#only to be told he doesn't fit in and that hurts because it's true and it came from someone who he didn't know well

[ventique18]

Ok so I've been seeing complaints about Book 7's ending by a few minority not only here, but from other platforms as well. While everyone is of course allowed to dislike something, let's tackle a few points:

Malleus deserved a harsher punishment

Everyone witnessed Diasomnia's moment. Everybody knew he accidentally killed Lilia. Everyone knows how much Lilia means to Malleus. So everyone knows that there's no punishment harsher than the eternal scar of accidentally killing your own father.

And that's not enough, because he lost majority of his power. THIS is his prolonged punishment. We should remember that his entire life revolved around being the strongest, so all of his foundation hinged on that. If you're an artist, it's like losing your dominant hand and having to relearn how to draw with your other. Except in his case it's like losing both his hands so he needs to learn how to draw with his feet.

While it's true that he's far happier now than he was when he was strong, that doesn't mean he won't go through so much suffering as a consequence. For 200 years. 200 years of being weak means he's not fit to be king; no Dark Fae will follow a man akin to a common Fae. His nobles will not respect him. He's now a very easy target, since he's not indestructible anymore.

This basically means he's currently a pretty decoration to Briar Valley. An unemployed trust fund kid. Random people will likely mock him or treat him like an amusing animal in a zoo.

Which means he will have to build his reputation from the ground up, against all odds, as a disgraced prince.

Malleus tried to kill x and x

No he did not. He genuinely thought he found a breakthrough and was doing the world a service by making immortality accessible to everyone. Remember that he used to be the strongest; he thought nobody was just capable of this feat until he did.

He was quite literally insane at that moment. When he did accidentally kill Lilia, he snapped to his senses and immediately reacted like a small child. He doesn't want to believe it, because he would never do something like that. He simply doesn't want to kill anyone-- what he wanted was the opposite: that nobody needs to die anymore.

Everybody left him off the hook so easily

We get a lot of scenes explaining this. Sure maybe for you their reasons are bullshit, but the fact is that this is a Disney story. He would never be executed. But the following are from different accounts from different characters.

There were actually very few injured, because even though he was insane in dragon form, a part of his morality was there and he unconsciously avoided hurting people as much as possible. There are more injuries that happen in Spelldrive than who Malleus injured, according to Epel.

For the rest of the student body, they were simply having the best dreams of their lives. Many compared to it an amusement park and want to experience it again.

The other overblotters tried to protest, but were reminded that they too almost killed people. Some were genuinely out to kill people while Malleus wasn't.

Most people on Sage Island are actually good people, unlike NRC students. They embody the values of Fantasia Mickey, where the apprentice was given a second chance instead of being exiled because he showed actual remorse.

He is entitled and thinks he's always right

Yes he's entitled. But that's part of his character. He thought he was right, insisted he was right, but when he was defeated and told otherwise, he accepted it wholeheartedly. He was the only overblotter who actually apologized in public, recognized he did wrong, thanked everyone for helping him, and swore he will become a better man.

He literally can't take back anything that's happened. Kicking him further will not achieve anything.

Why didn't he talk it out with Yuu instead of immediately jumping to overblot

He doesn't even understand that he's feeling something negative. Nobody taught him to recognize his own feelings. He was raised to be strong and independent, so his first instinct was to deal with the problem himself.

He can't even talk it out with Lilia and Silver; there was no way he could talk it out to a friend he just met that year.

His power literally hurts his surroundings when he tries to feel things. He's likely afraid of accidentally striking someone with lightning or drowning them in storms if he admits that he's feeling down.

He didn't know too much negative feelings could lead to an overblot. He was already out of his mind before he knew it.

There could be more but these are off the top of my head.

[alchemistc]

He's been good. He's been - pretending to be good well enough that no one has been suspicious.

It's just -

That was it. That was The One.

And sure. He can get back out into the world. He can fall in love again. There is a beautiful man somewhere out in the world who will make him laugh, make him cry.

He's just not sure he wants to put the effort in anymore.

For a hot second he'd really thought -

Not that it matters, anymore.

He's pretty sure his leg is pinned. The cockpit is more smoke than air, at this point. He can feel his toes, but honestly that might be more a curse than a blessing.

He's been staring at the phone in his hand for the last five minutes. Ever since he realized he didn't have the leverage to try to move the bracket keeping him from slipping free of the broken, crunched in door frame.

It's selfish. It's the most selfish fucking thing he's considered since he decided to break his own heart instead of letting someone else.

But logistically he's got about seven minutes until there's too much smoke and not enough air in here, and that's only IF the fire doesn't catch somewhere else.

He's got enough bars. And there are two numbers he could call. Two ways this could go.

The phone rings through four times, and on the fifth, someone answers.

"This is a bad time, Tommy," Eddie says, and Tommy feels a little hysterical. The laughter comes in fits, only slows when he gets a nice good whiff of smoke straight up his nose.

"Sure is."

The tone shifts. "Are you okay?"

"It was a bad idea anyway."

He feels woozy. Glances down at his leg and realizes that stain he'd thought was shadow is... definitely blood.

"Listen. I'm - when Evan gets the call, don't let him go alone. It's my fault for not updating my ICE."

The silence on the other line is deafening. "Tommy, where are you? Don't - don't make any decisions you can't come back from." It's a panned line he'd heard at the VA the half dozen times he'd gone.

"Yeah I didn't really make this decision myself. I'm just - I'm losing a lot of blood, here, and there's not a lot of ways for the smoke to get out of this cabin, and -."

High alert has a very specific sound and feel to it.

Eddie's cursing, something is shuffling, he's snapping his fingers in the distance. God, they're probably at work. "Where are you?"

Tommy rattles off his last known coordinates. "I already told dispatch, Eddie. I'm just. They're not gonna make it in time, and I need you to promise me you won't let him be alone when -."

It'd been a trip he would have been riding shotgun for, if Tommy hadn't made sure he wasn't. He's grateful for that, at least.

He's really not expecting much, he thinks. Eddie doesn't have to go far out of his way to support Buck. It'll hurt him, true. But Tommy's gotten pretty used to being the cause of that. And. He'll be dead, anyway, so he won't have to carry that guilt for long.

And then Eddie betrays whatever vestige of friendship they had left, because it's not Eddie's voice that responds.

"Hey asshole. Do you have enough leverage to break the window?"

He's got a good voice. A little gruff, a little heavy.

Tommy doesn't want this.

"No."

"Actually no, or are you just accepting your fate again without even talking about alternatives."

It's not how he thought he'd go. Dramatic final hour phone call, the end of their relationship as a metaphor for the bleakness of his situation. "I'm sorry, Buck."

He's having trouble focusing his eyes. There's a beat behind his ears that keeps slowing down. He thinks he might be hearing sirens but -

"Evan," Tommy says for the first time in six months. "I'm so sorry, Evan."

He says - something. The tone of it is there, even if he can't quite make out the words.

Tommy blinks. Coughs.

There's a phone in his hands.

Why is there a phone in his hands, he's supposed to be flying a -

He'd crashed it, actually.

Well shit.

Damn.

Eddie's gonna be so pissed if he has to find out second hand that Buck's going to get a really fucking shitty call in a few hours.

He should call.

---

When he blinks open his eyes, he finds his fingers first, nearly has a panic attack when they don't move they way he wants them to, except - oh.

There are fingers interlocked with his.

Tommy follows the line of the arm, even though he knows.

"Sorry," Evan says, and there are tears unshed at the corners of his eyes but he looks mad as hell. "You only get one dramatic exit out of my life in a calendar year."

[jyndor2]

I'm sorry, I do not want to be condescending or disrespectful to people who were more casual fans of rogue one, but it does not escape my notice that the initial response to this show before it aired was mostly "who asked for this???" so for those people, people who did not care a lick about cassian before the show, yeah of course they did not come in with expectations about who he is or the things he has to be and do in order to fit with a film that they don't really care much about.

for many of us who HAVE cared, who WERE ride or die for a cassian show from the moment it was announced, this has been an exercise in frustration and frankly even hurt. so when I say what I am about to say, it isn't because I think we are the only people whose opinions matter. but I am tired of being told since s1 aired that I just don't get what tony gilroy is trying to do, or that I am just a petty shipper, or that I lack media literacy which LMFAO. and I am also aware that my love of this character and the film has absolutely colored my feelings about the show - which I think is probably a better watch for people who did not come into the show knowing or caring about cassian andor as a character.

I understand what gilroy was trying to do. I think he was very successful with s1 even if I didn't like the choices he made for cassian's backstory. but s2 is a different story, and I think the show failed to deliver on what was setup by the first season but more importantly by the film. rogue one is about love - same as andor. the different kinds of love that exist between people, that people have for their communities and for all living beings. the idea of a revolution, to rogue one/andor, is beyond just hating the oppressor - but loving the oppressed, and having a clear understanding of what is to be done to build a brighter future.

this is why the relationship between jyn and cassian in rogue one is the HEART of the film. full stop. whatever the end result (which is of course what matters the most) this was a central part of the story very early on in development of the film, and it also is present in so many of the supplemental works - including in official art, in comics, and of course the novelization.

basically at one point in development, the character who ends up cassian andor is an isb spy who is in a relationship with rebel soldier jyn erso, and only when he sees what happens at jedha (probably jedha, may have been called something else at that point but i don't remember, this is all off the top of my head) does he become a true rebel. at another point, the film ends with jyn and cassian escaping scarif, and then there is a wedding, presumably theirs in the future. of course this ends up getting scrapped because lucasfilm lets the writers kill off everyone at the end, but that doesn't mean that jyn and cassian do not have a romantic element to their relationship.

jyn and cassian are loosely named after the original legends characters who get the death star plans - jan ors and kyle katarn, who are romantically involved.

multiple people involved in the film have said there is probably a kiss that was filmed in the elevator. diego luna was always VERY clear even through andor s1 press that jyn erso was at the very least extremely important to cassian (and back in the day he even said they'd be together and selling fridges lmfao), was his mirror and someone that he felt a serious connection with. diego and felicity clearly played their dynamic as romantic, even if nothing ever happened between their characters because they did not have the time.

the novelization by alexander freed is FULL of clear romantic subtext and outright text especially from cassian's pov. absolutely none of this makes it canon that they WOULD have gotten together had they lived, but it does show an intention that existed for almost as long as the characters did in development - that jyn and cassian's story is a love story, and that it is a love story that ends before it can really begin. that is the tragedy of rogue one - these are people who finally find their home (all of them, not just jyn and cassian, in the cause) and they have to die to save that home. and also it is their home because they WOULD die for it - for the rebellion.

though rebelcaptain has one of the most intimate scenes i have ever seen in star wars (the elevator scene) it is not physically intimate. so to many people that means it's not romantic. which is a shame because it's such a beautiful moment of emotional vulnerability, where these two people finally have a quiet place to just be together, to let all their walls down and belong, but since people are fucking idiots now they think cassian is wishing jyn was ANYONE else lmfao

but that doesn't change the reality of how beloved rebelcaptain is. rebelcaptain immediately inspired so much from the fans - for a mf ship to get as much love as it does to this day is a real testament to how much it is loved by fans. over 5k fanfics on ao3 for a niche non-explicitly canon mf ship is wild. it's the 7th most written about ship on ao3 for all of star wars media. again, for a ship in ONE movie.

of course, a prequel was never going to make jyn and cassian's relationship canon before they even meet. still it is a core part of rogue one and as such I would expect it to haunt the narrative of andor, which it does to some extent, especially in the first season but also in the second. this is not my issue with the show at all because again i understand where they are going with it.

my frustrations with the show are not about cassian having a committed relationship with someone else either. arguably that could have done a lot to move his character to the man who we see in rogue one - and to me it didn't all that well imo because the show doesn't treat cassian andor as if he is an established character with established motivations that we have known for almost TEN years.

my problem is that the show spends more time and energy building up a wonderful ensemble and doing pretty great plot for THEM than it does building cassian into the man we see in rogue one. it wastes too much time in s2 doing a whole lot of nothing, actual nothing, when it needs to be GIVING us what we need. not just what we want. meaning, if you are going to make the case that cassian is talking out of his ass on eadu, you better make that case well - or it won't fucking work.

SHOW us your work, gilroy. don't just tell the audience that cassian is suddenly a great leader, we need to SEE IT. i believe he is but the show does not give any real evidence for it.

it's storytelling 101 - show, don't tell. and considering this is CASSIAN'S backstory, it's a cardinal sin for so much of the development of cassian's core motivations in rogue one to be afterthoughts told to us offhandedly.

an egregious example of this is his relationship with bix.

in a single film, we see more evidence as to why cassian and jyn are so well suited to one another - be it as partners in the rebellion, as friends and/or as potential lovers - than we see of cassian and bix in the entire show. i do not say this to disrespect bixcass shippers, you do you boo, but because honestly I believe this is part of a fundamental problem with andor.

because I actually think the intention of the show is to make that point to us - that bix and cassian are NOT well suited to one another, that they may each be someone that the other WANTS to love, but they are not who they NEED. but I don't think the show gives this the time and attention it deserves.

we are told that bix and cassian are exes in s1, and we see that they broke up because of various incompatibilities - cassian running off and being inconsistent, cassian prioritizing his own needs and wants over bix's, cassian not being open to emotional vulnerability, bix wanting a normal life with a normal guy, etc. no matter how clear it was to me that they had unresolved emotions between them, it was also clear that one of them was always going to hold the other back.

s1 has the room to breathe but also isn't trying to overcome these issues. that is why their friendship, their dynamic, in s1 works on multiple levels - even if I do not ship them - because the show isn't trying to push aside their issues in s1. the first season sets up multiple paths: one that is two first loves who romantically reconnect after a period of personal growth, and one that is two first loves who find that they are better off as friends because their incompatibilities would not be sustainable under the weight of building a revolution. both of which, in order to line up properly with rogue one, would have to end in great tragedy of some sort. not necessarily fridging, but a separation or complete severing of ties because their GOALS ARE NOT THE SAME. not necessarily their goals for the rebellion, although the show does make that clear, but their PERSONAL goals.

it seems as though the show understands this too. the problem comes down to s2 not having the time to explore some very important foundational parts of this supposedly central relationship - or the interest in doing so either.

we do not see them reconnect, which is whack. so not only do we not see how their first teen romance worked (we are just told about cassian sneaking into bix's room lmao) but we also do not see how they fall back in love. because I'm sorry, love is a choice. love is an active thing we must work for. it is not easy, especially in conflict. we see how not easy it is between them once they have already committed to each other, but we do not see WHY they made the choice to rebuild their relationship with one another again, or HOW.

yes, cassian saves bix at the end of s1. okay? bix is deeply traumatized, and we never really see her deal with it. no, the girlboss 2015 era bad bitch coruscant blowout does not count. we also do not see cassian deal with literally any of his traumas either, but we don't see him deal with much.

it seems as though they get back together because they feel like they SHOULD - okay, well then show us WHY. this is supposed to be the heart of the show, right? well show me why that heart beats.

because what I see is cassian and bix fighting, being unwilling to let the other make choices for themselves (bix especially but cassian is guilty of this too) and bix basically reverting to a version of herself we never see in s1, which is a docile, tea-making housewife. cool cool but WHY?? where has it ever been established that bix caleen wants to be a homemaker? that CASSIAN wants that in a partner??

in fact, in the first fucking episode of s1, cassian EXPLICITLY mocks timm for picking a woman who is unruly and rebellious. that moment establishes that cassian understands bix will never be passive, it is not in her nature, and that he doesn't WANT her to be. he thinks timm is a bad match for her because of timm's own preferences for a partner being kind of incompatible with who cassian understands bix to be.

and yet - am I supposed to believe that bix's traumas have changed that core part of her? that a woman who chooses the rebellion is content with not doing ANYTHING? with tea making???

not only is this strike three for tony gilroy passifying a rebellious woman in some way for another character's story (jyn erso, cinta kaz and now bix caleen) it is also totally hard for me to buy because it's not even EXPLORED.

WHY does bix spend her time doing very little (except of course all the stuff she does earlier on offscreen apparently)??? WHY is the rebellion not utilizing her very important skillset (comms and mechanics) when the same revolutions that gilroy has clearly studied so much for this story would have made her very, very useful?

as I said earlier, I think the show makes a decent case for why they ultimately are incompatible. in the end, it comes down to a lack of trust that the other will do the right thing. bix leaves cassian (when she is pregnant; clearly the baby is meant to be cassian's) to go back to the place where she was sexually assaulted for Reasons because she is "choosing the rebellion" but what she is really choosing is to raise a child that cassian would probably want to know about without him even being aware of their existence.

what she is choosing is to not distract cassian from ~his destiny~ which lmao okay sure whatever but GIRLFRIEND you should not have to make that choice. you should trust that he is committed to this ideal you believe so strongly in that you are willing to leave everything behind for good.

because the truth is that yes, bix says that she'll find him someday, and yes, cassian thinks he'd like to find her someday too, but the truth is that this is a betrayal. this is a partner not only forcing the hand of someone they love for an ideal they both supposedly believe in, but also taking away the choice of the partner to have any say in whether or not he has a relationship with a baby that he helped create lmfao. of course a woman has no obligation to involve the genetic father in a baby's life but it's clear that we are supposed to think this is an act of love on bix's part, but... i'm sorry, bix seems to understand (like cassian) that there really is no likely future for their relationship. so if anything, it is selfish. okay. cool, then why is the final scene shot in a way that makes it look sweet and hopeful??? lmfao it looks insane because it IS an insane thing for a person to do.

and am I supposed to believe that cassian and bix would be having unprotected sex during a war???? with their traumas of losing their parents young????? sorry its always been a no for me with rebelcaptain and its a no period.

cassian, who has had his choices taken from him all his life, has this choice taken too - and fuck no I do not get with that, especially not when bix was not forced to do any of this. she CHOSE to leave cassian at his most vulnerable, after witnessing a genocide, something he himself is a survivor of, in order to keep him in the rebellion? girl bye

cassian is overprotective of her to a fault, and it gets them into fights. after her girlboss moment does she even do anything for the rebellion besides "choose" the rebellion for cassian? i literally do not remember a second of her doing anything besides pouring tea and yapping.

so we do not see her recover from her traumas, but we are to assume that she's better now because she tortured her torturer. okay cool, that COULD have been an interesting way to show the audience that revenge does not heal, and certainly not using the pain and suffering of oppressed children to do so will not heal. this could have played into cassian telling jyn to leave krennic at the end of the film, juxtaposing the way he led bix to harming herself further with the way that he asked jyn to spend their last moments together, free from the taint of an easy kill when he knew it was likely krennic wasn't gonna make it.

nope instead we get absolutely nothing. bix suddenly seems okay! great, cool but how did she go from drug addled and struggling with ptsd to beautiful sexy housewife who just so happens to never do anything with any of her skills again from that point?

and that does not serve cassian's story at all. it doesn't even serve her own.

one thing the show does well for her is how it handle's bix's assault. but again, this is how tony gilroy radicalizes bix, as if being tortured by the audio of oppressed murdered children is not enough. there's another avenue for her radicalization: in the first episode, timm mentions a wobani job. meaning bix and timm are working with the prisons (aka labor camps aka concentration camps) for her business. okay well imagine what it would be like to realize that you've been directly profiting off of a system that your friend/lover was enslaved by???

bix as an undocumented woman of course IS of course at risk, and it isn't wrong to show us what that means. the show does make a point of exposing how at risk marginalized women are - from kerri possibly being at the brothel to the way the imperials speak about the dhani women to bix's assault, it's a part of the story and i have no problem with it.

but the purpose was to radicalize her. and what is the purpose in radicalizing bix? to force cassian into serving the rebellion.

even though by then, cassian should be BEYOND committed.

and it's not even something he gets to confront, not really. while it seems to me that they both know their relationship is done for good, while the show seems to recognize that bix was out of pocket for that, why then the image of bix with baby??? why make it seem like she did something good for cassian?

i know, i know. legacy. but i'm sorry that's a legacy that cassian has no ties to but blood. and that's just genetics. not relation, not choice, not family. not necessarily.

it would have made far more sense to show a scene of what cassian was running TO - maybe to jyn, which would have made sense given the shot of saw, but also maybe to bodhi and galen, maybe to anything but what who left him behind and what he was always supposed to LEAVE behind in order for the show to stick the landing.

[captain-huggy-bear]

Careful babe with Michael

Requests are currently closed while I work through current ones <3 (We're nearly at request reopening time though) Writing Masterlist

"Careful, babe."

Your temple bumps into the back of Michael's hand, a hand he'd reached over pre-emptively without even looking to cover the corner of the table. The corner of the table that would have whacked you right in the temple...or rather your temple would have whacked right into it.

He's not even stopped eating his sandwich, one half still in his hand while he keeps his other over the corner, arm outstretched, tattoos on full display. It's become a sixth sort of sense for him. To know when to put himself in the way or to pull you out of the way.

"How do you do that?" Your mouth drops open a little, baffled because he seems to just...to just know when you're about to be clumsy.

"Huh?" He stops, mouth full, big brown eyes wide and confused. Michael doesn't seem to notice that he's just saved you from bludgeoning yourself without a single thought and without even looking at you.

"How do you always know when i'm about to hurt myself? You weren't even looking?!"

He swallows down the rest of his bite, taking a moment to think about it, fingers turning over on the table so that you can fit yours between his. Easy. Simple. Effortless.

"I dunno...just do, baby. It's like...my spidey sense tingles except it's my girlfriend sense and it goes off whenever you're about to get hurt or when you're about to get naked." He grins at you, goofy, all teeth and cheeks shoved up to crinkle his eyes.

"Fuck off, it does not go off when i'm about to get naked."

"Then how come I always face time you on a roadie when your shirt is off and you're about to take your bra off, huh?" It stops you in your tracks because...because he does. He always seems to face time you when you're half-dressed and it's not even the same time of day every time because of time zones.

"Are you serious?"

"Dead serious, I told the guys it's like my super power." He takes another bite of his sandwich like it was normal to tell your entire team mates that you had a spidey sense for when your girlfriend was getting her tits out.

"You told the guys?!"

"Well, duh? Like, I look awesome right now." There's no embarrassment from Michael, why would he be embarrassed? It's a point of pride in the locker room. He's that guy...or he thinks he is. Truth is most of the guys just think he's whipped. Which is probably true.

"You can't be discussing my boobs around the guys! How am I supposed to look Josh and Logan in the eyes? They're babies!"

"They're like 5 years younger than you."

"Babies." You restate your point because they're young, they're practically children still. Logan only just old enough to drink in a bar. 5 years or not.

[crispy-art-on-fire]

WELCOME TO LIFE CRASHSTOP aka BlitzPrime sparkling. They have 3 names because I cannot make up my mind if Blitzwing or Optimus were the carrier so this is just for ease of talking about them. (Shortstop for Blitzwing, Safetycrash for Optimus, Crashstop if talking in general or post reconciliation).

They're a natural triple changer and a civilian one at that, which means they literally fits in nowhere. They also don't have a weapon and instead have the power of wind turbines which doesn't hurt people. So mostly in fights they rely on their size and to intimidate their opponent to flee.

As for her backstory:

For Shortstop she grew up very sheltered by Blitzwing because the moment she was born and it was revealed she doesn't have any weapons to defend herself he went into overprotective mode. Making sure he was there for her at all times and protecting her from harm or scorn, though this included making her promise not to show her truck alt to anyone else. If asked Blitzwing will lie and say her sire was Lugnut even when they know it isn't true. This is all stifling for Shortstop. Forcing her to realize that she is different, weaker, than everyone else around her. She fantasized about meeting her sire often before deciding to sneak out behind Blitzwing's back to try to actualize this fantasy.

Safetycrash meanwhile has always known Blitzwing is her sire, it was one of the first things Optimus told her because there was no way to hide it. While Safetycrash and Optimus have a good relationship she cannot help but resent him for not being able to stand up for her. At the academy and growing up she was picked on for being a flyer, because she doesn't look like an Autobot. The only thing that Optimus can do is comfort her and try to stop it when he sees it but he has dedicated his life to the rules that now hurt her and he doesn't know what to do. Safetycrash decides that if Autobots can't have a place for her she might as well meet her sire and become a Decepticon instead.

Blitzwing and Optimus are basically doing the best they can but really their blind spots are where the other excels at. Blitzwing provides action, he can give entertainment, safety, and a plan to follow but he is awful at adressering feelings. While Optimus provides emotional insight and comfort but hesitates before acting. Together they make 1 great parent which is why Crashstop decides after spending time with both of them that she'll have her happily ever after damn it!

[cosmicpearlz]

can you open up the door?

summary: you guys hated each other, so why does your heart feel broken when you see him with another girl?

pairing: jude bellingham x reader

a/n: i feel like i'm running out of ideas to write, please request anything! i absolutely love writing for jude and would love to hear what you wanna see/read :) anywho, enjoy my loves!

jude felt like he was on a high. winning the final cup with real madrid had been a dream come true. now, he gets to go home and relax before playing in the euro 2024 competition. although, going home also meant seeing the one person he dislikes. you and jude had a long history of hating/disliking each other. it was hard because of how much time you guys spend together, being that you not only shared the same friend group but the same best friend as well.

"you know jude is coming home, right?" trent says to you, while you rolled your eyes.

"yes yes, i know already. i promise to be on my best behavior," you attempted to give him your best smile. it only made the boy laugh at how you tried to hide your annoyance.

"why don't you guys like each other again? i feel like the two of you would be perfect together. a proper power couple if you ask me."

"never say that again. i wouldn't be caught-" before you could even finish your thought, jude comes through trent's door.

"daddy's home," you groaned at jude's crude language. upon hearing the groan, jude locks eyes with you. have you always been this pretty? somehow prettier than the last time he saw you. jude rids the thought out of his head and turns his attention to trent. they shared a hug before jude takes his seat right across from you on the other couch.

"you didn't tell me that you invited the yapper."

"and he didn't tell that the dickhead was coming. so i guess we're in the same boat," you crossed your arms to your chest and glared at jude.

"guys can we not start?"

"he literally started it first! i was here way before he came in and interrupted things."

"well guess who was in trent's life first? oh right, it was me. you're just some outsider that thinks she fits in but you don't."

you weren't sure why that hurt your feelings as much as it did. maybe because deep down, you felt like he was right. you moved from america to england for college as an exchange student and landed a job working for england's football team as their photographer. it's where you met trent and jude.

"you're such an asshole jude," you tried to ignore the stinging in your chest, as you packed up your stuff and getting ready walk to your apartment.

Jude began to feel guilty for obviously hurting your feelings. he doesn't know why he says what he says. it just comes out but he thinks that this time it was too far. trent had told him about how you felt a bit lonely sometimes being that you weren't from england, and here he had used it against you.

"dude," trent looks to jude with disappointment, as the door slams closed behind you.

"i know, i'm sorry. i don't know why i said it."

"why don't you guys get along?"

"i'm not even sure anymore. we just continue to hurt one another."

-

it's been weeks since you had last spoken to jude or trent. avoiding the both of them like the plague, pretending that you won't be leaving with them to germany in exactly two days. today, jobe had texted you that he was throwing a going away party for the three of you. you tried desperately tried to get out of going but the younger boy wasn't having it.

so you went, unfortunately. dressing in a black mini dress with the black red bottoms you saved up to purchase for graduation. finishing the look off with a red handbag. the loud music from the club greeted you, while you walked in.

"you made it!" jobe yells over the music, after seeing you walk in. you smiled and gave him a hug. it never made sense to you that jude's brother was nicer to you than he was.

"did i actually have a choice?"

"no."

"exactly," the two of you burst out into laughter, which caught jude's ears. he won't admit it to anyone but he knew your laugh like the back of his hand. it was one of things he liked about you.

"are you excited to leave for germany?"

"honestly, yes and no."

"why the no?" jobe leaned in closer to whisper, "anything to do with my brother?"

"no."

"i know when you're lying. it definitely has something to do with jude! why don't you guys just kiss and make up," you gasp at jobe and slapped his shoulder.

"news flash, we don't like each other. plus, i would never kiss him nor date him," you replied, causing the younger boy to roll his eyes.

jude overhead everything. would it really be so bad if you were to date him? he wasn't sure why that left a sour note in body but he was determined to not let it bother him. instead, deciding to occupy his time with the first pretty girl he saw. just to further deny those hidden feelings. to get over someone, might as well get under someone new.

-

"you've been avoiding me," you looked to find trent taking the seat next to you on the couch.

"i've simply been busy."

"doing what? moping?"

"hey, i don't mope."

"so what are you doing right now?"

"people watching." trent followed your line of vision, finding that you were looking at jude engaged in a conversation with a pretty girl. you watched as he moved closer to her, causing her to giggle and place a hand on his arm.

"you have feelings for jude." you quickly shake your head in defense.

"no i don't."

"stop lying to yourself. you guys are both attracted to each other but don't know how to act on it. you guys spent at least two years pretending to hate one another, why?"

"i don't know."

"but you do. just tell me why. i'm your best friend." somehow, your heartbeat felt as if it were louder than the music. you do remember why you originally started to dislike him but you've never said anything.

"it's because i overheard a conversation between the two of you. we were already friends but it was the day you were going to introduce me to jude. i heard him say 'she will never be on my level or in my league'." you felt your eyes water as you brought up the same awful feelings you felt back then.

"y/n that's not what he meant. you didn't hear the rest of conversation."

"whatever, i don't care." you pick up your handbag and stand to leave. the saltiness of the tears falling onto your cheeks, no matter how hard you tried to hide it. trent stands up with you, trying to offer some sort of comfort that you didn't want. it was embarrassing enough to cry over someone that wouldn't even give you a second thought.

"i think i'm going to go home."

"y/n."

"i'm fine trent. please let me go," you whisper, not being able to look up from your heels. he nods at you and you take that cue to leave. rushing out of the loud atmosphere to the quiet outside air. jude's eyes follow your figure as you rushed out. immediately, he ignores the girl he was flirting with to follow you outside. you notice a tug on your arm, turning around you see the last person you wanna see.

"jude, i'm not in the mood."

"what's wrong?"

"why would i tell you? go flirt with the girl you were just with."

"well something is wrong with you and i want to make sure you're okay."

"why do you even care? i'm just an outsider trying desperately to fit in, right?" you watched as jude's mouth opens and closes, with furrowed brows, you scoffed.

"exactly. goodnight jude," you took one more look at him before getting into your uber that happened to show up at the right time.

jude walks back into the club with an angry expression on his face. he was more mad at himself rather than anyone in specific. he walks to trent, who was sitting in the same spot, nursing the same drink.

"please tell me what happened. i knew she was okay and then i seen her walk out."

"i totally knew it. you guys have feelings for each other!"

"trent."

"she was looking at you with the girl at the bar and finally told me why you guys don't like each other. turns out, it was complete miscommunication. y/n overheard you say 'she'll never be on my level or in my league'. i tried telling her that you didn't mean it like that but she didn't want to hear it."

the realization dawned on Jude as he thought back to that day. trent showed him one picture and he swore that he could have fallen in love right there. you had mixed his words up to rejection rather than realizing he meant that you were too good for him. maybe he could have worded it differently. you guys certainly wouldn't be in this mess now. would you guys be wrapped up in the same bed sheets whispering to each other? would you be at his football matches in madrid? would you visit him and let him show you around? a whole year he's played on the team and a whole year you could have already been his.

-

you were relaxed in your bed, having criminal minds in the background. the only sort of comfort you could find. stupid feelings and stupid jude. you wanted the floor to swallow you whole and then maybe you wouldn't have to deal with this.

a knock on the door draws your attention. who would be knocking at two o'clock in the morning? you get up from your bed, walking into the living room towards the door. you opened the door, finding Jude standing there with a small smile.

"what do you want?"

"to talk."

"no," you closed the door before the boy could say anything else. jude takes this sign to keep knocking, instead of just leaving.

"open the door. please, just hear me out and I'll leave you alone afterwards." you leaned your head on the door debating on letting him in.

"open up the door. i'm not leaving until you do." you finally open the door after two minutes, afraid that the knocking was going to bother your apartment neighbors. you pulled him inside and closed the door once again.

"what do you-"

"you have it all wrong. what you overheard was wrong. i meant that you looked like you were too good for me. that i didn't even deserve to try and win you over. how could you ever think differently? you are the prettiest girl i've ever known-"

"jude."

"i was only rude to you because that's what you did to me when we first met. there are so many things i wish i did differently. i could be the one kissing your tears away and not causing them. you're not an outsider, far from it actually-"

"jude!" you finally got the boys attention, locking eyes with him. you couldn't believe that your feelings were returned. all the time that was wasted. without a second thought, you pulled his shirt collar and kissed him. your lips molded together perfectly. a sudden eagerness that made the kiss more intense. jude's hand slipping under your pajama top, to touch your bare skin trying feel closer to you. you pulled away first, feeling overwhelmed with emotions.

"i'm so sorry sweetheart. i didn't mean of it." jude swipes away the tears that fell from your eyes.

"i'm sorry too."

"you have nothing to apologize for. it's my fault."

"it takes two to tango jude. i've said some pretty awful stuff too and i'm sorry."

"where do we go from here? what do you truly want y/n? if you want to pretend this never happened, i'll comply." his eyes trailing your face for some sort of sign.

"i just want you."

"you have me baby. you always have," jude whispers, before connecting your lips together once more.

[writinginatree]

Breakfast Gone Wrong

Relationship(s): The lost boys & reader

Summary: You get hurt by what was supposed to be your victim, and your overprotective vampire brothers get overprotective.

Warnings: Canon-typical violence, injury, blood drinking, swearing, vampire!reader, written from David's point of view.

Requested by @mizgames way back in February. I'm so so sorry for taking so extremely long to get this done. It's also a little different from your exact request because I remembered it wrong and didn't read the request again before I started writing, but I hope you still like it anyway!

David knew it was a bad idea to let you hunt on your own. He fucking knew it. That's all he can think of as he rushes to your side, following your pained screams. He should have never let you out of his sight, but you were just so goddamn stubborn he hadn't been able to change your mind. In a fit of what he can only classify as teenage rebellion, and for absolutely no reason other than being a brat, you had suddenly decided that you're a big, grown-up vampire perfectly capable of hunting alone. And David, wrapped around your little finger as he is, had given in and agreed, despite knowing he shouldn't.

He told you not to go too far away from him and the others, to pick an easy victim, to call him if you needed help.

And now here you are, writhing in the sand with a wooden stake through your stomach. He left you unsupervised for five, ten minutes at most. This will definitely have been the last time he ever let you out of his sight. He'll be damned if he takes the risk of something like this ever happening again. Nope, you're grounded — for the rest of all eternity.

The asshole who did this is currently being torn apart by Paul and Marko, while Dwayne is already kneeling by your side, assessing the graveness of your injury. David joins him, since the feral blondes clearly don't need his help. He wordlessly holds you down as Dwayne pulls the wood from your body.

You cry out in pain, try to sit up and get away, but David is stronger and keeps you in place.

He's looking anywhere but at your face. If there's one thing he can't stand it's seeing you suffer. If he looks at your tearstained face for too long he might just start crying too.

Finally Dwayne has pulled the stake — which on closer inspection is just a branch that was probably meant to feed a bonfire — free, and your wails die down into soft sobs. He lifts your head onto his lap, stroking your hair, as David holds your hands and murmurs soothing words.

Paul and Marko drag what's left of your attacker over to you, letting his blood trickle directly into your mouth. You instinctively gulp it down, though David is pretty certain you don't even consciously notice anything going on around you through the pain clouding your mind.

You'll need a lot more blood than what's left in this guy to regain your strength. In their ripping him to shreds, Marko and Paul wasted a lot of the precious liquid, which now uselessly stains the sand a few feet beside your weak form. David decides it's only fair if they're the ones to have to go and find another victim to feed you with, while he and Dwayne watch over you.

For a moment he considers immediately taking you back to the cave, but dismisses the idea as quickly as it came. With how weak you are, David doesn't want to risk moving you just yet. Not until they've gotten some more blood into you.

The other two have only been gone a few minutes, but David can't take watching you like this any longer. He pushes back his sleeve and pierces his skin with his fangs, holding the wound to your lips. You instantly start sucking his blood, and he can almost watch as some semblance of life slowly returns to your face.

"Don't give them too much," Dwayne cautions. "You weakening yourself too is the last thing we need right now."

"I know."

"They'll be fine."

"I know," David repeats, and it's halfway true. The logically thinking part of him does know that. But there's also that other part, the part that can't watch you cry, the part that would go insane if he lost you. It's the same part of him that upon meeting you all those years ago instantly declared himself your older brother, a feeling that has only been amplified after being turned into vampires. He doesn't doubt the others feel the same. As the youngest of their group you have them all extremely protective over you, though David is aware he's the most protective of you by far. Maybe even a bit too much so, though he would never admit that. It's only natural, he thinks, after all he was the first to become your brother.

But Dwayne is right, he shouldn't let his feelings get the best of him. You're going to be okay. Paul and Marko should be back with a human blood donor for you soon, anyway. He just wanted to make sure you could hold out until then.

Now you almost look strong enough to drain a victim yourself if they hold it down for you, and after you feed you'll definitely be strong enough to sit on David's bike and let him take you back to the safety of the cave. He almost thinks you'll even be strong enough to be a brat and protest, but David will not let you change his mind about grounding you. Your safety comes first, your happiness second.

He pries his arm from your mouth and wipes a few stray drops of blood from your chin with his gloved hand.

You blink up at him, seemingly a lot more aware of your surroundings than just a couple minutes ago.

"How are you feeling, kitten?"

"Ouchie."

David chuckles despite himself. "Yeah, you could say that. What were you thinking?!"

"He looked like an easy victim..." Your voice is weak, hoarse with tears, but David is relieved you're already wearing your typical bratty pout again. "How was I supposed to know he'd try and gut me?!"

"People tend not to like it when you're trying to kill them."

"That's not a reason to stab someone!"

David thinks of all the times you came close to biting his or one of the other boys' fingers off for minor offences like wanting a bite of your food or wiping dirt from your face. Just last week you threatened to stab David with your ice cream cone because he said you couldn't stay at the boardwalk any longer if you wanted to be home at the cave before the sun came up.

"Uh-huh."

He shares a look with Dwayne, and knows he's thinking the same thing.

Just then Paul and Marko come back, a woman's limp body hanging between them. They dump her beside you. "Here, baby, we knocked her out for you."

For a moment you just stare, like you're not sure what you're supposed to do with her, or too exhausted to lean over and bite her. But then you move, sinking your teeth deep into her throat and David smells the blood when your teeth break the skin.

The boys sit around you in a protective circle and watch as you drink. They're hungry too, after all they barely had time to find victims of their own, let alone suck them dry, before your cry for help drew them away. But they hold back. They can wait.

Silently communicating they agree to bring you home, and then go out to feed in pairs, so there's always two of them with you. It's an unnecessary precaution, of course, but that doesn't bother them. It will bother you — or at least you'll say it does. You always pretend to be annoyed by their protectiveness, by being babied by them so much, as you like to phrase it. But the way you always hide under David's coat, make Paul give you piggyback rides and Dwayne read to you, and insist on Marko doing your hair for you says different. You might be pissed at David for grounding you, but he doesn't doubt you'll secretly love being the center of attention like that — even more so than usual.

Paul has curled up by your side now, arms wrapped around you and nuzzling his head against your shoulder. You briefly interrupt your feeding to hiss at him. David is glad to see it — the fact you're defending your food is a sure sign you're feeling better.

When you're done there's blood smeared all over your face. Dwayne wipes it away with his flag, making you whine and try to push away his hands. "I'm not a baby, Dwayne!"

Oh yes, you're definitely feeling better.

Still, you allow David to pick you up and carry you back to where the bikes are parked, snuggling against his chest and refusing to be put back down when you've reached the bikes. David sighs and climbs on his bike with you, sitting you in front of him and telling you to hold on tight to him, despite you already doing that.

Back at the cave you still refuse to let go, so David carries you inside and settles in your favorite spot — a sort of nest you've built in a small alcove going off the main cave, consisting of a mattress covered in a pile of countless fluffy blankets and pillows, with all the stuffed animals the boys have won for you at the boardwalk over the years strewn all over the place — with you on his lap.

Paul runs after him, and throws himself down beside the both you, cuddling close. Once he's done squirming around to get comfortable he's halfway laying on top of David, too, his face pressed so deep into your side he would probably suffocate if he were human.

It reminds David that he wasn't the only one worried about you, as he watches the tension seep from Paul's body now that you're in safety and he can hold you close. Since it's obvious Paul won't be letting go of you for a while, Marko and Dwayne head out to feed first, each pressing a kiss to your forehead before they go.

You're close to falling asleep, despite how early in the night it still is. No wonder after what you just went through.

David brushes his hand over your face, gently traces the bridge of your nose up to your forehead and back down in a soothing motion, watches your eyelids flutter as you fight to stay awake.

David well remembers a night much like this one, many years ago when you had all still been human, kids living on the streets. You'd been attacked then, too, by a man who'd caught you trying to steal from him. You still have the scar on your chin, where his knife grazed you before you got away. Then, like now, you'd clung to David for the rest of the night, hiding in the questionable safety of his arms.

He traces over the scar on your chin, wondering if today's injury will leave one, too. He supposes not. Vampires don't get scars as far as he's aware, but then again there's still so much he doesn't know about all this, even after decades of undead life.

"Sleep, kitten. You've got to rest."

An agreeing hum comes from Paul's direction, but you continue forcing your eyes to stay open.

"I'm not even tired."

He ignores the wornout lie and says, "You're hurt. The sooner you go to sleep, the sooner you'll feel better."

You seem to consider this for a moment, absentmindedly playing with Paul's hair and snuggling even closer to David, if that's even possible.

Finally you nod. "Fine. But you have to stay with me the whole time. I'll get nightmares if you make me sleep alone."

David hadn't expected anything else, and agrees. He doesn't mind going hungry in favor of watching over you, even if he knows you've never had a nightmare in your life.

He keeps stroking your face, slowly lulling you to sleep.

Paul, never one to keep still for long, starts fidgeting, and David throws him a glare. "Stay still or go do something else. You're keeping Y/N up."

"Sing us a lullaby then."

Before David can even think to tell Paul to fuck off, your eyes shoot wide open again, and you nod. "Yes, David, sing us a lullaby!"

With a heavy sigh David resigns to his fate. He really needs to learn how to say no to you, but of course that's never going to happen. And, seeing the content little smile on your face, he can't really bring himself to mind.

[cogentsummoner]

[ hot & heavy ] sender and receiver go at it somewhere they absolutely shouldn’t

[ control freak ] sender lets receiver think they're in charge… until they flip the roles mid-way

❝ keep quiet, or they’ll hear. ❞

sender is reader, receiver is all might

[ hot & heavy ] sender and receiver go at it somewhere they absolutely shouldn’t [ control freak ] sender lets receiver think they're in charge… until they flip the roles mid-way ❝ keep quiet, or they’ll hear. ❞

warnings: vaginal sex, quick mention of blood, toshi has great hearing

Neither of you were usually like this. For all the gossip and fantasies that surrounded him, All Might was not the type to initiate anything more than simple kisses when in public. And you- you were always the sensible one, perhaps to a fault.

Neither of you were usually like this- but one thing had led to another, and here you were, in an often forgotten staff lounge, fucking on the couch, both of you desperate for the other.

"Is it good?" All Might asked, voice low and husky, gently rocking his hips. "It doesn't hurt at all?"

"So good," you breathed out, nuzzling your nose against his. "You fill me up so perfectly."

He seemed to melt a little at that, and kissed you deeply as he began fucking you in earnest. It really was incredible, how night and day his confidence was when he was in his muscle form as opposed to his true form.

The couch creaked in protest as All Might- who barely fit on the damn thing in the first place, sped up, filling the room with the sound of skin slapping on skin and your own moans. His cock kept brushing up against that sweet spot inside you, and you could feel your orgasm on the horizon, but...

But you noticed, then, the way sweat beaded at his brow, the way his whole body was trembling, and the way his lovesick smile had turned into a grimace.

"Toshi?" you murmured, cupping his cheek with your hand. "What's wrong?"

"I- almost- shit!" he almost shouted as the room suddenly filled with steam, and the familiar sound of his coughs. You were quick to sit up, and grab tissues from the coffee table for him, which he took with much thinner hands. "I'm sorry," he said at last, wiping the blood off his mouth. "I thought- I thought I had more time."

He looked so tired and resigned, and you could feel his cock start to soften inside you.

"I'm not disappointed, Toshi," you told him; when he looked away, you gently grabbed his chin and made him look at you. "I'm not disappointed. Are you alright?"

He sighed and nodded... and was completely caught off guard when you pushed him down onto his back, and quickly moved to straddle him.

"So then let me take over," you purred, giving him your most seductive look as you slipped his cock between your folds- not sinking down on him, not yet, but reminding him just how much you wanted him.

His eyes were wide, and face flushed a deep red; the Number One Hero was rendered entirely speechless beneath you, and could only nod eagerly in reply.

Once you did sink down on him, sighing in pleasure, he tensed up once more and said, "There are people coming."

"...You did lock the door, right?" you whispered, casting a glance back at it.

He nodded, eyes still wide with panic. If it was just students, then you'd be fine. If it was a teacher... and depending on which teacher it was... that could pose a problem.

"It sounds like-" Toshinori didn't need to tell you who it sounded like, because not a second later you could hear for yourself the loud, bombastic voice of your fellow teacher, Present Mic.

As he drew near, you could hear him enthusiastically try to convince someone- presumably Aizawa- to go get drinks with him. Toshi grew more nervous as they drew closer and closer, and you- you, the sensible one- got an absolutely devious idea.

You rolled your hips, clenching your cunt around him, and Toshi let out a sort of... startled moan that made you giggle.

You leaned down and murmured into his ear, "Keep quiet, or they'll hear."

The look he gave you was positively scandalized, but he made no motion to stop you as you continued rocking your hips- but he did slam a hand over his mouth.

Toshi was a very... vocal lover, you had been quick to find out, even if he tried to hold all those delicious little groans and whimpers back. So keeping quiet as the voices got closer, and you sped up, was quite the challenge for him.

Soon, they were right outside your door... and they walked right by it without hesitation. It would seem Mic had won this time, which was good for both of you, because the last thing either of you needed was Mic gossiping to every other teacher, nor Aizawa's silent judgemental stare.

"Now that they're gone..." you said, grabbing the hand over Toshi's mouth and pinning it above his head. "Don't you dare hold anything back."

prompt list / accepting!

taglist: @duckywithahat, @actuallysaiyan, @silvershadow1711, @like-a-clock, @crimsonflameproxy, @andriannag, @kennys-partner

[sailorblossoms-rankane]

Much holds Ranma and Akane back from confessing (even if on some level They Know) but I like how the cheerleading arc spells things out in a way Ranma is somewhat "comfortable" with (making it a challenge and concealing Akane's identity as knowing it's her makes him Combust).

It all starts with Akane's team losing a volleyball match because of the opposing team's cheerleader (Akane's been through considerably worse so I doubt that would have knocked her out, but I like that Ranma will not let her get hurt in any way shape or form on his watch).

Losing like this makes Akane cry out of frustration. Ranma doesn’t know how to comfort her (too many feelings) but seeing Akane’s feelings being hurt is something he can’t let slide. He only knows how to deal with things as fights/challenges... so he turns this into one

The cheerleader "falls for Kuno" (she's too desperate for romance lol) and so she challenges Ranma for him. Ranma doesn't have a single fuck to give until he clocks her as the girl who made Akane cry. this frames their match as one about love (L-O-V-E, if you will)

The cheerleader is doing it all for Kuno, but Ranma is always doing it for Akane. She's the only reason he takes the challenge, but he keeps this to himself, so on the surface, it seems like both "are fighting over Kuno" (sidenote: what the fuck is Kuno’s problem lmfaooo)

Establishing that "to cheer is to love (the one you're cheering for)" but putting Kuno in the middle makes Ranma have zero chance of winning, until Akane figures out it's about her. that a match about love has Ranma fighting for Akane's sake is an obvious declaration of his love

Just like how Ranma can't let Akane's feelings being hurt slide, Akane can't watch Ranma struggle/about to lose without trying to do anything to help him. her joining a match about love is also an obvious declaration of her love. Ranma fights for her sake, Akane has his back

On the surface, giving Ranma an unknown figure he can pretend to love is safe precisely because "there are no feelings attached." But it could be said that making that figure Akane, and having them fight together, makes it a celebration of their love... without the pressure of acknowledging it as such.

To cheer is to love, and while Ranma doesn't get this (refuses to perhaps) it's repetitively stated that you can't fake this stuff. He's correct that they are evenly matched, but unbeknownst to him, it is only because that guy is Akane. It's the only reason they win!

Sidenote: Kuno has given Ranma trouble so it’s notable that when Akane’s identity is separated from her roles as love interest/"normal" girl meant to contrast with the circus, she gets a bit of shine/praise usually reserved for male challengers. Kuno is fighting pissed and for real.

Nothing outside of Ranma’s real fights with other guys are “consistent” or taken seriously so I wouldn’t either. We’re told Akane is slow but she moved so fast here she fucking teleported with a new fit. (Not a manga for the power scaling hoes, I’ll tell you that much)

(If the plot needs it Akane will get it done. If it wants a Romantic Rescue, she won’t) (Note how the tone is different when Ranma fights as a girl. The challenges are deranged, exploratory, and very unserious – I mean, even more than usual. If it's a True Shonen Fight being a girl is a handicap. It is what it is)

“Ranma fights for her sake, Akane has his back,” seems like traditional male/female roles, so it’s interesting to see a reversal. I’d say doing so is saying that Ranma and Akane are equals. They’ll also do/push whatever mold/obstacle needs to be pushed for the other.

These panels really spell out how this arc is meant to "celebrate their love" (without pressure/shaking the status quo plot-wise at that moment). It encapsulates something we see whenever shit hits the fan, potentiated in the final arc: Ranma and Akane make a great team (the Power of Love etc)

Even if Ranma doesn't know that's Akane yet, their usually dynamic is still there, making it feel more authentic

(should have probably been obvious this is Akane at this point lol)

Something that really stands out to me too is that a match explicitly about love has Ranma teaming up with Akane in girl form. Look at Akane's reaction to a girl Ranma embracing her and saying they're in love.

While Akane "sheds her skin" to fight "as a girl" in the final stages, they still do the "romantic rescue" with Ranma as a girl, and the romance of it all is acknowledged as such. Akane revealing her identity also gives weight that "to cheer is to love" for all present

They even do a repeat of the "Ranma throws an 'I love you' to win a match and the gag is he said it to the person he's actually in love with, proceeds to freak out" with girl Ranma for good measure (they do this with him as a boy in the Nabiki as a fianceé arc)

It's not the first time we see romantic tension between them when Ranma is a girl. When she thinks girl Ranma is going to kiss her "we're both girls" is tied with "people are watching (public judgment)" ... Akane Tendo I know what you are

Just look at these reactions. At her excited little face when she hears "Ranma confesses he loves her." She's not any less excited because Ranma is a girl when she hears the confession... it's saying that Akane accepts Ranma just as he is (I know what you are Akane Tendo!!)

Miss cheerleader accepts her defeat because she acknowledges that the teamwork she witnesses between Ranma and Akane as romantic love (and at no point questions that those two are girls. Cheers to that)

At this point, I think Ranma likely knows on some level that he’s in love with her (as opposed to just liking her/finding her cute) (the specific way he denies it being a giveaway too lol) He’s just not ready to admit it and for others to know it.

The vulnerability of others knowing he’s extremely down bad for Akane goes against the manly strength he’s been taught and he doesn’t know how to deal with all the emotions (thanks Genma I guess). And Akane awakens too much.

Also, the arranged marriage means pressure as it makes the stakes of admitting his feelings so much higher... the noisy classmates also add to it, as it means Ranma never has the privacy he needs to process his feelings for her. If he has none at home or a school, where would he?

[hayakawalove]

Second Chance

Summary: After a battle with you, Suguru finds himself back at Jujutsu High with a major head injury. He doesn't remember any of the events that occurred over the past couple of years, including his defection. Will you be able to give him a second chance, or is it already too late?

A/N: Big shout out to @twentyfivemiceinatrenchcoat for discussing this with me. They are wonderful and their work is phenomenal, please check them out. I hope you all enjoy! The idea just seemed so interesting to me. How would reader act if they saw Suguru again, and he didn't remember anything? I'm sorry for the ending. I hope you'll forgive me! Comments are appreciated!

CW: Angst, Hurt No Comfort, Amnesia, Flashbacks, Death, Friends to Lovers

W/C: 4,791

Credit to cafekitsune for the banner

Silky hair and chapped lips. 

You’ve seen this man before, but never like this. You don’t know how long you’ve been sitting here, hours you think. Shoko has come in with food twice, but you’ve turned her down both times. It’s hard to have an appetite like this. There’s an endless pit in your stomach, the anxiety clawing at your insides like a demon. 

He’s changed. His hair is a bit longer, muscles a bit bigger. You can’t see his eyes, but you think they’re probably more cynical than they were several years ago. You deduce by the lines on his face that he still smiles the same. That angers you. 

You feel like the clock in the room is too loud. When you look around, you notice there isn't a clock. It’s just your heartbeat in your ears. It hurts how loud it is. 

You were a bit surprised Suguru showed his face. He avoided everyone, and everyone avoided him. For a while you thought maybe that would make it hurt less. You’ve grown to learn there’s nothing you can do to make it hurt less. 

Suguru was hurt. More hurt than you’ve seen him in a while. It was weird seeing him injured, it was even more weird knowing you were the one who caused it. Suguru was stronger than you. He always has been. Because of this fact, you can’t help but think that maybe he let you win. 

It was a laughable assumption. You knew there wasn’t a world in which he would give up that easily to you. But you couldn’t shake the idea no matter how much you tried. Maybe, maybe, maybe.

When Suguru fell to his knees you had a split second to make a decision. You could finish it all. Kill him. It was exactly what he deserved. There was a small voice in the back of your brain though, telling you you couldn’t kill him. You didn’t know if that was true. You suppose it was, because you dragged his body back to the school despite everything in your body telling you not to. 

It took a lot of convincing to find a room fit enough to hold Suguru. The higher ups were afraid he may do something drastic, but you knew better. After everything he’s done, he’s never gone after other sorcerers. “Just for now.” They told you. He can stay here until they figure out what to do with him.

A finger twitch. 

Any exhaustion that you may have felt was eradicated instantly. You stare at his fingers, praying to yourself it was fake, praying to yourself it was real. 

Lashes flutter and you’re met with caramel eyes. 

Words get caught in your throat, so all you do is stare. He was awake. He was awake and looking at you. Suguru. Memories flash through your brain of the childhood you once shared, happiness and youth flowing through your veins. You may have seen him earlier during your fight, but you didn’t see him, not really anyway. Not like this. Not up close where you could see your own reflection in his eyes.

He stares back, widening his eyes to wake himself up even more. 

Who was going to speak first? 

What would you say? 

Would he-

“Jellybean.”

There’s no ticking anymore. You think your heart has stopped, the sound no longer driving your thoughts. 

That was the nickname he had for you before he left. You aren’t even sure how he came up with it, you don't even remember when he came up with it. The only thing you could remember was how it sounded when it flowed through his lips. Just like that. It sounded just like that. 

Your mouth is glued shut as you look at him. Something is different. Something is wrong. The air around him feels different compared to hours ago. It’s not as heavy. His eyes flick around, taking in all the details of the room. 

“Geto.” You murmur. 

You use his family name out of spite, deciding that he doesn’t deserve to hear you speak his given name. 

Suguru’s brows furrow for a moment, as if surprised to hear you call him that. His gaze trails down to the handcuffs binding him. You know he wants to ask why, but he doesn’t. 

“What happened?” 

He couldn’t remember? It was hard to believe. Memories from your fight were replaying in your mind for hours. 

“You’re joking, right?” You ask. 

“Why would I be joking?”

Fine. You may as well go along with it.

“What’s the last thing you remember?” 

Suguru attempts to sit up but he doesn’t get very far. Pain is etched in his face as he moves. 

“I remember watching the stars.” 

It was something the two of you did together. 

You hadn’t done it in years. 

The last time you star gazed together was a couple of weeks before he left. 

“What do you mean?” You press. 

“I’m guessing more time has passed, you don’t look the same.” He has a thoughtful expression on his face as he takes in your features. 

He’s right. You don’t look the same. You don’t feel the same, either. Where he had smile lines, you now had worry lines. Your lips were set in a permanent frown. 

“You would be correct.” 

“How much time has passed?” 

You don’t really know how to respond to him. You can’t tell him it’s been years. You’re sure that would hurt him. You don’t know why you care about his feelings, when he showed you he didn’t care about yours. 

“A while.” You try to reign in the edge of your voice, but it’s hard.

Emotions you hadn’t thought about in years were beginning to stir inside you. 

“Why am I bound?”

“Safety precaution.”

He thinks on your response before resting his head back. If he doesn’t remember the past several years, that means he doesn’t remember what he did. 

Was that even possible? Forgetting years of memories sounded far fetched. You wanted to believe he was lying, perhaps playing some cruel joke on you. But as you look at him, your heart tugs. He looks like the old Suguru. He feels like the old Suguru. 

“What’s wrong?”

What’s wrong? He didn’t get to ask that. Not when he’s the one who put you in this mess. Not when you were unsure of what was even right. 

“You don’t get to ask that.” You bite back. 

He has the audacity to look hurt by the tone of your voice. 

The room grows quiet at your reply. He was done asking questions. Good, you think. You weren’t sure how much more of it you could take.

You call Shoko to assess him. When she arrives, she doesn’t tell you much more than you already know. He’s lost his memory, probably due to a head injury sustained in the fight. How he lost so many years, she couldn’t tell you. Shoko is stiff as she examines Suguru, even more quiet than she usually is. It’s hard to watch. It doesn’t go past Suguru, but then again nothing ever goes past him.

She waits for you outside the room, tired eyes following your figure as you close the door behind you. 

“Should I tell the higher ups?” She asks. 

“Probably. It’s not a secret that he’s here anyway.”

“And Gojo?” 

The mention of his name cuts you like a blade. You hadn’t even thought of him. Did that make you selfish? 

If anyone in the world should know about Suguru, it’s his other half. Gojo knows he’s here, but he doesn’t know the full extent of it. He doesn’t know that Suguru forgot everything. 

“Yeah- you should,” you downcast your gaze. “You should tell him.” 

What would his reaction be? You weren’t really sure. The man had become so detached from the events that had happened all those years ago. He never spoke about Suguru anymore, and would shut down the conversation anytime you tried to talk about it. 

“Alright, but” Shoko says your name and steps closer. “Keep an eye on him.” 

The way she says it sounds like a warning. Not like advice from one caring friend to another. 

“Why? You don’t believe him?” 

“I don’t know. It’s certainly possible. There’s also a chance his memory could come back. Who knows what would happen if that was the case. Just be careful.” 

You have to fight to swallow the rocks in your throat. She was right. Anything could happen. You should be scared. You know that. But there’s a deep part of you that had wanted this to occur. You wanted to have him back, no matter how hard you tried to fight it.

He betrayed you. He hurt you. He was the villain in your story. 

Even still. Even still. 

He was your friend. Your best friend. 

You wave Shoko off before leaning against the door. You release a long sigh, trying to collect yourself before going back into the room. You were going to have to get through this one way or another. You just hoped it would be as painless as possible. 

~~~

“What’s wrong?” He asks once more. 

It’s been a week, and he’s been acting the same way the whole time. In the beginning, you almost thought it would be a ruse. Now, you were certain it wasn’t. 

No one could keep up this ignorant act for that long. Not even Suguru. 

“Nothing.” Your reply is curt. 

You were less angry now. Still hurt, but you were confused more than anything. There were two parts of you, playing tug of war with your heart. Your past and present, fighting for a chance to control you. Your past self wanted to pretend everything was okay, but your present self was screaming at the top of their lungs trying to warn you not to get too close.

Suguru’s lip twitches. It always used to do that. You hate that you remember all of his quirks still like the back of your hand. You tried to forget them, but it was a fruitless endeavor. 

They were a part of you, tattooed on your soul.

“Come on. You know you can’t lie to me.” 

He was right. As much as you were acquainted with his quirks, he was acquainted with yours. If you were being completely honest with yourself, he probably knew you better than you knew him. You never wanted to believe that, but you learned that it was the truth the hard way. 

“No, but I can try real hard.” 

You didn’t know what to tell him even if you wanted to. Where would you even begin? Suguru had turned into the very thing he had been fighting against for years. If you spoke the words into existence, they would become real. Suguru was a monster.

How could you possibly tell him that?

Suguru cracks a grin and you feel like you’re free falling. It was the same smile you grew up with. 

He always graced you with that grin when offering you a cold soda. When you begged him to hold your phone so you could run through the sprinklers. When you stayed up way past your bedtime just so you could talk a little bit longer. 

You hate it. You hate it. You hate it. 

You hate that he’s having this effect on you. Making you melt in his hands as if he hadn’t ripped your heart out. As if the last couple of years didn’t happen at all.

As you repeat the words to yourself you realize it’s a farce. It didn’t matter how much you told yourself you hated him and never wanted to see him again, it simply wasn’t true.

“I suppose so.” He sighs, resting against his hands.

You’re glad he’s dropped the matter. You were unsure how much longer of this you could take. Being in the room with him was suffocating, made even worse when he tried to prod at you. 

You quickly realized leaving his side was just as, if not more awful than being with him. You were constantly wondering how he was, if his memories had come back. It was terrible. 

~~~

Suguru was nearly all healed up. His memories still hadn’t come back, which put the Jujutsu society in shambles. The higher ups wanted to execute him. It didn’t matter that he couldn’t remember what he’d done. But there were others who wanted him to become a sorcerer once more. 

If he didn’t have any past memories, they could mold him into a hero again. 

You think part of that pressure was a factor in why he left. A man gifted with powers that were out of this world. Neither him or Gojo had much of a say in how they operated before, being used like puppets in a game. Their entire high school career was like that, at least until Suguru forced open a new path.

You hated that the sorcerers thought that, that they wanted to use him like that. But you understood it. 

Suguru was an asset, you would have to be blind not to acknowledge that. 

Then there was Gojo. He didn’t have much of an opinion. Maybe he did, but he never said anything. Never spoke his mind one way or the other. On the outside it almost seemed he was impartial to the decision, but you knew that couldn’t be true. 

It must hurt for him just like it hurts for you. 

Although he has the added responsibility of being the executioner, the ax that will swing down if Suguru is decided to be irredeemable. 

You stride by Suguru, the two of you deciding to go on a walk this morning. His steps are small, walking slowly in order to remain at your pace. When you were in school he did the same thing. Never too fast, never too slow. 

The two of you weren’t even supposed to be out of the room he was placed in. Who knows what would happen if the higher ups found out you had been taking him on excursions? 

But you just couldn’t not bring him outside. The room he was being kept in was so small and suffocating. Everytime you mentioned doing something outside of it, you would catch a glint in his eye. He was envious. Of course he never said anything. That wasn’t in his nature. He would smile and nod, listen to your stories while pushing down his own desires to explore. 

You felt for him. You couldn’t even begin to imagine what it was like to be confined to a bed, awaiting your sentencing for a crime you didn’t even remember committing. So what if you snuck him out? It was only for a day. Nobody had to know.

The school grounds were relatively quiet, giving you the perfect opportunity to walk around. For how mad you initially were, you sure were crumbling fast. It was hard to maintain your disposition. Suguru was back, and that’s what you had wanted for years. 

“You hurt a lot of people.” You say, figuring you should finally clue him in.

The words taste bitter on your tongue. It feels like the understatement of the century. 

“How many?” He responds. 

You don’t say anything. You don’t say anything because you aren’t sure what to say. You had no idea how many people Suguru killed. And even if you did, you aren’t sure you would be able to tell him. 

Suguru picks up on your expression. 

“That many?” He murmurs.

You look away as if you’ve been caught in a lie. The clock (your heart) is back, and it won’t stop ticking. It’s hard to breathe under the heat of his gaze, under the pressure of reality. 

“That many.” 

You could tell that it was hard to believe for him. It was hard for you to believe, too. You wonder what’s going through his mind. The Suguru you once knew would never dream of hurting anyone.

“They want to kill you.” You go on. May as well lay it all on the table right now.

You assumed he probably already knew. You wanted to say the words anyway, to dispel any assumption that things would go back to normal once he was released. Then again, you weren’t really sure what normal meant anymore. 

“I see.” 

Suguru doesn’t argue back. He never does. Not like Gojo, who could argue until his face was red. Suguru doesn’t try to plead his case because he isn’t able to. What’s done was done. Even if he doesn’t remember it.

An unassuming man on death row. 

You tell yourself it wouldn’t hurt if he was being killed if he maintained his memories. That wasn’t the case, though. The man who was being put on trial for execution was your Suguru. 

The Suguru you grew up with. The Suguru who would fight for you. The Suguru you loved more than anything. The Suguru before he broke your heart. 

(You tell yourself they’re two different people, two different Suguru’s, the before and after. But you know that’s not true. Whether you liked it or not, it was the same man.)

“You didn’t like nonsorcerers.” You say. The wind brushes his hair from his face. “What do you think about them now? How do you feel about helping them?” 

His eyes flicker over the school. You wonder what he’s thinking. Is he remembering your childhood? For you, it had been years, but to him it felt like yesterday. You also were struck with memories of your childhood when you looked at the school, but they turned your stomach sour. 

“It makes me angry. I want to help them, they need it. But it hurts to see our friends die.” It was more than he had ever told you before. “What about you?” 

“I don’t mind.” You didn’t mind helping them in the same sense that you didn’t mind doing laundry. 

The task never ended. It was monotonous.

You had walked a full circle around the school, finally coming to a stop underneath a tree. It was the same tree you and Suguru had relaxed under many times before. It only made sense that your feet would carry you here. 

The two of you don’t share any more words, instead opting for a moment of silence. It was nice. Being under this tree with him. You needed it. As the wind kisses your skin you feel hopeful. Maybe he could be fixed. He just told you he wants to help. Maybe you could convince the higher ups he wasn’t a lost cause. Maybe you could save him. 

A form of repentance for your ignorance all those years ago.

~~~

The only sound coming from your room was the quiet lull of the TV. You had been up for hours, but you still weren’t tired.

Suguru was with you. He was clad in a large shirt with baggy pajama pants.

His presence was calming. Every night he made his way to your room to lay with you. 

It didn’t matter that neither of you slept for hours after he visited. You felt safe, and that was the important part. 

“Are you ready for tomorrow?” You ask, looking up at Suguru. 

You were laying on your bed, Suguru sitting at your side. He’s flicking through your TV, uninterested in everything that was playing at this hour. 

“Yeah, shouldn’t be too hard. I’ll have Satoru with me.” 

Both boys were assigned on a top secret mission tomorrow. The only issue was that “top secret” hardly meant anything to Gojo. He blabbed about it the second he was excused from Yaga’s office. The two had to escort the star plasma vessel. An extremely vital task, an honor that wouldn’t have been bestowed upon just anybody. Of course the two special grades were assigned to do it. 

“And you’ll be there as well. You’re just as strong as him.” 

“For now.” 

You pout your lip out as you look at him. Suguru was always humble, but his humbleness was turning into self doubt these days. Of course it was hard to compare yourself to Gojo. He was almost a prophet. 

It didn’t help that all of the adults compared the two boys. Suguru was trying his hardest, wasn’t that all that mattered? 

“You’re stronger than me, if it’s any consolation.” You reply. 

It’s hard to know how to comfort him. He wasn’t wrong in thinking Gojo would surpass him, but you didn’t want him believing that meant he was less than. 

Suguru looks at you and grins, pinching your cheek. He chuckles softly at the way you cry, pushing his hand away. The TV was set on some childhood cartoon, a show you knew Suguru didn’t watch. Gojo did, though. You imagine it brought comfort to Suguru. He leaves it on in the background as he lays beside you. 

His body heat brings about more warmth than any blanket could conjure up. You use all of your willpower to not snuggle up to him. 

“Do you wanna do anything when I get back?” He questions.

The proposition almost sounds like a date. It could be one, you think. The feelings you share for each other is no secret, it’s as blatant as can be. Neither of you acted on them, though. It was almost like a game, it was fun. 

You thought you had all the time in the world. 

(Oh how wrong you were.)

One of you would make the first move, but for now you tiptoed the line between just being friends and something more.

“What would you want to do?” You close your eyes as you strain your ears to pick up on his voice. 

You don’t see it, but his gaze is set on you. Picking out the details on your face. 

“Anything.” 

You grin, your body beginning to feel weightless. It was always easier to sleep with him around. You begin to think about the adventures you could go on tomorrow, the options were limitless. He was right. You guys really could do anything. It didn’t matter, as long as he was by your side everything would be okay. 

Everything would be okay.

~~~

The higher ups had made their decision. Suguru was not going to live to see another day.

It stings when you hear the news. You don’t remember who told you, all you can remember is the way it made you feel. Like you’re drowning. 

Were you so naive as to think you could change the outcome of anything? 

That you could even save him?

The sun is shining when the day comes to execute Suguru. Birds are chirping, the temperature isn’t too hot and your world is falling apart once more. 

You thought you didn’t care about him anymore. 

Silly you. 

Maybe you would never stop caring for him. He was too intertwined with your soul. 

“You have one hour.” The news is delivered to you. 

Suguru hasn’t spoken a word to you all day. It’s not because he’s angry, no, he’s quite at peace with what's happening. 

He doesn't know everything he did, but he understands that this is what needs to happen. There can be no Suguru Geto, for the betterment of society. 

Regardless of what’s better for you.

It’s sick how depressed you feel. 

Your head is pounding and your stomach has been flipped upside down all morning. You don’t know why it’s such a shock to you. You knew this was coming. Deep down, you knew the odds of him making it out alive were slim. 

Maybe a part of you thought they would change their minds, and that you and Suguru could run into the sunset. 

What a fucking joke. 

“It’ll be okay.” Suguru murmurs in an effort to help you. 

He’s comforting you? He’s the one on death row yet he’s worried about your feelings? 

That was so like Suguru. 

Your Suguru. 

His wording is funny, too. He says “it will be okay” instead of “you will be okay”. He would never tell you how you’re going to feel, but he does know everything else would be okay. 

The world will keep spinning and the sun will keep shining once he’s dead and gone. No matter how much you wish it wouldn't. 

The world didn’t need Suguru, but you did. God, you did. 

You’ve survived this long without him, but at what cost? Your sanity? Your youth? You were a husk of a person since he left, but you at least knew he was out there somewhere. You wouldn't have such comfort anymore. 

“I don’t want it to be okay.” You reply. 

And you really didn’t. You wanted the world to crumble in his absence, just like you had. 

He smoothes his hand over yours, heat spreading throughout you. 

“I have to atone for my sins.” Suguru says your name like a prayer, watching as you shiver beside his bed. 

Suguru was right. You knew he was right. 

“What if you didn’t have to? What if I,” you begin. “What if we leave?” 

You snap your head up to look at him through bleary vision. There’s a small smile on his face as he watches you, like a parent placating a child. 

“And went where?” 

“Anywhere!” 

“No.” His response is curt. 

He reaches a hand up to cup your face. The tears have poured over your lash line now, and they won’t stop. 

It was happening all over again. He was leaving you again. 

“How can you do this to me?” You cry.

Suguru’s hand drops and his lips pull down a little. It must have stung when you said that. You don’t care that it hurts him. You’re hurting, and he could stop the pain if only he fought back. 

He scoots to the side of the bed to create room for you. He doesn't even have to tell you to get in before you’re hopping up, sliding down into his side. 

“I’m sorry.” 

You don’t want his sorry’s. You want him. 

Your hands curl up in the fabric of his shirt, tugging it as you cry beside him. There’s an hour left and you aren’t sure you’ll be able to compose yourself before then. You don’t think you’ll ever be able to compose yourself. 

Suguru’s hand runs through your hair as you release all of the pent up emotions. To mourn someone before they’re even dead is a difficult feat, and you’ve managed to do it twice for him. 

Will it be fast? Will it hurt? 

“You have to go, they’ll be here soon.” 

“I’m not- I’m not going anywhere.” You pull him closer. 

You would have to be dragged away. You were seeing this through to the end. He needed someone before he died. He needed someone now because he never had anyone before. 

Suguru releases a shaky breath and holds you against his frame. You memorize the way he feels beside you, the smell of his skin against yours. You never really forgot, but you wanted to indulge one last time. 

There’s foot fall outside the door and you bury your face in his chest, pleading for the universe to be kinder to you. 

“I love you, you know that right?” His voice cracks. 

“I love you, I love you Suguru, please don't let them take you,” 

You can hear his heart shatter, but it could just be a reflection of your own.

“Take care of yourself, okay?” He’s kissing your cheek, licking the salty remnants from his lips. 

Was he kidding? You wouldn't be able to take care of yourself, not like he could. Not like he did. 

The door creaks open and you slam your eyes shut. Not yet. You weren’t finished. You needed more time. 

Without taking a peek, you already know it’s Gojo who’s standing in the doorway. You don’t catch the somber gaze he shares with Suguru. 

At least it was going to be Gojo who did it. He would make it as painless as possible. 

You force Gojo to work around you. You intended to keep your promise. You weren’t going to leave Suguru, not until you had to. 

“I’ll be waiting.” Suguru murmurs in your ear. 

It’s over quicker than you were expecting. Suguru goes still in your arms, heavy hands loosening from your body.

You stay with him until he’s become stiff. Only leaving once you’re forcefully removed. 

There’s static in your ears as you’re dragged back to your room. It was finally over. The last page to a macabre book. 

You knew it hurt to lose him, you’ve done that before. 

But to really lose him? 

It’s a pain you will never get over.

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[technoturian]

I have been thinking about this a lot. I drafted this and considered not posting it, but I read this post and I kinda wanted to add onto it and at the same time I didn't want to derail it with my own issue. Discussion of Neil Gaiman, fandom, and fatphobia below...

I was not a fan of Neil Gaiman. Not in a way where I disliked him, I just simply didn't engage with his work whatsoever. He was a non-entity to me. But when his big "Sandman" show came out I became aware of a certain incident in his show, namely the fatphobic depiction of the concept of "Despair". In an article about his work I remember Gaiman's characters in the source material had been described as fitting the aesthetic, "heroin chic". This character, Despair, the personification of human misery, was the only fat woman in the main cast.

I saw other fat folks call this out. I saw a direct response from him that, in my opinion, was smug and patronizing. But much more importantly, I saw flocks of people defending not his choice, but him personally. About what a feminist he is. About how thoughtful he is. We just didn't understand his genius. It was a misunderstanding. A misinterpretation. Because that would be bad, and he's not bad, he's good.

Some even went so far as to defend the choice as "better in the source material". You see, in the source material the fat woman personifying human misery was naked! It was better when she wasn't so sad, she simply scurried about like some hateful gremlin, shocking her victims with the grotesquity of her uncovered fatness. Isn't that better?

I researched the character and read a claim that her body was inspired by the Venus of Willendorf. The Venus of Willendorf is a historical artifact of a voluptuous woman. It signifies desire and fertility. Dare I even say, joy. And then someone allegedly saw this artifact and went, "I will name it Despair."

I was offended by reading that, but after doing so I found that I was so much more offended by the response. I mean, it's obvious that this was fatphobia, wasn't it? It was so clearly cut and dry. There was no kinder interpretation. And yet I watched as people bent over backwards, because he was so good! And he made them feel seen and so he couldn't have any prejudices that make that less true. And so when I posted about this whole situation I mainly posted about that response. Because that's what irked me most.

And after that, I decided I wasn't going to be a Neil Gaiman fan on purpose, rather than on accident. When it came to the man himself, I just rolled my eyes and put him into the box of "Not For Me". He could have turned out to be a holy saint in all other ways, for all I knew or cared.

But he wasn't a saint. He turned out to be a rapist.

I'm sorry if this comes across as a gotcha because that's the opposite of my intention. I'm not saying it to derail focus. I'm not trying to make it all about me or my pet cause.

What I'm trying to say is, people will now see things like Despair and take it as a "sign". It's going to be okay now to pick apart his work because now he's a rapist. But I didn't need to know he wasn't a good person to know this person's work wasn't safe for me. And I also knew it wasn't safe to say so, because everyone who tried to talk about how hurt they felt was told how wrong they were to feel that way.

At the same time, it's safe for me to finally vent about how this made me feel now, now that it doesn't matter because he's not good, he's bad actually.

I guess I'm just hoping instead of the usual pattern, where everyone bemoans the fall from grace and debates whether we "should have known" or "couldn't have known", people reading this can try to make space for a middle ground of criticism of the things you love now. Find that gray area somewhere between the top of the pedestal where everything the saint did was with the best intentions, and down in the muck where we should've known he was a rapist all along. Not because saints are secret rapists, but because there are no saints, and most people are there in the middle.

[jeonhwang]

Wonwoo + driving

pairing: wonwoo x fem reader

warnings: nothing I guess.. prolly just Wonwoo being sweet heheh

a/n: got this idea after rewatching To All The Boys I've Loved Before. And imagine Wonwoo in this fit!

[ 🤍 ]

⋅⋆ ─── ⋆⋅☼⋅⋆ ─── ᓚᘏᗢ ─── ⋆⋅☼⋅⋆ ─── ⋆⋅

"You.. want to drive?"

Showing him your best puppy eyes, you nod.

"I told you. So long as I'm with you, I'm not gonna let you drive, princess." Wonwoo sounds so exasperated, still not handing over the keys to his Audi.

"But, it's not snowing and I want to bring you somewhere," you are sure that he is gonna give in soon, but until then you need to tug on his heartstrings a little bit. You are his biggest weakness after all.

He scoffs, not in a mean way, like he thinks you're being cute. "Where? Just tell me and I'll drive us princess."

Pulling on his sleeve, you whisper "it's a surprise."

Staying quiet, he breathes in, a deep breath like he's actually considering the idea, before finally giving in. "Alright, here." He hands you the key, to which you giddily accept.

See? You always get what you want.

As you skip to the car, Wonwoo chuckles. He thinks that you're so cute. It doesn't take much to make you happy, so long as you get whatever you want. And what you want, is always simple. It's never complicated, never hard for him to make sure that it comes true. But maybe because it's just HIM. He will do anything for you.

In the car, you can't stop smilling. You've always wanted to drive his car—his beautiful, sleek, black Audi—but Wonwoo never allows you to drive whenever he's around. All that you've driven is your own car, basically useless because Wonwoo is ALWAYS around.

He trusts your driving, he has seen you drive your friends around before. If anything, you are the driver of your friend group. It says a lot about how much your friends trust your driving. But with him? You are his princess, his own pretty passenger princess. He loves taking care of you, what's wrong with that?

"Princess, focus. You keep smiling like that, your cheeks will hurt." He reaches out to caress your cheek with a finger, making you smile harder.

"Let me be! I'm finally driving you around. Do you know how much it empowers me to drive my man??" Wonwoo smiles at that. Sure, he can make you feel empower everyday if it makes you this happy, but less of the driving though.

"Yeah?"

"Mmhmm," nodding, you turn to look at him for a sec, only to look back onto the road because HOLY the way he is staring at you makes your panties wet.

Chuckling nervously, you ask "Why are you looking at me like that?"

He hums, leaning forward to tap a finger on the dashboard, not even turning away for your figure. "It's how you look at me whenever I'm driving. I'm just mirroring you, princess."

Wow. If it is true, you don't know how he survived, getting turned on every time? That's... a hard life.

"I don't know how you survived."

"You didn't notice me gripping your thigh every single time? And how I would drag you into the bedroom after?"

When it registers, you feel your face getting hot. Damn, Wonwoo can be so straightforward sometimes, no filter at all.

Masking it, you reach out and rests your hand on his thigh, trying to mimic him and he was laughing so hard beside you. "Oh princess, you are so cute." He grips ypur hand, playing with your finger.

The rest of the drive is chill, with Wonwoo telling you about his brother. You respond accordingly, driving carefully through the night as you are nearing your destination.

"We are here!" You got out of the car, fingers tingling to pull out the gift but you control yourself, holdong out til the end.

Wonwoo grabs your hand, waiting patiently as he looks around. "Wow, I didn't know this place existed."

It is a garden, looking so magical as if fairies are gonna come out soon. It is breathtaking, especially with the golden glow of the twilight, the air hums with the scent of blooming flowers. The petals are shimmering, delicate veins weave through the arched trelkises, with the lavender hanging over like waterfalls.

There is a pond, it mirrors the night, speckles with floating lotus flowers that are glowing, as if holding a secret light.

"Minghao told me about this place, I thought should check it out."

Minghao? Wonwoo is more confused by the one suggesting the garden. "How would he know? Does he go out on dates here?" he asks, to which you shrug.

Turning his body to face you, you give him a small smile. "Baby.." you start to take the gift out, "I know we are late to celebrate Valentine's Day, but I wanted to do something special for you."

A small smile paints his handsome face, looking down at your small figure. His hands rest on your waist, as he waits for you to continue.

"Thank you for the dinner, for the countless gifts and meals you've paid, for driving me around, giving me assurance and pouring endless love to me, I don't know how I got this lucky, but you're mine." He chuckles, and murmurs 'and you're mine.'

Slapping his arm lightly, you reveal his gift, pulling it from the box.

"I want you always remember me, and as much as I want to be with you all the fucking time 24/7, we know I can't. So in times that I'm not physically next to you, I hope this reminds you of my unwavering support. That I'm committed to you." You take his hand, pushing the ring into his pointer finger.

Wonwoo is speechless.

His mind is blank, overwhelmed and in a good way. He receives a lot of care today; from you cooking and massaging him, to you driving him and now giving him a ring.

"Princess.. I will never, NOT think about you." He cups your face, and gives you a kiss so deep, you feel lightheaded.

When he pulls away, he is all smiles, but can't look into your eyes.

This, is the man who dominates the hell out of you in the bedroom, but outside this is how he acts; shy, quiet but sweet.

"Thank you princess, I will be better so that next year you'll give me a bracelet next." He jokes.

"Oh yeah? A bracelet with my name on it?"

He gasps at your answer, fire in his eyes like he is determined to get the bracelet with your name on it. When you realize it, you laugh and slaps his chest. "You're nasty!!"

⋅⋆ ─── ⋆⋅☼⋅⋆ ─── ᓚᘏᗢ ─── ⋆⋅☼⋅⋆ ─── ⋆⋅

hope you enjoyed it! Happy Valentine's Day 💝

[buckley-diaztruther]

ive found the more that i read fics and the more I think about it, i really prefer the version of events where eddie doesn't have his own hoe phase before getting with buck. there's a couple reasons to this, one being that I hc eddie as being demisexual. but also because (and somewhat related to this), I don't think Eddie would. Not because it's bad or wrong or that he'd feel ashamed, but because I believe once Eddie is aware of his feelings, he's not going to want anyone but Buck.

there's no need or drive to "experiment" or "practice" because he can do all of that with buck or he can do it by himself. but his heart is gonna be set on buck and if he can't have him then I can easily see Eddie just deciding on playing it solo for the rest of his life.

another aspect which is somvery entirely my own feeling and not one I think is a hard rule, but i get frustrated sometimes with the way media (especially fanfics) take a person coming out as like. a switch flipping from celibate to promiscuity. and while that is such a real and valid experience for so many people, it borders on feeding into the stereotype that queer people (especially gay men) are all whores (i use this word affectionately). like every gay man just has to go out and slut it up every weekend at the club because that's what they all do.

and sometimes i just want to see the equally real and important experience of people who come out and then just. keep living life like normal, but happier because they're living their truth. whether that's bc theyre also ace-spec or just. don't prefer casual sex. and maybe that's me projecting as an ace-spec individual, but also. who doesn't want to see themselves represented on screen?

to me it'd be nice to see and it also, imo, fits eddies character better with what we know of him. sex has always been an obligation or an avoidance tactic for most of his life and that doesn't mean that he is ace-spec but I think it gives a believable reason for why Eddie wouldn't want to just. throw himself out there and see what sticks. and while these opposite can also be true, that his coming out means he can actually enjoy sex for what it is rather than an obligation, Eddie has just never struck me as someone who does casual (he's a nester) and when he tries it does not go well.

it circles back to the "im your first, not your last" concept and the amazing fics that have come from it with buck spiraling about being Eddie's "first". those fics are always great but in the ones where eddie does start sleeping around and dating at bucks insistence, it just felt so wrong to me. because it's turning dating and sex into an obligation for eddie again, something he's only doing because buck told him to. and sure maybe he enjoys it but I think it'd be a similar feeling to how buck used sex as his only option for getting affection or connection with other people to the point that it kinda felt like self harm. and forcing yourself to "get out there and experiment" when you aren't already enthusiastic about it is gonna end up similar, except it's hurting eddie, buck, and potentially whoever eddie is temporarily with because they'll inevitably get their heart broken the way 🤢tommy🤢 said he knew he would.

this has turned into such a huge tangent with tons of projection and im so sorry but also please tell me I'm not alone in this is literally feel ill thinking about it sometimes bc of how hard I relate to eddies journey

[ozzy-boy]

Cole love languages <3

(this is a long one, strap in. theres so much to write about considering hes literally obsessed)

((can you tell he's my fave?))

-When it comes to love languages, all of the above is pretty fitting for Cole... If you asked him directly what his favorite is, he'd struggle to find an answer. There are so many wonderful ways to love you...

-One he leans towards is words of affirmation.

-Cole lives and breathes to compliment you. It comes easy to him because he thinks that every single thing you do is cute. Every. Single. Thing.

-You could stand perfectly still, doing absolutely nothing and Cole would compliment the way you breathe. Everything about you is simply magnificent, and he's not afraid to speak his mind.

-In return, he feels like he's walking on air for days after you compliment him.

-Your words float around in his head and heart like butterflies, and he repeats it to himself constantly. You think he's handsome, you love him, you think he has a cute smile...

-No matter what it is, he holds your praise close to his heart.

-An extremely big fan of physical touch. But watch out. He gets crazy cuteness aggression sometimes.

-Gets sudden, overwhelming urges to squeeze or bite. Admittedly, he tries very hard not to act on these urges out of fear of hurting you. (Unless you're. Y'know. Into that kind of thing.) He kind of jokes around about it to gauge your reaction but it's very, very real.

-Often takes his aggression out on a pillow or something soft when the urge gets unbearable. Even just thinking about you too much can give him an overwhelming burst of energy. Needs to get it out of his system every once in a while so that he doesn't let it slip around you.

-At first, in your early relationship, Cole keeps his hands very notably to himself. He's always either holding himself or has his hands folded at the small of his back.

-Despite... well, everything, Cole is not delusional. He understands very well that his feelings and urges are not... normal. He worries quite a bit about scaring you away by revealing too much. So he keeps to himself for a long time, only occasionally dipping into your personal space for a few brief moments. Usually to whisper in your ear or tease you when he sees the opportunity.

-He allows you to set the pace of your relationship, only delving into his desires once it's been made clear that you feel the same way. Contact between you two will have to be initiated by you at the start.

-Once you've been together for a while though, this caution goes out the window. Now that you're his, get ready, because Cole. Is. Clingy. Wants to be touching you at all times. The only time he feels like he has true control over himself is when he's in your arms.

-Sorry but he is 100% guilty of lovebombing after he's done or said something suspicious lmao.

-Oh, you just caught him following you...? Er, well, has he told you recently how cute you are? And hasn't it been a dreadfully long time since he kissed you? Looks like he'll have to spend the next several minutes remedying that haha nothing suspicious about that haha....

-Always finds a way to weasel out of anything regarding his 'tendencies'. He's cute enough that he usually succeeds.

-Side note, he's a biter. Cole will occasionally stride over to you, bite your neck or shoulder (sometimes leaving a hickey if you'll let him), and then walk away like nothing happened. He'll also nip at your lips or fingers to tease. If you ask him about it, he'll say that it's a lingering effect from the curse, but how true that is is debatable.

-Your quality time is very dear to him. Always annoyed when something (or someone) cuts into your time together.

-Quality time is often intrinsically linked to physical touch for him. Would spend every waking moment in your arms if he could. It's not realistic of course, but a man can dream...

-Although, he'll enjoy doing anything with you. Loves to join in on your hobbies and the activities you enjoy, and appreciates it if you return the favor. Admittedly, Cole doesn't indulge in many hobbies (at least not many that he can actually tell you about) but he loves it if you get involved with his interests.

-Will often spend his time lackadaisically following you to and fro, if only to have a few more minutes with you. This is especially apparent in the mornings when you're getting ready for your day. He'll trail after you while you make breakfast, shower, get dressed... Everything, just for the few extra seconds of attention it gains him. And if he gets a few kisses along the way, then he certainly won't complain.

-If you're going somewhere, Cole will always offer to tag along. Going to the grocery store? He'll come with you to carry your bags. Going to work? He'll walk you there. Can't be too careful, now can we? Going to see a friend? Well... why would you do that when you could be here with him?

-tldr this man doesnt understand the concept of personal space nor time

-He's not super into gift giving, but he's hardly against it.

-Cole likes to get you presents more than he likes to receive them. All he desires is your time and attention (all of it).

-Shockingly good at getting you gifts. Almost suspiciously so...

-You know that weird phenomenon when you start wanting something and then suddenly you start seeing ads everywhere for that thing? Yeah, that's kind of what receiving gifts from Cole is like.

-You'll get something from him before you even know you wanted it.

-It's not like he stalks you when you aren't together and watches your every move and notices when your eyes linger on things when you're shopping or snooping through your phone when you leave the room to see if you've searched for anything recently haha totally not.....

-He loves the look of surprise that passes over your face when you open gifts lovingly wrapped by him.

-While it's not his preference, he loves receiving gifts from you, especially if there's no particular reason for it. Makes his heart squeeze painfully to know that you think of him when he's not around enough to buy him things. Perhaps you think about him as much as he thinks about you...? (impossible)

-Couldn't care less what the actual gift is. For Cole, it really is the thought that counts.

-Goes nuts over acts of service. You'll never have to lift a finger around him.

-Cole could wait on you hand and foot for the rest of his life and be content. Treats you like royalty. A prince/ss and their lowly servant... Born to fulfill your every whim.

-Loves to dote on you. Please let him dote on you. Even the most minor of things will be done in a flash if you want... Or the most major of things.

-Will do absolutely anything for you. No questions asked.

-He rather enjoys household chores, actually. Cleaning sort of comes naturally to him. If you live together, expect Cole to keep the house spotless. Just don't think too hard about how many surfaces/materials he knows how to clean blood out of...

-Additionally, he loves to cook for you. Cole would hardly describe himself as a health nut, but he is very mindful. He likes to be in charge of your meals to ensure you're eating properly and being healthy. King of making you eat all your vegetables.

-He's lowkey a pushover when it comes to you though so he'll do or make whatever you want anyways <3

[kateswallofweird]

WE'RE GOING TO BE OKAY . . .

oliver queen x you; cw angst, hurt comfort, mentions of infidelity (none of it true)

💭 written with smallville in mind but anything goes

oliver queen is a stubborn son of a bitch. he's cocky and obnoxious, and he likes to be antagonistic just because he can be. sarcasm is a second language to him, and there's no stopping him once he's set his mind to something.

when you first met him, you fell in love with his every quality. because despite his stubbornness, he knew how to let his reigns go for you. he was cocky and obnoxious, but he was sweet behind closed doors, a side of him reserved only for you. his sarcasm was just humor then, and his antagonism was forgiveable. you saw his drive as ambition and a yearning for success.

but sitting here now at the end of your bed—your shared bed with a tear-streaked face and frustration bubbling within you, you weren't so sure you saw the man you fell in love with in the image of oliver queen anymore.

"i am not cheating on you." you wiped your face with a shaky hand, trying to catch your breath as air evaded you. "i would never cheat on you," and you're begging him to believe you because it's true.

but hard-ridden by the years of distrust and hurt from his time on that forsaken island and the years he spent before it as a rich kid everyone was just trying to scam, oliver doesn't know if it's the fear of being right or the fear of being eaten by his insecurity that takes him over.

"i don't know," he breathes.

i love you.

it's what you want to tell him, but you know him. you know that love and affection, as much as he craves it, it's not enough to sway him alone. so you bite your tongue and you take as deep of a breath as you can before you speak again.

"what did you see? o-or what are you sensing or smelling or hearing that you think i'd—" you're nauseous at the mere idea of it, the rumors that might have shook him so deeply it came to this or the thought that someone was snaking their way so maliciously into his head, "that i'd hurt you this way, what are you thinking? talk to me. oliver, please."

his eyes find yours, and deep down he knows he's wrong, but some tiny miniscule part of him is still doubtful. he's good at reading people, so he knows you're telling the truth, but love to him has always been this ugly, terrible thing. and the darker part of his mind whispers, vulnerability, to him. weakness, it insists, and for some reason he wants to listen.

"i-" his voice cracks. "i don't know," he repeats. "i don't know."

and you try not to let any more tears slip when you reach for him and he flinches. (does he flinch because he's scared of you or of himself?) but you persist and oliver relaxes into your touch. your hand finds his and it fits so easily.

"but you know me," you say. "even if you don't trust me, you know who i am."

oliver is quiet. he's trying so hard to stay logical. who are you? he thinks, but the thoughts are so loud. the price of being a hero of the night eats away at him. but he thinks anyway. he thinks about the times you've stayed up in the early hours of the morning to patch him up after a rough patrol. he thinks about the time he first told you about his other life, and you started to cry because you were so sad he'd bore this alone this entire time. he thinks about when he met you and all the joy that followed. because you were a breath of fresh air, his missing puzzle piece.

"i'm sorry," he whispers. he brings your hand to his lips and places a gentle kiss to your skin. "i'm a mess."

"so am i," you answer, pulling him into a hug and letting him rest against you. "we're going to be okay, oliver."

💭 just realized i rarely write any happy stories..

[mikayuumouse]

I really like how you talk about sskk, do you have any reviews about them?

It's super obvious that I love Sskk, and it's true, I do, I'm completely enamored by the ship and I love their relationship dynamic so much (I love Bsd for a plethora of reasons, such as the individual characters, plot, abilities, depictions of mental health, etc, not just sskk ofc, but sskk has always been something that's interested me a lot and it's my favorite ship) so I'd love to give some reviews!

I won't be able to name every reason or review on this ship lol I just have too many, but I'll try to list some of my favorites

I don't ship Akutagawa nor Atsushi with anyone else besides each other, because to me they're soulmates. I adore their symbolism of the yin and yang, Akutagawa being the yin (evil with a bit of good) and Atsushi being the yang (good with a bit of evil). I think they have a very unique duo concept while still fitting as the next generation of Double Black/Soukoku

Also I'll never get over how much they actually like and respect each other. They might bicker and argue, but they've only fought like, twice. The first time was their first meeting and they fought because they weren't personal enemies, they were organization rivals. Then the second time was Atsushi desperately trying to save Kyouka, and people seem to forget that in the beginning Atsushi didn't know his own strength. Until he became an Agency member he wasn't able to control his ability, and he couldn't even remember transforming

A *huge* thing for a view on Sskk's relationship is circumstance. In the main series of Bsd, Atsushi is told to stay away from Akutagawa because he's a Port Mafia member. He isn't told about Akutagawa's personality or who he is as a person, because why would he? He's simply the enemy (at that point in time). Basically, the whole reason they were so adverse to each other was because the only information they were given about each other was to hate each other

Akutagawa never truly hated Atsushi for who he *was*. He was told to dislike Atsushi, along with every single other Agency member. Akutagawa has said he doesn't hate Atsushi twice, once in the manga where he said "I only hated you for your good fortune," as he was jealous of Atsushi and how Dazai treated Atsushi. The second time was in the 55 Minutes light novel

I kinda rambled a lot, but all in all, Atsushi and Akutagawa have never *personally* hated each other. It's all circumstance. Look at BEAST, when Akutagawa and Atsushi meet, they meet at a cafe and have no idea who the other actually is. They get along easily and enjoy each other's company, relating to each other and talking comfortably. It just goes to show that they might clash but in the end, they go so well together and support each other

So that's my review on how they actually don't hate each other lol

I think Akutagawa does respect Atsushi, and vice versa. I think their relationship is something similar to "I wish you never came into my life, because now I can't live without you,"

It's fairly obvious that Atsushi mourned Akutagawa and replayed his death many times in his head after Akutagawa died at Fukuchi's hand. Atsushi might call Akutagawa annoying but he missed him, and even was able to quote Akutagawa's last words back at Akutagawa before dying for him. Atsushi even canonly feels safe around Akutagawa, because he trusts Akutagawa. He trusts Akutagawa won't try to (seriously) hurt him nor kill him (at least until the six months are up)

(actually, regarding that for a second, I highly doubt the promise will actually go through. Or at least they'll pretend to want to fight, and then one of them is going to fold and admit that they don't want to do the death match. They would [and did] literally both die for each other, they're not killing each other any time soon)

Anyways

Their trust runs deep, even if its unspoken. Akutagawa is basically completely vulnerable without his coat/Rashomon, yet he gives it to Atsushi because he *trusts* Atsushi to use Kokko Zessou (the Singularity of their abilities) properly

Also in Wan!, which is to some extent canon btw it's confirmed to just be an alternate chibi universe, Atsushi stalked Akutagawa for a bit to see if he truly wasn't killing anything and then proceeded to comically see Akutagawa not even kill a mosquito. So after he sees that Akutagawa is true to his word he buys some pork buns for Akutagawa and gives them to him as a gift. Akutagawa splits open the bag with Rashomon and takes the food and I just found it really sweet that Akutagawa took the food that Atsushi bought for him. I know it's just Wan! and it's all silly, but idk it warms my heart that he didn't just throw out the food that Atsushi got for him 😭 (btw this is Wan! episode 4/chapter 66) (and even if I'm wrong about Wan!'s canonical credibility, this is still one of my favorite sskk moments and I don't really take it that seriously lol)

Also, Akutagawa has stated that his reason to live is to get Dazai's validation, to have Dazai admit that he is indeed strong and worthy (in BEAST his reason for living was to find Gin). Akutagawa even says he doesn't fear death, but he fears dying before proving himself to Dazai. The thing is, I think Atsushi could become his new reason to live (I know how cheesy this sounds 🙏). Atsushi 100% recognizes Akutagawa as strong and capable, and I just really think that protecting Atsushi and fighting alongside him could be Akutagawa's new reason to live (or at least, *a* reason)

Also another point of how much Akutagawa trusts Atsushi (whether or not he wants to admit it) is that he told Atsushi about his lung condition. Akutagawa is obsessed with power because of how Dazai trained (abused) him. He wants and needs status and to be feared, Atsushi even calls him out for "killing just to look powerful". Why would he keep his lung condition a secret? Because sickness is *weakness.* He despises being seen as weak or defenseless, but with Atsushi? He knows Atsushi won't ever think he's weak. So he tells Atsushi (and inadvertently Fukuchi) about his lung disease, trusting Atsushi with the information

Okay so these are (some) of my reviews on their canon relationship and why I think they're so perfect for each other, and ofc I had more reasons and opinions about sskk (I swear I'm normal about them 😭), it's practically an endless list

Also I love every single depiction I've seen of domestic/no abilities au sskk. I know their relationship isn't necessarily soft, but it could be. The look Atsushi gave Akutagawa before turning into bubbles was very soft.

As a romantic couple, they would be wonderful for each other. They're literally the perfect balance, and I think it would be a healthy and loving relationship just with some (weightless) arguing. That's just their personalities lol

And I think no matter what universe they're in, they're still going to be connected to each other. In BEAST when Atsushi enters the cafe, Akutagawa takes immediate note of him although he looks comparatively normal. Akutagawa senses his strength and notices him. I think even if in a world where they've never met, if Atsushi walked past Akutagawa one day,Akutagawa would turn around to look at him, and vice versa. They're very intertwined and I adore that part of their relationship

Oh, and I'm not saying it's odd or specifically special that Atsushi cares about Akutagawa, after all he's kind and cares about many people like Kyouka, Dazai, Kunikida, Ranpo, etc. But Atsushi has *extreme* trust issues so the fact that he trusts Akutagawa along with caring about him really shows how different their relationship is. Also it goes to show that Atsushi doesn't view the world as black and white, and doesn't only like the "good guys" and hates the "bad guys". Atsushi cares about Akutagawa despite all of Akutagawa's sins and debatable flaws, because he *likes* Akutagawa. And Akutagawa caring about anyone ever is pretty unusual lol. Atsushi, Gin, and his friends from the slums who died might be the only people he actually gives a damn about (he hates Dazai)

Also I do think they have the potential to become canon, it's unlikely due to a bunch of different reasons (such as Bsd isn't a romance manga/anime), but if it did become canon, it would just make a lot of sense. Seeing them navigate their relationship together while also dealing with Fyodor, Amenogozen, The Book, etc and their own internal struggles would be extremely interesting. I just know Asagiri would write it wonderfully

Dear Lord I talk about them too much 😭 anyways thank you sm for asking this and I hope you like my reviews<333