#so does silly things like this instead of saying it outright that he wants attention LOL

[dietmimo]

Winter Date ❄️

[fangirl-1st-class]

Sorry I didn't say hi!!!

Thank you for sharing so much about Raven. Did I spell thet right ?

I LOVE THAT you have tried to bring her back as faithfully as you constructed her in your teenage years!!!!

Was she always Zacks other half from teenage years too? Or was that something that developed over time.

I did read her coming up as Angeal's daughter. I love that she didn't even know how awesome she was and how talented she was gonna be. I got that right ?

Does she have a "how we met/fell in love" with Z? I bet it was Kunsel

How did they meet mimi? Did they become a polycule?

Sorry! So many questions!

GIGGLING TWIRLING MY HAIR SPINNING IN CIRCLESS YAPPER GONNA YAP!!! THANK YOU!!!!

So with Zack, she was meant for him day one!!! The thing is that she comes from an age where OC x Canon (let alone canon with love interest) was the cringiest thing ever so they were not 'officially' meant to be together... I still drew them kissing, of course. This kid learned whole new language only to play ff7, ofc she wasn't backing down entirely!!!!

AND YEAH BECAUSE OF THAT WHOLE OC HATE THING she wasn't meant to be Angeal's actual daughter originally, like at all!!

I know better now and I revised it and I think it's the best most tragic thing ever. And you get it right!! She learns about it much later in life. Yapping sesh under cut

Unfortunately when it finally happens, she's at the stage where it doesn't click in her head as 'I owe all my strength and determination to Angeal as I have always wanted' but as 'I wasn't good enough to be considered a daughter'. She's so viscerally Hewley it hurts. Thank God Zack has them figured out by the end of the damn game because she'd just go the same route as daddy. I'm unsure what you mean exactly by 'how we met/fell in love' question BUT THATS JUST ME BEING SILLY AND CONFUSED, LET ME JUST TYPE WHAT COMES TO MIND HOPEFULLY IT WILL BE IT!! So I can't imagine their relationship developing differently than the most pain-inducing slow-burn the world has ever seen. On the 'how' part - Raven sees Zack for the first time, as she's hidden in Angeal's house in Banora that she refuses to leave because of Genesis is running amok. Naturally, she hears about him first much earlier from the letters Angeal wrote home and oh boy... From the get go, in her eyes, Zack is an obstacle keeping Angeal away from her, if not outright stealing Angeal's attention. She lives in such JEALOUSY of the guy for a while. It's just her luck that after leaving Banora and joining Shinra, she saves him from a missile during the attack on Shinra Building. If Zack is going through the floors instead of heading straight for the entrance she helps him clear them. (...And she only steps up to save him because Angeal probably wouldn't be happy if his ass got blown up, she'd much rather hand it to him herself!!!!!!) *Sprinkling in doodles so the yap sesh is less borning!!!!!!!*

Now as for the 'fell'. Their relationship does a 360 after Angeal is gone as Raven starts to see Zack as somewhat of a replacement, begrudgingly accepting that Angeal chose him not her to pass on his sword. She tries to earn Zack's admiration instead. IT'S NOT HEALTHY!! ESPECIALLY THAT ANGEAL'S LIKE 'Hey Zack I fumbled real bad with my daughter, please can you look after her?' Now they both see in each other the last embers of their loved one and the overprotectiveness kicks up to 11. They should be in therapy.

And it only really hits her that she likes Zack for being Zack when he's gone past Nibelheim. Girl!!!!!! Kunsel is absolutely the first to notice the shift in Raven, and he misinterprets it as her being head over heels for the guy. He even writes Zack a little mail saying how he wished she looked at him the way she looks at Zack!! Kunsel changes his take a bit after he gets to know Raven better ofc, after learning who Angeal was to her.

AS FOR MIMI AND THE POLYCULE ME AND MIMI'S OWNER DIDN'T TALK THROUGH HOW IT HAPPENED WE JUST ACCEPTED IT AS A THING SINCE SHE SHIPS HER OC WITH ZACK SHSHSHSHSHSH!! WE'LL CHANGE THAT!!!!!!!

I was like 'Zack has two hands for holding his girlfriends' and she was like 'yeah!' lo and behold Zack has two girlfriends now

THANK YOU FOR ALL THE QUESTIONS, THEY MADE MY DAY!!!! SORRY FOR BEING SILLY AND CONFUSED I HOPE THIS ANSWERS THEM IN SOME CAPACITY ILY KISS KISS KISS

[ravencollege]

It felt sweet. The way someone’s name can feel on your tongue. Like honey and figs. Even if it’s bittersweet it’s still inviting. Sonically pleasing, warming the body, gentle on the soul. Melancholic. There are names you may not say aloud for a long time so the feeling of saying it doesn’t seem immediately apparent. Thinking it isn’t the same as hearing yourself say it. Forming the syllables with your lips and making it real. It’s different. You don’t realize the weight of a name until it’s spoken into existence. That’s how he felt in that moment, saying a name so fond in his memory but unsaid in recent years.

“Jamil?”

It was wishful thinking maybe. Davaa thought he’d meet Jamil one day, someday, but it wasn’t something he was actively searching for. Be it his own stops and starts, desire or fears, he kept the sentiment to the side, right in his periphery but never in front of him. It wasn’t so much avoidance as it was having other things to worry about. Both their lives seemed to be going perfectly sound (as far as Davaa knew on Jamil’s part, he would only ever see updates through magicam or what have you) but it was enough to satiate whatever anxieties he has for the former classmate’s well being as well as giving him an excuse to put it off. It’s not avoidance per se, he doesn’t want to fall back into that pattern, but butterflies in the pit of his stomach. Fluttering worries that are more stereotypically crush-shaped that makes him even more embarrassed. If he said ‘I miss you’ that would be painful. Painful in the cringe way right? Silly, ridiculous, delusional. Right? But he did. He does. And he wants to see this guy again even apart from past feelings because they were friends, even if neither of them admitted it outright back then. Stubborn teenage pride, the hubris of them both, is what was cringe. 

Things are different now. Years have passed. He’s standing in a gallery of his own blood, sweat and tears and some rich admirers are going to buy them for money he couldn’t exactly fathom. He was standing there only half paying attention to what his patrons were saying but he at least had his curator with him who was doing most of the heavy lifting on the negotiations, financial and logistics. There was a smudge on his glasses. He didn’t particularly like wearing them but he needed them to read now or for anything that requires finer detail work. It also totally makes him look smarter than he is, more refined or whatever. Along with slim-fit black slacks and dress shoes and black dress shirt practically half unbuttoned but tucked in because getting him into anything aside from joggers is a negotiation in itself. ‘You have to look presentable’ and all that. Even if anyone was allowed to wander in for the viewing, he still had to seem at least semi-serious as an artist. Although Davaa would argue having an eccentric gimmick would garner more attention, so he should have worn something totally obscene instead. Davaa is currently glad his manager had shot down that idea. 

His line of sight wanders to the smudge on the class directly in front of them, moving to remove them but hesitates when a distraction behind the buyer's head. It’s been awhile. Not too long, it could have been longer, but maybe just long enough. The man’s shoulders tense, his posture straightening and adding a good few inches back to his height from slouching. For how alert he seems now it’s possible his eyes even dilated after spotting them from across the room. But he’s still embroiled in this conversation. Brown eyes flicker from person to person, thinking frantically about what he should do right now at this very moment. Mouth gapes a little, preparing to excuse himself somehow but nothing came. He awkwardly shifts, shuffling away from the other three mumbling something something toilet something something emergency something you can have it for free hold on- and making a goofy little b-line to the familiar face.

@auratvm 💛

[sourgrenadine]

Can you write a scenario where Ed gets a crush on a new coworker who’s kinda like Spencer from Criminal Minds? They’re well-meaning and have a lot of encyclopedic intelligence, but they’re always the most socially awkward person in the room.

a/n: i decided to make this into a fuller fic instead of bullet points, but its still a little disjointed

The firm that Edward works at is small. No one really wants to work at a forensic accounting firm, not in Gotham at least. While in places like Metropolis the only turn off for the job is the admittedly mundane cubicle, in Gotham working for places like this can be a death wish.

So that's why he's so surprised to cee a new face in the office.

The few coworkers he has flit around you, holding out a hand and attempting small talk. To their credit, the people he works with aren't the worst companions in Gotham. At least they're working for a bureau less corrupt than others, but he still has to look on in pity as you shift on your feet, trying to swerve towards your desk.

You don't wave them away, nor do you voice any discomfort, but you fiddle with your hands and keep nodding your head without actually engaging. It's clear that you'd rather just start working and not have to deal with the office pleasantries.

Edward doesn't think much of you at first, you keep your head down and never go out of your way to interact with anyone. and that's fine by him. The two of you go about your routines without bumping into each other, both content to never speak.

He doesn't realize the full extent of your social skills, or lack thereof, until you're both in the break room (really, just a counter) and he murmurs a riddle to himself. He says it so softly, just a silly one about coffee, really not meant for anyone else to hear.

But you do and you say the answer to him, louder than you'd intended.

He stares at you, because it's the first time you ever spoke to him, and the first time he'd experienced you starting a conversation without really being provoked. You meet his eye for a second, spout out a trivia fact about some obscure deep-sea fish, and teeter out of the break area with your head down.

From there, he's hooked. Despite the shaky social aspect, the way you answered him instantly made him know he likes you. Sure, the riddle wasn't particularly difficult, but for most it would still take a few seconds to process the wordplay. He starts to leave little sticky notes, scrawled riddles for you to solve, notes passed in the margins of ledger paper.

He adores your work ethic, and is a little nervous to break your focus with his puzzles. The pros outweigh the cons though because the way that you quickly scrawl the answer down and pass the paper to him like you're passing a note in school is just too cute to him.

He begins to pay more attention to you too, taking note of the little things. Frankly, he thinks you're overqualified for this job. You fix his coworker's mistakes with a single scan of the ledgers, easily counting up the numbers that would've taken anyone else a calculator.

He notices when his coworkers fumble with a name of a client, you quickly pipe up to fix their bumble. Actually, you speak up a lot, if it's to correct someone else. Even when it doesn't seem entirely wanted, you still do it and Ed actually really appreciates that about you because it makes everything more efficient.

Ed puffs out his chest that you haven't corrected him too.

He starts to write harder and harder puzzles and riddles in an attempt to stump you, but you seem to pass them flawlessly and he falls so in love then.

He starts to bring you coffee if he notices your cup is empty. The breakroom coffee quality is less than favorable, so once a week Ed takes a coffee shop detour in the morning to buy something that doesn't taste like dirt. He quickly memorizes your order too.

He never outright says that he likes you, but he does write more romantic riddles.

No one else in the office humors him as much as you do, and even if you don't like him the way he likes you, he knows that he has a companion.

[marshmallowprotection]

Speaking of the ways to tell your lover you want attention, I wonder...

How would V show it?

Even after his trip I bet he's still the same reserved type. But there must be something he does to attract MC's attention. 🤔

V has a long history of struggling with his self-worth. With what we know about him, he used to be the kind of person who was outgoing and confident. He said what he wanted and he didn't let anybody stop him. It gave him a reputation with the people that interacted with him in good ways and bad. There aren't too many people who speak well of his attitude as a teenager before he met Rika.

They don't say outright that they didn't care for him but you can feel it in their voice by a long-shot. Over the years, he became more of a recluse. He lost what little confidence that he had in himself and he couldn't stand to look at myself in the mirror.

Instead of looking or thinking about things that would make him feel good… he turned to serving others.

It's not a bad thing that he likes to take care of other people or that his love language is to do for others. Where it became a problem is when he started to neglect everything he needed to take care of everybody else. It's one thing to take care of others but it's another to lose yourself in the process. V’s denial of his needs led him to where he is in life now.

Needless to say, he learned the hard way that he needed to take care of his needs just as much as he needed to take care of other people.

You can't sacrifice all of the clothes off your back. You can give up a glove or a shirt but you can't give up everything. You need something for yourself otherwise you'll have nothing to take care of you when it gets bad. It's good to take care of others but don't do so to the point that it destroys you. You don’t want to have to learn that the hard way... V did.

So, what does that mean in the terms of a love language for him? What has he learned about himself and his means?

Well, to put it lightly, the important thing is that he has taken the time to learn that he needs to advocate for himself. He can't avoid talking about things he wants or needs. It will just lead to more problems. There is a way he can do it that won't make him feel internalized shame, but it's going to take time and navigating to figure out boundaries and how to make sense of them with the person he loves more than anything in this world.

So, what does V show his love now? Acts of service. He makes breakfast for you. He waits for you to wake up in the morning so he can kiss you deeply with a smile burning on his face. He paints with the goal of finding the light once again outside of focusing on a muse, but whenever he feels low... he find himself at the easel just so he can sketch your face from memory to feel the love you inspire in him. It’s no longer about the image of the sun... it’s about the feeling he holds in his heart that make him feel strong.

His love is a simple, modest, quiet love. It doesn’t need to be flashy. He wants to experience life with you... you go on trips together, he holds your hand and tries to enjoy the world at large because... until you came around... it was like he was capturing an image never meant for him... but now as he sees the sky, trees, life and leaves, he feels like he belongs. He grips your hand a little tighter and feels like this is the life he is meant to lead.

But, if you do want to know the flashiest thing he might do? Well, keep your eyes peeled. His tradition with you is something spur of the moment... involved deeply by something that happens on your first date. Imagine whatever you will about it since there’s no wrong answer, but whatever defining object, experience, or the time will become a part of his love. Yes, that means if he bought you a silly little knick-knack, that’s how he’s going to remind you that his love grows.

[inhuman-obey-me]

Let's talk about Asmo

Avatar of Lust, the cute, narcissistic party boy who's always ready to get ~sexy~. But contrary to popular belief, Asmodeus isn't just all smiles, beauty, partying, and sex. He does love these things, but there is something much more wicked underneath.

(This contains spoilers up to lesson 53)

He is, after all, a demon. In the beginning of the game, he doesn't care much for MC and treats them quite coldly, if he bothers to even pay them any attention at all. He finds it boring that Lucifer didn't end up torturing or killing MC after the incident with the grimoire - because to him, it's much more fun if someone is dying.

It's safe to assume that this is actually who Asmodeus is when he's interacting with people other than his brothers. After all, the sides we see of all the brothers are only facets of them, and specifically the sides of them that they normally only show to those closest to them--their family. Their behaviors and attitudes towards MC become an exception to how they would otherwise act.

It isn't until he realizes the power MC has that he becomes interested. Realizing that they have incredible power, Asmodeus becomes interested in them, but in a way that suggests he thinks of them as a plaything. He's curious to find out where this will go, more than being interested in MC as a person. He pokes and prods at MC's body like a doll, commenting on their finger lengths and even examining their teeth. It's very much "Where is that magic hiding? Where is it? Where are you keeping it?", not a "I'm sexually interested in you" kind of action. He even says so outright.

Over the course of the first arc, Asmodeus does grow closer with MC (as do all the brothers), but again -- that's a side that most people do not have a privilege of seeing, because unlike MC, others are not living with them in their home, seeing them interact with each other. They can fuck around and mess with each other because all of them are siblings, and all of them are the most powerful in the Devildom. Others wouldn't dare act that way towards them. Even Diavolo and Barbatos, who are both extremely powerful in their own right, don't act as familiar with the brothers because they're not part of that family dynamic.

We do get a flash again of Asmodeus' anger and colder side when MC and Beelzebub return to the House of Lamentation after Belphegor gets taken by Barbatos and Diavolo. He's hurt by what he sees as MC's deception--having an ulterior motive for making pacts with all of them--and he doesn't just threaten MC for it, but is downright cruel in the gory, dispassionate details as he reminds them just what he could do to them. This isn't the kind of cute annoyed anger that he shows to his brothers, but the real sadism that he would show to anyone else, to an outsider.

For all the jokes and portrayal of Asmo not wanting to get his hands dirty, the reality is he will get his hands dirty when it suits him. He'll get his hands dirty if it's something that he thinks is fun or if he's truly angry. And he'll laugh as he does it.

The outside world knows him as a powerful demon who is incredibly dangerous. His charming ability is referenced as being more powerful than any other demon. In other words, he can hypnotize and control (almost) anyone he wants, including his Very Powerful brothers (and he does, for fun).

Asmodeus acts upset at being called "wicked" and "evil", but it's clear that is how others see him as he is a demon. (This is really just him being dramatic as he recounts his first meeting with Solomon, because when Barbatos mentions "Well, you are a demon", he goes "Well, yeah .... anyway").

So, okay then, Asmodeus isn't all smiles and partying. But what about his narcissism? What about the flirting? That's just him being fun and silly, right?

NOPE. The narcissism isn't just a fun silly personality trait he's always had, it's a direct inversion of his defining trait as an angel, which was loving everyone.

By contrast, demon Asmodeus loves himself, and only himself. He's no longer focused on the good he sees in everyone else, and it has instead been turned inwards to self-adoration.

Where he once flirted with people out of genuine affection and admiration, his flirting as a demon is a twisted version of that where it's not about the other person at all. He might flirt because he wants the other person, or because it makes him more popular, but it's all about himself now. He's obsessed with himself, with having everyone's attention on him and what makes himself happy, regardless of the cost to others. This narcissism is directly tied to him being a demon.

On that note, Asmodeus is the Avatar of Lust, one of the seven deadly sins. However, what lust actually means in that context is not sex, but desire, whether that's satisfying his own desires or creating desire in others. Asmodeus is always wanting the new hot thing, both just because he wants it but also wants to make others want and desire it. Unlike Beel who wants to eat the hot new food item, Asmodeus wants it to take a photo and attract others to it. He always wants that great shot for Devilgram, to pull his fans in and implant desire in them. He doesn't actually care that much once he has whatever coveted item (or person). The joy is in trying to get what he wants.

So yes, Asmodeus does partake in partying and beauty and sex and fun ... but he is also a powerful and dangerous demon.

[deluluass]

Then, the dam breaks.

Content warnings: rape/noncon; nsfw; dacryphilia; mild infantilization

Kuroo's not a bad person. 

Not even by a long shot. "Bad" is willfully stretching out a leg, hidden like a predator among the bushes; hungry for an unknowing soul who's naively secured with their surroundings and the crack that resounds when face finally meets floor.

Or, murder! Murder is bad, he believes.  

No, Kuroo isn't capable of any of those things. He might seem like he has a mean streak about him. What, with his sharp tongue and that incorrigible self-satisfied smirk (according to Yaku) and his words that may or may not sting like a backhanded slap sometimes. But that's all in good humor. 

Well-deserved, too, when given to the right asshole. And if he does manage to get under the skin of the wrong person, Kuroo's not above offering an apology. 

And he means it. (Occasionally.)

There's no pleasure to be had, if anyone would ask. Because, again , he's not a bad guy. He's sly: he knows that much, though he wouldn't taunt someone into visible pain just for the thrill of it.

There's a method to all this. A purpose. Not a profound one, but a reason all the same. 

So he has to admit he's feeling kinda lost figuring out why, of all people, it just really had to be you. 

There wasn't much of an option to begin with.

Art clubs had already been full. The other ones, you weren't much interested in. And by the time you realized your homeroom teacher would stop at nothing to remind you that this year was your last chance to do something other than study and prepare for exams, for once— well, it had already been too late to reconsider joining those.

Then a flyer was handed out to you.

"V-volley," the boy trailed off. 

Try as you might but you couldn't recognize him. A feat, that, considering his blond mohawk that you could spot among a crowd of thousands. 

He seemed like he'd caught a nasty spell that prevented him from meeting anyone's eyes, even as you deliberately searched his face for any sign that he'd explain himself to you. Surely, he must have a lot to say after he'd outright ambushed you from entering the cafeteria. 

"You...want me to join?" 

You were on the verge of asking for more details, focusing on the black cat (though it didn't look like it) drawn on the center of the curiously damp paper, only to find out that you'd been conversing with an empty hallway. 

A soft grumble left you. 

"Weird," you concluded, barely a whisper. "Weird, weird, weird ."

You were the volleyball team's manager since then. 

"She's not much of a talker."

Lev hunched to his knees again, sounding very much like he's running out of breath.

It should've been Kuroo's cue to gently ( gently) tell him off, that Nekoma's ace would handle a minute of catching a ball with their face with much more tenacity than he does, or that Nekoma's ace shouldn't have to catch the ball with their face in the first place, period.

" Zoning out already, Ace? " he'd planned on jeering, but instead he followed the direction of the overgrown 10 year old's gaze. 

Someone was talking to you. 

Apologizing , was more like it, if the other student's incessant bowing until his torso fell from his body was any indication. You were outside of the gym, clipboard tucked under an arm, so it was impossible to catch a word you were saying.

Not that you were saying much. Or anything at all. You only nodded. And nodded again. And after what seemed like the world's loudest "I'm so sorry, senpai!",you immediately went back inside to refill the water bottles lined atop the bench. 

"Hey," Kenma sighed, the ball in his hand aimed for a toss. "Focus."

And the cycle of Lev being an utter disappointment to the blond setter continued. 

Kuroo let out a noncommittal hum, eyes never leaving you, trailing like a lost pup as you handed out water bottles to Nobuyuki and the others. 

"Not a talker, huh," he muttered to himself. 

How long has it been? Two weeks? Three, maybe? Kuroo could scarcely remember for how many days you'd been showing up to this sweaty pit to perform your duties. On the dot. Always. Without fail. 

What he does remember was the first day.

Chin up; head held high. You strutted into their lives as if you were leading an entire militia to battle and had no time to waste.  

He teased you for it when you'd already busied yourself with clean up duty a few minutes after your (short) ( extremely concise) introduction.

("Slow down there, general," he told you with a wry chuckle. He expected any reaction from you, really.)

(He just didn't expect you to actually slow down on your cleaning and pick up on the Coach's remaining paperwork right then and there, going through it like a forest fire.)

It would take him a few more days to realize that that's just how you are. 

Even when you rejected a tongue-tied Yamamoto when he tried to ask you out. For a meal. With the other boys, of course.

Even when you took a hurtling ball to your leg and lost your footing and had the whole team scrambling for a stretcher, only for you to stand on your good leg, tell everyone "I'm okay," and walk to the nurse's office on your own.

(Kuroo doesn't think he's seen someone limp with so much grace before.)

His throat suddenly felt incredibly dry. 

Water . Water was what he needed. 

Right. 

You didn't see him coming from across the court. You were sitting on the bench and your back was turned, scribbling on that clipboard propped on your lap, yet— like clockwork, your idle hand shot out to give him the last bottle to your left before he could even finish asking for one.

He felt his lips curve as he muttered his thanks around the lid.

"Say," Kuroo began.  

You were reading the things you wrote back to yourself. 

"Mind telling me what was that about?"

You paused. You blinked up at Kuroo. 

The attention hits him like a freight train. 

That clear as summer sky gaze, unclouded and bright. 

It's nuts how unreal it felt. How can something so elusive be now all on him. 

(Just for him.)

"Earlier," he added, licking his lips and feeling silly for the way his chest tightened. "Seemed kinda intense."

"He borrowed my notes," you said. Then back to the clipboard again. 

Kuroo made himself comfortable next to you, elbow propped on his knee as he rested his chin against an open palm.

"Got a test coming up?"

"Cram school. He's in the same class."

Of course .

"Of course," Kuroo grinned. "What happened? Heard the guy apologize to you like you were about to kill him."

Laughter bubbled out of his chest. Unfortunately, you didn't seem to find it as funny as he did. Pity. 

He sighed.

"Nothing too bad, I hope."  

The noise of ballpoint pen scratching against paper halted. 

From way at the back, Lev was prattling Kenma's ear off again. Kuroo guessed they were about to leave, walking away from the court, away from the gym and to god knows where. The whole team, too, for that matter.

Everyone seemed to have gone, diminished in that second. He couldn't hear them anymore, didn't bother to see if they're still there.

He was looking at you, after all. Really looking at you. Your grip on the pen was a tad severe, he thought; fingers determined to squeeze the ink out of the barrel. 

Your face betrayed nothing. Indeed, anyone could spare you a glance and immediately guess that this is just another empty chat between acquainted individuals, conversation just for the sake of it. 

Kuroo wasn't just anyone, though.

Chin up and head held high; as you'd always done. But Kuroo's close enough to see it now, unlike before: the gulps you take in between breaths; the falter in those eyes that only ever looked forward.

Chin up and head held high, but Kuroo sees now that the neck he could easily break with one hand is so tense it's essentially a string pulled too tight that's on the brink of snapping. 

Oh.

"Oh," Kuroo whispered.

Oh .

"He lost it didn't he?" Kuroo realized. "Your notes."

And it did snap.

"Just..!" You looked down and bunched your pants in your fist. "No. Of course not. It's nothing," you huffed, putting the ball pen's cap back on. 

You were leaving.

Kuroo stood up.

"You look upset, manager-san," he said softly, his larger frame blocking your attempts of escape. "It is bothering you, hm?"

"My notebook got-got ruined, sure," you said. "But juice stains aren't bothering me, Captain ."

There it is. You were meeting his gaze again. 

" Too late for that ," Kuroo thought. There's a stutter to your words when there had been none. 

Your arms are trembling and you look  uncomfortable. He should stop. He knows he should stop , but whatever it is he said is chipping away at that impenetrable wall and he doesn't get what's happening now but damn, damn if that tingle running down his spine doesn't feel so fucking good. 

"My bad," he chuckled. "Sorry."

He raised both his arms in a show of defeat. 

"I'm- it's fine," you said through gritted teeth. "If you would just— excuse me."

Kuroo shrugged a shoulder. 

"Sorry about your notes, still," he said. "Must've been important to you. We all know how much you take your studies very, very seriously." 

Kuroo smirked. "You shouldn't have let him have it then." 

That made you stop in your tracks. 

"What do you mean?" you sought, confusion breaking your voice into what sounds like the smallest it's ever been.

Kuroo felt his breath catch in his throat.

"He needed my help, though," you rushed. "I can't just turn people away." 

"Really?" Kuroo sniggered, eyebrows lifting in fascination. 

"Could've sworn you were good at it," he said; whispered it so lowly, you couldn't have heard it. But you did.

You heard him, all right. Loud and clear.

Because it was just like watching someone take a bullet to the heart. 

First, the disbelief. 

Skin, muscles, and ligaments weren't made to be broken like that. A person wasn't created to bleed to death. And when it happens, well, all one can ask is: how could someone hurt me like this? 

So you stand before him, immobile, disbelief written in those wide eyes, because how could he hurt me like this?

Then—

Then, the dam breaks.

Kuroo doesn't think that you know it; that you're gaping at him with tears streaming down your face; that you're falling apart and stripping yourself bare the more you try to temper those quivering lips with that cute little nibbling you do.  

Kuroo doesn't think you know it, too.

That no one has ever been as beautiful as you are, right in that very moment.

You're not a good person.

Not even by a long shot. "Good" is an open hand, warm and soft and prepared to accept anyone in need of it. It's many things, goodness, but it most certainly isn't a dismissive attitude towards a well-meaning person who only wants to get to know you.

You hadn't gone this far in your uneventful life ignorant of what people say behind your back. "Frigid" is one. "Indifferent" on a good day. "Bitch" when someone feels like being mean. 

It's not like you're mad or anything; not as if you'd built up some sort of resentment within you that now you've settled for being perpetually friendless. You have plans, is all. You just can't afford to be a constant helping hand when you've got so much to do.

So you take it. 

Be a sport about it, was what you've always been told. Stiff upper lip, as they say. You remain silent about it and you endure and maybe you shed a few tears later as you lie in bed and maybe you entertain the possibility that you'll never see the end of this loneliness. 

But that's neither here nor there.

The point is, this time shouldn't have been any different.

(But sometimes even the strongest walls can crumble. All it takes is one crack, then the rest would follow.)

It was a bad day. 

You woke up late. You messed up the tally in the first set of practice games. You forgot the homework you'd stayed up all night to do. 

And the person whom you've lended your notes to for the college entrance exams lost it. 

He lost it. Conveniently just a month before the actual thing. 

"I- It's nowhere to be found, senpai," he explained. "I tried looking for it everywhere but- but I.." (You don't remember the rest.)

It's fine, you told yourself. You're fine. You can do something about a little inconvenience like this. You always have.

But then Kuroo Tetsurou asked. 

He's an amazing captain; even someone like you who only had a rudimentary knowledge at volleyball could understand the level of skill it requires to do what he does on the court while still managing to reign in the polarizing characters in this team together. And like most people, Kuroo Tetsurou has never cared for you. 

That's what you'd always thought, concerning him. Even when there had been times when he'd let slip what he thought about you. ("You're so cold, manager-san," he pouted once after you'd refused to eat with Yamamoto and the others.)

So it blindsided you, to say the least. 

The way he looked at you, as if he's privy to your darkest secrets, like he's seen you at your lowest and somehow knows you more than you did. 

When he'd jabbed and poked at what you'd only later realize was already a festering wound. (" It is bothering you, hm?" he said.) And before you could think about telling him to stop, to please, please let it go, it had already happened.

(" Could've sworn you were good at it ," he said.) 

This isn't news to you. Besides, there have obviously been worse digs. 

But hearing it from people who think you're not listening and being told about it to your face are two vastly different things. 

(Maybe it's because deep inside you'd always hoped that not everyone disliked you. That even though you're not a good person, you're not entirely bad either.)

Right in front of you, swift and without warning, he spoke only the truth.

You just weren't prepared for how deep it could cut. 

"I have to go," you murmured.

It took you a few seconds to realize that you'd been crying. And when you did, you immediately wiped your cheek with the back of your hand, turning away from him and the others still engrossed in their drills.

You let your feet do the thinking, allowing it to take you wherever they wished to go ( not here. not here. anywhere but here ), finding it impossible to do so yourself when your vision is clouded with welling tears. 

You moved forward, never once looked back, until you ended up inside the stark darkness of the gym's forgotten neighbor. 

The shed has long been abandoned and had nothing but dust, a couple of furniture in disrepair, and the occasional bug to keep it company. It was good enough for you. You didn't need much anyway.

Except for silence. 

The breaths that you'd desperately tried to control shook like dried leaves hanging onto frail branches, much like your legs, eventually collapsing at the slightest gust of wind. 

All you needed was silence.

Crouched down, the feeling of bones reduced to jelly was a lot more palpable. And despite the pins and needles that you know would eventually appear like a vengeful mistress, you stubbornly pressed your knees closer to your damp face.

Stuttering inhales and short-lived exhales  soon enough filled the gnawing emptiness of the shed as you count back to the moment you'd started the day to when your classmate told you that he'd lost your notebook to when you'd been told of how much of a shitty person you are and you wonder how you would've changed your decisions and how could it have gotten to this point how could it go wrong like this what did I do what did I do wrong what went —

"There you are."

You clamped your mouth shut, clenched your teeth so hard to stop their chattering. How useless. 

The creaking noise of the door being closed— punctuated by the sound of the latch clicking, rendered that effort futile. 

Kuroo Tetsurou locked the door.   

"C-can you," you panted. "Can you please leave."

"I need some time alone," you said, every beat of your heart like the ticking clock of a time bomb. "Please." 

You waited for him to do as you'd told. Maybe what happened earlier was a mistake, a slip of tongue that hurt more than it should've, and he's here to apologize. Of course. That's it, isn't it? Why else would he be here?

"I- If you want to say something, we can- we can— later." 

It was as if the entire world had gone still. He said nothing; neither could you hear any hint of movement. You turned around.

"C-captain..!"

He was right there. 

Right in front of you, crouched and staring right back at you. His face a hair's breadth away from yours. 

Your legs shot upwards. 

"What are you- ah !" You hissed, feeling every cell in your body being incessantly pricked. Finding it impossible to stand on your own, your hands scrambled to get a hold of something, anything, maybe the almost dilapidated table behind you— only to be caught in between large, strong arms.

"Careful, now," he murmured against your neck. His scalding breath like frostbite, chilling you down to your bones until you were numbed from the pain.

He slithered a hand around your waist. With blood thundering to your ears, you bit back a shriek and pushed him away with all your might. But have you forgotten? Despite that indolent swagger of his, you've witnessed how this boy pushes himself to exertion for each match and beyond. What made you think you could win against him? 

And when you attempted to open your mouth and yell, he effortlessly covered it with a palm while hauling you towards the table. The thing rocked under your weight. It is amusing, what the fear of falling does to you. One moment you're thrashing your way out; the next, you're holding onto your tormentor for dear life.

"No one's gonna come for you." He shushed you like how one would when placating a rabid animal. "You really believe they would bother? With an attitude like that?"

Down, down, his hand sank to your thigh, kneading the aching flesh until all you could do was mewl out a hoarse, "S-stop. I beg y-you."

Because it's all that's left for you. No one's going to save you. Or maybe someone would. But, who? And would they, really? 

(Go on, then. Try. See for yourself.)

"Kuroo-san," you whimpered. " S-stop ."

(Would they even believe you? It's your word against his. Him . Their beloved captain.)

"Tetsurou," he only said, dipping his hand lower, wrapping your freezing legs around him. "Say it."

He's everywhere. Lips tracing your chin, teeth grazing your throat; all the while your weak, pathetic arms stayed on his shoulders, thinking he'd regain his senses because he has to. He has to. He's not a bad person. He wouldn't hurt you, not in that way. 

Even when rough palms are already caressing the sides of your breasts and you feel a bulge rutting against your stomach, hot and rock hard and large, his hands grabbing your ass to bring your crotch closer to his—

"Cap- Tetsurou!" You cried, trembling hands back on his chest as you sobbed and pleaded please, please, let me go, I won't say anything, I-I'll keep quiet .

He did stop. But he didn't let you go. (You're a stupid girl if you think he would). Instead, with a forefinger under your chin and a thumb on your lower lip, he gently tilted your head to meet his gaze. 

And when your murky vision adjusted to the shadows, the heart that wanted to escape from your chest ceased its clamoring, arresting your breath with it.

The afternoon sun peeked through the crevices of the shed's wooden walls. Red-orange light revealed a pair of iris swallowed by blown pupils, only for it to pass and shroud him back into the darkness. 

"Say it again," he whispered, deep voice cracking. " Tetsurou . My name."

You tried to speak and protest once again but only a croaked snivel left you, your babbling becoming less coherent when he began planting soft kisses on both tear-streaked cheeks. 

"You've been all alone, haven't you? Keeping everything to yourself all this time."

He kissed your forehead and it was so tender you wanted to die. 

"My strong, brave girl," he breathed. "I'll take care of you. I'll take care of you. I- I-"

You heard him chuckle as he pressed his forehead to yours, felt it crease on your skin. "I love you."

No. No, no, no . You shook your head and closed your eyes and prayed to anyone who's listening. 

"I love you," he repeated, strongly now, as if he only realized it this time around. 

And then he kissed you. Just a peck. And then he kissed you again, deepening it to probe a wet tongue into your mouth. And the hand sitting lax on your neck felt like a gun to your temple.   

You remained just as you were, like a plaything to do with as he pleased, as you felt calloused fingers creep inside your sweaty shirt.

"Such pretty tits," he grunted as he raised your bra over your breasts to brush your nipples, rolling and pinching and pulling them with his thumbs.

He muffled the noises you made with his own mouth still when he continued fondling you. You soon enough tasted the salt off of his palm when he left your lips to lick and pepper bites on your neck, on the valley and mounds of your breasts, sucking and lapping the stiff peaks until he was satisfied.

You tried counting, one to whatever. And when that did not work, you tried biting your own tongue to rid of the heat you fear would burst in your belly. 

All that went to waste when he reached inside your pants. 

"Not- not there!" you gasped, breaking your silence and wriggling out of his grasp.

He cooed. "You'll feel good. I promise."

After hooking long fingers over the hem of your panties, he briskly parted the hair and lips underneath to pull the thin cotton over the folds, over the throbbing nub trapped in the middle. 

"Your pussy's so wet, sweetheart," he sighed, the tip of his middle finger drawing light circles on your clothed clit. 

It was so lewd and dirty and the fact that your panties were soaked with slick was enough to burn you with shame.

"You like it, hm?" 

Perhaps you whimpered out a meek "no." You couldn't tell anymore, heaving out while he continued to toy with a sore nipple as he rubbed your slippery cunt, preying on your puffed out, swollen clit.  

"Feel what you do to me." He squeezed your wrist and forced your shivering hand on his crotch. "Take out my cock, baby," he whispered, scattering kisses on your neck.

"Tet-Tetsuro…san," you cried. "I can- I can't."

"Yes. Yes, you can ," he said, not halting the ministrations between your legs. "You're a big girl."

As if held by a string, he guided you, wrapped his hand around yours as he— as you stroked him, scorching and thick, up and down, just like that . 

"Good girl. My good little girl," he groaned, parting your panties to the side to tease your dripping hole. 

You wept harder, the inevitable only a few seconds away from you. A single finger, at first. And when he added a second one, you realized you preferred having a hand on your mouth than his lips on yours.

(Because then you wouldn't have to think of an excuse why you're suddenly swirling and brushing your tongue in time with his.) 

For a while there had been nothing but the sound of two wet lips pursing against each other (along with those embarrassing squelching noises). 

He treated you as if you were made of porcelain, your plush walls stroked oh so gently as he circled the sensitive bundle of nerves. Even when he ended the kiss and removed your hand from his cock, spit and pre-cum connecting you to him, he still handled you as if you would break at the drop of a hat.

That's why it snuck up on you, what happened, after he brought his mouth to your ear.

"Don't scream," he whispered. 

Then, he rammed his fingers in your mouth. 

You tasted yourself as he forced you on your back, slamming you down on the dirty table yet still carrying your weight all throughout, never letting go.

The bitter acceptance of it— that what began earlier can only conclude to this , did not prepare you for the feeling when he finally thrust himself into you.

They say it shouldn't hurt at first. If it does then he's doing it wrong. 

You hardly know if it's relief or horror that dawns on you when you realize how he stretched you out so easily, despite his size. Because, by all means, this should be wrong. This is wrong. 

"Gonna ruin you," he panted. "Gonna ruin you and— fuck put you back together myself."

He grinded his cock inside you deep and slow and when he hit that spot you couldn't control yourself from jackknifing so hard he had to hold you down. He does this mercilessly, pace growing more delirious until you're nothing but a choked and sputtering fool around his fingers.

"I won't ever leave you. I’m here," he cooed, stroking your hair and kissing your face as you bawled and shattered in his embrace. "I’m here ."

"So cry all you want."

[fermented-writers-block]

PART 1 of 6 of the Owl Deity Hooty Theory

[NEXT PART]

[OWL DEITY HOOTY THEORY MASTERPOST] (in development)

(TLDR at bottom of post)

Over several long months of research and analysis since March of 2020, I have been following an utterly fascinating thread of potential misdirection and subtle details throughout The Owl House, and today, I would like to start weaving together of what I believe could become one of the biggest and most cleverly disguised twists in the entire show.

To begin, let’s take a look at the B plot of Understanding Willow:

On first glance, it’s an ultimately inconsequential sidestory with the sole purpose of justifying an excuse to keep Luz and Amity in Willow’s mind, as well as providing some well-needed room to breathe and release tension after the veryemotionally charged confrontation with Inner Willow. After half an episode of Eda and King outdoing the other in ridiculous ways to win Gus’ vote and Gus running off in frustration at the end of the episode from Hooty’s inane rambling, it’s easy to laugh off Gus’ pick and assume that nothing/of value was said when he closed the door for the interview.

However, if one pays close attention to that very scene, Hooty actually canstill be heard (if faintly) underneath Eda and King’s grumbling, interestingly talking about how “It all started with a hunt. Blood red skies. That’s right, I was created-.”

Now, while it may seem silly to focus on dialogue from Hooty of all characters, this A) tells us that there was an event in the past involving blood red skies and a hunt of some kind, B) that Hooty had been created close to said event, and C) implies that what he knows but can’t tell as a story worth a damn is EXTREMELY important to be included and be hidden in such a manner.

For comparison, the only other instance of dialogue being tucked away in the background in the entire show is in Wing It Like Witches:

During the lecture at the beginning of the episode, the history teacher openswith lore on Belos appointing a head witch to each coven over 50 years ago, immediately cluing in the audience to try and decipher the rest of the lecture as it moves to the background. Adding to this is how the musical sting when Luz shows off her movie obscures what he says even further, making it even more of a intriguing puzzle that the creators clearly intended for viewers to pick up on and attempt to solve.

In contrast, the hidden dialogue of Hooty’s interview is much shorter and not as hard to decipher as the teacher’s history lesson, but at the same time, there are few to no indicators whatsoever in that scene to clue in the audience to even check for something like that. It comes at the end of an episode where most viewers would have been paradoxically tired out and driven abuzz by the revelations of Amity and Willow’s relationship, doesn’t attempt to draw much attention to itself, and frames itself as a comedic subversion of audience expectations with neither the “greatest witch who ever lived” or the self-proclaimed king of demons being picked by Gus.

Instead, he picks someone that the show portrays constantly as an oblivious and gullible idiot after being described as a “state of the art defense system” at the very beginning of the series. Someone who, despite it being played for laughs, is scarily capable of casually subduing Lilith offscreen one episode and then beating her and an entire squad of Emperor’s Coven members without even the slightest change in personality or temperament.

Someone who, due to being the Owl House itself, could be considered the titular character of the entire show, yet is taken for granted by those who inhabit him and barely gets any respect from even the cutely patronized King - including when Hooty could be interpreted as having potentially been full on DEAD for a time given the use of extremely cartoony X eyes and a lack of vital signs in The Intruder.

And someone who Eda at best tolerates and at worst abandons in personal interactions and only occasionally acknowledges him when he’s actually doing his job. Yet at the same time is so implicitly trusted beyondprotecting her home to the point where - when up against the closest person Eda has to an equal outside of likely Belos - the only actually recognizable spells Eda used in combat were 1) stereotypical energy blasts, 2) a single shield spell in Covention, and 3) a noticeably large reliance on imitations of Hooty above any other spells she could have decided to use instead.

In short, the show repeatedly tells us he is just an idiotic gag character through and through, but at the same time demonstrates he has immense power through both onscreen and offscreen demonstrations, implicitly tells us his importance ahead of time through Eda’s imitations in actually serious situations, and treats his interview and origin story as - if not even more- important to keep secret than a long lore dump about how Belos’ reign works.

After all, there being only two instances of hidden background dialogue in the entire season is already intriguing on its own, but for one to get plenty of clues to draw in people’s attention and for the other to be treated as just another gag about a “mere comic relief character” - aka a good way to draw away attention and lower one’s guard - heavily suggests a far deeper significance buried under layers of misdirection, comedy, and conditioned audience expectations.

I mean, when Eda bragged about being “a bad girl living in a secret fortress,” Hooty followed with a remark about how “I’m the secret.” While that line may sound like Hooty simply being confused as part of a one-off on the surface, it’s an odd dialogue choice for the writers to pick when you think about all the other reminders of his nature as the house itself throughout the season. With the precedent these moments set, it would have been much more appropriate for him to latch onto the “fortress” side of “secret fortress” AND it would have been just as equally funny of a joke about his awareness skills, but instead, Hooty broke away from the established trend to say something that would make people suspicious were it to come from anyone else.

In a way, this reminds me much of the many subtle bits of foreshadowing strewn across the show, like Luz unknowingly describing Amity in Witches Before Wizards and Eda burning a hole through Luz’s coven type quiz that coincidentally selected the same track she had taken at Hexside as “a punky potionist.” At the time of airing, these initially seemed like one-off jokes, but eventually came back in full force several episodes later with Amity’s hidden sensitive feelings and love for the Azura books becoming clear in Lost in Language, and the reveal of Eda’s school track in Something Ventured, Someone Framed with her school misdemeanor pictures.

That said, compared to these individual bits of minor foreshadowing, the jokes about Hooty in Understanding Willow appear to simply be the most obvious pieces in a giant puzzle, implicitly and outright telling attentive viewers that there’s a major mystery to be uncovered here.

In fact, I feel bold enough to say that we could be looking at a twist on a similar scale to that of the Pink Diamond/Rose Quartz and Stanford Pines twists in Steven Universe and Gravity Falls respectively, what with this particular puzzle piece coming from how Gus wanted to make THE greatest interview of all time, and how he was looking for someone who was “interesting, accomplished, AND noteworthy:”

Note the emphasis on the ‘and’ here, as Gus had made a big deal that “people aren’t meantto be all those things” at the beginning of the episode, so as a result, stripping away all the comedic framing of his subplot leaves the intriguing implication that whoever - and, perhaps, what- Hooty is, they really are the most interesting, accomplished, AND noteworthy person out of everyone.

I could go further and talk about why I suspect the mystery surrounding King’s origins, whether true or not, is partially meant to misdirect us from paying attention to Hooty, or how the TOH crew’s could be disguising legitimate clues to his nature among made up and highly meme-able joke answers in order to proliferate said concepts throughout the fandom - thus letting us do all the dirty work of getting ourselves used to the ideas and used to dismissing them at the same time - but to bring things to a close for now, I’d like to leave you all with a question that I’ll start answering next time:

What does it mean when both the most powerful and notorious witch on the Boiling Isles and the possible actual king of demons/the Titan itself/something don’t match up to a house? And what do you think it is that makes him so special to warrant such misdirection?

TLDR: Between Eda’s golem spells, the show stressing his nature as the titular house, his implicit strength, and the odd dialogue and structure of Understanding Willow‘s subplot in relation to him, I believe I have good reason to suspect the show has been giving us many hints towards Hooty being much, much more important than it would like us to currently believe or even joke about. Particularly, through clever uses of comedy to establish and enforce a strong audience bias against looking closely at him or unironically taking him seriously, and to potentially plant the seeds for something I will start exploring in Part 2.

[itsclydebitches]

I kinda wonder, what could bakugou do (hori write bakugou to do) to make him less popular with the "anti" crowd. Like He was a horrid child no doubt and people who try to put blame on Deku or lessen the terrible shit bakugou did aren't great. But as we don't rly see it, we have to assume bakugous behaviour wasn't stopped, we only ever saw his mum "punishing" him when he was being rude after getting kiddnapped. Nothing will excuse what bakugou did, but he has stopped? He's overall a harsh person but he's not harrassing and bullying people anymore, specifically not deku, he's trying to attone for what he did to deku and has now apologised for it. His behaviour was never viewed as justified or good in the series, he's a scary figure in middle school, we're not meant to like his behaviour, so the series itself hasn't justified his actions.

As someone who relate to both bakugou and deku more than I'd like to admit (never told someone to jump tho, that's fucked lol) so I can 100% understand not liking or even hating bakugou but as someone who's not 15 anymore, looking back I also made a lot of really shitty decisions and like bakugou have tried to make up for it, and like deku I was 'friends' with people who hurt me.

Is there anything he can do for the "antis" to just dislike him rather that be "anti"?

(I'm very sorry if you've talked about this somewhere, you can just tell me to look for it if you have, I'll continue to look for your posts on the subject)

Hey there, anon! I think I’ve spoken about this only tangentially and/or in my main Bakugo meta, which is too big for anyone sane to read. So yeah, let’s chat here!

For me personally—and that’s all I can ever do: speak personally. I think it’s important to keep in mind that there is no single solution to please the “anti” crowd. Each fan will be looking for something slightly different in Bakugo’s character, much of which might contradict what a “stan” is currently enjoying. Given how charged a character he is, I'm not sure it's possible to get the entire fandom to like him—what I’m looking for hinges on having a different reading of the story than you seem to. Meaning, I think the series does justify his behavior. Not in any overt, super obvious way like having all the characters go, “Wow, Bakugo! I sure do love how you threaten people all the time. That’s super cool and heroic!” Things are rarely that straightforward. Rather, it’s in a more subtle, but consistent manner that paints a rather conclusive picture across hundreds of chapters.

Simply put, Bakugo is continually rewarded for his actions. Or, if not outright rewarded, his actions are ignored in a way that implies silent acceptance. Characters may not always like what he does... but they're willing to let it slide because Bakugo's heroism was always treated as a given, not something he had to earn and prove.

With the ever necessary disclaimer that I’m not fully caught up yet, here’s a list of some of the things that stood out to me in the first half of the series:

Bakugo’s bullying made him the most popular kid in school.

Bakugo’s bullying was ignored by/outright supported by the teachers.

Bakugo’s bullying did not hinder him from getting into U.A., one of the most prestigious hero schools around.

Despite acting horribly throughout his time at U.A. too, this behavior was continually ignored by the teachers and other authority figures around him.

Bakugo’s struggle to realize that other people aren’t “trash” doesn’t hurt his achievements in any way. He still gets top scores, still wins the tournament, etc.

Bakugo’s behavior gets him special attention from All Might, the greatest hero and Bakugo’s personal idol.

His behavior doesn’t make others dislike him in any manner that’s taken seriously. Everybody is still willing to not just put up with Bakugo, but—in time—start treating his behavior as a quirk (no pun intended lol) that they’re secretly fond of, rather than something he should legitimately be striving to change. Kirishima is the most overt example of this.

This is compounded by his behavior constantly being framed as humorous. Much like with Mineta’s perverted actions, characters might superficially go, “No, that’s bad!” but the story never demands any significant development because then we’d lose the “joke” of Bakugo screaming in rage at the slightest inconvenience, threatening to murder someone over nothing, constantly belittling everyone around him in a “funny” manner, etc. When fans talk about development of a manga character as archetypal and extreme as Bakugo, most don’t really want to see significant change to his base personality. Because then that would result in someone who doesn’t look like the “real” Bakugo: someone nicer, more even-tempered, more mature, etc. But for those of us who were never drawn to that personality in the first place, the continued acceptance of his rude, egotistical, and violent behavior is discomforting. The easiest comparison I can draw is between this and Bakugo’s mother slapping him. That slap is meant to be another “joke��—we see it constantly in shonen anime, something "humorous" you shouldn’t take too seriously because haha, it's just an overprotective mother—but many fans do take it seriously, using it as the basis for a whole “Bakugo was abused and this explains his behavior” reading. Well, I take the “joke” of Bakugo’s threats and insults seriously, especially in a story that starts with something like telling Izuku to jump off the roof. In the same way that many fans want others to treat Bakugo’s mother as a serious topic that has had a negative influence on his development, I want the series to take Bakugo’s everyday actions seriously as a negative influence on… well, everyone around him. But it doesn’t. His base personality is grudgingly adored.

The above two points are seen most overtly in Izuku, who never wavers in his respect for Bakugo despite how Bakugo treats him. Not just prior to U.A., but during their training too. Izuku, as the protagonist, is the emotional heart of this tale, so when he talks about how inspiring Bakugo is, it encourages the reader to see his behavior as inspiring too. Rather than, as said, something that needs to change. Izuku's continued friendship with Bakugo, his adoration of him, and his acceptance of the way he's treated has severely warped how the entire story sees Bakugo's actions. After all, if #pure Izuku can see the good in Bakugo, why can't everyone else? He must not be that bad after all.

I could get into detailed analyses of all the above—like how Bakugo was the one comforted after attacking Izuku outside the dorms at night and how the messed up relationship he has with Izuku is upheld as something to nurture; how the remedial courses he had to take were made to be rather silly, thereby undermining their supposed importance to his development; how Bakugo’s kidnapping had nothing to do with his flaws, but much of the fandom uses it as a way to dismiss any appropriate consequences because, “Hasn’t he suffered enough?” etc.—but in the interest of keeping this within a readable length, I’ll leave it at that. The point is that Bakugo has always been privileged when it comes to his behavior, resulting in others either outright praising it, ignoring it, or demanding that he change a miniscule bit, which always keeps him far below the standards of both his peers and the expectations of a hero. Everyone in 1-A must learn to be even better than the good people they already are... Bakugo needs to learn that other people aren't dirt at the bottom of his shoes. It's never been a particularly impressive development when pit against the rest of the class. All of which can make something like an apology feel pretty hollow. Yes, he’s apologized and I say with all seriousness that that’s great! But how does that apology stack up against 300+ chapters of content? As Bakugo’s words highlight, he's been a really awful person up "until now": he was consumed by Izuku being “miles ahead of [him],” he “looked down on [him]” because he didn’t have a quirk, he “didn’t want to recognize that,” he “hated that,” “grew distant,” “tried to beat you down,” “opposed you and tried to show my superiority over you,” and ends it all with, “it probably doesn’t mean anything telling you all this” before finally getting to the “I’m sorry.” This is basically a laundry list of how horrible a person Bakugo has been for the entire series, with an acknowledgement that this apology is coming really, really late. This is the moment where I could START to like Bakugo, depending on how he acts form here on out, but that pivotal moment arrived after six years of content and in the final arc of the story. It’s too late. Bakugo needed this kind of self-reflection and positive action 250+ chapters ago so he could (hopefully) grow into a better person across the story, not at the story's end. What we got instead is 322 chapters of him being a really horrible person, but the story going out of its way to excuse or even praise that behavior the majority of the time.

As a quick comparison to end on, I think what Bakugo needed was what Soo Jin got in True Beauty. You don’t need to have seen the drama to follow along. The tl;dr is that she has a lot of the core qualities of Bakugo: an all-consuming drive to win that was created due to abusive parents with high expectations, resulting in her bullying a peer to a pretty horrific extent. The difference between them is how the story frames their actions. When Soo Jin becomes the bully she loses everything. Rather than succeeding academically, her grades plummet, making it clear that this anxiety and self-doubt (things the fandom keeps insisting Bakugo is struggling with, but that rarely ever show up in the text) is actually impacting her day-to-day life. Her best friend drops her because she’s not going to support her choices. The boy she likes rejects her. She’s eventually forced to start over somewhere new - which importantly separates her from the girl she was bullying - and get some distance from her parents, resulting in the growth needed to become a healthier, happier, good person again. So when Soo Jin apologizes to the girl she hurt, it feels earned. The story continually recognized how horrific her actions were and put her into a place where she either had to change, or continue losing at everything else that was important to her. Bakugo? Bakugo doesn’t lose. Oh, he claims he does because he’s comparing himself to Izuku constantly, but that’s just him thinking in extremes. He still wins academically. Still wins many battles. Still wins at having friends. Still wins by maintaining the prestige of being a U.A. student. Still wins by getting All Might’s attention. Still wins by receiving Izuku’s respect and an agreement to maintain this rivalry that Bakugo is so obsessed with. Bakugo comes out well 99% of the time, he just thinks he's "lost" because he can't stand not being the absolute best.

For me, the story needed to have Bakugo face consequences for his behavior, not receive rewards and/or have others ignore it, and that revelation/apology needed to come way, way sooner. For me the issue is not a specific action that Horikoshi can have Bakugo do in the next chapter and them bam, I like him now. The problem is Bakugo’s entire concept, how he’s received by the entire cast, and his run across this entire series. "Entire" is the key word there. Which is why the “But he’s apologized. What more do you antis want?” reactions don’t sit well. What we wanted is a better written redemption arc across those 300+ chapters, not a single scene that’s meant to have us forget all the other problems inherent in the story. At this point it’s a far more complicated situation than, “Bakugo just needs to do X, Y, and Z and then we’re golden.” At the end of the day, Horikoshi failed to make me like him as a person and I’m pretty sure he isn’t going to change Bakugo enough to make him likable to me. Bakugo was never the sort of character I’d be inclined towards without a serious, nuanced redemption arc, but sadly, a core, crucial part of that redemption arc took six years to arrive. At this point there’s no way to change the problems in Bakugo’s writing for that huge chunk of the series and not enough time left in the series, it seems, to do the work we should have seen across the entire run. Honestly, idk if the Bakugo we'll get going forward is someone I can just dislike as opposed to being really uncomfortable with, but my money is on there being too little story left and too much investment in upholding Bakugo's base personality for that to happen. I could absolutely be proven wrong! But I think the problems are structural and needed to be better dealt with from page one, not hastily patched over in the final hour.

[miraculouscontent]

where do i even begin

The focus in this episode is all over the place and also on none of the right things.

Let’s just start with the obvious: they didn’t even bother showing Alya's reaction to Marinette being Ladybug. We got nothing. Marinette revealing her identity to Alya is supposed to be a big deal, but the episode brushes it under the rug and even seems to lowkey blame Marinette for not telling Alya sooner, to the point where it outright lies and has Alya claim that Marinette’s secret was responsible for all of Alya’s Lady Wifi appearances.

It’s not like I’m surprised anymore when the show blames Marinette for like--anything, but the fact that this season seems to brag about its continuity by being on a firm timeline and then keeps going against continuity is really irritating.

And speaking of continuity, the Adrien pictures are back on the wall with absolutely no reason given. Narratively speaking, the show put them there so Alya would see them and think of bringing up Adrien to get Marinette to take a break, but the show can’t just do that if it wants to imply that it has continuity. Worse still is that this is the episode featuring “Charm Bug” (does her form have a name? I just call it Charm Bug and continue to do so), meaning that “Gang of Secrets” (where there were no Adrien pictures) has to take place before this and “Furious Fu” (where there are also no Adrien pictures) has to take place after.

At this point, they might as well just confirm that “destiny” is a real force and the ladybug miraculous is messing with Marinette’s room and twisting her emotions to make the love square endgame because--yeah, that’s all it is at this point.

The other thing is that Alya shoos Marinette away from her guardian duties so Marinette can go comfort Kagami (let’s be honest, the best part of the episode was Alya being like, “but what about Adrien?” and Marinette was basically like, “what about Adrien?”), which sounds great, but then it all goes back to Adrien, because of course it does.

Not only that, but the episode mocks Marinette for worrying about Kagami. Not only does Alya doubt Marinette’s concern, but Kagami isn’t at all affected by the break-up and isn’t even touched by Marinette’s worry.

The thing is, I get where Marinette’s coming from, because this is the Kagami who told Ladybug in “Heart Hunter” that she (Kagami) and Adrien were perfect for each other to the point where Kagami prioritized her potentially getting together with Adrien over her friendship with Marinette. Also keep in mind that Marinette is Kagami’s only friend, and it makes total sense that Marinette would expect Kagami to be devastated by the break-up.

But because it’s Miraculous, the show makes Marinette look like an idiot for being concerned for Kagami, as if saying, “Silly Marinette! Kagami’s not like you! Kagami is a strong independent woman!! You’re just so over-emotional and you were ridiculous for being sad about your own break-up! You should be more like her!”

I also don’t like it because it presents Kagami as this character who really does feel nothing due to the show not letting her. She was angry at Adrien, obviously, but she was also immensely upset and it made sense when she put so much effort in trying to get him to return her affections.

Buuuut no. Kagami is just annoyed by Marinette’s efforts to try and get her back together with Adrien (it’s not that her anger isn’t warranted, but that’s all they let her feel instead of any genuine sadness over the break-up).

And of course, there’s no mention about Marinette literally trying to help get Kagami back together with Adrien and how selfless that is on Marinette’s part. Obviously I don’t agree with Marinette disregarding Kagami’s feelings (I do hate though how the episode refused to have Kagami explain why Adrien upset her, which would help Marinette understand because she seems to think there’s a misunderstanding/Kagami doubting herself), but the episode refuses to acknowledge Marinette’s good intentions because it’s Marinette and because she’s supporting Adrimi and not the love square, so they’ll make her look as bad as possible. This led to the fandom talking about Marinette and her oBsEsSiOn with Adrien instead of saying UM HI YEAH MARINETTE IS DOING A “HEART HUNTER” 2.0??

(The show also does this consistently, by the way.)

Another thing the show won’t acknowledge is that what Marinette does with Kagami is extremely similar to what Alya does with Marinette. Alya has ignored Marinette’s agency, physically pushed her towards Adrien, and locked her in a room with Adrien no matter how many times Marinette has told her no and that she doesn’t want that.

But because it’s Marinette and because what she’s shipping is Adrimi (i.e: a ship that interferes with the love square), the episode absolutely tears her apart for it. If Alya’s meddling was treated the same way - where she’d be constantly put in the wrong and punished for it - I wouldn’t say a word about this, but we know that’s not the case from “Reflekdoll” (where Reflekta targeted Marinette and Rose of all people) and “The Puppeteer 2″ (hey, remember when Alya did all of that and then it was the museum staff who did nothing wrong who got the worst of Puppeteer’s wrath?).

And this isn’t even taking into consideration that, once again, Marinette has learned something from someone else because they were never called out or punished or learned (originally being Adrien/Bustier where she “learned” to trust Chloe and see where that got her???), and then she’s the one who gets the heat for it.

Might I also add how insulting it is that the episode before this had Marinette saying that she “didn’t want to focus on love,” and then immediately afterwards, Alya is pushing for Adrienette and the episode itself won’t let anyone shut up about Adrien?

Like, this is the episode where Marinette does guardian stuff, gets an upgrade in Charm Bug, and yet the episode hyperfocuses on Aaaaaadrien. He doesn’t even do anything; he’s just a black hole that inhales all available attention and magically pulls all the characters towards his general location.

Then the episode keeps breaking its own continuity as an excuse to make things more about Adrien and also more about the love square, like saying that Marinette carries her disguises everywhere when it’s really just an excuse for Marinette to conveniently have the umbrella so that they can recreate the umbrella scene (by the way, the line from Marinette about “recreating Kagami’s moment where she fell in love with Adrien” is both incredibly forced and incredibly obvious because we’ve never even seen how Kagami fell for Adrien).

And when you already know how the show goes, it all becomes so predictable, which is a huge problem. By the time you hear Marinette say that she “didn’t want to focus on love” last episode, you already know what’s going happen. This episode reaffirms Marinette’s crush on Adrien, which is weird because it’s not as if there was ever any doubt in the first place? The show didn’t even try to convince its audience that Marinette was actually trying to move on, which gives the scene no impact when it happens. We already know that Marinette isn’t really in denial (she’s not stupid) and is very likely saying that she’s not in love with Adrien because admitting it hasn’t gotten her anywhere and she’s repeating something to herself is an attempt to make it true (which is a common coping mechanism for people with self-esteem issues/anxiety), so the scene is just for shipping fuel.

We’ve seen future episodes that show that Marinette hasn’t made any actual progress, hence being another piece of evidence towards my theory that the show does it on purpose to get the Adrienette fans to freak out when anything happens even if it’s reversed in the end. It’s particularly frustrating because it denies Marinette of agency yet again, with her saying something and the show then going lol okay but what if--

It’s gross, and made more so by Kagami watching Marinette and Adrien from a distance and saying that they’re “made for each other.” I’ve talked many times before about how the show is too lazy to have actual chemistry between the love square so they’ll just have characters say that they’re meant to beeeeee, so I won’t go into that, but really, actually think about what Kagami’s saying here.

This is the guy that, in her eyes, abandoned her repeatedly on dates and lied in order to get away from her. She stated outright that Adrien had disappointed her to the point where all of her feelings for Adrien seemed to have completely disappeared and she didn’t even want to be friends with him anymore (at least for now).

Yet, the show had Kagami not only say that line, but told Marinette directly that Adrien was perfect for her. This means either one of two things, neither being good:

- the show intentionally had Marinette do all this so that Kagami would feel embarrassed for Adrien and thus fix all of Adrimi’s relationship problems without Adrien having to do any work to earn her trust back (notice how Adrien in this episode is an “extra good boy” this time around, probably even more than they usually try - keyword: try - to portray him)

- Kagami’s opinion on Adrien hasn’t changed at all and she’s essentially saying that Marinette belongs with this guy who has hurt Kagami, betrayed her trust, and will probably do the same to Marinette

And obviously the show doesn’t think about any of that. It just wants to push for the love square. The only reason there was any focus on Kagami at all was to have a reason to get Marinette to go to Kagami, for Kagami to get angry at Marinette because - as we all know - Marinette “has to mess up and learn in every episode,” so there’d be a reason to go to where Adrien was, and so Kagami could become the next local shipper for the love square.

Marinette didn’t even get to figure out the magical charms by herself; Rena Rouge gave her the answer. It was like the show saw her doing guardian work and shoved her out the door because the only thing she’s good for is being part of the love square. Alya gets seconds of time shown with her looking over the grimoire to figure out the trick, which makes the whole thing underwhelming and rushed when Rena comes up and tells Ladybug that it’s essentially “just been about her” the whole time, meaning it’s just the show yet again being like “see, Marinette? If you’d just figured this out bEfORe...” (note that the episode never tells Marinette that she’s unnecessarily guilting/blaming herself)

But yeah, despite the episode not giving Adrien anything to do, characters talk about him constantly, Marinette somehow doesn’t get the spotlight she needs despite getting a power-up form, and the episode feels the need to constantly railroad Marinette exactly where it wanted to go, not for her, but for the love square, which has always been about not her. It’s already bad when the episode itself is bad, but when it has so much to throw in and delivers on absolutely none of it, it just makes it all the more painful.

[kast43]

HOW WOULD THE OBEY ME! DEMON BROS REACT TO MC, WHO IS SCARED OF THUNDERSTORMS?

💋Lucifer💋

•Lucifer took MC out to run some errands

•he made a mental note that MC would look up at the sky often

•asking strange questions about the weather in the Devildom

•maybe MC was interested in what rain was like here?

•mc rushed to get back home, but it was when some distant thunder rolled across the sky when things turned odd.

•MC let out a small yelp, and then ran into the nearest closed door

•which was a closet

•although he would think it was cute, he suddenly realised what was going on

•he went to the closet and opened it to find MC had shoved themselves in the deepest corner of the room

•"MC, is everything alright?" He asked peeking in

•mc had their eyes closed tight and covered their ears

•a louder roll of thunder, MC flinched again

•lucifer frowned at the scene, it dawned on him that MC was scared of thunderstorms.

•he reached out his hand to mc

•"do you trust me?" He asked, mc slowly nodding and taking his hand

•He took MC out of the closet

•he covered Mc's ears tightly and lead them to Lucifer's room

•he set MC down, and then started a record.

•he raised the volume to a pleasing level, and then grabbed blankets.

•draped MC with the warm blankets, then went to sit next to MC.

•the first roll of thunder heard over the music MC flinched and Lucifer reached an arm around MC to bring them to his chest.

•he would stroke MCs hair

•"you should know that nothing will harm you, so long as I am with you"

•MC would be so calm they would fall asleep in Lucifers arms

💰Mammon💰

•Mammon and MC were prob just vibing at the house, ya know...

•A roll of thunder strikes, but Mammon pays no attention to it.

•MC however just froze.

•He noticed, "Oi, what's the matter with you?" Mammon would ask, a bit annoyed as usual.

•MC  tried to act cool, but hearing the thunder getting louder, and the flashing caused them to dive under the table.

•Mammon was big confused, looking under the table.

•"What? Don't tell me your afraid of a little thunder?" He would ask with a grin.

•when he saw MC cowarding under the table, he felt his heart drop, his grin would fade.

•he wanted to help, but didn't know how.

•ya boy just got under the table with MC and sat next ti them.

•"hey! Don't be afraid, with The Great Mammon(tm) beside you NOTHING stands a chance! Not even some silly thunder strikes."

•this would make MC laugh, and Mammon would have an idea

•mammon spent the time telling MC about his wild gambling adventures, how he would escape the 'evil witches', etc.

•by the time  Mammon was done telling his stories it was really late...most likely crashed in Mammons bed.

🎮Leviathan🎮

•Levi just wanted to show off his new purchase

•a figurine from his new guilty pleasure "I Went To The Kitchen To Eat A Snack, And Ate A Prince Who Had Been Turned Into A Sticky Bun. Now I Was Kiddnaped By The Royal Family And Now Am The Crown Prince Of This Dimension and Betrothed To A Beautiful Princess Who Hates Me." [Omg I hated that]

•he sent MC a Text to come to his room ASAP

• MC came pretty quickly, to his surprise.

•The first roll of thunder, Levi just got annoyed

•"It was not suppose to rain today." He complained, as he too does not like thunder storms.

•He turns to MC to see them just crouched down on the floor, ears covered and eyes  closed tight.

•he seems to recall a conversation they had with MC when they were trying to make him feel better about being nervous.

•he felt a pain in his heart, MC told him of their fear of thunder, but never believed  them.

• MC was so brave and strong, how could someone like that be scared of some loud noise?

•first, this boy panics

•It was about the 3rd or 4th roll of thunder that he had an idea

•He took his head phones, connected them to his PC, and started to play his favorite anime.

•he carefully placed the headphones over MC's ears and set them on the bed.

•he took a blanket and covered MC, then sat down and watched the anime with MC.

•he couldn't hear the anime, but he had seen it so many times he had it memorized.

•If the thunder could still be heard, MC got closer to Levi, which he didn't hate but...ya know

📚Satan📚

•He was tutoring MC when it happened, in the main hall.

•basically going over any questions MC had about the subject.

•at the first strike of Thunder, MC lost all focus and just used a book to cover their head.

•it was just a sudden reaction MC had, they knew this was silly, but it felt safe to them.

•Satan took pause, not really sure what brought this on all of a sudden.

•at the second strike, MC was now under the coffee table.

•Satan was smart, so he connected the dots pretty quickly.

•surprised someone like MC would be scared of something so trivial, but understanding none the less.

•he wants to continue studying, but cannot seem to lure MC out from under the table.

•he gets an idea, grabbing the blankets and pillows nearby

•the boy makes a pillow fort around MC

•"Fine, if you won't study up here, then we can study down here..." he says crawling in beside MC.

•brings pillows and blankets under the fort.

•MC was both comfortable and distracted from the thunderstorm

•did not take long before they were listening to audio books and getting cozy

•they both fell asleep cuddled next to each other

•Mammon big jealous

💕Asmodeus💕

•Fear is not an avenue that he often travels

•who could fear anything when an Adonis like him roamed the halls?

•MC stopped responding to his Devilchats, and he was feeling SUPER affectionate today.

•He would have skipped all the way down to MC's room and let himself in

•[all the brothers do this and it makes me heated 😤]

•"MC why are you ignoring me~♡" he would ask, but stop in his tracks when he saw MC in bed, completly covered by blankets and pillows.

•thinking this was a weird way of flirting, he sat on the bed and rubbed MC's back.

•when he felt MC was shaking, and hearing the fear in their tone made him think.

•was not until MC outright admitted they were scared of thunderstorms until Asmo [bless his heart] finally realized

•but, being the avatar of Lust, he had a better idea in mind.

•instead of MC being scared of thunderstorms, he would make them love thunderstorms

•[this is where it gets 🌟spicy🌟 so minors skip ahead]

•Asmo crawled under the blankets and cuddled with MC.

•if MC consented, then he would start kissing every part of MC's body

•which would lead to kissed on the mouth

•which would lead to making out

•which would lead to clothes being removed

•which would lead to....home run!

•Asmo would make it to whenever MC thought of thunderstorms, they would think of him

•which is...one way of handling a fear 🤣

🍔Beelzebub🍔

•it would happen when Beelz and MC were outdone a dinner date

•they both wanted to try this new Devildom all you could eat buffet

•Beelz would be the last to notice the thunderstorm.

•however he would quickly notice the change in MC's whole demeanor.

•Suddenly MC was not hungry and stiffened up.

•Even if he was more focused on eating, he could sense MC was scared...of what he didn't know.

•he wanted to continue eating, but he also didn't want to leave MC vulnerable.

•he decided to go and sit right next to MC.

•He leaned in close to MC

•"What's wrong? Is there someone scaring you? Does the food taste bad?" He asked

• MC wouldn't outright admit it at first

•"do you want to leave?" He asked, getting ready to hop out of the booth

•MC knew how much Beelz was looking forward to this, so they finally admitted that they in fact didn't want to leave, they didn't like thunderstorms

•It took the poor guy a second, but then he smiled ear to ear.

•"Oh, for a second there I thought you were having a horrible time."

• without much thought he took off his jacket and threw it around MC.

•how did his jacket smell like cookies? It was so warm too

• Beelz would throw his free arm around MC, the other was grabbing food

•"Okay, I liked this one...try a bite of this" he would say, now feeding MC tenderly.

•nothing is worse than being scared on an empty stomach!

•MC might even eat too much and start to doze off while Beelz was still nibbling

🥱Belphagor🥱

•imma be honest, he is smarter than he let's on

•there have been past thunderstorms Nd he had noticed MC acting strange at those times

•one night while Mc and Belphie were stargazing, it started to thunderstorm.

•What a way to ruin the mood

•now MC was flustered.

•evennif he was comfy, he got up and helped MC up.

•he would have escorted MC to their special attic space.

• crawled into the bed, and making sure that MC was extra comfortable.

•more pillows, more blankets, more covering and tucking.

•MC only protested when they had become a blanket burrito

•"Belphie, what are you doing?" Mc finally asked chuckling

•"Making you into the ultimate cuddle buddy. It's going to be a long night" he stated, now wrapping his limbs around MC, the blanket burrito

•MC laughed "I can't move!"

•"oh...you wanted to move?" He would ask, only shifting MC to one side to face him now

•"come on, what if I get hot?" Mc asked chuckling

•Belphie looked into MC's eyes

•"then I will happily undress you" he stated cuddling as close as he could "now...do you want to watch some Demontube?"

•knowing this would help MC fall asleep faster

•MC fell asleep peaceful, operation distract and replace worked

[ohnococo]

hello I came across your Tumblr and I really like it !!! ♥️

I have a quick question for you 😊 Reiner at an amusement park with someone they really * really like a lot ⟵ (๑¯◡¯๑) * what is it?

I ask myself the question because it leaves a little the context of attack on the Titans and I find it funny

(I hope you will have understood my message because my native language is French)

Thank you for the request! I’ve written something in a Modern AU, so no angsty sad boy Reiner to be found here ^-^ I hope this is okay!

Reiner at an amusement park with his crush (sfw, gn!reader)

(under the cut for length)

Reiner is a confident guy, but somehow when it comes to asking out the person he likes he just can't outright say "want to go on a date?" It's just that Reiner thinks so highly of you that he can't imagine you not finding him lacking in some way in comparison. Though you've definitely caught him staring at your mouth as you speak, eyes sparkling and looking absolutely smitten. You've also definitely noticed how he always insists on being the one to sit next to you or make sure you get home safe during group outings with all of your friends. 

Taking you to an amusement park is the perfect cover though, he gets to ask you out under the guise of it being a group outing with your friends, and he gets to see you laughing and having fun - something that always leaves him with butterflies in his stomach. As soon as you arrive he's trying to make the day perfect for you, letting you choose the ride to go on first, offering to buy you little souvenirs and merch, and trying his best to get you in the front row of any ride cars you're on. He sits next to you as well, of course. 

If you're good with fast rides and rollercoasters he'll be happy to go on them as many times as you want, coaxing Connie and Jean into joining the two of you as well. If you're not so into rollercoasters but end up going on them due to certain members of the group insisting you ride them at least once, he'll offer you his brawny arm to squeeze onto tight as the ride drops and loops round the track quickly.

Sasha always insists on looking at those candid photos that are taken right as a ride has a sudden drop, and loves laughing at everyone's frightened faces - though everyone is in awe and mystified of how bored Mikasa manages to look even when in the midst of a stomach-flipping drop. When you all crowd around the screens to see a picture in particular that seems to make you laugh and blush in equal measure, Reiner secretly buys it to give to you later (or to keep for himself if he ends up chickening out at the end of the day). Everyone is happy, or scared, but all making amusing faces. He has to admit he looks pretty silly too with the fear in his eyes, but there you are, cute as ever, eyes shut tight and clinging to his arm as if he would save you from this manufactured fright. His adrenaline had been coursing through him with far too much intensity to notice at the time, but he was happy to see that he was the one you clung to like this. He imagines himself as your protector, and this just strokes that little secret part of his ego.

Once you all take a break in going on rides to have some of the amusement park food, he insists on buying you whatever you want. The two of you decide on ice cream and when you debate between two flavors for a bit he decides that you can get one and he'll get the other flavor you were interested in so you can have a bit of both (ever the gentleman, our dear Reiner). 

When you offer him a spoonful of the flavor you'd taken a few bites of, not only do you over him the very same spoon you'd been eating from, but you feed him the sweet treat yourself instead of handing him the spoon. It's something oddly intimate, and with the way you don't hesitate at all to feed him somehow all of the little returned affections between the two of you finally break through to him. How you always glanced to him to see his smile, even when it was someone else in the group talking. How you always texted him to make sure he got home safely after dropping you off at home. How when you were all out for drinks together you insisted you wouldn't dance with everyone unless you could drag Reiner onto the dance floor with you.

These things could have been obvious if Reiner wasn't so sure you were far too good for him, but somehow being here in this amusement park sharing ice creams and debating on which of the flavors you two preferred made all of those pieces fall into place. With his confidence bolstered the two of you end up going off to do your own thing as the group breaks up slightly, agreeing to meet up later - something Bertholdt and Armin are happy about since they can avoid being forced to go on the fast rides for a bit. 

 The two of you enjoy rides, with breaks for more sugary food in between, and when you've finally had enough of the excitement (and are too full of fried foods to continue on as you had been anyway) you settle on riding the slower rides together. Reiner finally makes the move to put his arm around you. You react as if it's natural, and it does feel natural when you sink into his side, resting your head against his chest as the small ride car you're in slowly glides past dancing figures singing songs. This is how the two of you can be found during each of the rides you go on from here on out, cuddling and barely paying attention to anything around you.

When the two of you join the rest of the group at the end of the day none of them are surprised to see the two of you holding hands, though Bertl gives Reiner a little thumbs up when he thinks you aren't looking. When Reiner gives you the picture he'd bought earlier you look over it as if he were handing you a work of art - your cheek squished against the heavily muscled arm that you had both hands tightly clinging to, Reiner's thin brows raised high as his teeth are bared in a terrified grimace - to you it's perfect. You kiss him on the cheek and tell him you can't wait to come back again.

[toujoursmiraculous]

Thoughts and Reaction to WISHMAKER

Oh I'm so excited about this one! Marinette's little soft looks she gives Adrien in recent episodes before snapping herself out of it is adorable. Not overwhelming, just nice. Poor Adrien doesn't know what he wants to do. But the thing that hurts me most (probably because I was always in the same position he is in, so understand more than hurt from it) is the fact he thinks that with Ladybug adding more people to the team, he won't be needed and thus won't be Chat Noir anymore. OOOF it hurts! Poor Adrien doesn't realize that if Ladybug didn't give these Miraculous out, Shadow Moth would've gotten their Miraculous from them a long time ago. I rewatched all episodes out now in chronological order, and it's so obvious she cares about him and could not be able to do what she does without him. What needs to happen is for her to not only tell him that, but express it somehow for him to believe it.

"Come on, Plagg. It's time to start thinking about our future." OUR future. He's including Plagg in that future. Good! I definitely understand what this episode is trying to get across about jobs and careers, but a majority of people can't and never end up doing a job or career they love and gives meaning. Some struggle just to find something they can do with their circumstances, much less something that'd make them happy. A very good message though to encourage young kids to look into many interests and try to find what you enjoy to life to end up doing that makes an impact on the world to spread the positivity and happiness. Hey hey hey Alec, how dare you go after Andre the Ice Cream Maker?! But good on him for not letting it affect him at all, he's doing what he loves so the criticism doesn't matter. "Pistachio and pecan for the clear-sighted young man!" "Who? What young man?" "Hello Marinette." I love Luka so much and Andrew's voice is so smooth. x3 I've wanted to learn the violin for years, I have one, but have never been able to do much with it. Luka having and playing his violin makes me incredibly happy (and adore him even more). "Whoa. You definitely have a gift for finding the right words at the right time." "Adrien." "Ah, well, most of the time." LOL But this entire scene. Luka saying you haven't told him about your feelings have you, her noticing he's sad, and Luka being like let's go talk to him and help him then! Just. AWWW! Poor Adrien has so much pressure to find something he wants to do or his dad will make him do what he wants instead. That's going to make it even harder for him to find something... I remember a spoiler from a long time ago, of Adrien baking with Marinette. What if he finds he loves it when that happens, and it's what he wants to do? :o Ahahahaha when Luka goes and sits next to Adrien, Adrien looks up at Marinette expectantly to sit down too. Probably thought by him. but she went the safe route and went next to Luka. xD Adrien, thinking he knew what Luka and Marinette want to do. Luka knows what he wants but it isn't what Adrien or the rest of us thought. Marinette thought she knew but now she's not sure at all. So all three are kind of confused and it's complicated. Life's complicated. Have you noticed, this is the most honest Marinette and Adrien have ever been about something so deep and personal to them? And they're able to do it around each other. Because Luka's there. He's like their emotional guide to help bring them closer and I love it. "Nothing, my mind is empty!" "I'm completely lost!" - Marinette and Adrien say together. Dang. When Luka explains Marinette and Adrien's "inner music" that felt like the most deep and personal scene this show has ever had. "You two will eventually find what's already in front of you," he says before he knew. As they look at each other. Oh lovely foreshadowing moment here. "But you can't hear it clearly, just let the melody flow." In other words, let things happen as they should. Don't force anything. If it feels right to do something, do it. If it doesn't, don't. Wow that violin is so beautiful. Adrien and Marinette's reactions in

sync, the surprise at the tune, the contentedness, and wordlessly looking at each other before getting up and sitting closer. Such a beautiful scene, this has me in awe honestly. "I've wasted my life!" oh I'm sure that hit hard with some of us older viewers. :c I have trouble sometimes not thinking this way, but there's always still time to change how things are. I love that everyone's dreams are either sweet and positive or just plain silly. Like CrocoJagged.

Hey, hi there, son! I absolutely lost it LOL this was brilliant! And the way he runs away on his hind legs it's too much XD "Hey Adrien, go hide behind that tree!" and then he drags Marinette along to hide her. So funny he's the one taking control in this situation. He's really shown his superhero potential in this and Optigami, even when not suited up. oooh Marinette wasn't where he brought her. That was sus. "HEEEELP I DON'T KNOW HOW TO SWIM!" "If we get hit, we'll reveal our secret identities!" "What do you mean, m'lady?" "When I was six I wanted to be the Knitting Fairy, and the Knitting Fairy didn't wear a mask!" The fact she's distracted and Chat Noir had to be paying attention to pull her to safety was such a Ladybug move. What do you mean you're not needed, Chat?! Obviously you are! Also she's giving you information about herself! LISTEN. She never used to and doesn't have to tell you these things, she's choosing to! And she even asked about you and your childhood! "You must have just forgotten!" or didn't have one. I honestly didn't have a dream as a kid, either. I don't know, I never wanted to grow up and be anything in particular that I thought I could do. I didn't have wishes of things I wanted to do for fun much either. I don't know why exactly, but I had a dad that's enough like Gabriel so maybe that's why. (My sister proceeded to tease me about being a sentimonster, since there's that "Adrien's a sentimonster" theory going around). "But Dad, crocodiles know how to swim..." "I didn't when I was a kid!" THIS SCENE XDD I love it! "If Chat Noir and I get hit, you must come back to this exact moment." Yeah it was at that point my suspicions of Luka finding out about them both seemed to be very likely to happen. "Nobody can know about our secret identities." At this point I was going omg omg omg omg the entire time lol The fact that Adrien would decide to have his identity revealed so he could learn more about himself to help him in the future. o.o This poor boy! And here's Luka finding out about Marinette being Ladybug! The dramatic zoom in! Viperion goes "Marinette?!" literally with Chat less than a foot away and he doesn't even budge. He's really that sad he's not even paying attention to what's going on Dx Okay, Ladybug calling on her Lucky Charm just to have the plushie squeak in her hand got me lol "My childhood dream is being what my parents wanted me to be!" Adrien seems happy. And he's himself, it looks like, so I don't know if we just got it cut off short or if he is exactly what his parents wanted him to be, so he's happy knowing that information?

This back and forth between a serious moment and a hilarious one! Shadow Moth's horrified Adrien's Chat Noir lolol not even the same kind of reaction that was in Chat Blanc when he found out . Okay but back to Luka. I think he was much too far away to hear what Adrien was actually saying, but he can see that it's Adrien standing where Chat Noir was.

He sees Adrien's where Chat Noir was.

The realization that Chat Noir is Adrien.

Understanding exactly what it means for Marinette to be Ladybug and Adrien to be Chat Noir. It's interesting how the people of Paris were able to still have jobs that was as close to their childhood dreams as possible. The man that wanted to be Santa makes toys. Mr. Banana wanted to be a cucumber and while he's not one, he wears a Banana suit every day. Jagged wanted to be a crocodile so the closest he could get was to have one as a pet. Marinette wanted to be the Knitting Fairy and look at all she can knit and sew! Alec: "When I was a kid, I just wanted people to be happy!" so sad that his bullying made him want to make others miserable instead. But it's nice that he wants to start now trying to make others smile and be happy c: "Sorry Alec, but when you're a superhero, even your dreams have to remain a secret." But she told Chat Noir hers. If that's not her going in the direction of outright telling him who she is....! Please let Luka be the one to help Ladybug with Chat Noir and Adrien with Marinette. Please. They need it. They have to have Ladybug realize her feelings for Chat and be willing to tell him everything. And they need Adrien to open his eyes and realize his feelings for Marinette. Once those things happen, they'll be okay. Except Adrien still doesn't know what his dream is because that was taken away by Second Chance. Personally, I think his dream of wanting what his parents wanted him to be, is what he already is. He just doesn't know it. As for his future, that can be up to him to start finding! "Thanks to you, our secret identities were persevered and nobody discovered who Chat Noir and I really are..... uh, not even you, right?" "Not even me. Luckily Wishmaker never hit you or Chat Noir." LIES Funny that he was "Truth" before, but now he's spitting lies. HOWEVER don't worry, I understand very much why he's lying and with the way Marinette is, this would be something she'd worry about and obsess over and Luka doesn't want that for her. He knows he can handle it, and she'll find out about it later when she's meant to. I just think it's ironic and funny lol And ooooof the way Luka's face fell after she left. Poor bb. "It was nothing, Marinette. You know you can always count on me." Luka's going to be Marinette and Adrien's best friend in a way that Nino and Alya just can't be. I can feel it. "We're all okay. Thanks to Ladybug and Chat Noir."

Oh. Oh you dorks! It's like they somehow know deep down they're Ladybug and Chat Noir with that look at that line. They're looking at each other like they know to some extent... I'm sure nothing happened in an episode we have yet to see but, it feels a bit weird, don't you think? "I may not remember my childhood dreams, but that's okay! It's time to focus on the future and find my inner music, like Luka said!" AWWW good for you my precious sunshine boy! Keep being you. Also Adrien's disturbed look at Plagg killed me again.

Marinette: "I'll do it all! .... I'll be Luka's best friend and I'll love Adrien!" Yeah see, that's it! You guys are best as best friends, and Luka will one day find someone else and he'll be happy to have you as his best friend when that time comes too. As far as all the other stuff, that sounds very busy and exhausting, but if it makes her happy! "How can you love other people if you don't love yourself?" Oh dang, that's such a good line to have put in this show honestly! Nicely done. So this is definitely one of if not my favorite episode. Chat Blanc's been my favorite but this is at least up there with it! There's so much to take from this episode, and so much that can come from this episode's events that I'm both extremely excited and scared to find out what happens next.

[igzsatelier]

Diamond Heart.

• It won't take too long for Mondo to realise he's interested in someone.

• After he realised he likes you, he gets nervous, slightly sweaty and blushes more, ends up yelling and shouting at you on impulse(then mutters an apology while looking elsewhere except you), smiles/grins A LOT more. He acts like this whenever you both are alone, though. • But when you both aren't alone, he would be distant. He doesn't approach you, yet he's almost always near you for e.g in the classroom, the cafeteria, the library, outside the school. Surprisingly, you'll hardly notice him at all, which is kinda impressive for a tall,buff guy with such recognizable hairdo. He's almost always quiet(and maybe stealthily) just so he can admire you from afar without getting noticed. • If you did manage to catch him staring at you, he'll quickly look away and act nonchalant and being in his usual demeanor, pretending as if he didn't look at you just now, with pink dusted on his cheeks. • His real intentions were to find the right timing to catch you alone, so he could saunter over to you and hang out/chat with you. He'll get frustrated if he can't, especially when you're always with your friends. But if you're alone most of the time, then you're making his plan way more easier. • He'll do subtle hints to show you that he's interested in you, like, helping you out with carrying stuff, accompanying you and bringing you where you need to go, him being protective of you, but, it's a bit difficult to decipher whether or not he's actually interested in you, because, he's quite helpful to others too. • Fortunately, it won't be so hard to notice if there's only the two of you. His stance would be, unnerving and kinda scary, as if he's going to punch you in the face at any moment, but no that's not the case, he's just anxious and blushy. • Another thing is that he would try to impress you! Let's say, doing tricks with his bike, flexing his buff muscles right in front of you, stuff he thinks that makes him manly and awesome. • Plus another reminder, he can be such a jerk and be annoying to you sometimes. You could either be red from embarrassment, or annoyance. • He'll mess with you in small ways like, dangling a book over the top of your head so you can't reach it, make snarky remarks, when you make silly mistakes he'll tease you about it. If you get flustered over compliments and praises(by him) then he'll definitely do that, mercilessly. He'll keep doing these things just to enjoy the sight of you being all riled up, he thinks it's charming. And also because you looked so cute, dammit he couldn't resist! • Get back at him, and he'll end up red in the face, and his voice will get louder too. If he's too overwhelmed, he'll just huff and walked away from you quickly. • He wants to say it, but confessing to you is going to be difficult for him, because, he's not use to feeling and showing himself being "weak" or vulnerable to anyone. • So to make this confession more bearable for him, he'll desperately look for any signs that you're interested in him too! And when he does find anything that could possibly meant you had romantic feelings for him, he'll be a little relief and glad. • When he finally confesses to you, it is....super awkward(for him). His words jumbled slightly, can't look directly at you, gets frustrated because he couldn't get it out right, then he'll outright shouts at you that he's into you, practically a bit sweaty. • Reject his feelings, and he'll totally respect that. That doesn't mean he won't be disappointed and upset later, and he will distanced himself from you.

• BUT if you confessed first, he'll be frozen for a few moments before staring at you, his eyes gleaming and asked if you could say it again.

• Return his feelings, and he'll be so fuckin' ecstatic! He might bear-hugged you and spin you around in his arms with a wide grin as a response. Either way, he's so relief it didn't turn out worse.

• He may or may not ask you out on a date after that. If he didn't, thats okay. The next time you're going to school he'll bring you there on his bike, and he'll be beside you all the time during school, whether you're in public or not, with an arm slung over your shoulders, a confident smirk on his face.

Bonus :

• Mondo? Flirting?? HAHA

• Mondo doesn't flirt. He'll be a mess when he starts flirting with someone he likes, and it ends up at him shouting at you before bailing.

• He will beat himself for messing up, then he repeats step one. This dude is trying too hard, oml.

• If he did succesfully said it, you will feel his eyes burning through you. To be honest, it's....giving you major anxiety, because, he's watching you like a hawk, and you have no idea whether to actually respond or not. It makes you think that if you give him a wrong answer, he'll be pissed off. Him on the other hand, he's anxious on how you'll react, and mentally prepares for any negative response you give him.

• If you end up brushing it off as a compliment, he'll be a little dejected.

• If you end up confused, he'll stammer and struggles telling you feeble explanations.

• If you end up giving him a nervous/intimidated response, he immediately feels guilty. He'll apologize, and may or may not tell you the reason behind it, beads of sweat on his forehead.

• But if you end up flustered, oh boy, he'll be surprised. That's a good sign right?

• To comfirm his suspicions of you having a crush on him, he does it a few more times. Unlike before, he becomes a smooth fucker(but mostly teases you), kinda makes you wonder how he becomes confident in such a short time, but he'll still be blushy throughout his interactions with you. He'll be cocky as fuck when he keeps getting the same results, and that will give him a huge push to confess to you.

• He might confess to you this way, and when you returned his feelings, he'll be like, "I knew it" with a smirk.

• Please flirt with him.

• He will be very embarrassed once he realised you were flirting with him, because, this never happened to him before, especially from someone he likes. So this feels new to him.

• He has no fucking idea on how to respond or what to do. Should he flirt you back? (It rarely happens, he's an emotional mess) He might awkwardly thank you, and thats it.

• If you won't quit your winking and teasing touches, he'll straight up shout at your face to fuckin' cut it out, with his face completely flushed.

"STOP IT!!"

• You don't uwu

• Does...does this mean you're into him?? Oh man, he has mixed feelings about this, but he mostly feels excited. "Holy shit! They like me...?!"

• He won't say it, but he likes the attention you're giving him.

• If you confess to him this way, Mondo.exe stops working. The feeling's mutual, and he's secretly glad that you confessed instead of him, because he doesn't want to accidentally scare you away if it was the other way around.

[ficcrimes]

junctures

Fandom: Helluva Boss Characters: Blitzo, Stolas; mentions of Stella, Octavia, Moxxie, Millie and Loona Ship: Stolas/Blitzo A/N: this is my piece for the Stolitz zine, Seasons, over on twitter! My bit’s finally been released, so I can publish this here now!  Summary: To everything, there is a season. 

——————————————————————————

i. summer

It was supposed to be a one night stand, and nothing more than that.

When presented with the opportunity to get his hands on that one particular grimoire, Blitzo didn’t think twice about worming his way into the Geotian Prince’s bed. What was one hot night with an ancient, entitled demon? Of course, he hadn’t stopped to question just why it had all happened the way it had, either. Whatever made Stolas not only agree to but pursue this whole lewd affair was really none of Blitzo’s business. Maybe he had a thing for imps, or some sort of weird, classist fetish. It really didn’t matter. At a glance, and that was all Blitzo had allowed himself to take when it all started, it seemed simple enough.

But it didn’t quite turn out that way, did it?

What started as something that had been meant to be short and sweet and fleeting turned into much more than Blitzo had bargained for. It’s nothing he can’t handle, of course, but Stolas calls on him frequently and comes on incredibly strong. It’s a little jarring, to say the least, but Blitzo can’t bring himself to outright turn the advances away.

He needs the book, after all. And, all things considered, this isn’t the worst possible thing he could have been doing to keep it. This is what he tells himself, anyway.

It has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that, for all the fuss he puts up whenever Stolas calls, at least Stolas makes him feel… something. Wanted. Needed. Even if it’s only physically. Even if it’s only temporary.

But then Stolas makes the once-a-month arrangement with him, and an already hazy situation becomes a little hotter and a little heavier. Their meetings are no longer quick and to the point. Suddenly Stolas wants to have fun with it; he incorporates games and costumes and silly little things into the affair that Blitzo’s not above or below doing. He’s a performer, after all - and at least Stolas seems to be enjoying the act.

He spends the night and wakes up in Stolas’ bed more times than he’d like to admit. Most of the time, he’ll leave before Stolas wakes up. But there are some days when he wakes up to Stolas propped up and leaning over him, all four of his red eyes heavy-lidded and bleary with something Blitzo pretends isn’t there.

He also pretends the rush of heat that surges up his spine isn’t there, and that it doesn’t count for anything.

As sleazy as it all is, it’s a good business deal and he wants to milk it for all it’s worth while it lasts - because he’s sure that it won’t. Nothing that burns this hot for too long is meant to last.

ii. fall

There is something so incredibly and unconventionally charming about the little imp.

It’s not every day someone like Stolas came across someone like Blitzo, and he’d been intrigued almost immediately by him. He was crass and rude and didn’t seem to think twice before speaking whatever happened to be on his mind in the moment, and Stolas found himself liking that more than he should have.

So, when Blitzo made his interest in the grimoire known, and it was evident all he had to offer in exchange for it was his own body, Stolas didn’t put up much of a fight or fuss. He knew he shouldn’t have been traipsing about behind Stella’s back and closed doors, but the supposed-one-night-stand promised to be the most exciting thing he’d experienced in a long, long while.

That first night with Blitzo had been unlike anything Stolas had ever had before, with his wife or otherwise. The sheer amount of skill the little creature had was surprising, and the way Stolas’ body had ached for him after he’d gone spoke in volumes.

Maybe it’s not in his best interest, or even in good taste, to start calling on Blitzo whenever he feels himself craving what only the imp can give him. And maybe he should learn how to properly manage and articulate the desperate desires he feels, instead of going off on long, unfiltered, filthy rants.

But Blitzo never explicitly tells him to stop, and so he doesn’t.

There’s a part of Stolas that understands Blitzo seems to merely put up with these antics so he can continue to use the book, and that’s alright. For a while, anyway. The more Stolas finds himself thinking about that, the more he can feel something creeping up on him, slow and steady. The ache he feels for Blitzo starts to change, and it’s not just his body that needs him.

He doesn’t really notice at first, continues to mistake the desperate need for the imp’s attention as something carnal and older than even himself. How silly to think his entire foundation could be shaken after so, so long, and by such a small and silly creature. And yet, eventually he catches himself drawing silly little caricatures on important papers of the two of them. Or he finds himself staring longingly at his phone when he can’t seem to get a hold of Blitzo.

By the time he’s suggesting they make their meetings a little more frequent and planned, Stolas realizes he’s in over his head. Or, perhaps he’s just head over heels. There’s really no difference here.

The whole situation is a little messier and more complicated than he would have liked it to be, but Stolas tells himself it will be worth it in the end. Until then, though, even if it’s only once a month, he feels like his walls can come down and he can be himself while Blitzo shares his bed.

He doesn’t mind when he wakes up to find the imp’s already left him. He understands. But it’s when he wakes up to find Blitzo still in bed beside him that makes his heart swell with something unspeakable.

He thinks, if things were just a little different, he could have this feeling always.

But Blitzo always leaves, and Stolas is always left with the weight of this feeling that’s too big for either of them.

iii. winter

Blitzo is right in thinking that things couldn’t stay so simple forever.

An already complicated situation gets that much worse when things like feelings and wives and daughters get caught up in the mix.

When Stolas calls him up out of the blue one day and says, very quietly, very seriously, that they “need to talk,” Blitzo almost wishes it had been one of his usual calls. Something cold and dreadful shoots up his spine by the time the call ends, and he’s already preparing himself for the worst. His mind is already racing, torn between coming up with some other lucrative back up plan and trying to persuade Stolas not to do this.

However he chooses to define ‘this’ in the moment, he doesn’t spend too much time thinking about it.

Stolas is quiet as Blitzo lets himself into his office space, book tucked under one arm. There’s no coy smile tugging at his beak.

Blitzo knows, and so he drops the book onto the desk that separates them. “I figured it’d only be a matter of time before you called this shit off,” he says through a sneer.

Stolas winces, and draws the book just a little closer to himself, fingering the crescent moon. He can’t bring himself to make eye contact.

“It’s not - You wouldn’t understand,” he sighs quietly.

“Oh, you’d think so, huh?” Blitzo replies, because he understands more than Stolas thinks. Stolas doesn’t know anything he doesn’t want him to know - and maybe this is happening because of that. Maybe if he’d been just a little less guarded and a little more obvious, things could have been different.

However… None of that would have changed the fact Stolas was a Prince, with a wife and child. And Blitzo understands that, too.

“No, no. I get it,” Blitzo starts, and waves Stolas off with one hand. “You got your weird royal bird shit to do, and fucking an imp on the side’s getting in the way.”

Stolas wants to say something else, Blitzo can see it in his eyes when all four finally meet his, but what actually comes out of his mouth is a quiet, “...that’s one way of putting it, I suppose.”

“Yeah, yeah. Quit looking like some sort of kicked hellpup. It’s not like you’re losing anything by taking the book back.” Blitzo almost regrets those words the moment they leave his mouth, but decides maybe they’re for the best. If Stolas is angry instead of just sad, it will make this easier.

But Stolas doesn’t get angry; he just looks all the more hurt. He sighs and steels himself. “I’ll see what I can do about loaning you my grimoire in the future, Blitz,” he says, “but for now, I can’t allow it.”

Hearing Stolas call him by his name instead of ‘Blitzy’ is what turns that cold trickle into a flash flood of ice. Something cold and hollow fills him, and Blitzo wishes it didn’t sting the way that it does, wishes he could feel anger instead of this.

“Sure thing, Your Highness,” Blitzo mumbles back, flipping Stolas off with one shaking hand. “If that’s all you got me penned in for today, I’ll see myself the fuck out. Thanks.”

Blitzo slams the office door on his way out, and Stolas can hear Stella screaming after him as he leaves. It’s only a small relief to hear Octavia chime in, telling her mother to leave him alone.

“At least he’s leaving,” Stolas hears her say, and he wishes she were just that little bit older so she’d understand this situation better. He had ever slept with Blitzo because he didn’t love her, but because he’d long since fallen out of love with her mother - but a royal marriage was not so easily left behind.

He sinks back in his seat and sighs heavily, pinching the bridge between his eyes. His heart no longer feels airy and light; instead it feels heavy, like it’s sinking into the pit of himself and weighing him down.

iv. spring

It’s weeks later and well into a work day when Blitzo emerges from his office. The first thing he notices is that his employees all seem to have disappeared, though he doesn’t have much time to wonder about that. His foot catches on something, and he stumbles forward, barely catching himself on a nearby desk. He twists around to look at the offending object that he knows should not be there, and sees that it’s a package of some sort. Brown paper-wrapped and addressed to him, and distinctly book-shaped.

He groans inwardly and hefts it up, the weight familiar, and the scent clinging to the wrapping even more so. Not that the break had been clean, but of course Stolas would have to go and try and make things complicated.

He doesn’t know if Stolas dropped it off personally or had it specially delivered, but he understands why the others left when it got there. Had he been in their shoes, he probably wouldn’t have wanted to risk it, either.

There’s no call or warning before he shows up at Stolas’ mansion, book in tow. He doesn’t use the front door, because he knows other, quicker ways to get to Stolas personally. And, surprisingly, none of those ways have been deterred or altered. It’s almost like Stolas had hoped he wouldn’t actually stay away.

It doesn’t take him very long at all to find Stolas, in his bedroom and lounging about as though he hadn’t just tried to lay some sort of intricate trap. It says something that the Prince’s surprise is entirely feigned, and there’s a grin tugging at his beak as Blitzo kicks the bedroom door shut.

“Ooh, what a surprise~” he coos, and Blitzo rolls his eyes.

“Cut the crap,” Blitzo mutters, dropping the book heavily onto the bed.

Stolas smiles and shrugs his shoulders. The robe he’s wearing slips from one lithe shoulder, and he doesn’t bother to adjust it. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. That,” he gestures to the book, “is just a gift. Circumstance aside, I’d hate to see your business fail.”

Blitzo snorts and grins in a way that shows his teeth. “Don’t you worry about I.M.P. We’re doing just fine without your borrowed little magic tricks.”

For just a moment, Stolas seems to falter, frustrated - not with Blitzo, but the situation itself.

“You really couldn’t think of any other way to get my attention, besides throwing me your scraps?” Blitzo presses on, crossing his arms over his chest, one brow raised.

“I didn’t think you’d return a call, or want to see me,” Stolas admits, and makes a vague gesture to the mansion. “And inviting you back here seemed… uncouth, at the very least.”

“Never stopped you before, did it?” But now Blitzo’s grin seems a little less antagonistic, a little more playful.

Stolas lets out an airy, half-laugh. “You’re not wrong.” He finally adjusts the shoulder of his robe, and rubs a hand against the back of his neck. “I’ve just spent a lot of time thinking about… Well, us. And I was thinking that, maybe we could… I mean, to start, we never should have - but…”

He sighs, and offers Blitzo a weak smile.

“I’ve missed you, Blitzy.”

It’s short and sweet and simple - just like this whole mess should have been from the start. But it’s not, and it never will be, because those three words and that sickeningly sweet rendition of his name coming out of that horrid bird’s mouth send that familiar warm rush right through Blitzo’s entire body.

“I see what you’re doing,” Blitzo says quickly, narrowing his eyes.

Stolas chuckles, shrugging. “I’d like to try again. Only no strings attached this time.” To make his point, he raises one hand and urges the grimoire over to himself, letting it hover between the two of them. “You’d be free to use this whenever you like, and though I would greatly appreciate your… company, there’s no need for a strict schedule.”

Blitzo eyes the book for a moment, and then shoves the magically aloft object aside. “And what about your ball and chain? You sure you wanna put up with her conniption fits?”

“You let me worry about Stella,” Stolas waves the thought aside. “A very serious discussion is long overdue, anyway.”

“And your kid?”

“Via will be okay. She’s young, but getting old enough to understand, I think.”

Blitzo looks the owl demon up and down, then shrugs a little himself. “Not the freshest start of the ages, but I’ll take it.”

Stolas smiles and breathes a sigh of obvious relief. “I’m glad,” he says quietly and moves closer. He lets one hand wander admiringly over one of Blitzo’s horns - and, for the imp’s sake, pretends he doesn’t notice the way he leans in to the touch.

“I have to wonder, though,” Stolas says after a moment, before the quiet becomes too much too soon, idly stroking the inner curvature of the horn, “how did you manage to keep I.M.P afloat without my grimoire?”

Blitzo leans away from the taller demon, and he grins again, wide and sharp. “I copied the spells out of it ages ago,” he admits, shrugging one shoulder. “Just in case this whole shebang went down the shitter.”

Stolas stares at him, a grin of his own tugging at his beak. “Oh, you clever little thing,” he muses, reaching out and taking Blitzo’s face into his hands. One thumb moves gently over where white meets red.

Blitzo has a nasty habit of speaking before he thinks, and Stolas has to wonder if he realizes what he’s admitted to. If he’d had the pages copied this whole time, either he’s a very dedicated actor and didn’t want to tip Stolas off - or, perhaps, it was all just a very convoluted excuse to keep coming back.

A blush starts to bruise the bridge of Blitzo’s nose. Stolas smiles.

“And here I thought you’d needed the book,” he says. “How silly of me.”

[dreamii-yume]

Ohh Queen Yume you've opened the floodgates!! Which guys would be head over heels over a gorgeous, kind sensei!MC?? Who would feel conflicted about their feelings and who are shameless enough to try to pursue her?

“Tell the guards to open up...THE GATES~”

EVERYONE (΄◉◞౪◟◉｀) fight me with this one, Darlings.

Everyone would be up our Darling Sensei’s ass, I BET YOU MY LIFE SUPPORT. The better question at this point would be asking which wouldn’t be attracted to a beautiful Sensei lol

Riddle would act as if it’s the end of the world as falling in love with a teacher is a huge violation of many rules. Though he sometimes slips up with little gestures that makes him stutter and blush uncharacteristically, he can hide his emotions very well. He will try to kill these forbidden feelings, but doing so just breaks his heart. He secretly wants you to come and save him, recognizing him like he does withyou.

Deuce would be ashamed for falling in love with a teacher, how can he tell his mother about this? He came here to become a model student, not to become so attached to his own instructor. He tries to hide as much as he can but he’s a blushing mess with just the slightest attention from you, anyone could instantly tell what’s up. It’s just a matter of time before Sensei herself realized this precious boy’s feelings.

Jack is conflicted. Why was he feeling this way towards his teacher out of all people available? I see him as someone who fully respects you, he’ll be less violent and even if you haven’t noticed, you already got him perfectly tamed. He’ll keep his feelings for himself and wouldn’t ever plan to tell anyone. Though people have been noticing how slightly protective he’s being with you, of course he’ll violently deny them all. But sometimes it can’t be helped, his own tail would involuntary sway back and forth so excitedly if you go as far as to graze him.

Sebek doesn’t seem to like it, poor boy is just really confused. He should already be dedicated to his young master, he doesn’t need these silly feelings to add to his plate! You’re a teacher! You’re a person that he should respect and pay attention to for knowledge but instead, he’s disgusted at the way you haunt his dreams every night! He can’t believe he’s already falling in love with a human like you! Stop making him feel all giddy on the inside, it’s some sort of spell, isn’t it!?

Poor Idia just can’t take a break, can he? When he’s already stuck in a school full of self-centered brats, how dare you come and knock at his closed-off, introverted heart? He knew these kinds of scenarios from all the dating sims he’ve played but never in his life had he thought that he will find himself in the same situation. That being said, he’s still anxious to come and talk to you personally, his tablet was one way but even that doesn’t feel enough. He might really be going crazy as he starts to want to go outside just to meet you...

Silver can’t seem to put two and two together, he couldn’t quite figure out why his heart was beating so fast for his Darling Sensei. He would ask his father for any explanation but wouldn’t get anything out of it but a simple chuckle. That’s fine, something tells him that he wouldn’t be able to trust his advices anyway. Whatever it is, he’s quite fond of it and he doesn’t seem to care much, he does become really sad when you’re away though.

As we already established, Ace can be quite shameless when it comes to his feelings. He won’t outright say what he feels for you, but he’ll constantly flirt and tease you when he has the chance. Don’t be surprised when you begin to notice him actually trying to cope a feel or looking up your skirt because that’s just him. Also, be careful, he’s very prone to using dirty handed tricks to capture your attention.

Leona is another shameless one, he doesn’t care about status, if he sees a prey, it’s just natural for him to bite from the neck, right? What’s wrong with being a little older? He’s not even that young compared to these useless herbivore, he’s the best that you can get. It wouldn’t be much of an exaggeration to say that your class might just be the only class that Leona wouldn’t skip. Mainly because he might miss some exclusive view of you, like when your skirt would hitch up every time you bend over to grab something. He wouldn’t hesitate to grope either, that ass is just too tempting not to bite to at least once.

Floyd is difficult to deal with, since he’s likely the most shameless one out of the bunch. He doesn’t care about you being a teacher, Sensei is Sensei regardless! He’ll bother you at every opportunity he gets and at every place he sees you at. He’ll make excuses to meet you up, even going as far as to skip class just so you could take the effort and search for him. It bothers you a little that this particular student of yours constantly keeps asking questions about your lectures even if he always seems to already know the answer.

I’d say Malleus would also be shameless but he doesn’t actually realize that he’s being one. Forgive him for acting so strangely possessive and clingy around you, following you everywhere like a lost baby animal. It’s just that he’s not familiar with having romantic feelings with someone, let alone a mere human. He doesn’t see anything special in your role as a teacher, he had lived much, much longer than you after all.

Lilia is amused, to think that someone as wise as him had actually fallen in love with someone who was supposed to be his ‘teacher’. Never in his long life had he found himself in this kind of situation, it’s interesting! It’s not like it’s a problem anyway, you are nothing more than a child compared to his actual age, you’re just a mortal teaching him stuff that he already knew. But it doesn’t hurt to take advantage of his youthful appearance now, does it? Lilia’s excited to know where this relationship can go.

Sometimes, Trey and Jamil just doesn’t feel like a student to you. Being a lot more mature than the other students, you just can’t help but to rely on them for a lot of things. Maybe that’s probably why you’ll never notice how deeply in love these two are with you, they’re just that good when it comes to hiding emotions. They’ll give subtle hints here and there and Trey, most likely, might even flirt with you at some point but you’ll be so familiar with him by now that you wouldn’t even mind. I’d say Trey’s a bit on the shameless side, but not in a way that makes him clingy while Jamil is the type to just keep quiet but secretly and skillfully making moves.

Cater is categorized as shameless when it comes to expressing his feelings, but when Darling’s a teacher, things becomes a little...complicated. Don’t get him wrong, he’ll be the same as always, so talkative and energetic around you, even calling out for you with a cute nickname. He’ll even flirt like you’re the same age as him but he would always make it seem like a joke. If you’re a teacher, he’ll also be very careful about posting something about you in his Magicam, he knows how this works anyway. One word out that you’re becoming too close with a particular student, you’ll risk losing your job. Cater doesn’t want that happening anytime soon, but just know that he can make it happen too if he absolutely needs to. Until then, it’s all good and dandy!

Ruggie wouldn’t be guilty nor conflicted about his feelings, but he wouldn’t be as shameless as to scream out his feelings to everyone around him. No, only an idiot will do that and it’s embarrassing so, no thank you. Instead, he can play the long game, he’s a patient guy despite how he looks. Besides, he’s used to these kinds of stuff by now so it’s not that much different~! Expect many coincidences with him in it though!

Azul appears to be very calm on the inside, always helping you out whenever you need him without asking for anything in return. That’s what he is, a simp a gracious student ready to help his dear teacher out any time! But that’s what you think, in reality, he’s just desperately trying to earn your favor by being your “Yes-man”. He believes that if he became the goodest boy in your eyes, you’ll be able to love him as much as he does with you. Although, just expect a few tears and tantrums when he doesn’t get his way though.

Jade is so different from his brother that it surprises you that they’re even twins in the first place. He respects your boundaries, even if he wanted nothing more than to become as shameless as his other half. He’s very active when it comes to your lessons too, always paying attention with the greatest interest. He even serves you tea as refreshments and helps you with work if he feels as if you’re overworking yourself. He’s not really the type to care whether you’re a teacher, “I wonder~?” He’ll be very vague about it if anyone dares to ask but if you look closely, that smile says it all.

Kalim wouldn’t be able to recognize his feelings for a really long time. He’ll think it’s just normal to feel this way, for his heart to beat this fast, for his face to heat up, for thoughts of you to flow through his head even at night. But when he does, all those times he shamelessly clung to you and talked to you will come back to attack him all at once. He’ll actually lower down his affection levels because he was told that liking a teacher is bad and it might actually cost you your job. But it’s so difficult! It wouldn’t hurt to spend...a little more time with you, would it!?

Vil thinks it’s stupid of him and of you. He thinks he’s stupid for falling in love with someone like you, his own teacher, it’s unbelievable how low his standards had become. But at the same time, he thinks you’re stupid for not being able to understand why he fell in love with you in the first place too. Despite the salt of falling in love with someone like you of all people, it doesn’t change the fact the he’ll keep on striving to become the best for you. He wants you to notice him, notice his improvements, and make you feel how lucky you are for catching his attention, so would you try and look at him in a different way for once?

Rook just loves anyone and anything, does he? Everything is beautiful in his eyes and yet, there was something about you that shines the brightest amongst all others. There should be no shame in expressing his feelings, he’ll shout it out loud to world. His eccentric personality is working against his favor too, even if honestly and openly admitted his feelings towards you with everyone, no one will actually take it seriously. But what others perceives to be true isn’t always true, Darling.

I’m not quite sure where to put Epel in all of this, something’s telling me that he would be on the shameless side only if he’s willing to show his much more aggressive side. However, I can imagine him being worried to show that side to you, since you were already put under the impression that he’s a dainty, gentle boy. Although he doesn’t like being treated like he’s the most fragile thing of all people, he can’t deny the attention he gets from you whenever he’s acting like this. Epel doesn’t really seem to care if you’re a teacher in all of this, he knew that it’s not good but he’s determined. Once he graduates, he’ll definitely make a move on you so, just you wait...!

Before I knew it, I made something for every character holy shi- my teacher kink is terrifying.

Also, yes, Darlings! Yume changed her usename from “amai-no-yume” to “dreamii-yume”! ( ＾∀＾) To tell you the truth, I didn’t expect to like posting sins in tumblr this much ヽ(；▽；) So I ended picking such a half-ass username! But now, I decided to change it to something hopefully cuter and more appropriate! ( ´ ▽ ` )

Nice to meet you again, Darlings~!