#the hero community was small in the beginning but boy did everyone have an opinion on that

[morganbritton132]

Love the idea that the JLA knows Batman had a partner in Gotham but not that his partner is an eight year old boy.

Sometimes when there’s an emergency and they can’t get ahold of Batman, they’ll patch in to his coms frequency. Mostly, you’ll hear him fighting if you hear anything at all, but occasionally it’s something like, “Robin, do not jump in that puddle.”

Followed by a splash.

The JLA is always like, who the hell is his partner? And then they meet Dick and they’re like, “Oooooh, it’s a child.”

Followed by, “Oh no, it’s a child.”

[greysfall]

My 4444-word review of NEO TWEWY (with personal illustration + heavy spoilers)

My overall critical score for the game is 7.5/10, while my personal enjoyment score is 8.5/10. This review is posted as I have 80% completed the game, got the secret ending and achieved the Angel psychic rank. I’ll first start with the main pros and cons as follows.

PROS:

-        Enjoyable as a whole, still upholding the first game’s spirit in world building and sharing the same backbone - which was mostly revealed in the Secret Reports, it’s impossible to grasp the story without reading them.

-        The new cast and new game is charming in their own way

-        The old cast’s return is one of the biggest highlights for sure, it was fun and impactful. Everyone stays true to themselves and also had their own stories wrapped up nicely.

-        Boss designs are cool, new pins are fun to use and collect

-        The connection between the old and new cast is well written and executed, including but are not limited to the tension between the old and new protagonist, the weird but fun interaction between the 2 Composers, the new friendships revealed and formed

-        Sho being in the main cast is something so uniquely TWEWY and uniquely Sho

-        Still good music

-        Still many fun side quests, some of them really uphold the same quirky spirit of the old game and some are surprisingly touching

-        Many new nice stores and yummy looking foods to explore

-        The map is really easy to memorize for me, it’s fun to travel around the “current” Shibuya to see all the differences compared to the past

-        The social network is crazy and interesting to read through

-        Has an anti-frustration system to help 100% complete the game more easily and earn money faster, so post-game is relatively managable.

-        Overall, I really feel the efforts the team poured into making this as their passion project, not just during the development process but for all the last 14 years. They showed the vision of what they wanted to make, at the same time giving something to both the old as well as new fans.

CONS:

-        The biggest problem with the game is scenario writing. The story is so heavily back-loaded. The director himself thought it would be better to balance out the tension flow by adding more at the beginning but gave in to the scenario writer in the end, probably due to time pressure. This results in an underwhelming execution of characterization and lots of wasted potentials for the first half of the game.  

-        I struggle to view it as a stand-alone game, since the backstory and the old cast both play such an important role in the core of the game. If someone plays this game without having played the OG, they can only enjoy it on surface value at best.

-        The new cast is nice but most of them aren’t quite as intriguing as the old cast, maybe it’s cuz they’re all too nice deep down that they lack a little bit of an edge, of that batshit craziness that everyone in the OG used to have? I think some characters (Fret, Nagi) ended up weaker in terms of characterization because the writer is too afraid of making them unlikeable – which kind of backlashed cuz they only became likable in the most expectable way to cater for a specific group of fans. I would have wished for the other team leaders to be more crazy too, had they not suffered 30+ loops of the Game…

-        The CAMERAWORK IS HELL.

-        Gameplay does get tedious at certain points with all the time travels.

-        Shiba is so badly written as a villain, some Shinjuku characters should be given more screentime cutting into Shiba’s– like Hishima or Kaie or even, Hazuki (though his limited presence also solidified his importance).

-        Some of the main character designs, for example Beat’s hairstyle and his food reactions are hilariously bad. What’s the point of covering up most of his unique facial features?

-        Some of the minor/side characters’ design are too cool for them to have such a small role (eg: Ayano, Eiru). Ryoji did get much screentime but is nowhere as fun as Makoto was.

-        Overall the scope of this game is made a little too big for the team to handle as perfectly as the last game that was very compact, it felt somewhat rushed in development too so the missing pieces are clearly there in the final picture

The entry fee versus paying for it all in the end

An important difference between the Neo game and the original Shibuya game was that the Shibuya rule asked for an entry fee that is the Player’s most important asset, stated as a chance the Composer gives them to reexamine themselves. Meanwhile, the Shinjuku rule neither encourages nor allows personal growth and ultimately aims to erase as many Players as possible. It’s a pity we were never introduced to the full Shinjuku rulebook, as it seems like the system there focuses more on building up power and a grand government to compare with the individuality-driven system of Shibuya.

When you have to compare the new game and the original game (OG), this is an important factor to consider. Also, the OG has a serious storyline running through and through, locked with a different partner/GM creating unique atmosphere for each week and you don’t get to see your old partners again until the end. NEO’s team system does not allow such deep insight and communication between the Players. All of your teammates are always there throughout, the dynamic does change with each new addition but it is not as prominent as a partner change.

Another important factor is how the OG was built from scratch for a new platform as “something no one has ever seen before”, while Neo recycled a lot of old unused ideas from the previous development (check out this interview for more details). The development team for NEO lacks 2 key members and had a change of writer so the final product is not as strongly bound together as the last game.

The new cast is definitely inspired by today’s teenagers (from the view of creators), compared to the old cast they’re more sociable and always seem to take whatever works for them despite feeling unstable inside. They are all innocent and genuinely nice kids, avoiding to hurt each other to a degree that they end up keeping some sort of distance. They’re also unable to communicate at deeper levels, always stagnant at this half-baked stage of equilibrium without any motivation to get to the core of things. That is the cost of entering the game without an entry fee, without even dying or having a reason to be there/to fight seriously. These kids were stolen from the RG into a Game that was decidedly the worst environment for them to change or develop, just wandering around cluelessly to find a way “out” until tragedies started to unfold one by one and they ended up being charged the total sum of the price for their actions – ultimately losing everything in the end.

That is, I believe, a story arc which can resonate more to the youth of today rather than of my generation. If the message of the old game was to “listen”, enjoy life to the fullest and accept to trust others, the message of the new game is to “speak up” from the inside, trying to understand yourself and take actions instead of just going with the flow and finally, to take responsibility for such actions.

If Neku was handpicked by the Composer for being the special one with an all-dense soul to ensure victory of the game then Rindo was just a normal kid chosen out of random by Kubo to be his back-up plan, who just happened to have a high enough imagination to awaken the incredible power from his pin. Rindo was then officially chosen by the Composer as Josh picked up and handed the pin to him again, this time not as Josh’s personal Proxy – but as the Proxy to represent the normal people of Shibuya and via whom he could gamble if humans can fight for their own fate.

The underworld heroine and the hero with little of his own

Shoka is for me a refreshing and layered heroine. She’s the kind of character that took at least 3 trials of creators to form as a complete individual – that included Nomura who gave her the base design and Reaper background, Gen who gave a more cunning touch and the writers who made her English dialogues more punchy. Dishonesty equals “tsundere” is such a cliché, so the English writers tried really hard to avoid that trope in my opinion, while still letting her good intention come through.

She serves as the character who is informed of everything the players should have known, and there was almost nothing she could do about it. Almost. Until she met Rindo.

They were drawn to each other by sharing a state of “not having anything of their own”. They both started out with not being able to truly know themselves, Shoka even hated her RG life but also managed to mature from that stage before Rindo. She must have vibed with Shiki’s love and passion in the Gatto Nero threads, initiating her connection with Shibuya and understanding herself more. With Shoka as Swallow, they were able to open up to each other and offer mental support… but was still not getting to the centre of their problems because for all this time, Shoka could not tell Rindo the most important things about herself.

How did Shoka feel when she met Rindo at the UG? She probably didn’t want to hope that he would live the day until she witnessed the Twisters’ potentials. From the very beginning, they were both incredibly conscious of each other and also constantly frustrated that the person they happened to “notice” was such a condescending bitch/a clueless loser. The Shinjuku Reapers are overall quite drunk in power and uncompassionate to Players, Shoka included. She is also a master of dissociation, which results in her constant boredom, tone swings, haughtiness and subconsciously distancing herself from the friend – the boy she cares about – from false hope, as she judged from facts that it was a hopeless situation where nothing could ever be. Maybe she is naturally a bit of a chameleon just like her name suggests (Shoka 紫陽花 = hydrangea, the color-changing flower), so putting on an act and always dissociating herself from what’s important was easy, while hiding her contradiction was impossible. It was the ex-Reaper Beat who broke it out to her, that she should decide whether she really cared and wanted to do something for a change. He knew how it felt like to cross that line, and knew she wanted to too.  

Shoka is endeared by many of the Shinjuku Reapers and has shown independent acts of kindness (the Shinjuku ghost), proving that her kind and truthful side is as real as her harsh and dishonest side – which makes her a nice mirror to the previous heroine Shiki, who also embraced a dichotomy of self-complex and self-love within her character. In the end, she was the first of the new cast to ultimately accept all that is important to her and independently made the decision to help save Shibuya despite all costs.

She was jealous at Rindo’s interaction with Tsugumi and Kanon but remained silent cuz she wasn’t at a place to have any say about it. She also didn’t reveal about Swallow because that would only add an awkward irrelevance to their current situation, as she was too ready to face erasure at the end of the Game. She only wished to “play a game” with him, be it FanGo or the Reapers’ Game. The tension that the team could only feel at the end, she’s felt it the entire time. The song “DIVIDE” is applicable to not just one bond in the game, but it always makes me think of theirs. There is always a “divide” between her and Rindo throughout the course of their journey, as the living and the dead, as a Player and Reaper, as someone who has a place to return to and someone who doesn’t, someone who knows little but wields too much power and someone who knows a lot despite not being able to do much.

“If only I had the chance to connect with you on the other side

But time goes on, and without us realizing it

The battle is getting heated

Time goes on, and without us realiazing it

Divided again”

To be honest, maybe I didn’t grow any affection for the new main cast from Rindo’s perspective but from Shoka’s. Since I started to sympathize with Shoka, I started to see the boy in a more “real” way. The real Rindo, behind his peaceful façade with others, would lash out on Shoka for her unfairly harsh attitude while none of the others cared. He could also subtly feel that mantle of unspoken secrets from her, her own contradictions, the unresolved chemistry between themselves – and not knowing what to do with it rather than to feel angry with all the unfairness he could not process. (As a Libra too, he’s triggered the most by unfairness!)

It is actually a positive development as he’s at least “reacting” to something strongly now rather than to keep evading his problems. During my replay, I clearly saw the difficult situation Shoka was in, her remaining harshness after the Motoi incident was due to her internal struggle with a mission to save her own life, versus a chance to really be with the team. Her decision was to do both at the risk of losing favour from both sides. Rindo started to accept her layer by layer, as the person who resonated the most to her contradicting nature from the start and knew that via learning her resolve, he has learnt his too.

Later into the game, she even got too much of his attention. Maybe even without knowing she’s Swallow, he’s familiar with her thinking direction and Swallow had always been closer to him than any other friend. It was only after she had to betray her important ones twice that she could start being truly honest. The scene when she died a 2nd time left a strong impression in me, the little reveal let Rindo know that he is also losing Swallow as he’s losing Shoka – and that only death could drive the last secret out of her. Her final “Later, loser” echoed through Rindo as it was the final truth, with only him remaining to hear it: they had actually, already lost everything.

Rindo was the boy who never dared to face all that matters to him until he lost it all, fighting an unfair battle in the faith that they would somehow still win. Shoka was the girl who always knew what was dear to her, but never dared to think she could be together with them ever after and still threw her all into a battle she knew was losing. I think they stir each other on naturally to fill out their gaps, similar to what the Shibuya game partner systerm would have aimed for. The end reward was a little divine intervention to help close up the divide between them once and for all.  

During the game there was not enough space to process anything personal so at the ending when they officially became “friends”, it was an important affirmation of their bond. Some people complained it was friendzoning but it’s not, they just have arrived at the perfect place to start something more. “From now on, we will truly be together” – I read it as that kind of message.  

The heroine from a lost battle, with her story taken away

After reading the secret reports and playing the game to be surprised of how small a role Tsugumi had in the main game despite being the “Hype-chan” thought to be a major character of the next TWEWY installment, many fans would feel sad at a missed opportunity to see the Shinjuku arc in full depiction.

It was shown clearly that, a Shinjuku arc was very carefully planned out and is a vital part of the whole story, yet it could not be made due to various circumstances behind the development scene. I would assume, that the team were not able to make a TWEWY game that ended on a despairing note, but it already happened in their mind, thus becoming a mental burden that forced them to break away from it and started the game anew with NEO. A significant part of NEO became the healing arc for the Shinjuku characters, especially for Tsugumi though I really wished more emphasis should have been placed on her rather than Shiba. We didn’t even get to see her brother – Shinjuku’s Conductor who had a vital role and instead was given the clueless Shiba, who had absolutely no idea what’s going on all the way until the last day in NEO. It’s as if Tsugumi has had her story stolen away from her, because her own battle ended with a saddening loss.

I think every time the game creators look at Tsugumi, they would feel that sadness too. Maybe to them, she is a bigger character than what is seen by the fans, as despite their failed effort to depict her story, she’s lived in their mind for all these years through periods of destruction, healing and rebuild.  Though it is a pity we could not get to experience the full scope of the Shinjuku story, the creators was clear about the place they wished for it to arrive at.    

Individuality, connection and the social network

The team system adapted from Shinjuku rulebook does not allow much room for personal development, as the team dynamic is closer to a work relationship forced to bear results, than a spiritual bond to max out all corners of understanding as found in the partnership system. The old Shibuya system allowed only 1 winner and 1 week limit per game, while the new rule declares for a 1 winning team and only the team at last place will be erased – the other teams will enter another loop. Furthermore, whichever team to challenge the unwinnable Ruinbringers will face the risk of ending up dead last followed by erasure. As a result, the longest-standing teams are most likely not the strongest ever recorded, but the ones who have figured out a strategy to simply survive until something changes, enjoying their newly found social constructs while they are at it. Basically, it is a system to hypnotise players into the illusion that they are still “living”.

Therefore, we as players would not get to the core of each Player individually as fast and directly as we did in the last game. The Twisters were able to stand out not because they’re powerful, they only started to have a real chance after growing enough to each form a meaningful and personal connection to another teammate. It did not come as a team, nor did it intiate from the existing friendship between Rindo and Fret. In fact, I did not find much solidity or anything truly note-worthy about the main team and new characters within themselves until they started clashing with other team members, Reapers and new recruits from week 2 onwards. Rindo found his personal development with Shoka (via a clash with Motoi and pretty much a mini dating sim between them), then via the confrontation of his role with Neku; Fret found his with Kanon then Nagi, the team learned about the real Neku via Beat, Neku entered the UG via Coco’s wish to save Tsugumi… it was not the team but their personal links that empowered them to fight and solve each of their problems.

The other team leaders may have failed because they did not form such personal links, after 30+ hopeless loops Fuya’s team all fell apart to pursue their own interest even at the cost of erasure, Motoi quit his KOL façade to work like a dog for the Reapers (probably to save just his own ass not his team), while Kanon dropped her tricks to find changes via honest cooperation in acceptance of a fair loss. The despairing note in that is huge without making much of a scene because their failure didn’t happen at their best effort to “win”, but in their last attempt to find a way “out”. Even Shiba got his way “out” in the end thanked to his personal friendship with Hishima and Tsugumi.

Something has shifted in the mindset of the game creators in the last 14 years, as both games are about “connection vs individuality” but the last game focuses more on connection between just individuals and this one on the overall network that is formed out of those individual connections.

The introduction of Beat into the main cast was truly the bridge between old and new, they helped each other out in several turns before officially recruiting him. Beat is a character whom a lot of fans including myself have felt somewhat concerned about after Neku disappeared from the RG, so when the new kids welcomed Beat with warm and organic interaction and Beat seemed happy, I started to feel like I wanted to help them out too! I think the overall team chemistry is enjoyable enough for new players, but I could warm up to the new kids more from the pov of a returning character – whom I’m glad to be Beat, as the older brother figure who is genuinely kind, fun, serious and upbeat at the same time; who is needed and needs the kids in return.

The social network is a fun and refreshing feature. You can read all of the crazy tidbits about Shibuya and the links each character have formed with the town people, it’s also fun to visualize how the characters act off screen. Characters’ profiles provide extra insight into their background too, like how it reveals Tsugumi has been friend with Coco during her time in the RG. During the game when not all characters have showed up, you can sometimes guess which empty spot will belong to whom. For example there is a 1 character linking to Neky that is not linked to anyone else, so I could guess that was Joshua, and that another character linking only to Joshua was probably Hazuki, hinting that the 2 Composers are related before either of them even showed up.

Hazuki only showed up for 5 minutes, but his presence is so vital and true to the game that I think he is the most memorable out of the new cast. The two Composers have such an intriguing bond, with their yin/yang or phoenix/dragon themes, opposite color design, the sempai/kouhai tone and the way they keep some sort of distance/work relationship as if it’s mandatory between Higher beings, yet at the same time they can talk so casually because they are truly equal – and different from one another. I have written a separate meta on them here.

Some people pointed out, that all Shinjuku characters’ names and themes are based off Hanafuda cards and the Phoenix in Hanafuda belongs to the Paulownia suit – which is Joshua’s name flower. This is so interesting because it feels like the creators somehow saw it as a sign to interweave the Shibuya and Shinjuku storylines together. Though it doesn’t come out much on the surface, it’s fascinating nonetheless considering both Josh and Haz had at some point interfered with the other town’s affairs.

“Shibuya tour with Haz” was such a special scene, as it happened between 2 characters who do not/no longer have a reason to care about Shibuya, on the subject of what is worth saving about Shibuya. Hazuki carried out the purification of Shinjuku and stepped in to restore Shibuya just as part of his job and unlike Hanekoma or Joshua who both possess profound understanding of humanity, he really didn’t know humans at all. Rindo’s irrational wish invoked in him a sense of curiosity, to try gambling on something irrationally and learning a bit of what his senior have experienced. With all the pieces put together, it provides an overview on Higher beings as a whole, and that Joshua and Hanekoma are really the odd ones out with Hazuki being somewhere in between them and the rest.        

The old friends

It’s easy to have returning characters overshadow the new cast as they have already matured out of their personal story arc and stayed in our hearts for all this time. In the end, I have managed to enjoy both the old and new cast separately and altogether, and they will both find their own place in our memory of this game for the long term.

Sho is truly as crazy as ever, the game wouldn’t be the same if Sho is any less of what he is. Sometimes it doesn’t feel like Neky or Beat is younger than Nagi at all, with moments when it seems like Neky has aged 14 years instead of 3 years. His friendship with Coco surprised me pleasantly, and their interaction together with Beat was fun to watch. Rhyme’s found a new dream and her friendship with Kaie is precious too, especially considering that she can still talk to him online after the game ended. Josh and Neku’s interaction suggested that they have resolved the past and are on equal terms now, they even parted ways in good spirit and I don’t feel any worry about them like I did before.

Neku and Shiki’s reunion scene was beautiful, theirs is such a special bond that it has grown and supported them even without being able to see each other. I am so happy to see them all again and that they stay true to who they are, albeit looking more grown up, cooler and happier than ever before.  

Overall, NEO can’t become a classic on par with the OG, but is definitely a good sequel and a good game in its own rights. I’m happy with whether or not there will be a 3rd game to complete the 3 monkeys theme, but if there will be – I hope the creators can really find the time to learn from the last 2 games and start over with a fresh mindset and strong core.  

[dizzydancingdreamer]

Steve Rogers, The Man On Fire

Hey y'all, as Pride month draws to a close I would like to post this fic. It's been in my drafts for a month and I finally today found the motivation to finish it. This is special to me for many reasons, one of which being that I'm proudly a part of this community. Some of the anger written in is my own. I think a lot of people will resonate with it. I really hope you all enjoy this and happy Pride Month <3

This was based loosely off a headcannon and once I re-find it I will credit!

Synopsis: Steve is freshly thawed, queer, and pissed | A.k.a. Steve's experience in 21st Century America

Characters: Steve Rogers, Mentions of Bucky Barnes, (loosely a Stucky fic but Steve thinks he's dead here)

Warnings: Angst but not bad, Steve Rogers being volatile and chaotic (we love), poorly written accents (I literally read this with an accent in my head), literally a 2k monologue

Word count: 5.1k

Steve Rogers came out of the ice angry.

No— not angry— Steve Rogers came out of the ice fuckin’ furious.

He came out of the ice with his hands curled into two fists, with his jaw clenched so hard his teeth were liable to snap, and with a bone to pick with every damn reporter and historian and too loud opinion on this side of the Brooklyn Bridge.

He came out simmering— no, erupting— like the serum in his blood couldn’t keep his body from hibernation all those years ago but it sure as hell won’t keep him from setting the entirety of New York on fire now. He’ll burn it all down if he has to and rebuild it the way he remembers it— the way Bucky would have remembered it— and at the end of it all no one— not the bigots or deniers or the homophobes that seem to be the only thing that came with him from the forties— will be able to say that Captain America can’t love whoever he wants.

No one will be able to say that Steve Rogers didn’t love James “Bucky” “the man I’ve loved since twelve years old” Barnes with everything he had and then some.

No one.

So he starts with the museums in Washington— because sure it isn’t New York but where else would a relic like himself belong more?

He still has hope when he enters the building. They didn’t make them like this when he was a kid— they had science fairs in the town hall and culture fairs in the backstreets near the docks but never anything this grand. No tall marble pillars or enough stairs to make him wonder if he would have been able to climb to the top when he was half the size he is now. It’s strange. It’s kind of wonderful. Yeah, the Smithsonian museums make Steve Rogers feel small for the first time in a very long time and that gives him hope.

That hope doesn’t last long, though, because soon he’s wandering through the halls, following the signs that say Captain America: The First Avenger— what the hell is an Avenger? Is that what they’re calling soldiers these days? Now he feels small and old.

Turning the corner is like landing on another planet, one devoted entirely to him. His picture is everywhere he looks, his name is in lights, even his damn uniform has been replicated and presented on a little stage and he hates it. The rage is back, sparking at his fingers— he’s a match and lucky for everyone this building is made of stone because if it wasn’t he’s sure it would be reduced to nothing but ash by now.

It only worsens as he begins reading through the plaques and the paragraphs flashing across screens on the walls— he doesn’t think he’ll ever get used to that. The more he reads, though, the more he wonders if the stone is really, truly safe from the fire in his blood. He doesn’t think it is.

He surely isn’t at least— he feels like he’s going to explode. This isn’t him— none of this is him. War hero. Martyr. Golden boy. He has to stop reading that plaque— clearly no one did their research. Clearly no one dug up his medical files— or his police records. Brawls at the pub, disorderly conduct behind Mr. De Luca’s sandwich shop, public nudity at the beach that one time— thank you Bucky for the best night of his god damn life. Golden boy— ha.

Golden nobody with the black eye and broken hand is more like it.

For a moment he thinks he’s fine— he thinks it can’t get worse than this. Then he gets to the early life section and for an even longer moment his tongue tastes like gunpowder.

Steven Grant Rogers grew up in the streets of Brooklyn alongside his friend James Buchanan Barnes—

He can’t bring himself to finish the sentence— not when they already got the most important part wrong. Friend. Friend? No, no, no. No! There are a million words in the english language that Steve could use to describe Bucky and ‘friend’ will never be the first one.

How about best friend?

How about partner in crime?

How about soulmate who loved Steve so much that every night for the past forty-eight days since he woke up in an era that Bucky doesn’t exist in he’s cried himself to sleep with the same cherry cola taste of his ‘friend’ on his tongue.

It’s the final straw— Steve loses it.

“Anyone got a marker?”

The museum is quiet before he speaks but when his voice— steadily rising and taking on that New York headiness that his troops used to jazz him about— cuts through the exhibit— his fuckin’ exhibit— it’s silent. It’s dead, almost as dead as Buck— Nobody dares move a muscle as he rips his ball cap off his head and throws it at the statue of himself. Everyone knows who he is— everyone is going to know who he is so help him god.

“I said—” he tries again— “does anyone have a marker?”

It takes a moment for the people around him to pick their jaws up off the floor and he allows them that moment with a smug grin starting to tug on the corners of his lips. Finally— they’re starting to get it.

He’s not a hero; he’s a supernova of every scrawny, queer kid who’s ever gotten beaten to a pulp for kissing who they want.

Maybe then it’s fitting that the marker— when it’s finally produced and placed in his waiting palm— comes from a teenage girl with a shaved head and a blue, pink, and purple denim jacket and a busted lip. She doesn’t say much— only a mumbled here you go— but her eyes say everything that her words don’t. Give em’ hell, Cap. For the first time since waking up he flashes a genuine grin back— yeah, this one’s for you kid.

Steve wastes no time uncapping the sharpie— he’ll look that one up later— and scratching out the error. The blasphemy to his unholy name. It takes him a little longer to decide what to write in its place. There are a million words, sure, but somehow none of them feel right at this moment. None of them are enough. That’s something he’ll have to come to terms with later, though— how much nothing feels like enough anymore without Bucky.

Finally Steve settles on a word and he scribbles it as neatly as he can given the fact that he hasn’t had to write anything in eighty years. When he takes a step back, feeling alive for the first time since waking up, he beckons over the girl with the shaved head and points to the place where he’s taken it upon himself to correct history.

“Hey kid, why don’t you go ahead and read that outloud for everyone here.”

He allows another moment— this time because she deserves the time it takes for her eyes to light up and the smile to stretch across her bruised mouth.

Steve laughs— a rusted, croaky laugh; another first in forever— when her head whips around, facing him as she loudly proclaims: “It says boyfriend. Steve Rogers grew up in the streets of Brooklyn alongside his boyfriend Bucky Barnes!”

“Damn right I did—” he mutters to the kid before taking a step towards the crowd of gaping mouths. “Did you all hear that? Don’t worry if ya’ didn’t— I’ll say it one more time. Boyfriend. Bucky was my boyfriend and if he was here today he would be my husband. If any of you have a problem with that then feel free to take it up with me. I took on half of Brooklyn for that man and I’ll do it again.”

When no one says anything Steve nods, turning to hand the girl back her marker and to thank her— he may be angry but he hasn’t lost all his manners— but when he looks at her she doesn’t look back. Instead she takes the same step forward that he had, one of her hands balled into a tiny, shaking fist at her side and the other wrapped around a cell phone that’s pointed towards the crowd. He doesn’t understand the mechanics but he thinks she’s recording.

“You hear that?” She parrots the super soldier with a wavering but fierce voice. “Captain America likes men! And none of you can deny it!”

This time it’s his mouth that drops, watching as she shakily turns the camera off and spins back around. Before Steve can say anything, though, she’s talking again, this time hastier, and he can’t help but think that she sounds so much like him. All flushed and scrawny and pissed.

“I’m sorry, I’ll delete the recording if you want but, I jus’ know these bigots are gonna’ try and cover everything up and that would be a fuckin’ shame. I don’t know if you know how many kids need to hear this. I did— and I think they should too. Only if you want, of course.”

He doesn’t answer right away— he can’t. It’s like looking at himself at fifteen. Suddenly he’s back again, his feet hanging in the water as his boyfriend paces behind him, asking if he’s ready to have him look at his knuckles yet. He didn’t get that many good punches in— the scrapes are mostly from the pavement— but Buck always worries too much so it doesn’t matter. The protective idiot.

Steve shakes his head, blinking away the sunset lingering behind his eyes. “Bucky woulda’ loved you, kid.”

The next time he loses it— the next time he turns into more flame than man— is after he saves the city he’s been trying to burn down for three months.

It isn’t long after that day in the museum when Nick Fury decides it would be best for everyone if Steve goes back into the field. Of course, no one really asks him what he wants— they pretty much just shove a new suit into his hands and tell him to get training, Captain— but what else is new?

No one really comments on his outburst besides that either. Can you really call it an outburst when you’re just trying to reclaim the parts of you that have been stolen? Sure, the press gets a hold of the story and, true to what the kid had said, tries to twist it into something more digestible, but no one actually addresses it up with Steve. Apparently when someone saves the world as good as he does no one cares that they kiss men.

Or that they don’t wanna’ to actually save the world anymore.

See, in those three months— between the training and training and even more training that Steve Rogers begrudgingly obliges— he has time to catch up on the world. More importantly, he has time to catch up on what the world thinks of him. He scours a plethora of documentaries, scholarly essays, and whole books of information about his time as Captain America. Well— his time as Captain America when it mattered. In all his scouring he learns one thing: everything written about him is wrong.

It’s all so fuckin’ wrong.

Just why the hell would he want to save a world so bent on destroying who he is?

The Smithsonian exhibition was nothing compared to what’s been written in the eighty years he spent in the ice. Better yet, nothing compared to what hasn’t been written about him. They’ve taken an eraser to every part of his life that doesn’t fit with the golden image that they constructed for him. A.k.a. every part that matters. His relationship, his past, every little thing that made him supposedly perfect for the role he was given. Gone. Erskine told him he was a good man— apparently he was the only one who thought so.

Apparently being a good man isn’t good enough.

They only wanted the perfect soldier. Yeah, well, they had one and they fucked him over too. Don’t even get him started on what they did to Bucky— Steve doesn’t want to think about what Winnifred— Winnie for short— Barnes would do if she saw the history books erasing her baby’s Jewish roots. Or his relationship. It wouldn’t be pretty, that’s for damn sure. If ever there was someone more protective than Bucky it would have been his mother. Not that there’s a damn note about her in anything either though.

Maybe that’s the final straw that does him in this time— watching the place that Mrs. Barnes loved more than almost anything else in the world crumble, while also knowing that the world no longer gives a shit about the two people she loved more.

“Mr. Rogers, this is where you grew up, is it not? Is there anything you would like to say about what took place here in your home city today?”

Maybe he pretends not to hear the last part— maybe he really does only hear up until where the reporter asks him if there is anything he wants to say. He’s been around quite his fair share of explosions; it would make sense that his hearing is a little off. Maybe he just doesn’t care anymore, though.

Scratch that— he definitely doesn’t care anymore.

And why the fuck should he? He does have something to say and propriety be damned he’s going to say it.

Steve stares into the crowd of faceless reporters and flashing cameras with a scowl on his grimey face. Around him stand the other Avengers— his ‘team’. The last time he had a team the historians screwed up the history for every single member. Dugan, Morita, Falsworth, Jones, Dernier, Sawyer, Juniper, Pinkerton. Barnes. All of them were brave men with families and sacrifices and all of them were treated like jokes by ‘reporters’ just like the ones in front of him now. He really doubts there’s a difference between old and new journalism.

The only difference is that now he’s here and this time he’s not going to let them write anything but the damn truth.

“It is—” Steve muses, brushing the sweaty hair from his forehead— “I’m surprised you know that though.”

The reporter cocks his head, clearly confused, and it makes the super soldier’s blood boil. “Come again, sir?”

“I said I’m surprised you know where I was born, kid.” This time when he says the word— kid— it’s derogatory. “Ya’ know, considering how you all seem to know nothing about me otherwise.”

Steve almost smiles at the way the crowd tenses. He actually would if it weren’t for the white hot rage coursing through his veins, mingling with the last of the adrenaline leftover in his system. It gives him an extra kick— not that he needs it. Even when he was just a runt from the wrong side of the tracks he needed nothing more than an offhand comment to raise his fists. Fighting to Steve Rogers has always been intoxicating— the aftershocks of winning the battle just makes it more thrilling now.

Who knew, right?

“Sir I asked—” The reporter sputters and Steve simply holds a hand up, silencing him before he can start again.

“Yeah I know what you asked, alright. You want me to talk about the battle here in New York today and how I am more than happy to have risked my life to save it. But I can’t do that, kid. Because I didn’t save it for you. I didn’t save it for any of you.”

Steve feels his team tense— maybe were it any other time he would stop talking. He would just leave it, let the issue go, because Bucky would tell him too. They aren’t worth it, bruiser, he would say, they aren’t worth your blood. Maybe he would listen to his boyfriend because usually he was right. Bucky was always right. So yeah, maybe he would list—

Who is he kidding; he knows he wouldn’t.

Not then and certainly not now— not when Bucky isn’t here to defend himself against everything Steve has been reading about. That’s exactly why he doesn’t stop talking. Someone has to defend him and who better of a person than him? So, yeah, he keeps going, even when he hears footsteps behind him.

“You wanna’ know who I did save it for? James Barnes, that’s who I saved it for! You see, just around that corner there is a bookstore. Rickley Books. That was my boyfriend's favourite bookstore. You know, the man who gave his life to stop a train in Austria from reaching the enemies? Yeah that was him. That train was filled with supplies. Had it reached their headquarters, who knows if we’d be standing here today. If there would be a New York at all. Not that you would know that. But who cares about that dead sergeant from the 107th, right? There’s plenty just like him.”

Steve shrugs nonchalantly— a move he picked up from the very man he’s speaking about— but he spits his words at the reporters with enough venom to cancel out any peace that the action brings. That’s his own move.

He keeps going. “You know who else I saved it for? His mother. Yeah, his mother Winnie Barnes. Wonderful lady. She used to run a soup kitchen a couple blocks from here. Kept the rift raft like myself from going hungry most nights— I was a brawler, you know.”

A couple of reporters in the crowd laugh at that and Steve flinches, his vision tinting red as he cranes his neck, seeking them out.

“Oh you think that’s funny, do you? You think I’m joking? I’m not. You ever been backed into a corner, son? Had people hurl slurs at you that I can’t even repeat today? Ever been beaten up for loving your best friend? No, I bet you haven’t. You weren’t a queer kid in the thirties. That’s hard— that’s borderline impossible actually. I only made it because of people like Winnie Barnes. That woman was a saint but nobody talks about her either.”

Steve has to take a deep breath, clearing the rasp in his voice that rises as he dwells on the woman he called his second mother for so long. She wasn’t just a saint, she was an angel. He can’t cry here though, not now. Not even as his throat begins to tighten.

“Winnie was the type of lady who didn’t let anyone walk over the little people. She used to sit me down and say Stevie you gotta’ fight for what you want because ain’t nobody gonna’ give it to you. She told me that I shouldn’t have to but that there were going to be people who would try to tear me down just for being me. And she was right— just like her son— because that was the era, you know? But now, here in the twenty-first century, you’re all still trying to tear us down.”

A hand lands on his shoulder, small fingers tugging at where his suit has begun to tear. Natasha Romanoff. He meets her gaze quickly, neck craning to stare down the red head, and in the few seconds their eyes meet it’s like Bucky is next to him. Somehow the blue in her irises catches the falling sun just like his used to. Steve can hear the gruff of his voice in the depths of his mind. Back down, bruiser. The sentiment is echoed across Nat’s face.

Steve shakes her hand off him, turning back to the reporters— don’t they know that he can’t?

“You all say you care about me, huh? That I’m a hero? You know nothing about me— you don’t want to. Before I was a soldier I was a kid. A queer kid. I said that already but let me repeat it. Queer. Did you write that down? None of you certainly did before. That’s how I know that you don’t care— because in an age where being queer is infinitely more accepted you still don’t bother to write it down.”

He pauses for another breath, shutting his eyes against the blinking red lights of the cameras. They’re like little demons, always watching his every move. Recording. Everything’s always recorded these days. Will he ever be used to that? Bucky was the technology guy, not him. Not then and not now.

When Steve picks up again— eyes open and shoulders freshly straight— it’s on a new note— a clear note.

“You don’t care about me— you certainly don’t care about the real heroes of the war because if you did you wouldn’t erase our history. Do you know how much it would have meant to Bucky to see our relationship accepted? The man who died for you? How much it would’ve meant to his mother? You can’t just pick which of our stories and our sacrifices are worthy and which aren't.”

He hasn’t spoken this much since he’s woken up, not all at once at least. Maybe he should have, though— maybe if he had then he wouldn’t feel like ripping the heads off everyone in front of him right now. Call it fight or flight. Call it revenge. Hell, call it whatever you’d like because it doesn’t really matter. Either way he feels like a kid again— again— backed into a corner behind the deli with his fists up and his teeth bared.

He feels feral again.

“So now you just want me to save the world like I did— like Bucky did— all those years ago— or maybe jus’ New York— as if that’s any better— and you don’t even bother to write a proper article about me? Hell, I never even asked for an article, let alone a whole exhibit! I’m just a soldier— and before that I was just a kid. If there’s never another article written about me I’ll be grateful. But now that I’m here, standing in front of you, I’ll say this—”

Just as Steve’s voice is cresting into a shout that would no doubt be heard regardless of whether or not the microphones were in front of him, Natasha tries one more time, her fingers slipping between his.

Her voice is a dull buzz compared to his, only reaching his ears by sheer will. “C’mon Stevie— we gotta’ go now.”

Like before he’s stunned but this time instead of seeing Buck— instead of hearing him in his head— he hears Winnie.

You fought good, honey. You fought good for us. You can rest now.

It’s jarring and it’s not lost on him the handful of awkward seconds that it takes for him to respond. That’s just the effect Winnie had on people though— still has, apparently. Steve shakes his head— I know, mama. But I gotta’ finish this fight.

“No, Nat— I’ve got to say this.” Steve mumbles— voice just beginning to waver despite how hard he clenches his jaw— before sneering at the crowd one last time.

“If I ever read an article from any of you that discredits Bucky Barnes, our relationship, or myself just know that I’ll come for you. I’ll come for this city. Don’t you ever forget who I saved it for. James Barnes, Winnie Barnes, and every queer kid who’s ever felt erased because of people like you. The bigots in the forties couldn’t stop me. The Nazis couldn’t stop me. Not even the Atlantic Ocean could stop me. So don’t think for a second that any of you could either. Have a good day.”

With that Captain America turns, marching off the impromptu stage and beginning the trek back to his apartment. He doesn’t bother looking at his team as he passes them— he can imagine their stunned faces well enough on his own. No doubt he’ll be getting another assignment from Fury soon enough to make up for this ‘outburst’ too. Still, he feels a little bit better. There’s an ache in his shoulder, and one under his ribs too, but he still smiles as he passes Rickman and Sons Books. That must mean something good.

The last time Steve Rogers burns he doesn’t burn the way he’s expecting to— he doesn’t vandalize his own name or blow up at a reporter. No, the third time— the final time— that Steve Rogers burns it’s with nostalgia— and with a damn good cup of coffee in his hand.

“I had no idea this place was even here.” The girl across from Steve muses, tiny hands shifting the steaming cup back and forth.

Her name is Ellie, he learned that back at the museum after asking for a copy of the video she took. He barely knew how to use his phone back then, let alone his email— hell, both still confuse him more often than not— but she had been patient. A little awestruck and a little riled up too but he took it in stride— easily. It’s not hard being nice to the spitting image of him.

“I’m glad I’m good for something other than making the news.” Steve chuckles and this time he means it— there’s no malice or ill intent, only humor. “O’Malley’s ‘s been here longer than I have. Looked a little different then—” he takes a moment to let his eyes wander the old coffee shop and it’s new appliances— a moment to feel his age catch up to him— “but I guess I did too.”

Ellie’s laughter joins in there and it’s strange— strange that he hasn’t laughed with another person in seven, almost eight, months; strange that her laughs sound so much like Bucky’s when they were younger; strange that Bucky isn’t here to hear. Here to laugh, too. Because he would have.

He would have called Steve an old man, would have wrapped his arm around his shoulders, would have asked— no, demanded— that Ellie try the plum cobbler. They always made the best cobbler. Bucky always had the best laugh. All grit and breath and him. Steve feels warm just thinking about it.

“Well thanks for letting me in on the secret, I’ll make sure to guard it carefully.” She even has Bucky’s warm sarcasm.

Maybe it’s not so much like looking in a mirror as it is looking at what he wishes he and his boyfriend could have been back then.

“And thanks for letting me interview you—” Ellie continues, setting the cup down but not before nodding at it, her eyes wide— “wow. You weren’t kidding about the joe, huh? Anyway— thanks for scheduling this. I know you’re probably super busy— and that there are more well established people you could have gone to.”

Steve sets his own mug down too— if he hadn’t there’s a possibility it would be more puddle than porcelain. “Well established means nothin’, kid. Not when you don’t have heart. They’re parasites, all of ‘em. The press couldn’t care less about me.”

Ellie nods, lifting the lid of her laptop. It’s a little bit dented and slathered in stickers, not quite the newest model— he would know, he has the newest one and it’s still sitting in his apartment in the box. Yet another testament to how little the people around him truly know him.

“Welcome to the twenty-first century, can I get you a side of classism with that commercialism?”

Now she sounds like Winnie too.

“Say, has anyone ever told you that you’re funny?”

She shrugs, tilting her head, a lopsided grin glued to her face. “Once or twice— I never know if they mean it or if they just want me to shut up. I never do so I guess we’ll never know.”

Steve sputters out another laugh because; “I guess we’re the same then— never give them a moment, kid. That’s the best advice I can give you.” He pauses— again— he supposes it’s going to be a day of pausing— he supposes it’s about time he pauses— before adding, “Bucky would’ve scolded me for saying that.”

Ellie’s fingers, swift and deft over the machine— Steve hadn’t even seen her begin to type— pause too as her smile softens. “What would he have said instead?”

Her question shouldn’t catch off guard— this is why he asked her to meet him; to finally, properly write his story— their story. Still he pauses— Steve’s empty hands feel hot, his shoulders warm; bare— what would he have said? It doesn’t take long to hear his boyfriend’s voice, not there but somehow loud in his ear all the same.

Just relax— they aren’t worth it. It’s too nice out to care about anything but the water— are you coming in or not? Summer doesn’t last forever, you know?

It’s impossible but Steve can feel the sun on his back and on his ears again, like he’s there— like he’s back, sixteen and on fire. Those were the days where everything made him cold. The days where his skin burned no matter the season but especially in August which was when the ocean was warm enough to swim in. It never stopped him from joining Buck— nothing could have stopped him. His cheeks warm, too, at the thought.

Steve blinks, his own smile— perhaps a little lopsided in it’s own right— shaping over his mouth. “He would have told you to relax— and to try the plum cobbler. It’s fantastic.”

With another giggle— and a reiterated comment— has anyone ever told you you’re funny, Steve?— they fall into a conversation, just a kid and a relic, about life. It’s not an easy conversation— but then again those kinds never are. It’s real, though, and unedited. Unfiltered. Just the way Erskine and Winnie and Bucky would have liked it— the only way Steve wants it. It’s not perfect but, hell, Steve has never been perfect.

He’s never wanted to be.

Maybe Steve doesn’t know everything his boyfriend would say— and maybe he’d be lying if he said he doesn’t blow up once or twice after today— but he can confidently say that he gave Brooklyn a run for her money— twice— and lived to tell the tale. He can say then when it mattered, he burned. That he still burns. That he will until he doesn’t— until he’s extinguished.

But, hey, though Summer doesn’t last forever, not even the Atlantic could extinguish the flame that is Steve Rogers.

That’s what he writes— in Sharpie— on the card he writes to Ellie— the one attached to the computer he knows he’ll never use.

[r6sedust]

Faith

(a fanfiction based off of an AU where Fenton is a FOWL agent, you can find it on ao3 by thatkidwithr6ses, which is my profile. I'm not posting the link cause my post dont appear in tags if I add links)

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It wasn't hard to see that Huey thought highly of Fenton Crackshell-Cabrera.

 

He was smart and noble. A brilliant scientist who was capable of creating his own energy source. A hero who believed there was no limits when it came to saving others.  And not only was he a great role model, he was a great friend. His best friend. He would always ask Huey for help and his opinions on his inventions. He was always so fun to talk to. Fenton would always enlighten Huey about his inventions that it sparked a childlike wonder inside of the small duck. He would always be delighted to answer Huey's questions about the Gizmosuit for his journal entries. Fenton was such a kind and good natured person. He was all that Huey ever dreamed of being. 

Yes, he's a good person.

He's a good person.

He's supposed to be a good person.

A good person who is always there for his friends and family. Who is trustworthy and would never keep secrets.

Who would never lie

Who would never betray anyone.

Sure, he's betrayed them before, but he'd never do it again because he learned his lesson right?

Right?

That's what Huey thought until he saw Fenton standing alone in his bathroom office, holding a button in his hands.

That had a tiny voice coming out of it. A voice he heard giving him orders.

A voice that sounded suspiciously like Bradford Buzzard.

'Agent Double C? Agent Double C, do you copy?'  That was Bradford's voice. 

Agent Double C? Who's that?

 

Crackshell-Cabrera. Fenton Crackshell-Cabrera.

 

Huey stood at the entrance of the stall, clenching the bottom hem of his shirt. He didn't know what to do. He didn't know what to say. He had barely any thought of what was going on. No, he knew exactly what was going on: that Fenton was a traitor-

 

'NO! ' Huey mentally screamed at himself, 'there has to be an explanation for this! Fenton isn't a villain! He's not! There has to be a reason behind this.'

 

"F-Fenton..." was all Huey managed to get out.

Fenton quickly turned off the communicator and hid it in his fist. His face scrunched up slightly and he looked at Huey. "Huey, I-" Fenton attempted to explain as he slowly approached the younger one of the two. Huey backed up a little bit in response. "W-what are...w-why are...why?" Huey struggled. "I-I..." Fenton was at a loss of words. He sighed and looked away from Huey for a bit to find those words again.

"I-I-I can't really explain it now, but all I can say is that I have my reasons." 

Has his reasons? What does that even mean?

"W-what...what do you mean? What's going on? Fenton, why are you talking to Bradford?!" Huey exclaimed, tears starting to fill his eyes. "Why...why FOWL?"

Fenton slowly looked at the floor, tapping his fingers in his thigh. "I-it's a long s-story that I don't think...uh...that I cannot really explain right now." he responded while looking down the whole time. "No, this...this isn't right! You're not a villain! Is FOWL forcing you to do this? Are you being controlled right now? Cause if so then we can help-"

"Huey!" Fenton interrupts, looking the boy dead in the eye and clenching his fist. He then softens his expression and gives Huey a sorrowful look. "I'm d-doing this voluntarily." You can almost hear a loud thump as Huey's heart drops. He lets a tear slip as he backs away from the stall. "...no..." he manages to say. "I'm really sorry, but that's just reality." Fenton states. 

Huey feels his whole body begin to shake. His breath was shaky and tears started to fall faster. He stared at Fenton with a fearful and hurt look that struck Fenton in the heart like an arrow. He tried to reached out to the young duck, but he quickly ran away from him. "Uncle Scrooge!" Fenton heard him call out. He thought of going after him, but realized that at this point it was useless. Preventing Huey from telling them the truth and forcing him to keep the secret against his will was cruel. Fenton wasn't heartless.

Which was the only thing about himself that he was certain of. 

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

"He's in here." Huey said as his uncle, Scrooge, and his brothers and Webby followed behind. They quickly entered the bathroom, Scrooge walking in front of the kids to the stall office. He looked back at the kids to see if they were ready. Dewey posed in a basic fighting position and gave him a nod, Webby pulled out her dagger with a nod as well, and Louie just hid behind Webby and Dewey. Meanwhile, Huey just stood to the side, hugging himself and looking at the ground. Scrooge nods at the kids before pushing the door open. 

"Alright, explain yerself Cabrera-" Scrooge started. Suddenly, he noticed that the stall was empty. He backed up and looked around the restroom. "Where in blazes is his?" 

Huey's head perked up at his uncle's question. Him and the others ran to the stall to see what he was talking about. To their surprise, Fenton wasn't in the stall like Huey said. "He...ran away?" Huey asked quietly. Scrooge let out a frustrated sigh and looked and Huey. He bent down and pat his head and gave him a hopeful look. "Don't worry Huey, I'll find him and get to the bottom o'this." He said. As he left, he mumbled something under his breath that Huey faintly caught. "Curse me kilts. And to think that another one of my employees was just another traitorous spy."

Huey felt himself begin to cry again as he rested his head against the stall's door. Dewey, Louie, and Webby took notice and exchanged sad looks with one another. Webby approached Huey and gave him a hug from the side. "I'm so sorry Huey, I know this is tough on you." She said, rubbing his back. His brothers approached him after Webby, both of them joining the hug. "It's gonna be OK big bro." Dewey comforted. "I-I know," Huey said quietly, "it's just...so hard to believe. I-I don't w-want to b-b-believe--". Dewey began to shush him gently as Huey sobbed. 

The others felt terrible for their brother. They knew there isn't really anything they can do to fix this, but they still wanted to help. They had a feeling that this was only the tip of the iceberg.

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

"Agent Double C, did you find those documents like I ordered?" Director Bradford Buzzard asked as Fenton entered the meeting room of the hideout. He walked to the chair beside the old buzzard and stood there with his hands folded behind his back. He looked away from Buzzard out of both annoyance and shame. "N-no sir, my mission was compromised. Huey Duck found out my identity and, as far as I am aware, he told his uncle." Fenton admitted.

Bradford furrowed his eyebrows and glared at the duck. "What do you mean he knows your identity? You were suppose to be FOWL's secret weapon. How can you do that when you've been caught?" 

"M-my apologies, sir. I shouldn't have carelessly had my communicator on."

"Apologies won't fix my plan." Bradford huffed, he removed his glasses and wiped his face, letting out a sigh. "You were so close too. I guess I have to come up with another plan. You're dismissed." 

"And to think you were competent enough for that job"  Bradford quietly hissed as he walked away, not knowing, or more likely caring, that Fenton heard. Fenton scoffed to himself as he hurriedly left the room. He went into one of the private rooms and locked himself inside. He sat criss cross on the ground and rested his head in his hands. He felt like he was going to cry, but nothing came out except for a sigh. 

If only, if only he hadn't had his communicator on at that time, he could've gotten the documents and have his mission be over with. He could've finally gotten what he had hoped of getting from Bradford like he promised. He wouldn't have had to crush Huey's heart.

No, he couldn't dwell on that anymore, on Huey anymore. He was merely just an obstacle in the mission. Fenton always knew that, he knew that getting close to anyone would be pointless. 

But he did anyway. Not just to Huey, but to Dr. Gearloose, Manny, everyone. And it was all ruined in a matter of a minute. He had to admit that he did feel guilty about what he did, but that was the kind of person he was. That's what a good person does, they feel bad. Yeah, he was a good person. 'I am a good person" he thought to himself. He rolled his eyes and huffed.

"What's the point of lying to yourself anymore?"

[theoniprince]

If you had to pick one name/alias/moniker to go by, fandom-wide, what would it be?

Where, besides Tumblr, can people find you doing fannish things? (Obviously only mention sites and usernames you actually want to be found at. Don’t expose your secret identities on my account.)

What other names have you gone by on these platforms, including Tumblr, if any?

When did you join the IT fandom? And what got you into fandom, to begin with?

What are your favorite ships, or characters, if any, and why? What do they mean to you?

In what ways do you participate in fandom? (ex. Posting memes, reblogging/commenting on content, writing fanfic, making fanart, creating fanmixes, etc.)

Do you have any in-fandom inspirations? Other members of the community that drive you? (And if you have the time/energy, in what ways do they inspire you?)

Name and link some of your favorite works, please!

Do you have any works of your own that you feel particularly proud of, or wish more people would’ve consumed? Please provide links if possible.

Have you ever participated in a fannish event (ie. IT Week, a fic Big Bang) or applied to be a part of a fanzine? If so, which ones, and can you please link them?

Without any form of bashing or lashing out, what is something you feel this fandom is missing?

First of all thank you so much for asking me!!! 8D It was a pleasure to answer all these questions. During this I got quite emotional (haha Stanpat, Eddie). It showed me again how much I love this 8DDD

( I apologize in advance for all misspellings and my sloppy English =_=)

If you had to pick one name/alias/moniker to go by, fandom-wide, what would it be?

Oh, what a start XD I'm not that into nicknames. Generally people using my first name to address me or my username which is mostly onyprince (in reference to a character from Hakuouki) ID Sometimes they say Oni or J(ay) (Nickname for my first name). Do as you wish (though I like ‘J’ the th most) 😉

Where, besides Tumblr, can people find you doing fannish things? (Obviously only mention sites and usernames you actually want to be found at. Don’t expose your secret identities on my account.)

Twitter. But everything I post there is also here. Feel free to follow my account, but you don’t have to. https://twitter.com/oniprince_

What other names have you gone by on these platforms, including Tumblr, if any?

Oniprince_ (Twitter) yeah… you see, I am pretty boring XDDD

When did you join the IT fandom? And what got you into fandom, to begin with?

Actually 23 years ago (haha I am old XD) When I was eleven I saw the miniseries with my cousins for the first time. The horror factor wasn't that important to me or maybe I didn't see it that way. It was more like an adventure story with an unfunny and nasty clown. A group of friends who had to endure an adventure. In any case, it entertained me well, even if I was not aware of some elements like that it’s a story about growing up, friendship, love and all these issues around becoming an adult XDD Then with 13 I read the book. It was a  new experience, and I loved every single word. Over the years I talked with friends and Kingsianer (XD) about it and read it for a second and a third time. At this point I could start a list with things I don’t like about the movies, but I’d rather mention on thing I really appreciate about them: they are a good opportunity for a new generation to explore this universe. Every adaption like the book itself is a reflection of a specific decade and what is more yeah… immortal, universal and diverse than a story about growing up. It was a discussion with a dear friend about book to movie adaptions some weeks ago that probably brought me back to this fandom

Nevertheless there are things from the book I would have loved to see in the movies. Let’s be honest at this point if you want to adapt such a brick of a book you simply have to cut some elements. You can’t please everyone

What are your favorite ships, or characters, if any, and why? What do they mean to you?

Ships:

Stanpat - orz q__q they are such a sweet couple and it is so heartbreaking, they never ever had a real chance to become parents. They would have been excellent parents. Imagine them on a beautiful summer day. They have a picnic with their children and Stan would watch birds with them. He would tell them all about the birds and keeps a journal about their observations with his kids

Reddie - Despite the constant teasing their realtionship seems like a natural, casual und easy thing from the start. And Eddie likes the nicknames. These secret names are like another identity. He can be someone else. They take care of each other. Their relationship is a deeper friendship that runs mostly on an emotional level and is sometimes expressed through small, physical gestures. The chemistry between them is indescribable. It is cute when 90s Eddie immediately starts to giggle as soon as Richie makes a dumb joke at their reunion. And thing about the little moments when Richie pokes Eddie and calls him cute. I am won’t quoting this one passage in the book that leaves much room for speculations, but there is no doubt their special bond is official. In any case, the decision to make Richie gay in the movies gave the ship another push. I don’t complain. I love it. Though I still think Eddie would have been a better option. There are already some scenes in the book which are like an invitation to speculate about his sexualityTheir chemistry is very obvious and believe me, there is nothing I would more appreciate than a happy end for them Q__Q

Benverly  „Your hair is winter fire

                   January embers

                  My heart burns there, too

This is one of sweetest things I have ever read in a book and that is all I need to explain why I love this ship.

Fav, Characters:  Hmm when I read „IT“ for the first time I had a crush on Bill. He ist the born leader and in my childish, pre-teen way found his stuttering cute. There is something about him that cast a spell on you. It is perfectly understandable that he was a role model and an inspiration for his friends – especially for Eddie. In my personal opinion book!Bill ist the best Bill.

Richie - I love this chaotic megane dude. He is this silly type who use jokes, pranks to protect himself. His voices are like safe heaven (the same goes for Bill, whose stuttering almost disappears, when he pretends tob e someone else). He hides himself and his insecurities behind them. It is a shame that he doesn’t know what an impact he had on his friends. Richie seems to never ever shut up and sometimes his trashmouth is still talking, when he better should be quite. And I am famous to fall for funny characters. He can lights up the mood immediately ( and OMG…. I love Harry Anderson in the miniseries. A real entertainer, BUT BILL HADER…. Bill Hader…just to make it clear BILL HADER  did such an amazing job. He rocked the movie and I still think, not just because I love this dude since over a decade, without him… the movie wouldn’t  have been so entertaining)

Eddie - He is in these abusive relationships. First with his mother, who keeps him small and makes him believe that he is weak. At the end her own fears of beeing left behind prevented her son from becoming a self-confident adult. Eddie always thought he is weak and fragile. Although he knows that he doesn’t need all this medication, his childhood experience were the reason for his coping-behavior as an adult – he still uses his inhaler. He married a woman who is like his mother. Mike's call was something of a turning point. Until this call Eddie could not overcome his fears and had to face them again as an adult. I can remember. While reading the book there were several moments of silence and I stopped reading and thought: poor Eddie.

Ultimately, his story is about a hero who surpasses himself, overcomes his fears and by sacrifice himself he protects what is most important to him - his friends. It just touched me. Eddie gave his life for his friends and I think you can say he's my favorite character. His death may be a tragedy, but it was necessary for his character arc. My theory is that Eddie represents someone who has lost track in his life and prefer to stick on old but unhealthy patterns.It is almost like Eddie stands for missed opportunities, but at the same time it is never to late to change something. He is a hero. There are so many things I would like to talk about, therefore I should start an own thread XDDD

Oh and Bev - I could always identify with her (not bc of abuse or domestic violence. My childhood was amazing). She is the only girl around the losers and I was the only girl in my  favourite clique too. We spent most of our time outside  - it was great. Of course I had other friends (female) as well, but with my boys… it was always special).. As you know as an adult she falls back in old patterns. Her husband is tyrannical man like her father. Again Mike’s call is a turning point.  Maybe the Benverly arc is the most satisfying. I was… I am very happy that Bev got her happy end.

Last but no least - I like Ben, Mike and Stan too. They have all there unique character treats and you sympathize with all of them. The Loser’s club is bunch of adorable idiots who just doing their best to become adults. I think it is normal that their friendship feels more intimate in the book – I highly recommand the book.

In what ways do you participate in fandom? (ex. Posting memes, reblogging/commenting on content, writing fanfic, making fanart, creating fanmixes, etc.)

Mostly fanarts, but recently I thought about posting my own theories and sharing my hcs and random stuff about the characters and the different relations.  

Do you have any in-fandom inspirations? Other members of the community that drive you? (And if you have the time/energy, in what ways do they inspire you?)

The fandom is full of amazing artists and writersand actually it would be a, but i want to name those who inspired me the most (mainly artists – hopefully I copied the links correcty):

https://tonyofthetrees.tumblr.com

https://meowsteryyy.tumblr.com

https://slashpalooza.tumblr.com/ ( you have to check out ‚Loose Ends‘)

https://coldcigarettes.tumblr.com

https://vvanini.tumblr.com/

https://eggocrumbs.tumblr.com

https://twitter.com/10_sgan

https://twitter.com/kasphacked

https://twitter.com/tac_nor

(oh.. the list got longer than expected IDDD)

Do you know this?

https://ragnarozzys.tumblr.com/post/189890790551/those-early-hours-after-a-sleepover-when-you-wake

Have you ever seen something as cozy and cute before I///D? – me neither XD

Trust me they are all worth a visit and I am sure most of us already know them 8D

Do you have any works of your own that you feel particularly proud of, or wish more people would’ve consumed? Please provide links if possible.

My art I provide on tumblr can be found here:

https://theoniprince.tumblr.com/tagged/myart

Honestly I like these the most:

https://theoniprince.tumblr.com/post/649446311120273408/my-first-reddie-sketch-now-scanned-the-quality

https://theoniprince.tumblr.com/post/649548606679007232/close-to-you-now-scanned-with-coloured

https://theoniprince.tumblr.com/post/650697175346593792/hammock-iconic-richie-is-reading-a-monthly

Have you ever participated in a fannish event (ie. IT Week, a fic Big Bang) or applied to be a part of a fanzine? If so, which ones, and can you please link them?

Oh… unfortunately I am not feelin‘ very confident about my own artworks. Sometims I have the feeling I am not creative enough and that my ideas are more or less boring. Nothing special ID Totally dumb – I know. As I mentioned before I came back lately to the fandom… I guess I missed many amazing IT weeks. I participated in some weeks/mainly shipweeks in other fandoms (Yakuza/Ryu ga Gotoku, FFXV) If I find an interesting annoucement I can imagine to participate in the future ; )

Without any form of bashing or lashing out, what is something you feel this fandom is missing?

In general… the fandom is really friendly – I hope so. Lately I have seen some salty comments on different stuff, topics… and well.. I have just an advice: life can be exhausting enough and time is always running. Don’t spend time on things you don’t like. Discussions can esclate quickly and worde can hurt too. So, just thing about before you jump in.

Thanks again! <3

(Special lil sketchy piece of art I did for this ask)

[rainywritingsx]

Torn •BNHA X OC • Chapter 7

You can find the prologue for the story here and all of the previous chapters can be found on my masterlist! Also let me know if you’d like to be tagged in future chapters!

Yeeeesss I’m back with a new chapter!!! I’m so so happy that I finally have finished one again because boy I’ve got so many plans with this story and I hope y’all will enjoy it too ^^ also I was wondering if anyone wants me to make a seperate post where I explain the world here a little bit because I did change some things from the anime. Let me know what you think ^^ alsoooo if you’d like to leave a little tip for me, my ko-fi can be found here! Of course you don’t have to send anything, no hard feelings if you don’t ^^ anywayyy now onto the storyyyy

Words: 4028

The next day, Saturday, my life was back to normal. I woke up, ate breakfast, got ready and left the house as if nothing had happened the previous day. Being back felt extremely odd. It was as though I had finally realized where I truly belonged, and it definitely was not here. But life went on, I had to keep going. Leaving would be pointless, since my parents had a massive network so even if I tried my hardest to keep a low profile, I'd be found within the blink of an eye. Part of me also just didn't want to leave. While my parents were far from perfect, I still loved and cared about them. The same thing went for my brothers.

I knew that it was strange. I didn't think that positively of them, yet I loved and cared about them. Was it because we were connected by blood? Because they were the only people that had been with me all my life? I didn't know what exactly it was, but I didn't want to ponder about it too much.

"Guys, breakfast is ready!" My mom called out. Not much later, I heard loud footsteps running downstairs, making me chuckle silently. To say my brothers loved my mother's cooking was an understatement. After a little while I decided to get up as well and go downstairs. I entered the dining room and was met with my brothers and my father, who were having a conversation, and my mother who had just sat down and tried to follow the discussion. I quietly walked over to my usual spot at the dining table and took a seat. My mother turned to me and smiled brightly, her eyes filled with either extreme happiness or complete insanity.

"How did training go yesterday sweetie? You were already asleep by the time your dad and I got home, so you must've been exhausted." Oh right... I told them I went to the gym to train. It wasn't a complete lie. I did train at the UA entrance exam in a way.

"It went well, I just really pushed myself while training so that's why I immediately fell asleep." I lied, to which she nodded. I could hear a scoff next to me and without even looking I knew exactly who it was. Of course it was Malo, who could never celebrate any positive achievements of mine. A small silence filled the room, which my mother attempted to break after a little while.

"So, Malo," she began "how did your day at school go yesterday? You played in a school sports competition, didn't you?" a cocky smirk covered Malo's face as he nodded and took a bite of his food. I could feel that he was looking at me, probably wanting to see me jealous, but honestly I was just annoyed. Why was he like this to me? I didn't care about what he did, so why did he? Was it all simply because I was the one everyone expected to take over our parents' profession? That was all?

"You were awesome yesterday, bro!" Chobu said, his gaze filled with admiration for his older brother, who absolutely adored the attention he was receiving. The younger boy's gaze went to my father, who was just sipping his coffee and he didn't speak a word. Of course, he didn't care that much for extracurricular activities. When it was about training, or anything that had to do with villains however, he was all ears.

"You should've seen him, dad!" Chobu almost jumped out of his seat as he spoke.

"He was so fast! First he went-" He proceeded to move his hands in a quick motion to mimic what he had seen the previous day. "And then he just went like this and scored!" At this point he was almost radiating amazement, which I couldn't help but smile at.

Emry, my ten year old brother, didn't say that much as usual. He was more of a quiet type who enjoyed analysing more than talking and he seemed to actually like me unlike my two other brothers. We weren't that close as he was a lot younger, but he was a real sweetheart and I hoped he'd stay that like forever.

After we all finished eating, Chobu and Emry went back upstairs to play some games, Malo went to the living room, and I got up to go back to my room, when my father suddenly called out my name.

"Janie, your mother and I need to talk to you." My heart dropped to my stomach at those words as I stopped dead in my tracks. Flashbacks of yesterday went through my mind as I tried to remember if I had seen anything or anybody suspicious, but I didn't recall anything like that. Gosh, what if my parents were actually there? What if there were disguised villains present at the entrance exam and they told my parents? Oh my god why didn't I wear a mask while I was on my way to UA? Janie, you idiot!

Malo looked at me, his gaze saying I was screwed even though I knew he had no idea what it was about either. Chobu and Emry just silently left and I could almost feel myself breaking out in a cold sweat. It wasn't often that my father  would just say that he needed to talk to me. It wasn't even only him, but mother too!

"Okay, father." I replied coolly, when really everything in me was screaming to just leave. But then again, I could try and figure out a lie about why I took part in that exam. But would they believe me? Would they have a reason not to? I mean, they weren't aware of the fact that I didn't want to follow in their footsteps. While my brothers could probably tell I wasn't that excited about becoming a professional villain, they probably didn't think that I wanted to become a hero instead. While all of this was driving me insane, I just tried to appear calm and collected so I wouldn't seem strange.

I sat back down and looked at my father a little expectingly, silently playing that it was none of the horrible scenarios that had gone through my mind.

"You're going to be interning at our agency, since you're getting older and you should start becoming more known between the villains."

Oh.

I wasn't sure if I felt relieved or more worried by this news.

"We've already talked to your school; you can miss a day in the week for now." I nodded and forced a small smile on my face. Great. Absolutely wonderful.

"When do I start?" I put as much effort as I could in sounding excited at this news. I could see my mother's eyes sparkle at the question before she answered with a big grin on her face.

"Your first day will be upcoming Wednesday! You can come with me in the morning and everything else will be explained once you get there." While I could clearly feel my mother's joy as well as my father's pride, I saw in the corner of my eye that Malo was glaring at me yet again. Well, that was what he got for almost laughing at me earlier.

"Malo, sweetie!" My mother spoke, completely ignoring-or maybe not noticing my twin brother's annoyed attitude. I could never tell which one of the two she was doing. "You can help us too, of course. But I also saw that there are some other villain groups that would love to recruit you." At those words a smug smirk appeared on his face. Of course, one huge ego boost and his day was complete again. Typical for him.

"Like who, mom?" A hint of curiosity was evident in his voice and honestly, I wanted to know too. Not because I admired villain groups, I just wanted to see where my brother would end up.

"I don't remember them all on the top of my head but the Yakuza and the League of Villains were mentioned." I wasn't all that interested in the Yakuza, but a few times I've seen things about the League of Villains. As far as I knew their leader was... interesting to say the least when it came to his goal.

"Ah, the League of Villains? Wasn't Stain with them before he ended up in jail?" Stain... I remembered having seen him on TV and to be honest, I could understand where he was coming from. While I definitely did not think he acted rationally, I was kind of agreeing with some of his viewpoints. I could tell that that wasn't what the League of Villains as a whole was about, though.

While my brother continued bragging about how talented and amazing he was, I decided to quietly sneak back to my room. As I plopped down on my bed, speculations about what Wednesday was going to be like came to mind. Despite the fact that I wasn't exactly excited about this internship, something in me was also curious to see what it was like at a Villain agency.

It felt weird, the idea that, just like heroes, villains also had their own agencies where they trained potential villains, worked just like 'regular' people did. What even was regular at this point? I lived in a world of people with quirks, that wasn't even normal to begin with.

It wasn't as if the community of villains was small; it was a very big and diverse group of people. Outsiders, people who were alienated because of their quirks, traumatized people, sometimes even people who were just completely insane and were abandoned by their own family. And of course innocent people did not want villains to have any power at all, but at the same time everyone knew that these people existed, and it was pretty clear that continuing to oppress them only made matters worse. This was exactly why the government was compliant with all of this. It was why such things as villain schools existed. It was way easier to keep track of everything if it was legal.

However, some underground stuff that sometimes most villains didn't even know about went on. Nevertheless that was a small percentage and in my opinion the positives outweighed the negatives.

I sighed and turned my head to just stare in the distance, when I noticed that I hadn't put my tracksuit in the laundry basket yet. Flashbacks from the previous day appeared in my mind and a small smile couldn't help forming on my face. I didn't remember ever having as much fun as I did yesterday. I also missed it. Not just the people, not just the building. I missed the feeling of being who I truly was. I missed not feeling pressured to do something I was completely against.

I bit my lip as my gaze slowly went to the ceiling. I wondered when I was going to receive the results. How could I not have looked at my points? This made me feel even more nervous because I had absolutely no idea if I gained a lot of points or none at all at the last moment.

Though, I was aware that pondering about this wouldn't do anything, so I tried not giving it much thought. A soft grunt escaped my lips as I saw up and walked over to my desk before sitting down on the chair and turning on my laptop. In my free time I would often write, either stories or little things that almost seemed like diary entries. Sometimes I would even note down dreams that I had, since some of them were just so out there that they had to be documented somewhere. Whatever it was that was written, all of my work was pretty private, so I refused to let anybody read my stuff.

As if on cue, footsteps that seemed to get closer to my brother's and my room could be heard. When they stopped, I lifted up my gaze only to find my Malo. Neither of us said a word. He just stared at me as I did the same. Saying this interaction was awkward was an understatement. After what felt way too long he finally looked away and entered the room, grabbing something and leaving without saying a word.

Ah, aren't siblings just absolutely wonderful?

I was honestly okay with this. My brothers, except for Emry, did not like me, which I was aware of and I didn't want them to pretend to like me. Chobu and Emry had fun together, my brother had his friends at school and I was fine on my own and the only real interactions we had were while eating or on our way to school. Our conversations when we went to school were probably the only time we really seemed like twins in all honesty.

The concept of twins was intriguing to me. The idea that people immediately assumed you're super close as soon as they found out you were twins was strange. We were still independent people, with independent minds just like other siblings did. But for some reason it was as if people couldn't see twins as autonomous humans; it had to be either both or neither.

I looked outside and pouted. The weather seemed lovely; it wasn't hot but it wasn't cold either. Getting some coffee at a cute cat café would sound wonderful if only I actually had friends to go with. Going on my own wasn't bad of course, but it slowly got boring to go to the same places on my own. And since people usually knew who I was, they found it hard to strike a conversation with me, which was one of the big reasons why I never had friends in the place.

But also, coffee was heaven so I guess I didn't mind being on my own.

I quickly got changed into a skirt and a cute white blouse before doing everything else and went downstairs. I let my parents know I was leaving and then finally left. At the feeling of the slightly cold breeze hitting my cheeks I smiled. Without thinking I walked to the same old cat café I would always go to, as it was closest to my house, and their coffee was absolutely wonderful. Also, their cats were all total sweethearts that I wished to adopt one day if I ever had a house of my own. I could totally see myself become one of those old ladies that ended up with a billion cats in her house.

As I entered the café, a whole wave of calm took over me and I walked over to the barista, giving my usual order and paying for the coffee. While waiting a few adorable cats came over to me, and as usual I couldn't resist not petting them. These creatures were too cute, how could I not love them? They were always calm and super cuddly and all they had to do in life was eat, sleep and get cuddled; they were basically living the life.

When my coffee was done I quietly thanked the barista and went over to a small table near a window. Again some cats went over to me, making me giggle quietly. I could already tell I most likely wouldn't be able to finish my coffee before it got cold, as these adorable fluffy creatures kept on demanding my attention. Not that I minded it though...

And just as I thought, by the time no cats were coming to me, my coffee had gone cold. An annoyed sigh escaped my mouth and I decided to drink it anyway. If I didn't, it would've been a waste of my money. Besides, cold coffee wasn't that bad. Right?

After having finished my coffee, I got up, softly caressed one more cat and finally left. Gosh, they were so, so adorable I felt bad about leaving.

Not wanting to go home quite yet, I decided to just walk around a bit to get some more fresh air. While the area I lived in definitely wasn't the most pleasant, I was aware of the fact that this was way better than other areas where villains live. Here it was mostly okay, though going out here at night alone was not the best idea and the people living here weren't amazing neighbours.

To this day it still amazed me how seperatedly villains and heroes lived. I mean, I could kind of understand it but at the same time it felt like I was in two completely different worlds. Inherently, we were all the same actually. It was just the small differences that caused conflicts between the two communities, and one was labelled as 'right' while the other one was labelled as 'wrong'. Both hurt people, both had some morals that seemed right, some that seemed wrong, both were just people.

I was pulled out of my thoughts when I tripped over what was probably a loose tile on the ground. Luckily, I was able to gain balance quickly so I didn't fall over, but it was a close call. I couldn't help but giggle at my clumsiness. This was what happened when you didn't pay attention to your surroundings, Janie...

It was only now that I had realised that I was in an alley which I wasn't really familiar with. Thankfully it wasn't dark outside yet, but the alley was tiny and the buildings were very dark, which gave off a not-so-inviting feeling. I often tended to go through the wider streets, which was why I didn't really know this alley here. But it probably wasn't that far-off from my house, right? The walk hadn't been that long, which meant I really couldn't have gone really far.

Maybe I could ask someone to lead the way? They would most likely know where the cat cafe was, so if I just asked where that was, I could easily find my way back home. However, in order to that I had to find someone and the street was... empty... I looked around in hopes of finding a person whom seemed trustworthy, but there was no sign of a person or any living creature at all.

Suddenly an eery feeling came over me. Maybe it was the silence, the loneliness or just the feeling that this unfamiliar ally gave me, but all that I could think at that moment was that I wanted to leave, and my gut was telling me I had to go right now. Without thinking my feet began walking as if they had a mind of their own, or maybe it was my instinct.

Out of the blue I bumped into something, which caused me to stumble backwards. I looked up and my face immediately filled with fear when I saw a pair big and cold eyes staring at me. In front of me stood a very large man. Despite the fact that it was still light outside, I couldn't see details of the man that well since the alley was so small. What I could tell though, was that this definitely wasn't a nice guy. As I slowly backed away, shambles of apologies left my lips along with quick and small bowing movements. I could tell that I better wouldn't mess with this man.

"I-I'm so so sorry sir, I didn't mean to bump into you!" To my annoyance, my voice came out soft and high-pitched due to how frightened I was feeling. Wonderful Janie, just wonderful. It wasn't as if I look terrified enough, huh? I couldn't put on a brave face for even a single second...

"Well, well, look what we have here. A gorgeous little lady..." I could feel shivers rolling down my spine at his strange words. From the corners of my eyes I couldn't see a single drop of water near me, so using my quirk wasn't exactly something that I was able to do at this moment. I slowly backed away, hoping to be able to leave but soon my back was met with someone else's body. Within a second I turned, only to find another man of whom I assumed to be a friend of that other creep. He was looking at me with a huge smirk plastered on his face, as his thick, bushy eyebrows were raised and his dark eyes looked me up and down. I felt disgusting by his gaze alone. I tried to slowly take tiny steps sideways, away from these men, but they both noticed my movements.

"Where are you going, sweetheart? You know it's dangerous out there for little girls like you." Yeah, dangerous because of old weirdos like you...

I could maybe use my quirk on those guys... But one, I had never done that before so success wasn't guaranteed, two, I hated the thought of controlling somebody's whole body, and three, they'd catch me before I could do anything probably... Gosh, what kind of villain was I? Not that I wanted to be one, but my parents would've been so embarrassed if they saw me in this situation. All of the training and I couldn't even defend myself in a situation like this?

Alarm bells started going off in my head when the two men both stepped closer to me. I wasn't able to tell what their quirks were yet. I didn't see any kind of mutilation, so they were most likely completely human. It had to be something else, but what could it be? I'd probably find out soon, because while I knew it was dangerous, I wanted to try running away. It was the only thing I could do.

So without thinking I tried running off, but before I had the chance to even take three steps an unknown force roughly pushed me to the ground. After this a foot stepped on my back to make sure I didn't get up and goodness, that really hurt. I tried looking up at the men, which was almost impossible, but I did notice that  the man who wasn't on me now was using his quirk which made me fall. I tried moving, but everything felt super heavy, as if a massive weight was put on me and someone was pushing that weight down to make sure I really couldn't go anywhere. I tried screaming, but the fear of what they could do held me back. It was as if my vocal chords had been taken out of my throat, and it frustrated me so much.

Was this it? What were they going to do to me? Where would they take me? Who were they even? Had they been following me? Did they know my parents? Did they know who Iwas?

Suddenly I heard both men yelp as the weight on my body was lifted. I slowly tried pushing my body off of the ground, wincing when I went a little too fast. It was only now that I realised how much they had hurt me. I didn't have to go to the hospital or anything, but it still hurt. I looked around, only to see that the men were both gone... I could feel another presence behind me however, and I wasn't sure if I felt happy or terrified. If somebody could scare away people like that, they were probably horrifying.

I gulped, not daring to turn around because I was terrified of whoever it could be. I noticed that I was shaking, but I didnt know if it was because of those two guys or this persom that was standing right behind me.

"No need to be scared, princess... I won't hurt you." A low male voice suddenly spoke. I turned around, curiosity winning from my fear for a tiny moment. The person's face was almost fully covered except for the eyes. They were a bright turqoise. They looked really familiar for some strange reason. Where had i seen him before...?

Wait.

the station...

[kurtty-drabbles]

Ocean au (Pool of Blood part 5)

N/A: Moving the plot forward. The heist is in the making.

@dannybagpipesarecalling @djinmer4 @bamfoftheundead

Kokoro was training arduous as always when she sees Meggan talking in the cellphone is paying too much attention to what is being said on the device, which to be fair, is not exactly Meggan´s forte as she´s too airy when talking in the phone(Brian thinks is endearing and Kokoro won´t judge...much) but not today. As the conversation stops Kokoro is peering at Meggan for a solid minute.

"Columbina?"

"I´m not saying anything here"

"The means justify the ends. Ok. What does she want to steal this time? "

"A Pool of Blood"

"Come again?!"

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Gwen Stacy is not a woman who believes in romance, at least, not anymore. She married Norman Osbourne for money and is still receiving the "judgment" from everyone. A shameful woman who sells her soul and body for money will rot in hell. Well, Gwen can´t say it was a nice marriage, but, she knows she likes his money and in this capitalist world...this type of marriage is not a bad deal...if you have stomach for that.

Gwen Stacy does not believe in romance and would like to quit dating and love, sadly, fate has other plans for her and when she did meet Clark Rogers...she decided that maybe, just maybe, romance is not impossible for her. Maybe.

"I know who you are!" Gwen is talking blandly at Clark Rogers who took Gwen to a nice cafe shop in Metropolis. Whilst the ambient is very nice, Gwen suspects he picks this place because it has not a single soul that seems to reconize she was married to Norman Osbourne.

"Huh?" Clark responds intelligently. Still pretending as much one can imagine and Gwen folds her arms bemused. "Oh...I know, it was the glasses?"

"No, the voice. I get why the glasses work. I do, but, your voice is too similar to him..." Gwen responds and Clark is surprised by this small detail, really, when he´s Super Soldier or Clark his voice never changes and no one ever picks up this little detail.

"I also know who your friend is. No, I won´t tell because I know you won´t tell either...but, can I make a question here? Why you help a thief?" Clark asks without any malice, in fact, his tone is completely laced with curiosity. Gwen got a nice divorce deal and is pretty rich and Gwen, by the few weeks they know each other, does not strick the type of being greedy, so, why help a thief?

Gwen offers a small smile, almost unnoticeable. "Well, Heroes can help, but, they are bound to the laws...and sometimes, bad peoples can use the law to get away, however, Columbina does not follow such laws and well, to get an omelette you got to break some eggs" Gwen explains and for a solid minute she was expecting the old speech how superheroes must follow the law and how Columbina is a ticking bomb.

"Well, makes sense. Actually...I understand that 100%"

And Gwen drinks her beverage happily letting her smile reach her face and eyes. Of course, Clark understands, still, Gwen does not want to fall over her heels ...yet.

"Now answer me this, pretty boy. Do you plan to be your ''fursona" for how long?" Gwen asked using the word fursona as the waitress was coming this way and no one in Metropolis needs to know about Super Soldier´s secret identity.

"Well...that´s a good question."

The date went well and Gwen is back home, in New Gotham, Super Soldier super-speed is a nice power if you ask Gwen, and if you ask her again she´ll tell the man in question is too much of a gentleman in all the right ways.

Later, when Gwen is scrolling on her phone notification of a message from Columbina appears. Gwen read one time. Two times and finally, three times. And is not getting so she decides to call Columbina. "Hi, Pool of Blood? Are you drunk?"

____________________________________________________________________________________________

All the ladies of JLX slowly come to terms that Columbina is not exactly subtle, which if you think about her extra-curricular profession, is almost laughable. All the same, faces are present, but, no one can´t ignore the presence of Kokoro.

The Japanese woman does not seem to regard the White Witch in a good light and Wanda has no time to humour Kokoro by pretending she cares for her opinion. Sparrow and Felicia are more than amused and slightly afraid. Columbina has no real fear...and only a few people know why.

"Hello, Kokoro...do you want to steal a Pool of Blood?" Kitty asked nicely offering drinks to the others and the Japanese woman shakes her head and looks at Meggan as if hoping for some support, so far, nothing.

"No, I´m here to see what you´ll try to drag my sister-in-law this time...if this Pool of Blood is indeed a menace as you said then ...why steal it?" Kokoro asked and Columbina nods saying is a good question and she points at her dog, is Cosmo, and her cat, Jupiter, to explain the case. For a moment, Kokoro was sure the woman was joking...but...

"Hello, non-believer" the dog speaks and Kokoro´s world ruins in a few words. "Ok, let´s explain what is the Pool of Blood. It all begins with Mom" Cosmo´s tail wave happily and Jupiter makes some comments here and there. "So to sum up, Mom likes to make monsters and Jupiter´s father likes to use the Pool to make bad stuff...we need to relocate the Pool. Any question?" Kokoro sits down and shakes her head.

"Ok!" Meggan now speaks. "What´s the plan?"

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

Kurt Ryder was researching until by a sheer miracle the man decides to take a break. You know, in movies, thieves like Columbina love to leave elegant clues that certain place was robbed by them, however, in real life this is far from the truth.

"All of her robberies are unknown. By all accounts, she may have stolen the crown jewellery and no one is wise" Kurt explains more to himself and looks at the screen as he continues to finish his sandwich. It was a treat, a nice treat Kitty made for him and this makes a ghost of smile gingerly hits the corner of his lips.

Suddenly, as his sandwich is completely gone, and inspiration strick on his mind. "Let´s use math!" and he makes a calculous to put some numbers on his favourite unpredictable thief.

"If we could trace all the unsolved robberies from the past 5 years it could give me a tip. Now, let´s reduce this number for valuable things as diamonds or any other types of pieces of jewellery then...let´s compare this with the travels Kitty made along those ...now, let´s see...." and now he looks satisfied as the screen shows a different picture.

"Ok, now, Kitty Pryde...what´s your connection with Columbina?"

______________________________________________________________________________________________

"So...that´s the plan!" Columbina states and the ladies are muttering among themselves and once again Sparrow rose her hand. "Uhm, ok, you can speak!"

"How can we be sure the Pool of Blood will accept this deal?" she made this question thinking how untrusty a Pool of Blood who side with Chaos itself must be. In the corner of her mind, Jubilee is sure that if she was a Pool of Blood she wouldn´t honour any deal made by humans.

"A good question" Columbina states and she side-eye her furry companions for a moment. "however, Pool of Blood and many other things made by non-human's hands work in this logic: A deal is the baseline of their power. If they break the trust...they have nothing left" and this concluded her explanation.

Felicia raises her hand too. "And can Polaris truly lift that thing?" and Polaris, who was silent during the whole speech, now raises her head. "Polaris is here and I can control all the magnetic and metallic objects that exist"

"So...you´re Magneto´s daughter?" someone asked, it was Wanda, who is curious as she recalls a video where a younger Magneto spoke something similar.

Columbina and Polaris now speak in total unison. "What? No!" and Gwen is laughing at this. It´s a comical reaction and now Polaris is being more vocal about her parentage. "What do you mean I´m his lost daughter? No, I´m not...The fuck are you talking about?!"

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Ryder is finally on the corridor of his apartment and is ready to take a shower and sleep, and maybe, try not to think too much about Columbina and Kitty Pryde, however as soon he rubs his eyes all the ladies of JLX leave Kitty´s door and are chatting about something until they all saw him.

Meggan is there along with Kokoro and is really awkward. Sparrow and Felicia seem to be the only ladies who Kurt has a positive past, ironically, Kurt never hit on Felicia even when she was single and right now this is a blessing.

Kitty was talking with Wanda(he swore Wanda said something like "if your dog allows we can cast more spells tonight" and Kurt wants to know the context) in the background but stops once she notices Kurt and Meggan and Kokoro staring at each other awkwardly.

"Ok. Ok. That´s enough awkward enough for everyone. So, Kurt...this is Meggan and Kokoro, Kokoro and Meggan this is Kurt...we all had shit past, it will get shitter if we make more awkward" Kitty states and pushes Kurt to his door and bide him farewell.

Meggan and Kokoro seem to be relieved and starts to carry on for the elevator. Before Kurt even has the chance to ask why those ladies are here, and Kitty knows him enough to know he wants to make this question. Kitty beat him first. Metaphorically.

"We´re talking about selling Ivone´s cosmetic together" Kitty speaks and the other ladies vehemently opposed to this idea.

Wanda and Gwen speak together. "No, this is a book club. Ignore Kitty´s lame jokes"

___________________________________________________________________________________________

"Magneto...now that you locate your daughter, what shall you do?" Emma Frost asked still on the jail and Magneto has ways to communicate with the woman without anyone knowing.

"Me?" and she can see the smirk playing on his lips. Magneto is really that arrogant. "I´ll finish what I started and will finally kill Martian X"

"Good luck...is that what you wanted to hear?"

"Depends...do you want to stay on the prison forever?"

"...I´m listening"

[tonystarkissist]

IronDad Bingo Fic #6

Trope: Bullying

Trigger Warning!!! Lots of self hate. Small mention of suicide and self harm.

Requested by anon. Thank you for the request!

The tabloids have always been known for their blatant hatred for the mess of a human being named Tony Stark. Of course, there were those select few reporters and articles that highlighted his few wholesome qualities, but people weren’t quite as drawn towards opinions not laced with drama and hostility.

The first truly demeaning article published about him that he could actually recall was when he was about 14 years old, attending a special gala with his parents during his Christmas break. His father had been giving a speech, and, yeah, Tony had snuck a couple drinks over the course of the evening, but this guy started choking on an olive in the middle of his father’s spiel and he didn’t even have any time to think before he was jumping into action. What was he supposed to do? Ignore the poor man? But in his drunken haze and fervent panic, he couldn’t quite remember the typical operating procedure to perform for a choking person, so he acted on instinct and reeled back his fist to send a punch straight into the man’s gut. It worked though, and the olive went sailing across the room, but the idiot demanded to press charges after he caught his breath and realized he was a Stark. And, of course, since no one else had witnessed the event in its entirety, young Tony had been labeled as a hostile, drunk, know-it-all without an ounce of human decency at the age of 14, and that title followed him all through his teenage years and into adulthood. The choking man had been set on getting his money and he wasn’t at all put out by the fact that it would require tearing down a somewhat innocent boy in the process.

His father had been pissed, even after Tony had finished explaining his side of the story. The press had been having an absolute field day with the abomination of a human being that turned out of Howard Stark’s son and Howard was beyond livid… and his mother, well… she had been disappointed. She didn’t speak a word to her son for nearly three days after the event. How could Tony blame them though? He had never done anything particularly noble, and he wasn’t known to be a truth-teller, but he had just wanted to help. He supposed that was what happened when you tried to help a person, so he didn’t go out of his way to try it out again.

After that, trouble just seemed to follow him. The press disregarded his accomplishments and highlighted the many many mistakes that only seemed to worsen the older he became. You couldn’t really blame the people either, because the mischief Tony Stark got up to was pure reporting gold. It granted them thousands, if not millions, of extra readers every time he didn’t something particularly stupid. The non-scientific community weren’t quite as interested in his inborn genius, and his amazing creations, lectures he gave, and ideas he had. People had always, and would always, be drawn to drama. And Tony Stark was the absolute Drama King.

So, over the years, he grew used to it. He grew used to the bullying comments made by human rights advocates, anti-war hippies, even some of his ‘friends’, and anyone else really… because they weren’t wrong. He was a selfish, immature, irresponsible, violent, impulsive, rich brat, and he’s long since accepted that fact. He remembered how the comments used to bother him as an adolescent and young adult. The self-hate, and depression that stemmed from the thought that everyone in the world, including his own father and mother, hated him with a passion. He had tried multiple times to prove his worth to the world, but he had always messed it up some way or another. And no matter how many so-called friends he would acquire over the years he could always see right through them. He could practically hear them talking and laughing about him behind his back. He knew they only wanted his money. But he didn’t care. He was fine with lying to himself for a while to gain a couple good friends even if they only lasted a few months.

He at least found one good friend, and Rhodey was probably the only reason why he hadn’t accidentally or purposely overdosed during those years at MIT, and even several years after.

He got over the deception quickly though, disregarding the people after realizing it wasn’t worth it to spend his time pleasing them, because the only person he should work on pleasing was himself. So, that’s what he spent the next few years doing. Spending every waking minute to prove to society just how right they were. To prove to his father that, yes, he really was all that the man believed him to be.

It wasn’t only the press and dumb college druggies either. After he took over the company… it was rare for anybody to take him seriously. His ideas were typically discarded by the board and Obie; nothing he wasn’t used to. His employees and coworkers had no respect for him even though he was the boss! He’d hear the whispered rumors as he walked down the halls, most regarding his inability to run the company or his nightly, drunken escapades, and he’d grit his teeth in annoyance before fleeing to his workshop to create something unquestionably amazing to prove his worth even though he truly believed every word the spoke.

Eventually, after a few years, R&D grew to respect his inventions, and the board members were impressed with the advancements he was making for the company. When it came to management… it was rare for anybody of any worth would actually listen to him. So, at about 26, he just stopped trying.

Even the people who worked for him believed the tabloids, so, really, what hope was there for the ordinary people of the world to look beyond what the magazines and newspapers said? He couldn’t expect the world to respect him, trust him, and believe in him when his own company wouldn’t… when his parents hadn’t.

The whispers and the shame never stopped… so he never did either.

Then, he had been kidnapped, tortured, and traumatized. He had had an epiphany in that cave. He realized how much he had done to hurt the world, and people in general during his years of spite fueled by self-hate, and he was determined to do everything in his power to fix it.

He became Iron Man, and he had pronounced his identity without hesitance, because he needed to be accountable for his actions. He couldn’t stand behind a mask, avoiding the responsibility and inevitable repercussions that would befall upon him during his doings as a superhero. He had already gone down that road during his years of selfish ignorance, and it had only brought trouble. He was determined to be accountable for his own actions, because honesty formulated trust, and he wanted people to trust that he genuinely cared.

Of course, when the news of a new enhanced robot-like being had shown up in California, and it had defeated another robotic enemy, the people had been both terrified and ecstatic at the possibility of someone, or something, there to protect them. Then, the people had learned who was really behind the mask, and it only went downhill from there.

Tony would sit on his couch every night for the following weeks, toying with a gauntlet, clenching his teeth until his jaw cramped as he watched reporters go on and on about his irresponsible actions, inability to protect them, and the unavoidable careless mistakes he would eventually make just as he had in the past.

Pepper and Rhodey had both encouraged him to watch the positive reports that were being given about him instead, because they knew about his tendency to spiral into a pit of self-hatred at the slightest mention of any of the deeper insecurities he’d been dwelling over for years, but he knew better. People didn’t want positive when it came to him. People wouldn’t believe those things; they’d disregard them as laughable lies and move on to the interesting, problematic portion of Tony Stark’s personality.

He tried. He really did. He did everything in his power to help the people and prove to them that all he wanted to do was help.

His public image went up and down through the following years. People would slowly begin to trust him and look up to him, but then sometimes he would mess up, and people would hate him all over again. Still, even despite the rare good, there were still many, many people who resented him during those times. They could always find some reason to hate him. There were fan pages dedicated to spreading their hatred for him and some news outlets were still fascinated with fabricating any lie they could to make everything that went wrong in an Avengers battle to be his fault. Which was cool, he was fine with that, because not all of it was really that wrong.

He had developed a disgusting habit through the years as a result. He’d sit down once a month and watch the negative reports about himself on the TV, always zeroing in on his blinding flaws. Sometimes his teammates would come close to catching him in the act, but he was always careful to make sure they never found out. He didn’t want them to know how the world really felt about him; to introduce the hatred the world rightfully harbored for him… but perhaps they already did. It would give them more ammunition to use against him. They were the first true friends besides Rhodey that he had ever had, and he couldn’t risk losing them because they found out how insecure, hated, and terrible he really was. Heck, Steve had already been influenced by the press and tabloids on their first meeting, and the hero had believed every word he read. Tony was too scared to find out who the man would trust when it came between the world and Tony Stark himself.

Tony had always been one to focus on the negative rather than the positive, especially when it came to himself. His self-image had already been ruined as a teen, despite the front he put up for the tabloids, and whenever a particularly demeaning characteristic that he had been hyper-aware of for years came to light, it sent him spiralling into a fit of depression and anger and he’d lock himself down in the lab, destroying, and days later rebuilding, his proudest accomplishments over and over again. It made him feel some sense of control.

He always sent Dum-E and U out of the room though, and he always shut down JARVIS for the night… he didn’t want to risk hurting them during his monthly fits of rage. He hated himself so much on those nights. He hated that he couldn’t be what people wanted him to be, and that he couldn’t live up to the high standard all his other teammates seemed to accomplish without a problem.

Years later, he was doing the same thing. His teammates, his friends, were gone… they betrayed him. The people of the world were terrified of him and all he stood for. His best friend was crippled because he was selfish, and the love of his life left when he refused to give up the one stable thing left in his life; the one thing that kept his head above water, knowing he was at least trying to help people. But everything was still his fault. The world knew it and they weren’t shy to tell him to his face. Everything was just so, so much worse.

So, just like every first Saturday night of the month he’d sit down in his workshop, bottle of scotch ready in his hand, and he’d instruct FRIDAY to stream the latest ‘lies’, as Pepper had called them (but he knew better), that had been circulating that month. He’d pay attention to the complaints given by citizens, especially when they suffered some sort of hardship as a result of an Avengers mission, and he’d do his best to reimburse them with both financial help and physical labor to rebuild anything they had lost. Any major disheartening actions or qualities brought to light that month would be mulled over intensely, worked through his brain a million and one times, before he set forth a plan of action to fix it. It didn’t always work. In fact, it rarely worked, but he tried. He tried so, so hard.

***

Peter loved going to spend time with Mr. Stark. After the Ferry incident had happened, the genius invited him over to the compound for some special training. Peter had been beyond excited to train with Tony Stark himself. He had always looked up to the man ever since he was a small child. He was his hero.

He remembered back when he was a bored thirteen year old, literally obsessed with the Avengers, particularly Iron Man, and he’d spend every waking moment scrolling through Twitter or Tumblr, or Facebook to find anything as to what they’d been up to that day. He had run across some not so nice thoughts expressed by some haters, and he didn't hesitate to set them straight. He had always been a hardcore Iron Man stan, and he couldn’t stand that they would speak of his hero in the way they were. Because the man was human, and he was allowed to make mistakes sometimes. Thankfully, the positive fanbase for the man was much larger than the negative. Iron Man was by far the most loved of all the Avengers, but still the most hated. And that had always pissed Peter off.

So, yeah, now he knew Tony Stark, his hero, personally, and he was allowed to visit every week! Sometimes they’d train in one of the training room and sometimes they’d go down into the lab to mess around with his suit or another project.

This week, though, he hadn’t been able to make it to the Compound because of Decathlon and the ridiculous amounts of homework he had to squeeze in between patrols. But Happy had said the Mr. Stark probably wouldn’t mind him stopping by on the weekend. So, here he was, Sunday morning, jittering excitedly inside the elevator as it descended to Mr. Stark’s workshop in the basement.

He hadn’t been greeted by FRIDAY, which he found a bit odd, but perhaps he assumed he was just down for maintenance for a couple hours. No biggie.

The elevators eventually opened, and the first thing he noticed was Dum-E and U chilling in the corner of the hall outside of Mr. Stark’s lab entrance. Peter quirked a brow curiously at the bots, and the two robots whirred excitedly at the sight of him. He greeted them with a smile and a pat on their arms before punching in the code to enter the lab. He was met with another bout of confusion as he glanced around the complete chaos and utter destruction that had befallen the room.

“Uh,” Peter mused with wide eyes, “Mr. Stark?”

“Kid!” Tony responded in surprise, popping up from behind the destroyed hot rod engine. “What-what-what are you doing here?”

“Oh, um, Happy said you probably wouldn’t mind me coming over this weekend.” Peter answered in a panic. What if Mr. Stark did mind? What if he hated Peter now? Oh goodness! Mr. Stark hated him for sure.

“Oh,” Tony mused tiredly. He glanced around the lab with a tight frown before returning his gaze to Peter. “Sorry for the mess kid. C’mon in. If I had known you were coming, I would have cleaned up a bit.”

“It’s alright Mr. Stark,” Peter responded hesitantly. He slowly made his way across the room until he was standing on the other side of the hot rod, watching as the man worked his magic on what looked to be a unsalvageable piece of machinery. “What-um… What happened in here?”

Tony chuckled under his breath, waving his arm dismissively. “Oh, I do this every month. It gives me something to do.”

“You-you destroy everything?” Peter questions, utterly perplexed.

“Well yeah,” Tony answered lamely, “that way I can rebuild it.”

“Oh, cool,” Peter drones quietly, “what are Dum-E and U doing outside?”

“I sent ‘em out there so they wouldn’t get hurt. Grab that wrench over there for me, will ya kid?”

***

The two of them got a lot closer as the weeks passed. Peter started staying over on the weekends once May picked up the weekend shift so she could come home earlier during the week to have dinner with her nephew. Peter had a blast on those weekends. He had his own room and everything, which was absolutely epic! He and Mr. Stark ate dinner with Pepper and Rhodey sometimes, and they’d watch a lot of movies too. Peter loved it.

They’d always stay up super late in the labs, or watching movies, on Friday and Saturday because, well, Peter didn’t have school or go home because May was expecting him.

But then one Saturday night was different…

“Alright, why don’t you call it a night and head up to bed, kiddo.”

Peter frowned and cocked his head to the side in confusion as he casted his mentor a questioning gaze. Mr. Stark never sent him to bed early, in fact, it was usually the opposite. It was typical for Peter to be so exhausted that he had to convince Mr. Stark that, yes, he needed sleep because he was a growing teenage boy.

“Uhhh… it’s only like 10 Mr. Stark. I’m not tired.”

He saw the man’s jaw tighten. “Just… just go to bed Peter. Watch TV, play on your phone, whatever. I don’t care. But take your project up to your room with you.”

“Mr. Stark,” Peter whispered softly, his eyebrows furrowed. He tightened his grip on his web shooter. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing, Peter,” the man responded tersely.

Peter didn’t argue anymore. He slowly started to gather his project into his arms. He eyed the man suspiciously once more before slowly making his way out of the room, but Mr. Stark didn’t say another word. He went up to Mr. Stark’ personal floor and was met with Pepper quietly lounging on the couch with her STARKpad in her lap. She glanced up at him curiously when he stepped into the room and Peter quietly admitted to her that Mr. Stark had sent him to bed early for some weird reason.   

Pepper didn’t say anything to that, really, which was even more weird. She just nodded her head sadly in acknowledgment and bid him goodnight. So, Peter hung his head, fled to his room and sat on his bed. He tried questioning FRIDAY, but she didn’t give him an answer. She remained uncharacteristically silent.

He waited an hour or two, listening closely for Pepper to go to bed, or even Mr. Stark, but Peter had a feeling that the man wouldn’t be going to bed early that night. He couldn’t help but think back on that first Sunday he came to visit Mr. Stark and the absolute disaster of a lab he had found when he went to greet the man. It made a gross feeling pool in his gut, and he really, really didn’t feel good about that look on Mr. Stark��s face when he left the room.

Eventually, he could hear Pepper’s soft footsteps move down the hall and her and Mr. Stark’s bedroom door close behind her. It was nearing midnight by then.

“Hey, FRIDAY? Is Mr. Stark going to go to bed soon?” Peter questioned in a whisper.

She didn’t answer, which only seemed to increase his anxiety. His senses tingled uncomfortably, and the anxiety gave birth to fear.

Peter jumped from where he was seated on the bed and he dashed for the door. He tiptoed down the hall, past the master bedroom and took off running towards the elevator. He jittered anxiously as he rode the elevator down to the basement floor, to the workshop.

The doors opened too slowly…

He rushed out in a flurry of limbs and wide eyes. Something was very, very wrong. He was met with the familiar sight of Dum-E and U huddled in the corner of the hall, emitting sad whines. Peter’s heart picked up speed and his breaths came in short, panicked bursts as the twinge in his neck became more prominent. He could hear yelling and crashing, and banging coming from the other side of the glossed glass and he rushed for the door to punch in the code… but it didn’t work. He punched it in again, and again, and again, but it wouldn’t work. The banging and crashing continued and Peter whined desperately. Something was wrong with Mr. Stark. Something was very, very wrong.

In the midst of his panic, there was a long, slow beep, and the door unlocked with a short click. Peter stared at the door for a moment, and he instantly knew who it was. He turned up his head to smile thankfully at the ceiling before grabbing the handle, throwing the door open and rushing into the room.

He was met with quite a sight.

Tony stood at the center of the room with a sledgehammer in hand as he swung it angrily into the side of the hot rod over, and over, and over again. The workshop was in ruins. Peter’s desk was covered in scrap metal, mangled bolts and ruined tools, and Tony’s was blanketed in old projects leaking oil, looking beyond repair, and a glass bottle that had been shattered. Amber liquid pooling around the surviving head of the bottle. Peter watched with his breath caught in his throat as his mentor released an angered shout, swinging the heavy hammer over his head to bring it down forcefully onto the hood of the car. Then he dropped it. He collapsed to the ground, bracing his back against the ruined car and hanging his head in his hands.

He was done.

There was nothing left to destroy that Peter could see. He slowly gazed over the destruction. In the corner of the room he saw the news on the TV playing, with several holographic screens alongside it to display articles of some sort.

He felt tears begin to bubble behind his eyes as he stepped closer to the side of the room to see what exactly was being played on the screen. It was news coverage of the Rogue Avengers… and Tony’s face was displayed in the corner as the reporter went on bashing shamelessly into him, blaming everything on Tony Stark and his selfish actions. Peter shook his head in denial, eyes wide with fear, clenching his teeth in anger as he stared through the tears to focus in on the reporter’s face. The TV flickered momentarily as it autonomously clicked to a new channel, and he was met with a different reporter. She spoke about leftover Stark weapons that had been uncovered in Eastern Asia earlier that month, accusing Tony Stark of forcing his company to deal under the table once more to make up for the loss of funds from the cleanup work he was paying for in Sokovia.

Peter’s face fell, horrified at the awful lies escaping from the womans mouth, and his attention quickly snapped over to stare at the holographs.

‘Tony Stark is responsible for the fall of the Avengers: Rumor has it he attacked Steve Rogers and arrested his teammates, denying them a fair trial-’

‘Tony Stark is just as selfish and immature as he was when he was a child’

‘Iron Man gives up. He was never worthy of being called a hero. He only fights for himself’

“Mr-Mr. Stark?” Peter whimpers pitifully, unsure of where to turn or what to feel. Everything was just… it was all so, so, so wrong. The world was so, so wrong.

Mr. Stark didn’t answer him. So, Peter turned away from the screens and carefully made his way across the room to where the man was still hunkered against the destroyed car.

“Mr. Stark?”

He was met with a defeated groan.

Then the man’s head was lifting and Peter saw his eyes. His expression was empty, his eyes rimmed red from tears. His gaze dropped to the man’s knuckles, which were split open and bleeding down the length of his arm and fingers.

Peter couldn’t help but cry.

“They’re so, so, so wrong Mr. Stark.” He cried, dropping to the ground beside his mentor to wrap his arms around his waist. He leaned into him and cried into his shirt, squeezing him hard. “They are so so so WRONG! You can’t listen to them. They’re so wrong.”

He felt a hand lift to pet his head, but there were no words to accompany the attempt at a comforting gesture.

“You’re so amazing Mr. Stark. None of this is your fault. None of this was ever your fault, and it never will be, because you’re good. You’re so, so good. You’re human… but you still try even after you mess up. And that’s so, so good Mr. Stark.”

The hand curls into his hair, gripping locks between their calloused, bloody fingers, and Peter can feel the ripple of a sob vibrate through the man’s chest.

“So good,” Peter whispers, tucking closer to the man with an insistent shake of his head. “So, so good.”

***

After that. Peter spent the first Saturday of every month, tugging his mentor to the Living Room, where he, Pepper, Rhodey and Happy would all sit on the couch watching the positive reports about Iron Man on the big TV. They watched random YouTube videos of little kids rambling happily about Iron Man and how much they love him and want to be just like him. They look at Memes, tumblr posts, and Tweets praising Tony and his compassion and love for the people. Pepper always brought fan mail for him to read through too, and it seemed like Tony enjoyed that part the most.

He’d always cry as he read through the letters and looked at the drawings. He cried every time, but Peter always made sure he got lots and lots of hugs, because Mr. Stark needed to know how much people really loved him.

Sorry if this feels rushed guys. I wanted to finish it fairly quick while I was in the mood. And thank you @irondadbingo again for the bingo card.

[sunnylildragun]

Let's get some things straight(or not that straight hehe), fandom

This will be a looong post. But please, read it! I don't mean to personally attack anyone or any ships, what I mean with this post is to get y'all to maybe try understanding each other. I will tag this as both Bumbleby and Black Sun, because I need both sides of the fandom to read this. It's important to create an environment of good vibes, because, in the end, we all(or most of us, Idk) want the same things. Our faves to be happy. Salem to be defeated. Faunus and humans living in harmony.

Bumbleby is NOT a toxic relationship. If I had to explain this as an entire analysis, it would take too long and people wouldn't want to read it, so I'll go straight to the generic line of thought. Blake "runs" away. Yang has abandonment issues. So... what now? The right thing to say is: Blake USED to run away. Wouldn't it be easier to go stay with her parents after defending Haven? Wouldn't it be easier to run away when she saw "Adam" on the train? Wouldn't it be easier to avoid Yang? If Blake still had the habit of running away, she would rely on that. But she doesn't. She stays, she promises to stay and she vows to not break that promise. Y'all don't trust Blake's capacity to keep her promise? Well, I do. I know she will. And that's the core of the rebuilding relationship between Blake and Yang. Blake not running anymore. Yang forgiving her and understanding her(Yang's not dumb, when she got to actually fight Adam, she understood Blake).

Not all Bumbleby shippers are bad or toxic people. I won't deny that I have seen some people be toxic, uncool, and everything towards others, even inside our own shipping "community". But it's important to notice that most Bumbleby shippers want to enjoy the show, produce content and enjoy content. If you go through the Bumbleby tag, you'll find mostly shitposts, fanarts, fanfics, ship analysis, and, if you go further, beehaw. There are some people who bash Sun for 0 reason? Yeah, there are. But they are the minority, and it's unfair to judge a whole group of people because of a small vocal part.

Not liking Bumbleby DOES NOT make people homophobic. It just means that the person doesn't feel a connection to the ship, and that's okay. I, for example, think some ships are cute, but I don't see them happening, bc I simply don't feel a connection to them. And I'm a bisexual girl who is supportive of the LGBTQ+ community!

Bashing Sun for absolutely no reason is unnecessary. I get some people were mad at him for following Blake the way he did, I was too. But as volume 4 developed, and volume 5 came in, Sun showed himself as a very supportive friend. Ship Black Sun or not, we can't deny that he helped Blake. And we can't deny that they care about each other. So, yeah, getting all the steps the guy makes, and every breath he takes, and turning it into some sort of atrocity that should be used against him/against his relationship with Blake is annoying.

Shipping Black Sun DOES NOT make people homophobic. It just means people like their dynamic and enjoy the idea of them together. Although I don't ship it, and lately have been seeing the two of them as very close friends, people have all the right to ship whatever they want. Don't take away others' right to ship. It's that old lesson everyone(I guess) is taught: your freedom ends when somebody's freedom begins.

It's okay to enjoy Adam's character construction, design, etc. I personally really like the work CRWBY did with him. They made him real. They made him someone who hides more than his eyes. And his design was, undeniably, one of the coolest of the show! So... stop bashing people when they say they liked Adam as a character. It does not mean they enjoyed him "as a person", which leads to the next topic.

It is NOT okay is to excuse Adam Taurus' actions and treat him as some sort of "poor boy". He was a victim of humanity's ways, yes, and that's undeniable. But let's not forget that he also killed innocents for the pleasure of it, hurt someone badly just to make another suffer, was involved in mass murders and such, even when the high leader didn't approve of some actions(Sienna clearly disapproved the Fall of Beacon). Adam was also abusive towards Blake, and it started as manipulation and psychological abuse. Pre-Beacon, we don't see him hit her, but psychological abuse is as bad as physical abuse. You see, Blake's self deprecation, the thought that she is better off alone... it all came from her time with him. So it is not okay to make Adam some sort of hero. He cannot- and should not- be lionized.

Someone having a different opinion than yours DOES NOT mean they didn't watch the show, it just means they watched it under a different pov. Not comprehending that makes the environment of the fandom a toxic place. That's toxic behavior, and it's something really sad to see. Each person is their own universe, and we have to respect that.

If you reached the end of the post, thanks for reading! I really wanted to get all of this out of my chest, it all has been bothering me since the hiatus began. A little before, actually. So... let's all enjoy RWBY peacefully! Love y'all and a good whatever time it is where you are ^-^

[nani-lahiffe]

Fighting Over a Lady’s Love: Chapter 2

Summary: Nino has a productive weekend, gets shocked by the news, gets shocked by Alya, and has the worst Monday ever.

Read Chapter 1 here or read it all on ao3 here

When Nino woke up this morning he felt energized and ready to face the day. It is the beginning of the weekend which means he has a whole two days to do the things he was yelled at for not doing the day before. He quickly turned off his phone so he wouldn’t be tempted to look at it. He also has already told everyone on Friday that he was going technology free during the weekend just so he could get caught up with everything that he has been slacking. Alya called him smart for thinking of that and wished that she could do the same, but the Ladyblog is too demanding. Not only did this tactic work, but by Sunday evening he managed to get ahead of his homework schedule by two weeks.

“You have made some great progress these past couple of days. I am quite proud.” Wayzz says flying over to Nino cuddling up to his cheek.

“Thanks, little dude, I couldn’t have done it without you.” Nino smiles at him and strokes his shell. If it wasn’t for Wayzz always motivating him and helping him figure out the material he couldn’t understand, Nino wouldn’t be as successful as he is now. He even helped clean Nino’s room which was definitely not an easy task. Maybe I should make him his own playlist to thank him, and so he can chill during the day while I’m in class.

“You deserve a break, Master Nino.”

“You know how much I hate it when you call me that.”

Wayzz laughs and with a smirk he says, “I know.”

Nino chuckles and jumps onto his bed. For the first time in two days he turns on his phone and was pleased to see that his friends and girlfriend kept their promise of not messaging him. He sent a quick message to the group chat between him, Alya, Adrien, and Marinette to say that he was still alive, and immediately went to social media to see what he has missed. Though what he was seeing was definitely not what he was expecting.

Love Between Paris’ Superheroes?  

On Friday night a few spectators were enjoying the nice weather when they saw Ladybug cuddling up with another one of Paris’ favourite superheroes, though not the one we were all expecting. It seems as if Ladybug might be more of a turtle fan rather than a cat one. Yes, you read correctly, Ladybug and one of the newer heroes, Carapace, were seen holding each other very closely and intimately up on a rooftop.

One onlooker, Ruben Musquet, took the pictures that are shown below and had this to say, “We were trying to enjoy a nice night so we all went up on the roof of our apartment building, which is when we noticed Ladybug and Carapace. We just thought that they were running around like they usually do around Paris until they started hugging and stayed like that for about 10 minutes. Even when that was over they were still physically close to each other. That is when we really started thinking that something was going on between them. Our suspicions were confirmed when they kissed.”

Nino was used to gossip and rumours about him being spread around but that last sentence made him do a double take. When the hell did we kiss? He scrolls through the article to get to the pictures and sees grainy pictures of him and Ladybug. One of them hugging, one of him rubbing her arms when he was comforting her, and another of when he kissed his cheek. Though of course from the angle that the picture was taken from it looked like an actual mouth to mouth kiss.

Nino immediately starts panicking. He leaves that article and sees what the rest of the world is thinking about this.

Move over Ladynoir, Carabug is the newest ship in town.

Is Chat Noir jealous of the newest competitor to Ladybug’s heart?

Top 10 reasons why Carabug is better than Ladynoir.

Top 15 reasons why Ladybug should be with Chat Noir instead of Carapace.

Is there tension between Team Miraculous?

Every documented interaction between Ladybug and Carapace that will make you realize that this ship has been sailing for a long time.  

Nino has the feeling that he should avoid being Carapace for a while, especially around his teammates. Though he is still scheduled for a Monday night patrol which he is now currently dreading. Friday’s squabble of who loves Ladybug more is going to be minor compared to the yelling he is going to receive since his team must think that he and Ladybug are together. And poor Ladybug is already so stressed from everything, and this is definitely not going to help with that.

Nino’s mind goes to Alya, his actual girlfriend, and starts thinking how crushed she might be when she finds out Ladynoir is ruined, and hopefully that opinion will be quickly changed. He heads over to the Ladyblog to see what Alya has written to find that there haven’t been new posts since Friday. It is very unlike Alya to just ignore the Ladyblog. Even when there is no important news she always plugs in fan work and theories to keep things alive.

He tosses his phone away and sighs. He has patrol tomorrow night so for now he should just sit back and try not to think about how all of Paris thinks that him and Ladybug have a thing going on.

As evening turns into night, Nino realizes no one has messaged him back yet. He lies down in bed and wishes that Paris calms down by tomorrow.

Surprisingly, Nino is the first one of his friends to get to school. Thankfully he didn’t wait long until Adrien’s car pulled up to the school.

Adrien starts getting out of the car and Nino yell, “Hey, dude!” He rushes over to see his friend and quickly stops once he takes a full look at his friend’s face.

“Hey, Nino” Adrien says in a weak voice. The boy was the definition of a hot mess. Disheveled hair, dark bags under his eyes that clearly shows the lack of sleep he has gotten, and eyes that look like he spent his weekend crying.

“Are you alright? What happened to you? Is it your dad again, because if it is I will literally fight him for you.” Nino wraps an arm around Adrien to try and comfort him as they walk towards the school.

Adrien cracks a small smile at that. “No, it’s not about my father, but thanks. It’s just this girl… I guess I thought we were closer than we actually are, and one-sided feelings kind of suck.”

Nino always had a feeling that there was someone in Adrien’s life, especially since he seemed to never consider anyone at school as a romantic choice. Also knowing how big of a romantic he is, it was weird that he hasn’t gone on millions of over-the-top dates. “Come on, dude, you’re a model! How can she not like you?”

Adrien gives him a sad smile and says, “I guess looks aren’t everything.”

Nino cringes at his bad choice in words, and he turns Adrien to face him. “I know plenty of girls here that actually like you, and I know that you will get along with them. Don’t even think about rolling your eyes at me. Trust me when I say they actually like you and not model you. You being hot is just an extra perk.”

He lightly chuckles at that and looks Nino in the eye. “Thank you.”

From all the advice he is giving out recently, he should change his career path from DJ to therapist.

One second, he is walking towards the school with Adrien, and the next he is being dragged away by Alya into a secluded part of the yard. When Nino realized where they were heading he was pretty excited to spend some quality time with his girlfriend, and then he looks at her and realizes that she, like Adrien, has also been crying.

Alya turns to face him and shoves her phone into his face. On it was the picture of his and Ladybug’s kiss. “Tell me what the hell is this?” Her voice was as fiery as her hair.

Nino just looks at her confused. “Uh, looks like Ladybug and Carapace hanging out?”

“Don’t do that to me, Nino, cut the bullshit. I know you are Carapace, so please, tell me what the hell this is.” Alya’s voice is strained, and she is trying to control her temper.

At this moment Nino felt his heart drop, because of course she knows and is misreading this situation. “Alya, I-.”

“You think you can become a superhero and cheat on me? Did you really think that I wouldn’t find out? This whole time you have acted like you were uninterested in Ladybug, but in reality, you two were together! Even around the team you acted like you didn’t care about our argument on who she cared about more, because obviously you already knew that answer!”

At first her words weren’t making any sense, and slowly he pieces together her whole statement and realizes a secret that should have been obvious to him. “You’re Rena Rouge.” He whispers.

Of course, Alya would be involved in the team’s fight. She has loved and looked up to Ladybug since she first arrived, has a blog dedicated to her, has risked her life to help Ladybug, and the first person Ladybug has trusted with a miraculous. No wonder he hasn’t seen her throwing herself at akumas lately, she was there as Rena the whole time.

“Yeah, I am. Surprised?” She says bitterly.

“You have it all wrong. Ladybug and I are not dating. She was having a rough time yesterday after the little fight that broke out. Hell, she was crying in every picture that those civilians managed to take! As a good friend, I was trying to comfort her!”

“Then explain the kiss!”

“It was on the cheek and she was thanking me! It meant nothing to the both of us!”

Alya looks away from him. “Just… don’t talk to me for the rest of the day.” She runs off towards the school.

“Merde.” Nino whispers to himself.

He walks back to school alone and enters the building. Across the hall Marinette gives him a strange and undecipherable look that he feels like he should know what she is communicating to him, but his brain is fried from the morning that he has already had. She is probably wondering what is going on with Alya, and I definitely can’t let anyone in on that secret.  

The rest of the day continues awkwardly, and it does not make it any better that everywhere he goes he is hearing about the Ladybug and Carapace situation. It makes him more bitter, Adrien weirdly gets sadder, Alya burns with rage, and Marinette looks uneasy. Alya he could understand why she acted the way she did, but the other two are an anomaly. He assumes Adrien just gets sadder about his own love life every time someone else’s relationship is brought up. Then with Marinette, well she has always been a firm believer of ensuring the heroes have privacy in their lives, which Nino currently wishes more people were like. She must be annoyed that their privacy has been broken.

By the time the end of the day arrived, Nino couldn’t be happier. He was tense and on edge the whole day, and now he is speed-walking away from the school and everyone in it. Sure, he wishes to talk to Alya to maybe make up and make out, but one look at her face says that he probably should not approach her yet. Maybe Alya will be calm once I’m done patrol, so I can visit her, if Queen Bee doesn’t murder me first.

[brynwrites]

Ask Compilation.

Topics covered:

Chapter Titles

Nonbinary character shenanigans

These Treacherous Tides, the series

Marketing yourself as an author via blog

Starting back up with writing

Writing children

Writing fighting woman with big hearts

Differentiating casts who feel similar

Writing in your native language vs English

And a few notes from my lovely followers.

All other questions should be listed on the ask queue page. (Except the last two WIP related questions I haven’t gotten around to answering…)

Chapter Titles

@aithlynfreyeaesthetic asked: Hello, I hope you're doing well. Are chapter title absolutely necessary? I've been avoiding chapter titles purely because I'm horrible at titles, but I've just always wondered.

Not at all! The majority of fiction books don’t use chapter titles. They can be fun, especially in certain genres, but they’re in no way necessary. 

Nonbinary character shenanigans 

@thebravetinsoldier asked: Hi! I’m writing a steampunk story were the main character is being hunted because they’ve cheated death and become immortal by changing their “deceased” parts with robotics and magic. I really want this character to be nonbinary, but part of the explanation is that they’ve changed parts of themselves so much that they no longer remember if they were a boy or a girl. Is this a bad thing? Sorry for the bad formulation, English is not my first language.

First up, I want to clarify that there’s nothing inherently wrong with most concepts in which nonbinary people are robots or mythical creatures, but it does paint an uncomfortable picture simply because there are so few nonbinary character in existence who are actually human, creating a implication that nonbinary people are not-quite-human because humans are the ones who have binary genders.

You fix that particular issue with a small adjustment: Let there be fully human/non-magical nonbinary characters in the world, even if they’re just a side characters who only appears in one scene. 

The main problem here though, is the idea that physical appearance determines identity. Rather than presenting the main character as not being able to identify whether they’re a binary gender, it’s far better to present it as them knowing they don’t (and have probably never) felt like a binary gender, and feeling happy with the way their body is androgynous, because they don’t feel the need to present as a specific gender*. 

Let me illustrate it this way: A girl who losses her physical, female body (or is born in a male body) will be no less a girl, even if society tries to tell her that she could or should be a boy. With time, she’ll still decide she is in fact a girl, no matter what her body says. The same is true with nonbinary people. If a person composed of robotics and magic decides they’re nonbinary, then it’s because they’ve always been nonbinary; they might have just taken a while to figure it out, especially if they original had a body their society told them had to assign them a binary identity.

(*this is not a qualification of being nonbinary by the way, though it is a common feeling among many nonbinary people.)

These Treacherous Tides, the series

@kiarazuri asked: You’ve mentioned before that Pearl is set in a mermaid series called These Treacherous Tides (awesome title, btw) and I was wondering how many books you’ve got planned? Also whether or not any of the books will interact with each other or just be set in the same world?

The These Treacherous Tides series is going to be a more or less unconnected series of romance/family-oriented books about different species of merfolk (and humans), though I’m not opposed in any way to cameos, especially of side characters. 

I don’t officially have a second book planned yet, but merpeople are one of my favorite things in existence, and the moment I finished Our Bloody Pearl I knew I wanted to write more books about them. I do have two concepts I want to play with in future books, so I’ll be fleshing them out further and picking a direction for them once I’m finished with We Are, We Are Monsters.

Marketing yourself as an author via blog

Anon asked: hi! i'm getting into the final stretch of writing my first novel (i have a few drafts left to complete and then i'll begin the self-publishing process!) and i was looking into how to market myself. among other things, i've been told to create a separate tumblr blog to post about my writing. obviously, yours is working very well! i was wondering if you would suggest doing this and if you have any tips to get it started/gain a following? thanks! 

I would definitely suggest creating some kind of blog for writing, and in my experience the writeblr community here is very encouraging and one of the most interactive writing communities on the web. The one thing I will mention though, is that every follower you talk to (i.e. are acquaintances or friends with) are worth a hundred followers you don’t know. I owe all my success to having a ton of writeblr friends who have (and continue to) reblog my posts like they’re gold. 

Check out my marketing tag for a ton of posts I’ve written about this! (Make sure you scroll down to the article on building an audience.)

Starting back up with writing

Anon asked: So I've just had exams so I had to stop writing for a while, but now I want to get back into writing my novel but I'm really struggling. I feel like I've forgotten everything ugh. Do you have any advice on how to jump back in?

My key tips:

Start small. Write 50 words. Take a break. Write another 50 words.

Remove distractions. If you’re on tumblr you’re not writing.

Don’t worry if your writing doesn’t sound good! (Follow the link for a full post!)

Writing children

@bloodybutterfly222 asked: Hey! I really love your tips, and I thought maybe you could help me with a problem I've been stumbling in. I have a story that partially revolves around parenting (bonding with a 2-year-old, more specifically) but I realized I don't know how to write children speech/dialogue. Since I've never had much contact with children myself, I'm even more at a lost about how to portray it significantly and yet accurately. Do you happen to have any tips on the matter?

I would love to help you, but I have little current experience in this area too. (Which I’m kicking myself over, because I did nanny through all of college, but I didn’t actually think about the way children speak while I was doing it and so when I write my own child characters they tend to be really stiff and generic.) 

The one piece of advice I will impart is this: Children are a lot smarter and braver and more creative than they’re given credit for, and they really do say the darnedest things. Some of my most memorable experiences with kiddos:

An eight year old asked me where evil and sin came from if god didn’t create it and then had a theological conversation with me that most adults couldn’t match.

He and his younger bother decided the heroes of our story would win by buying the villain a million ketchup covered pancakes.

Same younger bother spent ten minutes jumping on his bed shouting chocolate chips at the top of his lungs because he didn’t want to sleep. 

Also same young brother would tell everyone he was moving across the country for exactly seven years whenever he was angry.

Multiple instances of really polite 4-6 year old kids coming up to me while I worked retail at the Zoo, asking some variation of “Excuse me, miss, but would be okay if I could buy one of those cups, thank you” and then conducting the entire purchase on their own.

Writing fighting woman with big hearts

@tokinokagura asked: Hello Sir, Regarding your answer about strong female characters. In your opinion, where do females who are strong and independent yet have a very very kind side (like a fighting mom or big sis type, or a type who got something to be strong for) and also how do I approach this scenario of a strong independent fighting strong mother/big sis figure? Thanks in advance

There’s no trick to writing this sort of character; you just write them. Show her being both strong and nurturing, independent and compassionate. Explore the way these traits interact and enhance each other. Does she love her own freedom and want to provide others who are oppressed the same independence she’s found? Does she see compassion as something the strong are required to give? Does she believe true heroes are the ones who fight for others? Look deeper into how she became who she is and why she fights for those she fights for, and then carry that throughout the story in every scene, every choice she makes.

Differentiating casts who feel similar

@katekarl asked: Alright, I could use some help with this WIP. I have a heavy cast of female characters, and I need a way to keep them from sounding too similar. Some of them ARE similar, and the differences in worldview/personality/dialogue might be a little too nuanced. What are some ways that I can try and keep them from looking like they were copy-pasted into their different roles?

Bullet points!

Unless your world is heavy on the sexism and holds to very constricting gender norms, it shouldn’t make any difference that they’re all women; they should have just as diverse a range of personalities, hobbies, strengths, etc as if they were a group of any mix of genders, so long as the class and cultural diversity doesn’t change.

If your characters are too similar to differentiate between them, then you probably don’t actually need all of them. Any two characters who consistently make very similar choices should almost always be combined. If two characters are in fact making very different choices despite being similar in personality and background, then it might be time to sit down and figure out where those choices are coming from and adjust one of the characters to make the origin of their choices obvious.

In my opinion, quirkier characters are always more fun than un-quirky characters, and there are a million different crazy and eccentric traits you can give your characters to make them stand out. (I have a post about developing side characters here which has a few more, similar concepts.)

Writing in your native language vs English

Hi, I can speak English on a B2/C1 level but it's not my native language. I want to write a novel but idk what language I should write in. I have a poetry blog in English and I used to write stories in English but I feel like something more serious requires wider vocabulary and better language skills in general. I have nowhere to post/publish it in my native language though, so it would probably end up forgotten if I were to write it in my native language:/ what do you think I should do?

I don’t have any advice other than this: You’ll get better at a language the longer to try to write more complicated things in it. If you want to write something more serious in English someday, the only way you’ll get there is by writing something serious is English now, even if you do a poor job of it at first. 

Kind words

Anon said: I just wanted to say thank you for that fanfic answer and letting us in on what inspired you. I have an original novel in the works basically inspired by Steve and Bucky and wanting them to eventually build a definite relationship. But I didn’t want to write a fanfic, even though I love fanfic. It turned into a space opera thing

You’re very welcome! That sounds like an awesome space opera, and I wish you the best of luck with it! <3

Anon said: Hi I just saw what you said about writing through mental illness and I just had to tell you that it helped me so much! There is so much power in the advice and motivation you put there, thank you. 

I’m glad it could help! I’ve been struggling as a writer (and human) with depression and anxiety for year now, and I’m just happy to share what I’ve learned <3 I’ll admit that some days I don’t... well I almost said I don’t win this battle, but that’s not a mentally healthy way of looking at it. Some days I have to give myself time to recoop. Some days, taking proactive steps towards tomorrow is the best course of action, even if that doesn’t include writing. (And the taking to best course of action is always a successful day, even if you didn’t get to any of the things you wanted to.)

Anyhow, I’m proud of myself for coming this far and I’m proud of you all for growing alongside me!

Anon said: Not an ask, rather a message. Sorry if it's in the wrong place--I'm kinda new. So, yes, I'm a newbie and I found your blog, and I love it! Keep on writing. I'll be looking forward your works. Cheers! 

Thank you my friend! (This is exactly the write place. You’re so sweet to take the time to say this <3)

[avengers-nextgen]

Prometheus XVIII

It seemed that all worries had been forgotten. That any lingering fear had faded to the background. The adults watched the children with curiosity, each impressed by the resilience of their own offspring in the wake of conflict.

Wanda and Vision had essentially adopted Orion into their family as his parents continued to establish a new system in space. When they all went to the zoo Orion went along, when they went to the movies he went too, when they visited Wanda’s home once more Orion was there too. He enjoyed every minute of it.

All the while he and Scout grew increasingly more comfortable with one another. Vision noticed small things Scout did that Wanda also did. Sometimes he’d absentmindedly link pinkies with Orion, fix a wrinkle of clothing, settle his chin on Orion’s shoulder when bored, and even walk too close to the other boy so their elbows brushed together.

As for Wanda, she noticed traits of her husband in her son. The way he rambled about things he found interesting, the way his hand gestures while talking often involved some form of contact with Orion, and the way he blushed when he accidentally did something embarrassing.

It was very sweet in her opinion. Especially the way they fed off of each other’s emotions. Orion had become like a second son. The other half of Scout that had been missing for a very long time.

— — —

Chloe was beginning to see the brighter side of things. She wasn’t perfect, she never had been and never would be, but Nathaniel was a source of help she never thought she’d get. He understood everything, all of it, and as much as Chloe loved her brother-he just wasn’t able to help how she needed it.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t tried, but he just didn’t know what she needed. And having taken some of the older boy’s advice Chloe felt some of the weight on her shoulders slowly dissipate. She’d opened up, let him read her journals, and rather than assess the creativity of her writings he’d tried his best to talk through them with her.

He asked questions; how were you feeling when you wrote this? What’s the purpose of this? Did it help after writing it? Etc. They picked through nearly every page and talked until they ran out of time because he was needed elsewhere.

She began to look forward to the little meetings. It felt good to finally be understood. To finally have someone able to help her through her emotions. And-in a way-it was therapeutic for Nathaniel too. He’d come to better terms with things and had even babysat his niece Ellie. The baby was definitely energetic and he couldn’t help but love her.

What’s more, the two had an idea. It took lots of help from Piper and her contacts but it was coming to fruition. Nathaniel had mentioned his trip to the butterfly garden with Ellie years ago and Chloe had held back a few tears. Ethan had always called her his ‘little butterfly.’

Thus, a current building was under construction. It was a butterfly garden designed specifically to help people heal and process grief. They’d decided to call it, “Ellie’s Little Butterlies,” as a tribute to both Ellie and Ethan. People were already talking about it in the papers, and both Chloe and Nathaniel couldn’t help but be excited about it.

— — —

Piper was currently revising an architectural design to build a school solely for potential female STEM graduates. She’d run the designs by Gen and revised the plans as many times as it took to get things right all while Gen managed the finances.

And throughout it all Pepper couldn’t help but be proud of her daughter. She was steadily growing into her own self with ideas, passions, and interests that were far beyond anything she’d have expected.

Not only had Piper begun to design a school she’d also purchased an entire animal shelter eliminating the kill policy. After hearing about Gen’s volunteer time at a shelter and the way they moved through animals like trash-Piper decided that wasn’t going to stand on her watch.

Instead, she opened up the volunteer jobs to local homeless people who received portions of her savings and salary for their participation in taking care of the animals. Adoption rates had gone up, and Piper was certain it was because the homeless workers had finally found someone to love them, and they could now afford to care for an animal.

She was determined to start changing the local community for the better. After overhearing a discussion James and Fox had she’d learned some of the dirtier and often overlooked details politicians liked to pretend didn’t exist.

As for Tony, he couldn’t believe that someone was finally taking over the company and doing far more with it than he ever could have. He’d always tried to balance it with his hero job but-well that didn’t work out. He knew he was leaving it in good hands, and of course he was there should his daughter need any help. As for now he was watching from afar with the look of a proud father.

— — —

Fox had taken Maria’s offer and officially joined Shield. With that came her clean slate, and she was going to do something with it. Though it pained her, the first thing she did was shut down her parent’s business.

It had been passed down through the family but it had become something very different than its original intentions. The criminals inside were arrested and set to have trials, and Fox made sure to leave her parents with something. She arranged a place for them to stay and made sure they moved in comfortably but after that she made it clear: she was done having contact with them.

With James’ help and a few other agents they managed to redo the entire bar. It’s purpose as a bar would remain the same but what went on behind closed doors was no longer allowed. Formerly dirty, slimy, and all around gross, the building was now flashy, clean, and comfortable.

People no longer came in from gangs and other criminal affiliations. Instead it was happy people with friends, those on dates, and nervous college kids trying alcohol for the first time on their 21st birthdays.

James ran numerous background checks until he managed to hire a great group of workers and the place became one of popularity. On occasion he’d go there himself, not for any drink, but for food. And on occasion he’d conveniently be there the same time Fox was working a shift as a way to make money on the off days of work.

— — —

Thalia had taken an interest in Siyanda’s native language and the two were spending hours together teaching one another their native tongues.

Often times they said things wrong but the end result was worth a good laugh. Thalia was beginning to understand Siyanda the more she understood Siyanda’s culture. She even began to learn how to do different hair styles and would help Siyanda with them.

All of which Siyanda found endearing. She couldn’t think of the last time someone had bothered to learn so much about her and her people. It made her heart melt, and it made her consider taking Thalia back home to officially introduce her to everyone. But Siyanda was still hesitant about the idea.

Never the less, she enjoyed Thalia’s company. They were practically joined at the hip and Siyanda found Sif and Valkyrie very interesting. They had different perspectives on things than the ones Thor had, and there were certain traits Thalia had that matched her mother’s.

Siyanda supposed that at the end of the day, if she couldn’t quite bring herself to introduce Thalia yet she could at least bond with the rest of Thalia’s family. And they were happy enough to get to know Siyanda too. They were as curious about her as she was about them.

— — —

Arthur and Penny went on their ‘date’ despite Arthur’s nerves. He didn’t like socializing much let alone going out in public a whole lot. With Penny though it didn’t matter so much. She was full of spunk and energy and Arthur couldn’t bring himself to dwell on the negatives.

When they’d finished lunch Penny dragged him to an arcade nearby and he discovered a very interesting fact: Penny was extremely good at basketball. It turned out she’d played for a long time and had even participated on a few club teams before quitting to pursue her science interests and hero work.

Arthur couldn’t believe it, but Penny insisted she’d made the right choice. Still, he coaxed her into playing the basket shooting game only to lose with a major ass whooping to show for it. All the while though he saw her grinning in his peripheral. She was in her element and missing seemed to be impossible for her.

But Arthur got his revenge at air hockey. Penny, despite the assistance of her medication, was still easily distracted and he scored points like crazy. She took the loss with grace and a playful shove before deciding it was best they spend their tickets on something they could share.

The two purchased a stuffed bear. Penny decided on the name since Arthur picked the color of the bear. It was named Thickey the Bear, because of its butt.

— — —

Bianca was at the mercy of Enzo’s excitement as he tried to show her everything possible. All of his favorite movies, shows, books, conspiracy theories, and more. He’d latched onto her like a new big sister. She didn’t mind of course-he was very sweet.

And listening to him talk about school and his best friend Max was adorable. According to Enzo, they were the best on the hockey team. Bianca asked if Enzo knew anything about hockey at all and he didn’t. All he knew was that Max played it and they were really good.

Bianca took it upon herself to google as much as she could find on the sport and taught Enzo all about it. Then, she accompanied him to one of Max’s games. Having a better understanding of the game Enzo was all grins. Afterwards, Max came to say hello and Enzo dumped all of his highlights of the game on the other kid.

Upon Max’s curiosity Enzo sheepishly explained that Bianca had taught him all about the game. After that, Bianca found herself to be quite the hockey fan, and it was no surprise that it happened to be one of Bucky’s secret indulgences.

— — —

With Sage now integrated into the family life Alex had made her buy a brand new wardrobe which was like getting a kid to eat vegetables. At the end of the day-which was a long and exhausting day-Sage finally had new clothes that didn’t look like they were years old.

She did, however, sneak an extra shirt into the mix that hadn’t gotten Alex’s approval. Then, the next day she’d worn it and the look on the blonde’s face was priceless. Say:Eye, Spell: Map, Say: Ness.

From that moment on it became Sage’s mission to find increasingly ridiculous shirts. Alex pretended to hate it but she actually enjoyed the little sense of humor because it made Sage laugh. Not to mention she was so proud of herself for such a little rebellious gesture.

But the shirts weren’t the only small aspects of Sage’s personality that began to show through. Alex had discovered an old key board and it turned out Sage knew how to play very well. Alex had asked to be taught and Sage was surprisingly patient with it. Everything athletic came easy to her but music wasn’t something she was good at. She would try however, because it was something to bond over.

What surprised Alex the most was the evening Sage came back from a weekend exploring with Thalia (in search of other Asgardians) with a baby kitten. It was solid black with a single bright green eye. The other was missing. Sage had named it Salem, and once something was named it was meant to be kept.

The little guy took a liking to everyone immediately. Except for Enzo and his tarantula Kara. The kitten was as scared of the spider as everyone else was. And rightfully so.

— — —

But despite the new developments, both with new additions of people and pets, the kids were the same. They were kind, caring, loveable, loyal, strong, and most of all-a family.

The End

Stay tuned for more!

[sparda3g]

My Hero Academia Chapter 183 Review

Okay. I can definitely say this is the end of the arc; I’m 100% certain. Kohei decided to go through a montage or quick run of other events from the Festival. It’s probably for the best in my opinion due to how they don’t hold that much prestige to focus thoroughly. That being said the chapter did end on a nice note for an overall enjoyable arc.

If there’s one event that I would have like to stretch out more, it would be Class-B play, which is practically “I understood that reference” moment. I know not everyone is into pop-culture references, but I thought this was amusing for what it is. It would be a joy if it lasted more than a page, showcasing the ridiculous amount of storyboarding. Regardless, it was a funny moment.

One thing I remember from the anime is smartphone’s existence makes communication easier in today’s world for better or worse. It seems that Kohei has to keep Deku irresponsible when it comes to it. That way the plot or battle would ensue solo, though it can get redundant. Breaking the phone made sense in the Training Camp, but anything more would be head scratching.

I thought Deku would get some punishment for the action earlier, including how he should have rely on other heroes. The sad part is this moment would have been more effective if Deku purposely left others unnoticed to keep the Festival going. It would have been a good life lesson for him and the fans; instead, it only comes off a lesson learn that he’s already aware of. Remember, he only lie about the severe of his battle against Gentle, so it’s not like he purposely ignored the concept of heroes.

In any case, he is allowed to roam free and have fun with his friends, because Hound Dog is a good boy. Granted, he knocks him away, but you know, dogs can be rough. I’m going to save Eri’s part later, so in the meantime, let’s cover the other aspect of the Festival. Class-A gets praised for the performance. I would say  it’s only because they have main characters, but they were the opening act, so this scene is appropriate to exploit. It may be a bit too much, but it’s the main class.

I really don’t think it was needed to have committees from the Departments to be haters only to be convinced otherwise. It didn’t have much ground to begin with, so it didn’t hold much importance to the overall. All I remember is Bakugou saw those guys and never really reflect more until last chapter. Sure, it gave them a reason to go hard, but it can be said with any reason. Oh well. At least it was settled, so that’s that.

The Beauty Contest is shown and for what it is, it’s fine. I didn’t mind too much since this chapter is largely a relax one despite not really caring much of these events. Again, that Class-B play should have gone on a bit longer. At least we got to see what made Kenranzaki stand out; that’s probably understatement. She brings in some vehicle that could be in the next Twisted Metal game with her face on it. That would also include those eyelashes. It’s actually a funny visual with how it looks like it has fangs. It even pops out with a small body; how she won before is a mystery.

It’s predictable that Nejire is going to win this content, especially how this is her last year. I assume she lost last time because she tried to be flashy like Kenranzaki; dare I say there is no try. Instead, she goes out there and be herself, do what she does best, and her quirk is good for her quality to dance like a fairy. Sadly, the visual only shows her in the midair and that’s it. I guess Kohei is still exhausted from the last chapter in which we will get to that shortly. But really, it is him getting done quick as possible. Later, she is voted as the best, so good for her. It must be a bone thrown of Kohei because well, you know.

The scene enters a montage of everyone enjoying the Festival. I thought it was neat and probably for the best to get the narrative across of the students having fun. I would have like more of it, but when the series got mixed with the training and battle portion, one may get sacrificed in the importance level. I don’t recall at this moment on which series balanced it well, but I thought this could have done so. That said there are points that Kohei did good on.

The moments with Eri is charming and although you could argue that her development should have been taken care of last time, this was a fitting time as well. It’s nice of her to gain a human personality, let alone a child’s, so she can actually express her opinion with joy. Kohei did have two routes to choose and he chose the good side. It’s rewarding of its kind and I like it.

Deku did his job, so good for him on that regard. I like how he even got her an apple candy, so she can taste the sweetness. It’s a good end for her and although I don’t know when we will see her again, I wouldn’t mind. She obviously has an ability that can be helpful, so we will most likely see her again. It probably take time since controlling quirk is different than just gaining humanity. Other than that, I enjoyed this.

The other part that I like is the ending for Gentle and La Brava, mainly the former. I once had a feeling that Gentle being the main target for development, let alone sympathetic backstory, would mean something more. He too learned something from his confrontation and probably the only villain that has good morale than being completely evil. Because of his timing and lesson learned, the Gorilla cop, which is comical, let him know that he should be grateful that he is a rare one that actually got something out of it rather than laze around.

I like it because it shows how his character was the main focus in development term, since others kind of just get it on the spot without any action. Jirou’s development gets told about music and off she goes; somewhat undermined later on. Eri is a child, so it’s fine. Gentle gets the shine because he wasn’t a real villain, just a sympathetic guy. It’s no wonder he received it this way. Plus it helps the concept of the Festival bringing a change in a person for the better.

There’s a suggestive tone that maybe Gentle and La Brava will not go to jail or at least sentenced for a long time. Cops were impressed with La Brava’s hacking skill, but she only does it for her darling, Gentle. Maybe having both of them work for them is an ideal, like a service community. If so, that would make the development more reasonable and not just a one-time moment because jail and all. Granted, we will lose the villainy portrayal, but there are other points that can shine their characteristic. I guess we have to wait and see.

The visual is good though pretty simplistic this time around. It is better than sketches no doubt, though the amount of white background is plenty enough to make it feel a bit hollow. It’s kind of ironic if you ask me. The only time it was detailed was the beginning with the play. The character design is simpler like no need for shades or anything, though that’s fine with slice of life being the focus. I hope Kohei is healthy but I am probably overthinking.

This was a nice end chapter for the arc. It covered the last remaining pieces and it ended nicely for certain characters. While I don’t think it rejuvenated my attachment greatly like during the current run of the anime, this was meant to be relaxing. If the next arc is a serious one, I hope the joy of it will come alive like before. With this arc ended, it’s only matter of time to see what’s next.

[mattpitman]

If I ran the circus.

“If I Ran the Circus” by Dr. Seuss was one of my favourite books as a child. 

My family has a bit of history with the circus, we spent a lot of time there and it was pretty great. It’s weird how childhood memories sneak up on you when you have time to just sit and think. I was reminded of this book and its story as I was looking through an online bookstore and for one of those unknown reasons, I found my way to Dr. Seuss. I wasn’t going to buy any, it just happened. Weird.

The story, for those who don’t know, is told from the perspective of Morris McGurk, a young boy who is daydreaming about what he would do with “his favourite place in the whole world”, the vacant block outside Mr. Sneelock’s Store. As Morris’ imagination begins to get out of control, poor Mr. Sneelock is, unknowingly, brought along for the ride, being asked to do more outlandish and risky things for the sake of “The Circus McGurkus”.

It starts off small, Morris imagining that Mr. Sneelock will be able to adapt his store to be more like a stand so he can sell balloons and pink lemonade, that’s a simple change that would allow him to continue to sell products like he always did. Now it is more specific to the increasingly rapid change of environment in the once-vacant lot. 

As Morris begins to think bigger and bigger, however, Mr. Sneelock goes from selling pink lemonade to having an arrow shot from his head, skating through a dangerous obstacle course and finally jumping into a fishbowl, a feat that everyone knows is a bad idea - it’s dangerous, against the advice of experts and puts Mr. Sneelock in harm's way for unnecessary reasons. The performances Mr. Sneelock was a part of earlier were completely fine and there was no need to make another change so hastily. Mr. Sneelock complies though, maintaining his composure and professionalism, as well as his glasses and pipe throughout all the toing and froing.

At the end of the story, Mr. Sneelock, apparently, hears all of Morris’ wild imaginative thoughts and finishes the book looking wide-eyed and panicked as Morris claims:

“Why! He’ll be a Hero!

Of course he won’t mind

When he finds he has

A big circus behind.”

It seems Mr. Sneelock has some huge expectations to fill in the changing world of the vacant lot and the change to the Circus McGurkus. In Morris’ imaginative opinion he will be willing to comply with whatever he is asked to do. This is reflected in particular, with the use of “he might help out” at the beginning of the book, and “of course he won’t mind” at the end.

Now am I the first to think these thoughts or analyse this story for social commentary, no I am not. But I present to you a dramatic retelling of the story. The players for this retelling of “If I Ran the Circus” are as follows:

In a surprising twist on the original tale, playing the role of Morris McGurk: Hon Scott Morrison MP AND Hon Dan Tehan MP - I’ve seen them both in a lot of things lately, will they be able to pull it off?

In an equally surprising twist, playing the role of Mr. Sneelock: All the teachers and educators of Australia - With so much being asked of them, will they all be able to keep up and perform at the highest level. We shall see.

Finally, playing the role of the Circus audience: The confused Australian public - just a good job with casting on that one.

Hopefully, you can see what I did there. 

I am disappointed about a lot of the news that has come out this week. I’ve seen so many innovative redesigns of learning programs and so many examples of educators going the extra mile for their students during this difficult time. I admit this hasn’t been a smooth transition for many and there most definitely is a digital divide in this country, but I also feel that the shortcomings of our outdated education system are not just a topic of internal conversation anymore, there is some action, especially on the ground-level. At the highest level though, as decisions have been made about the immediate future of teaching in this country, I am disappointed that educators have been generally left out of the discussion and I am worried the more I hear.

The Circus McGurkus was just the wild daydream of a small boy, but I can’t help but feel like this real life “circus” we find ourselves in right now, is any less ridiculous or outrageous than what was asked of old Mr. Sneelock. I just wish as an educator, that I felt supported by our regulators.

Perhaps I am just stretching and the comparison to one of my favourite stories growing up as a boy isn’t relevant to real life right now. But it definitely feels like we are being thrown through hoops without any say, just like Mr. Sneelock from Sneelock’s Store.

“Why! Teacher’s will do it!

They don’t have a choice

When they find that their Government

Left them no voice!”

I’m just disappointed.

Here’s a few things that have inspired me this past week as an educator and a leader:

Twitter (https://twitter.com)

What a ridiculously late suggestion, but it is the truth. I have never really used Twitter. I have an account, mostly to follow my brother as he followed the Milwaukee Bucks as a journalist in the US. This week I have made more of an effort to explore what is on offer and it has proven to be a vibrant community and an uplifting read every-time things seem to be dark and gloomy. I don’t have any specific people to follow, but it definitely felt as I read through a number of educators’ thoughts this week, like a cohesive and supportive community, and one that I am fortunate to be a part of. Sorry I am so late to the party, hopefully I can add some value in the future.

The Atlantic Daily: Four Leaders Who Acted Swiftly (https://www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/archive/2020/04/ardern-merkel-breed-newsom/610351/)

I really enjoy a lot of the articles in The Atlantic and this summary of Ardern, Merkel, Breed and Newsom was a fantastic and inspiring snapshot into four leaders who were not afraid to take the required action, even before their people understood the reasons why.

Image by Mystic Art Design from Pixabay

[adventure-hearts]

Any advice for trying to introduce friends to Digimon? Especially the Adventure-verse?

Great ask! I do have loads of suggestions. 

(However, keep in mind that I haven’t actually tested any of these on other humans, because I haven’t talked to IRL friends about Digimonsince primary school. I’m weird.)

Here it goes!

» R’sUnofficial, Untested Guide to Introducing Your Friends to Digimon Adventure «

First, some assumptions:

You’re mainly interested in getting your friends intothe anime side of the franchise, specifically Adventure.

The friends in question have never had any significant contact with the Digimon franchise (or they watched it as children, but have no attachment to it).

They are grown-ups.

They would not just laugh at the suggestion of(re)watching a children’s anime from 1999, as most people would, for somereason.

Arguments

Yes, because before you get your friend in front ofthe computer or the TV or their phone, you have to actually convince them to give Digimon Adventure a chance, and explain why they should spend their precious time with this thing you like instead all the other things they would rather be doing instead. 

Here are some reasons you can present them:

It is one of themost well-known animes of all time, globally. It’s just a classic.

It transcendsits genre by far. It has little to do with Pokémon or similar series for boysfeaturing fighting monsters – it’s much more of a character-driven drama withsci-fi, fantasy, horror, and action-adventure elements.

The story isbased on time-tested formulas and so fits into a much wider literarytradition. It’s the hero’s journey mixed with one of the most traditionalscenarios in children’s literature (being transported to a mysterious world).

It’s filled withreferences to pop culture, literature, film, mythology, technology, science, andphilosophy, that elevate it in a grown-up’s eyes.

It discussespretty deep and sometimes dark themes.

You’ll fall inlove with the characters.

It has a greatsoundtrack and voice acting that make up for the dated animation.

It can be prettydamn funny… despite the poop jokes.

The content issurprisingly unproblematic.

It can be a gateto a wider franchise with other anime series, films, video-games, toys, books, music, and even a stage play.

The Digimon fandom is apretty damn cool community.

Use whatever relevantdetail that will convince your friend to like it. Try to connect the series to theirindividual interests. It could be something as simple as “Voice Actor X is on it!”, but don’t be afraid to go personal or dark!

And once you’ve actually convinced them to give Digimon a chance, it’s time to decide how you’re going to get started.

Strategies

1. Start with one of the Hosoda movies. 

I think this isactually the easiest way to introduce someone to this franchise.

Not only are Movies1 and 2 short and accessible, but they also require little to no context or time commitment. Moreover, they’re one of the few Digimon products that can actuallybe considered artistic – they’re beautifully animated and Mamoru Hosoda is an extremely respectedfilm director. 

Our War Game is probably the more entertaining of the two, and you have theconnection to Summer Wars that givesit some further cred. It also has the bonus of introducing you to the maincast. Don’t worry about the backstory: If your friend likes it, you can show themmore later.

2. Start with Episode 21 of Adventure. 

It is a truthuniversally acknowledged that the first two arcs of Adventure are asentertaining as watching paint dry. Don’t make a newbie sit through them on afirst watch.

Sure, thoseearly episodes are great at introducing the characters and explaining how theworld works and have some pretty iconic moments. We know that. But if you start from thebegining, I guarantee that you’ll lose your friend before Devimon even makesan appearance. “But they will miss so much!”, you may be thinking. You canfill in the basic details, and if your friend ends up liking the show, they’ll haveplenty of time to go back later and catch up.

Episode 21 maybe a good starting point precisely because it’s such an outlier and a turning point in the story. Again, there’s the Mamoru Hosodaconnection – it’s the best animated episode in the series, by far – and thatstrange, nostalgic mood that somehow captures the best this universe has tooffer. It’s an interesting starting point.

After Taichi goes to Odaiba and back, the plot runsmuch more smoothly. The remainder of the Crests arc is more than enough tointroduce you to the characters, the relationships between them, and how theworld works. And then you plunge right into the Vamdemon and Dark Masters Arcs, which are easily the best parts of DigimonAdventure.

3. Start with tri.

I’m ambivalent about this strategy because tri. isn’tfor everyone – in fact, it has many of the same pacing problems of theoriginal series. But tri. is made to revive interest in Adventure and to coverall the bases – devoted fans, fans who haven’t watched it in ages, or evenpeople who barely remember the previous series. This may be the best option for people who still have some vague recollections of watching Digimon as a kid.

For some people, it may seem less daunting to start witha modern, 20-episode anime series instead of a 50-episode series from the1990s. If they like tri. and are curious about its background, then they’ll bemuch more motivated to go back to the original series. In fact, perhaps not having that background will makemany of tri.’s problems seem less obvious? 

Alternatively, you run the risk of your frienddisliking the first few episodes of tri. or just feeling completely lost orbored, which will turn them off Digimon forever. That’s why this is a risky option,so it depends on your friend’s personality and what you feel their tastes are.

Bonus: Out-of-the-box strategies

4. Start with 02.

I know, I know. Sounds bonkers. But hear me out.

I know multiplepeople who got truly hooked on this universe via 02 – including myself. I hadwatched Adventure as a small kid, but it was the debut of 02 (when I was a bitolder), that made be want to dive deeper into things, and urged me to revisit Adventure. 02 simply has this je ne sais quois,especially in the first half, that makes it really fun, compelling viewingexperience for a newbie.

Moreover, 02 is the opposite of Adventure: it peaks inthe first half and it has better pacing at the start. By episode 4, the plot hasbegan in earnest and you know all the characters and the antagonist. You evenget mentions of backstory, the charismatic older characters, and an almostmythical aura around “the previous adventure”, which can be enough to make you want to re-watch Adventure right away.

02 has its share of problems, but, like tri., watchingit without comparing it to all the things Adventure did better can actually bean advantage. And getting introduced to Digimon Adventure asa prequel to 02 could make it lookeven better.

Think of this as the Machete order of the Adventureuniverse. Unorthodox, but it can actually make it more satisfying for newpeople.

5.Start with other Digimon series.

Not my favourite optionm since I think the Adventureuniverse is so crucial that its more interesting to watch it first and then goto the series that deconstruct it or homage it in some way. 

However, this is alwaysan option, especially if you know your friend’s taste would be more in tunewith other series. Just be careful with what you pick. Digimon Tamers and Appmonwould be solid introductions to the franchise. Xross Wars or X-Evolution? Probablynot a great idea.

6. Start with video games.

This is more directed to those friends who are obsessedwith gaming and have limited time for other media (we all know the type). The Adventure-related games may be a goodway of getting them attached and curious enough to check the original anime. 

Alternatively,the newer, high quality Digimon games (like Cyber Sleuth) could be an effectiveway of making the franchise more appealing for hardcore gamers.

Don’ts

These are strategies that I would NOT recommend (although in some cases, Isuppose any of them could work):

Starting withthe English dub (sorry: you know I feel strongly about this issue) or, godforbid, Digimon: The Movie. Original version all the way.

Starting withfanfiction, analysis, or the fandom in general. Let them form their ownopinions first!

Hyping theseries too much or being super-extra about it.

Bribing or blackmailing.

I hope this helps! Feel free to test these suggestionsand give me some feedback on wether they worked or not.

And if anyone has more ideas, please share! We all wantto make this stupid franchise more known to the world :)

[cerealwatch]

Okay so

Oh boy. Okay. I’d love to talk about all things Overwatch with you! Just… be prepared for some salt about certain characters. These are just my opinions.

I’m gonna put this under read more because this is gonna be long, my friend.

OKAY okay so. Let’s start at the beginning. The Overwatch timeline is really, really confusing. The Overwatch lore is confusing in general. I have no idea what happens when, but thankfully someone (I can’t remember who, but they’re a savior) made a reasonable timeline of the Overwatch events.

However, new things keep getting added and I’m???? I’m confused but. Like. The Uprising event. I thought Ana died 10 years prior to present Overwatch time but the Null Sector mission took place 7 years ago so like???? You just have to freestyle. The timeline is basically nonexistent so all I have to say on that is I just do whatever the hell I want with the timeline and nobody makes a fuss because we all share that apathy. No one cares about the timeline. It’s not even worth the effort to try to piece it together.

And I mean, the information we have on most of the characters is really vague??? I mean it gives me a lot of room to experiment and stuff but I’d love to have something solid on the characters that aren’t part of the original strike team or the Shimada Bros (because god knows how much Chu favors those two).

Like, D.Va, Symmetra, Zarya, Mei, Emily… they get ignored. Entirely. We only have mere snippets of them to work with and even then, I don’t have a fucking clue. It’s upsetting, really, but I assume (and hope, and pray, and wish, and need) we’ll get like a comic or an animation on one of theme here soon.

Well, we’d better. Or something for Pharah or Mercy because I SWEAR TO GOD if its something for the characters that already have SUBSTANTIAL LORE to work with I’m gonna be upset. I’m already upset. I’ll just be even more upset.

Like at this point there’s only a select few characters I even relatively give a shit about? But I figure I’ll just go through every character and state my opinion on them.

Genji - “I NEED HEALING I NEED HEALING I NEED HE—“ This is the ultimatum of Genji. He’s a double-edged sword. I can’t find it in myself to like him, not after everything. I won’t let myself say that I hate him, but I just… I can’t appreciate his character. In theory, his design in aesthetically appealing, and his backstory is dark in a way that I might have been able to enjoy were it not Genji. But at this point, he’s too far out of reach. His gameplay is not one that works well with mine, as a Mercy main, and the people who play him are THE MOST toxic in all the Overwatch community, hands down. And when I don’t heal him, Genji players don’t understand that maybe it’s because I have no idea where the fuck they are. Maybe it’s because they’re on the other side of the goddamn map and boy, would I love to heal you, but I can’t if you aren’t within reach of my health noodle. Maybe it’s because they’re jumping head first into the enemy team, and I may be healer, but my priority first and foremost is to keep MYSELF alive, so if you die in .2 seconds it’s not my fault.

In my opinion, Genji contributes nothing to a team, and where Overwatch is TEAM FOCUSED game, I can’t see the point in having him on a team. I can’t see the point in risking my life to heal him. I don’t see what he brings to the table. I won’t let myself hate him because Genji, as a character, deserves better than what people who play him make him, but I don’t see his value.

McCree - I could care less about McCree. I don’t have a set opinion in him. His character is extra in a way that is almost comical, and I can appreciate the McCree & Pharah sibling dynamic. It’s cute. And McCree is fun to play, I will admit. But as for what happens to him, I could care less. His character interactions are boring. His personality isn’t interesting. So while I don’t dislike him, simply because he’s fun and weird, I really just don’t care about him. At all.

Pharah - I LOVE HER I love her so much. I love Fareeha “Pharah” Amari. I love her because she’s everything you need for a commander, and I love her because she loves everyone. Like, she can be stern and strategic and harsh but she also cares so much for her teammates. I love her because of her morals— her tendency to defend, her instinctual need to protect. This is her life. This is what she was born to do— protect, and love, and if anyone should be the face of net-overwatch it had damn well better be her. I love her because her comfort can be the wisest of words and it can be the smallest of brushes of shoulders in the hallways and I love her because both of those comforts can mean the same thing in different contexts. I love her because when her mother left, she wasn’t understanding, fucking hell she was bitter. And you can hear it in her interactions that, maybe, she’s still bitter, she’s still mad at her mom for leaving. She certainly isn't upset for her mother putting her work above her child, but she’s bitter because she’s doing what she loves in protecting people and the only thing she can think of is how much her mother would disapprove. I don’t like what the fandom has done to her in making her character revolve solely around her mother, because while Ana certainly made her who she is, she doesn't define her. She’s the Strike Commander that the new Overwatch deserves.

Reaper - At the beginning, before we had any background on what he was like before the fall, I disliked him. I thought he was boring and his gameplay was dull and he was just some angsty teen wearing every clusterfucked article of clothing in Hot Topic. But now, now that I have lore, I love this man. I love his dedication and the fact that it wasn’t jealousy, it never was, but it was the fact that Overwatch wasn’t doing jack shit while the world crumbled in London. He deserved so much more than what he got— his strike team of fuck-ugly Overwatch rejects. Talon fucked him up but I think, deep down, he’s still just sad about what could have been and he just wants to take Widow and Sombra on vacation to Hawaii and not have to think about war or blood or Blackwatch or Talon ever again. If Pharah is the leader Overwatch needs now, he was the leader Overwatch deserved but never got, the one who cared about the troops and the cause so much that he would go so far as to forsake the law to fight for what he believed in. Easily one of my favorites.

Soldier: 76 - FUCK THIS MAN fuck him and his stupid white bread face and fuck his dumb aimbot let and FUCK the 12 year olds who can’t aim that play him. Fuck the people that see him as some dumb fucking father figure because he’s not he's a dumb, salty asshat who can’t accept the fact that Overwatch’s fall was his own dumb fault like the selfish fucking motherfucker he is. But most importantly, FUCK his stupid, unoriginal gameplay and his stupid unoriginal backstory. Blizzard thought they were being clever when they took Call of Duty and slapped a Yankee cap on it and called him Soldier: 76 but they weren’t. Fuck this dumb blonde-haired-blue-eyed poster boy that can’t get over his cardboard ass. Fuck him.

Sombra - Her voice actress is a gift and her gameplay is actually super useful if used correctly and her character has a lot of potential and dynamic, especially with Reaper and Widowmaker, but I just can’t get super into her??? Like she’s really, really cool in terms of overall design and people who write her, kudos to you, but I can only appreciate her from a distance. Sometimes I wish I could like her more, but I can’t I just… can’t. She’s not for me.

Tracer - SHE’S SO IMPORTANT so important in so many ways. First and foremost, she’s the face of Overwatch and she’s gay and that’s cool. That’s super cool. I mean, it’s a small step forwards, but it’s a step in the right direction. Furthermore, she is important in that she is the heart and soul of Overwatch. She is what makes it a hero organization. She gives it that natural, friendly appeal. But even further, she loves so freely and openly. But she’s not perfect, and thats what I think is the best thing about her. She couldn't save Mondatta, and she beat herself up over it. She fell through time and space and she wasn't fine afterwards. She still isn't fine, but the most important thing is that she moves forward. That’s why she is one of my top three favorite characters. (In relation to There’s Blood in the Water, I gave her the ‘healing hands’ trope for this reason. It’s in her nature to care, so when she helps Hana along her way, it comes naturally to her not because she pities Hana, but because it’s in her nature to care.)

Bastion - Play of the Game Simulator 2k17. A one-button masterpiece of a game where you look in one direction and shoot and wow! Look! You got a kill. Good job, you special snowflake you. A+ gameplay 10/10 would recommend.

Hanzo - I don’t like him. He’s just a fucking idiot is what he is. Nothing, absolutely nothing of what he did to Genji was justified. Like, if I was mad at my brother for enjoying the simple things in life would I be mad? I mean, sure, but like if I were the heir to the empire anyways I wouldn’t see a damn problem. But like, even if I were mad, why the fuck would I kill him over it? It just makes no fucking sense. There’s no reason. There is absolutely no reason someone should ever be so angry as to see murder as the only solution. There’s just no situation, especially with a sibling, someone you share your flesh and blood and your fucking life with, where murder is justifiable. Hanzo fucked up when he ‘killed’ Genji and any guilt he feels by that decision is what he deserves. Anything that comes his way, he fucking deserves that shit. Honestly, he’s lucky that his brother found in in himself to forgive him because, if like, my older sister tried to kill me because she was upset I was having sex rather than, say, paying my bills, I would be pretty fucking upset.

Junkrat - This dumb fcuking garbage man. You don’t need to aim to play him. You don’t need any level of experience with Overwatch to play him. Honestly he’s just so dislikeable???? I honestly can’t believe there are people that actually LIKE his character and ENJOY his play style. It’s just… so hard for me to believe. He’s so dumb. He’s SO DUMB. You don’t need to AIM to play him. And the people that ship him with Symmetra and Mei I’m just??? You really think they would let him within 10 feet of them??? Because you are sorely mistaken. This stinky rat man needs to go in the trash bin where he belongs.

Mei - Okay like she’s actually a fucked up character?? People overlook the fact that she was the sole survivor of the Ecopoint incident. Like, can you imagine that? Waking up one day after everything had gone to shit, coming out of the cryopod and looking around and realizing that you were the only one that made it out alive. And it would be weeks before help arrived so just waking up every morning and seeing those frozen bodies in the windows of the cryopods. Can you imagine what that would do to someone? So like the fact that she is able to stay so upbeat and focus on her dreams is beyond me. Like the nightmares from that shit would be fucking wild. Just… respect Mei, man. She’s got her scars.

Torbjörn - I mean, despite the nonexistent level of skill that is required to play him, he’s not that bad? I like envisioning him as a total family man. Like, drops everything to cal his wife just to tell her he loves her. Even in the middle of battle. Loves all of his children and sends them souvenirs from wherever his missions take him. Names every single one of his turrets and encourages them, like ‘I believe in you, Linda, you can do it!’ or ‘Come on Olaf, just a little longer and then we win!’ I feel like he would just… take in anyone under his wing. You need help fixing something? He’ll help. You need to rant? He’ll listen. Albeit, it’s in a bit of a roundabout way, but he has seven kids and he knows how to listen. Fuck Dad: 76, where are my Dad Torb fics? You know, the guy who actually has children?

Widowmaker - Out of every character in this goddamn shitting addictive game, I think her lore is, by far, the most interesting. Capture by Talon and programmed to kill her husband at just the right moment, then released back under pretenses that everything was fine— I doubt even she knew what was wrong with her until it was too late, and then that guilt was manipulated and twisted until they had their perfect weapon. The Widowmaker. And I think, subconsciously, she’s aware of what she’s done, aware that she’s messed up beyond repair and that she’s done horrible things. And I think that’s what drives her to, eventually, let herself be taken in by Overwatch (purely a headcanon of mine). Eventually, she will have a redemption arc, and it will be long and hard and she won’t be the same. The idea that Amélie is still in there, somewhere, is pretty childish in my opinion because nobody’s the same after torture, and on the degree hers was supposedly at, there’s no possible way. She won’t revert back to what she was. After all that happened to her, she’ll never be the same. But she can start over.

D.Va - DON’T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON D.VA don’t even. I love her SO FUCKING MUCH. I love her SO MUCH that I wrote 85k words that’s basically torture porn that was put in a blender with a healthy dose of introspection and PTSD. I love her character, I love her gameplay, and more than anything else, I love her ult. But I also hate her, and before you ask why, I’ll make my case.

I hate what this fandom and Blizzard have done to her. I fucking hate it. There’s nothing that could get me to hate you more, or shut you out of my life more than saying you think the ‘gaming gremlin’ thing is funny. Because that shit’s disrespectful. It attacks D.Va’s character and it attacks gamers and it attacks 19-year-olds and the case they make? “It’s funny. It’s just a joke.” No. Shut the fuck up. That shit hurts. You don’t know how hurtful it is. You don’t know how hurtful it is to be disrespected like that. And that’s why Blood in the Water is the way it is because I know that shit and it fucking hurts.

The only thing I could possible hate more than that is infantilizing her. Is lowering to such a standard where she’s nothing more than a child in a catsuit. There is nothing more disrespectful than taking her character— a soldier, a war hero, a celebrity, and a survivor— and thinking: “She’s just a child!” Fuck you. She’s nineteen. She’s every bit an adult as the rest of them. She has seen war and she has seen death. People she loved have died. Her home was destroyed, but that doesn't matter to the fandom, does it? They take her and degrade her into nothing more than Jack Fucking Morrison’s “baby girl” and there’s nothing that makes me angrier. Write stories about her and her PTSD. Write stories about her and the imminent guilt that comes with being a commander in a war. Write stories about her coping with the weight of a country on her shoulders. But I swear to Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, don’t write stories about her being nothing more than a fucking Dorito imp. Because I see enough of that shit in her tag already.

Orisa - I mean, I don’t really have enough information to come to a solid conclusion about Orisa, but I can go with some basics. Her gameplay is a little dull— it copies off of way too many preexisting characters. Her design is fucking brilliant, but her skill set is almost as dull as Soldier: 76’s. Despite that, I actually like her quite a bit— she’s the Baymax of Overwatch, and Efi’s the Hiro. I’d let this centaur robocop lady hold me any day.

Reinhardt - I love sad grandpa who just wants to support everyone in whatever they do. He’s such a pure and wholesome character. Even if you don’t believe in yourself, you can bet your ass he’ll pick you up off the ground and help you the rest of the way. He cares so deeply about his comrades, and I think that’s what makes him such a lovable character. He just cares so deeply, even about people he doesn’t know too well. Love this grandpa. Also, did I hear dad figure to Mercy because you bet your ass I headcanon that shit.

Roadhog - I often forget he’s a character until I get hooked through 16 walls, the multiverse, and my entire team. It’s a fucking adventure.

Winston - He’s trying his best to lead Overwatch but I don’t think he’s cut out for it. And honestly, his character is really bizarre in a way that I don’t even know how to react to it. He’s a genetically modified gorilla from the fuck shitting moon, not to mention he can talk and his only friend is an unbelievable mom-like voice on a futuristic iPad. He’s like McCree in that he’s extra, but it isn’t even funny with him. It’s just plain weird.

Zarya - Zarya, I feel, is the most underrated in Overwatch’s roster. You don’t see any stories delving into her, you don’t see lore in her favor. She has few character interactions (but the ones she has are, by far, amazing). I would love to see more work of her, just because she’s such a likable character (come on, that pink hair just takes the cake). Maybe, someday, I’ll get around to writing her more because writing her is fun as all hell. I just want her to hold me in those big, strong arms of hers and make my depression and anxiety back the fuck off. Holy damn. She’s like the cool older sister that everybody needs.

Ana - Honestly, I’m actually kind of bitter about Ana. I can’t forgive what she did to Pharah. I don’t understand why or how she could bring herself to do that. But I believe that, more than any other character, she has the potential to make amends. You can tell, in the dialogue they have, the backstory they could potentially share, that they want to make amends, but it’ll be hard because who can blame Pharah for being bitter? Ana understands. In fact, she probably thinks she deserves it herself. I can’t imagine how guilty she would feel, how much she would worry that after so long, her only daughter might not want anything to do with her anymore, but she’ll try because she refuses not to make amends before her time comes. And, in time, things will ease into the way it should have been all along, and all she can think of is how lucky she is to have such a daughter.

Lúcio - This boy. He believes in you. The most supportive support to ever support. But his story isn’t that deep. His character is shallow in a way I can’t interest myself in. Like, sweet prince, I love you, but you aren’t really all that important to me. But I will always do my best to protect this boy.

Mercy - You know, when I got this game, I told myself I wouldn’t become a Mercy main. I told myself that because I’d read how hard and unrewarding it was. But now, with somewhere close to 85 hours clocked into her, I can only laugh at myself. And really, it is unrewarding. You gain nothing from playing her. It’s hard and it’s stressful and it makes you bitter and there just… isn't an upside. But I’ll keep playing her because if I’m good at being stressed and bitter and exhausted. My friends jokingly call me the ‘Unsupportive Support’ and really, that’s what Mercy is in-game. But no matter how unrewarding it is, I swear to god, there is NO BETTER feeling than watching your teammates all getting sucked into a graviton surge, knowing they’re going to die, and looking down and seeing that you have rez. There’s no better feeling than gliding in there and watching that 5x appear on your screen and this grin spreads across your face because you know, and the enemy team that failed to kill you knows they’ve fucked up big time. NO BETTER FEELING than a five-man rez.

But in terms of lore, personality, and interaction, she’s actually really interesting and fun to write just because I can relate to her so heavily. There’s no way she sleeps on a normal schedule. There’s no way she’s all sunshine and rainbows and pretty pearly smiles. There’s no way she’s anything other than exhausted all the time, kept awake only by heavy overdoses of caffeine. Like, the so obviously hypocritical factor about her is such a likable work. She makes sure everyone else keeps their health in check and then neglects her own. It makes her feel like such a human character. And her interactions? Some of the best in the game (namely with Pharah because that is the good shit). I love Mercy. Second favorite character, and by far the most relatable.

Symmetra - And here she is, the most ignored, underplayed character in the game. She has like, a grand total of ONE character interaction. And what’s worse is that she’s such an interesting character? Her internal conflict of work vs ethic is such a cool concept, and yet we don’t see anything of it. We just have to speculate. Does she regret what she’s done? Is she aware of the wrongness of it? Her comic didn’t help settle anything other than clarify that, at heart, she really is a good person. She really is just trying to make the world a better place, but the interesting thing is that she doesn’t know, perhaps, that what she’s doing with Vishkar isn’t good. It’s hurting more people than it helps. Her character has so much potential for grown, not that Blizzard will ever delve into it. She has potential to realize what she’s done and it’s not in her to wallow in it, but to do what she can to make it better. Which is why, I think, she joined Overwatch. That’s the thing about Blizzard— their little eggshell biographies don’t show the true intents of the characters, it doesn’t show their scars or their morals. And that’s what Satya needs most— her morals have been twisted from the beginning, her scars covered in invisible ink. Her life, all she knows, has been a lie, and when she realizes that, it’ll be a shitshow.

Also, that death noodle. It melts so fast. Why isn’t she played more? Who needs Reaper as a tankbuster when you could have Symmetra?

Zenyatta - Zenyatta is cool, but I think everyone always overlooks the fact that he’s only 20 years old? Like yeah he’s a monk but if you’ve seen 20 year olds they ain’t exactly saints. Let Zenyatta wear hoodies. Let Zenyatta make off-kilter jokes that no one expects because, well, its Zenyatta. He’s the universal vent-station and resident therapist of Overwatch, but let Zenny have some quirks, too. Writing him is super fun though because it’s just like ‘if I wasn’t constantly having an existential crisis what would I be like?’