#we truly have come full circle LMAO

[jazzy-art-time]

JarbleAU screencap draw over

Officially drawn over a screencap of PASWG with JarbleAU characters! Reminded me of when I was a kid doing this stuff Nothing major or impressive, just a silly little trace over for shits n giggles!

Here is the original image, I obviously take NO credit for it as I literally traced over it to put my OC's there lol

[ak319]

Yan G!P athlete x fem!reader

��─ Reece Milford

Headcanon/Intro

AN: She's here finally-ヽ（≧□≦）ノfor those of you who don't know her, she's a side character from this series.

Warnings/MDNI: none, not much in this one tho, little age gap, (reader is 20 and OC is 23-24), suggestive themes.

Where do I even begin? Reece Milford, daughter of Edward Milford, a respected real estate mogul, and Catherine Milford, a poised philanthropist who runs a foundation supporting arts and culture. Then there’s Oliver, her older brother, a sharp and ambitious lawyer. Reece is the middle child, flanked by Lily, her sweet and free-spirited younger sister. The Milford family is as sophisticated as they come each member’s life is meticulously curated, their names whispered in the circles that matter.

But Reece? She’s different. Her story doesn’t follow the same predictable trajectory. It’s on the cricket field where she truly stands out. What started at high school with local matches soon spiraled into her securing a spot on the country’s national team. The media adores her, sophisticated, charming, a heartthrob on the pitch.

In high school, it was no secret that Reece had girls vying for her attention left and right. She didn’t even have to try, her height, athletic build, and effortless charm made her magnetic. But to Reece, they were just passing faces. Sure, she’d engage in lighthearted flirting now and then, but that was the extent of it. She wasn’t interested in dating, and playing around simply wasn’t her thing. Not like... a certain someone in her circle, but that was a story for another time (lmao- we all know who that is-)

Reece had always been the type to joke a little about girls, her teasing never crossing the line of respect. But if locker room talk ever got out of hand? That’s when her temper flared. She had no patience for that kind of nonsense, and more than a few people learned the hard way not to push their luck. She wasn’t just protecting some abstract principle, either, it hit close to home. With a little sister of her own, she refused to let anyone think it was okay to disrespect women.

Despite her grounded nature, rumors swirled around her. Whispers of Reece being a "playgirl" spread through jealous lips or from the sting of rejected love letters. None of it was true, of course, but she never wasted time defending herself. She knew who she was, and that was enough. Let people believe what they wanted, she had more important things to focus on.

But....despite this Reece held very specific views about women and love, and any notions of "dating" seemed trivial in the face of her goals.

As for family life, Reece barely spent quality time with her parents, especially her mother. While her dad was often caught up in his business dealings, her mom, Catherine, had thrown herself into her foundation. Prior to that, Catherine had been a full-time housewife, focused on raising the children. Reece had often been the one to suffer from the absence, not having the constant presence of her mother like Oliver did, and now, Lily didn’t have to face the same issues either. With her mom now running a larger foundation and becoming more involved with social media and community work, Catherine had less on her plate. She got to spend more time with Lily. But Reece, as the middle child, felt somewhat forgotten as she didn't experience that with Catherine as a kid and now was often at odds with her parents, especially her mother.

As time went on, Reece's views began to shift. She became firm in her belief that women should focus on the home, that their place was to care for children, nurture the family, and run the household. To her, the idea of being a "housewife" wasn’t a limitation, it was a duty, a role that held strength in its own right. Reece swore to herself that no matter what, she would never allow her wife to treat their children the way she had felt, neglected, forgotten, caught in the emotional distance of a career-driven mother.

Though the trio never discussed this but it was clear that her brother Oliver didn’t share her views, nor did her father, but that only made her resolve harder. She knew what she believed, and she was determined to make it a reality.

But the question lingers: what’s happening off the field? What happens behind the polished exterior of this icon of strength and good sportswomanship.

The truth? It’s you. Yes, you entered the picture.

Who are you, exactly?

You were just a mutual friend of Lily’s. Yes, when you and Lily grew close, you often found yourself invited to sleepovers at the Milford estate, something Lily loved, especially since their mansion was so vast, offering plenty of room for laughter and whispered secrets. It wasn’t uncommon for you to join, and given how the family was a bit overprotective of Lily, she rarely stayed at anyone else’s house.

She couldn’t explain why, but when she caught that brief glimpse of you, how shy and nervous you seemed in her presence, it made her chuckle, and something fluttered in her chest.

When you and her first saw each other in the hallway for the first time, you had just started college. Reece was 23, still grinding away in small leagues, always pushing herself, always working tirelessly with the hope of making it onto the national team. She had no interest in distractions, not in the form of dates or anything else. Her focus was singular, her ambitions far too important.

After that, she almost forgot about you. But then one night, when Lily thought everyone was settled in their rooms, preparing for bed, she saw the perfect opportunity to sneak out at 10 p.m. She assumed Reece was out with her friends, leaving the coast clear. But imagine her shock when, as you were backing your car out of the driveway, Reece suddenly pulled up and spotted Lily sitting in the passenger seat.

“What the hell is wrong with you?!” Reece snapped, her voice cutting through the night air. “Why were you sneaking out, huh?”

"J-just to grab a bite, Reece. Nothing else-" Lily stammered, her voice trembling under the intensity of Reece’s gaze.

Reece’s eyes flickered to you, and her expression hardened. She stepped closer, her tone sharp and commanding. “And you!” she barked, making your body flinch involuntarily. “What example are you setting here? She has a curfew for a reason.”

“But we’re 20, not 15,” You spoke up and she was almost shocked at your unexpected retort but her anger overpowered her.

Reece’s gaze didn’t waver. “Listen to me here,” she said, her voice low but laced with authority. She took a few steps closer, towering over both of you, her eyes never leaving yours. “First of all, this is our family, and you have no say in what we do. It’s never safe out there, and considering your background, it’s clear your parents never bothered to teach you even the basics-”

“How dare you!” You snapped, a surge of anger flooding your chest. “God! Lily, you never told me your sister was such a jerk!” Her words really stung, aimed directly at your middle-class background.

“Well, now you know.” You could feel the hurt rising in your chest, but you didn’t fight it. Instead, you turned on your heel and walked back to the car, your emotions bubbling over.

"Wait no! (Y/N)! I AM SORRY- REECE WHAT THE FUCK?!-" Lily's protests and apologies were blocked as you slammed your door and sped off.

It was a mistake. A mistake to be friends with someone like Lily, someone from a world so different from yours. Your heart ached as you drove, the weight of the words hanging heavily in the air. You cried all the way home, the tears blurring your vision, but deep down, you knew it wasn’t Lily’s fault. She had always been kind, humble, everything you admired. But Reece? She was a jackass.

Lily’s calls and messages flooded your phone, but you couldn’t bring yourself to answer. The hurt was too fresh, too raw.

Back at the Milford house, things weren’t any better. Lily, devastated by your silence, found herself hating her sister even more.

“You ruined our fucking friendship!” Lily shouted, her voice thick with frustration and hurt.

“I ruined it?!” Reece shot back, incredulous. Her voice grew louder, her anger flaring. “You’re blaming me for this?”

"You shouldn’t have been so rude to her!” Lily’s words hit hard, her emotions raw and unfiltered.

"Yeah , Reece, you shouldn't have said that to her."

"Dad, please- don't side with Lily on this one. I was just pissed and I said it! And next time she will think twice before-"

"You don’t get to dictate everything, including who I’m friends with! You can’t just go around hurting people like this!"

Before Reece could respond, Lily threw her hands up in exasperation. “I never asked for this! I never wanted you to act like this!”

With a sharp exhale, Lily stormed past her sister, her anger making the house feel smaller. She marched down the hallway, her footsteps heavy as she slammed the door to her room behind her.

Reece stood there, stunned, a mixture of regret and disbelief flickering across her face. But Lily didn’t give her the chance to apologize, she was already alone in her room, seething.

“You need to apologize to your sister, Reece. We didn’t raise you to be rude, especially to a girl. You need to apologize to both of them.” Her mother’s voice rang out, sharp and disapproving.

Yeah, right, Mom. 'Raise,' my ass.

With a bitter scoff, Reece stormed off, slamming her bedroom door behind her. She flopped onto her bed, pulling a ball from the corner of the room. Without a second thought, she tossed it up and down, her eyes unfocused, lost in thought. It was a habit she had whenever she was deep in contemplation or feeling the weight of stress, letting the ball float in the air, caught only by her tired hands.

Her mind shifted from wondering how to apologize to her little sister, to a sudden, unexpected realization, how the hell was she supposed to apologize to you?

What the fuck?

She had never apologized to anyone, ever. And you...

A part of her knew that she wasn’t just pissed at you for sneaking out with Lily, but because you had no regard for your own safety either. That’s what really made her angry. You were driving here alone, just... She took it the worst way. She focused her frustration on you.

And yet, there was something else, something that amused her. How you’d gone from the shy, skittish girl, who ran off to hide in Lily’s room the moment she saw her in the hallway, to this... straight-talking, confident version of yourself.

Cute...

"You think a takeout is gonna make things right?" Lily said, scrolling through reels on her phone.

"I’ve ordered gifts for you too."

"Don’t need ‘em."

Reece set the food down on the bedside table and sat on her bed, a hint of determination settling in.

"Give me her number."

"What?"

"I need to apologize to her. (Y/N). Give me her number. Now."

Lily hesitated, sensing the mix of gentleness and firmness in Reece’s tone. With a sigh, she sent the number to Reece’s phone.

"But... I don’t think she’ll forgive that easily. And for fuck’s sake, don’t say anything stupid. She finally went normal with me, and I don’t want you messing that up again-"

"I won’t, jeez. Eat up now."

With that, Reece walked out, unable to hide the smirk that tugged at her lips as she saved your number.

────

You were, as usual, putting the clothes in their proper places, mentally planning to get started on your assignment as soon as you got to your apartment after your shift at the boutique. Okay, next, check the bags...

"Hey."

You flinched and turned around to see Reece. You didn’t say anything, just stared at her.

"Um... I wanted to sincerely apologize... for, well, since you didn’t respond to my message-"

"So you came to my workplace?"

"I had to, okay? I just didn’t want to be the reason you have any sour feelings toward my family... or even Lily."

"I don’t," you replied, trying to sound neutral, but your heart was still racing. "I mean, they’re all very nice."

They.....Not me, huh? Don't you have a way with words...

She chuckled, clicking her tongue as she restrained herself from checking you out. Fuck, get a hold of yourself.

"I understand. I’m a jackass, a jerk, a douche. Valid. I deserve that. But please, don’t make your pretty face devoid of that smile because of me."

Okay, that took you off guard.

"Um-"

"I'll be right back, okay?" With that, she stalked off somewhere in the shop. You rolled your eyes, already knowing exactly what type of person she was: rich family, big ego--oh a customer!

Minutes later, while you were helping a woman, she popped back in, several bags in her hands, bags from not only the brand you worked for, but others around the street as well.

"Here. For you."

"What?! I’m not taking this-"

"Yes, you are. You definitely are. A token of my apology."

Every item cost more than your monthly rent. Though you were kind of touched, you reminded yourself that, at the end of the day, she had once again proved, even in her apology, that she was better than you. Yes, that’s what you felt. If she had just walked away after apologizing, that would have been enough.

"No, I am definitely not."

That took her off guard. Didn’t girls love expensive stuff?

"The apology was enough, alright? I get it, you’re rich and stuff. But you don’t need to prove your sincerity. I get it. You’re protective of Lily; she’s told me that. No need for these. Please."

Hm...

"I-I get it." Did you just fucking stutter in front of a girl, Reece? You loser.

"Um, thank you for accepting it." Her voice softened, but inside, a new thought took root.

Fuck these gifts anyway. You’re going to get that fucking ring on your damn finger, no matter what. She’ll make that happen. No way you're going to reject that.

That night her eyes had lit up when she saw that you had seen her message at least.

────

What you didn't expect was a notification pinging on your phone the next day.

"Hey, wanted to ask, can I at least take you out? A little compensation for that late grab bite you missed with Lily."

You raised an eyebrow at the text. The pickup line was casual, playful even, but something in it made your stomach twist. Was she trying to make this seem like no big deal? You sighed, knowing there was a lot more to it.

Should you ask Lily about this? She might know what was really going on....

You quickly typed a response, trying to play it off lightly.

"Hi, thanks, but it’s fine really. I’m good."

You sent it before you could second-guess yourself. But as soon as you hit send, a sense of dread crept in. Was that too dismissive? Was it rude? You didn’t want to come off that way, but this whole situation felt... off.

Reece, however, wasn’t the type to take “no” for an answer. She knew that Lily was a factor in all of this. But Reece wasn't the kind of person who let things like that stop her. No, she was determined to make sure you knew how serious she was.

"Reece, c'mon. (Y/N) just told me that-"

"Yeah, so?" Reece cut her off, a sharp edge to her voice. "Can't see your sister settling down, huh?"

The insult was quick and biting, catching Lily off guard. She flinched, a mix of confusion and anger flashing across her face.

"Settling down-?! And you? Look as much as I want to believe you saying that you don't engage in casual flings, I still find it unbelievable." Lily sputtered, eyes wide in disbelief.

Reece’s eyes darkened. "Listen here, I really, really like her, Lily. Not that you’d understand what that feels like. And don't tell me you believe everything they spewed about me. I thought you knew it."

Lily's face flushed, hands balling into fists. "No you don’t! You don’t even know what love is, it’s probably just lust, the same way you feel for every other girl-"

"Lily!" Edward spoke up, his voice firm but patient. "Can you relax? There's nothing wrong with going on a date. You should be a tad bit supportive, love. And stop doubting Reece's intentions."

"But Dad!" Lily's voice cracked with frustration. "What if she hurts (Y/N)? Didn't she had a problem with her background in the first place?"

"Enough!. I will go on a date and you can't stop me!"

Neither can you.

Oliver sighed sharing a look with his mother, leaning back in his chair, his fingers rubbing his temples. "Weekend with family always has some drama going on," he muttered, half-amused, half-exasperated.

Lily felt bad...she did. Guilty for being dubious about Reece's intentions straight from the start. You are a good, kind and fun person, not to mention her very close friend. And so she decided to make things right...by texting you.

"Reece really really likes you, and trust me, she's serious about this. I've never seen or heard bout her being this interested in someone, LIKE EVER. It's always the opposite. So do give her a chance. If you want to of course . Tbh shippin' u both already. 😛

That very Sunday's quiet evening, a knock on your apartment door caught you off guard. You weren’t expecting anyone, especially not Reece. You opened the door cautiously, your heart sinking at the sight of her standing there, casual yet somehow imposing.

"Hey," she greeted with that trademark confidence that made your chest tighten, her smile a little too knowing. "Lily told me your address."

You froze for a second, trying to process the words, before realizing the implications. "Lily... told you?" you asked, though it came out more as a question to herself than to Reece. Of course, Lily had probably shared everything already.

"Yeah," Reece said, unbothered, her gaze steady. "I thought we could grab something light and simple. Just...it won't be long."

You stood there, conflicted. She had this way of making you feel as if saying no would be an impossibility. "Reece, I..." you started, but her eyes softened, and she took a small step forward, clearly unphased by your hesitation.

"Come on, just a little something. I won’t make it weird," she added, the final words almost playful, though there was something in the way she said it that made you question if you’d be able to say no.

You bit your lip, glancing back into your apartment. But what choice did you have? Saying no felt like inviting a new round of awkwardness, and she seemed determined. Besides, there was a part of you, no matter how much you tried to ignore it, that was curious about why Reece kept pushing. Also the fact you didn't have any experience dating. And then...Lily's message made your heart flutter too.

"Okay," you finally relented, your voice a little quieter than you intended. "But just a quick bite. That’s it."

A victorious smile spread across her face, her posture shifting from relaxed to almost predatory, but in a playful way. "Great," she said, turning on her heel. "Let’s go."

And that's how it began. You, dating Reece Milford.

────

Dating her was nothing short of a dream, really. She was caring, understanding, and, if you were honest, a total golden retriever in human form. Watching matches together, her dragging you to her practices while making you wear her shirts with her name.

She was protective, sometimes to the point of being a bit too much, but you didn’t mind. In fact, it was endearing in its own way. And if someone from high school or an old fling tried their luck again with a call or a text? Oh, they didn’t stand a chance. Without hesitation, she’d block them or, better yet, hand you her phone and insist you respond or answer the call with a simple, "She’s taken."

She recorded one of those moments once, and to this day, it’s still her favorite video. Even when you’re a bit shy and clearly embarrassed in it, she treasures it like gold, replaying it whenever she needs a smile.

She knows her family name intimidates you and she’s painfully aware that her own words might’ve made you feel insecure at times. That’s why now, every moment she spends with you is dedicated to ensuring you understand that her last name means absolutely nothing when it comes to you.

She goes out of her way to make it clear that her family adores you, too. In fact, she’s quick to remind you of how her mom can’t stop asking about your hobbies or how her dad brings up your name during family dinners like you’re already one of them.

And then there’s your own parents. Your dad, especially, was practically beaming when he found out you were dating a daughter of such a prestigious family in the city. She teases you about it sometimes, calling you her “mom's favorite,” but deep down, she loves how everyone can see what she already knew: you’re perfect for her, and no family name, no status, could ever change that.

You glance at your reflection in the car window for what feels like the hundredth time. The dress you’re wearing, a simple but elegant number Reece insisted looked "absolutely stunning" on you, suddenly feels all wrong. Too plain? Too tight? Too loose? Too… not enough?

Reece parks the car in front of the grand gates of her family’s estate, but instead of stepping out, you sit frozen, clutching your bag like it’s a lifeline.

“Hey,” Reece’s voice is soft, her hand finding yours. “You good?”

You bite your lip, debating whether to admit the truth. But she knows you too well, and the furrow of her brow tells you she’s already figured out something’s off.

“I just…” You let out a shaky sigh, your gaze dropping to your lap. “I don’t know if I’m… if I look… right for this. For them.”

Reece is quiet for a moment, and when you finally glance at her, you see her jaw tighten, her hazel eyes narrowing like she’s preparing to fight someone.

“Are you serious right now?” she asks, her voice a mix of disbelief and affection. “You’re worried about how you look?”

You nod hesitantly, avoiding her gaze. "I just… your family’s um so perfect y'know. I just..."

Reece leans back in her seat, running a hand through her hair as if trying to figure out how to respond. Her heart breaks at your sullen expression. Then, without warning, she reaches over, cupping your face gently but firmly, forcing you to look at her.

“First of all,” she says, her voice low and steady, “you’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen, and always will be, and nothing anyone says or thinks is going to change that. Got it?”

You nod, though her words only make your throat tighten more.

“Second,” she continues, her thumb brushing your cheek, “my family is going to love you because I love you. And if they don’t, that’s their problem, not yours. You’re not the one who has to prove anything. You’re everything, okay?”

You manage a shaky smile, but she’s not done yet.

“And third…” She grins now, her usual playful smirk returning as she presses a quick kiss to your forehead. “If anyone even thinks about making you feel out of place tonight, they’re getting an earful from me. Got it?”

You laugh softly despite yourself, and she beams at the sound, leaning back with an exaggerated sigh of relief.

“There’s my girl,” she says, squeezing your hand as she steps out of the car and moves to your side to help you out. “Now come on. Let’s show them how lucky I am, yeah?”

Reece is not only your girlfriend but your own personal trainer too.

Her apartment’s (she made you move in after a month) personal gym has become your second home, or, at least, that’s what she likes to say while dragging you out of bed for "just twenty minutes of movement."

"C'mon baby, you can skip ten more. You are literally the strongest person I've met." Says your girlfriend currently bench pressing twice your weight.

She’s the kind of person who genuinely believes in balance but refuses to compromise on some essentials. Like fruits. Every. Single. Day. She’ll hand-feed you slices of apple or shove a peeled orange into your hands with a pointed look until you take a bite.

Her healthy meals aren’t just food; they’re little love notes wrapped in nutrition. Protein shakes? Homemade. Greek yogurt with berries? Perfectly portioned. Occasionally, though, she’ll surprise you with your favorite snacks because, as she says, "You’ve earned it for putting up with my bossy ass."

On the days when you feel too lazy to move, Reece doesn’t push. Instead, she adapts. She insists you keep her company in the gym because "your laugh is better than any playlist." You end up sitting on the mat with a bowl of fruit she force-feeds you because of course, “You will finish that, or so help me”, while she works out.

And if you’re feeling extra lazy, you’ll drape yourself over her back while she’s doing push-ups, giggling as she huffs and teases you about being "the cutest weight she’s ever lifted."

What makes it all worthwhile is how much she genuinely enjoys your presence. Whether you’re crushing a workout together or just lounging on the floor, her gaze always holds the same message: she wouldn’t want to be doing this or anything without you.

Reece absolutely adores the height difference between the two of you, maybe a little too much, if you’re being honest. It’s her favourite excuse to treat you like her personal doll.

When she’s in a playful mood (which is often), she’ll suddenly scoop you up, spinning you around effortlessly until you’re laughing and swatting at her arms. “Put me down, Reece!” you’ll protest, but she just smirks and says, “Not until I hear that laugh again!”

And those moments when you two disagree? She’s terrible at taking you seriously. You’re standing there, ranting about whatever it is, but all she can focus on are your eyes, especially the way they narrow when you’re annoyed.

"Are you even listening to me?!" you demand, glaring up at her.

She should be, but instead, she’s trying not to grin like an idiot. “Hmm? Oh, sorry, your angry face is just too cute."

That, of course, makes you even more pissed, which only makes her love it more. "Can you for God's sake listen and take the shit I am saying seriously?!"

Eventually, she stops your words in the most Reece way possible: by sweeping you off your feet (literally) and carrying you to the bedroom.

“REECE PUT ME DOWN! WHAT THE HELL?!”

"Yeah, yeah," she says, laying you down gently before hovering over you with a mischievous grin.

She starts peppering kisses all over your face, your cheeks, your forehead, lips, your nose, until you’re squirming and trying to push her away through your laughter.

"Stop it! You idiot!"

“There’s that smile,” she says triumphantly, finally stopping but not before stealing one last kiss on your lips. “Mad at me now?”

You sigh dramatically but can’t help the grin tugging at your lips. "I just hate you sometimes!"

Speaking of you and the bed... Reece is an absolute softie when it comes to you. No matter how tough or confident she might seem to the rest of the world, with you, she's nothing but gentle, which sometimes is really hard for her to do when all she wants to do is wreck and eat you all up. During those intimate moments, she treats you like you're made of glass, careful, attentive, utterly devoted. And afterward, when she's finally worn herself out, she holds you close, her arms wrapped around you as if to shield you from everything else.

Hearing her teammates call her "Cap" during practice or games might boost her ego, sure. But it doesn’t even come close to the power trip she feels when she hears it from your lips, soft, breathless, or even better as a whimper, and just for her.

“Say it again,” she murmurs, her voice raspy and low, her gaze heavy-lidded as she brushes a stray strand of hair from your flushed face.

And when you do, she smirks like she’s just won a championship. To her, nothing else in the world compares to that moment, to you.

But not everything...is that easy right? Not this dreamy. And you realized this after you got the ring on your finger after 2 absolutely beautiful months together.

── AN: Dw, there will be a second headcanon or different scenarios showing Reece's toxic side as well.

[eggluverz]

Hi I kinda had an idea for a fic with il Dan Heng x fem! reader if that's okay-

maybe something where reader and Dan Heng are walking around in Xianzhou together when she suddenly wanders off and accidentally freaks out il Dan Heng because he thought something happened (like she suddenly disappeared lmao) but in reality reader's just distracted by something that caught her eye

SOMETHING SHINY THIS WAY COMES

PAIRING. dan heng il x gn!reader

WORD COUNT. 1,338

SUMMARY. dan heng wants to face part of his past by walking around xianzhou luofu with you, but he freaks out when he notices you are no longer by his side.

SOF'S NOTE. thank you anon for the request!! just some worried and protective dan heng vibes in here <3 this is gn!reader since i didn't have a need to use reader's pronouns LOL hope that is okay!! + happy dan heng il banner release day everyone and i hope we all become happy dan heng il havers soon!!! :>

“Thank you for coming with me.”

You nodded in response as you happily skipped alongside him. One hand was comfortably resting in his, while the other was holding the bubble tea drink you were sipping on. It really was the food of the immortals.

“Thank you for inviting me,” you corrected with a smile. “i’m always here to accompany you when you need me.” 

Dan Heng gave your hand a gentle squeeze of gratitude as the two of you continued down the streets of the Xianzhou Luofu. 

He had told you about the struggles he had reconciling with his past life. Much to your happiness, he believed he was finally coming to terms with his connection to Dan Feng and the Xiaozhou, and he wanted to experience what it felt to walk around freely at the place he was once banished from before he could truly let go. Whether he wanted to avoid his past life for longer, or whether he wanted to confront it head-on, you would be there to support him no matter what. Still, you were especially glad this was the path he chose. Dan Heng deserved to go on with his life without fear or regrets weighing him down. Plus, it meant you got to explore a new world with him—one of your favorite parts about being a member of the Express.

You passed countless shops and booths during your adventure, each with its own charm and allure that drew you in. Dan Heng occasionally turned around to gaze at the look of awe on your face with a smile.

“This experience is more fun with you,” he said fondly, his thumb rubbing small circles against the back of your hand. “Your excitement is contagious, almost.”

“I wouldn’t be this happy if you weren’t the one accompanying me here, so you have yourself to thank for that,” you teased.

Dan Heng brought your interlocked fingers up to his face and planted a brief peck on the back of your hand. He smiled in gratitude. 

As you continued your slow stroll, Dan Heng stopped at certain places to immerse himself in the full experience. The last stop on your trip would be Scalegorge Waterscape, but Dan Heng wished to save that for last and enjoy his time roaming free first. 

You passed by a certain food staff and a whiff of freshly cooked dishes made your mouth begin to water. The merchant called you in with the promise of, “If you finish the spiciest soup here, we will give you a lifetime supply of free food!”

Unsurprisingly, you found your grip on Dan Heng’s hand loosening as you wandered over to the food stall. Along the way, you saw a small shop selling the brightest of jewels, one bracelet had a green gem that shined so strongly in the light, it reminded you of Dan Heng’s eyes. Forgetting the food stall, you walked into the vendor’s small shop and asked how much the bracelet was. You wanted to buy it for Dan Heng.

The Xianzhou Loofa may not be his home, but his connection to it ran deep. Perhaps he would like something to remind him of his experience here with you.

Little did you know that, instead of watching and following quietly behind you like you had assumed, Dan Heng continued walking down the path, turning the corner and marching on before he noticed you weren’t by his side.

Believing he was still next to you, you chatted with the merchant happily. You were asking for her recommendations and thoughts before you finally decided on the original bracelet with the green jewel that caught your eye in the first place.

Happy with your purchase, you turned around to share your findings with Dan Heng. You could not wait to see his reaction when you showed him the gift you bought for him.

“Look! I got you something—” you faltered when your gaze met an empty room.

The store was empty, bar you and the shopkeeper. 

The merchant silently watched as you talked to yourself, before quickly pocketing the money and scooting away. 

Your cheeks warmed as the confusion set in. You knew you had the habit of being impulsive, but you were almost certain you tugged Dan Heng’s hand over here with you...

Before you had the time to recount the events over the past half an hour, Dan Heng burst through the entrance of the shop with an alarmed look on his face. In all the years you have been on the Express, you had never seen him look this frantic. Your stomach dropped.

“Y/N!” he called, distress evident in his voice as he immediately rushed to your side. He examined you from head to toe. “Are you safe?”

Your insides churned as you took in his worry. You hated that you caused him fear for your own safety.

You didn’t hesitate before reaching out to hug him. “Yes, I am safe. I’m okay.” Dan Heng’s arms wrapped around your waist and you burrowed your head in his warm chest. “I’m so sorry.” 

He rested his cheek on top of your head and let out a long sigh. It sounded both like one of frustration and one of relief. His voice was stern, yet gentle. “I was so worried, Y/N. Please don’t just disappear like that without telling me.”

You nodded fervently, squeezing him harder, not wanting to let go.

“I’m sorry,” you repeated solemnly. “I promise I won’t wonder off without telling you again.”

You felt his muscles relax at your promise, but you still sensed some tension in his body.

“I was just…fearful.”

You looked up at him.

“I may no longer be an exiled criminal here, but that doesn’t mean grudges don’t run deep,” he explained, softly stroking the back of your head. “I was scared someone go to you when I wasn’t looking— To exact revenge on Dan Feng.”

You shuddered at the thought. You could only imagine the fear Dan Heng must have been feeling the moment you left his side.

“Nobody got me,” you reassured. “I’m safe, and I am so sorry for wandering off without telling you.”

Dan Heng shook his head, slowly letting you go from his embrace, but not yet moving away. “I understand that is just how you are. Normally, I would know you’re capable of defending yourself if trouble were to arise. But, this place…”

His voice wavered before he could finish and you nodded to let him know you still understood.

“Your worry makes perfect sense,” you said. “Xianzhou was a place of fear and punishment for you. I’m sorry for not being mindful of the setting and your past experiences.” 

The stiffness in his muscles visibly vanished, the distress on his face slowly melting into acceptance.

“Thank you,” he said quietly. “I forgive you. And I’m happy you are safe.”

“I’m happy, too.” 

You toyed with the box that contained the jeweled bracelet you bought for him, but decided to keep it in your pocket for now. You would give it to him when you got back to the Express. But you felt that now wasn’t the time. What you believed Dan Heng needed in this very moment was for you not to leave his side at the Xianzhou Luofu.

“Would you like to continue exploring?” you asked, extending your hand out to him. “I promise I will stay by your side.”

Dan Heng accepted your hand and smiled at the offer. “I’m not sure if I want to see all of Xianzhou. But with you, I feel less fearful of doing such a thing.”

You held his hand firmly in reassurance. “No matter how long or how short you would like to stay, I will be here with you for as long as you need me.”

Dan Heng laced his fingers through yours, gently pulling you along. The two of you walked side by side, down all the paths he wanted to take, excited to complete this journey together.

[angelic-sturniolos111]

The Right Words 🧸

Chris begins to question his opinions on commitment and relationships after being close friends with you for months. Chris’s feelings for you have grown stronger, but he can’t quite articulate his affection for you. Instead of using his words he makes a romantic gesture to show you how he feels.

chris sturniolo x fem! reader

warnings: none, just chris being super shy and fluffy

author’s note: kinda inspired by stuff he’s said ab relationships and how “too much love” kinda scares/intimidates him

not proofread lmao

Chris’s POV:

Matt had invited Y/N to come hang at our house while we record our podcast episode for the week. It wasn’t unusual for Y/N to always be around, she was our friend, but I hadn’t opened up to my brothers about how I truly feel about her.

She moved to LA a few months back and we all met her at some influencer party, and she hit it off with us immediately. First, it started with the four of us going out to record content, going bowling, thrifting, things like that. Eventually, we all grew closer with her and she started hanging out at our house a lot more, and often sleeping over. The first time she had slept over was after Nick and Matt had already gone to bed, and since she didn’t want to wake them she slept in my room with me. After that night I guess my room became the unofficial-Y/N-sleepover room because she has always spelt in my room every time since.

I immediately found Y/N attractive when we met— she’s a very pretty girl. I’ve always had closer girl friends in my circle, and even if I think any of them are pretty, my feelings never go beyond that— it’s always platonic. I know part of that is because they just weren’t the right girl for me, but another part of me knows it’s because I don’t let myself sit in those feelings. I’m scared of commitment, relationships, things of that sort. Sure I’ve hooked up with a few girls in my day, but I’ve never had any serious romantic feelings for anyone.

Until Y/N.

That first night she slept in my room we stayed up for hours talking about everything from our favorite hockey teams to deeper emotional stuff. That became our routine when she would sleepover… always the last ones awake, and always having long in-depth conversations with one another. What started off as friendly, platonic feelings for her quickly changed after many nights spent late night talking.

As much as I loved our late night talks I honestly wanted more. I wanted early morning talks, afternoon talks, and to just be with her every second of every day. I wanted to hold her, spoil her, kiss her, and call her mine. I thought I would never feel this way about anyone before, but she makes me feel things I’ve never felt— she’s everything to me.

I recently came to the conclusion that keeping these feelings buried was starting to drive me insane, and I had to open up to someone about it.

Matt and I were currently getting in his car on the way to pick up Y/N. Before Matt put the car in drive, I spoke up;

“Hey, can I talk to you about something that’s been on my mind a lot lately? I just really need someone to talk to about it.” I say sheepishly. Matt’s eyes leave his phone to meet mine, and he instantly put his phone down giving me his full attention.

“Yeah bro of course. You can tell me anything. What’s up?” He says concerned because usually this is the other way around. Matt opening up to me about his issues. It was rare that I ever had anything on my end to discuss.

“Well it’s just,” I pause, hesitating if I should even continue. Matt puts a hand on my shoulder comforting me enough to move on.

“I have serious, and I mean serious feelings for Y/N.”

I’m not sure what I was expecting in response, but it wasn’t this…

He started laughing. LAUGHING. In my fucking face.

“Okay why are you laughing? Is something funny about any of this?” I say now a little pissed off that he wasn’t taking this seriously.

“Oh man, no no I’m sorry I’m not trying to be rude. It’s just… SO obvious.” He says and continues to laugh.

“WHAT?! IS IT REALLY?” I yell. Oh god, I hope Y/N doesn’t know and I’m not making a complete ass out of myself.

“Yes! Nick and I talk about it all the time. You may not realize it but you NEVER stop talking about her. “Y/N said this funny thing last night,” “Y/N really likes this movie,” “You know one time Y/N” Y/N Y/N Y/N. I swear every god damn sentence you utter her name leaves your mouth.” Matt mocks, but before I can interject he continues;

“Jesus not to mention the way you stare her down whenever she’s in the room. Nick and I are always laughing about it— like when he’s editing our videos and we can see that you looking at her constantly whenever she steps behind the camera? Or when we went to the beach that one time!? You saw Y/N in a bikini for the first time, and we saw you grab the towel to cover your lap because—”

“Okay OKAY! Alright, I get it! I’m not as good as hiding my feelings for her as I thought…” I cut him off before he can continue to blabber about it any more. Matt comes down from his laughing fit.

“Hey, I’m sorry. I’m not trying to be mean. My point is is that we’ve never seen you like this with anyone before, and it’s really sweet.” Matt rests his hand on my arm reassuringly. “Well, we told her we were on our way to pick her up. If you want to I can text Nick and we can come up with some sort of excuse to leave so you guys can have some alone time together and maybe you’ll be able to talk with her about it?” He suggests.

“Yeah… it’s the talking that I’m scared of.” I look down and play with my hands in my lap. “That’s the problem. Like you said, I’ve never been like this with anyone before, and I don’t know how to put my feelings into words. If you haven’t noticed I’m not necessarily the most romantic person ever.” I say with a sigh.

Matt looks around the car seeing if anything might give him an idea. He sees the gummy worms in the center console from the last time we filmed a car video and picks them up to show me.

“Okay, candy? What about candy?” He says as if he just made some sort of scientific breakthrough.

“Kid, what the fuck are you talking about? Candy?” I laugh, completely confused.

“Yeah! We can swing by the store and you can get her her favorite candies and snacks, and you guys can watch a cute movie together or something? If you can’t tell her how you feel maybe you can show her through your actions.”

I thought about it for a second, and it honestly wasn’t a bad idea. I knew her favorite candy, snacks, movies, all that stuff. I know she loves comfy blankets for movie time. She also complains about not having a stuffed animal for her to cuddle when she sleeps over, and she usually steals one of Matt’s. All these thoughts came flooding into my head at once, and suddenly I had the best idea.

“Okay, I got it!. We’re going to need to stop at the store before we get her. You and Nick distract her when we get back to our place, and then find some excuse to leave. I have the perfect plan.” I say excitedly.

An enormous smile grows on Matt’s face. He clicks his seatbelt, and before he can back the car out of the driveway we see Nick striding out the door to the car. Matt rolls his window down.

“What the fuck are you two still doing in the driveway? I thought you were getting Y/N?” Nick says.

“Bro get in the car you’re coming with us we’ve gotta update you on Chris’s love affair!” Matt says jokingly making me laugh. Nick just rolls his eyes, and climbs in the backseat.

***

Y/N’s POV:

Chris had given me a call earlier to tell me that their manager, Laura, needed Nick and Matt for something at her house tonight so it would just be the two of us. She had apparently given them a call on their way out to pick me up so they were running late. Honestly, I was a little nervous that Chris and I would have the house to ourselves. I was always comfortable being alone with him in his room, and I’ve always hoping he’d take one of these nights to make a move. In my head I tried to convince myself he hasn’t made a move yet because his brothers were always home— worried they’d barge in and interrupt or something. I’ve had a HUGE crush on Chris, and I wasn’t super hopeful that he felt the same way because he’s never been a relationship type of guy. Plus, he always has girl friends, and I’m worried I probably just fall under the friend category in his eyes.

Finally, I see headlights shine through my front window and look to see Matt’s car in the driveway. I grab my purse and head out the door and open the car door to climb in the backseat. I was surprised to be met with Chris in the backseat, and Nick in the front with Matt.

“Fancy seeing you in the back. You’re never back here.” I say getting in my seat and clicking the seatbelt.

“Umm yeah, I— um.” Chris starts before Nick cuts him off.

“He was taking too long in the store so I hopped in the front.” I see Chris raise his eyebrows slightly at Nick, giving him a weird look.

“I didn’t know you guys went out. What were you getting?” I ask.

“Um just toiletries and stuff. Needed some, uh, shampoo.” Chris says shrugging his shoulders and breaking out eye contact. He seemed tense, but I brushed it off.

***

We pull into the driveway and I get out of the car making my way over to the trunk. The three boys get out and stand awkwardly behind the car with me.

“Did you want help bringing the stuff in?” I say and there was silence as the boys just awkwardly stared at each other, and then at me. “…From the store?” I continue.

“Oh no Chris’s got it. Matt and I wanna show you the updates we made to the podcast studio, come on!” Nick says grabbing my arm and leading me up the driveway to their front door leaving Chris behind to get stuff out of the trunk.

Matt, Nick, and I go inside and they immediately go upstairs to their studio, and I stop to hesitate at the bottom of the stairs.

“Should we wait for Chris?” I say. Matt turns around to look at me, and then shoots a glance to Nick.

“No he’s slow as fuck. Come on!” Nick yells. I laugh and make my way upstairs.

Matt and Nick start showing me decor and stuff around the studio. It honestly wasn’t anything that I haven’t already seen before, but I kept my mouth shut because it seemed very important for them to show me again. As they blabber on I see Chris run swiftly past the door, carrying a bunch of shopping bags, and going into his bedroom slamming the door. I became even more suspicious to his weird behavior.

Matt and Nick went on to me about the podcast episodes they were planning to film, but I was barely even listening since my thoughts were elsewhere. I’m snapped out of my daydreaming when Chris comes in and stands in the doorway.

“Okaaaay! You guys have to go to Laura’s, yeah?” Chris asks his brothers.

“Yes! Yes we do. Matt let’s get going!” Nick says to Matt and they eagerly start walking out of the room. Matt turns back and gives me a smile, “Have fun!” He says. Matt then gives Chris a pat on the shoulder before him and Nick make their way downstairs and out the door.

Why the hell were they all acting so weird?

I take a step towards Chris as he remains blocking the doorway.

“So, what do you wanna do?” I question, and a smirk creeps up on his face.

“I actually have a special movie night planned for us.” He says with that sweet smile of his I love so much.

“What makes it special?” I ask. He grabs my hand, making my breath hitch in my throat slightly at our touch. He leads me to his bedroom. Was this it? Was he making his move? I didn’t necessarily think he’d be so bold as to bed me right away, but I also wasn’t complaining. I thought to myself before he proves me wrong. He opens his bedroom door and leads me inside, and I smile big once I see what he’s done.

His bed is full of pillows from both his room and the spare bedroom, and they’re covered in a huge blanket. There’s another sherpa blanket on the bed with a cute teddy bear on my side where I usually sleep. On his nightstand is a bowl of popcorn, and bags of my favorite candies. He had turned his ceiling lights off and had fairy lights draped over his headboard illuminating the room. Also lighting the room was his TV which had one of my favorite Disney movies cued up ready to watch.

Chris steps back as I walk around the room taking it all on.

“Chris! This is so sweet!” I gawk as I jump into his bed and wrap myself in the softest blanket and he follows suit. We lay in his bed together in silence for a moment before he grabs the teddy bear and handing it to me with a smile. I take the bear from his hands and wrap it tight in my arms.

Chris’s POV:

“Chris, what’s all this for?” Y/N asks looking at me with her beautiful eyes.

I knew that she’d ask why I went all out. I had ran a couple scenarios of her possible questions in my head, and embarrassingly enough I may or may not have practiced what I was going to say with Nick in the car earlier…

“Well, it’s for you.” Duh? Chris I think that’s kinda obvious you dumb fuck. I don’t think any amount of practicing could’ve prepared me to face the prettiest, sweetest girl I’ve ever met in my life. I could feel my heart beating faster with each passing moment. She smiles, her eyes softening, and she scootches closer to me.

“You did all this for me? Why?” She asks sweetly. I knew she’d love the surprise, but also knew she’d be confused.

I really tried my best to prepare for this talk, but I was still so nervous. I didn’t know what to say.

I take a deep inhale before starting the conversation.

“I— I did this for you because I wanted to. Well I mean obviously I wanted to or else I wouldn’t have done this. What I mean is I want to show you what I think of you. Or, I mean, how I feel… and I— ugh.” I sigh and burry my face in my hands now completely embarrassed from my nervous rambling. “I don’t know how to use my words.” I mumble into my hands.

I feel a soft, gentle hand on mine pulling it slowly from my face, and I’m met with Y/N as her eyes lock on mine. When my hands are back down in my lap she reaches her hand up to gently cup my cheek, not breaking eye contact. Her eyes flicker from mine down to my lips, and back up to mine before speaking;

“Then don’t use your words…”

I bring my hand up to lay on top of hers cupping my cheek, and I lean in to her touch. I bring my other hand gently to the nape of her neck and pull her closer. Her face is mere inches away from mine. Our eyes breaking contact and moving to our lips. She slowly closes her eyes, and I pull her in fully and plant my lips on hers.

Her lips were soft. Sweet, even. They molded perfectly with mine as we kiss. The kiss is gentle and eager at the same time. I’ve only ever dreamed of this moment, and I can’t believe it’s finally happening.

We pull away from our kiss, our foreheads still touching. I open my eyes first to look at her, and when she opens hers a sweet smile creeps on her lips making me laugh softly.

“Hi.” I say in a whisper.

“Hi Chris.”

“I really like you, Y/N.”

“I really like you too.”

She pulls me in, this time with more force, and plants a passionate kiss on my lips.

We continue to kiss for a moment before I pull back.

“Will you be my girl?” I ask.

She smiles, nodding her head feverishly before bringing her lips back to mine and throwing her hands around my neck.

I’m in heaven.

**********

I honestly didn’t know how to end this and I’m kinda cringing but oh well.

Happy Thanksgiving y’all! 🦃

— Kay 🖤

[hermitw]

I've been thinking about this reblog of yours for months and I finally figured out how to respond to it.

I went and read No Longer Human by Junji Ito and it was a very upsetting thing to go through. I don't think I can read it again. However, I came out of it thinking that Gege was probably inspired by it.

When Yozo is first introduced, I noticed that Takaba's backstory was very similar. Feeling isolated from others, he decided to become a clown to gain acceptance from others. (Citations in Image Captions)

And later when Yozo was caught "cheating" (it's in quotes because those women are child rapists), I noticed that her face was really similar to the one Higuruma's client made when he felt betrayed by the trial outcome.

There's probably a lot more to say about how themes surrounding CSA and suicide in this work are echoed in JJK, but I'm not able to make the post myself. No Longer Human is too far out of my comfort zone in terms of graphic depiction to delve into it deeper.

But you seem strong enough to handle it, so... Idk maybe run with this some more.

Ohhh this is so interesting! I could definitely read No Longer Human again - tbh I read Junji Ito's version years ago. This year I listened to the audio book and bought a copy - but it's like, a draft in the author's handwriting (bc I thought it would help me study Japanese and if I had an English translation that I'd read it on repeat lmao). But you're real for that - I forget how disturbed people tend to be trying to read through it, I'm sorry that was rough.

I did go back to read the reblog and idk how relevant all that was - I've reread the manga since and felt like, oh I might have been misremembering some things like Uraume - idk if they actually had a freeze response in ch. 219, since they did tell Yorozu to back off though it took a minute - but it's also interesting how their CT deals with ice. Like to have a fight response, they freeze others? It's so interesting but I can't be sure whether it's there at all. (ik that yap II inspired some more coherent posts, like how it influenced Choso's self-image, etc., I linked but didn't tag you back then bc I felt Annoying especially w heavy topics but I can definitely go back and find them if you'd like.)

On a twin peaks note (without spoiling it), I feel like it inspired jjk to some extent - I've been feeling like the last chapter will end the way s2 did. Or at least - with the weird dreamy themes, "we are the dreamer who dreams and who lives inside the dream", etc...

But you're right - Yozo and the others' reactions resemble more jjk characters than I would think to connect. Takaba's jokes are truly a shield... And now I have an excuse to read Junji Ito's version again? Thank u so much (also isn't it funny how September 28 Uzumaki airs and September 30 jjk ends?).

I think gege gets inspired by the most tragic stories, I wonder how much of that is accurate but I can't always be convinced otherwise.... Especially when anime / manga series that he's confirmed as influences often deal with autonomy in ways that I couldn't handle (Evangelion, the night beyond the tricornered window).

By the way - ik we've mentioned elfen lied before, but in the first episode, you know that coffee mug? How it looks like jjk foreshadowing? Even has snail head Mahito - cut off-, the baseball, Panda, the worm (also cut off).... and later the newborn babies that look just like Yuuji...

I swear that elfen lied, Kagewani, and banana fish influenced jjk. It seems so obvious w those, maybe Vampire Princess Miyu as well.

Sorry for getting off topic - I've been looking into why Momotaro keeps coming up in jujutsu kaisen, and in the end it came back full circle to that damn coffee cup. Invest in a baseball team? A zoo? I'm going insane.

All this to say - rereading Junji Ito's version and seeing if I notice similarities between manga panels is so exciting. Gege even made a note that he asked for permission before drawing - I think it was the Uzumaki CT - So we know he's a big fan of Junji Ito. And it seems like there is a rly good chance No Longer Human inspired him as well (though I feel like characters with similar traumas having similar reactions is inevitable to some extent, if they're written in a believable way, it should be clearer when I'm reading both stories in the same format) based on the stories he has officially referenced.

[franklyimissparis]

jet skis on the moat: a queer-coded line-by-line lyrical analysis

this one was highly requested by me, myself, and i btw. sorry it’s so long, i truly cannot be concise when analysing alex’s lyrics, i get too into all of the different possibilities lmao.

Jet skis on the moat

- the titular line of the song is an interesting juxtaposition that could be interpreted in many different ways as jet-skiing, an adventurous and adrenaline-seeking activity, is contrasted with the defensive confines of a moat. the moat could be a metaphor for alex’s defenses around himself and his feelings, with the idea of jet-skiing around a moat being akin to doing something that should be fun and freeing while in defence mode.

- it could also imply that things are going in circles, like moats often do. that they’re having a good time but they aren’t able/willing to explore beyond the safety and comfort of their private spaces.

- to me, the phrase also invokes the idea of both being kept close to home (and never allowed to explore without inhibitions) but also being forbidden to enter fully into alex’s inner self

They shot it all in CinemaScope

- cinemascope is a lens adapter invented in the 50s for projectors that can expand the traditional screen to a wider length while using the existing equipment. we know that alex loves film imagery and this ties into the themes he often plays at while using said imagery of performance vs. reality.

- the use of cinemascope also implies to me the idea of making something (or someone) better for a bigger audience - this could tie in with alex’s personas and hiding the true self or referencing the band’s commercial successes. it also implies that there’s something beyond the traditional screen, the picture (or story) stretches out further than is seen with a normal lens. the idea of the lens being removable is also notable, the picture can be seen either way with the original equipment but the lens makes it more impressive. again i think this all ties in with the idea of performance and choosing to present things in a certain light.

- “they” implies that there is an audience or crew watching alex and the subject of the song, the two of them are not shooting this together, it’s being captured by a third party who is presenting things differently than originally intended

As though it's the last time you're gonna ride

- i can’t talk about this line without addressing the sexual undertones of the word “ride” lol. it could refer to the sexual aspect of their relationship, the last ride being the last time they’ll sleep together, or the relationship itself as if this is a couple who has split up and gotten back together multiple times

- with the previous line as well, it implies that the experience of their relationship is being captured (potentially by others) to preserve it, though they don’t see the full picture

- the phrasing “as though” is vague enough to leave it up to interpretation as to whether or not it actually will be the last time, somewhat implying to me that calling it a “last time” is something they’ve done before

- this could also refer to the public and private speculation that the band is finished or the somewhat unfounded worries that their commercial success is slipping away

Showstoppers anonymous

- this is a play on alcoholics anonymous/narcotics anonymous and implies that being a showstopper is somewhat of an addiction. it also invokes the idea that this isn’t a solitary experience by referencing the idea like a group meeting, alex’s lover also has a complex relationship with fame.

- the phrase could also poke at the idea of alex’s personas being disconnected from his true self, the showstopper would actually prefer to be (or has to be) anonymous in some sense.

- like in AA meetings, this could also refer to hiding their affiliation from the world or hiding their true identities within these meet-ups

Come over here and give your buddy a hug

- the word “buddy” implies a platonic relationship (i would say it also implies a friendship with another man but that’s very subjective.) with the later references to this person as a lover, we can infer that their relationship is not just platonic which poses the question of why alex would choose to refer to a lover this way. it could be to emphasise the friendship at the core of the relationship as being the more important or prominent aspect. it could also suggest that alex finds the romantic/sexual elements of the relationship uncomfortable to some extent.

- interestingly, this line is also a direct parallel to “come here and kiss me now before it gets too cute” from mr schwartz, suggesting a connection between the two. while this line can certainly be read as platonic, the line from mr schwartz is explicitly romantic.

- also the first two lines of verse one rhyme, making the listener expect these lines to rhyme as well. in alex’s pronunciation, anonymous would be a near rhyme with kiss and it is slightly surprising to hear hug instead.

So much for decidin' not to let it slide

- it sounds as though either alex or his lover feels that the other did something to wrong them which they refuse to forgive this time, but they end up ‘giving in’ eventually.

- in the context of the showstoppers anonymous line, it could imply that their relationship feels like enabling an addiction, that it is something they come back to time and time again despite saying they won’t. and also that their relationship is directly tied to the fame that they share.

- also interesting to ask: is he addressing himself or his lover? is he the one letting it slide or his lover? the previous line seems to imply that alex is asking the other person to come to him, which could imply that his lover is giving in for agreeing or that he’s giving in by reaching out (or both.)

Is there somethin' on your mind

Or are you just happy to sit there and watch While the paint job dries?

- alex’s lover is troubled over the state of their situation but it’s less painful to just ignore the topic.

- the paint imagery is very interesting as alex has a habit of using paint as a sexual metaphor for a certain bodily fluid - with ‘body paint’ and also in anyways (‘you go hard in the paint’)

- watching paint dry generally refers to something being boring or tedious which could imply that alex’s lover would rather do something painfully dull than discuss the issues in their relationship. but paint can also be used to cover things up which could refer to the idea of hiding the issues within the relationship or with hiding the relationship itself (asking: are you really happy to just let me hide things or will you take a stand?)

- if we think about the implication that this relationship has been off- and on-again, it could refer to ‘fixing up’ the relationship with a new coat of paint - doing surface level things to try to repair the damage - and alex could be asking if they’re willing to wait for things to look better again or if they want to call it quits now

When it's over, you're supposed to know

- this line could also be taken in many ways. it could be in the sense of alex feeling almost pitiful for his lover (or himself), who won’t admit that their relationship is actually over. but it could also refer to it being hard to tell whether the relationship is actually over or not - particularly if the line between having a platonic/romantic relationship has always been blurry with them (like we see with the use of “buddy�� etc.)

- the phrasing ‘supposed to know’ implies that they don’t actually know about the state of things, though they’re both aware that they should, also reminds me of the line “the fact that neither you and i has ever had a clue” from mr schwartz

Lights out in the Wonder Park

- i couldn’t find anything to suggest that the ‘wonder park’ refers to any real place so i would wager that it’s alex’s take on a fictional amusement park as a metaphor for the ups and downs of his relationship with the other person.

- the idea of the lights going out in contrast to the “wonder park” implies that the joy and amazement of the relationship has been turned off. it could refer to the relationship being off- and on-again with the implication that the lights will likely turn back on at some point. (which could be connected to “the gloved hand’s reaching in to hit the switch” from mr schwartz)

- to me, “the wonder park” also implies having an audience or crowd around. so lights out here could also refer to stopping a performance, etc.

Your saw-toothed lover boy was quick off the mark

- its interesting to pose if he’s talking about himself or his lover here. i know a lot of people interpret saw-toothed to mean crooked teeth like a certain musical partner in alex’s life but i think the phrase could also represent a ‘sharp tongue/mouth’ with the idea of him (or his lover) normally being witty or cutting but being caught off guard by the situation (similar to the ‘angle grinder smile’ from sculptures of anything goes)

- “quick off the mark” means to be slow to react to a situation which could also tie in with the idea of “watching paint dry” instead of talking about the relationship: they’re reluctant to actually change the back and forth element of their relationship.

- the use of the phrase “lover boy” also solidifies that this is a relationship that is at least somewhat romantic/sexual in nature (vs the earlier use of buddy), it’s telling that this more intimate phrase isn’t used until later in the song

That's long enough in the sunshine for one night

- this line could reference the idiom of something to “seeing the light of day” i.e. to be revealed to the public/to be open, their relationship won’t see the light of day with the sunshine instead being found in the nights

- sunshine could also represent a warmth or happy period in their relationship. with the previous lines, it could imply that they got together/met up again briefly but it didn’t last.

- the phrase “that’s long enough” implies that alex is the one to feel as though things have gone on too long, even though he feels the warmth of it too (he likes the sunshine (or relationship) but he doesn’t think it belongs in the context of the night)

Didn't recognise you through the smoke

- this is a play on the idea of “smoke and mirrors” which ties in with alex’s use of personas and the idea of obscuring the truth.

- implies that alex (or the other person) is used to being able to see through the fantasy but it’s been dialled up since their falling out and they are now obscured.

- could also refer to one of them being deceptive about their feelings, particularly for the other

- also could imply the other person is smoking a lot, etc. which could tie in with the idea of fame/their relationship being an addiction: people sometimes replace heavier drugs with excessive nicotine as a step in their recovery. it could also just imply that the other person is a bit of a mess if they’ve started smoking more.

Pyjama pants and a Subbuteo cloak

- subbuteo is a table-top game where you flick around little football players on a field that is placed similarly to a tablecloth. there was an interview where alex spoke about how he would wear the table-top subbuteo pitch as a cape as a kid. it’s unclear whether alex or the other person is meant to be the one wearing the unusual combination.

- wearing pyjama pants implies a sense of intimacy and vulnerability between the two to see each other in that state, especially as one would not generally wear them in public.

- the combination of the pyjama pants with the subbuteo cloak invokes a sense of nostalgia and innocence, particularly in relation to alex’s memories, as well as implies that the person is kind of dysfunctional to be wearing a sleeping garment in combination with a non-clothing item.

- the use of the subbuteo field as clothing is also interesting as it is a traditionally masculine symbol being used to cover-up or guard oneself - which ties in with the next line.

- the subbuteo field is also an interesting choice as the game centres around people controlling a full team of players in order to win. with one person wearing the field, it could imply that they are being strategic about controlling others or that they themselves are being controlled.

You know that it's alright if you wanna cry

- this is another line that could easily apply to either alex or his lover but i think it ties in well with the first line from there’d better be a mirrorball “don’t get emotional, that’s not like you” which alex has said is directed at himself.

- alex is telling himself or his lover that it’s okay to express their emotions and be upset about the situation, implying that they usually are not as forthcoming or overtly emotional or that they may be hiding their true feelings in the presence of the other to appear less invested or devastated

to summarise: alex and his lover had a falling out over their off- and on-again relationship going in circles and potentially being hidden. neither of them took the split well and they are trying to figure out where they stand with each other and what their connection will mean for them now.

[magicaii]

Ooh...I think you're the first person (that I know amd follow) that love Near/Mello ship. See, most of my Death Note moots love L/Light and a few love Matt/Mello. But none love Near/Mello....(I was the only one).

What do you think are Mello and Near's greatest personality strengths and weaknesses? Why? What do you love about their dynamic? In which moment that you start shipping them?Also, I know you are meronia shipper, but can I ask your opinion on these ships : L/Light and Matt/Mellow? Thanks...

yeah, unless you really go looking for them, its hard to find meronia circles. a lot of death note fans are averse to them/deem it too problematic (which... i wont even touch upon the irony of that).

mello:

i think mello’s greatest strength is how well rounded he is. he’s obviously very intelligent, but on top of that, he was ambitious enough to be in the running of L’s successor as well as make his way up in the rank of the literal mafia. as a TEENAGER. you don’t pull that off with smarts alone. we can infer from this and his actions throughout the story that he’s a very adaptive, crafty, and sociable individual. he handles all situations related to kira gracefully yet unpredictably, bargaining with the enemy in a way that backs them into a corner and gets him closer to his goal. and when things don’t go his way, he improvises (save for takada. lmao).

as for his weaknesses, it was definitely his ego. my mans had every right to be confident, but would it have killed him to play it safe? the prime example of this is obviously refusing to outright team up with near. it’s pretty much a fandom wide headcanon at this point that he would’ve survived had he and near worked together officially, but he was determined to prove himself and do things on his own. achieving a victory with near’s help would’ve hurt his ego. furthermore, if he had taken more precautions in his last encounter with takada rather than assuming everything would go according to his plan... well, i’d like to think he would’ve lived too. unfortunately, he made a slight oversight due to his confidence.

near:

near is interesting because i truly believe that the point of his character is having only 1 strength and lacking in mostly everything else. like with mello, it doesn’t need to be pointed out that he’s exceedingly intelligent. and yet, he has little else going for him. he gains his allies through the government, gets to stay in their cushy funded tower, once used a literal flood of cash to get out of a tough situation, and relied a lot on mello’s schemes and out-of-the-box plans to solve the kira case. 

i think if i could sum up his weaknesses, it would be that he’s too comfortable. he lacks direction. he’s rarely ever motivated to do things. he’s doesn’t have true relationships in his life, and he doesn’t go out of his way to make them. he has sensitive feelings, yet never expresses them. he admires mello, but avoids being upfront about this and leaves mello in the dark. he could go after the new kira that arises, but there’s no point. he only took the first kira case, took up the mantle of L, because he was appointed as the successor by wammy’s. at some point you start wondering if the guy truly wants or cares about anything in his life. some of us near fans think that he has some form of depression after mello’s death/the kira case and that’s why he is so demotivated. or maybe he has never had a true sense of identity/purpose in the first place. but when it comes to mello’s death, i often see it as near losing his ability to reach his ‘full potential’ with mello making up the other half of L. now he’s just complacent.

meronia:

what i love about their dynamic is of course the matching wits. i think that in many avenues, they are drawn to each other in ways unmatched by other people, because there’s just something that fundamentally clicks between them. mello thinking of near as a pompous brat yet being unable to deny the syngery between their minds, and knowing that he’s ultimately mello’s most reliable ally. i like the idea of mello and near arguing about the best course of action to take and both disapproving of each other’s worst vices (mello’s overambition, near’s lack of it). them being able to read each other and predict each other’s movements better than anyone else (i have to go save near’s ass because i know what he’s thinking already. that idiot). all their allies in the room being stunned into silence as they take jabs at each other with snide remarks. the way they would both look out for each other and yell at each other over safety precautions if they worked together. there’s something so interesting about how evenly matched they are in terms of intelligence, yet can be so utterly opposed in terms of planning and strategizing. i think working together would eventually result in a lot of care between them, and considering how they can both be so reckless, they would constantly be saving each other’s lives. and then they’d go straight back to bickering. 

i can’t pinpoint the moment i started shipping them tbh. i think it mustve been on my first death note rewatch when near finally started to pique my interest and i took note of mello’s strong reactions to near? and i was like ooh, there’s something deeper here. 

lawlight:

this was my first death note ship, and i REALLY got into them back in the day. it’s pretty obvious why, enemies to lovers, the way they never could’ve been something because they were obsessed with their game, the fact that no feelings could come to fruition lest they get in the way of what both of them lived for. however, while i still largely see what people like about it, i slowly fell out of love with them. the main reason is because the way i saw them changed a lot. because to me, while they are clearly obsessed with each other, i do think they are not so much obsessed with each other as people, but instead what they both represent. in fact, they seem to heavily dislike each other as people. light mostly thinks L is a genuine weirdo and L thinks light is a pretentious, haughty kid who doesn’t know his place. i don’t think they find each other very interesting beyond that. L cares only about light’s intelligence and his evil deeds, but sees him almost like a challenging video game boss that he’s having a lot of fun trying to take down. and light has a massive ego so he enjoys being challenged, and sees L as a worthy opponent who is unrelenting in pursuit. but that’s it. and that’s why the anime only scenes between them feel so weird, because they kind of come out of nowhere and make them seem a lot more invested in each other on a personal level, which they were never supposed to be in the death note manga. anyway, i just don’t see any romantic chemistry between them, is what i’m trying to say. i will still like and reblog funny lawlight memes. 

mellodramattic:

i really don’t mean any hate, but i’ve never particularly liked this pairing? i don’t dislike it, either. i can see the appeal. they’re a ride or die type of pair who tragically lost their lives one after the other. matt was among mello’s last thoughts too. but i think i see matt as a very straight person (he’s made multiple comments about women!) and while i guess it’s sweet that mello relied on matt and stuff, i don’t think they have a particularly deep relationship. matt is a smart, tech savvy dude that mello knows, so like with the mafia, he’s pulling out his best connections. however, matt seems even less driven of a person than near, and unlike near, does not even care a little bit about solving cases. i can’t really see them coming together in any meaningful way for the long term, and they both don’t really seem interested in each other beyond a surface friendship level. i feel like life would take them in different directions.

thank you for the ask!! sorry it ended up being so long D:

[jr-acrux101]

Carousel - part 2

Hey yall, hmm back to back updates 😏 there is gonna be a part 3 with smut 🧍🏻‍♀️ lmao and 3 one shots that can be connected or read on their own :)

More Angst :P and some fluff and resolution, talks of pregnancy, NOT BETA READ

Part one :

Summary: The reason why you two split up, Mike, who wasn't ready for any more commitments, and you, who wouldn't be his verbal punching bag.

Word count: 1k

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"Are you fucking serious?" The shout made you jump. Mike had never once yelled at you, let alone raise his voice.

You backed into the door, well you positive Mike would never physically hurt you, that didn't mean you weren't scared.

"I-I," you faltered, you didn't know how to respond.

"How could this happen y/n? You're on the pill and we used condoms! What? Do you poke holes in it?"

Your blood boiled and checks heated in embarrassment. "I would never do that! Are you seriously suggesting that I would go as low as to trick you into getting me pregnant?"

"I don't know y/n, would you? Make sure I was tied down to you? Give me another fucking responsibility!"

Tears sting your eyes, the fact Mike would accuse you of that, it broke something inside of you.

"Fuck you Mike." You spat the words out as you grabbed your school bag.

You opened the door and there was Abby sitting in front of her door. You stopped in your tracks. "Please don't leave."

The tears started to stream. "I have to Abby." You kneeled down and grabbed her hand. "I'll make sure to see you though Abby." Abby started to tear up. "Can't leave my favorite little artist with no one to draw could I?" She shook her head and dove into your arms.

You turned your teary gaze to Mike and shook your head. "Okay, sunshine, I have to go."

A sob wracked through Abby. You picked her up and walked towards Mike. He couldn't look you in the eyes. She clung like a cat, not wanting to let go.

A forehead kiss and a last squeeze, she relented and clung to Mike. With one last glance, Mike holding Abby as she sobbed and clung, you left.

"Y/n? Y/n?" A gruff voice called out to you. You blinked, there were tears streaming down your face and you suddenly were in Mike's room, with him kneeling in front of you. You blinked as your vision focused.

Mike was holding your hand, big dumb brown eyes staring at you, he was gently rubbing circles with his thumb.

"Y//n?"

You stared at him, eyes meeting each other.

Mike stared into your eyes, he missed them, e/c with life full in them. He saw the tears stream still, and he ached everywhere. He bowed his head and let the tears he had fall, he picked his head back up and gave a kiss to your hand.

"I am sorry. I know," he sucked in a breath, "I know what I accused you of and said, ther- there's no coming back from that I know y/n." He paused to let you digest the words, "I love you y/n. And I am truly sorry for everything."

Silence hung in the air. No one was talking now, you had to gather your thoughts and Mike was preparing for the next thing to say.

"I want us back together y/n. And I know it's selfish and I am a horrible person, but I love you so much." He gave you a watery smile. "Y/n if you could find it in your heart to forgive me, please I'm begging you. I love you, I will always love you."

You pulled your hand back and let your head fall in them. A quiet sob tore through you. Mike got up and sat next to you, wrapping his arms loosely around your frame. You let yourself be enveloped and give into the hug.

You stayed in the hug gripping him back now for what felt like hours. When you let go, he held one for an extra squeeze and let go. You sniffled and wiped your face.

You breathed and out, 'Steady breaths,' you thought.

"Mike."

He nodded towards his name.

"When you had accused me and yelled at me… I don't think there's ever coming back from that."

Mike's head dropped and a sob he was holding wracked through his body. You gently grabbed his hand.

"But…," his head shot up with wide eyes and tears falling, "I still love you Mike. I'm… I'm willing to give us another shot." You were tackled into a hug. While you reciprocated it, your voice filled the empty room again.

"But Mike, there will not be another shot after this at all." He nodded feverishly.

"There won't have to be." It was soft and it felt like a promise, you just hoped Mike would keep it.

He gently let go and wiped the remaining tears from your face. For the first time in a long while he felt genuine full relief.

Mike didn't think of how to tell you about his brother or the animatronic or anything that happened at Freddy's, for now he wouldn't until the time was right.

Mike's eyes dropped to your stomach, and back to your face. It was quick but you caught the look. Mike didn't push for a question, if you were or if you kept it or anything.

You put a hand on your stomach. Mike's eyes shot down again and he sucked in a breath. He was nervous and scared to be a father and he took that out on you. He would never forgive himself.

"Mike…

He put his hand on your stomach too, and lifted his eyebrows.

You shook your head no, "It was a false positive, an extreme rarity, the doctor said. Took multiple tests after and they were negative and had an ultrasound, nothing there."

If Mike could feel like an even bigger jackass he would. The two of you broke up because of his rash behavior and deep insecurities all for nothing it seemed.

He dropped his head on your shoulder. "I'm a fucking idiot."

You nodded along agreeing with the statement. He huffed out a laugh, "Oh please don't stop disagreeing." You followed in the laughter.

"I thought a good girlfriend agrees with her boyfriend?" You teased, and he laughed, tickingly your neck.

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Sooooo yall forgive mike ? I mean, i was teetering on it while writing like idk man, should i forgive you 😭

Lmk what you think!! I am sick now, so it will not be a back to back to back update sadly - or maybe it will be idk 🤭

Taglist: @stinkii-boii

[thegamingcatmom]

I just got back in my twilight phase and discovered your blog, so I was wondering if MC ever got transformed into a vampire in the sisters universe, who would be the one transforming her? I feel like the obvious choice would be tanya, but a part of me thinks that irina trying to kill MC, but accidently turning her would fit the level of unhinged they are. But also if turned into a vampire, how do you think the sisters would react to MC being stronger AND possibly hotter?

In that case:

Welcome to my blog! :3

Right off the bat: Irina cannot be trusted alone with MC at this point in time, that´s true. But it´s not gonna stay like that forever. She´ll come around sooner or later (more later though), so the chances of MC getting turned because Irina actually tried to finish the job are pretty slim. But I can see where you´re coming from and I love that yall´s minds are coming up with possible scenarios for the Unholy Trinity and their, uh...chosen one. 🤭

With that said-

It´s difficult to say who´s gonna turn her, as it depends on everything that leads up to that moment. And it´s gonna be a while yet before we even get to that moment. I don´t plan anything I write beforehand. I simply go with what feels right, so I´ll know who´s gonna turn MC when it gets to that. 😅

However, I´ve been working on a lil something for a bit now (yes, the something that´s supposed to make yall suffer), sort of like an alternate ending to The Sisters. Like, yknow how some games have multiple endings? There´s the good ending, the hidden one, and the bad one.

Well, consider my WIP the bad one. 😅

BUT: It might shine some light into everyone´s motives, especially when it comes to the whole turning thing.

.

As for the sisters´ reactions to vampire!MC?

...I mean-

So, not rly any different from now. LMAO.

It´s true though: They might not realize it yet (well, except for Tanya lol) but, to them, MC´s already-

I´m actually gonna take a page out of Edward´s (well, SM´s lol) book here:

MC´s always gonna be their MC, just a lot less fragile. ;3

Like yknow, I don´t think there´s all that much that would change for them. Ofc it´s gonna be nice when they won´t have to worry about accidently crushing MC when hugging her anymore (Kate´s bear hugs can be rather suffocating, it has to be said), but when it comes to attraction? I don´t think they could possibly be any more smitten with MC. Or else they might actually eat her up, lmao.

So, it´s not gonna be an overly sexual first reaction, if that´s what you´re asking. It´s more like they´re completely in awe of what they´re seeing, almost like they´re not quite sure what they´re seeing is even real. Because, at that point, all of them have been through a lot, right? All those months (perhaps even years, I haven´t decided yet) of madness and longing and arguments and more longing and fighting and some more madness and then longing again and-

By the end of The Sisters, it will have been one hell of a ride for everyone involved. So, seeing everything finally come full circle when their chosen one joins them in their shared forever? I don't think words could truly capture their feelings, tbh.

However, something I find quite funny to think about:

I reckon it´s gonna be MC who turns into the horndog this time, lmao. As a newborn, there´s only gonna be two things on her mind when she first opens her eyes to this new world:

blood

sex

That´s gonna be all she cares about. And, somehow, I think she´s gonna try and go for the latter first because duh, look at that gorgeous wom-

Wait, there´s another-

And another-

Jesus, can you imagine?? Poor MC, completely driven by her instincts. Instincts she just doesn´t know how to deal with yet. Her brain´s gonna melt. She´s gonna melt. This is too much, she is but a newborn-

And the sisters? They couldn´t be more delighted at that display. For them, it´s like watching a baby take its first step. I mean, they´re literally ancient. And MC´s so young, she´s a baby. YKNOW WHAT I´M SAYING??

Sugar Momma mode activated.

KSBJFKASKBFASKF

Honestly though, that´s kinda how I envision it. The sisters are beyond mature, and MC just can´t cope with any of it. She´ll need the sisters to guide her, show her how it´s done. She´ll also need them to soothe that inner beast of hers that keeps telling her stuff that totally contradicts with what she´s actually thinking-

And then MC goes about actually jumping their bones, only for them to-

.

Tanya: "Ah, ah...first we must get that thirst of yours under control, my love."

Kate: "I hate myself for this but, for once, I gotta agree with the spoilsport. One craving now, the other craving later. But God, you´re so sexy when you´re-"

Irina: "As Tanya said...we wouldn´t want you losing your pretty head halfway through and risk half of Alaska´s population being drained by noon, would we, maličký?"

MC, who hasn´t understood a word after "thirst": 🩸👁️👄👁️🩸

.

YKNOW???

But I also kinda HC that, in the world of vampires, with age comes status. All vampires have this inner beast that´s responsible for their more primal behavior and instinctive reactions in certain situations. Such as coming face to face with an elder. And MC´s got three of them.

Lord have mercy on that poor girl. We all wanna be her, let´s face it.

.

.

.

Thanks a lot for your ask! 💋

[libraryofgage]

Too excited to not share after finishing, so here's the full (unedited) Cheerleader Steve chapter of the Modern Steve in 80s Hawkins fic lmao

Featuring: Cheerleader Steve, Hellfire Club, Eddie's tragic split ends almost (almost) eliminating Steve's attraction to him, and Steve’s cheer routine living rent free in Eddie's head forever after (not that he knows it)

Anyway, here we go:

The theater room is mostly empty except for three more teens. A table is set up in the middle of the stage area, a DM partition at the head of the table and a grid-map spread across the middle. Little figurines are placed across the grid, each of them seeming to be in specific positions related to monster-like figurines. Steve can see two teens sitting at the table clearly, but the third one is behind the DM partition, slouching in their chair so only one hand with rings decorating the fingers can be seen dangling from the arm.

Flannel Teen leads Steve into the room just in time to hear the tail-end of someone saying, “-ill not convinced they won’t show up.”

“Eddie,” Flannel Teen says, cutting off whatever would have been said in response, “got a visitor for you.”

The one behind the DM partition---Eddie, Steve realizes---straightens up in his chair, a pair of brown eyes peeking over the top of the partition and landing on Steve. The eyes widen slightly, something like amusement and wariness dancing in them as Eddie stands and walks around the table and…

And Steve is fucked. He didn’t even know the whole metal-grunge-80s thing would do it for him, but here is with his heart skipping a beat. He wants to trace the rings on Eddie’s fingers, wants to study all the patches and pins on his vest, wants to grab him by the belt loop and wallet chain and pull him in close and kiss until they’re breathless.

The thing is, Steve doesn’t believe in things like love at first sight. But he does believe in things like his imagination and following his gut and knowing when the two are working together. Right now, his imagination and gut are doing a fucking tango with how they’re offering him visions of a semi-awkward dates, sweet kisses, incredibly satisfying nights, and little stolen moments together that make both of them smile for years to come.

He just knows in his gut that it could be so good, they could be good, but he still isn’t entirely convinced that Eddie isn’t a murderer. He’s, like, 98% sure, but that 2% is what keeps him in check, stops him from flashing a charming grin at Eddie. He’d really prefer to not be like those true crime girlies who want to fuck Dahmer, thanks.

“So,” Eddie says, effectively pulling Steve from his thoughts as he walks up to him, “what made you bring a stranger into our lair?” Despite looking straight at Steve, he knows the question is aimed at Flannel Teen.

“Some of the swim team cornered me in the hall,” Flannel Teen says, shrugging nonchalantly when Eddie glances over at him with a concerned, questioning look. “He…talked them into leaving and said he needed to talk to you.”

Steve thinks that’s an understated way of saying he implied they were all gay and then used high school social hierarchy and expectations to make them leave, but sure. Eddie hums with appreciation, apparently thinking Steve is worth a few seconds of his time, then, and asks him, “What’s your name, big boy, and what do you need from yours truly?”

“My name is Steve. It’s nice to meet you,” Steve says, smiling politely and ignoring the urge to ask how a theater room qualifies as a lair as he sticks his hand out.

The amusement in Eddie’s eyes instantly vanishes, replaced with indignation as he ignores Steve’s hands. His lips curl up in a sneer, circling Steve like he’s sizing up an opponent. “So, you’re the Steve I’ve heard so much about. How bold to show your face after making my campaign unplayable,” he says, coming to a stop in front of Steve.

This close, Steve is almost distracted by the absolute travesty that is Eddie’s hair. He wants to reach out, cradle the poor locks with their split-ends, and ask Eddie why he’d neglect something with such potential. He looks like he uses the 80s equivalent of a fucking 3-in-1 shampoo, and Steve almost loses all his attraction to Eddie in that moment.

Almost.

Steve drops his hand, keeping his polite smile even as he raises an eyebrow. “Unplayable? You could just reschedule it, dude,” he points out.

Eddie’s nostrils flare slightly, a scoff coming from him in the next second as he leans back, waving his hand dismissively. “Of course you don’t understand the sanctity of DnD. Let me guess,” he says, spinning on his heel and raking his eyes up and down Steve. “A jock, right? Balls in laundry baskets or tidy-whitey swimming? I’m surprised you aren’t with the rest of the brainwashed conformists at the game right now.”

Oh, Steve has been handed such a golden opportunity on a silver-platter here. He could blow Eddie’s assumptions right out of the water. But what would be funnier? Blowing the expectations out of the water now, or playing into them for now and confusing the hell out of him later? Well, it’s easier for Steve if he’s just honest and himself right now. Plus, he can't wait to see Eddie's face when he truly realizes he was wrong.

“I did play basketball,” Steve admits, ignoring the absolute elation on Eddie’s face that’s probably from being right and getting to rub it in, “and I did swim. But I’ve also played DnD a few times. I’ve been told my DM was shit, though, so I probably wasn’t playing right. Oh, I was a substitute cheerleader my senior year of high school and joined the chess club, too. I’m not at the game because Dustin asked me to talk to you. And because I just didn’t want to go.”

Eddie’s elation morphs into confusion, then curiosity, and then disbelief. “Somehow, I’m doubting the cheerleader and chess club part of that, Stevie,” he says, drawing out the nickname into something that’s supposed to be mean and goad him into reinforcing Eddie’s initial assumptions.

“What, want me to prove it to you?”

“Sure, Stevie, prove you were a cheerleader.”

Steve sighs, nods, and takes a few steps back. “You know, I fail to see what any of this has to do with Dustin and his friends asking you to postpone the campaign,” he says, shrugging off his jacket. He glances around, notices Flannel Teen standing next to Eddie, and holds it up questioningly.

Flannel Teen starts to reach out for the jacket only for Eddie to snatch it up himself. “Careful, Gareth, we don’t want you getting infected,” he jokes, flashing a grin that makes Gareth snort and tells Steve this is some kind of inside joke. He looks back at Steve and adds, “This has everything to do with it, big boy. I gotta make sure you aren’t a liar leading poor little Henderson astray.”

There’s genuine concern in his tone, so Steve bites back his sarcastic response and nods. He thinks for a moment, looking at the space around him and counting the syllables in Hellfire. After cycling through the few cheers he still remembers well enough to recite, he finally chooses one that doesn’t require too much movement.

Steve shakes out his arms, rolls his shoulders, and takes a deep breath.

“Hold on!” he shouts, plastering a bright smile onto his face and holding his hand out in front of him. He then spreads his legs to be shoulder-width apart and uses his right index finger to tap his left wrist in an exaggerated manner as he says, “Wait a minute!”

He’s barely started, and the entirety of Hellfire Club is staring at him like he’s an alien. The looks only get more confused as his grin becomes a little more genuine and he shouts, “Hellfire puts some boom into it!” As he says the club’s name, he pushes his arms out to the side, and he jumps as high as he can when he gets to “boom,” touching his toes mid-air.

Steve manages to land steadily, subtly letting out a breath of relief as he places his hands on his hips. He keeps up with the momentum, bringing his fists in front of his face. “Ramp it up!” He punches above his head with his left fist. “Knock it out!” He punches the air in front of him. Gareth slides his foot back slightly when Steve punches forward, and he’d feel bad if not for the clear fascination in the guy’s eyes.

“Hellfire Club always stays on top!” Steve brings his arms up and flexes them, a little proud of his muscles when he sees the way Eddie stares at his arms. “Hellfire Club never drops!” Steve, however, does drop. He drops into a split (and holy fuck, he’s grateful he wore the looser jeans today) with jazz hands thrown up in the air.

Silence reigns supreme in the wake of his cheer, and Steve can’t help his intense satisfaction at seeing the way Eddie’s grip on his jacket tightens, his knuckles surely turning white under the rings. Steve drops his arms, carefully moves out of his split, and stands up. “So, good enough for you?” he asks.

Eddie stares at him for a few seconds before looking away and roughly throwing his jacket back. “Yeah,” he says, his tone significantly less combative than before, “I guess we can fucking reschedule the campaign.”

Steve smartly refrains from asking what his cheer routine has anything to do with rescheduling the campaign when he was originally doing it to prove he wasn’t, in fact, leading Dustin astray. If this works in his favor, then he’s not going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Instead, he shrugs on his jacket and says, “Maybe everyone could tell me their names now.”

And so Steve learns their names are Gareth, Jeff, Asher, and---of course---Eddie.

[agro-carnist]

Fun fact if you didn’t know: “hysteria” used to refer to the type of crazy a woman got when her uterus started roaming around her body and inconveniencing the men around her!

We’ve truly come full circle with people not knowing a goddamn thing about uteruses & estrogen based hormone cycles & misogynists using that ignorance as a weapon

That's exactly why I think it's so ironic. I remember last night thinking "how long until we go full fledged misogyny by evoking hysteria?" Guess I didn't have to wait too long lmao

[vaguely-concerned]

I have genuine Deep Thoughts about this for all the characters in the Evil Campaign and I have been struggling to put it into words for so long, but like... selfishness/striving for self genuinely does seem like. the main redemptive force in that particular story. Which is so fucking interesting, considering the way it plays around with/subverts how Star Wars cosmology is most often posited in canon. I keep saying 'the Evil Campaign is a story about a group of very bad people whose sole saving grace and hope for salvation is that they love each other', and I think this is part of what I mean. The selfishness of love, and personal love; of deliberately choosing oneself and each other. The most immediate example is Aava's struggle for selfhood and freedom and individuation and separateness from the structure that has enslaved her — so SHE can get to choose what she'll be a part of, so her love along with all of her feelings and being can be unfettered. (Through victory my chains are broken, and so on, I guess!) 

But it’s also there in Blue and Zero and their dance around each other that has its own gravitational power on them both, ‘I want you and you want me but neither of us trusts it yet so we’ll just keep circling around each other and hoping’ vibes. But once they figure that mess out between them and connect with each other truly and honestly, I genuinely think they’d go the full ‘I would choose you. In every lifetime and over everything and everyone else in the world, every time, I’d choose you; as far as I’m concerned you ARE the world’ IMMEDIATELY, in a vaguely unsettling and stark but also weirdly moving and human kind of way. Again, the selfishness of love. Weird codependent love with a likely triple digit body count attached, to be sure, but very real and mutual love haha. Specific love and connection, built on ‘you are specifically you and I am specifically me and together there’s a specific we’, not a universal undifferentiated love. 

I feel like the arc was left abandoned about half-way through because of the point where the podcast ended, but that really does seem to me to be where we were headed, that’s the aching yearning thing that lies beneath their whole dynamic, for all the bullshit and fuckery (most of it Blue’s lol, a little bit of it Zero’s) resting on top. Maybe there would have been a lot more twists and turns along the way, but as the story stands I choose to take the near-miracle final dice roll in the last ep as an indication that Blue's need to be loved does win out over his ambitions and ego, when push really comes to shove. Not gracefully so right away, necessarily, but hey when has he ever been graceful about anything lol. I think he would choose his friends at the end of the day, not because he’s secretly good (lmao imagine!) but because that’s the kind of selfish he is deep down.  

You know the person who keeps choosing selflessness — who consistently subsumes his will and his self and his power, who surrenders his selfhood entirely into a larger cause? Who keeps deprioritizing his own personal feelings and connections to serve his role in something ‘greater’? You better believe it’s Synox baby!!! Which is why I’m not so sure there is a way out for him, or that he’d ever take it — or even recognize it if it was offered to him. (fucking ouch) 

And it makes me so fucking sad b/c in a way he’s doing exactly what he was ‘meant to’ as a clone, from his designers’ point of view, and what the jedi needed and profited from when it came to the clones during the war, however the moral implications of that might have sat with them. He’s still ‘following his programming’, he’s doing it all ‘right’, he serves and is ready to die for a higher ideal (an ideal that sucks absolute ass, to be clear lol, but is a dark continuation of what he was ‘born’ to serve, the Republic sliding quietly into the Empire). It’s why he’s such an interesting mirror to Bacta, whose individuation was born out of love and connection and, yes, loss. (Loss at Synox’ hands, even.) Synox clearly does care for the people under his command at least, but in his view of the world he’s not allowed to make that ‘important’ — soldiers serve and die, just like under the Clone Wars, but it’s all for the Empire and so it is justified. (Everything must be justified, if it’s for the Empire.) I don’t know if Synox can let people in close enough that he can experience a true personal loss when and if they die, because depersonalizing yourself that far means extending that to others too, even on your own side. And also I think that if Synox allows himself to think like that now, he would have to look back at what he’s done properly and I don’t feel like he would psychologically survive it. So. ‘Good soldiers follow orders’. And Synox did, he does, and he will, every time. And I feel like it’s going to doom him.  

(Considering Kat’s stated feelings within the podcast on the Sith/Jedi theology divide, I cannot imagine this emergent theme is entirely accidental hahaha. One of the most interesting and subversive examinations of the selflessness/selfishness dichotomy of light and dark in Star Wars in any medium, hands down. I don’t know that it’s The definitive answer in canon or anything (and frankly I think the franchise sprawls too much for such a thing to even exist), but it’s a novel and fascinating lens to read it through and I fucking love the story it produces. It really brings home how much Campaign Star Wars is transformative work, and the power in transformative work to examine and deconstruct the narrative framework of canon. Also sort that under 'Campaign Star Wars is a deeply queer work right down to the structural level', I suppose!) 

 + Headcanons for how defecting from the Empire would work (or not) for all of them under the cut to save people’s dashes at least a little!

Blue has the moral backbone of a chocolate eclair and conspired with rebels to fuck over a rival minister after like. a month, tops, in the job. He has NO principles or larger loyalties beyond ruthless self-interest, craving for recognition and needing his friends to love him, and he could just as easily do all of that with the rebels if that was made more convenient to him by circumstance. Give him a couple of hours to spin it until he's convinced himself 'no no I always meant for it to happen like this actually I’ve been playing 5D space chess all along don’t worry about it', and I think he'd be good to go as long as he had Zero with him lmao. Just remove him from his main means of exerting power (i.e. all that money, his position) and he's basically ineffectual and pathetic (affectionate). I don’t think he’d ever become a fundamentally better person no matter what happens, exactly, (maybe not even a particularly worse one, either) but he could be rendered a more harmless one pretty easily, is sort of what I’m getting at. You could harness his admittedly impressive drive and general nonsense into good-ish-ness (or at least less-badness) without that much of a narrative push. He has his own grand plans, and he probably would have worked just as easily in the Republic as he did in the Empire. Neutral awful posterboy.  

Zero's a simp (laudatory, honorific). He's here for the sake of love I mean a fat paycheck of course, he goes where Blue goes. and that's so valid of him. No tears spilled on his part methinks. He doesn't fuck with the Empire at all, really, he's just doing some compartmentalizing about it so he won't have to think about it. He’d jump at the chance to get out of there and bring his emotional support little bitch boy with him. 

Aava doesn't even want to be here!!! *teary voice* she should be at the club. She should be femme fataling it up in freedom and do her witch shit in peace. Out of the cast she’s also the person who’s not here of her free will at all and doesn’t profit from her position in basically any way. It’s all but stated that freeing herself is her deepest motivation. I suggest that they should all team up and kill Aava’s shitty abusive Sith mom together (Louphan you are not valid) and then run off together.

Meanwhile, in leaving the Empire Synox would have his whole sense of self obliterated in a way I'm not sure he could even survive, if it somehow happened. I love him. he's the worst of clones. he’s the best of clones. he's the funniest bitch in the whole show to me. Nightmare straight man of my heart. I still believe in my soul that he's a Spiffie and it brings me unspeakable joy to consider. But for all my love I really don’t think he’s ever making it out, he’s trapped by his own nature and history at this point. If he did make it out, it would be because the others fought to bring him with them (at least Aava and Blue seem quite fond of him (Zero less so haha), so it isn’t entirely impossible!).

This meta started life as a tag ramble under  drefvalentine's hilarious post over here! I’ve really been trying to capture this in non-fiction words for like a year now and today something finally just clicked into place for me, hopefully there is some kind of sense in this. Finally I can let go of it in my brain, at least, what a relief haha 

[m1ckeyb3rry]

LMAOOO I’m about to rewrite and entire parody for aiku I’ll send it in once I complete it it’s funny it’s like the reversed croagunk trope instead of cockblocking it’s helping him rizz girls up

SHSHSH goodra underrated goat I do love its vibes sm legible and snores collecting dust in the basement LMAOO after that one convo about the moon/space manshine shenanigans it’s disappeared forever but I can imagine nagi sending snorlax out only for it to continue lying down taking up like half the field and whenever he tries to get it to move it just swats him with its arm and send him flying by accident LMAO

AHAHA Rin being so desperate he goes to Shidou (wait the Karasu beef full circling to that second lead idea we talked about way back when)

LMAO “not unproblematic” tullia catching strays but Karasu holding a mini grudge for having his baby birds electrocuted like they ran into a telephone pole because of lanturn is so funny

Wait yk a combo I think is funny yarou because it also means bitch/bastard in japanese LMFAOOO wait but shoyoi is kinda cute too the way barasu sounds has me cackling though LMAO bayosagi love triangle wait this could be a kdrama on its own

LMFAO lowk makes me wonder if Karasu refrains from fowl products because he’s like “those are my children…” but FR full circle development where he’s confident enough and thinks it’s ok to be mediocre ehdhsjshsj

LMAOO you should give him that fit in a goofy crack spinoff side episode he would totally wear it (imagine they have a musical number with the phineas and ferb dance style too)

Reo calling bachira banged freak and raichi shark teeth LMAOO truly teenage boy activities kurona also catching strays everyone calls him a midget too ok but two sides of the spectrum both equally as attractive barous cluelessness imagine he just goes “your hands are tiny” and instinctively does that finger bend thing over your fingers (im so bad at explaining i hope ykwim) while Karasu KNOWS and just has a shit eating smirk on his face maybe there is something about guys who style his hair up like that

I didn’t even consider that they didn’t exist oops but WAIT THAT MAKES THE IDEA GO HARDER I’m not crying bruh imagine reader goes to the safari zone and is like wait I thought beautifly didn’t exist here?? Is yayoi doing some pet project and then big reveal

LMAOOOO I lowk love when memes have the “running faster than chigiri” aspect it’s so funny like the bllk equivalent of running faster than sonic the hedgehog but SHSH NO PRESSURE im just happy to receive whatever you come across don’t feel obligated to look for one specifically LOL

NO FR because like what you want me to add a period?? Nuh uh I don’t enjoy those vibes which is why I also default to just using “…” too LMAO

AHAHAHA ok so maybe i do need to use proper punctuation when explaining stuff my b I definitely used a run on sentence when I explained that part so I’ll make it less confusing next time LMAOO that’s so funny thigh that would actually be really embarrassing if that WERE the case though

Wait I’m loving the drama of this Isagis last straw Karasu comforting mc (CRYING THE BROTHER THAT STEPPED UP) I fw this Isagi so hard the conflict and character complexities >>>>> and the added love triangle yayoi originally leaning towards Barou not Isagi BRUTAL I love it

Otoya being spike is so funny bro getting demoted but actually seeing how everything is so interconnected is really interesting since we’re like metavisioning looking at a universe you created imagine life being this interesting but anyways I’m not about to get into an existential crisis rn

The way you’re converting readers (me) and yourself is so funny HAHAHA

IT DOESNT MATTER IF I MEMORIZE THE ENTIRE DEX (not gonna happen) but wait i just realized what this means CONGRATS ON 1K!!!!! Not you saying “idk it might be awhile still since it fluctuates” literally one day ago LMAO but here’s to more miraverse shenanigans!!!! DONT WORRY DADDYS HOME SHSHSHS but THANK YOUUU I just saw the event so I’m running rn let’s see who I get inspo for LOL

- Karasu anon

PLEASE DO SEND IT IN OMG an aiku parody would be insane…i love how no matter the au/verse aiku somehow makes his way into infecting it w crack LMAOAAO he’s lowkey the face of the miraverse (in a diff way than nagi and karasu)

nagi’s goodra is so CUTE tbh honestly it’s one of his best pokémon too considering it’s a pseudo legendary (wait now that i’m thinking abt it so many of the characters EXCEPT reader have pseudo legendaries 😭😭😭…like chigiri has a dragonite, nagi has a goodra, hiori has a metagross, karasu has a garchomp, and noel noa has an aggron…meanwhile reader’s rocking w galvantula LMAOAOA) PLEASE nagi finally meets his match w his snorlax he asks reo if that’s what it’s like dealing with him and reo’s just like “yes 😐” omg wait potential ova that’s just nagi attempting to train his snorlax ⁉️

HAHA YESS this is the au i was referencing when i mentioned rin as a second lead!! i’ve had it cooking for a while but yes since nagi’s the main lead and karasu’s the bestie w weird tension (i’m realizing this is a format i utilize often) rin has 0 way of winning like it genuinely hurts him to know that reader would rather go for a) lazy dumbass genius or b) cocky rude weird hair over him LMAOAOAO that’s why in the smau reader calls him “poor kid” she’s not here for that bfb dating younger men era 🤫 nagi’s like a couple months older than her and karasu’s a year older than her she is NOT abt to go for baby rin (especially considering there’s a whole subplot with sae that’s again meant to subvert the reverse harem vibe while also still having lots of love interests)

wait this just reminded me that isagi is canonically older than nagi and both nagi AND isagi are older than reo KDBCJSKS

LMAOO no because given how much we’ve talked abt tullia bullying otoya it’s impossible to call her UNPROBLEMATIC (not that otoya doesn’t deserve it ofc) but for the most part she’s pretty chill it’s like specifically otoya who she messes with 😓 PLEASE IT’S LITERALLY KARASU’S OWN FAULT TOO if i had a nickel for every time karasu got cocky and challenged someone he was wildly unprepared to face w his team of baby birds i’d have two nickels which isn’t a lot but it means bro needs to be STOPPED 😭 it’s a good thing he gets garchomp later on i think garchomp will be 99% of karasu’s impulse control as well as his main battler

YAROU ACTUALLY IS SO FUNNY especially because both of them are kind of uhhh kind of bitchy (especially to isagi) but agreed shoyoi is kinda cute sounding!! bayosagi love triangle…i have many thoughts about it that i will get to TRUST but agreed it’s giving kdrama

see i feel like the mediocre thing relates to his end of the world comment in the egoist bible too so it’s like in character yk?? like now he’s SEEN the end of the world (almost) what with team x and their nonsense, almost witnessed all of his friends die (if reader hadn’t sent nagi back to help save everyone they would’ve been overwhelmed because karasu’s garchomp is legit the only one left) and nearly died himself, and i feel like that makes him realize ykw why should i gaf abt being mediocre or not mediocre??? him realizing that as long as he’s happy nobody else’s expectations matter to him…lowkey this DOES mean that fwtkac reader doesn’t really fit because he’s too happy post epilogue to care about a rival but actually wait yk what would be cute imagine reader’s like a pokémon nurse who comes out to do check ups on the daycare pokémon and make sure everything is looking alright but karasu ends up falling in love with her so for a solid while he just makes up illness and injuries to call her out for like “oh my lucario hurt his paw” and she comes out and lucario is just standing there like “😐” obviously not injured and she’s like ???? but eventually she ends up liking karasu back and then he asks her out and it’s all cute and adorable (pursuit reader is just glad he’s finally getting married because she’s been making fun of him for being the last one to settle down for ages…“how did otoya AND aiku end up in happy relationships before you???” “I DON’T KNOW”)

REO DOES NOT CAREEE HE’LL VIOLATE ANYONE i love villainous team v reo he’s so so funny and his crashouts are legendary 😩 PLS YES THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT I WAS THINKING like barou has no idea that you’re flirting so he’s super serious about it and he’s like “wow your hands ARE very small 👍” and does the finger thing (ik what you’re talking abt) but karasu starts messing with you because he knows you’re trying to rizz him up (he’s already rizzed up obviously i think if a girl flirted w him he’d fold in 0.2 seconds) but he’s so funny about it and it def culminates in him lacing his fingers through yours and using it as an excuse to hold your hand (he definitely calls you mediocre for having small hands as a joke though HAHAHA)

NO THAT’S WHAT I’M SAYING LIKE IT MAKES IT 10X BETTER one thing about hiori he is going to LOVE his love interests like there’s something distinct abt the way i imagine hiori as the male lead he’s on a completely different level than the others…the closest in terms of emotions is probably nagi but with nagi a grand declaration of love is just him getting out of bed and like. cooking breakfast or smth 😭 so the scale isn’t quite the same…but hiori always goes all out in my mind like i’ve never imagined him being normal about someone he genuinely loves he always does insane shit like building a house or importing an entire species of pokémon instead of just being like “hey i like you” the way karasu (eventually) would JFJFJSSJ wait speaking of which your request for the event hehehe miscommunication/misunderstandings w hiori…i’m considering some things (i feel like that trope generally implies humor but it’s hiori he doesn’t give crack vibes to me…he’s like nagi i can only write him seriously unless he’s just a side character but trust i will cook smth up and it will be good)

PURSUIT ISAGI IS SM FUN I LOVE HIS CHARACTERIZATION because honestly he definitely thinks that he should be stepping into barou’s role as his best friend but he has zero idea how to do so meanwhile karasu does it so naturally (in this au i fucked w everyone’s ages so isagi and barou are a couple years older than karasu and are the same age as yayoi if i didn’t say that already) which is just another punch in yoichi “inferiority complex” isagi’s gut…eventually he does end up being kind of a cool older cousin/sibling to reader but it takes him a lot of effort to get to that point 😕 and for the love triangle i was lowkey think that yayoi would actually have originally liked isagi but isagi never pursued her (given that he thought she liked barou) so he kinda pushed her towards barou and she ended up falling INSANELY in love w barou (who wouldn’t) but that way the possible eventual yayosagi isn’t just her settling it’s her being like look i always liked you and maybe i still might but i have a lot of trauma from barou’s abandonment/death and isagi’s like yo me too let’s just be friends again and see where things go KDFHSKJDSMJDJS i lowkey love them as a trio and the relationships/duos within that trio honestly this is a version of isagi i would actually enjoy writing (ofc i’d have to braid in more of his canon characterization but this is a fun foundation to me)

OTOYA JUST GIVES SUCH SPIKE ENERGY i feel like based on vibes/lore alone, tullia is fluttershy, karasu is applejack, chigiri is rainbow dash, reo is rarity, otoya is spike, nagi is pinkie pie but like the opposite?? like he’s also incredibly random and insanely lucky with stuff but he’s super lazy instead of super energetic, and reader is twilight sparkle (not just because she’s the protagonist LMAOO)

HAHAHA BRO THANK YOUUU IT’S VERY UNREAL but AHH hiori inspo?? cheating on karasu i see /j 😭 it’s okay two of the twelve so far are karasu reqs…the way i only have four spots left and ZERO people have requested for nagi i think people don’t even realize how much i love him despite him being all over my blog because i never get reqs or anything for him 😩 or maybe it’s that everybody hates nagi atm so nobody wants me to write for him 😓💔 THAT’S OKAY THOUGH NAGI GETS PURSUIT SO WHO’S REALLY WINNING ⁉️

[bitegore]

woah I just finished reading licanius and I'm feeling lightheaded. do you want to yell about licanius because I want to hear you yell about it. I'm prepared to be so so normal about nethgalla

GOD. AHAHAHAHAA. i always want to yell about licanius

okay first my personal hashtag licanius hashtag experience is worth adding because it explains a lot about which parts i am most insane about. So I first found the first book Shadow of What was Lost back in the ancient years of like 2015 or 2016 or whatever before Islington got his book deal while it was still self-published on Kindle Unlimited instead of being published by any kind of publisher. Back in these years it was just the first book and the others weren't out.

....and surelyt you remember that fucking epilogue thing that Islington loves to do where he puts the Big Reveal right at the end of the book, right? So i spent like a full three or four years going absolutely Bat Shit about just the whole "caeden is also aarkein devaed" bit and then . book 2 comes out and. AUGH. AUUUUUUUGHHHHHHH AAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAAAAAA the fucking. MALSHASH is CAEDEN is AARKEIN DEVAED is TAL'KAMAR why does this man need to be every character. and THEN the fact that CAEDEN DOES NOT KILL DAVIAN. HE GETS HIM FUCKING SELF.

insane. this series makes me insane. literally foaming at the mouth insane.

nethgalla was just like. okay actually i cant lie i kind of love that she fucked up every romantic plotline caeden/tal could've been involved in because i am so glad he did not have any actual romance plot with karaliene or anyone else but how do you invent a character as cool as The Demon Shapeshifter From The Torture Dimension and then fuck it up by being like "and she's obsessed with this guy and exists mostly to be a femme fatale" like come ON. come ON you FLUBBED it. i wish she had more going on with her because even just the idea that she's tied to bhim because he summoned her by fucking up resurrecting his dead wife is like spicy as fuck but then the actual execution is so. like. mid at best? it truly saddens me especially because when Tal shows up she's lame about him but every other time she is SO badass. when she's pretending to be that one hunter she was so badass. when she was tormenting ashalia in the name of making her stronger that kicked ass. they should've kissed. i said what i said

also FUCK LMAO MELDIER AND ALARIC AND ISILIAR AND THE OTHER VENERATE i am SO not normal about them I am obsessed with them I want to put them in my mouth and EAT THEM. i wrote a crossover where Vortex gets recruited into their ranks for an exvent once. i love them so dearly. i spent multiple years bullying my girlfriends into reading the books exclusively so i could get them to write fanfiction about them for me. i love them i want them so dead i'm so glad the story went the way it did but also they deserved better and i wish it didn't happen in the first place. literally the best fucking tragedy ever. i wish we got to watch Wereth's death and Andrael's betrayal and i also wish everything were worse and there was more bad. i am so normal about them.they are so important to me

the fucking shape of this narrative also. this is so circles ever. it makes me lose my fucking mind. look at it it is a self-contained loop (derogatory) (aspirational) this thing is soooooooo the chicken and the egg. its so. its so! i am normal and not insane about it i promise come closer etc etc

[kaeyachi]

I just finished the interdarshan competition event!

SPOILERS BELOW!

you have been warned :)

additional warning:

tw: suicide mention- Please note that it was directly stated by a character during the event

.

.

.

I'm so happy my babygirl Architect Kaveh won!! GOOD FOR HIM!!!!!!! LET'S GOOOOOOOOOOOO

I can understand why he would rather donate said money though. I was worried the diadem could corrupt people and we'd have to attack him for a moment there...

I'm not sure about other cultures outside of asia, but where I'm from, money gathered from negative sources ( in this case, said studies caused the researcher pain and suffering which at the end caused the researcher to...well... unalive himself) would only make you miserable should you take it for yourself, and the best course of action is always to donate it or spread that wealth around to counteract that negative energy. Niceties and strong belief in justice aside, everyone who knows him could not see Kaveh ever agreeing to using said money.

Bless Cyno for insisting on paying Kaveh for the limited edition card. He managed to convince Kaveh to take it! GET THAT MONEY SIR.

Perfect representation of how hobbyists are a bit hard to understand from other people's perspectives. We see Cyno explaining that he works hard and earns up that money and that he really wants it and would willingly pay a large sum for it. He knows Kaveh doesn't understand that card's worth, and thus, he insisted on paying, despite Kaveh not seeing the worth of said item. I'm imagining the total estimate of Cyno's entire card collection at the moment... if one (1) limited edition card is worth 1 million mora......and he has a ton of it according to Kaveh...... s i r!

Ah, well, it makes him happy, and he seems to have more than enough funds!

Is it a translation issue or does Kaveh have large bills to pay? Kaveh said that the 1 million mora is enough for him to pay his bills for that month and treat Cyno, Tighnari, and Collei to 1 dinner... he also mentions that he already has it budgeted... 1 million mora is a lot so I'm hoping the rest actually goes to his savings or at the very least a portion of his debt.

Quick rundown for the rest of the dialogue post competition!

Dehya and Candace not wanting to do what Faruzan thinks is fashion. Nilou is nice to help balance the 2 different generations out (thanks Nilou). Also, Faruzan also got herself a student! Good for her!

Layla getting hyped up by her fellow darshans in rtawahist was so nice. She's getting treated to a meal! They did not let her bring herself down, we gotta stan them for doing that.

Dinner with Cyno, Tighnari, Collei, and Kaveh definitely gave us nice information. Tighnari cares a lot for Kaveh ( we could tell from voicelines before, but its really nice to see). In fact, having Tighnari be the first to raise concerns for Kaveh during the final round was so nice, and we also find out that Cyno and Tighnari frequently treat Kaveh as well. We also find out that Kaveh can't stop talking about Alhaitham in those said frequent dinners lmao. Alhaitham truly does live rent-free in Kaveh's mind (in our hearts according to Cyno, but Alhaitham isn't dead yet Cyno omg stop talking about others like they're dead)

Cute information about home life for Kaveh and Alhaitham shows how they care for the other. Alhaitham knowing Kaveh would bring him the leftovers and Alhaitham figuring out that Kaveh's father and Sachin met long ago and informing Kaveh about it was very nice to see. They seem to have a thing where they dole out backhanded compliments to the other. I can see why everyone would find this amusing.

Speaking of Sachin having met Kaveh's dad... the butterfly effect of that happening which led to Kaveh's father's death, to Kaveh's misfortunes in life, to the diadem ending up with Kaveh at the end, making him win this year's interdarshan championship was *chefs kiss*. It's like a story has come full circle. You could make a movie out of this plot.

Auntie Nahida signing up nephew hat guy to literally everything just to get him to interact with others is hilarious. We now have Wanderer as a college student. Wonderful (he's having fun hehe).

All in all, I enjoyed this event! I feel like the actual finals felt a bit rushed to compensate for the dialogue post championship though. I think I want to see more of them competing.

I found it a bit weird as to how out of all the contestants, only Tighnari was left to ask about Kaveh's well-being at the end. Where were the others? And at the awards ceremony, only Cyno was there...

Other than that, the 3 days of this event has been incredibly fun and I've learned so much about our Sumeru characters. Sumeru is so wonderful, I'm gonna miss it when we leave for Fontaine *sobs*

[presidentofclaudeloving2024]

Ok but some more things to ADD:

- Thanks to Neil's answer on his blog on more historical time periods, ABSOLUTELY Wild west and 60s Wives like can you IMAGINE??

- Finding out that crowley was an arch angel from before, even if we still do not know his true name in the end would be SICK af really

- BUT also love the theory that said miracles between aziraphale and crowley are only so powerful or always has been thanks to their LOVE for each other like??? LIKE HELLO????

- Muriel surprisingly being a hilarious and actually working well wingman er angel for them both lmao

- If the "Ms. Cheng is god" theory is true I will scream

- People have been saying on here what their second kiss should be like and personally I would love Aziraphale to slowly take crowleys glasses off as a sign of trust and vulnerability again and god their sobbing wet from all the rain theyre in but they don't care and just LOVE EACH OTHER SO MUCH!!!

- They dance again but it's in ALPHA CENTAURI!! DANCING!!! IN THE ONE PLACE THEY WOULD HAVE A HONEYMOON AT!!!!

- Ok but imagine if it all comes in full circle again for aziraphale and crowley in the beginning of season 3 instead, aziraphale with BABY JESUS in hand and crowley freaking tf out yet again!!!

- More full circle would be we would see Beelzebub and Gabriel again, this time actually helping them STOP from the world ending again. Like how HILARIOUS and IRONIC would that be?? Honestly they're just doing it because they kinda owe aziraphale and crowley from season 2.

- Aziraphale still doing the apologize dance

- Its another scene where instead of holding hands through another in between them like in both season 1&2, they're finally holding each others hand while on the same page. Finally an US and that the world IS their side!!

- Bonus on that scene also having most if not all of the original human characters cast again from both season 1 and 2 standing with aziraphale and crowley against heaven and hell. LIKE CAN YOU IMAGINE!!!!

- Oh and my favorite thanks to @whatever-man-whatever in their tags

They are horrendous when they both finally let go and basically scream at each other on how they truly feel about their situations and feelings involved with one another!! That they both were essentially confessing to each other that day but were too full themselves to get that point across very clearly instead. It'll be heartbreaking, it'll have them both crying and clearly upset with each other even more then they already were but most importantly they will finally be talking to each other. Finally.

For Good Omens season 3

All I'm asking is: - Crowley calling Aziraphale "Supreme Archangel" like it's a curse - Aziraphale apologising to Crowley and Crowley telling him "I forgive you" - I want ALL THE LOOKS. I want them to look at each other like they've always done - I want to see how Crowley fell and how Aziraphale reacted to it - I want more of them in different time periods - I want Crowley to talk about Alpha Centauri again bc it's the most romantic thing I've ever heard - SAD CROWLEY AND SAD AZIRAPHALE - I want a real showdown of heaven and hell, a real war and Jesus in between I'M A SIMPLE WOMAN, I JUST WANT MORE