#this evil hag I love this show | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

seeingivy · 1 year ago

Note

pls do "the story of us" for ur gojo x taylor swift series 🙏🙏

the story of us

satoru gojo x f!reader

**part of my satoru as taylor swift songs series

content: gojo is ur roommates best friend, he is annoying (more teen gojo I am arrogant bastard vibes then sweetie teacher baby gojo), hoes are fighting, hoes are in the most complicated situationship on the planet earth, mistletoe, ice skating, sukuna as an annoying ex, mysterious evil dad figure for gojo

an: proof im the most annoying writer ever. made a poll for taylor as gojo to, for a second time now, ignore those options and write a completely different songs. sincerest apologies but gojo as taylor fans come get yall juice.

“Good morning, you hag.” Satoru states, in a fell swoop, crashing any hopes you had of having a good morning.

“Good morning, you garden troll.” you respond.

You rub the sleep out of your eyes, rummaging through the cabinets for a bowl, as he jumps up off the couch and joins you in the kitchen, keen and eager to annoy you bright and early in the morning.

He’s leaning on the granite countertops at your side, his blue eyes peering over those god awful sunglasses he’s always intent on wearing - despite the fact that it’s quite literally raining outside - and gives you a jeering smile.

“So, do all girls wear granny nightgowns or is it just you?” he asks, twisting the end of your pigtail braids in his hair. You immediately smack his hand off and glare, turning around to reach for the milk.

“Do all boys have tiny dicks and overcompensate with a shitty personality or is it just you?” you iterate back, earning a satisfying glare back from him.

With his snow white hair and annoyingly glimmering blue eyes, your roommate's best friend, Satoru Gojo, is quite literally the biggest nuisance you’ve ever met in your life. Clearly a rich kid, trust fund type, you can tell that Satoru, in earnest, has never worked a day in his life. And his lack of tact and self awareness truly reflects that.

It’s embedded deep in the way that he acts. Because Satoru saunters from place to place, showing up at your apartment with no consideration or respect for you and Suguru, bats his pretty eyes at his professors when he’s failing, flirts with girls before he cheats off of their tests, and the list goes on and on.

One thing is clear. That he’s a spineless, pathetic little manchild.

And you’re not sure why, what it is specifically about you, but he’s clearly made it his personal mission in life to antagonize and irritate you.Maybe it’s the fact that you yelled at him the first time he ever showed up in this apartment, that you couldn’t help but disagree with every word that came out of his mouth, that at his core he just agitated you - but it led you to this horrible predicament that you’re in now.

That you ended up having to room with Suguru, when Sukuna dumped you and kicked you out. And that, of course, the universe was always in your favor, and you ended up at the one place Satoru was when he wasn’t shamelessly flirting with any living organism, which was right outside your room.

Right on cue, the front door slams open and Suguru’s barging in, wildly out of breath and panting. His usual fixed, pristine bun is in a mess, his pupils wide and dilated as he looks at the two of you.

“Fucking perfect!” he pants, leaning down on his knees and trying to catch his breath.

“G’morning Suguru. You okay, there?” you ask, giving him a strange look.

“Okay, okay. You guys are dating.”

“Huh?” you both ask, eyes boggling out of your heads.

“You’re dating. Be-be in love, I don’t know, be in love!” he shouts, immediately running back out of the door and slamming the door shut.

You and Satoru give each other a look before shrugging, returning back to your bowl of cereal and Gojo to his phone. And on cue, Suguru strolls back into the apartment, more calmly and with a girl at his side. His cheeks are still flushed in pink, the panting subsided but still present in his voice.

“Y/N, Satoru, this is Hiromi. Hiromi, this is my roommate Y/N and her boyfriend, Satoru.”

You swallow hard, realizing quickly what’s happening here. And out of the kindness of your heart, groan at the fact that you’re going to have to oblige.

Three months ago, you got dumped by Sukuna. Because as much as you and the two of you had moved past, he had finally exhausted all ends and had enough of you.

Quite literally, enough of you, because he went as far as packing your things and taking your key, fully intent on never letting you back in. And out of the kindness of his heart, one of your only friends - who was free of any attachments to Sukuna - had an empty room in his apartment that he offered to lease to you.

Suguru, naturally, was the perfect roommate. Always cleaned up after himself, offered to listen whenever you needed him, saved leftovers for you when you had a long day. Except for the stupid white haired plus one that came with him, it was perfect.

For you. Because while Suguru was all but willing to offer you the spot in the room, insisting that it never caused an issue, he might have been fibbing the truth to save your feelings. Something you found out from Satoru, who is naturally a loudmouth.

That since Suguru has a female roommate, you’ve put a damper on his…..romantic endeavors. Because they’re increasingly enthusiastic, so into him, until the shit hits the fan.

They find out that you’re his roommate. And you think it’s a little ridiculous, but they all cite the same reason for not talking to him past the second or third date. Because to them, there’s no way in hell that he isn’t crushing on you, that you don't cuddle at night, and that you definitely coddle each other in a way no one else does.

Because nothing is more ironic than losing a guy to the girl he lives with and they’d rather cut their losses before getting involved.

Which proves that Suguru must really like this girl. Because if he’s going this far, lying to her the second before she walks in, it must mean that he really wants her to stick around.

Is it moral? No. Is Suguru lonely? Yes.

“Hiromi. It’s nice to meet you. I’m Y/N.” you respond, setting your bowl down and extending a hand to her.

She gives you a warm smile back, laughing at Satoru flaunting some stupid line about chivalry before he presses a kiss on top of her knuckles. Satoru must be enjoying himself too much, because he’s now snaking his hand around your waist, leaning down to press his temple against yours.

“Would you like to stay for breakfast? Poor Suguru has third wheeled with us far enough.” he asks, as she politely nods in response.

You and Satoru lead Hiromi to the breakfast table - Satoru now eating your bowl of cereal - as Suguru starts setting out to make breakfast for all of you. You and Satoru sit side by side, sparing each other an awkward glance, as Hiromi shamelessly ogles you.

“So how long have you guys been dating?” Hiromi asks, politely folding her hands flat on the table.

“Well. Um, I moved here right after I broke up with my ex-boyfriend. He kind of left me with no place to live and I kind of met Satoru here. And then it just happened.” you mumble, cheeks turning pink.

Satoru, again, has no concept of personal boundaries. He slings his hand around your shoulders, planting a wet kiss on your cheeks, before responding to her.

“Don’t mind her, she just gets really shy when she talks about her feelings for me.”

“Satoru.”

“But rest assured, I promise you that you don’t have to worry about Suguru and Y/N, if that’s what you’re trying to pry about.”

Her face immediately goes pink, as you look over at Satoru, who flashes you a knowing smile and squeezes your shoulder.

“I-I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to pry, I hope you understand. It’s just that…it’s kind of a weird situation. And I know that probably says more about my insecurities than anything but-”

You reach over, placing your hand over her folded ones.

“It’s a normal thing to be concerned about. If I was you, I probably would have asked a hundred berating questions already.”

“Yeah. She gets really possessive.” Gojo unhelpfully adds.

You shoot him a glare, before returning to look at her and smiling.

“But I promise, you have nothing to worry about. I-I don’t even think about Suguru like that. And we’re never here alone, Satoru’s always here with me.”

“Like you, I too am possessive over my girl. Despite the fact that she quite literally makes it so easy for us by wearing the most unflattering pajamas, I’ll be here to stamp out any budding feelings, if that makes you feel better.”

“Yeah. Satoru really knows how to take the romance out of a room. I know better than anyone.” you respond, earning a laugh from Hiromi as she releases that awkward tension in her shoulders.

You kick the tiny divots on the floor, patiently waiting for your matcha latte at the bar. Your anxiety is growing by the second, the unexpected morning rush and the heavy foot traffic outside indicating that you were going to be late to your morning class if your drink wasn’t made in the next few minutes.

You’re thrown out of your thoughts by a tapping on your shoulder, only to find a boy, with blonde hair and brown eyes smiling at you.

“I like your shirt.”

You look down, at your boygenius the record shirt, and look up to smile at him.

“Thank you! What’s your favorite song?”

“We’re In Love.” he responds, giving you a warm smile.

You’re not sure why, but hearing him say the words has the blood rushing to your cheeks. You hold your hand out to him, swallowing that deep warm pit in your throat.

“Y/N.”

“Kento. It’s nice to meet you.”

And really, the moment - your stupid coffee shop meet cute - comes crashing down when you hear that agitating, grating voice at your side.

“And I’m Satoru!” Satoru states, standing at your side and too blissfully happy for seven in the morning. You glare at him, as he gives you an annoyingly irritating smile.

“Your drink is here, babe.” Satoru states, holding your dark green matcha latte in his nimble hands. From the way it’s half full, you can tell he already downed half of it in the few seconds you were talking to Kento.

“Thank you.” you grate out, giving Kento an awkward smile.

“Well, Kento. It was nice meeting you but we have a class to get to.” Satoru adds.

He cocks his head to the side, blue eyes peeking over his sunglasses, as he looks at you.

“Ready to go?”

You groan, knowing internally that whatever shred of a moment you just had was gone, as you sigh.

“Yes. Bye Kento.”

You glare at him as you walk out of the store, Satoru reaching over to pull the hood of your rain jacket up, as the two of you start marching through the downpour. He’s walking at your side, sporting some very light clothes for the way it’s raining down.

“I don’t like matcha. We should start getting iced vanilla lattes.”

“I didn’t realize we were sharing. And that was really rude, Satoru.“

“Everything that’s yours is mine, sweetheart.”

“Really? What are the three numbers on the back of your credit card, boo boo bear?”

“666.” he responds, flicking the side of your cheek.

“That’s fitting.” you murmur back, as he slides the drink out of your hand, again.

You and Satoru march in silence, trudging through the puddles collecting in the holes of pavement, the silence enveloping the two of you.

And really, for what seems like the hundredth time, you’re racking your brain trying to figure Satoru Gojo out. You’re not sure what it is about him, what drives him to act the way he does, but every answer you find leaves you with a hundred more questions you want to answer.

In the few months you’ve been living with Suguru, you’ve been able to ascertain a few things.

First and foremost, there is no one Satoru Gojo loves more than his friends. From the way he affectionately talks about Suguru, and their hometown friend Shoko, it’s evident enough that whatever friendship he has with the two of them means the world to him.

Second, Satoru Gojo is extremely comfortable in his sense of self. From the way he carries himself, enthusiastically chats with strangers on the train and feels so comfortable stealing your lattes after the bar, you can tell that no one has tried to stomp that spirit out of him. Other people, more meek and timid like you perhaps, get that childlike wonder stamped out of them. But here Satoru Gojo is, at the ripe age of twenty-one, still sporting it like a proud badge he wears.

And third, Satoru Gojo loves to irritate you. You’re not sure what it is about you exactly, whether it’s the fact that you’re Suguru’s roommate so it leaves you off limits to any of his usual charming compliments he leaves for other girls, but Satoru treats you like no one else. Always pulling at the ends of your hair, “lovingly” making fun of your clothes, and obviously, stamping any chance you have of romantic endeavors.

Satoru swings the door open for you, walking all the way to the front of your class. He holds out a five dollar bill and gives you a cheeky grin.

“What for?”

“Thanks for the latte, princess.”

You glare, snatching the bill out of his hands.

“You’re welcome.”

Right on cue, a girl all but appears out of thin air at your side, giving you and Satoru sickly sweet smiles.

“Hi Satoru.”

Satoru’s leaning against the frame now, an irritating move you’ve seen him do countless times - one to show off his stupidly toned arms - as he leans down and smiles at her.

“Hi Sammy. How are you?”

“Pretty good, now that you’re here.” she responds, twisting the ends of her hair in between her fingers.

You fight the urge to gag as Satoru laughs, leaning forward to tuck the stray hairs by the side of her ear.

“Right, so. I’ll see you later, babe?” you ask Satoru, giving him a smile.

He looks over, glaring with his bright, angry blue eyes.

“Y/N.” he responds, tone warning.

“And Satoru, sweetheart? Do remember to grab toilet paper on the way home. Suguru is getting really tired of cleaning up your skid marks.” you respond, reaching forward to pinch his cheek and settling into your seat at the front, watching him seethe at the front door.

When you walk into the apartment, Satoru’s incessant comments are the final nail in the coffin on what might be the worst day ever.

“Ouch. I think I just went temporarily blind. You look horrible.” Satoru asks, momentarily taking his eyes off of the movie he was watching with Suguru and Hiromi.

And the comment - so pathetically hitting you the last place you needed it - is enough to send you crying in a fit of your tears, as you lock the door behind you.

Satoru looks over to find Suguru and Hiromi glaring at him, Suguru more angry and Hiromi more disappointed. He can’t pick which one is worse. Well actually, you crying in his face is the worst thing that happened in the past few minutes, but their reaction is right up there with them.

“What?” Satoru asks, shrugging.

“Satoru.” Suguru berates.

“What? I was just joking.”

“I don’t understand how you and Y/N are dating. I mean, you can hardly even call it that.” Hiromi states, looking at him rather unhelpfully.

Suguru’s eyes go wide at her side and Satoru swallows hard, thinking of his collateral. Because in earnest, Satoru’s not really sure what Suguru sees in Hiromi, why he would ever think this would be the best solution to his issue.

But when you followed Suguru’s lead, all Satoru could really do was oblige.

“That’s just how Y/N and I communicate. It’s our love language.” Satoru says, giving her a halfhearted smile.

“You know she hates it right?” Hiromi asks.

“Well, I don’t know about-”

“Who would want to wake up every morning and have someone just constantly berating them? Just teasing them, making fun of every little thing you say. And sure, it’s fun sometimes to banter with your partner but…it can’t really be easy for her. She doesn’t have many friends. And the one person who's supposed to like her being…rude can’t help either.” Hiromi adds.

“Well, I just…tease her because that’s how I know to talk to her. That’s just how I am. And she has plenty of friends.” Satoru responds.

“Not anymore. They’re all friends with Sukuna, who I’m positive she wants nothing to do with. It’s probably why she even tolerates you in the first place. Granted, I’m not trying to speak on your relationship but from what I’ve seen, it’s….you kind of have to make adjustments for her.” Hiromi states.

“I don’t know if that will-”

“Just be there with her. It’ll help her. I think deep down, she just wants someone to be there with her. At her side to support her.”

Satoru gives Suguru a glare, before obliging and knocking on your door. He takes a deep breath as he walks in, finding you slumped on the floor next to your vinyl player. The gray vinyl is scratching on the table, soft guitar music emanating from it as you lay on your side. Satoru follows suit, lying flat on the ground next to you until the two of you are face to face. And in earnest, Satoru feels horrible. At your pink eyes, flushed cheeks, and puffy skin. Because for god knows whatever reason, what he had said was enough to make you cry.

Satoru never understood it. Why people assign him so much importance when anything he’s ever had to say has been discarded all together. It’s why he’s unsure of what to say to you right now, when he’s never had to say anything at all.

“Hi Y/N.”

You stare back at him blankly, his blue eyes void of any of their usual excitement as he stares back at you.

“Are you okay?” he asks.

You divert your attention, the question so…agitating, that all you can do is watch your vinyl spin around on the table, at the little pin digging into the plate.

“Is um….I don’t really know how to do this whole…comforting thing. It’s kind of awkward. Is this that band you like?”

You give him a meek nod, which he smiles at, before squinting at the small print on the vinyl.

“Ah. I get it. You’re trying to be Cool About It. Whatever it is that’s bothering you.”

“That was lame. Even for you, Satoru.” you respond, wiping the snot off of your nose.

“Well, I personally think you’re hot. Being Cool About It was never going to be your thing either.” he responds.

He’s not sure what it is about what he said, but suddenly your face is falling and you’re kind of…glaring at him. You pull your hood up and turn away from him, because the embarrassment of having Satoru Gojo in your room pitying you right now would be the actual nail in the coffin before you went full on off your rocker crazy.

Satoru’s quick to move, now sitting crisscrossed near your head and looking down at you.

“Are you playing hard to get so I’ll call you hot again?”

“No. I’m trying to get you to stop pitying me.” you murmur back, pulling the hood over your face.

“I don’t pity you.”

You stand up, crossing your legs on the floor, as you turn to face him. And you know that Satoru in no way deserves any shape of the wrath that’s coming out of your mouth, but you can’t help it.

“You don’t?”

“Well, of course I-”

“Yes, Satoru, you do. Because really, you’re only here because Suguru or Hiromi asked you to be. They asked you to put whatever the fuck it is that you have going on inside your head and think for one fucking second how it is that you make me feel. When you make fun of me constantly, do every last thing to agitate me, quite literally flirt with every living microorganism on this goddamn planet but me. I know that you really, truly do not care. You’re just here because they asked you to be but god, please spare me of whatever shitty response you’re trying to muster up to make me feel better because there’s no point. I just feel horrible when I’m around you.” you shout.

You lean back against the back of your bed, your chest heaving, as you knot your fingers together and groan. Because if the day couldn’t get any worse, you just yelled at Satoru.

For no reason. After he tried to comfort you, in his own weird way.

He scoots up at your side, sliding his hand around your shoulder once again, and leaning your head against his shoulder. Your stupid tears are falling again as he rubs into your skin, the touch soft.

“All that because you’re mad I won’t flirt with you?” he murmurs.

“Of course that’s what you got out of it.”

He laughs, the lack of anger in his tone at your words soothing down the bouts of guilt in your chest.

“You’re not the type of girl I can flirt with.”

“Jeez. Thanks Satoru. You really know how to make a girl feel special.”

He reaches forward to pinch your nose, before continuing.

“I mean, I’m obviously a guy who lacks self-awareness or tact, in quite literally any conversation.”

“Naturally.” you respond.

He gives you a pointed glare, before continuing.

“But I have self awareness when it comes to these types of things. I know I shouldn’t flirt with you.” he responds.

“And why’s that? I’m too ugly of a hag for you?” you spit.

“No. You’re the type of girl who could take my heart and run off with it if I let you.”

You shrug his hand off your shoulder, rolling your eyes.

“You’re full of shit, Satoru Gojo. And corny as hell.”

“You know you’re no good for me, right?”

You look at him, at his deep, ocean blue eyes for the first time, filled with an emotion you can’t quite place.

“You’d put me in my place too fast. Maybe too eager, too curious to figure out what it is I’ve got going on up and here. And I don’t know the answers to that either, but you’d want to make me figure it out. Whatever mess of things going on, I-I’d want to fix it for you. And as nice as that sounds, you’d probably break any semblance of structure I’d have left the second you go running. Which is something even I can’t handle.” he responds, lifting his hand to take yours in it.

You cross link your fingers with his, linking your hands together. And try to place the emotion, that dragging sound in his voice.

It’s desperation.

“Why do you think I would leave?” you ask, looking down at your intertwined hands.

Satoru smiles in response, reaching forward to trace his fingers along the edge of your lips.

“You’ve just proved my point.”

And when he pads out of your room, you realize that once again, he’s left you with a hundred questions left to answer. But the one you’re sure of is this.

That the emotion that was welling in his deep, crystal blue eyes was impassioned. That it was real.

In the following weeks, things change between you and Satoru, but not too drastically. You’re not required to keep your show up for Hiromi too often, because she’s quite literally too enamored with Suguru to even think about the two of you, and Satoru Gojo stays the same way he is.

He steals your lattes, pulls your hair, lovingly calls you an old hag, and stamps out any hopes you have for romantic endeavors. But somewhere around the grayness of November, he doesn’t stop by your apartment for three days.

“Hey. Where’s Gojo?”

Suguru looks up from his phone, giving you the most obscene look you’ve ever seen him muster.

“Huh?”

“Gojo? Satoru Gojo? That gangly idiot that’s always hanging around here?”

“Yes. I’m well aware who he is, Y/N. Why are you asking?”

“Dunno. He’s always around and now he’s not. Are you sure he’s not dead in a ditch somewhere?” you ask.

“He might as well be. His dad is in town. Spending time with him.” he responds, turning back to his phone and looking away from you.

You frown, leaning against the counter, as you reach for your phone. And you’re not sure why you do it but you slide into your chat with him and start typing.

you: are you enjoying your father daughter time?

satoru: are you missing me?

you: missing the free lattes that come from going to the coffee shop with you :/

you: come hit on the girl at the paper lantern. im craving a matcha latte.

satoru: i would never waste a free drink on a matcha latte.

satoru: and quit trying to whore me out for free drinks.

you: then buy me one.

satoru: well played.

satoru: the ice skating rink, on sixteenth and rockfield. i’ll be there in an hour.

You smile gleefully, wrapping your scarf carefully around you, as you head out into the cold to the ice skating rink Satoru had picked out. And you catch the back of his snow white hair, leaning against the railing as you eye the big, bright Christmas tree at the center.

You walk up to his side, lacing your hand through his, as you turn and give him a smile. He returns the gesture, some part of his demeanor muted today, as he turns to you.

“Hi Y/N.”

“Satoru. Where’s my drink?”

Satoru rolls his eyes, before reaching for the two cups on the ground and handing you one.

“Your shitty matcha latte. As requested.”

You smile, wrapping your arms around the drink, as he leads you to the stand to get your skates. His hand is soft on the small of your back as you walk up to the girl giving out the shoes.

“Sizes?” she asks.

“Eight.” you respond.

“Eleven and a half.” Satoru provides, as the girl whisks off to grab your shoes.

“Eleven and a half? What are you, Bigfoot?” you respond.

“You know what they say. Big feet, big…”

“Ego. But we knew that already.” you respond.

The two of you take the skates and head over to the bench, Satoru too quick with his own skates that he’s suddenly tying yours and dragging you onto your feet. The two of you stand at the front of the tiny little opening, the sudden awkwardness of the situation dawning on you.

That you don’t know how to ice skate.

“What are we waiting for?” Satoru asks, hands on both of your shoulders as he stands behind you. He rests his chin on the top of your head, his breath tickling the hair on your scalp.

“The rink to open up. There’s a bunch of people, I don’t want to crash into them the second we get on.”

Satoru frowns, bringing his hands around your chin and lightly moving your face to his.

“Are the people in the room with us? There’s like nine people here. And four of them are under the age of seven.” he deadpans.

“I don’t want to knock over a kid.” you whine.

“Yeah, that would be goblin on troll crime.” Satoru responds.

“Am I the goblin or the troll?” you ask.

“Troll. Obviously.” he responds, bringing his hands around your waist as he lifts you onto the ice with him.

You’re suddenly wobbling too hard on your feet and holding onto his extended arms with a deathlike grip, the cold air biting your skin as your legs turn to noodles.

“Okay, Raggedy Anne. Face me.” he states, voice soft as he turns you towards him. His hands are locked in with yours, the hold firm as he smiles.

“Satoru.” you whine.

“Just try to glide with me, okay? Our goal is to get to that side of the rink, by the end of our game.”

“What’s our game?” you ask.

“We’re going to play twenty questions.” Satoru states, mimicking the gliding motion as he instructs you.

You follow his suit, clutching hard on his arm every time you wobble, as Satoru starts to distract you with the stupid game he’s intent on playing.

“Me first. Why did you text me?” Satoru asks.

“Just wanted to make sure you weren’t dead in a ditch somewhere. It was surprisingly peaceful for the past few days, so I knew you had to be in some type of mortal peril somewhere.” you respond.

Gojo hums in response, as you try hard to pick the hundreds of questions you have to ask Gojo.

“Where were you the past few days?” you ask.

“Did you want me there?” Satoru asks, tone hopeful.

“You’re supposed to answer before you ask again. And I’m not sure if want is the word. But…I don’t know. It’s weird not having you around. All quiet.” you respond.

“My dad’s in town. Was kind of busy.”

You hum in response, rolling over the words in your head.

“I did want you around.” you add, earning a smile from him.

The two of you skate in silence, the wobbling minimal now as you try to reach the railing at the end of the rink that Satoru had pointed out, right near the small, brightly decorated Christmas tree at the end of the rink.

“It’s your turn, Y/N.” Satoru reminds.

“Right. Do you like your dad?”

“No. What happened with Sukuna?”

You swallow hard, so caught off guard by the question that you fall straight into the ice. You must have been holding onto Satoru too hard because he goes tumbling down with you, lightly rubbing the spot on his head that made contact with the ice. You reach forward, cradling his head in your hands.

“Fuck. Sorry, Gojo. That caught me off guard.”

“That’s my bad, princess. It came out of nowhere.” he responds, standing up on his knees as he holds his hand out for you. He’s wiping the excess ice off the sides of your clothes and you mimic his motions.

The two of you start silently skating towards the end of the rink again, hands linked together, as you figure out the right words to say.

“I live with Suguru because of him. He wasn’t the best.”

“I know that much, Y/N.”

“He…kicked me out. Like, put all my things in a box, put them outside, and kept my key.”

His hand tighets in yours as you swallow hard and continue.

“Dunno. I guess he just kind of sucked. I was trying to convince myself I liked him, that we were in love for a really long time. I’d write him all these really long love letters, that he basically read days after the fact that I wrote them. He’d compliment me once in a while, but then I realized when it was only when he wanted something.” you respond, sighing.

Satoru doesn’t respond, only squeezes your hand in response to the entire bout of word vomit you just gave him.

“Why don’t you like your dad?” you ask.

“He thinks I’m perfect.” Satoru responds, sighing.

“Boo hoo.” you respond, joking.

He smiles in response, his hand lightly loosening in yours. You tighten your grip against his again, giving him your best smile.

“I’m joking, ‘Toru. What did you mean by that?”

“I just mean. He expects so much from me, because I’m his only son. And when I was a kid, he was really hard on me for it. Made me attend all these shitty classes by myself, isolated me from other kids because I was meant to be something great. And I obviously pulled away from him because of it. But then, he kind of…shifted. He was vying so hard for my attention now, that suddenly I became free of all blame, all faults.”

“Well, we both know that’s not true.”

He snorts, dragging you to the end of the railing by the Christmas tree, as you both lean against the little glass panes.

“I just wanted him to be real with me. Tell me when I was good, tell me when I was bad. Not where he was criticizing every move I made but not when he was praising all of them either.”

You nod, turning to your side to hold both of his hands in yours.

“Well, you’re shitty when you’re mean to me. But you’re nice when you’re like this.” you state.

He smiles, that stupid lopsided grin, as he brings his hands around your neck and pulls you in against him. His lips are soft and warm, though you’re not sure how, against your almost frostbitten, cold blue ones. But the warmth that’s blooming in your chest, under your skin, from his hands, from his lips on yours is enough to bring you down.

He pulls back, resting his forehead against yours as he places a light kiss to the tip of your pink nose.

“What was that for?” you ask, breathless.

“Mistletoe.” Satoru responds, pushing off the little railing and slowly skating away, waiting for him to join you.

You look up, fighting the urge to smile at the small little bundle of leaves and berries above you, as you skate out and join his hand to go around the rink.

There’s an incessant pounding on your door that wakes you up, as you pull on the closest jacket and your glasses as you pad to the door. You open up to find him there, half bored on his phone, as he looks up at you.

“Oh. Hey. Was the spare not under-”

He all but lurches forward, wrapping his hands around your neck as he presses his lips to yours. He’s all too eager, because he’s walking into you so fast that he’s all but pushed you up against the wall behind you, his lips hanging off yours as he smiles into your mouth.

“Y/N.” he hums, smiling into your face.

“Good morning to you too.”

He smiles, wrapping his hands around your wrist, as he leads you back to your bed, quickly peeling your hoodie off your frame as he tucks you into the bed with him. And instead of doing what you thought he was going to do, he’s tucking you tight against his frame, your face tucked into his clavicle, as he brings his arms around yours and holds you tight.

“Did you come all this way to cuddle?”

“I came all this way to kiss you. This is just a bonus.”

You burrow yourself into his skin, leaning your head against his, as your thousand questions swim around in your mind. On what you’re doing, on why he’s here, on if you can even ask.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“You have a weird, pinched up look on your pretty face. What is it?” he asks.

“Oh. I was just thinking.” you respond.

“About?”

“Um, what we’re doing.”

“We’re cuddling, silly.” Satoru responds, leaning down to press a kiss to the top of your forehead.

“I know. But what does that mean?”

Satoru brings his hands up around your face, cupping your cheeks in his hands as he smiles.

“It means that I just had a really annoying fight with my dad. And I just want to hold you and not think about it.” he responds.

“Oh. Okay, yeah.”

You burrow yourself back into his arms, the two of you a mess of tangled limbs as you hold onto each other. And you’re not sure why you start talking, but you’re filling the silent space with your voice.

“I saw Sukuna the other day.” you murmur.

Satoru brings his hands down, rubbing into the side of your arm as he hums in response.

“Was it okay?”

“Kind of stupid.” you murmur.

“Why?” he asks.

“He came up to me to ask if I was going to go to the end of year banquet that they hold for the seniors going into the masters program.”

“And?”

“I mean, I was planning on it. And then he just felt the need to warn me that he’s bringing his new girlfriend and it was really awkward. He asked me if I was bringing anyone and I said no, just for him to smile in response and then walk away.”

“You should have said you were bringing me.”

“I wasn’t aware that I was bringing you.”

“Well, now you are. Plus, my dad…he always gets on my back to go to shit like that since he’s one of the donors. At least now I’ll have something to do there.”

“And what’s that?”

“Annoy you!” he responds.

You reach forward to flick the side of his cheek, before reaching forward to push the hair off of his forehead. The touch must be somewhat soothing to him, because it coaxes him to talk, in the slightest.

“When I was a kid, my dad forced me to go to events like that. All the time. And when I was there…he’d always yell at me for all these different things. My hair was too messy, I wasn’t standing right, I was too loud.”

You brush your thumb on the skin of his cheek, before reaching forward to press a kiss to his skin.

“And after I kind of figured it all out, I was so…irritated that I ever listened. And I’ve tried to stamp it out, that voice telling me to be quiet all the time. But sometimes when I see him…I don’t know. It just comes flooding back.”

You prop your hands up against his chest, resting your head on top of your hands as you look down at him. His eyes are shut as he faces your ceiling, a hand resting behind his head while the other one is secured, firmly around you. In the ray of sunlight peering out of your window, you notice that Satoru has the smallest patch of freckles around his nose.

“I always wondered why you were like that. But somehow, this makes it better.”

“Huh?”

“You were always so…you that sometimes it made me jealous. That you had this unstoppable, vibrant spirit, that you probably had life so easy that no one had stamped it out of you.”

You reach forward, tracing the skin on his cheek, as you continue to talk.

“But this is better. Someone tried to do that to you and you didn’t let them. You’re not weak or timid like me, you don’t let people like that shut you up like I do.”

“You’re not weak or timid.” he responds, cupping the side of your face.

“Satoru.”

“You’ve always stood your ground. Especially when it comes to me.”

“Well, you’re you. Sukuna is…”

“Nothing. You can handle an idiot like Sukuna. And I’ll be there, if he tries to say anything to you and you need me.”

You halfheartedly nod.

“And I’ll be there. If you want to annoy me instead of talking to your dad.”

“I’ll take you up on that offer. Always.”

Satoru presses a kiss to your cheek before running out the door, late for his class. And when you turn on your heel, you find Suguru giving you a wide smile, with an almost teasing look on his face. You glare in response, moving past him to do the dishes.

“Do you need something, Suguru?”

“Are you guys dating?” he asks, resting his chin in his hands as he gives you a jeering smile.

“What’s it to you?” you ask.

“My best friend…my roommate…seems like a very big deal to me.”

“Well, we’re just talking. I don’t know if it’s official, but I think it’s exclusive.” you respond.

“It’s definitely exclusive. He’s liked you for a while.”

You snort, as he comes up at your side and starts drying the dishes.

“No, I’m serious! I promise, he’s not coming around this much just to see me. And I’m sure you’ll make him very happy. Keep him in his place.”

“That’s what he said.” you murmur, smiling.

“Just, don’t get too heated if you guys get into an argument. You’re both the most stubborn people I know, but don’t let that get in the way of anything.”

“Okay, I’ll definitely take relationship advice from someone who pathologically lies to his girlfriend everyday.”

Suguru yanks on the edge of ear and you splash a good amount of dishwater at him in response as you both laugh.

“I’ll have you know, that I told her almost like two days afterwards because I couldn’t stomach it.”

“Huh? Why didn’t you tell us?”

“It was just funny watching you guys try to be nice to each other. And then Hiromi was dead set on matchmaking the second she figured out Gojo was all but in love with you.”

You roll your eyes at him in response, as you turn out to walk to the coffee shop before your next class. And as you march to the coffee shop, music blaring in your headphones, you feel a tugging on your elbow as you almost walk in.

You turn around to find an older man, with blue eyes and light hair, smiling at you. And as you tug your headphones off and hear him talk, you know without a doubt that this has to be Satoru’s father.

“Are you Y/N L/N?” he asks, his hands folded perfectly against the crisp pressing off his suit.

“Sure. Who are you?” you ask, yanking your headphones off so they're resting around your ears.

“I’m Satoru’s father.”

“Oh, okay. Can I help you?” you asked, running through your thoughts as you think of what Satoru would want you to do most.

Walk away? Be polite? Insult him?

Insulting him is surely what you want to do. But knowing him, he wouldn’t even want you to talk to him for a second, so you should try your best to abort the conversation in its tracks.

“I’d like to talk to you about your intentions. With my son.” he responds.

“I'd love to do that. But I have to run to class, so I’ll have to go now.”

“Class? What’s your major?”

“Education.”

That must not be the answer he wanted, because he stiffens his jaw before talking again, which just builds onto another reason that this man irritates you.

“Right, well. I’ll be off then.” you respond, trying to move past him.

“Are you dating my son?”

“Not yet. But I think it’s headed that way.” you respond.

“Well, if you’re so intent on attending your class, here’s my phone number. I’d like for you to call me the second you’re out of your class so we can discuss more.” he states, handing you a shiny piece of cardstock.

You begrudgingly take it, shaking his hand as you all but sprint off to your class. But unbeknownst to you, Satoru was watching the entire thing play out from the window, with an ice matcha latte in hand just for you.

He trashes the cup as he walks out. He’s always thought matcha was disgusting anyways.

And three days later, you find Satoru in the library. In what might possibly, the most compromising of situations.

You’re a few weeks out from finals, the banquet at the end of the week, and buried with term papers that you need to write. Hence the need to procure your matcha latte, lock yourself in the library for the rest of the week, until you can go to the event with Satoru and let loose before you go home for break.

Except when you’re trekking through the library looking for a place to study, you find that a really large group is populating your usual prime spot near the window, with the big white board that you like to use.

But even more jarring than the stupid white board and spot you’re comfortable in, it’s who is taking up the spot. Because Sukuna and his friends are taking up the entire face and there’s a certain white haired idiot sitting all the way at the end, headphones over his ears as he types away on his laptop.

And you can hear your blood rushing in your ears as you walk up to him, all but yanking the headphones off your ears.

“Hi Satoru.”

“Hi Y/N.” he seethes back, matching the anger in your voice.

“I got you a drink, asshole.”

He looks down at your matcha latte, before looking back up at you and rolling his eyes.

“Always intent on not listening to me, aren’t you?”

“I learned from the best, asswipe.” you respond, marching off to the apartment and fighting down the angry tears that are falling out of your eyes.

With the load of finals behind you and the quietness that populates your apartment, you find yourself begrudgingly dragging yourself to the banquet. And curse yourself for letting Satoru convince you, for already putting in an RSVP so early that now you can’t take it away.

The room’s uncomfortably warm, the masses of people moving around each other, cheeks blushed pink from the drinks and flutes in all of their hands. You swipe one off of the tray as someone walks past, intent on filling that cold, awkward feeling in your chest with whatever warmth it can give you.

You take a spot near the corner of the room, a nice vantage point from where you can spot, eye who you can talk to first. Your partner from your English class is stuck talking to your professor, which is frankly a bleak option.

There’s the group of girls from your cohort, but they’re all talking to Sukuna and his girlfriend, which is a big no for you. And you’d love to talk to your advisor, but you’re positive occupying the solo spot on the wall is better than talking to the one professor that everyone hates.

And you spot Satoru, his white hair stark against the crowd, as he talks to Hiromi and Suguru. He’s all dressed up, his tie loose around his neck and the top buttons are undone. You suppose that’s as well as Satoru can present for an event like this anyways, and your heart stings at the premise.

Because there's nothing you want to do more than point it out. That everyone’s dressed up, but he can’t even be bothered to put himself together for this. And you want him to argue back, to sport that stupid shit eating grin he always uses when he argues with you.

It’s irritating. How much it’s killing you to not be with him.

You pull down the edges of your dress, trying to soothe through the creases that are lining on your green dress, as you try your best to stop that tense, uncomfortable feeling from settling in your skin.

On the most annoying cue ever, Sukuna walks up to stand by your side, two drinks in his hand. He gestures for you to take one, which you oblige, as you swallow the irritation on your tongue as he starts talking.

“Y/N.”

“Sukuna.”

“Did you poison my drink? Or are you morally above attempted murder?”

“I believe I am.”

“Shocking, given your track record.”

“Are you here alone?” he asks.

“What’s it to you?”

“It’s just that you RSVP'd for two people. Yet you’re the only one standing here.”

“Are you stalking me now?" you ask, eyeing him.

“Maybe a little bit. I was just curious to see who it was you were seeing now.”

“What’s it to you?”

“Just have to make sure that they take care of you. That’s all.” he states, shrugging

You roll your eyes, putting a sizable amount of distance between you two.

“That’s rich coming from you. Leaving me without a place to live is a real gesture of compassion, Sukuna.”

“Well, I think that-”

A girl, with short brown hair cuts the two of you off, as she excitedly points to the wallpaper above you.

“You’re both standing under the mistletoe!”

You look up, to find a small lock of the plant above the two of you, as you fight the urge to internally groan.

“Right, well. That’s my cue to leave.” you respond, setting the glass down on the table.

Sukuna wraps his fingers around your wrist, pulling you into him as you stumble on the edge of your heels.

“It’s just mistletoe. You have to honor it or that’s like…really shitty luck.” he states, giving you a smile.

“I’ll take my chances. It couldn't possibly be worse than this.”

“Look. I really hate being on bad terms. You were really important to me and I hate to think that you’re out there being mad at me.”

“Right, well. Get used to being disappointed then because I’m clear on where I stand.” you respond.

You make the motions to move again, as Sukuna yanks you back again. Except this time, Satoru’s at your side, nearly shoving him into the wall. He gives you a look, devoid of any emotion, as he adjusts his tie around his neck.

“You’re not going to kiss her.” he states, teetering on the edges of his heels. Like he’s almost bored, so disinterested in the conversation that he’s having with Sukuna right now.

“I was just joking. It wasn’t that serious, I wouldn’t even consider it honestly.” he states, as the words sting your ears. You don’t know whether to be relieved, offended, or extremely agitated by the premise of his comment.

“You’d be so lucky.” he snorts, as you swallow hard.

“Right. We are talking about the same girl, right?” he sneers.

Satoru groans, looking up to the sky, before taking his jacket off and handing it to you. You give him a confused look, to which he smiles, before turning back to Sukuna.

“Rather unfortunate that you chose to mess with the wrong girl. That and the fact that I have no semblance of manners when it comes to these types of things.”

And then Satoru swings straight for his nose, wincing and shaking his knuckles in the air as Sukuna slams into the wall behind him. There’s a loud gasp, head turning to look at the three of you as you swallow hard. There’s a small amount of bright, red blood falling out of his nose as Satoru gives him a shit eating grin.

“Thanks for holding it.” Satoru states, taking the jacket from your hands as the two of you watch Sukuna walk off into the side.

“Right, well-”

“Satoru.”

The two of you turn around to find his father, nose flaring and undoubtedly mad, as he appears at your side. Satoru storms out of the room, agitated, as you follow and run behind him. The air outside is significantly colder, snow sticking to the concrete.

“Are you okay?” you ask, the air so cold that you can see your breath in the air.

“Yes. Are you?” he asks back, turning around to look at you. He’s kicking the tiny flakes of snow in the ground, averting eye contact with you as he talks.

“Yeah. Now, I can yell at you.” you respond, shoving him.

“What’s your problem?”

“What’s yours?” he asks back, seething.

“You. You ignored me for like two days and then I found you in the library being all buddy buddy with Sukuna. And then you punch him in the face for no reason?”

“It wasn’t for no reason.”

“Right. Your hand just jerked through the air and just happened to hit his face.”

“What do you want me to say? That I’m sorry?”

You groan, bringing your hands up through your temples, as your frustration comes to a head.

“Why are you pretending this is nothing? Like we're nothing?” you scream, tears burning your eyes at you look at him.

“When did I say this was nothing?”

“’m fucking dying over here to be the person standing next to you, because there’s nowhere else I want to be, and instead I’m standing in the corner trying to avoid you like the plague.”

His eyes twitch, his hands almost fidgeting at your sides as you angrily wipe your tears off your cheeks and smudge the makeup pressed to your face.

“You…you’re so fucking aggravating. You’re mean to me, then you’re nice. You act like you love me, but then you don’t. Your best friend tells me that I basically mean the world to you and then your stupid dad ambushes me outside a coffee shop and basically insults me but-”

“What?” he states.

“What? I just like…don’t know what page you’re on. You make no fucking sense, you’re so..so hot and cold with me instead of just telling me what’s going on. If you didn’t like me anymore, you should have just said that instead of hurting my feelings.” you state, crossing your arms as you turn back from him.

He comes up at your side, eyes wide as he looks down at you. He quickly takes his jacket off, wrapping it around your shoulders as the tears stream down your eyes.

“What did my dad say to you? Was it at the coffee shop?” he whispers, hands braced on your shoulders.

“Huh? How’d you know that?”

“Just, tell me.”

“Well, I was going to get my latte. He kind of pulled me aside. Asked me what my intentions were with you. Made some weird backhanded comment about me being an education major and-”

“And?”

“Gave me his business card. Told me to call him because I kept trying to leave. I think I threw it in a trash can or something.”

Satoru groans, leaning his forehead against your shoulder, as he curses.

“Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck.” he murmurs, eyes pinched in regret as he lifts his head back up.

“What?”

“Shit. I-I got mad at you. For talking to my dad, behind my back and not telling me. I thought…he was asking you for information about me and you were obliging. That you took his card so you could call him.”

“You watched that entire thing?”

“Yeah. And I saw you shove the card into your pocket as you walked away and I just got so angry that I-”

“That you what?”

“Hung out with Sukuna. To make you mad.”

You glare at him, shoving him again for good measure.

“You did what?”

“I was upset! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to it was just that-”

“You didn’t even think to ask me? You just had to be petty?” you scream, your frustration building.

His eyes go wide, as he swallows hard. He burrows his hands into his pockets, lifting them from your shoulders as he casts his head down. You can tell that his skin is burning, it’s turning slightly pink, as you realize that the reason the two of you weren’t here together, stupidly laughing at everyone, was because of a simple miscommunication.

“Satoru.” you groan, lifting your hand to your forehead.

“Y/N. I’m so sorry.”

“In what world was that fair to me? You didn’t even think to ask?”

Satoru takes both of your hands in his, lifting them up to cover his eyes with. Your knuckles are flat against his forehead, the ends of his hair tickling your skin.

“Y/N. I’m so shit at this type of stuff. You’re far too put together for me.”

“I’m not expecting you to be put together. Just to kind of…work with me here.” you murmur, as he rests his head against your frame again. You’re wrapping your arms around his torso, deflating into his touch.

“Yeah, well. All I know how to do is fight and-”

“If you say you’ll love me rather than fight with me, I’ll forgive you.”

“Huh?”

“Just promise. That you’ll try to love me. And forgive me before you turn to fighting.” you murmur, cupping his face in your hands.

“Y/N. I-”

“You have so many walls that I’m trying to break through. Just try to work with me here when I’m trying to do it.” you whisper.

“There you go. Doing that thing again.”

“Doing what?”

“Seeing the best in me. Making me want to be better.”

You smile, leaning your head to the side.

“Is that so bad?”

“No. No, just. Try to be patient with me? I know I’m really shitty at this type of thing but-”

“As long as you stick around. And don’t ignore me for five days like a fucking asshole, I promise I will.”

He leans forward, pressing a kiss to the palms of your hands still secured around his face, as he leans his own forehead against yours.

“Okay. Just, give it to me straight when…when I do stuff like this.”

“Okay. I hate it when you’re stupid as fuck and jump to conclusions. Like genuinely, it’s really irritating that I spent all of finals week sleeping in my bed alone when it was obscenely cold and you weren’t there. And you just had to assume shit when you didn’t-”

“Okay, I get it. Get to the good parts now.”

“Ego-maniac.”

“Cmon. I’m wounded here.” he states, holding his bruised hand up to you. You take it in yours, pressing a kiss to the red skin before continuing.

“I like when you talk to me. And when we get to keep moving forward, past this type of stuff. It’s like…the best part of a story. You get to see the conflict be resolved and then keep going.”

He smiles hard, nodding at your words.

“You have to kiss me.” he states.

“Why?”

“I’m going to pretend I’m not offended by that heinous look on your face at the thought of kissing me. But, mistletoe.”

You look up, to find a set of tiny Christmas lights with little embellishments in them, one of which is mistletoe.

“That doesn’t count.”

“Yes, it does.”

“That’s not real mistletoe.”

He pouts, rolling his eyes at you.

“Fine. Don’t kiss me then.”

You wrap your hand around his wrist, yanking him down by the tie to press a kiss to his soft, warm lips. They’re enough to warm up your frozen, nearly frostbitten blue ones, as he shakes his arms around your waist, pulling you closer and smiling into the kiss.

And you take solace in the fact that at least for that night, the conflict is over. And the story continues.

the satoru as taylor swift songs series masterlist

taglist:

@porridgesblog @k0z3me @kayleegomez @yihona-san06 @bsenpai @sweetenertea @skzismyhome @mykyoon @violetmatcha @rebeccawinters @luna0713hunter @shotenvinsoot @itzmeme @gojoswifeyyys-world @cutiejg

lmk if you would like to be added to the taylor as gojo taglist or my general taglist <3

298 notes · View notes

transmutationisms · 1 month ago

Note

i saw i think you put down on your favorite female characters and i saw you put janice thesopranos on there. im watching rn and i like her as well. id love to hear your thoughts on janice thesopranos

i am a sporadic and non-completionist sopranos viewer and part of the reason is because it was driving me so crazy how much the writers hate janice -__- i stand with my cancelled wife -__- listen like i just think it's absurd on a show that entirely revolves around tony's emotional inner life, including his feelings about his parents & childhood, that janice is simultaneously portrayed as this, like, hysterical hag for? being hurt that tony was the favoured child ? the livia funeral ep was kind of a straw that broke my back tbh everything janice said & did was justified & the show would never have framed tony so unsympathetically for raising the same complaints lol. similarly, the show wants to say a lot about how jersey italians viewed their ethnic identities, american-ness, and race in the 90s and 2000s, but it's hampered in its ability to do so by several writing problems, including that the writers have introduced an interesting dimension of janice's character with her orientalism but then constantly pivot into suggesting that it's an individual pathology of hers rather than exploring it as a broader phenomenon of a contestedly white group the way they try to do (sometimes successfully) with tony's antiblackness for example. there are just a lot of squandered opportunities to do & say interesting & meaningful things with janice's character because the writers' room is broadly blatantly misogynist and repeatedly chooses to instead use her as a flattened evil sister caricature just to lazily foil tony's psychological complexity.

#the sopranos

28 notes · View notes

d3arapril · 20 days ago

Text

i fear it's time u guys knew more about me than just my name.....

about me..!

my name is bayley, i'm a '99 baby (i am only two years older than paige - i swear i'm not a hag. you can all just call me mother) n i'm bisexual & british…damn double homicide……….. i have a degree in photography & i can speak (broken) korean! and i love cats :3

i love tlou (the game) & i'm an abby enthusiast. i hate the tv show casting and i don't believe in ellabs so don't chat to me about that lol. i discovered mrs paige bueckers on twitter one day and the rest was history with that lil lady! discovering her introduced me to the world of wbb and has allowed me to meet so many lovely people which i am so grateful for! :D

i love watching ᡣ𐭩 slushynoobz/out of character ᡣ𐭩, berleezy, jettro, mia maples, grackle & random gameplay vids! aside from tlou i'm a bit of a video game nerd :0 i love resident evil, mk, spiderman, silent hill, ᡣ𐭩 baldurs gate 3 (somebody please talk to me about minthara!!) ᡣ𐭩. i also really love marvel and moon knight is my favourite marvel character :)

i enjoy all genres of music! to name a few; the japanese house, bktherula, aespa, yves, charli xcx, kaytranada, clairo, banks, lil tecca, the story so far.

i love making friends so please do chat to me! even if it's a whole lot of nothing i love interacting with everybody on here so come say hey :D <3

#thoughts

26 notes · View notes

ultraericthered · 3 months ago

Text

The Dark, Twisted Tragedy Of Queen Nehelenia

While I really like Queen Nehelenia as the Evil Queen/Maleficent hybrid incarnation of nightmares and darkness from Takeuchi's work, I still gotta give credit to the 90's Toei SuperS anime incarnation of the queen, who was every bit as malevolent and frightening but, with the alterations made to her, is also layered and so damn fascinating on top of that, and I find the tragedy of her character arc to be so heartrending, so disturbing, so haunting, that I had to post about it. Disclaimer: this is purely about Queen Nehelenia from the Dream Arc covered in Sailor Moon SuperS, not the one from the Nightmare Arc of Sailor Moon Stars, which does not exist for me

The backstory for Queen Nehelenia in this series is that she comes from "the other side of the Moon", really a small asteroid that orbited Earth's moon. She was so renowned and adored for her ravishing beauty by all the other inhabitants of this dominion that she was made the ruler of the colony kingdom formerd there, a kingdom with a bright, colorful party/carnival theme to it. The young queen was praised 24/7 for how beautiful she was and routinely spoiled by her rettainers with parties and gift giving in her honor. As you'd expect, this made her very vain, sheltered and flighty, but she was far from a bad person. She actually seems quite sweet, generous and demure, more of a Snow White than a Queen Grimhilde. However, one of the gifts she was given was a very particular...shall we say magic mirror.

And since the mirror was believed to be magic, she does the whole "mirror mirror" thing and wishes to see her future, wishes to know that she is still beautiful and loved by all for many years to come. But instead, a haggard, wrinkled, hideously worn face emerges from the darkness behind the looking glass. In retrospect, we can classify this as the original Zirconia, the first distorted reflection of Nehelenia.

Not only is Nehelenia's reflection aged and hideous, but she begins to see the room around her changing to how it would look years in the future, decaying and full of cobwebs threaded across everything. Upon realizing that the ugly old hag in the mirror is her reflection and is representative of her in the far future, Nehelenia freaks out and has a nervous breakdown as she then starts hearing the voice of the hag in the mirror speaking to her: "Always remember not to forget, a child's dream is a dream that they should never get." Over and over.

Now what I find so sad about this is that what I believe is really going on here is that the mirror, though cursed and twisted by evil power, is displaying to the young queen the worst possible version of her future; a future where her dream, to stay beautiful and loved by all forever, fails to come true. It's not a future that's absolutely set in stone, but it's a possible future should Nehelenia set her life down a certain course. The words she hears, the "Always remember not to forget..." rhyme, are telling her that if she, growing up from childhood into adulthood, does not grow up her dream along with herself, instead clinging to the exact same dream she had as a child, then that very dream will be unattainable. Which makes sense seeing as you cannot fight or stop aging, it happens to everyone. Perhaps if Nehelenia found a new, more feasible dream to work towards, it would make her happy and she'd not age as poorly as what the reflection showed her. But instead, Nehelenia just stood in front of the mirror for longer periods, watching her reflection go from young to old to back young again to back old again to young again, and it entranced her, misleading her mind and corrupting her heart, the darkness of the mirror and her own heart's darkness becoming one.

From Queen Nehelenia's spirit bonding with the mirror, Zirconias are created. Yes, Zirconias. Malformations of Nehelenia's soul made to ressemble her worst nightmare, distorted to look even freakier than the initital old crone reflection did. The Zirconia that ran the Dead Moon Circus for her is merely one that she was able to let loose from her later mirror prison and was given sentience of her own. In the finale we even see a new Zirconia be spawned from right out of her!

YIKES.

So Nehelenia allowed her kingdom to decay into the exact sort of cobweb covered ruin that she saw that day, all while using the magic she acquired from the mirror to rip the dream mirrors from all of her subjects and servants, consuming their dreams for herself, which makes their souls spontaneously waste away and their forms change into sideshow freaks - "the living corpses of her people" as Nehelenia refers to them. The asteroid was no longer a dark moon - it was now a Dead Moon. And that is how the Dead Moon Circus came to be.

But there were only so many dreams to feed off of, and they alone would not sustain Nehelenia's dream for eternity. This got her to turn her attention back to the place she'd always envied, the White Moon Kingdom of Silver Millennium. That kingdom's queen, Serenity, was actually physically ageless thanks to the power of her Silver Crystal, and her kingdom had always been more prosperous than the Dead Moon's shabbier tent-filled colony. Queen Nehelenia began coveting Queen Serenity's position, kingdom, and crystal. If she could usurp her as Queen of the Moon, she could become a goddess-like ruler who could scour the galaxy for more beautiful dreams and with her power dominate the entire universe so that all its inhabitants would be made to worship her and adore her for her everlasting beauty. So she traveled to the realm of Elysian (shown to be a physical planet in the anime, so we know Nehelenia has the ability to voyage to other worlds at this time) in hopes she could obtain the Silver Crystal's counterpart, the Golden Crystal, held by Elysian's guardian Helios, which would grant her the power to overtake Serenity. Helios allowed her within its reach, but the crystal sensed her dark intentions and repelled her with golden flames, rejecting her as its master. Cast out for the darkness of her heart, a furious Queen Nehelenia embraced this identity as a "queen of darkness" and attempted to invade the White Moon with her own dark powers. It did not go so well for her. She was sealed away into her own magic mirror and cast off into a dreamscape when the New Moon (a lunar eclipse) came around.

We know the rest. As the dreamscape is tied to Elysian, Nehelenia was able to conquer Elysian and corrupt it into a state of decay and misery plagued by nightmares. Helios' spirit left his body and fled to Earth in the form of a pegasus. And during a solar eclipse, the Dead Moon was able to travel to Earth and set up their circus there to do their wicked queen's bidding. From here Queen Nehelenia is played up as a straightforward sinister villain until Helios is back in his original body in Episode 37. Helios simply gives the queen a fierce, judgmental yet pitying look just like he gave her on the day she failed to take the Golden Crystal and Nehelenia has a panic attack over it, and during this we see wrinkles beginning to form under her eyes. This gives extra incentive for Nehelenia to seemingly kill Helios as she rips the Golden Crystal from off his head, and enjoys doing so.

Then there's the "Zirconia as Nehelenia's reflection" reveal. Zirconia and Nehelenia were two sides of the same coin; Zirconia saw her beautiful queen as her fondest dream, while Nehelenia looked at her servant as her worst nightmare, her appearance and voice always disgusting Nehelenia, so she takes great pleasure in doing away with the crone. One hand of Nehelenia comes out from the mirror, and Zirconia's hand starts to glow. Nehelenia's full body comes out, Zirconia's body starts glowing. As Nehelenia fully emerges, Zirconia vanishes. The dark queen is finally free, with Golden Crystal in hand.

During this time, the sky over Tokyo has been darkened by the New Moon, more Dead Moon Circus tents have invaded, citizens who had their dreams stolen have turned into zombie husks, and there are cobwebs. covering. the whole place! Once again bears a striking resemblance to the young Nehelenia's mirror-induced nightmare...

Sure enough, as Nehelenia is blasted with the radiant power of the Golden Crystal, it wears away at her until the physical image of her dream fades and she's exposed for what she truly always was by this point in time - the hideous old hag she saw in the mirror all those years ago. Her pink-toned skin had already gone pale, but now it looks a pale shade of purple. Yes, she looks exactly like Zirconia!

What Nehelenia fails to realize is that she made herself this way. In clinging so desparately to her own would-be eternal dream from her youth, a dream that bases her entire self worth and right to exist on keeping her youth and beauty, in order to prevent the future she saw in the mirror from coming to pass to the point where she'd steal away the dreams of others and leave terrible nightmares in her wake, Nehelenia self-fulfilled the mirror's prophecy. She created the dark environment she'd been surrounded by during her breakdown. She became the wretched old monster that had disgusted and disturbed her so badly. And because of this, she gave up looking for any sort of happiness that did not concern her looks and her childish dream. She isolated herself, wallowed in lonelinesss and succumbed to bitter malice, hatred, and insanity. Queen Nehelenia believes the very idea of losing what she'd cherished the most grants her liscence to embrace nihilism, to lash out in wrath towards others and care for no one but herself and her own dream that she wished so badly could be everlasting. She feared the flow of time and the changes of life, so she preferred to retreat from any reality where she is not a youthful, beautiful, majestic and powerful goddess among all women. She is the living embodiment of childish self-absorption and nihilism, stuck on her own vanity and willfully stagnating in internal growth.

But as Usagi told directly to the face of this cautionary tale, "I'm not like you." Usagi sees her own cherished thing, her "dream" in the form of her future daughter, ripped away from her right before her eyes when Nehelenia throws the child off the levitating, crumbling palace. But rather than give into despair, loneliness, envy and hateful rage like Nehelenia hopes she will, Usagi takes a dive right after Chibi Usa, still willing to fight for the best possible future she knows is possible (Crystal Tokyo) rather than be overcome by dread of the worst possible future to the point of losing herself along with her care for others. Nehelenia is unable to do this. She is internally broken well past the point where she is capable of doing this. So while Sailor Moon dives towards a scary reality with an uncertain future, Queen Nehelenia retreats from it, willingly sealing herself back into her mirror as it's lifted up towards the New Moon. She is condemned to a lonesome eternity in complete darkness, stuck in a limited, stagnant space within the mirror with nothing and no one around her but her own self and her dream. But hey, she has her dream. She's got her youthful good looks, her precious beauty. She's all alone with just her dream of everlasting beauty, and that's just what she wants, right? She's happy this way! Happy ending....right??? And so vanishes the queen into the blackness of the New Moon, never to be seen again.

Always remember not to forget, not to let dream become delusion instead. Because otherwise, you end up like Queen Nehelenia.

Bonus: Queen Nehelenia's chilling theme music.

youtube

#Sailor Moon #Super S #anime #Queen Nehelenia #Zirconia #Dead Moon Circus #tragedy #nostalgia #analysis #Nightmare Fuel

26 notes · View notes

neyafromfrance95 · 3 months ago

Text

the issue with hotd is that they just fail to deliver the majority of storytelling points they want to make. this concerns the characterization, the relationships AND the atmosphere as well.

the issue isn't that alicent isn't an evil hag like in the books, the issue is that her brainwashing, her not living her truth and so on weren't sufficiently portrayed, in a way that would be tangible for the audiences.

rhaenyra is out of character every 5 episodes to the point one doesn't even know what her character is. initially she is a brat who essentially wants to be a boy. pre-timeskip rhaenyra was "i'm not a boy and i hate it", but post-timeskip rhaenyra embraces her womanhood and is "girls can do anything". and tbh, just like i think alicent being lesbian-coded would've been more interesting than whatever we got now, rhaenyra being transmasc-coded would've been more refreshing.

you can tell that the show itself sees her as a hero who is morally right... but her actions are inherently selfish. nothing wrong with selfish female characters, we need more of them, the issue is that the show itself isn't aware of this...

hilariously, the only believable character in the show is fucking cole! as he is the perfect portrayal of an entitled lucky incel.

i loved daemyra pre-timeskip bc the way they framed this dynamic was as hot as it was weird and wicked and wrong. but now i just felt nothing about their dynamic. the delivery, the framing were lacking imo. i like the idea of their dynamic, but the way it's shown on screen isn't captivating.

i think they also want to showcase the peasants' reality but never from their pov? lol.

finally, i love cgi, the set designs and locations, the color grading, but the atmosphere that they are trying to create isn't really supported by the overall feel that they deliver, i don't feel all those feelings that i know they want me as an audience to feel, the overarching messages fail to hit as well, and at no point do they present us with a piece of dialogue that reaches the masterpiece of writing was the first 3 seasons of got.

#hotd #house of the dragon #hotd s2 #house of the dragon season 2 #rhaenyra targaryen #alicent hightower

26 notes · View notes

cer-rata · 6 months ago

Text

Goddesses That Would Be Better Wonder Woman Antagonists Than Hera

Enough with Hera as a bitter, manipulative, shortsighted hag!!!

WE GET IT! HERA HATES ZEUS'S BASTARD KIDS! SHE GETS MAD ABOUT IT! ENOUGH! SHE HAS OTHER TRAITS!

*Cough*

I'm so sick of media making Hera a flat, hysterical cunt, especially compared to the general moral nuance that her entire pantheon represents. It's just lazy at this point and done to death, and for Wonder Woman to have to fight a woman who's main grievance is being cheated on and generally mistreated by her husband again and again again and again like...optics people.

So here are my choice picks for goddesses of other pantheons (and one Greek on) that would be interesting obstacles to Diana, both ideologically and materially. Also! I say antagonists on purpose, because generally in polytheism, gods aren't truly evil, even if they have negative attributes, it's always more complicated than that, and while these ladies WILL cause some conflict, they're all more than just flat villains. Most could reasonably also be allies, and Diana is all about making her foes into friends.

Skadi

A goddess and Jotunn, Skadi is the queen of bowhunting, skiing and winter, generally. Famous for storming Asgard alone to avenge her father, and being intimidating enough for Odin to choose to attempt to appease her instead, Skadi is intense, and fittingly cold, but also fair and capable of seeing reason. Her tentative truce with Odin and her failed marriage to the god of the summer, Njord, could be ripe to twist into reasons to cast her eye towards current events, both divine and mortal. A proud, mighty giantess that will do what she deems necessary to see justice done to herself? You can do stuff there.

Izanami-no-Mikoto

The Shinto creation deity turned goddess of death, Izanami is upset! Very upset! And fairly so! She's like if Eurydice got really livid after Orpheus ignored her simple instructions and vowed to break all of his little toys. Because that is exactly what happened, they almost have the same myth. As revenge for him messing up her resurrection, Izanami vowed to kill 1k people each day to hurt her husband, Izanagi, the other creator deity. Izanagi responded by making 1.5k new people each day, which...I mean solves maybe the wrong end of the problem but...

Unlike Hera, she poses an active threat to mortals and has the power to make dealing with her difficult. Maybe Diana and Amaterasu have to team up to deal with her insane...uh...step mother? Kind of? It's a little complicated, I'm not going into it, Wikipedia is your friend.

Ishtar

I'm going to be honest she's my mythology blorbo and I made this post for her okay--

The Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, conquest, divine law, the Queen of Heaven, patron of queer folk (No I'm not making that up, she's down for the gays mythologically speaking), Ishtar is complicated, a little strange, and funny, so funny. She's got a short temper, is easily offended, yet is generally fair and uninterested in harm coming to mortals. Her bit thing is how her conquest domain often manifests. She doesn't care about leading armies or whatever, she goes to attempts to swindle or fight other gods for their domains. Her big famous myth is about her hubris in attempting to single-handedly storm the underworld to steal the seat from her sister. She's incredibly powerful and self assured, a little petty, but not cruel. If you want a goddess who will show up, slap Diana down a city block and intend it as a friendly hello, while also vaguely suggesting that they make out, it's Ishtar. She's a perfect occasional antagonist/ally depending on her whims, and she's so disinterested in bothering humanity that you can really have mostly consequence free god fights. An arc where she decides that Ares is starting to embarrass the war god community and she's going to beat his ass and take his job? Diana has to try to get her to stop without offending her and making it a personal problem? Because again this woman is crazy, she has beaten a mountain to death because it wouldn't bow. It was not a sentient mountain. She'd be so much fun!

And we're going to ignore the version of her that showed up in "Black Adam" because that was boring, lame, and focused completely on the sexual angle, because straight men can only focus on one trait at a time--

Pele

Polynesian goddess of volcanoes, Pele fills a lot of the same niche's as Ishtar here, in that her rage and displeasure is catastrophic, befitting the personification of a volcano. Though even as a volcano god she's notably scary, in some tellings the previous volcano god who occupied the volcano she lives in now, caught wind that she was coming in his general direction--not specifically for him mind you, just in his direction--and he fled for his life, vacating the volcano. She's as multifaceted as a volcano though, bringing life as well as destruction. But you know. Her domain IS a natural disaster, so it's not hard to create a scenario where Diana would need to try to stop that from being a thing. Bonus points if she's irritated about the colonization of Hawaii, that could be an interesting narrative for Diana to contend with.

Nemesis

DC dropped the ball here as well, don't look her up, you REALLY don't want to see her design, it's nasty.

Anyway, Nemesis is the goddess of retribution, but SPECIFICALLY for the crime of "hubris" or arrogance against the gods. She punishes you for thinking you're hot stuff in comparison to the divine. She's the reason Narcissus fell in love with his own reflection and died. She did that. She thought he was a bitch, and she was correct. Why is that distinction important? Because she's not just vengeance, she's a tool to defend the honor and ego of the gods. Who in the DC universe would make the Greek gods feel disrespected and threatened? An alien who is willing to punch them in the face perhaps? We could have Diana desperately trying to stop this divine terminator from messing up her super friends who really don't understand the levels of petty the her pantheon is willing to stoop to to save face. Shes a winged warrior goddess with a heart of stone!!! Give us that fight!!!

Anything but Hera!!! Anything!!! Leave her alone!!!!

#dc comics #wonder woman #diana of themyscira #dc meta #wonder woman meta #hera #ishtar #skadi #izanami #nemesis #pele #get off of my lawn

30 notes · View notes

wellthebardsdead · 12 days ago

Text

*Some of the emerald grove devil au with a Hag in the mix*

———

Falûne: Auntie?? Auntie!! *runs ahead of the group to Ethel* thank the gods you’re here, you’re the only one besides papa who can fix this!

Ethel: Calm down sweetie! What could have my little blueberry in such a pinch? You haven’t been playing near that nettle patch again have you?

Falûne: it was one time and I was 7! *huffs* n-no I- I got a mind flayer parasite in my head and it’s been tampered with like the drow one I showed you, you said it was sick right?

Ethel: Oh dear… Sick is one word for it. Evil is more like, whatever’s got ahold of those worms is dark magic even by my standards hmph. I’m afraid I can’t help you honeybun. And if your magic isn’t able to rid it then I’m not even sure your father can.

Falûne: o-oh… this is really bad then…

Ethel: oh come now don’t look so blue dear. Why don’t you come by my home before you go save your father. I’m certain that’s what you’re planning on doing isn’t it?

Falûne: y-yes auntie.

Ethel: Right! I’ll head off now and have a bag packed for you. Not letting my favourite little devil get himself killed now. *disappears in a burst of spores*

Wyll: that- wasn’t normal for a little old lady…

Falûne: Oh! *giggles* Auntie Ethel’s a hag! A powerful one at that too. She… can be kind of mean and she tricks people a lot but. She seems to like me and everyone in the grove. She’s never asked anything of us and has always protected us too.

*meanwhile Raphael*

Raphael: *paying off Ethel with unimaginable artefacts he stole from his fathers vaults* right, that’s this years payment sorted.

Ethel: ah come on now at this point there’s no need to keep up paying me. I love the little fella truely!

Raphael: Yes, but I’m a devil of my word and we had a deal… And keep that nettle rash ointment on hand he’s very clumsy still.

#Falûne tav #emerald grove devil au #the emerald grove devil au #auntie ethel #Raphael bg3 #Wyll bg3

15 notes · View notes

beneathcandycoatedclouds · 1 year ago

Text

Ok hear me out I've been thinking so much about Astarion for obvious reasons but also about consent and how important that is to him as a character

I was talking to my husband about how I love him because he always waits for you to ask for things before doing them (feeding, relationship stuff, etc.) And even tho all the characters do that it feels extra special with him given his trauma and being a vampire, which usually means you hunt people for sport and are not asking permission, and my husband was like "yeah except for the first time"

And here's the thing about that - Astarion is a rogue. A real sneaky boy. Mechanically has sneak attack. His bite bonus action has a 100% chance of hitting. You shouldn't wake up until he has latched on to you already. Which leads me to believe... That he meant to wake you up that first time. He meant to wake you up so that there would be a chance to reveal his nature and to ask if he can have some blood so he doesn't fuckin' die. But given that the dude isn't used to trust or vulnerability and revealing that he is a vampire is already a MASSIVE show of that, he needed to find a way to make it seem like he wasn't asking permission. In a weird way, he wanted to ask for consent without being fully vulnerable. And to me this was the first display, way early on, that he was just waiting for someone to trust him and trust in his abilities to make the right choice. He knows what that choice is he just needs people to trust him to make it (which is also another de-LICIOUS theme with all the other companions as well and the overarching theme of overcoming the darkness within us as a whole).

And on top of all this he later reveals that he has never tasted blood from someone before!!! Only animals!!! Like even when he had to do terrible things for Cazador or was out searching the streets for victims he never caved once! He was living off of the putrid rats Cazador gave him and denied his hunger when out in public because it was important to him that he didn't hurt people when he didn't absolutely have to from evil papa C!

And like yeah. Sometimes he wants murder and chaos and children to die in act I. But also hear me out - one of the things so many approval guides messes up in explaining what he approves of is "is this person typically classified as a monster? Are you killing them without looking for an explanation or giving them another chance, even if they might not deserve it?" And usually it's things like sparing the act I hag or other "monsters". That's why he is so blatantly racist to the Gur - and please don't misunderstand I think it's rough to hear that part - but looking at it from his perspective as well, Gur monster hunters kill "monsters" without a second thought. If Astarion was alone they would have just murdered him without thinking or realizing that he wasn't everything they thought he was or knowing he had never tasted human blood.

Now we are far away from the original post idea from consent but this all leads to the final point of like. People characterizing him as chaotic evil and just how much the alignment system really can do people dirty. Like no! It can all be traced back to a deep good desire of wanting to give people another chance and giving people an opportunity to make their own choices and be better! He has no idea but that desire is there! Basically it's like the option you can say to Minsc - there's good and bad in everyone it's just what people want to listen to

#bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #baldurs gate 3 #astarion #bg3 astarion #bg3 spoilers

95 notes · View notes

twistedtummies2 · 1 month ago

Text

Top 20 Wicked Witches

Halloween isn’t here yet, but I’m still on my run of October-themed lists for 2024! So, let’s talk about one of Halloween’s most famous archetypes: the Wicked Witch. Disregarding the long and rather controversial history of real-life witchcraft, fictional witches have been a staple in mythology, fairy-tales, and popular media as a whole for a very long time. From gnarled old crones and nasty hags, to darkly beautiful enchantresses who are as glamorous as they are grotesque, these mistresses of black magic are a mainstay in fantasy and horror alike. Of course, not all witches are evil: some, like Hermione Granger from the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, are generally very good and heroic characters. Even some witches who have a dark side, like Grandmama Addams from “The Addams Family,” aren’t really evil, they just have a sort of ghoulish sense of style. But no matter how much time passes, there will always be bad witches as well as good ones: figures of female power for both darkness and light. I decided to look specifically at some bad witches for this list. Some of them are hideous, some of them are radiant, but all of them match the basic description of “evil feminine magic-user.” There are a LOT of witch characters from various forms of media, so forgive me if any noteworthy ones YOU favor get left out of the running. With that said…here are My Top 20 Favorite Wicked Witches!

20. The Witch, from Into the Woods.

I wasn’t 100% sure how much this character REALLY counted as “wicked” witch, but by her own admission, “she’s not good, she’s not nice,” and she does do some things that are…morally questionable, to say the least. Plus, I absolutely LOVE “Into the Woods,” and I frankly don’t get to talk about it enough, so I’m giving her a spot here. For those who don’t know, this musical is the creation of the late, great Stephen Sondheim, whom many consider one of the greatest musical theatre masters of all time. The show is a mash-up of several fairy-tales together: in the first act, the stories intertwine and, by the end of the act, all of the characters involved have seemingly found their happy endings. This is all well and good, but the REAL kicker comes in Act II, when the characters learn that their actions (and inactions) from the first half now have far-reaching consequences, and that sometimes “happily ever after” isn’t so easy. The Witch is a central character in the story, who effectively jumpstarts the plot, as most of the major plot threads tie back to her twin goals of regaining her youth and beauty, and protecting her adoptive daughter, Rapunzel. While not necessarily EVIL, in the strictest sense, the Witch is a very self-centered character, and her self-serving nature repeatedly bites her in the rear throughout the story, with increasingly unfortunate results. At the same time, however, she’s one of the most rational characters in the story, often stepping in to halt the other characters as they bicker and fuss…though even then, it’s usually only for her own purposes. The character is typically treated as the “star attraction” in the play, as whenever there’s a really big name cast in the show, it usually goes to the Witch. Given how much meat there is to the role, it’s not a surprise that such names as Meryl Streep, Bernadette Peters, Donna Murphy, and Phylicia Rashad have all tackled the part with aplomb.

19. Gruntilda, from Banjo-Kazooie.

This silly sorceress is the main antagonist of the Banjo-Kazooie franchise, which focuses on the adventures of a bear and a bird trying to outdo the nasty crone in her many schemes. Gruntilda Winkybunion is a classic, cartoony witch, inspired by the Queen from Snow White. Determined to be the fairest in the land, she kidnaps Banjo’s sister in the first game, planning to rob her of her youth and beauty, thus turning the girl bear into a monster and transforming the gnarled witch herself into a smokin’ green bombshell. In later installments, the evil witch returns to seek revenge on those who took away her chance at glamor. While Grunty is not necessarily an idiot, she’s still a generally more humorous sort of character. Her ironic vanity and overconfidence constantly lead to her downfall, to say nothing of her faith in her many bungling minions. Though funny, she nevertheless poses a threat to the world she inhabits, and has many ways of coming back from her numerous defeats, even from beyond the grave! She may not be the scariest witch on the countdown, but she’s certainly one of the most entertaining.

18. Yubaba, from Spirited Away.

“Spirited Away” is many people’s choice for their favorite film from the popular Japanese movie company, Studio Ghibli, as well as the debated masterwork of internationally famed animator Hayao Miyazaki. Influenced by various fairy-tales and pieces of folklore, the story tells of the adventures of a young girl named Chihiro, who ends up lost - along with her parents - in the spirit world. After her parents are turned into pigs (it happens), she goes to a bathhouse run by the wicked hag Yubaba, to try and find a way to get home. Yubaba tricks Chihiro into signing a work contract with her, and steals Chihiro’s name away, giving her the new name “Sen.” As time goes on, Sen begins to forget her name and her true identity: if she completely forgets her true self, she’ll be Yubaba’s servant for the rest of time. Sen must thus find a way to regain ownership of her name and escape the spirit world and Yubaba’s influence. Yubaba is one of the few proper villains to appear in a Studio Ghibli film, and she’s a very fun character. While absolutely the villain of the story, she does have some standards: she considers herself a businesswoman, and genuinely respects hard work and determination. She even starts to form a sort of affection towards Sen, despite everything. The old witch also genuinely loves her son, Boh, spoiling him absolutely as rotten as herself. Boh later learns his lesson, but Yubaba…well, the jury is still out on that one.

17. Circe.

It’s difficult to say who the first witch character in fiction is/was, but I think a fair argument could be made that Circe - a figure of Greek Mythology - could certainly be considered AMONG the first, at the very least. This enchantress was the ruler of the mystical isle of Aeaea. The daughter of the Sun God, Helios, and a water nymph named Perse, Circe was closer to a deity than a human being, and had the power to match it. Circe was prone to jealousy, and seemed to enjoy toying with mortals either out of spite, or for sport, or for both. With her magic wand, she could turn other people into all sorts of beasts. In the famous legend of “The Odyssey,” she transformed most of Odysseus’ crew into pigs, until he agreed to live with her for a year. In another legend, she transformed a nymph named Scylla into the legendary man-eating sea monster of myth, in a plot of revenge. In still another, she punished King Picus for rejecting her advances by turning him into a woodpecker. The character still survives through various modern interpretations (my personal favorite is the one from DC, where she’s a frequent enemy of Wonder Woman). Depictions of the sorceress range from her being a mischievous trickster who is more chaotic than truly evil, to her being an outright evil entity. As one of the longest-lasting examples of an antagonistic witch, she definitely deserves mention here.

16. The Other Mother, from Coraline.

While I count the Other Mother as a witch, since she has been classified as such in other sources, this character is sort of an iffy case. It’s not really clear what or who the Other Mother actually is. Alternatively referred to as “The Beldam,” she is a mysterious and otherworldly being who lives in a parallel world, where she lures unhappy children by pretending to be a nicer, more indulgent version of their actual mothers. The Other Mother creates a universe where the child will have everything they ever wanted, be able to go on all the whimsical adventures they could ask for, and where every person they know is now a much more interesting version of their real life selves. Once the child is “fattened up” with all this joy, the Other Mother convinces them to sew a pair of black buttons onto their face in place of their eyes. It’s not clear exactly what happens then, but once they obey, the Child’s soul belongs to the Other Mother, and she devours their bodies. In both the original novel, as well as the more famous animated movie adaptation (which, to its credit, stays largely true to the book), as time goes on throughout the story, the Other Mother’s appearance changes steadily, from looking identical to Coraline’s real Mom, to resembling some twisted, warped, disgusting monster that hardly resembles the real woman at all. Her origins, the nature of her powers, and even her EXACT motivations cloaked in mystery, the Other Mother is one of the creepiest characters on this list.

15. Witch Hazel, from Looney Tunes.

In contrast to the mind-numbing horrors of the previous choice, Witch Hazel is one of the most lighthearted contenders, and by far the most LITERALLY cartoony. First appearing in a parody of “Hansel and Gretel,” this hyperactive hag didn’t appear in a ton of cartoons, but she’s nevertheless fondly remembered. Most of the time, Hazel is looking for some hapless animal to cook into her stew for supper, or else seeking some sort of special ingredient for one of her many poisonous potions. While not especially bright, her powers and her tenacity make her a dangerous character. Hazel is largely entertaining because of just how EXCITED she always is: she’s almost always bouncing around from scene to scene, and clearly having a blast doing whatever she wants to do. Like many great cartoon villains, and especially those from the Looney Tunes library - similar to Wile E. Coyote or Sylvester the Cat - she never wins, but you almost want her to, simply because she’s so much fun to watch.

14. Mommy Fortuna, from The Last Unicorn.

While this haggard old hag (see what I did there, folks who know?) is a relatively small character in the story, her role is still important, and she’s easily one of the most memorable antagonists in the tale. “The Last Unicorn” was a fantasy novel written by Peter S. Beagle; it was later adapted into an animated feature film, produced by Rankin/Bass, with Beagle acting as the chief screenwriter and having a major role in helping to cast the picture. The plot of both the novel and the film is basically the same: a Unicorn, who believes she may be the last of her kind, leaves the secluded safety of her woodland retreat to try and find out what has happened to the rest of her species. Early on, she is captured by the wicked Mommy Fortuna: a witch who runs a traveling show called “The Midnight Carnival,” where she puts on displays of mythical beasts she has apparently captured with the help of her fellow showmen. It’s ultimately revealed that nearly all of Fortuna’s legendary creatures are mere illusions, as she uses her magic to make ordinary, rather shabby animals appear to be fantastic beasts. The Unicorn is one of only two actual, immortal beings she has successfully managed to ensnare. The other is the vengeful harpy, Celaeno. Fortuna has become obsessed with her capture of the harpy, and though she knows the Celaeno will literally be the death of her, she takes not only comfort but PRIDE in the fact that the creature will never forget the years she spent as the prisoner of the witch. The character was voiced in the film by Angela Lansbury, of all people; if you ever wanted to know what Mrs. Potts would sound like if she just completely lost her mind…well, first watch “Sweeney Todd,” then maybe take a look at this picture.

13. Jadis the White Witch, from The Chronicles of Narnia.

Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Snow Queen,” the White Witch - a.k.a. Jadis, a.a.k.a. The White Queen - is the primary antagonist of two of the Narnia novels: the original story “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe,” and a later prequel tale, “The Magician’s Apprentice.” Though beautiful, she is thoroughly and horribly wicked: a vain sorceress whose heart is as cold as the icy winter she plunges Narnia into during her reign. Jadis is not only a highly gifted sorceress, but also incredibly strong physically, making her a particularly dangerous force to be reckoned with. Any who stand in her way are tortured, killed, or turned to stone; sometimes all of the above. She is capable of appearing kind and helpful at first, but only when it suits her needs to manipulate people to her side. While the White Witch is a very iconic villain (arguably more iconic than her inspiration, since most versions of the Snow Queen actually bear more resemblance to Jadis than anything from Hans Christian Andersen), I don’t necessarily automatically think of her when I think of the phrase “wicked witch,” so I’m ranking her somewhat lower. Make no mistake, however, she is a marvelous character, and worthy of placement.

12. The Grand High Witch, from The Witches.

Arguably one of Roald Dahl’s darkest children’s books (and that is saying a LOT, believe me), “The Witches” is a book all about…well…witches. In this universe, witches are not just treated as spellcasting crones, but rather almost as another species…a species of pure evil, who LOATHE children. Why do they loathe children? Because kids stink…literally. Witches find the scent of children so repellent, they will do ANYTHING to eradicate as many little boys and girls as they can from the planet. The most notable of the evil ladies in the story is their leader: a mysterious and diabolical figure known simply as the Grand High Witch. In both the book and each of the two feature film adaptations that have been released (one starring Anjelica Huston as the Grand High Witch, the other starring Anne Hathaway), the Grand High Witch presents herself at first as a beautiful, glamorous woman…but this is quite literally a mask. Underneath her disguise, she is a nightmarish beast, almost too repulsive to describe, with a voice that’s described as sounding like something crackling over a fire. Easily the most feared and powerful of all witches, she will quite literally fry those who dare question her authority, courtesy of white-hot beams of energy she can shoot from her eyes. She’s easily one of the most unsettling and frightening witches on the list, no matter which interpretation you look at.

11. Morgan le Fay.

One of the original dark sorceresses of literature and myth, Morgan le Fay ranks low because how wicked she is, and what kind of person she is, tends to vary depending on the adaptation or reimagining of Arthurian lore you actually look at. In some cases, Morgan is not really evil at all. In others, she is a cruel but elegant sorceress who will stop at nothing to achieve her evil ends. In still others, she is a more sympathetic villainess, whose dark deeds are fueled by tragedy, or who shows a noble side to her character beyond her diabolical actions. Even her name has changed: she’s been Morgan le Fay, Morgaine, Morgaine le Fay, Morgana, the list goes on. It’s the constant reinventions of Morgan that keep her out of the top ten, but they also showcase her single greatest strength: she is, almost without a doubt, the most famous villain in Arthurian legend (in the ones where she IS a villain), the only other possible exception to this rule being her son, the universally black-hearted Mordred. Arch-nemesis to both King Arthur and Merlin, as long as their stories are told and retold, Morgan will be following close behind in some fashion or another.

10. Witchiepoo, from H.R. Pufnstuf.

Another more lighthearted enchantress. A lot of you probably don’t know much about this character, if anything at all, but I’ve always had a soft spot for the (hilariously named) Witchiepoo, the main antagonist of the classic children’s series, “H.R. Pufnstuf.” The series focuses on the adventures of a young boy named Jimmy, who ends up stranded on the shores of a peculiar fantasyscape called Living Island. He works with the town’s mayor, the titular Pufnstuf, to keep peace across the isle, and foil the machinations of the villainous Witchiepoo, who forever schemes to - you guessed it - take over the world. Witchiepoo is about as cartoonish a witch you can get without being an ACTUAL cartoon; think Witch Hazel and then make her a live-action character, and you’ll have a rough idea. I got to see reruns of this series a lot growing up, and even owned a Witchiepoo plush toy as a child (sadly, I no longer have it), so this character has always had a soft spot for me. Much of the credit for her power as a character goes to her performer, the late Billie Hayes. She reprised the role in “The Paul Lynde Halloween Special,” where she was revealed to be the sister of the Wicked Witch of the West…which…I guess means Witchiepoo is the Wicked Witch of the East? (Wonder how she came back from having a falling house crush her spirit…AND her body.) Interestingly, Hayes also played a very similar character in the film “The Black Cauldron,” in the form of Orgoch, one of the Witches of Morva. I guess she just had a very specific and delightfully wicked type.

9. Bellatrix Lestrange, from Harry Potter.

While there are many witches, both good and bad, in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, arguably none are as delightfully wicked as Bellatrix Lestrange. (Please don’t bring Umbridge into this mess, I said DELIGHTFULLY wicked.) Bellatrix is one of the most notable antagonists of the series, both in the films and the books…which is funny, since she actually doesn’t appear till the last three novels, and, by extension, the last four films of the original Harry Potter movie series. Rotten to the core, this mad witch is arguably the single most devoted of Lord Voldemort’s Death Eaters - an army of dark wizards who wish to conquer the entire world. Some do it for love of carnage. Some do it because they believe they are superior beings. Bellatrix does it for both reasons. She is sadistic and ruthless, gleefully tormenting and killing anybody who crosses her. Her personality flips from a zany, childish madwoman to a vicious, psychotic killer at the drop of a hat. In a way, Bellatrix feels like a sort of crossroads between the archetypal nasty crone many Wicked Witches seem to be, and the more glamorous dark sorceress type you’ll find in characters like Morgan le Fay or Jadis. She’s not necessarily bad-looking, but she’s not all there…I would say that perfectly describes her mental state, but that would imply there was ever a good soul there to begin with. Unfortunately for Harry and his team, that’s not the case.

8. The Sanderson Sisters, from Hocus Pocus.

Well, you can’t have a list of great wicked witches without these three, in my opinion. This Halloweentime cult classic is largely remembered JUST for these characters; I don’t think too many people care that much about about Max, Dani, or…(thinks)...okay, maybe SOME people care about Thackery Binx, but certainly not as many as those who care about the Sanderson Sisters! These three evil spinsters were executed during the infamous Salem Witch Trials (apparently, not ALL of the victims were innocent). They were caught in the middle of a plot to consume the life force of every single child in the village. However, before they were hanged, they cast a spell that would summon them back someday from beyond the grave…and three hundred years later, in 1993, they get their chance. Winnifred, played by Bette Midler, is the leader of the group, being the smartest and most cunning. Mary (Kathy Najimy) is arguably the silliest of the trio (which is saying a lot), but has the best nose, being able to sniff out kiddy-winks like the Child Catcher. Sarah (played by Sarah Jessica Parker) is a childish airhead, with a salacious edge to her personality. All three have the power to mesmerize people with their voices, siren-style. The actresses find a great balance between being entertainingly goofy and actually quite creepy and dangerous when necessary. The film’s popularity has only continued to grow over the years, with it now having a Halloweentime show at Disney World, and a sequel film, where the Witches return a second time almost thirty years after their initial resurrection. This film delivered much of the same from the trio, but also gave them a more sympathetic side, showing that these sisters didn’t come from the best background, and, beneath all their bickering and pantomime antics, they truly did and still do love each other. Always fun to see that in villains.

7. Ursula, from The Little Mermaid.

Consistently voiced by the late, great Pat Carroll, this cecaelian Sea Witch is certainly a unique choice on the list. In the original story of “The Little Mermaid,” the Sea Witch is a mysterious but not necessarily malicious character. She’s not someone you want to cross, but she’s not truly evil. In Disney’s treatment of the story, however, Ursula is depicted as an almost Mephistophelean character: a wily witch who makes almost Faustian bargains with merfolk, offering them the things they want most…but always for a price. With the help of her pet eels - Flotsam and Jetsam - she then sets about rigging the stakes to her advantage. Ultimately, these deals typically result in her taking her client’s souls, as she transforms them into withered, sentient, eternally-tormented polyps in her undersea garden. Ursula’s plans seem largely based around her desire for power, as well as her yearning for vengeance against King Triton. (In some continuities, Triton is her brother…Scar approves.) However, she also clearly takes gleeful delight in simply causing trouble, making other merpeople miserable and relishing every moment of their despair. She’s widely considered one of Disney’s greatest villains, and for good reason; placing her in my Top 10 here is a no-brainer.

6. The Witch from Hansel & Gretel.

Much like Morgan le Fay, there have been many incarnations of this witch throughout history. However, unlike Morgan, whose levels of evil tend to fluctuate…pretty much EVERY version of this Witch is pure evil, and it’s not surprising why. In this classic fairy-tale, a pair of small children - typically abandoned in the woods by their cruel stepmother - stumble across a giant gingerbread house in a secluded part of the forest. There they meet a kindly old woman, living alone, who takes them in and offers the starving babes some food. Unfortunately, it’s quickly made clear this is a sham: the “nice old lady” is really a cannibalistic witch, who uses her tempting home as a way of luring in her favorite meals: silly children. Arguably her greatest weakness is her poor eyesight, but her other senses are so heightened it almost doesn’t matter. The brother and sister must then find a way to escape the evil crone, before they end up as her dinner. The story is one of the most well-known fairy-tales of all time, and has been adapted to film and television on numerous occasions. There’s even a rather popular children’s opera rendition of the tale, along with other theatrical productions. Some of my favorite people to play the Witch include Cloris Leachman, Rosie Perez, Joan Collins…and our old pal Billie Hayes. Yeah, Witchiepoo strikes again…like I said, Hayes must have had a VERY specific type. XD

5. The Weird Sisters, from The Scottish Play.

No, I’m not saying the title, because I’m not taking any chances. But if you know your Shakespeare, you’ll know which play I’m talking about. If you don’t, however, here’s a brief little summary: a Scottish nobleman, whom we shall call “MacB,” learns from a trio of witches - referred to commonly as “The Weird Sisters” - that he will become king. Urged on by his ambitious and dangerous wife, he decides to kill the current king and orchestrate things in such a way as to seize the crown for himself, thus creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. Still unsure of his security and power, however, MacB later visits the witches again…and it isn’t long till history repeats itself, this time much to MacB’s detriment. These witches are some of the most iconic in history; their famed chanting of “Double, Double, Toil and Trouble” has arguably become more well-known than the play itself, or their role in the story. While the Witches are evil in the story, their exact motives are unclear: they seem to be bringers of chaos, simply relishing in the chance to stir up trouble with their prophecies and teasing words, leading MacB and others on then sitting back and watching the madness unfold. Some versions give them a slightly softer veneer, making them seem more like strange wise women than malicious monsters. In some versions, in fact, there are more than three Witches, instead revealing a whole coven of cackling crones, concocting vile potions and practicing scary spells in the wilds of the world. Given that this is my favorite of Shakespeare’s plays, it stands to reason these famous enchantresses would rank highly for me, but there are still a few characters I like more.

4. Baba Yaga.

If there is a quintessential fairy-tale witch, I would argue the Russian crone known as Baba Yaga fits that bill. Predating even the witch from “Hansel & Gretel” (whom she may or may not have inspired), Baba Yaga is a figure of Slavic folklore, who has appeared in many stories over the years. She is described as an ancient hag with iron teeth, who lives in a hut that is able to move around on giant chicken legs. She flies around in an oversized mortar, with a crooked broom in one hand that she uses to sweep away her tracks. In many stories, Baba Yaga is depicted as an eater of children; sometimes she lures gullible ones into her lair, other times she kidnaps naughty children and whisks them away for her supper. Of course, she doesn’t restrain her appetite to JUST kids; those who displease the Baba Yaga run the risk of being her dinner regardless. However, she is not wholly unreasonable: in some stories, she’s depicted as being somewhat like the Sea Witch - making hard but not impossible deals with mortals for her own ends. There have been many depictions of this character over the years: from animated films like “Bartok the Magnificent,” to video games like “Castlevania: Lords of Shadow" and “Rock of Ages II,” to unrelated forms of literature like “Babushka Baba Yaga.” Some of these make the witch out to be a more sympathetic character who is merely misunderstood, while others stick to her as a purely evil villainess. Arguably the greatest bogey-story of witchcraft on this whole countdown, Baba Yaga has more than earned her place in my top five.

3. The Evil Queen, from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

While I’m specifically talking about the Disney version here, one could easily give this placement to ANY version of the Evil Queen. In the original fairy-tale, it’s not clear if the Queen’s disguises are the work of magic or not, but considering all the other magical things around her - from the Poison Apple to the Magic Mirror to lesser-known elements - it’s not surprising many adaptations go the full monty, so to speak, and have her physically transform into a crooked old crone. Disney’s version was probably the first to take this approach, and remains the most famous. With this take on the character, you kind of get the best of both worlds with the spectrum of evil feminine spellcasters: as the Queen, she is cold, elegant, and darkly beautiful. As the Witch, she is a half-crazed, gnarled hag, complete with a cackling laugh. Both of her guises are iconic, and the scene where the Queen changes her shape for the first time is one of the most famous in the film. Like many of the other Disney Villains that would follow her, she is delightfully quotable, and set the bar many famous antagonists - including other witches - would later follow.

2. Maleficent, from Sleeping Beauty.

DON’T START YELLING AT ME YET. I am very well-aware that Maleficent isn’t TECHNICALLY a witch, in the strictest sense of the word. She is a dark fairy; a member of the fae. HOWEVER, I’m still going to count her because a.) she still fits the basic bill of “humanoid enchantress of the diabolical sort,” and b.) she actually HAS been referred to as a witch, in Disney-made materials no less, on more than one occasion. When you combine that with the fact she’s one of my favorite villains of all time, I think I’m justified in giving her some inclusion. While Morgan le Fay is arguably the archetypal “wretched yet beautiful sorceress” figure (and Morgan, herself, has some fairy-based origins, I should add, at least in some versions), Maleficent is the character I most quickly think about when I consider the same character type. She is regal, grandiose, and refined, yet has monstrous power and an even more monstrous temperament. As an apparent entity of evil, she seems unable to find real joy in life except when she’s causing trouble for other people, and she takes her work VERY seriously. Since her debut, she has become one of Disney’s most noteworthy villains; in many spin-off materials, such as “Kingdom Keepers” and “Kingdom Hearts,” she is depicted as a leading member of the Disney Villains, and she is consistently treated as one of the most powerful and dangerous even in her most silly reinventions. How much she really counts as a “witch” can be debated till the dragons come home, but in my books, I feel she’s worthy enough to not only make the cut, but place VERY highly.

1. The Wicked Witch of the West, from The Wizard of Oz.

While Maleficent may be one of my favorite villains of all time, let’s face it: when you think of the phrase “Wicked Witch” - or, heck, probably even if you just think of the word “Witch” on its own terms - chances are high the first image that comes to your mind is this character. In the original L. Frank Baum “Oz” books, however, the Wicked Witch of the West is a relatively minor villainess: she’s just one of the many obstacles on Dorothy’s journey in the original story, and while she is arguably the most dangerous and iconic, she’s not the antagonist of the entire novel. In fact, after her infamous melting, she kind of just disappears from the series: she was an evildoer who came and went, nothing more. It was the advent of the 1939 Technicolor movie, which starred Margaret Hamilton in the role of the Wicked Witch, that made the character so popular. Much like Bela Lugosi’s Dracula or Boris Karloff’s Frankestein Monster, I feel that Hamilton’s Witch is sometimes overlooked for how EXCELLENT the performance really is; while not at all subtle, she isn’t treated like a joke in the original movie, she’s treated as a legitimate threat, and Hamilton does a great job at making her one. The popularity of the musical “Wicked” - loosely based on Gregory Maguire’s novel of the same name - I think has both bolstered and yet overshadowed Hamilton’s superb spellbinder: as much as I love Elphaba, I think people often forget or underestimate the true power of the original, TRUE Witch from the movie as a result. Other versions of the character have come and gone since, as well, but it’s this version that has remained immortal and the most influential. I see no reason not to name Margaret Hamilton’s Wicked Witch of the West as my favorite - and the definitive - Wicked Witch.

HONORABLE MENTIONS INCLUDE…

Mother Gothel, from Tangled. (Full disclosure, ALL of the HMs are related to Disney. Weird.)

Magica DeSpell, from DuckTales. (Both versions of her are great; very nearly made the cut.)

Mad Madam Mim, from The Sword in the Stone. (Relatively small role, but very fun.)

The Witches of Morva, from The Chronicles of Prydain. (They’re less wicked in the books than in the Disney film, “The Black Cauldron,” but I think they still fit.)

9 notes · View notes