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malk1ns · 5 months

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A prompt if this sings to you... established relationship mid-30s sidgeno taking in a rookie to live with them? Maybe a Russian? Maybe not! Maybe it's ABO and the baby alpha is overwhelmed by milfy Sid/baby omega is overwhelmed by dilfy Geno? Maybe not! IDK I just want to see an awkward 18 year old being completely rabbit in the headlights witnessing these two icons and heroes being dorky and frisky and middle-aged at home.

Ooooh I love this!

This isn't my best work, but I haven't written in ages and I'm rusty, so—you get what you get, haha. But this is such a fun concept and I had a lot of fun thinking about it!!! That's part of why it's so disjointed I think, I had so many ideas about how this could look and what it could involve and I wanted to cram everything in. Maybe I'll revisit this when I can actually properly use the English language again and clean it up!

Mack doesn't get a choice about where he lives his rookie year.

Not a lot of guys do, really—if they're bouncing between the A and the big club, they get real familiar with a few specific hotels, and if they make the show right away the team usually encourages them to look for something in a particular neighborhood—but Mack, after the excitement of the draft was over and the contract negotiations began in earnest, didn't even get that much leeway.

He's a first overall pick. He's an omega. He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins. Of course he'll be living with Sidney Crosby and his mate.

Crosby—call me Sid he'd said, backstage after Mack stumbled his way onstage and held up his jersey and smiled so hard his face hurt—sends him and his parents an email in late summer, offering up a suite in his house in one of Pittsburgh's suburbs. He'll have a bedroom, a bathroom, and a living area to himself, along with a small fridge, and Sid says he'll help Mack get a car, too, if he doesn't already have one.

Mack's agent is copied on the email, along with four names from the Penguins organization that Mack doesn't recognize. It's not really an offer, after all.

Mack's parents are overjoyed. They're both betas, and when Mack presented his mom had practically lost her mind trying to figure out how to parent him appropriately, and they'd both been desperately worried about him living on his own. As if that had been an option; every interview at the combine included some discussion about where he'd stay, and it seemed like every team had a plan, no input from Mack required.

His dad's more focused on what he'll get out of living with Hall of Famers. "Watch how they spend their time off," he says to Mack as they're standing at Pittsburgh International. They'd all driven down in Mack's new car together, and spent the last two days getting him settled in and seeing the sights, and now his parents are flying back to Vancouver. "You're never going to have a better example than Malkin and Crosby. Pay attention to them, and you'll be fine."

Mack's not sure that this is quite what his parents had in mind.

Sid's amazing, of course. He knows what it's like to be an omega in the league—for all there are more now than when Sid was drafted, they're still an extreme minority, and going first overall, over all the alphas eligible, has only happened twice. Well, three times now. He walks Mack through the accommodations at the rink, connects him with the dynamics counselors and heat coordinators, and he spends a lot of time just listening to Mack, sharing his own experiences and talking him through his panic and nerves. Mack's lucky, and all the guys from BU are jealous as hell, constantly blowing up the GC with questions that Mack's not gonna answer in a million years.

Geno, though?

Mack's been around alphas his whole life. Sports at a higher level are riddled with them, obviously, and omegas aren't cloistered away anymore—he's not required to cross the street if he approaches an alpha, and North America has been totally integrated for decades.

There's getting in board battles with alphas his own age, though, or interacting with random people out in the world, and living with an alpha in his 30s, in the space he's marked as his.

Geno's not nervous around him. Which, obviously, why would he be, but Mack's used to the guys his age being a little on edge, a little anxious, a little fumbling in the presence of Mack's pheromones. Geno's a whole-ass adult, though, and he's been mated to Sid for as long as Mack can remember, so of course he wouldn't give a shit about some 18-year-old kid.

The whole house smells like Geno, a mix of coconut and snow and citrus. It's comforting; Mack's never slept so well in his life, and it just feels safe, knowing that there's an alpha around all the time. Sid's left his mark too, of course, but there's no escaping that an alpha lives in this house, an alpha who's strong, and confident, and sure of himself.

It takes Mack two whole weeks before he can talk to Geno without turning bright red and stuttering. He'd feel more embarrassed by his behavior, the way he reacts to Geno's scent, if he thought Geno noticed for one single second.

Because the thing is, what Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin seem to spend most of their off-hours doing is...each other.

Mack's never walked in on them—they're too thoughtful, and he's seen the way Geno stares down other alphas who look a little too closely at Sid, he's not interested in anyone seeing Sid that way—but he can smell them, all over the house. Geno's got a hand on Sid constantly; at his waist as they move around each other in the kitchen, on his legs when they sit on the couch, cupping the bond-bite on Sid's neck when they think they're alone. He smells like he wants Sid all the time.

And Sid absolutely reciprocates.

Mack can't blame him. If he had an alpha like that— He doesn't let himself go too far down that path, because he has to live with them, and he's too young anyway, he wants to focus on his career for a while, but there's something about how happy Sid looks, the way he teases Geno until they're both pink and smiling, the way he gets this look in his eye when he watches Geno putter around in the kitchen, that makes something in Mack's gut twinge with longing. He wants this, someday—a mate, a home, someone who makes him that happy.

He just wishes they'd do a bit more to hide when they're going off to fuck, though. Mack's cycle is still irregular, and being this close to a mated pair who are having sex practically every night—Mack is shocked they can still do it that much at their age—is gonna push him into early heat one of these days, and then he'll have to ask for a ride to the facilities, and Geno will know, Geno will smell it on him, and they'll both be so nice and understanding and go out of their way to assure him it's normal and make sure he has what he needs, and it will just be the worst, most mortifying thing that's ever happened to him.

Anyway, yeah. Mack's pretty sure his dad had something else in mind, when he was talking about what Mack could pick up from living with Crosby and Malkin.

It's going to be a long year.

#sidgeno #hockey rpf #a/b/o #my fic #my writing #macklin celebrini YOU are a pittsburgh penguin #rookie houseguest

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anim-ttrpgs · 6 months

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Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy, Introducing the Snoops!

Introducing the snoops! You just saw one right now in the Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy logo! These shady little guys are kind of the mascots for Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy, found all over the rulebook* playing hero and villain alike. They are meant to invoke the image of an old-timey detective or spy, as you can probably tell.

We went through a number of little terms for them before settling on snoops for now, including “dicks”, but the rest of the team won’t let me swear in the rulebook. They're called snoops because they be snoopin', among other things.

They serve kind of a similar role in the Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy rulebook to the role Vault Boy serves in the Fallout games. In fact, Vault Boy was a direct inspiration for this kind of iconography. Like Vault Boy, snoops appear unreal all kinds of different roles, sometimes hero, sometimes villain, but always there to iconografy some kind of rules concept or game mechanic.

Like here how Vault Boy appears dressed as the Grim Reaper to demonstrate the Grim Reaper's Sprint perk, and appears holding a all the types of weapons that get a damage boost from the Cowboy perk to demonstrate the Cowboy perk, we have—or plan to have—a snoop for every occasion.

Traits in Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy are not exactly the same thing as Fallout perks, nor were they inspired by them, but in much the same way as how Fallout uses a Vault Boy for ever perk, we plan to have a snoop for every Trait. Here is a link to a post all about Traits.

as well as use them to demonstrate key concepts and mechanics in the rules themselves.

This is not only fun and looks good, but the snoops also help readers find exactly where to stop when scrolling or flipping quickly through the Eureka rulebook. If you’re trying to find the beginning of the Composure section fast, you just have to remember that that’s the snoop that’s breaking down into puzzle pieces. Also, here's a link to a post all about the Composure mechanic.

*unfortunately, art is hard and time-consuming, and that’s why relatively few snoops have made it into the existing prerelease rulebook and demo that you might've seen thus far. But, I have some good news, the next patreon update will include a bunch more, including many of the ones you’ve seen here.

If you want to play this game, you can get the full prerelease rulebook plus a bunch of other bonuses for just $5 on our patreon, or go to our website to download the free demo version along with a free starter adventure module. However, the free version has very few snoops. Sorry, you get what you pay for. The patreon supporters will be getting a bunch of snoops in the next big update, though, so stay tuned!

Also, we are running a TTRPG Book Club, where everyone nominates indie TTRPGs, votes on what to play, reads&plays them, and discusses! It has over fifty members at the time of writing this! You can find the invite link to the book club on our website!

By the way, the snoop that appears in our company logo below and who is also kinda the main snoop, his name is Conway.

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maiyami · 3 months

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𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓞𝓷𝓮 𝓝𝓲𝓰𝓱𝓽

Pro Hero Hawks (Keigo Takami) X Pro Hero Female Reader

• Minors Do Not Interact

• All Characters 21+

• One-Shot Unedited

Warnings: One night stand, mentions of drinking, unprotected sex, language, teasing, oral (male receiving), wing play, pinning, open ending, and more.

About: Hawks has always been known to the public as a playboy, even though no one has caught him in the act. He needed to blow off steam from the latest headline of him, but little did he know that you were going to help him with that.

It wasn’t often that Hawks got the night off from hero work. Crime was surprisingly low tonight, so it was something his many sidekicks could handle. They practically begged the number two hero to take the night off, enjoy some freedom. Freedom, that was such a foreign concept to him. Constantly being watched by the commission, the countless articles and news clips of him, shutterbugs following his every move. Yeah, freedom was something he had long forgotten the feeling of. So when his employees quite literally pushed him out of his agency’s door? He had no choice but to try and feel free tonight. Which he desperately needed. Hawks didn’t let much of anything get to him, but the newest article of him having multiple partners within the week surely put him in a sour mood.

That’s how he found himself in one of the most popular clubs Japan had to offer. A club that had a strict policy of no paparazzi, or flash photography within its walls. A little place for many famous people of Japan could go. He felt slightly awkward at first, sure he’s been out before but it had been such a long time…he nearly forgotten how to act like himself. Opting to sit near at the bar and nurse the beer he had in his hand.

Even though he was supposed to be taking the night off, he couldn’t help but scan the room. Scan for anything that might happen, anything to go wrong. Keen eyes never failing to see almost every detail around the room. Picking up on the most insignificant moments others were having. A couple at the book across from him having a fight over money, the guy in the corner while his friends took shots, and then he spotted you.

He had actually noticed you when he first came in, your dress was the same color as his wings. A beautiful crimson color that shined slightly when the flashing lights hit it just right. There was something about the way you carried yourself, the way you didn’t give really anyone a second glance. You were there to be just you, in all your glory. Hair flowing around while you danced, how your dress was tight in all the right places, and the way your eyes looked while you moved around. He noticed he wasn’t the only one that was constantly scanning the area.

As the lights flashed to the beat of the music, your face would light up just enough so Hawks could take a good look at you. You were a vision. A slight shine to your skin, most likely a little bit sweaty from all the moving around you did. The way your nose scrunched up as you smiled, and the way you wouldn’t let one single person touch you on the dance floor. There was one thing Hawks adored most in a woman was independence and you oozed with it. Confidence written all over your being as you were content dancing by yourself. He must have been staring at you for an uncomfortable amount of time because next thing he knew was that you were staring back.

However, you didn’t look away when you caught him, like you had been doing with everyone else that looked your way. Instead, you offered him a small smirk. Your eyes in a low stare as you swayed your body to the music. Almost as if you were inviting him to continue looking at you. You were mysterious yet, inviting. He was curious about you, curious to how a gorgeous woman like yourself was alone in a club. He pondered if he should approach you, maybe ask you to dance. Then when the song that was thumping over the much to loud speakers changed, you made your way off the dance floor. You didn’t come to him though, you just looked at him once more before you started to make your way up the stairs to the second floor of the club. It was now or never, so Hawks quickly finished off his beer to follow you.

The second floor wasn’t anything special. Just a few balconies to get some fresh air and bathrooms. As he was watching your move, he prayed you didn’t head in the direction of the restrooms…he would have felt like a total creep knowing he just follow a woman to the bathroom. Though his fears quickly faded as he watched you swing open the door to one of the balconies. Watching you disappear for a moment, he felt himself stall. Should he even bother you? He thought for a moment until his body moved on its own. Going straight for the balcony.

The cool air brushed against his face as he opened the door, followed by the faint smell of something sweet in the air. Vanilla, it must have been your perfume. There you were, leaning against the balcony. You looked up from your phone, giving him that same smirk you gave inside. He offered one back, shutting the door behind him. Moving to stand next to you, leaning against the railing.

“Now…what’s one of the top heroes in Japan doing following a girl like me around?” You were the one to speak first, a little tease in your voice that made you giggle at yourself. “You know…I’m only in the high teens for rankings. You could do better.” You smiled once again.

Hawks didn’t say anything at first, frankly because he didn’t even know you were a hero. He had been so out of touch with others, it made him a bit upset at first. Though, the teasing nature you were putting on made it better. You weren’t bitter, in fact you were making fun of yourself. He didn’t care for that, he didn’t care where you sat in the rankings. “Better? Please, you’re gorgeous. Don’t think otherwise. Plus, don’t care about rankings.” He said back, now flashing a smile of his own.

It made you smile, shaking your head back and forth a little. “Ahh, there’s that smooth talking the tabloids always mention.” You flashed your eyes at him, chuckling a little to yourself. However, you noticed he didn’t laugh this time. He more looked away from you, gripping the railing tight in his hands. Your eyebrow raised slightly, nudging into him. “Hey, I’m only joking, ya know?” To tried to break the tension a little.

Hawks knew he shouldn’t have been upset, but those damn papers…the rumors are just going to follow him around everywhere. Even among other heroes. “Nah, it’s not that kid. I know you are it’s just…all those stories? They aren’t me. Never been me…hell I couldn’t even tell you the last time I went on a date. Let alone taken someone home.” He shook his head a bit, moving to rub the back of his neck. “I work too much to even think about those things, only reason I’m here is because of my employees shoving me out the door. Andddd…I don’t know why I’m telling you all this. God, I’m sorry.”

You placed a hand on his, it made him jump a bit but you kept it there. “Don’t be sorry. I get it, not that I’m in the news like you are? But I get being watched, rumors being told about you. No one should have to deal with that.” You rubbed his hand a little bit before smirking at him. “You deserve to be rid of all that kind of nonsense, to just be you. Not have to worry about what the next thing is said about you that you can’t control.” You turned to really face him, get a good look at his face. “Next time, give them something to really talk about. Something that you’ve done that is true.”

He doesn’t know what it was about you, but in the short amount of time speaking…it felt like you knew him for him. Not as Hawks the number two hero. That you knew he wanted to be known for things he did that were true, not whatever the public wanted to make up about him. He didn’t know what came over him, but then he found himself leaning into you. A hand placed on your hip to pull you forward, wings instinctively wrapping around both of you before he pressed his lips against yours. It was intense, it was passionate. It was something that words couldn’t describe. It was all of his thoughts and emotions poured into a kiss, a kiss with a stranger no less.

Your hands moved to cup his cheeks, deepening the kiss. Your tongue coming to brush his lower lip so he could open his mouth a little. Your tongues met, dancing around each other. Until you finally broke the kiss off, moving a thumb to wipe some off your lipgloss off the corner of his mouth. You chuckled as he went to pull you back, but you put a finger against his plump lips. “I thought this wasn’t you, pretty bird.” You said with a sly smirk.

The praise went straight to his head, making his wings twitch a little before he unwrapped them. He chuckled himself, shaking his head a little. “You must have some lust quirk, you’re kind of hard to resist.” He joked before you laughed almost too loudly. He shook his head once again, before a thought crossed his mind. “Want to make a rumor?” He asked with a cherisher smile. Which you returned to him.

Just because the shutterbugs weren’t allowed inside, doesn’t mean they weren’t stalking the outside. So when the number two hero came out, the cameras flashed brightly. However, when you were following behind Hawks with his hand in yours? The paparazzi went wild. No one had ever gotten a picture with Hawks and a woman before. Everyone was basically fighting over the angle to get the best shot of the pair of you. A rumor that Hawks started that was true, he was with a woman and taking her home.

Once you got back to Hawks penthouse? You were actually hit with what was about to happen. You were with the number two hero, in his home. Plus, the rumors that will happen tomorrow? You knew when you got back to your agency that everyone there was going to bombard you with questions. What happens will happen at this point, who were you to question it.

What you weren’t expecting was how nervous Hawks actually seemed, when he said this wasn’t like him? He wasn’t lying. He seemed a little tense, almost uncomfortable. It’s probably been such a long time since he has done anything remotely like this, he didn’t seem to know what to do at first. If anything, you were going to make sure he was okay. He was comfortable. Instead of coming on to strong, you walked up to him slowly. Letting your hands trail his arm lightly before letting your fingers slip into his hand. “We go at your pace. If you don’t want to do anything? We can talk…watch a movie? Anything you like, you name it.”

That made him feel a little better, letting you ground him for a moment. He never had anyone read him so well, keep him from floating to high. You were captivating, different from any other woman he met. You weren’t trying to jump him, weren’t trying to make him do anything. You were going along with what he wanted to do. He’s never had a person like you in his life, in the moment he never wanted to let you go. With a nod of his head, he led you to his bedroom. It was pretty bare for someone who had so much money, but truth be told? He only ever came home to sleep, he didn’t actually care for material things. The only thing in his bedroom that could attest to his wealth? Was his extraordinary large bed, of course he would need something to accommodate his wings.

You just smiled lightly at him, moving to run your hands against his chest. His eyes watching you made you feel intimidated but you loved it. As your fingers slipped under the material of his shirt, he took it upon himself to strip himself of it. His body was carved by the gods, his tanned skin looked amazing. You took it upon yourself to undo his belt, letting the object hit the floor before bringing his jeans down. To your surprise, he was already hard in his boxers. Goosebumps littered his skin as you slipped his boxers down. Once he stepped out of them, you backed him up to the bed. Letting him get comfortable sitting before you stripped yourself of your clothing. The small dress that was barely covering your body hit the floor and Hawks couldn’t take his eyes off of you. How your skin looked so smooth, how plump your thighs looked together. Perfect in his eyes. But when his hands went to touch you, you moved them away. Favoring dropping to your knees between his thighs.

“No no…this isn’t about me right now.” You said in the sweetest voice he ever thought he heard. You wanted to please him, something that was almost foreign to Hawks. He was always doing things for others and never getting anything in return. Somewhere deep down, he thought that you must have known that. He almost felt bad, about to say he wanted to make you feel good. But when the flat of your tongue ran up the underneath of his hard shaft? All those thoughts went out the door. Your tongue was hot against his skin, it made his cock twitch. The way your tongue swirled against his head, made him leak a bit of precum.

Your lips wrapped around his tip, giving it a teasing suckle. Hawks head hung backwards in pleasure, making you hum around his head. The way his thighs tensed up made you more excited. Letting inch by inch of his cock slip into the warm walls of your mouth, then you moved your hand to the base of his shaft. Whatever part of his cock you couldn’t fit into your mouth and throat was being stroked by your soft hands. It had been so long since Hawks experienced pleasure like this, it was making his whole body twitch at this point. Rocking his hips upward to feel you take down more of his cock. Bringing his head back up, he looked down to watch you. A blush creeping over his nose as he watched you bat your pretty lashes up at him.

“Fuck…don’t you look pretty sucking my cock- shit baby…” He said almost breathlessly, bringing a hand to hold some of your hair back. Seeing how slick his cock was coming out of your mouth, only to disappear back into it. God, you were addictive. The way some tears gathered in your lash-line, to the way you didn’t stop stroking him. But the most beautiful thing about you was the way you never took your eyes off him. Making sure that he was enjoying this as much as he was. As he watched you pull of his cock to move to suck on his balls a little, he groaned low. Reaching down to pull your face away from them. Taking his cock in his free hand before letting your face go. “Open.” Is all he said.

You took a breath after leaving his balls, watching the way he was stroking his own cock in front of your eyes before opening your mouth for him. Sticking your tongue out without being told too. The feeling of Hawks slapping his cock on your tongue a few times made you smirk slightly. He smirked back himself, leaning down to pull you up. His voice a little horse before pulling you into his lap. “Anymore? I’ll fold, I want you to feel good before that.”

Even though he hadn’t touched you yet, he could feel how wet your cunt was against his shaft once he pulled you into his lap. God, you were fucking perfect. He held you up with one arm, using his other hand to line his cock up to your slit. But before pulling you down, he looked at your face to make sure you were okay with this. Instead of speaking, you leaned forward to lock your lips with his. Moaning into the kiss as you felt his tongue dance around with yours, feeling his want on his tongue. He lowered you down, letting his cock split you in two as he slowly bullied inch by inch into you. The feeling of you shaking against him, made him hold onto you tighter. Peppering kisses against your neck to distract you from the stretch. He knew he was large, knew that it takes a bit to get used too.

Once you finally settled fully down on his cock, your nails were digging into his shoulders. A shaking breath escaping your lips before you started to move up and down on his cock. You were so wet that you were sliding up and down with ease, the sound of skin hitting skin was ringing in the room. Your walls fluttering around his shaft with every bounce you made down on his cock. Hawks ended up moving on of his hands onto your ass, gripping it righting to gain leverage. Moving you up and down on his shaft at a pace that was making you see stars. Each drag of his cock was hitting your g-spot so well that you were dripping down his cock. Your breathy moans so close to his ear, it made his body feel like it was on fire.

Without thinking, your mind being to clouded by lust your hands started to move. Hawks ended up thrusting his hips up a little to sharp, your gripped onto one of his wings. The moan that escaped Hawks, plus the way his whole body shook shocked you slightly. Moving your face from his neck, you looked at him.

His lip was between his teeth, grip tightening on your ass and hip before he just barely cracked an eye open to look at you. “Hurt?” You questioned him, loosening your grip in his wing. But he shook his head.

“N-No…felt so good…touch them again.” He said, but he wasn’t demanding it. It was like he was pleading for you to do it again. So that’s exactly what you did, carding both hands into his wings. It made him shake so hard, burying his face into the crook of your neck before both his hands were on your ass. Holding you so hard that he was moving you up and down with his sheer strength. Fucking into you like his life depended on it. His wings quivering in your hands while his cock throbbed in your walls. It was like he was a new person, not someone trying to be gentle with you like he was at first. You moved your hands more towards the base of his wings, right were they were coming out of his back. This made him almost scream out in pleasure, thrusting into you harder and deeper than before. “That’s it! Fuck fuck fuck…gonna make me fucking cum Angel.”

You were just as close as he was, digging your nails into his wings before you felt your cunt clench around him. “Cum…cum! Fuck I’m gonna cum!” You were now yelling, feeling yourself tighten around him one more time before you fell over the edge. Your body shaking and quivering in his arms as you left a white ring around the base of his cock.

At the feeling of you clenching around his cock, he quickly flipped you over. Your back hitting the bed as he gave three more deep thrusting before spilling inside of you. Panting over you before pushing himself fully inside your walls, holding himself there. He was looking down at your twitching body, the trembling you were doing before leaning down to kiss you. This kiss was different thought, it was slow. It had emotion behind it, you both could feel it. As he took a shallow breath, he finally pulled out of you. Watching his spent leak out of you before moving up behind you. He took you into his arms, pulling your back to his chest. Laying there, neither of you said anything. Just basking in the glory of the after glow, while Hawks never let you go. It was sweet, both of you drifted off to sleep soon after.

The sun was shining bright against Hawks face, making him squint a little before flipping over. As his hand spread out against his sheets, he felt the lack of warmth next to him. Opening his eyes, he noticed that you weren’t there anymore. Taking a moment to listen, to feel with the feathers he left all over his penthouse, he knew you weren’t there anymore. He sighed, sitting himself up for a moment. He didn’t even get your name, let alone your number. How did he not at least get that? As he rubbed his face with his hands, he noticed a note placed on the nightstand next to his bed. He grabbed it quickly to read it.

“𝐻𝒶𝒹 𝓉𝑜 𝓁𝑒𝒶𝓋𝑒, 𝒸𝒶𝓁𝓁𝑒𝒹 𝒾𝓃 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓌𝑜𝓇𝓀. 𝐼 𝒽𝒶𝒹 𝒶 𝑔𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓉 𝓃𝒾𝑔𝒽𝓉, 𝒽𝑜𝓅𝑒𝒻𝓊𝓁𝓁𝓎 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓌𝒶𝓉𝒸𝒽 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓃𝑒𝓌𝓈 𝓉𝑜 𝓈𝑒𝑒 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓇𝓊𝓂𝑜𝓇𝓈 𝒶𝒷𝑜𝓊𝓉 𝓊𝓈. 𝑀𝒶𝓎𝒷𝑒 𝓌𝑒 𝓌𝒾𝓁𝓁 𝓈𝑒𝑒 𝑒𝒶𝒸𝒽 𝑜𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝒶𝑔𝒶𝒾𝓃, 𝐻𝒶𝓌𝓀𝓈.”

You didn’t leave your name or your number. But Hawks always had a way of finding people. That’s what exactly what he was going to do. He was going to find you because how could he let the most perfect girl slip through his fingers.

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autumnmobile12 · 13 days

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The Epic Saga: Just A Man

Trigger warning for infanticide.

I want to talk about what an interesting choice it was in Epic's first installment for Odysseus to be the one to kill the infant.

In all versions of the story, the fate of Astyanax, son of Prince Hector, is always the same. He is thrown from the walls of Troy while the city is sacked. What varies from telling to telling is who does the deed, and it's usually between two people: Odysseus and Neoptolemus.

Most modern retellings make Neoptolemus the villain in this story, or they'll leave out this part entirely, because in the eyes of today's society, the senseless murder of a helpless infant is something only a villain would do.

Who's Odysseus? He's the man who won the Trojan War by engineering the idea behind the Trojan Horse, he's the guy who took ten years to sail home, he's the main character of The Odyssey. Odysseus is a hero. And heroes don't kill infants.

Who's Neoptolemus? He's forgettable. He didn't go on any heroic quests like Herakles or Perseus. He didn't slay any noteworthy monsters. Neoptolemus' biggest claim to fame are three things: He's the son of Achilles, he clubs King Priam to death in the sacking of Troy, and in some versions, he kills Astyanax. (He also enslaved Astyanax's mother.)

From the lens of the Ancient Greeks, a hero wasn't an upstanding guy who did the right thing. A hero was the guy who fought for what he wanted and did horrible things to his enemy in the process.

In the context of modern society, it's no wonder why the dubious credit of Astyanax's death goes to Neoptolemus. When that's the only real claim to fame he has, of course he's going to be a villain. We can't be having heroes killing babies because that's insane.

So let me tell you that when I first listened to The Horse and The Infant and I realized it was Odysseus who was committing the deed, that took me so off guard and I had to pause the song just to tell my poor sister how fucking crazy that is. I rarely saw this version. I mean, I understand the reasoning; it's setting up Odysseus' guilty conscious that'll plague him for the remainder of the musical. It's the flawed hero trope, which is a far cry from the brutality of the original myths.

And that in itself is testament of how mythologies have evolved over the centuries. It's why we have different variations of the myth in the first place. Societal views and values change and the stories told adapt accordingly.

Did Hades kidnap Persephone or did she go willingly to escape Demeter, her overbearing mother? Both versions are correct. All versions are correct. We cannot look for something as narrow-minded as a 'canon' version of mythology because mythology is a jumble of headcanons about the same basic concept thrown together by countless storytellers over literal centuries of storytelling.

In The Horse and The Infant, Zeus directly warns Odysseus that if Astyanax lives, he will take vengeance on him and his homeland. And after what the Greeks did to Troy, slaying the men, enslaving the women, and leaving the city in ruins, Odysseus is one of many Greek kings who have a lot to answer for.

Is Odysseus heroic for protecting his family by killing Astyanax because now the infant prince won't grow up to take vengeance?

Is Odysseus a flawed hero who carries the shame of his sins with him?

Is the deed committed by Neoptolemus and Odysseus goes home with his honor unsullied?

It all depends on interpretation. You can choose one that reflects a harsh history or you can pick the one that's been adapted to suit modern values. You don't even have to pick. You can appreciate them all for what they are.

And Epic: The Musical came out swinging.

#epic the musical #odysseus #the odyssey #the iliad #the horse and the infant #neoptolemus #astyanax #the sack of troy #greek mythology #myth retelling #mythology evolution

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xhdream · 3 months

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And what if I said surprising xdhs with a lap dance, then what? 👀 -🍑

giving xdinary heroes a lap dance

suggestive | xdh x fem!reader | mdni

a/n: i love this concept SO much hell yes

♡ gunil

gunil can sit and watch you for hours even when you’re doing just the most mundane things. a lap dance especially if it’s not planned, but happens out of nowhere, will be like an early christmas gift for him. he’d be hypnotised, but that won’t prevent him from talking at you. he’d compliment your every move; touching you everywhere with his firm hands, as you grind on his crotch or thighs. would be even more obsessed if you’re wearing lingerie - if you’re not that’s totally fine, but he’ll definitely surprise his good girl by getting her one for next time

♡ jungsu

he will chuckle a little at first cause where did this come from? he’d be surprised, but in awe at how amazing you look moving so seductively, so his mouth will stay open the entire time. i can see him enjoying this on a chill saturday evening while you listen to music, and you jump from your seat to dance for him. maybe you’re in sweats or pajamas - he would love that even more, especially if you start taking them off the more comfortable & confident you become with your moves

♡ seungmin/o.de

he’d probably be the most quiet out of the group in this scenario, cause he’d be just too mesmerised by you to form any thoughts. he wouldn’t want to intervene in your dance, because he wouldn’t want it to end. he’d love the fact you feel comfortable in his company to the point you would do something like this for his enjoyment. his smirk wouldn’t leave his face, his eyes will go up and down your body, memorising every curve, and when you slow down he’d pout asking for more, but without the clothes

♡ jiseok/gaon

you will see literal stars sparkling in his pretty eyes as he stares at you. gasping and giggling every five seconds while also asking you to do certain moves one more time. the more he enjoys it the more he’d intervene in your dance tho - he’d pull you in by sneaking fingers into the hem of your pants; he’ll spank you, and also try to get you in his lap, so he can shove his mouth into your boobs. he’d have even more fun if you tell him he’s not allowed to touch just so he can disobey

♡ hyeongjun/junhan

he’d get a little flustered at first, cause he wouldn’t be sure what exactly to do if he’s supposed to do anything? you told him to just watch, but it still doesn’t seem enough. but eventually the more you show off your shapes, the more he loosens up and his hands start to shift freely over his thighs, then occasionally against your skin. he’d tell you how gorgeous you are, and after you end your little show, he’d wrap his arms around you and press his lips on your neck

♡ jooyeon

just like gaon, he’d love it if you put some rules for fun, and tell him he’s only allowed to sit and watch. the difference is jooyeon would actually obey, because he’d want to be nicely rewarded later. he’d be loud, as if he’s in an actual strip club, whistling and singing a sexy song, as his eyes eat up your silhouette. he wouldn’t hesitate to moan and say the dirtiest words. he’d be able to hold back from touching even when you start to grind on his erection; it will be a challenge, but an exciting one. definitely the best surprise anyone has ever done for him

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hacash · 3 months

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Two guys who totally subverted my expectations going head-to-head.

Propaganda

Edward Little: Little as a concept is so funny to me because you've got an officer played by Matthew McNulty and the vibe you'd expect to get from him is probably brooding, Byronic hero because that's what you'd expect, right? Instead he's just this Guy who is clearly trying and is totally over his head and should really be a stay-at-home dad or a supportive coach for an under-10s football club. Something that involves handing out lunchables and ruffling hair. Everything else is beyond him. Just let him sleep.

Thomas Jopson: We all know Jopson is the kindest, the sweetest, the most loyal, the most Disney Prince, etc, but I do love that every so often there's something that reminds the audience that Jopson has a bit of bite to him. Staring down Hickey and refusing to engage in his power play at the beginning of 'Camp Terror Clear'; teasing Crozier for shaving away his job. Jopson's whole thing is to serve, but you get a sense that no-one gets away with pushing him around, and it's so sad that he never got to spread his wings further.

(You can vote on the rest of the blorbo bracket here - reblog for a better sample size!)

#the terror #terror blorbo bracket #edward little #thomas jopson

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yui-kuromori · 1 year

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One of the things I had to come to terms with, as a manga reader is that in order for me to fully enjoy the live action adaption of Alice in Borderland is for me to sepparate Manga Chishiya and Show Chishiya as two different characters.

Some things change during adaptions, that's inevitable, but AiB did such a remarkable job at keeping (and sometimes elevating) the core concepts of the source material, I fear I may have grown a bit spoiled.

Take Kuzuryuu for example. In the manga, Kuzuryuu was the dealer for the 4 of clubs (which Arisu and Usagi don't participate). He plays the part of the inured player who needs to stay in the bus, there he meets a kind woman who refuses to leave him behind and stays on the bus with him. In the show, he meets the 4 of clubs survivor, the guy Arisu saved, who in an effort to pass on Arisu's kindness, saves Kuzuryuu himself.

Even if these are altered scenarios, the core of it stays the same. Through the 4 of clubs, Kuzuryuu finds that kindness and altruism are possible even in the borderlands (something he believed to be impossible).

Chishiya on the other hand, has his core aspects changed.

One thing I have touched a lot on ever since season 1 came out was the decision they made to switch Arisu and Chishiya's specialties. Arisu is a hearts specialist who in the show becomes a diamonds player. Chishiya is a diamonds specialist who is changed into a hearts player.

This fundamentally changes both of their main arcs as well as the way they paralel each other. Chishiya suffering the most for it. In the manga, Chishiya is fully incapable of understanding hearts games. He doesn’t deal well with them to the point where he never actually solved the witch hunt. He was never part of the Jack of hearts in the first place.

Manga Chishiya was neglected from e very young age, to the point where he doesnt remember what it's like to properly emote or empathize with people. His own complicated relationship with his father causes him to view every relationship he has as transactions. He's cold, to the point of denying a dying man his last wish only because it was inconvenient for Chishiya to help him.

Show Chishiya used to be an empathetic person. He went into pediatrics. He cared for his patients. The medical industry had beaten it all out of him to the point he had been numbed to his own feelings. He's alone and scared to be alone.

Now, I don't particularly dislike this adaption of Chishiya. After the initial shock, I came to the conclusion that the show's writing team had been really smart about the way they went with his character.

Especially considering that Chishiya is a fan favorite, it makes sense that the show writers would want for him to remain desirable and lovable to the audience. Manga Chishiya as complex and fun as he is, is a really dislikable character. Choosing to give Chishiya that hearts speciality, that softer side, managed to keep him likable even as he acted like a anti-hero.

It's also my belief that this was a season 2 choice, as in season 1 he acts pretty similar to his manga self. Which is why you can see the disconnect in his characterizartion between both seasons.

So yeah, once I let go of the manga a little bit, I was able to fully appreciate the work they did for the character in the show. AiB is a wonderful adaption and it deserves a lot of love and praise.

#alice in borderland #ima wa no kuni no alice #aib #aib spoilers #chishiya shuntaro

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mathiwrites · 2 months

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the justice league's moms' book club's guide to vampire slaying, a martha kent, alfred pennyworth, atlanna & hippolyta fanfic

Chapter 6 - Love, Love, Laugh

“You are telling me,” Hippolyta measures her words carefully. “That this book was selected specifically to appeal to me.” Judging by the cover, there is nothing that stands out to her. It is a woman in a green dress. Good for her. And yet, in her attempt to dismiss the culture of man’s world while remaining included, she has managed to miss the point entirely.

They are here, a part of this ‘club’ to bond with one another that transcends the invisible tether created by their children’s friendships. She may claim not to care about this world, but she has been paying attention. The people have raised good children and excellent allies for her daughter, regardless of gender. It is why she gave this any thought at all.

“And you all thought that a book with a female protagonist, polyamory and a female love interest are what my tastes consist of?”

“Oh, I didn’t think. I know.” Alfred smiles.

The man spends too much smiling beneath that coiffed moustache of his. Hippolyta glares at him, loathing how he has been one step ahead of her this entire evening. From what they have told her, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo sounds wonderful. Though her disposition is tough, Hippolyta’s heart is as soft as her daughter’s. It was her who pleaded with the gods for a child, so that she could be a mother and impart boundless love on a precious little being.

She blames her daughter for Alfred’s cleverness; she must have prepared him for this day, somehow.

“One day, I will wipe that smile off your face, but for now… Grin all you like.” She sighs. “This sounds like the exact story that I would enjoy, and perhaps encourage my sisters to reenact as a play.” Hippolyta folds her arms and steals Atlanna’s copy for safekeeping. She turns to Atlanna, resting her chin against her palm. “And will it take you seven husbands before you realize that I am the one for you?”

For all the velvet in Hippolyta’s tone, Atlanna remains unmoved. She laughs and waves her friend off.

“So, wait, did you two… really?” Martha motions between them. It’s unlike her to ask too many personal questions, but she’s genuinely curious about the lives her friends have led before they became parents to the world’s heroes. She has known Alfred for decades and he never said anything about his life before the Waynes.

“Yes and no,” Hippolyta hums. “Themyscira has always had a political alliance with Atlantis, even before its fall. I have seen many Kings, but only one Queen.” She looks at her affectionately. “I have known the pleasure of her lips, and the softness of her gaze, but she will never be mine.” Her fingers reach out and caress her cheek. Atlanna catches her hand and kisses her palm.

“It is a different kind of love. Hippolyta has my mind, but Tom is my one and my only. I will never love another the same way I love him,” Atlanna holds Hippolyta’s gaze, then turns to smile softly at Martha. “You know what I mean.”

“I do. He brings you balance and peace,” Martha nods.

“And I would only elevate you to the height of goddesses,” Hippolyta laments dramatically.

“But what about… multiple partners,” Martha asks softly and awkwardly. She’s not unfamiliar with the concept, but she worries about overstepping and misspeaking.

The last time she had dallied was before Jonathan, her sweet traditional farm boy, and never with more than one person. Leaving the social circles her mother had practically worshipped for a small town shifted her entire world. It simplified it, and she focused all her love towards her husband, her son and what she can make with her two hands.

She glances at Alfred. The two of them come from a time when people simply did not talk about these things. They just happened, and they were either accepted or vilified.

“It’s not that simple,” Atlanna hums.

“It is not that simple here. Your world has many rules and hangups. Multiple partners can be compatible, but the useless baggage and insecurities.” Hippolyta groans, rolling her eyes.

“You speak from experience,” Martha wonders, out loud.

And that comment has Hippolyta closing herself off.

“It requires all participants to let go of everything they have learned in this modern society, and to choose love above all,” Alfred says softly, looking at his tea.

“You speak from experience,” Atlanna says to him instead.

“Mhm,” he hums. “There are certain kinds of love that you do not let go, ever.”

Neither he nor Martha have ever spoken about it, even if he’d never hid it, either. Too long glances when they thought no one was looking, or overly indulgent touches. She had seen right through them, far too observant for her own good, but she never commented on it. She never asked, not until today, and even now, Martha did not direct her question to Alfred.

“Why didn’t you tell me? When they,” she swallows the agonizing thought. To lose not one, but two pieces of your heart at once. Martha cannot imagine the grief; when Jonathan died, his loss suffocated her. Alfred had been there for her, along with Clark and Bruce. “We would have been there for you. We could have helped with…”

“I know, but I didn’t have the words. I still don't.”

Martha reaches out to him and squeezes his hand. She sits there for a long moment, looking at him with empathy.

The conversation is sobering, and it is wonderful. It reminds each of them that they are more than their roles, their stations and their accomplishments. They are individuals whose stories are not told, quietly tucked behind the legends they have raised. They do not need recognition, but this—what they have here—is freeing .

“My deepest condolences, Alfred,” Atlanna hums.

“If it is of any consolation, I know a place where you retrieve their sou—,” Hippolyta starts.

“I appreciate the offer, but no.” It is not in his nature to toy with life and death. He will let others do that, and he will face the consequences as they come. Alfred chippers up, lifting his chin. “Enough of this serious talk. I am on vacation. Let us leave the glowering to the Knights of Gotham. Tea, anyone?”

“Actually, I was thinking we could have dinner.”

Outside, the sun has set. Normally, Martha would have had dinner by now, and readied herself for bed. A buzz settles in her bones as she washes the teacups and the saucers. She doesn’t stay up late often, and it’s exciting to have friends over. They’ve all agreed to stay. She also has no qualms putting the others to work. While she cleans up, Alfred has been tasked with putting the food from tea time away, and both Queens work together to set the table.

Her mind wanders as her hands work. The farm looks different at night; she admires the way her berry bushes have begun to grow on the side. She likes to dream of happy little creatures nibbling on this season’s yield. In the distance, the barn looms over the farmhouse, but she knows it's a place of warmth filled with animals who want nothing more than chin scratches.

The rest of her land is a forest of stalks—corn and sunflowers—but the verdant colours have turned into nothing more than a dark wall surrounding her home. Had she not spent the better part of her life surrounded by these fields, and had she not found the greatest gift in the middle of that field, then maybe she would have found the farm isolating. Intimidating.

Movement snaps her out of her reverie. The stalks don’t move, not normal. They stay still, watching her with the same intensity that she watches them. Martha stops the water, leaning forward on the counter and looking outside the window.

There.

A quiver of leaves, and then it’s gone again. She squints, willing herself to see what’s there.

An animal?

Most animals that roam freely through the farmlands are too small to cause that kind of movement. The neighbours must have lost a goat again. Her own cow, Bessie, has been known to wander.

Your mind is playing tricks on you, she mused, looking down to dry her hands. The moment she looks up, she sees it.

A dark figure standing among the stalks, its head illuminated by the moonlight, but its features darkened by shadow. It stands there, watching her. Chills ripple across her flesh, lighting her up from the inside out with a certain kind of fear.

“Martha?”

She nearly jumps out of her skin. Atlanna looks at her, as if she has grown three heads. Her gaze follows Martha’s out the window, but she sees nothing. Atlanteans eyesight is not made for the surface. Her body may have adapted after all these years, but seeing at night is still difficult.

“Are you alright?”

“Oh, yes. It’s just this new generation of teenagers. They have no respect for others.” The lie is a comfort, but not for Atlanna. “I’ve slow roasted beef. A spin on Alfred’s recipe,” she grins. “I’ll be with you in a quick sec. Have a seat.”

One last glance out the window, and all she sees is the dark row of stalks—corn and sunflower.

That’s what I get up for staying up late.

#my fics #dc comics #dc fanfic #atlanna #alfred pennyworth #martha kent #hippolyta #superfam #batfam #batfamily #aquafam #wonderfam #pennywaynes #alfred pennyworth x martha wayne x thomas wayne #polyamory #superman #batman #wonder woman #aquaman

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lokislittlemidgardian · 2 years

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Oooo I have been looking everywhere for some daddy!eddie and you wrote him so good!!

If I may, how about little!reader coming with Eds to a hellfire meeting? 😊

dnd and colouring in

Content- hell fire club, very poorly written dnd, little!reader, dummy use, Dustin vibing with reader, soft toys, dnd scene from stranger things, canon swearing, mentions of bigspace.

Summary- Eddie has a hellfire meeting, you don't have a clue what's going on but you like watching how serious your daddy gets.

Authors note- this is such a lovely concept, I will be honest I don’t know anything about dnd so I just copied the scene in season 4 lmao, so sorry it took so long,it's not proofread, hope you enjoy♡

You didn’t know much about the game your daddy was playing but you enjoyed seeing him so passionate about something, besides you of course.

you were sitting a little bit away from the table with a colouring book in front of you and your black rabbit in your arms, Eddie was setting up with his 3 of his friends “Hey Y/N” said the one with the tartan red shirt on “hiii” you elongated the word colouring in your last bit on green.

about 30 minutes later two boys you knew as Dustin and Mike walked into the room with a shorter girl with an American flag draped over her like a cape. You liked Dustin, he would always have conversations with you regardless of weather you were big or little.

“Absolutely not” Eddie said sitting on his throne with his hands clasped together “you asked for a sub, we delivered” Dustin said pointing to the girl “this is Hell fire club, not babysitters club” that resulted in a grunt and a death stare from you “not you baby, not you” he whispered reassuringly as he walked towards the trio.

as you listened to the back and forth between the two of them your little side was a bit intimidated by the 11 year old but at the back of your mind your big side grew a liking towards her.

eventually Eddie backed down and they were all sat down at the table beginning the final part of the campaign.

Eddie described the monster to the club with very distinct detail, now normally it would scare you however he had already told you what it looked like so hearing it for the second time it didn’t really bother you. “do you flee Vecna and his cultists, or do stand your ground and fight?” Eddie questions the members around the table. “I say we fight, to the death” Dustin replied “to the death” “to the death” “to da death” you mumbled under your breath making Eddie chuckle.

at this point your colouring in was discarded and you started to feel the suspense of the campaign, watching carefully as everyone rolled the dice and had very intense reactions you started to really enjoy yourself. the best part was when your daddy started doing weird movements and jumped up onto his throne causing you to cackle.

the club huddled together after a while and your daddy quickly came to check on you, “hey princess, you ok?” he asked giving the top of your head a kiss “yeah daddy I'm ok, this is fun” you giggled into the fur of your bunny “yeah, you enjoying it” he smirked at you “yep.”

after he walked back he got their attention “Hey!, if I may interject gentlemen, lady applejack, whilst I respect the passion you’d be wise to take Gareth the Greats concern to heart. there is no shame in running. Don’t try to be hero’s, not today kay?” he said spreading his arms out “ one sec.”

“Screw it, lets kill the son of a bitch.” “the chances of success are 20 - 1″ “never give me the odds” Dustin said in a sassy way making you giggle. “Give me the D20″ he said Eddie throwing the dice at him. Dustin missed, you made a mental note to remember that for when you were big again. watching as Erica took the last roll you held on tightly to the cuddly rabbit in your arms.

Erica had rolled a twenty.

it took you a few minute to realise that it was over and they had won and when you did you shot up and made you way over to them. everyone was screaming including you, giving Dustin a hug you both jumped up and down together him shouting and you squealing. looking at Erica you gave her a small smile gave her a quick side hug “well done” “thanks Y/N” she said with a smile, she obviously knew Dustin would have told her, add that to the list of things to berate him about when your big.

Running over to Eddie you jumped into his arms, he spinning you around making you giggle hysterically.

if this was how all god campaigns ended, you’d have to come to more.

#daddy!eddie #little!reader #caregiver #sfw age regression #age regression reader #little reader #eddie munson #eddie munson x female reader #eddie x reader #eddie munson x reader

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itgetzweird08 · 10 months

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Okay But Imagine If Endeavor had a secret love child

(TW: Mentions of cheating, hints towards abuse, hints towards pregnancy)

Okay so just imagine. Me personally, Enji Todoroki does not seem like a loyal man in the SLIGHTEST with his track record. Like I could definitely see him going to clubs and hooking up with people while on missions out of the country to let off steam because he has a wife who he doesn’t love, a son that is a danger to himself and doesn’t know what it means to quit, and two other children who are ‘failed experiments’

Enji is hella motivated to accomplish his mission to create the most powerful kid, HOWEVER, he’s still human. I think deep deep down he might want some form of true love and human connection. And that’s where /she/ comes in. The gorgeous woman that he meets in a diner one late night in America, while trying to get a decent meal after a hard mission. Any place that would even come close to having something that fits his meal plan is closed, but he knows he needs to eat. So this seemed like his best option.

He enters the diner, and it’s sorta dark and is cheap as all hell. He had half a mind to turn around and just starve, but the smell of something fried hit his nose and he gave up that thought quickly. He picked his own seat, a booth in the back next to a window that hadn’t been cleaned in a while. His hand touched something sticky on the table, and his lip curled in disgust. But that curl turned into a small ‘o’ as his jaw dropped, his eyes catching the waitress that was walking towards his booth. He was never a love at first sight kind of man, especially when he gave up such a silly concept long ago, but this was enough to make him get on his knees and praise Cupid. It felt like an arrow of warmth and desire had been shot through his chest. He had a fire quirk but nothing had made him feel so hot.

Rei and the kids were nothing but a distant thought all the way in the back of his brain stem when the woman approached his table. She seemed other worldly, tall and full and brave and soft. Something about her full curls and dark skin gave nothing less than goddess. There was so much to look at but there felt like so little time to take in everything she had to offer.

A soft clearing of her throat though brought him out of his stupor.

“Can I get you anything, sugar?”

The nickname made him blush, heat rushing to his face. It was a miracle his skin didn’t alight with his flame. “Yes- my apologies. Let me get, um,” here he was, sweating and stuttering like a school boy. Pathetic- he was pathetic. Before he could get truly angry at himself, she laughed, and the sound was like a drug.

“Here, you seem like you’ve been working hard. Let me get you a coffee and a proper menu, and I’ll come back for ya. Sound good?”

And all he could do is nod with a fry mouth, his face so hot he could’ve sworn his quirk was activated.

When she came back, she poured him a coffee, asking if he was from around while he browsed the menu. He said no, and told her of his hero work and his home in Japan. She listened with open ears and heart, finding herself sitting in the booth to listen to the scarlet haired man. She took the extra mug on the table, pouring herself a cup and loading it with mini creamers and sugar packets. It was a complete contrast to Enji’s own pitch black cup. But he didn’t mind. He honestly found it cute. He wondered if the sugar in the coffee was apart of what made the woman so sweet.

One cup of coffee turned to two. And that two turned to three with two waffle specials and a bowl of fruit to share. That ended up being a free meal for him and a ride home for her after her long shift. And the kiss at the door, well…you can guess where that led.

He left in the morning before she could wake, as he had a flight to catch by that noon. But he left her with a parting gift: his cell number and the large jacket he gave her when the night breeze got too cold.

Their affair continued for a while. It didn’t help Enji that Touya was putting himself in more danger, Rei seemed to be increasingly more difficult to deal with, and like her body got tired of the constant trying for his perfectly quirked child. And he knew it was wrong, of course he did, but when had that ever been enough to stop him? He began making up missions and lies, just to fly back across the sea to see his gorgeous waitress. And every time he left her a gift. A diamond charm bracelet, a new pair of shoes, a heart felt note with Godiva chocolates. And all she did in return was make him feel alive, like his life was worth more then it ever had been.

Six months.

It all lasted six months.

That was until he got the call from Rei, mid flight across the ocean, that she was pregnant. All thoughts of love and happiness and the small whisp of desire to leave his family behind and start a new one with his lover was erased. He had a feeling. This was it, his perfect child. He had the pilot turn the plane around, leaving his doll with one last parting gift.

The baby growing within her.

This time? He didn’t look back.

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iminhiraeth · 7 months

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Limoreau Fic Ideas

because I have a terrible case of brainrot, I’m going to be listing all my fic ideas that I may or may not one day do. Who knows! But I figured I could share the brain thoughts in case somebody else needs a spark of inspiration :]

And Lmk if I should do more!! I’d absolutely be down to, but this is just a lil test of interest for neow. (Would also 100% be open with getting asks for blurbs like this on certain AU’s or concepts :])

Supernatural AU

Instead of 2 brothers on the road hunting the supernatural it’s Marie and Jordan, who are legacies of their monster hunter parents and are having to work together after their parents gave them an assignment before suddenly disappearing. Bonus points if Marie is actually a vampire and has to keep it under wraps, or Marie was turned into a vampire the same night Jordan was turned into a werewolf because the two of them were way too brave and confident they could handle a hunt on their own at the age of like. 8 or 9. Caused a lot of tension ofc because their families are HUNTERS !! Could be with super powers still except those with powers are all hunters and it’s like. A semi underground society that’s like idk. Men in black type of deal.

AU with boxer!Jordan

This one I imagine less as professional boxing and more as a sort of fight club. Everyone meets at a location that’s given only a day prior so they don’t get caught bc this shit is illegal, and Marie is dragged out to one by Emma bc Sam sometimes participates to blow off some steam. Marie ends up being the one who makes sure Jordan is alright after fights bc! I also think they’re only allowed to be in their fem form for the fights. (Due to make form being invulnerable to attacks.) Also sort of secret society but majority students in God U find out about it if the circles your in deem you worthy. (Aka you won’t snitch.) Jordan probably really gets a kick out of it too because they don’t have to be perfect in that space, and fighting just gives them some time to not have to think about anything else. Their parents were likely very strict and although God U does have public training n shit for crime fighting students, it could be that there’s just a lot less rules for these fights n’ nobody is nitpicking their form so they don’t have to worry about looking hero worthy. Just some college kids fighting underground, and maybe there’s a thing about there being an after party that usually turn out to be the best parties on campus. 100% just an excuse to have Marie patching up Jordan n being all hot n bothered over how they look in a fight. Bonus points if Jordan starts training Marie too and she starts signing up for fights.

Camp Counselors AU

This one explains itself honestly. Limoreau being rival camp counselors and always putting their teams against each other or some shit. They have a tally of their wins and have some sort of bet going on. After like their first year every other counselor was like why don’t you two just fuck already we’re tired of watching you flirt. Bonus points if it’s them reuniting after having gone to that camp when they were kids n even then we’re like. SERIOUS rivals. They could not get along for the life of them, but maybe one of them moved n they stood in the parking lot that year wanting to hug but not knowing if they were even friendly enough for that. They miss each other, much to their surprise, but then like idk 4-5 years later they coincidentally (Jordan for nostalgia?? Or bc their friends were like we should do something random for the summer… N maybe Marie because Annabeth wanted to go to the same camp for the summer.) both chose to come back to be counselors n when their friends try to introduce them they’re like we know each other already. (Likely Cate, Andre, Luke with Jordan and Marie with Emma and Sam??) Their homies then bear witness to the most sexually charged banter they have ever seen n are like you two… hate each other?? Are you sure?

Pirate/Siren AU

Pirate Jordan….. Siren Marie….. Froths at the mouth. That’s it, that’s the AU. I have no further thoughts other than Jordan washing up on fantasy island n Marie is laying there sunbathing next to them all oh ur awake!! Jordan short existential crisis of being attracted to a fish n then being relieved when Marie can change into a purely human form with small differences. (Sharper teeth and nails, a pointed tongue, a little more cat-like pupils, and a sort of strange gait to the way she walks.)

Alternatively, for Pirate/Siren, it could also be Pirate/Succubus

Marie ending up separated from her family after landing in human territory, Eek! Maybe b/c they’re like.. fantasy land royalty and we’re trying to strike a deal with this part of human land but then BAM betrayal, and as they’re fleeing Marie somehow gets pulled apart from them n their like find ur way back!! We’ll send Emma to come help you!! Jordan on the other hand is in search for a treasure that’s located in fantasy creature territory, and is in search of another crewmate after one jumped board. Marie gets rejected at first, since Jordan does not recognize her to be a succubus at first bc maybe… she has some magical amulet from her parents that blocks that perception of her for her own safety. Nor do they recognize her as royalty b/c I think it’d be fun if Marie was sort of? A veiled princess, nobody truly knows what she looks like but they’ve heard stories of what power she inherited. (Thinking that royal lineages are the ones who are supes.) Anyways, maybe that areas guards see her n recognize something she’s wearing so she’s like fuck it I’m jumping on board anyways Idc if you rejected me, n maybe it’s Cate who’s like ur in, I don’t know why Jordan was being an ass. Fairy!Emma joins them too either right after seeing Marie get on board or she was the one to be like FUCK WE HAVE NO OTHER OPTION JUST HOP IN !!

Bonus points if Jordan and Marie save each other at least once, and there’s cute moments of Marie showing Jordan places that are off their map (magic areas with like, cute little fantasy animals n just beautiful scenery bc I love that shit.) Marie basically on the run with Emma, maybe there’s also a part of the plot line where Marie has to deliver something to some magical beast or she was just tired! Of being holed up in that kingdoms castle just bc of her powers. Honestly could end with them reaching the place n Marie n Jordan are like strange that this is the same place I was going. N then they keep walking on the same path n their like are we… going to the same place right now. Edit: Forgot to add that Jordan would also probably come from a royal line, along with Cate, Andre, Luke and Sam! (Luke probably abandoning his position as king for some reason that could be adjacent to the whole situation with The Woods where instead of a virus being created it was just. An experimentation on Sam to try and see if they could come up with what essentially would be Compound V)

Post-Apocalypse AU

You can guess how majority of this goes. Could be that Compound V was made a lot earlier but somehow mutated and not only infected Supes, but also infected humans, which made them into zombies. Supes powers are dwindled down exponentially but they’re still a lot more enhanced in comparison to human zombies. Maybe Marie is on her own and finally thinking she’s reached the end of her line but then Andre comes in n is like hey!! Come with me lol I have a group n you seem cool. Andre explains to her that they’ve been on the search for a safe-haven they’ve been hearing about, and Marie is absolutely wowed bc she didn’t know any talk of that. Jordan is obviously irritated bc they’re like Marie is just body to protect and another mouth to feed W’s he’ll just slow them down blah blah blah. The usual Jordan looking out for themself first and foremost, but veiling it as a group thing. (Thinking it could be because they lost Luke n Brink n they just. Can’t take another loss like that, n it sort of feels like they’re just trying to fill a gap if they let Marie in. And they’d rather not stick their neck out for some stranger.)

Journey is long, Marie and Jordan have their moments of bickering and absolutely not getting along at first but after they find each other awake at night, both awoken by nightmares, they have a conversation and make a truce. They still snap at each other a little because they’re learning how to navigate one another but they’re noticeably a lot more friendly n are able to make jokes with one another. The group is like DAMN FINALLY !! Got sick n tired of hearing them constantly arguing. (Can especially see this situation bringing out the differences in Marie and Jordan’s moral compass. I feel like when in this setting, Jordan is a lot more willing to let others die if it means keeping loved ones safe. A lot more violent and unhinged and generally just a little bit scary, whereas Marie is the one who tries to see the good in people first instead of second even now. She’s more empathetic to the fact these zombies were humans once too, which could attribute to maybe Marie losing Annabeth to the virus. (Thinking that in this AU, bc compound V was made earlier that Marie’s powers didn’t show up until the apocalypse had already begun and possibly her parents were just in the line of fire when she freaked on a group of zombies, n Annabeth ended up bit but didn’t say anything. Except she was extremely irritable, slowly grew more sick, and eventually Marie had to lock Annie up n tried so hard to keep her alive until she realized forcing Annabeth to live like this was just cruel.) Marie probably ends up learning her lesson after a group they encounter stabs them in the back after Marie had JUST advocated for them. Jordan initially is rlly mad n is all up in arms about it bc they told her! They fucking told her! But quickly comes around when they realize Marie is genuinely having a whole factory reset bc of this n it just. Changes her perception completely, n Jordan almost mourns the fact that Marie had to learn things the hard away n they can’t just. Protect her from everything all the time.

#limoreau #mariejordan #gen v #marie x jordan #jordan li #marie moreau #gen v fanfiction #alternate universe #fic ideas

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altocat · 2 months

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CW:

I noticed that one of the main themes of Sephiroth’s character is dehumanization.

It got me wondering, did he ever experience or deal with SA or harassment when under Shinra? R&D stuff or just the way he was paraded around like a public idol? How would he have handled this type of issue?

TWs below the cut just in case.

There's a lot of uncomfortable aspects about Sephiroth's history with Shinra. The way he's treated like a weapon. His fucked up conception. The fact that he was a child soldier who had apparently never really been around people at all before the age of 14.

One of the more understated bits is the very disturbing fixation that Hojo has on his own son. Silver Elite had the whole shampoo infodump of course, but the basic theme of Sephiroth's private "club" (which is RUN by Hojo) is emphasizing how attractive he is. Rebirth added extra grossness by having Hojo further expand on his idea of a hero needing to be "attractive" in order to be beloved by the populace. Whether intentional or not, especially when you take into account that Silver Elite has been around since Sephiroth was a child, it creates the idea of Hojo having some...less than wholesome perceptions about his son and who he needs to be. I'm not saying that Hojo has directly SA'd Sephiroth as I don't think Square is leaning into this idea. But bear in mind that Hojo is implied to be Sephiroth's personal caretaker and physician, on TOP of being his parent and in a position of authority over him. Hojo has access to Sephiroth's medical history, access to private information that no one else will ever have. And he dumps this information out for the public, with a special focus on how "attractive" and "beautiful" his son is.

At the end of the day, I think Hojo has sexually harassed Sephiroth throughout his life. We now have confirmation that he's physically and medically abused Sephiroth over the years. But the sheer presence of "Chairwoman H" coupled with Shinra buying INTO it and exploiting it to keep Sephiroth popular is just...really disconcerting. Sephiroth is completely indifferent to his fame and his fans, so he's not sanctioning this information. But the fact that he doesn't stop it either suggests that there is still a level of control and authority over him by Shinra's upper management. And keep in mind that they RAISED him. This is basically your "parent" violating you every single day of your life while you're also told to go out and kill people and also kill your friends while you're at it. And there's nothing you can really do about it because there's nowhere to go and no one to be. They are all you have, all you have ever known. You have to obey them, even when you absolutely despise them for what they're doing.

Sephiroth is responsible for so many reprehensible acts. But he is justified in hating Shinra for everything they did to him. And I think his reactions in canon are his own little way of getting back at what they did. Sure, Sephiroth has let go of a lot of his humanity. But what remains still seems to remember the people who made him what he was. And in destroying the planet, he destroys THEM as well.

#asks #ff7 #ffvii #final fantasy 7 #crisis core #sephcanons #sephiroth #hojo #trigger warnings

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kuiperblog · 1 year

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What makes movie action “good?”

There’s a John Wick movie in theaters. There seems to be pretty uniform agreement that John Wick movies have great action, and simultaneously, there seems to be a lot of general “Marvel fatigue,” some of which is specifically about the MCU, but also some of which is about “action blockbusters” that seem to put a lot of focus on action and spectacle that a lot of people seem to be growing increasingly disenchanted with. (See, for example: Tomorrow War (2021) starring Chris Pratt, Extraction (2020) starring Chris Hemsworth, and to round out the Chris roster we also have Wonder Woman 1984 (2020) with Chris Pine.)

Most of the discussion tends to focus on effects, and how making everything in a computer feels soulless while practical effects like the ones in John Wick and Everything Everywhere All At Once are superior, and there’s a certain degree to which blockbuster CG does look worse due to everything being computer generated. But I think a much bigger and more deep-seated problem is that blockbuster action is poorly structured.

There are a lot of great practical scenes in John Wick with choreography that is great not just in execution, but in concept: if you recreated them with computer animation, or hand-drawn animation, many of them would be just as fun. You could look at a storyboard with a director’s poorly-drawn pencil sketches and you’d still be able to follow the logic and understand what the scene’s impact is supposed to be. You can tell this, because people can describe these scenes, and regularly do exactly that, because they’re memorable. It’s what the legend of John Wick is all about. (And it’s not just the “top 10 most creative John Wick kills” listicles that remind us of that fact.)

The thing is, John Wick doesn’t rely on the unique outlandish props for memorable kills. Most of John Wick’s kills boil down to “point gun, pull trigger.” And yet despite that most of his kills are with bullets, so many of them feel unique. Each scene feels like it has a tempo to it, a sense of flow, a chain of cause and effect. “That guy is hiding behind a pillar, but his toe is sticking out. So I’ll shoot him in the toe, causing him to bend over in pain, exposing the rest of his body so I can shoot center of mass.” There’s always the moment when John Wick runs empty and has to reload before delivering the killshot.

There’s a storytelling principle that’s often applied to plot structure. This was famously described by Trey Parker to a bunch of NYU students on MTVU's "Stand In." Trey Parker describes the writers room as containing a massive white board, split into 3 acts, where they write down ideas scenes and rearrange them. Each scene has to be entertaining by itself, but they also need to be connected by a coherent narrative through-line.

"You don't want just one scene where, 'well, what was the point of that?' Take the beats of your outline, and if the words 'and then' belong between those beats, you've got something pretty boring. What should happen between every beat that you've written down is either the word 'therefore,' or 'but.'”

A happens, therefore B happens. Or, B doesn't happen, but C happens, therefore D happens. Repeat. You can use this to structure the plot for a 25-minute TV episode, or a 120-minute movie, or a 2-minute action scene. Follow it, beat by beat, and see if one leads to the next:

One of the evil henchmen comes swinging at our hero with a wooden chair raised over his head, but the hero dodges and the wooden chair smashes against the floor, shattering. Therefore, the ground is now covered with the broken remains of a wooden chair, so the mook picks up one of the long pieces of wood that served as a chair leg and begins swinging at the hero again. But the hero successfully dodges and the wooden club breaks and splinters in a way that causes it to become, therefore the mook starts trying to use the splintered end to stab the hero...

I’m not saying this is an amazing action scene, but it’s a competent one: each beat flows into the next. The chair becomes a chair leg, then the chair leg becomes a shiv. Each time the henchman comes rushing at the hero, he’s doing it with a different weapon. The scene has a logic to it: if you rearranged the shots, the scene wouldn’t make sense. You can’t start with a splintered piece of wood and then end on an intact chair.

So many mediocre action movies fail to deliver it. The bad guy punches the hero. And then he punches the hero again. And then he tries to kick the hero. And then he punches in a different, cooler way. There’s no real sense in which each beat is a consequence of what followed it: if you cut the scene up and rearranged the shots, a lot of people might not even notice. (And in fact that sort of thing happens all the time in the editing bay.)

Tony Zhou self-deprecatingly describes this problem when critiquing one of his own videos, saying “This is a list you could put in any order. That’s why it’s so boring.”

For examples of action cinema where every beat feels like a consequence of what preceded it, watch any classic Jackie Chan movie (the ones that came out of Hong Kong, not Hollywood). Tony Zhou describes it like this:

“So how does Jackie create action that is also funny? First off, he gives himself a disadvantage. No matter what film, Jackie always starts beneath his opponents. He has no shoes. He’s handcuffed. He has a bomb in his mouth.“

“From this point, he has to fight his way back to the top. Each action creates a logical reaction. And by following the logic, we get a joke.” (Jackie is facing an assailant with a gun; Jackie has a gun, but it’s empty. Therefore, Jackie fakes surrender, handing his empty gun to the assailant. Therefore, the assailant is now holding an unloaded gun in his left hand. The assailant now thinks he has control of the situation, but reaching for the unloaded gun distracted him the fact that Jackie was entering a fighting stance and getting ready to kick: therefore, when Jackie kicks, he succeeds in knocking the loaded gun out of the assailant’s right hand. Therefore, the assailant tries to fire at Jackie using the gun in his left hand -- which is empty, and he realizes it in a moment of surprise which Jackie seizes on by punching the assailant in the face.)

This is the joy of watching Jackie Chan films: much like the example of a chair (which morphs into a chair leg, which morphs into a shiv), a prop in a Jackie Chan movie is rarely just one thing. A ladder isn’t just a ladder; it’s a prop. And it’s several different kinds of props. Fighting with a ladder like this:

...is subtly different than fighting with a ladder after this happens:

And if you flip it over a guy’s head, it suddenly becomes a cage:

...trapping a guy just long enough for him to look at you in surprise right before your fist intersects with his face.

It’s great for action comedy, but it’s also great for straight action: sometimes, the “punchline” is someone getting defeated in a surprising way. John Wick is one of the few big franchises of recent years to reliably do this sort of thing well.

Often, John Wick accomplishes this by being clever. But I think a big part of it comes down to the fact that John Wick is just mortal enough for the number of bad guy’s he’s facing to matter. Each scene needs a sense of “progress,” where the stakes are constantly changing, and sometimes the change in stakes is as simple as, “There are five bad guys, oh no!” Bang bang, pivot, bang bang. “Okay, now there are only three bad guys.” (It’s harder to do this when you’ve been injected with super soldier serum and wear a suit made of high-tech blast resistant stretch fabric: Captain America subduing five bad guys doesn’t feel meaningfully different from him subduing three bad guys, even if the way he punches them is really cool.)

Stakes matter! If threat level scales linearly with the number of bad guys on screen, then each scene will have a natural eb and flow to it as bad guys get gradually picked off (or as more of them stream into the room, or pick themselves up off the floor and reach for the gun they just dropped).

One of the MCU scenes that actually did this better than most is the famous Captain America elevator scene: first, Crossbones and two guys get onto the elevator with cap. A bit surprising. Why is that guy resting his hand on his hip so close to his gun? Several floors later, the elevator opens, and four more guys get on. They’re wearing suits, like you’d expect from people who just showed up for a day at the office. This is headquarters, there’s nothing to be worried about. So why is that guy sweating? Then, the door opens again, and three more guys get on -- and these guys are wearing tac gear. But hey, it’s Jack -- I know Jack, he was in the first ensemble movie, he can’t be one of the bad guys...so why is he standing directly between me and the door?

It’s a great example of slowly amping up the tension by gradually adjusting the threat level up. The scene even amps up the tension by having the magnetic handcuff, which leaves Cap in various stages of incapacitation throughout the fight. And he has to fight his way up from the bottom. But we very quickly go from this iconic shot:

...then after literally three seconds of Cap delivering a rapid series of strikes to incapacitate most of the mooks, he’s back to fighting two or three of them at a time.

Despite there being ten bad guys in the elevator, it’s kind of hard to get a clear fix on how many of them attacking Cap at any given moment, all of the others existing in various states of injury and recovery after they get the wind knocked out of them. In fact, the only shot that allows us to get a full body count is after the fight is over:

But it’s still a fun scene, one of my favorites, succeeding at being fun and memorable.

The bigger issue is the need to be “epic”: threat level can’t scale linearly with the number of bad guys on screen when you want a scene where there are literally hundreds of enemies to fight off.

There’s a certain point at which the marginal effect of another bad guy on screen is effectively zero. Obviously, this is the case when you have hundreds or dozens of enemies on screen, but there’s a real sense in which “group of seven bad guys” doesn’t feel different from “group of six bad guys.” Our brains just categorize both as “a pretty big cluster.” Research tends to come to slightly different results on this, but it seems like humans count “one, two, three, four, many.” Once you have five bad guys on screen, adding a sixth bad guy doesn’t do anything to change the stakes. (That’s the problem with having a hero who’s so strong that you need to throw 10 bad guys at him to pose any threat.)

If you cap the total number of on-screen bad guys at five, then each enemy the hero defeats meaningfully changes the stakes, and John Wick does this a lot. In many cases, the flow just comes from watching the number of bad guys on screen decrease linearly as the hero picks them off, one by one. It gives the scene a natural scenes of progress, and it can sometimes be played for comedy, like Neal Stephenson does in Snow Crash in a scene described by a sniper’s dialog:

"It's, like, one of them drug dealer boats," Vic says, looking through his magic sight. "Five guys on it. Headed our way." He fires another round. "Correction. Four guys on it." Boom. "Correction, they're not headed our way anymore." Boom. A fireball erupts from the ocean two hundred feet away. "Correction. No boat."

That’s a (very short) scene with flow. You can’t rearrange the beats; every beat leads to the next. Follow the logic, and arrive at the punchline.

#writing #john wick #movies #snow crash #neal stephenson

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