#the answer is presumably practice but like. Idk

[seawitchkaraoke]

hey artists how tf do you learn to draw people bc I've never been particularly good at drawing but I can manage plants and I can manage stuff that's vaguely geometric but humans? Impossible. But also I have animatics in my head that have been in there for 10 years and at some point I can't keep waiting for them to make a silmarillion TV show to give me footage to use so I guess I gotta learn how to draw faces and how proportions work and shit

[deliciouskeys]

Beware the Patient Woman (my foray into Sagelander)

This is set right after season 4. I don’t address anything beyond Sagelander. Ashley disappeared. Ryan is presumed returned to Vought Tower, maybe staying in a different room while they have to renovate Homelander’s apartment top to bottom. This is either a standalone or a chapter 1, idk. Had to get it out of my system. Rated PG cause I'm lazy/ a coward? (for now). AO3 link.

Sage may not have x-ray vision but she can tell who’s behind the door by the sound of the knock before she opens it. She didn’t have time to change out of her pajamas, but at least she was awake.

"May I come in?" he asks, peering down at her before his eyes start roving around the room.

"Of course," she says, even though she was looking forward to lying around in bed before having to put her suit on and trot out to the board meetings.

"Sorry, I know it’s early. I couldn’t really sleep last night." He walks in, almost brushing past her, arms clasped behind his back and hidden by the American flag cape billowing slightly behind him, so close that she has to lean back slightly to avoid getting an eagle beak to the face. But he didn’t mean disrespect by it, just distracted by looking all around the room.

"This was so much emptier when Maeve lived here," he remarks, stepping around various small pieces of furniture, nearly all stacked with books.

"I’m sure she needed the space to practice her combat techniques."

"Yeah or her drinking or her threesomes. I’m not sure she had the attention span to read a book in her life," he mumbles angrily, and Sage doesn’t like where this conversation is going at all. She knew there might be a downside to being given the room where Homelander’s old flame used to live.

"Did you want to discuss something?" she says, trying to keep any impatience out of her voice.

He turns around sharply to face her. "I really wanted to thank you for… everything that happened yesterday. I couldn’t even articulate how grateful I was for what you did for me."

For him, he thinks, despite her telling him point-blank that she did it to see if she could. But she was banking on his gratitude and on the high value he places on loyalty.

"You’re so very welcome. But I only did what you hired me to do," she says, cautiously, hoping this will emphasize that she may not necessarily have any interest in going beyond what she was hired to do. Maintaining boundaries with a man like this was always important.

"No, no." One of his hands emerges from behind his back to wag a finger at her. "Don’t play dumb with me. You know what I’m talking about. You did what I hired you to do, sure, but you did it even after I dismissed you. I’m not stupid, Sage. I know you could have used that brain of yours to fuck me thrice over and get revenge for how badly I treated you. I admit, I underestimated you. I did a dangerous thing, letting you go, when you were my best ally all along. So I… I know you could have made things worse for me, but you chose to side with me anyway. I was absolutely wrong about you, and it won’t happen again. I will listen to you, like I promised."

Sage hesitates. He’s saying all the right things, but these hollow promises aren’t worth much when they’ll fall to the wayside the next time he gets fed up with her. No, he’s leading up to something, and she’s wary of what might come next, so she’s not sure how she should reply to steer the conversation away.

"That’s good to hear. And no hard feelings, trust me."

Homelander nods. "Yeah, trust. I do want to ask you one thing. It’s just… I do trust you, but could I just ask you to keep me in the loop? No more lies?"

"I don’t think I ever outright lied to you," Sage answers, taking a deep breath, trying to keep her breath steady. Was this human powderkeg about to explode again? She thought she had him placated for at least a few weeks, but maybe she’s miscalculating just how paranoid he is. It's hard to feel completely calm when he's standing over her, forcing her to tilt her face upwards to meet his gaze.

"Well I’m including lying by omission," he says, but then his expression changes, softens strangely, and he steps back as if realizing that he's been looming over her. "I’m sorry, you’re misunderstanding, I didn’t come here to threaten you in any way. I just wanted to… maybe just establish best practices, going forward."

Shit, her heart rate must have spiked, finally given away that she was getting nervous. "Oh yeah, I understand. I appreciate that. Let’s discuss that."

Homelander shakes his head, wincing. "Look, I really don’t mean to dictate how you should work. I realize I’m doing it automatically. I’m catching myself telling you what to do again. I respect that you might not want to tell me everything– I do. I’ll be honest, it is a blow to the ego, and I’m not used to it, because… well you’ve seen the caliber of idiots that I've had to deal with. I’m not used to trusting someone else." 

He looks … unsure of himself? Is he genuinely apologetic? Sage is so reluctant to interpret anything he says as benign and without ulterior motives, but it’s tempting to believe him right now. She’s really at a loss for words, content to let him just keep talking and explain himself.

"So… I take back everything I said," Homelander mutters, his mouth folding even thinner as soon as he says it. "I trust you so much that I allow you to lie by omission. But if I ask you something, I’d really like a straight answer. Call it my weakness. I’m not a details guy. I’m not aspiring to look over your shoulder and micromanage your plans. But I just- I just need a little something in return for the trust. I need to be able to check in once in a while and know you won’t lie to my face."

Sage can’t believe she’s getting to watch this man wrestle with himself, threatening to spiral out while trying to define what’s important to him and what’s reasonable to ask of her. He’s debating with himself with only the barest input from her. She needs to nip this in the bud. She’s never felt that comfortable seeing him cry, and she doesn’t want things to get to that point, where she’ll have to comfort him instead of just reassuring him. "Hey listen. I love working with you. You’re giving me the opportunity of a lifetime. I’ll gladly discuss plans with you if you’re really interested in the boring details." Maybe she’s overselling it a bit, but he looks like he recovers his poise at least. 

"Anyway, that’s not even what I came here to ask you." he says, his tone sounding more like his usual self. "I wanted to invite you out for dinner. Just as a small token of appreciation- ah-ah! Nope!" he says, raising his hand as she tries to interrupt him. "Don’t say no before you hear the proposition. I found out you like sushi."

Sage’s blood runs a little cold at hearing him know something about her that she doesn’t think she ever revealed to anybody on staff at Vought.

"I located your mother and asked her a little about you over the phone last night," he says, as if guessing the question in her mind. Of course he did. He probably thinks that gives him leverage over her. Well, joke’s on him, because she hasn’t been in much contact with her mom, they haven’t gotten along since she was a teenager, and she’s not going to be manipulated by him threatening her mom. But her mom is right that she likes sushi.

"Oh yeah?" Sage asks, summoning a genuine looking smile to her face because she’s not sure how well he can tell when her mind starts running at triple speed when she’s feeling pressure. "I do love me some sushi. And I haven’t tried that many places since moving here, because it’s been so busy."

"Great!" he says, and now his smile looks genuine too, the fleeting reference to her family thankfully fading out of their conversation. "I’ve rented out this place called Masa night. You’re gonna love it. Three Michelin stars and all that. Best sushi in New York."

"Yeah, tonight works," Sage says, hoping it’s not too rude to imply that his setting her daily schedule for her is overstepping, his certainty that she’s going to love hanging out with him is overstepping. 

"Usually I wouldn’t put you through the hassle of going out, just have the chefs come to work at the Vought kitchen and host it at my place, but you know… my place is a bit of a disaster zone right now and yours… well I don’t wanna disturb your little setup you’ve got going on here."

Yes, there’s a problem she needs to solve as soon as possible brewing here. She’s very fucking glad she’s not being invited to dinner at his place. "So is there a dress code? Do I have to wear my superhero suit?"

Homelander scoffs. "I’ve rented it out. No paps, no photos. You can come in whatever you damn well please. Wear sweatpants if you want. This is all for you!" He smiles again, and it’s really genuine, and now she’s concerned that her fears are true. In his mind, this is a date.

"Just you and me?" she verifies, and when he nods she takes a deep breath and says something risky, but better now than later. "Just so you know– I don’t really do romantic relationships. I’ve slept with a couple of members of the Seven, but you don’t strike me as the kind of person who would want to get in on that action."

Homelander blinks, clearly taken aback. "It’s just dinner with a colleague," he says, but his tone is halting. "I don’t- that’s none of my business what you do in your free time with-" he licks his lips and Sage tries to guess what bothers him most about this. "Were you sleeping with A-Train? Is that how you knew?"

"No, I don’t mix work and pleasure like that." Sage can’t help but laugh a little. "I can tell you with whom. ‘No more secrets’, right? Noir and the Deep."

Sage can practically hear the wheels in Homelander’s head turning as he tries to picture it. "Huh," he says. "Well that’s uh… your prerogative certainly." Is that hurt in his voice? Maybe disbelief that she’d fuck people he considers far beneath him?

"Exactly. I assumed that someone like you would have no problem with workplace hookups," she says, shrugging. "Being part of the Seven isn’t really a normal gig. It’s so full-time, it’s your entire life. Might as well get some fun out of it."

"Yeah, makes sense," he mutters, trailing off, still thinking.

"So tonight then? What time?" she asks.

He snaps out of his thoughts. "I rented it out for the entire evening. So anytime from five onward. Up to you."

"Seven then?" she says. He nods and walks out stiffly. Sage shuts the door and leans back against it. She has to navigate this right. This overpowered manchild doesn’t have a good track record of keeping work and pleasure separate, but she can’t rebuff him in a way that insults him. She thought she was in the clear– that someone like her would never attract that kind of attention from him. She needed to be smart about this.

[st-severus]

Can't remember which one of the Snape asks you've answered already but 13

Thanks for asking!

13. How do you think Snape treats his own house?

I don’t think he’d actually be too much different with his own house than he is with the rest of his students, the only difference being that there’s no Harry Potter in Slytherin so there’s no one he would be so insane about. I think if someone on the Slytherin side was as incompetent as Neville he’d likely be (almost) the same way with him.

The exception being with Draco as it’s quite natural to be more understanding/gentle/idk-what-word-im-going-for to the son of a good friend. I presume that he and Lucius Malloy were a kind of friend as were told, and I also don’t think the author has gone through all the consequences of the fact that Snape is essentially a sleeper agent so I’m guessing all his motives are much more elemental than strategic regarding the Slytherins.

However, it seems to be completely normal to favour your own house in the school competitions as we see Dumbledore do to a hilarious degree so there’s no reason why he wouldn’t do the same, when that kind of thing came to him attention. Like when he signs up all the practice time for the Slytherins I think ahead of a Qudditch match which is so funny and such low-key sabotage. Like you are all so crazy about Qudditch and you didn’t bother to sign your houses up for practice??

In general, I think he’d be pretty strict with the Slytherins as well, impatient with the various squabbles of youth but very conscientious with their education like he is with most of his students.

[finderseeker]

Season 6 liveblog post! I'll be continuing the practice of putting it all under a read more so it doesn't clog up my blog or 55 people's dashboards.

So are we just not gonna talk about that Jake is partying with an all-powerful being and several cosmic entities including the lich?? (And also Peppermint Butler is there???)

I do like Prismo he seems cool. And he's got a neat design

Ohhh that's interesting about the lich. Prismo says the lich's "primary function is to cause mass death." And then compares him to "a machine without a purpose." Hmmmmm

Wait I thought the time room was outside of linear time

Finn is handling being in the same room as the lich, who's still in Billy's body, weirdly well.

DUDE WHAT IS THAT LIKE SHADOW PRISMO

PRISMO IS A DREAM!?

Why is he okay with being killed??

Wait, "killing a wishmaster"? Are there others??

"As soon as my corporeal body falls asleep again in a thousand years I'll be back!" PRISMO C'MON. THE LICH IS RIGHT THERE. YOU'VE GOTTA SEE WHY THIS IS A BAD IDEA.

*SCREECH*

Well at least the lich is imprisoned...?

Oh no. Weird black fire stuff

Either this guy's not his dad or his dad's just a jerk.

I'm gonna guess not his dad. He does suck.

Many questions about the lich...

UHH GRASS SWORD?

DUDE HIS ARM!?!? FOR THAT DICKWAD!?!?!? HIS ARM AND SICK GRASS SWORD!?

Is he gonna grow a grass arm...?

Uhhh more questions about the lich...

Oh no. I think uh. I think you guys should've told PB about this whole deal. Before you uh. Before you left baby lich with. Tree Trunks.

James again huh? Curious about that whole deal.

Three months since the zombie thing huh. Interesting when they give real a timeline for stuff.

Kind of. Um. Disturbing. How PB treats refusing to keep cloning James like she's firing someone from their job instead of. Y'know. Letting someone die. Like don't get me wrong I'm not saying treating him as expendable because he can be cloned was right either, but. Idk.

HE FAKED HIS DEATH A BUNCH OF TIMES?

"Dude I've been to your funeral like 25 times."

Banana guard just knew the term "vigintiquintuplets" huh

I've been wondering about how PB has, presumably, been the one who made the majority of the candy people, especially her own staff. And how she's definitely capable of making competent beings (like those gumball machine swordsmen), but she surrounds herself with goofballs, save for a few. Is it because she likes to feel like smartest one? Is it because she wants to be left to her own devices but can't take care of everything on her own? Is it because she wants to be needed? Some combination of those things?

This episode did not answer my questions about the radioactive goo.

I am glad that they're not brushing the arm thing off. I'm glad that they're not just giving him a prosthetic that replaces it perfectly. And the prosthetic PB gave him was unwieldy and hard to use, just like a real prosthetic.

Oh. He's got a ghost arm. :/

"AHH!" "What??" "I just thought about my anxieties, and it's like my mind-hand touched a hot memory-stove." That is EXACTLY WHAT IT FEELS LIKE YEAH.

Revenge be like that.

CANDY KINGDOM FALLOUT SHELTER?

Oh the ghost arm is gone that's good(?)

Dude where did you THINK that tower would fa

Once again: glad they’re not brushing this arm business or the effects of what happened with his dad off. It’s cool they’re exploring the numbness that comes after the anger.

Finn nooo don’t get your feel-good brain chemicals from kissing a whole bunch of girls! That won’t end well.

Did.

Did Finn.

Did Finn sleep with LSP…

TREE!?

HE REGREW HIS ARM!?

This feels like a cop-out, but at least it wasn’t immediate…

Alright. I admit I didn’t expect to be wrong about the ancient psychic tandem war elephant

Ohh another genderbend episode

LSP kidnapped the Ice King to make him read her take on Fionna and Cake. Incredible. Can’t wait to see how this goes.

I love that all these episodes are like, totally skewed by whoever writing.

Alright this is long. New reblog.

[gildengirl]

Why do you think Zach avoided talking to Cammie for two weeks after she told him what happened to her dad?

I'm assuming we're talking about the "somebody knows" scene in CMH. If so, I actually have a couple ideas because I've wondered about this too.

The first and most simple explanation is that boys are confusing. 😂

The second is that I think Zach might have been a little spooked by how fast his walls were coming down for Cammie. I mean, he's still very mysterious and by no means an open-book, but he's the one who actually prompts her to ask him about his parents: "I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours," which is big considering Zach is VERY guarded about that topic, even well into their relationship. I also think that when Cammie says that her dad went missing, it hits close to home for Zach, with him never having a dad and all. When he says "somebody knows" I think he's saying that to himself as much as he's saying it to Cam. At least that's my take on this scene.

"I'm saying somebody knows," Zach said, not snapping, but his voice was sharper—stronger. "I'm saying you shouldn't act like there aren't any answers just because you haven't taken the time to look for them."

Like, tell me that that isn't the wounds of abandonment talking. I don't think he'd admit it, but I believe Zach has spent a lot of time wondering if he'd ever have any answers about his father. And like Cammie at this point, he hasn't really gone looking for them either. Because as bad as not knowing is, there's always the risk that knowing is worse. Of course, Cammie doesn't know any of this about Zach at this point in the series, which is why he comes off a little harsh. But I genuinely believe this might be his attempt at bonding—he just hasn't had a lot of practice. In this scene I think you can tell that Zach really wants to get to know Cammie, and he actually wants Cammie to get to know him. So maybe he spends the next two weeks trying to work up the courage to ask Cammie out, which he does in a very mysterious "spy" way with the brush pass note and all, but still.

The third idea is kinda a continuation of the second (idea 2b I guess), but I have always wondered exactly how much Joe was involved. Like, it's no secret that Joe is kinda playing matchmaker throughout CMH. I mean, these are the two kids he cares most for in the world, so you best believe he's keeping an eye on them. JOE SOLOMON SEES ALL. Especially when it comes to the daughter of his best friend. Zach essentially told Cammie "there's answers, you just haven't looked for them" after she told him that her dad is MIA (presumably KIA) and she later goes into the passageways and CRIES!?! If Joe knew about that, Zach would totally be getting a lecture similar to the one we see him get in the CMH epilogue. The two weeks that go by is maybe just because Zach was put in the time-out of his life. But idk, that's just a silly little headcanon.

[workingforitallthetime]

drawn arrows unseen

part 15 / previous installments/tags

Mason plays nine games, and at morning skate before the tenth game, they make him lead the stretches. The clatter of his teammates’ tapping sticks fills the circle. He’s staying in Anaheim.

It’s harder to follow the Pats in his new time zone, but Mason manages it. He watches the fuzzy WHL stream when he can, and he sees his share of media coverage about next year’s presumed 1OA draft pick and his incredible shot and his dedication to hockey and how he’s only 5’9 but he’s sturdy with those thick hockey thighs, and that’s when Mason usually makes himself close the tab.

He keeps texting Connor just the same as ever. Hockey stuff. Draft stuff. Being Connor’s friend from the safe remove of his phone feels allowable. It also feels a little fraudulent, but it’s not like Mason’s going to stop talking to him. Maybe their texts are less frequent this season, but Connor’s got a lot going on. Anyone who follows hockey can tell that.

One afternoon a text from Connor catches Mason at home, on an off day in the middle of a homestand. He wonders later if Connor planned it that way.

hey this is going to come out soon so turns out I’m an omega

Mason’s hands go numb around his phone. It’s really happening. Kent was right. Mason was right, or his nose was. He can’t tell himself any more that maybe this is all some fucked-up mistake. He can’t think of what to say back, or make his thumbs work to say it. Another text from Connor appears before Mason can unfreeze, and he immediately feels guilty.

R u surprised? 

Sweat pricks at the edge of Mason’s forehead. How the fuck is he supposed to answer that? Yeah no your scent’s been driving me crazy all year, bet you didn’t think this could get any more fucked up huh! No way. Connor’s got enough to deal with already. He makes himself type kinda, and hits send. Thanks for telling me, he adds.

He stares at his phone. ok, Connor says. And then

Have you

A fragment, like Connor meant to rewrite or delete it instead of hit send. But it’s an opening Mason has to take. Connor’s going to find out sometime. If Mason doesn’t say it now it’ll only be worse later. His hand shakes as he thumbs Y and sends it. Another fragment. He should keep typing. He can’t make himself.

Instead, a reply from Connor pops up. 🅰️?

Heat roars through Mason’s belly at Connor calling him alpha, even in emoji form. Suddenly he feels more confident, ready to take charge of the conversation. Did the beard give it away?

Connor’s typing bubble appears. Then it goes away. It comes back, for a long time. But after another pause, all that appears is ya😂.

Idk why it’s not out yet, Mason says. Guess nobody cares about anaheim. He’s been bracing himself, knowing it wouldn’t take long once they reopened locker rooms to the media. But all of their very few beat reporters are betas. Trevor’s buzz hasn’t been enough to bring the national broadcast through town yet this season.

But this conversation should be about Connor, not him. r u ok? Mason asks.

just getting used to it

you could talk to owen, Mason suggests.

haha that’s what kent said

Heart pounding, Mason immediately swipes over to his text thread with Kent. Did u say anything to connor? 

No but u should. 

Mason can practically see Kent rolling his eyes as he types it. He’s halfway through a response when the texts on his screen are replaced by an incoming FaceTime.

Connor.

The same photo of Connor that’s always been in Mason’s phone, the two of them at U18 worlds, medals around their necks and trophy held between them. Mason opens the call and the photo is replaced with Connor’s face, a little narrower and sharper than it was a year and a half ago. The panic Mason felt at the FaceTime alert is washed away by the relief of seeing Connor, the anticipation of hearing his dry voice. 

“Hi,” Mason says, embarrassed at the fondness that manages to pack itself into that one single syllable. 

“Hey.” Connor’s wearing an old white t-shirt with a collar that’s stretched crookedly. The tips of his collarbones show underneath its edge. “Just thought I’d call. Probably should have in the first place, but.”

“Yeah, I get it.” Mason’s body autopilots him through his apartment while his eyes are glued to Connor. He closes his bedroom door behind him even though there’s no one else at home.

Connor sighs, frustrated. “I don’t know.” He looks so young.

The room behind Connor is nondescript. Mason can see the edge of the doorframe, the anonymous seam where the wall meets the ceiling. Probably their apartment in Regina.

Mason scoots back on his bed to sit up against the wall. The last time he saw Connor looking anything other than perfectly self-possessed was that first practice in Texas, holding his stick too tight. Mason knew what to do then. He doesn’t now.

“How’d you find out?” Mason regrets the question as soon as it’s out of his mouth. It’s not like Connor’s going to say I scented you and it was game over.

Connor’s eyes shift to the side, evasive. “It was pretty obvious.”

Mason wonders if there’s an omega equivalent of his own experience. For a split second he pictures Connor waking from a dream, slick pooling between his legs, and then he makes himself stop thinking.

“How about you?”

Mason scrubs a hand over his face. “Yeah, also obvious.” What would it be like if he could just say it? Most insane wet dream of my life, popped a knot. Would Connor ask him more? Would he stay on the line as Mason told him about the dizzying sensitivity of his knot swelling in his hand and what it might feel like swelling inside Connor, would he murmur geography questions to Mason while he…

He's seventeen. Mason wrenches his thoughts away and changes the subject. “Has anybody given you a hard time?”

“Nah.” Connor’s voice is wry. “I mean, I’m getting chirped, obviously. Like, Val…” Connor rolls his eyes like never mind, and Mason makes a mental note to check the Pats roster for who the fuck Val is.

“Are you worried about the draft?”

Connor shrugs. “Not much I can do.” The indifference seems more practiced than genuine. “Maybe Fantilli beats me out after all.”

“Fuck that,” Mason spits. “You’re better than he is.”

“He’s not an omega.”

“That we know of,” Mason counters.

Connor laughs. “I’ll keep you updated if I find out anything next month. Breaking news.”

World juniors. Mason’s been trying not to think about it. “You guys should have a good team.”

“You’re definitely out?” Connor’s blue eyes bore through the screen at him.

“Yeah, not an option.” It’s the right thing. But that doesn’t stop Mason from wanting to abandon his NHL contract and run straight to Connor.

Connor has a funny look on his face. “They probably wouldn’t let us room together anyway, eh.”

“Yeah.” It hurts to say it. “Guess those days are over.”

(next)

[pumpkinsy0]

ALRIGHT heres a general idea for my haitian zonbi (zombie) au for the outsiders

alright so heres key words to remember

bokor- male sorcerer who practices both light and dark magic, they have a connection with the spirit world and have a vast knowledge of herbs and rituals

mambo- basically a female version of a bokor but they play a more significant role in ceremonies, performing rituals, providing spiritual guidance and that whole thing

SO

angela is a mambo and curly is a bokor

it takes place like after johnny stabs bob and him and pony leave but WOW OH WOW WOULD U LOOK AT THAT, bob isnt dead johnny didnt kill the guy but damn hes close, angela finds him and long story short gives him this toxin that makes it look like hes dead BUT HES NOT☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽

maybe later on some other ppl find him, and hes presumed dead and buried, and angela and curly dig the guy back up and this toxin just makes it so bob is in a dream like state and isnt actually conscious, hes soulless basically and is controlled by angela and curly

CONTROLLED TO DO WHAT EXACTLY???? man idk yet for now hes just staying in the house or this secret hideout doing shit for angela and curly

some notes i wanna bring to light

1) this is actually common in how zombies r made in haitian vodou and to b SO VERY CLEAR, it ISNT a widespread or rlly accepted practice in haitian vodou, its like considered dark magic so this isnt me trying to spread misinfo or anything like that, angela and curly r just emotional teens w powers

2) this is just a general draft for the au, i may or may not change it up a bit later on

ANYWAYS if u got questions im happy to answer 🤞🏽🤞🏽

[mwebber]

also listen, like. i know this girlseb au stuff can get pretty heavy and i get why people are in my inbox asking for fluff or post-red bull scenarios. don't get me wrong, i'm happy to linger on it! but i don't take the au so seriously anymore... she's messed up and he's not a good person and they're awful for each other. they're tropes to the extreme by design. they don't need to be anything other than completely self indulgent wank fodder if you don't want them to be. they could be an examination of gender roles if you like, or they can be your meta critique of rpf, or they can simply be read at surface level as everything changes: the heterosexual version. if u don't think something is realistic or in character--fine by me!

but ig idk, please don't like, presume the au is some epic love story that it's not. i haven't given that much thought to this whole martian pregnancy/kids/life after red bull thing beyond "oh yeah, that'd probably happen in this fic because that's what's supposed to happen in these kinds of fics." plus in all honesty, fanfic OCs like imaginary kids make me uncomfortable in general...

so how does girlseb au martian resolve their problems to get their happily ever after? they don't, not really, but it doesn't much matter bc their actual story lies in where they're unresolved. the main point is not their resolution / the answer to their problems, but how they navigate their dynamic and complex history while mired in the pit of their self-made hell, and in doing so, demonstrate aspects of survival in complicated relationships and life situations. god forbid i ever find myself in a nasty love triangle like martianson in "wrestling in dirt pits" ! but having put it on paper, i can at least put words to some personal (if far more general) feelings of inadequacy and jealousy, or at the very least, i've gotten some practice in writing messy situationships. it's fiction. it's creative writing. nothing more, but nothing less, either :)

[myrtaceaae]

Also I know that school experience paragraph was long, so I'making a different post just to bitch about it. Basically towards the end of primary school (years 4,5,6), I got a shit education, especially at my third school. What happened at that school was that the "bright" kids and the struggling kids were put into the same class, so that the struggling kids could get more attention, whilst the "bright" kid did mostly independent learning.

What happened in practice was that the "bright" kids were given textbooks one or two years above (I was working with a year 7 maths textbook, a year 8 social studies textbook, and a year 8 english textbook). We were given these books, told to answer the questions and then self correct. Presumably the expectation was that you could ask a teacher for help with the things you didn't understand, but in reality the teacher would just instruct you to reread the chapter you were struggling with.

And like. It worked ok with regards to the kids that were struggling, because the teacher was able to do more 1-on-1 work.

But it genuinely set me back because I had very little feedback about my school work for 2.5 years, I had no-one correcting my answers, or helping develop writing skills, or doing literally anything to prepare me for secondary school.

Like. Idk. Perhaps if you have a number of kids at school who require more attention than others then perhaps hire a teaching aid or two. Don't just set half the class up with textbooks and ignore them for 2 years.

[super-novatuna]

Discussing/Going Slightly Crazy over Tears of Themis Main Story 09: Grey Frontier, a Post

will definitely contain spoilers under the cut!

HOO BOY TALK ABOUT MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS. NONE OF MY PREVIOUS QUESTIONS WERE ANSWERED AND NOW I HAVE MORE HOLY MOLY

my heart dropped when i didn't see a Trial level. more questions, less answers.

let's start by discussing the squares in the little bingo made by @/actualbird, who i will not tag because i do not want to spoil him accidentally. thank u zak for ur services :D

one thing to note is that there are NO bingos this chapter, mainly because one thing most of us probably didn't expect lmao: NXX SEPARATED.

unthinkable. unimaginable. like there's practically NO team stuff in ch9. that's insane. artem was flooded with heirson cases, vyn was dealing with.. whatever the fuck he was doing, marius was presumably busy with managing the backlash of the trial in 08, and that leaves luke, who even though is the one that mc can tag along with for a case is still busy on his own with nsb stuff. hardly any teamwork happening, besides if you count marius' "interrogation" where luke gave him his button back and vyn just guiding mc to figure out what the suicide notes meant... yeah. not to mention artem being skye's attorney???. 99% Win Rate Artem Wing. hello. I have never been more confused. what's the plot behind this? are they all orchestrating a behind-the-scenes plan that'll come together, or are they really all doing their own shit? I'm leaning more towards the former given the nature of the game but gosh this is taking a TURN

translation errors were a lil funny but i could still understand the point which is all i need.

vyn doesn't say anything ominous but saying kys out of nowhere counts a little i think.

jerome 🫰 hes cute but he's uncanny and I'm so curious as to what he's up to. telling the little girl to get marius to pay was nice but there must've been an underlying intention.

no nxx team meeting (i mean with luke and artem. that barely counts because artem was so busy he just let luke have her).

mc figured out abt luke's illness but from what I'm seeing nothing is quite clear and she doesn't know he's got three years oof. artem has a clue but I'm sure he knows nothing either. and marius and vyn have their suspicions but nothing's sure or confirmed.

LUKE PROTECT ROSA !!! YEAHHHH watch ur back u bitchass macho king

do parallels btwn skye and the incident with luke in the hospital count as symbolism idk I'm counting it. i think there's some symbolism a little bit.

for our romantic moment before something terrible happens, ah yes, sweet and worried words on a phone call and then luke has a whole episode. yay. delightful. luke don't fucking die.

no tot story would be complete without an absurd mid-story debate. damn, right in front of the secret nsb station???

no weird luke gadget 😔 sorry he was busy being sick

found family? they aren't even together the marluke moment was barely anything. artem worried about luke having an episode... counts a little. not enough to warrant even a question mark 😔

no nxx meeting, no hilarious bullshit from a boy. sad.

WHAT IS THE TIMELINE SHAKES HYV WHAT IS GOING ON

free space luke is dying

AARON YIPPEEE. good dad.

vincent is a good boy but no intel from him. just him being Best Assistant. Bestest ever.

I didn't cry but i am close to a mental breakdown

LUKE DEPRESSION ASHDJKWKW poor guy.

not sure if Emotionally Charged and Slight Conflict counts as an argument but personally i think kinda?

no baldr because NO TRIAL AAHFJSJJSK

not only do i have more questions about the new Big Bad but I have questions about WHATEVER THE FUCK IS GOING ON WITH THE WHOLE TEAM.

voice acting 🔛🔝 as always.

NO COURT 😓😓😓😭😭😭

marius was pretty badly injured what the hell WHERE'S HIS PERSONAL BODYGUARD AJDJFWJ LUKE CAN U DO A LIL FAVOR PERHAPS

artem? almost no artem. AND NO CAPTAIN MORGAN IN THIS STORY AT ALL 🥹🥲

luke's hands. r so pretty. in both goddamn illustrations. eeeee

okay and that's all the bingo points sorted, most of it sorted. two other things that piqued my interest was

1. skye harper. she loves taking care of people and she hates seeing people suffering. gerard suffered because of his mom and so many patients suffered because of tyson turner. she wants to protect her patients and the people she favors. i support her actions btw she's so cool for that. artem also supports her so that's a point in our favor! i also think her drinking all night when gerard disappeared definitely is relevant somehow, we'll see in the next chapter.

2. mc is probably feeling a little left out ngl. everyone's got their own thing, and she can't really actively participate in much because she got doxxed and her personal life is being pried into. and she can't do much about anything, not even help artem for some reason, and she's definitely having a personal conflict especially with luke's... everything. i just love mc's character so much i hope she snaps soon tbh.

thus ends my crazy goings. if u read all the way here kudos have a cookie 🍪

and when we get to the whole team about luke's illness... rubs hands together. hoo boy ch10 is going to go CRAZY.

ALSO the nsb is definitely shady and marius does not trust em all that much. i think he trusts luke but his affiliation with the nsb is causing some distance. aaa.

[kradogsrats]

Regarding the history of the first elves and dragons, where did the dragons come from?

That's an interesting question that I can't answer.

There are still a lot of missing pieces in our understanding of the history of Xadia:

I had thought at one point that there might be Great Ones/First Elves for all primal sources, having slowly disappeared until Aaravos was the last one, but It's been strongly implied at this point that Startouch elves and the Great Ones/First Elves are the same thing.

Ancient humans, at least, regarded the Stars/Startouch elves as gods.

Depending on whether Aaravos was depowered when he arrived in Xadia or when he was imprisoned, it's possible that his depowered state was sufficient to make five archdragons hesitate to confront him.

Aaravos also implies that the Stars are responsible for some... kind of creation or structure of Xadia, in that him destroying it will be an act of revenge against them.

One possibility is that the Stars/Startouch elves were originally the first elves, not connected to any primal source, and in fact created the primal sources out of deep magic and then installed themselves as part of the Star primal. This would suggest that they were able to similarly tie the dragons to individual primal sources.

I'm not sure how I feel about the likelihood of that, just because we're starting to talk about a scale of power that becomes difficult to wrap your mind around. Archdragons are described as basically the embodiment of their primal sources. Dragons are also, for most of history, not actually affiliated with the elves in any distinct way. Sol Regem is the first Dragon King of Xadia, and that was only 1300 years ago. It's easy to think of the elves as completely subservient to the dragons for all of time, because of the way we see them (particularly Rayla) interact, but that's not the case. The elves were on the brink of war with the dragons over Aditi's disappearance. Aditi has power both politically and (implied) magically that the Archdragons respect. So it's more accurate to think of the dragon as a separate faction from the elves, in that maybe there has always been a dragon monarch, but only for dragons, until for some reason *cough*risinghumanpower*cough*, they formed an alliance. (The political details of which, I will add, are both unknown and completely baffling in practice.) So "the first elves created the dragons, including Archdragons" just feels a little off to me.

Another possibility is that the primal sources have always existed—with Stars being vastly more powerful than the others for no apparent reason—and the Stars/Startouch elves created something more contained, like... humans. In this case, the dragons would presumably also have always existed.

I'm not sure how I feel about that one either, mostly because I strongly dislike the systemic imbalance of the Star primal being overpowered relative to the others Just Because(tm)... but I guess even Pokemon originally had dragon type only weak to other dragon types, so??? idk man

Maybe there was a much, much earlier alliance in which the First Elves and what would become the first Archdragons collaborated to create the primal sources. Maybe there's a secret fourth, fifth, sixth, twentieth thing going on that will become clearer as more pieces are revealed.

[moriihana]

we can’t fix each other but we sure as hell can enable each other instead || fourteen: probably not the best plan to go to deika

pairing: dabi x disabled!gn!reader

overview: you meet dabi pre-canon because your cat, nugget, literally won’t leave the guy alone. friendship, fluff and (eventual) angst ensue.

chapter summary: meta liberation arc time!! y'all meet ujiko and then get jumped at deika

content: fluff! probably a little bit of angst but idk

word count: 3729

a/n: this was hard to write lmao so it's probably. notvery good

taglist: @iincandescenttt

AO3 link

← previous ; next →

— ABOUT A MONTH AND A HALF EARLIER, BEFORE THE HERO BILLBOARD AWARDS…

“Eugh, that’s fucking disgusting.” You rubbed at your mouth as you hunched over on the ground, groaning while the nausea from the Quirk used to transport the group subsided. “I hate that so much.” 

“Stinky!” Toga whined and scrunched her nose up, shaking her arms up and down in annoyance.

“This is…?” Shigaraki looked around, confused.

“Where’re we now?” Dabi straighted up, holding a hand out to you to help you up as he took in his surroundings. “Nomu…? But unlike any we’ve seen before…” He tilted his head to the side, an eyebrow raised.

“They’re kinda creepy looking. There’s so many…” You stepped closer to Dabi, brow pinched as you eyed the Nomu cases. You practically jumped out of your skin when a voice rang out loudly with an overjoyed laugh. Your head whipped in the direction of the source.

An old man was sitting in a swivel chair, looking at you from over his shoulder. Almost all of his features were obscured by a bright light, the only things discernable being a strange pair of glasses and a busy moustache. “Can you tell the difference?! Once again, you’ve got a pair of sharp eyes, Dabi! Yep, these little ones are nothing like the mid- and low-level Nomu! They’re high end! Super Nomu I could almost call masterpieces! Impressive, huh? They’re my finest work yet!!”

You practically pressed yourself against Dabi, unnerved by the man’s boisterous attitude. He wrapped an arm around your waist, keeping a possessive grip on your hip.

“Doctor, I’ve been looking for you for a reason. I need you to reproduce some bullets I’ve got,” Shigaraki interrupted the old man’s rambling with a frown. 

“You’ve let your hair grow out, Shigaraki! How’re your Father and the others doing?” The doctor ignored Shigaraki’s statement, much to his obvious displeasure.

Despite that, he still answered the question in a fairly patient voice, “They’re fine.”

Compress squinted in the direction of the doctor. “Our doctor, I presume? It’s too bright to many anything out.”

“Stay back!!” The doctor practically shrieked, his chair taking off down the hall. “Sorry ‘bout this, but I wouldn’t recommend coming any closer. When we need to meet face-to-face, I’ll come to you. And if you break this rule, I’ll send you right back to that big old meat grinder.”

“You’re the one who summoned us, you freaky geezer,” Twice grumbled.

“Fuckin’ weirdo,” you muttered into Dabi’s arm.

Dabi sighed, boredom and annoyance lacing his features. “Why are we here?”

“I’d rather not give out my location, so I transported you all here instead. Besides Shigaraki, you’re all fresh faces to me, I guess. We might’ve met somewhere before, though. Like Gigantomachia, I’m one of All For One’s confidants. Daruma Ujiko is the name I give myself, for now. 

“Anyhow, Shigaraki… I summoned you here out of respect for the boss. My life, my tech and my little ones here… I offered them all up to the great All For One. Up to now, you’ve been getting by with just scraps and leftovers of my work. Now, I’ve got nothing against you. I just need to judge if you’re worthy of having all this. 

“Cus so far, you’re nothing. Just a 20-year-old kid palling around with the dregs of society. So what do you have to show me, Shigaraki Tomura?”

You scowled at that, a mixture of indignation and offence brewing in your gut. How dare he say that to Tomura.

“...I don’t remember much about my life before meeting Sensei and you.” Shigaraki tilted his head back as he rustled in his pocket.

“Yeah, I’m aware,” The doctor commented.

Shigaraki ignored him. “And yet… when I equip everyone all over me… my rage just boils over. I can’t help it. Ever since that day… I’ve done a lot of thinking. All I can really remember is Sensei holding me. Before then, I’d been an empty shell—completely hollow.

“So when I have the whole family on me, I feel so sick that I want to vomit, but I also kinda feel at peace… it’s weird! All I’ve got are these fragmented images, yet… it’s like there’s a lump of lead deep down in my heart, providing an endless source of rage that bursts out. It’s like I’ll never feel good again.

“Even if this hero society comes crashing down… even if I rise to rule the underworld… that weight in my heart is never gonna go away. It’s why I hate everything. Every living, breathing thing just rubs me the wrong way. So why not destroy it all? Why not destroy everything? I know you see it too—the beautiful horizon just waiting for us. So lend me a hand, won’t you, doctor? Heaven and Hell both—I’ll show you all of it!”

You smiled softly, turning your head to look at your best friend, who had a slightly manic grin on his face. He’s really turned into such a good leader. I’m proud of you, Tomura.  

However, your smile dropped as a vicious rage overcame you when Ujiko burst out laughing. 

“What a childish daydream! Saying that with such a straight face was quite impressive!! Very well, Shigaraki Tomura! I’ll help you out, so show me you mean it! Prove to me that you can make your villainous pipe dreams a reality!!” The doctor’s laughter continued.

Fucking asshole. Laughing at Tomura and calling him childish… ugh. If we didn’t need him and I didn’t value not being obliterated, I’d punch him in the face.

“So easy-going…” Compress mumbled.

“Tomura-kun seems kind of disturbed.” Toga looked a little nervous. She then made a face, puffing her cheeks out in a pout. “Wait… you want to destroy even the things I love?”

“My allies are exceptions. You guys should get what you want in life,” Shigaraki huffed.

“Woo-hoo!” Toga jumped up excitedly. Your anger fizzled out at the girl’s genuine joy, an fond look on your face. Dabi scoffed with a shake of his head.

Ujiko’s laughter quieted down to giggles as he spoke up again, “You’ve passed with flying colours, Shigaraki!!”

“You were testing me?” Shigaraki gave him an incredulous look.

“Sure, I wanted to see how much you’ve grown! But the plan was always to help you out… and these little ones are the first thing. As well as some research I’ve put together, all to give you power. But I can’t give you that second thing yet, because without a doubt, you’re all weak! You’ll need to prove yourselves first! The big guy—simple as he is—is a different story. Unlike me, he hasn’t accepted you yet! That’s right. Get Gigantomachia to submit to you… and everything I have will be yours to use as you see fit!”

“Right. This sure has been one looong tutorial.” Shigaraki grinned.

“Do what you want, Mr. Leader, but I ain’t helpin’,” Dabi said. You snorted at his bluntness.

“You’re just pouting cus your fire didn’t work,” Toga teased, smiling at him.

“Shut up, you lu—” You pinched him before he could finish speaking. He sighed, giving you a look before continuing, “I’ve found a good potential ally, so I’m putting my time towards that. I’m not about to go out in a blaze of glory beside our leader, here. I’m looking out for myself, okay?” Dabi thought for a moment, then added, “and Y/N, too. I’m not gonna let them get killed in your quest for more power.”

You let out a huff of laughter. “Thanks, pretty boy. While I can handle myself, I’d rather help Dabi out. Sorry, Shiggy.” You gave your best friend an apologetic smile.

“Don’t worry about it, Y/N. It’s probably safer for you to stay with Dabi anyways.” Shigaraki brushed off your apology, then looked at Dabi. “Bring this ally, then. I’ll be waiting.”

“Perfect, Dabi! You can help me test out a high-end Nomu!!” Ujiko said frantically, his loud voice startling you again. “I know just the one! The perfect match for your… let’s say, aesthetics!! You two will get along great!!”

It was Dabi’s turn to give the doctor an incredulous look. “...did you even pay attention?”

 Shigaraki looked at Ujiko. “Well? Go on. Send us back. I’m feeling like I could take on the world right now.”

“One moment—use these to keep in touch with me!” A metal clamp extended towards you, holding a case with seven communicators in it. The doctor said something you couldn’t hear, and the telltale sign of the warp Quirk activating hit you. You gagged as the black liquid poured out of your mouth and wrapped around your body. 

When the warp finished, Shigaraki held up Father, preparing to put it back on his face. “Hey! It’s the return of the future king!” Shigaraki grinned.

Gigantomachia turned towards him with a glare. “A king… must inspire dread. Must be admired. Must be strong.”

— CURRENTLY…

“Talk about the ‘burbs. Not too small, not too big…” Spinner commented as everyone overlooked Deika City. 

You frowned from where you stood next to Dabi. “Reminds me too much of where I grew up. I hate it. I want it destroyed.” 

“Nice atmosphere around here. It ticks me off!”  

“One hour and forty minutes until our oversized friend awakens.” Compress took off his mask. “Making them clash with Machia will require that we fight as well. This will be no walk in the park, I daresay.”

“ Yeesh. Why’d you have to drag Y/N and I into this? They aren’t even a fighter.” Dabi rubbed the back of his neck in annoyance. Twice shot his measuring tape out towards him and he leaned backwards, tugging you back by your hood at the same time.

“Hey, Giran brought you into the fold too!” He shouted.

“Like I care?” Dabi drawled with a roll of his eyes. You elbowed him, muttering a quiet ‘be nice.’

“Someone’s coming!” Toga suddenly warned. Dabi stepped in front of you, igniting his palm as everyone prepared to fight.

“Not another step! I was ordered to guide you down into town!!” A hero stopped in front of them.

“A hero?! I don’t recognise this one…” Spinner made a face. You hummed in agreement.

The hero put his hands on his hips. “If you want a face-to-face with the Liberation Army’s commander… then you’d best follow me, okay?!”

You narrowed your eyes. “I don’t trust this…” you murmured. Dabi extinguished his palm and stepped back, wrapping an arm around your waist with his usual possessive grip.

“Stay next to me, mouse. Don’t leave my side, got it?” He warned quietly in your ear. 

You nodded. “I won’t. Promise.” 

Shigaraki ordered everyone else to stand down. “Fine. Lead the way.”

As you all walked after the hero, you took careful note of everything around you. It was dead quiet, absolutely nobody to be seen. A heavy unease settled on your shoulders and you pressed closer to Dabi, who kept his arm tight around your waist. His other hand was in his pocket as he kept an eye out for any sign of trouble.

“Not a soul around...” Compress commented. The unease you were feeling could be heard in his voice.

Shigaraki glanced up towards a roof, pausing when he saw someone standing up there. “This whole city, huh?”

The hero touched his thumb to his forehead with his pointer finger aimed to the sky. “This place isn’t usually my turf, but today’s a big exception!” As two figures approached them, the hero bowed and slid off.

A man with styled black hair and glasses stopped in front of them, pressing his thumb and middle finger together. “Thank you for making the trip, and welcome! This is a day of celebration, and you are the guests of honour. Shall we start the festivities?” He snapped his fingers. “This is the Metahuman Liberation Army’s revival celebration!”

As soon as he finished snapping his fingers, people jumped out from every direction.

Oh, this isn’t good. 

You stayed next to Dabi’s side as promised, despite the fact he just standing there with one hand still in his pocket and the other on your waist.

“That’s Hanabata, leader of the Hearts and Mind party!” Compress exclaimed.

Spinner jumped out of the way of an attack. “Is he some big shot?!”

“Yes! Someone who could easily have 110,000 followers!”

Oh, this really isn’t good. I’m not equipped for this kind of attack! I’m an excellent fighter, but not against this many people! Especially with my manoeuvrability issues and the fact my Quirk is for healing! You pressed yourself closer to Dabi as they watched Compress and Spinner. “Dabi,” you breathed, “I’m one hell of a good fighter, but I’m not this good. I’m gonna end up slowing you down.”

“I ain’t leavin’ you, so it doesn’t matter whether you’re gonna slow me down or not,” Dabi snapped. “Get on my back, we’ll get somewhere where there’s less of these fuckers, then you and I can figure out what the hell we’re gonna do.”

You clenched your jaw and nodded, hopping up onto Dabi’s back. He hooked his arms under your thighs, then took off to find a safer spot.

“We’ve already established that you have to stay with me. There’s clearly a lot of these guys. You have your knife.” Dabi set you down once you were both relatively in the clear. “You don’t have your cane—which is fuckin’ stupid, no offence, doll—but now you have a free hand, so it works in our favour. You’ll be able to dodge better. Just keep your eyes open—I’ll watch your back.”

“You’re sure you’re fine with keeping an extra eye on me?” You frowned.

“Doesn’t matter either way, mouse. I’m not letting you out of my sight.” Dabi’s tone made it clear he wasn’t budging.

“Okay then, that’s settled. Next move…” You walked around a bit, scanning your surroundings, then stopped. “Oh shit, is that Shigaraki over there?” You squinted in Shigaraki’s direction

Dabi shrugged. “If our dear leader’s racking up bodies, then I’m going all in too. Hanging back and taking the pacifist route was never my style, anyways.”

You snorted and turned back to him, amused. Your amusement faded to alarm when you caught something in the sky above Dabi. “Dabi, move!” 

He turned around to see what you were looking up, then jumped backwards just in time as someone came crashing into the ground. His forearms were incased in ice that formed into the shape of hands. “Ice, huh…?” 

“And a little bit more.” You pointed out the other Meta Liberation Army members behind your new opponent. “Think you can take them all out at once?”

“Who do you think you’re talking to, mouse?” Dabi smirked, then addressed the ice-user. “Ice… sure, then. I gotta warn you, I think I’ve gotten stronger. Which means I can tell, you’re tough too.”

“Y/N… the League’s healer. Disabled, so your ability to move is hindered. Is that why you’re never alone? And Dabi… those blue flames make you the League’s only wide-range attacker. But why don’t you unleash your fire straight away?” The ice around the man’s forearms crackled and extended upwards, lifting him up with it. “It’s almost like you’re waiting for something… or do you have an issue with your meta abilities?”

Dabi clicked his tongue in annoyance, though his smirk never faded. “Wouldn’t you like to know! Fine. Consider this a freebie, just for you. Ice melts.” He unleashed a blast of fire at the ice-user. You watched as it destroyed the ice pillars that the man had been using.

“Is that so? Well, that could be a problem.” The man’s voice was almost sarcastic as he fell backwards. “Since you seem to be unaware… I manipulate ice. All ice.” There was a rattling sound, then from every direction, ice began to move towards the man. “I’ve been perfecting this meta ability for a lonnng time. Longer than most heroes. So no school for me. The Grand Commander helped make me stronger.”

“Sounds like you’ve led quite a life! But kinda sad!” Dabi ignited his forearm again.

“You’d best not think your little campfire can melt my ice!”

You grinned as Dabi let off a blazing inferno, a sadistic pleasure gleaming in your eyes as the Meta Liberation Army users that had been standing on the ground screamed, then were reduced to ashes. 

“Dabi!! A little moderation, please!” Compress’s voice rang out as Dabi’s flames raged around them. 

You laughed at that. “Dabi doesn’t know moderation, Mister! Haven’t you met him?” You called back.

Dabi let off another inferno at the ice-user. He grinned as the ice melted away, ignoring the sizzling of his skin and the smoke coming away from it. “Mine’s bigger and you’re outmatched elementally. Your precious ice is almost gone.” 

You aren’t being careful enough, pretty boy. You thought as you narrowed your eyes at the evidence of Dabi’s Quirk wreaking havoc on his body. You placed your hand on his arm and activated your own Quirk, ignoring the searing pain that started to blaze underneath your skin. The burns that had been creeping down past his surgical staples healed, manifesting onto your skin instead. You disregarded the sound Dabi made when he realised what you were doing, finishing up healing the damage.

Before he could say anything, Compress’s voice cut him off. “If you are winning so easily, then lend me a hand!!” He had ended up behind the two of them, frantically dodging the attacks being hurled at him left and right.

“Why should I help?” Dabi drawled.

Compress gasped, “Are you so unfeeling?!”

“Nah, I mean, just ask them.” Dabi pointed to the side. You followed where he was pointing, and almost laughed out of shock. There was an army of Twice’s doubles swarming.

As if they were waiting to have been noticed first, all of the Doubles started talking at once. “Dabi!! Mr. Compress!! The Twices are here to save the day!!”

“What about… your trauma?!” Compress said, his voice almost drowned out by the sea of Twices. 

“Love and courage were just what the doctor ordered!” 

That’s… really sweet, actually. And also really Twice-like.

“That doesn’t clarify things, but… this feels like a heroic origin story. Though you’re still a villain.” Compress shook his head a little.

“What good villain wouldn’t wanna save his friends?! There’re so few of you, so you’re even more precious! Hah!! Hang on… am I stupid? Why don’t I double Dabi?! I’ll double you guys too! Forget “League,” we’ll have enough guys for a whole villain nation!!” Twice’s Doubles were almost rabid with excitement.

“Maybe dial it down a little bit, Twice! Remember we still need to wear Machia out!” You interjected. 

“Oh. How long until the big man wakes up?”

Compress rechecked his pocket watch. “One hour, five minutes!”

“No prob! Toga comes first, then! I’ll ask me where she’s at, and get her some hel—” The Double was cut off as the ice-user unleashed a massive wave of ice shards, destroying all of the doubles in its path. 

Dabi stepped in front of you, creating a wall of fire to protect you from the blast. “Does this town manufacture ice? Something’s fishy here…”

The ice-user refroze one of the ice shards that had melted on Dabi’s arm. “As I mentioned… I manipulate ice!”

“Ah… I see how it is.” Dabi eyed the patch of ice on his scarred arm. You peered over his shoulder to see what he was looking at.

“That includes controlling the ice’s temperature! By shooting some ice into the water supply and cooling things down, I can extend my power to that water as well.”

“Why not lead with that? So obnoxious.”

“In the future that our Liberation Army foresees… one’s rank in society will be directly tied to the strength of one’s meta ability. Elevating ones ability will be the only way to really live! Beyond that sheer strength… life has no value!” The man raised his hand up, ice exploding out of the ground—simultaneously taking out more of Twice’s Doubles while also sacrificing his comrades.

You narrowed your eyes at the ice-user. “You’re real full of yourself.”

“Sounds miserable. I’m gonna need you to die.” Dabi’s mouth curled down in a frown.

“The one who will die is you, blueflame. I can smell it from here. Your body is burning away. Keen observation of the enemy’s meta ability is fundamental, and your festering skin looks ready to slough right off… you can’t fight for long, can you?! Not when your own flames eat away at you! If it weren’t for your little friend there, your body would be reduced to char from the inside out.” The ice-user stared down at you both.

Your lips pulled back into a snarl and you stepped out from behind Dabi, glaring up at the man. “Say one more word about his Quirk, imply one more thing about him being weak, and I will gut you,” you spat, twirling your knife in your hand. Dabi placed his hand on your shoulder, squeezing it.

“Calm down, mouse. You can gut him la—” Dabi paused as the ground began to tremble. “...he’s early.”

“Good for us.” You kept your glare on the ice-user, a cruel smile replacing your snarl. “We’ve got a lovely little gift on his way to Shigaraki—who, by now, is probably with your beloved Grand Commander. He won’t stand a chance.” The ice-user seemed to panic at that and he took off before Dabi could send off any more blasts of fire. “Good fuckin’ riddance.” 

“...that icy freak. I almost managed to burn him up,” Dabi grumbled, wiping his cheek with the back of his hand. You sighed at the blood that smeared onto it.

“You really need to be more careful,” you murmured, taking his head into your hands and healing the cuts on his face. 

Dabi scowled. “You’re one to talk. Look at your skin.”

“Huh?” You looked at the backs of your hands and frowned at the burn marks that had manifested there. “Oh. They’ll heal. It happens.”

He shook his head at that, clearly still displeased. “...c’mon. Let’s get somewhere safer, mouse. We can wait until the boss lets us know what’s up.”

“Yeah. Alright.”

[broodwolf221]

still thinking about dorian's arc being foreshadowing for one/some of the evanuris

it's just rly interesting to me that dai decided to bring in a mage from tevinter, a high-ranking mage whose family practices blood magic (granted, seemingly only the once, in a super fucked up way, but still)

we have krem, also from tevinter, and we could've gotten a different kind of companion from tevinter. why someone who has to actively grapple with having grown up with slavery as the norm? maybe it was just the obvious choice, a powerful mage from a powerful family, someone who could come from the top and point out that tevinter has its problems while humanizing it, bc it is a place full of people like all the rest of thedas. that could be the entire answer

but da does like its foreshadowing and dorian makes me wonder

also part of this is the fact that i don't see the protag & co., even including solas and mythal, being able to beat the rest of the evanuris on their own. like... all of the evanuris couldn't kill mythal, one of their number. how the hell is the da4 team supposed to manage? solas' orb is gone, too, and with it presumably at least some of his accumulated power. and that power was generated while he was sleeping - we don't know how the evanuris are imprisoned, but i think it's a fair assumption to say they have their own orbs, and that they may have been gathering power as well, possibly power that the evanuris aren't precluded from wielding immediately as solas was

solas does say he has a plan to deal with them and maybe that's the full answer. maybe he came across a method to kill them or to seal them permanently. idk. but it just seems like thedas is gonna lose this fight if it's all the evanuris except for mythal against whatever forces da4 arrays against them, which may or may not include mythal, and will probably include solas

having one/some of the evanuris turn against their own ppl seems like a rly interesting twist, one that wouldn't be too far outside what da games have done before. even if it was just them turning against their own, but not necessarily joining the protag's side, but re: dorian-as-foreshadowing it feels more like they'd turn on their own ppl

ofc i could be 100% wrong and that wouldn't come as a surprise, im just into this concept bc of how it adds nuance and depth to the dalish's gods. if da4 just makes them all Evil Bad Irredeemable Monsters then that's confirming that the dalish were always entirely wrong to worship them, that their entire faith and culture is a mistake.

[deangirlnotagirl]

Season 1 Episode 2: W*ndigo

Let’s do this.

- I love this recap remember when if you missed the first episode you just didn’t watch it until the reruns or dvs anyways those dramatic screen titles “what they witnessed sent two brothers on a quest for answers 22 years later”

- Oh there it is there’s the SUPERNATURAL noise with the title page ok it was just the pilot that didn’t have it

- Ok we’ve traveled from California to Colorado

- Love the flip phone and game boy in this cold open what a throwback

- Once again genuinely pretty creepy good job supernatural

- Oh that transition out of Sam’s dream made me jump I think my volume is a little too loud

- Aw Dean offers to let Sam drive that’s cute I love watching their relationship emerge

- I love their maps makes me miss maps

- Love watching Dean improvise and figure out who he needs to be to get the information he wants (and figure out what information he wants)

- Her brother looks like a high schooler so like once again I’m asking how old is Haley

- On this rewatch I’m really enjoying watching Sam’s arc of going from almost getting a full ride to the top school in the county to returning to hunting. The way he actually kind of loves it sometimes in a way Dean maybe doesn’t. It’s so tragic because it’s not what he would have chosen and he worked so hard to get away and all of that was taken away because he couldn’t escape his family forever. But at the same time we see from the pilot that he really has fun once he gets into it and hates that he has fun but starts to lean into it and find his niche as the show goes on.

- Ok so Dean introduced them as Sam and Dean and his fake ID says “Samuel Cole” which I looked up and don’t see an obvious origin (like a musician or something) so does that mean this is just a random name Dean picked and that he’s using Sam’s name sometimes when he hunts? Because that hurts.

- Every 23 years nice I love a recurring monster who hibernates

- Noticing that they pretty much never have to work very hard to get information bc they so clearly actually believe the person when nobody else ever has and even if maybe Sam and Dean are full of shit maybe they’re not and this is proof the person they’re interviewing is not crazy. Anyway if that’s not a metaphor idk what is

- “Corporeal”

- I forgot how angry Sam is this season (and a lot of seasons) and honestly he deserves to be angry right now

- Dean’s fragile masculinity lol but also Roy’s fragile masculinity the fragile masculinity of it all

- Ok I’m pretty sure they save the lost brother right like I hope so?

- This is a lot like the x files episode detour where they go into the woods and are hunted my an invisible humanoid but that doesn’t make it less good I loved that episode

- Once again I’m genuinely getting creeped out

- I really don’t like Roy

- Sam and Dean realizing John isn’t here and he wasn’t leaving a clue for them to find him. Realizing he put them on this case to keep them off his trail and set them up to doing his job while he goes on hunting his obsession.

- The fact that Dean sees Sam getting obsessed too and it scares him.

- “Saving people, hunting things, the family business” 😭😭😭

- Dean saying all that anger is going to kill you to Sam and he knows because he’s seen it happening to their dad ugh.

- Friendly reminder as they explain the lore that use of w*ndigos is major cultural appropriation and racist please read link on the title of this post to learn more

- How many do not enter signs can one entrance have

- They really do a good job of making this scary by not showing the scary thing good use of budget there sometimes you don’t need a giant cgi monster for good horror (no hate to giant cgi monsters I just love practical effects).

- The way that neither Sam or Dean are particularly freaked out by almost dying many times in this episode (or last episode if I recall). Sam even after taking a break from hunting presumably for most of the past four years - like that kid left home at 18 why has he had enough near death experiences at this point to be so cool headed in a crisis. Wtf John (I say over and over again throughout this show)

- Ok phew they do save the brother

- The way Dean uses the swagger to cover up everything else

- Again I just feel like this girl is too young but I guess if she’s old enough to be taking care of her younger brothers maybe she isn’t? Whatever what do we expect from supernatural

- Sam’s driving the impala!!!

- This last shot reminds me of my cousin Vinny

I’m doing this watch through as an escapism/nostalgia fueled way to remember a specific time in my life and let myself enjoy a very flawed show. So like as a monster episode this was scary and fun to watch and there was good character development and a good intro to the monster of the week episode format. And at the same time it’s a reminder of rampant casual racism to the point that it was basically thoughtless - I’m sure it just never occurred to the writers that there was anything wrong with using a being from another culture as a monster for Sam and Dean to fight and I’m sure this won’t be the last time they do this.

[caliro45]

Chapter 1 Part1

The school nerd and the school jock were put in the room since the new year started, and ever since they're relationship started to improve. Tim, the nerd was an intelligent young fella, he was kind of week, but he had a handsome face. Dave was the school's jock, big muscles, and captain of all the schools sports teams, popular and adored by all. Dave had a crush on Tim ever since they entered school, but was always afraid to tell him, presumeing he was a straight guy, so he was pretty happy when they were selected to stay in the same room. Even so, Dave was too scared to make moves towards dateing his wimpy roommate. Tim never really thought about dateing anyone, he was mostly concerned about school and how to improve himself, but he still founded Dave pretty attractive and ever since he started liveing with him, his feelings started to develop as well, but he thought that a guy as small as him would never have a chance to date the charming jock. One day Dave arrived home early form practice, he was sweaty, his smell filling the room. Tim was studying when he felt the smell, not being used to it, being something quite new for him, but something about the mosky smell of sweat was quite enjoyable. Dave apologized and said he will go take a shower. "No!" Said Tim "I mean *cofs in his hand*... you shouldn't hurry, I'm not necessarily bothered by it, you can do something else first if you want to" " Oh, ok, then I will make myself a snack, I'm starveing, do you want one?" Dave asked a little bit concerned, as his old roommates, everyone on the sports team and even the people he passed on the street were disturbed by the strong sent, and he knew best how powerfull the smell was. "No thank you, I'm studying for our last exam." Even if the jock was, well, a jock, he was getting pretty good grades, he never let his sports career get in the way of his studying "Do you mind if I... um... come study with you?" "Not really, but you should hurry, I wouldn't like to get behind with my skegewal" "Oh, the, you wouldn't mind if I skipped my shower and, idk, leave it for when we go to sleep?" The jock asked preparing for a no, but for his surprise Tim made a gesture with his hand to take a sit. Dave quickly took his snack and went to the desk. The two boys studied for a few hours and then Dave asked "You really are unbodered by my smell?" "Honestly... I sort of like it" Tim answered amberesed "Oh, really? well, that never happened before" Dave just got a confidence boost and so he leaned forward to the nerd raised his arm above his head, putting it on the wall, the arm pit right above Tims head. "Tim... would you like to... um... go on a date with me?" Dave asked awkwardly "Are you fucking with me Dave! Is this a joke?" Tim felt offended " You are the biggest and hottest guy in school, and I know you've always been nice to me, despite your friends being assholes, do you really think I would belive such a mean joke, I thought you were better then your team mates" Dave was shocked "No... I... I didn't mean it like that, I actually want to go on a date with you, I have a crush on you ever since school started, I... I'm sorry, i didn't want to make you feel bad, I just thought that it might be time for us to... idk, you should forget this happened" Dave left the table pretty depressed and continued to be like that for the rest of the evening.

[shslpunkartist99]

Punk I'm sorry but Babi was on my mind when I read your recent post's tags and the first thing to come to mind is Babi getting accidentally spooked by Tsuri.

I'm actually really intrigued and would like to know if you're willing to elaborate more, it's just unfortunate timing to read that while I was in the middle of thinking up some silly shenanigans that Babi finds themselves unwittingly pulled into. 😂

I'm gonna presume you're intrigued about my post and not about Tsuri accidentally intimidating Babi, so hooo boy prepare for rambleeee

Idk if I mentioned it before, but Tsuri comes from a very rich business family. All his lineage cared about was power and money. Everything was seen as value, as numbers. This included the children

Tsuri had many siblings, but they were all created to be part of the business. They got the highest education and mannerism, as well as were given a personal maid and butler to help further their development, but if they weren't "up to par", they were "thrown away". Tsuri wasn't close to his siblings because of this, only with his servants (who he never saw them as such, but rather as teachers, as well as the closest to friends he'll have)

When he learned that his parents planned to get rid of him when he was 13, his maid and butler actually cared more for his well being than the parents ("Our job was to raise and protect his wellbeing, so we're doing just that"), so they helped him escape. It was rough living afterwards, but he eventually grew up.. with a growing hatred for parents that never intended to be ACTUAL parents

He snapped when he saw a man yelling and roughly dragging his young daughter away. Grabbed a rusty pipe and beat the man to death. Not a word was exchanged between him and the girl, and he ran away after realizing what he did.

Thus beginning his life as Tsuri, the serial killer who hunts down abusive parents

A n y w a y

Even with him getting a name for himself and him becoming more an adult, there was always the one target he swore to kill, but was internally too afraid to go after: his own parents. Of course they'd be on top of the list, what with their common practice being the death of their own children. But as any trauma does, anytime he thought of them, he thought of them always bigger than him, glaring down at him.. he couldn't help but freeze up. However, after growing stronger by being Leroy's bodyguard, he eventually found the strength to finally go after them, so he would be ready the next day..

Only for them to turn out dead

A homocidal attack? A suicide? He didn't know. He just knew, just as he was preparing in the morning, there was news of his family dead. He was stunned, couldn't believe his eyes. His parents died.. how bittersweet. He didn't miss them at all, but he took too long to be ready to handle them himself..

But that was it. There was nothing he could do. He didn't want any clarity nor answers. He didn't feel unfulfilled. It left a bitter taste in his mouth, but at least they were dead. No more of that family. His only family would be his maid and butler (who were still around, just in their own ways of hiding in plain sight), and Leroy, his partner.

.. well, not really "no more of that family".

Leroy was given tickets to a photography showing, courtesy of Poppy (it was a date gift, but alas, her 2 day relationship ended in, well, 2 days), so he convinced Tsuri to come with him. The exhibit was very pretty, with beautiful shots at unique angles that you wouldn't get from generation. Even Tsuri, who wasn't interested at first, was intrigued a bit.

Until he saw one photograph: a photo that looked eerily similar to his bedroom as a child. Title: Loss, by Natalia G.

"Victor..?"

That name.. he hasn't heard that name in over 10 years. Eyes wide, he slowly looked over to the woman that said that name. Long purple hair. Tall and slim figure. Dull purple gray eyes.. just like his.

".. do I know you..?"

".. wow.. they were right. I wouldn't recognize you by name nor appearance, but by your eyes.."

Subtly looking around, she moved closer and whispered, "It's me, Flora.. your sister. I go by Natalia now though. Follow me, we'll talk somewhere private."