SYNOPSIS: Your cycle is ruining your mood, and what better thing to do than get a free massage.
CONTENT/WARNINGS: MDNI/18+. NSFW. Suggestive content. Titty massage. Slight daddy kink. Established relationship. Joel being a little bastard. Ambiguous age gap (Joel is in his 50s, reader is in their 20s). Mentions of menstrual cycle and female characteristics about the chest. Banter and teasing. No use of y/n.
WC: 1.2k
A/N: Alright, I'm kinda on a Joel Miller streak and I was just thinking about getting my tiddies rubbed by a man with strong & rough hands and this happened. Don't look at me like that okay, this is self indulgent and I just had to alright. Hopefully this is relatable for some of y'all lol. Shout out to everyone who has to deal with periods, you are stronger than the marines. Anyways, likes, comments, and reblogs are greatly appreciated! Dividers by @saradika-graphics.
➣ TLOU was created by a zionist and is based off of the Israeli occupation of Palestine. Please refer to this link to learn how you can help the Palestinian people.
NAVIGATION | MASTERLIST | AO3
Another month. Another week of unruly irritation, mood swings, and uncomfortable reactions to anything that breathed too hard or moved too fast. In the hecticness that was your current reality, dealing with the devil’s wrath was supposed to be something that slipped past your mind. Yet, in the efforts of your survival, having a menstrual cycle still took you off guard every time it came punching through your gut.
Tossing and turning in bed, you tried to get in the best position to ease your cramps by curling up in a fetal position. You thought it would make things better, but instead, the discomfort you felt all over your body pissed you off even more. A frustrated grumble filled the bedroom, flinging the sheets away and furrowing your eyebrows at the lack of relief.
Where the fuck is he?
Throwing on a pair of slippers you luckily claimed on a supply run, you shuffled down the creaky stairs of your home and wandered about until you reached the living room. Joel was hunched over his seat on the couch, currently messing with his guitar strings, aware of your presence the moment you hit the base of the stairway.
“Somethin’ wrong, sweetheart?” He questioned you as he took in your features and noticed your pout. You were upset; that was obvious when he found you in bed earlier today instead of somewhere else in the house. Simply kissing your forehead and letting you rest as best as he could, he expected you to come down to talk to him eventually when you had the energy to do so.
Joel didn’t say anything as you came closer to him without uttering a word, slipping your legs over his thick thighs and pressing your face into the curve of his neck. He put his guitar to the side and wrapped his strong arms around your waist, hands instinctively digging into your lower back where you felt the most sore. He could tell from the way you clung to him that it was that time of the month, already having gotten used to your changes in demeanor to see the signs.
“Uncomfortable?” Joel asked again, trying to get a better read on your emotions, but he only received an annoyed grunt in response. “Guess we’re just gonna sit here then.”
He ran his fingers up and down your spine, trying his best to lessen the strain you felt. He could snag some herbs to make you tea later if you were in the mood for it, but right now, a massage is what you could handle. His touch made you sigh with alleviation, focusing on the pressure points along your shoulder and backbone. Even with his attempts, the front of your body continued to ache.
“My boobs are fucking killing me.” You declared out loud, a deep rumble of a chuckle escaping from the back of his throat.
“You need me to massage them?” Joel offered, and his intention of doing that was purely to make you feel better. Though, you couldn’t ignore the slight flutter in your belly at the idea of having his hands elsewhere.
Giving him a nod, you sat straighter on his lap, holding his gaze as he slipped his hands underneath the flannel you wore and made a beeline for your chest. Joel didn’t flinch at the fact that you weren’t wearing a bra, being told once or twice how freeing it was not to have to deal with the constant friction of clothes against your heated skin.
He palmed both of your breasts and squeezed, his grip just strong enough to calm the throbbing of the swelling from your change in hormones. Your eyes closed as you focused on his touch, allowing Joel to do whatever he wanted with you, what he knew best.
“Feelin’ better?” You heard him ask, humming out in reply. He grinned at your reaction, the hum sounding close to a purr as he pawed at your chest.
Taking his hands out from underneath your—his shirt, you whined, a smirk tugging at the corners of Joel’s lips. Lifting the top of the flannel to rest on your collarbone, his attention went back to your breasts, looking at them with a mix of desire and affectionate pity.
“Poor baby. Hormones got my girl all cranky and upset.” He said, placing a soft kiss on the top of each breast before handling your body once more. You don’t know whether or not he was deliberately teasing you when you were the most vulnerable, but just hearing his voice was doing wonders to soothe your nerves.
You’ve always been fascinated with Joel’s hands since you met him, watching how he’d hold the handle of his gun or insert ammo into the magazine before reloading. His palms were rough, and his fingers were rougher, representing a man who’s lived a long life, who’s done unspeakable things to survive and get to this point. To most, they’d dislike the feeling of having so much of a contrast, but to you, the difference of his skin against yours was almost euphoric.
Joel squeezed with more purpose, focusing on tightening his grasp along the sides where the pain was the most prominent. One harsh thumb came to stroke at your sensitive nipple in gentle circles, pulling a breathless moan from between your lips. The smile on his face widened when his ears picked up the sound, moving to do a combination of deliberate squeezes and circles on the exposed nubs.
The warmth of his touch morphed into something else, need coiling in your stomach and clawing up your throat. As discretely as you could, your hips shifted further into his, craving much more than what he was giving you. Joel couldn’t help himself and brought you closer to him, grinding his hips up into yours. That got your attention, looking into his hazel eyes to find his pupils narrowly dilated.
“If you need me to rub somethin’ else, I can.” Despite the years worn on his face, he still had a certain boyish charm that jerked at your heartstrings when he flirted with you. Or, maybe it was just his southern gentleman persona, ever so willing to tend to your needs no matter what they may be.
“You’re annoying.” You mumbled to him, stubbornly refusing to outright beg for his affection, regardless of how badly you craved it.
“And you’re moody.” Joel kissed you tenderly, drawing away and snickering when you leaned forward to chase his lips for another.
“Let daddy make you feel good. Alright, darlin’?” You nodded dumbly at the proposition of getting something more than your tits massaged.
His eyes flashed with lust, making quick work to peel off the flannel and toss it to the ground. Already growing hard at the thought of having his way with you, he tilted towards you, kissing the column of your neck and letting his beard tickle your skin. You released a shaky exhale, fingers running through his graying hair and tipping your head back to grant him more access to your skin.
Hi Mae!! I keep rereading the overprotective poly marauders fic I love it sm 🫶 can I please request another one it can tie into casual dominance marauders if you want I don’t mind I just can’t get them off my mind. Thanks babe!!
Hi lovely!! So this went a bit off the rails, I had different intentions for it at first but then somehow it became very serious and the boys not so much overprotective as reasonably upset....all in all, I'm not super happy with it but I didn't want to throw it out, I'd be happy to write another overprotective one for you if you'd like!
cw: sexual assault
poly!marauders x fem!reader ♡ 1.5k words
You walk out of your office feeling odd and off-kilter. Your mind seems addled, unable to complete one thought before jumping to the next, and something prickles just underneath your skin that feels like anger and shame and also like panic.
Your boyfriends are waiting for you, idling at the curb. You’re supposed to go straight from here to the cinema, and you tell yourself you’ll feel better afterwards. Even if not, you have until Monday before you have to deal with this, if you deal with it at all. You may not. You’re not sure. You can’t think straight.
“Hey, angel,” James says as you get in, and it’s immediately obvious your upset has already been noticed. Probably as soon as you walked outside, your boyfriends observing you through the car windows. Remus, in the driver’s seat, and Sirius, sitting beside you in the back, are both charily silent. “How was work?”
“It was fine,” you reply. Your voice sounds off even to your own ears, but no one comments as Remus puts the car in drive.
“Ready for the weekend?” James imbues his voice with a light sort of commiseration. You try to smile for him.
No one is more surprised than you when a sob chokes you instead. You hide your face in your hands, tears already leaking out from between your lashes.
“God, sorry.”
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Sirius asks, unbuckling his seatbelt and reaching for you. Remus pulls into a parking spot just by the exit and shuts off the engine, turning around in his seat. “Baby.” Sirius wraps his arm around your shaking shoulders, squeezing tight. He sounds anxious. “Did something happen?”
The worst of your crying passes like a summer storm, over as quickly as it started. Your emotions gone haywire. You lean into Sirius, and he clicks the buckle on your seatbelt for you, pulling you the rest of the way.
“You’re scaring me,” he murmurs, pressing a quick kiss to your hairline. “Tell us why you’re upset, angel, please.”
“I think,” you mumble, face and eyes burning, “my boss grabbed my butt.”
You say it quieter than a whisper, but you know they’ve all heard. The silence that follows is so complete you could hear a pin drop.
“What?” James asks. His throat sounds dry.
You hear Remus sigh. “Oh, sweetheart.” The vinyl of his seat squeaks as he shifts. “When did this happen?”
“Just now,” you answer.
“Right.” Sirius’ arms had gone tense around you, but now they fall away completely. He moves for his door. “I’ll be back.”
“Don’t,” you plead. You worry he will anyway, but Remus locks the doors from the front seat.
Sirius cuts a glare his way, truly scary with the way wrath seems to gleam in his gray irises. He unlocks his door manually, and Remus locks it again.
“We can’t be rash,” he says, his own tone sharper than you think is intended for anyone in the car. “We have to think this through.”
“What’s there to think about?” Sirius snaps. James reaches behind his seat, taking your hand and rubbing comfortingly. “He’s just inside!”
“You think I don’t want to go in there too?” Remus gives him a look that’s a short fall from incredulous. “But if we have to call the police, it won’t help if you’ve already had a go at him.”
Your head spins. You hadn’t even thought of calling the police. You hadn’t really gotten past going to the cinema.
“What do you mean, you think he grabbed you, sweetheart?” James' voice is pointedly kinder than the others, and Remus takes a deep breath, calming himself.
“I don’t know, I just—I feel like I can’t be sure—”
“That’s alright.” Remus' voice is slower now. Soothing. “Why don’t you tell us how it happened?”
“I, um.” You swallow. James strokes the back of your hand with his thumb. “I was looking at something on his computer, because he said he wasn’t getting my emails and I thought they might be going to his spam. He was sitting behind me in his chair, and we were talking and his hand, like, squeezed—” your brain tries to shake off the memory, and you shudder along with it “—and then he just kept talking like nothing happened. It was so fast I’m not sure it even did--”
“Baby.”
You don’t realize you’re tripping over your words until Sirius’ voice cuts through them. You look at him, and his eyes are already on yours, fierce but solid.
“Did you feel him touch you?” he asks.
You rub your lips together. “Yeah,” you murmur.
Your boyfriend’s expression pinches, but his gaze is steady. “Then he did. Trust yourself. You know what happened.”
This provokes another wave of tears, less tempestuous than the first but somehow more painful. You wouldn't have expected any one of your boyfriends to blame you, not if you’d thought about it, but you haven’t had time to think yet and the relief that they’re so wholly on your side makes your heart feel cracked open.
“Dove, I’m so sorry,” Remus says. He’s frowning, a well-worn line etched between his brows. You hate to put it there. “What do you want to do? Do you know if you can contact HR?”
“I don’t know,” you admit, pliable to Sirius’ ministrations as he tucks you securely under one arm and uses the other to thumb at your salty cheeks. “I feel a bit silly. It was a small thing, I don’t think it’s worth a bunch of fuss.”
“It’s not a small thing,” says James, uncharacteristically severe. “It’s a big thing—a really fucked up thing, that he did—and it’s worth a lot of fuss. A lot.” He leans around his seatback, pressing a firm kiss to your hand. “It’s just a matter of how much fuss you’re willing to go through with, sweetheart. It’s up to you. We can go through HR, we can go to the police. There’s still the option of just going in there and roughing him up to be sure it doesn’t happen again.” He smiles wryly. It looks like it takes effort. “I’m very game for that option. We know Sirius is ready.”
Sirius makes an affirming humph sound against the side of your head. You try to smile back at James.
“I think maybe…HR?” Your voice is tentative. “I have a friend, Marcella, who I think would be nice about it.” You realize as it comes out of your mouth what a low bar that is, but that’s the reality of your situation.
“Do you know if she’s still here?” Remus asks.
You feel your brow wrinkle. “I think so…”
Remus unlocks the doors, and James gets out. You barely manage to squeak out a “Wait” before the door shuts behind him.
You turn to Remus. “Where’s he going?”
“To find Marcella,” he says. “It’s better that they know when it’s just happened, dovey, but you don’t have to deal with it right now. That’s why James is going instead.”
You nod. It makes sense, even if the reality of it all makes tears press at your throat again.
“My sweet girl.” Sirius holds you tight, mashing a kiss into the side of your head. “I’m so sorry this happened, baby. I’m sorry we weren’t there to protect you.”
“Don’t be sorry,” you murmur, turning in his arms to hug him properly. He seems pleased with this development, and squeezes you ferociously. “You can’t always be with me. And it’s not your responsibility.”
“Careful what you say.” Sirius seems to muster up some humor, a teasing edge to his tone. “I’ll get us one of those big shirts so the four of us can fit in it together, and then you’ll never be rid of us.”
“It’s our job to look after you,” says Remus, firm but kind. “It’s true we can’t be with you all of the time, but I’m glad you felt comfortable telling us this. Thank you, sweetheart.”
You’re about to dismiss his thanks when James gets back in the car, this time in the back seat instead of the front.
“Did you see him?” Sirius asks immediately, scooching the both of you over to make room.
“No, he must’ve left right after her.” James looks unhappy, but his touch is gentle as always as he takes your waist in both hands, easing you off of Sirius’ lap and into the seat between them. Sirius sighs but doesn’t complain, likely knowing he’s had more than his fair share of your comfort.
“Marcella was nice, though,” James says. “She arranged for you to have the morning off on Monday, and she’ll call you then to hear from you what happened. We can be with you, if you like.”
“Monday.” You blow out a slow breath, though it doesn’t do much to keep your throat from contracting in panic. “Okay, that sounds good. Thank you.”
“No worries, angel.” James rubs your thigh, watching you carefully. “You doing okay?”
“Yeah, sorry.” Your voice squeaks, and you cover your eyes with a hand. Sirius whines and kisses your shoulder. You try to laugh, but it comes out wet. “I think this might just keep happening for a while.”
“Oh, honey, it’s okay,” Remus coos, reaching out a hand to set on the top of your head. He scratches at your scalp with his fingernails the way he knows you like. “It makes sense to be upset. We’ll get you through this, alright? Let us look after you for a bit.”
"you can pretend all you want, i can see the fucking mess you’re making of yourself.“ with teacher!au would be sooo hot😋
hi, my love!! thanks for requesting this, I had fun trying to work out what to do for this one. hope you enjoy!! 18+ only please, mdni!!
content warnings; arguing (with Jamie lol), fingering, joint fingering swearing, use of a mirror, and light spit play.
word count; 2.4k ish!
p.s, I'm quite rusty with writing, so I'm really sorry if this sucks!!! this has been proofread, but I'm so bad at seeing errors so sorry if there's loads lol <3
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“Oh fuck off Jamie, that’s not what we agreed and you know it.” Matty huffs down the phone. you hear Jamie raise his voice on the other side even from across the room, so you know something really fucked him off, and he clearly blames Matty.
Matty seems just as pissed off with him, rolling his eyes and pacing at the end of the bed as he speaks, “Don't talk to me like I'm a child. Jesus Christ. Just- okay- I'm hanging up now. No, I don't care, Jamie! It's not my fucking fault you cant organise shit!” every word exchanged between them is getting gradually louder, and Matty’s hands start moving wildly as red hot words erupt from him.
You sit against the headboard and watch Matty get more and more irate with every second, and you can't deny it's making you feel something. Maybe it's because he's generally a calm huy, despite what people may think. Or, calm at home anyway. Not so calm when he's screaming about fascist governments on stage. The boys always joked that fatherhood mellowed him out, and from the stories you heard, that sounds about right.
But seeing him growing angrier by the second makes your skin tingle, that same electricity you feel when he’s on top of you whispering filthy demands into your ear. Suddenly, the fabric of your pyjamas feels scratchy against your skin, begging to be slid off and thrown onto the bed beside you. Without thinking, your hand slides under your top, rubbing against the overheated skin of your stomach as your pinky finger dips below the hem of your shorts gradually.
“What a twat,” Matty starts to rant as he marches over to you, staring down at his phone with a frown on his face. “He’s annoyed at ME just because he can't organise anything! I told him I couldn't do next weekend and still-” Matty stops dead in his tracks when he finally reaches you, his eyes tracing over your face and studying you suspiciously.
“You alright love? Your cheeks are all red,” he says worriedly, his hand coming up to feel your forehead. You can't help but lean into his touch. The feeling of his skin on your was charged with something, making the flush covering your skin darken immediately.
It's then that Matty realises why your cheeks are a pretty shade of ruby woo and why your once calm eyes are black with an emotion he didn't immediately recognise. You want him. Something about seeing him shouting down the phone made you horny. He couldn't help but smirk at the realisation, already forming a plan in his head as he slid into bed next to you.
Instinctively, you move towards him, trying to feel the warmth of his body against yours. But before you can throw your leg over his, Matty guides you between his legs, facing you towards the end of the bed and pressing his chest against your back. His hands immediately start moving over your body, massaging your arms and shoulders before moving further down slowly.
He pulls up the hem of your shirt slightly, only showing a few inches of skin, but it's enough to make you gasp, leaning into his touch and sighing blissfully. Closing your eyes as his fingers trace the soft skin of your abdomen. One of his fingers dips below the hem of your shorts ever-so-slightly, so quickly and delicately you would've missed it if you weren't so turned on you wanted to scream.
His fingers stay there, though, just teasing and dipping below the elastic until you open your eyes again and see his staring into yours in the mirrored wardrobe doors that sit at the end of your bed. He nods slowly, almost questioningly. He wants to know if he can take your shorts off if he can see you.
You move so slightly that no one else would see it, but your soft nod combined with your whispered, “yes.” is all Matty needs to slide the fabric over your hips as you lift them, smiling softly as you feel the fabric move down your legs and off your skin.
Your thighs part without you thinking, staring at Matty as you spread your legs. His eyes hold yours for a few seconds, but he can't keep them there for any more time than that. Instead, they drop to between your legs. Suddenly, the whole mess with Jamie melted away from his mind and you feel him stifle a groan at the sight of your wet core, his hands instinctively moving to your thighs as soon as he sees you. The intense need to touch you overpowering any thoughts he could have, every once replaced with your name on a loop.
“What got you this wet, baby? Tell me.” Matty whispers in your ear, his soft voice cascading down your neck, goosebumps rising in its wake. Every brush of his digits over your skin was torturous, fingertips dipping between your legs and hovering above where you needed him most. Instead, they move to the soft skin of your inner thighs, leaving featherlight touches that make you whine.
You throw your head back against his shoulder, begging him to touch you properly with soft cries as you buck your hips, desperately needing to feel his fingers inside you. You swear the air around his fingers is thick, and every time he edges closer to your clit, your skin heats up in anticipation. But that same cold feeling overtakes you when he slides his hand away from your core again. You know he wants to hear you, he always does. Forcing words out feels impossible but when his hand teases your tender skin again, you manage to mumble needily.
“S’nothing. not important, please, Matty.” You whimper, closing your thighs around his hand to keep it trapped.
“you can pretend all you want, I can see the fucking mess you’re making of yourself,” Matty smirks as he slides his free hand over your arms, watching cockily as he sees goosebumps rise in the path of his touch.
“Fuck- s’just because of you. You look so good when you're angry. Please make me feel good.” The words pour out of you within seconds, not being able to think about anything other than Matty’s fingers inside of you.
“Good girl, so good telling me what got you this wet. You like seeing me like that, hmm?” Matty waits until you start nodding furiously, wanting to make you wait just a few more seconds, letting his ego swell even more.
“Don't worry baby, I'll make you feel good,” Matty smirks as he speaks, forcing apart your thighs by hooking his feet around your own, pulling them open and watching as your slick glows on your skin, covering your inner thighs. You think he’ll tease you again, but whatever god there might be finally has mercy on you, and his hands start moving to where you really need them.
Heat rushed to your head the second his fingers finally sunk inside you, feeling them crook and hit that spot that made your hips jump, chasing more of him. His other hand grips your jaw, fingertips digging into the soft skin of your cheeks and forcing your head forward, making you stare at your reflection in the mirror.
Rosy red cheeks and lust-filled eyes meet yours in the reflection, looking fucked out already. You stare at the mottled red flush creeping up your chest and neck, obscuring the freckles that cover your skin, your desperation clear from the vision in front of you.
Your pulse quickened as you looked back at Matty’s reflection, watching his tongue dart out and wet his lips. His eyes don't meet yours, instead staying focused on the image of his fingers inside your cunt, watching in awe as they skink into you, seeing your wetness spread further and further down his digits.
Focused eyes watch as his thumb meets your clit, and just for a second, they flick up to your face in the reflection, just to watch the way your jaw shakes and the whites of your eyes become the only thing visible, uncontrollably rolling into the back of your head.
His pace was slow and deliberate, playing you like one of his guitars, moving his fingers with the same precision he uses on stage. The haze in your head was making it impossible to focus, pleasure already pooling at the base of your spine from each purposeful curl of his fingers.
Calloused skin brushes over your bud, sending shocks of electricity up your spine, licking every nerve as it shoots inside you. You can't help but gasp at the feeling, sucking in air desperately. Butterflies hammer against your ribs as you look at Matty again, seeing the deep pools of his eyes filled with pure black, trained on your body, studying every move you make.
Matty twists his head, reluctantly pulling his eyes away from your core to press a kiss to your temple and whisper in your ear, stopping his movements and moving his thumb away from your bud as the words drip from his lips like honey, “Explain what I'm doing to you baby, tell me how I make you feel, hmm?”
You shake your head, wanting Matty to just keep on moving, but the seconds without him inside you drag on, and you lose the fight in your head. “You're- fuck. You’re torturing me.” You pout, wriggling your hips and trying to get Matty to move again, pleading to feel that same push and pull of his fingers.
“Oh s’that bad, is it? Why don't you show me what to do then baby, teach me a lesson, yeah?” Matty laughs teasingly as he removes his fingers from inside you, the wet noise of the loss permeating the room along with your pained whimper.
You nod needily, moving your hand down to meet Matty’s between your legs and puppet it, pushing his fingers deep inside you, one of your own sliding in with them, guiding his digits. You suck in a breath as you stretch to accommodate your finger along with his, joining Matty’s as they press further inside you before pulling out slowly, watching your arousal string between them.
“Faster” you whisper, keeping your eyes laser-focused between your legs, watching your nearly manicured nails gripping the skin of Matty’s hand and speeding up his movements. He listens immediately, and soon, that slow torturous pace is replaced by quick frantic pumping, your slick dripping down his wrist with each rock of his fingers. “Fuck, yeah. Just like that.” you pant, bucking your hips in time with each thrust of his hand.
“Rub your clit” Matty demands, clearly deciding your teaching moment was over, and he was back in charge. His pulse was racing under his skin as he stared in the mirror. Anticipation filled his body, his mind hazy as he forgets to breathe whilst watching your reflection. He studies the way your nipples harden under the flimsy fabric of your vest, watching your chest heave with every desperate breath. You slide your finger out from inside you, holding eye contact with Matty as you slide it up to your clit.
But your finger doesn't stop as he expected, instead, he watches with a dropped jaw as you bring it up your lips, tapping your fingertip on your bottom lip before pushing it inside your mouth, moaning wantonly as the taste of yourself fills your mouth. Matty mouths “fuck” in the mirror as he watches, keeping his eyes trained on you. He watches wonder as you swirl your tongue around your digit, studying the way your saliva strings from it as you pull your finger from your mouth, smirking at Matty with each move you make.
Just as your spit-soaked finger touches your clit, Matty's other hand grips your jaw and forces your face to meet his, pressing his mouth against yours and forcing his tongue in your mouth, chasing the taste of your release on your tongue. The feeling of his lips on yours as his fingers move with abandon inside you, and your finger rubbing your clit was too much for you, and within seconds you're cumming with a shout against Matty’s lips. Your whole body shakes as overwhelming pleasure rocks your body, waves of bliss radiating under your skin.
“Fuck!” you cry out, letting the intoxicating feeling of pleasure crash over you, your eyes glazing over as the seconds drag on, time melting with each rock of your hips. Your hand clutches Matty’s, your nails leaving crescent moon-shaped marks in his skin, trying to ground yourself with the feeling of his fingers still inside you.
Matty watches intently, a flushed look covering his face as his skin glistens from the thin layer of sweat that covers him. Seeing you fall apart because of him will never get boring, seeing everything leave your brain and be replaced with all-encompassing bliss was a sight he couldn't compare, nothing made ego fizzle up his spine like watching you completely at his mercy.
Once the waves subsided, your grip loosened, and Matty pulled his fingers from inside you. You whimper at the loss, but Matty gently shushes you, forcing you to open your eyes and make you watch him place his fingers inside his mouth, smirking around them as he sucks them clean, groaning at the taste of you. Weakly, you slap his arm with a giggle at his exaggerated moans before turning around to face him, matching his smirk and opening your mouth slowly.
Wordlessly, you and Matty have a conversation, his raised eyebrows asking if you're sure and your slow nod telling him you've never been more sure about anything. His eyes stare into yours as his mouth moves over you, guiding his hand to your jaw and cupping as he spits into your mouth, using his grip to force it closed and watch you swallow. His eyes follow your every move, studying the way your throat bobs and smirking when you open your mouth proudly, showing him your clean tongue.
“Dirty girl” he whispers, smiling at you with crinkled eyes, letting them trace your every feature as you grin back at him, giving him a peck on the lips and settling into his arms contently.
“Mmm, your dirty girl, though,” you respond quietly, smiling happily when you feel Matty press a kiss to your head, both of your bodies sinking into the bed below you and letting the warmth pull you under.
Okay, now just because I'm about to embark on an epic rant does NOT mean I think anything bad about you as a person, OP. It's just on this one teensie-weensie most minor of points, I happen to think you're 100% wrong. Just thought I'd clarify that, so no offense intended. Anyway, on with the show...
Nah, they did us SO dirty with Chloe. I hear your above argument a lot, and it WOULD be a fair point… if it wasn't for the fact that there are SO many clear signs this wasn't what was intended from the beginning that it makes your reasoning completely null and void. Chloe's 'arc' was the most blatant case of in-show character assassination I've ever had the displeasure of witnessing, and I'm about to explain why. Read on! (If you want to, that is.... no pressure).
They strung us along for at least three seasons with various hints about her 'traumatic past', her problems with her often absent mother (which Marinette didn't help by encouraging them to bond because 'they're both such awful people'), showed her genuinely apologizing to her victims, protecting Sabrina from akumatization and having times when she treated her as a real friend, sacrificing herself to save the day occasionally, hugging Miss Bustier in a moment of genuine emotion, telling Ladybug how 'useless' she felt in a teary rooftop encounter, saving lives both as a superhero and a civilian (check back if you don't believe me), giving Adrien a moving speech on his phone about how 'she'd always be there for him', sharing a really close bond with her father, telling her butler Jean it was time she started doing things for herself, loving Mr Cuddly, adoring Pollen… I could go on. Not the best person in the world, true.... but a promising start. Green shoots, and all that. Her name literally means that.
S4 simply forgot any of this happened, and literally pushed her burgeoning development off a cliff with Sisyphu's boulder tied to it's big toe. There was NO build-up, NO foreshadowing, NO precedent for Chloe suddenly becoming a one-dimensional total-sociopath irredeemable-monster AT ALL, they simply made her that way on a whim. They had her start acting like a complete psycho for the evilz, made her the most stupid person in the show BY FAR, severed ALL of her few close relationships, wrote AN ENTIRE FLASHBACK EPISODE in incrimate her newfound nastiness even more and 'punished' her by sending her off exiled on a plane in tears with her abusive mother to… what else? Get abused, of course. GREAT MESSAGE TO ALL THE VULNERABLE TEENAGE GIRLS OUT THERE. (I won't even get into how utterly useless and blandly boring her 'replacement' of a plot device Mary S... oops, I mean Zoe is).
And we're supposed to believe the former corrupt mayor Andre, the terrorist Gabriel Agreste and Thomas Astruc (you know him) are the GOOD guys here? Well, I'd like to tell you what I'd like to do to them… but for fear of censorship, I'd better withhold that particular information for now.
The upshot of it is… if Chloe had been bad from the beginning and terrible at the end, I'd have accepted it. Heck, if her so-called damnation arc was even halfway well written and gave us an accurate and compelling look at the moral descent a person who's capable of redemption could take to the light but ultimately chose to stay on the Dark Side, this would've been highly disappointing to me but fine from a storytelling perspective.
But they didn't give us anything like that, did they? It was just… 'pretend the last three seasons never happened, develop amnesia, hit yourself repeatedly on the head with a shovel… we don't care. Just accept this is the NEW Chloe without question despite past evidence, because you won't be getting any answers. Now let's go back to what we're REALLY here for… Marichat, Ladynoire, Adrinette and that other stupid ship name. SWOON!'
Thanks, but no thanks. Did I ever tell you how much I HATE this stupid show? Apologies if I didn't make that clear enough.
"Sirius. Why the hell did the door just disappear ?"
"Hum. That's actually a great question Moonshine."
In an attempt to flee from Filch, Sirius had led them to the Room of Requirement. It looked quite cosy, with a large, plushy couch and a warm fireplace. It would have been perfect if not for the empty wall where the door had been mere seconds before.
Remus sat on the couch with an annoyed huff. Great, now he was even more angry with him.
"Come on, Moons, look at the bright side. It's basically your dream place. There are books, even."
Sirius was rewarded with a blank stare for his efforts. He was starting to feel his nerves get to him.
"Will you at least tell me what I did ? You've been like this for weeks ! Whatever it is, I'll fix it, I promise. I can't bear it when you're angry with me, Moony. Please, I'm dying over here."
He had let himself fall at the other end of the couch at some point during his rant. Remus was looking at him with wide eyes, seemingly surprised. Like he wasn't the one avoiding him all the time.
"It's not- you didn't do anything. I'm not angry with you."
Sirius had the sudden urge to stomp and demand answers like a child. He loved Remus' mysteries, but sometimes it was so frustating.
"Then what ? I know there's something. I know you."
He got closer to Remus, who raised his knees against his chest with his arms wrapped around them, like a barrier. His eyes were frantically searching Sirius' face.
"I can't tell you. You're going to hate me." he hid his face against his knees.
Sirius got close enough to put his hands on Remus' cheeks and raise his head again.
"Yeah, right. Like you thought I was going to hate you when I discovered you were a werewolf or when you told me you were gay. Haven't you learn Moony ? There's nothing that could ever make me hate you."
He hoped his sincerity was clear. Remus was looking at him with his lips slightly parted and his eyes swimming in emotion. His cheeks wore a light pink tint and his skin was so, so soft under his fingers. Before Sirius could register it happening, he was so close he could count the other's freckles, their foreheads touching.
It seemed only right than the next thing he did was pressing his lips against Remus'. He didn't think about it long enough to convince himself it was a bad idea. He just did it, like it was the only thing that had to be done. When Remus kissed him back, slow and soft, Sirius was pretty sure it was.
It didn't last nearly long enough. When they parted, Remus quickly moved to sit normally on the couch, bringing Sirius with him so he could straddle his lap. Sirius blinked and looked at him with a lopsided smile.
"What is it then ?"
"I love you." he whispered.
Sirius brought his arms around his neck and pressed his smile against his ear.
"I love you too."
They kissed for a long time after this. What started soft and sweet quickly turned hungry and passionate. Sirius was in heaven. He could feel Remus' warmth everywhere. He wanted to stay there forever. How convenient that they couldn't leave anyway.
"Hum, Sirius ?" Remus left his mouth to kiss his neck. "The door is back."
"Oh. But we don't have to leave right now, do we ?" he asked with a wicked smile.
"I suppose we don't." he answered, bringing his lips back to his neck.
When they finally got out, after what felt simultaneously like two decades and two minutes - even though Sirius knew it was probably two hours - Remus asked him what he thought about when he led them to the Room.
"Just that I needed somewhere to talk to you. Not my fault the Room thinks the only way for you to stop being stubborn is to lock you somewhere." he said with a proud smile.
While I'm still thinking about it--and I might go into more detail about it later--what kills me about Journey to Babel is that Spock has clearly chosen to go No Contact with both of his parents. He's in the human equivalent of his 30s. He's the best first officer in Starfleet (McCoy himself said it in Operation: Annihilate!). Like, he's an adult, distinguished in his career, and has two friends he'd give his life for (can not overstate his relationship with McCoy, he was also chosen to go to Vulcan for Spock's marriage ceremony, there's the whole "a doctor is more important than a first officer" in The Cloud Minders, etc.). Spock has created a whole life in the 18 years that he stopped speaking to his father and in the 4 years he stopped speaking to his mother, but one mission--by sheer chance--brings them together on the same ship. Spock can no longer avoid them, and we, as the audience, get to see why Spock would turn his back on generations of tradition and Vulcan philosophy itself to join Starfleet. We get to watch Sarek calmly, unemotionally, and oh-so logically chide his adult son for not being Vulcan enough, the one point of shame that Spock lives with. And then Amanda jokes about Spock's sehlat, plays up his humanity to McCoy who is all too happy to hear of Spock's human side, again compounding that shame from another angle and for all to hear and see. True, Spock doesn't show it emotionally. He does know how to suppress his emotions, but it's hard to watch and see how Spock slowly withdraws deeper into himself and uses his job as a shield to avoid confronting and talking to his parents because his parents have never heard him or seen him for who he is.
Actually wait. As a quick addition: what gets me about this clip in particular is that Amanda is human. To her, this is a light-hearted anecdote, but she looks at Spock before telling it. Spock looks down. He does not nod his head or verbally say "yes," he looks down as if to say, "Please, don't." But she says it anyway. Like. If that isn't the encapsulation of all that is wrong with his relationship to his parents. (I could be wrong in my reading of what Spock looking down means, but the fact that he later clarifies that sehlats are not cute teddy bears reinforces the fact that Spock is upset about his mother speaking about his childhood.)
So, someone sent me an ask, and I was ready to answer, BUT I WAS STUPID AND MISSED THE ASK AAAAA
the question was about what I think about Near as a neurodivergent, and his stims etc.
Firstly I would like to say that I LOVE when people ask me these questions, I keep thinking about them for a long time
I research a lot about these things, but I want to make it clear that I don't know everything, so I could unintentionally offend someone, but I assure you that that is not my intention <:3
(most of my thoughts were based on a video that talks specifically about Nearby and psychology, I like being a nerd at that level)
1. Autism
I believe this little guy has autism because he canonically presents all 3 requirements for autism plus a few things that are common in the disorder
About stims, he twirls his hair when he's nervous or has some strong emotion, but I think he does that when he's thinking too. I also think he has "dinosaur hands" and is comfortable in that position.
He probably has some level of eating problems (not entirely linked to autism but anyway).
2. Savant syndrome
People with this syndrome tend to develop many things very quickly, such as learning a language or understanding complex things etc... at a very young age, but have a lot of difficulty in communication, which is something that I totally believe matches Near
I think it took him a long time to start speaking, like, having been non-verbal for most of his childhood, but knowing how to speak about 4 languages (including BSL, which he may have learned at Wammy's)
I don't know much about it so that's it
WEELL I also think he has depression, like, his life is really horrible
and because of this he tends not to take much care of himself, working more than he should and spending hours without eating or sleeping, and only maintains his hygiene because he hates the feeling of being dirty.
Well that's it guys, I'm not good at expressing what I think, but I did my best :)
Band of brothers headcannon ,somehow somebody told them u were cheating on them and they get super angry or depressed but then they discover it's not true, in a way or another.
An angsty request? Nonny, I'm not sure if you know this, but I live in angst and pain and prefer writing this sort of stuff haha! So keep sending in the angsty headcanon requests, because I'm SO down! Requests are open!
Cut for length, light spice in some, angst under the cut, picking on Webster at least once for no reason haha:
Dick Winters:
-It's not necessarily that someone told him that you were cheating as much as it was implied through subtext and he does NOT deal well with that at all.
-But he's not super vocal about it??? Like, he's the type of man who would rather just talk to you about things than let rumors lie in wait and spiral.
-It doesn't stop him from worrying about if he's done something wrong to push you away until you're able to finally talk.
-And when you do talk, there's this massive relief that you were just getting another job and talking with a superior about it—nothing malicious or mean of the sort.
-Please just reassure this man that he's the love of your life. He's a fairly secure man, but this was rough emotionally and he never accused you of anything but that doesn't mean that he wasn't worried for a second there.
-It definitely becomes a laughing point in your relationship later on.
Lewis Nixon:
-Listen, this man has NOT had good luck when it comes to women or relationships in his lifetime. So when you're a little busier than normal and out longer than normal, he can't help but spiral.
-He takes these fears to some of his friends (not Winters though, because that man would tell him to screw his head on straight haha), and they somehow get it in his head that you're cheating on him
-Cue the downward spiral of drinking and being depresso-expresso yet again
-So when you come home and you've been working extra hours to get a surprise for him—because all you wanted to do was afford a dog on your own wages rather than Lew's money—and he's all emotional and upset—it's a rough situation
-Arguments are had and feelings are hurt. So when he sobers up and realizes that you were just trying to do something sweet for him, he's hurrying to apologize in a big grand romantic gesture sort of a way.
-Moral of the story? Don't surprise him, he'll assume something else is going on or start some sort of conspiracy theory about it haha
Ronald Speirs:
-Someone starts the rumors maliciously because they had a crush/feelings for you and it gets around pretty quickly....and the thing about the entire situation is that he's unfazed?
-Like this is the man who people-watches and reads people really well. He's fairly certain that he'd know if you were cheating on him lol.
-That being said, when the rumors finally make their way over to YOU, you shut them down and go to talk to him.
-He's really patient and sweet about the entire thing—because of course he knows you weren't cheating on him, but you're apologizing because of the rumors and he's just wanting to be there for you because that's a rough reputation to have going around tbh.
-Speirs is so secure in the relationship and the way that you feel about him. If not for the declaration of love, then certainly for the way that you are screaming his name later that evening lol.
-Also definitely finds the root of the rumor and uses intimidation to make them back off—no more problems like that for you two ever again.
Buck Compton:
-He's shocked and baffled as to what he's hearing and he's going through everything in his mind trying to figure out where he went wrong. Has he upset you? Were you two not close? What happened anyway?
-He gets real quiet about things when he sees you next because he's trying to figure out how to express what he's feeling.
-And there's definitely some distance on his part and so when he finally comes to you and just asks about the entire thing, YOU'RE just as baffled as he is.
-So reassure him, give him cuddles, attention, verbal affirmation that he's the only man for you, and he'll be secure in no time at all
-But also, realize that it's now going to be a lingering fear of his that you'll leave him for someone else. So be on watch and on guard for any feelings like that re-emerging over time.
-Communication and showing love is going to be big in patching things up.
Carwood Lipton:
-Heart shattered and in disbelief the minute that he sees you hugging another man that he does not recognize.
-He doesn't necessarily want to confront you and have a nasty argument about it, but his jealousy is certainly spiking quite a bit. This leads to him pulling away from the relationship.
-And then the minute that you introduce him to your cousin who has been fighting down in the Pacific for the past few years?? It all clicks into place and he suddenly feels very silly.
-Shamefully admits this to you later when it's just you two alone. And he feels really bad that he even doubted your feelings and intentions.
-But tell him that he's the one, demand that he give you a family—all will be solved by morning haha
-It becomes a running joke in your family for years to come.
Joseph Liebgott:
-JEALOUS JEALOUS JEALOUS—he knows that you have lots of guy friends and that you get along well with HIS friends. But let's be honest, it's probably Webster who suggests that maybe you're a little TOO close to some of his friends.
-And so the ugly side of his jealousy rears it's head and he's getting all possessive and kind of controlling in some ways
-Confronting him is going to be the simplest and easiest route to handle this entire situation
-It's going to be a few arguments later that he realizes that he's really messed up by accusing you of sleeping with one of his friends. But he does come to you and genuinely apologize for his words.
-Yes, this is something you and said friend are going to hold over his head for the rest of your relationship lol.
-And yes, Webster may have gotten punched by you for planting the idea in sweet Joe's head.
Donald Malarkey:
-Listen, this man pays no mind to rumors. But when the rumors involve you and another man? He tends to pay attention. He doesn't believe what he's hearing at all.
-Definitely runs to talk to you immediately about the rumors and isn't sure what to make of your reaction—shocked, of course.
-Your reassurances calm him down and a cuddle session immediately will help him feel much better
-He's definitely going to bring you flowers the next time that he sees you out of guilt lol
-Tries to be more confident in the relationship after that because you promised him that he's the only man for you
-Also attempts to quell rumors with his friends because he's fiercely defensive over you and your honor.
Eugene Roe:
-Soft man here is in love with you to the point of self-destruction, okay?? So when he comes to see you in the medic tent and finds another man kissing you, he's immediately hurt and heart is shattered.
-What he doesn't know is that that was a patient who just kissed you and you had to literally slap the man to get him off of you. So Gene here is in his feels and upset about things.
-When you come to see him and he doesn't really want to talk, you're so confused and he gets really emotional about the entire thing. It's a whole messy argument of you trying to explain what happened.
-And then of course after he's had some time to process the entire thing, he feels just awful for not listening to you or understanding the situation
-He comes to you with a really sincere and soft apology, possibly some chocolate in hand to help his case, and tells you how much you mean to him
-Is it the first time he admits that he loves you? Absolutely. And this certainly leads to the best makeout session of your life haha.
Bill Guarnere:
-Throws hands the minute that someone tells him you're cheating on him. He doesn't believe the rumors for one freakin' minute.
-So when you have to patch him up after some injuries and you're demanding to know why and he angrily explains that it's about you, it's a whole mess.
-You're sitting there trying to explain that you would NEVER, and he KNOWS that so he's just mad that someone would spread the rumors anyway
-This just leads to the two of you being more annoying with PDA haha
-And having a really noisy session of sex where you're both just being so vocal about your love for one another
-Yes, everyone knows that this just strengthened your relationship.
Joe Toye:
-He hears it around the guys in the base—the thing is?? It's an old rumor about some guy that you had kissed BEFORE you were with Joe.
-He gets real quiet and sullen about the entire thing, almost a pouty behavior that leaves you with your head spinning because where is all of THIS behavior coming from??
-It takes a few days of this behavior before he's ready to talk about it and then you're attempting to explain that it's an old flame and that your feelings are solely for Joe now
-In fact, seducing him might just be the move because then he's super smug about the entire thing.
-He might even go and talk to the ex to see if HE has any feelings for you left. And yes, some intimidation might be in order to get him to leave the rumors alone because you and Joe are together now.
-You warn him not to act all pouty like that again though—it was NOT it for you two haha
George Luz:
-Bamboozled, shocked, dismayed, all five stages of grief—but mostly in disbelief
-He's immediately going to shade the hell out of whoever was spreading the rumor even BEFORE he goes to talk to you about the entire thing
-Super down on himself and joking about how he's messed up the entire relationship because clearly you're cheating—and GIRL, you better shut that down NOW
-Please just give him a grand gesture of love yourself and shade him a little bit for even thinking like that??
-Honestly, if you say you're down for marriage, problem solved and this man will never bring it up again—except for maybe in the speeches at the wedding lol
-Is convinced you're even more beautiful when you're shading him for being stupid and believing rumors haha
It's a thing I already knew but all your beautiful analysis really made obvious (to me) how much of a grudge holder vale is. That man is never letting it go he's gonna hold his grudges into his grave
you know, I do think this is an interesting issue, because I'm not sure this is true of all his grudges. just sticking here with the grudges he accumulated in his capacity as a competitor, rather than just his general approach to life or whatever... how you judge this will kinda depend on how you feel about the 'reconciliation' he's experienced with some of his rivals - and whether you read the whole thing as sincere or not. now, personally I reckon he still dislikes biaggi, but also you are allowed to just dislike people so I'll give him a pass for that. some of the others, I'm a little more convinced by the whole reconciliation schtick
let's get valentino's take:
interesting that he mentions those three together, isn't it? and like, he's still not messaging biaggi or inviting him to his home - "even with max" kind of tells you all you need to know - but the other two? they said some proper nasty things to each other over the years!! I mean, the casey rivalry, there's some remarks from both sides where quite frankly I think I would struggle just a touch to get over it
I don't know, obviously this could all be pr stuff, but I kind of feel like... y'know, why bother? it's 2022, you're retired, who gives a fuck? sure it's a good look to be all magnanimous, sure it can be a bit of a way of twisting in the knife to the guys left in the cold, but also, who would care if you don't play nice? I think especially with jorge, you surely don't need to do all that, inviting him to your home and dancing with him... (which, again, some of the spats those two had...) and with the casey rivalry, if there's one guy who's still hung up about what happened between the pair of them, it's obviously casey (speaking of blokes who can hold a grudge). maybe this is giving valentino too much credit, but personally I buy it's more or less sincere. there's nothing to really indicate he's still particularly bothered by any of their past disagreements - he's basically going for the 'all's fair in love and motorcycle racing' approach. he knows he was an asshole, he accepts they were assholes too, whatever, that's how these things work. he's generally a fan of drama in rivalries, unsurprisingly, and he was happy enough to contribute his fair share - but he does see it as fundamentally being part of the game
to point out the obvious, check out who he's left out: sete and marc. that's where he can't let go of the grudges... because it's not about the offence itself as much as it is about the betrayal. this is the thing with valentino, right, it's about what kind of bond you had with him. if you weren't his friend in the first place and then piss him off as a rival then, y'know, whatever. obviously he's going to be vicious in trying to get back at you, but also he's really not going to waste his time feeling too aggrieved by it. I mean, think about how all the bullshit between him and casey dropped off sharply post-2012... from valentino's end anyway. think about how jorge and valentino pretty quickly got on again whenever they weren't fighting for supremacy within yamaha. they weren't friends in the first place, then they were enemies for competitive reasons for a while there, then it's over and valentino is basically happy enough to call it bygones
but... if it's a certain kind of bond you had with him and then you wrong him... that little mental list of all his past grievances, all your past transgressions, that's where it comes in. that's where he ices you out. denies you any emotional warmth. ensures that any interaction going forward is conducted entirely on his terms. where even any public 'reconciliation' won't truly be sincere.... or, certainly he's not going to forget what happened. if something else happens... it's like you've always got the potential of triggering this lingering resentment, in a way, where all that past stuff is still primed and ready to be called upon. he certainly doesn't just let it go
or, as he puts it in his autobiography:
Biaggi and I never talk to each other. I mean, we've never had a real conversation, anything that's lasted more than the requisite time to insult each other or put each other down, in the nastiest way possible. In any case, I don't hate him. It's true, we've never been friends, but hatred is something different, and that's too serious a word to describe our relationship. Far too serious. No, we have a reciprocal antipathy. No doubt this is a result of what we do for a living and the fact that we both want to win every single time. And perhaps it's also a function of the fact that we have very different personalities and very different ways of seeing things. Still, I don't think this means we hate each other, as some journalists have written. I think I could feel hatred for someone, but only for someone far worse than anything Biaggi has done. For example, if I were betrayed by a friend, then, yes, I could hate him.
But Biaggi will never betray my friendship for the simple reason that we are not, and never have been, friends. Our relationship is very clear: we compete on the track - outside the track, each goes his own way. You could say we detest each other cordially.
... I mean. he said it, not me. and given this book was first published in '05... biaggi can't betray his friendship because they were never friends... I'm not saying he's thinking about sete, but it has to at least be a possibility, right? he's talking about one rivalry here and refusing to even mention the other... and the one he's refusing to mention is the one where he was friends with the other bloke. I don't know, maybe that's reading too much into it! and anyway, even if this passage wasn't really about sete, it's obviously still revealing. "detest each other cordially" is essentially what he was doing with casey and jorge (or from his point of view in any case, not entirely sure they'd agree with that). the grudge comes when he feels let down by you... and then, yes, he'll never let it go
of course, he's willing to set aside his grievances for a while if there's sufficient motivation for him to do so. in 2009, when he had so definitively won that rivalry with sete, why bother kicking up a fuss? in 2016, quite frankly it was just too much, and it was getting to the point where it was obviously hurting him too. on the one hand there was the media furore that had been going on non-stop since sepang, on the other hand it was also hurting his own approach to racing. there's reports from the time how visibly aggrieved he still was in the first few races of the season, and it took until they got back to europe for him to... y'know, have fun again. it's not sustainable to be walking around with a constant dark cloud over your head and broadcasting burning resentment towards your two main rivals. certainly not for someone like valentino - he needs to be having fun! the slight rapprochement needed to happen, in a way, because otherwise those years would have been even worse for everyone involved. but that doesn't actually translate to forgetting any of those grudges. this is about convenience more than anything else
goes to show, really... most of the time he doesn't take these things personally. I talked about it a bit in this post, how maybe it's also something that changed over time for him: the question of whether he was willing to develop these kinds of bonds in the first place with competitors... because he does possess a certain level of self-awareness in terms of what these kinds of rivalries are like and what they do to interpersonal relationships. ideally, you don't want to be hurt by a friend like that, right? better not to have that kind of emotional attachment with your competitors in the first place. how unfortunate it'd be if all those years after sete the circumstances aligned for him to see a competitor as something like a friend again... because, after all, those are the only people who could betray him. those are the only people where he thinks he could truly hate them
you guys ever think about how. how in the beginning of Milgram, Jackalope was like "you can vote however you want, you can vote someone innocent just because you think they're pretty. it doesn't matter." And despite how hard we (or atleast me, but i imagine most of us) try to vote objectively and not succumb to the bias he expects of us, we do. Our votes are all biased because fundamentally, law and sin itself is built off of emotion, which is the root of bias.
And thats what causes such a debate in the Milgram fandom over verdicts: bc even though we think we're thinking logically, we're not, we are biased. Our biases don't overlap, though, and thats why we can't agree with each other. And on top of that, we are rigid in our biases. We are stubborn, we refuse to see subjective things from other points of view, because we can't. Opinions are hard as fuck to change.
Hence why the Amane debate, despite infuriating me, is subsequently my favorite. Neither side is right or wrong, no matter how much I think I'm right or other ppl think they're right. Its subjective what age is too young to be held accountable for your crimes, its subjective whether or not you should be blamed for the abusive ideologies you were raised under. And I could rant all day about why I believe one thing or the other, and I can get really mad at people who disagree, but its subjective. Just as the sole fact that Amane's cult teaching are bad is also subjective. Murder being bad is subjective.
People trying to change the prisoners' opinions using their verdicts is biased just as voting them based on our own opinions is also biased. We are trying to force our own beliefs and opinions on prisoners who have different ideas of whats right and wrong.
Es cannot see any of this. Most of the prisoners do. We see it mostly with Yuno, Fuuta, Amane and Kotoko, who criticize/take advantage of Es' god complex. Meanwhile, Haruka and Mahiru invite Es to decide for them (i think haruka does??? i dont fully remember). Muu and Shidou are both initially opposed to it, but become more willing to follow Es' verdicts because it benefits them. Even though Shidou's a little hesitant to see himself as innocent, he starts to. Kazui attributes Es' verdicts to a lack of knowledge on his situation, with the ideology that only his opinion on it matters, because he's the only one who knows the full story. Mikoto's kinda just confused (understandably). And don't ask about John idr.
Anyway I could rant for hours about how the specific prisoners act towards Es in regards to their verdicts + milgram fans' voting ideology + the philosophical undertones of milgram. Technically i did cuz this took 2 hours to write. But. maybe another day.
when jane's powers return in season four (and because they were regained by her confronting and accepting her past, rather than being retraumatised with it!) they're stronger than they ever were. when she starts getting a handle back on them, she very quickly comes to realise not only have they affected her, but her mother, too. one of the biggest losses that came about with her losing them was the fact that she could no longer visit terry in the void; while there was no real communication there, it did allow jane to sit with her, and gain a little more connection than she could in the real world. when she first visits the void after their return, it takes her three hours to find terry, something that is both unexpected and incredibly worrying. but when she does, it's something of a miracle. jane's increased strength and control over the void actually wakes terry up from her catatonic state, but only in the void. there's no way to help her mother physically, but she does do so (unbeknownst to her) mentally. terry is reborn in jane's newfound control over the vale of shadows; she becomes the woman she once was, and while her body remains frozen in a "good dream", her mind connected to jane's own allows her some freedom. jane is able to speak to her mother in the void, is able to be held by her, and while it's still unfair and jane cannot stay in there forever, it's something. this only lasts for about eight months, as each visit slowly begins deteriorating terry's physical and mental state, and jane's health begins declining after spending hours upon hours in the void each and every day.
when jane finds out these visits are actually killing her mother on the outside, she deems to stop, but terry expresses the importance of them being able to speak, that she'd prefer to die on the outside, if it meant she could have just a few months with her daughter like this. terry and jane's connection was always so strong, which ultimately led to terry "waking up" in the void, but even jane's newfound strength cannot save her from the harsh realities. each visit nearing the end of those eight months, terry fades more and more, becomes weaker in the void, and her real body eventually gives up. jane's in the void when her mother eventually passes on, and physically feels their connection weaken, like some part of her suddenly becomes lost in the shadows, a part she'll never find again. jane falls into a depressive state for weeks after her mother's death, given she's technically lost her a second time, but soon comes to realise she was lucky to have even shared those eight months together. it was better than nothing at all. there is a proper burial and funeral, (and when jane dies, she's buried next to her mother) which allows jane some sense of closure. she never fully recovers from losing terry, nor from the fact that she never had a proper relationship with her, but she does eventually find some peace with it all.
ANOTHER SKETCH DUMP! Featuring more of me playing with lineless art. Batman reborn era trio (dick, damian and steph) I miss you...when will you return from war. Also featuring Steph designs bc I've seen ppl dissatisfied w/ her current look, some good mom Talia, and Jason Todd poetry club. Duke is confused not that Jason would start a poetry club but that he'd have such mid poetry opinions. (ID in Alt)
every time someone mischaracterises jay ferin as the therapist friend a fairy loses its wings btw. put some respect on her emotionally-constipated ass.
truly i don't care who thinks it's stupid or boring or "doesn't count" or can't be as intense as what they think of as "real whump" or whatever else, whump with comfort and recovery and caretaker(s) is always going to be my style of whump and i'm gonna have a blast vibing with people who also enjoy that