#yes I am a writer writing two passionate stubborn idiots

[mirrorofliterature]

when you want your bestie to live but there's a war: perciver edition

Percy sighs, running a hand through his hair. Oliver watches him closely, too closely. He wants to touch. But that is an impossibility.

“I trust you to be careful, it’s just risky -”

Percy raises his hand, cutting Oliver off.

[nofliight]

THE POSITIVE & NEGATIVE; Mun & Muse - Meme.

fill out & repost ♥ This meme definitely favors canons more, but I hope OC’s still can make it somehow work with their own lore, and lil’ fandom of friends & mutuals. Multi-Muses pick the muse you are the most invested in atm.

tagged by: stole it from @sternenteile​ and honestly others tbh tagging: TAKE

my muse is:  canon / oc / au / canon-divergent / fandomless / complicated

Is your character popular in the fandom? YES / NO. [ for better or for worse, he’s THE face of kid icarus, after all. he’s a dork and funny and likeable and even if the fandom tends to get him WRONG (thanks smash bros) there’s no denying his popularity ]

Is your character considered hot™ in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK. [ i don’t??? think so??? most people are too busy talking about how they think he’s like 5 ]

Is your character considered strong in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK. [ EVEN THE FANDOM AIN’T GONNA MESS THIS UP. MAN FIGHTS GODS. CALL THAT WEAK. ]

Are they underrated?  YES / NO / IDK. [ make no mistake - pit’s got fans and plenty of them but he’s so MISTREATED by the fandom. his character is a lot more complex than he gets credit for and smash bros in particular is a big reason people think he’s just Big Dumb Baby Man ]

Were they relevant for the main story?  YES / NO. [ HE’S THE MAIN CHARACTER, THE CENTRAL FIGURE UPON WHOM THE NARRATIVE IS STRUCTURED AROUND, YEAH HE’S PRETTY RELEVANT. Uprising is literally made to tell the story of a war exclusively through the perspective of a single side and Pit (and Palutena) are the EMBODIMENT of that whole side. ]

Were they relevant for the main character? YES / NO / THEY’RE THE PROTAG. [ and a perfect one at that. he’s literally a perfect protagonist don’t tell me i’m wrong cause i’m not ]

Are they widely known in their world? YES / NO. [ pit is beloved by humans... and mocked by the Gods. seen by most as a spineless extension of palutena’s will, most “respect” of any variety goes to palutena while he gets treated as a joke 99% of the time... and it’s not like Palutena gets too much respect either ]

How’s their reputation?  GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL. (????) [ Uhhhhhh... it’s an odd one. Short answer is that Pit’s a good samaritan who’s done a lot of good BUT most of the gods think protecting humanity is a Folly and a Joke and that Pit’s just a pawn of Palutena’s and while the humans do hold a lot of respect for him, uh............. let’s just say, some humans on the surface have reasons not to be too happy with him. ]

How strictly do you follow canon?  —  about as much as I need to to respect one of my favorite video games of all time. while kid icarus uprising is a comedic game most of the way through it has a lot more nuance and depth to itself, its world, and its characters than one can see at first glance, even after a full playthrough. if you let yourself get invested in the characters, take a closer look at the dialogue it provides, and acknowledge the central, core storytelling message of the game for what it is, there’s a lot more to pull out than one would think. that being said, it’s still a comedic video game and one that I think could use some more expansion. though the game is inconsistent there seems to be the consensus that pit is like a child and I’m not into that, mine’s a bit more showing in his cynical and snarky side after all he’s been through and overall there’s a lot of expansion on the base while building it into something unique.

SELL YOUR MUSE! Aka try to list everything, which makes your muse interesting in your opinion to make them spicy for your mutuals.  —  imagine your typical bootstrapped anime protagonist. someone who, when younger, was a runt who couldn’t meet the expectations of others, was looked down on, and found himself crushed and hurt and near-killed by a great tragedy that he was forced to claw his way out of to make himself stronger. Now imagine all of that with a character who comes out still able to have a very real smile and ultimately comes out of it a self-assured, chipper goofball with a good heart. now put that together with all of the darkness and depth you would have expected to be there, but scattered realistically throughout the attitude of someone who does genuinely want to keep a positive attitude. someone who is sincerely an optimist who’s grown past his weaker days, but isn’t quite so simple as he’d like to believe. all of that combined with someone who can’t read, is willing to eat ice cream off the floor in times of duress, is extremely easy to fluster and can channel his goddess’ power to slay GODS? you got one strong man.

Now the OPPOSITE, list everything why your muse could not be so interesting (even if you may not agree, what does the fandom perhaps think?).  —  his positive attitude is what most people will see when speaking to him, because for what it’s worth, he’s not actively lying about his depth. he’s a cheerful, jovial man with a big smile and a love of the world around him - which is all well and good, but his depth is something you have to find, even if it is reasonably clear if you’re willing to look. he’s also portrayed as a bit unreasonably dumb at times, and though I personally justify the worst of it with proper explanations, I can understand reducing some of the value of the character in favor of seeing all of his Jokes

What inspired you to rp your muse?  —  i made my original pit blog, flightlesswarrior, on a total whim after playing kid icarus uprising. cute character, fun premise, why not? but over time, and with numerous plots I was able to take part in exploring the serious, not so serious, shipping, tragedy, and going back through the game to keep my muse rolling, it occurred to me more and more with time just how nuanced and interesting pit and co. really are. pit embodies many of the things i really, truly love in a protag, falling firmly on the side of good, having a heart of genuine gold, and having nuances and parts of his personality that are less than savory without making him seem like a contradiction. he’s got depth, he’s got story, there’s a lot to explore and flesh out... and he’s also just a nice, friendly guy who gets along well with others. plus, i’m drawn to dorks.

What keeps your inspiration going?  —  a) love for Kid Icarus: Uprising. a game that helped me gain a deeper and more insightful understanding of character development, subtle storytelling, optimism still tinged with legitimate and healthy cynicism, and overall something that changed my understanding of character development and storytelling forever. and b) spite. the fandom treats him like an idiot baby and smash DOES NOT help matters so i have to remind others that he is a veteran of a war, a socially inept loser with few real friends, and someone who’s kindness and optimism was shaped and molded by its hardships in a way that doesn’t require a near-breaking point or a reminder that “this guy could be evil you know” to show how someone can still keep a positive attitude in spite of all the shit life throws at him.

Some more personal questions for the mun.

Give your mutuals some insight about the way you are in some matters, which could lead them to get more comfortable with you or perhaps not.

Do you think you give your character justice?  YES / NO [ i’d like to think i have?? but i also acknowledge that he’s become something of his Own in some ways that do intentionally diverge from sakurai’s intentions. ultimately though, even though i may not play him completely true to text, i try to be as loyal as i can be to the spirit of the character. ]

Do you frequently write headcanons?  YES / NO / SORT OF? [ when i can!! but??? the problem is my mind really, really likes to reiterate the Same Damn Points i have to make with characters that draws me to them - and you know, writing the same hcs over and over is generally considered poor form?? ngl i also prefer to let the writing do the talking unless it’s something that’s not gonna show so 90% of the time pit’s open enough that all but the darker sides of his mind are lain out before you. ]

Do you sometimes write drabbles?  YES / NO [ maybe??? once or tWICE???? but i need to write more ]

Do you think a lot about your Muse during the day? YES / NO [ I REALLY DO, HOO MAMA. i have a lot of thoughts about him, his depth, potential relationships, goofy thoughts, more serious fanfic ideas im never gonna write and don’t get me started on how many SHIPS i have to think about for him ]

Are you confident in your portrayal? YES / NO [ my portrayal is made out of spite for portrayals in the fandom and some supplementary material that gets him wrong - it’s kinda hard to do that without the confidence ]

Are you confident in your writing?  YES / NO / ??? [ it’s uhh........ complicated??? i don’t think writing is my expertise, tbh. but it is the best way i have to show the passion i have for characters, by putting their nuances into actions, by allowing them to shine from who they are their core, by exploring relationships and scenarios and struggles and hope and everything that can flesh a character out. whether or not i’m a good writer is something i’m still sorting out - but i’m proud of my ability to develop a character, and to that end i feel like i’m doing fine ]

Are you a sensitive person?  YES / NO. / SORTA. [ on one hand......... very. i have a tendency to overthink everything i do and look back at moments i made an ass of myself that keep haunting me throughout my day - they haunt me. i only have two fears: what my immediate friend group thinks of me and the crushing existential weight of worrying one day i’m gonna ruin everything i am SOFT. that being said, i’m also hardheaded and stubborn and i’m not afraid to go off on someone i don’t have much respect for if it comes down to it. i’m easy to anger when it comes down to it you know i guess that proves the point huh i’m not stonefaced at all ]

Do you accept criticism well about your portrayal?  —  i try to? it’s a bit touchy for me I admit just because I do take portrayals and try to make them my own, but i am willing to listen if someone has any points they’d like to make that i haven’t acknowledged properly. if criticism IS had, lemme know, i do wanna hear it!

Do you like questions, which help you explore your character?  —   Y  E  S

If someone disagrees to a headcanon of yours, do you want to know why?  —  not that everyone who disagrees with my opinions has to explain themselves of course, but i do sincerely like the chance to learn if something i’m doing doesn’t quite feel right. even if it’s one-sided and i’ll come to disagree, i’m happy to listen! even if i don’t agree with the disagreement head-on, i like to keep them in mind and see what i can shift around to acknowledge them if necessary

If someone disagrees with your portrayal, how would you take it?  — neutral?? i mean don’t be mean about it, but if you just think my pit doesn’t seem right or it doesn’t click right with your muse i’m not gonna throw a fit about it. everyone’s allowed to view a character in their own way - and even if i may get salty about those who oversimplify him, it IS anyone’s right to view him how they will.

If someone really hates your character, how do you take it?  — agree to disagree tbh. i can’t pretend it wouldn’t disappoint me, but it’s not like, worth ending a friendship over or anything. everyone’s got their own viewpoints to run on

Are you okay with people pointing out your grammatical errors?  —  sure, within reason! i take pride in my grammar but i know that with my fast typing and often running on only a few hours of sleep some problems do slip in through the cracks. while i generally either catch them or just Die with them i’m all ears if i mess up

Do you think you are easy going as a mun?   —  uhhhhhhhhhh well i’m?? kind of a socially anxious mess honestly which DOES make being easy going a bit difficult BUT i do try and be friendly and sociable as i....... can. i’m too scared to talk to people and CAN say some dumb things but i’m not a hardass or anything!! i like to talk and Yell and shitpost and pretty much do anything but write tbh DHFLKSJDF

[tasteofswallowedwords]

The Perfect Shot

Part One

Pairing: Jughead x reader

Warnings: mentions of death

Summary: Jughead and the reader have hated each other for years, but are forced to work together when Betty recruits the reader for The Blue and Gold

It was not supposed to end like this: tied up in an abandoned building, dust stinging my eyes and something most definitely crawling up my leg. Wait, what’s that I see flushing itself down the toilet? Oh yeah, that would be my hopes and dreams for the future. Pretty sure they don’t accept corpses to college. A scholarship is no good to my dead ass. I knew I shouldn’t have listened to them. I knew Jughead Jones would do nothing but get me into trouble.

I guess I’ll start with the day it all changed; the day Betty Cooper approached me in the park.

The fox cub peaked up through the grass, eyeing the butterfly as it flitted over a bed of daisies. The sun beamed, but the autumn air was cold, gentle breezes rustling the golden leaves in the trees. I lay in the grass on my stomach, eyeing the animal through my camera. I zoomed, snapping a few quick shots as the cub prepared to pounce. I lined the next shot up perfectly, ready to capture the moment the fox took its leap, but a twig snapped behind me and the cub scampered away in search of its mother.

“I hope I didn’t scare it away,” a quiet voice said from behind me.

I rolled my eyes but quickly swallowed the snide retort that had bubbled up my throat. “Don’t worry about it,” I shrugged instead, turning to smile at Betty. “The light was fading anyway.”

She sighed with relief, beaming at me. “(Y/N),” she chirped, in a way that immediately filled me with dread. “I have a proposition for you.”

I stifled a groan. “What might that be?” I asked, popping the cap on the lens of my camera as it hung from my neck. I stood up, eyeing the blonde suspiciously.

“Well,” she smiled, hands fidgeting with each other. “I don’t know if you’re aware, but I recently brought the school paper back from the dead. The Blue and Gold?”

“I’m aware,” I said sceptically.

She nodded, ponytail bouncing behind her head. “I’d like you to work with me on it. On the paper. Me and you,” she explained, gesturing wildly between us.

I grimaced awkwardly. “Sorry, Betty. That’s not really my thing.”

“Of course it is!” she rushed desperately. “We need a photographer.”

“Don’t you have a smart phone?” I sighed bitterly. “Since the rise of the android, photographers have become pretty much obsolete.”

“Please,” she begged, then sighed in frustration. “Look, Weatherbee has been on me ever since I used the paper as an outlet to expose Chuck.”

“Good job with that,” I said. “That asshole deserved it.”

She smiled proudly. “I know. But right now, the paper has a bit of a… questionable reputation. Weatherbee wants to shut it down.”

“And you think having me take pictures for you is gonna fix that?” I said flatly.

“It’ll look great on your college application,” she coaxed. “Don’t you want to do photography in college?”

“I have my extra-curriculars under control.”

“But do you have any that are specific to the course you want to do?”

I scoffed, taking my camera from round my neck and putting it away in my bag. Truthfully, it would be awesome to be able to add “Lead photographer of the Blue and Gold” to my application. I needed all the help I could get if I wanted to get any kind of scholarship, but I knew who Betty’s friends were, and was weary of one in particular. “Who would I be working with, Betty?”

“Me,” she said, eyes wide with false innocence.

“Betty?” I said sternly.

“Well, you know,” she said quietly, averting her gaze. “We have some writers…”

“Some?”

“One.”

“And who might that be?”

She rolled her eyes. “You know who it is, (Y/N).”

“And you know how I feel about him.”

She groaned. “Jughead’s not that bad.” I raised my eyebrows at her. “When you get to know him,” she continued shyly.

“But I do know him,” I said, setting off across the grass.

Betty quickly fell into step beside me. “What even happened between you two, anyway?”

“Nothing,” I shrugged. “We just don’t mix, Betts.”

“You’re actually really alike,” she replied. “You both listen to loud music.”

I laughed, accidentally encouraging her. “And you both wear dark clothes,” she joked, pinching the sleeve of my dark-green plaid shirt. “You’re both incredibly stubborn-”

“Just a theory,” I interjected, “but perhaps that’s exactly why we don’t get along.”

“Just give him a chance-”

“I did. He’s hated me from day one. I tried to act nice; I tried to be friends with him. He wasn’t interested, so I don’t try anymore.”

Betty frowned, eyebrows tipping down sadly. “You don’t have to work directly with him. Just me. Please,” she begged, grabbing me by the arm and pulling me to a stop. “Please do this for me.”

I looked into her huge, cartoon-like eyes and I crumbled. “Fine,” I conceded.

“Yay!” she giggled, wrapping her arms around me. “I knew I could count on you, (Y/N).”

“Alright,” I said, pulling away, but I couldn’t help but smile as she beamed at me.

“This is the start of a great partnership,” she grinned, squeezing my hands. “I can feel it.”

 ***

 I took a deep breath, in through the nose, and out through the mouth. This is going to be fine, I tried to convince myself. He probably doesn’t hate you at all.

I gripped the cold door handle, taking one final calming breath before opening the door. Both Betty and Jughead stood, leaning against a table. They faced a bulletin board with notes and pictures attached, strings tied from one note to another.

Betty looked up at me and smiled. Jughead took one look and rolled his eyes. “Someone’s lost,” he muttered.

I looked to Betty. “You didn’t tell him,” I said awkwardly.

“Tell me what?” he almost spat.

“I thought it would be a nice surprise,” Betty said, wringing her hands together.

“What would be a nice surprise?” Jughead demanded. He looked between me and his friend, crossing his arms over his chest.

“I should leave,” I sighed, turning on my heel.

“No!” Betty rushed ahead of me to the door. She shut it and threw herself against it, staring at me wide-eyed. “You can’t,” she said, catching her breath. “We need a photographer.”

“Oh, we do?” Jughead asked, clearly unamused.

“Yes, we do,” Betty said sternly, eyes not leaving his. “For the thing. Remember?”

“No, I don’t remember,” he insisted.

“The thing, Jughead! You remember the thing!”

He stared at her for a moment, before looking at me and back to her. Understanding dawned on his face. “Oh,” he nodded. “The thing. Right.”

I looked between them both, standing there like an idiot with my hands in my pockets. It was at this moment, I now realise, that I should’ve left Blue and Gold Offices and never gone back.

“(Y/N),” Betty smiled, but it did nothing to diffuse the tension in the room. “Welcome to the team. You know Jughead.”

“Unfortunately,” I grumbled.

Jughead faked a smile, but the display of teeth was more of a snarl than anything else. I replicated it perfectly right back at him.

“Okay,” Betty said curtly, moving from the door to stand between us. “Let’s be civil. Or at least act like it.”

I raised my hands in mock surrender. Jughead rolled his eyes.

“Great,” Betty said, though her eyebrows were drawn together in worry. “(Y/N), this is what we’ve been working on.”

She gestured to the bulletin board. I looked more closely at it, taking in the pictures of the Blossom family, the map of Riverdale with various locations pinned on it, and the pictures of Sweetwater River. “What is this?” I mumbled.

“Our murder board,” Jughead said coldly.

Again, another red flag that I chose to ignore.

“I gathered that,” I replied flatly. “Why are two kids, who are supposed to be working on a school editorial, studying the death of an old classmate?”

“Aren’t you the least bit curious about what happened to him?” Betty asked.

“Nope,” I said shortly.

“Figures,” Jughead snorted.

“But it’s… a mystery,” Betty said passionately.  “It’s a puzzle.”

I furrowed my eyebrows at her. “It’s a murder investigation.”

“So?” Jughead asked, hatred written plainly over his sharp features.

“So, what do you hope to find?” I asked, dumbfounded. “You know where all these clues lead, right?”

“To the answer,” Betty supplied.

“To a killer,” I explained. “To the person that tied Jason up, tortured him, shot him, and threw his body in the river. You want to find that guy? Because I don’t.”

“We’re looking for justice,” Betty said, as if that would change my whole view.

“What would you do if you found the killer?” I ask incredulously, laughing in astonishment. “Arrest him? I’m sorry, Velma, Shaggy, I hadn’t realised I’d just walked into an episode of Scooby Doo.”

“Jason’s death is the craziest thing to ever happen to this town. Are you really going to pretend you aren’t interested?” Jughead demanded.

“I am interested,” I nodded. “Just not interested enough to actively search for the killer. I don’t know about you, but I like my brain bulletless and my body safe on dry land.”

“Nice,” Jughead said sarcastically.

“Betty, if I had known this is what you wanted my help with, I never would have agreed-”

“No,” Betty said, tone completely serious. “You are not backing out of this.”

“You can’t write about this in the paper!” I replied. “No wonder Weatherbee wants to shut this whole thing down.”

“We’d never be in any danger, (Y/N),” Betty insisted. She reached out, placing her hands on my shoulders. “We’d just be writing about it.”

“It’s not that,” I sighed. “My parents would never let me.”

“They don’t have to know,” Betty said.

I raised an eyebrow at her. “My parents keep a very close eye on me.”

Her face was sympathetic. “How would you feel about… lying to them?”

I rolled my eyes. “You think I don’t do that already? But it would be pretty difficult to convince them I was innocently doing calculus when I got brutally murdered.”

“No one is getting murdered,” she replied, squeezing my shoulders. “We just want to do a little stakeout.”

“A what?”

“Forget it, Betts,” Jughead said, with no attempt to hide his boredom. “She’s not up for it.”

Looking back, this would have been the perfect time to walk away. But alas, it was the moment in which I cemented my future. This was the moment my fate was decided, and it was all because I was too proud, and too stubborn, to let Jughead Jones belittle me like that.

“You know what, Betty?” I said through gritted teeth. “A stakeout sounds like a great idea.”

Betty clasped her hands to her chest in excitement, and Jughead shook his head, rolling his eyes yet again.

“Who’s the target?” I asked casually, though a lump had formed in my throat the size of a golf ball.

“Kevin Keller.”

I gaped at her. “Betty,” I whispered. “Kevin is your friend. You don’t really think-”

“No,” she laughed, shaking her head. “No. Kevin is dating a Serpent, but he won’t tell anyone anything about it. I think he meets with Joaquin at night, so his dad doesn’t find out. We’re hoping they’ll lead us to a serpent hangout. We want you to take pictures, so we can have a profile for each serpent, and figure out exactly who was involved in Jason’s drug dealing.”

I felt a knot tighten itself in my stomach: my gut’s way of telling me that it was a bad idea. Did I listen? Clearly not. I took one glance at Jughead. He stared at me levelly, desperately wanting me to leave.

I turned back to Betty, a determined set to my jaw. “I can do that,” I said confidently. “But it has to be tonight.”

Betty’s head shot back in confusion, brow furrowed. “Tonight? Why?”

“My parents are out of town,” I explained. “It’s the only way I can do it and be sure they won’t find out.”

“Can’t you just sneak out?” Betty asked. “It’s just, I can’t tonight. I have a huge algebra test tomorrow. I really need to study.”

I shook my head. “I wish I could. But if they caught me, they’d take away everything I care about.”

“That’s a little dramatic, don’t you think?” Jughead remarked snidely.

“It’s the truth,” I said. He seemed put off by the lack of aggression in my words.

“Okay,” Betty said, frowning. “Well, I don’t really need to be there, I guess.”

“What?” Jughead and I demanded simultaneously.

She rolled her eyes at us. “You just need a driver and someone to take the pictures. I’d be dead weight anyway,” she shrugged. “You two can get along for one night.”

“Betty,” I hissed. “You said I’d be working with you, remember?”

“Just this one time, (Y/N),” she pleaded. “These profiles are really important.”

She looked from me to Jughead. “God,” she said, exasperated. “You guys are like children! Call a ceasefire for a few hours, that’s all I’m asking.”

I glanced up at Jughead, to find him staring at me through narrowed eyes. “Fine,” he relented. “But I pick the music.”

Part Two