#whether it's platonic or romantic you can't deny their love for each other and that's absolutely beautiful what the flip

[astr0disiac]

i don't think there will ever be another ship like bkdk like who's gonna be the next them? no one. not in this lifetime

[lunaxstrange]

Can we talk about love in orv?

[SPOILERS]

Okay so, I am aware that Kdj loves the "story" but I really wanna point some things out individually because it's 2am and ORV is on my mind.

Kdj had the easiest way out of the 1863rd turn. The most perfect turn (at the time) but he really went I'd let the world burn for Yjh? Yeah, everything is "part of his plan" but let's talk about the 73rd Demon King arc. My man would do anything to make sure Yjh finishes his story. Apart from this, it's the fact that while everyone else dislike any other version of Yjh (even he hates himself lol), Kdj loves every. single. one. I mean 3rd turn (1864th) Yjh? Yes. Hsy's 1863rd turn? Yes. Frickin' Secretive Plotter? Got off to a rough start but yes. You simply cannot make Kdj hate his beloved protagonist. I mean, this man risked his whole existence to make sure the 0th turn is actually the most perfect one. He didn't want Yjh to regress but became his sponsor anyway because it's what Yjh wanted. He would do anything to see Yjh happy. This type of love isn't romantic or platonic or anything else, it's the most inexplicable form of love. Love in its purest form. I'd like to take the time to compare it to Achilles and Patroclus because while we can fight over whether these two were gay or not, we cannot deny the sheer love they had for each other. No strings attached. Kdj is in awe of Yjh.

Yjh. The regressor. The protagonist. The person Kdj loves the most. Yjh had everything (0th turn) but he really gave it all up just to meet Kdj. Suffered the "Hell of eternity" just to see him. Bro didn't even love Lsw the way he loves Kdj. Tbf, 0th turn Yjh didn't know what the real struggle of passing the scenarios without help was but I'm sure he got the gist. Okay, sure, you can call it "curiosity" that led to Yjh keeping Kdj alive during the 3rd (1864th) turn. But my guy didn't choose Kdj to go to Peace Land because he had "someone he loved" like bro, YJH!? THE COLD REGRESSOR??? HE DID THAT FOR KIM DOKJA! Not to mention the fact that Yjh didn't even care that his whole life was a mere novel. He just despised the fact that Kdj chose the 1863rd turn over him. I'm gonna cry. Bro wanted Kdj so bad that he kept fighting the Secretive Plotter. Not only this, he gave up the 3rd (1864th) turn for Kdj too. Went from Supreme King to terrorist just to save Kdj. When everyone else - even Hsy - gave up. After all, what is a protagonist without a reader? The whole astronaut ordeal might've been to "find his purpose" but we can't ignore their connection. He gave up everything he could ever ask for twice (0th and 3rd/1864th turn) for Kdj. The attachment these two have with each other is insane.

I could go on about them for eternity but we have another person to talk about - Hsy. This woman spent 10 years exhausted, stuck in a world-line and body not her own for one person. Even if it's only Hsy with half her memories, she gave up her perfect world-line because she missed Kdj. Just like Kdj loves Yjh, Hsy also loves every version of Kdj. She wanted to meet him, no matter what the world-line. My girl had only a few hours where she was in control and decided to use off all those hours to write TWSA - a story she herself disliked. Hsy wants to see Kdj happy, every part of Hsy loves Kdj. There is nothing a writer could love more than an avid reader who loves their story. And let's talk about the fact that Yjh and Hsy absolutely hate each other. He is literally her creation (more or less) but their relationship is questionable. Why? Because a protagonist has no value without a reader. Kinda like Asuka Ren and Kyrgios Rodgraim. They have no special relationship despite being creator and creation. Since there is no reader, Asuka and Kyrgios are as distant as two people can be. Alternatively, what brings Hsy and Yjh together is Kdj.

I just can't get enough of the way ORV relationships are written. If I had to describe love as a writer, I'd cite ORV as an example.

[bouquetface]

SYNASTRY: mostly friendship observations edition

Accuracy influenced by entire chart.

❤️‍🔥 Sun conjunct ASC: This can indicate a karmic connection especially if in scorpio or north node is aspecting the conjunction.

Sun can see/understand who the ASC person is easily. In my experience it is often the ASC person who benefits the most from this connection. Sun can offer support and praise/encouragement to the ASC, building the ASC person's confidence.

The negative side: the sun person may approach this connection with arrogance - "I know you better than you know you" type of mindset. This could anger/annoy the ASC person. Depending on signs & aspects, the Sun may take on a parental approach too - acting as if they deserve authority over the ASC person.

Twice, I've seen this occur in friendships, the friendship begins fast but ends terribly. If you believe in past lives, this conjunction can indicate you have past live karma to work out in this life. Once it has been cleared, you will leave each other.

Another thing, I've noticed is this conjunction has potential to be an on and off again thing. One person will occasionally try to reach out to the other every now and then. In one connection it was the scorpio sun person doing this, and in the other it was the sag asc doing this.

❤️‍🔥 Sun Opposite Mars can make the two prone to fighting. There can be a clashing of egos. Sun may be more likely to back down from an argument. They may still think they’re right but to keep the peace they’ll let it go. However, the sun person may get fed up with this dynamic. I observed this aspect in a friendship that ended extremely terribly - mars person physically wanted to fight sun.

This does not mean this is the only possible outcome of this aspect. If there are positive aspects between Mercury, Moon & Venus - likely there is less fighting. There can still occasionally be some type of power & ego issues.

❤️‍🔥 In my real life, I have noticed my scorpio moon friend's all have that one scorpio sun women they HATE. Scorpio is a sign associated with power. The planet you have scorpio in can secretly desire power in some kind of way- ex: being the wealthiest, being the sexiest, being the smartest, etc

A scorpio sun generally won't care to hide this desire of power. They may often naturally act as if they already have that power (because usually they do). However, this can run the scorpio moon the wrong way. They want to feel like the most powerful, most desired person in the room. This can create silent/sub conscious competition.

Personally, I love both placements. However, I can't deny often both these placements tend to have hidden resentment & envy toward other powerful people - specifically people of the same sex.

Ofc I know that won't be the case for every or even most scorpios. Accuracy is always influenced by the ENTIRE chart.

❤️‍🔥 Sun conjunct Moon for any sign is always a mixed bag. It can be very karmic. Often, the moon plays a supportive role to the sun. In a literal sense this can be the moon providing the sun with food, rides, other forms of help.

If the moon is happy playing this role, things should be fine. Due to the planet’s nature, the moon is moody & fluctuates. The support it provides may not be consistent. The moon may dislike supporting the sun.

❤️‍🔥 North node conjunct ASC this can feel fated. There can be a sense of familiarity - you meet the person & think “Oh it’s you” in a positive way. Things can move fast with this conjunction.

Having nn conjunct asc also means you have south node conjunct dsc. This can indicate in a past life you had a committed partnership - romantic, platonic & even business. Whether you have good karma or bad karma that you need to workout will depend on the entire chart.

In a romantic connection, nn person can feel asc is their wish come true. I have seen this conjunction work best in leo. Leo asc loves how much nn praises & appreciates them. Nn can be in awe that asc desires them too. Often, it is the nn person who will feel they are gaining the most from this connection. However, there would need to be other positives in the chart to indicate a long lasting & healthy connection. Nodes can be very karmic.

❤️‍🔥 North node conjunct Venus I do believe the venus person is the one who is more likely to be affected by this. I had this in the 8th H as the NN person & ngl it didn’t feel like an important relationship.

I think it may be the Venus person who feels it more since I did introduce that person to a group of friends. The friendships have stayed solid throughout our lives & I don’t see that changing.

I have seen people interpret this as meaning the two are fated to meet in this lifetime. There can be a feeling of unconditional support or understanding from that person. Due to the nature of the NN the two can quickly become friends after meeting. In the sign of gemini, I see it can manifest as being very curious initially - asking lots of questions, joking around, sibling vibe.

However, it depends on the entire synastry - I have Saturn in the same sign although it is not close enough to aspect the conjunction. This can explain why my emotions toward this conjunction are limited & a bit distant.

❤️‍🔥 On tumblr, I often see posts about placements that are the "most passionate" or the "most romantic". My opinion is this type of thing depends on our synastry. If you don't activate the planet's in one another, your experience can be neutral.

For EX: In my own chart, libra placements fall in my 12th and at most degrees will not aspect any prominent placements. This can explain why I don't feel like I experienced the libra venus I met the way other's describe the placement.

I have mars conjunct venus in scorpio, this is said to be a very intense and passionate, however I doubt the libra venus would describe me as this. Our synastry is simply neutral to almost non existent with each other. We don't activate those planets for each other. It would be ridiculous to assume a scorpio placement is going to be passionate & possessive of everyone they encounter.

[liquidstar]

chat i'm once again thinking abt how much i love the development of the emilia/subaru relationship. i just think they way they communicate with each other is so good.

both of them WANT to be together, they make that very clear. however their respective circumstances and traumas make that difficult at the moment, so they're kind of just hanging out. but everything is out in the open! they both know they like each other and wanna be together, but they're making the active choice to not act on it yet. given how fucked up they both are in the head... this is, like, remarkably healthy (and shows a lot of subaru's growth after feeling entitled! and emilia's growth in opening herself up to the idea that she could be loved!)

subaru constantly dotes on emilia, and its something she enjoys and feels comfort with. she feels like something is wrong when he doesnt (like in arc 6 w his amnesia). he tells her all the time that he loves her, expecting nothing back. shes not ready to commit to an "i love you," yet, but she's thankful to hear it, and she still wants to say it back someday. she outright says she can't marry anyone else because she's already chosen him! even if theyre not in a relationship, its like they're preparing for the day when they can be. they still both understand. and subaru is so patient with her about this now, he doesn't feel insecure about whether she likes him or not either. he knows! they both agreed to wait. they both know they're not fit for a real relationship but they're still committed to each other in this Just Hanging Out phase.

and from a writing standpoint i think this is GREAT because they can be a slow burn... and have open and honest communication about all their feelings for each other? thats so rare! literally no one is doing it like them. and i think their eventual relationship will have more payoff with less will they/won't they about the whole thing for it, imo. because 99% of the time w these kinds of stories, you know they will anyway, but what's cool here is that THEY also know they will.

i just think what they have going on is really cool and i love how it shows their growth. yes, its okay if theyre not "really" a fully romantic couple, that's too much for right now. but they can still be together in whatever way works for them, and slowly work their way into whatever comes next. they ARE working towards some kind of future together, but they're taking their time, testing the waters, and not settling into any specific roles just yet. just going with the flow, seeing how things turn out (especially w how hectic their lives are lol), but still undoubtedly loving each other (in emilia's case, even if she's not ready to commit to romantic love, you can't deny she loves subaru in a platonic way, or somewhere in-between).

its cool! its a cool dynamic that you dont get very often! but its also a very real one to me, they really feel like two troubled people just taking their time to figure stuff out with each other. not jumping into anything, but also preparing to eventually, and really communicating to make it work! that theyre both comfortable with how the other feels about them too, and easily settle into this nice peaceful dynamic they have in the meantime. theres no rush! they trust each other, and theyll get there.

[the-bi-fangirl-biatch]

"why do you keep shipping lokius, it's obviously queerbait and marvel would never do it, so stop wasting your time-"

see the best part of their dynamic is that it doesn't rely on it being romantic! they're character foils, their stories and backgrounds and traits mirror one another's, and they balance each other out. whether platonically or romantically, they need each other. ship them or not, you literally can't deny it. it's not even subtext, it's their canon dynamic.

and tbh who cares if it's canon or not? i get that it would be amazing if the mcu ever did it, and that queerbaiting is bad. but as a fanbase, we don't need to rely on them for material. so much talented artists and writers love it! fandom has never needed permission before, so we don't need to wait on it now.

tldr: let shippers be hopeful and enjoy something! let them read into interactions and throw away lines bc it's fun! don't be mean, thank you

[theschizotypalsolilquy]

the fact that some ppl keep denying jikook even more rn is absolutely insane to me

it’s like you’re trying to tell me 2 + 2 = 5

Nah I’m good sorry it equals 4 that is all

I wasn’t expecting any skinship or a minimal amount, thinking they would keep it very "bro mode" but what the heck did I just watch??

and their big smiles!! even though Jimin was sick you could still see he was happy to be here with his Jungkookie please they’re so cute how are we supposed to survive 8 episodes??!

I'm just here for the love, you know?

If people wanna disregard their happiness when they're with each other, that's on them. I mean, how bitter can you be if you can't accept that they at least find joy and contentment with each other, regardless of whether you see them as platonic or romantic.

[felixcosm]

oh yeah Jack/jerry. I mean. The classic

Send me a ship and I will explain why I do or don’t ship it

The fucking classic. I could spend hours talking about them. I ship them so fucking hard and I do think that canonically, Jerry had a crush on Jack.

I just love their dynamic.

I love how it changed from Jack feeling sorry for Jerry, then being annoyed at him, then suspicious, then tentatively trusting him and then trusting him more than any other person in the world.

I love how Jerry came to Jack in a moment of weakness and when Jack took him in, Jerry went 'guess I'm gonna dedicate my entire life to him now'. From all the times he's saved him, took a bullet for him, came by just to spend time with him, was a supportive friend and so much more, his affection for Jack is so strong.

If you pay attention, Jerry is very touchy and physically protective of Jack. He will often stand right by Jack's side whenever something happens or even stand in front of him. He was practically glued to Jack's side during the whole Tony scene, he follows Jack around everywhere, he carried Jack back to the car in Vol 2 and there are so many more moments.

He will often go to the gas station when he's drinking or taking drugs because he knows Jack will be there for him if he needs someone sober.

They care about each other so much and they're so protective and it melts my heart everytime. Whether you read it as platonic or romantic, you can't deny the strong bond they have.

[oneforblu]

my current favorite ships at the moment!

kagehina

this ship is my number one favorite ship of ALL TIME. their relationship is so beautifully written. from shoyo and tobio not having a team to creating a lifelong rivalry that will last forever. i talk about them so often, and i don't see that stopping anytime soon. the love i have for them knows no bounds; i genuinely believe they are soulmates. the bond they share, their growth, and the overall relationship between them is perfection. i really don't think there's another ship like them for me!

shimamitsu

they have grown on me SO MUCH this year. not only is skip and loafer one of my favorite pieces of media ever, shima & mitsumi's relationship is one of the best things ever to me. whether they are together romantically or platonically, there's no denying that these two characters mean so much to one another. they impact each other, they make each other so happy, and in turn, it makes ME happy!! i am just so in love with this ship. whenever i see them together, i just start to smile so big!!

hakyona

they are so nostalgic for me & finally reading akayona and seeing them become even more special to each other was just amazing. my favorite shoujo couple ever. they just love each other so profoundly & would do anything to protect their other half. i can’t get enough of them! hakyona is so beautifully written, and i could not imagine a more perfect example of peak shoujo slow burn.

killugon

i recently watched hunter x hunter this year, and i have been infected with the killugon virus. they grew on me so much in such a short amount of time. watching gon and killua become so close and special to each other was so amazing to see. there's no denying that killugon means the world to each other. they are written so beautifully. discovering killugon was the highlight of this year for me. THEY ARE JUST SO SWEET AND MAKE ME SO HAPPY.

cheolmiae

recently read aslfua this year & when i say im OBSESSED!!!!! this is such a perfect slowburn & if you know me, you know i LOVEEEE a slowburn. such a cute ship, first love type of thing. friends to lovers. awkward & silly. they are so comforting to me. such a well done manhwa full of love and friendship. just perfect.

edwin

SLOWBURN EXCELLENCE!!!!! CHILDHOOD FRIENDS TO LOVERS!!!! she was there for him in his worst times. HE VOWED TO NEVER MAKE HER CRY AGAIN. THEY GREW TOGETHER. THEY DID EVERYTHING TO HELP EACH OTHER. they are so perfect!!!!! i just can't explain to you how much they mean to me!!!

bakudeku

i will be honest, bakudeku was not a fav of mine when i first got into mha but after i finally read the manga for the first time, i can now say i am on the bakudeku train. katsuki and izuku are both favorite characters of mine, and they were written so well as individuals and as a ship. they mean so much to each other. they serve as fuel to accomplish their goals, as a friend they can count on, and as a duo that can take on the world. bakudeku is very special to me!!!

kyoru

i find them so warm and gentle. tohru was finally able to be vulnerable with kyo and kyo finally knows what it's like to be loved. they went through so much as kids, and i just love knowing that they will always have each other no matter what. they are my favorite part of fruits basket!!! just such a beautiful couple!!

koutaba

ao haru ride is SO special to me. it was one of the first shoujos i ever watched, and i recently have been obsessed with them. kou is such an amazingly written character, and i love how futaba was the one who "saved" him. they were middle school sweethearts who found their way back to each other. they have so much love for one another, and i'm so happy they got their ending.

[casdeans-pie]

One of my favourite things about Destiel is that whether platonic or romantic you can't deny that the love is there.

Dean literally calls Cas his best friend in 12x11 while Cas famously says the words I love you to Dean in 15x18

You can argue platonic vs romantic all day but hey. look. they love each other. its canon. its textual! The love is right there !!

[ssaseaprince]

I swear anyone who says Hannibal and Will aren't canon just didn't watch the show. It's not implied, it's not hinted, it's not subtext. It's incredibly romantic and is explicitly said so. The moment and embrace they shared at the end of season 3 was so powerful to me. Just because they didn't kiss or say "hehe want to be my boyfriend?" like they're in some teen romcom doesn't mean they aren't a canonical pairing. They got together at the END of the show after it being stated several times that they love each other and can't live without each other and want each other more than anyone. Lines like wanting to run away together and hungering for each other and "is Hannibal in love with me" are, apparently, completely platonic in some people's eyes or just wishful thinking or, christ, queerbaiting (a point I hope no one has made because it's ridiculously stupid). I'm quite happy with the end of season 3, but I'd hope for a 4th season if only, so they can be a couple on screen and people can stop being dumb about the canon of their relationship

I am so sorry that I have taken forever to reply to this, I lowkey forgot that my inbox was a thing 😅

You are completely right. I want to call it a lack of media literacy, but I'm not sure that's the best phrase. As an autistic person, I completely understand struggling with subtext and needing to have things presented in a straightforward, blunt way. However, with Hannigram, you don't even need to rely solely on subtext. Like you pointed out, Will flat out says, "Is Hannibal in love with me?" And then you've got the entire cast, the showrunner, writer, producers, etc, all saying that they are canonically in love.

And because of that, I really struggle to give people the benefit of the doubt when they say that Hannigram isn't canon or that their relationship is "open to interpretation." Because if you were solely confused due to issues with understanding subtext, then you wouldn't get all up in arms about people pointing out that Hannigram IS CANON.

This honestly leads me to believe that the very vast majority of people who will fight tooth and nail to convince everyone that Hannibal and Will aren't in love is because of homophobia.

We are not used to seeing queer relationships in media. There is maybe a handful of movies and TV shows that revolve around queer relationships. So it is people's knee-jerk reaction to assume that every character is straight and that only heterosexual relationships are canon, and it's because of this bias that they will fight against all queer representation and only accept it when the characters are physically affectionate, and even then they will find reasons to claim it's not valid.

Cishet people are a lot like white people, and men, and basically every other majority, in the way that they feel the need to relate to every single main character, otherwise they can't enjoy the show/book/movie etc. Hannibal and Will have been confirmed as canon, in and out of the show. But these people will fight against it because, whether consciously or unconsciously, the second that their characters are confirmed as queer, they immediately can't relate to them and therefore can't enjoy the show.

They see queer people and queer relationships as so *other* that queer representation literally ruins it for them. Maybe this is an extreme analogy, but it's like watching a movie about humans, and then halfway through finding out that they're robots, and all of a sudden, these aren't people that you're familiar with, they are something other. The knowledge that a character is queer is genuinely so incomprehensible to them that they will do anything to deny it.

And I think that kind of thinking is the biggest problem. It's not always done with bad intention, and it's not always conscious, but it's there. You can see actors and actresses who do the same thing. They have such a visceral reaction to the idea that their character might be queer, that they immediately shut it down. Because if the character is queer, the character isn't relatable, and if the character isn't relatable somehow, the show isn't enjoyable.

By relatable, I don't just mean, "They're straight, and I'm straight." I mean that they genuinely see queer people as completely other from them, and they just cannot grasp the existence of queer relationships as actual relationships and not just vague ideas. Yes, they know that queer relationships are real, but they genuinely can not look at a queer relationship or a queer person and actually have any level of deeper empathy and understanding. They see queer relationships are something completely different then cishet relationship, so the second that a queer relationship becomes the focus, they disengage.

This all relates back to people refusing to acknowledge any kind of queer relationship as canon unless physical affection is apparent.

Obviously, not all straight people do this, but it's an issue that's a lot more prominent than what most people think. As soon as you start looking for it, you see it everywhere. I'm not saying these people hate queer people or don't want queer representation, but this kind of homophobia is just so widely accepted and normalized that it's a knee-jerk reaction, and unfortunately, it's so normalized that people don't even realize they have these biases that they need to get rid of.

Sorry this reply is so long and late coming! I appreciate the ask and love hearing your opinions ❤️

[000-nostalgic-mutate-535]

So I was scrolling Pinterest and as usual, a pin of Klaus and Cami popped up and Battle of the Ships broke out in the comments and I got irritated watching everyone fight and typed this up. Only to be told there were toooo many characters and "500" was the "max". 🙄 So I figured I'd share here instead. Thank you. Good day sir.

Mikael destroyed his heart.

Esther closed it.

Tatia confused his heart.

Aurora put a knife through it.

Caroline opened his heart.

Hayley showed him how to use it.

Cami mended and brought his heart back to him.

Hope was his heart.

His parents destroyed it and he didn't have it in himself to fight it, so he let their words and thoughts. Deception and manipulation control and take it over. Aurora never intentionally stabbed Klaus in the heart but with the help of Elijah, she made him feel unlovable anyway. Tatia used his heart like a fish used to torment a cat, dangling it just out of reach. Without Caroline, he would have pushed passed and suppressed every ache his heart had to beat again. She brought it back to life. But he used it in the wrong ways. He wasn't taught and hadn't tried to learn for a thousand years but Hayley snuck passed him- against his will. Forced him to face it the good, the bad, the right, the wrong, the toll it takes but you need it. So he tried for her but it wasn't strong enough for himself and the two girls. Cami held him accountable and apologized when she went out of bounds. Even when he deserved it most. She taught him the control your heart has on others' hearts. How to mean what you say and not act on how it feels.

She gave him the final push to make that change. The strength he needed was not just tough love but nurturing and encouraging. Understanding with the ability to hold him accountable. Unlike the others, she showed him she'd stay while he changed instead of leaving and waiting for him to change on his own. He needed to know someone other than family would stand in his corner and help him back up even at his worst without doing it out of the ache of responsibility or out of fear of what would happen next if they didn't step in right then and there. Then Hope. His inner child. His child. His heart and world. Hope was his heart's rebirth. His old one was scarred and mendable but with her birth, he was given a new one. A new understanding of something he could never grip or imagine. But with that understanding came the understanding of pain and the fact he wouldn't have her be raised to see what he was but read it. He couldn't erase what he'd done, but he could make sure it was his past. Nothing more than an old dusty book on a shelf.

She had control over his heart no one else could fathom-- even herself. She didn't even need puppy eyes to get what she wanted the second it crossed her mind it'd be there. He didn't do a great job at what he wanted for her and changing his ways. But, he tried. He was willing to be held accountable, face the pain, admit his wrongdoings, and be fine with getting what he deserved in the end as long as those girls, his siblings, and his children went untouched. Everyone goes to a battle about which love interest is best. Which ship truly was his "epic love", but the truth is it was none of them on their own was Klaus' "epic love". But, all of them played a part in who he is not Caroline, Hayley, or Cami on their own but all as one whole. I ship them all for this reason and in 3 other lives each one would be endgame and more. But in the show his true love, the person he was in love with the most and changed him into a better man and he couldn't have gotten anywhere without them. It wasn't even romantic at all. It was the love he had for his daughter and whether you like Hope or not you can't deny it. Klaus' end of his story or his heart and love was always meant to end with the love of his daughter. His true love. And that hurts more than any platonic love interest because he was always meant to end up alone in that way. And, it hurts even more that the bond he and Hope had was never allowed to be anything more than 2 years and 3 weeks out of the 15 years he could've had with when he was alive because of the threats he and his family spent making for 1,000 years while they tried how to learn to love each other, themselves, the beauty of the world and people inside of it. It all could have been avoided with someone willing to put them in their place, teach them, give them the decency of some good old-fashioned understanding, and a sprinkle of therapy.

[xhanisai]

Top 5 couples

Oh wow, I have so, SO many OTPs that I would die for it's insane!!! I guess I can put together the top five that have driven me the most crazy~~

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

1 - Lovesquare (Miraculous Ladybug)

Obviously, this is the most predictable one from me hahaahah! These two have gotten me in a chokehold like no other pairings and that's because not only does this show allow us to see so many variations of them interacting with one another but also because of how they overturn many gendered tropes!

We have Adrien/Chat Noir so open about his love and affections for Marinette/Ladybug whilst she struggles to vocalise her feelings for him and often runs away. We have him openly emotional and quick to voice what is in his heart whilst she's often bottling up her own emotions. We have him often sacrificing himself to save her whilst the world can't be saved without her power. We have him haunting the narrative (as Chat Blanc), we have her saving him like a knight as civilians and just more and more and more.

I can write a 100K word essay about why I love these two and it wouldn't even scratch the tip of the iceberg. These two are made for each other.

2 - Shadow x Maria (Sonic The Hedgehog)

Probably one of the first few younger childhood OTPs that still have me going astronomically insane for them. It's no secret that I'm obsessed with tragic pairings and this one ticks all my boxes. As we've seen from the recent animation shorts, Maria and Shadow were each other's whole worlds! She wanted to finally visit Earth with him by his side and he wanted to be able to cure her illness.

And then Shadow had to watch her be brutally killed before his very eyes? So he vowed to destroy humanity in her name? Only to remember the promise she begged for him to honour, choosing to save the world with Sonic instead like Maria wanted? I am not normal about them they deserve the moon, stars and universe! They loved each other!! They loved each other so much and Shadow was willing to kill everyone as vengeance!!! I love them so much~~~

3 - Soul x Maka (Soul Eater)

I like to call them the ladynoir before ladynoir was a thing hahaahh! Maka and Soul's partnership means EVERYTHING to me and the lengths that they would go for each other (especially the lengths Soul would go through) brings me so much joy!

Seeing how their relationship develops from being childish and slightly mean to each other to the unbreakable bond it is now is just so good! They're so unique! Imagine my shock when I first watched the anime and seeing how protective Soul was over Maka. "A boy being so protective over the girl in a shonen animanga? Without any of the weird tropes into play? WOW!!" Thirteen-year-old me was ENLIGHTENED for real.

4 - Gojo x Geto (Jujutsu Kaisen)

Another doomed, tragic relationship. Another bittersweet romance that literally causes major plotlines in the story and I can never have enough. These two are like the sun and the moon and whether you see their bond as romantic or platonic, there is no denying the impact that they have had on each other! I love them, I hate them and I wanted them to have the best life they could have ever possibly had!!!!

Fellas never break up in front of KFC otherwise it'll cause your own downfall in the future LMAO.

5 - Ichigo x Aoyama (Tokyo Mew Mew)

Most likely my first ever OTP even before I even knew what all these terms meant and will continue to stay in my heart forever. I was obsessed with these two and would draw them practically every single day. Imagine how shocked I was to find out how unpopular this ship was online when I finally had internet in the house 😭

Cute, clumsy, optimistic girl x big bad alien in disguise who chose her over destroying humanity??? What's not to love!? THIS BOY LOVED HER SO MUCH HE UNCONSCIOUSLY CREATED A WHOLE ASS NEW ALTER EGO JUST TO PROTECT HER AND CLAIMED THAT HE IS HERS!!!! INSANE THEY MAKE ME INSANE!!!!! I love Ichigo with all three of his personas! UGH!!!!

They could have been a doomed romance BUT LOVE WON AND THEY BOTH LIVED HAPPILY EVER AFTER!

I loved how their relationship played out in the manga, the OG anime and the reboot~ I need to draw these two again.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: Yona and Hak (Akatsuki no Yona), Sonic and Amy Rose (Sonic the Hedgehog), Yato and Hiyori (Noragami), Bishamon and Kazuma (Noragami), Maomao and Jinshi (The Apothecary Diaries), Tohru and Kyo (Fruits Basket), Chloe and Lila (Miraculous Ladybug), Kana and Akane (Oshii no Ko), Roy and Hawkeye (Fullmetal Alchemist), Akira and Ryo (Devilman), Kaneki and Touka (Tokyo Ghoul), Haruhi and Tamaki (Ouran Highschool Host Club) and probably so many more but I can't remember at the moment lol...

[trashlie]

I just reread ILY to catch up after not reading in two years and I cannot believe the post 200 chapters are even better than when ILY was in its heyday popularity-wise. I’m desperately trying to get all my friends to catch up again so I have someone to talk to about it, I read all the Reddit posts, and I’ve seen so many of your responses and it just tickles my brain in a certain way. I can’t believe it’s been 6 years and we are FINALLY getting some canon confirmation of romantic feeling between Shine Ae and Nol. I don’t know what to do with myself! I guess this has been a rambly ask, but, in your head, how do you imagine they end up at the point where there timeskip begins?

Oh man, I know that feeling of just trying soooo hard to get your friends to catch up lmao. Everyone has to get to it when they are in the right mood but when you are living with constant ILY Brainrot, it just feels like any time you have to wait is TOO LONG lmao (which is why I wind up howling on the reddit and over here lmao). So I TOTALLY get it! lmao sometimes you just have to find everything you can to read and consume it all and pretend it is enough (but it's NEVER enough). But also aahhhh thank you!!!! It makes me feel really happy that I stand out to people and that the things I never shut up about reach people who are receptive to it, hehehe!

But man YEAH!!!!! The story has definitely been nudging us about their feelings - what was 151 if not a very not platonic break up that really made it feel SO REAL. I keep thinking about this, how I can't remember when I started shipping it or when it went from casual to Oh I CARE but 151 was absolutely the episode that made me go "Holy shit are we GOING THERE?" and my god we were GOING there I cannot believe it! And there's so many simultaneous plot lines running right now and I want to eat them all up at once but we can only get so much per episode and AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Don't worry, I really love rambly messages lol but to try to answer your question, mMMMMMmmmmMMMMMMMmmm

I HONESTLY DON'T KNOW lol

At the time of 151 I thought there was a VERY REAL possibility that the core trio were all going to go their separate ways and that the catalyst for the timeskip story picking back up would be that they were all coming back into each others' lives, but SO MUCH has happened since then that has changed my feelings. Isn't it funny how, right, the post 200 episodes have been SO INCREDIBLE SO good, giving us SO MUCH good content and it has completely changed the state of the story from that time! Frankly, I thought if Nol and Shinae were ever going to realize feelings, it wasn't going to happen until after the timeskip so frankly? I have been completely blindsided lmao

My main thought lately is that there must be some kind of resolve, right? Because if we were going to go my previously thought route, that they will all go their separate ways and then come back into each other's lives and that would have been a trigger for Nol and Shinae to realize their feelings, we wouldn't have had all of this - Nol ultimately unable to stay away taking that step taking a chance with Shinae, the entirety of what has transpired in that hospital room, the way he doesn't shy away from or deny that there was something romantic going on (he could have SO EASILY said Dieter got the wrong impression if he wanted to deny the feelings right?), this revelation of how important they are to each other, Shinae's continued fight for him. So I think we WILL get some kind of closure here regarding that. We are RIGHT on the cusp of Shinae coming face to face with her feelings, I think. Nol is already there and it feels like Shinae is dancing around it.

Will she run away from her feelings? Will she get freaked out and suddenly shy, unsure how to face him? Would she be more forthright, determined as ever wanting to talk to him, to voice this, to feel out where they belong in each others' lives? I think whether or not she gets freaked out by her feelings, that it has to go that way - talking about it, admission. Clearly a relationship is not.... you know. The most possible right now lol. Dieter is hurt, Nol still has a girlfriend, AND he's off to jail, but I don't think admitting feelings means they have to jump into anything or even apply labels. I still think it's very likely Nol will leave the country for university, because frankly, I think he NEEDS to get away, but we still stand to see how that's going to play out following the first time skip.

But I think we will, at the very least, see them acknowledge their feelings, acknowledge where they stand in each others' lives. I firmly feel like if Nol didn't want to, if he was willing to walk away, he would have done so, and he would have downplayed why Dieter is so hurt. It would be so easy for him to keep playing his cupid friend role, to tell her that Dieter seems to have misinterpreted their dance, poor buddy, don't worry, I'll talk to him. But instead, he acknowledged what exists between them. And I think once Shinae understands her feelings, she will use them to fight even harder for him, to further insist why they can't throw any of this away, that they're too important to each other to give it up.

In which case, I like to hope that maybe this would be a big, first step for them towards any kind of future. Even if Nol is leaving, that doesn't mean that things stagnate. As one of those people who brings Nol comfort, who always sees him, I think Shinae would be the complete opposite of what he's had with Alyssa thus far - someone who actually reaches out, who checks in, who makes time, who keeps up with him. Idk! I'm still very.... you know, feeling things out because quimchee is SO good at blindsiding me, but right now I guess I hope that we will at the very least have Shinae and Nol acknowledge their feelings but more importantly understand the place they have in each others' lives, that way when we have our big time skip, it won't be like they're stranger reuniting with each other, there won't be this big scar between them from unresolved hurt.

More than anything I want to see Nol and Shinae operating as a team by the time we reach the start of our time skip. I want to see them as two equals who are united together against their shared enemy, who have each others' backs. I don't want to keep seeing Nol push people away because he thinks it will protect him, I want him to WORK WITH her and know that they are safer and stronger TOGETHER than isolated and manipulated the way they have been. That's what is so important about acknowledging their feelings - whether or not they start a relationship, it's more important that they (and by that I mean NOL lmao) acknowledge that they stand more risk if they aren't united. There's nothing he can do to change Yui's interest in Shinae, it's too late. So I want to see them have that conversation, the one Shinae started - that she deserves to get a say, that he can't just decide how their relationship goes because he's trying to protect her, that it has nothing to do with HIM and everything to do with HER. I want to see them acknowledge how much they mean to each other and how much they need each other, because neither of them REALLY knows how terrible Yui is.

So!

Do I think they'll get there? I'm not 100% sure BUT it's what I'm hoping we'll see and where we'll see them standing as that time skip begins! One thing I REALLY hope is that Nol WILL read the letters in the Bible, get a glimpse at what Rand and Nessa's relationship was like, remind him that Shinae doesn't deserve that, that he deserves better, too. I need him to see that pushing her away lets Yui win, leaves him stranded and isolated. Choose to let himself be loved for once, pls ;~;

[starry-blue-echoes]

Funny thing is, the only other jojo that ever cried after saving the world, a moment of supposed TRUIMPH, was Jonathan. For different reasons, sure, but it often strikes me how eerily similar he was to Johnny after a grueling life-or-death battle. They had both lost everything, happiness and so many family and friends had to die just to get here and it doens't feel good! What's the POINT if I couldn't save them all? Why did I grow so much and gain this power for now? It feels miniscule, like a footnote instead of my life turning around! If Dio had tried to negotiate something in exchange for being spared, tried to gain leverage, I feel it too, that Jonathan would've been just as suspectable to a moment of weakness like Johnny :(

EXACTLY

Steel Ball Run is one of the few parts where we actually get to see the emotional impact of the losses that happened once the bad guy was beaten. In previous Parts, with a lot of the deaths either the characters didn't have time to mourn because they were in the thick of it, or we just never got to see their reactions at all. This is a stark difference in Part 7 when we see Johnny grieve Gyro. His victory didn't feel like one because of who he had to give up to get here

And in the beginning, Johnny's entire motivation had been for himself. Getting his legs back, getting his life back, it had been his entire motivation and completely for himself, and while that isn't a bad thing there wasn't anyone else in his vision of the future

but then he met Gyro. Beyond learning spin, he got to know the man, and whether you ship these two or not you can't deny the bond they had. Be it romantically or platonically, these two loved each other and inch by inch they found a place in the other's life. They joked, they talked, they bonded, they became the best of friends and maybe even more

But then it was so cruelly ripped away, and Johnny comes to the realization that somewhere along the line his goal became less getting his legs back and more just...... being with Gyro. Supporting him and his goal, helping him win the race so he could save that boy. He still wanted his legs but..... that became 2nd. 3rd. 4th, maybe even the bottom of his list, because Johnny was about ready to give up EVERYTHING in order to bring Gyro back

[arcadefloorvibes]

I don't have a title that I do for this anymore so uhhh

Hiya this is the text post, I am about to give a full rundown on how my partner and I have started dating because

my blog my house

I haven't been able to talk about this in depth with anyone except my siblings who do not care for the amount I am about to type and

my partner follows me on tumblr so kinda can't without it being blantantly obvious its about them (hi)

So this is going to be fun for me because i get to talk about this and this is going to be fun for my partner who pretty much got the summary of this

Quick thing: Partner will be referred to as Partner due to the fact I'm pretty sure his name isn't on here but I assume I will be told after this and Partner goes by He/they so I will be swapping

And now the readmore :D this is like a week and a half of chaos with additional 8 or so weeks before so we're back at it again with the long relationship posts nothing has changed

So to start this all off, you're going to need a bit more context on the mess that was us getting together.

We met through our dnd group, so immediately we're nerds off the bat and then became closer friends after we found out we both catch the same train from the same stop to go to dnd

We're also both very physically affectionate, which did make it difficult to work out whether we liked each other platonically or not later, but we'd hug and talk for an hour each way on the train

My partner is also an affectionate drunk and so within the first week or so of playing dnd, there were sweet messages in the group chat.

Somewhere along the line, more personalised messages go into my dms and eventually my email because I just thought "yea that makes sense"

About two or three weeks into dnd, we both decide to meet up in the city and go shopping because he knew manga stores and I didnt.

The shopping trip was fun! We got manga, I showed them the underground bookstore, we got ice cream (that i paid for, this will become important later) and at this point we'd been out for about 4 hours.

I, normally go shopping with my 3 younger brothers and therefore use "We" a lot. This does not work when you are no longer with your siblings

So being the genius that I am the checkout conversation goes as usual

"Do you need a bag?" "Oh no thanks, we've got one" (gestures to Partner)

And the SECOND we are out of the store, they just go "she probably thinks we're together" and 'Im already internally screaming at my social blunder so i just say "Yea we seem to get that a lot"

Then on the bus home the conversation turns to "if you ever need a fake boyfriend let me know because I'd do a great job at that"

And so it becomes a running joke that when we're out together, we look like a couple, because we kinda did, the hugs, they'd hold my hands when they were cold (highly unromantically mind you) and then the looks we'd get kept the bit running

Then during other conversations throughout the 2 months we knew each other, we had literally said we don't know if these feelings are platonic or romantic because we weren't used to it, but then the other would neither confirm nor deny, there was also a pickup line bit he did for a while and also pointing out that "its like the universe wants us to be together" with the amount of coincidences

Then came the second Monday of August, Partner had just gotten SIGNIFICANTLY fucked up on drinks and was not doing great, i don't remember much of the day but i do remember being very worried so i wrote at like 12 am a really long email about how important they were to me, it took me about half hour to write it

And then i open discord, and there's a message from him at 12:03 that basically read

Hey, i love you but like yknow in a friend way (idk discuss with sober me)

...yknow. after i just sent a massive email about how much I love them.

So i figured we're going to talk about this at some point, so i should just think about it! Yknow! Imagine a universe where we're together!

And i did

And I really liked it

And alllllllllll the denial I'd had over that past few months just for a little bit disappeared

So i did not sleep well that night, understandably, and i wake up the next morning to read what was basically:

Haha drunk me is fun to read, no need to discuss lol

...once again. Not confirming or denying.

And I'm just like okay I'll go back to thinking about you platonically and it just didn't work it just straight up didn't work because it just felt like the same denial I'd had previously

It is Tuesday now, I have early morning classes, so i went to class, i overthought, i denied and i tried so hard to get myself to like another guy in my class that i thought was cute but all i could find was more reasons to like Partner

So i get home after having what is essentially a 17 hour day and I get on call with my friends and we're just doing the usual of watching Doctor Who while screaming at our 3d program and I don't remember a lot of how we got to the point we did but we had cameras on, I had mine on but turned off so I couldn't see myself.

This part is fun because apparently Partner doesn't remember this but!

It was just a small thing of looking at everyone and one of our friends points out that you could see me in Partner's monitor but just like in the corner because of how the camera was angled and i reacted with "Ack!" Which prompted:

Partner: Whats wrong with you being on screen?

Me: I dont like looking at myself

Partner: Why? Youre beautiful

Me: ...Thank you...

And so they just tilt the camera away so i can't see myself and good news, my camera cant pick up my blushing but im just kind of losing it a little

I dont use "beautiful" for myself, its not a word that I think applies to me. Theres "cool" and "handsome" and "cute" and occasionally "pretty" but I've never liked when I was called beautiful growing up

And in that small moment, i really really liked the word, i still like hearing the word from them honestly, still don't think it really applies but sometimes i see it

At the time, this was NOT HELPING, especially paired with the coincidence of that day's wordle being "Lover" i was maybe going insane

Wednesday the ASMR bit starts.

Me and the asmr bit had a complicated relationship, on one hand its very nice, on the other hand i was trying to deny and this was also NOT HELPING. The asmr was basically compliments and the occasional ara ara

Thursday i make a playlist to try and focus on literally anything and i write down all my feelings out of hope that on the train the next day i would be fine

I get my hugs on the train, i get my random headscritches, we go shopping, i buy us cream puffs, they mention this is like a date, i dont confirm or deny, there's a small moment on the tram with a hug and a "haha wouldn't it be funny if you did the anime thing of falling on me?", and then because we have time we go op shopping

I got to learn a lot more about Partner's fashion tastes (alt) and i get to talk about mine (punk) and I'm talking about how i want a suit jacket but none ever fit me and as i say that they pull out one that looks my size

And like the fucking genius that i am im like "okay hold these for a sec" and i give them my bags while i try on the jacket

"I'm doing the boyfriend hold thing right now lol"

And I looked at them and just for a second I considered confirming and then i didnt and just did a neutral "yea my bad..."

And then I said "we" at the register again and I did acknowledge that to which the response was "At this point, it's probably easier if we just started dating, there's so many signs the universe keeps giving"

My response was "yea..." but in a way that didn't confirm or deny

Friday was my birthday, my body decided to just keep filling with adrenaline every time I thought about them, I had a few shots of vodka and accidentally told my siblings what happened

Saturday and Sunday I kept thinking about it at work and overthinking and rethinking

Monday I was on call talking the whole time, the asmr bit continues, the feelings don't go away, a conversation doesn't happen, its like everything is the same as always. There's talk of black lipstick and eyeshadow, the nerves get stronger

Tuesday was when I thought maybe they actually liked me back, there were "I love you"s, I was kind of flirting back maybe idk, and I decided that these feelings weren't going to go away and I should at least ask to work out if this is platonic or romantic or otherwise I will go insane

Wednesday I'm just thinking about what to say and nothing is working because even writing this now i still cant predict anything they say so i made up about 20 or so different ways of asking, the black lipstick couldn't be found and so i was a little more safe

Thursday. Thursday was planned to meet up early since their bus arrives earlier than i do so i walk up to the train station, playlist on loop, rehearsing and rehearsing and i get there to watch them arrive on the bus.

I like that image in my head, the fact that we both saw each other and waved, the massive smiles and oh my god the eyeshadow was giving me a heartattack. I have like 4 selfies of the eyeshadow now and it still gets me

We talk like always, I'm trying not to stare, I'm trying to form the words but every time i think I've got them the silence stops. We get on the train, the hug occurs and the week before I'd initiated a handhold so i was just there talking and thinking and terrified of fucking this up but it would've been worse if i left it.

4 stops until we get off and a silence stays long enough for me to at least try

Me: Okay so I told myself i was going to say something because otherwise it would get worse and this is really embarrassing but I'm going to try Partner: Okay...? A sigh and a breath Me: so you remember the message you sent on Monday? Partner: oh... yeah i do... Me: well i figured... we should talk about that...

And i explain a much shorter rendition of that Monday and veryyyy slowly his ears go red and it starts to spread:

Me: so like I'm fine with either, i just need to know what we're doing Partner: I wish i could give you an answer but I don't know either

That was not in the script so we just kind of sat and thought, doing the kind of shocked laugh thing and I'm just observing reactions while trying to think of what to say, I'm watching them fight their own denial in real-time

So i just said "I'm going to explain my past week and a half and if see if that helps"

And i explain pretty much all of that above and extra things, giving them a bit of time to process after each thing, noticing the denial again and kept going because all I could think was if I was going to get an answer I wanted one where we were being honest.

After explaining all that, and telling him to stop apologising and me apologising for dropping this all at once since they'd gone totally red and were shaking a bit, I let the silence sit for a while, 2 stops to go, before i said "Fuck it, I'm going to hold your hand properly and you can tell me how that goes"

And we both really liked it, and we held hands the rest of the trip and i initiated more hand holding as we walked around the train station. I then had to go to class but we planned to take the train home together, normally we didn't do that

So we got donuts and held hands again, I got the asmr bit irl so I did lose a lot of the control I'd had earlier in the day as now I was the red one

And that's it! that's how we started dating!

As of publishing this, our first date and week together is tomorrow and it's been incredible so far and they already know how much they mean to me because I keep saying it and I'm going to talk as much about my partner as possible because why not and also I know for an absolute fact they'll read this so

I love you, you're amazing, we're so bad at this, I hope we can keep trying until we get it right and I will keep writing until I can't write anymore

And that concludes the post! ah! I have a partner! the progress of the past few years is insane and I'm learning so much about myself while I'm at uni and if I've grown this much in one trimester I'm so excited to see what the next 3 years bring

And final note: this post is 2.4k words :D

[udaberriwrites]

Five Things I Never Get Tired of Writing...

I saw @sliebman10 's open tag and this is a great idea for a tag, so let's dive in!

With no pressure, I'm tagging @mikaharuka, @alpaca-clouds, @axolotlsupremacyowo, @0nelittlebirdtoldme, and @tsunderewatermelon!

Rules: list five things you never get tired of writing. it can be tropes, themes, characters, phrases, whatever brings you joy.

1) Friendship: sure, romance is nice, but I have a special fondness for strong platonic relationships, and there are so many flavors of it! From initially antagonistic to instant connection, from the initial hesitation to a long established connection, to me there's something special about characters who understand and will support each other without it needing to be a traditional sort of love :D

2) (Harmlessly) Petty characters: On that note, I never tire of writing characters who are comfortable enough in themselves and their relationship with others to be openly childish and petty. For example O'Brien and Garak, in DS9, who never fail to bicker whenever I plot a scene where they are in the same room xD

3) Fluff: Yes, @mikaharuka, you can laugh xD But I I can't deny that I find fluff very appealing. As fun as it is to torture characters sometimes, there's also something rewarding in letting them cuddle under a blanket of feels and warm chocolate and knowing that for the moment nothing is going to go wrong :)

4) Supportive romantic partners: When it comes to romance, my favourites are character who get where the other is coming from and do their best to help. It isn't the most conductive to conflict, but for a one-shot it works! :P

5) Character Study/Introspection: What makes a character tick? Why do they react as they do to a situation? Whether it's correct or not, it's fun to try and delve into a particular character's mindset, especially if the story covers a chunk of canon!