#but he's still the best character he's still my number one i miss his smart brain so fucking much

[navree]

watching nearly every male character in house of the dragon operate with maybe one braincell between them, tywin lannister i miss you so much

#personal #the single best character i said what i said #'but he's evil' yes i know and he did awful fucked up things especially to women and i don't like them #but he's still the best character he's still my number one i miss his smart brain so fucking much #bring back my intelligent man

[quiet-onset]

seeking refuge

pairing: carmen berzatto x reader

wc: 1.5k

summary: carmy is having a day, and you want him to get lost in you.

warnings: 18+ minors do not interact!!!, unprotected sex, overstimulation (character and reader)

a/n: is this realistic? probably not. but that's why it's fanfiction! i truly do not remember writing most of this, but i was looking through my wips to find something work on and came across this already finished fic from last year lol. enjoy!

He had the look in his eye. That look had him curling in on himself, shoulders slumped as his mind ran wild. Every once in a while, he’d get lost in his own thoughts, a complete mashup of all the anxiety-inducing shit he’d ever encountered. Money, renovations, Michael, don’t miss NA meeting, walk-in door handle, Ma, menu, run menu ideas by Sydney, Sugar, and oh shit, Sugar’s baby, right, I’m an uncle—

“Carm?”

Like some sort of psuedo-siren, your voice called him back to stable ground, away from troubled waters. Still, he was merely wading when his eyes focused on you. His lips pulled up in an anxious smile, the best he could give you at the moment. “Hey, sorry, hey. I’m here.” He said, nodding his head. Then, his brow furrowed, and he shook away the confusion. “Wait, what are you doin’ here?”

“Richie called, said you might need the rest of the day off.”

Carm rolled his eyes and stood from the office chair, stepping past you to yell at Richie from the doorway. “Cousin!”

“Uh-uh, you are not fuckin’ up my flow today, cousin. I’m in the zone. Take that anxiety bullshit elsewhere, heard?” Richie dismissed him before he could make his defense.

“Hey, fuck you.”

“Yeah, yeah, fuck you, too. See ya tomorrow.” Richie replied. “I need hands, chefs!”

You chuckled behind Carm, wrapping your arms around his waist. You pressed your cheek against his back and immediately felt some of the tension there roll away. “That training did a number on him.” You commented.

“Too smart for his own good now.” Carmen added.

You leaned up to press a soft kiss against his ear. “Come home, bear.”

It was only a matter of time after that. He’d explained the issue on the way home, or at least tried to. “I dunno, there’s just too many thoughts and not enough time or space. Feel like my brain’s gonna fuckin’ explode, just get lost in my goddamn mind.”

He almost pulled over and dragged you into the backseat at your reply. “Get lost in me instead.”

And he did. He managed to keep himself contained long enough to get home, but once there, he wasted no time. A mere fifteen minutes later, and he had you on your back, legs spread about his waist as his thick, hard cock stretched you open. You held on for dear life as your pussy clenched around him, wet and sticky with your arousal.

“Fuck, you feel good, baby. ‘S exactly what I needed.” He panted. “So fuckin’ wet.”

You could barely form the words to respond, hips canting up with each thrust, chasing the pleasure. Not that it mattered to Carmen, he was content with the sweet moans and whimpers that fell without pause from your lips. He adored the sounds you made and strove to pull them out of you as he pounded you into the mattress. He stopped for a brief moment when he felt your walls tighten, groaning deep in his chest. One hand gripped at the back of your thigh and pushed, spreading you wider. The other slid forward until his elbow was pressed against the mattress next to your head, and he buried his face in your neck.

“Gonna make me come ‘f you keep squeezin’ like that, baby.” His lips brushed against your ear as he spoke, his breath hot and wet against your skin.

“Can’t he-help it.” You whined prettily. “Feels good. Please don’t stop, gonna come.”

“Yeah? Gonna come on this dick?” His hand reached down to toy with your clit, eyes rolling to the back of his head when you cried out his name.

All you could do is nod, your moans getting louder as your orgasm approached. And then, pleasure so good, tears pricked at your eyes. Your back arched, your breasts pressed into his chest, you moaned his name. That white-hot bliss pulsed in every part of you, almost like it was being torn from you. Your cunt clamped around him, and you’re sure if you looked down, a ring of your arousal would coat the base of his cock.

Like all he needed was your pleasure, his finish hit him like a truck seconds later. An unending string of fuck, fuck, fuck as he pumped his come into you, the white, warm streams of him coating your walls. His balls pulsed hard as he gave you long, slow strokes, the head of his cock nearly kissing your cervix with one particularly deep thrust.

And even though his pace had slowed, his hips didn’t stop. The overstimulation was starting to set in, your stomach flipping deliciously at the continuous pleasure. Still, he was strangely quiet, so you wanted to make sure he was okay.

“C-Carmy,” You whimpered out. “You still with me, bear?”

You expected a pause, a wait, but the answer was immediate. “‘F course I am. Nowhere else I’d rather be. Goddamnit.”

“Carmen?”

“Gotta have you again.”

You didn’t have time to process his words before he was pulling out of you and flipping you over. He hastily grabbed a pillow and lifted your hips to slide it under. Even in the orgasmic-haze that fogged his brain, he wanted to make sure you were comfortable. Still-hard cock in hand, he stroked himself firmly as he kneeled behind you. His free hand gripped at the fullness of your ass, pulling lightly until he could see the mess he’d made of your pussy, a mixture of yours and his come dripping out of you. It might've drenched the pillowcase, but the thought hadn’t even passed Carmen’s mind. He just leaned over you until his nose was buried in your hair, pressing himself into your sweet cunt once more. You let out a loud moan of his name, your tight walls still fluttering post-orgasm.

“Didn’t want your legs to get sore.” He mumbled as he started fucking you again, slow and deep. “Shit, I need to keep goin'. Need to fill you up again.”

“‘S too good, oh my god.” You cried out. At this angle, the tip of his cock brushed against your g-spot with every thrust.

“Gonna let me keep goin’, right? Let me keep fuckin’ my cock into you, fillin’ your sweet little cunt with my come? Gonna let me get lost in you, pretty girl?”

On one hand, you weren’t sure where this Carmen came from. It wasn’t like he was silent during sex, but he never talked this much. Never this filthy. It was like his pleasure controlled him, the overstimulation working double-time to control his body and mind at once. With every word, his pace got faster, his thrusts deeper, inhibiting your ability to speak. 

It wasn’t made better when Carmen wrapped his arm around your neck, his bicep pressing lightly against your throat. A ragged gasp passed through your lips as he gave an experimental squeeze, timed perfectly with a deep thrust of his cock. He pressed his cheek against yours as you nodded eagerly, hoping the response would suffice.

“That’s it, baby, that’s fuckin’ it. So good to me all the goddamn time.” He groaned, hips bouncing off your ass with every thrust. “Pullin’ me out my head, makin’ me feel good. Perfect girl for me. Perfect girl with a perfect fuckin’ cunt, shit.”

He kept going and going and going, only relishing in a short rest each time. A setting sun and four orgasms later — five, for him — he was still burying his overstimulated cock in your overstimulated pussy. You were on your side now, facing him with your leg thrown over his hip. Each slow thrust of his dick and every pulse of your puffy cunt was laced with pain, but the pleasure was still there, too, making it hard to think. But for Carm, his mind was clear, the only thing left a vision of your sweaty face contorted with mind-numbing pleasure-pain.

One hand pulled you closer by your ass, the other brushing your hair off your sweaty forehead. “So pretty like this, baby. Could do this all fuckin’ day.”

“Carm, ‘s too much.” You gasped, eyes wide as you looked up at him. “Feels too good.”

He wiped a tear from your cheek, feeling his balls throb hard, almost painfully, as he plunged his cock deeper into you. “I know, I know. Just need another one, need to keep going till I’m fuckin’ empty. You can do that, right? You can take it.”

And sure, the overstimulation may have been clouding your judgment. But one look at his blue eyes, glazed over and needy, and you wanted to keep going. You wanted to lay there and let him take what he needed until he was spent, till all the anxious thoughts he ever had faded from memory. Your pussy tightened at the thought as you wondered how long it would take before he fucked his mind completely empty.

And just like that, he was coming again. Your sticky walls coaxed it out of him, pulsing around him until his hips stuttered. With the number of loads he’d already pumped into you, you couldn’t even feel the new warmth of his come. You only knew it was there when his cock pushed back inside, and come dribbled out of you and down your thigh.

And not a moment later, you were on your back again, and he was fucking you headfirst into your sixth orgasm. You and Carmen had a long night ahead of you. 

#carmen berzatto x reader #carmy x reader #carmen berzatto fanfiction #the bear x reader #the bear fanfiction #the bear fx fanfiction #carmy berzatto smut #carmen berzatto smut #carmy berzatto x reader #carmy berzatto fanfiction

[f-t-e]

I started watching SUPERNATURAL in November 2020. I know, I know. My partner and I had been isolating alone since March. The timing felt right. I went though a wild amount of upheaval and trauma over the next year and SPN was there for me through it all. It was THE show at THE time and it kept me afloat when I needed it the most. Since November 2021 I've written just about 110,000 words of SPN fanfic, a number that seems unbelievable to me, and that too has been a real blessing to my creative life, no matter what haters say. (why didn't I write my own novels in that time? Because I have a hobby, Karen, and I love it.) And I've read about 500000x that much fanfic, which has been the biggest blessing of all. (ETA: oh right, if you want to read my fic, you can find my stuff here, I wrote a fic where Dean reads books. Lots of books.)

I know I'm a nobody in this fandom but I thought on this, our #DestielDay, I would submit my own humble rec list. I've curated this very deliberately: every fic here has just about 4000 hits or less (most under 3000) and all were published in 2020 or after. So, sort of a rec list for some lesser known and newer fics, something you maybe haven't stumbled on yet. Especially thank you to @jewishcharliebradbury, her rec lists gave me a place to start back in the day and I have tried to model the depth and quality they brought to their lists. I tried to link to everyone's tumblr, but if I missed one, let me know.

Most of all, thank you to everyone who has EVER created something for this fandom, from 2005 to 2023. I am so thankful and, honestly, honored to be among your number. You're not supposed to be cringe and say a show saved your life...but SUPERNATURAL saved me, it really did. See y'all when the movie/reboot drops, to quote Ryan Gosling in The Notebook: IT WASN'T OVER, IT STILL ISN'T OVER. And I'm glad.

-----

Finale Fix-It & S15 and Beyond

What The Moon Was Saying by Amiril (@runawaymarbles)

This is hands-down one of the coolest “Dean Rescues Cas from the Empty” fics I have ever read and the concept is brilliantly structured to mirror the literal and metaphorical things Dean needs to give up and let go to get free. Every scenario is very satisfying and they make sense, is there any better feeling? Dean is very open in this, but in a believable way that still has edges. And, oh, the reunion is so good. Plus all the family stuff. Just excellent, exactly what you want in a fic like this: lovely, well-written, smart, fulfilling, all the pieces clicking, the show but better.

Awake and Annoying by skycruise

I love the use and passage of time in this one, it has some real impact, and I love the way Dean gets into the Empty (so smart, fits just right) and what I REALLY love in this one is the way it lets Dean be really clear-eyed and honest about his relationship with Sam, both the strengths and the weaknesses. And the last line, very clever and moving inverse of one of fandom’s favorite things. 

Living the life you chose by allthismusic

THEEEEE post finale Sam Winchester-Outsider-POV this fandom needs. Sam is absolutely awesome in this, the most believable, loving, realistic mix of “I knew all along” and “I had no idea” versions of Sam, landing somewhere I think that’s really true and in character. It fills in and develops so many gaps and silences in what the show let Sam know in the absolute best way. Best Brother Sam is a weakness of mine and he really shines here, there for Dean in the best ways but also coming into his own, I love it so very much. (this author also has a very great 2022 Big Bang fic, hugely recommend that one too.)

your ear to the wound that whispers by EmandFandems (@lazarusemma)

Who doesn’t love a HANDPRINT FIC?!? And boy this is such a good one. It follows Dean and his thoughts on the handprint from the first touch all the way to fixing the finale and it simply buzzes with longing and desire, tenderness and rawness. It’s great insight in lot of ways into Dean’s journey. It’s short but fulfilling and oh that very perfect last line. (this author also has a lot of great Jupernatural content.)  

Somewhere Off in the Dark by magickastiel 

Another awesome fic that traces Dean’s shifting/growing feelings for Cas from when he shows up in his hotel rooms to a HEA fix it after canon. Dean, again, is handled so deftly in this one, his confusion and sorrow at all the times Cas is slipping away from him all the way through the things he won’t let himself know. He feels really true in this one, sharp and tender in the best Dean ways. Also it has an agonizingly romantic end, you love to end up there.

Pins and Feathers by theskywasblue (@buttherewasnogod)

This author has so many freaking good SPN fics, omg it was almost impossible to pick just one to include on this list. Go treat yourself with their entire list because there’s so much good stuff there! But this one, oh I am a sucker for a finale fix-it that lets Dean be this tender. While I LOVE fics where he just jumps right into Cas’s arms (and write them lol) I also feel like this is so true to Dean too: that “maybe I misunderstood, maybe I shouldn’t say anything, maybe he doesn’t still –” And on top of all that, it’s a “they go the beach” fic and it gets the details of it so right, sand in your toes and all. Tender, amazing slow-burn, real, hot, full of heart and longing and everything unspoken and just waiting. Very satisfying!

i loved you first by kalmialatifolia

A set of four short fics that create an entire world of feeling and emotion. These feel like little whispered stories told under the covers, very atmospheric. There’s one very sexy one, a haircutting one (so good) and they’re just intimate. All together a great set and did I mention they’re in the “Cas saves himself” genre which is mmmm an underrated treasure.

no other faith is light enough for this place by anonymous 

A fix-it fic that has a particularly unique and beautiful visual of both how and why Cas comes back. The mechanics behind it are fairly standard but the way this author creates the visual of it, the sheer emotion and force behind it and how it happens, it really stood out to me and stuck with me. It’s Dean being brave enough to really feel and the way that just blossoms – lovely, aching, full-tilt wonderful.

 no proof, one touch by TakeThisWaltz (@watchinghimrakeleaves)

One thing I absolutely cannot get enough of is fic where Cas is hiding out from Dean in heaven. It just hits. And the only thing better is Dean chasing him down and the WAY he does it in this fic, methodically and – well the method (sobs) it is so endearing and OBVIOUS and gives Dean a chance to shout in all the best ways. This one is just real sweet and kind of goofy and if they have to be in heaven, I want them to still be these same two dorks.

Stay by redbrickrose

This is a post S15x18 from Cas’s POV and I think it’s very true to where he would be in the moment of getting yanked out of the Empty: resigned, hesitant about what he has in front of him, still a little in shock. And then. And then. Sweet and simple and Dean gets a chance to say, say, say it. This author has a good post series AU and a lovely little spate of S15 codas, all good. And then wrote this in real-time in the week after 15x18 Despair and right before 15x19 Inherit the Earth aired (could you just sob over the possibilities?!) and then hasn’t wrote anything since and that’s a shame but, like, yeah I get it.

like a one-two punch by Muir_Wolf (@muirmarie)

Don’t you love a short fic that feels like it’s a whole novel? This goes AU after 14x20 Moriah but it is a truly delightful twist on how Chuck could’ve reacted there and it makes Dean sharp as a knife, which is one really resonant image woven through this fic. Great imagery here and so many clever solutions for the lazy plotting of S15, including simply one of my all-time favorites in any fic ever solutions to Cas’s deal (genius) and getting rid of Chuck. Brilliant like a puzzle box yet still full of so much fucking joy.

maybe i like pleasure pain by tothewillofthepeople (@kvothes)

The fact that this was written in October 2023 and is so agonizingly good fills my heart with joy and tells me Destiel will never die lol. Cas, in particular, is great in this – he’s having a hard time adjusting to being in a body and with all the fuzz of the world. I love fics where Cas struggles with coming back from the Empty and this uses a really unique approach to it: Cas facing sensory overload and not knowing how to feel but wanting it all. Lovely, hot, Dean is just right in this too.

Earlier Canon (pre S15)

Proverbs 13:12 by starlingcas (@angelcasendgame)

Many might say I am biased because Renu has beta’ed everything I have written in the SPN fandom and they can read my brain and make everything I write better. But it’s not just that. Renu has done something beautiful and delicate in this fic, which is about Dean and Cas getting trapped in a net together (forced proximity trope, yes please) and weaves a web of its own; pulling you in just as they are pulled together. This is set mostly in early S14 (before fixing the finale in the most heart-healing way) and captures that feeling so well. There’s so much that’s unsaid between them yet still conveyed and Renu absolutely nails that, along with the tender longing that was always there. This is a fic to relish.

you may tire of me (as our december sun is setting) by deludedfantasy

You know how the show just sometimes is like “uh so anyway uh then Cas…uh…left.” and it just doesn’t make one lick of sense? FINALLY FINALLY a fic where Dean says “I’ll go with you,” and then goes because he actually would do that. This is a post Tombstone fic so it is exactly where/when he WOULD go and it is tender and hesitant and aching in just all the ways it would be between the two of them at this time. It’s about needing to keep someone in sight, it’s about having another chance to say something so important, it’s slow and soft and just right for the characters in this place. I could read this one about 100 times.

the anatomy of flightless birds by cowlovely (@dollhousemary)

This fic is basically the way you feel when you get all cozy and snug underneath your favorite blanket. This is a domestic-life-in-the Bunker S9 fic where everyone behaves like they are in character and not just like they have to get Cas off screen because the writers panicked. You’ll just want to curl up in this fic and savor it the way you wrap your fingers around a hot beverage on a very cold day, there’s no better way to describe it.

virtue by JenTheSweetie

I think I’ve read this about 100 times and it still gets me everytime? It’s a five things fic about Dean and Cas hooking up and it’s all you’ve ever wished for. This is set in an amorphous S8 and it is not just agonizingly hot but also romantic and very funny. It feels really in character! Sam is hilarious, Dean is clueless but bowled over and letting himself be swept up, Cas is delighting in every second and smarter than he lets on and it ALL feels fated and lovely and sexy and just splendid. (this author only has 3 SPN fics but they are all so good and if you try sometimes, well you just might find is an absolutely brilliant deconstruction of Dean learning the differences between “needing” and “wanting.”)

Romance at the Motel 6 by shelia_amour 

This fic makes me feel like Stefon from SNL. This fic has everything: Cas and Sam pretending to be married, just the right amount of jealous Dean, Dean randomly pretending to be married to Cas, Dean realizing maybe this isn’t so fake after all, motel vibes, Cas in Dean’s clothes, Cas getting bee slippers. If you are not sold on this already, we are very different people. So good, aches just right. (set in a kind of “whenever” of canon, but I like to put it somewhere in S8.)

que sera sera by Purple_Starflower (@hauntedpearl)

The epitome of how fanfic unfolds for us all the things that COULD happen. You can’t PROVE to me Dean and Cas never snuck off to snuggle and feed Dean’s touch-starvation early in S13. I had to check when I finished because I just couldn’t believe this fic was under 4000 words because it feels so full of touch, longing, the things unspoken, and all the ways Dean was reaching, reaching, reaching. The best kind of ache, and everything by this author is lovely. 

the hard edge that you’re settling for by lesspopped (@trekkiedean)

This is some S10 Demon!Dean that made my stomach hurt and my heart ache and I absolutely loved it and I absolutely hated it and it all felt so REAL with who Demon!Dean was and could have been. There’s a TW for mildly dubious consent in this, but to me, Cas was so agonizingly true to who he was/where he was at this point in canon too. This fic is gloriously, claustrophobically intimate. I say unbearable because as a reader you know that this closeness, this intimacy, is what Dean wants/craves/deserves but can only give himself as a demon and the author does an exquisite job at getting all that across. Hurts so good! 

four of swords by sundryvillians (eurythmix) (@perenial)

Can the world ever have enough post 12x12 fic? The answer is, of course, no. Dean and Cas bake bread and in the soft space of creating something with their own hands, get so close to the words Cas said. It’s about healing and anger and making something just because you are so tired of everything breaking. If that alone isn’t enough to convince you, let me also throw in this is another one of those “possible off-screen moments in canon” that gives them something honest and tender and raw and it feels so very possible. 

Fifteen Prayers From the Faithless by koyas_cat

Short, achy, that sweet sting. A set of prayers for Cas from the beginning to the end, full of all the things Dean doesn’t let himself say outloud and just reflecting the changes in their connection over alllll the years. So good.

#spn #spn fanfic #destiel fic #fic recs #destiel day #deancas fic recs #supernatural #destiel #happy anniversary #don't forget you're here forever

[heyitspersephone]

Thinking about stranger things again now that the strikes are over and how, narratively, it would be way, WAY cooler to have Mike get Vecna’d instead of Will in s5

It’s just something about the way Mike’s trauma is never addressed or handled in any way?? Like, he hugs his mom twice and then when he was depressed in season 2 and 4 nobody did anything (his parents scolded him for his behavior in s2 ig but that’s not support). His best friend went missing leaving from his house, he watched his body get pulled from the quarry, watched El (in his eyes) kill herself stopping the demogorgon, watched Will be possessed, saw Bob die, was in Star Court when everything went down, saw Billy die, had his best friend move away, was SHOT AT (and really too few people talk about the shooting in Cali bc omg??), buried a body, and watched the apocalypse start. And that’s just off the top of my head.

(And yes I’m aware that the other characters (especially Will) are traumatized too but I will get to my point in a second just hold on)

The plot is geared towards this idea that Will and Henry have to have some big face off (and they should, in my opinion, but I don’t think it should be in a possession, or at least not the the Vecna kind of possession, yk?) but that makes it all the better, writing wise, to have mike be the one in danger. Will was helpless and hiding in s1, I think Will should get his big strong moments in s5 where he gets to be the hero of the story.

It would just be a lot more fun to work with Mike being Vecna’d than Will, because what are we going to bring up with Will’s visions? His dad? His sexuality? The events of s1 from his perspective? It would be cool to see, for sure, but we already know most of that. Mike, on the other hand, has a number of untapped things, like jumping off the quarry, why he’s so hesitant to tell El he loves her, how someone who was smart and kind enough to take El in in s1 and come up with the spy and sauna plans in s2 and s3 could turn into the oblivious asshole that he was in s3 and s4 (he needs therapy, ik, I still love his character but I want to explore the reasons he went from his s2 characterization to his s3 one)

It would be a very interesting parallel, I think, to explore Mike’s thought processes in this way, especially with all of Mike’s repression business (bc whether you ship byler or milkvan he is repressing his feelings HARD. Like, beyond his inability to say I love you there’s the fact that he doesn’t bring up the apparent many times he called pre-s4 during the Rink O Mania fight?? That literally would’ve absolved him of guilt in that argument since he WAS reaching out to Will the whole time? Hellooooo????).

Anyways, this all brings me to my main point: Vecna targets isolation as much as he targets trauma and guilt. The whole party was traumatized by the events in s1, s2, and s3, but Max was the one targeted. Plus, Henry went for Fred, Chrissy, and Patrick (I think his name was Patrick) instead of going for the perceivably easy targets that the mcs would make (ik narratively that would’ve made it more boring but shhh), so why Max and those three specifically? They were isolated. Lucas and Erica have each other, Dustin goes to Steve and Robin, Will and El have each other and Jonathan and Joyce, Nancy probably goes to Jonathan, and who does Mike go to?

No one. And don’t say Nancy because if those two have heart to hearts then I’m the next coming of Christ. Max separated herself from the Party in the aftermath of her grief and guilt over Billy, and it feels quite obvious that Mike was doing the same (like I said, he has repression issues). So Mike is traumatized, alone, and guilty (be it Will getting taken from Mike’s house, losing El in front of him multiple times, the many deaths he has witnessed, or the internalized homophobia angle), which makes him more of a target than Will, in my opinion (or at least an easier one, especially given his tendency to put himself on the line during fights (quarry, most of s2, s3 mindflayer fight), which would set him up on the suicidal ideation path)

Furthermore, as I’ve seen a few other people point out (and I can’t find the posts but one of them had eight screenshots of the various moments), Mike is always the one getting in the way, so it would be a strategic move for Henry to target him to get him out of the picture. Mike was the one that found El and got her involved in saving Will s1, he was the one who came up with the spy plan and called out the ambush in s2, he was the one to monologue Will out of his possession s2, he was the one with the sauna plan for Billy in s3, he was the one trying to help El get the strength to fight s4 (even if the monologue sucked ass it’s the intention that counts). As much as people like to hate on Mike, he is in the leader position most of the time when the party is grouped up (barring his mental health struggles slowing that down beginning of s3 and throughout s4, but he’s still capable of it). He’s the idea man, and he’s the one whose character’s foundations were built on the desire to keep his friends safe, so it would be a very fun plot line to watch him be the one targeted in s5. Like Will said, as lovestruck and cheesy as he was, Mike is the heart of the party when he’s on his A-game, so Henry should 100% be trying to keep him in the issues he’s been struggling with.

Obviously, Will and El are the Targets with a capital T for Henry since they’re the ones that got away or whatever, but I think Mike is a weakness of Will’s (and El’s tbh but also I think they need to have separate character arcs and I don’t exactly ship milkvan) that should be exploited.

TL;DR: Mike should get Vecna’d instead of Will in s5 because it would make sense in lore and be a very cool way to resolve his character arc

#wow this ended up being super long for no reason oops #I meant to stop at the first paragraph #oh well this was a lot of fun to type out at midnight haha #and I don’t see enough people talking about or exploring this concept #percy speaks #stranger things #mike wheeler #will byers #eleven stranger things #el hopper #vecna #lucas sinclair #dustin henderson #max mayfield #byler #character analysis #stranger things analysis #byler analysis #ish #I’m a byler shipper at heart but it wasn’t the main focus sorry

[lina-lovebug]

USM characters dating a villains daughter

- you were recruited into SHIELD based on your merits and smarts

- also including the fact that your dad was a villainous genius and wanted you farrrr away from all that mess

- you helped the team every now and then concerning tech stuff or hacking, and Spidey developed a crush on you

- you found him cute, having seen his face a few separate times, but knew that once he found out that your dad has made multiple attempts to clone his DNA and/or kill him then that crush would die

- it was a small accident from one of the other agents, but one that made you avoid Spidey for WEEKS

- "Oh hey Miss. Octavius" "Oh hey-"

- normally you'd let that slide but not when you were having lunch with Spiderman

- "Octavius? Like-?" "Wow, I'm late for a meeting. Bye!"

- it sucked too because you used to have a great relationship with your dad but his change and obsession over Spiderman drove you two apart

- you missed your dad

- each time you walked past the team training or happened to be in the same room as Spidey, you'd avoid him like the plague

- you would have kept doing that but suddenly found your hand webbed to your desk

- "You're avoiding me" "who said that?"

- after a long conversation that you weren't a spy or a weird creepy person trying to clone him, he let out a sigh of relief

- "And here I thought my crush on you was ruined" "yeah same here. . ."

- the team teased you both about that for the next month

- it's not everyday that you find out your dad is a terrorist

- okay not exactly a terrorist but one of the most dangerous men in the entire world to the point where they locked him in a prison without any metal

- yup, your father is Magneto

- it was fresh into your relationship with Danny when you found out. Your mom died when you were a baby, and you were adopted by an Agent of SHIELD

- it began to explain so much - your powers always have been strong, even for a mutant. You excelled in your strength and control, except for the few moments where anger woukd get the better of you

- you were scared to tell him. You had been dating for barely a month now, what if he got scared? Magneto brings fear to his name for a reason

- but you didn't have to tell him because Magneto had already found you. It's a strange thing to feel your child through your shared gene of controlling metal

- "(Y/N), I know I was never present before, but I never knew that you-" "Love, what's he talking about?"

- Magneto raised his brow at the green clad boy beside you and you rightfully began to p a n i c

- "I'm her father, and you are?"

- Danny is like 👁👄👁

- "You're not my dad. My dad is Agent (L/N), and as far as I'm concerned, the only person who knows me."

- and still, Danny is just 👁👄👁

- also okay my girlfriend didn't know that her dad is one of the few people I'm scared of

- After the initial blow up, you refused to talk to him. Erik Lensherr wanted to get to know you - to know the little girl he never knew he had even though this motherfucker has kids EVERYWHERE

- it was Danny who encouraged you to know him. You didn't have to force yourself to call him dad but you could atleast try to see if he's worth knowing?

- "How long have you been dating that boy?" "Oh, uh, a month now." "Hmm. . .he says strange things but I like him"

- He never saw it coming but Danny is the number one favorite of your adopted and biological dad. Yippee

- "When do I get to meet your dad, babe?"

"Uh. . .how do you feel about never? Also he's in prison, so not exactly the best meet up scenario."

- Luke knew you had a complicated relationship with your dad but never knew exactly how complicated

- first few years of your life, you were always on the road with him. You never thought much of the constant moving and new motel rooms every week - it was just a roadtrip

- until that roadtrip ended with your dad in custody and you cowering in the bathtub with claws and trying to act like a very scary person

- you looked like a spicy cat

- Luke was still curious though and since you weren't giving him much, he decided to sneak into the SHIELD database

- Sabretooth a.k.a Victor Creed who is sadistic and violent, and used to bring you on "roadtrips" which could have very easily ended up with you being killed

- also making Wolverine your uncle who didn't visit much himself

- "ooohh that's why she accidentally called Fury dad that one time"

- daddy issues to another level

- anyway

- Luke respected your decision not to see nor talk about your dad, now knowing that he never really cared about you

- it also made him realize why you were so avoidant when you first joined the team #likefatherlikedaughter

- but you were nothing like Sabretooth thank fucking christ and loved Luke, so he planned a dinner for you to meet his family

- and if you're wondering, yes, Victor found out you were dating whilst in custody and ended up destroying his prison cell

- oh yeah, Sam already knew

- you mean to tell me that a girl with green magical powers, a golden headpiece with horns AND who calls Thor "Uncle" is Lokis' Daughter?

- :0

- you weren't exactly subtle when it came to the few times the team and Loki butted heads

- "Dad, stop fighting my friends!" "They started it!"

- Meanwhile Sam over here like "Wow my crush is an actual Goddess"

- being half Frost Giant and half Asgardian came with perks, and one of those being that your body temp was always cold so Sam CLUNG to you during the hot summer days

- you and Sam were on the roof of the Hellicarrier when you confessed your feelings and out of excitement, Sam grabbed your face and kissed you

- spoiler alert: Loki also decided it was a perfect time to visit you

- so imagine your dad's surprise when he portals to Midgard to see his daughter and sees some mortal sucking her face off

- it was a very eventful and frightening evening for everyone, to say the least

- "Dad, I'm sixteen. I'm allowed to date" "that's like a fetus in Asgard. Come back to me when you're 500 and perhaps you can date"

- you dated anyway

- Sam didn't care that Loki is your dad, insisting he also wasn't afraid this bitch is terrified

- despite your differences, you do love your dad and he loves you, so you don't understand his hatred for Sam

- that was until Thor dropped the bomb

- as an Asgardian, you're immortal and Sam will eventually die. So Loki is terrified that one day you'll lose Sam and be left with nothing

- cue the mental breakdown

- "You did WHAT?!" "you weren't giving her answers, brother." "No but you've given her a crisis!"

- It was something Sam thought about from time to time but seeing you so heartbroken about it made him sad, and it kept you both distant

- Loki forced himself to talk to you, telling you to enjoy your time with Sam and if you wanted to one day - you could give up your immortality, if that's what you wanted

- after a long and much needed discussion, you came to Sam with the information. He felt bad that you'd have to surrender all that you were just to be with him, but you said:

"I'll still be who I am; I'll be the annoying magic girl who saved your ass"

- with a bonus of Loki admitting that Sam wasn't that bad he adored you two

- so like

- your dad is kinda fucked

- you just so happened to be the one who was somewhat sane

- you happened whilst your parents were casually dating, and while any other kid might want their parents to stay together, you were more than happy that your mom left

- your dad is Victor Von Doom and your mom? Hot asf Susan Storm

- Reed and Susan raised you away from him, and you inherited your own abilities from when Susan was caught in the storm in space

- you met Ava when the Fantastic Four visited SHIELD for some meeting, being the teenager dragging along because you've always admired your mom and dad's work

- Fury was eyeing you for your brains, considering bringing the matter up to Invincible Woman and Mr. Fantastic first

- after some debate, you were in and met White Tiger first and once she took off her mask, you were like "damn"

- "what?" "I-I mean, damn it's nice to be apart of the team"

- you both got along great, and she admired how smart you were and capable

- she asked you out and it had been a great few months, but you did receive a yell from Fury after he caught you two in the main tech area

- you weren't hiding it necessarily but it did shock her that you never told her, I mean, dudes number one for a reason

- "your dad is Doom?!" "Hes not my dad, he's my sperm donor - there's a difference"

- never in a million years did you consider Doom your dad. Reed raised you, and he called you his daughter from the moment you entered his life, so no - Victor Von Doom was not your dad

- she knew she touched a nerve, almost sounding accusatory, and apologized

- but she had no reason to, you reassured her, before giving her a kiss and asking if she wanted to come over for dinner to meet them

- she said yes :)

#usm x reader #ultimate spiderman #ultimate spiderman x reader #iron fist x reader #spiderman x reader #nova marvel

[ladybirdswritings]

Silken Webs & Pirouettes- Miguel O’Hara x Reader

Summary: You decide to take all your problems out on the dance floor. Ballerina!Reader & CEO!Miguel. Alternate Universe with most of the characters included as seen in "Across the Spiderverse." Many cameos ahead. Miguel is a successful business owner but personality is canon. This is a steamy reader insert, Miguel x You! Enjoy and pls leave me lots of love and comments as it keeps me motivated <333

next chapter

eight

“Ladies leave yo’ man at home, the club is full of ballers and they pockets full grown— and all you fellas leave yo’ girl with her friends— cause it’s eleven thirty and the club is jumpin’ jumpin’”

Your hips sway in rhythm with the song, body glistening with a soft sheen, evidence of the time you’ve spent on the dance floor. The fluorescent lights feel like they’re only on you. Men and women have either danced or tried to dance with you all night. You’ve given your number to at least eight, so far. One of them a blonde with blue eyes, older but handsome.

So…. how did you get here?

Well…

Your bed was comfortable enough for the few days you were glued to it, teary eyes and puffy face as you gazed at the phone on your pillowcase.

To call home or not to call home… that was the question.

It seemed like each time you reached for it, the constriction within the confines of your heart stopped you from lifting it off of the satin.

So you turned, gazing up at the sky behind your popcorn ceiling. Thinking for hours and hours. Could there be a way you could stay? Any other way besides going back to that dreadful office with that fanged serpent inside. That beast. Wolf. Asshole.

Nothing came to you. Maybe you’d be lucky enough at the week’s end when your check finally arrived. Lucky enough to buy more time and search even farther for more open work opportunities. Yet luck is gentle sometimes, it hides away from the people that need it.

So you tossed and you turned for hours, feeling suffocated by the matting and lack of ribbons in your hair. Until you decided to just rip the bandaid off and give in. Or so you planned to. The bright light made you squint and press anything but the phone button, or maybe it was your subconscious. What you did press was a recommended video.

A woman, a gorgeous woman with jet black locks and intimidating eyes struck you silent as she simply said,

“Get up. No no no, I don’t care how you’re feeling right now, I don’t care that you lost them or you’re depressed or he hurt you. It. Doesn’t. Matter. Get up right now, go get pretty and go show the world how pretty you are. I promise you it will fix things.”

That’s all you saw before you were up on your feet, taking an everything shower for longer than you ever have. Tending to your wild curls and plump skin. You ate, too. Stale cereal as it was all you had but— you still ate.

Then you thought. You thought about what always makes you feel good again. Alive.

Dancing.

Now you could have risked your head and paid Katerina a visit, of course. Yet you played things smart. You took the next best thing. Ballet isn’t the only rhythm you know. You did your makeup and fit into your shiniest dress. Like a disco ball, glistening in silver. Then? You searched for the nearest nightclub nearby. One where you could just dance your problems away.

Now you’re here.

“Hey baby, I’m likin’ the way you move those hips tonight.”

Ew, he smells of strong liquor.

You only smile kindly at the stranger who’s missing a front tooth and twirl, turning your back on him and continuing to sway your hips. He takes it as an opportunity to place his hand on one— and you stumble forward, pushing it away.

Too many men have felt entitled to dancing with you tonight, and he’s just another. No one asks, anymore.

“No…” you sigh through a nervous giggle.

He sucks his tee— or tooth? “Bitch.” Is all he follows with.

You frown at that, parting your lips to utter another word but— you don’t get the chance.

“Hey, leave my friend alone!” That sing-song, familiar voice.

You turn on your heel where Cindy Moon stands tall, brows furrowed as she regards the drunk asshole who is acting like he owns rights to your swaying body.

“Cindy?” You sound shocked and god— you are. What a coincidence.

Soon as the vile man leaves, she grins wide at you and pulls you into the warmth of a tight hug. It’s the first one she’s ever given you. She hugs you so hard it’s as if she’s afraid you’ll slip into the crowd of dancers if she lets go. Christ, it’s only been a week.

As kind as this is, you’re baffled.

The music is pounding in your ears, so loud you’re borderline screaming, burning at your lungs so to speak to her.

“Wait, why are you here!?”

She tilts her ear toward you— taking a moment to analyze your voice before realization strikes her.

“Company gathering!”

What? Here?

You freeze.

She must see the terror in your eyes because she immediately raises two comforting palms and shakes her head.

“Nonono— don’t worry! He never comes to these! I mean- Jess always invites him but he hasn’t showed so, doubt he will today!”

The tension in your chest eases at once, your body surrendering to the vibration of the sound. You’re grateful to god now more than ever that he hates any living, breathing corner of the world with joy and fun. You can’t imagine him in a place like this.

Wait…

“Who is Jess!?”

Cindy starts to sway her hips as the prior song bleeds perfectly into the neck, you follow suite— hands raking back your wild curls.

“C-O-O! But don’t worry, she’s super cool! This was her idea! Hey— Miguel never told us why you quit anyways!?”

She’s awfully sweet and strikingly beautiful. You see the men looking at her from the corner of your gaze, mesmerized by the young beauty with the slender frame. Yet, sweet as she is— this was your night away from all of it. He is the last thing on your mind.

Your mind wanders, searching for the right answer to put a pin in this conversation. You find one soon enough.

“Morale.” You practically snort. It’s understood immediately.

She nods once, eyes squinting as she stands on her tip toes and searches over the lively crowd. As if there’s a lightbulb floating at the top of her head.

“Hey— let’s go grab a drink!”

She’s a genius, she must know the subject makes you squirm. You grab her hand, letting her lead you off to the bar where an awfully pregnant woman with gorgeous, coiled locks sits— sipping on what you hope is a virgin lemonade.

“Two shots!!” Cindy orders, leaning over the bar and getting chatty with the tender as he prepares them.

Alcohol, yes. Just what you need. You sigh in relief, taking a seat next to the Aphrodite sipping on her drink. Her curls are dark, and her skin is gorgeous and glassy, and she’s— staring at you.

Not for a single moment, no. She’s analyzing you. Eyes locked on the side of your face.

You offer her a quick glance, squirming in your seat as she squints.

Is there something on your face?

She gasps, it makes you jump.

“No shit… you must be Ribbons.”

Ribbons?

You turn to her, brows furrowed and eyes soft as they search for an understanding to what she means. She sticks her hand out, over her swelled belly and like a zombie- you shake it.

“Ribbons, it’s what they started calling you around the office. I’m Jess, from where you used to work.”

Jess.

She must see the realization settle in your eyes because she giggles. It’s a warm sound.

You can see why people like her, why they regard her highly. She’s gorgeous, and she smells of a garden with freshly bloomed jasmine blanketing it. And her smile, it’s welcoming.

You offer her your name with an embarrassed shake of your head, partnered with a soft laugh at your oblivious nature.

“It’s alright— you didn’t have the pleasure of meeting me before saving yourself from mister hates-everyone-and-everything.”

Oh, she’s funny. Lively. You like her. You only wish it was her instead that you worked under, maybe things would’ve been different. You’d bet your pretty soul that Cindy and Mary Jane must have thought the same thing, at least once.

Cindy returns to earth soon enough, no longer drooling over the blonde bartender with a boyish grin. She hands you a shot, keeps one for herself, and hands Jess one too. Your brows lift, concern swimming in your bright eyes.

“Don’t worry, it’s virgin. Just lemon juice and seltzer— didn’t want you to feel left out!”

The kind thing, you grin at that and so does Jessica. Your glasses raise in repetition of Cindy’s own.

“To you, Ribbons. For having the guts to do what none of us ever could and getting the hell out!” She’s joking, you think. But a more analytical part of you knows well that deep down, she is not.

Christ, he’s that bad.

“Amen to that, sister.” Jess adds, and you can only laugh at the irony as you clink your glasses and shoot the horrible, burning thing back. You immediately wince as the substance itches at the base of your throat, making your eyes swell with water whilst you cough.

“Ugh, is that tequila!?”

Cindy only nods before dropping the glasses down and grabbing your hand again. She barely flinched.

“Let’s go dance!”

You don’t get the opportunity to recover and say goodbye to the pregnant Aphrodite before you’re back out on the dance floor, swaying those hips to the beat. Except now, it’s with Cindy by your side. The music is good, the drinks being brought to you by mesmerized men are good, god- the night is good. Time feels slow as it passes. That lady was on to something. You showed the world your pretty face and you got rewarded for it.

Maybe it’s the alcohol or maybe the music but you finally feel it again. Alive. The buzz makes you feel loose, like with each sway of your hips— you’re throwing more of your problems into the burning pile and watching them melt away into nothing more than ash.

Meaningless ash. Where they can’t hurt you.

Cindy dances with a man beside you, but you dance alone. This moment, it feels too good to share with anyone else.

You don’t pay much mind to how long you’re there for, nor what’s happening around you. You don’t need to. You just need you right now, you and the music.

“I know right, she’s got the whole place looking!”

You hear above the bass; you don’t bother to listen more to Cindy’s voice or rather anything else except for the song. You’re lost in this safe little bubble, no one’s crowding you.

Wait— no one’s crowding you.

You open your eyes to see eyes staring back. Multiple, mesmerized by the way you’re moving those hips. Tipsy as you are— your face still flushes as you gaze back at them.

Your hips slow and then halt completely when the bony shoulder of a strawberry blonde bumps into your back.

“Hey, watch where you’re dancin— yeah?” A southern accent demands.

You frown at her, only seeing the back of her head as she storms past you. Christ, some night she’s having. She takes your place in the middle of the circle you created and attempts to move her hips. She looks— stiff. Like she’s trying to force the movement that should come fluidly in her hips.

Maybe you’re just drunk and critical as a former dancer. That must be it. You’ll leave her be, the room is too dizzy to care.

With a sigh, you bury yourself back into the crowd who have all turned their attention away from the circle. Whew, you’re feeling spun. Where Cindy, anyways?

Maybe it’s time for a water…

A record scratches, smirking mouth pressed up against the microphone as the DJ pulls it against his face.

“Alright alright— you guys havin’ a nice time tonight?” The crowd cheers, loud and rowdy as they look up at the record booth and lone, center stage. The DJ, he gets excited by the energy. As if he’s feeding from it.

“Alriiiiight, that’s what I like to hear. Now listen, rumor has it that right here, right now in this very moment— there’s a dancing queen among us. Oh yeah, I’m talkin’ full blown ABBA. I’ve seen her, I know you’ve seen her— light man...” He snaps his fingers, the singular luminescent glow from the ceiling lands upon him. He finishes, “Let’s find her in this crowd, shall we? Where is she?”

Your eyes scan over the crowd, curious to see just who they’re talking about.

God— she must be good for a personal shoutout in a place like this. You used all of the grocery money to get in here, it’s not like you’ve had much of an appetite, anyways…

Maybe it is the strawberry blonde with an attitude… no, no that would be absurd.

You squint as the light passes you quickly— but it soon snaps right back.

Your delicate palm softly lifts to shield it from your blinded eyes.

“There she is!” He announces, as if he’s found the first lick of gold in a deserted land of sand.

The crowd cheers, whistling and whooping as their hands pound together. You turn your head, looking each way for the dancing queen they speak of before you realize.

Oh…

It’s you.

You’re so drunk you can only giggle, covering your face with your palms as the DJ shakes his head,

“Oh no sweetheart, can’t get all shy now that you know everybody’s watching. We all saw the way you were moving those hips— we all saw it. Let me ask you muñequita, because I have a feeling. Do you know how to dance like a boricua? I saw the way you were moving, there is no chance in hell you’re an all white woman.”

He laughs at his own joke, and the crowd does too.

He’s right. Your father was a strong Puerto Rican man with intimidating eyes— he never smiled, nor did he come around often. But when he did come around? He taught you to dance. He loved to dance. You do too.

You snap yourself away from your thoughts, they’re waiting… they’re waiting and it feels so odd yet so right to have all those eyes on you.

The dancing queen…

Maybe this would’ve been your life had you not— well, tonight’s not the night to think about it. You’re far too buzzed and far too front and center to chicken out now.

You spread your fingers, eyes peeking out behind your palms. Maybe you shouldn’t but god— dancing just feels so good tonight. You nod, and the crowd cheers again.

“See, knew it. Knew it. I’m never wrong, I’m never wrong. So, chiquita bonita, how about you get up here and we give them a show— eh? What do you say?”

A show…

You can’t even deny or overthink it before the crowd starts chanting “do it, do it, do it,” in unison. Someone with cold hands pushes you forward and before you let better judgment stop you from swaying your hips center stage— you’re already up there. The lights follow you; they blind you.

“There we go! Alright, my beloved gringos and gringas can sit this one out— we’re gonna dance a little merengueeee.” He emphasizes the word in a way that makes all the girls swoon.

What are you doing? What are you doing? You don’t know. Daddy taught you merengue. You love merengue, but all these people…

Your mind flashes back to the week straight that you were wrapped like a mummy in your sheets. The tears, the loneliness, the dread. And now— here you are. They’re all looking at you like you’re a star.

…

Oh, fuck it.

The DJ spins a record again and soon enough a symphony of instruments and strings begin to flow throughout the speakers. Everyone cheers as he adjusts the needle and pulls his headphones off from his head.

Thank god, you’d just about melt if you had to dance this alone. He hurries over to you. He has kind, brown eyes and a mustache just above his contagious smile. His belly is soft, it protrudes just a bit.

“Peter.” He greets where only you can hear him. You peer up at him shyly, feeling the heat of the moment suffocate you. You haven’t had this many eyes on you since you were with Katerina. The very distant, sober part of you is tugging your hand. Begging you to get off stage.

Peter furrows his brows,

“Hey— don’t look at them. Look at me.”

He’s awfully kind, and he’s right. If you play pretend, this moment could feel euphoric. You nod, forgetting all your worries as the long intro finally comes to an end.

“Bajo una noche estrellada, de luna llena…”

See, the thing about dancers is that no matter how loud the mind screams, the body won’t stop moving. Yours is no different.

His palms are warm as they press against your own. You clasp your fingers against his and keep his warm brown eyes centered as the only thing in sight.

The dancer you are, your hips start to sway.

“Ahi está.” He praises, one hand falling to rest against your hip, following each effortless motion and figure eight they make in unison with the beat. Something about him, it’s safe. It’s gentle. It’s— a really good merengue dancer.

Christ…

You giggle as he moves his hips, leading your mesmerizing motions. He’s putting you on display, twirling your sparkling dress under the spot lights for the whistling crowd to see. He spins you once, twice, thrice, then he stops you— your back to him.

“You okay with this?” He whispers in your ear, you nod— grateful he asked for a yes. The first man tonight who has, unfortunately…

Your hips move back against him, his leg— at least that’s what you think it is. You’re too drunk to know any better.

You both move in unison, and although he’s the only thing that exists in your mind right now aside from the music— you can feel the crowd. In your bones and chest, vibrating louder than the sound that leads you and the hands that guide you. Feel their eyes and excitement as you do as he said and give them a show.

“You’re bringing me lots of business tonight, dancing queen.”

Your cheeks are pink from the buzz, and you laugh as he twirls you again— back into the first position. You both sway your hips, the trumpet of the song a euphoric sound. He reaches a hand out, pushing it in an upward motion to signal the crowd to get louder.

God- they do.

They do as you twirl again, as you move your body for them to see.

A dazzling starlet.

You’re lost, so lost in the moment that you feel like finally, you’ve reached it. That peak, just at the top of the mountain where no one and nothing else exists. Nothing plagues you, no. Just this moment.

Your curls are wild and free, no longer tamed by your straightener and ribbons, they dance on their own, too.

You could stay here forever.

Peter steps back, holding your intertwined hands up in the air— only moving his hips softly as he puts you front and center. In this moment, you no longer feel like a ballerina in a box. No, you’re the ballerina who leaped outside of that stupid wooden box. That stupid office. Stupid dance room.

Stupid boss.

Stupid Katerina.

Stupid Miguel.

Hey… that guys kinda looks like—

Peter twirls you swiftly back into his arms and continues moving. You’re still facing front, the rhythm controlling your body like it’s got strings sewn into your limbs.

But that guy…

The crowd is slowly fading back as the lights get a bit dimmer. You squint behind the hundreds of gazes on you so you can see— and Christ, do you see it.

Him.

Miguel fucking O’Hara.

And his eyes? Those intimidating eyes…

They’re glued on to you. Nothing else but you, as if you’re the only breathing creature besides himself that exists in this room. It must be him, you can’t delude yourself into believing or seeing otherwise. He’s seated beside a smiling Jessica.

Your gazes lock.

Woah….

The air leaves you, and you’re certain you turn entirely red against your silver. You stumble, and Peter catches you.

“You okay?”

You turn to meet his warm brown orbs.

You need to leave— now.

You’re drunk, and nauseous.

“No no I- m’ sorry I have to go.” Like Cinderella in the night. Only you’re running from the monster, not to it.

The crowd “awws” in unison as you part from Peter’s hands and softly make your way to the stairs. You leave him confused as he grabs the vacant mic.

He takes the attention off of you and quickly puts it back onto himself, likely seeing the panic in your eyes. You’d suffocate if the crowd watched you crumble.

“The dancing queen everybody, leaving me quicker than my first wife.”

The stairs make you dizzy, you grip tightly onto the rail as you descend them. Oh, the room is spinning. It’s smaller. Are you panicking again? No no, you can’t. Not while drunk.

Why is Katerina coming to the forefront of your mind?

Oh god, you are.

“That was awesome!” Cindy calls, gently grabbing your arm.

All of it, it’s all echoing.

“I have to go…” you breathe out as you push past her. Merengue makes people move, so so much. It’s hard to weave through. You’re gonna vomit. You are so gonna vomit right now.

You huff,

“Excuse me, please…”

They don’t listen or make it easy, but you’re slender enough to push through for the most part. The trumpets still play in the background, chasing you out and the crowd is laughing at something Peter is doing on stage. You don’t pay it any mind.

You need to go, you need air— distance.

“Oh!” Another bump against your shoulder from the strawberry blonde, harsher this time and you fall against a brick wall. Er- that’s what it feels like.

Your hands immediately lift to steady yourself against the firm stranger’s torso as your body straightens up. You’re so, so dizzy— and you’re certain that you’re drunk now because your speech is slurred.

The tequila.

“M’ so sorry I-”

Your mouth goes slack once you’re able to lift the soft curve of your chin from where it once stared at leather shoes.

It’s then that the scent of firewood and espresso all floats back— slamming against your senses like a crashing wave to shore. So suddenly. Looking down at you under the sparkling lights, in the sea of joyous people…

Dark eyes, tense jaw, long hair…

It’s him…

Mr. O’Hara…

🏷️’s: @reirain @needybitez @migueloharastruelove @laysmt @maomaimao @daisy-artfield @poutysprouty @chorizobeets @tabalittlelong @iitangerine | chap 8 song 🎧:

#atsv miguel #miguel o’hara x reader #miguel smut #miguel imagine #miguel 2099 #miguel ohara #miguel o hara #miguel x reader #miguel spiderman #miguel o'hara #miguel spiderverse #miguel x you #miguel x y/n #miguel o’hara across the spider verse #miguel o’hara x y/n #miguel o’hara masterlist #miguel o’hara fic #miguel o’hara smut #miguel o’hara imagine #miguel o’hara x you #miguel o’hara fanfiction #miguel o’hara fluff #au!miguel o’hara #spider man 2099 #spider man #Spotify

[comradekatara]

No but fr I wanna know all ur Yangchen thoughts 🥺🙏

Are we gonna get a review of Dawn of yangchen?? 💛💛 I really love ur analysis stuff, it’s fun to read

thank you and sorry for taking so long to reply! i kept meaning to write a review of the dawn of yangchen but then the sequel came out, which i just read, and i figured i'd just combine the little i had written with my overall impression of both novels. it might just be recency bias, but i really enjoyed the legacy of yangchen, it hit all the right spots for me. my review isn't formal in any way, but here are my scattered thoughts in the form of bullet points (in no particular order), and if there are any details you'd like me to expand on or analyze more formally, please don't hesitate to ask! i'd love to discuss these novels further.

obviously, spoilers for both the yangchen novels under the cut.

i like how i can tell that fc yee is a sokkagirl the same way i can tell that will arbery (one of my favorite playwrights, worked on s4 of succession) is a romangirl. and that’s all i’m gonna say on that! 

in my draft of my review of the previous novel, which i had only outlined but never actually finished, i said this: “zongdu chaisee seven months pregnant and effortlessly running an entire city from the top down in a way that makes her completely untouchable despite her obviously criminal tactics vs zongdu henshe gripping the public bathroom sink sobbing into the basin and flailing around throwing tantrums whenever the avatar questions his competence. a girlboss running her empire vs a pathetic little boytoy imploding under the weight of his own ineptitude. i love them both.” which i stand by even more now that chaisee is given more prominence in the sequel. she was already my favorite character in the yangchenverse, but now she’s EXTREMELY my favorite character. and rip henshe lmfao you were fun but we won’t miss you.

that said, kalyaan swiftly moved up the ranks. his scenes in this novel were so excellent. the way he humiliates kavik as simply as breathing, but also the way he completely fell apart when he thought kavik was hurt. their relationship is so fascinating, im obsessed with their toxic undying brotherhood!!!! and im the number one hater of guys with smug auras usually, but he’s so beautifully written in this novel i just couldn’t help but relish every scene he’s in. 

i also wrote last novel: “mama ayunerak was also a very cool character. at first she seems like just a sweet little old lady but it turns out she’s actually extremely shrewd and has eyes everywhere!! best spy in the whole damn spy novel, perhaps??” and my opinion has only somewhat changed. i still love her, don’t get me wrong, but i don’t think i was giving yangchen herself enough credit. she can evade the white lotus masterfully when she wants to.

i also, of course, LOVED seeing the white lotus in their banal, daily operations. how the sausage gets made, if you will. as a white lotus lover, and a kavik lover, and a lying liars who lie lover, this was all extremely satisfying for me. the fact that they were the ones to orchestrate the platinum affair is so beautiful to me. fc yee understands me. he gets it. 

yangchen and kavik have such a beautiful relationship. i love that by the end, yangchen still doesn’t even realize that kavik isn’t remorseful because he betrayed the Avatar, but because he betrayed her. he doesn’t even really give a shit that she’s the avatar in like, the grand, spiritual sense. he just loves her for who she is. a smart, funny air nomad who wants to make the world a better place. and she has it so bad for him lmfao i don’t think she even realizes it tho 😭

i loved the references to gurus laghima and shoten, the koans yangchen quotes to herself throughout the novels, the portrayal of air nomad culture in general. it’s great to be able to spend time with air nomads in a real way, even if most of the action still takes place in the earth kingdom. 

jetsun is such an incredible minor character, that final scene tells us so much with so little. and i love the stark contrast she provides to kalyaan, which yangchen even says. the difference between older sisters (queens & legends) and older brothers (toxic male manipulators) i suppose. 

a minor detail i enjoy is the confirmation that airbenders can use airwaves to detect the movement of objects. it’s only fair that each element gets its own version of seismic sense, and if firebenders have heatbending and airbenders have wavebending, i think waterbenders could theoretically do the same via the moisture in the air. just a fun piece of lore i like to think about. 

i love that despite how intelligent and studious she is, yangchen is, fundamentally, a jock. she thinks in koans and sports references. she prides herself on being airball team captain. she is competitive and fun loving, just like any other air nomad. 

also yangchen being called “a terror” (by jetsun) and “a horrible little girl” (by yingsu) is so real and adorable she’s literally a little sister & a menace!!!! <3

combustion bending lore getting expanded upon was great for me. i love that chaisee’s history as an exploited pearl diver gave her both the idea and the will to use people as weapons. it’s not that she thinks it’s okay to do, but she thinks it’s fine because it’s how the world works. though she’ll use the cruelest methods, she’s not innately cruel, she’s just been jaded enough to become amoral, and thinks doing whatever it takes to secure her position is always justified. excellent character i fucking love her truly. 

we never actually find out what happened to jujinta or the history behind the yuyan archers, but that’s okay. the toll it has on him is what’s important, and that’s communicated effectively enough without exposition. 

i thought that surely yangchen would find a way to end the platinum affair, but i actually loved that there was no getting through to feishan, and ultimately, he had the power. i think her strategy of becoming the zongdu for the entire earth kingdom and personally distributing funds is fascinating, because it’s exactly the kind of un-air-nomad behavior that separates her from aang. yangchen is wise and spiritual, but she is also shrewd and pragmatic. her air nomad status strengthens her integrity where it matters, but it doesn’t hinder her ability to make the necessary calls that burden the avatar. as much as she doubts herself and resents her responsibilities, she handles her role beautifully. 

her bison dying to save her is just. sheer pain. first jetsun and now nujian, not to mention her banishment from the northern air temple, avatarhood demanding sacrifice is the one constant across all their lifetimes. except roku. roku’s just a spoiled brat. 

something i love about kavik is that he is an excellent liar. i think that if he continues his career in espionage instead of becoming a healer, he could really flourish. also the fact that he’s really good at mental math is very funny to me. when you long to be a doctor but your skills are in accounting and spycraft… 

the chaisee yangchen foilage is so rich & juicy i love how chaisee genuinely loves air nomad philosophy despite her own modus operandi being so antithetical to air nomad values. how it’s clear that despite commiserating with the burden of the avatar, she so desperately wishes she had that power and built-in clout and eternally preserved legacy. how she calls yangchen her “little sister” in a parallel with kalyaan & kavik, but jetsun is her actual big sister so the thought of chaisee calling her that disgusts her. i actually think that if chaisee had joined the white lotus instead of becoming a zongdu she could have enjoyed all the benefits of power and protection without actually putting herself at risk. but she is also far vainer than she would like to admit. alas. 

i would have really loved to see the dynamic between chaisee and kalyaan. i know they would be such a fascinating couple, these inverted foils of yangchen and kavik, who are so smart, and shrewd, and talented, and fragile. i could read an entire novel just about their domestic disputes. 

i love the way the novel dealt with questions of avatarhood—its unfair burden, its unfair power, the ghosts of past lives possessing you, the way it can be so isolating even when you have community and personal support and the adoration of the masses, the arrogance that unique power can lead to. it’s a very difficult question if you actually try to consider the in-universe political implications of it. i hardly find it surprising that an anarchist (such as comrade xai bau) would come to the conclusion that avatars should not exist. 

fc yee does such a great job of incorporating lore from atla & lok, both small details and major plotpoints, in a way that feels natural and seamless. despite the fact that the tone of this novel is very different, it still feels like it takes place in the exact same universe. and for what it’s worth, i prefer the tone here. not that i don’t love the grand sweeping quest narrative of atla, but the daily minutia of exploitation, the manipulations and machinations of power players on a more balanced world stage is far more intriguing to me as an adult. the same way that as an adventure-loving child i was obsessed with katara, but i grew into loving sokka as i matured. i will always enjoy atla’s righteous battle between good and evil, but the nuanced, grounded politics of the yangchen novels really hit the spot for me now. i said in the past that the kyoshi novels do what lok tried to do, but this novel is actually the most perfectly illustrative of that idea for me. maybe because it explores the exact kind of archetypes and themes im already predisposed to enjoy in this franchise. maybe it’s just recency bias. but i loved this book. 

#sorry this took a year and a whole other novel to write this lmao #notsosecrettunnel #asks #the dawn of yangchen #the legacy of yangchen #chronicles of the avatar #yangchen #chaisee #kavik #kalyaan #ayunerak #jetsun #tagging the characters i have already drawn and/or know i will draw eventually #also heavily considering changing my url to smth yangchen related and maybe just straight up becoming a yangchen blog period.... 😬

[dumbass-duo-showdown]

DUMBASS DUO SHOWDOWN ROUND 2 BATTLE 3

Josuke Higashikata & Okuyasu Nijimura from JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure (ship name: josuyasu) vs Cole Brookstone & Jay Walker from lego ninjago (ship name: bruise)

REMINDER TO CHECK OUT THE PROPAGANDA UNDER THE CUT!

JOSUYASU PROPAGANDA

Josuke is fairly decent, but okuyasu, you know how in math, if you multiply a negative number with a positive one it is always negative, that is josuyasu for you. Josuke has 6 braincells and Okuyasu has -6734. Their first meeting was okuyasu trying to kill josuke, then he shows up at his house a few days later and goes "hey lets go to school! btw your mom is hot!" Josuke punches a plate of spaghetti because he thinks the chef is evil, they both fight a middle schooler who stole their cash. Okuyasu got the third most op ability in his part but he is too stupid (and kind) to realize it. Somehow they survive their entire part. They are thus far the second jojo and jobro duo to not lose each other. the second one? THEM IN AN ALTERNATIVE UNIVERSE! (okay but okuyasu is swapped for koichi in that one, but still).

Josuke normally is pretty smart, but somewhat silly, but Okuyasu. Isn’t incredibly bright but he’s the best jojo character idc. Okuyasu brings out josukes stupid and then they are just besties and totally bouncing off each other’s stupid ideas. Idk what Okuyasu does to josukes brain but I’m here for it

I saw the post title and without reading anything else immediately went to submit them, only to go back and read the full post and realize they were included by default. They are THE dumbass duo. Ever. The worst protagonists for a detective story, but they dumbassed around so hard they somehow caught a genius serial killer. No matter who wins, they’ll always be the number 1 dumbasses in my heart.

they are the best of friends, which of course means they met by trying to kill each other.

They’re both so stupid. Like josuke isn’t that stupid on his own but he’s kinda dumb and when you put him with dumbass incarnate okuyasu they multiply each others’ stupidness. Together they are a menace.

JOSUKE AND OKUYASU FOR THE WIN BECAUSE THEY SPEND AN ENTIRE DAY TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHETHER OR NOT A RANDOM ITALIAN WAS EVIL BECAUSE HIS PASTA WAS TOO GOOD

Okuyasu and Josuke share a braincell and they lose that braincell at least 5 times a day

The majority of Diamond is Unbreakable is those two getting themselves and their friends into absurd situations. There's no way the sportsboys can compete with discovering aliens are (maybe???) real and immediately trying to use the alien(??) to cheat at dice. Then they burned down someone's house

#josuyasu are DUmbass Incorporated and i love them#its literally canon that okuyasu has one of The Most Powerful Abilities In The Entire JJBA Universe#but is too dumb and good natured to put it to world ending use

this gif

don't ask about the weird space

BRUISE PROPAGANDA

They both come up with the dumbest ideas on the team and make jokes all the time

They got into a love triangle/fight because they were just dumb and missed each other. Also they’re canonical besties who are so fucking stupid but also love each other so much

They’re both just so silly… anxiety dumbass and emotional support dumbass…

They ended up in jail once because they broke a dangerous criminal out with good intentions, had a fight over a girl but in the end said that they were more upset about losing each other

part of the bruise propaganda being "they fought over a girl but actually they just missed each other too much" is RIDICULOUSLY funny to me they also were paired off at the start of season 8, resulting in jay mimicking cole, cole getting INCREDIBLY annoyed because jay doesn't understand how vows of silence work, and then the two of them getting into an argument which leads to an entire monastery of monks breaking their vow of silence. they singlehandedly caused an entire monastery of monks to break their vows of silence because they're that stupidly annoying. jay also got really jealous that the princess they meet in season 13 was interested in cole. like bro literally said "the princess seems interested in cole. i mean, he's my best friend and all, but, cole??" vote bruise.

#round 2 #polls #dumbass duo showdown #fandom poll #tumblr tourney #poll tournament #fandom tournament #character tournament #tumblr tournament #bracket tournament #tumblr polls #tournament poll #jojo kimyou na bouken #diamond is unbreakable #diu #jjba #jjba part 4 #jojos bizarre adventure #josuke higashikata #okuyasu nijimura #josuyasu #lego ninjago #ninjago bruise #cole brookstone #jay walker

[mediacircuspod]

“The Magic Trick You Didn’t See” is an essay written by an author who is on Tumblr, user ariaste. I think it’s a very well put together argument for “The Book of Life Theory” that has merit. However, I think there might be too much editing going on. I will explain.

I want to start this by being completely honest. I’m not sold on any theories because in the past I was so incredibly wrong about countless theories on Game of Thrones that made complete sense, I swear. But also were me just making up reasons for how the story could go my way. I’m actually really into the concept of “wait and see” because it places me firmly in the seat of “audience” or “consumer” and those are, in my opinion, the best seats in the house. 

So I’m not really a subscriber to the coffee theory or the book of life theory or the body switch theory, NOT because I don’t think they’re true or smart or have merit, but because I would genuinely like to “wait and see”. Even if that wait is until 2027. I waited this long for season 2, I’m not afraid of a few years for a good story.

Anyway, go read the very long, but very intelligent google doc, because even if you’re not sure about the theory, it has some REALLY cool meta, and some interesting easter eggs that you might have missed upon viewing the season the first go around, the very long document is HERE.

Alright here’s some highlights. Basically the essay is about how The Metatron could be pulling strings on Season Two with the help of “The Book of Life” for a number of reasons. Corresponding evidence being the lack of God’s narration, Maggie as a character, Eccles Cakes, and a whole lot of meticulous details. I really, really love the format of the essay too, but that’s just me being a nerd about magic tricks and “The Prestige” as a concept and as a movie. 

Where I diverge on this theory is simply how liberally it is applied, as well as the use of “bad” to describe certain ways of writing. And this is where my hot take kind of lies; I don’t think Good Omens 2 was bad. On purpose or by accident. I’m not saying my opinion is right, I’m just stating that that is where my perspective comes from. Now. Let’s get into why I like this essay. 

It’s so cool. And detailed. And smart. I love reading things that connect dots and describe a persons critical thought process, and wow, this essay is incredible at doing all of that. The sheer amount of information I learned from taking the time to read it gave me a lot of insight about the things I missed on my watch of the season. I found I was a lot more distracted by the Austen-esque pacing than the author of the essay who noticed things like disappearing eccles cakes, how no one else’s power went out during Crowley’s lightning storm and a load of other things. But also, being “along for the ride” made me kind of protective of the story being told. Because Season 2 isn’t the beginning, middle, and end of a story, like season 1 was. It is the “quiet, gentle, and romantic” middle of a plot sandwhich.

In any case, the essay poses quite a few things. The only major issue I have is the idea that The Book of Life can alter will, and not just situation. I don’t think Crowley or Aziraphale are changed by the Book of Life. Their actions seem distinctly them throughout the entire season, which is exactly why the season needed to end on the note it did. Obviously from a story point, we need Aziraphale to go to heaven for what I imagine is the conflict of season 3; The Second Coming. But from an internal perspective, Aziraphale’s character demanded to make that decision. It wasn’t out of character, it was distinctly in character. And yes, he could have been influenced, or manipulated, or hiding something, but he’s been affected by all of those ideas for the entirety of his existence anyway. He’s had 6000 years of The Heavenly Host manipulating him, and he’s had exactly 4 years of being on his own side(openly) with Crowley. He’s going to still be susceptible to their tactics, especially if they say exactly what he’s been wanting to hear for his whole existence. “We were wrong, and you were right.” Metatron really pulled out every stop of the proper apology except for the little dance. We were wrong about you, We were wrong about how to run things, We were wrong about Crowley. You can come back and you can bring him and you can fix everything. Crowley refusing isn’t heaven’s fault, they still offered. It’s Crowley who rejected Aziraphale. (For good reason, but that’s not what this meta is about.) I made a post about Crowley and his relationship to forgiveness HERE, if you were interested.

So maybe things were changed by the book of life, the analysis on the opening credits is amazing, like great job. But I don’t know if they were. But that’s literally just me holding onto the plot of season 2 and shouting from the top of my lungs, “ITS ACTUALLY GOOD THOUGH BECAUSE I LIKE IT AND WHAT IT SETS UP” And who knows, we might be all wrong and what actually happened is that the whole thing was a very detailed dream that Aziraphale wrote down in one of his journals.

#good omens #good omens spoilers #good omens meta #good omens 2 spoilers #good omens 2 #go 2 spoilers #go2 spoilers #crowley #aziraphale #crowley and aziraphale #ineffable husbands #ineffable breakup

[abcwordsurge]

Hii!! I read your intro post and you mentioned liking Ninjago and Romeo & Juliet :D Who are your favorite characters in both and why?

Thank you ☺️

oh! this was a delightful surprise. I just updated my intro post today (well, yesterday as of posting this), and I didn't think anyone would notice haha. thank you for reading it ^_^

I absolutely love both Ninjago and Romeo & Juliet, and honestly it's nice to have an excuse to talk about them on my blog. however, since you asked specifically about favorite characters, this will inevitably be a long one. I can never get myself to shut up about characters.

my favorite Ninjago characters are Nya and Jay (and honorary mention Kai). my favorite Romeo & Juliet characters are probably Mercutio and Benvolio (but I could make a good reason for any of them to be the best haha). very long rant under cut

--

so! let's start with Nya. first, I have to point out that she was horribly mistreated in canon. it was sort of inevitable- since she was "the girl," I feel like the creators felt like a lot of her arc had to be... being the girl? I'm just still a bit disappointed at her missed potential of just, y'know, being a ninja.

that being said, she's a flipping icon and I love her with all of my heart, and every time she's on the screen it makes me smile. granted, I totally project onto her (and her brother, our favorite Kai~), but even if you ignore my personal headcanons of her being aromantic and loveless, she's such a smart, stubborn, and creative character, and I love that for her.

also Jay. I love Jay. I feel like, as a fanfic writer, I treat him the exact opposite of how I treat Nya. every time I write about Nya, I write about her experiences with being aromantic, or her desperation to prove herself, things like that. when I write about Jay, it's like Jay's in love with Cole, or Jay's in love with Nya (actually unrequited love my beloved), or Jay's in love with Kai. (side note- I actually headcanon Kai as aromantic, too, but sometimes I put that headcanon on pause so I can ship him. because oh my god he has such cute ships.) anyway all this to say that Jay's an adorable goofy little guy and I like putting him in situations. (he also has massive angst potential but angst isn't really my forte.)

ok. Romeo & Juliet. before I get into specifics, I must say that the characterization in this play is criminally underrated. if it were released today, it would have leagues of fans obsessing over both Romeo and Juliet, and arguing over whether Romeo is a romantic or just an idiot, and getting into shipping wars (especially Benvolio/Mercutio vs Tybalt/Mercutio- though Bencutio is obviously superior). the fact that it only has 2000 fics on AO3 is a tragedy to rival, well, Romeo & Juliet.

(also- for my WttT followers and moots, if any of you have gotten this far, I have to say that we have very nearly surpassed Romeo & Juliet in number of fics on AO3. keep it up)

now if I was forced to pick favorites in Romeo & Juliet, I would have to say the aforementioned Benvolio and Mercutio- both as a duo and as individuals, they are so flipping wonderful. I saw a local production of Romeo & Juliet over the summer, and ever since then, I have been deathly defensive of them. I will fight over the fact that they're both so well written and well characterized. (I also super love them as a ship- in the production I saw, when Romeo and Juliet met for the first time, there were plenty of duos in the background, slow dancing, and Ben and Merc were dancing together, and I just... I have no words. they're perfect.)

anyway. Benvolio first. Ben is such a big cousin sort of character, iykwim. there's something so tragic about the fact that he tried from the very beginning to get everyone to stop fighting, but no matter what he did or said, he couldn't save them- not his cousin, not his best friend. (I've never seen Hamlet, but I'm told that Benvolio is the Horatio of R&J. Shakespeare knew which archetypes work, I guess.) he's so awesome. I love him

and Mercutio! Merc is just a kid you guys. he's a teenage boy. he's so funny and free spirited and every time I watch R&J, all I can think about is "he's here for a good time, not a long time." because it's so true! his recklessness and immaturity leads to his death! (another theme, perhaps- because while he did sort of bring it upon himself, I would never say it's his fault- but that's a rant for another day.) Merc is just so immediately lovable and his death hurts me the most. his death is the turning point between a mostly light hearted play to the tragedy that we associate with it, and that makes it hurt even more. (and Ben holds him when he dies and Ben is left all alone at the end, and oh my god Shakespeare is famous for a reason.)

so, yeah. this is very long and mostly unedited, sorry. you pushed the right buttons to keep me talking for hours. maybe I'll start posting more about my other fandoms, because this was a lot of fun. thank you so much for asking :D

#ninjago #nya jiang #nya smith #kai jiang #kai smith #jay walker #romeo and juliet #benvolio #mercutio #mercutio and benvolio #ask box

[rendomski]

Echo as a tactician/strategist

I really miss Echo's skills as a brilliant tactician/strategist in the show - and I have a theory of why we didn't get to see them!

Echo is supposed to be brilliant. Together with Rex, they devised tactics that couldn't be efficiently counteracted by the Separatists without slicing into Echo's mind directly. However, after the Anaxes, in the TBB series, we don't see any of this skill. Of course, Echo is smart and sassy but whenever he takes the lead it doesn't end well. When he almost rebels against Hunter and insists on infiltrating the base and saving Gregor, Hunter is captured. When they go after Hunter, they fall into a trap and all ends relatively well only because Crosshair has his own plans. The attempted war chest retrieval and that accursed mission on Eriadu weren't exactly led by Echo, but he took part in outvoting Hunter’s cautious attitude towards them. It wouldn’t be the first case of inconsistency in the SW show, but it is still a bit disappointing.

It is not that Echo’s expertise in tactics would overlap with the skills of the other characters. The tactics of the Batch are not exactly sophisticated or precisely planned - more like go through the front door, smash-and-grab or kill-them-all, that’s their style. Their numbered plans are rather a list of useful tricks than tactics. And I’ve got the impression that Hunter is very good at improvisation, a quick thinker, and he knows deeply the skills of his team and how to rely on them, but complex and calculating tactics are not his strong side. Echo’s tactical mind would complement his leadership perfectly.

(It almost seems that Crosshair was the best tactician in the Batch, capable of predicting and counteracting their actions when he was forced/chose to act against his brothers, outsmarting even Tech.)

So, here's the promised theory, for nothing fuels fandom theories better than the inconsistencies in the show 😉. I have even two partly overlapping theories. One, Echo consciously didn’t want to have anything to do with the strategy/tactics development anymore after his skills were brutally used against his brothers. Despite it being logical for Echo to continue his service as a staff officer, I can see him saying “Sorry, Rex, but I have devised enough tactics for the rest of my life.” Another option, less cheeky, is the trauma, psychological or even neurological (less likely because the outmanoeuvring Trench and the destruction of the droid army on Anaxes was brilliant). He just can't work on the complex tactics anymore because of what has happened.

Anyway, I'm glad Echo had the option to elope with our beloved gang of audacious commandos; to go through the front door, smash, grab and don't think more than necessary about what he had lost. You live only twice, after all ✌️

#the bad batch #tbb echo #clone force 99 #the clone wars #tbb theories #star wars

[kimbapisnotsushi]

the day had started off normal enough.

kenma had wrapped up a company-wide conference, tweeted a livestream announcement for eight p.m. that night, finished his homework at the office, and signed off on another product to be released all within a span of three hours hours. with the rest of his schedule free, he could go home, kick back, and relax until it was time to play misfiction. maybe he could make some more progress on animal crossing? or finally crack open pokemon legends: arceus?

that second one sounded like a better idea, kenma decided. he wasn't ashamed to admit that he had a crush on adamant AND iridia.

once he was back in the house, he chucked off his suit jacket and loosened his tie. being CEO of your own company, thought kenma, was entirely useless if you couldn't even wear a hoodie and sweatpants to all the important meetings.

he threw his bedroom door open and froze.

kuroo was lying on the bed, shirtless, with a head propped up on one hand. it was probably supposed to be seductive, but kenma had no idea why.

after all, everyone knew how much he was mean to kuroo. it was his number one character trait!

"hi, kitten," kuroo purred. "miss me?"

"kuro," kenma said, exasperated. "what are you doing?"

kuroo's smile faded. "did you not like it? i thought maybe if i gave you a cute nickname, you'd want to get back together."

kenma stared at him. "what?"

"kitten, didn't you hear?" kuroo's eyes filled with tears. "we can't be in a relationship anymore. childhood-friends-to-lovers is incest now!"

kenma scoffed. "as if i'd ever want to be lovers with you. i have hinata instead. he's so much more interesting, but once i get tired of him then i'll just ditch him and get a new boytoy to mess around with."

the bedroom door suddenly burst open. it was . . . oikawa tooru!

"how dare you!" he screeched. "shouyou deserves so much more! he and i spent a very passionate night together in rio, you know! it's all people ever talk about when they they think of us in brazil! there's absolutely no other meaning to it than just us hooking up!"

"whatever," kenma said, rolling his eyes. "i don't care as long as he's making me money."

"now, now," sugawara crooned (where did he even come from? hell if i know). "let's not fight. that is my innocent angel sweet summer child you're talking about, after all, i'm basically his mom - "

("i'm twenty-two!" shouted hinata from where i stuffed him in the margins. "and you know my mother is very much alive, sugawara-san! also, i FUCK! I FUCK HARD!!")

" - so naturally i know what's best for him!" sugawara continued. "and what he would want is for everyone to hold hands and get along. agreed?"

daichi grinned and nuzzled sugawara's cheek. "you're so smart! i can't wait to start a happy, cisgender-conforming, nuclear family with you."

a voice called from the hallway: "HEY HEY HEY!"

the bedroom door flew open again! how in the world has it not been broken yet???

bokuto cartwheeled into the room and puffed out his chest. when he saw that nobody was paying attention to him because they were too busy hissing at each other, he pouted.

"guys, come on!" he complained. "no fighting! let's have some fun instead!"

"it's no use, bokuto-san," akaashi said. "stereotypically-feminine traits such as being petty, catty, and more have been greatly exaggerated in us setters because we have been deemed more feminine due to what i assume is a vast and complex myriad of factors stemming from microaggressions intersecting with fans' understandings of the world amongst other things, but i expect you are too dumb to understand any of that."

bokuto stared blankly at akaashi. "huh?"

akaashi heaved a deep sigh, plagued by the burden of being the only one with brains in the relationship. "never mind. i still love you, and that's all you need to know."

"okay!" bokuto said cheerfully.

suddenly the bedroom door flew open for the third time that day! who even keeps closing it?

"i'm looking for hinata," said kageyama, poking his head past the doorframe. "has anyone seen him?"

immediately, everyone froze. their eyes shifted from kageyama to oikawa, who had swelled up with incandescent rage because he still retained everything from when he was fourteen and hadn't gone through any growth whatsoever since then.

atsumu whistled. "aw, geez. we might argue a lot, but at least we're not anythin' like that, right, omi-omi?"

"shut up and don't call me that," sakusa muttered darkly. "i hate you. i hate everyone. i hate being here. when was the last time anyone vacuumed in here?"

"if you hate it so much," atsumu said, smirking, "we could sneak away and make out somewhere. could even . . . you know . . . "

"why."

atsumu shrugged. "i am an inexplicably horny sex-on-legs bastard, apparently. especially with you. i mean, have you seen our ao3 tag?"

sakusa frowned. "we've barely had any canon time together."

"eh, people have worked with less." atsumu grinned. "'sides, i dig the whole enemies-to-lovers thing. just means you couldn't resist my charms, huh?"

sakusa would have responded with an audible gag, but . . . you guessed it! the bedroom door flew open AGAIN! this is a bedroom door that defies the laws of physics itself!

yachi stepped in and glanced around.

"weird," she said. "why is this bedroom so big? what are all of you doing?"

yachi hitoka, everyone. our only saving grace. she carries the sole brain cell and wrangles the childish dumb men, because they can't ever think for themselves. right? right?????

tsukishima scowled as he followed after her, trailed by yamaguchi. "ugh. do we have to be here?"

"tsukishima!" yachi scolded, swatting his arm. "be nice! you know these are all our friends!"

sigh.

yamaguchi didn't even greet anyone. he just stayed behind tsukki the whole time, looking like a mouse cornered in a city of cats.

suddenly, a BAM! made everyone jump! you have got to be kidding me! the bedroom door agai - oh, never mind! someone just kicked open the closet door!

"SHITTYKAWA!" iwaizumi roared. "get over here!"

oikawa''s eyes widened. "iwa-chan! what are you doing here?"

"looking for you, dumbass," iwaizumi snapped. "you haven't been taking care of yourself! but i'd never say it, because i'm an asshole. i'm a rock wall. i'm a hardened tough guy. i'm mean. i don't ever say or do anything nice. i throw volleyballs at your head for fun. i don't care about you at all. got it?"

("so you're saying he literally just came out of the closet for oikawa - " hinata began, before i shoved him back down into the margins.)

"no wonder i'm such an asshole," kindaichi marveled. "i guess i learned it all from iwaizumi-san! wow, he's a great role model."

being a stressed fourteen-year-old who didn't know how to handle another stressed fourteen-year-old that was causing said stress and eventually snapping from it and making a mistake, as people are prone to do, didn't really make you an asshole for the rest of your life, but hey. kindaichi didn't have to know any of that.

"it's getting kind of crowded in here, don't you think?" yachi asked, ever the voice of reason. "maybe we should get out and get some fresh air?"

ushijima nodded solemnly. wait - had he always been there?

"fresh air is good for the soul," he said. "not that i would know, because i'm an unfeeling robot who is strong and dominant and the epitome of masculinity. being stoic and silent are the only things i know. you should all bow down before my superior strength."

everyone stared at him.

suddenly, the bedroom door burst open AGAIN! this shouldn't be possible! it was already open in the first place! I KEPT IT OPEN! HOW DO THEY KEEP DOING THIS?

"guys!" hinata ran in, panting. "i finally did it! i escaped the margins!"

"the what?" sugawara asked.

hinata waved him off. "never mind that. it's about time to wrap up. we've put on a good show, but we should end it, don't you think?"

"hinata's right," kenma admitted. "i didn't think i could do this much longer, anyways."

oikawa made a face. "me neither. sorry, tobio. i hope you didn't take anything to heart."

"i'm okay," kageyama said. "i know better, now. we both know better."

"that we do," oikawa agreed warmly. "and weren't you looking for hinata? that's why you were here, right? you were the only one of us not part of an act."

kageyama blinked, as if he had forgotten all about that. not that anyone could blame him - i'm not even sure what the hell just happened.

"right," he said, then grabbed hinata's arm and tugged him close. "hey. i love you."

"what!" hinata squawked. "kageyama, what - "

kageyama shrugged, but red began to bloom across his cheeks. "i'd never joke about that. i just wanted you to know."

hinata beamed at him, brighter than the sun. "aw, kageyama! i love you too! but can we please wrap this up? there's no food in the margins, and i'm starving!"

"okay, everyone!" bokuto called out. "on the count of three! ready? one, two, three - "

"HAPPY APRIL FOOL'S DAY!" everyone shouted.

the end :)

#EDIT: it's okay to reblog! #i have since decided i don’t care go be free run wild #I SPENT LIKE TWO HOURS ON THIS #UHSOFLPWAFHRUILFH;USHSBGHKDSGBES #AND THEN SOME #okay i'm NOT tagging because i don't want this to fall in the wrong hands #this is for followers and mutuals ONLY #anyways!! hope you guys had a good laugh reading this! #keep in mind that i adore hq dearly and sometimes i AM prone to falling into certain cliches/tropes when it comes to writing certain charas #i just thought this would be a really funny april fool's day joke LMAAAO #haikyuu #haikyuu!! #sou says stuff #april fools prank

[dat-bruv-person]

hihi how are u doing today!? :> can i get single dad hcs (aged up characters ofc) with izuku midoriya, katsuki bakigou, and kirishina with a teen daughter reader. platonic ofc

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･ singlehandedly single

a/n: hello anon, nice to see you - I am fine. I changed the reader to gender neutral if you don't mind, and the skin colour of your other parent is not stated for those who are poc, because of diversity :)

gn!reader, poc!reader friendly always mwah <3

彡

Single Dad!Deku cried when his spouse left him, to this day he still doesn't know the reason. All he knows is that when they gave birth, they handed over his legacy of a child and walked out after recovery. You, [name] Midoriya, were his miracle. You were his pride and joy, the apple of his eye, his everything: he couldn't afford to let you go. So he worked. He worked tirelessly to be a role model for you, and his heart beat to see you smile. Unfortunately for him, his happiness was short lived because, a few years later after his ex-spouse found out how smart and talented and gorgeous you were, they came back to collect you. You didn't know what was happening, you just wanted to stay with your dad, but after hours of screaming they finally left you to him - oh but they didn't hesitate to give you their number in case you changed your mind. Single Dad!Deku grinned when you turned 16 and bought you the newest car available- in four different colours. He's the number one hero for fuck's sake! Still, if that pathetic excuse of an ex tries to come back because of high you are now, they'll have another thing coming.

Single Dad!Bakugou calls you squirt, angel and kiddo, he ruffles your hair when you get an achievement, and, oh my lord, he never stops bragging about you. His side chick left him because she claimed that he never paid attention to her, that she wasn't his priority- he wasn't even married to the nigga 😮‍💨. She walked out on him angrily, telling him that she was going to raise you better than he could ever imagine, and that he'd come back for you. The pain was too much for her after labour and told him that he caused her this pain. She gave you up. Shitty woman, he was going to give you the best fucking childhood you'd ever have, and one day you'd be as great as him. Single Dad!Bakugou ditched the car and took you on walks every day to get some fresh air. He'd make the best breakfasts and cook you the best lunches: fluffy and thick pancakes stacked on top of each other that jiggled like ass cheeks when you poured the syrup on top, and a top-notch Caesar slada with grilled chicken and hot white rice accompanied with chilled water. No sweet shit until dessert: a slice of cheesecake with powdered sugar on top. ONE SLICE! Okay that slice is a bit small, go on take another if you must. You grew up healthy and loved. Single Dad!Bakugou never missed any of your performances or activities, and cheered for you the loudest. You are even better than him now! Excuse him from leaving your 16th birthday celebration, but he has to double check the locks, should the mother find out that her child is living the dream.

Single Dad!Kirishima was so happy when he won the court trial to be able to keep you. He tries his best to make you happy, and you can bet he's done a great job of that. You were surrounded by many other parental figures from childhood: Auntie Mina, Uncle Denki and Uncle Sero. From piggyback rides to going on holiday every summer along with their kids, your life was fun filled. You visited your other parent every weekend, where they'd try to outdo Eijirou by playing games with you, introducing you to their friends, arranging meet ups with celebrities and taking you to all-you-can-eat buffets. Whenever you got home, full of bliss, it never failed to make you slightly upset when they exchanged glares. Single Dad!Kirishima never told you why him and your parent split up, often changing the subject instead to something like what you wanted for your birthday in ten years time. You were as happy as could be, and proved yourself in many different ways: both parents were proud of you. Your dad went the little extra mile on you sweet 16, opting to hire planes to fly and write messages for you in the sky. Of course, this struck competition between the two of your guardians as the other had daytime fireworks spell out your name in bright gold letters which, to Eijirou's dismay, looked absolutely beautiful. Back and forth it went, money draining from each others pockets until it was a fucking statue of you built in the front garden with a fountain. Goodness knows how much debt those two are in.

#ainsley writes #ainsley's gift pile #ainsley answers #mha x reader #bnha x you #mha x you #bnha x reader #bnha x poc!reader #bnha x black!reader #mha x black reader #mha x poc!reader #bnha x gender neutral reader #mha x gender neutral reader #bakugou x gn!reader #bakugou x black reader #bakugou x poc reader #bakugou x platonic reader #deku x black!reader #deku x poc! reader #deku x platonic reader #kirishima x gender neutral reader #kirishima x black reader #kirishima x poc!reader #kirishima x platonic reader #deku x gender neutral reader

[cosmicellis]

YOU...Astral Senpai ambassador. Do da character ask right now this instant

Yes, homie! What I love about them: At first Astral was just a nice eye-candy for me. I love his eyes the most (I think animators did too). He expressed so much by just staring. I was at one point fascinated by Astral being so different even compared to other people in Astral world. I do dig the fact, that even though you spent a lot of time with him in a show, but he's still left mysterious. Like, he's an embasador, but his powers are quite something else. He's cold and calculative and very smrt. I do like smart people, they fascinate me with big smart words, I guess. His character growth is pretty nice and I do like that he knows how to pull certain strings. Be that in the begginig with opposite game or at the end. A big brain move, in my opinion, knowing that Yuma seemed tired of dueling and in no way would agreed to another one. So yeah, I WILL ERASE BARIAN WORLD, so lets duel. He left him with no room for a "no". Is it mean? Hell yeah. But that's a part of him being a calculative smart ass. What I hate about them: Honestly, the inconsistency of "the number bestowed a knowledge to him about human world" stuff. It felt a bit random. I know its canonical, but it's just personal pet-peeve Favorite Moment/Quote: *Slaps entire Zexal anime* From the sub: -What does Astral says about it? -I think Yuma is an idiot What I would like to see more focus on: On Astral's past, honestly. I know he was mostly emotionless weapon, but I would love to know more what he was doing. He was not only aware about helf of numbers being on Earth, but also piece of him missing. Would it affect him? What was that part of him originally? A number? Like there is so much I would like to know And uncover mystery about his eyes. Is his eye white because yuma is missing? Like a canonical YES or NUH What I would like to see less focus on: Eh, hard to answer. I do like him interracting with other people (Shark and Kite) even confronting Barians is interesting. He barely spoken to Yuma's frineds and I would kept it that way. That bunch is worst thing in whole ass anime and don't want to even look at Ghost boi Favorite pairing with: Mhhhhhh. Hurd to answer too, mostly because I ship him with several people for different reason. I do like me old classic Keyshipping, cause it's a dumbass with a smartass. yuma seems like the fire in the relationship - brining the warmth, the outgoing energy. The elemnt of physical love and affection. While Astral is cool, chill the movie night kind of mood. He would be the one to calm down the tired partner and bring them a blanket And taintedshipping, because of evil and... not evil pairing. the opposites? Because Astral is ambiguous being and more of a "following rules' kind of ghost. I can see Mist starting shit and Astral would had to deal with that. Yet they both enjoy this still. Mist would appreciate his back cowered and Astral would just love the "lively" attitude and being on edge, A thrill that he misses. I do like my ship too c: Favorite friendship: Also with Yuma. Their interraction about "takoyaki" will forever stay as BEST represantation of how my two last braincells interract XD And they do give out an impression of having fun together. They do genuinely care. NOTP: The random ones. Because this fandom slaps people together even if makes no sense. I guess one of them is Tori and Astral. Mostly because it just makes no sense to me. They spoken ONCE. Favorite headcanon: Astral is a ethereal robot\weapon. Obviously he's not a human and he's not of a human's soul origin. He was made for a specific thing. So he's learning AI kinda deal, only in a form of a higher state of... soul thing. That's probably why chaos is deadly to him - because he never was a human to house one.

[istumpysk]

Here I am, haunting your halls again. Life got in the way but I noticed some interesting things in my reread and since I did threatened to come yell at you, TADA!!!

Ok, so in Portuguese they divided Game of Thrones in two volumes so I can't give you the pages numbers in case anyone wants to go check, but I'll do my best to provide context for the little bits I bring.

- So many hands: Ghost brings Jon the hand of one of the man that got killed by the Others. Jon burns his hand. Jaime cuts Torrhen's hand in battle. And then Eddard, the Hand of the king gets his head chopped off. Listen either George got a fixation with hands or the Jon part could be a parallel just like we had the Direwolf killed by a Stag.

- Arya's future as an explorer: In Sansa's chapter after Eddard tells them he is sending them back to Winterfell, Sansa is upset and Arya tries to cheer her up by offering to fix the dress but also by sharing her excitement of traveling by boat, examining that it would be an adventure.

-Bran the Broken: Bran's Chapter in which all the northern lords are at Winterfell and he goes to join them for dinner. Torrhen comments about Bran's disability which leads Bran to think "Broken,...Bran, the broken?"

-Sansa and staying true to herself: ofc I had to add something about Sansa!! So, Sansa is this character that is a lady at 3, but also a dreamer, in love with a world of heroes and legends. And she crashes with the horrible truth that the world isn't a song. And yet, despite everything she stays true to herself. When she is forced to send the letter to Robb, her brother asks what is wrong with her, to which Bran replies that she lost her wolf. That would make it seem like she is now less Stark or that she lost part of herself. Which in a way is true but Sansa is still herself, when she gets fetched to the Queen to write the letter she is polite to the ones that went to get her. She is polite at court even when she is scared, she is polite to Jeyne even if she is thinking less than nice things. She is a lady, she is courteous by nature, and she stays like that just like Arya stays wild.

Now the Arya and Bran parts could be coincidence, could be that the producers took the "Bran, the broken" bit and used it. But I thought it was interesting.

I will also say that Season 1 had something that I enjoyed and miss in the books, Cersei and Robert's conversation. I really love their scene together from the show. But reading Jon's chapters again? Seeing my smart, observant boy again? Loveee it!! And little Sansa ❤️

That is all for now, got to go back to join Robb's revolution!!! Sorry for the huge text!!

Never apologize, I'm glad your reread is going well.

You forgot Catelyn cutting her hand! He's such a weirdo, his fixation on hands won't stop for the rest of the series (pray for Arya).

It's so funny, the Arya ship stuff starts fast and furious right from the beginning. I don't know how some people manage to read her chapters and not see it.

I forgot the Bran the Broken aspect starts appearing so quickly.

I would argue that Sansa is the Stark who is most sure in her identity. So I guess you don't need a pet wolf to feel secure in who you are. Shocking!

Definitely don't think anything you mentioned is a coincidence.

Enjoy the revolution! 😊

#stumpy ask #winter-fir

[glitterandmoondustofficial]

Side To Side

Chapter 242: Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy

Notes:

Characters: Law, Jun, Bepo, Penguin Rating: Teen Warnings: Language, Alcohol Notes: I know, I know, it's been a while. A lot of life stuff happened (and is still happening) but I thought about this a lot. I have more stuff planned. I have a very long AU in the works that will be published separately after Dressrosa, I'm working on a part two of my Lammy lives AU, and of course I'm working on this fic with all of my heart. There will be a few Law chapters for a while, I figured you guys might want to read the One Piece character who's the star of this fic haha. ENJOY!

~~~~~

Law could not sleep. At all.

Everyday he worked himself to exhaustion and then would stare up at the ceiling every night, his body fighting any melatonin or sedative. This, of course, made him grumpier every morning. He would go through the motions as each day passed.

He couldn’t believe how pathetic he had become in Ruby’s absence. Every damn night he would wait by the den den mushi, hoping he could just hear her breathing. She never did. Naturally. Law doubted she had made it to Dressrosa in two weeks. She had a few more days at least, and she would surely call once she was safe. She was far too clingy to not call the first chance she got.

That didn’t stop the anxiety in his heart and stomach, however. She was capable and strong and smart, but she was just as easily drawn to danger. He wondered every night what kind of mess she had gotten into already. Something in the back of his mind told him she had been up to some shit and she’d already have a story to tell about whatever adventure she had gotten herself into. She probably already made new friends and had someone fall in love with her. 

And naturally he was dealing with the crew, as well. While Ikkaku was undoubtedly the most upset about Ruby’s departure, the rest of his crew was definitely missing their gardener’s presence. Unlike Ikkaku, they were not causing issues or distress. Everyone else had been very mature and reasonable. Everyone had been dealing with the loss of their beloved friend in their own way.

It’s always hard to lose someone you love, even temporarily. It wasn’t like when there had been that one guy who had been on the crew. He was an ass. He was cruel, even by Law’s standards. He had been harassing Ikkaku and Bepo, and if it wasn’t for Ikkaku decking him one day Law would have never known. Ikkaku thought she could handle it on her own and Bepo was far too timid to say anything. Law hoped he had proven to both of them that the comfort and safety of every crew member was far more important than numbers. Ruby would’ve hated that guy. She probably would have killed him.

No, this was depressing. This was missing her laugh and the way her heels clicked down the hall. Her thick accent and the way her hair got on everything. The crew was already talking about having a big reunion party when everyone was back together. Law still couldn’t bring himself to tell anyone he wasn’t sure if he would come home. There was still doubt creeping in his heart. He knew, he knew, that Ruby would try to keep them both alive, but he really couldn’t make any promises. There’s always a very large chance of him dying, of them both dying, and he couldn’t be irrational and try to say there wasn’t.

The best decision he had made was making sure his crew got to Zou. They should be safe in Bepo’s original home. They would be able to move on and find a new life where he didn’t drag them down with suicide missions. 

He heard his alarm go off and groaned. It was already morning again. Another night of no sleep. Another night of overthinking. He sighed and turned to sit up. He stared at the metal floor of the Polar Tang, his toes twitching against the cold. He ran his fingers through his hair and then rubbed his temples. He had a migraine coming on and it was definitely because he wasn’t sleeping. 

He let out a huff and stood up. He walked over to the window and stared out of it. He squinted his eyes in the early morning darkness before relaxing. Hakugan apparently had sailed them to an island. He tried to recall the islands that were nearby but came up with nothing. He wasn’t the navigator but he wasn’t sure that even Bepo knew the name of the island. There were so many on the Grand Line after all.

He dressed himself. He washed his face and brushed his teeth. He took a deep breath before leaving his empty bedroom, no naked Ruby to kiss awake. He sadly walked towards the kitchen and more specifically, the coffee pot. Caffeine was what kept him going most days, although coffee was hardly making a dent and he was running out of caffeine pills. Or someone was hiding them. He wouldn’t put it past Shachi to do something like that. 

Clione was already prepping breakfast, probably making something filled with carbs and protein since everyone would be busy running around and exploring the island. Law wasn’t interested in eating but he knew if he didn’t it would probably cause an intervention and he would be threatened by the crew saying that they would tell Ruby. So he would eat breakfast and drink his morning coffee. He would search for caffeine pills and if he couldn’t find any he would buy some from the island. That seemed like the perfect plan for the day.

As he sat at a table and nursed his coffee his crew started filing in. First it was Hakugan, wanting the second mug of coffee. Next was Jean Bart and then it was Bepo. Then they started to come in groups. Erina came in with Ikkaku, which was a relief. Law couldn’t force Ikkaku to go to her, but he really wished she would go. Ikkaku had been an absolute wreck without Ruby, and Law, being the hypocrite that he was, took care of Ikkaku instead of himself. He gave her advice that he wasn’t going to follow himself.

What he also noticed was that Jun came in by herself after everyone else. And then she sat aside by herself, not engaging in any conversation. Law pinched between his eyes. He was going to have to deal with that. 

After everyone had filled their plates and walked back to their seats, Law walked over to Jun with his plate. He sat in front of her with a flat expression. He popped a grape into his mouth and savored the taste of his girlfriend’s perfect vegetation. He sighed and ate another grape, watching irritation on Jun’s face grow.

“What do you want?” She asked quietly, knowing if she was too loud with her irritation she’d be faced with the wrath of Shachi. 

“Want?” He questioned. “I just want to sit with one of my crew members.”

“I don’t want to sit with anyone.”

“Which is why I’m sitting with you.” The irritated look on Jun’s face grew but she said nothing. “What is happening?”

“It’s none of your business.”

Law raised his brow. “Tell me,” he started. “Out of the two of us, who is the captain and who is the subordinate?”

Jun’s face grew red. She picked up her fork and pushed her eggs around. Law ate another piece of fruit, waiting for his wounded crew member to speak up. She huffed with a glare towards him.

“Why do you care?”

Law stared at her perplexed. “Because you’re a Heart Pirate.”

Jun rolled her eyes before shoving scrambled eggs into her mouth. “There’s nothing you can do,” she said while chewing. 

“Try me.” He had finished his fruit and was starting on the potatoes. 

Jun scoffed like she was a teenager and he was her father. “You really wanna know?” Her voice started to raise but she cleared her throat and quieted down. “Ikkaku…Ikkaku she…” tears filled Jun’s eyes and her bottom lip shook. Law started to understand what had happened.

“Have you two actually talked or has it just been you two being pissy and bitchy?”

Jun glared at him through her tears. “It’s not my fault she only loves Ruby.”

“So no.” He sighed and continued to eat his potatoes, silence growing between them. He had told the two of them to not make it an issue and now it was becoming one. He finished his potatoes and then looked up at Jun and her pathetically depressed expression. “You two need to sit down and have an adult and mature conversation. Don’t isolate yourself from the crew, we’ll give you space but you’re nakama , we’re here for you.”

Jun crossed her arms. “I don’t want to."

“Don’t be petulant. You two made each other happy. My girlfriend leaving shouldn’t stop that.”

Jun narrowed her eyes but said nothing. They continued their meal in silence, apparently Jun had no retort to that. Law finished off his perfectly runny eggs and wiped his mouth with a napkin. He stood up, taking his plate and mug with him. 

“Trafalgar,” Jun called him quietly. He turned to look at her with a raised brow. “What if it doesn’t work out?”

Law sighed with a frown. He didn’t really know the answer to that question. He knew how he would react if he and Ruby didn’t work out. He knew how Ruby would react if they didn’t work out. But that was him and Ruby, they were different people from Jun and Ikkaku. “We’ll see what happens if that happens. No point in immediately thinking about the worst possibility. Just try talking first.”

Great answer! He was quite proud of his masterful avoidance there. 

He walked away and placed his dishes in the sink. He turned and jumped when he saw Bepo at his side. He forgot how quiet polar bears could be.

“Bepo,” he greeted and then cleared his throat.

“Captain,” Bepo said. “You didn’t sleep again.”

Law frowned. “I’m fine,” he said. He rubbed his temples, that almost migraine coming back. “I just have a migraine. I’ll need to go to a pharmacy and pick up more pills to deal with it.” He walked behind Bepo and started to walk away, passing by concerned looking Heart Pirates.

“You’re running out because you have a migraine all of the time from not sleeping,” Bepo said as he caught up with him. He nervously wrung his paws together. Law chose not to answer that. “Let me come with you today.”

Law closed his eyes and sighed. “Okay,” he said, unable to deny Bepo anything. Law opened his eyes and saw Bepo’s ridiculously concerned stare. Law had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. “I’ll be fine.”

Bepo didn’t look like he believed him but the hope in his eyes made Law want to try. God. The two cutest members of Law’s crew had him by the heart strings. Bepo followed Law out of the cafeteria and towards the deck. Law was already ready to leave the Tang, not needing much other than Kikoku and his wallet. 

He figured that they wouldn’t stay long on this island. Everyone just needed to stretch their legs on land and maybe have a nice night in a tavern. It had been so long since they had fun in a tavern that Law barely remembered the last time they did. It seemed like they used to do it so often, but it was such a rare thing these days. 

Law guessed that he hadn’t really thought about it in months…maybe longer. Weren’t they pirates? Weren’t they supposed to get drunk on land and ruin the town? What had happened?

Law sighed. He knew that answer. Hard to go out and have fun when you’re constantly plotting your next step. Hard to enjoy yourself when your girlfriend is constantly getting hurt in some way and you want to stay home to take care of her. Hard to get drunk when you need to be sober enough to watch out for any impending threats. A lot had changed since the Heart Pirates entered the New World. Some things were for the better, some things, however, seemed to just dull the crew’s enthusiasm. 

Not that they’d ever say anything like that to Law. Not even Shachi, who had always been the hard-ass voice of reason, would argue with him over this. Law supposed he should be grateful for his crew’s sympathy, but Law never wanted to stop them from having fun. So Ikkaku had trouble talking to him about her problems, Jun had been distressed and isolating herself, and his crew had been stopping themselves from having fun because he was pulling away from everyone. Great. What else had he missed while he was in the middle of selfishness and self pity?

“Hey, Bepo,” Law called. “Let’s get everyone together tonight and go to a tavern.” It wouldn’t fix everything, but it should help his crew relax. Besides, spending as much time as he could with them is what he should be focusing on. Once Ruby was on Dressrosa and fed him the right amount of information, he would be on the way to Punk Hazard. After that…well…

“Aye aye!” Bepo saluted dramatically like Law had given him some serious order.

Law walked onto the deck and into the sun. He squinted his eyes in the bright sunlight and sighed, it was way too hot for him. If Ruby was here she would undoubtedly be sunning. He stared at her sunchair before moving to leave the Tang. Bepo caught up with him again, stating that he told Hakugan and Hakugan was going to tell Shachi and then word would spread. 

Hopefully it would cheer up the crew, especially the more depressed members. Ikkaku was the worst, of course, she was the one who threw a tantrum. It wasn’t just Ikkaku, however. Jean Bart and Penguin were both feeling down since Ruby’s departure, but they were being silent about it.

And definitely not taking it out on anyone. No, that job was reserved for Ikkaku and Jun.

Law and Bepo started to walk towards the direction of the nearby town. Of course they weren’t actually at the port. They were pirates after all and the last thing that Law needed to bring attention to the crew or, worse, a fight. So they were docked at a seemingly secluded beach. Nobody cared. They were just happy to run around on an island for a day.

The Heart Pirate captain and navigator made it to what seemed like a large town. It seemed like a relatively simple town but with busy people. Fairly standard for many islands. There were plenty of shops where the crew could shop, which would keep them entertained for the day and Law had already spotted a tavern where everyone could meet up later that night. What was next was finding a pharmacy.

He asked for directions as calmly as he could while the townsperson gaped at the walking, talking polar bear at Law’s side. He rolled his eyes and didn’t bother to thank the person before walking towards the direction that was pointed out to him. He needed to get those migraine relief pills if he was going to survive the rest of the day, let alone a night of loud music, drinking, and fun. 

After arriving at the brightly lit pharmacy he sighed and rubbed his temples. How annoying. It was warm, bright, and now there were even more bright lights in this store to make his temples want to explode. He walked in with Bepo in tow. He looked around noticing the uninterested teenager behind the counter, snacking on potato chips. He walked towards the back, ignoring Bepo staring at the chocolate bars. He easily found what he needed, scooping up armfuls of each bottle. 

He knew he looked like a crazy person as he dropped the medicine on the counter in front of the stunned pharmacy tech. He stuttered in what Law thought was protest but stopped when Bepo slid a chocolate bar onto the counter next to the mountain of pill bottles. 

The pharmacy tech snapped out of it and cleared his throat. “Is that all for you?” He asked as calmly as he could but Law knew that he was terrified of him and his stupid amount of pill bottles. 

Law looked at Bepo. “Is there anything else you need?” Bepo shook his head. Law turned back to the pharmacy tech. “This is it.”

The pharmacy tech took a deep breath. He started to count the bottles with a shaky hand and then added the chocolate bar last. “2002 berries.” Law laid down the money on the counter with no expression. “D-Do you want a bag?”

Law held back a smirk. “Yes.”

Law left with his bags of pills followed by Bepo and his chocolate bar. They walked around the town, grabbing lunch, going to a bookstore, and then going to a coffee and tea shop. Law bought a pack of coffee beans but didn’t buy any tea. Ruby had left behind plenty of tea that she had made and Law was sure nothing could ever beat the taste. He had to buy coffee because of how quickly the crew went through it. Ruby would never keep up with the Heart Pirates’ coffee intake. 

They left the store and Law stared at a crepe vendor. He blinked and looked to his side. He blinked multiple times to get rid of Ruby's image, grinning up at him. The grin that spread across her face when she was about to tell him to buy her something.  

“Captain?” Bepo called and Law blinked back to reality.

Law cleared his throat. “Let’s go back to the Tang and drop everything off.”

Bepo said nothing but the look of concern did not fade. Law chose to ignore it, not really wanting to explain that he was missing Ruby again. 

Law hadn’t realized that they had been out all day until he noticed that the sun was sinking closer to the horizon. He stared in the distance behind the Tang, looking at the vast ocean that was his home. The temperature was starting to drop and it seemed like it would be a nice evening. It would’ve been nice for a picnic to watch the sunset. Ruby would’ve liked that. She would’ve been overjoyed that he thought of her like that, as if his mind wasn’t occupied with thought of her at least 50% of the time. 

“Captain?” Bepo called him from the Polar Tang. 

Law switched to Bepo and his seemingly permanent concerned gaze. Law sighed. “I’m fine, let’s drop everything off and go to the tavern.”

It was best that they were headed to the tavern now. Law was starting to become hungry and greasy tavern food and an ale might actually cure his loneliness for a night. 

Law dropped off the bags of pills in the infirmary while Bepo dropped off the other items. Law was so lost in his thoughts about missing Ruby that he was surprised to see Jun standing in front of him with a flat look. He swallowed and then raised his brow at her.

“Did you need something?” He asked her.

She shifted. “I…don’t know…” she said slowly. 

“Why are you here? Did you know I was in here?” Jun looked uncomfortable. “Well?”

“My chest hurts,” she said with a frown. “It’s tight and hard to breathe. I dunno, maybe I’m having a heart attack.”

Law grunted. “Let me see. Get in the bed.”

Jun did so. She waited patiently while he ran his ECG test. He checked for all signs of a heart attack. Looking at his results and what Jun had told him, he had a theory. He had a feeling what this actually was so he was going to prod. Gently.

“How long have you felt like this?” He asked.

“For the past, like, 30 minutes maybe?”

Law nodded. “What all did you do today? Don’t leave out any details.”

Jun looked uncomfortable again so he raised his brow at her. She huffed. “After breakfast I went looking for Ikkaku but she had already left. She was hanging out with Jean Bart, of course. Now that Ruby isn’t here she had to hang out with the other one,” she said scathingly. She winced and then cleared her throat. “I was going to just stay on the sub today but Clione asked if I wanted to go grocery shopping together. I dunno, maybe he felt bad for me since Ikkaku didn’t want to hang out with me. I agreed and we went to go get groceries and then lunch. When we came back with groceries and were putting them away Ikkaku and Jean Bart came in. Jean Bart offered to help but Ikkaku got really quiet.” Jun frowned deeply. “Ikkaku looked like we just fucking shot her. Like putting up groceries was some goddamn crime against humanity. Clione and Jean Bart asked her what was wrong but she shook her head and said she needed to wash her face. She ran away and I followed after her.” Jun went silent. Law’s theory was starting to seem like it was a reality.

“And?” He prompted.

“I caught up with her, wanting to make sure she was okay. She wasn’t. She was crying. I asked her what was wrong and if I could help.” Jun frowned. “She yelled at me and accused me of trying to get rid of Ruby. She said she was tired of me trying to replace Ruby and that she was done with me. I was so confused and hurt. I…almost started crying because I didn’t know what else to do. That’s when my chest started to hurt. Before I could ask Ikkaku for help she walked off, saying she didn’t want to be around me anymore.” Tears filled Jun’s eyes. “I don’t even know what I did wrong! And now my chest hurts! I don’t know what to do!”

Law pinched between his eyes. “Well, I think I know what Ikkaku was on about. Did you buy any produce?”

“What? Yeah. Didn’t I say we went grocery shopping?”

“Ikkaku is upset that we’re buying produce that we don’t have because Ruby isn’t here.”

“That’s-”

“I know. Don’t worry, Ikkaku is working on becoming more emotionally stable again. Now, as for your chest, have you heard of takotsubo cardiomyopathy? Or even stress cardiomyopathy?”

“Uh, no.”

“It’s also known as broken-heart syndrome,” he said. Jun made a sour face. “Whether you like it or not you’re having heart problems because you’re stressed. You have the symptoms of it. You and Ikkaku are in a tiff. You’re getting into fights and causing each other stress. Ruby’s gone and it’s become a wedge between you two. Instead of talking it out, you’re both just arguing more.”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“And Ikkaku does. So you’re ignoring each other’s needs and are at each other’s throats.” Law gave her a serious look. 

“Well how do I make it stop? I hate this pain.”

“I’ll give you some aspirin and diuretics to see if that helps, but you also need to relax. I also recommend just talking to Ikkaku.”

“But I don’t want to talk about Ruby!” She shouted before wincing.

“Part of being in a relationship is talking about the shit you don’t necessarily want to talk about. Do you think I want to talk about shopping and nail polish and what fucking shampoo smells best in my hair? No, of course not. I do it anyway because it makes Ruby happy.”

“Those are not comparable.”

“Fine. Do you think I want to talk about my past? About her past? About all the bullshit we went through growing up? Of course I don’t. We have to talk about what hurts and how we can help each other. You both are being selfish for not listening to each other but for fucks sake the least you could do is listen to Ikkaku cry because she misses her best friend.” Law huffed. He walked to the cabinet and pulled out the medicine he needed to give Jun. “These should help. You’re banned from the tavern tonight. Eat a light meal and get some rest.” He looked at his pitiful crew member and held back a groan. 

“Fine,” Jun said stiffly. “Whatever you say, Captain.” Jun stood up and walked out of the room with a sniff.

Law did not hold back from groaning after she left. What a fucking mess. He can’t even keep two of his nakama from being upset at each other over something so easily fixable. 

“Captain?” He heard Bepo walk into the room. 

“Ugh, sorry, Bepo. I had to take care of Jun before-”

“I understand,” he said with a smile. “Do you still want to go out?” 

Law stared at his oldest friend and sighed with a tired smile. “Yeah, let’s go.”

Even though the tavern was loud and rowdy, and his crew was singing sea shanties and drinking until they dropped, Law read a book in a corner booth. He kept the den den mushi to his side, never letting it out of his sight. He smiled nostalgically, thinking of those early months when he and Ruby would sit in a booth together, brooding and bonding. Of course, she’d be eating her greasy food but back then she didn’t drink much.

He looked around at the crowd, the whole tavern in a tizzy. Everyone was here except Ikkaku and Jun. It seemed this was exactly what the crew had needed. A night to forget their troubles. To drink to good health and be merry. This was good.

Over the course of the night the Heart Pirates drank the tavern dry and many ended up needing to be carried home. Law, Bepo, Penguin, and Shachi walked back together. Well, Law, Bepo, and Penguin walked, Shachi was on Bepo’s back being carried because he was too drunk to see straight. He was still singing a song as they made their way back home.

“He’s drunk as a fish,” Penguin snickered. “Hope he doesn’t barf on you!”

Bepo made a disgusted noise. “Don’t say that! He might actually do it now!”

Penguin laughed and Law chuckled. “How are you feeling, Cap?”

“Fine.”

Penguin looked at him. He took off his hat and rubbed his head. “Are you sure?”

“As sure as I can be.” Law looked at Penguin’s now fully revealed face. “How are you feeling, Peng?”

He was silent for a moment. He sighed. “I miss her. I kept expecting her drunk ass to start singing in her thick as fuck accent.”

Law felt himself smile. “She could be pretty tone deaf.”

Penguin laughed and put his hat back on his head. “She sure fucking is.” He sighed. “Tonight was good. We need to start doing this more often again.”

“Yeah, we do.” Law patted Penguins back. They smiled at each other before making faces as Shachi vomited and Bepo cried.

After Penguin assured that Shachi would be safely put to bed and Law helped Bepo clean his fur, Law went to bed. He showered quickly before getting into his clean bed. He stared at the den den mushi on his desk before sighing. He had to keep telling himself that she couldn’t have made it to Dressrosa quite yet. That she would surely call when she was safe. 

He yawned, the day catching up with him. He hadn’t gotten the chance to check on Jun and Ikkaku but he’ll do it in the morning. He was tired. The tavern food and beer was catching up to him. He settled into sleep, dreaming so many things that even in his sleep he was confused.

#one piece #op fanfic #trafalgar law #lawxoc #law x oc #one piece fanfiction #heart pirates #sela ruby #ruby sela #hi i'm back #sorry for the wait #hope you guys are still with me #side to side