#the depiction of multiple minds was interesting. like not so much the initial thing as later [spoilery]

[aroaessidhe]

2022 reads // twitter thread  

Leech

fantasy gothic horror

a hivemind parasite goes to an isolated manor to investigate the death of a previous host, which it has no memory of, and discovers a rival parasite

[thinking1bee]

You Haven't Failed Part 12

Requested by Anonymous

Pairings: Wanda Maximoff x Reader

Tags: Spidey!Reader, Venom!Reader, So Much Angst, Fluff, Established Relationship, Graphic Depictions of Injuries, Blood, Violence, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, Smut

Everything Taglist: @ara-a-bird @alexawynters @sgm616

“Go, go, go!” Wanda screamed at Tony, urging him to go get help.

He tried to call multiple people, but so far, no one picked up. It was late at night, so it was natural that the Avengers slept with their phones off or silenced, and only a different kind of alarm could wake them up. That one would have to be activated by Fury. Venom snarled as Wanda tried to fight it back with her magic. Red wrapped around its body, but it was broken by a flap of its wings as it still charged towards them. Tony shot it with his repulsors. When Venom still didn’t slow down, he activated a panel in his back. Out of it came a gauntlet full of mini missiles.

“Sorry, kid,” he said sadly as he fired. The projectiles exploded on contact, and the alien screeched as its body warped around the blasts.

“Three minutes,” Tony promised as he looked at Wanda. She nodded and watched as he took off, his form disappearing into the compound in the distance.

She turned her attention back to you, to Venom. It stood up and rolled its shoulders. Smoke wafted from its body, but there wasn’t a scratch on it.

“Come on, Y/n!” she begged. “Fight it!”

Venom only laughed maliciously. “You have no idea how weak they were,” he began. Wanda clenched her jaw, her eyes narrowing furiously. “It was so easy to take them over. Their desperation. Their despair. They were drowning in it, and you were none the wiser!”

That made Wanda falter, her eyes widening at Venom’s words. She remembered what Osborn said to her. The symbiote feeds off the emotions of its host to bend them to its will. Is that what you harbored?

Venom cackled. “Love,” it spat, like the word itself was a disgusting thing to be uttered. “Such a useless human emotion. So weak. So distracting. It was almost too easy. Their love for you and their desire to never lose you again reeked of petty sentiment, but it was easy to use that against them, to let me take them over.”

Wanda thought back to the night you almost beat that prisoner to death, and the conversation that she had with you after. She remembered you telling her how it felt like you just got her back, even though she had been revived for years now. She thought that she understood, but maybe she didn’t comprehend just how deep this went for you. In all the times that she’s read your mind, not once did she see anything alluding to what Venom was saying. So, you either repressed this, or you hid it from her.

“детка…” she whispered sadly to herself.

“Did you know that they blamed themselves for your death?” Venom continued. Somehow, the monster managed to look incredulous, a nonexistent eyebrow quirking with disbelief at what it was about to say. “Their memories are interesting to say the least. There are fragments missing, holes where their memory had been too feeble to recall what happened to them. They harbor such great hate for themselves because of something that they were too weak to prevent. They genuinely thought that they could stop this Thanos.” It paused as it cackled. “Pathetic.”

Wanda couldn’t fight the tears that were gathering in her eyes. When she came back, the team had warned her of the changes in you and she didn’t think too much of it. It wasn’t like she didn’t care because Wanda cared about you and for you greatly. It was that everyone went through changes after the initial loss to Thanos. No one was the same. Even her. In her mind, she was going to accept you no matter what. The thing was that you were your usual self with the same sunny disposition that she fell in love with. When she came back, you had been protective at first, extremely protective, but she understood. If it had been you, Wanda wouldn’t have let you out of her sight and she reassured you as many times as it took to make you believe that she wasn’t going anywhere. Yes, there were changes, and she prepared herself to face them with you, but she didn’t know of your emotional turmoil. Hearing it was breaking her heart but hearing it from the symbiote made her feel as though she wasn’t attentive enough towards you. You hardly spoke about what happened after the snap, and while she did ask, you only told her that you couldn’t remember. Wanda didn’t want to pry, and she respected your answer all the same, but to know this was how you felt…hot tears trailed down her cheeks.

She needed to get you free from this thing.

Wanda wiped her eyes and took a steadying breath. She must control her emotions. She watched as the magic in her palms fluctuated wildly and she willed the energy inside of her to calm. There was a fine line, and crossing it meant accidently killing you. When Venom saw her ready herself, it cackled some more.

“Removing them from me at this point will kill them.”

Wanda shrugged. She knew what Osborn said. “They’re dead either way. If they stay there, they’re dead. If I remove them, they’re dead. At least with them removed, you won’t have a body to puppeteer.”

At that, Venom bristled, the smile slowly leaving its face. They said nothing more to each other, and Wanda watched Venom closely for any signs of movement. When she saw its wing twitch, she extended her arms, and with a yell of exertion, shot a thick column of red magic its way. It was wide, with the attack taking up the entire street. It wouldn’t be able to dodge it in time, so Venom used its wings as a protective shield. They folded in front of its body and flattened just as Wanda’s attack hit. Her red magic cut through, and Venom screeched in pain as her energy seared its black flesh. When the dust settled, she saw that Venom was still standing with half of its body missing, but what should have been empty space and scorched tissue were your limbs. Wanda could see your arm and leg right as Venom began to cover it in its own flesh, the damage healing as it regenerated. You weren’t gone yet and that was great news.

A loud crack of thunder made her jump, and she watched as Venom was struck by a thick bolt of lightning. Thor landed right beside her with a grunt. Tiny crackles of electricity surrounded his body as his eyes glowed a deep blue. He stood up with his Stormbreaker in his hands, but other than that, he donned nothing else besides a pair of boxers that said “Thunder” on one ass cheek and “Daddy” on the other. Wanda stared at him, her arms lowering.

“There was no time for clothes, Lady Wanda,” he said valiantly. “We need to get Y/n back.”

Wanda nodded and watched as Tony landed beside her.

“Was there only Thor?” Wanda asked him and Tony shook his head.

Right on cue, everyone heard a roar, and seconds later, a flash of green passed her peripheral vision before it landed on top of Venom. Bruce. He was quick as he snatched the alien by its ankle and smashed it repeatedly into the ground. Venom snarled, its arms flailing as it was smashed into the street hard enough to leave craters behind.

“Everyone is gone or out,” Tony told her. It was okay. They could do this together.

Venom began to stretch, its body thinning as it wrapped itself around Bruce’s arm. Bruce roared, but Venom was faster. It reached out with the top half of its body and dug its arms into the street to anchor itself. Then, it twisted, and Wanda watched as Bruce was momentarily handled like a rag doll. Venom was able to throw him several feet away, and everyone had to dodge his body before they were crushed. Venom spread its wings and screeched before it took to the skies. Tony, Wanda, and Thor followed it as they continued to fight. Tony kept shooting it with the small armory that his Iron-Man suit was modified with. Thor shot more arcs of lightning. Wanda used her magic, but she realized relatively quickly that their efforts weren’t getting them anywhere. Venom was absorbing their attacks and healing any damage made. Tony realized it too when he joined their side.

“Wanda, I don’t have any more of those devices or else we could use the sound to incapacitate this damn thing.”

Wanda took a deep breath and looked at him. “Get Venom to the ground. I’ll take care of the  rest.”

Tony nodded and left her side. He shot more blasts while Thor struck Venom with more lightning, but ultimately, it was Bruce that was able to get to the symbiote. He jumped into the air and snatched Venom right out of the sky. His hands crushed its wings, and Venom shrieked in pain as it thrashed in his grip. Brice twirled in the air to gain momentum before he threw Venom as hard as he could towards the ground. It shocked Wanda to hear a boom in the air, the sound barrier breaking before the ground cratered and quaked from the force of impact. Venom was slower to recover from this attack. Wanda watched as it tried to crawl from out of the crater only to collapse a second later. She took that as her chance, her fingers fluttering as red magic wrapped around the body it stole. She forced Venom upright and to its knees, and she restrained its arms to the street just slightly behind it, a thick column of red around the appendages. It tried to struggle but Wanda wasn’t going to let it go again. She regarded it with extreme fury in her eyes, the red shining brighter in them than anyone had ever seen before. She approached, her hand clenched into a fist, and as she got closer, Venom laughed.

“You won’t kill me, not with Y/n’s life on the line. Be reasonable,” it challenged. It continued to laugh, but that laughter died as Wanda conjured a very large, translucent bell. It was outlined in red from her magic, and it hovered just right beside her open hand as it rippled with power.

All Wanda needed to know was the volume and frequency of the noise she would need to create, and she now knew it because of Tony. Venom now looked at her nervously, its gaze shifting between her and the bell. She didn’t say anything at first. Her face was hardened into stone as she stared with steely eyes.

“Killing you is a mercy you cannot afford. You will realize, within the next few minutes, that what happens next, is me being reasonable,” she murmured in an unyielding voice.

Before Venom could retort, Wanda waved her hand, and the bell began to ring. The reaction was immediate. Venom screeched, and like last time, its body contorted in an effort to get away. Wanda tightened the restraints around its body as she continued to ring the bell. It swung from side to side heavily, just like a real one. The sound it emitted was loud enough to hurt her own ears, but she didn’t care. She couldn’t hear your voice, and she couldn’t see your pain, therefore, there was no reason to hold back.

“Come on, Y/n!” she yelled. She watched emotionlessly as Venom writhed, but despite the pain it felt, it was still able to speak.

“It’s too late!” it managed to spit out. “You’ve already lost them!”

Wanda faltered for a heartbeat, its words making her waver, but in that split moment, she understood. She was going about this the wrong way. So, as she kept ringing the bell, she changed tactics.

“You’re going to lose me, Y/n!” she screamed, the bell ringing louder and louder. “If you don’t fight, you’re going to lose me! You need to wake up!”

Tony, Thor, and Bruce all watched, their faces solemn and sad when they didn’t see any changes.

“Y/n, детка! I know you can hear me! If you don’t do anything, baby, you’re going to lose me! You’re going to lose us!”

Venom was already screeching in agony, but Wanda watched as its mouth began to open impossibly wider. It was like something unhinged its jaw, and half of its head began to unravel, the black tissue falling away to reveal a part of your face. Wanda watched with bated breath as you weakly opened your eye, and you looked around before your blurry gaze fell on her.

“Baby.” This was much quieter, gentler. “Please,” she begged, her bright red eyes filling with tears that spilled over. “Fight it.”

Instantly, your face crumbled, and a tired sob left your lips. “I can’t. I can’t.”

If Wanda thought you pale before, you looked ghostly now. “Let me help you, детка.” She wrapped more magic around Venom to keep it right where it was. “Let me in.”

More cries left you as you felt Wanda cup your cheek with a strong hand, her forehead leaning against yours as you felt her in your mind. You let her in. You let her see the parts of you that you never wanted her to see.

Part 13

[paris-in-space]

Hey, I was wondering how you chose colors for the Dracula cast! (I love Arthur's red jacket.)

Hi! I am so sorry I only just saw this ask today, but I’ll answer it now, hopefully it was worth the wait (at least with the drawing asks I have the excuse of not having had time to draw things).

Okay so, a lot of the decisions I made when it comes to the colours was on instinct, but I can still try and explain.

Jonathan wears brown, with a hint of red in his tie, and has brown hair and eyes, I wanted his colours to be relatively unassuming, the little bit of red is for visual interest but also maybe hints that he’s not just an average guy, but his design is intentionally quite plain.

When I first designed Mina it was actually for an English Lit A Level class where I had to make a character sheet about her, so I actually googled her for inspiration and took some from her look in the 1992 film (I now hate that film although it does have gorgeous visuals) and I think the green from her outfits in that film stuck in my head. Initially in my mind I didn’t imagine her as a redhead however when it came to actually putting colour on her it felt like a good decision to make, and offers some nice contrast to the green. Her earrings are meant to be like drops of blood because symbolism.

Lucy wears pink because I think of her as being pretty and feminine, the choice to have multiple shades of pink in her outfit was just to make it more interesting although the ribbon she wears in her hair matches with Arthur’s tie. Her hair is a warm blonde because of the sunny ripples line in the book, and her eyes are brown to keep things warm.

Arthur is the character whose design has changed the most since the first time I ever drew him, and I’m glad of it. (My original design of him was incredibly boring) although since first adding colour it has changed very little. The choice of red both looks nice next to Lucy and fits in with the other suitors whilst still being distinctly different. Choosing Arthur’s colours was very much a case of seeing what felt right rather than thinking too much about it in depth. (Also thank you for the compliment on his jacket.)

Jack spends a lot of time being sad so a cold colour palette made sense for him, I think the green has some medical connotations, and still allows for him to have some colour in his design without being too bright. Aside from brown shoes which sort of balance out his hair, any other clothing than his waistcoat and tie are grey because I don’t think he’s the sort to wear much colour. He also has the palest skin of the lot because he spends a lot of time inside.

Quincey on the other hand has such a warm presence as a character that his colour palette is full of warm tones. His mustard yellow waistcoat is the most memorable thing to me but it isn’t his only defining colour, I mostly just wanted him to have a very warm presence without venturing too close to Arthur’s red. I am also fully on board with the idea of Quincey being a person of colour.

Renfield is very grey all around with almost purple undertones. His clothes are very much inspired by the 1931 film which was of course black and white, and are also simple enough that many other colour choices wouldn’t make much sense for him. His hair reflects his age, and his complexion is somewhat unnatural (definitely unhealthy) to sort of separate him as a link between Dracula and the human world whilst also not really being a part of either.

I have barely drawn Van Helsing in colour so I don’t think I can really do a colour analysis on him yet, I need to get into the habit of drawing him and actually design him an everyday outfit, I’m pretty sure the only time I’ve done him in colour he was wearing black because of Lucy’s death.

Dracula himself is a mysterious black shadow with red eyes, mostly because I like the idea of depicting his menacing presence and dangerous vibe without specific details, I also really like the idea of a Dracula adaptation where you don’t actually see Dracula, and just have the mystery that the characters face and whilst drawing him this way isn’t exactly doing that, I think knowing this might make the design make more sense.

I hope this makes sense and was worth waiting so long.

(I had to re type a bunch of this a few times because I accidentally clicked off without saving more than once, having typed out multiple paragraphs)

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

hi Blair :) I read your post on house elves and i wanted to infodump about my thoughts/headcanons on elves. It’s one of the most interesting parts of the wizarding world to me.

House elves do not actually like being enslaved. So many people jump to the conclusion that “oh house elves love being slaves, and Dobby and Hermione are supposed to be the weird ones.” I don’t think that’s true, for multiple reasons.

-You touched on this in your post but first reason is that house elves are brainwashed. One of the unforgivables gives a wizard the power to control someone. According to the wiki, it’s only illegal to use an unforgivable curse on humans. There’s also other ways of controlling someone in the wizarding world, such as amortentia (keep in mind that there’s a half elf in the fantastic beast series). Even if they aren’t magically brainwashed, house elves have been a part of the wizarding world for ages, and would be raised with the expectation that they would serve wizards.

Second reason is the wars. Dobby mentions that the first war was a dark time for house elves. Goblet of fire takes place before the second war begins. I know elves have magic but it doesn’t seem like they have any defensive magic. They’re small creatures that are easily harmed/forced to harm themselves. We’ve seen how death eaters such as Lucius Malfoy of the Blacks treat their own elves. How would they have fared underneath Voldemort’s regime? 

My belief is that elves tolerate captivity in exchange for safety and protection from wizards. Sure, wizards do abuse elves and the Black family specifically beheaded their elves when they got too old. However, without an employer, the elves risk being killed by random wizards or other creatures. This is why I brought up the wars because most death eaters would not hesitate to harm an elf.

This next one is more specific to the kitchen elves. I think they were mad at Hermione because she was condescending and because Hogwarts is the best job they could get. They’re surrounded by fellow elves. They’re not abused. Dobby at least gets paid, and it’s possible some of the other elves are too. Their refusal to touch the socks that Hermione leaves could also be because they don’t want to risk losing this job. I don’t think they would be kicked out for handling clothes, but the risk of homeless is not worth it.

After the second war, more protections were put in place for elves. The biggest is that their owners would face legal repercussions if they abused their elves. More job opportunities opened for elves besides domestic work. Hermione took a more subtle approach this time and worked on deprogramming the younger elves.

Infodumps are the best kind of dumps!

Yes, yes! They are brainwashed! Anytime a story features a group of slaves who are "just so happy" to be enslaved...like, that's not the story saying it's a good thing. You gotta read between the lines. Doctor Who did the same thing with The Ood, and just line with the House Elves, there was more to that story than initially presented. Anytime a slave is happy about their situation, one can assume it's because they are conditioned to feel that way. Especially if they say that they have "no right to feel unhappy when there's jobs to be done and masters to be served." Like, that line has stuck with me since my childhood, it is so fucking chilling. How do Ron and Harry hear something like that and not become immediately radicalized?

I have no idea what sort of magic binds the House Elves into slavery but it must be quite powerful because House Elf magic is otherwise depicted as stronger than human magic. They can bypass things like Anti-Disapparation Charms and everything. I never considered The Imperius Curse but I can't imagine it's that simple either, because the Elves are often "inherited" and seem to retain the conditioning even when they're between Masters. Dobby was free for a couple of years, and made much more progress in his deprogramming, but he still couldn't speak a word against the Malfoys. Fast forward three years later, he had overcome the trauma enough to return to the belly of the beast and confront his old masters, even fight them, for the sake of his friends. So I think the conditioning can be broken, just like in real life, but it would take time. It would take a healthy environment. It would take an elf who actually wants to be free, and with the world House Elves are raised in, most of them aren't going to want that.

I...completely forgot there was a Half-Elf in the Potterverse. I know who you mean, too. The sweet little woman who took care of Credence. (Or maybe it was Corvus? I'm still a little fuzzy on the details.) But either way, that....that is horrifying. That sends chills down my spine, to consider the implications of just how that happened. Because there's no fucking way that was a consenting relationship. House Elves do appear to have human level intelligence so it's theoretically possible...in the distant future when House Elf slavery has been abolished for generations. But, in the nineteenth century? It would never happen. That just gives me the creepy crawlies and I wonder how many monsters out there exploited their Elf's absolute obedience to do the unspeakable.

It seems like a House Elf can do almost anything but their highest law is their master's bidding. Kreacher was ordered to return home from the cave, so he did. It was that simple. On the other hand, he was also ordered to destroy The Horcrux, and he couldn't do that. But Horcruxes are a cut above "usual" magic, so that may just be a special case. All I know is, House Elves would have been miserable under Voldemort's rule. He framed Hokey for murder. He tortured Kreacher and left him to be ripped apart by Inferi. I know it's a general rule of thumb that everything would be worse with Voldemort in charge, but especially for minorities and the House Elves are a minority.

The idea that House Elves tolerate enslavement because it provides protection from being killed in the wild is an intriguing one. I don't think it would be the case anymore, by the time Harry was growing up. But I wouldn't be surprised if this was how they did it. If this was how Wizards successfully subjugated the Elf race. By creating a world where it was sport to hunt them and then offering them a "way out." This would have been centuries ago, most likely. Yet even now, Wizards fear the Elves, even if they would never say so. There's a reason why it's literally illegal for any non-human to carry or use a wand.

I think you're absolutely right about the Hogwarts' Elves. They are likely a reflection of the mindset of Elven culture in general, especially when we look at Winky, but it's also a fact that working at Hogwarts is the greatest job they could hope to have. I know I give Dumbledore a lot of shit, but he did good here. Keeping slaves is never okay, but most of the time, the slaves in question would choose freedom if that was an option for them. These slaves won't do that, so the best you can do for them is give them a job where they're treated well and get to be among their own kind. If the other Elves asked for their freedom, to be paid fair wages, I'm sure Dumbledore would do that. And I don't usually praise the man but he'd have no reason not to.

But the fact is, they'll never do that. Not without real change, the kind of change Hermione wants to bring. Yes, Dobby is paid, but even he turned down fair wages and terms because, as he put it, he liked being free but he also liked working. The other House Elves seem to be embarrassed, even ashamed, at the ways Dobby doesn't conform to the expected status quo. It's also probably at least in part because he was freed. I'm sure a number of these Elves were, but Dobby and Winky are the only confirmed elves at Hogwarts who were freed, and they're equally ashamed of Winky, as she is ashamed of herself.

As for handling clothes...honestly, this gets into woolly territory because the books never answer the question of laundry. Can House Elves handle laundry? I have to assume they can. With that in mind, being freed is probably a more ceremonial thing, where the Master explicitly presents the Elf with a piece of clothing. (On the other hand, we see that this can be done accidentally, so who the hell knows.) I just don't think picking up clothes without even realizing it would count. Also, not for nothing, but....Hermione cannot free the Hogwarts Elves. She is not their Master, she doesn't have that power. She also cannot free Kreacher, despite Ron warning her not to give him clothes. I'm not sure why all of the characters act as if this is something she can do, including Hermione herself, but it just muddies the waters even further, in terms of figuring out how this rule works.

I do like to imagine that Hermione took a more subtle approach to dealing with Elf Slavery as her original strategy clearly wasn't working. But I don't know. This is the same girl who lit Snape on fire. Who kidnapped Rita Skeeter. Who scarred Marietta Edgecombe. When Hermione gets passionate about something, she doesn't do things by halves. Still, we know she eventually became Minister of Magic (one of the only things from Cursed Child canon I will accept) so it's safe to say she set the wizarding world on the right path, even if she didn't manage to completely abolish House Elf enslavement in her lifetime.

[clownprince]

Joker's motivations in Joker War

Now idk if I was the only one initially confused by wtf Joker's actual intentions were in Joker War. Maybe I'm just a bit schewpid and everyone else got it but regardless here's my attempt to piece together what's going on in his weird little mind.

Imho, the first lines we get about Joker's underlying intentions are here:

It's extremely important that he was aware of Bruce's intentions to redesign the city. That was definitely the catalyst for the whole thing.

Speaking of Bruce's plans to redesign the city:

He mentions multiple times that his goal is to build a city that doesn't need a Batman.

Regardless of whether he actually mentioned something like this at a press conference or something, I'm sure Joker would be able to pick up on it anyway.

And it's very well-established that Joker needs Batman. The Best Man arc has this whole beautiful monologue about it:

Joker NEEDS Batman. A city without Batman is a city with no place for Joker.

The whole Best Man arc takes during the same year (year 17) as Joker War (prior to it, obviously).

The Batcat engagement took place in year 16. (In which Batman also had Joker locked up in his basement. And he deliberately tracked down amnesiac!Joker and made him Normal Joker again so he could get information. Yowza! Not cool, Bats.)

Additionally, the events of Endgame took place on year 15 and Death of the Family in year 14.

Joker reveals more of his motivations in the final fight scene between him and Batman:

Very interesting that Joker initially chooses to stab Batman in the back. Hmm I wonder if that has any deeper meaning or reveals anything about Joker's own feelings in this situation /sar.

Also very, very, very significant that Joker chooses to battle Batman in that particular suit, after he essentially desecrates it:

So, by now, it's apparent that Joker's direct intention with Joker War was to essentially destroy the possibility of Bruce's vision of Gotham:

He even directly says that all of this was about them.

Hm... I don't think he's just talking about the city, here...

And then we have this:

There's been a recurring theme since Death of the Family, that Bruce isn't being the Batman that Joker wants him to be.

To me, this line feels like "okay, Batman is ruined irreparably, let's just destroy him and start over from scratch."

Then we have this panel. Whew. I think this might be one of the most revealing panels in the entirety of Joker War, largely because of how Joker is depicted in it.

He doesn't look angry, he looks genuinely distraught.

And I didn't notice this until someone else pointed it out but if you zoom in, it definitely looks like he's crying.

I don't think this is just an artistic thing, largely because of this panel from a few issues back:

So those are definitely tears of laughter. But it looks roughly the same. Except based on the context and his expression, I don't think those are tears of laughter in Joker War. At the very least, he's hysterical.

Somewhat of a tangent but it's important to tie everything together: Joker War reminds me very much of DOTF and Endgame in that Joker is depicted (or tries to portray himself) as this terrifying, ruthless, inhuman thing, but if you actually look into his motivations, he's being driven by his emotions, particularly his feelings about Batman, which are almost inarguably the most human part of him.

In DOTF he talks about how Batman isn't being the Batman he wants him to be and yadda yadda, but then in the tie-ins, we have this section, which I think does a beautiful job of explaining his real motivations:

It's jealousy. Jealousy and fear. He's terrified of losing Batman.

And then there's a similar thing in Endgame.

Initially, he says this:

"Haha yeah I'm just bored of you lol."

But then in the final scene we get this:

He's not bored, he's heartbroken. He's genuinely hurt by Batman (in his perception) rejecting him, and he's lashing out in a major way.

I think it's definitely similar in Joker War, except he's not as afraid of losing Batman to the Batfam, more so he's afraid that Bruce's new design for the city will eliminate the need for a Batman, although the Batcat almost-wedding and Bruce's growing family definitely play a role in his motivations.

I think that might be where his whole idea of making Batman start over with nothing came from. Because when Bruce started, he didn't really have anyone except for Alfred, and later Dick.

I think that Joker could tolerate him having a few allies but he can't handle the idea of Batman having an actual family. Both because he doesn't want to share Batman's attention, and because he doesn't have a family, so why does Batman get to have one? Why does Batman get to connect with people when the only person he's truly connected to is Batman? He wants Bats to be as dependent on him as he is on Bats.

So, that's just my Hot Take (read: mediocre interpretation) of Joker War. I wasn't too fond of the storyline until I kinda pieced everything together and it's still not my favorite arc but I definitely like it better than I did initially.

[boatemlag]

Hi I read your gift fic to Bee and I am soooooooooo wondering about the funerary rites of every empire pls tell me about them

[ID: Ask from erstwhilesparrow that says, "[staggers out of ao3 shaking slightly] okay so obviously now i have to ask you for your thoughts on empires funerary practices!! stares at you with big pleading eyes. share thoughts?" /end ID]

HI!!!! im so glad you asked >:) a lot of this is in my brain but this was the initial note for the concept for the gift fic so you see where i'm coming from

[Text ID: A screenshot of an iPhone notes app bullet point that says: "2. 2. mezalea and complicated system of rebirth and reincarnation-> no sense of grieving funerals? joel has never had to grieve because hes inorganic. clay structures dont die. interested in the connection between golems in judaism and clay constructs in mezalea" /end ID]

my basic concept with mezalea was ultimately that because constructs dont die (joel was made by the mother tree, and in turn made the mezaleans in his image? something like that) they cant properly die? and if they do die their friends and family or joel himself can reinstate them, and theres ritual for that, but its a thing that is ultimately for inorganics. and its not really akin to a funeral.

more under the cut, separated by nation! ones mentioned in the fic first!

mythland: for mythland i was inspired by this story i heard from a classmate of a funeral he attended in his father's hometown in china where they walked from the morgue to the cemetery and it took like multiple hours and they were singing funeral songs and prayers and such and then still had a ceremony at the cemetery. i had an image in my mind of the rain falling through the dark oak leaves and sausage dressed in the robes of a king even though he is so small (way too small for him) and the robes really are wearing him, and the hours upon hours of walking through the streets of mythland to the royal cemetery with hundreds of mythic citizens behind them singing mourning songs and the toll that takes on a boy too young to be king... yes. delicious. after the blood sheep religion is revived, these ceremonies involved ritual animal sacrifice.

gilded helianthia: i really like the idea of helianthians being people of the earth, and not having huge ceremonies for their funerals. people coming from the earth and going back to the earth. planting their favorite plants in their resting place. this one is pretty self explanatory i think? and its a very logical extension of helianthia's values. the bonfire is something i think is very common in surrounding areas of bordering nations.

pixandria: pixandria is, i think, the only canon depiction we have of funerals? its kind of obvious to say "The Vigil" but like. the Vigil. im also a big fan of the idea of something similar to an ofrenda being common, visiting the memorials of lost loved ones. i also think corpses dont preserve well in the desert so cremation is very common. the body is not considered very sacred and its the soul that has to be memorialized.

rivendell: i spend so much time thinking about these goddamn elves its not even FUNNYY!!!!!! religious schisms make me SICK!!!!!! in the head. anyway. i think cremation used to be very very common in rivendell because in the cold of the mountains bodies decompose very very slowly. but after the schism fire is considered weirdly sacrilegious when it comes to rituals, so they sort of have shirked the cremation part of the ritual. theyve always had wakes i think, and theyve replaced cremation with a complex catacomb type situation. elves also dont die super often? so there are centuries of elves buried beneath the mountains but its not like. that many. comparatively. elves consider it important to see the corpses of their loved ones as part of the grieving process and its an egregious crime to desecrate a corpse or modify the body in any way, even back in the days of cremation.

cod empire/codlands: funerals are VERY important in codish culture because the swamp conditions mean uhhh bog bodies are very possible. and thats considered sacrilegious because the only preserved body allowed is the cod head lmao. its a religious symbol as well as a theocratic symbol. that being said, there are a plethora of ways cod folk prefer to care for their dead. for those who are closer in heritage to oceanic peoples, its very common to feed corpses to fish (livestock) and hold a ceremony during then. for those with mythic heritage (before the ravine and erection of the walls of codlands and mythland) funeral processions were very common, though usually taken out to sea. these are just a few of the types of funerary ceremonies the codfolk use.

ocean empire: as mentioned in the previous section, oceanic rituals often involve feeding bodies to the fishy livestock as a funeral ritual. other than that, more land-living oceanic citizens do something akin to a "viking funeral" where flaming rafts are sent out to sea

lost empire: heh. so theres two main things here: pre and post xornoth. the folks of the lost empire used to bury their dead in large clearings dedicated as cemeteries. for more important people in society they constructed tombs all connected by underground tunnels. post-xornoth, cremation was added as a common custom. this was obviously short lived for the empire.

house blossom/the overgrown: similar to gilded helianthia, except instead of the land around, citizens are buried with seeds on their being, to be used as nutrients for the large wild flowers. post burial rituals include several days of merriment and mourning, and i like the idea that bonfires are also common here.

the grimlands: i really like the idea of public burial in the fields outside of the main capital of the grimlands. there are pretty large cemeteries that are multilayered. the tradition has a common ancestor with the lost empire's tradition.

crystal cliffs: I REALLY LIKE THE IDEA OF LIKE. magic being involved in some way. perhaps the crystallization of famous witches and wizards and sorcerers immortalized in amethyst, deep beneath the mountains. because the crystal cliffs is run by the headmaster or headmistress at the time i think the general burial rights actually depend on the nation of origin or wishes of the individual. crystal cliffs is very much a nation of various peoples because anyone can attend.

the undergrove: the burial rights of the gnomes is a dying secret. because there are very few gnomes left, the decimation of the population has erased former traditions in the face of cremation to eliminate chance of Corruption. it used to be something else, but that knowledge is lost to time.

[eetarot]

The first official post.

I posted some preliminary work over on @qwertyfingers a few days ago, but I've decided to be organised for once and stick everything on it's own blog, so here's an intro post for organisational clarity. I'll be posting any and all updates about the project here, and that's all it'll be used for, to keep the streams from crossing.

What is this project?

I’m aiming to produce a full major arcana for a tarot, using themes, imagery, characters and places pulled from Everything Everything lyrics and odds and ends like interviews, song Q&As and so on.

Some major arcana cards have immediately evident analogues in EEs body of work. For example, The Empress is a ‘great mother’/'mother nature’ figure, protective and wrathful in turn, obvious parallels to Tin (The Manhole).

They will embrace me tonight as a A father and a son And I will carry homo sapiens through the night

Our Empress can be represented by the Fox, and potentially bring in some evolution imagery from Choice Mountain, Leave the Engine Room.

Judgement meanwhile is a representation of a rapture-like apocalyptic event that rewrites everything we know - which is heavily telegraphed in much Mountainhead but especially Wild Guess and The Witness.

Do you know what I saw? Nothing but endless fields of bodies swimming in the pit There was blinding light There were many eyes How could I know that? How could I know that? If I wasn’t there?

The role of Judgement in this deck will be played by this great accident in the pit. The exact visual it will take on is less apparent, but we have our basic inspiration already.

Other cards are more difficult. The Devil is hard precisely because there are almost too many options to draw from, but few prominent or recurrent enough to be the obvious choice. There are multiple places to draw lyrical inspiration for The Hermit from, but none of them provide any visual information. But this whole thing is a process and I’ll get there eventually.

Why are you doing this?

I had the initial idea for this project in 2021. I became really intrigued by tarots status as a sort of agreed-upon set of glyphs and stories shared across time and spent a lot of time researcing the different designs and meanings of cards throughout time. I don’t “believe” in the power of tarot any more than astrology (i.e. not at all), but I’m fascinated by the function of the imagery and art of the cards themselves.

During my reading I got to thinking about what I feel strongly enough about to consider creating a deck and I struck upon this. The first card I ever had a plan for was The High Priestess. Described as a sort of spiritual or social leader-by-example, a representative of the best of humanity and our collective knowledge. In a tounge-in-cheek way, that’s exactly what Come Alive Diana is about.

Her phantom head is thinking for all mankind I saw her portrait in the Mail Her phantom head was directing the holiest of hunts

I was immediately struck by the image of a spectral Diana cradling her own severed head in a pretty gruesome pastiche of the traditional depiction of the card, and haven’t been able to get the thought of it out of my mind since. It’s spiralled out of control since then.

So yeah. Mostly I’m doing this because it interests me on a purely artistic level, and because it’s a fun challenge to approach something really creative in a strangely scientific way. Like I’m dissecting and analysing a bunch of art I really enjoy and creating horrifying chimeras with the remains. I love it.

How will it all get done?

I’m a relatively experienced watercolour and gouache painter and illustrator, though I’ve never tackled a project this big before. The thing that scares me most is having to learn architectural drawings for at least two of the cards I have planned so far. But I look forward to it.

Right now I’m working on typing up all of the notes I have scattered between sketchbooks and notepads about my ideas for different things and making sure I know which areas need my attention most right now. Otherwise, I’m just vibing.

I welcome any questions or suggestions you might have in my ask box or messages! In an ideal world I’d like to complete all of the card artwork myself, but I have no pre-existing skill in graphic or product design and have no idea how to go about choosing a font or designing a card beyond the illustration and so if that’s something you do know about and would like to get involved please do.

Currently I have no plans of printing these up or making any overtures towards this being more than a casual passion project. My only experience with the professional art world is very informal local gallery shows and I don’t feel ready to change that!

[pebblysand]

[SPRING 2023 FIC RECS]

looking for something to read? here are ten fics i think you should read this spring, in no particular order! 💚

CALAMITOUS LOVE AND INSURMOUNTABLE GRIEF by meliebee (HP) (MULTIPLE PAIRINGS) (<20k)

this is a collection of HP one shots. ngl, i don’t really like the format of this. to me, collections of one-shots should exist as a series on AO3, rather than as a multichap, it makes reccing a lot easier. this being said, that’s the only thing i don’t like about this fic. the stories are all written beautifully with an incredibly mesmerising and consistent style. there’s such an understated sense of characterisation in these fics that is just perfection, such a beautiful economy of words that say so much about the worlds this author builds. some stories might resonate with you more than others, but i definitely found them all well worth reading. to me, chapter 5 is an absolute must, with incredible quotes and this sense of loneliness and finding yourself - we know i’m a sucker for fics where harry goes travelling after the war and this one was gorgeous.  would recommend if: you're looking for a collection of well-written, different one-shots

VESTIGE by extrinsical (HP) (HARRY/HERMIONE) (AU) (<5k)

i like this fic. i wouldn't say it's an all-time fave and i didn't love the ending, but i do recommend it. the writing - especially the first half - is stellar. it's rather dark (spoiler: Ron dies 💔) but a very decent read! i really liked the structure and the pacing of the initial scenes. would recommend if: you're looking for a short, dark read, and you don't mind harry/hermione as a pairing

DECAY OF YOUR GOLDEN CITY by soapboxblues (HP) (GEN) (CC) (<5k)

this is incredibly sad and beautifully written. a dark take on post-war, with harry slipping into alcoholism. it’s very subtle, very delicate, and one big heartbreak. tagged harmony, though honestly you could read it as gen. some of the lines in this are just heartwrenching and absolutely gorgeous. “there was a time a time she thought about it. two, actually. (…) now she thinks about it all the time - wondering what she was thinking.” it’s the slow and painful breakdown of the trio in this that gets me too. dark but gorge. would recommend if: you're looking for a short, dark read, and you don't mind harry/hermione as a pairing

ALONG THE WAY by elizabeth culmer (edenfalling) (HP) (RON/HERMIONE) (CC) (<10k)

i had read this a long time ago, then i read it again when i was on holiday last february. it's a very interesting take. one of the best character study pieces i've ever read. often, i don't like these types of fics because they tend to veer towards pointless internal musings, but this is refreshingly beautiful. explores hermione's life post-war in a nuanced and adult way. i loved the depiction of her relationship with her parents, and with ron. the ending is a bit bittersweet with adult compromises, but in a very realistic way. would recommend if: you're looking for a realistic take on the post-war world, and on hermione's chracter

THE END CAME AS A COLD SHOCK TO A POCKET FULL OF ROCKS, TO A MOUTH FULL OF WATER by spirantization (HP) (GEN) (AU) (<5k)

this is dark af. set during the "darkest" timeline in cursed child, the one in which they lose the war and everyone dies. it's so dark and tragic and gorgeous. ron and hermione are a couple (ish), though under very different circumstances, and the story is more gen than anything else. it's one of those dystopian AU-s that are rare and that i absolutely adore. the writing is beautiful and perfect, and i very much love this. would recommend if: you're looking for a short, very dark read

AND WHOSE ARMY? by renaissance (HP) (GEN) (AU) (<50k)

this fic centres on anthony goldstein and exists in an au world where harry didn’t defeat voldemort in ‘98. the fic isn’t spotless (nothing ever is) but what i really liked the characterisation of anthony goldstein in this. it's incredibly hard to write characters who don’t necessarily have a “drive” and sort of float through life, and that is something that this author does impeccably well in this. i love the quasi-OC take on the world, and the characterisation work is stellar. would recommend if: you like OCs, outside perspectives on the main plot and what-if AUs

THE FICTION OF REALNESS by @evesaintyves (HP) (REMADORA) (CC) (<5k)

leaving a proper comment on this is still on my neverending to-do list (sorry ^^), but i will highly recommend it nonetheless. the prose in this is absolutely perfect, incredibly poetic and beautiful, and this fic is sort of the ultimate remadora tragedy. i'm not much of a remadora fan and i will admit this read to me almost as original writing because the characters aren't really defined in my head, but all the more kudos to the writer for making them real! i absolutely loved this! would recommend if: you like exquisite prose and are open to remadora

FIVE FEVERS by ariadnes_string (PEAKY BLINDERS) (GEN) (<5k)

this fic is truly unbelievably beautiful. it covers the presence of illness/fevers in the shelbys' lives. there is so much soul and heart in this story, especially now in hindsight with what we know about ruby. part of it isn’t canon anymore (we know their mum didn’t die in childbirth but by suicide) but this is such a gorgeously written story. the characterisation is spot on, not only with tommy, but with all the characters as well. i love (love love) may in this, and tommy “detoxing” from grace. polly is so on point. truly unbelievably good. probably one of my fave PB fics ever.  would recommend if: you're looking for an amazing PB character piece

CLEAN DRESSES, BRASS TITS AND THE IMPORTANCE OF A GOOD HAT PIN by voodoochild (PEAKY BLINDERS) (GEN) (<5k)

i've definitely recommended this fic before, but if you're looking for a great PB piece about ada - search no more. the writing in this is so good, so faithful to the language of PB, and the headcanon as spelled out in this now lives in my head rent-free. i would also highly recommend the podfic if you fancy. would recommend if: you're looking for a good ada-centric piece

UNDEFINED by orbythesea (THE GOOD WIFE) (WILLICIA) (GEORGETOWN ERA) (<10K)

this is an oldie. i recently started a TGW rewatch and re-read this (and the whole associated series) and fuck. if you've read this before, trust me, it's even better than in your memory. i realised that there are quotes from this that still live in my head rent-free ('they are not quiet' - helloooo??) ten years after the fact. i remember discussing this with orbythesea as she was writing it, and it's made me slightly nostalgic. this fic is basically the georgetown canon, from alicia's perspective. it's just absolutely gorgeous. would recommend if: you're new to the good wife and want to read a classic, and if you're looking for something georgetown era

[peacerisendove]

Big Ethel Energy: Season 2, Episode 1 (#61)

Back to the trenches I go reading this webcomic so maybe you don’t have to and maybe just boning up on my writing skills in the meanwhile.

Considering this is the first episode of the season there isn’t much to say except that I have a good feeling I know where this season is heading from the get go considering the signals.

So my predictions for this season are:

1. More jealous/insecure (and possibly angry or aggressive) Moose

Moose.

Darling.

Honey, that is not a good look for you.

Though you are very pretty playing poker, but it is unacceptable to snoop.

2. Moose and Ethel being on different wavelength / just being too different

Them talking about what they’d do for vacations just reminds me of the last season where they were talking about books and how Ethel judges Moose for not reading and leaving them on his shelves despite not reading them.

Their discussion about vacations while innocuous seems to signal that they’re two very different people. Ethel is this worldly traveled person and Moose in contrast seems to have pretty much stayed in Riverdale or around Riverdale or in the US his whole life. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it feels like it might be a point of contention later on because they’ll have different ideas of what their future may look like which potentially could lead to a split.

3. A love triangle based in Moose’s perception and his jealousy toward Seth.

Seth seems to have a thing for her or Moose is going to misconstrue Seth’s intentions and believe his feelings for her are romantic, which will amplify his jealousy and the perception of him as a jealous, insecure, and maybe aggressive as seen with the Season 1 Finale.

Honestly, multiple love interests was where I thought this webcomic was how I initially thought the webcomic was going to go when they introduced Jughead, Seth, and Moose at the start. Though now the non-mystery of Jughead has been solved (mostly; they still haven’t explicitly stated whether he’s aroace, asexual, or aromantic, but instead have only implied his sexuality which still sits wrong with me.)

4. Ethel and Moose Breaking Up

I think it’s fine for Ethel to be unsure of a relationship and not tell her parents that she is currently in one because she is unsure if she wants it to be serious relationship. Despite calling the relationship with Moose fun, I also feel that there is an underlying hesitancy that she displays toward it. That in her mind this isn’t a long term relationship through her currently being unable to label it as serious. Of course her relationship with her mother is also depicted as sorta uncomfortable when it comes to the topic of her romantic partners, which is also natural, so it may be just displaying her relationship with her mother and her mother’s effect upon her which in turn effects how she’s thinking about her relationship with Moose, or it is a warning sign within the relationship. For me as a reader though this seems to be another red flag/warning that things are not going to be smooth sailing for Ethel and Moose this season.

5. Dilton Doiley????

The curve ball here is Dilton Doiley. I might be giving the comic too much credit, but Dilton resurfacing after last season feels like a monkey wrench ready to cause chaos. 

Maybe I’ll be right, maybe I’ll be wrong, but that’s it for what I have to say about the start to this part of the story. I’m sure it will be just as messy as the first part.

[random-yandere-fandom]

Platonic yandere L as an older brother?

I've noticed a trend towards platonic family yanderes... I'm an only child so my depiction of siblings might not be accurate (which in this case might even be good cause yandere would not be healthy but still) but if you guys still like it then be my guest~

Platonic yandere L as an older brother

The two both of you were incredibly young when Watari found the both of you, dirty and disheveled and clearly not taken care of by an adult, with L protectively holding your hand in his, mustering the man who was doing the same to the two of you. It didn’t take much consideration for the founder of the orphanage to take the both of you in, understanding of your wariness but strict with getting you guys clean and proper. Before long your older brother’s genius was discovered which he undeniably still used for what he had always done, protect you.

While the two of you studied, apparently you were considerably smart, too, it was obvious that you would later on work together. Not only did the two of you know what the other was thinking without any words needed, you also complemented each other. While your older brother was more intimitating, you seemed almost harmless to approach, causing other people to let their guard down around you, a big mistake. 

Otherwise the two of you enjoyed playing together, L always readily entertaining you, whether you wanted to play legos, have him tell you a story or play hide and seek, nothing was off the table as you basically spent your days just the two of you, others rarely joining. Another thing you enjoyed was baking, less because of the activity itself and more because of the reactions your older brother gave you. He seemed flustered and surprised the first few times before happily digging into the treats, wordlessly grabbing some of them and giving them to you, telling you to eat them despite you literally being the one who made them. You accepted with a smile nonetheless.

Should he ever notice you having an interest in anything, he’ll ask Watari to bring you related stuff almost immediately. You remember the one time you had read about dinosaurs, excitedly telling L about them only to later come back to your room filled with all kinds of stuffed animals, figurines, books and the like. You still had most of them, actually. L had them transported to a safe house even though you had tried to argue against it, not that that had made much of a difference. He had only sadly asked you if you did not wish to keep his gifts, crushing your arguments with one sorrowful look that you could no longer disagree with.

The first case you got together was finished surprisingly quickly. Either the official authorities overlooked some clues before handing the case over or the two of you made the perfect pair of detectives. L and you decided that it was both. Over the years you decided which crimes to solve and did so effortlessly, quickly growing a favorable reputation. Though those people did not know that behind the facade of L, two people stood, despite your brother being the one you called the same initial. 

Wherever you guys went, you were somehow always the most guarded, the most protected, your older brother never shying away from hiring the best of the best to guarantee your safety. That is to say, the one he trusted the most to safeguard you was himself. He only allowed you to go out to areas that he considered safe and only with multiple bodyguards, though he relented that these should hide themselves appropriately so you could at least pretend to be normal. While he never said that you were not allowed to leave without him, no matter how much you pressed him on the matter, he always only agreed to your outings when he had time and therefore went with you. At the end of the day you did not mind though, finding your time spend together quite enjoyable.

That is to say, when he was not pranking you. He seemed to have a bit of a sadistic humor that he would never admit to, switching your shampoo with coloring right when you prepared to go out, tying your shoelaces together when you were about to leave in a rush and so on. You did notice the pattern of such incidents only happening when you wanted to leave and had spoken to him many times about the matter, but your older brother just played dumb, Watari even playing along. All of your attempts to evade his little surprises have yet to succeed.

When the two of you got another case, you did not think anything of it yet. It did strike you as interesting and strange, but it wasn’t the first in the category, even when you had to wear a medical mask around everyone else on order of L. You did understand that he was worried, but he did not seem to agree that if you had to wear the covering, so should he. Just as he wanted to protect you, you wanted to do the same for him, but he only explained that it was the best way to catch Kira. There was no reason to be overly bothered, after all, the best team had taken on this case. Your mask was only something to let his mind rest, he had explained.

[viviennevermillion]

Answering the entirety of this ask meme for Azul Ashengrotto

Welcome to "the longest fucking post"™

Here's the original post

❤ Are they romantic?

Definitely. Azul is the type of guy who fits the whole roses and fancy dinners aesthetic and somewhere along the line he realizes he's actually good at pulling romantic things off. He initially starts with it during the time you started dating because he wanted to play it safe and rely on what was typically considered romantic but he soon noticed it isn't something he has to force himself to do and comes rather naturally once he can put aside his initial nervousness.

Additionally I think Azul is a romantic as a state of mind. Once he feels comfortable enough around you and the realization settles in that the two of you love each other, he has a tendency to idealize your relationship a little (to a healthy level). He has a lot of rather deep and slightly poetic thoughts about your connection (doesn't mean he'd say them out loud though).

🧡 How do they confess that they like someone?

Oh geez this man probably suffers from chronic pining so if you're like, the least bit assertive when it comes to romance, you're gonna be the one who confesses first. In case it's indeed Azul confessing, I see multiple ways this could go:

At the end of a date: You asked him out so he's already somewhat aware that you feel the same, which makes it easier for him to make a move and just tell you once your date is over. Of course he thought very elaborately about what he would say to you when the time finally came. Doesn't stop him from being flustered though.

After ages of waiting he finally confessed: There's a certain amount of time after which even Azul gets sick of the pining, especially because the twins keep teasing him about it and the longer he waits the more they drop unsolicited hints that Azul likes you (cue Jade @-ing you under Azul's Magicam posts). So he plans the whole thing out and casually asks you for a date after class. He'd set up a nice dinner for the two of you at Mostro Lounge (when no other customers are around of course) and eventually confess his feelings to you. Despite his nervousness he keeps his suave businessman persona. Now you either got the option to roll with that or you could point it out and you'd get a flustered octopus who's secretly glad you can see through him and still love him for how he is.

Accidental: Now that accident can be many things. Azul just being dead tired and almost passing out on his desk. Seeing a magical item at the Atlantica Memorial Museum and asking "Why does this show you?" before he reads the 'depicts the person you love' sign right next to it. Or sometimes an accidental confession is just Floyd offhandedly mentioning "Koebi-chan, did you know that Azul has a huge crush on you?~" as revenge for the dorm leader making him do the dishes when Floyd didn't want to and Azul's poor unfortunate soul proceeding to internally die several deaths. Accidental confessions would definitely take this man out and stun him for a while as he anxiously tries to say anything to make the situation less awkward but he composes himself and melts as soon as you tell him you feel the same.

In a crisis: As much as Azul likes to be careful and calculated, he doesn't like to have regrets. So when you two are caught up in a fight together or like, uh, let's say a shady ass research facility in the middle of nowhere (nervous laughter), I could see him telling you how he feels fairly easily. He wants you to know in case something bad happens.

💛 Do they drop hints that they like someone and what are they?

It's more like that he constantly prompts you to drop hints. He uses every opportunity he can to steer your conversation to the topic of love and dating, of course in a way where you don't notice he's doing it on purpose, to see if you show any signs of being interested in him. Azul doesn't drop hints himself until he's fairly convinced you have feelings for him. If that's the case, he tends to make some ambiguous comments that can be interpreted as romantic but played off as a joke in case you react negatively.

💚 What's their type?

I have a lot of thoughts on this one and I feel like there's several characteristics that Azul is easily drawn to.

Confident and open but with a sad past: I feel like that would be a solid match for him. Azul strikes me as a person who's probably frequently dealing with the trauma-related kind of imposter syndrome where he constantly feels like he has to reaffirm his image and hide a "true self" (which is really just a bunch of insults about his past self which he has internalized to the point where his subconscious believes they still apply). So having someone around who's been through their fair share of hardships in life and has a genuine and healthy amount of self-confidence and especially self-acceptance as well as doesn't mind talking openly about their experiences and feelings would not only help Azul to strengthen the idea in his mind that he has indeed grown from the "dumb, clumsy octopus" people have tried to convince him he'd always be, but it would also help him to realize that opening up to other people and not hiding the parts of himself people have taught him aren't lovable does not equal vulnerability and weakness. And anyone who can inspire a bit of genuine self-acceptance in Azul is someone he'd want to keep around in his life and could probably love very easily.

Kindness: Azul isn't the kindest person himself but I think he will definitely respect and treasure genuine kindness. Probably not if you're naive on top of it or forgive everyone, but if he can tell you truly care about the people who deserve it and gladly make someone's day better, it'd be a very significant reason why he fell for you. Honestly, most people who have experienced a large amount of hatred and cruelty for a long amount of time won't take true kindness for granted and Azul is no exception.

Protective: This one's been a headcanon for a while. Might also have to do with his past but I can see Azul being into a protective s/o. The idea of having someone around who loves him and wouldn't hesitate to jump in and defend him would give him a well-appreciated sense of security and stability, even if your actual strength compared to his would be the equivalent of a chihuahua trying to protect Godzilla.

Rational: I feel like Azul definitely wants a partner who is rational. As in, they have a good amount of self-preservation instincts, their decisions are based on solid reason and they don't indulge things without being as informed about them as necessary.

💙 What is their perfect date?

While Azul does vibe with the whole fancy dinner date aesthetic, I feel like he'd really love movie dates. He canonically likes dark spaces and I think he'd really enjoy watching a movie which interests him with the person he loves, just sitting in a dark cinema, sharing snacks with you, leaning close to you and occasionally pulling you in for a loving kiss. After the movie he'd have a long elaborate conversation with you about the plot while you're snuggled close to him in his bed and he'd gently run his fingertips across your back.

💜 What's their favorite kind of gift?

Your love and affection. To be able to even give Azul gifts in the first place means you'll probably have to sign a contract somewhere that he won't be indebted to you if you give him gifts for free. That aside I don't think Azul is much of a friend of receiving surprise gifts in general, but he'll never say no to a new coin for his collection or a good book.

🎁 What gift would they get their s/o?

He'd give you the whole world wdym? Azul would probably give you the typical romantic gifts. Flowers, chocolate and accessories. Likely something from the Coral Sea.

🖤 Do they enjoy loving or being loved?

Both but especially in the beginning of the relationship I think Azul will be more passive and enjoy receiving and reciprocating affection more than initiating it, because he's still unsure what to do and he also doesn't want to come off as too clingy (because he's fully aware that he's clingy af)

💔 How do you break their heart?

Cheating, playing mind games with him, not telling him if you're dissatisfied with him, being mean to him and betraying his trust are probably the ones that'd hurt him the most.

❣ What makes them blush/gets their heart pounding?

Everything.

Shameless flirting: Oh god, if there's one thing Azul is not prepared for it's this. Just offhandedly hitting on him when you two are hanging out together or meet in school is surely a way to make him a flustered mess.

Affection: Azul isn't used to physical affection and his relationship experience is most likely 0 so in the beginning of the relationship as he gets used to receiving affection he's definitely gonna blush quite a few times. First kisses? His cheeks turned pink. Cuddling with you for the first time? He's flustered and awkwardly wraps his arms around you. Neck kisses? Congratulations, Azul.exe has stopped working.

Being called beautiful / handsome etc.: He never expects this but he appreciates so much. Give this man a confidence boost, he deserves it.

💕 Their future goals in a relationship? How far do they want to take it?

Azul doesn't trust people easily and lets them into his heart, so when he starts dating you, he does so with the intention of making it last. Of course he knows that relationships don't always work out and that few people stay with their first love, but he wants to hope you'll be around to grow old with him. Also I think Azul does want to get married one day. However when it comes to planning his future, Azul is probably one of the most flexible characters in the cast.

💞 How do you win their heart?

Be patient with him. Show him support and that he can lean on you, even if it might take him a while to actually take you up on the offer. Don't shy away from showing him that he's important to you and what you like about him. Make a move towards him. While Azul definitely understands being anxious and nervous about approaching someone you like, he'd be touched by seeing that he means enough to you for you to just be upfront about your feelings for him.

💓 How do they act when they realize they're in love/have a crush?

Not much different than usually. It's really hard to notice Azul has a crush if you don't happen to be Jade witnessing how his gaze lingers on you when he thinks no one's looking. The most that changes is that Azul spends more time around you and asks you more questions about yourself, which could also be interpreted as him just trying to be your friend or wanting to make a profit. So unless you specifically try to prompt some reactions from him, you probably won't notice.

💗 How do they show affection?

Lots of kisses and cuddles. He just seeks your company, asks you to spend time with him and invites you over when he's free. He also stops by at your club or classroom to pay you a short visit during a break and give you a kiss.

💖 Do they like PDA or are they a private person?

Azul is not nearly as clingy in public as he is in private but he doesn't mind a few quick kisses, having an arm wrapped around you or holding your hand in public.

💘 Do they take the time to learn more about their crush by talking/asking or observing?

Absolutely. Azul takes his time to learn things about people in general. He wouldn't have fallen for you as much as he did if he hadn't previously done that. And he'd definitely talk to you more and ask you questions once he realizes his feelings for you, so he can plan how to best approach you and also estimate how you might react to a confession.

💝 Are they more likely to fall for someone if they're friends first?

Definitely. I think the precondition for Azul to fall for anyone is that he feels comfortable around the person. Well, more comfortable than usually that is. So it's likely that he'd consider the person a friend first before he explores any romantic compability or emotions. Or you're like Kalim and just one day declared him your friend and refused to stop caring about him.

❌ Are they scared of being in love?

It's not like Azul is scared of being in love. He's more scared of being rejected and ridiculed. If there's any member in the main cast who has been the unfortunate victim of a childhood crush pretending to like him "as a prank" and then proceed to make fun of him, it's Azul. This is probably a fear of his when it comes to opening up to a crush.

🔍 Do they ask for advice or just deal with their crush on their own?

He would love to deal with his crush on his own if it weren't for Jade giving him advice to tease him all the time.

♒ Do they end up checking to see if their signs are compatible? Or maybe do they do 'love-tests' (enter in your name and see if you're meant for each other kind of thing)?

No but Azul would manipulate a conversation with someone who is curious about these things (probably Cater) to prompt them to whip out a love calculator or synastry report and enter various people into it, for the sole purpose of seeing how you'd react to being matched with him.

🎇 Are the feelings they have like a whirlwind or are they able to keep it under control?

Again, as long as you don't prompt him to get flustered, he's very calm and collected. He may be screaming on the inside but you won't notice any of it.

⭐ Do they believe that soulmates exist?

He didn't at first. He hates relying on something like luck or fate after all. But as time went on and you stayed together, the thought sometimes crosses his mind that maybe it was just meant to be. He still doesn't actively believe in the existence of soulmates though.

🌹 Are they likely to say 'i love you' first?

Oh hell no. Something serious would need to happen for Azul to just tell you he loves you if you never said it before. He's too scared of your reaction. A big thing with Azul is steering conversation and situations in a way that prompts you to say the things he wants to hear or give the types of affection he wants to receive, so he can reciprocate it, rather than having to initiate.

🌸 How often do they say I love you'?

He adjusts to you in that regard. He knows there's people who believe it loses its meaning if said too much. He'd definitely tell you a lot if he knows you don't mind or even better, are happy to hear it, even if it's been quite a few times in the past hours.

💐 Do they enjoy giving compliments or do they like getting them more? What kind of compliments do they give/like?

He likes both but I feel like receiving compliments just means a lot to him and makes him very happy. He appreciates all of them but receiving any praise about the things he's insecure about makes him especially soft. As for giving compliments, it really depends on the atmosphere. It's either the casual ones he tends to give people accompanied by a small chuckle or if you're in a very intimate or emotional situation he'd bring up something more meaningful and special.

🌺 Do they like to tease their significant other?

Not really. Unless you like to tease him. Then he eventually tries to take revenge and make you just as flustered.

🍀 What's their love language?

Out of the classical 5? Giving quality time and physical touch and receiving words of affirmation. But Azul's love for you also shows in trusting you with his feelings and worries. It takes him a long long time to get to that point but if he freely tells you about how he's feeling when you ask or comes to you when he's feeling down, you can see he genuinely loves you very much.

🌼 How do they view their significant other? Are they the light in their life? Best friend? Savior, etc.?

Azul views his s/o as someone who goes through life with him. You build each other up whenever you need it and in an ideal case there's a lot of mutual support and emotional intimacy. For Azul the person he loves is where he can unwind after a tough day and someone who gives him comfort by just being around him, even if you both do different things.

🥀 How do they act when falling out of love?

I think he'd talk that out with you. For Azul to just fall out of love with someone there's probably a reason for why it happened and he sees no need to beat around the bush or pretend everything is fine.

🌻 Will they do anything for their s/o? Will the crocodile tears win them over or are they stubborn on not giving in?

Azul would do a lot for his s/o but you can't expect to win him over with fake tears and exaggerations. I feel like he'd be a little angry if you tried to do that. If you're genuinely upset and crying however, he definitely does what he can to make you feel better.

💋 How do they kiss?

Azul's kisses are always full of emotion, even if it's just the small pecks he gives you in between classes. They're a silent reminder that he's grateful to have you in his life and that he loves you. He adores long and slow kisses though. He'd gently cup one of your cheeks with his hand and his thumb caresses your face as his tongue swirls around yours. Azul loves to take his sweet time when it comes to kissing you so at the end of the day he usually holds you close to him and spends some time just spoiling you with kisses. He whispers "I love you" in between them occasionally and you can feel him smiling into the kiss.

👁 What's their favorite part of their s/o?

Everything. Okay seriously, I don't really see Azul as someone who cares much what his partner looks like. He seems like the type to only start noticing a bunch of details about you he finds beautiful the more he falls in love with you as a person. He loves so many things about you, from your personality to your behavior to the way you look, it's hard for him to just pinpoint a favorite part of you. He fell for you as a whole and often when you look into a mirror you'll find him standing next to you or wrapping his arms around you from behind, smiling to himself. He thinks you fit together and look good as a couple and he's so proud to have you by his side.

👀 Are they protective?

Not unless he knows a situation is too much for you. Usually he trusts that you can handle yourself. He's there to support you when you ask for his help but if he thinks you'll be fine he doesn't really interfere or try to protect you.

🤧 How far will they go to take care of their sick s/o?

The most he'll do is send you to the infirmary even if you complain or check in with you during his breaks, bringing you tea and talking to you for a while. Azul has a business to run and classes to attend so that comes first even if you're sick. But as soon as he got his responsibilities out of the way, he takes the rest of the day to stay by your side and attend to your needs, making sure you feel a little better by the time you go to sleep.

☠ How do they react when they find out their s/o is dead?

Oh god, the angst 😭. He'd be so heartbroken. All that trust he built up? Gone. Losing you hits him so hard that it'll take him ages to let someone in again. He grieves for a long time and he'll struggle to keep working and carry on with his routine every day.

🥳 How do they cheer their s/o up when they're down?

Azul is good with words so he knows the right things to say to make you feel a little better. He's also very observant and attentive so he knows what usually works to cheer you up. He gives you your favorite types of affection, cooks you your favorite food and spends time with you to distract you. If he's busy he lets you stay in the VIP room with him and lets you sit on his lap while he does his paperwork, occasionally pressing a kiss to your lips.

😱 What makes them worry about their s/o the most?

First and foremost of course actual danger to your wellbeing. That's a given. Aside from that I think Azul, much to his disliking, worries fast and struggles to move on with his day until he has confirmation that you're alright. There's some things that he can get worried about on the regular, including:

You're bothered by your past or insecurities: Mostly because he can relate to this and knows how much it can ruin your day. He doesn't want you to go through these problems he knows so well and whether it's waking up from nightmares or struggling to focus on your studies and put anxious thoughts aside, Azul will be there to provide the reassurance and support you need.

Not knowing whether you're safe and well: Please for the love of the sea witch, send this man a text message if you're going somewhere and arrived at your destination or made it home safe, so his mind doesn't run risk of circling around thoughts like "What if y/n had a car accident?". Because unlike Vil, he's not going to call you or text you if he's worried, he's just gonna suffer in silence.

🥰 How often do they stare lovingly at their s/o?

When he's pining after you, all the time. The twins tease him to no end about this. After getting together with you it's more like he occasionally glances at you from the side while you're doing something casual like writing things down in class or scrolling through Magicam and he smiles lovingly.

😎 How do they impress their s/o?

Azul usually tries to impress with his knowledge. Azul's partner would be someone he can easily talk to and he tends to throw a lot of little facts he learnt into his conversations. He's very smart so he has a lot of interesting things to say. He also may pay more attention to his outfits when he has feelings for you and try to impress you with being well-dressed and having good manners.

😆 How do they make their s/o laugh?

Azul usually doesn't try to make you laugh, nor does he crack jokes very often. If you're laughing, it's usually about him getting flustered. Other than that the two of you tend to laugh together about the things that happen around you; the shenanigans of other students, funny things the teachers say in class or a funny post you found on Magicam. Azul only actively tries to make you laugh if you need some cheering up. In that case he's capable of some snarky comments about the teachers or people you don't like.

🏵 Do they enjoy Valentine's Day?

Before you know about his feelings for you, Azul uses Valentine's Day as a tool to get closer to you. An excuse to have conversations about love with you, to "accidentally" get matched with you for some Valentine's Day traditions and to be a little romantic with you without it coming off as weird. That aside, as stated before, I headcanon Azul as a romantic so I think he'll keep up celebrating Valentine's Day with you even after you get together. It's an excuse for him to spend a little extra time with you and spoil you more.

🎫 How do they celebrate their s/o's birthday and how would they like theirs to be celebrated with them?

Azul and you definitely attend each other's birthday parties at NRC but you always make a point to spend some quality time together afterwards. He lets you pick what you want to do for your birthday and usually goes along with it. After the guests have left he definitely wants some alone time with you, which usually involves sharing dinner and taking a nice walk together and making out with him

🎀 Are they likely to fall for someone first or is it the other way around?

Really depends on how fast you fall for people and how well you get along with him from the get go. If you get to know him and you're nice and open to him right from the start I don't think it'll take him very long to fall for you. He's not a love at first sight person but he can fall for someone in a matter of a few weeks if you just fit together very well. It's trusting you and actually opening up to you about his feelings that he struggles with and could potentially take ages.

💌 Do they send loving/cutesy texts to their s/o?

He definitely makes a point to let you know he misses you and loves you and occasionally texts you a compliment when you're not around. You won't go long periods of time without being reassured that Azul's thinking of you when you're away.

🗡 Do they try to be a good influence on their s/o or do they not care?

In an ideal case Azul does not care because you won't need him to be a good influence on you. He'd only try to do that if he sees you repeatedly making terrible life decisions or failing to take care of your responsibilities.

🎉 Are they a fan of nicknames? Do they prefer cutesy, traditional or silly ones?

Now I know I'm probably in the minority when I say I can't really picture Azul calling his s/o "angelfish", but I think most of the time he'd just call you by your name or a short version for it, because he has grown to love your name and he likes the way it sounds when he says it. Other than that he tends to call you "my dear" or "love".

[ladycatofwinterfell]

Raindrops, snowflakes, sunshine, part 3

Summary: Catelyn meets a northern boy in her algebra class during one of London’s many rainy days. Initially she doesn’t expect much, but this boy brings her a surprising amount of sunlight.

@leialannister and I discussed Scandinavian Starks and I realized I really wanted to write a fic so that’s what I did. Swedes depicted in media makes this Swede happy, and NedCat also makes me happy so why not combine it and publish him for everyone to see?

Ashara poked her head into the bathroom and squinted against the bright light. Catelyn got eye contact with her through the mirror and raised her eyebrows. Ashara had looked better. She was a beautiful woman, but at the moment she looked like seven hard years.

“Where are you going?”

“Did I say I’m going somewhere?” Catelyn asked.

She was going somewhere, but she hadn’t said a thing about it to Ashara and Cersei. She had planned to tell them about it, she really had, but then she had just never found an opportunity to do it. She had thought that she would be able to get out without them taking too much notice about it. That she thought because the two of them had a hangover from hell.

“You didn’t drink last night and you’re wearing makeup, you’re going somewhere.”

Catelyn turned around to look at her directly instead of through the mirror.

“I’m going out for coffee with Ned” she said.

Ashara smiled tiredly.

“You are?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m happy for you but I also hate you.”

Catelyn turned back to the mirror to examine her look a final time.

“What have I done to deserve that?”

Ashara leaned against the doorframe, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Cersei and I are stuck here, hangover as fuck, but you’re all pretty and have a date with a cute guy.”

Ned had accepted her following request and Ashara and Cersei had deemed him cute based on the pictures he had. Not amazingly good looking, but definitely cute.

Together the two of them had also reached the conclusion that there was no trace of a partner on his social media. He only had pictures with more than two people in them, which made it hard to determine, but after careful consideration they had said that he didn’t seem to have a girlfriend. Which of course didn’t matter to Catelyn, but they had found it very interesting.

“Thanks, but it’s not a date.”

It definitely wasn’t a date, but she was looking good. Her skin was glowing, her hair cooperated. It was a perfect day.

“Then what is it?”

“I’m meeting a person for coffee, that’s what it is.”

Ashara rolled her eyes.

“That really just sounds like a coffee date, KitKat.”

She didn’t know when Cersei’s ridiculous nickname for her had stuck, but it annoyed her that it had. She had long since given up on trying to fight it. KitKat. Sometimes that was just who she was. A chocolate covered wafer bar.

“If you insist on it, fine, it’s a friend date.”

She walked past Ashara and out of the bathroom. The flat was gloomy and the air was heavy with the smell of what Catelyn guessed was lavender, but she wasn’t sure. It didn’t matter what scented candle it was that Ashara had lit, the only thing that mattered was that Catelyn had an intense dislike of it. She was glad for that she had a good reason to get out of there.

“Is he aware of that it’s a friend date?” Ashara questioned as she followed Catelyn to the hallway.

He had to be. She couldn’t imagine him wanting to date her because why would he want that? She hadn’t exactly made a good first impression. Or second impression. She had been given multiple chances and had managed to fuck it up every time.

“Yes. I don’t think he would want to date me anyway.”

“Why?”

Catelyn tried to keep her mind off the social missteps she had made during her conversations with Ned. If she started thinking about that she would die. Well, she wouldn’t die, but she would have some trouble getting herself to their… friend date. And if she actually managed to get there she would have a very hard time looking at him.

“There’s no need to talk about that.”

A sly grin appeared on Ashara’s face.

“No need to talk about it, huh? Why’s that?”

“I’m an idiot, that’s all there is to say.”

“That isn’t like you.”

“My brain abandoned me somewhere in the middle, I don’t know.”

Catelyn really didn’t want to be that person, but she was smart. She was book smart and also did well in social situations. She was simply overall smart. Therefore she would have liked to know what it was about Ned that made her act like she had never spoken to a person before. What about him was so terribly special that she couldn’t use her brain? He wasn’t special, the only thing that made him stand out from the other people in her life was that he was Swedish. And there were literally millions of other Swedes.

“Good luck with your friend date” Ashara said when Catelyn opened the door to leave.

“Have fun here” Catelyn responded.

She was once more very happy for that she was going out instead of staying inside feeling like a corpse all day.

“We’re gonna order pizza, it’ll be great.”

Catelyn didn’t believe Cersei was awake and based on Ashara’s yawn she she guessed she would go back to bed for a little longer as well.

“Save me a slice.”

“Can’t promise anything.”

“Come on.”

“That’s what you get for ditching us for a guy.”

“Is it somehow my fault that you’re hangover?”

“Cat, honey, shut up and let me be a little bit jealous over your date.”

Why was she jealous? She had a girlfriend. And it still wasn’t a date, Ashara knew that. Catelyn would get no boyfriend out of meeting Ned for coffee.

“You have a girlfriend, go on a date with her.”

“I can’t date anyone in this condition.”

“I want dinner no matter your condition.”

Ashara almost pushed her out the door.

“Don’t keep the Swede waiting.”

“Hey, I need–“

The door shut before she had finished her sentence. She supposed it was for dramatic effect, but it wouldn’t really work as Ashara had pushed her out before she could take her bag and phone. So she opened the door and went back inside.

“Did you not get my hint?” Ashara chuckled. “I was telling you to leave.”

Catelyn snatched her bag up from where it stood on the floor just next to the door.

“I appreciate your attempt at recreating a scene from a shitty movie, but I needed my bag.”

“I knew something would ruin it.”

“Want to try again?”

Ashara looked like she actually considered it for a moment, but then she scrunched up her face.

“Nah, it wouldn’t be the same” she said.

“Sorry for ruining it.”

“I hate you now.”

Catelyn descended the stairs, cursing the fact that the lift was still broken. She didn’t even know how long it had been since it broke. Weeks, maybe months. And when it actually worked it worked for five days at a time anyway. Catelyn was a world champion when it came to running in stairs. She was nowhere near patient enough to simply walk down those stairs, that took way too long.

When she had stepped out on the street she heard her phone’s text signal and smoothly fished it out of her bag. It was a message from Ned. She had got his number after they started following each other on Instagram so that they could have more direct contact.

Is it fine if Oden comes?

Her lips curled into a smile, he wanted to bring his dog. That felt like an honor. She didn’t know if it was, but it certainly felt that way. And she was fine with his dog. It was a large dog, she wasn’t a fan of large dogs. But Oden seemed very polite.

Yeah, it’s no problem

Okay, see you soon

See you soon

She put her phone away again and happily walked towards the subway. She had hoped it would be sunny, it was not. Maybe it would have been if she hadn’t thought of it. The weather seemed to work that way. But it wasn’t raining, and according to her weather app it wouldn’t. It was just cloudy. Which was fine. Cloudy was fine. But it made her a little sad because her hair was at its best with some sunlight at it, if she could say so herself.

She arrived there before Ned. The bookshop was closed Sundays so she couldn’t browse for books while waiting. So she looked at her phone for a bit, tried not to stare at people walking past her. She didn’t know where he lived, so she had no idea about from which way he would come.

But before she knew it he was standing in front of her with Oden next to him.

“Hey” he said.

She smiled.

“Hi.”

“I hope Oden isn’t a problem.”

She crouched down slightly and scratched Oden between his ears.

“Not at all. We’re best friends, right, Oden?”

Not that a dog could answer her, but it seemed like he liked her. He wagged his tail. She didn’t speak dog, but she believed that meant he was happy. Or at least he didn’t hate her.

“He trusts you” Ned said.

She had been joking, but she saw no sign of that he was.

“I’m sorry, I’m bad with dogs, how can you tell that?”

“Oh that’s not about dogs overall, it’s just Oden. He usually doesn’t let people touch his head. His brothers and sisters were a bit mean to him, and they would chew on his ears so he’s sensitive in that area.”

Catelyn previously hadn’t believed that she would ever reach the point in her life where a dog trusted her. She didn’t like dogs, and dogs didn’t like her. It had been that way for as long as she could remember. And still she stood there with a dog who according to his owner trusted her.

“I really do not deserve that” she said dismissively. “At all.”

Ned looked at her for a moment before answering. She looked back into his eyes. Grey. They were grey. And she was certain of that she wouldn’t forget it that time around. Even more so she hoped they wouldn’t go so long without seeing each other that she had time to forget again. But she wouldn’t let that happen.

“I think you do.”

Maybe she was blushing. She had no idea. All she knew was that he was very sweet and that she liked that about him.

“Thank you.”

She had probably held eye contact with him for longer than appropriate but he didn’t seem to mind. When she snapped out of it and averted her eyes, turning her gaze to the street instead.

“Where do you want to go?” she asked.

Ned sighed.

“I’m going to confess something” he then said. “I don’t know a lot about coffee, where I come from we drink it plain and black. So you pick wherever you like.”

Interesting that he had asked her out for coffee then. Maybe that was simply the first thing that had come to his mind when he asked her.

“Okay. Well, this isn’t my part of the city, I’m rarely here, but if we walk around the area I’m sure we’ll find something good.”

She was only there when she was at the bookshop. She had no other reason to be there, she only knew they had a good bookshop there.

“Sounds good.”

They started walking down the street with Oden ahead of them.

“Don’t you have coffee shops in Sweden?” Catelyn said.

It seemed so much like an exaggerated stereotype that she couldn’t really believe it. Sweden wasn’t all winter and woods, was it? They had cities and in cities there were coffee shops. Or so she believed. Maybe Sweden was a stranger country than she had initially thought.

“We have in the cities, but my family is from the country side so I didn’t have easy access to them. I learned to drink my coffee black. In the wrong company you could get shamed for drinking it with a little bit of milk.”

“Really?”

“Proper people drink their coffee black” Ned said in a heavy Swedish accent.

Catelyn couldn’t keep herself from laughing and he smiled.

“I drink my coffee black too sometimes” she said. “But that’s mostly when I’m too tired to put anything in it because I’m studying.”

“Everyday I thank myself for quitting math.”

“I get you, sometimes it’s all pain, but I like it.”

“I’m a bit jealous, I wish I was good at it.”

She was somewhat flattered by that. So he wanted something that she had too, she wasn’t the only one who was a bit jealous of the others talents? Maybe she was a bad person for feeling that. She didn’t really care.

“Do you?”

“I have always admired academic people, but I’m definitely not one of them. My brain’s not wired that way.”

“That’s funny, because I thought the same thing about you when you said that you draw” she confessed. “I wish I was good at that.”

Ned didn’t answer, so she looked at him to see if something had happened. He didn’t look back at her, seemingly deep in thought. Which confused her. Had what she said really been that thought inducing? She didn’t believe so. They stopped at a red light, waiting for the light to turn green so that they could cross the street. The moment she wasn’t walking she realized her hands were getting quite cold. She should have brought gloves, she realized as she stuck them in her pockets.

“I could teach you, if you’d like” he offered.

By then she had almost forgotten that she was talking to someone.

“What?”

“I could teach you, if you’d like” he repeated. “I’m not amazing, and I don’t know how good I am at teaching, but I can try.”

Catelyn wasn’t a person who lost her tongue. She could always talk, even in situations where she got nervous or embarrassed. She always had her words. That wasn’t always something she considered positive, but it was true. Though she believed that what she felt then was the closest thing to speechlessness she would ever come.

They had only met a few times, that was the first time they had actually agreed to meet up. They didn’t know each other too well, they were only acquainted with each other. And still Ned offered to teach her. Still he offered to help her learn something she had wanted to learn for many years.

“Would you do that?” she asked, feeling herself smile.

“If you want to, sure” he responded, shrugging as if it was no big deal.

“I have nothing to give you in return, but thank you. I would love to do that.”

“You don’t need to give me anything in return, it’s just a fun thing.”

It could definitely be a fun thing.

The light turned green and together with the other people who had gathered at the crossing they hurried across the street with Oden leading the way.

“Are you cold?” he asked.

“What? No, I’m not cold at all” she lied.

There was no need to fuss about that. She was just too stupid to dress for the weather. Maybe she should have learned to after having been alive for quite some time, but she never seemed to do so. Her father would have shook his head if he could have seen her, he had always stooped her in the door and given her a hat and a pair of gloves.

“Are you sure? Because it really seems like it.”

She should have taken a scarf and a pair of gloves, she could definitely admit to that, but it was a little too late to think of it then.

“What makes you think I’m cold?”

“The fact that your shoulders are up at your ears and your hands are very deep down in your pockets.”

“Okay, I’m a little cold, but it’s nothing.”

If she hadn’t known herself as well as she did she would have looked in her bag to see if she by any chance had a pair of gloves in it. But she did know herself, and was therefore aware of that she would never put gloves in her bag. Looking was therefore unnecessary.

To her great horror he first handed her Oden’s leash, and then took of his own gloves off before offering them to her.

“Ned, there’s no need for that, you really don’t have to” she protested. “You shouldn’t have to be cold because I’m bad at wearing enough clothes.”

Ned didn’t listen to that. He merely took Oden’s leash back and instead gave her the gloves. When he did so his hand touched hers and she felt how warm it was. It could just have been the contrast to her frozen hand, but it felt like he was very warm. They would have made a good match if they were dating in that sense.

“God, your hands are warm” she said.

“I know, that’s why you need the gloves a lot more than I do” he said. “Put them on.”

The need to get her hands warmed up came out victorious in the fight against the want to keep protesting. And she was actually very grateful for the gloves when she put them on and felt an instant relief. They were way too large, but they were a lot better than nothing.

“Thank you, this is very kind of you, but never leave your dog in my hands again. He’s a nice dog, I like him, but I draw the line there.”

“Okay, thank you for letting me know.”

“I’m usually not this bad at planning” she then said, feeling that she had to defend some of what little dignity she had left.

“Just like you’re usually not late?” he quipped, obviously amused by her words.

So he remembered that, did he? That hadn’t been a lie, she was always on time. But the latter was a truth with modifications. She was a good planner, but not when it came to dressing for the weather.

“Yes, like that. I don’t know what has gotten into me lately.”

“I hear that’s what London does to you if you stay here for too long.”

“I think it’s Britain overall, it’s been too long since I was home.”

How long had it been since she visited home? It must have been in the beginning of the summer and at the moment it was the middle of autumn.

“Where are you from?” he asked. “More specifically.”

“Galway. Where are you from?”

“I doubt you would know it, most Swedes don’t know it. It’s a small town. And we didn’t even live in that small place, we lived a bit away from it.”

He was right, she knew exactly two Swedish cities. The two largest ones. And he said he was from a small place earlier so she had known it wasn’t one of those, but it had seemed polite to ask.

“I know Stockholm and Gothenburg, which one is it closest to?”

“Good question, uhm… Gothenburg, I think. But it’s about the same distance to both of them. It’s close to the Norwegian border, not too far from Sweden’s largest lake.”

Just then she realized that she knew absolutely nothing about Swedish geography. She had no idea about the name of the largest lake or where in the country it was. And knowing it was close to the Norwegian border didn’t exactly help, Sweden did have a long border towards Norway. That she knew.

“I’m completely lost” she admitted. “You’ll have to show me on a map.”

Ned laughed.

“Absolutely, but then you’ll have to show me Galway on a map. I have no idea about where that is” he said.

“Don’t you know Galway? There’s eighty thousand people living there.”

“I have heard of Galway, I just don’t know where it is!” he said defensively.

“Okay, small town boy” she chuckled.

He pulled a face at her, making her laugh even more.

“I know I’m not the most academic person, but you’re being unfair, big city girl.”

Catelyn smiled.

“Small town isn’t negative. I like small towns. They have an atmosphere and a feeling that cities don’t have.”

She thought of her grandparents’ house in the country side. She had been there all the time when she was a child, sometimes she had thought it was better there than in the city. Wherever Ned was from was probably lovely.

“Small towns are very different from London” he said. “My siblings dreamed of leaving, but I liked it there. It was calm, not much happened. A good place to make art.”

“You said your older brother lives here, right?”

“Yes. My brother Brandon lives here. I have two younger siblings, as well. A sister, Lyanna, and a brother, Benjen. They’re back in Sweden with my parents. Do you have siblings?”

“I have a younger sister, Lysa, and a little brother, Edmure. He’s twelve, he thinks I’m a total nerd for studying math. He thinks I should get a cool degree instead, like criminology. He still calls a lot and wants to come here to visit though.”

“Despite that you’re a nerd?” Ned chuckled.

“Yeah, despite that I’m a nerd. Apparently I’m still likable and a pretty okay older sister.”

“You’re likable. Och vacker.”

The first thing she understood perfectly, but those last two words she didn’t know. That was Swedish. Why had he started speaking Swedish suddenly? And what did it mean?

“Thank you, but I’m sorry, I don’t know what that second thing means” she said.

Ned gave her a look. She didn’t know what that meant either. There were many things about him that she didn’t know or understand.

“It was nothing” he said.

“No, that wasn’t nothing. If it was nothing you would have told me what it meant” she said, nudging him in the side. “Come on, tell me!”

“No.”

“You’ve made me cur–“

“This might be a good place, don’t you think?”

Catelyn shut her mouth and looked up to see that he was right, that was a coffee shop. She wasn’t sure of exactly where they were, she didn’t recognize it so she had probably never been there before. But they had coffee and that was the only criteria she had.

“You wait here with Oden, I can go inside and order” she said. “What do you want?”

“You already know what I want.”

“Are you sure you don’t want something more fun?”

“Proper people drink their coffee black, big city girl” he reminded her.

She laughed and then took off the gloves, handing them to him.

“Thanks for letting me borrow them, I’ll be back out in a few minutes.”

She opened the door and was met by a wave of heat. It was quite crowded, seemed like everyone had decided to get coffee at the same time. She placed herself at the end of the long line and then took her phone out of her bag, immediately taking up a translator. And then found that she couldn’t remember what that word was that he had said. Or those words. She was pretty sure of that there had been two words, but she couldn’t for her life remember what they were. And it annoyed her. It was annoying that he refused to tell her. Had it been something really insulting? But why would he say something insulting, she didn’t believe she had done anything to deserve that.

The smell of freshly brewed coffee was one she had mixed feelings for. She had worked in a coffee shop for almost a year, and had quit just before starting to take classes that autumn as her working schedule didn’t work out with the classes, and she wasn’t allowed to change it. Coffee was a good scent, but some of her worst interactions with other people had also happened in that environment. She had to get a new job though, she was starting to run low on money.

When it came down to it she got him a latte because she couldn’t bring herself to order black coffee. It was too boring, she had to teach him to drink other kinds of coffee as well.

“What do I owe you?” he asked when she came back outside.

“Nothing, it’s on me this time. And you didn’t get black coffee” she informed him.

“I knew it. Is it a latte?”

“It is a latte.”

“I’ll accept it.”

“You sure you won’t get all soft from the steamed milk?” Catelyn said teasingly.

He took a sip from his mug.

“If I don’t survive the winter it’s your fault.”

“I’ll be sure to let your family know that.”

“Thank you, I’m sure it will bring them much comfort as they’re grieving me.”

“Most definitely.”

“Do you want the gloves?” Ned asked when they started walking again.

She didn’t know where they were going, and she supposed he didn’t either. Just walking could be nice too.

“No, I’m good. I have the warm mug now, and besides they’re your gloves, you should have them.”

“I’ll bring an extra pair next time.”

He wanted to see her more times. Things couldn’t be going bad then, could they? He liked her as well as she liked him.

“Or maybe we’ll see each other indoors” she suggested.

“That works too.”

They crossed a street once more and came out to a park. Why had she never been in that park before? It was a nice park and it was probably even better in summer. She would have to remember that. Maybe she could go there with Ned again. Or she could take Ashara and Cersei there. They went to parks all the time in the summer.

“What do you do in your spare time?” Ned asked.

“If you’re fishing for hobbies now I won’t be able to give you anything. When I don’t study I read, and spend time with my flat mates, occasionally I go to a pub or meet up with other friends. Well, I bake a lot, does that count as a hobby?”

She was actually a quite good baker, but when she thought of it she lived a very boring life. She didn’t consider it boring, she liked it as it was, but it wasn’t anything spectacular. There wasn’t much variation.

“Why wouldn’t it count as a hobby?”

“I don’t–“

Suddenly he almost fell to the side and therefore right into her. Warm coffee splashed over both of them as she stumbled over her own feet. She would have fallen over if he had not quickly dropped her mug in order to grab her arm and hold her upright.

At first she didn’t understand what had happened or why he had lost his feet, but then she realized that it was Oden that had suddenly pulled at his leash.

“För i helvete, Oden!” Ned exclaimed before turning to her. “I’m so sorry, he must have seen a squirrel or something.”

She looked at him, coffee all over his chest area, then looked down at herself. She had equally as much coffee, if not more, all over her. Had she not worn her coat it probably would have burned her.

Catelyn closed her eyes and took a deep breath before opening them again.

“It’s fine, it wasn’t intentional. And no major harm was done.”

She hoped the stains would go away in the washing machine. Otherwise she wouldn’t be that happy, but she still couldn’t be angry at anyone. Neither Ned nor Oden had done it on purpose. And it wasn’t like he didn’t also have coffee all over him.

“Jag visste att jag inte skulle ha tagit med dig” Ned muttered to Oden. “Varför kan du inte bete dig när det behövs?”

The dog stood before them, looking at them with puppy eyes. Seemingly wondering why they had just stopped the walk. When Catelyn met his eyes he tilted his head, wagging his tail.

“And that means?”

“He’s not like this usually, I have no idea about what has gotten into him” he said apologetically.

She believed he had chosen to ignore her question and that wasn’t the translation for what he had said, but she couldn’t be sure about that as she didn’t know a single Swedish word.

“It’s okay, really. Accidents happen.”

He was still holding her arm, and they were standing quite close to each other. There was still some distance between them, but it was far less than when they had been walking. She was blushing, she could feel her cheeks burn. Why did she have to blush, why was that her first reaction to everything?

He noticed just seconds after she did and let go of her arm, then he backed away a step, avoiding her eyes.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to pay for the coffee?” he asked, sounding deeply troubled about it all.

“I’m sure. Next time coffee’s on you, it’ll even out.”

Ned sighed.

“I really feel like I should in some way compensate you for this.”

“It wasn’t your fault.”

It felt somewhat ridiculous to stand there and talk about whether or not he should pay her for the coffee while both of them were dripping with it.

She would have laughed if she hadn’t wanted to disappear into the ground, never to appear again. Both because of the ridiculousness of the situation and because it was so far from how it had played out in her head when she had thought about it beforehand. Nowhere in her imaginations had she come up with a scenario where they stood in a park together with his dog, both of them having coffee all over themselves. She should have expected it though. Of course she couldn’t see him one time without something happening.

“Look, I understand if you don’t want to see me again–” he started.

“Why wouldn’t I want to see you again?”

His expression changed from a very anxious one to one that indicated that he believed that she had completely lost it.

“Because I poured almost all of my coffee on you?”

“I poured coffee all over you too, this goes two ways. Oh God, we look ridiculous.”

She could always take some comfort in that they were looking ridiculous together.

“I know, I can see you clearly” he responded dryly.

As if he didn’t look just as stupid as she did. 

"Take a good look then, small town boy. I've never looked better."

She had probably never looked worse. At least when it came to her clothes. It was a good outfit, but the stains didn't really go with it.

"Det är ingen dålig syn."

The whole Swedish thing was fun, she liked hearing him speak his first language, but she was also already tired of not always understanding what he was saying. Communicating in Swedish didn't really work though because she didn't know a word in that language, otherwise she wouldn't have minded at all.

"I'm sorry, Swedish is a fine language, but I don't understand and this time you'll have to translate for me."

"That feels deeply unnecessary."

There was something about the look he had after he had said it that made her even more curious. Like a child who was pretending he wasn't guilty of something he had obviously done and was having a hard time keeping the mask up. What was he saying to her? And why did he refuse to translate it?

"Well, this has been very nice, but I suppose we'll have to continue some other time, because we're both in need of a change of clothes" she said.

She crouched down and picked up the mugs they had dropped. Then she walked over to a nearby trash can and tossed them in it.

"Once again, I'm very sorry” he said.

"There's not much to do about it, so no need to feel sorry."

They began making their way back towards where they had met up, trying very hard to pretend they were not covered in coffee. They actually managed to pass by fairly unnoticed, Catelyn only saw one person give them a look as they walked past. And that wasn't strange, she had seen so much weirder things than two people who had clearly had a little accident while living in London. Maybe it even passed as some sort of fashion statement. When it had just happened it hadn't felt like it, but it could have been worse. A lot worse. She still wanted to disappear from the face of earth when she thought about it, but at the same time she knew that it was definitely a thing she could get over. It had been an accident, it wasn't something she had done or said. That was always an improvement from the times they had met in the bookshop.

"Except for the mess I had a pretty good time" she smiled when they arrived at where they would walk different ways.

"We'll have to do it again without that part" he agreed.

"Indoors" she added.

"I'll bring extra gloves in the future, just in case we need to go somewhere."

She snorted, wondering if he really was that much of an outdoor person.

"That works too."

They fell quiet after that, unsure of what to do. What was appropriate? Could she hug him? That was what seemed most reasonable to her as a handshake was way too formal but she still needed to say goodbye in some way. Hugging also felt most natural to her. Though she couldn't be sure of that he was a hugger. She had never been more thankful for her phone ringing. Maybe a few times, but she was happy to hear her ringtone in that moment. She didn't have to answer it, but it gave her a little more time to figure out what to do.

"I should probably check who it is, I'm sorry" she said apologetically.

She wished she could have just taken up her phone, but it had somehow disappeared underneath everything else she had in the bag. Old receipts, two pairs of sunglasses, a charger, her wallet, a box with a broken bracelet that she had intended to get fixed, some pads. And that was only some of it. How had her phone managed to get down under all that? And when had she put all that crap in the bag? When she finally managed to find it she saw Edmure's name and picture on the screen, and she answered the call with a small smile on her face.

"Uncle wants to know if you're coming home for Christmas" her brother's little voice informed her before she had time to answer.

"Hello to you too, Ed" she chuckled.

"Are you coming home for Christmas?"

It was more than a month and a half until Christmas, why did Uncle Brynden want to know that already? And why wasn't he calling her instead of making Edmure do it? They had regular contact, why hadn't he asked her when they talked the day before?

"I am, but why does he want to know that now?"

"He said why, but I forgot to listen, I just know he told me to ask you that."

She had to keep herself from laughing again by biting down on her tongue. It didn't get easier when she locked eyes with Ned who proceeded to wave back at her despite that they were a meter away from each other.

"Okay."

She would have to call him later and see what it was about.

"What are you doing?" Edmure continued, quickly moving past Christmas.

"I'm out with a friend."

"Is it Ashara or Cersei? Or one of your other friends?"

"His name is Ned, you haven't met him."

There was a short pause from Edmure's side.

"Can I say hello to him?" he then asked.

She could imagine him in his room back in Galway. Sitting at his desk in front of the window of the room, picking at the flaking blue paint on his chair, his eyes narrowed with suspicion. He was always like that when she told him about new people.

"Do you want to say hello to my brother?" she said to Ned.

He shrugged.

"Sure, why not?"

She put Edmure on speaker and then held up the phone.

"Alright, you can say hello now, Ed."

"Hello, Ned."

Ned leaned forward slightly to answer.

"Hello, Edmure."

"Are you and my sister actually friends or are you her boyfriend?"

Ned raised his eyebrows in surprise and she felt the moment she stopped breathing, her eyes going wide.

"Pardon?"

"And that's enough!" Catelyn interrupted, quickly taking Edmure off speaker and putting the phone to her ear again. "Say hello to everyone back home and tell them I love them, bye!"

"But–"

She pressed the button to end the call. There was the reason for why not. She should have seen that one coming, she should have known. She could have spared them both the humiliation if she had just thought it through a second time. Edmure didn't have many boundaries, she had hoped that would grow away when he got older, but it never did. Though he still had some years left before he was a lost case, he was only twelve, after all.

"I had no idea that was going to happen, please forgive me" she said in a low voice as she put her phone back in her bag.

If she looked at him she wouldn't be able to see him again. She would have to delete his contact in her phone and erase every proof of that they had ever met.

"My older brother and my sister are exactly like that, I get you."

She had a feeling of that he wasn't looking at her either, but rather up at the sky.

"There's always some comfort in not being alone, I guess."

"There is."

She took a deep breath and then went in for a quick hug. Based on the way his whole body tensed at first she thought it had been a miscalculation from her side, but then he laid his free arm arm over her back and hugged her back. They were only in contact for a few seconds, but during that short time she once more got to feel how warm he was. His future girlfriend would be lucky to have him in the winter, it was nice. He was nice, all of him.

"We'll have to see each other again" she said when they parted.

"Definitely. Will I hear from you in the near future?"

Catelyn scratched Oden behind one ear. He had patiently been standing still and waiting while they had been standing there and talking. Why weren't all dogs like him? She would have liked them a lot better if they were

"You’ll hear from me as soon as I know when I can. Take care."

"You too."

She threw a glance over her shoulder when they walked separate ways. She did so every few seconds until Ned and Oden had disappeared behind a corner and she could no longer see them. She sighed, that sure had been a lot. They had done quite well, she would like to lay the blame with Oden and Edmure for that it had gone as it did. In the future she wouldn't answer any calls from Edmure while she was around people, it was better that way. Much better. When was back home and had climbed up all the stairs to the sixth floor she was met by ABBA. She hadn't even opened the door yet, but she could clearly hear "Dancing Queen". They were probably watching Mamma Mia!, Ashara loved that movie. Catelyn was almost positive she herself had seen the movie half a hundred times just because Ashara put it one at least once a week.

"What the hell did you do in order to look even more like crap than we do?" Cersei asked when she caught sight of her. "Really, what happened to you, KitKat?"

She felt like she was doing a walk of shame. Except for that she hadn't had sex with anyone, she had just spilled coffee all over herself and the person she had been meeting with. She needed fresh clothes. And dinner, she was starving.

"I don't want to talk about it right now, I need a while to process the whole thing."

"Sounds like a successful date" Ashara hummed to the tune of the chorus of the song.

"It was eventful, if nothing else.”

"There's pizza for you in the fridge, if that makes anything better."

Catelyn stopped to look at her, almost believing that she would start crying over some pizza.

"Really?"

"Yeah, go wild."

"I love you, I'll join you in a minute, I just need to change my clothes."

[thevoidable]

Why did Dabi let Hawks into the League? (major manga spoilers ahead)

This is a question that’s been plaguing my head ever since Dabi proudly announced to Hawks that he’d known all along that he was lying.

If that was the case, what was the point of bringing him in? Surely Dabi must have seen this coming by enabling Hawks to continue his infiltration? What exactly was Dabi’s end-goal here???

It’s unclear whether or not if this will get explained eventually, but after giving it a lot of thought, I think I have a pretty good answer to the question regardless. Essay under the cut.

What is Dabi fighting for?

First, we have to address Dabi’s motivations. They run deeper than just making Stain’s will a reality - he’s taking steps that Stain never even considered to make, because even he was blinded by something that Dabi despises more than anything: hero idolization. Stain saw All Might as a true hero, someone worthy of the title, but in Dabi’s eyes, All Might is one of the biggest contributing factors to why there is such a huge problem with the hero system, and aside from All Might allowing other heroes to become complacent, it’s all because of Endeavour.

Hawks and Dabi are two sides of the same coin when it comes to the new no. 1; Hawks grew up seeing Endeavour’s ambition to surpass All Might as impressive and heroic, mostly due to the fact that Hawks himself lacks the drive to become so great, because all he wants is to live life comfortably. But for Dabi, Endeavour’s need to surpass All Might was nothing but a blinded greed for power, the need to be the best of the best for his own selfish desires rather than to actually save people. It was a path that led him to horrifically abuse his own family in order to achieve it, because he saw Quirk breeding as the only way to fix his own flaws. As such, Dabi, AKA Toya, suffered greatly at the hands of it. He knows firsthand just how much the hero system is unjust, allowing for people with unhealthy mindsets like Endeavour to gain positions of power. He knows that people admire Endeavour for his heroism, but are unaware of the monster that lurks behind closed doors, even when his temper comes out during public patrols. This is a man who is the very definition of a false hero, a man who let his eldest son die and traumatized his entire family.

Dabi goes on to claim in chapter 267 that there are no true heroes - this, however, does not mean that true heroes cannot exist. All he means is that there are simply no heroes currently present and he plans to change that, because in the system that society has right now, it’s near-impossible. Hero idolization forces heroes to become perfect images that people can admire, and it also enforces the mindset that only the greatest heroes can come from schools like UA and Shiketsu. This results in a flood of people longing to become heroes for reasons other than saving people. Uraraka, for example, while she is gentle and kind-hearted, is still only becoming a hero so she can support her family. It’s a well-paying job, and that kind of promise will most certainly lure anyone in who is desperate enough. Yes, she has good intentions in mind, and she does want to save people, but saving people is not her ultimate goal. So, by Dabi’s definition, she is not a true hero.

Becoming a hero should also not be as easy as it is, and becoming a hero certainly should not start at such a young age. UA and the other hero schools are putting teenagers between the ages of 15 - 19 at severe risk, and we’ve seen worst-case scenario results of this twice over the course of the series, and it’s terrifying to think that there are most likely more that we haven’t heard of.

First you have Shirakumo who died before he had even graduated, an incident that led him to becoming a nomu working for the League, who would then go on to cause the second result.

By placing children in such a dangerous training course, it automatically places targets on their backs for villains before they even get their licenses. The League proved just how incapable the staff are at protecting their students by not only successfully attacking a location within the school, but also kidnapping one of said students later on, even after UA’s attempt at keeping the location of the training camp hidden and Dabi himself had revealed their basic plan to Aizawa.

This is all fuel for Dabi’s fire in his journey to rip hero society apart at the seams, and while he is absolutely planning to kill every false hero he comes across, he also has a secondary plan in mind, and that is for the students.

In One’s Justice 2, Dabi has this particular voice line to Hawks: “We’re working for the glorious future where those UA kids are hollowed, and brought down to earth. We’ll have to see what you’re working for.”

Dabi knows that while they are all still young, there is still time to prevent them from falling into every hero’s brainwashed mindset: villains bad, heroes good, no matter what either of them do. 

Something extremely important that the MVA and the current war arcs do is flip the black and white narratives on their heads, showing us just how human and empathetic the villains can be, while the heroes are doing nothing but making unheroic choices and opting for making the violent move first. We’ve seen all of the heroes do nothing but dehumanize Shigaraki, calling him “it” and “thing” like he’s just some monster that they have to kill. We’ve had to watch Hawks murder Twice in the name of “justice” simply because Twice refused to come quietly and be forced back into a life he felt miserable in. Even X-less chose to focus on the machinery next to him rather than getting a near-dead Shigaraki medical attention, and we all know how karma decided to treat that.

And this is where I would like to bring your attention to Tokoyami.

We’ve seen multiple times before how Dabi seems to have no interest in actually harming the students - initially, anyway. He leaves Aoyama alone even though he saw him; he taunts Shoto but doesn’t attack him to get him away; and lastly, Tokoyami first showing up to rescue Hawks actually calms Dabi down. Dabi shows no intent of hurting them because they’re still just kids, not heroes.

Calling back to how the heroes are currently being depicted as the ones making all the disturbing decisions, Dabi doesn’t hesitate to be the first to call out their decision to bring the students into what is essentially a covert-ops assassination mission that has turned into an all-out war. He first recognises that the boy in front of him is just that: a boy, and instead of attacking, Dabi gives Tokoyami a chance.

But what chance, exactly? To escape? Absolutely not.

The first thing Dabi does is make Tokoyami aware of the crime his so-called mentor just committed, and carefully wording it so that the stakes were made clear.

Twice was trying to run away to protect his friends.

But Hawks still killed him.

Dabi is giving Tokoyami a chance to recognise that the hero system he admires hides many skeletons in its closet, and is something that is severely corrupt. He’s giving Tokoyami a chance to rethink his working relationship with Hawks and everything Hawks has taught him.

But Tokoyami doesn’t take it.

As soon as Hawks speaks up again, Tokoyami returns to being obedient, ignoring everything Dabi just said and focusing only on the task at hand regardless of the moral dilemma presented before him, and that’s when Dabi’s intention for Tokoyami changes, because as Dabi put it, “You’ve stopped thinking for yourself.”

And indeed, Tokoyami has. Tokoyami is now cemented in the brainwashed mindset, blindly putting his faith in that Hawks’s decision to kill Twice was right, simply because Twice is the villain and Hawks is the hero, and Dabi realises this.

Tokoyami is now a false hero, and thus on Dabi’s kill list.

So, we have established that Dabi fully intends to wipe-out existing false heroes, while simultaneously trying to save those who have the chance to recover/escape from the brainwashing before it’s too late.

“Keigo Takami!!”

It’s no secret that Dabi clearly knows exactly what kind of situation Hawks is in. The fact that he knows Hawks’s real name alone tells Hawks that Dabi knows far more than he is comfortable with. So, seeing as Dabi was able to see through Hawks’s lies so easily, let’s assume that Dabi knows most, if not all, of what we the readers know about Hawks and how the HPSC groomed him.

Considering that Dabi came from the no. 1 hero’s household, there’s a high chance that he knows quite a bit about the HPSC and just how shady they actually are, especially if the theories are true that they had a hand in covering up his own death. Dabi is well-aware then that the HPSC is responsible for the hero system being so broken, and the reason they do nothing to fix it is so they can stay in power. They are not afraid to make questionable decisions which they know is only making the villain situation worse, because villains are what’s keeping them in business. And what’s sad about this is that even when the decisions they present are clearly morally wrong, the heroes are in no position to argue, because the HPSC is in complete control of their jobs. The HPSC governs the hero system, so whatever they do must be just, right?

Well, Dabi definitely knows the answer to that.

The HPSC deliberately manipulated the heroes to believe that the UA students were needed on the front lines for this mission, and so far, we’ve seen that they really weren’t, actually. The evac team remains the best place for the students to be, because while the pros with all the combat experience can focus on the villains, the heroes-in-training can focus on the smaller task of getting people to safety. Sure, Kaminari, Tokoyami, and the other front-liners helped, but the pros absolutely overwhelmed the PLF on their own. All the front-liners did was just kind of...pave the way, make things easier, and then they were sent back to rejoin their classmates. And the heroes didn’t question the decision at all.

What’s even more disturbing is that the students weren’t even aware of what they were getting into, and most of the pros weren’t aware that the students weren’t aware.

But, as mentioned before, Dabi doesn’t hesitate to call this out.

It’s highly likely that he’s able to connect that the HPSC were the ones who organised this attack and sent the kids out onto the battlefield, which also means that he’s unfortunately no stranger to the HPSC reducing talented children to nothing but weapons, a concept he is also personally familiar with.

Toya was bred with the intent of creating a Quirk superior to Endeavour’s, and then put under extremely harmful training that abused both his mind and his body. We already know that Dabi is heavily against valuing a person’s Quirk over their individual worth, thanks to his fight with Geten.

And in the world of heroics, this unhealthy mindset is unfortunately in abundance, especially in Hawks’s case.

What makes Hawks an especially tragic character is that he started out with the same longing to be a great hero that every child has. He wanted to be a comforting sight to those in need, and his innocent mind thought that the HPSC would help him make that reality.

Instead, the HPSC presented him with a life-changing decision that a child his age has absolutely zero mental capacity to consent to, and it’s heartbreaking that Hawks’s grooming began right from the second they met. The HPSC forced a child into intensive training at an age even younger than students training at proper hero schools, and they ever-so-gradually began chipping away at Keigo’s hopeful dream, starting with the erasure of his own name, the first step in disconnecting him from who he once was.

Over the years of the hero Hawks growing up under the HPSC’s wing, he had been stripped of his childhood and moulded into the perfect image of a hero, one that is loveable to the public, obedient to his handlers, talented in his work, and completely self-sacrificing to his missions.

The HPSC has successfully groomed Hawks so that his selflessness is now their trump card that they hold over him - instead of using his selflessness to save others no matter who they are, he’s been manipulated to believe that he has to give up everything in his life to be a great hero, that he’s not suited for being a “shining light”, thus bringing about his new goal of creating a world where heroes have free time, a goal that he is unfortunately pursuing in the wrong way. He’s been brainwashed to not think about villains too much, to not sympathize with them and dig into where they came from and why they became villains, which is why he’s targeting the wrong problem when it comes to making his dream a reality. He believes that he has to solve every case as fast as possible, and eventually there will be virtually no more villains left to hunt down, but the League has already shown us that the roots of villainy stretch much further down than that.

We catch a glimpse of how Hawks even acknowledges that he’s being held down by hero society, caged, and yet he does nothing to change it.

The result of his grooming has left him stuck in a thoughtless state, where it’s easier to believe that everything he is doing is right, and the villains are wrong.

And this is unfortunately something that he has spread to Tokoyami, as evidenced earlier.

Hawks is a hero who was groomed and manipulated from a young age, being thrown into training just so he could become a tool for those in power to use.

Sounds awfully familiar, doesn’t it?

Dabi can read Hawks like a book

It’s wonderfully ironic how Hawks prides himself in being capable of fooling anyone and everyone, making himself the hardest person in the room to read while simultaneously being able to read everyone else, and yet the one person that he couldn’t predict ends up being the only one who knows him better than anyone else.

Throughout all of their interactions, Dabi has always been two steps ahead of Hawks, able to catch him off-guard and ruffle his feathers. Keeping in mind that Dabi had known all along that Hawks was faking his desire to join the League, it’s interesting just how long Dabi kept stringing him along. Was he simply doing it for his own enjoyment?

Maybe a small part of him was, but in the long run, Dabi was absolutely still testing Hawks’s worthiness. What makes this great, however, is that Hawks was unaware that Dabi wasn’t testing him for what he originally thought.

Loyalty was absolutely out of the question for Dabi, since he knew from the start Hawks wasn’t planning on being as such. So, what exactly was Dabi looking for?

Looking through the tests that we know Dabi put Hawks through (the battle with Hood, and taking out a hero of Hawks’s choice), we can analyse what Dabi was impressed with, and what he wasn’t.

First off, there’s not a lot that Dabi didn’t like about what Hawks did. The most he complained about was Hawks simply bringing along Endeavour to the Hood fight instead of someone else.

It appears that he also complains about Hawks not letting anyone die, but Dabi is always quick to point out when heroes are prioritising lives, and this will become important later.

Then, we have Dabi asking Hawks to take someone out who isn’t the no. 1. When Hawks brought him Jeanist’s body, Dabi was genuinely surprised, but pleasantly-so. 

Now, Jeanist’s death here serves multiple narrative purposes:

It shows us that Hawks won’t hesitate to kill for a mission (RIP Twice),

It shows Dabi that Hawks is capable of killing anyone, not just villains,

And lastly, it serves as blackmail for Dabi in his pursuit of bringing down false heroes.

(There’s also Bakugo’s whole thing with his hero name, but this isn’t about him.)

That last point is what granted Hawks access into the League, contrary to Hawks believing that the only reason he got in is because the merging of the League and the MLA suddenly made it easy to do so. 

Dabi wasn’t going to let Hawks in without making sure he had a backup in mind in case Hawks tripped up.

But, blackmail wasn’t the only thing that Dabi was looking for. If anything, it was just a bonus.

What the Hood battle and Jeanist’s death showed to Dabi were the two sides that Hawks possessed: a bird of prey that isn’t afraid to kill for a cause, and the innocent child who just wanted to help people. Dabi was searching for both of those qualities within Hawks, because they’re both qualities that Dabi himself has.

Dabi relates to Hawks

As previously mentioned, there’s no doubt that Dabi is aware of how Hawks was trained and forced into a life he didn’t want. He’s very aware of how much Hawks longs for freedom but still wants to help those in need, but what separates them from each other is that Dabi has achieved the freedom that Hawks wants and is pursuing his dream in a way that works.

Dabi kills for his cause, but that cause is ultimately to prevent the future suffering of innocent lives at the hands of false heroes. In his own twisted way, he too wants to save lives. He wants to stop the possibility of another him from being created. He is choosing to be the unfriendly reminder that something is very wrong with the current system, and it needs fixing ASAP.

And that is exactly why Dabi can see through Hawks’s lies, because he recognises that Hawks too is a victim of the same system.

Dabi’s plan for Hawks

With Hawks presenting himself in front of Dabi, it offered up a multitude of opportunities for him. Dabi not only had a new connection to Endeavour through Hawks, but here was a hero who was prepared to get his hands extremely dirty just for a way to bring down the League. 

Dabi’s prior knowledge of Hawks and his past allowed him to constantly have the upper hand, but not in case Hawks attacked.

Through testing Hawks to see what qualities he possessed, Dabi was able to see if Hawks was worthy not for joining the League, but for undoing the brainwashing he’d been subjected to.

Dabi let Hawks into the League because he was giving him a chance, the same chance he gave to Tokoyami, to see hero society for what it really was and decide to do something about it. Dabi saw the potential in Hawks to be a true hero, to return to the boy he once was and save people for the sake of saving them. He saw Hawks’s potential to kill false heroes and that he wasn’t afraid to do it, and the idea of someone thinking the same way as Dabi, of understanding him and his goals wholly, would have absolutely been enticing to him.

Dabi claims to not care about the League, but even if that were true, Dabi recognises that the other League members are important to each other, especially when it comes to Twice and how eager he is to make friends. Dabi introducing Hawks to the League was his chance to show Hawks that they’re all human, and gain sympathy for them and what they stand for. It would have been the ultimate power move on Dabi’s part for Hawks to turn on the heroes and go villain, undoing what hero society did to him, providing him the freedom he always wanted and ultimately proving Dabi and his ideals right.

But, unfortunately, that wasn’t how things went.

How Dabi’s plan backfired

When Hawks first joined the PLF, it was obvious that Dabi was sticking close to him, both to keep an eye on him and to be genuinely friendly and accepting.

It’s rare to see a smile like this on Dabi when he’s around heroes, and he never smiles around the League, but for Hawks specifically, Dabi is always smiling. I think it’s safe to say that Dabi did genuinely enjoy Hawks’s company and that he was the only one Dabi actually liked, which is probably what led to him being comfortable with leaving Hawks to his own devices for the next few months, especially when he started a budding friendship with Twice.

Dabi must have been confident that Twice would be the one to break through the last of Hawks’s walls, because if we were seeing genuine smiles from Hawks, then Dabi must have seen them too.

However, it’s clear that Dabi severely underestimated Hawks’s capability to kill anyone. 

Hawks leaked the information to the heroes, an attack was launched, and Dabi immediately knew why.

And he was, understandably, incredibly pissed.

Upon confronting Hawks and hearing how he was about to kill Twice, Dabi used what he’d learned about Hawks during the Hood fight to his advantage and triggered Hawks’s rescue response, prompting him to subconsciously save Twice from Dabi’s flames, because Dabi knows deep down that a hero is who Hawks really is. What he was most likely hoping was for Hawks to maintain that response, but he instead made a mistake and directly caused Hawks to go back into mission-mode.

And it’s just a downward spiral from there, with all of Dabi’s last-ditch efforts falling flat. In one last desperate attempt to reach through to Hawks, he called out his name. His real name.

Dabi’s final chance to bring Hawks to his senses was to try and reconnect him with his past self of whom the HPSC had carefully erased, and it almost worked. Dabi let Hawks know that he knew everything about him, everything that he once was, but just like with Tokoyami, Dabi learnt the hard way that Hawks was beyond saving.

With Twice’s death, Dabi completely lost it, scolded Hawks for not focusing on him, and dropped one last bomb on Hawks before ending yet another false hero.

Until, yet again, that too backfired due to Dabi’s hope that he could save an innocent mind from the hero system’s brainwashing, and Hawks escaped with his life.

We get a glimpse of Dabi’s defeated expression, the knowledge that he can’t cry, and that he just lost two friends within the span of just a few minutes.

What next?

Honestly, if there’s one thing that is going to break Hawks, it’s knowing the truth about Endeavour. My hope is that Dabi is going to have a chance to make his reveal public to the entire nation, and exposing Enji Todoroki for the abuser he is will really shake things up.

At the moment, it’s still not clear exactly what Dabi told Hawks in his redacted bubble, but it was obviously something relating to his identity. Only time will tell what Hawks knows once he regains consciousness.

[dancingkirby]

Shipping

I’m sorry, but it had to be done.  Do y’all think this would work better as a Short Story, or just a oneshot on its own?  

DAY 1

To celebrate the tenth anniversary of his ascension to the throne, Zuzu and Mai were off on a world tour.  Azula had been left in charge of ruling the country.  While Azula was glad that he was finally realizing that she wasn’t always thinking about world domination all the time, so far her regency had been extremely boring.  Now, she was more than halfway through it, and absolutely nothing of note had happened.  

Today had started out like all the others.  She hadn’t slept great the night before because of the high winds that had battered Capital Island, and they hadn’t ebbed down very much by morning.  She’d had trouble getting her hair to stay in its topknot while training.  But the morning council meeting had proven as tedious as ever.  Azula was paying the exact minimum amount of attention required as the ministers droned on about tax brackets; most of her brain was occupied on what she would have for lunch that day.  Noodles were always nice, but she’d had them for two days in a row now. Anytime she ate any food on multiple consecutive days, there was always the risk of speculation among the courtiers that she might be pregnant.  Never mind that she hadn’t even done any sex acts that could result in pregnancy for years…

The door to the meeting hall abruptly swung open.  An out-of-breath messenger stood in the doorway, blushing deeply as nearly twenty pairs of annoyed eyes scrutinized him.  

“You do realize that you are intruding on a confidential council meeting, correct?” Azula inquired of him.  

“I’m t-terribly sorry, P-princess,” the messenger managed to get out.  “But I was told that this needed your immediate attention.” Could it be…that something interesting was about to occur for a change?

“All right. What is it?” she asked.  At her hand motion, the messenger climbed up to the dais and whispered in Azula’s ear.

“Okay.  I’ll be right there.  We will continue this meeting at a time to be determined later,” Azula stated.

So here she was on a tugboat, looking at the enormous cargo ship that had somehow gotten wedged into the Strait of Azulon.   Azula turned to the old salt who was leading efforts to remove it and said, “Explain.”

“That ship is called the Agni-Given, Princess,” the man said somewhat stiltedly; it appeared that he was trying to rein in a sailor’s natural tendency to use copious foul language.  “It’s one of the largest cargo ships in the world.  Today, it was passing through the strait when the high winds pushed it off-course and into a sandbar.  It also got tangled in some old nets from the Gates. We’ve been trying out dam…darndest to free it, but no luck.”

Azula took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly out of her nose.  “And what have these initial attempts included?”

 “We attached every tugboat in the harbor to it to try to pull it out, but it didn’t work, Princess. That fu…freaking thing is stuck deep into a sandbar.  Next step would be to try to dig it out.”

“Explain how that would be accomplished.”

“Yes…well…”–the old man paused–“We ain’t sure yet, to be honest.  The problem is that the place where the bow is stuck is seventy feet underwater.  All of the excavating machines available were built for use on land.  We was thinking of trying to get some of those new forklifts, try to extend their reach, and bring them out on boats, but…that would take time.”

“Forklifts?  Is that the best you could come up with?” Azula demanded.  She found herself imitating her brother’s famed nose-bridge pinch.  This would not do at all.  She needed an ingenue, someone who could design a whole new kind of machine if need be. And she thought she knew exactly where to find one.  

 DAY 2

It had been the end of a long day, without much progress being made.  Azula was just about to demand that the larger, more comfortable boat they’d made ready for her today take her back to the harbor when, at long last, the other ship that she had been awaiting arrived.  After this watercraft was tethered to hers, a figure came running down the gangplank, arms outstretched.  

“Azula!” Sokka exclaimed.  “How’s it going?  We haven’t seen each other in forever…hey!” His attempts at embracing her had been thwarted by the princess grabbing his shirt at arm’s length.  

“Not in public, remember?!” she hissed.  Then, just as formally as if he were any old dignitary, she added in normal tones, “Councilman Sokka.  It is good to see you here.  I trust that your journey here was uneventful?”

“Yeah, except we had to go around the long way because of…well…that,” Sokka replied, gesturing at the still firmly-entrenched Agni-Given.  “So how do you want me to assist, O Princess?” He did a little bow, and could not quite manage to keep a straight face.  

“Watch it,” Azula reprimanded again.  Whenever they encountered each other, she always needed to remind him that their relationship was a melding of intellects and occasionally flesh; romance had absolutely no place in it.  

“I recall that you designed a vehicle that could travel underwater,” she explained.  “Would it be possible to modify this concept and attach equipment for shoveling?  Or perhaps even the capacity for finer manipulation to untangle the net remnants?”

Sokka took a few moments to consider as he beheld the enormous ship.  Finally, he replied, “Yeah, I think that’d be possible.  It’ll take a while to draw up plans and get everything built, though.”

“Very well,” Azula told him.  “I suppose we shall have to simply endure each other’s company for a little longer.”

“’Endure?’  Is that what they’re calling it these days?” Sokka gave a wink that was obviously meant to be seductive, but in fact only made him look ridiculous.  Azula elbowed him in the ribs.

They did, in fact, end up fucking that night, after Sokka had eaten what seemed to be about half of the palace’s food supply for dinner.  They hadn’t seen each other in more than three years, and Azula was scrupulous about taking her contraceptive tea, so why not?

Sokka tried to kiss Azula after, but she didn’t let him.

DAY 3

Zuko had sent a message asking if he should cut his celebratory tour short and come home to help with this problem, but Azula quickly scribbled out a reply that they had everything under control.  

Today was the day that Sokka would first meet with the team of engineers assigned to resolve this problem.  

“And I’m sure that all of you will give him the respect that he deserves,” Azula told them in the most pleasant voice she could manage.  Some of them were obviously pissy about being forced to consult with a man who was half most of their ages.  Well, too bad.  Anyone who tried to ignore him would be upbraided with the utmost harshness personally by her.

DAY 10          

The manufacturing process had begun.  Sokka informed her that he had dubbed this new invention the “shovelmarine.”  He did not attempt to conceal his sheer glee at this horrible pun.  Azula threw a pillow at him.  

While the two of them worked by day and screwed by night, things were starting to get out of hand in the Harbor District.  The plight of the Agni-Given had captured the imagination of the public, and kiosks had sprouted all over the piers selling miniature models of the grounded ship. It seemed that every single street musician in the city had composed his or her own ballad about the situation.  Fan magazines had been established simply for the purpose of publishing the flood of stories and art that the more creatively-minded citizens had concocted.  Azula had gotten a hand on one of these volumes, and her favorite story was a somewhat graphic recounting of a speculated liaison between the Agni-Given and the statue of her grandfather.  Apparently, the statue was the dominant partner in this relationship…just as it should be.

This magazine had also included a drawing depicting her own activities with Sokka.  She knew that she should be furious about this; that the culprit should be tracked down and executed, but she found it just too amusing.  The picture was even surprisingly accurate, except that Azula had not actually handcuffed Sokka to her bedpost.  They had improvised with the sash from her nightrobe instead.  

DAY 16

“Okay, lets see what these shovelmarines can do!” Sokka said as the contraptions touched the open ocean for the first time.  The two of them watched from the boat that was by now almost as familiar to Azula as her own suite of rooms at the palace were.  

As it turned out, the shovelmarines (Azula had grudgingly accepted this terrible name) could do quite a bit.  Over the next several days, they worked steadily at the problem.  Finally, three weeks to the day after the Agni-Given had first gotten stuck, it once again floated freely, although it would be have to be drydocked to repair all the damage.  

In his excitement, Sokka had tried to kiss Azula.  She had initially resisted, but he had used his ultimate weapon: polar bear dog eyes.

“All right, but only once.  And on the cheek,” she cautioned him.  

DAY 25

Sokka had departed two days ago, and Azula hoped that he wouldn’t try to send love letters or anything stupid like that.  He should know how it worked by now.  Whenever they happened to meet, they would rekindle their affair for the duration of the visit, and then they went their separate ways until their next encounter. Of course, they wouldn’t be able to keep this up forever, but it would be fun while it lasted.  

And today…Zuzu and Mai made their triumphant return from their tour.

“Wow,” said Zuko as the two of them stood at the harbor, observing as the last of the debris was carried away.  “You and Sokka took care of that whole mess all on your own!  Thank you, Azula.”  At this point, he obviously knew from experience not to make any comments about her relationship with the nonbender.

“Why do you sound so surprised, brother?” Azula asked, turning toward him and raising an eyebrow. “It’s almost like I am, in fact, a competent ruler and don’t spend all of my days dreaming of bloodshed and destruction!  Who would have ever guessed?”

“That’s not what…” Zuko began, but he could say no more as Azula caught him by surprise, got him in a headlock, and began inflicting a merciless noogie on him.  

“Admit it, Zuko,” she crowed.  “I’m awesome!”

“Okay, I surrender!” he squeaked out.  “You’re awesome.”

She released him. “There.  That wasn’t so hard, now, was it?  Now let’s go get some ice cream.”

And so they did.

[strqyr]

I think Cinder is geniuely paranoid to an extent at the least.

The Madame explicitly comments on Cinders 'Jumpiness' back in Volume 6 and like others I think Cinder dosent form legitmate connections because she's scared of something like Rhodes happening again.

Another thing is that Volume 7s end said how she's motivated by Fear, not only that, but a 'Fear of Failure'. That indicates she isn't certain or assured of her Destiny, because at the possibility she might Fail is very much on her mind.

I think if it's something like you said(Initially certain before growing doubtful) then that was already back in Volume 3. Alternatively, her equivalent was actually Rhodes Trying to arrest her and giving the 'That's all you'll ever do' line. It was someone the King seemed to Trust that gave him the Crown that showed him a Dark future, and Cinder loved and Trusted Rhodes before he basically told her there was no chance for her anymore.

If that's the route they go down, one can Interpret that her entire motive is Paranoia, as Salem gives her an 'Alternative' that she sees as her only chance left.

so i went and read more on paranoia because my definition of paranoia is definitely mostly based on what i assume to be a very stereotypical depiction of it in media, and i can kinda see, like you said, cinder to be paranoid to an certain extent. like, some of the symptoms fit, but i’m not 100% certain she fits the “persistent state of constant, irrational, and unfounded distrust” part of paranoia.

obviously i’m no expert, i’m as armchair as one can get, but based on what i’ve now read, cinder has paranoid thoughts like most people do from time to time, but she isn’t like, fully paranoid? if that makes sense?? and even then, those thoughts are still somewhat rational, i.e. she has reasons for those thoughts, like learning to distrust others thanks to what happened with rhodes.

anyway, that’s an another interesting take on the story, and one i could see being the case. of course, the story could also have multiple meanings, and it just depends on the readers interpretation of it. which is something, if i remember correctly, that was also brought up in fairy tales of remnant: that these stories have different meanings to everyone, and what you take away from them isn’t inherently wrong or right, it’s just your take.

which is great, because think of aaaall the possibilities!!

[treeni]

Sanders Sides Orange Side Predictions

Theories Masterpost

If you haven’t read @averykedavra‘s post on the idea then you absolutely should. It is extremely well thought out and considers a lot of possibilities about the Orange side, even though there are some specific thoughts that I personally disagree with, it is absolutely worth reading through.

First, I want to say I agree with them pointing out @dragonsaphirareads character Otto, aka “Obsession” as being a brilliant take on what the Orange character could be from a conceptual basis. I also think @candied-peach / Peachsneaker’s character Wrath is another brilliant take on the opposite side of the spectrum of the potential of what the orange side could be. Honestly, if you haven’t, you should check out these two creators' works immediately as they are both completely fantastic writers and have a lot of great Sanders Sides stories, both with and without romance.

My only gripe is that I think both characters are too inherently good in their depictions. Personally, I think both authors are right, to a point. I think the Orange character would be someone who cares too much and takes things too far. What’s interesting about DragonSapphiraRead’s character, is that he was once Passion and gave up parts of himself to the others. It’s interesting, but I personally don’t think that’s how it’s going to go.

Instead I think Passion is exactly the trait that the darkside character is going to embody and this is where I most agree with averykedavra’s take. I think the Orange side is going to come in as someone who appears “good,” “right,” and even “helpful” at first glance, and yet, you gradually start to realize the problems further on. 

If you look at the progression of the darksides so far, you may notice that  they have followed the rule of three in establishing a pattern. Virgil showed up and scared the others until his point got across until he was listened to, so really was it any surprise when both Janus and Remus immediately did the same upon their introductions? Given the divide, it took time and understanding to start being open to the good that Virgil brings. Janus has only just started to really prove to Thomas that he is well intentioned and Remus hasn’t even begun that part of the journey yet. However, you can see the three characters all in various states of the pattern that Virgil set. Virgil is at acceptance, Janus is at tolerance (or at least close to it) and Remus is still at distrust, but past the introduction and initial scare.Their actions have all followed the rule of three behavior that establishes a pattern for the audience to recognize. We inherently know Janus and Remus as being on the same “track” as Virgil was on a subconscious level.

Which is why I think the Orange side will absolutely destroy that expectation by diverting from that path and all current expectations of darksides. After a pattern of accepting the darksides, I think they will decide to immediately give the Orange side a chance because by then they will also have multiple examples of their shortsightedness about the darksides potential in helping Thomas.

 I also think Orange will absolutely come in and appear good at first glance. This will probably happen after Janus is really, truly accepted by the other sides and Remus is at least on his way to being accepted. I also really liked averykedavra’s idea that the orange side gives his name immediately, but I disagree on the idea that he can hide his role. The roles are something that others have been shown to bring up to the group and be generally aware of. No side has had to introduce their role as far as I can remember.

However I actually think of this as further evidence for the side having the role of Passion instead of Wrath or Obsession. Because Passion seems good at baseline and is absolutely good if controlled. However, Passion also encapsulates things like Wrath, Obsession, Procrastination, and Spite.

Imagine if you will, a side that comes in dressed as seemingly innocuous in fandom gear and tee shirts with big smiles and excitement. He quickly and easily proclaims his excitement of all of the others’ work and is extremely supportive at the beginning. I could see CharacterThomas becoming quickly and easily attached to someone who seems so positive and relatable. I think he’d be a little like Patton at first glance, but more childish. There would be none of the “fatherly” care in him for example. He would seem interested in what the others would say and generally only make quiet additions to the conversation. In the beginning it seems as if he brings out the good in the other sides with his small bits of help and encouragement. Except, he doesn’t stop at small. Instead as the sides start to become used to his presence he starts pushing things further and further. 

This side never lies, he doesn’t need to. He can manipulate the truth to do his bidding. He gently reminds Roman of all of the things he hasn’t yet achieved of his dreams. As a friend he pulls Patton aside to remind him of some of the bad things happening recently in the world, just to warn him of course. He asks for Logan’s help in clarifying  some facts that might be a little uncomfortable, but definitely important. He gently nudges Virgil about some of the dangerous things that could have happened to Thomas and really? Isn’t he just lucky to have come out okay so far? And self-preservation? No, not even he’s safe as the side reminds him of the rocky state of his “supposed acceptance” until Janus’ doubts overtake him.

You think Thomas struggles in dealing with one of them acting in extremes? Just wait until they all are. Logan becoming obsessive, Roman becoming unfocused, Virgil becoming paranoid, Patton becoming hysterical, and even Janus literally walling himself away because he devolves into extreme self-defense. (Also possibly trying to hastily wall just him and Thomas away. Because defensive rationality.)

The vast differences between the caring Patton and this side become increasingly clear to the audience, but by this point it’s too late. The sides are (almost) all hanging on his every word.

Logan can’t outmaneuver manipulative honesty, Virgil can’t caution against it, Roman’s too restricted to find a creative solution for it. Even Patton and Janus are ineffective because not only does it sound and feel right, it also seems akin to some of Janus’ behavior of revealing “uncomfortable” truths that Thomas doesn’t want to hear. 

I think this side is going to slowly drive the others into their own extreme biases until their own behaviors are so chaotic and restless they become literally unable to contribute to the conversation.

I also think that will be what makes this particular side terrifying. Instead of scaring the others into listening to him, he simply feeds into their own biases until they are so divided there is no longer a conversation. 

You see, this side wouldn’t simply want to be a voice to be heard. He would want to be the only voice.

Okay, now for my justification as to why. 

1. As I already mentioned before, we as humans like threes, comedians will list three things to establish a pattern and then add a fourth in a “one of these is not like the others” to make a joke. The best way to break a pattern is to flip expectation on its head. This side is already breaking that ideology simply by existing as a fourth darkside. He isn’t there to follow the others paths.

2. Janus and Remus’ religious dialogue that is telling of their own negative views of their lack of “inherent goodness” because they consistently use their own existences as proof of Thomas’ “inherent evilness.” While being revealing of their thought processes, I also believe it is a hint to the last side’s state as a Lucifer-like character in the classical sense of his intended perception. Not a demon, but an angel. Someone who believes they have done no wrong and tempts you on a personal level.

3. Also consider some of the things orange as a color symbolizes: encouragement, enthusiasm, and motivation, yes, but also ambition, domination, temptation, and warning.

It’s still loose evidence as we haven’t even met the side yet, but we as an audience can still derive a lot about him from the other characters.

Now that I’m here shoving all my opinions in your faces, I might as well go all out. 

I am currently two for three on darkside names so I’m going to throw my hat in and tell you my guess on that too. 

If the new Orange side follows my predictions I also think he will be named Aiden. 

Why? First, it means “fiery one” which is a perfect association for both passion and the color orange. It also mimics a “light side” name without quite fitting in with the “en” ending. Additionally, like most names, it is a modernization of older names and this particular one has derivative connections to both the Celtic god of sun and fire “Aodh” and the Greek god “Aidoneus” otherwise known as Hades. (Also keep in mind that Lucifer’s name means Morningstar, aka the sun.) Finally, the word “Aid” is literally in the name to give the impression of innocence. 

And that is my TED talk.