#i just feel this not only shows his humility but just how at his core he always does what he thinks is right. he does what is kind

[mysticsnoopy]

i will forever think about this panel and how it shows usagi's character

#usagi yojimbo #HE JUST TRIES TO DO WHATS RIGHT.... #i just feel this not only shows his humility but just how at his core he always does what he thinks is right. he does what is kind #over and over again usagi trusts people and in reality its not always that he is rewarded for being kind or trusting. but he does it anyway #over and over he trusts someone and gets stabbed in the back but he still trusts people #of course he still takes no shit and if someone wrongs him he wont trust them again but he still trusts strangers #he helps people he doesnt know #hes kind to people and really only responds rudely as retaliantion for bad or rude behaviour #and all in all he is just a person. he has his flaws but hes still kind. #snoopy babbles

[once-upon-an-animation]

If I could redo PJO and give each counselor and some minor characters an arc…

So one of the things a lot of PJO fans want to see done differently in the show is adding more depth to the side characters at Camp Half blood, particularly characters like the Stoll brothers, Silena Beauregard, Charles Beckendorf, etc. I’m not sure how much screen time these guys are really gonna get, but I keep fantasizing about each of them sort of having their own story, even if it would lead to a convoluted plot.

Therefore, in this post, I’m going to outline what kind of arc I would have given to each character/counselor in PJO if I had been the one writing the story. Some of these will be pretty close to what is already canon, some of these are a complete overhaul of the canon characterization, some will be inspired by canon but not obey it completely. I also can’t promise that they’re entirely original. Brace yourself, this is a VERY long post:

- Percy Jackson: Wouldn’t change much about his original arc. I would add the following things:

1) Make him more active in the resolution of the love triangle between him, Rachel, and Annabeth. Have him reflect more on what he likes about Annabeth over Rachel.

2) Have him hesitate more in his decision to give Luke that dagger. The hesitation can be caused by Percy remembering all the ways in which Luke has hurt people, including himself. Have him be angry and not want to give Luke the dagger; it would add more suspension to the choice and make it a more emotional one.

3) Have him train more.

4) The first thing that Percy told us in the book was that he didn’t want to be a half-blood. I think an awesome full-circle moment for him would be to have a moment where he fully accepts and embraces being a half-blood as a part of his identity, even if he doesn’t like it much. He doesn’t necessarily have to be proud of it, but I think it would be s cool character moment for him to make peace with it.

It could work best during his dip in the River Styx when he forgets who he is. When he initially grabs Annabeth’s hand, he not only remembers who he is just as a person, but he also remembers being a half-blood as a part of who he is. He accepts his fate and his life as a demigod for what it is, and makes a final decision to be brave and to take on the prophecy no matter how scared he is. In a way, he would also be accepting that Annabeth is also a demigod and can’t offer him an escape the way Rachel can, but that’s okay because he cares for Annabeth deeply, and they can work together to overcome their obstacles.

- Annabeth Chase: I’m going to be honest, I don’t think Annabeth had much of an arc l’in the original series. Her relationships with others definitely changed over time, but I personally feel that she didn’t change that much in terms of her core character traits or beliefs. She started the story as a prideful, aggressive, sentimental character and mostly ended the story that way (as evidenced by HoO). She ended up being right about Luke redeeming himself, so it’s not like she was forced to change her view on when to stop defending bad people. She’s also rarely called out on her flaws; Percy getting mad at her in BoTL is the closest we ever get.

So for Annabeth, I would enhance her arc by having her try to counter her hubris by actively working on her sense of humility. This can manifest in many ways:

1) Humility in the idea that she might be wrong about Luke and his ability to be redeemed. Humility in the idea that he is not a perfectly good person and that he’s hurt a lot of people.

2) Humility in the idea that she is not always right in general and she is capable of getting things wrong. More moments where someone other than Percy calls her out on her shortcomings could be a part of this.

3) Humility in the idea that she doesn’t own Percy and isn’t entitled to a relationship with him. If they’re going to end up together, she has to give him the room to choose that for himself just like she chose it for herself. Don’t get me wrong, I understand that Percy waffled around a bit and needed to be pushed/challenged a little. But like, he still has his own autonomy, you know? His relationships are still his choice. I just want to see Annabeth respect Percy’s autonomy more than she does in canon. It seems like when he doesn’t agree with her or do things her way, her usual move is to get mad at him or worse, hit him. I don’t like this and it doesn’t demonstrate a healthy relationship.

4) Humility in the idea that her plans don’t always work, and sometimes other people are better at things that she is weaker at. ie. Rachel knowing how to navigate the Labyrinth better than her.

- Grover Underwood: Wouldn’t really change anything, I would just reveal more of his quest to find Pan and what he sees/learns along the way, maybe by adding more interactions between Grover and nature deities that we haven’t seen yet. Grover’s arc and involvement with nature would also be a cool opportunity to involve Demeter in the story more and make her more than just a nagging mom character.

Perhaps she and Pan have a friendship of sorts, and Pan has asked her to help Grover subtly along his quest. Or maybe Demeter and Grover can connect over their sadness at the destruction of nature, and how Demeter sometimes worries if her own domain will fade someday as more and more human societies turn away from traditional farming and agriculture.

- Luke Castellan: Wouldn’t change anything about his core story. I would, however, change the way that Annabeth thinks of and responds to him in later parts of the story, and I would change the way that he and his sacrifice is viewed at the end of TLO. I would give the story a more balanced or nuanced view about Luke’s actions.

I would also make Luke’s motivations more cohesive and have his desire to help other demigods be the main motivation from the start. Lastly, I would remove that stuff about him developing a crush on Annabeth at the end of TLO *or* if we want to keep this, I would just age him down. I don’t think much would change if Luke was like, 2 years older than Annabeth as opposed to 6 or 7.

- Thalia Grace: The only thing I would add to Thalia’s arc is more emphasis on the transition between the end of SoM and the beginning of TTC. Thalia has been out of commission for 5 years and I’m sure a lot has changed in the world since. I would add moments where she feels behind with the way things have changed, aka her not being up to date with the latest tech, pop culture moments, slang, etc. that the other kids at her new school are using. On top of finding out that Luke is now a villain, this becomes a source of emotional stress for Thalia and Annabeth has to comfort her.

In addition, I feel like this gives Thalia an even stronger reason to join the Hunters. Not only does she want to write off love, but joining the Hunters allows her to withdraw from the modern world that she no longer feels a part of and stick with the type of life that she knows and feels comfortable with.

- Bianca Di Angelo: Wouldn’t change much; maybe add more nuance and hesitation to her decision to ditch Nico and join the Hunters.

- Nico Di Angelo: Wouldn’t change much within PJO, but I have a lot of thoughts on what happened with him in HoO. Let’s save that for another day.

- Clarisse LaRue: The inspiration for Clarisse’s arc comes from her deep fear of making Ares angry at her and not having the same respect he gives his sons, and her need for respect in TLO. In my mind, Clarisse’s arc would be about learning the right way to earn respect.

Picture this: she starts the series off as a daughter of Ares who feels disrespected by her father and is craving respect from elsewhere. She thinks about how Ares and the gods in general command respect by being intimidating and making people fear them, so she engages in bullying in an effort to make people respect her. However, throughout the course of the series, we learn that none of the campers really respect her or the other bullies in the Ares cabin, and Clarisse continues to struggle to feel respected.

Over the course of the series, Clarisse begins to realize that bullying does not inspire true respect, but she has a hard time unlearning this because it goes against what she’s always thought. She starts mellowing out a little, having some of her softer moments in SoM and BoTL, but she’s still struggling. In addition, every time she experiences disrespect, she reverts back to her old behavior.

This comes to a climax in TLO when the whole Ares/Apollo cabin beef happens and she initially sits the war out. The campers call her out for not being a good friend all these years and for not being able to put her grudge aside to help her fellow campers during their biggest challenge. They specifically tell her that the reason she and her cabin don’t get any respect is because they aren’t very nice. Clarisse tries to argue about Michael Yew and the chariot, but the Apollo campers inform her that Michael is dead. He died fighting beside his friends, making him someone worthy of respect…unlike Clarisse.

Clarisse is forced to think about what makes someone w worth respecting and what doesn’t, and realizes her most respectable moments was when she was being a good friend. She apologizes to the camp for all the bullying and for ditching them during the war, and fights fiercely by them for the remainder of it. Clarisse doesn’t necessarily become a sweetheart after this, but she certainly becomes a better friend and cools down on the bullying. She also encourages her siblings to do the same.

- The Stoll Brothers: The Stoll brothers are pranksters and thieves, always turning every moment into an opportunity to steal and loot…even during war. This implies to me that they’re not very good at taking important things seriously, so here is my arc for them.

We know that things in the Hermes cabin aren’t exactly the happiest. The cabin is overcrowded with unclaimed kids and minor god kids who are probably salty about not having a cabin. You also have the other Hermes kids who are witnessing all of this. I like to imagine that since CHB doesn’t have a therapist and Chiron is spread pretty thin, the campers usually turn to their counselors or older siblings for emotional support.

After Luke betrays everyone and leaves, a lot of the unclaimed kids and minor god kids start to think about joining Luke in overthrowing the gods as they feel he might be right. They turn to Connor and Travis for emotional support but since the Stoll brothers don’t take things seriously, they brush off their campers and prioritize their pranking and looting. This pisses of their campers, and after the battle of the Labyrinth occurs and they see a bunch of their friends die without much help from the gods, a bunch of them make the decision to leave CHB and fight for Kronos.

As they’re leaving, Connor and Travis question them and try to make them stay, but their campers aren’t convinced. They complain about the way things have been, and they call Connor and Travis out for being crappy counselors before they leave. Connor and Travis feel awful about this and vow to win back their campers.

During TLO, the Stoll brothers encounter their old campers on the battlefield and hesitate to fight them. They try over and over to apologize to them and convince them that fighting with Kronos is not the way. The old Hermes campers are not convinced that the Stoll brothers truly care about them. This changes when the monsters from Kronos’ army pull a trick that ends up endangering the demigods who are on Kronos’ side, and the demigods feel deceived. Connor and Travis risk their lives to save their old campers, which finally convinces them. The old campers defect from Kronos’ army and rejoin CHB.

After the war, Connor and Travis vow to be better counselors. They commit to cleaning up their cabin now that it’s less crowded, and doing a better job of listening to their campers concerns. They still prank and loot, but they make sure they take care of their campers first.

- Charles Beckendorf: Beckendorf’s arc is inspired by his sentiments in feeling that machines are easier to understand than people and him being the anchor for the entire camp.

Beckendorf starts the series out as a guy who is pretty introverted. He likes to stay in the forge with his inventions and stay away from all the drama and hullabaloo that goes on with other campers. As a result, no one really knows Beckendorf or how great of a guy he is. This changes in SoM. At some point prior or during the beginning of SoM, Silena and Beckendorf start interacting. I like to think it’s because Silena got her weapon damaged and Beckendorf is helping her fix it. Silena’s kind and charming personality leads to Beckendorf opening up to her a little, which helps her realize that Beckendorf is a really cool dude.

As the camp continues to struggle with monster attacks while Mr. D and Tantalus don’t help much, Silena asks Beckendorf to help her and the other counselors talk to Mr. D/Tantalus and help lead the camp defenses. Beckendorf hesitates because again, he doesn’t like dealing with other people and being at the front lines isn’t really his style. But he does care about his friends and knows he can make a difference. Silena convinces him to break out of his shell, and he sort of takes over while they wait on the Fleece to be brought back.

Through his leadership, the campers get to see what a great guy Beckendorf is and he becomes more popular around camp. This encourages Beckendorf to come out of the forge more often, and he begins making more friends and bonding with Silena a little bit more. Over time, he becomes the “anchor” for the camp: giving people advice, being a shoulder for people to lean on, making people laugh and smile, and just being a great guy all around. I like to imagine that he, Percy, the Stoll brothers, and a few other boys form a friend group where they regularly hang out together at camp.

- Silena Beaureguard: Silena’s arc would remain mostly same as her book arc. The only thing I would change are her motivations and the depth of Luke’s manipulations.

Silena’s arc would focus on courage to do the right thing. When Luke initially convinces Silena to help him, it’s less so because Silena thinks he’s cute and moreso because she genuinely thinks that Kronos cares about demigods more than the gods do. She lies to her friends and dances around them to keep up with her spying. However, over time, especially after the death of her friends and siblings in BoTL, Silena starts to realize that Kronos doesn’t care about demigods at all. She tries to quit spyings few times. Initially, Luke tries to convince her that she’s on the right side by telling her that the deaths can’t be helped; it’s the campers’ fault for fighting for the wrong side. Silena is not completely convinced, but after Luke threatens to tell, she becomes consumed by fear of how her friends would react, and moreso, what Charlie would think of her.

She becomes more and more anxious about getting caught, to the point where Charlie starts to suspect that something is going on. Silena also becomes more anxious about her friends dying, knowing that she might be contributing to it. When she tells Kronos about the stealth mission, she tries to beg for Percy and Charlie’s lives, but Kronos agrees to let only Charlie live. Silena feels bad about what might happen to Percy, and has a hard time facing Annabeth, Percy, and Charlie prior to the mission. Right before Charlie takes off for the mission, she expresses her fear of losing him and begs him to be safe. Charlie assumes that this is what has been bothering Silena and gives her some comforting affection before he leaves.

After Charlie’s death, Silena is angry as she was in the books. She’s also mad at herself. However, she continues to help Kronos not just because she’s mad, but because she is still terrified of being revealed as the spy. Many campers are still angry about Beckendorf’s death, and she knows they would never forgive her. However, the amount of injury and death she sees during the battle of Manhattan is too much for her (especially Annabeth). This inspires her to try and redeem herself secretly by getting the Ares cabin, and then she ends up dying after revealing her secret as she did in the books.

In the original books, everyone agreed to view Silena as a hero. But in my head, I find this unrealistic. Maybe not every camper was willing to say what they thought because they don’t want to speak ill of the dead, but in my mind, there are a lot of mixed feelings surrounding Silena after the war. Some campers think she was a hero and don’t blame her at all, some view her actions as heroic but believe that she messed up big time, and some actively refuse to see her as a hero. Notably, Beckendorf’s siblings and closest friends (think Jake Mason, Nyssa Barrera, etc.) have a particularly hard time viewing Silena as a hero, knowing that her actions cost Charlie his life. Drew also has a hard time with Silena’s betrayal, but I’ll discuss that later.

- Pollux/Castor: Pollux’s arc is inspired by his brother’s death in the books. His arc is about overcoming grief and desires for revenge.

Pollux and Castor don’t have much of a personality in the books, so here’s what I’m thinking. As sons of Dionysus, they are larger-than-life party boys. To them, life is one huge party and nothing can bring them down. They celebrate everything and find any excuse to throw a party. In addition, they have mixed feelings about their godly parent being present at camp. On one hand, it’s like being the children of the school principal; people don’t really like their dad and don’t want to get in trouble with him and Pollux snd Castor have to deal with all that weirdness. On the other hand, it’s cool having a godly parent who’s close by and not as absent as other godly parents.

As twins, Pollux and Castor are joined at the hip; they do EVERYTHING together (including quests!) and Pollux can’t imagine a world without his brother in it. However, Mr.D starts to wonder if they’re too dependent on each other. Mr. D makes this comment to Pollux but he brushes it off. It’s okay if they depend on each other because they’re brothers and Castor will always be there, right?

During BoTL, Pollux and Castor fight side by side. However, they get separated in the heat of battle and they have a hard time fighting enemy demigods because they’re not used to fighting without each other. Just as an enemy demigod is about to kill Pollux, Castor manages to find an push his brother out of the way, and takes the hit instead.

After Castor’s death, Pollux becomes consumed with grief and depression. He stops participating in camp activities and stays in his cabin most of the time; he also doesn’t throw parties anymore. Dionysus tries to talk to him, but Pollux doesn’t want to talk to him; his dad is a god who wouldn’t understand. Mr. D reminds Pollux that he was once a demigod who lost his mother, but while Pollux appreciates the comfort, he is still grieving. He also develops a deep hatred for enemy demigods, and doesn’t sympathize with them or act merciful towards them the way Percy does.

The year between BoTL and TLO, Pollux becomes more and more bitter, getting snappier with his friends.. He also becomes consumed with training, because he has struggled with fighting monsters without Castor at his side. His friends try to talk to him about his behavior and mental health, but he doesn’t want to hear it. All Pollux can think about is his anger and desire for revenge.

During TLO, Pollux is absolutely brutal towards the enemy demigods, despite the campers he is with reminding him that the enemy demigods deserve sympathy. Pollux brushes this off, as the enemy demigods had no sympathy for him or his brother. Pollux eventually runs into the enemy demigod that killed Castor. Pollux becomes consumed by revenge and actively tries to kill this demigod, even if it means not following the battle plan. As a result, he endangers both himself and his fellow campers. One of the campers, who is Pollux’s friends sacrifices themselves to save Pollux and the others, allowing Pollux to get away with just an injury.

As he’s escorted to Olympus to heal, Pollux feels so bad about the dead camper and how much he has let grief and revenge consume him. As he rests in Olympus, he thinks about how the camper and Castor sacrificed themselves for him because they wanted him to live. Grief and desire for revenge has stopped him from living, which he feels is not a great way to honor their memories. Pollux decides that it’s time for him to accept his brother’s death and move on.

Before the campers head back to CHB after the battle, Pollux finds out that the enemy demigod who killed his brother was killed in battle somehow. Pollux remembers the kid’s name and godly parent from when they fought, and ensures that he receives a shroud at the final funeral. Pollux also decides that he wants to move on from Camp Half Blood and enjoy the life that Castor and his camper friend sacrificed themselves for. This is why he disappears after TLO. But before he leaves, he decides to host one last CHB cabin party with the help of other campers to celebrate the camp’s victory over the titans.

- Katie Gardener: Katie’s arc is inspired by her maternal personality and Demeter’s distant nature from her children. In addition, it’s also inspired by the fact that Demeter kids are not seen as super combative or strong in the first series.

Like Pollux and Castor, Katie barely shows up in the book and has no known personality traits except for the fact that she is stern/maternal. So along with her maternal personality, I like to think that she is stern but kind and caring towards her friends, especially her siblings. She looks out for them the way a mom would, making sure everyone’s on track and well taken care of.

I also think Katie is protective, the way Demeter is protective of Persephone. She sees it as her duty to nurture and protect her fellow campers, especially her siblings. When she fails to live up to what she perceives to be her responsibility, she beats herself up. Katie is very passionate about family. She prioritizes being there for her friends and family as much as she can. She loves culinary arts, and regularly bakes, cooks, and adds to her recipe book in her spare time. I like to think that she and all the Demeter kids get along really well with the nymphs and satyrs moreso than any other cabin.

Lastly, Katie is very mature. She hardly ever pulls pranks or breaks rules. She’s also very wholesome and “vanilla”. Her sense of humor is very kid-friendly, and you won’t catch her doing things like making out in public or spending a night in the stables with a romantic partner, unlike another couple we know! 😉

As for an arc, here’s what I’m thinking. Demeter kids are less likely to encounter their godly parent than other cabins, because of how distant Demeter is. The kids all feel a little sad about this in various ways, especially Katie, whose father never remarried. Katie occasionally tries to reach out to her mom via prayer but Demeter never responds. Because she loves her siblings and prioritizes family, Katie takes it upon herself to be the “cabin mama”, and looks after her siblings in a similar way that a mother would. This leads to Katie also becoming very protective of them, especially on quests and in battle.

Now, Demeter kids don’t deal with monsters too much, so it doesn’t bother them to not be as skilled or strong in combat. But when battle/war with the Titan army becomes inevitable, they begin to worry that they might not be strong enough. Katie is especially worried prior to the BoTL, because she wants to protect her siblings and get them through the battle alive. She and her siblings do their best, but the Demeter cabin ends up losing the most campers during the invasion, for which Katie feels responsible.

After the battle, Katie becomes preoccupied on how to become stronger in battle so she can protect her siblings; she begins training more and more. In addition, she wants to increase her magical powers beyond growing fruits and cooking food. Unfortunately, Katie still struggles with insecurities about feeling weak, especially when she trains with stronger campers and loses in duels to them.

She becomes desperate and frustrated enough to pray Demeter for help. Katie admits to Demeter in her prayer that she has insecurities about being a child of Demeter. Not only is Demeter distant, but she feels like she’s not as strong as other campers. She begs Demeter for help, some kind of magic item or assistance that will make her stronger. Katie doesn’t think that the prayer will work as Demeter rarely responds, but she tries anyway, reminding Demeter that her kids are family and mothers should look out for their kids.

Demeter is initially silent, which angers Katie. Upon returning to her cabin one day, she finds bags of various seeds from her mother. which angers her even more. These seeds are not special; they are the same plants that Katie has always grown. Katie feels like her mother didn’t help at all, and declares Demeter to be an uncaring mother.

During the battle in TLO, Katie is very nervous about fighting and losing more siblings in battle, and she worries if her training will pay off. Unfortunately, when the battle first starts, the Demeter kids take a few losses. Katie finally snaps, and uses one of her seeds/plants in a way she’s never used it before to take down some monsters.

Surprised by this undiscovered power, Katie continues experimenting with her gifted seeds, and ends up discovering a bunch of new ways to use the plants in battle and protect her siblings. The Demeter kids take her cue and begin doing the same with their seeds, turning their assigned tunnel into a jungle and defeating the monsters.

Katie eventually realizes that Demeter gave her those seeds as a reminder that Demeter kids have always been strong and that they have to grow their own strength. Katie’s insecurities about being weak begin to fade away, and she and her siblings kick butt in the remainder of the battle.

Now, I don’t ship Tratie (Travis and Katie), but a cute Tratie moment would be if during one of the final skirmishes, Travis gets into trouble and is about to get killed, but Katie pulls off some awesome plant magic and protects him. Travis thanks Katie and is surprised that she’s looking out for him, and Katie tells him that even though he’s kind of immature and annoying, she still cares about all her friends and would never let him die on her watch.

- Lee Fletcher: Lee’s narrative is kind of hard because he has even less of a personality and lines of dialogue in the original books than Katie does. However, I am going to base his arc off the fact that he’s an Apollo kid and some of the things Apollo mentioned in ToA about not remembering his children.

Now, as far as counselors go, we already have an archery kid (Michael Yew) and a healer kid (Will Solace). We don’t really have a music, poetry, or prophecy kid who’s lead the cabin. However, I want to stick with archery for what I’m imagining with Will’s arc. However, since the kids can have multiple interests or powers, I think it’s okay for Lee to be a good archer AND a good something else. I’m leaning towards poetry because we’ve already seen a lot of music-related powers in ToA. So poetry-related skills would be a little different. Here we go!

So in my mind, Lee’s arc is all about trying to get his father’s attention. I imagine Lee’s backstory like this: he came to camp when he was pretty young, like maybe 8 or 9. However, it took a really long time for Apollo to claim him (think a year or two). Most of the campers suspected that he was an Apollo kid due to his good archery skills and interest in poetry, and saw his claiming as just a formality, but unfortunately, the claiming took a while to come. In fact, unclaimed Apollo kids who arrived at camp after Lee were claimed before him.

After he was claimed, Lee was excited to finally know where he belonged. However, he couldn’t help but feel like Apollo didn’t care about him or live him as much as his other kids. While other Apollo kids received quests, had their prayers answered by Apollo, or even got to meet him once or twice, Lee has never met Apollo or received any quests from him directly.

Lee missed the pre-TLT trip to Mount Olympus because he was helping another camper out with one of their quests. Lee decides to try and gain his father’s attention/respect by becoming the best he can be at his skills. He trains hard to become one of CHB’s best archers and his poetry is incredible; he has a special poetry book full of his best work. Lee’s siblings (and other friends at camp) love him and really look up to him, especially Michael Yew. I like to think that the two could be close, and regularly train at the archery range together. But while Lee appreciates his siblings’ love and attention, it doesn’t make up for Apollo’s absence.

If I remember correctly, Apollo drops Percy, Thalia, and the Hunters off at CHB before leaving in Titan’s Curse. Lee hears about this after the fact, and is so angry about him missing such a close chance to finally interact with his father in a meaningful way. As Apollo continues to ignore Lee, Lee grows more bitter over the years, despite his siblings and friends continuously trying to cheer him up. He even writes some sad poetry to express his feelings. When some of the campers start to talk about joining Kronos prior to BoTL, Lee genuinely considers going with them, as he wonders what makes the gods worth fighting for.

Just as he is deciding to leave, he has a heartfelt talk with some of the siblings in his cabin, including Michael Yew and Will Solace. Lee realizes how much he loves his siblings and friends at CHB and how much they’ve supported him. He decides that while the gods might not be worth fighting for, his friends and siblings certainly are. Lee enters BoTL, ready to defend the camp with his life, and that’s exactly what happens. He takes on more monsters than he can handle to protect his siblings, and ends up being taken down.

His siblings grieve him deeply and promise to never forget the hero he was. As an epilogue to Lee’s story, I know this didn’t explicitly happen in ToA, but I like to think that one of his siblings brought up Lee to Lester/Apollo while Lester was at CHB during The Hidden Oracle. Perhaps they even show Apollo Lee’s poetry book. As Apollo reads through the book, he’s very impressed, but notices that the poems get sadder and sadder, and are referring to Apollo not caring about Lee. Apollo notices the last page of the book is empty and asks what happened. The kids reveal to Apollo that Lee died in the BoTL before he could finish the book. It devastates Apollo to discover that Lee died believing that Apollo didn’t care about it; Apollo spends a long time feeling like an awful father.

At the end of ToA, Apollo honors some of his kids who have died recently, including Lee and Michael, by writing a heartfelt memorial poem on the last empty page of Lee’s poetry book. The end of the poem also honors the Apollo kids who are still alive, and Apollo ends the poem with a few lines where he promises to contact his children more. While Apollo’s affection came far too late, Apollo wants Lee to know that he was an awesome kid, and that Apollo is proud of him and all of his children.

- Michael Yew: Michael Yew is another hard one. While he definitely has more of a personality than Lee or Katie, it’s hard to think of an arc for him that matches his personality and the theme of his death. But here’s what I’m thinking (sorry if it’s not great!): Michael is known for being on the shorter side, but offering lots of attitude to compensate for his height. He also holds on to that chariot dearly, only letting it go when he realized that the battle was more important.

So here’s an arc: Michael dreams of being a great hero, the kind that people praise for their strength and wit during battle and talk about for years to come. However, when most people think of heroes, they think of big strong macho guys, not little guys like Michael. Michael is insecure about his stature and physique, so he tries to compensate through his personality and his battle skills. In addition to his attitude, Michael is slightly cocky and arrogant. He puts himself on a pedestal, tries to act like more than what he is. He can also be a little reckless in battle; he occasionally ignores the danger of a situation if it means getting to have his heroic moment.

Michael trains hard with Lee and becomes a great archer. He’s not quite as good as Lee, but he’s still pretty good. Now, Michael got claimed much faster than Lee did and he was on the pre-TLT trip to Olympus where he got to meet his dad, so Michael knows Apollo cares about him. However, while Michael has helped others on their quest, he’s never had a chance to lead his own. He dreams of this, as it would be a chance to show off his skills and his leadership.

After Lee’s death, Michael becomes the new leader of the Apollo cabin, a role he takes seriously as he continues to try and prove himself. However, Michael’s attitude and arrogance come into play again a little bit, always looking for a chance to shine. His siblings tell him that he’s doing a little too much, but Michael doesn’t listen.

When the summer of TLO comes and quests are thrown out the window in favour of the raids, Michael is actually excited, because the chance that he will get to lead raids like he’s always wanted is more likely. However, the leadership thing doesn’t really work out because other counselors who already have experience leading (Annabeth, Percy, Clarisse, etc.) usually take charge. However, in the quest with the Ares cabin, Michael finds his moment to shine and ends up being a major hero in the battle. As he finally gets his moment of glory, Michael feels that as the “hero” of the raid, the chariot is his to keep, but as we know, Clarisse disagrees. The argument plays out the same way it did in canon, while emphasizing Michael’s arrogance.

As the campers are getting ready to leave for Manhattan as per Percy’s request, some kids in the Apollo cabin suggest to Michael that he should give Clarisse the chariot. When Michael demands to know why, his siblings tell him that it’s critical for the Ares cabin to be there if they go into battle, and that the chariot and his personal glory as a hero is not worth their absence.

At first, Michael disagrees, but then he does some self-reflecting not only on the chariot, but also on the qualities of a true hero. He really doesn’t want to let it go because the chariot is like a symbol of personal glory to him. However, he realizes that trying to shine as a hero isn’t the most important thing in the world; what matters is all the campers coming together. He tries to make peace with Clarisse by the chariot, but as it happens in canon, Clarisse holds on to her grudge, and Michael gets mad at her.

The battle begins and Michael’s on the bridge with his siblings. Michael is trying his best to lead and takes on the bulk of the monsters, but they’re struggling a lot and a lot of his siblings are getting hurt, even killed. In that moment, Michael doesn’t feel like much of hero; he feels like he’s losing and that the battle is impossible. Thankfully, Percy and Annabeth show up and things play out as they did in the books, right up until the beginning of the bridge scene. Michael’s siblings are trying to get to safety on the Manhattan side of the bridge, and Michael knows that he should probably get down and join them. However, he notices that the bridge is weak and comes up with a brilliant plan. Michael realizes that if the plan works, they’ll earn a win over Kronos by stopping him and his army from crossing over. Not only will this save them, but it’ll be a plan that Michael came up with. It’s a heroic moment that Michael has trouble resisting, even after his self-reflection from earlier.

Percy tells Michael to go but Michael ignores the request and informs Percy about the bridge. While Percy considers the plan and then goes to execute it, Michael has a split second chance to get off the bridge. But he’s so caught up in seeing his plan work out and watching the bridge collapse, that he doesn’t notice the cables giving way underneath him. He falls and smacks his head on one of the metal rods on the bridge, which renders him unconscious so that he doesn’t scream when he falls silently into the water. He ends up drowning In the river.

When Michael Yew’s death is confirmed, his siblings honor him as a hero. However, when they give their euology, they emphasize that what made Michael a great hero wasn’t necessarily how cool he was in battle. It was his better moments, like comforting Lee, and giving up the chariot if it meant getting Clarisse to come. This is what he is remembered for.

Sorry, I know this arc is kind of lame. I also know that it implies Michael is to blame for his death. However, I just couldn’t think of a reason as to why Michael would stay on the bridge long enough for it to collapse and take his life. Even as he fell, he could have jumped or even resurfaced in the water and yelled for help. The logistics of his death are really sketchy, so I did what I could.

- Will Solace: So out of all the tertiary characters in PJO, Will is the most fleshed out due to his newfound importance within the Solangelo ship. However, I’m going to be honest: I do not like Will’s canon personality. Therefore, I’m going to deviate from canon big-time and cook up a different Will in this post.

When I envision a boy who’s into healing/medicine, I imagine a much softer and sweeter person who pushes people when they need to be pushed, but in a gentle loving way (so more therapeutic). I also envision Will as a slightly flirty guy who enjoys romance a lot, and fantasizes about his ideal relationship all the time. Lastly, given his role as a son of Apollo and his light-related powers, my imagined arc for Will is all about toxic positivity, and his challenges dealing with the darker sides of being a half-blood.

Additionally, this version of Will Solace is a fairly sheltered kid. He lives in a part of the country where there isn’t much monster activity and crime/tragedy etc. He grew up in a relatively happy family…no significant trauma, abuse, neglect, relationship issues, etc. As a result, Will is a pretty optimistic, happy-go-lucky person who’s almost never in a bad mood. He always looks for the bright side in everything.

However, while Will’s optimism is generally a good thing, he sometimes falls into the trap of toxic positivity, where he pushes away darker topics and serious conversations in favour of keeping things light. This initially makes him a hard person to have nuanced conversations with, as he tends to dodge the issue at hand. Will also does this with himself. Whenever he feels sad or dark feelings, he refuses to do emotional reflection. He just bottles up whatever he’s feeling and forces himself to be “happy”.

Will is forced to confront the darker aspects of demigod life and life in general when he arrives at CHB the first time. As he talks to new friends and siblings about their backgrounds and learns more about the gods and the Greek world, he realizes there’s a lot of dark conflicts going on around him. In addition, as a healer, demigods don’t just come for healing with physical injuries. They also tend to talk about their emotional scars as well.

As much as Will cares for his siblings and friends. he finds all of the trauma overwhelming, and pushes it away as much as possible with toxic positivity. To him, anything can be fixed by just choosing to be happy and focusing on positive things. His siblings try to point out this toxic positivity and ignorant bliss, but Will doesn’t understand at first. To him, there’s nothing wrong with choosing to focus on happy things instead of dwelling on difficult feelings.

However, as the conflict with Kronos progresses, more battles happen, and more and more demigods get injured and killed. Campers open up about their grief of losing friends to death or to Kronos’ army, and Will finds it harder and harder to keep acting like these issues aren’t happening. All the feelings he’s bottled up come spilling out in BoTL (a recurring theme in this post, as you’ve noticed). Following the battle, there are a lot of dead demigods to assess, and a lot of injured demigods to try and heal. The healers from the Apollo cabin are working overtime and are struggling to attend to everyone. Will tries his absolute best to save as many demigods as possible, but some of the injuries are just too grave to fix.

The worst is Lee Fletcher. Will is tasked with trying to save his older half-brother and Will overextends himself trying to fix Lee’s injury. Unfortunately, it was never going to work as Lee was already almost dead anyway. After watching his brother die, Will’s first reaction is to do what he’s always done: bottle up the bad feelings. His siblings notice this and tell Will that it’s okay to not be positive all the time, and sometimes the best healing comes from facing sad and dark feelings instead of running from them. Will finally breaks down and sobs, letting out all the fears and worries about the dark side of being a demigod that he has kept inside over the years. His siblings give him advice on how to handle and overcome these dark moments.

Between BoTL and TLO, Will starts to change. He doesn’t lose his optimistic outlook, but he stops running away from difficult topics and conversations. He slowly becomes one of the best healers at camp not just for physical injuries, but because he’s now able to talk to people about emotional stuff as well.

This comes in handy during TLO after Michael Yew dies and the Apollo cabin is an emotional mess after losing another counselor within a year. Will is very nervous about being the new counselor; he’s not a renowned archer like Lee Fletcher or Michael Yew and doesn’t think that he will be as useful in battle. However, Will finds his groove as the battle progresses. His archer siblings take care of the battle stuff while he focuses on healing, and using his newfound coping skills, he’s able to console his siblings and keep the cabin (and camp!) together emotionally until the war is won.

These coping skills that Will has learned within this arc complement his future relationship with Nico. Nico’s status as a child of Hades causes people to fear him because of the creepiness of Hades’ domain and Nico’s powers. However, Will is one of the few campers that has no issues with Nico because Will has gotten better and better with confronting uncomfortable things. In addition, his therapeutic skills come in handy when talking to Nico about his trauma and emotional hardships. Rather than the snappy/angry Will that we get in BoO, we have a softer Will who validates Nico’s feelings and experiences, but gently pushes him to see that he is cared for and that there are people who want to be his friend, especially Will.

- Jake Mason: Jake Mason’s arc is all about living in the shadow of Charles Beckendorf.

As the anchor of the camp, Charlie is not only loved by all the other campers, he’s loved by his siblings. People admire his personality, his engineering skills, his looks, everything. As a result, the Hephaestus kids start using Charlie as the standard to live up to, especially when they’re building inventions. “What would Beckendorf do?” quickly becomes the motto of the cabin.

Jake Mason has mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, Charlie is a great guy and totally deserves this kind of praise. And Jake really admires him too. On the other hand, as the next oldest sibling, Jake feels a lot of pressure to be just like Charlie and to do everything the way Charlie would do it. Jake has a hard time with this because he’s not as talented as Charlie and he has a different way of doing things.

This becomes a major issue in TLO after Beckendorf dies and Jake becomes the new cabin counselor. Not only is Jake grieving, but now he has to lead his cabin mates in war while they’re all grieving as well. Since everyone misses Charlie, Jake feels a TON of pressure to be Beckendorf 2.0, and he’s not very good at it. His siblings don’t mean to add to the pressure; they just really miss Charlie and are accidentally projecting that onto Jake. Things come to boil during the battle of Manhattan when Jake tries to build and use an invention that Charlie designed. Unfortunately, Jake did not build it correctly and the invention ends up failing, leading to the Hephaestus kids nearly losing the skirmish and needing to be rescued by other campers.

After this, Jake goes to sulk. Nyssa Barrera and Will come after him, and he talks to them about all the pressure he’s been feeling to be just like Charlie. Will tells Jake that he knows how he feels - Will has also worried about not being enough like Lee or Michael. Will also tells Jake that he can’t be anything other than himself, and that he should focus on what he is good at instead of what Charlie was good at, just like how Will focused on his healing. Nyssa apologizes to Jake on behalf of the cabin for putting so much pressure on him to be just like Charlie, and she tells Jake that they appreciate him exactly as he is. She also supports Will’s message of focusing on what he can do.

Jake takes this advice and builds his own invention his way, instead of the way Charlie would have done it. When it’s time for battle, the invention seems like it’s going to fail at first, but it ends up pulling through, and the Hephaestus kids win the skirmish. Jake grows a lot in confidence and leads the cabin through the rest of the battle using his own style of leadership instead of trying to copy Beckendorf.

- Drew Tanaka: So like many fans, Drew’s canon character disappoints me because I’m tired of all the girly girls in this franchise being depicted as mean or shallow with no additional depth. I’m okay with Drew starting out as mean/rude girl but I want there to be more to her character.

My arc for Drew is her struggle with Silena’s betrayal. Prior to Drew’s first arrival at camp, she struggled with making true friends. Most of her friendships were based on shallow things, like wanting to be pretty and popular. This changes when she comes to CHB and meets some of the nicer girls in the Aphrodite cabin, including Silena. Silena is incredibly sweet: she looks out for all the girls in the cabin, is always willing to give a helping hand, is always offering a shoulder to cry on, is always willing to give her siblings advice about beauty, fashion, romance, and is just a good friend in general.

Despite Drew’s more blunt personality, she enjoys spending time with Silena because Silena shares her interests but also offers her a friendship with kindness and love. Silena’s motto of “spreading love and beauty” makes Drew admire her a lot. Drew and Silena grow really close as they get older; they’re practically besties and hang out together when Silena isn’t with Beckendorf. They shop together, do each other’s makeup and hair, help each other pick out clothes, bedazzle their weapons together, etc. They talk about everything under the sun; light-hearted stuff like makeup and clothes, and deep stuff like their family backgrounds and the gods maybe not being so great. Lastly, there are these matching charm bracelets that the girls share. One of the charms on the bracelet is of two girls holding hands. Silena and Drew both have this matching charm as a symbol of their friendship.

Aside from Charlie, Drew is the only other camper to suspect weird behavior with Silena as the story progresses. During one of their more serious conversations, Silena says some things that make it sound like she’s siding with Luke and the Titan army. This is because Silena is feeling insecure about her spying and is secretly trying to seek validation for her actions. Drew finds this odd and shuts Silena down; as far as Drew is concerned, Kronos is evil and there’s no siding with him. Drew is surprised that Silena would even bring this up. After all, Kronos/Luke has harmed a lot of demigods and as a sweetheart, Silena should show more empathy about that. Silena feels bad about getting shut down and doesn’t bring up the topic again.

During Silena’s death in the canon story, Drew was not present. However, in this version of her arc, she is present when Silena dies. Drew is shell-shocked and heartbroken when Silena reveals that she is the spy; she can’t believe that her sister would betray everyone at camp like this, including her own siblings. When Clarisse insists that Silena is a hero, Drew is the is the first to openly push back against this narrative. She argues back and forth with Clarisse about the extent and the awfulness of what Silena has done, including the fact that the spying led to Charlie’s death and the harm of other campers. She vows that she will never view Silena as a hero, and runs away from the scene in tears.

When Silena’s shroud is being burned at the end of the battle, Drew hangs back and doesn’t follow her cabin to burn the shroud, a symbol of her refusal to forgive Silena. Clarisse tries to talk to her about it, but Drew shuts her down. When Drew becomes the new cabin counselor, she does everything in her power to get rid of Silena’s influence; she changes a bunch of cabin rules and traditions that Silena had implemented. This makes Drew’s siblings upset, but Drew doesn’t care. She doesn’t want to be reminded of Silena whatsoever and she doesn’t believe in honoring traitors.

At the end of the summer before she goes home, Drew is standing alone in the cabin. She looks at the friendship charm on her bracelet, and thinks about everything that happened with Silena that summer. She thinks about how much she valued Silena for her kindness and true friendship, only to find out that Silena was betraying her and the camp all along. Drew starts to cry and rips the charm off her bracelet in anger. She tosses it in the garbage and leaves camp for the summer.

Drew’s arc concludes in HoO when Piper comes along. In order to have Drew’s arc play out how I want it, some of Piper’s story has to change. However, I’m not interested in the HoO characters for this post, so I won’t go in depth on how Piper’s arc changes, but just know that this version of Piper is also a deviation from canon. In this version of the story, things are still messy in the Aphrodite cabin, with Drew having changed a lot of cabin rules. and with her personality souring a lot since last summer. Prior to Piper’s quest, things play out similarly to how they did in the books but this time, with more emphasis on how Drew’s heartbreak regarding Silena is influencing her behavior.

When Piper returns from the quest, rather than having that classic “new girl stands up to mean girl moment”, Piper insists on figuring out why Drew acts the way she does. A heated argument occurs between the two girls until Piper says the phrase “spreading love and beauty”. This reminds Drew of Silena and Drew breaks down in tears. She reveals to Piper that Silena used to say something similar, and finally opens up about her heartbreak regarding Silena. Drew specifically mentions that she brought back the heartbreaking tradition because Silena’s betrayal made her very pessimistic about things like true love. Piper, Drew and the Aphrodite siblings have a heartfelt conversation about love, heartbreak, and why Silena might have done what she did. After the convo, Drew is not quite ready to call Silena a hero, but she has a lot more empathy towards Silena than she did before.

Drew’s arc ends with some of the Aphrodite kids revealing that they saw the charm that she tossed out last summer and decided to hang on to it. Drew accepts the charm back, symbolizing her finally making peace with Silena’s actions and death, and forgiving Silena to some extent. She peacefully offers the counselor position to Piper, stating that she (Drew) could use a break, and that Piper would make a great counselor. In addition, Drew helps Piper reinstate some of Silena’s cabin traditions.

- Malcolm Pace: Malcolm’s arc is inspired by the idea that he is a good battle strategist and the fact that kids who academically excel often struggle with perfectionism.

Like most Athena kids, Malcolm is pretty good with all academic subjects, but his favorites are modern history, especially warfare and military conflicts. In particular, he likes to study the battle strategies used during those conflicts. Malcolm’s goal is to become one of the best battle strategists at Camp Half Blood. While his siblings are good at coming up with plans for smaller monster encounters, Malcolm focuses more on large-scale battles. He studies formations, battlefield weapons, military strategies, and other things.

Malcolm’s personality is the following; he’s generally a kind person, but he can be a little snooty at times, like most Athena kids. He doesn’t make fun of anyone for being uneducated, but he does get annoyed when he hears dumb ideas. He’s also very passionate about academia, and his idea of fun is always book or learning-related, like study dates, exploring libraries, watching history movies, etc. Malcolm is also incredibly studious; while other campers are pulling pranks or riding canoes, he’s analyzing battle elements.

Malcolm’s desire to be a top strategist stems from two things:

1) He really wants to impress his mother. Malcolm has never met her, and he wants her to be proud and impressed by him the first time she meets him. Malcolm knows how much Athena admires wisdom and good planning, and him leading the camp to victory in an epic battle using good strategy would be the perfect way to stand out to Athena. He would be a hero not just in terms of strength and prowess, but also in terms of being smart and clever.

2) With the arising conflict with Kronos, battle is becoming more and more likely. Malcolm knows the camp will need help with preparing for battle, and he wants to be the one to do it. Yes, a big part of it is pride and impressing his mom, but he does genuinely care about the camp and wants to protect them.

As the story progresses, Malcolm gets a couple of chances to show off his knowledge starting in SoM against the monsters invading camp; he does pretty well and his plans help the campers take down the monsters. Malcolm is proud of himself, but in his eyes, these are just small conflicts. He wants to prove himself in a real major battle.

He gets his chance when BoTL rolls around and the campers learn of a possible invasion. While Malcolm is of course afraid for the camp, he knows that this is his major chance to prove himself as a strategist by outwitting the Titan army. While Percy and co. are on the quest, Malcolm is planning like crazy. He’s scouting the area around Zeus’ fist, he’s analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of each cabin, he’s looking at the placement for canons and other battlefield weapons, he’s mapping out offensive and defensive strategies.

The day of the invasion arrives, and Malcolm believes that he’s ready and that his plans will lead to victory. Unfortunately, Malcolm misses a few details in his planning due to stress and overworking himself. In addition, he has not planned for certain things with the Titan army, such as Kampe. As a result, Malcolm’s plan starts to fall apart partway through the battle. He tries his best to salvage it, but it doesn’t work out, and this leads to the deaths of a few campers.

After the battle, Malcolm is devastated and feels that he failed big time. However, because of pride, he is too ashamed to acknowledge what went wrong and refuses to talk to anyone about his plan falling apart. He decides to just ignore the whole thing and pretend that it never happened.

Unfortunately, Malcolm is forced to confront his failure when Athena chooses to visit him for the first time at the end of the summer when everyone has gone home. Athena is visiting Malcolm out of concern for his mistakes made during the invasion. Athena feels that these mistakes were very avoidable and were a big oversight on Malcolm’s part. She is even moreso disappointed that Malcolm has chosen to ignore the whole thing. She tells Malcolm that she has high expectations for him and wants to him to wisen up, as more battles will come and Malcolm will need to get it together. After Athena vanishes, Malcolm cries; he imagined his first meeting with Athena being a much happier one, but all she did was express disappointment, which makes Malcolm feel like a huge failure.

Over the next year, Malcolm’s perfectionism kicks in and he goes overboard with the studying and analyzing; he refuses to do almost anything else, not even sleep. In addition, he becomes hypercritical of himself, beating himself up for every mistake, even the little ones. His siblings, especially Annabeth, become concerned, but he doesn’t listen. He refuses to fail again, and will do anything to show Athena that he can do this. Unfortunately, this lack of balance isn’t good long term, and Malcolm starts to slip. During the raids in the summer of TLO, he has a hard time focusing in battle and starts making more and more mistakes, which he beats himself up for.

This vicious cycle comes to a boil during the battle of Manhattan. When the campers realize that they’re going to engage in another big battle to defend Manhattan all by themselves, Malcolm realizes how important strategy is going to be and how this will be a second chance for him. In addition, Annabeth will be staying with Percy for the battle, so it’s up to Malcolm to lead the cabin. However, Malcolm isn’t feeling very confident. His strategist skills have felt weak for some time, and he isn’t sure if he can lead the cabin to victory.

When the fighting initially starts, he does okay but is feeling very stressed. During one of the skirmishes midway through the battle, another one of Malcolm’s plans fail, causing him to finally snap and cry out of frustration. When his siblings try to comfort him, he reveals to them that Athena visited him last summer to express disappointment about his failures and he hasn’t had faith in his plans since. His siblings reassure him by sharing some of their own failures with him and reminding him that failure/mistakes are a normal part of gaining wisdom. They tell him that no matter how many mistakes he makes, he is still a smart guy and an awesome strategist.

Malcolm feels very comforted by his siblings, and regains a bit of confidence again. Instead of running away from his failures this time, he sits down and thinks about what is causing his plans to fail, analyzing what went wrong and what went right. He comes up with a new series of plans for the rest of the battle that end up working really well, and Malcolm becomes happy again as he feels he has gained back his mojo.

At the end of the battle, Annabeth congratulates Malcolm and says that he did a fantastic job. At the end of the summer, he gets another visit from Athena, who expresses pride in him for his work during the battle. She reiterates how important it is to not run from one’s mistakes and to keep learning from them, she reiterates that this is wisdom. Malcolm is happy to finally hear his mom say that she’s proud, and goes on to become an excellent strategist.

- Butch Walker/Lou Ellen Blackstone/Clovis: (different minor god kid perspectives)

These mini-arcs are based on different perspectives and experiences the minor god kids could have. We already had Ethan, who joined Kronos army immediately after learning who his godly parent was.

Butch: Butch can be an example of a minor god kid who came to Camp Half Blood and decided to support the gods in the war. This was not an easy decision because the demigods use Iris’ domain for communication all the time, but don’t see fit to give her cabin, something Butch finds disappointing. However, he’s made a lot of good friends at camp and couldn’t imagine siding against them. In addition, rainbows are often a sign of peace, so the idea of carrying out a war doesn’t sit well with him.

Lou Ellen: Lou can be an example of a minor god kid who is initially at CHB, but decides to switch sides. Lou feels that despite being a powerful goddess, Hecate doesn’t get enough respect. When Hecate switches sides, she calls out to Lou to join her and Lou does. However, Lou is one of the campers that Connor and Travis talk to about how Kronos doesn’t really care for them. When Lou realizes this, she questions fighting for Kronos and decides to switch back to CHB, much to Hecate’s frustration. After the war, Lou and Hecate speak about what happened and reconcile.

Clovis: Clovis can be an example of a minor god kid who has known his demigod parent for some time and has always sided with Kronos from the start. When he’s not sleeping, he’s very busy with doing favours for Kronos/Morpheus including helping them recruit demigods by sending messages in people’s dreams or putting enemies to sleep in battle (similar/identical to what happens in one of my favourite PJO fanfics, Daughter of Wisdom. I can’t remember the author’s name at this time but it should come up if you Google it).

In line with the idea that Kronos doesn’t truly care about demigods, Clovis starts being overworked at some point, which exhausts him more and more. He asks for breaks and rest time, but the army doesn’t care; he has work to do. Clovis grows more annoyed with the army over time, even debating quitting. When the titans lose the war but minor kids are welcomed to camp, Clovis feels a sense of relief, as he can now rest and feel safe/welcome.

Aaaaaaaand that’s it! If you read all the way to the end, thank you! I know this was a very long post 😂 Anyhow, I really enjoyed this creative exercise and coming up with story arcs for these characters. If you liked any of the ideas, please let me know. I like writing and want to write my own story someday, so feedback on which arcs were good would be helpful. Thanks!

#percy jackon and the olympians #PJO #pjo series #percy series #percy jackson #annabeth chase #clarisse la rue #charles beckendorf #silena beauregard #will solace #nico di angelo #bianca di angelo #malcolm pace #drew tanaka #lee fletcher #michael yew #jake mason #pollux #katie gardner #travis stoll #connor stoll #lou ellen blackstone #clovis #butch walker #luke castellan #grover underwood #thalia grace

[class1akids]

BNHA 352 - Thoughts

I’m in actual tears even though I’ve seen the leaks already. Shouto is the most soulful character of this manga and this chapter was an ode to everything I love about him:

his wisdom

his earnestness

his kindness

his endearing awkwardness

his appreciation of his friends

his constant soul-searching

his humility and gratitude

And it’s so satisfying to see him finally finding not only his own way, but his own drive. He knows who he wants to be and why and it gives him an incredible sense of serenity.

He shows so clearly in so many little and big ways how he’s the opposite of his father still (too many to count), but this time not out of pettiness, but for all the right reasons and the right way. He is not the perfect masterpiece - instead his imperfect and free-running, but also with a deep sense of his roots, accepting all of it - the good and bad and painful.

All of Shouto’s lines were so on point. Loved his little (and very overdue) talk with Izuku. “This is the one fight I cannot run away from”. (The one Endeavor ran away from again and again -  is left unsaid). 

Shouto doesn’t run away. He knows he has to do this, because it is who he is. He knows also that fighting Touya’s fire with fire can only end in tragedy, so he goes back to the drawing board to reinvent himself. He steps away from Endeavor’s way of thinking - he doesn’t turn up the power even more - he turns it down.  HK is bringing it all together - Shouto’s power which is just a single power of temperature regulation after all (congrats to the Hero Entropy crowd!), something he can unleash from the core of his heart with infinite MP to show exactly who he is.

“Only I can find out the reason I was born in that house” - this line killed me. Then his smile, so full of gratitude, and a beautiful recall to Midoriya vs Todoroki killed me a second time (Mt Lady was right, this version of Shouto is lethal).

In stark contrast to Shouto’s hard-earned hopefulness stands Touya’s raging fatalism - echoing Stain’s ideology (Stain cameo next with Iida to the rescue?) and the logic of old hero society. Where Shouto sees himself in Touya, Touya still sees Shouto as his opposite as he launches his full-out attack of destruction, turning Kamino into an actual hellscape of bubbling ground and columns of lava to erase everything. 

And it’s so beautiful how Shouto find his safe place where he can concentrate from in his friends, in Class A, that accepted him and made him feel belong. His safety net gives him the power to counter the toxicity of their home, the abuse that’s still powering Touya.

Shouto doesn’t make a big speech, he just lets his Ultimate Moves speak for him, which is not about outcompeting each other in destruction like the logic Endeavor created them in, but about putting out Endeavor’s flames of madness still burning in Touya, while embracing his brother, stopping his self-destruction and trying to open his eyes to a different way. To become the light that illuminates the darkness of Endeavor’s flames. Because Phosphorus means light-bearer.

Shouto finally finds his true power to make a stand for his family, for his brother, for the hope that it’s never too late to change the path on, for the friends and allies who gave him a safe place to stand on and reinvent himself as many times as it takes. 

He creates this hauntingly beautiful, white empty space, where just for a frozen moment they can exist together in peace. Touya, who went to Sekoto peak to show his power only to feel abandoned and unseen. Shouto, who wanted to play with his brother only to be torn away. The fire that divided them is gone.

Shouto finds a way to calm Touya’s raging inner child, to show him how far he’ll go for him, how he won’t give up, how much he wants to soothe his pain, how much he is not Endeavor’s puppet, but someone who carved his own path. He backs up his words with his entire heart and actions.  

Over to you, Touya. 

#bnha manga spoilers #bnha 352 #bnha meta #class1a reads bnha #todoroki shouto #todoroki touya #keeping up with the todorokis #wow what an amazing chapter #there is so much more #dabi vs shouto

[funkymbtifiction]

Hi! I wanted to ask if it is common for enneagram 2s to get into fights because of their unwanted help? I find myself getting repeatedly frustrated at 2s in my life who feel the need to "help me improve" even after I ask them to stop. Are 2s unable to express their negative opinions without trying to offer solutions, so they seem nice? I am not hating on them! Just trying my best to understand. Thank you!

This post is deserving of an Emma Woodhouse moment, since she's one of my favorite 2s. I love it that she is "unlikable" but likable. Jane Austen is mocking 2s and their "interfering nature" while allowing us to care about this particular 2, who also has to learn humility.

This brings up an interesting point, because I have been noticing the mass tendency people have to offer unsolicited advice and now I am wondering -- are they all 2 cores and 2 fixers? Is offering unsolicited advice something Americans (since I am most familiar with them) do more than other nations, as a culture, because by in large we are so "opinionated"? If the former, it's because 2s see others struggling, or venting, and they think "this is mine to fix" because of the super-ego telling them that everything needs fixed, that current problems need resolved, and someone (me) ought to do it because nobody else will! The dependent/super-ego stance all assume "this is mine to do/think about/problem-solve."

I have both been on the receiving and the giving end of this, because I know 2s and I have a 2 fix. It can be annoying how quick they are to "try and help," but then I remind myself, they are just trying to seem important within the relationship and "relevant." And it's fine to give them that space. I used to get defensive, now I just say, "Yeah, that's a good idea, I'll think about that!" (and do what I want anyway). You can't control what others do, just how you react to them -- so remind yourself, "they want to feel useful." You can get a long way with 2s by thanking them for their input (even if you don't intend to do it). ;)

In your particular case, it's because the 2s in your life have not figured out how to establish boundaries between themselves and others. In other words, when someone says "stop," they need to learn how to stop, out of respect for the other person's autonomy. From a 2 perspective, this can be frustrating and hard, because they genuinely want to help you and see what they could do to accomplish that. It is hard for them to sit on their hands, especially when someone complains about something and they see how they could fix it! Going to them about your problems, in their mind, is asking for help.

Example -- "my friend has such a disorganized kitchen and often complains that she cannot find anything, but she won't let me come over to her house and help her organize it!"

Now, the 2 has two options:

1) keep asking her and offering to help (which might annoy her friend) because this is a need that needs filled,

2) Tell themselves to love their disorganized friend as they are, that this isn't their business, and respect them by taking no for an answer.

It's also useful to think about this from their point of view. Their identity is wrapped up in being "useful." As in, if I don't help, I don't exist. Imagine going around feeling like you are nobody, unless you have something to 'offer' someone else. Advice, comfort, support, love, affection, service. Imagine wanting someone to care about you and the only way you can think of to get their attention is to... help, by 'bringing something to the table.'

That's a bit sad, isn't it?

It's sad in the way that all the image types are sad -- the 2 can't just be loved for who they are, they think they must earn it; the 3 can't just be loved for who they are, they think they must impress you to get it; the 4 can't just be loved for who they are, they think they have to show you how much they are different. All the heart types "HURT" for love, and adopt different strategies to get it. 4s push you away prematurely, and deny themselves love; 3s work hard to impress you, and 2s... offer unsolicited advice, so that they feel "useful."

You asked about 2s and negativity. It is true, 2s hate to be negative, toward themselves or others. They think they SHOULD BE positive (the super-ego inner voice again, dictating how a "good person does XYZ") and upbeat. So they re-imagine criticism into being "helpful." This is also where their core sin of pride comes in, because "people NEED me." They NEED ME to tell them what to do, or help them improve, or talk to that person for them, or drive them to school. I am needed. I am important to them. What would they do without me?

As a note to the 2s and 2 fixers out there -- start asking questions instead of offering solutions. Like, "Oh wow, how do you feel about that?" or "What do you think you're going to do?" or even "Do you want me to help you come up with a solution?" There are ways to help people that don't include advice -- such as listening and being empathetic and showing them that you are Present with them. :)

#question #enneagram #enneagram 2

[ironwoodatl01]

How does it feel knowing one day; you're going to be responsible for all the people considered "Undesirable degenerates." to get marched off to a camp? You would throw a party for yourself and flip through your book most likely. Only stirred when the sound of boots are at your doorstep. Rwde does not fucking like you man. That's where all the toxic sjw go, and they don't even enjoy your presence no matter how hard you try. You don't like gays, lesbians, bisexuals, asexuals and queers in general. You prolly think your some holy saviour or a person whos gonna show the light of jesus to others; when you just give motive to disembowel a bible and burn it... ( No respect for religious trauma in a world where religion places someone in permanent service based on sex) Do you actually think, the trans people you reblog character posts from genuinely wish to interact with you? How about you actually live as Jesus did so that you may find humility and true understanding on the world we are currently walking on now. You waste your life on hatred and the fact that you use the bible as an excuse is demonic on your own part. Honestly what a waste. Idk who beat you as child or deprived you of love to the point that you can only find it in an ancient book; but someone dropped the ball massively and that ball was you man. I Hope you can genuinely find peace in yourself. In hindsight; you will probably ignore/delete this post for your own relief, maybe reply to it and use bible verses to counter it without actually addressing the core criticism. Brushing it off as hysteria from a mentally ill person; which is ableist but I wouldn't be surprised if part of you hated yourself for being different growing up. Hence why wearing cartoons on your sleeves just like the queers you hate and want to see gunned downed or cured. Clarification: Clearly you hate yourself and view this as a peacetime where you can feel heard and help people. Analysis: Perhaps an early divorce occurred in your childhood or marterial problems while your feelings had no place; hardening and being leaned on was not a choice. Conclusion: You genuinely think your hardness and zero sense of acceptance will help save Queer people while head-butting your way into those same spaces seeking comradery. I feel pity for you. I feel as if you see a father in James that you never actually had growing up; or that he reminds you of him despite a possible strained relationship.

Your pity is not necessary, but appreciated. You put in the effort, and that is to be recognized.

I never knew you had mental issues, nor have I ever cared. The fact that you think it mattered speaks more about you than it does me.

As for the trans people and rwde? It also doesn't really matter to me whether they like me, and if it did matter to them they can block me anytime. I like the posts, so I repost. I have a point to make, so I make it. I post for the post's sake. Although I do have to break up my blogs a little to declutter, so thanks for reminding me indirectly.

The salvation of the LGBTQ people is not something I can do anything about, nor is it something I really want to do anything about. God gave his Son to die on the cross and its up to them to accept that gift. All I'm doing is correcting their's and other people's assertions of biblical truth by presenting the bible verses in context. The truth, the correct answer, will always piss people off, but that is the nature of Facts.

There is always black and white because the darkness seeks to destroy the light on its on accord. There will always be enmity not because of my aggression, but because of the other side's hardheadedness.

Harry Potter and Voldemort must kill each other not because Harry seeks the fight, but Voldemort won't quit until Harry is dead by his hand.

Ultimately, you seek common ground on terms I cannot, in good conscience, accept. We are opponents because the lie can't accommodate the truth.

In any case, I'm sure there will be a confrontation between me and the LGBTQs sooner or later. So be it. But I respect them enough to attribute them the maturity to decide when the confrontation occurs. They are old enough they/thems to block me and I don't think they need you to speak for them.

Don't be ableist

[angelicheather44]

Embracing your divine design: Living in alignment with your true self!

What is the core self? Who does God say we are? God made man in his image. God says that he knew us before we were born. “I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born, I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.” God knows our emotions and feelings fully. Jesus cried because we cried. Two passages in the Gospels and one in the Epistles (Hebrews 5:7) teach that Jesus wept. In the Gospels our Lord wept as He looked on man’s misery, and both instances demonstrate our Lord’s (loving) human nature, His compassion for people, and the life He offers to those who believe. When Jesus wept, He showed all these things. God is in tune with our hearts, thoughts, feelings, and emotions. God feels what we feel.  He can feel in his own spirit our suffering.  Look at scripture,  Isaiah 53:4 it was certainly our sickness that he carried and our sufferings that he bore, but we thought he afflicted, struck down by compassion, and healed the sick. He knows the heart of a man. What moves you moves him.

We can take this with us. God sees and knows your pain, sorrow, sickness, depression, oppression, despair, fear, anxiety, headaches, and all other. Emotions are a gift from God. Our wise creator embedded emotions in our humanity to serve a useful purpose in our lives. Just as our minds enable us to think and our wills enable us to choose, so our emotions enable us to respond. To appreciate the gift of emotions, imagine what life would be like if you could not feel. So if emotions are a good gift from God, we should embrace our design as feeling creatures, right? Sadly, many of us try to suppress our feelings. We don’t know how to handle our feelings or express them appropriately, so we shove them into a corner of our lives. Maybe you grew up in a family where nobody showed emotion, or maybe you were made fun of for crying in front of others. Maybe you worry that emotion will hinder your career advancement or hurt your image of control. Whatever the reason, suppressing your emotions may seem like the best way to handle them. When we can feel and see other people’s pain we have compassion and we pray for them. So, we know that God knows our cellular level, brain chemistry, hormone level, knows the exact number of hair on our head, collects every tear that we cry, and our memories. God says any emotion should be brought into prayer by doing so allows his peace and guidance to come to us.

God has given us the knowledge and understanding to understand ourselves so that we can be true to self. First, reflect on what you need across your life to make you feel safe, loved, cared for, and fulfilled. Consider both what you are already getting from others or your environment, and what is missing. To be true to yourself means you don’t worry about pleasing other people; living by someone else’s standards or rules. You don’t care what people think of you. You live as your natural self. Without compromise. Starts with knowing who you are and accepting yourself; knowing your strengths, passions, limitations, and purpose in life and then living that way all the time. You come to know yourself only by living life. Finding what works for you. What defines you and makes you whole. Honoring our emotions isn’t about being self-absorbed or arrogant it’s really about being true to ourselves, honest with how we feel, and willing to engage in authentic conversations with other people even, and especially, when we don’t feel or want the same things that they do.

Explore and educate yourself on emotional intimacy, emotional connectivity, emotional humility, emotional body language, and how it affects every feeling, which causes us to think of things that then cause our reactions. Learn how to control your emotions and feelings with emotional intelligence. Our core self is emotions and feelings. Wrote by Heather Climer

#emotions #authenticity #authentic self #spiritualgrowth #feelings #explore

[1111jenx]

Hi jenx, here's a good idea for you! Why do you love the rising signs? I know you will have fun with this 😊 Looking forward to your reply dear.

Stop I absolutely love this!

Thank you for the amazing idea anon and yes let's get into it!🤍

🕊The rising signs & why I love them

Aries Rising: It's the passion in their hearts, its their zeal for their work. The way they're always the brightest, yet opt to remain observational instead of acting on their knowledge. The rosy tints on their cheek. When the sun shines on their faces, their eyes glitter. They were born with loyalty ingrained in their veins. Hilarious and laidback nature. I admire how they infuse love into even the most insignificant of details. The way they dress is laced with a meaning, the small gifts they choose for their loved ones are infused with affection. Everything they do is driven by true passion, not the warped kind that leads to people doing things for the wrong reasons. Just a courageous soul attempting to experience life to the maximum possible extent.

Taurus Rising: Their smile. The way their eyes curve like a gorgeous crescent moon is just breathtaking. Every time they give back to the community, their halo shines brighter than before. Socially affluent, with a constant flow of ideas for what to contribute. Adored by the masses and adored by me. I will be eternally grateful for having met such astounding souls. Ones that represent not only just beauty but also grace.  Sweethearts. Jokes that are really intimate and difficult to forget. Caring in all ways, and will never fail to make you feel heard and understood when you need it the most. 

Gemini Rising: Their ability to reason. Their sincerity. Their dolly beauty. Porcelain-like smoothness to the skin. How they are adorably different from everyone else I have ever met is beyond comprehension. Everything they come into contact with turns into a work of art. Eyes that are coated with virgin honey and a burning desire to know and understand more. Individual spirits who are fiercely devoted to the core of their being. They make my heart rejoice, and my romantic side comes to life as a result of our encounter. Inside jokes that feel so particular and never fail to make they chuckle, thanks to their sharp intellect. Smiles that light the nights and the days to come. Bless their precious heart.

Cancer Rising: Their unique perspective. Their presence adds cheers to the most dreary day. I love how they’re always very restless and selfless. The way their skin glows under the moon. Even when I’m not around them, I’m always thinking about them. The pink hue on their lips. The way they know the real meaning of love is divine. Will take you in and make you feel like you’re crossing the threshold of your home. Their beauty is all consuming and their energy is ravishing. Never stop being unapologetically themselves.

Leo Rising: Their thoughtfulness. It is necessary for them to never cease giving and giving. More committed than people realizes or will ever be able to understand. They take great pride in their ability to read people's vibes swiftly. They are more sensitive than they appear and more detached than you realize. They're constantly there, yet they also seem to be a long distance away. The capacity to bring a room to life by demonstrating how real and honest their heart is. Cast to be the sunshine in your life, they will travel to Mars and back to ensure that you are well taken care of. How their eyes spark when they push you to take that risk. Draw people in with their warmth and their humility.

Virgo Rising: Their devotion. How committed their heart is to what they believe in. When people have trust in anything, they will never allow that faith to be extinguished. How they show their people off when they are proud. They will make certain that you are aware of their affection. The kind of person who will stay up and hug you til your tears dry on their cheeks. They move with such determination that it appears as though they had the ability to take over the entire world. Voices that travel through matter and energy during times of need. Vitality that is contagious, and a personality that shines brightly like the glorious Full Moon.

Libra Rising: Their sensuality is undeniable. Their sense of humour is underestimated. It's remarkable how they're able to find humor in the most insignificant of situations. When they love someone, their love is like an orchard: fragrant, long-lasting, and breathtakingly gorgeous. It is their daring spirit that most people fail to see. What a fierce defender of heart love and truth they are. Either 100 or 0 all the time. When they're in, they're in for the long haul. They're more than simply a pretty face. They are so much more than that. I appreciate the way they message their close friends and family members every minute of the day, and the way they love like they have never loved before. They're incredibly intelligent and well-spoken in all they say and do. They understand me so well, it’s like they can read my mind. I love you guys and all that makes you you. 

Scorpio Rising: Their unwavering commitment to doing their very best in all they undertake. They're like a breath of fresh morning air, and I love them for it. No one understands themselves as well as they do, and they have impeccable manners. Actions speak louder than words, and theirs create a compelling tale about themselves. Irresistible when they blush. Their gorgeous, solemn character, as well as the fact that everything feels so effortless when you're around them. There's the ordinary, and then there's them. 

Sagittarius Rising: Extremely compassionate, and far more intelligent than most people believe. The most authentic parents within the circle of friends. Spending time with them can help you to feel more alive, like they finally learn how to live. They are courageous, they are motivating yet brilliant, and they are tremendously diligent. A fantastic sense of style and are really expressive and imaginative. Mindsets that are one of a kind. So  persistent, and I admire them for it. So vibrant and full of potential. It's lovely to watch them light up when they come upon something they appreciate.

Capricorn Rising: Intelligent and grace. All in one person. Their hearts carry the weight of this world and they do things with so much attention. Heavy is the head that bears the crown, they take responsibility like no others and they understand temptation more than anyone. They have so much control yet so much more to release. Hearts that yearn for goodness and always are glazed with not only sincerity, but also power underneath it all. Deserves all the appreciation in the world.

Aquarius Rising: Their presence is mesmerizing. They know how to challenge others and push them to be their most best selves. Minds that harbour maddening but also magic. Every time they grin, I feel as if a breath has been taken from my lungs. The way they command complete attention just by walking into a room. The way the corners of their eyes wrinkle when they giggle is very endearing. It's a pleasure to look at such beautiful things. Their goofy jokes are my favorite since they are so kind and inviting to others. Always glowing because it implies both inner and outer beauty. Energies that are like a shade tree in the dessert. Wherever they are is where I want to be.

Pisces Rising: A soul that exudes the type of beauty that transcends all boundaries and classifications. In a world of background noise, they are a cheerful melody.It all comes down to how they move. People are compelled to accept attention of them. So compassionate, as well as possessing spirits that are mature and knowledgeable. I admire the way their diamond earrings are outshined by their sparkling eyes . Being with them will make you feel as though you are taking a leisurely stroll along the country lanes of France. The taste of their presence is sweeter than the kiss of the morning star.

— Here are a few words I have on the Rising signs, all Rising are beautiful and dear to my heart in different ways. I hope you guys enjoyed this. Let me know if you want more content as such and I'll deliver:) All you have to do is ask boo.

love,

saint jenx🪐

© 2021 Saintz Jenx All Rights Reserved

#astrojenx #astrology #astro notes #astrology observations #astrology notes #astrotips #aries rising #rising signs series #taurus rising #gemini rising #cancer rising #leo rising #virgo rising #libra rising #scorpio rising #sagittarius rising #aquarius rising #pisces rising #ascendant series #rising signs #astro musing #astrology community #assthetics #leo venus #moon in scorpio #libra sun #gemini #aquarius #libra #leo

[admirableadmiranda]

hi, hope you're doing well! so, i'm a bit confused about wwx being morally ideal vx morally gray esp when you take the golden core transfer into account? it's not exactly consensual considering the fact that wwx lied to jc. additionally, how was jc abusive to wwx or jl? idk i feel a lot of the anti jc arguments involve things he didn't do?

Thank you anon, I appreciate the well wishes. In fact, I am doing very well in part because your ask has made me realize my work against Jiang Cheng stans and their nonsense has not ended.

To all reading this, I am well aware this is a bad faith ask. This is specifically written in a way to annoy me especially given my usual reblog topics and some of the metas I've written before. Anon knows exactly what they're doing.

But too bad for them it's a Friday fucking night and I'm ready for an argument. Come at me stans, we'll see who's better in a slap fight.

You are right! Many of our arguments do include things he doesn't do. Let's go over some of them, shall we?

He does not: treat anyone in this story with respect.

He does not: uphold the tenants or ideals of Yunmeng Jiang in any way. He is a disgrace to his ancestors.

He does not: ever show one lick of gratitude for Wei Wuxian getting him back a golden core, and before we go into the consent shit he told Wei Wuxian he would do anything to get one. He willingly gave his consent to do anything to get a golden core. So how is it relevant that in the end it was a different method than Wei Wuxian told him? Given how Jiang Cheng treated him knowing that he only had a golden core because of a once in a lifetime favor, him knowing that Wei Wuxian gave him his own golden core would not have gone over any better.

He does not: tell Jin Ling any of the truth about his parents or what happened. He told Jin Ling that Wen Ning (who was supposedly already dead at that point) murdered his mother on Wei Wuxian's orders.

He does not: show any signs of humility upon being confronted with the fact that he is wrong, in fact he doubles down on his actions.

He does not: support Wei Wuxian in any way especially not when Wei Wuxian is busy fulfilling his debt to the Wens, in fact he makes sure to bury Wei Wuxian's name and reputation as gratitude for taking on his debts and allowing him to stay out of jianghu politics.

He does not: ever show any signs of character growth outside of one possible blip where he lets Wei Wuxian go at the end of the Guanyin Temple Hostage party, if anything he's more bitter and angry at the end of the story then he started.

He does not: do anything to deserve the whitewashing he gets from the fandom.

He does not: endear himself to me with his whiny petulant spoiled child attitude.

He does not get to get a jail out of free card for serial killing anyone who reminds him of Wei Wuxian after leading the massacre of fifty innocents including an old woman and a toddler.

Oh and just for a note as well anon, not only does he slap Jin Ling to the ground twice, but verbal abuse is also a real thing and that he heaps on Wei Wuxian and Jin Ling in spades. So kindly take your abuse apologism out of my inbox and out of my fandom. You are not welcome here.

#mdzs #jiang cheng #canon jiang cheng #asks #anon #anon asks #anon is trying to abuse apologize #and you do not get away with that on this blog #thank you and good night

[coconut-tree-cafe]

Study Notes: Making pacts with demons! Headcanon

This is so nerdy and long and stupid but here it is my dumb headcanon for what being in pacts with the demon bros would be like plus some other pact headcanons (since i love pacts)

(I know some of these things contradict each other, lol especially since MC has pacts with everyone… just imagine they cancel each other out)

General

Making a pact with a demon means a lot of things, but there are two types of powers in a human/demon pact.

Direct power refers to immediate and physical power over the demon and includes; summoning, power redistribution, and commands

Indirect power refers to gradual and intangible power that influences both the human and demon and includes; mental and physical influence, uniform life influences and telepathy

A powerful bond vs. a weak bond between the human and demon shows in the pact immensely, the two in a pact must be very close for the pact to be up to its full potential. 

Those in a powerful pact can read each other's minds, have a general sense of where the other is and what they are doing

The pact mark that is formed on both parties' physical bodies is only visible when the pact is being invoked/used.

A human in a human/demon pact is less susceptible to that demon's powers. 

Lucifer

You don’t make a pact with Lucifer, Lucifer makes a pact with you.

Although you have control over him with commands he has far more influence on you than you do him

He is very old and very powerful, a normal human wouldn’t even be able to handle being in  a pact with him. Not that they’d ever have the chance to be in one with him

You will find yourself to be more confident, you’ll be more assertive and pragmatic

If you were ever getting messed with at school by lower level demons, you won’t be anymore. Either by the change in your general air or if you were messed with while in a pact with Lucifer those demons' lives are over.

You will now have the energy of people who are described as having an ‘old soul.’

Even if you were in an intimate relationship with Lucifer before forging a pact with him, the way he treats you afterwards is far different.

He will be far more possessive as well as far more lenient with you. He understands you on a deeper level with a pact, and finds it easier to forgive you for any rule breaking.

The biggest benefit of having Lucifer in a pact is having one of the strongest fallen angels known to man in your arsenal, and he will back you up till the end of time.

Mammon

Ironically, you will find a lot of material possessions coming your way and just a general luck with money.

You’ll have more luck gambling, be better at bartering and finding deals (insert Skyrim level up noise)

You may notice you’re craving materials and money however

Mammon wastes no time telling every crow friend of his how much he likes you, and word spreads fast

If you’re ever alone outside you will always have a crow friend nearby to keep you company

They also bring you little goodies, the same way they bring things to Mammon

Mammon is also extraordinarily generous with you, he puts you first in every decision he makes. He makes sure you eat first, you sit down before him, you get the first share of everything. 

You will find yourself thinking about him more than often. This is mostly because you are always on his mind and through the pact you share similar thoughts. 

To your surprise, you also find yourself endowed in a veil of humility in every action you make. Mammon’s good nature rubs off on you.

Leviathan

Levi’s pact has more of an impact on him than it does on you. He will begin to be more and more like you, however you may be.

He will reflect your emotions of that day, not enough to abandon his own agency but if you’re in a particularly good mood then he will have a little pep in his step as well.

You will find yourself having razor sharp focus, like Levi. Through the power of envy or some other force you will be able to power through things for hours on end just to complete them.

Along with your enhanced concentration on things you work on, you also become more keen to others mannerisms around you. You may find yourself noticing insignificant motions people make more, what you think of them is up to you. 

Cue you and Levi gaming for 12 hours straight.

You get more competitive and more materialistic as well. 

In terms of physical attributes, you can hold your breath underwater for longer and you need less time awake to function but you also get cold more easily. 

Satan

Ever have the need to read a book before? Because you better be prepared for that.

Since your emotions are linked in a way, when he wants to sit down and read so do you. And he does that a lot

You may find yourself learning things a bit faster than usual, if it took you 3 or 4 reads to memorize something now it will take 1 or 2.

You can read faster and comprehend more as well as apply the knowledge you gained to your real life more easily.

Because you are now tethered to Satan, and Satan is tethered to Lucifer’s emotions, you understand Lucifer a little bit better. (Unless you are already in a pact with Lucifer)

Satan is a hard book to read (lol) but when you forge a pact with him you find it much easier to tell what he’s thinking.

As a virtue of being in a pact with Satan you now feel much more passionate about things.

Like Satan himself, passion is at his very core so you definitely feel that.

But, along with that you also are easily annoyed by things that you’d normally be indifferent about.

If you get angry you find it MUCH harder to control yourself physically, you may throw things or bang your fist on a table. 

Reach out to Satan to help you control your anger, as he has already learned how. But it will always be an uphill battle for both of you.

Asmodeus

You will now have a greater ability to understand others emotions. Through their eyes, the way they are moving their hands or swaying on their feet you can read them like a book.

You also find it easier to empathize with those emotions.

On top of that you have a greater appreciation for physical beauty, almost everyone you meet is appealing to you in one way or another because you can see their beauty (at least what feels like more than before).

Your natural appeal will increase, you may find yourself surrounded by more people than normal just by virtue of being so approachable and attractive in spirit and body.

Be prepared to be a bit more excitable than before. People will respond to your charisma more and you respond to theirs more. 

If you are someone who feels lust then you will for sure be feeling a lot more sexually driven, at least more than usual.

Your skin is also very clear from here on out

Beelzebub

You might expect to be more hungry, but that’s not the case. You feel the same as you did before but when you eat you always feel like you can have more. 

You can feel full but that doesn’t stop you from being able to eat more. 

For some reason as soon as you forge a pact with Beel he dotes on you A LOT. Expect a lot of physical affection.

You will probably be the only person he would share his food with, except maybe Belphie. 

Beel may seem a little dense sometimes but he has the most empathy of any of the brothers. 

You in turn will feel the grief and sorrow of the brothers as well as their collective happiness when you enter a pact with Beel.

Beel is like a rock, he’s stable and secure and very steadfast in his emotions. Of course he’s passionate (about food) but he is overall very mentally mature and down to Earth.

This will be reflected in you when you forge a pact with him, you find it easier to maintain a level head even during situations that you ordinarily would be a bit riled up by. 

Belphegor

Two words. Vivid dreams.

The same night you enter a pact with Belphegor you will undergo what feels like life-like dreams and not the mention they are long

They are numerous and intense, but if Belphegor likes you he will ensure that they are pleasant and relaxing. You will get a good night's rest every night, Belphie makes sure of it.

Belphegor is like Beel in that he’s calm, he’s a simple guy with simple desires.

However, if Beel is to be described as calm then Belphie is to be described as indifferent, which rubs off on you. 

A negative to a pact with Belphie is that things you may have felt passionate about before you feel slightly less so.

You won’t necessarily feel more tired, you just sleep longer and way harder than normal

Making a pact with a human is very serious to Belphie, you have to mean a lot to him so expect a powerful and intense pact

#obey me #om! #obey me! #shall we date? #obey me! shall we date? #mammon #lucifer #belphie #belphegor #beelzebub #beel #levi #leviathan #asmodeus #satan #headcanons #headcanon #imagine #long post

[inhonoredglory]

Run Away from Me: A Levi Meta

The core of this meta is to show that, IMHO, Levi’s violence against Historia in Chapter 56 is his emotional fallout from the torture of Sannes, as well as his own guilt at the person he had become. Coming from having only watched the anime, I personally found this placement in the manga of the Historia scene right after both the torture sequence and the Reeves Company alliance as incredibly meaningful, especially for Levi’s character and his emotional journey.

Levi is an immensely compassionate person, someone who wants to aspire to the “unimaginably altruistic” life of Erwin Smith (Isayama, SNK Encyclopedia). So how would this torture he had to inflict affect him? Because imagine for a second: This is the man who was the only one to truly react with horror and sadness at the knowledge that they’d been killing human beings all this time when they fought Titans. This is the man who went out of his way to ally with the Reeves Company in order to answer the Trost townspeople’s woes:

In Chapter 53, Levi is confronted with blatantly disrespectful Trost merchants who think the Survey Corps haven’t done enough to save their town. It’s the everyday things that burden these people—taxes, thieves, putting food on the table. Levi doesn’t once shoot back at them for their criticism. Instead, he listens. And then he spots a woman at the side of a merchant’s stall. She’s holding a baby and her eyes burn into Levi’s. She holds his attention while above him, the merchants continue their tirade. I think Levi’s thinking of his mother here: like this woman, she was a single parent raising a child in a city that is not unlike Trost now, a town abandoned and forgotten by society, poor and struggling. That child reminds Levi of himself, and this time, Levi can do something about it.

This is why Levi goes out of his way to ally with the Reeves Company. Levi and Dimo share a long, deep conversation, demonstrating that Levi’s alliance with them is more personal than merely the company’s strategic value. Dimo Reeves called Levi an “awkward yet kind man.” He goes on the say that Levi will “protect us and the barely-alive District of Trost, even though he doesn’t really have to.” This is Levi answering that townsperson’s accusation that “you in the Survey Corps aren’t working hard enough.” Levi entrusts to the Reeves Company the responsibility to bring the town out of poverty in the new world the SC will create. That’s his compassion, that’s his care, that’s his humility. That’s how he values the lives of people, not just by defeating Titans, but valuing their livelihoods. “A man like that must have come from absolutely nothing,” concludes Dimo.

This is the same Levi we find torturing Sannes.

In Chapter 55, the torture of Sannes happens because of the horrors Hange saw inflicted on Minister Nick. It is Hange’s passion for avenging Nick that drives the torture sequence, their anger at the tortures that had happened under the MP’s First Squad that motivates the payback inflicted by Hange and Levi. Levi’s violence is done, not out of his own desire, but primarily Hange’s. This is not to say that Levi was guiltless or without responsibility for Sannes’s torture; on the contrary, his actions weigh heavily on him, as will be discussed. But it’s interesting to note that out of all the tortures they did, breaking Sannes’ nose was the only retribution all Levi’s own (in reaction to Sannes’ justification of a series of horrific things the MPs had committed).

I also find it relevant that after everything they had done to Sannes, Levi was still visibly shocked at Hange’s overreaction to Sannes’ hesitation to answer their first real question. Because in Levi’s mind, everything they had done up to that point wasn’t torture—in one sense. It was instead a like-for-like payback for the horrors Sannes had inflicted on Nick. Note that it was Levi who had to pull Hange out of the emotional distraction of Nick’s death in Chapter 52, the same emotional distraction that drives Hange to overzealous violence here.

There’s an interesting parallel in what happens next with what Levi had gone through with Annie earlier. Levi threatened Annie with torture of her real body and said he enjoyed intimidating her as she was bound and trapped. Sannes confessed that for him, he enjoyed violence and tormenting the helpless—so why should he complain if these torturers, Hange and Levi, are the same as him? It’s a subtle parallel, but it’s a relevant theme in SNK that everyone, on all sides, are devils and monsters. Or as Sannes says later, “The world will always have people like us.” People who are violent, people who are lunatics, people who condemn themselves and get their hands dirty for the sake of some higher “good.” Sannes’ accusation isn’t lost on Levi, because this is the same Levi who looked at a struggling mother in a forsaken city and did something about it.

Justified violence is still violence. So what if Annie deserved to have her limbs cut off, time and time again, without relief of death? So what if Sannes deserves to have his fingernails torn off, one by one, without even a question put to him? They had, after all, inflicted death and untold horrors on innocent people. But does justice look like this? Does the name of justice absolve your hands from actions this ugly?

Morality is complicated. And Levi is the first to tell you that he doesn’t know how to slice it. “I’m not telling you what’s right or wrong. I certainly don’t know what is” (Chapter 59).

So now in Chapter 56, we come to the scene with Historia, right on the heels of that torture. The first red flag for me went up when Levi realizes he has “forgotten” to tell his squad about Historia’s true bloodline. It’s not that he didn’t intend to tell them, it’s not that he was not supposed to tell them. (Unlike, say, the entire Female Titan arc.) He forgot, and he’s clearly embarrassed when they confront him. Why? Because he’s not supposed to lose focus like that. But he did, because that information came from Sannes, and after that horrendous experience, Levi, like Hange before him, was emotionally distracted. That’s the only reason I can figure for Isayama focusing on Levi’s oversight like this, and showing Levi in such an obviously emotionally awkward place.

Hange isn’t here to translate for Levi, like she did when Levi berated Eren for being unable to harden during the experiments in Chapter 53. Levi takes the scenic, colorful route when explaining his feelings. To Eren, he admitted that his criticism wasn’t about blaming Eren for being unable to harden, stating that “going over our shortcomings and bitching about our situation is an important ritual.”

In this light, we can read Levi’s words and actions with Historia as a complicated picture of his psychological landscape. Notice how just prior to this scene, we saw Hange act out the aftermath of the torture by kicking the table. Levi too reacts, taking it out on Historia.

Imagine where Levi is right now. He’s taken on the role of Sannes in this new world—the executioner, the ultimate killer, Humanity’s Strongest. “Your hands are already dirty. You can’t go back to the way you were,” Levi tells Armin later, but it’s also what he believes about himself. All that idealism that brought him into the Survey Corps—a life bigger than being a thug in the underworld. Did all that idealism bring him here, to do this? He has to make it worth it, he has to make it count for something. It’s what he does every day when his soldiers die under him—he’s been there to make their deaths worthwhile. But who’s there to make the deaths and terrors he’s dealt out worthwhile for him?

Levi’s expression in the last panel is angry, yes, but also wracked with pain.

So when Historia says she’s unfit for the role of Queen, when she says she can’t be Queen because she’s not good enough, Levi snaps. “Then run,” he said, grabbing her. “Run away from us as fast as you can. Because we’re going to do anything and everything to make you do what we want.” Levi’s eyes are downcast, not looking at her, because what he’s saying is more about him than it is about her.

Because he knows he’s dark enough to follow those orders to do the worst things to a human being to make the entire world a better place. He knows it’s in his bones to commit these atrocities. He is afraid of what he found he’s capable of. He’s already come to terms with killing humans as Titans. He’s come to terms with torturing humans as humans. He knows he can and will do horrible, unforgivable things. That’s his strength, that’s what makes him valuable, useful, important. He’s not like other people—“I’m abnormal… probably because I’ve seen far too many abnormal things.” But he’s ready to condemn himself, to make his hands dirty for the sake of others. He’s decided he has to go full through with the darkness he’s committed, because how else can he justify what he’s done? “I’m fine playing the role of the lunatic who kills people like that. I have to be ready to rearrange some faces. Because I choose the hell of humans killing each other over the hell of being eaten. At least that way… all of humanity doesn’t have to be damned.” His are the hands that will be stained with blood, his is the conscience that will be stained, his is the soul that will sink to hell—all so that others’ innocence can be spared.

The 104th look at him like he’s gone mad, abusing a young, helpless girl like that. But they haven’t seen what he had to do. They haven’t seen how bloody his hands have gotten. His violence here is a desperate reaction to get someone to save him. He’s always been able to avenge the deaths of his soldiers. But this time, he is the one in need of redemption. He could not justify his violence completely, he could only plea for her to make them unnecessary in the future. By becoming Queen, it means he won’t have to keep torturing, keep killing, keep shedding human blood. Her becoming Queen means a peaceful transition of power. Her becoming Queen means he won’t have to pave the path to a new government with more blood and more guilt, at least, not more than he has to. He’s enslaved to doing what his strength allows him to do. He’s begging her to not let people ask that of him.

#進撃の巨人 #attack on titan #snk #aot #levi ackerman #snk meta #aot meta #levi ackerman meta #attack on titan meta #shingeki no kyojin #shingeki no kyojin levi #shingeki manga #shingeki no kyojin meta #rivaille #captain levi #snk analysis #aot analysis #levi ackerman analysis #*mine #*mymeta #*glory watches snk

[mostly-mundane-atla]

Quick rundown of aspects of Inupiaq religion you may not be familiar with:

I've mentioned naming as reincarnation before so I'll condense it here. Names are attached to souls and both are genderless. You remember things from previous lives such as skills, experiences, and even preferences. This is so ingrained in the culture, you would typically ask "who is your atiq [namesake]?" rather than "what is your name?" Even now, there are different questions for "what is your English name?" and "what is your Eskimo name?"

Siļam Iñua is the closest we have to a god in the sense most people understand. This force is not gendered but speaks with a gentle feminine voice that you will know not to fear. It is the spirit of Siļa, that is everything between the earth and the stars, you could describe it as the atmosphere.

This is more an insight to how things are perceived through language, but iñua (inhabitor, spirit) is the only word that doesn't get a possessive pronoun suffix like "-ga". Iñua is something that can be possessed while also being the possessor. Even words for family members and people based on their relationships to each other (like boss or teacher or friend) are not an exception the way iñua is.

There is no separate spirit world. All that exists exists in our same space or at the very least, in what we know is there (such as the ocean). Spirits can choose to manifest in a way we can see, or they can choose not to.

A shaman has special connections to these spirits and can call upon them for help. The spirits themselves are entirely neutral and their power can be used for the benefit or destruction of others.

Animals can take on a human appearance and use it to trick or help people. Humans can turn into animals but that requires a kind of spiritual growth beyond what the average person goes through. A human becoming an animal is an act of incredible humility. It involves knowing you can end up being hunted by your own family and accepting that. For a human to become an animal they must admit to themself without a hint of irony or dishonesty "I am not superior for the body I was born with, I still have so much to learn" and actively seek out that learning. Of course, Inupiaq culture is not that direct, this is merely the meaning of the act/ability. It's not something just anyone can do and is sometimes intended as a sacrifice.

Raven created the world and people, and shows up in other stories as a trickster helping the human race

The only difference between humans and animals is in the body. The only difference between killing a person and killing an animal is that a dead animal provides you food, clothing, and materials to make art and tools. To not honor the sacrifice made to sustain you feels not only morally wrong, but also dirty and gross. You do not leave an animal to rot just as you do not leave a human to rot. To make something from an animal, be it food or clothing or anything else, is to remember it lived and to thank it for keeping you from starving, from freezing, for the beauty and use it brings you and your family. A feast is a celebration of gratitude.

The two most important observances are Nalukataq and Kivgiq.

Nalukataq is a homecoming celebration for the whalers and our gratitude to the whale for keeping us fed. It is named for the blanket toss, which allowed hunters to see far away but in this instance was used for the Umialik and his wife to toss gifts to whoever was lucky enough to catch them (think like breaking open a piñata; it's even done with candy these days). Partaking in the blanket toss itself, even if you had no gifts to give, was also part of the celebration people looked forward to. Men have always liked to show off by doing flips mid-air. Drumming, song, and dance are also popular. It is at this festival that whale is distributed to the people of the tribe.

Kivgiq, or Messenger Feast, is an indoor festival in midwinter that celebrates our survival and having plenty and also invites the sun back. The Wolf Dance, sometimes called the Eagle Wolf Dance, is an important part of this and even gets its own special drum. Around the 1890s, an unknown Inupiaq artist drew illustrations of the events and dances of Kivgiq, so if you'd like to know what it looked like before being wiped out in the early 20th century (thanks Christian missionaries) and revived in the late 1980s, I'd google them.

Perceptions of us can be influenced by things even just inspired by us. That's not always bad, but it can be misleading for those who don't have prior exposure to the culture. NOTE: I can only vouch for these being Inupiaq beliefs, not necessarily Inuit beliefs. We didn't have a whole lot of contact with the Canadian Inuit, especially those of us from the Seward Peninsula or farther south. We developed seperately and so what is true for us CANNOT be considered automatically true for them, even if some core beliefs are shared.

Feel free to use this as inspo or refer to it if you're worried about cultural insensitivity sneaking into your work. If you have any questions, send me an ask or message. You can even use anon if you're embarrassed for any reason

#eskimo on main

[snackhobi]

pairing: jungkook x reader / word count: 7.4k / genre: pacific rim au with brief smut (NSFW, 18+)

summary: there are no secrets in the drift. if jungkook were to see the mess inside your head and heart, laid utterly bare, he’d turn away from you.

warnings: sexually explicit content (briefly), unprotected sex (please be safe when you have sex) / reference to injuries but nothing graphic, giant robots powered by love punching big alien monsters

a/n: this is a birthday gift for the amazing @yeojaa​. happy birthday, erin. this is completely self serving and is stuffed full with inside references that I hope you’ll enjoy. I wrote this in two days and it kicked my ass because I did so much reading and researching that turned out to not even come up in the story 👁👄👁 you know when I said I was studying? I lied. I was writing HAHAHAH ily I hope you like it hhhh (this is unbeta’ed so please forgive any mistakes it’s 1:30am as I’m scheduling this) (also summaries are so hard, I’m sorry)

Jeon Jungkook really is the perfect posterboy for a Jaeger pilot.

Broad across the shoulders and trim at the waist, all sharp punches and hard muscle, resilient and tough, with a face that’s the perfect balance of angles and softness; the cut of his jaw easing up and into his pretty mouth, the line of his brows subdued by his warm eyes—he’s a Goddamn vision, raw masculinity overlaid on rich veins of boyishness, glittering stratum that sparkle and shine even under the harsh lights of the Shatterdome. 

He pouts when he thinks and his hair hangs a little in his big, big eyes and he has dimples that appear when he grins, teeth poking out onto his pretty pink lips, like someone took a rabbit and turned it into a man and packed on pounds of muscle alongside. Undeniably powerful and strong, but youthful and sweet, too.

Alongside Kim Taehyung—arresting and beautiful and somehow affable and approachable, all at the same time—they’re exactly what South Korea needs right now, propelling the country’s new look for their renewed assault against the kaiju. They’re the lucky new Rangers who’ve claimed ownership of the only Mark-5 that their homeland has produced, Bulletproof Striker, a fucking gorgeous Jaeger bristling with the latest and greatest technology that the world has produced.

But that doesn’t mean they’re the best that South Korea has to offer.

Cypher Zero is smaller, lighter, older, but she’s fierce. Just like her pilots. You and Yoongi might not be the burning beacons of hope that Jungkook and Taehyung are, polished and buffed to a squeaky shine, but you don’t need to be. You’re vicious and victorious and show no signs of stopping. The kaiju kills painted on your Mark-4’s shoulder are evidence enough of that, notches for each monster taken down, spray painted in one tiny corner of the huge swathe of burnished metal plating, the red edges of her midnight skin.

Bulletproof Striker is almost untouched, deployed just once since her recent launch, flawless exterior so at odds with Cypher Zero’s battered facade. Cypher’s beautiful, of course, but bears the history of your skirmishes, inside and out: scuffed paintwork, dented metal, rust dripping down from the ladder rungs dotted across her, melting into the obsidian of her hull. 

Jungkook and Taehyung move in a way that’s practiced, disciplined motions of combat that their Jaeger echoes in turn. Her mechanical movements reflect those of the men inside her head, skilled and superb. Stunning. But you and Yoongi? You fight dirty, violent and rough; messy bar room brawls; shattered glass and clawing hands in beer soaked backrooms, tinged sulphur yellow under dirty lightbulbs; two kids who fought against a world that was against them. 

(Two damaged people coming together in the Drift to make something even stronger than the sum of your parts.)

(Two damaged people who survived the rough hands of the Jaeger Academy, trying to take them, push them, shape them, break them.)

(Life isn’t kind. You’d learned that young, surrounded in the splintered remnants of your childhood home, the facade of family and happiness already gone, long long long ago, leaving you aching and lonely and cold. The prospect of fighting thousands of tons of alien hatred, lifting out of the depths of the uncaring, dark sea? At least you can see the kaiju coming. Broken households and loneliness? A little harder to lay your hands on.)

(But out of everything you lost, you’d gained one thing—Min Yoongi, another quiet, damaged thing, but with the biggest depths of warmth and love underneath that hard surface; your best friend, your brother-in-arms, growing alongside you, with you. Damaged kids turned bitter teenagers turned razor-edged adults, outcasts in solitude, but together. Not alone.)

(The deeper the bond, the better you fight. Falling into the Drift with Yoongi had been easy, years of tangled connection bleeding into the images that flashed across your brain. The same memories from different angles, overlaid with different emotions, undercurrents eddying under the surface that caught both of you and swept you up in its flow; the same mind, bridged by hundreds of tons of metal and technology and firepower underneath you, linked together in the silence of the Drift.)

There’s reverence, in the way these two new pilots look at you both, reverence and awe and respect alike: older Rangers, more experienced, history written across the worn edges of your Drivesuits, the paint flaking away from your battle armour, scuffs and scrapes on the once unblemished veneer; knowledge etched into the feline slant of Yoongi’s eyes, the turn of your shoulders and hips. 

You know Jungkook’s track record. You know of the endless months of assessment and sparring and psych evals and Drift tests and simulation drops that every successful Ranger has to go through, and Jungkook had trumped them all, stood atop them like a conqueror surveying his hard-won lands—gifted, talented, some even said God-touched. And yet for all this indomitable talent and skill, there’s still humility at his core, a willingness to defer with respect.

That deference is obvious whenever he sees you. Jungkook’s dark eyes will touch your own, for a moment, dark and deep and bright—and then his gaze will skitter away, cockiness and bravado dissolving into something submissive, yielding. (Shy.) You’ve watched him orbit you, the younger ranger caught in your gravity, always nearby—the Shatterdome is only so big, for its magnitude and sprawling corridors—but never broaching that final gap, that little step, into Cypher Zero’s space, Yoongi’s space, your space. Keeping himself at arm’s length.

South Korea’s golden boy, less afraid of the Kaiju than he is of his sunbaenim.

Jungkook and Taehyung are both beautiful. But you and Yoongi are less so, unapproachable in ways that the younger pilots aren’t, private and prickly, like grasping a patch of stinging nettles with bare hands, stinging and burning.

As if Jungkook isn’t terrifying and gorgeous in his own ways. As if he doesn’t shine brighter than the sun himself. Taehyung moves through the world with a thoughtless, charismatic ease that Jungkook doesn’t share—but he’s still magnetic, bold and brilliant, monstrously skilled at everything he puts his mind to, training again and again and again to get it right, get it right, get it right. 

To get it perfect. 

But there’s no level of perfectionism that can surmount the twisted, unpredictable nature of the kaiju belched forth from the breach. No matter how good you are, how strong or fast, how smart or seasoned, sometimes you still get caught in that hurricane, even in a Jaeger.

It doesn’t matter how many engines are packed into each muscle strand. It doesn’t matter how fast the pistons and levers and gears shift and move. It doesn’t matter that the pilots in her cockpit are impeccable and incredible. Under the cloak of deepest night and pouring rain, blanketed in darkness and water from the heavens above and the sea below, movement is impossible to track—and when Steelbrute rises from the waves, no one sees the kaiju coming.

Bulletproof Striker takes the hit. Jungkook and Taehyung fight back but they’re blindsided and overwhelmed, and their Jaeger falls to her knees in the churn of the Pacific Ocean, salt water crashing over her in choppy waves as Steelbrute’s merciless maw gapes wide open.

Cypher Zero is 250ft tall and weighs 1410 tons. You and Yoongi are tiny specks of organic matter in a fearsome behemoth of titanium and tungsten and graphene and circuitry, commanders of a weapon that’s the same size as a skyscraper—and yet you wouldn’t think that for how fast you move. Zero hesitation. No verbal communication. Cypher’s legs cut through endless waves and gain momentum with each crashing step that slams into the seafloor before you leap forward in a flurry of motion and Drift powered fury. 

Your motions in the Conn-Pod are ragged and incensed, your arms and legs moving in sync with Yoongi, with Cypher Zero, a snarl ripping out of your co-pilot’s usually quiet mouth as the kaiju lurches underneath you. The world narrows down to this: throwing yourself into the fray, jagged knuckles edged with plasma pummelled into Steelbrute’s skin in a scuffle that’s vicious, aggressive, until Bulletproof Striker regains her footing.

The sun is rising, grey and cold on the horizon when Steelbrute finally sinks into the sea, toxic blood flooding the water with neon blue. When you step out of the cockpit, Yoongi’s fringe is matted with sweat, and you can feel all the places the circuitry suit sticks to your skin—piloting a Jaeger is mentally and physically exhausting, every muscle and organ and bone working overtime for endless hours as you fight tooth and nail. Without the helmets in the way, there’s nothing stopping you bumping your foreheads together, heedless of the sweat slicked there; Yoongi’s hand rests at the back of your head, a familiar cradle.

“All good,” you say. Yoongi lets out a quiet bark of a laugh, rough and exhausted.

“I want a nap,” he says, like he always does, even if you’re a long way away from that, still fully suited and due to speak to the Marshalls. There are so, so many things separating you from the bliss of sleep.

One thing that’s not part of the normal routine, though, is the other pilots catching you, demanding your recognition, respectful (Taehyung) but insistent (Jungkook). You know that Yoongi doesn’t like attention or hero-worship, but there’s nothing except gratitude, here, bent heads and words of thanks. You’d saved their lives, after all. Saved their Jaeger from being torn apart, pain screaming through their own bodies of flesh and bone, connected to their metal monster. Of course they’re grateful.

You dismiss it with a hard cut of your hand.

“It’s nothing,” you say. 

You’re speaking the words you know are in Yoongi’s head—years of friendship and shared Drifts leaving his thought processes wide open to you—although you know you’re sharper than he is, harsher than he is, even, for all that he looks like the cold one from the outside. Long lashes and silken hair don’t translate to something soft and feminine and pretty, and you’re all ragged edges and rough parts, bleeding into the delivery of your words. Yoongi rounds the words in his mouth and places them into the world with a rumble of quiet strength that belies his past, but you? Your tongue is cutting and terse and drips with distrust, even when you don’t mean it to, staring at these two boys, Jungkook’s eyes so brown and large when he stares back at you.

The truth is that you care about humanity, of course. You care about humanity and you care about the millions of people in the cities that line the coasts and further inland, and you care about your fellow pilots, skilled but soft-hearted as they are. You’re stronger. You have to be. That’s what Yoongi is, that’s what you are: fighters. You fight dirty because you fight to win, not to protect yourselves. You’ll fight and you’ll die for this, for them, even if there’s no friendship there. Not yet. You’re still too distant, for all that you’d thrown yourself in the line of fire to rip the kaiju from the younger Rangers. 

And when Jungkook levels a look at you, there’s a flicker of something. A spark. All the glittering of his warm eyes comes together like the cascading sparks of molten fire that fall when metal is cut through— his eyes score through you, down down down, right to your core, underneath all the armour you’ve laid about yourself throughout your life. Your heart stutters. You’ve been watching Jeon Jungkook, and he’s all cocky Ranger bravado, or innocent brown eyes and shy, curving smiles, and yet. 

And yet. You know he sees this soft part of you, somehow. Past the thorns and sharp leaves, past the hard husk, into the rich, bursting sweetness inside, oozing red gems of pomegranate that yield so easily to the fingers and mouth.

(He’s temerarious and modest and wickedly perceptive too, it seems.)

“That was our kill,” he says suddenly. Taehyung—the voice piece of the two, the one who’s been smiling and speaking, easy and slow—goes still at his side.

“What?” Yoongi’s eyes pierce through him, but Jungkook keeps his focus on you.

“Steelbrute. Our kill. It was a hit from our rockets that took him out,” Jungkook says, eyes still glinting with that sparkling shine. Slicing through you with an explosion of light. “Not your blades.”

Silence steals over you, for a breath. It’s never truly silent in the Shatterdome, an iron fortress that never sleeps, but for a second, there’s quiet. It wraps around you. Tight. Almost deafening.

But then you break that silence.

You laugh. 

You laugh at the cheeky grin that pulls at Jungkook’s lips, the boyish lift to his face.  You laugh at his shamelessness, the sudden 180 from his earlier fear. You laugh at the way he’s diluted this astonishing, formidable thing—humanity coming together to destroy alien predators that threaten the planet—into a competition.

“You’re a menace, Jeon Jungkook,” you say.

Stinging nettles you might be, but if you’re grabbed hard and fast by confident hands, you don’t wound. Jeon Jungkook defers to respect, avoids confrontation, bows his head and quiets his mouth, but he knows, now, that he can do this. That he can push you like this, and you’ll let him, sway against it, let yourself be pushed.

Yoongi slides you a glance out the corner of his eyes, a light touch, a tacit agreement to an unspoken question.

“You can have it. Steelbrute’s yours.” There’s the smallest curl to your lips as you speak for you both. There’s something weirdly easy and familiar to this, to this interaction, even if you’ve barely exchanged words before now, giving this triumph to the other pilots hand over fist.

(Giving it to Jungkook on a platter.)

You can see the flare of triumph in Jungkook’s eyes. You know it’s not for the notch of their first kill, one they can add to their Jaeger. It’s for something far harder to achieve, something far more ephemeral: digging down and past your cool veneer and lifting out a smile, spreading it across your lips like warm butter, liquid gold.

And he keeps making you smile. 

Jeon Jungkook, you find, is a force of nature, relentless, an ocean. Sometimes he’s soft, loving waves of glittering blue that crash on pearly white beaches, playful and bright. Sometimes, he’s intense, the crashing waves of a storm tossed sea, powerful and unstoppable. Always, he’s striking, even when he’s not trying—even more so because of it, moving without thought or uncertainty, a silence settling over your thoughts whenever you see him like this. See him in this raw state, so unafraid where before he’d curbed his tongue and bent his head in front of you. Now, he’s just himself, without filter.

Taehyung is there too, of course. Both pilots join your small, fiercely private circle, not just a path from you to Yoongi any more. They become intertwining lines, a pattern that’s drawn between the four of you, pilots, friends. And you learn, that for all that you’d thought that Taehyung was the dominant one outside of their Jaeger, social and extroverted and unabashed, Jungkook isn’t quiet. Not when he’s comfortable.

(Not, now, when he’s with you.)

He’s a myriad of things, endlessly deep, so different from you, from Yoongi, but—the truth of it settles inside you, your joints, the marrow of your bones, the blood that pulses forth from your heart each time it beats in your chest, liquid life running through you. 

Drift compatibility.

Not that it matters. You already have a partner. You’re never going to open yourself up to anyone that isn’t Yoongi, who’s seen every part of you already. There’d been no fear about letting Yoongi see inside your brain, your heart, the raw, bleeding parts of you—because he’d already known them. Just like you’d known his. Yoongi stands to your right, inside the Conn-Pod and out, a driving force, even in his silence. 

But Jungkook is softer, sweeter, for all his raw power and skill, respect engraved into his every motion, even when he’s teasing and making you laugh. Even when he ignores the social guidelines that he should follow, does follow for others, everyone except you. 

And you don’t mind. You don’t bite out insults at him when he slides into the quiet hollow you’ve scraped out, a small space with just enough room for the people you keep in your heart. You’re still barbed and spiked, warding away unwanted attention, but for Jungkook, the claws retract. 

You’re still you, of course. Jungkook calls you mean, says that you bully him, even as he’s flopped across your bunk, eating your rations, shovelling coveted popcorn into his mouth. He might pout and sigh and cry oppression, but you’re soft on him and he knows it. That quiet hollow in your heart is a little larger, now, a little louder. Jungkook is brazen in his claim of this space, spreading each of his limbs wide as he fits himself into every part of it. He doesn’t know every piece of your past, and you don’t plan to let him see all the messy parts bundled in your chest, but. But he’s still there.

And you let him stay. You make a home for him inside you and let him take the key. He might tilt his head and goad you, might pretend there’s a genuine challenge in the set of his jaw, but you know it’s all tempered with admiration, veneration. Friendship.

(And where he clearly respects you, you admire him in turn. You’re reminded of your differences every second he moves and breathes and just exists in front of you, but you don’t have to be similar to someone to realise just how incredible they are.)

(But though you’re different, there are similarities. You’re not a mirrored image, a reflection, like you are with Yoongi. Instead, you’re a line drawn between two separate places, an isohel, sun lighting up your world for the same sweep of the clock even for how far apart you are. Sharing that same, tenuous thing, for all your contrasting parts.)

(This thing that’s growing, held in your hands. This soft, gentle thing, shimmering, frail, unfurling slowly but undeniably. Tinged with happiness, disbelief. Disbelief that you’ve found this, that you can see Jungkook across the echoing cavern of the Shatterdome’s main hall, so far in the distance, barely visible at the foot of his Jaeger—and something will settle in your chest. Featherlight, iridescent. Something comforting.)

When you fight the kaiju, now, it’s with a deeper reserve of desperation. Taehyung and Jungkook aren’t just fellow pilots, dongsaeng that you’re obliged to look after: they’re your friends, something more than that too, part of the rare handful of people in the world who understand, this overwhelming pressure to fight and win and protect the things you love. The people you love. They understand what it’s like to step into someone else’s head, to be connected to that person on a level that’s unfathomable, anchored in a depth of love that’s endless. You’re their aegis, now, their shield.

(Jungkook’s shield.)

Maybe that’s what’s to blame. Maybe that’s why you’re so sloppy, this time. Maybe that’s why you throw yourselves in the way of the blow that was meant for Bulletproof Striker. Maybe that’s why Ojousan shreds Cypher Zero’s chest apart, her head, why Yoongi is almost ripped from you, his fear and pain screaming through your neural connection. You feel everything he feels and more beside, your heart hammering in your throat as you scream, Jaeger’s arm swinging up and around in tandem with your own motions as you try to rip the kaiju away, anything to protect Yoongi, so scared of losing him, always always always, scared of being left alone.

But you’re not alone. 

Bulletproof Striker lifts up like an avenging angel. Her horns roar a challenge, an echoing battle cry as the younger pilots move in. Heavier and stronger, keeping her balance even in the turbulence of a fight, she takes the hits, gives back her own, sends the kaiju down into the crashing waves, waits for it to rise. But the monster is crafty and quick and even as you’re lifting your left arm—Yoongi’s hurt, so hurt, you know this, feel this, but he moves with you to ready the plasma cannon buried in the mechanics of your Jaeger’s hand, even if he’s keening with pain—you watch as the other pilots, too, fall victim to the clawed tail of the kaiju, screeching through layers of alloys and across their Conn-Pod.

Terror strikes through every part of you and morphs into hate. You hate the kaiju, hate your own weakness, hate the pain that’s been saved from being written into your own body while Yoongi screams and sobs even though he still fights. Your motions are anguished and desperate as you battle to overcome this beast that’s almost taken away everything that matters to you—and Cypher Zero, Yoongi, as damaged and hurt as they are, come through. (Like they always do, for you, always.)

And somehow, despite everything, for all the self-hatred and pain and fear, you pull through. You pull through. Damaged and hurt but alive.

Barely.

Barely alive. 

(One hand gives, the other takes away.)

It takes hours for them to pick Yoongi’s Drivesuit from his body, crumpled around him from Ojousan’s claws, cutting into the soft flesh of his body, body ruined further by the fighting he’d been forced into despite his injuries; so many of Taehyung’s bones are shattered, and when you finally see him awake and with his eyes open, there are burst blood vessels that cast red across the usually warm expression, his friendly eyes.

You should be grateful that they’re alive. You should be on your hands and knees, weeping, benedictions dripping from your graceless mouth as you thank whatever merciless God above decided to turn their gaze on you and grant you this leniency. So many pilots have died and will continue to die, you know this, but somehow your partners are still alive.

And you are grateful. You are. But there’s bitterness on your tongue, twisted across your palate, sour and acrid and filling you with its taste. You’d been foolish and reckless and you’d almost lost the things you cared about most, even if you’d destroyed the kaiju, torn it apart and left its fluorescent indigo blood to corrode the ocean. 

That’s what’s important, isn’t it. Saving humanity. One person, two people, four people—you’re the tiniest cogs in a whirring engine of billions. Unimportant. Just a spinning part that keeps the machine going.

When you’re not with Yoongi or Taehyung, an unmoving presence from their hospital beds, a hovering gargoyle carved from stone, you’re with Jungkook. Always, always, always. Somehow you’d both escaped without the injuries inflicted on your partners—you’d manage to break your little finger, and Jungkook had a black eye and a twisted ankle, and the both of you had mottles of bruises cast across your skin, pulled muscles, an ache carved into your bones, but that was it. That was it. It was almost laughable, how unscathed you are.

You hate it.

(It should have been you.)

Your legs—unbroken, unharmed—hang over steel scaffolding, motionless as you watch the tiny specks of people scuttling across the catwalks that criss-cross Cypher Zero’s body. You can see under her skin, damage peeling back all the layers of metal that should be holding her together. Endless showers of sparks fall and scatter as she’s stitched back together. Your beautiful girl is so damaged, so disfigured.

(You’d caught Yoongi as he’d fallen from the harness, listened to the horrible noises that had torn out of his lips as he’d dripped blood and pain over your shaking hands.)

The bland food you’d scraped off your dinner tray settles fitfully in your stomach, still one second, nausea bubbling up your throat the next. 

It’s one of the rare times you’ve been alone, since… since everything. You’ve been taking comfort in Jungkook’s presence, unwavering and understated, needing someone there when staring at Yoongi’s battered face proved too much. Even with his own upheaval Jungkook’s been there, at your side, always close. Eyes locked on you and taking everything in, the tired set to your face, the expression that tugs down your lips, and still, he stays.

But he’d disappeared after you’d eaten, a peculiar look on his face—you know him well enough now to recognise that look, that it means he’s got something in his head, some plan he means to unfold. It’s the first time you’ve seen it since Taehyung had been pulled out of the Conn-Pod. It’s some semblance of normality, an expression of something other than pale-faced dread and bone-shivering guilt. 

(You feel it too, that survivor’s guilt. Taehyung and Yoongi will recover but it’ll take time and so much suffering and you wish you could take that from them, heft that burden onto your own shoulders.)

(You know Jungkook feels the same.)

(You see it written in the tense lines of his body. Hear it unspoken in the words he shares with you. The bruises on his skin melt from red to purple to blue to yellow, but even if his body heals, his brain and heart bear the scars of helplessness.)

Jungkook reappears, finds you at the heavy steel door that leads into your room, rusted and worn but silent as it swings open in front of you. His eyes are wide and he’s breathless, like he’s been running, chest heaving as he sucks in air through his parted lips, a flash of teeth and tongue as he smiles.

Despite everything, you smile back. Helpless for that smile, always, happier now for the sight of it, for how little you’ve seen it. You want to see that smile every day. You don’t want him to worry for anything. You want him to feel the same way you do, when you see him: that quiet, maybe selfish thought that things are okay. 

Maybe he does. (His eyes are so warm.) He presses something into your hands, something soft and round like a well-practised secret, and then he’s gone. You can tell by the gait of his stride that he’s going back to Taehyung, giving you a moment of lonely reprieve to wash the grime and dirt off your useless body before you follow in his footsteps, stationed at Yoongi’s side.

The door swings shut behind you.

You lift your hand.

It’s an orange.

It’s a small, overripe thing, hard nub of the stem falling away from the skin with only the lightest brush of your fingers. You stare at the fruit, its brightness cutting through the muted sepia tones of your surroundings, a point of colour in an otherwise dull room.

You haven’t seen an orange in months. Rationing is tough on everyone, even Jaeger pilots. You’d mentioned in passing, so long ago, an old habit of yours. Before something else floated above it, more important and interesting, you’d made a fleeting statement that had flitted across the surface of the conversation: you liked eating oranges in the shower. Liked that nice, cool citrus sweetness in your mouth while the rest of your body was caught in the fall of warm water.

It’s such a small, tiny thing. Just the briefest lament—there are more important things than the fact you can’t have shower oranges any more, after all—and you’d forgotten you’d even mentioned it.

But Jungkook hadn’t.

It’s almost syrupy sweet, this orange. You savour each slice, pressing them between your teeth, feeling the rush of juice burst forth through the pith and skin, and it’s so good you could cry. 

You do cry.

Your mouth is full of orange and your eyes are full of tears and your head is full of—of—something, something so all encompassing that it overwhelms you, water cascading down the aching planes of your body as you crumple inwards. Jungkook had protected you with the overwhelming power of Bulletproof Striker, and he’s protecting you now, soft and considerate and kind, vulnerable and human. Stripped of tons of metal and technology, Jungkook wears his beating heart on his sleeve and is none the weaker for it. 

This seemingly small thing means so much, so so so much. You understand him, and he understands you too, knows that this gesture is indicative of support and care and nurturing, a tiny fragment of peace he can offer you in the tumult of everything out of your control. 

A tiny fragment of peace that’s part of a greater whole, all the things that Jungkook gives to you.

When the Marshalls gather you and tell you the plan going forwards, you’re unsurprised. 

It makes sense, of course. Four pilots down to two still leaves a pair, and Bulletproof Striker is nearly functional even if Cypher Zero will stay out of commission while she’s rebuilt. Simple maths. One Jaeger, two pilots. You and Jungkook.

You’re scared.

You know you’re Drift compatible. Every fight in the Kwoon Combat Room is evidence enough of that. A dialogue, each challenge is meant to be a dialogue to show physical compatibility, and it is: there’s perfect sync in how you each move to strike, even if your motions are so different, muscles burning and breaths coming faster each time you attack, parry, strike, block. It’s not about winning or losing. It’s a conversation, one that you and Jungkook fall into without thought.

And he would be the perfect partner. That much isn’t in doubt. Loyal and open and strong, honourable and brave and kind—and you know him, have grown to learn so much about this golden boy, this bright, brilliant boy. He’s fucking indomitable and anyone would be lucky to find themselves in the same Jaeger as Jeon Jungkook.

But there are no secrets in the Drift. 

To let someone in, you have to trust them. And you do, you do trust Jungkook, probably far more than makes sense, some unspoken thing between you burning like a wildfire. But while you trust him, confident in his strength and his heart, you trust yourself less.

You’ll be flayed open, naked and defenceless. He’ll see right to the core of you, every dirty corner of your crumpled soul, every shameful part of your foundations, uneven brickwork layered into your shaky temperament; strong one second, weak the next. He’ll see that you’re hard inside, too, biting and acidic right down to your shrivelled heart. This nascent thing that you’ve been building with Jungkook, been keeping safe in the cradle of your careful hands, will sputter out and die.

“Baby.”

Yoongi’s voice is comforting, a familiar rumble that rolls through your ears as you rest your head in his lap.

“And I mean that you’re literally being a baby,” he continues, and you curl your lip back from your teeth in a small snarl, menacing.

Yoongi just continues to thread his hands through your hair.

You’ve Drifted with Yoongi often and long enough to know how every thread of thought unspools in that skull of his. You know he has every confidence in the unshakeable pillar of your soul. He’s a brother to you, a connection that thrums deep in your veins even without the intimacy of the Drift, and the love you hold for him is undying and true.

But whatever you have with Jungkook is so timorous in the face of that.

“It’s different.” Yoongi looks down at the twist of your face. You know his thoughts and he knows yours too, your face and heart an open book to him. “But different isn’t bad.”

You keep your mouth shut, keep the words swallowed down in your throat, shoved down to the pit of your stomach. Keep it secret. Keep it safe.

“Baby,” he says again, softer, lower. This time, you know it’s an endearment. 

At the end of the day, no matter what fear grips cold and endless at your insides, you’ll do it. You’ll Drift with Jungkook. You’ll throw everything you have into the pyre, watch it burn and turn to ash, if it means you can keep everyone safe. To save Yoongi, Taehyung, Jungkook—you’ll open yourself up to the mortifying ordeal of opening up, laying yourself bare. You have to.

It’s chaotic, anyway. The day that your practice Drift is scheduled is the day the next kaiju rises out of the breach, that dreaded rift between our world and theirs, because why would you be allowed to breathe, even for a second?

It’s a scramble into the cockpit. There’s no time for trial runs or test Drifts. You fly or you fall. Everyone’s in a state of orderly upheaval as you’re suited up and left to stride forwards into a Conn-Pod that isn’t yours, in a Jaeger that isn’t yours.

(Left to stride forwards to stand next to someone who isn’t yours.)

Your Drivesuit is grey. Jungkook’s is white. There’s a subtle hologramatic sheen laid across the planes of his armour, leaving him a multicoloured vision that shines out under the flicker of the cockpit’s endless tiny buttons and lights. Your own suit is a matte, gunmetal with accents of burning scarlet, far more battered and worn. Dark and wild in the face of Jungkook’s radiance. He’s the perfect answer to the kaiju invasion. You, though, feel like an interloper in a space that wasn’t designed for you, this circle room that’s been home to Jungkook and his true, real partner. 

But he’s looking at you like there’s no one else he’d rather have by his side. 

He doesn’t care that everything about this moment just cements how he’s too good for you in every conceivable way, elevated above you. Doesn’t care that you’re just a temporary stop gap. There’s trepidation, of course, skittering nerves that dance across his face for this first Drift, surrounded by all the commotion that’s swallowing the world up outside the cockpit. But there’s also that fire in his eyes, one you’ve learned to expect: Jungkook is a wildfire and will surmount any obstacle in a blaze of white-hot light.

And he wants you along for the ride.

(Burns bright for it.)

“You ready?” He asks, and the tiny tremor in his words takes you off guard even as it soothes a balm over the rash of apprehension that prickles across your skin.

(Because he’s nervous, too.)

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” you answer, truly.

His eyes crinkle into a smile, crescents of happiness as his lip peels back from his teeth. It should be jarring, seeing his sweet bunny smile in the pit of a Jaeger, so at odds with the military polycarbonate that girds his body with protection, the masculine edges of his face—but it’s not. The world is just a backdrop to Jeon Jungkook, dropping away as you fall into his eyes, twinkling stars of brightness and warmth that hold you safe, even now.

Peace and contentment steals over you. You’re almost shocked by it, the way your own face softens into a smile, the rising beat of your heart. Every ragged messy edge in you is smoothed over by Jungkook’s presence and you glow for him.

When the Conn-Pod drops, there’s the familiar weightlessness, the sway of your body in the harness as you fall. Anticipation roils through you as Bulletproof Striker’s head locks into place, whirring mechanisms securing you to nearly 2000 tons of metal, so much heavier than your own Jaeger. You’ve taken Jungkook’s usual place and he’s taken Taehyung’s, the right hemisphere, the dominant pilot, familiar with this machine in a way you’re not.

Not yet, at least.

“We’ve got this.”

Jungkook’s voice cuts through the noise, the AI talking at you, a narration of events you’ve long grown used to. You turn your head to look at him. He’s already looking at you, intent and sincere. Like always.

“Yeah,” you say. “Yeah, we have.”

There’s no point being afraid. In a few seconds, Jungkook will be in your head, washing over every part of you—and you’ll be in his, pressing your ethereal touch into every facet that comes together to make Jeon Jungkook who he is.

Seconds pass. There’s a little hitch in his breath, a stiffness to his limbs, and he shuts his eyes. You breathe in deep, deep, deep, sucking in a harsh breath into your greedy lungs—

—the timer hits zero—

—and then the Drift slams into you all at once, all encompassing and consuming, threading your minds together.

(Drifting with Yoongi is easy, the familiarity of coming home after so much time away.)

(But this?)

(This is throwing yourself into a cold lake on a hot summer’s day, bracing and refreshing and breath-stealing all at once, shocking life into every one of your limbs, so sharp and fast you’re scared you might drown before you breach the surface, water holding onto you and not letting you go. This is driving reckless and fast down empty roads, watching the world pass you in a blur, laughing in delight at the pleasure of it all. This is scaling a cliffside with nothing but your own hands and determination, digging your fingers into the unyielding rock, pulling yourself up-up-up, never letting yourself fall.)

(This is having Jungkook beside you. This is having Jungkook diving into the lake with all the grace of an Olympian before he rises to the surface, tosses his hair carelessly out of his face, and spits a mouthful of water at you with laughter in his eyes. This is having Jungkook behind the driver’s wheel, shifting gears without thought, looking away from the road to watch the way your hair dances in the wind. This is having Jungkook climbing beside you, waiting for you at the top, holding a hand out to pull you up and over so you can sprawl out beside him, exhausted and exuberant at the top of this mountain, basking in the sun with Jungkook just a hair’s breadth away from you.)

(He takes one look at you. He takes one look at all the dark of your memories, the cascading mess of your insides, the hidden things that are open to him in the Drift, cut open and peeled back for his gaze—and he doesn’t look away.)

(He sees everything, past skin and muscle and bone and nerves, even deeper, right into your heart—)

(—all the torrents that eddy the deep waters of your soul—)

(—and he doesn’t look away.)

(He doesn’t look away.)

(Can’t look away.)

(Doesn’t want to.)

(Never wants to.)

(Jeon Jungkook takes one look at you, your whole being, and he knows you.)

(And he doesn’t want you any less.)

It’s just a second, a flicker, a breath, this first connection in this Drift, falling into each other. But it’s also a lifetime, two lifetimes, four lifetimes; your memories, Jungkook’s memories, Yoongi’s memories in yours, Taehyung’s memories in Jungkook’s. Layers and layers and years and years piled over one another, a tumbling sprawl—but it’s easy. It’s easy, so easy, Jungkook seeing you, you seeing him, everything he is, everything you are, everything you are to each other, with each other, for each other. The important things. The things you need to know to navigate this together, in sync even before now, reading each other to a level neither had even realised.

And when you’ve killed the kaiju. When you’ve walked Bulletproof Striker back to shore, brought her back to the Shatterdome, back home, it doesn’t end. You lift out of the Drift, step out of your Drivesuits, as different as they are (as different as you are), and it doesn’t end. 

Jungkook’s eyes linger, as heavy as a physical touch, and even as congratulations for a successful drop are bandied about you, he doesn’t leave your side. He keeps his hand against yours—not intertwined, but brushing, the curl of his fingers against your own. Touching. You’re not the protector here. He’s protecting you, in a way that doesn’t leave you feeling inferior or weak. You feel soft and warm and small and safe, pulled inexorably towards him, supported, buoyed up, and you don’t feel selfish for it.

Because he wants this.

He wants to be your comfort and your support.

He doesn’t want it to end.

(You don’t want it to end.)

And when you finally break away from those crowds, released from the shackles of responsibility and expectation—when you’re finally left alone, the two of you with each other, there’s no hesitation when you come together.

He lays you out beneath him and has you sobbing, back arching into the pleasure he draws out of your body, playing you like a maestro. Because he knows you, after all. He knows exactly how to trail his lips across your skin, your neck and stomach and thighs, painting marks across your body like it’s his personal canvas. He knows exactly how to have you twisting underneath him, how to pull those pretty sounds from your lips, fucking you with his fingers and his tongue until you’re a shaking mess. He kisses you sweet, merciless, letting you claw at his skin as you beg for more, more more more, wanting it, needing it, wanting him, needing him.

And you know he’ll give it to you. He’ll give himself to you, give you everything you ask for. You know how he wants to see you fall apart and you know how to move your body to have him gritting his teeth and staring in awe. You know how desperate he is to worship you, to show you his adoration and reverence, and you open up for him, unfurl like a flower, dripping nectar. When he finally presses into you, hot and long and thick, it’s so good you could cry. You draw him in-in-in, into your body and arms and heart, pressing your lips to the sweat at his brow, the taste of skin and salt and Jungkook bursting across your tongue.

There’s no Drift here, no curl of memories and unspoken thoughts between you. It’s physical and human, the crash of your bodies against each other, skin on skin, the thrust of his cock pressing into the dripping folds of your cunt. It’s the other half of that connection, the final piece, this thing you have with Jungkook, this perfect balance you have with him. It sears itself across your body and into your soul: it’s pleasure and passion and devotion carved into each touch of your lips and fingers, each roll of your hips, each time Jungkook makes you cum, gasping for him.

When he’s finally come apart inside you, spilling into your willing heat as you shake beneath him, arms and legs wrapped around his body as you pull him as close as you can, unwilling to let go—it still doesn’t end. You’re so wrapped up in Jungkook, in his arms, his heart, and you know he won’t let you go, either. He presses his lips against yours, chases those kisses, quiet and chaste to open-mouthed and dirty as the mood takes you, and then Jungkook rolls over you again, a spark in his eyes as he decides he’s still hungry for you.

You know, now, that all that time ago, when you carved that space for him into your chest, he’d done the same for you. He’d laid his heart at your feet and waited there, kneeling, for you to accept it, patient and willing. Staring at you with all the deep love you never thought you deserved, never thought you’d receive. But here he is. Here he is, love burning in his dark brown eyes. Eyes that have seen all the damaged, aching parts of you and love you anyway.

“I’m yours.”

Jungkook shines so bright at your words, a supernova of joy. His smile is so wide and his gaze is so soft, for you, for you, for you.

“Everything I am is for you,” he murmurs, letting the words curl into the air, settle across your skin, sink deep inside your chest. Your eyes flutter shut as you feel this touch of him inside you, wrapped around your heart.

And when you lift your hands, he comes so easily. He presses his cheek into the curve of your fingers, lets you hold him, lets you cup those lovely cheeks in your palms.

“I love you,” he says.

Right now, in this instant, there’s nothing but him. No kaiju, no Jaegers, no crumbling world, nothing. There’s only him, and you, together.

“I love you too,” you reply—and when you smile, gentle and tender, Jungkook falls in love all over again.

Burns bright for you.

#btswritingcafe #magicshopnet #jungkook x reader #jungkook #bts #jungkook oneshot #jeon jungkook #jeongguk x reader #jeongguk #bts au #jungkook smut #jeongguk smut #jungkook imagine #bts imagine #bts oneshot #bts x reader #tags are exhausting you know? I should be more organised with them but I'm so lazy #pacific rim #guess I should throw that one in there #I haven't seen the second film so if this contradicts uprising somehow then my bad! oops! #also if anyone wants an link to the artbook pdf hmu it's super cool #something something it's so late and I'm incoherent #I'm scheduling this and going to sleep #joy.masterlist

[seyaryminamoto]

Do you think canon Zuko has any understanding of the idea of duty? That he, especially given that he aspires to political power, should act like his status as Prince gives him certain responsibilities? That doing what's best for the for Fire Nation or the world might require him to do things which make him unhappy or uncomfortable or require him to make grave personal sacrifices? Does he even understand duty as a concept?

Oof. Complicated questions, thus, this sat in my inbox for a veeeery long time.

I honestly, seriously, genuinely... don't think Zuko truly understood, at any point in canon, what it really meant to be a leader. I know many of us (and I think you, too?) don't particularly like the comics, but in my opinion, The Promise did a surprisingly decent job at highlighting several problems left in the wake of the end of the war, and perhaps unintentionally, this is one of the problems: upon becoming Fire Lord, Zuko is remarkably erratic, unsure of his choices, even seeking advice from his FATHER, of all people, because he has no idea what he's doing.

In the most favorable possible view of Iroh, he taught Zuko to be a better person. I don't entirely adscribe to this belief, but fine, let's concede that he did, or else this answer would never end: not just because you're a good person, however, are you guaranteed to be a good leader. Zuko, as we both know, is far from the best person in the world, and he is prone to making impulsive, emotional mistakes that can cause harm and trouble, and typically, Zuko doesn't face the consequences of most his actions, or the narrative just pins the blame on someone else. When we see this sort of behavior in a real-life politician, the immediate reaction we would have is "this guy is awful at his job", and sadly, I find myself thinking that quite often when it comes to Zuko's canon tenure as Fire Lord.

So... what is Zuko's concept of duty? Going by his pursuit of Aang in the first two seasons, duty is a task given to him by someone whose approval he seeks (in this case, Ozai) and he must pull it off, no matter what, to gain said approval. By Book 3, this logic still applies fairly easily to how Zuko acts over Iroh: I've highlighted in the past that the main motivation for Zuko's redemption is Iroh, doing right by Iroh, making amends to Iroh, regretting how he treated Iroh. He points that out explicitly in Ember Island Players, he does it as well indirectly by bringing up Iroh first of all, when confronting Ozai: this is his main priority. Ergo... I'd honestly say it's safe to judge that this is what Zuko regards as duty, as what he has to do. Iroh wants him to be Fire Lord? That's exactly what he becomes. The difficulties and complications in this particular line of work are taken for granted, and so, we have an outcome that was remarkably well depicted in The Promise, despite that comic's many glaring flaws: Zuko gets swept back and forth, twisted left and right by all the pressures and responsibilities, because he has no idea what he's doing as Fire Lord, and no idea/experience in how to be a real leader.

As far as I can tell, the core of the matter is that nobody really seems to have taken Zuko all that seriously as future Fire Lord. Ozai, evidently, wasn't training Zuko to be his personal heir. Ozai himself is a questionable source of information regarding learning what it means to be Fire Lord, considering he, as well, wasn't raised to take that role, just as he didn't raise Zuko for it. Yet Iroh didn't exactly teach Zuko how to lead anyone either, as far as I can tell: his lessons were meant to be of a more personal nature, and even then, Zuko had lots of trouble accepting most of them. Iroh's firebending lessons to Zuko were typically stunted in the basics because he was hot-headed and rash about getting to the intense and interesting stuff...

So: neither Ozai nor Iroh gave Zuko actual responsibilities. Ozai gave him a punishment Zuko was trying to endure however possible, a punishment he wanted to prove himself unworthy of by finding the Avatar and "regaining his honor". Then, Iroh punished Zuko as well by giving him the cold shoulder in Book 3, then he escaped and Zuko did everything he did, after betraying Ozai, to prove himself worthy of Iroh's kindness once again. It's not actual duty, the way it is in Azula's case: no doubt, Azula wants Ozai's approval too, but she has the madman's trust when it comes to finding her brother and uncle, to taking down the Avatar, and to conquering Ba Sing Se, as far as anyone can tell. I do doubt Ozai gave her all these missions at once, but he gave her the resources through which she pulled off ALL of them: she had the firebending procession, she had a ship, she had a train-tank, she had mounts... Zuko had a rundown ship that looked like a 1:10 scale version of every other ship in the harbor back in the very third episode: he was being punished. In contrast, Azula is entrusted with a mission, with LEADERSHIP, while Zuko has no visible, tangible, objective experience with the latter (consider how Azula steals the Dai Li's loyalty from under Long Feng: when did we see Zuko pulling off something like this? Even with Jet, Zuko was more of an associate to the Freedom Fighters, and Jet was still the leader).

I've always thought Zuko wasn't prepared to be Fire Lord, and the main reasons are the ones you indirectly point out through this ask: Zuko doesn't seem to treat the throne as a responsibility, but as his right. I won't get tired of pointing out that this was NOT Zuko's birthright, he was NOT born thinking he'd be Fire Lord: he was born to the second branch in the Fire Nation family. We literally SEE the day in which Lu Ten's death is revealed to him. According to somewhat official sources? He's ELEVEN in Zuko Alone's flashbacks. I, personally, think he looks a little younger than that, but I think that's the official wikia age, no idea where they got that info but that's what it says. Meaning...

Zuko, objectively, only had been crown prince for FIVE YEARS.

Zuko was NOT raised, not by his mother, not by his father, with the belief that the throne would one day be his (Ursa is gone before Ozai is crowned and Ozai clearly wanted Azula for the job rather than Zuko).

And yet, when you backtrack to the show? It seriously looks like that was the case. He clings to the throne in Books 1 and 2 as though he had no other purpose in life, as though this was everything that was promised to him (in contrast, Azula only ever indicates wanting the throne in Sozin's Comet: Part One). Even when he's an outlaw, discarded and cast out, he STILL talks about the throne, as though most his identity were built upon the notion that he must become Fire Lord: why? How come? Within five years, he's crafted his entire existence around being the heir to the throne? That's... a bit weird.

And a bit wishful, too. Which is why I commend that the comics show him struggling as Fire Lord, if anything they should've had him struggling MORE than that, because Zuko is simply NOT prepared for these responsibilities. He never gave any indication, any sign, of seeing it as such. He sees it as his right, his birthRIGHT. Why? Why more people don't ponder how utterly strange this behavior is, beats me. But it really does bother me that Zuko built his entire existence around being Fire Lord in a very similar way to how Korra built her own about being the Avatar. I have very little praise to give LOK in general, but the premise of Korra learning she was a person, a human, and not just the Avatar felt like the perfect parallel to Aang's story, where he was very much anchored in his humility and belief that he was just "one kid", and his rejection of his duties as the Avatar was meant to change gradually as he learned to accept himself as he was. Korra, however, never fully hit the mark with this subject, in my personal opinion... much as Zuko doesn't hit the mark either, since the show's only direct attempt to "deconstrue" Zuko's clinging to the throne happens in one dialogue, and his attachment to the idea is built up again, right afterwards:

Zuko: And then ... then you would come and take your rightful place on the throne? Iroh: No. Someone new must take the throne. An idealist with a pure heart and unquestionable honor. It has to be you, Prince Zuko. Zuko: Unquestionable honor? But I've made so many mistakes. Iroh: Yes, you have. You've struggled; you've suffered, but you have always followed your own path. You restored your own honor, and only you can restore the honor of the Fire Nation. Zuko: I'll try, Uncle.

And there we have it. The only point in the show (that I can remember) where Zuko seemed to not feel worthy of the throne and questioned he should be the one sitting on it (RIGHTFULLY!), buuuuuuuut he goes right back to wanting it, right afterwards, based on how this single exchange was enough for him to be 100% determined to take down his sister, merely a few lines later.

As for his willingness to make personal sacrifices... some might say he was outright willing to die for Katara in the finale -- though I'll point out he was trying to redirect the lightning anyway, didn't do it as well as he should have, but he wasn't exactly, consciously, trying to DIE for her... --, some might say that he left Mai behind in the FIre Nation, and that as well was a sacrifice... but was it? We don't see him missing her, or suffering about her fate, at any point in time after SHE sacrifices herself for him in the Boiling Rock (my biggest gripe over this particular canon couple is this, tbh). I feel like the show generally presents Zuko's situation as somewhat... self-sacrificial? Especially in Books 1 and 2, and yet that's really not the case: it isn't Zuko himself who makes the choice of traveling to find Aang, it's a punishment inflicted upon him.

This particular view upon his circumstances makes it so Zuko is never responsible for... well, any of his choices? It's always someone else's fault, therefore, whatever he suffers through, there's always someone he can (and usually does) resent for it. Therefore... I can't genuinely think of anything Zuko sacrificed in order to come as far as he did. He was forced to let go of things by his father, typically, by Zhao as well, maybe, but even then, it's not like we saw that he has a super healthy and happy relationship with, I don't know, Earth Kingdom people (his only meaningful positive EK bond was with Jin, which went nowhere and goes forgotten after a single mini episode)? The Palace staff? The commoners of the Fire Nation (they just treat him like a hero and he seems awkward and distant about it anyway, like he can really just do without their worship)? He doesn't have other friends beyond Azula's own friends... thus, he doesn't sacrifice anything that really matters. And in a sense, some people might say he doesn't have to sacrifice anything at all: he already went through so much strife and struggle that why would he need to sacrifice anything else? But the thing is... you DO have to learn to make such sacrifices if you're going to be a good king.

So often, people who devote themselves to their jobs have to consciously neglect their families, to name one thing: Zuko neglects Mai and she explodes at him for it in The Promise, then he just tries to get her back at all costs in Smoke & Shadow, with no thoughts given to the fact that maybe he isn't ready to juggle both a relationship and the throne, that maybe Mai could be happier with someone other than him, someone who can give her the attention and relationship she's looking for... THOSE are the sacrifices I'd be referring to, personally, sacrifices where his happiness and peace of mind have to be set aside for the sake of something much more important than himself, and I expect that's the kind of sacrifices you're referring to, too. I seriously don't think he's ready to make them, and with the comics as reference, there's seriously no evidence to suggest he's prepared to accept these burdens that come with the heavy mantle of leadership and ruling. I've never seen any signs of him being ready for it, myself. Maybe I need to reexamine the show and see if maybe I'm missing something... but I don't really think I am.

The worst part, for me, is that Zuko isn't even doing the bulk of the things he's doing in pursuit of genuine happiness: he's doing it over a sense of destiny. He never stops to reason with that destiny, to wonder if maybe he doesn't need to be Fire Lord, if maybe he could have a life beyond that role. Book 2 veeeery briefly suggests he MIGHT be on his way to questioning that destiny, but as I've said before, I don't see the sense in Zuko's big change of heart after the Appa incident considering we don't really understand what he's learned, other than how to be the perfect nephew for Iroh, apparently. Zuko never really is happy, as he says in the show: his happiest moments are with Mai and they're only like a 25% of his relationship with her, everything else is a mess (and his relationship with her isn't exactly the core of his character, either). So, the way I see it... Zuko is even worse off than it looks at first glance. He's out to fulfill a destiny he has never stopped to reason with, a destiny he's 100% sure is his, despite he has only been on that path, objectively, for five years? Despite he wasn't raised all along under the belief that this was what he was supposed to be? If given a chance to be genuinely happy, what on earth would he even do? A lot of the growth I gave him in Gladiator was based on that particular question: is the throne really what Zuko needs to be happy? It doesn't look like it, even in canon. If it's not... then it's not happiness he seeks, it's some sort of sense of assurance that he's doing the right thing, according to the figure of authority he follows at a set point in time: by Book 3, said authority is Iroh, and Iroh wants him on the throne. His motivation, as far as I can see it, is as simple as that.

Long story short... I don't think Zuko really has a strong grasp on many concepts that he absolutely should have reasoned with and worked out in order to become Fire Lord. In a sense, he's way too young for the role he's given, for the heavy burdens he has to deal with, and I'll NEVER see the sense in not having Iroh taking the throne (beyond how "poetic" the creators and writers found it to crown Zuko to finish his story, of course), at least for a short time, before Zuko can be ready. This is exactly why I wrote things that way in my oneshot where Azula takes Zuko's role, more or less: Iroh serves as regent while Azula prepares for taking the full role of Fire Lord when she's ready. I love her, she's awesome, I absolutely adore her character... but I don't think an Azula who was sidelined and sent on a long voyage with her uncle for YEARS could possibly be ready for the responsibilities of being Fire Lord right away.

Meanwhile? Iroh was given leadership of military missions enough times that he became a general in the Fire Nation forces. By all evidence, he was Fire Lord Azulon's pampered and spoiled son, whom he DID prepare for the duties of a Fire Lord for as long as Iroh was born: Iroh literally had fifty-ish years of preparation, as far as I can tell? How is he NOT the better suited person to take the throne, if just temporarily, while his nephew learns what it really means to rule by watching him, or by maybe learning leadership by managing smaller duties first, a specific town or city, and then putting his knowledge to good use by becoming Fire Lord properly?

Eh... because it wouldn't be an epic enough finale for the show, I suppose. That's the only answer I can find for this particular question.

So... yeah. That got long :'D but in short... I don't think Zuko has a strong grasp on responsibility and duty, let alone on the burdens inherent to these concepts. Yet more reasons why his character's arc can't hit all the marks it should, imo, to make it as great as the whole fandom is already convinced it is.

#zuko-always-lies #more zuko meta #and it got long #:'D #if anyone needs a read more #let me know and I'll add it #but for now #it is what it is #you know it really is sad to write all this when I'm more or less making peace with Zuko via Gladiator #and actually making him reason with soooo much stuff #that he never really had to in the show #*siiiiigh* #he'll never be my fav #that much is obvious #but he could be MORE #and it's sad that he's not #very sad

[burnedbyshoto]

all tied up

— Sero’s not an easy guy to fluster, but when he’s trapped in his own quirk, his embarrassment bleeds through when he finds out that he likes it.

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pairing: sero hanta x fem!reader

warnings: smut, 18+, characters are adults, pwp, dom!reader, sub!sero, rimming (giving), handjob, tape bondage, humiliation

word count: 2,002

a/n: and so, kinktober begins. all in all, this is a slow start on my own end. idk, I just am trying to approach this challenge different this year. theres going to be a lot of 2k pwp fics, and then a good handful of 10k plotlines with smut! to my fellow writers, good luck with your kinktober endeavors, and to you readers, comment on all the fics you read! have fun :D if you don’t want my kinktober fics, blacklist bbs kinktober 2020

main kink: bondage

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When heroes became professional heroes, some people thought that they stopped training -- stopped placing themselves into theoretical situations and simulations to see how they would fare. As a matter of fact, that was not true.

Sero was more than aware of this truth. Especially as he currently was nearly encased in his own cellophane tape in his attempt to combat a virtual villain with a whirlwind quirk. 

He struggled against the tape that managed to bind his arms tight against his side, and his knees locked together. It shouldn’t have taken him that long to unravel himself from his own tape, having been with it for the majority of his life, Sero knew how to escape his own clutches (the tape was also a lot less likely to stick onto him), but he was in a predicament. 

The tape was just a bit too tight.

The feeling of it digging into his skin, his wrists and ankles bound just right sent pumping blood straight to his cock. Not to mention, whenever he shifted his hips, his cock would rub just directly against the matted floor, sending his cheeks into a small puff, desperately hoping to not make a single whimper. It took nothing more than a few seconds for his cheeks to be flushed, and his brow sweating with his horror of how he was seconds from rutting into the floor to relieve his growing cock.

The mat under his chin was cold, the gym’s ac just a tad bit too strong, and for a moment, he decided that since you collapsed in front of him, eyes closed, not moving save your breathing chest… it wouldn’t hurt to move... right? 

Sighing softly, Sero averted his gaze from you, a bit too embarrassed to look at your relaxed posture while dry humping the floor. One thrust, two, he stopped, glancing at you quickly to see that you had rolled to your side, your back towards him. With a strained sigh of relief, Sero continued his rutting, already knowing that his cock was too hard, too tight in his gym sweats to go ignored once you would help him out of his trap. His sweats, thankfully, were a dark color, something that could conceal the leaking precum from his tip until he managed to shower. But as he took another serotonin releasing rut of his hips against the pleasantly warm mat, he heard you sit up.

Oh no.

It was only then that Sero became deadly aware of how wide his eyes were, the gaping of his mouth, and the wine red of his cheeks. His breathing became erratic as he met your glistening, bright eyes.

The world seamlessly froze, and Sero couldn’t think as you stood up, the smirk on your face growing wider as you sauntered behind him. Your footsteps light on the matted floor, and your quiet giggles vibrating deep within his core.

“Oh, wow!” Sero shuddered when your bright and deadly teasing voice broke through from behind him, a location he was refusing to look at for his own humility. “Did I catch you at a bad time, sweetheart?”

A bad time? Sero thought, his throat running dry. He had no idea if you meant about him being caught up or him rutting against the dirty, sweaty gym mats.

“Actually, I was just getting comfortable, these mats are quite nice,” Sero responded back as smoothly and detached as possible. His shoulders attempting to shrug nonchalantly, but he winced when his arms scuffled against the dry mat.

“Didja need some help?” you ask, hand pressing against the small of his back in a ready attempt to push him over, but it did something incomprehensible to the black-haired man on the floor. The feeling of your warm fingers and radiating palm pressing to the small of his back, the feather-soft linger of your fingers sent him through a loop.

Maybe it was because of the humiliation coursing through his veins, or the way that his tape really did serve as good bondage (something he had been less than willing to accept despite your constant approval). Still, a soft, deep moan reverberated from his mouth, vibrating through his body with such depth that the way you yanked your hand from his lower back almost made him pout.

“Hanta!” you whispered, and Sero threw his forehead against the floor in his growing horny aggravation. “Are you dry humping the sweaty gym mat?!”

It seemed your amusement came from the latter of the two previous options.

“Y/n, please keep your voice down!” Sero bemoaned, his cock refusing to come down despite the horror he was experiencing in real life. Whoever said that focusing on the worst thing in the world while hard definitely did not expect situations like this to be involved.

“Okay, okay, I will,” you whisper, planting your feet centimeters before his face before squatting down, your eyes falling onto his shamefully averted ones. “Are you sure you don’t want any help?” you ask again.

“Nah, I’m good,” Sero lies, a flushed faux smile on his face. “Don’t worry, I’ll be out of this before you even realize it!”

You hum in acknowledgment, and Sero isn’t sure if he feels better or worse when you stand up, moving out of the way of his line of vision, and his cock throbs in his denial while he squirms to figure out where you went. But he regretted shifting his body, his cock carding just so perfectly against the crease of the matted floor, sending a rushing wave of dizziness through his head.

Holy fuck, why did that feel so good?!

Sero swallowed a moan, the tension of the tape on his wrists and thighs tugging just the slightest bit deeper into his skin, an action due to his ministrations. But, it was a soft touch against his ass that nearly sent him flipping over; his mind had forgotten the fact that you were still there.

“B-Babe!” Sero choked, your once feather-light touches growing heavier, hotter, intentional. “What are you doing?!”

“I never knew how good you looked all tied up,” came a soft reply, your voice so soft and sweet that Sero almost felt as if he was showing off a fancy new outfit and not being BDSM’d up in the training ground with his long time girlfriend hornily grabbing him. “If this is how I look, fuck… it all makes sense now.”

“We’re in the gym,” Sero pants, his eyes closing as he almost melts against your softly massaging fingers. Your fingertips oh so intentful against his lean built muscles, and Sero feels a heartbeat in his cock, a reminder that yes, he was enjoying this. “Who knows who’s ar -- oh fuck -- around!”

“Let them watch,” he felt you murmur against his neck, your fingers slipping to the waistband of his sweats and pulling on them so that he was on his knees, chest on the ground, ass up. “I know you don’t care.”

Sero hissed at the feeling of cold air against his hot cock, and throbbing balls. His eyes desperately looking through the corner of his eyes to find yours, but he saw nothing. 

He saw nothing, but good god could he feel every little thing you were doing. 

Your lips trailed down the spine of his back, your tongue on occasion peaking out to feel cool against his sweating hot back. But the breathiest of moans, the slickest of cries came when he felt your fingers grab onto his ass, pressing the cheeks aside in two tight holds and the soft, cold breath passing past your lips onto his quivering, pink hole.

“Y-Y/n!” Sero gasped, the rim of his ass squeezing in his humiliation and arousal of being so exposed in the empty gym, but he saw stars. His cock twitching, dripping with precum as he could imagine your tongue pressing against his rim, digging into the tight hole despite it all, making his ass buck backward against your wet muscle. 

But it was not in the cards right now.

Sero nearly collapsed when your warm, slick lips pressed by your fingers, kissing every piece of exposed skin except where he wanted you most.

“Your asshole is so fucking cute,” he heard you giggle, the teasing cool breathes fanning against his hole, making him whine with greater need. “I haven’t eaten your ass in a while, have I? And look at you, pathetically clenching for my tongue that hasn’t even touched you yet.”

“Please!” Sero gasped, his teeth burying into his lower lip when your right-hand lets go of his ass. And he convulses when your fingertip presses against his tight muscle, not pushing past the opening, but just enough for Sero to choke on his tongue. “Fuck, y/n, baby, please!!”

“Only because you sound so, so desperate~.”

Sero’s vision went white when your tongue finally pressed against his rim, your hot, wet tongue swirling and edging into the tight muscle, yet never intruding. The solid moans, the whines emitted from his mouth, seemed to echo in the empty gym. He moves his ass back, seeking complete penetration from your tongue, his stomach fluttering, balls tightening when the tip of your tongue protrudes through his tight hole.

There was, however, nothing to warn him when your tongue completely pressed into him, moving and swirling inside him. The arm that wrapped around his stomach moving downward to hold onto his throbbing, completely ignored cock.

Sero howled into the mat at the feeling of your tongue curling within him, and your hand moving up and down his cock, fingernails trailing against his risen veins, finger pinching at his leaking head. There was no helping the shooting cum that came out of his cock in thick, hot ropes as you continued to move your hand up and down his length, tongue continuing to fuck him as he sobs your name. 

The pressure of his balls returns nearly immediately, Sero choking on his spit when your free hand presses a lone finger into his hole, the saliva on your tongue provides enough lube that the entrance of your finger does nothing but make him weak in the knees. The smirk on your face is pressed against his ass when you immediately find his sweet spot, your finger stroking his prostate as your mouth moves down to suck on his balls.

Hand around his cock.

Mouth sucking on his balls.

Fingers stroking his prostate.

Sero came again before he could even give a breathy gasp that he was gonna cum.

He slumped down onto the floor, spit making his ass slick, and cock throbbing with overstimulation,

“You looked fucking hot, Hanta,” he heard you whisper, teeth nibbling onto his ear. “I can’t wait to get you home and fuck you all night.”

It was safe to say that Sero particularly enjoyed the strap that night.

#sero x reader #sero hanta x reader #bnha x reader #bnha #mha #bbs kinktober 2020

[yuyupowers]

aristocrat!seonghwa

aristocrat!seonghwa x fem!reader

genre: fluff

trigger warning(s): patriarchal society mostly. let me know if there’s anything else!

author’s note: none of the pictures are mine!!

for reference, i’m using british peerage (hierarchy). there are five ranks: baron, viscount, earl (count), marquess, and duke - the highest being duke, and the lowest, baron.

second son of a duke

i imagine seonghwa to be someone who values tradition

unlike hongjoong who finds who finds the numerous aristocratic mannerisms pointless, hwa believes upholding these (rather stringent) rules is a sign of respect

perfect gentleman pt.1

excellent in swordsmanship, horse-back riding, and hunting

well versed in poetry, literature, art, and finance

(can maintain a conversation about politics but honestly it kinda goes over his head)

a bit on the shyer side, but a decent conversationalist

good at keeping the flow and mediating in case anyone becomes a little too heated about their opinions

definitely cares about his and his family’s image

naturally caring and tends to dote on those close to him

(translates into excellent manners)

holds the door open, offers his hand when stepping out of carriages, makes sure to walk on the side closest to traffic, diverts conversation when things are too “distressing,” wouldn’t be caught dead alone with a woman that wasn’t related to him or his fiancée/wife

and surprise, surprise !!

this is where you come in

you’re the second oldest daughter, fourth child out of six; born to an earl

hwa’s family had the highest title bestowed upon aristocracy

whereas your family accumulated more wealth and land than the park family

and since both you and hwa were prime marrying age™, your parents decided upon a mutually beneficial marriage

the first time you met seonghwa was under the watchful eye of both your parents, when the park’s invited your family for dinner

tbh, you were pretty relieved when you met him

“prime marrying age” was different for men, so you were just glad he wasn’t some old geezer

and he seemed like a decent person !!

a well put together gentleman, and his image was only consolidated throughout dinner

all in all, you didn’t have much to complain about from the initial impression

though it was kinda annoying when your little sister would not shut up about how he was the handsome man she’s ever met

even if you agreed

and didn’t she say that when she met woo?

anyways

after the first meeting with the park’s, both your parents set up multiple occasions for you two to meet

whether that be evening walks, picnics in the park, etc,,,

you learned a great deal about seonghwa 

how his favourite is black, how he loved the stars and that his favourite planet was mars

how he loved kids and doted on your youngest siblings (much to your sister’s glee)

how he enjoyed spending a quiet afternoon with you reading dickens, discussing afterwards the contrast between carton and darnay

how he was always considerate of your feelings and opinions

you liked to think you were a decent judge of character and thought overall that seonghwa was a kind and caring person

but you also noticed a few characteristics that-

you wouldn’t say it was off-putting or anything but,,,

it might bother you in the future

see, you were pretty good friends with hongjoong

and while you weren’t as extreme,

(you didn’t sneak out weekly to hang out with a bar maiden that you definitely did not have a crush on)

you certainly agreed with him on certain points

like hwa, you thought that abiding by certain mannerisms = display of respect

but unlike him, you didn’t care all that much about your image

okay, that was a lie.

you couldn’t say you didn’t care about your image

(social ostracization isn’t exactly fun ya feel)

but you thought it was,,,exhausting

it’s one thing to be respectful, but it’s another thing to say things you don’t mean

to fake humility

to undermine people that are supposed to be your “friends” or “one of you”

to be perfect, when “perfect” was such a subjective term anyways

it just felt so fake and that left a bitter taste in your mouth

even now, you could see all the efforts seonghwa made to constantly keep his image of a “perfect gentleman”

with perfect mannerisms and perfect answers and perfect-

yeah, it kinda frustrated you

not to mention how obedient he was?

of course you didn’t fault him for being a dutiful and filial son, but his loyalty blinded him

and it wasn’t like his parents were bad people !!

no, you’d say they were much kinder than the average noble family

especially considering their status

but when they made important decisions for their son without consulting him,

(because they were more experienced, because they knew better, etc,,,)

and he accepted whatever decision they handed to him?

well,,,

nevertheless, despite being his fiancée, you, by this point, had realistically had known seonghwa for a couple months

and you didn’t feel like it was your place 

(at least not yet)

to point this out

so the two of you continued your cordial but emotionally distant meetings

that is until “the incident” (as hwa fondly likes to call it)

okay, so-

one day you paid hwa a visit and the two of you decided to take a walk in his family’s garden

chattering about this and that

a lovely time !!

it was a bit overcast, but it didn’t look too threatening

so the two of you ignored the clouds looming in the horizon and wandered deep into the garden

big mistake

the weather took a turn for the worst, and soon it was pouring

by this point seonghwa was a little panicked

he knew that for women, getting ready could be excessively long and tenuous task

(courtesy of his little sister’s complaints)

and now !! you were getting rained on !! because he didn’t bring an umbrella !! just in case !!

!!!!

he turns to you, ready to shield you with his jacket and lead you back to the manor

but he’s at a loss by what he sees

he had expected you to be upset, to huddle closer to him, to,,,idk, maybe reprimand him for this thoughtlessness??

but instead, he finds you staring up at the dark sky, eyes shimmering with barely contained glee with the biggest smile he’s ever seen from you adorning your lips

he likes your smile

and if he was already confused (he was), he was about to become even more so

because the next thing he knows, you’re hiking your dress in one hand and grabbing his in the other, running through puddles of water and mud and everything in between, laughter falling from you like the rain

up until this point, you had been acting like the perfect (you hate that word) lady

polite, demure, charming-

in public settings, you only spoke when spoken to, with a voice that was purposely soft and soothing

you chatted with his mother and sisters about traditionally feminine things over tea with impeccable manners

whenever you two met, you were always prim and proper; never a strand of hair out of place

but here you were, getting not only yours but his clothes soggy and muddy, laughing without a care about how pleasant it sounded or how loud it was

seonghwa liked to think he wasn’t a judgemental person-

he wasn’t repulsed or anything by your sudden change in demeanor

just.

really confused

and when you looked back, you could tell,if his expression was anything to go by

but your grin only grew wider, because you could work with this

he wasn’t enjoying himself per say; a bit too confused and bit too stiff to do so

but he wasn’t horrified or disgusted

okay maybe he was a little grossed out; he liked to be clean thank you very much

you could work with this.

and so over the next few months, you showed him things he never dreamed of doing

some of which he liked, some of which he didn’t

some he was willing to try, some, less

like sneaking into the restricted section of the library (he’s never been so scandalized in his life)

or visiting the kitchen in the middle of the night so you could teach him how to make some basic recipes (which he surprisingly enjoyed)

or meeting hongjoong

(“of COURSE it matters if they got the colour wrong?! lord help me you’re the most insufferable person i’ve ever met-”)

and the more the two of you explored, the more he,,,real he became.

and vice versa.

gradually, the mask of perfection he worked so on hard to maintain was slipping before you

don’t get me wrong, he’s still kind and caring and a gentleman

but sometimes he would whine and complain when you encouraged him to do something he was less than enthusiastic about (usually something that involved getting him messy)

or he made The Face™ (the disgusted one) to you and when he didn’t like something or someone

or he would be stupidly stubborn about some random fact that you KNEW was wrong but he just WOULDN’T admit if even when you showed him proof

(“seonghwa for the last time toads don’t give you war-” “LALALA I CAN’T HEAR YOU” “eye-”)

once, he even playfully stole the strawberry from your cake

(big mistake. he’s never doing that again. he never knew a woman could move so fast or be so scary.)

it made you so, so happy because the two of you were finally getting to know each other

actually know each other

then one day, while the two of you were reading underneath a tree at the park

“,,,hey love?” (hwa)

“yes?”

“why are we doing this?” 

“what do you mean, dear?”

“i mean,,,i’m not complaining, but i guess,,,why did you decide to show me this part of you? the part that runs around in the rain?” hwa

you don’t reply right away

instead, you shut your book and idly stared at the willow swaying over the pond, wind running its fingers through its drooping leaves

after a few moments of silence

“,,,i wanted to know you and what you believed in. actually believed in.”

seonghwa tilts his head slightly to the side

“love, i hardly think my convictions have changed”

“but do you know what your convictions are?”

and you know when you hear something that resonates with you?

something that strikes deep in your core and makes you rethink everything you’ve know?

yeah,,,this is one of those moments

now it was seonghwa’s turn to set his book aside, falling deep in thought

after an unnaturally long stretch of silence, you began to panic a little

because ?? maybe you misread the situation and got a little too comfortable-

cause i mean you were questioning his core values, which is something he takes very seriously

o god you messed up didn’t you o crap you need to apolog-

“will you help me figure it out?”

“,,,huh??”

“will you help me figure out my convictions?” he asked

and you swear, you’ve never seen such a smile from seonghwa

one that conveyed a plethora of emotions, ranging from honesty and vulnerability, to confusion and loss, to lightness and warmth

it filled you with an unnameable feeling

like something sliding into place, fitting perfectly; like it was always meant to be there, filling you with comfort

shyly intertwining your hands for the first time, you looked up to meet his gaze with a pattering heart and a smile matching his own

“,,,of course.”

#ateez #ateez seonghwa #ateez hongjoong #ateez yunho #ateez yeosang #ateez san #ateez mingi #ateez wooyoung #ateez jongho #park seonghwa #seonghwa #hwa #ateez imagines #ateez fanfic #ateez fanfiction #ateez fluff #ateez angst #ateez smut #ateez headcanons #aristocrat!ateez

[recklessmark]

chapter five: distraction

—from DISCRETION series

Summary: you incidentally met a notorious CEO and your gut told you that you must claim this man. and even the fact that he’s engaged to someone else didn’t stop you from achieving what you want.

Pairings: CEO! Mark x Designer! Reader

Warnings: oral sex, voyeurism, masturbation, pussy slapping, dirty talk, humilation

Words: 1320

—previous: chapter four-you’re my first kiss

“What-“, your cheeks blush, “I mean no but-“

You’re halfway cut off by Mark’s lips. This time he kisses you more passionately, his tongue dancing inside your mouth. You struggle to kiss him back when his hands roaming all over your body, squeezing your breasts. His mouth moves away to your chin down to your neck, nibbling on the skin.

“Don’t leave marks-“, you mutter out.

Mark doesn’t seem to care though, he bites a specific patch of skin on the side of your neck, leaves it a purple mark. He unbuttons the blouse on you with his mouth following down. Pulling the shirt down your shoulder, he unclasps your bra, throwing the clothing with pieces of fabric on your carpet. His mouth latches onto your nipple, his fingers twisting the other causing you to moan.

“Mark-“

Mark chuckles when his name slips out of your mouth. He pulls away to kiss your jawline.

“Gonna make you scream my name, only mine.”, he whispers in your ears.

His hands continue to go down on your body, attempting to take off your pants, which you have to vulnerably do it yourself. Mark traces his finger on your slit through the fabric, seeing you squirm underneath him.

“So wet down here, I bet you’ve been dripping since I came inside this room huh?”, his thumb circling your clothed clit.

You whine, “Please Mark...”

He drags down your panty, his fingers spread your folds apart, collect your wetness. He brings them it to your mouth, demands you to have a taste of yourself.

“Do you touch yourself?”, Mark plays with your nipple.

“Y-yes...”, your face burns up with embarrassment.

“Naughty you are huh?”, he slaps your core making you joint, “Who do you touch yourself for?”

You bite your lips, not wanting to answer him since it’s too embarrassing but Mark never let you have anything that easy. He slaps you again, on your clit.

“Fucking answer me when I ask.”

“You Mark! I think about you when I’m touching myself!”, you cry out.

He chuckles darkly, gives you a kiss on your lips.

“Good girl.”, he presses his palm onto your pussy, “Now you’re going to touch yourself like you always do.”

You open your eyes to look at Mark, all get watery, glistening with lust which drives him crazy. He sits on the opposite sofa, waiting for you to follow his demand. Trying to ease the embarrassment away, your left hand goes down between your legs. You feel the intense gaze of him on your core, burning you vulnerably. When you slip your middle finger into your hole, Mark hisses, palming himself through the fabric of his pants. You start curling your finger, your mouth open widely to gasp. You try to keep the eye contact while fucking yourself on your fingers, the other hand of you plays with your nipples. Mark’s sitting over there with his legs open widely, showing you how hard he is, you only want to crawl in between his legs and have his cock inside your mouth deliciously.

“Fuck- I have to taste you.”, Mark groans when he sees the juice dripping down your core, he kneels on the white carpet, grabbing your legs with his hands. “Don’t you dare stop!”

He slaps your thigh when you stop your movement. The sting on your skin makes you whine, you put a second finger inside.

“Oh god- Mark!”

You are supposed to keep yourself silent since this is your office but when Mark’s tongue flicks on your clit you can’t help but scream. He captures your hand with his, pumping your fingers into your pussy himself. Your hip buckles up desperately while he’s sucking on your clit, humming against it to send vibrations to your core.

“I’m gon-gonna cum M-Mark!”, you gaps.

“Yeah? You’re cumming, cum baby, cum on my face”.

He retracts your fingers from you, lapping your slit passionately. Your hands run through his hair, tugging them as you reach your climax. Mark doesn’t stop there, he continually licks your juice, making sure that there’s none left until you push his head away due to the overstimulation.

Mark’s chin glistening with your essence, he swipes it clean with the back of his hand.

“Baby, you’re gonna return my favor okay?”. He stands up, helping you sit back as you calm down from your orgasm. His fingers tracing you lips, you nod at him mindlessly. Your face is now facing his abdomen, you can see his boner clearly through his pants.

“See how hard you make me princess? Now take it out for me.”, he pats your head.

You obediently unbuckle his belt, unzip his pants, pulling it down to his knees. You continue to take off his boxer, revealing his hard cock in front of your face. Your eyes go widen, You gulp desperately, Mark is big, and this is all yours.

Mark almost laughs at your facial expression. He tilts your chin up, making you look at him. “Enjoying the view huh princess?”

You nod, Mark leads your hand to his cock, letting you hold it. His length hot against your skin, you can even feel some veins. You delicately pump it, feeling his cock grows bigger inside your hand. You put it inside your mouth, licking at the tip.

“Fuck-“

You suck on his cock, pushing it down to your throat, your hand wraps around his base where your mouth can’t reach. You start to bob your head back and forth, salvia runs down to your chin.

“You suck it so good huh? You have always wanted my thick cock down your throat right?”, Mark collects your hair into a ponytail.

You can only hum in response since your mouth is stuffed up. You attempt to hollow your cheek as your tongue licking the pre-cum on his tip as you feel your jaw slacked, wanting him to cum soon.

“God- you’re suck a talented cockslut, aren’t you? Who knows you can suck my dick this good, fucking slut.”

Mark holds your head in place with his hands, thrusting his hip into your face feverishly as he’s chasing his orgasm.

“I’m cum-cumming, Y/N fuck-“

Eventually you feel a hot thick liquid in your mouth, some spills on your chin. After a few more thrust, Mark pulls out, his thumbs push the leak cum into your mouth. “Swallow them all baby.”

You follow his demand, feeling his seeds running down your throat and then open your mouth for him to see.

“Good girl.”, he praised, putting his pants on again.

“Didn’t I told you not to irritate me so that I can finish my work.” You complain while Mark helps you to put your clothes on.

“I’m helping you, orgasm is healthy, you look drained.” He gives you a kiss and a peck on your cheek as you dart your eyes sharply at him.

—

Although everything didn’t go well as you planned but you still manage to finish your work in late afternoon. It was torturing though, Mark was sitting there like a rock all the time, how were you supposed to focus?

“If you’re done, we can go.”

“Where?”, you ask.

Mark checks you out up and down, “Glowing up ugly goose Y/N!”, the meanest words on this world spill out.

Looking at Mark walking away, you want to scream, to tell the world how much you love this man!

Walking out, you stop at Alicia’s desk, she’s busy doing something.

“When will the show start?”, you ask.

“Next Wednesday, going tomorrow is still better. We can’t control everything well here, there are even the gowns haven’t been brought there yet.” Alicia says that much because she doesn’t want anyone mess up her plan. She always plans up everything delicately, even a small mistake can ruin them all.

You remain silent, give her a glance and follow Mark to go out.

Alicia doesn’t know what is your relationship with Mark but when Mark comes you don’t look exhausted as you were only an hour ago so she just lets it go.

—next: chapter six-come to your love

©️  DREAMYKRAM. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

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