#so it’s funny to see the inverse happening

[hauntingblue]

Last arcane episode ever..... here we fucking go....

[a11eya]

TITLE: lights will guide you home

CHAPTER: 11

PAIRING: Bakugou Katsuki x Reader

SUMMARY: Soul-lights aren’t as common in this day and age as they were in the past, before quirks, but they’re common enough that people do still find their soulmates.

At thirteen, you meet Bakugou Katsuki, and he lights up for you in orange and gold. You tell him he's your soulmate. He sneers and tells you that you aren't his. He makes your adolescence miserable until you part ways.

You meet again as adults, late at night, in a grocery store, over a pile of bok choy. He apologizes for how he treated you when you were children.

(In which you have a choice—to reject Bakugou's apology, reject him, or to let him show you the man he's become, to learn with him what it means to love and forgive.)

TAGS: soulmate au, trope inversion/subversion, slow burn, getting together, falling in love, fluff, aged up characters, pro-hero characters, eventual smut, mild bullying

NAVIGATION: Series Masterlist

“And you haven’t heard from Bakugou?”

“I haven’t.” Kirishima wrings his hands as you nod and look away, trying to hide your expression. In other circumstances, the sight of such a big man—fiery red hair, sharp teeth, muscles and all—fretting in such a way would’ve been funny. Sweet. But as it is, your worry shadows everything.

The first couple of days after Bakugou falls off the grid, you’re a little annoyed. He couldn’t have spared a minute to reply before leaving? Or at least given you an estimate about when he’d be back? Given you a heads up at all?

But a couple days quickly turn into a week, and you begin to worry. Is this normal? Can you call his agency to ask? Or would that be inappropriate, you butting your head into hero business? 

You don’t know if you’re being irrational or if you’re being overbearing when you and Bakugou are just friends. Unrequited soulmates don’t count. You have no real claim to knowledge regarding his whereabouts, his movements. You’re just friends. 

But friends can worry about their friends. That’s totally normal. So you figure—it wouldn’t hurt to ask. Just one call.

“Hi Aiko. I was just wondering…” You hesitate. “You know how Bakugou—Dynamight is away on a mission right now? Would you happen to know when he’ll be back?”

“I’m sorry.” Even over the phone, her regret comes clear through. “I don’t have high enough clearance to know that info. And even if I did, it’s agency policy not to share that kind of information.”

“Oh, don’t be sorry,” you tell her, forcing a cheerful tone. You gnaw at your lip, feeling a little lost. What now?

“But I’m sure Red Riot would know!” she says, just as you make up your mind to say your goodbyes and hang up. “Would you like to schedule a meeting with him?”

You immediately perk up.

“Yes, please!” 

Kirishima touches your shoulder. He says, “I think Bakugou’s been instructed to go dark for this mission.”

You look up into his earnest eyes.

“None of our friends have heard from him either,” he tells you. 

“Oh.” The ball of anxiety that’s been sitting on your chest like a weight lightens just a little. So it’s not just you. 

But is that a bad thing? No one’s heard from him?

The weight returns. 

“Is it normal for him to take missions like this?” you ask. “You guys are used to it?”

Kirishima frowns, looking conflicted. “No… These longer missions are usually reconnaissance or stealth missions, and Bakugou’s quirk doesn’t really mix well with them. But there might be other reasons for him to go dark.”

“I see,” you say, gaze falling to the ground as frustration swells in you. 

You’re so clueless about the hero profession. You don’t know what’s normal, how you should be feeling. If the relative calm Kirishima’s exuding is something you should mimic or if the calm’s due to his familiarity with situations like this. And it’s your own fault. Because in the months you’ve spent learning Bakugou, you could’ve asked about all this. About what he does and what’s to be expected. But you didn’t. 

“Look, please don’t worry.” Kirishima ducks his head to look you in the eye. “Bakugou’s really, really good at what we do. He wouldn’t want you to stress over him being gone.”

“Right,” you say, summoning a weak smile. 

“I’ll let you know as soon as I hear anything,” Kirishima promises.

“Thanks Kirishima,” you say. 

“Call me Kiri, if you’re comfortable with it!” he says, grinning. “And send me pics of Mikan and Natsu. Bakugou’s stingy about sharing them.” 

Laughing, you agree. 

You: I finally got Kirishima’s number! Remembered to ask him while stopping by the agency this morning 😌

You send a picture you’d taken—Kirishima grinning in the background with the smoothie you’d gotten him, and you throwing up a peace sign at the camera. 

Smiling a little, you imagine Bakugou’s reaction upon seeing the picture, seeing your message. He has no right calling you squirrely when he’s so weird about you being friendly with Kirishima. You’re not sure, but if you could hazard a guess, you think it’s because he’s uncomfortable with mixing friend groups. Which you can understand—sometimes it just doesn’t work, or it’s awkward to facilitate. But still. 

You admit that it’s fun getting reactions out of Bakugou, that sometimes you do things on purpose. You miss messing with him. 

Your messages finish sending, finally. But just like the other texts you’ve sent over the past few days, there’s no indication that they’ve been delivered. 

Your smile fades. 

“Hey, what’s up?”

Your head jerks up from your phone as you meet your friend’s eyes. Feeling strangely guilty, you set it down on the table in front of you as she settles back into her seat. 

Mitsuru raises an eyebrow at you. “You’ve been glued to that thing today. You expecting  to hear from someone?”

“Kind of,” you say, then make a face. “Or, I guess, not really. I’m not sure.” 

“The most convoluted answer,” she says, snorting. “Here, pick something from the dessert menu while I flag down that server. You can tell me what’s up with you while we eat.”

Sighing, you take the menu from her. 

Mitsuru’s sharp as a tack in general, but she’s also known you since middle school. It’s not often you wish you could hide things from her, but this time might be one of them. 

You haven’t told anyone about reconnecting with Bakugou. Not Mitsuru, or any of your other friends. You hadn’t even noticed you’d kept your friendship with Bakugou to yourself until recently. You’re not sure why. It’s not like you’re actively hiding it. It’s just… how it’s turned out. 

Okay, maybe you’ve been hiding it a little from Mitsuru specifically. But it’s because she knows him from your time at Aldera. She’d witnessed how mean he was to you, had gotten into verbal scuffles with him, defending you, until you’d asked her to stop.

So. You know that she doesn’t have a good impression of Bakugou. Even after all these years, when she sees ads or merch of him, she rolls her eyes. 

But you do want to talk to someone about it, about him, if only to get some objectivity about your worry. And Mitsuru, with her frank, realistic outlook on the world, is perfect for the job. 

So you tell her about it—an abbreviated, edited version of it. About this friend you’d gotten to know over the past couple months. The “business trip” he’d gone on with little notice and no heads up about when he’d be back. That’s you’re worried because you haven’t heard from him. 

Hiding details—that it’s Bakugou, that the trip is a hero mission—makes you shift in your seat, a stone in your stomach. But you’re scared of what Mitsuru would say. What she’d think if she knew. She’d only ever seen the cruel child he’d been. 

Mitsuru gives you a look when you finally fall silent. She plays with her nails, painted to look like glass, haloed like cat’s eyes, then lifts a hand to wrap a strand of black hair around her finger. 

“This friend of yours,” she says. “It’s Dynamight, isn’t it.” 

Your eyes widen. You choke on the water you’d been sipping. 

“What? Why would you—”

Mitsuru watches as you stumble over your words, mind racing as you try to figure out what to say. She sighs. 

“It’s okay. You don’t have to confirm anything if it’ll get you into trouble or something. But I’ve had my suspicions since I saw those promotional pics he took with those kittens. They’re the ones you’re fostering, right?”

Fuck. You should’ve thought of that. Mitsuru was the first to meet them, all those months ago.

“And then there was that noise on social media about Dynamight at that fancy pet store you were excited to try out a couple months back. Don’t think I wouldn’t recognize the back of your little head,” Mitsuru says, eyes narrowed at you. 

You stare at her for a long moment, scrambling for things to say to deny it. She’s cool, eyes steady.

You cover your face with a hand. 

“You can’t tell anyone,” you say, letting your hand fall, and she scoffs. 

“Who do you think I am,” she says. 

“You’re the only one I’ve told about him.” 

Mitsuru raises a brow. She crosses her arms over her chest. “I appreciate you confiding in me, I do, but… I remember that little shit did to you when we were in junior high. What the hell are you thinking?”

You wince. “I know how it sounds. But he really has changed, Mitsuru. He’s not that little kid anymore. That bully. People grow up.”

Mitsuru’s mouth remains downturned, eyes distrustful. 

“We really did meet months ago,” you say. “And within the first five minutes of conversation, he apologized. I wasn’t ready for it then, but… But since then, we’ve spent time together. Gotten to know each other. And he’s only ever been kind to me.” 

You find that your words catch in your throat, an unexpected wave of emotion flowing through you. Fiddling with your fingers, you say quietly, “We’re friends now.”

You raise your eyes to meet Mitsuru’s. 

Her expression has changed, softened a little. She reaches over and rubs your arm up and down briskly.

“Hey,” she says. “You don’t have to justify anything or feel any type of way about being friends with him given your history. I trust your judgement. I’m just worried, is all.”

“I get it,” you say. “He really was an asshole as a kid. But he’s a better person now. Promise.” 

You feel your words with a certainty you didn’t have months ago. The Bakugou you know, who cares deeply for his friends, who’s always honest, who admits his mistakes, who puts so much effort and care into his job, helping people, protecting people—he’s a good person. One of the best people in your life. 

Mitsuru leans back into her chair. She inhales deeply, exhales. She says, “Just one more thing. I… I know you say he’s your soulmate, that you can see his lights—”

Your breath catches. You know she doesn’t mean anything by it. But her doubt hurts. It echoes yours, feeds into an insecurity that’s only just tempered by the reassuring flicker of orange and gold when you see Bakugou.  

“—but I remember how unkind he was when he told you it’s not a mutual thing. I don’t know if you’ve already resolved that with him, but… I don’t want you to get hurt.” 

“I know.” You tap your foot against hers under the table. “Thank you. Really. And we… haven’t talked about it yet. It hasn’t come up.” 

“Why not?”

You shrug, looking away. Prickles of discomfort race up and down your arms. You should talk about it. But. What if it changes things between you? 

Mitsuru studies you for a long moment, then sighs. “All right. All right. But as your friend, I reserve the right to yell at him the second he fucks up. Just letting you know.” 

You snort, tension releasing. “Yes, yes.”

“And you gotta introduce us. Re-introduce us.” 

“I will!” 

Mitsuru reaches over and pinches you in the arm. You whine.

She grins. “Okay, now tell me how the cats got tangled up in being promotional material for Super Explosion Guy blah blah blah. I can be nosy now that you’ve said something.”

You laugh. “His hero name is one of the funniest things about him, isn’t it? So it started because of that pet shop…”

Natsu, your sweet girl, is finally adopted. The paperwork is finalized, Bakugou’s PR people and the foster organization wrap up all loose ends, and you say goodbye. 

It’s quieter, once she’s gone. Lonelier. She was never a noisy cat, but she would always curl up in your lap whenever you’d read or watch something on the couch. Make biscuits on you when you’d drape a blanket over your legs. She was the cuddliest of the three. 

Mikan’s lost both his playmates, and you try to make up for it with extra play time and mental stimulation via things like treat puzzles. You’re glad you still have him. You don’t know what you’ll do when he leaves you too. He’s so big now. 

To distract yourself, you sign up for a cooking class. It’s just one lesson, two and a half hours. You want to feel out the chef instructor, the vibes of doing something like this, before investing in other packages where more lessons are offered over the course of several weeks. 

It’s surprisingly really fun. You’d gone in worried about your knife skills, about keeping up with the instructor. But you shouldn’t have because everyone is super nice and encouraging. The instructor is attentive, patient. And what you make ends up being surprisingly delicious. 

Mitsuru comes over for dinner the next night and you prepare it for her. It’s a hit. 

“How’s pilates been?” you ask, and Mitsuru groans, reclining further into the couch and patting her belly.

“A nightmare,” she says. “I didn’t think it’d be so tough. You’d think two decades of playing sports and generally being active would help. It does in some ways, but not really. You know, I got the shakes yesterday? We were doing an exercise on the reformer and my leg kept shaking, like I had no control over it. It was so embarrassing, jeez. I was at the front of the room, too.” 

You laugh, imagining it, then shake your head. “If you think it’s hard, there’s no hope for me.”

She turns her head to look at you, eyes brightening. “Are you interested? Forget everything I said. It’s amazing. Life-changing. So fun. Easy, even. Come join.” 

Laughing, you push her away as she smacks your leg in enthusiasm. 

“Have you tried pilates?” you ask Kirishima as he finishes taking a big sip of the smoothie you’d gotten him. He’s just wrapped up a workout, and you’re visiting on your lunch break. 

“No,” he says, tilting his head. “My friend Mina does classes at a studio, though, if you’re interested.” 

“I’m definitely not,” you say. You give him a quick rundown of the conversation you had with Mitsuru, adding, “It just got me thinking about maybe joining a gym or picking up something easy I can do consistently. When I moved to this neighborhood two years ago, I canceled my old membership because of the distance. But with how much I’m chained to my desk at work, I figure I should find a new gym.” 

“If you’re down, I can get you started with a couple workouts here at our agency’s gym until you find something you like,” Kirishima tells you. “I know some gyms in this area, so if you want, I’d be happy to help you look, too!” 

You smile up at him. 

“That’d be great, Kiri, thank you! You sure helping me with workouts won’t interfere with your schedule?” 

“We’ll work it out, don’t worry.” He grins at you, giving you a look as if to say, Did you catch that? Did you get it? 

You laugh, shaking your head. “I’m going to ignore that. That’s terrible.” 

“Aww.” Kirishima ducks his head. 

You shake yours. “But really, thank you. For the gym stuff and just for being so nice in general.” 

“Well, we’re friends, aren’t we? Always happy to help a friend.” 

You smile. You open your mouth, then hesitate.

You like Kirishima, think you can become even better friends with time. Still, you’re conscious that you haven’t known him long. That the topics of your conversations have been everyday, casual ones.

But lately, certain heavier thoughts have been plaguing you. Despite keeping busy at work, indulging your interests, investing in your other relationships, you can’t stop thinking about Bakugou. It’s been two weeks now. 

Before, Bakugou being a pro hero meant that every once in a while you’d see him on the news if a villain altercation was serious enough to get covered. It meant seeing him in uniform on the streets during patrol, discreetly waving at him as you passed by on your way to and from work. 

Now it means struggling with not knowing where he is, when he’ll be back, if he’s safe. When you’ll see him again and if he’s okay.

How do heroes, especially ones who grow up together as classmates like those attending UA or Shiketsu, handle all these feelings? How do their—their friends, their families, and their partners manage the fear and uncertainty? 

You know you’re not doing a good job of it.

Looking up into Kirishima’s friendly face, those bright eyes and comforting smile, you take a little leap. 

“Can I ask you a question? A kind of serious one.” 

“Anything!” Kirishima says. He gestures for you to sit on a nearby bench, taking a seat next to you after you’re settled. 

“What’s up?” he asks. 

You take a deep breath and decide to just go for it. 

“How do you deal with it? The worry, the… all these terrible feelings when your friends are risking their lives fighting people or going off on these long missions?” You have to stop yourself there, worried that if you keep going, you won’t be able to stop; all of these feelings you’ve been grappling with will just come rushing out. 

Kirishima’s gaze softens, understanding. His mouth sets into a thoughtful line as he considers your question. 

“It never stops being tough,” he says slowly. “Simple patrols can turn into fights, or chases, or rescues all the time. Other heroes with more specialized quirks and jobs can be put into even more danger than us regular heroes, depending. I went to school with people who told us the risks, and we faced them. Even earlier than we should’ve.”  

For a moment, the planes of his face fall into a weariness, a seriousness you’d never seen on him before. That lovely light in his eyes dims, just a little. 

He meets your gaze. “And we still stayed on with the job. For lots of us, helping people, keeping people safe, it’s worth all of it. But for our family, partners, who’re civilians, it’s hard.” 

“So it never gets easy? You just have to live with it?” you ask quietly, that burden settling heavy in your heart.

“I don’t know about easy. But. For me, uh. I don’t know if this’ll be helpful at all, but, um, I try to stay in the present. I used to always be thinking about what ifs or things that hadn’t happened—yet, I thought, and worked myself up. Still do sometimes. But one of my former teachers told me that that’s no way to live your life. Miss out on so much doing that.”

You can relate.

Kirishima tilts his head, thinking for a moment. 

“Oh! And of course there are, like, mental health professionals and support groups I can connect you to. If you want! Lots of heroes see someone regularly, and so do their family members or partners,” he says. 

“I’d like that,” you tell him. 

He smiles at you, reaches out to pat your hand. “Talking about it helps. Having community helps me most, personally. Friends who have my back, family who care. So. If you need someone. I’m always here, okay? I got you.”

An open hand, so readily offered. 

A little lump rises in your throat. These people you’ve met—Bakugou, Kiri, Pulsar, Shieldmaiden—really are heroes. They’re such good people. 

“Thanks, Kiri,” you say with a wobbly smile. 

The days continue to pass, and you try to stay balanced, focused. Some days you succeed, and others you don’t. 

A new restaurant near your work opens up, specializing in your favorite cuisine, and you and a coworker head out to try it. 

You’re waiting for the light to change for the crossing, chatting with your coworker, when a flicker of orange catches your eye. 

You raise your head, your coworker’s voice receding into the background as you slowly scan the streets for what’d caught your attention. 

There. That orange and gold is unmistakable. Your breath catches. 

“Bakugou,” you say, and—his name feels like it’s ripped out of you, a compulsion. The vowels and consonants are lost to the bustle of city life, but his name remains, a question on your tongue. 

You nearly start forward, stepping into the street, before remembering yourself. It’s so hard to resist the urge to run after him, cars be damned, what your coworker would think be damned. But you hold yourself still, tense. Eyes locked on the man walking further and further away from you.

It’s him, right? If he wasn’t wearing a hoodie, you’d be able to tell for sure by his hair, his build. But the hoodie obscures the lines of his body. This far away, you can no longer make out any flashes of orange and gold.

The wait for this pedestrian crossing is so fucking long. You’re going to file a complaint to—to someone, to whomever is in charge of this shit. Fuck. 

Biting your lip, you watch as his figure disappears around the corner. 

“What’d you say?” your coworker asks, jostling you. 

You blink, feeling a little out of body, dazed. Your coworker peers into your face, concerned. 

“You good?” 

“I—yeah. I’m fine.” Forget about lunch. You need to check your phone. 

But before you can do so, your coworker grabs your elbow, propelling you forward. “Hey, the light’s changing, c’mon.”

Maybe you imagined it. Maybe it wasn’t him. 

The second you got the chance, you checked your phone. But there were no messages from Bakugou waiting for you, none from Kiri. Just a couple from Mitsuru, one from your mom, another from a coworker asking you to pick something up from the restaurant for them. 

Maybe you’re losing it.

You sigh, stroking down the length of Mikan’s back, eyes watching but not perceiving the show you’d put on. 

He’d text you if he were back in town, right? Kiri would give you a heads up. So it was your wishful thinking earlier, your imagination. 

You miss him. It’s been almost three weeks. You’ve thought about reaching out to the groups Kiri recommended to you, but you always chicken out at the last minute, phone in hand, number undialed. 

Kiri’d said that heroes’ family or partners go to these things. He hadn’t mentioned friends. Would it be weird to show up just as a hero’s friend? Would telling them he’s your soulmate help justify it? 

But no, because. What would you even say? Hi, I’m a hero’s friend. Yeah, just friends. Well, no, technically he’s also my soulmate. What do I mean by technically? Well, he’s mine but I’m not his. So yeah. 

Even the thought of admitting that to strangers makes you nauseous. 

And what if you slip and say his name? You don’t want people to know you’re talking about Bakugou. You’re not sure you’re allowed to say he’s on a mission. You’re still not sure you want people outside your personal lives aware that you know each other, are friends. 

You pick Mikan up, lifting him to eye level, and bury your face in his side. That nice cat smell envelops you for a nice moment. 

He squirms out of your grip, jumping to the floor. Giving you a look, he begins washing his fur with his tongue. 

You slump into the couch, defeated.

Bright and early, the next morning finds you at the agency in workout clothes. 

All night, you’d tossed and turned, mind busy. You’d fallen into a fitful sleep around 2 AM, only to wake up again around 5 AM. At that point, you gave up and decided that maybe if you tired your body out, your mind would shut up and let you rest. At the very least, you’re grateful it’s a Saturday and you don’t have to come in to work. 

Flashing a quick smile and wave to the front desk, you use your access card to head up to the gym. The halls are quiet, and the few people using the gym are people you don’t know. 

You slip on some headphones and get to work. 

Truthfully, you shouldn’t be mooching off Kiri’s—and Bakugou’s—generosity. But you’ve really enjoyed the workouts you’ve had with Kiri this past week. He designed a workout routine for you and demonstrated the exercises you’ve been doing. He’s encouraging, and he knows just how far to push you. He really has a way with people. It’s made you less motivated to seek out your own gym. You’ve been spoiled. 

You’ll look into the gyms Kiri recommended later today, you resolve. After a nap. The workout’s done its job. You clean up the machine you’d been using and head out. 

You’re mid-yawn, eyes squinted and watering, so you don’t catch that someone’s trying to enter the gym at the same time as you’re exiting until it’s too late. 

“Oh, sorry,” you say, quickly wiping at your eyes, embarrassed. When they’re clear, you look up, then freeze. 

“Bakugou!” 

Bakugou grunts. Says your name in greeting. His eyes quickly scan you up and down before coming to rest on your face. 

You’re warm, very aware that you’re still a little sweaty. You hope you don’t smell. You want to hug him so badly, but you’re too nervous. You’re self-conscious, shy. You don’t know what’s gotten into you. 

He looks tired, eyes weary. His hair’s grown out a little, longer than you’re used to seeing on him. A bandage rests right below his scar, stark against his skin. 

The little details don’t matter. You’re so happy to see him. You’re smiling, not realizing it. 

When Bakugou doesn’t say anything more, you ask, “When did you get back?”

He hesitates for a second, looks at the wall next to you, then back at you. 

“A couple days ago,” he says shortly. 

You pause. 

“A couple days ago?” you repeat. A feeling you can’t quite name begins to creep up the back of your neck. It’s not a nice feeling. “Oh. Did you, I mean, were there a lot of post-mission things you needed to do?”

“Yeah. A bunch of annoying bullshit.” 

You make a sympathetic sound. There, you tell yourself silently. He had reasons for not giving you a heads up that he’s been back. The world doesn’t revolve around you. 

“What’re you doing here?” he asks. 

The gym’s doors open behind you as someone exits, and Bakugou puts a hand on the small of your back, pulling you to the side and out of the way. 

His hand on your back, even through your clothes, is warm. 

It takes you a second to reply. “Kiri said it’d be okay if I use the agency’s gyms until I find my own. I hope that’s okay.”

“S’fine,” he says. 

His hand’s still on your back. He’s standing so close to you, just looking at you. At your face, darting down your body, as if committing you to memory. As if it’s something you won’t notice. You don’t mind at all. You can’t take your eyes off him either. 

But—

“I—sorry, I gotta ask, it’s bothering me,” you say. “I hear that you’ve been busy, but. A quick, ‘Hey I’m back, I’m fine’ message would’ve been appreciated, y’know? If you were allowed. Was it that you weren’t allowed to tell non-heroes that you’re back?”

Bakugou’s hand falls away from you. He exhales deeply and crosses his arms over his chest. 

“No. Just didn’t have time to talk to you.”

Something sharp and unpleasant rises as a slow wave in you. You remind yourself that busy is busy, and some things aren’t in his control. 

But—it’s been days. If it really was him you saw the other day, out in the city, it’s been at least four days. And it looks like he was heading into the gym before you bumped into him.

Frowning, you shift your gym bag to your other hand, bowing your head. “Bakugou. You were gone a long time, and I had no idea what was happening with you. I feel like you could’ve shot me a quick message.”

“I told you I was gonna be on a mission,” he says, furrowing his brows. 

“Yeah, but you didn’t say when you’d be back, or if it’d be dangerous, or anything except just that,” you say, voice rising a little at the end. 

Inhaling deeply, you force yourself to breathe, speak normally. “Neither Kiri nor the agency could tell me anything. It sucked, Bakugou. I just wanna know what’s going on.” 

Bakugou scowls. 

“Look, I told you I’ve been busy,” he says. “I just got back, give me a fucking second. And I can’t always tell you shit just because it’s inconvenient for you not to know.”

The gym doors open once more, another person leaving, and you become hyper aware that you’re having this conversation in public. Suddenly, you don’t want to be having this conversation anymore. 

“You’re right,” you say evenly. “Sorry for overstepping. I’ll let you get to your workout.”

You move to get past him, and he steps in front of you. You stop just short of touching, your hands tightening into fists. The strap of your bag digs into the meat of your hand.

“Fuck,” Bakugou says. “You’re not getting it. Stop taking shit personally. It doesn’t have anything to do with you.”

You look at him. Shaking your head, you say, “You know what? I’m done here. Bye.”

“We’re not done with shit,” Bakugou says.

“Well I’m done, so back off.”

“Not until—”

“Look, Bakugou,” you say, voice trembling. Shit. You don’t want him to think you’re crying, because you’re not. You’re just so mad. “I’m really fucking upset right now. And the shit you’re saying’s just making things worse. Let’s table this. Let me go.”

He stares at you for a long moment. You stare back at him defiantly. 

“Fine,” he growls.

“Great,” you say. 

You turn on your heel and leave.

Your mind is empty the entire train ride home. 

Distantly, you recognize that your back and neck ache from the tension you’re carrying, but it’s impossible to relax. You feel a little separate from your body, like you’re watching yourself move through the actions of getting off at your stop and walking back to your apartment. 

Once you’re home, you throw yourself into a hot shower, hoping to jar yourself out of the mood you’re in. But even after it, you’re still tense, still aching. 

You try to take a nap. But your body only remembers conflict; the normally satisfying ache and tiredness post-workout is nowhere to be found. You’re wide awake. 

The anger rears its head once more. Why doesn’t he get it? That you were worried, that you wanted him to communicate as much as he could, as soon as he could. 

You understand that he can’t tell you certain things because of the nature of his work. You just want him to think of you, of how you’d feel, of how you felt. 

Then it’s like a switch flipping, and you’re just. Sad. What a dumb thing to argue over. Such a small thing. Did you overreact? Did you mess things up because you’re overthinking things?

But how would he feel, if you did the same thing to him? Just—fucked off to some place without telling him where or when you’d be back? And when you did get back, not let him know until it’s been days? 

Maybe he wouldn’t care. Maybe it’s that you care too much, too much to be right for the relationship you have with him. 

Sleep finds you, eventually. You’re grateful.

Author's Note: And... I'm terrible! Awful! First I left ya'll with a cliffhanger with chapter 10, and now I show up nearly a year later with this angsty chapter... Feel free to yell at me in the replies, I deserve it. 😔

But thank you to all of you who've liked, reblogged, and commented on chapters of this fic since last update! And sent in asks wondering if I'm ever going to update again!! LOL! Knowing that people are still reading and care to know the end of Bakugou and Reader's story motivates me to keep writing. 💖

I do have about 2K of chapter 12 written... Hoping to post that soon, and not after a year has passed lmao. 😅

Alrighty, take care everyone! Hugs and kisses!!!

[lesbianrobin]

“So,” Buck says through a mouthful of lemon loaf, “Did you, uh… Uh, anything interesting happen at basketball yesterday?”

Did you see Tommy, Eddie knows he wants to ask. Did he seem upset, did he say anything about me?

“No snapped ankles,” Eddie says, taking another forkful of cake and tilting his head toward the half-eaten loaf. “This one's way better than the last.”

Buck glares at him, but he clearly can’t hold on to his annoyance long. “I used more sugar,” he says. “Are you really gonna make me ask?”

“Ask what?”

“You’re not funny,” Buck says, snatching the loaf pan and tugging it across the table out of Eddie’s reach. Eddie lunges for it, and they end up playing some odd inversion of air hockey, sliding the thin aluminum pan back and forth across the table in a flurry of limbs.

“Boys,” Bobby says warningly.

Eddie snatches the pan, sitting back in his chair like a civilized adult. “Yes, Cap?”

Bobby just sighs, rolling his eyes.

There weren’t any snapped ankles at basketball. There was an awkward proposal of “still being friends.” A noncommittal “sure, man.” A somewhat more aggressive game than usual. Maybe a broken finger.

It’s not Eddie’s fault that Tommy stuck his hand in the way of a moving ball.

Eddie takes another bite of Buck’s lemon loaf. “You ever thought about adding blueberries?”

Buck sighs. “...I can try that next.”

[misseviehyde]

I HAVE NEVER

It was your bullying step-brothers idea to play a game. You just wished you'd never listened...

Jordan was the bane of your life. He was stronger, taller and more attractive than you. He seemed to take a perverse delight in ruining everything in your life and when you finally got a girlfriend you could sense his jealousy.

You weren't worried though. Jenna was sweet, delightful and funny. She hated 'Alpha-Males' like Jordan and was deeply in love with you. She was best-friends with your twin sister Kate as well and the three of you got on so well.

One day the three of you were hanging out when Jordan entered the room carrying a bottle of vodka.

"Hey nerds," he grinned, "wanna play a game with me?"

"Not really Jordan, go away," sighed Kate folding her arms under her small breasts and glaring at him. "You're such a douchebag, we don't want to play anything with you."

"Awwww, what's the matter? Don't wanna have some fun?"

Placing the bottle down, Jordan opened it and grabbed four shot glasses. He poured out the vodka. "Come on losers, I'm bored and this will be fun. I bet you pathetic dweebs have never played 'I have never'."

I didn't want to play anything with Jordan, but strangely I found myself being drawn towards the shot glass the same as my girlfriend and my sister.

"That's it losers - you can't resist playing with me. In fact - you can't resist doing everything I say from now on."

A strange befuddlement seemed to throb through my head as my hand closed on the glass. I could see Jenna breathing heavily and Kate as well as they grabbed their glasses.

"Now then bitches, I'm gonna say something and if you have never done it before, you have to drink and then do the thing I'm saying."

"Th...that's not how... the game... works," groaned Jenna struggling to speak as a strange lethargy swept through her.

"It's how my version works losers - now then. I have never had my tits enhanced."

A strange tingle ran through all three of us and I found the vodka rising to my lips. I drank it and placing it down watched Jordan fill my glass back up.

The fiery vodka burned my throat and then my chest began to ache. I looked down and watched in horror as my t-shirt began to bulge and swell. My nipples were rock hard as my pectoral muscles bulged out and then became soft pliable flesh. Two round, perfect globes swelled out - big fat fake tits causing my t shirt to rip and tear. I could hear female moans next to me and saw that my sister and girlfriend were undergoing a similar transformation.

"H...how?" groaned Kate as she cupped her massive new tits. She had been relatively flat chested before, but now she had a fine pair of teenage milkers and she looked great.

"Just a little magic to spice things up," grinned Jordan. "All three of you look so much better with this big tits. Now then 'I have never shaved my pussy bare."

I felt the vodka rising to my lips again and I drank it. My cock tingled and a delicious feeling of inversion and sucking seemed to happen. My crotch was now flat and smooth - a pretty pink pussy where my cock used to be.

"Haha, this is cool," laughed Jordan. "Now then, I have never worked my booty out to become a PAWG."

All three of us drank again and my whole body ached. I could feel my ass swelling up and my body shrinking. Toned muscles rippled under my skin as my hips cracked out. I looked at Kate and Jenna - they looked like hot little gym bunnies now just like I did.

"Okay sluts - you're looking good, but we can do even better. I have never had hair extensions, fake nails, eyelashes and a tan."

My body ached and as I raised the vodka to my lips again I saw I now had cute white nails and smooth tanned skin. My short hair was now long and blonde, I could feel it tickling my shoulders. Long slutty lashes projected from my eyes and I could taste lipstick on my transformed face.

I had nearly become fully female.

"Yeah, that's it bitches - you look so much better. The bottle is nearly empty. How about one final round? I have never been a horny, popular, bitchy slut who only likes hung Alpha-males."

All three of us drank, the empy glasses tumbling from our hands as we shook and giggled. My pussy throbbed and my brain ached as I felt new urges and desires pulse through me.

I'm a slut... I'm a bitch... I'm popular. I wanna fuck Jordan, I love being a slut for him... ohhh fuck yeah.

My clothing transformed as did Kate and Jenna's. All three of us were now dressed in sexy lingerie. The three of us were mean little size queens now, sluts for bully cock. I felt my pouty pink lips twist into a dumb grin as I played with my hair.

"Like... I am sooooo drunk and I'm fucking horny. Jordan, please will you like let us suck your cock?"

Jordan smiled and unzipping his fly flopped out his big fat cock. Me and my slutty friends sank to our knees, our mouths wet. Mmmmmh, he was so good to us.

"Fuck yes. My step-sis and her slutty friends. This is such a better configuration," he crowed. "Maybe one day I'll turn you back so you can appreciate how much of a slut you were for my cock. Then I'll turn you back into this bitch - she's better than you ever were."

I had no idea what my hot step-brother was going on about. I was too busy sinking my cherry pink lips around his big cock and starting to suck as Jenna began to rim Jordan and Kate kissed and made out with him.

Glug... glug... glug...

THE END

"Mmmmmh, that's it girls - I have never had a threesome before and this is gonna be a blast..."

As I felt Jordan's cock slide deep down my slut throat, I gurgled happily. Mmmmmh, I loved playing games with him...

[phoenixlionme]

Charlie's Hatred towards Lute

Look at the difference between these three shots - The first one has Charlie is her normal form sweetly holding hands with Vaggie in a darkly comedic moment before Adam makes his obnoxious rant; the second has Adam in the middle of said rant with everyone looking upon in varying levels of disgust, with Charlie's being the only one looking like she, to an extent, pities him but still in a funny way; and the very bottom takes a more serious tone with Charlie in her more demonic form and her arm now protectively holding Vaggie closer while they both glare daggers at the now injured, one-armed Lute. Why such a stark difference?

With Adam, Charlie was just fighting him (possibly going for the kill in the heat of the moment) but stops Lucifer from killing him. And in the middle picture, while not defending him, still gives him a look of pity (as I stated); plus, she could've stayed in her demon mode given how he was still being antagonistic and threatening but doesn't. However, when confronted by Lute, the inverse nearly happens - Charlie is in her demon mode despite Lute no longer being a threaten; Charlie is protectively holding onto Vaggie by the shoulders while glaring daggers (with her girlfriend) at Lute; her line of, "It's over", is nothing but cold words hiding an enormous amount of anger; in contrast to her look of pity to Adam, Charlie has nothing but pure hatred on her face. Her whole stance screams, "You are VERY lucky I'm letting you live after what you did my girlfriend" or something along those lines.

Now, we didn't see or hear Vaggie tell Charlie about the reasons behind her fall, but given Charlie's look, you can tell she knows what Lute did. And then the crazy bitch tried to kill her girlfriend again. Vaggie has been Charlie's biggest and most loyal supporter as well as a caring, devoted girlfriend; so to learn how she was viciously cast out most likely enraged her. And given that Lute is going to be a bigger antagonist in S2, Charlie's anger and hatred will be brought forth. And I can't wait.

[laurashapiro-noreally]

Looking for something to read?

Oh look, it's another recs post! This time I'm featuring two stories per author. These are writers I always make time for, whose work stands out as unusually hot, clever, funny, or smart -- sometimes all of the above.

I'm gonna start you out strong with two by @werpiper: After Hours takes Aziraphale and Crowley to the baths after their oyster supper, and all sorts of interesting pleasures are there for our angel to sample. Piper's Crowley is one of my favorites: always evaluating the situation, not quite aware of what his own heart is doing but feeling it anyway.

Fitting In is a new story, still a WIP, but I am utterly tantalized by Muriel's first taste of love -- and tea. This is already rich in detail, soft and fragrant, and I can hardly wait for the action to get going in earnest. The pairing seems surprising but when you think about it for ten seconds of course it makes sense. Sex workers help the curious, the awkward, and the inexperienced every day, bless them.

If you enjoy these, check out @werpiper's back catalog -- they have done a ton of ineffables-through-the-ages, and their series Miracles and Heresy is worth many delightful hours of your time.

I love what @copperplatebeech has been doing lately:

He's Not My Friend is a T-rated story that explores Aziraphale's constant refusal to acknowledge his relationship with Crowley, and Crowley's mirror of that, and how things glacially shift over time. It is subtle and yet specific, it will make you ache and smile.

All Of The Above, also T-rated, is a warm and fuzzy alternative to that, a hilarious celebration of true friendship that made me laugh out loud and still got me right in the feels.

@copperplatebeech can do everything, from quiet, gentle, and romantic to devastating plotty AUs to extraordinarily horny established relationship to absolutely ridiculous humor. Do dive in if you haven't already.

Next up, @cumaeansibyl, master of kink:

better living through technology manages to shove everything I want in a dirty story into less than three thousand words: uptight Aziraphale reduced to sodden wreck, Crowley gleefully showing him what he's been missing, character-driven erotics, and exceptionally funny dialogue.

indulgentiam peccatorum nostrorum is somehow all that and more, turning the "I was wrong" dance into a kink (something I can't get enough of, recs welcome). This one is post-Bastille so it is extra-juicy. Mind the tags!

@cumaeansibyl has a gift for established relationship one-shots, which readers of mine will know are my entire jam. They also have a mind-meltingly hot inverse!omens AU that features different variations of angelic/demonic Crowleys and Aziraphales for our ineffables to play with.

A new-to-me author, Calico, has me hanging by a thread with their Ineffable Romans series. If you want to remember that your ineffables aren't human, that they are inordinately clever but very stupid, that the feelings they have for each other are truly beyond what anyone alive has ever felt, Calico may be the writer for you. This stuff is deep. Also hot af.

Sub Rosa reads like a nasty shag at Petronius', but there's so much more going on here. It is Extremely Queer, driven by power dynamics, and Crowley is fully demonic here and absolutely in control...or is he?

The Intemperance of Liber Pater continues on this theme, with dialogue-driven smut that reads less like a seduction than an inevitability. There's another story in this series, unfinished, and I can't wait to see what happens next.

Last but not least: two short pieces by @ineffabildaddy. I stumbled on their stories just this week and I absolutely love their approach, which I've not seen done quite this way before.

take me as your wife has a tight first-person perspective as Crowley meets Aziraphale for a meal and imagines (or is it his imagination?) that Aziraphale is suggesting Certain Things about how they might occupy themselves later. Indeed, is he suggesting even more? Something about their relationship? Or is it all in Crowley's head?

Only in Dreams is kind of a companion piece, from Aziraphale's point of view -- though hundreds of years later. This one's set after the events of S2 and although just as romantic as take me as your wife, it also offers an ineffable take on the ol' glory hole concept. Just in case you thought I was getting soft. 😏

@ineffabildaddy has a whole series of poems and ficlets like these and I can't wait to explore them all.

[wereprinxe]

Caelum being seen by the rest of the crew

I bellieve this is a headcanon ask, but if not, you can correct me. :D I can never resist this scenario, its just so sweet. (and also kinda funny to imagine that everyome thinks they see him separately, except Gavin, but it takes them a while to realize they all see him).

CW/TW: mention of inversion (Xavier's death), mention of Kody, grieving

Damien - he started seeing him since the bowling event, after being heavily stressed about his identity and self-reflection and awareness. Caelum was there to comfort him and reassure him, that it doesn't change anything and he is the same person, no matter if he likes girls, boys, all and nobody. And would help looking more through this topic!

Huxley - he would see him since inversion. Xavier was his dear friend and he took a lot on his shoulders to tell his family, his moms, his friends about what happened. He had to put on a comforting smile, but one night he break down in tears and was given a tissue by a daemon, that is Caelum. They would share experiences with emotions and grieving for a person and then play lot of games!

Lasko - he would see him since Freelancer talking to him about Kody. Lasko would be very stressed about not being able to help them enough and would overwork and spend late nights in his office. Comforted by Caelum and how Freelancer is a strong and brave person, Lasko promises to Caelum to be a good friend to Freelancer and support them in their darkest hours.

Dear - has already met Caelum. Only once, but they never forgot about him. The story is for now unknown.

[wardensantoineandevka]

To expand on a prior post I've made, it is really fun and it makes a lot of sense and it feels ultimately natural that Spahr is here at the end, in this last confrontation with Weepe, because he and Weepe are rivals. They're, almost unexpectedly, foils.

They're arrogant men who allow and enable awful things to happen to others to protect and increase their social standing. They hurt the people they care about most for self-serving reasons—but in the end, only one of them takes responsibility for that. (Trustfall and Ghosts are inverse parallels, and this post discusses a portion that is most relevant here.) Weepe increasingly identifies with the Trust as Spahr is increasingly disillusioned with it, and Weepe rises to power at the same rate that Spahr falls into disgrace. Just as Weepe is convinced that he will always be an awful person and fatalistically believes he cannot ever do better, Spahr has been convinced he has a self-evident righteousness but eventually sees that not only does he not, but he can and must do better.

Beyond that, they're narratively tied together. Weepe is in the Highest Light because Spahr agrees to bring him. Spahr helps Imelda lock Weepe in the Arca, and he does it in part for smug satisfaction because of his personal dislike for Weepe. He wronged Weepe by participating in engineering the circumstances that led to his torture and by failing to intervene against it out of fear for himself, and the fact that he wronged Weepe is something that Spahr is explicitly aware of and is something that weighs heavily on his conscience. It is through the Arca that Spahr traces Weepe's ascension to Tripotentiary as a direct result of his actions; he believes that he failed to stop, or even facilitated, Weepe's rise and everything that results from it.

For much of the narrative, they're racing to the same goal, even sometimes without knowing. Spahr is on Midst specifically to find the Breach centerpoint, and Weepe identifies it as the cabaret and turns it over to the Trust before Spahr has any chance to start looking. Weepe pulls the Fuze-Loxlee investigation out from underneath Spahr when he convinces Sherman to name Fuze's murderer, ultimately succeeding where Spahr fails. He takes the information to the Upper Trust himself after Spahr was removed from the investigation for, simplistically, lack of progress. Sherman chooses to trust Weepe over Spahr, and Weepe wipes his debt before Spahr can.

When Spahr is court-martialed, he is given the opportunity (read: pressured) into donating all Valor accrued during his tenure to his successor — and then that donation apparently goes to Weepe as part of a series of donations to help set him up as Most Valorous. The role of the Prime Consector gets folded under the new position of Tripotentiary, and without a Prime Consector appointed, Weepe is the sole direction that the Company has. Weepe even moves into the residence held by the Prime Consector, as we're often reminded that Spahr lived there before Weepe did. Weepe is Spahr's successor in all but literal title.

Spahr waits until Weepe repeats the order to bring Lark and Phineas to refuse. At the moment where Weepe is at his most elevated and Spahr at his most diminished, when they are such extreme ends in the hierarchy, it is to Weepe that Spahr says, finally, "No."

As Prime Consector, Spahr was ideologically (though not materially) the truest manifestation of Valor. A Consector's job is to hunt, to pursue those who have escaped the Trust and restore them to the Trust. At this point, Weepe is all that is left of the Trust, its only manifestation, and all he does now is hunt Lark and those who aid her, to rebalance and to restore what is felt lost.

As funny as it is that Spahr is here at the end as the only one who isn't a protagonist, it makes so much sense that he is here in the confrontation against Weepe. He has to be. They're foils to one another, one of their many. Their actions have deeply entangled themselves in one another's arc. Over the course of the story, very slowly, there's been a changing of places between Weepe and Spahr.

Of course Spahr is here too. He was a razor's edge from being the one bearing down on that cabin. He was very, terrifyingly close to being on Weepe's side of the door.

[lover-of-mine]

Lady Whistledown... Anna, my love. I'm sorry this is all so funny. If you don't post no worries. We aren't even going into Narnia. It's more Upside Down world or we are sitting by the fire after peyote. So let me bring you to the inverse.

So...... Lou said in the very beginning he's "great friends" with Ryan. Ryan follows Lou. Lou thought Ryan would be his LI. He was told to late it's Oliver. He only wanted the soft kiss in his own words. "I told Tim no one wants to see people make out". You can fact check that quote because I paraphrased.He was forced to do the big hospital kiss because that was Tim's short way of outing Buck. They have not touched since, and Ryan is involved because that's Lous boundary.

I mean. . Do I need to say more or like you get it right??? Picturing Ryan as Lous emotional support human I think makes me laugh the most. Also they are trying to organize to get Lou/Tommy to trend as much as possible this week. Even though they do know if it's actually trending for a minute like last week it's usually because Buddies are trashing it.

Also Oliver hate at an all time high thanks to Lou acknowledging them again and liking the post criticizing Oliver. So good times. Good times.

Protect you inbox. They might be talking a big game on main about "they added pictures to Bucks fridge so he can fondly remove them when he moves in with Tommy". Or the shots "of the loft are weird because they are already dismantling it". But the panic is real. I have no idea what's happening next week and won't predict. But they also know it's potentially their last week being able to ship it. After that it will become a hate watch. A buddie hate fan club if you will.

quote for reference

Hello my love, this was a wild ride oaksoaksokasokas Ryan is Lou's emotional support human I'm SCREAMING. Like, if, and that's a huge if, either of them established that boundary, that means the relationship is dead. How do you make a tv relationship is one of them doesn't want to be alone in a scene with the other???? They do realize that angle is bad for them, right? The show is not gonna keep a secondary character that doesn't want to interact with the main character they are attached to. And of course they hate Oliver, what else is new. This is....... The idea of a dramatic shot of Buck removing pictures from his fridge to move in with Tommy is sending me. He slept on the couch, why are they still clinging to the moving-in idea??? You're right, Narnia isn't enough, holy shit.

[ryuichirou]

So we know what his lovers do that drives Idia crazy (in a good way). How about the inverse, what does Idia do that drives them crazy?

You know what, Anon, my first instinct was to start talking about how Idia deliberately drives Azul nuts sometimes, and even you saying “in a good way” didn’t stop my train of thought. Yes, it is good that Azul gets pissed off at Idia! Idia is having fun, so it can’t be bad! lol

Jokes aside, this is actually a very good question. We did talk about what drives Idia crazy the most about his partners, so let’s think about it in reverse… I’ll only talk about our main boys, of course.

Azul – aside from situations when Idia teases the fuck out of him and Azul gets riled up because he wants to spank his ass lol I think Azul really enjoys Idia’s “evil genius” moments. If they have the same goal, and Idia suggests something effective, smart and truly wicked, Azul feels such a strong and nasty urge to kiss him or do other stuff with/to him. Also, when Idia runs fingers through his own hair while he’s thinking on his next chess move whenever they play. Azul stares when it happens.

Ortho – wow, this one is surprisingly tough! I see two options: when Idia acts unexpectedly and doesn’t give Ortho prompts that he expects, thus making his AI work harder and get confused sometimes; while that doesn’t happen very often, when it does happen, Ortho gets frustrated because of this misunderstanding and defaults to physical interaction if words don’t work lol But the second option is that sometimes Ortho just gets way too playful, and if Idia allows and enables it, Ortho gets so happy about it that he gets carried away. What I’m saying is that when Idia spoils him and allows him to do some new previously “forbidden” things, this is when Ortho goes insane (in a good way).

Lilia – when he sees the hesitation and hope in Idia’s eyes and knows that he really wants to say or do something, but just can’t. A lot of times he knows exactly what Idia wants, but acts oblivious because he wants to see this inner conflict in Idia’s eyes. The moment this adorable little sparkle of hope disappears and Idia looks disappointed in himself and starts avoiding Lilia’s eyes, this is when it’s Lilia’s cue to jump him. It’s like cuteness aggression lol Of course, he also loves it when Idia makes cute sounds, stutters or shakes after getting spooked by him.

Floyd – both of the Tweels love it when they get to chase Idia, or rather, it does drive them crazy. It teases something in them, I guess that’s just their instincts. But also, individually, Floyd really loves it when Idia gets fired up while playing videogames. He just finds this kind of Idia very unusual and exciting… also, he becomes so oblivious to his surroundings when he’s winning in a game, that it’s very easy for Floyd to bite him and hear him squeal. So funny~

Jade – whenever Idia purses his lips and gulps audibly, with his Adam’s apple jerking nervously. Also, whenever Idia tries to stay still, as if he is waiting for the predator to go away, and his eyes start to get teary a little bit. Idia’s shoulders also shake very cutely, and Jade could almost hear his heart going insane. Whenever it happens when they are alone together, Jade really wants to run the tip of his tongue right under Idia’s eyes to collect the tears, but at the same time eat him alive.

Sebek – whenever they argue, it does get Sebek angry and annoyed, but also there are some sparks of arousal that he feels when things get very heated, so I can’t ignore that lol But also, I think Sebek would get genuinely enamoured while watching Idia building something. It’s like he instantly forgets how easy it is for Idia to get him super mad because what he sees right now is… beautiful. Whenever Idia gets tired and stretches while moaning quietly though, Sebek blushes for some reason and looks elsewhere.

[ilikekidsshows]

Ladynoir is so dead, it's starting to get really funny watching people try to hype up every little moment they share because they don't wanna accept that the real partnership has been changed to Alyanette.

Kudos to those who at least acknowledge it while clinging onto some deeper interpretation, but them speaking is nothing to celebrate

Or Marinette laying a hand on Cat's shoulder as if that's some grand development and not the default since the start

No, this is not the inverse of season 4 just because the temps are not supposed to help with akumas right away. It's a tactical decision, not Marinette sidelining the team for Cat. The moment something happens to him she'll go right back to moving on from him as battle partner, leave him behind vulnerable and call in anyone else.

She didn't give him shit for not being there when no akumas were around because she wanted to see him more often, she tried making him out to be the one in the wrong again for HER behaviour. SHE decided to ditch Adrien at every chance and went against her word that the temps are supposed to help people outside of akumas to have an excuse for why shes faultless for treating her boyfriend like shit. Usual Marinette tactic of wanting to put the blame on Cat when shes in the wrong. At least he got to call that out, truly a miracle. Not that she ever acknowledged that and apologized for regressing in her treatment of him again. Of course not, sweeping under the rug as always.

I blame season 4 for making people believe that her being an aggressive power abuser was her being RIGHT and justified and kind. Now she gets praised for every little thing she does because in comparison to how she treated him in season 4 ANYTHING now looks like shes an loving angel. Bro, shes finally acting on basic decency. She doesn't need to be praised for FINALLY reaching that bar. It only shows how there is no bar at all for how she treats him. Very clearly, she can go right back to blaming him for her actions nd even go back to being aggressive and neglective and people just call it fine.

THAT'S the "normal" bar people are holding her to. "Normal" for her in Ladynoir is abusive and toxic, so any moment she's somewhat better than that is equal to her being a devoted saint.

How sad and pathetic is that. Girl is being praised for touching his shoulder because "normal" would be her hurting him. I would be insulted for her sake, but her writing has is the reason why people are so victim blamey in this fandom. The amount of times ive seen people blame Adrien for reacting badly to Marinette's shit treatment of him in Illustrhater is insane.

This show turns Marinette's fans into actual worse people. Thats WILD.

---

Yeah, like, when the protagonist not ignoring her oldest ally is treated as a sign of true partnership, it’s pathetically clinging to what used to be four seasons ago. When our protagonist admitting she's too childish to date someone is celebrated as a sign of her growing it's basically just showcasing that Marinette can do less than the minimum while still her stans insist she isn't in the wrong, because she's making and effort and had good intentions and she has such low self-esteem. I don't care how the asshole is feeling, because they have no intention of stopping being an asshole. Having poor self-esteem is not a get-out-jail-free card to trample on others’ feelings just because the character says they’re the worst while fully intending to do it again in the future.

The biggest lie Miraculous ever sold to the audience was that Marinette’s usually self-caused, petty problems were on equal ground with or even worse than the problems of all the other characters. After that first lie captured the audience’s sympathy, the rest was easy. The Miraculous fandom has been saying things like “let's not compare who has worse” and “misery isn't a competition” for years and it's obvious now that it's because a lot of other characters' problems, that they handle better than Marinette handles her own, are just worse. But, like, the show is the one comparing, and insisting Marinette making herself miserable because she acted without taking anyone else into account again is the greatest misery ever and the characters Marinette sidelines, treats unfairly and makes feel unloved don't matter, because Marinette feeling bad about causing that is the bigger suffering.

And, like, that's the thing with Marinette's now "better" treatment of Cat Noir. We're being told that everything is better now because Ladybug isn't as bad, and she isn't as bad because she isn't stressed anymore. The most important problem in the universe, Marinette being upsette, has been solved, so everything is perfect now! But, like, not a lot about Marinette's treatment of Cat Noir has changed, he just stopped complaining about it.

Ladynoir has been dead for a while now and yet the fandom cheers when its decomposing corpse gets strapped to a stick and touted around to pathetic applause.

[soupmanspeaks]

Miketrap AU (listen you gotta just trust me on this one) where Michael gets got in the springlock suit on night 4 of Sister Location trust trust trust

What was the Spring Bonnie suit doing at Circus Baby's? Uhhhh, trust it was Williams hiding spot for it or smth

I'd like to think how the actual springlock failure happened is that Lizzie's ghost manifested in front of Michael all like, "Haha! We finally got you now, father!-" only to see that it, in fact, is NOT Father, and just be really confused

Meanwhile, the springlocks are going off on the boy in the suit because he got spooked coz "IS THAT MY DEAD SISTER?!?!?!?-"

And then idk, girl puts the suit with the now-dead Michael in it back in the main control room because someone's bound to come down here and find himmmmm surelyyyyyy.....yerpppp

But I think she would still tell him that he won't truly "die" because she knows that him and her are kinda in the same boat now 😭

And ykw, maybe then boy wakes up feeling all mechanical and stuff and he decides to leave a message for dear old Father--(listen if I was William and a 6ft 300 lbs robot version of my son who I hate and who hates me told me he was going to "come find me" I would start running dawg)

Maybe his time working in FNaF 1 & 6 (and at the end of 2 if you're a fritz = Mike sorta guy) has him wearing an illusion disc so that in the job offer interviews, the interviewer doesn't get spooked by a literal robot in the room with them 😭

Nononono see, and this is why the animatronics go after him--because it would be kinda funny if the disc made him look like regular old Michael, yes, but it puts him in a suit that William would wear back in the hayday of Freddy's 😭

Maybe the same exact suit that he wore under the Springlock suit to...yk 🔪 (something something like the ballpit where the remnant of the suit retains memories and it's projecting onto Michael via the illusion disk)

Oooh wait this just made me realize that this au allows William to be actually alive for most of the FNaF games--which also makes FNaF 3 fun, because if you think Michael's usually the frightguard, in this AU, William could be working there in a nice inverse of fate!

As for Pizza Sim? It would be kind of funny if they just

Made it so Spring Bonnie was an attraction/performer animatronic--so to say Henry was the one mostly doing the Pizza Simming and upgrades and boy was there to....idk stand and look pretty /j

(I also feel like since he and the MCI spirits are on more common ground, he could reason with them quicker--so to say that the fake pizzaria was mostly to lure William in if anything 😭)

Not to jump the gun a bit, but I personally think this makes Glammike funnier--

Picture this, the souls are free but can still linger around the place, William Aftons back, and Michael's spirit needs a way to fix all this--so what does he do?

....

"CHARLIE PLEASE DO YOUR THING AND MAKE ME THE COOL SHINY FREDDIE MERCURY ANIMATRONIC PLEASE PLEASEE PLEASE IVE BEEN STUCK IN THAT STUPID RABBIT FOR 50 YEARS MATE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLE-"

And what would be infinitely funnier is that even after possessing Glamrock Freddy, anytime boy puts on an illusion disk or manifests his spirit, he's still got on the same William-esc suit on

(Sorry boy, you died in the Bad-Man's suit and your spirit has to remind you of that 😭😭)

[alittlebitofloveliness]

Let's Talk about Soda and Cherry As Foils

It's pretty widely known and accepted that Bob and Randy are foils to Soda and Steve, almost the soc version of them, something Hinton even named in her book. However, I think BECAUSE she named this foiling people overlook another pair of narrative foils who are a little harder to notice but ultimately very interesting to analyze. This may ruffle some feathers, but I'm talking about how Bob and Cherry's relationship foils Soda and Sandy's. Cherry and Sandy are narratively as different as they could possibly be. Cherry is the queen of socs, a cheerleader, at the top of the social totem pole, whereas Sandy is pretty enough and 'sweet' but still a loud and brash greaser girl, with very little social status. That said, both girls managed to pull boys who are viewed highly by their peers in their own respective circles, Bob who was 'charming and funny' and well liked by socs, and Soda who was 'handsome enough even soc girls went after him'. HOWEVER, in my opinion, this is a very surface level view of these characters relationships foiling one another- and that's because I don't truly think Chery and Sandy foil each other, or that Bob and Soda do. If we're looking at foiling through the lense of both problematic romances, which both end badly (albeit in different ways) I actually think that Cherry and SODA foil each other the best. They both fell for problematic people, but Soda was too blind to see it, and Cherry willing to ignore it. They're both very clearly upset when their relationships end, but Cherry develops through the story to the point where it's questionable she would have stayed with Bob had he survived, whereas Soda admits he was willing to stay with Sandy and marry her even though she cheated and was having another man's baby. Now, having looked at Chery and Soda as foils, we now need to look at Sandy and Bob as foils. This is difficult, as neither character gets a lot of 'screen time', but narratively speaking, they're not that different. Both were good looking, known for being charismatic, but they both clearly had a dark side, something neither of them are shown to ever have had much remorse about. We know that Bob 'was always waiting for someone to tell him no', and I think to some extent the same could be said of Sandy. I don't want to impose TOOO much speculation into what's supposed to be a cut and dry character analysis, but in my experience cheaters often want the next, shiny new person, when they get bored/feel a lack of attention from their new partner, and I think that's what happened to her when the Curtis parents died and Soda had less time to shower her with attention/love. One COULD argue that Sandy also has the INVERSE of Bob's problem, in that she's spent her whole life being told no and not having enough, so that when she has a surplus of boys who are after her, the first time she's had "too much" of anything, she takes what she wants from all of them, however, I think that interpretation comes with it's own set of problems. Either way you look at it, Bob and Sandy both end up being wolves in sheep's clothing, albeit in different ways, and Cherry and Soda end up being the idiots who fell in love with them, and ended up breaking their own hearts in the process but also learning from these failed relationship experiences.

But yeah. Just some Thursday night thoughts.

[kacievvbbbb]

God what even do I do with this chapter 😭 but here are some of my thoughts.

SPOILERS FOR CH. 268

- what the fuck

-“Maybe it’s time to try living for someone else” okay the itafushi shippers really won with that one, I can’t lie. But at the same time it feels like Megumi’s always been living his life for someone else specifically Tsumiki. so it kind of feels like the stronger message would have been to decide to live for himself? Kind of how yuuji’s journey went from finding this greater purpose to live and fight to simply just living is okay as well. But that’s just me. Im interested in hearing other people’s take on the situation

- this is from last chapter but I so really like the parallel of yuuji in this fight for his life with Sukuna and Mahito and being so weighed down by everything that he has lost and everything he is still trying to save and then Kugasaki hits that resonance and Yuuji sees that he’s not alone and god something about it always being Nobara and her insanity breaking him from that sorrow and giving him that last push to fight like he's not alone.

- also I do think seeing Nobara’s resonance after having to be the one to break it to itadori that she wasn’t recovering, really solidified that there where things still worth living for.

- I don’t know something about Sukuna finally after all these chapters acknowledging itadori by finally saying his name is so very Sukuna off him. It’s like the inverse of him going into Jogo’s flashing life and telling him he’s strong. This time he’s the one dying and he’s finally acknowledging the boy that killed him. Say what you want about Sukuna but he ain’t no sore fucking loser.

- God how fucking Yuuji Itadori of the whole thing to after everything all the terror and the torture and the pain to still offer Sukuna a chance to live and live better. A chance to not be a slave to his nature to this curse in their blood. God Yuuji what do I even do with you.

- okay so not even a fucking frame of the Hakari/Uraume showdown. Really 😭😭. It looked like things were happening too. With that final parting it looked like they’d reached some kind of understanding and not even a fucking frame. Gege the way your mind works.

- really not even one punch? Not even one gambling shot. I’d have payed good fucking money to see Hakari explaining how a pachinko machine works to a 1000 year old curse servant.

- the little “you’re just lucky is the best compliment for a guy like me” and the “yeah I guess it is” was a great exchange tho. Which is is why I wonder. Really not one fucking frame😭. I wonder if mappa will just ignore this and give them a fight scene anyway like they elongated the Sukuna vs Mahagora fight.

- and now finally, some good fucking food.

- Gojo’s little I killed your daddy note is so funny. What the fuck is wrong with him

- again. What the fuck.

- Nobara being as rude as fucking always god I love her. She is taking no prisoners. Fuck you mean you aren’t weeping at her feet at her return.

-Them trying to do the whole box suprise for Megumi and him catching them in the act is so stupid I actually can’t 😭. They really only have one braincell

- Nobara not giving a single fuck about her mom like what. Also what did she mean by “Special grade authority”

- crazy that they all got face scars now. They’re a matching set.

- I wonder what Yuuji’s talk with gojo was. I wonder what parental figure gojo exposed for him.

- I dunno this chapter making me feel like he might come back. Gojo Satoru just might make a come back.

- I’m glad that atleast after everything it’s gunna end with the three of them. Maybe a little damaged and worse for wear but together and that counts for something.

-lastly…..what the fuck m.

[jacks347]

Would the listeners survive a zombie apocalypse? (In my slightly sarcastic, completely subjective opinion)

Idk man, I'm bored and got time to kill in church so here we are

(Tagging this is going to be a nightmare-)

(Edit from the future: It was. It really was.)

Redacted:

For sake of my sanity this isn't all the listeners, just the ones I'm still actively keeping up with (I'll get to the others...eventually)

Angel - Solid maybe. Out of all the unempowereds, definitely has one of the highest chances. But it would take an extreme streak of luck.

Babe - No...I'm sorry but no. Would be like one of those extras that you see eaten in the first minute of a horror movie.

Sweetheart - Probably. Can a zombie detect someone invisible? Sweetheart is smart enough to survive, they'll be fine.

Darlin - Yes if they have Sam to hold them back from sacrificing themself for the "greater good". No if they're left completely to their own devices.

Lovely - Depends on the version. Pre Adam, no. Pre Inversion, maybe? Post Inversion, definitely. Hard to die to a zombie apocalypse when you're a) already dead and b) literally immortal.

Treasure - Okay, I know Treasure is the newest addition to the roster and we haven't had a lot of time to see their personality develop but as of now? Yeah...no.

Freelancer - They'll do it on -3 hours of sleep simply out of spite. Freelancer has been through enough, they're just tired. They'd survive but begrudgingly.

Honey - Honey would survive out of spite and spite alone. Would definitely have that baseball bat from The Walking Dead.

GBA:

Guardian - ...you're kidding, right?

Darling - Yeah...no. Soft bby would never.

Faithful - Possibly? That stubborn attitude and medical abilities would help but has absolutely no combat training so ehhhhh, it depends.

Paradise - If she can break a pirate crew out of space Fort Knox and wrangle Yargwynn, a zombie apocalypse is pocket change. Paradise would own an apocalypse.

Partner - I swear I'll stop bullying the new additions. Once they're worth not bullying. The man made the zombie apocalypse, I guess we're gonna find out if he survives won't we? I'm not hopeful though.

Escaped:

Asset - No one in ATW even knows how to do basic math, the only way any of them survive is through sheer force of which they might actually be successful. So maybe.

Raven - Yes but she would have a mental breakdown about it so she would not be the same on the other side.

Slash - ...seriously?

Guest - Hm, a trained vampire slayer in a zombie apocalypse, I wonder what would happen! Obviously she'd be fine.

Intern - Entirely dependent on who they're trying to keep alive. If it's just them, probably. If it's them and the rest of their merry band of misfits, no.

Future Wife - You're funny. RIP my girl, no one will know her husband broke the fuckin timeline for some pancakes.

Agent Schäfer - Once the shock and panic wore off, yeah she'd be fine. Hope she doesn't get eaten during that freeze.

("Where's Lass?" When Desmond returns for more than five minutes, come talk to me about listening to Blue Infinity)

Nomad:

Pack Mom - Definitely. We already know she's a deadly shot and wasn't afraid to shoot a living person, a dead one would be fine. She will be perfectly fine.

Lass - Yes. Not with as much overwhelming power as Pack Mom but she'd get through it. I mean...she has formal sword training, I think she'd do okay.

Little One - Probably not. Out of the original Frosthaven romances, they are the least likely to survive. They'd put up a good fight though.

Lamb - Yes and no. Physically, she'd be just fine. Mentally, I don't know if she could do it. Slipping back into that killer mindset might just drag her under.

Chester's mate - Probably not. Out of all the new Frosthaven romances, they're the most average. They'd try though.

Harlow's roommate - No. I love them but no. Not our slightly stupid boat captain.

Caltraxus' TA - Yes and they'd hate it every step of the way. Would survive completely hungover if that was an option.

The Doctor - Probably? If not by her own merit then definitely through someone else cause everyone needs a doctor in the apocalypse.

Beau's mate - Yes. Literally fought a bear once. She will be just fine.

(The lack of fandom names for Nomad's listeners saddens me greatly. And also makes my work so much harder)

This was so dumb but I had fun so :P

[ultraviolet-cello]

I'm gonna be honest guys, I looked at today's episode and was like Oh No because Episode 9 is my Achilles heel. not that there's nothing to say about it. But that there's so much To say abt it lmao. While 6 & 7 are my favourites, Knives is a character that I see soooooo much like. I need to put him under my microscope.

Anyway, today's analysis/detail watch/@tristampparty is episode 9 - Millions Knives.

Spoilers for Trimax and Tristamp, CW for uh. Knives in general, and enjoy!

It's probably just the angle here, but Knives does look marginally shorter in this shot, and it's extremely funny to me

Okay I did just get jumpscared by being in dub for some reason I was looking for the subtitles and heard English and had The Most dramatic reaction. okay we're normal now.

Knives,,,, Knives Knives Knives,,,, so I, once again, think that the narrative is working against him. It's interesting, then, I guess, that he's the only main character in Tristamp who doesn't get the portrayed-as-younger treatment in Tristamp.

Knives here is experiencing things that Trimax Knives only did way way later; the last run in particular. Trimax Knives witnesses a last run and starts fusing with other Plants midway through Trimax. This scene in Tristamp, however, takes place just 5 years after the Big Fall.

Trimax Knives ends up like he does by spiraling very very quickly after he starts fusing (And he was dead/in a coma for 20 years!); Tristamp Knives, however, has had at least 145 years to build up his power, build up his hatred, go down that spiral. No 20 years of being dead, just alllll that.

In that respect, Tristamp Knives is Trimax Knives taken to the end of that spiral, the extremist endpoint that Trimax Knives never quite achieved because of Vash - he never really had the time to reach the end of the spiral and settle in it, whereas Tristamp Knives has had that going for again, 145 years.

It's a fun inversion of what's going on in Trimax actually - the 20 years between July and the present are what gives most of the main cast their development and personality - They've had the time to develop those coping mechanisms, trauma responses, their characterizations past all the traumatic things that have happened.

Trimax Knives isn't present for those 20 years, he's down and out for the count. So that 20 years of Important development does not apply to him, making him the least Progressed character in Trimax actually.

So to have Tristamp Knives be the inversion of that is really fascinating, because it applies to how extremist he's willing to go, and how,,,, Bad[tm] the actions he takes are.

Some Knives characterization things that I see criminally overlooked are that,,, well, Vash struggles with empathy sometimes, but Knives often feels things far too much, as in a hyper-emotive or overstimulated state (he's autistic ur honour), which is what contributes to his overall spiral - he's so emotionally driven that he doesn't recognize the emotional weight behind his decisions anymore. I don't think he knows quite how much his grief and anger contributes to how he says he hates Rem. He doesn't really explore that but instead just turns it into motivation for himself.

Anyway him feeling things Way too hard is an entire mood and Studio Orange did an incredible job with his expressions.

Like for example, in this sequence he looks like he's about to physically Gag in response to seeing the Plant die

Or this one, where he looks like he's about to cry but shoves his hood over his face hurriedly in case he does. Daily reminder that Knives was the kid who cried a lot

So Vash steps in in the middle of Knives' little breakdown, but he hasn't really Seen that breakdown. To him, Knives is immediately just spouting about how humans are so bad, but from Knives' POV he just watched his sister die while the humans who surround him are unapologetic and uncaring. And that's gotta be devastating for Knives, because Vash really does not understand the context of the situation here. I think that gets to Knives a little bit, and unpauses his breakdown.

The other thing that really cements the Absolutely God Awful Time that Knives is happening is the guards going to grab him. We've already seen Knives be relatively adverse to touch (looking uncomfortable when Rem grabs him), and now he's having a really bad day, he's experiencing Trauma^2, and people just Grab him? Not to be dramatic but I understand the urge to start killing

But he also,,,, doesn't resort to violence first. He literally appeals to everyone's sense of heart, he points out that the Plants are crying out, can't you hear it? And then nobody listens, nobody comes to help him, and at this point there's probably a lot of fear.

A bunch of humans have turned up who are,,, apparently happy to exploit plants, conrad knows he's a plant, and he's being restrained by several people. That's a really scary position to be in, especially if you happen to have seen what happened to, oh, I don't know, Tesla?

Self-defense, in this case, would surely be justified to him.

Also the scene of Knives attempting to get Vash to shoot someone with a gun is a 98-only detail which I love actually - 98 has its moments, even if it's only 3rd in my Top Triguns list! (I love 98 to be clear, I just like Trimax and Tristamp more)

Vash tells Knives that he lost Rem because Rem was protecting Vash, and That's Not A Great Thing To Hear. Knives loved Rem very much and now Vash is telling him that yeah, she's dead because of him. Which he'd definitely known before, but it's such a gut punch to hear your own brother say that, scream it in your face even. Your mother is dead because of you. She was only protecting Vash.

And again, that too much emotion spills over into just inescapable grief and rage that goes into violence and taking it out on Luida which. Yeah. Yeah.

Tristamp fascinates me in that Knives actually has a genuinely good reason to amputate Vash's arm - he's in a haze, and he needs to think quickly, nobody else can do anything, and if that arm goes off it could evaporate everything in the immediate vicinity. So yeah chop chop. It's not a great solution, of course, but it's the quickest one he's got, and also starts desensitizing Knives to violence he commits against Vash. Because, of course, if this one piece of harm had saved Vash's life (which it probably did), then everything else that Knives does is also saving him, right? Right?!

Why does Vash get like. B cups in this scene and only this scene. Top ten questions science can't answer /j

Godddd okay Meryl and Roberto's reaction to seeing plants is,,,, It's nice, actually. I like that Roberto gets to see hope and flora before he dies. I like that the last positive, lovely thing that he gets to experience is the hope of the world. Even if he denies it.

God, Knives telling Vash that he's the reason for the big fall really did a number on him huh. The man is powered on 17 guilt complexes, CPTSD, and bisexuality

worms took her tights can't have shit in noman's land

Roberto also cracks a lot of jokes all the time I miss him. He's so deeply unserious half the time and the other half he's mysterious as fuck. Love this guy. But also the fact that he does try to,,, make the situation better for Meryl by joking with her is very sweet.

Wolfwood has. 0 experience in riding a Thomas because he was never given transport again,,, Why waste fuel and animals when the Punisher can just walk the desert himself? He's not human enough to die of it. ghrngrhgnrgrngrnnnnn

God that's gonna be so good when he gets Angelina though. His own transport,,,,

Zazie doing the lord's work by putting Aotearoa New Zealand front on the Worm Globe, we're so often left out of maps lmao

Alright I have spent some time condensing that Knives rant and it's still. a Lot lmao. Anyway that was my Normal-About-Knives episode, next is my Normal-About-Roberto episode, which I'm super hyped for! yippee!! yay!!!