#why communicate when you can vaguely hint

[luneariann]

We’re SO back

#Dazais such a mess I love him sm #he’s so dear to me #why communicate when you can vaguely hint #bsd #skk #chuuya #dazai #bungou stray dogs #bungou stray dogs fanart #chuuya nakahara #soukoku #chuuya nakahara fanart #ely art #bsd skk #skk fanart #teen skk #dazai osamu #dazai fanart #bsd dazai #bungou stray dogs dazai #domestic soukoku #soukoku fluff #bsd chuuya #bungou stray dogs chuuya #also idk if y’all caught this but Dazais abt to go to sleep #cuz Mafia works at night more #ely-comics

[zarnzarn]

i see all these comments talking about this after the new episode, but. i would like to state for the record that stolitz isn't. toxic.

first off, the concept of a toxic and a healthy relationship are such... vague terms. when you're online, drenched in language and tight moral boundaries, trying to put a nuanced story like helluva boss's into boxes is easy to attempt and impossible to do.

a toxic relationship is one where one or both parties is maliciously affecting the other. I'm talking fetid, nasty, rude interactions where there is more hurt than love. they're unhappy more often than not when they're with their partner, there's no respect or give from the other side.

stolitz is nothing like that.

Stolas actively cares about Blitz and actually has no fear or hesitation in ADMITTING IT OUT LOUD TO OZZIE. he has been calling, texting, commenting, laughing and finding ways to spend time with Blitz. he's throwing everything he has to the wind, finding the courage to move forward with the divorce, putting everything he has into trying to keep him. he's been alone in a palace since he was born, on medication, with such less people dear to him that he remembered the circus boy who spent a day with him DECADES ago- so when blitz comes into his life and brings back in laughter and color and sex, he's holding on with everything he's got.

and blitz does care!!! he cares a LOT, the whole series we see him falling in love with stolas through SHOW NOT TELL (his expressions, his choices, his fear, his lashing out) and utterly unable to process that stolas cares about him too when talking to fizz; almost a desperate kind of denial-

cause yknow. the first time he tried to confess something to someone he really liked, he accidentally killed half the people he knew and ruined the lives of the rest?

thats gonna leave just a teensy impact on the will to express your emotions in the future, methinks.

even before that, he clearly felt like on some level that he was unworthy and he's said twice that he despises himself for the accident even though it wasn't actually his fault. being self aware doesn't stop the emotions from emotioning.

he keeps insisting its only sex so urgently to anyone who doesn't ask because he can't even imagine it being anything else. he's both disappointed and relieved when he repeats that stolas sees him as a novelty, because what else can it be?

(there's a whole other spiel of how brave both Stolas and Blitz have to be to say it out loud even when asmodeus can't afford to, considering how publically and completely beaten down both were at the club.)

(there's also another whole spiel about how frustrating it has been for ME to see all these comments over time with such bad takes based on like,, 20 min worth of info of a show that takes months to release an ep. like godDAMN have some patience?? let the story UNFOLD MAYBE? IT WAS ALWAYS GOING TO HAVE AN EXPLANATION WHY WOULD YOU CRITICIZE THINGS THAT ARENT EVEN FINISHED ESPECIALLY AN INDIE ANIMATION- i digress)

mind you, this has NOTHING to do with abuse. an abusive relationship is one where one is actively harming the other with full awareness. Stella is an abuser and their marriage is abusive.

and stolitz isn't that; it isn't even unhealthy or toxic. it's a consensual, transactional fuckbuddy relationship that slid into something more for both of them.

but!!!!! one of the main reasons for the problems that everyone looks over is-

they're in a BDSM relationship.

I can't possibly delve into dynamics without making this a 10k research paper BUT even though we've gotten only hints and costumes and dialogue- they're very clearly and undeniably in a BDSM contract. Behind the scenes of this crazy show is a whole different story, of these two delving into the most hardcore kinks out there- knifeplay, painplay, bondage.

if you've gotten into the community, if you've read a couple dozen particularly good fics by authors who know what they're talking about, hell; even if your only experience is fifty shades or 365 or whatever- you gotta know that BDSM scenes are crazy fucking emotionally heavy. there's so much that has gone down between them during their full moons that helluva can't get into!!

but you know how in so many of these popular medias and fics, the dom in the relationship is also like,, the billionaire/mafia heir/prince, etc, the one with financial and physical power? this isnt that. it has been very clearly stated that stolas is subbing, blitz is domming.

now take a moment and think about how much that fucks up the dynamics.

in stolas' eyes, blitz is a confident, dangerous individual who's an old friend and cherished memory of his, who he's trusted wholly with his safety during sex and he's lucky to have; and he has been in an abusive arranged marriage for the past eighteen Years, he's probably not going to be pushing his luck with his dom that much in the first place. plus, blitz is never cowed by him during their conversations- think back to the first phone call right after he stole the book, completely unafraid.

and for blitz, it's someone trusting him again- but it's also a royal- a blue blood who's nearly untouchable and so much more powerful- who couldn't possibly like a piece of shit like him, apart from the sex he gets out of it. he only flirts once he gets some sort of cue from Stolas; he's desperately trying to view this as only a Goetia trying to get his rocks off, despite all the evidence to the contrary, because anything else is unfathomable to him, no matter how clearly Stolas shows it, because of the ptsd.

both of them thinks the other has the power. both of them aren't expecting the other to keep shut if something's bothering them.

and there's so much conflicting messages from the other too!

stolas calls him a plaything when trying to intimidate the humans; stolas cups his face gently and asks if he's alright

blitz asks him on a date and tells him to get better soon; blitz yells that it's only sex and doesn't reply to his messages

ya see?

bring it to fizzozzie for a second now; even though they do look all good on surface, you can still see fizz's trauma and doubt in all their interactions, they're still forced to keep the relationship secret. do you see his face when Ozzie says in hyperbole that he's never leaving the house again, or when someone accuses him of being a pampered house pet or when he got sexualized in the 7th ep? whatever happened in the interim between the accident with mammon, it fucked him UP. even though oz seems to be well aware of this when he tells him not to apologise and in their general interactions, fizz still visibly has trouble separating plaything/commodity from healthy relationship.

shout the fuck out to Ozzie btw, man knows whats UP. rooting for these two so much omg.

i forgot where I was going with this point, I'll edit it when i remember. but yeah! lovely fucking relationship, but damn what angst filled issues.

anyway, to sum up- stolitz is not a toxic relationship. the relationship is stuck sludging through misunderstandings and careless microaggressions and trauma responses, but it's not unhealthy or toxic because of the simple reason that most of the current hurt comes from... a misunderstanding. stolas didn't realise blitz would need reassurance about what they were and blitz didn't see stolas as someone who could get hurt.

unecessarily calling it toxic, even online, is more impactful than people think too. almost all spindlehorse ARE on all social medias; so MANY YouTube animators i know have found jobs there; they see your words, especially since a lot don't tag posts with "anti hb" correctly to keep them out of the main tag. there are Very few queer medias made BY queer people that haven't gone through heavy corporate revisions- helluva boss is practically a historical landmark in its success. it's very very very fucking easy to forget that not ten years ago some of the only queer videos on YouTube were butter lover (one kiss at the end post credits), dirty paws and welcome to hell (subtext).

the amount of "critical talk" helluva boss gets for what it is is very unprecedented. it's a beautiful show. can't wait for the next episode.

#helluva boss #stolas #blitz #stolitz #fizzarolli #helluva boss ozzie #okay im gonna make SO much content but i had to get this off my chest first #because so many people were like omg fizzozzie is so healthy stolitz take a lesson!! #and theres so much more nuance to it thats its so. frustrating to see a statement like that #meta #anyways #i love this fucjing show

[thenightcallsme]

Do I Make you Nervous? | Simon "Ghost" Riley

little re-upload from my AO3 :)

Synopsis: When Task Force 141 is betrayed by Philip Graves, they're forced to separate. Y\N fights her way through the foreign Las Almas with a broken radio and no sense of direction. Yet, somehow, she finds herself in the same church her lieutenant, Simon "Ghost" Riley, seeks sanctuary in. As they attempt to brave the storm sweeping through the streets, the infamously unreadable Ghost challenges their professional relationship.

Pairing: Ghost x F!141reader

Contains: fluff, kissing, use of Y/N, hint of angst but resolved in the end, vague mentions of blood/wounds

Word count: 5,874

• • • • •

It was all a set-up. A lie.

Disappointment and anger triumphs any sadness over Grave's betrayal. At first, he came across as over-confident in that stereotypical male way. Over time I had warmed up to him. But Shepherd? The man who has given me the most freedom I’ve had in a long time? I admit that my use as a weapon to him has put a strain on our companionship, but to station me with my own cousin only to lash out unprovoked? He’s crossed a line that he can never come back from. The small liking I had for the man vanished as soon as shit hit the fan. Everything seems to replay in my mind. Alejandro insulted and detained, Johnny shot at, Ghost cornered...

There were too many of them to fight off. I couldn't trust myself to hold my own with my mind worrying over Johnny, Alejandro and Ghost while also plotting Shepherd's death. So, though it pained me, I ran. Ghost and Johnny did the same. 

My radio was damaged in the incident. A stray bullet flew my way, and with a stroke of luck, grazed the radio instead of my ribs. The close call was enough warning to run, which is what I do now. The lack of communication only worsens the worry.

Shadows crawl in the streets of Las Almas like rats in a sewer. From door to door they go, yelling at innocent civilians in the late hours of dusk. From the conversations I've heard, they're looking for two foreign men and their female friend. They don't quite explain why we're being hunted, but the truth wouldn't change much. Every so often, a shot fires, echoing through the streets like a warning bell. A call of sorrow and fear.

With the Shadows forcing their way into civilian homes and raising their weapons against anyone who could harbour us, houses and shops aren't safe. The towering cathedral spires peeking above tin roofs and stacked houses catch my attention instead. Nobody would be inside at this time of night. For now, it's the best I can do. Also to my luck, the church isn't too far away. I take my time and keep to the shadows on my way. With a quick survey of my surroundings, I know I've bet the Shadows to this part of the city. That won't last long. The revelation has me jumping the gate within seconds of making it.

Inside the church is pitch black. Towering windows that tell biblical tales line the walls, casting light in intervals across the empty foyer. Rows of seats begin to emerge as my eyes adjust. Further back is an intricate, circular skylight tens of feet above the marble floor. Illuminating the altar below is a waterfall of silvery light. The giant cross, gold statues, and wooden altar glow like I'm looking through a blurred lens. The view is both eerie and magical...and not meant to be marvelled at in a time like this. My focus should be maintaining high ground. I begin to turn in search of a staircase when something shifts in the darkness.

A figure materialises, tall and built; easily a male physically capable of snapping my neck. My next best option is the gun strapped to my hip to parry the one in his hand. I go to reach for mine—

“Y/N?”

I freeze in surprise, but my mind eases slightly.

“Lieutenant? How—”

“Doesn’t matter. We’re here now.” He looks down at me with searching eyes. “You in one piece?”

“Yes. You—?” At that moment, my own eyes skim his body, only to halt at a worrying sight. On the left side of his waist, just above the waistband of his pants, is a blooming, dark red stain on his shirt. He’s been shot. “Jesus, Ghost. How bad is it?”

“I’ve had worse—”

He stops himself at the distant shouting. The surrounding streets haven’t been quiet since I’ve been in the church, but this time it grows closer. Angrier. Ghost doesn’t waste time ushering me along in search of a stairwell. The one we find leads to the second floor, then a third. Eventually, we discover the central bell tower. The room is dank and cold and decently big. Suspended in the middle is a gigantic bell. Even in the dark, I can see how weathered the metal is. The worn wooden floors creak as we cross it. On each wall are arched openings that allow entry to the cold night air and terrified screams. A small cluster of discarded furniture draped in white sheets huddles in a corner. From here, we have a perfect view of the sprawling city and winding streets. To those down there, we’re invisible.

Simon leans back against a wall and grunts, his hands brushing over the bullet wound. He pulls back his hands to inspect the fresh blood. However bad it is, it’s still bleeding.

“Show me,” I say. My voice comes out more demanding than I intend.

He gives me a brief exasperated look but doesn’t push back.

Ghost sits against the wall with his shoulders slumped just enough to reach my level. His jacket is unzipped, his black shirt rolled up halfway. Those tired, piercing eyes and muscular arms are the most I've ever seen of him. It feels like a reward when the weather is unforgiving enough to chase away his usual long-sleeve or jacket. His arms are tanned and muscled, with a tattoo sleeve working from the wrist of his left arm up to his elbow. I’ve begun to accept that it’s the closest I’m ever going to get to seeing him. But now I stare down at his bare abdomen.

The waistband of his black cargo pants sits low on his hips, offering a distracting view of a pronounced V-line and abs. In the moonlight, I can make out the reminders of war that mark his skin; a few silvery scars, some clean-cut, some gnarled and twisted; an old bullet wound healed closer to his ribs. The fresh one with the most of my attention is buried in a more acceptable spot. It nestles into the far right side of his waist, thankfully nowhere near any vital organs. However, it’s still a bullet wound and it still bleeds. That’s enough to worry me.

“Do you reckon it’s bad?” I ask.

He shrugs. “I wouldn’t say I’m dying.”

“But we aren’t in the position to get proper help. Maybe sit down for a bit.” Surprisingly, he does so without question. I get to my feet, draw a small knife from my thigh holster, and rip a strip of fabric from the white sheets. When I drop back down beside him, I take a deep breath. “Here"

He takes it with a mumbled thank you and wraps the fabric around his waist.

“You heard from John?” I ask.

Simon winces as he adjusts the torn sheet. “I radioed him multiple times. Never got an answer.”

“Are you surprised by all this?”

Simon leans back against the wall. “I tend to be less surprised by betrayal. But I had some respect for Shepherd.”

I sigh, shuffling around him so that I can do the same. “What are we supposed to do now?”

“Survive,” he says. “Shepherd wants you alive. Graves will see to that. He can’t kill Alejandro, either. But Johnny and I…” He shakes his head. “Graves won’t sleep until there’s a bullet in our heads and Shepherd won’t care enough to stop it.”

There’s a moment of silence as I fold my arms and look away thoughtfully. How are we supposed to do this? The blanket of night and the ensuing storm may offer some cover, but getting out of the city will be a mission. I can’t bring myself to leave without John, either. My heart hurts when I think about him. He could be anywhere, alone and outnumbered while I sit uselessly in a bell tower.

“What do we do about Johnny?” My voice is quiet. Fearful. “My radio was damaged so I couldn’t reach out to him. Maybe his is the same. But not knowing… He’s the only family I have left. My only real friend.”

“Don’t worry about Johnny. He’s one of the most resourceful and strong-willed Sergeants I’ve dealt with in a while. Have faith in him.” He looks at me then, tilting his head to the side. “I wouldn’t say he’s your only friend.”

“I do quite like his girlfriend…” I murmur.

“And Alejandro? Ronaldo?”

I purse my lips as his question draws thought. I’ve been considering Alejandro and Ronaldo as allies. Companions. But I’ve grown quite fond of them. Considering them as friends would set me up for heartache if anything were to happen. So I haven’t… At least openly. Despite my attempts to create some distance in our relationships, my subconscious has decided for me. Those two are my friends. It explains the immense distress I’m battling over Alejandro’s capture.

“I guess so.”

“Me?”

Silence ensues from both of us.

His question stuns me; I was prepared for him to stop at Alejandro and Ronaldo. There’s nobody else in Las Almas or back at home that I pay attention to. Besides Ghost, at least. I could answer him in a second. I almost do.

Ghost is infamous for his detachment. He’s quiet, short-tempered, dangerous and mysterious. I’ve heard the comments that he suits his code name. Spiritual beings do not communicate through speech but through action. Ghost is the physical embodiment of the epiphany. Anybody able to coax a few sentences from him outside missions is admirable. Outside of that, his physical emotions require deep analysis and theory to understand. The mask only makes things more difficult. I’ve never seen him show palpable kindness through his aura or words to anyone, never heard him allow the use of his name, never heard him offer others insight into the raging whirlwind of his mind.

And yet he lets those things slide around me.

He lets me speak his name when no one is listening. He offers me comfort when I need it most — if not through limited words, through soft gazes and a hand on my shoulder. I’m usually able to get him talking. Sometimes I receive short answers, sometimes I receive enough to help me understand more of that whirlwind mind. He even occasionally shows pieces of himself that take away from the guessing game I usually play.

I shut people out because the last people I let in betrayed me.

I never consider answering personal questions, but you tend to have a lot of them. And every time you ask…I almost answer

I guess you and I are more alike than I thought.

All of it has me wanting more. More of his mind, his words, the soft gazes I’ve noticed are reserved for me. What I already have is nothing compared to every naked truth he could be telling me. However, what I’ve managed to coax from him seems to be more than he’s told anyone in a long time. At first, I marked it down as me being the only female on the team or Ghost considered me fragile. But I've proved myself, and nothing about being a 'fragile female' (which I very well am not) does not automatically give me all these passes. I now realise it is much more than that.

Never once has he called me his friend. I already have. Now it’s his turn.

“I don’t mind you, Simon, but friendship can’t be one-sided,” I say. While it’s a simple statement, a silent question hides between each word. Are you my friend?

“If it was as one-sided as you think, you wouldn’t be calling me Simon.”

My heart skips a beat. There. It’s an answer to my unspoken words, but it’s not plain as day. As usual, Simon tells me something that is anything but straightforward. There’s room for interpretation in his answer—something that is beginning to tire me. It’s almost as if the honest answer is criminal and he’s trying to cover up his tracks. Almost as if not speaking that honest answer can allow him to deny it.

I don't bother concealing my annoyance. “That’s not what I want to hear and you know it.”

“Fuck sakes, Y\N, I said it,” he says. His voice comes out both argumentative and exasperated.

“No, you didn't. All I ever get out of you is stuff that works around the truth. Stuff I have to think about to understand.” I'm crossing a line, I know. I just can't help it. “What’s so hard about admitting it?”

“Don’t.”

His tone is final. I don’t care.

“Does the truth scare you?”

His eyes squint, becoming barely visible against the black paint, the mask, and the low light. I can clearly picture a scowl jumping across the many faces I’ve imagined. While I want to flinch away, I don’t. Not for a second do my eyes lower, and not for a second do I grow offensive. I remain calm and collected, which I think annoys him more.

“You want the truth?” he growls. The accent of Manchester seems to thicken. “Fine. I’ll tell you the truth. I don’t want to admit I think of you as a friend ‘cause I bloody well want to ignore it. For years, it’s only been me and I planned it to be for the rest of my life. Then all of a sudden you and your annoying cousin appear and jeopardise everything. The only person with an inkling of anything was Shepherd and I was fine with that. But now you’re catching up to him. You’ve so effortlessly undone everything I’ve worked hard to maintain.” The growl in his voice dies down the longer he speaks. In the last sentence, his voice is quiet, defeated, but a little begrudging. “And I knowingly let you.”

“If it was bothering you that much, you should have told me,” I say with a voice equally as quiet. “If I knew you didn’t want me to know so badly, I would have respected that.”

He shakes his head. “You don’t understand. I think about telling you everything. I may get pissy at you over your questions, but…” A sigh. The truth is shameful to him. “I look forward to them.”

“If it makes you feel any better…” I laugh a little. “It’s really annoying how intriguing you are. Not just your past and your face… When I’m not trying to guess what you look like, I’m refraining from asking you stupid questions. Shit like if you’re a cat or dog person.”

“Dog person,” he replies. Any hint of anger or annoyance has disappeared. “Cats have too much attitude.”

I squint. “You just don’t appreciate them.”

“You strike me as a cat person.” He pauses in thought. “You just remind me of a cat, really.”

I raise my brows, giving him an exasperated look. “Are you going to tell me I have an attitude?”

“Maybe. But there’s more to it.”

I cock my head in question.

“Cats are friendly. Independent.” His eyes shift and I wonder if there's a smirk beneath the mask. “Curious.”

“Was that another dig at my questions?”

“Yes. Now shut up and listen.”

Before he continues, I find myself turning my body so I can fully look at him, my shoulder against the concrete walls and my legs folded beneath me.

“There’s that look in their eyes that they know your worst thoughts. Your secrets. They’re also graceful. Got that high-class elegance about them. But they can be unpredictable, striking out when you least expect. Once they sink their claws into you…” His eyes search my face. “You can’t get rid of them.”

I look up at him in wonder, my mouth slightly agape as I try to find a suitable response. Nothing I could say would express the way his words sink in. I’ve always coined Simon to be the observant type, keeping to himself and remaining silent. But I never expected him to relay his finds. His usual short, sharp answers contrast the compliment greatly.

“I think…” A small smile curves my lips upwards. “…That was the most meaningful compliment I’ve ever gotten.”

“Don’t let it go to your head.”

“Never. Now I have a question.”

“The floor is yours.”

“Do you have, like, Queen Elizabeth tattooed on your face? The British flag?” I grin. “Something mask-worthy, you know?”

“Why does it have to be something British?”

“Because there’s no way you’re the only Brit I know that isn’t somewhat stereotypical.”

Simon huffs a laugh. “No stereotypical tattoos. Sorry to disappoint.”

“A big scar, then?”

He tilts his head. “No scars that make me want to wear it.”

I raise my brows. “So you do have a scar?”

“Only one big one.”

“Good to know.” I nod my head with thoughtful eyes. “I’ll add that to a mental note.”

His eyes widen a fraction. The skull sown to his balaclava only offers the view of his painted eyes and nothing. Not even his eyebrows. I guess he’s raising them in question.

“How often do you think about this?”

I let out a long breath. “You have no idea. I change what I think you look like every day.”

“What do you think I look like.”

I go quiet in thought for a moment. As I said, the image changes… Only more frequently than I want to admit. Sometimes the change is small. Sometimes the change is big. I know I’m not the only one stumped by this, either. John and I joked over it once. He said things eluding to him being unattractive. A crooked nose, a huge scar, broken teeth. Every time he made a guess I would laugh, but never did the ideas seep into my mind. Nothing in an unattractive sense, anyway. Despite the possibility, I can never picture him as ugly.

“It varies, but…” I take one last second to collect my thoughts. “Without that skull piece, you have dark eyebrows. I imagine your hair is brown. And you’re eyes…it’s hard to tell with the paint, but they’re more deep-set and heavy-lidded. The balaclava is tight enough to make me think you have a straight nose, high cheekbones, strong jaw…” I shake my head. “Beyond that, I’m stumped.”

I can tell he thinks deeply about each characteristic. I sit patiently and almost wait for confirmation, but I know better than that. If he’s not going to show his face, he’s not going to—

“My hair is brown.”

I’m about to backtrack on my previous thought when he reaches towards the space between my neck and shoulder. In the frenzy that has been the last hour, my hair has come undone. The braid was unsavable, making me pull out the band and attempt a ponytail…only for it to snap in two. My hair now falls in dishevelled waves. A small part of my hair falls over my shoulder. Simon gingerly reaches for it, curling it between his finger and examining it in the low light. …Can he hear how fast my heart is beating?

“Not like yours. A few shades lighter, maybe. And that scar…”

Even more gingerly, Simon pulls one of my hands from its folded position, and I pray my expression doesn’t betray me. Rough, calloused hands press against the back of mine. The size difference is almost comical. He guides it to his masked face, working his fingers working around mine to spread them out. He drags my hand over his right cheekbone, across the hollow of his cheek, and towards his jaw. My mind is hyper-fixated on the shape of his face.

“Right along there.”

His eyes continue to search my face. There’s nothing but curiosity in the blue-grey of his irises. Curious at what, I can’t tell. Everything about this has my mind raging. The way he looks at me, the way he holds my hand against the black balaclava, the way he towers over me even when sitting down... The thoughts that surface are shameful. He’s your lieutenant, for Christ’s sake. Have some respect. The remembrance of his position has little help.

If anything, it strengthens the fantasies.

His hold shifts on top of my hand, the pad of his thumb swiping across my skin to stop on the inner side of my wrist and press down. He may not have been able to hear my heartbeat…but now he can feel it at the worst possible moment.

“You’re heart is beating fast.” He inclines his head. “Do I make you nervous, Y\N?”

God, is my breathing even? I can’t tell.

“You just caught me off guard, is all.”

Simon hums thoughtfully as his hand breaks away from mine and reaches forward. His fingers connect with my collarbone before finding my neck, exploring upwards in search of a pulse point. A shiver of excitement and nervousness runs beneath my skin like a ripple. His other hand slides over my knee and up my thigh. If my heart was racing before, this is a life-or-death sprint.

Slow are his movements. Calculated. He knows exactly where my heartbeat reverberates in my neck. Instead, he drags the moment out, coaxing out his desired reaction. But there’s something else in the slowness: a window for me to flinch away and draw the physical line neither of us has ever drawn. We’ve brushed shoulders and hands. We’ve sat with our bodies aligned in cramped cars. He’s held my hair back in a bathroom as I threw up after a panicked episode (something I would like to forget if he wasn't so surprisingly understanding). He's placed a hand on my shoulder for many different reasons. All are excusable moments. The ones that surpass professional boundaries can be marked as friendly. However, the intimacy of this moment is new. Scary. Exciting.

“Did you know your bottom lip twitches before you lie?” Simon asks. I find myself at eye level with him. When did he get so close? “I don’t like lies. Try again.”

“Sometimes…” I breathe.

“Sometimes, what?”

Bastard. “Sometimes you make me nervous.”

“Why?”

“Because…” I frown. “I don’t know.”

He’s definitely leaning closer now. Not just with his head, but with his whole upper body. Out of the nerves Simon is so adamant on understanding, I retreat, only making it a few inches before my back hits the other wall. Simon half hovers over me, the hand that was on my thigh now bracing himself on the floor. There are only a few inches between our chests. Even less between our faces. Not once does he lose his connection with my pulse.

“Another lie.”

“I don’t know how to word it. That's not a lie.”

Simon drops his head so that his covered mouth hovers beside my ear.

“Good girl.”

Never has praise sounded so seductive. It takes every inch of concentration to reign in my self-control. I might have ripped off his mask then and there…

Only, I think he’s beating me to it.

From where his head hovers, I can’t see his masked face. The wide, strong shape of his shoulder obscures most of my vision. He retracts his hand from my neck to reach somewhere I can’t see. The sound of moving cloth widens my eyes and upsets the rhythm of my breathing, the uneven rise and fall of my chest barely brushing his.

Maybe he’s adjusting it, I convince myself. He has only ever offered you little pieces at a time. What he’s offering me now is more than he ever has at once. While my body screams for more, my mind knows I can’t expect too much from him. Whatever he’s doing now is more than enough.

“You’re breathing funny.”

The feeling of breath skims the shell of my ear and down my neck like a warm, ghostly waterfall. It takes me a second to notice a difference in his voice. It’s low, it’s rough, it’s teasing. All are easily noticeable and nothing new. What is new is the enhanced clarity. An added sharpness lingers in his accented words. The slight muffle is nowhere to be found.

I was wrong. He’s lifted his mask.

“Because you’re taking off your mask." My answer comes out in a weak whisper.

He doesn’t speak about the mask, instead repositioning his hand to my neck to find my pulse.

“If you can’t tell me,” he murmurs, returning to the previous topic, “your heartbeat can.”

A warm feeling presses into my neck. A gasp slips past my lips as my heartbeat continues to quicken and stumble beneath his thumb. Against my skin…I think Simon is smiling.

Nothing about this seems real. Simon plants slow kisses on my neck with his bare lips. They’re a little rough, yet soothing. Whether they’re full or thin, I can’t tell, but the lack of obvious signs paints an image of something in between. His nose brushes the base of my jaw. Just above the pointed tip is where the balaclava begins. I can feel the hard edges of the sewn-on skull pressing into my left temple. Light stubble covers his jaw.

As his mouth works slowly against my neck, my jaw, and my collarbone, my hand slides up and over his chest. I slowly feel his bare neck. Beneath my fingers, his Adam's apple bobs. Further I explore, feeling the planes of his skin. The stubble scratches against my curious hand. Raised skin runs in a line over the right side of his face; the scar. It’s thin and generally clean-cut. He pulls back slightly as I feel his face. A deep chuckle rumbles in his chest as my thumb traces over his lips. I was right, they are something between full and thin. His lower lip feels slightly fuller with a deep hollow beneath that curves into his chin.

When I find it in me to speak, my voice is breathy.

“Kiss me.” He seems to still at that. When his reply isn’t instant, I continue. “You don’t have to… But I won’t look. I swear it.”

Silently, he reaches for my hand. He holds his over mine for a moment as he did with the mask moments earlier. Then he gently pries it away. Cloth shifts in my air as he fixes the mask and pulls back. I can’t say I’m not disappointed, but I respect the decision. Simon looks down at me with lust-blown pupils. Mine must be the same.

He takes a second to examine me. My heavy-lidded eyes, my slightly parted lips, the way I slump beneath him, the glistening wet spots left on my neck. He whips it away before he speaks.

“Can I trust you?”

We both know the answer to that, so instead of saying the obvious, I one-up him.

“Do you want to trust me?”

Silence passes for a heartbeat.

“Of course I do,” he says softly. “I want to trust you. I want to touch you. I want to kiss you. …Undress you. I’ve wanted to for so long.”

Then he moves.

My thoughts go quiet as Simon’s hands reach upward. When his fingers brush the base of his mask, I reach out and still his hands. The action takes both of us by surprise. For months I’ve been thinking about this moment. Just now I’ve admitted how much what he looks like takes up my mind. Now I find myself stopping him, but not because I’ve changed my mind. I worry that this will be something he’ll regret.

“Simon,” I say. “You don’t owe it to me to show your face.”

“But I do.” He inclines his head. “Now keep your pretty eyes up.”

My breath catches in my throat as he pulls it off in one swift motion. I take in everything I’m seeing in amazement, wonder, and bewilderment.

He’s handsome. He’s really handsome.

The ruggedness and confidence he carries seem to be etched into the planes of his face. A light stubble shadows his angular, defined jaw. Just as I had imagined, the bridge of his nose is straight and strong. His high cheekbones, deep-set eyes and smudged black paint create deep shadows. His mouth is wide. The shape of them is a physical manifestation of what I had imagined. With an average fullness, his upper lip is slightly smaller with a soft cupid’s bow. Tracing the angles of his right cheekbone is that straight, silver scar. His hair isn’t as short as most other military men’s. It’s a little messy from the mask and, true to his words, a few shades lighter than mine. I can tell that, the longer it gets, the more it curls.

I stay silent as I take him in, eyes wide. Somehow I find the courage to slowly reach out. His blue-grey eyes dart to my hesitant fingers. When he doesn’t deny me, I close the space, this time feeling him without needing to imagine his image. I apply a little pressure as I brush his skin, feeling the warmth of his cheeks, the scar tissue on his cheekbone, and the stubble on his jaw. His eyes train on me. This is one of the few times I cannot understand what I see in them.

Whatever he’s thinking, it doesn’t matter. All that matters is that I stare back at Simon. Not Ghost, Simon.

“I was starting to think you weren’t real,” I say jokingly.

He laughs softly. One side of his mouth quirks up into a skewed smirk. My heart flutters at the sight of it. When he speaks, it’s with that teasing tone that always had me imagining a smirk. Matching his expressions to his tones is a strange thing to see, but I love it.

“Is this real enough for you?” he asks.

I hum in agreement. “You’re a lot better looking than I imagined.”

He raises a brow in mock offence. “Do I radiate unattractiveness? I’m offended.”

“I never said I imagined you ugly.”

I draw my hands back, taking another good look at him. My amazed smile remains. So does the awe in my eyes. Now that I know how good-looking he is, it’s going to be hard to get him out of my head. At least I can’t scold myself over falling for a faceless man anymore.

“I guess if I die tonight… I can go a little happier.”

The way he tilts his head and looks up through lowered brows sends my mind into a frenzy. I’m used to the action with his mask on, usually with the sewn-on skull. Now, with every part of his face laid bare for me, the feeling it stirs comes tenfold. He gives me a fake accusing look. Beneath the teasing air he gives off, that desire remains.

“A little?” he murmurs. His face grows closer, giving me a better view of the hollows and curves and marks of war.

“A little not enough?”

His eyes dip to my lips. “Not by a longshot.”

Then Simon kisses me.

Eyes fluttering closed, I sink into the feeling of his lips against mine. Gently. Hesitantly. Does he expect me to pull away? How could he think such a thing when I almost seemed desperate when I asked him? My hands slide over his chest, slowly linking behind his neck as the kiss deepens.

For a moment, everything fades away. The gunfire, the screams, the impending death we may face any moment... All of it reduces to a meaningless blur. Suddenly all that exists is me, Simon, and the secret embrace we share. In our kiss is a million unspoken words; a tidal wave of passion laced with a bittersweet sadness. The talk of ‘dying happy’ is no exaggeration. We very well may die, and seeing his face and feeling his touch eases the painful thought. Maybe this way I can find him in the afterlife - seek out his mysterious eyes and lopsided smirk and spend an eternity together. Or perhaps there is no afterlife, and this is my last stroke of luck.

Satisfied with the knowledge of what he does to me, Simon lowers his hand from my neck. The pressure reapplies near my belt. His fingers timidly skim the bottom of my tanktop, pulling the tucked part from my waistband. My own fingers weave through his brown hair as his hand slides further beneath. My kiss falters when he finds one of my breasts. His hand comfortably rests over it, his palm slowly kneading at the flesh. A low groan builds at the back of my throat.

After a moment, we pull away, chests rising and falling as we take deep breaths. His forehead rests against mine and suddenly I'm wishing we could do this over again. Except I picture less sadness to tinge every word and action. I picture the safety of home, the warmth of a bed, a carefree air that allows us to just enjoy the other's company. Reality comes back in a painful rush.

“I don’t want to die,” I whisper.

His hand retreats from my breast at my words. Instead, he takes a hold of my waist, giving me a comforting squeeze.

“You are not going to die. Not today. Not when there’s so much more I want from you.” He adds the last part with a teasing, suggestive smirk.

He looks down at my lips again—

“Ghost, how do you copy?”

We both freeze at the sound of a voice, so caught up in the moment that the radio is forgotten. Both the unspeakable things and sorrowful thoughts flooding my mind suddenly vanish at the sound of a familiar voice. There’s an equally received look on Simon’s face as he reaches for the small radio.

“I read you loud and clear, Sergeant,” he says. “What’s your location?”

“I…don’t know,” John replies solemnly. “Streets are crawling with Shadows. Where are you?”

“You see church spires above the houses?”

There’s a second of silence. Then…

“I see them.”

“Good. Head straight there and come inside. No Shadows here yet. They’ll be busy going door to door.”

“Affirmative. I’m on my way. Have you got any word from Y/N?”

Simon looks at me, silently giving me the floor to speak. “I’m right here, Johnny.”

There’s a sigh of relief on the other end. “Oh, thank fuck. You in one piece?”

“I’m all here. You?”

“Got a shot to the shoulder. Nothing I can’t handle.”

For the next while, Simon and I sit huddled side by side, guiding Johnny through the radio. I generally leave the talking to Simon. Listening to him speak and sinking into his warmth is good enough. Every so often, he'll say something that takes me by surprise. Sometimes it's a dad joke, either really good or incredibly bad. Sometimes it's something that alludes to Simon not minding Johnny. He never outright admits it, but saying 'I like you alive' to Johnny's 'so you do like me' speaks for itself. I smile at that. I have sunk my claws into him, and he's not going to be able to get rid of me till the day I die.

#call of duty #call of duty modern warfare 2 #modern warfare 2 #modern warfare ii #mw2 #mwii #ghost #simon riley #simon ghost riley #simon ghost riley x reader #simon riley x reader #ghost x reader #simon riley x y/n

[redrobinhoodrat]

BABY BOO CHAPTER ONE

Jason is out patrolling and for some reason he’s got random noises coming through his coms. 

Well, not random. It’s only been the one noise that he’s been hearing over and over. He can only hear it at random intervals but the pitch is enough to make his teeth ache- the green that flashes in front of his eyes isn’t very reassuring either.

To top everything off, Red was watching him like a hawk. The paranoid little shit already picking up on how tense he was. He rolled his shoulders as he landed the next swing, trying to keep his flinch at the noise minimal. It shouldn’t even bother him. He’s never been sensitive to loud noises, he uses guns for god's sake! Usually, he’d pass this off as something fucked up with his helmet.

It was grating on him though. It made his chest feel tight, like he was about to panic. The weird staticky chirp played over and over as he stood there trying the figure it out. It had to be getting louder, right? Why was he constantly hearing it now? Where was it coming from? Why-

“-Hood!” He gasped as he felt someone grab his shoulder. He hadn’t even noticed he’d closed his eyes and gripped the sides of his helmet. He looked up into Red Robin’s mask as he tried to relax. He could see the worry across his face and tried to straighten up from his slightly crouched position.

“Red Robin, report.” Batman’s voice came through the coms and Jason was too slow to catch Tim’s attention as he shook his head and made a slashing motion at his throat. He watched as the kid straightened at the command and hurried to reply before his brother could get everyone riled up.

“Everything is fine.”

“You weren’t responding.”

“This,” he said harshly, “is me responding. Everything is fine.” Jason continued making vague threatening motions towards Tim since he seemed like he was about to chime in. He thought the last threat really hit home since the kid’s shoulders hunched up and he looked a little huffy as he responded.

“Everything’s fine Batman. Just a communication error.” Jason gave him a short nod as he tuned everything back out. The noise hadn’t happened in a second and instead of feeling relieved he felt his anxiety kick up. He glanced around as he tried to contain the urge to hunt for…something. He still wasn’t sure here.

“Hood, B’s not going to be happy when we get back if you keep ignoring him. What’s going on?” Tim had moved to be in front of Jason. Not too close though, he’d noticed him cocking his head and he could barely see the slight sheen of green shining from beneath his eye lenses. Something was up and he was going to figure it out. He watched Jason’s head snap towards him as he moved a step closer. He seemed to be twitchy but resigned as he sighed before answering.

“There’s a weird noise coming through my helmet. I’ve been trying to figure it out but I can’t. It’s making the pits act weird.” He crossed his arms as he said it, he couldn’t help the hint of defensiveness in his tone. He rolled his eyes as he noticed that Tim had a hand on his panic button.

“When you say it’s messing with the pits…?”

“I'm fine,” He huffed. “It’s more like a humming, greenish feeling.”

Tim hummed as he typed the symptoms into his computer. Taking notes just in case. As he finished he moved a little closer to his brother.

“Still, why don’t I take a look at your helmet. It could be nothing but you could’ve been hacked.” He gestured for Jason to pass him the helmet. He raised his brow however, as Jason took a step back defensively.

“No way! I won’t be able to figure out what the noise is if I can’t hear it.”

“That’s the point Jason,” Tim rolled his eyes. “You don’t know what’s causing this. What if Ra’s or someone has a way to induce an episode of madness in people affected by the pits? It could be mind control. It might be nothing. Just let me listen to your coms and I’ll see if I can hear it.” He held out his hand again.

Jason huffed as he thought it over. Letting his brother check wasn’t going to hurt anything, especially since the chirps had gone silent for some reason.

He scowled as the thought crossed his mind. Why was he so freaked out that the noise was gone?

Time watched as Jason tensed up before sagging and taking off his helmet. He took it from his brother's reluctant hands and quickly started a scan. He was so focused that he almost didn't notice as Jason's head snapped up. He quickly took more notice as the green sheen beneath his mask seemed to turn into a bright glow. The expression on his brother's face wasn't encouraging either. Panic and rage were crossing his face in equal intervals. He ducked behind an AC unit as Hood started looking around. Like hell he'd be getting near him like this, he'd already had one pit accident with Jason. He had the scars to prove it too.

He quickly pressed his panic button as a horrible thought occurred to him.

There's no way for the sound to be affecting Jason without the helmet if it'd been coming through the coms. If he was right, then the helmet had probably been filtering the noise. If he could just get him to put the helmet ba-

"Chirp!"

He cut his thought off as he heard a weird noise.

"Chirp!"

He scrunched his nose as he heard it again.

Was-? Was Jason chirping? Like a bird?

"Red, what's going on?!" Nightwing's voice came across his com as he watched Jason frantically call out with his weird noises. Honestly, how was he even making them, his mouth wasn't opening!

"We've got a green eyed situation with Hood, possible mind control, heavy emotional influence. Cause undetermined. Hood was talking about a weird noise earlier and now he's making odd noises."

"Copy that. Back up is four minutes away, is he hostile?"

"So far, no. He's just standing there. Menacingly."

"Red."

"I'm being serious B! All he's doing is making weird noises and looking around. It's like he's using echolocation or something." Tim watched closer as Hood let out an even louder chirp before tilting his head like he was listening. Could he really be hearing it echo back to him? There's an echo for sure but to a regular human the feedback wouldn't give them much information. What could he be listening to then? Tim isn't hearing anything unless...!

"Guy’s, it's possible the noises are a form of communication. He acts like he's listening for some type of feedback." He watched as Jason's expression suddenly changed to determined.

"Shit! He's on the move. I'm following at a distance."

"Alright Red, don't let him notice you. I’ve got eyes on you." Bab chimed in. Tim cringed at the thought of getting in Hood's way right now. Based on past experience with the expression on his face, someone was getting hurt tonight.

“Red Robin, update.” Batman said gruffly.

“He’s crossing over into the Upper East Side.” Tim had been reporting to the bats as he followed Jason. They’d been patrolling towards the North docks so he’s guessing it’d taken them maybe ten minutes to get to the river. Where the hell was that backup?

Jason had been going in the same general direction since he took off. His movements were almost mechanical as he would go in a direction for a while, stop and chirp like a bird, listen for a second, then take off again. 

He was so never letting him live this down. He’d already gotten Babs to duplicate all the footage and audio from his mask cam. He spotted a flash of purple to his right. He shook his head as he pressed his com button.

“Where the hell you been, loca?” 

“Had to make a pit stop and grab BB, Red. Couldn’t leave her out of all the fun!” 

Tim scanned his surroundings a little better and was rewarded with a flash of black slightly to the left and ahead of him. He couldn’t help but relax a little as he did, if Cass was here the chances of everything working out easily doubled. He might also be a little biased when it came to his favorite sibling though. 

He grinned as he sped up a little. The wit and teasing of Steph along with Cass’s short hand signs was a welcome change to his anxiety over Jason’s situation. As long as they could stay with him tonight and snap him out of it everything would be okay. 

Sadly, his upbeat mood plummeted as Jason suddenly changed directions. He was heading towards Robinson Park. 

“We need to intercept him, he’s heading to the park.” Batman made a small disapproving noise over the coms. He could hear the Batmobile roaring in the background, he could tell just from the noise he was going as fast as he could to catch up with them.  

“ETA is 2 minutes, do you think you can hold him off?”

He shared some quick glances with Cass and Steph. 

“Take your time B, we can handle him.”

#dc x dp #batpham

[blockgamepirate]

Here are some suggestions I have for QSMP, that nobody asked for and that nobody involved with the server is going to actually see anyway (but I can't stop thinking about this so I have to write something down)

This is me trying to be constructive instead of just critical, because I do love this server and I want it to be sustainable

I guess this is vaguely addressed to either Quackity and/or to whoever is leading the team, idk, like I said they aren't gonna read a random tumblr post so who cares

And yes, obviously I'm sure some of the things in this post are already being improved on, I just think it's still worth listing them

1: Better communication all around

Especially within the admin team obviously, including the actors and builders and everyone, but also between the admin team and the streamers! And between the admin team and the audience as well!

I promise more communication almost always helps things work out more smoothly than keeping people out of the loop or not talking to each other, or worse; actively banning people from talking to each other

This includes being more open and reconsidering which things actually need to be kept secret and from whom, because if people don't know what to expect, they're not going to know how to prepare either! And they also won't be able to let you know about potential problems ahead of time!

The streamers and the actors and other team members as well should at the very least know about stuff that's going to affect their schedule and to have some idea of the kinds of things they're gonna be expected to do. If you just suddenly throw stuff at them and expect them to be immediately ready to cooperate or play along, that's just gonna cause frustration and burnout

I would also worry less about spoilers than about backlash when people expect one thing and get something completely different; you can in fact give a bit more hints so people don't get the wrong idea and end up disappointed

(And on the other hand if you have secrets that you can't talk about because they would lead to a big controversy if they were revealed uh.... maybe don't do the thing? Maybe simply don't do the controversial thing that you can't let people know about, consider it. If you feel like something you're doing would make people mad if they knew, that thing might in fact be a problem)

2: Show your respect for everyone involved in the project

Respect people's time, respect their ability to cooperate (AS LONG AS YOU TELL THEM WHAT'S GOING ON), listen to their ideas and concerns, etc. This is honestly also part of communicating better but it's an important part

Respecting and also demonstrating your respect for your team is so crucial as a leader, and it genuinely goes a long way even when you have very little else to give them

In fact I think often people would even appreciate respect more than they would appreciate money (although it has to be genuine respect, not just empty words; hence why I say you need to demonstrate your respect with your actions)

3: Have a more collaborative mindset

Think of all the members of the team and the streamers as partners rather than as employees or as customers; this is a collaborative creative project, not a business

As much as this started out as one man's passion project, there's no way to do something this ambitious other than as a team effort, including the actors, including the streamers, so it's just much healthier for everyone to think of it as such

Also it's just better for the stated goals of the server as well, because it's all about bringing people together and what better way to bring everyone together than to make them feel like they're part of a team?

4: That said, you don't actually need to drop all the admin driven lore, that's not what I'm saying orz

Just because I want the streamers to be more involved doesn't mean I think they should also be planning all the lore, that's just not necessary

pls do get a proper gamemaster on the team, though, someone who has experience running a LARP type of thing or at least a TTRPG campaign. That would help so much, and I bet you could ask Cellbit or Bagi or Charlie if they could recommend anyone

Honestly I could probably make a whole post just about how to run the admin driven lore better, but getting yourself an experienced gamemaster would be so much better than any specific advice I could give

5: If you're gonna have volunteers, you need to treat them like volunteers, not like employees

You have to respect the fact that volunteers are not subordinates, they're here to help you, not to be ordered around, banned from talking to people, judged for their availability, or made to sign weird NDAs

They're offering their labour for free because they care about the project or because they enjoy what they do, and they deserve to be appreciated for it, not policed and bossed around (not that you should treat actual employees with that kind of hostility either tbh)

Having volunteers is not necessarily the problem (at least as long as you're not using them to make a profit), it's treating volunteers as unpaid employees, because then you pretty much do just have unpaid employees instead of volunteers

Okay, finally the big one:

6: Consider running QSMP as a cooperative

I know this is Quackity's baby and a Quackity Studios' project, but the thing is, I don't think this model is sustainable

I mean, we already know it isn't sustainable, that's why we're in this mess

As far as I can tell, Quackity Studios is not making any profit from the server, there's no way the revenue from the admin streams and the QSMP Info channel would be enough to cover all the costs if people were paid decently (in fact I don't think it's even enough to cover the costs without paying everyone decently)

This sort of arrangement, with one party running the whole thing out of pocket, makes sense if it's either a very low maintenance server which doesn't cost much and doesn't require much work to keep running, or a very short-term one, more like an event type of thing

QSMP is neither of those, QSMP is both very high maintenance and has been running for almost a full year

I think there's absolutely value in having an ambitious long term project like this, it's very cool, it's very hype, but this is not a good way to run it

And it's especially bizarre considering that people do make money out of it, but the people making money are the streamers

So I would suggest taking some tips from the Hermitcraft SMP server which is run as a collective. Obviously Hermitcraft is much lower maintenance but their model is also much more robust, because there isn't just one person who has to take responsibility for everything, or pay for everything

It would also encourage the spirit of international cooperation to have the streamers literally be part of the server, not just as guests but as partners, so they could have a say in how the server is run and be more invested in the project

(At least those streamers who want to be involved, of course I realise some of them might choose not to)

This would require regular meetings, but I think that's also a good thing, and an opportunity to also talk things through off-camera whenever any issues come up (better communication again!)

AND it would mean that the streamers should actually contribute to the server costs and paying the admins and other behind the scenes people. Probably based on their stream revenue from QSMP streams because obviously some of these streamers make more money than others (I would suggest a progressive membership fee (like progressive taxation style) to make sure that it's not more taxing for the smaller streamers than the bigger ones, but obviously it should all be agreed on between the members)

And IMO the admins, including the actors, the builders, the devs, the translators, etc. should also be considered partners, but since they don't make money directly, the way the streamers do, they should be the ones who are getting compensated for their contributions so they're better able to commit to the project, by which I mean yes you should pay them, but not as employees but as creative partners

Of course this is just one idea, I'm not saying it's necessarily the only good model by any means, it's just a suggestion, all of these are just suggestions

#qsmp #qsmp discourse #sorry for the long post

[in3rci4]

LEONARDO'S DIFFERENT VERSION DATING HCS ( PART 2 )

Warning : Yandere hints ¿??????? Idk

IDW comic's Leonardo ( This one might be much vague since i didn't read the next comics after Leonardo's stopped being mind controlled )

Depending on his mood he might be more open about PDA some days ( Special occasions , peace before / after war, etc ), but in general he likes to keep it simple in front of others and let himself go in private

Unless you already know or start training self defense he won't let you go on missions , he would try to convince April to persuade you to stay with her while they do their stuff

Tries to take you beautiful or aesthetic places , but more often than not you two will be interrupted , so to avoid that he started to give you more gifts and spend more quality time inside a safe place

He loves it when you compliment his appearance , but if you compliment his skills and wisdom ? OOF , this man would be all giggly and blushing like a school boy

Denial and silent jealousy , he would not communicate his thoughts and would try himself to stop thinking that way , but it only gets worse . Fortunately , when he's on the edge of exploiting he would try his best to talk with you about it

Even when he's on the foot clan he would still choosing you

He would probably kidnap you and force you marry him and keep obedience and loyalty towards him ( And if he was feeling threatened by certain someone close to you , he wouldn't doubt twice on hurting them bad enough to make them know who you belong to )

After it's all over he would apologize for his actions and spend more time with you than before

Although his jealousy might be transform into more straight to point , being a little sharp with his words but nothing extreme

LEONARDO 2003-2009 ANIMATED SERIE ( I haven't watched it in a long time too lol )

At first he would be shy with PDA , but as times passes by he would start to care and less about what other people has to say

Wich would leads to a shameless romantic Leonardo

The ego bust when you compliment him is insane , he might act all humble but he won't stop smiling proudly for your words

Quality time and service are his main love languages , but gifts with sentimental reasons behind them are also a good part of him too

Rarely gets jealous since he trust you with his heart , but that doesn't stop him from not liking a person at all for trying to hit you ( Worse if they know that they were dating someone )

He would act fake nice to the point it's way too obvious for everyone in the room that he's not content with their presence , and would act clueless if you said anything about it

10000000+ points if you're good with kids and eldest people , makes his heart go brrr for you

DARK CLONE LEONARDO ( TMNT 2003 - 2009 SERIES )

Ok so first to talk about this version I say that if you decide to keep being his friend you have to teach him a lot of stuff ( Maybe I'll add a HC )

Maybe you're a close friend of the turtles , maybe you're Leonardo's partner / ex

The thing is that you were just or more patient with him than his counterpart , making him reflex about his existence , morals , actions , everything

So he decides to stay on Earth and try to be like the other turtles , to give his " brothers " a better life far from their creator

So , after a long time of learning , communicating and spending time with you , he decides to date you so he can be finally your boyfriend ( You told him that mate is weirdly used to call a partner here , he asked why , but you avoided the question flawlessly lol )

That being said , he would be slow with PDA but once he learns all the types of affection , he would SHAMELESSLY french kiss you , talk about how good you were last night , hug you on the air , etc

Even he's more civilized than before , he would steal without care things that he knows you like or need ( Be careful with saying " Oh I wish I had money to buy x thing" he won't think twice on breaking the law if it means he'll get it for you )

Cuddling with him is cool until you wake up first but he don't , and he won't let go even in his sleep ( Might even pull you much closer like if he's trying to absorve you with his body )

Yes , he did learn the sharing importance , but with you ? Hell nah , he growls to anyone who is way too much confident with you , including his brothers , but specially humans and the og turtles ( Leonardo having it worse , he would probably get hurt more than once just for talking with you inconveniently alone )

If you talk with him about his jealousy he would try his best to not push you away , but don't expect it to happen soon or fade away completely

Your loyal servant at lifting heavy weights , helping you get something out of your reach , etc , but if you don't know how to fight or be just as strong as him , good luck on trying to go on a mission / train or put yourself at any danger

#tmnt leonardo #tmnt hcs #tmnt #leonardo x reader #leonardo hcs #tmnt idw #idw leo #tmnt 2003 #leo 2003 #dark turtles #tmnt dating hcs #tmnt dark leo

[genericpuff]

I've come to the stunning realization-

-that Lore Olympus is basically to the webtoons industry what Youtube Kids is to Youtube.

And I'm not talking about the general "Youtube Kids" label, I'm talking about those videos - Elsagate, Johny Johny, Cocomelon, Mickey Mouse tattooing Spongebob or whatever other weird example you can think of - which are explicitly designed to game the algorithm, turn views into money, and most of all, gain and keep the attention of the one demographic that won't question what they're consuming - children.

!!!!THIS POST HAS FAST PASS SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!

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I mean, this is undoubtedly just a tinfoil hat theory, but think about it:

Bright oversaturated colors that are attention-grabbing.

Meme faces and 'lol rAnDoM' humor even when it doesn't suit the situation at all.

Art that's all around ugly and cheap on a technical level but still stands out due to its color design and prioritized advertising.

Vapid surface level scene-to-scene writing that doesn't connect or have any meaning in any coherent way.

One-dimensional projection characters who are easy to manipulate and sway for audience sympathy or anger even if those opinions change on a dime based on actions in the moment.

Cliffhangers that are less like true cliffhangers and more like clickbait. Episodes nowadays tend to be filled with drawn out plotlines, vague hints that can be applied to just about any school of thought, and non-sequitur memes to fill the time until they can hook the reader with another cliffhanger to keep them coming back next week.

Coin prices have gone up but episode length, substance, and quality have noticeably gone down. Even if they reach the same panel count they usually have, dialogue is minimal and pacing is brutally inconsistent to the point that plot progression is often non-existent.

Banner ads that run constantly, often in the first or second (or both) slots, with push notifications and pop-up ads also becoming more frequent whether you're subscribed to the comic or not.

And underneath ALL of that, we've got blatant objectifying and sexualization of female characters regardless of context, misogyny that claims to be progressive, racist undertones, borderline fetish content that constantly toes the Terms of Services line, normalization of problematic/toxic relationship dynamics, a creator who's more interested in 'getting back' at critics than writing an actual story, and underlying messaging both from the characters' and the creator's behavior that encourage witch-hunting, rejection of accountability, and blind devotion.

All this is essentially why I've given up consuming LO entirely, beyond just on a critical level as of late. There was a time long ago when I stuck around in the hopes it was going to get better, that maybe it was just going through a "rough patch" as some stories do. After that I stuck around because I wanted to see how it could possibly pull off its ending. And then after that, I simply stuck around for the laughs and community banter. But now I don't even find it funny anymore, the punchline of how bad it is has gotten incredibly old. And at this rate, as much as we'd like to believe it's going to end in its third season as it's been mentioned in the past, we also were told it was going to end between 100-200 episodes prior to that - the way it's going, I can't even stick around "for the ending" because LO is going to be around for as long as WT tries to milk it, despite it no longer having a heartbeat.

As much as I've loved talking shit about this comic and it's undoubtedly the main reason so many of you followed me here in the first place, I'm not going to lock myself in some kind of purgatory hell just to be proven what I already know is going to happen - either the comic continues on forever, doomed to be a lifeless mascot for the zombie corporation that is WT, or RS eats shit while trying to stick the landing with a plane that has no functional parts.

There's a quote from Caddicarus that I couldn't help but think of as I typed this up, from his nearly-decade-old review of Dalmations 3 (oh god, it's nearly been a decade since that video came out what the actual fuck-)

"And this is where I officially lost all fucking care. I realized it wasn't going to end anytime soon. It's one of those rare instances where the novelty of how awful everything is actually gets really tiresome and unfunny." - Caddicarus

#this isn't me saying i'm not gonna talk about LO ever again #i'm just explaining why i haven't engaged with it directly for weeks now and why my LO essays are less often nowadays #i'm even slowly phasing out of the critical community for it #it's just exhausting #and bad for my mental health #i'd rather put my efforts into something positive like rekindled than continue to give this propaganda on a stick more attention #i still love all the pals in the community but it's more to do with the content itself that's being discussed than the people discussing it #lore olympus critical #anti lore olympus #antiloreolympus #lo critical

[notafraidofredyellowandblue]

so I've heard in the past that some members of the band have hinted at not being 100% straight and richard has given hints at wanting to know what it's like to be a woman, could you please give me some sources to those since I've looked everywhere and can't really find them? thank you, if not, it's totally understandable

Another really really old ask, not because i didn't want to, but because i wanted to findas much info as possible 🌺 sorry anon for taking so long..

Well, the most recent 'hint' was Flake's podcast with topic 'gay/lesbian' where he mentioned that the topic came up one evening when the band were chatting and it turned out they all had their experiences 🥰

Rammstein is imo a band who has always been very 'inclusive' in any sexual preferences, and especially in Till's lyrics you can tell he is very interested in anything out there (not that that makes him 'not straight' (to be honest, i think he is, by some other quotes in interviews 😊) but i wouldn't be surprised if he tried some stuff somewhere in life).

Richard did an 2010 interview in Canada (don't have a link to the original, just this transcript) where he was quoted (about 'Mann gegen Mann')

"Actually, Till showed the lyrics to our Gay community, to our friends, just to make sure, because if you talk about something that you not really are, it's always kind of hard. Sometimes you cross the line, you don't think about it, but it could be offensive. If you do something because it's your experience, it's fine, but if you write something and you're not actually a part of it, I think you should make sure that everything you want to say is right. So he gave the lyrics to some friends, and they were very approving."

Which sort of confirms that they don't see themselves as gay so much. Also in interviews where they were asked 'are you gay', they usually end up with 'no'... interestingly, i don't think i've seen an interview where an interviewer explicitely asked 'are you bisexual' 🌺 (by the way, i would be really surprised if Richard hadn't some experience with a guy when he was younger, i vaguely remember he alluded to such in a really old interview, but i don't have a link).

--

Richard indeed has expressed ideas about his feminine side several times, in the interbiew above he says for instance

"If you talk to me right now, I'm a big believer in getting myself in balance between the female and the male side. I have a female side too, obviously."

And very striking was in several interviews ca 2021 after he did the cover 'Always on my mind' with Till for the Emigrate album 'The Persistence of Memory' and then made it a duet, stating:

"I mean, obviously, Till has also this very characteristic voice. And then it was pretty fast. He recorded one day. And then I was listening to it, and I felt a little bit that his performance was a little bit too male-oriented. So I felt I need a little female touch to it. So that’s why my personality came in. And I think it’s a good combination"

So he felt a female touch was needed, and added his own voice to Till's track 🥰

And ofcourse in 2023 he shared on his ig

"I've always wondered what it's like to be a woman"

Now ofcourse this could just be a Kruspe-caption 😊 but with the 'DT' video in mind and his role in it, it makes one wonder doesn't it... where is that making of when we need it 🌺😊

---

From the others i don't have quotes at hand...sorry...but maybe someone else has and is willing to share 🌺

#rammstein lgbtq matters #rammstein and the feminine side #quotes #till lindemann #richard kruspe #rammstein #flake lorenz

[bestworstcase]

You’ve mentioned a few times that Salem is awkward, could you get into you’re reasoning and evidence for this characterization (as she is currently)? I’m fascinated by this reading and fully persuadable. Her origin story being the tower, it makes sense she’d be a little socially stunted but she was charismatic enough then to convince others to fight for her through words alone (tho that is different from in person social skills (to that point she persuaded kingdoms to revolt against the gods)). Millions of years of isolation wouldn’t put a shine on amicability, but these things /inform/ characterization. I’m interested in what you see in her as awkward in how she’s presented to us in the Current Era (Remnant Era?)

this post regarding her interrogation of oscar in 8.4 is salient because that's the scene that rly convinced me she's being written this way on purpose. there's a lot of contributing factors, though:

both then (fomenting rebellion) and now (recruiting hazel), salem's standard approach to getting people on her side involves basically walking up and "demonstrating her powers," i.e. inviting or just letting the person she's trying to sway kill her over and over again until they're willing to hear her out. she can (and did) make a compelling enough argument for people to follow her, but the way she chooses to make people listen is by subjecting herself to extreme violence.

further, it's shown in V8 that even within her own inner circle, there is a lot of confusion regarding what salem wants—so much so that tyrian and hazel think diametrically opposed things. why does this confusion exist? ozpin (and most of the fandom) believe it is because salem lies; but a) salem hates lies and liars, and b) the idea that salem herself is deceitful is founded on things jinn says of her in the lost fable, which is a verifiably unreliable narrative. if we look at the two onscreen instances of salem speaking of her goals—"the moment you put your desires before my own" and "in pursuit of a new world"—what strikes me about both is her vagueness.

when cinder questions her in V5, salem answers in a very oblique way: "working with bandits? leaving ruby alive? what's the point!?" -> "never underestimate the usefulness of others; take leonardo. he was one of ozpin's most trusted, but now…" both the bandit (raven) and ruby were or are among ozpin's "most trusted," and salem's point is that she wants to turn both of them against ozpin (like leo and summer). but she does not actually Say That. i made this analogy in the oscar interrogation post but i'll make it again: the way salem answers cinder's question is like showing her work on a math problem but not actually giving the answer. a lot of salem's dialogue is like this: she talks in examples, hints, and implications.

in fact the one time we have ever seen salem clearly state what she means is after ozma asks her "what are you saying?" <- i find this to be significant not only because it flags that other characters find salem's speech to be opaque or unclear sometimes, but because salem answers him honestly and without any hesitation, which indicates that she was not trying to be vague or obfuscate her meaning on purpose. asked for clarification, she clarifies.

then there is what she says to ozma once he tells her the whole truth: "why spend our lives trying to redeem these humans when we could replace them with what they could never be?"—now i am not going to get into my whole theory here, suffice it to say that i think that by "them" salem meant the gods in accordance with her longstanding ambitions—but the salient piece for this discussion is that this bolded phrase is a direct paraphrase from the final lines of 'the shallow sea' and i do think that that is, given the preponderance of thematic links between salem and the faunus, probably intentional, i.e. salem is quoting that myth to express her rejection of ozma's mandate (compare ozma's reliance on fairytales to communicate and make sense of his existence.)

lastly, there are several occasions when salem is talking (to her inner circle in 6.4, or to ironwood in 7.11, or oscar in 8.4) only to be interrupted with unexpected new information (ozpin is back; ruby used the lamp; oscar is fronting). in the first two examples, salem responds by either kicking everyone else out or leaving herself. see the linked post for a more thorough breakdown of her conversation with oscar, but suffice it to say that she responds in a very awkward and disjointed way before she's able to get herself back on track.

so we have a pattern of:

speaking vaguely or being cryptic, in a manner that other characters explicitly find to be confusing,

clarifying readily the one time she's asked for clarification,

paraphrasing the concluding lines of a myth about people embracing change and leaving their old selves behind to live their truth in a new world that is harsh but free, in order to articulate her rejection of "redemption" and the divine mandate,

and ending conversations very abruptly when interrupted mid-speech.

and this pattern exists in correlation with a pair of soliloquies whose language is markedly more eloquent, even poetic, and delivered with a clarity and emotional smoothness that is often lacking from her spoken dialogue.

what this suggests, to me, is that salem struggles to articulate her thoughts (the soliloquies) into words (her dialogue), and that she deals with it with preparation—by planning out what she intends to say and how she'll say it in advance. that she relies heavily on scripts and rehearses speeches and conversations in her head specifically to avoid having to speak off the cuff, in essence.

(and i think this is generally the basis for ozma's distrust and doubts: she told him the truth but in a really confusing and cryptic way that didn't always make sense. if she wasn't coherent—and how could she be after millions of years alone?—of course he wasn't sure whether he could believe what she said!)

basically, i think she's capable of being compellingly persuasive only under particular circumstances (planned speeches given to an audience primed to listen to what she says by violent, spectacular demonstrations of her immortality), and she flounders in ordinary conversation because a) she struggles to find the right words to express her meaning clearly, b) her natural affect is blunted and sometimes erratic (<- "well… :) perhaps you and i can have a better working relationship……… >:( oscar, was it? /:"), and c) she knows both of these things make her come across as an insincere liar.

<- there is a performative aspect to… nearly every scene in front of her inner circle or her enemies; that informs this reading too. as does the fact that there are many, many characters who are tangibly more charismatic than she is—ozpin, blake, oscar, cinder, robyn, ruby, yang—whereas the character whose manner of speech most resembles salem's is pyrrha, who speaks in an overly formal way and explicitly feels socially isolated and unable to form real connections with people.

#it's also not just the tower #it's the millions of years being the only living person on the planet #i think part of it is she's so accustomed to having nothing and no one to talk to except herself #like a lot of her Being Cryptic comes across as salem #really needing the other person to ask clarifying questions bc she doesn't know how to organize information cogently #but she's surrounded by people who Don't Ask Questions

[artzychic27]

Hi, I'm the anonymous who suggested the AU of Favoritism, and I had another idea for a while in my head and season 5 and you fixed it even more, what if Marc and Zoe were Ladybug and Chat Noir, Zoe with the miracle cat and Marc with the ladybug …. in this AU they would already be in school at the beginning of the year, they would not be akuma, and I think they would not make the same mistakes as the original duo (half of Paris' problems with akuma is because of the love square, and them not being in love would save a lot of headache), what do you think?

Did someone fancy Fancy Heroes au?! Let’s just pretend you did

Keep in mind, there’s gonna be some out of order episodes, so… Yeah, it’s an au. Not everything’s gonna match up, you guys

It’s Zoé’s first day at DuPont… And she’s terrified. Cue dramatic inner monologue giving a vague hint on what went down back at her old school and explains her slight trust issues and why she left New York

Fortunately, she’s got her half sister (Who’s not a complete mythic bitch because they’ve been DMing each other ever since Chloé took a dna test when she was thirteen) to show her around and occasionally translate if needed

While they walk to school, Zoé runs into an old Asian man about to get run over by a car, and quickly pulls him out of the way

After checking up on him, they leave, and fail to notice his hand slipping into their backpack

Zoé meets her classmates and keeps her guard up when they try to converse with her

Marc who was assigned as Zoé’s guide, meets up with her, and while they’re both sort of introverts, Zoé attempts and succeeds in getting a few words out of him, and even learns about his crush on a certain someone when she catches him eyeing a redheaded guy walking past their classroom

The first day of school is pretty normal. Mme. Mendeleive welcomes Zoé, goes over the lesson plan, the students go to study hall, and Cosette saves Zoé from tripping over some asshole’s leg and embarrassing herself on her first day

Cue lesbian crush becuase this pretty girl so much prettier up close, and is holding their hand!

While Zoé is busy chatting them up, trying not to be a disaster, Stoneheart suddenly appears and starts destroying everything on sight

Ismael: Nope! Nope! Nope, nope, nope, nope! *Speedwalks away* I’m out! Peace be with y’all!

The students evacuate and head home while Stoneheart hunts for Kim, and that’s where Zoé finds the box in her bag. And in them she finds a ring, and… A tiny cat

Introductions go as canon, with Plagg explaining her new role, talking about the misuse of the Butterfly miraculous, asking for cheese, and of course… She’s freaking out becuase she’s a teenager with the world on her shoulders!

But after a much needed confidence boost, he transforms into Apex Predator, and their outfit is just so distinguished lesbian punk

They head out to track down Stoneheart, and meet another hero named Mariquita. They communicate with each other as to what their power sets are, helping them to come up with a plan, easily turn Stoneheart back into Ivan, and purify the Akuma

Crisis. Averted. Boom.

Oh, but the cops try to arrest Ivan until Apex Predator fucking lays into them and gives them all a verbal lashing

Apex Predator: He’s clearly disoriented and has no idea what just happened! He was possessed by some maniac who preyed on his emotions! That’s the guy you should be arresting! So, leave this sort of work to us until you can get your shit together!

Mariquita: If I weren’t gay, I’d be all over you.

Apex Predator: Yo, same!

The next day, Apex Predator and Mariquita are all anyone can talk about, and Zoé is trying so hard not to blush when girls call her hero persona hot

She notices that Ivan isn’t around and makes a note to ask Mariquita to help her make a public statement when she hears people still blaming Ivan for something that was not his fault

And she may not have to wait long becuase another Akuma appears! And it’s Stoneheart again, becuase some assholes just wanna blame him

This time, Mariquita slaps a few police officers across the face with his glove for shooting at Stoneheart while he has captives, becuase that’s dangerous as hell!

Anyway, they save Ivan, Myléne, and Chloé, Miraculous Ladybug, all is well… Then Hawkmoth makes his appearance and blames them for the destruction

Apex Predator: Fuck you, you human condom!

Mariquita: At least we’re not preying on the emotions of hormonal teenagers, you creep!

Apex Predator: CREEP!

They’re turned into memes instantly

Apex Predator and Mariquita are an impressive team- No romance gets in the way, they communicate, and Mariquita doesn’t throw Apex Predator into danger without warning

Zoé and Marc get pretty close as friends, and this makes Marc friends with Chloé by association and the enemy of one Marinette Dupain-Cheng (Who despises anyone who’s friends with Chloé because of a childhood grudge)

One day during another Akuma… Let’s say Mime, Mariquita protects Nathaniel from getting hit by the invisible arrows (Cue Nath’s celebrity crush)

When the Akuma’s all taken care of, Mariquita and Apex Predator head off to transform back, but unknowingly go in the same directions and transform right next to each

Zoé: MARC?!

Marc: ZOÉ?!

Marc/Zoé: …

Zoé: … Wanna… Catch a movie, sit in comfortable silence and then talk when it’s over?

Marc: Yeah, alright.

I take you back a few weeks ago to the start of the school year!

Marc is a shy boy who prefers to keep his face in books, when all of a sudden!… He has to show the new student around and bear social interaction!

He dreads the walk to school, but is actually relieved he left when he did, because there is just this old man reaching for his cane, and no one is helping him. Because he’s not an asshole, Marc helps him up and heads to school, not noticing the extra weight in his bag

Stoneheart happens, he meets Tikki, freaks out, and to the present!

After getting some explaining out of the way, Marc and Zoé figure they can make this work. Besides, it’s not like the world will end if they know each other’s identities… Yeah, no it won’t… They’re fine

Anyway, school’s normal, no akumas in about two weeks now, Nathaniel’s drawing Mariquita, Marc notices and blushes because a pretty artist is drawing his hero self

Of course, Zoé has to tease him, and in retaliation, he teases her about her crush on Cosette

Zoé: It’s funny how we’re both gay punks in love with short artistic bisexuals.

Marc: Life is odd that way.

Let’s see… Oh, on the weekend, during the fencing team’s practice, and during the episode, Copycat, Lacey, a friend and classmate of Marc and Zoé spies Marinette sneaking into the locker room and follows her

There, she spies Marinette breaking into Adrien’s locker and swiping his phone

She snaps a picture of this, becuase this is highly disturbing!

Then on Monday~

Ismael: Whoa! That’s creepy!

Denise: And highly disturbing.

Simon: Amazing video quality, but yeah, I agree with Ismael and Denise.

Reshma: I have always had my suspicions about her. I’ve seen the way she’s stared at Adrien, but I assumed it was an innocent crush.

Aurore: I saw her drool over him. It was gross.

Cosette: So… What shall we do with this video?

Jean: Blackmail!

Denise: Jean!

Jean: I want free clothes.

Aurore: Okay, but let’s hold off on showing that video. Technically, Lacey broke a law.

Lacey: She broke it first.

Aurore: True, but let’s go through all the right channels, and get this bitch red handed.

Mireille: That’s my girl.

So, on top of superhero work, Zoé and Marc are working up the nerve to ask their crushes out, doing schoolwork, and exposing Marinette’s steadily growing list of felonies because her behavior is just becoming disturbing

When Lila arrives, the Science Kids can already tell she’s lying, but figure she’s only trying to fit in. It’s Marinette who’s got the real problem with her

Marinette: You all know she’s lying?!

Cosette: Could you not scream in my fucking ear? Yes, we know she’s lying, and we don’t care. Why? Becuase this does not concern us. She’s not in our class, and she’s just telling us about her “connections.”

Simon: Yeah, and if your friends believe everything she’s saying, I fear the day they come across a cult leader, but so far, Lila’s just telling tales of an extravagant life. No need to bite our heads off.

Marinette: B-but she-

Mireille: Has a crush on Adrien?… She’s become infatuated with the object of your obsession? Hm?… Yes?… I have hit the nail?… She’s somehow stolen the boy you cannot speak three words to?… Has she?… Yes?

Marinette: I didn’t not come here to be mocked-

Marc: What did you expect, then?

Marinette: Oh, you and Zoé are probably laughing with Chloé all about Lila humiliating me!

Zoé: No, just about how tacky glitter is. Oh, and Chloé doesn’t believe her, either. I laid down some facts.

Marinette: … UGH! *Storms off*

Zoé: You’re welcome! Can you believe that girl?

Denise: Uh, guys? She’s following Lila.

Lacey: She’s gonna murder her! I knew someone from this shit hole would turn out to be a murderer!

Ismael: We gotta stop her!… After lunch.

Mariquita and Apex Predator battle Volpina, and learn from an Akuma with no filter just how she got Akumatized

Mariquita: Why would you pretend to be a superhero, first of all and then go telling some random guy? That’s dangerous with Hawkmoth going around.

Apex Predator: Second, Marinette was in the wrong for how she reacted.

Volpina: That’s not all! She followed me to the park!

Apex Predator: … If you give up your Akuma, you can help some… associates with a sting operation to get Marinette of your back.

Volpina: DEAL! *Breaks her necklace*

So Lila’s not the antagonist, but Marinette still hates her even though she stopped lying… About certain things

She apologizes to the class for lying, and they (Except Marinette) allow themselves to give her a second chance

Really, this is all so Lila can be a spy for the Girl Squad’s Adrinette plans and report back to the Science Kids, and then use her powers of manipulation to slowly get in the girls heads on how Marinette’s behavior is disturbing and quite frankly, toxic. It doesn’t take long to bring Alix over to her side

Hmm… What else?… Oh, yeah, remember when Lila tossed the Grimoire in the trash? Well, Marinette found it and discovered a little something about the Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculous. With the Wish, she can make Adrien all her’s!

She just has to get Akumatized and win

So, anytime there’s an Akuma near her, she makes a grab for it, but is real discreet about it and doesn’t go for one every day

Nothing can go wrong!

… Then Jean catches her reaching for an Akuma one day in Season 3. Fortunately, it got to Ikari Gozen first.

Reshma: This keeps getting better. Add it to the crimes list.

Simon: *Typing on his laptop* ‘Grabbing Akumas’. Okay, we’ve got breaking and entering, stealing, stalking, putting up an illegal ‘no parking’ sign, reading people’s private letters-

Lacey: Uh, guys? I caught Marinette making out with a wax statue of Adrien and then taking a strand of its hair… Then it turned out to be the real Adrien, and now I am going to have nightmares.

Simon: … I’ll add that to the ‘Disturbing Behavior’ list.

Mariquita and Apex Predator make sure to keep a nice close eye on Marinette from now on, but don’t account for her intentionally upsetting people so she can take their Akumas and look like the hero for keeping innocent people from getting Akumatized

Her latest victim? Nathaniel, already self conscious about being socially invisible and anxious after his classmates unintentionally left him behind during five Akuma attacks. She puts it in his head that it’s survival of the fittest and he’d just slow his friends down and put everyone in danger because he can’t keep up

Nathaniel: What the fuck?

Marinette: Or, and this is just a theory… Maybe it’s just that, they never liked you in the first place? Come on, you’re quiet, and it freaks people out. Sure, Juleka’s quiet, too, but Rose helps balance her out, you know, Nath?… Nath?

Nathaniel: …

Marinette: Yeah, good talk. *Leaves, but keeps an eye out for akumas*

Cue Akuma, but the next day, much to Marinette’s annoyance. Nathaniel is turned into Ultraviolet, an Akuma who can make himself invisible, and causes all sorts of chaos in his classroom- Flipping desks, scratching the chalkboard, breaking windows, and punching holes in the wall

When Alix realizes that the Akuma is Nathaniel, the students try to talk him down, but he refuses to listen and accuses them all of never caring about him, making them wonder where he got that idea from

Since they can’t just separate themselves from the group to go transform, Marc and Zoé attempt to talk to him and successfully assure him that his classmates do care about him

Doing so calms him down and allows Ultraviolet to reject the Akuma on his own while Tikki does the Miracle Cure

The first thing Nathaniel sees when he regains consciousness is a pretty boy looking concerned over him

When Alix goes to ask how he got Akumatized and where he got the idea that none of them cared about him, Nathaniel shuts down when he notices Marinette out of the corner of his eye

… Let’s skip

Okay, Marc and Nathaniel are slowly building their relationship, Cosette got tired of waiting an asked Zoé out since he’s obviously into them, and their list of Marinette’s crimes is slowly getting longer. Soon, they’ll turn it into the police and have the conduct an investigation. Oh, and they call new holders to help with Akumas (The Science Kids)

Marinette’s classmates, meanwhile, are becoming wary of her when they realize her “cute school girl crush” on Adrien is more of an obsession after Lila brings up the creepiness of the schedule

It’s late at night when suddenly, Marc and Zoé face their worst nightmares- Rejection, and Audrey

When they escape from their respective fears and run outside, they discover that this is the work of an Akuma, who just so happens to be Marc’s little brother!

To combat the nightmares being brought to life, they call in Jean to use the Pig Miraculous

Hamlet during his debut:

(I just wanted an excuse to use this gif, now let’s get back to the story)

Marinette is becoming more frantic with each passing day. Adrien still isn’t hers’, her friends aren’t doing anything to help her with her plans, there are rumors going around that she caused Nathaniel to get akumatized because someone overheard their conversation, and the Science Kids have been spreading rumors around that she supposedly committed several crimes! Fortunately for her, Alya is sticking around (Only to keep her grounded)

When Alya tells her that maybe it’s time to move on, Marinette becomes angry and yells at her to leave

While Marinette’s alone, an Akuma makes its way into her room, and she grabs it. She tells Hawkmoth (Yeah, he’s Hawkmoth because I ain’t calling him Shadow Bitch) what powers she wants, and cue Princess Justice

Her power allows her to bring back every Akuma Hawkmoth’s ever made, and they’re all under her control, and by extension, Hawkmoth’s. Only he won’t get tired from having so many Akumas active, so that’s a win for him

A swarm of Akumas invades Paris and brings back many of the past Akumas. And while they’re spreading chaos, she’s hunting down the Science Kids and by extension, Chloé, Lila, Nathaniel, and Adrien

The Science Kids take refuge in a seemingly normal massage shop and watch live footage of the Akumapocalypse on their phones

Ismael: This is how we all die. I-I always thought I’d die long after I turn sixty, or something!

Cosette: That crazy bitch is gonna kill us all. We are fucking dead. So, I suggest we all pray for the cool hand of death to take us before she does!

Zoé: Babe, that’s dark.

Cosette: Because I’m scared as hell right now! She’s got a big ass sword, and I saw her pierce it through someone’s chest!

Master Fu: Can you all keep it down?

Science Kids: …

Jean: … Are we all seeing the same short Asian man?

Marc and Zoé realize they have no choice but to reveal themselves as Mariquita and Apex Predator.

Mireille: Knew it.

And Master Fu starts handing out the Miraculous for each of them to use. Jean gets the Pig, Denise gets the Turtle, Ismael gets the Snake, Reshma gets the Bee, Mireille gets the Mouse, Simon gets the Horse, Aurore gets the Rabbit, Cosette gets the Dragon, and Lacey gets the Fox

Their mission? Rip that Akuma from Princess Justice’s cold, dead hands!

Leonardo traps multiple Akumas in a massive Shell-ter, Lemon Bee freezes Dark Cupid so he can’t fire any arrows, Wyvern gathers up some lingering akumas using Wind Dragon, Bronco teleports those Princess Justice hasn’t slaughtered to safety, Minnie clones herself to break multiple Akuma-infected objects, Foxtrot distracts the Akumas with illusions of herself and the other heroes, and King Cobra stops many… Many horrible incidents

While battling some Akumas, Mariquita gets struck across the face by an unseen force and realizes that it’s Ultraviolet. He attempts to talk him out of it, but that only makes him angrier, so Mariquita says something to him that only Marc knows, momentarily distracting Ultraviolet enough for him to de-akumatize him

Nathaniel is just staring at him before Mariquita carries him bridal style to somewhere safe

Meanwhile, Princess Justice has found and kidnapped Adrien. Lapin’s not letting that happen, and goes back in time to whack Princess Justice over the head before yelling at her past self to get Adrien to safety and then leaving

Princess Justice is seething, and sends out more Akumas to akumatize more people while she goes to hunt down all those who betrayed her and put her sword to use

Eventually, Mariquita and Apex Predator corner her and give everything they’ve got against her attacks. However, when it looks like she’s about to win and cut their heads off, Hamlet swoops in and uses Gift on her. While she’s distracted by an image of Adrien being her devoted husband and having three planned kids, Apex Predator cataclysms her sword, and Mariquita purifies the Akuma, finally ending the madness

King Cobra: We lived, fuckers!

Lemon Bee: Oh, to hell with it. *Kisses Foxtrot*

Foxtrot: … Damn.

And while they’re celebrating, the police arrest Marinette because an unnamed someone emailed them a long list of her crimes, which include intentionally trying to get people Akumatized so she could take their Akumas

After Marinette is found guilty in a court of law, it’s a nice cozy jail cell countries away for her

Meanwhile~

Cosette: So… What now?

Marc: I guess we keep looking for Hawkmoth. I hear he’s got a new partner, now, and… Zoé and I could use more teammates if you-

Jean: Yes! For Daizzi and the outfit alone!

Cosette: Same, honestly.

Mireille: Is this happening? Are we doing this?

Zoé: We’re creating a superhero team! Fuck Fu’s shitty rules! And I’m gonna tell you guys so many fucking secrets about the Miraculous that Marc wasn’t allowed to tell me!

Marc: But then I told her! Fuck rules!

All I’ve got at the moment, but how am I just turning your prompts into pure Marinette Salt? Gimme another one, let’s see what else I can do

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous #fancy heroes au #mlb ocs #Marinette salt #Marc anciel #Zoé Lee #aurore beaureal #mireille caquet #Jean Duparc #science kids #akuma class #mlb au

[adhd-merlin]

Dnsvvdnfkjdk idk if you are also Druid (I call myself that tentatively as I'm still very much educating myself) but your comments on my recent post and a quick scroll through what you've posted recently has got me pumped about the Merlin/Arthurian/Pagan/Etc discussions - I feel like I've found my niche of the particular intersectional way I enjoy the show dnsbvdvdkclsljsj

yeah your post triggered me into digging out some old meta, haha

I'm not into druidism or paganism myself, no, but I like thinking of religion in Merlin from a worldbuilding perspective. The hints we get are fascinating — I think the scene that got me thinking was Merlin promising his sick mother that "the gods" would look after him (in 1x13), which implies he was raised as a polytheist by Hunith?

And then I started wondering about Arthur, given he did mention "God" (singular) a few times — but I don't think it's something the writers put a lot of thought into. I mean, the religious aspect in the show is all left deliberately vague, apart from the "Old Religion" stuff and mentions of gods that would be hard to link to any actual major religion practiced today.

I can see why that is, of course, but I like it when fanfiction writers delve into it — The Hands of a Hundred Winters, for example, is a fanfiction series that takes many of the premises of the series entirely seriously (which might be great for some readers and not so much for others — I happen to like it) and there's a couple of scenes in which Merlin and Arthur discuss religion which I was very intrigued by.

I'm (vaguely) aware of what happened historically in Britain, with Christianity replacing paganism, but in Merlin's fictional universe I like the idea of the nobility still observing some pagan celebrations, but with the most "offensive" elements removed — more of traditional celebrations that religious holidays. If that makes sense. Kind of like non-religious people "celebrating" Christmas.

I also like the idea of a class divide also marked by religious customs and beliefs — I can see rural communities like Ealdor being more in touch with pagan gods and elements of "the Old Religion" compared to the nobility.

And whatever "the Old Religion" was, Merlin doesn't seem to identify himself as one of its followers, despite being (vaguely) pagan — which means whatever beliefs Hunith observed were separate from it (though I imagine there were common elements).

It's just—! All that's left unsaid is so interesting to me actually! Bendrui and High Priestesses! A magical matriarchy!! I've got so many questions.

Sorry for rambling 😅

#oh I meant to answer privately!! #I can't change it now #asks

[creachureboy]

Can we get some scout nsfw voicelines but subby pls……

HELP i dont have writing reqs open but i appreciate that u know what u want, so this is for you anon

Scout voice lines: subby ver.

Notes

I leave it kind of vague on what the reader is doing to him, let your mind go to town.

Sequel to my other scout voice lines writing, this time he's a bottom

Gender neutral reader

Mix of lines and writing

Tbh i think he'd be make a good powerbottom, but he gets more submissive thru this. And begs a lot

Scout as a sub would be so full of stammering to the point he'd hardly get anything across, communicating more with his eyes, breaths, and body language.

At first when you'd make a move, Scout would try and play it cool. He'd act like he's the one in control, going,

"Ohh, someone's gettin' bold."

But he'd end that line right then and there, suppressing the chatterbox urges as he would wait excitedly for you to do something. He really would give himself away too easily, his cheeks flushing red and leaning into every touch you would give him.

"You- you gonna keep goin' or what?"

You could ease him into it, but the way Jeremy would practically buck his hips at the slightest hint you were gonna do something? You didn't need to be told directly in order to get the memo.

He'd get impatient surprisingly quickly, his excitement reassuring you a little.

"Can't you just- like.. do somethin'?"

You'd kiss him gently, telling him to be patient while moving your hand slowly down his stomach. He'd chuckle in an attempt to seem confident, but his eyes would be locked on your hand.

"Well, well.. You, uh.." he'd chuckle, and then continue, "I mean, this-"

And he'd just say shit like that honestly, not even being able to get his point across and then grinning at himself in embarassment. He'd put his hands on your shoulders for a bit of comfort.

"I ain't usually so.. stammery, like this, I'm- uh, much.. bolder. Y'know?"

So you'd reassure Jeremy that it was alright and that you found it cute how he reacted. That you loved the way he would shudder at every touch and go along with every action. And best of all, that he didn't dare touch himself, instead waiting for you to do it.

His voice would get caught in his throat, smiling and throwing out aimless filler words like,

"Well, it's- uhh.." as if he'd have any direction of what he'd want to say. "If you say so."

You'd really have to be patient with him, it wouldn't occur to him to be forward and tell you what he'd want. All this time, his fantasies would involve him taking the lead, so he'd have no clue what to do in this situation.

So you would ask if he liked when you touched him a certain way, when you moved yourself against him. You'd ask, so he'd have to reply.

"Well," he'd chuckle, "ain't the best thing I've ever felt."

If that was the case, why would Jeremy be going along with everything you did? Why would he be reacting so strongly to every small movement? You both would know you have him wrapped around your finger. You'd know he's taunting you. That he's being bratty.

So you would have to coax it out of him, but you won't want to go all out just yet. So you would play with his nipples to hear him gasp, grind your hips against his to feel him moving against you too. Tell him that, if this wasn't the best, that you wanted to hear what he wanted.

He'd smirk up at you, but his voice would conveniently get caught in his throat.

"I- I want'cha to.. um-"

And you'd stop, feigning innocence, claiming that if you didn't know what he wanted, you wouldn't be able to give it to him.

And he'd fall for it.

"Oh, uh, okay- right."

He'd then mumble in the softest voice,

"I want'cha to.. uh.. do what you want.. To me."

A very adorable way of saying that he trusts you with control. It's much easier to earn Jeremy's shyness once the facade of confidence is down. So you'd move to touch him where he wants, promising you'd be gentle.

His breath would hitch in his throat as he'd gaze up at you in a haze - as if you didn't literally just start. His eyes would do all the talking here.

It would be really cute how much he'd want you, and you'd be determined to hear the words fall from his lips. So you'd keep going at your slow pace, watching him. Observing him.

And you'd ask how he likes it, already knowing damn well what he's thinking.

"Yeah.. uh- I- I like it.. it's good-"

"You're doin-" he'd inhale sharply, "good, real good, but.."

And you'd stop completely, gazing at him cheekily. And he'd whine,

"D- don't stop, hey.."

You'd ask again what he wanted. And he'd just mumble,

"Can you.."

And Jeremy would guide your hand on him to touch him more, and he'd let go once you caught on.

You nearly wouldn't be able to resist the way he'd be so direct and yet so shy, knowing exactly what he'd want but catching a frog in his throat every time he'd try and say it. So you'd press him a little, pouting as you ask if that's all he had to say.

"Well- uh, I..," he'd take a second to regain enough composure to continue speaking, "I love you. A lot."

"I trust you, baby. You don't have to- you don't have to be shy."

You? The shy one here?

You'd move your hand quicker, causing him to jolt and cling onto your shoulders. It would be so cute the way you could so easily get him quiet.

Jeremy would close his eyes and really try hard not to be noisy. But his breathing would quicken, and you'd be tempted to wedge your thumb between his lips to hear him more.

You'd keep pushing him, all while giving him gentle kisses. But just when it'd seem like he's really enjoying himself, you would stop. You'd tell him that if he wanted more, he'd have to ask for it.

He'd give you a cocky smile, but his head would be facing away a little, as if to show just how vulnerable he'd be. He'd taunt, in a soft and breathy voice,

"Why should I ask for more? Ya haven't given me anythin' worth askin' for."

But you'd know him well enough that you wouldn't fall for that.

So you'd play into it. You tell Jeremy you'd just stop in that case, and he'd get desperate really quick. His eyebrows would furrow as he'd lean closer to you, going,

"Hey, wait- uh- I was-" he'd take a second to swallow nervously, "no, I- I didn't mean that."

It'd bring a smile to your face how quickly he'd take it back.

"I don't-" he sighs, "I don't want you to stop. Can you.."

So you'd just keep playing innocent, insisting you don't know what he's asking for, all while running your hands all over his body and feeling him shiver under your touch.

"Oh, come on, don't make me say it.. you- I know you know what I'm gonna ask."

"I- what I mean is- ..look, you know I like- love. I love this, I love you, it- it's.."

He'd stumble over his words. And eventually you'd give him a taste of what he wants, but you don't let him get comfortable with that sense of relief. You give him a taste,

"Shit- yeah, yeah, like that.."

And let Jeremy enjoy it, this time actually wedging your thumb between his front teeth and earning a few soft moans from him,

..and then you'd stop.

You'd plan to do that over and over in attempt to try and pry it from him again, but it doesn't even take long for him to cave. This time he'd seem much more desperate.

"Oh, please, just- Can you just touch me more already?"

And he'd pause.

"Or- or ride me, or like- suck me off, or.."

And he'd say the next bit in the softest voice.

"..or fuck me."

So you'd kiss his face and hold his hips comfortingly, telling him about how you were hesitant since he didn't seem so sure in his answer. Why would someone who knows what they want stumble over their words so much?

"But-"

You'd talk over Jeremy, telling him that you don't wanna do anything to him he'd be uncomfortable with - to which he'd quickly interrupt you back a little too loudly, going,

"No, I want it! I want you to- do that stuff.. please?"

Just as you'd want, he'd become more pliable. So you'd kiss him slowly and tenderly, running your hands through his hair in order to reassure him, before moving to a comfortable postion. One where you'd be ready to do whichever thing you'd like to do with him first.

You'd ask if he meant like this, and you'd watch his face light up.

"Yeah! Uh- i just think-" he'd watch you in anticipation, "well, I mean, I just.. I want you. A lot."

Honestly you really wouldn't know how much you could tease him for, he would already be so adorable at your command and twitching at every slight touch. So you'd eventually relent, giving him exactly what he'd want, listening to the way his breath would hitch and how his eyes would watch you move as you gave it to him.

"Ohh, yeah, baby, like that.."

You'd tell Jeremy to look at you, and he'd follow suit, smiling a little from embarassment but his eyes quickly squeezing shut as breaths and curse words would fall from his agape lips.

He'd just whimper,

"Baby.. shit-"

"Fuck, mmh.."

"Like that, like that.."

You'd ask again if he likes it, and he wouldn't even go for words, just leaving you with a breathy,

"Uh-huh.."

But you wouldn't want to settle for an answer like that. You'd tell him to speak properly. Make a sentence for you to tell you that he likes it.

But just as Jeremy would take a breath to talk, you'd go even harder on him. All he'd be able to muster would be a whiny,

"Good- 's good.."

He'd move along to your rhythm, falling out of rhythm now and then only to stop moving for a moment so he could find it once more. He'd love that you'd move like you knew exactly what you're doing.

When he'd slowly get close, he'd be so easy, so pliable, to get him to say whatever you wanted. He'd futily try and suck in the drool threatening to spill out of his mouth, as he'd moan,

"More- more, please."

"I can't take it, don't stop, please don't stop please please-"

"Fuck, i just- I- it's so-"

But the closer he would get, the more words he would lose, and the more he would be saying two things.

One of which being a needy and breathy,

"Please-"

And another being your name.

But if you're feeling a little sadistic, you could stop right at the edge, so you could watch Jeremy gaze upon you desperately. You wouldn't even have to coax him into going,

"Don't stop- I- I'm so close-"

"Please, I want you so bad, please-"

"Baby, please.."

"I- I'll be good.."

And before you continue, you'd wanna have a last bit of fun with him first. You'd tell him to say something - something he was too embarassed to say before. Anything you wanted.

And the words would fall from his lips like it was second nature, not even having to stop and think about his embarrassment. He'd say it like it was the only phrase he knew.

And you'd kiss him, satisfied with his obedience, and then give it to him just like he'd asked.

#scout tf2 #tf2 #tf2 x reader #scout tf2 x reader

[faith--in-the-future]

Now you got me curious lol so which questions would you ask Louis if you were able to do an interview with him (on camera, not on paper)

ahh honestly so many ! and most importantly I would ASK HIM TO ELABORATE!! it drives me CRAZY when he says a hint of something bigger that he thinks and people LET IT DROP!! like UGH go deeper! ask him for examples etc etc and don't let him get away with vague answers lolol

in specific idk exactly bc I'd try to follow the flow of conversation and also it depends on what he's promoting at the time ! but guessing it was for an album I'd start with general questions about what was the "drive" for this album so like which concept(s) started it, is there something in particular you tried to communicate etc etc then asks about sounds, the production, specific choices he made etc (it's hard to do this based on an imaginary album lol)

more in general I'd want to ask him stuff like

- how come do you enjoy and support artists like the snuts or Sam fender or stone etc which like to make political and social commentary but you don't seem to want to make that kind of music yourself? (then elaborate based on his answer)

- love is such a central theme of your music and often it's portrayed in its most impervious and hurtful aspects, would you say that that comes from an abundance of experience in those aspects from you or is it more because that side just inspires you more ?

- what would you say are the most difficult parts of love/relationships for you? what have you encountered most that was hard for you?

- hope is another central theme of your music, do you feel like it can be hard to make hopeful songs without bordering on cliches or just empty optimism ? (and I'd reword the question also in reference to what seems to be his life motto too)

- in terms of hope, would you say that you were more cynical when you were younger ? and if so why do you think that is ?

- in your music and your life you seem to deeply appreciate and protect your friendships, but there's also a lot of longing for a partner in your music, do you think that friendships alone could be enough for you or are you someone who is happiest when they're with their significant other too? ( if he says the second option ) and what specifically do you find in a partner that other forms of relationships don't give you?

- your music is at times referring or hinting at sex, often with very effective and imo interesting metaphors and symbolism, but I wanted to ask is it a deliberate choice for you to be more symbolism rather than explicit on this topic?

- as a woman I have often felt objectified or sexualized by male singers and directors etc so I am always grateful that with your music there never are contents that make me or , from what I've heard, any of your female identifying fans feel that way, is that also something that u consciously decide to do or is it just subconsciously part of your work bc that's how you operate in life in general?

- speaking of these topics, you have said in the past that when you make music you take into consideration what that music will leave to the listeners, for example you try to leave them with hope and resilience rather than despair, do you ever feel like this ideal limits you while making music? like for example you'd write something but then discard it bc in your opinion it's not something that you'd want the listeners to be left with after listening?

- if that answer is yes then what would be some examples of things you avoid bc of that reason?

and I'd have MANY MORE QUESTIONS honestly I could go on all day especially if I had a whole new album to base them on!

then I'd also ask questions about his opinions on other things like

- in your opinion what is the worst characteristic of today's approach to music making?

- what do you think is lacking most in today's music and that you'd hope to see in the future?

- do you think that music fans sometimes also have a wrong approach to music too?

then I'd ask like

- you always talk about your relationship with us fans and how much you treasure it but it is no secret that you've had issues with certain aspects of fandom too, how do you juggle with contrasting feelings? knowing that those behaviors you have issues with (rightfully so) might be coming from the same fans that you feel loved by at concerts?

- in your relationship with fans I know you get comfort by our closeness and our comradery but do you ever feel like those aspects of it might be a double edged sword sometimes? bc fans might feel like they're entitled to doing and knowing more things than what is actually appropriate?

I'll stop now bc it would be too long but ahh ... so much to know!!

#ask #anon #imaginary interview

[hopefull-mindset]

Hello. I had another question. Would you say the way the relationships/interactions are written between the characters in BSD would be considered queerbaiting?

Technically by definition I would personally say yes, however there's usually a negative connotation that comes with queerbaiting that's related to harming the queer community so I was wondering if you had a more nuanced approach to the topic.

Queerbait… ah my worst enemy of a term has struck again. Mind if I add the Queer Coding discussion into this as well? Because when I see one person denounce the idea of Queer Coding in BSD, another person goes “oh yeah, it’s actually Queerbait”. No offense, but nobody knows what they’re talking about with either term and I understand why. I have my hangups about how they've been used and the blur between them causing this confusion.

I didn’t even realize this was something people argued about because I didn’t think there was enough to argue queer intent anywhere. I’m generally used to vague queer representation getting these types of arguments, so I blanked out with confusion.

For those who don’t know, Queerbait is a term coined to refer to marketing strategies that use the “implied” queerness to market their content to an audience who are interested in that to view their content. Of course, they don’t actually follow through on that “promise” for the sake of their viewership not being disturbed. Maybe they'll put some hints in their little show, and then kill them off when the time is ripe.

That’s where most of its negative connotations come from: Taking advantage of a marginalized group’s need for representation to improve their ratings. People use this… very incorrectly, usually when someone is clearly using Queer Coding in their work and get accused of Queerbait when they don’t follow through with an explicit romantic relationship.

Queer Coding is when a creator writes subtextual hints into their writing that a character or relationship is meant to be read as gay to bypass censorship or stigma within the media they’re writing in. Usually with signals that a gay audience can catch onto or romantic references in plain sight. While technically not the greatest example since MDZS is a danmei, the Donghua wasn't exactly allowed to fully present their relationship for what it was. Surprisingly, they added a scene where a move of Wei Wuxian’s colored both his and Lan Wangji’s robes red to resemble Chinese wedding garments.

I only chose that example because I think it's a great representation of details in plain sight. But then there's the other way I've seen Queer Coding get used and that's in queer analysis where we read a narrative or character as gay because of their distinct traits or plotline that resonates with LGBTQ+ audiences. It gets confusing when people use it both ways, but fandom usually uses it the first way.

I'm a bit bitter when I talk about these two terms because of how often the overlap confuses audiences, and god knows how loosely Queer Coding gets used to describe some vague, homoerotic friendship while the other side starts accusing the author of Queerbait. Then you start questioning if the author was really trying to take advantage of the community, wanted to explore sexuality without commitment, or literally didn't realize what they wrote could be interpreted like that because of how it chooses to write intimacy. It gets messy FAST.

Ah, how do I say this… I get the outrage of not having explicit representation more often, but when Queerbait starts getting used to describing the writing itself rather than just the promotional marketing, it starts losing all meaning to me and becomes a scab on my back. It generalizes the intent of the writer and assumes them in this box of malicious motivations. Then there's the whole argument of whether or not real people can “queerbait”, which is also stupid to me.

The examples people bring up don't even hold up (starts using t.A.T.u in your examples for once because… wow) and a majority only apply this to fictional content because of the super-secret rule to Queerbait. Usually, it can't work because then that assumes the sexuality of the person in question and they fully well could just be non-disclosed queer who's exploring their sexuality, but then what makes the writer a problem? What's stopping you from confusing Queer Coding with Queerbait?? It's different when it's obvious that they're using the queer identity for a quick browny point, but Jesus.

The way fandom uses it is not in these really obvious moments, but in ambiguous writing. I don't understand any of this when we start straying into this territory and I'm trying not to get mad when I'm currently talking about this right now. I am already mad, I failed. Maybe it's just a personal feeling, but I really don't like this term for these reasons. It's useful, but kind sucks. I can go on forever about Queerbait and the misusage of it, and even the way I think its used currently is bullshit anyway, but I digress.

Right right, this is about Bungou Stray Dogs. As you could guess from my rant, I don't think Asagiri is queerbaiting us if you mean it in the “queerbait writing” crowd. So what about Studio Bones?

Bones, well… I mean it's really common for animation studios to draw official art like this and since Queerbait is more of a Western concept, this is understood as just fanservice I think. You can technically count this as Queerbait if you'd like, but you should always consider the fact of a different community always having a different relationship with queer concepts.

Studio Bones's official art of Soukoku is hilarious to me. There’s another one promoting some brand and they're at a fountain dating spot. At least these are not as bad as the official art for Mecha animes in the 2000s lololol.

Moving on, the argument for Queer Coding when it comes to Soukoku tends to rely on these arts. I don't recommend doing that because relying on side content that holds no purpose other than to rile up fans doesn't make a strong enough case. Subtext is the most important part to making a point, so if you can't even point in the direction of the main text, then…

Dazai and Chuuya is a bit bottom barrel of what can be considered Queer Coding. I like Soukoku as much as the next guy (maybe not in the same way) and think their relationship is incredibly fun, but one vaguely homoerotic scene in Dead Apple does not convince me anything of the idea they should be seen in a romantic context. Trust me, I've spent a long time back proofing my arguments as to why my long-term OTP should be understood as gay. Soukoku doesn't impress me in these lines of understanding.

I personally think the way some SKK fans approach their relationship from a purely romantic view and are entirely insistent on this one-note understanding of Dazai’s feelings for him ruins most conversation on the topic of Dazai, Chuuya, Age 15, and his inclusion in Stormbringer. They're very important to each other, but some need to step back to appreciate what they have in canon and then apply romance?

I have no idea why people talk as if Dazai joking around and saying “That's what makes me like you” really meant anything. Makes me doubt half the time if it's just people seeing the panel out of content and have never read the actual novel.

Fyodor and Nikolai shippers are like this too. They take the importance they have to one another (at least for Nikolai, idk what Fyodor thinks of him) and then inflate that into just romance. What they have isn't really Queer Coding, it's just fixation that is seen as romantic. They have their official art, but that doesn't mean much since it's anthology art.

Rimbaud and Verlaine hm… sometimes when an author depicts real people who were in a relationship, they avoid that detail by calling them “brotherly”. The relationship of the real authors shouldn't be pointed at as proof at all because the characters are not the people. I would not recommend romanticizing their relationship either since it was um, I don't think chaotic cuts it. The age gap was disastrous, Rimbaud moved in with him and his wife at some point (obviously making the marriage worse), one of them got slapped with a fish, Verlaine tried shooting Rimbaud, etc.

So me saying that there was no Queer Coding shouldn't mean you can't see them as queer, I just mean there's no proof of Asagiri having that intention. That is all. I think Verlaine and Rimbaud had something going on, but that's purely from my own amusement and appeal.

That's my take on that I guess? I don't see it either way. It takes a lot for me to believe there was an intention to write them a certain way. Even if you asked me, “Do you think Akechi and the protagonist from Persona 5 are meant to be gay?” I'd giggle and consider it from what the p5 royal content was like, but I'd tell you no, unfortunately.

#bsd #bungou stray dogs #dazai osamu #bsd meta #chuuya nakahara

[dropthedemiurge]

Be My Favorite Finale Timeline [EP.10-12] How Pisaeng and Kawi change until they become equal

I honestly have no idea why I spent so much time on this, but the discussion with @rocketturtle4 got me thinking and, well, I like to consume my media scientifically, so I made a graph of my interpretation of the final jump xD

Somehow, I believe there wasn't really any 'different' alternate timeline this time because the changes to Kawi and Pisaeng's lives were minimal, so it can be a slightly different AU but to simplify, I'll assume it's one timeline because it makes a lot of sense. What's fascinating to me is not following their where-being (or when-being) but the changes in the characters mindsets.

[please open it to study, i couldn't make it more vertical, unfortunately]

I was talking about possible reasons why Kawi suddenly seemed to switch into such wise and calm demeanor during their repeated date, and I've heard of behavior patterns of Child, Parent, Adult modes.

Disclaimer: we studied it in uni very briefly cuz i'm actually STEM major but that description of mindsets opened my eyes and explained a lot to me so i'm using it, you can interpret it's probably with your own life experience; also terminology is probably not official, i'm describing it with my words and not scientific articles

So let me tell you my thoughts!

Phase [1]

Kawi and Pisaeng aren't on the equal footing even if they started to date. Kawi is into his "child mode": he's anxious and even if he's brave at times without alcohol, he's getting more anxious about being with Pisaeng due to all pressuring flirting (and Max's comments). His fears and hesitation are valid but he is protesting and running away a lot, sometimes being unnecessarily harsh and self-centered.

Pisaeng in his "parent mode" has to coax him, reassure him and sometimes manipulate to get them where he wants them, adding more not-subtle hints and more pressure onto Kawi.

Phase [2]

The date doesn't go well because they are not communicating and the power/control imbalance is too strong. It's not enough to get them to break up, of course, but it's not perfect life.

But wait – then why had the series immediately jumped to such a sweet intimate scene without any communication? Did we miss something? Why Kawi seemed to be hesitantly ready to challenge himself now when he just flatly refused to go on a scary ride with Pisaeng? First night shouldn't work when two people are on very different levels of comfort and confidence, so many viewers were worried and put off by this, me included. [especially if you consider Kawi was so heavily ace-coded throughout the show, it felt really wrong to force him to go through this in his alleged state of mind]

[now I completely recontextualized these Kawi's brave little nods, anxious blinking and heavy breathing, thanks to time-travelling hooray]

But! In EP.12 we get an explanation – Kawi actually lived the day twice (vaguely conscious of that) and experienced something very unusual that flipped his mindset – Pisaeng in distress. Kawi saw very upset and sad, scared and not confident Pisaeng in "child mode" and... immediately switched to his "parent mode" instead. (as someone who experienced this, I can tell that this switch can happen really fast and work really effective and it's not unbelievable).

Kawi is now the one reassuring Pisaeng – as someone who lived longer, as someone who already time-traveled and learned a lesson or two from time wizard and his own countless mistakes. Knowing that he and Pisaeng lived many happy years and they both don't want to change anything, left only one thought: well, then let's just be brave for each other, hold hands and face the future together, no matter what it is. I'll be strong for you when you aren't, and vice versa.

Phase [3]

Finally communicating with Pisaeng and seeing his vulnerable side, being able to provide comfort for him and gaining much-needed control, Kawi is reaching his ultimate bravery and peace in "adult mode".

It is leading him to overcome his last fears (even if taking "high adrenaline rides for adults" doesn't make him feel great anyway like he predicted, it makes Pisaeng happy so he'll do it, and they met each other in the middle instead, therefore the metaphor is complete). Kawi lives many years very content and zen-like, speaking wisdom because he's satisfied with his not-grand-not-miserable life. He also knows a bit about his future and getting extremely sick (he probably prepared that "i know what you have done!" teasing long beforehand xD) and just patiently lives his happy life, enjoying every moment in the present.

Original!Pisaeng, however, is still in his "parent mode", but since Kawi is meeting him now with more strength and confidence, they are able to move forward from disaster dates and live for years in good relationship, making many sweet domestic memories.

But it's time for Pisaeng's self-journey!

Phase [4]

Years in the future, Pisaeng is seeing Kawi's potential for stardom and celebrity fame, and he is thinking their queer relationship is bad for Kawi's life, that he's holding him back. Being "parent" all this time, he still feels responsible for Kawi. He doesn't believe that Kawi actually experienced fame in another life and doesn't want it anymore. Pisaeng thinks he doesn't improve Kawi's life. Not being able to pinpoint his fears or get answers that would satisfy him out of nonchalant enlightened Kawi, Pisaeng is slipping more into "child mode".

And when Kawi gets extremely sick, Pisaeng is hit with distressing realization that Kawi legally has no family and he's powerless to help him or do anything. All the more reasons that Kawi shouldn't have been staying in relationship with Pisaeng. Maybe they should've broken up in the past (which he actually suggest when going back). Eventually, Pisaeng is unsure, scared and in need of advice, like a child.

Phase [5]

It's only when he's experienced travelling to the past [Phase [2]], he actually believes Kawi. And Kawi insists that he would never change anything even if he knew he could die. He claims Pisaeng is the right person for him, and there's no room for any but what if? – Kawi has experienced many versions of his life, and he knows what he's talking about. Parenting reassurance of Kawi finally gives Pisaeng the peace of mind and his confidence back. [also something something hand offering-hand rejection-hand reaching-hand holding leitmotiv throughout phase 2 and phase 5]

At the happier and more peaceful version of their date, Kawi and Pisaeng already are two equal "adults" stuck in a weird little dot of a time-loop — but it is the exact moment that would define their whole life together.

Now they have similar timey-wimey experiences, mutual understanding and the same level of love, communication and bravery to face the future. That's where they definitely end up during the Time-Travelling point of Pearmai's wedding, after Pisaeng returns to the future and meets Kawi as equal.

With their lovely found family, many happy memories, bright future, both Kawi and Pisaeng are being confident and content with their lives.

Time Wizard Uncle's job is done here, for sure.

#somebody please make a comparison post of Kawi from the beginning of the story and its end #cuz that character development IS MASSIVE :D #be my favorite #be my favorite the series #be my favorite meta #bmf #dropthemeta #be my favourite #phew that was a long post but uuuh i dreamed the scheme before sleep yesterday and i needed to make it happen #pisaeng x kawi #bmf pisaeng #bmf kawi #thai bl #thai drama

[queerxqueen]

I refuse to believe that they’ll just drop the will/mike/el love triangle development in s5 and have will get over mike as if nothing happened in s4 or give mileven something new to argue about then resolve and get back together again or whatever, because of how vague and incomplete the ending was. like if mikes confession was truly meant to solidify mileven, why didn’t they have a scene of mike and el communicating/showing affection to each other afterwards in the cabin to conclude the arc? why have a moment with mike and will instead, and even specifically have mike say that they haven’t spoken much since? why the couple pairings with mike and will together & el by herself in the ending scene, which is a scene meant to hint at whats to come in s5 since it also shows the dying flowers and a view of the disaster in hawkins? when el was reviving max, why show flashbacks of max telling her she doesn’t need boys? plus, the duffers are shown to be capable of writing good relationships like lumax, so why would they suddenly fail with mileven esp when its like the no.1 main char ship? (unless mileven isn’t meant to work out *cough*)

But then again, at this point who knows what the duffers are thinking lol, s5 is 2 years away so we can only guess :”) aaargh I desperately need to see them talk abt it in an interview

agreed on alllll of the above and sharing without further comment <3 thank you anon!

#byler #stranger things #stranger things 4 #anon