#often her heroes have known their love interests for awhile
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izzythehutt · 8 months ago
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Started re-reading Bath Tangle because...why not, still in a Heyer mood. A few observations:
Heyer was pretty not sexy in style, even for her time period, but I do feel like Serena and Rotherham have Belligerent Sexual Tension (tm.)
Is this the only one of her books where the hero and heroine are exes? This would be called a "Second Chance Romance" in romance industry parlance.
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joanofexys · 2 months ago
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hi i know absolutely nothing about anything dc related but i would love to hear about your ocs if you'd like to share (and if you'd like to wait for someone who knows dc to talk to about them that's absolutely chill i just think your characters are cool & that there's no harm in mentioning im interested haha)
HI YAY THANK YOU FOR ASKING ABT THEM
okay so real quick
Harlowe Wayne:
She/her, lesbian
Blind with some light perception
Minorly enhanced senses
6’0
Ellis Wayne:
He/him, unlabeled, aspec
Glasgow smile scarring
6’2
The two of them are basically copy and paste of Bruce Wayne appearance wise. Ellis is easily mistaken for his father if people don’t notice the scars. And Harlowe often takes over as the Bat when Bruce is out of Gotham because she’s built like a brick wall and with a vocal modulator she can easily pass as Batman
They’re the eldest of all the Wayne children (despite him having 10 million kids jfc) and because there has to be a little bit of projection in everything, Bruce was a teenager when the twins were born (which also leaves them growing up pre-Batman and seeing Bruce create the hero which I’ve had fun with). Typically with the timelines I go for Bruce is usually in his 40s which puts the twins in their 30’s most of the time (sometimes late 20’s).
Harlowe went blind at 13 and can perceive light and shadow, and a few years later at 15 an accident enhances her other senses slightly though her sight worsens
At 16 Ellis is the target of one of the Joker’s attacks where a permanent smile is carved onto his face. Out of all the Wayne’s/Bat’s Ellis becomes the most frequently targeted for his civilian identity, while he’s rarely targeted when he’s out acting as a vigilante. Scarecrow takes a particular interest in him which leads to a lot of fear toxin being used on him, he develops not exactly an immunity to it but a less severe response, he’s less likely to hallucinate or experience true fear unless in high doses and insteads becomes restless and irritable until the toxin has worn off.
Harlowe becomes a lawyer and works for Wayne Enterprises for awhile. Ellis’ focus tends to be engineering and tech though he doesn’t exactly have a steady job and spends a lot of time travelling. As adults the twins actually tend to go long periods of time without seeing or even contacting each other even though they might be more consistent with their siblings (not because of a lack of care or closeness it’s just something they don’t tend to think about).
Harlowe takes after Bruce even when she’s not in the suit and as a vigilante she’s known to be brutal but she has an inflexible moral code. When she’s not working as Batman she tends to stick to smaller areas of the city and doesn’t focus on the big rogues, people know she’s pretty reliable to seek out because she usually can take the time out of her patrol to help people as needed.
Ellis has a much more flexible moral code and could probably be convinced to kill if given enough evidence it was necessary or the lesser of two evils. His constant traveling has the added advantage of him being able to track criminals and organizations for long periods of time and that tends to be where his focus is. He can get very single minded about things and can struggle to tear away from an ongoing mission to work on another one or to help people.
Ellis is 3 minutes older and it doesn’t really matter until they’re arguing and suddenly it really matters (he’s taller AND older so obviously she has to listen to him). They’re both bossy little shits but Harlowe at least knows how to work with a team, Ellis will try his best but that same flaw with being narrow minded can cause problems and he’s not much of a team player.
Ellis somehow ends up the most emotionally intelligent one here against all odds and he’s the most likely to reluctantly sit down and actually talk about his feelings.
Harlowe’s the most likely to actually acknowledge her injuries and take at least most of the proper time to rest and heal rather than pushing herself the next day
Uhhhhhh I have other stuff to say about them I’m sure but I’m blanking now so that’s a little bit about my babies
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frostedsketches · 11 months ago
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I'm not planning on going into full detail over the rest of the Mane Six like I did for Twilight, despite this, I think the Mane Six ships in the Hopes'nDreamsVerse deserve a bit more light and attention. There are some ships that are a bit unconventional and therefore need a little bit of explaning to be believable. I mean c'mon? When do you ever see Soarin and Rarity shipped, or Applejack and Double Diamond, or even Twilight and Star Tracker? ( I already did a thing on them, so go search it out of you're interested! )
So to curb your curiosity and disbelief, I will be explaining these ships, right here, right now.
Alright, well, Pinkie Pie X Cheese Sandwich and Fluttershy X Discord are pretty self-explanatory and don't have much to explain in terms of how they ended up together. The story of Rainbow X Thunderlane and Rarity X Soarin, is a bit more of a complicated discussion, given that it's more widely known for the husband's in these two ships to be swapped, and so you would probably think they would be. Well, I'm going to tell you why they aren't. . .
( Note: I LOVE Soarin X Rainbow and am partial to Rarity X Thunderlane, however they didn't work with the next gen characters I at the time had ideas for and wanted to design. Also Hopes'nDreamsVerse didn't used to be my main and I had never planned for it to be, but things change. My only regret really is that some of the ships I personally prefer didn't get to be a part of the main Next Gen that I strictly think happened after the show, so I can only save those for alternates, but really I'm fine with in the end )
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Being Wonderbolts together, it's natural that ponies within the fleet would form close friendships and sometimes even have romantic feelings bloom. Well that's exactly what happened between Rainbow Dash and Soarin, and Thunderlane and Cloud Chaser.
Rainbow and Soarin became fast friends, and even then, though she'd never admit it, Rainbow had quickly developed a bit of a crush that went slightly beyond her general fascination and hero complex towards the Wonderbolts as a whole, in fact she had always found Soarin to be kind of cute out of the stallions in the fleet.
Thunderlane and Cloud Chaser had already been friends before joining the Wonderbolts, and working together in such close proximity only escaladed their bond into something more. By the time Season 9 ended, in fact the evening after Queen Twilight's Coronation, Thunderlane proposed and the two pegasi got engaged. Only four months later were they married.
Rainbow and Soarin found romance and became in item around the time that Fluttercord and CheesePie were taking off, and though they were together for months and genuinely loved each other, in the end things took a turn for the worse. And that simply was their differing ideas for the future. Rainbow was perfectly content being his girlfriend and working on and rising up in her career, while he had always known that if he were to date he'd want it to be a permanent thing and to escalate, to eventually be something more, be something more to her and have something more WITH her. This is where the argument began, which eventually caused them to break up, though it left them both sore for awhile.
Meanwhile, Double Diamond, Party Favor, and Night Glider often liked to visit Ponyville to see their friend, and in PF's case, sister, Sugarbelle. Them being on the farm so often left room for Applejack to get to know them, and get to know Double Diamond in particular. Party Favor, once he met Miss Cheerilie, often took time to hang out with her in Ponyville while Double Diamond became interested in life on the farm and often snuck away to watch Applejack do her work — though he was genuinely interested in the work itself, he also loved to watch her work in particular, let's just say he has a thing for buff ladies XD.
Friendship and eventually feelings blossomed over the course of months and though they eventually became a couple, they being such good friends and keeping their romance out of topic to others, never really mentioned to anyone else their relationship until someone poking around eventually found out and spilled the beans to everyone.
Eventually when Rainbow decided to move on and stop showing how it still affected her, Rarity, single and by now thinking she'd always be so, took it upon herself to be match maker for her friends instead, and started sending her on blind dates, that is until the day Rainbow finally put her hoof down and told her she wasn't ready yet, that she was still bothered by her breakup and needed a bit more time, when she finally came clean about that, Rarity apologized and ceased. Double Diamond and Applejack are engaged at this point, Pinkie and Cheese are newly married and Fluttershy and Discord have just found out really early on that miraculously they're expecting a foal.
The night of the Grand Galloping Gala came. Rainbow Dash ran into Thunderlane and Cloud Chaser and hung out with them when they weren't performing. Rarity however, after the Wonderbolts show was done, stumbled upon Soarin keeping to himself and conversation struck between them, both getting along well, Soarin opened up about the breakup with Rainbow and Rarity offered some insight on Rainbow's side of the story, they ended up talking until the Gala ended and they both said their goodbyes, walking away strangely with warm, fuzzy feelings in their chests and fond wandering thoughts of each other for the next few days.
Fluttershy and Discord attended the Gala, but were forced to teleport back home when Fluttershy started feeling terribly ill and faint. Later that night Fluttershy miscarries the undeveloped embryo, and though it was so early that it wasn't even living yet, Fluttershy mourned greatly for what had almost been.
Thunderlane and Cloud Chaser's daughter Tornado Racer is born and while Cloud Chaser is on maternity leave, Thunderlane finds himself running into Rainbow more and more at work, and though at first it's all innocent and friendly, both ponies know they've walked into a mess when they start feeling things they shouldn't and Thunderlane's feelings for Cloud Chaser begin to dwindle due to less time with her and more and more arguments and disagreements at home, Cloud Chaser has always had a few red flags that never got resolved and they shine through more than ever these days, so you see it's not only his feelings for Rainbow that are contributing to their falling out.
After a particularly bad fight leaving both ponies with severely damaged feelings, Thunderlane comes to realize he doesn't feel right with Cloud Chaser and comes to realize his feelings for Rainbow are intensifying as she's been a good listening ear and comforting figure to him after fights with his wife.
Though he loves his daughter and has a bad feeling about what would happen if he were to leave her, he needs to get these feelings into words, soon confessing to Rainbow who feels the same way, but despite her feelings she gets mad at him, telling him firmly that if he really wants to act on these feelings, he has to choose, either forget about her and be a faithful husband to Cloud Chaser or get a divorce to avoid being a cheater.
Thunderlane didn't come to work for a few days after that, but when he finally did, he informed Rainbow he had made up his mind; he had told Cloud Chaser how he had moved on and wanted a divorce. Rainbow felt extremely guilty, thinking it's her fault for ruining Thunderlane's prior relationship, but ultimately knows that things were never really harmonious between them and it might've happened even without her muddying the circumstances.
They were married only a few months after the divorce was finalized, Thunderlane never talked of kids to her so she trusts he won't pressure her to have them instead of focusing on her career. He knows that's not what she wants and he doesn't trust that he'd be a good dad after leaving Tornado, the thought of it hurts too much and makes him feel even more guilty.
Cloud Chaser of course does not take this kindly, though she was half of the reason it ended this way, she refuses to believe that she was part of the problem and harbors feelings of abandonment and resentment, she blames Rainbow primarily, a belief and hatred she passed down to Tornado Racer, who's childhood is destroyed by this, though after a few years Thunderlane hears of his ex's spiral and tries his best to gain custody of his daughter, Tornado wants nothing to do with him, Cloud Chaser won't let him take her and after years he ultimately loses the battle. Tornado does have solace with her Aunt Flitter who takes care of her when Cloud Chaser is unable, but of course it's not enough to make how her life is going completely 'okay' and doesn't stop her from being messed up in adulthood.
By this time Soarin and Rarity have started seeing each other and eventually become a couple. Applejack and Double Diamond are married though ponies still wonder how their so chill and non-romantic in public ( they're very affectionate when it's just them, don't get me wrong here ). Rainbow and Soarin, now both with new partners that they love more than anyone, rekindle their previous friendship which spreads between both couples, so all four become good friends, all hurt feelings healed.
Sometime between the birth of Fluttershy's foal and Pinkie's twins, and the birth of Applejack's foal a year later, Soarin proposes to Rarity and Twilight and Star Tracker become great friends, soon to be married as I will soon explain, and soon couples are married not long after each other.
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So there you have the summerized story of how these couples came to be! Hoping to have more out soon, so stay tuned! Now go out and Idk. . . keep being 20% cooler then the poor souls who haven't found joy in MLP :D
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rosieblogstuff · 1 year ago
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Ok so this has been sitting in my drafts waiting for me to get time to untangle my VERY tangled thoughts... here goes:
I deeply believe that Nikki is a manipulator (& a traitor!) and Mac's relationship with her probably wasn't entirely healthy.
It seems like he worked with Nikki for awhile before they dated (I'm almost certain that in either 1x01 or 1x12, it's mentioned they only dated for a year or two; since we know that Jack was planning to introduce Mac to Nikki in early 2012, that means they potentially worked together for 2-3 years before starting a relationship).
Meanwhile, deep down, Mac is terrified of being abandoned by the people he loves, so he would have been willing to put up with a lot to keep the relationship once it started. Nikki would have known this.
A lot of what Nikki says to Mac comes off as manipulative but he seems to be in denial about it. She says she didn't want him to get hurt, which contradicts Kendrick and the actual events. She makes the ridiculous claim that she assured the CIA that he absolutely wouldn't let that virus escape. As if the CIA would have risked a worldwide disaster on just "but my boyfriend will prevent it!"
Everyone else hearing this claim: *eyes rolling out of their heads* Mac: awwww *heart eyes*
Oh, and the flirting in front of Jack (and anyone else listening to the comms)? Ugh. Mac will get going on some topic of interest and nerd out, sure, but he's not a show-off. I can't think of any time we see him being any sort of exhibitionist. But Nikki is flirting super hard over the comms in a way that seems like would be out of character for Mac. Yet she plows on ahead with her heavy flirting.
Jack breaks in to derail her comments, not Mac. I can see Jack being the type who'd crack inappropriate jokes over the comms, so maybe he's not very bothered by all the flirting. Maybe he breaks in because he knows Mac isn't so comfortable with Nikki's blatent innuendo.
Jack doesn't seem to dislike Nikki and we're never given any reason to think he disapproved of Mac and Nikki in general. But even if Mac told him a lot of things, he might not tell Jack about particularly manipulative things Nikki does that could be red flags.
Given that we never see Nikki again after 1x12 or even hear about her, I'd like to think maybe Jack had a serious talk with Mac after that. About her being manipulative, and untrustwothy, and regardless of her intentions or her job, she knew she'd break his heart and did it anyway.
And as far as Nikki being a traitor: Nikki was absolutely NOT on the level about doing it all for the CIA! She would never have HAD to agree to the stuff she agreed to, if she didn't want to. I think the honest truth was what she told Mac on the plane: that she was jealous because everyone saw him as a hero, and she was always just in the background.
I think probably her feelings became more poisoned over time as she got more and more jealous. Maybe always (often) being stuck in the van and not getting to go out with Mac and Jack was the first seed of it. She probably had to do all the same field agent training that we see Riley doing, since even she's just in the van she's technically in the field. But maybe she made some mistakes at some point, or maybe she just hasn't shown as much innate ability in the field as Riley does, so Thornton held her back.
I was rewatching the first episode and I wonder what the dynamic looked like back when the team was Jack, Mac, and Nikki. Like, comparing the found family situation they wound up in when Riley and Bozer joined up, their close friendship duo before they were teamed with Nikki, to Jack listening to heavy flirting over the comms. Was it still like a little family working together, with Jack and Nikki good friends both looking after Mac? Or did Jack ever feel a little bit on the outside? Did Mac feel a bit torn between two people he loved? Was it fun and teasing? We only got a short glimpse and…Jack and Nikki seemed to like each other well enough. I’m so curious and we’ll never really know. Of course it’s been a while since I’ve watched so I could be forgetting a conversation about this lol
oh my goodness, I have so many questions about this time period, you're gonna open a can of worms with this, friend! What did this look like, both in the field and at home? And I think it depends a little bit on whether you actually believe that Nikki is a triple agents or just a double (and traitor). I kind of eye roll the idea that Nikki "knew" Mac would be able to get the bio weapon back, hard. Sure, she can claim Kendricks acted alone when he shot Mac but that she was willing to put him in that kind of position, to me, screams that she was only ever using him.
I have this work in progress theory about Mac and relationships, and it boils down to, Mac desperately needs to talk to a therapist about his abandonment and attachment issues. I think that he is so desperate to hang onto the people he cares about that he throws himself into romantic relationships (or maybe trying to pursue something that could potentially be a relationship) in kind of like a "marriage/romantic relationships will solve everything/make them stay/make this relationship stable" way. But because we're talking about Nikki and I absolutely don't want to talk about either of the m/f ships we're gonna keep moving ahead.
The question then becomes did Nikki have feeling for him or was she using him. Mac would be so eager to please, so easy to manipulate in a relationship. It makes me wonder if Jack and/or Bozer picked up on any signs that Nikki wasn't genuine. Or did they keep their mouths shut about any concerns because Mac seemed happy? I think if either of them had expressed any concerns, Mac would have trusted them and listened to them.
In the Jakarta flashback from 3x12 (Mac + Fallout + Jack) Jack says he wants to introduce Mac to Nikki so he must trust her a little bit if he's wanting to introduce her.
The scene we see in the pilot looks like the three of them work together well. They joke around, they appear to trust each other. Jack puts up with their flirting with relative good graces. While I think Mac probably shares things about their relationship with Jack while they're alone, I think Nikki probably tries to get a reaction from Jack by saying things like "keep the tie" on open comms. Though I guess neither of them are concerned that Jack might walk in while they're getting cozy in the surveillance van. (Poor Jack has been sent out to take plenty of walks alone while the three of them share a safe house or hotel room)
They both genuinely seem upset at both her death and then her betrayal. Though I could definitely see them both blaming themselves that they never saw it coming and they should have noticed something.
Doesn't matter what happens next, Jack will never trust her again. And he's not too pleased in 1x12 with the comments about them not getting too much sleep the night before. Nikki trying to sway Mac's opinion with nostalgia and romance. Mac is definitely way too forgiving and trusting and easily manipulated. And desperate to hang onto someone that he once cared a lot about. He's experienced a lot of grief and for the first time ever he got back a loved one that he lost. That's going to mess with his head.
My other question: at Lake Como, Nikki stays with the van, ostensibly so she can be a "hostage" and Mac will turn over the bio weapon. That must not be an uncommon occurrence because neither Mac nor Jack twigged anything suspicious about it. Also, in the flashback of Cairo Day, Nikki isn't with them on the scene, but rather working the tech offsite. It's interesting that Riley is often with them in the thick of things.
I guess it all comes down to what you think of Nikki's convoluted triple agent storyline.
While it makes the betrayal worse, I guess I kind of hope they all got along? Like how miserable would it have been for Jack to keep his mouth shut while watching Mac and Nikki get closer and the two of them not getting along.
Or does Jack pull away after Lake Como because he worries that on some level he didn't do everything he could to find Nikki because he didn't want her around. Which, even if they didn't get along, I wouldn't believe because he did everything he could to protect Mac in the Sandbox, from day one, and they started out their friendship throwing punches. Jack can put feelings aside to get the job done.
I do think Nikki would have worked hard to win over Jack though because she knows how important Jack is to Mac.
What are your thoughts?
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luimagines · 3 years ago
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First Kiss! Part 3
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Masterlist
Part 1 Part 2
Part three will include Four, Hyrule and Wind!
Content under the cut!
Four
The night was crisp and young as you walked with Four around the forest before Wild had to eventually send out the Wolf to come and find you two if you wanted to eat anything at all.
He walked a little ways ahead of you and grinned when he came across a little tree stump with a small crack down the middle. “I found one!”
“Found what?” You tilt your head. “When you said you were going to show me something, I didn’t think it would be this? Unless it’s still something I’m not seeing yet.”
“We’re not there yet!” Four bounces on the balls of his feet like an excited kid and gestures you to come next to him frantically.
You try to hide your laughter and go do what he’s asking of you.
He’s quick to grab your hand and he takes a breath.
You raise your eyebrow and copy him.
Four looks over to you, knowing that you’re messing with him before he grins and says, “Ready?”
“Ready for what?”
Four starts chanting a spell before you can even think to stop him and your whole vision shifts and everything grows and it’s warm and sweet and there, before you is suddenly a small hut with mouse people that you’ve never seen before. With feathered tails and little hats and ponchos with acorn cups and pots and you take a minute to take it all in.
Four laughs at your struck dumb expression and ushers you forward.
“What is this place?” You ask on a breath.
Four grabs your hand and gestures with his free to the space around you. “This is a safe haven for the Minish or the Picori as they’ve been known to call themselves.”
“Wow...” You feel a bright smile on your face as you head deeper into the little village inside the tree stump.
But alas, it’s only a few seconds before Link is swarmed by the mouse peop- the Minish as they asll seem to recognize him.
“Hello Mr. Hero!”
“You’re back Link!”
“How have you been?”
“Come sit with us! Have a drink!”
“Link, it’s been awhile. Do you have any new stories to tell us?” A group of the mice- minish- you have to remind yourself again- walk up to Link and one dares to loop their around his, leaning her head on his shoulder as she says this.
Four grins and pulls himself away much to your relief. “You know it! But not right now.” Four says your name, introducing you to the people who must be his friend before saying he was going to show you around.
One minish girl pouts and goes to reach for his arm again. “But Mr. Hero~!”
“Later.” Four smiles in your direction and takes your hand for everyone to see, lacing your fingers together.
You smile a little more easily and gladly follow him through the town.
And it’s really quite lovely.
But... You would enjoy yourself more if Four didn’t have one of them come up to flirt with him every ten minutes.
You can see him begin to get uncomfortable and he’s already apologized more than once about not being able to give you his full attention and show you around like he wanted. Your heart breaks for him.
One girl though, really pushes your buttons.
It’s the same one from earlier- the one that didn’t hesitate to latch onto his arm. “Link! You’ve been here long enough already! Tell us your stories!”
“Sorry but he’s with me today.” You growled and pulled him away from her.
He lets you.
You glare at the girl who doesn’t seem all that impressed by your attitude and claim. She scoffs a little and crosses her arms. “And you are you supposed to be?”
“His lover.”
Four coughs a little next to you but doesn’t deny anything.
The picori around you all still as if you popped a balloon in a silent room. All activity stops and there’s a nervous air around everyone as they all turn their heads to look at you, Four and the small group of minish girls that backup the original.
The original blinks for a minute before smirking a little. “No you’re not.”
You feel like you’ve been slapped.
You take a step back before a calm washes over you.
She doesn’t believe you?
That’s fine.
You shrug and turn to Four who’s watching everything with intense interest.
You don’t hesitate to pick him up and pin to the wall beside you, kissing him like it’s the last thing you’ll ever do. Like you’ve been dying of thirst and he’s the glass of water you’ve been waiting for. Like you’re about to get heat stroke and he’s the shade to protect you. 
Four kisses you back with a smile on his lips.
Four wraps his legs around your waist and buries his hands into your hair, bringing you closer to him.
He tastes like apples and you vaguely remember the apple pie Four had managed to snag for breakfast earlier. There’s the hint of cinnamon and sweet sugar topping.
“I think they’re together.” Someone says in the background but you’re not paying attention to them any more.
You pull away from Four and rest your forehead against his. “Hey there Lover Boy, sorry about the lack of warning.”
“I am not complaining. That was hot.” He smirks and pulls you back in for another kiss.
Those who were interested in Four back away somewhat and everyone returns, with great difficulty on their part, back to what they were doing before.
Minish are terrible gossips.
But you think you can accept that the news is going to be that Four is with you now.
All those fangirls can back off, he’s yours.
Hyrule
You were in trouble for real this time.
You don’t know what it’s going to take but you think it might just be the end of the road for you.
You’re out of potions, you have no fairies, you can’t move your dominant arm and you’re ninety eight percent sure that you’re leg is broken.
To make matters worse, there’s a whole bunch of monsters nearby that you think you’re going to be unable to avoid when they find you.
Eventually.
You take a breath and try to calm down.
There’s no amount of adrenaline in the world that can help out of this one.
And you know you’re not getting any backup either.
This is it.
You can at least leave this plane of existence with a good conscious and a clear head. You can go down with dignity and you can at least you didn’t go down easy.
You just know that the next fight will be your last.
You try to sit up, ignoring how everything in your body seems to hurt, all for different reasons.
It beginning to hurt more now that the adrenaline is leaving your system and you’re getting tired.
A nap wouldn’t hurt.
Maybe the monsters will find you in your sleep and end you then. they say that’s the best to go. In your sleep.
Or (and you know this is unlikely) they’ll think you’re already dead and just leave you alone. Then you can wake up and try to go find help after you’ve rested a little while. 
It’ll be tough, but it’s possible.
Who’re you kidding?
You’re going to die.
You’re never going to see your family again.
You’re never going to tell your friends how much you appreciate them.
You’re never going to be able to tell that Traveler that you’ve fallen uselessly in love with him. 
You’re never going to see the sun again and sing and laugh and see a future family for you....
You don’t want to die.
A single tear runs down your face and you lean back against a stone wall. the corner you were in is secluded enough but not at all hidden.
You can hear the monsters come closer- they’re fighting something. The chaos is loud and thundering in the otherwise empty and quiet cave. They’re coming in your direction and you start counting the seconds.
They get closer and you see the fringes of one huge moblin take a step back to be in front of you. He’s not facing you- too busy fighting something on the other side but you’re out in the open.
You’re tired.
You take another breath and close your eyes. You hear the moblin go down and die but from what, you don’t know. You can’t even open your eyes anymore, that was how tired you were.
But then there’s a scream.
A familiar scream.
Link.
No, Hyrule. It’s Hyrule. It’s your Traveler.
He sounds horrified, pained and it’s enough to try to get you to move again.
You need to see what caused it, you need to see if he’s ok, you need to see what made him scream like that.
But you can’t.
The most you can do it flop an arm and move your head to the side.
Something lands on your side, you can feel it and if you can’t move you can speak. “Mmm...”
Ok, you guess not.
“Oh my god...” Hyrule voice breaks. He sounds like he’s crying.
Please don’t cry, you think. I’m not worth your tears. Save them for someone who matters.
“No...” He gulps and you can feel him move your head, being as gentle as he can with you. You take the biggest breath you can and try to move your head to the other side.
“You can’t die here.” He says. “I won’t let you.”
You can feel the spell he’s used so often on your friend’s fingertips, flow through you and it lessens the pain somewhat, but you know you’re too far gone. You’re too weak. You want to try to stop him from using all his magic but you can’t but at least you can die happy, knowing that he cared about you. It may not be as deep as you would have liked to take your relationship with him, but this is enough. More than enough even.
You feel him turn your head more and begin to lose consciousness.
This is ok.
You think you can go now.
Hyrule kisses you.
It’s desperate.
It’s longing- painful.
Magic flows through your whole body at an alarming rate and you think you can see a golden glow behind your eye lids that forces you to keep your eyes shut tight from the brightness of it all.
But you can move again.
You bring a hand up to your face, feeling Hyrule’s more clearly and let it rest on his jaw.
Slowly, you kiss back- half sure that this is a dream your dying brain has cooked up to make the process easier for yourself.
It’s not sweet, it’s not gentle anymore and the magic wakes you up again enough where you can feel how tight Hyrule is holding onto you.
You push him away with what little strength you managed to get back and blinked your eyes open.
The golden light fades and there’s sits in front of you, your Traveler.
He’s crying.
You blink and begin to feel more of your body again, confusion drowning you in its wake. “Link?”
Your voice is rough and you feel like you need to cough but Hyrule cuts you off and hugs you close. 
“You can’t die.” He says, gulping down the sob that threatens to break through. “I won’t let you... I promise. You’re going to be ok if it’s the last thing I do.”
Wind
“Wind!” You whisper yell and frantically wave your hand to convince to come over to you.
The boy in question grins and looks around momentarily before jogging over to where you were hidden in the bushes. “What is it?”
“Come with me.” You beam and take his hand, wasting no time in dragging him behind you. “There’s something I want to show you but only you. Wild might destroy it and I’ll never be able to get him to leave.”
“Leave where?” Wind asks in his normal volume.
You spin around and place your finger to his lips before glancing for the others again. When nothing appears to have heard the little outburst you pull away and lace your fingers together. “You’ll see!”
Wind doesn’t know what you’re talking about but the secrecy is fun for him, so he’ll place along.
You take him off the trail and take two lefts, a right then a left and Wind considers you two to be lost the second you make the last turn.
He takes a breath and looks around, each tree looking more imposing than the last but he would have no idea where to start if he were to try and go back. “I think we’re lost.”
“No way!” You snort. “This is my home. We’re almost there.”
“Your home?” Wind stands straighter.
You nod and pull away from him.
Wind goes to reach for your hand again.
You don’t notice.
You instead skip over to one of the trees and knock on it three times with your ear pressed up against the truck. You wait two seconds before nodding and take three large steps to the tree on the right and hit it with a branch Wind didn’t see next to it.
The tree shakes and a rope falls down.
You seem encouraged by this and take the rope, pulling on it with all your might which then drops a small ladder, that Wind sees is held together by ropes and connected to something at the top of the tree.
You don’t hesitate to start climbing , getting half way up before looking down and gesturing Wind to follow you.
Wind grins maniacally and follows you up the ladder faster than you would have thought he’d be capable of climbing.
You get to the top which is blocked off by a bunch of wood, but you know this place and you lift the trap door with ease and climb inside.
You get on your knees and turn around reaching your hand out to help Wind into the tree house.
He climbs in slower than you, glancing around with wide eyes, taking in everything.
There’s a small unmade bed in the corner with two stuffed animals from what he can. One is a dog and another is a bird but he doesn’t know what kind.
There’s a small bookshelf under a window that’s propped open with a small wooden board. There’s not a lot of books there, maybe seven at most but that’s more books than Wind is accustomed to seeing in one place and the rest of the space is filled is nick nacks and trinket that Wind assumes are from your adventure. And small chest next to it that must be where your clothes are if the cloth hanging out is any indication. 
There’s also a small- (toy sized) wood stove with matching metal pots and pans and a small sink on the other side of the tree house. Out of curiosity, he walks over and turns on the faucet.
It has running water.
“This is my home.” You whisper when Wind comes to stand up. “It’s little... and a little broken, if I’m being honest. I don’t have the tools to fix it but it’s mine.”
“Broken?” Wind blinks and looks around even more. There’s some rotting wood by the bed, now that he sees it and it doesn’t look like it’ll be able to hold much more weight if it continues without being replaced. It’s holding up the ceiling above your head- Wind instantly feels concerned for your safety should it collapse while you’re there, or what you’d do if it happened while you weren’t there. He’s almost sure now that there’s more that he just can’t see right now, if that was glaringly obvious off the get go.
“Some parts need fixing and replacing.” You admit. “But I didn’t build this place, I just found it and moved in, so I don’t know where I would even start. It’s not safe on the ground at night so I’m better off up here. There’s also some pipes on the roof are beginning to rust and get nasty. It collects the water from the tree leaves when it rains and keeps it in a container buried in the ground, that’s how I have running water. But it’s cracking.”
You sigh and sit on the floor, crossing your legs under you. “I’ll figure it out. Worse case scenario I’d have to leave and find a cave or something to live in but-”
“We can help you!” Wind turns to you and falls to knees in front of you. “Wild’s good at collecting materials. Twilight and Time can help build. Warrior can plan it out. Legend and Four can help with the pipes. You don’t have to lose your home.”
“The others might make fun of me for having this place.” You mutter with a small pout on your face. “But I knew you wouldn’t! That’s why I brought you up here! I may have nothing, but it’s a lot of nothing so I have enough to share.”
Wind leans into your space suddenly and places his lips on yours.
You gasp and touch them with the tips of your fingers, staring at him wide eyed and shocked.
It was just a peck, a butterflies touch, but the look on Wind’s face says something else. It’s heavy with emotion, with concern and care, and there’s a little part of you that finds it more attractive than you thought it would be.
“You won’t lose your home and I won’t let them make fun of you, I promise.” He gulps and bite his lip. “Let us help. Please.”
You blink at him and let the furious blush encompass your face entirely. You shrink a little bit away but smile. “Ok.”
Wind takes a breath and releases it a nervous but joyful laugh. “We’ll go get the others, ok? And we’ll make sure that you’re ok and safe and this whole place will be as good as new.”
You nod with a smile and Wind looks overjoyed that you agreed.
You hum and shift your weight onto your knees as well, leaning into Wind’s space, steadying yourself with a hand on his shoulder and place a delicate kiss on his lips as well. “Thank you Link.”
Wind also blushes something fierce and he begins to play with his hands in front of him, giggling and bashful. “Oh- Um- Well- I- Uh...You- You’re welcome.”
252 notes · View notes
lightsovermonaco · 4 years ago
Text
His Good Sweater: Chapter 13
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Masterlist
Thanks to @acollectionofficsandshit​ for being my bestie and beta reading! This would have never happened without her ❤ Make sure you read Roman Profile, set in the same universe!
Word Count: 6.7k
Recommended song: "Cupid’s Chokehold/Breakfast in America” by Gym Class Heroes
"I have to go."
"Can't you stay five more minutes?"
"I wish."
"Come on, just a few more minutes to cuddle." Pierre flings back the fluffy duvet and holds out a hand. "Please?"
"I have an exam," you say with a sigh but bend to press a kiss to his upturned palm. "I can't skip."
Pierre groans and slings an arm over his eyes. "What am I supposed to do all day?"
"I don't have a sim but I have an old PlayStation you're more than welcome to use. I think I still have one or two games."
"That won't keep me busy."
"I'm sure you'll find something. Just stay out of trouble okay? I'd like to get my security deposit back when I finally move out of this hellhole."
"Okay," Pierre grumbles, sitting up to give you a quick kiss. "What time are you getting back?"
"Four. We can go out to dinner or something." You smooth a hand over his hair, smiling lightly. "Or we can go for a picnic and take a walk through Saint James Park."
"Sounds like a plan." He turns his head to kiss your palm. "I'll be counting down the minutes."
You roll your eyes but your smile contradicts the sass. "I'll be home before you know it. Love you, champion."
"I love you too, mon coeur."
He was endlessly grateful for how easily the two of you had fallen back into each other. When he had shown up at your doorstep he had expected there to be awkward pauses and minutes of tense silence, but there had been blissfully little of either. As the days bleed into each other, your relationship only gets steadier, closer and closer to what it used to be. Maybe it was because you had been the one to break the silence or maybe it was because he had thrown himself into his career into someone's bed- whatever the reason, it didn’t matter. He was simply grateful to be welcomed back into your life. He didn't plan on leaving any time soon.
Pierre allows himself a half hour of lounging in bed before forcing himself to get up and shower. Off weeks were hard; all he wanted to do was rest and recharge but he still had to follow his workout regimen and sleep schedule or he risked falling out of the habit, making it that much harder to get back in the groove come race week.
First order of business: clean the clutter you had shoved in closets and the spare room prior to his arrival the day before. Folding the three baskets of clean laundry took an hour, washing dishes another thirty minutes, and vacuuming the entire flat took twenty. Once the counters are spotless and there isn’t a stray sock to be found, he takes stock of your pantry and notes what staples you were running low on.
Two hours later he trudges back up the three flights of stairs to your apartment, arms laden with reusable bags packed to the gills with food. His legs burn and he's slightly winded from the excursion; at least that could count as his work out for the day.
He's just about to start slicing vegetables for dinner when his phone chimes with a text from his PR agent, Sylvie.
You're supposed to be in an interview now. Where are you?
"Oh shit." He scrambles for his laptop which of course was dead. He manages to plug it in at the dining room table and angle it so the background is mostly neutral, just a band poster framed behind him. He checks his hair before logging into the interview.
"There's the star," the interviewer says, far too chipper to be entirely genuine.
"Sorry, I was having connection issues." He queues up his signature sweetheart smile that gets him out of any squabbles. It works, the woman's irritation melting into a more easy expression.
"Let's just get right into it. Since we're low on time I'll jump right in, if you don't mind."
Pierre leans back. He had an inkling where this was headed. "By all means, please."
"We just saw news of your deal with Christian Horner- if you take seventh in this year's drivers championship, it looks like you're at Red Bull Racing next year. How does that feel after being publicly demoted mid-season in 2019?"
A smirk tugs at Pierre's lips. He had known this exact question was coming. He had debated how to answer it without starting waves and still remaining truthful. If there was one thing he prided himself on, it was his ability to be diplomatic when others may have let their egos get in the way.
"Obviously I'm grateful that Red Bull has recognized the hard work I've been putting in at Alpha Tauri," he starts. "I think I've been able to push the car as far as I can but I still have pace in me, personally. So moving into the Red Bull would let me loose, so to speak, and give me a chance to prove that Red Bull is where I belong."
"Right, you have had quite a spectacular season so far with a race win under your belt and a few podiums for good measure. What do you attribute that success to? Why is it so different now in an Alpha Tauri versus that coveted second Red Bull seat?"
Pierre purses his lips. The answer he was expected to give wasn't one he was willing to voice. Instead he opts for neutral. "I've been able to focus and hone my driving this season. I've found a groove that works for me and with it has come an insane amount of confidence, which is something I struggled with for awhile after going back to Torro Rosso. I think it's really just that I'm finally comfortable in the car and with my team and that makes a huge difference."
"Thank you for that," the journalist says and Pierre nods. "Shifting gears, I have a few questions about your personal life if you don't mind."
This was the part he always dreads. Questions were often prying and he had to subtly skirt around them in a way that offered a satisfying answer without giving away too much. It was an art he liked to think he had perfected over the years but still didn't enjoy.
"As long as you don't mind me staying silent if I don't want to answer."
The woman laughs, the sound sharp and grating. "Of course. Unless I can bribe you into giving me an exclusive."
"Likely not. But you ask the right questions and we'll see."
"You've been seen hanging around a certain London neighborhood lately- that wouldn't have anything to do with you and your lovely lady, would it?"
He had been waiting for that one, too. When the two of you had returned from Red Bull headquarters he had noticed the man taking pictures across the street. He hadn't said anything to you at the time because really, there was no point in getting you worked up when he had a plan to handle it.
The question played right into his hand, in fact. 
Pierre sits forward, folding his hands in front of him. "Actually yes. We recently got back together and if you'll let me, I would like to make a request."
The woman leans back and checks her notes. "Well it's not quite what I had planned but please," she gives a flourish with a hand, "you have the floor."
"I know driver's personal lives are something that a lot of people are interested in and that's great. I don't mind sharing things with my fans or letting them get the inside scoop, but there's some things I would rather be left alone. My relationship is one of them. I know you all took note that she hasn't been around the past couple months and if I'm being honest, it's because of comments and press coverage that invaded her privacy. I think some people forgot she was more than just a name on a screen."
Pen poised to take notes, the interviewer prompts, "You said you had a request?"
He doesn’t stop to assess the damage he had already undoubtedly done. Sylvie was probably already on the phone doing damage control with every news outlet she could get her hands on, if her muted and black square at the bottom of the screen was an indication. 
"All I'm asking is that you leave her alone. If you have questions or comments you have to make, just direct them at me. Don't follow her around asking about me. Don't comment on her posts unless you're capable of being a decent human. Just… let her live her life in peace."
Maybe he was a love sick fool, but honestly he didn't care if he lost some support from fans. If they had such strong opinions on his personal life, he would be better off without them anyway. And his team could cut him and even if he was unable to secure a seat in Formula 1 after next season, he would survive. 
But if he lost you again, he would be broken. It had taken being apart from you for him to realize it and he'd be damned if he was ever disconnected from you like that again.
"That's quite the speech."
Pierre shrugs. "It was. She's the most important thing in my life, right up there with racing.” Now that he had started down the road of truth, he found it impossible to hold his tongue. “I lost her once because people couldn't be bothered to remember that their words have consequences. I won't let it happen again."
"So you see yourself with her for a long time then?" The woman's eyes glitter with the potential of getting an even juicer tidbit from him.
Pierre’s jaw sets, muscles feathering. "That's not something I'm prepared to discuss."
The woman purses her lips and tips her head to the side. There was clearly more she wanted to say. "Well, I have to thank you for what you've given me here. My boss is gonna love the exclusive. I won't push any further. Thanks for your comments, Pierre."
"Thanks for actually being respectful."
“We aren’t all monsters.” The woman shrugs. “I can’t say I haven’t had my moments but I try to be straightforward.”
“Right, yeah. I get that you have a job to do.”
“Anyway. I look forward to seeing what you can do the rest of this season. Good luck.”
He signs off and instantly anxiety washes over him. If she twisted his words he was screwed. Sylvie would be on the phone as soon as the article was printed, no doubt trying to soothe sponsors and investors. She'd give him an earful about being respectful and not poking the bear but he'd tune it out like he always did.
The sooner he got away from Red Bull, the better.
Instead of dwelling on it he busies himself with cooking. It was one of his guilty pleasures. He always requested a full kitchen when he was staying anywhere more than a few days so that if he had the chance to make a home-cooked meal, he had the option. For tonight he had selected his favorite recipe. Parmesan-Cesar chicken wasn't normally something you would ever touch with a ten foot pole but as long as he was making it, Pierre knew you'd at least give it a try.
Music blasting in the background, Pierre sings along quietly as he unpacks the rest of the ingredients and gets to work. He does a little spin between the island and the sink, rinsing the dishes and putting them right in the dishwasher as he uses them. A clean kitchen is the mark of a great chef, his mom had told him, drilling the phrase into him when he was young.
In the middle of cutting potatoes Pierre gets a call. He only has an hour until you're home so he doesn't bother stopping, just puts it on speaker and continues measuring spices.
"Hey Daniel."
"Heard you're in London," Daniel says, Australian accent thick. "And a little birdie told me you and your lady got back together."
"We did," Pierre says, a smile splitting his face. "Finally."
"Thank god, now I don't have to listen to your drunk woe-is-me rambling anymore."
Pierre laughs and sets aside the measuring spoons. "It's not that bad."
"Oh please." Pierre could practically hear the eyes rolling. "The number of times I had to send an uber to a bar after a grand prix is insane. Charles and I should be entitled to financial compensation with the amount of babysitting we've been doing."
"I can handle myself!"
"Not after a martini you can't."
He was right there. "Is there a point to this conversation?"
"Oh right- I'm actually in town today too, got some stuff to shoot for McLaren before we head to Austria for the race next week. You guys wanna come out with us tonight? We're heading to a bar or two."
"I actually had something planned-"
"She already said she's coming!" Dan's girlfriend shouts in the background.
“Well then why even ask me?”
“To be polite,” Daniel offers with a laugh. “We’re meeting at the rooftop bar at the Trafalgar hotel at seven. That give you enough time to do whatever you had planned that’s apparently more important than seeing your best mates?”
“We’ll be there,” Pierre says and hangs up. He finishes seasoning the potatoes and pops them in the oven, finally getting a chance to sit while they cook alongside the main course.
He's on his feet a few minutes later, decluttering the last bits of mess around your flat. It was clear it hadn't had a decent cleaning in quite awhile- hopefully you'd keep it tidy now that the effort had been made. The guys would tease him endlessly if they found out he was acting like a housewife.
You arrive home just as he’s setting the table. “God, it smells amazing in here.”
“Salut, mon amour.” Hands full with hot dishes, he settles for a kiss to your cheek. “I made dinner.”
“And you cleaned,” you observe. “You were a busy boy.”
“Pyry would kill me if he found out I was laying around all day. I had to do something.” 
You hang your backpack on the hook behind the door and take a seat at the table. “Well remind me to thank him again when I see him. This looks delicious.”
Pierre grins over his shoulder at you. “Me or the food?”
You throw your head back and laugh, loud and unrestrained. “The food, you goof.”
Pierre quirks a brow. "Is that the honest answer?"
"Okay, maybe both." 
The meal is filled with your ramblings about your exam and your new hobby- this month it was hiking. You went into detail about all the few trails in the city you’d been on as well as the more challenging ones that dotted the countryside. Pierre just nods along as you talk, already planning on staying up late to learn what he could about the topic so he could be a better conversation partner.
The pair of you work together to tidy the kitchen and put away any leftovers. “Did you bring something semi nice to wear tonight or do we have to make a quick trip to the store?”
“I’ve got some Tauri stuff I can wear. And not just team gear,” he adds when you groan. “You know that cream sweater you love? The one with the logo debossed on the front? I’ve got that.”
“Oh,” you say before biting your lip. Your eyes trail down his frame and back up like you’re imagining it on him. A tingle travels up his spine under your assessing gaze. If you kept that up, neither of you would make it out of the apartment tonight. “My favorite. Yeah, wear that. It’ll be on my floor by the end of the night.”
Pierre places his hands on your waist and grins. “Will it? And what will be on the floor from your closet, hm?”
“Your favorite dress.”
“The orange one?” He realizes half a second too late that you would never know how much he adored that dress from the gala. It had hugged your curves in all the right places and left your back exposed, which would leave him free to trace patterns on your soft skin whenever he pleased. He had missed out on worshipping you in it that night and he wouldn’t mind the opportunity to do so now.
You roll your eyes. “I can’t wear that to a bar.”
“Says who?” Pierre nuzzles his face against your neck, breathing you in. A light undercurrent of sweat from your walk home from classes mingles with the usual bright scent of you, only serving to rile him up further. Never in a million years would he have guessed that a simple scent could do him in, and yet here he was, completely wrapped up in yours. 
“Says me.” You sigh, tipping your head to the side when Pierre’s nose grazes your skin.
His lips follow until he reaches your jaw before he pulls back. “What one are you wearing then?”
“Does it matter?” You cross your arms, the smirk playing on your kissable lips tempting him.
“I have to mentally prepare myself.” And if whatever you chose was too sexy, he would need to get his handsiness out of his system before the pair of you met up with Daniel and his girlfriend. The last thing he needed was to be on the front of some seedy gossip column when his plan was to ease back into it. 
You smile up at him, broad and unrestrained as if knowing your answer would affect him greatly. “The cobalt blue one that makes you stutter.”
The dress in question was just as form fitting as the orange one, but shorter and decidedly more distracting. It fell mid thigh and the spaghetti straps left your shoulders exposed, which coupled with the low back displayed a downright sinful amount of skin. You had worn it at a Torro Rosso event a couple years back and he had scarcely been able to get a full sentence out around you all night. 
“That one’s a close second.” He follows you to your room, leaving you to hunt through the closet while he digs through his suitcase, thankful that he had the foresight to check out of his hotel on the way back from Red Bull and bring his things here.
Because there was no way in hell he was missing a second of being by your side while he was in town. Every moment had to count when he had no idea when he would be able to sleep next to you again, not when the season was nearly over and there were two double headers between now and winter break. When so many variables stood between him and you, he had no problem prioritizing you over a routine workout or a full night’s rest.
Pierre changes into the sweater and a pair of dark skinny jeans well before you emerge from the bathroom. He doesn’t bother responding to Dan’s text that includes an address and reminds him to be on time, instead opting to scroll through his instagram feed. He likes a handful of posts from his fellow drivers, including one of Max actually smiling at something off camera.
“Well?”
Pierre’s head snaps up at the sound of your voice. The phone falls from his hand when he drags his eyes over your body, head to toe and back again. 
Oh, he was so fucked. 
Maybe it was selfish, but with your hair done like that, the barest brush of makeup lining your eyes and in that stunningly blue dress, he didn’t want any other man to have the privilege of laying their eyes on you. 
No, you were all his.
The moment you’re within reach, Pierre places his hands on the back of your thighs, just beneath the curve of your barely covered ass. You chuckle and tap your fingers under his chin. “Close your mouth; you’ll catch flies.”
“Just so you know, if you wear that dress I can’t be held liable for my actions.” Up to and including scaring off anyone that wasn’t Daniel or his girlfriend. No one else deserved to be blessed with your radiance. Hell, he didn’t deserve it, and yet here you stood. 
“We’ll see about that.”
**********
Daniel and his girlfriend had already made their way through a round of drinks by the time you arrive. It wasn’t Pierre’s fault he couldn’t keep his hands off you and wound up getting distracted on the drive over.
"Late as always," she greets, kissing your cheek. "Dan got us here fifteen minutes early because he wanted the table with the best view."
"Like our names wouldn't have gotten us the table if we asked," Pierre says, wrapping Daniel in a one-armed hug before kissing his girl’s cheek in a traditional French greeting. "The view is pretty great though."
You were already leaning on the glass partition, hands curled over the edge and undoubtedly leaving behind fingerprints on the pristine surface, completely unfazed by the fact that the other patrons were staring. You had eyes only for the London skyline and Trafalgar square lit up below. The bar with its white marble tabletops and strict dress code was absolutely not a place that you should be standing on your tiptoes for a better view, but there was no way he could condemn you when your face lit up like that.
Pierre just places a hand on the small of your back and shoots a look at the bartender currently glaring in your direction, daring the smartly dressed man to say anything. He only raises a brow and resumes filling drink orders.
"You guys know how to pick a place," you say, "I could stand here all night."
"Right," Daniel's girlfriend says, rolling her eyes at Pierre who shrugs as if to say what do you want me to do? He was powerless to deny you anything that brought you a semblance of joy; your smile was everything to him. “Love, why don’t you come tell us about uni? You’re the only one of us currently enrolled, and I’m sure the boys would love to hear about all the drama.”
You and Pierre share a secret grin. You shake your head but allow him to guide you back to the cocktail table. “Drama? I’m an engineering major. The closest thing we have to drama is someone grossly miscalculating a structural load.”
Dan shoots Pierre a mischievous grin. “I heard Stroll might be moving next year-”
Both you and Daniel’s girlfriend groan at the same time. “No racing talk when we’re around tonight,” she says. “I’ve heard enough lately.”
“What’s new in the publishing world?” You ask, leaning into Pierre when he wraps an arm around you. He only half listens to her explain the so-called “top secret” project she’s currently working on, instead opting to get drunk on you. 
The light breeze filtering through the surrounding buildings ruffles your hair. You lift a hand absentmindedly to tuck it behind your ear in an attempt to keep it out of your face. Everything you do is amazing to him, snagging his attention even when he should be listening to whatever it was his friends were saying. Your gravity was simply too strong to bother resisting.
“Enough talk,” Daniel’s girlfriend says, waving a hand. “You need a drink, and I want to dance. Let’s go.” Before Pierre can protest, she’s dragging you away to the glass top bar. You throw an apologetic glance over your shoulder and Pierre just winks. He was fine watching you from afar for now.
Pierre’s gaze drops to your perky ass when you lean in to let the bartender know what you want, likely shouting to be heard over the music, your dress riding up a bit with the movement. For having such a strict dress code, this place sure did feel like an upper class club.
You hook your thumb over a shoulder, the bartender’s gaze darting to Pierre before the man nods. The only explanation you offer is a wink, followed by a note on a cocktail napkin and a beer delivered a few minutes later by a server.
This is supposed to be the best beer they have. Just try it.
Leave it to you to constantly push him outside his comfort zone. Pierre tentatively sniffs the foamy glass and shrugs before taking a sip. Not bad, but he still preferred his usual whiskey. 
Setting the glass down, Pierre turns back to Daniel. “Congrats on extending your contract with McLaren by the way. Should give you a decent shot at keeping up with the big boys and landing some serious points.”
“Seems like most of us are moving around, doesn’t it? Sainz to Ferrari, Seb to Aston Martin... The only one with any sort of long term commitment is Max and now me I guess.”
“And Charles,” Pierre adds. “He’s stuck in that red monstrosity for the foreseeable future.”
Daniel laughs, taking a swig from his glass. “And you’re moving too, huh? Austria should be interesting,” Daniel remarks, watching the girls at the bar nursing their own drinks. “What with the news of your new contract breaking and all.”
“Potential contract,” Pierre corrects. “Not for sure yet.”
Daniel scoffs. “Come on mate. You won’t have any problem getting up to seventh by the end of the season. Perez is slipping and the news that his seat is in jeopardy will only help your cause.”
Pierre takes a sip of his amber beer and nods. “I’m sure Perez doesn’t appreciate it, but he’s always been a good sport.” You catch Pierre’s eye and lift your fresh flute of champagne in a mock salute. Dan’s girlfriend drags you out on the dancefloor and immediately spins you. Your laugh is nearly audible, the memory of it fresh in Pierre’s mind as he watches you.
“Mate, have you been listening to a word I’ve said?”
“I’m sorry, what?”
Daniel shakes his head and drains his drink. “I really don’t know how it took you two this long to come together. You’ve been dancing around each other for years but neither of you would admit it.”
“I could say the same about you two.”
Daniel shrugs. “Fair point. At least we got it all worked out in a weekend though.”
Pierre rolls his eyes and shoves his friend’s shoulder. “Whatever. Not all of us can have a perfect love story.” 
The grin Daniel shoots Pierre is pure sunshine. “How long are you planning on waiting before you ask her to marry you?”
“What?” Pierre sputters, nearly choking on air. “Who said anything about marriage?”
“Oh come on,” Dan says, rolling his eyes. “We all know it’s coming eventually.”
Pierre would be lying if he said he hadn’t thought about it. But he wasn’t sure if it was the time for a proposal, not when you had just gotten back together. The last thing he wanted to do was go through the pain of losing you again because he was too forward.
“One day at a time,” Pierre says finally, dragging himself back to earth. “I just got her back a few days ago. I don't want to scare her off by proposing just yet.”
“Right. Well you might want to get a ring on that hand sooner rather than later,” Daniel notes, gesturing to the two men who had approached the girls. “How long are we gonna let that go on before we step in?” Neither of you paid the men any attention, instead enjoying each other’s company, but the men’s eyes roaming over your body sets Pierre on edge.
“They can handle themselves,” Pierre remarks, shifting on his feet. The weak attempt at self assurance didn’t do much to negate the red tinting his vision. “They’re fine.”
“Her sharp tongue will hold them at bay,” Daniel says, winking at his girlfriend. “For a while at least.” Props to Daniel for possessing inhuman amounts of restraint, but Pierre’s muscles were coiled and ready to interject at the first sign of trouble. 
He has to pause to remind himself he doesn't own you. You could make your own decisions about who you spoke with and who you entertained as long as he was the one to take you home. He didn't care if you wanted to flirt; he knew it meant nothing and if you got a free drink out if it then so be it. But those were the rules: flirting, no touching. He'd step in if need be if someone took it too far.
But that didn't mean he had to enjoy it.
Pierre watches tight lipped as you politely chat with the man, your body language closed off and dismissive. Pierre hates that you even speak a word to him. He knows it shouldn’t bother him because he trusts you, but the stranger is a wild card. Pierre watches like a hawk as the man inches ever closer, slowly interesting himself into your personal space. He waits for you to take a step back, to grant him that silent permission to come over and insert himself in the conversation and get his hands on you, this proving you weren't on the market.
One of the men shouts something at you over the music and you leer back at him, clearly disgusted at whatever he had said. Whirling on him, you open your mouth, likely to snap out a profanity lined retort, when his hand latches onto your arm.
"Oh, fuck no."
Half a second later, Pierre is stalking across the dance floor, no thoughts other than teaching the asshole a lesson. His hands are already curled into fists, ready to swing if the man hadn't moved by the time he arrived. Tolerating someone hitting on you was one thing, but blatantly ignoring the clear dismissals and laying a hand on you? No way in hell was he standing by and letting that happen.
The resounding crack of your open hand hitting the man’s face has pride swelling in Pierre’s chest. That’s my girl. You’d solved the problem before he’d even arrived. You jab a finger in the man’s face, Daniel’s girlfriend right there with you to back you up.
“Fuck off,” you were saying as Pierre approached, “or do you need to go back to kindergarten and learn to keep your hands to yourself? Maybe next time you’ll think twice before laying a hand on a taken woman- or any woman, for that matter.”
Driving your point home, Pierre slips an arm around your waist and pulls you in until your back is flush to his chest. You crane your neck up, the tense muscles beneath his fingertips and the fury contorting your features confirming just how rattled you are.
The lines creasing your brow are soothed away when you realize who holds you. You open your mouth to say something but Pierre places a hand on your throat, thumb and forefinger framing your jaw as he cuts you off with a kiss, his eyes locked on the guy still standing off to the side holding his cheek. 
You taste like the champagne you’d been sipping all night. It’s the only thought in his head outside of the jealousy licking through his veins like wildfire as he claims you then and there in front of the crowd. Mine, his heart sings. He flexes his fingers, taking advantage of your surprised gasp to slide his tongue against yours. Mine, mine, mine.
Pierre lets you be the one to break away, lips curling in a smug, kiss-swollen smile as you address the men. “In case you still don’t get the picture, I’m not interested. And neither is she.” You jerk your chin, indicating your friend and Daniel, who had indeed followed Pierre and since mirrored his possessive stance, one arm wrapped tightly around his own girlfriend.
The two men reluctantly slink away after mumbling something unintelligible but undoubtedly indecent. It had been a week and a half since he had been on track and he had plenty of pent up aggression to get out. He didn’t normally opt for using someone’s face as a punching back as a stress reliever, but rulers were made to be broken. Your hand splayed on Pierre’s chest is all that stops him from following and asking them to repeat themselves.
“Just let me hit him,” Pierre says, voice far more level and put together than he had expected it to be. “Just one punch. That’s all I would need.” His knuckles smart like he had already connected them to the man’s face. 
“And let you throw away your contract? I don’t think so. The last thing you need is a blurry photo of you knocking someone’s teeth in hitting the front page of every gossip mag in the country. I’m fine, so you can cut the bravado.”
“Yeah, I hear you.” 
“I was wondering how long you were gonna leave us out here,” you say, trying to regain Pierre’s attention. When it doesn’t work, you grasp his stubbled chin and force him to look at you. “I didn’t expect to be stranded for so long.”
The eye contact is what finally calms his racing thoughts. Seeing the trust reflected in your face is enough to have his grip on your waist loosening to allow you to face him. “Someone convinced me you could fend for yourself. And while it seems that’s true, I couldn’t stand it anymore.” 
Your satisfied hum is swallowed by the pounding bass but Pierre feels it rumble in his chest. “Sometimes even a queen needs saving.”
Though his point had long since been proven, Pierre’s hand slides down your back to rest on your ass nonetheless. “I knew you going out looking like this would cause trouble.”
You tip your head to the side, feigning innocence as you press your hips to his. You grin, noticing the hard on that had been bothering him all night. “Looking like what?”
“Drop dead fucking gorgeous,” he says, accentuating his point by sliding his hand up your thigh and under the hem of your dress. “You know I’m tearing this off you the second we get home, right?”
“Why do you think I wore it?”
The sound that escapes him is primal and possessive. The presence of bystanders does nothing to prevent him from palming your ass and kneading the flesh. He presses his lips to your neck and mumbles between kisses, “To torture me.”
You push lightly at his chest, laughing although your eyes dart around the space in search of cameras. Old habits were hard to break. “That may have been part of my motivation. But you’ll have to wait. I haven’t seen Dan in forever and I would actually like to have a conversation with him before we sneak off somewhere.”
At least you knew he wouldn’t be able to wait until you got home to get between your legs. “Fine,” he grumbles, hands settling on your hips. “Only because I love you.”
You beam up at him. “Love you too.”
Arm still slung around your waist, Pierre nods at Daniel and follows the other couple back to the table.
After two more drinks, you and Daniel's girlfriend are singing along to the music in lilting, off key voices, simply enjoying the night air. A stray breeze catches your hair just as you turn to look at Pierre and his heart damn near leaps out of his chest.
To his credit, Pierre’s cheeks are rosy from more than just the charged glances you throw at him as the night wears on. He was on his fourth beer, far more than he usually drank these days, and the buzzing in his head was becoming increasingly hard to ignore. When he has to squint to tell the time on his watch, he figured that was enough.
"I should probably get going mate," Pierre says, turning to Daniel. "Early flight."
Daniel laughs and beacons for the girls. He kisses his girlfriend's cheek when she returns with you in tow. "Are we leaving already?" You pout, and Pierre had half a mind to stay simply have your smile make an encore appearance.
"Car coming," he murmurs, dipping his head to give you a proper kiss. God, you were stunning in that dress- he might not be able to string together words coherently, but he knew that much. 
"Fine." You cross your arms for a split second to convey your feelings on the matter before wrapping your friends in a hug and saying your goodbyes.
Pierre's hand is already on your ass before you're in the uber. Get a few drinks in the boy and he let his guard down. You laugh and pull out of his embrace to usher him into the sleek black suv. If he had been coherent, he probably would have chatted with the driver about the specs of the engine or maybe even racing if he was a fan. Instead the ride is filled with stolen touches and sloppy, wet kisses to your neck.
"I can't wait till we're home," he mumbles. "You're gorgeous. How did I snag you? You're so far out of my league. No way should you be with me."
"I have a thing for guys that go fast in circles on the weekends." 
"Really?" Pierre frowns. "Should I be worried?"
"No. You're the only one I have eyes for." His head is fuzzier than when you left the bar but your laugh breaks through, his stomach flipping at the melody of it. "And we are home."
Pierre blinks, realizing he does indeed stand in your kitchen, with no recollection of climbing the three flights of stairs between the street and your flat. "Oh. When did that happen?"
"After I half dragged you up the stairs." You bend over to undo the straps of your heels, giving him the perfect view. He lets out a whistle that ends in a hiccup.
"Take me to bed, lover," he says in what he thinks is a husky voice. It should be impossible for you to resist.
You roll your eyes and wrap an arm around his middle. "That's the plan. I'll take you to bed, strip you out of that sweater, and you'll be asleep before your head hits the pillow."
"Nnnnnno," he protests, hand sliding down your exposed back to settle at the base of your spine. "I wanna make the most of tonight. I leave tomorrow."
"You don't leave until noon," you point out. "Plenty of time to nurse your hangover and have fun before then, after you drink some water and get some sleep."
"But baby-"
"No buts. Do as I say or I'll send you off tomorrow without a goodbye kiss."
Even in his half drunken state he knew it was a swiss cheese lie, spotted with holes and completely stale. You'd never let him leave without a kiss goodbye because neither of you knew if it would be the last time. He was a race car driver after all, and that came with risks. 
But he sighs anyways and slips off the cream sweater, letting it fall to the floor. At least one of you kept their promises. 
After confirming he was settled into bed, you retreat to the bathroom. His heart aches at the absence, even though you're mere feet away with nothing but a thin door separating the two of you. He registers the sound of the tap turning on and your soft, off key humming of the last song he remembered hearing before getting out of the uber.
"Mon amour," he croons when you re-emerge in a set of silk pajamas. He reaches out his hands for you and you slide under the covers, immediately slotting your body against his. A leg hitches over his hip, tugging him closer until your middles touch.
"Mmm," he mumbles, nuzzling into your neck. "Je t'aime. Tu es l'amour de ma vie et nous vivons d'amour et d'eau fraîche."
"I have no idea what you're saying," you whisper, running your fingers through his hair. "But I like it. Feel free to keep going."
"Tes baisers sont du feu et je fond à ton toucher." He presses his lips to your neck before resuming his mumbled French. "Je pense toujours à toi. Je veux être avec toi pour toujours. Tu as mon cœur et je ne voudrais pas qu'il en soit autrement."
"I like the sound of that." You press a soft, sweet kiss to his forehead. God, that tenderness was why he loved you. That, and your personality, and your eyes, and your… everything. "Dormir, my love. I'll be here to listen to your pretty words in the morning."
The single word of his mother tongue on your lips has him smiling. "Oui, tu le feras. Parce que tu es à moi et je suis à toi."
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autumnslance · 3 years ago
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I've got a writing question that's been on my mind for a while: how do you keep your OCs from becoming self inserts? Every time I think of developing an OC I realize that it's attributes that I
Oops, you got cut off! But in general: all your OCs are going to have traits of yours; it’s inevitable. Sometimes big things, sometimes small things. It’s how we relate to them, and also just natural, I promise. We write what we know, and we know how we interact with ourselves and the world.
But there is a difference between sharing some traits with a character and making them a self-insert. It’s letting their life, their community and culture, their experiences, also influence their traits and thinking, in ways that might be different from how you would respond in a similar situation. Even if you share those attributes.
This is me so let’s go behind a cut shall we?
Dark Autumn is as introverted and solitary by nature as I am; she can and does interact in professional and friendly ways with people (as I try to do), but needs alone time to recharge. However, Dark also has a very different outlook and relationship with her family than I, since her family is large and supportive, very close knit. If family is a lottery, I got the $50 scratch off prize while she hit the Mega-Millions. So I take that into account when thinking of her relationships not just with family, but with friends and potential romantic interests; Dark sees things through a lens of positive, low-drama familial relationships that I can barely fathom. This also means she has a support network and resources myself and other characters don’t, so gets some wish fulfillment of working through issues with care and grace instead of remaining in unhealthy places. She is my “comfort OC” so gets a lot of good things I wish I had—which shapes how she responds to others, like taking care of a FCmate and becoming something of a big sister figure for him, or the responsible older sister figure of my group of OCs. Which is me, really, idealizing my own older sister tendencies into this giant woman who’s better at it.
Aeryn was written to be on the ace scale; not my first character to be so, but the first written that way as I began to realize where my own orientations lie and wanting to examine that through fiction. That she fell for a certain rogue in the process of playing through MSQ again was not at all intentional. I like Thancred as a character—he hits a lot of tropes I enjoy—but in my own mindset, he’s a frustrating younger brother. I didn’t think I’d do NPC x WoL shipping. But there it is, because in determining Aeryn’s own experiences and how those shaped her, it ended up working out that way (and I spent the better part of 2 years writing the characters separately to figure that out and if it could work before writing them together because it’s not something that comes naturally to me).
Aeryn’s internal anger is something I have a difficult time with; it’s outside my own nature to carry things like that. I have my angers, certainly, but they are different from hers. I tend to need a lot to set me off and then it burns out hot and quick. Aeryn’s more of a long boil she keeps bottled up. I’ve gotten a few things through various fics, I think, but it’s why I do things like reference arguments but rarely depict them. Being non-confrontational myself (I’m meek and have hangups thanks to my own life) it’s a challenge. Aeryn responded to childhood traumas (that I never dealt with), bullying (that I did), losses (that I haven’t yet), and the responsibility she’s been given (thank goodness I don’t) far differently than I. Maybe I’d be more volatile, too, if I had her life. But I understand where her anger comes from sharing some of the reasons, I just shape it differently than my own.
There’s a lot of things about Dark and Aeryn that are accidentally similar, just due to the timing of their character generation and other RP OCs made for other games along the way; “Oh I haven’t done X or Y in a character in awhile” sort of thing, but how each approaches those similarities and why—their quietness, their issues with using magic, their tendency to “adopt” others as family—all come from different places and resolve differently, too.
C’oretta comes from a part of me that doesn’t quite want to grow up. That wishes I had been more of the peppy, active, cheerful, risk-taking, live it up stereotypical party kid, that ��popular girl” archetype I felt so often on the outside looking in about. As my second character, I wanted her to be different from Dark Autumn—visually, emotionally, mentally. Where Dark is steady, C’oretta is flighty. While Dark is people oriented, C’oretta’s a bit selfish (like I often feel). Dark’s introverted, C’oretta’s extroverted. Much of C’oretta’s attitude is a deflection against the hurts in her life, a way to fight back against some terrible things. It’s a way I could never react. But I also can’t get away from a character who loves to learn and wants to try new things—but where other characters gain the ability to stick with and see them through, C’oretta gets my easy frustration and boredom, and then the “ooh shiny” of a new interest. There’s a history of ADHD (or whatever the acronyms are now) and even autism and learning issues in my family; it’s possible I have some undiagnosed ND stuff going on, and people have noted these things in C’oretta that I’ve based on my own experiences and those of people very close to me.
Many of my characters have traits I wish I had, or were better at; patience, kindness, consideration, convictions, courage, thoughtfulness, and so on and etc. They’re good at skills I haven’t the knowledge in, or the ability to do. They’re certainly more active than I am, or could be! Because I can take the time to think and plan and research and write those things out better, and just maybe along the way not only learn something myself, but try to practice it better myself. I can even sometimes let them teach me what I can possibly do or be, not just imagine it as an ideal that’s out of reach.
I try to let my characters make mistakes I wouldn’t—or in some cases, have in my past, and that’s OK. Especially if I learned from them, but maybe the character does not. Maybe they do but it takes awhile, or repeated instances until it sinks in. Maybe I let them make errors I still make, as a way to puzzle out better solutions I should probably entertain for myself.
Character voice is something I’ve felt I struggled with in keeping my OCs distinct. Do characters ‘sound’ alike, in dialogue and prose? Having distinct ways of speaking helps; C’oretta’s breathless chatty run-ons are certainly different from Dark and Aeryn’s quieter tendencies. I have to remember to trim down Aeryn’s dialogue more often, say less aloud, add more gestures and facial expressions. I tend to be a talker, an over-explainer (if you can’t tell), while the only times she gets like that are specific. Dark’s somewhere in the middle of those two, like I am. A lot of the reason I like writing NPCs and try to keep them close to my interpretation of canon is to practice distinct character voice to get better at it in my OCs, so they don’t sound like me!
And something I’ve never admitted to before is that I think for me, it helps that from the time I was a kid watching various series of Star Trek, I always have had an in-my-own-head-only self-insert. She’s always a support character (that’s what I’m best at). She has cool and unusual abilities to help the actual heroes, cuz heck it’s my internal fantasy and that’s fun. She has traits I want to be better at or wish I had, developed over time with more energy and focus than I can actually muster in reality. As time’s gone on, she’s become more of a mentor and Mom Friend as I’m now older and see a lot of protagonist characters as “my kids” now. She appears in nearly every story I’ve loved over time, in one iteration or another. And because I have a headspace character where I can say “this is what I, ideally, would say and do and be capable of in this situation…” My other characters that I actually write about can vary between doing something similar (if it suits them) to doing something completely different (cuz darn kids never listen) as I can compare them to the self-insert and decide where to diverge.
So it’s a mix of myself and my traits and knowledge, but taking into account how each character would respond and use those same attributes differently than I do or would. Write what you know, write who you are—and then add in some wish fulfillment, some what ifs, some bad choices, some good choices, and shake things up. Give the characters tics and tricks different from yourself and let that shape them, too, by remembering to take those things into account (even if you have to tape a note to your monitor).
And finally, don’t be ashamed of your self-inserts; I’ve known some great characters that started as self-inserts and grew, through their experiences, into wholly different people than their writers over time. Heck, the epic romance my original WoW priest was part of was with a character that started as a self-insert; his player began the game knowing nothing of the lore or roleplaying, but as he learned the story and how to RP, and determined how his character fit into the world and how that shaped him, the character diverged over time, while still sharing some key traits (some endearing, some frustrating, as people are and all part of that friend). It’s not a bad starting point at all. The rest can come over time and practice, especially if you make a lot of OCs and try to make them different from each other while also being aspects of yourself.
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tornrose24 · 4 years ago
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Why exactly do Krupp and CU like Edith? (based on what’s in the movie)
So @warrior-of-waistbands  replied to my reply to one of their posts and I noticed that one of their tags said ‘Krupp and Cap probably have their own reasons for why they love Edith besides mutual attraction, but what would those reasons even be?’
Well I want to tackle that because its fun to speculate, but its also a challenge due to how little screen time we get with Edith and her interactions with those two. This is from what I could gather from the film:
With Krupp
-She’s probably a calming/pleasant presence for him (despite also being a source of nervousness and jump scares LOL) and doesn’t have a short fuse like him or the others
A lot of the staff are unpleasant, but she’s never like that around him. Even when she was pranked, it was more like “Oh!” than “I’M GOING TO RIP HEADS OFF!” And when she complains about the smell of the cafeteria, she doesn’t throw a super huge fit over it. And when we see them together, he’s at his absolute best when he’s relaxed and not a bundle of nerves.
I think his nerves stem from not knowing how to express himself towards her, but the first time I saw the film, I noticed he wasn’t being his usual irritated/annoyed/angry/smug self. It was out of character, but it makes sense when you see how different she is compared to the others at the school.
-She’s compassionate and sweet
Edith’s the only staff member at the school who isn’t trying to kiss up to him for something or be snappy and short with him like a few others. I just remembered this, but she tries to be mindful when he’s in the middle of something work related (he was making photocopies of the flyer for the science teaching position during their first interaction) and not take up too much of his time, which I’m sure he appreciates, but doesn’t mind since she likes her.
From his perspective, the casserole was her looking out for him (We know his job is tough, despite the perks having that power gives him, and he has little to nothing to eat at home). Its not like Melvin where the kid has a ‘scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours’ mindset–Edith’s casseroles come with no strings attached, and though she’s trying to hint at her feelings to him through them, she’s not pressing it too hard.
-She clearly knows him enough to know what kind of food he likes that he would eat.
Someone pointed this one out a long time ago back in 2017 (don’t remember who though... was it cicada-rhythm?). Many of us have a specific preference to what we like to eat, and Edith has an idea of what he enjoys (not everyone likes jalapenos and not many like tuna (actually I find it gross due to the smell of the canned stuff). Also, notice that the dish she gives him is comfort food/something you can actually eat any time of day, instead of something sweet or something you’d normally expect a girl to offer their crush. And it was something that takes more than a day (“That’s cause it’s been dry aged for a week.”)
-He might have gotten a glimpse of what she’s like when he’s not around her and liked what he saw at some point (And vice versa if you think about it, because Krupp isn’t an easily lovable person).
There’s no way Krupp would fall for just anyone. He’s obviously known her for quite some time, so it’s got to be more than just ‘she’s pretty.’ Director David Soren tells us in the ‘art of’ book that their wires have been crossing for quite awhile’ so this isn’t a recent crush for him.
At her most open, Edith is playful and fun loving in addition to being quite a flirt. He HAD to have seen her like this before in order for the crush to have lasted so long without confronting her or agreeing to that date.
-She responds positively to his flirting/interactions when they finally do date
Ah Krupp you damn dork ^_^. The way she responds to his “Just want the best for M’lady!” and how he reacts in excitement says a lot. He’s at his most open here like her and-again-they are comfortable enough with each other that you can see them dating more often.
-He’s able to truly be himself around her.
Remember the kernel theory of CU being that small bit of Krupp’s goodness buried deep? Is there anything familiar about his behavior during the date that’s similar to how CU interacted with Edith? He doesn’t have to act like the controlling principal with her outside the school–he’s able to let go and be a happy dork. He’s able to just be ‘Benjamin’ and not ‘Mr. Krupp.’ (Also, notice how he reacted to the invitation to the date?)
With CU
(For the sake of this, it’s important to ignore the idea that ‘Well he loves her because Krupp loves her’ and try to see this as CU as his own person like we all do.)
Her eyes– “But if your casserole is as striking as your one blue eye”/”Oh my... two blue eyes!”
-Edith is unique in that she is the only character with actual colored eyes in the entire cu-verse. This is something that CU instantly notices about her and I think he likes this uniqueness. It’s also interesting because we know he’s someone who doesn’t really ‘pay attention to detail.’ I also can’t help but recall how the first line is delivered, as if he wanted to say something more or couldn’t think of anything else to say. 
-The fact that she’s actually pretty.
-Well... this is a given, so its not that helpful. But notice how CU says “Oh my,” when she reveals her face and he just... takes a moment to REALLY look at her with this awe-struck look. It’s tied to the above and he actually might have been just looking at her eyes. But we’ve NEVER seen CU stare at someone in silence the way he does with her. 
-The way she responds to his flirting with laughter/appreciation
-So as we notice, he laughs a little after the ‘Two blue eyes’ comment. When she’s won over by it and laughs in an appreciative way, he starts laughing in a more excited way. Maybe she has a sense of humor or way of seeing things that is somewhat similar to his, or he’s just happy that she liked his flirting. Its also probably a clue to him that she’s easy-going/fun loving, which would make her a perfect match for him.
-Her laughter
-Edith has a pretty unique laugh, doesn’t she? It’s hard to describe, but its like braying/hiccuping but without being obnoxious? It looked like he really liked it.
-She’d accept him as he is and not be weirded out by the obvious
-When I was young, I didn’t think CU could be taken seriously as someone’s love interest until I realized “Oh right, its a guy in nothing but underwear” when I was older. Boy howdy was I proven right about the latter the instant I saw Edith getting excited over his unintentional G rated ‘clothes off’ moment.
She. Doesn’t. Care. That he’s a near naked super hero.
She loves it.
In fact, there was an alternate ending where CU carries Edith out of the resteraunt bridal style, but one of the shots would show her REALLY delighted over the reveal. (I think its somewhere on storyboard artist Todd Kurosawa’s instagram page, but be aware that storyboard!Edith is... uh... not super pleasing to the eyes).
So again, this is what I gathered from the movie based off evidence (and what could be gathered from David Soren’s notes in regards to how long they must have known each other). If there’s any more, let me know or feel free to add to this.
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lesbianrobin · 4 years ago
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Would love to hear more about your thoughts on Lumax, Stobin and Jopper after that gifset... v cool tags! Never thought of that before.
So I’ve let this sit in the inbox for awhile hoping that my thoughts would eventually coalesce into something smart, but... that hasn’t happened, so I’m just gonna give it my best shot anyway! For those curious, this is the gifset with my tags that anon is referring to, but I’ll be adding smaller versions of the gifs into this post for reference.
To start with, I definitely think that if we’re drawing direct parallels between members of the different core groups (kids/teens/adults), then Lucas, Steve, and Hopper would all be one another’s counterparts. They’re all very kind-hearted, playful, protective, action heroes, the type to step up when nobody else will, but they’re also prone to overconfidence and getting very angry or resentful when they feel they’ve been wronged by someone they care about (Lucas fighting with the party over El, Steve going full 80′s bully when he thinks Nancy’s cheated on him, Hopper with El in S2 and after being stood up by Joyce in S3). This isn’t to say that they all have the same personality or character arc, just that they have a fair number of similarities and often fulfill the same role within their respective groups. (Sidenote: Interestingly, all three of them tend to fill a “pursuer” role in romantic relationships, the one making their intentions known and waiting for a response or going out of their way to “woo” the object of their affections, but this is true of Mike as well. Jonathan is actually the only guy on the show who goes a significant amount of time without making a move on his crush, and the only one who does so after having essentially been told how said crush feels about him. He is also the odd man out among Mike, Lucas, and Steve, all of whom make attempts to “win back” their love interests at various points, whereas Jonathan does not reach out to Nancy after their fight in S3 and seems to have had no intention of doing so before she called to say their lives were in danger.)
There are also definite parallels between Max and Robin (the newcomer to the group, incredibly skilled and confident in her abilities yet harboring a deep fear, outwardly self-sufficient yet longing for friendship and a sense of belonging, snarky, lesbian, pretty, absolute lights of my life). Joyce, however, doesn’t quite fit this mold! She lacks the tough and sarcastic exterior, almost an inverse of Max and Robin; While they seem unflappable yet hide vulnerabilities within, Joyce initially appears rather weak yet hides a wealth of courage and tenacity. This is all relevant, I promise.
Before we go into the gifs, I’d like to ask that you pay attention to the movement of the camera, and you should see what I’m getting at immediately, but I’ll go into it a bit later on.
So, Max and Lucas!
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The two of them grab each other’s hands impulsively out of fear when the demodogs are about to break into the bus, and once the adrenaline fades a bit, they realize what they’re doing. While Max seems fine with it, Lucas quickly wrenches his hand out of Max’s grip.
More or less the same thing happens with Steve and Robin!
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They hold hands out of fear when they duck down to avoid being seen, and once the adrenaline fades, Robin seems okay with it, but Steve tears his hand away.
I think both of these scenarios are cases in which the people involved feel safer with the person next to them, are in need of comfort, and cling without thinking. There is no intention involved! Maybe if Robin weren’t there Steve would have held Dustin’s hand instead, and maybe if Max hadn’t been there, Lucas would have simply grabbed the edge of the bus seat behind him, or held onto Dustin’s shoulder or the back of Steve’s jacket. We don’t know! All we know is that they did not choose to hold hands in these two scenarios, and both Lucas and Steve were embarrassed by the weakness revealed to Max/Robin through this action, and thus put an end to it. Both Max and Robin seem hurt when Lucas and Steve pull away.
With Joyce and Hopper, however, things are different.
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Do you see why I mentioned the camera movement? We have the same downwards tilt as the previous two scenes!! 
At this point, both of the previous scenes have already occurred, so we the viewer have been taught by Stranger Things that if two characters with some romantic potential or tension are standing next to each other when something scary happens and we do a tilt down, that means we’re gonna see that they’re holding hands, and if tradition holds, we’re also gonna see Hopper pull away.
This doesn’t happen.
Joyce and Hopper aren’t yet holding hands as the camera tilts. They’re looking at each other not in surprise as they realize that their fingers are entwined, but as a question, a confirmation, and an understanding. This moment is not involuntary. It is not in response to a life-threatening danger, and unlike his younger counterparts, Hopper is not afraid of the potential weakness represented by the action. The two have been in plenty of dire situations prior to this moment, in the Upside Down and Hawkins Lab and secret underground Russian facilities, but it is on the Gravitron that they choose to hold hands.
Max initially teases Lucas for his crush before eventually kissing him, but then proceeds to dump him time and time again, possibly only going along with the romantic aspect of their relationship out of compulsory heterosexuality or for the fun of having a boyfriend. Lucas goes along with this routine dumping happily and has fun “marching into battle” to win her back. While the two certainly love each other, it is puppy love at most, and they are more friends to one another than they are true romantic partners. They’re on two different pages, one craving the vulnerability and trust that the other hasn’t yet grown mature enough to embrace, and so they cling to each other out of instinct before letting go.
Steve insists that he isn’t interested in Robin, yet later confesses his feelings to her immediately after having been tortured and drugged together. She rejects him outright. It’s unclear whether Steve truly had feelings for Robin that he’d been lying about all along, or if he simply mistook his feelings of genuine love and friendship for romantic interest. While they love each other, it is entirely platonic. They were on two different pages, Robin happy for the comfort of a friend and Steve fearful of a potential crush, and they clung to each other out of instinct before letting go.
A lot has happened between Joyce and Hopper. They’ve both suffered a world of loss, and helped each other through some of their darkest moments. The two love each other as lifelong friends and confidantes. Then, in Season 3: Hopper asks Joyce out. She’s still mourning Bob, and so she stands him up. He holds a grudge. They argue... a lot. Still, at the end of it all, they look into each other’s eyes, and finally, they’re on the same page. They know that they’re more than their worst selves, more than their hurt feelings and their pasts. They’re adults, partners, done with the misunderstandings and missed opportunities, ready to step into their future together, and so they make the choice to hold on. 
I... think those are all my thoughts? I hope this is sorta what you were looking for!! Sorry it isn’t more articulate lmao but thanks for asking!!
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simple-heroics · 5 years ago
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Momo Yaoyorozu Fluff Alphabet | Part 2 | Letters M-Z
 Guys, I love her so much. This took awhile to finish but here it is! Read Part 1 here.
credit to creator of the fluff alphabet prompt list here
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Marriage - Do they want to get married? How do they propose? What would the marriage be like?
In a word…yes.
However, Momo never dreamed of marriage as a little girl nor did she ever feel like she needed marriage - or any relationship - to be happy. She has her family, friends, a fulfilling career, tea, and other passions (i.e advocacy, fundraising, etc.) to keep her busy. 
Momo doesn’t date to get married or because she’s lonely or needs another person to feel complete. She dates you because she loves you. She marries you because she wants to spend the rest of her life with you. (Oh, and the legal benefits. One of which is that threats against spouses of various federal employees is a federal crime. Including pro heroes. Don’t fuck with Creati’s baby :) :)  She will use every possible way to ruin a person’s life forever if they come after you.)
Basically, YOU make HER want to get married. And you bet your ass she’s gonna put a ring on that.
Forget about “stimulating the economy” and that trickle down economics bull shit. Momo is making your ring - a symbol of YOUR LOVE - herself, and only the best of the best for you. She spends hours researching designs, meanings of various gemstones, the durability of metals. All the “samples” she makes are a small fortune in and of herself.
When she proposes, Momo takes you to a botanical garden - the same one you both went to on one of your first dates. Literally rents the entire place out. While you walk around, you start to get nostalgic just as she hoped and reminisce. 
Holding your hands, Momo talks about the first time she saw you, her favorite memories, how you’ve made her so happy. She tells you how you’ve changed her and helped her grow as a person, how everyday has been such a blessing.
Then she makes the ring, right then and there, for you. Softly, reverently, she asks, “Can we spend the rest of our days together like this?”
Marriage actually makes Momo much more comfortable with PDA. Whereas before she would only go as far holding your hand, now she presses loving kisses to your face and strokes your hair and is in general at least 20% more touchy. Marriage gives her a sense of security and - in a weird way - “propriety”. It’s one thing to lovey dovey with a datemate in public; it’s another to be affectionate with one’s spouse.
Oh, yeah. She loves the sound of it. Whenever your name comes up, it’s always “my spouse, y/n” or “y/n, my spouse”. It just makes her so giddy to say.
The feeling’s mutual of course. Anytime Creati is on TV, kicking ass or looking so pristine in an interview, you’re like:
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Nicknames - What do they call their s/o?
Momo is full of sweet, doting nicknames: darling, my love, dear, dearest, beloved. These are usually accompanied by a kiss on your hand or temple. 
All in private, though. You’d have to take her by surprise with a sudden visit to the office or it’d have to be an intensely emotional situation for Momo to call you those sweet names in public.
But Momo doesn’t need to call you a pet name in public for people to know who you are to her. Just the soft, almost reverent way she says your name - practically cooing it - says it all. Everyone knows that you’re her darling even if she doesn’t outright call you it in public.
On Cloud Nine - What are they like when they are in love? Is it obvious for others? How do they express their feelings?
Okay, so this is gonna be a little contradictory but…I see Momo as being both the most relaxed she’s ever been in her life and more focused than she’s ever been before.
You teach her that it’s okay to be herself and not this image of her “best self” she always has in her head. You make her feel safe enough to be let go of her perfectionism and accept her enough that she gradually drops one insecurity after another. She can be messy around you. She can be loud or quiet or giggly or grouchy or literally anything else. She’s just Momo with you.
Finally with some kind of outlet, the explicit permission to be free, it’s like watching an entire lifetime of tension slip away. 
But….because you make her feel this, so happy and light and free, Momo is overwhelmed with gratitude and love that it kind of kicks itself in reverse. She has to be absolutely perfect for you.
And it can become a cycle. Not a great one, either. So please keep in check with each other and help balance yourselves out. Please. She just wants to make you the happiest person on earth which - in her view - is hard because you already do that for her.
Like I briefly touched on above and will even more so below, it’s Very Clear that Momo Yaoyorozu is in love. People who have known her for years have never seen her happier nor have her own colleagues ever seen her so…intense.
Because Momo has a very solid, very real reason to make it through missions waiting for her at home. She has a precious person to make the world a safer place for now. She was absolutely dedicated before but now? Now it’s personal.
PDA - Are they upfront about their relationship? Do they brag with their s/o in front of others? Or are they rather shy to kiss etc. when others are watching?
Given Momo’s upbringing, the answer to most of these is no. Definitely not. Not only is Momo shy about PDA but she was taught that doing so is disrespectful to people around you and even your significant other. Japanese etiquette only affirms this. The most you can expect from your girl is holding hands or linking arms while you walk around.
That doesn’t mean Momo stops touching you in public. In fact, sometimes it’s like she can’t keep her hands off you but her affection is expressed in small, subtle touches disguised as helpful gestures.
Tucking your hair behind your ear, straightening your collar, dabbing the corner of your mouth, brushing imaginary lint off your shoulder. 
As for bragging…Momo doesn’t necessarily “brag” about you. But she does talk about you. A lot.
Out with a friend? “S/o said hi!” Doing paperwork? “S/o got me this pen.” Eating dinner with a colleague? “I should bring s/o here.”
Momo absolutely adores you. Even though she doesn’t go shouting this to the word, it shines in the little things.
The biggest giveaway? The way she looks at you with those bright, shining gray eyes. 
Quirk - Some random ability they have that’s beneficial in a relationship. I just love this prompt for BNHA imagines.
Momo has a lot of secret talents that you’re always discovering at random. Her parents put a lot of thought and care into their only daughter’s upbringing, especially her education, and it shows. Your favorite so far?
Her dancing.
And it’s not like Ashido’s dancing or really many people your age. I am talking classical ballroom, mostly for the sake of those fancy banquets and soirees that the Yaoyorozus often attended. Momo knows how to elegantly through a ballroom as well as she does in the field. 
But that’s not what you’re interested in. It’s the quiet, private part of your lives where’s it’s just the two of you in your home. No one else, no demanding tasks, no where to be. Just you and some lo-fi music.
Momo will gently take you in her arms and sway you around the room. And this is where you see her at her most relax, taking one of those skills hammered into her from a young age and just…letting go of all the rules. She makes it her own and just moves fluidly to the music, taking her with you.
Catch me when I swoon.
Romance - How romantic are they? What would they do to make their s/o happy? Cliché or rather creative?
Extremely romantic! Didn’t I tell you that she’s doting? And affectionate? And absolutely mesmerized by you?
And looord, does she know how to treat you.
As she grew up without want for any tangible object in the world, Momo is not a gift giver. Love, to her, is expressed in the time you spend with a person. This leads to fun weekend trips, surprise visits on lunch breaks, concerts, you name it. 
Momo always finds a way of incorporating a little personal touch into the most cliché of clichés and making them entirely your own thing.
Support - Are they helping their s/o achieve their goals? Do they believe in them?
You have been nothing but supportive of her pro hero career - one that demands so much from Momo and by extension your relationship with her. And Momo is READY to support you in any way she can.
This girl legit researches and creates an entire long term plan on how you can achieve your goal, whatever it may be. School-related? Hello, Momo-sensei. Fitness goal? She goes to the gym and exercise with you, encouraging you the entire way. Artistic goal? Oh, what a coincidence. That random gallery owner happens to be a friend of her mother’s!
You maaaay have to pace her a little bit. She believes in you wholeheartedly but needs to be reminded that they’re your goals and you’re the one working towards them. Not necessarily you and your enthusiastic girlfriend. 
Thrill - Do they need to try out new things to spice out your relationship? Or do they prefer a certain routine?
Momo has a high risk job where people’s very lives are at stake. For god’s sake, she was thrown headfirst into danger in her first two weeks of high school with USJ incident and it’s just been one thing after another ever since.
Give her a routine. Give her that calming domestic bliss. 
Seriously. It’s crucial for your relationship and Momo’s own mental health that she has some sort of routine with you. Routine is comforting; routine provides a sense of security and safety. For that, Momo sets some serious boundaries between her personal life - with you specifically - and work. 
You won’t be going on skydiving dates or anything with Momo. But you will wish each other good night every night, whether you’re in each other’s arms in bed or phone when she’s away or even just text if she’s on a stakeout. It’s these little, consistent things that make your relationships so strong.
Understanding - How well do they know their partner? Are they empathetic?
Part of the way Momo shows her love is learning you and everything about you. She’s spent hours dedicated to studying and now she studies you. It’s likely that she knows you better than you know yourself.
She knows everything about you: your favorite food, your hobbies, your goals, where you were born, who your best friend in high school was, everything. 
She collects every piece of information about you, always listening and observing, and holds it close to her heart.
That said…and don’t hate me for this…but Momo isn’t the most empathetic person. Of course she’s kind and caring and an overall lovely person. But she is a person who follows things by steps, who uses logical thinking to predict people. Sometimes she gets so wrapped up in her line of thinking that she…misses out on the emotional side. 
You’re probably the more empathetic person in this relationship, trusting your instincts and just letting yourself feel out situations while Momo tries to think her way through them. Both have their pros and cons, and it honestly teaches each of you a lot about each other.
Value - How important is the relationship to them? What is it’s worth in comparison to other things in their life?
Momo’s a busy woman. If she takes the time and energy to not only enter but maintain a relationship with you, you mean the absolute world to her.
And she reminds you of that every. single. day.
However…Momo is a selfless person. She gives a lot in the relationship and to you but to her, it’s not a necessity (close, though) but an indulgence. She sees herself as selfish for keeping you in her life, ever aware of the dangers of dating a high-ranking pro hero. She sometimes thinks of herself as selfish by staying with you, loving you, as she does.
Her worst fear is that you’ll suffer for her “selfishness” or be used against her in some way. Or worse still…that she’ll be forced into a situation where she’ll have to choose between you and her duty as a hero, between saving you or the public.
Even Momo doesn’t know which she would choose. She prays she’s never, ever put in the situation where she would have to make such a terrible choice.
Wild Card - A random Fluff Headcanon.
You know that one cool couple who is always hosting fun get-togethers with friends? Like, there are all of these monthly hang outs and yearly traditions that literally everyone in the squad looks forward to every year?
That’s you guys. 
Momo LOVES playing hostess and you know how to have fun. Seriously, you’ve expanded Momo’s world beyond posh banquets and afternoon tea and she adores you for it. You host regular hot pots. Movie nights. Brunches. Beach days. White elephant parties. Every year there’s a cake baking competition with a golden whisk as the prize along with a full 365 days of bragging rights. (Bakugo, who didn’t even want to come, won it last year and will die before giving it up. Nobody cares who wins the golden whisk next year as long as it’s not that gremlin.)
Y’all know how to throw a party.
Probably of one the best things about this relationship is that you’re not in a “couple only” bubble. You cherish your other relationships, and it shows in how you often include others in your lives. :)
XOXO - Are they very affectionate? Do they love to kiss and cuddle?
Doting. Doting is the exact word that comes to mind when I think of Momo and affection. Almost immediately after meeting you, Momo was just so achingly fond of you and those feelings simmered for loooong while before the confession finally happened.
Now she just can’t help herself.
If she’s not playing with your hair, she kissing your fingers. If she’s not doing that, she’s hugging you. If it isn’t a hug, it’s a full on cuddle session where she kisses your face and holds your hand and murmurs sweet affections and -
Yeah. Momo restrains herself in public to subtle, sweet gestures but once your alone? She makes up for lost time.
Her favorite is leaving soft, delicate kisses on your temple after tucking your hair behind your ear and whispering how much she adores you.
Yearning - How will they cope when they’re missing their partner?
Momo keeps incredibly focused and on task at work. But as soon as it gets quiet and she’s alone…she yearns. She pines. She sighs. And she video chats you.
She does a very good job of staying in touch and communicating when you’re separated for any reason. Like I mentioned above, Momo always wishes you good night. And good morning. No matter what. 
Please send Momo encouraging texts throughout her long, hard day. Please send her cute pictures. Please tell her love just because and tell her you can’t wait to see her again. It’s those little things that get her through missing you.
On a more angsty note…Momo worries about you. A lot. She has actual nightmares about something bad happening to you - being held hostage for ransom, a villain looking to get revenge against Creati, you getting caught up in a random public attack and her being unable to save you. These nightmares are at their worst when she’s away from you. The longer the separation, the more vivid and terrible they are. There have been times that she’s called you in the middle of the night just to hear your voice - the only thing that can calm her pounding heart and soothe her enough to go back to sleep. 
So while she keeps in close constant because she does miss you a lot, Momo also does so to give herself some peace of mind. She needs to know you’re okay.
Zeal - Are they willing to go to great lengths for the relationship? If so, what kind of?
Y E S. Oh, my god, yes. Momo would do anything for you.
Sometimes, it honestly scares Momo how much she would do for you. She’s always been a dedicated person, a true perfectionist that approaches everything with well thought out strategy. She does things by steps. She’s the woman with a plan. 
Then you came along and her whole universe imploded, forming a whole new one in the dust of her past and creating something new and unfamiliar and beautiful and terrifying.
So much so that even Momo doesn’t know her own limits anymore - not when it comes to you. She had lines before, boundaries, places she would not go. But with you? God only knows what she wouldn’t do for you.
Momo doesn’t like to linger too long on what kind of incredible, possibly terrible things she would do for you if pushed. But she promises herself that she’ll do everything in her power to keep it from coming to that.
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baddyzarc · 5 years ago
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1/6 Ruins: Legend of the Ancient Hero
x 2 3 4a 4b 5 6 7  
So awhile back I wrote a small, incomplete piece over Vector and his guardian, Minotarous, and how it connects to his legend and mythyrian number. Since then, I've been wanting to do it for all of the Emperors since there's enough details and Easter eggs to do that and nows a good time. I'm gonna be taking text mainly from the original subs since the dub did things to them that I do not agree with.
Since its gonna cover 6 different ruins, I decided to split this up into multiple parts.
So let’s begin with the ruins of everyone's favorite blind, book-loving, memelord supreme barian, Dubhe
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Being the first to kick off the arc, Durbe’s ruin is probably the easiest of the ruins to understand. 
Aside from the theme of trusting in others, one of the other major themes of his ruins revolves around the self-sacrifice motif.
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This is clearly seen at the very start of the arc. It started with the scene where Yuma jumped in front of a bear in order to protect Durbe, who is a stranger and a very likely candidate of the Barian Emperor that crashed into their ship. Yuma was willing to sacrifice himself to (or fistfight) a bear to protect a complete stranger.
The next example is a little more obscure, but I say it happens when Durbe pushed Ryouga out from under the falling rocks and trapped himself with the fish boy. This one is a bit tough to grasp what Durbe “sacrificed” by doing this, but I argue that Ryouga was immediately held distrust towards Durbe from the beginning. Durbe has no reason to save him, and it would’ve benefited him greatly if Ryouga is out of the picture. Instead, Durbe saves him, and in the process he sacrifices his safety for a person who really hates Barians.
This whole concept continues throughout the Durbe's ruins. “Numbers 44: White Winged Horse - Sky Pegasus“ has the ability to destroy a monster unless the owner pays 500 lifepoints, and due to additional effects, Yuma has to pay 1000 lifepoints (which is a quarter of his life) each time this happens. Yuma chooses to sacrifice his lifepoints to keep Durbe and Ryouga as well as his “Numbers 39: King of Wishes, Hope” alive. In the Legend, Mach sacrifices himself for Durbe, and Durbe sacrifices himself for Mach in the past. There’s also something to be said when Yuma places his trust in the Barian Emperor, Durbe, after recounting his disaster with my boy Vector too. Even near the end of the episode, Ryouga is willing to die in order for Yuma to win the duel. The whole mini-arc is lathered in this theme.
What I found interesting about the "self-sacrificing" theme is what Mach says at the beginning of the duel. He says that in order for Yuma to win (and in turn save Ryouga and Durbe), he has to surrender the duel, or "victory can only be achieved through surrender." In essence, Yuma has to sacrifice, or surrender, the Mythyrian Number if he wants to save everyone. This is usual villain banter, but in the context of this episode, it is almost knee-jerking and tragic.
Recall back to Durbe’s legend. The Legend of the Ancient Hero (recounted through the scriptures on the ruins, Durbe, and Mach) tells the story of a group of four brave knights with one of them being Durbe and his Pegasus, Mach. Together they protected a distant land. Durbe returned to his homeland for some time (presumably to aid Nasch in his quest). Corrupted with the aspiration for power, the remaining knights overthrew the king and took over the country. When Durbe returned, he tried to appeal to them by saying “their hearts [are] filled with justice.” Unfortunately, he failed to open their hearts, and the three knights attacked Durbe.
Despite the assault, Durbe refused to harm or kill the attackers because he saw them as his cherished companions. Instead of fighting back, he surrendered, and he was stricken down by their relentless attacks. 
Mach intervened in these attacks in order to protect his master, and he became fatally injured as a result. Durbe refused to retreat or abandon his dying steed, so he stayed by Mach’s side so they could perish together. 
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The final line of the legend said that the knights saw how noble the two of them were in their self-sacrifice to each other. They committed their lives to prove the bond between friends, the knights included. To honor Durbe, the knights ceased their rebellion, and they laid Mach and Durbe to rest as heroes. 
In the case of the legend, even with their tragic demise, victory was achieved through surrender. 
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Yuma does a similar thing. In order to win, he has to play Mach’s game. He has to accept sacrificing himself over and over again. Only by taking those hits, by surrendering his life, is he able to win the duel and save his friends.  
Okay, so enough about the theme of the ruins, let’s talk about physical ruins. 
Noteworthy imagery used in the ruins is the use of colors. 
When the characters got separated, they ended up in two chambers. One is lit by blue flames and the other by red flames. 
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And the thing about Zexal is that blue and red have strong associations to Astral World and Barian World respectively. Not all of the time, but the usage of these colored hallways and flames disappear shortly afterwards. So if the writers didn’t want you to notice the difference, they would’ve omitted it entirely. These colors are included for some reason.
Now you're probably wondering why I bring this up. Ryouga, Durbe, and Rio are Barians, Astral is, well, an Astral, this separation doesn’t make sense. But consider where the characters wind up. The “blue light” leads to the legend of the hero while the “red light” leads to the Number.
With the "red light" path, their intention is to free “Number 44: White Winged Horse - Sky Pegasus”. 
Okay, slight deviation since this is important, but the Mythyrian Numbers are a special set of Numbers that Astral used to seal Don Thousand’s powers away. With Numbers, they do not belong to the Astral as a whole. If that’s the case, the existence of “Number 100: Numeron Dragon” implies that Astral created God, which is a little problematic (or a plot hole, take your pick). This is also why the Barians have their own set of Numbers. Astral is called the Original Number, so I take this as he is conglomerate of a bunch of strong Numbers, and Astral’s whole identity and powers is tied to the Numbers. This is why his memory shatters in the form of Numbers, or how other beings can absorb Astral’s Numbers. The Astrals simply used the powers of the Numbers to create Astral and lock Don Thousand away. I’ll explain this more later when we get to Mizael’s ruins and the whole smitck with the Numeron Dragon because it gets complicated.
BUT if anyone took the Mythyrian Number, whether it was carried out by Astral World, or Barian World, or an Earthling, Don Thousand’s strength will be restored. No matter what, Don Thousand's strengthening is inevitable as long as the characters choose to act on the red path.
For during the path of the “blue light”, or the one that Durbe and Ryouga took, the show hints that the evil Barians maybe aren’t evil. They have another secret to them that we don’t know of. In fact, the legend concludes by mentioning that the heroic Durbe and Mach ascended into Heaven, or into Astral World. This did not happen, of course, since we know of Durbe’s true fate. With Ryouga, his presence with Durbe allows for a crucial scene to play out later in the episodes.  This also steadily connects him to his Barian heritage.
I can’t say much for Rio, but I feel as though the writers were incredibly inept about handling her Barianhood in comparison to Ryouga. They had no idea what to do with her (aside from being a handy-dandy translator and expositioner) and her character suffers for it, but ill get to her later. 
Like, I may have an slight explanation for why Rio stays with the “red light” group. It’s kinda weak, but here we go.
Out of all of the legends, only Nasch and Durbe were not seen to be touched by Don Thousand's direct actions:
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All of the other Emperors had a scene where an Over-Hundred goes into their heart or are possessed by Don Thousand. It is highly implied that Durbe also had the Over-Hundred Number monster enter his heart, but this was not shown since the scene cut away before we find out. Far as I know, Durbe was influenced to become a Barian when Donny made the knights turn on him, and the betrayal of his friends was so heart-breaking that Durbe descended into Barian World. Nasch was… well, ill get to him later too, but Durbe and Nasch could be the only ones who aren’t embedded with the curse. At least, on-screen. 
Whether it happened or not is up for your interpretation, but them staying on the “blue light”, in the path of true heroes, makes sense in this concept. 
Weak, yeah, but if there’s anyone that can explain why Rio is on the “blue light” side, let me know, aside from plot convenience. It’s obvious that the writers wanted Ryouga and Durbe to be together in the death rooms for plot reasons though. 
Moving on, more plays on colors could be seen with the drawings in the Ruins.
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This handsome, colorful fellow is meant to be Durbe. This depiction of him is much different than the one that is shown in (hopefully accurate) flashback. 
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It isn’t known who is responsible for scriptures and drawing in all of the ruins. 
But the person who did this has the right idea of dressing Durbe in this multicolored garb. The story is called the “Legend of the Ancient Hero” and heroes are often associated with the three primary colors: blue is seen his shirt, pants, and helmet; red is seen in his cape; and yellow is seen in his undergarment. Meanwhile, white is a color often associated with purity, peace, and sincerity. All of these colors represent Durbe his legend—as a pure hero. 
Being as he is the first Ruins we visit, using all this imagery to scream to the audience that “the barians are actually fallen heroes! theyre not evil!” is quite a nice, fun touch. 
As well, out of the Seven Emperors, Durbe is the one who tends to be the most pure and heroic. From his deck being based on “holy” objects and his... questionable leadership, Durbe isn’t like Vector. He isn’t cruel or evil; everything he does is “for sake of Barian World” and that’s about it. 
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He knows that if Barian World does not attack Astral World, they will die (and vice-versa with Astral World). His motivations are solely to protect his home and his people. Also, I like Durbe I really do, but he is pathetic as a villain. Literally the worst plans and a bad leader who does not know how to use any of his pieces, but I appreciate his noble goals. He’s funny, Durbe is really funny. He just doesn’t have the heart to be the bad guy; but as a character who acts heroic (his duel with Merag for example), he does it pretty well. 
And to rub my grubby little barian-eatin hands all over Durbe’s heroness, I want to talk about his ace monsters—his Mythyrian, his Over-Hundred, and his Chaos Over-Hundred. 
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Durbe’s Mythyrian Number also serves as his beloved Guardian of the ruins, Mach. This holds true for most of the Emperors due to the Guardians connection to their Emperors during their past life. 
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Now, Durbe isn’t shown with the card like some of the other Emperors, but we likely can infer that he was in posession of the Mythyrian Number, thus being a target of Don Thousand. 
The role of the Mythyrian Number for the Emperors isn’t crystal clear, but what is known is that their being used to seal Don Thousand away. During the original fight between Don Thousand and Astral, Astral won the battle but lost fifty of his Numbers. Among these were the Mythyrian Numbers, which had the power to suppress Don Thousand. I don’t know if it was random chance that the Numbers glided towards the Emperors or it was divine intervention, but what I do know is that anyone who got the Mythyrian original had a good, strong heart and were destined for Astral World. 
My personal theory is that the Barians and Astrals are like Newton’s Third Law, “every action has an equal and opposite reaction”. They complement each other and balance each other out. 
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In order to seal Don Thousand’s Chaos away, the Astrals had to counteract with equal forces of Cosmos. In their true life, the Emperors provided the necessary Cosmos to suppress Don Thousand. The Emperors were supposed to be Astrals anyways; the Astrals just harnessing their powers while they were humans to fight Don Thousand.
Since the Mythyrian Numbers are drenched with the power of Cosmos due to their relationship with the human Emperors, they are the antitheisis to the Over-Hundred Numbers whose powers come from Chaos.
Mythyrian Numbers being based more on Astral World could also be seen in how the Pegasus on the coat of arms is often associated with Heaven, or a messenger from God. And as Mach recounted the ending of Durbe’s legend, he does that color thing. That iconic blue, Astral-like glow.
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With his Over-Hundred Numbers, I think the most interesting thing about it is that the full Japanese name is “Numbers 102: Holy Lightning - Glorious Halo”. These Number monsters represent the Barian Emperors in some way (despite some of them being weird like the giant handy one). The most direct statement to this is when Vector uses the Over-Hundreds to mock Nasch by summoning Durbe and Merag’s monsters (as in “I ate your sister and best friend and these are mine now”), and the entirety of Nasch’s tragic display during his final duel with Yuma. 
So even in death, even as a Barian, even as one of the villains, Durbe is still sainted as holy and adorned with a halo. None of the other Over-Hundred are dressed in such a positive light (if at all). 
When he turns “Glorious Halo” into a Chaos monster, technically putting extra barian sauce on a plate of fried barian, the name changes into “Number C102: Unholy Lightning - Noble Daemon”. Durbe still has the “Noble Demon” attached to him, even with extra evil on him. 
Durbe’s nobility as a Barian makes since if you see that he isn't deeply infused with Don Thousand's curse in comparison to someone like Vector. Or his strong affiliation to keep Barian World safe from harm.  
Plus, as a little extra snippet that I noticed in the episode, I wanna focus on this scene in the ruins.
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This scene is great. It doesn't have much to do with Durbe, but it's an amazing foreshadow. I think by this point, the audience suspects that Ryouga is a Barian. He acts weird sometimes, his past is unknown, he can summon Chaos monsters, the Emperors are missing two and the Kamishiros slide in like a puzzle piece. BUT, I think the most damning evidence is this specific piece. 
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Before entering the ruins, Durbe broke his Baria crystal. He is unable to use his Barian powers nor does he have the ability to fix it. But the moment he saves Ryouga from falling to his death, Ryouga begins to glow that iconic red Barian color. 
Not Durbe, but Ryouga. Ryouga’s energy flows into Durbe, which restores his crystal to full power and allows him to reveal his true form. Since Ryouga is the King of the Barians, Nasch, it makes complete sense that his body has remnants of his Barian life. (why this didnt activate before, idk, maybe shark wasnt in the mood) 
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Watching Ryouga heal a fellow Barian is conclusive evidence that Ryouga, as well as Rio probably, must be Barians, or at least connected to the Barians. 
Even parts of the duel includes Nasch’s legend in it.
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“Labyrinth of Decisions”, “Unfair Treaty”, and “Shield of Conspiracy” are cards used by Mach that fit into Durbe’s story. The labyrinth could be attributed to him leaving the country to aid Nasch in tracking Vector into the Labyrinth of Screams, and the unfair treaty/ or conspiracy is attributed to his own story, where the three knights betrayed the king. 
In the end, the first of these ruins reveals two major plot points about the Emperors with one being much more obvious than the other. First is that there are more to the Emperors than being “plain evil” for the sake of it. Second, the events seen in the ruins hints that this shark-shaped shadow is Ryouga, and he is likely to be the final and missing Barian Emperor(s).
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Of course this isn’t everything. I don’t know why his ruins are in South America (Ecuador, i think, go here if you want to know more about geography) when they say his homeland is somewhere else. 
The Pegasus came from Greek mythology which spawns an interesting connection to the legend of Nasch and Vector. Pegasus was borne from the death of a gorgon (Medusa) and reared by Poseidon (who is attributed to being the god of the seas in most pop culture iterations). Gorgons and oceans is basically the story of Vector and Nasch, and as you know, Durbe and Mach participated in that legend too. 
I’m just so fascination by Emperors and their everything, their monsters, their past lives, their ruins, their planet, their composition. Theyre entertaining to explore bc it feels like the writers put something in them for the audience to discover. They're simply fun, and I'll see you in the next ruins
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Been sitting on this for awhile, I think it still needs some polishing and I haven’t settled on my design ideas yet (I need to pick a face-claim/potential VA/figure out some armor references if I want to draw him) but ya know what I think we need? Some more Greek heroes. I love me some Greek heroes. Here’s a Memnon profile for ya:
MEMNON PROFILE
5*
Rider (B/AAA/Q)
Origin: Greek Mythology / Africa
Brynhildr’s Beloved / Sky / Lawful Good / Greek Mythology Male
Passive Skills:
Divinity B
Affection of the Goddess
Riding B
Active Skills:
General’s Honor – Increases party’s attack, star generation, and NP damage (three turns).
-          When introduced to King Priam, the leader of Troy loudly proclaimed that Memnon will be their savior. Memnon merely smiled, and said that his strength would be obvious on the battlefield, but it would be impolite to boast at dinner. A mighty general who was admired by all his men and feared by all his enemies.
Affection of the Divine (A) – Grants guts to self (one time, five turns), raises attack and defense and apply ignore invincible (three turns).
-          Raised by nymphs at the shores of Okeanos, doted on by his divine mother, admired by Zeus and Hephaestus for his combat prowess. Rarely has a man ever walked the Earth who has been so blessed.
Proof of Immortality (B) – Charges NP gauge (20-50 percent), gains critical stars (10-30), gain de-buff immunity (one time, three turns).
-          Though his story is lost, the mark of his legend is felt across the world. It is said that his blood gathered in a river upon his death, and every year on the anniversary of his slaying, the river smells of blood. Memnon, unlike Achilles, does not draw power when he is present in his homeland, as his tale is lost to history. However, he can draw on this power instead, a manifestation of proof that he lived and was considered a hero.
Noble Phantasm: Chariot of the Rising Dawn. (Buster). Chance to inflict burn (apples to all enemies), deal heavy damage to a single enemy. Apply Burning Field to the surroundings after taking effect.
-          Invokes the protection and power of his mother, Eos, the primordial dawn goddess. Memnon has access to her chariot, which is pulled by two horses, Firebright and Daybright. Setting a trail of fire and sparks, he charges towards the enemy, leaving chaos in his wake.
-          Because Memnon prefers single combat and dueling, this works as a Single Target Noble Phantasm. The burn, however, is applied to all targets.
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Introduction: The hero always arrives at the last minute… or, so they say. I am Rider, Memnon. Please allow me to serve as your defender.
Profile One: The rival of Achilles, who was summoned from Aethiopia after Hektor’s death to participate in the defense of Troy. The son of a primordial dawn goddess, a humble and great leader who inspired countless men. His tale is lost to history with all but a few fragments remaining, so much of his life is a mystery.
Line One: If you wish to rest, please do so mindfully. The battle will begin again when the sun rises.
Line Two: The relationship of a Master and a Servant is simple enough to understand. I was a general, so the chain of command is nothing new.
Line Three: You are still young. Please allow me to advise you in combat. If necessary, I shall take the lead myself. Leave everything to me.
Likes: Hmm… I suppose my hobbies are making music and gardening. Why, is that strange? I was raised by nymphs, you know.
Dislikes: Things that I hate… I’d have to think about it. I’m sure that there are things I dislike but nothing comes immediately to mind.
Holy Grail: A wish-granting device is certainly interesting. Would it be selfish to…? Never mind. I’ll have to think about what I could wish for.
Event: A new battle begins. Remember your obligations!
Birthday: The day of your birth is cause for celebration. May the gods bless you on this day/
Character Interactions:
Penthesilea: Ah, the Queen of the Amazons. It was a great honor to serve alongside her. Her prowess in battle is like none I’d ever seen. She’s really amazing. You know, she used to wear a decorated helmet that obscured her face… well, when it came off in the middle of combat, Achilles stopped what he was doing and just stood there! She nearly took off his head! Can you imagine, the great Achean, standing there looking like…? [clears throat] I mean, of course, I’m glad I got to witness such a glorious exchange. A battle between two warriors of that caliber is a rare thing.
Hektor: Hektor. It is a shame that we never met in life! I’m honored to be fight alongside – oh, no thank you. I don’t smoke.
Paris: … I’m a bit worried. They say Apollo is a great god, but this is…
Artemis: Ah, the goddess of the moon! My mother spoke of you often. I am truly blessed to meet you. Strangely… you remind me of… Oh, never mind.
Achilles: Yes, I remember him quite well. I don’t have any grudges. Zeus blessed our battle, and it was an exhilarating fight. I’m honored to have been able to cross blades with someone like him. Though… I do wonder if it’s alright to speak to him. I suppose, in his position, it’s possible… Perhaps if I offered to duel him once again, he would forgive me! Yes, I shall do that.
Queen of Sheba: I have traveled through many lands, but there is something about you that is familiar. Please tell me more about your kingdom – I would like to hear of it, even though we were not alive in the same era. Hmm? What do you mean, knowledge costs extra? Is this some kind of border tax?
Iskandar: You want to hear about Okeanos? I’m happy to tell you - but I’m afraid it’s not very exciting. I was raised there, you see, so a lot of my stories involve me doing chores and... oh? You still want to know? Very well.
Scheherazade: A woman who collects stories. I wonder... Hmm? Oh, it’s nothing. Never mind.
Nordic Heroes: They seem to be looking at me. I wonder – do they know something about me that I don’t? Is there something on my face?”
Profile Two / Bond One: “Are you comfortable? How may I assist you?”
The story goes that after Hektor’s death, King Priam of Troy summoned an army from a distant land. Alongside the Queen of the Amazons, Penthesilea, Memnon sailed to Troy from Aethiopia, to defend the besieged city from the wrath of Achilles.
Profile Three / Bond Two: “A lost hero, you say…? Well, it can’t be helped. “
Where Hektor was Achilles’s great enemy, it’s more accurate to say that Memnon was his rival. Memnon was also the son of a goddess, and had many powers that made him equal Achilles in combat. The Greeks feared him and his army. However…
Profile Four / Bond Three: “Yes, my mother is the goddess of the dawn. I even had relatives in the royal family at Troy, but I was raised by the Hesperides on the shores of Okeanos. Yes, it’s a real place. I’m serious. Perhaps one day, you will be able to reach it.”
Zeus was impressed by Achilles’s strength, but also favored Memnon. It is said that he blessed their battle, making them tireless, and the god of the forge, Hephaestus, had also given both of the heroes indestructible armor.
The written text of this story is lost, except for all but a few sentence fragments. The glorious final battle of Troy faded into myth, and then nothingness. Though many writers carried on describing Memnon’s legacy and fame, his shining hour was eclipsed by time.
Profile Five / Bond Four: “I was given many blessings from the gods. I would not say I have any regrets about how I lived my life. After all, if there is even one person who remembers that I lived…”
After the death of Achilles’s most beloved partner, Patroclus, the hero was inconsolable, and it seemed that he would lose the will to fight. However, Antilochos - the youth who cared for his horses and occasionally helped Achilles steer his chariot in combat - cheered him up and convinced him to continue living. Later, during a battle, Memnon struck Antilochos down, forcing the hero of the Acheans to grieve yet another loved one.
Profile Six / Bond Five: “I would like to tell you a story. It’s a great tale about a man who travels the world from end to end. Would you care for tea? It’s a bit long, so we may be here for awhile.”
Not long after Memnon’s death, the Trojan War ended, and a new tale began. It’s said that his mother wept inconsolably at her son’s death, and so Zeus granted Memnon immortality.
The ancient world of Northern Africa was said to have many statues of Memnon, marking the places where he had stayed or traveled to. These too are now lost.
However, despite all odds, the enduring soul of Memnon remains alive in human memory. It is for this reason that he can be called from the Throne of Heroes.
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Personal Notes:
He’s BAAAQ with a single target buster because I wanted him to stand out from other Five Star Riders, basically, and the weird mechanic thing with burns is just something I think would be Neat because again I have no clue how a lot of the funky mini-mechanical technic-stuff works in FGO even after a year of playing. But like, if Space Ishtar can change her NP Card-type, then Memnon can have a single target NP that de-buffs all enemies.
So basically, he’s one of Penthesilea’s allies/an ally of Troy. He and Penth terrify the Greeks, at first Achilles is distracted by the hot new Amazon and his cute new rebound boy (I’m not a fan of Antilochos just like, on principle because this is a Patrolcus stanning household, but oh well), but then he eventually gets his act together and while he defeats Penth, Memnon winds up killing Antilochos. This leads Achilles to going on another rampage, and slays Memnon in the process. And after this, Paris (a known fool and idiot) finally asks Apollo for help in killing Achilles, leading to the end of the Trojan war.
There seems to be sources about Memnon that show he was well-known in the ancient world as a mythological figure (writers such as Herodotus reference him in their works/tales about Africa and he was probably memorialized in statues in various temples) but the primary text (the lost epic detailing the end of the Trojan War: Aethiopis) is basically gone. Which is a shame, because he’s a fascinating character - a true foil to Achilles in almost every way.
So basically, IT’S FREE REAL ESTATE.
Obviously because I’ve been deep in Achilles Loving Hell, I’ve been deep-diving into the lore, and even though there isn’t a lot to go on, the things I do find are rich and juicy. I imagine Memnon to be a bit older and wiser than Achilles (probably has a beard tbh, but not like a bushy beard) and a bit more relaxed. The guy was raised by nymphs and was basically nice to everyone, so it seemed. Memnon is not the type to go berserk in combat, but he also doesn’t hold back when it comes to beating your ass. There’s a sweet spot between Hektor “I Suppress All Emotions and Only Strategize” style of fighting and Achilles “I Am Strong and Fast and Have a Lot of Feelings so Fuck You” style of fighting, and Memnon is probably riiiight in there, crunching on some golden apples that his mom gave him for a snack.
(There’s also apparently a weird and funky piece of very obscure and maybe fake lore which states that Memnon might related by blood to Thor, which idk how true that is but I think it’d be hilarious to include.)
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morethanaprincess-a · 4 years ago
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THE POSITIVE & NEGATIVE; Mun & Muse - Meme.
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fill out & repost ♥ This meme definitely favors canons more, but I hope OC’s still can make it somehow work with their own lore, and lil’ fandom of friends & mutuals. Multi-Muses pick the muse you are the most invested in atm.
My muse is:   canon / oc / au / canon-divergent / fandomless /
Is your character popular in the fandom?  YES / NO / Depends. I think fans usually love Sonia or hate her.
Is your character considered hot™ in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK.
Is your character considered strong in the fandom?  YES / NO / In some aspects.
Are they underrated?  YES / NO.
Were they relevant for the main story?  YES / NO.
Were they relevant for the main character?  YES / NO /
Are they widely known in their world?  YES / NO.
How’s their reputation?  GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL / Verse-dependent. Mostly good, unless Despair-verse or post-Neo World Program/post-SDR2 for canon verses or Talentswap!AU for my Ultimate Mafia Boss AU. Sonia's reputation is pretty terrible in these.
How strictly do you follow canon?  
I do the best I can, considering that for most Danganronpa characters, there's limited information unless they're a protagonist. Considering DR, depending on the timeline of Sonia's class, takes place in various settings, realities, and states of mind, it can be a challenge to keep everything consistent. While I don't do a lot of threads that take place strictly in the SDR2-verse, where I do try to keep events canon to how they unfold in the game and as precisely as Sonia is presented as I can, other verses tend to be a bit more canon-divergent in order to fill in character building gaps that the game and anime don't really offer. The biggest change I tend to do is that unless I'm writing a thread of Sonia's arrival or first year at Hope's Peak or during the Neo World Program of SDR2, I don't tend to write many of her slang or word mix-ups. While Sonia reads and writes her 30+ languages better than she speaks them, I still believe she picks up on foreign languages easily and learns from her mistakes. She's a smart person, considering all of her talents mentioned in the SDR2 game alone. I also tend to disregard some of Hajime's free-time events with Sonia, particularly in terms of the hero legend and how she would allow the fabled hero to immediately marry and rule with her. My Sonia, for the most part, is a self-rescuing princess (and has a tendency to want to rescue everyone else too!).
SELL YOUR MUSE! Aka try to list everything, which makes your muse interesting in your opinion to make them spicy for your mutuals.  
Is your muse looking for a friend and/or significant other who's just fascinated by everything they do and will support them no matter what? Someone who doesn't care about where you come from, your family, your looks, your socio-economic status but only who you are? Someone generous, kind, gentle, optimistic, smart, well-read, well-mannered, and will always be your muse's biggest cheerleader? Then your muse will definitely want to meet Sonia Nevermind, Hope's Peak Academy's Ultimate Princess and occult and serial killer-lover extraordinaire. She's poised to inherit a European country that thrives under absolute monarchy, a ridiculous amount of wealth and prestige, her own military, and more homes and assets than one person, and one family, really need. But get her talking about her favorite books/movies/TV shows, particularly horror and romantic dramas, and she'll be ecstatic. She loves exploring haunted locales, questioning the motives and methods of serial killers (real and fictional! I hope you've seen Friday the 13th, Halloween, A Nightmare on Elm Street, etc. Is your muse Team Freddy or Team Jason?), and experiencing a 'normal' lifestyle unbefitting of a royal. Novoselic has no amusement parks, so your muse can really wow Sonia by introducing her to her first roller coaster! While she can't actually participate in Freemasonry or murdering people (Despair and Talentswap verses aside!) due to her title, she's still quite intrigued by it all. And like any proper Novosonian, she adores her chocolate and her wine. She's got a massive sweet tooth, perfect for her usual sweet and kind demeanor.
Now the OPPOSITE, list everything why your muse could not be so interesting (even if you may not agree, what does the fandom perhaps think?)
She's not terribly edgy or sarcastic in most of her verses. It's very easy for Sonia to get duped by someone, as she's quick to consider people friends unless otherwise shown differently. She's very poised and polite due to her upbringing and doesn't often act on every impulse she has or speak her mind, especially if her opinion is divisive or negative, unless she trusts your muse. It's easy for her to accept friends into her life and far more difficult to accept romantic love, as she's frequently facing people who love her for her looks, title, and apparent purity, which frustrates her. She doesn't want to be put on a pedestal, she simply wants to be treated normally. She also doesn't get into too many fights, especially if she's been slighted. This is not a muse who's going to throw a punch, but she's excellent with firearms of all sorts. Pistols? Check. Rifles? Mastered them. Rocket launcher? Her favorite! And of course, she learned how to drive a tank before she could drive a car. If you're looking for a meek and shy muse to write with, Sonia's not that type. She's reserved in some things, but if your muse is really out of line? She'll call them out on it. She also has a tendency to want to lead in everything (it's a struggle for her to give up control, she can't help it!) and is a workaholic unless your muse distracts her.
Sonia has a fair amount of Rich People Problems. If that doesn't interest you or your muse, you may not enjoy interacting with her. But she remains as humble as she can about it all. She's terrible at putting herself first and admitting feelings for anyone, automatically assuming the person she cares for wouldn't want to be close to her, platonically or romantically, because of how complicated her life is as a future monarch. There's a lot of press, official appearances, and times she has to be a Princess before a person. She never wants to feel like a burden to your muse, which can sometimes come off as passive. But in life or death situations? Her bravery comes through.
And let's not go into how her Despair verse could be potentially triggering to some muses and/or muns. Sonia's absolutely disgusting when in Despair: lots of gore, lots of torture, lots of death, lots of blood, and a fair amount of sex with bad intentions. She's a gross human being (and has to deal with all of that in a post-Neo World Program verse!).
What inspired you to rp your muse?  
I've been roleplaying for a pretty long time (not necessarily all on tumblr, but for awhile. I'm old!), and I've played action/fighting muses, know-it-all/brainy/witty muses, and muses who border on the mean girl trope with a heart of gold. But I've never really played a sincerely kind and good person. I tend to prefer writing female characters (I'm just more comfortable writing women than men most of the time!) and I've always had an interest in royalty and European history since I was a child. I played and watched Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc originally and while I found it fun, it didn't really hold my attention for long. It took 5-6 years or so for me to try out SDR2, and upon getting introduced to Sonia it was just a perfect fit. I love how kind and open-minded she is, how much she believes in the best of everyone, and how her interests in the occult, serial killers, anime, and dramas are a stark contrast to her royal upbringing. So many royal characters are complete snobs with no interest in commoners, which was never the sort of muse I wanted to write. But I loved the idea of Sonia's fish out of water situation of being the only foreigner in her class (and likely most of the school), who's just so happy to be there even though she gets various customs wrong and is just plain weird due to her personal interests. Additionally, I have a strong interest in horror, the occult, and serial killers myself, so it's been fun incorporating my thoughts on what Sonia would like outside of what the game and anime offered.
What keeps your inspiration going?  
This might be corny, but it's Sonia's innate curiosity about the world and everyone in it. Admittedly, I'm not terribly up to date on current and popular anime (and I've only played DRV3 once, so I don't know those muses as well, and I never completed that game's Talent Development Plan), so it's hard when I don't always know the franchise of the other muse Sonia's interacting with, but she's still so fascinated about others and is inclined to ask questions and take on new experiences. But when I'm feeling stuck on inspiration, I'm returning to books, movies, and TV shows. For Sonia specifically, I watch and read a lot of historical and royal-focused dramas, as well as horror and classic literature. I also follow blogs featuring royal history and modern royal coverage (though when it turns too gossipy, I tend to cringe!) for plot ideas. 
Still, it's the hardest for me to interact with other muses whose muns automatically assume I'm familiar with their fandom, especially when it's popular. I tend to do a fair amount of apologizing in that case, as most of my favorite anime are considered old or classic at this point. 
Some more personal questions for the mun.
Give your mutuals some insight about the way you are in some matters, which could lead them to get more comfortable with you or perhaps not.
Do you think you give your character justice?  YES / NO.
Do you frequently write headcanons?  YES / NO. 
Do you sometimes write drabbles?  YES / NO.  
Do you think a lot about your Muse during the day?  YES / NO.
Are you confident in your portrayal?   YES / NO.
Are you confident in your writing?  YES / NO / Most of the time!
Are you a sensitive person?  YES / NO.
Do you accept criticism well about your portrayal?  
Not terribly. In general, if someone doesn't like my portrayal, I question why they're following me (especially if we aren't writing together). I'm much more the type to respect someone's space if they decide to unfollow and/or softblock than want criticism of my portrayal. Of course, it's different if I'm writing with someone for awhile and we have multiple threads and character development, I'm a little more open to criticism but likely won't change my portrayal based on it. 
Do you like questions, which help you explore your character?
I do! In general though, I tend to prioritize threads and IC asks over OOC, starting with what I've got muse to write with first. I have anon turned off and so I don't really get a lot of random questions about my muse anymore unless I've posted a meme asking for muse headcanons, but when I do get them, I try to answer them to the best of my ability.
If someone disagrees to a headcanon of yours, do you want to know why?
Not really. It's okay to disagree with my headcanon, that's totally valid! But if it gets to the point where I'm being told how to write my muse, I get annoyed. When I write with a mun, I accept their headcanons in our threads, no questions asked. I prefer the same courtesy with my muse and their headcanons too.
If someone disagrees with your portrayal, how would you take it?  
Doesn't really matter to me. My general assumption is, is if someone disagrees with my portrayal, they likely won't write with me, follow me, or accept ask meme submissions from me. 
If someone really hates your character, how do you take it?  
We probably aren't roleplaying together. They likely either don't want to write with a Sonia or my version of her, and that's ok! What isn't ok is gossip and anon hate. I've turned off anon for this reason and won't turn it back on unless I need to (for example, a mutual I trust wants to send something on anon IC). It's a significant weight off my shoulders, not dealing with OOC anon rudeness.
Are you okay with people pointing out your grammatical errors?
Sure! No one's perfect. The only one that bothers me is different spelling for US English and UK/AUS/CAN English. I'm from the US and it's just easier to write in that, so I don't get anything wrong.
Do you think you are easy going as a mun?  
I like to think so! I'm pretty easygoing and understanding of things like hiatuses, no writing inspo, etc, as long as I'm told that's what it is. Of course, I have my preferences for writing style (I don't do much one-liners or crack RP, just not my thing. I write a lot and try to avoid purple prose as much as I can!), but otherwise I like to plot, to wing it, coming up with new AUs and ships, etc. I also like chatting fandoms and such OOC as well! Admittedly I'm not great when it comes to mental health struggles, as I go through them myself and while I'm pretty high-functioning, RP and tumblr is my escape from my career and horrible stuff IRL, keeping me grounded and such. I like roleplaying, chatting fandoms and fun things, and just having a good time over here and on discord.
That’s about it, congrats for filling out!
Tagged by: @monsieur-de-paris​ (Thank you!)
Tagging: Since this is a very long meme, whoever wants to do it. 
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enigmatic-elegance · 4 years ago
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△ Name one thing from their past that they regret. ☠ Do they fear death? ♣ Do they believe the world is made up of good and evil? ♥ Have they ever acted out of heartlessness? ♒ If they could choose how to die, how would they want to go? ™ Are they possessive? (This'll take you awhile, I want to know for Mas, Annei, and Corban 😁)
Horrific Headcanons
@quai-mason
Putting ALL OF THIS under a cut to spare my poor followers. Answers from Mas, @fragments-of-fortune, and @fallen-graces.
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△ Name one thing from their past that they regret.
Mas
Mas would tell others that she has no regrets. She calculates everything in her life, and adapts for what she can’t plan through. She sees life as moments that go her way and moments she will eventually have go her way. There are no failures, just opportunities to progress in other ways.
However, Mas does have a regret. One that is buried deep behind a lot of emotional nullification. One that occurred before she was fully the thing she is now. She was not there when her father died. And for no other reason than she couldn’t handle watching it happen. Her father was everything to her, and she was his world. He died of a lung condition that couldn’t be treated with Light or medicine. Mas last saw her father when he was already infirm, but still able to talk. Her mother was there when he passed away, but Mas remained home. She regrets that she was not there to hold his hand when he left the universe
She feels she abandoned him. And she will always see that as perhaps her only true failure and regret.
Corban
One of Corban’s biggest regrets, besides the fall of his house, was his treatment of his sister Lilac. Her magic is extremely unstable and dangerous, and in the noble world that is a ticket for people to use that against you and your whole house. He never wanted to hurt her, but he did essentially imprison her. He maintained her in her room, letting her leave to designated areas around Fairhold with escorts. Lilac does not hold that against him. She understands why it had to be that way, she is dangerous. But he still wishes he had not caved in to the pressure and let her be a free woman like she deserved to be.
Annei
Annei wishes she could have given her children a more normalized life. She raised them to survive. Both in the literal sense and also how to survive in a noble world. People can be brutal in Annei’s world, and will manipulate or use you. She trained her children to navigate that world at the expense of letting them just be children. She looks back on that and feels in a way she stole some of their innocence from them by doing so.
☠ Do they fear death?
Mas
Mas does not fear death. To her, it’s not the end. Just the next step in the cycle. Besides, she has contingency plans in place for that eventuality. And the contingency is named Serata.
Corban
Corban knows he will one day die. But he wants to know his death has meaning. Corban believes in the old warrior’s mentality of ‘earning’ a death. That you are only allowed to die after you have done something worth remembering. To him, he has not yet ‘earned’ death. He still wants to have children, raise a legacy, and leave behind a memory that his loved ones can be proud of.
Annei
Annei fears death more than she would lead on. If asked upfront, she’d say she doesn’t. In truth, when in situations of danger she gets nervous. She knows that there is no fate or plan. You might just catch a stray arrow and that’s it, game over. She is uncertain of what awaits her in the afterlife and she is equally uncertain that her soul is clean enough to not be dragged down for the things she has done.
♣ Do they believe the world is made up of good and evil?
Mas
Mas thinks that black & white thinking is the downfall of intelligence. The world is far too grey to be classified in such a binary fashion. She thinks that ‘good’ and ‘evil’ are abstract and change based on your experiences and perception of the world.
Corban
Corban thinks much like Mas though he holds a little more stock in some universal truths. He sees some acts as almost always ‘good’ and almost always ‘evil’. Things like altruism, for example, are almost always good things while things like sexual violence or violence against children are always bad things. He thinks there is room for interpretation between the extremes, but he won’t deny the existence of those extremes.
Annei
Annei thinks almost the same as Corban does, though she has much looser definitions on what is universally good/bad.
♥ Have they ever acted out of heartlessness?
Mas
Very often. Mas has been called heartless by many people and it’s not far off. To Mas, there is only the task and the means to that end. She doesn’t allow emotion to even have a say. If something needs to happen, or a goal needs to be achieved, she will do whatever is necessary to achieve it.
Corban
He has, though it isn’t a source of pride. He is still a man and has acted out of jealousy, pride, or hate. It does not happen often as he tries always to be an honorable man but he accepts that he is still flawed as anyone else is.
Annei
Annei very often acts in self-interest. She has told seas of lies to get the things she wants, and has faked whole marriages for purposes of power and wealth. She’s still pretty heartless in that she looks back on those things with humor and pride. People were ‘too stupid’ and she just took advantage.
♒ If they could choose how to die, how would they want to go?
Mas
Mas, if she had to pick, would wish for a calm death. Silence. An empty room, a comfortable bed, and she could simply lay down and meditate until death came to claim her. She knows what awaits her when she leaves her corporeal form, and thus has no fear. She would like it to be a peaceful affair.
Corban
Corban used to desire a death in battle. He romanticized the event, seeing it as something people would tell stories of. He wanted to be a hero. But now he sees that he was being young and silly. He wants to die an old man, wrinkled and grey, beside the person he loves and surrounded by his children he’s yet to have. That’s his goal.
Annei
Annei just wants no pain when she dies. She doesn’t much care if she lives to an old age. Besides, to her, beauty is a large part of her front and thus if that fades with age she’d rather not live to see it. She would much prefer to be a pretty young corpse that perished in peaceful manner in her sleep. Fully dressed and decorated with jewelry. Unrealistic but it’s her hope.
™ Are they possessive?
Mas
Mas knows what belongs to her, and you do not touch it. If you touch it, she will get you. Somehow, in some capacity, it will come back to haunt you. Though fortunately there is not much that Mas considers ‘hers’.
Corban
Corban has been known to suffer jealousy, but he makes effort to control it. He often makes it a joke, laughing off his concerns and invalidating them. In truth, the man has a very difficult time with loved ones because he fears losing them. He worries whatever time he has won’t feel like enough and he will be left feeling empty.
Annei
Annei is -very- possessive. She has many things, and no one touches them without her permission. If someone gets close to her she will stamp her ownership on them and get extremely haughty if they try and spend too much time with others. Gods help you if you get romantic with her, as she does not like to share and will make that extremely obvious.
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emotionaldepravity · 5 years ago
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Hello! Would you do HCs of armada Blurr, Jetfire, and Sideswipe having a human companion of their own? Maybe someone older and more mature than the kids? I like to imagine one of them maybe has a cousin who is a detective that ended up sticking around out of concern for the kids in what is basically a war/recon setting. Thank you very much! I'm glad you're feeling up to doing HCs and I very much approve the new content
Ahhh I’m so glad to be back and feeling good about writing again! Also thank you so much for the support! I’m really loving getting to write some stuff for all of these cuties~ Also, these are kinda long… ha ha ha… 
Blurr
- Alexis didn’t bother keeping the Autobots a secret when you happened to see your cousin jump out of a speeding sports car one day to make it to dinner on time. What was the point? You’d just follow her and learn the truth yourself, after all. She might as well as let you help them.
- Due to Blurr being the one that you happened to see first, Optimus suggested that you should get to know him first since you plan on sticking around.
-At first Blurr isn’t sure how to feel about having a human companion so he acts as disinterested as possible. 
- “Isn’t babysitting humans the minicons’ job?” 
-He just doesn’t know what to do with you.
-When you ask him to let you go on a recon mission with him for a new minicon, he is hesitant as he doesn’t want to be slowed down by having to protect you. However, Hot Shot and Red Alert convince him to give you a chance to prove yourself. 
-You manage to be extremely helpful to finding the minicon with how observant and focused you are. Its a nice change of pace for him than dealing with the children.
-For jut a moment, he opens up to praise your efforts, but in the next, he is all closed off one again. For awhile, this is how all your missions go. 
-It isn’t always easy to get along with him. He can be extremely headstrong, and even if you are simply trying to help him, he can shut you down.  
- It takes many silent drives and missions alone together before he truly warms up to you.
-After enough time has passed, he will just drive you around the city just to speak with you privately. Its his way of saying that he trusts you.
-When the minicon sightings slow down, he often likes to take you to see different parts of the world sometimes even back to past battle sites. Though he isn’t one to be sentimental, he would like to experience Earth and its nature when he isn’t try to fight for his life. Since this frivolousness isn’t exactly what he is used to, he makes sure you come along to teach him how to enjoy it.
- Once he finally realizes that his life has changed so much with you around, he almost wants to push you away, but he doesn’t. Instead, he allows himself to embrace his feelings for you.
-However, he has a bit of trouble deciding when or even how to confess. When he does decide to tell you how he feels, its done with little fanfare and as far away from the kids as possible. 
-Alexis occasionally teases the two of you about your relationship. She thinks its adorable. Its because of her that PDA is at a minimum. 
-When he goes on a mission without you, he tips your chin up so he can look into your eyes before he leaves. Its his nonverbal promise to you that he will come back no matter what.
Jetfire 
-The first time you saw Jetfire you knew that something was up.
-A huge space shuttle flying around the mountains where you knew your cousin, Rad, and his friends liked to play was suspicious, and you had to investigate. 
-You managed to figure out about when the space shuttle would circle the mountain and where the shuttle landed. 
- Of course, when the kids jumped out and the mystery shuttle transformed to a huge robot, you had to confront your cousin. He was happy to explain all about the Transformers despite your concern for him in the current situation.
- Seeing that you weren’t exactly pleased with him now in the middle of an alien war, Rad suggested that you support Jetfire when looking for minicons that way you would feel better that him and the kids weren’t out in the field as much.
- Jetfire isn’t keen on the extra work, but he understands that the kids are an important part of the dynamic at the base. He isn’t particularly interested in seeing how low morale could get without them. 
-As you work together to locate minicons, he gets a good chance to figure you out and see your investigation skills. 
- “Never thought I’d see a human be so observant; you must be a P.I.”
- He likes to ask you about yourself. At first it was just to get you to like him, but now, he genuinely is interested in you. Though not all of your stories are as eventful as his own war stories, he thinks highly of them and loves that you’re willing to be so open with him. At some point, he finally realizes his own feelings for you and decides to put his plan into motion to get you to like him in return.
-In typical Jetfire fashion, he does his best to charm you. For a playful flirt like him, teasing and complimenting you are some of his favorite mission activities.
-He can’t help but show off for you its just in his code. 
-Don’t be surprised if he takes you up into space to see the stars whenever things are a bit uneventful. 
-The moment he learns that humans also use nicknames, he starts calling you “sweetspark.” 
- One night during a sleepover at the Autobot base, he showcases his ability to mass displace by pulling you into his lap to “relax.” 
- When he finally confesses, its after a moonlit flight to an open filed where the stars were incredibly bright. 
-For the most part, Rad is just happy that the two of you get along. However, he has been known to make faces when he sees you acting like a couple. 
-He always says the same thing before he heads out for a mission: “Don’t miss me too much sweetspark, I’ll be back soon~”
Sideswipe
- Your aunt and uncle had always asked you to look after Carlos when you had the chance, and with his grades being even lower than usual, you figured a proper “investigation” needed to happen. You had your suspicions that he was skipping, but you had to go and see for yourself.
-One early morning, you follow Carlos only to find that he was definitely not headed to the old middle school you remembered going to so long ago.
-When you get to the Autobot base, not too far behind your cousin, Sideswipe was the first bot you happened to see. When you stare at him in awe, he returns the look because he didn’t really know how to react. Eventually, you 
-After scolding Carlos, and the other kids for missing class, you decide to stay long enough to speak to Optimus Prime.  
-Though part of him wants to act a tough guy like Blurr, he is extremely excited to have a human companion.
- Humans are so interesting to him, and he is always asking you questions about what its like being a human. 
-He thinks that you being a detective is very cool! You are saving the world in your own way, and he respects that a lot. You are like a human hero!
-In his clumsy way, his admiration for you turned into infatuation. He really wasn’t sure how it had ended up like this, but after spending so much time getting to know you, it was hard not to be charmed. 
-He likes to hold you in his hand so he can feel close to you since you are just so small compared to him. 
-Sometimes he wishes he was minicon sized so he could hug you properly. He practically begs Red Alert to find away to make it possible, and one day Sideswipe gets a mass displacement mod.
-Now he mass displaces all the time to hug you. Sometimes the others have to remind him that he has work to do because he cuddles with you for so long. Typically, its Carlos, and his reminder follows a “you two are so gross.”
-Whenever he goes out on a mission without you, he makes sure to give you a kiss for good luck. He gets a bit distraught if he doesn’t get to. 
- Sideswipe is always talking about you to his bro, Hot Shot. You are just so fascinating to him and well he likes to brag about how incredible his human is. In turn, he talks about how much he looks up to Hot Shot to you. After all, he wants the two beings he cares about the most to get along. 
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foreverwcnter · 5 years ago
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iris — flowers mini-series / peter parker
| teaser | part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | part 4 | part 5 |
pairing — peter parker x reader
warnings — tbd
summary — part 2 in which peter learns that a flower can be more memorable and passionate than the words “I love you.”
author’s note — thank you for stopping to read my fic! i work very hard on these and try my best to make sure they are enjoyable to read. i also do a lot of research to complete these fics. i hope you enjoy reading it as much as i liked writing this! 
══════════════════
peter parker could not wait to see you again. he wanted to see your delicate smile that appeared on your face. he wanted to see the passion that bloomed in your eyes much like the flowers you were so passionate about. it fascinated him. you fascinated him to no extent. it wouldn’t be much of a stretch to say that the teenage boy already had a big crush on you. ned noticed of course. the night he had ned sleepover to build a new star wars lego set was mostly spent peter ranting about you and how amazing you were. 
“you should meet her, ned. she’s so amazing,” peter sighed, laying on his bed and staring at the ceiling.
“ so you’ve told me, for like the twentieth time,” ned chuckled, placing a lego piece onto the other legos of the unfinished model. 
“seriously, ned. i’m probably going to swing by to her place tomorrow. i feel like i should get her flowers but i don’t know. i think she’d rather have some like flower seeds so she can plant them,” he explained, mostly talking to himself. ned leaned against the bed and looked over at peter.
“you should get to know her more, considering you’ve talked to her once and all she did really is tell you about floriography and help you fix your wound,” ned explained, fumbling with a few lego pieces in his hands. peter let out a long sigh.
“ i guess you’re right.”
the next morning, it was luckily saturday, so peter went on a morning patrol before heading to your apartment building. he stopped a few muggers, grand bike theft, even helped some old man across the street like the gentleman he was. he swung over to your apartment and landed on the roof, scanning the area and looking around. he made sure to keep his mask, seeing you weren’t on the roof and he didn’t want to deal with yet another person knowing of his identity. to kill some time, peter began strolling around your garden, gazing over the many plants you had.
his eyes looked between the rows and he occasionally bent down to examine the floral beauties. he ran his fingers against some ferns gently before the sound of a door opening sounded.
spider-man shot up to a standing position and his lips lifted into a smile. carefully, he yanked off his mask, running a hand through his tangled curls carefully. “uh, hi,” he greeted you.
“so you came back? no new wounds i need to treat for you,” you asked him jokingly, observing him to make sure the assumption wasn’t the truth. 
“i’m fine. no wounds today,” he grinned, making his way over to you. “i was going to text you, but i forgot my friend, ned was coming over so i didn’t have the time.” peter's voice seemed to go up a few octaves from nervousness and awkwardness. “sorry for rambling, i tend to ramble a lot. it’s kind of a habit, i should stop, i’m sor-”
“it’s fine. we all ramble occasionally,” you giggled, your signature smile appearing on your face. it was a beautiful smile. your eyes would crease up and your cheeks would poke up a bit and your smile seemed to just brighten up his entire world. 
“y-yeah of course,” he stuttered, watching you walk over to a box you had near all your supplies. you pulled out a relatively new package of seeds. “new flowers?”
you nodded, carefully opening the package as to not spill any speeds. you moved over to an open spot in your garden and scattered a few seeds across the spoil, your hand moving some dirt to cover the small seeds resting in the dirt. peter watched you intently, taking note of how each movement you made to care for the seeds and other plants had care and gentleness in it. you treated your plants like small children or porcelain dolls. one small movement could damage the plants and that was something you couldn’t bare. 
“what type of flower are you planting,” he asked curiously.
“irises. they are very pretty flowers and i think they would be a good edition,” you answered, showing him the small opened package.  
he then asked after looking at the picture of the flowers. “does it have special meanings like the lavender?”
“yes, it does. in fact it as multiple. it means faith, hope, emblem of france, my compliment, wisdom and valor, and last but not least, your friendship means so much to me.”
peter smiled fondly at your words. you knew it all by heart and he had the urge to go research all about it. he wanted to learn so much more. it made his heart swell with happiness. if he was being honest, the iris seemed to say what he felt towards you, just like the lavender. the new friendship he formed with you meant everything to the teenage boy and because you taught him things about the flowers, he wanted to show you something in return.
“are you afraid of heights,” he blurted out, gripping onto his mask.
“if i was, my garden wouldn’t be on a roof,” you chuckled before he grasped your hand, pulling you over to the edge of the roof while pulling his mask over his face, looking at you with his gentle eyes. 
“do you trust me?” he asked you, wrapping an arm around your waist tightly.
without a word you nodded and suddenly, you and peter did not have your feet on the ground. your arms wrapped around him tightly as he swung you through the air. you pressed your face into his shoulder, gasping slightly. the wing blew past you as you and peter swung through the streets of queens. you still had a tight grip on him, but you managed to look away, laughing as you examined the streets, noticing people point up at you and peter in amazement. it was exhilarating. with your legs wrapped around his waist to hold on, you couldn’t help but enjoy the feeling of your hair blowing freely in the wind and how adrenaline rushes through your body. after a few more minutes of swinging, you landed back on the roof of your apartment building.
“did you enjoy it?”
you looked over at peter, his mask pulled off once more. running a hand through your ruffled hair, your lips breathed out a soft chuckle.
finally you laughed,” hell yeah i did. that was so much fun.”
peter stared at your lovingly, just enjoying how happy you looked after that swing. he half expected you to hate it, since not everyone knew what it felt like to free fall through new york and have webs to get you safely from the ground. the brunet boy practically zoned out as you rambled about how you felt during the entire swing.
“- you should take me on swings more often,” was all he heard, snapping out of his daze. a grin spread across his lips to show his sweet demeanor.
he nodded,” obviously, but not too often.”
as for you, you couldn’t help but be happy in peter’s presence. he made you feel open. often times, he made you feel warm inside. quite frankly, you couldn’t help but let your heart swell when staring into his milk chocolate colored eyes. you couldn’t help but think that you actually had a crush on this boy. while there were risks to just being friends with the young hero, you couldn’t help but wonder if it would happen. if he liked you and you liked him. it was unlikely in your eyes. it was all just a minor fantasy.
“you should meet my friends from my school,” he suggested. “we could all meet up one day somewhere and hang out.” peter really wanted you to meet his friends. he was positive they would love you. “plus i kinda already told my friend ned about you and he wants to meet you.”
thinking for a second, you pondered on the idea. of course, you didn’t have many friends and going out and socializing was always a good idea especially since you wanted to meet people to connect with. “that sounds nice.”
peter’s face lit up for a second before he glanced down shyly. finally he stuttered out,” i probably need to go on patrol. t-the city needs me after all.”
“oh, okay,” you smiled softly. you wished you could spend just some more time with him, but it seemed the city was more important. “good luck.”
“thanks,” he grinned, pulling the red mask over his face and leaping off the roof, swinging off with a giddy smile.
later that night, peter sat in the kitchen of his apartment, his aunt sitting across from him. it was obvious he was thinking about something, so may was instantly curious about what was distracting her nephew.
“so, peter, how are your patrols going,” she interrupted the silence softly, his attention snapping to her.
he shrugged, pushing his food around with his fork carefully. “the usual, stopping muggings, robberies, helping out the police force. just waiting for something big to happen really.”
“ uhuh,” may mumbled, arching an eyebrow at peter. “well, you have your eyes on any girls, pete?”
this instantly caused a strawberry hue to brush over his cheeks, noticed by his aunt.
“so, who’s the special girl?”
“she’s well- we only met yesterday and well i had stopped a mugging but i got hurt so i went up to the roof of her apartment building and took off my mask. apparently she was up there and she helped me out with my injury. her name is y/n. “ may obviously was interested and peter sighed, shifting awkwardly in the wooden chair. “she’s a gardner and has this beautiful garden on the rooftop. she treats all the plants like they are small kids. y/n even told me that each flower has special meanings. it’s really cool and honestly, i haven’t known her for awhile but i really like her. she’s so kind and sweet and beautiful and loyal. she’s just perfect honestly. you’ve got to meet her.”
may smiled at her nephew, already realizing how happy he was talking about you. it was clear that he would be spending a lot more time with you. all that mattered was that peter was happy. you were happy.
it was a friendship that meant so much to the both of you.
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