#which... they were never in charge of this

[pluckyredhead]

Do you think Dick has a favourite brother?

I LOVE THIS QUESTION. I'M GOING TO ANSWER IT AT UNNECESSARY LENGTH.

But for the tl;dr crowd: yes, 1000000%. It's Damian. Dick would not admit this under pain of death, even to himself, but it's Damian.

THE LONG VERSION:

So Dick and Jason are not close and never have been. I always sort of blink in bewilderment when people say they are, or were when Jason was Robin, because they are demonstrably not, and that's what's interesting and tragic about them.

The fact of the matter is that Dick simply wasn't around very much when Jason was Robin. The Doyleist reason for this is that he wasn't really being treated like a Bat character: he was a Titans character, appearing in Titans books, with only the occasional cameo in Batbooks. He and Jason get along very well in Jason's first origin story (when Jason was a circus acrobat and his parents were eaten by crocodiles); in fact, Dick tells Bruce he wants to adopt Jason and Bruce is like "Not if I adopt him first!" But after that, Dick simply...wasn't there very often.

If you need a Watsonian reason for this, it's pretty easy to extrapolate one. Dick and Bruce were not getting along well during this period, so of course Dick would avoid Bruce and Gotham. And yeah, I think it's fair to assume Dick felt some kind of complicated feelings about Bruce having a new Robin, especially post-Crisis when Bruce made Jason Robin without Dick having any say or even a warning that it was going to happen. I tend to headcanon that he resented Jason a little, but was mature enough to know that it wasn't actually Jason's fault, and partially decided to stay away so that he didn't take that out on Jason. But Jason, a smart and sensitive kid, interpreted this as Dick avoiding him because he didn't like him.

And then Jason died.

Dick took that hard, and I think it was less "my brother who I had a close relationship with died" and more "this child followed in my footsteps and it killed him and I wasn't even there for him when I had the chance." To me, that absolutely forms the subtext of the relationship he develops with Tim.

Not at the start. At the start, once "A Lonely Place of Dying" is over, he's as checked out with Tim as he was with Jason. The Doyleist reason is the same - Dick literally just wasn't supposed to be in Batbooks too much - but the way it plays out is sometimes really funny in an awful way. Like in and just after Knightfall, when Bruce gets his back broken by Bane and is like "I've known Jean-Paul Valley for two weeks and he barely has any training, most of it done by my extremely new 13-year-old Robin...I think I'll make him Batman." And then Tim's dad and Tim's dad's doctor, Shondra Kinsolving, get kidnapped, and since Bruce has been aggressively romantically pursuing Shondra to the point of it being uncomfortable and inappropriate, he's like "Okay going to rescue Shondra! I mean, your dad! I'm taking Alfred with me! Tim, you're in charge of Gotham and Jean-Paul byeeeeee!" And then JPV immediately gets unhinged and violent and tries to kill Tim and Tim keeps calling Alfred like "Um can you please come back and help" and Alfred's like "No" and Tim's like "Okay well did you at least rescue my dad?" and Alfred's like "Also no." Anyway Dick finally comes to Gotham and Tim is like "THANK GOD, HELP, BRUCE MADE AZRAEL BATMAN AND HE'S TRYING TO KILL EVERYONE, I NEED AN ADULT" and Dick is like "He made someone who isn't me Batman??? 😡😡😡" and then just...fucks off back to New York and leaves Tim to deal with it. Very out of character, VERY funny.

BUT ANYWAY. Then we get to around 1996 and 1. Dick is no longer on the Titans which has a whole new lineup and 2. there's an editorial shift emphasizing the Batfamily. This is where the line really expands: Robin (started in 1993, but still pretty new), Nightwing, Birds of Prey, Azrael, eventually Gotham Knights in 1999 and Batgirl in 2000. Dick moves to Bludhaven and spends way more time in Gotham.

This is when Dick looks at Tim, says "Is anyone gonna big brother that?" and doesn't wait for an answer. All of a sudden he's behaving in a way that suddenly feels in character for him (although the idea of Dick as a big brother/mentor...really wasn't a thing for him prior to this era, so it's more of a new development that feels correct in retrospect). He's training Tim, he's giving him advice, he's teasing him about girls, he's coming up with inside jokes, he's giving him noogies. It's like he watched a bunch of 80s sitcoms to learn how to be a big brother and applied his research accordingly.

And Tim? Tim absolutely blossoms under the attention. Tim, who has been adultified by every other adult in his life since he was, like, eight, is getting treated like a kid. Tim, whose parents are never around, and don't pay attention when they are around, has an adult he looks up to who wants to spend time with him, for fun. Tim, who has hero worshipped Dick Grayson since he was...well, according to the math, he was one (1) year old so let's ignore the math, but he was small, is now basking in the full force of Dick Grayson's off-the-charts charisma. This is the best thing that has ever happened to Tim. This is the dream.

I want to be clear here: I think Dick's extreme reversal here is a delayed reaction to Jason's death, but I don't want to imply that he doesn't care about Tim as an individual. He loves Tim as much as Tim loves him. Tim's good opinion is incredibly important to him. This relationship goes both ways.

Annnnd then both of their lives fall apart extremely rapidly, and Damian shows up, and Bruce dies. And Dick tries to get out of it, but ultimately it ends how it has to: with him accepting the mantle of Batman, and responsibility for Damian.

The relationship Dick has with Damian is nothing like the relationship Dick has with Tim. Tim is his little bro. Damian is his baby. He's fourteen years older than Damian and as much of a parent figure as a sibling figure. And Damian is difficult and exhausting but Dick slowly, slowly coaxes a degree of trust and affection out of him that even Bruce will never achieve. And he can only do that by making Damian Robin, which means Tim has to stop being Robin.

This is where Dick and Tim fall apart, because what they need in this very vulnerable moment is so diametrically opposed, and neither of them are wrong. To Dick, asking Tim to step down - or up, from Dick's perspective - from being Robin is a compliment. Dick fought to free himself from Bruce, to become his own man with his own name, and so asking Tim to do the same thing is a show of faith in Tim, in his skills and experience.

Whereas Tim's hero-worship has always been for Robin, not Batman, and every glimpse he has had of a future beyond Robin has always been a dystopia. But more importantly, Tim has just lost his father, his stepmother, his mentor, his girlfriend, and his two best friends. He desperately needs to be able to lean on Dick, the grown-up he admires the most, and instead, Dick is kicking him out of the nest.

In other words: Dick is saying, with all the love and trust in his heart, "I need you to help me by being a fellow adult." And Tim is saying, with all the love and trust in his heart, "But I need you to be my adult." And they both get a no.

This is water under the bridge now, and they've healed even though they've never really talked it through because Bats don't do that (although what I wouldn't give for a Nightwing/Red Robin miniseries where they do everything but talk about it). But I do think Tim looks at the closeness and affection between Dick and Damian and feels some kind of way about it to this day, because it's so clear to everyone that Damian is Dick's favorite...but Tim remembers when he was Dick's favorite. And what Tim doesn't see is that Dick values him as a genuine partner in a way he will never quite achieve with Damian, because to him, Damian will always be his baby, even more so than he is Bruce's. (Dick is Bruce's baby, actually, not Damian. In this essay I will...)

(I could see a really interesting dynamic developing between Jason and Tim here, as the ones on the outside of that mutual appreciation society, but sadly the comics have never gone there. Alas.)

Finally, I think the relationship between Dick and Duke is very much "I just work here." Like, Dick is grown, he's out of the house, he's largely matured past the Bat-drama. He likes Duke but he doesn't feel the compulsion to brother him the way he did with Tim, and Duke doesn't need the mother henning Damian did.

IN CONCLUSION, and hooboy, sorry anon, most of this wasn't at all the question you asked:

Duke and Dick get along fine but aren't particularly close.

Damian is Dick's precious baby and always will be, even when Damian is an adult and annoyed by this treatment (but privately kind of loves it because he is a princess at heart).

Tim is Dick's buddy, his pal, his equal. If Dick were ever going to talk something through with a sibling, it would be Tim. (But that would require Dick admitting that everything isn't perfect or asking for help, so it'll never happen.)

Jason and Dick can't be in a room together for five minutes without fighting and Dick finds him wildly frustrating, but they will throw down for each other. When they aren't punching each other.

(And to answer the corollary: Damian's favorite brother is Dick. Tim's favorite brother is also Dick. Duke's favorite brother is Tim by default, since he doesn't know Dick very well and Jason and Damian are both too annoying, but really he's closest with Cass. Jason's favorite brother is Ace and he has communicated that often and loudly (but really it's probably also Dick).)

[daegall]

☆ unexpected company.

➷ in which the Gods give your boyfriend a shitty past few weeks, and you attempt to make up for it.

pairing: son of poseidon!jeno x daughter of apollo!reader

genre: reverse hurt comfort, fluff, angst, established relationship!AU

warnings: mentions of injuries (i think???)

word count: 2k words

a/n: jumpscare guys omg what the fuck i havent written since christmas 2 years ago LOOOOL um anyways........ comeback ? everyone say thank you jeno bc he is always and will always be my inspiration <3

btw this is basically . pt.2 of late night company so if you wanna go read that for just a little bit of context go crazy!! (you can read it without it tho)

The last few weeks in the infirmary have been busy, buzzing with clumsy teens and kids who carelessly run around in a sparring with someone clearly much stronger than them. You guess they get it from their god parent. As much as you love the infirmary and taking care of people, you're tired. Really tired. However, your (finally official) boyfriend for 2 months has always been there to help you through it.

Jeno Lee is someone you never expected to be so loving, but really, you should have known when he gave up his own team's flag just to go help you fight off Clairise during a capture the flag match. Despite his very busy schedule, Jeno loves to hang out around you, cracking jokes when you tend to crying, injured kids, getting you water when you don't realize you need it, and always attentively listening to you, whether it be a rant of frustration, or just a chat. Your favorite part is when he kisses you and tells you of how good of a job you've done.

As mentioned, Jeno has a very busy schedule. As expected, from a child of one of the big three gods. However, recently it's been… really packed. When Jeno does have the mercy of free time, he's always sleeping. You haven't seen him in two whole weeks. He's never talking to his friends, you never seen him swimming anymore,a nd worst of all? He's not eating. He loves to eat─and he's not eating. This calls for an emergency visit.

If only you had the ability to. You're in charge of the infirmary, however, and can never seem to find a replacement since your siblings always avoid the job and run away. You contemplate running away from your duties. For Jeno. You could send Jaemin to check up on him… no, he'd end up flirting with any girl (or guy!) he sees on the way. Damn Aphrodite kids. Finally, you decide to act on the former thought.

You don't even make it to the door, before you notice a very familiar presence by the door.

Your breath hitches as your eyes meet Jeno's. They look… tired. Nonetheless, you can still sense the love behind them, and it stirs something in you. You feel a small flame light in your heart, as if he's the one that set it on fire. The fire spreads to your feet as you make your way to him, to your fingertips as they reach out for him, and it's as if that fire has radiated on him, because he instantly melts into your touch, his nose bumping into your palm as he sighs out in what you can only make out to be satisfaction.

Despite his happy demeanor, you still can shake off the feeling of worry that stirs within you, noticing how his shoulders are tense─how he limps as you escort him towards a bed, how exhausted he looks. You wonder if this is how he felt when he saw you that night, on his dock, crying. If so, you'd never want him to feel this way ever again.

"I was just about to come to you, you know," You laugh softly, as you take a seat next to him and grab his hand in yours. It's warm, you've missed how warm it was.

Jeno's fingers instinctively curl between yours, and you feel the callouses of his fingertips on your skin, and it's oddly comforting. His head leans against yours, and he's strangely touchy, as if you were his battery source─like sunlight to a sunflower. "Oh? You were going to sneak out for me?"

You roll your eyes fondly. "I'd do anything for you."

"I know,"

And when his lips press against your temple, its you who melts this time, transforming into a giggly, grinning mess.

"I've missed you, you know,"

Jeno knows. He hopes you know that he's missed you even more. He's missed you every time he sees a band aid, he missed you every time someone made a lame joke, he saw you in every sunrise and sunset, he missed you when he gazed into water─which happens a lot, as a child of Poseidon. If he could, he'd abandon all these missions─what the hell are camp counselors thinking anyway, sending a kid off to beat the largest, most hazardous of creatures? He guesses that's the price of having power.

Jeno doesn't want power, however. He wants you. If power is in the way of him seeing you, he'd rather give it all away to the first person who asked, he'd give everything away for you.

"I've missed you too, baby,"

Your eyes tear away from your connected hands, trailing up to meet his own. They're longing and earnest. You smile, in hopes to comfort him.

It works, it always works. Jeno grins back, his other hand reaching up to brush your hair from your eyes, tucking it behind your ear. He notices a small chunk of your hair is shorter than others, and thinks back to the letter you sent him, the one where you ranted out of frustration when your siblings pranked you during your sleep and cut your hair. He smiles.

"Tell me about your missions," You mumble, encouraging him to fill you in on everything you missed out.

"Well… I kicked ass. Got my ass kicked. End of story?"

Jeno yelps and laughs when you punch at his shoulder. "Fine, fine, it was… fun,"

"Really? But isn't it scary to be doing that all alone?"

In an instant, Jeno's face changes. Alone. He's been feeling that lately.

"uh�� yeah, you could say that."

You notice the way his lips curl down, how his brows just furrow slightly. It tugs on your heart.

You squeeze his hand gently, head dipping down to chase his gaze. "Hey, what's wrong?"

Jeno's lips curl back into a smile, and though its weaker than before, it's still there. "Nothing, just a little tired." You nod at his words, processing and attempting to dissect his intentions. "…okay, do you wanna rest here? I can watch over you,"

At your pure intentions and even purer heart, Jeno melts, pulling you closer with a shake of his head. "No need, just want to be here, with you. No longer alone…"

"Hey," You give him a look. He knows that look. You've caught him red-handed. "I'm here for you, you know that. Tell me what's wrong…"

Jeno cracks almost instantly. He could never be dishonest when it comes to you─he could never hurt you. "I just… I was so lonely on those missions. Yeah, I was out at sea, and sure I did talk to my dad a few times but it's… it's not the same as camp, you know? Where you could spar endlessly just for fun, where every meal was full of laughter and not some cold, prepacked plate of literal shit. Where fighting never had me thinking that this could be my last fight."

He pauses for a moment, breathing in deep breaths, but you wait for him. You know when to talk, and now is not the time. Instead, you rub up and down comfortingly at his back, something he's always loved. You feel his breathing slow, and his muscles relax. Then, he continues.

"Nobody understands me. I'm the only Big Three child here, and I hate it. I hate that I'm the only one who doesn't get to join bonfire nights, I hate that I'm the only one that has to constantly live in fear of constant death, I hate that I can't love you the loudest─just to keep you safe! God, I hate that I can't give you everything… to tell you the truth… I hated it out there. I hated every second in solitude, I hated how my thoughts raced for no reason, and how I could hear my heartbeat in my ears, and how empty I felt. I know I'm an introvert, and I love my personal time, but out there… I wasn't alone. I felt like death was creeping up on me, keeping me company. I didn't want death's company─I wanted your company. I missed you, Y/N… so much… and it killed me to know that you missed me too."

Your heart shatters at his words, and the glassy look in his eye, indicating his tears. Your palms envelop his cheeks, despite his tight grip, and you gently direct him to look down at you. "You're here now, aren't you? I'm here, with you," You start with a shaky breath. "and don't you dare say you don't give me everything. You give me everything and more. You'd give me the whole universe and still think it's too little, Jeno," You laugh airily, squeezing his cheeks fondly. "and even though you were away, I always felt loved. You don't need to be here physically for me to know, you know, that how much I trust you. So trust in me too, please. Trust that I'm satisfied, trust that I can take care of myself and that I want you to love me without any fears because we shouldn't have to have fears. Let go, you uptight man, and live! There might not be a lot of people out there who get exactly what you're going through, but people will relate on some level. People are just like that, empathizing and loving. Don't hate who you are, please, because you'd be hating something that I love, something I know is always worth my time and attention and something I will never give up on. Okay?"

Jeno stares at you, his eyes glossy with a tint of red on the outer corners of his eyes. He still looks handsome. He's always handsome. His hand are on your waist, his thumbs rubbing gently over the material of your t-shirt, gently tugging you towards him.

"…shit, did I ramble? Was I too fast? Do I need to say it all again? Gods─um, you give me everything, and more, and I trust you, and I─"

Jeno shuts you up effectively, nudging away your hands holding at his face to dip his head down and connect his lips with yours. They're salty with tears, and so soft, moving gently against yours as you reciprocate the kiss, your hands finding comfort in his hair. He kisses you with yearning, and he thinks that if you came just a millimeter closer, you'd feel the ache of his heart and his craving for you. Your comfort, your hugs, kisses, your smile and your gentle touches, your appreciative glances, your love. He craves your love, and now that he has it, he won't ever let go.

He makes it clear as he chases your lips when you pull away in what is, in his opinion, way too fast, gently maneuvering you closer to him, your chests pressed together and arms wrapped around one another. You wouldn't be surprised if your heart reached out and merged with his.

When Jeno does pull way, it's only to shower your face with kisses and hug you even tighter.

"I'm always here for you, Jen,"

"I know, baby."

You grin, taking his hand in yours as you gaze into his eyes. "Stay the night? I've missed your cuddles."

Jeno's nose bumps against yours as he nods, his smile mirroring yours. "Never wanted anything more."

As you lay in an infirmary bed, wrapped in Jeno's arms, you realize that Jeno has already given you the universe. The warmth you identified as a flame of adoration in your heart has grown into a sun, and Jeno's orbiting around that sun, keeping you loved and cared for. Much like how he is your moon, and you are the tide, constantly gravitating towards him. You like this universe he's gifted you.

[demolitionsweetheart]

Smut headcanons

Sonic the hedgehog x fem!reader

(Written with mobian reader)

Request: pleaseeee I NEED sonic x fem reader smut headcanons pls pls pls pls pls pls pls pls

A/n(pls read if your requested this) : idk which sonic you were asking for so I just made them pretty general and the pictures just for the looks :3

NSFW! MDNI

✫His chest is incredibly sensitive-just the lightest touch is enough to get him riled up.

✫ With a high sex drive and a teasing nature, he's always eager to fool around. You go at it like bunnies, and no matter how many times it happens, he never tires of the high you bring him to. Messy and inexperienced, yet he always makes sure you're satisfied.

✫ His first time with you fast and filled with desperate need, as if he was chasing his own high. Despite that, it was never just about lust-his desire for you runs deeper, and he makes sure you know it.

✫ Refuses to wear a condom-no debate. The thought of any kind of barrier between you frustrated him. He wants to feel(and fill) every inch of you-like claiming you, driven by pure instinct. The same instinct that leaves you covered in bites, his teeth sinking into your neck whether to tease or simply because he's so lost in the moment, needing something to ground him and quiet his loud groans.

✫He loves eating you out-sloppy, relentless, and completely devoted. He wants you gushing, wants you to drown in the pleasure of it, drinking up every drop your beautiful body can offer. He adores your taste on his tongue and it's a lot more pleasurable for him then you think.

✫ He's open to anything-whether you're face to face,  or twisted in a new position that has you screaming his name. He's a switch through and through. Some nights he's the teasing type, leaving you trembling under his control. Other times he can't deny how much he loves when you take charge-riding him, dictating his pleasure,  making him beg. He thrives on the thrill of quickies in risky places;if he wants you, he's not waiting.

✫ Through every relentless round, he’s always checking on you, making sure he’s not pushing you past what you can handle. He’s fast, eager, and wild, but never careless with you. His touch is urgent, needy—fingers tracing every inch, mouth leaving trails of heat and love bites against your fur (?).  He's always kissing and talking you through it.

✫ He's not careful at all when it comes to marking. Scratches, bites, and hickeys-he leaves them all over your pretty body, taking pride in every one. he doesn't apologize, even when they end up in the most visible spots, especially when you need to be somewhere. While he isn't typically overtly possessive, if someone is bothering him, he'll make sure to mark you in every visible spot.

✫ He's loud-groaning, gasping, an absolute mess.  Especially the first time. He never expected to be this sensitive,  this overwhelmed, but the way you wrapped so tightly around his poor virgin cock had him spiraling. Every movement had him gripping you like a lifeline.  He even asked if it was normal,  if he was supposed to feel this good, this desperate. Once he comes down from his high,  he clung to you, face buried against you neck, still catching his breath in breathy whimpers.

✫ he's very vocal with praise. Sometimes showering you in the prettiest compliments and others just a moaning,�� babbling mess as he spills inside of you for the umpteenth time. Between gasps and whimpers he never Fails to remind you how much he loves you. He sounds desperate, almost pleading,  like the words alone aren't enough embody how deeply he feels for you.

✫He doesn't have a clear preference between slow and sensual or fast and rough—it all depends on the mood. How desperate he is, or how much you've teased him throughout the day. He can only take so much before he gets worked up and takes control. But if you stand your ground and top him, he becomes a whining mess, even more worked up and desperate for release.

✫ He's not the type to make a big deal of aftercare, but he'll gently clean you up before curling up in your arms, completely spent. Come morning though and he’s all sweetness. His teasing starts up again, and before you know it, you’re back at it, going round after round, even though you were already left breathless the night before.

Thank yew for reading :3

Requests r open

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[maythedreadwolftakeyou]

idk man i have seen a lot of speculation about Illario being a better candidate for First Talon rather than Lucanis, how he wanted it more/would be better at it etc, that maybe it was just Caterina projecting her desires for her favorite daughter onto that daughter's son...

but honestly I get it. like in game we see that when he DIDN'T get what he wanted, Illario made some huge power moves (arranging the death of his only rival, allying with the Venatori, kidnapping Caterina, sacrificing Treviso's independence) despite the major consequences that came with them (losing his only "brother", giving another organization an in/power over the Crows, kidnapping fucking CATERINA, giving the gods/Venatori a stronger foothold in Antiva). We don't actually know why he wanted the title or what his plans would be as First Talon--was he really gonna be content to just be named as in charge? Or was he gonna wanna make further big moves and leave his mark, or go for an even greater degree of power? We don't get that answer in game, but I really don't think his ambition would just stop. In part because I do think his desire for the role was tied up in just wanting Caterina's approval as the "lesser" Dellamorte, and so he WOULD probably keep putting more and bigger things at risk as he fails to find satisfaction in the title alone. He has the potential to not only throw their House into chaos, but the entire Crow organization, which is so ingrained with Antiva that this could shake the very foundations of the nation itself.

Even if we look at it as "Illario is more like Caterina so she should prefer him", i mean, Caterina got almost her entire house slaughtered. She failed, actually, at being a great Talon to her own house because her family ended up almost entirely dead. While I'm sure there's non-related members of the house (at the very least, trusted staff for the Dellamorte estates, contract negotiators, the people in charge of payroll, etc), and possibly even other assassins (orphans or whoever), they make it really clear in the game + wigmaker job that the only two left besides her who matter are Lucanis and Illario.

So if we take the traits the traits he shares with Caterina, that would make Illario more suited to it than Lucanis--he wants the title, he likes being in charge, he desires more power and is willing to compromise other people's wellbeing to get it--well that all already didn't work once. Caterina got a rough awakening for her actions and reputation, but Illario has--what, exactly, to reign him in? He already tried to get rid of his own biggest emotional liability, with hiring Zara to kill Lucanis. He already kidnapped and imprisoned grandma, and was working on a deal to sell out the city. What's left to shake some sense into him after that? If she picks him, is she just letting history repeat, ensuring the few left die and House Dellamorte itself falls to pieces, to be lost to history?

I do think it's telling that it's after seeing how badly all Illario's schemes went down that Caterina makes her choice and officially passes on the title to Lucanis. As far as we know, she never actually said who she wanted for the role--only that there were rumors she favored Lucanis over Illario, from the one line in the Wigmaker Job. We only know Illario believes it, not if it was true. So I think it's very possible she was hesitating in part because she really hadn't decided.

One grandson craves power too much, the other not enough. One has the social skills and charm to get people to do what he wants, but uses it for personal gain--while the other is so closed-off and unwilling to form connections he has no one he trusts outside the family. Neither of them are good choices, pre-Veilguard, and so she doesn't name either heir and puts the problem off for later--and it's in this way, funnily, that Lucanis takes after her more, with his allergy to planning ahead/making choices.

And finally the choice DOES make itself for her: when left to what fate brings for them, Illario's coup falls apart and despite all his charm he's left with "allies" who are just waiting to stab him in the back themselves. Meanwhile, Lucanis has somehow managed to break out of his shell, has new companions he trusts who are shown to support him, and he has lost some of his paralyzing fear of taking action on his own. He finally IS the clearly better choice in this moment--even if he doesn't actually want it still. I do truly think despite his hesitations, with how he grows over Veilguard, he wouldn't actually be bad at the job with some time to adjust. So while I certainly have my share of criticisms of the writing/spaces in Lucanis' personal quests, and just how cartoonishly villainous the game makes Illario to be, I don't think it's unrealistic that this is the moment when Caterina passes on the mantle of First Talon.

And I think Illario is a more interesting character when we keep in his desperation for power and approval, and where this could eventually lead post-Veilguard as well. Even if Lucanis decides "actually I am not subjecting myself to this" and promotes Illario in his place, is getting the title secondhand as a cast off really going to be satisfying to him? Even if he gets friends and his brother or even a lover afterward, how many times is it going to take before he believes it's real and not just something else he's going to have snatched away? For me personally I think the really interesting potential here is less in Fixing Him and more about just how many times he can bite the hands trying to feed him in a row. He's a very messy character and that's the part that's juciest to me.

[danadiadea]

I mean I don't disagree with your concept and I didn't in my previous post too, this line of thought is very fair and much better than hegemonic body positivity. of course, one never is going to find every single person beautiful, so we should internalize the idea of theating aestetucally unpleasant for us people with as much dignity as the ones whose appearance we like or have no strong opinion about. I just have a problem with:

1) the word ugly itself, but it's an English language problem I suppose, because I also can't really think about one word what would convey the meaning and don't carry so much negative emotional charge in it. "not beautiful" is my best bet, I guess, or "not aesthetically pleasing/unpleasant". overall, the words change their meanings or at least soften them, so maybe this one would too, but right now I don't feel comfortable using it or hearing it used towards real people, since in the linguistical context we exist in it automatically implies contempt;

2) ugly/beautiful not being as relatively objective as tall/short. we can set an objective criteria for being tall – let's say "taller than 170" or "taller than average", with average being a number that can be objectively measured. this just doesn't work that way with beauty, because the concept is too multilayered and also based exclusively on subjective perception, whether it's rooted in the way our brain works or how our culture shaped us or which internal beliefs we posess. any skill also is judged (if we are being reasonable) with objective criteria. spotted skin is just as objective as an inability to solve a trigonometry function, but the ugliness of spotted skin is not objective.

and I don't really agree with "everyone knows what tall is", let alone with stretching it to "everyone knows what beautiful is", because subjective perception will always remain subjective. for someone leaving in Timor-Leste a 170cm person is rather tall, for someone from Netherlands it's rather short. Not only the concept of beauty vastly (and I mean VASTLY) differs among cultures, the previous issue I've discussed, wich is the inability to set any kind of universal standard, makes this not a usable concept for me (like for the height we can technically count the average height of a person in 2025 and decide is 170 objectively tall or short based on that, but subjective perspectives of people from different regions wouldn't rely on statistics). Even if technically we could ask a big sample whether they find person A attractive and see if more or less then 50% agree, it is 1) inapplicable to other people 2) doesn't erase the fact that the descriptive "beautiful" can be honestly applied to them. Like I understand that both you and I probably understand whether the person is "generally" considered beautiful when we look at them, especially if they are unusually fitting/not-fitting to the "global" beauty standards, but I still think it's not all that universal and obvious. My autistic ass living in non-native for me culture is so often genuinely shocked when other people frame someone as beautiful/not beautiful, I've thought I was pranked a couple of times I swear. Us living in the times of globalisation doesn't help, but I think that when Japanese people described first Portuguese that contacted them in 1543 as the ugliest beasts possible, they weren't joking, but also the Portuguese people were perfectly ordinary. Now it all blends together a bit more.

so the concept of "letting people be ugly" doesn't exactly work for me if it's intended as "let people be objectively ugly". if it's "let yourself think someone is ugly and be normal about it" – I'm all for it.

also about the unhygienic stuff – I've put it to refer to that "people are trying to find exuses for Snape's hair" bit, because problems with hygiene are not exclusively about appearance, they also are about actions or a lack of them, and this is something people fairly wish to discuss when analysing a character. it's absolutely wrong to bully or demean actual people for it, but when people introduce "reasons" for Snape's hair being this way, I believe they mostly try to either debunk the implications of it being dirty or explain it – people very rarely neglect something that basic without any reason behind it, just as there are reasons for people to not have enough sleep or not eat enough. greasy hair which are just greasy don't need justifications (of the fandom, obv real people who neglect their hygiene for whatever reasons don't owe anyone explanations on their choices, but when we analyse a character saying that they can't keep up with showering is important for character characterization) though, because this is a purely aesthetic question, just like a hooked nose, and it doesn't define a character in any way. so I'd say that it's fair to approach the issue of Snape's hair differently if he neglects its state v/s if he just has oily hair because oily hair exists, since he's a BOOK CHARACTER, not a real person, and in the first case his action or inaction has motivations that may interest us as readers, in the second case it's just hair and whether we find it beautiful or not beautiful or neither is just our personal issue.

also people airbrushing charachters into "prettier" ones should be called Hermione Granger fenomenon fr, I am so sad she is almost always depicted as a literal supermodel:(

I love how the Marauders fandom is like everybody is perfect the way they are, they can be black, brown, white, fat, skinny, tall, short, everyone is pretty. Except Snape, no no no, he cannot be pretty, he has greasy hair, you cannot be pretty with greasy hair

[cherrysurf]

What. The. Fuck. s.hinata x reader

this is inspired by the tt trend “They say shooters shoot, Duke Dennis what’s up with you?” [im not sure if anyone did this before but if so lmk.]

Hinata Shoyo was your favorite MSBY player; you had been to a few games and were amazed by how cool and energetic he was. Recently, the "They say shooters shoot, Duke Dennis what’s up with you?" trend had been going around, and few people got noticed by their celebrity crushes or TikTok celebrities. You found the trend so interesting and comedic that you decided to make one of your own for Hinata Shoyo. It didn’t necessarily matter if he saw it or not; it was simply just for fun. In case he did see it, though, you made sure you looked your best because you never know, right? You finally posted the video after three tries. You added a few tags, but nothing crazy. After that, you put your phone to charge and went off to do your nightly ritual of showering and reading to detox your brain from your phone to sleep easier, which was a habit of yours that was hard to break at first.You fell asleep wondering about the possibilities of that video and perhaps fantasizing about a life with Shoyo Hinata because you’re just a girl, after all.You woke up at noon. It was Saturday midday when you picked up your phone and headed to the bathroom to brush your morning breath out of your mouth. As you opened TikTok to mindlessly scroll, you were reminded of the video you posted last night, which had a lot of likes and comments.You laughed at some people relating and some "toxic fans," and then as you went deeper, you found comments saying, "HE LIKED AND REPOSTED YOUR VIDEO." You were now internally freaking out as you stared at the many comments saying this. Then, you saw a familiar name with a blue mark next to it.

Hinata Shoyo: nothing much, what about you? 😉

Your toothbrush fell out of your mouth. Although the comment didn’t quite seem like his, it was cute to see him comment. You quickly ran to his repost, and sure enough, there was your video. Was this real? You thought it was too good to be true and way too easy to get his attention like that.You quickly exited TikTok to head to Instagram to get your mind from going haywire. That was until you checked your DMs to be met with that same name yet again.

"Hey! It’s me, Shoyo. Sorry about my TikTok comments. Atsumu said to put that, but I came to reach out because I'm not really like that 😅 I'd love to get to know you if you were serious about what you said on TikTok?"

"What the fuck!" you exclaimed as your phone fell onto the counter; you splashed yourself several times before you saw this was all real.

i genuinely don’t know how i feel abt this it’s mostly js so my brain can start writing again because i haven’t in awhile.

mostly for @dearru and me

gen hq list: @heartmaddie @livteracts @vertejay @massacremars @bakery-anon @na-i1 @nanasrkives @sexylexy12 @softpia

[forsaken-headcanons]

Middle-schooler-bluudud-bullying-c00lkidd Anon rising again, here to dump some more hcs that I made up on the spot

- Chance doesn't mind cooking, but is scared shitless when it comes to pan frying things. The constant popping of the oil freaks him out and they've been burnt way more times than they'd like to admit

- Chance fidgets with their coin in between rounds and has accidentally applied Weakness on themselves. It once reached to XII before Elliot asked him why he needed 3 charges when they were still in the cabin

- Noob owns a lot of bracelets, but keeps them in their room during rounds because they're afraid of them breaking

- In addition to the previous hc, Noob is also very sentimental about things and link a lot of things to certain people (i.e., their bracelets - Guest 666 because they used to make them together)

- Builderman has a clockwork heart. I can't explain it well but I saw it on Pinterest and said why the fuck not and decided to give it to him. It's basically just gears and cogs in the shape of a heart that takes place of it. Also it's a bit rusty and most of the gears get caught up a lot, especially when he has high levels of adrenaline (cough cough asthmatic Builderman cough cough), but he manages.

- Shedletsky ADORES cats but never had the time to take care of one + doesn't really like the thought of dealing with a cat's "zoomies" in the middle of the night

- Shedletsky and Builderman are the type of people to "jokingly" flirt with eachother and nobody can ever really tell if they're being serious or not, and neither can they. They don't know what they are

- I remember seeing somewhere that "Shedletsky/Telamon is Roblox's version of Santa" which has lead me to believe that his love language is gift giving + he LOVES making hand made gifts to people and especially for Builderman

- Shedletsky is also a very affectionate guy who has knocked people over by running to them for a hug. Builderman has been a victim of this one too many times

You guys could never guess who my favorite character/s is/are

Shedletsky running full speed at Builderman to hug him is such a vivid image in my head.

[wittyandobsessed]

𝟏𝟎𝟎 𝐅𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐎𝐖𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐂𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐁𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓!

𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆 | Gregory House x Reader

𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒 | none.

𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐓: 11. He had told her not to make a fuss about his birthday. He definitely hadn’t told her to plan a surprise party.

You had spent years working with Gregory House. Years spent exchanging sharp banter, dodging his sarcasm, matching his wit with your own. Years of stolen glances, lingering touches that were easily brushed off as accidental, and a slow-burning attraction that had never quite ignited into something more.

And now, you were done waiting.

His birthday had seemed like the perfect excuse—an opportunity to show him, not just tell him, that you cared. And, because he was Gregory House, you knew damn well he would never make it easy for you.

“I swear to God, if you even think about doing something stupid for my birthday—” House had warned, his blue eyes narrowing over the rim of his coffee cup.

“Define ‘stupid,’” you had teased, smirking.

“Anything that involves cake, balloons, or people I don’t like pretending they give a crap.”

Which, to House, meant most people.

Wilson had confirmed it. Cuddy had sighed and told you that, yes, House had made it his life’s mission to avoid celebrating his birthday. But you were nothing if not persistent. And stubborn. If House was going to avoid his birthday, then you were going to make it impossible for him to do so.

So you planned a surprise party.

And now, standing in the crowded hospital lounge, surrounded by his team, Cuddy, Wilson, and a handful of other brave souls, you started to think maybe this had been a mistake.

The door creaked open.

“SURPRISE!” The group shouted in unison.

House stood there, his cane still mid-step, his expression unreadable as his blue eyes swept over the crowd. The silence that followed stretched on a little too long.

Then, finally, he spoke.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

The tension in the room thickened as people exchanged nervous glances. You, on the other hand, bit the inside of your cheek to keep from smiling.

Cuddy sighed. “Oh, come on, House, just—”

“No.” He lifted his cane, pointing it in your direction. “This has your fingerprints all over it.”

You shrugged, unapologetic. “Guilty as charged.”

“You—” He exhaled sharply, shaking his head. “You ignored my explicit instructions.”

“They weren’t instructions,” you said, stepping closer, arms crossed. “They were a grumpy old man’s demands.”

He scoffed. “And yet, I find myself standing in the middle of a Hallmark nightmare.”

“Would it kill you to enjoy something for once?” You challenged, tilting your head.

House’s lips pressed into a thin line, and for a moment, you thought maybe—just maybe—he’d relent.

Then he turned on his heel.

“Nope. Not doing this.”

The room watched in stunned silence as he limped right out the door.

Cuddy sighed again. Wilson gave you an apologetic smile.

And you—well, you just rolled your eyes and went after him.

You found him in his office, sitting at his desk, tossing a small rubber ball against the wall with calculated precision. You leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed.

“You really know how to make an exit,” you mused.

“Practice,” he muttered, still tossing the ball.

You stepped inside, letting the door click shut behind you. “You didn’t even stay long enough for the cake.”

“Didn’t ask for cake.”

“No, but I did.” You moved closer, until you were standing right in front of him. “And I spent all night baking it.”

That made him pause. The ball hit his desk with a soft thud as he eyed you skeptically. “You don’t bake.”

“I do when I care about someone.” The words were simple, unfiltered. They hung in the air between you, heavy and undeniable.

House studied you for a long moment. “And here I thought you just enjoyed torturing me.”

“Oh, I do,” you admitted with a smirk. “But I also meant what I said.”

His throat bobbed as he swallowed, his fingers drumming against the desk. “You’re an idiot.”

“You’re welcome.”

“I didn’t say thank you.”

“Not yet.”

There was a flicker of something in his eyes—something raw, something real. You watched as he reached for his cane, pushing himself to stand until he was so close, you could feel the warmth of him.

“Why do you even—” He stopped himself, shaking his head like he couldn’t believe he was about to ask.

“Because it’s you,” you answered before he could finish.

His gaze flickered to your lips. Your pulse quickened.

And then, just like that, Gregory House closed the remaining space between you and kissed you.

It wasn’t tentative or hesitant—it was confident, certain, like he had been waiting just as long as you had for this. His hand found your waist, pulling you closer, deepening the kiss until the world outside of this office didn’t exist.

When he finally pulled away, his breath was warm against your lips.

“Still an idiot,” he murmured.

“Still worth it,” you countered.

His lips quirked into the faintest hint of a smile. “I guess one bite of cake wouldn’t kill me.”

You grinned. “Come on, birthday boy. Let’s get you that cake.”

And this time, he didn’t put up a fight.

▸ Everything

@alexxavicry

▸ House MD

@mayo-i @dustie-faerie @awxcoffeexno @khxna

[dalphahale]

"As long as you're feeling better and we don't have to worry about your stitches bursting open, I'm good with us starting up the process." He knew that getting her on the force soon would be much more beneficial to him and the team. He watched her as she relaxed, making sure she was alright before he shook his head at her question. "How often did you see me going to a donut shop when you were stalking me?" He countered, raising his brow at her. He had already known Selina tailed him which is how she had ended up in his apartment one night when he came home from his shift. He enjoyed sweets but he would never be caught in one of those places while on duty as he didn't want to fit the stereotype.

"They wouldn't put you in the same crowd as before. At first they would want all the info they can get about your clients and who you worked for but then I would suggest that we put you with a different group. We would make sure you are safe wherever you go." He would be in charge of that and so far he had been doing pretty good with making sure she was alright. "Can I get you anything? Water? Maybe a blanket so you can get some sleep?"

Now, she wanted to say, but she knew that he would shoot that response down. Mainly because they both knew she wasn't in any condition to be running around after criminals. Selina had only forced herself to go after him because of the danger he would be -- and had been -- in. "Maybe after a couple of weeks? At least until I'm back on my feet," she replied, finally pushing herself up to a sitting position. Lying down was making her dizzy, and she leaned back with a long hum, her eyes closing as she felt herself relax after the excitement of the day. "Anything I should know about being a police informant, though? Like is it true that cops like doing doughnut stops?" She cracked open an eye at that, grinning at him.

While she'd never seen him go into one of those stores whenever she watched him -- like some kind of stalker-y cat -- it could've been one of his well-kept secrets. "And do they expect me to go back out and pretend to be a criminal again? I do have a few...morally grey friends, but the rest of them might know what I just did. And they would either be happy about being rid of their competition or furious that I got rid of their big paydays. But I will if I have to. I've survived them all this long."

[bwat5-blog]

Caitlyn Kiramman Discussion Response: @xxbrightshadowxx

**Discussion of Arcane so obviously spoiler warning for entire show**

***REALLY LONG***

Before We Begin: To anyone aside from the user I tagged who reads this, please don't post anything aggressive on here. We have all done plenty of mud-slinging, INCLUDING ME. I am not judging or ragging on anyone. But they responded kindly and respectfully and have just asked for the same, which I intend to honor. Thank you.

Part One Of Discussion

Good morning, I have read through your entire response and as promised have returned to give my response as well. First of all, thank you for taking the time to read and respond at all. I'm just another internet random and you certainly don't owe me a moment of your time. Second, thank you for leaving the door open for good discussion and debate. I linked part one of this with your response as well up top in blue, and will paste your response below. That way this doesn't turn into an enormously long post, but we can see what was said and the response on this page.

Your Responses:

Hello. I will not lie, this is very impressive. You break down information and your response is effective. It’s organized, you get your point through very thoroughly. You also did it without insulting me which is a lot more than some tumblr users and TikTok users could do for me. You’re right it’s clear you and I are on opposite ends of how we felt about Caitlyn in season 2. Some of your points did change some of my thinking towards Caitlyn and some I still have the same feelings to.

You’re right Caitlyn was not in the right headspace when she went against Jinx and has a lot of PTSD from her so she wasn’t in the best of mind when she hit her. I’ll agree with that. For your point that Caitlyn apologized to Vi through her actions I have to disagree with that. That’s because the show never truly acknowledges Caitlyn leaving or hitting Vi. Her saving Vander, she does get a point for that however her running to Vi when she was injured instead of Jink just shows she still cares about her not that she’s necessarily sorry. Her keeping Jinx in the bunker rather than Stillwater, and holding off on any judgement until Vi is awake isn’t shown to be Caitlyn doing that because she wants to apologize to Vi. Her letting Vi free Jinx, while that could show she’s apologizing and making amends, it falls flat because Jinx leaves Vi so it doesn’t feel as effective, at least for me.

As for the gray and Ambessa’s manipulation: I also disagree with. Ambessa, while she did orchestra the attack at the funeral and put Caitlyn in charge, Caitlyn chose to use the gray on Zaun. The gray is a gas. That is what I meant by nuclear/chemical warfare(should’ve been more specific, sorry) You cannot control a gas once it’s released. And the gray isn’t just a tear gas or anything it is a life ending gas that could kill people. We learn this from Viktor who was dying from it in season 1. And the excuse that it was Chembarons they were using it on doesn’t help it. It does not matter if the chembarons weren’t good people and were criminals. They were still people. You mentioned the deleted scenes that make Caitlyn look better and I actually haven’t seen them. I’ll look into them when I’m less busy. But you mentioned deleted scenes and how there are no proven longer term effects to such a ‘short’ amount. There is a deleted scene of Ekko bringing people to the firelight base, people that aren’t one of the chembarons that were coughing from the gray. People who weren’t chembarons were also affected by the gray. But then again, it was a deleted scenes so it is a weak rebuttal since it wasn’t actually in the show. You are right, the show doesn’t glorify the gassing but it doesn’t ever acknowledge the event after it happens. No one calls out Caitlyn on the morality of using the gray or the effects it could have on the people. She doesn’t get consequences for gassing people or hurting Vi. The show doesn’t even mention the hit again after it happens. When Vi does call her out, it’s not for her attacks on Zaun. It’s for listening to Ambessa.

About Jinx, Sevika, and Silco. I do believe you simplify their actions. I do give Jinx more slack because she is a product of Piltover’s neglect and oppression. Don’t get me wrong, she’s crazy and very violent. But all her issues stem from Piltover’s abuse Enforcers killed her parents during whah seemed to be a protest against Piltover. Silco did affect her and made her who she was but he wouldn’t have done that if he wasn’t already affected by Piltover. yes, Silco is awful. He wants more than anything to get revenge on Topside rather than freedom for Zaun which causes him to do things that hurt his own people without remorse. But the only reason he was the way he was from resentment for Piltover constantly treating them like crap as stated before in season 1. His resentment overtook his want for freedom for his people and it turned him for the worse. If Topside treated Zaun better, Silco would’ve never become the monster he was. And as for Sevika, it’s implied she’s also a product of Piltover’s neglect. The reason why the killed Vander is because Vander was bending to Piltover’s will. He might’ve stopped the enforcers going down there but Zaun was still fighting for scraps, they were still treated as less and Vi calls him out for it. Im not saying them attacking and trying to kill the kids makes it right. But what I am saying is if you want to say Caitlyn is complex then you have to admit that Silco, Sevika, and Jinx are as well. Caitlyn, she gets consequences for going against Ambessa by her injuries but she doesn’t get consequences for hurting Vi or gassing Zaun. Also, it’s not that I only love Caitlyn when she isn’t affected by the things she went through. It’s just that I don’t love how the writers handled the direction her character went through even though I think they could’ve made it work with their vision. As a tumblr user I like said: ‘they wanted the aesthetic of a person gone down the wrong path while still making them seem good in their eyes’.

To finish this long reply, you make great points in the defense of Caitlyn, some making me take on a new perspective. there is so much more I most likely missed or counterpoints you might have for me. I also plan to read through your analysis posts to see how you interpreted them. If you do and want to rebuttal I’d be interested to see what you have to say as long as you stay respectful to me and I’ll do the same for you.

End Your Responses

You disagree that Caitlyn ever truly apologizes for hitting and leaving Vi-

Okay I responded to your overall complaint that Caitlyn never really apologizes to Vi. I stated that while it is correct she never verbally apologizes, she does so through her deeds.

You responded to each point, explaining why you still don't feel that it was truly addressed and Caitlyn truly apologized:

"For your point that Caitlyn apologized to Vi through her actions I have to disagree with that. That’s because the show never truly acknowledges Caitlyn leaving or hitting Vi"

You then responded to each point:

1. We agree on Caitlyn helping save Vander. 2. You feel that prioritizing saving Vi over hurting Jinx was more an expression of still caring for Vi rather any remorse for her actions. 3. You feel that Caitlyn keeping Jinx in the bunker and holding off on judgement was not shown as an apology. 4. You feel that while allowing Vi to free Jinx could be seen as making amends, it falls flat because Jinx leaves. (you make a point of mentioning at it does so at least for you)

Okay, so I already mentioned the actions I consider her expressions of apology and remorse. But we need to talk about her words as well. There are three big moments that show her feelings about her actions in particular:

S2 E8 28:51- "I know!"

Vi has confronted Caitlyn over Jinx being locked up. When Caitlyn says it was clear Jinx was a contingency in the commune because Vi didn't trust her, Vi straight up calls her out-

"Can you blame me? How long were you sidled up with that shifty, self-serving war pig? She oinked poison in your ear and you just ate it"

Our timestamped quote is how Caitlyn responds. She is clearly upset and angry with herself. She knows what she did and is acknowledging her wrong doing in allowing herself to be twisted up and used by Ambessa.

S2 E8 28:19- "We can't erase our mistakes. None of us"

The conversation continues. Vi tells her that Jinx has changed and this is how Caitlyn responds. But again, we have to look at Caitlyn is actually saying.

"None of Us"

They have been talking about Jinx. Caitlyn is verbally equating herself with Jinx. The woman she hated so intensely it drove her to this point. The woman who killed her mother. And even though she is saying it about Jinx she is saying it about herself as well.

She is looking at Vi and saying in another way- "Nothing can erase what I did"

S2 E8 27:06- "No amount of good deeds can undo our crimes!...Hating you... I've hated myself. I just don't have the energy for it any longer".

So as we know, following her conversation with Vi Caitlyn goes to see Jinx in the bunker and they have this moment.

So once again, Caitlyn verbally equates herself with Jinx. This time speaking to Jinx directly. That is twice now she has placed herself on the same level as the woman who killed her mother, who she allowed her hate for to drive herself so far over crossing the line. Twice that she has expressed the belief there is no way that not only Jinx, but that SHE can make things right.

And perhaps most telling of all, it is not to Vi who she loves, that she admits she has hated herself. It's to Jinx. The woman who once haunted her literal waking steps, who she hated with such intensity that she cast aside everything she believed in, who killed her mother. I suspect guilt doesn't even begin to cover how she feels.

Okay. Now, I am well aware that none of that is a direct apology to Vi over what she did. My reason for mentioning those moments is that we have to remember Caitlyn is not a character known for outward display of emotion. Not that it doesn't happen, but no matter how you feel about her I think we can agree she is never really shown to be the overly mushy type. Look at the moment tells her father she could have stopped Jinx:

S2 E1 30:30- "I had the shot"

We at least agreed Caitlyn went through some seriously messed up stuff in season one. So she has been through all of that, now she is dealing with her mother's death and sitting on the couch next to her father. And this is all she says. Staring down at the ground with teary eyes she says this one thing, blaming herself.

She was never the sort that was going to fall on her knees and beg Vi's forgiveness. It just isn't in line with her personality or depiction. So keeping that in mind I would argue we need to view her actions I listed with this new context in mind that I have given:

1. She is aware and admitting she messed up and is clearly angry over it 2. She feels that nothing can erase what she did 3. She feels no good deed can undo her crimes 4. She is placing herself on the same level as Jinx 5. She hates herself for what she did 6. She is not the sort of character to express herself through her words

Saving Vander: We agreed on this one

Prioritizing saving Vi over hurting Jinx: I actually do see your point here even with this context. But, I think that the fact that when Caitlyn didn't have time to think and just had to tact, her eyes never left the woman she hurt so terribly in pursuit of her hatred even though the object of said hatred was there with her back turned. And I think that speaks greatly to the change in Caitlyn's heart.

Holding Jinx in the bunker and postponing judgement: So this is the first one where Caitlyn has any measure of time to think. When I say this is a way of making amends I don't mean Caitlyn saw it as-

"I screwed up, if I keep Jinx out of Stillwater and don't execute her maybe I can make things right"

Caitlyn doesn't believe she can make things right, as we have seen. She doesn't think anything she does can erase her crimes. And she sees herself in the same light as the woman who killed her mother. She hates herself.

Regarding this point, we have to remember Caitlyn is not the only person who wanted Jinx's head on a plate. The elite of Piltover, the families of every Enforcer she killed, there are countless people who would be baying for Jinx's execution. But Caitlyn keeps her close, and even though she was still The Commander at that time and had all authority needed to do so, she does not hurt her. She waits for Vi, because even if she can't make it right, she doesn't want to make it any worse.

Allowing Vi to free Jinx: So on this one you stated you can see it as making amends, but it fell flat for you because Jinx left Vi. You are of course entitled to your opinion and I understand if you feel that way. All I'd say I suppose is that just to remember what the weight of that decision actually means regarding Caitlyn. She set aside her hatred of her mother's killer, in favor of her love for Vi. Even if it would mean she lost Vi forever.

You disagree with my points regarding Caitlyn & The Grey-

Regarding the use of The Grey you raise several points:

1. You admit that while Ambessa orchestrated the attack on the memorial, Caitlyn made the choice to use The Grey 2. You clarify your overall complaint was her use of chemical warfare against the defenseless of Zaun regarding your point in your original post- "She gassed and used nuclear warfare against the defenseless in Zaun" (You clarified you meant chemical) 3. You state The Grey is not like tear gas, it is fatal. And that we learn this from Viktor who was dying of it in season one. 4. The use of The Grey is not justified just because The Chem-Barons are criminals, as they are still people 5. There were people affected who were not bad guys 6. The show does not acknowledge using The Grey, she faces no consequences for it, and when Vi calls her out it is for Ambessa, not for her actions in Zaun

Caitlyn made the decision to use The Grey on her own:

She absolutely did. No arguments. But I will say I think considering the context is extremely important and something that is often left aside when this comes up. I am posting a section of another post I did below that addresses this topic exactly. Part of this post was proving Ambessa set up the attack as well so ignore that as we already agree.

***START OLD POST***

Let's go back in time to the aftermath of Jinx's attack on the council and what their plan of retaliation entails. S2 E1 33:37-Ambessa smirking at Mel as Salo explains "I thought it prudent to solicit the advice of such an experienced veteran"

S2 E1 33:20- Salo finishes explaining his plan- "We flood the undercity with Enforcers, armed with Hextech"

S2 E1 33:18- Caitlyn immediately protests "innocents will be caught in the cross fire"

S2 E1 32:02-31:58- Mel agrees to a form of the plan after Salo continues to push. "I'll agree to endorse the invasion. But I draw the line at Hextech".

Okay. So we have established the Council's intention in clear and precise language with examples straight out of content- INVASION. But! There's a problem. Because what does Ambessa actually want? Fully weaponized hextech. How do we know this? Well she told us-

S1 E9 33:35- "If there is a chance hextech can be weaponized, we must have it" Ambessa says after being confronted by Mel

S1 E9 33:32- "Piltover isn't your testing ground" Mel responds S1 E9 33:23- "I can't believe you'd start a war just to cover your ass" Mel continues S1 E9 33:20- " I would set the world ablaze to protect our family" Ambessa admits

Alright so we know the Council's plan. And we know Ambessa's motivation, including how far she'd go to achieve it and that comes straight from her own mouth. She openly admits she'd not only start a war, but light the world on fire to do what she views as needed to protect her family. The council's failure to ratify Salo's plan of all out aggression counters her goal.

So how does she push it to that point? The memorial attack. She sent her man Rictus to assist the Chem Baron Renni, giving her the chance for revenge on Jayce during the memorial. She of course then came to the rescue with her people, killing Renni herself. We see evidence of all of this below:

S2 E3 5:48- Flashback begins showing everything we just discussed

Ambessa's goal: Weaponized Hextech at any cost

Council's plan: Invasion without Hextech

Ambessa's response: Organizes a full Zaunite incursion in the middle of a memorial service killing several and stoking hostility and fear to an all time high

Back to Caitlyn-

Okay finally we are back. So as I said, she protests the invasion plan but is denied. We see this clearly. The memorial attack occurs and of course we know from there Caitlyn forms the plan for the strike team, goes to the council, then she and the team go into Zaun utilizing The Grey and so on. So lets review the conversation leading her to create the team. It's after the memorial attack. She is understandably quite upset- no matter how much you don't like her they got attacked during a memorial for her mom- and she and Vi talk.

S2 E1 7:48 to 7:41- Vi tells Caitlyn "you need to find a way to call off the invasion... This battle was on your soil. Down there, you'll be on their terms" S2 E1 7:35 to 7:27- In response to Vi telling Caitlyn they need to change it when Caitlyn says "none of this is on our terms" Caitlyn says "I don't know how okay? She leaves this giant hole, and I'm just supposed to fill it. Like she was never here to begin with."

S2 E1 5:26 to 5:16- Salo is speaking to the others in the wake of the attack pressing once more for the full weaponization of Hextech. "We can't afford anymore handwringing. If we do not defend ourselves with Hextech, our principles will mean nothing".

And from there as we know, she uses The Kiramman Key and learns about The Grey. From there we get the "Heavy Is The Crown" sequence where the strike team is revealed.

Conclusion:

Caitlyn formed the strike team and used The Grey as an alternative to The Invasion. She only did so because of The Memorial Attack.

Ambessa conclusively and undeniably orchestrated the memorial attack.

Ambessa did so after declaring in her own words in season 1 after being accused of being willing to start a war "I would set the world ablaze to protect our family"

Caitlyn used The Grey because of Ambessa and the events she orchestrated.

***END OLD POST BACK TO CURRENT DOC**

So all of that mess to say, while I do of course agree that the end of the day Caitlyn made the choice. I all too often see this component totally left out. Ambessa intentionally and knowingly orchestrated not only an attack, but an attack during a memorial knowing it would enrage people. If she hadn't done we never would have arrived where we do.

Addressing points 2-4: Caitlyn used chemical warfare against the defenseless, it is fatal, and the use of it against the criminal element does not justify its use as they are still human beings.

Okay, the reason I am addressing three points in one is these all fall under the same issue. There has been quite a lot of criticism levelled at Caitlyn all under the heading of chemical warfare. All with mention of the real-world definitions and laws that classify such things, and the accusations of how she violated them. At the end of the day, this is all a work of fiction. So real-world technical standards of war crimes, chemical warfare and so on have no meaning in-world.

And that of course isn't to say there is anything wrong with analyzing fiction through a real world lens to a point. If you are interested as an exercise in curiosity I delved into how the use of The Grey would be classified per The Chemical Weapons Convention myself. To the best of my ability I deduced it would actually be called a "Riot Control Agent" or "RCA", not a "Chemical Weapon". It's linked below but I realize sending additional documents when I'm already on here writing novels is obnoxious.

Grey War Crime Doc

So setting aside the real-world standards at least for this conversation (you are of course entitled to stick to them for yourself as see fit), we can very much so talk about The Grey with what we are given from content.

Is The Grey Fatal?

Long Term Exposure: Absolutely it can be. We see the sketches of those Zaunites when caitlyn is using the key with those terrible injuries. Viktor actually isn't confirmed to be sick from The Grey itself but more than likely. There is all sorts of dialogue and plenty of evidence to back this up.

Short Term Exposure: There is zero evidence to support this. Every single person we see exposed during the Strike Team's use of it, during Silco's use of it, and during the final battle is either alive, or quite clearly died from something else. Of course as I said in the other post, we can speculate. But we can speculate about all sorts of things. Vi's repeated head trauma alone is very likely to end in seizures or CTE if we want to get into that. Sevika is a chain smoker. Jinx is infused with shimmer and looks like she weighs roughly 90 pounds who knows what her future holds. That could go on forever. But if short term exposure is fatal as you suggest, this is a list of characters who are going to die of complications, or should have died already-

Caitlyn

Vi

Jinx (I know but I'm of the camp that she survived)

Steb

Sevika

Piltover boy Ambessa uses as an anti-zaun prop

Heenot

And those are just the ones whose names we know. There are many things in our world that are extremely dangerous when exposed to excessive quantities, but quite mundane at lesser quantities. All evidence given by the show itself suggests The Grey falls into this category.

2. Did Caitlyn Gas The Defenseless?

First, lets review her named targets of The Strike Team:

Jinx

Associates of Silco (the chem-barons)

Shimmer

So at the very least, her named targets are not anyone defenseless. Now as we know, the deployment of The Grey was via the ventilation system Cassandra Kiramman herself created. This means two things:

-It wasn't being dropped as bombs, or fired from cannons or any of that. It was coming from specific points at chosen times. -Caitlyn had control of it. Not arguing what she did with it yet, just that she herself was the one "at the wheel" if you will. And we do get confirmation of this via the Hellfire animation with plans showing the controls and actual images of Caitlyn using them

I bring that up only to show that it was not just some sort of random flooding of The Undercity.

Moving on! So, we know they at the absolute least did not enter Zaun intending to target anyone defenseless or innocent, and that Caitlyn did have some amount of control over its use. Now we come to this quote by writer/creator Amanda Overton:

"It was strategic to a pin point. Still, is that forgivable?"

Now I know as I stated before in the original post, many people who are very unhappy with Caitlyn's story in season two have made up their mind to ignore/disregard this quote. If you feel that way, I cannot argue it because that is your right. But as she is one of the creators and she did say it, I factor it into my conversation and will continue to do so.

Now, we of course do have the address the issue of it being a gas, fictional or not. I absolutely agree that there was no way it could be controlled completely. And we do see this, in S2 E2 31:29 Smeech and his crew arrive at Margot's base to find the grey leaking out of the big statue's eyes and mouth to a point. But I would point out two things.

This is what it looks like outside-

It looks thick but some of that is regular Zaun smog we always see, plus Smeech and his associated while covering the mouths are able to speak quite freely with only a bit of coughing

2. This is what it looks like where they actually let it loose just on the other side-

So my point is this. I absolutely agree they could not guarantee it would only impact their chosen targets. But I would say that clearly the system they use is giving them at least a decent amount of control.

In Review:

Caitlyn very specifically names targets that only pose a threat to everyone's safety, Piltover & Zaun alike.

The deployment of The Grey is proven to be under her control to a point.

One of the creators of the show confirmed Caitlyn used The Grey in a strategic manner

While acknowledging and recognizing that The Grey cannot be contained completely, the evidence we see of that very thing suggests that environmental exposure is fairly controlled at least while dealing with Chem-Baron bases themselves.

So my question regarding this topic is as follows: Which of these two statements seems more fair and honest given this topic?

Caitlyn gassed the defenseless.

Caitlyn used the grey in a tactical and strategic fashion, but in her growing anger and hate failed to account for the potential risk to the defenseless of Zaun.

Because as I have said several times now. I'm not out to justify her wrong doing. Just to bring down the heat of the rhetoric around her story so it can be discussed fairly and honestly.

3. Was gassing the Chem-Barons unjust?

So this is again something that is going to come down a lot to opinion. But, we can certainly discuss it. To review a few pertinent factors:

Caitlyn's strike team is an alternative to a full invasion, as we saw.

The chem-barons have weapons and shimmer.

The Grey is only proven to be fatal with long-term exposure. Otherwise it is temporarily debilitating like tear gas.

So, Piltovan retaliation is coming. That is not up for debate. The chem-barons are extremely dangerous. If Caitlyn doesn't use The Grey, and they want to stop the invasion as we showed earlier, what is her option?

Fighting. Room to room, floor to floor, more than likely fatal fighting. Instead of using the grey and arresting everyone while they are coughing up a fit, more than likely a lot of people are going to die.

And we have to remember, while of course the Chem-Barons are people. They are very dangerous, and they are not good for Zaun either. We see Sevika trying to stop their turf wars because they are ripping Zaun apart. And this section of lyrics for Suckers put it quite plainly as Jinx is walking through the fracturing Undercity-

"Dirty little animals You cannibals, eat your supper One by one, all these vultures keep coming"

As we are given scenes of them destroying each other. These are violent, greedy, evil people ripping their home apart.

Something we should also address is that at least Chross (if not the other barons) has forced child labor somewhere in his organization. We see them being taken during the Suckers montage. So, does this mean if there were children in a base that got hit with the grey then they did as well?

Yes it certainly does. But keeping in mind that the alternative is for Enforcers who don't care who they hurt wielding hex-tech weapons to storm these bases shooting shooting at will, what is the better option for these kids? The Grey, or a bullet?

The show does not acknowledge using The Grey, she faces no consequences for it, and when Vi calls her out it is for Ambessa, not for her actions in Zaun

Okay, so this is kind of the wrap up regarding The Grey. So in review:

1. No in-canon evidence of being fatal from their use 2. It was used in the most controlled fashion they could 3. The alternative to the strike team was a full invasion, and the alternative to The Grey within the strike team was active and likely much more deadly fighting 4. The people they did target were dangerous, well armed, and posed a threat to everyone's safety

So what does all that mean?

It means that the use of The Grey, is not wrong for the reasons people have made it out to be. Not in this instance. Let's return to just the small bit of lyrics from "Hellfire"-

"Can I do the right thing for the wrong reason? Is it bad that I'm making friends with my demons"

Putting Jinx aside because her dynamic with Caitlyn is obviously much more complicated, the strike team's goals are good for everyone. Shimmer is a blight on Zaun. Ekko himself says so. And we have already covered the barons. Removing these things is undeniably good for Zaun. And with the alternative being an invasion or what would clearly be much more deadly fighting, I genuinely cannot fathom a way in which they could have done this better. What they are doing, is not the issue. It's why.

Caitlyn doesn't lead a strike team into Zaun to liberate the people of The Undercity from these threats that Piltover's negligence and abuse have allowed to flourish. That would be another issue entirely. She is there chasing her hate, her rage, and her need for revenge, and she doesn't see it because she can justify it under doing "the right thing". She doesn't see that its "for the wrong reason". And therefore is leading her down a darker and darker path, no matter how many lives it saved.

Something of note: Ekko is still in Zaun when this is going on. Now, I saw a post recently that suggested the writers left him out simply because they didn't want to address the fact that he would have to fight Vi and Caitlyn if he was present in these scenes. However, as stated I am more inclined to analyze the story I was given. Therefore, if you consider all the evidence I have presented, and that Ekko had not yet vanished to the AU, what is the only logical result? He at the very least tacitly approved. Because he was such a champion for his people, if this was all truly so terrible, I think we can agree he would have been in their business immediately.

So regarding your complaint, I would say my response is that The Grey isn't what she has to apologize for. That's why it isn't a focal point moving forward. Especially from Vi who was there beside her.

You disagree with my oversimplification of Jinx, Silco and Sevika-

So actually I can answer this one fairly easily. You are 100% correct. My sort of quick and dirty list of the actions of these three characters was exactly that. It lacked the detail it should have had. And given that one of things I have addressed frequently is the lack of context to Caitlyn's actions many people to demonize her unfairly, that was wrong of me. Your closing to statement to this section is one I agree with entirely-

"But what I am saying is if you want to say Caitlyn is complex then you have to admit that Silco, Sevika, and Jinx are as well."

In closing before your comments to me you revisit the topic of Caitlyn's consequences-

You see her consequences as for going against Ambessa only, not for her actions in Zaun or for hurting Vi

You don't love how the writers handled her character and story

You share a quote you agree with- "they wanted the aesthetic of a person gone down the wrong path while still making them seem good in their eyes'

Regarding Consequences:

Well as we have discussed this may just be one of those things we feel differently about. I think if you were looking for "eye for an eye" transactional sort of punishment that isn't what this story is.

But, I will try to give a clear list of what I see as consequences of her actions. I'll leave it to you to decide what heading they belong under. Keeping in mind of course that some of things are more nebulous in definition, such as long term mental health impact, but I feel that in a show like Arcane it is reasonable to assume these characters would experience such things.

Immense physical injuries: Fight against Ambessa

Immense guilt: All of it. As we established because she says in plain english, she hates herself. And if you really think about how this spiderwebs into everything that has happened there will likely be a part of Caitlyn that NEVER stops punishing herself for this

They almost lost the fight until Zaun showed. And Zaun initially didn't show yes because of their history but also because of the occupation

Mental trauma like you wouldn't believe: I mean take your pick, but the woman she was sharing a bed with while Vi was gone almost murdered her

Now, I see all of that as consequences of her mistakes and decisions in season two. Listed below is the Miriam Webster definition of consequence.

Now, I don't post that to be an arrogant jerk. I know you know what a consequence is. I post it because more and more I am getting the impression that many fans who feel as you do are looking for this:

And again, if that is how you feel, that is your prerogative. But the way I view the events that unfold, she will be living with the consequences of her actions for the rest of her life. And if you are looking for punishment, from who?

As stated, everything she did was entirely lawful. Now I am of course not saying that makes it okay. Far from. But she acted completely and totally within the bounds of the rules and laws set by this shows world. So there is no judicial punishment to be meted out.

And if you are looking for the other sort of punishment- retribution , then from whom?

Vi- Vi loves her. And Vi is also aware that Caitlyn spared Jinx's life at Vi's pleading and her entire life was ripped apart. Vi is also aware of what it feels like to lose control in a terrible moment and hurt someone you love (By the way I'm not one of those people equating Caitlyn hitting Vi to Vi hitting Powder. Clearly the actions of children versus adults, just saying Vi knows how that feels). Vi also saw who Caitlyn was before she lost her way. The same Caitlyn who saved her life repeatedly, and who comforted her after the fight on the bridge. The same Caitlyn who helped save Vander at the drop of a hat and who let Vi free her mother's killer, because she loves Vi more than she hates her.

Zaun- Regarding the grey, we have discussed that. As far as I'm concerned Caitlyn removed terrible threats from the streets of Zaun. Now talking about the occupation and Martial Law does Caitlyn owe a debt to Zaun? Of course. But Caitlyn's debt is not Piltover's. She shouldn't have to shoulder the last however many years of oppression and negligence because that nothing to do with her. The worst deeds of the occupation were done without her knowledge and away from her eyes. She was manipulated and used by an extremely intelligent and calculating war monger who stoked the conflict for her own designs. It doesn't excuse her letting herself be blinded to it for the sake of her vengeance. But she was hardly the head of the snake either.

And in closing regarding consequence or punishment, I'll say this. I know her near-death was because she fought Ambessa. But let's not forget what a victory for Ambessa and Viktor meant. Viktor intended to evolve all of humanity. Caitlyn willingly put her life on the line, and almost lost it, for a battle that mattered to the future of Zaun just as much as Piltover. And when it was all said and done,(although I acknowledge we never really get the specifics on how it works in terms a new councilor being chosen) Caitlyn doesn't sit in her mother's old seat. A Zaunite does.

You don't love how the writers handled it:

Nothing for this one that is entirely your right

"they wanted the aesthetic of a person gone down the wrong path while still making them seem good in their eyes"

So it's hard to dig too much into another person's quote. But I have seen something to the effect going around so I think I understand.

There has been a lot of commentary lately essentially saying it's like they were unwilling to commit to Caitlyn's villainous arc. That by continuing to use plot points and scenes that show her in a sympathetic light, they failed to stick the landing regarding her "turn to the dark side"

If (And I do mean if because this is someone else's quote and I don't want to put words in your mouth) that is what you mean I just cannot see it.

You yourself clearly outline Caitlyn as a good person in season one. So the way I see it:

Good person in season one + Conflicted person who makes mistakes in season two= Conflicted good person who makes mistakes.

They don't fully commit to her being a villain, because she never was one.

WRAP UP:

Good god I'm obnoxious. I feel like this is somehow even longer. I'm really sorry lol. Anyway, I really appreciate you for being willing to engage and discuss. If you are done I totally get it but I'd love to keep on if you are up for it. I'm genuinely enjoying the chance for some good respectful debate. Thank you for your time.

[jinxed-newyork]

Six & T ; Just Another Thursday

pairing: Bucky Barnes x child reader (platonic)

word count: 3.7K

content warnings: hurt/comfort, canon violence, cursing, fighting, physical illnesses, referring to Bucky as “robot” and “six”, friendly banter, overprotective Bucky, medical inaccuracies, reader is kinda British, no use of y/n, little sprinkle of angst

synopsis: (Basically the Grey Man but it’s Bucky Barnes because I love him and mourning the loss of Sebastian not getting an oscar.) Bucky, needing a break from work, agrees to a security detail for an Uncle from Sam and Sarah’s family. He assumes it will be pretty easy and a good break from the work he doesn’t want to do but actually ends up enjoying the job. What happens when he has to actually protect you?

Bucky Barnes was used to the murmurs and uncomfortable glares he got from the congress members, the government never fully trusted him despite allowing him to run as a congress member. It wasn't until he was actually voted into office that he was aware why, they were using him. Holding his pardon from his crimes as the winter soldier over his head, despite the fact that Steve had already fought for his charges to have been dropped completely because he wasn’t aware of what he was doing at all. Sam never agreed with the way that the government was carrying it out but with the current president being in jail and he being at the root of the problem the both of them just had to fall in line for a little bit so they didn’t end up in the same cell as him. It was uncomfortable and irritating, the reminder of his nightmares being held over his head everyday and brought up at every mistake or small hint of aggression.

He needed a break, a vacation, just a minute of time to himself so that he would be able to breathe and Sam’s Sister offered him something light. He always had a soft spot for her, he was a nice younger woman, never looked at him weirdly or brought up his past and gave a small smile every time she saw him despite being so stern with her own kids. An uncle of hers and Sam’s needed a new security detail for his niece, a very simple task, she couldn’t have been a day over thirteen and the most supervision that was needed was to ensure that she didn’t eat ice cream for dinner. Besides, it was in a different country, and he would have to stay in the estate which was pretty huge, so it seemed like a win-win, however Bucky didn’t like kids. He didn’t trust himself around them, despite being sure that he wasn’t under Hydra’s control anymore, kids just weren’t his forte. However he still agreed, it was a simple protection case, a few months of protecting a child shouldn’t be so hard right? And it was a friend of his, he couldn’t have just said no, had it been anyone else he might have but this was Sam.

“Now I’m going to be gone for a little bit. A new case came up, it will be a few months. Can you handle yourself?” Your uncle wasn’t an idiot, you were young but he taught her how to handle herself at least a little bit. His line of work was dangerous and the people he worked for and against could snap at any moment so he wanted to make sure that you could at least put up a fight and leave a trace if anything were to happen to you. “I’ll be fine. You hired me a babysitter with a metal arm. I don't know how anything could go wrong.” You responded, thick sarcasm running through the sentence as you looked up from your bowl of ice cream, spoon now digging aimlessly into the dessert. Bucky stood in the background, hovering like a creep, his hair long and stubble grown out enough to where he should be late forties, however his body barely looked late thirties. With a kiss to the crown of your head, he gave bucky the rundown. You weren't really allowed to use technology, safety reasons and what not so that you couldn’t be tracked. However, occasionally there would be a few hours where you would be allowed to use the tablet or computer but mainly that was it.

The first night after your uncle left was awkward, he stood in the corner of the rather huge dining room while you ate. Every now and then you would glance up from the computer in front of you, absentmindedly playing a random show you had turned on, wasn’t necessarily interesting but it was good background noise and was enough to keep you entertained until you had to sleep. “Are you just gonna stand there the whole time? In silence? Like some shadow or something?” A noodle from your meal hanging from the fork that lay just before your mouth, Bucky glanced over but didn’t answer. You got through a few more bites before speaking up again. “What’s your name, shadow?” “Six.” He answered shortly, now taking a few steps towards the table but still just standing before you. He wasn’t sure why he chose that name, it’s not like he was in danger if he told you his real name and yet he just came out. (What an odd name) You looked at him weirdly before going back to your meal, what could someone even say to that? His eyes glanced down at the watch on his wrist before looking back up at you, his facial features were always hardened, he never truly looked relaxed or calm. It didn’t freak you out, it was just a little freaky. “You should start to get ready for bed. It’s almost eleven.” How irritating, was he going to be like this the entire time?

All you were going to do was lay down, not even go to bed. With a sigh you looked back up at him, finishing up your meal and swallowing before asking your question. “Can I play a record before I go to sleep?” He looked at you and for once it finally looked like he had relaxed. “Go on T don’t make it long.” Your head turned at the nickname, he knew your name so there was no reason for him to call you “T”. “T?” “Where did that come from?” He chuckled, for once in the twenty four hours you had met him, he smiled and laughedH , you were sure you were never seeing that again. “It’s short for Three. It took you only three hours to annoy me.” Your face turned at the reasoning, your nickname, his tone was obviously sarcastic however you still rolled your eyes in response to it. “I think you just really like numbers as names, Six.” He made a small “mhm” noise while his eyes nodded towards your room, with another eye roll you got up, heading to your room to pull a vinyl out of its sleeve and place the record onto your player as you turned it up to medium volume. A minute into the song, Bucky knocked on your door, telling you to turn it down. This guy sucks.

A month later he finds you laying upon his jacket, while outside, lounging in a chair by the pool. “Excuse me” He states moments later before turning back around. “Looking for your jacket? Looks like I sat on it.” A mischievous grin playing on your face as you stared him down. His eyes immediately find it beneath you and he groans, hand twitching behind him to just pick you up and grab it and then he notices the phone in your hand, something you weren’t allowed to have. “Is that a secure phone?” You feign ignorance, staring at the screen a moment before turning to show him, making it aware that you weren't paying attention. “Just got the high score. I had a lot of time to practice after the operation.” You had an operation on your heart a few months ago, just something to ensure that you were ok and that the medicine you were taking was still working and wasn’t killing you. “They made me stay in bed.” You spoke with a hint of annoyance, there was never really anything to do after operations. Bucky stayed quiet which only irritated you, it was his nature but you at least wished that he would keep a conversation going. “How long did they make you stay in bed for?” You fake his tone and rather heavy American accent for the question before responding to yourself. “Quite a long time. Several weeks, actually.” “Oh, I hope you’re ok.” “Better now Six, thanks for asking.” Keeping the fake conversation going. “How’s your time been here? Enjoying the grounds?” “Oh, they’re lovely. I like to walk in circles and stare at my shoes.”

He ignored everything you said, still looking at his jacket. “Can I get my jacket?” Begrudgingly, you hand it over, not before mentioning his arm- not the metal one. The tattoo on his wrist, “Taking All The Stupid With You”. “Nice tattoo, where’d you get it? Prison?” “Yeah, actually.” A fake gasp escaped your mouth, hands covering your lips before you slumped back in your chair. “I’m shocked.” He began to walk away, this man truly was terrible at conversations, with a groan you once again realized you were going to be the only thing keeping this very small conversation going. “What’s it mean, the writing?” He shrugged. “Oh it’s, you know. A quip between guys.” “What guy?” At this point you had pulled off of the edge of the chair, this was the most you two had talked in the month he had been here. “Just a guy in my life, trying to keep our friendship together.” “Why?” “I don’t know, because he liked me?” “He liked you? Did he need friends?” You didn’t know much of anything about “Six” or “Bucky” so anything you could get out of him was good even if it was a weird conversation about him becoming friends with a guy and then getting his words tattooed. “Yes and no, we just clicked, we were good friends and worked well together. I think.” “Was he a good friend?” “Probably.” “Were you a good friend?” “Probably not.” “So why were you friends?” “You ask a lot of questions.” Your arms crossed as you smiled at him, he was still entertaining you and he was surprisingly good company. “You’re quite the conversationalist.” You threw back sarcastically, hoping he would catch it in your voice and very obvious expression. “I’m gonna get back to work.” And just like that he tried to leave again, did he hate you or something? You couldn’t figure out what was dragging him down to the point where he ignored you at any given moment except the ones where he was forced to be in your presence. “Hey.” You called out to him, hoping he would turn, and as the second surprise of the afternoon, he actually did. “Did you ever see your friend again?” He laughed, it was more like a hearty chuckle that was short lived but it was something. With his posture fixed once more he turned his back to you as he answered. “I’ll let you know.”

Four months after that, he had become more comfortable around you. Enough to actually make jokes with you and enough for you to call him by just “Six”, granted he was going to be called that regardless because you didn’t actually know his name. He was doing a routine check, flashing his light outside to see if anyone was there and checking the cameras. You were finishing getting ready for bed, pajamas on and teeth brushed, however as you reached for your vinyl your body felt heavy. Your limbs began to hurt and a pain in your chest was growing by the second, air became a luxury, as if it was flying out of your lungs every time you tried to breathe it in. Something was wrong. Using the wall as a crutch, you did your best to get out of your room, just barely making it to the hallway before you saw him. “Mr. Six-” voiced strained as you gasped for air that kept fleeting you. “Something’s wrong.” The last thing you were able to get out before your body hit the floor and your eyes started to close, Bucky ran over to you at a speed you were unaware he had, barely seconds after you had hit the floor he was holding you in his arms, cradling you into his chest. Bits and pieces were all you remember, him placing you in the car and the movement of the car being well past the speed limit of the area, you knew where you were headed– your uncle’s private hospital that he paid to be built close to the house in case something like this were to happen. The caretaker you had was great but she was only equipped for so many things and this was not one of them. Gasping for air as he carried you into the hospital, the chill of the area being combated by the pajamas you still wore, body shaking from both the chill and over exertion of trying to keep you alive. He’d given you a hoodie to help with the shaking but it was taken off a little while after by a doctor, your hand helplessly reaching out for it before passing out.

It was a terrifying two hours of silence but when you woke you were hooked up to pretty much every tube known to man while Bucky stood outside of your hospital window. He looked as stoic as whenever you had met him but the glint in his eye was different, he was truly worried about you. It was funny and also nice to see the “robot” with actual feelings, a nurse came in a moment later, stealing your attention from off of the window. You looked terrible, a heart monitor attached to what felt like every part of your body under the hospital gown, the chill from the materials not making the temperature any better. The thin blanket barely doing anything, your hands laying in your lamp after restlessly trying to pull the thin sheet over your body only to be left with more anguish than warmth. The nurse turned up your morphine dosage at the sign of your body still shaking and sick appearance, despite it being just a small tremor she wanted to be sure. “Can he come in with me? I’m. . . I’m scared.” The nurse sighed, pulling up the covers from your bed to layer them over your arms and went back to checking your vitals. “Not yet, I’m sorry sweetheart. However perhaps in the next thirty minutes he can be here. You’ll be home soon. I promise.” Afterwards, she left to discuss what was going on with Bucky. “Tell him there was a programming glitch, we were able to repair it, non-invasive. Gave everyone a bit of a scare but it’s alright.” His eyes finally left your sickly body to look at the woman talking to him. “So this won’t happen again?” She shook her head with a proud smile. “It shouldn’t.” His eye twitched of pure annoyance but it wasn’t entirely her fault. “It shouldn’t or it won’t?” “It won’t.” With that he finally glanced back at you, this time your eyes actually meeting as you gave him a peace sign, a pained but goofy expression gracing your face. He simply nodded, not saying anything to the action, not even a smile or a laugh.

You two had finally gotten into a rhythm, once again at the table during dinner; however he had gotten more comfortable to the point where he could finally sit next to you, sometimes watching what you were watching or doing a crossword puzzle. An “old person activity” as you called it but he didn’t answer anytime you called it that, just rolling his eyes and continuing. “You feeling better?” He asked, a nod towards your incident just a few hours ago. “Just another Thursday.” You spoke dryly, digging another spoonful into your ice cream. “Uncle says this is the best medicine-” You motioned towards your ice cream, it basically melted at this point. “Tend to agree.” Once more, taking a bite and finishing your bowl of ice cream. “He's a very smart man.” “Only family I got.” “Closest thing to family I got too.” You smiled, turning your head in his direction. He didn’t seem like a friend person but you didn’t expect him to also not be a family person. Sam mentioned him a few times but you thought it was along the lines of taking him in like a stray dog, not another family member but more the merrier. “Maybe that kind of makes us family.” He smiled but said nothing, he was so annoying when he did that. With a yawn you started to turn back to your ice cream before he spoke. “You should go to bed.” It was odd of him to actually remind you of your bed time at this point so you looked at him weirdly, what you didn’t know is that every single camera overlooking the estate had just gone offline, which was a problem. The estate was huge and the land that surrounded it was even larger, so he knew that he needed the cameras and if they were offline then that means that someone else turned them off because he knew for a fact that he didn’t. Your head nodded towards him staring at his computer screen, you could see him looking at something through his eyeballs but he didn’t say anything about it and you thought maybe it was the reason behind his weird outburst about your bedtime.

You didn’t get a time to respond as the caretaker hovered over you, basically forcing you to get up even without touching you. “Alright little one, you heard the number. Let’s go.” You giggled, it was still so weird hearing someone refer to themselves as a number. “Night Robot.” You called out before turning to walk away from him. “Goodnight T. You can play another record tonight. Turn it all the way up.” Excitement filled your body immediately, now walking just a bit faster to your room than before to find a record to play., he never let you do that, it was always supposed to be played super low. Sometimes he would let it get a pinch higher but never would he let you turn it all the way up. Your hand pulled out “Silver Bird”, a song from the 70’s, if you were being honest that was all your taste consisted of. Your uncle was old and never really bought new vinyls unless he really liked the artist which was rare, you knew of some popular artist because of social media ; Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter, Olivia Rodgrio, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars and even rap artists like Doechii or Kendrick Lamar but you had never truly listened to anything by any of these people because you couldn’t. Your tablet could only play movies and shows or games where all the ads were non-existent so the only music you had was whatever was in your Uncle’s collection from a little while ago but you enjoyed it.

You placed the record onto the player and immediately turned it all the way up, turning towards the bathroom in your room. Bucky came to your door, once again doing his routine knock but this time he didn’t tell you to turn the music down, he just made sure your door was closed, all the way. Sometimes you tended to leave it cracked just so that Bucky could hear it a little bit because you knew he liked the music even whenever he tried to pretend like he didn’t. Barely a moment after Bucky had closed your door, the men had broken in, glass shattering from one of the windows towards the front of the house but you were none the wiser because of how loud your music was playing. Bucky was completely silent in his actions, every take down was with such precision and accuracy that every man didn’t even get a chance to fire their gun, the thing that caught your attention was the sound of grunting and the movement of his flashlight going haywire in the window. He should have just been checking the hallways but from the view it looked like he was waving it everywhere and doing god knows what else.

Tiptoeing towards your door you pulled it open to see the sight of a man falling to the floor after being hit by Bucky. “Six?” Your voice shaky as you looked at him, he stared at your wide eyes from the hallway, giving you a light nod as if he was asking if you were ok. “Are you ok?” Your hand was still shakily holding the door knob, ensuring that everything was ok, in response he actually smiled again, you hadn’t seen him do that since the day you met. “Yeah, broke a bowl.” He held up what looked to be a piece of something but it was so far away that you couldn’t see exactly what it was. Your eyes moved down to the pair of legs sticking out from the wall, unmoving, was it a person? Were they dead? Was that what he was doing? You didn’t get a chance to question it before he stepped in front of the body, covering it with his own. You finally looked back up at him, eyes wide. “You sure you’re alright?” He nodded. “Just another Thursday.” You nod but don’t move yet, body still frozen in shock. “You should go to bed. Goodnight T.” “Goodnight Six.” Finally you turned away from him, heading down the hallway to your room, terror being the only thing that kept you from looking back before you eventually reached your door. Turning back to look at Six as he shut it, his posture still as stiff as the day you met except this time.. he smiled.

[softer-ua]

Nezu is way too suspicious.

His Quirk allows him to cause chain reactions, a fact explicitly stated by Midnight, who also made sure to remind us that he holds a grudge against humans. We don’t know the full extent of his abilities, but we do know that his foresight is extensive—so much so that he planned specific routes for Kaminari and Mina to take during a crisis. That suggests his influence is incredibly far-reaching.

And Midnight? The only UA staff member who isn’t around anymore. Suspicious.

Now, let’s talk about Nezu’s involvement in key events:

1. The USJ Attack

• He’s one of the few who knew about AM’s Quirk, its limitations, and how little time he had left.

• Nezu deliberately held up All Might, making him even later to the attack than he was already going to be.

• If Nezu wasn’t directly involved in setting up the attack, he at the very least played a role in ensuring AM wouldn’t be there in time to prevent it.

2. The Successor Plot

• Nezu was part of the selection process for AM’s successor, encouraging him to choose a UA student before Deku even entered the picture.

• He personally voted for Deku’s acceptance into the Hero Course.

• He knew Deku and Katsuki were from the same middle school, likely remembered them from the sludge incident(which was in the paper) and saw that they some of the highest scores in separate categories.

• Then, he placed them in the same class and observed their very complicated relationship firsthand.

3. The Sports Festival & Its Consequences

• He allowed Katsuki to be tied up on live in an event that replaced the Olympics in popularity.

• Which directly led to him gaining the League of Villains’ interest.

• At the same time, this put Katsuki on Jeanist’s radar—setting up a future mentor-student relationship.

• All of this put even more pressure on Katsuki, forcing him to prove himself.

4. The Training Camp

• Nezu was one of the very few people who knew the camp’s secret location

Possibly even picked the location

Was in charge of many pros would be there.

Was vastly easier to kidnap Katsuki in this setting rather than the other failed attempts

AM conveniently wasn’t present.

(Frankly I think these play a big role than one student leaking the location)

5. Katsuki’s rescue and AM’s Retirement

• led directly to AM refacing AFO instead of the LOV

He then burnt out the last embers of his power, forcing him to retire.

• This intensified Katsuki’s suspicions about AM and Deku, making him dig deeper into their relationship.

• The guilt lessened Katsuki’s performance during the Provisional License Exam, which he failed—leaving him out of the work studies.

6. The Ripple Effects on Katsuki & Deku

• Because Katsuki wasn’t eligible for work studies, he missed Deku’s battle with Chisaki.

• This fight also cemented Deku’s personal investment in Eri, and reinforced his need to break rules for the sake of others.

• Deku’s actions, in turn, saved UA’s reputation by overshadowing another potential scandal.

6. The Long-Term Setup

• Jeanist was taken out of commission during Katsuki’s rescue, freeing him up for later.

• Nezu actively discouraged his staff from searching for a traitor among them.

• He finally implemented the UA dorm system, something he had been advocating for but never acted on—until now.

• He reassured AM that if nothing suspicious happened after the students moved into the dorms, then there was nothing to worry about.

7. The Final Stage: The War Arc & Beyond

• By the time of the war, Katsuki had matured emotionally and was able to fight alongside Deku for the first time in a villain attack.

• He had also become even more deeply connected to Deku, setting the stage for their intertwined fates.

8. Nezu’s Endgame?

And here’s what fucks me up the most—Nezu easily agreed to let the students ambush Endeavor and hunt Deku down.

It was never even a question whether that was in his power, Uraraka knew it would be, so it’s just common knowledge? 🤨

But how does he have the power to do that, like imagine being one of the leaders heading off a fascist uprising and your sons hs principal demands you come in and you have to because you used to go to school there???

And then UA becomes the shelter during the war, but it doesn’t come as like government mandate, it’s Nezus choice something he does as a concerned and caring individual

In the end nearly everyone who rebuilds society is a UA alumni, and Deku, the face of the war, now works there!!

So society has an intense gratitude to UA for holding them during the war, an intense admiration for producing all these heros, and there’s apparently a rule/law(?) that you are beholden to your old principles meetings even when the worlds ending 💀

Nezu owns society and he planned it!!!

[randomthefox]

I find it so annoying and disconcerting that The Audience is not allowed to simply discuss media anymore without the creators of said media engaging in the discussion. Breeze did not tag Evan Stanley in their tweet. They were simply voicing their own thoughts, in their own space, on a public platform. Artists who work on the comic found (or more likely, were sent) their tweet, and decided to engage with it. In a very defensive and condescending manner, it must be said.

I keep going back to this, but the creators of the IDW Sonic comics do not seem to be aware that they are creating an official product that is being sold for money. They act like they're creating a web comic or something. A passion project that they're making for fun, and we're being assholes by criticizing their fanart. It's incredibly unprofessional, and I don't mean that in a derogatory way, I mean LITERALLY unprofessional - this is behavior that you see from people who are NOT professionals. If I find a comic on deviant art, say for example Ghosts of the Future, and I start complaining about how bad it is, then the artist and creator of that comic is more than well within their rights to defend their creation which they drew in their own free time and have posted free of charge as an expression of their own passion.

If I SPENT MONEY on a PRODUCT that was PUT ON SALE by a MAJOR PUBLISHING CORPORATION then I am allowed to say whatever the hell I want about what a piece of shit it is, and YOU as a contributing creator to that product are well within your rights to SHUT THE FUCK UP AND PISS OFF. Who the fuck do you think you are? What do you think our relationship is? I bought the fucking ticket, I can say whatever the hell I want. If you don't want me to be able to do that then GIVE THE MONEY BACK. The five dollars I spent on this comic issue is the free pass that gives me the right to wipe my ass with it in front of your face, and the money in your hand that you were paid in exchange for producing that comic means you have to sit there and watch silently with NO INPUT OR RESPONSE WHATSOEVER.

The way these creators feel like they have the right to respond to fan discourse and criticism like this is so INSANE. Like, first of all, everything I already said: you produced an official product that was manufactured for sale. This is a transactional relationship, and the transaction is completed as soon as I spend the money. After the money changes hands the relationship is officially over and you have no input from that moment onward. Second of all,

how is this not punching down? How is this not inciting harassment? Evan is 100% knowingly exploiting her status as a much larger and prominent account to intimidate critics into silence and putting a target on a much smaller account and essentially giving her fanatical followers carte blanche to attack them with righteous indignation.

There is a zero percent chance that she is not aware of what she is doing.

These comic creators (and I don't just mean the creators of IDW Sonic either this is a massive problem with western comic books in general tbh) have a serious problem where they think that we are peers. We're not. You are the creators. We are the audience. We are not peers. This is not a respectful discussion between equals. Comic creators in this day and age are all comic fans themselves, they became comic creators because they were fans and got the dream job of getting accepted into the comic industry, but they never acclimatized to realizing that they are now part of that industry and thus NO LONGER PART OF THE FAN COMMUNITY. They act like we're all still just fans discussing the thing we're a fan of, and they have just as much of a right to take part in that discussion as everyone else. But they aren't, and they don't. They gave up that privilege when they started accepting a paycheck.

The fact that they do not realize that and keep doing this shit is destructive to fandom spaces and discourse. The response to what Evan Stanley has done with her tweet needs to be "SILENCE BRAND" en mass, because that's what she is now. She is The Brand. And she needs to be treated as such, especially since she is seemingly unaware of her status.

[ambiguous-avery]

Pick Your Poison³

S1!Dean Winchester x fem!Reader/You | WC: 2541

Summary: Seven years is a lot to catch up on all in one night. But there’s a lot that can be said without words alone.

Tags/Warnings: SMUT 18+ MDNI, unprotected P in V sex (make safe decisions, friends), femme nicknames (pretty girl), g/n nicknames (baby, sweetheart), reader is AFAB, no use of Y/N, fluff, no beta we die like men

Now Playing: Pick Your Poison by Knox

A/N: And it turned into a 3-parter. Sorry, not sorry. Finally a conclusion and a bit of happiness for our boy! @wendichester, here's a tag for the conclusion. Took the drink from the Supernatural Official Cocktail Book (that I totally didn't buy just for this story 😉 If anyone is interested, it's the "Still Kicking" drink) Read Part 1 and Part 2!

Dean had never been more motivated to wrap up a case in his entire life. He almost felt bad that people dying hadn’t lit the fire under his ass in the same way your offer had. You hadn’t so much as stoked his motivation. Rather, you had thrown gasoline straight onto it, causing it to roar and flare, and Dean was sure it had rivaled the fire from the salt and burn job. He had unceremoniously dropped Sam off at the motel that night, telling Sam that he’d be back in the morning. Maybe. Maybe early afternoon. He wasn’t entirely sure. Sam had just rolled his eyes at him.

He pulled up to the bar just as you stepped out of the front door, and he waved you over. You whistled and took a seat in the Impala.

“You really know how to charm a woman, pretty boy.” You set your purse down in the footwell and looked at him. He was ready for your gaze this time around, and instead of knocking him off balance, he met it with an equal intensity that charged the air in the car. Your look carried your burning curiosity, but there was still that unending compassion in your eyes that he remembered seeing years ago. He had seen some pretty awful things in the world. They had left him calloused and jaded. But you? He couldn’t help but wonder what had happened in those same seven years that had shaped you into the person that was before him now. Someone with eyes that could cut someone down or comfort them and had no troubles switching between the two.

“Only the ones I like,” Dean finally responded. You chuckled. 

The only thing easier than the drive back to your apartment was the conversation that flowed between the two of you. You told Dean about things that had happened since you last saw him. You graduated from college with a degree that was about as useless as the paper it was printed on when it came to applying for jobs in your chosen field. Several failed relationships back to back had left you happily single, and overall, it sounded like things in your life were relatively okay. Good but not great. He wanted to dig a little more. Wanted to ask about all the little details you glossed over. But it hardly felt like his place to know. When you directed the conversation spotlight onto his life, he gave vague answers and brushed over large swaths of his time away. Dean could see the way your eyes implored him to give more detail. Implored him to spill all the secrets that were fighting to spill from his lips. He bit them back.

Dean took a seat at the breakfast bar that separated the kitchen from the living room space in your apartment. It was a nice little place, but he could tell by the scattered boxes that you were either still moving in or maybe getting ready to move out. He wasn’t sure which it was.

“If I remember correctly, I’m pretty sure I still owe you a drink.” He watched as you pulled several liquor bottles from the cupboards and set them down between the two of you, reminding him of times long past. Though the liquor here was much more expensive this time around, he noted.

“What can you make?” He flashed you a grin. You winked back at him.

“I could make you a drink that reminds me of this guy I hooked up with in college,” you said cheekily, locking eyes with him. He arched an eyebrow, intrigued.

“Alright, let’s see what that’s like.”

Dean was regretting that he hadn’t been able to watch you work behind the bar earlier in the evening, but he was making up plenty for it now. Watching you move was something else. You had your own bar setup. It was less professional than the one you had at work, but it did the job nonetheless. With a cocktail glass filled with ice set in front of you, you grabbed a bottle of rye in one hand and a jigger in the other before upending the bottle with a bit of flair. The alcohol splashed into the cup as you dumped it before you tossed the jigger from one hand and into the other, catching it with two fingers before setting both the whiskey and the jigger down. Dean whistled.

“Flashier than I remember.”

“I’ve had a few years to practice.”

It was mesmerizing to watch, even though everything you did was relatively mundane. Sure, you had fancy tricks that made every moment seem more extravagant, but Dean had the distinct feeling that he was only as interested in the process of drink making because it was you making the drink. Two dashes of bitters went in next. Hell, even when you popped open the can of ginger beer, his eyes were drawn to your fingers. It was a simple thing, but Dean watched like it was the most riveting thing he could set his eyes on. You carefully cut into a lemon and sliced away the skin before wrapping it around your finger and letting it slide into the drink. You set it on a napkin in front of him with a flourish, and Dean thought that that was what love felt like.

It wasn’t a grandiose display of affection with dramatic declarations or sweeping gestures. It wasn’t the whispered honeyed words exchanged in the intimacy of night. It wasn’t even those three little words. Instead, it was found in the quiet, steady confidence that radiated from you. It was in the way your eyes settled on him, brimming with an unspoken understanding, as if you were acutely aware of every struggle and triumph that had shaped his journey to this moment. And it was in the soft, gentle curve of your smile, a tender expression that conveyed more than words ever could.

“Drink up, pretty boy. If you like it enough, maybe it’ll become the Dean Winchester special at the bar.” He laughed and picked up the glass, brought it to his lips, and took a long, slow drink from it. His first cocktail, and it was going to be named after him. It was a simple drink with only three ingredients that he saw you put in, not counting the twist of lemon. But the spicy rye mixed well with the sharp ginger beer that kicked at the end. He liked it.

You had already set about mixing up the same drink for yourself, emptying the can of ginger beer into your own glass.

“This is what you think I’m like?” he asked. Your eyes twinkled with the same teenaged mischief that had drawn him in the first time.

“I think you’re better. But this is a close second.”

“Damn, I’m smooth.” He laughed, clinking his glass with yours before you both drank. There was a beat of silence. “Humor me for a moment, sweetheart. Do you really remember me from those years ago?” You set your glass down on the counter and leaned back, crossing your arms as you thought. Dean watched the way the light from the kitchen overhead caught in your hair, casting shadows on the curve of your cheek. He wanted to hold it, feel your skin beneath his fingers again.

“I remember more about you now than I did back then, if that makes any sense,” you finally said, a small smile playing on your lips. “Back then, you were just another guy at the frat. A little mysterious, a little dangerous.” Dean chuckled at that.

“And now?”

“Now?” The ice cubes clinked in your glass as you picked it up, regarding him with a thoughtful expression. “I see a man with fire in his eyes and a heart burdened by a darkness he can’t shake.”

Dean’s breath caught in his throat. How? How did you understand him in a way that no one else seemed to? He had spent so long closing himself off from others, from forming connections that could be ripped away in an instant by the cruel hand of fate. But when his eyes found yours again, there was a warmth in them that made Dean’s chest tighten. Your perceptiveness was something he was unfamiliar with. You maybe had a collective five hours of getting to know him and already you could strip away the layers he had carefully placed around him. That disarming gaze of yours was both terrifying and liberating. He didn’t feel like he had to put on a performance. Didn’t have to put up a facade. He had never felt so seen.

You stepped around the counter, drawing in close to him. He could feel electricity crackle between the two of you, and he turned to face you. You settled between his parted legs, the heat of your body mingling with his. He could feel his heart drumming in his chest, the intoxicating scent of your perfume filling his senses. Your hand lifted to trace a line along his jaw, your touch feather-light yet searing all the same.

“Are you okay?” you asked quietly, and Dean knew what you meant. Knew that you were asking about more than just his physical safety. You were asking about the storm that raged inside him. The storm that darkened his thoughts and kept his heart heavy. Dean searched your eyes, finding concern and genuine care there, and for a moment, he let himself believe that maybe he could share some of his burden with you.

“I’m…” he hesitated. He had spent so long tamping everything down that he wasn’t sure he could even find the right words for what he felt. “I’m trying to be.” The words were so simple, but it felt like a crack had split down the center of the wall he had spent years carefully building up. Your thumb brushed against his cheek lightly, a silent gesture of support that anchored him in the moment.

“I can see that,” you muttered softly. “It’s okay not to be okay all the time.” The weight of those words settled over Dean like a warm blanket, offering comfort in a way he hadn’t realized he needed. And then, without another word, Dean closed the distance between you, capturing your lips in a gentle yet achingly tender kiss. It was soft and sweet, a silent confession of all the things he couldn’t find the words to say.

You led him to your room before long. It was a slow, sensual flurry of messy kisses, fingers tracing along heated skin, and sweet nothings gasped into existence as the two of you undressed. His back hit your mattress as you straddled his hips.

“Let me take you for a ride, hm?” You placed a hand on his chest, steadying yourself as you sank down on him. Dean groaned, low and throaty, as you took him inch by agonizing inch. Adoration shone in his green eyes which were wide and unblinking, not wanting to miss a single second of the moment. You looked down at him, eyes half-lidded and moaning at the feel of him. Dean didn’t fuck like he hunted. On a hunt, he was quick, efficient, get in-get out, take no prisoners. But in this moment, he was perfectly content to let you take the reins and drag the night on as long as you’d like. And drag the night out, you did. You braced your hands against his chest, your nails digging into his skin. He only offered a guttural sound as your hips sat flush against his, his cock pressed against the deepest part of you. You answered him with a whimper.

You set a slow, torturous pace, and every one of Dean’s coherent thoughts slipped further and further away with each roll of your hips. When he looked up at you, you were the only one in the world anymore. His jaw went slack, lips parted as he settled his hands on your hips, thumbs rubbing against the jut of the bone there.

“Dean,” you breathed, “Fuck, Dean...”

“Go ahead, pretty girl,” he mumbled, his words beginning to bleed into each other. “Take what you need.” And that was all you needed to hear before you gave into your own selfish desire to ride him exactly the way you wanted. Your chest heaved as your breaths became more ragged, your movements stuttering.

“More.” You ground your hips against him, searching for more of that delicious friction. Dean thrust upwards into you, using his hold on your hips as leverage, and you yelped in surprise. He shifted and moved one hand to your shoulder, pulling you to him. You leaned forward, pressing your chest against his, your breaths ghosting over his skin. The new angle caused the length of his cock to drag against your clit with every thrust. Your responding cry was breathless. His fingers dug into your skin, threatening to leave marks in their wake.

“Please, baby. Need you so bad,” he grunted between thrusts. Your name spilled from his lips, and he sounded so utterly wrecked. It was the last piece you needed, and as he seated himself fully into you, you clenched and fluttered around him. He held you close, finding his own release moments after you.

Slowly, carefully, he pulled out of you, and you both laid there for a moment, hearts pounding in sync. Your fingers traced random patterns across his chest as he slowly regained his bearings. Eventually, he rolled onto his side to face you, touching his forehead to yours.

“You’re something else.” He pressed his hand to your cheek. You smiled under his touch, mirth dancing in your eyes.

“You’re not so bad yourself.”

“I think I owe you a thank you,” Dean said softly.

“For what?”

“You were the first person who ever gave me a way out. Who showed me that I had a choice in everything.” You chuckled.

“I didn’t do anything special, Dean. I just…”

“You did. You don’t realize it.” He reached past you, grabbing for his wallet he had set on your bedside table. You watched him curiously as he opened it and pulled out a worn, yellowed paper that had been folded over a few times.

“Is that-” As he unfolded it, even though the ink had faded over time, ten familiar digits were scrawled in your handwriting.

“My good luck charm,” he boasted. You laughed and rolled on top of him. “Got me through some tough times.”

“That number has been disconnected for years.”

“I know,” he said, a somber tone bleeding into his voice. Your smile faded, and you rested your head against his chest. Dean tucked the paper back into his wallet and tossed it, missing the bedside table. It thumped somewhere along the floor. He wrapped his arms around you, and you melted against him.

“I’ll get you my cell number before you go. Until then, tell me all the things you wanted to say over the years?” And for once, under the cover of night and in the warmth of your embrace, Dean felt safe enough to bare his soul to you.

---

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[lovcrss]

pretty please could i request a peter maximoff fic? >__< i'm thinking one where peter gets arrested for some petty theft (again) and u can't help but find it attractive HAHA he looks like such a total loser but ur all heart eyes.. a total 'crush' by ethel cain moment

obsessed with this, LOVE PETERRRR

handcuffs | peter maximoff

The evening started off peacefully. You went to a coffee shop with friends after a long day and had much fun. The weather was perfect for walking and you used that opportunity to walk back to the X Mansion.

You’ve been working with the mutants for a long time, supporting their missions, helping with their physical health and being a major problem solver. Out of all of them, Peter Maximoff should be the most lucky to have you to get him out of trouble.

His little scandals and adventures always caused him a lot of trouble. He was wanted by many for his mischievous tricks. The gift of super speed was mostly used for petty things such as stealing, yet somehow he would always get away with it.

Charles always warned you about Peter, telling you to keep an eye on him and you tried hard, but Peter was spontaneous and restless. With him, you never knew what could happen.

Enjoying your walk back to the mansion relaxed, you receive a warning text. It was from Charles: “Peter is at it again. I sense trouble, please check it out.”

After you were finished reading the text, sirens started blasting somewhere behind you. Police cars passed and your gut told you that something was wrong. Running after the cars, you cursed Peter for being so recklesss.

When you arrive at the scene, your suspicions appear to be right. Police cars surrounded a gaming shop, where Peter got all his video games from. Peter’s silver hair pokes out the door, in between two officers who held his hands behind his back. You quickly jog closer to the mess he made, calling his name.

Peter looked up and saw you, after which he smiles ironically and shrugs his shoulders. He looked all flushed and ashamed. “What can I say?”

You shake your head disapprovingly, glaring bullets at him. “Officers, will it be possible for me to take it from here?”

“No, unfortunately. We have to report him back to the station.”

One of them put handcuffs on him and that’s when a weird feeling interrupted your train of thoughts. With his hands pinned behind his back, Peter throws his head back, closing his eyes defeatedly. His Adam’s apple popped though his neck, he sighs, his eyelashes falling to his rosy cheeks. Even in this state, Peter managed to look like a statue. “Oh thank you, officer”, he jokes.

Snapping out of your daze, you realize what’s happening when they start approaching the car. “W- uhm, Wait up-”

Peter turns around to look at you. Suddenly you appear more nervous than you were when you arrived, you had no idea what was happening but he noticed it.

“I’m right behind you!”, you shout after him.

“Don’t speed too much”, Peter calls sarcastically.

—————————

A cab took you to the police station. It was half empty, so it was easy to spot Peter right away. He still had handcuffs on, looking bored and embarrassed.

The officers who took him here were speaking to the receptionist, guarding Peter between each other. You enter, hurrying to check the situation. It seemed like they checked him in the sistem, but now you were there to take responsibility for him.

Once he saw you, Peter straightened his posture and focused, relieved to see that you came to his rescue once again. His lips squeezed together in an “oh well” manner.

You roll your eyes, quickly whispering in his ear: “I’ll deal with you later.”

His eyes darken, lips part and face turns red in a flash. For a second the arrest was worth hearing you whisper that sentence to him, making his blood rush through his veins.

He watched you speak to the police, loving how in charge and leading you looked. You held your head high and tone calm as you negotiated.

“Give us some time and we’ll let you go shortly”, they told you.

Meanwhile you notice how the handcuffs made Peter’s muscles more defined, his back wider and his behaviour more tamed than ever. It made you wonder why the hell you hadn’t reported him yourself earlier to watch him in this state. With his arms behind his back, wrists crossed and head thrown back, his silver strands of hair falling around his head he looked hotter than ever.

You were so stunned you didn’t notice when the officers tried talking to you. Peter looked at you to see what you were gonna respond, instead noticing the look in your eyes as you watched him. “Hello?”, he tilts his head.

Reality hit you once again, trying your best to focus. “You were saying?”

The conversation between you and the police resumes, while Peter notices the shift in your behaviour. He observes: you nervously play with your hands, red in the face and constantly glimpsing over at him, not even sure if you were listening to what was being said to you. This was confusing, but he liked the way you were looking at him.

Once you were finished, you were instructed to sit down on nearby chairs. Peter joined you while the officers weren’t looking, still handcuffed. He was tamed and still a little ashamed of the situation he found himself in, getting caught like this, more importantly having you witness it. On the other hand, you were more aware of his presence than usual since they caught him.

He was eager to tease you. “You know I’m the one arrested, not you, right?”

“What?”

He looked you up and down. “Well, I can sense you’re nervous. Did anything illegal tonight, Y/N?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about”, you scoff, playing it off, trying to ignore him and crossing your arms.

He chuckled, standing up. “Whatever you say, ma’am.”, he shrugs.

His long sleeved shirt showed his muscles and you couldn’t help put notice them. You felt like you were being tested, like Peter knew exactly what he was doing. Subtly, you stand up and pull at his handcuffs. “Stop doing that.”

“Doing what?”, he smirks.

Your glare riles him up even more, adrenaline entering his system. He realized you secretly loved watching him in those handcuffs.

Going back to the reception, you talk to the officers again. Negotiations were ahead, deciding if Peter was going to get punished slightly or not. “Bail is possible, since this is his first strike”, the blonde policeman explained.

Hearing this Peter went back to being embarrassed, staring at the ground and squirming in his place. This only made your excitement grow.

“Don’t worry, we will make sure this doesn’t happen anymore. Right, Peter?”

His gaze was still focused down. “Yes, I promise”, he mumbles slightly desperate, nodding.

After a few minutes, they finally announce: “You’re free to go, for now.”

You wait outside while they took his prints and take off his handcuffs, much to your disappointment. As he walks out, Peter barely looks at you. His shame and sudden lack of cockiness only amuses you. “Why so sad now, Quickie? You miss the cuffs?”, you tease.

He rolls his eyes. “Not funny. Matter of fact if anyone misses them, it’s you.”

You play dumb. “What the hell are you saying?”

“I’m saying I saw the way you looked at me.”

“You’re too cocky”, you scoff.

“Am I?”

It was already past midnight, you waited for a cab to take you to the mansion. He had his hands in his pockets, still feeling humbled. “Should’ve just ran from here.”

“I’m tired, let’s just put this behind us now.”

Your relaxednesses was suspicious to him, making him gain a little confidence again. “Still gonna deny it, huh?”

“Deny how I saved your ass once again?” , you raise you eyebrows at him.

He kicks pebbles, humbled once again.

“However, I think I’m gonna buy you those handcuffs for later”

[magnuspanoptes]

i don't know if this needs to be said but people often overlook the second part of his, "why does a man seek to destroy the world?"—"for immortality and power" when talking about jonah's motivations. sure, he calls death 'the last and greatest terror' but everything else we hear from him points towards a lifelong desire of wanting to be in control, which is why in 92 he unnecessarily begins his confession with "i have done everything because i wished to". and i think that distinction between the fear of death and the need for control is important because people bring up his reasoning of 'what i considered an inevitable transformation' when talking about why he did all that. and it may have begun as such, but he and gertrude also figured out that the rituals were too flawed to work anyway. when he hires jon as head archivist that sense of urgency is just not there, it was no longer a proper 'race' to conduct your own ritual, he did not have to immediately end the world.

what i'm saying is that he caused the apocalypse because he was never going to be happy with the world as it was. because the horror in the magnus archives universe operates on one basic tenet - that your life can be destroyed at any time, through absolutely no fault of your own.

MAG 106 - "A Matter of Perspective" // MAG 118 - "Stranger and Stranger" // MAG 160 - "The Eye Opens" // MAG 117 - "Testament"

the "dark and horrible reality" of the world, and in turn the specific existential dread that grips him is that of chance. to be told that you did nothing blameworthy inspires a specific feeling of powerlessness—that if you didn't do anything wrong, there is nothing you can do, no personal behaviour you can correct to stop it from happening again. and he understands this quite well, it's in the way whenever he really wants to twist the knife he tells them it was luck, but that doesn't comfort you does it!

which is why the use of "freedom" here is very telling. in their universe you are always going to be a victim of the cruel caprice of gods, that in itself is a blow against all notions of personal agency and control. how can you be truly free when malevolent cosmic forces govern the world and can ruin your life without warning at any time? and 160 is above all, an attempt at escaping the grasp of the fears entirely. it's not just about death, it's about wanting to be in charge so no threat can touch him again and in their world you can only achieve that by causing the apocalypse. he will be free (or, at least the closest thing to being free in their world) and it will be at the expense of the entire world.