#sorry guys for posting this i am just kinda irked that someone could do the laziest thing for punctuation and then accuse me of laziness

[punctuation-completionist]

Holy shit I thought I'd seen the worst and laziest gimmick blogs already. Congrats on setting the bar even lower.

@#$_&-+()/*"':;!?,.~`|•√π÷ק∆£¢€¥^°={}\%©®™✓[] get a fucking job

jokes on you asshole, i am in school most of the day and have multiple hours of homework every night. i just ride the bus for two hours to and from school and know how to use a queue

and you? do you understand how much work i put into this blog? how much i've learned about various punctuation so that i—with time i could easily use doing something else i might add—can tell people about things that i find interesting? i doubt it because you just have a hate filled heart from what i can see, picking on blogs that you find lazy because you can't even bother to dig.

i would have just left this in the inbox; but i really do feel like showing everyone what a fool you are. i mean, come back when you know all the brackets and dashes and have read at least one book about punctuation and then you can talk about who's the "laziest gimmick blog"

and no, i am not justifying that keyboard smash of an attempt to get more punctuation. if you want to talk about lazy bud? take a look inwards, perhaps.

[anashins]

Could we get a ocxJaehyun where he’s kinda insecure cos oc doesn’t show she’s jealous (just not a situation where he tries to make her jealous on purpose pls🥺) and when he confronts her about it she’s like “you have no idea how jealous I am, I mean look at yourself 😭😭😭” so the rest of the story may be smth fluffy like healthy communication or just smut lmao.

Pls <3

Pairing: Jaehyun x You

Genre: light angst, fluff, romance, a bit suggestive in the end

Word Count: 1.3k

Summary: After posting a picture of you and your male best friend, your boyfriend turns very jealous. After all, you're always so casual about his life, so he assumes the reason behind is that you don't find him attractive and wait for someone better to come around. If only he knew.

A/N: Thank you for requesting! I went through this 2 days ago with my bf, this hit very close to home haha

“Having dinner with my best friend in the whole wide world!”

Jaehyun read the caption on your Instagram story post over and over again while his stomach dropped in the process.

The fact that the photo you had posted did not only show food, but a guy having his arm around your shoulder while you were leaning close to him put him into a rage. And his members were his target. 

Jaehyun tossed his phone back into his bag and returned to the others who were currently learning a new choreography. By the change of his facial expression alone, Taeyong could tell that his mood had entirely shifted within an instant - something that unfortunately happened too many times lately.

“What’s wrong?”

he asked with his serious leader-voice, having predicted the outcome of this situation already and wanting to prevent it at all cost. There was no way Jaehyun would disturb the entire dance practice with his jealous mood again.

“Nothing.”

How he stood there though, with the corners of his lips facing downwards, eyes dark and arms folded across his chest, now everyone was alarmed and the leader had to look over their friendship for once and put Jaehyun in his place. Again.

“If it’s nothing, then act like it. We have a concert coming up,” Taeyong addressed him. “Otherwise I will have to send you away.”

Jaehyun just grumbled something, but remained silent. His friends rather had him silent than taking it out on everyone though, which was why nobody talked to him for the remaining hours again.

When practice was over, Taeyong walked up to him and took him aside.

“I’m telling you this not only as your leader anymore, but as your friend too, okay? Talk it out with her. Either that or you won’t be allowed on your phone during practice, Jaehyun. I’m serious. Everytime something like this happens, your mood is eating you up and everyone feels it. You can’t concentrate, you can’t memorize the moves, you cannot work with the others. This has to end.”

“I’m sorry.” Jaehyun dropped his head along with his shoulders, and Taeyong felt guilty, but he had to do what he was supposed to do. 

He patted his friend’s back. “It’ll be fine.” And with a grin, he added, “I mean, look at you. You’re Jeong Jaehyun. You don’t have any rivals.”

-

“Hey, how was your day?” you asked Jaehyun after entering his apartment.

You were in a relatively good mood as you had had a great day with your best friend who was visiting the country for a month, and since he was living abroad the majority of the time, you tried spending so much with each other as possible.

The possibility of it irking Jaehyun had only crossed your mind when he started commenting on the photos you posted kind of snarky like “Oh, you’re out together again today?”, but since he hadn’t said anything directly, you had just brushed this feeling off.

Today though, he didn’t look good at all, it was written all over his face, no matter how hard he tried to conceal it with a fake smile that he usually reserved for cringy fancalls. 

“Are you okay?” you asked when you followed him into the living room. “You can tell me, you know?”

“Yeah, I’m okay. It’s just…” He took a deep breather. “I haven’t heard from you all day.” 

“I’m sorry, I was busy. You know I’m rarely on my phone when I'm with people. I don’t want them to feel like I prioritize anything else over my time with them.”

He shrugged. “But there is always enough time to post on your Instagram story.”

Jaehyun could have bitten into his own tongue as he was usually very composed, but before he could redeem himself, you had already put the puzzle pieces together. 

He was jealous.

He shook his head. “I’m sorry, I’m just-’”

You got on your tiptoes and cupped his face. “Jaehyun… please tell me exactly what’s wrong. You know there is nothing to worry about since he has a girlfriend too and that’s just how we are together. I always told you that.” 

He averted his eyes, but you remained yours. “You’re always so casual and excited about everything. You like all my posts, my stories, comment encouragingly and supportingly on them, no matter when and no matter with who. Even if I don’t find time to reply to you, even if something holds me back from returning you the same energy. Am I the only one who cares?”

“Care about what?”

“That someone might take you away from me.”

“Jaehyun…” You tilted your head. “Why would you think that?”

“Because you never reacted the same way as I. No matter where I am, what I do or what kind of videos and pictures pop up online. You never seem to be bothered, and yet here I am, not being able to return this feeling, because even when a guy looks at you, I want to get you out of his eyesight. Does it mean I’m just not that attractive in your eyes, so you’re not worried at all? I genuinely want to know.”

Your mouth stood open over the fact that your boyfriend, possibly almost every girl in your age range’s ideal type, was assuming you didn’t find him handsome. His perfect face, that graced screens, placards, phones and everyone could stare at whenever and how often they wanted. He thought he wasn’t attractive, because you didn’t show jealousy.

Of course you were jealous as hell.

You brushed with your thumbs over his cheeks, trying to ease him. “Every day, so many people get to see this handsome face and experience your kind character. Just look at yourself. Of course I’m jealous too. Sometimes, especially when you’re touring, they see you more often than I, and I get to backtrack everything online, what you’re doing and saying, after them, after strangers. And the things they write… I don’t want to see, but I cannot close my eyes. At times, the pain gets so unbearable that I have to log off and trust that you eventually call me and tell me about everything.”

Jaehyun frowned and his former dark mien shifted into a frown. “I didn’t know all that.”

“Of course you wouldn’t know, because would that benefit me in any way? No. I trust you and only you. Everyone else doesn’t matter. I don’t have any influence, so I try to distance myself from it. So, I’m sorry if you ever feel like I don’t find you attractive enough, because I don’t show it in that kind of way. It’s just… I will always get painfully reminded that so many other people feel that way too. And every single one of them would take you away from me in an instant if they ever get the opportunity.”

"Nobody will.”

“I know.”

Something inside Jaehyun cracked when he saw you being so honest and also so confident about it. So, you were feeling the same about the other, you just had different ways to express and cope with it. 

Jaehyun took your hand into his and kissed your palm. “I’m sorry for being so insecure sometimes and not having more faith. We love each other, we want to be with each other, I shouldn’t make you feel down with my problem. I should be more like you. It’s the healthier way. Please show me how.”

“Baby steps,” you told him and took his hand into yours. “But first, let me prove to you how attractive I find you.”

“Maybe it will take you more than one time to convince me.”

“That’s fine.”

[ask-alphabetboyluvr]

i know you mentioned not being offended, but you seemed pretty offended by the end of it 😂

my question was answered in the first few paras where you mentioned your real life doesn't resonate w what the plot of the book is, so i'm glad my question was answered

as for the rest of it, oof

like i don't remember saying that you shouldn't write something that deviates from my preferences, nor did i say i want the two in otte to have a happy ending and live happily ever after, my question was simply why write something that puts you through emotional hurt bc you know that would make it difficult for you to complete when people could potentially end up wanting more, which again, was answered, idk where you got the 'cookie cutter' ending idea from, because again, i never said anything about that, also bc otte doesn't even have an ending to begin with lmao

i never asked you to not write a fic that doesn't fit my standards nor was it an attempt at that bc i'm an avid reader of angst and would love an angsty ending if there's going to be one at all, all i was wondering about a complete book

half of your reply wasn't even what i was looking for?? it was simply unprovoked and hurt me a little because i try to put forth my question as respectfully as possible nor would i encourage you to stop writing bc i like your fics, i could expect a lil niceness too right? or does that irk you too 😂😭??

the hashtags apart from the first few paras were rude for no reason, especially when i made it clear i wasn't tting to be offensive and it never was my intention

thanks for answering i guess

also, another question, is there a posting schedule for the 'slut war' book? or would it be like bd?

i was annoyed, not offended!! and i've also slept on it so am a lot more chill about it now. you caught me at a bad time and that's on me, so I'm sorry for being a bit defensive with it all. if i'd have waited until this morning to answer it then yeah, you probably would have gotten a different answer.

that being said, tonally, your ask came across a bit rude to me--it questioned my motives in a way that I didn't really get, and made me feel like i was a bit stupid for publishing in the first place. it might just be your typical way of typing, but it's the kinda way i type when I'm fighting with someone lol, so it had my back up!! especially that final little lmao!!

you've also gotta bear in mind that I don't really have much of a presence on tumblr and that the otte was published 9 months ago, when my presence was even smaller. i really didn't/dont have reader expectations. it felt like you were calling me ingenuine and that's a shitty thing to be made to feel like!! especially when I've always been very open/honest with you guys about things!!

the story to me is done. it was never intended to be a fic!! or to have a resolution!! that's what I meant by people wanting a cookie cutter ending--you wanted something different to what was written. the ending is the ending.

i think i always strive to be kind, and I definitely wasn't trying to be unkind--but I'm also not a doormat and I do have feelings too, so even if you didn't intend for it to come across rudely, it kinda did and I responded accordingly.

the last thing i want is to leave a bitter taste in peoples mouths, though, so hopefully we can chalk this up to a misunderstanding/bad timing/me being a little reactive.

as for slut war--yes, it will be like bd!! I'm trying to commit to having the first 5 or 6 chapters ready for upload by the time bd is done so that we can have a steady couple of weeks of updates as we get into the story. it'll be shorter--a little over standard novel length, probably around 140k!

[volfoss]

how about ranking bucciarati's team?

regret to inform you that ur gonna get a very long answer bc i have passionate feelings about them all! also trish is in this bc she is part of the team and no one will tell me otherwise and will also include some rambling bc it is me and i have so many feelings towards these characters and none of them r cohesive

under the cut just in case (post writing yes it was long)

Giorno Giovanna:

way way more complex than ppl normally give him credit for (i will not go into feelings on how a majority of the fandom treats him unless ppl want me to then i will in fact make a very long ranty post and will not be stopped)

mildly op (esp at the beginning with how hes kind of able to just use his stand really well w no problems altho i think thats true of most of the jojos that we have seen animated?)

i am emotionally attached to him and want to give him a big hug

hes just a kinda goofy kid and is maybe a bit not good with figuring out hey this is a semi dangerous situation maybe i shouldnt be taunting him (leaky eye luca for example)

has the actual best theme

i love how he works off the rest of the team so well (even w members who do not like him)

is in my top 3 jojos i love this kid sm i would adopt him if he was real

7/10

Bruno Bucciarati:

the fucking way his character develops from licky man to best dad material is my favorite thing

his outfit is so so so good i would die to wear it

in general this man is one of my fave jojos characters and i get a lot of comfort from him

hes just really neat and has a good taste in music

he did his fucking best and i will always love him for that

imo the way that his death was drawn out was genuinely one of the most heartbreaking deaths in the entire series and fucks me up each time i think of it

i feel like he really is the one to hold the team together in a way that everyone feels cared for and saved

def has a savior complex tho for sure

dilf but im ace

also manga superiority bc he either makes the stupidest faces or looks very nice (anime has a lot of weird animation in regards to his face) and also because its lingerie there instead of a tattoo that changes thickness and placement every second

10/10

Leone Abbacchio:

guilty pleasure liking man

i am obsessed with his vibes and wish to become him

i cannot physically express just how much i love him but hes one of my faves of all time (not obvious by my theme at all wdym)

i miss his manga palette but also the colored manga isnt my beloved but also black lipstick abba

hot take maybe but anime abba looks better than manga minus the lipstick debacle

hes so so tall and i will steal his height in a nice way

his past man his past it fucks me up

his death fucks me up normally but when i was rewatching recently, i saw he gave this tiny lil smile after helping the kids get their ball and i could not take it anymore

him and brunos relationship (canonically and out of canon too) is one of my favorites in the series

also fandom hot take as i guess i am doing those for everyone- but ppl either have him as cosntantly trying to murder giorno or being like good son and v out of character, and it is really weird? not sayign that ill do better when i write them but also like im convinced some ppl havent seen the show or smth

i will steal both him and bruno and marry them both <3

this man is beloved i love him to death

10/10

Pannacotta Fugo:

i cannot spell his first name to save my life

also fandom take- ppl make him constantly only angry boy all the time and it really irks me. ik araki did not give him 2 much to work w in terms of canon personality but its frustrating

the light novel purple haze feedback is so so so good and adds sm to his character and i really like it for that!

fugo is one of those that imo deserves a lot and didnt get that

genuinely the vibes between how he treats narancia is v interesting to me, like its clear he cares about nara but nara not doing great w math really frustrates him

i love their interactions and how he is genuinely a kind person at times

the manga colors r superior here, my strawberry boy <3

i just really love and appreciate him a lot and wish that ppl gave him more love

i keep getting assigned him on kin quizzes

very smart good boy

ALSO ok fugo did not do any wrong by leaving

unsure if thats a hot take but i genuinely dont blame the character one bit for leaving and again purple haze feedback really delves into that and why he did it

if ur a fugo fan go read it

his past is really upsetting esp in the anime i will cry over it

his stand is adorable and i wanna hug it

his vibes r fun and i wanna gift him strawberry dangly earrings

8/10

Narancia Ghirga:

this boy i am also adopting (i am adopting most of them sorry)

i really hate how ppl act as if hes stupid bc bad math skills do not equal stupid like did ppl not see the fight w formaggio??

the way he just fucking dove into the water after the boat and how brunos face went all soft and happy it will never not make me cry

he is constnatnly making me wanna cry if i think too much about him for 2 seconds i love him sm

how can anyone not adore him when he set an entire street on fire yk

hes just happy despite his past and it makes me sad i love nara sm

torture dance is one of my favorite memes from the show

ALSO ok the way he died so suddenly absolutely broke me bc the remaining team members r really just seeing everyone die in front of them so quickly

his goofy and laid back moments r my fave

i love just how loyal and caring he is to his friends

his stand is really cool and again the fight w formaggio was so fun to watch

8/10

Guido Mista:

probably my least favorite member of the team for a semi good reason:

the jokes towards trish are really really uncomfy and how fugo doesnt wanna be involved but he is pushing him to do something that makes him uncomfortable did not make me like him a lot

hes goofy but not goofy enough for me to be ok with the repeated jokes about that esp in the body swap episode (ik it was supposed to be funny but it just felt off)

his vibes r good but i wish we got to see his hair

the fandom interpretation is normally pretty good of him overall?

despite not loving him a lot, i really enjoying writing for him (one day might open up headcanon requests or smth but unsure)

hes someone id wanna watch movies w but his taste in movies and mine r very different

love how he and his stand get along

honestly has very very good comedic potential

i really like how he and giorno interact as the series goes on (in a platonic way i need to clarify that i love their friendship)

again him in purple haze feedback was really interesting

probably a 5/10?

Trish Una:

beloved and deserved better

her first outfit in the manga > outfit in the anime

actually in general i believe in manga trish superiority like her hair in the manga looks so cool

her stand her stand her stand i love sm

if u dont include trish in the group i am murdering u <3

HER CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT!!!! IS SO GOOD!!!!!!

fandom gripe is how people either pretend she does not exist or has the trish first introduction thing where shes using her defense mechanisms and acting a bit spoiled

OK but her in purple haze feedback!!! mild spoilers but how bruno was taking care of her post the ending of vento aureo makes me so happy each time i think of it

very mad that she canonically didnt really get an ending and yet again PHF my beloved actually gave her that

how spice girl starts out as a stand thats helping her thru a very stressful situation is so cool and i love it

DAD BRUNO DAD BRUNO DAD BRUNO *frothes at the mouth*

but more seriously how she leans on bruno and begins 2 trust him and nearly point blank is referring to him as a father figure always fucks me up

esp because of the resulting fight afterwards

and the very ending of the arc that ends w bruno being like bye gonna go in the clouds and look ethereal now, oh man it makes me so sad

bc giorno is the only one that knew what happened and people that were closer to bruno due to knowing him longer didnt

i wanna see how trish coped w that personally

despite being introduced not at the beginning i think her arc and character in general were as well paced as it could be!

9/10

finally done! sorry that took so long but oh man i have so many feelings towards these guys its not even funny

[morning-might-arrive]

Here’s the continuation of my last post. Thank you so much to everyone who liked and reblogged! This is becoming a lot longer than I thought, so there will be another part soon. Feedback is appreciated!

A series of misunderstandings involving a limousine and Spectra’s blog lead Jackson to the realization that he has way more friends than he thought.

Wednesday

Jackson sighed as he silenced his blaring alarm clock. 7:00 am. As he walked to the bathroom to get ready, he was suddenly struck by a memory.

“It’s nothing personal, normie. You just look like such a freak.” Manny told him as he shoved him off of the lunch table. Jackson looked towards the other mansters, but they said nothing. So they all agreed. Even Clawd. 

He cringed. He’d had to eat lunch in a bathroom stall that day. He looked at his reflection, desperately wishing he could change it. He sighed and got dressed. He had to leave early since he now had no car and his parents weren't home. He plugged his headphones into his phone. Holt had gotten them into this situation, only fitting that he deal with it.

Holt Hyde cursed under his breath as he walked to school. Although the weather was warming, mornings in March were still frigid. He sighed in relief as he approached Monster High.

“Heya there, sweetpea,” Operetta drawled in greeting as Holt waltzed through the front doors of the school. 

“What’s good, Oppy?” Holt responded, his usual loud and energetic self even at the early hour.

“Just peachy keen like always, hun. Say, you seen the Ghostly Gossip lately?” She asked.

“Nah, we usually stay away from that garbage ever since that story about us and Frankie. Humiliated the poor ghoul and almost tanked our relationship. It really ain’t cool what they're doin’.” He replied nonchalantly. 

“Oh. Okay. Well sugar, you know you can tell me anythang you wanna, right?” She continued.

“Uh, yeah, sure. Thanks Oppy.” That was kinda weird for the rough and tumble ghoul to say, but honestly Holt was just glad their botched attempt at dating didn’t mess up their friendship. Oppy was a cool ghoul. 

“What’s the word, cool cats?” Came a new voice.

“Johnny!”

“Johnny.”

Johnny spirit sauntered casually down the main corridor of Monster High, and students jumped out of his way as if he had the plague. He put his arm around Operetta’s shoulder. “Hey, babe.”

Holt snorted. “I’ll never get why everyone lets you float around like you own the place.”

Johnny shrugged. “Guess they don’t have a choice. Besides, I never see you doing anything about it,” he replied with a bit of challenge in his tone. Holt rolled his eyes.

“You know you don’t scare us, Spirit. Anyway, it seems like Oppy’s got you on a leash without our help.”

Johnny bristled at that “Y’know Hyde, I’m gettin’ real sick of-”

“Why don’t we scamper on down to the catacombs and finish that new song we been workin on, sugarpie?” Operetta cut in. She really didn’t want to deal with a fistfight this early.

The couple walked away and Holt made toward the auditorium. He found the symphony on stage setting up and dashed up to join them, plugging his guitar into its amp. Jennifire was nearby greasing the corks on her clarinet. He huffed and sat down next to her.

“Another run in with the phantom pianist?” She asked, not even looking up.

“That guy is such a jerk!”

She chuckled and shook her head. “You boys are so easily provoked; I may never understand it. My brothers were just the same. He has done not to insight your anger.”

Holt really hated to admit it, but she was right. Johnny really didn't scare Holt, and he knew a little better than to try that tough guy act on Jackson. Plus, it was kinda funny seeing guys like Heath and Manny faint when he walked past them.

“Your emotions run like wildfire, I am very impressed you came to terms so easily with your end.” She continued.

Wait. What. “My what now?”

“Of course, it must be so hard for you to talk about. I am sorry.” A tear fell from her eye and promptly turned to smoke upon hitting her face.

“Jen, are you okay?” Holt asked, facing her.

She smiled. “Yes, I will be okay. So kind of you to think of me.”

“Okay, Okay, enough chit chat. Places people!” The director yelled as he approached the stage. Well. That was weird. Holt took his place in the stool beside the amp and looked up as the director began counting them off.

After an awkward hour of rehearsal, they were dismissed to second period. Holt emerged out into the crowd of students in the hall. Jennifire was nowhere to be found, so he made his way toward the art room. His Spotify playlist suddenly changed to a song by Pierce the Veil. He pulled out his phone to skip it and saw he had a message from Jackson. He scoffed. If D-low had told him what was wrong, would he be asking? JJ could be so oblivious. Maybe it was just a normie thing. 

He took his usual seat in front of his canvas and continued his painting for this week. 

“Psst, Holt.” he heard a whisper. He turned and met the shiny magenta eyes of retired popstar Catty Noir. “We’re turning up at Cleo’s place on Saturday, you in?”

“Yeah totally- oh, nevermind. We can’t make it, we kinda got a...thing that day.”

“Oh,” she said, looking kind of taken aback. “It’s that soon?” 

“What was that?”

“ I said I’ll see you soon!” she hastily corrected herself as she got up and turned in her painting, promptly leaving the art room. Man, everyone's acting off today. He touched up his work and quickly followed suit.

He basically had the rest of the period to himself, so he decided to riff on his guitar for a little bit. He couldn’t do it in the building anymore ever since that one time Headmistress Bloodgood caught him, so he moved to the front steps and set his bag beside him.

“Hey Holt!”

Holt turned towards the front of the school. “Frankie Fine-Stein! Where have you been hiding?” Her skin glowed a light mint green and her eyes sparked in the sun. Just as bootiful as ever. She sat on the step beside him.

“I was actually just in the library. I found this book about the original Jekyll and Hyde. It was way harsh; It said that Edward Hyde trampled a child in the streets of London, is that true?”

“Nuh-uh! Those stuffy normie’s didn’t like that grandpa’s were different so they dragged their reputation through the dirt!” Holt declared passionately. “Some of the people they charged him with killing didn’t even exist in the first place! Then they made Dr. Jekyll out to be a complete basket case and threw them both in jail! That is until they got bailed out by our great-great-grandma, Lucy.”

“Oh, man. I didn’t know any of that!” Frankie replied. She actually knew all about it, she had heard the exact same thing from Jackson before. They were both incredibly salty about the smear campaign launched against their great-great-grandparents that made their family flee to America in the first place, and you could hardly bring it up around them without a passionate rant. Frankie felt a little bad about bringing up something she knew was a sore subjet for them, but she had to make sure Spectra and the other ghouls didn’t get caught. It was for their own good, right?

Her phone buzzed in her lap and she glanced down. “Spectra got something, meet us back in the library.” Clawdeen. Frankie jumped up. “Sorry, Holt, I really gotta go.”

Holt watched her go in curiosity. He checked the time and quickly jumped up himself and dashed back inside the building. The only way to not be late now was to go through Section C, the so-called “vampires only” hallway. It really irked them when other monster’s used it, but he didn’t really care when it was either that or detention. As he made his way through he felt someone glaring at him, and met eyes with a large group of the former prep-school vampires. He braced himself, but instead of giving him grief like they usually did, they just let him pass. They were acting weird, but so was everyone else. Oh well, he didn’t really have time to think about it now.

Holt’s third period was Chemistry 2 with Mr. Hack. No thanks. Science was never his strong suit. Plus, there was seriously something off about this particular teacher. He just took a little too much pleasure in the cutting open of living things for Holt’s liking. He pulled out his phone.

“Keep an eye out. Today’s been weird, Bro.” He typed the message out and then disconnected his phone from his headphones. The world went dark.

Jackson blinked a few times. What was that ringing sound? “Oh, shOOT!” He bolted through the closest door- which just happened to be the right one- and took his seat as the bell finished ringing.

Mr. Hack passed out a hefty amount of worksheets to the class. “Okay class: no whispering, no talking, no looking around, no coughing or sneezing, no you can’t use the bathroom, and if I catch you on your cell phone the whole class gets detention. You have until the end of the class to complete the worksheets or it's a 0 for today.”

Everyone groaned. Good old Mr. Hack. Charming and likeable. Jackson tried to ignore the stares and whispers in his direction as he did his work. He knows he’s different, don’t they ever get tired of reminding him? Were they all paying more attention to him than usual, or was it just his imagination? He blazed through his work in about 20 minutes, it was just some simple thermodynamics equations. He looked up and noticed that Mr. Hack was asleep. Typical. Half the class were on their phones and the other half were talking amongst themselves. He pulled his phone out and saw Holt’s message.

Huh. Maybe it wasn’t just his imagination then, everyone was acting a little odd. Granted, every day at Monster High was pretty weird. Last week they had lost their school crest in a rollerblading contest and the school nearly toppled over, so maybe he could just ignore whatever this was.

The bell finally rang for lunch. He set his work on Mr. Hack’s desk as he jolted awake and practically ran from the room. He shot Clair a text

“Okay, transportation is set and decorations bought. Am I forgetting anything?”

“Measurements, goofy.” She responded almost instantly.

“Oh, right. I can get a tape measure from the woodshop teacher and get them during lunch.”

“Have you told the other monsters about Saturday?”

“No. I just don’t know how they’ll react, y’know?”

“Aren’t they always telling you about how you don’t belong? So why would they care?”

“Yeah you’re probably right. It’s just a difficult situation.”

“Yeah, I hear you. Let me know how it goes.”

Looking down at his phone, he didn’t notice Draculara until he bumped her as he passed.

“So sorry!” He exclaimed. 

“It’s alright.” She reassured him as she walked away. She made her way to the library where her friends were already gathered around in a circle. Spectra floated in the center.

“What’s this all about?” Draculara asked.

“While Frankie had Holt distracted, Spectra looked in his locker.”

“Well what did she find?” Cleo demanded.

“Just this. It appears to be a receipt for some kind of car rental.”

Clawd glanced at his phone. “Heath says Jackson is in the boys locker room right now taking measurements of himself and writing them down.” He told the group.

“Then what Spectra said is true.” Fraknie finally admitted. The room fell into extended silence.

“Well we can at least show Jackson he means something to us.” Draculara spoke up.

“Yeah,” Frankie agreed, “we can do something nice for him and Holt.”

“What are we going to do? Hijack the gym and throw a huge party during lunch?” Cleo asked sardonically.

“You’re on a roll Cleo! It’ll be closed tomorrow, but we can do it Friday!” Clawdeen agreed.

Cleo smiled. Very well then. Friday would be a day for the monster history books.

[soyouareandrewdobson]

…the ugly. SYAC: The Master Review 4

Last post I covered much of what I consider the good or passable strips of SYAC of the pre-Dobbear era. What I have admittedly not covered yet, were three certain characters of the strip that exist beside Dobson.

Persistent Pam

 Curmudgeonly Carl

And… this guy I am not even sure has a name.

No, seriously. He shows up in like the 61th strip of the series for the first time and yet I never see his name mentioned once

All I know is that he is an accountant, who pities Dobson (for good reason)

And despite Dobson not liking alcohol, they regularly meet up in a bar as if they are some late 80s comedy duo

Funnily enough, he shows up way before Pam, who would have her premiere in these strips

 And despite only showing up in a few strips after her premiere (mostly to make “fun” of overbearing and snarky commissioners I suppose…)

 She actually managed something no other character or series by Dobson managed to get: A fanclub

 Not that she would really be of any major importance afterwards.

As for Carl, he is supposed to be something like an antagonistic embodiment of Dobson’s “old” art teachers and people being stuck in old ways, who shows up for the following strips forming a sort of arc.

In addition, it is very obvious, that Carl is supposed to be a mockery of people flaming Dobson. Not helped by the fact that THIS character sheet of him made by Dobson assures us, that there were quite a few even less “endorsing” things he wanted to name the character.

Yet funnily enough, Carl turned into such a popular character with readers, Dobson was essentially “forced” to make him reappear in other strips. Not of the “classical” SYAC strips, but he showed up as the “antagonist” to Tenku in the storydriven multi pagers. Though even antagonist is a strong word, as he is essentially more of a jerkish art teacher and college advisor who is harsh on Tenku, but actually has his best interests in mind. To the point he even offers him to be his “harsher” art critic in the years till he enters college, because he wants to see him grow artistically.

 However, Carl was also more of an “accident”. Cause when it came otherwise to tackling criticism or things that irked Dobson (and were not anime related) he would end up more or less creating strips that painted him in a manner where he would supposedly always look like “the better” compared to his opposition or mock it. Which is where a lot of the irk Dobson would earn over the years eventually comes from.

Now to be fair, I do not want to call every comic in that regard “strawmanning”, nor do I want to say that Dobson doesn’t have the right to also mock to a certain extend the mentality of certain “snobs” and so on. For example…

On one hand, I know there are people out there who think they are “special” by having the best tools at their disposal. When in reality you can achieve good results also with less expensive stuff. So mocking that sort of attitude is fine to me to some extend

BUT, when you also make down the line a comic like this…

… essentially making yourself come off as a “better” artist or person than others because you have “chosen” the better mass produced crap (btw, that is coming from someone who types this review on a Mac that runs Windows) , then the hypocrisy ends up to be rather strong with you.

 Which is also essentially the biggest issue with the strips I am about to show. The hypocrisy of Andrew Dobson. And no, I do not mean the tumblr blog by that. I mean the simple fact, that the content of some of the soon to follow strips gets kinda muddled when you take into consideration some of the things real life Dobson had said and done either at the time or in the years to come. Well that and the way how he tries to mock issues people have with his work, not realizing how he is essentially just reassuring those “silly critics” in their opinions while making his flaws more obvious to people that may have been previously unaware of them.

But enough talk, let me just show you in quick succession examples to confirm said point.

Considering Dobson’s longterm disdain for DnD you have to wonder what the joke really is outside of him portraying DnD players as ugly nerds, supposedly too geeky even for him. Which is hilarious in hindsight as he would years later become a fan of TAZ among other things.

Less hypocritical but the set up is kinda flawed. Like, you are obviously at a convention trying to sell stuff. Why would some old dude not interested in “kids crap” be at the convention anyway? Is he just bringing someone there and just wants to go, but first needs time to belittle your life choices?

 Rather hilarious in hindsight to me. Cause for someone claiming he has ideas that last for a life time and who seems rather distraught on the idea of others giving their input, he turned out to be so in need of ideas. Alex ze Pirate e.g. became from 2015 onward only defined by Dobson talking about the sexualities of his characters (and not even in comic as by that point it was discontinued, but rather in tweets and so on). Formera, which ran heavily on cheap shonen anime tropes ended up cancelled after two volumes, Cabin Rest was a failure after 20 strips, 2019 he relied primarily on cheap comics about Miraculous Ladybug and his understanding of certain genres is so bad, he can’t even think up the most basic ideas for a magical girl story.

Weirdly enough, that pitch of a garbage truck driver who fights crime? I think that could make for an enjoyable short story about a vigilante a la the Punisher or Sin-City.

 The way Dobson perceives criticism, while also essentially giving a quick rundown how he appreciated criticism in his childhood way better than in adulthood. Yeah, because criticism by your parents as a kid was always VERY constructive. (looks back at certain drawings from own childhood) brrr. And sorry Dobson, but sometimes criticism by strangers is better than criticism from friends. Cause friends may mince their words. Plus people have over time given you quite some insightful criticism aside “U SUX” when it comes to comics. You were just never willing to listen

Hey Dobson, you hear that? That is the sound of your career, dying and no one caring.

Yeah, I think someone who made such “brilliant” comedy as in these comics, totally has the right not to listen to what seems to be solid theoretical advice.

BTW, that Talus comic… I swear to god the worst “joke” Dobson ever told.

 Wow. You essentially make a point why you suck at drawing. While still not trying to change.

And as someone else once said: Don’t play with fire if you can’t deal with the heat, BLOCK-son!

This is not how I perceived your shit over the years. See, on one hand it is true that Alex ze Pirate e.g. has its own webpage to read the comic for free. HOWEVER most of his comics Dobson would hide from the start behind a paywall. The idea being that he would e.g. put a small reading sample of 10-15 pages up somewhere and then expect people to buy his comic for full price to get the rest. And you know, if you are e.g. a professionally published writer, that is fine. But when your average art output looks like THIS

And you expect people to pay more than 10 dollars for something that is only around 70 pages long while most people can get 200+ pages for the same amount of money that look like this…

 You can frankly go and screw yourself.

On one hand I get that the joke is meant to be, that as an independent content creator you may find yourself in a weird spot where your “child friendly” work may be put in a palace between edgier stuff other creators sell at conventions. On the other hand, I find it rather insulting in hindsight, that self declared feminist Andrew Dobson portrays such competition as either psychopathic murderers or stereotypical cartoon bimbos. If modern day Dobson saw the same strip by any other person, he would be insulted on behalf of the female that she is portrayed as a bimbo, when she could also be a very smart and attractive woman who knows how to tell brave and sexy stories.

Also, I have read your “child friendly” stuff, Dobson. I would call Atea or Alex abusive bitches who like to bully orphans but child friendly? Not to forget that your work is so basic and shallow in depth, it’s like the someone tried to create a chimera out of some of the worst traits associated with Dora the Explorer, 80s toodler cartoons and the Fairly Oddparents.

I frankly hate this theory on comedy. It is true, a lot of comedy can be deprived from conflict, misunderstandings etc. Looney Tunes, Tom and Jerry and other cartoons as well as screwball comedies such as Rat Race can depend on it. Heck, one of my favorite comedians of all time is Christopher Titus, who based his entire career on the misery and absurdity of his life.

But comedy is not just defined by misery and conflict.

There are for example also the following theories when it comes to comedy…

And to get back e.g. to Titus, yes, he has build a lot of his comedy on the bad stuff that happened in his life. But he is also someone who in his comedy has build a lot of punchlines on the absurdity of certain situations he has been in life but which in a way have enriched his life positively.

 What I am trying to say is, comedy (and entertainment in that regard) does not just have to be defined by misery. And all things considered Dobson, you could have really tried to also just make comics wherein either you or your characters are just happy with their situation in life.

For example, this page from an Owl House fancomic?

I think it holds more entertainment value than your “joke” right here, despite not even telling a joke.

Simply because as a page overall, it tries to convey a positive emotion. Which is more than I can say about the strip.

Because of a lack of different level of thickness regarding your lines, which would trick people into perceiving depth, the fact that the fill bucket and shade layers can only do so much to cover for the rather monochromatic dull nature of your comic, the fact that your characters are not really all that complex and look rather simplicstic even compared to stuff from a comic like this…

And that is just coming from the top of my head as someone who never studied art. If any reader has something to add, I am willing to listen

And considering you could in later years never keep up to any release schedule, which among other things resulted in only three SYAC strips in total being released in 2016, I say go fuck yourself. Not to forget that even some of the worst newspaper comic strips out there tend to actually find a decent following and good jokes eventually, otherwise they would not manage to stay popular for years, if not even decades.

As someone who has worked internships a lot in life, I just want to say fuck you in all our names. Glad to see you having just as much respect for interns than any other scumbag on the planet. Probably even less respect, cause you know, in some places interns tend to get paid.

Also, there is supposedly an entire real world story going on about Dobson having worked at his former university at the time the comic came out and Chaz is based on a fellow intern.

Things are unfortunately rather vague in that regard and only hold up by demonstrative evidence such as the name of Chaz showing up in certain pages of the university and Dobson’s internship being mentioned somewhere.

Well, would you look at that: People have different opinions on your stuff.

There are ways to draw memes funny and then there are ways to fail at them

 You failed.

Funnily enough, that comic rings a lot truer to text than you expect. Considering how Dobson would often emulate certain aesthetics in his comics of shows that were rather passee by the time he published his stuff, plus how he will obsess over certain trends and games for years to come (like Skyrim or his Quiet Hate Boner) while also being unaware about current trends (how do you e.g. not have heard of My Hero Academia by 2018 at least once by accident?) Dobson has always been kinda late to the party. Missing the “zeitgeist” of nerd culture and as such never quite finding an audience.

Yeah, what Pam says. Not helped by the fact that yes, the floating eyebrows are real. Look at some earlier sketches or “professionally published” comics by his and you will see that each time characters get excited, their eyebrows will suddenly split into sets of three and float higher than Pennywise’s victims.

Ironically, that fits real life Dobson at the time and later on even more so than this comic version did. Sorry, but what am I supposed to call a person who has an hate boner on anime for years for superfluous reasons, made Danny and Spot a “gaming webcomic” deliberately to piss on non Nintendo fans and has admitted in some by now deleted youtube video, that he kept a list of usernames from an old forum just to remember even years later the people that were mean to him online?

 Fuck both of you. I do not expect the Sixtin Chapel in the background, but something to filll up the empty space behind you is at times needed.

The comic here is actually called politics. … ironic how things changed once a certain reality show host turned president.

Jesus Christ. I am not even that much of a Transformers fan (Prime fan for life however) but even I know that this is not supposed to be what you design the head of a Transformer like. Not even if they ever produce the Transformers equivalent of Teen Titans Go.

Too bad you still can’t stand the heat, otherwise you wouldn’t have completely disappeared last year.

When you know you are in a no win situation, and still manage to choose an even dumber option to escape. I really don’t get it. I just think the Portal reference makes the comic dated and Dobsn’s attempt at a smug face looks so stupid. Like his cheeks are falling in and his mouth is about ready to get raped by a garden hose or something.

Yeah, considering Dobson’s later constant need for safe spaces and to be in control of a situation and the narrative, which led to so many blocks over the years… if you know anything about Dobson, how this comic becomes harsher in hindsight is rather self explanatory. I just want to say one thing: There is a difference between genuine agoraphobia and just wanting to be by yourself. And I think Dobson just prefers the later on average. Which is okay, but humans still need to interact with other human beings in one form or another, even just for the sake of keeping their mental health stable. Why do you think are so many people getting depressed in times of covid lockdowns, despite many having all sorts of technical gimmicks at their disposal to at least keep boredom at bay?

And by putting himself into a bubble like that, I think Dobson has deprived himself of some of the most basic human interaction, which was likely a severe factor in his mental degeneration over the last years.

It is still a valid suggestion! Just draw some cartoon characters or a nice fantasy scenario on a mural and earn yourself some bucks. Just be sure they are not by Disney or the Mouse will tear down the school!

… Just google up the words Andrew Dobson and Samus Aran commission by ED and you will see how this comic just further shows how much Dobson seems to actually be proud of being an unproductive asshole.

 And by the way, I know that any form of artistic work takes time. Just writing these review posts takes a lot of time for me. But that doesn’t change the fact that people should post and create stuff in a timely fashion, especially when there are e.g. deadlines to hold up too. And by the way, Sloth’s don’t have fingers, they have claws!

And that is it.

Sorry if I missed anything folks, but I just saw how many pages in word this is already filling up, so I call quits for this part here right now. I think I made my point about how Dobson trying to badly deflect arguments people may make against his art and work ethics via jokes clear enough, while also showing some posts that are either harsher or hilarious in hindsight.

Next time we will however address one certain issue about our main character, that has been not directly addressed here. In the meantime, have a little fun video that shows hopefully how entertainment and a certain amount of comedy can be gained NOT via misery.

[takonei]

I rate the DR 10th anniversary outfits because

Sooo someone posted scans of the thing and I am here to rate those disasters. Here we fucking go.

---

Makoto: 7/10 Simple and effective, but nothing special.

Taka: 7.5/10 A bit more classy than Makoto but still simple with not much originality.

Byakuya: 6/10 Out of all the characters who could have worn a jacket incorrectly, they choose McRich for the job. I hate it. But outfit is fine I guess.

Mondo: 10/10 So ridiculous and in character. Love it.

Leon: 5/10 What are you, scottish? The shoes ruin everything for me they’re so ugly smh. I know I can’t draw shoes either but what are those

Hifumi: 0/10 Look Hifumi, I know your character gets too much hate but I gotta say: Ew.

Hiro: 6.5/10 I like the outfit. But my guy, that color is piss. If you had just changed the color I would have added 2 points.

Sayaka: 7/10 Like Makoto, it’s nice but that’s it.

Kyoko: 9/10 Damn, she look classy as hell. I don’t like that much whatever is going on with the sleeves but the rest looks stunning.

Hina: 10/10 My girl looks SPLENDID in yellow. And the flowers are great too, I just love her. Plus that smile <3

Toko: 8/10 It’s nice, I like the bun(s?) and the dress looks good. The flower in her hair is a nice touch and the colors fit her.

Sakura: 9/10 My girl looks great in buns (+ flower). I like the kimono a lot but the colors used irks me just a tiny bit. Still love her, though.

Celeste: 8.5/10 I wish that veil was a bit more transparent so I could see her dress in it’s entirety. Either way, she looks stunning and that hairpiece is just in character.

Junko: 9/10 The dress looks fantastic, the mask is a nice touch but I feel like she would have been perfect with loose hair.

Chihiro: 7/10 Say what you want about the onceler, I like that outfit. Very cute but the socks(?) give me the same vibe as Miu’s bondage gear and mmmm don’t like that

-

Hajime: 7.5/10 See Makoto above but a little 0.5+ for that flower.

Nagito: 8.5/10 I’m a sucker for boys with tied hair, as you may already know. White looks nice on him, and the outfit is nice.

Twogami: 4/10 You just took Hifumi’s ugly outfit and put a fur coat on it. It doesn’t look that bad since it’s at least less flashy, but I just don’t vibe.

Gundham: 6/10 The outfit is okay I guess but are you telling me that this guy wouldn’t choose something 100 times more extra? He looks so plain. Give him the crazy outfit he deserves.

Kazuichi: 6/10 You fucking disaster. You just took your jumpsuit and made it fancy. This is so damn ridiculous, but I can still see some appeal in it but like, you’re a disaster man. Also nice glasses bro

Teruteru: 10/10 I love it. The vibe it has,,, I love this. The colors, the simpleness yet effectiveness, it’s just perfect.

Nekomaru: 6.5/10 It’s fine, I guess. It does fit him, but I don’t see that much stuff that could be considered out of the ordinary in a good way.

Fuyuhiko: 7.5/10 Palette color is good but like. The outfit is peak bisexual. I don’t even hc him as bisexual.

Akane: 10/10 THAT’S MY GIRL. She is more of a queen than Sonia will ever be, I’m sorry. She is rocking with that cape. And the outfit is great.

Chiaki: 7/10 It’s cute and effective, it fits her. I don’t like her hair that much for some reason, but overall she looks neat.

Sonia: 6/10 What do you mean this isn’t a miss universe contest?  I can’t vibe, I’m sorry. It looks nice, but it feels more like a popular girl’s dress than who Sonia really is.

Hiyoko: 7.5/10 It looks better than her in-game outfit, at least. The colors suit her, I like it.

Mahiru: 7/10 I have mixed feelings. I love the dress, but the headband is a huge no from me. Little plus for the flower, though.

Mikan: 1/10 Who thought this was a good outfit? Genuinely curious.

Ibuki: 9/10 This is so damn extra, I love it. So many ribbons for nothing, it almost gives a Touhou vibe. But the outfit itself? Horrendous color palette, but it fits because it’s Ibuki.

Peko: 9/10 Opposite of Ibuki on the same spectrum. It’s calm, classy anyway, and fits Peko. I don’t have anything to say, it’s just really good. Nice flower btw

-

Rantaro: 7/10 Outfit is fancy af, but you would have a better grade if it wasn’t for that damn fedora.

Kokichi: 7/10 Who the fuck wears purple socks with white shoes? Also as I said before, he looks like the type of person who gets drunk before coming to the party. Outfit’s good, but once you get to the details it’s a disaster.

Keebo: 4/10 I do not vibe. I don’t know what I’m looking at. Is this another armor? Is this an outfit on the armor? I don’t know. Scarf looks a bit out of place. Also Keebo, wearing your jacket like Hiro doesn’t suit you I’m sorry.

Gonta: 4/10 I do. do not vibe. Too many squares? Too green? idk what bothers me the most. Also he gave me a heart attack the first time I saw him bc I thought he had cut his hair.

Shuichi: 6.5/10 After those two disasters I am glad to see someone at least decent. The color palette doesn’t suit him that much, but I can respect it.

Kiyo: 10/10 The guy is so classy it hurts. I don’t even know if that’s a skirt or pants but either way I love it. This outfit just suits him 100%.

Ryoma: 3/10 What the fuck is this. What. What is this. This hat reaches Touhou levels of ridiculousness. It’s horrible. The outfit is kinda better than whatever some of them have going on but holy shit the hat ruins everything for me.

Kaito: 9/10 The coat is fantastic. Black with tiny moons and stars + a space interior? That’s beyond perfect. Outfit is nice, although I would have liked a different color for the vest and the pants.

Kaede: 8/10 It’s simple and effective. I really like the flowers but still, I can’t get used to Kaede’s haircut. At this this one has cute flowers and ribbons.

Miu: 8.5/10 Now you would think that with what Mikan got, Miu would get something super revealing, but this is surprisingly not the case. It’s very original and it suits her a lot, especially the huge sleeves.

Tsumugi: 7/10 The dress is nice, but that’s pretty much it. I like how she tied her hair, it does look nice. Also those shoes are weird tbh

Tenko: 9/10 I was wrong. This is, in fact, a mini-short. She looks so classy and I love the new placement of the hairpin. She looks a lot like a talentswap Magician!Tenko and I love it. So classy. Very good.

Kirumi: 10/10 That’s peak fancy. I just. I love. her. She’s so fucking great like the elegance, the classiness, everything is perfect. I believe in Kirumi supremacy.

Maki: 3/10 I’m sorry I hate this dress. It had good potentiel but the color palette irks me. No. I can’t. Hair looks nice tho.

Himiko: 8/10 It’s just so damn cute. Idk if the space theme is a reference to her beta design but either way, I love it.

Angie: 8/10 A different kind of fancy. I like the large pants, it does fit her vibe. Also that veil is cool af.

[fairytellerxo]

It’s been a long while but I’m back to clearing out drafts and folders. Between here and google docs, it’s out of control.

This is Colel ‘Nicole’ Oceteva and The Reyes boys. It’s a draft of a draft that I had already posted but I’m thinking of turning it into a series of one shots. Just to see if her and Angel get nastier and if she can crack through EZs vanilla shell.

-

“You spit in the mouth of a cartel hit man’s niece,” EZ whispered to his brother. “If he finds out, you’re fucking dead Angel.”

Angel scoffed as he stubbed his cigarette out. “Who’s gonna tell him? Only three of us know that and I know the three of us won’t be airing that shit out. I was gonna tell the boys but I guess there goes that fun. Would’ve for sure been a good fucking story to share with them.”

“EZ,” Bishop stopped at the pair. “You’re first up on protection. I trust that Nicole will be in good hands with you.” He nodded. “Nicole, that’s EZ, Angel’s brother.”

Nicole grinned. “Nice to meet you,” she shook his head. “Like I told my tio, I don’t really need to be protected, I'm fine.” She took a seat and watched Bishop wall away before turning her attention to Angel. “So, a Mayan huh?” She pulled on the front of his kutte. “All makes sense now, the Harley in the driveway and the tattoos.”

Angel smirked. “There wasn’t too much downtime to swap life stories.”

“Just enough time to swap other things,” she smiled. “So, any chance at a packaged deal. I mean come on, brothers? Need it.”

“Okay, no.” Ez looked at his brother. “I’m not doing it.”

“We don’t even have to make eye contact,” he looked at Nicole. “Right?”

She nodded slowly. “Come on, you only live once.” She looked at EZ. “We can give you a safe word.”

“How is this a thing?” He stood up. “Come on, we’re leaving. I’ve got stuff to handle. You good with being on the back of a bike?”

“I’d let him handle me.” She smirked at Angel before standing up. “Can he come too?”

EZ shook his head. “Only if you two stop being weird together.” He shrugged. “I cannot deal with two of you Angel.”

Angel leaned closer to Nicole. “I told him about the spit thing, he’s being a hater now.”

“Did you tell him about the thumb thing?” She smiled. “That was life changing wasn’t it?”

“Oh man, the thumb thing,” he smiled. “Bro, you gotta try the thumb thing.”

EZ sighed. “No, I don’t want to hear anything else. Why don’t we find out why she needs to be protected before you two start organizing an orgy with Coco and Creeper.”

.

.

“I never thought we’d cross paths again.” Nicole looked at Angel. “I guess the world had different plans. It’s nice to see a familiar face though. Even if we just met, fucked and fucked again while your brother ran to the store.”

Angel laughed as he offered the brunette his cigarette who waved it off. “Ez is uptight, sort of vanilla. He just needs the right one to bring him to the dark side.”

“He needs to experience the thumb.” She chuckled. “That’ll help him out a ton.” She sat up and stretched her arms above her head. “Is he always super serious about this kind of stuff? Club duties?”

“He is, he takes it serious but usually I can get him to lighten up or vice versa if it’s me taking it too serious.” He stood up and looked at her. “So what’s your deal huh? You didn’t seem like the type who’d need protection when we met.”

Nicole shook her head. “I got home Sunday evening, I hopped in the shower, got into some fresh clothes, crawled into bed and about two hours later, I hear my dad come home, he calls out to me, ‘Colel, I’m home mamas!’ I call back, acknowledge it. So an hour goes by, I hear glass shattering, I go on alert and I check the cameras from my phone, see about four guys and I grab my gun and I go into hiding. My dad told me to never try to confront any intruders and to always save myself. So that’s what I did but when I slipped out of the house, someone shot at me. So they knew someone else was home. Miguel and Nestor think that I’ll be a target.” She shrugged. “My dad’s dead and I officially am all alone in the world.”

“Damn, I am sorry,” Angel rubbed his forehead. “I know what it’s like to lose a parent. That shit isn’t fun at all.”

“I’ll be good,” She shoved her feet into her sneakers. “What is there to do around here? I’m not even local I live in Mexico.”

EZ walked in and frowned. “You can’t leave, I’m not getting my ass handed to me.” He shook his head. “Do you play cards?”

Nicole dropped down to the sofa. “I play rummy or strip poker, no in between.” She smirked at EZ. “You can stand to loosen up and have fun. I’ve only known you for a few hours and you’re way to analytical and are in your head way too often. Relax and let me ruin your life just a bit, I promise it’ll be fun.”

“Listen, there’s nothing wrong with being analytical, I can have fun too.” He set the bag of groceries on the coffee table. “I got snacks, I figured since you’re the female version of Angel, you’d like the same snacks he does.”

“Look at him being an asshole,” she smirked at Angel. “It was shitty of you to assume that I would like the same snacks as him because I let him spit in my mouth.”

“Can we not say that anymore,” EZ sat down. “It’s just a weird mental image. Even weirder than the time Angel tried to stick his dick in a body less head.”

Nicole irked a brow at EZ. “Tell me all about it.” She smiled. “Was it like a prop head or something?”

“Yeah, was it a prop head?” Angel looked at his brother. “I’m all ears.”

“It was not,” He shrugged. “It was a real human head.”

“One time I saw my dad behead someone,” She shrugged. “I was sixteen and thought I’d be traumatized but I slept fine.”

Angel nodded eagerly. “I am turned on by that.”

“As I say, to each their own,” she smiled at EZ. “Come on what’s your kink?”

EZ blushed slightly before shrugging. “I don’t know, never really explored.” He rubbed the back of his head. “Did eight years in jail, so I lost out.”

“You probably would do well with a girl who dresses up,” she smiled. “Baby steps.” She squeezed his thigh. “Makes sense why you don’t like to talk sex stuff, you gotta have fun and explore! There’s so much out there, spanking, hair pulling, biting, smacking, wax play. Oh do you have a candle? It’s harmless.”

“Here ya go,” Angel passed Nicole a candle and lighter. “Do what you gotta do, I am gonna check in with Bish, see why they’re calling me like crazy.”

“Relax,” she set the candle down and looked at EZ. “I am not gonna do anything to you. We’ll play cards or something innocent.” She shrugged. “I see that you’re kinda shy but it’s cool.”

EZ nodded slowly. “I’ll start a movie, then we can start cards. Who even knows how long we’ll be stuck together.”

She shrugged again as she toed off the sneakers. “I could use the company, I don’t have a home to go back to just yet. It’s a crime scene.” She grabbed the deck of cards from beneath the table. “Sorry for the whole weirdness thing with me and Angel. I’ll tone it down when you’re around.”

“It’s not weird to hear him talk about sexual stuff, it’s just weird to see that he found someone just equally as nasty as him. No offense meant though.” He chuckled. “It’s cool though, never seen him look so dumb and happy. It’s only been like three days so I don’t know what to make of it.”

Nicole smiled. “Never thought I’d see him again but I’m not upset that life had our paths cross again. I can get to know him for real and I’m excited for it. Hell, I learned that he’s into necrophilia and that’s not the weirdest kink I’ve dealt with personally.”

“What’s the weirdest you’ve dealt with then?” He looked at her carefully. “Because necrophilia is pretty fucking weird and gross.”

“To each their own,” She shuffled the cards and shrugged. “I met a guy online, his kink was being humiliated and giving me his money. I once got money from him and all he wanted was to watch me get fucked by a dude with a bigger dock than his. I’m not a whore or whatever you’re thinking. I just am very sexually free and you should explore that side of you sometimes. Who knows, maybe you’ll like the thumb thing too.”

“Do I wanna know about the thumb thing?” EZ settled closer to her and smiled. “Because my brother is weird and it seems like it’s something weird.”

“It’s not,” She held up her thumb. “But you’re probably going to think it’s gross or whatever.” She laughed. “You just use this bad boy right here and get it a little wet with some spit and just rub circles over the asshole, it’s just an extra stimulant. If the guy or girl is more adventurous, you just slowly slip the thumb right in. You get it now. I’ll spare you more detail because you’re blushing hard as fuck.” She rubbed his cheek and smiled. “Your brother and I aren’t a thing, so if you ever wanna try the thumb thing, I’d happily introduce you to it.”

EZ nodded slowly as he let his eyes bounce between the brunette and his hands. “Yeah, I don’t think that’ll be for me but thanks.”

“Hey,” She handed him the deck of cards. “You won’t know until you try it.”

[svtxsoju]

00. prologue | dear miss soju

ღ Synopsis: College is hard. Love is even harder. Good thing the students of Mansae University can write in to Miss Soju, the campus’ very own romance advice columnist! The only problem is she’s never been in a relationship. Ever. There’s no telling what kind of chaos she may cause in the love lives of several of MU’s most eligible bachelors. Too bad no one knows who she really is!  ღ Characters/Pairings: college AU! Seventeen & OC’s, Pairings TBA!  ღ Genre: Romantic Comedy, Slice of Life ღ Warning(s): Mentions of alcohol, underage drinking, mentions of sex, language, bad jokes ღ Word Count: 2.6k words ღ Binu’s Note: hi to anyone who is reading this!!! i’m super excited (and kinda nervous :0) to post this bc i’ve been working on this project for a while now. aaaa i hope there are at least some people who can enjoy it! this is a relatively short-ish chapter but it’s p dense with exposition lol but anyway if ur reading this, thank you i love you!!! 

《 ⊛ Author’s Note & Credits ⊛ Masterlist ⊛ Navigation ⊛ 》

《 Previous ⊛ Next 》

Introducing The Front ’s New Romance Advice Columnist: Miss Soju! 

We all have an ideal: an ideal type, an ideal first date, an ideal relationship. The problem is love isn’t ideal at all. And sooner or later, we find ourselves sitting on that plastic chair in that tent on the side of the road with an ache in our chest. You’re hurt, confused, and kind of going crazy-- all the tell-tale symptoms of heartbreak are there. And the only cure? Soju, of course! 

Finding a decent partner and maintaining a healthy, sustainable relationship is difficult enough as it is. Then layer it with the culture shock of university, where you’re experiencing actual adulthood for the first time without mommy and daddy to hold your hand. It’s enough to make anyone lose their minds! Sure, you could always turn to your friends for support and advice, but in all honesty, they’re even more of a mess than you are. 

That’s why Mansae University’s affiliate newspaper, The Front, will be reviving our romance advice column this fall! Each week, Miss Soju will be answering all your burning questions, and that means all of them. Her expertise touches on topics as simple as explaining to that one guy that your love is fated because you passed each other at Yuhaeng Quad, like three times, and extends to more extreme situations that require an anonymous veil, like how to confess to your new boyfriend with the furry fetish that you’ve been severely allergic to animals since you were three and you have no idea how any animals act, let alone… Yikes. 

It’s true, college is full of new and bizarre experiences, some we must go through and some we’d much rather avoid. Who knows? Maybe you’ll meet the love of your life here. But it’s okay to admit that you need a little guidance through the mystical and confusing world of college dating. Miss Soju has got your back, and she’s not afraid to hit you with that real shit. As she always says, good advice is like taking a shot: sweet on the lips but burns your throat as you swallow it down. 

Monday, June 3rd, 2019 3:07PM

“Jihoon, I don’t know if I can do this.” 

Name: So Joohyun. Major: Journalism major with a minor in communications. Estimated graduation year: 2021. Desired position: World News Journalism Intern. That was what she had put on her application for The Front’s junior internship program. She had made sure to attach her published articles and to emphasize her interest in-- no, her passion for-- reporting compelling stories on an international scale. Not once in her application did she indicate that she was an expert in love or sex, let alone qualified to give others advice on the subjects! In fact, she was probably the least qualified person on campus for this position, which was probably the most perplexing aspect of the whole situation. 

But despite all of that, there she was, sitting in Yuhaeng Quad with her best friend, reading the promo piece she had written for Miss Soju. Jihoon had been ecstatic when he had thought of the nickname back in high school. She had snuck bottles of the alcohol over to his house one night after finals week, and he had drunkenly claimed that the name was doubly clever since So-ju were also the first two syllables in her name. When the newspaper had told her she needed an anonymous pen name, it was the only thing she could think of, mostly because creating a secret identity had made her in desperate need of a drink. She changed her mind. Having a secret identity was equally as perplexing as pretending to know how to spice up people’s sex lives. It was like she was some kind of Love Spiderman. She was not ready for that kind of great power or the great responsibility that came with it!

“‘I don’t know if I can do this’?” Jihoon repeated her words slowly. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say those words in that order. Can I take your picture? I need to commemorate this moment.” 

“Can’t you see that I am having a crisis?” she whined. “The integrity of my career is on the line because I’ve never bothered to go on a date!” 

“When are you not having a crisis?” Jihoon laughed. He sat up from lying down on their picnic tarp to give her full view of his smug grin. Originally, he had dragged Joohyun outside in hopes that the perfect summer weather would help relieve some of her stress from the past week. He even found her favorite spot under the shade of an ancient tree that overlooked the stretch of green field. But Jihoon could not call himself a proper best friend if he passed on an opportunity to rub all of this in her face. “This is what you get for chickening out on all our group blind dates! I could have scored that hot bassist girl with the thigh tattoo, but nooo, you always had to put your career first.” 

“Sue me for having priorities!” she huffed. Leave it to Jihoon to chalk this all up to karma. Now that he mentioned it though, she couldn’t help but feel like a higher power was taking a piss on her life. Or maybe it was just the shit-eating smile on Jihoon’s face that had her on edge. Joohyun tried to avert her focus to a couple of boys tossing a frisbee around instead, but somehow that irked her too. The idyllic weather, the carefree students, everything that was pleasant seemed to mock her sour mood. She pouted at the ground in defeat, and continued, “You are the first person to know that if I was told that dating and fucking around were going to be crucial to my journey to becoming South Korea’s top journalist by the time I turn 25, I would have become a hoe long ago.” 

“Woah, are you gonna start your thot phase for this? Are we gonna have a hot girl summer?” The boy began to bounce excitedly. Joohyun felt it was high time to give him the finger, but she also felt a small smile tugging at her frown. “Easier said than done, though. Remember Jessi from high school?”

“Yeah I remember,” she said with a sigh. High school romance had lured so many of her friends into its clutches, with its enticing promises of sweet chocolates and stuffed animals, and she had helplessly watched from the top of the class as they forsook their grades for boys who didn’t even know what deodorant was. She only shuddered to think of the state of their grades after a nasty break up. It was then that Joohyun had decided that her future was not worth risking over a boy’s attention. “Which is exactly why I never got involved in all that mess in the first place.”

“This must be the gods telling you that it’s time to.”

“What kind of fucked up god sets up a virgin as a love advice columnist?” she asked the sky loudly. If she had known there was anyone listening, she would have insisted that her question was rhetorical and was not in need of any type of response! However, the gods cared not for grammar technicalities on the mortal plane. They just couldn’t resist the chance to respond to someone so openly questioning their decisions with some good ol’ spite. Honestly, with the way things were going for her lately, Joohyun probably should have expected the frisbee flying merrily towards her face, even if she hadn’t just challenge the universe. 

“Oh fuck!” Joohyun jerked out of the way and felt the frisbee thunk against her shoulder instead. “Ow.” At this point, she didn’t even have the capacity to be annoyed; she just braced herself for whatever misfortune life threw at her next. 

“Sorry about that!” A boy called out, jogging up to them. As he came into clearer view, she noted that he looked far from misfortunate, and also had to remind herself that staring was rude even if someone was unnaturally handsome. His features were soft yet striking, like he had been carefully sculpted from cotton candy. Or maybe a fluffy rain cloud? Joohyun shook her head a little as if that would get her to stop staring so shamelessly. She speculated whether it was the sun that made it look like his blond hair was a glowing halo. Okay seriously, stop staring! He gave Joohyun a sweet smile when he reached them. “My friend got a bit distracted. Now that I’m here, I can’t say that I blame him. Hope we didn’t do too much damage!” 

“Uh,” was her captivating reply.  

Jihoon, never one to miss such a ripe opportunity, piped up beside her. “She’ll be fine. This is Joohyun, by the way.” 

His smile widened at Woozi’s introduction, and Joohyun could swear there was an actual twinkle in his eyes. “Nice to meet you both. I’m--”

“Yoon Jeonghan!” They all looked towards the call. The ethereal boy let out a startlingly loud cackle at the sight of his friend, who gave the two strangers a sheepish wave before continuing to gesture for Jeonghan to return. Joohyun must have been put in a staring mood, because she didn’t miss how his friend’s big ears were a shade of pink and how they bloomed into a cherry red when they briefly made eye contact. She caught herself wondering if all the boys at Mansae University were always this cute. 

“I guess I better go,” the boy named Jeonghan shrugged. Joohyun felt his fingers brush against hers when he took the frisbee from her hand, his eyes glinting mischievously. Now she was sure she was seeing things. “See you two around!” 

They both watched him retreat in an awestruck silence. That was certainly… unanticipated. Even long after Jeonghan and his friend were out of sight, the brief encounter left a blanket of fogginess lingering over them. Had she not felt his fingers on hers, Joohyun would have easily believed that it had all been in her head. At the same time, she was pretty sure that she wasn’t bold enough to conjure up someone that looked like that on her own. As she continued to fathom how a human being could glow, Joohyun felt the fog dissipate into the warm summer air. She felt like she was waking up from a disorienting dream, and she blinked to hasten the process. To her growing bewilderment, she found that her heartbeat was steady as she came back to her senses, her mind seemingly devoid of the panic and doubt that had plagued her all week. It was a gasp of fresh air. 

Jihoon, on the other hand, had long broken free from the strong impression that the blond boy made. He noted the dazed look on his best friend’s face and rolled his eyes. Who knew that a pretty boy was all it took to make her shut up a bit? He nudged Joohyun impatiently, so that she could pay attention to him while he roasted her for totally flubbing her chances.  “You thinking of risking it all for that guy?” 

In an instant, Joohyun slammed herself back into reality just to shove Jihoon away from her. “That is so not happening,” she said a little too indignantly. Before Jihoon could reassure her that the guy seemed interested enough even though she had only said a single syllable to him, Joohyun suddenly turned to him very seriously. “Do you really think I  can do it, Jihoon?” 

“What, bang that guy? I can try calling him back here if you want,” he snickered. 

“You know what I mean!”  

“Okay sorry, I couldn’t resist,” Jihoon replied, his grin now melting into a familiar smile, the one that could put her at ease on her lowest days. “I just don’t know why you have to ask. You and I both know that you kick ass at writing. You’ve written about stuff like natural disasters and the student protests, no problem at all. It’s not like you have a PhD in environmental science or politics. How is this any different? ”

Joohyun scrunched her face as if Jihoon had just suggested that chocolate milk came from brown cows. “Dude, they’re completely different. Those articles were reporting on facts. I did research, I conducted interviews!” 

“That’s what I’m saying, Joo!” Jihoon exclaimed suddenly. As smart as she was, he couldn’t help getting a little giddy whenever he thought of a good idea before her. “Why not treat Miss Soju like any other of your other projects? I mean, love is probably one of the most well-documented experiences throughout history, and people are still going through all the same shit. There’s probably thousands of resources for a man simping on a hot chick alone. You can even take your pick, like movies, songs, books, weird couples on Youtube?You don’t need to have experience, because you can just do the research! ” 

“Research?” Joohyun repeated. If there was one thing that she was good at, it was doing the work. From the moment she had decided to become a journalist, everything she had done was a strategic move to get her closer to her end goal. She had spent sleepless nights perfecting the details of her writing, countless hours reading through endless archives of old articles. Hell, she even restricted herself from dating for years just so she could focus on keep her grades up. It was almost too easy of a solution. Maybe she was meant to do this after all.

 Another couple of months of research would simply be another hurdle on her way to the finish line and she was getting closer and closer. Finally, she felt a smile spread across her cheeks, a real, genuine smile. “I… I can do that.” 

“Now that,” Jihoon said as he took her hand in his, pulling her up to her feet, “sounds like So Joohyun. Or should I say Miss Soju?” 

She laughed as she dusted the grass off of her butt. “You know, it’s probably not a good idea to include the first part of my name in my anonymous persona. It makes it so obvious that it’s me.”

“Yeah, I mean it would be obvious if people actually knew who you were in the first place,” Jihoon scoffed, narrowly dodging a kick from her. “That’s a good thing for you! Anyway, let’s get out of here, I have a couple of tweaks to make to my song before releasing it tonight. Could you listen to it by the way? I need to know if it’s too cheesy.” 

“Oh, the song you’re writing about your mystery muse?” Joohyun hummed playfully while packing up their blanket. She followed after her best friend as he began the short climb uphill. “I don’t know if I want to, you’ve been pretty out of pocket today.”

“Hey!” he said defensively. “First: I don’t need a muse for my songs, I just have a very vivid imagination and my talent does the rest. Second: I literally just stopped you from giving up on your lifelong dream of becoming a journalist, so I think you owe me one. You’re just jealous I can write love songs without having an existential crisis.” 

“See, that is what I mean by out of pocket,” she paused for a beat. “I may be willing to listen to your song. For a small price, of course.”

“Okay, deal,” he agreed without hesitation, missing the way Joohyun deviously smirked beside him. They reached the concrete pavement at top of the hill and headed in the direction of his nearby apartment. “What is it this time, Ms. So?” 

“Well Mr. Lee, thanks to your lovely suggestion earlier, I have been inspired to begin work immediately. So we shall be watching Twilight on movie night,” she said all too gleefully, mostly for satisfaction that Jihoon’s twisted face of disgust gave her. 

“Do we have to?” he groaned.

 “It’s for my research!”

[watchinghannibal]

Season 1 Episode 1

I said I would go back and start at the beginning, and here I am! After I wrote the first post, it was clear that this a live blog experience, meaning I think this is best consumed while watching or right after watching the Hannibal episode. Therefore, I’ll be putting in some timestamps so that people know where I am in the episode without me having to stop the flow of my commentary. I am watching on Netflix. Here we go!

My very first impression of this show, knowing nothing but that it was a crime show with a cannibal involved, was that I was about to get the displeasurable BBC Sherlock experience. There’s a popular video on YouTube that intricately explains what I mean (https://youtu.be/LkoGBOs5ecM), but the short version is that we have a detective who can magically solve crimes that the viewer could NEVER solve on their own. You see Will, looking at a crime scene, and rewinding it in his head - something that I admit could possibly be done with the visual evidence laid before him. But then...

2:04 “This is my design”. Will has not only visualized the crime but he now knows the “psychology” of the killer, simply by looking at the scene. There are certainly ways to deduce the generic mindset of a killer from a crime scene - a person stabbed 100 times is most likely a crime of passion - but to know that the killer wanted the man to watch his paralyzed wife bleed to death is just not possible. 

But this is a work of fiction, and I’m willing to put reality aside to believe that Will can do this. The story he creates in the first scene has logic, it’s not unreasonable. What comes next is what really appalled me and drove me to write this blog.

4:46 Big, mean FBIman comes in and asks where Will falls “on the spectrum”. Rude, to start. Will then describes a spectrum that goes from Asperger’s to narcissist/sociopath and declares himself autistic because he doesn’t like being social. However, in the next sentence, he says he has empathy and imagination. Okay, so now I know what I’m dealing with - a Psychodynamic BBC Sherlock, based on psuedopsychology and wikipedia-level psychyoanalyses. The writers, five minutes into the show, have displayed a massive misunderstanding of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), sociopathy, and personality psychology.

But that’s okay - psychopathology is an advanced and technical field. It makes sense that this American crime TV show doesn’t get it all right. I won’t forgive the mistakes they make because honestly I see this show as offensive to people with ASD, but again I’m watching fiction so I’m willing to continue watching and give my opinions about the psychology that comes up. 

11:32 Will finds the girl impaled by antlers in her own home. He chokes her in his little replay and this is when I started to become uncomfortable about how this show treats violence towards women. In the first scene, Will replayed the crime. This time, he just pounced and choked her. That’s not what happened to this girl - she was killed, impaled, and then placed back in her bed. So why did we see Will choking her?

14:05 Very good doggo scene. There are many good doggos in this scene. Good job to all involved.

15:28 I thought to myself, ooh is this gonna be a scary show? I’m into that. I think if this shows goes more towards horror, I’m more willing to allow all 

USE THE LADIES ROOM

to allow or at least tolerate the women choking shit. Quick note about sociopaths: sociopathy is a personality disorder in which the person is unable feel some or any emotions. They sometimes act in ways that harm others because they are unable to understand how their actions make others feel and further unable to empathize about others who are harmed. Not all sociopaths are bad people or do bad things. Some actively try to understand others and fit into society.

21:34 Will magically discovers the killer eats his victims and we are shown our first view of Hannibal eating a beautiful meal of dubious origins. I liked the imagery and contrast there. The gory forensic morgue, the mortifying realization of cannibalism, and then boom - a delicate and indulgent show of pleasure.

I actually really like Hanny and maybe it’s just ‘cause of Mads, but I’m sure I’ll figure out why I like him soon enough.

FIBman barges into Hanny’s perplexing and massive office. May I also note I hate FBIman. He has bad energy - he seems like the kind of person to call a psychologist a tree hugger.

26:18 Hanny analyzes Will in public. Again, so very rude. And might I add, against the code of therapists, the Goldwater Rule, to not make public psychological assumptions about people who did not ask for help.

28:26 Again I am questioning why I’m seeing a full naked woman impaled. I’m not against gore, but I guess since I’ve watched ahead a bit I just kinda know this pattern continues and it irks me. I promise I’m trying to turn off my angry scientist brain.

He loves women he LOVES them that’s why he eats them!! Love.

I can’t imagine lungs tasting good Hannibal. Or maybe he’s just a good cook. Damn the little smile Hanny gives to that tomato. Thank you Mads.

More SPOOKY visions, this time a feathery deer. Why does it have feathers? I guess that’s scarier? No, that... can’t be it. Is it because the call the killer a shrike? That might be it.

32:03 Are you reconstructing his fantasies? Oh Hanny please give me a full Freudian report on the shrike please. Oh he’s just gonna toy with Will, darn.

36:52 This made me want to keep watching the show. I mean I assumed Hannibal the Cannibal was a bad guy but this was a cool way to solidify the viewer’s suspicions. THEY KNOW!!!!!!!!!

Now Will rewinds a crime scene he was actually involved in. Hanny acts so chill he’s like, huh, would ya look at that? I also appreciate that Will legit looks like someone witnessing a horrible crime and panicking. Sometimes in crime or horror shows, the detective is like, yeah he ripped her insides out, just another Tuesday.

Big Bad FBIman is so fucking mad and Dr. Mom is like fuck you, you hurt my BOY! Those 2 really suck you guys. Will is not a child, Dr. Mom, and he did NOT ask for your help. Hanny has the balls to be holding this girl’s hand.

Okay guys, sorry this post was a bit less funny, but I wanted to articulate why this show is not good to me and why I feel like I can make fun of it without taking it seriously. I want this blog to be a chance to laugh and maybe learn a bit about real psychology. Thanks!

[koorinohebi]

@super-kame-love

Continued From:

I am curious: how would you describe Kiomi's relationship with Jiraiya? And with Koji Kashin? What you've shared about them so far seems very interesting and I must know more!

+ + +

Sorry for breaking it into two different posts, Kame-san. The other one felt so long already.

Quick note: IF you haven't read or watched Boruto, this will definitely contain spoilers.

So for this second one, we have...

Kashin Koji

So the main reason I was interested in him was when rumors were floating around that Jiraiya or someone that resembles him is back in Boruto. One look at his design and I was like, yeah. Unmistakably related in one way or another. Lo and behold my friend, lo and behold.

I have 2 verses for Kashin Koji. One is the one where you often see me mention Takeda. That one is an on going RP with @ambitiousparagon, and the other one is a verse where I pen Koji myself. The one with Takeda is still in the works and currently still very unpredictable, so for this instance I'll talk about my own version of Kashin Koji, which actually...more than Kiomi being the main focus, I tend to lean more towards the man himself. This is heavily influenced by headcanons that are based on what I noticed his personality being based on what we know so far.

So when I first encountered Kashin Koji there was hardly anything on him, which is to say, still very true currently. He hasn't been seen in the manga after his crushing defeat against Isshiki, and in the anime, they've given him a voice, and we see how he acts, but ultimately it doesn't differ from what we've already read in the manga (if you or any of the ones reading this have read it).

So Kashin Koji is, despite being quite whimsical, a no nonsense kinda guy. So he is very...well, I wouldn't call it by the book, but as a shinobi, he chooses the most efficient way to carry out the mission, which is...by default, how Amado had initially programed him-- Not as a perfectionist, no, but as Isshiki would say it, Amado's programming of Kashin Koji rode on his maker clinging onto Jiraiya's mighty fate. However, with Jiraiya being the template, it's not a surprise if Koji would inherit the man's sentiments, principles, and even slight eccentricities as a Shinobi (which I believe Amado had predicted and saw as a weakness. He needs and creates tools as he sees fit, and he'll use whatever he can to further his agenda). Amado strives to emulate within Kashin Koji the "star of change" which Jiraiya possessed. As we know, thanks not only to the prophecy, but also due to Jiraiya's diligence in searching for that revolutionary that could change the world, he was able to bring together (in one way or another) three of the most powerful game changers that we have who affected the course of the current History. If they wanted to defeat Isshiki, he needed that kind of trick up his sleeve. Because however, Kashin Koji has imperfections, and someone Jigen had deemed weaker than he is (because Jigen told Amado to dispose of clones more powerful than he was), our good professor faces a setback and thus needs to come up with a new plan (going to the Hokage, and asking them to kill Isshiki instead while having Kashin Koji show them the "ropes" on how it's done).

My take on him stems from this human weakness. Kashin Koji is aware of who he's supposed to be a clone of. We see this when he comments on his fate being tied to Konoha and the like. And admittedly, knowing your predecessor's legacy, not to mention having been able to perfect something that the original couldn't gives him a bit of an ability to brag, and believe that he can be just as great or even greater than Jiraiya.

But the question is how convinced he is of this himself. I do believe that Kashin Koji wants to be a person of his own, and in being the perfect heroic shinobi tool, even if he dies, it wouldn't be for naught so long as he brings down his target (which happens to be the biggest threat since Madara, Tobi, and Kaguya). Believing that Amadao was entrusting the fate of the world in his hands bolstered his confidence. However, when Isshiki pointed out the painful truth of Amado's betrayal and deception, he internally refuses to accept it. That he was just a pawn, and that he'd never break free from being nothing but Jiraiya's shadow. I always felt that if at the baseness of Jiraiya's personality, you have a decent grasp of his shortcomings, regrets, and insecurities, you'll get a good grasp of Kashin Koji too. Although it's just my headcanon (and people dont really have to abide by it), Koji too, is plagued by this ever looming sense of not being good enough, as well as not living up to the name of his original (very much like how Jiraiya felt his accomplishments dont match that of Sandaime or Minato).

So after this long explanation on my take on Kashin Koji, you may ask where Kiomi comes in. Well, she comes in as a form of support.

Just as with Naruto's unreasonable worry, the first time that Kiomi sees Kashin Koji, she's instantly unreasonably bothered by him as well. Worse, when the mask comes off, and she sees his face she is instantly appalled and angry because everything that she's been keeping inside is dragged to the surface. Of course, none of this was Kashin Koji's fault. It was more of Kiomi's own regret, and seeing him was like opening a can of worms for her, reminding her of all the things she wanted to do and say had her teacher been alive. At the same time, she's very irked that someone was running around with his face, because someone had the gall to deliberately make a "knock off" as she calls it, of the man she respects the most.

With this much animosity, one would wonder how Kiomi becomes his support. While Kiomi and Kashin Koji initially dislikes each other, the woman rejects the fact that he's just "some clone", as he is also a person who deserves to live his life as himself regardless of whether he was created as a tool or as a clone. If you remember from my first post about Kiomi and Jiraiya's relationship, this was exactly the same kind of treatment that Jiraiya gave Kiomi when she viewed herself as nothing more than a disposable chess piece. She doesn't say this outright to Kashin Koji though. He learns this on his own. Seeing that someone believed in his own possibilities gave him a little peace of mind, just a little. In effect, this draws his curiosity. Kashin Koji being an Inner of Kara does his assignment pretty well, so he would by effect, know who she was as too. He believed she would be one of those who would constantly see him as a glorified Kagebunshin, but surprisingly she didn't. In fact, seeing as he was who he was, it would make him a perfect replacement, but she didn't treat him like that. This makes him loosen up around her, enough that his usually snide and sarcastic remarks are now laced with a hint of fond teasing. Ironically, she hates it when he does this, as it reminds her of Jiraiya. (Because Jiraiya often teases her about one thing or another.)

One of my favorite interactions of them is probably this one, just because it shows a little bit of both their internal struggles and how they deal with each other.

===

“Tell me,” Instead of standing to leave, he remained seated opposite from her. Kashin Koji removed the mask which barred a portion of his face that she was surely uncomfortable seeing. And he was right. She averted her eyes briefly, before putting up a look of feigned indifference once their optics finally met.

There was relative distress in her features, that much he could tell while staring at her…curiously, seriously. “Do I resemble him? This Jiraiya of yours.”

Looking at him was like staring into a nightmare, a stark reminder of what she could never hope to have. However, she understood his question. They were past simple notions of physicality. It wasn’t just about his face, nor was it about his origin. It was deeper than that. For Kiomi’s alleged simple-mindedness, this concept was not something so hard to grasp. Not when this was the very base of the learnings she had inherited from the mentor she respected the most. Despite Jiraiya and Kashin Koji’s shared similarities, they were still two very different people, each with their own uniqueness. Besides, denying a man his own identity was probably the cruelest judgment any living being could impose on another.

“You don’t.” The answer came simply; however, he did not miss the semblance of melancholy that lingered upon her visage. To him, it felt indicative of disappointment…such fragile and complicated feelings.

“I see.” Kashin Koji had closed his eyes then, satisfied with the answer. In a sense, he felt his lips curve into a smirk. Two words of reassurance; to think that hearing something so simple had such a significant impact. And as for Kiomi who had only seen the man scowl at her existence, this look on his face for the first time caused her chest to ache. Perhaps in her words, she knew not if a lie existed; if only because such an expression looked frighteningly similar to her teacher’s.

“The two of you must have loved each other very dearly.” At this point, he had refocused his gaze upon the female, only to raise a brow shortly after. He had never seen anyone choke on air before. Her flustered features shouldn’t have been anything extraordinary, but it felt amusing. “Was I mistaken?”

“Yes, you’re wrong! You’re very wrong!” She retorted, her flushed face, easily beating the most crimson of fruits. “Everything, this…my…they’re all just…” She tried to calm down as she explained. “…they’re all just…what I’m trying to say is…whatever they are, they’re all just one-sided emotions…” She looked downtrodden. He recalled Naruto saying that their mentor died while she was away figuring out herself, and had carried a burden none of them could share. Jiraiya had meant everything to them, each within varying degrees unknown just how much to the other.

After learning that all of this was one sided, he looked at her with lethargy. “Are you actually an idiot after all?”

“Oi, you actually dare to call me an idiot in my own house? Besides, it’s not like I stood a chance against the person he sought after.” It wasn’t a secret to her after all, that he had his eyes on Lady Tsunade. What chance did she have against someone who had shared in his losses, successes, strife, and victories?

“Was what you felt actually so flimsy that it lost to someone else’s? Did you confirm it with your own mouth?”

The questions that bombarded her, matched with such an unexpected interrogator threw her off. So much that when she had come to her senses, she found herself face to face with Kashin Koji. If she was distraught earlier, then the ante had been upped then and there. Trapped in between his arms, being stared at, it felt horrible and suffocating for many reasons that she convinced herself that she couldn't understand. “Should I teach you just how lofty your feelings are?” He lingered so close, too close for comfort. But that was where she drew the line. Steeling herself, she pulled her head back just enough to give her some room to drive her forehead down against his. THWACK!

Both of them found themselves clutching their heads, one clicked his tongue and the other was cussing up a storm in her mind--and verbally, apparently.

“Don’t you dare mock me—“

She was on the verge of throwing him out, but there he was, laughing, collapsed on the floor as he held onto his forehead. She stifled her annoyance because she remembered how; pranks of the same nature had been done to her, by none other than her favorite mentor. And he would laugh just the same. At least sensei’s were a little more innocent and subtle. “Don’t laugh at me either!” She demanded with childish vigor, kicking him in the shin repeatedly. He fended them off well enough, which added to her irritation.

“That’s enough out of you.”

“You don’t get to tell me what to do in my own hou—hou—“ That was to say, if she wasn’t going to stop her assault, then he would have to play along. Grabbing her ankle when she struck, he pulled her over; just enough to make her balance crumble, bringing her down effectively.

“What the actual hell is wrong with you?”

“Even now, you’re struggling to protect what’s important to you. You may be a bit weaker than others, but it doesn’t seem like you’re lacking in persistence and perseverance. What are you so afraid of?”

Again with questions and commentaries that she did not ask for…

Her silence was enough of a response. Regrets, apprehensions, guilt, it was painted on her face. Shaking his head, Kashin Koji came to a stand and dusted himself, thereafter extending a hand for her to take.

“At the very least, come up to the starting line and show that mentor of yours your resolve.”

She begrudgingly looked at the hand that was offered to her. She felt ashamed and annoyed at herself because she knew that his point was valid. He wasn’t wrong, and in fact, he made more sense than she had wanted to admit. With an inward sigh, she took that hand and he helped her to her feet.

“…” Their grasp on each other persisted for a while. There was no warmth there; no comfort of a familiar friend, but there was a firmness that was enough to uproot whatever doubt it was that crept within the confines of her mind. She wouldn’t exactly call the other’s presence reassuring, but in a sense it was something close to it.

“Tsk, just who do you think you are? Acting all high and mighty?” Compared to before, the scowl had turned a bit friendly, but a scowl none the less.

“In case you haven’t heard or have been mistaking me for someone else, it’s Kashin Koji.” He replied with a tinge of whimsy in his voice. Matched with that was a tighter grip on the female’s hand which she reciprocated in kind. “Kiomi.” She rebutted against his satirical introduction.

When they at last released each other, there was probably a reddening mark there, but it also seemed like they’ve come to a certain understanding. “With a grip like that, what do you even hope to accomplish?”

Everything that comes out of his mouth is a fucking insult… Kiomi mused, unabashed by such a sentiment. Still, she watched him retrieve his mask only to wear it over his face once more. “I’ve a scouting mission at the Hokage’s behest. Two days time.” He stated out of the blue, walking towards her direction, incidentally near the exit. “Join me.”

“And why exactly, should I do that?” Folding her arms over her chest, she asked.

“Learn something useful rather than wallow in your self-pity.” Just before he could pass her completely, the intruder halted to cup her cheeks, moving it side to side casually.

(I made a thing.Lol Kiomi and her tendency to get manhandled.) There was no tenderness there, rather it seemed like he was inspecting a toy for some kind of defect. “You dont seem outclassed by anyone, not even by the Godaime. Put yourself to good use. You are a Shinobi, after all.”

“What does Lady Tsunade even have to do with this?”

“Who else would you feel so inferior to? It doesn’t take a genius to put two and two together. Besides,”

Finally, he’d relinquish his hold to observe her frame carefully. She was a slender woman, possibly bordering voluptuous underneath all that fabric. From the wrinkles and silhouette of her attire, he could tell that she was filled out in all the right places. Fair skin, a set of apprehensive platinum orbs…among other things. “You have the curves. Maybe not the appeal and self confidence, but you have the curves. You’ll be fine.”

Perhaps it was in that retort that Kiomi ran after Kashin Koji as he left her place, albeit with a senbon or two hurled at the man. “I was wrong; you’re probably just as much of a letch as sensei!”

The projectiles were caught between the fingers and twirled around with ease, no troubles at all. He contemplated for a mere second before deciding to keep them as a souvenir. “You wound me with your presumptuousness. I'm a busy man, and have no time for countless women. Such a disappointing assessment.” He waved her off, walking away and finally disappearing from sight.

===

Pardon the length, but this is how they normally interact in my story.

Koji serves as a challenge for Kiomi, while Kiomi serves as a "net" for Koji so that when he falls pray to his feeling of incompetency, he remembers that she expects him to plainly be Kashin Koji, and no one else. Both of them remind each other of something important which they both hope would make them better versions of themselves.

So what kind of relationship do they have? I'm pretty sure it's along the lines of frienemies.

[weprettytings]

Outrun The Lie

Here’s my piece for @zabdielmuch 700 writing challenge! Thank you for letting me take part, hope you enjoy it and congrats again 💚 

Prompt #3: “Close that door” 

Written for Zabdiel in AU! Kinda angsty, kinda smutty?? First time posting something I’ve written ☺️

Word count: 2.4k 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The darkness of the night sat still, the only thing glowing in contrast was the city skyline in the distance. The clock on the dashboard seemed to tick ever more slowly with each passing minute. My senses had heightened since we stopped here, I had hoped this would be a quick exchange - nothing out of the ordinary. That was until I had been forced to bring a runner with me. 

“You know I’m more than capable of doing this by myself! And of all people why him?” 

“It’s been getting tense out there, it’s for your own good.” 

“What you think I can’t run shit myself?” 

“No. I know you can’t. Not right now Amor.” 

“Well at least send someone else with me, he’s not experienced enough.” 

“Exactly. Who better to train him than you. Don’t doubt him.” 

I gritted my teeth, trying to not let his words sink too deeply into my already wounded ego. The anxious tapping of my partners fingers on the dash didn’t help my already bubbling anger. 

“Erick would you quit it!” I snapped. He quickly stopped coiling back into his seat. I almost felt bad for yelling. Almost. 

“I’m sorry Y/N. I’m just nervous,” He spoke timidly. 

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, instead trying to take a more hostile approach. “Don’t worry. You’ve already got all the product strapped to you. He should be here shortly, it only takes a few minutes to exchange.” 

“I don’t want to mess it up.”

“Speak loudly and clearly when he talks to you and you won’t. Can’t make a bitch of yourself.” 

He widened his eyes in surprise at my choice of words. I refused to look at him any longer. It wasn’t the fact that he was annoying, or the fact that he had no experience that had irked me so much. It was the fact that this I was him, more so, could’ve been him. On my first run scared out of my mind. He’s worried now but it won’t take long before he’s worked his way up the hierarchy of the system and moving his own product and making his own hits. 

All these years doing the same job over and over constantly having to prove myself. I can do a thousand more runs like this and Erick will be promoted before I ever am while I’m here in the drivers seat with a new face next to me. I have more experience in handling shit than anyone else who would ever come through and yet I’m here, still in the same position Erick’s in now, only stronger. 

“Is this him Y/N?” A car pulled up on the opposite side of the parking lot, headlights turned off. I squinted my eyes trying to get a better look at the driver but the tinted windows and lack of lighting didn’t help. 

“You’re up,” I told him cooly. “Don’t panic, I’ve got you covered from here okay? Guards up.”

He gave a small nod before trying to exit the car. “Erick wait,” I pulled a gun out of the glovebox and hastily shoved it in his sock. “Just in case.” 

I gave him one last reassuring look before he left, the coolness of the air creeping into the car for a split second. He won’t need the gun, as a matter of fact I don’t think he knows how to shoot one. I grabbed onto my own gun from the glovebox. “Just in case,” I quietly reminded myself. 

The person in the other car didn’t get out, instead Erick rid himself of everything he had been holding onto in a hurry. My brows furrowed in confusion. Rule number one in the drug dealing world; always make sure your buyer gets out of the car, for multiple reasons. I scanned the area looking for any suspicious activity but everything seemed as it was before they arrived. 

I couldn’t see clearly enough but Erick reached into the vehicle, making me assume he was accepting the cash. As soon as his arm was out the driver put his window up and quickly sped off throwing the both of us off guard. Rule number two; make sure all the money is counted and correct before parting ways. 

“What the fuck,” I unbuckled my seatbelt getting out of the car to make sure everything was clear. 

Rule number three; leave the area as soon as the drop has been made. Don’t stick around for too long. 

These rules had all been ignored this entire time, leaving the car wouldn’t make a difference now. 

“Erick!” I called out. “Come on we need to leave right now.” 

“Espera un momento, I just need to count the money,” He slowly started walking back to the car looking in the envelope he had just received. 

“You can do that in the car, let’s ju-“ My demands had been cut off by the sound of another car quickly approaching, headlights off as well. They parked exactly where the previous car had been, only this time the engine was cut and two men stepped out. 

“Aye! You better not be leaving with my product,” One of them called out as Erick stood next to me. 

“We’re not, just making sure everything’s in here,” I turned around pushing Erick into the car. 

“Y/N,” He tried protesting. 

“Erick not now, we need to get out of here. Whatever happens stay put.” 

The same man yelled out, “We don’t have all day, you got our shit or not?” 

“Patience is a virtue, it won’t kill you to wait a couple more minutes,” I bit back. I hurried to the trunk of the car pretending I was looking for what they came for. 

Their footsteps slowly started to make their way towards us, “Well I don’t have a couple of minutes sweetheart, especially for Zabdiel’s little bitch.” 

My breath hitched in my throat. Fuck they recognised me. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was sent here to make a drop, which we’ve already done. You’ve mistaken me for the wrong person.” 

I turned around to make an escape but one of them launched themselves at me quickly knocking me down. “Well if you don’t have our shit I can think of something else to take.” His hands wrapped around my throat in an attempt to cut off my airways. 

“Fuck you,” I spat in his face buying me a split second to flip so he was pinned beneath me. Quickly I freed myself from his grip and punched him straight in the mouth. 

In the heat of the moment I had forgotten about his accomplice who had taken it upon himself to put me in a choke hold. 

“Boss will be happy when we bring your head back,” A cool metal was placed roughly against the side of my head. 

“You’re making a mistake,” I spat. 

The other one one the floor was still trying to wipe his face clean of my attack. The gun I had armoured myself with sat in the waistband of my pants. I could easily free myself if I just- 

“PUT THE GUN DOWN!” Erick’s voice echoed surprising all of us. 

“Or what?” He laughs menacingly in my ear. 

Before I could cut in a bang went off. The grip of the man holding onto me eased as he slumped onto the ground. My ears rang loudly and there was a burning sensation on the side of my head. I quickly pulled myself together ignoring the sting and dealt with the man on the ground, pulling my gun to serve him the same fate. 

Instinctively I reached up to touch where the pain was still throbbing only to notice a huge chunk of my ear was missing and blood was pooling onto my hand. “Erick you fool, you clipped my ear!” 

“Lo siento! I was just trying to help,” He begged with me. 

“I told you to stay put I had it under control.” 

“They had guns!” 

“So did I!” I didn’t want to waste another second argue knowing we had to leave the area as soon as possible. “I need you to drive back so I can get myself cleaned up.” 

Most of the ride back was quiet as I tried my best to stitch my ear. The bleeding had stopped but the pain was intense. 

“Erick.” 

“Yes?” He looked over at me nervously. 

“Whatever I say go along with it okay?” 

——————————————————————————————————

Erick’s foot tapped away nervously at the floor. I swear I could hear every thud and it irritated me. I took a deep breath to control myself. Maybe it was the ringing I still had playing in my ear. 

He sat behind his huge mahogany desk, emotionless. He hasn’t looked at me once since we arrived. It was one of the few times I couldn’t read what he was thinking. I tried to match his expressions but I know, even without looking at me, he can see right through me like a thin veil. The injured ear didn’t help my case anymore. 

“The money?” He finally spoke. 

Erick wasted no time sliding the envelope across the desk for him to check. He opened it without breaking eye contact with the brunette boy, pulling and laying out a few $50 bills. Wouldn’t have even been an eighth of what we were suppose to bring back. 

I huffed wishing this would all be over and done with. 

“What happened?” 

“It was my fault,” I was quick to speak up. “Some guys pulled up before the ones we were suppose to meet. I didn’t assess the situation well enough and let Erick make the exchange. By the time they left it was too late.” 

“I didn’t ask you what happened,” He finally bore his eyes into mine. There was no softness like I was used to seeing. Only aggravation. 

“You weren’t exactly specific.” I remarked. 

He hummed in response not taking his sight off me, “Is this true Erick?” 

“Yes.” 

I raised an eyebrow daring him to challenge me. 

“You can leave,” He addressed him. 

Erick turned to leave giving me a sympathetic smile on the way out. 

“Zabdiel-“ I tried to speak. 

“Close that door.” His spoke lowly standing up from his seat.

I obeyed his orders instantly not wanting to anger him anymore. 

“Why are you lying Y/N?” 

“I’m not,” It sounded like I was trying to convince myself more than him. “I made the shots.” 

“I thought Erick did? Literally.” My heart rate slowed at his answer. He couldn’t know two men had been taken out. 

“Answer me,” He demanded. 

“He didn’t. He stayed in the car, I dealt with it.” 

“So two of their men are dead.” 

I didn’t answer him this time knowing it wasn’t a question. “What happened to your ear?” 

“One of them bit me during the fight.” The lies rolled off my tongue easy but there was no persuasion behind them. 

“Because you’re Zabdiel’s little bitch right,” He mocked. “That’s why you got upset?” 

Fucking Erick. 

“Erick told me everything, you don’t need to lie anymore.” 

“So why play games?” 

He smirked, his gaze finally softening. “No games Y/N. You can’t hide anything from me. I will have to punish you though.” 

I rolled my eyes, “What? You going to have your men beat me up, you know I’ll kick their asses. Or are you going to stop me from working? Because I rather stop all this shit than be in the same fucking position I’ve been in since we started this. I’m your best option here yet you won’t give me more.” 

He walked towards me speaking in the same calm tone. “Bend over the desk.” 

I starred at him dumbfounded my displeasure quickly draining. “Excuse me?” 

“Don’t make me repeat myself.” 

My legs were shaking as I walked over and placed my hands on the cold wood hoping this stance would be enough. 

“Bend.” Clearly not. 

I spread my legs further apart pushing myself down into the desk further. The throbbing in my ear seemed to intensify; so did the the throbbing elsewhere. 

His feet pressed into the carpet at what felt like an agonising pace but it only took a few seconds before I felt one of his larger hands cupped underneath my chin. His front rested directly onto my back as I felt my core start to heat up. 

He placed his lips right against my good ear, “Amor, I’m doing everything I can to protect you, my best worker. But you are making my job harder.” 

His other hand roamed my inner thigh teasingly making my eyes flutter close. 

He continued to work his way up my thighs and waist with his featherlike touch. “What am I going to do with you?” 

I had lost all ability to string together a simple sentence, let alone my own thoughts. 

“Punish me,” I spoke barely above a whisper. 

“You want that don’t you? My touch.” His lips tickled my neck, not kissing me. 

“Zabdiel please,” I was practically begging at this point. 

He laughed deeply, “The kingdom can be ours but you have to deal with this problem first. As punishment.” 

“What happened to protecting your best worker?” I questioned. 

“I can do both. Don’t doubt me.” 

His hands left my skin making me whine at the loss of contact. He threw a box in front of me. “For you.” I stood up to face him only to be met with a tender kiss on the forehead, a complete 360 from the mood he was just in.

He started to retreat out of the room leaving me confused and worked up. “Zabdiel wait!” 

His grin was sly knowing what he had just done to me and the state he was leaving me in. “We’ll have all the time in the world for fun, when you deal with the war you started.” 

With that he left the room closing the door behind him. There was no point in following him as Zabdiel was a man of his words. We would have time later. 

I grabbed the box tentatively opening it. 

My eyes grew wide at the gift. Neatly perched on some tissue paper inside was a piece of flesh… the flesh that perfectly matched my injured ear with a menacing note next to it. 

Next time we’ll be sending her head. 

[sukarabia]

Sereia x Leona - A disastrous first meeting

Disclaimer: Sereia is @kirseduwu‘s OC! Mary-Ann is one of my (still unrevealed) OCs, and they’re both 1st years at the time of this drabble. I’m sorry this took so long, and sorry if Sereia is OOC, I tried working with the character sheet you provided me T_T Regardless, I hope you like it! <3

“... You’re seriously weird, you know.”

Sereia stopped in her tracks. That voice- it was unmistakable. Swift as thunder, she turned around.

“.. Ara, if it isn’t Leona-san. Is there anything I could help you with?” She titled her head, softly smiling at him.

“There you go again. Seriously, aren’t you tired?”

Dusk was slowly setting on the courtyard, yet the light seemed almost blinding to Sereia as she processed what Leona had said. She responded, as imperturbable as ever, a fake smile plastered on her face.

“I’m afraid I don’t follow, Leona-san. I am just putting away the practice material, after all. Is there anything wrong with that?”

“... Ha, look at you, with that fake smile n’ all. Don’t you know your eyes ain’t even smiling when you’re grinning like that?”

She had to resist the urge to bit her lower lip as she fought the growing uneasiness swelling inside of her.

“’A fake smile’? You must be mistaken, Leona-san. Why would I pretend about anything?”

Somehow, her voice had faltered a bit. And when Sereia looked up to meet Leona’s gaze, she understood that he had noticed. Shit. Why did this guy have to butt in? He threw his head back, looking down at her with a cocky expression.

“Hah, so I was right. Seems like our lil’ mermaid can reach her limits, too. Must be tiring, smiling around those idiots all day and pretendin’ you care. Kinda admire you, in a sense.” He paused, and his expression got colder. “... But man, you seriously creep me out.”

--

“You seriously creep me out”.

As much as she wanted to play it cool, Leona’s words rang in her head. Seriously- what did that jerk even want anyway? He barely showed up for class, despite being held back once already. He barely interacted with his classmates, scoffing whenever anyone would talk to him, and purposefully skipping on any social activities. What even was he up to? Who knows, but Sereia knew what she wanted- to have a smooth high school career, both academically and socially, in order to land a nice job post-graduation and finally become a person who matters. Which, obviously, a spoiled royal like Leona would never understand.

“Se~re~ia~-chan~”

Absent-mindedly, Sereia tapped on her pencil. Did he figure her out? Well, not that it mattered, or that she was in the wrong. For someone like her, it’s important to keep on a façade- because unlike Leona, she has to be liked. Because no one is going to fold their back for a rootless orphan- she had to be the one to appeal to people. She was going to erase the scars of the past. She was sure of it.

“-ia-chan?”

But man.... regardless, she was irked. It was her adage to avoid troublesome matters- but trouble had just found her. She just couldn’t understand- why would he purposefully go out of his way to tell her that she creeped him out? When he is such an aloof person by nature?

“Heeeey....”

Sereia jolted up as she felt something cold on her cheek. Startled, she looked up to see her classmate Mary-Ann handing her a soda can, pouting.

“Oi, Sereia-chan, you just ignored me for a good 5 minutes y’know? Seriously, after I go all the way to the cafeteria to bring you something to drink? How mean ~”

“... Ara, Mary-Ann-san, I didn’t see you. My apologies.” Sereia smiled as she took the can from her hand.

“‘Didn’t see me’? That ain’t not seeing me, that’s straight up ignoring!!” Mary-Ann sat down next to Sereia, sighing.

I didn’t even offer for her to sit.... was Sereia’s first reaction. Ah, seriously, we don’t match. Mary-Ann was extroverted and exuberant, the type of person that anyone could figure out at first sight. The very opposite of Sereia- yet when they met on the first day, Mary-Ann suddenly decided they’d become best buddies, and tagged along wherever Sereia went. She wasn’t a bad person, but she was way too simple-minded.

“So, what’s up with you?”

“Huh?” Sereia looked at her. “Ah... Nothing much. I was just thinking.”

“Nah, no way, you literally look like you swallowed salt.” Mary-Ann put her chin in the palm of her hand. “Is it Leona-san?”

For a split second, Sereia couldn’t control her expression of surprise. How did she even figure that out?

“Eheh, hit the nail on the head ~” She laughed as Sereia stared at her with a suspicious expression. “- Oi, what’s up with your face? Swear I didn’t spy, but I saw you both talking when I was putting stuff back after Vargas’ class.” She grasped Sereia’s arm, her face way too close for the blue-haired girl. “Soooo, what happened?”

“Mary-Ann-san, you’re misunderstanding, nothing happened.” Sereia clarified as she wriggled her arm out of Mary-Ann’s embrace. “Leona-san just had things he wanted to talk about, that’s all.”

“Leona-san? Talking to anyone? As if. Plus, judging by your face, he was totally being a jerk, wasn’t he?”

... Maybe Sereia misjudged her, and she wasn’t as oblivious as she thought.

“Aaaah, seriously, that guy pisses me off ~ He doesn’t talk to anyone in class at all, and then he comes around and insults you? You’re like, the kindest person in the class!”

.... Or maybe not.

“Ara, I really am not.” Swift as thunder, Sereia feigned a smile. “I guess I must have irked him the wrong way....”

Mary-Ann suddenly got up, startling Sereia. The blonde girl clapped her hands, a grin on her face. What is she up to....

“Well, you don’t wanna keep a misunderstanding around for too long, right? That Leona guy definitely doesn’t have any reason to hate you, so you should clarify things with him!”

“He leaves straight after class, so-”

“Aaand that’s where I come in! I’m on classroom cleaning penal- ahem, I meant duty with him today, so if you cover my shift tonight, you’ll get to talk to him!”

“.... Mary-Ann-san. Surely, you aren’t just trying to escape your cleaning duties?”

“Eh-? Ahah, no, I would... never do that...” Letting a nervous laughter out, she waved her hands. “And I’ll like, totally pay you back by covering your shift when you’re paired with a hot guy, m’kay?~”

Sereia sighed. That just sounded like trouble, but... she felt as if she had to clarify things with him. She was used to contempt and scoffs- but for some reason, Leona’s words made her heart ache.

“.... Alright. Thank you, Mary-Ann-san.”

--

Sereia regretted agreeing almost as soon as she entered the empty classroom. Leona was napping on a desk, obviously not intending on helping out at all. Sereia cleared her throat.

“... Is this how you clean?”

Surprised, the Savanaclaw student removed the book he was using to block the light. He slightly raised his head to peer at the young girl in front of him.

“Well, if it isn’t our lil’ mermaid. What are you doing here? I thought I was on cleaning duty with that blonde chick?”

“She isn’t ‘that blonde chick’, that’s Mary-Ann-san.” Sereia sighed. “I’m covering her shift for her, so please start cleaning already.”

“... Well, would you look at that, ever-so-kind.” Leona grinned, resting his head on his arms. “Do you get some brownie points for that?”

Irked, Sereia turned around.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Now, if you would please start cleaning.”

“And what do I get for it?”

Sereia turned around once more. Upon seeing her face, Leona’s grin disappeared. Her eyes had turned cold. Interesting, he thought.

“Leona-san. I assume as a royal heir, you haven’t had the opportunity to clean after yourself, never mind after others, am I correct? Well, now that we are both Night Raven College Students, please understand that you are to do as us plebeians do.” Sereia’s voice came out as colder than she had intended. But for some reason, Leona’s arrogance really brought out the side of her she’d rather hide.

“Ha, what a quick change of attitude. How creepy.”

“- Would you please stop saying that.”

The tone of Sereia’s voice perked Leona’s interest, as he raised himself up with a big yawn. His gaze met Sereia, and the intensity of his predator eyes caught Sereia off-guard.

“... You’re an interesting one, you know.”

“If I’m not mistaken, you said I was ‘creepy’ a few seconds ago. Talk about a change of attitude.” Sereia tried her best to keep her composure, but the air seemed to grow heavier as Leona shifted towards her.

“All those lil’ herbivores ain’t worth my time, but you...” He stood up, and stopped right in front of Sereia. “.. You seem to have some fight in you, y’know. The way I see it, you can’t stand those idiots either, but why do you go around pretendin’ you do? What are you trying to get out of them?”

Sereia took a step back, only to be met with the wall behind her. Shit, she thought. The tension made her feel like her legs could give in at any moment- yet she couldn’t turn her eyes away from Leona’s gaze.

“... I already told you, I’m afraid you’re mistaken about this.”

Leona let out a chuckle as he placed his arm above her head, hovering over her.

“You’re still going on about that even in this situation? Hah, my instincts didn’t fail me- you’re intriguing. Y’know, I can’t stand those innocent, goody-two-shoes types, but you....”

The setting sun made Leona’s eyes shine even more in the dusk-coloured classroom. Sereia gulped, almost enchanted by the sight in front of her.

“... Something tells me you might be the one to make this pretentious school less boring.”

[rabbitsparklez]

✨sorry Im kinda late if you're still doing the ask thingy. anyway, what are some of your UNPOPULAR opinions?

No, it’s fine! I’m happy to get asks whenever :)

First of all, I’d like to apologize for the delay. It took me like 3 days to answer this because I added a lot. This was a LOT more elaborate than you asked for so uh...... enjoy?

I have a lot of conflicted opinions that I wouldn’t exactly call “unpopular”, but I also have several that I would. There is negativity in this post, and if you’d rather not read it, then please don’t.

Please do not comment or message me about these if you disagree. This is my blog, and if you generally disagree with my than I don’t know what you are doing here.

Thank you for the ask!

1. I kinda... almost.... hated “Buddy”.

 Yes, it’s a really catchy song and a great blend of Zach and James’ voices, but it also serves as a reminder that the writers prioritized Cassandra’s importance over Eugene’s. I’m already not a fan of it when people use strong and mature characters in overly silly scenarios, but it makes my stomach churn to think that they would actually dare to ridicule Eugene to such a far extent in order to give Cassandra the spotlight, when her entire arc was written poorly despite all their costly efforts to give it to her. I know that Eugene didn’t intentionally fall under the influence of those flowers and he certainly would’ve done something had he been there when Rapunzel discovered the Moon Incantation, but honestly that just bothers me even more because Eugene had so much potential and they wasted it.

2. (I don’t know what’s gonna come of this) I don’t hate King Frederick. I’m very disappointed in him, but I don’t hate him. Everyone hates him because of his failure to handle a threat to the kingdom, and his rashness and dishonestly toward his daughter, and I both agree to a lot of it, but I don’t hate him.

I have no excuses for the fact that he lied about having the black rocks under control because he didn’t know what to do about them. As the king, it is his responsibility to consider what is best for his kingdom, and by lying about a major threat, he only caused the problem to get worse. The reason the black rocks came in the first place, however, is because he took the Sundrop to heal his dying wife and unborn child. I know it wasn’t the most prudent decision, and he did a horrible job cleaning up the mess he made afterwards, but he was desperate to save his family, and chances are likely that he didn’t have time to consider every aspect and consequence that taking the Sundrop would cause.

Regarding his actions towards Rapunzel, I hate the fact that he would dare consider locking his own daughter in her room to protect her from something that he’s not making any effort to fix. Treating people immorally harshly while saying it’s for their own good is toxic, and I want to make it clear that I am the last person to defend abusers, but I highly doubt that Frederick gingerly considered every aspect of locking his daughter in her room and how it would affect her. Rapunzel was kidnapped as a baby, and that gives two reasons why Frederick is so protective of her: the fact that he is her father and the pain and trauma in itself. Everyone takes trauma differently, depending on the person and the weight of the situation. I hate it when people who are clearly smart and strong enough to understand the situation use their traumas as an excuse to justify their actions, but some people are so devastated by their traumas that they completely lose themselves. Again, he logically wouldn’t have thought about every single thing he was doing and the trouble it would cause. He lost his baby girl. I’ve heard many times that losing a child is the worst pain imaginable, and you could only understand that pain if you experienced it. Perhaps he even felt responsible for the fact that his daughter was kidnapped because he thought that he wasn’t as protective as he should’ve been, and the idea of “making things right again” and protecting her was drilled so deeply into his mind. In addition to the pain that he went through and how that affected his judgments, Frederick had no parental experience whatsoever. All parents have to figure out who their children are and how they should handle situations. Doing this involves trial and error, tears and pain. As seen in the episode “You’re Kidding Me”, Rapunzel and Eugene both thought they knew how to treat children but both of them made errors due to the cooperation and sensitivity of the kids they were looking after - this applies to every parent and every child. Frederick was completely ad-libbed into parenthood, and his trauma from losing his child did not mix well with Rapunzel’s spirit of adventure and independence.

As a king, Frederick failed in his responsibility to do what is best for the kingdom, and I agree that he wasn’t justified for the actions he took (or didn’t take), and he was a jerk for lying about it; but as a father, I feel more sympathy for him because in his eyes, he was doing the right thing, even though we know that he wasn’t. People are so quick to justify Varian for his actions following his traumas, when he’s admittedly intelligent enough to understand them; but people are so quick to demonize Frederick for his actions following his traumas, when he’s clearly not intelligent enough to understand them. I don’t think that’s fair in the minimal sense and it still irks me how biased a lot of people were in this situation.

3. I’m not sure how “popular” or “unpopular” this one is considered, but I hated both Stalyan and Brock Thunderstrike. It takes a lot for me to actually hate a character, but considering how much they wronged Eugene, I can’t ever see them in a positive perspective.

Aside from almost killing Lance, Stalyan abused Eugene. When he was only 16, she tried to marry him so that he could be her partner in crime, and judging by the way she talked to him in BTCW, it’s likely that she manipulated him and constantly belittled his choices. (which is another reason I hate how they did that with the Cass arc, because he should be entitled to such a valid opinion). She called him by his fake last name and tried to pull him back into the past, showing that she gave no importance to his persona and development as a character. When he refuses to marry her, her dad poisons his best friend and forces Eugene to either let his best friend from childhood die, or leave his girlfriend - his closest companion who filled in his missing parts and helped him to know that he mattered. Afterwards, she brushed it of with “that was my dad’s idea, but bad guys have a flair for drama”, in the least sympathetic tone imaginable. She then locked him and his dying friend in prison until the wedding, and tried to convince him that he wasn’t good enough for the woman he loved. The writers could’ve used her as a way to understand Eugene’s insecurities and pain a little bit better, but they freaking REDEEMED her. She just went with Rapunzel on a little road trip where she decided “y’know what, you can have my ex boyfriend and I’ll move on! Tell him I said hi!”. We didn’t get a proper address that Stalyan likely had a role in damaging Eugene’s sense of importance and trust, but even worse, we didn’t get an apology. I can’t believe that they made Rapunzel deal with someone else’s abusive relationship, where she hardly understood what was actually going on. Stalyan never said another word to Eugene or apologized to him or Lance for what she had done to both of them. She married a guy that looks exactly like him in the end too! Instead of looking for someone new, she chose a guy who looks exactly like her ex, showing that she cared more about his looks than his inner self.

Speaking of her new boyfriend, I hated Brock Thunderstrike. Let’s just pretend that Eugene hasn’t already been sidelined and ridiculed for Cass, and make an almost exact copy of him, only without his flaws and development! Let’s make him look exactly like him, make him repeat every iconic action and line that he made in the movie in a flawless way, and make him steal his entire former identity!  - THAT WAS SO STUPID! I can’t believe they actually did that! Eugene is one of the most meticulously created, personified, and multifaceted characters that Disney has ever created, but not only did they push him in the mud to give Cassandra space, but they created this idiot Mary Sue copy of him with no personification otherwise! In the end, just like Stalyan, he decided with no redeeming deeds or apologies that he would make a new person of himself.

They really make a good match, and that’s not a compliment.

4. I love Lance as a person, but not as a character - If that makes any sense.

I love that wholesome boy a lot, but I don’t like the way he was used in the show. I think that even he pitched in to the factors that flattened Eugene as a character in the show. First of all, it takes away some of the meaning of love and it’s necessity to Eugene’s life. We always thought that Eugene was a lonely, rejected child who needed love more than he realized, but it turns out he did, in fact, have a buddy who wasn’t just his partner in crime for years, but a close, brotherly figure. That contradicts the significance of Eugene’s childhood and life as an orphan. Secondly, Lance was often used as an object to distract Eugene and drag him into the stupid and nonsensical scenarios that prevented him from interfering with Rapunzel and Cassandra’s overly prioritized involvement to the plot of the episode. Don’t get me wrong. I love Lance and have nothing against him, but his role as a character could’ve been used in better ways.

5. Adira should have either had a larger or smaller role in the show.

When we were introduced to Adira in Season 2, she was the fairy godmother  that always came when the squad was in distress. She could do everything: she is superhumanly strong and agile, can cook, can effortlessly cut down trees, can survive in the wilderness, knows everything, and is practically perfect. But considering her knowledge of the Sundrop and Moonstone and her past with the Dark Kingdom, I was disappointed that we couldn’t explore more of her character and personality. In Season 3, she just kind of vanished. Considering her amazing abilities, we could’ve explored her character and learned of her weaknesses and backstory in season 3, but we didn’t. She played a lot of parts in Season 2 but almost none in Season 3. I thought Adira was sort of a Mary Sue. She’s perfect on the outside, but we have little knowledge of the inside. To make her a better character, she could’ve either been brought into the light in Season 3, or not given as much attention in Season 2. Either way, she’s an unbalanced character. I like her, but she’s hollow.

6. I like Shorty. 

He’s kind of pointless and it made me roll my eyes when he unintentionally saved the day when other characters *cough* Eugene *cough* could’ve done so, but he also made me laugh a lot. He’s an idiot but fairly harmless otherwise. Also, unlike a lot of things in the show, he’s in character. In the movie, it wasn’t out of character for Shorty to pop up in weird places or save the day without really knowing it (he was one of the ones who helped Eugene break out of prison). The Snuggly Duckling was a major point in the movie and we didn’t see a lot it in the show. While Shorty’s tagging along didn’t contribute anything to society, it kept the Snuggly Duckling present in the show.

7. As much as I love him, I’m not attracted to Eugene.

I think he’s handsome and charming, but I ship him with Rapunzel too much to be in love with him :). I would give anything to have a platonic friend like him, but maybe not a husband.

To be frank, I’m a little creeped out by people who seem to “fall romantically in love” with characters, because they sometimes........well let’s just say that they portray them in a way that makes me incredibly uncomfortable - if you know what I mean. This applies to all characters, but especially to the ones that I like.

8. Varian’s role was too invasive. You’re probably surprised at this, because a lot of fans seem to think that he didn’t get enough of a role and wasn’t put to his full potential. I agree that he is a very elaborate character with a lot of potential, but he was never intended to be a main character, and he shouldn’t have been given a larger perspective and more angst factors than the actual main characters.

After his villain arc, fans started hating Rapunzel because they had sympathy for Varian and accused her of not treating him well, which I hated. It is true that he was in a situation worth having pity on him for, but they expressed a lot more emotional impact from his perspective than from anyone else’s, thus fans only considered his feelings. Rapunzel was going through an extremely difficult time at that moment, too, but it was shown in a less dramatic and sympathyzable way. She almost lost her parents and the man she loved in a snowstorm, while for the first time when she had to make prudent decisions as a leader, the kingdom was in a state of distress. After the storm, her father continued to lie to her, and the reason she never helped him was because he convinced her that Old Corona was under control. All she wanted to do was stabilize herself in a calm state of mind, which was ok, because she didn’t realize that there was more trouble. Even so, she could hardly do so because she was still stressed and traumatized. If these things from her perspective were more clearly presented to the audience, there would’ve been less of a war in the fandom and there probably would’ve been sympathy from both sides. But they wanted to show things from Varian’s point of view, which was valid until he went feral. {He stated in the episode before the finale that he understood that Rapunzel “did what she had to”, and he is clearly intelligent enough to pull things together, but everyone used trauma as an excuse. If he could connive that entire plot where he would kidnap the queen, use a dummy of him, extract the Sundrop’s power, etc. then he clearly was in a sane enough state of mind to put things together, but he didn’t. In Season 3, he admitted that the reason he became a villain was because he had taken his anger too far, after realizing that he was wrong. }

Considering that Rapunzel is the main character and the writers expect us to feel sympathy for her, they should’ve at least made the situation less dramatic from Varian’s point of view. Chris Sonnenburg himself was annoyed with fans who sympathized more for Varian and watched the show for him instead of Rapunzel - but in a way it was his fault for the way he portrayed the situation. I agree with him in the sense that I was annoyed with Varian fans taking over the fandom and demonizing Rapunzel, but it was the crew’s own choice to make Varian such a likable character to so many people.

Although his redemption arc was handled well in my opinion, it was more focused on and important to the show than that of the Father of Tangled Redemption Arc’s - Eugene’s. His redemption arc is the backbone to the entire franchise, but the series didn’t take him seriously, so even though his redemption subtly fell in place in Season 1 especially, I was disappointed that he didn’t have a nice serious episode where his redeemed self shined in the light, while Varian, a secondary character, did. Although not to such an extent, Varian’s role, similar to Cassandra’s was prioritized in the show above the main characters’ and that bothers me.

9. I’d say this one is more under-acknowledged than unpopular, but Cassandra’s existence contradicted Rapunzel’s development rather than bringing out her characteristic “compassion”

Even after all of the horrible things Cassandra did to Rapunzel, to Eugene, and to the kingdom of Corona after deciding to turn evil, she was redeemed. Anyone would’ve stopped pitying her and left her behind, but Rapunzel still cared for her and let her be her friend again. Why? Because the writers tried so hard to convey the message that Rapunzel has compassion for everyone and anything that comes in her path.

It is true and in her character for Rapunzel to be compassionate and humane. The movie conveyed the message that Rapunzel, even after spending so many years unloved and mistreated, loves and has sympathy for everyone. She sees the good in everyone and everything, thus she is capable of redeeming those who have strayed. This characteristic of hers is what caused Eugene to leave behind his past self and find a new life. She didn’t fix him; she opened his soul and brought out the good person who had been hiding inside him for the longest time. The same thing happened to the thugs, other former thieves, and many others. Rapunzel’s compassion and love for others brings the best out of the unlikeliest of people. The way Glen Keane described it, Rapunzel is the representation of humanity.

However, Mother Gothel is the representation of everything that is an obstacle to Rapunzel and her freedom. She gaslight and objectified her by passively claiming that she loved her, and used her as an object to satisfy her own vanity. She never let her express her energetic and adventurous self by locking her inside, and when Rapunzel rebelled, she locked her in chains and took her to the dungeon. Rapunzel’s development can only grow if she is not stifled by chains and abuse, therefore she should avoid Mother Gothel at all costs. But who is this person who, three years later, Rapunzel tries to redeem? The very daughter of Mother Gothel, who is more like a reincarnation of her to be frank. She brought back what Rapunzel was supposed to leave behind. She condescended over her and shamed her for her underdeveloped tendencies before she even betrayed her. She constantly wanted more from her instead of accepting her who she was. She blamed her for her problems and victimized herself. Rapunzel is supposed to be past these things so that she can grow to be a strong and independent woman. Using Cassandra as a permanent villain who Rapunzel would fight against would define her as a developed woman who has moved on from her traumatic past - but it wasn’t like that. Rapunzel pined onto Cassandra despite everything she put her through. The writers tried to use this situation as a way to bring out Rapunzel’s compassion, but it contradicted her self independence and strength.

Rapunzel and Cassandra’s relationship was a toxic one, and it shouldn’t have been portrayed as a good thing at any time in the show, because of it’s disintegration of Rapunzel’s development. Rapunzel is both compassionate and resilient, but because of how poorly the writers handled this, they contradicted both of her character tendencies. It looked more like schizophrenia to be honest: One day Rapunzel resents Cassandra for her actions and fights her with a powerful incantation to keep her away from Eugene; the next day, she sings a song mourning their friendship and expressing how much she wanted her to come back.The way a character’s personality traits are presented is very important. Imagine that you’re at a restaurant where every item uses the same ingredients, but is arranged and composed in a different way. A burger on a bun with lettuce, tomatoes, cheese and ketchup would be delicious and appealing; however, a hamburger and cheese smoothie with chunks of lettuce and tomatoes floating in it and ketchup drizzled on top would be nauseating and a horrible idea (sorry for the ridiculous comparison but hopefully it gets the point across). Even though the two items have the same composition, one of them works and the other doesn’t. Rapunzel is both compassionate and resilient, but the writers made a contradicting mess out of these two tendencies because they made them clash.

10.. It annoys me when people think Eugene overreacts to things. He’s neither whiny nor childish. He’s a realistic person in a crazy world, who can’t help but be upset about certain things.

Let’s face it, he’s been through a lot, and all things considered, he’s very tolerant and resilient. He’s the most realistic character in terms of skepticism and trust issues, and that’s something I’ve always loved about him. In situations where nobody’s in danger and things are fairly normal, he tends to “overreact” to minor things, but in dangerous and serious situations, he is the first person to stand up and help people. If he was a shrimpy, whiny wimp who can’t handle things, he wouldn’t have willingly died to save someone, led a rescue squad to save the king and queen in a dangerous situation, decided to live with his former abuser to save someone who was dying, or willingly accepted his role as a captain and lead the safety of the kingdom.

If you were abandoned by your father and ended up as a poor orphan who became a criminal to fend for yourself, it’s only human to not immediately feel inclined to accept him into your life, especially considering his apparently whimsical and unconcerned personality. By the end of the episode, he himself realized that his father kept in touch with him and by the end of the show, came to understand his motive for abandoning him. Nobody forced him to see the good in his father. He realized it by his own effort. When his father gave him a gift at the end, he was the first to hug him, showing that he had come to accept him willingly.

If for generations, your family has dedicated and lost their lives to destroying a dangerous object that has caused a lot of deaths and destruction, and you break your trust with your girlfriend to protect her from it; then when you finally allow her to take it when her jealousy-driven handmaiden takes it with every intention to kill her - of course you are going to resent that woman and be upset that your girlfriend still cares about bringing her back, (especially considering you weren’t keen on her in the first place). Even though Cass didn’t deserve it, he still patiently put up with and respected Rapunzel’s opinion of her despite obviously still disliking her. That doesn’t show that he was happy about it, but that he patiently tolerated situations that he didn’t agree with.

Imagine that the only comfort and security that you had for 15 years was your fake reputation as a different character, despite knowing it wasn’t a good one, and you find it difficult to let him go because you still can’t help but wish you were as established and “successful” as he was. Then some cocky twerp that looks exactly like you comes along, dresses exactly like you and uses the same name as you did, and repeated everything that you were proud to accomplish but only better, and is liked by your friends better than you ever were. Despite the fact that your former identity wasn’t a good one, it was the only thing you had and the only thing you could find pride and joy in because you had a low self esteem about your actual self. I can certainly say that if I met someone like Brock Thunderstrike but a copy of me instead of him, I wouldn’t be happy at all. But in the end, although he obviously resented and was jealous of him, Eugene disinterestedly told him that he saw potential in him, and allowed him to find his own identity.

Eugene is one of the most realistic characters that I’ve ever seen, but he lives in unusual circumstances that he’s not used to. There’s nothing wrong with the fact that he can’t immediately see something, because all’s well that ends well - and in the end, he always makes a just decision.

{There was one more that I wanted to post but I thought it would be too conflicting so I didn’t.}

If you agree with some of these but not others, that’s fine! After all, these are unpopular opinions and I’d be lucky if anyone agreed with them.

Again, thanks for the ask!

[miraclejune]

HERO’S SOUP: Chapter 13

Thousand Hearts

Monday morning. The mansion was in chaos. 

Hyunjin was running late again because he ‘overslept’. Woojin had to drag him out of his warm blanket earning a low groan from the Beta.

Changbin left first with Chan and Jisung, the only people who weren’t busy for the day, they volunteered to help Changbin with his studio. Well, he had to buy them each a new pair of sneakers next week so it’s not quite volunteering if you might ask.

“Minho? Felix? Where are you guys headed?” Felix adjusted the strap on his backpack before turning to Woojin. “We’re gonna head out for a while. There’s a popular new spot for busking down at Hongdae. We’re gonna check it out.” Minho tapped his feet letting them snuggle in his shoes perfectly. “Eric’s outside.” the two of them dashed out the mansion yelling their goodbyes.

"Remember to stop by the cafe later!" Woojin reminded them with a shout as he closed the front door.

“I didn’t even get to say hi to Eric.”

Woojin rolled his eyes, tugging the towel around the wolf’s waist. Almost revealing a damp and stark naked Hyunjin. “DUDE! What the hell.” Hyunjin gasped and tried to cover his body. They were the only ones left in the house but he was over-dramatic without fail.

“You could’ve exchanged your pleasantries if you weren’t so busy reading each fucking comment in your Instagram posts last night.” Hyunjin huffed, fastening the towel as he stormed to his room. Woojin chuckled, Hyunjin was the second easiest to tease. The first place would always be Changbin. Hands down, that idiot is so gullible.

He looked at the clock, ah they’re terribly late. It was 9 am, and their call time was 1 pm. We can’t really see any problem with that, as a matter of fact, they had plenty of time. However…

“Hwang Hyunjin don’t you fucking dare do your tedious make-up routine. Busan is not a 5-minute drive.” Hyunjin shot up from his vanity table’s seat as he heard the alpha’s growl at the end of his sentence. Woojin was in full-on Manager mode. 

He made a break for it. Snatching his backpack behind the door, simultaneously combing back his damp hair. He hopped the last 3 flights of stairs stopping in front of a brooding Woojin. Hyunjin suddenly remembered that one time Chan said Woojin looks like a hostile bear when he's mad. At that time he couldn't quite see it but now, Woojin kinda did resemble his description.

"Why can't we just take the train." Hyunjin eyed Woojin fastening his seatbelt, he earned another deathly glare. The terrified wolf gulped and decided to put his feet down from the dashboard. "Sorry."

Woojin pulled into the road. "It's better to have our own car just in case we finish late." 

Hyunjin quietly nodded. "Plus, you're a head-turner. It's gonna be a pain in the ass." Woojin might've done what Chan told him not to. Actually, there were too many to list but this one thing is on the top. "Hm." 

Hyunjin likes being praised. His confidence and self-esteem shots up. It's good, Chan said it's fine to praise the boys every once in a while. But, Hyunjin's a lost case. "Wouldn't want to get chased for hours by scouts." Woojin caught a glimpse of Hyunjin's face from his peripheral vision as the wolf said those words.

Oh gosh, he's done it now.

-

Seungmin didn’t have council work today, nor Jeongin had class. It was their University's anniversary so the school decided to let the students rest for the holiday. Leaving the two college students with nothing to do.

"Hey, can you get the door!" 

"Okay." 

Seungmin stood in front of the open door, his head moved about figuring out who opened the door. "He's in the kitchen." Seungmin's eyes fell on the boy who looked much like a smaller version of Yang Jeongin. He gave the kid a smile before following suite inside the house.

He calmly made his way to the living room, sitting down on the left side of the sofa near the window. Jeongin's little brother comes back from upstairs, a switch on his right hand. Seungmin eyed as the boy sprawled on the carpet. He spotted the pile of snacks on top of the coffee table. Seungmin smiled, it seems like someone's enjoying their free time.

"Hey, Seungs!" Jeongin appears from the kitchen wiping his soap ridden hands on a strawberry shortcake apron. "Can you wait for a while? I'm just finishing up with the dishes." 

"Seriously? Strawberry Shortcake?" 

Jeongin's eyes blinked at the blinding light of a camera flash. "Don't you dare---"

"And... sent! This is gonna leave them in stitches." Seungmin tipped back his head and roared with laughter. Jeongin looked at her with disbelief, Seungmin did the exact opposite of what he was about to say.

"What on earth are you laughing about now? Delete it! And this isn't even mine! It's my moms!!" 

Seungmin abruptly stopped laughing and looked Jeongin dead in the eyes, "Nnnnnnnnno." he made sure to enunciate the 'N' just to irk Jeongin's nerves before resuming his laughter.

"You look ridiculous." Jeongin's little brother got ahold of Seungmin's phone that fell on the carpet next to him. "Ugh. I hate you all so much." he groaned and stomped his way to the kitchen. 

-

"Ma'am, what do you think of my friend? Isn't he adorable?"

"Oh my! That's a very cute apron he's got there haha! Here, take these fish cakes, it's in the house for making my day!"

"Thank you so much!"

"Jeongin, where are your manners?"

"T-thank you." the boy bowed his head. His blush seared through his cheeks and for a minute he thought her face was on fire. Jeongin suddenly felt embarrassed and delicate; even going as far as attempting to hide his rosy features behind his slim fingers. 

He eventually took action and dragged Seungmin outside the small snack shop. Jeongin swears he could see Seungmin smiling from behind him. The witch picked up his pace and walked beside the blushing boy.

And there he was in his arrogant triumph, Seungmin smirked - just a small pouting of the lips; a narrowing of the eyes and a tilting of the head. It was so subtle, it was even more infuriating for Jeongin who caught a glimpse of it after making the foolish mistake.

"You don't have to show that photo to EVERY person we meet today!" face the color of an overripe tomato and annoyance boiling inside, Jeongin could only groan. "No way. It'd be a shame to devoid the world with this gem. Plus, we get free food." Seungmin held up his phone in front of the boy, irking Jeongin's nerve some more.

After a few minutes of Seungmin annoying Jeongin and at some point his phone was thrown to the pavement, they reached Changbin's studio. Well, where the building was located to be precise. It had 4 floors and looked fairly new. The paint on the walls was still fresh and some windows don't have 'windows' on them yet, just the frame.

"3rd floor. 2nd door to the right." Jeongin recalled what Changbin told them yesterday. "Let's go, strawberry shortcake." Jeongin disregarded the nickname and followed Seungmin inside the building, they headed towards the door with the stairs logo on it. "Elevator's working." the old guard chirped. They turned around and met with his wizened eyes. "Thank you." he gave them a smile and went out of the building.

Chan, Changbin and Jisung or 3racha as the others would lump them, didn’t know they were coming so they decided to surprise them with some chicken, rice rolls and spicy rice cakes (of course they bought it lol don’t let these kids near the kitchen). All in which Seungmin showed his photo to.

As they opened the glass door, Seungmin expected the place to be an utter mess. It was plausible. The building smelled new inside too. So renovations are most likely on-going.

However, both were surprised to see the place neat and tidy. A few boxes were neatly piled on the corner, there was no hint of renovation at all. Surprisingly enough, the AC blasted on the side.

"Looks like it's fully operational now."

"Yeah." Jeongin took a look around. The place looks nice.

Seungmin yelled over and walked towards the adjacent room. "Hello, dweebs. We have brought you some snacks." Changbin hit his head under the tattoo chair. "Fuck! Dude what the hell. You scared the crap out of me."

Seungmin pursed his lips "Mm. Then you better check your diaper, you big baby." he put the paper bags on the small coffee table near the wall, before offering a hand to Changbin who was massaging his sore spot. "Where's the old dude and the squirrel?" He carefully sat down on the chair Changbin was fixing. "It's fixed. You can sit." Changbin said, turning around to gather the tools. He closed the toolbox with a click and placed it near the door.

He noticed Jeongin looking around. A smile automatically crept on his face. "Jeongin." the boy yelped and found Changbin leaning on the door frame smiling at him. He smiled back. "Changbin! The place looks so cool." he was naturally pulled into a tight hug. 

'Always so warm.' the boy thought as he hugged the wolf back. "Did Chan help with the designing?" 

"Of course he did. This place looks like the black hole itself." Seungmin muttered from inside the room. Changbin and Jeongin chuckled. "Yeah, he has this aesthetic that's suited for a tattoo shop."

"Can't deny that."

"You didn't answer my question Changbin." Seungmin whined. "They're out buying some stuff needed. They'll be back soon." he turned around and went back into the room. "Just stay there, Jeongin. It's still dusty here." Jeongin sat down on the chairs provided. So, Chan and Jisung are out. 

The room is like a perfect magazine cover for an aesthetic tattoo shop. Jeongin was afraid to sit, worrying he would wrinkle the fabric or stain it with something he doesn't know on his pants. The leather couch is inlaid with rhinestones; placed so delicately. The white curtains are linen, the kind of white that is untouched by hands and devoid of dust. Those types of curtains that leaves the room in complete darkness even in mid-day, it stood out the most because of the black walls. Jeongin's eyes fell on the velvet walls they were decorated with stripes, which he thought he was just hallucinating but they really do reflect when you move around. The floor is a high polished wood, dark and free of either dust or clutter. The photographs are black and white, arranged to look like such by a professional, must be photos taken by Seungmin. One photo caught his attention. He stood up and sheepishly walked towards it. 

It was their group photo from when Woojin showed him his room in the mansion.

The door shot open. "We're back--Oh Jeongin you're here!" Jisung instantly dropped the contents on his hand and engulfed the boy in a tight hug. Little did he know Chan was right behind him. "FUCK!!! Dude my foot!" Chan sat on the floor, the sudden pain weakened the back of his knees.

Jisung didn't care at all. He detached himself from Jeongin for just a second before putting an arm around his shoulder, looking down on Chan. "Has anyone told you, you look great kneeling down like that?" A very annoyed vampire looked up to both of them. Color drained from their faces.

"W-we brought food! You guys must be hungry, it's in the tattoo room!" Jisung cleared his throat, pulling Jeongin away from a fuming Chan. "Cool! Let's go! We're starving. Right, Chan?" that must be the stupidest question he has ever asked and do note that he asks a lot of halfwitted questions. Jeongin could've sworn he saw Seungmin face-palming hard inside his head.

They gathered inside the tattoo room, Jeongin swept the floor a bit while the others moved the boxes and other stuff outside to make room. "Pull the table near there." Jisung did what Chan told him. His grudge only lasted a few seconds. They're back to normal as if Jisung never made a snarky remark earlier.

Seungmin sat on the floor with Changbin while Chan and Jeongin situated themselves on the leather couch fit for two. Jisung, on the other hand, went out of the waiting area and grabbed one of the ottoman chairs provided. 

Changbin watched in disgust as Jisung stuffed his face with rice cakes. Shaking his head, his right hand became busy. Seungmin fought with him for the tuna rice rolls. Changbin turns to Jeongin with a smile on his face, "You kids don't have school today?" obviously Seungmin lost. He pouted and took a plain roll, angrily putting it in his mouth.

"Nope. It's our school's anniversary so we're on a break. Only for today though." the boy replied. He turns to Chan who was offering him a piece of the rice roll. Jeongin opens his mouth letting Chan feed him. "Like a baby chick." Jisung said before scarfing down a chicken leg.

"Am not!" 

"Yeah, he's not." Jeongin was thankful for Changbin siding with him. "He's not only Chan's baby. He's our baby!" ...nevermind.

Within a span of a few minutes, all the food was gone. The four of them finished everything. It would've been gone within a second if everyone else was there. Oh, Chan excluded.

They talked about the place for a while. Seungmin was suggesting a few things here and there while Jeongin and Jisung played with Chan's switch. The vampire went out to the restroom.

"Hey, Wooj. How's the trip so far?" Chan's voice echoed a bit inside the empty restroom. Since the building was fairly new, there were only a few tenants. And today they were the only ones there. "It's great. Hyunjin complained for 10 minutes straight before I knocked him out." Chan chuckled, he knew what the alpha meant by 'knocked him out'. "He blabbers nonsense then falls asleep after eating a snack. Like a baby." Woojin laughed on the other end. There was a short pause as he switched lanes and shifted gears. "How's the shop going?"

Woojin heard the sound of the faucet being opened. He waited for a while for the vampire to respond. "It's pretty much done. We just have to recycle the boxes and clean up a bit. Seungmin and Jeongin are here too."

"I know." Chan complained about why he didn't tell him. "Because they said it was a surprise! I don't wanna spoil it." Hyunjin stirred in his sleep, the blanket he pulled up fell on the side. "Hang on, Chan." 

Woojin fixed the blanket, making sure to glance on the road every once in a while. "Did you find out some info about the Sofia's?"

"No. Man, those guys have a shit ton of people yet we can't get ahold of any useful information. They're too secure." Chan couldn't agree more on what Woojin said. He lived at that place for decades yet he hasn't heard of a spy nor a mole from outside. The information he knows about that family was only their rules and regulations within the clan. He was not given a word on how they manage their operations and business. 

Although he did only live there because of Kazuo's grandfather who trained him. It was strictly just training. Chan would wake up, be served breakfast in his room, clean up and train. His free time outside would involve 5 guards and 10 undercover guards as he roamed the streets of Tokyo. 

"Maybe I should go stop by. Can you book me a flight to Japan tonight?" he closed the restroom door behind him. Chan dawdled a bit at the hall. He should finish this conversation before going back inside the shop.

"Tomorrow. I'll go with you."

"Alright. Drive safely."

Woojin's voice vanished. "Okay, maybe another call." He dialed a new number, after a few rings Chan could hear the bustling sound of a busy street. "Felix? Where you at?"

"We're at Hongdae with Eric." Chan could hear Minho and Eric arguing in the background, he smiled. "You guys found a new spot?"

"Yeah---hey save some for me, you dickheads. Oi fuckwit!!!---Hey, we're just waiting for our turn." Felix's accent comes out when he's preoccupied too. Chan should note that.

"How's the shop going?" Felix reached out for Minho but he already has the phone to his ear. "Oh hey, Minho. We're almost done. Just cleaning up a bit." 

The phone was passed around for a while. It was impressive of Chan to know who he's talking to. Maybe because this happens on a daily basis when it comes to phone calls. 

"We'll drop by Woojin's cafe later. Are you guys coming by?"

"Yeah. Since you mentioned it."

Chan smiled, hearing Felix's deep chuckle. 

"Alright! See you there!"

"Bang bang chan chan see you~" was Minho.

"I'll come by the mansion on Saturday! I'm so gonna own these idiots in Mario Kart." and that was Eric.

The three boys on the other line argued for quite some time. Chan waited for Felix to end the call before slipping his phone inside his pocket. 

He sighed, recalling his talk with Woojin. They had no lead on why Kazuo knows about who Jeongin was. Maybe it was just him? Maybe the guy's just messing with him? Kazuo always did that when he was part of their clan. Chan rested his hand on his neck, he could feel the mark of the Sofia underneath Seungmin's spell.

It was a flame-shaped mark burned into your skin by the existing leader of the clan. It takes weeks for the wound to heal (even for Chan) but the scar will never fade, even if you rip your skin off it will still be embedded in your flesh. Not even a tattoo can cover it up. Chan had Seungmin put a spell on it to make it disappear from the eyes. But if you touch that part, you would still feel the mark on your hands.

Flashbacks from the Sofia's mansion played in his head. He was rather fond of those memories, although only handpicked ones. He had no idea of what that place was and what they were doing behind closed doors. Every time he would ask the staff responsible for him, they would turn a blind eye and excuse himself/herself for a stupid reason. The next day, the staff would be replaced by a new one. It happened a couple of times until Chan realized that it was his fault, so he completely stopped asking anyone and just went his merry way.

"What are you thinking, boy?" Chan felt his heartbeat in his chest, pounding, banging, trying to get out. His breath hitched as his head snapped at the end of the hall. 

Standing near the window, an old man wearing a security guard uniform. The smile on his face was calm and warm. But Chan knew otherwise. It was just one of her disguises. Underneath that was a demon. Skin almost translucent, blood-sucking fangs bared at him, her small waist was bound by a tight corset showing off her inhumane figure. Purple and red eyes devoid of emotion, pitiless. Her face is every woman and man's desire.

But Chan was rather focused on what was running through her veins. The blood flowed like a lazy river. It flowed like so much red gravy across the slaughterhouse floor. The metallic scent wafted through the air right into his nostrils. 

He ran forward, every second craving for the woman's blood, he felt as though his own blood were on fire. His limbs were moving on their own. He was disconnected from everything but the ever-present sound of his drumming heart.

'I need it. I need it. I need it.' He spoke those words like a mantra. Again and again and again. 

The figure didn't move, she stayed there. Her hands were open, almost like a trap. As Chan plunges, he was pulled into a hug. The old man vanished, there stood the woman underneath it. 

"Hello. It's been a while, boy." Chan was shaking, his blood-red pupils dilated, claws scratching at the woman's back, his body trembled all over. Chan was no longer himself.

"Let's go home, shall we?" 

"LET HIM GO!" Changbin's voice roared. It was almost as if the building itself shook. One by one they all stood across the unknown person holding Chan. Jeongin could see how Chan shook underneath his grip. "Isn't that the guard from earlier?" Seungmin nodded, he pulled Jeongin from the front. "Stay behind Jisung." 

He stood behind Jisung who gave him a reassuring smile. Somehow Jisung was trembling too. Jeongin didn't know why. He was not strong nor have abilities but he wanted to somehow help Jisung. Jeongin snatched Jisung's right hand and filled the gaps with his own. 

"Thank you." Jisung felt calmer. He could feel Jeongin's thumb caressing his hand to distract him from his fear. He knew he had to be strong for the boy.

"What do you want from him?" Seungmin asked in a cold tone. But his head was filled with mindless thoughts.

The old man stared at them. No words were uttered between them. His lips slowly formed into a menacing smile. 

"He asked you a question." Changbin growled. In a split second, he transformed into his wolf form. The old man's smile grew wider and wider until it literally reached his ears, his pupils turned white and blood came out of his eyes. It was a disgusting sight. 

Jeongin shivered. The chills on his spine won't go away. The back of his knees were giving up, his hand gripped Jisung's tighter. 

They breathed in as the old man started chuckling. His laughter filled their ears almost as if he was standing right beside them. Changbin growled so loud. He was pissed. Chan wasn't trying to escape at all. What are they supposed to do? Woojin wasn't there. Jeongin is probably so scared and this... this being is giving him all sorts of scary feelings. It's as if he was staring right at the devil himself.

Changbin growled once more. He had to do something!

"Changbin!" Jisung shouted.

In the blink of an eye, Changbin's battered body fell on the floor. Before he could even take one step, he was already banged against the wall. They didn't even see what happened. 

The crumbs on the wall fell on his fur. He may have broken ribs and legs. He could feel a gush of blood underneath him, but he remained conscious. Struggling to get back on his feet only to fall back on the wet floor. 

The rest of them were left in utter shock. It was as if the scene had knocked every wisp of air from their lungs, and they stood there struggling to inhale, to exhale, to do anything. 

"Jisung, get Changbin and Jeongin out of here." Seungmin's voice went an octave lower. He loosened his tie. "But, Seungmin!" 

"NOW!!!!!!" his hair turned white and his eyes were a striking shade of purple. With a snap of a finger, 3 spell books emerge from thin air, floating around him. Seungmin had no time for Jisung to put up a fight. 

Jisung's head hung low, he knew he had to do something. But after seeing Changbin almost killed within a fraction of a second, he chickened out. He wanted to run. He wanted to get out of there. But as he saw how Jeongin's eyes looked at him in fear, he wanted to kill the living shit out of the old man across them.

He wanted to claw the man's organs out.

"Jisung. Today's not your fight." Jisung looked up to see Seungmin staring at him with his purple eyes. They were pleading him to go. 

"Please." he bellowed, snatching Changbin, who went back to human form, he put the injured wolf on his back. "Jeongin, gimme your hand." he said to the boy sitting on the floor, trembling in fear.

No. He doesn't want to go either. He can't leave. He doesn't even have the energy to stand up. "Jeongin, I'll get Chan back. I promise." tears formed in his eyes as he looked up to Seungmin. 

Jeongin took a deep breath and stood up. He took Jisung's outstretched hand. "Please stay safe, Seungmin." the witch can only give him a half-assed smile. He turns his head back after seeing Jisung, Changbin, and Jeongin disappear out the window. 

Suddenly the air became heavier. The building felt like it was gonna collapse any second. And there he saw the old man was just a mere figure drenched in blood. The smell was gut-churning. Seungmin could feel the vomit behind his throat. This is insane.

"You..." the witch couldn't make out the words the monster was saying. It was only like a rumble.

"You found him." 

Found who?

"SHIT!" the monster started shrieking. It was so loud. Seungmin could feel his ears bleed. He couldn't see where Chan was anymore. His vision was blurry. He eventually fell to his knees, screaming in pain.

-

"Seungmin. Wake up." the witch felt a light tapping on his cheek. He groaned. Was it a nightmare? But as his hands felt the cold wet floor, he knew that horrific scene really did happen.

His eyes slowly adjusted, he saw a bloody Chan. "A-are you okay?" seeing Seungmin in that state, Chan felt like he could cry. "Yeah." he supported him, letting the witch rest his back against the also bloody wall. "What happened?" As Seungmin looked around, he realized it wasn't only Chan who was bloody. The hall was covered in thick, pungent blood. 

"I took her heart." Chan held up his right hand. Confined in his sharp claws was a heart, beating only once a minute. A spellbook flew beside Seungmin, he glanced at it for a second before holding up his hand on the heart. His eyes and hair glow white and as he closed his hand like a fist, the heart burst, painting Chan's face with its blood.

"So it's done?"

"No. I only got two." Seungmin nodded. They had a long way to go, indeed.

"I never thought she would show up, Seungmin. Not in this century. Not with you guys in it." Seungmin can feel the weight underneath Chan's words. In front of him was a very vulnerable vampire.  

"Woojin's coming back." Seungmin said. Woojin was the only one who knows what to do in these types of situations.

"He knew something was wrong."

Chan balled his hands into a fist. He wiped the blood from his face. "Thank you for making the right decision."

"Jisung's a bit stubborn but he's a big softie when it comes to promises. Just like Jeongin."

Chan somehow managed to smile at Seungmin. "But, Changbin's in critical condition." the smile vanished as if it was never there. Changbin always thinks he has to take action whenever a dire situation comes up. He doesn't want to depend on other people even if they offer him help.

"Let's go find them. I'll call someone to clean this up." Chan stood up and pulled out his phone, thank god it wasn't crushed. "Do you have the strength to fix the wall?" Seungmin was already on it. 

After the last piece of crumbled cement vanished into the wall, Seungmin turned to Chan. "Did you lose yourself?"

Chan stopped from his tracks. His head hung, he stared at the blood-ridden floor with an empty gaze. "Yeah."

"How much blood did you get?"

"None. I couldn't reach that heart."

Seungmin nodded mindlessly. So it was the old man's blood. He walked towards Chan, not minding the blood pooling on his shoes. Seungmin put a heavy hand on Chan's shoulder making the vampire turn to him. 

Chan likes cuddling with them. Whether they were watching a movie or just hanging out in the living room. His hugs were warm because he adjusts his temperature to make them feel comfortable.

But as Seungmin held him in his arms, the biting cold chilled his fingers into clumsy numbness, cold seeped into his toes and spread painfully throughout his feet as if it were his bare feet on the pristine icy whiteness rather than sneakers on a blood river.

Chan was cold.

[dontbesoweirdkira]

Dating Levi Ackerman would include

-Him calling you cadet, still even though you are on his squad, just to irk you

-you calling him Captain Ackerman or Mr. Ackerman to get back at him 

-“My name is Levi, Cadet. i might have to send you out for disciplinary action next time you call me Mr or Captain”

- Him not trying to bias you, however if the mission or task might severally  harm you in any way he will force you to stay back

- yes force you because you are stubborn

-You are always to the left or right of him when out in battle so he can easily check on you to make sure you are okay.

- “L/N, how are you holding up?’ “Let me know when you are not feeling well.” “If you need to go back and have someone else take your place, tell me. Understand that?”

-He is quite soft and sweet when it is just you around. 

-he will bring you flowers on his off times, or stop by to give you food or a cup of tea when you are on night or morning duties.

-PDA is a no. he doesn’t like to show off the relationship too much because of his position and plus he thinks that the relationship is just between you and him and it is not for others to know how he displays his intimate affection.

-although with that said. if their is a creep or some cadet that is being inappropriate or quite flirtatious, he will intervene by telling them to piss off and he will move your body close upon his to show you are his and not up for auction.

-semi possessive Levi

- Jealous Levi (hides it quite well however you see right through him) 

-occasionally he would kiss you when no one is looking and whisper into your ear how much he loves you and how he would make it back safely for you.

- “ tsk, you do know i love you shit face, right? make sure this place stays clean while i’m gone. when i come back, i will be checking under the tables. ill be careful because i know you worry.”

-you guys don’t fight too often because things are normally pretty chill for the most part however if he is super stressed or overly tired, a fight might break out but it is usually made up fairly quickly.

- you are not super dependent on him, and you don’t flaunt him or show him off

- he appreciates that about you, however he does wish you could count on him some more

- not that you don’t, he just has so much stress on his plate already and you do not want to add to that pile.

-staying up with him, if he is grieving or had a nightmare.

-” listening to all his doubts and fears. 

-cuddling you constantly in hopes that nothing will come to harm you 

- He often worries that your sleep schedule will get messed up because of him but honestly WHO EVEN SLEEPS ANYWAYS LMAOOOOO

- not many nicknames other than ‘idiot’ ‘dumbass’ ‘cadet’ ‘fool’. he just simply thinks your real name is very beautiful 

-oh yeah insults. he will insult you all day and night but it is his weird way of expressing his love to you

-” Hey Cadet Y/N, why do you look worse than jean today? seriously go wash up or something.”

-”HEY LEEEEVIIIIIIIIIIIII I WAS THINKIN-”

-”no, go clean the window seals shitty face”

- he really enjoy your presence and would move the earth for you even though he does not always let you know that.

- you are younger than him so he thinks that he’s too old or not energetic enough for you. often has a lot of insecurities about his appearance or personality.

-constant reassurance that he is perfect for you.

-calling him old man just to tease him

-sometimes he acts like your dad but steps back when he realizes it

-all in all an relationship with levi would be quite chill and something that moves slow. it has its ups and downs but he really loves you and he isn’t fond of many humans so take that as you will

note; oof i am tired so im sorry if this is kinda all over the palce but ill post some more tomorrow