#so far interesting things have been introduced about him which I hope will actually insert nuance to the show
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adastreia-12 · 1 year ago
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poseidon’s relationship with percy is something that is so personal to me. love so flawed and complicated, so wary and tentative. your father is here. he’s always been here. he’s not sure what to make of you but he is proud of you. you’re not sure what to make of him either. you’re sally jackson’s son, but you have your father’s eyes. you are the sea as much as he is. trust him. trust yourself. breathe. the sea does not like to be restrained.
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headingalaxys-spicy · 2 years ago
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yandere norway headcanons pls (maybe some nsfw teehee)
Forgive me but I can’t think of N$F W headcannons right now for him. His personality airs on the side of asexual and not really the type to be into situations. But what’s do I know it’s just the ramblings of a woman who’s lost her mind probably.
Anyways hope you like this post!
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He’s one of the most difficult to read Yandere, similar to that of Sweden, Iceland, and Japan.
When he does have a darling that he takes an interest in he will not approach you at all.
In fact by the time you do meet him it’s at least a year before he will introduce himself to you. He takes his sweet time in trying to figure out your personality through parasocial interaction, information that his magical friends bring him, and through subtle gestures that you get the hint and follow his lead. He’s not a particularly dangerous Yandere, somewhat forceful but not to the degree where it trips red flags like England would, as a fellow magical yandere.
Dude will go through all of your socials and read the backlogs. He will be entertained by the more than a decade old post that you wrote and about how you hate HS. He will build a perfect picture in his head of how you actually are in reality and anticipates the changes that have occurred in your life that have led you to be the human that you are now. Perfect in his eyes, and feels that you waste too much time in (home country). Where the standards of living are pathetic compared to the happiness that his people have.
He will occasionally join a stream you have going, IG live, Tiktok live etc Just to hear your voice so that when he goes to sleep at night he has something that can ease his mind and add to his imagination. The sight and sound of you flood his mind like great tides flowing in from the Northern Sea. He can sleep soundly.
His magical friends from the other side will aid him by pilfering things that you 9 times out of 10 won’t realize are missing. Things like a lip-gloss, sticky-notes that you used for meetings over zoom, that water bottle you thought you left on the bus.
He watches you like a tv show of sorts from his magical room. It’s nice for him to be able to gaze at your beauty from afar without having to exert himself.
Eventually the numerous sea of strings will overwhelm his soul and he will eventually want to be much closer to you than to have just the vision of you. Which at least as far as Yandere’s go is not nearly as bad as what England might do.
Norway is going to want to meet you in a fantasy he created and keep you there. He was able to look into your past memories using his magic to learn more about you and what makes you comfortable, what are your deepest dreams, etc.
“What makes you happy?”
Late one night. You brought your tired eyelids to a close. You had just survived a long tumultuous day . You didn’t want to think about anything. You didn’t want to think about anyone. You just wanted to sleep. When your eyelids closed for the last time you were brought to a new reality, one of which were it felt as though it were real.
“Oh (insert greeting that is most common for your nationality but for more friendly terms) Y/N how are you? Ready to bake (favorite dessert) and watch the ocean cam? I heard that tonight is supposed to be particularly exciting because of the storms raging on tonight.”
“Oh yeah! I’ve been in a haze of sorts. Hahah.” Not fully aware of your body but you wanted to at least try to regain some control. Everything felt fine even though you felt a little lightheaded but nothing too intense to hinder your basic functionality. All will be fine in this sweet daydream since Norway is great at keeping his close family entertained.
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bonny-kookoo · 4 years ago
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Cat Eyes (JJK x Reader) ❤️☁️🔞🐾
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Pairing: Jeon Jungkook x Reader
Genre: Hybrid!AU, Human!Jungkook, Hybrid!Reader, Fluff/romance, Strangers to lovers?, slight angst, smut
Warnings: discussion of homelessness and unfairness against hybrids, mild mention of past abuse, trust issues, Sweet Koo, smut because duh, lovemaking it’s so sweet yall, dirty talk but only minor, overstimulation, multiple orgasms, doggy style, mild biting, yeah that’s it this time wait for part two oh my
Summary: on the streets, cast out. Just another week for you, but somehow you wonder if this stranger might mean a change for you.
Or alternatively: Jungkook feeds you and you’re kinda grateful for that.
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Its cold, but you've been preparing for that outcome for a long time already. Being born as a hybrid, a simple housecat at that, you had nothing special or rewarding about you, making you just a pet getting passed around from person to person as soon as you got too boring to keep around.
This was a regular thing for you. The fact that you got kicked out so many times already made you wary of actually possessing any belongings at all, not even owning a phone or clothes you could consider your own- merely the things you currently wore, drenched in the water that had been dribbling from the skies in rough speeds, hood over your head already useless at keeping your hair and ears dry. But it was okay. This was normal for you, after all.
Sitting down between two glowing vending machines located behind a small convenience store, you tried to warm yourself up with the small amount of heat radiating off of the two metal machines- not really being successful, but desperate times called for desperate measures.
It's been three weeks already like this, trying to find a place to catch some sleep before roaming the streets again, searching for food and sometimes even finding a bit of money on the street. You didn't have a collar, so you had to hide your hybrid features well- not like you'd like to show your dirty fur anytime soon anyways.
Yawning before turning a bit, shoes squeaking a bit with the amount of water inside them, you closed your eyes, mind focusing on the buzzing next to your head, trying to use it as a form of lullaby to soothe you into sleeping a bit. Yet you were disturbed by someone pressing the buttons and inserting money into the vending machine, the loud noises of the soda can banging against the metal interior loudly enough to make you press your ears flat against your skull. You hoped whoever was craving the beverage was a human or didn't pay attention to you; but again- you were out of luck.
"Huh?" Came the humming question of a male voice, and you instantly tensed up as a warm hand was placed on your wet shoulder. "Hey.. you okay?" The voice asked, and you imagined his Umbrella shielding him from the rain, the pitter patter of it on the plastic fabric an indication that he probably used one. You weren't an impressive predator like a Tiger or a Leopard, but you certainly could distinguish noises from one another to see things around you, even without using your eyes. "Can you hear me?" He asked gently, and you wanted to turn around, scoff in his face that yes, you did, you just chose not to. "Do you have an owner.?" Well, piss. Seems like hiding your features didn't do much as well.
You only turned a bit, hood catching on a pointed piece of metal from the vending machine, making it reveal one of your wet ears to him, as well as a piece of the side of your face. You only saw him with one eye, but you already knew he was on the far opposite of the food chain- expensive suit and sparkling rolex on his wrist, connected to the tattooed hand holding his black umbrella almost mocking you as he looked at you with pity. You spotted his ears, or more lack thereof, already wanting to cry at them; a human like him didn't know the things you were going through. That's probably why he'd asked if you were owned immediately, and you wanted to laugh. Yet your croaky voice didn't say these things. It only stated the obvious. "No." Because you really didn't- the official timespan was two weeks, after that, a formerly owned hybrid was officially considered a stray if it went missing. You didn't belong to anyone other than the state itself- which was why you had to hide so well, to not get thrown into an adoption center again.
The stranger furrowed his brows a bit, before leaving. Well, at least he took the hint, you thought, before he came back again, placing a white bag with some plastic items down in front of you, before putting his umbrella over your head, the rain suddenly stopping from falling down on you. You looked downwards, at the plastic container- sushi? Dumplings? And another one that steamed a bit- rice? You didn't get it, but still turned around a bit, watching him warily as if you were waiting for him to yell sike and run away. Yet he didn't, simply scooting a bit closer to not get the rain onto his head, and waiting. The sound of cars passing by and some music being played somewhere was the only noise surrounding you for a bit, before you hesitantly reached out for the containers, always keeping an eye on him. He simply smiled when you started to unpack the plastic foil of the cheap chopsticks, digging into the hot rice as if it was a five star meal. You could practically feel it warming up your belly, making you suppress a sigh as you got lost in consuming the food he'd bought.
Only once you were finished, not being able to eat everything, did he actually move. He grabbed some of the leftovers, eating them until he took the boxes and put them into the trash nearby. You looked at him with a questioning gaze. Would he want anything from you now? You didn't trust his angelic features at all if you were being honest. "You're probably not gonna want to come home with me and thats fine." He said, before looking at you. "I'll leave the umbrella here, alright? Lets hope the rain stops soon." He mumbled, getting up, making you look up to him as he slowly turned around, giving you a small wave. "Goodnight. Stay safe." He simply said, before jogging to his car.
Huh. What a weird guy.
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Jeon Jungkook was his name as he'd introduced himself on the second day of visiting you behind the convenience store, and he was indeed a weird human. He made it a simple casualty- visiting you every day after work with food, having full conversations with you, and asking about your day and life in general. He himself noticed a slight spark returning to your eyes, interest peaking in those orbs as you talked to him more and more. You were a quiet girl, not really giving away much about you, but managing to make him feel like he knew you. You were smart, and he liked that. After almost a week of daily conversations, he finally popped the question.
"Do you want to come home with me?" He asked, making you look up from your can of soup he'd bought you this time. You thought for a bit before shrugging. At this point he'd invested so much into feeding you that it felt like you had to- simply as a form of repayment. He smiled, before leaning his head a bit to the side, voice low and serious. "You don't have to. I'm simply offering." He said, and you put down the empty can, nodding.
"Alright." You said, and he grinned, standing up and putting the trash away before closing the umbrella still hanging over the vending machines, turning around. His eyes widened a bit at just how short you were, yet he found it endearing. He led you to his car, not caring that his cream colored interior could be stained with your admittedly dirty clothing and shoes. He'd pay someone to clean it the next day, and all would be fine.
"So uhm.." You began, unsure what would happen now. "What am I supposed to do when we get to your place?" You asked, and after a moment of realization, his ears turned red.
"No no no, I'm, oh my.." He cleared his throat for a moment, before he threw one leg over the other, as to make himself seem more sure of himself than he actually was. "I'm not that kind of person." He explains calmly, as he waves his hand to the driver, who nodded, before the window to the front closes, giving you two some privacy. "I simply saw you there and.. I don't know. I couldn't just leave you there." He said, and you nodded.
"So it's for your repuptation." You said. "I guess you're an investor then?" You knew people like him. Their initial thought was nice, but at the end of the day it was only for personal gain. Well, at least he'd keep you around for some months before the public would slowly forget about you again. You've been through that as a young kitten.
But he shook his head. "I am an investor, yeah- but I don't plan on showing you to the public eye. I don't want anything of you other than your company." You opened your mouth again, but he groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose for a second. "Not like that." He began. "My apartment is.. big. Huge. But it's also empty. A friend of mine had told me I should get a hybrid, and I genuinely considered. I was actually at a shelter the day we first met." He explained, and you nodded. "I didn't find anyone I was.. okay with, I guess. I can't just let anyone into my life, you know. Most people only want something, just to leave right after. When I saw you, yeah, at first it was pure pity, I won't lie." You nodded, watching him. "But the more we talked, the more I realized how compatible we were." Well, this was new. "I won't be home much, because I work a lot, but I don't like being lonely." He turns to you, serious. "If you're comfortable with it, I'd like you to simply be a companion. Someone who shares my home with me, accompanies me to those absolutely boring dinners I have to endure every week or so, and who sometimes maybe comes to work with me. If you simply want to stay home however, that's fine as well." He says, and you nod.
"Can I.. think about it?" You ask, and he nods, a gentle smile adoring his lips. The rest of the ride is filled with comfortable silence, and you almost drift off to sleep, but you arrive at his apartment complex before you can fully float away. There's nothing said between the two of you as he leads you inside the hallway of the building, a hand on the small of your back as if to make sure you won't get lost, his figure always close to shield you from wary eyes of the security and other residents walking by. Inside the elevator, silence is still present, until someone joins you two; a tall man, a little older than your now soon-to-be Master, who looks at you, and then at your Master.
"Ah, so you have finally found someone for you? I'm happy for you Jungkook." He says,a smile on his lips. "My name is Kim Seokjin my dear, may I ask yours?" He speaks, and you look at Jungkook close to you as if you were expecting him to answer for you- like it was typical. But he only smiled as well, nodding towards you in encouragement, so you, quietly, answered with a small bow of your head. "Ah, a shy one isn't she? But very pretty, I have to say." He said, and Jungkook chuckled as if to accompany that statement. "Ah, well. Please think about the company dinner next saturday, and oh!" Seokjin said as he left the elevator, hand holding the elevator door open for a moment as he looked at you one last time. "Bring her along, yeah? I heard that Jimin is bringing Yoongi as well. A good chance for her to make friends.!" He said, before winking, and waving goodbye- leaving you and Jungkook inside the elevator to climb a few more levels higher.
"Don't feel pressured now, please." Jungkook said, as the elevator chimed, the two of you stepping out as he walked past you to open his apartment door. "You don't have to if its too soon." He said, before opening his door.
He didn't lie when he said his apartment was big, but you never truly saw a skyline like that. It was a breathtaking view outside the windows, and it took a moment until you could finally avert your eyes to scan the rest. It felt.. almost sterile, in a way. Nothing truly screamed his name at you, neither the furniture, nor wall decorations. A few pictures were hung up, but other than that, the apartment looked like it got pulled straight out of an interior design magazine. "It's pretty bland, isn't it?" He lowly said, as he turned on some of the lights, hanging up his coat on the hanger next to the door as he untied his shoes. "I know it does. I.. hope that'll change, maybe." He said, before he made his way into the open kitchen. "Are you hungry? Thirsty? I can just show you your room and leave you be as well, yeah, that would probably be a good idea. Let me show you." He said, and you followed him after taking your own shoes off as well.
It was a rare occurence to have a room for yourself- so much so, that you only remember having one as a kitten, when it had been necessary. Stepping inside, you noticed the crisp air; he'd opened the window to air it out, it seemed. There was a bed in the corner, a wardrobe and a mirror- as well as a door that connected to a bathroom, right now void of light. "I'll leave you be for now. There are some of my old clothes so you have something to sleep in- don't worry, I washed them so you won't get my scent on you just yet, I know it makes hybrids a bit fussy." He chuckled, and nodded towards you with a smile. "If you want to, you can come out, if you don't stay inside, I won't be mad. I'll have the day off tomorrow and after, so we should use that time to get you some clothes if you want." He suggested, and you nodded into his direction. He bowed a bit, before leaving the room, and you alone.
You waited a bit so his footsteps got out of reach, before you walked around a bit. The room was bigger than the one you had as a kitten, but still small enough to be considered a guest room. Your first goal however, was the bathroom. Grabbing the clothes he had left you, you noticed immediately that it had been washed with hybrid proof detergent- a brand called 'noscent' which was typically used for newly homed hybrids so they wouldn't get overwhelmed. How he knew of that was unclear to you, but maybe he did have a hybrid before, or a friend told him. It didn't matter though, because you knew this was timed. Better make the most out of it. So as you climbed into the bathtub, soapy scent around you as you washed yourself squeaky clean, you felt okay again. Now was the time to mend yourself together, figure out what your master liked so you could make your stay as comfortable for everyone involved as possible, and just enjoy the good sides while rushing the bad.
But somehow there was a weird feeling in your gut.
Maybe things were really about to change this time.
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The next morning was calm. Apart from something clattering in the kitchen, you awoke by yourself, shocked to see it almost being twelve. Why had he not woken you up, when he so clearly implied yesterday that he had plans with you today? For a moment you wondered if maybe this had been a test, but judging by his whistling in the kitchen, he was in a good attitude still.
So you went for it.
Simply brushing your hair and tail, you stepped out the room, smell of food immediately meeting your nose. "I was about to wake you." He said without turning, as he grabbed another bowl to fill. "I figured I'd let you sleep after all that change so you could rest well. Good morning." He said, finally turning around, making you gasp internally a bit.
You knew that his hand was tattooed, but what now showed was his entire forearm covered in ink. Completely different from yesterday, he wore a simple grey sweater and sweatpants combo, hair in a messy tiny ponytail on his head. He looked so.. young, yet masculine, not at all like the businessman you had encountered before. But it was a nice change; because if he let you see himself like this, he really was intending to have you around for longer, and was working towards a more personal companionship. Maybe he really did want you as a companion for himself, not his outside persona.
You sat down at the table before stopping immediately, eyes widening. He seemed to notice this however, chuckling as he placed a warm hand on your shoulder, helping you on the chair properly. "You can sit at the table with me, don't worry. Please move around freely; my home is as much mine as it is yours now, okay?" He said, and you nodded. "Thank you." He said, and you watched him for a moment, before you started to eat.
"How.." You started, and he wiped his lips with a tissue before looking at you, attention now on your words. You were grateful for that small gesture. "How do you know that much about hybrids?" You asked, and he smiled.
"Yesterday, Jin-hyung said something about Yoongi, you remember?" You nodded, a bit eagerly, since you were used to remember things that your master said all the time. "Good girl." He said, and it made your skin tingle a bit, as he cleared his throat, a bit shy after letting that slip. "He uhm, Yoongi-hyung is a cat-hybrid as well. His owner is Jimin, who's my coworker. Yoongi was a rescue a few years back, who I asked a bit about what to do if I take someone in who.. you know, wasn't from a shelter. He told me a few things." He explained, and you nodded.
"Why are you calling him Yoongi-hyung though, if he's a hybrid?" You asked, before taking another spoonful. You liked warm food. It made your belly warm.
"Ah." He mused, as he finished his plate, leaning back. "I'm not really following the whole foodchain-order stuff, to be honest. Yoongi-hyung is older than me, my hyung, so that's that. Oh, that reminds me, how old are you?" He asked, and you answered.
"I think.. 22?" You said, and he seemed a bit sad. Did you say something wrong? Did he want someone younger? Someone older?
"Ah, sorry.. but, you think?" He said. "So.. you haven't celebrated your birthday, at all?" He asked, and you shook your head. "Ah thats no good. We'll celebrate it this year, promise!" He said. "You're a bit younger than me, by the way. I'm 25." He said, and you nodded, saving that information inside your brain for future reference. "If you're done we can either go shopping, or if you don't want to, we can shop online. We should do that now though, otherwise you'll have to wait too long for delivery and stuff." He said, and you nodded.
"Do you have a collar for me then?" You asked, and Jungkook grabbed your empty plate to put away. A collar wasn't something he could just not give you- he knew from Yoongi that it wasn't demeaning in any way. Wearing a collar was a form of comfort, it wasn't just an accessory, it was a physical evidence that you were claimed and safe.
"Yoongi gave me one of his older ones, but we can buy a proper one you like today." He said, and dried his hands on a dish towel as he looked at you. "Go and get your shoes, I'll give you one of my coats to wear, and then we can go, yeah?"
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Shopping was always a hard one to crack.
This was when you would somehow have to figure out by simply picking the opossum on the road to know if its dead or not- in a sense of; simply point, and wait for the blow. With Jungkook however, there never was one, and it confused you how calm and somehow even happy he was. For example, when you pointed at a pretty expensive collar that wasn't your style just to see how he'd react, you didn't know how to react when he smiled. "Ah, let's look for something more delicate, yeah? The price doesn't bother me, but I doubt that heavy chains suit you kitten." He had simply said, and somehow, the petname made your ears turn towards him, making a nearby bunny hybrid and her owner chuckle.
He'd somehow managed to wiggle under your skin in just a day.
Because somehow, every time he looked at you, helped you reach something, or talked to you about what you liked, it felt so genuine. It felt like he really cared.
"Okay, how about.. oh, this one!" He said, pointing at a collar hidden behind glass- one covered in velvet, with a pretty pattern and a silver plate on the front where your name would be. It was expensive; absolutely mind blowing however, but what made your eyes glisten were his words. "There's a jeweler next door, so we can have your name and ID, as well as my emergency information stamped in." Because, until now, you only had the one's where you slide a paper with all needed info underneath a clear cover- it was easier to replace or give back. But, getting it stamped onto such an expensive collar was definitely something that would last- well, forever. "Or- wait, hey hey, whats wrong? If you don't like it we can buy a different one-"
"I love it." You said, and he led you away from all noise, into a more secluded part of the shop, where he squatted down to properly look at you. "I just.. I..it's..-" You began, and somehow he understood, and had this absolutely frustrating smile again, as he helped you wipe your tears a bit less harshly than you did yourself.
"I haven't said it clear enough yet, haven't I?" He asks, voice warm. "I plan on forever, not just for the moment. What I said when you first came into my apartment was directed at you. I hope you'll make my home feel like a home one day. How can I think about giving you away, when I just got you?" He questions, and you shrug. "I know trust isn't something you give away easily, and thats completely fine. I can also Imagine that you're not too sure of things right now, considering where you came from. But I promise you, I really do-" He says, and takes your hands in his. "I'll stay by your side for as long as you let me." He finishes, and you nod after a moment. "Alright? Alright!" He says, and takes your hand to buy the collar, your eyes still sparkling when you later on watch the lady at the jeweler stamp in your name- and his at the bottom.
Maybe this really was permanent.
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At the dinner table with all his colleagues, and the infamous cat hybrid Yoongi next to you, you felt less awkward than you thought you would. Yoongi was a huge help, his calm demeanor helping you to stay composed as well, even under the watchful eyes of the rest of the people. Seokjin had been sweet as well, immediately making you feel welcomed. Jungkook never let you out of his sight, and it made you feel save as well.
It felt good.
Yoongi and you conversed here and there, and occasionally, Jungkook or Jimin, Yoongis owner would chime in, which made it feel as if you were always a part of this. You started to smile a bit, converse more openly, all until a waitress came and turned everything upside down.
"Would you like us to escort the pets to a different table, sir?" She asked Seokjin, who you had learned owned the company Jungkook and his coworkers worked for. He cleared his throat, and shook his head; almost an apologetic look in his eyes as he looked at Yoongi, you, and Taehyung- an independent Tiger-Hybrid with working license, he'd told you. He seemed to clench his teeth as to stay quiet, as the waitress left, leaving an uncomfortable silence behind.
"I'm sorry, please continue." Seokjin said, but the reminder of your status made everyone a bit.. uneasy the rest of the night.
"I'm sorry about the waitress, by the way." Jungkook said, as he helped you into your coat, when everyone was leaving. You shook your head, but he held his unsure expression. "No, I really am. It was uncalled for, and I'm genuinely upset that she phrased it like that." He explained, and you smiled.
"It's okay, Master." You said, which made Yoongis and Taehyungs ears shoot towards your direction, as if on instinct. They didn't look, no, they were discreet. But they still wanted to know what would happen next. "She probably didn't know- after all, it's still quite uncommon to keep hybrids as equal partners nowadays. Change comes slow." You said, but Jungkook suddenly seemed even more serious as he placed his hands on your shoulders, as you looked up at him.
"Jungkook." He said, and you leaned your head to the side in question. "Please, don't.. please just call me Jungkook." He explained, and you nodded, unsure why he was so upset by this. He sighed, before he traced your metal nameplate with his thumb for a fracture of a second, smiling again. "Let's go home." He said, and you nodded, walking after him as he lead the way, not noticing the way that Yoongi and Taehyung shared knowing glances at each other.
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When Jungkook came home, he didn't know what exactly made him realize at first. Maybe it was the way your shoes were placed where there used to be none, or how the clothing hangers held your coats and scarfs as well now. Maybe it was the scent, or the rug that was placed on the lightwood laminated floor because your feet were always cold- or maybe it was your body on his couch, covered by a thick blanket he'd bought you recently when the winter became colder. No, it wasn't that- it was what came next. Your ears which flicked into his direction from their place ontop of your head, and the words you uttered next. "Welcome home Kookie!" You said, and he smiled.
He simply walked over to the couch, letting himself lean ontop of you as he squeezed himself behind your body on the couch, holding you securely to his chest as you turned around to face him. He looked tired, but happy and you took in his scent, so distinctive you could probably tell his from a million others just after a second. He sighed, before he ran a hand over your back, cold palm warming up slowly. You were both unsure what exactly you two were- but it was clear that this wasn't just an owner-hybrid companionship anymore. No, the way Jungkook looked at you had something in it that you knew only lovers had; which made you feel so comfortable around him, after all.
So it was only natural, in a way, that after a moment or two, or maybe more (you didn't really notice anymore), you two found each other in his bedroom, a place you had spent your nights before as well. But this time there was no sleeping involved, at least not in that moment, as his hands roamed around, lips chasing yours as you mewled underneath him needily. He wished he could record it, but even if he did it would never sound as sweet as it did right now. Everything felt so good he didn't even care about his own noises, as you two began to shed your clothes one piece after another, until there was nothing to cover you anymore.
"You're so sweet, you know that?" He hummed against your neck, as you squirmed underneath his hands, his inked fingers wandering down between your legs, were you were aching for his touch to make you fall apart. "Even right now, with my fucking hand between your legs, you look so cute." He chuckled, while you could only rut into his palm like a touch-starved pet. He was teasing, and in a way you hated it, but somehow you couldn't tell him to hurry. No, you didn't want him to hurry at all, because you were at the point of realization;
"I love you, Koo." You said, and he stopped for a moment, some seconds that made you feel absolutely humiliated, before he groaned, pushing your legs against your stomach.
"You can't drop something like that onto me like this, Kitten." He scolded playfully, with no harm intended. No, he simply took hold of his already leaking length to guide himself into you, making you squeal in delight before you sighed out. "I love you too, I adore you so much, I swear to everything I have.." He said, as he began to move, almost as if he was unable to quite control himself. Technically, you were the one to act like an animal; but instead, it was him nipping at your skin, and growling out curses that sounded way too filthy to be uttered out from those lips.
You loved it.
The way he held you, played you like a well tuned instrument, how he sped up his pace without warning because he knew you could take it. You were his good kitten after all, all his, and he knew you would be good. You were lost in your own little cloud as his hand went between your bodies again, fingers suddenly flicking your nub in a sadistic movement that had you scream without sound- pleasure shooting through your veins so violently you were unsure if it was pain or heaven that you felt.
"Ah- Koo- I-" You pressed out, but he simply moved his hand away, never stopping however. "I can't-" You said, but he pulled out before you could finish, flipping you onto your stomach where he pulled your lower body upwards, entering you again as he teasingly stroked your tail which flopped down to one side to make space and give him a clear view of where you were connected so intimately.
"You can, kitten. And you will." He growled out, noticing how you were slowly clenching again. "I can feel you, greedy kitty." He growled out, pace growing harsher and harsher as the sound of skin against skin got louder and louder. "Come on. Give me one more, yeah?" He said, and you were unable to answer him. "Come on- come on, there we go-" He pressed out, a whining sound leaving his lips as well as he grew more sloppy, more desperate as you came again, your clenching core pushing him over the edge as well as he spilled inside you, before he pulled out, watching almost hypnotized how his cum dripped out of you after a moment.
"I love you." He said, uncaring of how you two probably stained the sheets right now. "I really do." He said, whispered like a promise, as he pulled your body against him, palms still kneading your breasts.
Because if you thought he was done with you, you were very wrong.
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I apologize for how short it was, but I only have my phone for now. Sorry if this sucks, it's not my best work, but I didn't want to leave you hanging and without content for this long.. :< Love, Bunny <3
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stxleslyds · 3 years ago
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you know how dc keeps forcing this sudden "we're a family" narrative out of nowhere? I'd love batfam content but years of hurt among them make the recent content seem unearned.
bc you know more about dick and jason than the others, how do you think they would realistically become family to each other, or would it even be in character for them to be the "bros" they're written as now?
Oh anon, this question is amazing, I love it! I saw it when I woke up and since then my brain has been brewing this answer, I was thinking about it as I brushed my teeth and as I was making breakfast, and now I am ready to give you the answer, I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed thinking/writing about it!
DC keeps forcing the wrong relationships, and they keep forcing the wrong centre of this supposed family, they make it out to be the Bat-Family when in reality the Bat (Bruce) should have never been invited to this party.
This is why I give you the… Dick-Family!
Oh yeah baby, I am going there. Dick is the centre of this “family”, he is the guy who is actually connected with everyone, he has been around for so long and he has been present when almost all of the remaining characters were introduced! Bruce might have come first but that guy has nothing on Dick Grayson.
Dick has cared and loved for everyone in this family in a true and beautiful way, no matter how much fanon and DC try to tell us otherwise. This man was an amazing son to Bruce and Alfred (my love for Alfred and Dick is brought to you by @hood-ex), a fantastic brother to Jason, Tim and Cass as well as a phenomenal father/older brother to Damian.
Dick Grayson is the centre of this whole thing, and thanks to DC now being an Omniverse I will be able to explain my line of thoughts. But first let me clear some ideas up.
The way I see it Jason would only get along good enough with Dick. I am not here for Jason and Tim having brunch together (honestly, Lobdell, what were you thinking), Jason never cared for Tim, and then writers that didn’t know how the Red Hood worked made him try to kill Tim so, to me, that relationship is non-existent, Jason doesn’t really perceive Tim (yet).
Jason and Damian, listen, I know that there is this fanon theory that Jason knew and cared for Damian while he was in the League, but that is just fanon talk and it doesn’t really fit in canon either. Jason wasn’t really capable of doing much other than fight, and after he was put in the Lazarus Pit he either had to leave because Ra’s wanted to kill him or Talia took him to the All-Castle. So, Jason’s only real interactions with Damian would be when Jason was written as a crazy, blood thirsty dude that actually tried to harm a child. So, him and Damian wouldn’t really have a good relationship (yet).
Jason and Cass… that’s just a no. Jason and Barbara, I mean Barbara was older than Dick when she first met Jason, so they wouldn’t have much of a relationship.
Now, lets move on to how I will make the Dick-Family work.
Dick (bless him) actually talks and listens to people, unlike Bruce, so the change would start there. Let’s set the timeline, I will stand right after the events of Under the Red Hood. Bruce just chose saving Joker over letting Jason kill the Joker and the building they were in exploded.
Batman keeps on being himself (trash) and Jason, having survived the explosion, moves on to keep on building his empire. He really wants to control the drug trade in Gotham, so he works on that, he slowly but surely takes his place as a drug lord again and is a constant pain in Black Mask’s ass.
While Jason is doing that, Dick is trying to put together his life after Bludhaven was attacked with Chemo. Let’s say that Bludhaven isn’t completely erased from the map but he does have to leave so the city can be re-built. He goes to Gotham, where the Red Hood works.
Let’s say that Alfred told Dick who was under the Red Hood, so Dick being a good brother goes looking for Jason. Their first interaction out of the mask wouldn’t be nice, Jason barely remembers his life before the pit and he really is convinced that Dick is the absolute worst.
But then Jason being a nosy man would make an appearance, for some reason, let’s say that he hacks into the Batcave and when he does that he finds some footage… The footage in question would be the one which shows Bruce punching Dick and sort of blaming him for Jason’s death. (Oh yeah, I am going there). The footage will make a memory come to mind, Dick taking Jason on a skying trip.
So, the next time that Dick and Jason see each other is because Jason went looking for Dick and here is where these two actually talk. The way I see it, Dick is more flexible with the no killing rule, he has worked many times with people that are villains or that just have different ways of doing things. So, I think that he would understand where Jason’s coming from with his ideas. As they begin to understand one another Jason begins to recover more and more memories from before the Pit.
They get together once a week and they chat about life as well as vigilante stuff. They become friends.
At the same time Dick is also very good friends with Tim and also acts like the amazing big brother he is with him. They chat, they sometimes work together and one day they come across a very complicated situation involving a new drug being introduced in Gotham.
Dick would call Jason and now both of them and Tim are reunited in a safe house working together so this new drug doesn’t fall in the wrong hands. Jason and Tim wouldn’t really like each other. Both of them are there for Dick and because they have to get the job done.
That’s how I see Dick forming the Dick-Family unconsciously. Hell, I will introduce Barbara now. Do you guys remember that in UtRH Barbara was mad with Bruce and didn’t want to work with him but she was still in contact with Dick? Well, I am using that so it can fit my narrative.
Dick, Jason and Tim need more intel so Dick calls Oracle (real Oracle) and because Barbara trusts Dick she works with them.
Here is where it gets interesting, through Barbara, Dick meets Cass, through Tim he meets Stephanie. You see that Dick’s connections are leading him to form a group of people. Cass and Stephanie are trained by Babs and Dick and they become the new Batgirls.
As all of that keeps developing Jason and Dick become “partners in crime” they help each other, they start building a brotherly relationship again. Although Jason refuses to say that out loud.
Then comes in Damian, a difficult child if there has ever been one but he has Bruce so Dick doesn’t have to jump in that fast… right?
Oh brother! Bruce is dead (omg what would we do? Battle for the cowl maybe? No!). with Bruce gone there is only one person who can take his place and everyone knows it has to be Dick.
Dick would feel a lot of things as he is taking Bruce’s place as Batman but he has a group of people ready to back him up (Alfred, Jason, Tim, Babs, Cass, Steph), and he also has to take care of Damian, he is a child and with his father gone then maybe his mother would want to take him back to the League of Assassins, Dick obviously doesn’t want that so he talks to Tim and tells him that he sees him as his equal and that he has a plan to make Damian stay and it involves making Damian his new Robin.
Tim would obviously be sad and a little hurt, but he understands Dick’s decision because they talked about it and Dick actually took the time to explain why he was doing what he was doing (really DC half of the problems you guys come up could be fixed in seconds if people would only take some time to just TALK!).
Dick and Damian work as Batman and Robin and Dick starts assuming the position of his father. They would live with Alfred in the penthouse and maybe Tim will join them from time to time (when he wasn’t busy with Young Justice/Teen Titans stuff). Slowly Dick and Damian will become the Dynamic Duo that we love today.
So, Dick would have his own Robin, Oracle (who is also managing her own team with Black Canary and (why not) the Batgirls), Red Robin and Red Hood working with him if he needs them. They are always a call away. Jason is the most difficult to reach and he will only involve himself in that kind of drama if its about controlling the drug trade or scaring the living shit out of some very shady people.
So, Red Hood wouldn’t be working with the new (and improved) Batman but Jason would hang out with Dick sometimes.
From there they build up. Dick renovates Arkham Asylum and makes it work they way that it is supposed to work. He might also recruit Catwoman when he needs someone really sneaky, they have known each other for so long, I bet Selina loves Dick, she would certainly help him out.
But as all things do, this happy and well-connected Dick-Family is disrupted when Bruce comes back, he inserts himself slowly back into his role as Batman and as he does that Dick starts to move away from it.
But Dick’s connections are strong and well cared for, so, even when he goes back to Bludhaven and starts fresh (again) as Nightwing those connections remain. Oracle still gives him intel, Robin and Red Robin come over to Bludhaven to patrol, maybe they even have their own rooms at Dick’s place.
With Bludhaven functioning again, all of the terrible people that were working there also come back, maybe some of them never left and they have been corrupting the city from its very core. So, when Jason tells Dick that he would like to expand his operations to Bludhaven, Dick says yes, as long as Jason keeps him updated on his work and also lets him know what is going on.
I think it works! What do you guys think so far?
From then on with the whole Dick-Family being connected and strong I think they can actually act and solve their problems as a family. All those arcs that didn’t work very well because Bruce was in the middle of it being a jerk, I think they will work if Dick is at the centre of it. Let’s say that Bruce hid the fact that Joker knows their identities and all that, with such a strong family the second that the Joker tries to manipulate Jason into believing that he created him, Dick will come out of the shadows and shut that bullshit down. If Joker tries to do something to the Circus, then the Birds of Prey and the Robins will be there in seconds helping Dick.
The Court of Owls, those little shits wouldn’t stand a chance against this team, this force of nature! Jason would be the one working from afar because you know my boy wouldn’t be subjected to the “no-killing” rule but if he does it, he has to do it away from the children (Damian) and away from Cass, if he doesn’t want to know real trouble. (He probably arranged those things with Dick a long time ago and he is happy with it).
Now, please forgive me but for angst reasons I will actually let the events of, Batman Incorporated #8, Forever Evil, Nightwing #30 and Spyral run its course.
Let me explain, after Damian’s death Dick holds the Dick-Family together, as well as Bruce because he is amazing like that, but then after Dick supposedly dies, things change just a little bit. Jason would retreat back to his own corner because the only thing attaching him to the Dick-Family was Dick but he would also keep his eyes open and he might also have a direct line with Oracle if things go south.
Aside from Jason, I do see the others working on keeping their connections intact. When Damian eventually returns the land of the living, I can see all of them coming together even more because that’s what Dick would have wanted.
And then Dick will come back from Spyral and here is where the Dick-Family will show the “Bat-Family” why its superior to it in every aspect possible.
The Dick-Family will notice that something must have happened, Dick would never play dead and leave them like that, but Dick loves Bruce and he doesn’t want to tell them the truth, Bruce has no memories now and his family doesn’t deserve that kind of drama BUT Jason and Tim are suspicious, they know Dick at this point and they trust him so they firmly believe that he is hiding something to protect someone. And here is where life repeats itself. Let’s review the Batcave’s footage, yes, I did it again, I just love the fact that Bruce has footage of himself being the absolute worst to his kids, how does DC not use it! Anyway, Tim and Jason find the footage from the events of Nightwing #30 and suddenly the Dick-Family have their “Dick defence squad” jackets on and they are ready to party.
After all that Bruce eventually gets his memories back and he is held accountable for his actions. Also, around this time the events of Robin War would have already happened so Duke is also introduced. Dick lets him join and all that, and then Duke and Cass become besties and they work together.
And yeah, as Rebirth comes closer the Dick-Family would be more united than ever.
The end.
That is how I would have done it. But this way is slow, and DC wouldn’t be able to monetize it as much as they would want.
Jason wouldn’t be giving hugs and calling everyone their brother or sister, he will only get along with Dick and he would be professional with everyone else.
Tim and Damian would get along but they wouldn’t go for ice cream together on a sunny day. Steph and Damian would and so would Cass and Tim or Cass and Duke.
Oracle would work with Dick and the others as a side thing because her main thing would be the Birds of Prey, this time with Helena too.
Alfred would spend his time with Bruce but he would also be very aware of Dick and his influence on everyone around them. Bruce eventually would be integrated to the Dick-Family because Dick is a sweetheart but Dick would also make Bruce follow his rules, Dick is a little bean but he is also the most badass person in the room (whichever room) so you better listen to what he has to say.
The Dick-Family would be something that grows silently and doesn’t need a “Joker War” in order for them to be there for each other, they would try their best each step of the way and they will talk things out when mistakes are made.
This is the way that I see this family dynamic working.
I would even go as far as to say that Talia can be part of the Dick-Family because she is connected to three people, Dick, Damian and Jason.
Dick is the person with most connections in the DC Universe, the Titans, the Justice League, Deathstroke, they all have connections to this treasure of a man. If he needs help in Gotham or Bludhaven then he can call people from the “first circle”, if things are beyond a “street level” threat them he can call the Titans and if shit really hits the fan, Clark and the others are a call away.
Anyway, this was unnecessarily long, I am sorry about it but I am also not because I really don’t know how to answer your question without going on a long rant.
In conclusion the Bat-Family doesn’t work and sadly it wouldn’t work no matter how much they force it. These people don’t have connections, Bruce is not able to make connections between people. And DC has erased entire relationships that Dick used to have. I mean, they got rid of Dick and Tim being close brothers just so they could give us a shitty brunch between Tim and Jason? Only yesterday we saw a true and beautiful interaction between Dick and Damian.
DC is handling the “Bat-Family” in all the worst possible ways. It just doesn’t work.
They should have used Dick all those years ago and they shouldn’t have destroyed Jason’s characterization with Lobdell’s ideas.
So, sadly, my dear anon, I don’t see the Bat-Family as a in character thing for any of these people as they are written currently, but I hope that you enjoyed my version of it. May the Dick-Family bring everyone who reads about it a little joy!
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silversatin2105 · 3 years ago
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Shaman king Fan fic : A Case of mistaken Identity
This fic has two ends to read to the bottom, This covers a scenario between a Fem- Reader deciding their future list of characters featured below.
Yoh Asakura
Hao Asakura
Anna Kyoyama / Asakura
Fem- Reader
Now with that out of the way enjoy the fic
Main scenario: The ribbon of Destiny
You had been friends with Yoh for four months, Ever since you met him on monument hill one fateful night as you were there to attend to the grave of one of your ancestors, It would have been a brief conversation until you said “By the way can you see that samurai” with those words Yoh’s interest was peeked, For the rest of the night Yoh and you talked He explained that he was a shaman and the samurai explained that he was Amidamaru who had became Yoh’s spirit ally when their goals aligned.
You agreed to meet with Yoh on a nightly basis and so you did, It was a month into these evening meet ups that you noticed you were beginning to have feelings for him however you knew about Anna and she knew about you, Anna did not like these meet ups I mean she really didn’t like them as she punished Yoh for meeting up with you like that, Even though he assured her that it wasn’t like that.
Everything came to a head the night after the comet of destiny appeared, Anna caught you confessing your feelings to Manta, The next thing you felt was the sharp sting of a hand across your cheek and the harsh words that were spoken “I forbid you from seeing Yoh ever again, I will let you go with just this but if you show your face here again I will make sure you suffer in your afterlife”
With these harsh words you broke into tears, Nothing could console you and you knew this would be the only outcome for not dampening these feelings, you KNEW that Yoh and Anna were meant to be but stupidly you held up hope that he would reciprocate those feelings, After that you dropped out of the school you all attended and started attending a school in your district, Any spirits you made friends with in your brief moments in Yoh’s life you ignored and for the most part you returned to the world you came from.
Half a month had passed since you had saw Yoh and you were back to your old life, You studied in your free time for your finals and you focused yourself on getting into a good college as you went back to your primary goal of getting a degree in (Insert what you want to do here), It was late as you left cram school and you knew it was your turn to pick up ingredients for the evening meal as you left the store with meat and rice for the dinner you spot a familiar face, It couldn’t be, Yoh ?
Without a moments thought you ran towards the familiar figure “Yoh, are you alright?, Its been awhi” your words were cut short as you dawned on your mistake, The person in front of you did indeed look like your one time crush but he was different, You could not see warmth in his face and as you looked into his face you noticed a deep sadness, Your thoughts trailed on as you had noticed you hadn’t spoke since the hick up you only snapped back when the figure in front of you began to speak.
“Hello miss you seem to have spaced out there, Are you okay?” He enquired as you stepped back from him; you collected your self and did a bow of apology.
“I’m sorry you look a lot like someone I used to know” You managed to speak out, your face turning red as you hid in the folds of your scarf, Something must have amused the familiar stranger as he burst into a mocking laugh, He gripped his sides as he continued to laugh.
“Wow the people in this country really are polite” He remarked whilst regaining his composure, Soon after he stopped laughing he introduced himself as Hao, The future king , this statement you found strange but you put it to the back of your mind as one of his eccentricities.
He asked you to meet him tomorrow night at the same time to which you agreed with caution, You made your way home to which you were scolded for being back late after your apologies and a bath you went to bed with so many questions on your mind.
Throughout the next day you couldn’t focus at school, Were you actually going to meet up with that Hao guy or were you going to go straight home and forget your encounter with him, Every hour that passed you flitted between your going and your not going with one final decision and out of actual curiosity you agreed to meet up with Hao.
Walking thought the darkening streets you found your way back to where just a day ago you met Hao, He waited there for you and offered you a sat by him, After a brief conversation in which you asked him the important questions of why he asked to meet you and what was his intentions he stood up and brushed himself off.
“If you want to know, Walk with me” Hao spoke out whilst walking away from you as you stood to follow and within no time the streets turned into woodland, If you weren’t curious about what he had to offer, This would be the part where you would book it and go home but still your curiosity still had a hold on you.
After walking for what felt like an hour you both came to a clearing that was far from town, Hao stopped walking and turned to face you with an eyebrow raised as he crossed his arms and sat on the floor.
“Before I tell you what I have to say I must find out if I can trust you, What are your intentions with the one called Yoh” He questioned in a tone that you knew if you answered with anything less that the truth would lead to dire consequences.
“I bare Yoh no ill will, I used to have feelings for him but I knew that it was stupid to, we have not spoke since his fiancé told me to back off, I went back to my life and that’s, that” you answered looking Hao dead in the eye, Your heart pounding in fear of what could happen, Its true that he looked like Yoh but you could sense he was a different kind of person, With Yoh you knew he’d never hurt you but with this person you were sure he’d kill you if you put a toe out of line.
“I see, So you have no ties to him at this moment in time” He asked.
“No like I said I have not seen him since Anna scolded me” You replied.
Hao then stood up and paced around looking deep in thought “Usually id kill any outsider that would be threat to my plans, But I find you interesting so ill let you live, Spirit of fire, this girl isn’t to be touched” you wondered what he meant with that, You were about to enquire when before you appeared to be a red demon cloaked in flames offering its hand to Hao.
“Now if you wish to know more, Meet me here tomorrow night If not go back to your life and I assure you we will not meet again” Hao remarked before disappearing from your sight, You found your way back to town and went home to mull things over.
I could not decide on what the reader would decide so to end the argument I will dedicate a page each to 2 sub scenarios 1 in which the reader doesn’t follow Hao and 1 where she does and you can decide which 1 you like the best
Scenario diverge: Plume of white Daisies.
(This scenario covers the reader’s choice in remaining at home and the results of this action)
There was no way you could go with him, Hao may have spared your life but that did not mean you owed him anything, You owed it to yourself to put this whole incident behind you and be content that for a brief time in your life you were a minor character in something important.
The next day at school all who knew you were shocked out of speaking, You walked into class and took your seat as one of your classmates broke the silence.
“why did you cut your hair? (insert name),I thought you were growing it” they asked as you looked at them with a warm smile and replied whilst opening your text book.
“I Just fancied a change of pace”
Years passed and the brief time you spent as part of the shaman world had faded from your mind, You were now an adult and now worked in the field of your dreams and were engaged to your S/O who you met whilst studying for your (insert field) Degree, You no longer lived in your hometown as you had to go where the work was however you returned every summer and winter for a week.
During one of your returns to your hometown you decided to visit the grave of your ancestor, not much had changed since your last visit there other than the fact that the grave looked to be attended to frequently and that Daises had began to grow upon the grave.
As you left the old graveyard, You spot a familiar face in the distance approaching a group of people, You came to recognise the tallest one as your long lost school crush and the other as you presumed right now wife, A little boy clings to the legs of his mother.
With a slight nod to them both you make your way back to your parents home, Petals of daises fill the air as you walk towards the future.
End Scene
Scenario Diverge: Scent of hibiscus
(this covers the readers choice to follow Hao and the results of this action)
The morning after you were given the ultimatum from Hao, whether to remain in your world or follow him into the dangerous world of shamans and spirit fight, your mind was made up, You would follow Hao and learn what you could of the world he lives in.
It was early morning as you checked downstairs to make sure the house was empty, It was as your parents had left for work, You began packing a bag of the things you thought you would need and you wrote letters to your loved ones explaining that you were okay and that you didn’t want to be found.
When night approached you stood where Hao told you to meet him, you held you packed bag on one shoulder as you paced waiting for him hoping it wasn’t a trick, hoping that you didn’t need to go home and awkwardly say that your letters were a prank.
“Ahh you showed up, Right choice” You heard a familiar voice say as you turned to face Hao.
“Yes I did now show me what’s to be done”
You spoke out before you both disappeared into the night.
Years had started to pass, In that time you had trained under the watch of Hao and had become his Itako, You both travelled from place to place brining spirits (usually by force) to his side, You did go home from time to time al though meet ups with your family usually ended in arguments, Your parents accused Hao of derailing your path to success and that you could have been more than you are right now.
You didn’t care, You never regretted your actions not even when Yoh looked at you with suspicion when he saw you at the tournament nor when Anna accosted you intending to tell you the truth, The shock on her face was priceless when you told her you knew and didn’t care.
one night whilst sitting down for a cup of tea, you and Hao spoke of the past and the night you both met, he joked of your embarrassment before giving you a bouquet of aromatic hibiscus that to your shock had a ruby ring on one stem, that moment he got down on his knee and smirked.
“Well will you be my queen?”
“You need not ask my king”
End Scene
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lavenderbexlatte · 4 years ago
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office hours
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nct 1.8k words gender-neutral reader insert Reader x Qian Kun SUGGESTIVE/NSFW
🖤 warnings: vaguely inappropriate work relationships, kissing n’ touching, a boner 🖤
connect with me! / masterlist
“Any final questions before I let you go?”
You glance out over your small class of undergraduate seniors, anticipating the usual last-minute queries about due dates for next week or term definitions from your lecture today. These students are pretty bright, all things considered, and extremely attentive even though your senior seminar class meets in the morning.
That’s why the question that one of your back-row girls asks bowls you over as much as it does.
“Doc, do you think Professor Qian is cute?”
“Professor Qian? In the music department?” you ask, trying to hide how flustered you are.
“Yeah. D’you think he’s hot?” the girl repeats, grinning as she shoves her notebook into her bag without breaking eye contact with you.
“I guess…I’ve never really thought about it,” you say honestly.
The girl hums. “Well, I think he’s pretty hot.”
You get the feeling that she’s got an agenda, a feeling that’s only solidified when you see a few of your other students struggling to hold back laughter and smiling into their books. This is not gonna fly. They can’t make things weird for you, these little punks.
“Any other final questions?” you ask, “About the material?”
Heads shake around the room.
“Okay. Go home, and you better have your summaries to me by Sunday night!”
The students pick up their bags and their books and their Hydroflasks, and they leave the room in their ones and twos. As the last one bids you goodbye, and you’re left alone with your notes again, you sincerely hope to yourself that this isn’t going to become…a thing. These kids (young adults, actual grown adults, though you always think of them as kids) are far too old to be pulling shit like this on you.
Truly, deeply, sincerely, you hope that your 22-year-old student is not planning on trying to bag the music professor. That would be way too much trouble to have on your radar.
You sling the last of your class materials into your bag, and head for your usual stop after your ten o’clock class: the nearest dining hall. The school gives you free lunches on the days that you teach, so you might as well take advantage.
One trip through the buffet-style lines later, you’re balancing your full plate as you scan the room for an open table. The only one you can spot, however, is right next to a group of students, and holding court is none other than your senior girl with the apparent penchant for older men.
“-like a fucking idiot!” you hear one of the other students laughing, “He’s faculty. He’ll get fired.”
“Only if I snitch,” your student is saying.
“Or if literally anyone finds out,” says another one.
“No one would find out. No one would care,” your student dismisses. “Unless they’re in the music department, no one even knows who Qian is.”
So she’s really trying to fuck Qian Kun, huh?
It’s none of your business, really. But if this actually happens, and it even gets out that you knew and said nothing, it’ll be your ass on the line, too. And you’re really not one to fight important shit like Title IX. But the girls at the next table aren’t letting up, the conversation turning more and more raunchy and giving you a growing desire to plug yours ears with the shitty cafeteria napkins for some sense of deniability.
You stab at your meal, annoyed at the position that you’re in now, the liability you hold. Fuck.
You’re gonna have to go see this other professor, and head off this mess before it begins.
---------------
It’s rare that you’re on campus in any place but your own department, but you find yourself in the music building later that evening. You’d done a quick snoop on the faculty page and found Professor Qian’s office hours, and decided that sooner is better. If you can get to him before your (admittedly pretty and fit and 22) student does, then maybe you can spare everyone the headache.
His office is tucked at the end of the hall, farthest from the doors into the building. Lucky him, you think. Your own tiny office is smack in the middle, with essentially no privacy as other faculty and students come and go all day long. The door is shut when you reach it, but the light inside is on, so you knock.
“Just a sec!”
You oblige, waiting and praying to anyone who’ll listen that you’re not about to see a very familiar coed behind this door.
But no. When finally, the door opens, all you see is Professor Qian.
He’s not someone you know well, or someone you see often, and maybe that’s why you spend such an awkward amount of time just looking at him. Your first extremely stupid thought is that your student is kind of right: he’s cute. Thick brown hair, neat eyebrows, a jawline that makes him look like a goddamn marble sculpture…
“Can I help you?” he asks.
You nod, mentally kicking yourself for being weird. “Yeah, hi. Can I come in?”
Qian Kun gives you a brilliant gentle smile that reveals deep dimples, and gestures you into his (blessedly empty) office. You introduce yourself, give him your name and your department, and after a cordial handshake and pleasantries, stood in the middle of the tiny space, you decide to just come right out and say it.
“I have a student who I think you know,” you say, “She’s a senior and a double-major.”
He asks for her name, and you give it.
“Yeah, she’s in my senior seminar,” Professor Qian tells you.
“Mine, too,” you say, “And she’s gotten a little…TOO comfortable in class, lately.”
His grin turns lopsided. “Are we talking eating without permission, or something less tasteful?”
“She has made it clear that she’s interested in some things involving you. And her. And sex,” you tell him, fighting to keep your voice level and not actually die of embarrassment.  
Now the grin disappears entirely. “Seriously?”
You nod, “The exact words I heard were ‘he’s super stacked and I want to-‘”
“Whoa, okay!” Professor Qian cuts you off, “Okay, yeah. No.”
“Professor, I’m sure you know this, but I can’t let anything like that happen. We’ll both get canned,” you say.
“Kun.”
“Pardon me?”
“Call me Kun,” he says, “We’re colleagues, don’t need to dance around titles.”
“Kun,” you repeat, “Alright. But you – you’re not going to-”
“Christ, no,” Kun says emphatically, looking scandalized.
“Good. This has been the most thoroughly uncomfortable conversation of my whole career, but good,” you say.
“I would rather you bring it up to me than let things get worse,” he assures you.
“I’m sure it’s flattering to know that students are interested,” you joke. “Sort of wish I was that kind of attractive.”
Kun laughs. “Well, for what it’s worth, I’ve always thought you were attractive.”
Your brain comes screeching to a halt so quickly, you’re sure Kun can hear as it slams on the breaks and leaves you confounded and blinking at him. He has the presence to look a bit sheepish, having just turned this around on you.
“I’m sorry, was that too much?” he says, running a hand through his hair nervously.
“Unexpected but appreciated,” you reply. “And what do you mean, ‘always?’”
Kun shrugs, leaning back against his desk. “We share a lot of students. They talk about you, that makes you stand out, I see you around. Frequency bias.”
You crack a smile. “So, I come here to save you from one of my horny students, only to find you’re my secret admirer, is that it?”
“You could say that.”
He looks amused but not smug, satisfied but not cocky. The way he’s leaning his weight back on the sturdy wooden desk makes it really difficult not to notice his strong thighs in their fitted slacks, or his chest against the thin fabric of his shirt.
Maybe you were a little harsh, before, judging your student’s attraction to him. You can see the appeal. Completely.
You take a step closer to him, which isn’t difficult given the extremely limited space in the office. “You spend a lot of time thinking about me?”
“A completely normal amount of time,” he replies.
“What kinds of things do you think about?”
Kun reaches toward you suddenly, and then hesitates, leaving his hand hovering in the general direction of your hip. Fascinated, you cover his hand with yours and bring it down to meet your side, as he intended.
“How you always look so put-together but act so cavalier,” he says, finally. “How the kids say you curse in lecture and sit cross-legged on your desk and watch TikToks on your phone, but also grade harder than anyone in your department.”
You hadn’t known that anyone noticed those things. Not your students, and least of all some random colleague.
“So what do you wanna do about it?” you ask, genuinely curious.
“Well,” says Kun, taking hold of your hip more firmly, “Since you’re right here, and the door is shut, and you’re not one of my students…”
You laugh, and his smile makes those dimples pop out again.
“Then,” he says, “Then I think I wanna do this.”
You can say with absolute certainty that you didn’t come here to kiss Qian Kun, but that’s exactly what’s happening. He kisses calm and steady, and you’re ready to about melt into his arms. It’s just a few gentle presses of your lips against his, until he suddenly grabs you around the waist and spins the both of you, so that you’re the one up against the desk.
He lifts you the little bit so that you can sit on the cold surface of it. You move your legs to either side of his hips, and he groans a bit as he draws even closer. As he settles his body against yours, you can feel the barest beginning of an erection pressing against your inner thigh.
“Excited already?” you ask, amused, as Kun traces a path of kisses across your jaw.
“Maybe,” he replies, “Are you complaining?”
“Not at all.”
He laughs at that, which makes you laugh, and you hook your arm around his neck to bring his mouth back to yours. You could get used to this, you think, as one of Kun’s hands sneaks down to jerk your button-up out from where it’s tucked into your nice jeans. As soon as he has access, that hand goes right up your shirt to find purchase-
KNOCK KNOCK.
You jump, and Kun glances over his shoulder at the door, panic evident on his face. Before he can call out to tell whomever it is to wait a second, the door swings open.
“Hey, Qian, I had a question about the performance review for-”
Of course, it’s her. Your student, the very same one with the hots for Kun, walking headlong into the office. When she finally looks up and sees you there, on the desk, legs spread and Kun between them, she freezes.
“I…” she sputters, “I – I guess I’ll come back later.”
“Close the door behind you,” Kun agrees.
She nods, looking mortified. “Yeah, yeah, of course. S-see you on Monday, Doc!”
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red-hood-redemption · 4 years ago
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SO I know I’m like, super late to the party, but I finally got my hands on Robin 2021 and there is literally no one for me to talk to about it so now I’m just screaming my thoughts into the void ✌
First off, before i even bought the first two issues, I read through a lot of other people’s opinions on it to kinda get an idea of where it was going characterization-wise for Damian, and because of all the mixed reactions, I figured I should just read it myself and find out. Now I am the FURTHEST thing from a comic book authority, so like, this is truly just an opinion piece but if it convinces anyone to give the run a chance, then yay!!! Honestly, I’m really glad I gave it a shot because I’m genuinely hooked! I’m actually excited about this series (and it scares me lol)!!!
I'm gonna separate my thoughts into two sections: characters, and story, mainly for my own ease, but also if anyone cares more about one thing or the other it's easier to distinguish. But,  the line is a little blurry so if I end up getting a little too much into the characterization in the story section, just bear with me lmao. OH and I'm going to try and keep this as un-spoilery as possible but we'll just have to see. SOOOOOOOO
Characters
I think it goes without saying that Melnikov's art is absolutely gorgeous, and really does show how much Damian has grown up. It makes me want to sob its so beautiful, everyone is so pretty, even the guy that looks like a washed up, high as fuck Tony Stark lmao. But moving on to the actual characters,
Rose Wilson
I honestly don't know too much about Rose, I haven't read enough about her to say anything about her characterization and how it compares to her other appearances, or whether or not she is OOC, but so far, I'm enjoying her taking up the "big sis" role, like, immediately lmao.
I don't know how much I trust her yet, but I definitely get the vibe that even if she does betray Dami in any way, she's probably gonna stick her neck out for Dami again and he's probably gonna do the same.
I'm really intrigued about her motivations for being here. Obviously, Respawn has something to do with it, but I want to know what's up with that. I've seen a lot of theories and I'm so excited. Also side note, that Black Swan chick is hot, and I can't wait to see more of her in action!!!
I feel like Ravager knows a WHOLE lot more than Dami does about the interesting things going on on the island, mainly because she's been doing a lot more sitting and waiting than he has as of yet, but I'm hoping to see more of the two of them doing detective-y sleuthing together. We love a mysteryyyy
Flatline
Okay but real talk, why does she look like a character straight out of Monster High
Honestly tho, I dig it. It's cute! She's cute! She isn't annoying (yet) but I don't know if I care too much about her other than she would make a cute friend for Dami.
I think the problem with DC is that they know people LOVE Harley Quinn and they try so hard to make characters just like her but it always falls short, so honestly I am a little wary of her character development in this run, but I'm willing to give her a shot since her little coffin purse on the cover of the second issue is so damn cute. I'm a slut for character design, okay?
Oh speaking of Flatline and Dami, I don't ship it and I don't want them to force a romantic relationship into Damian's "coming of age"/"soul-searching" moment okay? Because that's what this run is about, at least to me! More on that in the story section!
They're literally 13/14 years old. That's 8th-9th grade, babes lets think about that for a minute
Also let's stop the whole "lets introduce a female character just to make her a love interest!" bullshit okay?
Basically, Flatline is interesting, or at least has the potential to be, but I don't want to get my hopes up because DC is notorious for disservicing their female characters 😕
I think the mixed reaction to her is valid, I don't think she's had much time to make a solid impression yet, so I guess you'd have to read it for yourself. Personally, I don't understand why people immediately hate her, especially because she's like, 14, and what kid that age isn't annoying? like at least a little bit lmao! But, yeah. I don't trust her either but literally everyone on this island is sketchy at least and a murderer at best, so hey 🤷‍♀️
Damian
His new outfit lmaoooo at first I was like "WHaT is this child wearing? You'd think Dick would have rubbed off on him and taught him what good taste looks like" but then I saw the later outfit, with the gold patterning and those sleeeevessssss ugh and I take it all back. A Fashion Icon TM. Truly stunning. A sight to behold. So proud, look at him go 😪
I think there's a lot of different opinions on Damian's characterization in this run, and I can definitely see where its coming from, but I disagree with the notion that Damian has been done dirty and reverted to a blood-thirsty, feral child.  And I have a LOT of opinions on the whole "feral" thing regarding Damian period (but that's for another time).
I don't think of Dami's rampage as a regression for his character. He's letting of emotions right then and I think its very similar to him venting. Its just not verbal, its physical and he knows he's not going to have to grapple with the consequences of his actions on the first kill. He knows he's technically not doing anything wrong.
He is clearly upset at Bruce and his failure to protect Alfred, and while Dami and Bruce are really often described as being very similar personality-wise, they are still distinctly different individuals who came to their current moral codes in vastly different ways. Bruce came to his "no killing" rule on his own; he made that decision for himself. It wasn't taught to him, it was a moment-of-truth kind of situation. Damian, on the other hand is in a vastly different situation.
Dami is, I think, at the beginning of the climb to his own moment-of-truth. He is in his rebellious phase like Dick, where he's gone off to spread his wings. It's not his conscious intention (at least that's not the vibe I got from reading the first two issues), but its directly underlying his "mission".
Damian is growing out of the expectations of his parents and into his own person. We all know he's been thrown from one moral code to another, both drastically different from each other. I don't think its a regression for him to lose his way a little, because realistically, he's going to have to in order to find it, specifically a moral compass that he forged on his own. He's just what? 14? Like hell a kid his age wants to listen to any form of authority. He's as stubborn as it comes. Damian needs to come to his decision regarding the path he takes in life on his own. It can't be made for him. He's seen and lived both sides of the coin, and I don't think he should be forced just yet to choose a side or pave a middle ground, but I do think that he should get the opportunity to see and experience all the gray areas on his own.
I think I'll transition from characterization to story here, because let's face it, this story is about Damian dealing with his confused emotions right now, in the wake of losing Alfred, a man that kind of acted like a grounding presence, a voice of reason, or a moral compass for him (and honestly Bruce and the rest of the bat crew if we're honest).
Story
So there's a lottttt going on in the story that is really enticing and exciting, and I'm really interested to see how it all plays out.
All the rules to the tournament are so, sketchy? Like they don't sound like they are meant to be sketchy, its basic safety and guidelines or whatever but with all the glowy green shit and the stakes of the tournament? Yeah, you can bet your ass its the "no fighting at night" and other shit is gonna be broken, and that's likely when the fun begins *insert evil laughter*😈
I was slightly put off by the whole "let me teach you to have fun" thing with Rose, because it's not like Dick, Steph, Jon, and like the Titans haven't done that with him too, but eh, not something I'm too concerned about. It's definitely just a segway to get us introduced to more characters that might become Damian's friends which will be interesting considering what Mother Soul said about fraternizing.
And that's another thing! I want Damian to make some friends! I know he already has some, but here's the thing: I think he's already been struggling with belonging, and he's definitely been feeling the disconnect between his life and other kids', whether they're supers/vigilantes or not. I think it'd be nice to see Dami have the experience of meeting people who he at first thinks are just like him!! and then realizing that maybe he doesn't really fit in here either, and that it's okay to feel like you don't belong, as isolating as it may feel at times. It just means you have a set of values. I want him to realize that its not always a bad thing, and you learn more about yourself and your own heart this way.
And from there,,, lets talk about the thing that stuck out to me the most in these two issues! GUILT!! It's mentioned SOO many times already, and I think its going to be a really fun, heartbreaking, and interesting aspect to explore about Damian. Is it guilt about his actions? Leaving behind family? Not being able to save Alfred? Not being a perfect example of Robin? He may call himself Robin but he doesn't sport the OG look or symbol like before. I love that his guilt takes on the form of Alfred though, or at least his conscious. I think it'd be really interesting to see this conscious disappear when Dami strays too far from his center, and when he finds it again, it reappears.
I really think that seeing Damian's actions in this run as a failure of character development is an unfair assessment, though. You can't do everything right in order to grow! You have to screw up, lose your way, experiment with life to find your fit, right?
Something tells me he doesn’t care for the tournament itself, but the end result, and the people behind it and more about WHY it was hidden from him. I mean he finds out the tournament TRULY begins once everyone has died once and tHEN he kill everyone? Felt to me less like a “killing spree” as everyone put it to a calculated decision to get the tournament going. He literally cuts Mother Soul off in the middle of her speaking to start fighting at the beginning
Anyway, just my thoughts lol. I do have some issues with the past two issues, and I might make a separate post about that, but honestly not enough for me to dislike Robin 2021 so far. I mean, besides the very obvious white-washing in the second issue, because DC can absolutely do better. And they should. It’s like they thought we wouldn’t notice???? But besides that, story and characterization-wise I’m looking forward to more. Here’s to hoping it stays that way, just with a better colorist!
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masterhandss · 5 years ago
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Hamefura Idol AU!
No one on tumblr really knows it but... I love idols, like idol animes and games are my childhood and has eaten away at my very soul. I like drawing and imagining idol aus for pretty much any show I get into, and sadly hamefura isn’t gonna be an exception to that :P
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(i’ve yet to draw for my dumb au so have a placeholder image from an upcoming anthology by @/relaxmakoto)
Instead of being isekai-ed to a bootleg PS4 otome game, our monkey girl gets reincarnated into “Fortune Lover: Cinderella Idol!”, an idol-production rhythm game (help me i’m bad a choosing names).
(Long post, I’m basically gonna retell the entire game in an idol setting lol. I only wanted to draw for this au, but thinking about plot and gameplay was too fun so I wanted to share it)
The Game
The original game’s story follows Maria Campbell, the main character of the game who applied for a job in Sorcier Productions after seeing a wanted ad online. By some luck, she gets hired as a temp-producer for the famous male idol group “Fortuna”. After a few hours of gameplay involving producing the male idols (Gerald, Keith, Alan and Nicol) through the game’s tutorial (introducing various aspects of the gameplay like “Choosing your Idol”, “Getting Relationship Points”, “Rhythm Game Concert Mode”, “Idol Produce Mode”, “TV Drama Mode” etc), the game reveals the plot twist of the game: Not just the male idols, but you get to also idol-produce yourself!
By the outcome of various events, Maria ends up performing in the stead of another idol during a mini concert that she escorts the boys with, and immediately stole the hearts of the audience by her beauty and hidden talents! M.C. is actually the first idol in the “Self-Produced Idol” project, one that aims to determine and bring out the full talents of an idol by exposing them to all the in outs of the idol world. Maria ends up becoming quite known very quickly, being rumored as a “Cinderella” of the idol world (In sports, the term Cinderella is used to refer to situations in which competitors achieve far greater success than would reasonably have been expected, rather than the typical meaning of Cinderella which means “damsel”). This rumor leads her to the anti-hero rivals for Maria (who ends up joining you in the game as idols you can produce), the perfect idol Mary Hunt and the “rarely appears publicly despite her talents” Sophia Ascart.
They start out as rivals for the game but ends up becoming friends with you and becoming produce-able idols like the 4 boys. You can even form a trio unit with the girls if you have enough relationship points (when your trio unit “Amour” is unlocked, you get more events, songs and outfits for you and the two girls!). But the true antagonist of the game is Katarina Claes, a boastful and prideful newbie idol who joined a few months before Maria, who earned a fan base thanks to her confidence and mature style. She doesn’t have the best voiced or is very skilled at dancing, but her confidence and ideals draws people to love her for her unique character. Katarina lacks self-awareness though, and thinks that she is the jack of all trades when it comes to being an idol, thus leading her to have an unbelievable amount of self confidence when it comes to her popularity and skills. She despises Maria Campbell because of how much the articles praise her for her charm and adorable singing, as she thinks that Maria is nothing more than a wannabe that doesn’t know the harsh reality of the idol world (the irony of that is an important aspect of the game’s story, since Katarina is overly reliant on her producer Anne, and Maria is the one who works both as an idol and as a producer).
Maria doesn’t really play much into the “self-insert” protagonist, more like an involved protagonist like Izumi from A3 that plays an important role into the story. The player does get to choose Maria’s (and everyone else’s) songs, schedules, outfits etc. by the guise that you are Maria, working as both an idol and as a producer.
The game does have a “relationship points” system, which means you can actually date one of the boys form Fortuna (secretly). Even if you don’t intentionally date anyone, the game already does play the “you, the main character, are so important and they wouldn’t know what to do if you weren’t here” agenda that most games have, so the game already makes all the love interests seem interested with you regardless of whether you actively target Gerald, Keith, Alan or Nicol.
Katarina’s Bad End
(Rather than the life threatening doom flags of FL) In the game, Katarina Claes constantly sabotages Maria’s events and performances, creating the conflict in the “story mode” and the “events” of the game. Near the end of the game, the character who has the highest relationship points with Maria will reveal Katarina’s awful treatment of Maria in public, ruining Katarina’s reputation and causing her to lose public opinion and fans
Sabotaging fellow idols is actually quite common in idol stories, but the extent that Katarina goes for her bullying is terrible, which shocks the public because that side of the idol world had never been put into the forefront before. While Katarina does have an arrogant and prideful personality, learning that she, who didn’t have the cleanest reputation in the first place, has been harassing the darling of the idol world, meant that shows, programs, radios and events didn’t hire or invite Katarina anymore in fear of loss in sales or public outrage, leading to her eventual downfall.
The final event of the game, the Idol Queen Tournament, Katarina performs despite her ruined reputation, and was met with almost no response from the audience. Realizing that her life as an entertainer is ruined, she quits and vanishes from the public eye.
It is said in the epilogue that she moved into the country side, by a small farming field, shunned by her parents and the public for her embarrassing behavior, in order to repent and look back on her actions, much to her anger and disapproval.
The degree of Katarina appearances and story events differ depending on which male idol love interest Maria has the highest points in. Katarina is most active if you are closer to Gerald, as she is madly inlove with him and only became an idol to be by his side (as Gerald won as the “Idol King” of that year, and Katarina aimed to be his “queen”). Katarina is also frequently present in Keith’s events and interactions, as she makes fun of the both of you for being a disgrace as idols. She also appears on Alan and Nicole, but not as much.
“Fortuna” and “Amour”
Fortuna, the most popular male idol group during that time, and Amour the all-new girls idol unit, are the “produced” characters of the game
(i’m bad at thinking at idol group names so those are placeholders lol)
Gerald Stuart is a child actor known for being a perfectionist. Even as a child, he had a good face, pose, fashion sense, perfect memory, amazing acting talent and charisma to carry himself infront of a crowd. He became an idol in hopes of escaping the endless sea of acting offers he gets, and to just starve off a bit of his boredom and free time. He ends up becoming interest in their new producer Maria, due to her unique circumstance and how hard working and earnest she is. Idols are known for being prohibited from dating, but in the Gerald Ending Epilogue, he proudly announces Maria as the woman of his affections and deeply apologizes to all his rabid fans and supporters, and hopes to gain their support for his feelings for her. The two are crowned the “Prince and Princess” of the idol world for that decade.
Keith Claes is an adopted son of the Claes Household. He was bullied by his sister and mother, making him feel alone and isolated as a child. In his teens, he became a handsome playboy that easily caught the hearts of a female crowd, leading him to be scouted by someone in Sorcier Productions. He accepted, wanting to use the love of a huge fanbase to drown himself with praise and adoration and to fill the hole in his heart from years of trauma and loneliness.
Keith attempted to flirt with his new young producer, but gets constantly rejected due to the idea that idols can’t date (and bc Maria is just so busy), making him crave Maria’s attention even more. He ends up respecting her diligence, intelligence, beauty and honesty, making him slowly fall inlove with her. In the Keith Ending Epilogue, Keith confesses to Maria and wants to date her, but knows that he can’t just let go of the fans that he gained from his playboy persona, so instead he gives her a promise ring, telling Maria that when their whole “idol” thing is over with and pass them, he hopes to be able to date her (and even marry her) for real one day without a fanbase that might attempt to seperate them.
Alan Stuart is the twin brother of Gerald, who is often compared to his twin brother due to his lack of acting and entertainment skills. Alan does however, have a deep love for music. He might not be as good with instruments as his brother, but unlike Gerald, he truly loves composing and performing music and finds solace in the melodies that he can convey. Alan ends up becoming an idol due to his love for music, with the desire to one day use the connections he can make as an idol to become a full-time composer and song writer (as well as to generally learn how to sing bc he secretly likes that too). Alan also wanted to be an idol as a way to compete with his brother in an area that he is more knowledgeable on.
Throughout Alan’s encounters with Maria, he ends up rejecting Maria’s friendship and praises due to his inferiority with his brother. Through time, Maria’s constant praises of Alan’s music and singing ends up resonating with him, leading up to her telling him that he shouldn’t compare himself to his twin brother and there are only things that he is good at, like his music. Maybe a line like “Not even Gerald can recreate the melodies that you write and compose, Alan! These scores are very Alan-like, and there’s nothing I’d rather listen to; nothing that warms my heart more. This is something only you can do, as Alan and no one else” does him in.
In the Alan Ending Epilogue, he admits that his heart isn’t ready for a relationship yet, but declares that he wants to be with Maria forever and that from the moment Maria started to make an impact in his life, she had become the “Aria” of his music, and that he wants her to know that he will always write his music with his love for her in mind. He wants to be able to convey his love for her through song one day, and he hopes that she will continue to love him until he finds the right words to sing.
Mary Hunt is the daughter to a famous businessman and politician, who has connections to the Stuart Family. She met Alan by accident, during the dinner party in her house for his father’s birthday. Mary was hiding in her beloved garden, and had encountered Alan who had done the same, before she could retreat to her safe haven. She was in awe as she watched Alan play and sing a song in his small guitar, almost thinking that the song was for her. They ended up singing in a duet, with Alan complimenting her voice, saying that she should develop it. Mary instantly fell inlove with Alan, and had trained herself in the same musical arts that Alan loved, especially the voiced that he had complimented, in order to one day become worthy of performing by his side. She had originally assumed that Alan wanted to perform for an opera or musical, but when she found out that Alan wanted to become an idol, she auditioned to Sorcier Pro. as fast as she could.
In Alan’s ending, Mary was very heartbroken to know that she could not be the one to stay by her beloved Alan’s side, but silently thanked Maria for breaking Alan free from the inner turmoils that Mary knew was an impossible job for her. Despite her feelings, she still wanted to sing by Maria’s side and congratulates the two with all of her heart.
Nicol Ascart is the son to the esteemed Ascart Family, owner of the Ascart Inc., one of the major sponsors for Sorcier Productions. Nicol has been a child model and was popular since childhood because of his beautiful face. He doesn’t talk much, so when someone has filmed him singing to himself in the hallways in highschool, it immediately went viral, causing various scouts to offer him a role as an idol. Nicol had only accepted his request due to the circumstances of his little sister, Sophia.
Sophia Ascart is born with unique features, leading to her being bullied and made fun of in public due to her stage appearance. Sophia has always loved idols, being envious of their ability to enchant a crowd and sing songs about their feelings out loud. She had a sweet voice and an adorable face, but her hair and eyes caused people to think of her as a freak. She wanted to become one, but knew it would impossible for her. Nicol decided to use his popularity to jump-start Sophia’s possible idol career, by trying to brainwash/persuade his fans to also love Sophia (when she first joined and started as an idol). It didn’t work on everyone, but he was determined to help his sister.
When Maria befriends and even starts a unit with Sophia, Nicol eventually fell for the woman who made both his and Sophia’s wish come true. There’s also the fact that as their producer, Maria became a true friend of Nicol’s, one that didn’t look at him with obsessive desire and only wanted nothing more than to be a friend and an ally.
In the Nicol Ending Epilogue, he quits being an idol due to his desire to eventually join his father in the family business, much to the disappointment of his fans, but promises to always watch Maria from the side lines. He would always send bouquets almost everyday, with small cards giving the declarations of love that he normally wouldn’t be able to vocalize. He thanks her for supporting both him and his little sister, and promises to jump to her side once she is done being an idol.
Bakarina
As usual, Katarina ends up remembering her future as an 8 year old kid, and plans to prepare for her future “banishment” and humiliation. She learns to farm in order to provide for herself once she gets shunned and retreats to the countryside, and (unknowingly) meets all the characters in the game and gains their good favor before the events of the game begins
I’ll write the rest of the plot involving reincarnated!Katarina next time lol :P
This au is obviously heavily influenced by a lot of the Idolmaster console and mobile games, Ensemble Stars, A3, Vocaloid Project Diva games, Aikatsu etc lol. Thanks to anyone who gets to read till the end. Feedback (and name suggestions) are very appreciated! Hamefura is still a small fandom so idk if i’d write for this au, but it’s a good enough excuse to draw the girls in cute idol clothes so i’ll take it XD)
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bluemoon-writer · 5 years ago
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Childhood Friends AU: MariKim Headcanons
Part 3- In which Lila fails at ruining Marinette’s life
Part 1 is here
The masterlist is here
(Just a heads up, this is pretty long)
------------
-Lila still wants to destroy Marinette
She has to be more careful now around Adrien though
-So she’s ecstatic to find out about Marinette and Kim
Adrien wasn’t there when Kim revealed how close he and Marinette are
Which makes Kim the perfect target for Lila, she can drive Kim away from Marinette and make her miserable without Adrien suspecting a thing
-So, she starts by flirting with Kim in class
Which, to her frustration, goes miserably
-Because Kim already knows she’s a liar
-Marinette told him about the confrontation she “overheard” between Ladybug and Adrien at the park at dinner that night
Which also resulted in their parents hearing all about Lila
-When Lila comes back, Kim is skeptical of what she says, but he also doesn’t hear a lot of it. He works out before school, so he only got to class a minute before the class actually started
hence why his seat stayed the same
he watched in confusion when Marinette was pushed to the back of the room
he figures he’ll ask her about it at lunch, since they usually go to her house, but Max drags him to the cafeteria, saying he has to help Lila since her wrist is sprained
Kim doubts that because, as an athlete, he’s had several sprained ankles, wrists, ect and he always wrapped them, or wore a brace until they were better
and Lila has no brace
-But Kim follows and helps because maybe Lila doesn’t know that she should do that
When Marinette throws a napkin at Lila he’s even more confused because it’s not like Marinette to randomly throw things at people
unless it’s him, he asked her years ago to help him hone quick reflexes, and she’s been throwing things at him ever since
-He suggests to Lila that she should wrap her wrist to help with healing and to lessen pain, but she just glares at him and storms away
Kim shrugs it off and goes about the rest of his day
-but at the end of the school day Marinette drags him off to rant about Lila
Kim is pissed, when he gets to lacrosse practice later he wipes the field with his teammates. His coach pulls him aside after practice and asks him if everything is alright bc he’s never seen him play that aggressively
-after that day, he’s goes out of his way to avoid Lila at school. He gets to class just before it starts and heads straight to practice when it ends. He and Marinette always go home for lunch so they don’t have to listen to Lila’s crazy stories
-so when Lila suddenly starts focusing on him, he’s a bit suspicious
-he’s not enticed by her (fake) offers to introduce him to world class coaches
he says that he could never betray his current coaches
-he’s not impressed by her “athletic feats”
        “I once did a (insert insanely impossible action here) in (insert sport) and my coach was so impressed! he wanted me to go to the olympics, but I’m not interested in the fame. I’m satisfied just being able to play (insert mispronunciation of earlier sport)”
“huh, not me. I’d never pass up a chance to go to the olympics.”
“Oh, well maybe I can help you train! I am an olympic level athlete”
“No way! I don’t want any of my teammates feeling jealous if I get extra training.”
-stroking his ego doesn’t seem to work either
“Wow Kim, you’re so strong!”
“It’s from weight lifting. You should try it sometime, it’ll give your arms some more definition!”
“You’re amazingly talented at sports! I could never be that good”
“Anyone can do great with enough dedication and practice! I used to be scrawny and weak too, but if you put your mind to it you can be athletic like me Lila!”
-and flirting fails too (bc Kim doesn’t realize she’s flirting)
“Your so handsome Kim.”
“Thanks, my grandma says so too!”
“I hope your girlfriend doesn’t get jealous that I’m talking to you...I’d never want to ruin your relationship!”
“Girlfriend?!? I don’t have time for that, not when there are more important things like swimming practice!”
“To be honest...I like hanging out with boys more than girls...because the girls in our class are just so pretty...and then there’s me :’(”
“Yeah, there are some really pretty girls in our class!”
“Especially, compared to Marinette...she’s so pretty and talented. I must seem like a loser to her.”
“Aw don’t say that! Marinette is pretty, talented, and kind. Marinette will like you no matter how lame you are!”
-Since words aren’t working, Lila has to switch to actions
-She actually starts working out with Kim in the morning
-She dresses up, full make up, brand new work out clothes ready to flirt Kim’s head off
-Only to arrive to see Marinette and Kim full-speed sprinting around the track
-She waits and pretends to stretch bc there’s no way in hell she’s going to run and get sweaty
-Kim barely pays attention to her, he and Marinette are competing to see who can do more pull ups
-Lila pretends to drop a dumbell on her foot to get his attention
-Kim barely looks up, “that’s why you don’t pick a dumbell thats too heavy for you. Try using the 2 pound one instead.”
Lila leaves early, but doesn’t give up.
Kim said Marinette doesn’t come every day, so Lila decides to come everyday until she figures out which day Marinette doesn’t come
-Unfortunately, Kim and Mari realize what Lila’s doing, and Marinette just has a “sudden, inexplicable urge workout”
Lila wants to scream in frustration
She fakes a strained ankle as an excuse to skip morning workouts
-She decides to try switching seats again, except this time to put herself next to Kim, and Marinette in the far back again.
Her “sprained ankle” is very helpful because she can’t climb all those stairs with a strained ankle, so she has to sit in the front row.
It’s easy. Instead of coming up with a complicated plan to get her classmates to rearrange themselves she just goes to Ms. Bustier
-she meets with her before class and explains her sprained ankle and she hates to accidentally move someone away from her friends just so she can sit in the front row, so she proposes a new seating arrangement
”I think I put everyone next to someone they like. I’d hate for someone to be lonely all because of my sprained ankle” 
Ms. Bustier looks at it and it seems like a good seating chart so she agrees. It seems like everyone is near a friend
(scroll down for the seating chart)
-Then, after Ms. Bustier announces the new seating chart, Lila asks Alya is she wants to switch places with Kim
“it’s just that...I know you’re friends with Marinette, so I don’t mind sitting by Kim. He is kind of cute”
Alya readily agrees and goes to ask Kim to switch seats but he says no
-He has no desire to sit next to Lila and tells Alya that if she wants to switch seats she’ll have to ask Ms. Bustier
-Lila is pissed because the second part of the plan was to go to Ms. Bustier at the end of the day and apologize for creating such a disruptive seating plan 
“I had no idea people would be so distracted when they’re by their friends”
add in a fake sob, “I’m so sorry, you must be so *sob* disappointed in me. Here, it’s not much, but I can help you make a new *sob* seating chart that should maximize people’s ability to pay attention”
Ms. Bustier would have no idea that there had been a problem, bc at that point she was used to having students be constantly distracted
but (ideally) she’d accept the plan because it CLEARLY meant so much to Lila (/s)
-But with Kim turning down Alya, she’d have to change the plan a little
-She assumed since Marinette and Kim are supposed to be such good friends then they’d talk through class and she’d be able to separate them since they’re so *distracted*
unfortunately, (for Lila) they’re the best behaved students in class that day
-The moment Ms. Bustier announced the seat change and Marinette saw the smirk on Lila’s face, she knew something was up
so they put on their best behavior during class and double check their bags at all times
Lila is pissed, but goes through with the second half of her plan, figuring she can at least make the seating chart work better for herself
She wants to be surrounded by people who are either easily manipulated or have connections
and she wants to break up any major pairings that might give her a disadvantage (like Chloe and Sabrina)
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^(a Chart of the seating changes)
-Ms. Bustier agrees to change the seats again
“I’m disappointed to see that you all are not mature enough to sit near your friends without disrupting class, so I’m afraid I have to change the seats again.”
-Almost no one is happy, but no one is as pissed as Chloe
For once though, Ms. Bustier stands her ground, stating that sitting alone with no distractions should hopefully improve her grades.
-Kim is actually thankful to Lila. He forgot how much fun sitting next to Marinette in primary school was
they figured out how to discreetly pass notes
(and Ms. Bustier isn’t really watching for it anyways. She only notices it when it’s pointed out)
and with Lila in the front of the room there’s no one to rat on them
-Nino hates to admit it, but he does pay better attention when he’s away from Adrien and Alya
Max is a really good seatmate too, he’s always willing to share his notes if he notices Nino getting lost and will explain things to him during their breaks
and Nino’s not completely alone, he has Marinette and Kim behind him. He’s not super close with Kim, but they end up getting along surprisingly well
-Alya is sad to be separated from her boyfriend and best friend, but finds sitting next to Lila to be really fun
she’s always passing her funny notes when Bustier has her back turned and she tells the best stories during the break
-Adrien thinks he’s in hell, his best friend is far away from him, and his only friend near him is to distracted by Lila to speak with him
he eventually asks Ms. Bustier if he can move next to Chloe (just so he doesn’t have to hear another ridiculous story from Lila)
She agrees because he’s an almost straight A student, and he promises to keep Chloe on track
Lila’s not happy about the change, but takes the opportunity to make another minion and convinces Mylène to move into Adrien’s old spot
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-Nino’s estatic that Adrien is near him, and so’s Adrien tbh. He also doesn’t mind sitting next to Chloe, she’s been quiet since she was separated from Sabrina
-Adrien’s surprised to see that Marinette and Kim are so friendly, and Nino fills him in on what he missed during the boulder akuma attack
-Marinette was pissed at first that Lila got her way and was able to move everyone around as she pleased...but honestly, it worked out
She enjoys sitting by Kim and she’s still near most of her friends, the only person she’s missing is Alya
But Alya doesn’t look miserable, so Marinette’s willing to leave this be
-ironically, the seat change allowed Marinette to hang out with Adrien more
both Nino and Chloe needed to work on their grades (Chloe had great homework scores, bc Sabrina did it, but poor test scores)
Max likes Nino, he’s less jittery than Kim which helps him pay attention better and Nino writes down really good questions about what he’s confused about
which helps Max immensely bc he likes explaining things, he’s the type of person where explaining something to someone helps him learn it better
so Max proposes a study group that weekend to help Nino out, Marinette offers her place, and Kim, the ultimate wingman, invites Adrien (bc he’s clearly pretending not to eavesdrop) and Adrien casually mentions that Chloe needs help studying too
-thus resulting in one of the oddest study groups in the history of Francois DuPont
but it goes well, Chloe is happy to be hanging out with Adrien so she plays nice.
the group hangs out in Marinette’s living room and after two hours of studying they end up playing the newest game Max is working on
-Lila debates giving up on Kim, but she has a few more tricks up her sleeve.
First, she tries blaming her sprained ankle on Marinette
She corners Kim after class and puts on a sad face, “I know you’re good friends, so I hate to tell you this, but...Marinette isn’t who you think she is. She’s the reason I sprained my ankle *fake sob* she threatened me to stay away from you, and then pushed me, making me sprain my ankle.”
“Huh, that’s weird, because Marinette and I went to her parents bakery for breakfast right after working out that day. You must have mistaken someone else for Marinette, maybe you should get an eye exam? You’ll never make it back to the Olympics with bad eye sight!”    
-Then, Lila tries to turn Marinette against Kim.      
She sends Alya screenshots of a fake group chat with her (Lila), Max, and Kim where the two boys are making fun of Marinette.       
-Omg Alya, I’m in a group chat with Kim and Max for studying and they started talking shit about Mari! What do I do?”        
Alya, of course, immediately texts Marinette who brushes it off.         
“Those are so fake Alya”.         
“Look, Girl, I know you’re Friends with Kim, but maybe he’s not who he seems.”
“No, Alya, Max has never in his life used an emoji. These are definitely fake texts.”         
-Lila is starting to get really frustrated at this point.          
-She straight up just asks Kim out after school one day, with a fancy heart shaped card and everything  
When he says no, she blows up.         
She has spent hours trying to win him over! She’s beautiful, and smart and he’s the stupidest person in the world for not wanting to date her.         
-Hawkmoth akumatizes her into Heart Stealer where she has the power to make anyone instantly love her when hit with one of her heart notes.           
-Ladybug chooses King Monkey to assist her on this one.        
-One uproar and Lucky Charm later and Lila is back to normal.          
She’s hoping that after being akumatized she can guilt Kim into going on a date again.     
but he turns her down again.       
“But why? Marinette has a crush on Adrien you know! She’s not going to date you, so why not go out with me?”            
Lila continues to confound Kim,
 “Haha what? Marinette? She’s my best friend, but I’m not interested in her! Also, aren’t you interested in Adrien?”           
-Lila huffs and storms off, she gives up on Kim. There’s got to be easier ways to mess with Marinette than dealing with her idiot guard dog.      
-Kim triumphantly high-fives Marinette who was waiting around the corner.         
-The akuma took up most of his practice time, so he skips what’s left of practice and they go to the bakery to celebrate          
Marinette and Kim commandeer a stove and make some special (extra sugary) macaroons -they end up starting a flour fight and get the kitchen pretty messy, but luckily the bakery was closing so they didn’t get in Tom’s way.    
they offer to clean the whole kitchen to make up for it            
it only takes 5 seconds for Kim to make a bet about who can clean faster. Within 20 minutes the whole kitchen is sparkling and Kim and Marinette are arguing about who cleaned faster.    
-the macaroons give them such a sugar high that Sabine kicks them out of the house and tells them to go run laps or something until Kim’s parents arrive for dinner.      
Kim challenges Marinette to a race around the park to see whose faster
She beats him, but only barely.        
“best two out of three”.        
The second time Kim wins, and the third lap is interrupted by the arrival Kim’s parents.    
-Sabine is testing a new recipe sent to her by her brother for dinner
she likes to try out new recipes when the two families get together for dinner      
it’s delicious, but Marinette and Kim are actually exhausted from running around the park.        
-it’s supposed to be game night but Mari and Kim can’t stay awake for it.      
filling their stomachs with warm food makes them sleepy and the end up passing out on the couch  
their parents play a quiet card game at the table and take a picture (read as a thousand pictures) of the two cuddling on the couch.           
-the next few weeks of class go rather peacefully.      
-although Lila’s not through with yet      
-and sometimes Kim can’t stop thinking about what Lila said about him liking Marinette
---
This is so fucking long, I’m sorry. 
Let me know if you want to be on the taglist for all my MLB posts, only all Childhood AU posts, or only the MariKim Childhood AU posts (the next few are probably going to focus on other characters)
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ephemeral-writings · 5 years ago
Text
Everything I Need // 05
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oh sehun x reader
genre: angst, fluff
word count: 4.4k
Everything I Need // oh sehun teaches you a thing or two about life. but falling for the boy who lived across from you was not what you had anticipated.  
A/N– Hope you guys are doing well, staying safe and healthy. Please feel free to talk to me if you need a place to displace any anxiety you might have. Also, thank you to anyone that’s still reading this otl i’m sorry for the turtle--snail pace updates, but truly, thank you if you’re still showing interest in this story💓 Please leave me your thoughts!!! Enjoy reading!! 
Also, happy birthday to the love of my life, oh sehun; you’ve been my muse since day one and you’ll be my muse until the end. 
Part 01 / Part 02 / Part 03 / Part 04 / Part 05
//////
Somehow the dinners with Sehun became a common part of your routine. You would come home from your shift some nights, and Sehun, as if he had memorized your schedule, would knock on your door just minutes after you had returned, asking you if you had eaten yet. Before you knew it, a month had flown by, and then another half. 
A friendship, dare you say, was beginning to bloom between you and Sehun; however, whatever feelings you had reserved for the man was left unexplored. 
Sehun proved to be a man full of surprises, a new layer of his personality unveiling itself with every time you met up. One minute he’d be a gentleman, grilling meats and plating them on your plate before his own, or swapping dishes with you if you expressed even a mild dislike to the food you decidedly ordered. But next, he’d be teasing you nonstop about your small quirks like your tendency to neatly clean up after a meal-- you called it server tendency-- or how you might have a more serious case of RBF than he does. That argument was still up for debate.
Sehun, from the moments you’re allowed to ponder the man, was nothing you’d expected. His quiet nature that you once thought was from a place of cockiness and judgment turned out to be him being quite the shy and soft-spoken man. His actions, however, were what struck you the most surprised. Like when he’d randomly press his palm to your lower back whenever he ushers you back into your apartment at the end of the night, as if his body had naturally adapted to being close to you; or when he’d stare so intently into your eyes while you’re talking, towering over you easily with his stature, that you feel like he’s looking right into the depths of your soul-- the theatrics of it all was disconcerting. For the most part, despite all the chords he struck somewhat unconsciously, you were set in favor of his presence. 
The end of November was creeping in, and so was the cold weather. You realized that once you began layering a long-sleeve underneath your work shirt, and Chanyeol’s music was becoming a new definition of cozy. 
“So,” Chanyeol started. “My friend hooked me up with a gig this weekend. I’m thinking about inviting my partner. Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions?” He listed off as you’re both closing for the night. You’re closing out the register while Chanyeol stacked the chairs and swept the floor. 
“Give me a sec. You know better than to talk to me while I’m counting, Yeol,” you grumbled, finishing off your till five minutes later. “Okay, what’s up?” 
“I’m looking at this opportunity to show off my music a little, ya know? Plus, she’s also been more responsive, less edgy. Do you think she’ll agree to go?” 
“It doesn’t hurt to ask.” You offered. “Where’s this again?” 
“A pretty popular club among the kids at uni actually, called Love Shot,” he said. “You heard of it?” 
You racked through your head at the familiar name, and you finally realize that it was the club that Sehun worked at. 
“Yeah,” you said, nonchalantly before adding, “Went there for a party once.” 
Chanyeol stopped sweeping all together and looked at you as if you had five heads growing out of your neck. “Wait, you went to a party? At a club?” He half asked, half accused, and you almost got offended by his tone of voice, when he added, “And I wasn’t invited?” 
You reddened at the realization at how pathetic you must look to other people when you’ve quite successfully hermit yourself from social events, to the point that even Chanyeol finds it unbelievable. “Whatever, Yeol, that isn’t important right now. We’re talking about you.” 
“Nu-uh, this changes things. I wasn’t gonna pressure you to come because I know how you are,” you frown deeply at that, to which Chanyeol only points a knowing brow at you. “But, now you have to come, Y/N. You could wing-man me!” He exclaimed as if it was the most ingenious idea he had ever manifested. 
“First of all, I don’t know the first thing about wingmanning, you don’t want me to wingman-- or is it wingwoman? you, dude.” You quickly objected to the idea flat out. You could just see it now, you trying to hype Chanyeol and inadvertently making him look stupid instead(not that he doesn’t play part in that himself alone), and by the end of it, you’ll probably make a fool of yourself by trying to rectify what was never there to begin with. 
“Please, Y/N,” he begged. “I want you there when I perform some of my new stuff.”
Chanyeol tried persuading you to go watch him perform at Love Shot for the remainder of the night until you finally relented. You don’t really even know why you’re so hesitant on going, but thinking about the night of Jongdae’s birthday makes your stomach churn anxiously. 
“Shit, it’s raining,” Chanyeol said when you’ve both clocked out. He nudged you with an elbow, saying, “Let’s go, I’ll drive you home.” 
Chanyeol drove a Jeep, one that you find very difficult to get in and out of, but you suppose a free ride home was better than getting caught in the rain. 
“You wanna come up? I could make something for us to eat?” You offered when nearing your apartment. 
“Sure,” Chanyeol shrugged, claiming anything was better than cereal for dinner. He parked his Jeep in the allotted spot for your unit and cut the engine while you’re pulling your hood over your head for the oncoming rain. “Wanna race?” 
“You could run, but you’ll slip and end up hurting yourself.” You chortled, imagining his lumber worth of limbs flailing in the air. Chanyeol ends up half walking, half jogging, heeding your warning as an afterthought than anything else. 
While you’re searching for your keys in your purse, footsteps coming up the stairs and voices belonging to young men echoes through the hall. It was Sehun, and he had friends with him--one of which you’ve met before in passing when he had dropped by Sehun’s place while you were also over(for only 5 minutes as you had to use his printer because yours had jammed). 
“Oh, it’s you again,” the guy aforementioned spoke, greeting you brightly afterwards. You returned the greeting, ever as awkward, shooting a less stiff one to Sehun as well while he returned a thoughtful look that had your cheeks warming. 
“Hi, I’m Baekhyun,” he said, thrusting a hand forward for Chanyeol to take.
“Park Chanyeol,” he replied, voice booming loudly, though not unkindly. 
The other man seemed familiar, and you realized after a closer look, it was the other bartender you saw the night of Jongdae’s birthday; he introduces himself as Kim Jongin. 
“Did you just get off?” It was Sehun who asked the question that was directed towards you. You nodded, characteristically shy from the attention of both Sehun and his friends. 
Something suddenly clicked in Chanyeol’s head then-- you distinctly recognize the spark that flashes across his pupils-- and you think absolutely nothing good could come from whatever he has working in his head. 
“We just got off; we work together. And you are?” Chanyeol questioned, tone nosy and maybe a tad bit menacing, but maybe it was because you knew him better. Sehun, having gone quieter than usual, simply tells him his name with no further insertion that would’ve qualmed Chanyeol’s brewing curiosity. 
“What a coincidence, these two work together, too,” Baekhyun said, gesturing towards Sehun and Jongin, and because Chanyeol felt like conjuring his inner Holmes, he inquired the said place in which the two--
“Awe fuck,” you thought, brain finally catching up with Chanyeol’s, and with the help of Baekhyun, Chanyeol’s formless scheme began taking shape. 
“No shit,” Chanyeol said, stretching out the first word as he turns to you with a sadistic almost-grin. You glared at him, attempting not to wear the anxiety on your face that could possibly, wordlessly confirm his suspicions that might or might not have already gone too far into his head. Chanyeol doesn’t mind your silent pleas to shut up. 
As the silent(and painful, for you) interaction between you and Chanyeol transpired, the three male stared, perplexed by the whole ordeal; one man in particular being more bothered by it than the rest. 
Sehun hadn’t expected you to talk about him to your friends or anything(even though he does to his’), but he’d be lying if the revelation didn’t strike him as surprising, or made him a tad bit upset. 
“Is something wrong?” Baekhyun eventually asked with a wry smile, breaking the tension between you and Chanyeol . 
Chanyeol promptly turned to them, slapping on his wide and creepy smile as he explained, “Y/N gets moody when she’s hungry, and she’s supposed to be making us food right about now.” They laughed hesitantly, not quite sure what to make of Chanyeol’s statement, until Sehun spoke up. 
“Don’t let us keep you, then.” Sehun nodded curtly, and without further ado, marched into his apartment with Baekhyun and Jongin following. Once they were out of sight, Chanyeol steered you into your own unit, muttering, “Guess I’m staying a little later than planned.” 
-
The week goes by bizarrely quick, what with Chanyeol’s constant tormenting through work and text. After that night, according to him, Sehun was your secret boyfriend whom you’ve been hiding, which was absolutely ridiculous, and you never failed to reject the notion every single time it was brought up. 
Thu 15:21 delivered 
‘Stop. Tagging. Me. In’
15:22 delivered
‘Relationship memes.’
Yeol Thu 15:24 received 
‘im being supportive’
‘its ur first relationship after all’
Chanyeol sent with the stupid face emoji blowing in a tissue attached to his message.
Thu 15:25 delivered
‘im blocking u’
In a blink of an eye, the weekend was at your doorstep. You spent over half an hour agonizing over what to wear, fumbled with your scant collection of makeup only to end up with a few strokes here and there to brighten your dull complexion and to open up your eyes from the evident lack of sleep, and in the end, you looked...decent. 
Suddenly, your phone dinged from across the room where it was charging. Chanyeol was reminding you that he was going on at 9pm, and also telling you how nervous he was because he just saw Eun walk in. 
20:24 delivered 
‘go say hi to her!!’
Yeol 20:25 received
‘GOING’
‘pray i don’t choke’
You grinned, sending him all the luck in the universe so that he doesn’t make a fool of himself. He’s worried about nothing, you thought, for Chanyeol was a kind, thoughtful, and humble guy, not that you’d ever tell him that yourself. Likewise, you’d like to think that he saw the good in you, despite it being so difficult for those qualities to reflect in your eyes, and it was why your friendship was so easy. 
As you’re walking out, your phone dinged again. It wasn’t from Chanyeol, but Sehun instead. 
Sehun 20:34 received
‘Hey, did I just see your friend at loveshot?’
‘Chanyeol? I think’
20:34 delivered
‘yeah, he said he’s performing there tonight’
You debated adding the fact that you were heading there right then, when suddenly, you contemplated your state of emotions, whether you were excited or anxious to see Sehun again, at Loveshot no less. It was certainly out of your comfort zone, hence the anxiety that bubbled away in your stomach, but Sehun was familiar now and Chanyeol’s a close friend, so it shouldn’t be that terrible. Right? 
Sehun didn’t reply immediately, to which you assumed was due to the fact that he was presently on duty. You arrived shortly after, seeing a decent sized queue outside of the club. You were about to shoot a text to Chanyeol to let him know you’d arrived when two messages came in at the same time. 
Yeol 20:52 received
‘U here yet?’
Sehun 20:52 received
‘does that mean i’ll see you tonight?’
Ignoring the latter message that short circuited your mind for a second, you responded to Chanyeol’s, and not two minutes later, he emerged from the club’s entrance, peeking around the crowd for your small stature. 
“Y/N!” He beckoned you over, whispered something to the bouncer’s ear, and you’re both walking back into the lively albeit dim space before you knew it. Chanyeol’s looking the best you had ever seen him; dressed to the nines in his dark denim over white graphic hoodie, paired with ripped, black jeans and chains draped along his right thigh, you think that this Eun girl would be a fool if she couldn’t see his efforts to impress her when Chanyeol lives in essentially five different hoodies. 
“I’m actually shocked that you made it, was sort of expecting you to flake last minute,” Chanyeol said, giving your outfit a subtle once-over and grinning when you rolled your eyes at him. You’re wearing a tight-fitting tank top, one that has lace edging the bust and cropped to your midriff, and to cover up from the cold, you wore a cropped black puffer jacket. Your bottom’s a pair of black high waisted jeans, the slightly flared at the ankles making you look longer than you really are especially with your ankle boots. 
“But then again, your secret boyfriend is working tonight, so maybe you’re really here for him, who knows,” he smirked with mirth swimming in his eyes. At that, you remembered Sehun’s message, its implications bringing warmth to your cheeks.
You shoved the tall idiot with an elbow, though it does little to affect him. He’s cackling to himself stupidly all the way until you both reach the bar, a destination you hadn’t noticed you were even heading towards, not with how Chanyeol’s dumb teasing had distracted you, making your cheeks flushed and heart race for nothing. Subtly, you scanned the vicinity for Sehun but spotted him nowhere in sight.
It was Jongin instead that took notice of you first. “Hey, it’s you again,” he said, voice throaty and silvery at the same time. The tone could easily be menacing had it not been for the kindness floating in his orbs or the disarming half-smile he gives you, as if he knew something that you didn’t. 
You managed a polite smile in response before Chanyeol abruptly pushed on your shoulders, forcefully planting you on one of the chairs, directly in front of the bar.
“I’m gonna head up now,” he tells you. “Get yourself comfortable before I introduce you to Eun later, cool?” 
Letting go of your petty bickering for a moment, you gave his forearms a placatory squeeze while wishing him good luck and off he went. 
“Can I grab you something to drink?” Jongin asked when Chanyeol was out of sight. You told him the same thing you told Sehun last time, giving him the freedom to choose for you. 
“Sehun’s slacking off somewhere,” Jongin said suddenly, distracting you from watching Chanyeol as he introduced himself. You clapped along with the crowd, though your brain had separated itself and you could only respond to Jongin with a questioning look. What made him think you were looking for Sehun? 
“Oh,” he exclaimed, staring over your right shoulder. “Speaking of the devil.” 
Sehun ignored the other boy all together, only looking at you as he spoke. “Hey, you never answered my text.” You turned to face him, his expression at first hard then gradually dissolving into something softer the longer he stared at you; he was in his uniform again, minus the velvet bow tie and plaid vest that you assume was specially worn for Jongdae’s birthday event. Even with just the striped button down, a few buttons undone from the top, he managed to garner more looks than you could’ve imagine. His arm goes to prop himself on the countertop as he leaned closer to you since his height was towering over you and glaringly so. You caught a whiff of his scent as you breathed in, attempting to calm your nerves, but laced with the familiar seaside breeze came the all too familiar acrid smell of cigarettes. It was nowhere near the stench that clung to your father’s breath, clothes, and skin, but the effect was there nonetheless.
“Y/N?” Sehun had repeated your name twice before you realized where you were, who he was, and how far you were from the past. His hand had barely grazed your arm when you snapped out of it, unknowingly with a recoil under his touch, something that doesn’t go unnoticed by both Sehun and Jongin. The former leaned in even closer, and asked in a hushed tone, “You okay?” 
Not trusting your voice, you only nodded while giving him a weak smile. “I - need to use the restroom, excuse me.” You tried to ignore Sehun’s imploring gaze on you as you got up and walked towards the direction of where the restrooms were.
“Get it together, Y/N,” you muttered under your breath as you stared at your reflection in the mirror. You willed your mind to focus on something-- anything-- that was presently in front of you, needed to get a grip on reality. It felt like your brain was being dissected, that your eyes were so distanced and while out of one window you saw your reflection, pale and panic stricken, you also saw your childhood home. You saw your father sitting in his chair with a lit cigarette between his fingers, and his face looking so far gone that he doesn’t even notice you standing right in front of him.  
“Well, well,” a voice started, echoing so suddenly on the tiles of the restroom that the image of your father dissipates all together at once. “It looks like my night just got a whole lot more interesting.” 
You turned your head, finally grasping onto something real, however unfortunate it was to be no one other than Liah. You groaned internally, from the dull pain in your head or from the prospect of the upcoming headache that the girl will cause? Take a wild guess. 
“Wow, didn’t know my existence had such an influence on you. I’m flattered,” you said, face blank as ever. 
Liah clucked her tongue, looking annoyed which was no surprise to you. “Don’t be a smartass, Y/N, no one likes a smart,” she drawled. This time you outwardly rolled your eyes, turning to the mirror again as you prepare to tie up your hair. It was getting uncomfortable with how heated your skin got after your little episode. 
“But I suppose it’s an upgrade from being a coward, hmm?” She mocked sympathy as if you keeping quiet to her belittling all those years ago wasn’t a result of how miserable she made your life. 
You’re trying hard not to lose your cool because the last thing you wanted was to stir something up that frankly shouldn’t be touched. But the word coward pulsates in your ears, clinging adamantly to your memory as it digs and digs for all the names your father has called you, worser than coward. Liah doesn’t mean shit to you, not anymore, you told yourself. 
You’ve washed your hand after successfully tying up your hair; it’s messy and unruly but you tell yourself it’s a damn look, especially as you turned, once again, to stare at Liah directly in the eye, and said, “Smartass or coward, I’d rather be those than someone who feeds off of other’s weaknesses.” 
If you’d bothered to stay and watch Liah’s reaction, you would’ve seen the utter hatred within her eyes as she tried to stare you into the submission she once did. 
You headed back to the bar, thankfully unscathed, but the unwelcome trip down memory lane mired your thoughts as you tried to recomposed yourself. 
Jongin was the one who caught your approaching figure first. He nudged Sehun who was polishing a glass by his side before taking a few steps away to tend to some patrons, leaving you and Sehun alone. Well, alone as alone could be when you’re standing in the middle of a packed club. 
You plopped back on the same chair from earlier, making as little eye contact as possible with the man. 
“You’re flushed,” Sehun bluntly noted. He stopped what he was doing to really look at you. With your hair up, there’s no hiding the rosy hue painting your cheeks and ears. You’d feel too hot with it down, so you bear Sehun’s scrutiny for the moment. 
“Because it’s getting hot in here,” you said in a ‘duh’ tone. “Are you making my drink again?” 
Sehun squinted at you before deciding to drop questioning your suspicious behavior. “Do you want sex-” 
“You don’t have to say the name, y’know,” you tell him quickly, a little panicked and fully blushing. Sehun outrightly smirked and somewhere between the music playing, you imagined Jongin’s laughter. 
“Your friend’s growing a fanclub up there,” he said, starting on the drink. 
You spun in your seat to see that Chanyeol indeed has some girls fawning over him. A few more tenacious ones slid, not-so-discreetly, crumpled up napkins with what you assume to have scribbled phone numbers on them. You gave credit that Chanyeol politely declined all advances on the spot; with a boyish grin and shake of his head, no one could get mad at that. It made him appear professional, but you also didn’t miss the way he would glance at a certain someone every time it happened. 
You snort while muttering, “Way to be subtle.” 
“What was that?” Sehun voiced. 
Turning your body back around to face him again, you said, “Nothing. Just that there’s gonna be some hearts broken, is all.” 
You don’t notice the way Sehun’s grip on the tumbler becomes tighter from your words. 
Sehun, for the most part, kept you company for the night. Jongin jumped in every once in a while, and you found him to be quite the clumsy yet the most suavest guy you’d ever met. He reminded you of another tall ogre and that in itself was something that allowed you to release your inhibitions for the night. 
“Alright, alright,” you slurred, “What do you call a bear with no teeth?” 
Jongin squinted at you, seemingly deep in thought, and opened his mouth to answer but someone else had beaten him to it.  
“A gummy bear! Why’re you going around telling my jokes?” Chanyeol blurted. He took advantage of the slouched over position you were in to give you a noogie. 
“Ugh, get your crummy hands off of me,” you groaned in protest, not bothering to lift your head to glare at the man. Instead your eyes settled the girl standing next to Chanyeol. “Oh? You must be Eun.”
“And you must be Y/N,” the girl smiled, and you could’ve sworn you heard Chanyeol’s heart beat right out of his chest. She offered you her hand, and before grabbing it, you suppressed the tickle in your bloodstream. You looked more sober in that split second than you probably felt.  
“Jeez, how much did she have to drink?” Yeol asked the two tenders. 
“Not too much,” Jongin supplied. “We cut her off after she started reciting psych theories to us,” he continued, to which you sing-songed replied with, “The more you know.” 
It made Eun giggle so that’s all that mattered. She easily slid into the seat next to you, and left Chanyeol towering over behind you two. Seeing as you were getting acquainted, he excused himself to go talk “business” with the owner. 
“Don’t go trying to make yourself sound cooler than you really are, Yeol,” you reprimanded, earning a half-smirk-half-shy-grin from Eun. Jongin offered to show Chanyeol the way to the owner’s office, leaving Sehun to tend once more. You whined for another cocktail, but the man remained steady in his stance to cut you off for the night. Eun doesn’t drink, so he offers her, and yourself, some club soda instead.
Eun was surprisingly easy to talk to; her voice seemed to lull you in like a siren and you think-- it’s no wonder Chanyeol was so taken by her. You have half a mind to straightforwardly tell her, “you know--  Chanyeol’s like-- ready to bust the fattest uwu for you, right?” but then that didn’t seem quite the way to go. You snort like an idiot, stopping Eun mid-sentence. Sehun and Eun exchanged looks. 
“You okay there, darling?” It was Eun who asked you while Sehun simultaneously mumbled, “Maybe we should’ve stopped at the first drink.” 
You repeatedly tell them “no, no no it’s not that,” but “I was just thinking about how good you and Chanyeol would be - together.” 
There was a pregnant silence after that, and you realized that wow, that was a big Not-a-Good-Wingwoman thing to say. Eun looked thoroughly blindsided, and if you could see clearly enough, you would’ve seen the quirk in her lips by your honest words. You let out an indignant sound from your throat, ready to apologize for your stupidity, when Eun suddenly let out an awkward but hearty laughter. Sehun had appeared amused whereas you looked like a fish out of its bowl. 
“Thank you, for saying that,” she smiled, making you beam in relief. You knew then that there was more to Eun than you realized. Her eyes glimmered with hope, or maybe it was apprehension, at the prospect of Chanyeol’s affection. 
Right then, Chanyeol’s voice boomed, “Alright, ladies,” startling both you and Eun. ��Deal’s been sealed. You’re looking at a regular DJ of Loveshot,” he boasted, and as if you had planned it, you both rolled your eyes followed by the mandatory kudos, even by Sehun himself. 
“You girls ready to go?” Chanyeol asked. 
At the same time that Eun replied yes, you chimed, “I’m gonna stick around for a bit.” Chanyeol sent you a doubtful look, to which you fail-winked back at him while Eun wasn’t looking; he smiled, grateful at first, but then it morphed into something mischievous when he detected the man behind the bar watchful gaze on you. 
“Right then,” he echoed, then stared at Sehun when he asked, “Do you mind taking her home?”
Sehun, who had really only glanced at Chanyeol when he spoke to him, returned his eyes on you, and asked, “Do you mind waiting a bit?” 
How he manages to sound so soft and gentle yet all the same impassive in his speech unnerved you. You found yourself shaking your head, agreeing with him and whatever was to come. 
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feliciamontagues · 4 years ago
Text
My Ranking of Every Hercule Flambeau Episode (S01-S08)
There are some spoilers for S7 and S8, but they are fairly vague and pretty much the sort of thing that you might see on the official press release. So not true spoilers as such. Also this is totally subjective and the result of my own personal biases. It’s also behind the cut because it’s looooonnng. 
8. The Two Deaths of Hercule Flambeau (s06e10)--
So, this episode is *fine*. It’s hardly the worst episode of the show, but it’s easily the weakest of the Flamby eps, despite their being a few isolated moments I enjoy. (Hercule getting a long overdue bedroom scene for one :P)
My main gripe is with this episode is the uneven way Lisandra Flambeau is written. The script seems to flip-flop over whether we are supposed to find her sympathetic or not.  On one hand,  many scenes imply that she genuinely loves Hercule despite them having a shotgun marriage after only a few days of knowing each other. On the other hand, she does not hesitate for a minute before poisoning an innocent (Fr. B) for no other reason than to hurt Flamby, which makes her lose a lot of sympathy points.
And as a result, it seems to make Flambeau seem like more of arse than normal for betraying her, while somehow also absolving him of responsibility for doing so, because she turns around and does *THAT.*
And ngl, it does make me a little uncomfortable that while the character of Lisandra (as an Italian) is possibly not meant to be interpreted as a POC, the actress portraying her definitely is. (Sara Martins is of Afro-Portuguese descent).  Which makes the uneven characterization (and underwritten-ness) seem even more glaring, especially  when compared to that of the other (white) women in Flambeau’s life (his first love Rebecca and his daughter Marianne, arguably Lady Felicia as well). It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth even if  in all likelihood, the part wasn’t written with Sara Martins in mind.
I think a much more interesting approach to Lisandra would be to have intending to betray Flambeau all along. Maybe she had her own agenda for seducing Flamby, meanwhile he thinks he’s the one using her for his plan. Maybe she does develop some feelings for him along the way, but it only makes her hesitate for a moment before going ahead with her original plan. That way, she keeps her agency and isn’t reduced to the “woman scorned” stereotype while also leaving the writers free to ship Flamby with others in the future without seemingly endorsing guilt-free adultery .
Other random note: I can’t take  parts of this episode seriously because the “Crown of Lombardy” is very obviously Guinevere’s crown from BBC Merlin with no attempt to alter or disguise it. 
7. The Daughter of Autolycus (s04e05)--
Not gonna lie, I am not really a fan of “character has long lost relative that we’ve never heard of until now” plots. And that goes double when said long-lost relative is a child or sibling. As such my low ranking of this episode is partly due to unconscious personal biases against that trope.
That being said, if we had to get a long-lost relative that we’ve never heard of until now plot, I’m so glad we got Marianne--even if it takes her another episode to really live up to her potential. 
I have to knock off a few more points for Nero Hound as a villain. For one thing, he was played by Nancy Carroll’s real-life hubby, but they didn’t let let him interact with Lady F at all. Such a *waste.*  Also Nero Hound is far too similar a name to Nero Wolfe, and I’ve definitely confused them on more than one occasion). He’s also rather generic in my opinion, even compared to some of Flambeau’s other “generic mobster” rivals/associates like the ones in S8.
However, there are some moments in this episode I genuinely like--particularly the theft “imagine spot” and Flambeau’s bishop disguise in general. Plus, the scenes where Flambeau and Marianne appear together are excellent, as are the hints that Marianne will become a redemptive trigger in Flambeau’s life.
6. The Judgement of Man (s03e10)--
Again, the low ranking of this one may be due to personal biases.  In this case, I’m still low-key bitter--five years later-- at the BBC marketing department for baiting me with the idea of Flambeau actually interacting with the rest of the squad (esp romantic tiems with Lady F)  and then giving me the absolute minimum of Felicia/Flambeau flirting and no Flambeau/Sid and Flambeau/Mrs. M interaction.
But there are other reasons why this is in my bottom 3 Flambeau episodes. 
Honestly, I feel like an equally compelling episode about the Vatican’s complicity in Nazi art theft could’ve been made without having to insert Flambeau in it. I mean I suppose it does make sense to have the art thief character  in the art episode, but still I feel like both Flambeau backstory and important historical lesson about Nazis, the Church, and Jewish art suffer from being crammed into the same episode. 
That being said, Mrs. McCarthy’s duchess disguise in this episode cleared my skin, watered my crops, etc, which is why I’ve ranked it higher than the previous two. 
5. The Folly of Jephthah (s08e05)
It loses a few points because I got very exited about the idea of Marianne becoming Bunty’s thief gf cool new friend, and yet in the episode itself, they only shared one scene and didn’t really interact much in it. That being said, I did like like that Bunty and Mrs. M had a bigger role in this episode than the squad usually gets in Flambeau episodes. 
Overall, I feel this episode works a lot better than most of the other “backstory-heavy” Flambeau episodes, because we’ve already gotten the Marianne-related exposition out of the way and can focus more on allowing her character, Flambeau’s and their relationship with each other to develop.
I’m also a bit smug in that I predicted (or at least hoped for) this exact character arc for Marianne within a few weeks of “The Daughter of Autocylus” airing and that my hopes came to fruition so beautifully.
It doesn’t particularly impact the ranking too much, but I do feel like this episode deserves a special shout out, because it has established a (hopefully-continuing!) pattern of Father Brown calling Flamby  almost exclusively by his first name, which is a major significant step in their bromance and deserves recognition as such. 
4. The Blue Cross (s01e10)--
As someone who was first exposed to Father Brown through reading the stories for a college course, I always find it especially interesting to look at the episodes that were adapted from Chesterton. 
This episode is neither the most faithful book-to-show adaptation (which is probably “The Three Tools of Death”) nor is it the best (imo “The Sign of the Broken Sword’) , but it is arguably the most significant. “The Blue Cross” was the first ever Fr. Brown story and is probably the most well-known. It’s also the first real look we get at the character of Flambeau, who (in the stories and arguably the show as well) is probably the closest thing we get to a clear character arc.
The show keeps some of the important elements of the short  story: Flambeau’s clergyman disguise, the switching of the packages. But it also has the challenging task of upping the relatively low stakes of the story, as well as introducing a major recurring character that resembles his book counterpart but remains distinct enough to justify the fairly different direction show canon is taking him. 
The show does this reasonably well--if not particularly imaginatively. I do enjoy some of the touches (I’ve written an entire meta before about Flamby’s reading material on the train and how it relates to his character)--particularly the show’s choice to have Flambeau fixated on religious art specifically (RIP for Flambeau’s Dairy Company though. It will always live in my heart).
Unfortunately in the adaptation, loses a few points for not really using the show-original characters particularly effectively. It loses still more for Flambeau’s characterization in this episode . He comes across as much more  serious and menacing in this episode than in all the others. It works okay when we consider this as a standalone episode but provides some glaring Early Installment Weirdness when we compare it to other episodes. 
3. The Penitent Man (s05e15)--
So as the rest of this list  will testify, I have strong preference for the “fun” Flambeau episodes over the more series ones. This is the exception that proves the rule--the  serious, cerebral, melancholy episode that simply “works” for me in the way that some of the others have not.
A lot of it is due to the more-intense-than-usual Flambeau character focus that goes into this. Sure, we’ve met his (presumably ex-by-now) wife, his daughter, and his first love by this point, but all of those episodes focused primarily on Flambeau as an extension of the relationships with others. (”The Judgement of Man”  in particular is far more Rebecca’s story than Hercule’s.)
Whereas this episode is very definitively focused on Flambeau himself and allows more nuanced exploration of two of the most defining facets of Flambeau’s character:  (1) his fascination with religion--and spiritual salvation in particular--  as  something he seems to resist and crave in near equal measure  (2) his almost masochistic streak of recklessness.
Even though Flambeau’s supposed “piety” is revealed to be all part of his heist plan, there are strong hints that his desire for redemption and atonement are at least somewhat genuine, even if he is not  ready to pursue them just yet. 
Off topic, but a few random things of note in this episode: this episode all-but-confirms bi!Flambeau, wet!Flambeau at the end is extremely relevant to my interests, Father Brown attempts to smuggle Flamby a lock pick from the beginning and has the audacity to say “ I only use it when I get locked out of the presbytery.”
Also, it has this iconic exchange:
Goodfellow: What is that awful smell?
Father Brown (covered in sewage): It’s me
2. The Honorable Thief (S07e10)-- So nearly all of the Flambeau-centered episodes from S3 on  have been a little preoccupied with filling in some of the gaps in Flambeau’s backstory, which is *fine*, but honestly, I feel like in doing so, they’ve really lost sight of why we fell in love with the character in the first place. 
 He’s vibrant and clever and funny and over-the-top. But most importantly, Flambeau is a lot of fun. Therefore, it follows that episodes that feature him should be a lot of fun too. 
And well... they are all fun in some way,  but they aren’t as fun as they really could be. John Light is insanely charismatic, but charisma can only go so far when the episode in question is a downer.
Fortunately, this episode is the furthest thing from a downer imaginable. It’s absolutely delightful from start to finish. The plot is serious enough to keep things engaging, but also light enough to keep us from getting too distracted by angst. 
I’m also incredibly biased in favor of this episode, because it finally gave me the Felicia/Flambeau ship tease I’d been passionately hoping for (if not really expecting to get after “The Judgement of Man” disappointed me). But it was so much and so good, and I wasn’t ready for it.
In a broader sense though, this episode really delivered with Flambeau/squad interaction in general--which was a key component that has been missing from most of the other episodes. And the Father Brown & Flambeau interactions were also has heartwarming and funny as they always are.
If I have one tiny little gripe with the episode, it’s that Daniel is not Sid. He has enough broad similarities with Sid that I can’t help but wonder if the episode was originally written with Sid and then hastily re-written when Alex Price couldn’t return. That being said, he was a likable enough guest character in his own right, and I wouldn’t mind seeing him again.
1.  The Mysteries of the Rosary (S02e05)-- Perfection. Not only is this THE definitive Flambeau episode, but is also one of the best episodes of the show overall. It has everything: the birth of bearded Flamby, bromantic road trips, a treasure hunt, great guest turns from Anton Lesser and Sylvestra Le Touzel.
I think part of the reason this episode resonates so strongly with me is that it’s really the first proper sense that we get of Show!Flambeau as a character. Sure we officially met him in “The Blue Cross,” but considering he didn’t show up until halfway through the episode and was in disguise for most of it, we didn’t really get much of a sense of who he is.
This episode changes all that and sets Flambeau up as the character we will know and love for the rest of the series--charming, urbane, funny, passionate, a carefree carpe diem exterior masking (or overcompensating for?) a sense of uncertainty and conflictedness.
Somewhat off topic, but as great an episode as this is for Flambeau’s character, it is nearly as wonderful for both Sid and Father Brown’s characters. We get to see Sid’s  ease with Father Brown, the casual camraderie that the two of them have--as well as Sid’s protectiveness (and jealousy) when Flambeau decides to gatecrash their bromantic road trip. 
Honestly, there are so many things that are great about this episode that I don’t think I could possibly list them--but one little detail that really struck my the last time I watched was that the first proper glimpse we see of Flambeau in this episode (we see him in shadow in a flashback before) involves him  saving Father Brown’s life.  Whereas the last proper glimpse we see of Flambeau is after Father Brown has saved Flambeau’s life.  Thematic reversals. Cinematic parallels. We love to see it. 
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melancholydreadfuldream · 5 years ago
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seven devils dreaming
Fandom: Doctor Who
Summary: DW AU. You have a new assignment, to keep an eye on a man called John Smith. Easy, right? That’s until the truth is revealed behind who John Smith really is. The most dangerous man in the universe, the trickster of the world, the last of the Time Lord, the oncoming storm called the Doctor, trapped in a human state.
Pairing: Tenth Doctor x Reader
Warning: ooc, deception, mention of sex, a possibility of dark!doctor, obsessive behavior, mention of torture.
A/N: Honestly, this is also a nonsense of a fanfic indulging in the idea of dark!doctor. But I couldn’t write very well hence this will be a painful read. But I’m gonna post it anyway because I am evil.
Ugh, I was bored. I have been inactive ever since my last mission 2 month ago. I have been assigned for desk duty which is such a waste of my potential. I am one of the best actives in the Division where I work. And yet here I am sentenced into desk duty as punishment for punching the jerk-face that is my client during my last mission. In my defense, that jerk-face deserved it. That man was horrible and it was times like this I hated my job, to protect bad guy like him. Though in my line of work it was actually all about the pay day.
The base where I work is located in some alien planet with permission from the local. We got along with the local fairly well. The Division offered protection in exchange for the space we occupied for our headquarter.
The Division consists of both alien and human, we are all to work together to monitor the happening in the universe and sell information to those who seek it and depending on the clients, we are to step in to stop the chaos or cause it. We are no shadow proclamation or even time agency. In fact, the time agency hated us but still sometimes they also used our service.
Someone dropped a folder on my desk right in front of me.
“Look like you got your wish, (last name), you are off desk duty. That is your new mission.” Luke said. He is one of my co-worker in analysis section. He is not an active like me. In Division, we called our field agents an active.
I picked up the folder with excitement and frowned when I saw the contain. “Babysitting duty? Again? Why me? Can’t someone else do it?”
Luke is annoyed. “Would you prefer desk duty then?”
“I will take it.” I quickly said.
“Good. Because you don’t actually have a choice. The big guy upstairs ask for you specifically for this assignment.”
“The big guy did? Is this another punishment?” I asked in exasperation.
Luke shrugged. “Wasn’t that bad. You get to be undercover the duration required to keep an eye on that guy.”
I pulled the picture of my target. A handsome man called John Smith. “Is that a fake name?” I asked. The man in the picture is actually good looking, an eye candy, so maybe it won’t be so bad.
I read the detail regarding this John Smith. A human. A history teacher for a school in Beacon Hill, a small town on Earth. He also work as a librarian.
“Ugh, boring…” I complained. “What is interesting about him that someone pay us to keep an eyes for him?”
Luke shrugged. “Don’t judge a book by its cover.”
“But this guy sounded boring. His lecture probably put his students to sleep.” I mocked. “Also, ‘keep an eye on him by inserting active on his daily life’. Please don’t tell me I have to be undercover as a teacher?”
“I felt bad for your students if that is the case…” Luke said in flat tone.
“Hey!” I yelled offended.
“You actually can pick how you are planning to insert yourself into his life.”
I grinned mischeviously. “I want a job where I get to kick bad guys in return for watching over that boring man.” I gasped dramatically. “A private investigator. I always wanted to be a PI.” I grinned. “(Name) (last name) PI.”
“Glad to see your finding amusement in this.” Luke said but his tone is anything but glad. “How are you meant to watch over him if you go after bad guys?”
I shrugged. “I will make it work.” I picked up the picture again. “I’m about to rock this guy world.” I said with a huge grin.
Had I known who John Smith really is, I would have refused the job. But I was set up.
&&&&
“The Doctor is indisposed. He won’t be causing us trouble. And I have employed actives to distract the human doctor.”
“Make sure it stay that way.”
&&&&
Inserting myself into John Smith’s routine is fairly easy. I ‘met’ him during his time working in the library. I was there for research. I introduced myself as a PI who just moved in town.
John is polite and awkward but very helpful in my research.
I thought it would be fun to be PI but considering I was in a small town, there is hardly any excitements here.
As a PI, mostly I got bored at my office which I rented on the second floor of a bar. The place is quite large so that’s where I stay for the night.
I didn’t stalk John all day because I didn’t want to catch attention of the people of town so I hang out in the bar and befriended the bartender. Small town, people like to gossip, so I have to be extra careful, newcomer tend to catch the town people’s eyes. At least, the bartender is cute and friendly, his name is Holden.
My first case is to find a missing cat much to my chagrin. The second case is slightly more intriguing, to investigate a husband affair.
In between, I always made sure to go to the library for my 'research’. I got to speak with John a few times now and he is hilariously awkward with women. Some women in Beacon Hills evidently find him eye-pleasing and love to flirt with him. After I saw how he dealt with them, I realized I can’t be outright flirting with him. He would just shot me down like he did the others.
Though, I supposed I have a better chance because John is definitely interested in me when I mentioned that I work as a PI.
He is curious why I moved into the small town of Beacon Hills and I said I needed a fresh start.
&&&&
John found me lurking around at the school where he teaches.
I told him I have a concerned parent as my client who want me to take a look at their son’s life, fearing he’s involved with the wrong sort of crowd.
John, as a teacher, is rightly concerned and offered to help especially when, surprise surprise, the boy in question is actually one of his student.
Well, I was supposed to keep an eye on him too so him volunteering to help is helping my case. Two birds one stone kind of thing. I was pleased with myself.
I found out I was wrong about John though. His lecture didn’t put his students to sleep. He has a funny way to make history interesting. And it does help that he is good looking so most of his female students are very attentive to listen to his lecture in hope to get a praise. He is very likable among his students. He is one of the students’ favorite teacher.
John discreetly pointed to the boy, Clarke, his name. I turned to watch over the boy and he did look too distracted. John is concerned and he wishes to talk to the boy. Of course, it didn’t end well. Teenagers. They want our attentions and they don’t want it too. I watched as Clarke get mad at John and left.
So I followed the boy, he is my job after all. I wanted to get paid so I have to report the case as soon as possible. I have some other boring clients I need to deal with too beside Clarke’s parents. The soonest I finish with all of them, the quickest I could establish my reputation as PI here and get accepted by the town. Then I can finally focus back on my primary mission, John.
Of course the son of the client ended up in trouble and I have to intervene. Though I ended up in jail for starting a fight with the local drug gang. The parents are right, Clarke did get into a mess with the gang and now they are blackmailing him. Once I found out what they have on Clarke, I politely asked them to hand over their blackmail material to me and they laughed in my face. So I violently asked with my fist instead.
The Sheriff glanced at me in displeasure as I stared back at him from behind the bars. I could tell he dislikes me already, probably think I’m trouble. Well, he’s not wrong.
John surprised me when he come to the police station to bail me out. He seemed on a good term with the Sheriff that the old man actually let me off the hook.
“Thanks, I owe you one.” I said as we got out of the police station.
“You didn’t owe me anything, Miss (Last Name). You are doing a good thing after all…for Clarke…”
“Yeah, just call me (Name). I didn’t do it for Clarke. I’m being paid by his parents, remember?” I dismissed his claim.
“Still, you saved him from the gang. I’m grateful for that.” John turned to glance at my face. “That look hurt.” He tentatively touches the bruises on my face.
I winced.  "Should have seen the other guys…“ I said with a laugh.
“I really can’t say I’m approve with how you deal with the gang though…” he said in firm tone.
“Ah, you are one of those pacifist people, huh?” I rolled my eyes.
“Well, I wouldn’t go that far…but I do believe in less violence and more talking.”
“No wonder you are a teacher.”
“What’s wrong with being a teacher?”
I shrugged. “Nothing, I suppose. Well then, Mr Smith, thank you again for your help but I gotta go…”
“Call me John.”
I blinked and then shrugged with a small smile. “See you around, John.”
“See you soon, (Name)” He actually pick up one of my hands and kissed it like a gentleman from those classic movies. “Take good care of yourself.”
&&&&
The next day, while I was hanging out on the bar nursing my drink, I spotted John entered the bar. I raised my eyebrows at him. He didn’t strike me as the type to go to a bar sort of person. Too gentlemanly. He seated himself beside me without invite.
“What are you doing here? Aren’t you suppose to teach Beacon Hills’ bright young minds?” I asked teasingly.
“I have a free period.” John replied as he glanced at me. “I feel concern for you.”
“Me? Why?”
He shrugged. “So what about you? No client today?”
“Nope.” I said. “Can I buy you a drink, John?”
“Sure.”
And from then on, we become sort of friends. I hang out on the library in lazy afternoon when my work as PI is slow. He hang out at the bar at night at my request whenever I need to wind up. I also invited him to my office to have a look around.
“Sorry, the place is messy…” I said.
“It’s fine. I’m the one who is intruding…” He glanced around the room. “You sleep here?”
“Yeah, can’t afford separate living space and office.”
John hummed. “Nice place though.”
“I know.”
&&&&
“So what’s with you and the teacher?” Holden, the bartender asked one day.
I raised an eyebrow at him. “What do you mean?”
“Lately I saw you hanging out a lot with him. Are you seeing him?”
“Just friends.”
“Friends that hang out most of the times?” he asked in obvious disbelief.
“we find kindred spirit in each other?” I spouted out bullshit.
“Fine, if you don’t want to tell me…” Holden shrugged with a pout. “You are alone today?”
“yeah. John has a teacher gala thing.”
“He didn’t invite you along?”
“Not my thing.”
He finally left me alone to deal with the other customers.
&&&&
John is adorably awkward. He told me about a fellow teacher at the school, Joan, who seem to be politely flirting with her.
“Well, if you like her, flirt back.” I said.
“I don’t know…”
“Why? Do you have someone you like already?”
“No, not really.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“I think the school has rules about fellow teachers getting together…?”
“Screw the rules…” I said. “If you like her, you should give her a chance. What if she is the one for you, John and you missed your chance because of some rules?”
“I suppose…” John looked reluctant.
I rolled my eyes. “Do you need my help with her?”
John’s eyes widened. “No!” He practically yelled.
“Geez, okay, no need to yell…”
“Sorry.”
&&&&
John started seeing Joan so he started to spend less time with me.
When I reported this to my handler, Luke, he gave me an earful about it. So I had to do something.
I stalked both John and Joan on their date. I started to investigate Joan for dirt. I have to sabotage their relationship. Not my proudest moment especially since I was the one who push John into dating her. Eventually they broke up and John return to hang out with me, nursing a drink together over his short-lived romance. Though I get the feeling John isn’t entirely too troubled with the break-up.
&&&&
I finally established my reputation as a PI in Beacon Hills when I 'rescued’ a child from a kidnapper. Honestly, it was just a coincidence. I just happen in the wrong place right time kind of thing.
I become sort of famous because of what happened. My picture is in article on local newspapers. The Sheriff is actually start to look at me differently and acted all nice with me.
John gazed at me with admiration as if I have suddenly become his heroine or something. He took me out on a dinner. I told him to meet me in McDonald for burgers much to his astonishment. I think he want to take me to a fancy dinner but I hate that.
I started getting more clients as a PI. The Sheriff also started to invite me to help with his cases. I started getting into my fake job a little too seriously now, almost neglecting my primary assignment.
Luke, for some reason, seemed to know and reprimand me to 'up my game’. Ugh, I don’t like this part because that meant I have to start getting romantically involved with John to keep him with me.
So during a night while he’s hanging out on my office while we drank alcohol together, I kissed him. He kissed me back. But he acted like a proper gentleman, telling me that I was drunk and it would inappropriate of him to take advantage.
John is acting weird lately, like those lovesick fools. He become more affectionate with me, holding my hand, caressing my hair, smiling adorably at me, stuff like that.
I should be happy because he’s acting exactly as I expected him to but I like him as friend and It just so weird to change the dynamic. But I know I have to make the jump on that.
&&&&
John is upset with me. He’s actually mad because I didn’t properly acknowledge what we have, whatever that is.
“Do you like me, (name)?”
“Well, yeah, you are my best friend, John."
"That’s not what I meant and you know it.” John looked frustrated. “I want more from us. And I would like it if you want it too…”
I wanted to hit myself in the head. I should just follow the mission and become his girlfriend but I genuinely like him as a friend and I don’t want to pretend to love him. Even though for the sake of the assignment, I have to. I can tell John is losing patience in dealing with me. I have been brushing him off lately and then being affectionate next. And I said assignment, but really its all about the payday, isn’t it? Part of me feel horrible because I do consider him as friend but another part of me, the sensible one, forced me to face reality. John is just an assignment, not a friend at all. When the time come, I would have to left him behind.
John displeased with me and left, refusing to talk to me.
Now what? If he is mad with me, it would be a bit hard to keep an eye on him. Luke is going to give me hell for this. But I did accepted this assignment so I have obligation to see it through at any cost.
&&&&
I got a client, a young lady who is afraid of her husband who apparently a very influential individual in this town. The husband abused her hence she wishes for a divorce. But the husband refused so the lady, Mary, wishes for me to discreetly get a dirt on the husband and blackmailing him into divorcing her and left her alone. So I made plan for a stake out on the husband.
I saw John and he is being cold toward me on purpose. I don’t like it.
I got dirt on the husband but I wasn’t careful and was found out. His henchmen attacked me while I was walking home alone one night. Had it not for John I would have got hurt a lot worse. It was the first time I wonder if John has a dark side. The calm way he handle the henchmen with precision movement to disable them while still give them a whole of hurts is kinda…amazing but also scary.
I gaped at him. “John?”
John walked toward me and sat down beside me on the ground. He gently touched the bruise on my neck from when they tried to strangle me. “I really wish you would be more careful.” He said with a sigh.
“Thank you for saving me…” I whispered.
“Just because I’m still mad at you, doesn’t meant I don’t care about you. Because I do care, (name)…”
“I…care about you too, John.”
“But you don’t love me…”
“Do you? Love me?” I asked.
John didn’t answer for a second. He sighed. “I like kissing you. I want to kiss you some more.”
I chuckled at him and winced as I stroke my neck. I closed my eyes and thought on the night we kissed. I don’t know if I want to kiss him again but right at this moment, I very much wanted to.
“We should report this to the Sheriff and you need to go to see a doctor.” John said in concern.
“No to both.”
John glanced at me in disbelief. “These men just tried to kill you.”
“Hazard being a PI? Means I’m doing my job right…somewhat…” I said with a hoarse tone.
“Not funny, (name).” John said firmly. “Look at you, you can barely talk. You really need to see a doctor.”
“Ugh, too much paperwork.”
“I will handle the paperwork.”
“John, I really just want to go home, you know? I’m beat up…” I said tiredly.
“Fine, but you’re coming home with me.”
“Fine.” I agreed to tired to argue.
&&&&
I glanced around John’s house. It was a bit small but lovely. I saw a few sketches on the coffee table. It was sketches of some alien in nature. My eyes widened. John is suspicious after all. I thought he was an ordinary human but he knew the existence of alien? The drawing of Daleks, Cyberman and many other alien species. It was really good though, the drawing. I didn’t know he could draw so well.
“What is this?” I asked as I waved one of the sketches.
“Oh, it was just a doodle.” John said. “You knew years back there are alien invasion on Earth. Those are supposedly eye-witness account of how the alien species look like.”
“You never encounter any of them?”
“Nope.”
I picked up a drawing of a young girl. “And who is this?”
“Rose…” John whispered solemnly.
“And who is Rose?” I asked.
John didn’t answer for a few seconds. “Nobody, apparently…just someone that didn’t exist.”
I frowned. I have a feeling there is more about this Rose. So while John is distracted, I took the sketch into my pocket, intending to ask Luke to investigate her.
John prepared a warm bath for me and tend to my wounds afterward. He also gave me some hot tea to calm my nerves. He gave me one of his pajamas for me to wear to sleep.
“You can take my bed, I will sleep on the floor.”
“Your bed is big enough for two. We could sleep together.” I said.
John raised an eyebrow at me.
“You know what I meant.”
He grinned.
I shook my head. “I’m tired. I will go to bed first.”
“I will join you later.”
“Just a warning, I snore.”
John chuckled.
&&&&
That morning I woke up with John’s arms somehow has envelop me. I turned to look at his sleeping face. I couldn’t help the small smile on my face. I discreetly removed his hands and move out of the bedroom as not to disturb him. It was still a bit early.
I took my bag pulled my smartphone and took a picture of Rose drawing and send it to Luke with a text to find out about her. Then I made coffee for myself.
Shortly after, John got out from his bedroom, with adorable messy hair, looking a bit in panic. He stopped short when he saw me chilling in his kitchen drinking his coffee.
“Hey…” I greeted innocently. “Coffee?”
He gazed at me and actually sighed in relief. "I thought you left the house…“
"What if I did?”
“I would have hunt you down.” He said with this expression I can’t decipher.
I couldn’t tell whether he was joking or serious. So I decided to change the subject to my case, the reason why I become a damsel in distress for John.
“I am a PI. This is what I do. And frankly I love it. I’m not gonna stop doing what I do just because some guy decided I was in the way.” I said when John expressed how dangerous my line of the work are.
To tell the truth, if I ever left Division, I could see myself working as PI.
&&&&
I managed to get back at the guy who tried to have me killed. I blackmailed him in regard of his illegal business, forced him to divorce his wife and make him agreed to give said ex-wife generous amount alimony.
He agreed very reluctantly but I know he won’t just let me go for blackmailing him. I know he will try different ways to hurt me but for now he will back off.
John is worried and tried to stay by my side whenever he can to make sure I will not be in danger. But he can’t do much since he has school to teach and other stuffs.
I reassured him that they won’t get the drop on me again.
&&&&
This small town lately become a hotspot for crime. Robbery, kidnapping and murders. And I used to think small town means less excitement. Now it feel like too much sometimes.
My relationship with John is still shaky at best. All because I couldn’t fully open myself to him. How can I? I’m living a lie. John might know my name and the fake background of mine but he doesn’t know the real me.
And John obviously is not what he said he is either. Sometimes i catches a glimpse of someone scary within John. It made me pretty curious to try to find out more about the true John. I suspect John’s identity is a cover up. But even as I suspecting this, I started to have all this confusing feeling for him.
&&&&
The nerve of her! That Joan! How dare she said that I’m not worthy of John? Who does she think she is acting all high and mighty?
When I told John about it, he grinned childishly. “You’re jealous…” he said, pleased and wrapped a hand around mine.
I scoffed at what he claimed. Why does John look pleasantly happy with the thought of me being jealous? It was kinda annoying me.
But to tell the truth though, Joan is right, I can’t imagine why John could ever love someone like me. I’m a mess.
&&&&
“The Doctor’s companion has contacted Jack Harkness for help in locating the Doctor.”
“Stall them. Divert their attention. Create a chaos near them. Do not let them find out the location of the Doctor. The plan must not failed.”
&&&&
“DON’T YOU DARE RUN AWAY FROM ME!!” I yelled on top of my lungs while I ran after the bad guy.
My target, upon hearing my banshee scream, ran faster. Only to fall spectacularly with a trick by John who happened to be in town while I was doing my thing.
John, who heard me screaming like crazy, glanced up from his conversation with a fellow teacher. He smiled in amusement upon spotting me. He saw who I was after and did thing I can explain, creating some sort of chain reaction with stuff around him which ended up with my target fell within my reach.
“Hah! Got you, jerk-face!” I yelled as I grabbed him.
Joan winced at my language.
John grinned as he approached me. “What are you doing with him, (name)?”
“Isn’t obvious? He’s a fugitive. I’m a bounty hunter at the moment.” I said with a grin.
John smiled fondly at me.
“How did you do that by the way?”
“Do what?”
“That thing you do… I don’t know what it’s called anyway, but that is awesome!” I said.
“Happy coincidence?” John said with a shitty grin.
I saw Joan from behind John, watching us with a look of disapproval which make me suddenly have an idea to annoy her some more. I pulled John down toward me and kissed him much to his pleasant surprise. He kissed me back. I saw from the corner of my eyes of Joan leaving the scene. I grinned into the kiss.
“What bring this on?” John asked.
“For your happy coincidence.” I said teasingly.
“Get a room.” My target scoffed.
I turned toward him. “Oh you will get a room, alright, off to jail you are.” I grabbed him and pushed him to the direction of the police station. “See you around, John.”
“See you tonight, (name).”
&&&&
I was drunk the first time I had sex with John. What the hell was I thinking? It was so embarrassing. I was upset because of a case. I lost a client that I personally get attached to. I failed her. I was so upset and I drank a lot.
John took me upstairs to my place where I shamelessly (at the times) seduces him with (oh dear, someone kill me please) a lap dance and basically being a tease till he agreed to bed me. John is a proper gentleman and at first has refused me, claiming he didn’t want to take advantage of my drunken state. Apparently I told him to hell with proper and if he didn’t bed me, I would find someone who would. And after that, I distinctly saw his eyes darken with possessive desire and he did exactly what I asked and more.
I have got to admit John is an excellent lover.
&&&&
I was pissed at John for suddenly proposing me with marriage. We haven’t even know each other that long to even start talking about marriage. Hell, there isn’t even a talk about it yet and here he was, cornering me with a proposal?! What.the.hell? And when I acted surprised and confused and absolutely against it, he got really quiet and withdrawn. When I asked him about it, he gave me the silent treatment. Seriously?
He acted like a maiden I deflowered or something and now demanding I marry him as a responsibility.
I sighed in frustration. At the risk of calling myself bitchy, I really think John is too needy and I don’t like it. He’s wonderful man but why is he in a hurry with our relationship? And in the first place, this isn’t actually a real relationship!
I contacted Luke and asked him how long I am meant to watch over John and if I really have to go through a fake marriage with him. I actually got order from the above to do it. Do everything within my power to make John happy and make him stay attached to me.
&&&&
John got shot, because of me. He was protecting me from a drive-by shooting. I was trying to talk to him but he stubbornly ignoring me and then he did that, protecting me again. How could he be so stupid?
I was getting emotional as I waited for him in his hospital bed. This was supposed to be a simple assignment so why did it went too far like this? John got hurt because I choose to be a PI while inserting myself in his life.
Thankfully his wound is not severe. When he woke up, I said 'yes’ to him. At first he is confused but when he realized what I meant, he smiled brightly.
After he got out of hospital, he become more affectionate with me even in public. I don’t do PDA, I only did that before to piss that Joan.
I was suspicious with the shooting though. Things seemed to happen around me and John which kind of pushes us together. I asked Luke if he or someone from above arranged that but he had no idea. He did promise to poke around for me.
&&&&
Thankfully we both agreed on a small wedding. In fact, I vetoed wedding dress. I wore a simple white dress on the day of our marriage and we signed on a piece of paper I didn’t bother to look twice with a fake priest arranged by Luke.
I moved into John’s house. We shared a room together and I settled into our marriage life. John still disapproved of how I handle my PI job from time to time especially when he found out I got hurt. One day, I got home with busted lips from my interfering a fight between crazy divorced couple and the dark expression that flashed across his face literally give me chill. I explained to him that it was just an accident and he really need to stop having constipated face every time I got a little hurt.
John is evidently angered by me dismissing his concern. He grabbed both of my wrists and demanded I paid attention to him. I flinched at his reaction and he apologized sort of.
Thankfully, afterward I only got small cases like tracking a missing dog or stolen family heirloom. The school is out on holiday. John wanted to assist me in my work. I narrowed my eyes at him unhappily. It is almost like he want to take over my life or something. But then when I saw the childlike delight on his face when he found the missing dog or successfully retrieving the lost item, I ended up allowing him to come along.
“You’ve got to teach me about that happy coincidence trick…” I said.
“(name), I wouldn’t know how to. I just do it.”
I pouted. “Just say that you didn’t want to teach me that.”
John and I accidentally got involved with a very scary pregnant woman whose water broke and she was cursing everyone during the entire birth while the ambulance is nowhere to be found. But the look on John’s face though when he deliver that woman’s baby… I almost worried that he’s going to demand we have a children but thankfully he didn’t.
John always gazed at me with that genuine expression. No one ever look at me that way before, no one but him. I told him as much. He would kiss my neck gently and told me that everyone who couldn’t really see me for me is a fool.
And I wonder if he really see me. I lied to him, I still do, but did he know? I become unsettled at the thought of being played by him. I become determine to find out why they wanted John observed and who he really is.
&&&&
Luke is frantic when he called me about Rose. Rose was that man’s companion. The Doctor. The most feared man in universe, the face-changer, the man who is capable of being kind as much as he is able to be cruel. I froze when I saw the many known faces of the Doctor on my tablet and one of them clearly is John.
I discreetly scanned John while he was sleeping and found out he is a human, only have one heart. But the Doctor has two hearts. What the hell is happening? Someone has turned him into a human. But who? And for what purpose? Are they planning to kill him? But why assigned the Division to keep an eye on him?
I groaned in frustration. What is the big guy even thinking to accept a job that involved the Doctor? What the fuck is wrong with him? He had made me a target for the Doctor’s wrath for when he returned to his true self if that even possible. I was really, really frightened by the Doctor. I heard the stories and it wasn’t good. I know he is capable of being kind but from my side, I only ever heard his famous cruelty of no second chance.
The Doctor is a good man. That was everyone always said. But they also said he is the most cruelest man ever. When he suffered lost of his companions, he snapped and enraged at the world. He called himself the Time Lord Victorious and that the law of time is his.
Although he’s getting better, according to rumor, that he’s making amend and taking both old and new companion again, saving people and planet and whatnot, the Time Lord Victorious still existed in him and still come out to play from time to time. And that is what make the Doctor is properly frightening.
I found out that his current companion is Martha Jones and Mickey Smith. So I grabbed my vortex manipulator and went to investigate them. From what I can tell, they have lost the Doctor. I was off my game apparently because someone put a gun on my back. I recognized him as one of the Doctor’s former companion, Jack Harkness. He found me lurking around and caught me.
They interrogated me. I have no choice but to tell the truth about John when Jack force-feed me a truth drug. They demanded I bring them to John.
&&&&
“Hand off my wife.” John said coldly as he pointed my gun toward Jack and the others when he saw me being kept as prisoner after we entered our house via vortex manipulator.
When Jack, Martha and Mickey realized that John really did not recognize them, they let me go. They were surprised to learn that John had married me.
John fussed over me. “Are you alright, (name)?"
I didn’t say anything. It was my first time seeing him carrying a gun and for some reason, he frightened me greatly. I tried to calm myself.
The companion furiously asked me what did I do to him even though I am as clueless as they are. Jack demanded that I take them to the Division and to the client that asked us to keep an eye on John.
John demanded everyone to shut up. He glanced at me, expecting me to explain but I didn’t. I refused to look at him. It was Martha who tell him all he needed to know.
John looked calm after he learned the truth from Martha. He scrutinize me with his eyes. "So it was all a lie.” He said, sounding strangely not surprised.
“You are way too calm about this.” I said. “Are you sure you really have no idea?”
John looked pissed now. “Would you like me to be angry, wife?” he spatted the word with venom.
I flinched. “You are the one who asked me, remember?”
“And do you even love me or was it all just an assignment to you?”
“Does it matter?”
“Of course it does!”
I looked away. “It wasn’t real.”
“You’re lying.” he said, almost pleading me.
“Am not. Ask Jack, he forced me to eat a truth drug. I can only speak the truth.”
Jack confirmed it.
John looked sad and defeated. I wanted to hug him but all my instinct is telling me to run. I could see it within John, the being called the Doctor, and I am afraid.
&&&&
I was forced to help figuring out what happened to the Doctor and who turned him into a John.
Martha said something about chameleon circuit? And something about a watch with perception filter. But John and I never saw a watch like the one Martha described.
I have no choice but to enlist Luke. He is pissed at me for ruining the assignment and for involving him with this mess. I glared at him. I blame the Division, what kind of idiot would willingly agree to mess with the Doctor in the first place anyway? The big boss should have his head cut off for being massively stupid.
&&&&
One mess after another later, we finally found the information regarding the Doctor’s Time Lord consciousness. Jack basically has to threaten to dangle the big guy off the window before he told us about the client who made the payment for John case.
I was surprised that John willingly agreed to follow on it despite knowing the return of the Doctor means the end of John Smith. John has not talked me to me since I told him everything between us wasn’t real.
Luke provided John with the tablet containing information regarding the Doctor. And he learned about Rose. “She was real…” he whispered in awe.
I almost felt jealous. Almost. I know I didn’t have a right to be jealous. So I turned away from him to focus on other things.
&&&&
I have no idea how someone got the drop off the Doctor. Apparently during an adventure with Martha and Mickey in some alien planet, they got ambushed by a young woman called Kovarian and her army. She tricked the Doctor into a chameleon circuit of her own. The Doctor is smart but he knew he can also be thick sometimes. He had no choice but to follow along Kovarian’s demand if he want to keep his companion safe.
Kovarian had promised to let Martha and Mickey go after the Doctor follow through with the chameleon circuit. And so he did. His time lord consciousness was stored into a special hourglass and the energy is being used for experiments. For what purpose, no one know.
True to her words, Kovarian did drop Martha and Mickey on Earth where they frantically contacted Torchwood for help in locating the Doctor. What they didn’t know is that Kovarian also dropped the Doctor turned human on Earth under watchful eyes of the Division. The companion had thought that she would have taken the Doctor off on another planet.
&&&&
I managed to retrieve that damned hourglass and I pushed it on Martha’s hand. I was done with them. I was done with John freaking Smith and the Doctor. While everyone is thoroughly distracted with breaking the hourglass and the time lord consciousness forced its way into John, I ran. I was a coward. I couldn’t stand any longer be in their presence.
Kovarian, having lost and cornered, decided to hold the Earth hostage. Now, they really need the Doctor to save the world.
&&&&
I cursed the big boss for putting me in this position. I packed up my stuff and decided to go on the run before the Doctor come for me. I picked up a bio damper to throw him off my signature in case he decided to track me. And I ran and I prayed and I hope he never bother with me.
But, of course, it was only a matter of time before he find me. Luke warned me about the Doctor coming to Division demanding to meet with the active called (name) (last name). I ditched the communication device I had on my person knowing its likely Luke’s warning call is traced by the Doctor. And I ran again.
That dreaded day finally come when I saw the Doctor’s Tardis one day.
John, no, the Doctor got out of the Tardis. He was alone. He glanced at me and said, “Hello, wife.”
“I didn’t want any trouble, Doctor.” I said quickly. “I didn’t know that John is you. Had I known, I would never…”
The Doctor regarded me curiously. “You are afraid of me.”
I didn’t reply as if that is not obvious considering who he is.
“I’m not gonna hurt you. I know you didn’t have anything to do with Kovarian.”
“Then why are you looking for me?”
“I just would love to talk…”
I stared at him flabbergasted. “Talk? About what?”
He shrugged. “You are my wife.”
“It wasn’t even a real marriage!!” I snapped. I probably shouldn’t have said that but I was really frustrated and confused with the Doctor.
“It was real for john so it was real for me.”
“John is not even real person!”
The Doctor shrugged again as if he can’t see that he’s upsetting me greatly or maybe he know but didn’t care. “You took care of me, sorry, John. And even if it wasn’t real to you, I would like to say thank you.”
I was confused with his line of thought here. What? Shouldn’t he be super mad at me or something?
“I would like to offer you a chance to travel with me in the Tardis just this once.”
“I don’t believe you.”
He looked surprised, his mouth hang open.
“Why would you spend all this time looking for me? Just to say thank you? I’m not stupid, Doctor. What do you really want from me?” I stared at the Tardis behind him. “Are you trying to trick me to get inside the Tardis so you could punish me or something?”
He looked saddened. “You really saw me as the bad guy here, huh?” He noticed some bruise I have on my wrist. He moved to touch me but I stepped backward. He didn’t take another step. “What happened to you?” He gestured to my wrist.
“None of your business.” I spat furiously. I wanted to kick myself in the head for poking the bear.
A dark expression crossed his feature.
I gulped.
He composed himself into a calm and polite manner. “I would like to show you something.” he said as he raised a hand toward me.
I stared at his outstretched hand. “Do I have a choice?”
He didn’t reply for a few second. “I promise you will not be harmed. And if you come with me, you will not regret it.”
I didn’t know what possessed me to accept his words. It was stupid of me.
&&&&
He took me to that night, in the past, the first time John and I had sex. I didn’t recognized it at first. The Doctor brought me to a place, the place where I lost my client and he told me to save her.
I was flabbergasted by him again. “Isn’t that against the rule of time or something?”
“Are you really gonna argue about the rule of time with a Time Lord?” he asked back.
So I did as he asked. I saved my client. But past me had no idea, she still think the client died.
The Doctor arranged for my client to leave town and start a new life.
I didn’t understand why he did this. “Why?” I asked.
“I remembered this night. The night you come to me, sad and lost. I remembered thinking I hated seeing that expression on her face. I want to make her, you, happy just as you made me a happy man that night.”
I blushed when I realized what he’s implying. My mind couldn’t help but having a flashback of that night we spend together.
The Doctor smiled at me. “I would really like it if you come with me, (name). Travel with me in the Tardis. Have adventure together, saving people. I know that’s the reason you love being a PI. Stay with me and we can go anywhere anytime.”
A warning bell rang in my mind for a while now but, being the idiot that I am, I ignored it in favor of that handsome face smiling beautiful lies at me.
&&&&
The Doctor is fiercely protective of me. He didn’t take it well when someone took me as hostage or when I got hurt by someone else’s hand. That part of him reminded me a lot of of my times with John. It also made me very uncomfortable.
One day, I found a piece of paper and I recognized it as my fake marriage certificate with John. But why did the Doctor keep it? And then I frowned when I noticed the signatures on the certificate. What should have been John Smith’s name is now written and signed as the Doctor. What?
I confronted him about it.
“I told you it was real for me.” He said.
“It wasn’t real! This is a human marriage custom! You are not even human!” I yelled furiously. I don’t know why I was so angry over this marriage thing. I felt like I have been imprisoned and I didn’t even realized it. “How did you even change the name in the first place?” I asked. “In case you don’t know, the priest who officiate our fake wedding is also fake. So this paper…” I waved it around. “…is meaningless!!”
“He was a real priest. I made sure of it.”
Did he seriously crossing his own time stream just to make sure we have a real marriage? I can’t believe it. He really creep me out right now.
“It is still legal and binding. You are my wife.”
“Like hell I am!!” I yelled. “I’m not your wife! You are an alien and thus the marriage is invalid!”
“Not to me.”
“You can’t do that! You can’t just decide on your own which rules apply to you and which didn’t!”
“Does it bother you that much to be married to me?” he asked. “Do you hate me so much?”
“You are frightening me.”
“I didn’t want you to be afraid of me. I would never harm you willingly.”
“Take me back.”
“What?”
“Drop me back on earth or wherever, I don’t care! I just want to be away from you.”
The Doctor looked hurt but to my surprise he dropped me back on earth. “I will come back for you when you have calm down.” he said.
I wanted to scream. “No, Doctor, I want you to leave me alone.”
“I can’t.”
Oh I believe him. He is not going to let me go just like that. I started to mentally making a plan to run. But he took one look at me and he knew.
“Don’t run from me, (name).” He warned. “No matter how far you run, even to the end of time, I will always find you…forever.”
“Well, Doctor, considering you are immortal and I am not, I don’t think you will have forever.” I said cruelly.
He flinched at that. He gazed at me with a profound sadness that made me feel guilty. And then a darker expression replaced it.
I froze under his gaze. In hindsight, I probably shouldn’t say that last bit.
The Tardis vanished out of sight and I can finally breath easier.
&&&&
I contacted everyone I know and begged them to help me hide from the Doctor but one word of the Doctor and they all shut me down. They wouldn’t want to risk the wrath of Time Lord Victorious.
Not even the Doctor’s companion willing to help me.
“I don’t know what he see in you.” Jack replied with disgust. “But you obviously make him happy. Even though you seem to bring a darker version of him out…”
No, I am not, I wanted to scream.
“After losing Rose, you are the first he allowed himself to love…”
And that gave me an idea. If I could get Rose back… I heard she was trapped on the other universe. If I could get her back here, then maybe he will let me go. According to Jack, Rose is the light that make the Doctor a better person. If she is here, then maybe whatever darkness the Doctor harbour will be gone and I will be set free.
With that new mission in mind, I ran again from the Doctor while discreetly trying to enlist help in opening a breach on the other universe.
The Doctor always found me, like he promised. He rescued me from danger sometimes. He traveled with someone called Donna now. He introduced me to her but not as his wife to my great relief. He gave me a look that said to behave so I obeyed.
Donna excitedly greeted me. She was a nice enough woman and I like her. She begged me to travel with her in the Tardis, claiming she need a woman’s company.
I had no choice but to agree.
&&&&
Turned out I didn’t have to do anything about Rose. Because she is coming to our world herself. The fierce woman who love the Doctor and the woman he still loves. I can smell the freedom already.
The brightened smile on his face when he saw her is annoying to me. I don’t understand why I still have such complicated feeling for the Doctor. I tried to pushes my feeling down.
Then the Daleks happened.
And then there is a meta-crisis doctor who decided to call himself John. Both version of the Doctor are stupidly in love with Rose, I can tell. Does that mean I am a rebound?
I don’t know why I am so upset. Getting away from the Doctor is what I want, right? Was I in love with the idea of the Doctor loving me or do I truly have feeling for him? I closed myself and thought of the times with John. I did enjoy his company. I also enjoy the Doctor’s company. But what does this mean?
Then everything spiraled out of control. The Doctor had to seal the breach to the other universe but he left both Rose and metacrisis doctor on the other side.
No. Just No. This wasn’t supposed to… I was so confused.
In the end, I was left alone with the Doctor once more now that Donna is also gone, having her memory erased. Seeing him standing alone, the loneliest man in the universe, how could I keep running from him?
So I stayed in the darkness with him.
&&&&
I was screaming.
Why am I screaming?
Pain. So much pain.
Where am I?
I forced myself to open my eyes. I was restrained to a medical bed and there is sort of machine whirred around me.
I froze when I saw him. The Doctor. But he wasn’t alone. There are other people I didn’t recognize.
“We will have our forever, (name)…”
The Time Lord Victorious allowing the experiment on his so-called wife in order to prolong her lifespan.
I shouldn’t have put that thought about 'not having forever’ in his mind. Now I’m paying the price.
He didn’t lie. He didn’t harm me. He let them do the the dirty work for him.
I sobbed and screamed again.
A/N: I was listening to Seven Devils by Florence and the Machine on a loop while writing this hence the title.
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dragolianx · 5 years ago
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How I’d rewrite Miraculous Ladybug a.k.a Miraculous Ladybug Final Mix
Before I start I just want to say, I actually loved this show. I always appreciate shows that establish their own universe separate from the big publishers. Ben 10, Generator Rex, Big Hero 6, hell My Life as a Teenage Robot does this well.
When I started Miraculous I had high hopes and season 1 definitely delivered. However, season 2 had some issues and season 3 only made it worse.
Say what you want about the show, but there was a noticeable shift in quality between season’s 1 and 2 and an even bigger drop in season 3.
I won’t touch season 1 since it did its job well. It established the world and explained some of the rules and lore about Kwami and Miraculous powers.
Now the end of season 1 gave us new antagonist in Lila. Her arrival shook up the established flow of the school. She was the new kid so she hooked everyone with stories of traveling around the world. However she had a habit of lying about herself to make herself seem interesting.
She lied about knowing ladybug and about being the latest in a family of superheroes.
Marinette knows that she’s lying because Lila claims to be Ladybug’s BFF, but she never met Lila before that day.
We then get the episode Volpina and so far this was the closest Ladybug came to surrendering. The only other akuma to get close to getting her earrings was Lady Wifi at this point. She knew how to manipulate people, even if she was sloppy with her lies at first.
When season 2 starts however she’s no where to  be seen until the season finale, Hero’s Day. This is where I’d make my first change.
Season 2
Make Lila stick around for season 2 instead of adding her back at the end of the season
Her absence is attributed to her “Traveling around the world” when she’d really just at home skipping school.
Her mom believes that the school is closed due to constant akuma attacks. The problem with this is that the school would most definitely have called her about her daughter’s absence. Or at the every least gave her a courtesy call about how the trip is going. It also make’s Lila’s mom seem incompetent because she doesn’t bother to go her kid’s school.
If there’s ever a parent teacher conference this lie would be easily dealt with.
Instead have the season 3 premiere episode “Chameleon” be the season 2 premiere. Instead of having the class change the seating order because she came back have her manipulate it so that she’s sitting next to Adrian and that Marinette is sent to the back.
Instead of Adrian telling Marinette to take the high road, have him warn her that without actual proof she’d just be isolated even more by the class. Adrian then promises to help Marinette whenever he can.
This worked in the episode because it showed just how persuasive she could be and how she could sway people she barely knows.
The episode would play out the same way, except at the end Bustier has Adrian stay where he is because she insists that he be a “good role model” and help Lila because of her “Disabilities”
In the end, the seating order is changed permanently and Marinette is moved to the back of the class. Lila begins to wedge herself between Marinette and the class.
Other big changes I’d make to season 2 would be moving Zombizou closer to the episode Despair Bear. At least make them be within an episode of each other. These will be the seeds for Chloe’s redemption, which can work in the show if Astruc would get his head out of his ass and learn how to write his damn characters.
Going off topic for a bit, but Kevin Levin from Ben 10 has tried to kill Ben for most of the original series run. After his mutation he tries to frame Ben for crimes and then off him when they were dragged into a gladiator match. He even teamed up with Vilgax to trap Ben in the Null Void and take the Omnitrix.
When Alien Force rolls around Kevin still tries to kill Ben, but when he meets a Majester Plumber and witnesses him die because of weapon deal gone bad, the same deal that Kevin set up, he realizes that he could be good and teams up with Ben and Gwen.
The same can be said for Chloe.
The most she’s done was prank Marinette, get Alya suspended, and plagiarize Marinette’s work.
As an antagonist she sucked. Hard.
Over the course of season 2 Chloe should steadily get better at not bossing people around and stop playing the “Mayor’s Daughter” card for her own selfish reasons.
At the same time, we should get small hints at Lila driving a wedge between Marinette and the class.
It could just be her mentioning how flaky Marinette can be because she’s never on time for events or just disappears sometimes.
It’d be hard for Marinette to counter this without revealing herself so the class begins to question her.
The season plays differently with Chloe mellowing out and Lila planting seeds of doubt.
Another thing worth mentioning is how Adrian/Chat Noir factors into the show.
In season 3 we see him miss his mom more, but it comes out of nowhere. We the audience know his mom is dead and assume he’s sad about it, but we don’t get actual scenes about this until Gorizilla and it’s not touched again until Felix.
In season 2 we should get more of how Adrian handles his isolation and how the loss of his mom affects him.
Have him lean on Marinette for support like how he asked her to lean on him for help with Lila.
Also have Chat Noir more involved with the whole temp hero thing and have Master Fu keep him in the loop.
Balance seems to be a central theme to the show, but Ladybug seems to be holding all the cards between the duo and Chat Noir is just in the background.
This makes him seem more like a sidekick instead of a partner since he’s almost never consulted when it comes to choosing heroes.
When Anansi happens have Adrian pick Nino to use the Turtle Miraculous and save Alya
The same can be said for how Chloe gets the Bee Miraculous in Style Queen.
He’s known her the longest and sees that she’s been making an honest effort to change, so as Chat Noir her gives her the Bee Miraculous.
This way Chloe gets to have her secret identity and prove herself to Ladybug and Chat Noir as a worthy hero.
Queen Wasp is removed from the series entirely
Maledictator happens because Audrey threatens to go back to New York and Chloe doesn’t know if she wants to go with her or not because she knows she wants a better relationship with her mom, but she’s also making progress at being a better person at school.
Lila sets off the celebration for Chloe leaving and that make Chloe want to leave because she thought she was getting better, but it seems as if her efforts weren’t good enough. Marinette doesn’t participate and defends Chloe since she hasn’t bothered Marinette or anyone else for the last few weeks and Lila takes this opportunity to make it seem like Marinette wants Chloe to stick around and bully the class.
Instead of defending herself Marinette chases after Chloe, and Adrian follows soon after once he hears the news.
The episode play nearly the same way until Chat Noir get whammied by Maledictator and becomes an actual cat.
Ladybug then gives Chloe the Bee Miraculous again and the episode plays out the same way until the end where Marinette offers to be Chloe’s friend and she accepts
Event play out the same leading up to heroes day and the season ends the same way. However, as a reward for their bravery in facing Hawkmoth and Mayura: Rena Rouge, Carapace, and Queen Bee get to keep their Miraculous
Season 3
Since we moved Chameleon up a season and removed Queen Wasp, we’ll give those two episodes to season 3 as exposition episodes. One where Fu explains in detail to the current holders what happened to the order.
Have it be different from Feast sense the whole reason was Ludacris to begin with. Introduce the concept of an order dedicated to chaos that wants to use the Mirculous for various reasons.  The temple is attacked and Fu managed to get away with the main miracle box with the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous in it.
We also get Fu choosing Ladybug to be the new guardian if something should happen to him with the other heroes agreeing that it should be her.
She begins her training after this episode
In another episode explain what happened to Adrian’s mom
We know that she has some sort of sickness keeping her in a coma and that only the Miraculous can fix it. We know because Adrian mentions how Natalie showed the same symptoms his mom did before she “died”
Have Gabriel remember what caused her to use the Peacock and how he found them to begin with. Have him study the grimoire to learn how to use Ladybug and Chat Noir’s Miraculous to save his wife.
Remove Animaestro since it adds nothing to the plot and was just an excuse for Astruc to shamelessly insert himself into his own show.
As a writer this is a major sin if done wrong. And while other cartoon creators have done this, the make their appearances cameos and don’t take up a majority of the episode complaining
The love Hexagon remains mostly the same, but Marinette doesn’t get super jealous of Kagami and ends becoming friends with her after getting to know her better. Meanwhile have Adrian subconsciously react to Luka’s presence around Marinette and have him question why when he thinks he’s dead set on loving Ladybug.
The episodes leading up to Ikari Gozen remain the same except Kagami doesn’t reveal her identity in the fight and Chat Noir gives her the Dragon Miraculous before she get captured by her mother.
Chat Blanc would be completely different. Instead of a what if episode, we have Chat Noir gets akumatized because it’s the anniversary of his mother’s death and he can’t hide how sad he is. Hawkmoth capitalizes on this and Chat Blanc is born. The other heroes show up to deal with the threat and the new reserves show up to help as well.
Chat Blanc almost sets off a world wide Cataclysm, but Viperion uses second chance to warn them. Have Monkey King disrupt Chat Blanc’s powers and then have Queen Wasp paralyze him so Ladybug can find the Akuma and cure it.
Felix plays differently as well. For starters have him not be related to Adrian and make him look different from him entirely. Felix and the other Quantic kids can be in a different class altogether. His introduction can play into the whole Lila situation as he and the other quantic kids don’t buy into her lies, but they can’t prove any of them are false.
For this to work even more, Lila’s lie of knowing Prince Ali doesn’t come up since she didn’t leave the school.
Now comes the big episode of the season, Ladybug.
This episode was good for so many reasons, but this time we’ll up the ante.
Lila still plants the necklace and test answers, but this time she goes further.
When they’re sent to the principal’s office she throws herself down the stairs can then claims that Marinette pushed her.
This time the evidence is damning and Lila’s mom is called. With the actual scrapes and bruises to help sell the story along with the test answers being put in Marinette’s bag and the Lila’s necklace in her locker Marinette is expelled and the same events as the episode take place, but this time Nino isn’t akumatized because it’s implied that he’s known Marinette for a long time so he should know she’d never get physical with someone or cheat (But she has taken the occasional cell phone)
Alya looks for clues to prove that Marinette is innocent and Nino joins along with Adrian.
The trail goes cold and then the episode pans out the same way. In the end Chloe makes a big scene about Marinette being expelled and find proof that she didn’t cheat on the test and didn’t steal the necklace, but can’t ultimately prove that Marinette didn’t push Lila. She then uses the “Mayor’s Daughter” card to get Marinette back in school, but the damage has been done. Most of the class believes Lila over Marinette and begin to isolate her. Although, Alya decides to finally do some fact checking on Lila after the string of incidents that morning and finds out that she’s been lying. She apologizes for how she’s been acting and nukes the ladyblog since she deems it “tainted” and commits to the school blog.
This shows a great deal of growth for Alya since he doesn’t feel the need to follow superheroes since she is one, and is willing to give up something for her friend’s sake.
After all of this happens Marinette is stripped of her class rep title and the Class nominates Lila.
Hearthunter and Miracle Queen don’t happen at all sense Chloe is fully redeemed at this point. Instead, Lila returns as Volpina to lure out Fu since Hawkmoth managed to figure out that he was in town after Hero’s Day.
Volpina creates an illusion to lure him out, but Fu realizes this and runs to find Marinette while in disguise. He gives her the Miracle Box and he loses his memories. Marinette stashes the box in her room before trying to get him somewhere safe, but when he gets to the train station he’s Akumatized by Hawkmoth and Ladybug and the other heroes must fight their mentor.
After the battle Marinette calls Marianne to take care of Fu and the two leave Paris while the other heroes watch the train depart with heavy hearts.
My biggest gripes with the show are how the character are never allowed to grow and how much the status quo remains mostly the same at the end of each episode.  
Almost none of what happens in a regular episode changes the flow of the story, and only the season premieres and finales seem to hold any weight. Not to mention Astruc’s obvious bias towards certain characters. He expects Marinette to be super mature, but she’s 14. He stated that he hates Chloe and Felix and goes out of his way to treat them like garbage.
In Felix’s debut episode he had him make an enemy with damn near the entire cast and even had Ladybug deck him.
Astruc for the most part doesn’t change anything and plays things too safe, unless it’s pointless fanservice that just serves to anger the fans even more.
I rewrote the last two season of Miraculous because for the most part, it’s become a sinking ship that could have easily been fixed.
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onf-headcanons · 4 years ago
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ONF Modern Fantasy!AU pt.2
or known as Familiar spirits AU
Tumblr media
More establishments for this AU below!
Initial establishment here
Goodbye Minseok arc here
Headcanon 1 here
Headcanon 2 here
The ending here (warning its angsty)
Then have more of the modern fantasy au shall we?
•During the days where you are only living with Jaeyoung, Hyojin and Seungjoon. You noticed something and you are curious about it.
• You noticed Hyojin and Seungjoon are close. And only to know they have known each other for ages. But Hyojin did not always be with Seungjoon for all of his lifetime. As per Seungjoon, there is a moment where Hyojin gone missing. When he returned he looked malnourished and frustrated. Seungjoon was the one who helped Hyojin to recover.
• Hyojin has 2 symbols imprinted on his skin. One on his wrist and another on his back below his nape. You got curious and you asked him about it.
• Hyojin was even shocked that you asked him : "You did not know?" And you just shook your head and blinked your eyes.
• Hyojin then told you his story. He used to be familiars for 2 other individuals that are parent and child. Their mad obsession with his voice so much to the extent they imprinted him to bound him at the human world. He was later released by their grandchildren.
• Once imprinted, the familiars cannot pact with/summoned by other people for a period of time decided by their owners. His first owner bound him about 100 years and his second one bound him about 150 years. In short imprinted familiars are forced to shut away from their own world in a certain period of time. And only the owner or person blood related to owner can terminate or make anew to the bounding.
• You cried as he told you his story and it shocked him a bit. He knows that there are good humans too but deep down he also felt humans are selfish. Including you. But it might be the first human he met that emphatize with him and his experience.
• After hearing his story you are interested why he still choose to follow Seungjoon to come to your side. When he can totally decline your summoning and let Seungjoon come alone
• Hyojin : "I am worried if he meet someone dangerous so I followed him."
• "And I was kind of planning to have revenge on human too...but you are alright I guess." Hyojin saying it while averting his gaze. His hands awkwardly pats your head.
• Cues in you stand up while wailing that you are sending him and the other 2 back because they all deserves a better life back in the magical world but Hyojin stops you. He knows those 2 are already attached to you because you treat them very well.
• As for Hyojin, he felt he could stay and enjoy since the human world has changed alot.
• You began to wonder what period Hyojin was in when he is bounded in this world. Then you began to Google all sorts of historical paintings and showed Hyojin. Trying to find which country he used to stay. Cues in you two got really excited in front of the computer while browsing historical paintings. This is also the timing where has totally let his guard down towards you as he chattering about the older human world. Which period and country Hyojin was in I shall leave it up to you.
• The first time when Hyojin sings, you are delighted and surprised. Finally understands why his previous owners would be that selfish to bound him. But you are not going to do it. ALSO Hyojin singing while roaming around the house. And because he is doing it , later the other 6 starts doing it too making your house having all sorts of melody noises mixed up
• Cues in Hyojin looking at you eating and was like "is that even tasty?" Because historical cooking is different than current and he is interested.
• You would share your food and snacks to him when he is looking at it with his eyes open wide with curiosity.
• Once he got into the taste and flavour of human food, he starts his smuggling food from your house fridge act as mentioned in the first establishment.
• At first, its a secret between you and Hyojin. But then as his "appetite" to taste human food flavours grow bigger its not a secret anymore. Sometimes he just walks around the house with eating snacks. And he is the reason you never succeed in dieting. Lol
•Your butler feels like he is feeding 2 kids. And the new butler got confused when he sees Hyojin eats human food. Especially when the first day he joins the house and sees Hyojin walking upside down on your living room ceiling while sucking lollipop with his animal traits still on him.
• Cues in some plausible scenarios to happen :
• Hyojin munched a big bite of the roasted chicken your butler has made exclusively for guests. And your butler is furious about it. Hyojin would hide in your room because your butler is not allowed to enter your room without your permission
• Or one day you came back home and your butler mentioned he will be heading out to buy stuffs because the kitchen ran out of the ingredients. Then you find Hyojin chilling in your room. And you knew he is the culprit for sure.
•BTW because of the knowledge you gained from Hyojin's story, later when you summoned Changyoon, you quickly noticed the imprint on his arm and you can immediately tell he had the same experience of being bounded. You apologised and mentioned that you will send him back because you felt bad. But Changyoon volunteered to stay.
• So apparently, his experience with humans are better than what Hyojin been through. Based from Changyoon, he was the one who volunteered to be bounded by the previous owner because they are dying due to illness but no one they trust enough to take care of their young children. So Changyoon was bounded for a short while. Maybe until the child reach coming of age or until the child released him is up to you.
(By the way this is totally my idea of preference. The complexity of symbol/tattoo = the length of being bounded. Changyoon's tattoo was quite simple in design so I had the inspiration for this setting)
• You mentioned to Changyoon that his imprint symbol looks like WHPH in human language.
Changyoon asked you what does it mean and the first thing comes into your mind was Work hard Play hard. And he loved it. Btw you googled paintings to find out which period and country Changyoon was in too.
• Since Changyoon has the experience of taking care someone he knows how to cook and do some chores. He quickly becomes your old butler's new fave and then also the new butler's fave being.
•BTW this might happen rarely but the cooking show down between new butler and Changyoon to compete who is the better cook. For some weird reason, you were never invited to be the judge and you never participated for food tasting. It was Hyojin's exclusive only.
• Fusion of magical world food ingredients with human food. Changyoon will keep it harmless.
• So enough of character establishment a bit more of the story... sometime later after you first time summoned Jaeyoung, one of your family member from main family came to visit
• You quickly returned Jaeyoung to his world and hoping that relative of yours won't notice. Even asked your old butler to keep quiet about it
• (Little that you know actually that relative of yours already sensed the new presence in your house but was sceptical as you are never truly exposed to their world as per their knowledge)
• Fast forward to the time you have successfully summoned Hyojin and Seungjoon. You left Jaeyoung and the new 2 familiars at home with your butler then you head out to school
• When you came back home you saw a unfamilar car stopped in front of your house and you had a bad feeling about it
• You stepped into the house acted like normal and find the head of main family with the relative you are close to are sitting on the couch in living room waiting you to return
• You glanced at your butler as you did not see your new friends in house. But your butler just lightly shook his head hinting now its not the timing. You acted normal and small talks with the guests until...
• One of them, preferably the head of family : "So, Y/N, are you not going to introduce us your new friends?" And it sent you chills.
• You tried to act like you don't understand the topic but they said they could sense the presence of your familiars in your house. No choice, you set out to find them. You found them in your room according to you butler. He was the one who suggested the trio to hide there.
• Seungjoon is under your bed, Jaeyoung is hiding in your closet while Hyojin locks himself in your bathroom.
• They are scared at your relatives because of their aura were way different from yours. You calmed them down and they all finally meet.
• Cues in you relatives are amazed at you being untrained, but still managed to summon such high class familiars and even sustain them. (Welp at this timing they all look like teenage boys and the consumption of your energy were limited)
• Of course you relatives lower down their intimidating aura when they checked and found the trio familiars of yours are basically harmless
• Cues in your relatives glanced at you when they saw Hyojin has 2 imprinted symbols. You already what it is by that timing and you firmly said "I knew about it, he told me. He wants to stay and I still wanna keep him."
• Your elder relatives exchanged looks and nodded to each other. They understood your initial motive and also they had to acknowledge that the apple does not fall far from the tree. The head of the family even pats your head and invite you to stay over at grand manor during summer holidays. "Having being accompanied is good but don't forget we are your family too."
• (You went to the grand manor before with your family but after their death you never visited much)
• And what happens was every year of your visit, the number of familiars you bring with you increases until you reach 7 familiars
• Again , this is my idea of preference. There are other members in the family having high class human looking hybrid familiars like you too. You can insert any other kpop groups. Like one relative of yours have a group of 6 (Oneus?), another one have 9 (PTG?). You even found out someone had 13 familiars. It is all flexible, even just 1 or 2 of your bias from other groups is doable too.
(This is because I personally don't like writing them does not interact with other beings or entity/species and just interacting with reader stand in only. Yea a weird sense of obligation for world building in fiction.)
•BTW ALL OF YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS DOTES ON MINSEOK LIKE THEY ADOPTED HIM. EVERYTIME YOU VISITED THR GRAND MANOR, THEY WOULD TOTALLY ASK FOR HIM.
• Minkyun might even befriended the family pet dog or cat in the grand manor
• As number of familiars increase, the household is getting chaotic. At first you are doing a good job controlling them like raising your voice while warning them but
• You eventually joins their weird antics occasionally and getting scolded by your old butler
• When you are not in the house and they are really out of control
• Cues in your butler just randomly throws a dead cockroach or dead bug towards them and they all freak out then scatters while making incoherent noises lol (old and new butler both doing it)
• It started with unexpectedly as during summer insects start roaming around. Usually there is no insects in your house but 1 or 2 occasionally just sneaks in. And took the liberty to die at the hallway or any corner in your house. So you and your butler found out about the 7 of them are scared of cockroaches and bugs in no time.
• its obvious when you see 1 or a few of them does not dare to walk through the hallway or just stand still or even suddenly runs toward you. Especially Yuto and Jaeyoung
• So one time, you are away from home. 7 of them are having way too much fun while the butler cleaning up suddenly he found a dead cockroach and out of frustration he picks it up and throws toward the 7 of them. And that is when and where you butler has found the ultimate weapon.
•Both old and new butler always reminds your familairs to hide their animal traits when some one normal comes by to visit
• Its perfectly doable if the 7 of your familiars ships you and the new butler. Which kinds of explains why they mostly overprotective when someone tries to flirt with you.
A/N : i will be stopping this part here for now. Need to head to bed soon. Initially thought of making an arc specially for Hyojin's story but then I dont have much time so I just merge everything into AU establishment
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newmayhem · 4 years ago
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Reading and ranking the entire Den of Shadows series
Check out my other Den of Shadows reviews HERE.
After a year such as this one, I wanted to close it out with something fun so I spent the past month marathoning the entire Den of Shadows series- rereading the original quartet and then reading for the first time the new TDOS books. I was originally going to post reviews/reactions for each book, but that got too cumbersome. Instead, I’m doing one big post of my personal ranking so I can discuss each book and talk about the series as a whole.
Spoilers for the entire Den of Shadows series below.
Personal Ranking
I based it on several different criteria but mainly: 1) How much I enjoyed it, 2) Writing/storytelling quality, 3) If there was anything glaringly ‘problematic’ (which I’ve found is usually a big factor in how much I enjoyed it), 4) How it fits in context of the entire series.
9. Shattered Mirror It hurts to put this one last on my list because Shattered Mirror was my intro to The Den of Shadows and to ahar’s work. Reading this again as an adult was frustrating because I can see why I loved it the first time around and how most of that doesn’t hold up today. Sarah was a great main character who deserved so much better than the ending she got. It was just wall to wall rape culture and misogyny. I hated Christopher and how he was a creepy pedophilic stalker framed as a romantic hero, I hated how Nikolas got some copout backstory so he would look like a good guy even though he beat a girl to death for rejecting his brother, and I hated how Nissa was enabling both of them. I really hated that this was meant to be a racism/prejudice metaphor because that doesn’t work out when the ‘oppressed’ group does actually harm innocent people. Aside from that, I felt like the pacing was really off- the events unfold over the course of a little over a week and we’re supposed to believe that after hanging out with them twice Sarah’s developed a bond with these vampires strong enough to override the prejudice she’s been raised with since birth (and that Christopher’s in love with her). And then there’s that whole anti-climax when it turns out that the ‘villain’ was Kaleo all along, but instead of having the book end there, there’s another 20 pages where we have to watch Sarah get attacked and changed against her will and then have it framed as a happy ending. I did like that she decided to not stay with Christopher in the end, though.
8. Midnight Predator I was actually surprised by how much I liked this one because I didn’t remember anything from it at all except for like, two scenes and some character names. It felt more mature in writing style, thematic content, and aesthetics. I also liked that we got a main character who was a little older and that the world was, for the most part, very removed from the human world. It was a good way to close out the original quartet in that it touched on a lot of the themes that had been explored in the books previous. That said, I had a lot of problems with how the issue of slavery was handled and also with how victim-blamey the moral of the story turned out to be. It just didn’t sit right with me that at no point did anyone bring up the idea of, you know, ending slavery at Midnight, which Jaguar had all the power to do. I hate that we were supposed to be sympathetic towards Jaguar and treat him like a good guy because he doesn’t abuse his slaves (for reasons that center on him) like everyone else does when he easily could just...not own slaves. Tying in with the victim blaming stuff, it felt like we were supposed to be satisfied with Turquoise freeing herself but being ok with letting slavery continue. And the big character arc that leads to her getting revenge on Daryl was framed as her ‘not letting herself be a victim anymore’, which is an objectively terrible take on this issue. Aside from that, I also had issues with the pacing here. We were promised a story about Midnight and a mission to assassinate Jeshickah, but all of that goes out the window in an anti-climax about two thirds of the way through the book (and two days into the timeline), and then the rest is a plodding montage leading to a very abrupt end. I also didn’t like how Daryl was supposed to be the real villain of the story but was also portrayed as a snivelling idiot that no one liked anyway, because that lessened the impact of Turquoise finally getting up the courage to kill him.
7. Demon In My View This was a good followup to ITFOTN in that it struck a balance between being standalone and having ties to the previous book. That said, I found the tone to be surprisingly more immature. I mainly didn’t like how the main character and the antagonist were handled. Jessica, while being a great reader insert/power fantasy, wasn’t very interesting because she didn’t go through any character development or have to sacrifice anything, but still got everything she wanted in the end. Fala was too much of a buttmonkey and her motives were too weak to be taken seriously. It also didn’t sit right with me that she’s the only canonical woc so far and she’s being portrayed as this incompetent cartoon villain even though objectively, like, she does have a point. But I do love the introduction of my favorite underappreciated side character, the ultimate MVP: Caryn Smoke!
6. Token of Darkness This book had a lot going against it, mainly in that it’s the most disconnected from the other TDOS books in terms of not only characters and setting, but also with introducing beings that hadn’t been mentioned before (in text, at least). I think especially as one of the new TDOS books, it would’ve helped to at least offhandedly namedrop some people/events/places. My second problem with this book was that everything felt very underdeveloped. I loved the new characters that were introduced, but I was disappointed that we didn’t have a lot of time to get to know them. I would’ve liked to see Cooper actually start training under Ryan, I would’ve liked to learn more about the LeCoire family and what it means to be a sorcerer. I also just wanted more Delilah because she’s such a fascinating character (I loved her reckless and unapologetic ambition). Kind of like ITFOTN, I felt like this lacked an Act 2. I think the story should’ve started earlier so we could see more of the investigation part of it, so we can get all the characters together earlier and have them working together (while Delilah has her hidden agenda on the side) to figure this out and build towards that climax. Even with the pacing and development problems, this is higher on the list because I just really enjoyed it- it was light and fun and I hope we get a chance to see these characters again.
5. Poison Tree This was something that I really wanted out of a new TDOS book- it delved deeper into parts of the world that had been mentioned before- the Bruja Guilds, SingleEarth, the Mistari, and all of that serves to set the scene for Promises to Keep. The concept was this cool deconstructed/reconstructed whodunnit story. It was more complicated than the typical TDOS plot, so I appreciate the ambition. That said, the execution wasn’t great- I often had to pause and go back in order to keep the facts straight and figure out who knows what, which was distracting. Another reason why this didn’t rank higher was that for some reason, I didn’t connect as much with these characters as I have in other books. The pacing was odd, I didn’t like that it came to a point where everyone had figured the main part of the mystery out, but instead of going directly to the climax, it took a detour into relationship drama, which slowed down the momentum. I think it would’ve made more sense to put Sarik and Alysia into a situation where they were forced to work together (rather than that brief but drawn out thing with Sarik and Christian). There would’ve been more tension, conflict, and forward momentum, and because they’re the two leads that were supposed to be focused on, it would’ve felt less like a detour.
4. Persistence of Memory This was a very good return to TDOS. It feels very familiar in how the new characters fit into the world. It struck a good balance between introducing new characters and having them coexist with concepts and characters that we’ve heard of before. I felt the same spark while reading this as I felt when I first read the original quartet. Like, this entirely new book made me feel nostalgic, and that’s not to be underestimated. I really loved the two protagonists and I was very invested in both of their stories. I particularly loved Shevaun because her struggle with her fear of becoming human again is one that we don’t often see in vampire fiction. I also think both she and Adjila are the perfect embodiment of beings who’ve been around for centuries and just don’t have the same morals and boundaries that humans do. I don’t normally read these books for the romance, but both canon ships here were really well done and believable, and also paralleled each other in an interesting way. And I loved the oddly wholesome focus on found/chosen family. Also, this gets extra points for everyone dunking on Alexander every time he’s mentioned.
I didn’t rank this higher because I wished Erin was more involved in figuring out what was going on with her. I didn’t really like that after a certain point, it felt like Sassy took over as protagonist. Still, I really enjoyed it, the ending was very satisfying (I loved that it was a straight up happy/optimistic ending instead of a bittersweet or abrupt one like most of the TDOS endings had been so far).
3. Promises to Keep This was a bold ending to the series. It took a lot of guts to basically blow up the world that you spent nearly 20 years creating and I admire that. It was a really engaging story that truly showed the full extent of what ahar was capable of as a writer at that time and the full extent of what a TDOS book could be. I think this time ahar really nailed the pacing (which was something that had always been a bit shaky in the past). We got to spend enough time with Jay and get to know him (it was a good choice to have the protagonist be a character we’ve met before but could still get to know more). I liked seeing everything we’ve learned from all the previous books come together and come into play. And I especially loved that our MVP Caryn got the HEA she deserves. The little epilogues at the end were fun to read (only, I’m mad we didn’t hear anything about Risika. Especially because she does get mentioned (and we finally know that 1) she found out about what happened to her mom, and 2) she and Kaleo have active, ongoing beef over it)). It really felt like a finale, but at the same time, it felt like a new beginning and I can’t wait for new books in this post-Promises world.
This could’ve ranked higher, but I did have a problem with Brina. In terms of personality, etc., I loved her and she was fun to get to know, but I can’t get past the whole slave owner thing and how that aspect of her was handled. I wished that her character arc was more about realizing that enslaving people is objectively bad rather than having her keep pointing out Jay’s incidental hypocrisy as if it weren’t a false equivalence. Her happy ending just felt a little unearned- the only real ‘penance’ she performed wrt being a slave owner was a tacked-on apology during the ritual and a sentence about how she freed her own slaves (again, no mention of whether or not all slavery has ended), and even though she was turned human, it’s not framed as a great or permanent loss, and on top of that she also gets witch powers.
2. In The Forests of the Night I admit, this ranking is mostly based on nostalgia...but it’s still a very solid book to kick off the series, set the vibes, and introduce us to this world and what kind of series this will be. It’s not the best of the series in terms of writing quality, plot, or scope, but of the original quartet, I think ITFOTN holds up the best. For a YA book of that era, especially one written by someone of its own target demographic, this felt very mature. It wasn’t trying to talk down to its audience and that meant a lot to me. It showed me that YA could be dramatic without being overwrought, serious without being an ‘issues’ book. It tackled questions of identity, morality, faith, power, and freedom, all framed within a fast-paced revenge story. Most of all, Risika is such an interesting, complicated character and her journey was both relatable and entertaining. Of all the endings in this series, the ending of ITFOTN was the most satisfying for me in that the main character had to change and sacrifice, and in the end she got what she truly deserved even if it wasn’t entirely happy. My only complaint is that we don’t see more of Risika throughout the series, especially when there’s clearly more to her story.
1. All Just Glass The TDOS books are fine as standalones and it’s cool that each one makes it feel like whoever you’re reading about is just a small part of a bigger world, but All Just Glass shows how good it can be when we go deeper into a particular story and give it more time to develop. That said, I don’t think it would’ve been as good as it was if it was written right after Shattered Mirror. There’s a very clear improvement in writing quality and storytelling that can only come from 10 years of experience.
While it didn’t fix all the problems I had with SM (mainly, I would’ve preferred it if Sarah didn’t go back to the Ravenas in the end), AJG made a great choice in shifting to a different, more cohesive theme and illustrating it across a compelling ensemble cast. It cleverly plays on our expectations of the Vida line that were based on the limited scope of SM in order to show that contrary to what we’ve seen previously, this is actually an institution that’s in decline. The Vidas aren’t this great power ruling over the rest of the Macht witches- they’re actually these fundamentalist/extremist outliers who are on the fringes clinging to the ‘old ways’ while everyone else kind of does what they want and their decline is directly related to their obsessive adherence to tradition at all costs. What’s so great about this is that it’s not just a sequel, it’s a subversion of SM that also sets the tone of the new TDOS series in anticipation of the inevitable end.
General Notes
I loved reading these all back to back and watching ahar grow as a writer, watching the world unfold right before my eyes.
It was interesting to see the difference between the two series. I found most of the books in the new series to be generally more engaging because they’re based around a central mystery (What’s the connection between Erin and Shevaun? Who is Samantha? Who attacked SingleEarth? Who’s the shapeshifter?). I also liked that rather than shy away from mentioning technology and trying to pretend that it doesn’t exist or that we’re still in the early 2000s, ahar really leaned into it and in doing so, made the stories feel more realistic.
The original quartet was very aesthetically cohesive, it was a series of vignettes that purely aimed to explore a particular piece of the world. The new series, however, felt cohesive in that each of the books is building towards the end and showing a piece of the puzzle that sets the scene for PtK (PoM gives us more about the Tristes, ToD gives us the elementals, AJG and PT are about groups that are on the decline with their fates based on whether or not they choose to align with the rising power of SingleEarth).
On kind of a petty note, I wanted to mention how much I hate all the new covers (both for the new TDOS series and for the re-release of the original quartet) and I was really disappointed in how low-effort the marketing was for the new series. Even just reading the synopsis for PT and PtK was painful because they seemed slapped together at the last minute like no one cared. I think it was a real missed opportunity to draw in a new audience because they were coming out just as the YA boom, particularly in vampire fiction, was happening.
The biggest takeaway I got from this marathon is a huge respect and appreciation for this extensive world and cast of characters that ahar built (and then had the courage to entirely upend). I know mainstream attention isn’t everything, but I just really hope ahar gets their flowers because this is a great (and highly influential) body of work that’s so different and even ahead of its time.
Anyway, that’s my take on the series. I might make this re-read an annual thing because this was fun. Also, as I was reading, I made sure to note factual info about the world and the characters, so I’ll be making new additions/edits to the reference materials soon.
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zydrateacademy · 4 years ago
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First Impressions / Review - Cyberpunk 2077
I have some screenshots but they’re mostly photo mode and the occasional interface showing off my gear. So this review will be pic-less for now. I got Cyberpunk off of Stimulus money so as far as I’m concerned, the government paid for this game which does negate some of the problems I’d normally have for dropping 80$ or so on a preorder. Use that information how you will. First, I want to address some technical issues. In the sense that I don’t have very many. I have a 1050 GTX, an i5 processor, and 16GB of Ram. That’s about as complex as my knowledge goes on that. I’ve had a few glitches like Jackie ghosting through a closed door, some vans were clipped into the parking lot, and some NPC’s being stuck in furniture. A lot of ghosting around, really. The odd frame drop but nothing game breaking, and I haven’t had any crashes except one on startup, right after updating my drivers. Just the one in ~21 hours of gameplay. I play on High (but not ultra) settings. So all in all, not a bad experience. Everyone’s computer is a unique butterfly so while you will see a lot of yelling on various communities, some of us are trucking along several hour sessions at a time and not having a problem. Let’s do a quick dive into the story, and there may be some spoilers here but it’s mostly for Act 1, which is reachable just a couple hours depending on how quickly you want to unlock the whole city (as you’re locked to one region until you complete a major heist). 
You play as V, of any variety of gender identity you wish (though you are stuck with he or she pronouns). Basically a futuristic mercenary that does any kind of work available, kind of giving me some vibes from Burn Notice. Arms deals, stealing fans, VIP extraction, and so on. Of course, nothing goes as plan and you more or less lose your entire initial team after a heist goes wrong in every way possible. You’re witness to a world changing shift in a power structure and are forced to insert a chip with the ‘soul’ of Johnny Silverhand, an angry and incredibly bitter man who staged a bombing decades before V enters the game. This becomes the driving force of the game as you work to remove him safely from your body before he replaces you entirely - Something that not even he can stop, really. I’ve only had my toes dipped in Cyberpunk as a genre but it seems pretty standard fare. The concepts of “do cybernetics eat your soul’ and the various debate of how much human makes a human, all that. You’re put right there in center force as you grapple with these questions, even though our avatar as V is more concerned with just curing themselves like it was any other terminal disease. Even in-universe, the idea of a soul-preserving microchip is still a relatively new invention, though still in development enough to be advertised and talked about in news circuits. So let’s approach my first problem. It takes several hours for the game to essentially ‘wake up’. For a long time, you’re stuck in several conversations and interactable cutscenes with very little gameplay except taking advantage of V’s chosen origin in dialog. A couple of firefights here and there but the initial region locks you in and there’s only so many world encounters to just run into. The game more or less railroads you into completing Act 1 with some haste, because it also unlocks the ability to get more cybernetics and even some actual, full on mechanics. Within that railroading, you’re witness to so. Much. God. Damn. Talking. Mercifully you can press or hold “c” to skip through some things if you already understand the gist, but the first several hours of the game can very much feel like a very pretty walking simulator. Thankfully this kind of goes away after Act 1. You suddenly get called by a variety of Fixers that preside over various regions and they toss you dozens of side-jobs to do and so far, I find them to be delightfully varied. As a stealther, I found great joy in having a VIP escort quest with the optional objective of not sounding any alarms. So I went and bought myself a silencer and happily snuck around some gang mates boxing in the middle of a building, retrieved my guy, and escorted him outside while leaving several enemies alive. It was a great achievement. These side-gigs can be as complicated or straightforward as you please, giving me some Dues Ex vibes. The tutorial introduces you to hacking so you can distract and destroy your enemies how you see fit, and I have found that most encounters are designed with alternate routes to deal with enemies. Others are less clear. During one gig, I opened a door and the entire bar went ape on me, so I shot my way through and earned two stars from the police. Turned into a massive shootout that led to a dropbox that had gang members in it that also shot at me. Playing on Easy is a saving grace, but as someone who typically likes sneaking around games when the option is available, I wish the game made it more clear if I'm in a "suspicious" type zone. I also have no idea which NPC's are counted as potential enemies (the scan early in the story tells you if they're in a gang or not), as perfectly normal NPC's in the aforementioned bar just began unloading on me. It was wild, and I survived and got paid but the mission giver telling me it was sloppy work. Thanks, lady. Another time I opened a gate and trained my silenced pistol on the guard only for her to slightly sidestep as the gate opening “alerted” her. So I missed the shot, she opened fire, and the entire structure came out to play. It was an intense gunfight in which I was victorious, but it felt hollow as my silenced approach just botched the entire encounter. It was difficult for me to figure out what the game’s general “loop” is. So far it gives me the Ubisoft vibe of “hit everything you run into”. I do like the idea of V being something of a vigilante, as random police encounters pretty much allow you to intervene and gun down gang members without them bothering you about it. I must admit, however, I wish there was more to actually DO in the game. So far it’s mostly just side-gig after side-gig. Escort guy here, steal a van there, eliminate all enemies here. Though again, I said before that some of this can be quite enjoyable under the right circumstances. Maddening in others. In a way, this is kind of the Rage 2 problem all over again, in the sense that people loved the general gunplay but there wasn’t actually a lot of gameplay beyond the decent combat mechanics. Cyberpunk 2077 is certainly no GTA5, but I hope some day it can become that with DLC’s that add actual activities.
A couple of quick asides. I despise the driving, as most vehicles seem to want to spin out very easily if you hold the turning key for a second too long. In some fashion, it forces you to drive like an actual sane person and mowing down civilians (even accidentally) adds a GTA-esque wanted level though it seems stupidly easy to avoid. Narratively, it makes sense as the authorities in this universe are incredibly corrupt and it basically amounts to “eh, they’re too far now, let’s not waste resources”. So, fair enough. Still, I hope to GOD there’s no mandatory story-based racing. Games have screwed me on that before, and I have not beaten most GTA games because of that. Secondly, I don’t think the origin choice does a lot. You get different dialog choices and being a Corpo did lead to one interesting turn when you just ‘knew’ a credit chip had a virus on it. So there is that, but ultimately the rest of the dialog is identical. You could chalk this up to V spending six months with Jackie and he, more or less, lets your V really swim in Night City culture but honestly ALL V choices feel like they’ve become the same person. I was originally a Corpo but it just feels like her past and culture didn’t seep in through most of the dialog. At the end of the day, V is always just some mercenary punk. The world is gorgeous, albeit not as alive as it may have been advertised in promotions. Random civilians just have canned dialog, a lot of it rude. However I’ve been hard pressed to find doubles or clones of anyone just walking around, but that may change once I get into the hundreds of hour counts. It’s a very pretty game and despite some of my qualms, I am enjoying the experience. There’s a photo mode which is wonderful to utilize when you run into an environment that just captures the imagination. I took a screenshot of Jackie’s wall of pinups, including a typical slutty nun but as per the universe, her chest filled with beautifully placed cybernetics. It was just fun to see, and there’s a lot of semi-subtle world building like that that I just adore.
The game has issues. However, if you wanted a slightly scaled back idea of GTA5 with a different aesthetic, this is not at all a bad choice. However I will not blame anyone if they wait for the “GOTY” editions to come out. And on sale.
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