#not to mention the stupidity of these people wanting to kill the one immune person they’ve found

[sapphicmayfields]

personally i don’t see the selfishness in a parent going to violent lengths to save their child from the people trying to murder them but maybe that’s just me

[r0-boat]

Yessssss I lOvE your headcanons about the 2 unreleased kings 😋 must be because I love dark headcanons.... (and that in Abbadon is something couldn't miss out 😈)

But can you do some moreeee? 🥺 Like about the headcanons about interactions between kings perhaps (seven kings---!!!!) Or maybe between kings and MC pls 😚 I kinda crave for some dark contents right now (cus when I first play WHB, I already expect this 👀)

Only if you're fine with this request, and jusst ignore it if you don't okie 😘

Oh my God interactions with the Kings hshshs

I mostly just have really stupid headcanons about those guys interacting but I got some dark ones

Dark!whb King headcanons

speculation for asmodeus and belphegor(I'm writing these two before they come out)

Cw: yandere, murder, drugging/drugs, death, cannibalism, sexual slavery mentions of being sold off, most of this shit is just talking about a black market shcsdgj. This shit is dark dead dove do not eat

Disclaimer: I do not condone anything I write This is purely for fantasy written by adults for adults only!

Belphegor and asmodeus has been fully released here's the update

Links to little asks about people's questions

Question one about Satan's desires

Question two on Mammon

Satan

I don't think we talk about Satan's depression as much as we should have. What I feel like you would think himself as a wrathful monster unable to control his wrath, sometimes he would have depressive episodes where his personality is a completely 180. He's just as angry at himself as he is at everyone else.

The first time you've witnessed this depressive episode is when he accidentally struck you and made you bleed. His whole body starts shaking as he began to break down He tore apart his room and started crying and took weeks for him to calm down.

The reason why his subordinates are okay with him taking out his anger and physically hurting them is because if he doesn't have an outlet he'll take out it on himself.

Satan is dependent on you for his emotional needs. He loves you, and he needs you; please do not leave him.

Satan is definitely holding back a lot of his dark thoughts because he doesn't want to hurt you, and he doesn't know how much longer he can hold back these darker desires. Normally he tells you everything, but he doesn't want to scare you. He wants you to like him.

Leviathan

Leviathan is a budding yandere, He already stalks you. Trying to keep his obsessive thoughts underneath a layer of hatred. That hatred mixing into more obsession. Of course he wants you to love him, but he also wants to be hated by you just as much as he is loved because it gets him on your mind. And that's really all he wants. It doesn't matter if he makes you hate him. As long as you're thinking about him he is okay with that.

Because of his abuse as a child from angels I would not doubt he wouldn't know how to normally show affection.

He has killed another devil for you. And he will gladly do it again. He sends the heads of lower rank devils that you dare show a smile too under the name "You're admirer" isn't he so romantic.

Leviathan only tolerates the kings being around you because chilling one of them or they're subordinates would start a war. So to have you he must use sneakier tactics.

Beelzebub

He has a fantasy where he roofies you at a bar and takes you home with him. Whenever you go to the bathroom thinking that Your drink is safe with him, He stares blankly into the glass, thoughts swirling with mental images of your nice loopy giggly self being laid on his bed.

Angels taste like chicken, humans taste like beef, demons taste like pork. Humans so far is his favorite. Humanoid meat especially humans are delicacy and highly illegal in the Tartaros black market. A delicacy He has been recently craving.

If he ever dies he wants his last meal to be you after he fucks you of course.

Levi gives the bodies of the devils he has killed too Beel to eat.

Beel definitely does drugs He's mostly immune now... He hates that Adderall doesn't affect him the same as the others.

Mammon

Tartaros is home to the rich and the very powerful. They hold grandiose special parties where the wealthy gather. Of course Mammon attends these parties. These demons see you as a pretty little exotic pet unknowing that Mammon is the pet and you are the master. And these same demons frequently talk about how they would buy you at any price, talking about your body as if you are a piece of meat and a prize to be bought and sold. Sadly you are not for sale.

As the demon of greed flaunting is his specialty And he has definitely thought about telling you up and all his gold and jewels to bring you to one of these parties to show you off. As a message saying 'This is something you cannot have.

Mammon knows of the Tartaros Black market and he turns a blind eye, but he will gladly do something if you tell him to. Or if belphie gets off his ass and strong arms him.

Giving him a little more because getting asked for it: Mammon doesn't do shit about the black market because He owns part of it and he practically created it. This man runs his kingdom like a mafia and he is a mob boss. Shady dealings to other kingdoms smuggling goods anything for More money and greater goods.

Lucifer

Has purchased a human corpse from the same black market for scientific purposes he swears up and down.

He slowly corrupting himself He beats himself up over it but at the same time he kind of likes it.

"hey can I cut you open and look at your organs? No? Oh okay..."

Lucifer because of his past as an angel suddenly gets urges to kill you. They have gone down over time since his transformation as a devil but he really shouldn't be getting this hard over thoughts of putting his hands around your neck.

Makes aphrodisiacs as a paid commission for asmodeus. And asks you to test the drugs.

If you ever die he wants to keep your beautiful eyes.

Your blood is a beautiful drug like sweet wine. He's obsessed with the taste

Belphegor

Belphegor and his superpower of a kingdom are the only reason why the Kings actually give a damn about their laws. Nifleheim is a strong powerhouse and a great enemy to those who don't want to make one of them.

However, Belphegor isn't all justice and the law and order in fact far from that. He is the law whatever he wants he can bypass it and everyone will turn a blind eye. If you were ever sold by Mammon to the highest bidder Belphegor would be your buyer.

Grand spectacles of public executions are very popular thing in Nifleheim(Belphie Danganronpa fan)

The real horror is that belphie invest in cryptocurrency and has an NFT/j

Belphie is also completely dependent on you and he will make you stay any way necessary.

Belphie only hasn't cracked down on the others harder as he should is because he doesn't give a fuck what happens in other kingdoms if it is in his own.

Belphie thinks Asmodeus is a disgusting freak. Leviathan is an amateur to him. Satan and belphie would get along pretty well I think they would be FPS partners.

Asmodeus

All of hell's most heinous devils come here because the laws are so lax. You're wondering why this kingdom hasn't fall to complete anarchy... Apparently getting you addicted on sex and then withholding it as a punishment is surprisingly very effective.

Asmodeus would love to have you but hasn't invite you yet because... Well if your kingdom is filled with half trained rabid dogs and you throw a nice fine steak inside.... Yeahhh.

Asmodeus is actually a pretty nice dude, He's very calm, polite and chivalrous. Which makes you wonder how much of that is a mask. Something you'll never know.

Asmodeus has a harem I think that goes without saying. And he talks greatly about adding you to that harem and how you would be his favorite~

It's no secret that I think humans are a very sexualized being in hell. Asmodeus is one of the demons with a huge human kink. Humans in his eyes are still primal animals which is part of their biggest appeal to him.

Asmodeus thinks belphie has a stick up his ass and he needs to loosen the fuck up

[kekaki-cupcakes]

Request for Nico di Angelo!

Hello! If it's okay, may I request Nico with a (GN or male) reader whos got like, super serious mommy issues? Like, they'll be in a bad mood during the last day of summer solely because of the fact that they have to see their mom once they get home. And it's not even bc they're a misbehaving kid, it's just because their mom absolutely sucks. Maybe where their mom has a bunch of pointless rules, too. Like, nothing to do with cats, praying every morning, going to church every Sunday and church school every Monday, etc. And readers just done with life during the year. They'll purposely go on quests the last week if they get the chance just so they don't have to go home, too. Lmao, just realized this is sorta venting in a way, so sorry. It's alr if you cant do my req. Take care and have a nice day/night!

this is a short one but I really like it, so... and by the way, if anyone ever wants to just vent in my inbox please feel free too, there's no judgement on this blog and you're so strong <3 <3 <3

You don't have to be sorry for doing it on your own---Nico x reader with a shitty mum [fluff, dw] »»————-　★　————-««

-Nico would be that person who’d offer to kill anyone you hated

-But he would be completely serious

-Like, no fucking around. He knows how much you despise your mum. But it’s so very hard to hate parents because they're still your parents. Godly parents are a whole different story, but the mortal ones are hard to loathe without feeling shit about it inside, so it becomes this sort of silent resentment. 

-Nico knows that. Sort of… well, from knowing you, really. And he may have planned out your mortal mother's death in a very excruciating way, with a few backup plans just in case.

-You shut that down when he mentioned it subtly, so he went back to rubbing your back and bringing your favorite snacks from the stash Cecil had secretly [everyone knew] imported from the mortal shops, then hissing at people like a rabid cat when they asked where you were. 

-He’s very good at scaring campers off.

-You’d be eating shitty junk food and sweet red strawberries in your cabin and listening to Harry Styles’ song Matilda [Hazel had bought you his record for your birthday last year] pretending your head wasn’t spinning with thoughts about how much you wanted to run away from home, and then the shadow’s by your bed would thicken and your boyfriend would just launch himself onto you.

-You’d gotten pretty used to it, obviously, and now you were pretty much immune to jumpscares. 

-It was a handy skill to have considering how many horror movies you and Nico would watch together. He liked to critique how realistic the deaths actually were, and you liked to watch his nerdy face and tease him for jumping when Ghostface crept out from behind a doorway. 

-But sometimes, mainly the days before you had to return to your mother and the house filled with crosses and rules and arguments and not enough pet cats for your liking, not even movie marathons and picnics in the strawberry fields could help your mood.

-So, Nico would resort to his back up backup plan [not the murder one, the happy boyfriend one], which was cuddle piles. 

-It had taken him quite a while to get used to touch, but between Jason’s ‘how to ask out that random dude you're obsessed with’ classes [you were the random dude] and the fact you liked to hold his hands, he would say that he was quite the expert on hugs now. So he’d wear the biggest jumper he could find, probably one of Hazel’s flowery ones, and drag you into bed. 

-Thankfully his bed was no longer a coffin [they had been turned into bookshelves] and was big enough for you both to squish in. So he’d stroke your hair and nod understandingly when you scoffed about how stupid it was to send a literal child of a Greek God to a church. 

-It wasn’t even a nice church, apparently. It smelt like socks. 

-He had a very good speech for these complaints, which you both knew the words to by now.

One day, very soon, you’re gonna get a job, or a smart person class at college, and you’ll never have to go to Sunday school again. We’re gonna get our own house too. With lots of tea and toast. And rescue cats. And we can name them after your favorite famous people and book characters and we’ll have a huge squishy couch too we can watch horror movies on. 

There’ll be lots of posters on the walls and no one will tease you about being a little kid and you can wear whatever clothes you want. Maybe not orange ones though. I think we’re all sick of oranges. 

And all of our friends can visit whenever they want to, and we’ll have all of their snacks as well. And toothbrushes.  

And we can have Christmas there, without all of the bad stuff. We can decorate the tree really badly. You don’t have to invite your mum. At all. And if she shows up, her coffin will be shaped like a fish. They’re a real thing, you know, fish-shaped coffins. 

You’ll never have to see her again. We’ll have our own place. I promise.

You can throw a party full of everyone you know, and not invite your family, 'cause they never showed you love. You don't have to be sorry for leaving and growing up.

I promise. 

»»————-　★　————-««

[sleepyboywrites]

Hey there, do you wanna do yandere headcannons for the creepypasta characters? (Specifically Trans or Cis Male Reader) whichever once you want, I did it with the TF2 characters and it was tons of fun

Hey! I hope it's okay if I just do an in general Male Reader because I don't like to use specifics unless it's necessary, like for trans/cis exclusive experiences ie: dysphoria/euphoria, overly descriptive nsfw if I ever end up doing something like that, and/or things like periods which cis men don't experience to allow more people to relate. In short I just don't want any male readers to feel excluded if it's not an exclusive experience if that makes any sense.

Also I apologize for not posting in a bit and taking so long to respond to this turns out I have too many thoughts about this particular prompt actually so this will probably turn into individual series/posts after this one

Yandere! Creepypasta x Male!Reader.

Tw: yandere behaviors kidnapping, murder, physical or psychological abuse, slightly spicy? for a couple Idk, it's nothing descriptive just mentions of a perverted mind and could possibly be interpreted in that way

Eyeless Jack

• obsession obsession obsession. Beastlike has things he stole from you in a nest. Kills people who interact with you. Almost wolf-like if I had to put a fine point to it.

• At first it's just people who were mean to you, hurt you, or made you feel badly about yourself because surely a boy like yourself would praise him for being so helpful to you, right?

• Then it's anyone who gets too close or appears to like you romantically.

• Then it's anyone you spend too much time with which interferes with time meant for him.

• He's delusional, but in the practical sense.

• Think, "I'm doing this to protect him" , "Those people would hurt him eventually", "He's not safe on his own, he needs me to look over him." "The outside world will tear him apart."

• Stalks you 24/7. You are never without eyes on you but you also don't have a clue he's watching at first.

• After all he only steals things you haven't worn in months or you could chock up to misplacing.

• And he's a hunter so he specializes in stalking whether for food or in personal matters.

• You won't know he's there until it's too late.

• He'll make his move to kidnap you once you've essentially isolated yourself out of fear to those around you dying. He'll treat you gently during his kidnapping.

• Using his medical knowledge he'd give you anesthesia as you sleep and take you home.

• May remove an organ or two as souvenirs, treats if you will to add to his nest.

• Once you are in his possession he will add you to his nest and you'll wake up pressed firmly into his chest as he mumbles incoherently.

•If you ever try to leave he will make you pliant in anyway he can think of. He's not above physically harming you if that makes it so you can't leave him. He worked so hard to retrieve his mate and he won't lose you even if he has to hurt you or you end up hating him but you will stay.

Ben Drowned

• A lot like EJ he's also always watching difference is you are always overly aware of his presence.

• He wants you to know that he's watching. He wants you to interact with him. Even if that interaction is you yelling at him and begging him to leave you alone.

• He is 100% playing some sort of sick game with you that he knows you'll lose. Think you'll develop Stockholm syndrome before he even kidnaps you.

• If he ever leaves you alone for a few days you'd find yourself missing the teasing remarks and add ons normally added as you went about your day.

• All due to his tendency to drive people insane of which you are not immune but the trail of your insanity leading directly to his arms.

• He knows this and is overly cocky about it both to your face and to others. Think, "oh poor you, you love me, what an unfortunate situation." To your face the first time you fall asleep around him with a stupid sick grin or "I'm going to kill you and he's going to come to me for comfort and protection when he finds out." when talking to someone he's deemed bad for you.

• He wouldn't go on a murder spree without a trigger but then like Jack that'll devolve into killing anyone he disapproves of which is everyone else.

• He has a general distaste and distrust of people due to the nature of his creation and will find an excuse to kill anyone around you should his murderous intent be triggered which can happen in three different ways you're constantly distraught by someone, you start ignoring him to be around someone else, or you've failed to keep him entertained so he needed a more entertaining situation.

• Possesive with a capital P, if he does not know your precise location or have you within arms reach at any given moment he will lose it.

• Clingy but veiled with indifference. He'll act as if he doesn't care but insist on keeping some kind of contact at all times. Once he physically has you this would be physical contact and before hand just following you everywhere saying he doesn't have anything better to do.

• Will use psychological and emotionally harmful methods to keep you in line if you ever try to reject him or his advances but claims won't hurt you physically in anyway.

• His vice grip on you reveals otherwise though. Enough so to encourage you to go along with him.

Laughing Jack

• I feel he'd court you in cat-like ways. If you've been in his box more extravagant shows with him as the lead, carrying you around places. (Being weary to let you leave until he eventually stops letting you leave.

•Leaving you gifts that go from sweet to scary really fast. Think your favorite treats and then your loved ones' hearts carved from their chests so you never have to leave him again.

• He's the king of being delulu and reacts poorly to ungratefulness so do try your best not to scream or hit him when instead of cotton candy he has a loved one's head on a stick.

• You can try to gently coerce him to stop killing your loved ones in order to isolate you and making you stay forever/to let you go. But he'll say "you're being silly" and "here is where you belong you goofball of a boy. " covered in your loved ones blood as he ruffles your hair.

•The accidentally kill you for being ungrateful/not accept him and keep your corpse like your still alive type.

•Keep it lighthearted and the Jester is your friend. If you don't and mention troubles he'll fix them violently.

• Is constantly coddling and cuddling you.

• Since he was once a guardian angel and he believes his murdering of ungrateful children is God's work, he sees you as a present for all his good work.

• Like a child being gifted a puppy on Christmas.

• Bone crushing hugs and grips that bruise your skin and make it so it hurts to move but he acts like he didn't mean to and gets moody if you push him away or say he's hurting you.

• It's an act though, he likes seeing you squirm in pain and the expressions you make trying not to cry when he holds you.

• He thinks it's cute. He thinks you're cute when you're in pain.

• On a lighter note, he 100% is the type of clingy to hold your sleeve going places or to poke you (mostly) lightly in order to get your attention.

Homicidal Liu

•The softest in this lineup.

• I believe the term is dormant Yandere? Yeah. It is, because you wouldn't guess something is off until something starts getting between the two of you.

• You remind him of before his traumas, whether that be you look like someone who was kind to him before or upon first meeting you were genuine, honest, and kind. You make him feel safe and calm or as calm as Sully gets and he's never letting you leave him.

• He'd incorporate himself into your life truly getting close to you. Like this is months if not years long in the making. He becomes the closest person to you in your inner circle and you're the same for him. He plays the long game.

• You guys live together and you probably already like him the same way he likes you but both of you are too awkward to talk about it and Sully has been forbidden to say anything or Liu threatened to take his meds. Or you guys are in a long-term committed relationship already.

• Protective, possessive, and obsessive but fairly level headed. He is aware of the reality of the situation. Ie: his possessiveness is giving you his clothes and repetitive thoughts of "mine" during times of physical contact or seeing you in his clothes and needing texts or where you are, why you left, and when you plan on being back as well as if anything changes. He obsesses over your likes, dislikes, mannerisms, emotional cues, and interests so he essentially knows you even better than you do. Protective being watching over you as you sleep in situations where it's acceptable to do so and setting up security systems for the house.

•More likely to grab your arm or hug your knees and sob "please don't leave me" than he is to ever hurt you. The most agressive he gets is when Sully is fronting but even then the likelihood of him hurting you above holding you a bit too tight is 5% and reserved for extremely specific occasions which virtually don't happen. Ie: you find out he's a murderer and react too poorly in a way he didn't expect, you leave him cold turkey, you treat him poorly

• Clingy always needs some kind of contact most of the time this equates to holding hands/pinkies in public and ensuring the two of you are essentially attached at the hip. Though because he's entered your inner circle you just think it's because you two are close and that's the product of your closeness.

• His hunting turns into stalking and killing those who've been bugging you and you've talked poorly about whenever he feels his bloodlust bubbling over.

•'Cause if he kills people you've said that you wished would die or that you hate you'll be able to forgive or even praise him right?

• Unlikely to kidnap you unless he gets caught/found out then he'll probably relocate the two of you but he'd rather talk to you about it beforehand so it'd be a last minute emergency type thing. Or if you spend too much time away from him.

Jeff the Killer

• Doesn't play games of any kind. He'll observe you just long enough to learn about you, your schedule, who all knows you, and how frequently they check in. Then he'll remove obstacles and he'll just just take you.

• Impatient and the shortest fuse known to man.

• He's not afraid to hurt you in fact he enjoys it so the more perverted side of him wants you to push him and his expectations.

• The chain you up in a basement type

•He'll kill anyone involved with your life so when you beg him to let you go with tears in your eyes saying you have people waiting for you he can tell you with certainty that you don't. Not anymore. Laughing as he tells you and stroking/tugging at your hair.

• Degrading and mean to the point where you can't tell if he hates you or not. Uses pet names in a derogatory way as well.

• Pretty distant and cold even after you warm up to him and he lets you wander around a contained and highly surveillanced area, though it's probably just the torture basement he chained you up in to begin with.

•Most affection you'd get is a pat on the head or shoulder.

•Any other form of affection wouldn't really feel like affection.

•Wants to break you into a mindless doll essentially for him to love, use, and abuse. But the breaking you into it is very important to him.

• Will torture you severely for any mishap.

•The only way you can tell he's attracted to you beyond physically, is if he goes too far with the torture, when he's patching you up, or when he brings you something you like/he likes.

•Though he talks to you sweetly sometimes after you pass out and/or are slipping into unconsciousness. "You were made for me, sweet boy." "So good for me." It wigs you out though.

•you will feel like you live on eggshells as try your best to accommodate to him.

• you are most likely to go insane and learn to crave his mistreatment.

Ticci-Toby

• Delusional. He is convinced you and him are in love and have the white picket fence dream. Complete with a German Shepherd and two adopted kids.

• And because of the way his brain is scrambled once he starts thinking about you regularly he can no longer tell what really happened or what was a daydream.

• Hopefully he has a good enough grip on reality to have actually interacted with you before his delusions convince him that you need to be with him at all times and he kidnaps you.

• 'Cause if not he's going to be really confused as to why his boyfriend who told him this is what he wanted is freaking out to the point of needing restrained. You'll hurt his feelings and he'll probably successfully gaslight you into believing his delusions himself.

• Also the lock you up type but more in the paranoid of others stealing you from him way, so if it's not together you aren't going.

• Like Jeff he allows you to roam around a highly surveillanced and locked up area but unlike Jeff it's an actual house and not a basement.

• He will hole up with you for weeks until duty calls or the house runs out of supplies

• Very "I love him I love him I love him I love him" coded and needs you to be just as enthusiastic.

•The hurt you on accident and profusely apologize immediately after but loves how you look when you cry and tremble as he patches you up type.

• Think someone telling him something that insinuated his affections towards you didn't count so he grabs your arm and squeezes it as you try walking away, asking "Toby... you're hurting me." He says wide-eyed struggling for only a moment as his kidnapper/partner tightens his grip with steel cold eyes. "Tell me it counts. It counted right?" (may or may not be my first ex-core as in my experience based)

•He feels really guilty about it too and periodically he will be crying into your lap forcing you to comfort him after an outburst because he feels just like his dad and he hates it.

Tim/Masky

• Much like Homicidal Liu and Hoodie he is actively incorporating you into his life. Difference is he's trying to manipulate you into thinking he's the only one you can trust.

• Uses the White Knight Method, which in case you're unfamiliar is a highly efficient manipulation technique in which they solve your problems while unbeknownst to you being the source of said problems until you become obsessed with or fall in love with the "knight" protecting you.

• If you feel like someone is watching you, he's toying with you. In fact he'll probably show up shortly after from the opposite direction of where you think watching is coming from and ask you if you're okay. Revelling in the look of fear on your face as you gush to him about what's bothering you and promising to protect you as he walks you home.

•He'll sabotage your relationships by making you think that they're the ones who've been leaving disturbing gifts on your doorstep/trying to hurt you.

• It's very much so a game to him and you're the prize.

• He's the type to want to see every emotion you have to offer.

• He's also the likes when you smile and likes when you cry more type

• But his need for you to need him and seek him out basically nukes the previous headcannon and makes it so he settles for comforting you when as far as you know something/someone else made you cry.

•Essentially by the time he's done with you, you'd beg to never leave his side, for him to keep you close and keep you safe but you don't have to because that's right where he wants you.

Brian/Hoodie

• Stalker alert! He's watching you sleep and following you everywhere

•Also uses the White Knight method but he uses what would have been a one time scary occurrence and uses that occurrence as a scapegoat to make more situations/scenarios which isolate you and bring you closer to him.

• In fact, his protection is a gateway to you, his foot in the door.

•It starts with him stepping in when things get scary then you see him somewhere you frequent and you talk to him or he talks to you and numbers are exchanged.

• After of which you are his clearly. Obviously, you just don't know it yet.

• Then he starts staging more scary, making your loved ones hurt you/turn on you/are the culprit in a scary situation until he's all you have. Until you need him.

• Mans has hidden cameras all over your house.

•You know where most of them are after all it was his idea, he said it was for your protection. What you didn't account for is all the hidden cameras in the gifts he's got you.

• He's the quiet, doting, infantilizing type.

• As in he genuinely believes you are too small, weak, and pure to know any of his intentions and he treats you as if you have no clue about anything always. Babies you constantly at a gradually increasing weight until it's suffocating.

• He wants to lock you up and protect you.

• Gaslighting king, if you catch on or try to leave him he will gaslight you into staying.

• Think "Baby boy what are you even talking about everything I've done was for your protection and your protection alone. There's no secret cameras you don't know about you're being silly." Or "Sweet boy, I've never done anything you didn't want or need. I'm very intuned to your needs and you need me. You need to be protected, you aren't safe unless I'm near."

• So genuinely and heartfeltly said that you'd clearly be the bad guy for even thinking like that and with how deep he has you you'd believe him too.

[foreverfairytailfan]

🚨RANNT ABOUT FAIRY TAIL HATE INCOMINGGGG🚨

Long rant. Like LONG long. Feel free to scroll on by but I seriously needed this off my chest so just be prepared if you decide to read it💀 also not trying to (and wont with all due respect) debate with anyone about the things I’ve mentioned below, this is just purely how I feel inside atm, plus it’s super sloppy and emotionally charged; I would’ve done a much better job at talking if it was a debate post, but it’s not lol. Debating stuff about FT can always happen another time on another day so hopefully this post isn’t misunderstood to be starting something, just a simple rant :) okaythanksforyourtimehaveagoodday

Mentions of death, as well as murder/killing

——————

ARGH THESE FAIRY TAIL HATERS GET ON MY NERVES SOMETIMES FOR REAL! LIKE I GET PERSONAL PREFERENCES BUT THEY HATE OVER THE MOST STUPIDEST THINGS ABOUT IT!!

One thing I always see people complain about is how Fairy Tail hardly has any killings. First of all, wtf??? How have we become so desensitized that we want to see innocent characters to die? Like I get it contributes to good story telling by expressing the emotional process of it all, and I certainly know I’m not immune to a good and gripping character death when it’s done right, but come on do we really need to have people dying left and right ALL THE TIME?? If the story has to have so many deaths 24/7 to make it a good story, is it really a good story?

Second, there was in fact death in Fairy Tail; it’s just not enough death for people to mention apparently?? While the deaths are rare in FT, when they happen I think it hits harder, and it makes it much more personal because it’s not a normal occurrence. It affects you on a deeper level because you weren’t expecting it already, you know? It shows us that death shouldn’t be taken lightly.

Third, death is not gonna happen frequently for Fairy Tail. Why? BECAUSE THEY ARENT ACTIVELY FIGHTING CRIME!! THEY ARE NOT A GUILD ABOUT FIGHTING PEOPLE!!! They. are. not. superheros!! They are a magic guild that cares about family, their town and townspeople, and supporting one another. They always try keep the violence to themselves (aka roughhousing) and taking jobs that can have potential battles involved.

They don’t ask to be dragged into shit like guild wars, fighting literal dragons and crazies, and life threatening forces! They fight because they’re good people who want to protect the ones they love, innocents, and their planet. This is not a shonen about killing their enemies and bathing in their blood and victory, all they want is to have peace and fun with each other. There is more to the story than death. There are multiple tragic things that happen in the series that are just as heartbreaking as a death.

It’s a feel good series that doesn’t focus on the deep negatives, but how people overcome said negatives and use the power of the love for their found family to fight for what’s right. You say it’s a surface level series, but the truth is your not willing to look deeper under it because you can’t be bothered to see there is more to a series than many deaths, killings, etc.

there are so many shows and mangas like FT that don’t get a quarter of hate like FT does and I just think it’s incredibly stupid and unfair to target a show over petty reasons such as LACK OF DEATH?? It’s a wonderful show that is supposed to cheer you up and make you feel happy, why can’t we just have a series that’s exactly like that and still be considered a good story? And yes, Fairy Tail isn’t perfect; no series is. It has its flaws just like any other shonen.

My point is that FT is picked on way too much for reasons that other anime’s display as well, and that there’s a lot of hypocrisy in FT haters. I never understood why Fairy Tail was the scapegoat for all the hate when their favorite shows and mangas do the exact same thing! If Fairy Tail isn’t what you’re looking for, then move on without shitting on it.

The people of Fairy Tail are extremely important to me, as cheesy and cringe as that sounds. They raised me, taught me lessons that I still hold dear to my heart to this day. It has picked me up in times of need while still being able to evoke strong emotions from me. It just gets under my skin when so many people either pick it apart and don’t bother to dig deeper behind the meaning of it, or just sexualize the characters constantly without paying attention to the valuable lessons we could be learning from them instead.

I know it’s just a show/series at the end of the day, and I shouldn’t let it bother me this much; but I can’t help it, the characters are like family to me and have helped me process many emotions and gotten me through dark times. I just think if you’re gonna hate, you should do your research first and then come back with plausible reasons. I respect all opinions (as long as it doesn’t hurt others) and I never try to say that they’re wrong and I’m right blahblahblah because we all have our own preferences and that should be celebrated, as well as be able to have the right to express them; but let’s not over do it with hate outloud and in the open where people can be affected by the hurtful things you say.

[cartoonrival]

4, 6, 7, 8 GO APESHIT

4. what was the last straw that made you finally block that annoying person?

popular sonic blog made a post baiting terfs to make a "free block list" even tho the person who runs the blog is cis. not the answer that this question is looking for but its the most notable one in my repertoire

6. which ship fans are the most annoying?

ranryo....... this is the yuri show. obviously im a yaoi enjoyer because im gay but like be serious........... their relationship is so much fucking better as stupid friends where ranma loves ryoga and ryoga wishes ranma would die but does also love him too. like in no world is ryoga gonna be able to have a relationship with ranma that comes even close to what rankane has....... i cannot help but think that some ranryoers just dont care for akane enough to even understand why ranma loves her and why shes such a good character and why she and ranma are such a good pair. like idec what ranryoers are specifically saying this ship just annoys me on principle. you know this

7. what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

i actually have an immunity to this phenomenon. i refuse to let fandom stupidity win 💯

8. common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about

WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU PEOPLE SAYING ABOUT NODOKAAAAAAAA. fuck nodoka omg shes never gonna love him she will kill her child dead if she knew. it all stinks of copium..... but literally why ToT likeeeee queerphobia is a core theme in r/2 and ur ignoring it to argue (argue!) that nodoka doesnt waaaant to kill ranma she just says shes gonna because of the contract... THAT CONTRACT SHOULD BE MEANINGLESS IN THE FACE OF A MOTHER NOT ACTUALLY WANTING TO KILL HER KID. if she didnt want to then she wouldnt. she doesnt want to because she doesnt want ranma to be girly..... if hes girly then she sees the seppuku as a necessary evil because she and genma failed as parents. nobody wants to KILL their KID, but too many are willing to resort to that if they think their kid has gone too wayward. nodoka is a KEY player in driving home the theme of acceptance and part of wahts SO significant about rankanes relationship, but ppl just ignore it so they can make everything hunky dory....... BORING! not to mention WRONG!

[the-firebird69]

We have several acquisitions of major companies today they're taking place they're going to focus on trouble areas right now Banks and hospitals in pharmaceutical companies these people are tremendous assholes and they're simple but they're dangerous one of them is John remillard and we can see how dangerous he can be he did brain transplants in the whole realms crashing we're moving on him cuz he tries to do it on just about everybody and we mean it too he's a sick disgusting mutant and he is a person who mangles people. We're going ahead and we're going to remove him from power tomorrow he goes to court and he's going to get nails they don't want him out. And they're going to publicize what the findings are you going to see this a****** Trump show up some places and it should be in jail that's what they're up to they want to see him do that and show him the effect and see if he can figure it out you're ruining yourself you're going to be gone you're going to have no idea and no characters in your brain will be burnt it's already battered mac daddy said the last sentence. So we're going ahead with banks and we're going ahead with hospitals and pharmaceutical companies and biological research companies. And chemical companies and we're doing that today.

We are signing over other major companies today and we didn't post Malone a couple but mostly we are signing over different ones that we mentioned a couple of the ones that were signing over just big and then we went through some details

**Costco it is a huge company it sells wholesale or son wants to buy there once the freezer needs to and it's a pain in the ass going up there every day and his bike and wrist breaking it and these people don't care they're a bunch of jerks so we need to take these people out of the picture and we're going to do it shortly but the company is our it's locked stock and barrel we have 90% of the stock they have two chairs it's the same people and we're going to run it and we're going to fix it it's already pretty good but the employees are working there are keeping people out and we're going to kill them for it

**Sam's wholesale club it's the same deal we have 95% of the company they have two chairs left we're going to revamp it and it's close to being okay but we have to get rid of these idiots and we're going to pull them out and we need to get rid of them and their clans because they refuse to stay away what they're doing is illegal and they prevent people from having food that would be worth something against Tommy f and the warlock are going to be dissolved there won't be any of them and they're useless people. I want to make a note that they're going to try and hide in regular people and her son is a prime target because I think that his body would hold their stupid brain and it would not it would eat it up his immune system it would destroy it but that's what they're thinking so we have to be on guard

**Target superstores and Target stores are hours today Lock stock and barrel we have 9% of the stock and have two chairs

These are three of the biggest retailers on Earth there's a few more and they're not as big but they have gigantic sales already and they're going to overshadow these three in certain areas but Costco and Sam's are mostly food now and that's what we need our people to have and that's what Max need and foreigners and we're going to provide it but these stores are professionals in their areas of clothing and tools and small equipment and small appliances and appliances

**Sears and roebuck and that's the name we're having and leaving and they are going to have two chairs we have 95% of the stock we own and run the company and we will wield it as if we do because we are. We're opening almost 100% of the stores are closed some of them are in areas that are shut down this is a company that is greatness and we like it and our son loved it and daughter and it and he went there often and got a lot of stuff going to be reinstated the Craftsman tool guarantee will be reinstated and we're going to be selling all the brand names that they sell usually plus. And all the hand tools and we're going to be selling machines lawn mowers and excavators backhoes and all sorts of fun stuff for attachments it's going to be a nice time it's a very big company it's going to be big overnight the clothes they sell are in fashion they usually watch that that's what they watching and quality

**he says Walmart has no fashion sense and they don't and straight talk is a Walmart company and they keep billing him and billing him and billing him for something that they had already done and now they stopped Billy him and there's taking the money in and out of his account because their jackasses it's cold and we're going to use it against them completely and we're going to bury those idiots and take the Walmart company over I'm moving now that we take Walmart everyday all over the world going to pull the retards out completely

**Marshalls this store is very big they sold a lot of stuff during the repression was really what we had and we're reviving it and revamping it and we're doing new store friends and we're going to include more things that we are going to include a lot of stuff that they sell it's good good for a lot of people and we're doing it now these companies are signing to us today Lock stock and barrel they're supposed to do yesterday but an hour completing the documents and paperwork and it will be a go it's 90% hours two chairs same people

**JCPenney same as the above same percentage same people and we are going to revamp it and bring it back to its former luster it did have a high in store and we're going to include that we're going to include higher-end items at a decent price and that's when the name of the game is with this company and his son reminded us of it and we knew it and we were going to do it but it's nice to say

**Macy's it's a huge company and it just deserves being said that it will be revamped and it will be utilized the way it was and it will be high and stuff for a decent price and very nice things but they're not the highest

**Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus two different companies but the high-end stuff and We own It Lock stock and barrel same as above 90% roughly two guys still seating and we are going to revamp them bring them back to the former luster and include items that are much more expensive than we're in there and also items that are expensive that people can buy and a decent price can't sell the stuff too cheap it takes money and time to make

All these companies were going to own Lock stock and barrel probably soon and we are going to wield the power and use it. We're going after Banks today Bank of Boston Bank of America are two of them key Bank is another and the several sneakers around here BB&t is one of them I'm going to make sure you know that we're here and we're going to start taking it over I'm so sick of listening to you and having to talk to you idiotic kids you're so stupid that you shouldn't be driving a car or walking around you should be in a hospital and that's it they were taking over the hospitals too but a nightmare in pharmaceuticals and we're taking over the pharmaceuticals and hospitals at same time but really we take over hospitals in the pharmaceuticals get shut down you people are bunch of yammering jackasses and they're going to lose because of it. There's a few other industries that we're going to scour but really we're starting on the other ones after today and we're signing up all these retailers in the hospitals and the pharmaceuticals it's an ongoing in item and we do dental and outpatient and specialist too and we're going to take it all over it's ridiculous now you can't go anywhere and get anything done these idiots have to leave they've been asked to leave and they're not. It's seven more things of business and we'll mention it soon

Thor Freya

We're getting it out he's got breakfast ready almost and I'm saying I thank him very much he's doing good work and he knows what he says he thanks me

Hera

We approve this message in all its content and we are taking these companies over today they are signing to us and we are taking over all of the gas stations on Earth you might notice that they're different you show up with a little cigarette you're going to jail

Olympus

[familyagrestefanblog]

Hi, I'm the one who wrote the post 👋

I just wanna throw in the clarification that when I pointed out that Marinette threatened to destroy Adrien's amoks I did so with the strong opinion that Marinette 100% didn't realize that the rings are even a factor right now. Marinette would have never EVER disregarded or threatened Adrien's life like this. Whatever this is gonna lead to regarding Gabriel's point of view only happens because it's GABRIEL'S point of view and HE then quickly realized he's wearing the rings and then didn't speak up about it. And his mind is the only one that matters concerning the wish.

The situation happened because up til that point Adrien's amoks were secure under Gabriel's transformation and Marinette wouldn't even have known that Gabriel is for the first time wearing both rings.

Gabriel himself acted on stupid instinct by wanting to paralyze Marinette with venom, not thinking about that he's wearing BOTH of Adrien's amoks which are fully exposed right now and he has just moments ago lost his Ox immunity. Gabriel made quite the habit out of using this power after teh cataclysm incident (which makes sense, this is smart thinking) but it had the unfortunate side effect of him having gotten a bit TOO used to not concider the cataclysm power as the immediate threat it is.

But he instantly realized it the moment he threw his fist towards Marinette and she by her own instinct catched it without thinking and went on as she did.

The only thing on can possibly accuse Marinette of in this is that she at some point should have thought further and what exactly Adrien's amoks ARE since Félix did not mention that detail at all.

I'm pretty sure Marinette did not piece that together yet because it would have also raised some questions about her having been there in "Gabriel Agreste" when Gabriel gave Félix one of the rings and yet they are both back on his hand now. This is the narrative gap I was looking for so someone can in future get Felix' ass for selling Adrien to his abuser. I bet Marinette is gonna appreciate Félix conveniently having left those details out in his story, concidering it almost lead to Marinette killing Adrien.

What im saying is that Marinette in the finale 100% did not realize what she was doing here. She did not intentionally threatened and disregarded Adrien's life. The only thing on can accuse her of in this is that once she found out that Adrien is a Sentihuman she didn't think further about what exactly his amok(s) is when it's quite logical that's he's being abused through them like Félix was.

Especially in connection to Gabriel Agreste being Monarque is this a more than fair criticism. This regards Adrien's entire existence. If this had gone wrong no excuse of "but she had so much on her plate, she didn't think about it!" had been enough to undo what happened.

Though blame also lies in Felix and I suppose Kagami maybe has to be included in this now too. The fact that these two told Marinette Félix' story with the intention of giving her the motivation of facing the father of the boy she loves and yet they withold the information that Adrien's amoks are the wedding rings is a fatal négligence on their part.

And again, no amount of crying and excuses would have mattered if this had gone wrong.

The blame here is on 5 people: Gabriel, Marinette, Félix, Kagami and Nathalie.

Yes, I'm including Nathalie. She was the only one who knew for sure that Gabriel is currently wearing both if Adrien's amoks. Of course she was dying, I didn't forget that. But she was also the person who told Ladybug that Adrien is in safety when frankly the only thing Nathalie knew is that Adrien wasn't where he was supposed to be in London. That in no way means he's safe, especially when Gabriel is wearing both rings and Ladybug and Chat Noir are about to fight him.

Do you think Marinette realized Adrien is a Senti before or after Her final fight with Gabriel?

Someone pointed out that Gabriel had Adrien’s amok on the same hand he had the miraculouses which means that Bug Noire threatened Adrien’s existence. (Which might be why Gabriel relented. ) Now Marinette is getting criticized for doing so and one even went so far as to use it as “evidence” that she really doesn’t value Senti lives.

I think she realized before the fight that Adrien was a Senti, though how much she truly digested that fact, I dunno. I'm guessing (hoping) that Marinette was simply bluffing when she threatened to destroy the Miraculous on Gabriel's hand - and Adrien's Amoks with them.

Not that that would change what GABRIEL thought. It's not like he has any reason to think that Ladybug would know or even suspect that Adrien was a Senti.

[hermitdrabbles56]

Immune System headcanons

Note: I am not a doctor but I have a...sort of idea and I'm rolling with it.

Time: Use to have an absolutely horrible immune system as a kid. Like probably got sick a couple different times on his adventures but had to push through. And when Mask was in Wars era he scared the shit out of Wars more than once. Since then his immune system has gotten better as hes gotten older and he's started being around people more. He doesn't get sick nearly as easily as he used too. But, he's starting to reach the age where his body is slowing down from all the abuse its taken over the years so things are starting to hit him again if he isn't careful.

Warriors: Toughest to crack because of how much illness and death he's been around. He's careful to the point of paranoia. His down fall is when he's stupid and forgets to take care of himself because he gets vulnerable when his body is exhausted.

Sky: Help him. He's one of the worst. He comes from a small isolated community in the sky where they had no chance of catching anything very dangerous. Moving to the surface has definitely fucked with him. His lungs are compromised, He already is easily exhausted, and who know what the gravity was like on skyloft so yeah, he's a little messed up and gets sick very easily.

Wind: He's no better than Sky. Small community very little contact with other communities before his journey. He manages to get through his first journey without getting sick. But Traveling with tetra and the pirates is a different story and it messes with him a bit. So he's gained a little more immunity than he had? But it's still bad.

Wild: Absolutely dog shit. There are very few Hylian communities still around so he hasn't encountered much. Plus the tomb of resurrection messed him up just ad much as it fixed him. Be it the malice that was on him when he was placed in the tomb or the tomb being broken to begin with it sapped a lot of his strength and stamina right out of him (yes he took a hundred year nap so that also can attribute to the decline but the tomb was also supposed to be preserving and healing him so what the fuck) and you bet it fucked with his immune system too. First time he catches a cold it nearly kills him. His whole world is a death sentence that he has spitefully dragged himself through.

Four: One of the most stable immune wise. He grew up in a busy town and frequently traveled with his grandpa as a kid he's a healthy little thing and is very careful and takes care of himself. When he gets sick it's a normal sick and generally no one has to worry to much about him.

Legend: His bones may fucking hate him but he's healthy. He grew up in the busy city surrounding the castle and he's been to do many places by now that his immune system is almost iron. Not to mention the malice his world is steeped in. But when it does hit him it hits him really hard because of all the other problems he has.

Hyrule: It's complicated and complex. He's used to a poisoned and malice steeped world that's riddled with plagues. But at the same time he's malnourished and his body has taken a lot of abuse. His fairy magic and spite are probably the main things keeping him functional as he just pumps as much healing magic into himself as possible until he can get access to medicine.

Twilight: Immune system like steel. Yes he was raised in a small village just like Sky and Wind. But he was also raised on a lot of good hearty crops and herbs (and is in a village that is blessed and protected by essentially a mini god), and we have no idea where he may have lived before Ordon (in my personal headcanons the locations would have made him pretty damn sturdy). His body is extremely healthy to start with and then he has time to build up even more of a tolerance when he starts being around castle town and the other villages more frequently. So he's learned how to be careful with illnesses especially since he doesn't want to bring anything back to Ordon. But generally when he does get sick it's a fairly quick recovery unless it's something extremely serious but even then he's capable of bouncing back pretty quickly unless other factors have fucked him over.

[lupically]

#FEF5F1 | DILUC RAGNVINDR.

genre | fluff

word count | 1825

warning | none

note | i finally wrote something for my top husbando :’)

it came to you as a surprise that diluc, at all, sleeps.

there has always been this fantasy version of him in your head, a fantasy that lacked the great ideals and bright adventures most fantasy novels you have read consisted of. in contrast, your fantasy of him was insulting and otherworldly at best—someone restricted to the rules, a personality as plain as a dull purple doormat, a total stick in the mud that kills joy at the mere sight of it, an emotionless robot that has no use for human necessity such as the bathing and sleeping.

does diluc even need to consume food? you have literally never seen him eat or drink anything before. has he ever taken off his gloves to pick up a hamburger—oh, archons, you just realized now that you have never seen the skin of his hands before. he always has gloves on! was it to hide something?

"oh, wow," you exclaimed lowly to yourself as you leaned forward to examine the hands of the very annoyed red-haired man before you. your long-term question was finally answered. "fascinating... so you do have hands!"

diluc spared not even a glance toward the limb you were so interestedly staring at. he kept quiet for a moment and peered down at you from his bed, one leg propped up and the other stretched out—a rather awkward position he had no time to get out of after he almost burned you alive for sneaking into his bedroom in the winery.

"what drunk wind blew your incompetent self here?" he asked, ignoring your remarks about his lack of real and human hands. whatever you meant by that? you were always spilling weird things out of your mouth, you might even be worse than venti, he reckoned. 

you glared up at him after hearing his mindless insult. you were only fifty percent sure (which was already a lot in your book!) diluc never actually meant those hurtful words, that they simply fly out of his mouth due to his weird need to make sure everyone around him knew that he leaves no room for unnecessary sentiment. 

being kind blatantly was not his thing, and he has no intention of being applauded for being a decent person. why that was, you couldn't be sure. you had your assumptions, but kaeya turned out far too different than diluc that you weren’t sure if you should put your finger on the assumption. you also didn't dare dive deeper into it because (a) you just weren’t invested enough, and (b) by then, it would be a family business you would hate to indulge yourself with.

"kaeya dared me to take a picture of your sleeping face in exchange for some wine. our good friend, the honorary knight's smaller friend also wanted it as a possible blackmail souvenir," you told him honestly.

diluc immediately murmured something you couldn't quite hear, but he looked more confused than annoyed when he glared down at the mattress of his bed. he grumbled something along the lines of how the roles were definitely reversed. you didn't press further about that.

"if that is what you came here for, your best bet is to leave the way you came," he said after a moment, pointing a cold hand toward his bedroom window. "you're not taking any pictures of me."

you snorted, holding up your kamera and tapping the lenses. “uh, i think i came pretty close to taking a picture of you sleeping, diluc.”

“i had woken up the second you walked through my bedroom door. you could never,” he said.

you hummed under your breath, eyeing him suspiciously. he was probably telling the truth. he barely struggled in surprise when he grabbed your hands in the dark; was it pure luck that he perfectly found where your kamera was on the first try or does diluc secretly has night vision? your guess was as good as the unknown. 

not to mention, he looked normal, just like someone who may be in the know of your intrusion. he appeared grumpy but that was just his normal state. you could barely get him out of a frown even if you pay him, mainly because he wouldn’t need your money, but also because he was stubbornly against smiling, it appeared. 

"you know, i was surprised at first. i didn't know you sleep at all! i always thought you kind of just shut down, or maybe you have stayed awake all your life," you said with a shrug, and when he deadpanned at you, you defensively waved your kamera around. "i'm sorry! i just–you don't strike me as a person who sleeps!"

"so dead, then?" diluc asked calmly, although there was very little calmness in his facial expressions, especially those judgemental eyes of his.

"not dead! just... not really human–" you paused and pressed your lips together, thinking back to what you said to him and realizing that he might have a point. then you turned to him. "you also eat, right?"

“are you leaving or not?” he asked, a hint of flare in his voice that if you looked closely, you may see fire emerging from his body.

being stubborn as ever, and knowing that diluc would never really hurt anybody he knew to be good people, you feigned thoughtfulness for a second. tapping your finger against your chin, you scrunched your nose and shook your head. setting the kamera lumine forcefully had to borrow you between your crossed legs, you flashed him a mischievous grin. 

“no,” you said. “i am getting that picture out of you!”

“like i said,” he said, “you will never.”

“fine! then i guess i will just have to sit here and wait for you to fall asleep on me,” you said, slapping your hand down on his soft mattress. “don’t try to force me out of here! i will make it way worse for you!”

diluc furrowed his brows, wondering if you meant what you said. when his questioning gaze couldn’t get even an ounce of budge from you, he could only sigh in frustration. if you planned to sit on his bed until he doze off, then you would definitely make it worse if he tries to dump you out of his bedroom through whatever means you could.

he may be a skilled swordsman and a vision bearer, but unfortunately, he was not immune to bullshits from the likes of you.

diluc closed his eyes to savor the tiniest bit of sleep he managed to get before he heard your extra loud footsteps creeping around his room. he was supposed to get a good night's sleep, which was something he hasn't had in a while because of all the business schedules and his side vigilante job.

he was supposed to rest tonight, and there came you.

there always comes you.

dilly-dally, unpredictable, the epitomie of 'knights of favonius... always so inefficient,' letting klee out of solitary confinement and causing a ruckus amongst the responsible adults kind of irresponsible, has paid for his wine at least a zero number of time kind of broke, and was just always here to ruin his mood at the tavern every single day. 

most of the time, diluc thought about you in a negative light, much like he did with everyone around him and the entirety of the knights of favonius. but there was a version of you in his head that painted you as somebody different—somebody respectful, somebody worth keeping around...

somebody he likes, perhaps.

after all, joy was never prevalent in his life. it used to be, but that was a past he has long forgotten the details of. even if he wanted to remember them now, he could only remember snippets that wouldn’t guarantee him a good nostalgia. he may just end up feeling worse at the end. the only constant influx of distraction he has now seemed to be either you or venti, and with the godly bard as his other option, he would much rather choose you. 

but it was not because that venti was too hard to confine in. you were just as hard to talk about problems with considering your optimism and fickle attitude. 

what diluc wanted was permanence; a train that never stops, a bottle of wine that continuously refills, dandelions that do not stop flying even after it reaches celestia. and venti was too understanding and abstract to be one. as interesting of a character he may be, venti knew when to leave people alone. or, occasionally, he just cared too little. after all the city of mondstadt didn’t lack a god because he was responsible. 

you, though. diluc could never pinpoint if you were as dense as you appeared to be, or if you did know how to read the room and simply chose to ignore it, but you never leave people alone. you never left him alone; you unknowingly pick a petty one-sided argument with him all the time, you get drunk at the tavern and somehow has never let anybody take you home but him, you barge into his bedroom in the middle of the night because of some stupid dare his brother made you do and you still refuse to leave despite being sleepy.

you give him a way out, whether he likes it or not.

arms crossed in front of his chest, he deadpanned as he watched your head drop lower and lower to the mattress. soon enough, you were snoring away on his bed with the gadget discarded by your feet. he watched you in silence, your cheek smushed against the surface and the intensity you always radiated lessening from your body. you looked normal now; not energetic, not talkative. just sleeping peacefully, the way he always made sure you were after carrying you home. 

diluc’s heart was finally softening under the knowledge that nobody was watching him anymore. the pessimistic monster that often emerges from him was still here, but in the face of you, it has painted itself pink and it has forgotten vengeance and retribution. in the face of you, it has been dragged out from the death it once laid and became forgiven. 

carefully laying your head down on the pillow, diluc draped the blanket over your shoulder to tuck you into his bed. after making sure you were fine and well, he placed the kamera on the desk in the room, somewhere visible you could find once you wake up, and he left for one of the guest rooms in the mansion. 

tonight was the first time in a while when he has forgotten about all the problems he’s had. something that wasn’t about wine, the family business, or the abyss order. it wasn’t the rest he wanted, perhaps it was hardly any rest at all, but he was glad he got to think about something else.

of course, diluc would never tell you that.

[system-of-a-feather]

You know, it just occurred to me that a lot of people who meet our system and get to know us as parts, and even on this blog, probably assume I'm a protector of some sort, and I guess they wouldn't be wrong if we solely look at our functions, but I really don't consider myself one. I was reading @constellation-of-us post on protectors and it really took me a hot minute to realize that a lot of people would probably assume I'm that "big scary protector" for the system. I don't want to say I am 'immune' or that the post is wrong, cause its 1100% correct and we've seen it time and time again with our protectors that ID as protectors

But honestly, I really don't see myself as a protector really much at all. I don't intend to protect anyone in this system, I don't *do* defensive action, I don't *do* fixing, I don't even naturally really frequently consider the system beyond my own self. I've worked on that a shit ton and do keep a few mantras in mind to keep myself from being too aggressive to the point of massive self destruction of myself or the system. In a way, I guess I am "learning to be a protector" or some might call me a "missguided protector" or a "persecutor" which are terms I identify with more than "protector" but even those roles are more of a side effect and secondary to my main and initial function and why I'm here as a part.

I - as a part - have almost all my natural ways of existing and reasonings rooted in aggressive and offensive action. I'm not in love with martial arts because I want to "be able to protect myself or those I care about" it is so that "I am ready for when I get the opportunity to legally kick someone's ass" or so that if someone wants to try to jump us, I can make them eat shit for being a stupid fucking idiot. I'm not honing my skills so that "we can have a stable life and sense of security" it is so that I can dominate every environment I'm in and have reason and history to back that I am factually better than everyone else here and that I am the top dog.

As a result, the most proper term for me that I've identified with is "perpetrator" alter; though I personally HATE the term and the stigma that comes with it but I have yet to think of a better word for it (other than "piece of shit", mainly due to lack of trying though since my preferred role title is co-host / host). Cause my role is to be worse than our abusers and abuse our abusers into well, not abusing us. I originally and innately couldn't care less for the system - I'm not protecting them - but I also couldn't care less for the system - they're not relevant to me beyond being an obstacle I have to work around.

(Content Warning: Brief Physical Abuse Mention)

As a result, I don't really functionally ever "don't know what to do" or "are overloaded". Even in the peak of some of my worst shit as a part (am a trauma holder and one of the worst carriers of gender dysphoria) my trauma response isn't feeling trapped or shit cause as a part, if I feel trapped, I tear everything around me down until I'm not. If I'm going to die, then I might as well bear my fangs and tear at the thing trying to kill me. I don't really have the ability to feel oppressed or stuck, because if I did, I wouldn't have been able to basically beat our dad into frightful submission enough that he'd be too scared to be abusive to our family.

(Content Warning: Cleared)

And I am not saying this as a "oh Im so edgy" or as a "oh well Im a SUPERIOR protector" because fucking hell no. GOOD protectors should have a healthy level of fear and should have a healthy level of pulling back from an attack and going on the defensive / disengaging. What I have is also a trauma response and has caused a shit ton of problems as I've adjusted to being co-host plus it makes me absolutely unplattable to most people who don't have the patience to understand and acclimate to my acquired taste.

I'm saying this primarily cause "perpetrator" alters are too fucking demonized and shunned and written off as "not real because its a bad trope >:[" and put into a corner of uwu they're just more abusers cause there is the large tendency to continue the cycle of abuse when your trauma response it to abuser your abuser harder than they did you.

But anyways, I just had a few thoughts on the matter. This isn't meant to be this huge thing just a talking point I guess. Feel free to reblog or add your own thoughts but if you are gonna be a little bitch who goes on their high horse like the people who shun those with Cluster B or whatever, get the fuck off this blog. No one likes you anyways.

[kookygobbledygook]

Yeah, but Xander doesn't make that argument.

There are so many instances where I would have more sympathy for Xander's views but the writers don't go down the compelling path. Another example is that I would have more empathy for Xander's argument if he ever mentioned Jessie after The Harvest. If he ever said "I had to kill my best friend because you told me he was a monster, and now you're sleeping with another monster just like him" I would say "You know what? That's fair." But the writers don't go down that line. They don't go down the line of Xander is scared for the future, or that Spike still wants to hurt people. They go down the line that Xander thinks having sex with Spike is degrading.

I made this post after a recent watch-through so I had the lead up to this scene fresh in my mind, so that context coloured my interpretation of the scene in a way maybe it didn't for you.

Here's a quote from the script of the previous episode Entropy when Xander finds out Anya has had sex with Spike:

XANDER: So you go out and bang the first body you can find? Dead or alive?

ANYA: Where do you get off judging me?!

XANDER: When this is your solution to our problems. I hurt you, and you hit me back? Very mature.

ANYA: No, the mature solution is for you to spend your whole life telling stupid, pointless jokes, so that no one will notice that you are just a scared, insecure little boy!

XANDER: (bitterly) I'm not joking now. You let that evil, soulless thing touch you. (pointing at Spike) You wanted me to feel something? (Anya looking chagrined) Congratulations, it worked.

Anya stares at him, looks like she might cry again.

XANDER: I look at you ... and I feel sick. 'Cause you had sex with that. (points at Spike again)

Anya looks down at the ground, hurt.

Buffy looks a bit ashamed too.

Look at the words in this slice of script. There is nothing about danger Spike poses, there is nothing about the harm he wishes to do. What does the script focus on when Xander is confronting Anya here.

1. "So you go out and bang the first body you can find? Dead or alive?"

Here Xander doesn't call Spike by his name. He calls him a body. Then he reiterates that point by adding the dead or alive comment. Firstly this shows that Xander doesn't see Spike as a person; he is literally objectifing Spike. Secondly by saying it was the first body Anya could find implies that Anya was desperate and indiscriminate in her choice to sleep with Spike. Thirdly the dead or alive comment means that Xander just doesn't view Spike as a body, but a dead body. He is in this moment comparing sleeping with Spike as something equal to and as shameful as necrophilia.

2. "ANYA: Where do you get off judging me?!

XANDER: When this is your solution to our problems."

He doesn’t deny that he is judging Anya in this moment. He thinks she deserves his judgement. Not only that but the "solution to our problems" quote still implies that he thinks of Anya and him as still having a relationship even though he recently left her at the alter. There is a proprietary element to that statement he doesn't have the right to hold, considering they are not in a relationship. This unfortunately is a theme with Xander throughout the series. For example this line in Ear-Shot after he and Cordelia have broken up.

XANDER You know Oz, I look at all this beauty, all these healthy young woman and I wonder why I ever wasted my time on Cordelia. I mean, look at her. She's no better looking than the rest of them. Oz None of them are really my- Oh my God, he's looking at her!

Xander sees Wesley a distance away on the stairs, staring at Cordelia in awe.

XANDER He's got his filthy adult Pierce Brosny eyes all over my Cordy.

Wesley shakes his head and continues up the stairs.

OZ You're a very complex man, aren't you?

This is important because Buffy is not immune to Xander feeling a sense of ownership over her and then getting judgementalabout her dating choices. Look at this quote from Prophecy Girl all the way back in season one, when Buffy turns Xander down.

Buffy: I'm, I'm sorry. I-I just don't think of you that way.

Xander: Well, try. I'll wait. (smiles weakly)

Buffy: Xander...

Xander: Nah. Forget it. (gets up) I'm not him. I mean, I guess a guy's gotta be undead to make time with you.

Buffy: That's really harsh.

Xander: Look, I'm sorry. I don't handle rejection well. Funny! Considering all the practice I've had, huh?

So we already have this history of Xander feeling like he has the right to judge and shame the dating choices of the women in his life whether he is currently in a relationship with them or not. This is a confirmed character traits that he is still exhibiting six years later as an adult man. The conversation he has with Anya in Entropy and the one he has with Buffy in Seeing Red have precedent.

3. "You let that evil, soulless thing touch you. You wanted me to feel something? Congratulations, it worked. I look at you ... and I feel sick. 'Cause you had sex with that."

Okay, this is a lot to unpack. Once again, Spike is a "thing" so he's an object. But more than that he is an object of revulsion that contaminates anyone who touches him. Xander says that looking at Anya makes him sick because she had sex with "that". Anya disgusts him now, and all these statements therefore apply to Buffy because she also had sex with Spike.

Now we don't have time to go into how this is rooted deeply in slut-shaming and purity culture. The idea that these two women are now somehow tainted because of who they've slept with is such a gross take for the writers to go with.

But the problem I have in my original post is a logical fallacy that Buffy as a series never fully addresses: what actions are forgivable and what are irredeemable?

Faith accidentally kills one man and the series protrays her as though she's gone past the point of no return from then on, so must pay her penance in prision. Meanwhile Angel who has killed hundreds of people, and Willow who flayed a man alive and tried to destroy the earth serve zero gaol time.

Some demons are inherently bad, even though they are sentient and Buffy is allowed to kill them without discrimination. But then not only do you get former demons like Anya, but current demons like Clem who is just a chill guy.

And this is just one more example where one character is being held to a different standard than another. And like the examples above it would have been so easy for the writers to address the situation in a way that gave Xander depth and nuance. But they didn't. They not only went down the easiest, laziest, most sexist (imo) route. And if you're going to have someone make those judgemental statements you have to make sure they aren't doing something equivocal or if they do explicitly call them out in the text and have them unambiguously apologise. That's if you want the audience to still like them.

TL;DR I like the arguments you have made on Xander's behalf. They're good arguments. But they're not the ones the writers make in the show, and the arguments they did makes were sexist gross and hypocritical. I think you are giving the character grace based on your own internal logic rather than the points that were made on screen

Here's a little shit-show in Seeing Red that seems to be missed because of... every other shit-show in that dog-awful episode.

Below Buffy and Xander having their first conversation after he finds out Spike and Buffy have been having sex:

BUFFY: It just happened, okay?

XANDER: (chuckles bitterly) Oh, like, uh, "Say, you're evil. Get on me"?

BUFFY: You fought side by side with him when I was gone. You let him take care of Dawn.

XANDER: But I never forgot what he really is. (Buffy looking hurt) God, what were you thinking?

BUFFY: (laughs) You're asking me that? Oh, 'cause your decision making skills have really sparkled lately.

XANDER: I'm not saying I didn't make any mistakes. But last time I checked, slaughtering half of Europe wasn't one of them.

Yeah the judgement is gross, the entitlement to dictate Buffy's love life is gross, and Xander ingoring that Buffy's trauma is fueling her less-than-great decision-making is gross. It's all just another example of Xander not aging great, as a character.

But you know what really pisses me off?

Xander was, until very recently, ENGAGED TO A FORMER VENGEANCE DEMON!

Anya had explicitly said, multiple times she's "maimed and mangled" unloyal men for over a thousand years. And she never really shows any sort of real remorse until season seven, which hadn't happened yet when this conversation happens.

I want to be clear, I love Anya more than Xander and I don't want anyone to think I am dumping on her. But c'mon Xander. You really are the pot calling the kettle a slut for the forces of evil.

Honestly, knowing what happens later in the episode, it just feels like an opportunity to foreshadowe and victim-blame at the same time.

[ravennm84]

Complicity

Hey everyone! Sorry I’ve been missing for a while, but I’ve had a lot going on and lacking inspiration, until the other day! I know that Lila thinks she’s the smartest person in the room and that everyone else it too stupid to figure her out. So, I decided to let her “think” she’s being smart, but gets caught because she did something stupid. Warm-Fuzzies and please enjoy!

Lila was happy. Since she had become a model, she had acquired a small fan base of people that thought she had beauty and talent. Granted, it wasn’t as large as she thought it should be, but she had only done three photo shoots and had been mentioned in one magazine. But this was just the beginning; soon, all of Europe would know her name and reporters would be clamoring after her for pictures. 

But at the same time she was very angry.

This was because Marinette had been mentioned in the same magazine as her. And where Lila got a single photo that showed more of Adrien than it did of her, Maribrat had gotten an entire article and multiple photos about her designs and the collaboration she was doing with Style Queen Audrey Bourgeois since the woman had decided to stay in Paris. She had even looked at the girl’s website and saw that there was an actual wait list to receive one of her original designs.

Enraged that someone she considered to be plain, talentless, and all around lower in status than her, Lila started coming up with plans. She wasn’t about to share her spotlight with anyone, let alone Maribrat.

She was tempted to accuse the bluenette of stealing her designs and ruining her reputation, but since she had been designing for longer than Lila had been in Paris, that had too much of a chance to backfire. She’s thought of sicking one of her classmates/sheep to break into her house and destroy her commission projects, but that also had too much of a chance to backfire since they would likely blab if they were caught.

No, she needed a different type of plan. Something that would be farther removed from herself so nothing would blow back on her, but harsh enough so that even Maribrat wouldn’t connect what happened to her. It took a few weeks and a lot of planning, but she came up with something that would work. It had been the perfect plan, a way to get Marinette out of her life and the spotlight for good. 

All it took was some sweet talking one of her new followers; a large, burly boy named Henry that was a couple years older than her and not very bright. He would have done anything for her… including going after a “stalker” that had threatened to hurt her. She barely even had to suggest anything before the boy assured her that he would protect her at all costs. It even seemed to be working when Maribrat was suspiciously absent from school for a few days after Henry said he would “take care of it”.

It had been the perfect plan...

Until the police showed up. 

She had just gotten home when the police arrived, saying that she was wanted for questioning in an open case. They had already been in contact with her mother and Greta Rossi had promised them their full cooperation. Rather than risk looking guilty, Lila called her mother to make sure they were telling the truth before grudgingly going with them. 

When she got to the police station, she was met by her very confused and furious mother. This wasn’t the first time she had been in trouble with the law. There had been an incident in Rome where she’d been accused of pushing a boy, Simone, down the stairs, and her mother had been forced to pay his medical bills. She had made it very clear that if Lila caused any more problems at school, it would not be pleasant.

So there she was; sitting with her mother and a couple of police detectives that she didn’t recognize, who were giving her condescending looks. “I am Detective Cooper, and this is Detective Raimus. We understand that you have been made aware of your rights, correct?”

“Yes, multiple times. What is this all about? You can’t just bring my daughter in for questioning like she’s some common criminal.” Her mother said as she stared down the two men.

“Mme. Rossi, we need to ask your daughter some questions in connection to an assault that took place against one of her classmates.” Stated Cooper, a detective with a thick mustache.

“Are you or your daughter familiar with a M. Henry Mortaure?”

“I’ve never heard of him,” Lila lied with a shrug.

“Neither have I, who was attacked?” Her mother asked, suddenly worried about what her daughter might have gotten involved in.

“A Mlle. Marinette Dupain-Cheng, are you familiar with the name?” Asked Raimus, who looked a bit older than his partner.

Greta Rossi thought for a second before nodding. “Lila has mentioned her a couple of times, said that she was a bully. What about her?”

“The Dupain-Cheng residence was broken into a few days ago by M. Mortaure. He was armed and confessed to be doing so with the intent of killing Mlle. Dupain-Cheng.” Mme. Rossi gasped in shock while Lila was attempting to hide her smirk with a look of worry. “The Dupain-Chengs were not harmed, although the same cannot be said for M. Mortaure.” Cooper placed some photos in front of them on the table, gaining another gasp from Greta. Three of the man’s limbs were wrapped in heavy gauze, his face was swollen and bruised from a black eye and a seriously broken nose. 

Lila didn’t flinch when she saw the photos, but was now fighting a scowl at the knowledge that Henry had failed her. And since she was here in an interrogation room, it could only mean that the idiot had blabbed. But that didn’t matter, she could just say that he must be a crazy stalker who had somehow found out that Maribrat was bullying her and decided to take things into his own hands. After all, it wasn’t like she had called or messaged him from her personal phone. She had bought a burner phone with cash just for this occasion. 

“Despite being armed with a pistol, he never had a chance to use it,” Raimus stated as pushed one of the photos towards Lila. “He will require reconstructive surgery on his face from being hit multiple times with a rolling pin. His arms were severely burned when he fell into a fryer, it’s likely that he’ll never have full use of them again. Despite the burns, he attempted to go for a kitchen knife after being disarmed. That knife was turned on him and he ended up with a perforated lung.”

Greta looked like she was going to be sick, unable to look away from the pictures in front of her. But she eventually did, casting a harsh stare at her daughter. “Please, tell me you had nothing to do with this.”

Doing her best to fake her shock, she shook her head and pushed away the photos. “I swear, I had nothing to do with this. I don’t even know why he would do this.”

“We were wondering the same thing and discovered that he’s a fan of yours. He has multiple pictures of you, as well as Mlle. Dupain-Cheng. We suspected that he had been stalking you and came to the conclusion that he thought she was bullying you and decided to protect you on his own-”

“Oh no, that has to be it!” She exclaimed, skillfully faking shock. “Marinette followed me out of school last week and threatened me to stay away from my boyfriend. This boy must have seen her and decided to get rid of her.”

“If that’s the case, why are you questioning my daughter?” Greta pressed, not completely believing Lila but seeming to be coming around to her side.

“As I was saying,” stressed Detective Cooper. “We had suspected that M. Mortaure was stalking your daughter, until we got the warrant for his phone. It seems that someone, supposedly Lila, has been corresponding with him for many weeks. She had been flirting with him, sending him photos of herself, and then Marinette. She went on to tell him that Mlle. Dupain-Cheng was a stalker and had threatened her. M. Mortaure seems to have done what he did with the understanding that he was protecting Lila, at Lila’s own behest.”

“I would never do that!” Lila cried before reaching into her purse to pull out her personal mobile and set it on the table in front of them. “Check my phone, I never messaged him.”

“We have already checked your phone records against the one that has been messaging M. Mortaure, and found that the numbers did not match.” Detective Raimus said, and Lila watched her mother visibly slump from relief… but it was short lived. 

“We did, however, track the number to a burner phone that was purchased in cash from a gas station. We thought it was a dead end, but the person who bought the phone made a mistake.” Raimus continued as Detective Cooper pulled out his own mobile and dialed a number. “The person who bought it has kept it on, and it is currently active.”

Seconds after Cooper pressed send, a ringing came from Lila’s purse. Greta Rossi stared at her daughter in shock before yanking the purse out of Lila’s hands and pulling out a second phone from inside. When Cooper cancelled the call, the second phone stopped ringing. 

“What have you done?” She spat at Lila.

Panicking, she shook her head while looking around the room for an exit. “That’s not mine! They must have planted it on me when they brought me here! They’re trying to frame me!”

“DON’T LIE TO ME!” Greta screamed at her daughter, causing Lila to practically fall out of her seat in fear. “You convinced someone to commit MURDER for you! That makes you just as guilty as him!”

“But-but I have diplomatic immunity! I can’t be charged for any of this!”

“Yes, you can,” Greta said, her voice going cold. “I may be a secretary to the Italian Ambassador, which grants me immunity, but that doesn’t extend to you! I told you to behave! I told you to never cause trouble like you did in Roma after what you did to that boy that called you out on your…” Understanding washed over Greta’s features as her expression morphed from anger, to understanding, and then disgust. “That’s it, isn’t it? Marinette never bullied you. She knew about your lies and you set out to hurt her just like before!” 

Standing up quickly, her mother started pacing the room before looking back to the detectives. “I’ll still need to speak with the ambassador, but you can expect our full cooperation in this.”

“Mom, no!”

“What are the charges?” Greta asked, acting as though Lila wasn’t even there. 

“As Lila is a minor, she can be charged with Complicity to Commit Murder, the decision of sentencing is ultimately up to the judge. But seeing as she purposefully bought a burner phone to use and has also lied to the police, I wouldn’t hold much hope.”

~oOo~

The trial took longer than expected. At first, things had been looking up since her followers from class had come to act as character witnesses. All of them saying how wonderful she was, a great friend that did so much for them and everyone she knew,   and that she would never do something so terrible. That Marinette was just jealous of Lila, so it was better to take whatever she said with a grain of salt.

Then, the prosecution started their case. Showing evidence of Lila falsifying records at school, video evidence of her purposefully framing Marinette for assault and theft. As well as the communications between herself and Henry, encouraging him to kill Marinette. 

Her followers had still been a bit sceptical to believe what the prosecutor was saying about her, not wanting to believe that they had supported someone who would try to get another person murdered. But then came her past victims, many of whom her mother had never known about. Simone from Rome, Sara from Florence, Giulia from Venice, Daniel from Viterbo, and Sofia from Palermo. All of them testifying against Lila, many with screenshots of threatening texts from her, photos of ruined property and injuries she had inflicted on them, and all around proof that Lila was the reason behind many hardships that had happened to them. And all because they had figured out that she was a liar and she had done everything in her power to hurt them.

After all that, the judge had not been kind. 

“It is clear, Mlle. Rossi, that you are a very disturbed girl in need of help,” the judge said, not bothering to hide how offput he was by Lila. “I cannot, in good conscious, allow you to roam freely. Having seen that these habits of yours have not only been repeated over and again, but have escalated to attempted murder. I have no choice but to have you returned to Italy where you will be kept in a juvenile detention center until you turn 18, at which point you will be transferred to a mental hospital for treatment for no less than five years. At which point, you will be evaluated to see if you will be able to safely rejoin society.”

Lila was immediately escorted back to Italy in disgrace. Her name slandered across every newspaper and magazine across Europe for what she had done. She was now famous, with most everyone knowing her name and reporters scrambling to take her picture as she did her walk of shame out of the courthouse. She was finally famous, but for all the wrong reasons

In case you are wondering. Henry made the mistake of coming after Marinette when she was with her parents. Tom and Marinette were in the bakery kitchen and Sabine was at the front. Tom saw the gun and hit him in the face with his rolling pin twice. He dropped the gun but was still coming after Marinette, she tripped him and he landed in the frier, which had been turned on to make donuts, and splashed oil all over him. Sabine had rushed back in time to see a bleeding and badly burned Henry grabbing a knife, she did some wicked moves that resulted in Henry stabbing himself. By then, he passed out from the pain and the Dupain-Chengs had called the police. The officers that came were both impressed and terrified by what happened to the boy, but the surveillance footage proved that they were only defending themselves.

TAGLIST:

@2confused-2doanything @7-sage-7 @aadnrsstar @abrx2002 @awkwardromances @bayball @babylovebug18 @botanicalfoxx @caffeinetheory @cheshire5210 @chocolateherringtacofan @city-of-all-tunas @classycollectorreviewworld  @corabeth11 @darkened-flame @delightfulcookiesrecipespizza @fandom-trapped-03 @ghostmaster @iamblinkmarvelarmy @interobanginyourmom @izang @jesussavedevenme @kazedancer @kitten12113 @lady-phoenix-of-tardis @lilypotter2018 @lunataravler @maskedpainter @ miraculouslydumb  @nerd-nowandforever @ola-is-dead @pandacatxd @plushbookworm @plz-excuse-my-inner-ravenclaw @pheonix-biach @raiderofthelostbooks @ramos123 @rowanrouge @rowanyx @ren121 @seesea22 @seraphichana @sashakoi @shypeacekitten @tazer6787 @that-girl-sakea @thecrazyfantrollshasmoved @the-smallest-kittenz @tishwinchesterannabethjackson @t1dwarrior-of-earth @ulmban @with-forward-motion @wonderbat91939 @zoiechance

[dancingazaleas]

𖨆. 07 / all for us

summary: it feels as if god is blessing you personally when levi decides to spare you. but as the day goes on, you can’t help but notice things and ask questions, some of which you didn’t ask.

note: why was this chapter so hard to write

taglist: @voltairelesecond @baelo80 @the-sun-baby @uniquepickle @ascybous @messyhairday-me @stupid-stinky @saturnalya @megumitodoroki @kouyume @quacksonlover81 @gipumar

word count: +3.0k

warnings/notes: cursing, mentions of murder, mentions of drinking and driving, vomiting, mentions of blood, mentions of ocd, the reader is confused

LEVI ackerman knew he wasn't a good person. he knew from the moment he watched his uncle slaughter a man in front of him at the age of eight.

levi knew the moment he killed a man for theft. he knew the moment people would cower before him in highschool when he'd walk through the halls. he knew the moment he was sucking the smoke from a cigarette into his mouth.

he knew the moment he found himself fighting police officers. he knew the moment he was pushed against the hood of a car with his hands cuffed behind his back.

he knew the moment when erwin smith sat down in front of him with no emotion written on his face. the moment when erwin said he knew levi had done it, but he would be defending him either way. the moment when levi disobeyed the oath as he spat out his testimony. the moment the gavel was slammed down along with the verdict of 'not guilty'. the moment he stepped into the sunshine, erwin's hand in his, for the first time in months, knowing damn well he didn't deserve it.

but levi didn't care, he never did. the world he was born into was cruel. he had to fight for his place at the top, for his food, for his clothes, for everything. if no one cared about him, then why should he care for others.

but as he stares down at you trembling from fear on the floor, he can't help but think that he's incorrect.

"please don't hurt me again," you plead in a whisper, tilting your head to the floor.

levi only sighs, walking in and shutting the door behind him. he crouches in front of you, hand now awkwardly stroking your head.

"what happened," he asks, and it's something that comes as a shock to you. you were slightly prepared for a beating.

you snap your head up to look at him in shock.

"what have you got in your hands," he points at the scrapbook held to your chest.

"oh!" you fumble to show him, "i saw this earlier... i wanted to look but i didn't think you'd allowed me. i'm sorry, please don't hurt me."

"i would've let you, i barely look at this thing anymore. can you tell me what happened now," he scoffs at the front cover of the scrapbook.

"when i was going to put it back, a book on the shelf fell. then another book on the top shelf fell off, so i used the lower shelves as a ladder. as you can see, it didn't work," you look ashamed while you gesturing towards the shelf.

he just huffs, "go sit on the couch. we can look through that book after i clean."

you obey and watch levi heft the bookshelf back onto its legs. his fists clench as he looks down at the pile of books surrounding his feet.

hastily, levi's picking up the books by the color and placing them back onto the shelf. when he's finished, he takes a step back to look at it. he's unsatisfied, instead more frustrated as he starts to take all of the books off of the second bookshelf he has.

but in the middle of taking the books off the shelf, he twitches and taps the book against the wood five times. he's putting the books back onto the shelf, going back to the other bookshelf and taking all the books off of that.

you stare in absolute bewilderment. the shelves had looked perfect and identical to you, not to mention clean. as he's in the midst of taking the books off the shelf, he taps the book against the wood again.

and with that, he's placing it all back onto the shelf again. he sighs in relief after he's checked everything, finally trotting to you and plopping down next to you on the loveseat.

nervously, you scoot closer to him in order for you both to be able to see the scrapbook. he watches you flip it open past his baby picture, instead turning to the page that showed his mother feeding him.

"that's my mom, kuchel," he gently rubs his finger on the photograph, "think i was around a year at this point."

humming, you flip to the next page. when you realize it's the picture of levi at his mother's funeral, you try to flip the page but levi stops you.

a sigh, he explains, "my mother always had a very weak immune system, according to my uncle. because of where we lived, we both ended up getting deathly ill and we were too weak to get any help. i had to watch her die and wait for someone to come check up on us."

"i'm assuming it was your uncle," you tilt your head.

"it was. he took me in afterwards, gave me food and a shower. he even taught me how to hold a knife and how to fight for future reference. he had some work to do while i would fight for food."

you point to the one of levi standing in front of a building. to which he replies with, "first day of kindergarten. my mother was still alive back then so she decided to take the picture."

he turns the page for you, a relieved look in his eyes at he stares at the next photograph. it's a picture of levi, in high school, wearing a tux while standing next to another man with a bubbly girl holding onto levi as she holds up a peace sign.

the boy, who's also wearing a tux, has ice blue eyes and wavy dirty blonde hair that obviously hasn't been styled. he's got a gentle smile on his face while he looks at both the girl and levi, someone who levi was obviously fond of.

the girl has dark red hair in low and loose ponytails with freckles painting her tan cheeks. her eyes shine an emerald green along with her pearly white teeth.

"that's... isabel and farlan. met them in 8th grade, and we were at junior prom in this. farlan took me as his date while isabel went stag. i'm glad i still have this picture."

you resist the urge to fight back the joke of his type in men, instead asking, "are you not friends anymore?"

levi stays quiet for a moment, "they died in a horrible car crash a month later. some asshole decided to drink and drive while driving a semi. rear ended them at 45 miles per hour and killed them on impact. isabel was slouching in her seat and farlan was hunched over the wheel apparently. it was gruesome."

"i.... i'm so sorry," you reluctantly touch his arm.

he waves his free hand up and down in dismissal, despite hurt he actually was, "it's fine. happened years ago."

he turns the next page in order to distract himself from the sheer awkwardness that bathes the room. the next picture is of him, around the age of 24, standing in the sunlight while he smiles softly to the sky.

"erwin was my attorney, before he became a prosecutor, when i went to jail. he proved me not guilty and this was the picture he managed to take of me right after we left the courthouse. it was the first time i'd seen the sun without handcuffs on in months," he huffs with slight annoyance at the memory, something that surprises you just a bit.

"why'd you get arrested?"

"nothing you need to worry about," telling you would only make you fear him more. and that would be a pain to deal with.

the next page after is blank, along with the rest that follow.

"i stopped because i thought it was stupid," he crosses his arms, nudging the back of the scrapbook with his knee.

"i don't think it's stupid," you shake your head, fingertips gently tracing the grainy and textured paper.

"why's that?"

"well," you smile a bit while your mind wonders to the scrapbook pieck made you one year for your birthday, "it shows you the good memories that you might've missed as the time passed. reminds you that there's something in every little small day. it helps you keep the memory alive, even if some of it is upsetting, and i think it shows how much you've changed as a person."

levi stares at you, slightly flustered at your words as you relook at the photographs with gentle hands.

he stands up, "i just remembered the tea." ah, a sound excuse. if only levi had made tea.

you watch as he seems to rush out of the room, something you shrug off while gently putting the scrapbook on levi's desk and laying back down on the couch. you play another movie on the television that hangs on the wall, perking up when levi walks back into the room with a tray. it holds finger sandwiches and some lettuce mixed with some fruit in a small bowl along with tea. cracked sunflower seeds sit on a small plate on the side, and you feel yourself droll when you realize at there's cheese, lettuce, and ham on your sandwich.

levi places it on your lap, simply nodding at your kind, "thank you, levi."

he doesn't answer and just goes back to his desk, while you chew quietly.

it stays that way until erwin comes home.

————

it isn't until your eyes are fluttering open that you realize you've fallen asleep. you flinch at the sight of erwin's face close to your's, but slowly relax when he pulls away.

"i'm sorry, i didn't think my kiss would wake you," he places a loving hand on your head.

"'s fine, probably needed to get up anyway," you reply groggily while rubbing an eye, "how long have i been asleep for?"

"levi said since a little bit after lunch. it's only three o'clock at the moment," he sits on the edge of the couch, smiling at how you shuffle to accommodate him.

"sandwiches must've been tasty.... did you just get off work," you sigh and snuggle up under the thin blanket that's been laid on top of you while you were sleeping.

erwin lays his large hand on your cheek, which has you tense for just a moment and then relaxing.

"i got off a little while ago but i needed to run errands," a thumb strokes at the apple of your cheek, something that you disgustingly find comfort in.

"where did levi go?"

"went to make himself some tea," he chuckles with a shake of his head, "he claimed that he felt withdrawals."

you shake your head while laughing, "i doubt he said that. how was work?"

"i guess i can say it was adequate. i missed you and levi the whole day, but would often get distracted by my clients and their necessities. i'm dealing with a kidnapping case at the moment. a girl around your age named ymir was recently found by her girlfriend, historia. i can't say anything more," he pulls his hand away from you and uses it to pinch the bridge of his nose.

you feel yourself get the chills.

he's.... working on a kidnapping case.

he's prosecuting.... a kidnapper.

he's punishing someone who's doing the same thing as him. someone who took away a girl and kept her trapped for months. god knows what the man did to the girl.

and here you are, letting erwin hold your cheek and looking through an old photo album with levi.

you feel sick to your stomach, shooting up while slapping a hand to your mouth and grabbing at her's shirt.

"i'm gonna throw up," you barely are able to speak without the feeling of your food coming out of your stomach.

startled, erwin stares, "what?"

"can... need a can," you gag and lean over the edge of the couch.

erwin gets up when he realizes just what it is you're asking for, rushing across the room only for you to spill your guts out onto the floor.

it's been forever since you've thrown up, minus when levi kicked your stomach, and it has your whole body shaking. the intensity of it all has your nose dripping with blood and tears falling from your eyes, forcing you to seal your eyes closed.

"what happened here," levi sounds scared as he stands in the doorway, but before erwin can even finish his sentence levi is slamming the door behind him while he storms out.

erwin sighs with frustration, helping you scoot down the couch so he can place the trash can in front of you without the bottom being dirtied. with shaky hands, erwin's pulling all of your hair out of your face while you sob and gag into the trash.

it's ten more minutes before you're able to lay back down. blood and tears stain your face and you dazedly stare up at the ceiling.

"i'll be back with a towel and some water, levi will be back soon with an avalanche of cleaning products," erwin reassurances while he stumbles out of the door.

just as erwin leaves, levi enters. he's got a mask that covers his nose and mouth and rubber gloves that match with his cleaning apron. he's carrying a sponge, some spray, a towel, a broom/dustpan, along with some breath mints.

levi squats on all fours, scrubbing at the floor aggressively as he rides the room of the stench and the stain.

"s... sorry," you croak and levi grimaces.

he ignores you in order to keep scrubbing at the floor just as erwin rushes in with a warm towel and some water. he wipes off your blood, tears, and the mouth to rid you of your vomit. you look at him dazedly as he helps you drink the water he's given you.

levi passes a few breath mints to you when you're done drinking the water, which you eagerly take. you plop them into your mouth, sighing as you rest back against the couch cushions.

"take her to her room," levi orders erwin while spraying the spray onto the floor and couch.

erwin does so in silence, carefully carrying you to your room and laying you on the bed.

"levi won't hurt me will he...? please tell me he won't," you grit your teeth while holding onto erwin's shirt sleeve, tears welling up in your eyes.

"no, he won't. he's just scared," erwin grabs the hand on his sleeve and holds it in his own.

"of what?"

"uncleanliness. a while after he started living with me, i took him to a psychiatrist as i had noticed strange behaviors. he ended up getting diagnosed with ocd, and the psychiatrist thought it had to do with his upbringing in poverty. if things aren't a certain way or clean enough, it causes him to spiral," erwin explains carefully, trying to find the correct words and meanings as he speaks.

"doesn't that... give him more of a reason to hurt me...?" you squeeze his hand tightly and pulling it closer to you in fear.

"it doesn't. why are you insistent at how levi might hurt you," he bunches his eyebrows up in concern while scooting closer to you.

"he's done it so many times before... remember? if i say the wrong thing... i'll get slapped. if i make a mistake, he'll beat me.. i just don't want to hurt anymore," you sob hysterically, bringing your free hand up to your face to cover your eyes.

erwin stares in bewilderment. he hadn't realized just how much levi's beatings effected you. of course, they were supposed to affect you in some way, but not enough where you were terrified of making a wrong move.

"he won't hurt you unless you've deserved it, and you've done nothing in a while. he loves you," erwin stroked his thumb across your skin.

you raise your hand from your eyes to stare at him, heat swarming your face, "he does? he doesn't act like it.."

"of course he loves you," erwin smiles, "i love you as well. we'd never hurt you unless given a reason."

something about his sentence makes your head throb in pain. maybe it was the secret confusion that lingered in your head. they said they loved you, even though they kidnapped you and beat you half to death. but then again, they did provide you with things you'd mentioned to them before in order to keep you happy. they even bought a grand piano for you.

it has your heart speeding up and your body hot, bashfully looking to the side.

you loved them back didn't you? they'd treated you with such care, hadn't they? bathing you, feeding you, dressing you, and even visiting you. anytime they were around you, your heart would speed up and you'd get a weird feeling in your stomach.

that meant love, did it not?

subconsciously, you furrow your eyes and grit your teeth. they didn't love you. they were just crazy.

well, maybe they weren't crazy, maybe just misled. you've yet to learn about erwin's past, but based on the way he acts, you assume that it might be a sensitive topic. that had to be the only logical solution, right?

but if they weren't crazy, they'd let you outside, right?

but then again, the outside world could be dangerous at times. when you went outside last time, you did get scuffed and bruised because of the concrete. maybe they just wanted to protect you? that had to be it.

you open your mouth to reply, but the sound of your door opening and closing has you slamming it shut.

"she's still crying," levi asks while walking closer, frowning at how you grip erwin's hand tighter.

"it's best if i let you and her speak about it," erwin says sadly, letting go of your hand and making his way to the door, "alone."

you gulp as soon as erwin shuts the door behind him, staring at levi anxiously. he plops himself next to your body, just like erwin did before.

"please don't hurt me..."

sighing, he lays himself down next to you and pulls you close to him.

"i'm not going to hurt you," he pulls your head into his chest and wraps his arms around you, "not unless you deserve it."

"but...," you quiver, "you were so angry earlier."

"i wasn't angry. i was just... nervous, i guess. and it wasn't at you, or because of you, it was at the mess."

a silence floods the room as you relax in levi's embrace, heat once again spreading to your cheeks.

"what made you puke? i know lunch wasn't that bad," levi grumbles while rubbing your back, arm slightly stiff.

"erwin... was telling me about his case. the one about the girl getting kidnapped...," you tense up again while levi sighs.

"why would he tell you that? i swear he's gonna end up shooting himself in the foot one day," he shakes his head, "you're not like that girl."

"how so..."

"we did it because we love you, not because we wanted to use your body," he scoffs, "surprised you think of us that lowly."

"n-no! i-i don't," you exclaim.

"i know, i'm just teasing. but don't doubt us like that. we want to love you and care for you, not use you," you trace your finger in a circle at levi's sentence, embarrassment washing over you like a wave.

"you love me?"

"yeah, wouldn't do what i did otherwise."

"i think..." you furrow your eyebrows, unaware of the slightly shocked expression of levi, "i think i love you too..."

[webbedphantom]

He was quiet for a while after that, just trying to think of what to say.

On one hand, she was right. His excuses were pathetically thin, and she was right to tear through them. And... she was right about how close he'd come to death tonight. He should've called for backup, if not from her, then from someone. Even if that new spell would turn them against each other, she probably couldn't have hit both of them at once. But... if she'd gotten hurt... if he'd been forced to hurt her, he'd never forgive himself for that.

He physically winced when she started sniffling. The pain and sadness in her voice hurt him worse than anything he'd felt tonight. He wanted to back down, to apologize, wipe her tears away and promise to never do something so stupid ever again.

... And then he remembered why he'd done it in the first place. The nightmares he'd had since the day she'd gotten her powers, the day he nearly lost her for good. He knew she was capable, hell she was probably already a better fighter than he was, and she hadn't even had her Persona for a month.

But he'd let her down before. He couldn't get to her in time, couldn't save her from Akechi's attack. Even though she was stronger now, even though she was now immune to the thing that nearly killed her, she wasn't invincible either. What if it happened again? What if she needed him to help her, and he failed again?

He couldn't let that happen. He had to keep that scenario from ever being a possibility... even if it meant she'd hate him for it.

He couldn't help but let out a laugh when she mentioned his ego, though it was quiet. Small. Pathetic. He had a lot of problems, but an ego wasn't one of them. He could talk a big game, carry himself with confidence, especially in the suit, but in reality he didn't think that highly of himself. He didn't see himself as something worth protecting. That the only thing he was good for was helping people as the Spider, because that was the only time he felt like he was worth anything at all.

That... and one other time. The time he spent with her. She made him think that maybe he was something more than just the costume, that he had worth outside of the mask.

But who was he kidding? The only person in the whole world that made him feel like he was worth a damn, and he'd brought her to the verge of tears. He wasn't worth anything. He was a disgrace.

He didn't deserve her. He didn't deserve to even look at her.

"I'm sorry..." He said finally, his voice as quiet as his prior laugh had been... and just as pathetic. "You're right... I should've called for backup..."

He could give her that much, alleviate her fears somewhat... but he couldn't give her what she wanted. He couldn't put her in a situation where she'd have to rely on him again.

He'd just let her down. He'd just get her hurt.

"But you're-" He paused. How could he phrase this properly? What would convince her to not try to fight beside him? Would anything??

"... you're not ready for what I'm up against. You're close, but you're not there yet."

Liar. She was more ready than he was. But he couldn't put her at risk. She needed to be safe from his failures, at least until he could bring Akechi down... maybe for longer.

Maybe forever.

"I-I'll ta-take-" Another pause. That last thought made him choke up a bit. He didn't like it. He was nothing without her... but maybe he was nothing anyway. Maybe she was better off without him holding her back. "I'll take some time off... focus on healing up."

He stood from her bed, despite the fact that she was barely even half done. And this entire time, he'd never looked her way, averting his eyes, facing away from her. He couldn't bring himself to do it, no matter how much he wanted to.

"I'll talk to the others about getting you out into the field more. They'd be better for you... better teachers. I'd just slow you down-"

That last part was said faintly, more for his sake than hers. A reminder of why he had to do this. Even though it hurt like hell, far worse than any blow he'd taken tonight.

He summoned his costume back upon him, still in tatters as he hadn't fully recovered. Though he didn't think he ever would.... not from this.

"Thanks for the patch up. I should be good to get home now..."

Makoto listened to his explanation with a rather disappointed scowl on her face as she continued to patch his wounds. As much as she was used to his foolishness, this was the last straw for her. The stress of worrying about him all the time, paired with her newfound abilities to fight alongside him and still getting shafted into the "damsel girlfriend" role had become far too much for her.

She glared at him angrily as he tried to make the excuse that backup wouldn't have helped. "What do you mean?! Aaron, you could have been killed tonight! Even if I'd gotten there a little late, I could have helped! You can't fight everything all on your own. Not anymore. One of these days you're going to fight someone for the last time and how the hell do you think your friends will feel when the news hits? H-how... How do you think I'll feel?" She lectured, her voice cracking at the last part.

Makoto paused, gently wiping at her eyes and sniffling. "You're not invincible, Aaron. And I can fight. I'm just as capable as you. Especially now. You can't just keep shafting me to the side like this cause your ego wants you to be the star of the show all the time."

[thezebrawlw]

Donna Beneviento x Maiden.

I'M A BIT ANGRY 'CUZ WHEN I FINISHED, MY COMPUTER DID SOMETHING WEIRD AND RESTARTED AND WHEN I LOGGED IN AGAIN EVERYTHING WAS ERASED AND AAAAAAAALSKDFGKJDFKA

Warning: Mild suicidal content // Mentions of sexual abuse.

(A/N): (I'm still studying English, so if I have a mistake, I apologize)

Summary: A maiden arrives at the Beneviento mansion. What will happen when Donna begins to live with her?

(I'll do a part two, because I don't want this to be too long.)

- - -

The day the maiden arrived at the Beneviento mansion, it was raining. The door opened effortlessly. Not even the toxic pollen from the plants would drive someone crazy enough to come close to the house, so there was no need to have locks.

A chorus of high-pitched voices scared the young woman "what are you doing here" "how did you get in?" "You shouldn't be here" "Let's play with her, let's play with her"

The young woman felt scratches on her arms and on her legs, someone bit her arm and pulled her hair hard enough to almost rip it out.

"Please, I just want to hide," the woman yelled.

"You shouldn't have come in, stupid girl" "Now you belong to us"

Suddenly the dolls fell to the ground and crawled back to their places.

The young woman saw a shadow materialize in front of her. It was a slim figure, covered entirely in black, opaque cloth. The figure was carrying a doll in wedding clothes in their arms. It was from that doll that a hollow voice came out.

"You shouldn't have come in, stupid girl. Now you're never going to be able to come out."

"I don't care," said the maiden, "if you want to kill me, just kill me. I'd rather perish under the hand of a noblewoman than die from those hunters."

"You're not worth Donna's time" the doll spoke again.

"If you don't want to murder me, then let me serve you" implored the maiden "your house will always be clean, the fire will always be lit, there will be no dust shavings on your beautiful dolls, just please, let me stay here, Lady Beneviento"

Donna didn't move. Beneath her veil she had an arched brow, confused by her request. The pollen must have made her hallucinate enough to make her say those things.

"Change those old rags that you have as clothes and find something to clean", say the doll.

"Yes My Lady"

"The name’s Angie and the only Lady here is Donna. Got it, muddy face?"

"Yes, Miss Angie"

From that day on, the young woman became the servant of Lady Beneviento.

Working there would be easy if it weren't for the mischief the dolls played on her. If she swept, the dolls would run around the little mountain of dust. When the floor was freshly waxed, the dolls dragged their knives on the wood. At night, the dolls would not stop laughing or making sounds of babies crying. They also watched her sleep, sometimes sitting around her bed.

But the maid never complained, she just looked at the mess they made with a tired smile, as if she was watching little children do mischief. Even if they watched her sleep, the only thing she could hope for was to be killed, but that never happened.

During the first weeks Donna tried to induce the maiden some hallucinations, but it seemed not to work, she assumed that her new servant had some kind of immunity to cadou and by extension to the pollen of the flowers that grew around the mansion.

Donna watched her and evaded her in equal moments. The leader of the Beneviento was locked in her room or her workshop for most of the day, so te only way to keep an eye on the maiden was through her dolls.

It was for that reason that the maiden always walked with a small retinue of dolls behind her, like a mother duck with her chicks. She was used to it by now.

That's how Donna realised that the maid was a very good singer, but a distracted cook. She was thankful that she didn't need to eat, just a drink now and then, because she didn't think she would be able to eat coal with sugar in it.

She also noticed that the maid was an active conversationalist. She talked a lot and about everything. The dolls listened to her and little by little they began to join in the monologue.

The young girl listened attentively and that was how she learned the dolls's names, where they were located in the mansion and what they liked to play with.

Watching her, Donna also noticed that the maiden looked out the windows, a melancholic smile kept on her face when it snowed or when the sun made an appearance.

One particularly snowy day, the dolls pulled the maid to the front door, asking her to come out and play for a while.

"I don't know, I don't think Lady Beneviento will give me permission"

"It will only be a while, it will only be a while", said the dolls.

The maid had never asked Donna for anything since she arrived. Donna hadn't spoken to her either, if she needed something, Angie would be the one to speak in her place.

Then, a dark figure appeared on the stairs. It was Donna accompanied by Angie. The doll spoke for her.

"You can come out"

"I... Am I allowed, My lady?"

Donna nodded. Angie spoke.

"If you promise to stay in the garden"

"Yes, yes, thank you very much, My lady, Miss Angie"

Donna allowed Angie to join the others and then went to her room. From her bedroom window, she watched her servant and her dolls play in the snow. The young woman made small snowballs and distributed them to those who only asked one, becoming the person in charge of making ammunition for the doll's games.

Angie began to converse with the young woman. Thanks to her connection, Donna could hear her.

"Why did you come to Beneviento mansion, mudy face?"

"They were chasing me"

"Who?"

"Hunters. They know that my mother was a witch and that her blood runs through my veins. They are afraid that I'll curse people."

"Would you do it?"

The maiden laughed, a wicked, sing-song laugh.

"I already did it" under her clothes, she showed an exquisite necklace made with rose petals. "The petals of this rose are tongues of the people who tried to abuse me."

In her room, Donna froze. This young woman could be dangerous if offended enough. Would her witchy nature be of any benefit to Mother Miranda? She decided to keep her longer and also to ask the dolls to stop their pranks.

One night, the maiden slept peacefully, too peacefully, so peacefully that she awoke in the middle of the night. It was not normal to sleep like this as the dolls were still making noises. When she lit her room with a candle, she realised that she was alone.

She went out into the hallway and heard sobbing and banging upstairs. She ran to Donna's room and found the dolls by the door.

"My lady?"

Angie's voice answered.

"Go away."

"Do you need anything?"

"Go away."

"I can get you something to drink if you--"

"GET OUT!"

Then a group of dolls armed with knives followed the young woman to her room. She locked herself in and felt lucky to be alone.

Donna's anxiety attack ended around three in the morning, so it was to be expected that she would wake up after midday. She also knew that her attack had caused some dolls to break, so she grabbed Angie and left her room.

She noticed that there was no one in the corridor. Donna looked for her dolls and found them in their respective places, they were broken, but there wasn't a speck of dust on their bodies.

Donna asked if they had returned on their own, but the dolls replied that it was all thanks to the maid. Donna busied herself with her dolls upstairs and when she came down to the living room, she found the maid carefully cleaning the face of one of her dolls.

"You are ready, I will now place you on the table so that... ¡My lady!"

Donna smiled under her veil.

"What are you doing?" Angie, as always, spoke instead.

"I figured you wouldn't be feeling well, so I decided to accommodate the dolls instead. Is... it okay?"

Again, Donna did not answer. Instead, she turned her attention to repairing the broken arms and legs of the dolls, apologising quietly to each one for hurting them.

The maid continued her work on the cleaning and that was the first time the two had been in a room together for more than two minutes.

In the night, some of the dolls still in need of repair talked to Donna, all of them telling her about the maid and how pleasant her company was. They told her that the young woman was a good listener and that although they could not feel warmth, they were sure that her touch was warm because she was almost always in the kitchen.

The dolls also tell Donna that the young woman (they all referred to her as "mudface" thanks to Angie), was very good at playing hide and seek and sometimes helped play tricks on other dolls.

Donna realised how fond they had become of the young lady, so she decided to thank her in her own way.

In the morning, the maid found a small box wrapped in a ribbon. Inside was a pair of woollen gloves to protect her from the cold and a note in elegant handwriting that said "thank you".

Donna looked out of the window at the maid. She was hiding behind a fountain so that Angie would not find her. The day was snowy and somewhat cold, but it was no problem for the maid because her hands and neck were protected by gloves and a scarf.

Both items were Donna's creation. The leader of the Beneviento continued to make small gifts for the maid as a way of saying thank you for the care she took of her dolls.

When the game was over, and thankfully spring was in the air, Angie and the young lady sat down to enjoy the sunshine and make a couple of wreaths.

She finished making one for Angie and placed it on her head, then made a larger one and told her to give it to Donna.

She looked up and found Donna watching her, the maid smiled and waved, though Donna remained still.

The gift was well received by Donna and in gratitude she knitted another pair of gloves.

The end of winter was all about giving small gifts. It was no longer about gratitude, the two women liked to see each other wear or use the gifts they each made.

A flower necklace dipped in amber, a hood for the cold, a jar of biscuits, a flavouring made from pleasant-smelling herbs...

Donna left her room more often, sharing space with the maid. The evenings were quiet, but not uncomfortable. She still didn't speak directly to the young woman, so Angie always had to step in to make small talk.

The young woman, despite her nature, tried to speak little so as not to make her mistress uncomfortable, for which Donna was grateful.

On one occasion they were both in the library, each reading her own book. They were not sitting close together, but within sight of each other. They were silent, until Donna let out a little giggle. The maid couldn't help but glance in her direction, eyebrows arched and a half smile on her face. She had never heard Donna laugh before.

"Are you having a pleasant reading, my lady?"

Beneath her veil, Donna stood still. Angie was playing somewhere and couldn't answer to explain the reason for her laughter, so she just nodded.

From that day on, the maid tried to make Donna laugh more often. Sometimes just making funny comments or other times telling jokes to the dolls, making sure Donna was close enough to listen.

Donna laughed more often and was in a better mood. You could see it in the way she walked and in the new dolls she created. Even in the laughter that could be heard from her room when she was talking to Angie.

But one day, her progress in confidence slipped back.

This is the end of part one.

Part two is here