#still. he's not exactly good at playing nice so he isn't very popular with his classmates

[multishipper-baby]

Also random thought about the AU but, since Owynn can't be too suspicious while he's with the group, that means he'll have to play nice with Freddy the whole killing game. Rip to him.

[lurkingshan]

hi there i hope you don't mind me asking for recs! this might be a bit too specific but do you know any (good) bls with age gap? i've only watched old fashion cupcake and minato's laundromat and i'd love to see more of that dynamic. have a good day!

Hi anon! I am delighted to talk about age gap bls with you. A few notes about how I define this:

I think of a true age gap romance as one where the narrative is at least in part driven by the age difference, not one where the characters are just incidentally different ages but it doesn't really matter to the story

The age gap needs to be significant enough that it puts the characters in different phases of life, so something like a college freshman dating a senior doesn't count

I also don't count supernatural stories where there's a massive age gap as a function of one of the characters being immortal, that's a totally different genre and narrative intent IMO

I will only include a show in this list if the age gap is between the main pair or a very significant side pair who has a lot of story time

So this means I would not be including shows like My Tooth Your Love or The New Employee where there is technically an age gap but everyone is adults and it doesn't really matter to the story. Or shows like Cutie Pie and Love in the Air, which do play with power dynamics somewhat based in age but where the actual gap is negligible and the story isn't about their age difference. Or something like Ossan's Love where there is an age gap pairing in contention but it's not actually the core romance of the story. Then there are shows where on paper there is an age gap between the main characters but the production cast actors the same age, so it never actually feels like an age gap story no matter how many times they write in dialogue trying to convince me that 28 year old is 40 (I love you dearly, Moonlight Chicken but please be serious).

So all that said, there are not as many proper age gap bls as you'd think! You'll note that this rec list is dominated by Japan and Taiwan, the absolute rulers of this trope. Productions in these countries love to dig into an uncomfortable taboo, and a true age gap romance fits nicely in that niche. Thailand doesn't play much in this space thanks to their branded pairs system that puts close-in-age actors together (and the couple times they tried large age gap romances were so terrible that I shan't speak of it). Korea has surprisingly done very little on this despite noona romance being one of the most popular kdrama subgenres. Where are all the hyung romances, I ask you??

With all that rambling out of the way, onto the list of age gap bls I recommend checking out.

History 2: Right or Wrong

An under appreciated entry in the HIStory franchise that pairs an overworked single father who is neglecting his parenting duties and the student he hires to help look after his kid.

History 3: Make Our Days Count

These two are technically a side couple, but they get near equal story time to the mains and they are an exemplar of a great age gap romance that gets the character dynamics exactly right to mitigate the uncomfortable power differential when one is an adult and the other is still growing up. My personal favorite age gap bl pair.

History 4: Close To You

This one's for the girls who like to tackle multiple taboos at once. Not only age gap, but also stepbrothers, with a bit of personality disorder thrown in for flare! And somehow with all that mess, they tell the story so well and make you believe. Do not @ me, I said what I said!

Kiseki: Dear to Me

I know many folks remember this show primarily for the side couple, but the mains actually have a very well done age gap romance between a gangster and a high school student he accidentally drags into hell with him. The plot of this show is absolutely not to be taken too seriously, just have fun and go with it!

Lovely Writer

The only Thai bl I think qualifies under the definition above and actually tells its story very well. This one is interesting because you get to see them both as kids and as adults and see how their age difference and its effect on their relationship shifts over time.

Minato's Laundromat

You already mentioned this one, anon, but I'm putting it on this list for posterity. A classic age gap bl with a romance between a repressed older man and the persistent teenager who worships him.

Mr. Mitsuya's Planned Feeding

Winner for most significant age gap in terms of years, this show is about a mid-20s editor who falls for a writer twice his age after meeting him on the job. So much glorious food and sexual tension.

Old Fashion Cupcake

Another one you've already seen going on the list for posterity. A workplace age gap romance with a younger man pursuing his mentor via foodie dates. One of the best Japanese BLs ever made, period.

The Pornographer

A maladjusted (to put it mildly!) man gets hit by a young student on a bicycle, and uses the situation to bring him into his home as a writing assistant. Things get pretty fucked up from there. This is one of my favorites and very under appreciated in part because you have to chase the story across two series, two shorts, and a movie to get the full narrative. Trust me, it's worth it!

[silviakundera]

The Double ep 15-16 reaction

I'm glad they added another flashback of her brother and included his escort friend from the novel. Minor character and a small tragedy but it humanizes him for me. He was just a sincerely nice guy who wasn't kind to her as an aim to possess her, but because he was a good person. And so she never forgot him. She thinks he forgot her - only to learn he never cut ties with her; he was killed. Little tragedies, small people that royalty step on like ants.

To me it feels important that as much as the drama gives her husband depth and makes us sympathize with his situation, it shouldn't allow us to forget that her family was destroyed. We didn't see it happen, like the shovel to her head, but her father was his teacher. Xue Zhao was his brother in law. Their names may no longer matter to anyone else, but our protagonist will not allow them to go unavenged. [lil note from the novel I liked - novel!Duke Su being perplexed and unable to figure out how FL is getting this successful escort to assist her, when even he seems to respect how impossible it is to get a handle on the woman - because she has a secure position as a popular escort & enough money & is satisfied being exactly where she is (doesn't want to fight for favor as someone's treasured concubine), independant and unable to be threatened or bribed. so what could possibly move her?]

(Now this is sorta thematically tying in with the backstory drama created for ML with this bandit. ML's general dad was a good person and so he wasn't forgotten by this person whose life he touched, so presumably he'll do ML a favor. FL and ML have turned into schemers and are willing to get their hands dirty; but are aided in their quest by the fact that their dead family had a positive impact on some people who still remember it?? Be interesting to see if this does become a minor theme 🤔)

ANYWAY let's get to the good stuff: Last episode ML started realizing he's catching feelings. This episode FL feels jealousy and isn't shy about it ('can't I?'). We're making real shippy progress here!

He very much still enjoys watching her strut and perform. But the distance between them is slowly closing. That whole drinking game scene was pure gold.

"Are you not upset now? "Huh?" THE LOOKS THEY EXCHANGE AT THIS.

He's entered the play, joining her on stage instead of coldly manipulating from a high vantage point. Her walls are down for a moment and he's not even hiding his bias. Blatant flirting and she has him smiling. Yes, he has 2 agendas here but unlike the last failed 'date' they were playing together, not her in the role of pawn. I love a smart ML. Boy is not gonna fumble this chance to have his schemes AND a woman who's perfect for him.

I found this subplot of FL foiling the Li clan's plans for Ye clan her most clever manuveuring in the translated novel (up to ch 113). Though it's being compressed for time & tweaked, still satisfying to see her outflank the corrupt local government. As well, very glad to see the ML point out that she has a double-motive... to intentionally make the Jiang and Li irreconcilable. (They're not her real family, they're her enemies!) Nooooooo don't have multiple layers to your plans, it's too sexyyyyyy

[enbysiriusblack]

sirius and peter's friendship is one of the most interesting and compelling relationships to me.

they are best friends. they were best friends for about 10 years. what we see of them whilst being friends is essentially sirius making fun of peter; he mocks his interest in james playing with a snitch and peter appears embarrassed. but they were still good friends. sirius still says he would have died rather than betrayed peter. which definitely isn't the 'peter was always left out by his friends and they didn't really care about him, but only kept him around to feed their egos' narrative.

but sirius is still very much an attractive and popular and talented person. whilst peter isn't. although i would argue peter was still extremely skilled and smart, he managed to become an animagus so young just like sirius and james and practically single handedly (pun intended) brought voldemort back. but even so, from what we see it does seem like sirius makes fun of peter and pushes him around. and we have rosmerta saying peter tended to follow behind james and sirius, as if he's somehow lesser. but clearly sirius (and james and remus) didn't actually think of peter like that.

what i think is that peter is very much someone who understands people and knows how to manipulate people to his favour (he'd be an excellent politician), and that is what he does during school and why outsiders seem to view peter as following the others/being made fun of by them but his friends don't actually think that, creating a sorta sympathy for him by outsiders. he knows people will judge him for being fat or being less outgoing or less academically gifted. peter, in public, doesn't say comebacks. however, alone with the other marauders, he does. in the dorm rooms, peter will make fun of them and they'll make fun of him back, all in a joking spirit. but in public, his friends will still do that, and just don't seem to notice he doesn't do it back around other people. because he wants their sympathy/pity in order to make them like him.

james and sirius easily get people to like them just by joking around qnd being their charming selves. remus gets people to like him by being nice and sweet and helpful. and peter gets people to like him through pity (we even see him attempt this with remus and sirius in poa)

now going back to sirius and peter's relationship. i honestly think they had one of the closest bonds. sirius trusted him to be the secret keeper instead. sirius said he'd rather die than betray peter. sirius remembers exactly what peter looked like in his animagus form, that he was able to tell scabbers was peter from a tiny newspaper photo.

this next part is my headcanons about them but i wanted to add it so: i see peter as being raised in a muggle environment so whilst sirius helped him with understanding the wizard world, peter taught sirius about muggles. i think peter also played a large part in helping sirius understand his sexuality- with peter's mum being a lesbian and peter himself being gay and sorta knowing more about the idea of sexuality and gender expression and everything. dyslexic peter and sirius who proofreads his essays for him even though he hates academic work. peter and sirius being partners in potions because james and remus suck at potions so much. peter and sirius coming up with the dumbest pranks that always get vetoed. peter and sirius being the bestfriends that they were <3

anyway yeah. sirius would have died for peter. that's how close they were.

[fairytail-whathesays]

god I can’t ever stop talking about Freed’s hair I love it SOOOOO much 😭 could I request Freed with a S/O who likes to play with or do his hair ? Male or gender neutral is good for me!!

I love reading your headcanons!! I honestly take some for myself lol!!!

I'm very glad to hear it!

In a lot of cultures, hair has a differing level of importance and is a sort of status symbol. The most obvious case is certain eras of Japan and other east Asian cultures where hair length and style are associated with caste.

Freed's version is not exactly the same but something pretty akin, in that his long green hair is associated with his family, who are wealthy elites. Rather like the Malfoys' and Weasleys' blonde and red hair (I hate to use the Harry Potter example given Rowling's insanity, but it's the closest one in reach) marking them as members of different clans, so too is Freed's clan well-known at a distance by their shared hair color.

Much like he keeps his suits pressed and his nails clean so you know he's rich and untouched by peasant poverty, so too is his hair rigidly maintained and styled. It takes a lot of work, at that length, but it's worth it.

It's also perhaps the biggest barrier towards him living his best gay life. Freed was very used to his hair looking like 'popular' hair amongst the elite scene back before he ran away, and so it was a bit of a culture shock when he went to Fiore and got mistaken for a woman about 500 times. It took a minute for him to really process that guys usually don't have hair as long or as luscious as his.

It's made him super popular with women, ironically, when what he's trying to attract are men, and long hair isn't really respected in the gay scene. He's fully aware he could probably get more attention from men if he chopped it, but he's just too stubborn to do it most of the time.

Which of course means that you are the man he's been waiting his whole freakin' life for. Finally, a guy who appreciates how much work and care goes into his hair! How nice it feels when you run your hands through it! The wig you could make from donated Freed Justine hair would be akin to wearing money on your head.

By the way, are you a drag artist? You absolutely should be. Anyone Freed would actually trust with the care of his hair absolutely knows at least some of the art of hair care, fashion, or both.

Mind you, this is still the Freed Justine you're touching. Don't forget what a privilege you've got to be handling all that beautiful hair unsupervised. If your antics with his hair start reflecting badly, you're under review, even if he otherwise loves you.

If you can manage to convince him to give his bangs a chop (they take so long to grow out!), you can style him up to be pretty convincing as a rich elite businessman from the 1800s rather than the 1600s. The kind where you don't realize their hair is insured until you see the low ponytail running down their back. Perfect for horseback riding or adventuring.

He would love a day where you two could just relax and he could lean on something while you brushed his hair. Maybe he'd read poetry or birdwatch. Maybe you'd braid flowers into it.

Don't pull on it. Ever.

But absolutely admire how it falls down over his body and/or hangs over your face. Y'know. Sometimes.

[mikittalabs]

in a mood right now and i've been playing fire emblem again, recipe for disaster so let's just get on with this post.

anyway it feels like every time an fe fan mentions liking something about engage, it's in spite of it. there's always a "but" tacked on. like you can't really like engage, alear's hair is red and blue and isn't that so dumb!

and i get it, engage is tonally light. it's not about poorly written politics like 3h is. it's great that 3h has a sad line from dorothea a few dozen times and that characters love to talk about how much war sucks every 10 minutes.

it's weird and annoying. every criticism of 3h is fought back against because actually you just missed this single piece of lore from a random npc in ch6 you fucking nincompoop. did you even play the game? the fact every character loves to exposit information at you is actually a good thing and a sign of good writing and doesn't completely muddy up the experience.

meanwhile you have to prove that you actually like engage. and yea. i love engage. i think it's great. i'm gonna talk about things i like because i think the game is good. there is no "but" here.

think a perfect example of this whole "in spite of" thing is yunaka. that's not to say i don't like her, i think she's great, too, but she's also the character who angsts the most out of the cast. her ass is not slick when it comes to hiding her backstory.

naturally, the fandom likes her in spite of engage. like i'm sorry that hortensia is so offputting that you completely missed her story about abusive families and desperately reaching out for something that you can't go back to, and might not have existed in the first place. it's so sucks that celine talked about tea in the 2 supports of hers you got. it sure would be a shame if she's hiding some odd feelings of resentment towards alfred or her cruel tendencies.

sorry guys, supports can't have subtext. if your characters aren't saying exactly what they feel and exactly why all of the time, then it's bad writing. actually subtext is just bad. exposition dumps are where it's at! i loved that part where rhea looked at the camera at the end of verdant wind and told us the entire history of fodlan. or like, the majority of 3h supports.

i forget if i ever posted it but i called 3h characters a vehicle for more lore, and i think i was kinda on to something. engage has a lot of silly supports where characters are just goofing around, but they were never used for more lore in the way 3h uses its cast.

3h supports typically involve someone just telling the other their entire backstory and i'm not about to argue that it isn't giving you more information on a character. in an extremely physical manner, it is. but it's obnoxious. it's an extremely unsubtle way to get across information.

in a very literal manner, you, as the player, are learning about this character. things have in fact happened to them, but i think the crucial difference lies in how this doesn't usually tell you anything about the character as a person. you can draw connections between how they act and their backstory, sure, but what does that actually say about them?

sylvain acts like that because his family fucking sucks. this is true, but he's still acting like a fucking cunt. i understand that crests are so highly valuable in fodlan society that he was objectified and reduced to the fact he had a crest. he says that himself in his support with mercedes. it does not change the fact that he is still a piece of shit to women. contrary to popular belief, i don't think the fact that he's nice to annette changes that fact. also like, mercedes's own backstory is completely glossed over in that support, but that's another conversation for another time.

contrast that with pandreo. he's a silly goofy party guy. there can't be any depth to him because this is engage. except you read his supports and realize he's a deeply faithful man. he found faith when his parents were being The Worst and he parties because it's how he expresses his faith. perhaps you're initial perceptions of a character are not always correct. something you would think fe fans would know considering sylvain has supports where the support partner says something to that effect.

ok i'm starting to get a headache so i'm just calling it here. see you all in hell or however people end these long posts

[deiscension]

so when can we expect this dissection of that lyric for sqx huh 👀🍿

@deathfavor You can get it right this instant if may be allowed to pull an swd and lose my entire gotdamn head. This isn't as detailed or organized as I'd like to get with it because I want to pull very specific lines from the different arcs they're involved in but I'm going to summarize as best as I can!

First off I need to emphasize that I think as "unfair" as what happens to SQX is, I think it needed to happen. I am putting "unfair" in air quotes because I'm also a HX defender and as terrifying and life-altering as Black Water arc is for them, I also do not think SQX would lament how "unfair" any of it was after the proverbial dust has settled (that's a discussion for another time though because I have A Lot Of Thoughts about swd's beheading + the direct aftermath + SQX not wanting to ascend again + immediately seeking to descend and not be sought out again after willingly giving up their powers).

SQX loves SWD, MY/HX, and XL. I refuse to put past tense there too okay she's full of love for better or worse. Usually for worse. I digress. She loves them, but she doesn't know them. She thinks she does. She's had no reason to believe she didn't, and that she was running out of time to know them all. That's why things had to happen the way they did. That's the price of her ignorance. It's not a faultless thing even if it was never meant to be malicious. And my GOD, she's lived her whole life in layers and layers of ignorance, all of it heaped onto her. She can go her whole life loving with all her heart but she has to learn how to actually know others, too. Let me try to break down what I mean through the three specific characters I mentioned. I am going to try to keep this short-ish because I will elaborate more when I've got the braincells and quotes to go for it but!! Here we go.

Also before I get into it, I don't mean to say that she didn't know any of them at all. She knew them all in exactly the ways they wanted to be known, in my opinion; not all of it convenient or surface level either! And she's a fair more insightful about all three of them than one might notice on a first reading. But she's still missed key facets of each one-- if I may be a bit heavy-handed, she's blinded by the sun and stumbling through the shadows, thinking that because she can't see those shadows they're not there. And that's not how people work. So!

Xie Lian -- while it is very indicative of the type of loyal, rational (when necessary), ride-or-die, and kindhearted person SQX is when they defend him against PM and then against the Heavenly Court, it goes to show just how easily blinded they are. Don't get me wrong, it also says a lot about their ability to think for themself (that's another bone I have to pick with popular fanon interpretation of them LOL) and not bend to social convention/pressure. But they're also letting one interaction inform them against centuries of history. Granted, we aren't ever told how much SQX knows about XL before coming across him at Banyue Pass. However, considering the amount of officials that play nice with SQX, I can't imagine they wouldn't have heard all matter of gossip-- truth mixed with tales and the like. And then there's the whole "he had remembered the flower but forgotten about the sword" line: SQX knows XL as a gentle, level-minded, experienced person. They haven't yet contended with his personal history. This trait of theirs is a double-edged sword. I can't imagine they wouldn't have reflected on this after being left in the Heavenly Capital. They would've never meant any harm by not digging into XL's past, but how ashamed they must feel of trying to be a good, reliable friend while remaining ignorant of all his past troubles.

Shi Wudu - that's her brother! She LOVES her brother! He's given her the world, he's kept her safe, he was the only person she had for so long-- the only person who didn't try to take advantage of her pain and ignorance and just wanted what was best for her. He'd never lie to her, he'd never hurt her, he'd never belittle her, he'd never give her reason to fear him. Not in any way that's anything more than a temporary sibling tiff. Except he did. Time and time again, he did. And I'm not saying this to disparage SWD because especially after a second reading of BW arc, I know SWD loved them too, and he is a fascinating character. We need characters like him alright, just as much as we also need SQXs and HXs and XLs and HCs and so forth. There's so much that needs to be taken into account when examining SWD's behavior towards SQX and how frightened SQX is of her own brother even before discovering the truth-- and I'd love to get into it but maybe not here because I'm already rambling soooo much LSDKFJSDF. Back to the point. SWD loved her. But at what point does love become a cage? At what point does it become hands around your throat? SQX has no idea what all was sacrificed for her. She's not allowed to know. Yes there's the iconic "the one he feared most had been beside him all along" about Ming Yi but HAVE WE CONSIDERED HOW MUCH IT APPLIES TO SWD TOO. HAVE WE!!!! Because I am Considering and I am Dry-heaving at how on the nose it is for SWD too. I already talked a little bit about it (here) but in his efforts to secure a place in the heavens for himself and her, SWD became the exact thing SQX hated and feared the most. SWD is a mirror to the Reverend, at least in actions. Gobbling up lives without a second thought, using fear as a means of control, laughing in the face of another's undeserved and unearned misery, "we've lived good lives"-- EVERYTHING SQX fears is her brother. Her brother, who she loves so much but didn't know nearly well enough.

I'm planning on doing a whole Shi sibling meta but I need to read through a few more passages with SWD first because while my brain is not particularly big I also refuse to misinterpret his character on purpose just because I sometimes want to give him a swift kick to the ass. SWD my beloathed-loved. Idk. Bestworst shitass brother. Still meditating upon that one though because they are both unreliable narrators with each other and XL is an unreliable narrator too so I have much to think about.

He Xuan - [gripping your shoulders and looking into your eyes] Help Me God I Am About To Explode. Where Do I Begin. I'm not gonna lie the first time I heard this part:

I was a kid until I fixed it Tore into a love affair Between me and what wasn't there Oh, I was kissing you Just to feel the air

my brain was like 'wow S.arah K.insley that's so SQX reflecting on her time with MY/HX you're so right'. Which is what led me to thinking even more about all SQX's other relationships too. I know fandom has a lot of contention in how to read into their relationship pre-BW arc and post-BW arc. Frankly I am here to cry as hard as I can and as long as I can so based on my second reading of BW arc + the way SQX acts with both MY/HX and comparing it to how she is with everyone else, I think her feelings with MY/HX are deeper than they're often given credit for. SQX is "friends with everyone", sure. But to HER, MY is her first true friend. Her most beloved, most trusted, most treasured friend. And she never really knew him. Oh, we can point the finger at him and say "well, he was pretending to be someone he wasn't, she wouldn't have found anything out either way". To that I say yes-- and I'm sure SQX did try to poke around for more, but she's so carefree and trusting, it seems logical to me that she would've taken his prickliness and closed-off nature as "just how he is".

All we have about her social life before ascending is pure speculation. I know I'm not presenting good evidence for my reasoning at the moment (I really want to cook up a post about the type of sheltered life SQX lived because all that spoiling and opulence came in after being brought into the middle court-- like yes SWD spoiled them by always being the one to take care of the difficult things, but again! Another topic for later! I have much to say about SQX's learned helplessness there). SQX didn't have anyone but her ge. I'm sure she had "lots of friends" in the Middle Court too. But she didn't have a capital-f-Friend. And then-- she has MY! Someone who's not trying to get to her brother through her (LOLLLLLLLL), someone who doesn't disappear during times of storm, someone who doesn't disguise their true nature or intentions for the sake of personal gain (LOL x2). Well I'm laughing there but again- HX defender. I digress, again. SQX isn't latching onto MY out of pure convenience. If SQX wanted to befriend someone who goes along with all her whims, never gives her a hard time, and plays coy for her amusement, she has thousands to choose from. Hell her brother could've picked for her. But she wants MY as her best friend and closest confidant. It would've been so easy for her to dump him on his ass and chase after best friend status with XL if all her clinging to MY was purely informed by self-interest and the desire to feel good about herself all the time. They themself even say that XL has earned "second best friend" status during the beginning of BW arc, all while XL is objectively the only person giving her tangible comfort. She doesn't just want a best friend, she wants her best friend Ming-xiong. My god! He's the first they cry out for at what's arguably their lowest: right after willingly giving up their power, when it turns out their brother is the type of person they've always feared the most, when it's clear they cannot save anyone, they cannot even save themself.

And oh, how she wanted to be the same for him! She risked HC's wrath (or at least she thought she was, which is also so funny in greater context) to "rescue" him. She would've done anything for him. Except she couldn't. She didn't know him. She failed him so terribly, so miserably, so shamefully. Him and everyone else who loved him and actually knew him, the ones who died so she could have a life she hadn't earned. We both know how agonizing those moments in the Nether Water Manor-- but what about the aftermath? What about when it was just them stumbling around, after the fear and shock had worn off, with nothing but their own audacious words echoing around in their head? "This whole thing has nothing to do with Ming-xiong, but he had to suffer like this". THEY DIDN'T KNOW THE HALF OF IT! And they said it with such grief then-- well, what about now? How much worse had they made his suffering? Had he felt nothing but revulsion that whole time? Had she made his loneliness, his suffering, his weariness worse? All those times she told him not to worry, all those times spent fussing over him, (trying to) dote on him, looping her arm through his and pulling him this way and that. Did it mean anything at all? He was her best friend, he was who she wanted at her side, but who was she to him? Was he ever really there?

But SQX is too empathetic to only think about herself when it comes to such pains. Once the wallowing wore off, how often did she spend wondering about him? Knowing that of anyone in the heavens and on earth, he was the one deserving of the good life, he was the one deserving of someone who loved him for who he was. What a fool she was for thinking she was that someone! She couldn't even call the right name. She did indeed cause the death of her closest family. She did indeed cause the death of her best friend. And what can she do? What can she say? Sorry doesn't bring anyone back; sorry doesn't make everything better; sorry doesn't make up for being unworthy of the time she squandered at his side, all because she didn't know. Ignore, for a moment, the fear and trauma now casting impenetrable shadows over the image of "her best friend", and consider: by any grace yet again unearned, could she ever accept an offering of forgiveness for such grievances?

I know SQX is doing "fine" as a mortal, she has friends that don't just want something out of them, and I know she's taking better care to practice knowing along with loving. But it just kills me how all her life she has had "everything" but nothing at the same time. None of it was hers. She did nothing to earn it, no matter how much she as a person deserved it. What's deserved without earned, after all?

[davidmariottecomics]

Week 86 - 8/28/23 - A BLUE BEETLE MOVIE???

Hi there, 

It probably isn't news as it's a pretty popular film in theaters right now, but there's a Blue Beetle movie out! And it's a lot of fun! 

If you didn't know, Ted Kord, the second Blue Beetle, is my favorite superhero. There's a pretty good joke in the new movie about the difference between Ted and Batman, and not to step on the punchline, but it boils down to Ted knows how to laugh. He's a character frequently written to have a sense of humor, to know a good joke, and to be the dramatic superheroic straightman when it counts. He is not exactly an everyman--he's a genius, he dresses up in a silly costume, and he's rich--but in a lot of ways, he's just a guy trying to do the right thing because he can. 

And he casts a long shadow over the new movie, which is about Jaime Reyes--fantastically played by the dreamy Xolo Maridueña--who I don't love quite as much as Ted, but who I think is himself a great and important character. He's a very different hero. He's got a sense of humor, he's got a good heart, but his relationship with his family, with his friends, with the scarab, and with the Blue Beetle legacy allows him to be something totally apart from Ted. The movie takes a lot of liberties--it's part Spider-Man, part Ant-Man, part Green Lantern (though... honestly probably better than the past few recent film adaptations of those characters)--but it doesn't run from the truth of who Jaime is as a character, which I think makes it all the better. The best superhero movie projects don't try to be just an adaptation, but to take what makes the hero great, understand it, and share it in a way that makes them more accessible and loom larger as a hero. 

I don't want to spoil anything, but there was one extremely stupid part that made me tear up (out of just finally getting to see a thing on-screen and knowing there's some practical version of it out there and honestly, a little bit jealousy). If you see me, or want to reach out and ask about it, I'll gladly tell you. 

But there's a Blue Beetle movie. And even though I saw it and really quite liked it... I kinda still can't believe it. 

Next week: No blog on the website/newsletter! There is a Patreon post scheduled if you need your fix, going out to all backers at $5 or more a month! But I'm outta town and will see you when I return. 

What I enjoyed this week: Blank Check (Podcast), Yu-Gi-Oh: Duel Links (Video Game), Craig of the Creek (Cartoon), Honkai Star Rail (Video game), My Adventures with Superman (Cartoon), The Broken Room by Peter Clines (Book), Dumbing of Age (Webcomic), Solve This Murder (Podcast), The Venture Bros: Radiant is the Blood of the Baboon Heart (Movie--which my pal Phil Murphy worked on!), Kaiju No. 8 (Manga), Kaguya-Sama: Love is War (Manga), Blue Beetle (Movie--duh), Oldboy (Movie), Witch Watch (Manga), Becca playing a little more Persona 5, Tangled (Movie), Jurassic Park (Movie), D.E.B.S. (Movie) 

New Releases this week (8/23/2023): Godzilla Monsters & Protectors: All Hail the King TPB (Editor--on the latter half)

Final Order Cut-Off next week (8/28/2023--last day to get your preorders in): Sonic the Hedgehog #65

New Releases next week (8/30/2023): Godzilla Rivals: Vs. SpaceGodzilla (Supervising Editor) Sonic the Hedgehog: Endless Summer (A very silly credit) Sonic the Hedgehog: Scrapnik Island TPB (Editor) 

Announcements: Becca is at Cartoon-a Palooza in Temecula on 9/15 & 9/16. It's a cool free all-ages little con, so come on out and see them!

Wanna support me? Consider joining my Patreon! I've got a bunch of cool stuff coming up and already on there. As well as some silly stuff like a tour of my desk, so you can see where the comics magic happens! I've got a bunch of stuff scheduled for September already and there'll always be more! 

I have a webstore! It does look like I'm going to get a small supplement to my Beast Wars Vol. 3 stock, which is nice, but most everything else, I am not going to have more of anytime soon! Maybe give it a look! 

I've still got a few things on my eBay, if you're looking for stuff! But obviously, anything that would get shipped out won't until I'm back!  Pic of the Week: It was National Cinema Day yesterday, which is why Becca and I went to Blue Beetle ($4 tickets to the movies!). But they had to work, so I went and saw a second film, the 20th anniversary screening of Park Chan-wook's Oldboy. And the theater that was showing Oldboy had a special Cinema Day deal on the Blue Beetle backback popcorn bucket, so I did pick it up because that with a popcorn and a drink was still significantly cheaper than the bucket usually is by itself. So here's a photo of Becca modeling it. 

[alpona]

Revice character analysis *Incomplete*

( this isn't even half of what I was supposed to write, it's a totally incomplete analysis, I started writing but never got the chance to finish properly. It's been sitting on my notes, but finally with some courage, and inspiration from @scoups4lyfe , I'm posting this.)

George Karizaki:

starting with my favourite, yes I'm biased. First, let's just celebrate the fact that I even HAVE a favorite this time? Because despite popular belief, I don't always give out 'fav' title in every season. Even when said seasons are very good and full of good characters.

... But looks like I don't have to write a thing. someone already did a breakdown, of the main question, of Juuga arc. Who? Oh no, not just any random fan.

The actor himself, Hamao Noritaka. He wrote it all! Explained everything!!

When you don't write breakdowns for years, and only come back to find out actors themselves took up the job. 🙄🤣

This actor is a fan himself, and truely so. Well, Nori-chan (yes, I'm using this name) Mainly explained why George went berserk in 47-48, I have something more to say. But He pointed out some things I didn't think of either. Makes sense, as my main clues are from actor's subtle expressions, of course the actor himself should know better!

So at first glance, George Karizaki is... Pure entertainment 🤣. Yep. End of discussion.

He's insufferable, a manchild, pain to work with, also incredibly lonely. In a chill mode most of the time, always having fun, but also uses this persona as coping mechanism.

Has no idea how to deal with serious emotions.

Wants to appear to be in Control, not showing weakness. Tries to act cool and unattached.

...........

Relationship with father:

Goerge clearly had a sweet relationship with his father in his childhood, loved and respected him, masumi was also such a nice and encouraging father. Crystal clear from flashbacks.

Also from the very 1st episode, before any flashback, we see how George looks up to Masumi, and still misses him. Yes, the scene of fenix ceremony. When George was talking about visstamp history, after saying "my father made those..." There was a little pause, then he said 'but he died' with very faint, bittersweet expression.

He also regularly attends Masumi's death memorial, as seen in ep 21/22?

So yah, he respects and misses his father, but came to accept and live with it for all these years. But then eeeverything crashes.

And isn't it funny how he figured this all out in the background ? Unlike main characters typically in such situations, he didn't get a grand revealation like 'whaaat! Daddy you're aliiive!!' he pieced together clues, investigated, and came to this conclusion by himself.

Without any emotional support to handle this grave situation.

Even before knowing the fact about inner demon transfer thingy, I saw a bit of 44 when George refuses to visit his father. Thought of another simple psychological state.

Denial. forced detachment.

He lost his father once, it was definitely sad enough then, plus at such young age. Definitely came to adjust and accept this loss over the years, as normal.

But to find out he's actually alive and then lose him soon AGAIN? For 2nd time? 'I'd rather not care, I'd rather not feel.' tried to deny, and not care, to not feel hurt again.

This idea wasn't exactly true, but still not totally invalid. SO many factors and emotions played roles in this case, ultimately resulting in the breakdown.

Ep 28. Scene- first time facing his father,

"Why didn't you tell me you're alive?" Then his father kept talking about defeating Giff, the world, etc.

But in that moment, with every step George kun took, he couldn't hear the 'world' or giff or whatever. His mind was filled with resentment,

'I'm facing you after ALL this time, and you keep talking about missions, you're not even explaining yourself, I have So many questions, and yet everything else comes first to you, before me? just answer my obvious simple question! How could you? How could you?!!Why? Whywhywhy...'

Masumi was dying, and made it his life's goal to redeem himself of the vail incident, spent his last moments engrossed in it too. Very logical and understable, but to George? It hurt.

'Why couldn't you focus on ME, our time more, and a bit less on the world' , as illogical as it sounds. Also resentment about all the mistakes Kari-chan papa did before, they're separated in the 1st place because of those, and had to spend the entire time fixing those.

He felt abandoned, and used.

Juuga arc:

why didn't it happen sooner and longer??! Lol.

Going berserk and totally unhinged (and suuuper cool! )

Was, in simple words, Goerge's strange way of dealing with grief. Dude has no idea how to deal with such emotions.

Despite everything, did you notice how incredibly lonely this guy is? How he barely deals with serious, real emotions?

Now, a big problem here is that I'm missing some info right here, the summer movie takes place right at this time, so might be missing some important piece of info. Also chic, his father's transferred demon , we barely know any info about that. chic is a villain in the movie, released from George. So gimme info!!

If George's behaviour was indeed influenced by chic, that would change some explanation.. but right now I'm describing things mostly without this effect.

I might have to update this part after the movie comes out.

(*later Update: Summer movie came out, and no, no explanation on this whatsoever. A surprising lack of, I'd say. Chic was one of the main villains there, but George didn't even have a proper talk! Chic is definitely interesting, everything demanded a proper face off or conversation at least, between these 2! Like come on!

And the movie doesn't even transition well from chimera special, I mean George's mood is nothing like in chimera. He's not supposed to be the usual peppy Kari-chan, he was already unhinged in chimera special!)

Someone from FB noted that transfer of Masumi's demon gave George 'imposter syndrome'. It happens in real life, when you doubt your own achievements as someone else's influence.

If all this time he had the part of his father, not sure how much chic influenced him, so everything he did, achieved, invented, was it his own doing, or was it just because of his father? Who am I? He thought he's been controlled, as clear from the lines "in the end I've been dancing in daddy's palm" and "he transferred his demon to control me".

Character development -

Why you became kinda nice later, George- kun? 😝

He slowly started caring for the igarashis, particularly, Daiji's wellbeing. The change seemed sudden at ep 26, when he was genuinely concerned about daiji vs kagerou situation.

But the reason is, from 25, after learning about the igarashi secret and his father's involvement in this whole thing, experimenting on Genta was the reason why the fam, the siblings are in this mess. So that... Kinda gave him a sense of responsibility and guilt? (From This guy, yes!) That's the point when he visibly became more caring. Probably.

......…..

(more observations, theory and questions coming up next!)

[cak31ssuperi04]

Crashing at ur ask box again but the rest of Sweet Beach 4 the ask game

(I feel like one of those door to door newspaper boys trying to to bring u the latest issues of the daily survey /hj /lh)

HOW LONG HAS THIS BEEN IN MY DRAFTS. MY BABIES NO (under the cut)

Hitohito:

favorite thing about them- They love him for his nice kindness. Friendly boy swag. I appreciate that he's a loud energetic type but still portrayed as reasonably smart.

least favorite thing about them- Idk he's just a cool chill guy. What is there to dislike. Maybe that's a problem. Maybe he needs to do something objectionable right now.

favorite line- This isn't quite a line but I think about it often

brOTP- I like the idea of him being Sagara and Izuchi's normie childhood friend. They've mostly lived in the same neighborhood their whole lives so they're just kind of on each other's radars, even if they aren't always exactly close.

OTP- N/A

nOTP- N/A

random headcanon- Kills it at Taiko rhythm games. Fishes in his spare time.

unpopular opinion- N/A

song i associate with them- Brothers. Good vibes slightly nonsensical lyrics

favorite picture of them-

Mary:

favorite thing about them- I like the thread of her being a child star who had to grow up too fast, who's sheltered and emotionally/socially stunted from having to maintain an image all the time and longs for a normalcy that she knows she can't have("people envy what they do not have.") but will enjoy whatever little of it she can. I feel like the Sweet Beach side-character friend events shy away from delving into them beyond a surface-level(which, all things considered, makes sense for how little time they have to dedicate to each one I guess) so it's nice to see it get touched on.

least favorite thing about them- I loooove her design so much don't get me wrong but Actually drawing it is like putting myself through a meat grinder(I'm weak I know)

favorite line- "I see. He's lost the ability to speak. What a sorrowful person." So unintentionally patronizing jksadhasgdhjg

brOTP- Nanashi(obvious answer is obvious) but also Hitohito! I also have the headcanon that she continues visiting the cafe to cool off. While Hitohito(who listens to a lot of top 40 radio stations while he jogs--and since Fairytale Forest lets its employees curate the music that plays in the cafe he just winds up listening to a lot of just the most popular music at the moment at work anyways-- so he IS familiar with her music but doesn't keep up super closely with her as a celebrity.) was able to offhandedly dismiss her as a cosplayer the first time, that excuse doesn't really hold for very long after that.

OTP- N/A

nOTP- Meury is aesthetically interesting but idk the 17-21 age gap is a no for me.

random headcanon- While Sweet Beach is a big tourism area, the specific area that Eruno and Aira takes Nanashi to is a less industrious, less popular area of it, hence all the buildings being single-story and some rando being able to singlehandedly drive all the tourists off the beach(which apparently is the main attraction of said big tourism area) without getting into trouble for it. In any case Mary specifically chose that area because it wouldn't be as swarming with paparazzi and crowds, and easier to keep a lower profile.

unpopular opinion- N/A

song i associate with them- Itan na Star

favorite picture of them-

Meru:

favorite thing about them- Just an eternally sleepy girl trying to make it in this world

least favorite thing about them- For how much it's played for laughs I do wish they either went more into exploring her condition and how it affects her life or gave us more about her character outside of it. Though I guess there is something to be said there about her not seeking professional help and turning to other means because of the stigma surrounding neurological disorders?(if I'm missing the point like, lmk though of course)

favorite line- "…But the work hours are most favorable here. Other slave driving workplaces make you work 5 hours or more…" Go girl

brOTP- I really like the idea of a Meru/Ryuuri/Yuuto friendship. Sleepygang

OTP- Meu! I'm so weirdly invested in the idea of them. Look hear me out. Meru likes stimulating things. Meu is high-energy all the time. They share 2/3 of their favorite gifts(Similar tastes! What do you mean Im grasping at straws im not grasping at straws i)

nOTP- I saw someone suggest Izuchi/Meru once

random headcanon- Loves metal(the music). Also loves rollercoasters, though is hesitant about riding them on her own because what if she falls asleep.

unpopular opinion- N/A

song i associate with them- Time Slip

favorite picture of them-

Saaya:

favorite thing about them- I like that she's kind of complicated? She's a 14 year old with abandonment issues and a warped perception of love who handles it in destructive ways and she's fucked up but that's kind of real to me idkidk

least favorite thing about them- Her treatment of Nanashi (the self harm threats particularly) is still very uncomfortable

favorite line- "Strange? No... This is the realm of gods! Yes! You are a god, Nanashi!!"

brOTP- Meu! I've mentioned this before but I like the idea of her just coming to Meu for divinations on her love life only to end up venting. At some point she just drops the pretenses but Meu is fine with it. She's a good shoulder to cry on.

OTP- N/A

nOTP- Nanashi:(

random headcanon- I like to think she does a bit of sewing for a hobby.

unpopular opinion- Not an unpopular opinion but I'm thinking about how she mentions the water looks a little bloody. And since the water is pink I can't help but imagine 1bh characters having bright pink danganronpa blood

song i associate with them- Aishite Aishite Aishite/ Lovefool

favorite picture of them-

Meu:

favorite thing about them- She's so funny and silly and energetic. She's like an aunt to me. Not really good at what she does but very committed to the bit and I respect that.

least favorite thing about them- Feels a bit scammy to me and I feel like there is potentially a line to be towed there but it's okay she's allowed to do that.

favorite line- "A fortune is never a guarantee! Why, it usually isn't in fact! ✬ Kyahaaa!"

brOTP- Sagara! In my mind Meu eats lunches at Little Berry(is eating cake for lunch entirely healthy? Probably not. But Meu thinks she especially needs a little treat today to help with her luck. In fact she thinks that everyday. Though there probably are a couple of regular food options, and it's right next door anyways) and Sagara acts as a Witch's Apprentice(tm) sometimes when she isn't at work, which basically just means sweeping floors and rearranging things but she also gets to wear a cape and a cool hat so she pretends it's serious magic business. They match each other's energies well and Meu also watches magical girl anime so it works out. Meu lets her hold DND sessions at Star Brink because she likes the vibe there.

OTP- Meru!

nOTP- [see Mary's]

random headcanon- Has a black cat. That she found in a trash can and just decided to keep. Leaves it at home when she can because it keeps trying to knock over her trinkets, and especially has it out for her crystal ball.

unpopular opinion- If she hasn't been roped into a pyramid scheme yet she will be

song i associate with them- No Reason/ Why Must We Tell Them Why

favorite picture of them-

[klondiketales]

This is W.E, in principle I expected that Freckle would forgive Rocky, he cannot live without him, and to answer your question, I am from Russia, if you are wondering why I am in the English fandom, it is because in my country Lackadaisy is not very popular, accordingly there is not much content on it, that's why I came here, something like this, so before moving on to my 2 idea, I will say my opinion about chapter 4, I liked it, but I was confused by the names, when the character speaks, for me it made it a little difficult to immerse myself in the atmosphere, and it felt unnecessary, but as they say, this is my opinion, you still wrote everything well, despite this, so now, let's move on to my 2 idea, here

This idea came from another idea, it's Rapist!Rocky x Rapist!Freckle, so I decided to do a reverse version, yeah, Victim!Rocky x Victim!Freckle, I'll explain everything now, the idea turned out a little fantastic, so I understand if you won't add it in the chapters, so I looked at the comments under chapter 3, and I decided to take the idea where Freckle, after being raped by Rocky, decided to kill himself with a gun, after which, he dies, but he ends up in another alternative reality, where he is Rocky's rapist, as a result, he wakes up in the Rapist!Freckle body, and the first thing he sees is Rocky's face, naturally the Victim!Freckle panics until he realizes what he sees, Freckle sees a very thin and Rocky's beaten body, and he realizes that he is in some kind of basement, a dialogue occurs in which it becomes clear that Freckle is not the same Freckle, and that he is from another alternative reality, Freckle realizes with horror and disgust what his terrible copy has done with Rocky, and yes, Freckle feels guilty, even though it's not his fault, after which, Freckle helps Rocky leave the basement outside, it will be a long process of getting over it, and it's hard for them to look at each other, although they realize that they didn't do those terrible things things with each other like their cousins, although maybe they'll get used to each other and have a family relationship, and yeah, it'll be hard to explain to Ivy that Freckle isn't really the same Freckle

Like I said, the idea is too bigoted, so I'll understand if you don't add it in the chapters, and also, if you're wondering what happened to Rapist!Freckle, he ended up in the body of Victim!Freckle, yes, Rapist!Freckle is dead, and lastly, I’m interested in Rocky’s reaction to all this, I think that at the beginning it’s very hard for him to believe that the person in front of him is not exactly his cousin, and he thinks that his cousin has completely gone crazy, until he believed the words Freckle, because Freckle can't lie, we all know that, thanks in advance for the answers

Hi, W.E. You have really good ideas! I can just imagine the way this would play out. Poor Victim!Freckle would be so scared and confused, finding himself alone with his abuser in a dark, unknown location. Then he would realize Victim!Rocky is chained up, and that he (Freckle) shot himself in the head but isn’t dead…they would both be scared, but they would talk it out. Freckle would find they key in Rapist!Freckle’s duffel bag, and he would set Rocky free, and they would talk things out more, and begin their healing journey together. Rocky would be so happy to see sunlight again, when he was so sure he was going to die in that pit. And Freckle would be so relieved to have his nice, loving, non-evil cousin back :”D and Rocky would feel the same.

Like you said, Rocky might not believe it right away, but he would eventually. He believes a lot of crazy things (like in my other fic when he kept seriously speculating that Mordecai is secretly a vampire). He’s kind of a silly, “addle-brained” boy (as Mitzi put it). So this wouldn’t be totally far beyond his suspension of disbelief. And with time, and hearing the details of Freckle’s explanation, and knowing Freckle isn’t imaginative enough or smart enough to create such an elaborate, unbelievable tale, and seeing the bruises on Freckle from the times Rapist!Rocky hurt him, he would believe him. And Freckle would believe Rocky because he saw the chains, and the starvation-level thinness, and the baby stuff, and Zib’s grave…wow. I really want to make this au.

Just wondering, when you said Victim!Rocky x Victim!Freckle, do you want them to be in a romantic relationship, or just as brothers again? I hope I can do this idea soon, but I might not have time until after final exams in April ;u; I’m taking history of modern greece this semester.

Thanks again for the ideas! They’re so good!!!

EDIT: DAMMIT i forgot to say, you’re right about the new chapter, the format is no good. I was basically just experimenting new ways to save time, definitely won’t be doing it again. I just don’t like it. It’s not effective at communicating the emotions of the scene. It sure was shorter than it would have been otherwise, though.

[andreabandrea]

@carlyraejepsans weaving us friendship bracelets and dancing around right now. soooo true. FINAGLC is the epitome of flowey mischaracterizations to me. that fic really annoyed me because it mischaracterizes not just flowey in an awful way, but papyrus as well. a lot of people seem very drawn to papyrus as this perfect woobie who needs to be protected by his brother instead of, like. an adult man who happens to be silly.

relatedly, sometimes i regret portraying papyrus as asexual in the holiday party fic, because i recall a friend telling me that they, as an autistic person, really see themselves in papyrus, but portraying him as aro/ace can read like i believe that autistic people cant maintain romantic or intimate relationships. i had good intentions, and its not exactly canon that papyrus is or isnt aro/ace (and i dont think its fair to judge him rejecting frisk as him being not interested in relationships-- they're a child, and he was just playing along w/ them to entertain them, there was never a consideration of them as a plausible partner in any way), but i dont want to rub anyone the wrong way. (there's several things i regret about the holiday party fic, honestly, but im really glad people still find joy in it.)

but anyway, i digress. i was going to say that, in general, i need to be honest-- while i miss getting a huge plethora of gorgeous fan art and remixes every single day, early fandom-era undertale was a bit hellish for me. everyone thought chara was a pure evil devil child and you literally had to use the tag 'soft chara' to talk about chara who ISNT the villain of undertale. im glad that this kind of thing has largely fallen out of favor and people have come to understand chara's role better in the no mercy route.

i remember a lot of fics like FINAGLC getting SUPER popular because people can struggle with media comprehension. sorry. like I remember one majorly popular fic that was all about saving Asriel from Chara's evil grasp and bringing him back post-pacifist that got super popular and people were like "Undertale is incomplete because you can't save Asriel" like. some things cant be undone!!! sometimes you just need to move on!!!! ok? ok <3 (and while i like floweypot AUs quite a bit too, i'll be honest, flowey choosing to stay behind in the underground and not play nice w/ all the monsters he tormented for so long is reflective of the player not being able to see the monsters on the surface either. you need to let them live their lives. you need to let go.)

i wonder if certain aspects of UTY like flowey existing at all in this time period or clover not being able to reset are less of a creative choice and more due to the fact that the game started development in ~2016, and this was before popular theories like narra chara and 'all the human souls could probably reset' and so on came into being. sorry to talk mean about UTY again. i promise i sincerely really do like parts of this game and im glad it exists and i'm impressed w/ the devs for finishing it. but i was thinking about this.

even though i'm talking down about people back in the height of the undertale fandom who didn't understand that flowey isn't evil and chara isn't evil, i will admit that there's most certainly things i didnt understand about undertale until later! everyone learns and grows. with that said, i still really dont like FINAGLC.

i think the thing about not understanding that flowey is an unreliable narrator and you shouldn't take his words at face value is that the first thing he tells you, "down here, it's kill or be killed", is pretty blatantly false. if you disbelieve that, why do you believe this traumatized child is a viciously evil killing machine?

[jadeylovesmarvelxo]

💞 Obvious 💞

Summary; There's a new guy that has joined Hellfire and y/n takes an interest in him. Eddie is not happy.

Warnings; Jealous Eddie, fluff.

💞💫

There was a new member of The Hellfire Club, his name was James and y/n was pretty enamoured by him.

He hadn't been in the club long but was an excellent D&D player and a lot of the boys especially Dustin worshipped him.

She couldn't help but admit that he was very, very cute, his brown eyes were gorgeous and he had an effortless sort of confidence that she really admired.

As she headed into Hellfire that night she had made a little effort with her appearance.

"Are you wearing lipstick?". Gareth asks baffled as she joins him at the table and Eddie looks at her curious.

Truthfully Eddie had been her crush for so long, she fell head over heels for him but he always seemed interested in girls like Chrissy Cunningham. The popular, pretty type so she kinda gave up on him ever liking her back.

She and Eddie were friends but they weren't best friends or anything like he was with Gareth and the others and she worried that she didn't mean as much to him as the guys did.

It wasn't like she had been a member long either, only six months.

James's arrival brings her out of her reverie and she beams at him. "Hi, James".

"Hey sweetheart, did you like that movie I recommended for you?". She nods and tries to remember Chrissy's advice on how to flirt because usually, she was god damn terrible at it.

"Yeah. It was a little scary in some parts would have been nice to not watch it alone". She bats her eyes at him and hopes she doesn't look like a fluttery idiot.

"What are you talking about? You loved it. You weren't scared at all". Dustin pipes up and she glares at him, that little shit.

The chatter about D&D takes over and they settle down to play the game. It's a short campaign and James approaches her once they have finished up.

"Good game". He says smiling at her and she feels flushed at his compliment. "You too".

Gareth grins and makes kissy faces at her behind her back and Mike sniggers, she glares at them both. Eddie has a strange expression on his face as he watches her with James.

"I'll see you tomorrow gorgeous". He winks and as soon as he leaves Gareth is teasing her.

"Oh, James, you're so handsome, have you been working out? Kiss me please". He chuckes and she glares at him.

"Asshole, imagine if he saw what you were doing. I'd be so embarrassed". She huffs and Jeff pipes up.

"You so have a type by the way. No wonder you like him. The long hair, brown eyes, and tattoos. He looks exactly like... She glares daggers at him and she peers nervously over at Eddie.

Eddie is watching the whole exchange with his eyes narrowed and he slams down the D&D manual.

It startles all of them. "Eddie, are you okay?". She asks concerned. He nods and helps tidy up quickly before heading out slamming the door behind him and leaving the lot of them very confused.

💫

For the next fortnight, James is very flirty and Eddie seems to get very brooding and moodier. He snapped at her and James for holding up the campaign with their flirting.

They weren't. However, Eddie doesn't seem to listen. It upsets her because her love for him still lingers very heavily.

She likes James, she does but Eddie is her dream guy, she just isn't his dream girl or someone he would remotely ever be interested in and she's trying to deal with that.

Sometimes she wonders if he's jealous but she dismisses that theory quickly.

Tonight is particularly tense at Hellfire, Eddie is pissed about something and James is acting off, he seems strangely nervous.

She exchanges confused looks with Dustin because she doesn't know what is going on.

Lucas bravely speaks up. "Uh, is everything okay Eddie? James?".

James gives them all a charming smile. "Of course, Eddie and I just had a minor disagreement". Eddie scoffs.

"If that's how you want to put it". He mutters his eyes flashing.

"He's just being overprotective that's all". James says good-naturedly and she notices Eddie silently fuming. She walks up to him concerned and touches his arm.

"Eddie?". He softens.

"I'm fine sweetheart". He isn't, he looks very conflicted over something.

"Eddie just misunderstood the situation, that's all". James pipes up and Eddie's expression changes to one of pure anger.

"I didn't misunderstand anything dick, care to explain why you have been flirting with y/n for weeks when you have a girlfriend?".

The guys gasp and she turns around to glower at James. She isn't as upset as she thought she would be, just pissed off.

"Seriously? So what you would have dated us both at once?". She asks him furious and his expression darkens.

"Bet you took great pleasure in saying that huh? Considering the fact you're in love with y/n". He barks at Eddie.

Wait... What?

"Get out". Eddie snarls and she can see the pink tinge in his cheeks. Her heart skips a beat.

James stands his ground and Eddie looks down at the floor downcast. "Well, now you know, I understand that you don't feel the same way". He says resigned.

All this time and he felt the same.

"I thought you had a crush on Chrissy?". She murmurs.

"No, That crush was and ended ages ago princess, you've been it for me since we met. I fell completely in love with you"

James is still whining in the background but she ignores him.

She walks up to Eddie and smiles, strokes his cheek and kisses him. He kisses her back wrapping his arms around her. He pulls away and kisses her forehead.

"I'm sorry, I was so moody sweetheart. I was jealous. I should have just told you". She cuddles into him.

"Ditto, I'm in love with you too Ed's". James gapes looking back and forth between them both.

"Freaks, the lot of you". He storms out. Idiot she thinks as she watches him go and Eddie sighs contented.

"I can't believe you're mine. Been dreaming about this day princess". He tells her and he's staring at her like she's the most precious thing in the world to him.

"How could the two if you not realise how the other felt? It was so obvious" Mike inquires looking genuinely baffled.

"I know dude', Jeff agrees, Gareth and I had a bet going. He owes me 50 bucks". Eddies eyes narrow.

"You bet on us!". He seethes and they both seem suddenly interested in restarting the campaign.

Eddie shakes his head exasperated and they go back to the campaign with identical loving grins on their faces.

💞💫💞💫

[kazewhara]

falling asleep on the train with xiao 😳😳😳

"sorry to bother you but, uh, is this seat taken?"

xiao takes out one headphone at your words and shakes his head. "no, go ahead." he gestures subtly to the seat beside him for you to sit and shuffles over some more when you do.

the trains are usually packed whenever you do your daily commute to and from classes everyday. you'd tried your best to plan your schedule around rush hour, but there were no other times available for the classes you needed, so you had to settle for what was being offered. the crowding and heavy foot traffic does very little to improve your mood for the day, but it's not all bad when you get to see xiao on the way home.

you've had a crush on xiao since the end of your freshman year. he made a name for himself amongst his fellow music majors and professors as a prodigy since he's well-versed in musical history, theory, and overall talent. his good looks only helped boost his popularity with the other students, and soon enough you, along with several others, found themselves weak to xiao's silent charm. you consider yourself to be one of his luckier admirers though, since you're the only one who's been riding the same train with him for over two years now.

the only real problem is that you've never been able to talk to him one-on-one. you have mutual friends which pushed you two together on occasion, but never have you actively sought him out for conversation unless absolutely necessary; you preferred to admire xiao from afar -- or at least as far as hu tao would let you whenever she hosted gatherings.

you squeeze yourself into the end seat beside xiao, willing your heart to slow down when you feel how warm he is next to you. "thanks," you say, smiling a little when he gives you a small nod.

you wish you could say you had some magical moment with your crush on a crowded train, but you can't. after you sit, nothing happens; you and xiao just sit in silence as your train speeds through the city to your respective destinations. you notice that xiao still had one headphone out and for a second, consider telling him that you recognize the song he's listening to, but you think against it; what if he thinks you're weird for paying attention to his music in the first place? his music is loud, but you don't want to come across as nosy, so you stay silent.

honestly, the silence is nice. the rest of the train car is surprisingly quiet, and as the events of the day begin to weigh on you, you feel your eyelids starting to get heavy. you blink twice slowly before giving up and shutting your eyes. you've slept a few times on the train before, so this shouldn't be a problem, right?

xiao nudges you gently, making you jump. "s-sorry," you stammer as though you were in the wrong.

he shakes his head. "no, that wasn't..." the harsh screeching of the train stopping makes him pause for a second, then: "i was going to ask if you wanted to listen since you're nodding off."

your cheeks warm. you look down to see him handing you an ear bud and then back up at his face. xiao isn't the most expressive guy, so you don't know what you were expecting to see, but his golden eyes are fixed on you which makes you look away quickly to pretend you didn't make eye contact at all. this should be fine, right? you two aren't exactly strangers -- this is fine. just friends being friends.

...right?

"are you sure?" you ask, hestiantly taking the earbud. your fingers brush and you recoil a bit. "i don't wanna bother you or anything--"

"if you were bothering me, i would have ignored you when you asked to sit." xiao's words are as blunt as ever. he has a point, even if he's a little too brash in his approach. but here you were, sitting here with your heart hammering away in your chest anyways. "do you want to listen or not?" he asks again.

fearing that you were annoying him, you nod quickly and put the earbud in, your brows furrowing as you tried to make out what song was playing. when you ask xiao about the song that comes to mind, he turns his eyes back to his phone. "do you not like this one?" he asks.

"no, no, it's fine!" you raise a hand to stop him. "it's alright, really. thank you."

xiao gives you a grunt in response and then... nothing. you're back to square one, sitting in silence with your crush as you ride home. the music doesn't ease your nerves the way you thought it would. you can still feel xiao pressed against your side and you're listening to his music; something he likes that he thought you'd like -- something he was willing to change just for you.

you're not sure how you got to this point, but you're pretty sure your crush on him just got worse.

not only does the music not help your nerves, but it doesn't help your drowsiness either. when the next song starts, you close your eyes and try to focus on the music in hopes that the beat would wake you up, but it doesn't. you're asleep in almost no time at all, your head nodding as the train shambles quickly along the tracks.

xiao, who's been watching you from his peripheral for the past couple of minutes, sighs when he sees your head jerk backwards. he's not sure what he was hoping would happen when he offered his headphone to you. he made up the lie of keeping you awake on the spot. he'd actually been meaning to do something like this ages ago; sharing music with others was his way of expressing his fondness for them, be it through the lyrics or melodies, since he wasn't the best at words of affirmation. part of him hoped you'd have picked up on that by now, but judging by the way you seemed to fear him still, he still had a long way to go before he got that message across.

beside him, your head thuds against the wall behind your head and you scrunch your face in pain with a quiet groan, but you don't wake. xiao hesitates for a second before he brings his hand up and pulls you down against his shoulder. xiao tries to reason with himself for being so impulsive -- he's just trying to keep you from hitting your head again, that's all. but when you hum and lean into him a little more, he finds himself stuck.

you seemed to be afraid of him enough as it was; every time you met up, you'd avoid his eyes or cut conversations shorter than they needed to be. just a few minutes ago you shrunk back from his touch like he'd burned you, leaving him clueless. he has no idea what he did to make you act like this around him, especially since he's gone out of his way to make his feelings for you as unnoticeable as possible.

as you slumber on his shoulder, xiao wonders if you would hate him for touching you like this if you found out. again, he sighs. maybe if he was more obvious, you wouldn't act the way you do around him. he rolls his eyes. he swore he would never ask zhongli for advice, but the longer he thinks about it, the more he realizes he may not have a choice.

because if this is what it's like to be so close to you on the regular, if you were always this cozy, then... maybe xiao would have to be greedy just this once.

he rests his head on yours and keeps scrolling through his phone. he'll move and wake you before your stop comes so you won't hate him later. for now, he was going to savor the moment and indulge in your warmth for a little while.

[spideyspeaches]

Heart made of glass ↬ t.h

A/N: Beta read by the lovely @hollandcrush​ !! <3<3

Request (Summary): can you please write one about Tom, who is on the filming process of cherry and has some emotional problems because he feels that his character is already part of his life, so he comes home very angry and in a bad mood, so he just snaps and creates a big fight with the reader and just says things that he obviously didn't meant, you know very angst, and at the end just very fluff.

Hope you like this anon! Lemme know your thoughts heh <3<3

Warnings: breakdowns, slight vomiting but it’s not graphic. I’m not in any way romanticizing or sexualising breakdowns. 

WC: 2k+ 

Pairing: Tom Holland x Reader

Masterlist || Taglist

Tom was an ambitious guy. He took his roles seriously, no matter what his character was and who he played. It was an admirable trait, the way he both enjoyed his work and worked hard to earn a high place in such a place as Hollywood. 

You always took pride in how amazing and accomplished your boyfriend was, your heart swelling whenever you heard his name being mentioned in events and interviews. You enjoyed how he tried to diversify the movies he worked in. 

("I've been playing the friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man for so long, it's about time I play someone different now." He once said in a Jimmy Kimmel interview. You were watching from the audience, smiling as the audience roared in affirmation. 

"Well looks like you took quite a big leap from playing a superhero." Jimmy said, smiling at the audience with his paparazzi smile. 

You knew the question was scripted, quite harmless, but you still noticed how his shoulder stiffened, his smile not wavering once. 

"Well yeah, I used to be a superhero and now I'm a heroin addict." He joked, winking at the audience as he ran a hand through his nearly hairless head.

He cried himself to sleep that night, burying his face in your chest as you shushed him. )

It always worked in his favour, with the incredible support his family and fan base provided. And he was always so humble about it. 

Filming Cherry, however, was way different than he thought it would. With filming Cherry came consequences that he didn't necessarily like. He knew what he was bringing on himself and his family when he was first introduced with the script.

(Contrary to popular belief, he didn't actually give out spoilers, it was just small promotional stunts that kind of took over as his reputation to spoil minor details.)  

The process was intense, getting into the mindset of "Cherry" was taxing, and people were beginning to notice it in him. He was more restless, tugging at his non existent curls when he thought no one would notice. 

He was more clingy, more appreciative of your body and you, letting you know that there was no sexual intent behind his acts of caressing your waist at random times. You didn't notice the change in his behaviour. 

He had always been like this, watching you with the most gratifying gaze a man could muster, his pretty brown eyes like globes of whiskey, staring at you with a muffled expression. You didn't notice. 

There had always been a cutting edge to his voice, you knew and adored it. Behind the British actor who played Spider-Man, he was your Tom. Your Tom who gave you forehead kisses and baked cakes with you and made silly playlists that reminded him of you and you of him, your Tom who worshiped the ground you walked on, your Tom, your Tom and your Tom.

(Sometimes you envied that he was an actor, so good at hiding any emotions he felt, it came easy to him, just another fake emotion like he was a face behind the camera.)

He was never aggressive towards you. Never. Even on tough days, he was soft, caring and understanding to the point where it made you mad, immediately making you feel guilty. He worked so hard and yet here you were, blaming him for being nice, never standing up for himself.

"Uh, Tom, Tom stop, wait." You grunted, pushing his shoulders as he scrambled away from you at your discontent. 

You held his face, his breath hitching, hyperventilating as he tried to get himself together. 

Ever since he had started filming Cherry, he had been away from you. And now that you were finally here, he had been all over you, making love to every inch of your skin, like it was a holy grail he had to find, caressing your warm skin under his fingers making you shiver as his nimble fingers wandered. It was the intimacy, sexual and quasi-sexual, that made you realise, that there was something wrong.

Sex- it had been a constant in your life other than Tom. But of course, you didn't live on it. It was but a fuel that strengthened your relationship, it was about discovery and showing your vulnerable sides. It was a reminder of the coffee dates and baseball matches. It was loving, gentle and raw, like a gentle breeze caressing your face.

But this, this was different. And you noticed. This, what you had been doing, it was fucking. It was aggressive and needy and it felt good, but at the same time, it felt different.

"Baby?" You asked softly, trying to meet his eyes in the dark lit trailer. It was late, way past filming times, the only time you got to see his vulnerable side. 

You should have been in his hotel room, but you were in his trailer instead. All alone in the all encompassing darkness, it made your heart stutter beats. 

"Baby speak to me. What's happening, who's doing this to you?" You ask once again, holding onto him firmly this time, his squirming frame making you loosen your hold. You didn't care that you were naked, he had already seen it all. 

Fiddling with the rough sheets, he huffed a heavy breath. And that was all it took for the dam to break. 

"Tell me how do you feel baby, you're starting to scare me." You urged. All you got in response was his muffled sobs. Pulling him forward, you let his head rest on your bare chest, rivulets of tears sliding down your warm skin, almost burning you like acid, his tiny hair tickling you, a very contrasting feeling. 

"I can't do it. I can't take it anymore." He sniffed, wrapping his strong arms around you, shivering at the contact. It was a cold night in Cleveland, and you were naked and he was crying. You were berating yourself for not noticing. 

"What can't you take anymore?" You hold him, tracing circles on his buzz cut hair, just the way you did when he had his curls. 

"I feel like I'm becoming him. I don't like it at all, I try and try but I can't." He sobs, shoulders hitching with each sob. You felt your heart break, the sounds of his cries sending daggers into your skin. 

How could you have not noticed? The lively sunshine of a man was almost an empty shell. The interviews with former drug addicts had been excruciating for you, pity, disgust, sympathy and every other sinful emotion swirling in your mind. 

You couldn't believe that you hadn't thought about Tom, of what an effect it would have on him. 

"Bub, listen to me, carefully," you said, shushing him as he continued to look at you, teary eyed and red nosed, snot dripping out of his nose,"you listen to me. You're strong and resilient and nothing like him okay? He's not you. You're Tom Holland. You're brilliant and brave and amazing okay?" 

"But I don't feel that way!" He said, his aggressive stance surprising you, "he's- he's…" 

"He's what?" You asked, a little too impatient. Muttering a sorry, you rub your palm on his cheek, kissing the soft, moist skin.

"I don't feel so good." He croaked, getting up suddenly, making a run for the washroom. You rushed after him, watching him as he heaved into the toilet. Rubbing his back, you muttered affirmations, curling besides him as he sat on the ground, his back to the cold wall. 

You got up to switch on the lights, feeling his hands tugging yours, a soft "stay" coming out of him. 

"Better?" You asked, feeling him now against your collarbone. 

"I shouldn't be this affected, this- this isn't fair. I'm overreacting, I'm sorry I worried you baby I swear I didn't mean to-" 

"Shh, Tom first of all, you're not overreacting okay?" You smiled, kissing his nose, moving towards his brows and his forehead, "It's perfectly reasonable. The role you're playing...It's not exactly picking daisies. Fuck you're playing a heroin addict Tommy, a broken soldier with PTSD, a breakdown was inevitable. It only shows that you're human." 

"Really?" He smiled, it looked more like a grimace, a plea for reassurance. 

"Yes, really." You said, booping his nose, eliciting a giggle from him,"now, you better go to bed mister, you have an early shoot don't you?" You playfully scolded, kissing his lips, laughing as he carried you bridal style. 

"Tomorrow will be better." You whispered, kissing his eyelids, already closed, chest moving rhythmically as you counted his pulse, making sure he was completely asleep before slipping on your clothes, covering him with the thin quilt. 

***

"Is everything okay on set?" You asked casually, watching the crewmates work tirelessly in the daylight. 

You were standing next to Ciara on a prop jeep, fiddling with the water bottle held in your hand. 

"Hmm, as okay it can be with two people playing drug addicts." She shrugged, looking at you with a small smile. 

"Are you okay?" You asked, turning to give her your full attention, remembering your boyfriend's breakdown yesterday. 

"It gets… intense at times. Some scenes are hard to play, but we're okay. Mostly." She answered, taking your water bottle and chugging the water. 

"I'm not a therapist, but you can talk to me, you know?" You smiled, holding her shoulder as she gave you a bashful smile. 

"It's been tough on Tom. He's more aggressive, nearly had a breakdown during a scene." She said. 

"Yeah, that.. that happened yesterday too." 

"It was time, a person can only hold so much right?" 

"Yeah." 

You pondered her words, wondering if you could do anything to curb this. 

"I think I need help." He said one day while you were eating dinner. Harry, who was sitting next to you, looked up from his plate, giving you a knowing look before clearing his throat. 

"I'm gonna get some water." He said, waving awkwardly at you and getting up. You took that as a cue to scoot closer to Tom, running your hands through his camel hair. 

"That's very brave of you hun, asking for help." You smiled, kissing his cheek softly. You felt him smile, sliding closer to you, holding you by your waist. 

"I learnt from the best." He muttered in your hair, kissing your forehead. 

You felt his love that day, felt the way he ran his smooth fingers on your waistline, sliding across your thighs with care and softness you hadn't felt in a while. He was healing. It was a process, it took time but it happened.

***

You were walking across the library, his hand in yours, your hearts beating in silence. 

"How was your appointment?" You asked, shivering in the cold air. You rubbed your palms together, bringing your jacket closer to your chest, huffing the cold air. 

"It was good, much different from what the media portrays. She even showed me this meme she thinks you would like, look." He said, bringing out his phone to show you the saved meme. 

You laughed at his eagerness, kissing his lips as a final gratification. 

"Well it looks like you're having a great time. You have another scene left to do today in the evening so we better scram." You reminded him. 

You always did that, remind him of his schedule, reminded him to take a breath when he felt like he was drowning. You reminded him of home and what he had to look forward to.

"Why can't we have a lazy day today?" He whined, kissing your neck, making you giggle as it tickled. 

"You know you can't do that hun, you already took three days off." You snickered, poking his sides. 

"Well that sucks. I just want to spend my day with my girl, is that too much to ask?" He smiled, kissing your forehead, one hand holding yours, swinging back and forth, the other holding a large cup of coffee in a tight grip. 

You reached to loosen his fingers, taking a sip, slurping loudly, making him laugh. You decided you liked this laugh much better, it was breathy and free, a melody to your ears. 

You noticed how he was more relaxed and back to being that ray of sunshine. Back to being your Tom.

Thanks for reading! also as a side note- here’s a similar fic @itsallyscorner​ !!

[thesoundofmadness]

*claps hands* okay so I have different aus depending on if Randy mind wipes.

if he doesn't mind wipe, he works as a teacher at NHS and helps the ninja out with ninja stuff, like the sword smith. nomicon let him since he defeated the Sorcerer

If he DOESN'T mind wipe, I have this au where he and Howard form a popular rock band with Levender. Alot of my thoughts on this comes from this au. Here's the Lore.

So, it's graduation. Randy has until the end of the night to give up the ninja suit and mind wipe. Both he and Howard feel very conflicted about it.

they have a talk, and the ninja nomicon interrupts them, calling Randy in to mind wipe. Before he does, Randy asks Howard NOT to tell him he was the ninja. He's worried it'll somehow undo it and he'll turn into another Mac Antfee. "No matter what happens, no matter what I say later, don't tell me. Promise me you won't." Howard reluctantly agrees. Randy goes into the nomicon and mind wipes. (Howard doesn't mind wipe because the nomicon just. forgot to. it prioritized Randy for obvious reasons.)

After graduating and giving up the ninja, Randy becomes a bit of a legend in the ninja nomicon for defeating the sorcerer, sorceress, and a bunch of other shit.

They both go off to college. Howard studies either business or culinary, but Randy's just going for a basic degree. He didn't plan for after high school at all because of the mind wipe. He feels very lost and aimless. He's also developing PTSD from being the ninja, but absolutely no one can figure out why. (look me in my eyes and tell me that boy isn't traumatized). Doctors suggest it's some sort of dissociative thing. Whatever it was, he couldn't handle it so his brain forced him to forget. He knows that isn't it, but absolutely cannot place why. Plus the general stress that comes with being an adult, he's Not Having A Good Time.

(One HC I have about Randy's PTSD is that he has selective mutism. Whenever he gets really freaked out he'll just straight up stop talking for days. Stealth is one of the biggest aspects of being a ninja, so Randy started associating quiet with safety. If no one can hear him, no one can hurt him)

Howard starts drifting from him. He HATES lying to Randy about him being the ninja, but doesn't want to break his promise to him. Howard stops hanging out with him, stops texting him, eventually they stop talking completely. Randy doesn't know why, and Howard hates every second of it. He's also somewhat dealing with trauma from being possessed by the Tengu and watching Randy get hurt so much, but it's a bit easier for him than Randy.

One night, Randy decides to go out to a local bar, and Levander just so happens to be performing there with his new band. Levender recognizes him in the crowd afterwards and decides to say hi. Levender is still pursuing rock-stardom. Surprisingly he doesn't have any hard feelings about what happened in 9th grade, but Randy still feels bad about it (even if he doesn't know exactly *what* he feels bad about).

Ya know the classic nerd to cool kid transformation? That's exactly what happened to Levander. He's still kinda shy and not exactly confident, but calm and easy to talk to. They're going to different schools, but Levender is studying absolutely everything he can about music. From songwriting to composing to producing to actually playing. And he has some serious skills from playing the guitar for so long.

They start becoming friends. Randy's a bit wary of him, but that goes away quickly. Levender does ask about Howard, and Randy just says they're "not talking"

Whenever Randy and Levender run into Howard, it's awkward. Randy keeps trying to act like everything is normal, but Howard just keeps pulling away and won't even tell Randy why. Levender is nice and keeps the mood light, but it's clear Something is happening. Levender wants to help Randy, but mostly stays out of it.

Howard's really conflicted about Randy. Not just the promise, but everything else. Randy constantly ditching him for ninja stuff, Randy getting hurt so much, feeling awful for having the chronic disease of being 15, suddenly NOT having Randy with him constantly, Lavender apparently replacing him?? t's a lot.

In the background of all this, Levender is also having some drama with his band. The main issue is, despite having all the instrumental power, they don't have a lead singer, so no record company is going to pick them up. This leads to them fighting and Levander leaving the band after his members say he doesn't have the talent for them. Levender vents to Randy about it, and Randy tells him a nomicon lesson about being yourself and doing what you want. Levender is... oddly inspired by this. He asks Randy if he wants to try forming a band with him. Randy's hesitant, but ultimately agrees to try it.

eventually Howard has enough of all this, and decides to make up with Randy. Randy's not having it after nearly a year of Howard ignoring him. it leads into a fight.

I like to imagine Heidi gets fucking Annoyed at Howard having all this drama, and just. forces him to talk to Randy. Straight up drags his ass to the Gamehole to meet Randy a few weeks later.

Randy and Howard have. not exactly a fight but I wouldn't call it a conversation. More like, them just crying their feelings out to each other. They didn't want to stop being friends, things just... changed and they couldn't deal with it. They make up.

They make up, they start hanging out again. Levender and Howard make awkward friends, eventually leading Randy and Levender to ask Howard to be their drummer.

Years later, they graduate college and manage to start a successful career as indie musicians. Levender plays guitar and handles everything musically. Composing, song writing, and producing. Howard plays drums, manages their money and gets them gigs. Randy's the lead singer, plays piano and synth, and handles everything regarding the public. They have 5 albums in total, but it's not until their 3rd album they really got their sound and started making a name for themselves.

The ninja keeps ninja-ing tho. By the time their 5th album comes out, there's been at least 2 ninja cycles.

Randy learns to manage his PTSD better, but it never really goes away. He doesn't know he was the ninja, and it haunts him. He can feel something happened, but it's really fuzzy. Ya know that feeling you have when you have a good dream but can't remember any of it? It's like that for him. He's almost desperate to figure out what happened to him.

Tho, being the ninja never crosses his mind. He still holds a lot of respect for the ninja. If he and the ninja ever meet, he does what he can to help them while feeling the weirdest sense of deja vu. For some reason, Randy feels an odd sense to protect them?? He just has a feeling they're not the mythical 800 year old hero everyone knows. He doesn't really care to find out their identity tho, just to make sure they're safe in battle. Complete opposite of Mac Antfee.

I like to imagine the ninja is very popular in Norrisvile internet. There's dozens and dozens of fan pages and YouTube videos about the ninja, including a lot about Randy's time as the ninja. Randy finds a lot of it easily. The mind wipe doesn't let him connect the dots, and it's VERY frustrating.

Howard knows they're only a teenager in a magic ninja suit, but doesn't dare to ever tell anyone that. He doesn't want to put himself or the Ninja in danger, while also keeping his promise to Randy. Whenever the ninja shows up to fight a monster, Howard stays close by and makes sure they're okay after. He doesn't care to learn their identity either.

Levender's a fanboy. No clue about anything, but thinks they're cool, and grateful that they're here to protect everyone. He is curious about their identity, but he's not gonna try figuring it out.

I have a bunch of stuff between Howard and Levender, and some more specific hcs, but this is long enough already-

do you wanna hear some ideas I have for Randy mind wiping after high school? I've thought about it so much.

I love weinerham sm. I've always imagined them as like, 'not officially but might as well be'. Randy insists that he's in love with Theresa, but then constantly talks about and acts very affectionate towards Howard. and Howard's being a tsundere. Weinerham with Randy getting hurt from ninja-ing owns my soul

YES YES YES tell me rn🫵

Tsundere Howard is what none of us wanted to say but all know is true. And I totally totally agree they call each other pet names and are so affectionate and always have been that it’s normal to them and so so fruity to everyone else. And I will forever and always be a sucker for wound tending as hurt/comfort <33