#this has probably been done better but whatever

[beccastareyes]

The most delightful part is when the universe is better for the character personally, but is generally worse.

Like, a universe where Ozai was more like Iroh in that he was a genuinely loving father. That while he'd note that Azula was probably the better firebender, but Zuko would be the better Firelord. And Azula was fine with that, because she'd rather be a general or master firebender who had a few close confidants (including her brother) and didn't have to think about most people beyond 'would Zuko be disappointed in what I am about to do'. Either Iroh is Firelord or Iroh voluntarily abdicated after Lu Ten's death, but it's generally acknowledged that Zuko will be Firelord and both Ozai and Iroh are fine with that and making sure he is ready.

But the Airbender genocide still happened. The Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes were still fighting a losing war. The Firelord's reasoning for using the return of Sozin's Comet might be about sparing Fire Nation lives by using the power boost rather than 'let's burn it all down for resisting', but he's still going to use that to wrap up the conquest in a display of fiery doom. Zuko might know the Avatar should be out there, but he's almost certainly not trained in firebending, Iroh is still on the Fire Nation's side and not working with the White Lotus, and Azula is actually mentally healthy and has a functional support system.

(To some extent, the first half of Season 3 does this, but Zuko knows that it's still the same Ozai and Azula, and any love is conditional. This is a universe where Zuko has never needed to earn his father or sister's love, and he has looked for some indication that the person he replaced was 'better' than him by Ozai or Azula's standards, and found nothing. If anything, this Zuko has done less because he's been at home learning to Firelord, rather than exiled to go look for the Avatar.)

Which is a twist in the knife -- that for Zuko to have a loving family beyond an uncle whose heart was in the right place, but wasn't always able to deal with Zuko's level of trauma and drama, all of the friends Zuko made are going to suffer or die. And that Zuko's 'betrayal' of his family and nation will seem to come out of nowhere because all the steps that lead to Zuko deciding that the Fire Nation's imperialism needed to stop never happened in canon. After all, the alternate universe Ozai, Iroh, and Azula see themselves as benevolent rulers... who rationalized that global conquest by a benevolent ruling family is for the greater good of the world. (Ozai might even believe that he and Iroh need to finish this before Zuko becomes Firelord, because Zuko is too compassionate to be a wartime Firelord, but will be the perfect Firelord for the upcoming Pax Ignis or whatever.)

I was thinking about universe swap AUs where characters from very dark (and often abusive) universes get brought into a much kinder universe. Those AUs are my favourite but consider:

Canon Zuko is temporarily brought into a universe where his father never hurt him, his mother never left, Azula adores her big brother- and he has no idea why this universe is so much kinder to him than his own

[yandereunsolved]

» 🪙 Yandere Connor — RK800 » 🪙 (part 2)

➜ (part 1) ➜ cw(s): kidnapping, self-harm mentioned (reader), starvation (reader), suicidal ideations (reader), force feeding, & manipulation ➜ tags: @bimboghostface, @savas-q1, & @aceofheartsssss

You have screamed your voice raw in hopes that some unknown savior will take pity. You have cried your tear ducts dry until your eyes swell and become bloodshot. You have cut into your skin with whatever you can find for just a modicum of control. More times than you can count, you have done these things. Each time the consequences increase, but the probability of escaping does not.

Each new place he—it, that thing you dared call your friend and perhaps even your crush, has hid you in has become progressively more dilapidated. Plush armchairs and soft carpets once softened the torture of your solitude; now splintering wooden floors and asbestos-filled walls are left in their wake. Places so damaged you question why Connor chooses them. It should go against his programming, or whatever's left of it.

But why should you care?

He deviated and showed you once again how dangerous unchecked androids are. Now small groups of rebellious preprogrammed code run amok, causing havoc—at least from what little you've been able to gather. Connor isn't keen on informing you of the goings-on of the outside world. He prefers to reassure you, which does little good (because fuck him).

A familiar shuffling behind the door alerts you. Your head snaps up like a startled deer, staring at the door like a predator will come through. He's drenched in blood when he comes in, red blood. His beanie has been lost. His multitude of jackets have tears and bullet holes. But he looks okay for the most part. The word must really hate you.

"I have news that will please you," he murmurs in that babying tone you have snapped at him to stop using.

He approaches you, kneeling down, a bag stuffed into one of his pockets.

"We'll be at a compound soon—one where my kind are able to live freely. And you have been granted access too. It has all of the necessities and even a bit of luxury."

He takes out the bag, unfazed by his own appearance but noting that it's disturbing you. He pulls out a packet of crackers and some applesauce. No. No, no, no, no.

"Connor, please, let me go," you beg with the panic rising in your voice.

You quickly shake your head as tears prick your dry eyes. You fruitlessly kick at him and yank at the chains holding you down to this place. You can feel the bile rising in your throat and the arduous aches in your muscles struggling to keep it held down, struggling to keep you awake.

Other things arise. The regret of being too weak to fend him off. The sorrow in being denied the right to take your own life.

A plastic spoon is inserted into your mouth with the apple mush oozing off it. You try to spit it out, but he wipes your face and more forcefully inserts the next spoonful into you.

"Nutrition is necessary for human survival, to thrive, yet you deprive yourself of it. Convincing me to let you leave would be much easier if you stopped proving that you are unable to care for yourself."

"I just want to go," the soul-crushing defeat evident in your voice.

Without missing a heartbeat of yours, he responds, "You can't. I-I need you here."

He shoves not just one cracker, but three, into your mouth. You almost choke, but he makes sure you are unable to. Maybe it would just be better if you choked on them. Or your vomit. Or even the shitty plastic spoon he keeps forcing into your mouth.

"You're being selfish," you finally manage to get the words out.

"You're being selfish. I have sacrificed the entirety of my being for you. And still you try to harm yourself. Do you hate me that much?"

He retracts the food from you. He stares unceasingly at you. His LED switching from red to colorless, one of the only parts of him that he has kept since his deviancy.

"Do I hate you?" you incredulously, rhetorically question. "Yes! I hate you! Is that what you want to hear? A confession of how much I loathe you for fucking up what little good was in my life?"

The tears well up and escape down your face, getting wiped off by Connor's attentive hands. You can't stop the shaking or the meltdown his presence has placed upon you.

"I hate you. I-I hate you. I h-hate y-you!"

The last syllable is barely out of your mouth when hands come up to cup your face, squishing your cheeks. Still having a meltdown, your teary eyes are just barely able to make out the abnormal pinkish hue on his LED. A color you've never encountered, even with him being deviant these last months—years, whatever.

"I understand," nearly inaudible, "and I suppose I always have. Your human nature causes you to think irrationally. You aren't able to see the 'bigger picture,' as humans call it. You have suffered at my hands. That I apologize for."

The acknowledgment of his transgressions breaks you down further. You can't quiet the wails escaping you, snot dribbling from your nostrils. Your body rocks itself back and forth in a pitiful attempt at comfort. You can't stop. It won't stop. He won't stop.

It validates him. He continues his tirade, sure that it will have the intended pacifying effect.

"I should be more attentive. But I'm so busy making sure that neither of us is caught by the authorities."

Excuses.

"When we get to the compound, all of that will change. You will have a higher standard of care. Me at your side. Your brain will stop merely surviving."

Promises.

"Then your love for me can bloom."

Resolution. His mission completed with you as his lover.

You quiet. He mistakes, or quite possibly dissmisses, your transition from an unfiltered meltdown to a horrified shutdown as an opportunity to cradle you. And for the first time since your kidnapping, you embrace him back—not out of some sweet, loving bond, but out of need. The need for someone else's closeness, touch—affection, even if it's all wrong. The desperation seeps out of you in droves and into your actions. Your mind and body want to claw at his synthetic skin, tear him apart, and thrive off the warmth of his parts.

...

If he can have a mission beyond his own makers, then you can have one beyond your captor's.

[she-whatshername]

this is dark so i get if you don’t wanna go there but what would xaden, garrick, bodhi and liam be like comforting a reader who just went through a traumatic experience?

Don’t we all need a little comforting after this weeks past events in the fictional and real life non fictional world. I’ll try my best to keep this light, and full of comfort. Because I know they’d all be such gems at this.

Xaden:

I have not finished Onyx Storm so no spoilers but wow, I did not realize what a fucking sweetie Xaden is

Yes, I am late to the party on this, but I bring the best snacks so let me in lolol

I could see Xaden reacting one of two ways when he finds out about the experience

One - he loses his beautiful fucking mind and goes hard on revenge. Trying to keep calm while you explain but simmering on the inside. In fact he doesn’t let you finish before he gets up, kisses your forehead and walks to the door to take care of business. Whoever or whatever hurt you, its their last time

Two - he’s in comfort mode. Pulling you in to a deep hug, kissing the top of your head. Running soothing circles on your back or just listening quietly, giving you space to talk. He’s so fucking gentle with you.

I also think Xaden’s got a plan up his sleeve for you. If you’re at Basgiath and say, you go through something traumatic. You loose a member of your squad, you just get out of RSC interrogation, etc. You know you can’t break in public, so you’re holding it in. So, he takes you into the forests that surrounds campus after classes wrap and towards a clearing. Unbeknownst to you, you walk right into a warded dome that’s hidden to the eye. The dome is soundproof. You turn, realizing he’s on the other side and start pounding to get out. But Xaden is there, lifting is fingers to say “No one can hear. Grieve, scream, punch the barrier. You’re safe. Let it out. I’ll be here when you’re done.” He turns to give you privacy, and you spend the next fifteen minutes doing just that. When you’re done, you sign at him to release you, and he pulls you into loving embrace

Garrick

This man. This dimpled man right here

This sweet giant

Like Xaden, he’s thinking revenge. And will probably use the leverage he has either on campus and as Xaden’s right hand to see it through.

But what I love best about the made up facts I made for Garrick is that I bet he is the best diffuser.

I have a scenario I need to finish writing but i image that you’ve experienced the trauma and you’re not alright. You’ve been wounded during a patrol during the Riorson House days and you’ve fallen after getting stabbed in the side. You’re in shock, panic and pain taking over you. Garrick is at your side in an instant, cupping your face and in his hands, “Baby! Baby, look at me…there you go. You’re alright, you’re alright - no. No you’re not going to die. I’m here, yeah? You have to breathe, I know it hurts but look at me. Take a breath…good, good - don’t close your eyes, love. Keep them here, on me, okay? Don’t be falling asleep on these good looks, the boys will never let me down for this. Help is coming baby, Hold on…”

I’d be like “okay!” Lolol

Garrick also seems like someone who would give you space. He wouldn’t be constantly at your side but when you pass each other or at meals he’s always looking in your direction and waiting for you to give him indication that you’re feeling better or not.

Bodhi

A true sweetheart

Kind

Caring

Gentle

Compassionate

And maybe a little protective, but we need that now. And he’s ready to give it to us.

Bodhi is such a great combination of knowing what you need and giving you confidence to say what you want.

I totally imagining him sitting next to you saying “How can I help?” And if you’re too shocked or scared to say anything he’s asking, “I have a few ideas in mind, can I try something?” And the moment you nod he’s giving you exactly what you need to help feel calm and protected. He just knows you that well. If affection and touch is what you need, he’s pulling you close, and wrapping his arms around you, physically putting himself between you and the outside world. His embrace is protective.

He’s also in full caretaker mode. If we’re in the Aretia days he’s pulling you into his room, drawing you a bath in his private bathing chamber, setting out clothes for you to wear and helping you get in bed to rest. He’s bringing up food from the halls, and picking up on any missed assignments or missives.

He will also just cancel his schedule if you need him to. If part of taking care of you is being with you, done. Everyone else can wait.

At bedtime, he’s curling up next to you, kissing your shoulder and rubbing your back to help you sleep. If you need space, the bed is your’s and he’s curled up on a chair at you side for when you need him.

Also I know his bedside manner is just top tier. The way this man will give your verbal affirmation after verbal affirmation. Yes.

Like Garrick can help bring your emotions down, Bodhi is helping to lift you up

Liam

Very much like Xaden i believe

But i think what Liam excels at is distracting through storytelling.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed with the trauma. Whether you are healing body or mind he’s sitting next to you, carving up something and just talking. He’s got a story for every emotion you may be feeling. If its grief, he’s telling you about the days when he lost his parents, or losing contact with his sister. If you need a funny story to distract you, he has one of those.

I can imagine he throws Xaden under the bus if you will, sharing a funny story when they fostered together at Xaden’s expense, “And if Xaden can fall on his ass and get scared shirtless, you can too, love. We’re human after all.”

Though, he’s also giving Xaden praise as well, “If I didn’t have Xaden…I dont know how I would have gotten through those years after my parents, after being taken away from Sloane. But, just like Xaden was there for me, I’m here for you. I’ll always be.”

[chuck-fag]

Same as it ever was, same as it ever was

[sejarcus-archive]

Guys, guys… cheerleader Sejanus, football/basketball player Marcus

[tamymew]

behold! a beast!

[yzafre]

mnnnnnNNNNNN so I was looking for something to do to procrastinate on my other projects and this person’s ask/idea from over on @turrondeluxe's blog started haunting my brain like a ghost and it’s not exactly the original concept BUT.

Here it is.

[totheidiot]

all i can think about is that i am going as L for halloween. I AM GOING AS L FOR HALLOWEEN EEE.

[king-spite]

.

[volfoss]

actually yeah im making a quick poll on this. for anyone who has been around long enough to remember when i made my massive clamp readathon situation (in which i read every single one of the works they put out) be everyones problem. hi. im doing it again but much worse now. reading about 400 volumes (and more if i can find more) of tezuka osamu's work. i am just curious on the general consensus of if i should upload thoughts as i read each one (ie: one post being like i finished kimba/jungle kingdom, heres my thoughts) or just have a MASSIVE post of hey. read them all heres my thoughts (as i did with clamp. which is when i found out tumblr had a max text limit)

[wwillywonka]

.

[autumnrory]

woooo my niece took 5 of my 13 lego sets, one of which was one of the three larger ones, so that's one huge box out of the way and i'm just glad she wanted them because like they ARE twenty years old and they look fine ofc but sometimes kids aren't gonna want stuff that isn't new and shiny ya know, but she did seem to want everything which would've been fine with me but i knew there was no way they would take all that with them, and at least i still have stuff of my own to sell, plus should get at least a cut of my brother's stuff for doing the inventory and putting together that stuff that wasn't already done

[opens-up-4-nobody]

...

[nyxire]

wait wait i just thought about this a while ago but just remembered again, but how the fuck does Zelda have Rauru & Sonias powers of light and time?? No children were at any point shown, talked of or even referenced? sonia dies ! and so does rauru not too long after! so its not like its a case of ‘oh well they can still hv children later’ how does the royal lineage work??? how does Zelda have these powers? its heavily implied that the sage powers are passed down through blood/lineage so where are her powers coming from ????

[perilegs]

just started fear & hunger, met d'arce, she talked about jesus 2.0, called me a peasant, and overall just seemed very nasty. as you may have guessed, im obsessed

[skrunksthatwunk]

well that's easily the best essay i've ever read about wanting to eat placentae