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pedgito · 1 year

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Request idea for Eddie and reader where one day she gets him a few new things like band tees a new pair of jeans a pair of sweat pants and maybe a pack of socks, and Eddie is so confused like why did you do this? I can’t really give you anything in return and she’s just like I was just thinking of you, I love you. And he’s never really had a thoughtful gesture like that.

author’s note: crying at the thought of this, i hope this does your request justice, i was too invested in the storyline of this lol.

cw: 18+ (to be safe) mentions of sex/roleplaying, sad eddie headcanons, reader being the best partner, eddie doesn’t know how to accept gifts, established relationship, if i missed anything lmk!

word count: 1.7k

Eddie wasn’t used to new things. Everything he owned was either hand-me downs or well-loved from a secondhand store—or stolen, because yeah, he’d never had the easiest life. He lived in a mess, compiling almost too much stuff at a certain point, too afraid to part with anything because every piece had some type of meaning to him and he was scared to lose things. Everything always left him, people included, and it was a constant fear that he lived with.

When he meets you, he latches on immediately. But, you start to recognize the patterns early, his obsessive nature with collecting and always taking what was offered to him without question, even if he didn’t really need it, even if didn’t really want it. Eddie had always been raised to appreciate everything, even the most mundane.

Wayne bought him his first guitar, used and always slightly out tune, but it was his first love. So, when he wanted more and couldn’t scrounge up the money, he improvised. He’s never been proud of his habits, even if he didn’t steal anymore—it was a reminder of where he came from, the obvious missing piece in his life that reminded him how unwanted he was. His father left him alone, his mother having been taken much too soon. Wayne was there to mend the broken state of that boy, but he was never well and truly fixed.

His jacket is the one thing he has that’s semi-new. He’d collected the pieces over time, a true creation of his own. There wasn’t a single thing like it in the world, that’s why it was considered new—even if it was falling apart at the seams and constantly having to be sewn back up.

He hates when you clean up his room, afraid he might lose something important—but the whole idea was that you wanted to make sure everything was organized, to relieve the panic he always felt when he couldn’t find something.

When he finally relents, it’s a mountain of discoveries that lead you to the final decision. Eddie needed something new, something untouched and untainted, all his own.

Holes in his socks, his boxers—rips in old shirts that clearly didn’t fit him anymore, jeans marked up in sharpie and shoes that were barely hanging on, worn down to the sole. Despite the obsessive amount of graphic shirts he owned, he always cycled through the same eight or nine, one for each of his favorite bands and a couple Hellfire shirts. His jeans were all black, accompanied with the same rips, though in unique places for each pair. He didn’t own a suit, nothing of the sort—not even a fancy jacket or nice dress shirt.

He always complained about wanting to dress up for you but feeling like it wasn’t worth it, knowing he’d ultimately look like a fool. It wasn’t true, Eddie just didn’t have the money to manage treating himself to something nice. Wayne worked long hours but the pay was horrible, only managing enough to pay bills and put food on the table—and Eddie’s dealing business wasn’t exactly booming, especially when half of his profits went back to Rick.

Luckily you were slightly better off, having never fallen on hardships as hard as Eddie. You didn’t have to work, didn’t have to worry, and Eddie envied you greatly. But, he always noted how you were different from the others at school—the ones who had money, showed it off. You were humble, you kept to yourself, and you never tried to shove it in Eddie’s face.

Still, it didn’t change the fact that you wanted so desperately to treat Eddie, even if he ended up hating you for it. Because if there was anyone he’d refuse to receive gifts from, it was you.

Unfortunately, you weren’t putting up with it this time.

Eddie comes home late on a Friday night, fresh off the adrenaline of his performance at The Hideout, practically bouncing with the lingering energy. He pounces onto you immediately, hands slipping up under your thighs to lift you up, a surprised squeal leaving your mouth.

“Eddie, put me down,” You beg through a weak laugh, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead, feet hitting the floor soon after, “thank you.”

He smiles slightly, eyes darkening with excitement—you knew what he wanted, what he needed, but you needed to get out your surprise first and let him decide then. He doesn’t even notice how spotless the trailer is until he’s peeking into the fridge, the normal, mucky smell now gone.

“Don’t tell me Wayne started sleeping with that one lady again,” Eddie says offhandedly, because you knew just as much about that situation as he did, having lived through the chaos, “last thing we need is her stealing from my stash again, even if she does clean the place spotless.”

“Wayne would never,” You assure him, “not after that shit we gave him for it.”

Wayne was lonely—but it wasn’t lost on him that he had Eddie, and you by association. He’d retired from the dating life soon after a few bad run-ins, settling for nights in with both of you and home-cooked meals when Eddie was busy with his own stuff and you couldn’t keep your hands and feet out of the kitchen.

“It was me,” You shrug, “I got bored and this place reeked.”

“Yeah—and now it smells like a fuckin’ lemon cake.” Eddie grimaces slightly, nose scrunching up in minor disgust.

Your eyes narrow a little, threateningly as you approach him.

“I mean, not that I don’t appreciate it.” Eddie recovers, “fuckin’ love lemons, you know?”

“Uh huh,” You answer mockingly, draping your arms over his neck and forcing him to look at you, eyes gliding over your expression curiously, “—I’ve got a surprise for you.”

Eddie perks up at that, “Please tell me it involves sex.”

His fingers are crossed from where they rest at your waist, wishing and hoping.

“Not quite,” You tell him with a short laugh, “it’s not off the table, though.”

And Eddie doesn’t have any idea what it could be if not that, letting you drag him by his hand to his room, forcing his eyes closed as you cross the threshold.

You reach for the stack of clothes and new pair of shoes and place them into his waiting hands, his face turning up in confusion as he feels it out with his thumbs.

“Role playing, babe—“ Eddie smiles widely, “you really shouldn’t have.”

“No, it’s—“

But, Eddie continues on.

“I know I mentioned something about an elf princess and a knight but we need to, like, plan that out—I had a script planned and everything—“

“Eddie, it’s not clothes for role playing.” You tell him monotone, patting his cheek lightly until his eyes flutter open, glancing down at the clothes briefly before it clicks with him, eyes turning up to you wide and bereft.

“Hey, no—“ Eddie says immediately, voice soft, “I told you no gifts, I don't need them.”

“Shut it, Munson.” You warn lovingly, pushing the clothes back toward his chest that he extends to you, “You don’t get to treat me to things without at least getting something in return.”

“Eating in the parking lot of Benny’s is pretty lame, you know.”

You smile fondly, thinking of all the small, practical dinners you’d have after a long day at school—finding it best to unwind over a burger, feet propped up over Eddie’s lap, the wrapper of his burger resting over the top of your shins and sometimes he’d drop a topping on purpose just to find a reason to touch you. It never failed to make you laugh, watching his tongue swipe against your skin to wipe it clean.

“It’s not,” You tell him honestly, “it’s what I love about you.”

Eddie huffs slightly at that, looking down at the clothes with a tinge of sadness.

“You didn’t have to do this,” Eddie insists, “I have plenty of clothes.”

“But nothing new,” You point out, “fresh off the rack, tags attached—I even got you a new pair of Reebok’s.”

Eddie can’t deny how crisp they look, so drastically different from the shoes on his own feet—a half size to small now and ripping at the seams.

“They are nice,” He smirks slightly, “I just—I don’t know what to say.”

“Don’t say thank you,” You tell him, “I know it’s implied.”

Eddie drops the clothes abruptly on the bed, opting to grab your face with his hands, touching as gently as ever.

“I love you.” The words hit just as strong each time, his eyes watering slightly but not quite reaching the point of tears.

“I know,” You smile, bottom lip pulled between your teeth briefly, “they can be your dress up clothes, yeah?”

Eddie snorts, pressing his mouth against your forehead—not kissing, only touching, pulling you into a warm hug.

“It’s just some socks and underwear—a couple shirts and a pair of jeans, too. I can’t stand the holes, Eddie. I can’t.” Eddie nods knowingly, though the laugh he gives you is full of amusement at your obvious annoyance with the matter.

“I hope you weren’t trying to turn this into an opportunity for really sappy sex,” Eddie says, arms squeezing around your waist to lift you again, “I can’t do slow tonight, sweetheart.”

You nod slowly, “I hate slow,” You didn’t—it was actually nice, the tenderness Eddie showed when he took his time; soft touches, longing looks that made your face heat in embarrassment, knowing how badly he affected you, but the dirty sex was just as good, if not better, “you know that.”

Eddie kisses you quickly, fully, his hands squeezing at your thighs as he bounces you slightly, adjusting his hold on you.

“I meant what I said about the roleplay, by the way.” Eddie interjects, “I’ve got this vision and—“

If you didn’t stop him now, it would never end—so you kiss him quick, deeply, tongue dipping into his mouth and igniting a fire in the low pit of your belly that has Eddie moaning into your mouth.

“Shutting up, got it.” Eddie nods, finally taking the hint.

He doesn’t complain when you buy him new clothes anymore, accepting them with a soft smile and shy acknowledgement of appreciation—because he deserves it and he deserves you.

Please consider a reblog if you enjoyed this fic! It’s makes a huge difference. ♡

#eddie munson #eddie munson smut #eddie munson headcanons #eddie munson x you #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson fanfic #eddie munson blurb #my writing

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browneyesandhair · 13 days

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Non-Exhaustive List of Soulmate Fics: Polin

Okay, I'm bored so I'm compiling my favorite soulmate fics. Here's the Polin edition:

These Days Will Fade Out by noveltyromance

Summary:

Penelope walked in and inspected the silvery words embedded on her skin. She really did meet her soulmate. It wouldn’t have turned colors if he was not hers. “So he said your words,” she mumbled softly to herself in the mirror, “but you didn’t say his.” It only meant one thing. Colin was her soulmate. But she wasn’t his.

tend my garden by runimpossiblegirl

Summary:

The forget-me-not on Penelope´s upper left arm had appeared when she was just sixteen. [Orinally posted with 5700 words on 31/12. Now updated to final version with 6900 and extra Colin POV on 01/01]

i'll use you as a warning sign by TheSushiMonster

Summary:

The words on his body sound like Lady Whistledown. His soulmate - the person meant to capture his body and heart, his partner and love of his life - ruins lives. Perhaps it makes sense that she’s already ruined his. - Or, soulmate AU where the words you write show up on your soulmate's skin.

i might lose everything if i lose the pain by frankchurchillsaysrelax

Summary:

Based on the prompt: On your 18th birthday you get a soul mark - one that would be identical to your soulmates. Colin is devastated that his does not match Marina’s. Trying to lighten up his mood days later - his brothers teasingly console him by saying that Penelope could get his mark when she turns 18 and that’s when she overhears him say that he would never marry her because he didn't think she's his soulmate. And as is Penelope's life a couple years later she gets an identical mark. Now she plans to hide it because she can’t handle his disappointment.

Give Me All The Pain (Give Me Everything) by wasteddarlinglover

Summary:

Penelope Featherington's soulmate hated her. She was alright with that. She hated him just as much. The only reason for their bond to exist was to bring each other pain. Colin Bridgerton's soulmate gave up on him years ago. He was not worthy of love and patience that their bond required. He learned to accept that and move on with his life. When two broken souls are brought together, Penelope and Colin find hope. Neither one of them can be with their soulmate, but maybe they can build something remarkable together. If they manage to let go of the pain, maybe they could even let themselves fall in love.

All the Time in the World by dontmakemeover

Summary:

All ladies of the Ton are instructed by their Queen to implant a TiMER on their wrists when they enter society at age 16. It is the truest and best way to find a Soulmate, with the TiMER counting down until the first time they will meet. Countless marriages have started this way (with at least a few of them ending the same way!) But Penelope Featherington does not highly rate this technology, for when her TiMER was implanted, the screen was blank. And what's more, she has seen the timer of the man she would like to be her true love, Colin Bridgerton, and knows that whoever her soulmate truly is, his is not her.

Latibule by The_Readers_Muse

Summary:

It was said you would be drawn to your one. That was the only advantage you had.

For the Both of Us by logogram

Summary:

A conversation with Fife and Cho leaves Colin wondering whether Penelope is his soulmate. Unfortunately, she seems to have become stubbornly attached to her gloves.

And So the Yandere Met the Bonnet Assassin by Seaowl

Summary:

There was a reason Violet was so hell bent to see all eight of her children married. The most valuable things to them are their soulmates and the family is told all their life that you are to do anything to protect and keep your soulmate. Lie, cheat, kill, frame, anything is on the table. The family that is so big on love that they become quite possessive of those who marry in, even if it is the soulmate of one of their siblings.

i'm the lock and you're the key by TheSushiMonster

Summary:

Penelope is ready to move on. Pining after Colin Bridgerton requires too much energy, too much of her soul. Penelope wants to find her soulmate, but maybe that may not be Colin after all. But… perhaps one last effort is necessary to completely eliminate Colin from her heart and mind. - Or, the “you must sleep with someone to determine if they’re your soulmate” AU.

Would I Lie To You? by LightLeadingMe

Summary:

It has been said and even written that true soulmates cannot lie to one another. They simply were unable to. Not even a small fib could be said to the person. Penelope began to resign herself to the fact that she'd never meet her soulmate, but then she ran (quite literally) into Colin Bridgerton.

Soulmarks by Seaowl

Summary:

Colin has found his soulmate, now he just has to find out who she is.

just let me adore you by TheSushiMonster

Summary:

Colin Bridgerton falls off his horse at age twenty-one and laughs. It’s a full-body laugh, bright and bold and gut-wrenching, as if his soul is finally free. Then he feels a burn across his left bicep, just beside his shoulder and when he inspects his skin, the outline of a detailed feather stares back at him. - Or, now that Colin knows Penelope is his soulmate, he vows to make her laugh in his presence so she can be his too. Or, the role reversal soulmate AU.

#rec list #soulmate aus #fandom soulmates #recs #fanfic #bridgerton #polin #penelope featherington #colin bridgerton #penelope/colin #penelope x colin

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farolero-posting · 10 months

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Notes on Niko

Hello! This is basically a post where I wanna compile facts and thoughts about Niko, for now it's just shorter facts or thoughts on them, but I may share more later c:

Let's start with a list!

Niko is a crafty child, since they can manage to fix the battery in the Barrens and the button for the Elevator with our suggestions.

They also know how to herd rams, and is implied they do similar things in their village.

They have looked after small children so they probably know a few things about looking after someone else, but they still have a lot to learn.

And they do learn! Niko remembers information they've been learning, such as what power cells, yellow phosphor, or blueprints are.

(maybe) it's likely they're at that stage where they can get by on their own with what they know but they still learn plenty of things in a day.

They hear a lot from movies and cartoons. Sometimes fiction helps explain ideas.

They know what death is, even if it's not mentioned out loud they can still deduce what the suicide note was about, or what could happen if they return the sun or break it.

They don't like being described as a cat

They tend to default to "noun guy/lady" to refer to people they don't know the name of. (elevator guy, plant lady, robot lady)

They're scared of ladders, but not heights, they're fine with the flying machine or walking around the top of the Refuge.

They also have fear of any other things that are potential hazards but nothing paralyzing.

They like fire! They even talk to Alula about it. They also know to lit up a fire in the starting house. Also the devs words on Niko doing arson lol.

They love fish, but think eating it raw like sushi is weird.

They know a few "big words" like "precarious" but probably don't know more technical words. They're around eight years old so I personally assume it's a mix of fiction and children's stories often trying to teach words incidentally.

They likely don''t like people assuming they can't do things, like them insisting they know how to read, it's just that the strange journal is not in a language they understand.

Part 2 to be released soon! ...I hope :D with longer notes.

#oneshot game #oneshotgame #niko #long post #analysis #most of these are very surface level things lol #i just like picking up on quirks so I wrote down things off the top of my head #niko oneshot

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thesherrinfordfacility · 5 months

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clearing out the drafts of Random Things I've Noticed if you can't tell but here, have another one - this building on the end of aziraphale's row of shops, on the other side of the record shop:

now im fairly certain about two things. first, it's called 'Alf Laylah wa-Laylah' - translated to english from arabic as One Thousand and One Nights. i can't quite tell at this quality if the writing below it is hebrew or yiddish, nor if it's a translation of the text above it (although, as best as i can tell? it isn't? but not sure)

im also not entirely sure on the relevance of the reference - if there is any to be had - to the story compilation that is One Thousand and One Nights, to tell the truth. the immediate thought that springs to mind is how scheherazade tells the king countless folk tales and stories over 1001 nights in order to keep him in suspense of hearing how the stories end - so he essentially stops killing women as revenge for the infidelity of his wife (it's a whole thing), whom he eventually pardons/spares from execution.

all the tales - as well as returns to the 'present' - include debate on philosophies and ethics, and explore various themes and topics, but regardless... my thoughts are somewhat jumping between this, the questions around the reliability of events as presented in s2, the flashbacks and the Lessons, etc. maybe that's not the link to make here, but it's all im coming up with so far.

but back to the building, and the second thing: think that the stars on the bottom half of the building, in the specific configuration they're shown, are the kaheksakand (estonian) / auseklis (latvian) - an eight-pointed star representing fertility and life, the triumph of light over darkness, as well as used as a protection symbol against evil (aptly placed outside the door).

there's a lot to go into re: the symbology behind '8', including its relationship to the concept of balance and harmony, especially in nature. the eight-pointed star in general, not just in the above exact shape, has dozens of cultural, religious, and mythological links (tbh it's probably featured in some capacity in nearly every culture), but i think particularly apt is how it links to venus aka. the morning star.

in the interest of keeping this brief (im sure cleverer people may wish to clarify/develop this more!!!), and keeping on track with where its place may sit in the show, i think it's first of all potentially of interest how this building is lit, given the above. we see the shot of the bentley arriving to whickber street in ep1 at night, and this particular shop (?) front is the most brightly lit... might mean nothing, might mean something:

but when the demons descend in ep5, a good portion of them appear out of the mist from that direction; a green mist (green shop?), reflecting the hell vibes we saw in ep1 etc. that being said, when crowley starts sensing Trouble Is Afoot earlier on, he's looking in all directions and certainly we see some demons behind him (in the direction of the dirty donkey) when he confronts this particular little gang of them, so unless some demons started arriving ahead of schedule, they may not have all come through this building:

but. we know from eric that the lift is broken, and the only other routes are the small lift, one at a time, or the stairs. shax obviously arrives in style, but the other demons? taken the stairs. what if this front is that exit onto earth? but just the back stairwell?

there's so many potentially loose threads to weave in here, and im sure i'll come back to this at some point, but felt it was an interesting design choice nonetheless, even if it ultimately means naff all✨

#good omens #i'll come back to this im sure #props meta #thats probably the most accurate tag for the moment

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art-that-fucks-you-up-tournament · 7 months

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Stats Part 3

Now that Round 3 is over, we're down to 32 (well, 33) remaining artworks which feels about time to check in on how our statistics are doing!

And if you're not interested in statistics, I (Mod Salix) wanted to talk about the polls. You may have noticed that I've been trying to keep to 4 polls a day, which would mean that Round 4 is only going to be 4 days, and Round 5 would post everything in two days. Starting in Round 6, we'll probably re-institute week long polls. Hopefully none of us will lose track of what day to post the next round!

We have 20 artworks by male artists, 10 by female artists, and 4 by groups or unknowable entities! And of those, one person is Black, two are Aboriginal (one of whom is Mestizo and Kichwa, the other of whom is Aboriginal Australian), one is Asian-American (and two are Chinese living in China as opposed to living somewhere they're a minority), and one is Indian-British. And also three are left from gay men about the AIDS crisis, in addition to the AIDS memorial quilt, and one lesbian comic.

There are six American artists (including the Asian-American mentioned above), and three Chinese artists (including the Asian-American mentioned above), as well as three Russians (including Ilya Repin, who was born in the future Ukraine and lived near St. Petersburg), technically two different pieces by the same Dutch artist (hi van Gogh), and one each from Argentina, Serbia, Ecuador, Colombia, Canada, Italy, Northern Ireland, Poland, Australia, Finland, Germany, France, and Britain. And one artist I have listed as Denmark/Germany/France, because August Friedrich Schenck was born in a place that was Denmark at the time, Germany now, and worked mostly in France.

Of the pieces with known locations, eight are in the United States (four specifically in New York), two each in Australia and Russia, and one each in Argentina, Finland, Italy, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland and one in a private collection.

There are two archaic pieces of art, Judith is our last standing piece from anything between archaic and 1843, 8 pieces of art from the 1800s, although five are from 1878 to 1896, one from 1903, two from the 70s or 80s, 5 from the 90s, four from the 00s, four from the span of 2014 to 2016, and three from the last two years. And two unknown dates and the AIDS memorial quilt which is still being added to.

There are 15 paintings, 7 installation arts, one comic, one photograph, one cave art, one sketch, one tattoo, and one fiber art slash installation. And the most common subject of the art are five queer related art pieces, although I have four each I summed up as either horror or grief/anguish.

And, lastly, someone sent in an ask in like Round 1 asking about statistics regarding whether being in first or second place in the poll biased anything. I'm not actually a statistician, so I can't answer that question, but I did compile the numbers of how many first-positioned vs second-positioned arts won! Surprisingly, Round 1 had 64 firsts to 63 seconds (and one tie), Round 2 had 29 to 35, and Round 3 had 15 to 17. Technically speaking that's not a large enough sample size to determine bias but it's... interesting?.

I was going to make a scatterplot featuring the number of votes in each poll to track engagement, but I haven't actually figured out how to do one in Google Sheets yet so maybe at the end of the bracket.

#definitely not inspired by a tag i saw on a poll spawning me to check ratio of men to women artists remaining #stats for nerds #mod salix #announcement #the most baffling poll is marat vs dusseldorf museum kunst palast somehow only had 146 votes? that can't be right #edit: if that one WAS hidden we had no way of telling :( it was finally beaten though #second edit: i included oswaldo guayasamin in the stats even though he was knocked out by keith haring :( sorry

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sinsisters · 3 months

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I decided that I'd like to start sharing informal, occasional devlogs about various WIPs I'm working on, so feel free to filter out #SSDevlog if you're not interested in seeing them!

Project List

The Spanish Privateer: Done, I do want to send out a short story compilation to backers and maybe write a few more to distribute. Also would like to tweak the keyboard help page so it auto-configures for controllers at some point.

Blueprint to a Villain's Heart: This was a 2023 otome game jam project that unfortunately never got finished due to collaborators getting busy (why must life!!!!).

You're the lead architect for evil lairs (rich conglomerate luxury mansions, eerie castles, underwater shark tanks, floating spiral hideouts, etc.). You sometimes have to make repeat appointments with clients, and they so rarely have normal conversations that they can occasionally get a little clingy…

Mephistopheles' and Baron Samdi's routes are done, about 13K each with a good ending, two bad endings, a best ending (romanced) and a best ending (friendship). The true villain's route and the art need to be done, but I want to share the beautiful concept art...

Mephistopheles' Concept Art

Baron Samdi's Concept Art

Glycon (True Villain)'s Concept Art

Surprise Cthulhu route?

Architect (Protagonist) (Selectable Pronouns) Concept Art

(View some more concept art on Jazzy's page!)

Would love to make this little game a reality, but it's hard to guarantee anything! It would be a free game, so I'm not sure how well crowdfunding would work. And even with money, you can't force people's time or interest.

Nazla: Beds of Thorn: My personal pet project. It's inspired by both classic (Zork) and modern (Shepherds of Haven) styles of Interactive Fiction, implementing classic-style exploration and questing with modern-style dialogue and writing.

You take a rest in an inn, and wake up to an uninvited guest nestled in the soft burrow between your body and your soul. You're left with three options: exorcise the spirit, reopen the veil, or… become a bed and breakfast innkeeper?Play as a human, elf, dwarf, orc, or some combination of the above in Nazla: Beds of Thorn. Featuring fully-customizable names and appearances, seven half-hour long origin stories, eight romanceable characters, and a simple three-class combat system, your journey can be soaked in blood or one-hundred percent fighting free.

It's been really fun to work on a project without worrying about needing to acquire assets. Plus, I plan on it being free, so I'm not concerned whether anyone ever reads it. I won't be doing any out-of-pocket projects for a few years i want to afford house

And I have two other projects stashed away, one of which I'm hoping Nazla helped me learn enough skills to pull off. But in the meantime, I'll be slowly plodding away at Nazla, sharing bits and pieces as I go. ♥

also i played cxm and let's just say... morioka can get it 🥵

#SSDevlog #tsp #btavh #nazla

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randomvarious · 2 months

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Today's compilation:

Atlantic Rhythm & Blues 1947-1974 - Japanese Edition 2012 R&B / Doo Wop / Soul / Rock & Roll / Funk / Jazz / Blues / Pop

Alright, well, I had originally planned for this post to dovetail quite nicely with the end of Black History Month, but when you get a virus, it has a way of setting things back a bit. But then again, Black History should obviously be celebrated in every month, so either way, without further ado, here's a massive end to my foray into the history of Atlantic Records: a deeply comprehensive recounting of its first 27 years in the record business called Atlantic Rhythm & Blues: 1947-1974.

Now, maybe because of how this label is currently constituted, you think of Atlantic as being among the amorphous blob of major record labels whose fingers are seemingly in the pies of every popular genre, and the quality of the output is barely distinguishable from its other competitors. Like, who cares who's on Atlantic these days, right? A major label is a major label is a major label. They all basically feel indistinguishable from one another at this point, don't they?

But here's what you may not know about Atlantic in particular. For about two decades, until they started signing rock bands like Led Zeppelin, they were almost exclusively dedicated to nothing but secular, black-made music. And that's originally how they ended up making a name for themselves, as an independent label for black musicians that actually had a reputation for usually compensating their artists fairly.

So in 1985, the first iteration of Atlantic Rhythm & Blues 1947-1974 hit the shelves. It consisted of a whopping *186 songs*, chronologically spread across 14 separate records or 7 cassettes. And then in '91, it was reissued on CD in an 8-disc set, with an extra 17 songs mixed within.

But this edition that I have for you all today is a much, much rarer one that was issued exclusively in Japan in 2012. And what it consists of is the same eight discs from the 1991 reissue, plus two more, which have songs on it that were handpicked by Japan's own super selector, Keishi Suzuki, who ends up supplying 52 more songs—a lot of them rarities—bringing the total amount of tracks within the release to a grand total of *255*! 😯

Now, obviously, that is a whole lot of music, and I'm not gonna write an ungodly amount of paragraphs to cover it all, but regarding the first discs in this box set, what I'll say is this: these are must-listens for any old school r&b/soul/doo wop novice or junkie out there. These CDs do a wonderful job of allowing you to take a bird's eye view of this label that managed to develop itself into an indefatigable powerhouse for popular black music. From its earliest days of jazzy and jump-bluesy instrumentals, to its deeper endeavors into soul, you can trace this label's contours and get a feel for just how eminent its entire existence has been upon the history of popular music writ large. From its first star Ruth Brown—who helped earn the label its clever, Yankee Stadium-inspired nickname of 'The House That Ruth Built'—to Ray Charles, to The Drifters, to Otis Redding, to Wilson Pickett, and to the Queen of Soul herself, Aretha Franklin; it's all in those first 8 discs.

But those final two Keishi Suzuki-curated CDs are the ones I'm here to write about especially today, because a whole bunch of these total obscurities are, really, absolutely phenomenal.

Like, maybe you're familiar with 60s soul-man Don Covay, who had a solid number of Billboard Hot 100 and R&B chart hits in his career, and also penned Aretha Franklin's own mega hit, "Chain of Fools." But did you know that Covay actually started out under the name of 'Pretty Boy' and performed with a raucous Little Richard-esque rock & roll flair? Suzuki provides "Bip Bop Bip" here, an energetic tune with scratchy, throaty shouts, mashing hi-hats, and an electrifying saxophone solo. And it was actually produced by Little Richard himself!

Then there's Lawrence & The Arabians (what a fucking name, man), a short-lived all-white group, who in 1967 released the outstanding "I'll Try Harder," a fully uptempo and poppy piece of horn-heavy blue-eyed soul that sounds partially cut from some type of Motown cloth. Delightful gem right there.

And lastly, we have Peggy Scott, a pretty well-known southern soul and R&B entity in her own right who managed to make the American top 40 thrice in the late 60s. But after she stopped charting, Scott ended up releasing just one single on Atlantic—through their Atco sublabel—and in 1972, on that single's B-side, she showed that she could still more than hack it with the fantastic "One Night Is All I Need," on which her voice is striking all throughout, but is especially so whenever she goes for that gravelly passion 😌.

And these final two discs in this set have more underappreciated stunners on them too, but we're done here. This is such an excellent release that I shelled out a pretty pretty penny for, and I'm ultimately glad I did, because while the easier-to-find editions of this thing are cheaper and deeply satisfying themselves, nothing beats the thrill of being exposed to underheard gems that not very many other people know about. And in that regard, Keishi Suzuki knocked his task way out of the park.

A magnificent album, both for its extensive chronologizing of one of the most important labels in the history of popular music, as well as its extra 50+ songs that get some much needed light shone upon them too.

Highlights:

CD1:

Ruth Brown - "So Long" Joe Morris - "Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere" Ruth Brown - "Tear Drops From My Eyes" Joe Turner - "The Chill Is On" Joe Turner - "Sweet Sixteen" Willis Jackson - "Gator's Groove"

CD2:

Ruth Brown - "Mama He Treats Your Daughter Mean" Ruth Brown - "Wild Wild Young Men" Ray Charles - "Mess Around" Joe Turner - "Honey Hush" LaVern Baker - "Soul On Fire" Professor Longhair - "Tipitina" The Drifters - 'White Christmas" The Drifters - "Whatcha Gonna Do" Joe Turner - "Shake, Rattle and Roll" Tommy Ridgley - "Jam Up" Al Hibbler - "After the Lights Go Down Low" Ray Charles - "I Got a Woman" Ray Charles - "Greenbacks"

CD3:

Ray Charles - "A Fool for You" Ray Charles - "This Little Girl of Mine" The Robins - "Smokey Joe's Cafe" The Drifters - "Ruby Baby" The Cookies - "In Paradise" Ray Charles - "Drown In My Own Tears" The Coasters - "Down In Mexico" Ray Charles - "Lonely Avenue" Clyde McPhatter - "Without Love" Chuck Willis - "C.C. Rider"

CD4:

Chuck Willis - "Hang Up My Rock and Roll Shoes" The Coasters - "Yakety Yak" Ray Charles - "Night Time Is the Right Time" The Coasters - "Charlie Brown" Ray Charles - "What'd I Say" The Drifters - "There Goes My Baby" Ray Charles - "Let the Good Times Roll" The Coasters - "Poison Ivy" Ben E. King - "Stand by Me" LaVern Baker - "Saved"

CD5:

The Mar-Keys - "Last Night" The Falcons - "I Found a Love" Ben E. King - "Don't Play That Song (You Lied)" Booker T. & The MG's - "Green Onions" Doris Troy - "Just One Look" Esther Phillips - "Release Me" The Drifters - "Under the Boardwalk"

CD6:

Otis Redding - "I've Been Loving You Too Long" Wilson Pickett - "In the Midnight Hour" Otis Redding - "Respect" Percy Sledge - "When a Man Loves a Woman" Wilson Pickett - "634-5789" Sam & Dave - "Hold On, I'm Coming" The Capitols - "Cool Jerk" Wilson Pickett - "Land of 1000 Dances" Eddie Floyd - "Knock On Wood" Otis Redding - "Try a Little Tenderness" Wilson Pickett - "Mustang Sally" Sam & Dave - "When Something Is Wrong With My Baby" Arthur Conley - "Sweet Soul Music" Aretha Franklin - "I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You" Aretha Franklin - "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" Otis & Carla - "Tramp" Wilson Pickett - "Funky Broadway" Booker T. & The MG's - "Hip-Hug-Her" Sam & Dave - "Soul Man"

CD7:

Aretha Franklin - "Respect" Aretha Franklin - "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" The Bar-Kays - "Soul Finger" Aretha Franklin - "Baby, I Love You" Aretha Franklin - "Chain of Fools" Wilson Pickett - "I'm in Love" King Curtis - "Memphis Soul Stew" Aretha Franklin - "(Sweet Sweet Baby) Since You've Been Gone" Otis Redding - "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" Archie Bell & The Drells - "Tighten Up" Clarence Carter - "Slip Away" Aretha Franklin - "Think" Clarence Carter - "Too Weak to Fight" Donny Hathaway - "The Ghetto" Tyrone Davis - "Turn Back the Hands of Time" Les McCann & Eddie Harris - "Compared to What" Aretha Franklin - "Call Me"

CD8:

Aretha Franklin - "Don't Play That Song (You Lied)" King Floyd - "Groove Me" Clarence Carter - "Patches" Wilson Pickett - "Don't Knock My Love" The Beginning of the End - "Funky Nassau (Parts 1 & 2)" Persuaders - "Thin Line Between Love and Hate" Aretha Franklin - "Rock Steady" Aretha Franklin - "Day Dreaming" Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway - "You've Got a Friend" Betty Wright - "Clean Up Woman" The Spinners - "Could It Be I'm Falling in Love" Roberta Flack - "Killing Me Softly With His Song" Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway - "Where Is the Love" The Spinners - "I'll Be Around" Roberta Flack - "Feel Like Makin' Love" The Spinners - "One of a Kind (Love Affair)" Blue Magic - "Sideshow" The Spinners - "Mighty Love"

apparently you can have too many hyperlinks in a post...will include the rest in a reblog...

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majaloveschris · 9 months

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Ok, so while you’re on the talk of staged photos - I found it kinda hilarious that there’s a pic of them with the original photo of the pumpkins propped up next to uncarved pumpkins and then them taking a selfie sitting 3 feet apart.

Like - alluding to the pic he previously posted of the post carved pumpkins. (Yes, those pumpkins were made by us together!)

Just like the photo of him driving while his dog has his chin on his shoulder - added later on to the vday dump to indicate she was the one who took it. (Yea, she was the one who took that photo!)

Over a year…narrative (scare videos - with a “looking back at the past year” caption)

Vday compilation - continued “looking back at the past year. So many pics - eight of which were just them separately (lol) and only ONE pic of them kissing. In a car. Someone else took the photo and his body is turned away from her while her neck is craned upwards like a giraffe.

Im sorry - anyone can feel free to disagree but these two instances alone were too obvious of a blatant strategy for me to buy into anything else.

Let’s be real here. How many straight men in the world - would organically post generic pics on their IG grid, and months later - add “follow up” photos with more specific details as part of a “reveal”?

IMO, That’s why the rollout of the whole relationship was questioned by many ppl, maybe including outlets like buzz feed and Perez Hilton.

It’s just a little too staged - each time, to make it truly believable.

You know how sometimes you’ll hear a story, or even get an anon posting a question - and they go on for a bit and there’s just one little detail that pushes the story over the top so that it’s not believable. It’s like, “if you hadn’t amped up that last 2% I would have believed you!”

That’s the entire vibe I get from this whole thing. Again, feel free to disagree.

This whole relationship seems forced and unnatural. This whole posting thing is so out of character for him; when people said that “this and that” was so weird, they did something to prove it otherwise (for example, the whole Lisa thing, and then she started following her and even liked one of her pictures). They don't look in love, happy, content, or like a real couple.

Obviously, there are people who think they are so happy together and will marry and live happily ever after. I can't and would never be able to support this relationship. Obviously, I'm nobody to them, so they don't need my support or blessing, but I still feel this way. I don't think she or the people around her are good people; her and their behavior and words are something I could never support or pass by.

And it's not that I don't want him happy or that I want him to end with me; I just don't think she is a good person, and I don’t want somebody I like to end up with somebody I don't consider a good person. She and her friends did and said questionable things. They were racist, fatphobic, and Nazi supporters. And these don't scream good people to me.

#majaloveschris #chris and alba pr #cevans-love

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ofduskanddreams · 1 year

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Trust In My Hate: an Azris /Captive Prince Crossover

I likely won't start truly writing this fic until after What Lies Inside is completed, but I've been having a lot of fun planning, worldbuilding and outlining so I thought I would share some of it (but please note that the content of this post is subject to change, nothing’s final just yet.)

If you aren't familiar with the series, it's the Captive Prince Trilogy by C.S Pacat. [link to Penguin's page for the series here.]

I'm not calling this an AU because I'm not transplanting Azris to the Captive Prince (CaPri) world, nor am I transplanting the CaPri plot into ACOTAR. The world where the fic is set is inspired by both the CaPri and ACOTAR, as you can clearly see in the map below. The characters are maybe 60% ACOTAR, 25% OC, 15% CaPri. The plot is like 60% CaPri, 20% post-canon ACOTAR, 20% original. I essentially threw everything I liked into a blender and made something new.

Find the map and the fic's prologue below the cut! [new map and updated prologue as of 2/22]

Map:

I recommend clicking on the map to view it at a higher resolution.

Prologue:

This will explain the map, I promise.

Excerpts from the Illyrian Chronicle, compiled by Gaspar Kasos for his majesty King Gabriel in the year 207 AL (after liberation.) Long ago, the great Island of Prythian was divided into eight kingdoms. The Kingdom of Andr in the far north, and a coalition of seven kingdoms known collectively as the Courts. There were four seasonal Courts: Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter; and three solar Courts known as Dawn, Day, and Night. Five centuries ago, Cornelius II, then the ruler of the Autumn Court, began a campaign of expansion. By the time his great-great-grandson Timothy IV took the throne, the Autumn Court’s power had consumed the other three seasonal Courts. Timothy did not think Andr, that rocky formidable land, worth the resources necessary to claim it and thus turned his gaze to the south.

In response to the growing threat from the north, Dawn allied with Day. Both would remain neutral in the initial conflicts to come which distanced them from the Night Court who stood fixedly against Autumn’s actions.

Not long after this coalition was formed, a rebellion broke out in Night. For centuries the Night Court’s rulers had oppressed the Illyrian people within their borders, forcing them to live in desolate camps and serve in their armies. Under the leadership of the warrior Enalius, the Illyrians were able to break away from the Night’s oppression. During the revolution they conquered half of Night, establishing the great Kingdom of Illyria as it stands today.

Though Dawn and Day remained neutral for decades, it would not last. On the Winter Solstice in 57 AL, Autumn spies massacred Dawn's royal line in its entirety, prompting Night to join the Southern Coalition with Day to stand against Autumn and aid in governing Dawn's rulerless territory on the border.

Thirty-seven years ago the newly crowned King Rholand of Night and King Gabriel of Illyria met on the border at Mount Ramiel to discuss a tentative peace, marking the end of over a century and a half of strife between their lands. Rholand offered Illyria a public apology for Night’s persecution of their people, as well as a generous peace treaty and trade agreement that leaned heavily in Illyria’s favor. It was at this summit when Illyria formally joined the alliance against Autumn and the allied Southern Kingdoms as we know them were formed. The final offering on that celebrated day however, was made by no kingdom but by King Rholand's younger sister.

The Lady Elyssa of Night surprised all of those gathered by offering King Gabriel her hand in marriage, arguing that there would be no better demonstration of this new, peaceful relationship between their kingdoms than joining their houses by blood. Impressed by her eloquence and resolve, and after discussing the terms with Rholand, Gabriel accepted the proposal and the two were wed the following sunset at the grand temple in Illyria’s capital, Ios.

The three southern rulers of Prythian ensured that their sons and heirs—the Princes Azrelios of Illyria, Rhysand of Night, and Lucien of Day—grew up paying frequent visits between their lands to bolster the trio’s camaraderie. The rulers’ forethought was well rewarded when a brutal battle broke out at Marlas in the borderlands at the eve of this current decade.

The three young, then untested heirs valiantly led their forces against Autumn’s armies, but the battle only ceased when the Illyria’s Prince met Eren Vanserra, Heir to the Autumn Throne, in single combat and slew him on the battlefield. Eren’s death placed his younger brother Eris next in the line of succession.

The battle of Marlas shattered over two centuries of relative peace between Autumn and the South. Nine years later, skirmishes are still frequent in the borderlands and tensions between Autumn and the Southern Kingdoms are at an all time high.

If you made it this far, thank you <3 I know I'm a nerd. Yes, I made the map myself and likely spent waaayyyy too much time on it but I think it's pretty cool and I hope it stoked some excitement!

#azris #azris fanfic #captive prince au #captive prince #my wips #acotar fanfiction #acotar au #azriel #azriel shadowsinger #azriel acotar #eris vanserra #eris acotar

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hayleysayshay · 1 year

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You know I don’t think I’ve ever rly done a post on why I like Mako, my forever blorbo:

He’s just the kind of neutral character I like and I think it’s because I really don’t have a strong personality and I tend to like characters some people think are boringg because they’re the straight man. Scott Summers was my favourite x-man lol.

He has weird eyebrows. It’s a plus for sure.

He has a tragic backstory, but it’s trauma that’s related to poverty. His parents were killed young and he’s been in a caretaker role since he was eight. That leaves him emotionally stunted. Emotional constipation is my jam. There is literally a post compiling all of the characters in the legend of korra crying, and Mako isn’t in it because he doesn’t cry. I think he needs a good cry.

Also his parents were killed by a firebender, he is a firebender, the show never explores this juicy source of angst.

He generally cares and is very protective over his friends. He doesn’t even really hide it, at the start of book 1 it’s clear he only cares about the people he cares about. This changes by book 4 when he sacrifices himself for the city. His world has expanded.

There’s a ruthless side to Mako, he can be a little dark, see how he threatened people for Korra in book 1 (and then Wu in book 4 lol?). He killed Ming-Hua and my own HC is that he was probs fine with because out of the four I think Mako is the most pragmatic (though tbh I don’t think we’ve seen all of what Asami can offer so maybe second most. Think Asami would murder easily).

I like his dynamic with Bolin a lot, and a lot of book 3 slaps because of this (ignore whatever the jail thing in book 2 because it’s just strange.)

I also like his dynamic with Wu which is why I’m a wuko shipper lol.

He is a very bad communicator. I think that’s neat, because communication is actually something people in general suck at talking, and I don’t ever really like people saying ‘just talk!’ A response to characters conflict, because people don’t just fucking talk to each other. Communication is hard.

Mako starts an eighteen year old who thinks he knows everything but really doesn’t. The only person he has had to rely on his entire life is himself, so his outlook on the world is very warped by his own perception of it, so I think he lacks introspection and can’t really relate to many people emotionally so he couldn’t understand Korra’s frustrations in book 2 (though yes to say Korra was also in the wrong). By book 4 he has grown more chill to trust and support Korra implicitly (who has also grown as well).

I love the breakups. Mako and Korra and Asami all seemed to like each other but never really understood one another. A lot of the issues between them were not just started by Mako (ppl forget Korra initiated the love triangle by kissing Mako without asking when she knew he had a gf) and it’s just teenagers being dumb and not being honest with eachother. I don’t think the writers set out do this in book 1 but by choosing to end the relationships in book 2 I feel like there was some awareness to the flaws present in the relationships. It is, accidentally, one of the more realistic relationships squabbles on a kids show. I love that shit because I’m weird.

All of this leads to this incredibly flawed doofus who means well. I think that’s blorbotastic.

Anyway because most of the fandom hate for the relationship drama is towards Mako I feel the need to defend him since it’s just not that bad. I also feel the need to explain every time that Mako dying would have been a very bad way to end the series, please guys, I will fight you in the streets over this.

None of this is very well explored in canon. I don’t think Mako is a blank slate character, a lot of his character is defined early on and is consistent, but it is not well developed beyond the initial setup at all. This is great for fanfic and it’s fun for headcanons. Hooray!

Because it’s underdeveloped your headcanon doesn’t need much time to work with canon as long as you actually watch the series.

#mako #tlok #lok #legend of korra #it’s half two. why did I feel the need to explain this now

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egg-emperor · 1 year

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I'm not under the impression that Eggman designed Sage to look like that atm, unless we get evidence that she looked like that before the prequel comic or first cutscene with Eggman getting trapped in Cyber Space. She was just a disembodied voice in both, then again in the post credits, like a program typically is.

Because 1. it doesn't look like something Eggman would design at all and 2. You realize how random and strange it'd be if he just suddenly decided to make a creation that looked like a humanoid little girl, despite him not seeing himself as her father at first or even a person and only a program and an "it."

It's weird how she just suddenly looks like that in her first full appearance but a lot of other shit happened off screen too. With the way the first scene of her and Eggman talking starts, it doesn't seem to be the first time they've talked there, so his first reaction could easily have been off screen.

That's what would make the most sense story wise though, I think. I know there's a chance it's just not supposed to have that much thought put into it as the design was probably just made first, without thought of how it fits Eggman's character and creator's touch but this is how I'd attempt it.

We could apply the logic that Sage said her and her capabilities were modified in some ways after intergrating with Cyber Space, in ways beyond how Eggman compiled her base code. Because we don't get to see until what she looks like until after we know she's integrated with Cyber Space, right?

I dunno, that's just what I'm going with so far unless we see otherwise because it stops me being so confused and curious by the design choice, as Eggman would have no reason to make her look like this- aside from the possible alternate option of hoping Sonic and friends will hesitate to fight a child maybe lol

Which is funny because Eggman himself is infamous for always being ready to be violent and murderous towards children himself, towards Sonic and all his friends even with those that are as young as six and eight years old. I could accept that logic do if they do wanna go with him designing her XD

#dr eggman #eggman #dr robotnik #dr. eggman #sage the ai #sonic frontiers #my post

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themonopolyhat · 1 year

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shoulder the sky: the windix hanahaki au

that time i was screwing around in chat with @shootingstarpilot and accidentally coughed up a 6K+ windix-flavored hanahaki au for his shoulder the sky series. (hanahaki disease is a fic trope in which unrequited or unconfessed love causes flowers to grow in the afflicted person's lungs.)

compiling the comments here for funsies. featuring mace and helix, needle and stitch, cody, obi-wan, and a whole pile of tropes bubblegum-taped together.

as always, helix the clone medic belongs to @swmoddy, needle and stitch belong to @shootingstarpilot

the setup:

@shootingstarpilot: this is taking the concept and running with it, but i like the thought that it's not just romantic feelings, it's familial too. im just thinking about kamino's fucked up upbringing, how dangerous that sort of out-loud acknowledgement would be--

@themonopolyhat: oh i knew you would hurt me with this i knew it

@shootingstarpilot: thinking about helix, helix who loves in everything he does but doesn't say it, never thought he needed to, starting to cough up flowers

my crimes:

so maybe it's not every clone, maybe it's just a few really unlucky ones that get hit with this predisposition

most of them die young bc kamino is a bad place and lots of clones get culled, it's statistically likely for any clone with a deviation from the norm to get caught and killed

helix is one of the very, very, very, very few that makes it out. and he does so without becoming a cold unfeeling bastard, which is the usual defense mechanism

if he loves someone, he starts to cough petals. the symptoms abate if he confesses. that's easy enough for him, he's a medic and he's kind and he's not shy. he tells his brothers he loves them, no problem.

sometimes he coughs petals for a few days before he figures out who the new culprit is.

sometimes he coughs for a few days and then the symptoms clear up, and he figures out that the culprit died.

the thing is that he really does have a good grasp of professional distance. he doesn't love every patient, though he cares for them. he's good at holding his heart carefully. he just doesn't mind loving colleagues and friends and batchers easily.

he loves needle on day three. coughs petals, isn't even fucking surprised. needle hugs him desperately when helix tells him he loves him. it's something needle hasn't heard since -- well. since he got up from the chair a different person.

he loves stitch on day two. that one's a surprise. it's not because stitch is quiet and wary and obviously, obviously hurt. that inspires sympathy and protectiveness.

it's the way stitch fixes pillows and adjusts cannulas and talks so softly to the men in his care. he remembers everything he's told. he's brilliant. he's sweet. he cares and he's talented and he doesn't ever look for praise.

helix tells him he loves him on day eight, because any sooner and he's sure the poor kid would shut right down on him. it's cutting it close -- stitch is confused but thanks him. helix pops another throat lozenge and goes about his day.

[needle and stitch] figure it out after a while and in retrospect they're like ohhhhh helix you enormous sap you loved us that fast???

things are fine, really

u n t i l

there comes a day, a little ways into the war, when helix coughs petals. and it takes him some time to realize that he's coughing them up over his first natborn.

the first natborn he's ever loved -- the first who's ever earned it --

helix just kind of bangs his head down on his arms when he finally cottons on. he's a moron. of course it's their general. their kind, funny, exasperating general who loves them and flings his body between them and pain and death every goddamn chance he gets -- who defends them with every scrap of that gigantic brain and that silvery tongue and the weight of his own title and influence and connections --

helix loves obi-wan. he's coughing petals over it.

his boys figure him out way too fast, as always, and they suss out the complication just as fast when they've cornered helix in the office.

needle and stitch stare, a bit wide-eyed, as the reality sinks in.

"have you ever -- a natborn --?" needle asks delicately.

"no," helix grumbles tiredly, rubbing at his sore throat. "exactly which natborn would have made the cut?"

"how are you going to tell him? does it work if you use synonyms, or if you say it like you're joking?" stitch asks, undelicately.

helix gives him a wan little smile despite himself. "unfortunately, no, it doesn't work like that. i experimented when i was young. and... gods, i guess if i don't want to die, i'll have to figure out the how sooner or later."

fortunately for helix, blind luck gives him an easy out soon enough.

he's holed up with the general alone in a shallow crater, where they flung themselves to avoid being spotted while picking their way back to their own side of the battlefield.

why are they out here alone? because helix is playing field medic today, his larty got shot down, four men survived the crash aside from him, two of them died minutes after, the other two he was able to patch but they couldn't move fast with their injuries, and helix ended up hiding alone after an ugly chase.

and then obi-wan turned up to get him, in person, already dusty and sweaty and dinged up after the day's fighting, and helix still doesn't know exactly how the hells the general found one lone clone out here.

so they're here in the depression in the earth, catching their breath and drinking a little of what remains in their canteens.

"shouldn't be long now," the general murmurs lowly, checking the coordinates and the sky. "we're not far. another hour or three, if we're careful, and we'll be past the droids' scanning range. then it's just another half a day to camp, if cody's scouts pick us up right away."

helix nods. watches his general poke at the readout from his wrist comm some more. "i'm sorry you came all this way for just one," he hears himself saying out loud.

obi-wan doesn't look over, which is, helix has learned, a sure sign he's feeling some strong emotion and hiding it. "i'm not," he says easily, the reply so ready he must have had to express similar sentiments before. "this is what i am for, really. i'm just sorry i wasn't there soon enough to save anyone else along with."

helix's throat itches, and his lungs feel abruptly heavy. he hasn't coughed in front of obi-wan yet, and he doesn't intend to start now. maybe it's the fact that he knows he's talking to an empath, but it doesn't seem so difficult to get the words out, not when they're delivered on a swell of feeling.

"you make it easy to love you, general," he murmurs. "and i do. love you, i mean."

(he has to be explicit, or it doesn't work.)

obi-wan does look over, now, and his surprise is clear to see. "oh. ah. well." it's not often that he's caught so flat-footed, and helix finds it both hilarious and charming. "thank you? you must know i care for you, as well." a pause. "very much, helix. i care for you very much."

helix knows what he means. he feels lighter. breathing, of course, is easier. so is running, when they inevitably get to that point in the escape.

[fast forward to] the SECOND natborn helix loves enough to start the flowers growing again

everything develops in series canon... [mace and helix are] trauma besties. then friends. confidantes. they trust each other. they care for each other.

mace comes into helix's life at the same time that practically everything is horrible. so it's understandable that the realization takes time.

the coughing doesn't start, luckily, until after helix gets back from his trip through the rift. after seeing the utter lack of recognition in that other mace's eyes, the impersonal sizing-up and curiosity and distance. after seeing his mace again, clocking the warmth and depth of mace's attention and attentiveness, the way he carries himself with such grace, the faint curve of his mouth when he's amused and the light in his eyes --

helix coughs. realization comes swiftly. he hides from needle and stitch for nearly a full day.

the first time his voice goes scratchy, needle eyeballs him malevolently. the first time he stifles a cough around stitch, stitch immediately comms needle. it's inevitable. helix is resigned.

"who is it?" stitch asks outright. "it can't be someone new. we haven't gone anywhere in days."

"except to the past, and i can't see helix being the love at first sight type," needle muses, as he often has before. (he's very right and should repeat the facts often, in helix's opinion.) "so it's got to be somebody he already knows and just had a Moment about."

stitch gently, carefully listens to helix's breathing and hands him a lozenge, with the exact air of someone handing a child a sweet after shots. "do we need to guess or do you want to tell us?" he asks.

helix sets his hand over his eyes. "it's mace," he says flatly.

"oh," stitch says brightly.

"oh," needle says, deflating somewhat. "that makes sense."

helix swallows a chuckle and, in a spurt of ill-timed desire for support (even if it's in the form of teasing and the worst suggestions known to clonekind), he adds, "it's not... the regular kind."

"oh?" stitch asks, frowning, immediately concerned, the diagnostician in him leaping to the fore.

"oh," needle repeats. he blinks at helix for a moment. "oh." surprise, delight, and smugness are fighting an audible pitched battle for dominance. "stitch, buddy, put that away. it's not a difference in strain. it's a different catalyst."

stitch looks at needle and waits for explanation, which he will get -- nobody who loves stitch plays coy with him, it's not kind.

"helix doesn't just love like a friend or a brother this time," needle continues, though his voice is quieter now, soft and overjoyed and conspiring. "do you, helix? it's more than that."

helix leans back and looks up at the ceiling, biting the inside of his cheeks to keep from smiling like an idiot. damn, but it does feel good to have it outside his own head. good and annoying, but for now he'll coast on the good. "more," he replies simply, dryly.

it's more than enough for needle, who audibly grabs stitch and shakes him in place. "stitch!" he hisses. "helix is in love. romantically. with general windu!"

a deafening silence follows. helix can hear stitch processing from here. "is that even allowed?" stitch wants to know. he sounds baffled. little gods on rye, helix adores him.

helix looks at them again in time to see needle squishing stitch companionably under one arm. "if it's not, most of the army is in trouble," he answers cheerfully. "show me a man who hasn't got a thing for at least one of the generals and i'll show you a certified liar. or a you, unless you're holding out on me."

stitch wrinkles his nose. "i'm not holding out. they're the generals." which is all the explanation he seems to feel is warranted.

"right, right, but you've seen the nose art and the tats and the cartoons on the forums. the polls, too. didn't you vote for general kenobi in the last 'sexiest jedi' poll?"

"yes, because general fisto was winning and general kenobi deserves our support."

"well there you go."

helix doesn't want to think about any of the jedi generals in terms of sexiness (except one, maybe, and isn't that a new and shining and fragile line of thought), especially not kenobi. he coughs lightly into his fist, catching their immediate attention. "widespread pining aside, i know i can count on you both to be discreet about this," he tells them. "i probably wouldn't say anything to him if this damned disease wasn't going to force my hand, but as it is... well. i'll figure something out. i just need some time."

helix may not have any prior experience with this kind of love, but he knows it's not the sort of thing he can confess easily or casually, like he does to his brothers. nor does he anticipate circumstances conspiring to give him a good opening, like he had with obi-wan.

he has to figure out how to tell mace he's in love with him. a clone in love with a natborn. in love with a jedi, and the master of the order, at that.

but first, there's the rift. the past. and there's ben.

(watching mace tread carefully around ben does nothing to tamp down helix's feelings. he coughs for some minutes every morning, now. petals and more petals, mixed with mucus. sometimes it's tinged pink.)

he doesn't find the time. he doesn't make the time.

in his defense, there's very little time to be found or made.

he blinks, and ben is gone, the rift sealed, and mace has so many duties pulling him in every direction. helix is busy, too -- the clones are hurtling toward citizenship, and one of their first acts of freedom after the war is declared over?

[shoulder the sky spoilers redacted]

mace is going with them. he's on a different ship.

helix coughs and coughs and coughs. he takes suppressants during the day, and pays for it at night. pink turns to red. petals turn to buds, then to blooming flower heads. a leaf here, a young stalk there.

some nights he lays next to the commode after heaving up half a garden and gasps for air, his vision darkening all around the edges.

needle and stitch notice. of course they do. they know his throat is sore, his breathing hampered. they see the exhaustion dogging his steps.

needle takes helix aside one day and very, very seriously affixes an emergency call bracelet to his wrist. "it calls to stitch and me, both," he says crisply. "use it any time, any shift. you know we mean that."

helix just looks at it, guilt stirring down deep. he's killing himself slowly here, like a moron. and he's making them watch.

"helix," needle presses.

"i will," helix tells him softly.

"don't make us find you," needle begs him.

which is what makes helix decide he actually will use the damn thing. if he needs to.

he needs to sooner than he expected.

he gets a comm from mace that makes him chuckle fondly for half a day after. that night, he coughs so frantically that he finds himself fumbling for the bracelet -- he's going to pass out, he can't stay upright, he's afraid he'll vomit and aspirate, so he tumbles sideways and hopes it's close enough to the recovery position --

he comes awake hacking, convulsing with it. a hand strikes his back firmly, and a voice murmurs to him that he's all right, most of it's out already, there are just a few residuals, it's okay, you're okay...

he blinks wetly up at needle and stitch, who've wedged themselves into the little 'fresher with him and look very solemn indeed.

"drink this slowly," stitch commands, passing down an opened bulb of water. it's been warmed and tastes like salt and lozenges -- one of stitch's own recipes for sore throats.

needle holds helix's head in his lap, stroking his hair. "we pulled the major obstructions out while you were unconscious." he pauses. "it's never been this bad before."

he's scared them. he can see it.

"you have to tell him," stitch says, with such clear uncomprehending pain that helix has to close his eyes against it. "you can't do this for much longer, not without staying in medbay for observation and intervention."

"which means we'll tie you to a bed and intubate you and you'll have to make your confession via battle sign," needle adds darkly.

it's a little funny. helix doesn't mean to laugh, but he does, a little. a cough rattles free.

"i'm sorry, boys," he murmurs, and presses his cheek to needle's leg. "i really am. your cmo is an idiot."

"yes," stitch agrees. "which is why i already asked ponds to have general windu comm you tomorrow at lunch time. you can tell him then and your throat and lungs can start healing."

"you asked ponds...?" helix croaks in surprise.

"well. i asked ace who asked ponds who called to ask me for clarification and then told me he'd arrange it."

needle is all smiles. he lays a hand across helix's brow. "i want to hear the details of that conversation later."

"later," stitch agrees peaceably.

helix gives a shallow sigh. he didn't want to do this over comms, but he's running out of options and he knows it.

fast forward, the call with mace gets interrupted, helix does not get to tell him. he ends up back in medbay and needle and stitch look so hopeful and he feels worse about having to shake his head than he does about his own diminishing health.

(it's not an easy death, or so he imagines. there's never been a clone who lived long enough to die of this particular ailment. they don't even really know how long it might take.)

there won't be another chance to talk to mace before they make planetfall. it will have to wait.

(he shakes his head, no he didn't tell mace, no he's not taking a shift off even though he was up late gagging on flowers, no he doesn't need a break, he's fine, he just needs to sip water and take a hit off the inhaler stitch concocted for him)

it must be mentioned that some of the 212th has noticed their cmo seems a bit off. the boys aren't stupid, and they're so accustomed to the way a clone ought to look and move that deviations due to injury or illness stand out like flashing alarms. helix's color isn't great, and his breathing is wrong, and he doesn't move as quickly as he used to. he talks like it hurts his throat. he shifts his balance like he's fighting dizziness, sometimes.

it's noticeable. they notice. they have noticed.

cody is the one who comes to ask. he sets his helmet precisely on the corner of helix's desk and looks him squarely in the eye. "you're sick," he says, straight to the point.

helix doesn't bother asking how he knows, or whether anyone else does, too. it's likely that every clone aboard has a hunch, at least, or has heard about someone else's. (kenobi is actually the least likely to know. clones keep some things strictly in-house, and old habits die hard.) "i am."

cody nods slowly. "treatable?"

"in a manner of speaking." helix sighs, shallow and careful. "but not at the moment. i'm managing."

"will you need to go back to coruscant for treatment?"

helix considers for a moment. it might not be a bad idea if cody knows the truth. he's trustworthy with secrets, and if helix does croak, someone ought to tell obi-wan why. "it's hanahaki."

cody's expression is sort of hilarious. "you -- what?"

"the love disease. i'm coughing up flowers. it'll kill me at some point, if, well. you know."

cody opens and closes his mouth, and apparently has to sit down, because he drops out of his upright parade rest and into a chair as though he's had a few strings cut. "what the kark," he finally says.

helix grins wryly at him. "yeah."

"that's... i didn't know anyone got off kamino with that. they all got caught as cadets."

"most did."

"but not you."

"not me."

cody just stares at him. "you're sick because you love someone and you haven't told them."

"that's the sum of it, yes."

"helix, that is the stupidest way a clone could possibly die."

helix is surprised into laughing, which threatens to send him into a coughing fit. he reaches for the inhaler, smiling, and rasps, "don't i fucking know it, cody."

(it will occur to helix later that he really should have ribbed cody about his thing for the general -- if cody had been coughing flowers, it might have saved them all years of watching him and kenobi sashay around each other like nubian flamingos.)

cody doesn't ask who it is, and helix doesn't volunteer the information. it's immaterial to the situation they're all about to be in, anyway.

cody does tell helix in no uncertain terms to get his shit together, though. he does not want him to die of this like some tongue-tied airhead shiny.

truthfully, that leaves helix feeling very cheerful indeed. after they've [redacted], he decides. he'll find mace somewhere and tell him. short and sweet.

[redacted shit happens]

helix glimpses mace twice, from a distance.

there's no time to talk to him.

and then there's even less time than before.

[redacted redacted]

he's choking before he can catch a full breath. choking, coughing fruitlessly, clutching his chest, his throat, staggering to his knees instinctively because he knows he's going to fall --

someone is shouting. several someones, nearby and far away. there are hands on him, frantic questions, a light in his eyes. so many dismayed expressions hovering over him, he wants to bark at them to quit gawking and do something before they catch flies.

he can't speak. blood slides down his throat, coats his lips. there's a flower caught at the root of his tongue, huge and strangling. he can't breathe. he can't breathe. he can't --

he wakes up.

it's slightly surprising, to be honest.

he knows he's in his own medbay before he's even fully conscious. the sounds, the smell, the feel of the place is sunk into his bones by now. he knows it. it's home.

helix gingerly swallows, curling his fingers slightly in the blanket. he's so sore inside. breathing hurts. his throat feels like it's been peeled raw. his chest is tight. the oxygen cannula in his nose is some relief, but he'd blackmail somebody for a lozenge or warm water with an analgesic dissolved in it right now.

"are you awake, helix?" someone murmurs from the bedside.

helix licks his lips, tasting the medbay chap gel there, and opens his eyes, blinking blearily until obi-wan's face swims into focus. "sir," he tries to say, and his voice is such a ruin, his throat flares with such pain, that he shuts up immediately.

"no, shh, don't try to talk," obi-wan says quietly. "you don't have to talk. just rest. i'm sure needle or stitch will be over in a minute, they've been watching over you very carefully."

helix absolutely believes that. his heart twists. they're such good boys. they deserve better than this bullshit. there's enough going on without them having to manage their cmo, too.

obi-wan eyes him a moment. "i didn't know you were sick," he offers quietly. "and no -- that isn't a criticism. you're entitled to your privacy. i'll go if you prefer that i am not here, but i wanted to watch over you while you slept, at least for a little while."

helix could cry, and he almost too tired to stop up the impulse. almost. he points wearily at an insulated cup on the bedside table. it's full of ice chips, he knows. kenobi can stay if he pays his way in ice chips.

obi-wan cottons on in an instant and immediately fetches the cup and a spoon. he feeds helix an ice chip without another word.

the trickle of cold water hurts. then it feels wonderful.

needle is the first to arrive over, and his smile is warm and sweet, though there's stress in the pinch at the corners of his eyes, and in the careful way he checks helix's vitals and monitors and the tuck of his pillows.

"you can read the chart if you want details," he tells helix softly. "but it was close." he pauses significantly, and helix glances at kenobi and then nods at needle, wordlessly giving him clearance to keep going. "we cleared your throat and suctioned your lungs as much as we could, but the... symptoms have advanced to the point that surgery is the next step. and no, we have no idea if that would help or make things worse."

helix sure as hell doesn't think surgically scraping the plants out will fix him. he shakes his head gently and sets a hand at needle's cheek, all gratitude and apology.

“that's what we thought you'd say." needle cups his hand over helix's, and he's still smiling, but it's even more painful now. "we're not sure how many more episodes like that you can survive, helix. and even if you... get the treatment, we don't know if the damage will reverse fully. no one's ever gotten to this stage, that we know of."

helix nods and eats another ice chip when it's offered. he's been thinking about that, too. whether his body will heal as magically as it's destroying itself, if he confesses to mace. nobody can know what to expect.

"needle," obi-wan interjects quietly, "is it... the treatment, is it a matter of cost? availability? i can make sure you have access to any help the temple can provide. anything we can do."

helix reaches for obi-wan's hand and squeezes it, and needle shakes his head. "sorry, sir. that's not the problem. there's nothing you can do."

obi-wan eyes him shrewdly, fingers curled securely around helix's. "but there's something that can be done. yes?"

"yes, sir."

"who do i need to make pleasant or unpleasant overtures at, in that case?"

helix huffs a silent laugh. their general is truly one of the finest the temple has on offer. /windu,/ he signs succinctly. /need windu./

obi-wan does not ask why he needs mace. he simply procures him.

needle is off duty and asleep, obi-wan is long gone, and stitch is helping helix sip some more lozenge-water when mace arrives, not three hours later.

he's such a welcome and painful sight, helix feels his chest constricting. he swallows his water carefully and lifts a hand in wan greeting. (truly, he thinks morosely, he has never felt more attractive a prospect than he does right now.)

"obi-wan told me you asked for me," mace tells him, coming to the bedside, his expression all concern. "i didn't hear you had collapsed until a short while ago. will you be all right?"

helix can't speak, still. there's no amount of painkillers that can mend his raw throat enough to let him talk. he gives the signs for /red band triage/, which isn't the clearest answer but it's as close as he can get with battle sign.

"red," mace interprets. "critical but salvageable, given immediate treatment." off stitch's and helix's confirmation, he looks between the two of them seriously. "how can i help? obi-wan seemed to think the treatment is something you can't access by yourselves, but he didn't know any details."

helix pats stitch's chest gently and flashes him a couple of signs. stitch nods -- he's not always great with reading the nuance of battle signs when they're used in other contexts, but these he can read easily enough.

"it's very private, sir," stitch explains, his voice pitched low, for their ears only. "a secret. no one knows. this condition is rare, and as far as we know, helix is the only one with the predisposition to have survived this long, and this is the latest stage of acuity anyone's ever seen."

mace absorbs that and gives helix a Look. "there's such a thing as striving to be singular in too many areas, you realize."

helix grins at him. he wants to touch him. he holds the impulse back.

"i'll let helix tell you himself how, exactly, the condition manifests, if he chooses to do that," stitch continues soberly. "but it's serious, and he will die if he doesn't take the necessary action in time." his expression twists. "there's not much time left, as far as we can tell."

"i see." mace presses a hand to helix's arm, warm and grounding. "what can i do to help?"

helix looks up at him. little gods, mace is so handsome, and his dark eyes are endlessly deep, unfathomably sincere. the constriction in helix's chest winds tighter, and he gulps in a breath, signs quickly to stitch.

"you can listen, sir," stitch replies softly. his palm rests lightly on helix's brow for a moment. "i'll be nearby if you need me." and then he's gone, stepping away and twitching the privacy screen closed behind him.

they're quiet with each other a moment. helix isn't sure how to begin this conversation, especially since he can't actually fucking say most of what he wants to. he hesitates, picks at the blanket.

"it's been a while since we were alone together," mace remarks easily. "i haven't talked with you in person for weeks." he arches a brow. "would i have noticed you were sick, i wonder."

helix considers. /maybe,/ he signs. he's been in obi-wan's presence a couple of times since this bout started, but not since it got bad, and anyway, obi-wan's been slightly busy, himself. if he didn't notice, it wasn't for lack of care. mace might have picked up on something, but there's no way to know, now.

"it seems to have gotten serious fairly quickly, in any case." mace tips his head, presses his lips together slightly, as he does when he's working through strong emotions. "stitch said you needed me to listen, helix. i am listening."

this is it. after everything, it feels almost anticlimactic. and yet -- it's unbearably dramatic, with helix lying on his near-literal deathbed and reduced to using gods-damned battle signs to confess his adoration.

(why me, he laments internally, and not for the first time in his existence.)

/insufficient signs,/ he begins. /rig on the fly./

"you don't have the signs to say what you want to, but you'll figure out how to get your meaning across," mace interprets aloud.

/you know s-p-e-l-l-i-n-g signs?/

"yes, i know the sign alphabet."

/copy./ helix swallows, his throat feeling more raw than ever, if that's even possible. /you and i. take cover together. trench battle. review footage./

mace takes in the sequence and nods slowly, somberly. "you showed incredible conviction and kindness, in suffering through that for obi-wan."

/you had injury. you k-i-n-d. no success without you./

mace quirks the faintest smile. "far be it from me to argue while you haven't got your sharp tongue available in full. it seems unfair."

helix hopes his expression conveys something like "damn straight." /i have an urgent report,/ he signs, and it's so stupid, but he thinks mace will catch his meaning.

"you have something important to say," mace guesses. "to say to me, specifically?"

helix nods. his tongue feels dry, despite all of the ice chips and stitch's water.

he lifts his hand and spells, slow and clear.

/i l-o-v-e y-o-u/

he sees it, the exact moment the meaning becomes clear.

mace's eyes don't go round, he's far too controlled for that, but there's an opening-up in his expression, a glimpse of utter surprise.

"you love me," he echoes, so very softly. "i didn't misunderstand?"

/l-o-v-e./ and, because why not, helix taps his own chest twice, directly over his heart, and points to mace.

and something in his chest twists. helix gasps thickly, claws at the neck of his scrubs and digs his heels against the mattress. terror spirals through him -- is it killing him anyway, was he too late, is mace going to watch him die -- ?

the alarms are shrieking. there are hands on his arms, on his chest, on his face. mace is here, warm and steady. stitch has reappeared and is just as steady, in his own way -- grim and fast and going through the steps, a dance they both know like --

well. shit. they know it like breathing, don't they?

"sit him up," stitch orders sharply. "in case he has to cough it up."

they slide their hands behind his back, hoist him half upright, half leaning into the support. helix doesn't quite feel like coughing. his chest feels -- strange. not necessarily bad. but strange.

he swallows and realizes with a start that his throat doesn't hurt. the weight on his chest is sliding free, like someone's released a vice around his ribs.

"helix," stitch says imploringly, "cough if you need to. i'm right here. i'll help you get it out."

helix tentatively sips at the air, disbelieving. there's no pain. no threatening tickle in his throat, no sandbags in his lungs. he's still tired, and his head is spinning, but -- but --

he shuts his eyes and sucks in a deep breath, the kind he hasn't been able to draw for weeks.

stitch's hand does not leave his back, but the familiar sounds of a scanner start up. "oh," he says, shocked at whatever he sees.

mace's hands are here, too. one at helix's back, the other secure around his arm. "what is it?"

helix breathes in again and again, biting the inside of his lip and mashing down the urge to cry with relief. he opens his eyes and looks at stitch. "i'm fine?" he asks aloud. his voice is a little thready still, but he thinks that's just reaction, not damage.

stitch nods, huge-eyed. "the scan indicates no abnormalities. no blockage, no foreign mass."

helix smiles at him. he takes his face in his hands and leans to press a kiss to his forehead. "scram for a minute, i want to talk to mace. get needle, will you?"

stitch scrams, nearly tripping over himself on his way out.

mace's expression is bemused but soft when helix turns to him. "sorry about all of this," helix tells him first, reflexively. "i didn't mean to let it go so long."

"i believe you." mace curls a hand around helix's, gently, questioningly. "i have never quite felt anything like that in the force before. are you all right, really?"

helix grins at him and squeezes his hand. "i'm better than i've been in a while, mace. the boys will run tests to be sure, but i feel like it's receded completely. and the damage got undone, but don't ask me how the hells that happened."

"that question is maybe sixth on my list," mace says dryly. "i would rather ask you if you meant to tell me what you did, just now."

an easy question, in a way. helix looks at him squarely. "yes. i meant it." he feels his smile turn crooked. "i love you. i have for months, i think."

mace does not take his hand from helix's. he looks like he's listening to something far away. it's a very jedi look. "i won't do you the disservice of pretending i don't know what kind of love you mean."

"i appreciate that."

without so much as a blink, mace is back with him, right here, close and sturdy. he lifts his other hand and cups helix's cheek. "you must know that i have thought very highly of you since the beginning." there's something in his voice, a note of softness helix hasn't heard from him before. "i have cared for you for nearly as long. we were in the trench together, as you said. a bond not easily forgotten, even if i were of a mind to."

helix nods wordlessly. he realizes he's holding his breath and makes himself inhale. he doesn't know what answer to expect from mace, but whatever it is, it'll be kind. mace is kind.

mercifully, mace is also straightforward. "i think that, given room to grow, my regard for you will become love." he smiles, more a warm cast in his eyes than a curve of lips. "quickly."

helix covers his hand where it's fitted to his cheek. "what kind of fertilizer do you need?" he asks, a chuckle threatening for more than one reason.

END

#my writing #shoulder the sky #hanahaki #windix #mace windu #helix the clone medic #shootingstarpilot #fanfiction #the clone wars

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siflshonen · 2 years

Text

The Bakugo Presentation 2.0

Sequencing My Hero Academia’s “Manga DNA”: A Breakdown of Katsuki Bakugo

Welcome to the Bakugo presentation 2.0 now with added sections and revisions based on the feedback of the Bakugo survey! If you have not taken the survey but would like to do so, please have at it! Just make sure you read the disclaimer at the start as your answers may be posted on the @baku-fessionals blog.

Link to the Bakugo presentation 2.0 Part 2

Link to the Bakugo presentation 1.0: Part 1 | Part 2

Link to the Kirishima presentation

Link to the Todoroki presentation

Link to the Deku presentation coming eventually

What you are about to read is a combination of self-guided research and absorption from fan discussions and other fans who have taught me so much. @rironomind @pikahlua @greenhappyseed @the-nysh and so many others, thanks so much! Again!

Warning: This is over 140 slides long and spread across multiple posts. I’ve put the rest under the cut because I love you all dearly and wish to spare you. Beware of My Hero Academia manga spoilers and My Hero Academia Vigilantes spoilers! I’m (almost) current and dangerous.

Katsuki Bakugo Overview

He’s the worst! He’s an asshole bully! He’s taken the current popular anime world by storm! He’s Katsuki Bakugo of Kohei Horikoshi’s My Hero Academia (MHA) and he inspires big opinions from all who know him. If you don’t know anything else about him besides his name and his face, don’t worry: he’ll probably make you hate him in the first episode!

But not for long, apparently. His fans (that includes me!) think he’s pretty great. He’s won the Japanese MHA character popularity poll seven times in a row (out of eight total polls) and the North American polls four times out of five. The image above is the fourth North American popularity poll results.

Bakugo is a jerkwad teenage boy, but apparently there’s something to him that attracts attention from the audience. I can’t speak for everyone, but I can offer a comprehensive overview on the major features of this character. Please be aware that my focus is primarily manga-specific! I’ve seen the anime and I think it’s fine and dandy, but for the sake of consistency we are going to view him from a manga-centered lens.

He’s My Hero, But He Doesn’t Have to Be Yours!

It’s true! If you’ve come here as someone who vehemently hates this character, I don’t care if I change your mind about him whatsoever. I don’t care if I influence you at all! This is meant to be informative in that it gives you, the reader, a lens into Bakugo as a character, concept, and pop culture-pseudo-it-boy. If you don’t like the character, then that’s great! You don’t like him! It’s valid! Move on with your life! I do not expect you to agree with everything I have compiled here, but I would love to hear and read your thoughts once you’re done digesting everything I’m about to throw your way.

At a glance, Bakugo sucks! He sucks so much! He’s the worst kind of smug, entitled asshole you probably went to school with or experienced in some form in your life. Or maybe you were this person at some point? Maybe just a little bit? Just a smidge? Maybe for a few qualities on this list? Like, one or two? Hm?

No? Well, all the better. It’s so great to know that some people really were born perfect. Thanks for deigning to interact with the rest of us plebs. Keep your crowns up, kings, queens, and mighty sovereigns.

One of the major drivers behind why people like certain characters is in how well they understand them. Not necessarily that they agree with them and their actions—just that they understand them. If you are (or were) any of the things I’ve used to describe Bakugo and can recognize it in yourself, you likely already relate to Bakugo on some level and see where his narrative leads. The MHA story rocks his shit from the very first chapter (especially once we get more context of his childhood and motives and what actually makes him tick) like in any stock “shonen bully gets told he ain’t hot shit” narrative, but also takes the time to give context to the world outside Bakugo’s control and how it influences him.

Context is really important. Detailed world building is really important.

So while the story takes the time to put Bakugo in his place (there’s an entire chapter called “Breaking Bakugo”), it also adds some layers of nuance to his situation. It’s important to note that the manga’s principal character and narrator, Izuku “Deku” Midoriya (y’know, the kid Bakugo bullied) is also a child with a limited point of view. He’s aware of some of this stuff, but clueless about the rest. Some of the “surprises” the story (and Bakugo!) offer aren’t actually twists, but things that Deku didn’t realize, know about, or think to tell the audience.

None of this information justifies Bakugo’s more unsavory actions, mind you. It simply offers depth to his motivations for acting in the way he does. Context is really important.

MHA as a Fictional Reflection of Modern Japan

Please keep in mind that this story is Japanese and not Canadian or from the US, so not all Western-centric thinking is going to apply to the manga’s modern-Japan-reflective reality.

I wouldn’t exactly call MHA biting sociopolitical commentary (c’mon, y’all, it’s a shonen manga and that’s what it wants to be!), but it isn’t toothless. Then again, I’m from the USA where we put just about anything on the news and say whatever we want all the time, so take that with a grain of salt.

While the slides don’t discuss this specifically, the MHA world is obsessed with Heroes as public figures. The MHA world is obsessed with their personal narratives and public presentation because Heroes are a commercialized commodity and public figure combined. Basically, the entire MHA Hero world is trying to frame its own reality as a comic book with “good guys” and “bad guys” even though real life doesn’t work that way in practice. The characters (especially the main Villain) are doing this, too, and not just as a meta-textual joke for the reader.

TLDR: the MHA world is one glutted with propaganda. Every Hero and Hero student lives and breathes it at some point in the story.

How does this tie into Bakugo specifically? One, Bakugo often refers to other characters as “extras/side characters/supporting cast.” It’s rude of him to do it, but he’s not wrong. Like, he’s not even wrong in a literal meta-textual sense. It’s very twisted. And two: this culture places a massive amount of pressure placed on not only established Heroes, but Hero hopefuls like the students at UA. I point this out because it may offer insight into some of Bakugo’s motives as I go deeper into this presentation—particularly since he’s thrown into the public eye as a celebrity victim by the end of the pilot chapter and the fallout of that affects his actions even into the Sports Festival.

MHA Is a Shonen Manga About Shonen Manga

Also, and perhaps more importantly, MHA is a shonen manga. It’s not a comic, it’s not a manhwa, and it’s not a bandes dessinée. While it includes elements from other media besides Japanese shonen manga (or anime), it is a Japanese shonen manga to its core. It embraces this fact. Kohei Horikoshi also embraces this fact. Masashi Kishimoto, mangaka of Naruto and a major influence on Horikoshi’s work, embraces this fact as well. Context is really important! Knowing your comics is important! I love deconstruction-reconstructions! I love pastiche!

So, yes, while MHA is a distorted reflection of real-world modern Japan, it is also a shonen manga about shonen manga. These two facts are almost inseparable from one another in regards to breaking down this series. To that end, you’ll notice I start color-coding words throughout these slides.

If a word is red, it’s about Japan, Japanese shonen manga, society, social expectations, the self as reflective of society, or the role of the protagonist.

If a word is blue, it’s about the West, North American comics, or deuteragonists. Why? Because in this discussion, discussion of the West is secondary! That’s the hope, anyway. I tried.

If a word is orange, it’s either a general header, highlight for color difference, or specifically about Bakugo.

If a word is teal-green, think of Deku for me, okay?

Oh, also? While most of what I’m about to say generally applies to the anime, I am primarily referencing the manga.

Bakugo’s Manga DNA: Deconstructing the Shonen Deuteragonist Rival and Protagonist Hero

MHA mangaka Kohei Horikoshi said near the start of the series that he wanted to make Bakugo “Vegeta-like”. And why not? Vegeta is among the most famous and iconic rival and late-series deuteragonist characters in the ‘biz! He’s a great template to draw forth inspiration from for a new deuteragonist character!

But what’s more interesting is how Bakugo explores and breaks down (and sometimes spoofs) the standard shonen protagonist role while being the series deuteragonist in actuality. (Mob Psycho 100’s Teruki Hanazawa does something similar within his own series. It’s likely not an accident that both characters, at times, look like blonde-and-foreign-eyed-delinquent Naruto specifically despite not being the main character. More on that later.)

Apparently, western MHA fandom social media semi-regularly gets into debates about whether or not Bakugo is a deuteragonist or not. Well, I’m here to tell you:

He is.

There can be multiple deuteragonists in a work.

Importance to a work does not necessarily correlate to how much one likes a character.

The fact that Bakugo is the deuteragonist does not negate the importance of the rest of the main cast.

Bakugo can fill the deuteragonist role while still filling, exploring, or impacting other roles.

But for this discussion, the more important thing to consider isn’t whether or not Bakugo is the deuteragonist, but rather the overlap of tropes and roles often assigned to him as they apply to the shonen genre! There’s a great many similar shonen deuteragonists throughout media history that I could pull from for compare and contrast exercises. Despite the similarities between these deuteragonist characters, there is always something new and different that can be done with the role depending on what combination of other roles a creator chooses.

I’m going to break down the roles and tropes relevant to Bakugo one at a time. But, in order to do so, I’m going to open the next section with this very charged statement: Bakugo’s Vegeta-analogous “Manga DNA” doesn’t exactly come directly from Vegeta.

Bakugo’s Deuteragonist Inspirations: Vegeta and Tetsuo Shima

If anyone reading this is going to INSIST Bakugo is “the Vegeta”, do me a personal favor and compare him to the older initial inspiration for his character type: Tetsuo Shima from Katsuhiro Otomo’s Akira. And don’t just do it to indulge me, either. Do it because Horikoshi spoke about this at length in one of his interviews.

I’m not saying Bakugo isn’t also similar to Vegeta. What I am saying is that Bakugo’s influences, tropes, and general manga references involve a scope much larger than just Vegeta. Kinda like how Dragonball’s Cell was made from more than just one character’s DNA, you know?

Speaking of characters made from Son Goku’s DNA.

Embodying Victory: Son Goku’s Legacy of Heroism By Winning

Shortly after the MHA anime was first announced in Japan, Horikoshi spoke in an interview with Natalie Comics about what media he likes and what aspects of heroism he focuses on. Specifically, he mentioned Spider-Man and Dragonball’s Son Goku. While he never directly says “All Might is like Spider-Man and Goku combined”, he did point out that the two of them seem to embody the heroic aspects of “saving” and “winning” respectively. He wanted to make sure his manga did not limit the idea of what a hero should be, but rather explored the many different aspects of heroism that exist.

If you read the series, I hope I don’t have to spell out how the manga specifically references “saving” and “winning” in regards to things embodied by early-manga Deku and Bakugo, but in case I do, I’ve put a couple manga panels on the slides for your reference.

If you don’t read the series, here’s your explanation: Deku embodies the heroic aspect of “saving (others no matter what)” and Bakugo embodies the heroic aspect of “winning (the fight no matter how bad the odds are)”. (Of course, MHA has the two of them swap aspects at times, but they do it very intentionally and always with the other as their source of inspiration or motivation.) All Might, who has both, recognizes these “saving” and “winning” aspects in both of them. Ergo, Deku is “saving” Spider-Man while Bakugo is “winning” Goku.

If you aren’t familiar with Dragonball, the fact that Vegeta only wins against Goku once (and in-series it’s treated as a tie since he retreats offworld after Goku convinces Krillin not to kill his troll doll ass) and is humiliated, irked, or otherwise constantly waxing poetic about his continued losses to Goku for the rest of the series is a defining trait of his character and arc.

Bakugo continuously winning (with one notable exception at the beginning that very pointedly hinges on a technicality in Deku vs Kacchan 1!) against Deku completely flips any sort of Vegeta-Goku dynamic they have totally on its head.

To make it more complicated, Bakugo is usually completely distraught over his victories against Deku for one reason or another, so despite usually winning against Deku, he perceives it as some sort of loss or greater failing regarding himself. Given that, one could say that Bakugo is the “winning Goku” of the dynamic in reality, but in Bakugo’s own head he feels he is the “losing Vegeta”. Meanwhile, much of the real-world audience (and the MHA public) perceives Bakugo’s shitty attitude as the “Vegeta (who should lose)” but Deku perceives him as the “Goku (who always wins because he’s amazing)”. It’s a paradox. Have fun chewing on it.

Dead Dove Do Not Eat: Victory Over the Self

But why is it understood Bakugo always wins? Why is this a notable and understood feature of the character? Well, it’s written by his head in his introductory anime nameplate.

Characters in Japanese works often have meaningful names. In fiction, they often function as labels of what a character is like or signals to the reader exactly what their arc is about. While a character’s name can be given to them ironically, Bakugo’s is not.

Baku: bomb; Go: powerful/large. The reasoning behind his family name “Bakugo” (large explosion/huge boom/big bomb) isn’t that deep. Bakugo is a boy who blows stuff up. Shocker.

His given name “Katsuki” is the real point of interest. Katsu: victory; Ki: self. “Victorious self”. Or “Selfish victory”. On its face, it’s a comically blunt name for a guy initially introduced to us as obsessed with being the best to the point of self-detriment. But that’s not the only—or most appropriate—interpretation of his name.

His name is best interpreted as “victory (over the) self”. This has the double meaning of “get the victory at all costs, even if it includes destroying yourself”, which is Bakugo’s stated early-series belief, as well as “win against yourself”.

Japanese given names (in real life) often draw from the names of the parents. Bakugo’s father is named Masaru (which means victory—I’m not going to get into the weeds about why it’s pronounced differently) and his mother is named Mitsuki. If you put the last character of Mitsuki’s name on the back of Masaru’s, you get “Katsuki”. Also, to draw from real life even more: the names a child is given in Eastern cultures can also signify wishes of the parents for the child or even expectations placed upon them. In other words, even Bakugo’s name alludes to a potential obligation he carries by dint of being given a name at all.

For the purposes of this discussion, the concept of “self” in Bakugo’s name can also be “the self as molded by the society in which one participates.” The name Katsuki “victory over the (self as molded by society)” Bakugo is yet another clue that he is a character on a journey of self-improvement. Because, while many of his personal social obstacles concern his relationships with others, he is also grappling with how he relates to himself. Bakugo’s constant enemy is public expectations and opinion, but his true nemesis is himself.

Bakugo’s Backstory: The Tragedy of Self-Loathing

If how I framed Bakugo’s outsider-imposed and self-perceived “Goku/Vegeta” complex earlier in this writeup didn’t make sense to you, just interpret it as a shonen-flavored way of saying that he has a superiority-inferiority complex.

Bakugo’s backstory is not melodramatic like Sasuke’s or Vegeta’s. It is not a twisted and horrible accident like Shigaraki’s. It is not full of self-harm and murder like Toga’s. It is not flashy or cool in any way. Instead, it is utterly grounded in real-life pressures of the everyday social realities of modern Japan. In fact, even when Bakugo tried very hard to tailor his own “backstory” by ensuring he was the only student from Aldera Middle to make it into UA High, he has never denied the fact that, aside from his quirk, talents, and strengths associated with them, he is stunningly average. Actually, that’s the very thing he won’t deny but hates to admit: he is just like everybody else. It’s just that in Bakugo’s mind, there is no middle ground between “main character of this damn manga” and “extra”.

Bakugo hates himself and he makes it clear early in the series. In my opinion, the fan translations do the best job of showing this one aspect of his character as they aren’t afraid of using phrases like “a useless piece of shit like you (while clearly showing Bakugo’s own face at his most pathetic as the visual so we know he’s really thinking about his own miserable self-worth)” while the official translations limit that sort of language and keep it vague. All Might and Aizawa also point this out, albeit indirectly and through the angle of Bakugo’s fragile ego.

A teen boy bully who hates himself is pretty mundane. For some readers, Bakugo’s mundanity is a weakness of how he was written. For his fans, this is one of his greatest points of appeal.

MHA makes it a priority to openly explore Bakugo’s self-loathing using a lens specific to modern Eastern cultures. I’ll talk about it more later, but it’s best I establish this line of conversation here. The isolated, granular details of Bakugo’s character culminate in making him an uncomfortably real figure for a lot of readers rather than just, like, a generic shonen rival antihero-type.

Bakugo is also drowning in the double-standard imposed by the expectations placed on him for his talent and the reality of what he actually values.

My Antihero Academia

For those that say Bakugo isn’t exactly heroic: I agree. He’s an antihero. He’s also a trickster hero, but let’s break this one step at a time.

An antihero is a character who does heroic things for unheroic reasons. In other words, an antihero is a figure that does whatever the hell they want and finds success in it for whatever reason. Or, to use more MHA-relevant language, an antihero is a character who does “selfless” things for selfish reasons. MHA goes out of its way to point out that all of these descriptions are subjective and dependent upon the status quo.

For example, Deku’s “selfless” urges to save anyone he perceives as in need of help are born from the selfish desire to act as he sees fit regardless of what the victim of the situation feels or wants. Meanwhile, Bakugo’s “selfish” desire to win everything on his own selflessly takes the pressure off anyone else to put forth any effort in a dangerous situation at all. (And yes, both of these things are part of what screwed over All Might and the social situation in the first place.)

The MHA story as a whole throws ambiguity on what constitutes a “Hero (occupation and literary role)”, “Villain (societal designation and literary role)”, “victim”, or “extra” and by doing so is a story made, mainly, with a cast of morally ambiguous characters. “Goodness” is usually defined by how socially accepted something is rather than any true moral or spiritual failing or success on the characters’ parts. “Hero” is someone sanctioned by the existing social orders and power to do as they see fit. “Villain” is whoever the existing social orders deem as bad. And, in MHA’s modern-Japan-analagous world, “bad” is often “nonconforming”. So while I believe Bakugo–and many of the shonen rival deuteragonists before him—should be classified as an antihero, the story casts shade on what is and isn’t heroic/unheroic/selfless/selfish with the intention of making these roles harder to define.

Oh, and also? The main protagonist of a shonen does not have to be defined as a hero. They can be, and commonly are, antiheroes.

Bakugo as an Antihero Shonen Protagonist: Pastiche Costuming

Oh, beloved summer costume. Only you could make it look this good even as your fans make fun of you for it, Bakugo.

It’s “edgy”. It’s cringey. It’s got massive grenades and lots of black and scary things that a teen boy would think is cool and flashy but look absolutely stupid to the rest of us (and a little bit homosexual to those of us in the West). And yet he pulls it off! Hats off to Horikoshi-sensei for making a character with enough on-page charisma to do that. I absolutely love his costume for all of the things I’ve outlined about it, but also because it screamed “HELLO I AM TRYHARD EDGY ANTIHERO SHONEN PROTAGONIST!” from the moment I saw it. It’s so overblown that the “edgy” part of it rubs off and instead just makes me think, “cute! Little immature baby high school kid!”

MHA is a Shueisha/Shonen Jump property, so references to works like One Piece, Naruto, BLEACH, Yu-gi-oh, and the like are all fair game for Horikoshi to make. Horikoshi even dressed Bakugo up like Luffy in a little extra comic! Look!

Also, I’d like to point out that Monkey D. Luffy from One Piece (by mangaka Eichiro Oda’s own admission) is intentionally meant to be like Dragonball’s Son Goku. This is part of a larger feedback loop of “shonen protagonists are like THIS!” that has existed for decades.

I also bring before you Ichigo Kurosaki from BLEACH (arguably the best-dressed shonen protagonist in the history of the genre—JoJo fans, I am ready and willing to listen to your argument to the contrary) on this slide mostly because I love him rather than because of his costuming, but he’ll become more relevant later. (The hair. The glare. The need to maintain his reputation…)

Devilman’s Enduring Influence

Do you know the impact of Go Nagai’s Devilman on the shonen genre? No? Well, you might know the next series I’m going to bring up, so it’s fine. I don’t think Horikoshi was necessarily thinking of Devilman when he designed Bakugo’s mask, but I know he was thinking of what’s on the next slide, which was definitely influenced by Devilman in the inspirational zeitgeist if not directly.

Do you know the plot of Devilman and how it might reflect on the plot and characters of MHA? How it’s about a boy who is “chosen for his pure heart” to wield a great power that is also a curse (and also is a whole other presence living in his body) and is linked to humanity changing into beings with strange bodies and powers and how that causes an upheaval in society that ultimately ends with the world being destroyed? And how at the end everyone realizes their folly because the Devilmen are human beings who have been denied their right to exist because they are different? What? That sounds like any given shonen? Well! Looks like you might understand how influential Devilman is.

…Or, wait, no? You don’t? Well, don’t worry about it. The original Devilman is, respectfully, the worst manga I have ever read. I’ll go to bat for Devilman: Crybaby, though.

Naruto Lives On in the Zeitgeist

If you don’t know Devilman, you probably do know Naruto. And Boruto. In the crosstalk interview I’ve referenced, Naruto’s mangaka Masashi Kishimoto admits he views MHA as Naruto’s successor of sorts. I can’t speak definitively, but based on Horikoshi’s reaction to the statement as well as his direction with his manga after that point, he embraced alluding to his predecessors with aplomb. (Also, wow, he sounds so much like Deku about it all!)

It’s About the Look: The Influences in the Rest of the Cast

So, yes. Bakugo’s breakdown of the shonen protagonist role (despite not being cast in that role) is tied up in the look of it. His costume is intentionally chosen. It is purposeful. Bakugo is not unique in this—many MHA Heroes and Hero hopefuls intentionally draw from existing figures—and not just because Horikoshi likes references (though he sure does!) but because the characters want to evoke recognition from the in-story public (and the readers) about who they are and what they do. For example, Shota Aizawa/Eraserhead is an “underground hero” who is out of the public eye. He’s a ninja. (In the crosstalk interview, Horikoshi admits he didn’t initially realize the similarities between Aizawa and Kakashi but acknowledges they are undeniable.) That’s the power of good branding, baby.

Perhaps more pointed are All Might’s visual signifiers. While Toshinori is Japanese, his Hero persona is modeled after, y’know, a Western superhero. (He and his in-story retirement can be interpreted as an interesting take on American military occupation leaving Japan. Particularly in that All Might—the West-coded figure—didn’t solve crime. He merely suppressed it and upheld what was an otherwise unsustainable system while said system continued to form around him. Is this offensive? I leave that to you. This topic is not today’s discussion!)

Some Heroes, like Rumi Usagiyama/Mirko (not pictured), draw on figures from folk tales (she’s the rabbit making mochi on the moon) or mythology. Oboro Shirakumo/Loud Cloud on the top right is obviously emulating Son Goku, but specifically younger Goku and the character’s Journey to the West-inspired roots. For the purposes of this discussion, Shirakumo is splitting the difference between shonen manga, classic literature, and folk tales in his choice of inspiration. Speaking as a fan of Dragonball (and Journey to the West in concept), the fact that the character who strove to follow in those footsteps is dead is deeply upsetting. And that’s just from me making the associations in my mind based on what I know of the source material he references! That’s a separate emotional response from the absolute roller coaster Aizawa’s backstory regarding his death took me on in the Vigilantes spin-off!

All of the supplemental manga information supplies specific taste and media background on me, your presenter, but it is also a detailed example of how much the manga-savvy audience may be influenced by the characters’ choices of inspiration regarding their Heroic (or social) presentation. Much like Bakugo’s costume, the entire MHA series intentionally draws from other sources. While it’s not explicitly stated, the characters likely know about these other manga, too. These figures are part of their cultural zeitgeist! Think of it like the characters themselves are making literary allusions from other comics, graphic novels, and pop culture phenomena.

Anyway, back to Shirakumo as Goku/the Monkey King: since so much of the shonen genre—particularly in the protagonist role—is tied up in Son Goku specifically, one could argue that Bakugo’s shonen-protagonist-specific costuming choice is signaling something to the audience in a similar way as Shirakumo’s.

I know it does for me—and this includes references to other shonen staples besides Goku.

A Brief Primer on Shonen Manga and World War II

Unlike Akira Fudo in Devilman, Astro/Atom of Astro Boy is not “possessed by a devil”. Instead, he’s a robot boy who is powered by a nuclear core. Put simply: at any point in the series the main character could choose to blow everybody up. He doesn’t, but the portrayal of shonen power being double-edged is pretty much a genre requirement since then. Going back to Dragonball—the Super Sayan/Sayajin form was initially an ambivalent-to-dark power. It wasn’t until the Cell Saga that this portrayal was hand-waved (and even then, Gohan still had a personality change when he achieved the second form of it.)

Admittedly, having background knowledge and personal connection to Astro Boy is specific to me rather than the MHA audience as a whole, but I bring it up because Astro Boy is just as—if not more—influential within the shonen genre and the Japanese conscience than Devilman, which also blatantly references war and nuclear devastation in its finale.

Anyway, this association of shonen power and nuclear power in MHA isn’t subtle. Deku is called a bomb because of his power at one point. Bakugo blows stuff up with his sweat. He wears grenades on his hands. His initial all-or-nothing stance on “winning” meaning everything doesn’t just remind me of the pressures of modern academia and success on today’s children and how it warps their psyche and values. It reminds me of World War II and postwar nationalist thinking rooted in fear—for any nation—which, for this discussion, is in turn echoed in modern Japan’s academic pressures. Failure is not an option.

That may not be what Horikoshi was thinking as he was writing the character or the series, but it’s something always lurking in the background for those familiar with the shonen genre. It’s a concept and theme that is just as much a part of shonen “manga DNA” as Akira or Dragonball.

I bring all of this up because, as much as I love a good shonen series, they have (and in my opinion, should be aware of) a dark core that is, in the modern day, still shaped by the fallout of World War II. Bakugo’s hero costume, with all of its black in addition to the red and orange, really does suggest the uncomfortable reality of what a classic shonen protagonist might be like in the real world. Bakugo is dangerous, powerful, maladjusted, and unpleasant—which is a direct and honest reflection of what a shonen protagonist would actually be like in modern society. And yet Bakugo the character plays the role in this way on purpose—because that is the expectation placed on him even if at the beginning of the series he doesn’t yet realize how and why that is. Bakugo initially doesn’t realize what he is asking to inherit with his chosen shonen protagonist antihero role much like Deku doesn’t realize what sort of obligation he has received alongside All Might’s power.

THAT is an angle of exploration one can sink teeth into. It’s not always outright stated, but it is alluded to in how many of the characters—including All Might, Deku, and Bakugo talk about power. And yes, the MHA world makes reference to a great war that the younger generations cannot and do not remember but are aware of from the inherited grief of their older generation. Even when it isn’t discussed explicitly or made into a plot point, the shadow of World War II and the rememberance of the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki is inseparable from the work.

You know how I said most readers likely wouldn’t have a strong tie to Astro Boy? Well, Godzilla is another personification of great power (nuclear power) and the ambiguous nature of it. Obviously, this association was made within MHA and put forth into the world even if not through the lens of Astro Boy.

Presenting Bakusatsuo: King Explosion Murder… of kaiju! We love him, we fear him, and we think he’s a huge asshole. Can’t imagine a world without him.

Presenting: Mothku! Friend to the children and sometimes nemesis, sometimes, um, friend of Bakusatsuo. You know the discussions about how Godzilla and Mothra are the king and queen of kaiju, yes?

Why is it significant that both Bakugo and Deku draw from a specific mix of Eastern and Western influence?

Winner Take All: Furyo Shonen and Western Envy

The Allies won the war. Postwar Japan had to swallow it. A lot of modern Japanese youth think the West, particularly the USA and the English language, is pretty cool nowadays, but the postwar fallout persists. A good example is the introduction of certain beauty standards—like wider eyes and a more pronounced “Western” profile—throughout the East. But things like attitude, values, and self-presentation also factor into what is considered Western versus traditional. Enter: Furyo shonen—or Japanese delinquents.

Furyo shonen, or delinquent boys, are part of a subculture that was particularly common in the real world from the 1950s through 1990s. The subculture’s original “look”, the pompadour hair and (when not in non-compliant school uniform) Hawaiian shirts, was inspired by US GIs who hung around in the country after World War II and were based there during the Korean War. They definitely solidified the stereotype of Americans as loud, rude, insensitive, and also as “winners”.

I’m not the right person to talk in-depth about the complicated relationship that Japan (or any other country) has with Westernization, particularly by the US, but just know it exists, okay? The point is, delinquents, or “Yankees” (y’know, like Yankee Doodle, or the term people from the US uses to refer to people from the northeastern part of the nation) became a counterculture by emulating the swagger and abrasive individuality of these GIs. Eventually, the delinquent “look” came to be anything that flew in the face of the conventional. Tattoos and dramatically shaved or dyed hair are common looks. Usually, delinquents either fall out of the subculture and assimilate into society or they get picked up by the Yakuza. (Check out the Kirishima presentation for more about this.)

But delinquents have a totally different reputation when it comes to shonen anime and manga of the 1970s-1990s. They range from genuinely goodhearted guys with rough and socially frowned-upon exteriors to legitimate antiheroes who do acts of good for selfish reasons… usually before learning the power of friendship and community and all that stuff and turning into the first category of the trope. Or dropping the delinquent act altogether.

But, looking at this shonen trope from a distance, the furyo shonen waffles between the most iconic type of shonen hero as well as the most common type of shonen antihero. Akira’s Tetsuo Shima (early in the series) and Shotaro Kaneda are both iconic examples of the antihero delinquent deuteragonist and protagonist respectively. BLEACH’s Ichigo Kurosaki is a delinquent boy hero and, much like Bakugo, he is intentionally putting on the airs of being a delinquent for the benefit of his “image”.

Specifically, Bakugo is going for the “delinquent with a perfect attendance record” trope. I’ll admit that when I first watched the English dub of the anime, I didn’t immediately pick up on the fact that he is leaning into this trope as hard as he possibly can because strange hair colors are normal in MHA, his speech pattern isn’t nearly as contrived in English as it is in Japanese, his middle school teacher doesn’t hate him, and he’s such a little goody-two-shoes rule-follower outside of his mean personality. Even glancing the manga’s way, though, it hit me like a ton of bricks that he is a delinquent. There’s nothing else Bakugo could be even if he wasn’t so utterly transparent about it. Personally, whenever I watch Bakugo ham it up as a delinquent, I see a kid wearing a Halloween costume in my mind. I find this self-aware overcompensating hilarious once I get over the secondhand embarrassment.

The furyo shonen protagonist was outdated even in 2014 at MHA’s time of publication, so by extrapolation it would have been extremely out of fashion in MHA’s setting of 200 years into the fictional future. This is pointed out indirectly: Eijiro Kirishima’s Hero persona Red Riot is inspired by delinquent Hero Crimson Riot, whom Kirishima and Midnight both refer to as old. The delinquent thing is vintage in universe. Bakugo’s chosen day-to-day persona is vintage. It’s like seeing a modern real-life teen boy become super obsessed with The Outsiders or gangster movies to the point he decided to make it a major part of his identity. (I talk more about this throughout my Kirishima presentation.)

However, while Bakugo’s delinquent fashion is somewhat performative, there’s an element of truth to the underlying sentiment.

The most important thing to understand about Bakugo’s self-presentation as a delinquent boy is that the original subculture draws from disenfranchised Japanese youth putting on the nonconformist airs of Westerners—Westerners that won the war and colonized postwar Japan and therefore forced the nation into treating them as their, well, “victorious betters”.

To the victor goes the spoils. The winner of a war gets to write the narrative however they like. And in doing so, they make themselves a hero regardless of what the opposition might say. So, yes, Bakugo’s early-series “might makes right” mentality (and the similar real-world mentality born from Japanese academic performance rather than might as physical strength) comes from somewhere specific. And while “that comes from somewhere in real life” is true of all characters in any work that hold this mentality, the interesting thing is that the source of Bakugo’s attitude isn’t far removed from the influences of origin present in MHA’s “manga DNA”. The direct line between the Allies as ‘the heroes” because they won the war and wrote the narrative remains intact and intentional to Bakugo as a character through the direct ties modern history has to shonen manga as a genre.

Oh, and also?

The Tragedy of Self-Loathing Returns

The flipside of Bakugo being praised for his quirk and “shallow things”, as his mother puts it, is that these statements come with the unstated-but-implied flipside of “The ONLY good thing about you is your quirk and ability to win.” I find that interesting when held up to a kid who is doing his damnedest to come off as an individualistically minded hero with specifically Western-inspired affectations in the face of modern collectivist Japan. He is trying to be the “obnoxious, selfish, nonconformist Western winner” despite being raised in a society that envies and usually rejects the “obnoxious, selfish, nonconformist Western winner” because he doesn’t think he can be anything else.

This level of reality and history to Bakugo’s self-loathing and intentionally chosen presentation makes him uncomfortably real for some readers. Please see the Kirishima presentation if you’d like to follow this line of thought in more detail.

Bakugo as an Antihero Shonen Protagonist: Delinquent Archetype

I’ve talked a lot about World War II and Westernization as it relates to a meta-textual narrative. But don’t take that to mean Bakugo is directly mulling over that slice of history in the story. Initially, he’s a child who is naive to the greater implications of the larger historic and social factors that influence him. Instead, Bakugo follows his chosen archetypes using the logic of a kid who reads a lot of hero narratives, particularly shonen ones, and is trying to make himself into one of them.

Which, even with his naivete, still pits him—an individualistically-minded kid intentionally donning the Japanese stereotypes of Western affectations—against a society analogous to modern collectivist Japan. It’s a step removed from “this is about World War II”, but the line between MHA and the bigger conversation about all of shonen manga’s influences is still present.

Just because Bakugo isn’t actively aware of the past as it impacts his present doesn’t mean it isn’t impacting him. Just because Bakugo isn’t actively aware of something doesn’t mean that the audience is likewise unaware.

In this way, Bakugo’s chosen self-portrayal as a shonen delinquent is a deliberate way to show that he is, in all senses at the beginning and then later in appearance only, the most genre-savvy, on-the-nose antihero (by the definitions of what his modern-Japan-analogous world considers antiheroic) he could possibly be.

Best Jeanist Hates Your Look: Rejection of Identity and Personhood

For your reference, the Best Jeanist Award is real-world a Japanese fashion award. Meaning Best Jeanist the Hero isn’t just a fashion designer on the side. He is the pinnacle of style and appearance for celebrities and Hero society. He puts a very fine point on rejecting every nonconformist thing about Bakugo and he hates it! He cannot endure this! Bakugo is a boy who blows stuff up with his sweat! Intentions aside, HE CANNOT SURVIVE IN THIS BOX PEOPLE WANT TO PUT HIM INTO. NOT BY FORCE. NOT LIKE THIS.

But BJ does manage to put Bakugo in a pair of designer jeans that actually sit at his waistline for a chapter, so there’s that, too. BJ also smooths down his hair and gives him a side part (like the one class president Tenya Iida sports) which is emblematic of “obedient conformist polished good son Japanese youth”. And that’s cute.

I’m going to tell you an open secret: Bakugo is an insecure little boy who doesn’t totally know who he is but is desperate to figure it out. It’s another description that is true of most teen boys—particularly bullies—across cultures, but I think it’s an underrated one.

Why? Because Bakugo’s identity struggle is in part a result of his keen awareness that the spoken-about ideals of his Hero society and the ones it values in truth are not the same. Hero society talks a great deal about the value of saving others in need of help, but whenever a victim is also nonconforming to societal standars in any way (Toga, Spinner, Twice, Shigaraki, La Brava) or make a mistake and go against society for any level of infraction (Gentle Criminal, The Crawler/Koichi), they are deemed a Villain in perpetuity. Hero society wants their paragons to talk the talk of saving, but in practice they want them to crush all perceived nonconforming individuals. Their world is entirely concerned with the status quo. Bakugo’s schtick of “putting on airs” like a delinquent and leaning into his hyper-aggressive tendencies are his way of expressing what his society has signaled to him as the correct way for a Hero to be.

Bakugo is very, very aware that the concept of Hero/Villain is not synonymous with good/evil. How does Deku fit into this? Well, the fact that Bakugo always thought Deku, even when quirkless, was better than him is telling. Despite all of society signaling to Bakugo that Deku is worthless because of his lack of power, Bakugo’s doubts were still strong enough to motivate him to bully or outright avoid Deku.

Remember Deku’s internal monologue in the first chapter about needing just one person to believe in him? Yeah, that one person already exists. His name is Bakugo and he was a fucking asshole about it.

Bringing Old School Shonen to the Modern Age

This is abstract meta-talk rather than something I can back up in the work or from Horikoshi’s interviews, but I don’t think the interpretation of Bakugo as an embodiment of the classic genre learning how to interact in the pressures of a different age is an unfounded or unique one among genre fans. MHA explores the idea of people acting as symbols more than once (Shigaraki as a symbol of fear, Bakugo as Deku’s personal symbol of victory, etc) so it’s not out of the question to think of his story as an allegory of change for the things he represents (those things being “shonen as a monolith” and the “base state” of MHA society—and perhaps modern Japan—primarily.)

And even if one doesn’t agree with the interpretation of Bakugo as representative of something old becoming something new again, the impactful real-world social factors impacting the manga’s themes are certainly updated from the ones that impacted classic shonen.

Repurposing Wartime Devastation into Social Obligation

Classic shonen manga draws from Japan’s lasting national memory of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as well as the Westernization of the postwar period. I’ve established that. But the newest generation of Japan isn’t so consciously affected by this history. Theirs is a new world with different (but related) pressures and sources of grief. So, if MHA is a shonen that draws on the history of the genre but with a new and more contemporary spin, what takes the place of the bombs?

During the manga’s War Arc, Bakugo refers to Deku’s One for All—which is basically a quirk bioweapon even by the MHA world standards—as a “cursed power.” Contextually, he seems to be thinking more of the obligations placed upon the quirk holder rather than, you know, the duality of nuclear power as shonen are wont to do, but the implications overlap significantly. This is interesting because, much like World War II cast the greatest shadow over the genre post-Astro Boy, the modern challenges affecting Japan as a whole and therefore weighing on the social consciousness are the complications that arise from peacetime. In a general sense, these are social obligations, the double-standards they impose, and the resulting oppressive and unjust status quo that arises from these conditions.

Everyone in the manga, Villains and Heroes included, are locked in a battle between preserving the social order, destroying the social order completely, or changing the social order in ways that benefit some but not others. I could talk about how Star and Stripe (hello, United States flag) butting into a Japan-centric conflict fits into this (my brief opinion: it’s a little tasteless), but that’s a larger discussion. This is meant to focus on Bakugo’s character, role in the story, and impact on the modern shonen genre.

Let’s take a step back into modern day Japanese societal conventions and cultural norms... in part 2!

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