#the first one thought her arc came out of nowhere

[rawliverandgoronspice]

One thing I really like is that the whole Unhallowed Vespers trilogy (so Litany, Descant and Antiphon) is that is really served as my brainstorming test grounds for Thralls.

There are ideas in there I realize I don't like as much as I thought in hindsight, or conflict with other stuff I decided I'd rather pursue instead, and I get to have explored them before committing to those in a more long-form kind of project --or some that are too subtle or complicated to be carried out outside of writing (mostly thinking of a ton of Ganondorf character details, some things about gerudo culture that I want to tweak, characters that are getting axed because We Don't Have Time, etc).

On the contrary, there are things I set up in there I never actually got to explore, and I get to pull out that thread in here instead (basically every single of the hylians' character arc roughly, Nabooru, even Impa in a way). It's pretty weird and interesting to revisit the same core ideas twice, but in a different medium and with different character arcs in mind starting off the same thing.

[jennifer-jeong]

[Fluff + Slight Angst] [Kamo Noritoshi x Reader] Home is Where the Heart is

SUMMARY Nowhere else to call home but here, with you

CONTENT NOT SPOILER FREE, mostly fluff, mentions angst, gender neutral reader, mentions of trauma, ALL CHARACTERS ARE 18+

AUTHOUR'S NOTE Ik this man barely has any screen time but I just feel like he's just a lil guy after finding out about him post culling game arc?????????? I felt like he deserved some love so I wrote this is one go. Enjoy! <3

WORD COUNT: 833

You love Noritoshi regardless of whatever stupid clan he comes from and when you first explained that to him, his eyes blew wide. His whole life was about being heir to the clan despite being it’s “bastard.” He always held an amount of resentment towards his clan for what they put him and his mother through. So when you call his clan "stupid" he couldn't help but lightly laugh and mentally agree with you.

He loved his mother more than anything and her not being part of the clan broke him in multiple ways. They treated her like dirt and also drove her away from him. It all resulted in her finding her own home, creating her own family, leaving Noritoshi where she thought he’d be safe.

But here he was,

no longer the heir, no longer anyone’s son.

He had nowhere to call home.

But you came along. Bursting into his life in a dazzling light. He always came off aloof to protect his heart from being broken again. he reasoned that if he didn’t let anyone in, he’d never get hurt again.

But he threw that out the window when he got to know you. He didn’t care what you did to him, he just wanted to let you in. Maybe it was rash of him but he trusted that you wouldn’t hurt him. He didn’t know why he did it, maybe it was just a desperate attempt to cling onto someone to help him heal, or maybe he just sensed that you were someone he couldn’t not have in his life. You were too good to let go of, so he didn’t.

Seasons changed and you two got closer, Noritoshi wasted no time in taking you out on dates and spoiling you. He had so much love to give and gave it all to you.

Of course he also had his classmates but he just couldn’t express himself the same way with them. But since he met you, his classmates noticed changes. He became more gentle, more kind, more warm.

You were always there for Noritoshi, always comforting him and listening to his past. Your heart ached for him and sometimes you’d even cry for him. Sometimes you’d just end up crying together and even though it was sad, it felt cozy. You were healing something in him that he didn’t know how to cure. He didn’t even know it was curable until now.

Noritoshi is also a very giving lover in return. He's always showing his love for you with acts of service or gift giving because the poor boy isn't too great with his words or physical affection. Quality time is a given with him though, whenever he wants to do anything, he asks you if you want to join but most of the time he'll just plan the whole thing around you. He's always there for you when you need him too, doing his best to comfort you by spending time with you and doing anything you need him to do. He also always grabs you a cup of tea when you aren't feeling well, it's how he says "I love you."

You love him so much and don't understand why the Jujutsu world and his clan treated him so badly. The poor man has done so much for the clan when his father paid him no mind. They treated him like a prized possession only because he inherited blood manipulation. They never truly loved him as a son of the clan. It was disgusting.

He was treated like Gojo Satoru but in the Kamo clan. But since he was a half blood, when the firstborn son awakened his powers, they chose him over Noritoshi instantly. He was almost jealous of Satoru. Despite all the pain and suffering, at least his clan still chose him at the end of the day, at least he was of pure blood.

Your boyfriend used to struggle a lot with the concept of being unwanted, unneeded, replacable. But you've filled any and all of the voids left in his soul. Getting closer with his classmates thus makes his heart overflow.

His life is painted in color now, the dull filter that used to fog his vision has now lifted. He swears you the moment he saw you, you were the one holding the bow and arrow despite him being the sorcerer, and you shot him straight through the heart. The colors he now sees seeped out from his heart slowly starting from that day. He describes it like an injury but you actually healed him and you've actually now started an inside joke where you'll pretend to shoot him and he'll pretend to get shot. It's a sweet joke that's always followed by innocent giggles.

Noritoshi doesn’t care anymore about clans or family nowadays. He knows that home is where the heart is. He knows that family is where the heart is.

And he knows that his heart is with you.

Thank you for reading!

|| MASTERLIST ♡ ||

[essycogany]

Hot Take! Nine’s Redemption Arc Was Rushed

I’m usually positive on this blog, but I believe it’s important to have a balance. This’ll be my longest post yet, so buckle your seatbelts. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.

Quick Positive Points

I like the idea of an antagonistic Tails. Nine’s amazingly voiced by a VA I recognize. His design is awesome. His attitude and sarcasm can be entertaining. Nine saving Sonic’s skin when dealing with the Chaos Council was nice. The scene with Nine and Mr.Doctor Eggman talking about Sonic is one of my favorite moments. The thought of creating robots who look like the other characters as if Nine still wanted friends was neat. (even if he tried to kill with them) And despite my grievances, I thought Nine’s hug with Sonic at the end was adorable. The animation is what helped with that.

Introduction

While I do like Nine, I’m going to talk about my glaring issues with his character development. I can see both sides of the argument, but let me tell you why there’s more proof of Nine not being well written. I will implore you to think for yourselves regardless of what I have to say. We all have our opinions and I’m only here to share mine.

Nine’s Characterization

This is how the fox carry himself throughout the show and why most of it isn’t written well. I’ll state my issues with Sonic in certain moments too.

Season One

Nine’s reasonably defensive at first when Sonic came to his home out of nowhere. He became annoyed by Sonic’s immaturity yet concerned for him once they’re captured. After they meet the Rebels, his sassiness begins to show. Replying “You’re welcome,” after saving Sonic by taking control of Rusty. Having a direct and harsh tone when advising others to take the Chaos Council’s shard. And not seeming to care about the rest of the group who gets trapped with Mr. Doctor Eggman.

Nine: “Sonic we have to get to the core!” “You heard her come on!” This I understand because Nine doesn’t know them, so they don’t really matter to him. But then Nine dismisses Sonic’s feelings even after he asked “are you okay?” Because he noticed the hedgehog was a little off.

-Because Sonic started remembering the events that happened to him before he broke the Paradox Prism.

After Sonic realized the prism shattering was his fault Nine says, “Snap back to reality! Grab that shard and we’ll sort the rest out later!” Then when Sonic stated the original Tails told him not to touch it Nine states, “Well, I’m telling you the opposite! Now grab it and let’s go!” Not realizing if Sonic is the reason for the prism being small, his original variant might’ve known touching it was a bad idea. I also can’t forget about these lines.

Sonic: “If there’s anyone who’s got the brains to put it all back together, it’s you.” Nine: “That’s the first thing you’ve said that I agree with.” Nice ego for a person who ends up getting Sonic sucked up by the prism after being warned. Back to what I was saying before, Nine seems to only care about stealing the shard away from the Eggmen here. Which is proven later on in season one. His care for Sonic has progressed, but Sonic learns from the Rebels that Nine abandoned them. And it’s never addressed by Sonic.

-Sonic also insist Nine’s “not a traitor” without any proof. Sonic hasn’t known Nine that long. The last time Sonic saw the fox, he ended up getting the hedgehog sucked into another shatterspace. Unless Sonic’s talking about Nine working with the group. But I’d argue it was more for Sonic and his own sake. Especially since Nine left the Rebels and Rusty at the drop of a hat.

When Nine comes to help Sonic, he shows off the Grim and discuss how it’s “Their bright new future.” Wanting to live in the Grim with Sonic. Even after the last time he saw Sonic, Nine knew how distraught Sonic felt about losing his home. Again, Sonic stated he believed Nine could put the prism back together. Meaning his original friends and world would come back. But Nine immediately assumes Sonic would be happy living with him for the rest of his life. Which is sweet on paper but very messed up in execution. I’ll get into why later. To be fair, Nine’s never had a friend before and was bullied for most of his life. His social skills aren’t the best and he isn’t use to caring about others. But even if Nine didn’t understand empathy, he has no reason to believe Sonic would forget about his home just because Nine didn’t care about his.

Nine: “That city hasn’t brought me anything but misery. I owe it nothing.” He hasn’t been around Sonic for long either, but Sonic’s demonstrated his loyalty before. By worrying about the Rebels instead of the shard while Nine did vise versa. Anyways, Sonic explains he needs to save the Rebels. Nine being Nine didn’t care about them, but came to help anyways because he “cared about Sonic.” I’d say Nine only helped because he thought Sonic would join him after getting the other shards, but that’s my opinion.

Nine: “With enough fortifications and enough shard energy, this could be home.” Because of this line, I believe he already knew about the other shards before Sonic. Which is also why he knew what Sonic was doing in season two. He also says, “When this is over, I’m going home and never looking back. Whether I go it alone is entirely up to you.” Still assuming things.

-Sonic doesn’t give Nine an answer for some reason. Only responding with “I knew you’d come back, buddy.” Projecting how he’d expect Tails to act. Which becomes a serious problem later.

Season Two

Throughout this season, Nine helped Sonic collect the shards. Which was a bonus to keep developing the Grim.

-Sonic and the Rebels have another debate on trusting Nine. At least this time when Sonic says “He saved you,” it’s true. Nine took down the Doctors before Sonic and co got killed. I’d still argue it was for Sonic, but Nine still saved their lives despite his intentions.

I’ll also admit when Mr.Doc used Nine, it was reasonable for him to feel as if he had no choice. He even apologizes to Sonic. We even learn how Nine first fount the Grim and see him make a hammock for Sonic. But the positives goes down hill once we get into the shard chase between Nine, Sonic, and the villains. Once away from the Docs Sonic stated, “Oh, things are finally coming together. We’ve got the shards! We can finally fix everything!” He’s still obviously talking about Green Hill and his friends. But Nine doesn’t notice this. Instead he says, “It’s going to be perfect.” Very specific you two. Nine seems to suddenly believe Sonic changed his mind and Sonic still thinks Nine and Tails are one and the same.

Dude even calls the fox “Tails Nine,” while introducing him to another character. What are the odds? Later on Nine says, “If you like surprises, wait until you see what I’ve got going on in the Grim.” Sonic responds with, “Grim? Cool. Can’t wait to here more. But right now, we’ve gotta get to Ghost Hill.” Talking as if if the Grim was an afterthought. Then the two talk about bringing the prism back together without knowing what the other’s thoughts were behind it.

Even if they didn’t have time to discuss things, I think they should’ve explained something to each other during the chase or before Sonic left to help the Rebels in S1. That way the unfortunate occurrence could’ve been avoided later on, but we’ll cross that bridge soon enough. Anyways, after the goose chase, they meet up with Shadow, who reasonably doesn’t trust Nine.

-The Blue blur defended the fox again with his projecting his friends onto strangers self. It’s also weird how often this dude doesn’t listen to anyone while also wondering why no one won’t listen to him.

After Nine put one of the shards back together and it brought everything back for a split second. Sonic: “Reality was flipping out over here.” “Green Hill was back and so were my friends.” Which must’ve went in and out of Nine’s ears because this show has no time for the characters to communicate properly. Instead of listening, Nine interrupts the hedgehog and shenanigans ensues.

After said shenanigans, another argument scene happens. Except somehow, it’s worsts then the last. I’ll criticize both characters. I want to address the “Sonic projecting” discussion first. I know people think Sonic’s wrong for doing it (he is) but I believe he’s doing it as a coping mechanism. Since his friends are replaced by ghost who repeat themselves and a bunch strangers who look like them, he might not be able to help it. I give him a bit of slack because we all know what he’s been through. Prime!Sonic is also a very sincere version of Sonic who instantly feels guilt. Even if he doesn’t completely understand what he did wrong.

For example, in the first episode, Tails didn’t tell Sonic why he was upset with him. He just said, “It’s cool really.” Tails brushes things off instead of discussing them. I can see where Sonic is coming from. What I won’t excuse is Sonic having a terrible amount of trust in Nine. I’ll discuss this in S3’s issues. And the rest I’ll summon up to Sonic never addressing problems which might’ve needed to be addressed. Like Green Hill almost coming back and other stuff I’ve already mentioned. Onto the fox. This argument might be a great time for Nine to explain what his plans are instead of saying, “We’re not making your old world. We’re building a better one.” Implying Sonic’s original world is inferior and he should deal with it being gone.

When Sonic says, “I think we can get it back.” Nine responds with, “You’re wrong about that.” Despite Sonic in the same episode said minutes before, “Green Hill was back and so were my friends.” Did the fox forget? Is he lying? Or does he not care? I’ll go with the writers forgetting about this line since it never gets mentioned again. Which seems to be a trope in this show. I understand Sonic’s done plenty of wrong when it comes to Nine as well, but I don’t see how Sonic wanting to fix the problem he made in the first place as selfish. Especially since Sonic’s not the only one who wants Green Hill back. Shadow’s dealing with the consequences too.

The “what’ll happen to me when you bring your friends back,” issue is never explored. There’s no confirmation on what happens, so this comment basically means nothing. Also, Sonic living with Nine forever is messed up. It implies Sonic and Shadow never going home. And their friends would stay ghost forever. Dead to be specific. Not to mention Nine’s home would be a copy of what Sonic use to have. You’re telling me Sonic The Hedgehog would allow his freedom to end because of a self centered fox who wouldn’t care if he wanted to go home? I could continue, but I’ll stop here. In the end, Sonic and Nine were both wrong. You could argue Sonic never said “no” to staying with Nine, but Sonic saying in S1 “It’s not going anywhere” was all Nine needed to hear. Sonic thinking Nine would love Tails and discussing Green Hill was prominent when talking to Nine before getting to Ghost Hill too. Dude was completely set on getting home and he wasn’t subtle about it.

To be fair again, Nine hasn’t been in enough good relationships to know who to trust Then finds someone he thinks he can trust. Then gets treated like a reflection of someone else instead of a different person entirely. This goes to show I actually don’t hate the idea of the miscommunication. I only feel the show doesn’t give them enough time to breathe and only focuses on rushing the plot. Therefore having contradictions and forced conflicts.

Season 3

Nine’s first statement in this season is, “This could’ve been everything he ever wanted.” I wish Sonic had a moment to explain why creating a new world is a nice but bad idea. That way Nine could get a better understanding of how close Sonic is to his home and friends. Giving it a sense of importance. He could choose to stay selfish or to be reasonable. Nine tries to capture Sonic in order to get his shard energy throughout S3. In the next scene Shadow says, “So, it was all about power?” (Shadow is the MVP of this entire show) Then Sonic defends Nine for the millionth time.

Sonic: “No, that’s not…” Nine: “Exactly!” Wonderful.

Moving on. Sonic tries to reason with Nine again. Nine: “You were only using me to get what you wanted.” Sonic: “That’s not true.” The hedgehog doesn’t elaborate before or after this conversation. I love how the two barely have a coherent conversation. It’s honestly my favorite thing in the world.

-Sonic tells Shadow if reasoning with Nine doesn’t work, he’ll be “their’s.” Probably implying they’ll have to hurt or kill Nine if necessary. Then Sonic never fallows through with it and doesn’t actually fight Nine. Sonic only uses his shield powers or tries to convince others not to hurt the fox.

After that Nine tries to attack both hedgehogs with a robot copy of Sonic and states, “This time, you’re on your own.” Shadow: “He’s not on his own” Nine: “We’re all on our own.” Describing his perception on loyalty is a detail I actually like.

Later in the season Nine tries to disrupt the bystanders worlds to get Sonic, so they disrupt their agreement. Nine attempts to kill them again and wonders why they wanted to protect Sonic. Almost as if Sonic has been helping them since the fox met him or something.

After constant fighting and begging on Sonic’s part, he tells Nine to, “LOOK OUTSIDE!” And that’s when Nine at last sees the shatterverse breaking and realizes what he’s done. All of this mess lasted 7 episodes by the way. The big fight took up 6 of them. Nine knew beforehand the shatterverse was ending and it didn’t phase him as long as his world was safe. Now he suddenly he feels guilty?

Sonic apologizes because he didn’t listen to what Nine wanted. Or appreciate what he was trying to do. This is Sonic’s words not mine. Nine doesn’t apologize for trying to kill everyone, but to Sonic instead. Sonic asked everyone to leave Nine alone. And asked Nine to not cause anymore trouble. Knucks: “How can we trust him?” Nine: “You can trust me.” Outstanding dialogue. Plot needs to occur, so we’ll skip the part where Nine and everyone else gains trust in a none forced way. Great.

Nine finally helps Sonic even if those problems could’ve been avoided a few episodes earlier and say their goodbyes. The End.

I hate how Sonic had to apologize to Nine about wanting to go home. It’s absolutely unfair. Then Nine doesn’t apologize to everyone else for the havoc he’s caused. What I believe Sonic should’ve apologized for was treating Nine like Tails, but it never gets brought up. But my biggest issue is the only way Sonic called out Nine on his actions was by saying, “This isn’t you!” “Don’t do this!” “I care about all of this. You, the shatterverse, and everyone inside of it. I know you do too.” The last bit being a huge lie.

I don’t make these kind of comparisons often, but Game!Sonic would have everything nipped in the bud. I’d assume by telling Nine, “What you’re doing is wrong. This is why it’s wrong. If you don’t quit, I’ll do everything in my power to make you quit.” He’d understand Nine needed to be stoped and act accordingly. I’d assume everyone would have to make him surrender and he’d be force to fix everything. No, it doesn’t reform him, but I wouldn’t have minded if he didn’t get reformed because sometimes you can’t change people. This might not have been the perfect solution, but I tried. Yes, Nine is a child who was treated terribly, but it shouldn’t excuse his actions.

What’s hilarious is during his last talk with Sonic, he unreasonably guilts the hedgehog and called him selfish. Saying Sonic didn’t save everyone because he actually cared about them. But because Sonic feels guilty about breaking everything from the start. Except Sonic actually admits to messing up which was shown in the third episode of Prime. And took the time to right his wrongs. It’s the most hypocritical and short sided statement in the entire show. And if that wasn’t enough, Nine gets upset when everyone came to attack him. It admittedly was a dumb idea, but Nine made himself the enemy. He didn’t give the gang a reason to trust him before or after his deal with Sonic. Yes, including the end of the show. It made no sense.

Why Nine’s Reformation Was Rushed

First of all, I’m not saying I don’t like Nine because of his negative traits. That’s the main reason he exists. He’s a antagonistic or I’d even say evil version of Tails. Nine is suppose to be distant, selfish, and such. I simply don’t believe after all he’s done and how his character was established that he suddenly changed into a good guy.

Nine’s focus was on his own pain. As he ignored everyone else’s. Including the one person who saved his life on multiple occasions and who (even if it’s wrong) still tried to stick up for him. Giving off the, “I suffered so everyone else should suffer,” mentality. Then blames Sonic by saying he, “put him into this position.” As if Nine didn’t already make terrible choices before going evil. Sure, the shards could’ve been corrupting him, but it’s never explored and can only be assumed. Which are too different things.

These are obvious toxic/red flag behavior and it never gets properly called out. Things are only fixed because the plot demanded it. Not because there was a natural progression. The only thing that progressed was Nine’s uncaring attitude until it magically fixed itself…at the last minute. And I hate that for him because he deserved better. Sonic deserved better. All of the Sonic Prime characters deserved better. But they all fell into the pit of unsatisfying conclusions.

Side Note: What also bothers me is how Sonic is almost the only character Nine interacts with. No wonder he doesn’t care about anyone else. Nine barely talks to anyone. Like Shadow, the blue blur is the main center of Nine’s attention. At least most of the other characters don’t have the same problem, but it’s still ridiculous.

How The Show Is Flawed In General

I have more glaring issues with this show. Sonic Prime’s plot almost never stops to breathe. The repetition is unreal. None of the characters (especially the OGs) get enough attention. Some things are both over and under explained simultaneously. There’s reused animations.

Reused conversations and dialogue are especially prevalent. “This isn’t you, Nine!” “It’s over, Nine.” “Gotta go fast!” “Game over.” “We’re gonna end/fix this together.” “We’re friends.” “Me Beauty.” “We have to take the fight to them.” “You’re even dumber then you look.”

This isn’t half of the repeated lines unfortunately. Some of them aren’t only said by Sonic either. It’s almost as if they ran out of dialogue. I am only scratching the surface of problems, but I won’t go any further. At this point “the show’s writing” is the main issue of Nine’s arc. It’s also why other parts of Prime feels rushed.

Conclusion

Yeah, I have a love hate relationship with this show. It’s seriously hard to watch sometimes. I know this has been a bummer, but here’s what Sonic Prime does right. I adore Sonic Prime in terms of how it looks and sounds. With the outstanding animation, voice acting, music, editing, and sound design. I’ll even say it’s one of the best looking 3D animated kids TV shows I’ve seen. There’s so much attention to detail and quality of the character facial expressions and movements. Furthermore, when the lighting is really good, it looks near movie levels of quality. Not to mention great writing still exists. All in all, Sonic Prime may not be the best written Sonic show, but it does have the most polished animation. Even with its plethora of flaws and lost potential, I’m glad Prime exists to prove 3D TV shows can look fantastic when given enough care.

Stay Creative! 💜

[awarmcupofmilk]

Gojo x reader "Finishing Start"

afab!reader

series: pt 1 pt 2 pt 3 pt 4 pt 5 pt 6

summary: half gojo’s pov- a drunken conversation ends your five year marriage w/ gojo

content warnings: breakup/sad, angst, deviations from gojo’s past arc, slight descriptions of violence (from fight w/ a curse), divorce

word count: 1,368

note: thoughts on this ending?

© 2022 awarmcupofmilk

please don’t repost, edit, translate, use, or copy my works on any platforms (if you’d really like to please reach out – reblogs are welcome)

Gojo ran his hand over his face. He had made you cry again. He lashed out. He made your job search about the money. And he still was no closer to finding out what he did.

He called Geto. 

“Are you sure you can’t remember?”

Geto sounded apologetic even through the phone. “I think you’re your best shot at remembering. But Satoru, I don’t think it was just that night.”

Gojo didn’t say anything. After muttering a word of thanks and hanging up, he found himself lost in thought. 

✧ 

You stared at the curse in front of you, something purple and viscous and disgusting oozing out from beneath it. The special-grade bellowed and charged at you. 

You closed your eyes and felt your cursed energy surge, channeling your innate technique. 

Ah, you’d missed this, you thought. The exhilaration of missions, the joy of doing something for yourself, the satisfaction from saving others, the impact of your energy against a cursed spirit. You didn’t regret giving it up when you did, but you really did miss this. 

You took out the curse with some effort, it had been a while; you were rusty. When you miscalculated a move and had to jump back, the curse’s nail dug into your arm. You’d have to go see Shoko later, it was considerably deep. But you knew you had done well. The reevaluation would be successful. Some previously anxious part of you was relieved that after half a decade of no practice, you still ranked a grade 1. 

✧ 

You sighed as you made it to Shoko’s. You ran into Gojo on the way. Insanely awkward. He froze, seeing your bloodied arm, but you didn’t meet his gaze. Besides sorting out the logistics of divorce, you hadn’t been speaking with him. 

“What’s with the doom and gloom?” Shoko turned towards you when you entered the room. 

“You have to ask?” You chuckled. And Shoko, eyebrow raised, nodded in understanding. 

 “You know, he really is being a baby about this.” Shoko said as she healed your cut. 

“No kidding,” You snorted. 

“Well, good to have you back.” Shoko said. You gave her a hug and thanked her before leaving. 

✧ 

Gojo had a box of kikufuku in front of him. What Geto said swam and echoed in his mind. “I don’t think it was just that night.”

He took one, bit into it, and remembered. 

You had been cooking dinner when he came home. You greeted him with a smile, even though you were clearly tired. Namie was playing with her stuffed bunny. 

“‘Toru,” You had smiled. “I made nikujaga.”

“Okay,” Satoru had responded curtly. He’d gone upstairs to change, and you’d looked disappointed. 

He had forgotten until now. That almost unsettled him more than the actual memory. Had he really cared so little about how you felt that he forgot?

He took another bite of the kikufuku. 

He had come back from a mission and went out. It was the first time he didn’t come straight home after a mission. He didn’t do much, mostly just strolling around a shopping mall. 

When he turned around, you were standing there, expressionless. He felt his phone vibrate and saw that you had called him twenty-three times, seeing as he had returned but was nowhere to be found. 

You were too far away, he couldn’t be sure, but it looked like you had wiped a tear. But then, you ran up to him, and you were smiling. You didn’t look happy, more resigned. He hadn’t noticed.

“I’m glad you’re back,” You had said. “But at least call me when you get back next time, okay? I had to find out from Shoko.”

He’d muttered some sort of agreement. He thought maybe you’d sighed. 

Gojo felt cold. He took another bite. 

He’d begrudgingly took out time to come to your reunion. He’d stood silently as you introduced him, occasionally acknowledging the conversation. He could tell he was making the atmosphere awkward. Your friends were uncomfortable. You were trying to make the best of it. But then he left. He vaguely felt you turning around trying to look for him. Walking over to the bar, he didn’t drink but bantered with someone, he wasn’t sure who. 

Your friends shook their heads. You had sighed. You’d walked up to him, tone somber. “Satoru, it’s time to leave.”

He had nodded and gotten up, but he hadn’t noticed that for once, you didn’t call him “‘Toru”.

And then what you’d said entered his mind. “Do you really need me to point out how little you cared about me or this family?”

“Did it ever occur to you that what you did might be too painful, too humiliating for me to repeat? I don’t owe you an explanation!”

“You’ve done enough harm.”

“We both know you’ve done enough to justify this just from what you can remember. Focus on that.”

“Self-respect? You’re talking to me about self-respect?”

“I thought after our last conversation you’d actually indulge in some self-reflection.”

“You make me sick.”

And his stomach dropped at the thought that he hadn’t listened to any of it.  Even now, he’d only reflected because of what Geto said. 

Did you hold even any significance in his heart? He felt despicable.

And then, by some miracle, he remembered what he said that night. 

“Marriage really isn’t all that.”

“I’m really wasting my life. I’m always worried on missions, and now this is always being used against me, you know they gave up being a sorcerer.”

(“It was for Namie though, right?”) “Sure, but did I ask for that?”

“Look, all I’m saying is, Y/N and I were friends in Jujutsu High. Maybe we should have stayed at that.”

He slid off the couch, head between his knees. 

Who was he to interfere with your life? What had he ever done to give him that right? 

He had no answer. 

✧ 

You’d officially received your reevaluation. Grade 1 sorcerer. You’d be on missions soon, you were added to the payroll, it seemed like everything was coming together. 

Then Gojo called. Ugh.

You were in such a good mood, too. He was sure to ruin it. But besides for Namie, you’d been ignoring him for weeks. So, gritting your teeth, you answered.

“Y/N? Oh, Y/N,” Gojo said, hurriedly, as if he was afraid you’d hang up, yet relieved. “I’m so glad you picked up,”

“That’s a new tone for you,” you said, sarcastic yet pleasantly surprised. 

“I’m so—” He began, then stopped. “I… I just wanted to let you know I think you should have the house.”

“Oh,” you’d said, completely pleasantly surprised now. 

“Just let Namie visit when I find a place, okay?” You rolled your eyes. As if you’d been keeping her from him. 

“Anyways,” Gojo continued. “I just, if Namie needs somewhere to stay when you’re on missions, I’m here—unless I’m also on a mission, but, yeah.” He finished awkwardly. 

What was up with him?

“Uh, okay,” you said, confused, but pleased. 

“Great, we’re still on for today, right?”

You hummed in confirmation. And he hung up. 

What was that?

You frowned to yourself. But seeing the time, you went to get Namie. He was visiting today. 

✧ 

The three of you walked down the street. Namie held an ice cream cone, munching happily, humming to herself. You held her hand and kneeled down to wipe her face with a napkin. She giggled, and though you knew you’d have to wash her dress later, you laughed, too. 

Gojo watched the two of you, fighting the thought that maybe he had lost the happiness in his life. This family would never be the same again.

He felt a tear slide down his cheek in surprise, and wiped it away. You looked up then, and noticed, as you do, with a questioning glance. “You okay?” You mouthed, not wanting to concern Namie. 

Namie looked up then and gave him a grin. She held up the cone to him. You lifted her up so she could reach, content smile on your face. 

 And Gojo, taking a bite, wondered what it was he felt in his chest. 

<- Previous part ✧⭐︎☆⭐︎✧ END

✧ Masterlist ✧

taglist: @skzismyhome @chanyeolscoon @cloudsinthecosmos @dunnowhy-m @mykyoon @coffee-on-a-rainyautumn @96jnie @scaraslover @iam-mia9 @carirosesg @aeanya @wretchedthingluz @whippedbyikemen @vesta-ro

[armoredtitanmistress]

𝙖 𝙨𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙡𝙤𝙦𝙪𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙬𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙙 | ᴛᴏᴊɪ ꜰᴜꜱʜɪɢᴜʀᴏ| forgotten gems (18+ MDNI)

pairings: toji x gojo!reader

summary: your family doesn't understand your value but Toji sure does.

tags/genre: toji x gojo!reader, gojo’s older sister, pre-star plasma vessel arc/star plasma vessel arc, suggestive language (thanks to Toji, of course), explicit language, symbolism (?), misogyny, satoru being a little brat (are we surprised?), strangers to friends to ?, fluff, 2nd person point of view, the first person point of view switches are intentional!, original character (Osamu Zenin).

warnings: 6.3k word count, rated M (18+) for language and sexual scenes, mutual masturbation, vaginal sex, male dom, fem sub, praise kink, degradation kink (barely), boob play, calls her a slut, handjob (fem and male rec.), teasing (this is toji were are talking about), sweet talk, dirty talk, pet names, semi-edging, cowgirl, safe-sex (they used a condom).

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You had let your guard down. Your mother had informed you about a brunch you had with your father and it did psyche you out. Your father never had a one-on-one with you unless it was business-related. Therefore, your thoughts leading up to the brunch pertained to your father with slight glimpses of that night with Toji.  Your mother had chosen your clothes, usually a cause of alarm but you had been so preoccupied that you didn’t question why she had insisted you wear a pale blue kimono with displaced floral arrangements as the design and to wear your hair up in a bun with silver floral blue hairpin. Extravagant wardrobe choice for a brunch.

You were truly blindsided when instead of seeing your father you were met with a smug Osamu Zenin sitting at the table you were directed to with food already there for you. 

“Gojo, you made it this time. I was expecting to be stood up as per the usual routine that we find ourselves in.” He mocked. Even his appearance reeked of pretentiousness. His relatively long hair was being pushed out of his face and into a low ponytail.

He wore a yukata that was similar in color scheme to your outfit, just a darker shade of blue and devoid of any sort of pattern. His frame came nowhere close to Toji’s. He was slender and had a few developed muscles in his biceps at best. Gesturing to the seat in front of him, he says, “Please take a seat. I paid for all this food and it would be a shame to see it go to waste.”

Osamu Zenin was the perfect man for you. 

A sentence that your mother believed wholeheartedly to be true. In comparison to any other son that Naobito had tried to set you up with, your mother voiced her utmost praise for Osamu. She would surmise him as a younger version of your father, down to the haircut and the personality. Truly what any woman wants a potential suitor to be described as. Among the Zenin clan, he fell under the previously inhabited category of Most Attractive. However, his personality didn’t match it. His looks had the female diaspora yearning for him and his personality had them at his beck and call. You called it an epidemic of Stockholm Syndrome.

You surveyed the restaurant out of the slim hope that your father would appear from either the bathroom or the front doors. Unfortunately, he was nowhere to be found. You scoff at the situation, “If a woman actively avoids seeing you during arranged meetings like this, that should be a clear enough sign that she isn’t interested.”

“Send your mother my gratitude for managing to make this happen.” He took no offense to your words and dared to smirk, “You’d be pleased to know that this meeting holds substance.” 

“How so?” You ask with the same amount of interest that you had from the beginning of the interaction. 

Zenin hold a dominant trait within their family. It appears in each generation and if it skips one then surely the child is illegitimate. That trait is being incessantly annoying until they get what they want. You’ve seen it first hand and historians write about it enough for it to be true. They were bred manipulators with an apathy that matched that of a sociopath. 

The Gojo’s were quiet with their manipulation. It’s hard to tell it even happens until someone is negatively impacted by the repercussions. They also hid their misogyny well.

“Take a seat. I hate looking up at women when it’s unnecessary.” He urged with a load of disdain coming from his mouth. Women were to be at his beck and call. Never the other way around. He had confessed that to you during one of your first meetings. He knew of your reputation and he was confident that he could make the impenetrable Gojo his without much effort. Gojo’s are complicated beings and he had figured that out after 6 years of courting. His favorite play must’ve been Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew. Unfortunately for him, yours was As You Like It.

“And I like looking down on men when it is.” You shot back with a pointed look with your arms crossed over one another not before directing it toward the other patrons inside. The entire establishment reeked of affairs and widowers. “Speak up or I’m leaving.”

“You Gojo’s are insufferable.” You heard him mutter under his breath. 

The Gojo’s and the Zenin had a history dating back to the era of feudal Japan. The story goes that during the Edo period, the heads of the clans fought resulting in the death of the Gojo clan head. It was said that they were each in possession of their inherited techniques– a battle of the century. The backstory as to what led to the fight has been misconstrued and in semblance to the Bible has been interpreted further and further from the truth. It was a mystery to you why Naobito wanted to push a marriage between the two families. The malignant history should’ve prevented any sort of arrangement.  Your father was impartial to the arrangements and if he did care, he made little effort to show it. 

“Yet you still chose to pursue me. Seems counterproductive.” You chastise, “The answer will remain the same for as long as I live. I’d pick any of your relatives over you without missing a breath.”

He scoffed and countered, “Now you and I both know that’s not true.” 

He may have been right. The other “suitable candidate” would be Jinichi and let’s just say you liked his brother better.

“Do we? Because I’m failing to see when you and I have seen eye to eye on anything.” Your voice had slightly risen and if there had not been prior threatening conditions, a few heads would’ve been turned. From the outside looking in, you two were in the middle of a lover's quarrel. A demeaning assumption to be lumped into.

“You’ve wasted my time.” You sighed and decided not to linger any longer, “This meeting doesn’t hold any substance and I do not like wasting my time so frivolously. If that’s all you had to say I’ll be leaving.”

Your feet pivoted away from him, walking away as you searched inside your clutch to text your driver that you were ready to be picked up.

Osamu didn’t seem bothered by it. He had anticipated that reaction. He snapped his fingers at your departing figure and called out, “Oh, I wouldn’t leave so soon. This proposal is concerning the Six-Eyes that you treasure so much.”

His words managed to halt your movements but were not enough to commit to turning back. Each snap he’d do was transcribed in your mind as a countdown of you getting closer to getting visibly pissed off.  Having found your phone, you quickly typed out a text to your driver but let your fingers hover over the send button before you questioned his audacity,  “Are you using my brother as a threat? Should I relay to you the reason for my declining all your former marriage proposals?”

“I say that to you not as a threat but as a warning from your clan.” You turn around and see the satisfaction dripping from his tired eyes. You’ve seen that expression before and it wasn’t as antagonizing as his.

“You’re speaking in tongues. Would you like me to cut it off?” You warned but he didn’t back down even if he knew you weren’t one to speak without purpose. 

“Always quick-witted aren’t you?”His boisterous laughter resounded through the restaurant. He turned some heads but they soon disappeared into their conversations. He laughed out your name before explaining, “Do you truthfully believe that your clan is going to allow a woman to lead them? Let alone by herself? It would be blasphemous for you to even be considered in earnest for such an important position.”

“I don’t see why they wouldn’t. I at least would know how to get to the point in meetings like this.” You stated before turning your phone off and placing it back into your clutch.

“Your clan has no plan on making your position permanent. You are merely there to become an acting clan leader for Satoru. After he gets to a relatively sentient age, they’ll release you of your title and sell you off to become a housewife.” He informed you as he looked thoroughly pleased that you had finally given him your full attention. He took a bite out of one of the hors d'oeuvres and continued, “How does it feel to be lied to?”

You remained poised but let your words pierce for you.

“Why would you of all people know any of this? I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen you at any of the Elder meetings.” You mockingly wondered, searching for an answer in the ceiling. Your eyes find him again and you deadpan, “Oh, wait.”

He scoffed, “I happen to be in the ones you aren’t a part of.”

“Is that so?” Knowing full well that he was spewing bullshit.

“Why would I risk my livelihood for a man.” Then it clicked. He was so insistent on being married off. Particularly to you. A Gojo, nonetheless. It was for the same reason men initiated wars or talked over women. It all came down to power. 

“Ah, that’s what it is, isn’t it? What this whole thing is about? This has never been about Satoru.” You began as you lifted yourself from your seat and gathered your clutch into your hands.

“Where are you going?” He asked. His hands were getting ready to grasp your wrist but were repelled by an invisible force. You glance down at his hand and scoff, “Not enough for you to know how different you are from me.”

“I’ll say this as I look down on you because I know how you adore looking up to me. You’ve been doing it your whole life.” You leaned your body down until you were level with him and zeroed your blue eyes into his eyes, “You loathe the idea that a woman would be in a higher position than you. If I marry you, it’s because I chose to. Not the other way around. Your threats don’t even hold a value because even in that scenario, you're not the one in power.”

But neither did you. Sorry to cut off your monologue but if his power was nonexistent then yours was miniscule.

Families tend to bear the signage of their legacy. A Gojo was thorough and quaint with an honorable benevolent presence. Their eyes and hair are key components to their icy exteriors. Not an inch of warmth to be dispelled from them. They get what they want and whoever harbors the consequences of that is left as residual fragments of their greed.  

That’s why when you walked into your family’s dining room, you had all but smoke coming from your ears when you saw your mother enjoying her midafternoon tea with a fashion magazine in hand. You were a spitting image of her minus your hair and eye color. Her hair was pulled back into a bun and a blue hairpin similar to yours. Her kimono was also blue but was a shade of blue that was nauseating to stare at. Kind of like a person with motion sickness on a boat. She didn’t have to bat an eye to notice the bad energy you had given off when you entered the room.

“Back from brunch so early?” She commented as she licked his finger to turn the page. 

“Would have been there longer if the meeting was worth my time. I ask that you don’t involve me in any of your schemes moving forward.” You tried to remain composed but it was hard when she barely acknowledged your presence. 

“Osamu is a good man. He has a good head on his shoulders and enough tact to understand what it means to rule a clan. He is perfect for this family.” She answered, not breaking her stride in skimming over the magazine pages. 

Your father was the pillar of your family and your mother was the maintenance crew that made sure to preserve that image. Your mother had a mind but that mind was enshrouded with images of your father’s reputation. It must have been an inherited trait to desire to control every and any aspect of life. Her image must be upheld alongside those whom she associates with. 

Of course, you included. It was deceitful to the public that she portrayed herself as a loving mother. You’d tell me that she was the Victorian era’s incarnated embodiment. She loathed you since she laid eyes on you. She had done everything right — met your father, married him, received the power, and bore the clan an heir. During that high, she failed to take into account birthing a daughter. A firstborn daughter, at that. Countless times had she tried to mold you into the perfect woman by attempting to dissuade you from becoming the clan head. Deeming it to be too masculine for a woman. That playing house was biologically instilled within you and that going against it was an act against nature.

Your mother, though married into the family, held the insinuation of being a Gojo best. Her favorite color would have been green if blue didn’t exist. She designated specific blues for the family. Your father was a Royal Blue to commandeer his role in society and accentuate his noble features. His color resembled the waves of The Great Wave off Kanagawa. He carried power in his stride with a color that was made for him.

 Satoru was categorized as a blue which could never be forgotten. You see it once and use it as a reference for describing the perfect hue of blue. It illuminates any kind of room whether it be an office, a library, or a bedroom. It matches each occasion. As a gem, he was a sapphire solitaire. 

Blue is the root of all your problems. From your conception to the present day, blue plagued you because you weren’t a specific hue of blue. Matter of fact, you were the palest blue that painters could find. The kind of blue that was painted in nurseries, the kind that the sky was known for, and the kind that resembles a forget-me-not. As a gem, you belonged in the possession of someone else.

You were cold. No, not because of your appearance but because you decided to wear nothing beneath the baby blue silk pajama set in place of the pair of sweats and the baggy t-shirt you had tucked underneath the floorboard of your closet. You were in your room and you easily could’ve wrapped your blanket around you but didn’t feel like staying in your room. It had as much personality as your public persona. It’s not like you were able to design it. Your mother’s strict aesthetic did not discriminate when it came to your private life. If anything it was meticulously calculated. She wanted it to become a lifestyle rather than a facade. 

You wanted the comfort of a home. This room that has been yours since you were born never grew to become one. The house as a whole was not one either. In hindsight, you should’ve gone to the garden but the chances of running into Toji were too risky. 

Since your night with Toji, you were scared of him. How he made you feel per se. Never in your life had you felt as desired as he made you feel. Sex was coined to be meaningless for people in your age group. Just something that had to be done by a certain cutoff age. From what Yuki had told you, it happens and you move on. So why would you rather let your garden wither than have to face him? 

Intimacy comes with sex, that’s just the nature of it. You knew what you were getting yourself into but the capacity of it left you blindsided. You’ve been praised for your value for so long that you have forgotten that your value was based on your worth besides someone else. Without a name, you were as good as a fine china dining set. You had gone on a whole morality spiel with Satoru about the importance of names and yet you hated when people used your name. That night your name was brought up but instead of it feeling like a weight on your shoulders it was the complete opposite.

A man should never have this sort of hold on you. They never have until him. Not even with guys who looked like him. All the men in the world could disappear in the world and you’d exhale in content but not without the wandering thought of him. 

Nature was a familiar topic for you. Nature and instinct coincide with one another. You adhered to instinct well. That’s why you knew that your relationship with Toji was based on the natural pull of instinct. 

While you were enshrouding yourself to fear, Toji was convinced that you would be the best he ever had and encouraged the thought of seeing you again. He had been going based on late-night fantasies he’s had of you since he was a teenager. How could he not? The desire to want something that is so out of reach yet so agonizingly close? You had manifested into a personalized kink for him. He could freely explain his desires for you ranging from what he wanted to do to putting those desires to practice. He was open in that sense of your relationship. That was the situation until you turned the tide.

You stopped coming to the garden, completely. It could’ve been a coincidence seeing as during that time of year cursed spirits tend to be at an all-time high. However, you aren’t the only sorcerer in the world and you couldn’t possibly be busy enough to neglect your garden. It wasn’t until after the second week of your absence that he clued in that you were avoiding him.

He wasn’t having it. In the same way that he was “having” an overly intoxicated woman grinding her ass on him with no rhythm to save her life. A few weeks ago, she would’ve been the standard- an average girl with big tits and an even bigger ass. He accepted that a lot has changed for him since he met you. He pushed her off and though she scoffed at his rejection she didn’t continue her advances and let him leave. He didn’t even know why he was at this club. He didn’t want to be there. He thought the neon flower light decorations were too tacky compared to what he had grown used to. He didn’t want to see the flowers in the garden, frankly, he didn’t give a fuck about them. He wanted to see you.

You had been in your world when you began to hear taps against your bedroom window. You’d seen clouds earlier that day and had written off the tapping as heavy rain. Your heart nearly leaped out of your chest when you noticed a dark shadowy figure tapping incessantly on your bedroom window. Foolish to even confuse the sounds of Toji Zenin as something so peaceful

You pondered for a while if you should even acknowledge him. You could go about your night and pretend he’s not there. You would’ve followed through if your window didn’t sound like it was on the brink of cracking.

You cracked the window open and immediately started questioning him, “What are you doing here? How’d you even know this was my room?”

For once, Toji wasn’t annoyed by your incessant need to ask trivial questions. He would’ve let you continue with your tangent if it hadn’t felt like it was below zero degrees outside.

“I’ll answer all your questions if you just let me inside. It’s fucking cold out here.” He had the decency to ask but didn’t plan on listening to what you had to say after. He tried to push through the small gap you left open but you blocked it with your body. He raised a brow at your actions, amused by your stance, and cocked his head at you to speak. His expression briefly reminded you of the look he had from that night and you prayed he didn’t hear you gulp. It was dark out and the light from the moon couldn’t make out. 

“Ironic. The man with an inhuman body is getting taken down by a little breeze.”

His eyes darted to your breast and he couldn’t help but lick his lips, “Not the only one that’s being affected.”

You furrowed your brows and let your eyes travel to where his eyes had landed and felt yourself heat up. You weren’t wearing a bra. Why would you? Your nipples pierced through your silk pajama shirt enough that you couldn’t even form a rebuttal. You crossed your arms over one another trying to protect your decency. Again, why would you? He had seen far more than an erect nipple from you.

You shook your head and tried to affirm, “You need to leave. You can’t be here.” You planted yourself in front of the opening and tried hard to play off your embarrassment. He took your attempts as nonsensical.

He planted his elbow on the ledge and used his hand to prop his head, he mused, “You’re gonna make me leave after I’ve gone through all this trouble? You're so cruel, sweetheart.” 

He had used that nickname once before. At the time, you assumed it was a slip of the tongue. Even now, you have followed that same mentality. 

You scoffed and puffed your chest out, “Cruel is one of the many things I’ve been called and I take pride in it.” 

His position remained the same, caring little that his body could enter hypothermia if he remained outside. He continued the banter, “So have I. You’re nothing special, sweetheart.”

Surely, not a slip-up anymore.

“That’s a new one.”

“Like it? Think it matches you well.”

“A lot of words have been used to describe me but sweetheart has to be a new one”, You shook your head in protest and subconsciously side-stepped out of the window opening. Enough to give him an opening, one that you had noticed too late. Your back was already pushed into the wall and his hands were cupping your jaw. You opened your mouth to speak but he had his fill of hearing your voice. His lips caged yours in desperation. His desperation could only be described as Odysseus coming back home after decades away from Ithaca. You couldn’t reprimand him either because as much as you had actively avoided him, you missed this feeling. One that you couldn’t pinpoint.

“Good.” He breathed out before diving back to your lips. His lips suctioned onto yours as if he were sucking the seed out of a cherry. His hands that had been stationed on your chin deviated to the back of your neck, pushing your lips further into his. Breathing did have to happen and with one last peck, he spoke, “I would hate for someone to see you like that.” 

“As a decent person?” You tried to joke and keep the situation airy but you missed the feeling of his lips on yours already. This is what you had been afraid of. He is an addiction you can’t quit once you start. He held that over you and he didn’t even know it.

“You think you're decent?” He asked as his lips traveled down from your lips. Kissing against your chin with the same amount of passion as he had down to lips seconds prior.

You softly exhaled, “Don’t think I’m the worst.”

“Sure, you don’t.”

“And you are?”

“Don’t start putting words in my mouth now.” He scoffed as he sucked harshly against your neck. He let that happen multiple times, each more prominent than the last. You let his mouth ruminate on your neck in bliss. The breeze coming from your window knocks you to your senses.

“We have to stop.” Your room was far enough from the rest of your family’s rooms but you didn’t trust your voice if you did continue on the path you guys were heading toward.

“Have to? Or scared to?” He asked with the intent of getting a legible answer. He knew you avoided things when they got too serious. He’s experienced it firsthand. His hands trailing toward the buttons on your shirt and unbuttoning them with expertise. With your boobs on full display, he let your shirt drop off your shoulders and onto the floor while his fingers wasted no time toying with the nipples that had been taunting him since he had seen them.

“Gotta answer? Your body does.” He mocked before letting one of his hands sweep across your stomach until they found solace in the band of your pajama pants. Just like the bra, you weren’t wearing any panties. His fingers fiddled with the band but restrained themselves from delving further.

“Got anything to do with you disappearing on me?” He whispered into your ear with his eyes targeted at your own. You tried to avoid them by focusing elsewhere but looking up or down you’d still be met with him. 

You groaned from the sensation of his hands, “You want to talk about it now?” 

He squeezed particularly harder on your boob and inched his hands further into your pants then cheekily asked, “Why? Is now a bad time?”

This had to be some form of torture. You wouldn’t put it past Toji to leave you like this. He tends to do things his way and right now was a prime example of it. As you said before, Zenin’s are inherent assholes. However, he was currently the asshole that managed to cause a pool to form in between your legs and the only one capable of doing anything about it.

“I was busy.” You answered quickly. It wasn’t a lie but it also wasn’t the whole truth. You could’ve reached out to him or even gone to the garden. The reasoning as to why briefly left you as you pushed your legs against one another was to absolve you of the tension that he had built up. 

You felt his smirk against your ear before whispering, “Nah I don’t think so.” He dipped his head down to kiss the edge of your cheek that led into your ear. His hand on your boob continued its ministrations while the other one let your pants pool at your ankles before continuing its journey into your cunt. He would stop himself whenever he’d hear your breath falter, “If I didn’t know any better I’d say you were avoiding me, sweetheart.”

You hummed eagerly, impatiently waiting for his fingers to find your clit. Any conscious reasoning telling you to stop before was shunned by lust. He was satisfied with your admission. He promised himself that he’d edge you the next time he’d get to have you and this reaction was enough for him. His fingers gave you what you wanted and your immediate response was to let out a cry. Your mother was home and unfortunately, her room was the closest to yours. 

You bit your lip to mask the noise but he wouldn’t allow for that. His pace went faster, swirling his finger over the bud and flicking it a few times. He was trying to elicit noise out of you. It was hard to tell before what he was wearing, the moon barely illuminating his figure. He was wearing a black crew neck and sweatpants. Nothing to gawk at. It was his usual clothing but it did give you an idea of your own.

You slid your hand to his bulge and palmed it over his pants. He groaned into your ear, “You're better than that. If you’re gonna do it, you shouldn’t half-ass it, baby.” He let the hand that had been busy on your boob deviate to his waistband pulling his pants along with his boxers down to let out his hardened cock. He grabbed your hand and said, “Spit.”

“W-What?” You stuttered, staring at your hand in awe. 

“Need to wet it before you start to stroke it.”

You were reluctant to do so but did as you were told. He smirked and guided your hand to the base of his cock. You’d never given a handjob before yet you managed to handle his cock with ease. He had to reward you for your hard work and caught your lips before plunging his fingers into your cunt. His groans and your moans fought for dominance as they desperately tried to be heard. 

He was knuckling deep in your pussy while your pace on his cock was faltering. 

“Doing so good for me, sweetheart. You must be wishing my fingers were something else.” He grunted as his pace increased. Your back arched against the wall while your body curled into his. His words held truth but you weren’t going to deny his fingers were doing a good job substituting it. 

Your fingers tried to simulate the same pleasure he had been giving you, trying to remember the porn videos you’d watched when you were younger. You let one of your fingers graze his slit before swirling your finger around the base of the head. 

“Am I doing good?” You panted out between battered breaths.

He sucked on your neck as he praised, “Always s’good f’r me.”

His praise went straight to your core and had you shuddering out an orgasm on his fingers. Though you were wrecked from cumming, you were still adamant about getting Toji to cum. His cock was twitching in your hand and you knew he was getting close. Just when he was close to finishing, he pulled your hand away.

You raised a brow at him and he pecked your lips before quickly replying,  “Wanna cum in you.” 

He tossed his crewneck somewhere amongst the other discarded clothes before lifting you and wrapping your legs around his waist. 

“My bed. Now.” That is all you managed to get out of the kiss. He chuckled against your lips before sitting down on your bed and having you straddle him. He tossed his crew neck somewhere amongst the other discarded clothes before cupping your hips in his hands as you leaned in to kiss him. Your hands had tangled themselves in his hair pulling on it as your pussy grinding against his thighs. He halted your movements with his palms, tapping them against your thighs.

“I forgot a condom.”

The Toji Zenin. Forgot a condom. The irony. 

For once, you thanked Yuki for her stupidity. You got off of him, walking toward your closet and searching for the clutch she had let you borrow. Pulling out the box, you tossed them to him before clearing your throat, “Will those work?"

He caught the box and looked at the familiar packaging then smirked up at you, not expecting you to have a stash of condoms but amused that you did. Shaking the box at you, he asks, “Where’d you get these?” 

“A gift from a friend.” You respond as you walk back to him.

“A friend?” He tries to pry, opening the box and pulling out a condom. As far as he’s concerned, he was the only friend you had. 

You narrow your eyes, “Do they fit or not?” 

He chuckles at your insistence but nods, ripping the packaging and putting the condom on with ease. He hooked a hand around your waist, situating it in between his thighs before snaking a hand down to slap your ass catching you off guard. He smirked and challenged, “Still wanna learn how to ride, cowgirl?” 

You flushed at the memory of your first time together. How you managed to be so daring was a mystery to you. It had to be the sex-induced confidence. You’ve heard of a lot of different positions from Yuki. She even gave you a ranking on which positions were best and listed the pros and cons for each one. The downside of this one was stamina and luckily for you and Toji that wasn’t a concern.

You nod your head and you feel his hands on your hips lift you back to the position you were previously in while your hands situated themselves on his shoulders. He kept your hips slightly alleviated from his then used one of his hands to align his cock to your entrance. Not before sliding it along your entrance getting a mewl out of you. 

“Can’t you just put it in?” You irritably asked. Your cunt tried hard to clench on his cock whenever he’d glide it over. 

“Need to give my pretty girl what she wants.” That was his warning before he slammed his cock right into you. Your head lolled to his neck while your nails dug into his shoulders from the impact. A wanton moan followed after the impact and you could only pray no one heard. 

The cocky shit dared to cackle at your reaction. You bit his collarbone but his laugh just became more obnoxious.

He gripped the small of your back, guiding you to bounce up and down on his cock. Compared to your first time, he was handling you in the same manner as he did his hedges, sloppy and rushed. However, just like the hedges he had a method to his madness.

“Just gotta do it like this.” He instructed before whispering in your ear, “Think you can do that, sweetheart?” 

His answer came in the form of another moan and the rolling of your hips into his. You were a fast learner. Such a fast learner that he’d think you’ve done this before. You were going along with what felt right and what would get you closer to the end. With that being said, your awareness about your noise level had been clouded with desire.

“You can’t be so loud. Wouldn’t want your family hearing you be such a slut now would we?” He mocked, rutting his hips into yours at an animalistic pace. He had delayed his orgasm for as long as possible and as he had said he wanted to be in you when he did.

“N-Nooh” Your words and your tone of voice weren’t corresponding to each other. You tried to ignore the way you clenched at the degrading nickname. He wasn’t.

“Oh, you like being called slut?” He growled, harshly slapping your ass causing you to bite down on his collarbone to mask your cries. You tried to match his pace, trying to coordinate with him but it was no use. He was animalistic.

“That’s right. You’re my slut, baby.”

You whimper — something bordering pathetic — but your pride is left on the floor with a whimper being the only noise you could remember. You're nearing your end. He can tell, probably before you can. Your mind is enshrouded in galaxies and nebulas. You wanted it to stay there. You wanted him.

“S’good, baby,” he coaxes, brushing a few sweaty strands of hair from your face. “My pretty girl.” 

You cum hard with his name still on your lips. He caught your moans with his mouth and didn’t relent with his speed trying to catch his end. If he’d continued any longer you would’ve reached your third orgasm of the night. Fortunately, the loud groan he let out in your mouth and the feeling of the condom filling up didn’t let that happen. You wouldn’t have minded if you didn’t feel like your legs were going to be impaired the next day.

He tied the condom off and tossed it in your bedside trash can. He fell into your mattress pulling you on top of him. Your legs tangled and the both of you were communicating in giggles. 

“Can’t believe you forgot a condom.” You teased, laughing into his chest. 

He seemed flustered by the question, an expression you don’t see often from him. He avoided your eyes and lifted a hand to rub his neck before he answered, “I wasn’t planning for things to go this way.”

“What were you planning?”

You felt him shrug.

“Just wanted to see you I guess.”

“Oh.” Is the safest response you could think of. You guys were friends. It was just now with the added benefits. A sting was felt in your chest at the implication but his hands rubbing circles on the small of your back soothed that sensation away.

It was silent for a while. Neither one of you knew what else to say.

His slowed breathing indicated he’d fallen asleep. You felt safe enough to say what you had initially thought. You left a shy kiss on his chest as you mumbled, “I wanted to see you too.” 

Morning came soon and Toji had left just as fast. By the time you’d woken up, he was gone and the window that had been open was firmly shut. All that was left of him was your discarded clothing from the night before, the condom in your trashcan, and a text from him.

Toji:

Sorry.

You rolled your eyes at the text. Why’d he apologize for leaving? You sent a question mark and tossed your phone on your mattress. You threw your pajamas into your hamper before putting on a robe, grabbing a change of clothes, and walked out of your room and toward your bathroom. 

A shriek of your name caused you to turn around. Satoru was standing a few feet away from you with his eyes beyond the words of terror.

“Your neck!”

Curse that Zenin fuck.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

a/n: sorry for the three month break! honestly had a lot of trouble writing this chapter. I decided to rewatch the anime and saw some edits on tiktok that sparked my inspiration. the next couple of chapters are going to be heavily reliant on action as to stay relevant to the anime. Also, I have a playlist that I use when I'm writing for this fic. Here's the link!

references:

Taming of the Shrew: Lucentio loves Bianca but cannot court her until her shrewish older sister Katherina marries. The eccentric Petruccio marries the reluctant Katherina and uses a number of tactics to render her an obedient wife. Lucentio marries Bianca and, in a contest at the end, Katherina proves to be the most obedient wife.

As You Like It: Rosalind and her cousin escape into the forest and find Orlando, Rosalind's love. Disguised as a boy shepherd, Rosalind has Orlando woo her under the guise of "curing" him of his love for Rosalind. Rosalind reveals she is a girl and marries Orlando during a group wedding at the end of the play.

The Great Wave off Kanegawa: famous japanese painting.

tag list:

@cococola-cocaine @justtnat @softvgold @missroro

comment to let me know if you want to join the tag list for future updates!

make sure to reblog, like, and comment! they really help me know what you guys like and don't like!

[rollinouttahere-writes]

Just read chapter 3 of lucky break and I absolutely love Zoro and reader relationship, I think there would have an interesting/fun dynamic 💗

pfft idk why but I hope it comes a running gag that reader has a hobby attracting wild animals 🤣👌

amazing chapter as always love how you wrote the characters, the fighting scenes were amazing, hope your doing ok and drinking plenty of water ☺️

You're close, but the running gag is that Lucky just kinda has the touch with cats specifically

Aww thank you, I had a lot of fun writing for Zoro in this chapter! Lucky is essentially his external self preservation instinct since he doesn't have a single one.

When we get to the Baratie arc, Zoro will be the first to realize that Lucky is suspiciously absent purely because she isn't getting on his ass. Have a little drabble

Zoro screwed his eyes shut and forced himself to breathe through the pain stemming from the wound across his chest. The Baratie staff were doing their best to treat it, but this was significantly above their pay grade. Lucky was going to have a field day nagging him to 'get some rest' and 'see a doctor'.

Wait. How is Lucky not already doing all that. Frankly, he surprised Mihawk was able to leave without getting yelled at by her.

Zoro pries his eyes open and lifts his head to look around. She isn't anywhere in sight. This is rubbing him the wrong way, and he says as much, "Something's wrong."

"Wrong with what? You? Yeah, I would say there is if your dumbass thought it would be a good idea to take on Mihawk of all people," Sanji couldn't resist the opportunity to take a jab at the swordsman.

"No, curly-brows, Lucky isn't here," Zoro huffed, annoyed that this was the person that Luffy just had to have for a cook.

"Curly-brows? Wait, what do you mean Lucky isn't here?" Sanji's head swiveled around violently, trying to locate her and prove Zoro wrong. He wasn't though, she was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Nami or the ship you all came here on, he noted.

"Are you kidding me?!" Sanji kicked a nearby broken table, sending it hurtling into the sea. "The second I join is when both of the ladies disappear?! We need to find them! What if they were kidnapped?!"

"Kidnapped? Who was kidnapped? What's going on?" Usopp whipped out his slingshot and swung it around wildly, trying to figure out where the danger was so he could go the other way.

"Lucky and Nami are missing, we need to hurry!" Sanji didn't even know where to begin, but that wasn't going to stop him from throwing himself into this head first.

"They're gone?! Hang on, where's the Merry?!" Usopp screeched, hands pulling on his hair from the shock and terror of the beloved ship being absent.

Zoro forced himself up onto his feet despite the protests of the cook around him. He wasn't about to leave these two idiots in charge of figuring out where Lucky went (and Nami too).

[blackcat419]

Hotd S2 E1 A Son for a Son review

It's here. Two years weight and I'm more disappointed than a vegan at Outback Stake House. Lets get into this then.

Predictions for Season 2 and if they came true

My predictions for the reactions towards Blood and Cheese were pretty damn on. People justify Jaehaery's death, missing the irony of an eye for an eye, a son for a son, when Aemond didn't get Luke's eye and Jaehaerys isn't Aemonds son, Alicent being blamed for it.

Blood and Cheese was an accident, meant to go in for Aemond, stumbled upon Helaena, and just got told who the son is, at least they didn't accidentally trip and stab Jaehaerys.

White walkers are alluded to even though we now know they're so easy to take care of, just need one episode and POOF!

No Dyana mention so we'll see if she shows up.

Where we left each character and where they are now

For TB its very consistent. Rhaenyra is mourning Luke, Daemon is pushing for war, Rhaenys is pushing for no war, and Corlys is pushing to be relevant.

For TG its all over the place. Our consistent characters include Otto pushing for war and control, Alicent pushing for control but less war, and Larys pushing to hold the most secrets any person can. Our characters that have changed are Aegon now wanting to be king and trying to prepare Jaehaerys, Aemond deciding he totally did mean to kill Luke, Alicent changing from rule follower to now rule breaker, and Cole deciding he does like sex actually.

Aegon and Aemond's transitions make sense, they were set up in last season and it works for them. Alicent and Cristin are in a full-blown sexual relationship that's been going on long enough for them to feel comfortable doing it in mid-day. That was not set up. We miss an entire character arc for both where they 1. decide they don't want to follow the rules society tells them to and 2. decide they want to bone. This was not set up in season 1, it comes out of nowhere, there is no explanation for why these two are boning now, how they justify it to themselves, if they justify it to themselves, nothing. So instead of an interesting character arc where we see change, we just get the end with no idea how they go here. Thanks, I hate it.

Conflicts

Again, for TB the conflict is consistent from season 1 and makes sense. Rhaenyra is being pulled by her duty to the realm for peace but by her grief for war. Daemon is pushing for war, Rhaenys is pushing to not start the fight, and Corlys is there too.

But for TG it's all over the place. We still have the dumb conflict between Alicent and Otto over how much war we'll have. Not between peace and war but just, should we have more or less? it's not even really about involving the dragons as that's Aegon and Aemond's position. Overall, Alicent and Otto's conflict is poorly thought out and their positions hold so little difference that it borders on meaningless.

The conflict between the two groups is who will strike the first blow. We already have one kid dead and a blockade but we are still waiting for someone to act. wow, so intense much drama.

Adaptation from the Book

The main parts of the book being adapted are Jace's visits to the Vale, the sisterlands, White Harbor, and his stay in the north. Rhaenyrs finds out about Luke's death, and blood and Cheese.

The only part done well is Rhaenyra's grief over Luke's death. It is so powerful and Rhaenys saying that she can't properly grieve until she knows Luke is dead is very powerful. Jace has an amazing trying to talk while he cries scene, the funeral pyre is so emotional, and very well done in showing how much losing Luke affects these characters.

I am very disappointed that Jace's whole storyline going north is turned into exposition about Stark customs and the wall being so sexy and cool. No Jace and Cregan being friends, no Jace trying to convert Cregan, not even Jace hooking up with Cregan or Sara Snow. just nothing.

Blood and Cheese has to be the worst thing I've seen in a while. We have Daemon telling them to kill Aemond but it is ~ ambiguous ~ whether he said to kill Jaehaerys. We have Rhaenyra saying she wants Aemond dead but it is ~ ambiguous ~ if she knows Daemon is doing this. Blood and Cheese literally walk past Aegon in the throne room? No secret passageways into the queen's chambers, no plan, no nothing! they just happen to find Helaena. We also lose the character development of Helaena where in the books she offers up herself to be killed and only after Blood and Cheese say they'll rape Jaehaera and kill all of them, does she give in and choose Maelor to die. We don't get their cruelty of telling Maelor his mom wants him dead and then killing Jaehaerys. No, Helaena just offers up her necklace, they take it, then AFTER she knows they're going to kill her son (one of them says they need a head and a son for a son), she just walks out and runs into Alicent riding Cristin? Why? Where is the tension of Helaena being forced to choose a child to die only for that child to know their mom chose them, the drama of Helaena offering up herself to try and save her kids, the horror at what these monsters are willing to do for coin? Nothing. It was emotionless, I only felt shock at how poorly it was done.

Overall Enjoyment

I did not enjoy myself. This was not fun or interesting to watch. The showrunners are scribbling over a beautiful sketch with crayons.

What I hope for the next episode

NO MORE ACCIDENTS! I swear this show is the house of accidental war crimes.

I want to see Nettles, Daeron, and Maelor.

I want actual character development instead of character teleportation.

I predict that Alicent's character will continue to be massacred and put in scenes where Ryan Condal can see Olivia Cooke naked.

[miraculouscriticismshub]

Felix and Chloe - two sides of the same coin. SEASON 5 SPOILERS AHEAD

Introduction

As you may know , MLB is far from a decent show. Poor writing choices are common and most characters are inconsistent. But today I want to talk about two characters , Felix and Chloe . This might be a controversial take but I think Felix and Chloe are two sides to the same coin . Both are quite similar in character and personalities but whereas one character receives hate by the fanbase and is slandered by the writers , the other character is loved and gets rewarded for doing bad things. This post will talk about how MLB introduces unintentional misogyny despite the writers claiming they are feminists. This post will also go in depth to analyze how hypocritical the fanbase is. This is not a Chloe defense post or a Felix hate post. This is a post criticizing the writers and addressing the double standards. 

Felix and Chloe - similarities

Credits to @drawing2cope on tumblr. Link - https://drawing2cope.tumblr.com/

Despite what most fans may think - these characters have so much in common. First Chloe and Felix were both Adrien’s only childhood friends growing up. Second, both had a cuddly toy. Third , both had one abusive parent , for Chloe it was Audrey and for Felix it was Colt. Fourth , both had one enabling parent , for Chloe it was Andre and for Felix it was Amelie. ( Side note : the difference between Andre and Amelie is that at least Amelie loves her son and only enables him because she wants to show that she cares for him ) Fifth , both were part of the hero team. Sixth , both betrayed the hero team by siding with HM. The key difference is while Chloe failed , Felix succeeded. Both are bad as each other because while Felix seemed to have better motives, he had more control over the situation while Chloe was being manipulated and used.  Felix and Chloe are both essentially two sides to the same coin - both did bad things for different reasons and both had similar relationships with Adrien .

Why Felix receiving a redemption felt wrong . 

Hot take - Felix character was ruined in Season 5 (and before you delusional Felix fanboys start typing nonsense and sending death threats , read the rest of the paragraph before judging.)  What makes Felix’s character compelling is that he is an anti-hero. He is morally gray and only works for himself. He is on neither Gabe’s or Ladybugs' side. His “ redemption arc” in season 5 came out of nowhere and was badly done. Felix does have potential for a redemption and I am not against it but it would’ve been much better written if his character wasn’t rushed and he was redeemed in later seasons - when he will be an established character. His redemption in season 5 felt poorly written because of how he never proved himself or apologized to Ladybug or faced consequences for his actions. His crimes ranged from SA , assisted terrorism and attempted genocide but only faced consequences for the third crime. Him getting away with his crimes is not a terrible idea if he was portrayed as a villain but since the writers are portraying him to be a hero at the end of S5 , this concept is pretty much ruined. Hopefully , in S6  he turns against the hero team and works with Lila. If you want to read more about my opinions on this Character - please read the post My Thoughts on Felix - anti hero gone wrong on my tumblr.

Double standards of the writers and fanbase

Miraculous ladybug despite being a show that promotes feminism has undertones of misogyny. Felix and Chloe have both done atrocious things - I argue Felix has done worse - but while one person seemingly faces consequences for their actions and is hated by the writers and fanbase , the other character is presented as a tragic hero who doesn’t face punishment and is loved by everyone. Just to make it clear , I am NOT an abuse apologist or a toxic Chloe stan but I can’t just ignore the blatant hypocrisy from the producers.

The writers - more specifically Thomas - says on his twitter Chloe will never change because her actions are deemed too unforgivable and i quote “ Once a bully always a bully” . He also pretty much confirms Chloe will never be Queen bee saying “ Mean people don’t and will never deserve a miraculous”. This rule doesn’t apply to Felix, he is essentially a tragic character who is 100% innocent and deserves forgiveness and ownership of his miraculous despite being a nasty person. I am not denying he isn’t a tragic character - his abuse under Colt explains his motives which made him a compelling anti - hero but doesn’t excuse them. He is also a child too but compared to Chloe - a more malevolent one. The worst thing Chloe did was paralyze the train driver in Queen Wasp to cause a dangerous situation in which she saves everyone in order to get praise. She had selfish reasons but never had the intention of killing anyone. However the worst thing Felix did was mass genocide in Emotion with the malicious intention on murdering all humans. Both are horrible but it's obvious who is worse.

Sure he had better motives of freeing his cousin and Kagami while Chloe only thought of herself but he never apologized to Ladybug or proved himself as a good person to her for what he did. When Chloe nearly killed those people , Ladybug tried taking her Miraculous and it was only after she got deakumitized that she apologized to her and gave her miraculous back. Felix by the end of season 5 got to keep his Miraculous despite not saying sorry to Ladybug or proving himself .She faced the consequence of losing her Miraculous while Felix got to keep his. He has been awful committing crimes such as SA , assisted terrorism , genocide , stalking and kidnapping but seemingly doesn’t face punishment for most of his actions. Chloe crimes although still horrid are much less heinous than Felix's. A terrorist and extremist earns sympathy from the writers but a spoiled bully is painted to be the devil and is the only character to face consequences.

The Double standards the writers have for Chloe are too hard to ignore. Thomas himself mocks a fan who confronts him about the Hypocrisy saying he misinterpreted the show. If Thomas wasn't a hypocrite , he would've answered the question properly instead of ignoring it and mocking the fan . Chloe is no angel too , she bullied Marinette relentlessly, gave her trauma , took over Paris in miracle queen and Revolution, mistreated her friend Sabrina and nearly killed all those people in Paris in Queen Wasp but at least she is held accountable and experienced Karma. Her bullying Marientte causes Adrien to stop being friends with her and her teaming up with HM in Revolution causes Andre to disown her and send her to live with her abusive mother. Felix easily gave Marinette more trauma by exchanging all the miraculous to Monarch and is partly to blame for how Monarch won but Marinette seemingly forgives him and he joins the team. He even gets rewarded with a girlfriend and possession of his miraculous and still doesn't get his Karma. It's so clear the writers favour Felix while Chloe receives the short end of the stick.

The fanbase is not much better , they slander Chloe, glad she is gone from Paris and sent to live with Audrey because they think she is irredeemable but sympathize with Felix and cheer on when he joins the team. When Chloe does something evil , the fandom label her as Satan and only wishes the worst for her but when Felix also acts in a similar way , the fanbase feel sorry for him and defend him saying he does everything he does to ensure his freedom . The fans say the neglect Chloe received from her mum does not excuse her actions but defend Felix's actions by saying " Colt abused him, He isolated and controlled Felix , Felix is blameless and everything is Colt's fault" . While I agree Colt is horrible , he never told Felix to SA Ladybug or to steal the Miraculous or kidnap Kagami. Why does " past trauma doesn't excuse actions" only apply to Chloe not Felix? The writers think this too sadly by how they demonize Chloe telling the fans parental mistreatment doesn't justify bullying, even having Mylene say in the Derision Flashback

" My mother abandoned me but you don't see me bullying Marinette"

But try justifying Felix's actions with his abusive childhood with the play he acted out in Representation.

The hypocrisy of the writers are painted as misogyny even if it is not intentional because Chloe is female and is robbed of a redemption while Felix a male is deemed tragic and is given a second chance. Ultimately , both Characters are horrible people but one is portrayed by the narrative as a hero while the other is an irredeemable , oppressive monster who needs to go down

To conclude , Felix and Chloe are two sides of the same coin. Both are terrible people that deserved punishment . While I’d prefer Chloe getting redemption , I understand that at the end of the day not all people change. However Felix's character is poorly done in Season 5 and is redeemed out of nowhere. What annoys me the most is how Hypocritical the fanbase and writers are that Chloe is hated for being a brat and is not redeemed because she doesn’t show remorse while Felix is adored by the fanbase and is given a redemption despite not apologizing to Ladybug or facing any consequences. Again ,this is not a Chloe defense post or a Felix hate post, just me sharing my view on this. I'm surprised the fandom isn't addressing the similarities between these two characters . I cross my fingers that Felix either turns on the team and becomes the villain again or is held accountable in S6 and Chloe at least receives closure and becomes a better person in future seasons. But these are just my opinions. I’m not saying you are not allowed to like Felix or dislike Chloe. Feel free to disagree : ) . Don’t hate the characters , hate the writing .Please stay respectful.

[loveislandthegame]

my overall thoughts on season 7, writing edition: what in the world ? 😭 i cannot believe i thought this season was gonna be good. i’ll be joining rohan & S2 MC in the circus, since FB made me look like a damn clown. i don't even know where to begin

being a casa girl had so much potential, and it was something that a lot of players actually wanted, even before FB started doing these themed seasons. they really fumbled the bag here

i enjoyed casa amor. the guys were all unique, had their own dialogue, and it was cool to see their pre-established relationships (alex being the villa dad, bryson and rafa being partners in chaos, the beef between bryson & joyo) then we arrived in the villa, and it all went downhill from there:

everybody became an empty husk, so they could be forced into interchangeable roles: uma’s partner, bonnie’s partner, OG LI’s ex, loved up couple (summer/joyo or #rafne) to name a few. FB’s lazy asses ruined their own characters . why is alex, the supposed level-headed & mature one, being petty & childish af in my playthrough? 😭

MC literally had no thoughts, head empty. we barely participated in any of the challenges and games. it felt like we didn't do anything besides "get pulled for a chat" by your LI or the girls

the LI personality merge in this season was the worst it has ever been. all they do is agree with whatever you say, or tell you how great you are (gone are the days of LIs having their own interests, & getting extra dialogue because of that, like levi with artist MCs)

same problem as the most recent seasons, where MC doesn’t have friendships. she has a forced bestie, then potential LIs that sit around waiting for you to pick them, choose them, love them (they immediately disappear if you don’t pick them)

the plot made no sense at all. being a casa girl means we miss out on the first half of the season, but there were many different ways they could've shown what happened before we arrived (it couldve been something as simple as MC watching the show at home or during the jeep ride to the villa. lol) the timeline was inconsistent, so much important information was paywalled, and i’m pretty sure FB was just making shit up as they went along, since the drama with stephen and OG LI's ex genuinely came out of nowhere . he wasn’t previously mentioned in the beach hut, casa amor, nothing . his only purpose was to make the OG girl look bad.

speaking of the OG girls, what a disappointment . before we got to the villa, i honestly thought they were hinting at estelle and/or willow being LIs . even if they were forced to be our rival, they still could’ve had an interesting character arc . it would've been a lot more fun if she was like allegra, rather than OG LI's equivalent of suresh

i was gonna write, "why tf did she even make it to the finale?" but the answer is obvious : for the gem scenes. every damn volume, it's pay diamonds to upstage her, pay diamonds to clapback, pay diamonds so “your man” doesn't turn his head 🙄 it's already stupid enough, but it makes even less sense if you're not pursuing your OG LI

which leads me to the biggest problem of this season, the lack of branching. you're given the illusion of choice, everything leads to the same outcome . i didn't think it could get any worse, until i saw what happens when you choose the money . does your LI storm off? nope. they make you do the treasure hunt anyways...to win you back ??😭 MC should've called security on their ass

s7 had a promising start but ended up being a flop. it was better than s5, but that's really not saying much . i wish FB would just take their time—s1 and 2 had a whole year long gap between them. but it's clear that rushed seasons are gonna be the norm, season 8 is dropping in february . capitalism ruins everything luv x

[jozor-johai]

Dorne, Told not Shown: The Watcher Sees, while Doran Says

ASOIAF is all about the way that information—or misinformation—spreads and changes the course of action and history.

Perhaps this is true most of all in the Dornish arc, and especially with Doran Martell, which is entirely about the way that people are told something and not shown the truth of the matter. And, moreover, the way that can have such an impact.

This is all building up to a second post in the future about why I believe Darkstar is not only innocent, but a good person, and maybe even a true knight. First, though, we have to question Gerold Dayne's supposed guilt: did he actually cut Myrcella, like we are led to believe?

Our number one source for that information, strangely, is Doran Martell, who was nowhere near the Greenblood. Arianne was there, but she didn't see anything. Instead, she's told the whole situation by Doran... and Doran is a fucking liar.

In this essay, I'm going to point out the numerous reasons why we might doubt that Gerold cut Myrcella in the first place, with evidence from The Queenmaker and The Princess in the Tower, and then I'm going to jump ahead to The Watcher and point out how much this pattern of being "told, not shown" is a recurring theme in Dorne... and how often Doran himself is the culprit. At the end, I hope to convince you that Doran is almost never trustworthy... because in my next essay, I'm going to argue that Darkstar, contrary to his rogue reputation, is trustworthy... and maybe even worthy of Dawn.

I'm sure I'm not the first to suggest this, as it's been so many years since the release of Dance, but it's exciting to experience a moment of realization that makes me see the Martin's writing itself in a new light, so I wanted to share my thought process here.

It's a long essay, but tumblr can handle long essays. Putting it under the cut.

1.1 The Maiming of Myrcella:

Beginning with the incident in question, Darkstar's alleged crime, and his biggest on-page action... if he even did it.

This is the quote that really started me thinking about how much we are not shown what's really happening in Dorne—because it's made very clear to the reader that Arianne does not actually see what happened to Myrcella. Keeping with the strictly limited POV structure, Arianne is looking at Arys, and so we only see what's happening to Arys, even when Myrcella is shrieking:

A thrown spear took Ser Arys's mount in the flank, yet still the horse came on, staggering as he hit the gangplank. "No," some girl was shouting, some foolish little girl, "no, please, this was not supposed to happen." She could hear Myrcella shrieking too, her voice shrill with fear. Ser Arys's longsword slashed right and left, and two spearmen went down.

And again, in the immediate aftermath, it's really highlighted how much Arianne doesn't see what happened:

Arianne did not remember climbing from her horse. Perhaps she'd fallen. She did not remember that either. Yet she found herself on her hands and feet in the sand, shaking and sobbing and retching up her supper. No, was all that she could think, no, no one was to be hurt, it was all planned, I was so careful. She heard Areo Hotah roar, "After him. He must not escape. After him!" Myrcella was on the ground, wailing, shaking, her pale face in her hands, blood streaming through her fingers. Arianne did not understand. Men were scrambling onto horses whilst others swarmed over her and her companions, but none of it made sense.

She doesn't see, she doesn't remember, and here is Myrcella, already on the ground bleeding.

1.2 The official story

Despite this chaos, and despite the state she was in at the end of her previous chapter, Arianne begins her next chapter already absolutely certain that it was Gerold Dayne's doing:

"Areo," she had pleaded with her captor during the long dry ride from the Greenblood back to Sunspear, "I never wanted the girl to come to harm. You must believe me." Hotah made no reply, except to grunt. Arianne could feel his anger. Darkstar had escaped him, the most dangerous of all her little group of plotters. He had outraced all his pursuers and vanished into the deep desert, with blood upon his blade.

How does she know that? She didn't see that, so far as we can tell. She specifically didn't see any of that. This is a memory, and already Arianne is inserting her interpretations into it. So where does this idea come from? Doran's orders, we can assume, given that it's Doran's story when he finally goes to see her:

Arianne was almost afraid to ask. "Myrcella. Is she . . . ?" ". . . dead? No, though Darkstar did his best. All eyes were on your white knight so no one seems quite certain just what happened, but it would appear that her horse shied away from his at the last instant, else he would have taken off the top of the girl's skull."

Yet even in this dialogue, Doran reminds us that no one was watching. Arianne is being told, not shown, about Gerold Dayne, just as much as we, the readers are… and as we will see, we are given every reason to doubt what we are told.

1.3 How trustworthy is a friend?

Based on the word of Arianne's companions, we might share Arianne's suspicion that Gerold is "the worm in the apple," (as Arianne later imagines) because so many of her other confidants don't like him—and tell her so:

When he was gone, the others exchanged glances. "Forgive me, princess," said Garin softly, "but I do not like that man." "A pity," Drey said. "I believe he's half in love with you." "We need him," Arianne reminded them. "It may be that we will need his sword, and we will surely need his castle." "High Hermitage is not the only castle in Dorne," Spotted Sylva pointed out, "and you have other knights who love you well. Drey is a knight."

Later, though, we might second-guess their counsel.

After all, someone must have been the proverbial worm in the apple, because, as Hotah intones: "Someone told. Someone always tells." However, Arianne herself thinks, the idea that said informer was Gerold makes little to no sense:

Garin, Drey, and Spotted Sylva were friends of her girlhood, as dear to her as her cousin Tyene. She could not believe they would inform on her . . . but that left only Darkstar, and if he was the betrayer, why had he turned his sword on poor Myrcella? He wanted to kill her instead of crowning her, he said as much at Shandystone. He said that was how I'd get the war I wanted. But it made no sense for Dayne to be the traitor. If Ser Gerold had been the worm in the apple, why would he have turned his sword upon Myrcella?

Why indeed? We're told it was Darkstar's doing, but we're also reminded how that story fails a basic logic check. He cannot have been the informant and the attacker of Myrcella, those two roles seemingly have opposite goals.

Arianne discounts the rest of her co-conspirators as being the informant because of their long history; all the rest have been her friends since childhood... but that might count for less than she thinks.

It brings to mind this quote from ADWD Reek III, when Roose is talking about Ramsay. Considering Feast/Dance as one book thematically, as I like to, I believe these moments serve to inform one another.

"Breathe deep. I know what he said. You're to spy on me and keep his secrets." Bolton chuckled. "As if he had secrets. Sour Alyn, Luton, Skinner, and the rest, where does he think they came from? Can he truly believe they are his men?" "His men," Reek echoed. Some comment seemed to be expected of him, but he did not know what to say.

Where does Arianne think these friends came from in the first place? If they are her childhood friends, then they were placed alongside her in the water gardens by Doran decades ago. How can she be sure they are hers, and not his, any of them? Any of them, save the one that the Martells never trusted: Gerold Dayne.

In the unreleased TWOW chapter Arianne I, Daemon points out Oberyn's public disdain for the man (if you can call him that):

"Is that what Darkstar is? A man?" Ser Daemon grimaced. "A man would not have done what he did to Princess Myrcella. Ser Gerold is more a viper than your uncle ever was. Prince Oberyn could see that he was poison, he said so more than once. It's just a pity that he never got around to killing him."

Of course, for all we know, Oberyn might have tried. Gerold might hint at a past conflict between the two of them during one of his few scenes:

I was weaned on venom, Dalt. Any viper takes a bite of me will rue it." Ser Gerold vanished through a broken arch.

I think it's possible that Gerold is making a double entendre here, referring to the Viper here, and not just "any viper". If so, that would suggest that Oberyn had tried to eliminate him in the past, but failed to.

Even without that speculation about poison, it's clear that the Martells do not trust Gerold, and haven't for some time. So, all of Arianne's conspirators, like Daemon Sand, are simply echoing that one talking point, and never actually giving us information about Gerold. She's being told, not shown... and not even told much.

From the perspective of the readers, we have to understand that we're not being told that Gerold is trouble, we're being shown that Doran and any of his potential allies want Arianne to think he's trouble.

So we might next wonder: what else does Doran want Arianne—or us— to think? And what evidence do we have to believe anything he says... or better, what evidence do we have not to?

1.4 The Watcher

The more I've thought about it, the more important the title of Areo Hotah's second chapter is, and it exemplifies what's so valuable about Hotah himself as a POV for Doran. Almost nothing actually happens in The Watcher. The chapter has two acts, and both center more around talking than action; the first act focuses on the reveal of the alleged skull of Gregor Clegane, while the second act focuses on Doran revealing some of his plans to the Sand Snakes and enlisting their help in his plotting.

Hotah, "The Watcher", tacitly understands that the truth of the matter comes in seeing it, and this chapter is written with that perspective in mind. Hopefully, it cues the reader into a similar mindset. For the most part, Hotah keeps his thoughts suppressed (unlike Arianne's frantic internal narratives) so it's still up to the reader to put these things together—but, on the other hand, he offers a relatively unbiased view, so it should be possible to infer details as a reader that Hotah doesn't note himself.

1.5 Arianne joins Doran's growing lie

When it comes to Doran's story about Gerold being the culprit, what's even better about this is how this story grows recursively. In The Watcher, we see an updated version—one that we know has lies in it.

Last time, Arianne was told that Gerold cut down Myrcella, and accepted that as the truth... and here we see that this narrative was so effective that Arianne then turns around and doubles down on Doran's lie on his behalf, telling the Sand Snakes that Gerold not only cut Myrcella, but also killed Arys.

"...And when the girl tells him how your captain cut Arys Oakheart from neck to groin with that steel wife of his, well …" "No." Princess Arianne unfolded from the cushion where she sat and put a hand on Hotah's arm. "That wasn't how it happened, Cousin. Ser Arys was slain by Gerold Dayne." The Sand Snakes looked at one another. "Darkstar?"

This time, we the readers fully know this is a lie. Not only that, even Arianne fully knows it's a lie. And yet, despite knowing what she's lying about, Arianne still believes half of it: she thinks she's lying about Gerold killing Arys, but not Gerold cutting Myrcella. If Gerold is being falsely accused of harming Myrcella, this part almost becomes laugh out loud funny—how can Arianne be complicit in this lie, and yet never wonder if she herself is being lied to, too?

Doran, though, speaks both tales in the same breath, and claims them equally true:

"Darkstar did it," his little princess said. "He tried to kill Princess Myrcella too. As she will tell Ser Balon." Nym smiled. "That part at least is true." "It is all true," said the prince, with a wince of pain. Is it his gout that hurts him, or the lie? "And now Ser Gerold has fled back to High Hermitage, beyond our reach."

Is it the lie that pains him? Areo, the Watcher, wonders. That's all Hotah deigns to add, but we might note where that appears: it's after Doran says it's all true. If Doran can claim it's all true—and possibly wince with the falseness of that—we might wonder just how much of it is a lie, and to whom? Does the fact of the one lie spoil trust in the other? If Doran says they are both "equally true," and one is clearly a lie, then are they not, instead, both "equally false," put another way? While Arianne never considers this herself, I think that may be the case.

1.6 An uncertain skull

This network of telling, not showing, is a major theme in Hotah's Dance chapter, even when Doran is on the receiving end. This is what the Dorne story is about.

From Balon Swann's perspective, he's being told Myrcella is fine, but he's never shown her—nor is the reader. Balon will be told that Arys died protecting her from Gerold Dayne, but I suspect more of that might be a lie than Arianne knows.

On the other hand, Ser Balon is hardly innocent himself. He comes bearing a skull; the crown is telling Dorne that this skull once belonged to Ser Gregor Clegane... but there is no way to show anyone the truth of that, as Obara points out:

I'll take that." Obara Sand plucked the skull from him and held it at arm's length. "What did the Mountain look like? How do we know that this is him? They could have dipped the head in tar. Why strip it to the bone?" "Tar would have ruined the box," suggested Lady Nym, as Maester Caleotte scurried off. "No one saw the Mountain die, and no one saw his head removed. That troubles me, I confess, but what could the bitch queen hope to accomplish by deceiving us?"

…Even better, Lady Nym goes on to give an ominous warning about the cost of lies:

If Gregor Clegane is alive, soon or late the truth will out. The man was eight feet tall, there is not another like him in all of Westeros. If any such appears again, Cersei Lannister will be exposed as a liar before all the Seven Kingdoms. She would be an utter fool to risk that. What could she hope to gain?"

Of course, we know that Cersei is an utter fool, because this is Dance, and we've read all of Feast. Later, nearer the end of Dance, we also learn that another like him has appeared again—this so-called Robert Strong, newest member of the Kingsguard. And, we know that Lady Nym herself is headed to the Small Council, and will be right there to see this man, and therefore to bear witness as Cersei is exposed as a liar before all the Seven Kingdoms.

Of course, there are a myriad of theories about whether this is Gregor's skull or not, which tie themselves into knots trying to justify one answer or another, but I think the thematic importance here is that no one in Dorne knows. Tywin knew the importance of the certainty that Gregor was punished in ASOS Jaime IX:

"Undoubtedly. I swore as much in the letter I sent to Prince Doran with his brother's body. But it must be seen to be the sword of the King's Justice that slays him, not a poisoned spear. Heal him."

But here, now, the Dornish themselves are having their own treatment returned to them: they are being told one thing, and no evidence.

But perhaps Nym's warning has another meaning, with a more general application. If the truth comes out, then the teller risks all. Nym's warning is about Cersei, but it gains more broad thematic resonance if it's also true about Doran.

In fact, with this quote, Nym is providing the entire reasoning for the next step of Doran's plan: to "beard Darkstar in his den"—a mission that Doran believes is so vital that he is sending his personal security, Areo Hotah, to do the job. Areo Hotah is the perfect man for the mission—and the only man who could do it—because of his two most notable traits: he is lethal, and he knows all but says nothing.

As Lady Nym points out, If Doran were lying, then Gerold could not be suffered to be left alive, because if he were to be left alive, the "the truth will out" and the liar would be "exposed as a liar before all the Seven Kingdoms".

1.7 Doran supposedly "reveals" Balon's "secret mission"

Finally, Balon's final and worst offense, the one that finally collects all of the Sand Snakes to Doran's side and convinces them to join him.

Dorne still has friends at court. Friends who tell us things we were not meant to know. This invitation Cersei sent us is a ruse. Trystane is never meant to reach King's Landing. On the road back, somewhere in the kingswood, Ser Balon's party will be attacked by outlaws, and my son will die. I am asked to court only so that I may witness this attack with my own eyes and thereby absolve the queen of any blame. Oh, and these outlaws? They will be shouting, 'Halfman, Halfman,' as they attack. Ser Balon may even catch a quick glimpse of the Imp, though no one else will."

Balon tells Doran that a ship wouldn't be safe for a return trip, and that Myrcella and Trystane must needs return to King's Landing overland, but Doran informs the Sand Snakes of the reality of Balon’s plot to harm Trystane....

Or, is it that Doran only tells us that Balon plots this, even though we are never shown anything to back up this claim? Rather than taking Doran's word here, without any other information to back it up, what if we were to investigate whether or not any of this is the truth?

To start, I want to point out how Doran's so-called "friends at court" is a deliciously vague phrase. This phrase has sparked many a theory—who are these friends? Who at court is informing to Dorne? Taena? Varys? Moon Boy for all I know?

I wonder instead if these friends are even real. It's a vague enough phrase as to handwave any questions—Dorne has spies, sure. It's believable without needing any more evidence. But then notice what Doran says almost immediately afterward, in recruiting Lady Nym and Tyene to his cause:

That task will be yours, Nymeria. The Lannisters will not like it, no more than they liked it when I sent them Oberyn, but they dare not refuse. We need a voice in council, an ear at court. Be careful, though. King's Landing is a pit of snakes."

They need an ear at court? But I thought they had an ear at court, the one which revealed Cersei's top secret plans?

And on that subject—this isn't a rock solid argument alone, but it's worth saying—that these plans are pretty elaborate for something Cersei could come up with. Cersei is clever, sure, but her plans are rarely as well-developed and intricate as this one. Take her plan to kill Bronn, for example, from Cersei V:

"I . . . I would sleep more easily of a night if I were to hear that Ser Bronn had suffered a . . . a mishap . . . whilst hunting, perhaps."

This is not a plan with many moving parts, nor does it take much political intricacies into consideration: just take him hunting and make it look like an accident. Note that this was basically identical to her plan to kill Robert, too: take him hunting and make it look like an accident. It seems unlike Cersei to design this Trystane plan, much less to involve Tyrion's name—she seems too preoccupied with the possibility that Tyrion really is out there to use his reputation as a ploy, much less to take advantage of his former clansmen in the wood.

When I've brought this question up before, though, people are quick to jump to this line from Cersei in AFFC Cersei IV:

"His long wait is almost done. I am sending Balon Swann to Sunspear, to deliver him the head of Gregor Clegane." Ser Balon would have another task as well, but that part was best left unsaid.

Ser Balon would have another task, one better left unsaid. I recognize that this sounds suspicious... but I'll get back to this in a moment. I don't believe this other "task" is the plan Doran describes.

1.8 The truth of Trystane's trip to King's Landing

More importantly, it's much easier to see a different problem in Doran's story, one which our dutiful Watcher sees plainly: Balon never asked for Trystane. Doran offered Trystane—while claiming in the same breath that it was Cersei's idea all along. Hotah saw the truth of it earlier in the chapter.

Midnight was close at hand when Prince Doran turned to the white knight and said, "Ser Balon, I have read the letter that you brought me from our gracious queen. Might I assume that you are familiar with its contents, ser?" Hotah saw the knight tense. "I am, my lord. Her Grace informed me that I might be called upon to escort her daughter back to King's Landing. King Tommen has been pining for his sister and would like Princess Myrcella to return to court for a short visit."

Note that here, Balon apparently divulges the content of said letter: That he might escort Myrcella back to King's Landing. Balon himself says nothing about Trystane being mentioned by Cersei whatsoever.

Instead, it's Doran and Arianne that bring up Trystane:

Princess Arianne made a sad face. "Oh, but we have all grown so fond of Myrcella, ser. She and my brother Trystane have become inseparable." "Prince Trystane would be welcome in King's Landing as well," said Balon Swann. "King Tommen would wish to meet him, I am sure. His Grace has so few companions near his own age." "The bonds formed in boyhood can last a man for life," said Prince Doran. "When Trystane and Myrcella wed, he and Tommen will be as brothers. Queen Cersei has the right of it. The boys should meet, become friends. Dorne will miss him, to be sure, but it is past time Trystane saw something of the world beyond the walls of Sunspear." "I know King's Landing will welcome him most warmly."

Balon doesn't ask for Trystane, he says Trystane "would be welcome" if he came, once his attachment to Myrcella has been brought up. Then, it's Doran who says "the boys should meet," right after saying how "Queen Cersei has the right of it".

Queen Cersei only asked for Myrcella! Balon never suggests that Trystane is part of the crown's plan. Nevertheless, Doran is saying that she has the right of it, making it sound like he's only acquiescing to the Queen's plan. Since we're seeing through Hotah's eyes, though, the intricacy of that detail is included along all the rest.

And thus is my rebuttal of the idea that Cersei is thinking of this task back in the small council. Cersei thinks how Balon would have "another task"—we hear that other task, from Balon. His primary task, and his only task so far as the Small Council knew, was to deliver the skull. His second, secret task was to retrieve Myrcella—this is the task unsaid by Cersei but said by Balon. Cersei knew that was better left unsaid because it's a selfish and strategically poor decision—Myrcella was a sign of trust with Dorne that she's trying to undo. It's only Doran and Arianne that bring Trystane into it.

1.9 GRRM is such a good fucking writer

That lie about "Cersei's plan" is yet another appearance of the way that we need to be asking ourselves: are we, the readers, learning something for a certainty, or are we watching one character be told a story by another character?

It's also, more pressingly, another example of how much we should be looking closely at Doran's words and doubting the stories that he is telling intradiegetically. Because Doran is a talker, not a doer, and when he is talking, he is, above all, lying.

Finally, towards the end of the chapter, there is a very GRRM interaction, that leaves a clear final note on how much you just can never trust what Doran is saying:

"We leave for the Water Gardens at first light." We may depart by midday, then, Hotah thought.

It's a very little thing, but it's consistent, and a brilliant bit of character work. Obviously, there is the metaphor for Doran's late, late plans. As with the overripe oranges in Hotah's first chapter, Doran is surrounded by evidence that he waits too long without acting.

But there is another aspect: Hotah has known Doran long enough, and knows Doran well enough, to know that you cannot take Doran's word for it. Even with planning something as simple as a trip to the Water Gardens, Doran will say one thing and another will happen.

GRRM loves to have characters' aspects be represented wholly throughout their whole being. Think about the characters who smell foul to represent their foul nature (or characters, like Littlefinger, who chew mint leaves to cover his breath in a metaphor for his gilded persona covering his malicious personality).

Doran, wheelchair bound, cannot act, only talk... but words are wind, and his more than most. To understand just how much Doran is like this, he's shown through the POV of his perfect foil: Areo Hotah, who never talks, only watches, and acts... and Hotah understands the truth of the matter.

He won't tell, though, he just thinks it. He gets a single line of dialogue that chapter:

"That is not for me to say, my prince."

No wonder Doran likes him so much.

In the companion post to this one, I'll be returning to Gerold Dayne's scenes and attempt to look at them as though I were Areo Hotah, not Arianne. What is the truth of what we get to watch Gerold do? What kind of man is he, really? And might he be worthy of the title Sword of the Morning, after all?

[blues-valentine]

it’s still a bit frustrating readings pws claim to this day that portwell “was meant to be endgame” because it’s like they don’t understand those characters and the underlying premise of “their romance”. there was not romantic undertones to them on season 1 and their romance on season 2 was doomed before it even started. pls media literacy i beg.

I believe one of the main reasons PW/Rinis cling so hard to the whole “real endgames” thing is because they are so used to teen shows staying with the “core 4 ships” formula so they refuse to acknowledge the writers changed things because Rina ended up being more dynamic.

This amazing channel did a really thought out explanation about how PW was doomed from the start. Check it out. It has one of my favorite analysis about the show, especially Rina.

But let’s discuss for a moment:

As you said, there weren’t romantic undertones between Gina and EJ on Season 1. They had a common goal. She wanted Nini out of the role of Gabriella and EJ was jealous of Ricky being around Nini. Gina didn’t care about EJ getting the role of Troy. She was actively advocating for Ricky to keep it. The homecoming situation was a plan Gina came up with thinking Nini would be there and get that frustrated she’d quit the show — she was wrong so she took it out on EJ. And instead of the episode ending in some common ground between Gina and EJ, it ends with Gina leaving with Ricky and connecting with him over feeling like outsiders — which kick starts their whole journey. After that, she stopped pursuing her plan with EJ or seeing him all together. They had a whole conversation about Ricky. And later, another argument used to implicate PW was romantic. The plane ticket. That situation wasn’t about Gina. It was about EJ doing good things and becoming a better person and he was inspired to do so by Nini initially. I won’t say that Season 1 doesn’t end with the potential to turn this dynamic into a romantic one — and they did. But it wasn’t aimed as a endgame build up, and that’s made even clearer once you know the existence of that 206 opening night flashback taking place.

EJ starts Season 2 claiming he feels older than the rest of the group. Already making a point that EJ is moving towards a different life stage. His arc started with college applications and the first hint that he might have a crush on Gina comes suddenly on 205 [conveniently after Gina and Ricky had a fallout]. And the narrative never really says why he liked Gina in the first place. And I feel like in a way it was a distraction for him. I’d say it was easier to see why Gina would develop feelings for EJ. This is why I said pairing those two together felt like a plot device for Gina/Rina than it was to serve EJ’s own arc. He was there when she needed it and one thing about Gina, she craves the attention she lacks from her family unit. Gina liked EJ because “he showed up” and I feel he represented a band aid to her feelings. Just like Gina was to him.

The famous sofa scene, the one PWs claim is the epitome of understanding and connection. But as the person from the video says, it never really showed them being connected to each other — it does the opposite. Gina downright says she doesn’t understand him or what he is dealing with but it’s allowing him to dump his problems on her. She sympathized with him but cannot empathize with him. That scene only showcases how different their lives are about to be and how Gina isn’t at the stage EJ is at yet but at that point in time, it felt like they were the only people willing to listen and be there. And having Gina downright say “I don’t know” to EJ’s issues was straight up a parallel to Gina saying “I know” when Ricky open up to her.

And people claiming the miscommunication issues came out from nowhere are really not paying attention. The only reason Gina and EJ got together was because of Ashlyn’s initiative to clear their misunderstanding. If it wasn’t for her, they would have ended with that in mind. And it showed from the get go EJ assumed and let it awake his insecurities instead of speaking.

Another interesting thing the video points out, that I also noticed right away is how Season 2 is framed as a before and after. Divided by 206, which is the flashback episode but also the moment Gina decides to cut off her friendship with Ricky. It’s not a coincidence 205 sets PW up and 206 makes the argument there’s clearly unspoken issues between Ricky and Gina. But mostly, it sets the “I never do things right the first time, Ricky” thing in motion. I said it back in 206 that this quote had a deeper meaning. And after 206, the narrative insists on letting the audience know EJ could be Gina’s first date, first boyfriend and first kiss. They were spoon feeding you the narrative. EJ was going to be the first, just not the last. 209 is a Rina coded episode and I also pointed it out back when it premiered (X). The episode points out Gina was not over Ricky. It has Jack advising Gina to “care less” in her next relationship. An advice that she takes into consideration. And we also got Jack telling her to pick the safest seat on the plane (planes, a metaphor that has been used for Gina’s feelings about Ricky). Gina ended up this episode already with the mindset that she was going to go forward with a more carefree attitude because safest choice (EJ) = less potential pain. @curtsies-from-princess-ashlyn makes a great analysis on how 209 is an episode divided between Ricky and Gina plus their paralleled/individual arcs (X).

The Season 2 finale ties all of this together with second chance, which I said it was a Rina coded song and here’s this lovely analysis (X). Ricky and Nini having the verses about new beginnings because both of them had moved on from their relationship vs Gina and EJ having the verses about shutting down emotionally with Gina saying she’s safer on the run and EJ saying he isn’t sure about what he wants. Neither Gina and EJ started their relationship in the best mindset.

Now, Season 3 premiere, they bring back the “never do things right the first time” analogy again by hitting you with Gina’s “summer of firsts” = “first boyfriend” “first summer camp” and “firsts” continues being a theme all season. Then, we have Gina sub-conditionally saying a person could interfiere in her relationship with EJ, which is a way to say, Gina is not over Ricky. Like, it was so obvious and it was insane people were still holding onto the idea the season would culminate in a love confession with them.

A lot of Gina’s relationship with EJ started by the fact she was compromising her ambition to fit into a role that was more likable for others. She said this to Nini at the end of Season 2. And you can also tell by the way Gina interacted with EJ. It felt like Gina was trying her best to fit into the role of girlfriend, because she didn’t want her first relationship to fail. And this was noticiable with Sofia’s acting choices. And the fact she later confirmed this was an intentional choice means that there’s awareness there.

I’ve said before, Gina and EJ’s relationship was going to fail for a lot of reasons. Their different stages, the fact Gina was not really herself, the fact she still had unresolved issues with Ricky. Gina needed to date EJ to experience her first relationship and even out the dynamic between Ricky and Gina. Gina was pinning on Season 2, then it was turn for Ricky on Season 3, so they could meet in the middle when they were ready. In fact, Season 2 was the season that made me confirm they were serious about Rina because that level of detail isn’t given to non-endgames.

[eruscreaminginthedistance]

Ugh it's taken me like a week to post this because reformatting PF posts on my phone is a bitch so I'm gonna throw this out here so that i don't put it off any longer; my Dune Part 2 review.

Basically, I feel like I'm living through a Category 5 LOTR event in real time. I was worried going into the second film that I was overhyped and that I should temper my expectations; speculative fiction adaptations 9 times out of 10 are usually dead on arrival and Dune Part 1 already defied the odds for being as good as it was for an almost 1-to-1 recreation.

I feel like after this I could confidently trust Denis Villeneuve with my life. The man's not really making a product. He clearly LOVES sci fi. Respect for the source material oozes out of every scene of Dune, and his little tweaks and changes are done with care and with a sense of critically engaging with the story that shows real thought.

Praying to the gods that once Denis finishes the trilogy he brings out a boxset DVDs with at least three behind the scenes DVDs MINIMUM. I need to see every single aspect of production on this leviathan of a project and then ritualistically watch all three movies back to back as I would with LOTR.

Spoilers under the cut

In terms of what I liked:

I've only read the first two books in full - Children and God Emperor are next on my list to finish this year - so I can't speak as an uber knowledgeable Dune nerd who knows the books back to front, but I'm very confident when I say that Denis's changes to the source material didn't take away from the experience of the story at all.

- Chani's probably the biggest change of all in the sequel and oh my god does it revitalise her character. I was quite shocked scrolling through tags to see book readers complain about how much the movie changed her and her arc. What are they mad about? That they gave Chani something to do other than sucking Paul's dick? In the book, literally everyone is 100% behind Paul uncritically accepting every single thing he does and Chani is just one of a swarm of characters that do that. I say this with much love because I like her book counterpart but I struggle to understand the people who claim to be so invested in book Paul and Chani's dynamic as opposed to the film's when book Chani's whole character is "Wife", until Dune Messiah when she gets the "Nagging Wife" upgrade. Denis's version effectively makes her co-protagonist with Paul and it was so exciting to see that play out on screen. She became the moral litmus test and the last vestige of uncorrupted ideals in the movie; Paul's descent into fascism and betrayal of the Fremen would not have hit nearly as hard if everyone went along with it like in the book.. I really felt for Chani having to watch everyone she knows get swept up in this insane fervour. She's too dedicated to the concept of freedom to fall for the bullshit and that was such a relief ti witness. Film Chani is her own character, not just another limb of Paul's, so her story is going in a slightly different direction and I'm really excited to see that. Would not have been nearly as hyped if her whole arc was just going to be "be pregnant. die" again.

- Jessica being an absolute FREAK. She was probably my favourite character from the book and I was so pissed she wasn't in Dune Messiah. I needed to get inside her head and wiggle around in there while I was reading, and Denis fed me. In the book, I got the impression she was quite a passive participant in the prophecy, so getting to see her go full wicked witch in the film was a massive highlight. Speaking to Alia in the womb, her sinister use of The Voice (such a horrific departure from her only using it for self defence in Part 1), her FASHION. Denis needs to adapt her into Dune Messiah I refuse to watch a version of Messiah without Jessica in it.

- Stilgar came out of nowhere with the steel chair for me. The first book is filled back to back with noble fatherly leader figures so he got very lost in the shuffle and I didn't really pay attention to him that much beyond being one of Paul's many mentors. I read a tiny bit of Children before watching Part 2 and Stilgar seriously considering murdering Paul's children made me do a double take. Then seeing him in this movie blew me away. Guys I think I've slept on Stilgar all this time xD. Not gonna lie though, the film beefs up his character quite a lot from the books. I think it was a good decision to make him comedic relief, because it offsets that "religious fundamentalist" element that could put people off. It makes him much softer and more likeable. He's just a guy with big hopes and big dreams and a big heart who's a bit silly sometimes, and that makes him the ultimate prey for Paul and Jessica. It's absolutely sickening to see them exploit his sincere faith and beliefs and I'm getting upset now just thinking about all the horrific things he'll be lead to do. Denis did a fantastic job of making him a more sympathetic and softer character for people to compare with his post-timeskip Space Hitler's Right Hand Man role.

- Introducing Princess Irulan early hell yeah!! Huge improvement on the book imo; she was very much a dark horse character for this film and Florence Pugh nailed it. I loved her being the narrator much like in the book, and it was interesting to see her contribute to putting the pieces in place for the endgame, rather than just turn up at the end. More of her please, Denis!

- One of my complaints about the first film was that there wasn't enough Harkonnen action, specifically the Harkonnen-Atreides rivalry, which was talked about a bit but not really shown. Denis made all those Harkonnen scenes specifically for me. I adored the balls to the wall aesthetics and the incredibly villainous acting. This film isn't afraid of moustache twirls and villainous laughter and I LOVE that. It felt fresh. Villains who just love doing bad shit and aren't even trying to justify themselves they just LOVE being horrible creatures in their black stone murder palaces.

- What can I say about the look of the film. You've all seen it. If you haven't then go fix that. It's one of the most visually cohesive and stunning films I've seen in a long time. I don't know how a world can feel so real and yet unreal (/pos) at the same time.

- Hans Zimmer showed the fuck UP for this score. I've been listening to it nonstop all weekend. I kinda miss the Atreides bagpipes but the new horns drive me insane so it's a good tradeoff.

Things I'm on the fence about:

- I think it was a good call to remove the whole thing with Paul uh, inheriting Harah from Jamis. It gave more screentime to Chani and I think would have really put viewers off Paul when really you wanna keep people going in blind rooting for him until the third act. BUT I was surprised she wasn't in the film at all? I was convinced that the lady we see Chani talking with was supposed to be an adapted Harah, but I'm seeing everywhere online that that's not supposed to be her and Harah wasn't in the film? Why not? It just felt a bit weird that she's just some nameless Fremen.

- I'm not gonna lie I forgot Thufir existed on my first watch. I think me not missing him overall is a good sign. I didn't rewatch part 1 so I guess I assumed they'd killed him off in the Arrakeen attack, and didn't realise his part had been cut until I saw an article about it later. That was kind of disappointing. While I think the film is perfectly fine without him, I think the inclusion of his plot as kind-of prisoner kind-of strategist for the Harkonnens would have really solidified the Harkonnen-Atreides rivalry. Again because we almost never see an Atreides and Harkonnen onscreen together, so having him there to exemplify it in practice I think could have just polished things up for me personally. But also I want all films to be 5 hours long so what do I know.

- Jessica and Chani didn't interact nearly as much as I wanted them to tbh. I'm hoping that Dune Messiah beefs up their relationship.

- Timothee Chalamet

Things I didn't like:

- Not Paul btw, just Timothee

- Been saying this since the first movie but him and Zendaya were really only cast cos they're hot ticket items right now, not because they have the look and feel of the characters or the world; they just wanted to cast some hot supermodels in the roles

- Zendaya justifies her casting though by being the better actor though; I was sceptical but I came to buy her as Chani and she did a good job resonating with me

- Timothee's just a guy though, wasn't impressed

- Which is a huge problem because the emotional throughline of the movie is their romance and I just. Did not buy it. Timothee could not have paid me to believe that he was in love with Chani. They were like the definition of everybody's beautiful but nobody's horny. Just saying words with their blank hot faces. At least Zendaya put some effort in.

Anyway 10/10. This is going in my top 5 movies of all time and is one of the best book to screen adaptations I have ever seen.

[overnighttosunflowers]

So here’s a theory that’s neither “it will all stick just like that” and “it was a dream”—time loops. (The actual theory here is all @xanthera; I’m just pulling together some supporting evidence and some follow-up thoughts.)

First of all, while Matt’s most recent tweets about high stakes and player choices do clearly say that this event will have lasting repercussions, he did also like this tweet, which I think implies that there’s more going on than just what we saw on Thursday. (So, to me, does his whole bearing during the fight, but that’s neither here nor there.)

Secondly, we know that this show loves to see its threads through, and particularly that this is a campaign MADE of threads from the previous ones. Right now, dunamancy and Aeor are the biggest two c2 threads that are clearly being pulled, to an as-yet-unclear end. So we have:

The T-dock Caleb destroyed, which can’t be the only one that existed… and also, a PC who is walking evidence that stuff from Aeor is now making it out into the rest of Exandria

The dunamancy vials that the Assembly forced Yeza to invent… which are now being traded by the Paragon’s Call, which Otohan leads

A backpack worn by Otohan, which Matt has called attention to multiple times, which seems to be tied to her abilities and which has two cavities in the middle… what for? Dunamancy juice?

Evidence that Otohan was the one who attacked Zephrah, an attack which “came from out of nowhere and disappeared almost before it started”

A PC who lived 100 years inside 6 years due to being trapped in a time loop in the feywild, making it clear that the most powerful fey can manipulate time

Knowledge that Otohan has been spotted in the feywild collaborating with Unseelie fey

A Cerberus Assembly leader, who is the reason that the dunamancy vials exist, also in said feywild collaboration

Taken all together, feels like pretty clear evidence that dunamis and the feywild are entangled and will be playing a major role in this campaign, no?

So then @xanthera pointed out: what if Otohan has an ability to use chronurgy to reverse the last few minutes while allowing everyone to keep their memories of what happened? It would traumatize everyone and make very clear what can happen if they don’t do what she wants.

This can be consistent with “lasting repercussions,” per Matt’s tweet. It’s compatible with characters staying dead if that’s what their players really want.

BUT, for everyone else—isn’t that still a real consequence, to live your death in reverse and come back? To realize the extreme extent to which this group you’re with is truly a powder keg, the extent to which you can’t protect others or yourself when push comes to shove, the extent to which you’re a danger to your loved ones, to which your loved ones are a danger to you? Wouldn’t it be campaign-defining?

Wouldn’t you seriously change tactics in the way the M9 did after Molly died, when—as Matt noted in interviews not long after, when he also spoke about this being a game with real consequences—they started becoming much more careful researchers in forming their plans? Wouldn’t you have to find new ways of operating as a party to have a shot at ultimately defeating this? Wouldn’t it shake up the status quo in ways that reverberate, and reverberate, and reverberate?

And, on the “better than it was before” side of consequences, wouldn’t it kickstart some major character arc shifts? To realize all the things you could’ve died left unsaid? Couldn’t it lead you eventually to (checks Matt’s tweets) “the brightest epiphanies” and “joy and catharsis”? Wouldn’t you go confess your love to your sending stone buddy wouldn’t you kiss your Girl Best Friend

Anyway, I mean, who knows. Maybe it’s all absolutely real and Liam and Ashley want their characters to stay dead and Otohan will walk away from a pile of corpses and we’ll have 2-4 new characters at the table and Imogen will be a DM-controlled villain. Or it’s all real and Otohan will walk away from a group frantically cascading heals and revivifies and hoping to reach everyone in time and Imogen will be battling her way through a corruption arc.

OR, maybe, they’re all just left gasping and alive and burning with the memory of everything that just happened and unhappened, and could happen again. And they’re changed by it.

[chase-ingjackson]

A few reasons I like and dislike the the new Percy Jackson show (and why I think the musical is better) - initial reaction

To start, I think this new PJO show is a million times better than that dumpster fire of a movie (though I love logan lerman <3). I like that it is quite faithful to the overall arcs and major plot lines of the book. I love the diversity and high caliber of actors (though I def have some Viria-art inspired character images in my head that are god-tier). I love some of the characterizations/portrayals, especially when it comes to making the character more complex (I really appreciate TV Sally for being a real person with complex emotion, though of course book Sally is my fav). And I love that it's so high budget and hgihly-anticipated (great marketing) that it is bringing this beloved story to a greater audience, especially the younger generation and older generation (as parents/grandparents) than those of us who grew up with the series.

I can boil down all of my dislikes of this show into one overarching but very essential part of the show: I don't like that it is a drama. The characters are way too serious and too every-other-moment-we-need-an-instense-heart-to-heart. What I think this show should have been is a comedy adventure with drama/melodrama sprinkled in. In the books, it's all about the banter. And the TV show does some good one-liners, but it's always so serious. I think the best part of the book is that the characters can stay light-hearted and fun despite the horrors and terrors they face. In the show, the gods spoon feed the trio most of the answers, so when they do have a good realization (SPOILER: e.g. Kronos being the orchestrating force) it kind of comes out of nowhere. TV Annabeth is so serious (I know in the first book she is her most serious, but not to this degree) and a lot of the moments when she has time to use her smarts are gone or approached differently. Percy, too. He's not just self-sacrificing (which they really lean into in the show) but he's also incredibly smart and silly. In the books he's kind of a surface-level himbo with great critical thinking, but in the show he's kind of left in the dark and doesn't get opportunities to make his own plans (also, he doesn't seem to know how to control his power (by the 7th episode); whereas in the book he def did at this point. Then there are just dumb changes to make the show more "serious" like not mentioning that cell phones attract monsters or that monsters just smell demigods and not have a 6th sense for them. I'm finding that by trying to change these small details to make it something more exciting or interesting, it's distancing us existing fans by not letting us relate to the small details that really don't matter. For the cellphones, they still use Iris messages rather than getting a payphone or something, so that's kind of a plot hole in the show that is answered by the book.

Anyways, those are my main takeaways. Now, when I say "the musical" I refer to The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical by Joe Tracz and Rick Rokicki which first premiered in 2014 but got revamped and redebued in 2017 (which is when it came into my life). I got to see it live in Toronto in 2019 with my middle school best friend, but have been an avid listener of the soundtrack since 2017 (the day it came out on streaming platforms).

The musical in my eyes is a nearly-perfect adaptation of the book. It's soo funny - def the action comedy I'm after, but does have the meaningful emotional moments (ballads, which are essential in musicals). The show itself if the full package; however, even just listening to the soundtrack gives you the whole gist. Here's a link to hte soundtrack on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFwX6FWeUFQ&list=PL0hK1fYMaqXbtZ0Fhm48TYcLJl7ikNX7Q&ab_channel=TheLightningThief%3AOriginalCastAlbum

Anyways, I want to hear more thoughts and pls tell me what you think of the show (and the musical!!)

[reashot]

Rw-By-oh ARC V/ Beware the Vermillion Flash/ The conclusion to Victor's matricidal urges.

The Arc Kids. For anyone that's not up to date:

Previously....

Victor: This is all your fault!!!

Weiss: *choked* (Please someone save me. Ruby. Please save me Jaune...)

Victor cannot believe that this is finally happening. He finally have the bitch's throat on his hands. All those years of abuse he and his sister had to endure by her after their father died. And all those atrocities he had to commit under her order. All of it will finally come to an end. And all he needs to do, is just to slightly tighten his grips on her neck... Or he could just do it quickly and snap her neck. Decision, decision... Victor then looks down at her and see she is struggling to breath as she gasping for air. And in her eyes he can see that she is slowly losing the light from her eyes. He smiled as she's finally about to die. But suddenly she raised a hand. Victor expected that she's trying to get away from him by hitting him. But to his surprise she instead reaches out to caress his face.

He's too shocked to even react to it. It is the first time in a long time that he felt something like this. His eyes went wide in disbelief by Weiss's action. He looks down at her one more and to his surprise He did not see Weiss dying face but instead he is greeted with a gentle smile on her face. A smile that's usually reserved for when a mother lovingly looks at her children.

(This can't be real.) He thought to himself.

But it is real and to add another layer of disbelief. Weiss is moving her lips trying to convey something to him. Not through sound because Victor is currently strangling her. But she say it through the movement of her mouth. Victor may not be a lip reader but he can still make out what she's trying to convey to him.

I. Forgive. You...

(This is not real. ) He thought to himself.

(W-why do you have to act like a mother to me now!)

'She's not her...' A familiar voice reaches out to him seemingly out of nowhere.

(I KNOW THAT!!! You think I didn't know that.)

'Don't kill her...' Again the voice said trying to stop him from killing her.

What ever the voice said to him clearly work. Because he starts to loosen his grip on Weiss's neck. But before he can completely let her go. Victor notices a silver flash coming right towards him in blinding speed. Using the reflex and quick decision making he hone during the war he let go of his grip on Weiss and swiftly dodged out off the way of the flash.

Victor: Show yourself!?

???: I gotta give it to you. You're probably the only few people I know that is able to dodge my Gintetsu.

Victor: Yeah. Then maybe you should get closer so you can congratulate me better.

The person that saved Weiss then walks closer a way to introduce himself to the two of them.

Victor: What it can't be?

Weiss: *cough* *wheeze* J-Jaune you came... Wait you're not him?

The person that saved her shares the same face with Jaune just like her son. But unlike Jaune he exudes more self-confidence, more prideful and he walks towards them with a swagger like he is the only person in the entire place.

???: The name is Vermillion Rose-Arc. It seems you're already acquainted with my useless old man. And you two must be Weiss and Victor.

Victor: How did you know our name?

Vermillion: My little sister Scarlett told me all about you two. You know when she starts talking she never stop. My little sister is cute like that. But anyway please step away from Mrs. Schnee. I know enough about you that you are too dangerous to be left alone with anyone let alone her of all people.

Victor: How about you go mind your fucking business. This is a family affairs. Stay out of it!

Vermillion: Geez. You try to be nice to people for once... Okay put your sword up. I don't want you to make excuse after I cut you down.

Victor: Not before I plunge Myrtenaster down your throat.

Weiss: *cough* w-wai... *cough*

As Weiss tried to stop the two boys from killing each other. The two of them are already in their respective battle stance. Victor with his Schnee's family fencing stance with his sword pointing at blonde boy. In contrast to Vermillion's sword which is still sheathed. Weiss notices that his stance is an Iaido stance. A sword technique that utilizes the quick unsheathing of a blade to attack. The two scan for each other's weakness. While waiting for an opening to come. Any loss of concentration would spell the end for them. That is how serious the two view each other's skill. Even a small distraction would prove deadly....

Scarlett: There he is. There's that ice jerk! 😠

Ruby: And he's with Weiss too... Oh no she's on the floor. He must have done something to her! 😫

Yang: I knew we shouldn't let you live!

Dusk: W-why Mr. Snowman I thought we're friend. How could you lie to us we even made pinky promise... *sniff*

Blake: (He makes my Dusky Wusky cry, he must die 💀)

Aurum: Oathbreaker!!! I will make sure you pay for this treachery!

Victor: I guess they finally here. Took them long enough.

Vermilion: Did Dusk just call you Mr. Snowman?

Victor: Do not let it disctract you from our duel.

Vermilion: Would not even dream of it. Mr. Snowm....

Before he could finish his sentence. Victor starts the opening attack by launching multiple thrust at his blonde counterpart. Vermilion can only react by deflecting and blocking the thrusts with his Katana. Vermilion tries to land a hit at him but Victor never let up in his attack. This forced Vermilion to take up a more defensive position. Their fierce battle causes all that watches them to stand still in awe. Weiss on the other hands are still trying to stop the fight, but when she tries no voice came out. Vermillion having had enough playing defense starts going on the offensive. Vermillion quickly sheathe and unsheathe his Katana releasing a flurry of slashes too quick to be seen by the naked eyes. Each slashes hit fast and true and Victor can feels that his Aura starts to deplete as fast as he can throw his slashes. Victor knowing he can't win against him in close combat decides to jump back giving him some distances to work with. Vermillion simply falls back into his Iai stance readying himself for anything Victor is preparing for him. Victor then summons a large dragon. The same kind of dragon that he summoned against the others the last time they fought. Fafnir. Unleasing his dragon Victor felt his victory to be assured.

Vermillion: *sigh* Taurus Hiden Ryū. Akatsuki.

Just as the large dragon appeared suddenly out of nowhere they also suddenly disappeared. Victor was shocked to say the least it's not the first time he saw his dragon being defeated but at least it took multiple strikes from the golden knight before it's defeated. Vermillion took the dragon out with just one strike.

It's not just Victor that's at loss for words everyone that watches it cannot believe what they just saw with the exception of his sister.

Scarlett: That's my bro.

But probably none is more shocked than Blake.

Blake: Adam?

Vermillion: So... You ready to call it quit now?

Victor: Shut up! This is not over yet. I don't like doing this but you forced my hand. I'm going to summon something that I never tried before.

Vermillion: Seriously take the L man... *sigh* oh all right I'll bite what Grimm I will be facing next. Nuckleave, Behemoth, Erlkönig? Mind you I beaten most of them already.

Victor: No... This not will be a Grimm you'll be facing unfortunately.

Unlike the usual white colored summoning circle however the summoning circle Victor used is Black. And what came out of it is something that no one expected him to summon.

Yang: Ruby?

Scarlett: Mom? 😧

Ruby: (Oh sweet Oum. I'm hot 🤯. Take that Yang. Who's going to end up as a pipsquak forever now.)

Blake: Wait a minute how are you able to do that? Weiss's Semblance can only summon Grimm that she defeated. She can't summon a person....

Aurum: You really did killed her?

Vermillion: You....

Victor: Yeah I killed the Ruby Rose of my timeline. And I only recently figured out how to summon her after my last fight with you clowns.

Vermillion: I change my mind. I will kill you now. You are too dangerous to be let alive.

Vermillion pulls the trigger of his Katana/Gun hybrid. The blade shot through the sheath at blinding speed. He then angle the blade slightly in order to deliver an equally blinding slash at Victor. But his blade is then quickly blocked by the summoned Ruby's scythe. He looks at the moving corpse of his mother and felt disgusted seeing her like this. It's bad enough to know that she was killed but seeing her raised from the dead to serve as his slave. It's textbook sacrilege! He knows that this Ruby is not his mother but he still can't help feeling like she is. And if she is anything like her mother, that means she can kick his ass like she did the last time during weekend D&D family game. He doesn't want to do this but if she is half as strong as his own mom then he has no other choice but to use it. He slowly blink and then suddenly a bright flash of light appears from his eyes. Everyone that has their eyes fixed on him is temporarily blinded. And when they finally regains their sight. The other Ruby is gone. Leaving all of them confused as to how Vermillion managed to do that. But before everyone can process what just happened. In the blink of an eyes Vermilion's blade managed to break Victor's Aura. Caught by suddenness of the attack Victor can't react to it quickly in time. Without his Aura to shield him, Victor knows that he will not survive if Vermillion decides to follow through with his attack. Preparing for the next attack Vermillion sheathe his blade and prepare to pull the trigger. With the intention to kill him. But when he is about to do it. Weiss suddenly stood in front of him. Finally finding the strength to stop all of this madness happening in front of her.

Weiss: STOP IT!!!

Victor: M- I mean. Weiss what are you doing? You stupid bitch! You could have died!!!

Vermillion: Wow... Talk about irony. Mr. Snowman there is right, though. You could have been killed if I didn't stop in the last second. What were you thinking?

Weiss: I don't know. My body suddenly moved on their own.

Vermillion: I see... Anyway, can you please step aside for a second. I'm gonna cut his head off...

Ruby: Cut his head... You mean kill him?! 😱

Yang: Wow! Wait a minute, isn't that going too far!!!

Aurum: You are right mother. No matter how much of villain Victor is no one have any right to end people's life.

Dusk: No. Poor Mr. Snowman. Please someone, please save Mr. Snowman.

Blake: (He's just like Adam.)

Scarlett: Bro please don't... 😐

Vermillion: Look. I don't take pleasure in this. But you all saw that he tried to kill Weiss right? He's a threat and a danger to everyone around him. An animal like him deserves to be put down.

Blake: (I stand corrected. He's not like Adam. He is Adam.)

Weiss: I will not move from this spot and I will not let you kill him!

Vermillion: Weiss. I will only say this once. If you continue to protect him. I cannot be held responsible for what I'm about to do next...

Victor: Stay away from me Weiss. This is between me and him!

Weiss: No!

Vermillion: You do know that he tried to kill you, right? Twice in fact. What on Remnant possess you to defend him?

Weiss: That's because he is my son...

Victor: Weiss...

Vermillion: *sigh* Fine... You're off the hook snowball. (I'm getting soft like my old man.)

Weiss then turns around and gives Victor something he probably hasn't receives for a long time. A hug. Victor then burst into tears after receiving the hug. It as if a dam finally burst letting out all the tears he been holding out within him for all those years. His hand then slowly reaches out to her. Vermillion ready his sword in case he gets any idea. But he just hugs her and cried on Weiss's shoulder.

Jaune: What's everyone doing here... Wait. Scarlett and the rest of my kids are here too. Did I miss something?

Vermillion: We're just having a peaceful resolution to a long drawn family dispute. Nothing serious happened here, really.

Yang: He said that after he threaten to kill Weiss's kid.

Aurum: Honored mother. I don't think we should tell father what transpired here.

Scarlett: Absomundo bigger bro. The last thing we want is to give our dad more reason to worry about. And beside the situation already been resolved. Thanks to Vermy. 🧐

Ruby: I guess so, but I still don't like to hide thing from Jaune. 😔

Dusk: Yay! Daddy is here.

Jaune: I see... Well if you managed to solve Victor's mom issue then I guess it's all right then. But who are you supposed to be?

Vermillion: Oh! I'm also your son's from the future and Scarlett's brother.

Jaune: Of course the face should have given it away. I'm sorry. It just that I have a lot on my mind right now.

Vermillion: Don't be dad. It's my fault for not informing everyone here earlier. Ha, ha, ha..... Say dad how about the two of us and Victor spend some father and sons quality time together. I bet we have a lot to talk about.

Blake: (Who is this guy? He said he is Jaune's son but the way he fought and his weapon are closer to Adam than Jaune. And why is he asking to spend time with Victor. After trying to kill him earlier?)

Aurum: ... Why am I not invited to this father son quality time?

Jaune: Okay I guess but we have to do it some other time. Right now I have something important to do right now.

Vermillion: No problem dad. I can just pull up a portal with my silver eyes.

Ruby: (So that's how they all get here. 🤨)

Weiss: Wait Jaune I want to ask. Where have you been? We haven't seen you around in weeks.

Yang: Oh yeah that's right, we were just talking about this. Jaune why the F are you avoiding us!

Ruby: Why Jaune. Do you not like us anymore? 😭

Jaune: No! Sweet Ohm no! There's no way I don't like you girls... It's just that it's hard to meet everyone after everything that just happened.

Yang: Well, we're here right now. And we're not going to let you go until you tell us everything. If you don't want to see us anymore then it's fine just tell us why?

Jaune: That's what I'm about to do. I would prefer we do this with just the five of us. But with my kids being here. And as weird as that sound. This must be sign that I should do this in front of everyone.

Truthfully the reason I've been avoiding everyone lately is because I've been working odd jobs to buy everyone something....

Ruby: *gasp* Are you buying us something! What is it? I bet it's something wonderful. 😚

Jaune: Ruby, Weiss Blake and Yang.... will you marry me?

Everyone: What!!! ______________________

And that's the end of Jaune's (future children) Arc. And as usual I will only make a continuation or in this case an epilogue. if it gets enough traction. So some of you must be asking why is Vermy used the same weapon, fighting style and generally closer to Adam Taurus despite being Jaune Arc's son? Well there's the like and quote button below. Better start pressing it. Also don't forget to comment.

[darlenicy]

I got tagged by @rosie-love98 on this:

Tag 9 People you want to get to know better

Thank you and sorry, that it took me so long!

3 ships:

Okay, since I’m tagged on this tumblr account I’ll first go with WINX of course.

1. Driven (Darcy x Riven - Winx Club)

I’ll say it over and over again – they’re perfect. THE POTENTIAL: OMG: If Rainbow had be braver and didn’t focus SO much on Bloom, they could’ve added such an angsty storyline. They build the grounding but never made it to detail and that’s a shame. I may repeat myself, but Darcy was the first one to listen to Riven. To really listen and maybe even the first person after a long time to actually care for him. Of course, she is beautiful and she used that beauty to enchant him but what mattered in the end was that Riven finally found someone who was really interested in him. Someone who saw his ambition and talent. Someone who didn’t see the sparkly outside of perfect Sky and Brandon but who saw this man, who I bet went trough a lot to achieve the right to study at Red Fountain. Finally, someone interested in the one who trained hard to be where was and who wasn’t privileged like other people. Another thing I love about them is the trust and faith Riven had in Darcy who.. in the end destroyed that YES THANKS RAINBOW.  I mean, he never questioned her even though he knew that the Trix’ plans were evil. He did not care about that. Only for her. The betrayal must have been hard. But what about Darcy? How did she feel? Well, we never saw it but regarding her character she might be an overthinker who thinks everything through, who is afraid to show her true self. Darcy seems to be the one who is afraid of losing control and of being betrayed herself. So better destroy than get destroyed? I’m sure she opened up to Riven to some extend and got caught by her own fear of losing control and then overreacted. Maybe. Who know. But the thing is that their end came completely out of the nowhere and I wished the writers had focused a bit more on that instrad of making a cut so that another fairy had a love interest by the end of season 1. It also should have been more focus on their relationship in the following seasons. (I miss the longing stares omg. We could have so much angsty drama!) I think the end of the relationship was not easy for both of them. Darcy lost everything at the end of season 1 and I’m sure she questioned herself a lot after it. Like, what would have happened if etc. And Riven, even more broken than before. What did he think? It’s no secret, that most characters in this show need therapy but these two? Couple therapy maybe lol (now this was long, but that’s when I talk about ships haha)

2. Brella (Brandon and Stella - Winx Club)

I don’t really talk about the fairies here, but I love Brella. They are such a healthy and dynamic couple. Even as a kid I noticed how harmonic and devoted. I loved, that they got so much attention in the show and that they were the harmonic couple and not Sky and Bloom. They had the storyline in s1 I which Brandon disguised as Prince Sky and lied to her. He was afraid, that Stella would only like him as a prince. And yes, Stella might look superficial at first glance but in fact she is not. And I think she showed a lot of strength in forgiving Brandon who lied to her for a long time. She made no big deal of it even though she is a princess who could have easily married or dated a prince. But she chose Brandon. Then there is the Downland arc at the beginning of season 2 and it wouldn’t have worked with another couple. As I said, they are devoted to each other. Stella fkn jumped after him into that abyss without a second thought? Luckily they survived but then Amentia shows up and Stella almost dies because there is no sunlight in Downland. So to save her life, Brandon agrees to marry Amentia who then agrees to let Stella go. I could fangirl over this arc a lot but I won’t because it already gets too long here. Then s3 in which Stella thinks that it might be just her beauty which Brandon loves (which doesn’t make sense after what they went through) but I think the problem Stella has, is that she was always judged by her looks. She was raised to be a perfect princess and let’s face it, before she met Bloom and the Winx, she had no real friends. However back to the show, Brandon knew that Stella was transformed into that Monster but he did not care. Of course not. He was trying to help her no matter what, just to see her happy again. I won’t focus on the later seasons, because they might still have their cute moments there but after all there was too much beef going on between all the couples and I don’t consider these superficial seasons as canon so I’ll stop here. But Brella is chef’s kiss. The best Winx couple followed by Tecna and Timmy and no one can convince me otherwise.

3. Ethel Hallow x Nick Hobbes - Weirdsister College (Do they have a shipping name?)

Since it was rosie, who tagged me I think I have to take a ship which has nothing to do with Winx but which goes more in the direction of Harry Potter and The Worst Witch. And that is an easy one: Ethel Hallow x Nick Hobbes. OMG the potential, the POTENTIAL! Same as driven, they have so much unused potential even though they were on the best way to build an angsty couple with trust issues and all the drama my fangirl heart needs. I love how Nick noticed right away, that Ethel resembled him. She always played the nice and hardworking students but we all know that she was a devious bitch who used every opportunity to make Mildred look bad. And from her perspective, she did nothing wrong. It was always Mildred who stole the show by breaking the rules and being at school but was in the end the good girl who was appreciated. She always played by the rules (yeah not always but she tried her best) and was ambitious and just wanted to be the number one student, yet who interfered? Always Mildred. It’s no wonder she tried everything to get rid of her. Ethel just wanted a happy school life without interruptions. So she wasn’t innocent at all and Nick knew that. In the first episode of Weirdsister College, he immediately checked that he AND Ethel would not have a chance of passing the all-seeing-eye. He tricked Mildred so that she helped him and used that for him and Ethel to pass the ceremony. He’s the typical bad boy who took advantage of Mildred’s talent and gosh, I wished they hadn’t followed this weird storyline he has with Mildred. Because everything was already there with Ehtel: Both students who tried their best to become the top of the class, both power-driven and both unsure in the end. They have so much in common. And Ethel is, after all, the good girl who fell for the bad boy and she KNOWS that he’s doubtful. She does not trust him but is still fascinated by him. And I just love that trope, okay? Ehtel also gives me hardcore rl Darcy vibes and not, it’s not just because they have the same voice actress I Germany. They’re the dark edgy couple I live for. There could have been done so much if they gave us a second season…..It looked like they were giving up on the Mildred/Nick storyline by episode 9 which was again one big flirt of Ethel and Nick. (The potential!) This is why I hate the way they went on the last episode where it’s like “It’s only you who can save him, Mildred” bullshit. I’m doomed for loving couples the writers seem to hate. I could write an essay about them and I probably will on @yaviae somewhen.

Look at them! Ethel's side eye <3

Last song:

Seventeen by Marina

Last Movie:

Crimson Peak (And again I love the doomed couple: Lucille and Thomas, omg my loves)

Currently reading:

Schneewittchens dunkler Kuss (Snow White’s dark Kiss) by Stefanie Lasthaus

Currently watching:

World of Winx season 1

Currently drinking:

Just finished my tea (fennel <3)

Currently craving:

Inspiration! It’s Sunday and that means it’s my ff write day but I haven’t written anything. I’m so tired this weekend..

And I tag: @wtfastaroth @witch-cauany @aurora-of-the-fairies @cerisia76 @stellasolaris @alex-cold17 @no-white-dress @d-arcyky and of course @evdizav