#need to sacrifice poses to the pose gods

[venomgaia]

long time no figure study

[targaryen-dynasty]

WORSHIP ME INSTEAD.

Maegor Targaryen x Niece!Septa!Reader

The Gods have been unhappy with your uncle for some time now, but perhaps he's just needed to give them an offering… a sacrifice in return for a healthy heir all along. And what makes a better sacrifice than a septa?

WARNINGS: SEXUAL CONTENT - MDNI; very dubious consent, canon typical incest/targcest (uncle/niece), blasphemy, corruption, corruption kink, size difference, semi public sex, female reader (mentions long, silver hair as appearance)

WORDS: 3K

NOTES: you're all getting some big tiddy daddy as a special treat and to officially end my 3k celebration! thanks to everyone that has participated by asking questions, by writing their own fics, and by just supporting me. also a special thanks to @zaldritzosrose and @arcielee for betaing this. <3

The atmosphere in the newly completed Red Keep is strange. It never was comfortable or calm, not even when your father sat the throne, but it feels as though a dark veil is hanging low over the castle and its staff, not even sparing the king and your uncle, Maegor Targaryen. 

You’ve been gone from court for quite a while, being sent to Oldtown to become a septa by the very hands of the man you’re serving now, which has made the change in atmosphere even more apparent to you. 

Several deaths haunt the castle — Ceryse Hightower’s being the most recent one — and you can only fathom the pressure your uncle holds on his shoulders at this very moment. He does not have an heir, one wife after the other perishes, and the boy that poses the biggest threat to his claim to the throne, your brother Jaehaerys, has fled the castle of Dragonstone with your mother after the passing of the Dowager Queen Visenya. 

You were not mad at being sent to the Starry Sept, for it allowed you to leave the insanity of your own House for an unknown amount of time. It was when you’d been called back to King’s Landing that you could feel your mood sour. You were brought there with no real task for you at hand which forced you to take over some duties Grand Maester Benifer assigned you with. 

Your whole day has been spent in the Keep’s library, making you forgo your hood at one point and therefore allowing your silver tresses to cascade down your back freely. Wearing the hood is no necessity, hence your lack of concern should someone walk into the library and catch you without it. 

With several books in hand, you sort some of the scrolls and books that had been brought to the royal chambers before, putting them back to where they belong. 

You are too engrossed in your task to notice that you’ve been alone for the longest of time, only aware of that other presence the moment the raspy voice fills the room. “Septa,” he almost says it in a mocking manner, and you immediately know who it is that has joined you. 

Turning on your heels, you crane your neck to meet your uncle’s eyes for a moment. “Y-Your Grace.” You dip into a slight curtsy, placing the books in an empty place on the shelf.

Heat warms your cheeks in his presence. Even during your childhood, you have always found a liking for your uncle and enjoyed the way he allowed you to leave the boredom of your princessly duties to take you flying on Balerion or let you watch him train with the sword. 

“At ease, Septa,” he replies, flicking his hand as if he means to dismiss your stiff posture. The library is not well lit, a few candles sparsely placed here and there granting for most of the light, and yet you still notice the way his eyes rove over your form slowly and deliberately. “I trust that all is well in the Keep?”

Your heart races in your chest underneath his gaze, as if he contemplates eating you, and it makes you swallow thickly. “Oh, yes, of course. Everything is well, Your Grace,” you say, trying to keep your voice as calm and polite as possible, though you can not help but feel your pulse quickening at the hunger in his eyes. 

His lips curve into a smile, clearly taking pleasure in the way you’re squirming beneath his gaze. “And your duties? All going smoothly?” He takes a step towards you, looming over your small frame. 

You have to bite the inside of your cheeks to keep your composure, more so as his pleasant scent fills your nostrils in a way you can’t describe. Taking in a shaky breath, a shiver runs down your spine. It’s been easier being close to him when you were all but a child he’s bounced on his knee, not a woman grown.  

“Well enough,” you reply a beat later. “The new midwives are coming along wonderfully. The Queen can know herself in good hands should she be with child soon.”

Maegor just hums in response, reaching out a hand to drag his knuckles over your cheek, his calloused fingers rough against your soft skin. Even from this little contact he can feel how warm your flesh is, and a heat grows in his loins at the thought of how warm and sensitive your skin would be if it was no longer covered by your septa robes. 

“That is good then… Septa ,” he says, hesitating to use your title. His voice has dropped lower as his hand travels to your jaw, his thumb caressing your chin. 

Your eyes widen, but you don’t dare to step away from him for fear of the consequences. “... Your Grace?” You eventually find the courage to whisper. 

His fingers graze your jaw, gently tracing your features. A low hum rumbles in the depth of his chest. You don’t know that he’s always found you beautiful, much more than your younger sister Rhaena, and even more now that you’ve become a woman grown. You’re so unlike the women he usually entertains himself with. “Yes, Septa?” With these words leaving his lips, his hand travels down to your neck, gently wrapping around your throat, grasp firmly but not enough to hurt you. 

Drawing in a deep breath, that is the moment you decide to bring some space between you again, taking a step back. But much to your surprise, his grip does not falter, hand still around your throat with his arm just outstretched. “I–” you swallow thickly, not able to keep your gazes locked. “This… This is highly inappropriate, Your Grace.”

Maegor merely scoffs, and although his hand follows your movements, it’s clear it’s meant to stop you from getting away from him. His thumb gently runs along the sensitive skin of your throat, feeling your pulse quicken beneath the pad of it. “Inappropriate?” he murmurs, his dark blown eyes drinking in the sight of your slightly parted lips. “When have I ever cared for what was appropriate, Septa?”

It feels as though the gentle brush of his thumb coaxes another shiver to run down your spine, and you catch your mind straying to the thoughts of what it would feel like if his fingers were anywhere else but your neck. 

“Must… Must I remind His Grace that it was him sending me to Oldtown to become a septa? I–I have vowed–” you trail off, your voice shaking slightly. “It is not very proper for a septa to be touched in… this way.”

Moving forward again and closing the gap that has formed, his hand around your throat stops you from backing away. “It’s not proper, no…” he murmurs, leaning forwards to bring his lips on level with your ear. “But then again, I’ve never been a proper man.”

You suppress an involuntary gasp as you feel his hot breath fanning over your skin, enough to nearly melt you here and now. Perhaps his grip leaves you more as a willing prisoner to his mercy rather than his prey. A part of you wants to pull away, yet the other part is afraid of angering him by doing so. 

“Y–Your Grace…” you whisper, the sound of your voice almost breathless as his domineering presence makes it difficult to think straight, “... please.”

The wicked smirk on his lips grows wider at your pleading. He can feel himself getting lost in your voice, so soft yet sounding so helpless in his presence. If it hasn’t been obvious before, he takes immense pleasure in the way he towers over your frame, making you appear so small and fragile clad in your septa robes. 

“Please what, niece ?” he says, leaning in even more to brush his lips against the shell of your ear. 

You try to tilt your head to get away from him, squirming in his grasp, but to no avail. “Īlon kessa daor,” you try to reason with him in the tongue of your ancestors, a small flicker of hope that this brings some sort of clarity back to him. We should not. 

But Maegor just chuckles lowly, the grip around your throat tightening slightly. Your breathing is uneven, shaky even, with your body pressed against his, and he relishes in the feeling of your vulnerability. “Kostilus īlon kessa daor,” he replies, a dangerous lilt in his tone. “Yn gaoman sīr jorrāelagon raqagon ra nyke kessa daor.” Perhaps we should not. But I do so love to indulge in things I shouldn’t.

Before you can answer, you’re spun around by him, the movement unusually fluid and graceful, as if he’s done it plenty of times before. Your back presses against his sturdy chest, pinning you between him and the bookshelf with no way to escape. The hand from your throat rests on your waist instead, the fabric of your robe pinched between his fingers.

“That’s much better, is it not?” he teases in a murmur. 

The vow of chastity you’ve sworn plays over and over again in your mind, but does little to stop your knees from growing weak at the proximity. 

“This is not a good idea… uncle ,” you protest quietly. It’s completely out of place for you to address him as such, he is the king and you’re a mere septa that has set aside her last name, but neither the Mother Above nor the Maiden can stop him from getting under your skin. 

“Perhaps, but where is the fun in a good idea, huh?”

You’re a septa, and you’re supposed to be a pious and celibate woman, but at this moment all you can think of is how good it feels to have him this close to you, so very close to giving you more – something you’ve craved for a long time. 

Both your hands are captured by his paw, pinning them behind your back and making you unable to move. While his lips explore the side of your neck, leaving a trail of open mouthed kisses, his other hand rucks up the skirt of your robe, bunching it around your waist. It’s pinched by the fingers of his other hand, held high and allowing him to pay more attention to your undergarments. 

If you weren’t so distracted by the coarse hairs of his beard scratching the sensitive skin of your neck with each kiss he pressed to it, you would have attempted to squeeze your thighs together, making it more difficult for him to tug down your smallclothes. But alas, your mind and body are too far gone from all the summers you have spent untouched and unsatisfied, addicted to the rush his touch sends through your body. 

He is hard and heavy behind you, the outline of his thick cock pressing against the curve of your arse. You're too desperate for something you have only imagined at night, making you arch your back as though you mean to make him hurry up. You can feel him fumble with the laces of his breeches, undoing them one by one. 

“We’ll just have to be good at not getting caught,” he rasps against your neck. The robe you wear offers almost no liberty to push it down to reveal more of your soft skin and the curve where your neck meets your shoulder to him, and so he has to make do with your neck alone. 

Your uncle is met with little resistance as he sheaths his hard cock inside of your warm cunt, filling you up at once. Not even the sharp pain of his teeth sinking into the skin at the curve of your neck grants you enough distraction from the stinging that comes with accommodating his size, your cunt struggling to take him completely. 

“By the Seven,” you whimper, your hands clenching to fists in his grasp while your walls flutter around him.  

Your soft whimpers are enough to drive him further into his need for you already, and the gentle rolls of his hips make your knees slacken, caught by him bringing his free hand to your chin to pull your body against his. “There is no need for the Gods here, my sweet Septa,” Maegor rasps into your ear, emphasizing his words with a particularly harsh thrust of his hips that makes you choke on a whine. “You may worship me instead.”

His grip on your chin forces you to tilt your head back and arch your back against him to hold up with the slowly increasing pace of his thrusts, and your teeth digging into your bottom lip is a fruitless attempt of yours to stifle a moan coaxed past them by that. 

The sound of your moans and whimpers sparks something in him, prompting him to growl against your skin. It tightens the grip he has on your chin to the point it becomes borderline painful with how much he has tilted it back. 

“Don’t hold back,” he grunts, resting his forehead against the crown of your head. “Let me hear you, sweetling.”

Although your mouth is agape, no more sounds than breathy whimpers and whines leave your lips, despite the reckless pounding of him. But when another moan manages to escape your chest, it strains your throat to the point you have to cough once. 

Sensing your discomfort, he eases the grip just slightly, shifting it to your throat and allowing your head to tip forward again. You’re desperate to fill your lungs with air, yet each breath is knocked out of them by the merciless snaps of his hips. 

“That’s it,” he groans, nudging your legs further apart with his foot. “The Gods have been unhappy with me for some time now, but perhaps I’ve just needed to give them an offering… a sacrifice.” He’s just rambling into your hair at this point, and your mind is too hazy to really process anything he says.

You’ve been so inexperienced and have spent so much time completely untouched that even the slapping of his heavy sac of stones against your pearl brings you a pleasure beyond imagination. 

He towers over you, your small frame completely hidden by his significantly taller one. It’s such an easy game for him to keep you where he wants, to use you however he pleases, and at this point you’d let him do whatever he desires with you for as long as you get to relive the sensations you feel over and over again. 

Your peak washes over you in an ambush, the pleasure all but soaring through your veins. But his assault on your cunt doesn’t stop, and when the urge overcomes you to squeeze your thighs together, it doesn’t seize. 

“Perhaps the Gods haven’t been giving me a healthy heir because they need me to fill you up,” he growls as if he’s been waiting for this since the moment he’d sent you to Oldtown, his voice raspy and thick with need. “Perhaps the Seven will bless me with a son if my seed quickens within you.”

His words nearly send you to your knees if it wasn’t for his muscular arm wrapped around your frame. A renewed wave of your arousal oozes out of your cunt at the thoughts of you carrying his child, yet it also makes you shudder, a feeling of guilt lingering in the pit of your belly. “By… By the Gods… T-The Seven would not–” you protest weakly, your voice a little more than a gasp. But even to your own ears your protest sounds more like a pleading than denial. 

Pulling you even closer against him, Maegor nuzzles his face into the crook of your neck, teeth grazing the exposed flesh of your shoulder gently. “My little Septa,” he murmurs, the nickname almost sounding like an insult and a taunt. “You say we can not, yet you press yourself against me… are you so desperate for my cock?”

That is the moment you lose any resemblance of restraint you’ve held before, your mind becoming blank, his merciless pounding, and words forcing every thought right out of your brain. You whine a string of incoherent words, rambling one ‘yes’ after the other. 

It’s as if he’s just as desperate, because you can feel his thrusts becoming more and more erratic, a sign that lets you know he is about to topple over the edge. With a few more thrusts, he forces his thick cock into you, until a strained groan heralds his peak. His twitching cock spills his seed deep inside of your quivering cunt, and you squeeze him ever so tightly in response, all but milking him for every drop. 

He squeezes your flesh and trails both his hands over your body, mapping out the curves hiding beneath the robe. His thrusts grow leisurely, the feeling of pure bliss subsiding rather quickly for him. 

Shame and guilt for what just has happened overcomes you, growing stronger the moment he pulls out and you feel the remnants of his spend idly trickle down your thighs.

You don’t dare pull around. You don’t want to meet his gaze, to see the smugness and satisfaction written over his features at having convinced you to give in to him. 

“I suppose I have kept you away from your duties for long enough,” he says, his voice dripping with irony. “You’re a septa, and I believe you have some more duties to tend to.”

Nodding weakly in agreement, you can’t shake off the feelings of being exposed and vulnerable under his piercing gaze. It takes a moment for your brain to function again, the fog of need and pleasure only slowly clearing from your mind. 

“You’re right, Your Grace,” you say, voice weak and shaky. “I should… I should get going…” Dipping your head in a nod, you’re quick to scurry off, hastily looking around on your way out of the library in hope of no one having seen you in your moment of indiscretion.

Maegor Taglist: @hypocritic-trash-baby @k4marina @foxyanon @peachysunrize @nats-whore

@palmer-hjp @sinarainbows @luvdella

General Taglist: @arcielee @userhotd @multyfangirl @zaldritzosrose @black-dread

@wintrr13 @winter-soldier-101 @thought--bubble @dixie-elocin @beautbuck

[midnight1nk]

So, this week's episode...

[Spoilers below cut]

I'm absolutely terrified, it's not even funny. I can't even click it. But I have to... for the LOREEEEEEEEE... okay, let's-a go....

(The following is my live reaction:)

ay the TADC plug, of course

"Born to shit, Forced to wipe" - not smg3

wise words Three

also, the Ferris Wheel and rollercoaster thing is still there in the background (Ferris Wheel wedding, my beloved...)

I knew someone was going to bring up Meggy and her disappearance

LEGGY! MEGGY, WE'LL RESCUE YOU I PROMISE!!!

THANK YOU THREE for asking the right questions here

oh... not what I expected. at least the crew knows this is obviously Mr Puzzles

NAME DROP

OK, a LOT to digest here:

These are all the possible minigames that we might see in WOTFI. Well, at least all the attractions we could see...

a Mr Puzzles Chonk plush (in the bottom right)

a Tunnel of Love attraction... hmmmm.......

Huh, I didn't know this was by the coast of the Mushroom Kingdom. Or it could be an island/peninsula.

The what now, Leggy?

YEP I knew that once they found out, they would want to leave

...and of course, Mario wants to stay

Yeah, Luigi said it himself

but also, look at the Mr Puzzles cardboard cutout in the back, he's wearing Meggy's cowboy hat from Western Spaghetti

Alright, but before we go in, we gotta have a buddy system, guys

All these critiques are going to make Mr Puzzles lose himself even more than he already is

I think I saw someone posted about submitting a water gun game so congrats for getting in!

Leggy Plush!!

also spider-man plush... symbiote... venom... GOOP!4????

...Once Upon A Perfect SMG4?

[*points at Four and Mario*] The sillies

ok, but like, why is Three smiling like that while everyone else looks so disappointed?

They did the buddy system!

Bob: "Those dumbasses will see ANYTHING and get excited."

I feel seen and I don't like it.

I don't like this either. I already know this is a trap but like noooooo

Three just standing there like a dad watching over his kid

Someone else also submitted a mini-game involving a ducky fishing game

GOD DAYUM.... why did you have to pose like that, Three? You're not beating the allegations, huh.

Aw, Three really wanted to enjoy a carnival if Mr Puzzles wasn't involved (writers, write that down + carnival dates)

OK NOPE WE NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE NOW

🫵 🏳️‍🌈⁉️

oh c'mon now, it's just plainly obvious. Not that it should be surprising, everyone's part of the skittle squad (tm)

STRONG WOMEN we love to see it

...that can't be a real thing... can it?

same Luigi same

YES PLEASE CAN WE?

sorry dude, they really locked in

also what the hell is that building in the back?

Luigi (or rather the SMG4 fandom): "See? I can handle this! I'm not afraid anymore! Do you hear me? I'm not afraid-" [*horror jumpscare*] [*scream*]

NOT EVEN MELONY'S GOD POWERS COULD HELP US, WE'RE FUCKED

NOOOOOO NOT KAREN AND SAIKO

THREE WE NEED TO LEAVE NOW

NOOOOOOOO THREEEEE I THOUGHT HE WAS GOING TO BE THE LAST ONE TO MAKE IT OUT

[*sobbing*] he sent one last text to warn them :( he really does care

AND HE SENT IT TO FOUR [*head in hands*]

the contact names they have for each other.... (I'm not well)

WE GOTTA GO [*runs*] GET OUT GET OUT

Leggy... why did your face change like that?

WHAT WAS THAT CRYPTIC CAPTION?!

Mario, please don't sacrifice yourself... oh, thank god! They really are having me panicking for the smallest things

wait... OMG THEY SAW MY SUBMISSION! THEY SAW IT!

the mini-game challenge that I submitted:

Pop & Whirl: Everyone gets a bag of popcorn. The winner must keep all of their popped kernels in their bag, without dropping a single one... while being chased around the carnival by a collapsed Ferris Wheel (Professor Layton style)!

I DON'T CARE IF IT DOESN'T HAPPEN AGAIN IN WOTFI, I'LL TAKE IT. But if it does happen, I'll draw lawyer Meggy with a redesigned Ace Attorney-esque outfit (somehow)

please don't tell me the green pipe is also a trap...

...the exit door from TADC?

oh god, why does this remind me of the dark web?

and the eyes on the mushrooms... [*IGBP flashbacks*]

heh heh, funny mirrors... AH SHIT PUZZLES, DON'T JUMPSCARE ME LIKE THAT

actually, now that I think of it, Mr Puzzles hasn't revealed himself this whole time...

THE DIDNEY ENGINE ROOM?!

...holy shit

so was I right about us getting to see Mr Puzzles' "truest form" and the whole "Eye of Ra" thing?

are those his arms? and the circle things, it could be part of his cyborg texture but they also look like eyes.

the fog part is really interesting because they could've gone with any "spooky" color but they chose this. It's the creative vision, the one Didney had in this room.

This really reminds me of the goo from IGBP and Wren's wire simulation in Western Spaghetti, but also from this angle, a bit of Zero's "no legs" body design.

"His obsession becoming his identity" - Puzzles connected himself to the single star Didney had. You got it right, past Ink.

HUH?! YOU CAN'T END IT THERE

AND THEY GRAY-ED OUT OUTRO, NO MUSIC! IT'S ABOUT TO GO DOWN, GUYS

also congrats to Nikej1708241 for making it to the credits 🎉

.・-: ✧ :--: ✧ :-・.

That was a pretty solid episode ngl. Probably not as "plot twist-y"

(i know that's not a word) as the previous episode but my spaghetti gods, it delivered! Not Marty again, we may have to rethink this one.

Ok, I've made a list of all the attractions and mini-games there are in the carnival grounds in Puzzle Park:

Ferris Wheel

"Tender Tunnel" (Tunnel of Love attraction)

Merry-Go-Round carousel

Basketball arcade game

Hammer game

Bumper Cars

"House of Crazy" funhouse (also that fits Mr Puzzles somehow)

A spooky cart ride

Water gun game

Rocket ride

Arcade (just flat-out an arcade)

Clown Ball Game

(There's apparently a cafe???)

Ducky Pond fishing game

Pizza shop (....marty?)

It's probably not all of them, we would just have to wait and see, but if you submitted a mini-game that involves any of these, congrats, you likely got in!!!

I still very much enjoyed this episode and some of what I theorized could possibly come true. And some didn't, which is totally okay with me. I'll cherish the Ferris Wheel chase scene regardless :)

We still have to wait for a trailer or a special video in regards to WOTFI, which I will have to analyze and see what's to be expected. From the looks of it in this episode, it seems like it's up to SMG4 and Mario to rescue their friends one by one by completing the mini-games. The more people they rescue, the more help they can get to complete the games. And that includes saving Meggy at the end.

Now, personally, I don't want Mr Puzzles to die. Not yet. There is still a lot of potential that could go for him. A similar redemption arc just as Three went through. Puzzlevision 2. Goop!4. Marty. Anything could happen. Then again, he could die.

Now you might think he might not die because he has a plushie, but there's literally merch of Axol and Desti and they're dead. Puzzles isn't safe from this possibility.

Put in your final bets, my dear fellows, because nothing will ever be the same again...

[yandereunsolved]

Yandere self-aware Visenya Targaryen—yandere material if there ever was

Yandere Visenya has always denied her use of sorcery. It simply started as a passing interest in the supernatural when she was but a few moons from her ninth name day. The interest grew, like a dragonet, into something fiercesome and all-encompassing. She would spend the moon's hour researching and worshipping the gods of old. In return, she gained 'naejot ūndegon aōla' (to see yourself).

She met the love of her life that night. Both of your sets of eyes connected, and she felt an intangible spark. When she reached out to you, she could not touch. The connection faltered, and she was left alone without you for the first time.

Yandere Visenya had madness simmering under the surface because of you. People were gossiping at the thought that it was simply another woman falling into their 'womanly madness'. None in her family could get a word out of her about why she was so on edge.

She'd snap at a servant making the littlest mistake. She'd ignore her future husband and her sister. She'd spend days upon end stuck in odd rooms doing what was whispered as forbidden magic. She would ignore the claims and always present a strong face, but those closest to her knew that she had fallen for something, whether it was in love or a scheme.

Yandere Visenya had to marry her brother, for it was her duty. She loved no other than you. She only ever thought of you. They just thought of her as 'lumie' (sick). She did not want to be touched or seen by others. She seemed to grow paler and had aches and pains all over her body. What else could it be?

Yandere Visenya chose to ignore her health in order to continue working on the ability to contact you. Bit by bit, she'd grow stronger and could concentrate for longer. Soon she was able to see your visage clearly. She could make small contact with you—a hand on your thigh or a pat on your head.

You became her place to escape to.

She'd ramble to you about everything and anything. She'd get excited. Her voice would grow more expressive. Her hands contort into various poses as she does so. Giggles end up escaping her as well.

Those moments are the happiest she's ever had.

Her favorite topics are about dragons, magic, and weaponry. The topics are specifically her dragon, Vhagar, and her weapon, Dark Sister.

Yandere Visenya is aware that she is scaring you. She does her best to ease you into her naejot ūndegon aōla. She makes herself appear as harmless as she is able. She manipulates the text to hide her darker intentions and darkest moments.

She just wants your love. She gets enough confusion and fear from everybody else.

Yandere Visenya learns of a ritual to temporarily erase the barriers between worlds. She has to sacrifice those closest to her. It's easy. She lures her husband and his second wife to her chambers at night. She stabs them through the heart and sacrifices them to the gods that will help her.

Everything around her melts away as she is finally able to have you.

Yandere Visenya doesn't waste a moment. She takes your sleeping body into her realm before the ancient spell wears off. Only a handful of your belongings are taken with you. She knows what is most valuable to you, so she grabs those things.

While waiting for you to wake up, she snuggles into you. She grows drowsy and slowly fades into a state of slumber.

The sleep is perfect.

She needs nothing more than you by her side.

[aezuria]

*ੈ✎ be my, be my baby!

—be my baby; the ronettes

content: leo valdez x daughter of aphrodite! reader

╰┈▸ back cover: part I | part II | part III

╰┈▸ warnings: cursing

librarian's annotations: guys i realize this would technically be a twoshot.. ANYWAY yall already KNEW i had to make a part 2 also i had to search up 'villain hand pose' to get the word STEEPLE -the more you know ig

loveloveyn shared a note "mom if ur reading this set me up with yk who I BEG"

you sighed and put down your phone. this was honestly getting embarrassing. you hadn't even had a single conversation with the love of your life! maybe you'll sacrifice an extra nice portion of your breakfast to aphrodite. yeah, that's what you'll do.

you hated to say goodbye to the best part of your maple-syrup drenched pancakes, but it was for the greater good. please give me a real sign mom!! you prayed silently as you scraped the rest of your plate into the fire.

love wastes no time apparently, because as soon as you turned around to walk back to your table, leo stops short in front of you with his plate, the both of you almost bumping into each other. oh my gods. you've never been this close to him before! "uh, sorry." you muttered and walked around him before he could see how embarrassed you were.

'uh, sorry!?' what the hell is wrong with me!? you went back to your table, mortified at your awkwardness. where was your charisma when you needed it!? you put your head in your hands. piper noticed and poked you. "what's up with you? love problems again?"

you stayed stagnant, staring into space. "i think i'm the problem."

alldaladiesluvleo sent a message to: water, fire, air, and frank "BIG RED BUTTON"

jason ran into bunker 9, percy and frank mere steps behind him. "what's going on? what's the emergency?" he leaned against the door, panting. percy was doubled over on his knees, frank not looking much better.

leo swiveled around in his chair and put his elbows on the desk in front of him. his hands a steeple in front of his mouth, making him look like a villain talking to his henchmen. this was probably the most serious he's looked in his life.

"as you all know, everyday i have dedicated my offerings to the goddess of love, hoping to receive a sign to pursue fajita." he paused for the ultimate dramatic effect. "and i have gotten an answer."

the three boys broke out into a flurry of overlapped reactions.

"are you still calling her 'fajita?'" jason raised his eyebrow, focusing too much on the small details. it was a very unconventional codename.

"i love fajitas, and i love her!" leo broke his stoic attitude for a second. "it makes perfect sense!"

frank's tired expression morphed into a very, very, unamused look. "you used the emergency codeword for this?"

"hey! the big red button was absolutely necessary!"

"oh. my. gods," percy gasped, immediately standing up straight. "no way."

leo nodded solemnly, back on his stoicism. "yes way."

jason looked at him skeptically. "are you sure it was a sign sign? or are you just being delusional again?"

the curly-haired boy shot him a look, though not very intimidating. "i am completely sure! i specifically said, 'please make her bump into me as a sign' and guess what happened at breakfast!?" his serious front gave way into an ecstatic smile. "she did! that's the most definite sign i've gotten!"

frank and jason had a silent conversation with each other. wait, that is the most definite sign he's gotten. frank's eyes seemed to say. did her mom finally listen to his begging? jason's eyes responded. percy was too busy jumping for joy and congratulating leo to notice.

the boy in question was jumping along with him, before clearing his throat. "guys. i'm gonna follow her." he pulled out his phone to prove it.

shocked gasps ensue. they all crowd around him, looking over his shoulder as he went to your profile. the bright blue 'follow' button stared back at him, taunting him. he took a deep breath of courage and pressed it. the button smiled and turned into a more forgiving grey of 'requested.'

"i did it." leo looked at his friends in disbelief. "i did it!"

"he did it," jason and percy breathed out.

"you know you still have to wait for her to accept, right?"

"oh, fuck you, frank! you ruined the moment!"

loveloveyn sent a message to: so coquette 🎀🏹🔪 "CODE RED I REPEAT CODE RED"

mere moments after you sent that text, piper came running with hazel and annabeth in tow. they caught sight of you laying in the grass and rushed over. annabeth knelt before you, shaking your shoulder. "y/n!? oh my gods are you dead!?"

you opened your eyes and blinked up at her. "oh hey guys, you're here!"

the blonde was very much not amused. her cheeks were tinted a dusty shade of rose as you were in fact, not dead and she had made a fool out of herself. (it really wasn't that embarrassing, you're okay girl!) "so what's the emergency? i thought we agreed to use that in important situations."

you sat up straight, almost knocking her head in the process. "this is super important. like, the events of my life have aligned perfectly and created this moment. wrench.." you paused, also for dramatic effect. "followed me."

the three of them stared at you, disbelieving.

so, you turned on your phone and went to your instagram notifications. there, at the top, it said:

alldaladiesluvleo requested to follow you. 1m

"oh my gods," they said in unison as they stared at your phone in shock.

"hurry! accept it!" hazel insisted, and shook your arm.

"wait, don't do it right now! give it like, a couple hours," piper shook your other arm.

annabeth stayed silent, probably pondering the pros and cons of both choices. you were quiet too; for an entirely different reason, that being a well-thought out love life of you and leo, reaching all the way into marriage. what type of house should we get? how many kids will we have?

"in fifteen minutes." annabeth finally spoke up, startling you from your nice home life built inside your head. "accept it in fifteen minutes. that way, he won't think you don't like him by waiting hours, but he won't know how desperate you are if you accept right now."

"was that jab really necessary!?" you huffed, but you knew she was right. "alright, fifteen minutes it is." you went to your clock app and set a timer.

"did you seriously just set a timer?" piper asked incredulously.

"how else am i supposed to know when exactly to follow my man!?"

librarian's annotations: THERES GONNA BE A PART 3 I JUST WANTED TO SEPARATE THEM

[kradogsrats]

One Truth: The Nature of the True Heart

The Dragon Prince has long dealt with contrasts and tensions between idealism and pragmatism, particularly as a source for character conflict. From Harrow, Sarai, and Viren clashing over the Magma Titan to Callum, Ezran, and Rayla deciding whether to pursue killing Aaravos or securing his prison, principles weighed against practicality is a never-ending battle for the characters of this world and story.

Since the story never purports to give us the answers to the moral questions it poses, we as the audience are left to form our own opinions and judgements. One of those that is fairly consistent across a lot of the fandom is that Ezran is naive in his pacifism and reliance on negotiation. My opinion on this has largely always been "yeah, he's naive... but he's literally twelve years old and that's developmentally appropriate, even without the trauma."

We knew Ezran and his growth would be challenged in s7, but what we also got was a codification of that process as a tangible in-setting phenomenon: the true heart.

The true heart is described to Terry, Claudia, and us (the audience) as a way of seeing the world that is innocent and good-natured, without the complexities introduced by adult concerns. All children begin life with this worldview, but it is inevitably challenged over the course of their growth by situations that it cannot necessarily react to without being inherently altered.

It is possible, though rare, to hold on to the true heart past childhood into at least the beginning of adulthood—it is revealed to us that Terry is one who has, against all odds, retained his true heart. This allows him to read the map to the Garden of Innocents, the final resting place of unicorns. However, it's Ezran whose arc through s7 is most related to the true heart, as he confronts new challenges in the world around him as well as changes to himself and those he loves.

But what is a true heart? What does it actually mean to have one?

Simple and Clean: Language Surrounding the True Heart

First of all, I think the way the true heart is intended winds up being difficult to articulate properly because even the most neutral language used to describe it is loaded with baggage. Innocence, purity (though "pure" is a word used only by Kruha, who demonstrably struggles with human language), light and darkness, simplicity, and even childhood are all concepts that carry cultural connotations that skew our perception of what's being discussed.

In the heavily Christian-influenced culture of the West and USAmerica, the concepts of childhood, innocence, and simplicity in combination carry associations that become protectiveness, condescension, or dismissal. While childhood and innocence are valued as things that should be protected in those who have them, that leads adults to dismiss children as essentially lesser beings. Innocence and simplicity together are indistinguishable from naivete, another feature associated with a need for protection, but with a nice slice of contempt on the side. If you weren't so naive, you would have known better than to get hurt.

Finally, from a perspective saturated with Christianity, innocence is also conceptually inextricable from the concept of sin. Like, one of the central myths of Christianity is that the first humans were enticed to defy God and eat the forbidden fruit that granted knowledge of good and evil, which made them aware that their naughty sex parts and female-presenting nipples must be covered, which meant they had to be expelled from paradise into a world of struggle, pain, and death. This transgression was so severe that it tainted every human ever born, until a few thousand years later when God personally came to earth as a self-cannibalizing sacrifice to essentially pay bail on letting their souls into heaven. (This is a very serious and 100% theologically accurate summary, don't @ me.) As a result, we get fucking weird about innocence and its "loss."

The point is that in the setting, it's strongly suggested that there is no inherent "better" or "worse" to whether you have a true heart or not. You aren't morally superior for having one (though the nature of the true heart aligns more with compassion and openness, it doesn't have a monopoly on them), nor are you necessarily wiser or more mature for not. There are roles and circumstances where one might serve better than another—the likelihood of Ezran being able to continue indefinitely as king with a true heart has always been low, but an argument could definitely be made that his true heart was necessary to change the world, and the setting would not be what it now is without it. The true heart—as well as people who retain it into adulthood, like Terry—is a vital part of society, in that it inspires people toward an ideal. Terry calling out Claudia on her cruelty toward Rayla shames her enough to go back and correct it. Ezran giving up the crown in exchange for the safety of any moral dissenters within the Katolis army gives those dissenters space to take a stand—something crucial to their eventual victory.

So here's how I propose thinking about it in a way that's slightly less loaded with unnecessary associations: instead of innocence, the true heart is about faith. Specifically, an unwavering faith that people are inherently good. From that faith, several important conclusions are derived:

People are inherently good, therefore all people want the same or similar things both for themselves and for the world: peace, plenty, and community

People are inherently good, therefore if someone is intentionally doing things that hurt others, they either don't understand the impact of their actions or are lashing out as a result of fear or pain

People are inherently good, therefore treating everyone with dignity, respect, and compassion is the natural state of any society

These form the basis of the worldview and resulting behavior of those with true hearts.

The Tides are True: Depth and Complexity

Despite all of that, Aaravos describes the true heart in a fairly neutral manner to Claudia:

All children have a true heart. But as we grow up, we are forced to make choices, sacrifices, compromises. And they change us forever. Childhood innocence gives way to something... complicated.

and later to Terry:

The true heart is a gift of childhood. For a few wonder-filled years, we each have innocent eyes to experience the world's beauty in a simple way. I have seen generations of humans and elves accept the darkness that lurks in all of us beside the light. There is no black or white, only shades of gray. We must all carry complexity. But please believe me that there is beauty in this burden. Your heart will be a little heavier. But now, there will be no more half-truths.

In both explanations, he refers to what replaces the true heart—what we grow into—as "complicated." We learn to accept that nothing, including ourselves, is purely one way or another, but at some gradient point in-between that will be different from everyone else's. The words he uses—"light" and "darkness," "black or white," "shades of gray"—all carry strong connotations of a scale of morality, and the understanding that nothing can be fully good or fully evil, but is instead inevitably... complicated.

However, I think this is meant to be a little deeper than just that surface-level association to tie in with the overall light/dark and complex morality themes of the show overall. These are things we've heard in another context: of all the primal sources Callum could have focused on or arcana he could have unlocked in arc 2, there's a reason what we got was Ocean.

A better way to refer to the "darkness that lurks in all of us beside the light" is as those depths you can't see—it's not about good and evil, it's about clarity and obscurity. Simplicity and complexity. People, even people you love, aren't all the same. They don't all want the same things for themselves and the world.

There are depths within you that you may not see or understand, but even more so, there are depths in others that you will never see or understand. Even if someone is only lashing out because they're hurting, there are hurts you cannot heal. There are people who will refuse to allow their hurts to heal. There are people (and by people I mean Aaravos) who would rather make the entire world hurt along with them than ever allow themselves to heal. You can't heal these people for them. It's beyond your control, and all you can do is respond appropriately to their actions and mitigate the harm they do.

When you accept that, you will treat those people differently. You may decide to keep trying, but with the knowledge that it will be an uphill battle of strategy, compromise, and progress so slow that few will recognize your work as worthwhile. You may decide not to waste your time and effort on them anymore, and focus your attention on doing a broader range of good more efficiently than struggling to change a single heart or mind. You might decide to make them the enemy, and purposefully antagonize them because you are hurting, too—maybe even because of them.

The point is that there is now "us/me" and "them," and that's what's antithetical to the true heart. You can't fix everything simply by reaching the part of them that's the same as you. You will have to compromise.

A Just King: Ezran's True Heart

Before examining Ezran's true heart arc in s4-s7, I want to point out a much earlier, and perhaps unexpected, appearance of a textbook child's true heart:

Yes, back in s1e2, Callum had a true heart. (By the standards with which I'm describing it, at least.) Where did it go? When did it go? Someone more interested in Callum could probably write a very long essay about that. You could probably make a case that being possessed by Aaravos the first time is the final vestiges sliding away.

This also highlights my personal theory that the true heart of childhood is not usually lost in a single, all-or-nothing event. It's like losing your baby teeth—under normal circumstances, it happens one or two at a time over the course of a few years, until you've Ship of Theseus-ed your whole mouth. (Also, in contrast to things like "losing" your virginity, there's no weird purity or moral connotations to it. It is a completely normal thing that happens to everyone as part of growing up.) However, it's also possible to have some, a majority, or even all of your baby teeth traumatically knocked out of your head at once.

Oh, wait.

Let's roll back a bit, first. Ezran's arc, like... well, everyone's, gets its initial setup in s4. In fact, it kicks off s4: the major event starting the season is Zubeia's visit to Katolis, which is clearly one of Ezran's first big initiatives toward not just peace, but potential unification.

In the lead-up to Zubeia's visit, Ezran's true heart is on full display in his behavior and the assumptions he's making:

Zubeia is a good person, and good people will understand and accept that both she and other dragons should be treated as friends.

Everyone will approach this meeting with open hearts, because everyone wants to grow toward peace and understanding.

Even when the meeting, where he is honoring the Dragon Queen in the final resting place of human kings and queens, no small number of whom (including his own mother) were killed by dragons, is sabotaged by a relatively mild act of vandalism, look at his response:

The person who did this is obviously lashing out because they are hurting—they are angry, and that anger needs to be soothed. He affirms that he and the people are the same, inside. They are all angry and in pain... but, like him, they all want to not be angry and in pain anymore, and understand that the way to do that is to move forward.

This is not to say that he's wrong, or even ineffective—he speaks from his true heart, in a poignant call to both himself and his people to acknowledge the past while looking to the future, and to reach for that future in every way they can instead of clinging to the hate of the past. It's a key scene for all of arc 2, and one that is returned to over and over again, thematically.

However, it's also a point where he demonstrates how his true heart leaves him ill-equipped to approach Rex Igneous's selfishness, or Sol Regem's hatred, or even Karim's petty arrogance... much less the shit Aaravos has going on.

(Speaking of Sol Regem... he not only refuses to be healed, but instead demands to be remade into an engine of indiscriminate death and destruction. He really does out-bitter Aaravos, on occasion.)

Then s7 hits, and two things happen: Katolis is destroyed, and Runaan is returned to the living world. Well, both of those technically happen in s6, but Ezran actually has to deal with them in s7.

For all that Katolis being destroyed sets Ezran on a path toward the complex politics and morality of nuclear deterrence, it's really the situation with Runaan that both tests and exemplifies Ezran's true heart. Aaravos's initial explanation of the true heart ("Childhood innocence gives way to something… complicated.") is directly overlaid on Ezran's dealing with the aftermath of Callum helping Rayla and Runaan escape the Banther Lodge. I don't think Ezran ever really expected to have to deal with Harrow's killer, since Runaan is presumed dead, so he's unprepared to be confronted with it—particularly given that he has convinced himself he's over it, when he really isn't. He's tested both in suddenly facing a person he can't see as good, deep down. Runaan wasn't lashing out because he was hurting or scared, nor can Ezran conceive of them wanting the same things. There's also the sense of betrayal at Callum and Rayla differing so deeply from his own reaction, when they were previously so in tune—literally banding together despite being born on opposite sides of a millennia-old war, because they recognized the goodness in each other and that they all wanted peace.

Ezran's reaction to Runaan is definitely affected by what happens to Katolis—he's denied not only any kind of justice for Sol Regem's attack, but any explanation. Runaan's fate is something he can ostensibly control, in a situation where he feels both responsible and powerless. Now, an entire separate post could be done about s7's recurring exploration of punitive versus restorative justice through Rayla's trial, Ezran and Runaan, Janai and Karim, Terry, and (as always) Aaravos, but to briefly recap part of my meta on Terry's true heart and growth: Terry, in being challenged during s7, comes to realize that even if he chooses to continue holding to his true heart's faith in the world and others, he is complicit in the harm Claudia and Aaravos have done, and he feels compelled to start doing the work to repair that harm as much as he can. While he hasn't necessarily done anything that would warrant punitive justice, he recognizes that truly doing good requires work and effort, and sometimes doing difficult things. There's not really anything Runaan can (knowingly) offer to make right what he did, beyond his confession that he has come to realize everything he believed at the time was wrong, and he did grievous harm to Ezran that night. However, in that confession, he says something crucial:

Ezran's true heart led him to rule in a way that changed the world for the better, moving toward an unprecedented era of peace—something that, to Runaan's eyes, required a great deal of strength to put aside completely legitimate pain and grievances that could have easily rekindled millennia of war. (See also: "It's a strong name" in that Terry meta.)

I think it's in part because of that reminder—the description of the kind of person and king he wants to be—that Ezran chooses compassion and working toward forgiveness with Runaan. He's not choosing the true heart as a core part of his identity the way Terry does, but his own past true heart inspires his current self to make a decision that's right, but also hard. As with Terry, he is discovering that goodness can take work—true, concerted effort to both determine and follow the right path.

Does Ezran retain his true heart throughout s7? I don't know. I don't think it's entirely as simple as a yes/no state, and he has definitely lost some of his earlier confidence and beliefs. Ultimately I'm not sure it matters. He took a solid punch to the mouth, but either way... it seems like he's going to come out of it okay.

Not Worthy: Claudia's Skewed Perception

And now, a final tangent.

All that stuff I said earlier about a true heart not making you better or worse, and its "loss" being morally neutral? Well, there's at least one person who doesn't see it that way.

In s7, Claudia's inability to read the map and Terry leaving her (as she knew he would, when he learned the truth about her and her behavior) both contribute to the insecurities she has carried for most of her life. Claudia derives most of her self-worth from being very good at dark magic, and therefore loses emotional stability when either she "fails" at something magic-related or dark magic itself is questioned.

This is an interesting connection, because the true heart and/or its loss isn't inherently linked to dark magic. A true heart doesn't shrivel and die at your first dark magic spell, but it's inevitable that the practice of dark magic will at some point become impossible to reconcile with the core beliefs of the true heart simply because they're inherently incompatible... you can't see sapient magical creatures as "people" the same as you and as resources for spell ingredients. So while it's not surprising that Claudia no longer has her childhood true heart, it's not necessarily because of her dark magic... and yet, some part of her perceives it as an indictment against her.

We also know exactly where she probably internalized that view:

Puzzle House is actually where we first encounter the concept of the true heart, as a yes/no state that allows you to access the map to the Garden of Innocents. Kruha, the map's guardian, doesn't ascribe any moral value to being able to see the map or not—noting that he, himself, is "too old" to see it, anymore. However, a single note from Kpp'Ar, combined with her own insecurities at a point of emotional turmoil in her life—her mother has left her, Kpp'Ar has (apparently) left her, she's acting out by attempting increasingly complex self-taught magic and keeps getting in trouble because of it—lead even a 7-year-old Claudia to question whether she might also be unable to see it due to being "not good."

We still don't know why Kpp'Ar was seeking the Garden of Innocents and what caused his "change of heart," but if it's at all comparable to Viren's experience, he was going through The Horrors(tm)—it's not surprising that he'd indulge in a little self-loathing in what's meant to be a private note. Claudia, meanwhile, has her faith in him as a mentor figure she wishes to emulate shaken—he imprisoned Kruha, keeping him collared like an animal, away from his home and family. She knows that's wrong, and struggles to reconcile the Kpp'Ar she knew with someone who would do that. If Kpp'Ar is somehow bad, and she didn't know, could she also be bad and not realize it?

This is particularly interesting to me because she doesn't have this crisis when Viren quits dark magic, even when he explicitly tells her he led her down the wrong path. She does question whether she should also quit dark magic, but it's from the perspective of "it seems like it might have done him a lot of good, emotionally... maybe I should also try it?" rather than "my dad thinks I'm evil, actually," or even "my dad explicitly said he hopes I'll take a different path, one day... am I betraying him if I don't?" She's remarkably chill about it, though to be fair, she's probably still in a state of emotional shock and dissociation. She gets progressively more sensitive about it again during s7, particularly as she receives validation from Aaravos.

Anyway, just a little window into which little wheels are spinning in Claudia's head when she insists she hasn't changed:

I'm sure that won't be significant as she starts her Dragon Girl Summer (and Autumn, and Winter, and Spring).

[angeliqueiguess]

''Focus!'' (Vacation Edition)

(must read after reading the fic)

W. Counter: 1k

Warnings: Alcohol consumption and mention, wedding mention, baby mention.

The morning sun bathed Cancun’s pristine beaches in a soft, golden glow. The soothing rhythm of waves crashing against the shore brought a sense of peace to everyone there. Well, almost everyone. Y/n, despite having dreamed about this getaway with her friends for weeks, was back at it with her camera.

Near the edge of the infinity pool at their rented villa, she focused her lens on Jaehyun, who effortlessly posed against the shimmering water. His slightly tanned skin caught the light perfectly, and his platinum blonde hair looked almost like it was glowing under the morning rays.

“Okay, babe, that’s enough,” Y/n finally said, lowering the camera with a playful shake of her head and a smirk. “You’re supposed to be relaxing, not auditioning for your next campaign.”

Jaehyun grinned, his dimples making an appearance as he ran a hand through his damp hair.

“You’re the one who said the lighting was perfect, baby. I’m just being cooperative.”

With a cheeky glint in his eye, he struck an exaggerated bicep-flexing pose, earning a burst of laughter from Y/n. Before she could respond, a dramatic sigh broke the moment.

“Oh my god, can you two not?”

Both of them turned to see Ten strolling onto the pool deck, wearing a brightly patterned shirt billowing in the breeze. His oversized sunglasses—ones Y/n relentlessly mocked—covered most of his face but couldn’t hide his signature deadpan expression.

“Some of us are single and trying to soak up the vibes. Nobody needs this over-the-top Instagram couple energy right now.”

Y/n laughed, slipping the camera strap off her neck.

“Didn’t you say last night that being single was a personal choice?”

“That was last night,” Ten replied, collapsing onto a lounger like he was auditioning for a soap opera. “This morning, I’ve decided love can find me—ideally while I’m holding a cocktail.”

Jaehyun chuckled as Y/n shook her head, amused.

The villa soon buzzed with energy as the rest of the group emerged one by one. Johnny appeared first, a beach umbrella slung over his shoulder like it was a fashion statement. His unbuttoned linen shirt revealed his already bronzed skin, and with his usual swagger, he slipped on aviators and surveyed the scene.

“Where is everyone? We’re wasting prime beach time.”

“On their way!” Haechan’s voice called out from inside. Moments later, he strutted out, wielding a GoPro on a selfie stick like it was an Olympic torch. “Today’s vlog is gonna be ICONIC.”

Behind him came Mark, juggling a volleyball and a bottle of sunscreen.

“Alright, broskis! Who’s ready to get obliterated by Team Markhyuck?” he shouted, trying to spin the volleyball on one finger. It lasted about two seconds before it hit him square in the face.

“Doesn't even sound like a team name,” Yuta muttered as he walked by, smirking.

Down at the beach, the sun burned hotter, but the volleyball match was even more intense. Johnny and Jaehyun ended up on opposite teams, their competitive streaks in full display.

“That’s your serve?” Johnny called out, shading his eyes dramatically as he tracked the ball.

“I’d call it better than anything you’ve got, grandpa,” Jaehyun shot back, smirking.

“Grandpa? We are slightly the same age” Johnny placed his hands on his hips in mock outrage, earning laughter from everyone else.

Meanwhile, Ten was actively dodging the ball whenever it came his way.

“Why am I even here? I’m a makeup artist, not an athlete!” he cried, just before tripping over his own feet trying to hit a serve, landing face-first in the sand.

“Content! Content!” Haechan yelled, capturing the scene on his GoPro while cackling.

Y/n dodged a stray ball that Ten had missed, laughing so hard she had to lean on her knees for support.

“Ten, you’re supposed to hit the ball, not sacrifice yourself for it!”

“Sorry, not all of us were born athletic,” Ten quipped, brushing sand off his face and shirt. “I bring beauty, not brute force.”

The game ended as chaotically as it had started when Mark accidentally popped the volleyball, eliciting groans from everyone except Ten, who looked relieved.

After the game, the group headed to a beachfront restaurant. The air was filled with the smell of sizzling tacos and grilled meat, and colorful plates and tropical drinks quickly filled the table.

“So,” Johnny started, leaning back in his chair with a tequila glass in hand. “When’s the wedding?”

Silence fell as everyone turned to Y/n and Jaehyun.

“Uh… we’ve been busy?” Jaehyun said casually, shrugging.

“Busy making a baby,” Ten teased, earning a swift kick under the table from Y/n.

“Can you not?!” she squealed, her cheeks turning pink as she buried her face in her hands.

“Wait… are you?” Haechan asked, his eyes wide with curiosity.

“We’re thinking about it,” Jaehyun admitted with a shy smile.

Johnny nearly choked on his drink.

“Thinking? You’re telling me I’m going to be Uncle Johnny soon?”

“Please don’t call yourself that,” Y/n groaned, though she couldn’t help but laugh.

The conversation shifted to lighthearted teasing and shared stories, the table echoing with laughter and clinking glasses.

That night, the group gathered around a firepit back at the villa. Soft music and the sound of waves crashing in the distance set a mellow vibe. Ten, manning an impromptu cocktail bar, handed out drinks while Haechan insisted on playing Never Have I Ever.

“Never have I ever… walked a runway at Paris Fashion Week,” Haechan said, pointing directly at Jaehyun, who rolled his eyes but took a sip.

''Not fair'' said Jaehyun drinking.

The game spiraled into hysterical confessions, snarky comebacks, and fits of laughter as the night deepened. At one point, Y/n looked around at her closest friends, her heart swelling with gratitude.

“Guys,” she began softly, “I know I don’t say this enough, but I’m so glad and happy we’re here together. This... this is what really matters.”

“Awwww, we love you too Y/n!” Mark shouted, wrapping her in an overenthusiastic hug.

“Alright, enough with the Hallmark moment,” Ten said, raising his glass. “Here’s to more vacations, less drama and maybe a baby... or two in the near future”

Laughter and cheers rang out as the group toasted under the stars, their night perfect in its simplicity. For now, the world outside didn’t matter—this was their time.

---

Focus Masterlist // Main Masterlist

Christmas Edition // next

Angie's note: FIRST POST OF THE YEAR! Hope y'all read this! I don't know if this is important but it is to me, this was the first full-fic I've ever written and finished. So this being my first post of the year means a lot to me, thanks for reading this part or reading my work in general. ILY ALL <3 and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Taglist: @apolloxxivmin @aerivrs @chan-yeoldelling @livingdoll-hara @cryingforjae @heavenjae @milanco @sibwol @neocupidd @minkyuncutie @miniature-tragedy @kukkurookkoo @kodasity @injunnie-lemon @thegracerammy @hahaechans @illitzen @pandagirl753 @flamingi

[thelastsirenssong]

I'm thinking of Bakugou's hands. Calloused palms and slender fingers, digging into your shoulder blades as you groan, the act unexpected as he asks you a question with two hands, and two words: "Long day?"

The chair you were sitting forward in is wooden, and his thumb pads are diligent as they are gentle seeking out the knots in your muscle.

The night has dragged on seemingly longer than the day, but you find ridicule in his question- as though you had any right to answer what was posed when one of the hardest working people you know is standing at your bowing spine.

"Not really. Just tired, I guess." You push against his hands, and you turn, to face his offended glare. "What?"

"I was working." You laugh, and his scowl deepens as he grabs you by the shoulders. "Turn back around, I ain't finished." You shake your head, facing the back of the wooden chair- examining the grooves, the lines of what once had been rings of age.

"How about I do yours? You sit?" And Katsuki, for how much he has learned, has not learned patience for the self sacrifice of others. His lip curls up, in a familiar disgust- something you don't see in your peripheral- before he bows his own spine to face you, red eyes mere inches from your own.

"Turn the fuck around." His expression is half as cruel as his words are, maybe even half of that still, but you are determined to not meet his gaze, eyes still on the chair.

"I don't wanna." When his hands cup your face you don't expect it. To be pulled from facing a wooden chair by the soft tips of his fingers is all you need to look him in the eye as he strokes your cheeks with his thumbs.

"'S too bad I ain't askin'. Come on. Turn around." And so you do, with a slow spin, settling back into the chair rigidly with your face aflame as you feel his fingers find their way back around your shoulders, and he squeezes, forcing you to cave into him again.

"Swear to god everyone around here's always gotta act so fuckin' tough." He pushes harder, his fingets finding another particularly vicious knot, and you groan, but he makes no sound behind you. No snort of gleeful scorn, no scoff of impatience.

"I'm not. I'm not acting tough."

"Then you're lyin'." You laugh softly, and if he smiles behind you, you can't see it.

"Fair point." He grunts, and you hiss at his hands as they move lower, pushing closer to the center of your back.

"I'll let it go if you promise you won't try that shit again."

"Promise?" Your voice is strained with disbelief at being held to an impossible standard, and Katsuki rolls his eyes behind you, something else he knows you can't see.

"Fuck, I can't even get that? Fine. Give it your best shot then, at least. Fuckin' useless." Silence, for all that it is worth, fills the air between you for a moment as his hands find the pain in your back, and pull it apart. You open your mouth, and he hears the relief in your voice as he works another knot away.

"I can promise that." "Good." He wonders if you can hear the relief in his.

[blueorchid-95]

So I’ve been thinking about book IV lately. I have a bit of a theory about how the dream situation works, especially in the context of the Summoner’s apparent power… and its implications.

When Kiran summons a Hero, they form a “contract” together. Lore-wise, this contract is primarily used to better coordinate combat and expand the summoner’s tactical options. However, it does NOT cause a shift in the Hero’s personality. That’s how we end up with Grima and Chrom staring each other down on either side of the home menu while Robin stands awkwardly just above them.

So, through these contracts, Kiran connects with their summoned Heroes. Which would mean, naturally, that the Hero is connected to Kiran as well.

Freyja’s position as a goddess of dreams provides her with the perfect position to take advantage of this. By sneaking into Kiran’s dreams, she can trick them into forming a contract with her, which enables her even greater influence over their mind. From there, she imprisons them in slumber so that she can use the necklace to take Freyr’s power from him, so that they may be together forever.

However, the Summoner unconsciously senses Freyja mucking around in their mind through the contract, and therefore fights back in the only way they can: calling for help. Through this, Kiran draws his three closest friends—Anna, Sharena, and Alfonse—into the dream realm with him. Freyja realizes the threat they could pose, even if they’re unaware of the dream—when she takes Freyr’s power, nightmares will run amok on Askr, and the four of them will no doubt start finding answers to questions she doesn’t want answered.

To remedy this potential issue, Freyja draws them into the Dream Realm and messes with their dreams: she causes the Summoner to dream that they’re Alfonse, and separates the REAL Alfonse from the group and subjects him to the control of nightmares. This ends up directly leading to her brother’s sacrifice.

Now that her brother is dead, Freyja needs the dream to stay together, so that she may recreate her brother in the way that she sees fit. She’s the goddess of nightmares—any version of Freyr she creates for herself beyond the dream will be her worst nightmare. But according to the law of the dream, she can bring her brother back just how she wants him without facing that consequence. All she has to do is prevent the Summoner from awakening. So, she lies: she tells them that Alfonse is dead and that they took on his identity out of grief.

Right now, her only goal is to manipulate the summoner into wanting to remain within the dream. So she presents herself as a reasonable figure, carrying only their best interests in mind.

And as the summoner resists her, she gets more and more aggressive and dangerous.

Freyja’s attempts to bend Kiran to her ultimately fail, and they do awaken—but it’s worth noting that she managed to get into their head in the first place. She used the summoner’s power against them, and the only reason she failed to keep them under control was because they became aware of it. Now that the summoner has supposedly lost their memories of the incident, they have no way of realizing the issue with their power, which leaves them open to being attacked through a false contract again. And to make matters worse, if Freyja rises, she can 100% drag the summoner back into dreams… and this time, she knows to prevent them from reaching out.

Now, which gods just might have the power to reach into Kiran’s mind…?

TLDR: the summoner’s contracts allow them to be manipulated against their will, which caused Book IV and could cause more problems in the future

[ineadhyn]

Playing Astarion good aligned and what that meant for his character - a completely unnecessary but fascinating analysis

So the idea was: entirely good aligned Astarion origin playthrough

However I can't just do that, it has to fit into his character somehow. It has to make sense to me, so I did analyze and justify and this is what I came up and how it is going:

Normally Astarion escapes Cazador gets tadpoled and is a menace, a violent bastard who lashes out, barely contains how hurt he is and tries to get people to like him the only way he knows: through sex.

What if Astarion is the main character? The leader? If he figures people would like him if he is good or at least pretends to be. He notices quickly that people approve of good deeds and oh, how good the praise and gratitude feels. So Astarion tries being good for a change. People are easy to believe he's genuine because they want him to be, especially good souls like Karlach.

He still hooks up with Lae'zel, but figures quickly that his body is far less powerful than his arrow in the right throat. It's not worth it getting on his back anymore. Also he has set his eyes on the wizard (Gale was very suppportive about Astarion's vampirism).

As Act one closes he is too deep into the being the good person to drop the act now. Halsin is with him and he would annihilate Astarion if he ever found out how much he actually loathes the tiefling party. No, he is in this now, he has to carry on.

Entering the Shadow Curse and meeting Jaheira he remembers his own hero: Drizzt do'Urden and, now expecting more great things from himself and having to live up to the expectations of others, he tries to become Drizzt. His most asked question to himself is: wwdd - what would Drizzt do? It becomes his compass for decision making.

Gale finds himself in love with Astarion and Astarion is very pleased about that, a bit of genuine softness feels nice and also, hello, there's delicious hunger for power hiding under these purple robes amongst other things.

Now we come to the core problem this version of Astarion has: His heroism is an act, a mask. He has picked it up so quickly he never had the chance to be terrible and start to heal. He is as full of fear as he was at the beginning of the game and desperate for protection. He's reaching for every straw that will give him an advantage not caring for himself in a healthy way. He's ready to make sacrifices. He bit Araj.

He encourages Gale to go for the crown. He even toyed with the tadpole's power. Not ready yet to give up his beauty and become half-illithid but maybe after the spawn attack he panics so much he'll consume it. (I wonder if Cazador reacts to that, seeing his spawn like that, his beauty ruined) What a powerful protection against being sexually abused again. Gale will still love him, no matter his appearance.

And most likely he will ascend and pretend it didn't affect him. He needs to keep the mask up, can't risk to fail against the Absolute and reveal the weak spawn he (thinks) he really is underneath it. He needs the praise to keep coming, he needs to protect himself and his lover and Gale needs to protect him. So ... god Gale is also very much possible.

I am now entering Act 3 and will keep this updated because it is an unusual but very fascinating path to me. Astarion, glowing on the outside, the hero of Baldur's Gate, the good vampire, the one people trust - but on the inside he's more rotten than ever, more afraid than ever. The only real thing about him is his relationship with Gale, he genuinely loves him, which sadly makes it worse for both of them.

Note that I do feel bad for him, but am too intrigued to stop.

Here he is, drizzting his way through my game. Nailing the hero pose, just as he nailed the smile when he lured a target:

[ardentpoop]

Would you mind expanding on Sam/Amara and Dean/Chuck parallels?

hi :) please see the screencaps I just reblogged as a starting point.

quick summary:

amara is made out to be a villain by chuck, who had used the threat she supposedly posed to humanity as justification for locking her away, when what the real issue turns out to be is that he couldn’t handle not being the one guy in control. obvious parallels with samndean’s relationship in s4. the time that amara spent locked up is comparable to sam’s time not just in the panic room but in the cage as well.

because dean is this story’s central patriarch there are always easy comparisons to make between him and every other patriarch, but especially one with the level of sway over the narrative that chuck is revealed to have, given how seriously dean’s perspective biases the audience’s reaction to everything that transpires. even if you can’t stand chuck as a character/plot development (understandable tbh) you should be able to get some enjoyment out of these comparisons if you really understand dean’s role in the story. dean’s outraged reaction at discovering chuck’s orchestration of samndean’s lives and his desperation to sacrifice jack (and everyone else…. except sam) to ensure that he doesn’t have to live under chuck’s thumb is VERY telling btw. “I can’t live like that, man! I won’t!” because dean hasn’t had to since john died and dean became him. sam, on the other hand, is used to having no control over his own life. it is an essential condition of samndean’s relationship.

plus there’s this, which you can read however you like:

now I’m gonna drop in some dialogue excerpts from one of my top favorite late-seasons episodes, 15.17 “unity.” it is genuinely so delicious and so underrated.

I hope you’re picking up what I’m putting down. there is so much insight into the imbalanced nature of samndean’s relationship, about the way it functions at sam’s expense, and about dean’s influence over the story that you can extract from these scenes.

notably, chuck and amara’s Beautiful Grand Love Story ends with chuck literally consuming amara to keep them “together” and give “them” the best chance at wresting control back from samndean. this ending only came about because dean lied to amara to get her to work against chuck - of course not telling her that he intended to kill her alongside chuck. I don’t remember exactly why but I think dean believed it to be a necessary sacrifice. anyway, potential s4 parallels yet again!

also I used the term “literary chiaroscuro” once to refer to dean and sam’s respective Light and Dark roles and the way these roles are intentionally subverted/messed with - the brothers are compared to michael and lucifer, to cain and abel but also to cain and colette, to their own parents john and mary, to god (chuck) and “the darkness” (amara). I can’t get into the validity of all of these individual comparisons or I’ll be here all day, but they are worth exploring beyond their surface-level similarities.

final note: the difference between chuck and amara’s ending and samndean’s ending in “unity” (which is not-so-secretly my preferred series finale) is that dean backs out of his rampage, his intention to sacrifice Everyone to ensure he got to kill chuck as revenge for puppeteering him to pieces, because sam reminds him of his life’s purpose, instilled in him by john: “protecting” sam. like… dean points a gun at sam and forcibly knocks him to the ground after having convinced jack to kill himself for The Greater Good, and he’s furious and shouting and his hand is on his gun again… but when it comes down to it nothing matters more to dean than sam does. which is dangerous. sam hasn’t been any less “consumed” than amara is by the end of the series, but when a situation with dean needs to be deescalated sam is the only one who knows what dean needs to hear.

I’ll stop here because I think there’s so much more I could say about this episode if I kept thinking about it; perhaps I’ll do a full breakdown at a later date. in the meantime I hope any of this was interesting to you lol.

[incorrectly-quoting-murderdrones]

Sky’s Episode 7 Review (now that she’s stopped screaming) ((kinda))

Spoilers under the cut

Never trust interns with anything

Also holy shit the animation has gone from amazing to absolutely jaw-dropping

N desperately clawing at the rocks to get back to V is heartbreaking

The fact that the Disassembly Drones were built to murder humans and not the workers is one hell of a reveal and not something I expected at all.

That’s probably why Nori kept making plans about the murder drones before they even arrived, she kept thinking they were after the drones, not remembering they were there for the humans.

Now that we know Tessa is was nothing but a skin puppet, are there any humans left? Are all of them dead?

ALSO WHAT THE FUCK IS UP WITH THE TESSA SKIN PUPPET?!

I thought maybe it was Cyn just puppeteering the spacesuit and making it seem bloody, but Jesus fucking Christ the skin suit was absolutely disturbing

Thad and Lizzy return!

Khan actually taking initiative? I do love the consistency of him being able to repair Uzi’s rail gun easily.

Also we’re not gonna talk about how Khan KEPT her rail gun?

Please for the love of god give Uzi a break. She really goes through it this episode.

Nori: “Bite me!”

Now we see where Uzi gets it from

N immediately screaming at the V hallucination and Uzi noping the fuck away from the wall of flesh was a great reverse on the usual horror tropes

So we’re just gonna gloss over how Nori is not only alive, but one of the weird little squid drones? If that affects drones with Absolute Solver, maybe Doll isn’t as dead as we think.

Just how much does J know? Is she even aware of Tessa being a puppet?

I love how in the fight between Uzi-Cyn and N, we get a callback to the Knife Dance!

“Nori! The truth is Uzi and I-“ and then he just writes “hang out”. They are really keeping the Nuzi fans in suspense, aren’t they.

“Your backups will forgive me” So there are clones of N? Did Cyn turn only N, J, and V into murder drones and then clone them a bunch?

Uzi drop kicked her own mother. This show is incredible.

N killed Tessa to save Uzi!

Elsie and Michael did an incredible job with the voice acting

Between the knife dance, hand holding, the “Hang out. Just hang out idk lol”, and the “We did NOT discuss being gross and stuff!”, I am getting so many mixed messages about N and Uzi’s relationship

I love that even though Nori’s head was scrambled when she married Khan and had Uzi, she actually thinks that Khan is a hunk in her normal mind.

Bit of a personal theory here, but with the way the show sets up both N and V having a crush on each other, and N and Uzi having a crush on each other, I think the show might actually have eNVUzi be canon rather than just Nuzi, Envy, or Vuzi, which I’d be totally down for

The way Uzi bites at the tentacle just so she can go down with a cool pose made me laugh

N just watched both of the girls he loves sacrifice themselves for him, learned that Tessa was fucking skinned and worn by Cyn like a puppet, learned that he himself has killed not just hundreds of worker drones but thousands of humans too, and is now alone in his quest to stop Cyn from destroying the universe.

He is going to need so much therapy if he survives this

Also AJ Dispirito coming through with another incredible soundtrack!

Nuzi’s theme playing during the “All I know is, I need you.” scene. (I think it’s the same leitmotif that plays during “Falling….for you?”)

Uzi’s theme (Solver Uzi) playing during her sacrifice

The music for the fight between Cyn and N?!?!?! Incredible!?!?!

[zorosangell]

⛥ﾟ・。 protector: chapter twenty-two

synopsis: " you were supposed to stay a crewate, just another back to watch, " he tightened his hold, " i didn't even notice the change until i woke up one day and realized i'd take a bullet for you "

cw: violence, gore, fighting, mature themes, profanity, MAJOR/MINOR ANIME SPOILERS, follows the plot of the anime, slowww burn.

a/n: reposting from another account

After the battle was won, the crew, as usual, celebrated with a huge party in the castle, complete with a fully stocked banquet, music, and your usual Strawhat shenanigans.

But all good things must come to an end, and after taking a free bath, the crew hightailed it with all the food you could carry.

You gave Vivi the option to sail with you, but as nearly everyone guessed, she decided to stay back and help rebuild Alabasta.

Though that didn't mean you couldn't give her a proper send off.

After wishing Vivi goodbye and departing from the desert island, the crew discovered a stow-away on the ship.

Miss All-Sunday.

Or Robin, as she liked to be called.

With nowhere to go and nowhere to return to, she asked to stay with the crew, and Luffy complied.

So the crew set sail, soon realizing that the log pose was pointing towards the sky.

Nami was stumped, but after a ship nearly crushed you all to death, you discovered a map to a place called Skypiea in the wreckage.

And after enlisting the help of a couple trash collecting monkeys and the descendant of a liar, the crew traveled up the Knock Up stream and finally landed on the Sky Island.

And after a couple run ins with the locals, and a kidnapping from a runaway lobster, you, Zoro, Robin, Chopper, and Nami were now stranded on an altar in the middle of the Upper Yard.

A place sacred to the god of Skypiea.

"I can't believe that overgrown crustacean just dropped us out in the middle of nowhere," Zoro huffed, annoyed, as he watched the creature swim back to who knows where.

"Does anybody know where we are?" Chopper asked, taking a seat on the rail.

"One thing's for sure," Nami sighed, "we're definitely somewhere in the middle of the Upper Yard."

"This seems to be an altar for sacrifices," Robin stated, taking note that the Merry was now perched on top of a large, decorated stone.

"Wait, sacrifices?" you cocked a brow.

"Nami, what's a sacrifice?" Chopper asked. 

"Y'know, It's... like an offering to the gods."

"Oh, that's all? I thought it meant being boiled alive in a big stew or something."

"Actually, that pretty much it," you nodded.

"WHAT?!"

"Regardless of the method, the thing being offered is generally someone's life," Robin agreed.

"Are you tryin' to tell me we're all gonna die here—WHOA!" Suddenly, the reindeer lost his balance, falling off the rail and tumbling down the steps of the altar.

"Chopper!" Nami exclaimed.

"Dammit!" Zoro groaned, jumping off the edge to go after him.

Robin managed to sprout some arms at the bottom of the steps and catch him, but just as he took a breath of relief, a shark jumped out the clouds below, ready to attack.

Chopper screamed, but Zoro was quick to his aid, tackling it back underwater.

"Oh no! What is that?!" Nami squealed, eyes wide.

"A shark in the sky," Robin answered, quizzically, "A skyshark?"

"Zoro! Zoro!" Chopper called, running back up the steps.

"That idiot better not get himself killed under there..." you bit your cheek, the slightest hint of concern in your voice as you peered over the edge.

He needed air at some point.

"What if he's eaten?! It's all my fault!" Chopper cried, nervous.

"If he was eaten, the clouds would've been stained red," Robin assured... in her own way.

"How can you stay so calm at a time like this?!" Nami exclaimed.

Just then, Zoro and the shark burst from the clouds, the swordsman having uppercut the life out of the fish.

Literally.

'Thank God... should I still say that here?'

"I can tell you one thing," he groaned, walking back up the steps, "We are not gonna make it across by swimming."

"What kinda swordsman punches a shark 'stead of using his blade?" Nami cocked a brow, unamused.

"Fish probably didn't like him 'cause he was too dense. Dumbassery makes you chewy," you rolled your eyes.

"I can hear you two!"

"I'm so glad you're okay!" Chopper smiled, taking a deep sigh of relief.

"Whatever happened to your precious swordsman's pride, huh?" Nami teased.

"Would you give it a rest for once?!" Zoro shouted again, removing his soaking shirt.

'DAMN!'

You could feel your face heating up at the sight, the water providing a dewy glow to his incredibly toned chest.

You had seen him shirtless a couple time before, but the image always got to you.

It was honestly a little embarrassing, as if you were a young girl with a schoolyard crush.

"You might want to close your mouth before he sees," Robin smirked, snapping you out of your stupor.

You glowed with embarrassment, letting out a flustered scoff as you quickly composed yourself.

"Shut up..."

"There's a whole school of them!" Chopper screamed, taking note of all the dorsal fins popping up from the clouds, "What are we gonna do?!"

"I'm not sure," Zoro sighed, "But if that first one was any indication, we're not gonna have much luck fighting them off."

"We've got to do something. We can't stay here forever," Robin added.

Zoro shook his head, ringing out the water from his shirt, "If leaving us here was that lobster's idea of a joke, it's not very funny."

"Perhaps this is the Heaven's Judgement we've been hearing so much about..." Robin stated quizzically, peering over to examine the altar again.

"'Cept you'd think this God would try somethin' a little flashier, ya know?" Zoro shrugged.

Nami tossed the swordsman a blue tank top, muttering something about cutting off all your distractions so you could get her out of this mess.

'Jerk.'

"Eh, couldn't say. Never met the guy," the scholar turned to you, "What about you, (y/n)? You have the Angel-Angel fruit. Certainly you've seen some manner of God before..."

You paused for a moment, thinking back to see if you could remember anything about when you first got your devil fruit.

It was so long ago, and apparently traumatic, that your brain blocked out most of the event.

"If I did, I wouldn't remember. I got my powers a long time ago," you shrugged, "All I do remember is hunger, then a horrible taste, and a sudden pain in my back. No God."

"Either way, I'm not sure what the solution is. We definitely can't set sail with the hull looking like this," Zoro turned towards the ship, taking note of the damage the lobster left, "Hey, Chopper, try to figure out a way to fix the ship."

"Uh, okay!" Chopper nodded.

"Why should he fix it? Are you going somewhere?" Nami asked, raising a brow.

"I'm gonna find a way into the forest," he nodded, throwing on the shirt, "We should probably make this our base of operations. You guys can keep lookout. I'm sure Luffy and the others are headed this way." 

"Zoro, if you wanna go into the forest, well, I guess that's okay with me. But you haven't really told us what for..." Chopper asked.

"There's supposed to be some kinda God on this island—I wanna meet him."

"Wait, that's a terrible idea!" Nami exclaimed, "I mean, what are you gonna do when you actually find him?"

"I don't know. Depends on if he behaves himself," the man smirked.

Your brows flattened.

'Seriously...'

"Zoro, you're the bravest person I know," Chopper marveled.

"And the dumbest," you rolled your eyes, "Keep talking like that and you'll be smited before we even get there."

"We?" he raised a brow.

"Someone's gotta make sure you can find your way back. I let you go by yourself and we won't see you for weeks," you teased with a smirk.

"Hey!"

"What about his priests?! You guys gonna beat them up, too?" Nami scolded, placing her hands on her hips, "The last thing we need is you two pissing off a God!"

Zoro turned to the girl proudly, "By the time I'm done with him...this God is gonna bow before me."

'Dork.'

"Dork..." you rolled your eyes, outstretching your wings.

"Yay! Go, Zoro!" Chopper cheered.

"I don't believe in him, anyway. What do I care about pissing him off?"

As Nami said her prayers, you began packing your day bag, which was complete with a loaf of bread, some water, and ten bottles of sake.

'Perfect.'

"Secret Technique: God's Messenger, Six Point," you whispered, closing your eyes and taking a deep breath.

Just like that, about six of your feathers popped off, floating in the air.

"Stay with Chopper in case he needs help. Let me know if he's in trouble."

They gave a quick wiggle before zipping off to the top of the mast, perching there to surveil from all angles.

"That vine looked pretty sturdy," Zoro noted, looking up at a low-hanging branch.

"Ah, excellent idea," Robin nodded, "Mind if I tag along?"

"Sure. Long as you promise not to slow us down," he shrugged.

"Wait a minute! Where do you think you're going?!" Nami shouted

"At least a thousand years have past since this altar was built," she smiled, "The sense of history here is amazing. You feel it?"

'Not particularly, no.'

"A place like this is sure to be filled with all kinds of old relics. Imagine all the valuables we could discover. The possibilities are endless."

"I'll join!" Nami smiled, nothing but money on her mind.

Robin used her hands to bring the vine into reach, and the three of you climbed up to the crow's nest for a jumping point.

Zoro took the vine in his hand, clearing his throat for an oddly long time.

You cocked a brow, "The hell are you doing?"

He took a deep breath before swinging over, making Tarzan noises the whole way.

"It's official. He's lost his mind," Nami sighed.

A couple chuckles slipped from you, "That man is an idiot."

Robin grabbed the vine on its journey back, and swung over herself, Nami doing the same thing once Robin made it.

"Be careful! If you fall, you'll most surely die!" Robin called.

"Is that your idea of helping?!" Nami glared.

Below, the skysharks circled the dead one, each taking turns eating the creature.

"She's right... I'm dead if I fall..."

"Uh, Nami-" "Alright, I'm goin! If that's what you want!"

She jumped off, screaming the entire ride.

You couldn't help but laugh.

And it was a good thing Robin went before her because she prevented Nami from becoming a splat on a tree.

"Thanks for catching me," Nami panted, dropping to the ground.

"Anytime," Robin nodded, turning and starting off in the forest.

"You realize I could've just flown you over, right?" you smirked, landing next to her.

"You tell me that now?!"

"I was trying to tell you!"

"AHHHHOOOAAAAAHHHH... is what you should've done," Zoro shook his head.

"THAT HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH IT!"

"Long-sword..." you stated, mapping out the image of it in your head, before making appear out of light in your hands.

"Kunai knife."

"What're you doing?" Zoro asked, brow raised as he watched you.

You had been at this since the group left the ship, and he didn't remember you having this ability a couple days ago.

"Back in Alabasta, I discovered I could make weapons out of light," you started, forming the kunai in your hand, "I made a bow and arrow and defeated the blue haired woman. So now I'm training myself to be able to come up with whatever I want instantly. That way, I can be battle ready in a second."

Zoro nodded, taking a quick moment to process the information.

"Need help?"

You cocked  brow, a little confused, "You wanna help?"

"It's always good to level up your skills," he shrugged, "And the stronger you are, the easier my load'll be."

You turned to him, a sly smile on growing your face at the teasing opportunity.

"If you wanted help just 'cause it was me, you coulda said it."

His breath hitched, and his cheeks lit up in crimson.

He didn't expect you to pick up on that.

He didn't even realize that's what he was doing until you said it.

It was almost as if his body went on auto-pilot when he asked, like it knew that's what he wanted to do before he did.

"Shut up!" he loudly scoffed, "You want my help or not?"

"Okay, okay!" you laughed, holding out your open hands, "Don't give me any warning. Just say any kind of weapon and I'll make it appear as soon as possible."

He nodded, taking a moment to get a list going in his head.

"Ready?"

"Yup."

"Katana."

It took you a moment, but you made it perfectly, using Zoro's as a reference.

"Faster. Flail."

That one took you a little longer.

"C'mon, faster. Axe."

You got it instantly.

"Good. Arrow."

You also got it instantly.

"Keep it up. Whip."

That one took you way longer than it should've, the image taking time to come up in your head.

"C'mon, don't slow down now. Bow."

You got that sooner.

"Good. Mace."

You got that one instantly.

"I think I have a suggestion," he chimed, hand on his chin.

"Lay it on me," you panted, catching your breath.

You were now discovering just how much energy it took to make the objects, especially one after the other.

You would definitely need more training.

"It looks to me like the quickness of the object's appearance depends on how familiar you are with how it looks. It's why the mace was conjured faster than the flail," he started, "So to train that, you should probably try to memorize the images of weapons you'll frequently use while doing one of our training workouts."

He turned to you, handing over his water thermos.

"Training like that should help you up your strength and speed at the same time."

"Thanks," you smiled, accepting it gratefully and taking a couple good swigs.

"We should probably stop for now. Can't have you too tired if we're gonna keep exploring this jungle."

You nodded in agreement, handing him back his thermos, when he suddenly got an idea.

"But one thing..." his smile grew, making you raise a brow, "Do ya think you could conjure up some sake?"

You snickered, "It's light, Zo. I doubt you'd be able to drink it."

He blushed at the nickname, but quickly played it off.

"Damn..."

"You can take a couple bottles out my bag if you want 'em," you offered, turning to show your backpack.

"A couple? You mean you have—CHRIST, WOMAN! Did you pack anything else?!" he exclaimed as he opened the flap, your supplies ninety-five percent alcohol.

"I brought bread! ... And a thermos of water..."

"Dehydration's gonna kill you before any skyshark will..."

"Hey! I—" you stopped your sentence at the sound of a faint whistle, along with a feeling of dread rolling down your spine.

'Huh...'

"What's wrong?" Zoro firmly asked, resting his hand on the handles of his swords at your sudden stop.

The dread was from one of your feathers.

'CRAP! ALREADY?!'

There was a look of fear and worry in your eyes, as if you were seeing something he couldn't, and it was beginning to frighten him.

"Is she alright?" Robin asked, she and Nami stopping to turn around and check the commotion.

"(y/n)!" Zoro exclaimed as you suddenly went limp, catching you by your shoulders and holding you up.

One by one, your feathers were disappearing, sending a burning sensation echoing through your back.

"Fire... Priest... Merry," you muttered staring up into the sky as the images came rolling through your head, eyes flicking through each new one.

Your feathers had never done this before, and it was honestly quite frightening.

For both you and Zoro.

The swordsman overheard you leave some feathers on the Merry just to be safe, but he had never seen them give you such a physical reaction before.

Was it because of your increased strength?

Suddenly, the image of Chopper being burned flashed in your head, before quickly disappearing, your last feather gone.

"Chopper!" you gasped, breaking free of Zoro's grasp and jetting off at top speed in the direction of the Merry.

"(y/n)!" Zoro called after you, a nervous pit sinking in his stomach.

'Dammit, take me with you!'

Judging by the few words you muttered, what you were running into sounded like it was serious.

And he wanted to be there to back you up.

"Robin, can you sprout one of your eyes on the Merry to see what (y/n)'s seeing?" Zoro sharply asked, turning to the dark-haired woman, "I wanna know what she's up against."

"I'm afraid the ship's too far out of my range," Robin tried, but failed, "Her reconnaissance is one of the many things she has me beat at."

The scholar did her best to fight back her smile, knowing that this was not the time nor place.

But you and Zoro's adorably romantic interactions had amused her since she first joined the crew, and she made getting you two together a little passion project of hers.

So if she had a chance to talk you up, she would.

"Damn it," he grunted, turning back to the direction you disappeared in, "We gotta go after her."

"Now, hold on a minute," Nami stopped him, grabbing his arm, "If getting this far took us this long, then imagine how long it's gonna take us to get back to the Merry, even if we run the whole way."

Robin sighed, slightly saddened that she wouldn't get to see Zoro's grand gesture, but accepting that what Nami had to say was logical.

"(y/n)'s the fastest out of all of us, and incredibly strong. She'll get there and defeat whatever's attacking the Merry, then use her feathers to be back in no time flat. But for us, we'd only slow her down. We should keep moving forward, instead. We're sitting ducks just standing here."

Despite the objections of his heart, his head knew that Nami was right.

"Fine," he grumbled, starting back on the trail, now eager to get the trip over with so he could get back to the ship.

He knew you could handle yourself.

He was confident you could handle anything thrown at you.

You were a strong and independent woman.

'Dammit...'

So why was his first instinct to be your protector?

[accidental-apocalypse]

Alright, I really didn't think I'd make this post TONIGHT, but the brain worms got me. Strap in.

Mutation in the X-men franchise is often interpreted as a metaphor for queerness - rightfully so, I think! (My God, the queer themes. The found family. Somebody sedate me.)

But hear me out - mutation as a metaphor for disability.

At its core, the metaphor stays the same; a marginalised group of people that is discriminated against due to an inherent part of themselves. But where it gets interesting is where the degree of (dis)trust mutants are awarded depending on the nature of their powers is concerned. And this happens both with humans and other mutants!

If we look not at the mutant-human opposition, but at the infighting among mutants, one position stands out very quickly: invisible mutations are generally looked down upon / seen as easier by mutants with visible phenotypes, with telepaths scoring the highest levels of distrust as the use of their powers leaves no visible traces behind.

(Ignoring the gay little poses they have to strike to read minds, apparently.)

As a result, there are multiple instances of e.g. Mystique accusing Charles of having had it easy/not sacrificing anything for the cause etc. Professor X's paralysis (which I'd personally count as a fairly big sacrifice, wouldn't you?) aside, while mutants with non-visible mutations may have it easier in some situations, they certainly don't have it >easy< overall - they're still mutants! And not only are they subjected to human bigotry, but to discrimination from fellow mutants, too.

Invisible disabilities often face much the same treatment. Distrust and criticism from within (and without) the community, the discrediting of their struggles with a disability overall and of their unique challenges of having an invisible disability all pile on top of the actual struggles with their disability.

This is in no way meant to take away from the struggles of >visible< disabilities - I just noticed the parallels between the treatment of X-men telepaths and common real-life rhetoric when invisible disabilities are concerned.

[If you are proud of me for making almost an entire post without diving off the deep-end of queer subtext: HAH FOOLED YA!

Just like invisible disabilities, aroace-spec folks are included in this metaphor because too many queer people like to pretend we don't exist.

Ask me about the absence of attraction and its threat to patriarchal and amatonormative structures!!]

tldr: the discrimination telepaths face from the mutant community is reminiscent of the treatment of non-visibly disabled / aroace people from their own communities. Everyone needs to stop bullying Charles for like 5 minutes please and thank you.

[winterprince601]

so we all know that the got show wildly underutilised the direwolves and robbed them of all magical significance, which annoys me because the starks finding the direwolves in chapter one of got seems to be a direct counter to the existential threat posed by the others in the prologue. they don't just mark the beginning of political upheaval, but also the return of magic to westeros. like daenerys' dragons, they are the magical counterbalance to the evil power of the others - one of the many incarnations of ice in the prophesised song of ice and fire.

having said that, they also have personal roles for each stark. the nominal determinism of the pups has been well analysed but i think you could read thoroughly into the behaviour of each one - for instance, nymeria connecting arya to westeros and her identity as a stark warg and summer matching bran's weird-girl green-seer energy.

to cut a long-winded post short, however, i think ghost is going to have to die in order for jon to be resurrected. i hate the thought as much as you likely do - ghost has been a close companion of jon and the reader throughout the series but unfortunately, that's what makes the sacrifice so meaningful. i do think jon's resurrection will require a sacrifice: it won't be like the show where jon sits up, is sad for five minutes and then hops off the dissection table to swing a sword about.

one of the many things ghost's name seems to foreshadow is jon's resurrection. not only that, but theon suggests the albino wolf is bound for death, saying he will "die faster than the others". however, when jon retorts "this one belongs to me", he takes responsibility for ghost's life. this is what all the starks do for their pups, but in jon the rescue is especially marked: he turns back to find ghost and whilst he is the runt of the litter, under jon's care he grows to be bigger than his siblings. jon gives ghost life and it makes a lot of symbolic sense for that life to be eventually returned. moreover, ghost with his weirwood colouring represents the old gods of the north - jon even muses that he might be some kind of agent of them. i don't think the lord of light alone can bring jon back: it has to be a rebirth of ice and fire, a spring-like mix of both elements of jon's nature.

jon's resurrection will mark a major change for the direction of his character and is potentially the first step towards realising his targaryen heritage and maaaybe becoming a dragon rider. the death of ghost, of his past as the invisible bastard of winterfell, might be necessary for this. however, i don't believe ghost or his identity as a wolf, as a stark, will truly leave him. if he has warged into ghost and lives on for a period of time in his body, it only makes sense that ghost will live on in him even after he has died. prolonged warging can create slippage between man and beast which we've already seen between living jon and his direwolf. we won't lose ghost entirely and perhaps with the affirmation of robb's will and finally turning home towards winterfell, jon will realise he doesn't need the physical emblem of a direwolf to be a stark - he has the wolfblood of the old gods and the first men within him always.

[lizaluvsthis]

Okay other SMG34 shippers I see what you've been talking about...👀

Presenting the Axoøny and SmgØles THEORY!!!

I have ALL eyes yknow?

If none of the people understand this context-

I put up a screenshot of how similar these things are that they referenced from Smg3 and Smg4's interactions

The first one that I screenshotted is the episode/Movie called REVELATIONS its where Niles took over in Melony's control and his goal is to rebuild their world thinking those SMG's are some bunch of extras/wannabes

But when Niles is so close to that, SMG0 knew that the world would be in danger if he lets Niles continue. So SMG0 tried to keep telling Niles to stop.

From Niles` anger his poses, his actions, the temper were the same that referenced to SMG4 when he did to SMG3 from the Movie ITS GOTTA BE PERFECT.

SMG0 looking at Niles in shock?

Smg3 looking at SMG4 in shock.

Niles yelling and telling him that the world of theirs is gotta be better?

Smg4 yelling and telling him to leave him alone to make his perfect video. But the perfect video requires sacrifice.

And what similarities from the sacrifice?

Niles doing all that he could to make the world a better place for him and SMG0 his sacrifice had to be done by lending more power and almost took out the world and himself by doing so.

Smg4 doing all that he could from his power to make a perfect video, a perfect meme to show the world, the internet, on youtube that he's not a failure and he wanted to make everyone happy. The sacrifice? Himself too.

The similarities of "having you here is the best thing thats ever happened to me" ?

Smg0 telling Niles that he's already done enough and even tho in the end didnt end up quite as Niles expected, that almost destroying the whole world had happened, and SMG0 says he's still there with Niles in the end. They're already together. And the two left this corrupted soul and went somewhere to rest. Niles ended up changing and went with SMG0.

Smg3 telling Smg4 that he understood whatever he'd felt and that his friends are always by his side and not giving up on anything at all. Telling him that his friends- I mean- They- will always have lots of fun and laugh together. Even tho the three are almost sucked down from the black-ish mud. Smg4 breaks out of the keyboard's spell and saved them just in time, with also the tears. He didnt know smg3 had felt that way from him. SMG4 ended up refusing to let three of his friends die, even tho he needed to complete the perfect video. Smg3 helped him out of there and the two succeeded.

And for the Melony and Axol theory... "doodle"

After watching near the end of the WOTFI 2023 video

I saw what seems to be SMG3 doodling a precious memory, a moment where he and smg4 did in such a day. This spat out my coffee. I recogniced that similar spot.

Its where Melony drew herself and Axol being together even tho Axol passed on, she'll remember that memory.

So what if... smg3 or smg4... one of them... no no- i think thats too much- just- what if... one of them dies...?

We've had this theory here- since axol is possessed by corrupted smg0 and melony KILLS axol in order to make corrupt 0 to perish.

Then what if Smg3 or either Smg4 gets possessed or manipulated by the new antagonist "TV guy" from the end of wotfi 2023? And one of them actually kills... oh my god- this is too MUCH honestly... I actually doubt this is ever gonna happen- It wont happen heheh... right...?