#and pushes himself to help everyone even if it actively puts him at a disadvantage

[kaeyapilled]

i really didnt see the way alhaitham is acting in the interdarshan as him not wanting kaveh to win so he doesn't move out. in fact that sounds extremely stupid as i type it. sorry to enjoyers of this dynamic but i dont think thats it at all lmao

#i think hes just. whatever emotion lies between ''worried'' and ''annoyed in an affectionate way'' about kaveh #kaveh and his people pleasing lol #idk if people pleasing is the right term for this case actually #but you know what i mean. the way he basically lets people walk over him at times #and pushes himself to help everyone even if it actively puts him at a disadvantage #and the way all of this comes from feeling responsible about things that aren't his fault and the guilt that comes with that mindset #like all the dialogue about kaveh in this event talks about this. they're introducing the character and setting him up for some development #(hopefully. probably) #also some things ive seen people talk about are just. alhaitham being himself. like buddy that's the autism #i seriously don't doubt he read that championship rulebook cover to cover #kavetham #kaveh #alhaitham #my posts #complaining tag #<- a little

[hey-michael-young-history]

31 Days of Christmas

Day 8: Workout

Kuai Liang couldn't remember a time where he wasn't underweight or in shape. 

There came a point for all Lin Kuei where they needed to keep up with the arduous strength and conditioning while being starved. Their bodies either adapted or… they didn't. 

His body adapted and his love of food became yet another thing that he was forced to deny, ignore, and despise. Even when he was free and recreating the Lin Kuei in his image, he couldn't bring himself to eat more than the bare minimum. Food security was something everyone in his clan deserved. Except him. 

It was Hanzo Hasashi who healed his unnatural aversion to food. But he took it to the opposite extreme. He couldn't stop eating. And for the first time, it showed. 

“Looking good, Big Blue,” Johnny Cage had commented with a wink. 

“You’re finally getting the nutrients your body needs, I'm so proud of you,” Chiyoko had praised at one of his checkups. 

“You are fat,” Bi-Han stated, one day over coffee. 

Fat. The word was so foreign to him. Too much weight has never even been on his radar. 

Hanzo insisted that he liked Kuai Liang's body, in whatever form it came. He had the vague thought that Hanzo actually preferred him this way, soft and out of practice. Was it an Alpha thing? Was it something he attempted with his wife? Kuai Liang didn't know. He never asked about Harumi. Hanzo deserved to cherish those memories privately. 

Despite Hanzo's assurance, Kuai Liang still needed to get himself on track. He was already disadvantaged, being an Omega. He couldn't be a fat Omega as well. 

He jumped back into an active lifestyle and reduced his consumption to only eating while hungry. It worked for a while. Then after their marriage, he hit a plateau and not only did he start gaining weight again, but his body was changing. His face became rounder, as did his abdomen. Kuai Liang resolved to address it on his own, avoiding both his Alpha and his medical provider. 

Now he understood what was happening. Their daughter, his daughter, was growing inside of him. And his refusal to eat was starving her. She was so small. She was underweight when she was born. His hesitancy to eat meant that he was having trouble feeding her. 

As difficult as it was, Kuai Liang once again  allowed others to control his diet, so that his daughter could be healthy. 

For an agonizing year and a half, he ate and tried to ignore the weight he was gaining. Avoided all contact with his own body. Especially looking at himself. 

But now, Lì-Yán had turned two and was comfortably eating with her parents. He could have his body back. 

So they were getting to work. 

Hanzo still prepared his meals, but Kuai Liang only ate a quarter of his given portions. As delicious as it was, weight management was in what he ate. He learned that as a child. 

Hanzo insisted on being there for his first training session and Lì-Yán was happy to run off with Takeda to get into trouble. 

Being separated from her put an unexpected strain on Kuai Liang. His heart was always pounding and his wrists itched, where she had marked him. Thankfully, Hanzo was there, with his comforting pheromones and light embrace. 

“I know.” It was all he said. 

Working out helped take his mind off of it. It felt good to stretch, to punch, to push his powers to their limit. They had been out in the sun for hours and Kuai Liang's body ached. He used to retreat for entire weeks to work out and train. How far he had fallen. 

“We should work on endurance next,” Hanzo suggested. 

They ran. Just a few dozen kilometers before Kuai Liang's heart was pounding again. His mouth was dry and he was starting to feel dizzy and like he was about to fall. 

It was getting dark. Hanzo stared at the sky and said, “We will be able to run back before the sun sets. How are you feeling?”

Kuai Liang just nodded, attempting to breathe through his nose rather than his mouth. 

“This should give you your second wind,” Hanzo assured him. 

Kuai Liang didn't think so. But he had to do this. He was not a fat housewife. He was a warrior. 

They began running again, this time Kuai Liang hung back just a bit. But Hanzo noticed. 

“If you are tired, I can take you back now,” he offered. 

Pity. Kuai Liang didn't want it. He shook his head, then closed his eyes so that the world would stop twirling around him. 

“Stay with me,” Hanzo ordered. He grabbed Kuai Liang's arm and pulled him forward. 

The increased pace exhausted his lungs. His heart felt like it was going to shut down and his vision was blurry. 

And then, he was waking up, gasping for breath and sitting up in a cool bath. 

“You have awakened.” Hanzo's voice drifted from their bedroom. 

He appeared in the door with a bottle of water. “You passed out.”

“No,” Kuai Liang argued. “We were running–”

“You are dehydrated,” Hanzo chuckled. “The nurses wanted to give you fluids, delivered through your arm. I managed to convince them that the bath would do. Drink.”

He put the straw to his husband's lips and almost felt the relief he was, as he quickly drained the bottle. “I will bring you more in a few moments.”

Then he became serious. “You have been starving yourself.”

“No, I have only been reducing my–”

“You are not getting the calories you need to maintain your body's every day activities. Otherwise, you would not have passed out. I know that you have been trying to lose weight, my treasure, but there is no deadline. You will not be punished for losing weight in a healthy manner. I want you to be healthy, above all,” Hanzo explained, looking directly into his eyes. “You don't need to eat when you are full, but you must eat when you are hungry.”

“It… It is not so simple,” Kuai Liang protested. 

“I know,” Hanzo said with a bitter smile. “But we have time. I only see my wise, handsome Omega and one day, you will see him, as well. I promise.”

“Hanzo–” he paused and relished in the pheromones they were both releasing, easing the tension in his body. “Yes. Yes I will.”

#MK omegaverse #hanzo hasashi #kuai liang #tw for disordered eating

[citrusdarling7]

jealously

summary- Tom Riddle becomes jealous of reader’s boyfriend and decides to take matters into his own hands

warnings- smut, cheating, degrading, edging, and a bit of light choking. dom! tom, sub! reader

🗡—————————————————————🗡

I’ve never been much of a morning person, but for some reason I was up early today. I knew that I had a potions essay due tomorrow, and I was behind on it. Still in my silky nightgown, I assumed no one else would be in the common room. To my surprise, Abraxas was sitting in front of the fireplace. I smiled and tip-toed over to him, wrapping my arms around his chest from behind him. He squeezed one of my hands gently, acknowledging my presence.

“Darling, why are you up? It’s barely 5 am,” he told me softly. I rolled my eyes and swiveled around the couch so I could sit down next to him.

“I should be asking you the same thing, Malfoy. Oh my God, what happened to your face?” Even in the dim lighting of the Slytherin common room, I could see the dark purple bruises around one of his eyes. I gently reached up to try and touch him, but he turned his face to the side.

“It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it. Did you sleep well?” He tried to change the subject, but I didn’t let up.

“Brax, what the hell happened? Please tell me that the other guy looks worse,” I said while positioning myself closer to him. I gently ran a finger along his jawline in a comforting gesture. I could smell his sage wood cologne, which I absolutely adored.

“Truthfully darling, I think I’m lucky I walked away without him cursing me. He was absolutely livid after you left.”

Of course. I was such an idiot. Tom had done this to him.

Late last night, Abraxas and I were kissing in the corridor when we decided we wanted to go somewhere more private. Abraxas knows how to find the Room of Requirement, and he dragged me inside, still kissing my neck and holding onto my waist. Unfortunately for us, all of the other 6th year Slytherin boys were already there, brewing some type of illegal potion. Not only had Abraxas forgotten he was supposed to meet with them that night, but he had also exposed me to what was happening.

Although some people would believe so, I’m not naive to what goes on in this school. I know about Tom and his pursuits in dark magic. I know about their constant fights with those Gryffindors who all wear that one lion pin. But Tom seemed to believe that I had no prior knowledge of these secret meetings, and he instantly started yelling at us.

“Malfoy, you idiot! You are not supposed to bring back girls to this room, and certainly not when we’re in the middle of illicit activities!”

Rosier and Avery were still sitting by the cauldron, doing nothing to help the situation. I stepped away from Abraxas and turned towards Tom.

“Calm down, Riddle. You and your superiority complex need to learn that not everyone’s life revolves around yours,” I spat at him. Tom took a step closer to me, and I instinctively reached to pull out my wand. Before I had a chance to, I felt the back of my head being slammed against the wall, Tom’s hand gripping my throat tightly. Abraxas and Rosier both shouted for Tom to let go of me, but I just smiled. I stared him down, letting him know that I wasn’t afraid of him.

“You’re not allowed to speak to me that way,” he growled.

“I can speak to you any way I want Tommy.” His eyes looked as if he wanted to strangle me, but I saw the trace of a smile play across his lips. He abruptly let go of me and turned towards Abraxas.

“You need to keep your girlfriend under control. Get out of here.” Abraxas quickly grabbed my hand and started to pull me towards the door.

“Not you, Malfoy. Your presence is still required here.” I opened my mouth to tell him off again, but Abraxas quickly shook his head.

“Go back to the common room, darling. I’ll see you tomorrow, alright?” I reluctantly sighed, but figured that I shouldn’t piss Tom off even more. I should have known that Tom would still be angry with Abraxas.

Flashing back to present time, I turned around to look towards the boys dormitories. Abraxas could tell what I was thinking, so he gently squeezed my hand.

“Leave it alone, dearest. He was fine the rest of the night, confronting him will just make him mad again. I don’t want you to get hurt, my love.”

I’m not one to back down easily, and I constantly let my temper get the best of me. But Abraxas’ soft touch against my leg and heart-felt words relaxed me a bit.

“Alright. I won’t say anything. Have you done Slughorn’s essay yet?”

We spent the next hour or so alone in the common room, trying to hastily finish up homework. By the time that others started waking up, I was sitting in his lap, my hands in his hair as we kissed passionately.

“You two are disgusting. 20 points from Slytherin,” a cold voice said. I rolled my eyes and gave Abraxas a quick peck on the lips before sliding off of him and back onto the couch. Tom was Head Boy, and he had no problem with taking points from his own house. He had a lot of nerve as well. Almost every single night I watched him drag some girl into his room. She always left limping a few hours later, and Tom never spoke to her again.

“Put some clothes on. You’re dressed like a whore,” he spat at me. I scoffed at him, but got up to head back to my room anyways. As I slipped on my school robes and brushed out my hair, I couldn’t stop thinking about Tom.

The rest of the day went by pretty quickly. I managed to get through all of my classes without speaking a word to Tom. After watching the Slytherin quidditch team practice while gossiping with Lestrange, I sat with Rosier and Abraxas in the common room. Rosier made me play chess with him, beating me every single time. This was strange, since I considered myself an excellent chess player. I guess I was just a little distracted. Abraxas excused himself to his dorm room, saying that he had a ton of homework to do. He gave me a gentle kiss on the cheek before leaving.

“Something on your mind?” Rosier asked me. I sighed and slumped down in my chair.

“I don’t know. I guess I’m still kind of upset about what happened with Tom. Why do you guys let him treat you all so awfully?”

“It’s not as simple as that. Being friends with Riddle has advantages and disadvantages. The occasional hex or punch to the face isn’t much of a price to pay.” I scoffed and rolled my eyes.

“One of these days I’m gonna kill that son of a bitch,” I said with a grin. Rosier chuckled and patted my arm.

“Good luck with that.”

A few hours later I was lying in my bed, staring up at the ceiling. I had been trying desperately to fall asleep. But something was still on the back of my mind, and that something was preventing me from being able to relax. I let out a sigh and rolled out of bed. I slipped out of my room and quietly walked down the stairs, into the common room. I then made my way up the stairs leading to the boys dormitory. I took a deep breath before knocking on the door at the end of the hallway. He opened the door, and my nostrils were instantly filled with the smell of smoke. Tom stood inches away from me, still in his school uniform. He was holding a lit cigarette between his fingers.

“Did you need something, sweetheart?” I rolled my eyes at his stupid pet-name.

“You are absolutely insane, Riddle! You walk around this damn school like you own the place, and I’m sick of it.” He smiled and offered out his arm to me.

“If you’re going to yell at me, then you might as well do it behind closed doors,” he offered. I didn’t take his hand, but I did step inside and let him shut the door behind me. Since he was Head Boy, his room was bigger than all of ours. I could see that his window was open, probably because of the smoke. His bed had black silky sheets adorning it, and I could see all of the books on his desk were neatly stacked. His box of cigarettes was laying on his nightstand.

“So did you come here just to tell me off or did you want a smoke as well?” he taunted.

I turned around to face him again.

“I want you to stop hitting my boyfriend. And the rest of the boys. You have to learn how to respect others.” He chuckled darkly while taking a step towards me.

“Darling, that’s a pretty demanding request. My respect has to be earned.” In an attempt to look more confident, I crossed my arms across my chest.

“You’re such a child, Tom. I don’t know why you think that everyone worships you!” I shouted at him. He quickly wrapped his free hand around my neck and pushed me against the wall. He flicked his cigarette to the ground and stomped it out.

“That’s because everyone does. Everyone except you it seems.” I don’t know why Tom had this constant need to slam me up against the wall and choke me. It didn’t make me afraid of his dumbass.

Honestly, it was kind of hot. He brought his other hand up to my face and he touched my cheek softly.

“Did you and Malfoy ever finish what you started yesterday?” It took me a moment to realize that he was asking if we had fucked.

“That’s none of your business,” I snapped at him. He tightened his grip on my throat and used one of his legs to pin down mine.

“Answer my question.”

“No, I haven’t slept with him. Why do you care?” Tom brought his head down to my neck and whispered into my ear.

“Because I’m not into sloppy seconds.” Before I had a chance to mention the fact that he probably had over twenty bodies, he started kissing me roughly. I kissed him back and wrapped my leg around one of his. I let him suck on my neck as he pushed my thin nightgown up my leg and slipped one of his hands under it. He started to slowly rub circles on my thigh. He continued to suck on my neck as I tried to grind against him. He growled and used his other hand to push my waist back against the wall.

“None of that. Do you want me to touch you, darling?” he asked in a mocking tone. I nodded and he slipped his fingers into my underwear.

“Someone’s a needy little slut,” he whispered. Part of me wanted to call him a man-whore, but the part of me that valued my life kept me quiet. I felt him push two fingers inside me and I whimpered. He started to rub my clit with his thumb as he thrusted his fingers in and out of me. He started kissing my neck again as I moaned quietly. He was going incredibly slow, making me desperate for every touch. At a particularly sharp pressure, one of my legs twitched and I had to bite my lip to stop from making noise. Tom chuckled and tilted my chin towards him.

“Didn’t you come here to yell at me? Are you going to yell at me now, darling?” He started to rub me faster, which made it difficult for me to even speak.

“I hate you,” I was able to mutter. He laughed and pinched my waist roughly, making me jump. After only a few minutes, I was starting to get close to my peak. I felt my legs start to shake as I bit my lip to stifle my moans. Tom noticed this, so he stopped touching me. I frowned as he leaned down to whisper into my ear.

“Did you really think I was going to let you come that quickly?”

Before I had the chance to respond, he grabbed my legs and spun me around, pushing me onto his bed. He quickly tugged my nightgown off of me and started to take off his shirt. I tried to reach up and help him, but he used his free hand to push me back onto the bed. He quickly unbuckled his belt and kicked his pants off before getting on top of me. I felt his member pressing against my thigh. He wrapped a hand around my throat again and used the other hand to gently rub one of my hips.

“Is this what you want? Me to fuck you senseless while your boyfriend sleeps two rooms over?” I felt him rub against my clit, teasing me purposefully. I decided that I wouldn’t tell him that me and Abraxas weren’t actually dating until later.

“Tom-”

“Shut up,” he growled before thrusting into me sharply. As he rocked into me, I definitely felt a bit of pain. He was bigger than what I was used to, but I was adjusting quickly. I tried to rest my arms on his shoulders, but he didn’t like that. He pinned my hands above my head and started to attack my neck with his mouth.

“If you do that again, I’ll tie you down. Don’t test me,” he muttered. He continued to rail into me over and over, hitting me at just the right angle. In less than ten minutes I was close again. I tightly clenched the sheets and tried to grind my hips against his to alleviate some of the tension. That’s when he slipped out of me with a grin.

“Not yet, sweetheart,” he said while stroking my hair.

“Are you fucking serious?” I complained.

“Completely. Be a good girl and maybe I’ll let you finish before the night is over.”

I will admit, his self-control was pretty impressive. Most guys wouldn’t be able to handle pulling out before they had finished. But I also figured that he was just bluffing. There was no way he would be able to do this for more than twenty minutes. After 30 or so seconds of him attacking my mouth with his tongue, he thrusted into me again. This time his strokes were a bit slower and more gentle. He rubbed one of my arms lightly as he made me shiver at his touch.

“Tom, oh my God,” I moaned into his neck. I assumed he was going to tell me to shut up, but I guess he liked knowing how good he was making me feel.

“That’s right, darling. You like this?” I nodded my head as he pressed soft kisses against my jawline. I was definitely pleased with his change of pace. The slow stroked and gentle kisses made this feel a bit more like a normal thing. But of course, that didn’t last very long. Once he was done leaving hickies all over my neck, he wrapped his hand around it. He started to press himself deeper inside of me, rocking me into his bed. I whimpered as he hit a spot that made my legs twitch.

“Quiet, slut,” he demanded. I tilted my head slightly away from him, trying to stifle my moans with one of his pillows. I was panting at this point, desperately gripping onto the sheets.

“Could Malfoy make you feel this good?”

“Yeah, if I was with him I would’ve came by now,” I thought to myself. However, I shook my head in an attempt to appease him.

“That’s right. Should I let you finish now?” I nodded and he jerked my face back towards him. “Alright. Beg for it.” That actually made me laugh. There was no way I was going to give into him that easily. Tom shrugged and continued to pound into me. “Be difficult then. I don’t care either way.”

I bit down my lip to muffle a scream as my stomach flipped and my legs shook. Right when I was about to be sent over the edge, he pulled out of me again. By now, I was completely fed up with him. I tried to bring one of my hands down between my legs, but he was quicker than me. He grabbed both of my arms and roughly pinned them above my head.

“I don’t think so, dear. I want the whole hallway to hear you screaming my name,” he said while stroking my cheek tauntingly.

“Good luck with that,” I said with an eye roll.

“You’re mine now. No one gets to touch you but me,” he muttered into my ear before thrusting into me again. By now I could see finger-shaped bruises starting to form on my waist. We had been going at it for at least 35 minutes, and my body was aching for release. I was confident that he had left at least 5 or so hickies on my neck, which I was not looking forward to having to cover up tomorrow. Out of instinct, I tried to move my leg around his to adjust the angle. Tom slammed me down onto his bed roughly.

“Don’t fucking move,” he growled. He pressed one of his thumbs against my clit, making me whimper. I was so frustrated that tears had started to stream down my face. Tom gently wiped them away with his free hand.

“Are you gonna apologize for yelling at me earlier?” he asked in a snarl. I shook my head, which made him chuckle.

“That’s what I thought. If you’re gonna be like that, you clearly haven’t learned your lesson.” He started to kiss roughly at my collar, obviously trying to mark me more. After a few minutes of listening to me whine and pant, he decided to give me another chance.

“Promise me you’ll stop hanging around Malfoy,” he said softly. That kind of threw me for a loop.

“What? Why?” He nibbled on my ear lobe and thrusted into me sharply.

“You’re my little slut now. I don’t want him touching you. Promise me.” I instinctively shook my head, which only made his thrusts even harder.

“Promise me, darling. Like I said, I can go all night.” I really, really wanted to keep my mouth shut. But I was so overwhelmed, I couldn’t take much more.

“Fine. I promise. Please Tom, I-”

He bit down on my lip and thrusted into me at the perfect angle and speed.

Over-and-over again.

I moaned his name as well as a stream of profanities as waves of pleasure tore through my body. My legs were shaking so bad that he had to actually hold them down. While I was riding out my high, Tom muttered praises into my ear. I was so extremely sensitive that every touch set off fireworks against my skin.

“Take me like a good girl,” he said before roughly grabbing my throat. It took him a few minutes to finish himself off, but when he did it was so hot. He didn’t even bother to pull out. He continued to kiss me for a bit before he got up and started to walk towards his bathroom.

“Now, get the hell out of my room, whore.”

I smiled at his lovely term of endearment as I tried to quickly pull my clothing back on. I stood up quickly, and my legs gave out beneath me. Tom laughed as he put on his bathrobe.

“You’re pathetic,” he said while helping me up. Surprisingly enough, he walked me back to my dorm, smiling the entire way. Before he turned to leave he pushed a piece of hair behind my ear.

“Sleep well, darling.” I flashed him a sweet smile.

“You too, Riddle.”

#tom riddle #tom riddle x reader #tom riddle smut #smut #tom riddle oneshot #oneshot #harry potter #hogwarts #slytherin #tom marvolo riddle #tom riddle fanfiction #fanfic

[immaturityofthomasastruc]

IOTA Reviews: Guiltrip

So, my week has been hell. In addition to working night and day on final essays for my classes, I've been really busy at work lately, and the second COVID vaccine shot really took a lot out of me this week. And that's not even getting into the bureaucratic nonsense that comes with applying for the MTEL which is slowly making me wonder if I actually want to teach in the first place.

But, despite all that, there was a single light of hope this week that almost made it all worth it.

STAR WARS: THE BAD BATCH, BABY!

OH MY GOD, THIS SHOW IS AMAZING! I ALWAYS LOVED THE CLONE-CENTRIC EPISODES OF THE CLONE WARS, AND NOW WE GET AN ENTIRE SHOW ABOUT AN ELITE TEAM OF THEM? KICKASS! AND IT TAKES PLACE AFTER ORDER 66 WITH GRAND MOFF TARKIN AS THE MAIN VILLAIN? SWEET MOTHER OF GEORGE LUCAS, I CAN'T WAIT! I DON'T EVEN CARE THAT THEY TRADED IN THE COOL SNIPER CLONE FOR SOME LITTLE GIRL CLONE, I ALREADY WANT TO SEE MORE THAN THE TWO EPISODES WE GOT SO FAR! GOD, I LOVE THIS SHOW!

Oh yeah, there was also a new episode of Miraculous Ladybug that aired on the same day too, I guess. It was pretty good. Hell of a lot better than the past three episodes I've sat through.

Let's get into the fifth (chronologically the eleventh) episode of Miraculous Ladybug's fourth season: Guiltrip

We start off in the middle of class where we see Marinette looking at Adrien lovingly.

Because the writers are still trying to push the Love Square on us as if they were trying to sell us some death sticks. And yes, expect a few Star Wars jokes in this review. This episode did premiere on May 4th after all.

Rose suddenly gets a headache, and asks to go to the nurse, saying that “Miss Dora” is back. While walking there with Marinette, she explains that it's a code name she gives when her head hurts and can tell Miss Bustier without letting everyone know. She probably felt a name like “Maya Grain” would just give it away.

At lunch, Juleka gets a text that really upsets her, so Marinette tries to cheer her up. Keyword being “tries”.

Okay, yes, this is referencing the previous scene, where Rose refers to a certain snack at the nurse's office she eats to recover her health whenever “Miss Dora” visits called “Mr. Coffee”, but it's just bad timing. I get Marinette has a habit of not reading the room, but why did she have to use the term “Miss Dora” when she knows what it's being used for? Sure, she doesn't know that Juleka knows, but did she really have to say “Miss Dora”? She couldn't have used any other name instead? It's like making a chemotherapy joke when you just found out someone close to you has cancer. Even putting the context aside, what is this joke's punchline supposed to be? That “Miss Dora” will visit Juleka if she eats her lunch? Even by the humor standards of this show, the joke fails spectacularly.

Marinette bumps into Adrien, and although she stutters a little with a little exaggerated body movement, she does manage to take things seriously so she can have an actual conversation with Adrien about Juleka, who wants to be alone. She explains that the text she got was from Rose, who was sent to the hospital because of her sickness, and the entire class finds out because Marinette texted everyone to come to check on Juleka.

Goddamn it, Marinette. I usually defend you for getting screwed over by the writing, but you really aren't on your A game today.

Juleka explains that Rose got this sickness when she was little, which naturally worried everyone else. To make things worse, Juleka also says Rose made her swear to not tell anyone about her to worry her. Everyone else swears to not let Rose know that they know, and the act of support is actually enough to drive away an Akuma targeted at Juleka.

Unfortunately, nobody ever said anything about being overly affectionate to Rose, so everyone in the class tries to do things for Rose like carry her bags, giving her a pillow to sit on in school, helping her take notes, letting her cut in line at lunch, and giving her apples.

All of this makes Juleka remorsefully tell Rose that she told everyone else, which worries her because she hates all the special treatment, so she goes to tell them all about her illness. While they seem to accept her, the next time she sneezes, they overreact like, uh... how can I make this joke in a tasteful way?

Rose says she's had enough with all the treatment, which makes Juleka feel guilty. In the bathroom, she gets akumatized into Reflekta (yet again) with a Sentimonster named Guiltrip. And then Reflekta immediately gets sucked into the Sentimonster, which will cause it to go out of control. Nice job, Shadowmoth.

While it might not look like much, this is easily my favorite Sentimonster by far. Granted, that's not saying much, given all we've gotten so far for Sentimonsters is bootleg Mothra, sentient candy, a robotic doll, a frog with a body count, yet another evil doppelganger, and an eye, but my point still stands. Rather than actually confront the heroes, it's basically a portal to another world where it can trap people in bubbles that represent their regrets and despair, and turn them into copies of Reflekta.

It's a really strong metaphor which reminds me of the villains from Kamen Rider Wizard, who tried to drive their victims to despair in order to turn them into monsters. Ironically, that show's main villain is also some asshole in white who was risking countless lives just to save someone close to him. In general, the area inside of Guiltrip is visually stunning, and easily the highlight of the episode. It's just so surreal, and it really sets the tone the episode's going for.

Ladybug and Cat Noir arrive on the scene, and also get sucked into the portal, seeing some of the victims before they also start to fall into despair. And I can't believe I'm saying this, but this is one of the few times where Angstdrien Depreste is thematically appropriate. Cat Noir points out that if they had simply defeated Shadowmoth by now, none of this would be happening, which is a good point. He even attempts to kill himself using his Cataclysm, but unlike RWBY, they don't try to glorify it.

This also leads to Rose managing to fight off Guiltrip's powers with her optimistic personality (so I guess you could say she's A New Hope for the heroes), inspiring Ladybug to compliment Cat Noir. While I'd normally be pissed that this is yet another way to boost his ego, it does fit in with the episode's theme of positive thinking. Well, with the exception of one line where she points out what her time as Ladybug would be like without Cat Noir...

BEING A SUPERHERO IS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE FUN. Yes, there are certain benefits to being a superhero, but it is not a fun game you play when lives are on the line. Why are the writers so dedicated to validate Cat Noir's beliefs that being a hero is just a fun extracurricular activity? Has there ever been a superhero who shares a similar mentality and isn't treated like a complete jackass?

So Ladybug and Cat Noir break free of the bubbles, and after summoning her Lucky Charm, a pickaxe, Ladybug realizes she needs more positivity to break free from Guiltrip. As such, she pulls out the Pig Miraculous and gives it to Rose, who transforms into Pigella. Funny how she forgot her little headache condition when she bangs her head like a death metal singer while transforming.

The design is... wait, she's not wearing a skin-tight jumpsuit? She's actually wearing something different?

Yeah, I really like the Pigella design. There's a good mix of pink and white, and the skirt really brings the whole thing together. It really reflects Rose's optimistic and bubbly personality.

So the three heroes find Reflekta, who has been consumed by tons of bubbles. Pigella uses her superpower, Gift, to show Reflekta what her heart wants the most right now. So it's basically a more specific version of the Fox Miraculous? In fact, what do pigs have to do with optimism?

Whatever reason, it works, which helps Reflekta to break free of Guiltrip's influence, letting Ladybug de-evilize her. But because we need to have a fight scene in this episode, the Reflekta clones start to attack the heroes, but Ladybug uses the pickaxe to climb out of Guiltrip and purify the Amok.

So Rose hands the Pig Miraculous back to Ladybug, and the episode ends with everyone treating Rose normally in class, realizing she isn't as delicate as she thinks she is.

So yeah, I really like this episode. Aside from a few stupid things Marinette said this episode, I honestly don't have a lot of problems with the episode here.

I also really like the lesson this episode is going for. It doesn't shame Rose for rejecting the help, and it doesn't shame the class for being to overprotective of Rose either. It tries to find a middle ground, which is an important lesson to learn, not just for dealing with a loved one who has an illness, but for disabled people and other kinds of situations where someone has a disadvantage. Even as much as I ragged on Marinette for the text, it's clear that she isn't the only one to blame. In fact, nobody really gets blamed for anything this episode. It's more of a misunderstanding, and both sides find a balance on how to treat Rose.

It's overall a really good episode, and the second best one so far this season. And you know what? This episode taught me the importance of staying positive, so with that in mind, maybe I shouldn't be dreading “Queen Banana” when it comes out this week.

Wait, what? It got pushed back two weeks? Oh, THANK GOD! Now I feel like dancing. And I know exactly what song to dance to...

#immaturity of thomas astruc #iota #miraculous ladybug #miraculous ladybug salt #marinette dupain cheng #ladybug #adrien agreste #cat noir #chat noir #rose lavillant #pigella #gabriel agreste #hawkmoth #hawk moth #shadowmoth #shadow moth #juleka couffaine #reflekta

[captainpikeachu]

Steve & John: shared similarities

People have talked endlessly about Steve and John’s differences that made Steve worthy of the shield and John not worthy (plenty of gifsets are all about that), but for me, the contrast of their personalities and how they handle things only really work because the two characters actually share many similarities at their core. And I don’t just mean because superficially they are both blond haired blue eyed white dudes with military experience. 

So in this post, I’m going to talk about the ways Steve and John are much more alike than people would like to admit.

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

1. Shy down-turned smile (also Imposter Syndrome)

Steve always had this shy/nervous downturned smile when someone took a genuine interest in him, and no doubt much of that came from how often he was looked down upon before his transformation. So he’s genuinely surprised/pleased that someone is interested, and a little nervous too. Because even if he is the big strong man now physically, I think there is always that bit of imposter syndrome with Steve where he still thinks of himself as the scrawny kid from Brooklyn and not this big tall hero that people see him as. John when he gets teases from his wife and his best friend in those locker room scenes does this same shy downturned smile, as if he’s still that nervous anxious high school kid with a lot of expectations on his shoulders, a side that he doesn’t really present to anyone but the people he trusts to let his guard down with because John also has a huge case of imposter syndrome as his past experiences and trauma doesn’t make him feel so strong and qualified and heroic. Everyone may call him the hero, but in his heart, he doesn’t feel like the perfect righteous hero that people expects or sees him as. 

2. Discomfort with their public roles + Just want to do the job

Steve was notably uncomfortable being thrown into the USO tours. It’s not what he wanted, it’s not what he intended. He felt like a dancing monkey, performing for people instead of doing the things that he wanted to do to actually help people. And while he reluctantly accepted that all the autographs and fake smiles and acting and fame was part of the job, all he really wanted to do was actually do the real job and save lives, to have the chance to make a difference and do the right thing. This same sentiment is echoed by John, who is equally as uncomfortable being placed into a public role that he clearly does not want to be in. He’s a soldier used to serving a silent and thankless role, we see his discomfort with publicity in his GMA interview, and we see it later in the show when strangers come for autographs. Yes, like Steve, he has accepted this is part of being Captain America, but he doesn’t want it, he just wants to be able to do his job, complete his mission, and keep everyone safe.

3. Loyalty to their loved ones

Steve will always come for the people he loves, he will always stand by them, he will fight for them and die for them. Numerous times now Steve has been willing to risk everything to protect Bucky or anyone else that he cares about, even if no one else is willing, even if the world is against him or his own life is on the line. John carries that same loyalty for the people who matter to him. When Lemar is taken by the Flag Smashers, John’s immediate concern isn’t even about the mission or his job, it’s getting Lemar back. When they were fighting on top of the trucks in Episode 2, when Lemar’s life was in danger, John puts himself at a disadvantage to take a shot at the guy holding Lemar even though it leaves himself open to attack and nearly kicked off the truck roof. And then he throws the shield to cover Lemar’s landing despite it would leave him weaponless as a regular non-powered person to face off a super soldier. Steve and John would both do anything for the people they love.

4. Self-sacrificing

We’ve seen Steve willing to throw himself on the grenade, so to speak, time and time again. He did it in his first film to send the plane into the water. He does it for Bucky in Winter Soldier. And not to mention actually jumping on grenades, even if that ended up being a test. Steve’s instinct to throw himself in danger and sacrifice for others is well documented, but John matches that self sacrificing instinct as well. He’s jumped on grenades before as an active duty soldier. He has three Medals of Honor that would only be earned through willing to sacrifice himself above and beyond the call of duty to save others. And even in the final fight in Episode 6, we see him fighting off the Flag Smashers while trying to pull that truck up even if the Flag Smashers pull him over the ledge. When push comes to shove, Steve and John’s instincts are to jump into danger to shield others with their lives, no hesitation. They both would see it as their duty. 

5. “I can do this all day”

This is Steve’s signature line. He doesn’t give up, he can keep standing up to fight for what he believes in, whether against bullies, Red Skull, Tony, the government, Thanos, and even a version of himself. Steve is resilient and his endurance goes beyond just his physical abilities. He has the heart to keep fighting, the stubborn tenacity to never give up even when all seems lost. Yet John has that same stubborn tenacity that Steve has. Those three Medals of Honor are proof of that. You’d have to be able to walk through hell to even get one medal, much less three. The mental endurance required to keep going would have been enormous. And even after Sam and Bucky broke his arm in that warehouse, John got back up and tried to keep fighting, they had to bash him into unconsciousness to even stop him. And even then he went on to forge his own shield and got back into the fight. Much like Steve, he doesn’t know when to give up. 

6. Lying (in an attempt to protect themselves and others)

Steve lied to Tony about the truth of his parents’ death. He knew and he kept silent, lying by omission, and he was going to keep lying until Tony finally confronted him for a simple clear answer. Steve even admits that he thought by not saying anything, he was sparing Tony, but he realizes that he was really sparing himself. It was a selfish choice, one born not out of malice, but perhaps a misguided attempt to keep the peace, thinking if the truth isn’t out there then maybe any conflict is unnecessary and everyone can have their peace of mind. And that same line of thinking is what drives John’s lies to Lemar’s family too. A part of him wants to spare them further pain, because what good would come from telling them that their son/brother’s killer is still out there and that he failed to stop them? He wanted to spare them, he wanted to give them closure and peace in their grief, to not burden them with an open ended story with no justice. But he was also sparing himself, because he’s afraid admitting the truth that he didn’t kill the person directly responsible might lead to Lemar’s family hating him and he’d lose them and his last connection to Lemar. This is not a decision of malice, this is a decision born from fear. Steve and John both lie in trying to spare others from pain but also selfishly spare themselves from the further conflict that the truth may cause. 

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

In a way, yes, John was designed to be a darker mirror to Steve (less solid morality, less emotional control), but that darker mirror only works when they share some core similarities. Their differences are in how those traits can manifest outward into different actions.

Perhaps shockingly, I think Steve would have understood John and his choices more than most, and may have been able to talk him off the ledges better anyone else besides Lemar, and maybe with some more understanding guidance, John might have made for a good Captain America. After all, Steve did say once say in that letter to Tony, “I know you’re doing what you believe in, and that’s all any of us can do, that’s all any of us should.”

#these two are a lot similar than people like to think they are #and i needed to talk about that #steve rogers #john walker #captain america #the falcon and the winter soldier #tfatws #tfatws meta #mcu #marvel #mcu meta

[solalunar-eclipse]

45.06°N, 1.656°E

Summary: Rouge deserves more cool.

Word count: about 4200 words

Author’s Note: Hopefully my writing abilities haven’t deteriorated too much over the hiatus- but either way, please enjoy! (Side note: this is technically set after Scars You Can’t See, but it isn’t vital to read that if you haven’t already)

...

It was truly a beautiful day outside in Empire City. Puffy clouds drifted across a rich blue sky, a light breeze pushing them along as the sun shone down brightly- just enough to bring the temperature up to a comfortable range. Its rays shimmered upon one of the many tall, silvery buildings that this city was known for, threatening to leave a temporary mark on the vision of anyone who looked at it for too long. This particular building advertised itself as an insurance company’s headquarters, and it looked perfectly in place amongst all the other skyscrapers in the city.

The activities going on inside, however, were anything but ‘in place’.

Near the very top of the towering structure, a bat sat in front of a wall-sized computer screen, her black-gloved fingers flying across the keyboard. Firewalls and security systems fell like sandcastles swept out by the tide- no corner of this building was safe when she was in control. Identity checks meant nothing to her, passwords were a breeze, and two-factor authentication? A joke.

Rouge smiled in satisfaction, taking a break to stretch out her fingers now that she was successfully through the various measures designed to keep hackers like her out of these computers. With a click of the mouse and a few keys tapped, the various sums of money the people who worked here had stolen began to make their way back to their rightful owners’ bank accounts.

After all, this building didn’t actually house an insurance company. That was just a cover story for the real business here- draining the cash out of innocent people’s funds. Rouge had been determined to stop this as soon as she’d learned about it before any more people got hurt (when she stole it was usually from rich people who could afford to have one of many diamonds go missing- this was just cruel!), and now she’d successfully completed about half the job. Just returning the money wasn’t quite enough, of course- this scheme had been running for over a year now, and it was about time someone put a stop to it for good. 

That was where her friends came in.

While she manned the cameras, Shadow and Omega were grabbing plenty of physical evidence from the various offices throughout the building- more than enough to incriminate everyone who worked here. Rouge’s job was mostly to ensure that they could get what they needed without any serious trouble. It might be a difficult task, considering that Omega was set on blowing up most of the tech stored here...but she was prepared to deal with that.

The bat leaned back in her chair, catching a quick glimpse of herself in the window as she did so. Ever since they’d left G.U.N., a great perk (in addition to the lack of association with a corrupt military organization, obviously) was that they could wear whatever they wanted on the job. Before, Rouge had really been pushing it on ‘formality’ with her jumpsuit alone, and even then she hadn’t been allowed to wear anything else while on the job for the sake of ‘consistency’.

Now, in a drastic change from her usual style, she wore a tight black leather jumpsuit over a purple shirt, complete with white gloves and high-heeled boots. The latter two had neon blue accents, too, providing a burst of color as well as an actual light source to see by- perfect for dark missions.

Shadow and Omega hadn’t been allowed any personal effects re: clothing before due to the fact that a few too many supervisors saw them as weapons and not people. Rouge had of course argued against this, but there was only so much one person could do.

Now, though, the bat had insisted that both of her friends get more clothing- ‘if nothing else then to stick it to them’ were her exact words- and they had both taken to it quite well after an initial period of hesitancy. Omega in particular had been quite devastated (and then promptly offended) upon discovering that no leather jackets were currently produced in his specific size. Eventually, however, he was placated with the offer of a fedora, claiming it made him look ‘VERY MYSTERIOUS’. He had now taken to collecting hats as well as weaponry.

Shadow could fit into a leather jacket, on the other hand, and consequently owned about five of them, three of which he’d bought within the same week. Today he wore one with red stitching, and while he hadn’t had anything to say about it, Rouge had caught him admiring it in the mirror before the mission (at which point he scowled, blushed green to his ears, and teleported away).

Right now, though, he and Omega were quietly discussing which documents to take and which ones to leave behind. It would raise suspicions far too quickly if the criminals inhabiting this building came back to discover a completely bare office, after all, so they only took several receipts of major transactions as well as a list of the bank account numbers that had been hacked- and some future targets as well.

(Was this whole thing illegal? Kind of. Did anyone really mind so long as they were helping others? Not really. After all, Tails was totally not old enough to fly a plane, but at this point the government had basically thrown up their hands and said ‘whatever I guess’, so it was fine.)

“ROUGE.” Omega said suddenly, making the bat stop her musing and drop her feet from the desk. “THIS IS IMPORTANT.”

“Yeah, hon? What is it?” she asked, ready to deal with any problems that might arise.

“MY HAT KEEPS FALLING OFF. I REQUIRE SOME SORT OF METHOD TO KEEP IT ON.”

The bat sighed and gave a relieved laugh as Shadow hissed, “Omega! This is a serious mission!”

“It’s alright, Shadow. Omega, we’ll find some double-sided tape or something when we get home, alright?”

The robot paused for a moment, thinking. “THIS IS ACCEPTABLE.”

As Rouge watched, they gathered up the rest of the items and began to move towards the lobby. Today was an off day for the ‘business’, so most of the hallways would be empty. The secretary out front would take his usual break to go get lunch in two minutes as well, giving them a clear chance to escape.

And of course that was when everything went wrong.

It turned out that leaving G.U.N. (while the right idea) wasn’t without its occasional disadvantages. If they’d still been part of the military organization, then they would’ve had the resources to figure out that these criminals were more than a little paranoid, so their security system ran diagnostics every hour on the dot. When it discovered the hacking, it locked Rouge’s access to any other computer terminal and then restricted every single application on that one computer.

These people weren’t exactly beginners when it came to computers, after all.

The bat jumped out of her chair the second her computer glitched and froze, panicked. “Guys. Guys, get out of here right now.” she said urgently into her microphone. “I can bust out a window but you two have to go right now-”

She froze as, on the screen, multiple armed guards and two gigantic mechs dropped down onto the ground level and pointed their guns at Shadow and Omega. The robot moved to cover the hybrid’s back as Shadow pulled his favorite katana sword out of its scabbard.

Rouge refused to sit and watch another minute, kicking the door off its hinges hard enough to slam it against the opposite wall and tearing down the hallway to save her teammates.

Shadow and Omega fought well in the meantime, managing to take out one of the mechs and several guards too. Occasionally, Shadow even curled up and was promptly fired out of his friend’s cannon at top speed, turning into a deadly projectile all by himself.

Eventually, though, one of the guards got too smart and pulled out a stun gun, shocking Omega long enough to put the robot temporarily out of commission. Shadow spun around to defend his friend, using the Chaos Emerald he’d brought along to deliver a devastating blow- but he had nobody to watch his back now, and it barely took a minute before the mech found an opening to slam him into the wall as he dealt with the guards.

Shadow dropped to the ground weakly, temporarily unconscious. Omega was still struggling to get his systems back online.

Rouge, meanwhile, was furious.

The bat rushed to the balcony overlooking the lobby from the third floor, her teeth bared as she watched the mech move into position, prepared to bring its giant fist down on Shadow’s unmoving body. Flipping over the railing, she free-fell the three stories to the ground, slamming both heels into the marble and leaving a long crack across the floor. She snatched up the Emerald from the tile where it had fallen out of Shadow’s quills, holding it tightly in her hand. 

“Leave him alone. Now.” she snarled.

When the mech pilot gave her nothing more than a cursory glance, raising the steel fist higher, Rouge charged.

An ultrasonic shriek exploded from her lungs, making every other human in the room double over and clutch their ears. At the exact same time, the glass in the extra-tall windows of the lobby vibrated, cracked, and then shattered into hundreds of pieces.

Rouge didn’t see any of that. Rouge didn’t care about any of that. All she could see was the hedgehog she’d come to care about so much about to be crushed by someone who barely even knew his name.

She jumped up and whirled around in the air, the power of her wings suddenly (strangely) strong enough to send the mech swaying backwards slightly, before lashing out with a kick that dented the chestplate of the thing and hit it hard enough to-

-and Rouge’s eyes widened-

-to send it flying through the shattered windows and down the street that the building faced, so far that it became nothing more than a speck in the horizon.

This was, incidentally, a mech that weighed over two tons. 

Omega, near the other end of the room, silently thanked every inventor that had ever lived (aside from Eggman) that he had powered back on in time to see this.

Rouge, however, didn’t spare more than a second to think about it, instead dropping to her knees to check on Shadow. The moment she pressed the Chaos Emerald back into his hand, the hybrid’s eyes began to open slowly.

“Ugh….what happened…?”

“That moron of a pilot smacked you into a wall, hon. Are you gonna be okay?” Rouge asked, scanning his face for any sign of a concussion.

Shadow blinked twice, then suddenly sat bolt upright, his eyes wide. “...Rouge? Are you sure you’re alright?” 

The bat frowned, confused, looking over herself. “Yeah, hon, I’m….”

She froze.

While Rouge had seen many strange things in her time, the sight of her lower legs and feet glowing bright purple was certainly a first.

As she jumped back from Shadow in surprise, she let go of the Chaos Emerald in his hand, making the aura surrounding her fade. “What...what was that?”

“YOU WERE SO COOL. THAT IS WHAT THAT WAS.” Omega declared, hauling himself to his feet and walking over. “YOU BEGAN TO GLOW AND KICKED THAT INFERIOR CREATION SEVERAL MILES AWAY. THE ONLY REGRET IN THIS SCENARIO IS THAT YOU WERE UNABLE TO CONTINUE DESTROYING YOUR ENEMIES, AS THERE WAS ONLY ONE OF THEM.”

Shadow looked up at her in surprise and- was that a little bit of awe? “I should have known you’d be able to use Chaos powers!” he said, shaking his head as he got to his feet. “Incredible...it’s no wonder you’re so resilient in battle.”

Rouge pointedly ignored the light flush on her face from all of this praise. “Well, we’ve got what we came for, so there. We’ll leave all of this evidence-” and clearly she wasn’t just talking about the papers- “for that new organization the government’s setting up. What’s it called again?”

Omega shrugged- an odd motion with his bulky shoulders. “THEY’RE STILL DECIDING. HOPEFULLY IT TURNS OUT TO BE SOMETHING COOL.”

“Well, whatever their name is, it’s their job now to deal with all this.” Rouge said, gesturing around at the general mess.

At that moment, the secretary returned with his food, only to stop dead in his tracks and stare at the three members of Team Dark amongst the wreckage of two gigantic robots and a lot of broken glass.

The bat ‘s face split into a wide, wicked grin, pointing directly at him. “And you’ll be the one to explain it to them!”

(It took one extremely short chase to retrieve the man- who foolishly thought he could lose Shadow and Rouge in the alleyways- before he was tied to one of the disgustingly ostentatious pillars by Omega. The team then went home and spent the next two hours watching Rouge glow and then break things…mostly things she meant to hit.)

…

Several days later, her team and Sonic's crew (plus Amy Rose) were in a different city, dealing with the usual biweekly Eggman attack. This one seemed, unfortunately, to not have most of the weak spots that usually came into play when fighting one of his giant robots, as both the power source and the mad scientist in question were heavily guarded.

However, after a particularly well-timed attack from Omega, Amy, and Knuckles all at once, Rouge spotted a panel that was currently rather dented and bent open with some wiring spilling out, and knew exactly what to do.

“Shadow! Omega! Cover me!” she shouted, leaping into the air and soaring towards the robot.

Immediately, she saw several smaller robots explode in her periphery, having fallen victim to the deadly lasers and Chaos Spears that her friends used. Her focus was on one thing and one thing only, though- making it up to that panel.

The moment Rouge latched on, she pulled open the panel the rest of the way and began to rewire the machine at an impressive pace. While she might not be the same kind of tech expert as Tails, who built devices and wrote code most people with a PhD couldn’t understand if they tried, one thing she certainly knew was how to make computers do what she wanted.

Eventually, though, Eggman caught on to what she was doing and tried to swat her off his mech with its two giant metal fists. “What do you think you’re doing down there with my robot?” he shouted, swinging at her wildly.

Suddenly, one of the fists in question promptly vanished, replaced by a smoking hole and a bunch of wires where a functioning steel hand was supposed to be. Rouge, startled, looked around for what could possibly have caused this- and promptly relaxed upon seeing Omega retracting his biggest laser cannon (which was glowing red-hot) back into his chassis with a glare up at his creator.

Thankfully, he’d also provided just the distraction she needed to rewire the last few parts, at which point she jumped off just as the robot began to spin wildly...and then its entire midsection exploded, launching the command center with Eggman still inside a good fifty feet into the air.

The bat landed on the ground to cheers from her friends and took a dramatic bow. Omega clapped a hand on her shoulder in a friendly way (which meant he only knocked the wind out of her and didn’t shove her several feet deep into the asphalt) as Shadow looked on with his arms folded, but still clearly proud.

“Wow, Rouge!” Tails exclaimed, his eyes wide and smile wider. “I didn’t realize you knew your way around that kind of tech that well- you should totally stop by my lab sometime!”

The bat shrugged. “It comes with the job, that’s all.” she insisted, but internally she was more than a little surprised- it still didn’t quite come naturally to her to consider that people would be impressed by what she did. All G.U.N. had ever told her was that she’d done ‘as well as was expected’, which made it seem like her skills were just average. Seeing someone who she’d mostly considered an acquaintance telling her how incredible her skills were when to her it was just ‘something I can do’ was...pretty nice, actually.

Rouge offered him a quick grin as the other three heroes came rushing up to her in varying states of surprise and excitement. “I just might take you up on that offer sometime.”

…

A week after that, Team Dark was spending time at the Station Square mall together- a common occurrence for them. It had good clothes, tolerable food, and most importantly lots of jewelry stores. They were here today because Rouge’s favorite was having a sale, and she refused to miss out on any opportunity to shop for gems.

After about an hour of looking around in the store (most of which was spent attempting to prevent Rouge from emptying said store and/or sneaking things out from inside locked cases), the three finally left with about four tiny bags of jewelry, which Omega wore hooked over his fingers. “THIS SEEMS WASTEFUL, BUT ALSO AMUSING.” he’d commented, at which point the bat riding on his shoulder gasped in mock outrage and began to vehemently defend the store’s choices.

They hadn’t gone more than a few steps, though, before she heard some gasps and squeals somewhere off to the left. She sighed. Some people seemed to have this odd hero-worship thing around Shadow, but the attention only made him feel awkward, so it looked like she’d have to play guard as usual here. Drifting down from her perch as the three young women approached, she said, “Alright, ladies, what are you here for?”

The bravest of the three moved forward, clutching something in her hands. “Uh…”

Rouge prepared herself to say no on behalf of her friend, to hear complaints like ‘why can’t we talk to Shadow?? You suck”, but then-

“...can you sign this poster, please?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t— wait, what?”

The bat stared at the poster, her eyes wide. A picture of herself looked right back at her, a smirk spread across her printed self’s face as jewels dripped from the hand not resting on her hip.

The photo was rather outdated now, having been taken not long after the ARK disaster. Post-crisis, Sonic had insisted that everyone (except for Eggman, since he’d caused that whole mess in the first place) get recognition for trying to save the planet together...and that included her. 

Rouge and Sonic had both been wearing Shadow’s inhibitor rings during that photo shoot. It was their way of making sure that even though he wasn’t with them any longer, even though nobody would really remember who he was, he’d still live on in some little way without a big announcement.

She took the poster quickly, shaking off old memories, and gave them a genuine smile- rare for strangers. “Of course, hon!” she said, taking the offered pen and signing her name with a flourish and a little heart.

The one who’d asked promptly squealed and clutched at the poster, a big grin on her face. “Oh wow, thank you sooo much!” she gushed. “You know, you’re, like, my hero, right? Everyone always just, like, says that you can’t look good and be a real hero at the same time, you’re either a sell-out or too serious...but, you’re, like, both?? And that’s just so, y’know, empowering? To see someone looking fabulous and being a hero, but like not taking any nasty comments about it?”

Both her friends agreed eagerly, and Rouge found herself blushing just a little at all this praise. “If either of you have anything else, I could write something on those too,” she offered, still feeling a little bit bewildered at the moment.

This earned her two simultaneous squeals of “Really?!” followed by a lot of frantic searching for paper. Rouge was more than happy to sign her name there too, even adding a little message to each of them- and to the poster for good measure. As the three fans cheered, snapped a quick selfie with her (which was something she so wasn’t used to either), and then rushed off with a “thank you so much!!” Rouge found herself still smiling as she turned to walk back to her friends.

Shadow and Omega had moved a little ways away during all of the fuss, and now they were sporting similarly pleased expressions with more than a little bit of smugness mixed in. “SEE?” Omega asked, and Rouge could tell he’d be smirking if he were able to do so. “WE HAVE TOLD YOU OVER AND OVER AGAIN THAT YOU ARE EXCEPTIONALLY COOL. YOU DIDN’T BELIEVE US THEN, THOUGH….DO YOU NOW?” He stopped there and somehow promptly assumed an even stronger I-told-you-so air than before.

“Maybe you’ll even get your own fanclub before long...oh, wait. Look what I just found.” Shadow added, tossing his phone over to her. Only the faintest of smirks was visible on his face (they were in public, after all) as Rouge stared at the screen proclaiming the current website to be “The Official Rouge Fansite (anyone feel free to join!!)”.

The bat found herself blushing to her ears, flattered and surprised by all of the support she hadn’t known existed until now.

Omega picked her up and set her on his shoulder, turning his head to look up at his friend. “COOL PEOPLE LIKE YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE TO WALK PLACES.”

“And-” Shadow added, slinging the bags she’d acquired at the store over her shoulder. “-cool people like you shouldn’t have to carry anything either.”

Rouge wondered briefly if her grin might strain her face if it grew much wider. Leaping down for a moment, she hovered in the air just long enough to ruffle the quills on top of Shadow’s head before perching back on Omega’s shoulder and patting the robot fondly. “You two dorks are the best.” she said warmly.

Shadow huffed and began to walk on ahead, clearly embarrassed. “DORK.” Omega called after the hedgehog, his eyes brightening by about fifteen percent in good humor. 

“She called you one too, you know.” Shadow replied without looking back.

“YES, BUT YOUR DORKINESS IS MORE OBVIOUS.” Omega declared, by now shouting across several stores as Rouge tried to stifle a laugh.

“If you don’t catch up and stop talking I’ll hide all the hats in your favorite store and you’ll never find them.” the hybrid growled.

Rouge promptly discovered that Omega, despite weighing a thousand pounds, could in fact move quite quickly when threatened with the loss of a chance to add to his new clothing collection. The robot fired all of his boosters at once, sending them flying down that particular wing of the mall and nearly slamming into a wall in the process.

After a spirited chase that lasted over five minutes (along with lots of shouts of “get him, Omega!” and jumping off balconies and general taunting), the group was promptly escorted out of the mall without a chance to enjoy the store they’d started the ‘fight’ over in the first place.

Rouge watched her two friends sulk for a minute before smirking suddenly. 

“Guess what?” she asked, stepping back to look at both of them.

When she had their attention, she pulled out a nice new summer outfit with a laugh…from that same place.

“You didn’t.” Shadow said, staring at the clothing.

“OH, SHE DID.” 

Rouge then proceeded to pull both a cool hat in all gold and a nice blue bomber jacket out from behind her back as well, her smile widening even more. “Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten you two at all. Or forgotten to pay, either.” she added quickly with a sigh. She soon shifted to watching with delight, though, as Shadow’s eyes widened considerably and Omega’s head whirled to fixate on her hand. 

“HAND IT OVER.” he ordered, holding out his clawed, metallic fingers insistently.

“Well...since you asked so rudely...no.” Rouge replied, before leaping into the sky with a grin.

“What?” Shadow gasped.

The robot’s eyes narrowed. “DON’T YOU DARE.”

Rouge flew higher at that. “Oh, but I do dare.” She wheeled around and began to fly off at top speed, snickering at the sound of indignant shouts behind her. Soon enough, she heard the swish-swish of Shadow’s skates and the clanking of Omega not far behind.

They might be able to catch her eventually, she mused, soaring through a gap between buildings- she wasn’t that fast, really. It wouldn’t be easy for them at all, though. 

After all, Rouge was just as powerful as they were, in her own way.

#shadow the hedgehog #rouge the bat #e 123 omega #45.06°N 1.656°E #the title is based on rouge's theme from the mad space level in sa2! #i thought the title and the song were cool so why not #also if you want to *follow* the coordinates...you might find a surprise #hehe #by the way! as you might have notice i tried writing omega's dialogue in all caps this time #*noticed #is that better or worse? feel free to let me know! #and yes in the first scene rouge is wearing her 'elite agent' outfit from sonic forces speed battle :) #the fedora idea is from khi's fanart for sycs because i love that art SO MUCH #yes there are lots of clothes in this but honestly team dark seems like the type to be stylish i think #it's rouge's influence #(also how do people end fics well i need advice) #(it just never works quite right...) #anyway! as always thanks for reading! #:D #sol's fanfiction

[the-final-sif]

📂📂 Please bless me with your godly thoughts on this fine day, oh great one

Aizawa was hesitant on Katsuki at first, rightfully so. He wasn’t sure if the kid had what it took to be a hero. The USJ incident helped a lot in that regard, but what actually cemented Aizawa’s belief in Katsuki and made Aizawa realize that Katsuki cared a lot more than he let on, was Bakugou vs Uraraka in the sports festival.

See, Uraraka’s plan during the sports festival was,,, bad.

That sounds mean, but look at this:

Her plan was to rain a ton of heavy debris down on the entire arena.

The arena that she is in.

She was dropping heavy rocks that could easily kill her over the arena she’s in and cannot leave without losing.

If anything, she put herself at a disadvantage with this move. Katsuki can easily knock rocks away, even if he wasn’t blasting all of them. She cannot. Hell, Katsuki could’ve easily knocked some of those rocks at her and ignored the rest. This honestly shouldn’t have hindered Katsuki at all. He didn’t need to blast all the rocks away. He just needed to blast the few that might him & keep fighting her.

But Katsuki doesn’t do that.

Katsuki looks up and realizes how dangerous this is. He completely ignores Uraraka’s attack to focus on blasting away the debris, because it could kill both of them. He doesn’t just knock away the rocks right over him either, even though that’s all he’d need to do to protect himself, no, Katsuki knocks everything away.

He doesn’t just knock it away though, Katsuki literally knocks the debris out of the park.

He not only knocks the debris completely away from both of them, but he also makes sure to blast it far enough away that it doesn’t hit any spectators. Because UA appears to have literally no safeguards in place.

Katsuki seriously strained himself to do this too. His hand was obviously hurt by the move, and he did it full well knowing it would push his limits, and that he still had to fight other matches. Even though he could’ve gotten away with using less force and only protecting himself, he actively chose to completely knock the debris away, protecting everyone involved. Even the people who’d been booing him for not being sexist.

Aizawa is intimately familiar with how deadly falling debris can be. Whenever there’s debris his first move is to protect the head of whoever he’s with. He’s also already shown during this fight that he was looking past the surface and seeing the thought behind Katsuki’s actions.

So I think this fight was the moment that Aizawa realized that Katsuki really had what it takes to be a hero. He saw the depth to Katsuki’s actions. He saw Katsuki prioritizing protecting people over ‘winning’, and he saw Katsuki do it without complaint or seeking glory for it, even for people who’d just been harassing him. Sure, he knew Katsuki still had a lot of work to do, but he could see that the core of a hero was in there. Even if other people liked to overlook it.

#katsuki bakugou #shouta aizawa #Ochako uraraka #dadzawa #bnha theory #mha theory #bnha manga spoilers #mha manga spoilers #manga spoilers #bnha #mha #the sports festival #uraraka vs bakugou #sif speaks #sif answers #my headcanons #random headcanons #also sidenote it's very funny to me that katsuki watches uraraka pull a reckless move #that's just as dangerous to herself as it is to him #and he's like #ah #this must be deku's influence #the-one-and-only-bird

[shoutaaizawas]

↳  ❝burn❞ dabi x fem!reader → part V

summary: touya todoroki, your childhood friend was dead or so you thought. things get more complicated than you ever thought they could. word count: 2.7k+ tags/warnings: angst, mentions of abuse  a/n: i'll be gone for a while but im hoping to have a couple parts done while im away. enjoy this until i return~ spoilers for chapter 265 of the manga. also im sorry i need to get better at writing action scenes. masterlist

part IV part V part VI

It was a night you had tried to forget but it always replayed in your mind, over and over. How could you forget that night? You would always carry the weight of it, the grief, the guilt.

It was a gut feeling. You were always in tune with Touya for better or worse. It had been a bad night, Enji had yelled and screamed at him and it was the breaking point. Touya knew he would never be enough to make his father proud. His quirk wasn’t the perfect quirk Enji wanted but Shoto did have that quirk.

Once Enji knew he had his perfect child Touya was even more neglected. Before that, he was at best a backup if Enji couldn’t have the child he wanted.

This pushed things to their limit. Touya had enough of never being enough. Sure, he hated his father more than anything but deep down there was still something in him that wanted his approval. Touya reasoned the best way to prove himself was going against his father’s biggest rival.

It was probably stupid but when you got that gut feeling that something was wrong with Touya you would go to him just to make sure. You hadn’t been wrong. You found Touya changing late at night and you knew he was up to something.

“What are you doing?” You questioned.

“Proving myself.” He said.

“By running around at night?”

“No, I’m going to find my father’s rival and show everyone that I’m strong enough. That I’m good enough-” He cut himself off taking a shaky breath.

He didn’t have to finish that sentence for you to know what he meant. How many nights had he opened up to you in his most vulnerable state? He had told you how through it all, even with how awful his father was to him he just wanted validation. He wanted his father to be proud, to be supportive, to love him. What kid didn’t want that? You knew that he just wanted to be good enough to be loved.

Touya was good enough to be loved even if Enji Todoroki would never see that.

“You are good enough, I know you want him to understand but this is dangerous.” You said. “This isn’t the right way.”

“You can’t change my mind.” He said as he walked past you.

“I’m not going to let you go alone.” You said as you followed. “What kind of friend do you think I am?”

“The best.” He said as he looked at you with that playful smirk you loved so much.

You wished more than anything that you had stayed home. Over the years all you could ever thing was what you could have said, what you could have done to stop him, anything to change what happened.

Touya had tracked him down to an abandoned building. Before you stepped in you knew this was a bad idea. Things only got worse once you found him.

The fight was bad, indoors there was only so much you could do. You could use your quirk but you had a disadvantage in a smaller area. It was bad, Touya’s quirk was getting out of control. More so than you had ever seen it before. The heat from his flames was nearly burning you.

Endeavor had caught on to his son sneaking out and followed but he had not been fast enough. The villain collapsed the building, with a rumble you knew that you had no chance of protecting yourself from the debris that came crashing down.

Your eyes opened to find Endeavor over you, guarding you against the debris. You quickly realized that if he had saved you where was Touya? Endeavor burnt the rubble away freeing the both of you. Standing up you looked around but there was no sign of Touya.

You screamed and screamed for him but there was no reply. Looking at Endeavor you saw his face fall.

“Why didn’t you save him? Why did you save me?” You screamed at him, hitting his chest.

You tried pulling up the rocks, looking for any sign of him but there was nothing. You screamed his name hoping for something, anything to tell you he was still alive.

The villain had disappeared and Touya was gone. Endeavor had been doing the same thing as you, looking for any sign of him but he realized it was useless. Sirens approached and he pulled you away from the scene and to the ambulance. You screamed punching and kicking but it was pointless against his strength.

“They’ll look for him. They can search better than us you need medical treatment.” He said putting you down on a stretcher.

“This is your fault! He did this because of you! Why couldn’t you just show him, love? Why couldn’t you tell him you were proud of him?” Tears streamed down your face as you sobbed.

Enji stared at you with a solemn face before he turned to the search and rescue team.

You were taken to the hospital to have your injuries treated. By the next morning, you were told that the only thing they found was a pile of ashes.

Touya was dead. Your best friend. The only person you had ever loved and you never had the chance to tell him.

After it all, you found it hard to care about anything. Hero work seemed so pointless. Your classmates tried to help you, cheer you up but it was an impossible task. Eventually, you were a loner, you went to school and did your work but didn’t connect with anyone around you. What was the point if you would just lose them.

Most days you would sit under the tree you and Touya always sat at and remember all the good times you had with him.

You remembered all the times he had patched you up after a rough training session. All your scrapes and bruises were worth it for the disgruntled look on his face as he kneeled in front of you with a first aid kit.

“Touya with how good you are with a first aid kit I think you might consider interning for Recovery Girl.” You would tease.

“Only for you, rain drop. Only for you.” He would always reply.

It hurt being there, under that tree thinking about him, knowing you would never see him again. Students passed and gave you a sad look.

It was odd, that night was present in your mind often but lately, it felt like you couldn’t push it away at all. You missed Touya, you always missed him. How often did you see something he would have liked and thought of him? How often did something happen and you wanted to tell him? It didn’t matter how long he had been gone, his loss was fresh as the day it had happened.

There was no connection that you could see between his death and the situation with the hero commission but it still felt personal.

You had pushed for more information but were unable to find anything. Your last resort was risky but you had a feeling it was the only way you would get a real answer.

Walking into the hero commission’s building your heartbeat in your chest. You knew it was dangerous but you were in this so deep, you couldn’t walk away without understanding what was happening.

You had scheduled an appointment with the commission to report on villain activity in your patrol territory. It was something you had done here and there and something a lot of heroes did to keep them informed.

But the real reason for your visit was different.

“Thank you for visiting us again, if you have everything written down in a file you don’t have to stay and explain it all, we will review it and deal with things as necessary.” An older man said. “Just to clarify have you found that we need more heroes or less in your area?”

You handed them the file. The man took it and set it down not even opening it.

“Things have been quiet so for the time being I think some heroes could be put to better use in other areas.” You said.

“Good to hear.” He said. “Thank you for your time.”

“Thank you for yours.” You said as you turned to leave.

This was your time, now that you were deep inside the building all you had to do was find where they kept all their files. Of course, they had a lot of different file rooms but you wanted the one that had the information they didn’t want out there.

It was unmarked but had a serious lock on the door. Obviously, they didn’t want people in there. You looked over your shoulder confirming there was no one around and no cameras before you started to pick the lock. You thanked your internship with a hero that specialized in more subtle hero work.

It wasn’t easy, especially with how shaky your hands were from nerves but finally, the lock clicked and you knew you were in.

Opening the door quietly you moved in looking around all the shelves. You had to be quick but you wanted all the right information. Most of it was unmarked. As you glanced over the information you were disturbed.

The hero commission had a program where they took in children with promising quirks and trained them into weapons. The most notable one being Hawks. Skimming through more of the information you found Hawk’s file. He was in fact was working as a double agent. What horrified you, even more, was that the commission approved the killing of Best Jeanist. Everyone thought he was missing but he was dead.

The paper slacked in your hand at the realization. You kept reading, you would have time to process this later. Looking over more files you found evidence of them killing off heroes and covering it up to keep this information from getting out.

A shiver went down your spine. You were now one of those people. If they found out you would be another casualty. You grabbed the most incriminating papers and folded them up and hid them in your pocket. You had to get out before someone knew you had been there.

Once you were out and around the corner you let out a breath you had been holding. You made it out but that didn’t mean you were safe. You had to decide what to do with this information before it was too late.

That night you couldn’t sleep, all you could think of was all the children that had been taken from their families only to be stripped of their identity and treated like soldiers. How could an organization that was supposed to stand for justice and heroism do something like this? It was wrong and that was just the tip of the iceberg of their misdeeds.

You were just one person, what could you do?

Enji Todoroki. Your interaction with him stuck in your head. He claimed to be a changed man, or at least a man trying to change. If you approached him with this information he might want to help, even if he didn’t want to you could guilt him into it.

The thought of working with him made you sick.

Hawks was a more dangerous option. He was a victim of their system, there was a chance he would want to get out. There was also a chance he would be the one trying to kill you if the commission found out you knew.

Perhaps it was your pride but you chose the more dangerous option, tomorrow you would talk to Hawks and see how it went.

As you left your house you had a bad feeling. Someone was following you. You tried not to look like you knew as you walked along the street. There were people around so you were most likely safe for now.

You had been wrong. A weight collided with you and you were thrown into the street. You were disoriented but you tried to gather your senses quickly.

The man that stood over you was familiar, he was a villain. You hadn’t fought him before but you knew his face. He had a teleporting quirk. As you stood up her appeared behind you a knife in hand. You swung your elbow back, hitting him in his ribs. He was quick, as your arm went back he took advantage leaving a gash across your arm before you hit him. He let out a sound of pain but recovered quickly grabbing your arm and flipping you onto the ground.

Your lungs burned as the wind was knocked out of you. He leaned down to grab you by the collar of your shirt but you kicked him in the stomach knocking him back. Standing up quickly you used your quirk to push him back with a gust of wind before you summoned a lightning bolt down on him. He let out a grunt of pain.

Even while he was still in pain he teleported behind you so quickly you couldn’t react. He kicked you to the ground, hard. You landed on your face, unable to brace for the fall. Your head was spinning from the impact. He placed his foot on your back holding you down, not that you could move with how disoriented you were.

“The hero commission sends their regards.” He said leaning down close to your ear. You had expected another hero to come after you or even an underground vigilante but a villain?

You let out a scream of pain as he dug the knife into your side. Great, he wasn’t going to go for the killing blow he was going to torture you first.

You waited for another stab but you were shocked when a burst of flames blew over you, knocking the villain away. When you rolled over you expected to see Endeavor, which would have been odd considering he wasn’t over here very often.

When you saw Dabi you were confused.

He walked past you towards the villain saying something you couldn’t quite make out before he let out another burst of flames turning the man into a pile of ashes. You flinched at the heat from his quirk. He turned to you looking at you with an odd expression.

Why was he here?

He didn’t say a word as he picked you up in his arms and walked in the direction of your house. Did he know where you lived?

“Where are you taking me?” You asked.

“Your house.” He said as if you should have known.

“How do you know where I live?” You asked.

“A hero is stalking me and you didn’t expect me to do some stalking of my own?” He said in a teasing voice.

“Oh.” You said. That made sense you supposed. You were in over your head, you should have realized that when a villain was trying to kill you for the hero commission but being carried home by a villain was somehow more confusing. “Why aren’t you trying to kill me?”

“One attempt on your life in a day isn’t enough for you?” He joked.

“Are you the one who took me home after that night in the alley?” You asked.

“None of your business.” He said.

It seemed you weren’t going to get a straight answer from him. You supposed that made sense. You got home and he opened the door and took you inside setting you down on the couch.

“Where’s your first aid kit?” He asked.

“Under the sink.” You said. “Wow, so you not only saved me but you're going to patch me up. I’m starting to think villains aren’t as bad as they’re made out to be.”

Dabi returned kneeling in front of you looking at you with those familiar blue eyes.

“Only for you, raindrop. Only for you.” He said.

The realization hit you and it felt like you couldn’t breathe.

“T-Touya?” You could barely the name out. He looked at you with shock, it seemed he didn’t mean to say that out loud.

a/n: i swear i didn’t mean to leave it on a cliffhanger but it was getting really long and i didn’t have much time to finish it all

taglist:  @flowersgirl02 @wesparklebitch @moon-write @strangely-charmed @ibookishqueen @tomomoni @why-so-red @grungy-pansexual @sugarandsoft @pansexual-potterhead @ha-tep @milegonzalez96 @prettyinblack231 @jadepersonaldriscal @nanamichan @multi-madison @e-wwis @itlivesintheanime

#dabi x reader #touya todoroki x reader #dabi #bnha x reader #touya x reader #bnha #mha #mha x reader #touya todoroki #my writing #burn

[cinanamon]

nct dream’s hogwarts house analysis

I decided to make this because I’ve had opinions on their houses for years and there are some specific moments that I’ve had in mind for my reasoning, so I thought this would be a great opportunity to spill my two cents with links when necessary! In this essay I will discuss from my point of view what things they’ve done/parts of their personalities that place them in their specific hogwarts house. this is based off of my observations and opinions, but feel free to hit up my ask box to talk about it!

word count | 2.5K

MARK — GRYFFINDOR

this shouldn’t really surprise anyone, should it? Mark has been in the spotlight of nct for a long time: nct 127, nct u, nct dream, super m—he’s an ace.

And though sometimes he may act shy or serious, overall he’s very confident, esp. in himself. That self-assurance is what places him in Gryffindor. Yes, he’s also hardworking and ambitious and smart, but when you look at him, you can’t help but be charmed by his confidence in his own skin; even if he’s awkward or nervous, it’s what shines through the most.

On stage when he’s performing, he’s very focused and honestly just feeling himself; his fortitude is admirable for the simple fact that he doesn’t seem bothered to have all eyes on him, but this self-confidence is intrinsic, for the most part. Remember that one time backstage he said “don’t be nervous” to the camera? He’s incredibly self-reliant and doesn’t need a lot of outside assurance. (x) (x)

He’s also a very chivalrous kind of guy who looks out for his members and is very open and friendly, like a Gryffindor. They’re the kind of people to stick up for others, which I personally believe mark wouldn’t hesitate to do. (He’s also a Christian which I want to suggest that, since he’s strong in his faith, he probably also tries to follow the word of the Bible on being a good person. Just a thought). (x)

Other than that, he’s also just a very outgoing person and I think his overall demeanor fits Gryffindor rather well. He’d probably laugh loudly in the dining hall with his friends, help the first years around (mostly likely a Perfect), and he’d stick up for the quieter kids, no matter their house. He gives me Harry Potter + Oliver Wood vibes.

RENJUN — RAVENCLAW

this was kind of close not going to lie; he was almost Slytherin. But even though he can be rather snarky with good comebacks, a Ravenclaw can do the same. After all, Ravenclaws are known for their wit and Renjun has many many funny comments and witty banter. (x)

ultimately I put Renjun in Ravenclaw because he is very very wise. He’s had that “pure boy” imagine clouding him but underneath, he is young, yes, but he has a lot of knowledge. He gives good advice, is very talented on many things (possibly due to research), and actually makes for a good mentor sometimes.

I want to talk about the wisdom thing very quickly though. There’s one reply to a fan he did where he made amazing comparisons and addressed the issue very thoughtfully; when someone is willing to take the time to think about an issue very seriously to give the best advice possible, I can only imagine him as a Ravenclaw. (x)

He is also very independent and self-assured like Mark, but there is a difference: I believe Mark’s stems from natural confidence while Renjun’s stems from introspection. Do you remember when asked which idol he wanted to be, and he said he wanted to be himself with his own path? That was, again, a very thoughtful response, and a very wise and intelligent thing to say which rounds out my upper two points. I think everyone really admired him for saying that after. (x 4th pic)

Renjun is also a very creative and artsy/crafty person (likes to paint) which places him in Ravenclaw as well. I can see Renjun sketching away during class, doing well when debating with students (who may have just wanted to mock him), and being professors’ favorite because of his wit/wisdom and good grades. (x)

JENO — HUFFLEPUFF

Again this shouldn’t be a surprise. I think Jeno fits everything Hufflepuffs stand for: honestly, kindness, fairness, loyalty, patience, and hard work. He is legit an angel.

To start it off, Jeno is very patient. Though he teases the other members sometimes, he take a good brunt of their jokes. He took being called “no fun/nojam” in stride and went along with it, and even with his asmr videos, plenty of the members would be very loud to mess with him. You could tell by his face he wasn’t too pleased, but he smiled through it and didn’t get very mad at them. (x) (x)

Jeno is also a very welcoming, open, and kind individual. He cares for his friends a lot and tries very hard to make sure they’re comfortable, even if it ends up putting himself at a disadvantage. Esp with his “angelic” persona, he just makes a very good, loyal friend.

Jeno is very hard working and talented as well. He does other dance videos, an asmr channel/videos, and acts as a host for shows. Even though these may be solo activities/work, he has consistently been cheery and patient and attentive for each and all. (x) (x) (x)

Last of all, have you seen this man smile? He can warm the darkest of days? He instantly brightens a room and I’m sure at hogwarts he would be a school favorite, kind to everyone, help out in the library or cleaning classrooms, and having the strongest plants in herbology class because of how much care he gave them. Jeno belongs in Hufflepuff.

DONGHYUCK — SLYTHERIN

This also shouldn’t be nothing new lol! I think Hyuck is a great example of a Slytherin tbh, in a more...immature way? Like not demeaning towards others, but his way of acting and treating others has a flair of drama, if that makes sense? Not necessarily in a bad way, but he is considered more “high maintenance” because he himself said he can be clingy/annoying to the other members. (x)

Haechan is “full-sun” because he’s funny, loud, bright, playful, and as I said he’s more dramatic/extra and makes a show of pouting and being (mock)petty. I think the way he treats his friends is peak Slytherin behavior because if you remember how he mocked mark on dream vs dream saying mark didn’t care about him/he didn’t care about mark? That kind of “self-centered” humor seems very Slytherin. (x) (x)

Esp in terms of purebloods, Slytherins are very sure of themselves and Hyuck is no exception to being cocky. He thinks he’s hot shit sometimes, whether he thinks he’s looking hot or dancing well and he doesn’t disguise his expressions. Even during dance practices, he makes sure to smirk at the camera and his movements/expressions practically scream that he’s feeling himself. And, quite honestly, it’s part of his charm, and it makes him hard to resist. (x) (x)

Hyuck is very clever, and even when he loses he doesn’t seem to think he did, or he doesn’t count it as a loss. As a Slytherin, his self-confidence is very high like a Gryffindor, but it’s more proud and sly. Hyuck isn’t afraid to cheat/bend the rules (which Slytherins are known to do) and, since Slytherins are self-preserving, he’s very cunning and careful in how he acts/play his cards to get what he wants, such as pretending to cry as he went to Johnny on weekly idol. (x)

Even with these attributes, Haechan is still a good, caring, loyal individual and he isn’t a stranger to doubt or sensitivity, that’s not what I’m saying through this. His “Slytherin” traits aren’t all he is/defining, but they are strong enough to classify him. At hogwarts, I can imagine Hyuck sneaking through the secret passageways after curfew to snack on the every-flavor-jellybeans, he’d play light pranks on the other dreamies, and he’d be a jokingly arrogant quidditch player.

JAEMIN — SLYTHERIN

I feel like this is potentially controversial because I personally can see Jaemin in every house because he has a shifting persona and vibe depending on the circumstances, and no one part of him sticks too much.

Firstly I’d like to say that I don’t think Jaemin is an extrovert, so I wouldn’t say Gryffindor or Hufflepuff as my first choice since one of their main points is to help others/socialize/be outgoing. Not to say he couldn’t be in these houses, but he would definitely need to recharge. My point being is that Jaemin is a very cute, funny, caring individual and is sometimes very loud/energetic—we’ve seen how he interacts with the members. But he’s said himself he needs to recharge, he tends to stick in his room a lot/get serious at the dorms, and I think it’s because he exerts so much energy to uphold a persona for the camera, and I’ve always thought this. You can tell in vlives or interviews too that he gets quiet and contemplative, which has me think Slytherin (or Ravenclaw) for his maturity and seriousness when allowed to be himself. Not to say that Jaemin isn’t happy or naturally funny/caring, but I think he exaggerates a lot for the fans and he burns out quickly. (x)

We know that Jaemin thinks about quitting school to be an idol a lot, and by choosing sm he was ambitious in his pursuit of singing. Yes, every nct dream member had to give it up, but from how much he talks about it, I think it still bothers him. But by pushing through to be an idol, we can see his goal-oriented choices and dedication poke through, making him a Slytherin, even though it cost him potential friendships and a normal life. This also adds into the Slytherin self-preservation because he weighed his options to determine the best outcome for himself (also goes with hesitation=introversion). (x)

We know Jaemin is caring and can become very energetic/cute (for the camera) such as performing aegyo or teasing the members, but I feel like he’s very resourceful and sneaky about the way he does it? He seems to know exactly what will embarrass the members and uses it to his advantage, without any sense of doubt or bashfulness. He is also similar to Hyuck, in that regard, about being clingy/cute/annoying to the other members (when he is feeling energetic) and he also can be jokingly petty/complaining to the members and I think he takes pride/joy from embarrassing/annoying the members too, which is more of a Slytherin-friendship thing than any other house imo. (x)

I think if Jaemin went to Hogwarts, he’d be quite popular and well-liked but I always imagined him as not having many close friends and sometimes even being in the background even though he’s so well-known. I think he’d like and need a lot of alone time in the library/astronomy tower/owl sanctuary, but he’d have a lot of situational/class friends. Like Chenle too, I think he would also aid in changing the stereotype that Slytherins are all mean. I actually always wanted to write a long fic for him because he kind of gives me Draco vibes, but we’ll have to see. (And I can elaborate more on the Draco/Jaemin thing if you’d like to send an ask!)

CHENLE — SLYTHERIN

I already know some people are going to fight me on this, but hear me out!! Yes, Chenle is a very kind, bright, helpful person, but that doesn’t strictly place him in Hufflepuff: those personality traits aren’t necessarily only one house. So Chenle can be a bright and bubbly person in Slytherin just as well.

So first of all, Chenle is highly ambitious. He likes to win, he likes to progress, he likes to do well, and he’s not afraid to cheat or bend the rules to get his way (which is very un-Hufflepuff who believe in fairness even though his hard work/determination is (because it’s misplaced)). In one interview, all of the members ratted Chenle out for not accepting defeat by refusing to agree when he lost/said it wasn’t fair. And in dream v. dream with Jaemin, he made the game unfair because he asked a question he didn’t even know the answer to (not maliciously, I’m sure, but still unfair). (x) (x)

If you also remember the game nct played where if you smiled you lost, Chenle was very happy to be winning and was cunning like a Slytherin to get there. Though it was cute and fun, it didn’t change the fact that Chenle wanted to “advance” and was focused on the prize much like a Slytherin would. (x)

On top of that, we have to remember that Chenle has been in the entertainer game the longest. From a very young age, he’s sung and played instruments and been the object of media’s attention. This gives me “pureblood” vibes because he’s almost an old-money who is used to the amount of attention. Also please just assess his vibes when he’s not smiling. (x) (x)

Again, I would just like to reiterate that Chenle is a very bright and kind and funny person so it makes sense based on those traits to put him in Hufflepuff, but it’s his goal-oriented actions that place him in Slytherin, and his house shouldn’t impact his personality. I think it’d be cool to see a bright Slytherin walking down the hall and greeting other houses with a smile, playing games with the Gryffindors, studying on the hill with Hufflepuffs, and overall destroying the stereotype that Slytherins are all evil.

JISUNG — GRYFFINDOR

I was also considering Hufflepuff because Jisung is so sweet and hardworking, but I ultimately chose Gryffindor because he had a lot of potential to be an ace like Mark. He has a natural kind of charisma, though it takes him longer to warm up.

is not super loud or confident, but neither was Neville, was he? Jisung can still be “awkward” but so can anyone, and it seems to only be with strangers. He has a sense of humor and charm to him, and he had a willingness to be outgoing once he’s comfortable. (x)

I’d like to point off his stage presence and confidence when performing real quick. When Jisung is dancing, he gets in the zone and when he focuses, nothing can stop him. That kind of self-assurance and determination places him in Gryffindor. Even when he did the “Lemon” dance, it took bravery to create the video and post it. He just seems to be a little shyer with recognition. (x) (x)

There’s also something about dorky behavior that seems so Gryffindor? Jisung constantly does different hand motions, gen z vibes, cute smiles—it seems so make him charming and it really makes someone stick out and seem true to themselves (which takes confidence). (x)

So overall I can see Jisung as a Gryffindor or Hufflepuff but I settled on the former because of his vibes and potential! He’d be the type to play with the mythical creatures after class, to hide out in the back of the library (to study and snack), and for older classmates to be unable to resist messing up his hair (bc he’s so genuine and wholesome). I really think he’d grow a lot while in Gryffindor.

#neowritingsnet #nctwriters #cznnet #dreamwritersnet #nct #nct fanfiction #nct dream #nct dream fanfiction #mark #donghyuck #haechan #jeno #renjun #jaemin #chenle #jisung #00 line #nct fanfic #nct dream fanfic #nct dream scenarios #nct scenarios #nct imagine #nct dream imagine #00 line fanfiction #00 line fanfic #00 line scenarios #00 line imagine #cinanamon #nct dream hogwarts house analysis

[eleanor-devil]

Boruto: Sacrifices [Remade] | Chap.7 - Outsider

Written by: Eleanor-Devil & @mirage-05​​

Prologue | Chap.1 | Chap.2 | Chap.3 | Chap.4 | Chap.5 | Chap.6 | Chap.7 - You’re here

Hiding behind a tree, Mitsuki was reaching out with his senses to check out the ninjas as he quickly controlled his weapons. Not that he needed to, not really… Any of his classmates’ would pale in comparison to how huge an arsenal he had, but it was always better to do a second check. All was good. His weapons were still enough to take down a troop. And the blue haired boy was calm, collected… he had mastered his ninjutsu well enough to hold his own against even jounins. He had proven so before. Whatever his father had pounded into his system, it was working in perfect order. He felt them coming to a halt before the footsteps stopped. “Now would be a good time to start.” a blond man said, seemingly the leader. “Alright, all of you know what to do,” he began. “Hideyoshi will go up front, giving us our targets and warning us, should anyone of a particularly high level of chakra cross our path. I and Takeru are the main offensive, we follow suit. Hiraku… stay as far away from the battleground as possible, remember our formation, wait for my signal. Scatter, we don’t follow the linear formation, just watch out for the signals we talked about. Any questions?” “Just one thing…” the mahogany-haired man replied in a gruff voice, his eyes gazing upwards at the tree branches. “We are not alone.”

Mitsuki felt his body tense hearing it, damn, they had a sensor with them… this would give some disadvantage in his surprise plan. He reached inside his kimono and pulled out a kunai, he was more than ready to throw it, but he glanced down and saw which kunai it was. It was one of those Konohamaru had gifted his team after their first C-ranked mission. It looked like an ordinary kunai on the outside, a simple weapon that just had a ribbon with the student’s respective color, blue in his case, attached to it. But this wasn’t just an ordinary one, no… their sensei had said this kunai had been designed to have one jutsu inserted inside it; somehow like the kote Boruto used in the exams. Mitsuki gripped it hard, he would wait for the perfect moment to use it. “I will make you proud, sensei…” Everyone in the squad had tensed suddenly. “Where?” the leader asked, unconsciously leaning a little forward in an attack stance. “How strong?” The sensor furrowed his brows, concern apparent on his features as his fingers trailed over the surface of a weapon attached to a strap on his back. “Pretty damn strong… and I’m only talking about one person. I’d say… kage level, even.” The tension was now so apparent that it was almost tangible. “Damn it…” the leader hissed between gritted teeth, they didn’t expect to encounter someone this powerful right out of the top… A scout? It could’ve made sense with how strong this person supposedly was, but wouldn’t he run away to inform the village by now…? “What do we do?” the platinum blond haired man that was standing close to him asked. Their leader, Goro, was silent for a moment… but then a wicked grin formed on his face… well… shouldn’t this be fun? They could test out their abilities on someone who was possibly kage-level, close to the man they wanted to kill… “Shall we go greet them?” “Playing cat and mouse again?” “Well, no one knows me better than you do, Hiraku,” the man said, smirking. A minute passed in silence as only the sounds of nature were heard around them. “Huh.” the brunette in the group finally said. “It would seem that someone needs an incentive. Tell me, Goro, what was that ninjutsu of yours capable of doing in direct contact?” Catching up to what he was trying to do, the blond was quick to come up with his own. “That was this technique improvised. In direct contact with the neck area… well, let’s just say that the head pops out quicker than a can ring. It’s much like the previous Raikage’s lariat. That’s what I’m gonna use on the hokage.” There was a rustle above, and then silence again. “That’s right… show yourself…” Goro muttered, his smirk growing. Seconds ticked away, with no new move from either side. “Why don’t you go in hiding, sweet cheeks?” Goro told the woman. “That bastard not seeing you might work to our advantage.” The woman glared at him for the briefest of seconds, but did as she was told. “Well,” the man continued nonchalantly, raising his voice. “I suppose, whoever you are, you just don’t care enough to come out and face us. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we have a village to ransack and some kage to kill.” They heard another rustle and Hideyoshi threw his first arrow in that direction… only to be met with an explosion of snakes. And fast as the speed of lightning, snakes stroke from above, one of the bigger ones going for Goro’s head. The brunette, Takeru, took out a barrage of kunais and with the help of his wind technique, took down the snakes in one swipe. They disappeared in a cloud of smoke. “Leave this to me,” he said with a smirk, reaching for his belt to take another blade, this one looked longer and sharper than the others. “I will take care of our visuals first and then force him to come out.” “He’s moving fast,” the mahogany haired man all but grumbled and another arrow rang out before Hideyoshi quickly changed his position. Goro touched the two identical hilts that were strapped to his back… the deadly blades that could be activated by chakra… but no, there was still time for it. Now was the time to tire the stronger opponent out. “Scatter and find him, no matter how.” the wicked grin was still there as his hand left the blades, assuring them mentally that they would soon have a taste of delicious chakra. “Now we begin our first hunt.” … Mitsuki moved from branch to branch, tree to tree, extremely fast; he had always been the fastest in his class, practically no one could beat him in his quick moves. No one other than Boruto; after their field trip to Kirigakure the Uzumaki had clearly improved his speed, living to the expectations of being the grandson of the Yellow Flash. The boy’s senses, however, were on high alert, there was one of those attackers who was fast too. As Mitsuki was making up a plan to lead them to the border, Takeru jumped ahead of him on a branch, forcing him to suddenly halt right there on his spot. “Knock knock,” the man said with a smirk. Mitsuki didn’t think. His mind had already succumbed into combat mode the moment he saw the man, exactly like how he was taught. Quickly completing the hand seals, he spread his hands in a crescent motion. “Fuuton: Kamaitachi.” Takeru’s confusion upon seeing who they were chasing, the person who had kage-level chakra resources was… just a kid… faded away and left in its place seething fury upon noticing the kid’s attack. What the hell?! A kid?! A fucking child without even a fucking headband?! Was this a goddamn joke?! Growling, he himself made quick hand seals and created a strong gust of wind to counter the wind scythe. Blue eyes met golden ones as they both stood their ground, the air blasting around them. Two could play that game if that was what this brat wanted. Not waiting for the wind to completely die down, the jounin threw one of his special kunais with precision, aiming directly at the boy’s heart, in an attempt to test his opponent. Mitsuki’s eyes were already on the weapon, he had been trained on similar attacks, there was no way he was going to let a kunai end him like that. Before the kunai could even hit the point the boy was, he moved out of the way as fast as lightning and when Takeru looked up, the blue haired boy was jumping on him with a snake morphing in the place of his arm. ‘Just what the hell is he?!’ Takeru thought. “Sen’ci Jashu,” the boy muttered as the snakes jumped towards the brunet. As he moved right above the man, Mitsuki took the chance to analyze the enemy. The man had cleverly hidden it beneath his clothing but he still had a split second to see the glint of a headband. The technique he saw the boy use almost made Takeru freeze - but he was quick to snap out of it and used the air currents to push himself away. One of the snakes’ fangs had grazed his hand, though, and it hurt. He balanced himself on a tree trunk on his feet and quickly flipped the bottom of a kunai open, reaching for the ointment inside. In a minute, the stinging from the bite had faded. He looked up in time to see Goro using one of his fire techniques on the boy, forcing the brat to redirect his attention. Snakes…? From the old legends he used to listen, that kind of technique brought an old fear to his mind… Mitsuki, on the other hand, quickly made new hand signs, now it was two against one in close combat… he had to be even faster than them both in thought and moves. An idea crossed his mind as his chest filled with large amounts of air and he let it all out. “Fuuton: Toppa!” As he did that, he jumped above Goro and used the wind against the fire the man was spitting from his mouth. The speed of the wind was so much that it made the fire change route against its will, moving towards Takeru and the trees closest to him. “Goro, watch it dammit!!” the brunet cursed as he attempted to move away from the now burning trees. It was a good thing he was functioning well under hard circumstances - otherwise there would be no way this inferno wouldn’t be seen by the village. That brat was either too clever or too damn lucky. The leader himself swore loudly as he quickly created two shadow clones. This person was good… damn good. He didn’t want to use the swords so soon. If they got out of control… Takeru landed next to him, searching the tops of the trees. Before he could even open his mouth, Goro stepped in. “Do whatever it takes to finish that guy.” “Boy.” the brunet replied curtly, and his tone was full of hatred and disgust. “Boy?” Goro’s eyebrows flew in surprise. Now, that was unexpected… to put it mildly. “Brat shouldn’t even be older than thirteen. Came to play ninja…” “That brat who came to play ninja just almost roasted you.” the blond’s tone was unimpressed. “No thanks to you!” Takeru almost spat out, rounding on him. “Why don’t you stop playing with fire and bring out the big guns?” “All in good time. Tire him out first, and then my babies can do their job. In any case, we can’t let him escape now that he has the chance to spoil our surprise. We have to finish him here before moving on to the village.” He felt the clones’ defeat as their memories rushed back to him, and he nudged his comrade, pointing at a direction to the far left of them. “There, get moving!” As he said it, they heard the twang of another arrow. Hideyoshi wasn’t being hot-headed like his two comrades, he had always been calm and collected in the battlefield, it was something he had learned due to years of experience. Being hot-headed and blood-lusted would only bring dismay on his side sooner or later. He focused on the person’s chakra. There! He threw an arrow but it only hit a tree, his amber eyes saw the quick shadow move to another place. Hideyoshi needed another plan or soon he wouldn’t have any arrows left and his only chance would be to go collecting them one by one. He focused again but the person was nowhere to be seen… had they escaped? No… whoever this person with immense chakra was, wouldn’t abandon a battlefield just like that. However, before he could even realize, a pair of long, elastic arms wrapped around him, breaking the ground right below him. How had he not seen that?! Before he knew it he was pulled right down into the earth, and something snapped… his bow, most likely, due to the sudden shifting. Sharp pieces stabbed into his arms and legs, effectively immobilizing him. Hideyoshi almost grunted out in pain… but that was when he finally saw the figure in front of his eyes. Panic shot up inside him and he quickly yelled out, “Wait!” His heart skipped a beat and he felt his breath hitching as he saw the enemy was... only a child… probably even younger than his own son? True, his chakra flared up like a supernova but the mahogany haired man knew it wouldn’t matter… not with the kind of power Goro had… if anything, this kid was walking right into a trap! “Kid, don’t do this!” he yelled desperately. “They are going to kill you!” Now it was Mitsuki’s turn to get baffled. This man cared? Why would he care about his own enemy? His father had always taught him that he shouldn’t show mercy for his enemy, for they wouldn’t show mercy for him either, but yet here it was, he was crying out for him not to continue. “The reinforcements are coming.” he stated simply, it was a fact, he had calculated the time in his mind. He had sent the message about five minutes ago, they weren’t that far away from the border. By this time, the message should’ve reached Lord Seventh. “No, you don’t understand, there is-!” but before he could even finish, Mitsuki had already turned his back on him and flew right away from his sight. “Kid no!!” He attempted to get out of the hole but the pieces of his broken bow stuck in his flesh were making this task impossible. “Seriously? You got caught by a kid?” he heard the mockery yet annoyance in Takeru’s voice as the man stepped out of the shadows. “Damnit, stop this!” Hideyoshi pretty much hissed between gritted teeth, looking up at the younger man with fury in his eyes. “You know what Goro is capable of, that is just a kid!” Takeru’s expression didn’t change. “So what? That runt is not gonna get it easy.” He twirled his kunai in his hand. “Maybe I will manage to get a piece out of it myself. Now hurry up and get your ass out there!” With that, he was gone too. Hideyoshi tried once again desperately to move, to do something… to no avail. … Mitsuki decided it was time to use the kunai his sensei had given to him. He had implemented his lightning jutsu inside the kunai and had just finished making about two more snake clones; this was going to take lots of chakra from him but hopefully it would take down who seemed to be the leader of this group; and if he had any luck, that fast man too. The clones were in position, surrounding the space Goro was spreading his own lightning attack. Mitsuki quickly made the hand signs. Clap hands - monkey. The clones copied him. “Raiton: Hebi Mikazuchi!” he muttered, low. And suddenly the circle he, his clones and the kunai he had placed on the top of a tree all activated the snake shaped lightning, moving fast towards Goro. Lightning, huh…? And a pretty unique technique too… well, maybe it was time to put all his best in it too… Reaching for the hilts strapped to his back, Goro put chakra in them and felt the blades flare up, bright blue and white. He looked up at the lightning snake, ready to meet it head on… it wasn’t like there was any other choice. “Raiton: Raiha!” he cried out before swinging the sword in one huge swipe, hitting the snake from its head. The blades hummed loudly with the chakra they pulled out of the jutsu… Goro could feel their excitement… it made him excited as well… “Let the real party begin!” Both lightning jutsus clashed, creating a large explosion in the area. Mitsuki had gone in hiding, already having predicted that such a clash would cause something like this. Sweat dropped from his forehead as he tried to keep his breathing stable. Just as he thought, the lightning snake took a lot from him. The explosion slowly died down. The boy peeked slightly from his hiding spot and scanned the area, black and grey were now the colors of a big part of Konoha’s forest. He thought about the time again, probably five more minutes had gone by, meaning a total of ten, and the reinforcements were still nowhere in sight. Just where were they? Surely they discovered his location, it couldn’t be hard especially after this explosion. Mitsuki didn’t see any sign of Goro either, but his instinct told him not to let his guard down, again, like his father taught him… without a corpse, there is no assurance of the enemy’s death. His amber eyes then noticed something stuck in the ground of the burnt area; a blade. The boy took a moment to assess the situation, his breathing bated. Did that mean… that his enemy was… dead? True, the lightning snake was powerful but to actually blow up a man who also had lightning based attacks…? In any case… a sword would help him greatly. He was pretty good at kenjutsu, and now while he was weak in chakra, he needed anything he could get his hands on… the leader wasn’t the only person he was fighting after all. Reluctantly making his mind, Mitsuki jumped swiftly and silently on the ground. Immediately, a barrage of kunais stuck on the ground on which he landed. The boy had no other choice but to duck, grab the sword and roll out of the way. “Come out come out, wherever you are…” he heard Takeru’s voice not too far from the bushes behind which he hid, he had quickly memorized their voices and scents. “Fucking snake brat… Takeru the cat is gonna catch you and fucking eat you alive, I swear it!!” It was clear in his voice, how annoyed the man was. Good, maybe he could drive him crazy a little bit more. His speed did not require more use of chakra, but using his stamina would slow down the recovery of chakra. Mitsuki was starting to take his first steps to run around the brunet when he was met with a blade coming from one of his sides. He barely had time to react to it and counter it with his own blade. He met the soulless smirk of the leader. This man… maybe he himself wasn’t one to talk, being only a synthetic human, nothing more than a replica in this world with some purpose… but Mitsuki had encountered many opponents, many enemies before, enemies even more powerful in their own right… yet he had never seen before anyone that looked less human… and more of a beast. “What is the matter kid?” the man said, his smirk growing more. “Feeling tired yet?” Lightning sparkled along his blade… the blade that looked so similar to the one he was wielding now, the blue haired boy noticed. “Or,” came Takeru’s voice before he could proceed more on that thought, and Mitsuki tried his best to avoid the next kunai attack… but he couldn’t act as fast. He felt the blades cutting his skin… “He’s just feeling down because he’s all alone, with no one to help…” Takeru came out of the woods, his smirk matching that of Goro’s. He stood there for a minute and looked around, as if listening to the sounds. “All this fighting and… still no reaction from the village you are hell-bent on protecting.” He jerked his head to the direction of the village as he looked at Mitsuki, as if to emphasize his words. And indeed, he was trying not to dwell on that too much so as not to distract from the battle, but it was peculiar that no one, not even a single jounin arrived yet. Konoha wouldn’t disregard a threat this close, especially after the latest attack, no matter who was fighting out there now... “Aww, look at his face, Goro,” the brunet smirked and closed the circle around the boy a little closer. “He only realized now how alone he is.” Mitsuki tried not to show how affected he was by this discovery… he focused on making up a plan to escape these two. Maybe it was time he started running back to the village and raised the alarm himself. He felt a slight burn on his superficial cuts. What he did next didn’t go unnoticed by the other two shinobi. The boy was healing the cuts and soon his skin was clean, no cut, just the few marks of blood that the cuts had provoked… but the wounds were gone. “So… the little snake can heal, huh? I bet that takes a lot of chakra from you.” That was right, although of course he wouldn’t tell them that. He kept sweating more and his breath was hitching more by the minute, this… fight was somehow taking more than it should from him… He really needed to end this sooner… Goro and Takeru took a step towards him, and Mitsuki had to do the one thing that immediately came to mind to buy himself some time. They were a temporary relief, but smoke bombs did work quite well for distraction. As his enemies’ vision was momentarily clouded by the black smoke, he extended his arm to grab the lower branch of a tree and pulled himself up. “That brat… I swear when I’m finished with him…” Takeru growled. “He’s coming close to his limit.” Rather than annoyed, Goro was enjoying every minute of it… he was in his element. “Keep attacking him psychologically. The rest will be dealt with Raiha.” His fingers caressed the half of his sword almost lovingly. Mitsuki landed safely trees away, with the sensor down it should take a while for them to find him again; thankfully he was good at hiding and escaping. He tried to keep his breathing steady… what was wrong with him? Sure he had used a good amount of chakra with the snake lightning but not enough to make him this weak, he felt his vision failing at times, like he was almost at his limit in the chakra reserves. Something wasn’t right, something definitely wasn’t right… last time he had felt like this was when he fought that Shizuma guy in Kirigakure… that glutton sword Samehada, together with the red mist sure had been a pain, sucking his chakra so easily like nothing… Wait… that was it…! That had to be it! His chakra was being sucked! That was the only explanation! His mind quickly went to thinking mode, he needed to figure out what was sucking it before they found him! And still this… silence, this inactivity from the village was beginning to unnerve him, as much as he didn’t want to admit it. Even if, by some inexplicable reason, no one could hear these sounds, even when they weren’t exactly being quiet… haven’t anyone seen the explosion? What was keeping Konoha ninja from rushing to this battle already? ‘Or maybe they just don’t care…’ The voice that returned in his head was so sudden that the boy involuntarily flinched. The same resentful, hateful voice that almost made him turn a blind eye when he first saw the rogue ninjas… But he couldn’t, he couldn’t leave his friends to the mercy of these beasts. ‘Oh? And where are those supposed friends now…?’ the voice asked with malicious delight. Mitsuki shook his head as if to get rid of the voice. He shouldn’t concentrate on this now… this was just a distraction. Distraction that could easily cause him to fail. Suddenly the earth shook and it almost made him fall from the tree. Dammit he had been found and caught with his guard down! ‘Focus, Mitsuki!’ his mind screamed as he jumped to the nearest trees. “Where are you going snake boy?! Want to play cat and mouse again??” he could hear Takeru’s teasing voice, where was the other one…? “You know no one is coming, don’t you?” he heard the laughter. “No one cares, no one knows you’re here! You’re just a nuisance, why would anyone come? Why would someone come for an outsider? You don’t even have a headband, you’re not a ninja y’know!” That made Mitsuki’s heart clench. No… he couldn’t let these words get to him…! ‘He is right, you know,’ the voice said, painfully in sync with the man. ‘You should’ve bailed when you had the chance. Now you’re all alone…’ “You are nobody,” the brunet continued. “No one moves a finger for a nobody. You’re not gonna make it out of here! You’re gonna die like the vermin you are, all alone!” ‘Why do you fight…?’ the voice whispered. As the man moved forward, the boy yelled in rage and jumped, again using his jutsu to extend his arm. Luck was with him this time, his arm wrapped around the man’s throat and tightened. Takeru came to a very sudden stop and gasped, and then tried to get Mitsuki’s arm loose, growing desperate when it didn’t work. The boy tightened his arm, but found himself lacking his usual strength to finalize the move… he needed it to keep his stand against the leader… The man’s color was slowly changing from purple to blue. His pupils dilated and he gurgled once more, his attempts growing feeble. Mitsuki had to let go, catching his breath. “Y-you…” Takeru coughed, gasping for air. “Y-you are a-an i-id-idiot… you s-should’ve… killed me…” his lips started to curl up in a smirk. “You’re… a goner n-now…” He didn’t have time to react, not even the time to sense the chakra of the person showing up behind him and just as Mitsuki turned around, he felt a sharp blade pierce his pale skin harshly, cutting it from one side to another; coloring his white and blue kimono in different shades of red. His body was paralyzed in shock, he felt the blood coming from his throat and out of his mouth, his amber eyes moved up to see his attacker… it wasn’t Goro… he was… very similar to the leader but it wasn’t him… how… had he not noticed there was another in the group…? Hiraku began shaking when he realized that he had just attacked a child, his breathing quickened, an icy smoke of breath left his mouth and he tried to gently pull out the sword… it only worsened when he saw the amount of blood spilling from the wound. The blond lost all ability to stand at the sight… his knees gave way and he fell on them, trembling all over. Tired and weakened as he was, Mitsuki still saw Goro’s murderous gaze a second before the charging man raised his sword high. His mind in automatic drive, he did the move that saved his life back in Kirigakure. “Fuuton: Toppa...!” He didn’t feel the blade… he only felt his heart clenching and the pain, the pain like someone just lit it on fire… He had no strength to keep standing… nor the will… with a silent sigh, he fell forward. “Goddamn brat… Gave us one hell of a fight…” The leader’s voice was full of hatred, disgust… He spat on the boy on the ground before turning to Hiraku. “Get a hold of yourself, you spineless coward.” Mitsuki could barely stay awake, his body was too weak… how had he come to this…? He was supposed to be the perfect fighting machine, he shouldn’t have lost… his father had made him perfect… His weak eyes saw Goro bend down and grab the second blade. The wicked smile widened. “You didn’t even see it coming, did you brat?” he said in a teasing tone. “This blade ate all your chakra without you even noticing.” Trembling from the pain and exhaustion, the blue haired boy was surprised - and disappointed - that he couldn’t even have made the connection. He had seen the legendary Samehada up close, felt the blade sucking his chakra… and let that blade do the same… he was too focused to just fight, fight for survival, fight for the village… The village… his… friends… At least maybe they were safe… if he had ensured that much, he still would have completed the mission… Goro’s face contorted in inhumane fury as he kept looking at the boy, who was still stirring, albeit feebly… This worthless pup had made them lose a considerable amount of chakra… they couldn’t go on to the village tonight with the state they were in right now… He had to pay. Hiraku noticed Goro raising his foot but his mind didn’t make the connection in time to stop what happened next. With a sharp, sickening sound, the leader’s kick smashed right on to Mitsuki’s chest, making the boy hiss in pain. “Why don’t you hurry up and die already, you pesky brat?!” “S-stop that, Goro! He won’t be able to move in this state! Let’s just leave him!” A female voice came from behind Hiraku, an amused snort. “You really are a newbie in this, aren’t you? Leaving the kid alive is the same as dooming your life. In this life, the enemy must die.” The woman, Suzume, bent down to look at Mitsuki. The boy moved his eyes to her. He felt his eyes burn, as well as his chest… was it the pain from the blade’s attack…? No… it was something else… the sensation almost felt familiar... “Tch… pathetic. How does a crybaby like you almost beat us and ruin our plans?” Cry… baby…? Once again, he was crying…? So that was the wetness on his face… But why…? He couldn’t be… upset because he was beaten, Shizuma had beaten him too back in the field trip, he didn’t recall crying back then… ‘Your father would be ashamed if he saw you like that now…’ the voice in his head said spitefully, and Mitsuki felt another pang in his heart. “Awww, or is it that this poor lone ranger is too afraid to die?” the woman continued in a mocking, sing-song voice and pulled out a kunai. “Let me end your misery honey, won’t you?” “I’m… not afraid… to die…” Mitsuki breathed out faintly but still with all the power he could muster, before he coughed up more blood splaying his lips… It was all he could do to just keep his consciousness… It was fading away, just like how the pain slowly was… Suzume grunted and wiped the blood from her face with a disgusted look in her eyes. Tch… damn brat. “I can see why you get on my comrades’ nerves, you truly are an annoying brat. No wonder you are here all alone.” The woman raised her blade with the intention of plunging it into the boy’s heart at once but the moment his amber eyes met her own, Suzume froze in shock… these eyes… those damn eyes that she knew too well…! She quickly got up, sweating hard. “No way…” “The hell are you doing Suzume?! Finish him!” Takeru muttered, annoyed. “Forget it, I’m out of here!” And with that, she took off, without another glance to spare their way. “What the fuck was that…?!” Summoning up the last dregs of his consciousness, Mitsuki had made his mind. The village was the next target… and no one was coming, maybe they weren’t even aware, although he didn’t know how… if he could delay them a little longer… Monkey… Ox… Maybe it was his sluggish movements, but he never found the time to complete the Paralyzing Jutsu. A kick dangerously close to his face forced his hands apart and came crashing down on his right arm. The boy heard his bones crunch but he could no longer feel the pain. “This vermin seriously grates on my nerves. Hiraku, I have a job for you.” Hiraku inclined his head to their direction, but didn’t give any other sign of interest. This got a ‘tch’ from Takeru, while Goro just rolled his eyes with an impatient huff. Then he quickly bent down, grabbed a fistful of Mitsuki’s hair and jerked his head up. “Get your hands on that sword of yours. I want the boy’s head.” "W-What?" the other man managed to stammer, unable to believe he said just that. "What, never heard of trophy hunters?" Goro asked, his smirk taking on a more insane quality. "I won this hunt, and I want my trophy. You are not a weakling, are you? Bring me the boy's head." Bile rose up in Hiraku's throat as he realized what kind of an inhuman being his companion truly was. "You bastard! I'm not doing that to a child!" Goro didn’t say anything for a moment, squinting at him with great distaste. "Fine, I'll do it myself." Goro said and dropped Mitsuki roughly to the floor, going for the sword that was next to Hiraku. "No! Goro, stay away from the boy!" Darkness overwhelmed Mitsuki, but not before he saw a shadow nearby, someone who felt familiar... Then he felt the presence of someone warm, someone he could trust... and he felt no more.

#boruto:sacrifices #boruto #naruto #mitsuki #sarada #boruto fanfiction #naruto fanfiction #tw:blood

[professionalfixator]

The Complicated Relationship of Gilbert and Moody

An Analysis That No One Asked For But Got Anyway 

By G.H. Tehrani, Psychology Student

The relationship of Gilbert Blythe and Moody Spurgeon is complicated to say the least. It is also complicated to analyze, given that the amount of screentime of them is extremely limited, ranging anywhere from a few seconds to a minute. But from this little screentime showrunner Moira Walley-Beckett gave us, there is a lot to break down. While you may think this is an unimportant relationship to break down (why not Moody and Charlie, or Gilbert and Billy?), Gilbert and Moody could actually have a large role in future seasons and can say something really interesting about the state of society - but more on those later.  First, we have to take it back to the beginning. 

Where It All Started: Season 1 

As you all know, because we are watching from Anne’s perspective, we meet the schoolkids after they have all known each other for years. We don’t know exactly how long they have known each other, but since it’s a small town, I’m going to guess it’s been since they were little kids. 

In episode 3, Gilbert walks into the schoolhouse and we instantly know his social role. He’s the tall, smart, popular guy with the dark eyes that all the girls love. Interestingly enough, the first person to call out Gilbert’s name when he returns to school is Moody, who immediately pulls him away to ask him all about his travelling adventures. 

Moody is, simply put, the opposite of Gilbert in Season 1. He’s shorter than the other boys, chubby and jolly. It’s not a far cry to say that Moody admired Gilbert, and aspired to be like him, especially since Gilbert is a year older. Most of the boys did. Moody most likely always wished that he could have the same kind of attention that Gilbert gets from the girls, instead of just being called “ridiculous” (as Diana delightfully put it). No one would ever call Gilbert ridiculous...he’s Gilbert! 

We can tell by their interactions that Gilbert is at least vaguely friends with Moody and the other boys. He jokes around with them, goofs off in class, and generally seems to be having a good time with them. 

But when Gilbert’s father dies in Season 1 Episode 6, we see a drastic change in Gilbert’s personality, and this lends itself to changes within his relationships as well. 

Gilbert’s Crisis: Season 1 to Season 2

After Mr. Blythe’s death at the end of Season 1, we see a much more emotionally disturbed version of Gilbert. He’s grieving, and not taking it well. He pushes everyone away, including Anne, and punches Billy in the face when he calls him his “bud”. Although we don’t see Moody in any of this, we do get a look inside Gilbert’s head. The insensitivity of his classmates puts him off and for the first time, he sees the gap between him and them. They’re still kids and don’t understand the weight of what he’s going through. This most likely factored into his decision to leave town and travel the world.

When he meets Bash, it seems like Bash gets through to him, helping him heal from his father’s death. He sings, writes letters to Anne, and seems like he’s having the time of his life (who wouldn’t be, travelling is awesome). He also discovers his passion for medicine when he gives birth to a baby in Trinidad. 

Growing Up: Season 2

While Gilbert was travelling the world, Moody was having some firsts of his own. He has his - presumably - first kiss in Season 2 Episode 5, when he’s forced to kiss Diana during spin the bottle. But overall, it seems like he was still the same character he was in Season 1, just a little older, but that could be because we hardly get to see him this season, at least in the first 5 or so episodes. 

But it seems that travelling did Gilbert a world of good, because when he returns to Avonlea with Bash, we see him chatting with his schoolmates. 

He seems perfectly fine here, almost like his old sociable self, but there’s a distance there. Things can’t quite be the same. He agrees to help with the pantomime, but stays off to the side, not interacting with any of his schoolmates. He actually never interacts with his schoolmates after that brief shot in Episode 6 of Season 2, except for going to help Cole when he breaks his wrist (thanks, Billy), but that doesn't entirely count, since he was in Doctor Blythe mode. In every schoolhouse scene, Gilbert is sitting by himself studying for his vocation. We really don't see any kind of Gilbert-schoolmate relationship, nevermind Gilbert and Moody. The only times we see them in the same scene or frame was:

1. When Moody is backstage during the pantomime and Gilbert is manning the rig, however we don't see them speak to each other,

And 2. When Moody is about to lick the lightbulb and Gilbert, Anne and literally everyone else in the room yell at him not to.

So, this leaves us with Season 3, where most of Gilbert and Moody's interactions occur, and where we can really closely study their relationship.

At Odds: Season 3

At the start of Season 3, we're put at a bit of disadvantage. We have no idea what happened in the last 2 years since Season 2, but we can assume that it followed the same pattern, the schoolkids growing up and having new experiences, while Gilbert drifted away into adulthood.

At the beginning of Season 3, we see him playing hockey with the boys, so he isn't completely detached (yet). Gilbert is still ignoring Ruby (more on that later) and Moody is flirting with Diana. 

Again they don't interact. Now, just because we don't SEE them interact doesn't mean that they never do, but it's safe to say that outside of the canon scenes, they don't either. Case in point: the 3x01 classroom scene. Gilbert is sitting in a corner reading a book, and Moody is on the other end of the room talking with some other boys. No interaction.

Gilbert is playing with them, yes, but that doesn't mean he is ONE of them, not anymore anyway. (Note: It is mentioned that he leaves often to go to Charlottetown for his apprenticeship with Dr. Ward.) The boys probably view him as less of a peer and more of this distant figure who is sometimes there and sometimes isn't.

But! Remember what we mentioned early on in this essay: "It’s not a far cry to say that Moody admired Gilbert, and aspired to be like him, especially since Gilbert is a year older. [...] Moody most likely always wished that he could have the same kind of attention that Gilbert gets from the girls."

Things have changed now, Moody is older. Slimmer and taller, but that doesn't mean he's not still insecure. He still respects Gilbert and his opinion. The evidence for this? 

1. In 3x05, when Moody is injured and the Indigenous healer offers him the leaf of a weeping tree, he initially refuses, only accepting because it was Gilbert who told him it was okay to eat it, 

2. Also in 3x05, Moody asks Dr. Gilbert if it’s okay to dance, but Gilbert says no, so he doesn’t dance, 

3. And in 3x07, when Moody rightfully criticizes Anne for her article, the moment Gilbert claps back at him in her defence, he immediately shuts up and looks almost sheepish - showing us that he really values Gilbert’s opinion, even though earlier on they are clearly seen arguing - only interrupted by Miss Stacy’s paper airplane. 

These are all moments that show us that Moody respects Gilbert, because he’s older and is studying to be a doctor. However, he is the only one that thinks that way. By this point, most of the Avonlea boys don’t want to be friends with Gilbert anymore (this is made clear by the fact that none of the boys are seen talking to him ever). Gilbert has pushed them away enough times for them to stay away. But Moody is the only one who still wants to be friends with Gilbert. This is evidenced by: 

1. In 3x08, Moody actively attempts to make conversation with Gilbert at Miss Stacy’s house. He asks him about Winifred and invites him to the ruins (possibly hopeful that he would actually show up), 

2. Also in 3x08, Moody hyperventilates and yells, “Where is Gilbert!?” - either because of Gilbert’s doctor status or because he wanted him to be there for moral support, 

3. In 3x09, when they’re rebuilding the school, Moody AGAIN tries to make conversation with Gilbert, asking him about Winnie and what he’s going to do after he’s married, but Gilbert blows him off and walks away in the middle of their conversation, 

4. and finally, in 3x10, when they get their exam results, Moody congratulates Gilbert by calling him PEI’s finest.  

More than once we see Moody try to be Gilbert’s friend, supportive of him, and time and time again Gilbert blows him off or treats him like he’s less than. Because in Gilbert’s mind, he is. Moody could never understand him. We can tell by his responses to Moody’s advances. Blank stare, eyebrows, “That’s not how it works”, “I know what you meant Moody” or just not showing up. He doesn’t show up to the ruins, the only reason he went there was to talk to Anne. He treats Moody like he’s below him or just one of his patients - like in 3x05. 

Not to mention that he purposefully humiliated him in 3x07 in front of Ruby. Moody was right about Anne’s article, and he was in the right to voice his opinion, and Gilbert arguably crossed a line by putting him down, exposing Moody’s feelings for Ruby to the class (don’t think Gilbert chose a random person for his demonstration). 

But, I’m not going to get too ahead of myself, because we haven’t even talked about Ruby yet. 

Gilbert, Moody and Ruby: Season 1 to Season 3

Ruby genuinely loved Gilbert. 

That’s a bold statement, but it is arguably true. She cared for him, about as much as a 10 to 16-year-old could given their less developed prefrontal cortex. Sure, it was a little obsessive, but you can’t tell me there wasn’t some actual feeling in there. In 1x03, Josie tells us Ruby has liked Gilbert for three years, and by the time we get to Season 3, six years. 

S i x y e a r s. For Ruby to be able to like Gilbert for six years, she must have seen something in him other than looks (though she mentions it the most). In Season 1, Gilbert is handsome, kind, charismatic, and smart. I could see where she’s coming from. He was a good guy. 

But here’s the thing, for all of Ruby’s love and adoration, Gilbert never gave her a single thing back. (Yes, he lifted her off the ground, but that was because Anne was there.) 

Not once did Gilbert ever do anything nice for Ruby because he actually wanted to. No matter what Ruby would do, how obvious she made her feelings, Gilbert ignored her and liked Anne - her best friend(!) instead. The gentlemanly thing to do would have been to tell Ruby he wasn’t interested in her, but that never happened. I don’t know if that makes Gilbert an oblivious boy or a jerk. But he couldn’t have been that oblivious since he’s an observant guy. 

The only explanation would be that he didn’t see Ruby an important person to clear things up with. Again, we see Gilbert deeming people less than because of his own cognitive bias toward thinking he is superior to everyone else in maturity because of his life experience. The only reason he paid any attention to Anne in the first place, was because he deemed her as an equal to his superior maturity, which she was. 

Given all this, where does Moody fit in? 

Moody was always a good friend to Ruby. We don’t see it very much, but they were in the same school together, and Moody helped her and Anne save Miss Stacy. 

But that also means, being Ruby’s acquaintance/friend, he watched her cry over Gilbert for six years. 

For six years, he has seen Ruby try and fail to get Gilbert’s attention and be disappointed when it doesn’t work out. A never-ending cycle of tears and hurt, that Moody could do nothing to help because he was just her guy friend. We know Moody wants to help people -  that’s why he’s going to become a minister - so for him to be unable to help Ruby is just painful. 

In Season 3, Moody has experienced a similar situation with Diana (Diana deems people less than because of her superior social status and wealth), so now he knows how Ruby feels and he’s even more empathetic toward her.

Does Moody harbor resentment toward Gilbert for his treatment of Ruby? Maybe. 

In 3x03, when Ruby is crying over Gilbert’s absence (again) and accidentally wrote his name in the newspaper. Everyone laughs but Moody looks on sympathetically, showing this is upsetting him more than it is amusing him. 

When Ruby says, “Gilbert was so heroic”, Moody gives her his handkerchief, which in that time period was a very heroic thing to do. It’s an act of romance and the first nice thing a boy has ever done for Ruby...which is kind of sad if you think about it. Moody is conveying in that moment that Gilbert isn’t the only heroic boy in Avonlea (he is too). 

This means so much to her, that she ends up getting over Gilbert and falling for Moody instead, which is the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen on TV. 

The Future of Gilbert and Moody: Season 4 and Beyond

Even though Anne with an E was sadly cancelled in November 2019, due to an ongoing dispute between Netflix and CBC, that doesn’t mean we can’t theorize about the content of a future Season 4 and 5. 

We know Moody is going to be going to Queens withe rest of his classmates and Gilbert is going to University of Toronto. However, Moody’s time at Queens is probably temporary. In the books, he becomes a minister, so I searched up Bible Colleges in Canada to see where he would be able to train as one. I discovered that a new college had just opened in the late 1890s: Toronto Bible College, which trained common-folk as missionaries and ministers. 

The cool part? Toronto Bible College was down the street from University of Toronto. 

Moody and Gilbert would be going to school together, maybe even rooming together, for the next 3 years. 

How would their relationship in Seasons 1 - 3 factor in to their experience as roommates? It would be interesting to see Moody confront Gilbert for what he did to Ruby. This would give Gilbert an opportunity to redeem himself and be likable again. 

Some Controversial Conclusions on Gilbert Blythe 

I started this essay in early January, but it is now late March and I have left the Anne with an E fandom. One of the reasons I left was the growing toxicity and idealization of Gilbert. All the time I would see tweets and posts claiming that, “Gilbert is my dream man”, “I wish I had a guy like Gilbert”, “The only good guys are fictional (Gilbert)”. It ticked me off because it’s just not true. Gilbert is not a good guy. He is a jerk with a superiority complex. 

In every version of Anne, Gilbert completely worships Anne. He adores her, writes poems for her, almost dies without her. He is very needy and clingy, and we view that as romantic, because we want to be worshiped. 

Dating Gilbert would include him being unable to survive without you, constantly fearing you’re going to fall out of love with him, needing constant reiteration of your feelings, showering you with affection and flowery words, and possibly not allowing you to have any male friends. That isn’t romantic. 

Being true equals in a secure relationship would be understanding that you love each other - and being secure in that - and being able to let them be free to do the things they want to do without constantly needing validation. I’m not saying Gilbert in AWAE is toxic, but he has severe communication issues that no girl should have to put up with. 

Note: I’m not saying that Gilbert is a bad person through and through. He is a gentle soul, we see it in his interactions with Bash, Mary and Delphine. A lot of his negative actions may have subconscious causes. But we’re not slaves to our subconscious. Even if we are implicitly being a jerk, there are still conscious ways to change our behavior and become better people.  

#gilbert blythe #moody spurgeon #friendship analysis #psychology #tv analysis #analysis #anne with an e #awae analysis #relationship breakdown #long post

[turkoftheslums]

Aftermath of Sector 7

Fandom: Final Fantasy VII Rating: T Word count: 2,379

Written as a precursor to a thread. Link to Ao3 version.

***WARNINGS: Blood, Injury, Temporary character death, Hospital***

“’Press the button,’ they said. ’No-one would be there,’ they said” would be the thoughts going through Reno’s mind as he leapt from the helicopter if he wasn’t focused on his task of deactivating the plate support for Sector 7.

Change of plan then: delay AVALANCHE from touching the panel for as long as possible. Tseng needed time to pick up Aerith and Reeve needed time to evacuate as many people in what little time they had. He could do that, no sweat. Reno was a consummate professional after all. There was no-one better than him for the job.

Dodging the ex-SOLDIER and his gang wasn’t too difficult as they were more focused on the helicopter and his leap from it than himself actually heading for the control panel. He typed as fast as he could before the three on the support surrounded him and he made a show of pressing a button on the console, claiming the mission was now complete. Of course it wasn’t, that was just the final key to activate the confirmation button. If any of the numbskulls in front of Reno touched the wrong set of buttons now, everything would go wrong.

Time to be the attention-loving asshole he was born to be.

AVALANCHE fought harder than he expected. Both sides were fighting for survival at that point, to be fair. But still, Reno expected to leave with just some bruises and maybe a little bleeding at most, not have the snot beaten out of him with bullets tearing through cloth, blade carving through skin, and fists bringing forth bruises. They could have done with more time but he needed to bail then and there otherwise no-one on the mission would return to ShinRa at all.

Bidding his farewell, Reno ran past the console towards the railing and hit the confirmation button, shrill sirens warning everyone in attendance to run. Allowing adrenaline to take over and numb his pain sounded really nice but the shaking it would leave him with would put him at a disadvantage, especially since he needed precision as he gripped the railing and leapt over it, ignoring the twinge in his wrist at the motion. Just tune it out.

Reno landed with a roll and stumbled out, meaning he was probably worse off than he thought, but that would have to wait until he got the mission squad plus Aerith back to ShinRa. Sprinting to the helicopter was his priority, not the health he could feel draining from his body. The Turk was earlier than previously agreed – arriving at the same time as Tseng and Aerith – but they needed to evacuate then and there before they were caught up in the soon-to-be-falling plate.

He climbed through the door shortly after Tseng, ignoring any and all looks he received, and chased the pilot into the co-pilot seat. His daring tricks were going to the be only way they would get out in time and no beginner pilot like some infantry would even have the balls to attempt such a feat. As already planned, Reno hovered by the control platform to allow Tseng to taunt the members of AVALANCHE and goad them into infiltrating ShinRa.

That brief break seemed like the perfect time to assess himself properly. Aching wrist that was either sprained or broken, gashes of varying depth, pain in his chest with every breath – the large man with the gun arm definitely aimed there quite a bit, aching face and just… blood everywhere. The thought of him getting blood all over the helicopter amused him and he barked out a quiet laugh. A glance to his left revealed the infantryman staring at him in concern. Was he saying something? Movement of the infantryman’s hands towards the control stick had Reno’s hardened gaze snapping to the man’s hands and then his face.

“If you touch that I’m banishin’ you t’the back- you know what?” Reno faced forward again and attempted to sit in some way that was comfortable but kept him focused. “Go t’the back anyway. I got this an’ I don’t need you distractin’ me.”

Gods, he was tired.

A reflection in the window to the right caught Reno’s attention and he grimaced as much as his aching face would allow. Even his face didn’t escape a beating: covered in scrapes, bruises and blood. Cleaning himself when they got back was going to be a chore. He just hoped he could either get enough off before Rude saw or convince Rude it wasn’t as bad as it looked. Gods, he couldn’t lie to Rude. How much did he even know about the mission?

The rumbling and screeching of metal above them reined Reno’s attention back to the present and he prepared himself to fly them all out. With Tseng’s signal, it was time to go. “Buckle up!” Flying higher the moment the door closed, Reno booked it to the closest exit point and dodged falling debris like he had a sixth sense for it, even going as far as to fly sideways to escape. His vision was tunnelled and focused as he flew.

Coming out from under the plate was like a breath of fresh air, but that didn’t stop the dread from settling in Reno’s stomach as he took a moment to watch the Sector 7 plate collapse, nor did it stop a chill from setting in his bones as his injuries decided it was time to play catch-up. It was so, so tempting to give in then and there, but he banished his co-pilot earlier and so had a duty to bring them all to ShinRa safely.

Touching down on the helipad had never in Reno’s life filled him with so much relief before. A few moments passed as he collected himself before peeling away from his chair, hand gripping the backrest to help push himself away and pull himself up. Standing up was probably the worst thing he could have done he noted as the pool of his blood on the chair caught his eye with a soft “Ah.”

Lanky legs gave out as he tried to take a step and the redhead fell in slow motion, cold chill seeping in further and seizing his chest in its clutches. Vision blackening, a chorus of ‘sir’s rang out, lead by Tseng’s more reserved ‘Reno’ and a high-pitched scream of his name before the pathetic splat of his blood-soaked body hitting the floor barely reached his ears.

-

Watching Reno crumple with no resistance was disturbing in itself; the man always fought to stay standing so him falling to the floor was a huge concern. His skin was cold when Tseng turned him over and it seemed he was struggling for breath with each passing moment. Reno was in critical condition the whole time and still he brought them to ShinRa in one piece.

What an idiot.

The swift arrival of medics told Tseng that Reno’s banished co-pilot had contacted them after witnessing the extent of Reno’s injuries. Tseng would see to it that the man received a generous gift from the Turks as a thank you for saving one of their own.

Organising Aerith’s escort to Research and Development was (mostly) hassle-free as Reno’s rapidly paling form was examined and loaded onto a gurney. Tseng followed – hand gripped tight on one of the gurney handles – and barked at anyone thoughtless enough not to move out of the way. As they reached the infirmary, he was ordered to stay behind so the medics could use all the room they needed.

Rude offered to wait for the medics to finish with Reno with the promise of updates so Tseng could file the reports for the ‘incident’. Writing reports was one of the last things Tseng wanted to do but the task would keep him occupied and with Rude watching over his second in command, he would be free to take any calls that required him. He was just thankful Rude didn’t have to see the state Reno was in. There was too much blood.

Sighing to himself, Tseng took the lift down to the Turks’ auditing room as his worst fears plagued his mind. Reno would pull through just like he always did, but the sight of his second in such a terrible state brought forth too many doubts and uncertainties. So once the Wutai reached his desk, he took a minute to pray to Leviathan - and any other god that would listen - to watch over Reno and ensure he wouldn’t leave them so soon.

Putting pen to paper, Tseng distracted himself with his first report. Years of practised penmanship fighting with the weight of his second’s unstable fate had him finish it within two hours. He removed his PHS and unlocked it, thin lips pressed into an even thinner line at the lack of updates. Another report would simply never be written until he had an update – besides, Rude could probably do with relief from Reno duty after two straight hours.

Returning to the infirmary took longer than Tseng felt appropriate, even as he walked faster than normal. His PHS vibrated twice while he was on his way.

[TEXT: Rude] He’s in a room and asleep. They won’t tell me anything [TEXT: Rude] Nurses say they want to talk to you

Tseng’s lips pressed into a thin line for the second time that day as he prepared himself for the information that would soon be presented to him. If they wouldn’t tell Rude, it could only be gravely serious. Approaching the nurses’ station, he inquired about Reno’s whereabouts. The nurses shared a look before one – likely the head nurse – grabbed something from the table before leading him to the redhead’s room, talking along the way.

“I’m not going to sugar-coat it: we didn’t think he was going to survive. He lost a lot of blood by the time he arrived due to multiple lacerations, gunshot wounds, and blunt-force injuries. There was extensive bruising across his chest and face, overstretched muscles in his right leg, and sprain in his right wrist. He’s healing fast and we set up an IV for him with a strong painkiller and a weak potion to aid him in his healing.”

They stopped in front of a closed off room occupied by Reno and Rude, but the nurse wasn’t finished. What she said next made Tseng’s blood run cold. “He died an hour in for approximately two minutes after suffering sudden cardiac arrest. We intended to put him on a ventilator before letting him out but he began breathing for himself just fine.” She held out her hand and waited for Tseng to hold out his, curling his fingers over the object. “You’ve got a fighter there, sir. He won’t be leaving you anytime soon.”

With that, she left back for the station. Tseng’s head followed her for a moment before focusing on his hand, opening it to find Reno’s metal hair clasp. He’d be wanting it when he woke up. Speaking of which, Tseng turned around, straightened out his story for Rude, whispered a thank you to Leviathan and whoever else heard his prayer, and gave a gentle rap of the door before entering.

The lights of the room were dimmed for the night, leaving the luxury room bathed in the minimum amount of light for the occupant to sleep easy whilst allowing guests and nurses who entered to see. Rude sat in a chair pulled up beside the bed, jacket resting over the back of his chair and ungloved hand resting inside—

Reno.

It took all of Tseng’s focus not to visibly react to Reno’s bedridden form. He’d seen the other patched up and bruised before, but never had he seen his second so quiet and still. It was unnatural for someone as loud and energetic as Reno to look so… dead. One glance at Rude proved the other Turk was struggling with the sight as well. Swallowing thickly, Tseng pulled the remaining chair up to Reno’s other side and played with the metal clasp in his hands as rhythmic beeps and buzzes of machines attached to Reno filled the empty space.

While Reno may have been the smallest of the three remaining Turks (in both height and build), he’d never looked as small as he did in that bed covered in gauze and bandages and surrounded by medical equipment. The sickly pale form before them just didn’t seem real. Reno was supposed to be loud, warm and energetic – even in sleep – not quiet, cold and… so still.

“What did they say?” Short and to the point, as if there was nothing wrong in the world.

“Not much,” Tseng lied, you know, like a liar. “He’s recovering quickly. Just sleeping it off.” A stranger would be forgiven for thinking Rude plainly accepted the response, but Tseng caught the tightening of muscles in the man’s face, his hardening gaze and tighter protective grip of Reno’s hand. The air was suffocating. “He piloted us back, you know? He used his banned skills to get us out safely.”

An amused huff came from Rude whose gaze flickered towards Reno as he gave the younger’s hand another squeeze and rubbed the back of said hand with his thumb. Tseng arrived with the intention of allowing Rude a break but it seemed the other would not be willing to leave any time soon. Standing up, Tseng set the hair clasp atop the overbed table, gaze catching on Reno’s bright hair splayed across the bed before breaking to observe the fine details of the windowless wall, room hidden away from the desperate prying eyes of the public. Only the best for someone as important as a Turk.

“You’ll be taking the next few days off, I assume?” Rude nodded, gaze unfaltering, as if Reno would pass the moment he looked away. Tseng nodded and moved towards the door without a word, pausing with his hand on the handle. “Do get some sleep. He won’t be leaving any time soon. If he even thinks about it, I’ll drag him back myself.” And with a click, he was gone to finish his reports and file some paperwork.

Tseng had a feeling a certain someone would be looking to return home very soon.

#Fanfiction #Fanfic #my work #blood tw #injury tw #death mention #temporary character death #Reno #Rude #Tseng #Hospital #plate drop #PlateFall #OGVerse

[elisaphoenix13]

Winter Vacation (Ch.2 End)

When Tony woke the next morning, he found Stephen flush against the front of his body...and their bed was occupied by others as well. Specifically Natasha and Sam. Based on their locations on the bed, Nat came first. Sam followed. He was on the other side of the bed with Stephen and Natasha between him and Tony. The assassin was known to randomly crawl into bed with them whenever she had nightmares on trips like these, but Sam was a surprise. 

"If I look up, will there be kids at the foot of the bed?" Tony mumbles and Stephen huffs against his neck.

"I don't think so. This is why I have you reserve the room with the king sized bed."

"I get Nat, but what's Bird Boy doing in our bed?"

Sam pulls his hand out from under his pillow and raises it to flip off Tony. "These walls are thin man. Not only did I hear Spacecase and Tic-Tac going at it, but you stuck me with Rhodey and he snores. Loud. I'd rather listen to you snore."

Tony snorts. "Me and Mama Bear could have been playing slap and tickle too."

"I followed Nat. I know she doesn't care about most things, but you two in the middle of it is a line."

It was true. If he and Stephen were in the middle of sex, Nat would have never come in the room and instead would have stayed up the rest of the night. Probably sitting in the lounge reading lousy magazines. They weren't though, so instead of two people in their bed, there were four and possibly a kid or two. Tony sits up just enough to look at the end of the bed and confirms that there are no kids on the bed, but then wonders about the floor. He decided he didn't care at the moment and lays back down.

"What time is it?" Stephen asks and Sam grabs the sorcerer's phone off the nightstand.

"Time for your peace to be shattered any second now."

And Diana came in not even a second later. Tony and Stephen always left their door unlocked when they were on trips where the kids were in another bedroom theirs wasn't connected to, but Stephen always cast a protection spell on the door. Only the kids or team members would be able to pass safely. Anyone other than that? They were immediately sent to a not so pleasurable dimension. They always specifically asked for their room to be left alone so a maid wasn't accidentally tossed into the hell dimension.

Their daughter climbs onto the bed at the foot and crawls up to Stephen and Tony, making herself comfortable on the sorcerer's hip before sprawling across him. Natasha cracks a single eye open to lift her hand and brush the little girl's hair back, and then murmurs quietly to her in Russian before dropping her hand and using her other to push Sam out of the bed. The man complains loudly when he hits the floor with a thud and Nat smiles when Diana giggles.

"I need to get out of bed."

"Damn Nat. You could have asked."

"And pass up that opportunity?" Natasha replies dryly as she sits up and looks back to the couple. "Thanks Mama Bear."

Stephen nods in response as the assassin slips out of bed, and Sam gets up to follow her out of the bedroom. The two move aside when the rest of the kids barrel in, and Sam walks out with a laugh and something along the lines of 'heads up Mom'. Six more kids jump onto the bed and Tony rubs his face.

"At least four of you can bug your own parents."

Cassie makes a face. "I'm afraid to even touch their door."

Tony points at her. "Point taken." He looks at Clint's kids next. "What's your excuse?"

"Dad told us to come bug you." Lila admits.

"And you listened?"

Nathaniel pouts. "We're starving!"

Stephen chuckles and mimics Nat's earlier action by pushing Tony off the bed. "There's a breakfast buffet downstairs. Go eat and behave. We'll all be down soon."

The kids didn't need to be told twice. They all scampered off the bed, Diana having to roll off Stephen first, and they leave the room to Tony and Stephen. The sorcerer moves closer to the bed to look down at Tony, and smirks when he finds his husband staring up at the ceiling potentially pondering his life.

"Did you break something?" Stephen teases and earns a glare for it.

"Thank you for pointing out my age Stephanie, and no, I didn't break anything." Tony sits up and winces. "Bruised maybe."

"We better get dressed. They won't behave for long if Harley has anything to say about it."

"We have about ten minutes while he stuffs his face."

Tony and Stephen get up and get ready for another cold day, and when they exit the room, they pause in the hallway when they find Diana and Sam on either side of the doorway to Quill and Scott's room. Sam quietly opens the door, and both Tony and Stephen watch in mild amusement as their daughter levitates a small pile of snow into the room. They weren't the only ones watching either. Rhodey, Clint, and Natasha were too. Laura hopefully went downstairs to help supervise the kids.

A shout of surprise follows moments later, and Quill curses as he stomps over to the door and nearly yanks it off its hinges when he opens the door. Stephen readies a spell when the celestial opens the door with glowing hands and galaxy eyes, but Diana steps directly in front of him and smiles up at him. 

"Morning Uncle Quill!"

The powers were gone just like that. No more light in Quill's hands, the galaxy eyes were gone, and the god visibly deflated. He had been pissed but not berserk. When he was just angry and using his powers, anyone could approach him safely (unless they were the ones who pissed him off; in this case though, Quill would never hurt Diana). Sam then takes the chance to stand behind Diana and fold his arms to glare at the celestial.

"These walls are thin. Keep it for home or where no one can hear you."

"Our bad."

Sam looks down and ruffles Dia's hair. "Thanks kid. You can go eat breakfast now."

Diana smiles and skips down the hall, and her parents follow her down the stairs to the dining room. Laura was there with Wanda, both making sure the kids remained on their best behavior until the rest of the adults joined them, and breakfast went by with some excitement toward the new day. The adults were barely at the end of their own servings before the kids went back upstairs to dress warmly, and when everyone finally did go outside to have another day of fun, it started with a snowball smacking the back of Stephen's head. Both Bucky and Peter groan as the sorcerer turns to look for the culprit, and immediately zeroes in on Quill with a second snowball.

"Dude...there's a reason we don't pull Mom into our snowball fights." Peter says.

"I highly suggest you run." Bucky warns and Quill gives him a confused glance.

"What? Why?" The celestial turns to look back at Stephen, and his eyes widen when the sorcerer conjures a few more sets of arms, each armed with a snowball. "OH SHIT!"

Quill dashes away to take cover behind a tree just as Stephen throws multiple snowballs at him, and another hits the back of his head. The sorcerer whips his head around in surprise to find the second culprit and raises an eyebrow when Peter points at Steve. It was very clearly a lie, but he wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to pull the captain into the shenanigans. If Stephen could let loose once in a while, so could Steve. So he pelts the soldier with a snowball who instantly looked astonished at being attacked...and then picked up some snow, formed a snowball, and threw it at Sam.

So started the second most extreme snowball fight in history. Everyone was attacking each other individually, but eventually teams were formed, Diana being not only a small target but also a disarming one. She actually got Clint to rethink throwing a snowball at her when she smiled up at him, but then she looked up a little higher and the archer follows her gaze to find a pile of snow floating above his head. He curses when it comes crashing onto his head and Diana giggles when she high fives Cassie and Bucky. Peter and Harley hid in a tree and hit unsuspecting victims, and everyone else actually made snow forts to hide behind. Stephen and Diana only used magic when other lodge visitors weren't around or looking, and they both were allowed because Diana was small and at a disadvantage, and Stephen had his hands. He was wearing gloves but tried not to hold the snow long enough for the cold to seep through. 

The other people visiting the lodge wisely stayed out of the Avengers snowball fight. They were content to record it instead, which was expected at some point during this trip. Stephen was the first to bow out of the fight since the cold did eventually get through to his hands, Peter was the next although it was a little unwillingly. His limbs stiffened enough that he actually fell out of the tree he and Harley were in, and his brother had to jump down and help him inside. The fight dwindled down after that. Some of the team either going inside for a break or moving on to other activities, Tony was one of the ones to go inside and found Stephen on one of the couches by the fireplace with Peter and Harley. The sorcerer was reading quietly while the boys were warming up with hot chocolate, Peter exclusively bundled up in Levi. The cloak actually threw a fit when they tried to leave without it so Stephen let it come disguised as a scarf. It obviously changed its form to a blanket to help warm Peter up.

"Done already?" Tony asks the teens and Harley holds up his mug.

"I'm going back out as soon as I finish this." He gulps down the rest of his hot chocolate, places the mug on the table, and vaults himself over the back of the couch.

"Jacket!" Stephen says as he lifts up Harley's coat. The teen runs back and snags his jacket from the sorcerer, runs back outside while putting it on, leaving Tony to take his recently vacated spot on the couch.

"What about you Underoos?"

"I haven't decided yet. I'm still warming up." Peter sniffles as he takes another sip of his hot chocolate and snuggles into Tony's side for the extra heat.

"Quill's probably a better choice for this."

Peter wrinkles his nose. "He's not my dad though...and Scott usually comes attached."

"Good point."

Peter eventually fell asleep against the engineer once he finished his drink, and Tony looks over at Stephen. He asks how their son got so cold with the spell and the sorcerer calmly explained that the snowballs were just a little too much for the spell he usually put on Peter. He would be fine. They quietly speculate who they might find in their bed the next morning as the others slowly trickle in for dinner when the sun starts to set, and Peter grunts in annoyance when Harley finds his way back to their couch and squishes himself between his brother and the arm of the couch.

Cassie came in without Diana, but before Tony or Stephen could question her, Steve came into view with Bucky and had the little girl riding piggyback on him. The captain sits on the couch, squishing her between his back and the cushions and Diana pouts.

"Uncle Steve!"

Steve smirks and looks over at Sam. "You hear something?"

"No. Must be hearing things Cap."

"Harley! Help me!" Diana reaches out for her older brother and he gets up to dig his sister out of her prison. Once free, he situates her against his side and steps over Scott who had sprawled out on the floor.

"It's too close to dinner for hot chocolate but I think Mom will let you have hot cider instead." Harley says as he walks to the dining room and Stephen looks over the couch at them.

"The smallest size!"

Harley replies with a 'yeah, yeah' and Stephen looks back at his book as Peter sits up. Everyone takes time to relax before dinner, either dozing or talking amongst themselves, and Harley and Diana come back not even three minutes later. The oldest sets his sister on the ground in front of Stephen's legs before squishing himself back onto the couch next to Peter who shoulders him playfully. Harley was a punk sometimes but today was proof that he cared about his siblings. He nearly carried Peter inside so he wouldn't freeze to death, and he took Diana to get something warm to drink after saving her from Steve. Stephen never said anything but it always brought a smile to his face to see Harley drop the facade every once in a while. He was sure if either Peter or Diana asked their brother for help, even if they were fighting, Harley would drop everything for them. He would risk everything for them.

"So can we talk about how Wanda completely fell through a soft patch of snow and disappeared?" Scott asks and Quill cackles.

"I literally blinked and she was gone." Laura laughs. "Scott was the only one who saw what happened and we were wondering why he was digging in the snow."

Wanda covers her face in embarrassment and Rhodey pats her back. "Then he had to ask Clint for help to pull her out."

"Not Quill?" Tony asks with obvious surprise.

"We didn't know where he disappeared to. So Clint and Scott are trying to pull Wanda out of the snow-"

"I'm still convinced it was vacuum sealed." Clint interrupts with a huff.

Rhodey ignores him and continues. "Whatever the reason, they couldn't get her out and her arms were at a weird angle so she couldn't use her magic."

Sam snickers. "Tic-tac literally said 'fuck this' and yelled for Spacecase like he was in trouble. Never saw a guy his size move that fast without knocking anything or anyone over."

"As soon as he realized Wanda was the one who needed help, he pulled her out like it was nothing." Clint finishes.

"It was nothing." Quill brags and Clint grabs a magazine to roll up and smack the celestial with.

"Mama Bear, the boys are being mean." Wanda complains humorously and Stephen flips a page in his book.

"Behave children." The sorcerer says dully and everyone laughs.

"We better feed them before they get grumpy." Tony jests. 

"Thank the Vishanti that I'm not cooking."

#ironstrange #stephen strange #supremefamily #tony stark #mama bear stephen strange #peter parker #harley keener #diana stark strange (oc) #avengers #the avengers kids

[aweebwrites]

Allies Ch15

Lloyd caught Morro in a large orb of his green energy, showing him a real whirlwind by having it spin around rapidly before slamming him down into the hot sand at top speed, an agonized roar echoing as he made impact. He wouldn't die from something so simple of course. He was Wu’s son after all. Lloyd shielded his eye as he kicked up a sand storm with an enraged roar. He really doesn’t quit, does he? His wind attacks are clearly barely effective and as annoying as sand is, it was doing zero damage. If they were in an area with more than just sand, he was sure he would put up a better fight but he was disadvantaged out here. This was becoming tiresome and he needed to ensure no-one goes to aid Wu. He gathered his green energy as Morro pelted him with sand. He allowed his green energy to explode outwards, banishing his sandstorm and throwing him out even further into the desert.

Morro grunted as he came to a stop, panting heavily as he glared down the so called Green Knight. He was at a disadvantage, that was clear. He couldn’t get close enough to make use of his talons or teeth because he had range on his side. Morro too had range but his range was ineffective. He didn’t want to admit it, didn’t want to accept it, but he was too powerful. He couldn’t defeat him like this. He got to all fours, snorting once the Penumbrian Prince began walking towards him. His body was in pain all over and his back left leg was throbbing intensely but he had to keep fighting. He couldn’t win this like this, that was clear but he had to keep this guy away from his father. He didn’t know how but he had to. His attention was snapped to a bright flash of blue behind him before his eyes widened at the sight of a wave of blue energy moving rapidly towards them, leaving solid ice behind it.

Lloyd turned around at the loud sound of an explosion- before his eyes widened at the wave of blue energy racing towards him. This wasn’t apart of the plan! He turned back to Morro as he attempted to fly away from the blast and moved to take after him- only to be immediately encased in thick ice. Morro grunted as the shockwave threw him back, ice forming on his tail and wings, sending him spiraling out of the sky. He landed roughly but it was enough to break the ice on his wings. He grumbled as he pushed himself up, hating that he was batted around like a cat’s toy all of today. He glanced back- and his eyes widened at the thick ice that covered the landscape, thinning out then stopping right at his still frozen tail. He didn’t know Zane had powers like that… And it was a good thing that he did. The Green Knight was frozen solid, a determined expression still on his face. This was his chance! With him out of the way, he can help his father! He curled his tail close and bit into the ice there, breaking it off from his tail before he took to the sky.

____

Garmadon glared down the dragon that was his brother in the air as their powers clashed between them, gold on dark purple, pushing back and forth but unable to move more than a few inches in the opposite direction. He was chipping at Wu’s defenses but of course he and his brother had to be evenly matched. Someone had to eventually fall however, and that person would be- Their attention shifted once a loud sound filled the air, both Dragon and Oni’s eyes going wide as they spotted the explosion of blue racing towards them. They broke apart, Wu flying up to avoid the impact and Garmadon using his cloak as a shield, letting the ice engulf him from the blast while activating his destructive powers, shattering it almost immediately after. He shook his cape out then surveyed the damage, able to tell only he and Wu were the ones to escape the blast of frigid cold.

“Lloyd…” Garmadon whispered, worry filling his heart for his son.

He glared up at Wu as he descended again, fangs bared. This was something he hadn’t foresaw happening. He hadn’t known any of them had that much power or range. This battle has now hit critical. Garmadon grunted once a strong gust of wind sent him flying back, landing on all fours as he hissed, looking up at the son  of Wu who had also inherited the blood of dragons. He was outnumbered now, overpowered too. He refused to lose! He turned tail and ran up the mountain, both dragons firing at him, right on his tail. Morro kept trying to blow him off the mountain but Garmadon was keeping all six limbs on the ground for a reason, his claws allowing him to keep hold of the rocky surface that made up the Golden Peak. He glanced back, seeing them both flying in to grab him by the talons- then used his destructive powers to break apart the side of the mountain, throwing himself over the rock slide he created as he did. He didn’t wait to see if it slowed them down or not, not when he could see the top already.

He swore to his people, to his son he would end this war and he will even if it killed him. He panted as he finally came to the top, pulling out all four weapons then held them out before the mouth of the Golden Peak, brightly glowing gold bubbling just below. He grinned as an orb of said gold floated up to meet him and he released the weapons into it, allowing the mountain to do its part.

“Yes… It’s working…” He says as he impatiently waited for the Mega Weapon to be forged, the orb of gold glowing brighter, growing more compact.

He shielded his eyes as it exploded into an almost blinding burst of light. Once the light lessened, he looked back, marveling at the sight of the Mega Weapon floating just within reach, reaching for it. Before his claw could so much as touch it he was grabbed in strong jaws and thrown, a roar of rage leaving him as he soared, just barely managing to grab onto the edge of the peak, boiling gold below him.

“Your reign of terror ends now.” Wu says after shifting back into his more humane form, glaring across at him as Morro joined him.

Garmadon hissed, quickly climbing up the side and running back to where the Mega Weapon was floating, Wu reaching for it. If he gets the Mega Weapon-!

“Aah!” Morro yelled as both he and Wu were knocked aside in a flash of Green, Morro’s wind saving them from a burning death, setting them down on the mouth of the peak again.

“Lloyd!” Garmadon called in relief, the large green dragon that was his son beating his wings to stay mid air. “Quick Lloyd! The Mega Weapon!” He urged as he was closer than he currently was.

“No!” Wu yelled as Morro launched himself at Lloyd to stop him but he was too late.

Lloyd wrapped his paw around the Mega Weapon and Garmadon laughed, knowing victory was now theirs- But then, the weapon glowed a bright gold, the energy of it traveling up Lloyd’s paw and taking him over, turning his scales to gold as it went.

“Lloyd?!” Garmadon called out, rushing towards his son as Wu did, not liking this at all.

Lloyd couldn’t comprehend what was happening. So much… Power…! His eyes grew overcast with gold as the golden energy wrapped around him, becoming one with him. He was seeing flashes, seeing the Mega Weapon in his father’s hand, seeing him make his wish… Seeing Ninjago fall to ruin… Seeing everyone and everything fall under corruption… No. This can’t be true! His father would never! His father- his father- 

Garmadon chuckled as he sat upon the blackened throne of the Fulgoric palace that now lay in ruins, purple eyed and enslaved elemental masters awaiting his bidding. The people of this realm, cowering in fear of him… And his new army of Oni, of dark creatures with nothing but destruction and hatred in their hearts, who wanted to see all of the realms destroyed and nothing more… And him?... Locked away beneath his feet, shackled and muzzled like an animal.

He gasped as he came to again, shifting back to his humane form somewhere along that vision. He panted heavily as he stared wide eyed at the staff he still held, floating mid air as he still was. If his father… Got the staff then… Then…

“Don’t go anywhere near my son!” His father’s yell drew his attention and he watched as his father wielded the dark magic gifted to him for the first time since that accident, Wu quick to use his own Golden Power to counter it.

“You’ve seen it, haven’t you?!” Wu yelled, looking up to meet his eyes as Morro recovered from an earlier attack. “You are the Green Knight! The only one in all of Ninjago to wield the same power as my father, the First Spinjitzu Master had! It is your destiny to save Ninjago! Not aid your father in destroying it! He may have filled your head with his lies but you must listen to your heart! You know this isn’t right! You must not let him have the Mega Weapon! Give it to me instead! The faith of Ninjago as we know it depends on it!” He yelled and Lloyd’s breathing picked up.

“Don’t listen to him son! Whatever the staff might have shown you is not true!” Garmadon yelled back, gathering destructive energy in his lower hands and blasting it at Wu too and he grunts, skidding back a bit.

“Give the Weapon to me!”

“No, to me!”

Lloyd pressed his hands over his ears, confused and in shock. What should he do? Should he betray his father and give the Weapon to Wu? Or should he believe his father and give him the Weapon? What was best for Ninjago? Who was best for Ninjago? He didn’t believe for one second that Wu was the good one here. But if that vision was right, neither was his father. He thought back to the Garmatron, thought of him using Dark Matter… He swallowed thickly. They both pledge peace but what is true peace? Does such a thing even exist? And really, if that vision… If it was true… Then… Then… Was he the evil one? Was all his hopes and efforts… For naught? He watched them battle, watched Morro glare him down as he held his broken arm, Wu before him. He has to make a decision! He looked at the Golden Weapon, at his reflection there.

Maybe he could do it by himself? End this war? He could use the weapon… At least then he’d be sure that Ninjago wouldn’t fall to ruin. But how would he do it? What would he say? How could he end this? Does he even have the mindset to even use it? The Weapon demands a strong mind to use it and right now, his mind was all over the place as he questioned everything.

“Lloyd!” He looked to his father once he called to him, his glowing gold eyes filling with tears of frustration, of just too much. “This is what destiny wants of you. It demands that you be the one to choose how this war ends. I will not force you to hand the weapon over to me but the Weapon can be dangerous to those without a strong mind.” Garmadon told him, a stalemate drawn between he and Wu as they looked up to him.

“Before this war, my kingdom and even myself, you are what matters most to me… Be strong and… Be careful.” He whispered at the end, red eyes filled with nothing but concern for his son.

“He’d clearly say anything to make you believe him.” Morro huffed and Lloyd looked to him with a frown. “Don’t you get it? He’s an Oni. Those monsters only think of hatred, revenge and deception, nothing more. You can’t trust them and you sure as hell can’t trust him. If you’re waiting for a sign of what to do, clearly you’ve already had it. Now either choose or use it yourself so we can be done with this!” He snapped and Lloyd frowned deeper.

“Embrace your destiny, Lloyd.” Wu nods at him and he looked at them all.

Destiny, huh? It’s always been about destiny. Every bit of this war has been stained by the word. Something is always destined to happen and always through hardship and sacrifice… He was starting to hate that word as much as his father does. Destiny… Listen to his heart… He lifted his head, gold eyes filling with adamancy. He’s decided. _______________________ (Who will he choose? 🤔 Thanks for reading!!!) _______________________ Ch1 | Ch2 | Ch3 | Ch4 | Ch5 | Ch6 | Ch7 | Ch8 | Ch9 | Ch10 | Ch11 | Ch12 | Ch13 | Ch14

#ninjago #lloyd ninjago #ninjago morro #Lord Garmadon #Sensei Wu #aweebwrites' work

[boku-no-imagine-this]

Imagination Forest • Brave Boy

summary: A hero marching in the woods can be scared and lost, nonetheless, a hero will always be a hero. Especially when he stumbles upon a small cottage where lies a frightened soul.

a/n: I’ve been planning this for a long time and finally wrote it in the plane,,, kagepro has been a part of my heart for a long time (manga and novels are fucking emotional rollercoasters. I’ve cried a thousand times) and I also rlly love kiri.

maybe more kagepro song based fics(?)

song rec: Imagination Forest and Brave boy by Jin (part of the Kagerou Project series <3)

A forest was a peaceful place. An area surrounded by veridian; a color of tranquility and life. Several other bright patterns and colors embroidered the forest, flowers, trees, and bushes circling and filling every area. The forest was an area the brimmed with life; a sanctuary for creatures to roam free. Forests could have anything, ranging from fruit to animals, blossoms to shrubs.

Though, a forest definitely didn’t usually have a blur of crimson blindly wandering around.

The hero-in-the-making trudged through the bushes and trees, a mix of annoyance and anxiety resting on his features; a rare sight, several of his peers would say. In his hero costume, and merely a slightly tattered piece of cloth draped on top of his right shoulder, he was vulnerable.

To add onto that state, he was lost.

Kirishima let out a huff before plopping himself down a smooth rock. He placed his knees apart from each other, the rock being quite low for him to properly sit, leaving him to resort to a squat. Kirishima puffed his cheeks in irritation but his brows were furrowed. He wasn’t the type of person to stray from his friends but at the circumstance he was given, there was no other choice.

Kirishima groaned, “Damnit, why did we have to train somewhere other than U.A”

He would have laughed it off, making a joke out of the situation if he weren’t entirely hopeless or if any of his comrades were with him. To his disadvantage, none of that were true.

Letting out a sigh, he figured that it was best to rest for a while, conserve his energy instead of walking through the forest for another three hours. Maybe, just maybe, Aizawa, All Might, or any of his classmates would appear at any second. Yeah! That would be the case! They wouldn’t leave him alone in the wild, much less the country area of Japan.

‘Would they really?’

A small frown had quickly replaced the newly found hopeful expression on his face. Trying to convince himself it was merely the heat or paranoia that was bringing him down had put the state of his mind at conflict.

Kirishima shut his eyes tight in an attempt to put himself at ease. A pitch black had been imprinted in his mind, it was definitely a ‘sight’ he was used to. It was often a peeve of his to attempt to cool off by closing his eyes. Surely, it was a troubling yet more easing sight than the mix of green arrays the forest had presented.

Letting out a deep breath with his eyes still closed, he had finally cooled off. Oddly enough, before he could even open his ruby irises, an unfamiliar sound had come into his hearing.

‘Help me’

At the sound of the voice, his eyes grew wide. The red head jolted up in surprise, his arms instinctively hardening in defense.

‘Please, someone… help me’

There again. The voice had appeared. It was odd. Unlike the usual voices of his friends and acquaintances, people in general, the voice was soft, somehow muffled yet clear.

‘I’m lonely. I want to be saved’

The voice was sorrow filled, sincerity lacing it. The words itself had confused him. The meaning was clear but the direction of the voice wasn’t leading or close to anywhere in particular. The voice was faint, it couldn’t be a yell or scream. It was more of a cry, a plea. Kirishima was on guard but cautiously walked forward.

“Is anyone th-“

‘I’m scared.’

His yell had been cut of by yet another sound of the strange voice. This time, it had gotten louder but the tone was still the same. He walked forward even more.

‘I want to be free’

His somewhat far fetched assumption had been proven right, as soon as it was confirmed that the voice would get louder as he walked forward, he ran. Something about the voice was alluring, not in a bad sense, but the voice had drawn him to it; as if he were obliged to find the person crying out for help.

‘I hate myself..’

At that point, Kirishima was shoving past the bushes, pushing past vines and shrubs that were in his way. He was close to the voice, he felt it. Brows furrowed in determination, he continued running, the urge and need to find where it was coming from rising.

‘Please… I want to be free’

Finally, the voice was clear. Still not coming from a particular direction, but it was as if someone were speaking to him. He stopped his tracks and slowly began walking forward.

Narrowing his eyes, Kirishima had arrived in front of a clearing. In the center of the clear area was a petite cottage. Moss had filled some of the white bricks that made up the wall of the white cottage. The roof was slightly damaged, cracks around the edges were visible around the cone shaped red roof. Hardening his arms once again, Kirishima walked forward. He approached the wooden door in caution, hoping that it was where the core of the voice lied.

Unhardening his right arm, he placed his hand against the door, knuckles lightly pressed against the wood, then he knocked thrice.

The muffled sound of breaking glass had been heard from the other side of the door, following suit was a shrill yelp. He knocked thrice again.

“Is anyone in there?” Kirishima inquired, attempting to sound firm and loud but he was slightly afraid of what was to be revealed from the other side.

‘NO! I-I-I I can’t talk to anyone, please! Go away!’

His eyes widened at the strange response, “I won’t go away. I’ll come in.” He stated, slowly placing his hand against the door knob, twisting it. The door open slowly with a loud creak. Kirishima peeked inside and slowly walked in, only to reveal a set of scattered broken porcelain on the floor, liquid running down from what appeared to be a broken teapot. The more noticeable figure and what his eyes were locked on was a figure.

The figure was clearly a person. (H/l) (H/c) hair messily fallen above the person's forehead. Hands were covering the person’s face as they were knelt down to the ground. Your hands were quivering, yet they were firm in position to cover your face.

Kirishima cleared his throat to speak up, “Are you-“

“Don’t come close! You’ll turn into stone if I look at you!” You shrieked.

His eyes widened at your sudden outburst, Kirishima quickly assumed it was your quirk. “It’s alright, please try to calm down and-“

Once again cut of by your response, he flinched. “I said don’t! Please! Stay away from me!”

‘No. I don’t want you to leave’

Initially after her retort, the same blurred voice had rung into his ears once again. Kirishima’s brows furrowed as he began to think, ‘they must have two quirks like Todoroki’

“I know you don’t want me to leave. Even if you say that I won’t” he firmly stated.

Shocked at his reply, your eyes widened. “W-why?” You choked out. “Everyone left me because I’m a monster! You’ll turn into stone and voices will come to your head! Y-you’ll also have snakes try to kill you!” You screamed, hands becoming cold and clammy, your figure began to shake even more.

“Just stay back!” You yelled shakily.

‘I want someone to save me!’

There was the voice again. He knew of people hating their quirks but he wanted— needed, to help you. He had seen several of his classmates do heroic acts, saving people who were in peril, so he felt the urge to help the frightened person in front of him. Though, he was conflicted by the contradicting words that came out of your mouth and the voices in his head. It was somewhat confirmed to be yours, but he didn’t know how to approach the situation.

What would Crimson Riot do? How would Midoriya, Todoroki, hell even Bakugou, handle the situation?

Coming to a conclusion, the red hero knelt down and tried to get in your view. His brows were furrowed as he was set on one goal alone, “You don’t need to turn me into stone, you can’t really” he chuckled, then activated his quirk on his arm, making sure it was in your view but wasn’t close enough to injure you.

“I also have a ‘power’, a quirk to be exact, See? I can turn myself hard like stone.” He grinned then retracted his hand. “I was also just like you, I used to be scared of my quirk, in fact, I hated it.” He said, quickly pursing his lips, recalling his past.

Your eyes widened, the deep scarlet fading into a bright (E/c). “H-how?” You inquired, “Everyone outside was normal! Didn’t have powers…” you trailed off.

“there are people like us out there…?” You softly asked, the tone of your voice contradicting the previous one.

He nodded but was confused, “y-yeah? About two-thirds of the planet.”

“R-really?!” You piped up, lifting your head to face his. The male in front of you had shining red hair, spiked up. The most distinct feature were his matching red eyes. Once those had come into your view, you immediately turned away and faced the ground.

Kirishima was also shocked to see your face. Bright (E/c) hues were shining, your other features were cute as well. A small tint of pink had flushed his face at the sight.

Brushing it off, he quickly reminded himself of his goal. “Yeah! How long were you in here?” He questioned. “If you don’t mind me asking,” Kirishima quickly added to be polite.

“I don’t know.. but I’ve counted two hundred ninety-two thousand days when I was seven hundred years old…” You timidly replied.

His eyes widened in shock, how could you be more than seven hundred years old yet look his age?! The redhead wasn’t as intelligent and good at academics as his other friends but he was sure that that amount of time was far from short.

“Please leave me alone!” You yelled once again, restating your original idea as if your curiosity hasn’t been piped up, “You’ll die if you don’t!”

“I won’t.” Kirishima pressed. “I wouldn’t be a true hero, nor a true man if I left you alone here” He stated. “Come outside with me. I’ll help you out, everyone needs a friend and someone to rely on y’know?”

“The outside world scares me” you softly said.

“You’re right. There are many scary things like villains and attacks but I promise I will protect you! I won’t leave your si-“

Kirishima was interrupted once again, this time it wasn’t you, but the loud ringing of his phone in his pocket.

The ringtone caused you to shriek and scramble in fear. Kirishima's eyes widened and he immediately picked his phone from his pocket to see Bakugou’s caller ID.

“W-w-w-What’s that?!” You quivered, motioning towards the mobile device.

“You don’t know what a phone is?” He inquired, even more confused than before.

You nodded slowly, “p-please just make it stop making that sound” You timidly spoke up.

He nodded and clicked the button to accept before placing his phone against his ear.

“Hello Bakubr-“

“FINALLY YOU FUCKING ANSWER! GODDAMNIT SHITTY HAIR WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?!”

Bakugou’s yells were heard clearly from the other line, judging by your reaction to the loud and angry voice that had come out of the strange machine. “B-Bakubro, please chill”

“All of these shitheads have been trying to contact you and Aizawa just came back from trying to search for your ass. Where the hell are you and what the fuck happened to your GPS?!”

Kirishima chuckled lowly, “well,, I kind of broke it when I activated my qui-“

“Fucking knew you’d do something as stupid as that. Just hurry the fuck back here already!” He hissed from the other side of the line.

Kirishima chuckled, scratching the back of his head. “Right, Sorry, I’ll try to find my way back soon. I’m in a… tough position right now. I’ll call back soon, bye!”

He quickly ended the call hoping to put your state at ease.

“What exactly was that?” You inquired, still frightened by the thing. He held it up to present. “It’s called a phone! You can use it to search, call, talk, and basically do anything! It’s one of the great things about what’s outside.” He grinned.

“R-really?”

He nodded in affirmation, “If we learn to go out, learn to talk to others, those who are like us and care about us, we can be free and saved. You can smile! There are so many things outside.”

Eyes widening at his words, a small spark had been lit in your heart. Curiosity and imagination had filled you, wonder of what lies beyond books had entranced you.

“If you’re scared, how about this?” He asked. Before you could even turn to him to inquire on what he was talking about; a soft material had been draped up on your head and upper torso. “It can work as a hood, or a cloak. It’s a cloth I was planning to hide for my training but you can use it! If you’re scared of turning me into stone, I wouldn’t be able to look at your eyes if they’re covered by that” he suggested

You pulled the edges of the cloth closer to yourself, finding an odd comfort in it.

Kirishima suddenly stood up, stretching out his hand. “As a future hero and a man, I, Eijiro Kirishima, promise to protect you with all my life,” he smiled.

“Don’t you think the world would be so much brighter if we weren’t so scared to go?” He added. “So what do you say?”

After a while, no response had come from you yet. Kirishima began to worry about your answer. Just as he was about to retreat and leave you alone, a sudden shift in movement had been made.

You nodded placing your hand softly on top of his, “I wish to go outside”

#bnha x reader #bnha #fluff #kirishima #kirishima eijirou #eijirou kirishima #kirishima x reader #kirishima x reader fluff #bnha x reader fluff #kagepro #imagination forest #brave boy #mha #mha x reader #bnha scenario #bnha x reader scenario #kirishima scenario

[commentaryvorg]

Danganronpa V3 Commentary: Part 5.17

Be aware that this is not a blind playthrough! This will contain spoilers for the entire game, regardless of the part of the game I’m commenting on. A major focus of this commentary is to talk about all of the hints and foreshadowing of events that are going to happen and facts that are going to be revealed in the future of the story. It is emphatically not intended for someone experiencing the game for their first time.

Last time in trial 5 (trial 5!!!!!), we went over what Maki caused and witnessed last night, including torturing Kokichi for information because that’s normal behaviour in the world she was raised in, Kokichi partly telling the truth but also still partly lying, him deliberately goading her into shooting him so that Kaito would jump in the way because he’s Kaito, Kaito having zero regrets about doing that even though it seemingly made things worse, Kaito’s furious stubborn determination in the face of hopelessness as he refused to show Maki how bad things were, and Maki’s despair.

Then Shuichi turned down the suggestion to vote because he noticed a new fact in Maki’s testimony.

Tsumugi:  “Oh yeah! The alarm should’ve gone off if someone got close to the shutter!”

Maki:  “I was too focused to notice at the time. But now that you mention it, it is odd.”

Yeah. “Focused”. That sure is technically a way to describe the state of mind she’d have been in while she was slashing at that control panel. She doesn’t seem to want to describe it any more accurately than that.

Maki:  “I did attempt to enter the hangar… and I tried to destroy the control panel with my knife.”

“Oh? Did you now?”

…

Exisal Kokichi:  “Or maybe Maki is telling a lie… Did you really try to break the control panel with a knife?”

Some more very easy ad-libbed minor dickery from Kaito: try to discredit everything Maki says and act as though she’d lie about anything, even when she’s very clearly not lying and doesn’t have any plausible reason to be doing so.

Exisal Kokichi:  “Huuuh? Why would I use an Electrobomb? I had no reason to shut off the alarm, right? I’d be at a disadvantage if I did that.”

Never mind the part where he said like an hour ago that he totally might have done that for fun. I was pretty sure that one was ad-libbed, but this one probably isn’t scripted either because we’re still talking about something Maki did. I guess Kaito just wants to oppose that possibility more now that Shuichi is actually pursuing it, since that’s the kind of thing Kokichi would do.

Shuichi:  (What piece of evidence is called into question if the safety function was off?) “…Kaito’s cause of death.”

Maki:  “…What?”

Maki’s voice sounds pretty shaken here. She’s only just awakening to the possibility that maybe she didn’t kill Kaito after all.

Exisal Kokichi:  “… I see… very impressive. The hydraulic press *could* have been the cause of death. But that’s… just a possibility.”

Shuichi:  “What do you mean?”

Exisal Kokichi:  “It’s possible that I killed Kaito with the press, but there’s no way to know. Kaito’s death could have been either the poison arrow or the hydraulic press. Both causes are possible, but you’ll never be able to determine it… no matter what.”

So here’s an interesting conundrum. What we see here from Kaito should still all be ad-libbed, because this is still related to what Maki did that Kokichi wasn’t able to put in the script. But this whole thing is rather uncharacteristically much of a good plan for me to be sure it’s really all Kaito’s idea.

Shuichi:  “So that’s what you were trying to do… You were trying to commit an unsolvable murder!”

Exisal Kokichi:  “Nee-heehee… Do you finally get it? Yup, that was my plan. The gimmick of this murder case isn’t the unknown victim… But rather, the unknowable culprit!”

…Because this is a really clever bit of misdirection. The looming question this whole trial has been “what on earth is Kokichi’s reason for making things so confusing?”, and no conclusion is going to be satisfactory until we have an answer for that. The real answer is that it really is about the unknown victim – but it being about an unknowable culprit and Kokichi wanting to make a case where the truth literally can’t be found is also a plausible answer to that question that therefore distracts from what he’s really doing with this.

This move is a very Kokichi-esque move to make. I want to have faith in Kaito’s ability to have come up with a clever idea or two in the entire night he had to think about nothing but this, but even then I’m still not sure he’d have necessarily been able to think of this. On the other hand, since this is such a vital point which massively helps the entire plan, it’s quite possible that this is the one thing Kokichi added to the script – probably not literally, probably just by telling Kaito to say it – in the short time he had after Maki had left.

(I would say it was possible that none of this was planned and Kaito just jumped on Shuichi’s deduction and went “yeah, uh, let’s go with that, it was totally about this all along!”. But Kaito was clearly trying to lead Shuichi into coming to this conclusion in the first place, so unfortunately that idea doesn’t hold up.)

Exisal Kokichi:  “No one understands but me! Only *I* know the answer!”

So I’m assuming that Kokichi really didn’t directly add any of this bit to the script, which means that this is most likely again some very insightful ad-libbing from Kaito. He’s gloating, which is a very Kokichi thing to do. Maybe this is once again drawing from Kaito’s frustration at the realisation that Kokichi knew a hell of a lot more than he ever told anyone and apparently got a huge kick out of being the only one to know. Or maybe this is Kaito drawing from some bits in the script that we’ll see him recite later on which also have Kokichi gloating a lot, and he’s adapting that idea to fit here.

Exisal Kokichi:  “There’s no more room for deduction here! Choose the culprit with your own intuition!”

Using their intuition? As in, their judgement of the people involved?

Because if we assume that the truth of this situation really is as it’s being presented here and then have to decide if it was Maki or Kokichi based on that… it doesn’t seem likely that Kokichi did it. Sure, he’d cover it up and make it look like he might have killed Kaito, but actually directly killing him? Something that would then indisputably mean that he is responsible for someone’s death? Ha ha, no, not Kokichi.

…Okay, well, maybe it’s a bit different this time because Maki already landed a fatal blow, so even if Kokichi finished it with the press he could tell himself that he’s not really killing anyone since Kaito was already going to die thanks to Maki in the first place.

Kaito might not really be asking them to use their judgement of Kokichi’s character, though; while I’ve talked a million times about what I call Kaito’s “intuition”, Kaito himself has never actually used that word for it. What also makes sense to do here is use logical intuition of what would give the best outcome for Kokichi, which would probably be that he did kill Kaito but is trying to trick them into thinking Maki did it so that he can get everyone else killed while surviving himself.

Of course, it really doesn’t actually matter either way, since Monokuma still does not have even the slightest clue that the real culprit is Kaito, which means the plan is succeeding and any verdict at this point is a good one.

Keebo:  “I-Intuition?”

Exisal Kokichi:  “Nee-heehee… Are you troubled? I’m sure robots don’t have intuition, right?”

This is literally the one single robophobic thing that Exisal Kokichi has said. Apparently Keebo’s comment reminded Kaito that, oh yeah, Kokichi was always a dick to Keebo as well wasn’t he, better throw in just a tiny bit of that to be convincing. But no more than this, because there is no reason to be any worse than absolutely necessary. (I doubt there were any deliberate jabs at Keebo in the script, like there almost certainly were at Maki, since Kokichi wouldn’t have been expecting Keebo to act in any particular way towards him.)

Exisal Kokichi:  “The heart-racing excitement as the blackened and the spotless face off! It’s… VOTING TIME!!!”

The delivery of this line is has some of that just-a-little-too-over-the-top intonation, like this is another one of those overly-rehearsed scripted lines. Probably Kokichi put this in the script as something to say at any point in which it might be reasonable to try and push the vote through early, since that is of course what he’s trying to do here.

And… it actually works? This sends us to the voting screen. It can’t be just that the screen was always active and this line made Shuichi turn to it thinking that he has to vote, because the screen has a time limit and so someone needs to activate it. Which makes it a little strange that the screen activated at all, since Monokuma does not want this to happen and cancels it before anything goes through. Perhaps the voting screen really is somehow just set to start when someone, anyone, says those exact words.

(I voted for Kokichi, because there’s no way Shuichi would choose to vote for Maki in this situation – as far as he knows, if Maki gets the majority vote, she will definitely die whether she did it or not – and he doesn’t have a reason to vote for anyone else. You can also get away with not voting.)

Monokuma:  “Hey! That’s my line! I’m the one who decides when it’s Voting Time!”

Exisal Kokichi:  “Aw, c’mon… No one’s gonna figure out the truth. Let’s just vote already. This won’t be a problem, right, Monokuma? Cuz you know who the culprit is, don’t you? …Just like you always do.”

Monokuma:  “…Eh?”

In this moment right here, Exisal Kokichi is ruining the entire plan. This draws attention to the fact that Monokuma doesn’t know who the culprit is, and as soon as Shuichi figures that out, it becomes possible for him to figure out Kokichi’s real plan and, in doing so, cause it to fail. Shuichi might never reach the truth if Monokuma’s lack of knowledge doesn’t come to light, and that’s a fact he might not have figured out if Monokuma hadn’t been goaded into acting suspicious about it here.

Which really begs the question of why Exisal Kokichi does this.

Possibility one: this is scripted. The line to force through voting time was almost certainly scripted as something to do if everyone has reached something that seems like a plausible truth but isn’t the real truth, so these lines here would also potentially be scripted as a response to Monokuma inevitably cancelling the vote before it goes through.

Why would Kokichi put such a blatantly terrible move in his script? Because he was an idiot. He’d evidently always underestimated Shuichi’s ability to figure things out, since he apparently thought it’d be totally fine to not have Shuichi as his accomplice and leave him free to uncover everything in the trial. So it’s quite possible that it didn’t occur to Kokichi that doing this here would obviously lead to Shuichi figuring out that Monokuma doesn’t know who the culprit is and thus eventually reaching the real point of the plan. Meanwhile, Kokichi loved to gloat, very much to the point that he’d do so from beyond the grave by making Kaito do it for him, so this could well be Kokichi having wanted to be all “ha ha, Monokuma, I’m smarter than you” while oblivious to the fact that doing so will ruin his whole plan. More on this general idea later this post.

Possibility two: this is not scripted and is entirely Kaito’s decision. Why would Kaito do this even though it’d ruin the plan? Because Kaito doesn’t quite want the same outcome from this plan as Kokichi did. I mean, sure, ideally fooling Monokuma and proving that he got a verdict wrong to ruin the killing game would be the best possible outcome. But Kaito knows that Shuichi is amazing and is almost certainly going to lead Monokuma to the real truth sooner or later, and therefore that the best outcome of this plan is extremely unlikely to ever happen.

In fact, Kaito has been known to somewhat overestimate Shuichi’s abilities in terms of how much he’s already figured out. So Kaito probably thinks it’s quite possible that Shuichi will figure out the victim switch and that he’s the real culprit without even needing to know that Monokuma is being fooled. If that happens, it’ll never come to light at all that Monokuma didn’t know who the culprit is and was relying on Shuichi to get it right. It’ll never be proven that Monokuma had to get it right.

Kaito knows that the best possible outcome of this trial is already practically out of reach – so he might well be gunning for the next best outcome, which is to push Monokuma into a corner and make it undeniable that he can’t break the rules and can’t get the answer wrong. If that happens, that’ll prove to Shuichi that there really is an audience watching this somewhere. It’ll give him a path to reach that “something beyond the truth” that Kaito told him about before, namely the idea that what they saw outside was somehow a lie and there’s still somewhere for them to escape to and call home. That’s what Kaito’s really doing all this for, since he’s already pretty sure that straight-up ruining the killing game isn’t going to happen here.

(Possibility three is that it’s a combination of both, in that Kokichi scripted it because he’s an idiot but Kaito is still actively thinking about going for the next best outcome as he reads this part of the script.)

Monokuma:  “Th-The culprit, you say? Ah, y-yes… Of c-course I know…”

Himiko:  “Hm? Why do you seem so flustered?”

Monokuma:  “F-Flustered? Me? Hahahaha! What are you talking about?”

Monokuma is really bad at this. So much so that it’s most likely deliberate. It’s possible that he’s not allowed to directly admit that he doesn’t know who the culprit is, but by acting this way he might be trying to get Shuichi to figure that fact out, so that Shuichi can then use that fact to deduce the real truth for him. Temporarily compromising his integrity as a gamemaster but then getting it right in the end would be better for him than appearing like he knows what he’s doing but then getting it wrong. And no matter what, this is still an interesting story – if anything, this development just makes it even more so.

Shuichi:  “Monokuma… do you not know who the culprit is, either!?”

Monokuma:  “Huh!? Whaddaya mean I don’t know!? Uh, what don’t I know, huh!?”

Maki:  “…You don’t know, do you?”

Monokuma:  “…”

Even once they’ve guessed it, he still doesn’t directly confirm it. Maybe he really isn’t allowed to say that. (And since he’s an AI, he might even be physically incapable of doing so, just like a certain someone in DR2 couldn’t say certain things.)

In fact, after this point, Monokuma shuts up again for a while. Which does support the idea that his nervousness just now wasn’t genuine nervousness but just an act to point Shuichi towards the truth, an act he no longer needs to keep up.

Exisal Kokichi also shuts up for a while here. This rather suggests that him drawing this out of Monokuma wasn’t for Kokichi’s potential purpose of gloating, which, if that was the case, he’d want to continue doing even more now that this fact has come to light. (There is plenty of gloating about beating Monokuma in the script, but we’ll get to that in a little bit – only after it’s become apparent Kokichi isn’t the mastermind. Until then, it makes a lot less sense for him to gloat about knowing something Monokuma doesn’t.)

But for Kaito’s potential purpose of pushing Monokuma into a corner, he’s now achieved it and therefore doesn’t need to push any further, so he probably would indeed shut up at this point.

Shuichi:  “Kokichi wasn’t just trying to commit a murder than we couldn’t figure out… He was trying to commit a murder than Monokuma couldn’t figure out, either!”

This is… still not quite the whole truth. It’s not just about Monokuma not being able to figure it out, but about proving that Monokuma got it wrong. Kokichi didn’t just want to mess with Monokuma by giving him a confusing conundrum. If he does that, there’s no way to prove that he’s won. Kokichi wanted to utterly, indisputably defeat him.

If the crux of the plan were making the culprit genuinely unknowable, by killing Kaito and posing the unanswerable question of if the cause of death was poison or crushing, then that wouldn’t actually achieve his goal. Kokichi could claim all he wants that he knows which it really was – maybe he checked Kaito’s pulse just before putting him in the press or something – but he has no way to prove that. Kaito is not visibly breathing in the video, precisely to keep this kind of thing hidden from Monokuma right now, and it’s not like Kokichi could have secretly taken another video from another angle that showed that Kaito was breathing. Monokuma could declare the blackened as whichever one he feels like, and even if he is wrong, he could insist he’s right because he totally just knows these things, and nobody would be able to conclusively prove otherwise.

That’s why the real crux of the plan here had to be the unknown victim after all. Kokichi wanted to make Monokuma think that he killed Kaito, so that once Monokuma renders his verdict, Kaito can climb out of the Exisal and undeniably, conclusively prove him wrong.

(It’s a good thing this really isn’t a virtual reality. This is somewhat reminiscent of the plan in chapter 5 of Danganronpa 2, which also seemed for a bit like the point was purely for the culprit to be completely unknowable – but Monokuma knew anyway because of the nature of his control over that world.)

Shuichi:  “Prior to this case, Monokuma always knew the specific details of each crime, correct? That must mean that he was using some way of monitoring us…”

And finally, Shuichi reaches this conclusion. If only he’d figured this out in chapter 1, everything might have been different. It was still totally possible for him to figure it out then just from the killing game rules, but I guess it took having a bunch of actual class trials for him to start considering the question of how does Monokuma know the real culprit anyway.

Shuichi:  “The Electrobomb *would* prevent any cameras from sending video wirelessly.”

As well as being vital to the plot of chapter 1, the invisible cameras are also potentially an important plot point here. If the cameras were large ones like in the other games, they might be able to send their video to Motherkuma through a wired feed, which the Electrobomb wouldn’t affect, or at least have some kind of drive space to save their video locally until the Electrobomb wears off and they can send it. But the Nanokumas are, A, obviously not wired to anything, and, B, almost certainly too tiny to have data storage space within themselves and have to send their video footage to Motherkuma as they’re recording or it’ll be lost. So the Electrobomb works perfectly here when it might not have done in any other Danganronpa. The fact that the gamemakers don’t want the students to be aware of the cameras also means that there aren’t any official school rules against tampering with them, meaning that Kokichi could safely do this.

Shuichi:  “Yes… the Exisals weren’t protecting Monokuma, they were… […] They were watching Monokuma.”

Good job finally figuring this out, Shuichi, after Monokuma hinted very strongly at it during the investigation. He was probably trying very hard to tell you this, as another hint that he doesn’t know the truth.

Shuichi:  “Remember what Monokuma said earlier in the investigation?”

He only said this to you, so I don’t know why you’re asking everyone else to “remember”, but okay.

Maki:  “Before I stole an Exisal, all four units were focused on Monokuma. That’s why when I stole one to enter the hangar, the other three didn’t pursue me.”

Shuichi: “So Monokuma must have been talking about Maki…”

Shuichi is referring to that awkward bit I mentioned during the investigation:

Monokuma:  “The person who shared that info with me didn’t seem interested in sharing it with you guys… So you share it instead! That way, it’ll be fair to all participants!”

…even though “sharing info” definitely does not seem to be what Maki did with Monokuma at all. So maybe Monokuma only talked about it that way to give himself an excuse to tell Shuichi, because really he just wanted to be able to hint at Shuichi that he doesn’t have a clue what happened so that Shuichi can figure it all out for him.

Tsumugi:  “But Kokichi’s the mastermind, right? Shouldn’t he be controlling Monoku—”

Shuichi:  “Kokichi might not be the mastermind!”

Himiko:  “Wh-Wh-Wh-Wh-Whaaat!?”

Shock horror! Such an unexpected twist!

Which, to be fair, is more of a twist for the characters than it is for us, since they don’t have the narrative argument of “but it’s way too boringly obvious”. Plus, the Flashback Light rendered them utterly convinced that he’s a Remnant of Despair, at which point him being the mastermind just makes sense regardless of his confession.

It’s not a twist for Tsumugi, though, of course, but look at her still trying to insist that he totally is the mastermind. It’d help her cause to have it finally be revealed that he isn’t, but I suppose she’s acting this way because she knows Shuichi is about to refute it anyway.

Shuichi:  “Remember that the only reason we think that, is because Kokichi told us. Monokuma hasn’t said a word about that. It’s possible that Kokichi is just lying to us.”

See, all of Kokichi’s efforts to convince everyone that he’s definitely the mastermind didn’t even work on Shuichi, who is the one person they should have needed to work on in order to be worth doing in the first place. All those efforts (including, have I mentioned, murdering two people) were for the purpose of manipulating everyone into being more inclined to assume that his lie was the truth and not question it, even though there was no concrete evidence. But now that the logic is beginning to line up such that things only make sense if Kokichi wasn’t the mastermind, Shuichi is more than capable of putting aside all his preconceived notions and acknowledging that there’s no actual proof of this anywhere. Shuichi was always going to be able to think like this, because that’s what detectives do. Murdering Miu and Gonta was so fucking pointless.

Exisal Kokichi:  “Ah-hahahaha! No way I lied! I’m definitely controlling Monokuma. The mastermind of the killing game is totally me. The one who pitted humanity’s last survivors against each other is… all me, baby!”

And now we’re back to some definitely-scripted stuff. Kokichi would absolutely have written a response to them questioning whether he’s really the mastermind. Of course that response would include gloating, too – he gloated about all this stuff he didn’t really do while he was still alive, and he’s still even doing it in death through Kaito.

Himiko:  “He’s a Remnant of Despair! How’d we forget that?”

Shuichi:  “But that doesn’t necessarily mean that he’s the mastermind.”

Tsumugi:  “Umm… well… I guess. But is that really possible?”

Tsumugi, what do you even want here? Do you want them to figure out he wasn’t the mastermind so they can maybe reach the truth and save your game’s integrity, or not? This seems like another of the times where she’s determined to back up the story shown in her Flashback Lights, but at this point she doesn’t even need them to believe that any more, since she already achieved her goal of making Maki try to kill Kokichi.

Monokuma:  “… I can’t answer that without causing problems, cuz I gotta run this trial fair and squa—”

Shuichi:  “Even more reason to give us the answer! If you don’t tell us the truth right now, you’ll be an accomplice to Kokichi’s lies. Does that sound like a fair game? Would you say this class trial is fair?”

Honestly, this class trial is so confusing that I don’t think “fairness” even comes into it any more. I’m also not sure that revealing Kokichi’s claim to be a lie does come under the principle of “keeping everything fair”. Participants of this game can lie about whatever they want, and it’s not supposed to be Monokuma’s place to call out those lies. The Monokuma Files, for example, always leave out details that would explicitly prove any student’s claim to be a lie.

Tsumugi:  “Yeah, tell us! Is Kokichi the real mastermind or not!?”

I wonder if Monokuma was only able to actually tell them after receiving a direct instruction to do so from Tsumugi.

Monokuma:  “Unlike the lies you love so much, the truth should be impartial to everyone.”

This particular truth kind of isn’t? Confirming that Kokichi isn’t the mastermind makes it possible that Monokuma really doesn’t know what’s going on, which makes Shuichi more likely to figure out the real truth and puts whoever’s in the Exisal at a disadvantage. Monokuma says he’s being impartial, but he’s totally siding against Exisal Kokichi here.

…Also, look at him being sure he’s talking to Kokichi. Heh.

Monokuma:  “With the key from the last motive, he was the first to learn the truth of the outside world. Based on his deductions, he fabricated a lie to make you all think he was the mastermind. […] His deductions got a lot of details right, though. Pretty impressive, honestly.”

Exisal Kokichi:  “…”

This would read as Kokichi being deliberately silent at being caught out in his lie, but in reality it could be Kaito wondering about how much Kokichi knew and what was going through his head when he told them all that stuff. Kokichi admitted to Kaito that he wasn’t the mastermind, but he didn’t really elaborate on it, so Kaito might be only realising the full extent of his lie here, just like everyone else is.

(Also, Monokuma is totally lying through his teeth about anything Kokichi said back at the end of the tunnel being “right”. Kokichi did in fact deduce the real truth, most likely, but he never told anyone that part.)

Monokuma also adds that the Exisal remote Kokichi had was just made by Miu.

Exisal Kokichi:  “Hey, isn’t it a bit unfair to tell them all that?”

Monokuma:  “Fairness has nothing to do with it. I offered up that info purely out of site. Spite towards you, for trying to usurp the mastermind’s role and take over the game!”

Fairness didn’t have a lot to do with him revealing the first piece of information, but hey, at least Monokuma’s admitting it this time. It’s also appropriate that Monokuma would do something this petty out of spite towards Kokichi for ruining his fun, when spite towards Monokuma was also the entire reason Kokichi set up this whole plan. They really are quite alike.

Exisal Kokichi:  “Well, whatever. It’s way more interesting to defeat an enemy who plays dirty anyway.”

This… might be ad-libbed? I’m not sure if Kokichi would have thought to put in a response to Monokuma being spiteful. I’m also not sure Kokichi would have been this casual and flippant about Monokuma playing dirty towards him either, since he threw a huge tantrum in trial 4 when Shuichi dared to use a single lie against him.

Tsumugi:  “What were you trying to accomplish by pretending to be the mastermind, Kokichi?”

Exisal Kokichi:  “…”

Looks like the answer to that question isn’t in the script. The real answer is, apparently, “to make them think I’m definitely alive when I’m not”, so of course he wouldn’t have put it in the script. I don’t think he told this to Kaito, though, so Kaito might also be wondering this himself right now. Why the hell did he decide to murder two people just for something that’s now not even a thing any more?

(I also wonder if Tsumugi asked this because she genuinely wants to know too.)

Shuichi:  (The real mastermind is not Kokichi… Who could it be?)

Unfortunately, Shuichi, that is not a question for this trial and Monokuma isn’t going to let you keep thinking about that here.

Exisal Kokichi:  “Before we worry about who the mastermind is, or what my intent is… Let’s figure out the culprit!”

Kokichi should not have wanted them to figure out the culprit at all. But neither should Kaito, even though he’s pretty sure Shuichi is going to manage it sooner or later anyway. So, eh, this probably isn’t an ad-lib.

Exisal Kokichi:  “Let’s just leave the decision-making to Monokuma. But… you gotta run the class trial, too. So no mistakes, okaaaay?”

Monokuma:  “…Are you tryin’ to get me to do something?”

Exisal Kokichi:  “You’ve been watching us solve all these cases, but you can’t be a spectator anymore. You’re gonna participate in the class trial from here on out.”

Shuichi:  (Huh?)

Exisal Kokichi:  “So, let’s resume this class trial! Monokuma, you gotta use your brain too!”

This whole thing seems very much like it’s coming from Kokichi. He was always furious at Monokuma just sitting back and enjoying himself from the sidelines as everyone distrusted and betrayed and accused each other. Kokichi must have got a lot of twisted satisfaction from the idea of forcing Monokuma to become just another participant in this game, just like them, and then of beating him at that game.

Exisal Kokichi:  “This will be the final class trial! Me versus Monokuma!”

Shuichi:  “You versus Monokuma?”

Exisal Kokichi:  “…When I play a game, I intend to win. But what’s considered winning in this game? Beating the other players? No… beating the game’s mastermind is the true victory. And that’s how I’ll win! That’s why I decided to challenge Monokuma! If I can deceive Monokuma till the very end, then I’ll be the winner!”

He got such satisfaction out of this idea that he couldn’t just keep it to himself and die in that press only silently knowing that this was going to happen. He had to make sure Monokuma and everyone else watching would know that this is what he’s doing. Kaito is reciting these lines from the script, but this is very much Kokichi speaking right now, from beyond the grave. This is more from the heart than anything else Kokichi put in the script just to keep up the deception. Remember “there’s nothing more depressing than an unnoticed prank”? There would be no point to Kokichi in defeating Monokuma if Monokuma and the audience don’t even realise he’s been beaten. Kokichi is gloating to his fullest.

Exisal Kokichi:  “But since the outside world is in total ruin, this game is the only entertainment we have… At least I can enjoy this game to the fullest and feel good winning.”

…This part is less directly from the heart, of course, but it’s still from the part of Kokichi that desperately, twistedly convinced himself he was having fun with this, that he had to have fun with it, to cover up how much he hated it. If he hadn’t been so desperate to feel that way, then maybe he’d have just boringly ended the game without “winning” it by helping everyone escape in chapter 4 like he should have done. But no, he had to find a way to enjoy it, and he had to win, otherwise, to him, it wouldn’t have been worth it.

Maki:  “You really are a Remnant of Despair. Your way of thinking is just chaotic.”

Exisal Kokichi:  “… …Remnant of Despair?”

Kaito’s heard this phrase a bunch of times by now, but I guess in this moment his confusion over it and why the hell he’s supposed to know about it slipped out.

Exisal Kokichi:  “Eh, whatevs. Let’s just get this started.”

But then he brushes it off. See, at this point, being explicitly not the mastermind, the real Kokichi would be free to go “okay, no, really, I don’t have a clue why you think I’m one of these Remnant of Despair thingies because I’m not”. But Kaito still isn’t sure whether Kokichi really knew about this and really was one or not, and whether everyone else has some kind of information which would make them certain that he’s not Kokichi if he didn’t know about this. So he’s still being vague to play it safe.

Exisal Kokichi:  “If the students or Monokuma don’t know who the culprit is, then I’m the winn—”

The students not knowing who the culprit is should be completely beside the point. Phrasing it this way puts “Kokichi” on a separate team from the students, and implies that the students and Monokuma are on the same team. (This line has to be scripted despite the ad-lib just before it, because Kaito thoroughly considers the students to be on the same side as him and wouldn’t say something like this while hastily improvising.)

Shuichi and the others are about to make a very foolish mistake. They’re going to decide that Monokuma is basically on their side and continue to pursue the truth, even though it should be apparent at this point that they don’t want to find the truth, because Monokuma doesn’t know it either and him remaining in the dark is a good thing. But who’s the single most responsible person for them making that mistake? Kokichi.

It’s most apparent in the phrasing of this one line just now, but this entire gloating speech he just had was essentially Kokichi presenting himself as more of a villain than Monokuma. Even though they know now that he’s not the mastermind, it’s still quite easy thanks to that speech to continue feeling like Kokichi’s their biggest enemy in this trial. That’s a stupid mistake, of course it is – Monokuma is always the real enemy – but it is Kokichi’s fault that they’re going to make this mistake.

This could have been very easily avoided if only Kokichi had phrased his gloating in such a way that made it clear that he’s actually on everyone’s side, that by defeating Monokuma he’s going to save them, that he pretended to be the villain but he’s really the hero. It could have also been avoided by Kokichi just not gloating at all in the first place, and simply letting the personal satisfaction of believing that he’s going to win be enough for him. He could easily have taken this chance, now that Shuichi is aware that Monokuma doesn’t know the culprit, to outright communicate to Shuichi that Monokuma remaining in the dark would be better for all of them and so he should shut up and stop making deductions.

But no. Kokichi had to take this opportunity to gloat, even though he’d be dead by the time the gloating happened, and he had to do so by usurping Monokuma’s villain role and seeming even bigger and eviler than him. He was so determined to do so that it didn’t even occur to him that it might just ruin the whole plan. This is the final reason why Kokichi’s plan was always inevitably going to fail.

(It’s also pertinent to note that if Kokichi really were selfless and doing this plan because he cared about saving everyone, if he’d always genuinely felt like he was on their side, then you’d think he’d be able to realise that now is the time to finally drop the villain act and admit that he’s been on their side and trying to save them all along. The fact that that’s not what he does rather strongly suggests that he was only ever in this plan for himself.)

Of course, I should also talk about Kaito here, because he sure as hell doesn’t care about gloating and coming across like a villain for its own sake. It might have occurred to Kaito that this whole speech seems kind of odd and unnecessary and possibly not a great idea – but, apparently, Kaito is trusting Kokichi’s plan anyway. He’s had to accept lately that his own plans are terrible and that Kokichi’s are generally way better than his, after all. So Kaito’s assuming that anything Kokichi put in the script has a good reason for being there, even if he doesn’t understand it himself. He’s only deviating from what the script wants him to say when it involves him being unnecessarily cruel, but otherwise, Kaito is not questioning Kokichi’s judgement and is trusting that every word of this script was somehow carefully crafted to make the plan more likely to succeed. That’s why he was happy to randomly talk about nipples earlier, and that’s why he is faithfully reciting this whole speech and making the plan fail. Kaito doesn’t realise that Kokichi’s plan, while pretty creative and clever in a lot of ways, was also horrendously flawed simply because of the kind of person Kokichi was.

As it happens, the thing that Kokichi should have done – simply being quietly satisfied with the knowledge that he’s (supposedly) going to win without needing anyone else to know about it – is also basically what Kaito is doing right now. He’s spent this whole trial fighting as hard as he can to carry out the plan and save everyone, but currently nobody else has any idea that it’s him who’s doing this. Okay, granted, Kaito knows that at the end of the trial he’s going to get to reveal himself and explain his part in the plan – but even when we get to that point, Kaito is not going to make a big deal of the fact that he tried to save everyone.

This is another one of those fun similarity-yet-contrasts between Kaito and Kokichi. Much like Kokichi always needs to be the centre of attention, Kaito’s thing of talking himself up to be a big hero seems on the surface to be a similar thing. But it was never quite the same. Kaito may be showy about himself, but that’s mostly to inspire others to have a similar level of confidence in themselves. And more to the point, back in the earlier chapters, he rarely made a big deal of the ways in which he was helping others. He would just do those things without caring whether or not anyone knew that he was trying to help. Of course, this fell apart a bit as Kaito realised he was dying and became more desperate and started to clearly need people, particularly Shuichi, to know that he was the one helping them. But now, Kaito’s grown past this! He’s able to be satisfied simply with the knowledge that he’s playing a small part in saving everyone, without needing everyone else to know that he’s the one saving them. He started changing in this way the moment he dropped his own terrible escape plan and picked up Kokichi’s Electrohammer earlier in this chapter, and this whole trial and his part in this plan is the culmination of that growth. Kaito is so good.

And it’s because Kokichi didn’t grow and change at all, like Kaito was able to, that he’s still the same attention seeker he always was and still felt the need to show off about his deeds to the point that he’s just ruined his whole plan.

Monokuma:  “Don’t underestimate me. Or Shuichi and the others for that matter.”

Well, mostly don’t underestimate Shuichi. Which, of course, is exactly what Kokichi did and the other big reason his plan was always going to fail.

Monokuma:  “It’s just like a Remnant of Despair to try and assume control of the game. But these kids are all that’s left of Hope’s Peak Academy. If you think they’re gonna make this easy for you, you better think again!”

Yet again this idea that the students are basically just warriors for good in a huge battle between good and evil, when that’s not the point. Monokuma is partly pandering to the audience here, but he’s also pandering to the part of Shuichi and friends that’s been brainwashed into seeing things this way, to help along the idea that Kokichi, who is totally a Remnant of Despair, is the biggest enemy here. While Kokichi obviously didn’t know about this Remnant of Despair stuff while writing his script, his general evil gloating has very much helped Monokuma frame things like this.

Monokuma:  “…Monokuma joins your party.”

Monokuma – Ultimate Despair Headmaster

…Okay, giving an Ultimate introduction screen to Monokuma as if he really has become one of them is pretty great.

Keebo:  “Let’s just ignore Monokuma. His actions are always beyond comprehension.”

Monokuma:  “Yeah! Let’s just focus on the case!”

Monokuma is pushing them along and encouraging them to not think too hard about his motives for suddenly acting like he’s on their side, which they of course should not remotely be ignoring like this. But they are, thanks to Kokichi being a selfish attention-seeking idiot from beyond the grave.

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