#and it just Happens to become convenient later on and this happens VERY often and no one ever really knows how he does it

[talentforlying]

father grimaldi: forgive me, lord, for i have sinned. constantine: — understatement of the bloody century, that is. father grimaldi: the chapel is closed to the public! who are you? how did you get in here . . .? constantine: did you know vatican city has the highest per-capita crime rate of any nation state in the world? i'd have thought a touch of breaking and entering's pretty much par for the course around here.

so #1, an undeniable slay.

#2, how long do we think he was sitting in the confessional booth waiting for the guy to wake up from ellie's fake vision quest. like an hour? checking his light, practicing his Big Reveal Pose TM? he probably brought a book with him and just shoved it underneath the seat cushion when it was time to show off.

#3, knowing how intensely he studied & continues to study in order to teach himself magic at such an absurdly advanced level without any teachers to formally guide him? and how that level of dedication would absolutely carry over into researching a mark / making sure he had every corner of a confidence scheme nailed down pat? i like to imagine that the day before this meeting was spent with his severely under-caffeinated ass parked at a public library computer, squinting at articles for 'most important things to know about vatican city before you travel' or 'top 10 little-known facts about vatican city' and using the back of his boarding pass to take notes on what would be the best throwaway line to blow off all the usual questions with.

also, he probably woke up still in his travel clothes less than two hours before this scene and had to hustle to get suited up in time for his Dramatic Apparition. the demon blood was boiling so bad in that chapel that it was giving him a killer migraine. he didn't get breakfast so his stomach was growling the ENTIRE time. but all that meant was he had plenty of room to eat UP the runway and that's EXACTLY what the fuck he did.i'm

#( ooc. ) OUT OF CIGS. #always torn in half between 'john is a freaky little weirdo who just Knows Things and Picks Up Vibes and it usually works for him' #and 'john is the most Normal Dude in the whole london occult scene he just works w/ magic like a grad student prepping for finals week' #and you know what? the answer is always 'Both. Both is good.' #also on the one hand i'm truly obsessed with the idea of john just?? Always having a bunch of weird trivia available w/ his eidetic memory #like he read about the apostolic palace once in a book when he was with the peace convoy and his brain latched onto it forever #and it just Happens to become convenient later on and this happens VERY often and no one ever really knows how he does it #but there is a real real charm in considering that he's still Just A Guy beneath all the layers of false confidence and mysticism #still someone who had to work to get to where he is now and who will always have to work to Maintain as well #i like the mental image of him pacing around his temporary digs with index cards and drilling all the necessary details for the scam #or him and ellie getting blasted the night before and dramatically playing out their Big Final Confrontation to iron out all the beats #you just Know they were laughing til they cried workshopping shit like 'MY OLD ADVERSARY! WE MEET AGAIN!' and 'DO YOUR WORST HELLSPAWN!' #still trying to keep straight faces the day of the fake fight while drastically improvising to try and throw each other off their game #idk!!! i always enjoy the Strange and Off-Putting things about him but all of the Really Really Human stuff is also just. so so precious #we always get to see The Myth The Legend as shaped by the errors of The Man. but especially in later years actually SEEING The Man gets rar #all this to say that for every perfectly executed and properly horrifying loom out of the shadows with a glimmer of his freaky glowing eyes #there is always at LEAST half an hour or more practicing angles + expressions + mood lighting in the mirror going on behind the scenes #and that is very very special to me!!!! #( headcanons. ) I'M JUST LIKE THE BASTARDS I'VE HATED ALL ME LIFE. #( visage. ) AND I'M A BASTARD. #sched.

[blkgirl-writing]

The massive list of SFW and NSFW Gale Dekarios headcanons

Gale of Waterdeep x Reader (Gn! for the most part)

A/N: the more I write Gale, the more in love with him I am. I started this before patch 5 and haven't been able to play it myself, so whoopsies if I just have to make another one of these. Lots of requests included in this one, to be expanded on later!

Gale is the most caring partner in the whole group. Followed by karlach and Wyll

He would much rather do everything for you than anything for him

This means he often over extends himself for you and you have to convince him to let you help him

Quality time and words of affirmation are his main love languages. All he wants is time alone with you, and he will do so much to make that happen

Gale actually sets up his tent to be as comfortable as possible because you don't have your own tent, and he doesn't mind at all if you sleep in his

eventually you basically just sleep in his tent exclusively, platonically at the moment. Sleeping on other sides or with a blanket between you

It isn't until you wake up from a particularly bad nightmare that your accidental touches aren't followed by apologies. Not quite embracing but not flinching away

He held you that night, wrapping his arms around you, his hands were big, soft, and comforting. He didn't speak until you did, who knows how long that was. All he said was "You're safe. It's ok."

────⊱⁜⊰────

He truly believes he doesn’t deserve you and that weighs kind of heavy on him

That shows in his body movements, confidence, still hesitant to be close to you physically in an extremely subtle way

With more flirting, more talking, more late nights close together, but still apart, still a gap in your embrace

Gale is still in touch with his sexuality and sex, but sex is different than love making. And he knew, when he fully let you in, when he’s finally stable and his mind, body, and soul were ready, he’d make love to you

Your first time together was for the most part, pretty talked through. You set your boundaries and safe word pretty fast

He’d stop at some point, pull back and just admire you

Stop is used lightly because he’s definitely still inside you and just very slowly still pumping in and out of you

“You’re absolutely ravishing.”

And he’d give himself fully to you

Gods he’d be all over you after, so touchy, even if not sexual in nature, any tough felt electric

Gale holds your waist more than your hand, it feels more romantic, showing you off to the world as someone that chose him. It’s really sweet, the first time he does it, he hand trembled a bit, he thought he was smooth enough for you not to tell but you could definitely feel it

Don’t get me wrong, he is confident and cocky at times, everyone knows that. But with you somehow, he feels nervous that you deserve more than he could give

Part of your early relationship is making sure he knows he’s wanted and loved and more than anything you could have wished for

────⊱⁜⊰────

Cuddling is always fun because it usually end up with fucking

If you’re the big spoon? He becomes such an angel and snuggles into your touch

If he’s big spoon he’s immediately turned on by everything, you being so close into him, your ass pressed against him, so many beautiful places for him to touch

Always ends in side fucking, just pulling your underwear down just enough to grind his cock on your bare ass

It’s also just convenient and easy if you’re getting busy while the others are sleeping in camp

But many days your time has you weak and just ready for rest, but you're both more horny than tired

that's when mutual masturbation becomes a daily routine, which never really leaves, even when you aren't as tired and have more privacy

he likes you call you his cherished work of art, seeing you spread for him is like a painting

────⊱⁜⊰────

One night in baldurs gate, you stay up into the morning drinking and talking in a bar, they only kicked you out when they literally were an hour last close, keeping it open because you had bought so much

It was literally anything, just talking about everything and nothing at the same time. Past pets, stupid haircuts growing up, embarrassing failures

That was the night everyone else really realized how deeply in love you two were

Like sure there was romance but real true love, with sparks

They absolutely made fun of you when you finally stumbled to your camp and passed out all day crammed into the small one person beds

I like to believe Astarion drew a stick figure version of y’all’s sleeping position to make fun of you when you woke

────⊱⁜⊰────

Once you’ve moved in with him he gets more and more turned on by you every day

You could be doing nothing and he’d grab your thigh and give you such a dirty look of lust

Not even three months in and ya'll have fucked on every surface possible, knocked over many books, and accidentally broke a vase and a bit in the shower

For the most part, your cozy days consist of him reading, and you beside him, feet resting on his lap

If you're a bard, of course he's going to ask you to practice and play around him and while you relax together, his favorite sounds all come from your sweet melodies

if you drink you definitely share a bottle of wine throughout the day

When Gale get's tipsy he just gets lovey and nerdy

telling you about a favorite bit of history or a spell, interrupting himself to compliment you "Gods you're beautiful, have I told you that today, dear?" and "And that's how the stars fell in love with- that top is stunning my love, mind if I take it off?"

cooking is fun yet very stressful unless he has a drink in hand

it's his kitchen and he's not used to company in it, so he often bumps into you or doesn't know where to say something is, so he just ends up getting it for you

I have a feeling this man is super into coffee and the roasts

like he's an absolute snob over it. A whole glass cupboard is dedicated to bags of coffee from where ever he travels

"Just too dark of a roast, it muddies the hazelnut flavor" (yes I believe he's a whole bean light roast lover)

Maybe you get a normal, non-speaking cat for yourself and just to have a bigger family in your home

I'd imagine a very reckless black or ginger cat who tara takes a VERY long time to love

but it's your and Gales cat. It's a thing you own together and love dearly

There's also a self of cards, board games, etc, for your date nights in

Gale legitimately is just as happy if you win than if he, if not more happy for you

He often takes a while to take his turn because he's distracted by you

super sweet but makes games feel much longer

────⊱⁜⊰────

@shyminnie07 @makers-breath @claryvoyantfray @black-sapphic @fapqueen

(Consider supporting me on Ko-fi)

#x reader #fluff #smut #gale of waterdeep #baldurs gate 3 #gale x reader #baldurs gate gale #gale dekarios #bg3 gale #gale x tav #gale of waterdeep x reader #gale of waterdeep bg3 #gale of waterdeep x tav #gale of waterdeep smut #baldur's gate 3 #baldur's gate iii #baldurs gate tav #baldurs gate x reader #baldurs gate headcanon #headcanonn #fanfiction

[heartfullofleeches]

Oblivious healer entity reader that finds joy and endless happiness every day living in a town that's basically hell on earth for its human residents

-

To live in this place is to know true suffering. Life is meaningless, flesh is expendable. Few bother to make friends with their neighbors or check in relatives as tomorrow is never a guarantee. Creatures from the unknown, unexplainable disappearances, those who lost themselves and craved the same violence thrust unto them, false prophets. Those who attempted to flee often faced the worse kinds of punishment. There was truly no end to their torment.

Dazed and on the verge of collapsing, a new arrival in town found itself roaming the near empty shelves of a convenience store in ruin. Glass stabbed at its outer layer flesh, reflecting the strange clawing sensation in the lower regions of its stomach. It would later learn these feelings to be the pains of hunger, one it was not as fond of as others. The newcomer had learned so much in such a short time residing in this new town and body. It wanted to learn more - like what would happen if it stuffed those odd, brightly colored shapes into the singular hole it called a mouth. They were sweet, they were sour, they were savory- flavors and descriptions foreign til taught by those who cared for it later on.

The newcomer comes across the owner of the store laying motionless behind the counter. The syrup surrounding them is not as sweet as what it sampled from bottles in the cold storage spaces. Poking at the owner garners no response. It's then that the newcomer realizes their faults. It hadn't offered currency before eating like it'd seen others do. It didn't have those papers or coins or even those rectangular bits of plastic. It deciding the next best thing to give as payment was to fix that large hole in their face. None of the humans it came across before had one of those, so it must need fixing.

The store owner finally responded to its questions once it had repaired the hole. If the newcomer had anyway to describe the process it was like playing with clay. The store owner only answered in screams of terror until the newcomer was able to calm them enough to tell them how they had fixed them - and eaten the rest of their stock. They weren't upset by that second thought as the newcomer had thought, and even gave them a supply of their favorite treat before calling the police.

The newcomer wondered if it helped more people it would get more treats or be invited to come back anytime as the store owner had generously offered. It was having so much fun in this new form. Its powered had been limited, but the feel of warm sunlight on their skin was worth the loss. It couldn't understand why everyone around it was so unhappy when they get to wake up everyday and welcome the morning sun. It wants to fix people, it wants them to be happy. Many reject them for fear of the unknown, but those who accept cling onto them like a lifeline. Without the newcomer around they are plunged in darkness as it has become the source of light for them it speaks so highly of. The newcomer is oblivious to their devotion as it reads books about the new world and takes light of its tragedies as it takes glee I'm all its pleasures.

-

Yan: Let me get this straight - you just repaired my kidneys and all you want is a hamburger?

Entity Reader: .... Two?

-

Yan: There is no point in waking anymore. When I'm asleep i hear the crying of my dead mother. When I'm waking she's standing over my bed. I can't think, I can't breathe. Make it stop, make it stop- There is no reason to keep existing- I should just let my cannibal neighbor eat me

Entity Reader: ...They gave me eleven nuggets instead of ten. I am very happy right now. Want the extra? :D

Yan: ..I have never been more mentally stable than I am in this current moment, if you leave me I will die.

-

[Entity Reader walks in on a friend about to be sawed in half by a masked maniac. The two share a glance before Reader throws their arms up]

Entity Reader: Frankie!! :D

[The machine rips the saw out of their victim's abdomen and rushes reader - hugging them and spinning them around as the victim fights to keep their intensities in their body]

#yandere oc #yandere imagines #yandere x you #yandere headcanons #yandere scenarios #yandere insert #yandere x reader #yandere #yandere blurb #yandere drabble #yandere text

[twopoppies]

https://www.tumblr.com/twopoppies/747389355237195776/hello-gina-i-hope-you-have-a-good-day-i-dont

You make some really good points here, especially about stepping away a bit and trying to just enjoy them as musicians. I’ve tried it with some success, but it’s not easy. I do honestly love both of their music and listen to it daily. Beyond that, it’s good to back off a bit for me.

I think for me something that has really become clear this last year, is that many fans feel entitled to what I would call Chapter 118 of the Harry/Louis WIP, and the reality is it’s just not coming. Now I love reading Larry fan fiction as much as the next person, but looking at it that way is so unfair to them. They have real lives and relationships and it’s not a story that needs to be tied up with a happily ever after. Lots of Larries - especially Twitter Larries - seem to use every interview or use of a primary color as a new chapter. I’ve never been a believer in the “mastermind” theory. And you are so right when you say the good vs evil is not really clear anymore. Yes, Syco and Cowell committed a lot of abuses, but those guys walked out of there with around $50M and tons of doors opened for them that wouldn’t have been possible without 1D , so the lines are blurred.

I think it’s pretty clear from Harry’s “corner of the internet ….it’s not real” interview to Louis latest, they don’t want our help in this - whatever “this” is anymore. It’s not underdogs vs overlords and I don’t like taking away Harry’s and Louis’s agency at this point.

It’s funny, because in 2016 if someone had said this is where you will be 8 years later I would have laughed in their face. But this is where we are and finding ways to deal with it and realizing we may never have more then we have today can be hard. Who knows what will happen in the future. Tomorrow the whole thing could blow wide open and lots of questions will get answered, but I just don’t think so and I’m ok with that. Sort of…. lol!

Anyway, thanks for the nice, calm commentary. I still enjoy reading it all!

Oh, I totally feel you on waiting for chapter 118. So many people treat their lives like an unfinished fic or a game to win. It’s super unhealthy for fans and I can’t imagine it feels good for Harry and Louis. And I very much agree that where we once were helpful, we may now be a hindrance at times. Saying that, I think it’s important to acknowledge that we’re not fucking making things up out of thin air and Harry/Louis/their teams often use Larry and larries for their benefit.

That makes it difficult to feel that they’re being completely honest when they say they don’t want a focus put on Larry.

Regardless, I’m tired of playing this game. I’d prefer to just chill in my own little circle and talk about Larry with my friends and go to concerts and have fun. But I don’t enjoy being treated like shit when it’s convenient and then sent flowers when I’m needed again, you know?

#current thoughts on Larry

[slaymitchabernathy]

Stubborn

“Darling, open the door,” Coriolanus says with a sigh.

He doesn’t hear a reply come from the other side of the heavy wooden door and his fingers wrap around the door handle even tighter than before.

“Soarynn I mean it. Come out now and we can talk about this like adults.”

Part of him just wants to break down the door. He very well could call in someone to do it for him, but what if she was near the door? Leaning against the door? She could get hurt. Coriolanus couldn’t have that. And he knew why she was hiding. She wasn’t supposed to see that.

He knocks again, harder than the last time, “Soarynn, I fucking swear if you don’t open this door I’m goi—“

“You’re going to what? Kill me too?” Soarynn asks from the other side, her voice razor sharp.

He pinches the bridge of his nose. Why must she be so difficult? “No darling, we both know that I would never lay a hand on you but I simply wish to see you and make sure that you’re alright.” Another lie but that’s okay. She wasn't supposed to see that man's body being dragged down the hallway, Coriolanus blames the messy work of the Peacekeepers, the Peacekeepers who will soon be dead because of the trouble they've now caused him.

"You promised me it would stop Coriolanus, that this would stop."

He almost laughs because they both know how little his promises mean, how often he breaks them when it comes down to his own convenience. "Sometimes things like this can be necessary," he says calmly as if talking to a spoiled child. Soarynn practically is one considering the way he lets her act.

"Go away Coriolanus."

Well, now he's had it. He can handle the tears and the snippy tone, but to tell him to leave? In his own house? The house he's worked so tirelessly for? Becoming President of Panem was no easy task and he didn't appreciate his pretty little wife acting like it was.

Coriolanus clenches his jaw and turns on his heel, striding towards his study where there are always two Peacekeepers standing guard. "I am reassigning both of you to guard that door," he says, pointing at the locked door, "it is your job to ensure that Mrs. Snow doesn't leave that room. No food, no water, nothing in, and nothing out. Am I understood?"

They nod like the mindless fools they've been trained to be and head towards the locked door. If Soarynn wants to act like a little brat then he can certainly treat her like one.

Coriolanus shakes his head as he walks down the hallway towards the front of the Mansion, he loves his wife, he really does, but sometimes she can be so stubborn. It's good that this happened really, now he can put her back in her place.

"A blessing in disguise," he mutters.

꧁ ꧂

Soarynn is brought up to their room three days later. She looks so frail, so small in the arms of a Peacekeeper. Coriolanus finds it almost humourous that the First Lady of Panem has been starving just like those who live in the Districts.

Coriolanus silently takes her into his arms, her limp body weighing almost nothing. He quietly closes their bedroom doors behind him and carries Soarynn to the bed, gently laying her down.

She's looking up at him like he's some monster, some cruel human who deserves to burn in hell. He absentmindedly brushes her hair away from her face, "Did you learn your lesson darling?" A single tear escapes from her eye and she takes a shaky breath, "You locked me in there," she whispers.

Coriolanus tilts his head, "I was the one who turned the lock? Really Soarynn, I thought we agreed not to lie to one another." He can see in her eyes that he's already won this argument. When he asked her to marry him he'd had one single request. He remembers how he pulled her into his loving embrace and how his lips ghosted the shell of her ear as he whispered in it.

"No matter what you do my darling, don't ever lie to me. You are my most precious possession and I'd hate to see you get hurt."

He had seen her perfect expression slightly falter but it was too late, his ring was on her finger and she was as good as his.

"You didn't let me leave," she presses, attempting to sit up but failing miserably as she falls back onto the bed. Coriolanus chuckles, "You needed to be taught a lesson, my stubborn girl. Without me, you don't have the luxuries of life, no food, no water. You're as good as District scum." He can see the pain in her eyes when he compares her to people in the Districts, mostly because since meeting Soarynn he's drilled his hatred into her head, repeatedly telling her how horrible those wretched people are.

He brings his hand down to her small face, gently cupping it with his large hand, "I want you to have the best life possible Soarynn, and we both know you can't get that without me." Soarynn looks at him with some fear in her eyes, good, he thinks, better to be feared than loved.

"You killed someone," she says softly, more tears rolling down her beautiful face. Coriolanus sighs, "My love, you know better than anyone that I cannot always be a good man, not if I intend to run this country the way it should be, and that includes how I discipline my wife apparently." The man he killed was no one of real importance, simply some loudmouthed diplomat who had one too many opinions for his liking.

Poisoning people has always been easy, that's how he won the election in the first place.

Coriolanus places one knee on the bed, right next to her thigh, "I wonder how those days of hunger left you feeling, perhaps you longed for your husband in more ways than one." He places his hand right next to her head as his other knee comes onto the soft bed, landing him on top of her.

Soarynn is far too weak to do anything right now but Coriolanus found himself quite sexually deprived for the last three days and he intends to make up for lost time. He leans down and places a kiss on her neck and Soarynn shifts against his touch, "Coriolanus," she whispers, "Coriolanus, please don't."

He knows she wants to go to bed, eat, drink some water, and take a bath. His dumb little wife was stupid enough to lock herself in one of their many living rooms, leaving her without as little as a bathroom sink to drink from.

He shifts his knee so it sits in between her thighs, spreading them, "Don't act like you haven't missed me Soarynn," he says, sucking a bruise onto her soft skin. Soarynn whimpers as she closes her eyes.

Coriolanus reaches his hand down to feel her covered cunt, almost desperate to sink into it once again. He takes another good look at his pretty little wife who once again thought she could win a fight against him. He places a soft kiss on her lips, much like the one they shared on their wedding day.

"It's a good thing your cunt isn't as stubborn as you are."

| tumblr drabble/oneshot |

#coriolanus fanfiction #coriolanus snow #hunger games #slaymitchabernathy #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #the hunger games #coriolanus smut #ao3 fanfic #wattpad #soarynn snow #staywithmealways #coriolanus oneshot #coriolanus imagine #coriolanus fic #coriolanus x original character #oneshot #coriolanus x oc #drabble #coriolanus drabble

[demonslayedher]

Things that went through my head while watching this episode: --Herein lies the biggest irony about Hantengu: His transformation into something reminiscent of a Buddhist deity; the sort of fierce and menacing kind that uses violence for justice. Zouhakuten is as convinced of his own righteousness as much as Hantengu is convinced of his own self-pity, and this is what Tanjiro is unable to stomach about him. Tanjiro cares about the strong defending the weak, so it's not just all the lives Hantengu has stolen, it's his blasphemy that makes him hate him.

--In a Kimetsu Kindergarten AU, I want to see Tanjiro and Rui and Zouhakuten all get into schoolyard arguments all the time.

--For as much as I've been appreciating the irony of Hantengu this time around, I do not consider myself well-versed enough in Buddhist iconography to do any detailed analysis of Zouhakuten's character design and name (yet), but suffice to this: The tengu references in Ki-Do-Ai-Raku's designs also borrow from the attire used in practicing Shugendo, because tengu are often depicted as and associated with Shugendo practitioners. Shugendo is a mountain ascetic religion with multiple influences, including Buddhist, and Zouhakuten looks like the sort of deity Shugendo practitioners might encounter in the mountains.

--But if anyone in this episode lives up to the Shugendo ideal, it is Haganezuka. That Taisho Secret with his extreme physical and spiritual preparation? That's what I mean, right there. That hyperfocus, though? If I were to diagnose one character in this series as neurodivergent, it is Haganezuka-san, and that maybe be part of where he gets his hyperfocus. Still, it's built into the plot that he prepared to put his life on the line for this endeavor, so I also give him credit for having also practiced spiritual mastery! For when it counts, anyway. Swords are the only time when it counts.

--Muichiro--both physically and spiritually-- was very vividly saved by Kotetsu's actions, but Haganezuka also deserves credit for having been the perfect person to exploit Gyokko's weakness--his pride as an artist. (You get a 'you tried' gold star, Kanamori-san--for now, because the sword you smithed saves the day later. Truly, everyone's actions are important!).

--Might I just say--OWWWW, Kotetsu's solar plexus might not have been punctured, but that's gotta hurt. And speaking of getting punctured, MUICHIRO FELL FLAT ON THOSE NEEDLES HE STILL HAD STUCK TO THE FROM OF HIM, OW OW OW OW OW OW OW

--The fact that Rengoku-san's tsuba was what saved Kotetsu is another why reason I really, really wanna see Senjuro and Kotetsu become penpals

--I like that even though Tanjiro and Mr. Tokito have a resemblance, Mr. Tokito sounds like a dad. But Tanjiro has so many bags around his eyes in comparison--Mr. Tokito is so much better rested! I guess he's resting in peace.

--I love this bitter side of Muichiro. It's not simply that he picked up a sharp tongue from Yuichiro, but instead, a utilitarian outlook on the world that makes him quick to judge others--or himself--as incapable. Mr. Tokito's words really were such gentle and chiding guidance. I wonder what Yuichiro's reaction to their dad was if he ever tried to have a similar teaching moment with him?

--Jumping back to the first half of this episode, making Tanjiro and Genya barely able to stand under the pressure of Zouhakuten is, well, sort of a convenient way of portraying "look he is powerful" and "now we have the hero converse with a demon." It's not quite as memorable as other times this happens in the series, but it is a signature part of KnY for this to happen.

--Another big difference between Tanjiro and Genya, at least in displaying their potential as Pillars (which Genya agonizingly recognized in the previous episode that he doesn't possess), is that while Genya spend a lot of time thinking "WTF!? W... T... F?!? WTF!!! WTFWTFWTFWTF!!!" Tanjiro is already back to rolling with the new situation. The fact that Tanjiro wasn't killed instantly by those wooden serpents was because he possessed the peace of mind to grab on and use his chances and move around to where there were pockets of safety. If Genya were in that position, he'd probably just take the hit and then flop around until his body regenerates. Likewise, Tanjiro's ability to sense unique demons, their locations, and how powerful they are is something he has continually developed, so he had a general idea how Zouhakuten came to be, but Genya needed to witness it. Again, like started in the last episode, Genya deserves a lot of credit for how hard he's worked and how much more he's able to do than just munch. Even in demon mode here, he mostly uses demon mode for the regenerative ability, and for offense he still reloads his gun and holds onto his broken blade.

--Nezuko, girl, you too. Just charging in and sacrificing limbs without a thought. Girl, you have gotten too used to this freaky regenerative speed of yours and the whole Corp sure is lucky most demons never achieve that.

--Again, I'm not a shipper, but I am tickled by the idea of reframing things with a Genya x Aizetsu angle (probably just one-sided infatuation, or even that they are exes but Aizetsu is still in love). After all, Genya knows Aizetsu's name, but didn't use the names of the other demons! Ohohoho! That sure adds more meaning to Genya witnessing Aizetsu's final moments of terror! (For the record, I do not see any of this in canon; it is simply funny.)

#KnY Rewatch #my art #Gyokko #kanamori #haganezuka hotaru

[heich0e]

BACKGROUNDER - the one that got away!kuroo

note: hello!! if you're seeing this post, you probably clicked through from this fic, and if not... well that's ur own journey <3 this is a collection of posts from my #the one that got away!kuroo universe, which offer context to the main story but aren't strictly necessary—like... further readings, i guess. i contemplated how best to direct people here, and in order for you to most easily access this info, i settled for this post!! under the cut are all of the asks/text posts that ultimately culminated in the full fic, arranged in chronological order for your viewing convenience:

original text post: not to kill the vibe but kuroo tetsuro does give me big 'guy who isn't ready for marriage but then gets married to the first girlfriend he has after the two of you break up' energy for reasons i cannot quite put my finger on

> n to rub salt into the wound, you thought for sure you and kuroo would marry

you didn't think the breakup would stick. you always thought—or hoped, maybe—that the two of you would find your way back to each other when the time was right. but not even two years later (which feels so SOON, even though it isn't really) you see that he's engaged to a girl—a perfectly nice, normal girl, that you can't even bring yourself to hate because you know all too well what it's like to be in love with tetsuro. know what it's like to want a future with him. and you can't blame her for it, even if you resent her for being the one who gets it.

> after the wedding who do you go with? are you drunk out of your mind

you aren't invited. that stings. but you think it might have been worse if you did end up getting one of those beautiful, unnecessarily elaborate invitations in the mail. 

you run into kuroo a few months before the ceremony at a mutual friend's birthday party. end up talking. the wedding comes up accidentally more than anything—maybe someone else mentions it, maybe you ask, maybe he tells you like he's repenting for a sin he didn't commit—and he stumbles through an unbearably awkward explanation (that he doesn't even owe you) as to why you weren't invited. but you know even if he says it in nicer, easier to swallow words, gilded with white lies: it would be weird. it would be wrong. it wouldn't be fair to anyone. not to him, or to you, or to her.

you get drunk the night of the wedding and hook up with the guy you've been fucking for the past few months, who you're pretty sure doesn't even know what you do for work even though you've told him multiple times. all your friends are dressed up and celebrating, and you're throwing up in the hotel bathroom by 2am while the guy sleeps in the bed a room away—completely, blissfully unaware of what's happening on the other side of the wall, let alone at a glittering venue across town.

you envy him for it.

> does kuroo still love reader? does he love her?

he does still love reader AND love his fiance too. maybe in different ways. maybe his love for reader is like guilt. maybe his love for his soon-to-be wife is more like atonement. i don't think it took kuroo very long to realize what he did to you was, well, sort of cruel. i think he regrets it deeply and thinks about it often. in a fucked up sort of way it makes him better to his new partner, because he doesn't want to hurt someone like that again because of his own immaturity. it's unfortunate, but it's like she gets to reap all the benefits of the growth he experiences at your expense.

> Will it ever get better for you after kuroos wedding

of course it will. that's the really weird thing about heartbreak: life just keeps going. you feel like your heart has been cleaved out of your chest, but then you just... go to work. you do your laundry. you read a new book that becomes an all time favourite. you spend time with your friends and family. you go on dates. you learn all the lyrics to new songs. you celebrate holidays and birthdays. and one day you realize it's been years and you're in a totally different part of your life now, and the boy you thought would one day be holding your hand on your deathbed doesn't even know what the inside of your new apartment looks like. and you don't know what his looks like, either. and it's still sad, and hard sometimes, but all you can do is keep going. keep trying to find new happiness even if it's not the one you wanted. and hope that somewhere out there he has a new favourite book too. 

> think of Kai who was secretly pining for you during your relationship with Kuroo. Yet, he still doesn't have it in him to confess his feelings. So, he does the next best thing: he becomes your booty call. But when you slip during one of your hook-ups--when you moan Kuroo's name--he realizes it would never work out between the two of you. Your heart is so full of Kuroo that there's no room for him.

kuroo is so beloved by the people around him that i don't think there's a friend in his life who would EVER betray him like that—even if they did have feelings for you. even more than that, a lot of the friends that he introduced you to during your relationship (who you got close to) seem to grow distant after the breakup. even though it was his fault, really. even though you were their friend too. they just seem to naturally gravitate back to him, like belongings that are divvied up after a divorce. and there's no hard feelings. they don't dislike you, or even do it consciously, it just... happens.

you do definitely call out tetsuro's name when you're hooking up with other people though. it never ends well.

> sorry if u’ve already answered this but how long did kuroo and reader date?

they met in high school, and always had little crushes on each other but it never went anywhere. kuroo FINALLY confessed at graduation (he tried to be rly smooth like the shoujo protag he isn't and almost botched it) and they started dating at 18. they dated for a little over 5 years. broke up at 23. kuroo stayed single for a while before he started dating his (eventual) wife, and they got married at around 26. reader moved away from Tokyo when she was 28-29. and reader and kuroo are both in their mid-to-late 30s when the fic opens!!

#totga!kuroo #btw if you're seeing this rn the fic is not posted yet LMAO

[mediocreanomaly]

Hi, how are you?

Can i request headcanons about how Vash would react to finding out reader (gender neutral) has pointed ears?

Like, reader is always seen wearing a beanie that conveniently hides their ears and one day, during a fight with bounty hunters, they lost their beanie and Vash end up seeing reader's ears.

Later, when asked why reader didn't told him, reader just gives him a piece of paper that has written "how to tell your boyfriend you have pointed ears in 3 steps" in it.

Reader was planning on telling him but the plan got ruined.

When asked how their ears are like that, reader just shrugs and says "mama told me it was a birth defect and, well, i never questioned it".

Also, reader's ears are very expressive.

They are happy/excited? Their ears perk up.

They are sad/depressed? Their ears drop down.

They hear something from afar? Their ears move up and down as if it was trying to find out where the sound was coming from.

I'm so sorry of this is super long.

I hope you have a good day!

Authors Note: Sorry it took me so long to get to this!!! I'm writing a DnD campaign so I've been busy...but yes I've had a good day thank you! I also added a bit of reasoning behind having pointed ears (vaguely) hope that's okay!

Vash x Reader, Reader Has Pointed Ears HC's

•When your mother was pregnant with you she had experienced a lot of difficulties, most the doctors had determined that you wouldn't survive

•As a last resort she had gone to the towns plant facility, she didn't know why but it always calmed her to watch the plants move around their tanks

•No one 100% knows what happened that day but your mother insist that the plant gave her the energy to carry you, and to be honest it seemed to be true because when you were born...you had a pair of pointed ears

•They were highly expressive, perking up at sounds and standing at attention when you were happy, drooping when you were sad. Your mother saw it as a sign of luck, that you had been blessed. Others...did not

•A lot of people thought it was weird, or even said you were cursed. You had learned to hide them away the older you got, not enjoying the odd looks or insults you had thrown your way.

•When you first joined Vash's little group no one really said anything, they all had their weird things, I mean Vash wears a bright red coat and Wolfwood drags a cross wherever he goes no one was really in the place to judge you for not taking your hat off, besides it wasn't uncommon for people to wear beanies or cowboy hats

•Eventually as everyone becomes closer you do get the ossiconal question, whether it's Meryl just causally asking about it (it's the reporter in her) or Wolfwood teasing you about it (it's the big brother in him) you always blow it off with a half assed excuse with "oh i dunno" or "I just like it"

• Vash actually doesn't press you too hard about it, he's got his own secrets (cough scars) (cough plant markings) so he's fine if you keep your hat on, even when your dating

•Then the two of you get caught in the crossfire of some bandits. Vash is quickly pulling you down in the dirt with him trying to keep you from getting hurt when you feel your hat fall off, your ear perk up at the sound of gun fire going off and Vash stops wide eyed for a second before remembering he's supposed to be not getting shot and pulls the two of you off to safety

•When you two first talk alone he's a bit pouty, not because of your ears but because he feels bad you didn't trust him enough to know. Then you argue that for awhile he didn't tell you about his plant markings and the argument is resolved with a truce lmao

•You also mention that you had been planning to tell him but chickened out each time worried he'd see you as a freak. Which he gets 100% he's often worried his plant qualities will be ridiculed so if anything this brings the two of you a lot closer!

•Vash loves your ears, he thinks it's super cute how they perk up at the sound of his voice, or stand at attention when you talk about something you like. Sometimes he gently runs his fingers over them enjoying how the flicker at his touch

•When you're sad he instantly knows because of your ears and won't leave your side until their not drooping. Doing everything in his power to cheer you up

•Then when he learns that it was plant energy that gave them to you he's even more excited!

"y/n we're the same!" "uh..i don't think that's how it works Vash" "shh let me have this"

#vash x reader #vash x you #trigun x reader #zero responds

[prince-kallisto]

So these past couple of days I’ve been scratching my head on how Crowley knew that STYX was going to break in. I have a hunch that whoever gave the information at the Land of Dawning is a new character, but why would they tell just Crowley beforehand? In fact, how does Crowley know about a lot of things that end up happening?

For example, in the prologue, despite kicking Grim out and planning to expel him, he still had a ready-made magestone collar for him. As if he knew Grim and crew would succeed.

Throughout the main story, Crowley just…Knows Things while keeping his cards close to his chest. And thinking about it, Crowley definitely ‘sets the stage’ for many of the conflicts that lead to Overblotting. The duel for Housewarden in Book 1, Malleus in the Hall of Fame in Book 2, conveniently abandoning MC in Book 4, etc.

Because if Crowley is causing the Overblots somehow (I’ve made a handful of theories regarding this lol), how would he know to set up these very specific conflicts? How would he even know that it would WORK?

And- this one is a little crazy ahxhdbsj, but indulge me- but Lilia mentions that “he” (I’m assuming Revan) saved Lilia’s invitation from NRC, which Lilia used 500 years later. If we go by my tinfoil crack theories, what if Revan/Crowley knew that the invitation would come in handy hundreds of years later?

Ravens in mythology are connected to the gods- often Apollo, who is the god of prophecy. Due to this, ravens have become symbols of messengers and prophecy as well. Different types of Fae seem to naturally have different abilities, but could the gift of prophecy really go THAT far into the future and in such detail? 🤔 Or is it perhaps Crowley’s Unique Magic?

I can’t even fathom to make theories on Crowley’s Unique Magic haha, like anything is possible at this point ｡ﾟ(ﾟ´ω`ﾟ)ﾟ｡ But if Crowley did have the ability to see parts of the future, it makes sense why he sticks his nose (beak?) into some situations while abandoning others.

Like in Book 1, 2, and 5, he knows that he needs to set up the stage by pushing the characters in the “right” direction. But in Books 3, 4, and 6, he knows he needs to let some events play out on their own without his intervention- to the point he literally doesn’t do anything on purpose. Doesn’t interfere with Azul’ schemes, Jamil’s schemes, STYX’s nonsense, because he needs these events to happen

I don’t think the idea is that far fetched because MC technically has a form of prophetic powers too with the mirror dreams. And recently (especially in book 7), it seems that MC doesn’t need to be around the mirror OR sleeping to have visions of the past Disney villains. In fact, it seems even more plausible because MC started seeing the dreams through the mirror, right? Crowley fucking WEARS mirrors all over his body 😭😭

(Crack theory time: What if Revan [aka Crowley] disappeared because he *knew* how the war would end and it was a fruitless battle ahdjxbsvs)

(Crack theory time ANGST EDITION: if we go by the Crowley Overblot theories, what if Revan Overblotted because he knew how the war would end and that Mallenoa would die- and the knowledge that he literally can’t do anything to prevent it overwhelmed him, which is why he disappeared anjxhsgba. But now under the influence of blot, he doesn’t feel the same anguish from seeing the future anymore)

#the devil works hard but i work harder #when it comes to Crowley theories at least ABXHSBSV #twst dire Crowley #dire Crowley #twst Crowley #twst revan #twst levan #twst theories #twst spoilers #KallistoPost

[marshallpupfan]

Going Back to my Rubble & Crew Theory...

Back in December of 2022, I wrote up a theory based on how Rubble's backstory might link up with his yet-to-air-at-the-time spinoff, "Rubble & Crew". If you like, you can click here and check it out. If not, here's a recap of what I said.

Rubble's family had a big, big job. They were incredibly distracted and inadvertently became neglectful of their youngest, Rubble.

Due to his age, Rubble wasn't allowed to help. He didn't get why everyone was gone so often, thought no one loved him anymore, believed himself to be on his own, and ran away.

Months pass. His family can't find him and later accept he might be gone for good... but deep down, they never gave up hope.

Rubble encounters Chase, Marshall and Ryder. Rubble impresses Ryder during a mission and later joins the PAW Patrol.

A year later, Rubble's made a name for himself in Adventure Bay, but nobody thinks to look for him in such a small town.

The events of the first theatrical film happen. After being involved in a big rescue in a big city, Rubble & the other pups end up on the news and are regarded as heroes. This news broadcast is seen all over the country.

Rubble's family sees this broadcasts and finally discover their little Rubble's alive, well, and has grown to become an experienced construction pup.

They quickly head to Adventure Bay to meet up with Rubble. Many hugs and tears soon follow.

The family apologizes for neglecting him, but Rubble also apologizes to them, realizing now the burden they had and why they were gone so much.

The family wants him to come back with them, but Rubble says he has a new family now and they all love him, thus he doesn't know what to do.

Conveniently, they have a new job in an upcoming town called "Builder Cove", which just-so-happens to neighbor Adventure Bay. He doesn't have to pick which family to stay with now!

Keep in mind, I wrote this before knowing that much about Rubble & Crew or even how things might continue in the next theatrical film, "The Mighty Movie". All any of us knew was A) Rubble now has a big family, and B) "Builder Cove" is new and will neighbor Adventure Bay. I took a pure guess based on these two details.

I thought it'd be fun to go back and see just how the spinoff connected with Rubble's backstory, as well as just how much of it I got right! Here's a list of what they did...

Rubble suddenly has a big family because Spin Master said so.

All that stuff about Rubble being alone and not having a family? Well, never mind that.

Look, just pretend "Pups Get a Rubble" doesn't exist, even though it still airs on TV and can be found on Paramount+.

And there you go! I was....... 0% correct! :D

...no, really. I'm not trying to be cynical. That's honestly it.

While I haven't seen much of Rubble & Crew (I've seen exactly two episodes, and only because Marshall and Chase were in them), I have heard others talk about them. And yeah, going by what they've said, they really did just flat-out ignore Rubble's backstory. Out of lazy convenience, I imagine. That's a shame, if you ask me. To think, I put in way more effort than anyone at Spin Master.

Viewers, and that includes older fans, love these characters. You want them to have some meaning behind them, and backstories often accomplish this. However, they lose that meaning when the very studios behind their creation disregards these details whenever they feel like it. You all know I'd love to learn about Marshall's history, but I want it to matter and not just be something that pops up for a single plot of a movie, never to be references again... or simply tossed aside when it becomes inconvenient to a writer. I feel like these characters deserve better than that.

Well, what can I say? Hey, that Rubble & Crew episode involving Marshall was pretty cool. Wait, what does this have to do with this post? I don't know... but have a cute pic from that episode, anyway.

#PAW Patrol #PAWPatrol #Rubble & Crew #Rubble&Crew #Rubble and Crew #Rubbleandcrew #Rubble Crew #RubbleCrew

[rudycomics]

Rudy Recs: Witch Watch (and its bittersweet love story)

I've written in the past before about some of the things I've been reading in shonen jump, You and I are Polar Opposites as an example, and the current generation of manga in their lineup right now has some interesting stuff going on. Somehow, Witch Watch is not one of the manga I hear other people talking about as often as the others and I think that's a real shame!

Kenta Shinohara has 2 award winning manga under his belt and even though his concepts don't have this really intense fantastical hook and his art isn't clamoring for attention in the ways things like Chainsaw Man or Dandadan do, I think Witch Watch has incredible range. It's part romance, part slapstick comedy/gag manga, and part shonen battle manga all together, bouncing back and forth between these different styles each chapter.

I always felt like it was just really solidly put together and consistently entertaining (except for when the story focuses on some side characters writing fan doujinshi which bores me to DEATH), but the thing that made me feel like I needed to write about it was the way the series handles the romance between the two main characters, Nico, the witch given a prophesized control over every type of magic, and Morihito, her childhood friend and chosen protector because he happens to be one of the last Ogres in the world.

I'm going to be talking spoilers for things that happened in recent chapters, so be warned!

I will put a warning when I get to it, but I like writing about these things because I personally think getting someone to gush about specific instances of well executed craft gets me more interested in checking out new things than anything else.

The basic setup to their romance is that Nico has a crush on Morihito (which she calls Moi and I'll use this nickname for convenience) and she begins living with him as her mother received a prophecy that some evil force will try to use Nico and her unnatural powers for evil purposes that will ultimately bring her harm in the process. Moi is chosen to be Nico's familiar to protect her from whatever this vague danger may end up being, but we see their personalities clash right away. She's very aware of him and he seems very stone-walled and closed off, despite their being some sort of connection between them from childhood.

The two get into a lot of wacky situations as Nico attends school and continuously uses her powers to try to help classmates with their personal troubles and they make some new friends along the way with their own special powers. The household of just the two of them grows into a house of 4 boys and Nico, with two other girls making frequent appearances. We learn about all these characters and their quirks and see how they are all invested in helping Nico try to form a relationship with Moi. It's not until a good handful of chapters later that we learn that in typical Nico fashion, she had somehow ended up putting a curse on Moi when they were children that locked Moi into being "best friends forever" with Nico, essentially kneecapping any romantic growth from sprouting from Moi.

It's not that important to what I wanted to talk about, but I do think this is such a fun story device because it completely fits in line with everything we've learned about Nico and what every wacky situation stems from in this series: Nico somehow uses her magic in ways that challenge the intuitive way the powers would seem to work and creating unintended effects on top of what the power is supposed to do. Nico's bond with Moi ever since they were children has also become the reason that nothing will ever happen between them.

EXCEPT... All of their new friends have sussed the situation out and form a plan to break through the curse and free Moi to accept the feelings that are actually blocked off inside his heart that they all know are there. They even have this fun visual metaphor of a heart with a valve leaking romantic feelings that gets repeated all through this arc.

They try some things to get Moi to over flow with feelings faster than the curse can repress them which is fun but ultimately fruitless, only for Moi to accidentally being able to listen in to Nico tell everyone that she loves him because of all his flaws that are center to his insecurities that make him close up. It's a beautiful moment that caps it off with using that visual metaphor again to really push emotion to the reader and I thought this was so effective!

From here on, I think what I want to talk about is spoilery enough that I should put a marker here for people that don't want to see anymore before reading:

**SPOILER WARNING!!**

The two both have feelings for each other at this point and Moi wants to confess to Nico now, but tragedy strikes as the big bad makes his move to attack Nico and friends which ends up costing Moi his life as he gets shot in the chest with a gun. Nico uses her powers to heal him at the cost of something of her own and what she ends up giving up is her time, which includes her memories, and turns back into a 5 year old.

The group find out that Nico can be restored to her natural state by collecting these magic butterflies that escaped from her body during her spell, and here is where I think this series does something that really grabbed me.

I read a LOT of manga. Like, scouring for new stuff to read every day. Comics are my primary source of entertainment and I read a LOT of romance stories. One of the things that I feel like authors have to consider when writing compelling romance is how to get readers to connect with characters enough to also want to see those characters get into a relationship. In general, I think a lot of this connection buildup happens AFTER characters get together and you have to just get accept the weak initial romantic beginning (like Galaxy Next Door for example), OR the story spends its whole lifetime creating their bonds slowly and ends right as they get together which annoys me, personally (hoping this one doesn't do that, but we will have to see).

What I think Witch Watch does here is so striking and unique; Nico and the gang put in so much effort in between their escapades to get these two characters together so that they can be happy. Right when things lock into place, it all comes to a halt and resets, but what doesn't get reset is the readers' understanding and connections to these characters. We're already invested in Nico and Moi and we get a second chance to see these characters form a loving connection in a really unique way that feels unpredictable as Nico slowly regains her age and memories back. It's got a bittersweet tone to it as Moi doesn't get to express his love in the way that he wants to, but we get to see such a complex form of love develop as he takes the role of a caretaker for little Nico. Love is more than romance or attraction and getting a chance to put that trope away for a bit to do something different is so refreshing. It really builds out something so much more complete and more befitting of a seinen maybe, rather than a shonen with fight scenes and mythical characters.

This current arc is the beginning of part 2 of Witch Watch, with the big bad leaving the group alone because Nico is useless to him as a child with no control over magic. We know this peace will come to an end when Nico is restored to her proper age, but we get to see the characters all get up to their silly antics again with child Nico in the mix now. It's a really cool shakeup that adds new life to the slapstick comedy bits that make up most of the story, putting the action in the back seat again for now. This is the most recent chapter at the time of me writing this (chapter 133), and seeing Moi's perspective as the point of view in contrast to Nico's experiences so far is really gripping to me. This final page of the chapter is what did it for me:

It hurts, but it's love. The pain is temporary, all for the goal of being together when it's all over, with a connection deeper than anything that they would have formed otherwise.

Please go give Witch Watch a read! It's really fun!!

#rudy recs #manga recs #manga recommendation #witch watch #kenta shinohara

[mermaidsirennikita]

Which historical romance books would you recommend to someone who would like to get into the genre but doesn't know where to start? So far my preferred genre was fantasy romance but I think I exhausted it completely at this point so I'm looking for something new. I tried Bridgerton but I didn't like, so I would appreciate any other recommendation. Thank you in advance.

Hey! I am happy to offer some recs. Imo, the Bridgerton books are kinda dated and work for a very *specific* reader, so it's not surprising to me that it wouldn't work. We can find something!

Sarah MacLean is a great gateway--I read every single adult historical she had out when I was first getting back into them in the early pandemic days. She typically writes very strong heroines (not always in a "we do battle" way, but always in mind and heart) and heroes who are just.... like, honestly, MESSES. Guys who can kick ass and fuck hard but are actually, deep within their souls, simps. From her backlist, I'd recommend as entry points:

Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake. Her debut, and I recommend it because it's super compulsively readable and very beloved, with good reason. It's the story of a wallflower type who's like, "Jesus Christ, I am so tired of being this person" and sets out to break these nine "rules" and have adventures. She ends up enlisting this known Slut Man to help her (in exchange for helping introduce his long lost sister to society) and naturally, he is soon after her. I will say, MacLean's first series is the most ballroom that she gets? Her tastes are definitely a bit wilder, and they get so from this book. It's funny, it's sexy, it's a romp. My favorite series of hers is the Rules of Scoundrels series, which is about a group of friends who own a gambling club and like getting emotionally destroyed by their lovers. But since you read fantasy romance, I will also suggest...

Wicked and the Wallflower. This is the first in her Bareknuckle Bastards series, which has a very fantastical, fairy tale-like premise. Basically, this guy's wife gave birth to an illegitimate daughter. At the same time, he had three illegitimate sons born together. So--girl not his, sons his. But he claimed the girl was a son upon baptizing her, and decided he'd pick which son was worthy of being his heir in what was essentially an extended CHILD BATTLE ROYALE. Anyway, the books focus on the grown children years later--two of the sons have become rulers of the London Underworld, taking the girl with them. It's wild, it's fun, the stakes are high.

Lisa Kleypas is a classic writer of the genre. She tends to write very emotional books, often focusing on very competent heroes (except that time she didn't and everyone clapped). For her, I always recommend her most famous series--it's a great crowd pleaser.

The Wallflowers. Four friends who are striking out on the marriage mart agree that at all costs, they will help each other find husbands this season. I recommend reading these in order, but the two strongest entries are It Happened One Autumn (book 2, an enemies to lovers situation, he's uptight and she's wild) and Devil in Winter (villainous hero enters into a marriage of convenience with the shy girl, gets absolutely emotionally compromised because she's actually everything), which MUST be read in order for max enjoyment. All the books are good, though, and book 1 is a great start with this kind of indecent proposal angle.

Monica McCarty's Highland Guard series could work for ya! It's a medieval series that centers on this group of knights who do these kind of black ops missions for Robert the Bruce as he's trying to take the Scottish throne. There's a lot of history, battling, Secret Love Shit. The first book is The Chief, which centers on the leader, this cool and stern guy who ends up in an arranged marriage situation with this woman who wants to Know Him Emotionally. These books have tons of adventure.

The Uptown Girls by Joanna Shupe. This series focuses on three sisters of a prominent man in Gilded Age New York, all of whom get into various types of trouble, some of which does involve organized crime. Fun and scandalous~ with a bit of danger. Also, super sexy.

Elizabeth Hoyt's Maiden Lane series is a great one that takes place in Georgian England. Lots of working class characters, walking on the wild side, danger. I'd recommend starting with book 3 (Scandalous Desires) as a starter, as it centers on a river pirate who basically takes this widow woman into his lair~ (he's actually trying to keep her and his daughter, who she's been caring for, safe--but he has ulterior motives, obvi). These books are super hot and often quite daring. Some of my personal favorites.

I think these are some options you can sample and maybe find a match or several with--imo, finding your niche is important. Like, I know Julia Quinn often doesn't work for me because I prefer books that are a bit ... heavier? And definitely with more sex and passion, often with less focus on the marriage mart. With exceptions, clearly!

#romance novel blogging #book recs

[max1461]

Look, I just don't buy that people's stated beliefs are a very consistent guide to understanding or predicting their actions. I mean, it's an idea that has some intuitive currency, but that doesn't mean it's true or even that it should be our null hypothesis. Our null hypothesis should probably be "no correlation", and I think obviously we have enough evidence to reject that. But that doesn't mean that we can default to "strong correlation"! In particular, I think if you just like, interact with people, it becomes obvious that they say things they don't believe and believe things they don't say all the time. They act based on vague gut feelings and justify it with some narrative later. They bullshit, say whatever is convenient in the moment, thinking only about how it sounds and not what it means. They also say things they actually mean, but it can be very hard to tell which things are which (sometimes intentionally!). Often there is no sharp dichotomy. People just do shit and say shit, those things aren't necessarily connected to each other.

This doesn't mean that people's stated beliefs are no guide to their actions, obviously that's not true either. I mean, duh. If you go through life just ignoring the content of what people say you won't make it very far. And I think "I take people's word for what they believe, and assume that their beliefs are reflected fairly literally in their actions, unless I'm given strong reason not to" is, for what it's worth, a really good heuristic—better than most alternatives. But the thing about using a heuristic profitably is that you have to recognize that it's a heuristic, you can't actually conflate it with ground truth. And the ground truth, again, seems to me to be that people just do shit and say shit a lot. Guess it depends on who you're spending time with. But like, enough people do this that you have to take it into account.

This isn't about anything in particular, it's just that "of course we should take people's stated beliefs more-or-less literally when trying to predict their actions or understand their motivations" is a refrain I hear around here a lot as if it's self evident. And I think it's not only not self evident, it's like, actively misleading. Out of politeness and respect, among other reasons, I believe in basically taking people at their word. But you should probably maintain a pretty high prior that any given thing being said is kind of a little bit bullshit so that you aren't caught off guard when it inevitably happens. And, more importantly, if you're reasoning about large populations or large bodies of speech, you should be prepared for a bunch of it to be kinda bullshit. Because it will be.

#society

[bnhaobservation]

Any hcs for what Enji's mother could be like/ their relationship?

I fear this might feel disappointing but my headcanon toward her is...

...she died giving birth to him.

Yes, I basically remove her out of the story before she gets any chance to impact it.

It's not done just because it's a convenient way yo have a character less but because it fits nicely with how the story is presented.

Beyond his wife and children we never see any family member for Enji... even when it would make sense for them to be present.

When Rei goes to the Miai with Rei, it would make sense for one of his parents to be there because the ones handling it are generally the parents of the two who are to marry.

Yeah, it's Enji's idea to marry a woman with a ice Quirk, but normally he would have asked his parents to handle the search and the contacting. He would go at the Miai WITH THEM.

We know his father couldn't be present because he died when he was in middle school but many mothers have been behind the Miai of their children so it would have made sense for his mother to be there... she's not.

As his father died, it would have made sense for his mother to live with him, that's usually how it works in Japan but she's clearly not doing it.

In theory the story seems to point out to how Enji's mother was also dead when he went to the Miai.

Yes, it didn't have to happen on his birth, it could have happened later... and here I go and play a bit with Enji's psychology.

Enji has a weakness that was always there, that was inborn (chap 356). In more simple terms he's insecure and suffers of an inferiority complex.

The easiest way for such a thing to be born inside a child is lack of love.

Confidence is either nurtured by love/trust or formed by repeated perceived personal successes.

Enji is a very accomplished man, he's the Number Two Hero, he became as such when very young yet he's insecure, his claiming his weakness WAS ALWAYS THERE, hinting that insecurity was always there, even before All Might were to come back in Japan and be known as a Hero.

Enji is not insecure due to All Might, Enji merely views All Might as the proof he's not good enough.

If that insecurity was always there it's not the result of the trauma of losing his father, it was prior to it.

So it's not a problem of accomplishments, it's a problem of lack of nurturing.

Enji's parents didn't help him build confidence when he was small, they made him feel not enough, not talented, less capable.

Enji asks to be looked at the same way Touya does, he feels the need to prove himself.

And this need, this weakness, was always there. He views it as inborn.

So then what?

It can be his parents were just as neglectful as he was. Parents who neglect their children are often the kids of other parents who neglected them in a warped circle.

His parents might have been cold or overly pretentious. He doesn't blame his own problems on them having too many expectations on him and sees nothing wrong in pushing his expectations on his children. He doesn't see it as a lack of love... which fits more with people who were looked down by their parents.

They can end up on having a warped view in which excess of expectations = encouragement.

But why wouldn't his parents expect things from him?

He has a strong Quirk and he's healthy, his father died to save someone so it's hard to think they would look down at his wish to become a Hero. Plus there's the fact that his mother too went missing before he was 20.

So... I speculated she died of childbirth. A dead mother can't support you or nurture you or have expectations on you. And while it's clearly not Enji's fault and, not having memories of her, he wouldn't feel it as a personal loss, the loss of a mother is a big loss for an infant child if she doesn't get replaced with an equally nurturing figure.

The lack of a mother figure might have been elaborated by Enji as a lack in himself, a weakness.

His father might not have been up to the task to compensate for such loss between work and, possibly, personal gried, and he dies when Enji is still young.

Enji grows insecure, tries to compensate by hiding it behind an air of confidence and tries to build up for himself a family that will take care OF HIS NEEDS in place of the one that should have done it when he was a child.

He marries solely out of convenience, which can be taken as a hint he didn't have in his memories a successful loving marriage he wanted to replicate with his own. Regardless of people believing he loved/liked Rei or not, a good couple relation wasn't his goal, but a child who would make him feel better, that would soothe the dark feelings that plagued him... basically viewing that child as an extension of himself.

On the other side... beyond giving him babies, he has no expectations on Rei, he doesn't really ask for her psychological support TO HIM, he gives her tasks.

In his idea Rei should watch Touya while he doesn't because he's busy with work, he might try to reproduce a familiar family dynamic... one in which his father didn't look over him because he was busy with work... and the task should have befallen on his mother... but she was dead and didn't.

If his mother was dead... someone else should have looked over him, if it was a hired person, it could explain his way to give tasks to Rei as if they were jobs, because he was used to see his father task someone else with the duty to look after him as a job.

Yes, Japan is a society in which the family head rules over the family and in which the role of caring for kids falls on the mother... so his behaviour isn't that odd so it might be Horikoshi just prepresenting this.

Besides the idea is that the relationship worsened as soon as it turned out Touya couldn't fulfil Enji's dream so we simply might have not been shown good moments between them because they ended pretty soon.

Of course all this is part speculation part headcanon and, even though it tries to latch to canon, we have so little info that, with that same amount of canon info, people can come up with completely different explanations.

Similar psychological reactions can, after all, be born by different experience, there's not a rule that say that from experience A you must always have reaction B.

More common doesn't mean 'written in stone' and Enji's behaviour can easily be Doylistically explained with him representing a certain stereotype of father in tales, which might as well exist in a vacuum because Horikoshi might have just wanted to use it as a trope and not bother explaining the psychological reasons behind it.

Enji's mother might very well be completely missing from the story, even from the parts in which she would have expected to be there, simply because manga are meant to be ergonomic more than realistic, so since Enji's mother was an unneeded character, she simply got... erased (kind of like how neither Enji nor Fuyumi nor Shouto mention Touya until it becomes plot relevant for them to do so...) which is fair.

Continuing with the headcanons (and those are completely headcanon, as there's zero material about Enji's parents so I'm making them up from nothing) I've for Enji's mother I think that, in contrast to Enji, the marriage between his father and mother was one of love, and the loss of the woman he loved was what caused Enji's father to grow cold and anaffective toward him... a bit like Kotarou.

She was very glad she was going to become a mother and, had she lived, she would have loved and nurtured her son and help her husband do the same.

However, exactly because I tend to headcanon her as dead before Enji's birth, I don't really have much on her, I've more about his father as you can easily see from my fanfic about the Todoroki family.

Sorry if my reply probably feels unsatisfying and it's more filled with headcanons for Enji than anything else... I know many in the fandom have interesting backstories for Enji's mother but... that's all I have about her.

I guess I'm more focused on Rei's mother, sorry.

Still, thank you for your ask!

#Todoroki Enji #Todoroki Rei #Ask

[lassiekitsune]

Peter Parker x Reader "Under the starry sky"

GIF isn't mine

Description: You need help with your math test and you ask your best friend for help. But Peter needs to tell you something important, after which your relationship will never be the same.

Warnings: fluff, a little agnst.

Y/N - Your name

(H/C) - Hair color

"- On Monday, I'll be waiting for you all to write a very important math test. You all will have enough time to prepare" - your teacher said then the school bell rang. Mathematics wasn't your favourite school subject, but your family demanded perfect grades from you. "It's just not realistic" you thought. The problem was that you missed the last topic due to illness and no one could help you... Almost no one. A few minutes later you spotted your best friend Peter Parker with Ned in the school hallway. Peter was known at school as one of the smartest students in the school, who knew the entire school curriculum at "A+". It was because of his knowledge that Peter was often mocked by his classmate Eugene Thompson ("Flash"), but you didn't care about him. You and Parker have been friends for many years, and it was he who you decided to ask for help with math.

"- Hello, Peter! Hello, Ned!" - you smiled.

"- Hey Y/N! We haven't seen each other for a long time" - Peter smiled at you as well, and so did Ned - "Did you want to ask something?"

"- Um, yeah, but..." - You looked at Ned. Peter's friend taking your hint and leaving the two of you alone. You sighed and continued - "So, I think I need your help" - Peter adjusted his backpack and looked at you curiously

"- Did something happen to you?"

"- No, I'm fine, don't worry" - knowing Peter's caring side, you rushed to comfort him - "Do you know that I have been absent from school for several weeks?" - Parker nodded - "And I missed the last subject in mathematics, and on Monday I have a test for which I am not ready at all... This is exactly what I need your help with"

"- Wait, do you want me to explain the topic to you?" - Peter's eyes lit up with joy

"- I do not insist, if you are busy…"

"- No!" - your friend interrupted you - I'm completely free today! If it's convenient for you, you can come over to my house today around 6:00 p.m., okay?"

"- Okay, sorry, I must go. Goodbye"

"- See you later, Y/N" - if you had turned back at that moment, you would have noticed how Peter guided you with his gaze.

~5:58 p.m.~

You are standing in front of the door of the Parker house. Peter told you a LOT about his Aunt May, and he was sure that you would become friends. You took a deep breath and tapped ligtly. Contrary to your expectations, a woman opened the door and smiled at you.

"- Hello! Are you Aunt May?"

"- Hello, yes, it's me. And you are Y/N? Peter said you would come today".

"- Yep, I'm Y/N. Can I come in?"

"- Of course, but Peter isn't at home now"

"- Oh, then I think I should go. Peter will call me when he gets back"

"- No, no! You can stay here, I don't care. After all," - May gave you a strange look - "I wanted to get to know you better"

~8:30 p.m.~

You were sitting next to Aunt May who offered you tea and you were talking to each other. Peter was still not at home.

"- Aunt May?"

"- Please call me just May"

"- Okay, May, where do you think Peter could be at this late hour?"

"- Honestly, I don't know" - May sipped her tea from her cup - "This is not the first time he has come home late. I tried to talk to him about it but he doesn't tell me anything" - May sighed. The conversation continued untill your mother called you and reminded you that it was time for you to go home.

"- Don't worry, Y/N, I will have a SERIOUS talk with Peter tonight" - May said with a special emphasis on the world "serious".

"- No, you don't have to" - you didn't want your best friend to get in trouble. When you got home, you changed and went to your room. You can't to sleep, probably you were worried about Peter. You've had a crush on Peter for a long time, but you've always had to hide those feelings from him. Of course, you, like many girls, dreamed that one day he would confess his love to you. So, after spending several hours in bed, you went out to the balcony to look at the stars. The night wind blew your (H/C) as you gazed up at the twinkling stars, and you closed your eyes to hear the sounds of night nature. Silence. Peace. Stop, something is wrong. You opened your eyes and heard footsteps on the roof. "- Are they thieves?" you thought and hid behind old boxes. A footsteps got closer and you tried to sit as quietly as possible. One moment, and familiar shadow is standing on your balcony. You did not think that HE would appear here, but you believe your eyes, before you stood the famous Spider-Man. Judging by his rapid breathing, he had just been running away from someone. You could endlessly watch this Superhero until he would have disappeared in his direction if not for his spider-sense. Spider-Man turned to face you

"- Y/N? What are you doing here?" - said a familiar voice

"- How do you know my name?" - You were in shock, but managed to find the strength to come out of your hiding place.

"- It's not important now, we have to get out of here" - Spider-Man held out his arms to you - "Don't be afraid of me, I won't hurt you. But now you are in danger if you do not go with me"

"- But, I..." - your voice was interrupted by the roar of some black scary creature that was slowly approaching you.

"- We must go RIGHT NOW!" - Spider-Man said as he grabbed you with one hand and held you close while the other released a web that gave you the opportunity to escape from this creature.

"- Thank you for saving me, but who was that?" - you asked fearfully

"- Venom and you're welcome"

"- What did he want?" - you asked, Spider-Man didn't turned to you

"- I'm sorry, it's my fault. You shouldn't have seen it..."

"- What? It's not your fault!" - you moved closer to him. You wanted to continue but the words got stuck somewhere in your throat. You realized where you could hear this voice, without thinking long, you defiantly pulled off his mask.

"- Hey! What are you doing?" - Spider-Man was outraged and tried to take his mask from you

"- Peter? Is that you?" - you asked in surprise. Parker looked at you and turned away sharply.

"- No! Don't look at me!" - Peter tried to hide his face with his hands -"I'm not Peter!

"- You are Spider-Man! I can't believe it"

"- Don't talk so loud" - Peter came closer - "Someone might hear it"

"- Hey, don't worry, I promise no one will find out about your secret"

"- T-thank you..." - Parker whispered "- Why are you awake at such a late hour?"

"- I couldn't sleep because I was worried about you. You promised to come, but you didn't"

"- Oh, I'm so sorry about it"

"- Don't worry, I had a great time with your Aunt May, I think she liked me"

"- That's good" - Peter smiled. There was an awkward pause between you as you just stared down. Parker was the first to break the silence between you

"- Y/N can I tell you s-something?"

"- Sure" - after your words, Peter nervously took your hand and looked into your eyes

"- Y/N, I know now is not the right time, but we have been friends for a long time and I... I... No! I can't to say that!" - Peter turned around

"- Peter" - you came closer to him and touched his shoulder with your hand -"You know you can tell me everything and I'll keep it in secret if you ask me. We are best friends, do you remember?"

"- That's what I tried to say, Y/N!" - Peter turned to you sharply -"I don't want to be your friend anymore!" - You felt your heart break into a million pieces.

"- Well, if that's what you really want..." - you could barely hold back your tears - "I won't bother you anymore..."

"- No, no, no, wait, that's not what I meant!" - Peter sighed and whispered - "Oh, my God, Peter, why are you so stupid?" - You didn't understand anything. Peter, as if thinking something, took your hand againe

"- Peter, what are you do..." - you were interrupted by an unexpected kiss on the lips. Peter kissed you and it was completely real! Realizing what he was doing, Parker pulled away from you.

"- No, what have I done? Y/N, I'm sorry, I didn't ask you before..." - you kissed him again to shut him up. This moment could last forever if you didn't need oxygen, you pulled away from each other, gasping for air

"- Wow! I did not expect this" - Peter smiled nervous and looked at you -"But, now I'm sure, I love you, Y/N and... Would you like to be my girlfriend?"

"- Yes..."- you answered, Peter smiled and kissed you again.

#marvel #marvel imagine #marvel x reader #the avengers #avengers imagine #avengers x reader #peter parker #peter parker imagine #peter parker x reader #peter parker x y/n #spider man #spider man imagine #spider man x reader #spider man x y/n

[a-writer-on-elm-street]

so ever since i watched house of wax, i've become obsessed with bo sinclair, like i think about him ALL THE TIME. and the more i think about him, the more interesting he gets, and basically i just have so many ideas and theories about him and i don't know what to do with them. so i'm putting them on here. this will probably be very chaotic and unorganised so sorry in advance but i just gotta get these out there.

first off, his clear manipulation of vincent. during the movie, when vincent comes back to the house after killing paige and blake, he's in the kitchen with bo and bo tells him this: "ain't your work more real now? ma would be proud." this obviously indicates that bo is using their mother as a way to get vincent to go along with all the killing and turning people to wax. and i feel like the reason bo is doing this is to tarnish everything his mother worked for and at the same time, turn her perfect little boy into something not so perfect. i feel like this is all fuelled by his hatred for his mother due to the way she treated him as a child.

but i also feel like he holds some guilt and remorse for what he's doing because bo's first proper appearance (not taking into account the scene in the woods) is in the church, at trudy's 'funeral'. now, obviously the whole being in the middle of a funeral thing is clearly part of the act to bring people's guard down. make them feel bad for him, to take suspicion away from him. but if you think about it, what reason does bo need to be in that church, pretending to be at a funeral? it doesn't exactly have any significance in regards to how they take the victims.

the whole operation seems to be run by bo. bo shows up at the campsite, later vandalising wade's car, and then lester conveniently sends them in bo's direction to fix the car, where vincent inevitably turns them to wax, under bo's guidance. maybe setting up the funeral was vincent's idea, but bo pretending to be at that funeral was most likely his idea. why? why would he station himself at a funeral for a mother who abused him? i think whilst he probably harbors some resentment towards his mother, i also feel like he definitely still loves her, which is why it's possible he carries guilt for what he's doing, essentially in her name.

but then there's this:

i'm not entirely sure if this is real or not because i literally found it at random the other day. also, i think this did come from a blog on here, but i can't remember who so if anyone knows, please let me know.

anyway, moving on. that last line, carly insinuates that bo killed his mother, that he 'blew her brains out'. now, let's assume that was true, that he killed their mother, the funeral in the church could represent one of two things: bo's guilt in regards to his mother, or it could almost serve as a trophy, bo reliving the kill. this is common in serial killers, they will often take a trophy in order to relive the kill and gain back that rush they got when it happened. maybe that's what the funeral setting is for bo (although personally i think it's more of a guilt thing rather than a trophy).

also, it appears that bo's immediate weapon of choice is a shotgun in the movie. if he shot his mother, this could potentially be a reason for him choosing a shotgun as his main weapon. i don't really have anything else to add to that, it was literally just a random thought i had but yeah.

finally, when carly asks why he's doing this for a woman who hated him, he gets angry and responds by yelling 'don't say that!' he's clearly becoming very defensive, which could show a sense of loyalty to his mother. even after everything, he won't let anyone talk about her that way because at the end of the day, she was still his mother, no matter how she treated him.

it could also be a show of denial, maybe bo doesn't want to accept that trudy hated him, and wants to believe she loved him, despite everything. if he is feeding into this delusion that his mother loved him after all, then the funeral is merely about bo paying tribute to her, he is doing right by his mother by setting up a funeral for her.

i don't have anything else to add. i also don't know what this is to be honest. it might not even make sense. i've just had these thoughts floating around in my brain for a while and i wanted to share them. obviously, these are all just my own opinions and ideas so if anyone disagrees, i'm absolutely open for debates in the comments, but don't hate please. in no way am i a psychologist or whatever so obviously this isn't going to be 100% accurate or professional or anything. i just wanted to share a few of my thoughts i had.

might just delete this later though cos it's a mess lol

#bo sinclair #bo sinclair thoughts #bo sinclair house of wax #house of wax #house of wax 2005 #brian van holt