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hhorror-vacuii · 7 months

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In my lit theory clas we discussed a certain key in which all literature (which is also a part of the gay&lesbian theory, one of the newer schools of thought in this field) could be read, and that is a so called homotext. A homotext is a text in which there is no need to have a homosexaul/romantic character appear – the most important aspect is if the figure „speaking” to us through the text is homosexual/romantic one (a figure speaking through the text is not necessarily the narrator, nor the author, but I simply do not want to turn this post into a lit theory lecture). All we need to know now is that this figure must appear to be closely woven into the text, and try to communicate with its recipients (the readers) through so called secret signs. To be able to discover this figure and its secret language we need to be extremely careful and meticulous during our readings, to try to uncover the mystery and solve what is almost a riddle. The theory of a homotext lists 5 signs we need to look for (I’m keeping the male-centric language, because it pertains to the books I’m going to discuss later):

Male body described in a peculiar manner. It means that the body might be very improtant, or described in great detail, or be the focus of the story, or be very different (extremely ugly or extremely beautiful, disfigured, unearthly, unhuman, not in keeping with the story etc. It would depend on each specific text, I imagine).

Eros and Thanatos – Love and Death – must be linked together somehow in the story.

A love triangle consisting of 2 men and 1 woman must appear. What is important (apprently) is that the men never consumate their own desires (there is no sex or love affair in the usual sense of the word) between them.

The action of the story moves at some point from a center to outskirts/peripheries. It means hiding, or abadonement, or a mystery disappearence etc.

The two men in question must share some secret reading between them – a language that only they two understand, or reading a book together, or one teaching something to the other etc. Something that pertains to reading and is specific to them only.

Because I was already in my D’Artagnan Romances insanity era by the time I was studying this, I began to look at the trilogy through the homotext lens and you might be either surprised or delighted, but the relationship between Athos and Aramis fulfils every point on that list and then some. Here goes:

1. Dumas did not really describe his characters in great detail, but he did describe some of their features, sometimes in such a great detail it comes off as a surprise to readers. Because I cannot, for the life of me, imagine why would we need all that he says about Athos’ beautiful hands, and handsome, noble face if we don’t even actually learn his name. Yet he describes the hands and nobility radiating from Athos as if his life depended on it. Aramis, on the other hand, has a bit more attention focused on his appearance, and for a reason, since he’s the pretty one. So much so that many adaptations only focus on that, because Aramis is also so many other things, but! He is described as short, strongly built and beautiful. There is also a great amount of instances of his blushing in the first book, or of his biting his lip in the third one (to say nothing of his habit of pinching his ears so that they are read, and putting his hands upwards so that they look white, or of his almond paste he uses to make himself look, again, pale and beautiful. He is extremely foused on his appearence). He is, on the whole, percieved through the way he looks to the world, which is deceptive to the readers (and his fellow characters), because while he may look angelic, his nature is decidedly more sinister. Another amazing detail – which @widevibratobitch made me aware of in her amazing tags one day – is that, being a man in a certain epoch and place, Aramis was all but required to sport a mustache; but his’ is very small and thin (and he kept it that way even when the fashion changed, it was mentioned in Twenty Years After if I recall properly), which points again in the same direction: Aramis is a man, and does a lot of typically manly things like being a soldier, being a priest and so on. But he is also feminine-coded, and in such a way that it must have been obvious to anyone who knew him: ’Aramis, you know,’ continued Athos, ‘is naturally cold, and then he is always involved in intrigues wih women.’

2. Eros and Thanatos, linked together, are what plagues Athos from the very beggining of the first book (even if we don’t know this at first, there are signs: mostly in the fact that he does not have a mistress and is a melancholy drunk etc.), and that is the easiet point to make. But there are more. First of all, they all are linked with death by profession, but only Aramis and Athos became Musketeers because they killed someone, or believed they killed someone. Their new paths in life are therefore marked by both Eros and Thanatos – the women they were besotted with and the subsequent deaths they caused. Neither of them has a lover is what we believe at first, because Athos truly does not have anyone and Aramis plainly states he is following in his footsteps (lying through his teeth, of course). There is also another thing: while in world of the novel d’Artagnan must have learned all of his friends’ true names, presumably once he became the lieutenant, the readers were kept in the dark right until the moment d’Artagnan observes the rendez-vous beetwen Aramis and madame de Longueville. We learn his christian name is Rene through her lips (Eros), and d’Artagnan’s ears (Thanatos, since that was the decisive moement in their relationship and shifted d’Artagnan from fondness to disdain); not to mention the name itself means born again, which is as much a jab at his life and profession, as a thing linking him with death (Aramis is the only one who kills with pleasure, and one could argue intrigues – at times resulting in very violent outcomes – are his pastime). I find it interesting, that in the second book (which is when the relationship between them both starts to get truly interesting) Athos likewise has begun a new life, and that new life means for him an increased acquaintance with Aramis, with whom he stayed in contact, while the contact with Porthos and d’Artagnan was either severed or lost altogether.

3. This is arguably the funniest point on that list: Aramis is a lover of Marie de Rohan, duchess de Chevreuse, ever since the beggining of the novels, which comes about very quickly, and is even a source of amusement (plus a spiritus movens) – Athos meanwhile disdains women. But in Twenty Years After we learn that he has gotten a son, and then we learn that Raoul’s moter is Marie de Chevreuse. With whom he slept because he thought she was a man at first, but that does not change the fact Marie is the woman in this equation, linking Aramis and Athos together, linking them even more than what is needed in the theory, since they both slept with her. There is also a smaller instance of Aramis repeating the very words madame de Longueville told him at the beggining of the book to Athos at the end of it (yes, it’s a political statement, but what we focus on is that Dumas chose to repeat this phrase between two lovers and put them in an exchange of two-perhaps-lovers).

4. So we all know that at the end of the first book Aramis takes some sudden trip to Lorraine and hen he up and disapears and then becomes a priest, and Athos inherits a property and leaves Paris as well, if in less mysterious circumstances. But how does this move the plot if it happens at the end of the novel? Well, in my opinion, it moves the plot to recenter it in the second book with a much richer configuration. The whole of the first book is so to speak through d’Artagnan’s gaze, and in terms of reading and getting to see the story develop it is rather constraining. Twenty Years After – not to mention this silent, 20 years long, break they took – allows the character more movement, and it creates new paths their relations ar taking. Aramis and Athos have both moved away from the capital, and it allowed them more room for growth together – which is why they are now frondists together and honestly, in no book of the three but this one is their relationship so fully developed, folly portrayed and so interesting to discover. And in terms of just Aramis, his life changing from the king’s bodyuard to a priest (so from a sort-of public life to a more private one, moving to the outskirts of the material world) is what allows them to build his character in the third volume, which resonates with Athos’ story a little bit, because his status as a bishop with realistic expectations ofbecoming a cardinal later in life moves him a little bit closer to Athos’ status as an aristocrat.

5. This one might be a stretch, but I don’t care: they are the only two of the four who speak Latin. (But also! In Twenty Years After they exchange letters d’Artagnan is not privy to – they are even kept from him on purpose – and these letters are secret, because they are rebels.)

#go ana analyze your favourite novels now #the three musketeers #twenty years after #the viscount of bragelonne #aramis #athos #ad i did NOT include quotes to back up my reasoning because 1 it already took me 3 days to finish & 2. what are you a tumblr post police?

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just-sp-in-inginthevoid · 9 months

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Sano family brainrot

Mainly focus on Mama Sano/Papa Sano/Emma's mom + Izana('s relationship with Shinichiro) rather than the Sano siblings

Shinichiro & Mikey is here

Mama Sano and Papa Sano loved each other. At least, Mama Sano did. We don’t know what pushed Papa Sano to have Emma with Karen (and if it was planned) but we also don’t know when Mama Sano had to go to the hospital to never come back and those two things are most likely related.

The Sano Parents’ relationship could have evolved in different ways: they could’ve agree to divorce (he didn’t love her anymore; they knew she would die and thought it would be best; etc, etc.) or to allow him to pursue his life and have another relationship if it came to be (without divorce) or Papa Sano was just a playboy and that’s how Emma happened.

Still, Mama Sano was at the hospital since Mikey was very young. He has a memory from his father when he was 3, but he has none of his mother when she wasn’t at the hospital – supposedly she’s been there for so long he would’ve been way to young to remember her being able to raise him.

Mikey and Emma have a 1 year and 3 months age gap. So Mama Sano’s health could’ve declined during Mikey’s first year in life which could be followed by Papa Sano meeting Karen (or he could’ve met her during Mama Sano’s health decline).

And then… OK. If Mama Sano was at the hospital, and Papa Sano raised Mikey and Shinichiro, what did they do when he left to (supposedly) see Karen?

We don’t know if Shinichiro and Mikey were aware of Emma’s existence before she came to their grandfather’s house. Their surprise doesn’t last long, supposedly they knew they had a (half-)sister. Or they didn’t bother freaking out and just accepted it as their new reality, who knows. Maybe they knew their father had a relationship on the side, maybe they didn’t. But they didn’t know what she looked like or even her name, so their father didn’t talk much about that.

Karen is a very interesting, with very little clues/material and no narration from her POV to help which makes it very hard to analyze her character. She doesn’t care about Izana, but she cried when telling him goodbye and told him to ‘be strong since he was going to leave alone from now on’. She lied to Emma (whereas she didn’t with Izana) about picking her up later. She was wearing red lipstick and smelt like flowers that day.

What we know about this woman is: Her first husband was a ‘useless man’ who had Izana with a Filipino woman (the French translation I read called her his ‘ex-girlfriend’ meaning Izana was there before Karen and his father got together – which could give a reason as to why he wanted to marry her. But the English version gives you the idea he was unfaithful, and honestly I think both could be equally damaging to Karen’s mental health) – as to whether this relationship she had with that man was healthy (and honest) or not, we don’t know. But clearly, whether it happened when he was still alive or after his death, she couldn’t care less about him.

But she still had to raised Izana. And until he met her again as a teen, she never told him she wasn’t his biological mom. She let him call her that. (until he saw her again after all those years)

A thing that could’ve bring Papa Sano and Karen closer was that they had to raise kids alone. If him and Mama Sano got divorced, since Mikey doesn’t seem to be at his grandfather’s house as a baby/toddler, I’d say Papa Sano got custody (in Japan, divorced parents can’t share the custody of their children. Only one parent can keep it, and it’s usually the mother (because we all know children need more their mother and their nuturing care than their father /sarc) and father does not get visitation rights most of the time; it’s common for a child to not see their other parent after the divorce. Which, you know, makes you wonder who took care of Mikey when he wasn’t home, but– (oh hey Shinichiro)

And that’s the problem, isn’t it? Was Papa Sano more with Mikey and Shinichiro or with Karen and Emma? Was he there to raise Emma? If Karen knew Grandpa Sano’s address than her and Papa Sano should’ve been rather close (I mean, they had a child together. But Emma could’ve not be planned, who knows), no (if he didn’t know about Emma, Karen couldn’t have known about Gandpa Sano, right?)? Did he meet Izana? Did Izana met Papa Sano?

After her first-husband’s death, Karen had to raise Izana alone, meeting Papa Sano 1. someone could understand the pain and difficulty of raising a kid alone in Japan (which there are a lot of articles about) and 2. Papa Sano was a good guy. Not like the ‘useless man’. But like the useless man, he died too.

She wasn’t going to raise 2 kids by herself. Or 1 again.

No matter the reasons, she couldn’t handle raising kids, to be a mom, anymore.

So Emma goes to the Sano and Izana remains a Kurokawa.

Mikey is the one to have made Emma opened up to them. They don’t have a big age gap either so it’s easier to get closer, contrary to Shinichiro. Shinichiro took on him to raise his siblings, he says to his father’s grave that he’ll take care of them and that he(his father) doesn’t need to worry. But Emma, unlike Mikey, wasn’t in his life before he lost his parents and his ‘normal’ life. He never had a normal big brother-little sister relationship with her, whatever a normal siblings relationship is supposed to be like – he straight up went ‘guess I’m your father figure now. Wanna see delinquent stuffs?’

And now… Izana and Shinchiro. And the 1Billion dollars worth question: Why didn’t he ever bring Izana back to the Sano household?

They both have wayyy more of a brotherly relationship than what Shinichiro has with Mikey and Emma (which isn’t brotherly since he’s raising them). He shows him the delinquent ways (kinda like with Mikey) but he doesn’t have that ‘father figure’ responsibility there, for once.

But let’s go back to facts for now. Shinichiro learned about Izana because of Emma (while Mikey didn’t bother to listen/remember) and went off to meet him. Why? Just to see how he was like? *shrug*

Why didn’t he tell Emma about the correspondence he had with Izana? *shrug*

He didn’t make Izana and Mikey met for at least two reasons: 1. Mikey complete disdain when Emma talked about Izana 2. Izana clear rage for Mikey (tbf, Shinichiro ruined it by only talking about Mikey when he was with Izana). But it could’ve been dealt with if they had met, no?

Financially, it could’ve been difficult to take care of Izana (alongside Shinichiro and Mikey, Emma. Three children is already a lot, specially when there’s only one adult to support and raise them) – but that doesn’t explain why he couldn’t make them see each other from time to time.

Adoption could be a sensitive topic as well – first of all, no matter the country, adoption is hell and Japan is definitively NOT an exception, second of all, in Japan, parents can request the children they put in institution to not receive foster care. No matter what, biological parents (unless they legally, officially cut ties but it rarely happen) have more power on the children than the foster parents (and they can take they children back whenever they want, even if it’s been 10+ years they didn’t see their kid and didn’t bother to come and see them, even if the children have been in a foster family for years and grew up there). And here comes a problem:

Is it Karen or Izana’s biological mom who has more power on Izana’s life?

By Japanese laws, it’s his biological mom (except if she went through the process of cutting ties with him but I doubt it) but it’s still Karen who was his father’s wife, who raised him, and who put him in the institution. But did she ever had ‘power’ on him? Since she didn’t gave birth to him, and is most likely not registered as his mother officially/legally.

Which brings me back to my Why-Did-Shinichiro-Went-to-The-Philippines-There’s-No-Other-Character-That-Can-Be-There-But-Izana’s-Biological-Mother questioning which I’m still not over with and won’t ever be.

Gotta wonder when and how he found out about Izana not being related by blood to him and Emma. Was it when he went to pick him up at the institution? Did he go see Karen once to get the permission to adopt Izana (really, it would’ve been Grandpa Sano officially)? Then went to the Philippines when she told him about how Izana wasn’t her kid? But going to the Philippines, first, cost money, second, he either did it just before or after his clash with Izana.

And. He asked Mikey how he’d feel if he had another big brother. Why didn’t he tell him there. What was your reasons Shinichiro. Why didn’t you bring Izana home.

I mean, there’s also the question of Izana going to Juvie and pushing a guy to commit suicide when he was twelve which shouldn’t have helped Shinichiro in his decision, but he’s the one to have shown Izana how to be a delinquent – sure, probably not like that, but who knows how Izana would’ve turned out if he hadn’t be shown the way.

Not going to bother on how Izana discovering he wasn’t related by blood to any of the Sano led him to stop interacting with Shinichiro (for a while) and then Shinichiro died (probably).

And we have no canonical evidence of Shinichiro being aware of Izana’s dependence on him for his mental stability; just like for Takeomi’s, so… Can’t talk about how Shinichiro sees Izana either. We just know that since the 8th gen, BD is not what it once was. Gotta wonder if the 8th gen happened before or after the clash, too. And the 9th.

And for Izana and Emma’s relationship… As children, they seemed rather close (for the little we saw of it), but they spent more than a decade apart. Emma most likely doesn’t remember him much (which wouldn’t help her wanting to see him again, he’s basically a stranger even if he’s her brother) and Izana… Had the institution. He felt too lonely, cut off, and he didn’t interact with her in years, she was a stranger to him as well. He has more memories with Shinichiro than with her. Kinda like Kazutora, he got rid of what he held dear and realized it too late. The only thing he didn’t realize too late was the importance of Kakucho in his life. Kakucho was truly the most constant person in his life. More than Shinichiro and S62.

Blood ties are very important in Japan, way more than in the western world where we are more opened to adoption (the adoption rate in Japan is disastrous), in Japan you are expected to have children and they have to be yours. Biologically. Learning he doesn’t have ‘biological family’ (his father’s dead, how could he possibly found his biological mother? Him and Shinichiro, him and Emma, aren’t siblings? The things he hold on, the things that made him go through it, isn’t real?) And even though Izana dies telling Mikey there’s ‘no way to save me, right?’, he also dies protecting Kakucho – who he isn’t related by blood to, but who spent most of his childhood, teenhood, whole life, with. He also dies with Emma on his mind, as his last question was both for Mikey and Emma (‘there’s no way to save me, right? Right? Emma’) – because at the end, even thought she became a stranger for him, she was still his little sister. Even thought he agreed to her murderer, he walks away as soon as he sees her, he knows what’s about to happen. And he didn’t smile or anything that showed it was happy with her soon-to-be death. Izana doesn’t know how to read people (thinking S62 only follows him because they’re scared of him) but he doesn’t know how to read himself either. (didn’t realize he had Kakucho until the end, didn’t realize he also had S62, didn’t realize he could’ve had Emma and Mikey if he came to meet them. And it’s not illogical. Izana truly felt lonely, at the institution, until Shinichiro came to see him, he had no one. Then he had had to wait his 12 to meet Kakucho, and then he met S62 in Juvie. Whereas Mikey got to see the ‘good’ sides of delinquency, Izana fully focused on the ‘bad’ sides of it (assaults, drugs dealing,…). As always, and that’s not news to anyone, Izana is a tragic character.)

Edit: if we decide to think about 'Mama Sano is the one to have raised her sons (and somehow Papa Sano got visitation rights if they got divorced)', then Mama Sano fell ill possibly after his death. If they were still together, the 'player Papa Sano' scenario is a bit more likely - but she seemed to have become close to Emma (as Emma heavily cried when Mama Sano died) still. I just want to know when did things happen in the timeline, Wakui pls

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redactedgender · 1 month

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songs i associate with redacted audio characters - speaker & listener edition

oh yeah baby, we back for round two

im not gonna include a singing voice claim for everyone this time around, but some of these might have them in there. also, im only doing three speaker characters this time around because im also including three listener characters. but, i will include four songs for the listener characters. just for funsies.

!! CW FOR SUI/ MENT !!

geordi

hate myself - dodie

; my poor sweet geordi. my little man. this song is far too relatable enough as is, but i have a feeling our resident tetris boy would relate very much to this song. specifically the chorus—“when you go quiet i hate myself” is almost literally about how geordi felt when he was first getting used to cutie’s silence. i can imagine how vulnerable it was for him. he’s getting better tho! which is exactly what i wanted!

voodoo doll - 5sos

; so a bit of a weirder pull for him, i like the idea that in the days after meeting and getting cutie’s number, his thoughts were just plagued with images of them in his mind. do i think they put them into his head? no, but this was early cutie, so it could have been possible. but i like the idea of one of geordi’s thoughts just going all conspiracy over why he kept thinking abt them.

wish me luck - wallows

; another sad one for our tetris boy, and this might even be sadder than the dodie song. i love wallows, theyre probably in my top fave artists, and all their songs are sooo good. this song just screams geordi to me. the genius lyric website says that this song is about “the narrator [is] asking for support and validation from a loved one during times of struggle and self-doubt, whilst talking alot about encouraging self-awareness and speaking out about inner conflicts and problems”, which. i mean. yeah, thats geordi and cutie alright! i imagined this when they were slowly starting to talk to each other again but were still really nervous about what the other would say.

━━

sam

leaving lonesome flats - dierks bentley

; so this song is. alright so its from the second trolls movie. BUT HEAR ME OUT OK. this is my sam singing voice claim and i think its damn near perfect. i would have done bentley's song “what was i thinking?” instead but i think the trolls song fits better. something about running and coming back, etc etc. listen, this song is just really good, and i think it makes sense for sam. that’s the only explanation i can give here dhsjdhjd

she keeps me up - nickleback

; i was not a fan of nickleback for a while, and now im kinda vibing with some of their songs, but this has such big sam and darlin' energy to me. like, look, darlin' is canonically hot as fuck (as confirmed by porter), and i really just think this song fits really well with their dynamic.

believe me - james and the shame

; so we're all in agreement that sam definitely has some kind of religious trauma (most likely catholic/christian) right? anyways, i only recently got into gmm last year, and when i heard this song i was like “there’s no shot that’s rhett from gmm”. knowing that rhett writes this from the perspective of someone healing from a religious past that was harmful was really empowering, and i think that it fits sam really well.

━━

blake

absinthe - idkhow

; this song is just cult leader energy. i know he isnt a cult leader really, but like. i mean. sometimes i think closeknit might see blake as some kind of deity or god to worship. but i can imagine blake lowkey liking having that kind of power for one reason or another.

how i’d kill - cowboy malfoy

; this to me suits blake because of the tone shift in the song. where it goes from slow and almost eerie to a bossa nova jazz type swing to it. to me, it reflects how blake is really like: the way he was around sunshine vs bestie, like in his “two sides to a yandere” audio.

if i killed someone for you - alec benjamin

; uh. well. i had this song on the playlist before the “for you” audio. and then the audio happened. so. blake-core i guess??

━━

darlin'

vampire - olivia rodrigo

; this is such an obvious fucking song to put for them but also i do not care it still fits. this is about quinn, obviously, and i think it especially hits hard after listening to their second vid with sam and how they mentioned finding another vamp that quinn had slept with. like, was this another manipulated vamp? this song just hits differently when you think about darlin'. and also, even if it’s overplayed, the song slaps.

paul revere - noah kahan

; there are definitely other noah kahan songs on my tank playlist, but this one is just such a good depiction of who they are. them coming back to dahlia, people recognizing them but them saying they’re not from dahlia, how dahlia doesn’t feel like home, like—something about that just really hits me in a way that i love.

howlin’ for you - the black keys

; this is my “darlin's go-to karaoke song” song. imagine them kinda drunk, feeling themself and having fun, singing this in front of their pack, and especially in front of sam. like it’s such a good song for them.

best friends - grandson

; this is here because in my little universe, darlin', david & asher were in a band as teens, and they covered this song. but also, this is such a teen!tank song. this was probably playing while they beat up tires in an abandoned parking lot. like i imagine david wasn’t as much a rule breaker as asher, milo, amanda, christian, & tank were, but you gotta admit their friend group were probably hellions in their own right.

━━

honey

disco man - remi wolf

; this is a good song that fits honey in my eyes. it’s sort of like about guy from honey’s perspective from earlier in their friendship/living situation. learning that the guy who won’t stop flirting with you with the cute smile is a creative writing major probably made honey regret crushing on him asjkgfhjks.

lego ring - faye webster & lil yachty

; ok this actually is inspired by oh, baby, baby by lovelylonerliterature because that is one of the best guy/honey fics i’ve read in a while, but i think honey learning to be softer and be a bit silly with it is so wonderful. also, i like the idea that guy would joke propose with something silly like a bread tie ring or a lego ring but honey would fully take it as a promise for the future and just break guy. what can i say, i like making our pizza boy flustered. and so do they.

“listen to your heart.” “no.” - cheekface

; this is just based on vibes. guy sings most of the song, honey only sings the “no” lines. i’m a genius.

soft bitch - rio romeo

; awww, honey you sap you! no but seriously, i imagine that honey often thinks about how much guy has changed them for the better. and they haaaaate it. y'know that one tiktok audio where someone’s like "he makes me smile—OH WHAT THE FUCK"? that was honey when they realized they had a crush on guy. and this song kind of embodies that too; honey isn't used to being sweet, but being with guy has made them into a sappy person, which they never thought they would be, and how much they actually enjoy it.

━━

freelancer

just existing - daysormay

; so not only is this my favorite song at the moment, this is also my freelancer theme song basically. the lyrics "it always took too long to learn how to slow down / chasing shortcuts and serotonin touchdowns" and "maybe i lost drive / i'm searching every day for relief / and chasing a break that i don't really need" feels like our resident (and chronic) overworking deviant. this also works when you think about freelancer singing this and each of the verses matching with one of the D.A.M.N. crew boys.

my body - young the giant

; a song about feeling the need to overwork yourself to get better at something because you have a fear of failure and falling behind, in my freelancer playlist? how ridiculous! /j no but in all seriousness this song is a perfect depiction of their need to keep pushing, keep working, to be perfect. i think even when they know they’re good at something, they have to be better. they need to be better to prove themself.

empty bed - cavetown

; so this is a bit more of a depressing and sad song for freelancer, but one i think still makes sense. this reminds me of early s3!freelancer, still healing from the inversion and terrified of everyone they love going away. how they grew up, how they hide their pain as best they can so they don’t bother anyone with their problems, but how they dont want their friends to deal with that kind of pain. how they don't want the D.A.M.N. crew to be in pain, but was so hesitant to let the others know their own pain.

babyface - artio

; so i found out abt artio recently, and when i looked them up on tiktok and saw the lead singer, rae, i immediately said “oh, that's crow!” (for those who dont know, crow is the name of my freelancer-sona). this is very specifically for my freelancer-sona, but i think it stills works for canon!freelancer. how their people pleaser tendencies can make them so quick to change themself for others but how they’ve slowly grown to be more confident in themself.

━━━━

this took. far too long hdsjhd

i am still considering sharing my spotify link on here, so if you want to see which of the redacted audio character playlists are on the app, pls let me know!

#redacted audio #dog.txt #geordi #sam collins #blake #darlin #honey #freelancer #redacted headcanons

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armoredtitanmistress · 8 months

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𝙖 𝙨𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙡𝙤𝙦𝙪𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙬𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙙 | Toji Fushiguro| fruitions of life

characters: toji fushiguro x gojo!reader, toji zenin x gojo!reader

summary: you can’t expect to enter a garden and come out without getting messy…figuratively.

tags: toji x gojo!reader, gojo’s older sister, pre-star plasma vessel arc/star plasma vessel arc, suggestive language (thanks to Toji, of course), explicit language, symbolism (?), NO SMUT (bare with me y'all you will get it eventually) strangers to friends to ?, fluff, love their dynamic, 2nd person point of view, the first person point of view switches are intentional!

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The stars would have laughed at your relationship. You are close enough to be friends and hold enough attraction for one another to be lovers, but distant enough to be considered strangers. Toji was not far off when he talked to the stars to say that you were in denial about your relationship. This is not to say that Toji understood your relationship any better. Though he was aware that an attraction between the two of you was mutual, he understood his feelings to be simply that, attraction. Very hypocritical of him, if you asked me.

The persona that Toji had created when he entered your garden was a paradox to the life he lived outside of it. You knew only what he would allow you to know. Yes, he was swindling women for money. Yes, he liked to partake in gambling of all forms. Yes, he was a mercenary by trade. None of these “hobbies'' of his were ever explained thoroughly, just a lot of in-between kind of talks. He joked about how different you were from your reputation when you first met. He was an open book, a paperback that if you bent the page to read and didn’t have something to secure in place they’ll just snap closed. If it were put into proper use the years would reveal themselves before you even got to the title page.

I’d describe you to be a hardcover. You were a popular read that any literary aficionado wanted to unravel. Abiding by the rules of commerce, hardcovers cost more than paperbacks. Hardcovers are for appearances while paperbacks are for a proper read. In stark contrast to a paperback, hardcovers don’t advertise their use with their exterior. No, you’d have to flip through and give it the same amount of attention as a paperback. No one would want to do that.

The Toji Zenin who currently was helping you plant some pink camellia in your garden and the stone-cold mercenary that would remain a topic of discussion during debriefings were two distinguishable people in your eyes. I allow myself to believe that the reasoning behind this is that you both presented different personas to one another. Whether they were founded based on your true personas or the fantasy of what could’ve been. To this day, even as the narrator, I do not know.

You watched with your tote bag of gardening supplies perched on your shoulder as the man worked. He had shown up in a black compression t-shirt that did what it was told as you could see his muscles fighting against the shirt's fabric. Any movement he made you would be able to see his muscles contract and pronounce themselves against the shirt. It was a short-sleeve so regardless if it was a compression shirt or not you would be able to see them. He wore these kinds of shirts every time he entered the garden. You didn’t know if this was his everyday attire or if it was a coincidence. Unfortunately, you didn’t mind either reasoning.

“You gonna just stand there and check me out or help me plant this shit?” He asked midway through digging an unnecessarily enormous hole. Though he had been gifted with many physical attributes through this Heavenly Restriction, a green thumb was not one of them; He overwaters the plants, he doesn’t understand the reasoning behind removing weeds, and always accidentally stomps on flowers because of how comically big he is. Yet, you still allowed him to help and still paid him.

Call it charity work.

“I was judging how badly you planted those seeds.” You squatted down beside him, placing your tote bag on the ground before snatching the shovel from him and shoving him away to take over. You inspected his work and huffed, “With that poor eyesight of yours, I should reconsider your qualifications on letting you help me out with the garden. Seriously, how could you possibly think a seed this tiny needs that big of a hole.”

“Speaking from prior experiences?” He quipped, somehow not at all offended by you scrutinizing his work. You were trying to wrap your head around him having the body of a full-fledged adult with the accompaniment of the mind and libido of a pubescent boy. “When you say shit like that you make me think that you’re asking for me to say something out of pocket. I mean you kind of walk right into them, doll.”

Unknowingly is what you wanted to add to his statement. You unknowingly walked into his linguistic traps. You scoff, “How about I do you one better? What if you had something other than sex on your mind, pervert?”

He furrowed his eyebrows and poked a finger into your cheek furrowing your eyebrows but not letting it sway your attention on the flowers.

“Now where’s the fun in that? Life gets boring after a while. You gotta start switching things up before you get to that point.” He asserts, pulling another small shovel from your tote bag to continue tormenting your garden. “Ah, but I guess you’re already there.”

He knocks several decades off your lifespan with his words alone. You shook your head, “This is why I refused to exchange numbers with you. I’d rather keep my dosage of your stupidity to a low.”

“You’ll come around to it.”

He had immoderate confidence.

“You have to be gentle with them. Using that much aggression only leads to unpleasant results. The flowers feel the energy you put out.” You explain as you minimize the hole he made and gently tuck the seed inside of it. It was a philosophy of yours and wasn’t backed by any science. It’s just an observation you’ve made over the years of tending the garden and a philosophy that you’ve integrated into your life.

He wasn’t buying it.

“Bullshit. Flowers are flowers. They are meant to look good no matter how you plant ‘em.” He shifted his eyes to the flowers he planted versus the ones you planted and saw no difference between them. “I wouldn’t even be able to tell who planted what because they look the same.”

You saw where his eyes were and you scoffed at how wrong his statement was. What you were looking at were two very distinct patches of roses. One patch was weed-filled with roses toppling over one another. I don’t think I need to describe it any further for you to understand whose handiwork it was.

“It’s like childbirth. A child made out of love will prosper and continue to flourish on that love. On the other hand, a child who wasn’t won’t stand a chance and wither if it doesn’t have any love to live off of.” Though it was simply an analogy, it held truth in your lives. You and Toji weren’t made out of love. You were made to be exploited. Time and Decay struck a deal with each other and postponed you from withering. Perhaps, a sick twisted bet to see if you’d be salvageable. In your eyes, Love wanted nothing to do with the bet and wanted to let Time run its course. You morbidly bet against yourself; Time will tire itself out eventually and allow Decay to win.

Though the argument on the preservation of flowers would continue to be a disagreement, you had a feeling if you had vocalized that wager between Time and Decay you both would’ve seen eye-to-eye.

“Guess I’ll be seeing you in hell then.” He said as patched the holes you made along the way. You allowed him to help in doing that seeing it’s his expertise when it comes to gardening. You nodded your head in agreement, “Satan would make you your own little island just to get away from you.”

“That so? And what about you, doll? Gonna join me in my solitude. I’m bound to get lonely.” He couldn’t go through one conversation without making it flirtatious.

You’d abide by the routine of it all: he flirts and you deflect. “Obviously I’m going to marry Satan and be the one to give him that plan. I’ll send you sucubus to keep you company.”

“So much for being a friend.”

It had been a few moments of silence and you both didn’t mind it. It was comfortable. However, something had been omnipresent in Toji’s mind, children. Children were a brand new topic. He had known of your stance on marriage. Specifically arranged marriage. It was the reigning topic whenever you’d complain about the meetings between you and the elders. It piqued his curiosity enough to ask, “That little children monologue you did is making me think you want kids. Hate to remind you but that kid of yours would be a Zenin or a Kamo.”

“Out of duty, I have to bear children. Like you said with one of them but…” You stared at the seed packets and the flowers that surrounded you before continuing. “Selfishly, if life were different I think maybe I would still want to have my own.”

“Why even bother with kids? They just come in and ruin shit. Don’t understand what’s so great about them.” He stated, as he furrowed his eyebrows and sported his signature disgusted face.

You enjoyed being around children. They were the purest form of humanity that someone could be. It was the adults around them that corrupted the purity that they were born with. You wanted to preserve as much as you could of it but you weren’t a superhuman. You were just a sorcerer.

“If they are anything like Satoru, I don’t think I’d mind.” I would hope not.

“Yeah?” He asked as he handed you a seed packet that you graciously took offering him a head nod in acknowledgment. “Must mean you got some names thought up.”

“Hmm.” You weren’t paying much attention to him as you were trying to fix the mess he had made. Even though that’s what you were doing, he knew you heard him. You were just dodging the question.

To spite you, he grabbed another small hand shovel and dug up the hole you had just patched. That didn’t do much in stopping as you just patched it up again. Of course, this man was persistent. You both continued the ongoing dig-patch-dig-patch game until you got fed up and snatched the shovel away from him. You turned to reprimand him but his eyes had a Medusa-esque curse for turning you stiff. Knowing he had your attention he asked again, “You’ve thought about having kids enough. You have to have some names picked out.”

You saw his expectant gaze and sighed. You continued what you were doing but replied with your answer nonetheless. “It’s embarrassing to say but I only have one name in mind.”

He shrugged, “That’s one more than I have. Spit it out.”

“Megumi.”

It’s a common name. You can’t live in Japan without knowing at least one Megumi in your life. The absence of originality never hindered its appeal as a name for you. The name itself wasn’t what made it a contender for you but the meaning of it felt the most suitable for a baby. “I think it’s a fitting name. Children are supposed to be considered blessings.”

“Even for a guy?” You nod your head as you finish planting the seed, wiping your hands off with a hand towel you brought with you, “I don’t think it matters as much. The meaning wouldn’t change.”

You handed the towel over to him and he reciprocated your actions before racking a hand threw his hair, “I don’t know if your future kid will think the same way. He’s probably going to plot your death in your sleep.” This is one of the few times I would agree with the man.

“They’ll be more concerned about the life they were born into than their name.” Indeed they would be.

“What about you? Never thought about having a miniature you before?” You prompted as you got up to get the watering can that was nearby. “I’m hoping the answer is no.”

“Fuck no.” He barked out a laugh. Children were the last thing on his mind. He watched as you leaned down to grab and turn on the hose, “I’m barely surviving on my own. A kid would only add to the expenses and the shit I have to worry about. I use condoms and never go to the same place twice for that reason.”

“Ever thought of just practicing celibacy? Feel like it is a far less risky option than whatever you just said” You suggest as you shrug your shoulders and begin filling the can with water. Your suggestion was supposed to be rhetorical. In all honesty, you hoped he would just change the topic afterward but to your dismay, he hadn’t.

He planted his hands behind him and used them to position himself, “Once you experience what it’s like to be inside a pussy for the first time, you don’t go back.” You were convinced he didn’t have any words other than those that could be considered raunchy. “You’ll understand once some small dicked Kamo knocks you up on your Wedding day.”

You had half the mind to redirect the hose to splash that smirk off his face. The topic of first times came up once and you had told him that you were a virgin. You told him to never bring it up again but this was Toji we were talking about.

He noticed the grip you had on the hose and you didn’t know how he could extend his lips to curve to the extent they did as he continued his debauched tangent, “Sex is something people use to get rid of stress. You could benefit from that. Wouldn’t want my dear friend to get a full head of gray hair by the age of 21.” His head tilted towards your head, “Guess you already kind of have that going for ya don‘tcha? With the white hair and all.”

“I could just drown you with this water and I wouldn’t feel a damn thing.” You pointed out, letting the gesture of you shaking the water from the hose against the ground.

He suited mercenary work not only for his physical prowess and instincts. His audacity was a core component of his trade. It became obvious the level of audacity he had as he permitted his green eyes to stay fixed on your legs, “I would prefer you’d let me suffocate in between your thighs. I’d get you so wet I wouldn’t even try to come back for air.”

The half of the mind became all the mind. It was all a blur in the moment. One second the water is being directed to the water can and the next you are pointing it directly to Toji. When you realized what you had done, all you saw was a drenched Toji making his way toward you. “I can’t be the only one that's wet, baby.” He didn’t allow for any room for you to register the new nickname before he wrapped his arms around your torso and you were lifted off of the ground.

“Toji! Let go of me, you big oaf!” You pleaded with the man to let you down but he remained indifferent. He was treating your body like a rag doll —- twisting you left and right, up and down, and making sure that you are fully accosted to the same wet fate that you had graciously gifted him.

You were slamming your fists into his chest and it felt like punching a concrete wall. You, a user of the Limitless Technique with the ability to repel this man away but you momentarily forgot. You were too caught up in the idea that your clothes had molded to your figure due to the water in the same way it had for Toji.

Contrary to how careful you had been to not get any dirt on you, Toji treated the dirt that spread throughout his clothes in the same manner as the blood that would occasionally stain his clothes. He didn’t bother with it. Resulting in not only naturally tailored form-fitting clothing but also mud stains.

You were wearing a kimono, a staple piece for you. It lacked many potent colors like pink or red. Your mother preserved her looks as much as she did yours. She instilled into you that cool tones emphasized your physical features. Whenever you’d explore outside of that color spectrum a slew of passive-aggressive comments from her end.

Her comments on cool tones applied to your entire intermediate family. Remembering that you sobered up.

“Put me down! I can’t go looking like this!” Of course, you were referring to another event. You felt his hands sink further into your waist and hoisted you further up causing you to brace yourself with his shoulders. “Live a little. Just skip it.”

With how he had you positioned, you would need to look down to see him, which you did when you looked at him as if he had committed blasphemy and retorted, “Have you lost your mind?! I can’t just do that!”

Toji hated a lot of things; losing bets, women who kept in contact, employers who gave him half-ass pay, and jujutsu society. Though he didn’t hate anything about you, he did bear a hard distaste for how obedient you were when it came to the Elders. He scoffed at your words, “Says who? The elders? They could kiss my ass for all I care. It’s gonna be another event where you’re just there to look pretty. Have some fun, doll. I wasn’t lying about the gray hair.”

His words held merit and if he had used more persuasive language the possibility of you missing the event would have been higher. However, it wasn’t enough.

“Fine, I’ll let you go but only if you give me your number.” He proposed, halting the man made rollercoaster he had created.

You thought about it. There were plenty of cons to giving him your number that outweighed the pros. You were too fed up to care for it.

“Fine.”

He did as told and put you down but made quick with pulling out a grey Nokia flip phone that has seen its share of fights based on its condition. He handed it to you with the Create New Contact page open. You weren’t one to agree to things without following through so you held up your end of the deal. You were typing in your number when a text came through on his phone. He wouldn’t be able to know since the phone was on silent but you saw the text.

Sui Kong:

New job in Miyagi. Meet me at the usual spot. 10 million on this one.

Once you were done you handed it back. He hadn’t seen the message and you didn’t want to comment on seeing it. He was more focused on trying to get you to pull out your phone.

You shook your head and crossed your arms over your chest, “That wasn’t part of the deal.”

Another thing he doesn’t like about you. He groaned, “Do you always have to be so square?”

It wouldn’t kill you to be, you thought to yourself before you caved and searched for your phone before begrudgingly giving it to him. He inputted his phone number and said, “Well you’ve got shit to do, so I say let’s just call it a day.”

“Right.” Nothing compared to what he would have to do. You gathered all your things into your tote bag and were going to leave in silence as you usually do but you didn’t.

“Treat me to a nice dinner afterward.”

He would leave confused but understand what you’re referring to when he sees the message. You would have already been at the event socializing with the guests when you’d receive the message.

Unknown Number:

It’s a date.

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

let me know in the replies if you guys want to be tagged in future chapters!

#anime #toji x reader #toji x y/n #toji zenin #jjk toji #jjk gojo #jujutsu kaisen #toji fushiguro #jujutsu kaisen toji #toji x you #fushiguro toji #shiu kong #jjk fluff #jjk anime

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aemiron-main · 1 month

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Father And Son: TFS, Brenner, Cat Stevens, The Cycles, Cat’s Cradle, 8:15gate, Radiationgate and Cat’s In The Cradle

So, during TFS, Brenner says the following to Henry, specifically saying “father and son” to him at the end:

Which, that made me think of the 1970 Cat Stevens song, Father and Son, because Brenner’s dialogue is worded the EXACT same same way as the song title:

And you might be thinking “this is a stretch, Brenner just saying ‘Father and Son’ doesn’t mean it’s connected to the Cat Stevens song, ‘father and son,’ is a common phrase, right?” and usually, I’d agree- however, Cat Stevens, and specifically, the EXACT ALBUM that Father and Son is on has ALREADY BEEN REFERENCED in ST specifically in the context of Brenner.

Where?

In the newspaper (because of COURSE it’s the newspapers again)- look at Brenner’s crossword here:

It says “tillerman’s beverage,” as one of the hints- and the answer is tea. As in Tea for the Tillerman. As in the exact album by Cat Stevens that Father and Son is on:

And not only does it appear in Brenner’s crossword, but they specifically showing him crossing that one off:

And there’s him having written the answer in, down vertically from 60- “tea”:

And what is the song “Father and Son” about? Well, it’s basically about what the title says- a father and his son. But specifically, it's about a the difference in perspective between father and son re: his son leaving/it's about the generational divide between father and son, and was written about the idea of a son wanting to leave to join the Russian Revolution.

This is also all interesting regarding the idea of anachronistic song references in TFS, specifically, songs from the 70s, such as Chuck E’s In Love being referenced in TFS versus Father and Son being from 1970:

And while I don’t think Brenner himself was necessarily referencing the song (although it’s possible because as evidenced by him knowing the answer to that crossword, he’s clearly aware of the album Tea for the Tillerman), it’s still yet another reference to a 70s song in TFS.

And speaking of TFS, Father and Son was originally supposed to be a musical (and of COURSE there's an Edward involved LMAO):

Versus the musical number in the church in TFS and the musical Oklahoma being reference repeatedly in TFS/Ted Wheeler sings a song from it.

However, there’s also more to this whole ST referencing Cat Stevens thing- because it’s something I talked about on discord quite awhile ago-

-but basically, summarizing those screenshots, this all connects to “I Just Died In Your Arms Tonight,” playing over a scene of Karen in s3, because that song has these lyrics:

And that “curtains are closed, cat’s in the cradle,” lyric is interesting for the following reasons:

a.) the whole “behind the curtain” thing in ST plus the whole TFS play/curtain thing

B.) “Cat’s in the cradle,” versus the book Cat’s Cradle from 1963 by Kurt Vonnegut- which has some VERY interesting connections to ST.

So, in Cat’s Cradle, the narrator is a writer that introduces himself as Jonah (but his name is really John and he’s never named again), and he sets up the plot as a flashback. The plot centers around when Jonah was planning to write a book called The Day the World Ended about what people were doing on the day of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.

Which, the connection to Hiroshima is interesting considering what I talked about in this post regarding how 8:15 gate connects to Hiroshima & to James’ radiationgate posts.

And in the book, John also includes snippets from religious texts called The Books of Bokonon. Most of the events of the novel occur before the narrator was converted to his current religion, Bokononism.

And while researching for his book, Jonah heads to Ilium, New York, the hometown of the late Felix Hoenikker, who was a co-creator of the atomic bomb, because Jonah wants to interview Hoenikker's children, coworkers etc.

When he gets there, Jonah finds out about a substance called ice-nine, created for military use by Hoenikker and now likely in the possession of his three adult children. Ice-nine is an alternative structure of water that is solid at room temperature and acts as a seed crystal upon contact with ordinary liquid water, causing that liquid water to instantly freeze and transform into more ice-nine. Among several odd unfoldings in Ilium, the narrator meets Hoenniker's younger son, Newt, who recounts that his father was doing nothing more than playing the string game "cat's cradle" when the first bomb was dropped.

Which, all of the ice-nine stuff has me staring at the lack of water in the UD, and the song “Cold As Ice” playing during S3, during a scene where Mike has a Lynx behind his head (which, the Lynx thing is something I’ll come back to in this post bc it ties into all of the “cat’s in the cradle,” stuff, esp being in the same season/possibly the same ep as that Karen “cat’s in the cradle scene” and Victor’s burning cradle scene vs the taxidermy lynx in the Creel house).

And also, the book even has its own Papa- the dictator called “Papa” Monzano, who is introduced when Jonah goes to the fictional Caribbean island San Lorenzo, which is also where Jonah gets introduced to Bokononism.

Bokononism was founded by Bokonon, who was a former leader of the island, and who created Bokononism as part of a project to give people hope and community in the face of the island's poverty. As a deliberate attempt to give Bokononism an alluring sense of forbidden glamor, the religion is outlawed, which forced Bokonon to live in "hiding" in the jungle.

Which, Bokonon hiding in the jungle reminds me of all of the stuff re: Henry supposedly hiding in the darkness versus Will hiding in S1.

And also, Papa Monzano, threatens all Bokononists with impalement on a large hook (despite the fact that Monzano himself secretly practices the religion, and the hook punishment doesnt really get used)- which this makes me think of all of the impalement imagery in ST, such as Billy being impaled by the fleshflayer-

(which is extra interesting considering the visual parallels between this shot of Billy’s impalement pose versus Vecna’s attic pose & how Vecna also gets impaled by the tentacles when they plug into him)

-plus Phineas Gage having been impaled by a rod-

(which is ALSO extra interesting considering how the Phineas Gage scene/“No Longer Gage” ties into TFS with Alice saying that “Henry” is “Not Henry,” and how right before that Alice-Henry exchange, Henry had these weird appendages grow out of his back, which is extremely visually similar to the Vecna attic scene I just mentioned, and therefore also ties all of this back to Billy’s impalement, especially considering the parallels between Billy and Max versus Henry and Alice, although Henry doesn’t treat Alice the way Billy treats Max, there’s still parallels + Max has unending Henry parallels, especially re: sibling death & Billy’s death vs Alice’s death)

And also, Monzano has an adopted daughter, Mona- which, that immediately makes me think of Patty being Mr Newby’s adopted daughter, especially considering Mr Newby’s Brenner parallels, such as Mr Newby having stolen Patty versus Brenner stealing kids-

-AND Mr Newby being very authoritarian/dictator-esque when it comes to how he runs the school & how he runs his family.

And also, Monzano is ill from cancer- which, as we know, there’s SO many references to cancer in ST, considering what I’ve talked about re: the connections between regen healing and cancer plus the idea that Peter Owens may have had cancer.

And also, Monzano wants his successor to be Frank Hoenikker, who was both Monzano's personal bodyguard and, coincidentally, Felix Hoenikker's other son. Frank achieved this position by giving "Papa" Monzano a piece of ice-nine.

However, Frank doesnt want to be the new leaser and somewhat randomly offers Jonah the presidency. Although Jonah is surprised at at first, he accepts after he finds out that this means he’ll get go marry Monah. Soon after, the bedridden "Papa" Monzano commits suicide by swallowing ice-nine, whereupon his corpse instantly turns into solid ice-nine.

Papa Monzano being bedridden has me staring directly at Brenner Sr (who Brenner Jr also calls Papa), who was bedridden and dying after his return from Dimension X.

Frank Hoenikker admits to giving Monzano ice-nine, and the Hoenikkers explain that when they were young their father would give them hints about the existence of ice-nine while experimenting with it in the kitchen. After their father's death, they gathered chunks of the substance into thermos flasks and have kept them ever since.

Which, this has me staring at the scene of the Bingham kids in the kitchen, and how Peter Bingham puts in “too much salt,” versus the salt and ice used for sensory deprivation tanks, versus ice-nine, PLUS “Peter” Bingham versus what I mentioned earlier about Peter Owens and cancer, PLUS what I mentioned about Mr Newby versus all of the parallels between Mr Bingham and Mr Newby and Suzie versus Patty etc etc.

And after Monzano dies, celebrations for Jonah’s presidential inauguration begin, but during an air show performed by fighter planes, one of the planes malfunctions and crashes into the seaside palace, causing Monzano's still-frozen body to fall into the sea.

Instantly, all the water in the world's seas, rivers, and groundwater transforms into solid ice-nine. The freezing of the oceans immediately makes tornadoes ravage the earth, but Jonah manages to escape with Mona to a secret bunker beneath the palace. When the initial storms subside, they emerge and search the island for survivors, and discover a mass grave where all the surviving San Lorenzans committed suicide by touching ice-nine. Grieving for her people, Mona follows suit and dies.

This makes me think of a.) the complete lack of water and complete lack of people in the UD, and b.) all of the bunker stuff in ST, specifically, the NINA bunker + Murray’s bunker, and how Murray has a bunch of Creel references in his bunker, like his his Billie Holiday record + his WW2 posters which then also connect to the Peter Pan and Skull Rock and Eddie-Edward stuff but that’s a post on its own- but that also makes me think of what I said earlier re: Phineas Gage getting impaled because Scott uses that skull graphic that reminds me a lot of Murray's poster:

I also now have to wonder- if the UD was once a normal timeline that got devastated in some apocalyptic manner, could there still be PEOPLE there?? In bunkers?? After all, we’ve only seen UD Hawkins, but if the UD extends to other parts of the world, then what if there’s an UD NINA bunkers that still has living people inside of it??? Or hell, what about Murray’s bunker in the UD?? They’ve never shown it to us, but for all we know, there could be living people/alternate timeline versions of people in there, having survived however long it’s been since the disaster.

And at the end of the book, Jonah lives with some other survivors in a cave- versus TFS Henry having ended up lost in a cave in Nevada, and ending up contracting the shadow as a result, and Brenner says that Henry “changed, like my Papa,” due to Henry’s time in the cave, which brings us back to what I said earlier about Brenner Sr.

And anyway, setting all that aside and going back to the other reason why that “cat’s in the cradle,” line fron I Just Died In Your Wems Tonight is interesting, there’s also C.) “cat’s in the cradle,” versus the song Cat’s Cradle by Harry Chapin.

Which, “Cat’s in the Cradle" by Harry Chapin is about a father not being able to find time for his son and then his son growing up without him and not being able to find time for his father- basically, the son becomes just like his father, ironically, as a result of his lack of interaction with his father, which, the whole “becoming his father,” thing has me staring DIRECTLY at the lines in TFS re: “you have to BE your dad”:

And the “Cat’s In The Cradle,” thing is extra interesting because that song CONSTANTLY gets misattributed to Cat Stevens, who has an album called Cats Cradle:

Which, that reminds of all of the mistaken identity stuff in ST, especially regarding Brenner and Richard vs Martin/the identity mixups there and Eddie Munson delivering subtext for Edward & Eddie Munson being wrongfully accused of murder & Victor also being wrongfully accused by Wayne versus “the man who did this,” and how that connects to Brenner.

And speaking of “cat’s in the cradle,” there’s also all of the cradle imagery with Victor:

And there’s also all of the cat imagery in ST, specifically the silver cat/lynx stuff in S3 versus the stuffed silver cat/lynx in the Creel house and Victor talking about a wildcat:

Not to mention that again, that lyric is from “I Just Died In Your Arms Tonight,” versus Henry literally “dying” in Victor’s arms:

And it’s also interesting that this seems to be a REALLY specific song choice for S3/they really wanted “I Just Died In Your Arms Tonight,” because the use of this song is anachronistic, as S3 is set in 1985, and I Just Died In Your Arms Tonight was released in 1986- which is also interesting considering what I talked about earlier re: TFS and song anachronisms.

Point is, I think that Brenner’s TFS dialogue re: “father and son,” is meant to reference the Cat Stevens song “Father and Son,” and that there’s a bunch of other connections re: “cat’s in the cradle ,” and Vonnegut’s “Cat’s Cradle,” and Harry Chapin’s “Cat’s In The Cradle,” and all of Victor’s cat and cradle imagery.

And I also won’t be surprised if we get the song Father and Son on the s5 soundtrack.

#stranger things #the first shadow #henry creel #martin brenner #st music #st analysis #brenner's weird song lyric stuff

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nashiriel · 4 months

Note

A new thought that occurs to me: Visenya’s egg. Do you think it could have hatched for Luke if he hadn’t offered it to the Cannibal?

It actually would have done!

It’s important to note that Luke is really not a reliable narrator when he returns to Dragonstone. He’s struggling with grief, survivor’s guilt, and a pre-existing sense of inadequacy that gets dramatically worsened by what he sees as him getting Arrax killed. If he had been thinking more clearly, he might have made some different, healthier choices in that chapter, rather than offering up the last remaining tie to his little sister and the life he could have lived with it in sacrifice.

Had Luke chosen differently…

The egg would have eventually hatched for him into a little blue dragon. She’s a mischievous, sweet-natured creature, although Geradys remarks that her shape is quite akin to Queen Rhaenys’ lost Meraxes.

This is not terribly helpful in terms of firepower, but does provide a boost for the Blacks that Rhaenyra is clearly rightful queen, given the ease with which her sons hatch dragons.

Emboldened by this, Rhaenyra isn’t nearly as hesitant in sending her sons out into the field, with quite interesting implications for when pleas come later down the line for reinforcements against Green attacks. It also boosts Luke’s self-esteem (also, his massive, massive denial over Shipwrecker’s Bay) and helps convince him to accept Corlys’ offer to serve on the fleets as part of the war effort. However, the delay caused by the egg hatching means that Luke is still around when Arryk arrives, and because the Cannibal actually had no influence on Luke’s documented reaction when someone threatens his family…

Once onboard the ship, Luke is very aware of how dimly he’s regarded by many amongst Corlys’ men, particularly those who served alongside Ser Vaemond (though the Arryk situation does earn him some respect too). Desperate to prove himself, he throws himself into learning the ropes, helped by Alyn of Hull, whom Corlys mysteriously trusts above all others to guide his heir without undermining him. This helps forge a friendship that lasts throughout the rigours of the war, and also means Luke is very ready to vouch for Alyn and his brother in the highly unlikely event that they should ever have their loyalty doubted.

Surprisingly enough, Luke actually flourishes quite well in that environment (although his seasickness is lessened after his near-drowning, a lot of it is down to him powering through as IRL sailors like Admiral Nelson managed). His dragon becomes a familiar sight, looping through the skies above the Velaryon fleet or coiled around Luke’s shoulders as he and Alyn work upon the decks (despite her small size, her issuing billowing clouds of smoke whenever Luke is vexed proves oddly intimidating!) Luke’s crew take a particular pride in “their” dragon, and joke she’ll one day be the greatest terror of the Green’s forces.

(“Princess Rhaenys had Baratheon blood, you know. Not surprising, really, the lad having hair like that, and there’s no denying his grandfather’s blood after he saw his men through that storm. Fine sailor, Ser Vaemond, but you’ve got to wonder, him being so quick to grasp at High Tide before Lord Velaryon even breathed his last-“)

Queen Alicent is driven to despair when her “my son is NOT a kinslayer, just FYI” campaign runs into the difficulty of Aemond being determined to remedy that - at least, that’s the only reason most can fathom for why he seems to keep haring off from his military campaign in the Riverlands whenever Prince Lucerys’ location becomes known.

As it so happens, the various battles the fleet engage in across the course of the Dance do provide ample opportunity for Luke to prove as fierce as any dragon, including the sinking of most of the Redwyne fleet (which also ends with the capture of some prominent Hightower hostages). During a clash with the Triarchy, an enemy captain also finds out the hard way that a baby dragon’s flame is still deadly at close range.

Luke starts having visions courtesy of his brush with the Drowned God. Unfortunately, these come in the form of fever dreams that aren’t particularly easy to interpret (Luke really should have got brought back by R’hllor instead) and that he’s not even always aware are of the future as such. He mainly tries to ignore them, but the rumour does leak out among the fleets that Luke has a touch of the strange about him - a rumour either fiercely denied or proudly boasted of by Luke’s men, whose doubts about their teenage commander seem to have gradually transmuted into a steadfast loyalty.

(“Mayhaps he used them dark arts to see off Prince Aemond, when he went alone to confront the traitor alone on the beach for a few hours. They say the prince looked awfully shocked when he landed back in Harrenhal empty-handed, and he even demanded a septon cleanse him, for his soul was gripped by a strange madness that seeing his nephew face to face had only worsened-“)

There’s a brief encounter with Dalton Greyjoy. The rumours that he suggested that Prince Lucerys could easily be the prettiest of his salt wives are probably untrue, as are the whispers that Prince Aemond’s rage when he heard them were what prompted Vhagar to torch half of the Greyjoy fleet. It’s undeniable at least that Lord Greyjoy sports both a small burn and a newfound respect for Targaryen authority afterwards.

None of the above changes Corlys’ feelings as a grandfather, naturally. Truly he loves them all equally, from Lucerys, his precious heir, pride of the Driftmark fleet and future Lord of Tides…to, you know, the rest of them.

#house of the dragon #lucerys velaryon #lucemond #aemond targaryen #asks #carrion #Captain Luke AU?

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renjirukia · 7 months

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tbh i don't think too hard about the forty year renruki separation beyond the angst of the pining and avoidance but in an effort to un-vague that time period and make some sense as to why renji is so aggressive towards rukia during the arrest/reunion i have some thoughts.

more under the cut because this got long

first let's talk about the break up. they've been drifting apart since arriving at the academy; they're in different classes ; renji gets sorted into the advanced class while rukia is not and this creates a shift in their dynamic; as it's implied rukia was very much the leader of their little gang. renji doesn't seem to mind the shift as he finally gets an edge over rukia and likes to show off though there isn't any kind of malicious intent in his behavior. rukia on the other hand is going through an intense case of cultural shock, her shift in dynamic with renji is distorting her own self-perception and making her feel cut off from her one friend in the world. enter byakuya. rukia is hesitant to accept the offer of adoption but at renji's boisterous (and somewhat forced) encouragement she takes the offer. i think renji's actions here devastated rukia and saw it as a confirmation that she was right in feeling like she was being left behind or cast aside.

now the intervening years. in the soul society arc the root conflict between them is that she is a noble and he isn't and that class disparity is why they can't "be together" though there isn't much evidence of the gotei adhering to such a rigid caste system and that class mingling is acceptable at least during work hours (and like everyone wondered why renji just didn't get a job at the 13th if he wanted to hang out with her so bad). we don't learn too much of what they got up to during their estrangement other than rukia's kaien trauma and her tenure as one of the more unlucky heroines from an 18th century gothic novel. while renji graduated school went to the fifth got transferred to the eleventh and somewhere in their picked up the goal of surpassing byakuya. we get a glimpse when renji tells ichigo "for a long time... a real long time... for decades... rukia and i... ...had drifted so far apart we wouldn't even pass by each other. it was you... who closed that... distance between us."

Like i said i don't think academy renji was fully aware of how hard of a time rukia was having at adjusting to seireitei life. he teases her about not "getting with program yet" but i think renji was confident in rukia's moxie that he figured she would eventually settle in. i don't think it was much later he realized there were irreparable cracks in their relationship. in chapter 98 as rukia walks away he narrates "rukia finally had a real family. let her go... don't get in the way... that's what I told myself." but it bleeds into the present day and it reads like a retrospective rationalization. "but thinking back...maybe i was just... afraid."

ok the point finally. now this part is just speculation and headcanon-ery but that's the lifeforce the animates any fandom so... basically i think rukia ignored renji. hard. after he finally went to work in the gotei 13 and i think it blindsided him. it's never stated exactly when renji decided to surpass byakuya but in the (frankly incredible) chapter 144 flashback kira tells renji "i suggest you stay away from her. for your sake and hers. i'm sure she realizes that she's not like us." and as that scene does not take place during their academy days i read it as renji only at that moment understanding the full breadth of their separation. i'm not sure i take kira's word as law wrt to her intentions because frankly he doesn't know her like that, and instead i see it more as kira encouraging his friend to move on and uses their difference in social status as a reason for her snubbing him ( rukia doesn't care about social status and it's not something she could have picked up from byakuya because 1. he doesn't talk to her 2. byakuya himself doesn't care about social status). next we cut to ikkaku saying "wow. that's quite a goal. to become stronger than kuchiki byakuya." and finally yumichika in all his wisdom sums up their break up era, "it's a difficult thing. discouraging, isn't it? it's always easier to tear down than to build. and much more difficult to tie than untie."

i read these scenes as a cause-and-effect from the order presented to us. rukia ignores renji (because from her pov he dumped her and she still feels some type of way about it) -> kira witnesses said ignoring and tries to impart some advice -> renji doesn't agree with the advice because he can see different social classes interacting all the time but kira's minor nobility does hold some weight with him so he takes what he wants from the advice -> concocts a plan to surpass byakuya (love the vague word choice surpass him in what? social status? ability? height? i don't think renji really knew instead using it as a launch pad to get back into rukia's good graces, because once they start hanging out again he seems more than fine with being byakuya's 2nd) -> yumichika imparts his own advice (which reads more like a thesis statement of the arc the way "a heart is born between two people" was used during the hueco mundo arc) but in the context of the scene he's sympathizing with renji and his relationship woes; "rukia finally had a real family. let her go... don't get in the way... that's what I told myself. but thinking back...maybe i was just... afraid." renji had doubts about pursuing rukia this way, but kept on course because he was uncertain he was in a position to 'tie' the relationship back together, but doesn't want to 'untie' it either.

now the other point; renji's aggression during the arrest. renji has dedicated a huge chunk of his (after)life into reaching a position where they can be equals again, and here rukia is fucking it all up with her "antics" as he later calls them. and if he's been living with the idea that rukia won't talk to him because of the gulf in their social status and here she is living amongst humans (not sure where humans sits on the soul society social hierarchy but i'm gonna guess they're not even considered they're so low) it probably brings up some deep resentments, i don't think renji has the heart to truly stay pissed at her for long and when ishida and ichigo step onto the scene they make for much easier targets. this isn't renji at his best, but i can see where he's coming from, and he drops the act completely when it becomes obvious rukia is willing to go to jail for a long time for ichigo's sake.

ok wow this really got away from me and i've forgotten the point i was trying to make BUT tl;dr i think the renruki break up is more complicated than initially presented and there are some incredible unexplored avenues of angst.

#renruki #💭#meta #proofreading? i don’t know her

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4rainynite · 11 months

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Cerise and Ramona should've been Cousins!!!!!

Hi, before we begin my rant this is just my opinon on how the Cerise & Ramona storyline should've been handled. I'm aware that Ever After High was a toy line to sell dolls but somethings could've been avoided. This is one of them!

I'll explain who's who in the Hood/Badwolf family, history, theories, and why Cerise and Ramona would've worked better as cousins.

Cerise Hood

Let's begin pre-Ramona introduction with Cerise Hood.

Cerise is the daughter of Red Riding (Ruby) Hood and an unknown father. Cerise spent her childhood in the Dark Forest near the outskirts of Hood Hollow where two families the Hoods and the Wolfs reside in a huge rivalry due to the 'Little Red Riding Hood' story.

When Cerise came of age she was accepted to attend Ever After High School a school dedicated in teaching the future fairy tale teens their destiny.

Despite being one of the most popular fairy tales Cerise was a loner. Raven thought during Freedom Year that Cerise would be friends with Cedar, Maddie, and her. Even though she and Cedar are roommates Cedar only knew that Cerise slept with her hood on and snores loudly. Despite Cerise's aloof nature she did interact with her future friends, but she was still a mystery to them. Cerise's peers find it strange that she wears a hood all the time and she explains it's a part of her story to wear a red hood, they accept it.

In 'The Cat Who Cried Wolf' ' not only is Cerise half-wolf she's also the daughter of Bad (Breaker) Wolf.

This explains why she's so muscular, athletic, and secretive - she can't have anyone knowing about her family secret.

After Legacy Day, Cerise becomes more open, confident, and gains friendships with both Royals and Rebels. Seeing how all she had was her father and mother due to her heritage, both parents are proud she has found people she can trust. Cerise gets involved in many sports teams and managed to become MVP something she wouldn't have done before.

The only people who know/maybe know that Cerise has both her parents' destiny are:

Raven: The leader of the Rebel's and the first-person Cerise told the secret to. Cerise tells Raven the truth about her family and Raven not only the did Raven swore not to tell anyone keeps it a secret but covers up, so Cerise won't be exposed. No matter what the other is going through they will defend each other.

Maddie: In 'The Secret Diary of Raven Queen' Maddie and Raven were invited to stay at Cerise's place during spring break and Maddie reveals the Narrators told her already in 'The Unfairest of Them All'. Seeing as Maddie is a sweetheart, she kept quiet about it until Cerise told her and called her wolf ears 'silly' so no one would know the truth. Also, her dad was Ruby and Beaker's marriage officiant in Wonderland so he may have told her afterwards.

Kitty: Kitty finds out during Cerise and Carmine's run through the woods and threatens to expose the secret in front of their classmates as a joke. This is before 'Spring Unsprung' when Kitty realizes that some things are not funny! The only reason Kitty never tried to expose Cerise was because she never does the same prank twice and after Raven used a speed spell on her, not worth getting a worse punishment. Also, I think Kitty's mom was a witness to Ruby and Breaker's wedding and may have told Kitty at one point in time, Kitty thought she was messing with her.

Cedar: Cedar is cursed to tell the truth and Cerise has one of Ever After's biggest secret. You'd think being roommates would make things very awkward, and they were at first but now the two are friends! Cedar did get hints of Cerise snoring loudly, but never seen her without her hood. She knows something is up with Cerise, but doesn't ask due to her truth curse. In my fanfic ' Way to Wonderland (Rewrite)' Cedar finds but keeps quiet about it.

Dexter: Cerise and Dexter seem to be on friendly terms even when Raven isn't around. Dexter found out about Cerise's wolf ears in 'Once Upon a Twist: Cerise and the Beast' and when they returned Dexter claimed he hit his head and forgot everything. He lied to protect Cerise and keeps a close eye on her to make sure her hood doesn't accidently fall off again.

Ginger: Ginger and Cerise are childhood friends so growing up Ginger may have noticed somethings about Cerise. Ginger respects Cerise privacy and Cerise will tell her herself, and Ginger will accept her no matter what.

Hunter: Hunter is one of Cerise's friends as both are Rebels and athletic. Hunter doesn't believe the rumor going around that Cerise is his half-sister, but he is protective about her when Ramona and Mr. Badwolf are around. Like everyone else, he'll gladly accept her (and be grateful that the rumors about his dad having an affair are over with)!

Justine: In her diary Ramona texted Cerise to save Ramona. This would seem strange to Justine since at that point Cerise and Ramona weren't so close.

Rosabella: Cerise is listed as Rosabella's friends, and she probably read Cerise's aura and saw a wolf spirit inside her. At first, Rosabelle thought it was Cerise's spirit animal.

Ramona: I'll explain how Ramona found out about Cerise in her section.

The History of Badwolf & Red

In 'The Cat Who Cried Wolf' Cerise shows a family photo in her locket of her, Red Riding Hood (Ruby), and Mr. Badwolf (Breaker) in human form. But, when a button on the locket is clicked it shows Breaker in mid-transformation.

I don't disapprove of Cerise carrying a locket with her family inside, but if a certain someone found it *COUGHMILTONCOUGH* that would be disastrous! Even a student like Faybelle, Duchess, Blondie (maybe not she does have standards), or Sparrow might find it and expose them.

Ruby and Breaker were students at Ever After High, with the Hoods and Wolfs rivalry this was probably the first time the two met. Breaker would hang out with The Evil Queen (Eagle), Dark Fairy (Darcy), and Candy Witch (Candy) as the bad kids. Breaker did seem to have a crush on Raven's mom before crushing on Ruby, and the Evil Queen and Ruby were roommates during Legacy Year (sophomore year) - so, you know that's kinda *cough* awkward.

In 'Class of Classics' Breaker and Ruby were partners in a school project for theatre class. At first, Ruby saw Breaker as nothing but a class clown and was worried about her grade. The two became smitten with each other and hit common ground on both their ideas for the project and started crushing on each other.

Years later Ruby and Breaker married in Wonderland by the Mad Hatter (Hatthew) as the marriage officiant with The Cheshire Cat (Catherine) and Maddie's mother as witnesses. Due to the strict rules of Ever After if Ruby and Breaker married there would've been a riot or something. After, they had Cerise and did everything to keep their marriage and daughter a secret out of fear of going off-script.

Since both Ruby and Breaker had a theatre class together if Breaker wasn't the General Villiany teacher he would've been teaching theatre. He was a class clown in his youth, but preferred to be called a performer and we saw his acting skills in 'Cerise's Picnic Panic'. But knowing how bias Headmaster Milton Grimm is he wouldn't allow it (Giles would)!

In 'Unfairest of Them All' Cerise had to reveal that Red Riding Hood and Bad Wolf are her parents to prevent both the Hoods and Wolfs from throwing Raven in the river to most likely drown. Once exposed both Hoods and Wolfs come together to - banish Cerise from Hoods Hollow. Grandma (Ruby's mother and Cerise's grandmother) holds a contest to see if Cerise stays or is banished. Long story short - Cerise wins and the Hoods and Wolfs keep Cerise's heritage a secret, but Ruby's people turned their backs on her and Breaker maybe did the same. The only people in Hood Hollow who probably still associate with them is Grandma and Woodrow Wolf (Badwolf's distant cousin).

In 'Next Top Villian', ' Cerise's Picnic Panic', and 'Class of Classics' Breaker is seen in human form which is a bad idea if you go back to the locket part above. I would've made him in his time as a student switch between human and wolf form. As he got older he spent less time in human from, when Ruby announces she pregnant and gets hired at Ever After High he stays in wolf form permanently so when Cerise attends school no one will see that they're related.

Ramona

Ramona first appear appeared 2015 in Justine's diary where it said she was Badwolf's daughter and Cerise almost called her sister. Ramona made her cartoon in the Dragon Games, Moonlight Mystery, A Big Bad Secret, and Epic Winter.

But, wait, where has she been all this time? Apparently, she in the Dark Forest Reform School.

Yeah, that -that was just wrong.

We spent years believing that Cerise would inherit both her parents' roles. Cerise even had a Cerise Wolf doll for crying out loud! All that buildup, angst, and hope for nothing!

No hate on Ramona or the EAH crews' character decision, but one character having two conflicting destinies sounded more interesting.

When Ramona was first introduced, she was tough- as- nails, rude, edgy, and sarcastic. She was looking forward to becoming the next Big Bad Wolf and showed it.

But she is also loyal to the people she cares about like when: she alerted Cerise when Justine left to stop Duchess from cheating on a dance show, pointed out flaws in Humphrey's tech, helped Justine find out why her shoes were damaged, and lightened up on her teasing with Cerise.

There was so much hype about Ramona, but sadly she never got a doll or diary (along with many other characters that have been around since chapter one, but that's another story) due to the series cancellation.

From what I can go by is she's interested in sports and will most likely join track and shield. She may have an artsy side to her due making a snow wolf and heavy makeup she wears that contrasts Cerise's natural look. There's so much we don't know about her!

If you notice in the photo Ramona isn't there. Ramona would've been besides Cerise and leaving Ramona out of the photo is just hurtful. In 'The Secret Diary of Raven Queen' Raven visited Cerise, but Ramona was spending the break with one of her friends. In 'Cerise's Picnic Panic' Ramona wasn't there for the family picnic, because she was in reform school at the time. When you get older you realize you won't be around for every family event. But, 'The Cat Who Cried Wolf' came out in 2013 & 'Cerise's Picnic Panic' came out in 2014 and Ramona didn't appear until 2015 in Justine's diary and 2016 during the Dragon Games, Moonlight Mystery, A Big Bad Secret, and Epic Winter. So, take that with a grain of salt.

I believe Ramona going to reform before the Royal vs Rebel thing happened, most likely Freedom year and it had something to do with Cerise. Blondie even asked Cerise if she was responsible Ramona being sent to Dark Forest Reform School due to rumors.

How the heck does reform school work in the world of Ever After High? I mean we have Faybelle - who takes ever opportunity to be evil, yet was never sent away. Raven rebelled, Headmaster Grimm even admitted the only reason he didn't expel her was because of her story. He even threatened to expel Ginger. What the heck did Ramona do?

We never did find out if Ramona was a Royal or a Rebel but going by her gloves in the image above, she's a Rebellious Royal (if that makes any sense). But like Kitty, Poppy, and many others she's not listed in any group.

My Cousin Headcanons

Now, the moment we've been waiting for: my headcanon on why Ramona and Cerise should've been cousins. I'll explain who Ramona's parents are, the rivalry between the Hoods and Wolfs, and etc.

Like most siblings Ramona and Cerise have a rivalry due to keeping the who their parents are a secret until graduation.

In my cousins headcanon: Ramona has no clue that she and Cerise are related and picks on Cerise due to it's their destiny to be enemies. This takes place during Freedom Year so Cerise tries to brush it off, but Mr. Badwolf won't let Ramona get away with it. This confuses Ramona, why would her uncle (actually, distant cousin) being protective of the future Red Riding Hood. Time skip - Ramona is at Dark Forest Reform School before the end of Freedom Year.

Ramona returns to Ever After High School, but it's like after the first month of school to a week before Legacy Day so she can pledge with her classmates. Ramona is back to her old tricks, but Cerise has gain some confidence since she last saw her which almost startles her (almost). Ramona finds out about rumors of Raven not wanting to sign and Cerise befriending Raven Queen.

The day after Legacy Day which is called Yester Day when Headmaster Grimm makes the students talk to previous generations with similar destinies to see the importance of their stories. Ramona most likely visited Mr. Badwolf and was nowhere near Hood Hollow when Cerise revealed herself as a Hood and a Wolf.

Later, Mr. Badwolf tells Ramona the truth about Cerise being his daughter. It all makes sense now: why her uncle (distant cousin) has a 'World's Baddest Dad' mug in 'Next Top Villian' and why he defends Cerise. Not only is Ramona hurt by the betrayal that her uncle not only married a Hood but Red Riding Hood. And with the revelation of Cerise being her uncle's child Ramona realizes she may not have a destiny anymore if Cerise inherits it. Ramona stars acting out more and disrespecting Mr.Badwolf the only person in the school she ever respected and looked up to.

Ramona tries to antagonize Cerise, seeing her as weak for not letting her hood down and embracing her Wolf side. But Cerise is no longer the damsel-in-distress she was Freedom Year and can stand up to Ramona's words and paws.

One day things go so far that Mr.Badwolf sends both girls to his office. Inside Ruby, Raven, Grandma, and Woodrow are there to clear things up. Ruby, Raven, Grandma, and Cerise describe how the Hoods and Wolfs tried to throw Raven in the river, Cerise revealing her heritage to stop them, almost getting banished and the race. Woodrow and Ramona are shocked, they are aware both sides don't get along, but never have they tried to drown or banish anyone. Ramona realizes how dangerous Cerise's situation is and if Headmaster Grimm finds out it'll be even worse!

If the series continued Cerise's secret would've been revealed to everyone proving Headmaster Grimm's whole 'follow your destiny or you'll disappear forever' is a lie. Ramona will be one of many to defend Cerise if anyone tries to harm after the truth is revealed.

Once, everything settles down (or at least somewhat close) Ramona and Cerise form a friendly rivalry in sports and bond more with each other.

The reason I made Mr. Badwolf Ramona's uncle/distant cousin is because in 'Once Upon a Time' it said that Mr. Badwolf has a distant cousin named Woodrow Wolf, who owns Huff and Puff Glass Blowers and makes cups, vases, and delicate glass flowers in the same beach village Cedar Wood lives. Ramona is the daughter of Woodrow and a werewolf woman. Once, they find out about Cerise and Badwolf marrying Red Riding Hood their one of the first besides Grandma to accept them.

The reason Ramona was believed to be the next Big Bad Wolf despite not living in Hood Hollow is because she's the oldest of her cousins. There are many Wolf family members in Hood Hollow, but there might be an age gap since the Wolfs that were named: Cranky Wolf and Horribus Wolf are adults while Cry Wolf is a child.

So, in the final book/episode everyone can choose their destiny and Cerise can let her hood down and changes her name to Cerise Hood-Wolf (you can share both parents' last name if you choose), the conflict in Hood Hollow has ended, and everyone is one big happy family!

P.S. I can see Sparrow begging Cerise, Ramona, and Mr.Badwolf to turn him part wolf since he's family (distant cousin). They most likely howls enough with his music and doesn't need to be transformed and accepts that he's an honorary Wolf.

Well, I hope y'all enjoyed my headcanon, I plan to do more in the future, bye!

Images from EAHWIKI & ROYALREBELWIKI

#ever after high #ever after royal #ever after rebel #eah #cerise hood #ramona badwolf #cerise wolf #red riding hood #raven queen #cedar wood #madeline hatter #maddie hatter #dexter charming #hunter huntsman #big bad wolf #ginger breadhouse #justine dancer #my art #rosabella beauty

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armpirate · 3 months

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Soundleasure | Choi San || CH. 5

Pairings: Soft!San x fem!reader || Strangers to lovers, fake dating

Genre: smut, angst, fluff, online sex, ghosting

Warnings: inexperienced!San, fem!reader, masturbation, online sex, camboy, first times.

Summary: You can do whatever you please and be whoever you want on the Internet. And San knew that a little bit too well.

After finally following all the signs the universe was throwing at him, he started living a double life that no one was aware of. Everyone in his daily life knew him as Choi San, the reserved and quiet boy who wouldn't raise his voice, and would barely communicate with anyone outside of his comfort group. But only a few knew him as Soundleasure, the man with a sexy voice and a filthy mind that had their toes curling just with his narrations.

He never thought of the possibility of those two lives ever meeting, he had always tried for them to follow a parallel route and had always played safe to keep his friends from ever suspecting that side even existed. But his plans will start to crumble when he gets a little too close with one of his subscribers and she invades his real-self and altergo's universes without being able to stop it.

Y/n will not only help him to keep his secret from his circle, but will also show him there's more of Soundleasure in him than he'd like to admit.

Previous || Next

MASTERLIST

Aprox. time of reading: 12 minutes

After that first contact in real time, it all kept evolving further between them. The conversations were even more frequent -if that was even possible-, having the both of them stuck at their screens at the minimum chance a notification popped up in hopes of it being the other's text. And all those messages throughout the day only finished with one good video call at night, being the last person the other saw -even if it was through a screen. Y/n kept thinking the only possibility for what they had was to keep evolving. More messages, more calls... and it all stopped.

She remembered she was confused at first. San usually took no longer than five minutes to answer her messages, and she kept seeing her text at the end of their conversation, marking the end of the chain of messages. First it was hours, later it was days. Whenever she called, her calls were never answered either, and she couldn't help but worry at the thought of something happening to him.

Until she received that notification she knew so well.

Y/n: Hey??

Y/n: ???

Y/n: Are you there?

Y/n: Did something happen?

Y/n: ...

Y/n: Hello?

Y/n huffed while rereading those texts after a few weeks. She never in her life felt like begging for someone to pay attention to her -not even attention, but have the common decency to tell her he didn't want to have anything to do with her anymore. She didn't care what the reason was, she'd have accepted it and moved on with life. But the fact that he disappeared, out of nowhere, but still was active posting his videos made her blood boil. She even went as far as sending him texts back on his page, just in case he'd read them, but it had the exact same response: nothing. He didn't even read them, or at least it didn't show up for her.

"Do you want to cancel your subscription?"

—He can fuck off if he wants —she mumbled, pressing the small "Yes" on her phone screen.

She clearly wasn't going to keep giving him money in exchange for being ignored. She didn't even try to watch the last four videos he posted, remembering how the only thought going through her head was throwing him the heaviest thing she could find.

It was complicated for her. It made no sense, and that made her more furious.

For the first time since she broke up with her ex boyfriend, and after several awful Tinder dates, she finally managed to connect with someone who made her feel comfortable and at ease. Leaving aside the sexual attraction that was evident through texts, she felt understood by someone that she didn't even meet in person -and it wasn't because she didn't want to.

During one of their video calls, Y/n casually mentioned how much she liked walking past Acorn Street whenever she had to, and how it never bothered to move by feet when she knew the destination would make her walk through it. San's answer was automatic, as if he wasn't thinking what he was saying, when he told her he used to walk past that street when he was younger, but how he hadn't been around that area for so long. When her brain clicked all that information together, and dared to ask if he was also living in Boston, he started stuttering, showing off how nervous that question made him and taking longer to nod and confirm it. While she was excited about the news, and mentioned how they could meet in person one of those days, San simply nodded, desperate to change the topic to something else.

That memory made Y/n scoff, convincing herself that that man was no better than anyone else she had met. He wanted the horniness of masturbating with someone, with enough distance so she wouldn't be a burden for him, and she was planning on changing his comfort zone.

—Jennifer —Y/n called her assistant, who entered silently to leave some files over her desk, and was about to leave as she was done—, can I ask you a question? And promise you won't tell anyone?

—Me? —she asked, confused.

Motioning her to close the door and step back inside, she waited for the brunette girl to take a seat over one of the chairs that were in front of her desk. With the type of life she had, she barely managed to maintain any of her friendships, and most of the ones she had were directly connected to her job -so it wasn't like she actually considered them friendships per se-, which left her looking for advice to her poor assistant, that had to keep up with her dramas and rants.

—Let's say that you start talking with someone —Y/n started—, and that someone suddenly disappears as soon as you mention seeing each other in person...

—Well, I don't know... —the girl hesitated for a few seconds, before she finally concluded:— Did you have another failed date?

Y/n's back fell over the backrest heavily, feeling attacked by that question that only reflected the reality of her love life.

—It didn't even get to a date —she whispered.

—Was it an online relationship? —she frowned.

—No... I mean...

Was it?

—No —she denied, confident with her answer—. We were talking for a few weeks, it was all great. But when I told him to meet up in person, he ghosted me.

Jennifer frowned slightly, pursing her lips as she tried to get to an answer with the information that was displayed for her.

—That sounds like he has a girlfriend and doesn't want you to find out.

Y/n covered her lips with four of her fingers, surprised at herself for not ever thinking about that in the two weeks he had left her on a limbo.

—I didn't think of that —Y/n admitted with a thin voice—. That asshole...

—Or maybe there was something he wanted to hide, and he's afraid you'll know if you see each other in person.

That'd also make sense, but what would San be hiding?

For sure he was hiding a girlfriend.

When her father entered her office, both of them were leaning over her desk, trying to speak as low as possible so none of the information would leak through the walls. Your father's eyes darted over your assistant, who moved quickly on her seat to get up and subtly sprint to the door, mumbling an excuse before she left them alone.

—Confessing crimes? —he arched an eyebrow.

—Something like that —she sighed.

—You need to stop using Jennifer as a confessional —her father clicked his tongue, sitting on the same chair her assistant was sitting—. Find real friends and chat with them about those things.

—What brings you here? —Y/n asked, ignoring his advice.

That counter question made him chuckle, seeing himself reflected on his little creation in front of him. There was no doubt that it was indeed his daughter.

—I've had a meeting —he started, tapping his fingers over the glass of her desk that covered half of the wood underneath.

—And that meeting was so bad that you came to my office to let me know you had a meeting? —she tried to guess, lifting both of her eyebrows as she waited for his answer.

—Y/n —her name left his lips with a sedated tone.

—What?

What started as a joke, started to be something that concerned her. She recognized that look in her father's eyes, and it only took her back to a few years back when the crisis in the company was so big that he had to fire ten percent of the employees. It was an awful time for her father, but it was an even worse time for everyone who was left with no income and no job without a previous warning.

She sighed, throwing her head back, hoping it wasn't what she was suspecting.

—Why did you even start hiring people again? —she complained, getting up from his seat.

—It's not as bad as the other time.

—I don't understand. The numbers are positive.

—Yet they're below what we should be making.

—And firing people is your only option? —her hands rested on her hips, over her beige pleated pants.

After Covid, the company almost went bankrupt, seeing some light after all of those people were kicked out of the company and some things changed in the line of production and distribution. She didn't even think they'd be affected by some of the external crises until her father showed up in her office not even five minutes back.

She wasn't going to fire anyone. Only remembering the destroyed faces of the ex employees, while they begged her to keep their jobs -even if she was only her father's assistant in that time-, almost made her throw up. She understood it was part of the responsibility she was willing to take when she inherited the company, but she still hated it. She hated being the one hurting someone else, and being the only responsible to destroy their lives.

—For now, you'll only have to go without two of the members of your team —her father whispered.

Looking through the glass wall, she saw them all sitting on the rounded table, working together, peeking over one another's laptops before they were back to chatting. All of them were useful and needed, how was she supposed to fire two of them?

—If you want to keep earning what you do, you'll need to sacrifice something else —he shrugged—. Every team will be reducing their staff.

—Wait...

Y/n stopped him, stuck at the first thing he said. While her father looked at her, he was aware of the way her brain was probably working. Her eyes raised to the ceiling, with her eyebrows slightly frowned while her hand floated in the air. The slight movement of her fingers hinted at the counts she was probably doing, when she was finally back in reality.

—You mean that if I stop earning the same amount, I won't need to fire anyone —she concluded.

The man, who was resting his elbow over his desk, simply sighed when he caught on where his daughter was trying to take all that issue to.

—If you lower my salary, taking out two of their salaries, I'll still have a fair pay and I won't need to kick anyone out.

—Y/n...

—You always ask me for responsibility, and this is mine —she stopped him before he was able to say anything—. You either take it, or take it. You came with an issue, and I gave you a solution. I can't see what else there is to discuss.

—Are you sure? —he stepped towards her, keeping a safe distance.

—Uh hum —she nodded—. On my side, everything is solved.

San moved around his room, from one corner to the other, scratching his nape while he kept punishing herself for the way he acted, when he should've been studying instead. Y/n was the only girl he was able to talk to with no problems, and he ruined it all by ghosting her because he was the dumbest person alive.

The fear of anything slightly changing between them once they saw each other in person led him to stop answering her texts, feeling guilty when each one of them showed more confusion and disappointment than the previous one.

What if she didn't like him? What if she thought he was a weirdo that didn't deserve her wasting her time on him? She was beautiful, funny, friendly... she certainly had everything, while he thought he didn't have much to give back in response.

And it certainly was too late to ever think of sending her a text, making it more difficult with every day he allowed to pass.

Y/n deserved something better than him, that was for sure.

A loud sound and the sound vibrating made San hurry out of his room, finding Wooyoung on the floor with a chair dropped not too far away from him.

—What the hell did you do? —San asked, walking towards his friend to kneel next to him.

—I hung on the ceiling fan, because I thought it'd be so fun —he replied with irony, sitting with his help—. What the fuck would I be doing? I was cleaning what neither of you wanted to clean, and I lost my balance. And now my arm hurts —Wooyoung whined, holding his folded arm with his other hand.

—Can you move it?

—No —Wooyoung's voice trembled when he tried to, moving it back to the same position it was in.

—Let's go to the hospital —San mumbled, before he helped his friend to get up from the floor.

—I'll go alone —he insisted—. You have an exam tomorrow.

—So? —he replied back, walking towards his room to pick up his wallet, his phone as his keys— The exam will still be tomorrow whether I study or not.

—I mean, duh —Wooyoung gave him a confused look—. It's not up to you, the problem is the result of it.

—What I meant is that I'll take you to the doctor anyway —San answered, pushing Wooyoung gently towards the door—. I'd be too worried about you to be able to concentrate on studying.

—Awe —he felt his cheeks being squeezed by two of his fingers of his healthy hand, almost making him regret ever thinking of looking after him—. You're so caring when you want to.

San simply rolled his eyes, heading towards the lift and holding the door for Wooyoung before he stepped inside as well.

If there was something worse than dealing with his overthinking head, it was dealing with a bored Wooyoung. Every five seconds a comment that made no sense, or a complaint that had been mentioned a few many times, left his lips as he looked for San's attention, trying to get him to distract him while his friend just looked around at the slightest hint that a doctor would look after him and deal with Wooyoung's injured arm.

—Why didn't you tell me you had a girlfriend? —Wooyoung inquired, kicking his side with his upper arm— I've told you about all of my crushes, and dates I've had since the first year of college, and you didn't tell me about your first girlfriend? It's so annoying, I thought we had something special.

The old lady that sat in front of them right when Wooyoung was towards the end of that sentence gave them a judging look, turning her lips into a thin line as she looked away.

—Perfect, and now you're ignoring me.

—I didn't think it was a big deal —San shrugged.

—Your first girlfriend and it's not a big deal? —Wooyoung sat straight on the chair— I thought you'd die before being able to touch a tit —he admitted, making some heads turn to them—. It's indeed a big deal.

— Well, sorry —San whispered—. I'll tell you everything from now on.

Wooyoung's tongue clicking just warned him he wasn't done.

—I even told you when the German teacher gave me a blowjob in her office —he mumbled—, and you kept to yourself something so simple...

—I'm sorry —San apologized again—. I'll tell you everything that happens with her from now on, alright?

And that would be the announcement that they both were broken up when the time was right.

—Show me a picture of her again.

San knew Wooyoung would go on with that blame chant if he didn't. And it was better to show him a picture, than have half of the hospital looking at them because his friend had no shame.

Scrolling through his gallery, he tapped on some of the "normal" pictures Y/n sent him. He wasn't thinking of saving them, but he thought she looked way too beautiful to just forget about that picture as it disappeared among their texts. It was something he wanted to scroll past out of nowhere while he looked for something random in his gallery. He wanted to keep that smile with him.

—She's pretty —Wooyoung nodded—. I can't understand what she saw on you —he commented out of nowhere, taking San by surprise.

That last comment had San turning to him almost instantly, with Wooyoung being saved by the nurse calling his full name and giving him a good reason to walk away from where they were sitting.

Wooyoung was still right though: San couldn't understand what Y/n could've seen on him to ever feel interested in him.

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carusolikey · 11 days

Text

The Blue Hour

a Max Phillips & Bloodsucking Bastards FanFic Chapter 1: There Goes the Building

Pairing: Max Phillips of Bloodsucking Bastards x afab!fem!reader

Rating: Explicit / NSFW 18+ (No Minors)

Author’s Note: I wrote this piece during the month of April 2024 - Adenomyosis Awareness Month, and the idea came to me during March 2024 (Endometriosis Awareness Month). This will not have any type of pregnancy kink, but will touch on infertility of OC due to the aforementioned; canon for this story is also that Vampires are infertile - there will be no Renesmé. OC is intended to be around the same age as Max, reader’s choice up or down, but no age gap. Because older afab/fem lovers are sexy - we drink and we know things.

Warnings: Most of these warnings will apply to later Chapters. Chapter 1 is fairly light and fluffy "getting to know you" with some steamy close calls, lingering touches and what have you (the what have you is the best part). But don't worry - we'll be getting down and dirty in Chapter 2.

A bit of rough sex/smut (fingering, fem penetration - P in V, oral [m + f receiving]), food play, 18+ only content, able bodied fem afab reader, alcohol consumption, non-gendered pet names, fem can be carried and has hair - though length is not mentioned, consensual "bondage", some use of y+n - but not explicitly, though consensuality is implied and intended through actions and reactions, no protection used for Vampire reasons TBD (be wise and always use protection, this is fiction). Did attempt to stay away from gendered pronouns and nicknames, although did use the word woman, 3 times throughout the entire piece (not fully published yet) referring to OC. Future chapters will discuss history endo / adeno, and of previous relationship / SA; there will also be Vampire hunting, murdering, and blood….sucking bastards.

Return to the Masterlist!

Sitting at my little mahogany desk, stretching back in the leather desk chair, I shut off my phone alarm as it blasted the opening chords of Raspberry Beret. 3:15 a.m. - time to grab my laundry from the basement of the old apartment building where I was settled.

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Weird time to be doing laundry, huh? Not for me, though - I’d had insomnia for, let’s see, I’ll have to count on fingers and toes, 5 + 12 + 3 months, so that makes...20 months.

20 months without sunlight, for the most part. I’d had random doctor appointments that interrupted my daytime drowsiness, but about 20 months ago, I broke a little inside and haven’t been able to get back on a normal schedule.

So middle of the night laundry. And mail. And gym time, groceries, cleaning, working…

Honestly, it’s not that bad - I make my living narrating books, and I can do that whenever. Groceries get delivered to my apartment, I’m living Sandra Bullock’s The Net dream life. Peace, quiet, solitude, and ultimate zen.

Is it lonely sometimes? Sure. But that’s what my vibrator is for, and Mr. Rochester is doing fine work. The best part for us is that it’s pretty noncommittal, given that his back story is that he keeps his mentally unwell wife in the attic. Thank you, Charlotte Brontë.

As I headed down the apartment stairwell with my laundry basket against my hip, wearing my laundry day “Li’l Sebastian” (you’re 5,000 candles in the wind) t-shirt, and my hair in a side party-pony, I scrolled through my phone looking for the perfect song. Walking down the stairs, the scent of clean laundry wafting nearer, I enjoyed the open breezes from the stairwell windows. Spring was certainly taking the tepid steps of a lamb, easing along and bringing slightly warmer licks on gentle winds, carrying hints of flowers and plants experiencing horticultural resurrection.

The laundry room, in the dank cement-block basement, was far enough from the apartments that you could throw a party and no one would know, but it also had amazing acoustics. The actual accommodations, on the other hand, left much to be desired - but down here? Chef’s kiss - perfection. Which is why I always seized the opportunity of being the only one awake doing laundry, to partake in one of my favorite activities: singing while folding laundry. The ultimate mood booster.

As I scrolled through my Spotify, I landed on a classic and hit play, crooning in my best sultry voice, “I was staring at the sky, just looking for a star, to pray on or wish on or something like that…”

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I continued folding, singing at the top of my lungs, letting my voice trickle through the runs, shimmying my shoulders as I danced in place. Breathing right along with Fiona Apple during Paper Bag, “Oh, hunger hurts - but I want him so bad, oh-oh it kills, because I know that I'm a mess that he don't wanna clean up. I got to fold because these hands are just too - shaky to hold. Hunger hurts, but starving, it works, when it costs too much to love.”

Daintily placing the last folded item on top, I turned around and was startled to see a man in a three piece suit standing in the doorway of the laundry room.

This is why I don’t wear airpods down here. Safety first.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t realize someone else was down here. And - you just had to endure me giving a private demonstration on how to sing like no one’s listening and dance like no one’s watching.”

I uncomfortably raised my eyebrow and pursed my lips.

“If I gave you money, you could be my private dancer, my dancer for money.” He smirked.

“Tina Turner? Really? I don’t know if that’s the best way to - “ I paused before changing my mind, “No, wait a minute, I think if you’re even going to start with that proposition you have to at least sing it to me. Otherwise, that’s a lazy proposal.”

He didn’t laugh, but he didn’t not laugh. While I gave him the once over, waiting for his response, I noticed that he was unnervingly handsome. Sandy brown hair, with eyes like a hot, fresh espresso, I could practically smell the roasty cinnamon and nutmeg, getting lost in them as he poured them over me, so warm and comforting. His smile crept up to one side - I had a hard time determining its sincerity, but he certainly seemed amused by me. Why? I had no idea. Like the mere idea of me tickled him as he watched me uncomfortably shift in my laundry day outfit and party pony under his gaze.

“Another time, absolutely.” I took a step back, confused by his response, “I’m more interested in who you want so bad that it kills?”

“Huh?” I asked him, ineloquently, and then, “I’m sorry - what are you asking me?”

He gave a low chuckle, and stepped closer, “The song you were singing. You sang about how you ‘want him so bad, OH, it kills,’ -- “ he put his face next to mine, “who do you want?”

“You’re intense, aren’t you?”

Stepping back, he raised his eyebrows.

“How about a, ‘Hi, my name is, I don’t know - Blake? I live in the building, I like ponies and narwhals, and my favorite book is something super pretentious about fountain pens’?”

His smile widened from a half smile to a full smile, “My name is Max Phillips, I live in the building, I do like ponies - and narwhals, in theory, I’ve never seen one. My favorite book is The Grapes of Wrath and basically anything by Bill Waterson.”

“Wait - Bill Waterson? Calvin & Hobbes, Bill Waterson?” I responded, a bit shocked, but highly intrigued.

“Yes, but I think you’re supposed to respond in kind,” the words were nice, although they sounded a bit like an order, which I’m not a huge fan of, but for some reason I didn’t seem to mind coming from him.

I told him my name, that I was a huge Capote fan, loved Breakfast at Tiffany’s and In Cold Blood, but that I also really, really loved Dickens, too. Specifically David Copperfield. I hated to admit it, but somehow he’d cracked me open and gotten me talking about my favorite subject. As I stood there waxing on about the upside down ship house and Aunt Betsey Trotwood, and how the movie Breakfast at TIffany’s differed from the book, the laundry basket kept drooping lower and lower on my hip. Without realizing it until I had finished a particularly impassioned speech, I noticed that Max was holding my laundry basket for me. I had been wildly gesticulating with both hands while he contentedly watched me.

“Oh my goodness.” I started, realizing that I’d gone off on a tangent, “I’m so sorry - you probably have other things that you’re meant to be doing.”

My eyes drifted to his suit, perfectly tailored, the button-up underneath holding on just barely, and the snug collar that would probably be a lot more comfortable for him if I were to loosen his tie for him. I bit my lower lip, thinking about it - and then told myself to snap out of it. Alone is good and healthy. So what if my therapist friends say “fine” is a four letter word? I’m fine. I’m FINE. He’s fine. Haha. No. Back to narrating books. Oh shit, he’s looking at me.

“I’m not in any rush,” he started - but I took the laundry basket away from him anyway.

Immediately, he reached out and grabbed my hand in between my thumb and forefinger, pressing firmly, “Did you know that this spot right here is an acupressure point, that helps with migraines?”

“Oh!” caught by surprise, I let out a gasp. “Well, that’s incredibly useful information, thank you,” nervously, I chuckled, “I’m gonna go, but it was really nice to meet you, Max.”

“It was an extremely pleasurable experience for me, as well.” He said, his words dripping with single, double, and I didn’t know it was possible, but triple entendre as well.

As I walked back up the stairs, I thought about what he had just done for me - the acupressure point. How did he know that I was getting a migraine? Was it just obvious from my facial expressions? Well, I suppose I’d rather he recognize that I was having a migraine than think I wasn’t interested. Wait - is he a doctor? Shoot. I didn’t ask. We also didn’t exchange numbers. I can’t go back, I’m already halfway up the stairs. Ugh! You know what? No. I’m therapist “F” word. FINE. If it’s meant to happen, it’ll happen. Meanwhile, I know Mr. Rochester is charged and waiting. It’s all good.

By the time I got back to my apartment my migraine was actually gone, and I was feeling quite flushed after the passing experience with Max, so I decided to treat myself. I lit my fancy Sage & Peppermint candle, turned on my “To Be Savored” playlist, then went straight to my treasure box and pulled out Mr. Rochester. I know exactly how to set the mood for me.

I thought about Max’s handsomely roguish grin, with its slight dimple and the way his eyes crinkled playfully, like he wanted to keep toying with me all night. Placing Mr. Rochester onto my clitoris, then rubbing up and down to get him wet - easily done. After where my thoughts had been, I turned him on to the first vibration and started moaning lightly. In the back of my mind, it registered that I heard footsteps coming down the corridor of apartments in the hallway, just outside of mine. I turned the vibrator up another click and moaned a bit more, thinking about a fantasy situation where Max came bursting into my apartment, and fucked me right here and now. Suddenly, the footsteps stopped right outside the door of my apartment.

Panting, there was a sudden twitch as my clitoris began to orgasm, unable to determine what was fantasy and reality.

“Is he outside my apartment?!” I hissed in confusion and paranoia. I ramped up the vibrator, and let myself have it, breathing out, “Oh god, Max!”

Then, the footsteps started again, and I heard a deep baritone chuckling.

No. No, no, no, no, no.

Shit.

Well, there goes the neighborhood.

It had been a few days, and I started to wonder if Max was actually real, or just the product of my desperate, overactive imagination. If that was the case, kudos to me. I really could not have imagined a more perfect specimen.

I would be glad, if he were simply imagined.

Because I was so horrified post-self-coital that he might’ve heard me, that I did actively hide even more so than I’ve already been hidden.

But I still had to get mail, and I do still exercise pretty regularly, so there was bound to be an incident. Not that there had been, or that we’d bumped into each other in the gym before, but the odds of someone you’ve never met from your building, bumping into you in the laundry and then walking down your hallway at the exact moment that you just happen to decide to masturbate to their extremely, tall, hovering frame - the odds, what were they, really? I laughed to myself, to keep myself from overheating and crying a little bit.

However, I’d been keeping my nighttime moonlighting as the resident lounge singer on the very, very nonexistent down low. Which, yes, “crushes my fragile spirit,” sure, but worth it not to bump into someone I fantasy-orgasmed to very loudly.

Especially if they were real and happened to hear me through my poorly sound-proofed door. The cringe is real, the cringe has its own cringe, the cringe lives in a house made of cringe on Cringe Lane in the town of Cringe at the edge of Cringe Lake. But when you say it that way, it just sounds British, and suddenly, my cringe sounds quaint, doesn’t it? But oh, god - what if Cringe Lake has a Cringe Lake House, with a magic mailbox? No. I can’t entertain that idea. It’s too much, I’m spinning out!

The only thing that really centers me, is heading down to the basement gym. Is it poorly lit with the same cement block walls as the laundry room? Is it carpeted with a full wall of mirrors and a bar for an imaginary barre class that I sometimes pretend that I’m taking? Are there only two ellipticals, one exercise bike, and only one set of mismatched weights, but 5 treadmills? Yes, yes, yes, always, yes, yes, yes, who knows why - maybe because of the prancercise craze of the mid 90’s? (It’s just prancing. Prancing, I said!)

My machine of choice? Always the elliptical. I’ve never been skiing, but I like to pretend like I’m Audrey Hepburn, in the Swiss Alps at the very beginning of the movie Charade, when she’s at a ski resort in the Swiss Alps, not skiing at all, and then she never goes back there at any time for the rest of the movie. What I’m really saying is, I watch something on my iPad for almost an hour until I reach an esoteric high.

Tonight though, I needed to focus. No comfort binging Law & Order: SVU. Nay, it was vital I concentrate on the latest book I was narrating. I would love to say that it was something that will take the literary world by storm but, it was definitely a bit more niche.

The plot was focused on sexy British assassins - a first day on the job for one, while the other had been training their whole life. Naturally, the conflict being that they’d slept together once before and someone accidentally lost their memory when they were kidnapped. Of course, that led to misunderstandings, and one assassin thought the other was blowing them off, when it was just simply a case of, “I was drugged by a rival assassin team and forgot everything that happened between us”.

Make no mistake, once everything was cleared up - there was a lot of sex in this book. A LOT of sex in this book. So much. And you have to wonder when people are writing this, is this what they like? Do they have a partner that they’re trying all of this out with first to make sure it works? Should I be trying this out first in order to be an accurate narrator?

Oh, no. Stop thinking about Max.

As I placed my iPad on the elliptical along with my water bottle and stepped up onto the machine, my thoughts began to drift. Setting the machine to Interval Training, I opened up my iPad to the book and continued where I’d left off, trying to decide what voice I would give to the main character, to her counterpart. Although, there was a possibility the author would be finding another narrator to read for the male character. I wouldn’t know until later.

These thoughts trailed beneath as I read about how the male character could identify the female character by her scent. Ridiculous, I thought, letting out an amused giggle, even with a personalized perfume, really? Tracking her by her scent across London? Who would buy that?

Things continued to heat up for the protagonists, but right before they were about to rip their clothes off, my elliptical made a disappointed, whoosh sound as it transitioned from cool down to off.

Same, elliptical. Same.

Climbing off the elliptical, I turned up the music on my phone, and started stretching out my muscles. As I finished my stretches, Adele’s Send My Love (To Your New Lover) came on, and there was no way I was going to resist singing along.

Fuck it, it’s 2:45 a.m.

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I grabbed the mirror rail, feeling myself entirely, swaying my hips back and forth. Sliding down and dipping back up, dragging my hand down my neck, my chest, and letting it rest on my stomach, I closed my eyes and belted, “Send my love to your new lo-o-ver! Treat her be-e-etter. We’ve gotta let go of all of our ghosts, we both know we ain’t kids no more….”

“I don’t know about you, but I’m very glad we’re not kids anymore.”

“Oh SHIT!”

I jumped and hit my elbow against the mirror, then immediately slid down the mirror hard and hit the same spot on my elbow on the mirror rail, landing on my backside, cradling my elbow.

“Oh! Sad face!” I yelped.

“Did you just say ‘sad face’?” Max had rushed over from where he’d been standing in the doorframe watching me, and with tempered concern put his hand on my forehead, then my arm to see if I was alright.

“Yes, I believe it’s the current preferred standard of emoting. It’s clear, concise…it’s um,” I started to drift a little.

“Hey, stay with me, tell me more about your emojis.”

Taking his phone, he turned on the flashlight and shone it in my eyes, holding my chin to keep me steady, “Pretty eyes, song bird,” and gave me a half smile.

“I’m not a BIRD. I’m a full grown adult woman.”

Eyeing me up and down, Max scoffed gently while shaking his head, “There’s no denying that. Luckily it looks like you don’t have a concussion, but unfortunately,” licking his lips softly as he looked at my elbow, which had a large splinter of wood sticking out of it and a little bit of blood starting to drip from the site, “I’m gonna have to cut my workout short. I think this is definitely a ‘walk my sexy neighbor home emergency’.”

It was my turn to scoff, “Okay, okay - how many sexy neighbors do you walk home every night? Don’t act like this is impressive or like I should be impressed because I’m not.”

He didn’t laugh out loud, but his deep laugh rumbled and shook his chest, like he was deliberately trying not to laugh at me. As though he thought it was important to me, to be taken seriously. Which it IS, of course, but - why does he know that?

Sweeping his right arm under my left arm, leaving my wounded right arm out so that I could hold it close to my chest, and using his left arm to lift me up by the legs, he picked me up.

“Just the one,” he smirked as he made direct eye contact - and carried me up five flights of stairs.

It was definitely impressive, but I had to ask him when we got to the top, “Why didn’t you take the elevator?”

Max clicked his tongue and looked at me reproachfully, “Never, ever miss leg day. Ever.” and then he used me to do curls, after unlocking the apartment and walking inside.

“I object! To being used as gym equipment!” I declared like a regular Lady Violet, the Dowager Countess of Grantham, and Max immediately set me down on my leather couch.

“Much better.” Quietly approving in a mutter from my seated position.

“I’m assuming bandages, antiseptic, antibiotic ointment, that’s all in your - bathroom?” I nodded, still feeling a little woozy, as I watched him walk away.

And then panic struck as I remembered something terrible, a pall was cast over my face as sudden abject horror and humiliation pulled me into a dark and spiraling pit.

“Oh no.” I whispered.

“What?” called Max, from the other room.

How could he possibly have heard that? Did I not whisper? Am I a loud whisperer like my mom and I just don’t know it yet? Max returned, with the engaging smile of someone ready to sell me a bridge, and holding Mr. Rochester, “Is this what you’re looking for?”

My eyes grew wide and large and extra. I ran through a list of possible scenarios where this worked out well for me, and I hated every single one where I admitted it was mine. Normally, yes, I don’t care. I’m very sex positive, but (sobbing internally) this man. I am just not there yet, and I get to make that decision, right? Right.

“What’d you find there?” I asked innocently.

Genuine shock washed over Max’s face and he looked slightly taken aback for a split second, before smoothing himself over, and resuming play, “It was sitting on a towel on the sink in your bathroom.”

I shrugged my shoulders, I touched my face, I looked up and to the left, hid my thumbs, pursed my lips, I basically inadvertently did everything the FBI guy from the podcast about lie detecting said liars do.

“Oh, um, I don’t know. Maybe - uh, maybe maintenance left it here?”

“Maintenance?” Max gave me a dubious look.

“Yeah, the –“ had to pause while I remembered everything that might go in a bathroom that I was willing to have clogged in front of him, “SINK was clogged. I had to get maintenance here to use something for it. I think that’s a snake, is what they call it, right there. What that is.”

“A snake? For clearing clogged drains?” He bit the inside of his cheek, and ground his jaw - I could tell he was not convinced, and might be slightly amused, “You know I’ve used a snake before, this isn’t it.”

“Oh my god. I wonder if someone - accidentally - left it here during one of those, neighbor meetings.”

“What neighbor meetings?” Max gave me a very skeptical look.

“You know, the ones we have. With chips and dip and we talk about neighbor happenings. I don’t think you were at the last one. Probably it’s a microphone. Cordless. With bluetooth for TIkToks,” I gave an extra super chill shrug to add to my very convincing improv acting that has not remotely degraded in skill over the years, “Obviously.”

“You know what. You’re probably right.” He said, seeming very convinced, and I don’t think he noticed, but I did breath a sigh of relief.

“I’ll check in with all of the neighbors, and make sure that I’m on the email list for the next neighbor meeting, while simultaneously checking to see who might’ve misplaced this ‘device,’ here. In your apartment.” The look he gave me was smug.

I grabbed my Nic Cage sequined throw pillow, and hugged it tight, groaning when I realized we still hadn’t attended to my arm.

Max’s face softened, but only by a hair as he set down Mr. Rochester and walked towards me. Sitting down on the couch next to me, placing all of the medical supplies on the coffee table, he began to examine my arm. Licking his lips with a far off look in his eyes, he gulped softly, then took a tweezers and started removing the pieces of wood.

As he worked, he spoke softly, firm, but his voice remained smooth, velvety rich, plush - I wanted to run my hands against it and feel the warmth - nope, that’s the horny pain talking; but what he actually said was, “So, as I was saying, I’m going to take the ‘mysterious device’ from your bathroom for safe keeping. I’ll, uh, ‘check-in’ with your neighbors to see if it belongs to anyone,” then he looked directly into my eyes, holding mine and not letting go - deep caramel brown pulling me into him, “and if I can’t find who it belongs to in a few days time,” I groaned at that, “I’m sorry, am I hurting your arm?” I bit my lip, knowing that wasn’t why I groaned, “then I’ll bring it back, and we can explore the device together. Try and figure out what it does, how it works, the best way to use it. Sound good?”

He looked up at me from under his eyebrows, and I melted. Oof, he was smarmy and smooth, and I had a bad feeling he was going to be my achilles dick.

I tilted my head to the side like a puppy and raised one eyebrow, “I suppose that could be – ” pausing as I bit my lip, debating the right word, “amenable.”

“Well, we certainly wouldn’t want to inconvenience you, would we?” Max looked back down at my arm, taking a wet, soapy, warm cloth, and gently washing off my elbow.

The action was so small and insignificant, but I found myself easing out of my discomfort as I watched him dry off my arm, and apply a large bandage.

Snapping out of it, I started to sit up, “Oh wait, no - I just finished exercising, I need to take a shower first, I’ll put a bandage on afterwards.”

Max looked at me, one eyebrow raised, as he continued what he was doing, and I scrunched my nose up at him in response.

Giving me his smug half-smile with the dimple, his voice somewhat patronizing, “Now that this is taken care of, I’ll run a bath for you – “

“Extra bubbles, if you must,” I interrupted, frowning at him and feeling slightly suspicious. Who was he to run baths for me in my own apartment? I picked up my phone and started passive aggressively scrolling for bath tunes, because of course, despite the nerve of this man, I was going to enjoy my bath.

“Alright,” Max came out of the bathroom, “I hope it’s hot enough for you.”

Looking up from my phone, I couldn’t help myself from drawing my gaze slowly up his body, slowly lingering on his stomach, where his shirt lifted as he stretched his arm above his head. The V of his stomach, disappearing into his sweats, the light trail of hair from his navel to - destination unknown as of yet, but those pants gave some ideas. Oh my god, I’m such a Samantha! I giggled to myself, and Max gave me a confused, yet intrigued look.

I shook my head, “Nothing. Don’t worry about it. I’m sure the water is fine, thank you.”

“You’re very welcome,” he crossed over to the couch, reaching under my left arm, and giving me a lift so that I could walk leaning against him. I groaned getting up, “Yeah - you’re sore, aren’t you? You fell pretty hard. The hot water should help, I added some bath salt with the bubbles.”

“Why are you being so nice to me? We barely know each other.”

“I’m being a decent person. You need to adjust your bar for ‘so nice’, because that threshold is too low, Sweetness.”

As he walked me into the bathroom, I saw that he’d lit a candle, and put all of my shower toiletries, as well as a fresh towel on the bench next to the bathtub, within easy reach. It really wasn’t a hard thing to do, it was a simple, nice thing to do for someone who’d just hurt themself, but it got to me and I had to swallow a lump I felt rising in my throat.

Turning to him, my eyes starting to sparkle a bit with the beginnings of tears that I was determined to hold back, but my sincerity would not be mistaken, “Thank you. I mean it.”

His mouth was smiling, but his eyes lost their crinkle and his eyebrows frowned slightly, “You’re welcome. Now, I’m gonna be just outside the door, over there on the couch, catching up on some emails on my phone, but if you need me –” he mimed the words ‘call me’ while holding his hand up to his ear like a phone.

I nodded, chuckling at his corny sense of humor, “Okay, buddy. Will do,” giving him a thumbs up. He gave a look indicating that he did not like being referred to as ‘buddy,’ and I laughed a little harder while closing the door on him.

Shedding my clothes and tossing them into the hamper, I noticed that I had a large purple and green bruise forming on my backside. Perfect, that’s gonna be sore for a little while. Before stepping into the tub, I popped on my playlist - the water was nice and hot, and felt amazing on my sore body as I sank lower into the water. Yes, yes, and yes - perfection. I let my bandaged arm rest on the edge of the tub as I soaked a cloth, washing my face and the rest of my body. Using the handheld shower head attachment with my left hand, I rinsed through my hair, getting it thoroughly soaked.

I grabbed my shampoo bar soap and started to lather, realizing very quickly that with an elbow that I couldn’t bend, I was going to have to do it one handed.

“Shoot!” I muttered under my breath, as I tried to figure out the best way to do it without getting my bandage wet.

Immediately there was a knock on the bathroom door. “Is everything alright? I’m coming in, but my eyes are closed.”

Max walked in with one hand on the doorknob, and the other over his eyes. I quickly put my left arm over my chest, despite the fact that there were still a LOT of bubbles covering me up. Max knows how to make a good bubble bath, I’ll give him that.

I looked down at myself, and realizing that it was fine, said, “You can look, Max. It’s all good.”

He took his hand down from his eyes, and closed the door behind him. “I’m just struggling a bit to wash my hair while not bending my arm. I mean, I’m sure I can get used to it - I’m just in an adjustment period.”

He sat down next to the bathtub, “Why don’t I help you out tonight - you’re still obviously in shock, right?”

It definitely was a question that indicated concern, but I had a strong sense that he was cajoling me. Mr. Spider, may I introduce you to Miss Fly?

Bickering with my shoulder angel and demon, I opted to accept his offer - because I was sore, and even if his bid to assist me concealed darker intentions, I struggled to care. Somehow, within the presence of his pheromones, his spicy musk, leather and oaky whisky, there existed nothing outside of the puzzle box where we existed, where I was kept like his little secret treasure.

Handing him the shampoo bar, he dipped his hands in the bath water quickly, and started lathering up the bar. “Can you sit up?”

I put my left arm back over my chest and leaned forward until I rested my breasts against my knees, my right arm still clinging to the tub. Max started to massage the shampoo into my hair and I involuntarily leaned my head back into his hands, moaning gently.

“Well, if that’s all it takes to get you to make sounds like that, maybe I should come by and wash your hair again tomorrow.” he teased, his voice irresistibly oozing charm.

“I mean –” I started without finishing, my eyes blissfully closed, thoroughly enjoying what Herbal Essences commercials of the 90’s long ago promised and never delivered.

Cackling, actually gleefully cackling - pleased with himself, Max took the handheld shower head and rinsed the shampoo from my hair. “Alright, I’m assuming there’s a conditioner next?” I pointed to the Olaplex No. 5, “Okay, Fancy.”

“You don’t have to use very much, a lot goes a long way.” I looked over at him, resting my chin on my knees.

“Fair enough.” He squeezed a bit of conditioner into his open palm, and then started rubbing it with both hands into my ends, working his way towards the roots.

“Uh, this is not your first time washing a woman’s hair, is it?” I asked, my voice brimming with curiosity.

“Well, that would be part of my backstory.” I frowned at his response.

“Which I will tell you. One day. But I think it’s a little soon for that.” Max could tell that he was losing me to my thoughts, “But no, it’s not something that I’ve done for a sexy neighbor before.”

Immediately, I was brought back to the here and now, as the word ‘neighbor’ must have given me the same tone of face that I had given Max when I called him ‘buddy’. He looked particularly self-satisfied, as I shot him an admonishing glare.

“How long do we need to leave your conditioner in?” he asked, as my playlist moved onto one of my favorite songs, albeit an unfortunate choice for the moment - Sharon Van Etten’s, Jupiter 4.

youtube

Twisting my hair up, I gestured towards a hair clip on the bathroom sink. Max picked it up, and while I used my left hand to hold my hair up on top of my head, he clipped my hair in place for me.

“Thanks, I usually leave it in for the length of a song - this one should be good.” Blushing as I thought about how sexy this song made me feel. I started to lean back, crossing my left arm back over my chest, and sank back in the water - letting my chest and abdomen be submerged, while my knees and legs stuck out in peaks from the water and the bubbles.

“This is Sharon Van Etten - “ Max paused, “I really like her, and this song,” he took a breath, raised an eyebrow, while looking me up and down, and started singing in his low voice, “Touching your face,” he leaned forward and lifted my chin towards his face with his index finger and thumb, “How’d it take a long, long time - to be here. Turning the wheel on my street. My heart still skips a beat. It’s echoing, echoing, echoing - “ he stared into my eyes, and it felt like another world was opening up to me, “Baby, baby, baby, I’ve been waiting, waiting, waiting my whole life for someone like you.”

As he leaned forward on the tub, his arm knocked the bottle of conditioner into the water, and I took a deep breath in, realizing that I had stopped breathing during his serenade. I broke my gaze from him to the water where the bottle had fallen in, near my legs, and then back to him. Without breaking eye contact with me, he reached through the warm, foamy water, leaning closer to my face as he carefully waded deeper beneath the bubbles.

His hand didn’t touch me, exactly, but felt along the edge of the tub, near the side of my body, going down. I knew where he needed to go, I could feel where the bottle was and squeezed my legs together, tilting them both towards the wall. Suddenly, he put his hand on my right thigh, slowly going up towards my knees. I closed my eyes, and I could feel his breath on me as he turned his face, leaning closer into my neck.

When he got to my knees, I breathed out like I was breathing through a straw, opening my eyes and looking down the tub at his large hand. He slipped his fingers between my knees and gently wedged them apart, stretching his hand so that his thumb was on one leg, and his pinky was on the other. Slowly, he dragged them down both legs, gradually pushing my legs open wider the further down he got. I could feel my heart rate increasing, my nipples growing harder, my vagina pulsing. Looking back at him, my mouth slightly open as my breath started to grow a bit more ragged, my eyebrows furrowing as I held myself back. Gazing back at me, his lips parted, his tongue poised between them, he watched me hungrily - and as I looked down at his sweatpants, I could tell his appetite was fully whetted.

His hand was almost to my vagina, to my clitoris - my whole body trembling, I involuntarily arched my back, letting my breasts peek out from the water for the briefest of moments, and Max’s eyes flickered down my body as he licked his lips. That hand, that cruel hand, slipped just mere seconds before touching me where I craved it. With a quick detour, he pulled the bottle of conditioner out of the water.

I cried out in agony, throwing my left arm over my chest, suddenly and abruptly sitting upright in the tub - trying to catch my breath, shaking as my body pulsed with uncontrollable longing. What is wrong with me? I hardly know this man. This is my neighbor. Oh god. THIS IS MY NEIGHBOR. And I let him give me a bath? Inside I was cry-laughing and dying. I’ve talked to him twice. How did I think this was a good idea?

Max said absolutely nothing. He turned on the handheld shower head and rinsed the conditioner out of my hair, then used one hand to rub my back while I focused on steadying my breath.

As my breath steadied, he asked, “Are you ready to get out?”

Standing up, he held the towel with both hands, and closing his eyes, “I promise I won’t open my eyes –” he opened one eye, looking amused, and then closed it, “again - until I leave the bathroom and, or, you say it’s okay.”

A simple enough promise - will he break it? I suppose there’s only one way to find out.

I sighed and said, “Yeah, I’m ready.”

Standing up, I started to take the towel, but Max wrapped the towel around me instead, giving me strong arms to lean on as I stepped out of the tub, and closer to him and the overwhelming scent of him. Tucking in the towel I looked up at his face, with his eyes closed. The strong, angled, and clean shaven cut of his jaw, the beautiful line of his incredibly sexy aquiline nose - like a marble statue from antiquity. The line of his brow, begging me to trace my fingers across them, and his lips - always pulling back to reveal that suave smile and dreamy little dimple. What I wouldn’t do with those lips!

“You can open your eyes.” I spoke softly, embarrassed that I was here in this moment of intense vulnerability, somehow.

He opened his eyes and looked down at me, grinning at first, but then he saw my look of deflation and his gaze became stern.

“What’s wrong?”

Glancing down, I tried to find the words, “I’m not exactly sure what just happened –”

With an encouraging smile, Max asked, “Well, I helped my sexy neighbor wash her hair –” he squeezed my shoulders, “did she want something more to happen?”

“I’m not sure.” My brows knitted together as I looked up at him.

“And that’s why I didn’t do anything more. But rest assured, the moment I get a resounding ‘full speed ahead!’ I will be hard pressed to stop.”

His eyes flashed down to my lips, sticking his tongue out just a little bit, and then continued, “You’re beautiful. You’re attractive, intelligent, funny - did I say smart? I’m not going to take advantage of you, or risk pushing you before you’re ready. We have time to get to know each other.”

I beamed as he fawned over me, heat rushing to my cheeks.

Feeling certain and satisfied that he had rejuvenated my spirits, he wrapped his arm underneath my left arm, opening the door and walking me out of the bathroom, naked but for a towel.

“What exactly are your plans for the rest of these midnight hours?” he casually asked.

I thought back to my iPad and the sexy assassin story, “Ah, well, I need to work actually.”

“Narrating? I’d love to sit in and listen.”

Again, I thought about the content of the sexy assassin story, and after that bath - no, no, no. My cheeks and my neck flushed red, “I’m not sure that’s a good idea. Besides, I don’t think the material would be up your alley.”

“Really?” He mocked surprise, “But how do you know? Unless you try?” giving me a wink.

The thought of reading him sexy lady-porn books and then ripping his sweatpants off and taking his cock in my mouth stopped me in my tracks and made my mouth twitch. You have a job, and you have to make money. You cannot make money sucking his cock. Or can you? No. You can’t. That’s not legal here. GODDAMMIT.

“As a professional,” I cleared my throat, “narrator, to be clear - it is - my professional opinion that you not be here while I work. Unfortunately. I’m sorry.”

I gave him an ‘ohmygod, I’m sooooo sorry,’ smile.

“That’s too bad,” he said, biting his lip.

“Yeah, maybe another time - like Bring Your Daughter to Work Day.” Why did I say that? Was that funny?

His eyebrows flashed up and down quickly, and he gave a surprised chuckle as he walked me to my apartment door. But not before stopping by the coffee table and grabbing Mr. Rochester.

“Can’t forget this,” he arbitrarily declared, “gotta make sure this little guy makes it back to his forever home. Bet his family misses him.”

And then he made it jump around in the air with his hand, making little yapping and barking sounds, like Mr. Rochester was someone’s lost purse dog. The blatant audacity of this man. I refuse to laugh.

When I didn’t laugh, Max made sad puppy whining sounds while nuzzling it up to my neck. “Noooooo.” I cried, closing my eyes in mock distress.

When we got to the door, he quickly nabbed my phone and held it up to my face, swiping up so that he could unlock it. Then, he called his phone from mine, and took a selfie of us together - him holding Mr. Rochester in one hand and his other arm around me in a towel. Which of course, he programmed so that it popped up every time he called me on my phone, and every time I called him, that way, “we could be phone twins.”

Stepping outside my apartment door, he turned around to speak to me, “So, I’ll see you in a couple days, after I confirm who this bad boy belongs to, and get myself situated with those,” he squinted his eyes at me, “building meetings. But if you need anything, you have my number.”

His eyes drifted down to where I was feeling tension, a craving that I wasn’t willing to give into just yet.

“Do you think you’ll be okay for a few days?”

He shook Mr. Rochester playfully, and my eyes widened, my left arm tightening around my towel, and I shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. Can he read minds? What is happening?

“I’ll be fine, and I promise I’ll text if I need anything.”

His grin widened, “Great! See ya soon!”

I closed the door and wobbled over to the couch, where I picked up my Nic Cage pillow and screamed into his sequined face, throwing it at the door afterwards.

Somewhere, far off, I could swear that I heard Max laughing.

Knowing full well that I am right handed and only technically a little ambidextrous because of piano lessons as a child, but definitely not enough to satisfy myself as necessary without Mr. Rochester - I looked down at my left hand, “You’re a disappointment, and I hate you.”

But it wasn’t lefty’s fault alone, it was partially mine and I would remedy that later. But first, to slog through painfully sexy narration for the next few hours. I let myself give out a loud sob, and then told myself to buck up and be a professional.

To be continued...

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#Pedro Pascal #Max Phillips x afab!fem!reader #Bloodsucking Bastards Fic #Adenomyosis Awareness #Endometriosis Awareness #Not Twilight #NO Renesmé #Youtube

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bringerofdeathandtheapocolypse · 11 months

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Honestly, having been rewatching the early episodes now, I'm a little annoyed how little what we learned about Ivan and what was going on with him and how horrible his actual debut truly was.

Fantasia set up that Ivan was exiled for an unknown reason (something which is still unknown since Makarov didn't know Ivan knew about Lumen histoire until Laxus asked about it so it wasn't that), that he had some interest in Laxus although again never specified what for or why, that he was the one to give Laxus his lacrima and that Gajeel was working as a double, double agent for him.

Then we learn through a flashback during GMG (I think. I might be remembering when wrong) of Laxus asking Makarov about what he was doing with Ivan and learning that he didn't attack Fairy tail over the 7 years. Something which we do know the reason for, that being no one remaining would have known the information he wanted.

Now I'm not saying that Makarov or Laxus need to info dumb about their pasts or something. It would be quite OOC for either of them unless it was an episode/chapter focused on say Laxus and the thunder legion, you know, the group he is the closest with.

Better ways of dropping small hints would be, even just taking canon events, have Makarov think about things when he's beaten by Hades. Think about how not only did one of his potential father figures turn down the dark path but his son and almost his grandson did too and have him think about what he could have done for that to happen.

Stories can have unreliable narrators. Not everyone is going to see things through the same lens as you do. Makarov thinking he was a good father and grandfather could make sense if perhaps he wasn't entirely aware of what was going on behind the scenes.

If, like I have mentioned before, Ivan grew resentful of Makarov and Fairy tail because it took away his father's attention which started out as Ivan acting out for that attention but it didn't work and got worse then its possible Makarov may not have noticed his son was feeling neglected. And I will stand by my belief that Ivan was an abusive father to Laxus. Maybe not physically but definitely mentally. And its possible that he said something to Laxus for him to be too afraid to take to Makarov about what was going on.

Fairy tail has a mix of villains who you can understand why they might have fallen down the path they did(the seiz with bad guidance, Lyon with becoming obsessed with his goal, Gajeel being raised in a guild that practically praised him for his violenece) while others where they just are evil because (Brain/Zero, Mard Geer and the rest of Tartarous, Erigor) I personally believe Ivan could have been the former. Give more context to it. Sometimes, children who aren't treated correctly by their parents fall into the wrong crowd, that could have happened with Ivan.

And again, his debut and build up in GMG was not good. His whole reason for joining the games was to get at Fairy tail and possibly get to Laxus specifically. So why was it only targeted on the first day. Third I get since there was no way to attack each other although they could have tried to trip up Cana or sneakly hurt Erza or Cana while they stood around.

But there isn't an excuse for day 2. Natsu and Gajeel could barely move. Wouldn't it make sense for RT to go after them while they were down?

And why not attack Juvia as well as Gray? Both are from FT.

And the fact that Gajeel being a double agent is brought up once with Laxus just mentioning that was how they got the info and Ivan being angry about it. Why not bring it full circle to have Ivan order Gajeel to work at sabotaging FT and aiding RT. Maybe even make him attack his own guild members during the night. Gajeel would likely refuse to do this since he at this point cares about FT so Ivan proceeds to threaten one of the members he's close with. It could be Lily or Levy, maybe Juvia or any other member he has an attachment or relationship with (Like how I see him being close with Mira and Wendy) Which forces his hand and makes it a case where the members are sceptical and think Gajeel is falling back into his old ways and betraying the guild.

So then when its the fight with Laxus and Ivan reveals some info to Laxus since he thinks he'll be on his side, it gets Laxus angry that Ivan would be willing to harm any of his guild and breaks what little hope he had for his dad.

Plus, it could lead to a little more chaos if Ivan is questioned by the council because he could try to put the blame on Gajeel and cite his sudden behaviour change. The council bring Gajeel in for questioning and then you could have a moment where Laxus reveals Gajeel was never wanting to hurt the guild and that he was being threatened into doing what he was doing and Makarov reveals Gajeel was a double agent the entire time.

The consequences can vary. It could be Gajeel is arrested because its a 4 to 5 vs 1 and its canon Gajeel has been in legal trouble before or he could be let go with a slap on the wrist and a warning to the FT guild where it could come back up later. (Maybe in a Gajeel centric arc perhaps something similar to the Rhodinite manga)

Or have Ivan cause harm to Gajeel now that he knows he was a double agent, attacking Gajeel and causing him to have a permanent injury. A branding, missing limb, damaged eye. Something other than a basic scar that isn't that noticeable to put out permanent consequences.

What can I say, I just love putting Gajeel in angsty situations.

#fairy tail #Ivan dreyar #Makarov Dreyar #Laxus Dreyar #Gajeel Redfox #Rant #Raven tail

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reina-royale · 10 months

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Ron Deserved Better

Ron deserved better, from a narrative standpoint. Ron was capable of being more than just Kim's sidekick, and it would've been great to have that emphasized more.

In "Tick-Tick-Tick" Ron is the one who comes up with the idea of using hot sauce to short out the tick and a straw to remove it.

In "Bueno Nacho" Ron figures out how to work the laser after messing around with it for less than a minute.

In "Attack of The Killer Bebes" Ron is the one who made the connection that Kim's dad was the next target, came up with the plan to protect him and find out who was behind it all, and made an extremely convincing disguise in less than a day.

(I know Kim wasn't aware of any of this because she wasn't around, but Kim walking off the mission because she was mad isn't a good look for a hero. However, that's not the point of this post.)

In "Sink or Swim" Ron displays stealth, cunning, quick-thinking, improvisation, resourcefulness, and bravery. Even Kim acknowledges this, but only this one time.

In "Animal Attraction" Ron figures out that getting Rufus to eat corn dogs would make him heavy enough to press the button to release them. Simple? Yes. Effective? Also, yes. And most importantly, a plan that Kim had failed to come up with on her own.

In "Royal Pain" Ron manages to use a mini golf prop to stop a bad guy, aimed in such a way that Prince Wally, who was being held in the bad guy's grip at the time, wasn't harmed.

In "The Twin Factor" Ron manages to not just evade Kim and Shego, but trick Shego into undoing his bindings and lasts against them long enough for Jim and Tim to finish their silicon-phase disruptor.

In "Job Unfair" Ron used sneezing powder on Drakken, which managed to take both Drakken and Shego out of the fight. Simple, effective, and clever.

In "Naked Genius" Ron's mangler was actually a fairly decent weapon, especially considering he was just throwing random things together. And his idea to use it against all the armor was brilliant.

In "The Fearless Ferret" Ron actually makes a decent hero at the end, despite the fact that his mentor was a delusional man.

In "Exchange" Ron manages to kick a tree, that then splits cleanly and falls over. That is not a normal amount of strength. He also manages to make his clothes disappear during Bo practice, which, though embarrassing, is also a bit of an impressive feat.

In "Hidden Talent" it's stated that Ron proved quantity was better than quality, but Ron was actually good at half of the acts he performed; tap dancing, ventriloquism, and water glasses.

In "Return to Wannaweep" Ron figures out how to use his new beaver-like mutation and his surroundings to defeat Gil, and figures it pretty quickly.

In "Partners" Ron and Monique manage to build a donut-launching system relatively quickly, and it proves extremely useful in distracting a mutant dinosaur.

In "Oh Boyz" Ron manages to help the Oh Boyz escape by having them use their dance moves to throw off the motion-detecting lasers. He also taught himself their dance moves just by watching them.

In "Triple S" Ron actually did a decent job of staying on the tray and holding the umbrella. I'm not surprised people thought it was a new sport; an average person doing that on accident wouldn't have been able to stay on it at all.

In "Bad Boy" Ron builds dangerous and powerful devices, and has the foresight to track the Kimmunicator's frequency. And the only thing he switched with Drakken was morality, not intelligence. Thus, it's reasonable to assume that Ron is extremely intelligent, he's just not trying.

In "Overdue" Ron goes on several missions alone to retrieve a library book.

In "Stop Team Go" even Shego acknowledges that Ron turning evil again is very bad. And he sends a bunch of Wegos flying through the air immediately afterwards.

And, of course, Ron's powers come into full bloom in "Graduation".

TLDR: Ron was capable of being more than a sidekick, a solo hero in his own right, and it would've been nice if the narrative hadn't treated him as Kim's inept and clumsy sidekick, even when he's being amazing.

Bonus: In defense of his clumsiness, and less than stellar grades, Ron mentions in "The Fearless Ferret" that he has "a slight stigmatism" but that his doctor says he shouldn't need corrective lenses. As someone who needed glasses at Ron's age, and someone who had astigmatism, I can say this; Ron's astigmatism may not be bad enough that he is legally classified as visually impaired, but even with slight astigmatism, it can still make things blurrier than they should be and mess up his ability to see detail, read, and screw with his depth perception.

In other words, Ron isn't horribly clumsy or stupid, he just can't see.

#ron stoppable #kim possible #meta #character analysis

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searchingforserendipity25 · 1 year

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Can I ask Maglor for the ask game please? :)

Character Ask Game 💚🤍🖤

Maglor

Thank you so much @theghostinthemargins <3

I loved writing this even if it took some time, it was so enjoyable (too many Maglor thoughts to be easily ordered!)

one aspect about them i love

Everything! Favourite blorbo. I have a big weakness for characters who are very alive to their role in the narrative and try to talk over it while removing themselves from it, the tension of narration as agency/acting as foretold is delightful.

To narrow it down: I love that he wrote the Noldolante. I love it. Regardless of the angle you take with it, he was doing something with it, and the vast possibilities of interpretation comes across as playing into the authorial intent of it all - it’s a work of mastercraft to be judged, as the deeds were judged. It’s a fascinating situation from every ethical and emotional angle, and the idea of such a text/work of oral memory/manifesto/epitaph/elegy existing, outlasting him, lingering as his last word and testimony - delicious!

one aspect i wish more people understood about them

Sometimes exiting the narrative while making a very pointed point that the narrative you’ve composed is over is the best possible choice!

one (or more) headcanon(s) i have about this character

Nomadic at heart, and all the time too. Hates cities; genuinely believes Turgon lost his mind in the Ice to think Gondolin is a good idea (laughs about it very tastelessly in public); very concerned about Finrod, hence the regular invitations to hunts outside the caves of Nargothrond.

The Siege was nightmare for many reasons, but honestly? Mostly because they had to stay stuck in the same side of the Mithrim. Fully aware that Fingolfin was on to something about wanting to attack Morgoth during the Long Peace, but also knew the Gap would be the first place to be sacrificed for that gambit, and simply did not care for that.

This decision did not age well, but got too attached to the freedom and challenges of the Gap (hello fun blood-rituals!) to consider doing anything else. Especially on Fingolfin’s terms. It took a long, long time for him to even be sorry about that, never mind actually regret it.

as well as

one character i love seeing them interact with

Maedhros. They bring a fun ‘bros bickering over the camping fire’ energy to every slaughter and divine judgment that I really like.

one character i wish they would interact with/interact with more

Fingolfin, actually. The recognition of the second-born is very bitter.

one (or more) headcanon(s) i have that involve them and one other character

A minstrel isn't just a guy that sings sometimes! It's a fully official position with political, spiritual and religious, life-long implications. I'm not saying he's getting paid to be the spiritual spokesperson of the Noldor, but I'm not saying he's not not getting paid, in the days of Valinor, when competition for the (then mostly decorative) position of leading singer are an outright cesspit of intrigue and political machinations.

Unrelatadly, Indis was the one in charge of the jury to decide who received the honour; they developed a very intense frenemis situation when Maglor, in the one and only time he set himself to compete with Curufin for Best Son (also to get some pocket money), set himself to the task with all the drama and verse of an ambitious tiny-sized prodigy around 16 in human years.

Nerdanel thought it was hilarious, and absolutely refused to put in a good word with Indis for her son. India also thought it was hilarious - he was very short, his stack of scrolls was very tall, and his demands for a dozen organs and a five-hundred singers for the chorus was cute, as if - but never let it on, and that turned out to be a good influence on Maglor.

To, uh, a limited degree. He definetely learned a great deal about public relations and the backstage production of narratives to go with the diplomacy needed to calm down primaddonas, that’s for sure, if not necessarily for good.

(He did get the big extravaganza, eventually).

#theghostinthemargins #i'm sorry this took ages! it was. a weird week #this was a lot of fun!#asks and answers #maglor #headcanons

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true-blue-megamind · 2 years

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Do you think metro man knows hes an alien?

FAN THEORY... Um... SUPPOSITION SUNDAY? – Does Metroman Know He’s Alien?

Well, I have to apologize for being weeks late yet again. Although I try to take life one day at a time, recently my days have been forming gangs and jumping me in large numbers when I least expect it. I am seriously considering changing the name of these posts to “Fan Theory Sometime Eventually.” LOL. In the meantime, however, here, at last, is a new Megamind fan theory blog article! Enjoy!

Please note that I’ve previously written about portions of this on another site, so it’s possible portions of this post may be familiar to some. I have, however, expanded upon it.

And finally, even though, whenever I say this, the Blue Defender himself threatens to send his most destructive brainbots to my home with the information that their favorite wrench has been hidden somewhere in the walls… SPOILER WARNING!

This may, at first, seem like a bit of an obvious question, but the more I thought about it, the more I began to wonder. Does Metroman know he’s extraterrestrial? We have absolutely no evidence that he is aware of his birthplace. In fact, after a little research, I began to realize that it may be possible that, despite his superpowers, he could believe he’s human. What do I mean? Let’s take a look!

Of course, anyone who has seen the film is already aware that Megamind and Metroman share a similar origin story. Both are refugees, and as far as we know the sole survivors, from two different alien planets destroyed by a black hole. It’s clear that Megamind remembers leaving his home as he is the one who narrates the story of his early life, but that doesn’t necessarily mean Metroman would as well.

It's important to remember that the blue man’s species obviously possesses incredibly advanced mental faculties while there’s no evidence that his former nemesis’ people were the same. Although not stupid, Metroman certainly lacks Megamind's genius. Could he lack his early-developed memory as well? Furthermore, the former hero is far closer to natives of Earth in appearance; could there be other similarities too? If, indeed, Metroman's brain functions are similar to that of a human, it's likely he would not be able to remember his homeworld. (How many of us can recall anything that occurred when we were infants?)

That, however, is not the only reason to suppose that Metroman might not realize he is extraterrestrial. Keep in mind that the movie Megamind is, among other things, a parody of DC Comics, especially Superman. This means two things. Firstly, like the DC universe, presumably there are other superheroes in existence. After all, in the original script, there were going to be other supervillains in Metro City, some of which had extraordinary powers. There is also the fact that, after Megamind’s first fight with Titan, the mayor readily welcomed the latter as their “new hero.” Clearly the idea that another superhero might show up was not entirely unexpected, and that would not likely have been the case if Metroman had been the only one known to be on Earth. By extension of this logic, it is not unreasonable to suppose that the former hero may have believed himself to be a human with unusual abilities.

Secondly, the former hero himself is a direct spoof on the character Superman. In fact, the writers of the original script even explained during an interview with Comic Book Movies that they were initially inspired by the question: “what would happen if Lex Luthor defeated Superman?” It can, therefore, be safely assumed that there would be some notable similarities between Metroman and the Man of Steel. Indeed, this seems to be the case. The two share the same basic origin story, the same human-like appearance, and many of the same powers. In the earlier script, then called Mastermind, Metroman, similar to his DC counterpart Clark Kent, even has another name: Wayne Scott. If this pattern holds true, then it's possible that Metroman may not have remembered where he came from.

Why do I say that? Because it certainly seems that Superman initially did not, although he learned when he grew older. In several of the comics, such as the 1986 edition "Man of Steel," Superman's adoptive parents tell him about his true origin after he graduates from high school. The question, then, becomes whether Metroman’s Earth family would have done the same.

Several weeks ago, when I first received this question, I posted about it on a fan theory Reddit page to get some feedback from others, and many seems to agree with my own assumption that it does not seem very probable. After all, their respective adoptive families are one aspect in which Superman and Metroman most certainly differ. Indeed, despite their similarities, the two are raised very differently. The former finds a home with a hardworking, morally-upstanding farm couple while the latter is taken into a wealthy household and essentially raised to be a spoiled rich boy.

Furthermore, while Ma and Pa Kent clearly try to do what is best for their son, Lord and Lady Scott seem to notably lack the strong family bonds and selfless love displayed by their counterparts. Lady Scott readily believes that her husband would simply leave an infant for her under the Christmas tree, no more than another item among a pile of presents, which does not bode well for her insight or her empathy. She immediately dotes on her new baby boy while her husband appears distant and disinterested. (He never even bothers to look up from his newspaper.) This plays into one of the film’s major themes, Nature Versus Nurture, and could explain why, unlike mild-mannered and basically good Superman, Metroman seems to be rather arrogant and self-centered. After all, he basks in public admiration, throws babies around to show off, and abandons people who need him to start a music career.

If the circumstances of his upbringing are to blame for those behaviors, it makes Metroman oddly sympathetic. In some ways he is as much a victim of poor child-rearing and early expectations as Megamind himself. That, however, is another subject for another post.

What concerns us now is the fact that all of this information presents the only evidence available to determine what sort of people Metroman's Earth parents are. If they are more selfish and less honorable than the Kents, as seems to be the case, then whether they chose to inform Wayne about his origins would likely be based upon self-serving reasons.

This is a vital point because, as mentioned before, Lady Scott appears elated to have a baby to call her own while Lord Scott hardly seems to notice the boy’s presence at all. Neither would lead viewers to believe they would be eager to inform their son of his apparent extraterrestrial origins. (Indeed, to be fair, even if they had wanted to tell their son where he came from, it doesn’t seem likely that they would be able to tell him any more than that he arrived in what looked to be a spacecraft.) Furthermore, because Wayne Smith appears to be an only child, as far as we know, it's doubtful whether doting Lady Scott would want her sole son to know that he wasn't really hers. As for Lord Scott, it doesn't seem likely he would care enough to bother.

Finally, there are people's reactions to worry about. Lady Scott would probably want to protect her only child, and that might have meant keeping the truth about his extraterrestrial origins a secret. Megamind is obviously alien, and most of the humans around him seem to have a problem with that. He's ostracized in school, of course, but adults don't appear any more comfortable with his inhuman appearance. This post by Demishock takes the time to transcribe the Hometown Boy Makes Bad newspaper article appearing in the movie's title sequence. In that clipping, the prison warden both states that "hardened criminals" are afraid of Megamind and says: "It's not like he's a normal kid... I mean, have you gotten a good look at his gigantic blue head? I don't know where you come from, but where I come it's just not right."

This makes it yet more improbable that Lord and Lady Scott would tell Metroman where he came from. Aside from any other personal reasons, they might well view it as potentially problematic for both themselves and their son. Clearly, many citizens of Metro City are decidedly not alright with having an extraterrestrial among them, and that could be another possible reason why Metroman's adoptive parents might hide the truth. Even if we give them the benefit of the doubt and assume that they did grow to love Wayne, they might still be unlikely to tell him that he arrived from space for fear of seeing him endure the same biases as Megamind. Letting their son believe that his powers had come from a genetic mutation, lab accident, or some other source might seem infinitely preferable, especially if, as many suspect, the Smiths wouldn’t want anything hurting his social standing and, by extension, their own. After all, Wayne Smith looks human enough to be accepted. It seems unlikely that the doubtlessly affluent and influential Smiths would counteract that knowing that it could make their golden boy a pariah.

So, does Metroman know that he’s an alien? There is not sufficient evidence to answer that question with certainty, but it does appear plausible that he might not. At any rate, there are enough hints in the film to lend significant weight to the fan theory that he spent many years believing himself to be human. That, of course, has opened the door to a plethora of related theories: did Megamind recognize the city’s only other alien and try to tell him where he was from? Did young Wayne reject the idea, and could that be a part of why he was so keen on bullying the blue boy? Was the final realization that he wasn’t who he thought he was part of what propelled Metroman into the midlife crisis that led him to abandon heroism altogether? We may never know, but if any evidence exists, you’ll probably see it someday in another Fan Theory Thursday. Until then, I hope you enjoyed reading this one! I’ll see you next time!

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