#which is more like the shows i tend to go to

[weepingtalecowboy]

The answer to legend’s eye color would be ‘yes’ (four conspiracy theorized too much and completely missed the obvious answer)

I heard the argument about legend's eye color

But that gave me a hilarious idea

Fanfic prompt :

Legend's eye color changes depending on magic circumstances

It is red if there is prominent dark magic actually surrounding him (lorule , dark world , twilight realm , etc)

It is blue when he is in an area with a lot of light magic because it is strong enough to nullify or repress the effects of dark magic (sacred realm, fairy fountain near a light guardian)

And violet when both magic sources are around but prone to changing depending on how much of what magic is around ( Hyrule kingdom by default)

And green when he is near a water source or actually wet because the mermaid curse is pretty green looking in the oracle game and even more prone to changing

And depending upon who he is close to it also gets influenced (like with Hyrule he has blue eyes or violet, with twilight because of the twilight shard red eyes or violet , with sky blue eyes again, with warriors, time and wind violet eyes and if it is raining he has green eyes)

So image what sort of reaction four would have if he sees legend's eye colors rotate that way (green, red , violet and blue)

He freaked the hell out because legend mentioned that he retrieved the four sword once

And he very inconspicuously (it was not inconspicuous no matter how much Vio is in denial about it) tries to conspiracy theorist through it

But it is barely noticeable that they stay consistent because how the chain is close together anyway if you don’t search for it

Like he will have violet eyes then twilight would run up and they go red and sky and hyrule join as well so now they are blue and then he takes a sip of water and they go green then twilight moves away a bit and they go back to violet or blue

And if they fight monsters they are usually red or violet

This made four think that legend's colors are different from his in temperament

Legend's red obviously seems more like a fighter than four's (that kinda annoyed blue that his color rarely shows up in battle but when Hyrule and legend are being cuddly guess what , blue is there )

Legend's violet is way to social in comparison to four's (and much more snarky as well but that is just because he always has violet eyes when he and warriors interact , hyrule and sky tend to leave them to their teasing)

And legend's green seems to badly be around for anything but a meal or a break (soup is their only kind off meals so obviously his eyes turn green over water heavy stuff and also them messing around in rivers)

And how fast legend seem to change from one to another color is really worrying to four because that must be exhausting and confusing to pass around control this often without stopping once for an actual duration of time

And he tries to teach legend how to use the four sword but he having heavy trauma keeps pushing away lessons (I still decades later never recovered from the fight against the dark colors it is genuinely harder to beat then ganon )

So four tries to even harder

(While completely missing the fact that legend in fact cannot use the four sword (as it is pretty much useless in link to the past) nor has he ever used it)

Four tries so aggressively to bond with his probably successor that it makes twilight’s desperate attempts to connect with time look like nothing

He wants to fix this mess of a four sword user as soon as he can but legend actually has to trust him with the four sword stuff (which legend obviously wants to take to his grave for entirely different reasons because damn he killed the little guy and four seems to know that and it makes him feel horrible that four actually is such a nice person , why must he be so insistent on knowing what happened to the four sword)

So they dance around each other so aggressively that even wild and twilight find it impossible (a real pot , kettle situation they are totally not Better)

[exocynraku]

I like to say that I absolutely adore how you design your feline characters and make them very unique. You’re my favorite warrior cat artist because of it! How do you go about designing your characters?

halloo... thank you! this ones a bit harder for me to explain, but i'll try! i'm going to specifically talk about cats, but these could be used for other types of characters, mostly furries. note: um, guess who talks too much! i had to split this post into four. so check the reblogs! 1. placing markings with PURPOSE (this is the big one!!!) it was only recently i finally managed to find a way to word this. to create a good design, you need to understand how to place markings with purpose. to me, there are two components to this: spacing/size and body wrapping. body wrapping first. this is how the markings on a cat's pelt wrap and contort around their body. bodies are not flat surfaces, they have plenty of curves, ridges, etc, which will alter the shape of markings placed on top of them. the markings on your character both needs to contort to the shape of the body part AND how it would look from the viewer's perspective. here's some examples;

in the first picture, you can see how i wrap the markings around the cylindrical shape of the leg. in the second picture, you can see both that i've wrapped the markings around the shape of the arm and belly, but likely also that the marking i've specifically highlighted on the arm is being smushed because of the bending of the arm. this leads to a better design, as when you look at it, i feels more natural than if you were to plaster markings over the cat in a straight line. here's a real-life example.

you can see how the markings curve around the body, though i find it's sometimes less pronounced as i would portray it in art. but it's there. sizing and spacing are second. these are less realistic aspects, as cat markings tend to be very random, however it art it leads to a cleaner, more readable & desirable design. sizing and spacing also have a lot to do with consistency. it's also... a little hard to show. i don't find myself messing it up in old pieces, and the designs i do know of which do this are... from strangers. who i would feel bad throwing under the bus for having designs i don't like LMFAO. but i can do my best to describe them. the size of your markings should stay relatively consistent throughout your design. what i mean by this is if you have large, thick stripes along your whole character's body, i wouldn't recommended adding one random thin, pinstripe-y stripe on your characters body. if you want to give them thin and thick stripes, then you need to have BOTH consistently throughout the body. or, give it a balance. thick stripes on the body, neck and tail, and thinner stripes on the face and legs, for example. very, very small markings are GOING to go unseen by you or others drawing the design, i absolutely guarantee it. similarly, the spacing of your markings should stay relatively consistent. for me this mostly occurs in tabby cats. if i draw, for example, the character's body stripes a certain distance apart, i'm not going to suddenly change that distance on another part of their body, such as their legs. the main issues i find with sizing and spacing is when people have issues with BOTH of them at the same time. random markings everywhere with all sorts of sizes and shapes and spacing will make your design cluttered, unreadable and unappealing. even on characters you'd think would be exceptions to this, such as randomly spotted characters/tortoiseshells, i still think about. how can i place these spots or patches in a way that will properly define the markings, making it easy to understand? how can i place spots to not make them too cluttered in certain area? etc. it's definitely a bit hard to explain, especially without visuals, but i tried lol (SOBS) (see reblogs for CONT.)

[dadsbongos]

dirty 30... or 40.

1.9 k words / warnings - (first time) anal, age gap/age diff kink, jimmy's your asshole ex, kinda rushed but like stfu

summary - it's curly's birthday! and a surprise guest (jimmy's pretty ex) gives him a surprise present!

“My dad died at forty, man,” the redhead in front of him mumbles. Plump lips stained red with wine and hair mussed in all the places she’s been wringing her fingers through it. Her eyes are a little drifty, empty behind the color and caked mascara, “But you’re in way better shape. So, you’re fine… I think. You don’t have cancer, right?”

Curly clears his throat, shakes his head to both refuse the accusation and try spotting any of his actual friends, “I don’t think I do.”

Jimmy is across the room, standing in the open patio door with his back to the room. An unlit cigarette bit between his molars and a black lighter in the hand he’s using to point out the glass frame. His cheeks are red, surely not from the single beer he’s had, and his face is pinched toward a scowl. He’s getting in a fight.

Perfect.

“Ah,” Curly beams down at the woman, a friend’s friend’s sister he thinks. Fresh out of a divorce. Pretty. One year older than him. Lovely, drunk, off putting, “My friend needs me. I’ll see you around, yeah?”

Usually the last two are more his type, but tonight just isn’t his.

She nods and waves him off with the sweetest little, “happy birthday!” he’s heard all night.

Easily cutting across his tiled kitchen through the spread of his friends and family, Curly flocks where everyone else is already staring: troublemaker Jimmy raising his voice at an unseen woman in the backyard. Music filters in through the open doorway, not nearly loud enough to cover the murmuring of people wondering why the man was even invited. Which Curly supposes is fair -he tends to avoid bringing Jimmy to his formal birthday gatherings because everyone showing up is either from work or related to him.

But for some reason, the morning after Curly’s real birthday party with his friends Jimmy insisted upon making an appearance. Said he’d smoke the whole way through, but he’d stick it out.

Right as he’s brushing back stressed blonde waves and gearing up to drone out the classic hey what’s going on? he sees exactly what’s going on. From over Jimmy’s shoulder, he gets a view of the entire grassy block making up his backyard. Cousins and their older kids clog towards the pool, a few aunts lingering by his orange trees, but all the way to the right is his target. All the way to the right, at the very side of his house is a cracking wood gate door hung on rusty, squeaky hinges.

A hand is on that door, it trails around the edge and around to slide its metal bar lock into place before joining the other hand in cradling a yellow polka dot box. A purple glitter ribbon crinkles into the bust of your shirt, shiny flecks decorating your cleavage.

Once his eyes tread up your neck, he spots the beaten pout slithered over your face. Gaze honed on Jimmy -- which redirects his own attention toward Jimmy, the entire reason he’d toddled over this way.

“Get your hooker ass the fuck outta here!” Jimmy doesn’t give you the benefit of anyone’s doubt, either, he fishes you directly out of the crowd with the tip of his lighter. Silver glinting beneath the warm sun, “Bitch, if you- !”

“Don’t pretend we were strangers,” Curly steps past Jimmy, slightly jostling the man with his broader shoulders. Thick stature leaking out at his friend’s side and pouring onto the cement, he waves you over, “It’s been awhile! Glad you could find the place alright.”

Then Jimmy stabs an elbow into Curly’s side, hissing, “You fuckin’ invite this cunt?”

“No,” dismissively, Curly shrugs while watching you slink over. Heels stapling lime green astroturf into the ground as you do, “But what’s the hurt?”

“Bitch,” Jimmy scoffs, reaching behind the both of them to slam the glass door shut. Staunchly avoiding eye contact with you by craning his neck downward, cigarette drooping between his front teeth while he fiddles to light it.

“Good to see you again, Curly,” you all but purr, pushing the box in hand beneath your chest to give him a biiiig birthday hug, “I’m glad Jimmy hasn’t killed you yet.”

“Shoulda fried your ass,” is all the man says.

Curly laughs when he really shouldn’t and ticks his head towards the door, “Want to come inside?”

“How nice,” it’s clear you’re saying that loud enough for Jimmy to hear, “Of course, I do.”

To ease his friend even a little, Curly lingers at the glass door and quietly offers, “Jim’ wanna come inside?”

Jimmy shakes his head stiffly, sucking almost half the life from his cigarette in one breath.

“It’s been awhile, how��ve you been?” he guides you into the kitchen and pops the fridge. Snaking a hand deep into the back for one of those fruity seltzers he knows you drink (Jimmy hates them all and made you chug his entire beer in apology for buying them one night, Curly thinks that’s why he remembers this about you).

Your face, still round with unlived life and sweetness, brightens seeing the crisp white can in Curly’s hand, exchanging gift for gift as you answer, “Pretty good… Nothing crazy. How about you? What’s old age feel like?”

“Old age,” Curly rolls his eyes, twiddling the showy bow you tied, “Jimmy’s older than me, you know?”

“What do you think I called him?”

“‘Babe.’” jimmy hates pet names unless he’s the one giving them.

“You’re so cute,” you slide into his side, expertly dragging one tassel of ribbon to undo the knot. Skin flush against his, your warmth mingling until he can’t surely state where personal space ends and begins, “I meant that. Differently.”

Once the bow is done away, you lift the top of the box to expose a single piece of paper scrawled over with a pink glitter pen and heart stickers.

“I thought it’d be funnier this way, but uhh, happy birthday!” you have to double check Jimmy’s still outside before kissing Curly’s stubbled cheek. A dewy stain left behind, smelling of pure sugar, “You said you liked your ladies direct, right?”

‘ONE FREE COUPON FOR: BIRTHDAY SEX!’

Curly feels winded. Grasp on the box tightening. He blinks down at the scraplet before locking onto you.

Soft and sweet, despite it all. A reprieve from his own bullshit as much as an untouchable boundary. Maybe even more forbidden, actually.

Con: Jimmy had to buy your drinks for you when you two first got together, and that was only a couple years ago.

Con: You’re strangers outside of Jimmy.

Con: You’re Jimmy’s fucking ex.

Con: You’re almost half his age.

Con: You’re Jimmy’s ex.

Con: half his age

Con: jim’s ex

Con: age

Con: ex

pro: you’re absolutely throwing yourself at him.

“You think that’s a good idea?” Curly can’t really look you in the eye so he focuses on the patch of skin between your brow bones. Weirdly, that too is pretty to him.

“Why wouldn’t it be?” you shrug, so disconcerted with taboos and trivialities just like his cousins’ kids, “We’re both single, right? Not like anybody’s getting their feelings hurt.”

“Jim’ would- !”

“Jim’ would kill me if I toasted you,” you’re not sure why they’re friends but you don’t have the energy to ask, especially if it means it’s about to lead you to the holy grail of men, “Forget about him for a second, it’s your birthday.”

Sexual liberty, anti-puritanism, pleasure principle and all that bullshit -- kids these days are all hopped on hormones and fight those causes daily just for the right to fuck as they please (jesus he should stop saying ‘kid’). Sometimes social impurities are set in place for a reason.

But this is your choice, isn’t it?

Besides, you dated Jimmy. How much worse could Curly be for you?

“Break up was pretty ugly,” Curly hisses like this hurts him, and for all you know it probably does. His knuckles are whitening as he holds the (practically empty) box, “He wouldn’t even tell me about it.”

“Do you actually give a shit? Or do you just want me to go home?” you take the box away and make to turn out the door.

Not even a second passes before Curly scrambles after you, after the box. One hand on the corner and one hand on your shoulder as he blushes and pants, “Well- I- well- you know?”

“No clue, Grant.”

You beam up at him, all teeth glowing beneath rosy lips.

“You’re terrible,” Curly steers you towards the stairs, shaking his head the entire time, “You’ll get me killed.”

“Relax, it’s your birthday -you can do whatever you want!”

Like having sex right upstairs from the party composed of all your family and work friends.

“How’re you doing…? Hah -shit- can I move?”

“Uhhh… go slow, please?” you bat lashes up at him, one cheek smushed against the pillow and voice so high and pathetic and pleading.

Curly nods, a loose coil of flaxen hair bouncing in front of his forehead, “Yeah, yeah, of course- of course,” he’s mumbling to himself, mostly, every working braincell dizzying out at the tightness of your ass around him. He slides out one squelching, lubed centimeter before sliding back in, “Don’t wanna hurt you, baby.”

You squeal between pinched teeth, brows knitting up at Curly, “Careful!”

Sighing through his nose, Curly has to swallow down that entitled little ‘it’s my fucking birthday’ he wants to spit on your flaming cheek. Instead he just forces a ditzy, gold-hearted chuckle, “I didn’t believe you at first… about not letting Jimmy fuck you in the ass.”

Pouting, you reach up and claw the back of his neck to yank Curly’s lips against yours, “Don’t bring him up now!”

“But you really are tight,” he grunts, bruising your thigh in his hand -- taking out the urge to restlessly hump your ass in that vicious grip. The other hand slides between your molten thighs until he can swirl leisurely circles into your swollen clit.

A ragged mewl slithers through your throat right into Curly’s mouth as he repeats the tedious little pushes and pulls before he can glide smoothly into your ass. Pitchy whines wheeze after, hardly muffled by the man’s rosy lips. Shiny with mingling spit and swears. When his cock can finally urge past that cinching ring of muscle and you gasp, Curly can only quietly chuckle and nose at your cheek,

“What’s that, baby? What’re you whimpering ‘bout, huh?”

Letting your head hang back, nearly thunking against his darkwood headboard, you shudder and blubber out between ‘ah, huh, mm, uh’s, “So- full- Grant… so fuckin’ big…”

Some sick urge crawls over him before he can choke it down, "Bigger than him?"

You squeal, "Fuck, yes!"

Surging forward, Curly digs pearly canines into your exposed throat -- unsuccessfully attempting to mute his own moans into your skin. Only retreating far back enough to whisper into your hot ear, “Yeah? You like it?” your fucked out needy nod isn’t enough, he needs: “Say it, baby, tell me how much you love me in your ass.”

Fuck the party downstairs, if the music isn't loud enough they can just leave. And Jimmy could croak for throwing away a diamond slut like you.

“I love it!” you warble, breathe sharp, “So good, Grant- thank you!”

“‘Thank you,’” he laughs, sucking each bite in your neck until he’s sure it’ll be stained there tomorrow morning. Fingers dipping into your cunt as syrupy slick gushes out, middle and ring finger crooking toward the pouch of your stomach while his thumb continues to ply your bundle of nerves, “Cum for me, honey, c’mon, it’s my birthday.”

If he wasn’t digging you out with his cock then maybe you’d be able to cackle at how pathetically he whines.

And the best present of all is Jimmy’s controversially young ex letting him fuck her pretty little ass.

[hobbitkiller]

It’s not a perspective. Cait and Vi didn’t have different goals in that scene. Also, not every scene that sets up joining forces has to literally spell out that’s the intent of the scene. I honestly don’t get your insistence that everything be spelled out for you like you’re a child.

I’m also clearly going to have to explain foreshadowing to you. Foreshadowing is a literary and story telling device that is used to plant an idea in the reader’s/viewer’s mind for later. Introducing the idea that Piltover and Zaun had joined forces before was placing that idea in the viewer’s head.

You are very much reaching with your analysis of Ambessa just being there to raise tensions. You seem to not grasp how stories develop. In interesting, multifaceted stories like Arcane characters don’t show up with a moist ache to twirl indicating evil intent. That doesn’t mean it’s bad storytelling for them to become the major villain. That’s good storytelling, actually. That said, someone familiar with tropes and story structure could easily predict that she was going to become the new big problem.

Again, you keep acting like every bit of setup had to be super explicit in spelling out the two sides were going to fight together and that, if it didn’t it means that wasn’t the plan. That’s not how writing works. You’re supposed to be able to put all of the pieces together.

That said, they pretty explicitly showed where the use of hextech could lead without nuance in the second episode, so acting like that wasn’t set up as a major threat frankly feels intellectually dishonest. Sure, at the time we maybe thought Heimerdinger was being an alarmist, but everything that happened with hextech from that point forward drove the plot more toward that point he warned about. Even when they spell things out for you as clearly as they can, you don’t want to see it.

As for agency, season two was very much the “find out” part of “fuck around.” What happened with Viktor was a result of his dangerous experiments with hextech. If he hadn’t done that, Jayce wouldn’t have been able to use the hex core to heal him. Him and Jayce going their separate ways was the consequence of Jayce weaponizing hextech. The anomaly was the consequence of Piltover overusing hextech. Ambessa’s ability to take over was the consequence of Jinx blowing up the council. Season two was where characters had to deal with the consequences of the choices they made in season one.

None of these consequences were forced. Yes, they had big fantasy/Sci Fi fallout, but that’s because the show is Sci Fi/fantasy. That tends to be what happens in the genre. You could easily replace the implications and fallout of hextech with nuclear power or similar technical advancements that created massive problems in the real world, and an imperial power like the US, or Noxus in the show, taking advantage of social and political division in a smaller country to try to control its land and resources is a common refrain throughout history.

You’re right, the arcane isn’t the main focus. The main focus also isn’t the political strife. Both are devices used to tell the story of the characters. The show is not about Piltover versus Zaun. The show is about how that conflict has shaped the characters. Feel free to read my other posts on the subject.

Not sure wha t your Warwick point is. Yes, he is there to retraumatize Vi in the end. Yes, his agency is taken away. That would be the tragedy right there.

As for Mel continuing the cycle, that’s up for interpretation, I guess. I think the cycle she’s specifically breaking there is the one where “Medarda’s only take.” She ended the cycle where her family raises itself up by taking from others.

Your argument against the acceleration rune doesn’t make sense because the device that could only be made with it was Ekko’s which was, in fact, the difference. Pointing out how everything else is the same actually hurts your argument there.

Also, a big lipped alligator moment is something that comes completely out of nowhere and serves no purpose. Neither of those describe Viktor and Jayce. Do they have to explain the exact mechanics of what happened? Would stopping to go into some technobabble have made the show better? Because we always pay close attention to characters doing that in media right? We’re really in it for the made up technobabble.

Your desire for the show to end in a civil war makes it neither better writing nor what the show initially intended. You like to reference what actually happened in the Jayce Silco scene to try to say it wasn’t foreshadowing (again, because I can only assume you don’t know what foreshadowing is)? What did Jayce say would happen if they actually went to war with each other? Zaun would have been crushed. Yes, it would have been a blood bath on both sides, but a Piltover army with hextech and the Noxians would have either won or would have claimed victory and been dealing with insurgent attacks from Zaun for the foreseeable future.

There would be no reconciliation at all unless the show wanted to really abandon one of the ways it was most grounded, which is how violence and vengeance feed each other. There’s a reason why, after most revolutions and wars throughout history, the country is drawn into another war pretty quickly after. One conflict breeds another.

There’s a reason why regions like the Middle East are seemingly caught in endless cycles of violence—because people don’t generally forgive losing a war easily, because wars are costly in lives and resources, and because generational traumas and wrongs often come back to haunt us. Even if the war ended with a miraculous agreement on both sides to lay down arms, there will be people who lost family who will still want justice—to feel that their loved one’s death meant something.

If, however, people’s loved ones died fighting together, that’s a powerful reason to try to make a positive change. Because, again, people want the sacrifice to mean something. It supposedly partly why Britain and other European countries established services like the NHS after WWII. After living through the Blitz and the destruction, it made them want to create a better future.

You keep complaining that the show largely drops the class conflict story after episode four, and that would be a problem if that was what the show was about. However, given the show is about the characters and episodes five and six are mostly about bringing Jinx and Vi and Vi and Caitlyn back together, it made sense to narrow the focus back down to that family unit. The conflict is still there in the background—it’s in the tragedy of Vander, Silco, and Felicia. It’s in the fact that Noxus and Piltover feel entitled to take Vanwick, but it’s not the focus.

I’m honestly not a huge fan of episode seven, because I’m not a huge fan of TimeBomb, but that was an interesting take on what else could have helped bridge the divide between Piltover and Zaun—the tragic loss of a child and the loss of the technology that further drove Piltover and Zaun. The episode is about the class conflict in the sense that it introduces a world mostly without it, showing that, just like it’s possible to have “good” versions of Jinx/Powder, it’s also possible to have a works where Piltover and Zaun have peace. That was the lesson Ekko took away from his AU adventure, to not give up on a better world—that things aren’t “too far gone.”

I also find your point about Jayce not talking to Viktor weird…you do get that he wasn’t really in his right mind there, right? We also can’t say for sure what would have happened if he hadn’t shot him. Maybe the fallout would have been worse. Maybe Viktor would have made more followers so that there were even more dolls when it came to a head. But, again, Jayce wasn’t in the mental state to have a rational discussion right then.

The conflict does come back in the last two episodes because it is somewhat a question of whether or not Zaun will help—which would be Piltover suffering the consequences of its actions. Now, you’re right, arguably the question would be what choice did they have in the end, but that’s again honestly true to many real life conflicts. You’re stuck working with the lesser of two evils.

As I said, what would have been completely unrealistic would have been if everyone hugged and kissed and had a huge barbecue together with fireworks after the Noxians left. We know from history that old prejudices often return once the battle is over—take how Black soldiers were treated in the US after…I was going to say WWII, but really every American war.

I also honestly can’t help other people deciding Sevika being on the council is supposed to be a resolution instead of a first step. It was clearly not framed as a resolution with everyone sharing mistrusting looks and her looking, frankly, uncomfortable. If people decide to be obtuse and not read the overt visual language of the show, that’s a them problem.

And guess what? The show isn’t about class conflict. Yes, it’s an essential element, a major theme, and vital context. It is not what the show is about. Just like unchecked scientific progress is a theme, but not what the show is about.

You bring up what Silco said about the cycle continuing. My point is not about how all violence will always and forever be no more; it’s about how these specific characters are breaking their cycles. Again, this show is about the characters first, which is why it makes sense that they didn’t solve class inequality in a year. It’s about these characters and their stories.

Really, though, much of this conversation has strayed from the original point, which is that this was the direction that was set up in the first season. You may not like it. You may have wanted it to go another way. But it was, in fact, set up. The memory Heimer has of the horrible fallout from Arcane is essentially what happened. They deliberately planted the seed (which, again, is the purpose of foreshadowing—not explicitly stating what’s going to happen next, that’s just exposition) that the thing that originally brought the cities together was a common enemy. They had this conversation one episode after Ambessa, a war monger from an imperialist nation, was introduced.

Even if the show did what you wanted and went with a civil war, there’s a very good chance it would have developed into Piltover and Zaun versus Noxus anyway. Cait/Jayce would be trying to stop the war on Piltover’s side, but Ambessa would refuse to give up the fight and leave with nothing. This would have caused Noxus to turn on Piltover, and then it would have been up to Zaun to either help or let them take each other out first and then fight the survivors. Maybe that would have been better. I personally would be asking, “Hey, what happened to the existential threat posed by hextech that was also being built up in the first season?” But maybe you’re fine with dropping the whole “arcane” bit of arcane.

“What happened to rebel Vi? Season 2 destroyed her character!”

“What happened to rebel Vi” is that Vander took her to the bridge where her parents died in his revolution and asked her what she was willing to lose. Then she meets Cait who is gentle and kind while still being tough and it makes her rethink how she sees topside. When Jinx tells her she changed too, that’s what she’s talking about.

I’m sorry if you thought Vi was going to be a topside-hating revolutionary in Season 2, but that’s clearly not where her character arc was going. Remember how she forced her way between Ekko and Cait? It seemed very straightforward that was the role her character was taking on.

I feel similar about people who act like the show was betraying its premise because it ended with reconciliation/Zaun and Piltover working together. Again, the fact that two of the most important relationships were between characters from both sides and that they made a point of talking about Zaun and Piltover first coming together against a common enemy was a pretty clear indicator that was the plan.

Now, I get being annoyed that that was what they chose to do. You don’t have to love the creative decisions of media, just like media doesn’t have to compromise its creative direction to satisfy you. But not liking that they went that direction is not the same as the show having bad writing or engaging in character assassination.

Everything Vi did in season 2 was very much in character with how she changed and who she became throughout Season 1. Hell, she used enforcers and Hextech to raid Shimmer facilities before Commander Kiramman ever threw on a beret. So, yes, actually wearing the uniform was a huge and complicated decision that she was definitely not happy about, but it also fell in line with what she had been doing.

There’s meat for another post at some point about the three different Zaun/enforcer partnerships we see in the show: Vander/Greyson, Silco/Marcus, and Cait/Vi; but I’m not going to go into that now.

TLDR: “Rebel Vi” who wants to fight all of topside hasn’t existed since the end of the second episode of the show.

Editing to add that Vi doesn’t see attacking Chem Barons as attacking Zaun; she’s taking down the people who are destroying Zaun.

[shinjisdone]

𝑇𝜎 𝑆𝜎𝑓𝜏𝜀𝜋 𝛼 𝑊𝛼𝑟𝑟𝜄𝜎��’𝑠 𝐻𝜀𝛼𝑟𝜏 (Vinland Saga; Thorfinn - 𝑺𝒍𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝑨𝒓𝒄, 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒕 4)

In which you have joined Askeladd’s band…and grow closer to the Son of Thors - though as your future seemed promising, his thirst for revenge devastated all that you had left.

[Headcanons of how it would be like to meet Thorfinn again after he shattered your heart (based on season 2; both platonic and romantic)

Sᴇᴀsᴏɴ ₁ ﹙Wᴀʀ Aʀᴄ﹚ is here

Part 1: - (Thorfinn as a slave and his struggles) Part 2: - (Thorfinn trying to accept your existence as a slave)

Part 3: - (Thorfinn finds a reason to live, you finally see him)

Tag list:

@luopenis , @jinsecho , @mitsureigen , @theknightssecrets , @lana-del-stan , @theghostofanficpresent , @night-shadowblood-writes2

[Mentions of murder, death, war, slave trade, harrasment against women and whatever awful things happened in the viking era. Slavery will be a main subject throughout the entire arc. Mostly gender-neutral examples but female-leaning ones are there, too.]

[TW: This part will specifically mention: depressed tension, attempted murder, suicidal thoughts, lots of talking, lotsa dialoge, short but detailed description of strangulation, finding reasons to still keep living including being begged to]

Mighty River, Release My Soul...

Your arms were as warm as they were on that winter day.

You scolded him back then too, though he reckoned it was far more vicious than your prattling now.

The way you looked at him, were so focused on tending him even if it was for a mere moment, was like breathing in fresh, icey cold air that he has been deprived from for weeks. It coursed through him and stung each limb. It only found an end after Pater cleared his throat.

Immediately you let go of Thorfinn, spinning to the man with a confused noise and a gasp. He smiled. "Thorfinn is fine now, you don't need to worry. These two boys just need to take the rest of the day off. Now that you are willing to talk...I believe we'd best have a conversation. Not with Master Ketil, do not worry."

Still, that flustered panic did not leave your face as you meekly nodded and followed him. Pater waved Thorfinn and Einar one last goodbye before motioning you to follow with an easy gait. You looked back to Thorfinn before tailing after Pater.

Einar let go of his baited breath. "How..strange. They...you really know them, don't-" The brunette chocked on his breath as Thorfinn was disappearing into the dense forest. Work had to be done, injured or not. Perplexed and with a huff of irritation, he ran after him.

First he doesn't know how to show gratitude and say 'thank you' and now he is shrugging off - someone who was scared to death for him!

What the hell is this guy's problem?!

The way to the forest was easier than the last few weeks. The both of them were able to cut down quite a lot of trees, clearing the path, but the stumps remained, leaving the woods like a rugged wasteland of dead trees.

Einar didn't even noticed his stomps and the way his bruisened feet dug into the soil. Narrowed blue eyes watched Thorfinn swing down the axe again, again, again. Cut, cut and cut.

His movements were fluid as he observed him, as he wasn't threatened this day at all. As if he wasn't a second from throwing his life away at all.

But he dodged. He sprung out of the way and didn't seem to be aware to have tried to kill Snake. He seemed so...light and out of it. Like a drunken bird.

"Hey, Thorfinn." The blonde barely showed any sign of listening to him, continuing to cut. "Have you ever been to war?"

Thorfinn chopped once, "I have."

Einar's gaze darkened. He answered him clearly and with focus.

"Have you ever killed people?"

Again, he cut. The tree fell down swiftly. "I have."

"How many? A few? Five, ten?"

"Why do you want to know? Don't you hate war?"

His blue eyes snapped up as the blonde halted. If he stalled or wanted to hear his answer, he didn't know. He just knew that each and every day of being with him confused him more, made a tiny flame in him flick, made the gall in his throat come up.

"I'm asking because...if you went to war and killed, then how-"

Einar took a deep breath and swallowed the gall that threatened to spit out, "-How can that person be worried about you? Why do they want you to live if you killed?"

The axe hovered above his head before he slowly lowered it down - and having it fall with a thud to the ground. His dull eyes oversaw the mess he left. "I don't know...", "Why not? They seem to know you. Are they like you?"

"No." Thorfinn quickly and sharply answered. Though his next words fell flat and soft again, "They aren't a dog like me."

Not when you looked at him like that. Not when you were so heavily relieved by seeing him breathing and battered, like his father was back then.

...I Need To See The World...

Waged war since he was a child.

Ever since he was a wee lad, he said, but he couldn't remember the exact age. He is only about eighteen, so how long ago was it that he can't even remember? Could he even recall it?

It sounded...ridicilous as Einar walked back to the little barn they called their home - or beds, he wasn't sure - back hunched and steps sulken, though his face was as dark as thunder.

He pillaged and killed and stole of people's hard work. Their land, wheat and loved ones. And he can't even remember who, when and why?

Let that fool cut away at the last standing trees as roughed up as he is. Einar is allowed to rest and he'd rather drown in his thoughts alone, bundled up in hay than look at Thorfinn for another minute.

Falling asleep alone feels somewhat sad...but at least he'd fall asleep without any screaming waking him into the early night.

It was the sound of spilled water that made him shoot up his gaze up at the person holding a bucket and rags with them. You shuffled awkwardly to the side, standing right in front of the barn.

Einar was quick to wipe the glare off his face. "Oh...good evening."

"...G-Good evening." You struggled to reply, he thought.

Einar couldn't help but make a long and wide face, pursing his lips as his blue eyes took in your uncertain form. You finally met his eyes with your own. "Are you waiting for Thorfinn?" Your brows rose as you nodded. He must've figured it out quick - or you are just that predictable.

"Pater allowed me to go see him quick. For his ear. Just to make sure the wound didn't fester through the day." "He's still back in the forest chopping. If you wait too long, you might get in trouble."

Shuffling a bit, you hesitated. "I'll wait a bit more. He's stubborn."

The brunette's shoulder sank. With a sigh, he swiftly sat down on the boulder next to the barn's entrance and crossed his arms. "I'll wait too, then."

He sat there on the right, while you stood on the left side. You stared at him briefly, confusion written on your face. The sky turned even darker, with the stars shining through their hiding spots. The moon was nowhere to be seen but the lights from the master's estate still offered some solace. It was illuminated enough for both people to see each other and perhaps recognize an possible incomer.

The silence did not feel heavy yet pressuring. As if any moment, something was waiting to happen.

You glanced at the man and took a deep breath. "...Are you hurt somewhere, too?"

"Uh, what?" Einar jumped and whipped his head to you. "You were there too, right? With the guests. They must've hurt you, too." "Oh! Well - I'm fine enough. Just a few bruises," He rolled his shoudler while chuckling dryly, "The real unlucky bastard is Thorfinn."

You hummed and rose the bucket in your hand. "Pater didn't give me any balms or medicines but the water should cool the bruises." "Ah, uh," Einar waved with his arms, laughing as he shook his head, "No, no, I'm okay. Honestly I...got really off scott-free. Really, the one who has it the worst is...Thorfinn."

You pulled a face - Einar could not decipher what it meant - and went back on being on the look out. "I'd figure. He likes getting in trouble."

The man glanced in your direction, taking in your unreadable, narrowed expression briefly, before staring back down the hill as well, though halfheartedly. "You know him?" He dared to glance to you again, "That he's like that?"

The grip on the bucket tightened and your eyes darted around the cool meadow below. For a moment, you shifted aimlessly but decided to give in. "Yes. He...is an old friend."

There was no need to pretend. To act coy and unknowing when you so foolishly started to speak and cradled him in your arms. Not when you were waiting here like an idiot for him to return and see him again just this once for tonight.

As if he was deserving of it. Thorfinn did not return when you ran after him, did not stay as you lead him to Leif's boat and now you are waiting for him again - and the only certainty you had was that he had the order to do so as a slave.

You yourself needed to oblige.

Lying here will bring you nothing but punishments and you had to be on your best behaviour, even if it meant not being with Thorfinn for however long you were allowed to. But for now, you could use Pater as an excuse and do all that you could - even if this whole place, Thorfinn himself and your own actions didn't make any sense to you.

You are a slave here now on this farm. Why should you even try?

Back with Askeladd you could fight back. But here, your hands are only untied by Ketil's orders.

"There he is." Einar lowly let out and made you snap your head up to see the short blonde march towards you with a hunched back and one arm holding the other bandaged one. His own lidded gaze was focused on the ground before they widened upon your sight.

"Your friend has been waiting." Einar got up with a start, his voice stern and certain, "I'll be just outside. Let's head to bed soon after." Thorfinn barely had the chance to utter a protest as the brunette simply turned around the corner of the barn, staying a few steps away from it. Though his eyes quickly went back to you, wide and unsure, before he walked into the barn and sat down on the hay. You kneeled down next to him, dunking the cloth into the water.

Wordlessly, you got up and went around to his side, pulling his greasy strands away to observe his ear. Thorfinn felt the gentle, almost ghostly tips of your fingers graze his shell as he unblinkingly hung his head, sitting cross-legged. His hands were clutched and the fingers would tense around one another, slightly, as if shivering from the cold.

There was nothing to see. No festering, no tissue. A clean cut that won't affect his hearing at all. You knew, but wanted to see him anyway. Perhaps it was the paranoia, perhaps you didn't trust Pater's word, felt like you couldn't, or you truly just wanted to see him again. This ghost of a man from the past.

You didn't know. But you knew you were a fool for feeling drawn to him after all this time, for wanting to see if he is really alright.

Gaze remained on the wound for a while before you let his hair slip off your hold and kneeled down next to him again. Watching him, Thorfinn didn't meet your eyes, not even when you brought the wet, cold cloth up to pat his face.

His jawline felt thinner. The short stubbles tickled your skin and bent back against the cloth. You couldn't remember him with any stubbles, let alone a sliver of what seems to be a beard ever appear on his grimsome mug. Blonde hair heavy and stringy tickling his shoulders - he used to hate having long hair. It bothered him so that he'd cut it whenever it got too long for his tastes, leaving him with this disheveled, wild look. But here, he was downcast, downtrodden, like nothing he has ever been before or wanted to be. Yet his eyes stayed the same. The sorrow you saw reflected in the deep brown, the same you saw that winter day.

Still, Thorfinn didn't want to look at you.

...To The Unknown, I'll Go Against My Sorrow...

"What are you doing?" Was all he muttered instead, staring holes into the ground. The cloth hung in the hair before you dapped it in water again. "I don't know. I think I wanted to see if you're still...here."

Pressing the water out, you took his limb hands and gently glided the cloth over his course skin. "You shouldn't. You'll get in trouble and..." For a moment, Thorfinn glanced to the side, "...I'll drag you down with me."

You couldnt help the frown as you focused back on his hands and picking out the splinters of wood. Thorfinn dragged you down with him ever since you met him. Drowning together seemed like fate, a curse that befell upon you the moment you so foolishly returned his dagger.

Is it punishment for not being like Askeladd and letting him die? For not being like Canute and letting him be? Are people like you just meant to suffer in this world, all caused by your own actions?

It felt like it. Yet here you were with him again. Was a reunion another form of punishment, prolonging your suffering just a bit more before you die?

Was sitting here and tending to him suffering as well?

"I can't be dragged lower than this. There's nothing else." Finally, Thorfinn looked at you and the action was as painful as he thought it'd be. Your hair was longer, face bearing more and you've grown, too. Lidded eyes were focused on his calloused hand, the shadows of the night consuming you, not even the stars were bright enough. Hesitation would flicker within every minute, every moment, if it's really you - yet then his eyes would unwittingly search for the familiar injuries you had in the past, that one uniquness you wore, a certain pattern of speech and it would ease all doubts he had, eliminate them with the memory from just today. When you embraced him. When you told him he should be back in Iceland.

Thorfinn turned his hand around, grabbing one of yours, while the other one swiped the cloth in your hand off, as if it meant nothing in this, as if his injuries meant nothing at all, and held both of your hands in a tight, suffocating grip. With every passing second, they trembled more.

"You shouldn't be here. You should be somewhere far away, somewhere that isn't here. I'm doing this to you." He glared at your hands with an anguished frown, gripping them as if they could be swept away any second while yours were lying limbly in his. "I thought if I could be here...it'll be fine. But I'm still finding ways of doing this to you. Even after all I did...I'm still managing to hurt someone, and that's you."

Suddenly, he whipped his wide-eyed stare to you, taking in your own frustrated and chagrin-filled face. Your dry, pressed lips, the frown etched onto your visage, your bulging eyes. Thorfinn felt like he needed to continue before you began tearing up. "I'm...still me. But I will be here tomorrow. And the day after that." The blonde hesitated - before deciding to not promise it. He can't tell how much faith you can still put in him and neither can he.

Your watery gaze narrows before looking back over your shoulder. The house's lights are out and you'll need some to find your way back.

Slowly, weakly almost, you got on your feet. Hands still clung to Thorfinn's as they slowly slipped out of his grip. With one last look you offered to him, you hoarsely whispered, "You'll be here."

The man could only nod with wide eyes as you finally let go and went back. The darkness of the night swallowed you whole, only the sound of splashing water letting him know you're still nearby before only the sound of critters were left.

As Einar turned towards the entrance of the barn, he saw Thorfinn lying on his side. He watched him, the blonde almost motionless but the rise of his chest was a relief. He wondered how on earth Thorfinn could've fallen asleep so quickly but he didn't care enough to ponder for a minute more. This...guy. He was another beast, wasn't he?

He killed and pillaged and caused people like him and Arnheid and Pater to end up in places like this. Though Master Ketil was a kind trader, he was an exception to the rule. Anywhere else, and he might have it worse. And you seemed to be just like this guy.

One by one, the brunette took a step closer. How many has he killed? And have you taken lives as well? Can any of you remember?

The hay glided off his legs like snow. Have you caused fires, burned down fields and houses, flung spears and arrows into people?

He stood in front of him. The hay was warm around his knees. This murderer is now cutting down trees to make a field, to plant, to grow, to thrive. To feed people. To still their hunger, use the wood for houses and tools and use the wheat to bargain and trade.

His thick, scarred hands fit around his neck. The anger burning inside him and filling the hole in his chest made it easy to clam them around tightly. Einar could feel his pulse, steady and clear against his skin. Further back was part of his spine, feeling every movement of each inhale. Yet it feels so surprisingly soft when he puts pressure. Soft as his fingers curl around the back of his neck, squeezing the spine in, feeling his pulse quicken and his breath labored. The peaceful snores turned into winces, into pleas for the pain to stop.

Just a bit more. More. The blonde gasps, wiggling around in the hay as his whimpers turned into groans of pain. Somehow he could still breath.

"...Shit."

The throat was warm but Einar could feel his palms getting sweaty. In an blink of an eye, he surprised himself of how quickly he let go. His squatted legs trembled and stumbled back. Thorfinn didn't stop screaming.

Shit. He can't do it. Einar can't kill someone!

It's scary. The feel of someone's neck around your hands is terrifying and daunting, like a weight itself is put on his chest even though he is pretending to be the predator. To be stronger. To be the winner. He can't do it. He doesn't want to do it. He doesn't want to hate. He doesn't want anyone to die.

Suddenly his hands whipped out into the air, wailing around for help. Thorfinn gasped for air, only to screech out more. Even when Einar tried to kill him, he's still throwing a tantrum.

Quivering with hitched gasps, coughing and panting. It's the same every night.

A man like him. It's all nightmares, every night, and he knows it but now - now he wants to live to keep dreaming and live to keep seeing you and live to keep chopping down trees. Yet still, he feels so out of place here.

A desperate inhale and he reckoned he wanted to call for someone. His sweaty hand stiffened. In an blink of an eye he could feel it coil to a fist, pressure forcing his fingers down and he snapped his gaze wide open. Einar's hand clung around his.

"...You..." Thorfinn could finally feel the coolness of the air, the way the hay prickled his back as he desperately sucked in deep breaths like a man starved of food.

A good minute passed, at least to Einar, and Thorfinn shuffled around to sit up. He wiped the sweat off his face before glancing towards the brunette's back. Finally he calmed down, and noticed how dry his mouth was while swallowing. "...Why..." The blonde licked his lips, "...Why do you wake me...everytime I have a nightmare?" He took another breath and could clearly hear the crickets, hiding among the high grass, now. "...I...killed people, too." Propping his knee up, he leaned his elbow on it and his face against his hand - scarred and big enough to cover half his downtrodden visage. "I helped pillage and kill in each village I passed by. People like you. For years. I am...I am as despicable as the warriors that killed your family. And I'll just drag you down, too. So why-!"

Suddenly, Einar shot up, like a predator seeing his chance. Swiftly he snapped to him, a steel-tight grip on his tunic and a glare as dark as thunder as tears welled up in his eyes. "So, you wanna die, huh?!" He gave him a good shake and Thorfinn let it happen, "You wanna die here in the woods you chop down?! You and your - listen," His tone turned dark and Thorfinn's eyes widened, "I don't know exactly what happened to you. And I don't wanna know! I can't even imagine it!" Another rock, "But even if we are far down in our lowest point, there are - there are still some things we can be glad about to experience! Even if we just eat, work, sleep and shit all day, it's worth something! When you get cleaned up all nice, even when its with a stinky, worn out rag, it's still something! And all of that...all of that is only possible because someone let you live!"

Through gritted teeth, he swallowed his snot and fought against his tears. Images and voices of his mother and sister flashed by and Einar bit his lip to focus on the pain. He shook Thorfinn again.

"So be grateful for that at least! Do you hear me?!" He couldn't help but let a shaky sigh escape him. He didn't even have the strength to throw the blonde to the ground - he'd let that happen, too. So his grip grew softer and in defeat, Einar slumped down on his side of the barn. "Besides," He muttered, "It's not like you were the one who killed my family."

His brown eyes observed his hunched back, the way his body curled into a ball. Quiet and steady were his breaths as Thorfinn looked back to his hand. His scarred, calloused hand Einar took to get him back to the waking world, to the cold and dark night, the crisp air as crickets played their songs. It was better. Calmer than any other place he had ever been to.

"...Thank you, Einar." His voice was a mere attempt to utter his gratitude but it made Einar's heart beat faster. "Thank you for always waking me when I have a nightmare."

"...Yeah. Can't get a good night's sleep with you brailing around. Just go to sleep, Thorfinn."

"I will. I'll get up with you tomorrow."

Mighty River, Release My Soul, Out To The Open Gold...

He did wake up first.

Washed his face, stretched, got his axe. Waited for Einar to finish his chatting with Arnheid as you came around the corner.

It seemed like Pater was not angry last night nor did you get in trouble. Thorfinn couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.

Einar noticed you as well and tried to give his best welcoming smile. "...Good morning!" The brunette noticed the crack in his voice but tried to brush off his embarassment with a wider grin. You blinked and gave a somber reply. "Oh...good morning." Your eyes immediately went to the shorter blonde, seeing him ready with the axe over his shoulder. His locks hid the shine in his gaze. He, too, greeted you. "Good morning."

The sound of your name on his tongue felt foreign. Like a hometown meal he hadn't had in ages, or learning a melody from his long-gone childhood. He saw your eyes widen as you struggled to instantly give a response. "G-Good morning, Thorfinn..."

His back was straighter, you weren't sure if he even noticed that himself, and his steps were heavy. The deep rise and fall of his chest was...relieving in a way, but before you could glance at him again, Einar sucked in a baited breath and stepped forward. "Well, we'd best get going, haha!" His laughter was too forced and so was his goofy grin, "Trees don't chop themselves! Uh, have a good, productive day, you two! See you later!" He marched away with a comedic wave towards Arnheid, and with Thorfinn in tow.

The woman chuckled before looking at you. "We're lucky to have such sweet and funny guys as our neighbors, don't we?"

The sun slowly went her way down across the sky but Thorfinn was more eager than ever to drop his axe, rope and knife to walk towards the edge of the decreasing forest. Einar rose a brow but brushed his confusion off, believing the blonde wanted to greet the master. "You're up and about, you lads, aren't you? Very good work ethics, I must say."

"Thank you, Master Ketil." Einar noted Thorfinn's quick and serious reply but kept his mouth shut. As fair as Ketil was, here on his high horse, it wasn't like Thorfinn to be so eager for conversations with him. "I do plan to turn this place into a field in about three years," Thorfinn added with an determined tone, his words cut and clear. Ketil, too, rose a brow. "Oh? Have you planned for that exact time?" The shorter man shook his head. "No. But I will get it done by then."

Look at that guy. Talking all high and mighty, confident like a carpenter as if Einar isn't doing half the work, too!

"And when it is done, Master...I'd like to ask you for a favor." The elder straightened his back and took a sharp inhale. Thorfinn making any suggestions piqued his interest - yet rather in puzzlement. "What did you have in mind, boy?"

Now, he, too, straightened his back, widened his eyes as if trying to pierce through Ketil's soul, wanting dearly for him to understand the utter necessity that bore in his words, that tore apart his heart. He had to say it and the man had to understand. Please.

"If you would so kindly allow, I'd like to work as much as I need to till this soil and grow its crops here. But instead of buying myself, I'd like to sell you the produce in order to buy their freedom back."

"What?!"

Both Einar and Ketil jumped at the boldness of his words. Thorfinn didn't blink an eye as he kept his expectant stare on the master. "Thorfinn...do you know what you're saying? Three years, at the least, all for this...one, one person? You don't mean the shy, new one?"

"I do." Thorfinn did not falter, "I want to work to buy their freedom back. To get somewhere else, far away from here. I want them to be free."

I Can't Stay Here Forever In This Hollow...

----

okay, so, this took too long-

first of all, I noticed way too late that Einar is, in fact, not a brunette;;;;his hair is rather dark reddish...oops. i'll pay more attention to that in the next also, i read a few posts of manga-onlys/those who read the manga first that they didn't like Einar's confrontation with Thorfinn in the barn after their drama with Snake. That he's too violent, put in a bad light and I do get that - considering how incredibly kind and open-minded the guy actually is and even called Thorfinn his friend in that very chapter (in the anime it happened way later). this is...complete bias on my part but I don't mind the scene in the anime. its scary, almost unnecessarily so in some regards considering how long the strangle goes on, like wtf - but I do like that it allowed Einar to be angry and grief in a rather negative way and realise in the midst of the action that what he is doing is wrong and that he physically does not have the guts nor want to kill someone. Imo not even giving into the thought of hurting Finny (like in the manga) shows more maturity but I don't mind both scenes. Plus, I like his speech of finding even the smallest things worthwhile and letting go of his anger in the moment to wake up Finn, cause he knows its wrong - that he isnt doing anything helpful or good, despite not liking Finn during that time at all.

ngl, I didn't get his speech at first - but pondering it about it more, Einar had already gone through a tragedy as a child with his father fighting off warriors/vikings to defend their village and not being sold off as slaves. After the huge amount of damage vikings have done (I imagine), there was prbly a lot of things to recover and rebuild again where all he, as a child, could do was work to rebuild, eat what they had, sleep as much as he could, and shit all day until their village recovered and they could enjoy their peace again - aka Einar being rather hopeful and ready to do that all over again as a slave and buy his freedom back.

[ilikekidsshows]

It doesn't happen often but sometimes I see people say "core four" as a way to group together Marinette, Adrien, Alya, and Nino and I just have to scoff at the idea, especially now. I've seen similar titles applied to other media but it usually refers to groups that are actually a team. ML isn't really a teamwork show anymore. It's just about Marinette who sometimes brings Alya along, rarely respects Chat as a teammate, let alone someone she claims is her partner, and Nino is typically forgotten and the last time he wasn't, they basically made him liability to the sercret identity thing.

There is no "core four" because having a "core" group would require there to be equal focus on the members of that group. That's not how it is in Miraculous. They can't have a character do anything without shoving Marinette in and making her look like she's incapable of minding her own business. We've already seen that Marinette was ready to replace Chat Noir until she decided that she needed to have a mini wangst fest about it and cry until he came back. There isn't a team or anything now, it's just Marinette and her minions.

---

While I wouldn’t say a core cast of characters necessarily requires equal focus, since even ensemble shows tend to have one main focus character, you do require characters to have more focus than the rest of the cast to claim they’re special in any way, whether it’s called “core” characters or “main” characters. You are absolutely correct that Miraculous can’t even manage that, since it notoriously can’t even manage to give its second title character more focus than side characters. As such, your criticism of using this term for Miraculous’ notorious “Marinette and her puppet theater” cast is 100% accurate. Like, Nino barely shows up more than the rest of the classmates, and that’s mostly because he’s dating Alya and helping her and Alya get Adrien with Marinette, which just makes this “core four” dynamic exist in Adrinette scenes, that were mostly “let’s trick Adrien into spending time with Marinette”. Not very “core cast” to me.

I think the core four idea might have been born either from that shipping dynamic, or the first S6 episode we saw, which showed Alya and Nino being very proactive as heroes. It gave off the idea that these two are a larger part of things than they are but, like, Sublimation is now out as well, and Nino was a no-show. Besides, as of the reboot, Adrien isn’t core anything. We have two episodes with no transformation sequence for him, and Plagg only showed up in one of those for a single line about it being snacktime. Adrien is barely a character, and Plagg is barely a cameo.

Miraculous could arguably have a core duo now, and that’s Marinette and Alya. Alya is involved in both of the S6 episodes we’ve seen so far. She’s presented as the cool, competent and collected foil to Marinette’s spiralling mess and she’s being set up to take on as leader once Marinette crashes and burns. If that’s the route they’re going, this new story arc would clearly just be about Marinette and Alya, Nino and Adrien have no space in it as anything more than “the boyfriends of the characters the actual plot happens with”. Although, since I have no faith in this show, I’m convinced it’s still “Marinette and her most useful tool plus the rest of the puppets” and they’re not going to commit to the idea of Alya stepping up and taking up any of the spotlight, instead merely acting as Marinette’s sounding board and biggest cheerleader.

[cocogum]

The Great Wave - Chapter 13 Review

‼️SPOILERS FOR THE CHAPTER‼️

We end up in a completely different place in the midde of...nowhere?

This floating rock is just chilling in the middle of the ocean, okay. Yeah that's fine. Just don't let any fishermen or adventurers notice you at all.

Oh! Maybe the reason why it's got nothing to worry about is because it's surrounded by a magic invisible barrier that doesn't let people outside notice it. Kinda like how Grougaloragran used the same method for Oma Island and how Phaerys used it at Yugo and Adamai's birthday party in the manga between season 2 and the ovas.

Uuuuhhh....

Uuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhh......!!!

UUUUUUUUUUUUUUHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUHHHHHHH!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

IS THAT DARDONDAKAL!?!?!?!

I thought seeing Grougalorasalar was going to be enough for the Great Wave, but apparently, we're having another primordial dragon here! Nice ✨️✨️

For those who don't know, this new guy is Dardondakal, one of the six primordial dragons of the World of Twelve, which means he's also Grougalorasalar's brother.

In case we might see the other primordial dragons, here's a helpful reminder that shows you each of their names, dragon forms, and which dofus they originated from.

(You have no idea how helpful this image helped me through the years whenever I had to remember one of their names for an explanation. Only Aguabrial's name was the easiest to remember, and now Grougalorasalar's name became just as easy too. I feel like when we get a proper introduction for each dragon, it tends to become a lot easier to remember their names.)

Dardondakal actually looks nice in his human form, but I don't know who the dragon he's worryingly looking at is. But it's definitely another one of Dardondakal and Grougalorasalar's primordial brothers though (man so many dragon names are tiring my tongue out why are they so complicated to write and say??) so I'm betting my money on Terrakourial for being that possibility.

Awww???

Dardondakal has beef with Julith lol

You'd think it'd be awkward to face the wife of your deceased guardian who had also gotten falsely accused of killing said guardian 🥰🥰 but nope Dardondakal at least knows the truth but he's still mad that she's here and almost beat his ass.

Yeah, Jahash (a bontarian huppermage and the past leader of Bonta's army) is Dardondakal's guardian. You gotta watch the Dofus movie for that.

Bro's just standing there not even looking 😭😭 Also what is up with everyone choking people in this manga?? First it's Amalia getting choked in a dream, then It's Aurora choking Amalia, and now it's Julith getting choked by Dardondakal.

Like damn, twelvian people really love necks.

Back in the last chapter, I was unsure if Julith was wearing clothes underneath her cloak but now that she's moving more, I can safely say that she won't catch hypothermia any soon. But it is weird that she's still isn't seen talking...Like what is up with that?

Also even though I never expected Dardondakal to have been much softer than I realized, it makes some sense. The Dofus movie depicted Dardondakal and Grougalorasalar as opposites in every way. Even their colors are the opposite of each other. So I guess acting like the opposite of your brother was planned ever since the movie.

Dardondakal almost getting his ass beat by Julith seriously makes me wonder what he might've thought of her and his own guardian getting married together.

Like he obviously doesn't like her in the slightest and thinks she's way too rough and barbaric so just imagine how he might've reacted when he saw her and Jahash getting married and having Joris lol

...oh yeah uhhhh...Don't go to Brakmar rn Julith....Toross fucked it up. I wonder if we'll ever see its state in upcoming chapters or even in season 5...

But even when Dardondakal doesn't agree with Grougalorasalar's methods, he's still stubborn and doesn't change his ideas even when his brother tells him that it's kinda messed up.

Do you realize how far gone he is with his plans when even one of his brothers can't get to him??

I seriously wonder how the encounter with Yugo could've gone out if Dardondakal had been there with Grougalorasalar.

Either Yugo would only attack Grougalorasalar, or there would've been NO POISON AT ALL.

But wait...if the belladone poison never happened, then Amalia wouldn't have kicked the two useless royal osamodas out...

Okay you know what? It's actually a good thing that it was only Grougalorasalar and Julith who came. Because they unknowingly made Amalia push herself to kick the useless turds away.

And while I'm still thinking about it, I don't think Dardondakal, despite being the softer one between him and his brother, could've kept his cool better than him. He literally lunged at Julith's neck for being the reason why so many lives lost. And she wasn't even the one who initiated the sacrifice! It was Grougalorasalar! AND BRO KNEW THAT!

Everyone's a hypocrite in this family 😍

But even when I thought that Grougalorasalar would've revived Julith to assist his fights, I never would've imagined that he would have brought her back for 'non-combat' reasons. Like what is that supposed to mean??

Julith was called the butcher of Brakmar for a reason because she literally perfects in fighting. So telling Dardondakal that that's not what she's here for makes me wonder if she won't be there to manipulate a certain little blue-cloaked guy....

Oh god....

Is this why we can see Joris in a later chapter cover???

Is that why Julith is even there? To make sure that Joris meets her once more and they talk one on one??? For what reason?? To bring him to her side??? In the Dofus movie, younger Joris was with her during some of the events transpiring and he had legitimately thought that she would be good for some time but NOPE!

Joris won't get fooled twice. He was a kid back then. The thought of seeing his mother once more will obviously shock him because he knows she died back then. But there's no way he'll willingly come to her side.

It's time like these where you know no one knows what the hell they're doing 🥰🥰

I do agree on one thing with Grougalorasalar in this chapter: even if you think your ways are brutal and forceful, you'll have to apply them with the utmost confidence. You cannot be seen doubting yourself or look soft when you act. It'll just make you look like a wimp and especially someone who doesn't know what they're doing.

Also uhhh....Is something happening to their other brothers? The dragon we saw in the beginning was clearly one of them, which is why Dardondakal was seen shedding a slight tear. This entire cavernous room might as well be that very same dragon's lair, and Dardondakal just came to visit.

Grougalorasalar....Clean whatever shit your bothers are in BEFORE dealing with Yugo.

Like that is basic knowledge 101. You HAVE to deal with your own problems before messing with other people's problems.

Everyone here should go to therapy at this point.

I wonder what Joris will think about all this.

[fadelbison]

#A READ#but a deeply loving one - @chicademartinica

oh man it is SO deeply loving what can I say about it?

bad shows and mediocre shows and boring shows are necessary for the artistic process. the truth is that sometimes Jojo Tichakorn will make a boring show. bless Never Let Me Go but I don't remember a single thing about that show other than Pond and Phuwin sat on the beach soulfully looking out at the sea in sepia adjacent coloring. But that was simply his artistic impulse. there's no THK without only friends without NLMG. And in that VERY same interview from TWO years ago Jojo revealed that Ninew originally wanted Only Friends to be set in an acting class while Jojo pushed it to Business. and now??? Ninew gets to direct Only Friends: Dream On. HIS vision of only friends. It's mind boggling, for a queer person to live such a sweet life, training under a mentor, working towards and achieving their dreams I just dgaf if it's horrible I love OF: Dream On with all my being already.

I don't know if P'Golf will ever construct a story where they don't pretend that the villain is not the villain? Like they build such compelling narratives of conflict and intimacy and the intimacy to be found within conflict and then completely forget to set up the motivations of their antagonists (RIP Thua and Ter plywood beams supporting so much of the narrative's weight) but like I really dgaf the person who submitted Thailand's marriage equality bill, an act that changed the course of history can do whatever the fuck they want lol

I mean many such cases?? I didn't watch Last Twilight despite Aof being one of my favorite directors period is because I knew his protagonists tend to follow lakorn logic, he did it in ATOTS, DBK, MLC and even in Bad Buddy (random shooting my beloved <3), like idk if it's the shared enthusiasm for RPF or traditional asian narratives but I feel this man's vision on an atomic level and I knew from the trailer how that show was going to end and I didn't watch it because I know his artistic limitations. But then it suddenly became about how GMMTV hates disabled people. Like??? Not only did Aof Noppharnach present such a beautifully compelling and deeply celebratory representation of queer disability in MLC he named his queer disabled character Heart idk how to explain the shock I felt when faced with people's short term memory regarding this.

I'm not surprised that Nuchy is the one directing Burnout Syndrome, a three-way entanglement with gun atthaphan as the centerpoint. The exclusion of GramBlack, outside of its social reactions and implications, was a significant failing of her narrative. Gram was in fact in love with Black, that's what how it was in the original story from which Not Me was adapted and that's how it was in the show. To change who a character is in love with is changing the whole character which she simply hadn't done but she compromised her art against social pressures and like I don't have proof but im not surprised that the keys to Gun's Off Jumpol chastity belt was handed to Nuchy.

it's incredible, make your shitty pots my dears I'm here to witness it. we are nowhere near the peak for any of these people. Hayao Miyazaki was 47 when he directed My Neighbor Totoro. Jojo is only 40 years old that's a baby in artist years. They are pioneers in an entirely toddler of a genre, they have countless more life experience to collect and tonnes more stories to tell imperfectly and I am simply so happy to be here. I like to acknowledge GMMTVs hand in creating this reality.

I think one of the most incredible things about gmmtvs artistic direction *is* their dedication towards the commonplace the steady the familiar. Not only do they make boring gay shows (in addition to the exciting and interesting imo) but they do it consistently every single year. Every single year they make terrible shows and boring shows; shows you can put on in the background and promptly fall asleep during shows that I consistently forget exists or even aired (in addition to the great!).

Will P’Golf ever stick the landing in their shows? idk but they certainly will be directing till we find out 😂 Is New Siwaj on some quest to turn his low stakes college anthology style into like a degrassi or skins-esque staple? idk gonna find out during gmmtv2026. Which formative media for Jojo is going to become his next aesthetic centerpoint? Idk but we gonna find out. Will Aof Nopparnach ever stop directing like he wished he was making lakorns instead? maybe if it’s RPF but idk we gotta find out.

Like??? I am following pioneer creators on their creative journey *as* they’re taking it. I’m watching them fumble and pirouette as they sculpt their pieces; flaws and all.

man what an incredible place for queer media to be and what good luck to be experiencing it when I am

[ethicaltreatmentofcowplants]

(part i)

And here we are back for the second part of Day One! I would tell you that absolutely no drama happens at all, but they say that the best lies stick as close to the truth as possible, and well…

Once Lilac and Forest return home, Lilac wastes no time at all in flirting with Caden over the piano. Caden must be an extremely understanding pixel, as he likes piano playing and - unlike Lilac - actually has a little skill in it.

Just as the three (Caden having accurately singled out Giovanna as the one other token sane pixel of this household) are settling in for a nice chat, Guess Who Don’t Sue (Spencer) shows up.

He starts off with a seemingly innocuous ASK ABOUT DAY to Lilac, but we all know what he’s really digging for.

Caden (who has been Spencer’s housemate since the first round and therefore a decent amount of time to observe him, especially as his Number One target) then calls him out for spying. Spencer is aghast. He would never.

Well…

0/10 for subtlety, my guy.

Understandably Caden is a wee bit pressed about this, and our previously proper gentleman even lets loose some FORBIDDEN WORDS over dinner, which appalls GOOD MANNERED Giovanna...

...and also Spencer, who got him into such a state in the first place.

(Forest is likely giving Spencer a thumbs up on the inside, as this move is simply diabolical 🤭)

Though Lilac likewise also found this funny on the inside, she does take pity on Caden and attempts to calm him down. He vents about Spencer but manages to enjoy some flirtation towards the end.

(And also gets a case of Dodo Brain.)

We thought that Baarry White should be around to help Lilac keep a lid on things, so here he is.

Lilac apparently only had one woo-hoo left to give today, as for once that’s not what kicks off a late chore montage hour. Our outdoorsy duo Giovanna and Forest take care of the animals and fishing respectively, while Spencer and Briar are our gardeners. 

Briar enjoys what must have been a good chat with Lilac, as she gained the adoring sentiment towards our bachelorette.

So long as she enjoys their company, Lilac tends to give her nearest and dearest more leniency than GOOD traited Araminta. However she does feel some duty of care towards participants and asks Spencer if he’d consider going easier on Caden.

Spencer however has one condition, and that one condition is…

...bed cuddle.

(I’ve just been letting the Sims sleep wherever this round, and evidently he’s claimed the right side of Lilac’s bed as his own.)

You’d think this would mean Caden’s night was a little easier, and yet.

Tomorrow is another day, my guy.

(rolls)

@jonquilyst @mdshh @riverofjazzsims @ravingsockmonkey @akitasimblr

[internet1girl]

Chapter 8: Johnny?

Pairing: Johnny Cage x Fem!Reader

Summary: Something horrible transpires whilst you’re on your latest mission. Thank the Gods you weren’t alone.

Word count: 16.4k Warnings/Notices: named!reader, attempted SA (attempted, nothing actually happens), violence, tears, angst, sexually suggestive, johnny cage shenanigans, a few curse words here and there

First Chapter / Previous part

A/N: welcome back <3 let’s get into it

This time around, you, Johnny and Geras were all outside of Sun Do’s gates, standing around by the city’s walls. You both were ready to get going to this Tarkatan colony, yet you couldn’t. Not right now. You were all waiting for a certain someone. Someone who was going to accompany you on this excursion.

All the sweat and grime from yesterday’s training session was all washed off, your sweaty gym outfits had been swapped out for your heavier, harder infiltrator uniforms. Your long hair was cleaned up and combed out, tied back into your usual braid. Johnny’s facial injuries from the last mission were starting to heal, the scratches on his face had begun fading away.

Speaking of, he was currently busying himself by staring at his reflection on the surface of a nearby puddle. Silly faces and comical expressions were constantly sent in the direction of this poor body of water, along with the occasional snicker and weird noise. Dolt.

“Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like we’re forgetting something. Or someone…” He said out loud, speaking to anyone in his nearby vicinity. Which just happened to be you.

“Were you not listening to Liu Kang yesterday?” You were leaning against Geras’ carriage, busying yourself by checking your nails for any dirt or indentations, your best attempt at trying to distract your brain from that weird dream you had about a certain someone last night.

“What? I was mostly listening.” He joked, trying to mask the fact that he totally wasn’t paying attention at all. “Just tell me, who are we waiting for? And why the hell are they so late?”

You rolled your eyes, pushing yourself off of the carriage wall with a huff. “Baraka will be coming with us today, to assist us with the Tarkatans.”

“Baraka?!” He groaned, a little more taken aback than necessary. “Why the hell do we need him? We can handle this on our own, can’t we?”

“It is best that we have a Tarkatan on our side when we’re there, just in case things go awry.” You were ignoring the feeling of disappointment deep down inside. As silly as it sounded, a part of you was honestly a little saddened that you both weren’t going to be alone this time, like you were on the past two missions. 

“Yeah, I guess…” He mumbled, crossing his arms with a huff. Johnny then glanced around, noticing that his temporary ally was still nowhere to be seen. “Well, where the hell is he? Is he gonna show up or what?”

“I am sure he is on his way. Just be patient.” You reassured, that typical exhausting feeling you always associated with this man starting to bubble back up again. There’s a word for it, it’s just right on the tip of my tongue…

A few minutes of silence passed. Johnny was pacing around, his hands in his pockets as he tried to numb the boredom ebbing away at his mind. You were leaned back against the carriage, idly toying with your hair. And Geras… well he was just tending to the horses attached to the carriage. What more could you expect from him?

This was boring as all hell. Standing here doing absolutely nothing was like torture. In an attempt to alleviate the mind-numbing boredom, Johnny strode over, taking place against the carriage right beside you. He glanced over. Your pretty face was focused on something in the distance, not paying him any mind or attention. He sighed.

Surprisingly, you didn’t move away when he approached. You didn’t know why, it seemed like your body was in control this time. All you did was give him a bewildered look, before turning away and acting like nothing had happened.

A grin broke out on his face, seeing this as an invitation to tease you a little.

“Bored as hell right now, huh?”

You hummed in agreement, your eyes on the forest in the distance and not on Johnny next to you. He stepped a little closer, the contact of your arms touching making your belly feel all warm. Ugh.

He huffed lightly. He found it cute how you didn’t even bother to look his way. You were just staring straight ahead, your attention not even on the handsome man beside you. Of course, he couldn’t have that. No, this wouldn’t do at all.

Slowly, he inched his hand over. His palm placed itself atop the back of your hand, clasping your own with his. Surprisingly, you allowed him to do this. Your cheeks flushed a rosy red as you realised what was happening. His hand was so large compared to your own, it felt so firm and warm. Your heart, that traitor, started to beat a little too fast for your liking. The urge to grasp on, to intertwine your fingers, it was growing every second.

But you didn’t do that. Now wasn’t the right time. Instead, after a few seconds of this, you yanked your arm away, turning to the side to scowl at your pursuer. Your anger was doing a great job at hiding your flushed face, so you thought.

Johnny couldn’t help but smirk at this. “Aww, what’s wrong, sweetheart? You were letting me hold your hand before, why’d you stop?” He said in a mocking, slightly condescending tone, trying to rile you up a bit more.

“You… you…”

You were more than a little flustered. Flustered, and pissed off. Johnny and his stupid kissable lips were making you mad. You hated this effect that Johnny had over you. It was like you were attracted to him or something-

Ha! Yeah, right! He isn’t ugly by any means, but you would never stoop so low as to fall for this fool…

…Right?

“Why must you be so… male??” You put extra emphasis on the last word, practically sneering at him as the sentence concluded.

“Aw, is that your way of saying that you want me?” He pouted, leaning in closer with a sickeningly sly smile on his face.

“Ugh, Gods, no!”

You gave the bastard the filthiest of dirty looks before turning on your heels, stomping away to the front of the carriage, the sound of his fading laughter burning your ears. You really couldn’t deal with Johnny and his antics, it was too damn early in the morning for this shit. Maybe Geras needed help doing whatever he was doing, you thought. Probably.

You spent the next few minutes giving his horses some attention and quietly complaining to your driver about your annoying partner. A mostly one-sided conversation. The construct just listened to you with a small smile on his face, he let you vent to him without any judgement or pushback. it’s not like you were vastly wrong, or anything.

You were just concluding your little ‘Johnny is an irritating POS’ rant when the sound of footsteps caused you to stop mid-sentence. Footsteps that were coming from the forest, closer and closer to the carriage, your location. Footsteps that were so loud that even Johnny hopped up out of the carriage to join you both to see what was going on. 

A figure was slowly making their way through the forest surrounding, their shape was becoming more and more clear as they walked closer and closer to the carriage. Whoever they were, they were tall, with a large frame, just like Geras. They were covered head to toe in a thick brown cloak, their face was completely covered by the shadow of their hood. You, Johnny, Geras and even the horses were all a little spooked.

This person stopped around twenty feet away from the carriage, pausing for a bit before taking down their hood. A man afflicted with Tarkat was revealed. He was bald, with red eyes and no lips. The lower half of his face was replaced by rows of razor-sharp, jagged teeth. This would’ve been an alarming sight for anyone, but the three of you were instantly at ease. These gruesome features were instantly recognisable to you, and your associates. Baraka had finally arrived.

“Well well well, you just had to arrive in the most ominous way possible, huh?” Johnny loudly announced, splaying out his arms slightly, a smirk on his face.

Baraka’s eyes scanned around what was in front of him. He was told to meet two Earthrealmers and a sentinel outside Sun Do at this precise time. None of you could tell, but he was happy to see familiar faces.

“Geras.” The construct nodded in response, his face as emotionless as always. Baraka’s voice was rough and raspy, but unlike how Geras’s was. Whilst Geras was refined, like a smooth stone, Baraka was rough and feral, like a wild beast.

“Jade.” You nodded, trying hard not to let your uneasiness show.

“Cage.” Again, you three couldn’t tell, but he was no longer smiling when he laid eyes on Johnny. Much like all the other familiar Outworlders, Baraka wasn’t fond of this fool. Could you blame him?

He just chuckled, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he squirmed around a little. “Good to see you again too, pal.”

A deep growl came from him in response, the sound akin to a predator provoked. His eyes narrowed as he locked his sight on Johnny across from him, the red in his irises darkening, the shade deepening. Uh oh.

In an attempt to ease the growing tension, you spoke up. “It’s good to see you again, Baraka. I trust that the journey to Sun Do wasn’t too troublesome?”

He took a deep breath, calming himself down or at least trying to. After that, he shook his head. “No, there was no trouble… mostly.”

“I am glad to hear it.” You would be lying if you said that his appearance didn’t make you uneasy. His mutated face and sharp claws both made you feel scared of and sorry for the man. Not that you ever expressed your concerns out loud. Baraka had experienced enough fear and pity in his life.

You looked to the side, facing the most immature member of your group. You gave Johnny a look that was akin to a mother telling her child to behave, a mentor reeling in their most troublesome student. He could see what you were doing, the silent command all too clear. Usually, he’d tease you a bit, maybe push you a little further, but something told him to not ignore the intensity in your eyes. At least, not this time. The last thing either of you needed was Baraka getting angry and starting a fight.

“Ahem.” Geras’s voice cut through the silence, the clearing of his throat grabbing all of your attentions. “Now that we are all present, it is time we depart.” He walked over to the carriage door, opening it and gesturing for you three to enter.

With a defeated sigh, Johnny moved towards the vehicle door, pausing as he took a place by Geras. “Ladies first.” He quipped, looking at you.

You gave him a nod of acknowledgement before quietly entering the carriage, almost as if to say thank you. This made him smile a little, however that smile was wiped off of his face when Baraka followed after you, a low growl sent his way as he walked past. Jesus, this guy was even more unsettling up close.

Whatever, though. With a groan, he entered the carriage to find you sitting on one of the benches and Baraka on the other. Not passing up the chance to be next to you, he quickly plonked himself down beside you, the action a little too hasty to be brushed off as normal. Was this a little childish of him? Yes. Did he care? Not at all. Being this close to you made his pulse quicken a little. Your knees were almost touching, he could smell the faint scent of your perfume, it was all driving him a little crazy.

You shuffled to the side a little. Yes, that warm feeling came back when he came into close proximity, but you were so over it that you just ignored the sensation. You did, however, give him a small look of questioning as he crashed down onto the cushion. One that he made sure to parry with a grin.

Baraka, meanwhile, watched the whole ordeal with an emotionless expression. Well, as emotionless as his jagged face allowed him to be. When your mouth is stuck in a permanent smile, it’s hard to display any form of emotion.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

A considerable amount of time has passed. By now, the carriage has long since departed Sun Do. The vehicle was rolling through the plains of Outworld, the course of the horses overlooked by Geras. The sun was high in the sky, the orb shining brilliantly in the stratospheric sea of blue. It was shaping up to be a nice morning, what could possibly go wrong?

Inside, not much was going on. You and Baraka were busy staring at the outside world, through the window. You were leaned back in your seat, arms crossed and feet propped up beside Baraka’s hip. He had his own feet placed firmly down on the carriage floor. His hands were intertwined with each other as he gazed out of the carriage window, mirroring your silence. 

Johnny had occupied himself with his cell phone. Though, every now and then, he switched his attention from the screen in his hand to you beside him and vice versa, something entirely unnoticeable by the other two members of his party.

Though, as the minutes ticked by, his boredom only increased. He tried to occupy himself with games in his folder, but that only worked for so long. He was never great at sitting motionless for such a long amount of time. This… this was torture. It had only been about an hour since he left, but it felt like a lot longer.

He ended up shifting his attention to you once again. He couldn’t help it, you were like a magnet that drew his focus, you and your lovely side profile. Despite the way you’d always regarded him, he continued to try and get closer, closer to you. Why? He had no idea.

Ah, there was no point. You weren’t even looking at him. Your gaze was solely on the plains outside, you didn’t even notice him staring at you. Johnny frowned. He couldn’t believe he was being so desperate, that and how it didn’t even pay off. It bruised his ego beyond belief. He was Johnny friggin’ Cage, THEE Hollywood legend. He should be the one ignoring women, not the other way around! But alas, here he was, trying and trying hard to get and keep the attention of the beautiful assassin beside him. He felt like what he was; a lovesick boy. Oh well, maybe next time.

He went back to his phone, sulking slightly as he opened up Instagram and ventured through his explore page. Then, the opportunity to actually interact with you presented itself. Whilst scrolling, he saw something funny, something that actually made him laugh out loud. 

“Hey, Jade?” He turned to you, tapping your shoulder.

You took your attention off of the outside world upon the feeling of his touch, turning around to face the man sitting next to you. You didn’t have a scowl on your face this time, rather a look of curiosity. Just what did he have to say?

He smiled. “Here, look at this.” Johnny shifted in his seat, angling his body to face you directly. You leaned in a little to get a better view of the screen he was presenting to you. To be honest, staring at this canton’s barren plains was starting to get a little boring. Whatever stupid thing Johnny found funny couldn’t hurt to look at, right?

What was being shown was a guy completely failing to do a backflip, paired with a humorous caption. He had forgotten to curl his body after he had jumped, and as a result, he landed straight on his neck. Johnny would get waaay more than he bargained for. As soon as you saw this guy in the video literally launch himself 100° in the air, you burst out laughing. Your hand shot up to cover your mouth, splutters of laughter slipped past you as you fell back onto the bench, the composure you always carried yourself with vanishing like a cliché magic trick.

Johnny’s eyebrows shot up, his mouth dropping. This was the first type of reaction he had gotten from you like, ever. Literally ever. You… were laughing! Laughing because of him!! The sound was so pretty, like churchbells or a sweet song. Your guffaws, the way you tried to cover them, the way you were falling back, it was cute. Really cute.

There was something about the dude and the way he fell that had tears rocketing down your face. You were laughing so hard that you forgot you weren’t supposed to act like this, especially in front of you-know-who. It’s not like you really cared, though. To the Netherrealm with your reputation, this video was funny!

Johnny’s shock turned into a full-on laugh, and then into a series of cackles. Ones to match your own. He loved seeing this other side to you, this side that he didn’t even knew you had. It was all so surprising, in the best way possible. He placed a hand on your shoulder as you both lost yourself, partly to use your form as support and partly because he just wanted to touch you. But not in a weird way. He just wanted to relish in the cute image sitting right next to him: Jade, a deadly cold assassin who literally killed people for a living, uncontrollably laughing.

“What is so amusing?” Baraka’s harsh voice snapped you both out of it. Your eyes reopened to see him staring at you both in confusion, looking at the two of you like he had just witnessed something entirely fanatical. Were you both laughing at his expense? Were you Earthrealmers making fun of him?!

“Oh, nothing! Just a stupid video we saw.” Johnny pointed at his phone in his hand, a wide smile on his face. He leaned forward, tapping the screen a few times before swivelling it around, letting the video replay for Baraka.

Unlike you both, Baraka didn’t find this video funny. As an Outworlder, he barely even understood the concept of a cell phone. He really thought that what Johnny was showing him was a weird form of magic. As his eyes adjusted to the slight glow of the screen, his vision settled on a man failing to do a flip. He didn’t understand… how was this amusing? With the way this man landed, he looked like he could be seriously hurt, or worse! Earthrealmers are so confusing…

“How is this depiction amusing?! I have no interest in Earthrealm customs!” He growled, leaning back.

“Yeah, he’s a party pooper. Just ignore him.” Johnny rolled his eyes, leaning away and turning back to you.

For some reason, Baraka’s confused expression made this whole thing even funnier. You saw his reaction, you heard his words, somehow. You tapped Johnny on the side of his arm and held up his phone so you could watch the video again. As soon as the digital ordeal repeated, your laughing fit roared up again. You both were even more hysterical this time around, the sounds of your near-screams probably echoing throughout the vast plains the carriage was in. Neither of you gave a shit, though.

Baraka growled again, this time out of defeat. He really didn’t understand why this stupid moving picture was so damn funny!

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

“…And long story short, I am never going to Okinawa again.”

Some time has passed. The atmosphere inside the carriage was different, changed. There was no longer silence, the air was thick with the sound of yours and Johnny’s voices. The both of you were engaged in a passing conversation, the ice between now broken.

Yes, he was just finishing up telling you about one of his travel stories.

“No, I refuse to believe the island is as bad as you say it is!” Gone were your typical feelings of disdain and irritation towards Johnny, vanishing like the wind. So far, you were actually enjoying listening to what he had to say, a smile on your face as words rolled.

“Oh, I promise, it’s hell. I have no idea what you’ve heard of it, but I’m here to tell you the place is a living nightmare.”

“You’ve only been once! You need to thoroughly explore the island to properly formulate an opinion!”

“Once is enough.” Johnny huffed a frown on his face. “That place is horrible. The people, the traffic, the food… terrible.”

You scoffed, looking away from him for a moment. “You Westerners all sound the same.”

"You Westerners all sound the same" ?? 

“Excuse me? You are not about to call me a Western idiot for my very correct take.” Johnny was in disbelief, evidently so by the mock surprise on his face.

You scoffed again, laughing at what this dummy had to say before responding. “Americans always have such a specific fantasy of Japan. And then, when you all eventually travel to the country, you can’t handle that we are, in fact, not how you always picture us.”

You mockingly pouted at him. “You just can’t comprehend that Japanese culture is nothing alike all the anime you watch.”

He was speechless. “You… you think that I, a full grown-ass man, have no idea how Japanese culture actually is? Y-you think I’m one of those weird Japan-obsessed creeps?”

“Johnny… I’ve seen snippets of some of your films. It’s evident that you are.” You looked at him with an expression that screamed “you aren’t fooling me.” He couldn’t be serious.

Johnny was fuming. All the times he has been labelled as a “weird” guy by his exes, and now here you were, calling him a goddamn weeaboo. It… it was ridiculous!

He scowled at you.

In this moment, you found it incredibly hard to take him seriously. The pout plastered on his face was practically undoing you at the seams. You tried desperately to keep the laugh clawing at your insides contained, but you found it increasingly hard to do so with each second his little diva frown was in your field of view.

Simultaneously, the sight of a red-faced you holding in your amusement was just too funny for Johnny. Eventually, you both burst out in laughter, the sound of your loud voices bouncing all around the confinements of the carriage. The two of you sat in your seats, giggling hysterically at your mutual foolishness.

Meanwhile, Baraka across from you was unintentionally eavesdropping on your conversation. Unintentionally. He did not want to hear your voices. But there was nothing he could do about it. Nothing legal. By Delia, these Earthrealmers were so loud, but it was somewhat bearable. He just tuned you both out, his red eyes focusing on the plains outside. He would sneak glances at you and Johnny every now and then, eyes narrowing and quiet growls emanating from his core.

You were in the process of calming down, wiping the tears from your eyes away with the back of your finger. Out of your peripheral vision, you managed to catch a glimpse of his staring. You couldn’t even tell that he was silently judging you both. Ah, those narrowed eyes and low growls were just classic Baraka.

Dismissing it, you turned to Johnny, a small smile on your face. This banter with him was nice, you liked it. Johnny was actually kind of funny, you were a little tired of pretending otherwise. That feeling of curiosity was also there, mirroring your high spirits. You wanted to know more about him, him and his story, what made Johnny Cage, well, Johnny Cage.

“So, Cage, tell me. Are you well-travelled?”

A small smirk appeared on his face at that. This was something he was good at, you had picked his favourite topic to be the subject of the conversation; himself!

“Well, I’ve been to a few other countries, let me tell ya.” He said, leaning back against the wall of the carriage, getting himself comfortable in his seat. “Germany, England, France, Russia, Brazil, China, South Korea, Thailand… the list just goes on.”

You listened intently to Johnny list off all of these countries, genuinely interested. You were admittedly a little astonished, you had no idea that this man was so cultured. He never acted like it, what a surprise! Your eyes were curious, watching him and his gestures. You actually kind of liked hearing about all of his experiences, you itched to ask the details of each vacation.

“I’ve been to Europe a bunch of times. Been to South America a few times, also. Oh! I gotta tell you about the time I went to Egypt. See, there was this-“

“What is an ‘Egypt’?” The rough voice of Baraka cut Johnny off mid-sentence. Now, his attention was fully on you guys, and not on the scenery outside. He had never heard of such places in his life. A part of him was convinced that he was speaking another language.

Both you and him whipped their heads to face the curious Baraka. The two of you didn’t expect him to chime in during their conversation, you had kind of forgotten about his presence. And Johnny definitely didn’t expect to have to give him a geography lesson right now.

“Egypt? Er…it’s a country in North Africa. Uh, it has the Nile River, great historical places, the capital is called Cairo…?”

North Africa? The Nile River? Cairo? By Argus, what were all of these odd names? All he could do was stare at Johnny with a confused look on his face because… huh? His head was tilted to the side slightly, his brain working to try and comprehend what he was hearing.

“These are all places in Earthrealm, Baraka. Johnny was just informing me of all of the locations he has travelled to.” You chimed in, noting his evident confusion.

“…You don’t seem to know much about Earthrealm places, do ya?” Johnny also spoke up, his question paired with a dry little laugh.

“I know little about Earthrealm.” Like most Outworlders, Baraka knew that Earthrealm existed… and that’s about it. He knew next to nothing about its customs, history, locations, etc. He had never left Outworld before, not once in his long life. “All of these names are locations?”

Johnny nodded. “Yep. Europe is the continent where countries like Germany, France, Italy, and Greece are. South America is another continent. It has countries like Brazil and Argentina. And Egypt is actually located in the African continent. It’s a part of the world. You got it?”

Nope, he didn’t get it. Baraka still had that confused look in his eyes, before turning back to you. 

You looked back at Baraka, mirroring his befuddlement. Why was he staring at you like that? You tried to analyse his face, to gauge a general idea of what his intentions were. That large mouth full of razor-sharp teeth, as well as those fiery red eyes, sent a sliver of uneasiness through you, a concern that you made sure to keep confined to your mind. You liked Baraka, you admired how he still carried on with life despite his Tarkat affliction. You were hoping that he didn’t have ill intentions towards you, but you didn’t want to assume.

“What is on your mind, Baraka?”

He grunted, shifting around a little. “I’m simply wondering… do you understand these places that your friend speaks of?”

Ohhh, that’s why he was staring at you like that! You relaxed a little, the confirmation that he didn’t want to eat you or something calming your nerves down.

“Oh… yes. Johnny speaks of locations in Earthrealm, that is all.” You gave him a little smile, hoping that this would help.

Baraka nodded with another grunt, seemingly finally understanding what you two were on about. Yes, all was resolved… with him.

On the other side of the pond, Johnny didn’t see it this way. From his perspective, it looked like Baraka was eyeing you up, checking you out. He… didn’t like it. He didn’t know what this beast was thinking. To him, the expression on Baraka’s mutated face looked like he wanted to eat her. That wasn’t the case, but Johnny didn’t know that. He didn’t even know why he suddenly felt so… protective over you. You’re a strong, capable woman, you can take care of yourself. But…

Why was Baraka so focused on you? Why was he looking at you like that? Why did another man’s eyes on you make him feel a little jealous?

He scooted closer, nearly bumping sides with your form. He wrapped his hand around yours, squeezing it tightly out of instinct. The warmth of your hand through your gloves eased his nerves a little, the tiny sense of security quieting his paranoia.

You yanked your hand away in response, a little harder than intended. It caught you off guard. From your perspective, you were just having a normal conversation with Baraka. What was the need for that? You looked back at him, the confusion on your face doubling when you saw that his usual smirk was completely absent. Why did he look concerned?

“What? It was cold.” He quickly spoke up, acting innocent and nonchalant as if he hadn’t just squeezed your hand like a lifeline.

You gave him a look. Interestingly, you weren’t mad at him like would typically be expected. No, you just… wondered why he did that. Eh, whatever. It was just Johnny being weird. You turned to look at Baraka, and then turned your attention away to the window. Both of these men were behaving oddly, you thought. Maybe they just need some fresh air, or something.

Baraka, meanwhile, watched the whole ordeal between the two of you with slight curiosity. The way you both were acting, it was almost like there was… something… going on. Hm. Ah, probably not. Maybe all of your kind act like that with each other.

Earthrealmers are weird.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

By now, you were almost at the Tarkatan colony, only a few minutes away. Outside, except for the scenery, nothing had changed. Inside, however, it was a little bit of a different story.

The air was no longer thick with conversation. You had your attention on the outside world, on the nature surrounding. Across from you, Baraka had his gaze lowered, his hands were intertwined, he was lost in his thoughts. Next to you, Johnny had his attention on his phone, squeezing in his social media time today. Awkward wouldn’t be the right word to describe the vibe of the carriage, but it was definitely something.

Johnny would glance at you discreetly out of the corner of his eye every now and then, out of habit. Baraka sometimes, but mostly you. You were staring out the window, deep in thought. He wondered what was going through your pretty head right now. Were you thinking of anything… anyone in particular? He allowed himself to look at your profile for a bit too long, that weird fluttery sensation he always got whenever he thought about you flaring up in his belly. You’re so… beautiful. You looked really pretty today. Your face, your voice, your features, the way your body looked in that battle wear, your strength and intelligence, your smile… especially your smile.

He took in a deep breath, sighing through his nose. The more Johnny thought, the more he realised that he really didn’t dislike you that much anymore. Hell, if he was being really honest with himself, he had been drawn to you ever since the first day he came to the Wu Shi, when he first met you. Something about the fact that you didn’t immediately start swooning over him like most women did was a leading factor in his disdain for you. And now, he actually kind of admired that about you. You’re not a sycophant, not like most other women he had met in his life. You didn’t let his status affect how you viewed him. You’re actually pretty cool, who knew? You-

“We should be at this colony soon. Prepare yourselves, Earthrealmers.” Baraka’s bestial voice interrupted his train of thought, the sound of his voice jolting each of you a little.

Johnny nodded in response. His eyes flicked over to you, right at the same time your eyes happened to flick over to his. For a bit, the both of you just… stared. At each other.

There was something about him that made him look really handsome today, you thought. His hair was neatly styled, full and soft-looking. His features were so chiselled, his body broad and sculpted under his battle wear. You almost wanted to give into your desire to stay like this, to study every spot and blemish of his perfect visage. 

You spun back around, turning your attention back to the carriage window. Luckily for you, the back of your head shielded your blushing cheeks. Johnny did NOT need that ego boost right now.

You started thinking. Why were you acting like this? You couldn’t explain it, but something about his proximity, his presence, it was doing things to you that you couldn’t not describe, or even understand. For the Gods sake, you even told him the true story of your family, your brother! Something that literally no one knew about.

Holy shit… did you… have a crush on him?!

Baraka, meanwhile, picked up on how you two were acting. The way you both were previously so enamoured with each other, your chemistry so natural, he could see it. It’s not like he had much of a choice. And yet… the way you both became so visibly flustered when you would come into physical contact with each other signified something more. Ah yes… he knew what was happening here. He might not know much about Earthrealmers, but he accurately guessed what was going on, what would become.

A few minutes later, the carriage stopped. All three of you were caught off guard by this. You rocked a little in your seat, the recoil shaking you slightly. Baraka was on edge, curling his fingers and darting his head around. He didn’t understand, why did he suddenly stop moving like that? Were they under attack? Was there something wrong? You and Johnny knew better, though. This wasn’t your first time, you knew what this meant by now. After the initial shock wore off, you both relaxed a little. Finally, you’ve arrived. For some reason that carriage ride felt longer than it was. It was kind of weird for you, having a third party accompany you and him.

Johnny took a deep breath and sat up, looking at Baraka and then at you. He smiled at the way you were so focused and serious. He could sense your tension, he knew you were getting into ‘professional mode’. So cute!

“Try not to be so uptight, princess. We’re not here to go murder some innocent civilians, you can relax a little.”

Heavy footsteps could be heard making their way to you all. The light of day flooded the carriage interior as the door swung open. Geras was on the other side. He stared you all down for a bit, waiting for you guys to gather your bearings.

“Jade. Johnny. Baraka. We have arrived.”

“Yeah, we’ve noticed, buddy.” Johnny gave him a sarcastic, yet charming smile. Geras didn’t react, however. He said nothing in response, the lack of words speaking for themselves. It was difficult knowing what the construct was thinking at times.

He stepped to the side, so that you all could exit the carriage. Johnny hopped out immediately, taking in a deep breath as he shook out his limbs. Outworld always smelled so strange in comparison to Earthrealm. As much as he tried to enjoy the fresh air, he couldn’t help but scrunch up his nose a little bit at the scent.

Ah, whatever. It’s not like it mattered. Turning around, he extended his hand, offering to help you out of the carriage as you got up.

You stopped at the doorway as you saw this. For a few seconds, you were motionless, stuck on what to do. One half of you wanted to swat his palm away and chastise him for being… well, him. Another part of you wanted to take it and let him guide you down the carriage steps, a result of you starting to fall for his charm. What to do…

A growl from Baraka behind you snapped you out of it. He wanted to get out of this stuffy vehicle, this silly Earthrealmer was blocking the way. Hastily, you scurried down the carriage stairs, ignoring Johnny’s hand in the process, something he frowned at. After Baraka hopped out of the vehicle, you three all looked around, beginning to take in your surroundings.

Under the decree of Empress Sindel, when a citizen contracts the Tarkat disease, their assets are to be seized and they are to be exiled from society. This was the main reason you and Johnny had to meet Baraka outside of Sun Do, Tarkatans are forbidden from entering large Outworlder settlements. Banished to the wastelands, the afflicted have no choice but to form small colonies and rely on each other for survival. The one in the distance was no different.

The sight before you was disturbing, to say the least. As far as the eye can see, the colony was filled with a huge number of people who were all in various states of decline. Some were infected, some were seemingly healthy and normal, but one thing was clear - everyone here was all suffering, unfairly so.

Do people really live like this?

Baraka’s heart ached a little, this colony’s inhabitants were his people, after all. Johnny felt a little disgusted, if he was being honest. And you… you were stunned. You had come across a few Tarkatans here and there, throughout your time in Outworld. But a whole colony of them? This was a completely new experience. The conditions most of these people were living in, the fact that they were so horribly disfigured, it all just pulled on your heartstrings. It was so disheartening to see.

Seeing your crestfallen face, Johnny’s heart ached. Such an expression had no business crossing your visage. He couldn’t help but be a little worried, this wasn’t the kind of environment for a woman like you. He took a step closer, almost as if he was trying to protect you from something.

“Ahem.” The sound of Geras loudly clearing his throat drew all of your attentions, cutting off all of your thoughts. He made his way towards you three.

"Yeah, big guy? You got a bug up your ass or somethin'?"

He ignored Johnny’s remark as if it had never been spoken, Geras had to physically stop his eyes from rolling back. He walked back over to the front of the carriage, where he was always sat. The wall that you presumed he always leaned on was actually a tarp, he pulled the material away to retrieve a chest tucked away behind.

The chest was pulled out from the little storage space and planted down onto the ground with a thud. Opening it with a grunt, the chest’s content came into view. On top of what looked to be a bunch of medical equipment were two masks, one green and one grey. He took the garments, extending both of the coverings to you and Johnny, his arms outstretched.

“These are for the two of you, so you don’t risk contracting Tarkat.”

"Do we really have to wear these? It looks stupid." Johnny whined, grabbing the grey one with a sigh.

“Liu Kang thought it best to not risk the two of you contracting the disease, or anything similar.”

"What kind of bullshit, man..." Johnny mumbled under his breath as he slipped the mask on. The fabric over his jaw was surprisingly comfortable, the material soft and breathable. He still felt kinda dumb wearing it, though.

In contrast, you had no problem wearing a mask. After your nasty experience with that Tarkat infection you picked up from Shang’s lab, taking precautions against any forms of affliction sounded like a great idea. You took the green mask and slowly put it on. After securing its strap at the nape of your neck, you turned to look at Geras, then at Baraka and Johnny.

Johnny met your gaze. Your lower face covered left only your eyes out on display. Even with half of your face covered, you still looked… beautiful. The way your brown eyes shone in the sunlight made his heart skip a beat. Your long eyelashes only enhanced your beauty, you were so captivating to look at. Green tone complimented your features so well, it was definitely your colour. You’re so beautiful…

When you looked at Geras in that mask, he felt a strange form of familiarity… like he was looking at someone he hadn’t seen in a long time. He didn’t let this show, though. The memories of Kronika’s timeline were just that, memories. No need to dwell on the past.

After a bit, he spoke up. “The three of you are to venture to the colony in the distance and collect DNA samples from the residing Tarkatans, in order to bring back to Liu Kang.”

He turned to Baraka, it was now time for his part in the plan.

“Baraka, you will make your way down to the colony first, and inform everybody of what is to happen. They have already been made aware of our visit, do not expect any pushback. After a few minutes, Johnny and Jade will follow.”

He nodded, the action paired with another one of his grunts. Baraka turned on his heels, headed for his destination, leaving you both alone with your driver. 

“So, we’re just going to the colony, gather some blood, and come back. That’s it?” Johnny crossed his arms, frowning under his mask. An easy mission? No challenge at all? Where’s the action? Where’s the fun? Lame.

Geras nodded, he was emotionless like always. He didn’t understand Johnny’s constant drive for everything to be entertaining. That’s now how life works. “I wish the three of you luck.”

It was all simple. Hopefully, nothing will go wrong or anything like that...

…Right?

彡彡彡

You and Johnny were to wait by the carriage for a bit, so that everything was prepared for the two of you to work as seamlessly as possible.

Johnny turned to you. He was happy that that third wheel was finally gone. Sure, Geras was still there, but he didn’t really count. He was grinning under his mask, something his eyes failed to hide. 

You met his gaze, your eyes narrowing in contrast. “I hope you’re prepared for what’s to come." Yer voice was slightly muffled under her mask, though it was still as cutting as always. “Please don’t say anything that would offend these people, Cage.”

“Why do you always assume I’ll mess up? I’ll have you know I have good manners, missy!” He dramatically placed a hand over his chest, giving you pathetic puppy dog eyes.

“Right, because that’s totally true…” Johnny Cage? Good manners? Ha! Yeah, right! That’s an oxymoron if you ever heard one. Thank the Gods for your mask, you didn’t want Johnny to see that small smirk that planted itself on your jaw.

He rolled his eyes, folding his arms and leaning on the side of the carriage. A moment passed, he took this passage of time to look at the scenery, letting his mind wander a bit. Letting his mind wander to you.

“…Hey, Jade?” His tone had a hint of seriousness, something you don’t hear from him often. It was weird, so out of character.

“Yes?” You turned to face him, your head tilted. “What concerns you?”

Johnny took a moment just to look at you, just thinking of how to word his next sentence. Normally, he’d come out and say whatever was on his mind. But this time was different. He had to pick the right words, otherwise he could mess everything up.

“I just… I just wanted to say I’m sorry.” His voice came out sheepishly, his hand coming to rub at the back of his head. He found it hard to maintain eye contact with you, for some weird reason.

“…For what?” You're confused. Johnny Cage apologising? How odd. Who was this man and what had he done with your companion?

He took a deep breath before continuing. “For all the times we argued with each other. All the times I’d say something rude to you, all the times I’d make some stupid joke about you. I’m… sorry for that.”

This was… actually really sweet of him. Johnny finally being mature and acting like an adult was such a weird sight, it threw you off a little. But him apologising, genuinely too, for all the stupid stuff he’s done was actually kind of admirable, in your eyes.

You stood there for a bit, your eyes staring into his. You… didn’t really know what to say. The fact that he was completely genuine too had you speechless. How do you even respond to this?

“…Thank you.” You paused again, almost as if you were refraining from something. “…I would like to apologise, too.”

“…I…I don’t understand.” He managed to sputter out, dumbfounded. “What do you have to be sorry about?”

“I’m sorry for all the times where I was harsh to you.” You felt a wave of guilt wash over you, his words have you reflecting over the span of your soured relationship with him like you never had before. All the times you were, admittedly, a total bitch to him, all the times you gossiped about him with others like he was dirt on the sole of your shoe, all the times you picked arguments with him, it all came crashing back. Johnny might be irritating, but by the Gods, did he deserve all that? Especially considering that, over these past few weeks, you really got to know him and see past that wall of bravado, past the ‘Johnny Cage’ persona. He wasn’t anywhere near as bad as you always thought him to be.

“We were both unkind to each other. Unfairly, too.” You reached out your hand, for him to shake. “Truce?”

He quickly reached out and took your hand into his, gingerly shaking it, gently grasping your palm in his, the both of your eyes brightening upon the contact. “Truce.” He smiled, nodding his head.

You both shook hands for a little too long. After you each stopped the up-and-down motion of each other’s palm, you just... kind of held each other for a bit. For a few seconds, it seemed that neither of you wanted to break contact. Johnny's hand was so large and warm, it made your stomach explode with butterflies.

It wasn’t until his finger started to unconsciously caress yours that Johnny realised that this ‘handshake’ had been going on for too long. He quickly released his hold on you, letting his hand flop down to his side. He didn’t want to, to be honest, but he did so out of fear of your reaction. His palm felt so empty without yours in it, that was weird. Whatever, nothing he couldn’t brush off. 

You were admittedly a little saddened when he pulled away. There was a part of you that felt a little safe in his grasp... as ridiculous as it sounds. A seasoned assassin feeling 'safe' in the touch of some pompous, loud-mouthed, bratty action star. Ha. What a joke. And yet... that feeling was still there. Weird.

"So... we even?" His voice ripped through your thoughts, pulling you back to reality.

You allowed yourself to chuckle a little, your mask hiding the way your lips curled upwards. "Sure."

"Well..." He said, awkwardly shifting around, putting his hand on the back of his neck, trying to ignore how sweet the sound of your laughter was. "...I guess we're good now, then?"

"I guess so."

Your efforts at hiding your reaction fell through. Your mouth may be hidden, but your eyes gave it all away. There was a certain light in them, your irises were a little brighter than usual. Johnny just couldn't help but tease you about it!

"You think I didn't notice you smiling?"

By the Gods, he found you out! Ugh, this was embarrassing. This was exactly what you didn’t want to happen. You were a little more flustered than you would like to admit, your cheeks turning a shade of pink that was way too strong for your liking.

"...I have no idea what you are talking about."

"Mhm. Keep telling yourself that, princess." He teased further, his grin growing wider at your adversity. 

"You're incredibly irritating, I hope you know that." You huffed, looking away from this nuisance for a bit, biting back a smile.

"So I've been told." He replied in a nonchalant tone, not taking your little diva chide seriously. He was rapidly warming up to this side of you. It was cute, it suited you.

"Hey..." He whispered quietly, shifting a little so that your bodies were closer. He leaned in, the warm fabric of his mask grazing the shell of your ear. "...You know I could say the exact same thing about you, right?"

The blush on your cheeks doubled, maybe even tripled at the sudden proximity change. Damn this man and his… masculine wiles.

"…You know, I-"

The sound of Geras loudly clearing his throat behind you cut off your sentence, and your train of thoughts once again. Great timing on his part.

"You... need something, bud?" Johnny asked, a little bit incensed that whatever he had going on with you was halted. 

“It is time for the two of you to depart.” He gestured to the colony ahead, pointing to the settlement with his finger.

"Right. We'll be on our way now." Johnny said with a nod, turning back around to face you again before taking off. Business always came first, this unfortunately wasn’t an exception.

彡彡彡

The way the carriage was parked, the vehicle was on a perch overlooking the colony. The walk to the settlement would only be a few minutes downhill.

For only a few minutes, Johnny and you were alone. No construct in the background tending to horses, no man-beast always on the verge of a crashout, it was just you.

Walking side by side, the sound of your heeled boots against the hard, rocky ground was loud. For a moment it was the only sound cutting through the silence between. Until Johnny spoke up, of course.

"How long are we gonna walk down this damn hill for?"

“The colony is only over there. It’ll only be a few minutes until we reach it.” You pointed to the settlement in the distance. You turned back to face him, a sliver of mischief dancing in your eyes. “Are you that impatient, Cage?”

"What? Me, impatient?" Johnny scoffed, turning his body to face you. "I prefer the term, 'eager'. I'm eager to stop walking."

You huffed a little. Johnny complaining about a walk that’s only going last such a minuscule amount of time made your eyes roll. How can somebody be this lazy?

“A little walking will do us good. We’ve been confined in that carriage all morning...” You pulled your arms into a stretch, the joints of your shoulder popping a little, a sound you winced at and a sight your companion didn’t hesitate to glue his eyes to.

"Oh, yeah sure, maybe for someone like you. You're agile, flexible, athletic. You have experience in this stuff. I, on the other hand, am an actor. A very good one, mind you, but an actor nonetheless. I do not do a lot of walking.” He crossed his arms in defiance.

“Well… you should. Walking is good for the body and the soul.” Johnny calling you these things had an effect on you that you wouldn’t like to admit, or even acknowledge.

"Yeah, yeah. I know that..." He sighed, rolling his eyes dismissively. You’re such a stick in the mud. No fun, all work. Boring! 

Ah, but Johnny’s thoughts about you being a health nut were quickly replaced by something a bit more… filthy. He smirked under his mask, biting the tip of his tongue before speaking next.

"Walking might be good for the body and the soul, eh?” He stepped closer, bumping your shoulder. “I can name one other thing that’s also good for the body and the soul." He shot you a wink.

“By the Gods…” You’re not an idiot, you knew exactly what he was insinuating. Him and his dirty mind, you’d had your fill of it. You scowled at him through your mask, your eyes darkening before you picked your pace up, walking ahead. You were almost at the colony by this point, there was no point in wasting time by entertaining this man’s drivel.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

You walked through the entrance and met with Baraka, with Johnny catching up and joining the conversation a few moments later. The place didn’t exceed expectations, not that that was a hard task. The whole space was dirty, cramped, crude, primitive and with a certain… smell in the air. Whatever, though. You had a job to do.

Extracting DNA samples from Tarkatans was as glamorous as it sounded. The sight of the compromised up close was a personal encounter of the weird kind to both you and Johnny. As much as you felt sympathy for the afflicted, there was a sliver of disgust within you that you just couldn’t seem to subside. Thank the Gods that you were wearing a mask, you weren’t really sure how the Tarkatans would take the grimace on your lips.

Speaking of the Tarkatans, their skin was surprisingly hard. You almost broke a few of the syringe needles whilst trying to insert them for blood tests. The fact that some of them had small spikes protruding from their bodies creeped you out, not that you were vocal about it. 

Unsurprisingly, you ended up doing most of the work. To be fair, Johnny wasn’t entirely useless. But by the hour, you had gotten through about five times as many Tarkatans as he did. Oh well. At least he tried.

By now, a few hours have passed. You both were pretty much done by this point, you each had received more than enough samples to take back to Liu Kang. You were satisfied, Johnny was happy that it was over, the Tarkatans were fine and Baraka was overseeing everything operate with his arms crossed. What could go wrong?

You were in a secluded area of the colony, cleaning yourself up a little as well as packing away some of the medical equipment you worked with. That was… the most disgusting thing that you had to do in a while. But it needed to be done. You should be honoured that Liu Kang personally had selected you for a mission, no matter what it was. A cold shower and a nice mug of hot chocolate awaited you back at Sun Do, the thought of the simple pleasures to come bringing a smile to your face.

Your daydreams were interrupted by the sound of footsteps coming from behind. The sound of feet colliding against the ground grew louder as the owner approached. Ugh. You were expecting to see Johnny and his stupid grin behind you. What childish, depraved thing was going to come out of his mouth now?

Imagine your surprise when your eyes settled on a Tarkatan, that wasn’t Baraka, standing behind you. He wasn’t Baraka, but he was still built like him. Tall, toned and with the same amount of large and jagged teeth. His blood-red eyes were fixated on you, taking in every detail in front of him. From your slender body to your beautiful face, even if it was half covered. He was in awe. There was something about you that was so ravishing, jaw-dropping. He was entranced, quietly growling as he didn’t dare to break eye contact with you.

For a while, you both just… stared at each other. From the way his eyes moved around, you could tell that you had caught this… person’s interest. You were admittedly a little creeped out, silently wishing that you were being approached by Johnny instead of… this.

“Uh… can I help you?” Your voice was shaky, your mask hiding a small grimace.

“You are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid my eyes on.” He breathed out, his raspy voice filled with desire. His eyes narrowed as he looked at you, just taking the time to drink you in.

You didn’t really know how to respond. Of course, you had been subject to men showing interest in you before, you literally work with Johnny Cage of all people. But this time… it felt different. This man flirting with you wasn’t like Johnny’s dumb attempts at seduction. It was more primal, animalistic. There was something about his voice and demeanour that made a shiver run down your spine.

“…Thank you?”

A low laugh came from him at that. He inched closer, slowly, ignoring your obvious discomfort. “You are Edenian?” He asked, his eyes continuing to rove over your body.

“No… I’m from Earthrealm…” You took a few steps backwards. The way his eyes were so clearly full of lust was sickening. The sound of his laugh sent a stomach-churning mix of fear and disgust through your being.

The way your widened eyes were fixed on him, your body language uneasy, it all sent a spike of adrenaline through his body. In a twisted sense, the fear in your eyes turned him on. He inched even closer, continuously closing any established distance between you two.

“You’re beautiful… like an angel…” His hand slowly lifted, reaching out to you.

Whatever this guy was feeling, it was certainly not mutual. You swallowed your fear. You weren’t doing this. Not here, not now and certainly not with this… beast. Quickly, but not aggressively, you moved his hand away. His razor-sharp nails against the material of your gloves made you wince under your mask, you did not want those talons anywhere near you.

“I apologise, but I am not interested.” Your voice was firm, you weren’t going to sugarcoat your rejection or mollycoddle this grown man. Why the hell should you?

His heart dropped. This… wasn’t the reaction he was expecting. In his mind, you were supposed to be swooning over him. You were supposed to be his new mate. But no… you rejected him. Was he not attractive? You’re so beautiful, too beautiful for him to accept no for an answer.

His face darkened, his lips would’ve pulled up into a snarl if he still had them. Why weren’t you interested? Why? No, this wasn’t an option. 

How dare you reject him?!

“What, you think you’re too good for me? Is that it?!“ He growled, tens of his sharp fangs on full display. The lust in his eyes was replaced by hate, fury. His growls became louder and less subtle, his fingers started to curl a little as he stared you down.

The uneasiness in you switched into fear just like that. Whatever attention was on the equipment being packed up subsequently vanished, it was all now on this beast in front of you. You adjusted your stance, steadying yourself, just in case the worst would happen.

With another growl, he drew out his arm blades. He dragged the spikes against each other, a spark dancing across their sharp edges as a result of contact. He stepped even closer to you, his eyes raking over your body one more time. He was ready to claim what he viewed as rightfully his.

Oh shit. The fear in your veins instantly went into overdrive. You readied yourself, taking on a fighting stance as a hand flew to your compacted bō staff, strapped to your hip. A nasty wave of dread swept through you when the weapon wouldn't detach. The damn thing was stuck, even with both of your hands now pulling, it just wouldn't fucking come off.

You heard him chuckle, the sound dark, ugly and nasty. You looked absolutely pathetic to him, struggling to unattach that glow stick with shaking hands. You were completely helpless, it made the bastard feel powerful.

Taking advantage of your incapacity, he rushed forward. You were so focused on trying to get this stupid staff off of your side that there was nothing you could do in time to stop him. His foot slammed itself into your torso, the sound of the collision produced a sickening thump that echoed around the secluded space housing you two. He watched with a twisted sense of accomplishment as you flew backwards, crashing against a wall of rocks with a thud. A stifled grunt of pain seeped through gritted teeth, your back exploding in pain upon contact. He hadn't kicked you hard enough to break a rib, but he had knocked the wind clean out of your lungs.

The beast stalked forward, pride in his eyes, closing the distance between you two again, slowly. Low growls were emanating from his nasty mouth, like a predator cornering its prey. You were presumably a skilled warrior, but right now you had no weapon nor fighting chance against him.

“Look at you now…” He was mocking you, eyeing your crumpled form up and down. “So helpless. All mine.”

"Get... away... from me..." You couldn't bring yourself to stand up. You tried, but the pain in your body didn’t allow it. You couldn't even raise your voice above a whisper, screaming for help was unfortunately out of the question. Your right hand was still weakly trying to detach your bō, not that you could’ve successfully fended the creature off if you could deploy your weapon. You were in no state to fight, but you still tried. All you could do was watch on in fear as he came to crouch down in front of you, his eyes ablaze with a disgusting combination of dark lust and filthy amusement. His shadow loomed over your weakened frame. He chuckled once again, his face only inches from yours now. His breath was hot against your face, it was disgusting.

He reached out a hand, his coarse fingers grabbing your face forcibly. With a loud snarl, he ran a nail down your cheek, the sharp claw leaving a thin red line in its nasty trail. You yelped out in pain, as loud as your damaged lungs could manage. The feeling of his talon slowly cutting through your skin was agonising, you could feel the blood starting to pool out from the fresh wound. Your hands were weakly, but desperately pawing and shoving at his chest. The little strength you had was being spent trying to get this cretin away from you. The fact that it was very much a futile effort was heartbreaking.

He tore your mask off with ease, discarding the item somewhere behind him. You were completely defenceless now, laid beneath him, powerless. He had you completely at his mercy. He took sadistic pleasure in watching you struggling, your writhing was feeble and useless.

"I shall enjoy this..." He stood up, fumbling with his pants.

Gods. This was it. It was so unfortunately clear what was about to happen, and you could do nothing to stop it. You were paralysed, partly because he had kicked the wind out of you and partly because of how fucking terrified you were right now. All you could do was watch your would-be assaulter fumble with the string keeping his pants up in horror. You were trying to brace yourself for the seemingly imminent reality of what was going to happen, but by the Elder Gods it was horrible.

Your eyes clenched shut, a tear droplet made its way down the side of your face as you tried desperately to block this out. The sound of the Tarkatan's low laugh rang in your ears, it had your heart convulsing.

Thankfully, by some miracle, this wasn't going to happen. Not now, not ever. The noise of your near-abuser’s laughter was replaced by sounds of... struggle? Your eyes flicked open to see what was happening. Elder Gods above, the sight before you sent such a strong surge of relief through your body. You choked on the gulp of air you inhaled. Never in your life did you think you would be so happy to see him of all people.

There, pulling and wrestling the Tarkatan away from you, was Johnny.

彡彡彡

Johnny was cleaning himself up from the mess he had just been in. He was relieved that this mess was over already. Finally. He just wanted to take a hot shower and a nap. But that’s not an option just yet. Soon, though.

He had just finished packing up his share of the equipment when he overheard what sounded like struggling coming from a corner. Weird… maybe a couple of Tarkatans were play fighting, or something? The strange noises, paired with the fact that he hadn't seen you in a while, raised a cause of concern for him. You’re a capable fighter, that he knew, but it couldn't hurt to go and see what this noise was about... right?

Imagine his surprise when he found a Tarkatan fumbling with his pants, towering over a bruised, battered, helpless you.

In an instant, Johnny ran forward and threw himself over your attacker. His arms were firmly wrapped around the beast’s neck, yanking it backwards roughly, ripping the monster off of you. He was livid, it was written all over his face. He fully understood what was happening.

The creature stumbled backwards, regaining his balance. It wasn't until he turned around to face his own attacker did he realise that he was face-to-face with your companion, that man you walked in here with.

Uh oh. As soon as the realization dawned, the creature's lust was replaced by fear. He would’ve pissed himself right now, if he could. Johnny was much more built than him, and the way his face was just so twisted with rage was honestly scary.

Before he could say anything, his face was met with Johnny's fist smashing into it. Blood and a few teeth flew in all directions, a groan of pain was beaten from the beast. It stumbled back from the sheer force of the hit, clutching its damaged face. No words needed to be spoken, Johnny’s actions did all the talking. He stared down the animal writhing in pain, his eyes nearly black with rage. There was no way this monster was going to lay a hand on you.

A fight ensued.

Well, to be more accurate, it was less of a fight and more of a beatdown. Johnny rained punch after punch after punch down on your attacker, enraged that that this thing had tried, and almost succeeded, in violating you. With every hit, every scream, his knuckles became more and more soaked with blood. Not that he cared, though. His sole focus was on teaching this bastard a lesson.

This Tarkatan was no match for Johnny on a good day and was even less of a match for an enraged version of him. He didn't even get a hit in, Johnny was just too fast and too strong. A brutal couple of minutes would pass by. By the time Johnny decided that he was done, a light sheen of sweat glimmered on his forehead. He was catching his breath, wiping his now-soaked knuckles on his sides. He stood over the bloody, broken body of your almost-assaulter, still furious.

It lay unresponsive on the ground, where it had been pushed. The creature's face and chest were completely doused with blood, shallow breaths escaped its mouth as its body started the slow process of repairing all of the damages inflicted. Both of its eyes were blackened and swollen, its nose was flattened beyond belief, the epicentre of the mess that previously was its face. That damn thing almost took advantage of you. It.. it wanted to do things to you. The thought of it all angered him more than he thought possible.

When he finally caught his bearings, Johnny looked over at you. Your eyes met his as he sprinted over, your pupils still wide and dilated. “Are you alright?" He knelt down, his tone a lot softer than usual. The sight of you injured tore at his chest, the feeling like a knife to the heart. 

This whole time, you were watching the ordeal in shock. From when Johnny pulled the Tarkatan away from you to when he hit the creature for the last time, you bore witness to the whole thing. You saw it all, the way he rapidly pummelled his fists into the beast's face was incredibly scary to watch. Looking at the aftermath, the beast lying unconscious and battered on the ground, it made you feel sick. Johnny had rounded the corner at the right time. Without him... you didn't even want to imagine what would've happened. He had saved you.

His face was splattered with blood, his hair was messy and undone. And yet, his eyes were full of concern. Concern, and worry. He placed his hands on your arms, gently hoisting you up. It hurt as you moved, you winced as positions switched. The area in where you had been kicked was incredibly sensitive and Johnny noticed this, he took great care in how he moved you around. His eyes roamed your frame. He wanted to get a closer look at where you had suffered. He stepped closer to you, barely suppressing the urge to wrap you in his arms.

"What hurts?" He asked, voice uncharacteristically gentle and soft.

You didn't say anything in response, only pointing to your sternum and the cut on your cheek. You were regaining your breath, the capacity of your breaths slowly increasing. The thought of what that Tarkatan would've done if Johnny didn't show up was running through your mind, much to your dismay.

He reached out, the back of his fingers gently tracing the damage on your face. A small grimace worked its way onto his face at the feeling of the disturbed skin underneath his touch. He held the unblemished side of your face, the fact that you both were going to have matching facial scars had his stomach twist in despair. 

The sting of your injuries, the sight of the bloody body a few feet away, the mental images of that beast having its way with you, even Johnny's gentle touch, it was all too much. You really didn't want to cry in front of him, but you couldn’t stop your face starting to scrunch up, nor could you halt your vision blurring with tears.

Without thinking, you threw yourself into his embrace. Your arms wrapped around his neck as you buried your face into his shoulder. An attempt to stop yourself from breaking.

He wasn’t expecting this at all. His body tensed up, he had expected a cold, heartless response to his touches and his questions, as usual, not… this. He wouldn’t dare reject this, though. As gently as he could, he wrapped his own arms around you, being especially careful around your injured midsection. His heart broke as he felt you tighten your grip around him. He pulled you closer, pressing you into him.

Surprisingly, Johnny was a great hugger. His body was so firm, he felt so warm. It was really nice. You felt a feeling of safety in his arms, the fear flowing through you subsiding.

For a few moments, you both just stood there, in each other’s embrace. You allowed yourself to cry a little, the spot on Johnny’s shoulder where your head was resting now a little wet with tears. He just stood there holding you, his hand slowly rubbing your back. You felt so comfortable in his embrace, the feeling of him surrounding you near-euphoric. You fit in his arms better than you would like to admit.

You were the one to break the silence, not being able to stand the deafening lack of sound in the air anymore. A small, meek, quiet "thank you" slipped from your lips, you whispered the words right into Johnny's ear. You spoke so gently, so shyly, that Johnny would’ve missed it if your head wasn’t so close to his ear. His heart skipped a beat at the sound. So soft and vulnerable. It made him feel protective. Like he was your protector. He wanted to hold you there forever, to keep you safe from anything that sought to harm you.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

The walk back to the carriage was a quiet one. You and Johnny quickly left after all of the samples and medical equipment had been gathered up. The two of you had enough to do with Tarkatans for one week. You couldn't even bring yourself to look at the other afflicted people as you were getting ready to leave the colony, even though they did nothing to you. The similarities between them and your would-be rapist were just too much.

The whole trek back, Johnny was by your side, a little closer than usual. Not that you objected, though. You felt better with him close by you. You even allowed him to sling his arm around you, cradling you against his side.

Prior to leaving, you had instructed him to not tell Baraka, Geras or Liu Kang about what had transpired. The thought of the three men, especially Liu Kang, expressing pity for yourself just didn't sit well with you. Despite everything that had happened, your stubbornness still had the reins. You have a reputation to uphold, and nothing would falter it.

Baraka, meanwhile, was walking in front of you both. He didn’t know what had happened, but he picked up on how you guys were strangely silent. That, and the weird red line on your cheek. You seemed detached from reality, in the middle of a cloud of melancholy, whilst Johnny was looking over at you, his face all crestfallen. Baraka didn’t want to pry - instead, he just chalked up your negative moods to the hours of work you had completed. In his eyes, Earthrealmers were weak and puny. It would make sense that such endeavours would leave you two feeling so tired.

If only he knew what actually happened in the colony.

Just like the walk back, the carriage ride was also silent. You occupied yourself by looking out of the window, slightly disassociating as Outworld’s nature rolled by you. Your face was neutral, as always - though, your thoughts suggested something else. Your brain was trying to block out all of the past hour, your mind trying hard. The thought of that… thing having its way with you was disgusting. The idea of his hands on your body made your face convulse every now and then. Silently, you thanked whatever Elder God was watching over you in the moment, for whatever sign they gave Johnny to intervene.

Try as you might, you couldn’t help but think about everything. Your chest and cheek were still aching, an unfortunate reminder of the damage that beast inflicted on you. Yet, most of your focus wasn’t on that. It was on Johnny. You couldn’t stop thinking about how he so bravely stepped in and stopped the worst from happening. It was him who helped you up and comforted her. Johnny was your saviour. 

He was amazing.

Speaking of, he was on his phone, of course. But every now and then, he glanced over at you. He couldn’t help all the questions flooding his brain. What were you thinking about? Were you still in shock from everything? Were you scared? Were you in pain? He wanted to know so badly. He wanted to help, in any way he could.

Unconsciously, Johnny’s eyes kept going back to your facial injury, as much of it he could see in the window’s reflection. He didn’t even realise he was staring, but as soon as he did, he had to force himself to stop looking at it. He tried to. Seeing the discolouration of your usually flawless skin made his heart ache. His eyes travelled south to your chest, the place where you were struck. All of it, it made him want to reach out and touch, to soothe and comfort you somehow.

Instinctively, you turned around, swivelling your head to face Johnny next to you. Something in you wanted to capture a glimpse of him - what you didn’t expect, however, was him to also be looking at you.

The two of you locked eyes, looking at each other’s visages for a moment. You and him were staring at one another, the both of you simultaneously tried to figure out what to say next. If at all.

Johnny is… so incredibly handsome. Finally, you saw this. His chiselled jawline, his perfect lips, his beautiful brown eyes, his Roman nose, everything. You were tired of repressing the fact that he’s an extremely good-looking man. Denying facts makes them no less real. Johnny was amazing, a great man. Annoying and immature, but in this moment you really didn’t care.

You smiled at him. A warm, kind expression of happiness spread across your face, directed towards Johnny and Johnny alone. You weren’t a fan of expressing emotions, but you couldn’t help but make an exception in this case. You were grateful, appreciative, thankful for what Johnny had done for you.

That smile, your face lighting up, it sent a shiver down his body. He smiled back at you, returning the gesture. You’re so beautiful like this, it made his heart skip a beat. He wanted to replay this moment forever, for time to stop like this or for one of the Elder Gods to sear the image before him into his brain, like a branding. For a work of art like you, this wasn’t asking much.

You blushed, quickly spinning your head back around to the carriage window. He once again made you all flustered, eugh. You couldn’t help but feel all gushy inside, it was sweet gross. The logical part of your mind was chastising you, a stern voice reprimanding your reaction. Damn it. This was Johnny Cage, an arrogant, annoying, pompous Hollywood brat. You were above this!

Right?

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

The rest of the day panned out fairly normally. Well, as normal as the given circumstances permitted.

It was late afternoon. You and Johnny were still in the carriage, now only minutes away from Sun Do’s gates. Geras was kind enough to take a little detour and drop Baraka off at his own colony on the way back. It was only at the cost of an extra hour added onto the total journey, not a big deal. Whilst exiting, Baraka bid you a warm, slightly feral, goodbye. He also bid Johnny a… not so warm and slightly more feral goodbye. You held back a laugh at that.

By now, you and Johnny were still in the carriage. For the first time today, the two of you were truly alone. You and him were still sitting next to each other - though, not much was being said. As usual, his attention was deep into his phone, and you were just staring out of the window. You were nearly back home by now, all you could do was wait.

Basic celebrity news, dry and unfunny memes and people throwing fits over the most mundane of things presented itself to Johnny as he scrolled through Twitter, his thumb mindlessly dragging across the screen. All that adrenaline from earlier had long since died down, everything was all just quite boring now.

The nature outside, though lovely, wasn’t enough to occupy you. You turned to face Johnny, your expression mostly neutral as you stared at him silently. His side profile was so handsome, there was something about the way he looked so concentrated that made your stomach feel all warm. You wanted to say something, anything, to fill this silence and numb your boredom, but he beat you to it.

"You gonna take a picture or what?” He turned to face you, a snarky smirk on his face. “It’ll last longer."

You chuckled, shaking your head slightly. There was that classic Johnny Cage arrogance that you knew and loved.

"No, really, you can take a picture. I’m sure you have a huge shrine of me back at your place."

Now you laughed. The back of your hand went to cover your mouth, you couldn’t help it. How can one be so self-deluded?

“In your dreams!”

Your laughter egged him on further, his smile broadening. “Oh, come on! I got no doubt that you’ve got a whole room dedicated to pics of me. I bet you’ve got my figure cut out of magazines and pinned to your bedroom wall.”

"Your delusion astounds! How could you think me so depraved?"

"Don’t even deny it, princess! I’m handsome and I’m a global martial arts icon. Which girl doesn’t have a little picture of me in their bedroom?" He shot you a wink, his pearly white teeth shining in the evening light.

You scoffed, looking away. This man’s arrogance was really starting to get on your nerves. You weren’t as incensed as usual, though. Weird!

For a few minutes, silence hung in the air. The only audible sound was the trundle of the carriage wheels on the dirt path outside. You resumed your gazing out of the window,  trying hard to focus on the scenery outside and not how much the light of the sunset suited Johnny’s features. Even more weird.

The main focus of your repressed thoughts observed you from his position as much as he could currently. Like usual, he was having a good laugh at your expense. You always took the bait, without fail, and it was great! A frustrated Jade was a really fun sight to witness. The way your face twisted in displeasure, how your hands would start balling up whenever he said something stupid, it was all so great. A frustrated Jade was also incredibly cute, he had to admit.

As the quiet began to settle once again over the carriage, Johnny’s eyes instinctively travelled downwards, to the floor. He was calming down, but the memories of today replayed throughout his mind. His face became a lot more solemn when everything that happened earlier came back, rearing its ugly head. Remembering you on the ground, that creature towering over you, it made him feel sick. He had no regrets about beating that thing senseless.

He couldn't bear the silence anymore, it was deafening. He turned back to you, speaking up to get your attention.

“Jade.”

You pried your eyes off of the woods and towards Johnny, turning around. The lack of that dumb smirk on his face that was always there drew the remainder of your focus onto him. A serious Johnny was weird, borderline unsettling. You didn't say anything, your curious expression did all the speaking.

“You, uh…you doing okay? After… after what happened earlier?” His eyes slowly scanned your face, staring at you for a bit too long than what would be considered normal.

Your face screwed up a little upon recollection of the afternoon's events. You were brought back the way that Tarkatan rushed forward and kicked you down, the fear coursing through your immobile body as you watched him attempt to take off his pants, laughing like something was funny. It was horrible, even if only for a half-second.

"...I'll manage." Your voice was low, vulnerable, honest. You looked down for a bit, almost as if to gather your thoughts, before looking back up to face him again. “…Thank you for stepping in." You reached out and lightly placed a hand over Johnny's, much to his surprise. A warm smile bloomed on your face, your eyes looking at him just as bright. "You fought bravely today."

His eyes darted down, to your hand on his lap. You’d just initiated physical contact with him, wow. His heart was going crazy at this. This type of contact, while completely unexpected, was very much welcome. It made him happy. 

"Yeah… I know I did." He found himself unable to resist the opportunity to do some more light teasing, but know that it came from a place of love.

You scoffed, your spirits lifted by this man’s typical arrogance. "Are you incapable of acting modestly for once in your life?"

"Modesty? Me? Nah, you have the wrong guy. I’m the great Johnny Cage, baby! Modesty ain’t in my genes!" His smile widened, his thumbs rising to point at himself.

You laughed again, this time loudly. The sound bounced around the carriage, it rang in his ears, making a pretty shade of pink flush on his cheeks. You were so tired of repressing your need to laugh at Johnny and whatever he had to say. He was funny, both unintentionally and intentionally. Funny, and completely unbelievable.

“Johnny Cage, you are the most arrogant man I have ever encountered."

"Oh, that just makes me that much more charming, darlin’." He chuckled, leaning back, smirking at his rhyme.

There was something about the way he said that last word that made your stomach flutter. Johnny was so effortlessly sexy, damn him and his charm. You had to temporarily look away from him, lest that warm feeling in the pit of your belly flare up again, rearing its unwanted head.

After a moment, you turned back around, meeting him and his smug smile. Maybe your rosy cheeks weren’t as noticeable as you thought they were.

"I-" You were cut off by the carriage suddenly coming to a halt, the recoil sending both you and Johnny back into your seats, your bodies pushing against the soft material of the bench backs. You had to put a hand on the way to stabilize yourself. The vehicle stopping was definitely a nasty surprise, but not a reason for concern. You both had been through this enough times, you knew what this meant by now. A wave of relief washed over you upon the realisation that you were finally back in Sun Do.

As expected, heavy footsteps could be heard making their way from the front of the carriage to its door. A few seconds later, said door swung open to reveal Geras on the other side. He stood in the doorway, the light of the setting sun behind him making him look even more imposing. The look on his face was unchanging and stoic, the man just had a resting unchanging face 24/7.

He and Johnny locked eyes with one another for a few seconds, a somewhat challenging look in the latter’s eyes. Geras meant no harm, nor did he ever harbour any bad intentions, but Johnny couldn't help but feel a little uneasy whenever he was around. To be fair, the man couldn't be blamed. Subtlety was not one of the construct's traits. And those glowing, emotionless blue eyes that would stare down at him were just-

The same couldn't be said for you, though. You liked Geras, he was great. There was really nothing to dislike about your frequent driver. In a way, you found his emotionless nature comforting. You smiled at him as you two locked eyes, an action that he mirrored. You should feel lucky, he only smiled with certain people. He liked you, you’re nice to him and you’re sensible, unlike your partner, your partner who couldn't help but feel a small pang of jealousy when he saw this. Why was this… robot thing also worthy of your beautiful smile?

"Good evening to you both. We have arrived back in Sun Do." Geras announced, his deep and gruff voice piercing the silence.

You nodded. You turned to Johnny, your smile still on your face. “Come on." You whispered, making a 'follow me' gesture with your hand as you got up.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

Some time later, the two of you had just finished debriefing Liu Kang on the day’s events, as well as presenting him with the DNA samples collected.

You purposely omitted your encounter, falsely telling Liu Kang that the cut on your cheek was the result of a stumble. You couldn’t have him know the truth. No, not ever. You hated keeping secrets from your superior, but some things are your burden and yours only. The mere thought of his face twisting with pity, or even worse, disappointment, made your stomach churn.

“Thank you for your work, both of you.” He smiled at you both when you were done, pleased with everything so far. Liu Kang stood up now. After placing the samples on a table, he walked over to the door, opening it and gesturing for you and Johnny to make your exit.

The sound of your boots echoed throughout the halls of the manor. You and him were on the way to your rooms, there was really nothing else to do for the rest of the day. Both of you desired to get out of these scratchy and tight uniforms, to slip into something more casual.

You massaged your still-sore torso, your hand gently pressing on the bruised area. The pain was dulling, but it still hurt. Thank the Gods he hadn’t broken a rib or something. Johnny saw this, saw the discomfort on your face as you rubbed circles into your chest, wincing. A part of him hated seeing you in pain like this. He felt like he had failed to protect you, though he quickly shook those thoughts from his head. He knew that you would likely grow irritated if he kept fawning. That’s just how you were. He wanted to lighten the mood a little, thinking of something to say to break the silence.

"Got any plans for tonight?" The classic Cage smirk met you when you craned your head to look at him.

“I plan to wash and rest.” You admitted, your attention being taken off of your damaged body, just as he had wanted.

Johnny chuckled at your answer. Typical you, not a fun bone in your body. It's almost endearing. Almost. "Really? No fun plans? No parties, no dates?" He taunted, a small grin on his lips.

“None of the sort, Johnny.” There was something about his zest for life that was amusing, admirable. He was so unlike most of the no-nonsense monks and assassins that you knew. In a way, it was a little refreshing. Though irritating, he was actually fun to be around. Though you tried otherwise, you couldn’t help but smile a tiny bit at his remarks. “What about you?”

"Me? Oh, I don’t know..." He stalled, stuffing his hands into his pockets, looking around the corridor. "Might go and see Kitana, if she’s around…"

Ah. The mention of her name wiped that smile off of your face. It had slipped your mind on how Kitana and Johnny were hooking up, the reminder sending such a nasty pang through your being. The mental image of them fucking made you more upset than you would like to admit. Your face hardened. There was something about how he was so casual about it all, like it was just another part of his day, that you just couldn’t stand.

"You know, last time we saw each other was yesterday, at the training grounds...“ He didn’t notice your change in expression, too focused on the memory of his cock sheathed in her yesterday. He chuckled lowly. “We had a great time, we trained a little, some sparring. And then when we were alone-”

You cut him off mid-sentence. "You do realise that Sindel would have you jailed if she found out about your relations with her daughter, right?”

“…What, are you gonna snitch on me?" He chuckled, looking over at you. You seemed… mad. Upset at something. Huh. Weird.

For a moment, you considered the possibility, honest to the Gods. The brief mental image of Johnny being thrown into the jails for his discretions made you want to smile a little. The other brief mental image of Kitana being punished for going so low as to court an Earthrealmer made you actually smile a little. This chance to change it all in your favour was in your lap. Hm…

Nah. You dismissed those thoughts as soon as they sprung up. There was no point in creating such a massive amount of drama. Besides, how would Johnny being imprisoned benefit you? It was dumb, it was stupid.

"Jealous?” The man of the hour leaned forward, cutting off your brainstorming by invading your personal space, wearing a grin.

"Ugh, no." You re-established the distance between, a small scowl on your face as you leaned away from him.

"Aw, I think you are! I think you’re jealous that Kitana has my attention, huh?" He teased you more, your perception of his smirk souring rapidly.

He was right, damn him, but you didn't let him know that. Why would you ever? You couldn't even admit to yourself that you were indeed envious of their intimacy. And yet... whenever the subject of the two was brought up, you couldn't help but react with concealed anger. You felt a sliver of possessiveness over Johnny, like you were the only woman he should flirt with. To know that he was also fawning over another, and that said other held a mutual interest, it made you upset. It didn’t feel right.

Why? What was this? Why did you-

Your thoughts were interrupted when the end of the corridor came up. You’d reached the split that divides your quarters and his. This is where you part ways.

“Well, looks like this is where we part ways.” Johnny gave you a charming smile, one that he hoped would elicit some sort of reaction.

You turned to face him, your face blank like always. You didn’t say anything, nothing he wanted, only nodding slightly in response.

“Aww, nothing to say, princess? You’re gonna miss me, is that it?” He took your lack of response as an opportunity to poke some fun at you, his smile widening. This was such a fun little game.

You groaned, rolling your eyes. He’s so annoying, why did you allow him to get under your skin like this? "You are delusional."

"Aw, come on! Don’t be like that, Jadey! You know you’re gonna miss me tonight~”

You didn’t say anything as you walked away. You were reaching the limit for your Johnny Cage tolerance today. A long shower and a warm bed, without the presence of this clown, awaited you. Why deny it any longer?

"Alright, you don’t have to admit it! See you later, princess!" He called out to you, the volume of his voice getting louder as you got further. He snickered to himself as he watched you enter your room, shutting your door with a huff. You’re just so cute!

He also entered his room, closing his door with a loud sigh. He began to undress, a process he had been looking forward to for the whole day. Getting out of that uncomfortable suit was a relief. His muscles ached, he could feel his knuckles still slightly throbbing. The back of his hands were still a little sore after what had happened today. He threw his uniform onto the clothes pile, changing into something more loose and casual.

All the while, he was thinking about you. He chuckled at the way your pretty face screwed up when he spoke about Kitana earlier. It was funny. He never pegged you for the jealous type, but he did peg you as the type to deny continuously. If only you were a good liar.

The grin on his face faded a little when his thoughts shifted from you to Kitana. His blood pumped a little harder as the thought of the princess overtook him. Lust was starting to cloud his mind, his shaft starting to harden for her.

He was definitely seeing her tonight.

彡彡彡

Johnny’s husky laughter was the last thing you heard as you slammed your door shut. Now, you were alone. Completely and truly. Free from anyone’s gaze and range of hearing.

For a few moments, you just… stood there. A thick veil of silence cloaked you, it had to in order to process the day you just had. Today… Gods, it was a lot. You were just happy to be back in your chambers, finally safe. A long sigh made its way out of your parted lips as you let go of all the stress that had been built up. Your uniform, it suddenly felt so heavy and sticky. A shower was due.

Now, you were undressed, in the shower. This time, you couldn’t bare the thought of a usual cold shower. No… not this evening. The comfort of warmth seemed ten times better than the iciness of cold water.

You sighed as the warm water from above ran over your body, cascading down your skin. It felt nice, so cosy. The mild sting of your facial cut subsided, the water numbed the pain excellently. A tiny smile spread across your face, but it didn’t last for long. You stood motionless under the stream of water, for how long? Unknown. You were zoning out, processing the terrible twenty-four hours you had been through.

No one was around. You allowed yourself to release the grasp you always had on your composure. You allowed yourself to cry. Your tears washed away with the water but your quiet sobs echoed around the small bathroom. Your arms wrapped around your body. There was nobody left in your life to comfort yourself but… you. Today was one of the worst days you’d had in a while, you were so tired of bottling up your feelings. You wanted a break, some time to relax and breathe.

This was one of the times when you let your repressed thoughts take control. Why? Why did my life turn out like this? How did this all happen? Why was fate so cruel to me? All I want right now is to be a little girl again, running along the beach near home and playing with little Hiroshi. Back when life was peaceful, happy, without worry or pain.

Fuck.

A/N: this was a bit of a darker chapter but i hope you liked it regardless :) i listened to chappell roan whilst completing this so that’s why every line hits like a car crash, 100% recommend

the link to the video they were laughing at: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C7I6RXTsREh/?igsh=aDQ4OWVpcTY1MWp2

[kan-be]

Hii!! Um I’m just curious about how you draw anatomy :D I absolutely LOVELOVELOVEEE your artstyle along with the coloring!! If you’re fine with it, can you give a breakdown how you draw anatomy? Or maybe how you suggest learning how to draw anatomy better- DW I UNDERSTAND IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SHARE THAT‼️ Either way it’s nice looking at your art and learning from it!!

hii!! ty ty that’s very sweet of you to say 😭💕

I’m actually not that good at anatomy myself and if I have to draw parts of naked body I surround myself with references 🥴 in any other case I just use blocks to make a rough sketch which I then dress up like a doll, so it’s not so much about anatomy as it is about proportions and shapes (which I suggest to learn first thing bc that’s what we started with at art school :p)

I really don’t think you need to know the name and exact form of every bone from the bottom to the top to draw people well enough, IMO all you need as a core except for named above are the very general things like the way leg bones connect with pelvic bones, or the rib cage shape and how it can differ, or, for example, those anchor points where the bones are practically not hidden by anything, like the collarbones or upper anterior iliac spine and etc etc. what I’m trying to say is you don’t have to memorise skeleton and all the muscles in all details, especially in the beginning 🤓

in terms or advices I probably won’t say anything new: when I get an annual urge to learn anatomy more or need a reference I go through Anatomy for Sculptores since everything is very clearly shown there or straight to youtube and watch channels like Proko. he actually has a very useful practice in homework to find muscles or bones on a photo and draw it on top/separately. I myself rarely do it and I’m ashamed bc when I actually did it was so helpful for understanding 😭

I also have a few pinterest boards for anatomy and love to look at pics like these, gives me a better understanding of volumes and the way shading should go

I tried to read Bammes too but it has A LOT of (not so necessary on practice IMO) info (and a lot of typos in russian version) which is too much for my one and only braincell and I can’t remember a single thing for a dear life of mine from there 😭😭😭 schemes are good tho 🤓

heard good things about Figure drawing, Design and Invention by Michael Hampton and Morpho series (especially Simplified Forms) by Michel Lauricella but haven’t gotten my hands on them yet

I actually have this recs from someone on IG, can’t remember who it was sadly

and ofc looking at and drawing real ppl helps not only to understand how anatomy works but also how our body parts can hugely differ, even if it’s the exact same muscle

anyways sorry for a lot of letters, here is an edit of different sketches I have in timelapses, you can see how I usually do them 👀 I also tend to be lazy and sketch things without refs just to get confused on a rendering stage and redo anatomy on top with refs so I added one full timelapse just to show it 🤓

[cephalotyrant]

Hello it feels like heaven just descended on me I've been thinking these points for ages...

I definitely also fell into the "These women are evil and their male counterparts are victims" rhetoric when I first started out looking for/creating twst content but that was also because it's so... prevalent?? The Cater tag is absolutely SWAMPED with the same rehashes of the same "Cinderella" sob story. Cater's mom literally gets turned into Mrs.Rosehearts 2.0, like Cater doesnt already have his own set of angst that, noticeably, gets overshadowed to paint a "Mom and sisters bad" narrative. Do you know how difficult it'd be to raise three children, do an activity that includes all of them, (baking, in this case) without anyone to help you because you move every 2 years? You can't call grandpa and grandma or uncle or aunt to babysit and take off the load for a few hours, theyre a whole ocean away. By the time you get comfortable and settle into the neighborhood, you're already packing your bags to move onto the next. We hardly even know anything about Cater's family, which makes it even more insulting.

And Mrs.Rosehearts is a famous, highly respected doctor and figure in her community. She would NOT believe in things like essential oils, isn't a "social climbler"— we never even see what she is as a person outside of Riddle's perspective— or shelter Riddle from sex ed (he's going to he a DOCTOR. HE'D HAVE TO KNOW ABOUT SEX IN PARTICULAR FROM A MEDICAL STANDPOINT ABSBMA.) And when it comes to Mr.Rosehearts, he's a victim, or busy with work, or Mrs.Rosehearts divorced him and prevents him from contacting Riddle (Riddle says his parents don't get along/they attend parties as a family. They are still "one unit".) but, oh, "He goes behind his wife's back to give encouraging words to his son if he can!!!" this is a man who failed to show up to his 8 year old's birthday even when there's clearly a plate left out for him. An attentive father would notice how meek his son in in the face of his mother and notice that he's changed since the tart incident. This is a man who's son NEVER mentions him unless it's alongside his mother— he's so ABSENT Riddle can't even consider him his own "person", just as one piece of "my parents." Mr.Rosehearts isn't socioeconomically hurting, either— he's ALSO a revered magical doctor, but people seem to forget that. He has the same reputation, same fame, probably makes the same amount of money. Maybe it's supposed to be a refrence to the Queen of Hearts dismissing the King of Heart's opinions but there's so much vitriol packed behind these headcanons + she DOES listen to him (He begs her to have a trial in the first place instead of going to beheading immediately, and theyre clearly affectionate, calling one "Dear" and the other patting his head. Even in twst canon, theyre said to have had an amicable relationship that Riddle wishes his own parents were like.)

This isn't even touching the multiple accusations of abuse that get pinned on her, from accusing Riddle he "ruined her" to throwings things and whipping him. She DOES push him away in the manga, but there's no real evidence indicative that she's hit him in the past (He tends to flinch when she scolds him bc she raises her voice, yes. That is still abuse.) but it feels almost insulting and insensitive— is Riddle less "valid" as an abuse victim because he doesn't have any bruises or scars to show for it? What is the absolutely *dire* need to make it so that she's every type of abusive under the sun?

It really is quite noticeable that when the male characters in TWST (even the one-off ones) do somethings fucked up that there's at least 10 people writing essays on how their pookie is So Much More Complex than that vs a woman being even mentioned negatively by a male character and therefore we get treated to people drawing her "getting what she deserves" and calling her a bitch.

[dundeey-art]

How would you interpret prowl as a romantic partner? Especially IDW prowl

my friend, this is the question of the century. youre asking me to answer one of life's greatest mysteries. every day i knock on my friend's barred doors, and i demand they answer my very same question...: How would you interpret prowl as a romantic partner?

now, if i was a writer, and if this was a headcanon blog, i would give you a neat little list of headcanons that would make your heart flutter. unfortunately i am not a writer, so i can in no way paint a beautiful picture of a world in which prowl is your lover in a sweet 200 words or less. instead i wrote a stupid essay for you that doesnt even answer your question... hah. after another hour of typing i actually did more or less answer your question

so, you say "especially" IDW prowl, but IDW prowl is unique (and all i think about), so this is just going to be about IDW prowl.

let me just say that i started writing and i couldnt stop, so i accidentally ended up with a bunch of bullshit that has nothing to do with what you asked. i kind of like the bullshit though, so i'm not deleting it. just scroll down until you see "the headcanons" if you want to skip past my nonsense.

i used to have trouble envisioning prowl as a romantic partner because of the way he's portrayed. i bold that last part because it is specifically the way he's portrayed that makes it difficult to envision him in a romantic setting, and not necessarily the way he is as a character. what i mean by that is that prowl is always shown to be in extremely stressful situations and in environments where the stakes and tensions are high. nevermind personality, we don't even get to see how he is when he's relaxed, when he's not under threat. i suppose we get a glimpse of that during the flashback that shows him working with chromedome, but even then he is 1. performing dangerous work and 2. shown interacting with someone who is more so a colleague than a friend. even then, that is a prowl from the past. we don't know if that is how he would still act "today" (by which i mean the end of IDW). since then he's gone through millions of years of war, and that doesn't just come with trauma, but all kinds of growth and change. so we can't just fall back to pre-war prowl for our headcanons - we have to focus on present-day prowl, trauma and all.

i also want to say that i don't like the way i see how a lot of people headcanon prowl as a romantic partner. again, because of the way he's portrayed, people tend to default to a cold, mean and distant partner. someone who lacks empathy, communication skills, something about "emotional intelligence"? i've even seen people headcanon that he would be abusive... yikes. i think what people tend to forget is that prowl is not a villain. he does act distant to the people around him, but that is a pretty common personality trait that a lot of normal people in the real world have. so while he can be a little rough around the edges, i'd say hes just a normal guy who is, just like anyone, capable of developing romantic feelings for someone. still, prowl has some key traits that are undeniably him, and i try to base my idea on that while staying as loyal as possible to the canon.

the headcanons

i don't see prowl as someone who would fall in love easily. but when he does, it's intense. prowl is shown to have one goal throughout the comic: it's to attain peace. that goal is his world. i think that in a similar way we can imagine how he might be when in love - his partner, the object of his desire, would become his world. i think he would love his partner with the same kind of intensity that he is shown to have in various situations.

i think he would like to have you rely on him; he likes to be depended on, to be trusted. he wants you to leave everything to him, and he would take good care of you. that's not to say that he wouldn't trust you to take care of yourself. however, he might have a tendency to be a little controlling and overprotective - but really, it's because he cares a lot about you. he wants to prevent harm from befalling you at all costs. he might have to learn not to be so worried about you all the time. can you blame him though, after everything he's seen? if prowl lost you, he probably would not be able to move on.

i can imagine prowl's lover, and love in general, having a certain effect on prowl. you bring a kind of warmth out of him. you make him let his guard down. when he's with the one he loves, he can finally relax. he's not under threat and he's not constantly being scorned - you are essentially his safe space.

the thing is that love can bring a side out of people that you might not normally see or expect. you can imagine almost anything within reasonable limits. maybe, as a lover, prowl is soft spoken and sweet. maybe hes playful. or maybe he's not one for verbal but physical affection. honestly, it was hard for me to tell you exactly how i imagine him as a romantic partner because i like nuance, and i like to be open minded to those infinite possibilities. still, i did my best to paint a picture for you. 👍 this just took me two hours so i hope you like it

[sleepsucks]

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

I wouldn't really agree that boys are just arm candy in magical girl shows and only there to look cute. Yeah, sure the girls' friendships are the focus, but the boys are usually very much involved in the plot and most shows do explore their feelings about the odd things that happen due to magical shenanigans even if they aren't in the know (It's why ML baffles me even more with how they screwed up Adren's arc when he's the deuteragonist, when all these boys are supporting cast and get well rounded arcs)

I'm not much of a winx fan, but the specialists were very much not arm candy. Did the girls talk about them being cute? Yes, it's what teenage girls do. Did the narrative suggest they were good looking? Yes, but that's standard for most love interests in any genre. But we still got scenes with them talking amongst themselves about how they themselves feel and they got a fair share of badass fight scenes even if they wield no magic. A large amount of episodes actually included the boys and girls working as a team solving a mystery or fighting a villain. The girls might deal the finishing blow but the boys were still integral to the plot.

I hope this doesn't come across as hate, it definitely wasn't my intention. I'm just a bit too passionate about the magical girl genre.

I do think you have a good point with ML having a problem choosing a genre or blending two genres successfully.

For the CCS fans, I will add though that Cardcaptor Sakura had both Tomoyo and Syaoran serve as sources of motivation for Sakura. And both Sakura and Syaoran collecting cards even if Sakura is the only one who could seal them and yet never made you question whether Syaoran was even necessary for the job the way ml does with Chat.

I wasn't trying to say that boys have no part to play in magical girl team shows or that they're always treated as having no lives beyond the girls, that's why I mentioned that the Winx Club boys - aka, the Specialists - have their own (mostly off screen) lives and occasionally show up help the girls:

the boys are usually off doing their own thing and only occasionally show up for a date or to give the girls a ride on their cool bikes or magical spaceship

Even then, this is certainly a simplification of the roles that they play in the story, but I kind of had to simplify their roles down to their base components for the original post's discussion as I was talking in broad strokes of how these stories are written.

In terms of those broad strokes, the Specialists are absolutely only there for shipping fodder. That's why each one is assigned to a girl from the start and why their main role in the narrative is supporting their assigned love interest or causing relationship-based drama for their assigned love interest. If it weren't for shipping, then the Specialists would not exist.

While the Specialists do have fleshed out characters and may even effect the plot, the execution of those elements is designed around the girls. A really obvious example of this is the character Timmy, who has character development as the boy's tech guy. Why is he into technology? Because he's the designated love interest for the fairy of Technology and we have to show why they're a good match. Along similar lines, the boys don't really get plots that are removed from the girls because this is the girl's show. Every episode features one or more of the Winx, but the boys are optional and often don't appear.

This is because, narratively speaking, the boys are just love interests and that brings us back to Miraculous' big problem. You can't have a show where Adrien is written like a Specialist while also being part of the Winx Club and where Alya is written like she's part of the Winx Club while technically being more of a Specialist in terms of power set and actual narrative role.

I'm was thinking back to my memories of various Winx Club plots to find one that really highlighted what I mean here and I remembered that one of the big dramas in season one was the reveal that Bloom's love interest - Sky - was in an arranged marriage and had just never told her. As it turns out, that's a great example of what I'm talking about re Adrien!

Is that plot line technically based around Sky and letting his life effect the plot? Sure, but the fallout of that reveal revolves around Bloom, not Sky. The story doesn't really care how Sky's feeling as the conflict progresses. Instead, it focuses on how it affects Bloom and her friends because of course it does! She's the main character. It would be really weird if that plot suddenly focused on her side character love interest and his friends during one of her darkest hours/biggest moments.

Think of that and then consider how the ending of season five is written. Notice any similarities? Sure, this is Adrien's family drama, but because he's just a Specialist, the focus isn't on him. It's on Winx Club member Marinette and Adrien only shows up at the end for a kiss. That is the problem. That is what I'm talking about when I say that Miraculous will randomly write him as if we're watching a magical girl team show where Adrien is just the love interest.

In fact, let's really dig into this example because it's a good one.

You can have a look at the transcript for the finale episode of Miraculous season five here and see for yourself that Adrien doesn't even show up on screen until the final scenes when the big drama is over. The Winx Club wiki also has episode transcripts, so I took a look to see what happened in Winx land during the arranged marriage reveal plot (I love that this is a thing. It's so useful for fact checking myself!) This is the script for the episode after Bloom learns the truth. Sky does not appear even though his lies and family drama are the fuel for this episode's events, which are a major part of the season's arc. Note how perfectly that matches Adrien's writing?

Similarly, Sky's dialogue in the reveal episode is all about Bloom. He's worried about her learning the truth and thinking less of him. To match that, here's Adrien's only real dialogue in the penultimate episode of season five (full transcript):

Adrien:(Covers his ears.) I cannot transform... (Looks at his ring and tries taking it off.) Plagg: What are you doing?! Adrien: I'm not in my right mind. I'm too angry — at myself for falling short of Marinette's love, at my father for sending me here in London, at this stupid app and these rings that use my image... it makes me sick! This nightmare is giving me the horrible feeling that, if I transform, I'll get akumatized and destroy everything with my Cataclysm — Marinette, Ladybug... (Takes off the ring and hands it to Plagg.)

Switching back to Winx. After Bloom learns the truth about Sky, bad things happen because she's depressed. This results in her and the Winx going off on a journey to learn the truth of who Bloom is. After the girls share this big plot moment and Bloom gets her mojo back, the boys show up to be their ride home and to give Bloom her romance moment where Sky wins her back by declaring that he broke off the arranged married because he loves her.

Sky notably doesn't get an arc about choosing between his arranged marriage and his true love. We don't even know that the marriage is broken off until he tells Bloom because that was never really a conflict as far as the narrative was concerned. Of course he's going to pick Bloom! He's her designated side character love interest! He only exists to be with her. We don't need to treat this as a serious thing for him. The arranged marriage plot was never about him anyway. It was about giving Bloom a reason to have a darkest hour moment that moves the plot forward. Similarly, Sky calling off the marriage is nowhere near as important as him telling Bloom that he's called off the marriage to be with her in a grand romantic gesture.

This perfectly mirrors Miraculous' season five ending where Adrien doesn't appear until after Marinette is done fighting her big girl power fight against his father. As far as the writing is concerned, that fight isn't about him. His connection to the villain only really matters in terms of how it affects Marinette's actions during the final battle. Then, when the battle is over, Adrien shows up to give Marinette her big romance moment because, while the plot may be driven by Adrien's family, he is not a Winx club member. He's just a Specialist. Or, in the words of the head writer:

[image text: She's Barbie, he's Ken. You don't like it. I get it. It won't change. Anything else?] (The full, even more damning context of this tweet can be found here.)

What else can I say other than, "I rest my case."

Oh, and also that I didn't take this as an attack. I just thought it was a good opportunity to really dig into the nuances of this and what I was talking about in that original post as I never know how obvious this stuff is if you don't closely study story telling. As this case study hopefully shows, if a show is about a group of girl friends using the power of friendship, then their love interests may have important roles, but the boys are never going to be more important than the girls and most of the boy's screen time will be focused on romance and how their existence effects the girls because it's ultimately the girls' world. Without them, the show wouldn't exist. Without the boys? Well, then we just wouldn't have a romance plot.

[transmascutena]

these lines hit different when you read utena as transmasc