#and acknowledges how unhealthy it is but the realization of this makes the both of them understand each other more clearly without-

[dawdlecentric]

Man, this doujin isn't fucking around

Meanwhile, Seikuri in the background...

Doujin: Flashbackers by Totobe

#my ramblings #bocchi the rock #no fr tho. please read flashbackers!! it's so good! #it's a ryokita doujin made by one of my fave artist and everything about it is just...so great. I can't express it enough #whether you ship ryokita or not it's still a good read! like really it's well articulated and goes in depth about ryo & kita's relationship #and acknowledges how unhealthy it is but the realization of this makes the both of them understand each other more clearly without- #-seeing through rose colored glasses. I just- ughhh! I'm not good with words and I can't stress it enough so once again please read this! #you can really tell how much this artist is passionate and dedicated about the ship #not only that but how they color the cover page (and their art in general) is JUST SO CATCHING! LITERAL EYE CANDY! #and the pacing and panelling of the story is well thought out plus the equal balance of humor and angst is so entertaining & heart wrenchin #and their art style... fricking adorable and expressive and striking!! Just grrr!! I LOVE THIS ARTIST'S WORK SO MUCH!!! #I'm not that particularly crazy about ryokita but they are very interesting to explore and could have some potential if they worked out- #-their own flaws. I've been meaning to draw them sometime (if only I could start posting decent bnj art- #-tfw hyper fixation so strong it overwhelms you and in turn can't make fanart of it even if you most definitely WANT TO) #ehem. anyways I think it's quite criminal that ryokita was one of the least popular btr ships #in other story. I was woken up by my cat way to early today so I ended up reading this in a half awake state XD #I just found out last night that this doujin was already translated so what better time to read this other than first thing in the morning- #-running on three hours of sleep 😃👍

[echo-and-dust]

now that my brain has somewhat unscrambled itself i have gotten most of my thoughts in order about season 3.

and the first thing i will say is: i loved it.

while it was gutwrenching and polarizing in some ways and i feel that i am entitled to financial compensation for what its done to my mental health, i loved this season for pretty much almost everything it did.

i cannot fault people for having issues with much of the characterization and plot choices made—that’s been the trend during the entire run of the show after all, and imo it’s a testament to the phenomenal way it generates nuance—but i wanted to share my feelings on the recurring opinions i’ve seen about some of these things.

first, i do not blame simon at all for the things he said in the final scene. he’s a child who has been receiving endless verbal and physical harassment on top of all the trauma he is still trying to heal from. he just watched his boyfriend lash out in anger and hurt—while not at him, but it must’ve been a close resemblance of how he might’ve seen micke act. at least, that's what i thought, though i've seen others say otherwise.

and yes, wille is not micke, but just because wille’s source of outbursts is different from micke’s doesn’t mean simon is wrong in drawing similarities. at least he's finally getting a true glimpse into what wille has had to deal with. i've honestly grown to like that they didn't have simon immediately comfort him though; wille's mental illness is not his fault, but it is his responsibility, and instead of pushing a message of unhealthy co-dependence, the show has simon be honest: "but i see that everything hurts you and that hurts me too." and to me, that's so important.

plus, it doesn't make their love any less genuine. wille is a victim of the circumstances; he is not evil, and he is not undeserving of simon. he just has a lot of growing and healing to do, a lot of unlearning and exposure therapy because he's still blinded by privilege even when he tries not to be.

speaking of, i have so many thoughts about wille that i feel like i need to save for its own separate post, but to sum them up: i'll still defend him with my life, and he needs to get the fuck away from that institution.

also, the fact that the responsibility of controlling simon's media decisions was placed solely on wille confused me at first like—why wouldn't they get a professional to give him proper media training?

then i realized, this could be the royal court's way of sabotaging their relationship. they knew that making wille the one to tell simon what he can and cannot say or post would create distance and animosity between them. despite the ramifications of simon's behavior on social media, it seems they still thought it best to have his boyfriend be the one to try to mold him into the system. because they knew that's how they could get rid of him. in conclusion, fuck the royal court (we been knew but still).

one of the standouts this season was their transparency regarding the show's politics. it not only works well with the show's arc (wilmon is public, everything's out in the open now and there's nothing to hide), but also it felt necessary at a time where censorship has been rapidly gaining momentum. it felt so refreshing for these characters to talk so openly about racial discrimination and queerphobia and class disparities, forcing both character and viewer to acknowledge that they exist and you should feel uncomfortable about it.

i don't think i can add much more to what was already said about it—most of the fandom is more eloquent and observant than i am anyway—i just wanted to reinforce how important this season is to myself and the story even with how controversial it is to fans right now. a lot of people may disagree with me and that's fine.

#young royals #wilmon #simon eriksson #prince wilhelm #yr spoilers #yr s3 spoilers #ad speaks #i don't know how they're going to tie everything together in under an hour but so far this season is strong enough for me to like it despit #what ending we receive #and i know i'm in the minority in that sense but i've been spending most of the hiatus trying to keep myself from setting expecations #so i haven't really been let down too much #i really don't want to let this show go though :'( #forever my heart #yr season 3 #young royals season 3

[transmascutena]

something i love about the rooftop scene is that while it is the first real moment of genuine honesty and vulnerability between utena and anthy, and they're taking a huge step forward in acknowledging the ways they've hurt each other and the mistakes they've made, they also both end up taking several steps backwards in the duel the day after. and it just goes to show that healing from trauma and growing to become a better person is not a linear process. a lot of the time you're going to fall back into old unhealthy habits and make decisions that hurt yourself or others.

that moment they have alone on the roof is so incredibly important for them and their relationship, but as soon as their abuser is in the room with them again, they retreat back into the roles they supposedly agreed to abandon. utena goes back to her prince role despite finally having realized the harm it has caused anthy, because it's still the only way she knows how to cope, and it's all she can think to do to oppose akio. and anthy, out of fear and resentment and hopelessness for the future, ends up siding with akio and stabbing utena in the back.

none of this undoes the progress they made in being open with each other, though. you're not undeserving of redemption just because it doesn't all happen at once. sometimes the only way to grow is to take two steps forward and one step back

#revolutionary girl utena #utena #anthy #m

[childrenofthesun77]

Assuming that the whole 'mahiru is the vessel needed to bring back the count and the 9th servamp will be the servamp of vainglory' theory will be correct, it's interesting how both mahiru and touma can be accused of this sin even if the way it applies to them is opposed.

What touma wants is to be acknowledged and to that end he was willing to become the villain who destroyed the world before mahiru and tsurugi managed to change his mind:

Mahiru's way of being vainglorious seems a lot more positive at first because he wants to be a hero who saves others, but it's self-destructive and encourages laziness in others:

But thankfully we see mahiru starting to let go of the need to make other people proud of him and to prioritize making himself proud in his conversation with tsurugi:

and later when mahiru has a meltdown because he fears his uncle might be dead and suggests sacrificing his life to save the world kuro rightfully yells at mahiru for acting hypocritical and not listening to his own advice:

(I want to mention here that I really love how horrified kuro looks as he realizes that mahiru's reckless hero behaviour comes from a very self-destructing place:

because not a lot of manga I know really acknowledge that maybe the way a lot of their protagonists try to be heroic is actually pretty unhealthy and shouldn't be encouraged? Like Sigurd pointed out at the C3 meeting, it's kind of shameful that the children have to save the day)

Which is why I love that mahiru decided to trust kuro to handle tsubaki without him going with him:

He decides to stay back with everyone else, showing that he has learned that he doesn't need to be the one to do everything and can stay back with the others to buy kuro time.

Interestingly we see touma doing something similar. Opposed to his old need to have the whole world acknowledge him he now wishes for everyone to believe he's dead and he's helping to protect the city by creating a huge barrier without making it known that's he the one doing this:

He's helping the protagonists seemingly with no intention of earning acknowledgement for it.

I think in a way it could be cool of servamp to subvert the shouned trope that for the finale battle the only one able to defeat the big bad is the protagonist while everyone else just watches on from the sidelines, not allowed to do anything because this is the protagonist's moment of glory.

What if lily's plan when he put kuro in mahiru's path was that if kuro tried to stop tsubaki at the gate surely his eve would need to be there with him, right? Because of course he needs his eve to fight and then there's also the distance limit. So why not make the vessel you need at that gate for the ritual to work kuro's eve? Then the vessel would be at the place where you need them without you even needing to do something because naturally they would be thinking they are doing the right thing by going with kuro to fight tsubaki together. And surely someone as vainglorious as mahiru would never pass up the opportunity to be the hero who stops tsubaki. It's foolproof!

Unless of course before the ritual the vessel learned to let go of their vainglorious nature, accepted that it's okay to take a step into the background and trust in others. And additionally also found a way to break through the whole forced proximity thing that the servamp and eves had going on.

I don't know, I feel like it would be a neat bow on mahiru's character arc and a unique way to thawrt the antagonists' plans if the creation of the servamp of vainglory failed because the 'it has to be me' guy they wanted to use as the vessel decided against glory and stayed back to let his partner handle things with tsubaki alone because he trusts him. Kuro on the other hand wants to make up for his past regrets and resolve the conflict through communication this time. Learning to trust in himself again by managing to talk tsubaki out of going through with the ritual on his own would be a logical conclusion to kuro's arc.

#servamp #mahiru shirota #taishi touma #This started as a short post about both touma and mahiru being vainglorious just with one wanting to be villain who destroys the world #While the one wants to be the hero who saves the world #because they both want to be acknowledged #And then it escalated into a post about how the two of them letting go of their vainglory might end up saving the day in the end #As for lily and mikuni I feel like that needs to be resolved by misono #He has to deal with lily to get out of the chess game and tell the others about what he has learned or to confront his brother #Mahiru doesn't really have a deep connection to lily or mikuni #He barely knows them and they see him as a pawn #The one who needs them to understand that he's not a child in need of protection to the point that all they did was lie to him is misono #Lily destroyed mikuni's and his kiriko's lives as well maybe misono can work with that? #Or maybe mikuni is playing 5d chess anyway and all he does serves his end goal to get revenge on lily by making sure his plan fails idk #It is weird that his best known spell has people get hanged if they killed other humans in their life #And now he wants to kill the people of tokyo for power? That doesn't make much sense doesn't it.

[intrulogical]

shakes you. YOU DON'T GET IT GUYS!!! working through intrusive thoughts is one of the best sasi episodes for how much it reveals about logan and remus and yes i am biased to intrulogical but there is!!!! a reason!!!!

obviously beforehand we just acknowledged remus as one of the people logan debated against throughout the series but no THIS time we have to acknowledge how they're two sides of the same coin!! they r the same kind of character!! there's an implied deeper narrative connection between these two by how much remus KNOWS about logan's vulnerabilities and actively pushes his buttons more than any other side does to get him to snap!!!

to explain, one of the reasons this episode is so important is because we gain the opportunity to learn more about remus as a character. in dwit, we're just introduced to his personality— gruesome, random LOL humor, a bother. but what wtit establishes is how he perceives being viewed as a bother AND how his "random LOL" personality is actually more deliberate than what we thought it is.

one— remus is bothered by being ignored. "you're going to pretend i don't exist so i'm gonna pretend you don't exist" is the BIGGEST evidence of that, coupled with the fact that this sentence exactly mirrors what apparition!nico said to thomas. in fact, the fact that these two match completely proves that what remus is projecting onto thomas through nico isn't just thomas' insecurities but some of remus' as well. this is my first talking point on why i think remus and logan are different sides of the same coin. they are suppressed!!! they are LITERALLY fighting for thomas' attention in the episode.

and they both lose. holy shit guys. they r literally the sides thomas hate the most and they literally both lose and thomas doesn't listen to them and!!! ARE YOU HEARING ME THEY R NARRATIVE MIRRORS!!!!!

and second— i'd love to add that remus is proven to be extremely deliberate. people like to write remus as someone "who does anything he wants for no reason" but that's not the entire story. think of it this way: remus HAS left-field goals and aspirations, but he is extremely committed to fulfilling them, which makes him deliberate. his entire thing in wtit is to bother thomas as much as possible, and he stays COMMITTED to that. he has plans and he thinks and he's smarter than what most people believe. why do you think he had a notepad w all his plans written on it????

again, he IS a mirror to logan, not only in methodology but end goals??? like do you ever wonder what role remus serves as a side. and i mean obviously he's intrusive thoughts and we all hate intrusive thoughts, but in essence, each side believes they are benefiting thomas whether you agree with their methods or not. remus imposes his ideas onto thomas because he believes them to be beneficial. in this situation where thomas is at his lowest, remus actually serves an interesting role of being thomas' alarm clock.

what do i mean by that? what i mean is, so much of the series shows the sides seemingly finding a perfect solution for each predicament they go through. but in reality, thomas going through issues by himself is SUPER unhealthy and unrealistic. remus serves as a reality checker to thomas. the more intrusive thoughts thomas receives in uncontrollable amounts, the more thomas would realize that hey, maybe i SHOULD go see a therapist for my problems.

AGAIN, ANOTHER MIRROR TO LOGAN BC I CAN'T GET ENOUGH. logan is the one who imposes the alarms in wtit to remind thomas to do certain chores. these two are basically cues for thomas to actually RESPOND to his mental health issues, but logan is more solution-based while remus is more emotion-based.

AND THEY R WHAT, STILL NOT LISTENED TO! but the important thing to realize is that, w so many implications about them being mirrors, something is Bound to happen, specifically to logan, that would eventually reach thomas and slap him into reality. remus and logan share the same goal, after all— to be listened to and for thomas to recognize his mental health issues. when remus says "gee logan now you're speaking my language" after logan got mad at him, remus is saying "now you understand why i use emotion as a means of getting other people's attention (and i hope you know who to use that against next time)" AND THAT MAKES ME INSANE. REMUS AND LOGAN R INSANE. they r scary powerful as a tandem and may change the course of thomas' life in the future and PLEASE SEE MY VISION Y'ALL THEY R MIRRORS

#sanders sides #remus sanders #logan sanders #thomas sanders #intrulogical #my analysis #sanders sides meta #long post

[sparrowofthedawnsworld]

Alright, wrote a little something for all the gresties who struggle with storm anxiety like I do. I see you, I feel you, you’re not alone. You’re not crazy for feeling anxious or afraid. Like seriously you’re not, my messages and asks are ALWAYS open. I really hope these help you all in some way ❤️

Now, then… This is how I imagine the boys would comfort you during a storm:

••••

Jake:

Night time storms were one of your biggest fears. Everything was even more dangerous, with the decrease in visibility. That unsettled you to an unexplainable, unhealthy amount.

If there was a tornado, you wouldn’t see it coming and that was more than enough to send your anxiety soaring to heights that you couldn’t come down from at times.

You sat on the edge of the bed, listening intently to the weatherman on the screen. Everything he was saying was somehow going in one ear and out the other, besides the part where he’d said “tornado.”

“Jake??” you called for him, worry laced so heavily in your voice.

His footsteps were coming down the hall immediately. “What’s the matter, baby?”

All you could muster was a shaky, pointed finger towards the TV screen.

Jake watched and listened for a moment, before looking over at you with a softening expression.

“Oh, love…” Jake ran his fingers through your hair soothingly. “It’s gonna miss us… See?” He pointed to the TV.

But that wasn’t good enough for you.

“But what if it turns this way??” you question seriously, watching the Counties under said tornado warning scroll along the bottom of the screen. “I mean…It could happen…”

Jake stayed quiet for a moment, trying to think of the best way to help soothe you or make you feel at least a little bit safer.

Your head snapped to the window as wild lightning flashed from outside, then snapped back towards Jake with even more worry evident in your eyes.

“Baby, It’s okay,” he spoke gently but firmly. “Do you wanna sit in the bathtub until it passes? Would that make you feel better?”

It felt ridiculous - for you and Jake to squish into the bathtub for no reason other than for the sake of your anxiety, but you knew it would help. Jake knew it would help and he would do anything to make you feel safe.

Jake grabbed a couple of extra blankets and tossed them down in the tub, leaving one to lay over your shaking body.

He got in first and sat down, then, reached his hand up to stable you as you stepped in. You sat down between his legs, letting him pull you back against his chest. Both of his arms wrapped securely around your waist, squeezing reassuringly.

“I’ve got you, love,” he whispered calmly. “We’re not going anywhere. We’re okay. You’re safe right here with me.”

Sam:

Thunder shook the walls of your house, jolting you out of what had been a peaceful sleep.

Once you adjusted, you could hear the wind banging things around, the rain - sounding more like hail - hitting against the windows a roof. The lightning lit up your room as if it were daytime.

You sat up in the bed, running your hands through your hair with an uneven exhale of a breath.

“Love bug,” Sam mumbled from beside you, startling your further - not realizing he was awake.

Your head snapped to look back at him and he continued in a gentle command, “Lay back down.”

More lightning lit up the room and a particularly rough gust of wind shook the window, causing you to avert your attention from Sam entirely.

He sighed knowingly, sitting up to wrap his arm around your waist and pull you down himself.

“Sammy,” you whimpered.

“Shhh,” he hushed you softly, pulling you against him and enveloping your body. “I’ve got you, bug. I’ve got you.”

You tried your best to settle down and relax into Sam. He started to draw little patterns into your arm, squeezing you in his arms every so often to let you know he wasn’t gonna let go.

“You’re so beautiful… you know that?” Sammy asked softly, speaking as though he would scare you further if he talked too loud.

You hummed in acknowledgment to his words, but couldn’t find it in you to form up a better response. Thankfully, he wasn’t looking for one.

“You’re the prettiest girl in the world…” he continued, his voice already starting to calm you as he knew it would. “So smart, and funny… so sweet. So, so sweet. You’re so strong and brave, aren’t you?”

“M’trying…” you mumbled quietly, trying to let sleep overtake you before more anxiety could instead.

“You are,” Sammy corrected. “So strong. And you’re safe… Right here with me. I’ve got you. I’ll be right here when you wake up, love bug.”

Josh:

Storm after storm; it never seemed to end. You would be blessed with a few days of sunshine, only to be bombarded with more severe weather in the wake of those sunny, warm, days.

Of course, to you inconvenience, this time around the storms just had to be hitting at night.

“Mama, you can’t stay up all night.” Josh argued lightly - worriedly.

“But what if our phones don’t go off for a warning and we don’t get woken up? What if-“

“Baby, please,” Josh pleaded lightly, crouching down in front of where you were sat anxiously on the edge of the couch. “You need sleep. We both do. You shouldn’t stay up in here and scare yourself even more.”

He was right, if he went to bed and you stayed up, that would just make it worse - not having him next to you.

“We can turn the bedroom TV on, yeah?” Josh reasoned. “We can turn it on, I’ll make sure the volume on my phone is up all the way… It’ll be okay. Just come lay down with me, okay?”

With a defeated sigh, you got up and followed Josh to your shared bedroom. To your surprise, the TV was already set to the Weather Channel and his phone was plugged in on his nightstand.

“How’d you know I’d give in?” You questioned him, trying to sound playful but still just sounding anxious.

“I didn’t, but I wanted to be ready just in case,” Josh answered, climbing into the bed. “C’mere.”

You climbed in beside him, watching him as he leaned over and flipped off the lamp on his nightstand. He picked up his phone and held it out in front of you.

“See?” He pressed the volume buttons on the side. “Volumes all the way up, mama. If it goes off, I promise it will wake us up.”

You nodded and sunk down into the blankets, feeling surprisingly calmer than you were feeling before.

Josh, laid on his back next to you, guided your head to his chest.

It was silent for a few minutes, save for the faint sounds of the weatherman talking away on the TV, until Josh began to sink quietly.

“Kiss me once, then kiss me twice

Then kiss me once again…

It’s been a long, long time…”

You couldn’t help the content sigh that fluttered out of you, the anxious feelings in your body being overtaken by the gently melody that Josh was filling the room with.

“Haven’t felt like this, my dear

Since I can’t remember when…

It’s been a long, long time.”

The sounds of thunder and wind and rain, faded into background noise as Josh continued to lull you to sleep with his voice, not stopping until he was positive you were sound asleep.

Danny:

“Babe?” Danny called, finally returning home late from the studio.

The storms had kept them stuck there for a few extra hours, but the second a break in between storms came, Danny was rushing home to get to you.

He searched around for a moment rather frantically, before finding you laid out in the floor of your walk in closet with blankets and pillows.

“Baby girl,” he couldn’t help the surprised chuckle that slipped out of him at the sight before him. “How long have you been chilling in the closet??”

“Uhhh,” you started, looking at the time on your phone. “Since the first tornado warning…”

“Babe, that was 4 hours ago.” Danny stepped in carefully, sitting down next to you.

“I’m so sorry,” he sighed weakly. “I should have just stayed home with you today.”

“No, no, it’s okay,” you assured him.

“Do you wanna come into the bedroom…?” Danny asked hesitantly. “We can cuddle on the bed…?”

You looked out into the bedroom, then back down at your phone that had just lit up with another warning.

“Could we… Do you think we could cuddle in here?” you asked him seriously with a sheepish expression.

A little hint of a smile tugged at his lips, “Yeah, we can stay in here.”

Danny slid underneath the blankets beside you, tugging you securely into his side and placing your legs over top of his.

“You wanna hear about to Kiszka Studio chronicle of the day?” Danny asked, making an attempt to focus your attention elsewhere.

You looked up at him expectantly, waiting for him to continue.

“So, after one of the storms… Jake insisted on going out and looking at the hail,” Danny began, the exasperation already clear in his tone. “It was fuckin’ massive. So, of course, he brings a couple of them back inside with him and he tossed one at Sam, but Sam missed it and it hit his bass…”

You genuine gasp jolts out of you, knowing good and well that Sam was very cautious with his instruments. “Did Sam kill him??”

Danny giggled at that.

“Not… yet? I don’t know. There was a lot of yelling after that, but he didn’t kill him,” Danny continued, laughing lightly. “You know Sam, though… he’s ruthless. He’ll get him back.”

@twistedmelodies @ourlovegrows @doodle417

#gvf #greta van fleet #gvf headcannons #sparrow’s fics #sam kiszka #jake kiszka #danny wagner #josh kiszka #sammy gvf #jake gvf #danny gvf #josh gvf #peaceful army #gvf fluff #greta van fleet fluff #greta van fleet headcanon #gvf fic #greta van fleet fics #greta van fic

[animeyanderelover]

Tw: Yandere themes, unhealthy mindset, unhealthy relationship, possessive behavior, obsession, delusion, clinginess, touchiness, stalking, control, manipulation, sabotage, bribing, guilt-tripping, isolation, jealousy, aggression, violence, drugging, abduction, death

Yandere Bucciarati Gang Hc’s

Bruno Bucciarati

🤐A mobster and the leader of his own squad, combined with Bruno being in general a very mature and intelligent man, makes him rather self-aware of his obsession with his darling. There is little to no doubt that he realizes when his feelings start gaining a rather unhealthy side to them. Being involved with Passione and possessing a naturally nurturing and compassionate side to him, Bucciarati is also a very protective individual who often looks out for you and your well-being. He always has enough time to listen and give some advice if you are distressed about something and doesn't mind to run an errand for you if you have little to no time to do it yourself. There is this manipulative streak he has on him and he will use it with the excuse that he only does it for your own good. He is good with people and looks out so much for you as it is so chances are good that you will consider his advice. With all the citizens praising him, this certainly isn't easier for his s/o.

🤐​He observes you and stalks you. You'll find him often around your neighborhood where he gladly helps the people living there and he never fails to greet you and ask you how you've been doing when he sees you. It isn't hard for him to quickly gain the favor and like from everyone in your district and whilst he offers his help for free, he has a hidden motive behind his friendly actions. He wants to get closer to people who see you daily and find out more about you and even minor things about you are memorized by him. There is this advantage he has by having people you're close to liking him since they will support him. After knowing each other for a while where he occasionally dropped hints already, Bucciarati starts making his move more obviously. He's very affectionate with his gestures and words that people tend to often confuse you for a couple already and he enjoys it. He's able to be more possessive himself but keeps it at bay as long as he isn't triggered.

🤐​As a sociable individual who gets along quickly with others, Bruno would find out soon about someone who fancies his darling more than they should. He's friends with your friends and your family so the chance that they inform him about suspecting someone else to like you is very likely. He isn't someone to believe mere rumors though, he needs to see it himself to confirm the gossip of someone else liking you. He is a tad bit more warily around someone who likes his s/o but if they acknowledge his relationship with you and are happy for you two, he will continue being friendly to them, even praise them for their resolve and selfless actions. He mostly gets jealous when you share a relationship with someone where both of you share meaningful gestures and you go to that person a lot for help and advice. That is his job and even if he knows that this relationship is platonic, he can't help the small jealous jab. He'd rather have a talk with you about his feelings.

🤐​Opposing to his kindness, Bucciarati has a ruthless and violent side to him. He doesn't hold the life of a gangster in high regards and wants to keep you out of it under all means necessary. As considerate as he might come over, the man is more than just capable to get rid of someone in your life. He isn't unnecassarily violent though, he's more fair with his judgement. He wouldn't hurt normal citizens unless they committed some serious crime that involved hurting you, they normally get away with a stern scolding and a few threats. As long as someone learns and stays away because they're scared of him, Bruno will let it go after a while. If someone from a rival gang attacks you, Bruno doesn't hold back though since he knows how the Mafia world works. If he feels genuine killing intent from someone, he'll return the favor by dismembering someone brutally. It's better to remove someone from your life before they can even hurt you after all.

🤐​The citizens already seem to adore you two and stand up for you two before he is even your official partner and sometimes it might just be a bit pressuring. Especially since his liking towards you is not hard to notice anymore at one point. You'll hear people around you so often mentioning what a fine young man Bruno is and that he is such a considerate gentleman. Once you two are a couple, things get a bit more suffocating since it's plain as day that even your own family supports the young man and loves him dearly. If you start feeling uncomfortable with the relationship, Bruno notices quickly and is just as fast to have a discussion with you to hopefully fix whatever is bothering you so you can start feeling more comfortable again. Honestly, he's capable to let you live your own life since he trusts you as long as he isn't proven otherwise. Even though he wants you two to move in together at one point. He grows more monitoring with time though, wants to know what you did when he was away for a bit.

🤐​He has the wish to move in with you and marry you soon even if he knows this might be too fast for you. He'll make sure that you're comfortable and happy in your new house with him though. Bruno is on a more lenient side. He trusts you and even leaves you the option to continue working even if he would be happy if his darling would just decide to take care of the house and let him be the provider of the house. Most of the time he is fairly sweet and considerate yet Bucciarati has a more controlling and strict side to him which is especially shown if you discover his occasion and his unhealthy behavior. He treats you with kindness and respect but expects the same from you and if you don't even show him the basic manners, he will tighten his hold and hinder your freedom. From scolding you and locking you inside a room like a child to even using his stand on you if you turn violent or can't keep your mouth shut. He's fair but also quite severe when he sees punishment fit for his darling and by now he might believe that he knows overall what is best for you. If you'd just behave yourself, he could be such a romantic partner for you so why don't you do both of you that favor?

Leone Abbacchio

🍷He is just as aware as his leader is yet he can’t even manage to live with it half as good as Bruno can. Instead his desire leaves him often with the feelings of shame and guilt as soon as he is left alone with his thoughts. He acts sort of rough when you are near him as he tries his best to ignore you and avoid you. He feels overwhelmed with his feelings and his desire, doubts that he’s worthy of love with the life he has and doesn’t want to risk getting you into danger. Yet the loneliness always hits him like bricks and it’s especially worse when he recalls how comfortable and warm he felt when you were near him, even if you didn’t talk with him. Initially he drowns his sorrow in alcohol before it becomes too much and he starts following behind you and protects you from a distance. The longing to have your gaze and attention on him eats him alive and if you work in a shop, he’ll make sure to be a daily customer.

🍷Very protective. He’s haunted by his past and still can’t forgive himself for getting his partner killed. Abbacchio knows that this city crawls with crimes and bad people and even if he failed already once, he wants to protect someone he loves this time. Even if it involves dirty methods. He’s often looming somewhere around the corner and when he has a restless and sleepless night, he always ends up walking to your house where he just spends the night sitting outside like some sort of somber guard dog. Even with his low opinion of himself, there is this undeniable longing he feels for you and your affection. He doesn’t have anyone besides Bruno, he’s terribly lonely and is frankly spoken only more miserable now when he isn’t near you. Due to his insecurities he would be all the more possessive and clingy once he is in a relationship with you.

🍷All his unworthy opinion about himself aside, Leone is someone who will feel jealous about anyone who you’re close too and are very affectionate with. It stirs from his own desires mainly as he can’t help but wish that he could be that person. You might not even know him much or see him in the same light, he knows that much but it doesn’t quench his longing nevertheless. He ends up quickly leaving the place if his heart can’t handle it which normally ends in a few empty bottles of wine. He despises it especially though if you two actually have some sort of interaction with each other and someone else interrupts. The rude glare and scowl on his face never stops appearing and if he’s feeling especially annoyed, he’ll let a rude comment slide. Even if he is your lover his jealousy doesn’t stop since his insecurities never disappeared in the first place. He’ll react more aggressive though since he’s also grown to be more possessive.

🍷There is not much of a problem for him to use violence though since he justifies it with the excuse that he is protecting the only good part of his life. He isn’t that much impulsive himself but tends to be more aggressive and feels easier threatened. It isn’t uncommon for him to throw aggressive insults at someone that triggers him nor is he opposed to throwing hands. The only thing that might hold him back from being violent is when you try to calm him down. Moody Blues makes it easy for him to track down someone and collect information if he suspects them. Abbacchio is simply more paranoid now that he knows of you as he is often worried that someone else will try to steal you away from him or that someone will hurt you. His paranoia may lead him into scaring someone quickly away if they did something wrong or even threaten those who just give him a bad feeling.

🍷​It is somewhat more likely for Abbacchio to kidnap his s/o given his paranoia. This sometimes irrational fear might sometimes simply consume him and get the better of him which leads to him acting according to his anxiety. He can't seem to let you go for the sake of his own selfish desire, he is basically a wounded dog with his past and the shit he has gone through. There is immense guilt when he actually kidnaps you though which leads to another few glasses of wine in an attempt to forget about everything. If you scream and yell at him, he just locks you away and leaves the house for a while until he has somewhat calmed down. Leone doesn't really want you to show you how vulnerable he can be so if he ends up really crying because it is too much for him to handle, you'll never be informed about it. Despite his messy life, he still tries to treat you well.

🍷​He pities himself sometimes with how miserable and lonely he tends to become when he isn't with you as he sits there and just uses Moody Blues to replay whatever you might have done multiple times in a row. He isn't really talkative but he adores it to hear you talking about things, mesmerized by your voice. His guilt and overall adoration he holds for his darling holds him back from ever physically hurting them though he will restrict them and tie them up if they try to escape him. Or he uses handcuffs from his time as a cop. When he accidentally says something that comes over too harsh, he feels immensely sorry for it but struggles to express his feelings. Abbacchio views himself as a coward because every time you two get in an argument or he does something to make you cry, he initially runs away to regain some sort of composure. The man is somewhat desperate to change your opinion about him even if he feels the same, tends to be more clingy and affectionate in an attempt to gain your pity and sympathy.

Pannacotta Fugo

🟣​Fugo is highly intelligent so he definitely is another person who picks up quickly on his feelings which are far from healthy. It complicates quite a few things for Fugo since he is a hot-headed young man and seems to suddenly hyper-focus on his darling because he realizes his obsession. Despite being very much aware, Fugo is also awfully possessive over his s/o which leads his more impulsive and violent side to come out far more often since he becomes prone to the feelings of jealousy and the need to have darling's attention. Even with his more violent side, Fugo tries to charm his darling as much as possible since he knows that his angry side wouldn't really appeal to them. If he isn't mad because of something, Fugo actually manages to be quite funny since he is intelligent and a very caring individual. He's the type to talk bad behind someone's back to you if he wants you to stay away from them.

🟣​He's great in memorizing things about you, sometimes gifts you a book or something else he knows that you enjoy a lot and is happy with the attention and affection he receives afterwards from you as a sign of gratitude. Fugo is the type who ends up isolating his darling a bit for multiple reasons. The first reason is simply because he hates having to share his darling with someone else since he is possessive and the second one is precisely because he knows that he can't tame his temper easily. There is the risk of accidentally letting Purple Haze out and he knows how dangerous his Stand is so for your own safety and to not commit mass murder, he keeps you rather isolated so he doesn't have a need to lose his temper. Very protective of his s/o, even if they should have a Stand themselves. If you sustain a wound, he is quick to bandage it and tries his best to not let you be a victim of his wrath. There is no intention to hurt you and he fears that he might get violent if he gets lost in his anger.

🟣​Fugo would initially think that he can't be that bad when it comes to jealousy but he is quickly proven wrong. He's far too possessive to not be affected and there is a small part of him that is envious that others can be so carefree since they don't have anger issues like he has, especially if you're a bit scared because he has such a bad temper. Fugo is openly selfish and wants your attention all to himself. Sure, you have friends and family, but even with them he sometimes struggles since he is greedy when it comes to his darling. Similar to Abbacchio he decides to storm away when he feels like he might lose control and is for a while after usually busy with letting his pent-up frustration and jealousy out on his surroundings with Purple Haze. Even if he is a bit envious of others, Fugo can also become rather arrogant and ends up trying to outdo someone else with his impressive knowledge in order to amaze you. He is mean and quick to criticize someone for even a small mistake.

🟣He's just brutal with the death he gives anyone unfortunate enough to be his victim. If someone tries to take you away from him, they're dead if they don't avoid you like the pest within his first warning which was already violent enough. If someone hurts you, he instantly hunts them down to murder them. Everyone will be reduced to mush if they try to hurt you or take you away from him and since he can turn quite unhinged when push comes to shove, he will willingly attack even friends and family of yours. ​Other members might have some sort of honor inside of them, Fugo doesn't. He's willing to do anything to have his darling by his side and if they avoid him and run away from him, he will end up killing even the people they cherish to ensure that he's the only one they have left. His love can be quite twisted and he knows that but he has resigned to this madness, will whisper in your ears what he could do to those you love if you attempt to leave him.

🟣​It is the final outcome at the end of the day since Fugo just can't keep his possessive longing and jealousy under control anymore at one point. By now you're the lid which manages to keep his anger within a certain range of control and if you aren't with him he tends to be even more ruthless with his outbursts. It is a decision Fugo makes himself at one point since he loves you too much and despises it whenever he catches you being with someone that isn't him. He plans it out though, most likely invites you over to do something with him which ends with you either being knocked out or drugged. A bit more extreme if you should prove to be too difficult for him to handle. You'll be locked up, tied to the bed, gagged if you don't behave that tongue of yours and he will tell you the things he could and would do for you which are basically just horror stories of him murdering your dear ones. There is something humiliating about him feeding you and being forced to ask for his permission to go to the toilet, Fugo enjoys it though.

🟣​If you struggle with your studies, Fugo ends up using that to his full advantage. He literally insists on helping you to study and is so persistent about it that you eventually cave in. It allows him to spend more private time with you and he hopes to impress you with his remarkable intelligence. Fugo luckily learns to keep his temper better under check when he is with you since his adoration holds him back from lashing out at you and if he senses that he's about to burst, he just leaves quickly to lose it somewhere else. If he snaps in front of you though it is quite scary. He shouts at you loudly and blames you, some rather hurtful words tend to leave his mouth as well. He apologizes usually after a while unless he thinks that you really deserved it. Might use his Stand to scare you a bit and he can be more physically violent, his darling might end up with a few bruises and in the worst case a broken leg. Call him a hypocrite for yelling at you that he could be so perfect for you if you would just let him whilst hurting you like this.

Narancia Ghirga

🧡​Narancia is possessive over his darling since he greatly fears to be left and betrayed by them just like he has been in the past. There is this certain paranoia he tends to have as soon as his s/o ignores him for a bit or spends time with someone else so he normally spends every waking second he has with them, if he has no missions that is. Narancia is very clingy and awfully touchy, his hands are constantly on you and he absolutely smothers you in his affection and constantly pleads for you to show him your love as well. Affection is so important for him since it helps him to feel more at ease and it is the easiest way to calm him down when he has a violent outburst. Narancia is also a rather delusional individual. Everything he does, he justifies with his love for you and he tends to misunderstand small and nice actions from your side easily as signs that you like him as well. Even if you tell him your feelings, he refuses to listen and comes up with excuses as a way to not have his heart broken.

🧡​Very obsessed and he doesn't have very much shame when he steals a few things from you and keeps them for himself. His favorites are clothes since they have your scent and he loves cuddling it at night and falling asleep and waking up with your scent. It doesn't compare to the real you but it's better than nothing. Whilst Narancia doesn't have a shrine, he is unnaturally careful with his little collection of stolen things and possessive over it as well. He doesn't let anyone else see it or touch it. The young boy is also willing to emotionally guilt-trip his s/o if something doesn't go the way he wants it to go. If you two somehow start an argument, it ends or starts with him crying and begging and pleading you to not leave him since he's been left before. He might even start to neglect taking good care of himself as a way to bring you back to care for him and spend time with him.

🧡​Similar to Fugo, Narancia is a bad attention-seeker and wants your attention solely on him and witnessing how you are friendly and sweet with others triggers his jealousy. Narancia, as delusional as he can be, sometimes feels a bit insecure about himself, especially if he notices that the other person is intelligent since he's conscious about his lack of education. He throws the biggest scene though. Not only will he start to cling to his darling, tug at their clothes, interrupt the interaction and whine about the lack of attention, he will also be hostile around the other person. He is foul-mouthed and violent if someone actually talks back and to avoid a catastrophe, you normally have to leave quickly with him. Staring too long at you with him noticing can already lead to a wrong assumption so he is quick to warn and threaten everyone to stay away from you. He tries to be more respectful around family but even then it takes only seconds for him to cling and signal you that he wants attention again.

🧡​He is prone to violence and it doesn't take much for him to feel triggered enough, someone who tries to be cozy with you or talks bad about either you or him since he is such a dumb child and not good enough is enough. He might already start throwing hands in public and the switch blades he carries around are definitely used to threaten and attack people more than just once. If he is truly mad though, he uses instantly Aerosmith to do the job for him. The young man is a bit in a frenzy when he is truly triggered and ends up destroying the vicinity alongside with his victim with his straightforward violence. If he uses his Stand, it means that he truly intends to kill someone which often includes people who betrayed you or attacked and/or hurt you. Committing such crimes when it comes to you is already like signing a death certificate.

🧡​If he ends up kidnapping his darling, it's in the heat of a desperate and paranoid moment. He's the complete opposite from Fugo who makes that decision and plans it out for a while. It is such a spontanous and rash decision of Narancia where he clumsily knocks you out whilst muttering apologies for hurting you. He is somewhat aware that this action will lead you to disliking him but his belief that you two can overcome this obstacle and go back to a loving relationship is still there. He'd hate to tie you up but if you try to attack him or try to run away, he'll have to restrict your movements somewhat. The mobster won't leave you alone though since he still craves to spend time with you and now has all the time in the world to be with you. Somehow he also thinks that he needs to insert his presence to get you used to him again. If you stop pushing him away, he'll promise you to undo the rope and even let you roam freely around the house.

🧡Definitely tries to break into your house more than just once. ​Since he is so lovestruck, gullible and naive the chances to manipulate him a bit aren't that unlikely. If his s/o just gives him the puppy eyes and showers him a bit in the affection he so dearly desires, he's open to fulfill them a wish of theirs. If you are happy it means you'll love him more after all. If the two of you are just alone, Narancia is really sweet to with you since he has no need to be mad if no one is around and you don't show him the cold shoulder or yell at him. Might ask you to coach him a bit in education and he tends to get quickly discouraged when he notices that you start to feel irritated when he doesn't understand something even if you've explained it to him already multiple times. Often brings you your favorite food and snacks, and he always tries to convince you to agree to feed each other, flowers or something else that caught his eye and that he could afford.

Guido Mista

🔫​Mista doesn't fully fit to be delusional nor is he all that aware either, he's somewhere in between those two things. Whilst he bears a certain understanding towards his obsession and realizes that some of the actions he takes are more creepy, such as stalking, he will just as much discard such worries. He isn't someone who likes to overthink, he is a simple man and sometimes doesn't have the nerve nor patience to fret over his obsession, not to mention that he justifies his more violent actions with the excuse of wanting to protect you. Mista is more of a stalker though as he finds himself somewhat bashful around his s/o and is initially a bit too flustered to talk to them. He gets so quickly nervous and isn't keen to embarrass himself in front of his darling. Give him a bit time to gain some composure and he'll be quick to approach you though since Mista is a very sociable person. He's even a bit more tactful, waits for you two to be a bit more close before he starts his casual flirting with you.

🔫​You're someone he holds very close to his heart and for that Mista has sworn to protect you and keep you away from harm under all means necessary, specifically if you are a normal citizen with no Stand. He knows that his affiliation with the mafia might end up in you becoming a target for the rival gang so he grows to always be a bit more cautious. Similar to Narancia, Mista ends up stealing a few of your things for himself. There is this small debatte whether or not he should do it but his obsessive side wins in the end before he quickly stuffs your personal belonging somewhere to take it back home with him. Very touchy and such a flirt once you get to know him properly. The man is sometimes downright shameless, throws an arm around your shoulder or comes up with a really corny pick-up line. Just because he is simple doesn't mean that he's dumb though, Mista sabotages some situations to his favor, mostly when he's jealous or concerned for your safety.

🔫​He comes over as quite laid-back and is actually somewhat considerate of the fact that you have other people in your life you're close with or you might simply be a very friendly and sociable person yourself. The Stand User tries to respect that as much as he can but he tends to get quickly uneasy if someone is more friendly with hugs and touches and flirty words themselves. He's quick to pull you back in such cases, an arm around your waist as he tries to appear taller and starts to act all tough whilst being quick to remind the person that he's your boyfriend with a rude glare. I'd advice to understand the hint and apologize because Mista will let it slide then, though he lets a rude comment or two slide within earshot of the other person. Talk back though and he is quick to commit a violent act and beat someone up, his darling has to do their best to calm him somewhat down and drag him quickly away.

🔫​Despite being around you quite nonchalant and laid-back, Mista can be rather fast to turn rude, ill-mannered and violent for the pettiest reasons at time. He gets especially upset if someone talks crap about you and insults you in any way in which case he never fails to throw hands. You have to be adored and loved in his eyes since you're lovely and unique and everyone who doesn't agree with him is on the safe path of getting beaten up. Capable and willing to kill for his darling and he is even delusional about it since it is to keep you safe. He's said himself that his stand Sex Pistols is perfect for assassination and he certainly proves that statement by successfully killing the threats who try to harm or hurt you. If someone bothers you, he's just as fast to take action so be careful with offhanded remarks such as someone listening too loudly to music since Mista will approach such a person and break personal belongings to make you more comfortable and happy.

🔫​He wouldn't be as prone as some others would be since Mista takes the relationship more easily as long as you aren't frightened because of his tendency to be violent and there is no big threat. He might even view kidnapping as a bit bothersome since it means that he'll end up scaring you. Quite obviously he wouldn't want to ruin the work he has done so far for you to gain your affection only to have you yelling and cussing at him. Kidnapping would only destroy the relationship, he knows that. He'd have to be triggered enough to decide to still do it. He isn't the greatest planner either, he decides to kidnap you and tries to think of a scheme whilst he is on his way to you. His lifestyle is probably a bit more messy so he has to tidy up a bit now that he has essentially another person he has to provide for but Mista doesn't mind as long as it means that you're healthy and well. Your rebellious act is expected but it doesn't stop him from complaining how you complicate things so much for both of you.

🔫​He's a bit of a pervert, you can sometimes tell from the way he grows very touchy or eyes you out of the corner of his eyes sometimes. One smack on his head is normally enough for him to stop though. Due to him being someone who just wants to live a normal life and enjoy himself, he usually is someone who keeps things rather simple. He enjoys a simple date or a picnic more than something fancy though if he realizes that you think that he isn't putting in the effort because you don't mean that much to him, he tries to step up his game. Mista might actually prefer his darling to be the more leading part in the relationship since he's more often nonchalant and just goes along with how they feel and what they want to do. His Stand adores you too and they constantly bother Mista with questions and requests to see you even if you can't see them which would make them a bit sad. The only thing he really begs you to do is to avoid anything with the number 4.

Giorno Giovanna

🐞​Giorno appears always rather serene and hardly seems to be very emotional yet he is quite possessive over his darling but is able to hide it quite well. His childhood has been a tragedy to say it nicely and on his journey to become the boss of Passione, he has lost precious comrades as well. Combine that with his obsession and you get a man who is secretly and silently longing desperatly to gain your love and affection. Giorno is more on a semi-delusional side himself. Whilst he knows that his position and the extent he'd be willing to go for you could end up scaring you, he also can't shake off the feeling that he's the only one who can really cherish, love and protect you like you deserve to. His position allows him to quickly gain all the information he wants to have. Family, job, hobbies, past relationships and whatever else his heart wants to know. Giorno wants to know everything about you so he can treat you the best.

🐞​He's a man who sabotages the strings behind the scene whenever he sees fit. There is this certain pride that holds the Don initially back since he would rather get closer to you the normal way, worm his way into your heart with his own charm. If someone tries to interfere or if you prove to be a bit more difficult though, he's quick to use his influence. He can make people disappear or get you into financial troubles and you'll have to go to him for help if you want to get out of this tricky situation. Giorno has his way with words as well, a sincere look in his eyes when he tells you gently that this person gives him a bad vibe and that you should be cautious. Who knows, later on there might really be an article in the newspaper that this person was arrested for being involved in some shady business. Above all, Giorno is extremely protective though and concerns himself constantly with your well-being. The neighborhood you live in will be watched and any form of danger will be instantly removed and if you struggle with your job because of money and stress, he'll make sure to have a word with your boss and take care of your financial problems.

🐞​If people would know who the person next to you is, they would probably be far too scared to interact with you at all. Giorno keeps his identity a secret for now though to not intimidate you and frighten you. The blond is very collected and calm throughout an event where someone might make him feel jealous. He gets most jealous when you are acting oddly sweet to someone since he didn't receive much affection throughout his childhood so he's slightly starved for affection. He doesn't butt in instantly and just waits for a few moments where he just looks at you and hopes that you realize it. If you are too engaged though, he ends up interrupting the interaction politely though he calls you instantly by a term of endearment and touches you more intimately to make it obvious that you're his lover. If you're too affectionate with someone who isn't him, he always feels a bit envious but he is confident that on the long run he has the influence to make someone avoid you if they relish too much in your affection.

🐞​It would be wise to not mess with his darling since that is just like messing with the don himself, especially considering how protective Giorno really is. As polite and gentle he is with you, the same treatment doesn't count for anyone else. Sure, he is polite but it doesn't go beyond that. If someone bothers you, bullies you or, worst of all, even attacks and hurts you it is over. Whoever inflicts harm on your mental or physical health will be swiftly taken care of accordingly and everything that might hurt you seemingly disappears over time. You have to be protected and adored and Giorno has made it his responsibility to see through that you will be adored and protected. It's more rare for him to kill someone personally, he has a lot of men waiting for his command so it's in most cases other members of Passione who commit criminal acts.

🐞​He always wanted you two to live together and he is busy arranging a villa for his darling. Somewhere more secluded with a huge garden and luxurious interior. His darling might just be shocked when they hear him asking this question after only a few months of dating. He calmly explains why he thinks that they should move in with him and that those few months of dating were a long time and that it isn't "too soon" to already take the relationship to the next step. He loves you and you love him after all. If you reject him once, he'll be displeased but will let it slide for a while before it really starts bothering him greatly. If convincing you doesn't work, he will simply use his position once again to his advantage. From suddenly not finding your keys to starting to feel like someone is following you, whatever means necessary to lure you to ask him if you can stay with him for a while. Only that once you enter this house, you won't leave it again. Don't worry, all of your personal belongings will be brought over soon.

🐞​It is a huge golden cage his darling ends up living in. The Don showers his s/o with lavish gifts and all earthly possessions they might want to have from clothes, to food, to jewels. Giorno is nothing short of sweet and doting himself with you, especially if you end up being scared of him. It is hard to have him openly show despair since he is such a calm individual around you. He sweet-talks a lot, tries to coax his darling into relaxing around him and soon with him. If you end up fighting against him as you are unable to understand how you're supposed to sit still whilst being locked inside a huge house, he'll even sit down with you and explain to you the advantages that come with living with him and having him as your lover. You'll never have to work again, he can protect you in here and he'll provide you with everything you want as long as it doesn't involve leaving him. Often gifts you flowers he made with his Stand or creates something else to lift your spirits a bit.

#yandere jojo's bizarre adventure #yandere jojo no kimyou na bouken #yandere jjba #yandere golden wind #yandere bucciarati #yandere bruno bucciarati #yandere abbacchio #yandere leone abbacchio #yandere fugo #yandere pannacotta fugo #yandere narancia #yandere narancia ghirga #yandere mista #yandere guido mista #yandere giorno #yandere giorno giovanna

[jinxedmuse]

let me back in — joshua hong, 홍지수

🎵 i keep thinking, maybe if you let me back in (did i fall out of line when i called you?) we can make it better, breaking every habit. pull myself together, you could watch it happen (when i told you, "i’m fine," you were lied to) let it happen, let it happen.

in which: reader and joshua are in a confusing relationship. a constant tug of war over who can get each other more in love, and more heart broken.

authors note: hii! tysm for the new support ! wish i could hug u all :( it means sm & truly motivates me to keep writing! plz enjoy this angsty one shot i whipped up a few nights ago while missing shua & having this song on loop!! ><

tags/warnings: afab reader x non idol joshua, unhealthy relationship, fwb except they’re barely friends, extremely angsty, mutual pining but they’re both too hurt to realize. mentions of the word sex but no actual smut, just suggestive moments. discussion that may come across as ‘arguing’ but they’re just genuinely learning how to properly communicate for the first time since they met…

˚　　　　✦　　　.　　. 　 ˚　.　　　　　 . ✦　　　 　˚　　　　 . ★⋆.

joshua’s phone rang at exactly 12:00 am on his birthday.

just as a stream of constant messages poured in, wishing him a happy 27th birthday. another added year signifying he was truly growing up, catching up to time.

the number calling was one he hated himself for recognizing. for engraving so deep within his mind that he could practically say it backwards.

he mentally cursed himself more for what he did next; picking up.

“joshuuuuu” the voice sang out, your voice. on the other end, almost fully overtaken by the sound of what seemed like a club in the background along with laughter from your friends.

“this.. this is way out of line.” he begrudged out. it was wrong, so wrong for you to be calling. even worse for him to be entertaining it.

yet, here he was and he felt oh so genuinely content that you remembered his birthday after almost a year with no contact. now listen, in his honorable defense, shua was many things; dumb? wasn’t one of them.

however, when it came to you? his acquaintance, old friend, ex, situationship, fling, lover, whatever the hell you wanted to call it. he was, no, the first step is accountability. he is, way too smitten for you to have anything such as common sense.

“i know. trust me, i know. it’s just old habits die hard, you know?” you slightly slurred with a melancholic tone. as if reminiscing the countless times in your knowing of each other that this almost exact conversation has happened.

“yeah, i know. so.. what is it tonight?” joshua asked. slightly hopeful that you had more in mind then a simple birthday phone call.

“i have something for you, let me come over.”

his heart practically raced out of his chest. he could already imagine a string of thoughts; possible scenarios that could occur. but he had to put on a front, at least try to resist.

even if it was just a bit.

“at what point are we going to have enough of each other? isn’t this tiring?” he asked, feigning an exasperated sigh.

more than anything in this world he wanted this constant cycle to end, but more than anything in the world he wanted you, craved you, just as much.

the question rang in your ears. i mean genuinely, just what were you two still doing? both in your mid to late twenties playing a constant game of back in forth, banter through the pain that left you both feeling lonely for what? the nostalgia of it all?

at what point would this tug of war finally be bearable?

maybe when it ended.

regardless, you ignored his question. refusing to let the buzz of tonight’s choice of alcohol wither away into the depths of such a question.

“is it still the same address birthday boy?”

there was silence. followed by what seemed to be him getting up.

“yes.” he timidly replied. too embarrassed to acknowledge the fact that your grip on him seemed to be getting stronger each year.

“good!” you exclaimed. getting your purse and slinging it onto your shoulder, grabbing a full bottle of sikhye before gesturing to your friends that you were leaving and would call them later.

“why’s that good?” he asked, retreating to lay back down on his couch.

“it’s only like a 20 minute walk from the club i’m at.” you said nonchalantly while double checking your map app.

“no need, i’ll order you a uber. wait out front.” he replies. he then puts you on speaker and starts ordering the ride, wanting the quickest and most comfortable one that would bring you to him.

“why? i’m a fan of walking actually. i picked it up a few months ago. needed something to do to distract myself from you joshu.”

there was a pang in his heart that felt all too real. he hated when you guys weren’t on speaking terms and the fact that you could bring it up all so casually while he had difficulty even whispering your name to recount to his friends what happened this time.

“that’s great, i’m happy for you. but there’s no need to tonight.” and with that, the ride was purchased. uber black, all for you.

“why? a gentleman doesn’t let a lady walk alone? that’s certainly not coming from you i hope.” you mocked bitterly. trying to push away one of the many painful memories you’ve had since your entanglement with joshua.

“you never let me explain my point of view of that night.” he complained. the flash backs still all too real, as if they had happened just yesterday. a feeling of frustration and guilt making home in his heart.

the uber black suv pulled up to the side. a man coming out to open the back seat door for you as you tumbled forward, thanking him quickly. once you’re in, he closes the door and you focus of not getting car sickness as he departs.

there’s a twinge in your stomach that has you patting it gently. you lower your window and stick your head out slightly. the cool air of the night slowly waking you out of your drunken state.

there’s a few minutes of silence before joshua speaks up again.

“hello? y/n? you still there?” he asked, tone laced with worry.

the question made you laugh.

despite all that you two had went through. the unrequited high school love that soon turned to a torturous one. years of pining, unbelievable out burst of arguments, and some passion yet “casual sex” but you both knew all too well there was no such thing as ‘casual’ for you.

regardless, you were still here. on the way to his place at almost 1 am on his birthday.

“yeah. i’m still there.” you replied.

you both always joked that you were probably thriving soul mates in another universe. you guys read each others mind dangerously fast but it still took you by surprise when he immediately picked up on the heavy meaning behind your words.

“it’s okay. i’m still here too.” he answered. as if to let you know that you weren’t alone in this cruel yet daunting situation. because after all, it takes two to tango.

soon enough, the driver stopped in front of the towering condos. you get out, once again thanking him as you grab your stuff and try to pull yourself together.

what takes you by surprise is the fact that joshua is waiting for you outside. wearing all black, hair slicked back and phone still to his ear. a small smile appeared onto his face, he looked as handsome as ever.

it still made your heart race just as it did when you first realized you liked him all those years ago in high school.

you walked towards him, trying to remain in a straight line. the nerves of the alcohol no longer giving you the confidence which had led you here in the first place.

it isn’t until you’re a few feet closer to him that he starts walking forward to meet you.

you’d make a joke about his action and the symbolism it had in regard to your relationship (or truly lack-there-of) but it still hurt too fresh. was still too early.

“here. happy birthday” you said slightly shoving the sikhye into this arms. he hangs up the phone and takes it, holding it carefully.

“so, how’ve you been-“ he starts but you’re already walking way past him, making your way to his place which he left unlocked.

joshua’s not dumb. he knows you did it on purpose. small talk never having been your fortitude but it still hurt him.

you enter the condo, him following closely behind snd locking the door.

as you take off your shoes and set down your purse, you looked around. everything the same as the last time you were in here on your birthday, almost a year ago.

“i’ve missed you.” he says while setting down the sikhye on his marble counter top. the small lights on top illuminating him. he almost looked angelic.

he always knew just what to say to have you weak in the knees. it was infuriating.

“i’ve missed your nice ass place, do you always have the ac blasting like this?” you say as you flopped down onto his ridiculously soft beige couch. using one of the pillows to prop yourself up.

“the floors are heated so i like the cool air, even during winter” he comes up and sits beside you on the couch, observing you closely.

“well my bad mr.money man” it took everything in you to not physically roll your eyes. you weren’t actually annoyed and you knew shua wasn’t saying it to brag but it was frustrating how seemingly put together his life is.

aside from this rather “chaotic” ensemble, your life was actually pretty nice. yet you were always right behind him, a step behind like some loyal puppy.

and tonight, you had the urge to prove once and for all you weren’t just a puppy, you were an equal.

what you didn’t know was that he already saw you as one.

“come here” he says while patting his back, looking at you with eager yet cautious eyes.

you don’t verbally respond, just physically get up and do as instructed. straddling his lap.

his hands dig into your waist, holding you in place.

“explain yourself.”

“explain yourself.”

you both said it at the same time. it was eerie but earned a unanimous laugh.

“you first” you string out. one hand playing with the ends of his hair and the other just below his neck, playing with the hem of his shirt.

“look, y/n.. this isn’t just a one way street and we clearly remember things differently” he says blatantly. the grip he had on your waist loosening the more he spoke.

“just admit it.” you start, piercing into his soft brown eyes.

this would be much easier if he wasn’t so handsome.

“admit what?” he ask. hands trailing up and down your back, just how he used to back in uni.

“that i’ve had it worse, it hurt me harder. admit that you, hurt me way worse.” you demand, trying to ignore the ache in your throat.

joshua tilts his head back and let’s out a frustrated sigh.he looks back at you with something else in his eyes, lust.

he pulls you closer to him while pushing you down onto him. you look at him confused but he doesn’t speak yet, instead he starts pressing light, gentle kisses up your arm.

“did i complain when you started going out with that pathteic exuse of a man might i add, in uni just a less than a month after you confessed to me?” he ask peering up at you.

there was a slight pang in your heart. you remember it so clearly. after years of a seemingly unrequited love in high school, you confessed to him in uni.

hoping, praying, that it would help you get over joshua.

when he didn’t give an answer before mid terms, you tried moving on in another ways. getting with a guy that liked you way more than you liked him.

thinking back, it was definitely cruel but staying alone and seemingly rejected seemed worse.

he continues, both kissing your body and speaking. as if letting out years of pent up hurt in the air.

“did i ignore you after you rejected my confession at the end of the last semester? a week or so before my birthday? you ignored me sweetheart; even though i was the one rejected.”

this one struck a nerve.

a memory far too painful to be brought up. he goes up to kiss your collarbone but you back up, ultimately getting off him and sitting on the table in front of him.

“seriously joshua? are you really still acting confused as to why i rejected you then?” you ask fully bewildered. one eye brow slightly raised as you observe the man in front of you.

he leans forward and mocks your expression. daring you to state your reasoning after all these years.

you let out a dry laugh before crossing your arms.

alright then, your turn to straighten some things out tonight.

“joshua hong do not act oblivious to the fact that i have been pathetically in love with you since high school. i don’t know if it’s when you started sitting by me in class, or opening my drinks, or that time you shaded me from the sun while i was napping in p.e but i have been. plain and simple, okay?”

he starts to talk but you cut him off, determined to get your point through.

“foolish teen me thought i was special. until, i realized you probably sat next to me because your two friends sat in front of me, you open anyone’s drinks, and excetra excetra but either way, i made the dumb mistake of confessing my feelings for you in uni.”

you’re angry now, not at him but at how pathetic you must’ve seemed all these years.

he stays quiet, letting you take a breather before continuing.

“so yes. to get over you i started dating, having fun, doing anything to fix a mended heart of what i assumed was unrequited love because you gave me some ambiguous ass answer and what i needed in my life was not ambiguity, especially from you.”

you get up while taking, now pacing around his table trying to stop any tears that warned they would fall out if you looked at him any longer.

“then, a year into my relationship, on my relationship anniversary, you confess to me and crumbled down genuinely almost every ounce of self respect and happiness and i barley managed to scrape together to make my relationship work. i had to break up with him because how could it be fair to try and love someone else when a single confession, no, even just a mere look from you spiraled me back into you palm.”

joshua looks pained as he looks at you, getting up to come over to you but you stand firm on the other side of the table. moving sides any time he tries to approach you.

not afraid of him, never afraid of him.

afraid of the affect he has on you.

in a momentary lapse of weakness, a tear comes out and you immediately wipe it away.

“i love you. a lot more than you do me which is fine, i accepted that a long time ago but i will not be the girl who has these arguments with you once a year and then slips out in the morning after we’ve had sex. not again, i can’t.”

you didn’t even realize when but joshua was suddenly at your side, holding you gently and leasing you to sit back down on the couch next to him.

“y/n i’ve loved you a lot longer than you think, i swear it. and i’ve never once told you to leave in the mornings, trust me. i never sleep well because i wake up practically scorn when i see the spot you’re supposed to be in is empty. i get hurt a lot more easier than you think, it’s written all over my face when i miss you.”

his words practically ate you alive. if he had said all these years ago, even months, no even just last week you probably would’ve gone right back head over heels, full in.

you let out a coarse laugh. the ache in your throat from holding back your tears evident as ever and he realizes this, gently brushing back some hair behind your ears.

“you never told me to leave but never asked me to stay.” you murmur almost incoherent while staring down at your hands.

“mhm?” he hums, confused at the string of words you purposely rushed out.

“i said, you never told me to leave but you never asked me to stay.” you repeat, now looking at him directly. trying to read his eyes.

this, he couldn’t refute. and he knew it deep down as well.

after all those years of pining and watching from afar it still felt too real for him when you were suddenly in his bed for the first time.

you could’ve thought he was a teen who hadn’t had his first kiss yet. hands shaky, eyes nervous to meet yours, mind racing with thoughts at 100 miles per hour because that is how much of an affect you had on him.

he never admitted it though, failed the chance to and soon enough you mistakenly took his silence as a “hint” and slipped out every morning before the sun even rose.

it was his turn to tears to start falling but his hands felt too limp to even dry his eyes. so when you raise yours and wipe them away ever so gently, all he can do is cry into your hands.

“i’m sorry” he starts choking out.

“i really am so sorry. if i could do it all over again, if you just let me back in, i would. i would make it right. make a move faster, acknowledge my feelings earlier, not let you slip away so easily. i would tell you to stay. i want you, no, i need you to stay.” he rushes out, practically pleading at this point because God forbid he lets you out his life again.

but you both know it can’t happen. you’ve hurt each other far too much, have fallen dependent on each other for far too long.

it was unhealthy and you both knew knew it.

you firmly interlock your pink with his and stand up. he looks at your pinkies for a few more seconds before standing up after you.

you walk ahead, grabbing your purse and slipping on your shoes. your pinkies still loosely intertwined.

joshua wants to say something, he tries to on multiple accounts but every time he opens his mouth, tears brim his eyes again.

you unlock the door and slightly go outside, your pinkies barely still holding onto each other.

you stare at each other longingly, as if you both knew in your hearts that it would be for the last time.

you smile fondly, even after just crying he was still so handsome.

“same time next year?” he jokes

you let out a genuine laugh and he swore in another life he’d do anything to keep hearing it.

“i’m joking. you are never, ever, allowed in my “nice ass house” again.” he dead pans, while not so obviously trying to hide a small smile.

you knew it had to end here, at his door step, pinkies intertwined. it would’ve never worked, no matter how much you guys both wanted it.

“i’ll miss you, so much.” you say sincerely.

he knows this. “miss” was a massive understatement in his books. he leans forward, placing a gentle kiss in your lips which you kissed back but for once you don’t chase after his lips once he pulls away.

he places another light kiss on your temple, as he does so he pulls away his pinky and this action is the one that almost breaks you all over again.

a beat passes, you stare at each other with simultaneously far too much love and hurt to ever truly be strangers.

“i’ll miss you too. just as much.” he echoes. meaning every word.

and with that, for the first time since meeting him, you pulled yourself together and turn your back to him first.

you walk away first.

and he watches it happen before closing his door, for good.

#jinxedmuse #joshua hong imagines #svt joshua angst #joshua hong comfort #svt writers #svt #svt angst #svt comfort #svt headcanons #hong jisoo #joshua hong x reader #non idol au #kpop angst #kpop writing #kpop comfort #seventeen imagines #svt oneshot #svt drabbles #svt x y/n #svt x reader #svt joshua fluff #joshua hong fanfic #svt fanfic #svt joshua x reader #svt fluff #svt scenarios #svt imagines

[shadfinite]

ok but the thing is shadow and infinite isnt a "healthy" or "good" relationship at first. it takes them years to be good for each other. they shouldn't have been together! they should have broken up years ago! but they didn't and they are working through it and eventually things work out. EVENTUALLY Infinite stops enabling Shadow's self destructive behavior and EVENTUALLY Shadow stops tolerating the admittedly unacceptible way Infinite treats him.

See, Infinite doesn't know what it's like to be with someone who doesn't want to hurt him even a little. Every relationship he's ever been in has been a really unhealthy and dangerous power dynamic (he's been the weak one and the strong one before). It takes him YEARS DECADES maybe even CENTURIES to realize Shadow is NOT LIKE THAT. Shadow didn't even really want to specifically hurt Infinite when they first encountered each other in the Mystic Ruins. He was just doing a job. It takes Infinite such a long time to understand that. He's so obsessed with Shadow but he has this one conflicting core understanding with Shadow that he simply cannot wrap his head around. He needs to stay in control so that "when Shadow tries to fuck him over he has a way to regain the upper hand."

Shadow thinks he's lesser than everyone, even Infinite. Even though Infinite literally started a war and wanted to destroy everything just because he was bored. If Infinite wants all the power over him, Shadow is okay with that because surely he deserves it for being such a miserable creature. When Infinite calls him names and treats him poorly he just lets it happen because Infinite is the first person he's met in a long time who will treat him in a way he understands. To Shadow, this is unfortunately what true love looks like. Being attacked is familiar, and Shadow knows that when people are kind to him he doesn't know how to deal with it. He thinks Infinite is giving him a form of stability that he can't live without.

What's confusing for both of them is that they do have moments of tenderness, and they do have inexplicable boundaries that they never cross with each other. They've never discussed their limits, but there are things they would never do to each other because it'd be too much.

They have moments of vulnerability, where they are just sitting beside each other and Infinite is telling Shadow how beautiful he is. And Shadow believes it because he's pretty sure that Infinite wouldn't waste his time being nice if he didn't mean it. Shadow introduced Infinite to a part of himself he didn't know existed, a part of himself that doesn't want to have to try to hard to reach for the top. But that vulnerability is terrifying at first and neither of them want to acknowledge it. It just happens and then its back to business as usual again. They don't talk about it.

They will do things to each other that cause conflict or anger, enable each other's worst habits, but they won't try to change each other's identities. That's the hard limit. They might have an argument where they harp on each other's bad behavior, but it's just talk. They'd never do anything to each other that would actively contribute to a crisis because one thing they both understand on a fundamental level is that changing the answers to core questions like "What is my purpose?" or "What do I believe is right?" is mind breaking. They never force each other to do things that challenge the status quo or threaten to shake their already deteriorating stability.

But this boundary is also part of the problem. They, for a long time, don't let each other grow and absolutely get worse! They break each other down, but they keep making excuses for why they should stay together. People who constantly fight with each other should not be together!

And when I say "together" I don't really mean together. Their relationship is a situationship at best, but Infinite still refers to Shadow as his boyfriend. Shadow insists they aren't even friends, but doesn't really passionately refute when Infinite says they are together. He just deflects. Of course he wants to be Infinite's partner, but that commitment is terrifying and he doesn't get how Infinite can be ready to commit like that even though it's been YEARS. It feels so impermanent because Shadow's perception of time is based on his immortality. That's one thing Infinite doesn't have (doesn't really think he has).

Two things jade them: time and people.

Shadow and Infinite won't challenge each other's core values, but time and people will. For Shadow, this comes in the form of his admittedly slightly larger support system: people like Rouge Amy and Big especially, but also Sonic to some degree. Infinite stagnates. His only support system is Shadow, really. He also has, like, Big and Sonic and Wave, but he isn't ever vulnerable with them in the way Shadow is with his. Shadow starts to grow, Infinite doesn't.

Infinite is definitely the worse off in this relationship. Shadow always knew that. They both knew it when they got together. Shadow has a savior complex. He thought he could fix it.

It in fact gets worse. Infinite is just bound to break that unspoken boundary they set, and Shadow has to put his foot down. Only then do they break all of their walls down and talk about those unacknowledgable moments. Only then do they get better. They can't work out unless they start to see each other as equals, but it's a really slow process for them to explore what that looks like or how its possible.

#infinite the jackal #shadow the hedgehog #shadfinite #infinadow #textpost #squid screams #i also have some ocs relevant to this #but i havent mentioned them here yet #so less confusing not to mention them #theres also more about shadows savior complex #but its kind of self projecting and #doesnt fit with the point im trying to make #shadow and infinite have an open relationship which is part of #the reason they eventually grow #because if they were isolated they'd probably just kill each other #i didnt get to it much here but infinite being the first one shadow #feels real kinship with is important because its a gateway to self love #which shadow has none of lol #and in turn shadow is a gateway for infinite inti trusting others #ill make a different post about that later #guys they are so important to me #i could say words about them forever #THE POINT IS THEY ARE TOXIC #THE POINT IS THEY WORK TOGETHER TO FIX IT #THE POINT IS NOT EVERYTHING IS PERFECT ALL THE TIME #AND JUST BECAUSE ITS BROKEN DOESNT MEAN IT CANT BE FIXED!!!!! #BAD RELATIONSHIPS ARE NOT A LOST CAUSE #ITS POSSIBLE FOR BAD PEOPLE TO TURN AROUND #i have catholic guilt. what about it?

[swamp-spirit]

It’s... more D.Gray-Man meta.

Anyway, something I really love about D.Gray-Man, which I think confuses a lot of people, is that it’s a tragedy hiding in a shounen. A lot of the things which are framed as Positive Shounen Growth are actually the setup for tragedy.

I think this turns off readers on two counts:

A) Though I don’t think Hoshino’s perfect, I have a lot of trust in her ability to know when a plot beat is tragic, even if it isn’t portrayed that way at the time. There’s a lot of really dissonant plot beats where the show is playing it like a victory, but, if you think about it for five seconds, are Pretty Messed Up. I think, without that trust, it can easily feel like “wait, why is this being played like a win??? Isn’t this bad???“

B) On the flipside, if you trust shounen convention, you’re going to end up feel like your ‘wins‘ keep getting ‘stolen‘. The characters keep doing things that make them powerful and selfless! Why does that keep making things bad.

Because, at the core, it’s a series about how the traits that make a good shounen hero ARE tragic. Shounen values self-sacrifice, power, and perseverance. D.Gray-Man understands that these are BAD things for a teenage child soldier. In the face of the apocalypse, having those traits may keep the characters alive, but characters becoming more ‘powerful‘ and ‘motivated‘ in D.Gray-Man often means they are actively turning away from the stable, healthy option. Often, the healthy option is not survivable, but even when the unhealthy option is heroic, it’s still tragic.

Let’s talk specific moments

Allen Makes a More Moral Choice Than Kanda Because He Doesn’t Love Anyone

I think this scene reads very differently when you know who they’re both referring to. Kanda is living to see his wife again. For him, it’s okay to make the pragmatic choice because there’s something more important to him.

Allen makes one of the moral arguments D.Gray-Man makes a lot: that a win brought about by sacrificing innocents isn’t a win at all, but he also brings up something else.

Allen says he’s lost what was dear to him. Allen loves the whole world, but, at this point in the series, he’s the opposite of Lenalee. For Lenalee, her loved ones are her whole world. Allen doesn’t have any meaningful connections yet. The world was cruel, and then Mana wasn’t, and then Mana died. He obviously somewhat cares about Cross, but not in a ‘live for his sake‘ way.

And, in the framing of this scene, I think there’s somewhat of an argument that Allen can be selfless BECAUSE he’s emotionally isolated. He doesn’t have anyone to protect or come home to No Matter What, so it’s easy for him to put his life on the line in a way it isn’t for Kanda.

And Genuine Emotional Bonds Start to Hold him Back

As the series goes on, Allen gets to start making genuine bonds with his friends, and this canonically gives a hit to his power. He’s focused on fighting to help his friends, and, when his power fails, he tries to find his motivation in The Power of Friendship.

And his powerup comes, not from that friendship, but when he realizes wanting to help his friends has distracted him from his purpose.

It’s very common in Shounen for a power-up to come from an emotional realization. I mean, that’s how good storytelling works. Hell, there are even examples where a power-up comes from an unhealthy realization, but that’s usually Anger Awakening Dark Power.

Combat wise, getting Crown-Clown is good! He can save Fo! He can save his friends! This is what we wanted! It’s not the forbidden dark mode that should never be activated, it’s the core heroic power.

But the realization he needs to come to in order to harness that power is to dehumanize himself and acknowledge his role as a weapon.

And speaking of

that

...

Allen Didn’t Take His Out Because He is Held Together With Twine

Let’s rewind a little.

I think China is the first time we see how deeply broken Allen is. His determination to save lost souls and keep the promise he made to Mana is his guiding light. As long as that’s working, he seems like a fairly functional, if dangerously selfless, person, but, every time that’s threatened, he completely falls apart. He doesn’t look at other options, he just collapses until he can get back to the status quo. Inside, he’s a step away from that catatonic child. We see him hit this same wall when Mana’s love for him is called into question and he can’t function until he decides he loves Mana anyway and it won’t change anything.

It’s important to remember here that Bak and Allen have very different info coming into this. Bak knows Allen’s weapon is still there, so he’s giving Allen an out before Allen can pressure himself. If his priority was making sure Allen could return to duty, he’d tell him, but Bak knows Allen is a parasite type. Bak is motivated not to repeat the mistakes of the past. He knows Allen taking back his weapon is dooming him to die as a child soldier. (And that Allen’s resentment for that truth could break very bad. Giant glowing torso bad.)

If Allen was motivated purely by helpful good goodness, he’d take the path offered. As far as Allen knows, he can’t be an exorcist. The path he’s trying to follow doesn’t exist. The way forward is to accept the loss and keep helping with what he does have.

But he isn’t. Bak doesn’t give Allen back his weapon because he respects Allen’s determination, he gives Allen back his weapon because Allen is completely dependent on his identity as an exorcist. From a practical standpoint, this confirms he won’t turn on his weapon and Fall, but, from an ethical standpoint, it also tells Bak he can’t save Allen. He’s pretty much a zookeeper sadly realizing the rare animal can no longer survive in the wild and, even though that would be the better choice for the animal, it’s no longer a possible one.

If the art and framing don’t make it clear enough this tragedy is intentional, later reveals do. Because now we know that Allen’s One Path Forward was always leading him to the most painful possible ending.

But let’s talk about some other tragic shounen wins.

Timothy Had No Good Options

Let’s be clear here: He’s not wrong.

We’ve seen over and over, exorcists don’t have a choice. The parasitic power was forced on him by an abusive father. Now his options are to be hunted by akuma for the rest of his life and watch monsters kill everyone around him or become a child soldier. Either way, his parasitic power kills him young.

The win here is not what the framing says it is, and this is where my trust for Hoshino comes in. I think we’re meant to understand this is Timothy choosing to sacrifice himself. It’s followed up with a comedic scene, and I know the quick mood switches aren’t for everyone, but I think it’s unfair to assume it means Hoshino doesn’t understand the tragedy. There are plenty of atonally cheerful moments in unarguably dark moments.

It might be the best choice Timothy has, just like taking the crystal boots was the best choice Lenalee had, but it’s still a tragic choice. The only win is that they had the agency to make the tragic choice themselves, for their own reasons.

Komui Saving His Sister Also Doomed Her

Finally, let’s talk about Lenalee again.

Personally, I will fight for Lenalee sticking with the Black Order being a fantastic character choice. It’s not her being weak-willed or naive, it comes from her being just as broken as the other exorcists.

Komui’s love for his sister starts as a gag, then becomes genuinely heart-wrenching, and it’s easy to miss that it’s also the core of Lenalee’s greatest character flaw.

Komui joining the black order saved Lenalee. She’d been mentally broken, and that connection gave her a reason to live again, but it also trapped her.

(If you remember what chapter this scene is in, please tell me so I can grab a panel)

Lenalee says once Komui joined, she understood she couldn’t leave. She sees the Black Order as home and family more than anyone else, and that’s her lifeline. She’s not fighting for the world, she’s fighting for the people she loves, especially her brother. His dependency on her may be more melodramatic, but she’s just as unhealthily dependent on him.

The Black Order kidnapped Lenalee and forced her to fight. She saw horrific experiments, and, now in canon, has watched them hurt and use her and her friends, but she’s trapped. Her entire world is tied up in a corrupt paramilitary organization, but leaving it would mean abandoning her whole world.

I think her goodbye scene with Allen makes a lot more sense through that lens. They’re both traumatized kids held together by a single purpose. They care deeply about each other, but neither can make the choice the other might want because their guiding purposes tie them to different forces, and, without that tie, they’d become untethered.

In Conclusion

Characters in D.Gray-Man don’t become more powerful by accepting friendship, they become more powerful by hacking parts of themselves away and binding themselves to tragedy, and then the story smiles and goes ‘look, we won, we did it‘ while it holds a knife behind its back.

#d.gray-man #dgm

[merakiui]

OHHHHHMYGOD. I loved ur clingy codependent bf azul so much. I literally felt a bit of anxiety reading it, I love azul sm hes baba, but the thought of him being this obsessed ans codependent is so nerve-wracking. you really wouldn't be able to leave him alone once he starts exhibiting signs of mental health issues.. and if this is an au where he has his canon octo form, then hes def the type to cut a tentacle or two of his just to "prove" how serious he is, knowing it will grow back eventually anyway so why not make the most out of it and scare the hell out of darling 😭

UGH AND THE WEDDING TRAPPING. and the fact it only spirals downwards from there. the door and knife scene literally made me pause bc omg.. I was not expecting it to escalate like that.. but it fits SO well!! and darlings realization throughout the drabble is honestly so upsetting because acknowledging that most of their attempts will be futile is so frustrating and hope-killing when they have a slimy and pathetic octo clinging to them 😭😭 and especially now considering how close they and azul are, legality wise. REALLY, I don't know what's so different about this compared to your azul drabbles, but it really had me pacing a little im ngl. maybe it's the fact hes way more blatantly insane and blunt with his obsession or that he's willing to go to more extreme measures? whatever it is, you nailed it and I absolutely loved it!!

and this on a different, more minor note, but are you the same author that wrote the ex scara stuff? reading the azul drabble took me back to this other codependent, obsessed bf drabble i read a few months back. it wad about darling and scara being high school sweethearts, but scara becomes more unstable throughout the relationship, so darling eventually breaks it off with him before going to college. only for ex bf scara to show up, feign innocence and squish himself into darlings friend group as a way to get close to them again, and it ends with scara also wedding trapping them. if u did not write that, I am so sorry 😭 the azul piece just kinda reminded me of it but theyre two separate things and I love each one sm!! srsly, your writing is so addicting I don't understand how you do it. and you pace things so well, like despite the azul piece not being a fully fledged fic, it still has nice pacing. it's not too short or too lengthy, and not too fast or too slow, it keeps you alert and eager to continue!!

AAAAA THANK YOU FOR READING IT!!!! I’m happy you liked it and that you could even feel anxiety from it!! :O I was hoping it could evoke uncomfortable feelings like that, so I’m relieved to know I could succeed in that endeavor!

An Azul who is so dangerously unhealthy and obsessed is always a scary thought. I wanted to write something where it starts seemingly innocent and then becomes something so uncontrollable, much like how most toxic relationships often begin. It’s small and almost cute until it isn’t—until you’re snuffed from the stifling nature of someone’s codependent behaviors. It can be stressful, so I wanted to portray that on both sides. Stressful for Azul because his tendency to panic and overthink when he’s spiraling makes anything like a day out with friends seem like a very stressful thing. Stressful for Reader because they’ve taken on the role of protecting Azul from himself (even though it isn’t a role for them to take on).

Reader probably likens Azul to a glass vase sitting on the edge of a cliff and one strong gust of wind is all it takes for that vase to come crashing down. But then Azul is also highly intelligent and he only takes risks if he knows there will be a reward, so he can peer over the edge of the cliff and he won’t fall. So if he does cut a tentacle or two to prove something to Reader (or scare the life out of them and force them to stay), he does it while fully knowing it’ll grow back. It still hurts, but then Azul thinks this pain is nothing compared to the pain he’ll feel if you leave him forever. “Leave” and “abandon” are so interchangeable for him. They’re somewhat similar words, but “abandon” sounds harsher. You can leave a person and all is well. You can abandon a person and that makes it sound wrong. Hurtful and villainous. It’s such a small thing, but it hooks you every time. Because leaving Azul makes it sound easy. But abandoning him paints you as the bad one—the one who abandoned him in his time of need.

And marriage trapping!!! He’s really so cunning, but Reader’s too busy trying to balance his breakdowns and keep him above the water to realize that beneath all of that he’s actually quite smart. In a marriage, it’s just you and Azul. No one else can truly interfere with that. And for Azul it’s easier to isolate you. You agreed to be his now. You agreed to live with and love him for the rest of your life. You said your vows. You kissed him in front of family and friends. You are a pair now, and that’s unbreakable. Not even divorce can save you because that’s an expensive and lengthy process and even if you did separate in that way you’d still be forced to fret over him and what he might do next. And that’s really scary! The idea of “okay, he’s done this terrible thing…but what’s next?” is always so chilling. What else is this person capable of? is a frightening question to ask when you don’t have an answer. When there isn’t a line to make a clear divide between the crossable and uncrossable or when that line is blurred, it makes it seem like anything is on the table. And since Azul is so codependent, there are always worrying mindsets like: If you aren’t in my world, I shouldn’t be here either. If I can’t have you, no one can. If I lose you, I lose a vital part of myself. My life hinges on you being here with me, so if you’re not in my life there isn’t a life to live. Without you, everything is worthless and meaningless.

Thank you again for liking this piece!! I’m glad it felt different from other Azul thoughts I’ve written. It’s most likely as you’ve said: he’s much more insane and willing to go to extreme lengths for the sake of his obsession. >_< this type of Azul is truly horrifying, but he’s very interesting to write and analyze like this.

And I did write the possessive ex Scara story!!! :D omg for a moment I forgot I had written it until you reminded me! I’m happy you like this one as well. Scara 🤝 Azul: codependent boyfriends who raise your stress meter just by existing. ^^;;;

Aaaaa thank you for thinking my writing is addicting and well-paced!! I’m glad it didn’t feel too slow or too fast as well as too long or too short!! I’m happy it can be an enjoyable, albeit anxiety-inducing, read!!!!

#twisted chit chat #also!!! please forgive my lengthy response orz #i love rambling about azul hehe <3

[youroomwasquare]

In regards to your post about Marcy’s arc, if your right-that marcy got nothing out of her time in amphibia-shouldn’t she hate the place, or at least not want to be associated with it?

Plus, why would she take a career that allows her to engage in escapism and is probably not what her parents wanted, when her whole are is about escapism being bad and that she needs to obey her parents.

first ask!! aaaa!! excitement noises

for your first point-- I think marcy has a lot of conflicting feeling towards amphibia, and towards her own experiences in it. and I want to correct my words-- I do think marcy got something out of amphibia, but it was absolutely NOT what she was looking for, nor did it benefit her or her overall growth in the way that it did for anne and sasha. amphibia showed marcy that her actions have consequences-- brutal consequences. it gave her the step she needed to confront her major flaw of being unable to let go-- which manifested in her always running away. amphibia was where marcy learned that you do eventually have to let go of some things. life does not always go the way you want it to, unfortunately. marcy had to face the things she was running away from in order for her to properly move forward.

also, at the end of the series, marcy learned that she will never truly be alone-- anne and sasha will be there for as long as they are able to-- whether that's in person, in spirit, or through phone calls + the internet. marcy needed the reassurance of their love, that they do care about her, in order to take that extra push and go home with them. does that contradict the whole theme of letting go? perhaps, but learning to let go doesn't mean that you have to let go of everything-- it just means that you have to come to terms with the fact that things will come in and out of your life sometimes. it also doesn't make what you had less real-- in fact, it makes it that much more special. because you're acknowledging the fact it existed, and that you truly cherished the time that you spent with them. THAT'S what marcy learned. her true arc was not that escapism is bad, but more so that you can not run away from certain things. not without bringing yourself (and the people around you) a world of bad. once she realized that anne and sasha are not leaving-- not in the way that she thinks-- that's how she was able to let go. and that's how their friendship can still exist and still grow even after years of on-and-off contact after the move. *** as for her career, the girls likely coped with their experiences-- both good and bad-- in different ways. you can also see how their experiences in amphibia shaped the people they are now. sasha became a child psychologist. anne became a herpetologist. marcy became a comic artist.. not because she's still engaging in the same kind of escapism, but because she's using that escapism as a healthy outlet. no longer is marcy running away-- rather, she's taking charge of her own life and doing the things that SHE wants to do. you have to remember-- escapism as a concept isn't bad, per say. escapism only becomes unhealthy when it hinders your own life, or negatively impacts the people around you. we all indulge in a form of escapism from time to time in some way, shape, or form-- our favorite books, movies, TV shows, etc etc. even though marcy's still getting lost in fantasy worlds-- they're ones that she creates, and not because she's trying to run away from anything, rather, fantasy worlds and creativity have always been a part of who marcy wu is. amphibia wasn't marcy's first taste of escapism-- nor was it the last-- it was just the most unhealthy and prominent one. and marcy likely worked on fixing her relationship with fantasy and figuring out the limits of her escapist tendencies. especially when it becomes necessary to ground yourself back to reality. marcy has always gotten lost in fantasy worlds-- it's a core part of her established personality. if she can express it in healthy ways, why would it be a negative trait? lastly, about her parents, I honestly don't know much about the wus besides what we were given in canon. do I think the way they handled breaking the news to her was absolutely not the right way to go about it? YES! do I think she may have a slightly rocky relationship with them? also yes.. sort of. but by the end of the series, marcy is an adult. her parents should really have 0 say as to what she wants to do with her life at that point. and while we can see that they seem to value more.. traditional career paths (at least from the subtext of the show), I definitely don't think that was what the writers wanted to close marcy's story on. marcy, in my opinion, didn't move for her parents-- she moved because that was the culmination of her arc. she started the series running away from the move, and ended it with the intentions of making things right-- starting by going through with the move. marcy, by that point in the series, knew that her friendship with anne & sasha was unbreakable-- and that was her main reason as to why she opposed it in the beginning. this allowed her to walk out of the skin of her old self, towards a new beginning. and who knows? perhaps marcy wu flourished in massachusetts. I'm content with epilogue marcy. to me at least, she looks very happy.

#amphibia #asks #sorry if this is messy aaaa.. this was mostly my unfiltered thoughts #please let me know if there's something you disagree with-- I love broadening my amphibia takes!!

[klayleyism]

Do you consider/think that Rebekah betrayed Klaus by getting with Marcel in the first place? I wasn’t much of fan of the auntie/nephew/lovers “relationship” they had it was just weird af but rewatching TO S1 now….

it’s making realize that Rebekah did betray Klaus by going after HIS SON (same if Elijah went after hope after she grew up) and Marcel did by brining Pap Tunda then Mikael and yet somehow they framed it as Klaus being the villain/evil brother in that storyline.

Their so called “relationship” it’s just disgusting & disturbing on so many levels and Klaus was actually right to prevent it, he was selfish & cruel in getting in the way of all of Rebekah’s other relationships but I actually agree with him on this on.

Rebekah should NOT have started anything with Klaus’s son, she cross a boundary, and she basically groomed Marcel to love her, had Marcel been a girl and Elijah got together with he, everyone would acknowledge how creepy that situation was and how Klaus was right to prevent such “relationship”.

Would love to know your thoughts on the manner if you will please

Now the originals is about how dysfunctional the mikaelsons relationships are, they're all deeply traumatized and troubled not very good people so yes, I mean if we're gonna talk about how unhealthy/inappropriate these ships are klayley will get most of the lashings here too

But Klaus wasn't ln the right,in fact he just had a huge victim complex, his reasons for ruining it for Marcel and Rebekah were not out of some sort of fatherly fear for Marcel's well being, if anything he neglected him quite a lot

But it was a mix of feeling entitled to both of them, worry they'll love each other more than they love him and also fear of them being too attached to each other under the threat of Mikael as Klaus himself said in s1 that after settling in new Orleans and him feeling like they found their forever home he did not mind them being together and was quite happy for them

Rebekah suffered a lot of abuse from Klaus, she had every right to do the most to escape him because it was him who drove her to such a point and traumatized her that badly

So yeah I actually think she should've done worse tbh

#the originals #klaus mikaelson #rebekah mikaelson #marcel gerard #marbekah

[lunestael]

Itafushi vs. Satosugu Analysis

Posed with this question on twitter which had me go like “yeah thats not gonna happen.”

“If Megumi and Yuji end up the same as Gojo and Geto... what are we going to do? “

disclaimer: just using their ship names in reference to the relationship dynamic between the characters in canon, not connotating a romantic relationship

I feel like satosugu and itafushi are specifically portrayed to be foils of each other, to compare the ways that itfs excels in what stsg failed at (honest communication and being sensitive to each other’s feelings, acceptance of each other despite differences in philosophy, etc)

Both itfs and stsg have pivotal philosophical debates on what their personal beliefs surrounding “saving people” entails, which narratively serves to establish each person’s character and goals as jujutsu sorcerers. however, despite being about a similar topic, they are approached completely differently.

fushiguro claims “selfish” reasons for saving people, saving those he personally believes deserved to be saved, because he isn’t some kind of righteous hero, hes just a jujutsu sorcerer, and he does not want to save someone who will just cause harm others in the future.

itadori, on the other hand, maintains the belief that all humans deserve to life a normal life and die a normal death, regardless of what they have done, or will do. If someone were in trouble, and you were the only one capable of saving them, itadori’s belief is that you should try your best to save them. 

Both of them acknowledge this difference in philosophy, but interestingly enough neither disagree with each other’s conviction either. They find the meaning and think about each other’s positions in life that made them come to their own separate conclusions, and respect it even if it doesn’t exactly align with their own, with itadori stating that even if their philosophies are different, doesn’t mean they can’t both be right.

itafushi consistently seek to understand each other’s perspective and put themselves in each other’s shoes. This makes them more empathetic and more willing to listen and understand those they care about. 

stsg have always struggled with this from the beginning. Gojo and Fushiguro have relatively the same philosophy, as do Itadori and Geto (i could do a whole other analysis comparing gojo vs megumi as well as itadori vs. geto goddd) regarding the concept of saving people, though Gojo is much more crass about it than Fushiguro was, most likely to bait Geto into a fight, which Geto easily falls for. Even though they’re close and inseparable friends and the self-named “strongest duo”, there are clear moral lines that divide the two that they use to push against each other. I mean, they literally escalate into a near physical duel over it in not even two pages. 

on another note, gojo has been noted by gege to have relied on geto as a moral compass. your own moral and ethical code being dictated by another person can be extremely unhealthy and become manipulative. gojo saw geto as the pinnacle of morality (which is ironic considering his moral decisions a year later) to the point where whether gojo would massacre an entire religious group all depended on geto’s response at that moment. 

meanwhile geto had his own inner idealization of gojo as the strongest alone, not in the way the rest of the world perceived him, but in his own way as the supposed other half of the strongest duo. you can feel a certain sense of...envy or resentment when geto wishes he were gojo so he could achieve the society he gave up everything for, even though he was supposed to be the strongest WITH gojo. thats how far he felt from gojo without gojo realizing he had felt that way.

satosugu overall have a lot of misconceptions about each other they accept as inherent truths though they never actually confirmed, some of which are realized too late, others never revealed at all.

megumi could almost immediately tell when yuji had gone through some trauma as soon as he saw him alive again, and immediately brought it up to make sure he was okay, which even though yuji was not okay, it was a huge gesture from megumi to stay emotionally in touch with yuji when he can see him struggling.

gojo, however, doesn’t notice when the same thing happens to suguru, though he does notice something is off with suguru. not to say that it was satoru’s responsibility to bring suguru from the brink of his mental break, but rather it shows how their wavelengths are no longer as in sync as they used to be. with satoru having suguru as his moral compass as well, satoru may also have some doubts that suguru would have his own moral struggles since he depends on him to always make the right and just choices (oh the tragic irony...)

TLDR; itafushi tackle their differences and issues with each other with open arms and seeking to understand each other with honesty. they don’t apply a codependent attitude towards each other, being very close and understanding without idealizations of each other beyond reason. itafushi are just raw truths to each other from the beginning. satosugu...have a lot of internal issues they never bring to each other and just let fester until the dam breaks. they have preconceptions about each other and idealize each other without communicating them to each other, adopting both an unhealthy codependent relationship without proper communications. 

i think itafushi have a much better foundation of support to survive whatever ordeals they will undergo, and most likely be able to pull each other from their respective brinks when they come compared to satosugu’s tragic end.

#jjk #jujutsu kaisen #itafushi #satosugu #jjk meta #itadori yuji #fushiguro megumi #gojo satoru #geto suguru #this is not any this ship is better than this ship debate either!!! so lets not bring it there!!!! #all of my otps are wildly obsessive and unhealthy and toxic and that is simply how i like it <3 #sorry if this post is a mess i started this months ago and then work killed my ass!!! #i just want to get this out of my drafts

[wiseabsol]

Hey! I wanted to tell you that I love your Dominion reviews, and I also wanted to ask you about your opinion on a possible Azula-Catra comparison. Because people tend to compare Zuko’s and Catra’s redemption arcs in order to debunk the latter, and though I can see the parallelisms, I’ve always believed that Catra is, at heart, much more similar to Azula, and even more if you consider Dominion!Azula (which will never not be the real, full-fledged Azula to me, never mind canon). What do you think?

So I think any redemption arc in media tends to get compared to Zuko's because, A.) The people doing the comparing often grew up with ATLA, so it's the first one that comes to mind, and B.) It's a redemption arc that takes time to develop, has setbacks, and has Zuko working towards earning the trust of those he hurt in the past.

Catra's, I think, is harder for people to swallow. A large part of this is because she spends 4 out of the 5 seasons being an angry, toxic person, especially towards Adora and Scorpia (Scorpia, I want to point out, does not respect Catra's boundaries, forcing physical affection on her when she doesn't want it. This doesn't mean that Scorpia deserved how Catra's treated her, but I think that friendship was unhealthy both ways). I can understand why people, looking at Catra, would say that getting only one season for a redemption arc wouldn't be enough--especially because she nearly destroyed the world and did, functionally, kill Angella. Zuko, in comparison, stalked people and burned down people's homes, but didn't kill anyone.

But personally, I liked Catra's redemption arc. I liked her acknowledging her anger issues and having a therapy animal to help her manage it. I liked her apologizing and trying to make things right to the people she hurt. I liked her realizing that her ambitions in the earlier seasons were mostly a means to have some control over her life and gain the favor of the adults around her. Catra, all things considered, is a pretty self-aware character--she knows how she's been treated all of her life is wrong, and that the side she's on is evil, and that what she wants most of all is to be with Adora. However, she gets hung up over feeling abandoned, lashes out when she's afraid and upset, and ultimately feels so guilty over pushing people away and the things she's done that she's suicidal about it. Dying doing a heroic thing seems, to her, the only way to make things right.

Which doesn't happen, of course. Catra is saved. And ultimately, she's offered a spot of the best friend squad, because people are still willing to give her a chance to be a better person (in part because she took that first step to try to make things right). And that, I think, is really important--because while it's no one else's job to fix you, if no one ever gives you the chance to grow and is always waiting for you to mess up--to prove yourself to be a monster--then what motivation do you have to get better?

But I'm getting off topic. What you actually asked me is if I see similarities between Azula and Catra. And in some ways, yes--mostly in how the fandoms treat them--but in other wars, no. Let's dig into it:

Catra knows that she has been abused by Shadow Weaver and that Shadow Weaver is a bad person and parent. Azula does not realize consciously that she's been abused, or that Ozai is a bad person and parent (though she knows he's capable of hurting his children, due to what he did to Zuko).

Their responses to this abuse differs. Catra is more angry, defiant, and irreverent, and is physically hurt by Shadow Weaver as a result (which isn't her fault--it's Shadow Weaver who's in the wrong). Azula decides to become the perfect firebender and ally to her father, and in doing so secures "safety" for herself from Ozai. Incidentally, Adora also picked the striving for perfection route of appeasement.

Catra knows that the Hoard is evil, but goes along with their goals anyway, largely to get back at Adora for leaving her and to gain Shadow Weaver's and Hordak's "respect." Azula doesn't know that the Fire Nation is in the wrong, because she's fully been indoctrinated. In fact, Azula and Adora are more similar on this point, at least before Adora realizes the Hoard is attacking villages. Would she have realized this, though, if she hadn't spent time there beforehand with Glimmer and Bow? In any case, Azula stays with the Fire Nation because she's never been given a reason to question their conquest, and because that's how she earns her father's "love" and "respect."

Catra is happy about Adora's promotion until she realizes that she won't be shipping out with Adora (and thus is being left behind). Azula and Zuko grow up in an environment where if one of them succeeds, that means the other one is failing, and thus are never happy about each other's accomplishments.

Catra just wants to be the one Adora chooses and tries several times to get her to come "home." Azula desperately wants to be chosen by someone, hence her attachment to Ozai. But also, Azula goes to great lengths to get Zuko to come home too, setting him up with Mai and letting him take credit for killing Aang.

Catra and Azula both break down and lash out when the people they love leave them. They also both experience guilt over what they've done, though Catra, I think, confronts this more head on, while Azula tries to rationalize her actions ("Trust is for fools."). They also both fully believe that they're monsters who no one can love.

Both Catra and Azula treat their best friends poorly and drive them away. Catra, after doing some soul-searching, tries to sacrifice herself to make things right, and is given the chance to redeem herself after she survives. Azula attempts to do some soul-searching, hits a "does not computer" error message, and is not given a chance to redeem herself, in part because there's no more show left. If there had been a season four, perhaps we would have gotten that, but unfortunately, all we have are the (terrible) comics.

Azula is 14 during ATLA. No one reaches out to her or encourages her to think critically about what her side is doing. Catra is apparently 17-18 at the start of SPOP and 20-21 at the end of it. People do reach out to her and encourage her to think critically about what her side is doing. Azula gets no shot at redemption. Catra does.

Azula and Catra are both demonized by some of the fanbase, with Azula commonly being pathologized. Azula, despite being younger, being less self-aware than Catra, and being given fewer chances for improvement, is actually treated with more vitriol than Catra--even though Catra knows she's in an evil organization and chooses to stay, and objectively does worse things over the course of the show. My guess is that this is because SPOP offers more sympathetic moments to Catra, which ATLA doesn't give Azula. Regardless, explaining to these fans that these characters are young victims of abuse who responded to it in maladaptive ways, and deserve sympathy and a chance to heal, doesn't work. Instead, because they were toxic and hurt the characters we like (characters on the other side of a war), they are ruined forever. Despite being incredibly young and, for the most part, barely stepping out of the abusive environments they grew up in.

And to be clear on this point--I can understand it if the people these two hurt never accepted them back. Their pain is valid (in fact, I wish Scorpia had told Catra that she needed time, rather than forgiving her easily at the end). However, saying Azula and Catra are lost causes who can't become better people, who can develop healthy relationships with other people, is incredibly reductive. It also tells real people that if you fuck up in your youths, you'll never get better and no one will ever love you again, which is appalling. As someone who had maladaptive reactions to growing up abused, if this had been what I was told--rather than having loved ones who were patient with me, told me how I messed up, and encouraged me to self-reflect and grow--I might not be here right now.

Which brings me to my final point: To be happy and find peace, what Catra and Azula both need is acceptance and love from healthy sources. Catra receives it and works on herself. Azula...doesn't. And I'm not sure I can blame a 14-year-old for stagnating as a result.

#Azula #Catra #ATLA #SPOP

[chaoticsoulsword]

I didn’t know how to capture this moment except in a gif (or maybe in a video but the quality and size would still be wonky) so my apologies in advance.

But I’m DESPERATE to talk about it.

This is the moment when both the leaders gather EVERYONE in the square to apologize and share BIG NEWS. Maxie begins with the first part, taking full responsability (even though it wasn’t even their faults this time around) and also encouraging both teams’ admins to do the same (to which Archies also complies - and that’s very daddy-ish of both leaders). Next, Maxie explains that they were humbled by the experience of losing control over Groundon and Kyogre and that there’s no point in fighting over land x water.

But then!! THIS IS THE MOMENT!! This is the moment Maxie stares at Archies and allows him to finish his reasoning. This is the moment of their understanding, their ACTUAL RECONCILIATION!! Archie follows the queue and then reveals that Team Magma and Team Aqua called a truce.

The way Maxie and Archie SHARE the news is just so important. Maxie just stares at Archie as if he were saying “go on, tell them we’re no longer fighting”. And Archie KNOWS and he’s HAPPY about it. Archie’s expression is not of someone displeased (he does have those kinds of animations in the game). But here, he’s happy. He’s happy to deliver the news that the teams finally achieved some kind of peace. AND ON TOP OF THAT, Maxie adds that they’ll help rebuild Pasio (which is basically a very common prompt in Hardenshipping fics post legendaries, mine included lol).

So yup, they pretty much left their differences behind, as they just merely teased they would in ORAS. BUT FINALLY, FINALLY they acknowledge it. Because, in the beginning of this chapter, they both confess to their admins, respectively, that they’re not interested in fighting their rivals. But they don’t know they have similar feelings. They don’t know YET.

However, Looker probably mediated them. Besides, they’ve never attacked each other, it was an accident. And it’s true they blamed one another at first, but as soon as they realized they were wrong, they were mature enough to move past it, which proves that, in fact, they’re also mature to acknowledge the feelings they have for each other.

Not wanting to battle, joining forces, fighting to save the world, those are things that brought them together, and to some degree, they seem very comfortable and happy about it.

Because truth be told, they never wanted to be rivals. They were part of the same organization, they’ve shared the same ideals at some point before developing opposing goals, blinded by their violent and extreme methods.

The amount of growth in this single gesture of Maxie staring at Archie so he could conclude the reasoning and share the news is BONKERS. They’re genuinely getting along again, and Maxie revealing that they only fight because that’s how he acknowledges Archie’s feelings is just... This is HUGE.

IT’S POETIC CINEMA.

I’m speechless at the depth of this storytelling. They didn’t have go to this hard for a ship but they did it anyways.

Maxie and Archie at this point of the game are not even villains anymore. They made their divorce about everyone else and now they’re making their reconciliation about the world they want to build together.

I’m at my limit and I’m an unhealthy amount of not normal about them.

#hardenshipping #magma leader maxie #aqua leader archie #pokemas #pokemon masters ex #pokemon masters ex spoilers #hoenn villain arc pt 2 #hoenn villain arc #hoenn villain arc spoilers #pokemas spoilers #oras #i'm a bit bitter that zinnia and steven stole the spotlight but also i'm pleased #they're never allowed to be heroes because they need the protagonists to shine #so they're always left behind in every plot but at least we got reconciliation #so all is forgiven