#i lose my interest when its no longer about my ship lol
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The Phantom of the Red Keep
Aemond Targaryen x Female!Reader
Phantom of the Opera AU
Rating: M (Mature)- as a general rule for my blog, minors please do not interact!
Warnings: Gothic horror romance vibes, violence, very sensual scenes but nothing explicit, jealous and possessive aemond- this is not what we would consider a healthy relationship lol
Word count: About 8.5k
Synopsis: You are haunted by the phantom of the Red Keep and he is determined to make you his.
Author’s note: This is not an exact retelling of Phantom of the Opera, it is based off of the vibes and loose plot, though I took a ton of liberties and of course the villain gets the happy ending in my version. This has been long awaited and its finally here and I am so excited!! I hope this lives up to the hype! Thank you so much @anepitomeofgrace for the mood board!
Important announcement!! I am no longer using a taglist! Instead if you would like to be notified when I post new fics follow my side blog @jo-writes-fanfic and turn your post notifications on!
Aemond Masterlist
You moved into the Red Keep when you were a young girl after your mother died and your father was given a position in the king’s small council. Everyone warned you of the ghosts that reside there.
But you never were very afraid of ghosts.
When a phantom voice began to speak to you through the walls at night, you were not afraid but rather enchanted.
Your ghost had a beautiful voice, soft and low, as he whispered secrets to you from within the castle walls.
Years passed and you told no one of your encounters with the phantom of the Red Keep, preferring instead to keep his existence to yourself.
You used what he taught you to your advantage. People often questioned where and how you learned to navigate the political landscape of the capital city so well and how you seemed to know everything that happened within it, but you would not reveal your ghost to others.
He was your watchful eye, your teacher, your companion in loneliness, your salvation.
You often wondered if he was truly a ghost or if the rumors of the scarred and reclusive prince were true.
But you never dared to ask, scared you would offend and lose him.
You heard his voice even in your slumber, the soft lilt of his accent as he led you into dreams, dark and deep and often of him.
He called your name, voice low and seductive, and you smiled.
“Tell me of your day,” he ordered as you unfastened the bodice of your dress in preparation to retire for the night.
You never worried if your phantom could see you in states of undress for a part of you would always belong to him, and besides, he was a ghost, or so you believed.
“Lord Stark did in fact attempt to make a move like you warned me he would,” you said softly as you slipped the dress off your body.
“Hm,” the unpleased hum echoed through the room.
“I managed to dissuade his efforts,” you said softly.
“Your father will not tolerate your insolence for much longer,” he mused.
You sighed as you pulled on your nightgown.
“I do not wish to marry.” The end of the sentence, ‘anyone but you’ went unspoken.
For how do you confess to a ghost that you love him?
The soft chuckle heard made your heart thump in your chest as you slipped beneath the sheets of your bed.
“You will eventually be forced,” he said.
“But you can still help me to delay the inevitable, yes?”
“Of course, my sweet,” he promised.
You sighed in contentment.
“Will you tell me another story about dragons to help me sleep?”
You drifted off to sleep with images of fire breathing dragons in your sleep and the warmth of your phantom’s voice in your ears.
———————-
“How interesting,” you said and your bored tone betrayed your true feelings as Lord Greyjoy rambled on about the types of wood his ships were built from.
You wished you could steal one of his ships and sail far away from him.
You took another sip of your wine and withheld your sigh as the man, oblivious to your impatience, began speaking of sails and the type of material used to create them.
You wondered how long you would have to suffer through this before you could escape to the library.
The quiet refuge of books was your favorite place in the Red Keep. The fact that your phantom often visited you there only played a small part in why you loved it so.
“Lord Lannister!” you said in surprise as he approached you and the dreadfully dull Lord sitting on the bench next to you.
“Hello, my lady,” he said kindly and nodded to Lord Greyjoy.
“I was wondering if I could perhaps steal your attentions for a short while,” the handsome man said.
“Of course!” you said all too excitedly.
He smirked.
“I am sorry, Lord Greyjoy,” you said, your tone full of sincerity that you didn’t feel.
“It is alright, I shall have to finish telling you about the wonders of my ships another time,” he said kindly.
“Absolutely,” you agreed and took Lord Lannister’s hand.
He led you down the path through the gardens and once you were certain you were no longer in hearing distance you looked up at him.
At the twinkle of amusement you saw in his eye, you both began to laugh.
“That man is such a bore,” he said and you giggled once more in agreement.
“I hope it is alright that I came to rescue you from his clutches,” he said dramatically and teasingly.
“It is more than alright,” you said with a smile.
“My hero,” you teased and he smirked once again.
You had a surprisingly pleasant conversation with Lord Lannister as he walked you through the gardens and eventually deposited you in the library.
He was very kind, if a bit arrogant, but you found that you did not mind his company and he respected you as a person which was much more than many of them men vying for your hand could offer.
Unfortunately your afternoon did not get better as you anticipated, for you never heard the sound of your ghost’s voice as you read quietly in your secluded corner of the library.
He did not visit you that night either.
You tossed and turned and struggled to sleep without the comfort of his gentle voice.
When sleep eventually took you, you dreamt of an angel with a halo of white hair who beckoned you to follow him into darkness.
———————-
The next day Lord Lannister invited you to dine with him, which you accepted.
You tried to be realistic. Your yearning for a man you were not sure even existed would not help you in this life.
Your father would marry you to someone soon and at least the man before you was relatively kind and not positively tedious to spend time with.
You even managed to hold yourself back from rolling your eyes at the arrogant statements he made from time to time so as to not bruise his ego.
He was kind enough and you were prepared to settle, so when he moved to kiss you, you allowed him.
It was a short, proper kiss and did not arouse any sort of feelings within you.
But you smiled at him and thanked him for walking you to your rooms before you found solace within them.
You sighed as the door shut behind you and you were once again alone.
Your favorite voice whispered your name and the hairs on the back of your neck prickled.
You were not alone.
“You are back,” you said breathlessly.
“I did not leave,” he said, his voice hard.
“I… you did not speak to me last night,” you said.
“You betrayed me,” he said and anger colored his tone.
“No, I-“ you protested but were cut off by him.
“No? What do you call it when you smile and bat your pretty eyelashes at a man? What do you call it when you allow another man to kiss you?”
His voice was low and dangerous, full of anger. It should have frightened you but instead you felt indignant.
“It is not as if you kiss me! I do not even know if you are real or a figment of my imagination!”
“Do I not feel real enough to you when you touch yourself to the sound of my voice?” he growled out.
You gasped in shock.
“Do not bother pretending, my sweet. You are not as subtle as you think you are,” he said.
Tears of embarrassment pricked your eyes.
“I am real, pretty girl. Do you not remember how all the suitors you despised seemed to suddenly disappear?”
“That was you?” you asked in surprise.
You sat heavily down at the end of your bed.
“Of course, I protect what is mine. You are mine, are you not?”
“Yes,” you breathed out, spellbound.
“Good girl. You shall have your proof of my existence soon enough, but you must be patient. Can you do that for me?”
“Yes, yes, absolutely,” you said hurriedly, excitedly.
You could hear the smile in his voice as he said, “Wonderful.”
You breathed a sigh of relief that you were no longer the object of his temper, and instead back in his good graces.
As you fell asleep that night you pondered on what he revealed to you in that conversation. You were giddy with excitement at the prospect of getting proof of your silent protector.
———————-
“I wish to tell you something,” you said to Lord Lannister as he sat with you in the castle gardens.
“Do tell,” he said and his eyes danced with amusement.
“When my mother passed away she promised she would send me an angel to care for me and watch over me.”
“What a beautiful promise,” he said, clearly placating you.
You sighed.
“Yes, and her words came true. There is an angel that protects me,” you said.
He raised his eyebrows in disbelief.
“That must be a comforting thought,” he said and patted your hand as if you were a child.
“No, not just a comforting thought, there is a presence that protects me from those that wish me harm,” you said urgently.
“Is that why so many of your suitors have disappeared? I have heard rumors of you being cursed, but I have never been afraid of silly superstitions. I also heard ridiculous gossip of ghosts and recluse princes when I came here, there is no need to put stock in such things.”
You furrowed your brow.
“No, there is-“
“Lord Stark!” the Lannister man exclaimed as he saw his friend across the gardens.
You sighed in frustration as you watched him stand and bound towards Lord Stark and embrace him.
The two began speaking and you were quickly forgotten.
The topic was never raised with him again.
———————-
Your nerves were high as your lady’s maid dressed you for the masquerade ball.
Feasts, parties, and balls were all commonplace during this time of year in which lords and ladies often courted and marriage alliances were made.
Though, a masquerade ball was a first. You were excited. You found the whole idea rather romantic.
“Are you certain about this dress?” you asked Reyna.
“Of course, my lady! You look absolutely beautiful. The men will fall at your feet,” she said with a sweet smile.
You really only cared about impressing your phantom and you hoped against hope that tonight would be the night you finally got the proof he spoke of.
You smoothed the front of your emerald green dress as she brought you the delicate black lace mask.
You pulled it on carefully and Reyna made a few small adjustments before she declared you perfect.
You thanked her and with a grin you made your way towards the great hall.
The moment you entered, you were enchanted. Musicians played ethereally beautiful songs and as you strode through the hall you were fascinated by people’s outfits and masks that bordered on costumes.
Elaborate decorations made the room appear to sparkle and shimmer.
A servant handed you a glass of wine and you sipped on it as you made your way through the bustling crowd.
Soon, however, the dancing began and you smiled happily as you watched the men and women twirl.
A man approached you and asked you to dance, you grinned as you accepted, and quickly determined him to be Lord Greyjoy.
Though he was not your favorite lord, the music was quick paced, as were your steps and you were happy to join the merriment, no matter the company. It was not as if he could speak much to you anyhow as the dance was quick paced and required a switching of partners frequently.
Man after man danced with you and your smile was as wide as the stretch of the sea.
You felt a prickle on the back of your neck, like a heavy gaze was upon you, but as you looked around you could see nothing but strangers in masks.
At the end of the last fast song you were spun by Lord Lannister and another man caught you.
The crowd clapped as the song ended and as you caught your breath you looked up at the man who held you.
You did not recognize the face of the handsome stranger who smirked down at you, so why was there something about him that felt so achingly familiar?
He wore all black, with the intricate embellishments on the cloth a dark green, the exact shade as your dress.
His hair, a shocking silvery white color, was straight and pulled half back as it cascaded down his back and across his chest. It was much longer than most men keep their hair, and it was beautiful.
The left half of his face was completely covered with an intimidating black mask that appeared to have a sapphire within it rather than a hole for the eye to see through.
The right side of his face was bare and you marveled at the handsomeness of the sharp planes of his nose, cheekbones, jaw, and chin.
His visible eye was a startling yet otherworldly gorgeous violet color.
His smirking lips were plush and naturally curved upwards.
You had never seen such unique beauty in a man.
You were certain your expression was wonderstruck as you stared up at him.
The next song began, a much slower melody, and he held you close to his warm body as he swayed you both to the beat of it.
“I do not believe we have met,” you said primly as you attempted to muster up your wits.
He smiled at you before he spun you.
He caught you and pressed your back to his front. As he leaned down, his hair fell across your shoulder and his lips grazed your ear.
You shivered in response as your eyes fluttered closed.
His large hands spanned much of your waist and you covered his hands with your own, wishing to keep him close.
“Are you certain of that?” he whispered in your ear.
Your spine went rod straight, the hairs on the back of your neck stood, and you sucked in a gasping breath as you recognized the voice of the man that held you.
He chuckled darkly, that laugh that you often heard in your dreams.
“I am not certain of much of anything anymore,” you breathed out.
“Not even of my promises?” he teased as one hand moved further down your waist and the other up high enough that his thumb grazed the bottom of your breasts.
Your breath hitched even as your eyes drifted closed once more and your head fell back against his shoulder.
“You are the only thing I believe in anymore,” you murmured.
“Hm,” he hummed in satisfaction at your words.
One hand gripped your waist and the other slipped up your arm, across your collar bones to rest gently around your throat, as if his hand were another necklace to adorn you.
“You are most beautiful this night, my sweet,” he purred.
You breathed in his warm masculine scent and wished to stay in his arms forever.
He spun you back around to face him and he caught you with hands around the small of your waist and your hands found their place on his chest.
“You…you are much more handsome than all my wildest dreams. Why would you hide this face from me?”
You could not look away from his gaze, it was as if he had a power to trap you with him, though you would never desire to escape him.
You placed your hand on his cheek and did not miss the way it made him suck in a breath, as if he were just as affected by you as you were by him.
You did not know how many songs had passed since you were in his arms, but you never wanted the music to end for fear of no longer being pressed against him.
The entire room melted away and there was only you and your phantom made flesh as he danced with you to music of your own making.
“There are things you do not know of, that I have made efforts to protect you from,” he answered you finally.
You furrowed your brow in confusion and as you looked away, you realized it was the first time you had looked away from his face since he took you into his arms.
You hadn’t realized that multiple songs had come and go and still he held you. You hadn’t realized that most of the eyes in the room were on you, curiously watching you and the mysterious man.
“I have proof now of your existence. Tell me everything, or do you not wish to make me yours?” you asked as you looked back at him.
He pursed his lips as he stared deep into your soul.
“Of course I wish to make you mine,” he breathed out.
He sounded just as entranced by you as you were with him.
You reached up and softly grazed your fingers against his sharp cheekbone.
“Then show me all of you, my phantom,” you whispered as your fingers curled around the edge of his mask.
So enraptured by your touch and your presence it took him a moment longer than it should have to react and you had nearly removed the mask from his face and saw a flash of a jagged scar before he yanked himself back from you.
He pulled the mask from your hand and covered the side of his face once again as he stepped back, his chest heaving with desperate breaths.
You stumbled backwards from the momentum of his sudden movements, and strong hands from behind caught you and with a glance back you realized it was Lord Lannister.
Your breathing was also heavy as you turned back and gazed upon the object of your affections in shock.
Regret flashed in his eye, but he turned and quicker than you could think of anything to say, he disappeared into the large crowd and was soon gone.
He was gone as quickly as he appeared and your eyes stung at the near rejection.
“Are you alright?” Lord Lannister asked you and you realized his hands were still around your shoulders where he had caught you.
“Yes, quite,” you said and the shakiness in your voice did nothing to assure either of you of the statement’s truthfulness.
As your attention once again found the room around you, you then heard the hisses of angry whispers of the people around you.
“Monster.”
“Did you see that horrid scar?”
“Why would she let him touch her?”
“Disgusting.”
“His eye….”
“Recluse prince.”
“Aemond Targaryen,” one man said and you whipped your head around to him.
“What did you say?” you demanded.
“My lady, that must have been Aemond Targaryen, the recluse prince. Only the gods know what would have caused him to slither out from his hiding place,” the old man said worriedly.
You huffed and turned to leave.
“Perhaps I should accompany you to your room to ensure you arrive there safely,” Lord Lannister offered.
You nodded absentmindedly and took his proffered arm.
As you exited the hall you let out a sigh of relief to be away from such a crowd of hateful and discontented Lords and Ladies.
“I fear you put yourself in danger by dancing with such a man, my lady,” Lord Lannister finally said after he gave you several moments of quiet to collect yourself.
“He meant me no harm,” you said softly.
“You know nothing of his intentions,” the man said.
Finally you reached your door.
“Thank you, Lord Lannister, I appreciate your help and concern,” you said in an attempt to dismiss him.
He nodded, and he clearly understood your message.
“Goodnight, my lady,” he said.
“Goodnight, my lord,” you replied and turned and walked into your room.
You shut the door securely behind you before you slid to the floor and released the tears you had been holding back.
You could no longer withhold the torrent of mixed emotions you felt that so overwhelmed you.
You heard nothing from your ghost that night and as you fell into a fitful sleep, nightmares plagued you.
You dreamt of a demon that chased you and all you could see of it were two sapphire colored eyes that glowed in the depth of darkness you were lost in.
———————-
Your phantom did not find you for the next two days and despite being surrounded by people often, most frequently suitors who wished to woo you, you found yourself incredibly lonely.
Each night when you entered your room you called out for him but only silence greeted you.
By the third day you resolved yourself to try and move on. It was easier said than done.
Now that you had actually met the man that belonged to the voice you idolized, it was much harder to prevent yourself from loving him.
It was as if he was in your head, had burrowed himself in your heart, captured your soul and held it in the palm of his hands.
How were you supposed to just let go?
You pondered on all these things as you attempted to relax in the bath in your chambers.
Your father was pressuring you to make a decision soon. You were lucky that he even allowed you a say in who you would marry, though you knew he was partial to Lord Lannister. Thankfully, he agreed with your assessment that Lord Greyjoy was an absolute bore.
He was not present at the masquerade when you danced with your phantom, but he had surely heard the gossip by now.
It would not bode well for you.
You wished to hear your ghost’s voice so desperately you feared you were hallucinating the sound.
But there it was again, your name, said with such gentleness and care.
“Are you really there?” you asked hopefully.
“Yes, my sweet,” he said after a moment too long of silence.
You sighed in relief.
“I have missed you,” you said.
“Truthfully?” he asked and there was vulnerability in his voice.
“Of course,” you said passionately.
He did not reply and you grew concerned he did not believe you.
You were suddenly grateful for the suds and bubbles in the bathtub for fear he could see you. It was something you had never been self conscious about before, but now that you had seen the handsome man himself and knew he was real, you were more worried about what he had seen.
Even still, you said, “Please do not hide from me any longer, I wish to see you when you speak to me.”
“Why would you wish to see a monster?” he asked harshly.
Your eyes prickled with tears at his pain.
“I do not believe people’s words that you are a monster. You, who has protected me at every turn, are a good man,” you said gently.
The oversized portrait beside your bed creaked and opened as if it were a door.
You gasped as your phantom stood in the darkened entryway.
A mask still adorned half his face, though this time it was white and interestingly there was still a sapphire embedded in it where his eye should be.
You sunk lower into the bath and gripped its edges as you stared back at him.
“You cannot believe that about a creature of such darkness,” he said.
“I do. I rather like the dark,” you said and a small smirk showed on his beautiful lips.
“Come closer,” you said as you reached your hand out to him.
He walked slowly over to you and knelt next to the bathtub.
You placed your hand gently on the side of his face and his eye fluttered closed while he took a shaky breath.
“Your name,” you said, your voice soft and tentative. “Is it Aemond as some have speculated?”
He made a pleased sound low in his throat as he nuzzled his face into your hand.
He ran his nose across your palm and the veins at your wrist.
Your heartbeat spiked.
“You have no idea how long I have yearned to hear my name fall from your perfect lips, my sweet,” he murmured.
Your breathing was heavy as you looked at your phantom, your angel, your Aemond.
“Aemond, I apologize for attempting to unmask you in front of a room full of people. Truthfully, I forgot we were not the only two people in the world,” you said gently as your fingers traced his cheek and lips and soaked in the warmth of his skin.
“Hm,” he hummed in pleasure.
“Will you bare yourself to me now?” you asked.
You wanted to add that it was only fair as you were currently mostly bare in front of him.
Though the bath was a milky color from the soaps and scents, and suds still covered the surface, you were certain his all knowing eye could see much of your glistening wet skin.
His eye blinked open and he looked at you, his gaze raw and full of emotion.
The sound of knuckles rapping at your door broke your focus from him.
“My lady?” your lady’s maid called out.
You looked across the room to your door.
He quickly stood and disappeared behind the portrait door once again without another word, as if he truly were a ghost.
You sighed in frustration before you called out, “Yes? Come in.”
“My lady, I forgot to bring you your fresh bed sheets, I am so sorry! I will only be a moment,” she said as she rushed to your bed.
“It is quite alright, Reyna,” you reassured as her anxieties often became too high.
She smiled at you and quickly started her task.
You sunk lower into the now cold bath and cursed your rotten luck.
———————-
Your father ran out of patience and betrothed you to Lord Lannister.
You sat at the celebratory feast and tried not to look too sullen.
When the queen congratulated you, you flinched slightly, now that you knew it was her son you were so desperately in love with you felt even more guilty.
You worried the news would break him.
Even still, you did your best to be graceful and poised as many people offered you their excitement on your happy news.
You didn’t mind Lord Lannister, truthfully, but he did not bewitch your very soul as Aemond Targaryen did.
There was a commotion that caught your attention, a fire had started in the opposite end of the grand hall.
You gasped and watched as the men rushed to put it out.
A hand grasped your wrist and began to tug you backwards.
Your eyes widened in surprise as your phantom pulled you into the nearby darkened hallway.
A mask still covered half his face and his expression was hard.
He pressed your back against the cold stone wall with the weight of his body against yours.
Your breath sped and your heartbeat spiked.
Not from fear, no, from the feel of the long planes of his warm body against yours.
He placed a hand against the wall on either side of your head and caged you in.
“Do you wish to marry him?” he asked.
“No,” you breathed out, your focus again on his lips as he spoke.
He leaned down so his lips grazed your ear and asked, “What do you desire?”
You shivered.
“You,” you practically moaned as your eyes closed.
He hauled his body off yours and you whimpered softly at the loss of his warmth.
He smirked.
“Then wait for me, I shall come for you, my sweet. I promise,” he said and you quickly nodded in agreement.
He turned his head to look back down the hallway at the great hall.
His hair swished as he moved and you longed to run your fingers through the white silken strands.
“They have most likely put out the fire by now. Go before you are missed,” he said.
“Alright,” you said, and before you tore yourself away from him you pressed a soft kiss to his cheek.
He hummed in pleasure and you attempted to memorize the sound, beautiful as it was, just like everything about him.
When you reentered the great hall, the chaos was settling and no one had noticed your brief absence, not even your betrothed.
———————-
Most afternoons you could be found in your favorite secluded corner of the library.
Unfortunately, your betrothed knew that and often interrupted your reading.
Today however, you were blissfully alone as you reread your favorite book.
Sunlight filtered through the nearby window and bathed you and your novel in a warm glow.
A cup of tea and a little snack were long forgotten as the plot enraptured you and you curled up into a plush armchair.
A whisper of your name slid through the contented air and alerted you to the presence of another.
“Aemond?” you whispered back.
“Come with me,” he crooned.
You turned and saw him. He had revealed another secret hallway, this time hidden by a bookshelf.
His beauty was otherworldly and you felt as if you were in a trance as you set your book down, stood, and walked towards him.
You took his hand and allowed him to lead you into the dark and watched as he shut the bookshelf door behind you.
He lifted a torch off the stone wall and held it before the both of you, though you suspected it was only for your benefit.
“Where are we going?” you asked.
The thought occurred to you that you should have asked before you followed him, but logic was never your strong suit when it came to decisions about your phantom.
You could never resist his pull.
“To show you more of myself,” he said.
Your heart skipped a beat.
You walked through winding corridors until he stopped at another portrait-door. Though, this time your view of it was from the inside.
He opened it, stepped down himself, and then with hands on your waist, helped you navigate the large step down.
Though, he stood so close that your body practically slid down the length of his as you did so.
With your hands on his strong shoulders you stared at him.
His gaze flickered down to your lips and for a moment, an excruciating wonderful moment, you thought he might kiss you.
But he released you and took a step back, his breaths as rapid as your own.
With him not right in front of you, you could see the room you stood in.
It was dark, the dark curtains drawn completely so as to not allow any light within.
Candelabras adorned the furniture to offer the light your eyes so desperately needed.
It was also clearly the room of a prince, grand and ornately decorated.
Black and emerald green silk covered the large canopy bed.
The other decorations matched his chosen colors.
You slipped from his hands and walked around the room, your fingers traced the surfaces as you took it all in.
It was all so Aemond. But there were pieces of you as well.
A vase full of your favorite flowers. Stacks of your favorite novels were on both his bedside table and his desk. They were mixed with books you did not recognize, ones that must be his favorites.
Crumpled papers took up space on the desk, with your name scrawled at the top of the one on a stack of blank papers, as if he had been trying to write you a letter.
There was an easel with paint supplies in front of the window, finished paintings leaned against the wall, turned around so you could not see them.
The painting drying on the easel, however, was of you. You gasped softly.
It was a romantic view of you in the bath as you had been the other night, and there was such love and tenderness in your face as you looked at the viewer of the portrait, the painter of the portrait, truthfully.
There was a halo of light around your body, every stretch of your skin that was visible had a brightness about it, the more intimate parts of your body covered by the water in the bath.
Tears pricked at your eyes as you realized this is how he viewed you. An angel, just the same as you perceived him.
He was your angel of darkness and you were his angel of light.
“Oh Aemond,” you breathed out.
If you were a betting woman, you would bet that many of the completed paintings you could not see were of you as well.
You knew the reality of what you saw, this was not just love, it was obsession.
Logically, you should be scared, but you could not bring yourself to be anything but flattered.
There was a mirror in the corner, but it was covered by black cloth as if he did not wish to see himself, your heart cracked at the thought.
He had been watching you warily as you explored his space and learned more about him.
“I want you to know the reality of what you would be getting into if you choose me, my sweet. A life of darkness with someone most consider a monster,” he said as he leaned against the wall and looked down at the floor.
You strode towards him and placed a hand on his cheek and led him to look at you.
“That is your version of reality? In my reality I see a kindhearted man who cares for me deeply and is offering me a life of affection. I do not care for others' opinions and would like to help you heal from the hurt they have inflicted,” you said quietly and tenderly.
He breathed out in surprise and brought you closer, so you were pressed against him.
“You say such kind words but you have not seen all of me, you do not know why others fear me. There is more darkness to me than you know,” he said lowly, but still he moved his face closer and nudged his nose against yours.
“Then show me,” you begged once again, “and let me accept you completely.”
His lips were so close to yours that you could almost feel them.
You ached for him, had ached for him for so long, that you lost yourself, your self control, and leaned up to brush your lips against his.
But, he pulled back right before your lips were able to meet.
You let out a shuddering breath, same as he did as he pulled his face back enough to look at you.
He intertwined his fingers with yours and lifted your hand to the mask he wore.
With a slight nod he gave you permission to remove it from his face but still said, “Are you certain? This would bring you past the point of no return.”
“I have never been more certain of anything in my life,” you said fervently as you stared at him with your heart in your throat.
He swallowed and dropped his hand from yours to let you finally take off the mask.
You gently curled your fingers around the edges and his eye fluttered closed, another indication of his nervousness, as if he could not handle seeing your expression once you saw him.
You slowly pulled it off and revealed the other half of his face.
A long jagged scar stretched from above his eye down across his cheek.
Instead of a left eye, there was a sapphire in place of where his eye should be.
You realized you were mistaken before when you thought that the mask held the sapphire, it was in fact a replacement to the eye that was missing.
Though the scar marred his skin, it did not take away from his handsomeness. You could understand how the scar and sapphire eye could intimidate others, but you could not understand how anyone could describe him as a monster.
“Beautiful,” you murmured as you cupped his cheek and ran your thumb across the scar.
His eye fluttered open and as he looked at you, his perfect lips parted in shock. You knew he felt that the disfigurement was a reflection of his soul and expected rejection. Though he had subjected himself to the potential rejection anyway, because of his feelings for you.
“You cannot mean that,” he said and the words broke your heart.
You kissed his cheek, his scar, right below the sapphire eye and he gasped softly.
“My phantom, my protector, my Aemond,” you said as you trailed your lips across his cheek, across the length of the scar.
“I absolutely mean it,” you said passionately and he groaned as he, at long last, pressed his lips to yours.
His plush lips were soft as he pressed them firmly against yours.
He made a low pleased hum as your lips moved against his and you tangled your fingers in his hair.
It was not the sort of kiss that sparked a fiery passion, no, it was slower moving than that, deeper. The kind of kiss that changed the both of you intricately, completely, eternally.
The kiss molted the love within you and him like lava and fuzed your souls together.
When you pulled back and ended the kiss he said, “I love you, completely, my angel of light.”
“And I love you, darkness and all,” you replied and kissed him once more.
———————-
The day of your wedding to Lord Lannister had arrived and you were a bundle of nerves.
Aemond had sworn to you that you would not have to go through with this wedding. He assured you that he would make you his and his alone.
You believed him, you just did not realize that he would wait until the last minute to do so.
Your lady’s maid Reyna cinched up your wedding gown as you stared at yourself in the mirror.
Your expression was sullen and you felt as if you were being readied for your funeral.
Aemond would intervene as he promised, right?
You had tried to talk to your father, to make him understand where your feelings lay, what your heart desired, but he refused to listen.
“You look beautiful, my lady,” Reyna said as she finished prepping you and stepped back to view her work.
“Thank you,” you said quietly.
“What is wrong?” she asked as she took your hands.
You shook your head and refused to let your eyes fill with tears.
You must believe in your phantom’s promise, he had protected you at every turn and you had to believe him that he would do so now.
“Lord Lannister seems kind,” Reyna said gently.
You nodded.
“Yes. Yes he does,” you agreed as you took a deep breath to calm your nerves.
Your father arrived and escorted you to the sept.
The sept was grand as always, and as it was sunset, lit completely with hundreds of candles.
A large crowd of lords and ladies filled the room and watched you as you walked towards a future of shackles.
Your heart plummeted as you saw Lord Lannister there waiting for you.
He smiled at you as your father walked you towards him, escorted you towards a loveless life. You could not force yourself to smile back. Your breath was short and it felt as if there was a weight on your chest. Your legs shook as you walked and finally you stood before Lord Lannister and the septon.
The Septon cleared his throat and the crowd’s murmurs and whispers hushed and it was suddenly all too quiet.
You could hear the pounding of your own heart.
The septon opened his mouth to speak, to begin the ceremony, when another booming voice filled the sept.
“I object to this marriage. This woman is spoken for. She belongs to me,” the voice of your ghost echoed through the room, through your very soul.
You gasped in relief.
The sept doors blew open by an unexpected and terrifying gust of wind that blew out all the candles and thrust the grand room into darkness.
There were gasps of horror and shock as well as screams in fear.
You grinned.
“This wedding is over,” the voice announced and you whipped your head around as you realized where the origin of the sound was.
The phantom of the Red Keep stood behind the Septon.
A fire suddenly lit behind him, illuminating him, and another round of gasps and screams began.
Aemond stood, presence intense and intimidating, dressed all in black. He wore nothing to cover his scar and sapphire eye.
Your body moved of its own accord and you managed to take one step towards him, when an arm gripped you around your waist and hauled you backwards.
Lord Lannister shoved you behind him and pulled out his sword.
He pointed it at Aemond. You lurched forward, but he held you back with his arm.
Aemond quickly pulled out his own sword.
The septon scrambled away.
Guards began to stream into the sept, but the fire spread, as if controlled, and circled around the three of you, and kept everyone away.
“You have no claim on this woman! She is my betrothed!” Lord Lannister yelled.
Aemond smirked, a devilish sort of smile.
“That is certainly not true, is it, my sweet? I have a strong claim on you, do I not?” Aemond asked you as he leaned to the side to meet your eyes around his enemy’s body.
“Yes,” you breathed out, entranced by his presence.
Lord Lannister whipped his head around to look at you in shock.
“He is a monster. Let me save you from him. I am your chosen hero, remember?” he said fervently.
You shook your head.
“He is my protector, I tried to tell you this before. My heart belongs to him,” you replied.
“No,” he said angrily and shook his head.
“No,” he repeated himself, “you will not whore yourself out to this vile demon. You are my betrothed.”
He attacked your love. You gasped as they crossed swords and the sound of clanging steel echoed.
You stepped back, as close as you could get to the edge of the circle of fire without burning yourself, and did not know what to do.
Others watched the fight through the fire, helpless to assist, and did nothing but spectate.
The men fought and it was clear that despite Aemond’s missing eye, he was the superior skilled swordfighter.
You felt powerless to help. The fight did not last long, for Aemond soon sliced a shallow cut across Lord Lannister’s chest and then disarmed him.
He held the tip of his sword to his opponent’s throat as he breathed heavily and gritted his teeth. Hate gleamed in his one good eye and you knew your betrothed represented all the hate and suffering Aemond had endured since his eye was so savagely taken.
“Stop,” you gasped.
He turned his head to meet your gaze and the look in his eye softened.
“You do not have to kill him,” you said, “just take me. Let us be together. Let us leave this place behind.”
He pursed his lips, a war fought inside his mind, before he nodded and removed his sword from Lord Lannister’s throat even as he kicked the other sword away so it would be completely out of reach.
You ran to him and threw yourself in his arms.
He kept his sword pointed at your former betrothed, but hugged you back with his other arm.
Lord Lannister held up his hands and nodded, conceding and admitting his defeat.
Aemond turned his head and pressed a kiss to your temple.
“I want it to be known here and now that this woman did choose me willingly. Though I know you will indeed ignore my words, there need be no monster hunt, she and I wish to leave peacefully,” Aemond announced.
The crowd stared in shock as you pulled his face down for a passionate kiss.
Your love raged like the fire that surrounded you.
He was yours and you were his.
“Take me,” you begged him as your lips broke apart.
The last thing you saw was the uptilt of his lips into a smirk before the room was plunged into darkness and then there was only the sensation of falling.
You splashed into deep water and strong hands pulled you up.
“We must hurry,” your lover said as he helped you swim.
You looked up and as the ceiling closed above you, you could see that the entire sept seemed to have lit up in flames once more.
He led you to the edge of the canal and hauled you up out of the water.
He lit a torch he found on the wall and you could finally see.
“It will take them some time to put out the fire, but they will follow us as soon as they can,” Aemond said to you in a hushed and hurried tone as he helped you step into a small boat that floated upon the water. He handed you the torch and you held it as you took your seat and settled.
He soon followed and took the oars and rowed as quickly and powerfully as he could, his strength evident in the action.
He navigated the canals effectively and knew which turns to take in the winding and confusing darkness.
You stared at him as he did so and admired your phantom in the flickering light.
His hair was wet, his lips set in a hard and determined line, and the sapphire glimmered and gleamed.
You loved him, you wanted him, you were joyously happy he had saved you from a life you despised.
You smiled.
His gaze flickered to yours and he raised an eyebrow at you.
“What is it?” he asked.
“I love you,” you said quietly but strongly.
He smiled. A real, full smile, not a smirk or a half smile, a real full smile in which his lips stretched and you could see his teeth.
“And I love you, my sweet,” he eventually replied, the moment heavy with emotion.
“Thank you, for protecting me, my guardian angel,” you whispered.
He shook his head.
“Thank me when we are actually safe in our destination,” he said.
“Where is our destination?” you asked. You did not truly care about the answer, anywhere safe with him was perfect to you.
“There is an estate in the countryside owned by the Hightowers, my mother’s family, that has been gifted to us by my mother. Some sort of recompense for all I have endured from my father’s family, I suppose. We shall have to pretend to be Hightowers and it will be a simpler life than you are used to in King’s Landing, but it will be safe and I will protect you. I hope you find that suitable,” he said softly.
“Of course,” you said, “a life with you is all I desire.”
He smiled once more and it was your favorite sight in all the world.
“Good, I have arranged for a septon to be waiting there to wed us. If all goes well it will only be a few days' journey and then you will well and truly be my wife.”
You grinned and placed your hand on his knee as he continued to row. It took all your self control not to throw yourself into his arms and kiss him until neither of you could breathe anymore.
“I could not imagine anything more perfect, my love,” you replied.
The canals eventually deposited the two of you into the entrance of a river on the outskirts of the city.
Aemond climbed out of the boat and quickly helped you do the same.
Thankful for the cover of darkness, he snuck you to a stable where two horses awaited you both.
He pulled clothes out of the packed saddle bags and handed you a bundle.
“Can you help me?” you asked as you turned your back to him.
You heard a shuddering breath.
“Of course,” he said and began to unlace your wedding dress. He slowly pulled at the laces, and his fingers brushed your skin as he did so. You shivered, and you were not certain if it was from the cold air or desire for the ghost that stood behind you.
You slipped out of it and turned back to face him.
His gaze was dark and intense once again.
Your heartbeat stuttered.
Then you heard distant shouting, you were still being pursued.
“We must hurry,” he urged.
You swallowed your disappointment and nodded even as you began to remove the rest of your clothes.
He walked to the other side of the horses, to hide you from his view, and allowed you to finish changing.
You pulled on the new clothes, and realized he had picked out peasant clothes a man would wear, most likely to make you both as inconspicuous as possible.
You pulled on the fresh underclothes, the trousers and boots, and then the loose white shirt.
He rounded the horses, already fully changed with an eyepatch over his sapphire eye.
Your breath caught as he knelt before you and began to tie the laces of your boots.
You bit your lip as you watched him.
His nimble fingers moved quickly as he laced both shoes then stood to his full height before you.
He then laced up the front of your shirt, to hide your breasts, and his hands grazed them as he did so.
Your breathing was heavy as you watched him.
He nodded in satisfaction with his work then pulled two cloaks out of the saddle bags as well.
He pulled his cloak on and then helped you with yours.
Your hands caught his and you could not help yourself.
“Kiss me,” you breathed out.
He huffed in amusement before he pulled you in for a brief but firm kiss.
“Aemond, please,” you begged as he pulled back.
He gripped your waist and rested his forehead against yours.
“I will make you mine and give you everything you desire, my love,” he promised, “but you must exercise patience. We need to hurry, our lives are still at stake.”
You sighed and nodded.
He pulled your hood over your head and then tied his hair back and did the same.
With strong hands on your waist he helped you climb atop your horse and then mounted his own.
With the click of his tongue, he urged his horse forward and you followed his lead.
Soon, both your horses were galloping and you left the horror of King’s Landing far behind.
You journeyed into the darkness, but felt assured that there was light at the end of your travels for your phantom was there with you, and you would be together, forever, as you both desired, as was right.
You loved the man, the ghost, the so-called monster beside you. You loved your protector, the man who had maimed and killed for you, who guided you through the deepest darkness.
He was your angel, your salvation, the rest of your life.
He was yours and you were his, forever.
All was finally right in the world.
#aemond targaryen#house of the dragon#hotd#aemond targaryen x reader#aemond targaryen x you#aemond targaryen x y/n#aemond#aemond targaryen fanfic#aemond targaryen x fem!reader
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Fanfic Writer Questions
Tagged by @dreadfutures! Tagging @effelants and @kiastirling-fanfic.
1. How many works do you have on AO3?
47
2. What's your total AO3 word count?
739,512
3. What fandoms do you write for?
Resident Evil/Biohazard, Dragon Age, Mass Effect
4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?
Recovery, a post-RE2 Remake Leon/Claire smut (340)
The Rise, part 1 of my DAI-timeline series that starts with the prologue and ends with the arrival at Skyhold (140)
Bracing, a 350-word drabble for Dorian/Bull (71)
A Terrible Bore (350-word Cullen/Theresa drabble) and An Evening In (one-shot Cullen/Theresa fluff) are tied for fourth (64)
Fiercely Perish, which is essentially Die Hard in Thedas, with Bull as John McClain (56)
5. Do you respond to comments?
Yes! I try to respond to everyone and try not to be overwhelming in my gratitude lol. I so rarely get comments that each one feels like Christmas Morning to me and I want to cherish it forever.
6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?
The Black City - the second part of my post-Trespasser Cullen/Theresa series, which ends with their relationship in tatters and them coming to the conclusion that the only way they can heal from their grief is apart. One of the hardest things I've ever written. T_T
7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?
Swept Away - my super indulgent Josephine/Isabela adventure romance. I wrote it as a combination of Pirates of the Caribbean meets Jane Austen. I adore them!
8. Do you get hate on fics?
No, never! I've been very lucky.
9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?
Yup! I've written one-shots as well as scenes incorporated into longer stories. It's almost never PWP though - I have tried and literally can't. For some reason it always ends up at least partly a character study lmao. And because it's me, there's also usually some angst worming its way in there. I am hopeless. ^_^;
10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?
Nope. The closest I've ever come was D&DA Effect, which was me just taking the idea of "what if the plot of DA was actually just the crew of the Normandy playing D&D?" and cranking out a short dialogue-only scene. It reads like a transcript lol. It was definitely fun, but overall I don't have much interest in crossovers.
11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?
Not to my knowledge.
12. Have you ever had a fic translated?
I've had a couple people ask if they can translate one or two of my fics, and I've always granted permission. If they ever completed the translations, I was never tagged in them.
13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?
A couple times, yes. I've participated in a couple round robins with my fellow server members, and did a pinch hit on an exchange event with another writer.
14. What's your all time favorite ship?
Oh gosh I have so many.... My favorite to write for is definitely Cullen/Theresa, Theresa being my OC Trevelyan Inquisitor.
15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?
Look. I really, REALLY wanna finish my Reprises & Reprisals series. I promise!!! I'm about to pick it back up in fact. But my worry is that once the fourth game comes out I may lose interest in writing for Inquisition for a while. And who knows when it'll come back. So I'm hoping to at least finish MOST of book two, which will at least get me to the end of the base game and the big revelation I've been sitting on for literal YEARS.
16. What are your writing strengths?
Character and dialogue, and I've also been told that I write action well
17. What are your writing weaknesses?
Repetition. Descriptive prose and scene blocking. Every time I have to describe what a character is physically doing in a scene, I immediately forget how to exist in a body or how to move one lol.
18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?
If you are fluent enough to write in that language, write it out. Or if not, at least run it by someone who is. The more often languages other than English are included in stories shown to a primarily English-speaking readership, the less "other" it will become. Otherwise, it's best just to write it in English (WITHOUT writing the accent) and describe what language it's being spoken in. Conlangs and ciphers are definitely trickier, and I try my best not to lean too heavily on them, just because I don't feel I'm well enough versed in linguistics to really parse the nuances of such use without accidentally falling into unfortunate implications or stereotypes.
19. First fandom you wrote for?
Mass Effect
20. Favorite fic you've written?
As much as I love my Cullen/Theresa stories, I have a deep fondness and love for Swept Away. I poured a lot of time and effort into its writing, and it remains, in my opinion, one of my best-paced, best-written, and most engaging stories.
Blank form under the cut
1. How many works do you have on AO3?
2. What's your total AO3 word count?
3. What fandoms do you write for?
4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?
5. Do you respond to comments?
6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?
7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?
8. Do you get hate on fics?
9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?
10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?
11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?
12. Have you ever had a fic translated?
13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?
14. What's your all time favorite ship?
15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?
16. What are your writing strengths?
17. What are your writing weaknesses?
18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?
19. First fandom you wrote for?
20. Favorite fic you've written?
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Fic author interview tagged by @vampirenaomi
1 How many works do you have on AO3?
42
2. What’s your total AO3 word count?
728,089
3. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?
Fic that annoys me so much I disabled comments (go find it yourself lmao), Marked for Death, Tiger by the Tail, What's coming through is Alive, The Sea is Getting Rough Again
my one piece fics all have way more kudos than my recent stuff basically
4. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?
i do sometimes, im usually tired from writing and editing so sometimes ill just say thanks lol
5. What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?
i wrote a fic anonymously which is horrendously dark and doesnt have a happy ending but I think most other fics i write at least have a bittersweet or happy ending hdfgb
6. What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?
uhhhhhh i dunno man I like the ending of the fic i wrote where goemon threatens to cut one of jigen's exes' dicks off and then they go hang out by the pool. that was fun :)
7. Do you write crossovers?
not really, I've had a few ideas for them but they're hard to write and wouldnt have worked out
8. Have you ever received hate on a fic?
not... really? i got a really weird backhanded compliment where someone talked at length about a ship i dont like (the fic wasnt about that couple) then said the first chapter was alright apart from being painfully slow (thanks) and then accused me of virtue signalling because of the difficult topics i handled in the fic.
It was really, really strange like I genuinely think they were trying to pay me a compliment but they were incredibly shit at it lol
And then in another fic I turned off comments because a minor started bitching at me about the porn I wrote not being sexy enough and when I told them to go away they harassed me for a little while. That was fun.
9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?
Yeas. I prefer it when smut is incorporated into the story because I kind of need the emotional stakes to be high enough otherwise I kind of lose interest. Smut without feelings is just kinda boring to me. Of course I have some exceptions but those are rare nowadays.
10. Have you ever had a fic stolen?
Not that I'm aware of.
11. Have you ever had a fic translated?
yes, though it's on wattpad apparently so I have no idea if the person doing it credited me because I dont use that site lol.
12. Have you ever co-written a fic before?
yeah and I dont recommend it. we only wrote like 2 chapters of it but i no longer speak to the co-author and the whole thing ended up feeling a bit disjointed and weird.
13. What’s your all-time favorite ship?
Uhh I have a couple, zoro/luffy, ace/sanji, jigen/lupin and jigen/goemon
zolu probably wins here because i have not so far written a 200k fic about anyone else lol
14. What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?
*gestures weakly at literally everything in my google docs*
I forgot how to write sorry
15. What are your writing strengths?
*tv static noise*
16. What are your writing weaknesses?
i cant speak english
17. What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?
I don't know whether its bad or just handled badly by a lot of writers but I don't like it. Speaking as someone whos been learning japanese for the past 2+ years I hate it when I come across a word and have to either look it up myself or scroll to the bottom of the fic for any footnotes there are to explain it. Gonna use myself as an example for how I go about this kind of thing:
Fujiko tries to smile at his robotic, overly formal speech patterns, when really it's a little off-putting. She hasn't heard anyone use the word sessha, 'my humble self', for themselves outside of a period drama.
each to their own but i prefer putting in a small aside like this rather than shoving in foreign words and expecting for the reader to go and break the flow of the writing by looking it up for themselves.
18. What was the first fandom you wrote for?
id say pokemon mystery dungeon but the first fic i wrote i instantly deleted after getting one negative comment, i think one piece is more where i cut my teeth
19. What’s a fandom/ship you haven’t written for yet but want to?
i dont really know? ive gotten into a couple of new things recently but they havent triggered my "oh i gotta write something" reaction
20. What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?
i dunno man i dont like my work very much right now heres an image if u read all of this
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🌱🎉📦🎇 for the ask game? :3
🌱 Who was your first F/O?
OH GOD UHHH i think my first official f/o (as in after i realized selfshipping was a thing that i was doing/could do) was sans undertale aslxnskcnkd
🎉 Tell us some fun facts about your newest selfship!
ough um i think my "newest" selfship would technically be with grusha but i have nothing for that yet so im gonna go with bugfang hehe ^__^
the ship timeline takes place over the course of a good few years where the classic timeline is the past instead of an alternate dimension!!!! (its supposed to be the past now but its been fucky for a few years) they meet when bug is still working for eggman and are essentially sent to keep an eye on the hooligans when eggman hires them.
fang did NOT like bug back then. but when they meet up again after a couple years and theyve completely changed he kinda is like "woa. oh wow." typa thing
bug lives by the sea while fang is often on the move cuz hes a wanted man and all that, but they let him stay at theirs and always offer for him to stay so he has a roof over his head. he always declines, but theres a part of him that wants to
bug is one of the only people he trusts around his bike alone lol
📦 Who are some F/Os you no longer ship with? Why?
ive dropped plenty due to outgrowing them (gladi0n from pkmn and natsuki dd/lc come to mind) as well as just plain losing interest whether romantically or just losing interest in their source altogether (2d g0rillaz, sans, spin3l)
🎇 Which is the most CURSED crack selfship you’ve thought of?
oh god oh fuck ummm. i dont feel like these are necessarily crackships but moth x st*rline or eggm4n would be so fucking cursed. oh god now my brain is thinking about bad crackships. kitty x ge0ffrey st j0hn 😰
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I feel like I’ve found my kin, I fell in love with Kakashi when I was like 8 LOL. Can I request some general yandere Zoro headcanons btw? I loved/still love him too 😶
Yes you may ahhh!!!! I love Zoro so much. I love writing for fandoms like this bc shounen anime are... Well, shounen, they're aimed at dudes, so they tend to not have as large of a female audience so there's not a lot of content out there. I love Luffy and there's like zero girl-targeted content for him. I swear I've spent so much time looking for wholesome, decent LuNa (my otp im sorry i just hhhh) doujins that aren't super male-oriented, and there's like... 2. For a 900+ episode anime. 2.
I also love the concept of a yandere in a situation where they CAN'T kidnap you, they're limited by their circumstances, so they have to kind of adjust or go insane. It's an interesting dynamic because it eliminates the norm for yanderes.
I think I mentioned this but I'm not 100% caught up with one piece (I mean, who is?), so I'm just keeping it simplistic and going with kinda basic Zoro and nothing with specific character developments or any spoilers other than his backstory
Yandere Roronoa Zoro (One Piece)
Tws: all the usuals -- yandere, noncon, kidnapping
He meets you while he's lost. I'm sorry I just. Zoro gets lost in the middle of some place they're docked, and you're just such a sweetheart, you see this guy clearly not knowing where he's going, and offer to help him. He's kind of taken aback by your softness and sweetness.
He's not easily made aware of his own feelings. He's a rough and tough sort of guy, and he has dedicated himself to swordsmanship so much that he's neglected to focus on himself and his interpersonal relationships, and he's not really self aware at all of his own feelings, very out of touch with his emotions.
Obviously, even if he tries to shove it down, Kuina weighs heavily on his mind in relation to you. He's another man that has known loss and it's dealt its damage on his psyche. He can't lose another person who's dear to him again.
This results in him becoming insanely protective, one of the most protective yans out there. He's easily one led into paranoia delusions regarding your safety. However, he's an honest and reasonable guy and can be level-headed when confronted. If someone (not yourself, as he thinks you're naive, but maybe another girl like Nami or Robin) tells him he's being overprotective and exaggerating about your safety, he may actually have a moment of self-realization and admit to it. He's capable of being reasonable enough to see it once it's pointed out to him. However... this doesn't stop him. He tries, really, he genuinely tells himself that he needs to stop. But his instincts just kind of take over. It's an impulse, to stop you from doing even the most slightly dangerous things.
Once you join the Straw Hat Crew, he just kinda... clings. It's a silent presence, but he's always there, constantly seems to show up wherever you are. Unfortunately, you can't really... get away from him per se. You're kinda limited to one ship, at least as long as you're out on the sea. Your only option for respite is going to your room or bathing, otherwise, he's gonna follow you, even if he's not saying anything and (very badly) trying to feign indifference, pretending you just happen to be going the same way all the time. He doesn't really know what to say, he's not good with these things, and often he's acting without really thinking too much about it. He won't usually strike up a conversation, he just... is there. Watches. May awkwardly ask a question or make a passing comment.
One scenario I imagine is you jokingly picking up one of his swords and wielding it around giggling and he just flips out, takes it from you and yells at you not to do that, are you an idiot? Do you want to trip and fall and have that impale you? Do you realize how easy it would be for you to slice your arm open by accident? It's startling to both you and anyone watching -- even for someone who gets yell-y as easily as him, it seems like an overreaction. He'll apologize but insist it's a safety thing, really.
And he really tries to hide his more... aggressive nature, because he thinks it will drive you away -- he's a blunt, tough guy with a short-fused temper, and he thinks that's definitely not something women like very much. He tries not to yell at you, not get mad so easy, keep his calm better around you, and might even be nicer to others so that you don't think he's mean. And for the most part, he can manage that. Except when it comes to a very specific, very problematic blonde crew member. His little conflicts with Sanji get worse, to even a point that he's snapping at him so frequently that even Sanji himself is a bit bewildered and caught off guard by it. The others notice they fight a lot more often... and Zoro always seems to instigate it, picking quarrels over the littlest things. In reality, he's afraid of the other's... sleazy nature. He can't have you falling for that bastard. He even starts to get jittery when you're in the presence of Franky, Usopp, hell even Luffy of all people. It's noticeable, and everyone kinda worries for him.
He kicks himself for it as soon as he does it, but he finds himself insulting you nonetheless. It's a terrible habit. He gets so awkward and flustered that it's second nature for him to say something snarky or even rude when you talk to him, and he immediately is just mentally screaming at himself for doing so. This will get a bit better with time, though, if you two talk more often.
Now, even if you can fight, you're never gonna really get the opportunity. In battle, he's clinging to you and protecting you at every moment, even if it costs the others some unnecessary wounds. It's highly uncharacteristic of him, and they notice. He won't leave your side, insisting that you're a weak fighter and that he has to take care of you. You just don't get it, you overestimate yourself, you underestimate your enemies, you're a girl. What, Nami and Robin? Well, they've been at this much longer than you, and they had rough upbringings. You're different. You're soft... fragile. You just can't see it. You're lucky he's here to protect your dumbass.
Due to your setup, well, he can't really kidnap you per se. He undoubtedly would if you two were somewhere else, in another life or another setting, but that's not really an option, and even as a yandere, he would never go so far as to kill or abandon his crew. So, he's stuck with just... slowly, slowly mentally deteriorating.
Now, he's not capable of kidnapping, he's not smart enough to really manipulate you into anything (although he WILL tell you that some of the other guys are out to use you), so, he's left to be the guard dog he inevitably becomes to you. If you avoid him, he'll just follow you. If you don't talk to him, that's ok. If you confront him, he'll just insist he has no idea what you're talking about, and you'll start to feel like maybe you're just paranoid. The others... don't really know what to do, to be honest. I can see Nami/Robin potentially confronting him, but in the end, they can't force him to change his behaviors, and they can't afford to lose him. This results in, gradually, everyone slowly kind of accepting your dynamic onboard. They feel bad for you, really, but... in the end, Zoro's just more valuable to the crew. Sorry. They're not gonna get rid of him, but they don't want to get rid of you either.
If you leave? It may just be one of the very very few things that could ever cause him to leave the Strawhats. It would tear him up, really, it goes against his dreams, his pride, his loyalty, but in the end... his loyalty is first and foremost to you. He'll follow you if you leave. It's a bad move on your part, because this gets rid of the only thing standing between you and kidnapping. Which, at that point, surely will happen. Like his other behaviors, he'll feel bad, he'll try and stop himself, tell himself it's wrong, but you'll end up bound in some dark basement nonetheless. He's one to take a very simple approach. Find you alone, sling you up and over his shoulder and carry you off before anyone can come.
Rejection doesn't faze him. No matter what, he'll remain by your side. Even if you never love him in return. It's just his nature, he's a guardian through and through.
In the end, he'll be right there by your side, scaring off any competitors, clinging to you like glue, ever in your presence like a shadow, forever. Whether you want him to or not. He's just an inescapable force, an unmovable object, and you're wasting your time trying to change your fate.
Now, he's very flustered with anything sexual. Highly embarrassed, lots of shame, and doesn't talk much about it. It just kind of happens. He doesn't talk much during, mostly grunts and the occasional fuck when you clamp down, occasionally asking you if you're ok, if it hurts, if it feels good. It's one of the only very soft sides of him. In the end, he really, truly loves you, and doesn't want to hurt you, he wants you to feel good and just love him. It's a very different side to him, one no one else has ever really seen, it's the most vulnerable he himself has ever been with another person.
He feels shame for it, but initially he'll definitely be one to steal your things, sit outside of your room at night, listening to you through the wall, try and get glimpses of you bathing or dressing. He really, really feels guilty, and he's one that will, once you're comfortably restrained and never going anywhere, just sit down and list out every nasty little thing he's ever done regarding you, just to get it off his chest. He understands if you react badly, and he'll apologize, which is a bit ironic considering how much worse kidnapping you is.
He'll apologize for that, too. He's actually one to do so a lot. He's normally a proud guy, but with this? He knows it's wrong, he knows it's fucked up. He knows he can't stop. And he'll be sorry to the moon and back. Just never sorry enough to stop.
He's actually a pretty vanilla guy. Hand-holding missionary type. And, despite being so embarrassed over it all, oddly romantic about it. It's one of the only things he's ever soft and gentle about, it's almost unbelievable to you that he's capable of being so gentle and slow with anything. But he'll kiss your forehead, really take his time with it all, make you cum on his fingers before ever actually fucking you. Hold your hand, look into your eyes. It would be honestly incredibly sweet if it weren't... you know, taking place in some dark sealed off room after dragging you there against your will.
If he's particularly mad, he can get rougher, but he'll apologize after. It's a lot of harsh grabbing, biting, it leaves bruises that he'll rub over softly, whispering an apology, even if a little part of him likes the way it looks on you.
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Lullaby of Woe
AO3
Angst Prompt - "Of all the times to tell me, why now?" - Any pairing
From @crazydemigod666 on Tumblr
@crazydemigod666 Psst you sent this ask to my main but I don’t really post my writing there, so I’m posting it here. Hope you don’t mind ;) Also, though very different in tone, this actually reminded me of your own Jolly Sailor Bold as I was writing it in a lot of ways lol so I hope you enjoy!
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Description: Feeling unwanted, Patton climbs up to the deck of their ship to get some fresh air when the voice of a siren comes calling.
Also, there's a song in this one. I modified the lyrics, but the song is "Lullaby of Woe" - Ashley Serena and you can listen to it here if you'd like.
Word Count: 2104
Pairings: Logicality
Characters: Patton, Logan
Warnings: Major Character Death (Ambiguous, honestly its entirely up to how you interpret it), Angst with an ambiguous ending, Hurt/Comfort, Mentions of neglect, Mentions of cheating, Past toxic relationship, Mentions of food insecurity, Touch starvation, Hypnosis-like trance, Brief Suicidal ideation, Crying, (Let me know if I need to add anything!)
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Patton had a problem.
The crew hadn't been able to look him in the eye for over a fortnight, even though he could feel the pity in his stares as he milled about the deck without purpose. At any other point in his life, he would have been deeply ashamed, but he was nearly too tired to care now. The captain had notified him that his rations had been cut. He'd been told it was a temporary measure, but Patton knew better. The captain was starving him off the ship.
The wind nipped at his arms as Patton nimbly topped the ladder to the upper deck. Moonlight pooled on the polished wood, lighting his way as he strode through the darkness. He moved confidently, though he felt himself nearly stumbling and losing his footing with the sharp rocking of the ship. The weakness was getting to him. He knew he shouldn’t be up in the open air as the boat rocked in the wind. One swift wind could blow him overboard and he'd be gone forever, but he couldn’t bear another minute of listening to the crew's whispers.
His heart was broken enough already. He'd thought the captain loved him. When they met, Patton’s body and soul had felt like fire. In a flurry of passion, Patton had dropped his comfortable life to follow the man he'd loved across the sea and it had been the thrilling journey of his life. Flowing from adventure to adventure, the pure excitement and adrenaline had lit up his world and blinded him to the fire that had begun to eat him up inside.
Only now, as Patton staggered to the bow of ship, did he realize how much he'd withered away to make way for the man who claimer to love him. Mere embers of the previous flame remained in Patton’s heart as the captain drifted into the arms of new lovers, his loyalty already fickle and fading before Patton was even gone.
Patton sucked in a sob as he lurched forward, nearly tumbling over the ship's railing as a sudden wave jarred the ship. His white knuckles gripped the wood on instinct as he sunk to his knees. A soundless cry escaped him as he collapsed to the floor and tears flowed freely down his face in silent grief.
The pain in his chest was nearly unbearable as Patton lost himself staring into the black water of the sea below, mesmerized by the swirling vortexes as he desperately pushed away darker thoughts. He had no idea how long he sat there, silently sobbing as the moon moved across the sky, but it seemed like only moments before an unnerving melody floated through the air.
Fishes asleep among the weeds,
Patton’s head shot up at the sound the unfamiliar voice echoing eerily across the open deck. His knees curled to his chest as his eyes darted through the darkness, searching for the source of the voice.
Waves all a swaying in the breeze,
“Who’s there?”
Patton shivered as he raised his head to get a better view of the deck below. Unable to spot anyone, he cautiously reached up to the railing to pull himself upright and listen to the voice continue.
But one soul lies anxious, wide awake,
Fearing no manner of ghouls nor wraiths.
Patton jumped, spinning on his toes as the last line finished directly behind his ear. His shoulders spun clumsily as he stumbled away from the bow of the ship, landing on the ground with a thud as he turned to stare at the beast balancing on the bowsprit of the ship.
The creature stood on two feet and Patton could nearly have mistaken him for a man a man, if not for the pallid color of his skin and haunting blue glow of his eyes. The specter glided forward with an unearthly grace, balancing on the narrow bow of the ship as it rocked chaotically in the wind.
“Do not scream.” The man purred as he dropped silently on the deck. “Lest you condemn the rest of your friends to share your fate.”
A grimace curled on Patton’s lips at the statement and he resigned himself to quietly edging closer the railing behind him.
“Oh, not friends then.”
The beast cooed under his breath as he leaned forward to loom over Patton. Adrenaline rushed through his veins as the creature slowly kneeled in front of him and raised a hand to his face. Patton flinched as cold fingers brushed along his jaw and guided his chin up until he was staring into the ice-cold eyes of the man above him.
“Relax.”
Patton felt the tension in his body disappear as the dulcet tones of the man's voice lulled him into complacency. His vision blurred as he tried to stay focused on the man’s face, but as he was pulled to his feet, only one thought rang out in his mind.
He's…pretty.
The beast's calming voice continued to fill the air with a lilting melody as he smiled crowded Patton against the railing.
Don’t dare let him tremble,
For the witcher, heartless and cold,
Paid in coin of gold,
He comes and goes and he'll leave not behind,
Subtle chills tingled across Patton’s skin at the man's power. He knew fear should be gripping his heart, but he couldn’t help but his starstruck smile as the man lips curled into a sharp-toothed grin.
but heartache and woe,
Deep, deep woe.
Patton’s breath caught in his throat as his waist caught the railing. His balance wavered as the momentum nearly sent him tumbling into the dark water below, but an iron grip caught his collar.
Deep, deep woe.
The man’s deep voice resonated against Patton’s chest and he finished its last note, drawing Patton’s attention back to his mesmerizing eyes.
“Are you afraid?”
Patton sucked on his lip as he stared into the icy look of the man’s eyes. His heart slowed as the air shifted blinked his shock up at the man in front of him.
“Please, I'll do anythi—”
“Young one, be at peace. Fearing me is a waste of your energy.”
A raspy breath escaped Patton’s parted lips as the beast's hand passed over his jaw to curl around the back of his neck. Instinctively, he started to flinch away, but the monster caught him.
“Why do you allow yourself to wither, human?”
Patton sucked on his lip as his skin tingled like wildfire from the man’s icy touch. He hated to admit it, even to himself, but it'd been a long time since he'd been touched with such gentleness. The sense of danger radiating off the man in front of him should have made him quiver with fear, but instead he felt himself leaning into the unfamiliar comfort with a quiet sob.
“Hush now. You no longer need to suffer.”
Scaled fingers slipped through Patton’s hair as the pale beast comforted him. The walls which he’d built around his heart came crashing down and his feelings escaped him in a subdued mourning.
“That’s all you really wanted. Isn’t it? To be needed?”
Patton’s grip tightened on the man's flowing silk shirt as a soft whisper escaped him. “I don’t want to be a burden.”
“I've been watching you since your ship left the port nearly a full moon ago. The effort you extend to for the benefit of the others aboard this vessel is nothing less than commendable.” The beast’s breath passed through Patton’s hair like a soft wind as his fingertips brushed Patton’s cheek. “You are not simply a weight to the man who scorns your love.”
The man’s soothing voice resonated from his chest as Patton timidly tipped his head up to him.
“W-who are you?”
“My name is of no consequence,” The man’s whispered, though he seemed to immediately correct himself as he noted Patton’s disappointment. “Though you may call me Logan, if your heart desires.”
“Logan—” Patton breathed as he lifted his head. “—you've been watching me?”
“With deep interest, my dearest. You are too delectable to be wasted on someone who does not appreciate you.” Logan’s sharp-toothed grin grew wider as his thumb brushed Patton’s cheek. “Your scent is absolutely dizzying.”
“T-that can't be true.”
“Oh?” The siren's pale fingers trailed down Patton’s jaw, letting out a melodic chuckle as Patton sighed at the touch. “And why is that, my lovely?”
Patton’s face twisted in disgust and he started to pull away. “I'm—I'm not—”
Logan’s hands caught Patton’s waist, eliciting a gasp as he effortlessly lifted Patton and placed him on the railing of the rocking ship. He moved forward, standing between Patton’s legs as his piercing, blue eyes locked onto Patton.
“Not what, darling?”
“N-not special.” Patton whispered quietly, suddenly entranced by the mesmerizing glimmer in Logan’s eyes.
“It truly is a crime that any man was able to convince you of that.”
Patton blinked in disbelief as the siren curled a finger under his chin, lifting his gaze. “What?”
“Your soul leaves a sweet scent in the air that only a fool would neglect to savor.” Logan whispered, sending pleasant chills down Patton’s spine as his other hand slipped around Patton’s waist. “My dearest, you are a gift to this world that has kept my eye for thrice the time it's taken for the dark moon to turn bright in the sky.”
“If—If you've been watching me—” Patton started after a moment of silence, shaking as he reached up to grip Logan’s wrist. “Then, of all times to tell me, why now?”
The siren was silent as his piercing eyes bore into Patton, sending a heated wave of adrenaline through him as another wave crashed against the side of the ship. Logan’s grip tightened on Patton’s waist as sea's mist filled the air.
“I think you know why I have approached you.”
“Y-you're a siren.” Patton whispered as he nervously clung to the railing.
“Come away with me, darling.”
“They—” Patton swallowed the lump in his throat as he turned his head away from the dangerous look in Logan’s eyes. “The sailors say that those who are taken away by sirens are never heard from again.”
Logan remained quiet for a moment before raising a hand to wipe the tears from Patton’s cheek. “You will not be missed by the men on this ship.”
Patton sucked in a breath as though he'd been struck in the stomach. “I—I know, but—”
“Hush, now. Do not be afraid.” Logan whispered as tears brimmed in Patton’s eyes. “Do you have loved ones on the land?”
“No,” Patton breathed as an emptiness filled his chest. “I am alone.”
“Then what do you live for, dearest?”
Patton started to shake as tears streamed down his face. “I—I don’t know anymore.”
“Then tell me, my love.” Logan whispered as he curled a finger around Patton’s chin to lift his head up. “What risk is there in leaving with me?”
“I'm not ready to die."
Logan's sharp teeth glistened in the moonlight as he leaned into Patton’s ear. “Who said anything about dying?”
Patton blinked, still in disbelief as he sputtered out a response. “Are you going to hurt me?”
“Will you take the risk to find out?”
Patton sucked in a breath as he stared into Logan’s blue eyes. His heart pounded in his chest as he balanced on the railing of the ship, teetering above the dark waters above.
“O-okay.”
Logan leaned in closer with a knowing grin. “You have to tell me what you want, love.”
“Take me away, p-please.”
Logan's unearthly grin widened as Patton curled into his chest. “As you wish, darling.”
A hum started deep in Logan's chest, soothing Patton’s uneven breathing as he continued his song.
The waves are silent for the night,
All matter turned in as daylight dies,
But one soul lies anxious wide awake,
My dear darling Patton, shut your eyes,
Lie still, lie silent, utter no cries.
The world around Patton seemed became blurry as the siren’s song lulled him into a deep trance. His skin tingled with a pleasant vibration as the soft sound of Logan’s voice filled his ears. Deep in a stupor, he barely noticed as they dropped into the dark waters below. The moonlight faded as they disappeared beneath the surface, but Logan’s voice still echoed beautifully in his mind.
Beware of the man who covets your soul,
He'll chop you and slice you,
Cut and he'll dice you,
Eat you up whole,
Eat you whole,
All while he sings to you,
he lullaby of deep, deep woe.
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General Taglist:
@justanotherhumanstuff @im-an-anxious-wreck @shadowyplaidpurseegg
#sanders sides#sanders sides fic#sanders sides fanfiction#sanders sides fanfic#ts patton#ts logan#logicality#siren!logan#human!patton#tw abuse#sailor au#siren au#Lullaby of Woe#villain writes
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do you have any gx rivalshipping hcs!! im super curious on your take of them :]
When I saw this ask my immediate reaction was thinking: "Yes, I have an excuse to talk about gx rivalshipping, YES."
So yeah. I love this ship a lot, like a whole damn lot and it's a little hard to explain why, especially when gx has so many open possibilities for romances involving Judai. By which I mean two, really, and Manjoume is not one of them (sadly for me). I am referring to Yubel and Johan, by the way, I refuse to acknowledge Asuka as a love interest.
I'll start off with a bit of fluff headcanons?
Manjoume thinks Winged Kuriboh is really cute and that its friendly and fluffy appearance screams Judai, in a way. But he will never admit it because of what that might imply for him and the Ojamas.
Manjoume is fueled by caffeine and monster, he only really starts to recognise how nice it can be to have a meal because of how much Judai enjoys his food. He tries to sit at the table with him with dumb excuses.
Judai feels a bit guilty for how his actions impacted Manjoume's life, but Manjoume generally tells him that it's fine, it's better this way, that he's never this happy, that the only reason why Judai should maybe feel bad about it is because of his tendency to get overly invested in other people's problems and getting hurt in the process. Judai responds with bear hugs.
Manjoume brags about Judai a lot, actually.
"Oh you think that's cool? One time Judai managed to do a backflip, you loser."
"Slifer reds suck, but they do have redeeming qualities, by which I mean one of them is actually good."
Judai likes to indulge himself in the thought that he's Manjoume's most trusted, that he's the only one who could ever be allowed to have that many incriminating pictures of him. Because Judai just loves taking candid pictures of Manjoume. He thinks he looks and and cool in every situation, so yeah. A part of him does it because he has an inexplicable fear of forgetting people and the way they look, but he just can't say why that is.
They hang out in silence a lot, but once they start talking they just never stop. You'll find them on the beach at 3 am with a smiling Manjoume listening to Judai go on about how crazy it is that you can fry food in so many different ways and how he once caught a butterfly as a kid and named it Kujaku.
They share their music a lot, so Manjoume's tastes switch from just emo to fast paced rap and the weirdly happy sounding songs about very morbid things Judai listens to (plus emo). Judai starts to enjoy a bit of angry screaming into microphones thanks to Jun. Do they sing along like idiots as they share earphones? Yes. Is Manjoume mesmerised by Judai's singing voice? Also yes.
Judai loves hiking and sometimes invites Manjoume, but because he's a lot weaker and has less stamina, they take it slow. Manjoume keeps cursing himself for being slow and dead weight, but Judai is just happy to have a companion. Admittedly, going slower makes the walks better as he has the time to enjoy the scenery properly. He never teases Jun about his lack of physical training.
Now... I wanted to talk about my general view on the ship, plus headcanons I guess, but this is going to be EVEN LONGER (you are getting more than you asked for, your fault for enabling me, really). For the sake of the sanity of mobile users, I'm adding a cut so nobody has to unwillingly scroll through endless text.
On to the the juice, then. My thoughts on the ship.
Manjoume and Judai are, of course, the rivals of the series and, if my thoughts on rivalry weren't clear enough, I am one of those people. It's just really romantic to me.
What is very interesting about the two of them specifically is that they are polar opposites in the way the reason why they play, throughout the whole series. Hell, their views end up getting reversed completely: Manjoume goes from "if I don't win I'm gonna have a breakdown breakdown" to "losing is ok, as long as I enjoy the game and am true to myself", while Judai does the 180 from "I really just love playing cards with my friends, who cares about the outcome, it's fun" to "I have card game related trauma, nobody speak to me, games are only an excuse to assert a sort of power scale and honestly fuck that".
Manjoume is sort of the only person in the 'friend group' (he's never actually part of it, sadly, literally only Judai and Fubuki like him) to not idolise Judai, not explicitly. He clearly has an admiration for Judai from the beginning, but he is adamant on expressing it as hatred towards for being better than him. A part of me feels that a lot of his superior act is meant to try and fool himself and Jaden into thinking that he's a worthy rival, because I know for a fact that Manjoume doesn't believe that. He wants it to be true, yes.
What I am trying to get at is that Judai is probably a little confused by the fact that Manjoume doesn't drool all over him like the rest of the school does, but it soon becomes a crutch. Judai is under a lot of pressure because he is the hero who will save everyone and people like to remind him of how much they count on him. Manjoume is in it for Judai. He wants to be acknowledged by him, he wants his recognition and his attention, but he never asks for help or expects Judai to fix his problems for him. Judai is probably thankful for that.
Manjoume is also really scared of being left behind and cast aside as soon as he stops being useful and that's exactly what the writers do to him!!! hooray!, but Judai keeps insisting that he's not a bad guy, that he's fun to be around, that he's competent. Manjoume doesn't really believe all that that much, but Jaden keeps playing him despite his repeated losses and to Jun that's the equivalent of someone kissing his tears away. Manjoume only learns to accept his losses and shortcomings because Judai did it for him first.
So basically Manjoume is the only one who fully sees Judai as a person, while Judai is the only one who is really willing to look past his pretentious facade. I fully believe that Judai was relieved to learn that Manjoume was not just a perfect boy with perfect manners, by the way. They both just love to learn about every imperfection that the other has and silently thinking that they just add to the beauty of the other's character. Will they tease eachother about it? Fuck yes. Do they feel awful when the other tries to fix something about themselves because they pointed it out? Also fuck yes.
They are in a dumb competition against themselves to be better in order to earn the right to be friends with eachother, but because they are fucking dumb they never actually communicate (until they do), so for a long time it's endless pining that is definitely not gay because admittedly Judai just doesn't think that dating is a thing, while Manjoume is straight™, really straight. He has never liked a boy in his life, he's so very fucking straight, I swear.
So Manjoume is a bisexual disaster (and in my headcanon he prefers boys, actually, the Asuka incident is the biggest example of denial™ ever. He prefers Fubuki, fight me over this).
The problem is that he never really considered he might be crushing on Judai, but at the same time admitting to maybe liking boys too means that there was more to wanting to stay at DA, to hanging out with Judai's crew despite their mutual dislike, to his continuous playful headlocks and ear pulling. To add onto that, there is probably a certain amount of guilt over having betrayed that bond with Judai by trying to throw away his cards and everything.
Judai, on the other hand... is confused at how bothered he is by the public declarations of love, because Manjoume is his rival and rivals are supposed to focus on eachother, not on some girl, no matter how good said girl is at card games.
So maybe they are a bit gay for eachother. And maybe they just want excuses to be together as much as possible. And it's really just the vibe of highschool romance between two people who don't want to admit to caring for one another on a deeper level, but are also weirdly possessive of eachother for no apparent reason.
And I think I'll stop here with my gay retelling, but really if you look at the two of them you do see that they do a lot for eachother's characters. It's kind of beautiful, really. They are the two socially inept characters who find comfort in someone being just like them and understanding them as they change and grow up.
I have a lot to say about how that changes once the transfer students come in, but I think I've bored everyone for long enough- as in nobody will read this lol.
That's ok.
I thank you again for the ask and for allowing me to gush about this ship that is so close to my heart. If anyone ever wants to talk about them, just. Do. Break into my house at night and I still won't mind, I just want to talk about them.
#shut me up#i'm so sorry#i started and i couldn't stop#i also didn't want to be disappointing by giving an half-assed response#i've thought about this ask all night#i still improvised the whole thing and i'm sure you can tell#yugioh#ygo#yugioh gx#ygo gx#gx rivalshipping#manjoume jun#jun manjoume#chazz princeton#yuki judai#judai yuki#jaden yuki
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Random SF ideas
It has a lot of Travis ships because that's my feral lil bby. I'm having fun keeping him from bullying people by bullying him instead lol
Every time he enters school Sal mutters “anything can happen in the Bronx”. Todd is the only one that doesn’t understand.
Travis is emotionally constipated and will take it out on others, but later do small things as his form of apologizing. Philip and his mother are the only people that understand him and understand why. Sal thinks he may be bipolar and Larry has probably called him the r-slur under his breath. (Stinky boy probably would say it openly if not for Sal's disdain for that word).
Maple and Travis bonding over jewelry and make up. Travis won’t admit it to anyone but her but he likes the way Maple accessorizes. Obligatory Chug appreciation to keep on her good side, later forms a healthy and wholesome friendship.
Travis and Larry fight verbally. It doesn’t get physical unless Larry loses control and shoved Travis. This prompting a snarky reminder that Larry is no better than Travis’ own father. They cuddle and fall asleep later tho, after Sal puts them in their get along corner.
Nicknames. Travis’ weakness is nicknames. Lisa discovers this and shows Larry and Sal who abuse this power. Travis’ tan cheeks are bright red anytime he’s out public with them because of their stupidly sweet nicknames. Their go to for reactions are baby(boy), sweetheart and bottom
Shameless PDA when Sal is jealous. Travis learns the hard way how easy it is to make him jealous when a hand is in his waist and holding him close to the shorter. Fingers tracing any exposed skin to keep Travis focused on him. Sorry Lar, you took up too much Travis time..
Travis’ mom being an absolute babe. Apple if her eye is her sweet boy. Probably passed while he was young and had to watch him grow in that unhealthy environment.. maybe reaches out to Sal for help since he’s more intuitive. Def terrifies Larry a couple times as a prank. He hit her son, bully or not, it just felt right to braid his hair to his bed post a couple times and paint his nasty thoughts on his chest.
Travis hates surprises and loud noises because of his father. They don’t learn that until they throw a surprise birthday party with cheering and loud pops of confetti balloons, his panic attack damn near gave him a heart attack. (He refused to accept apologies for something they didn’t know. Instead demanding they spoil him for the rest of the week as compensation for his hospital trip on his birthday)
I said it once, and I’ll say it again. Service. Animals. Mr. Phelps legally obligated to give him a service animal and Travis is somewhat saved from Kenneth's abuse. Taking more time outside for walks (the dog can’t bare letting Travis stay in the house for long with his father home). He genuinely bonds with other students over his new dog (the dog allowing contact when not in uniform but if Travis’ needs are present will attach itself to Travis’ hip.
Religious trauma and coping. Because PLS, can we please address the amount of abuse because of the Bible?? That boy may stay and follow the proper words of his lord. Or he could detach himself from the church entirely (especially because of the cult!)
Travis ships: Salvis and Larvis
Asked out: Oh. Oh no. How did they fall for Travis?!? What did they do to find that feral little kitten so cute?? Was it they dyed hair? The dresses when he shows off more legs than they anticipated? Him apologizing and changing for the better?? What happened to him to make him so interesting!?
Sal absolutely starts approaching Travis cautiously. Taken aback when he's greeted with a warm smile and compliments. They start to grow as friends and spend time together often. Sharing eachother with their friend groups and on their own. It takes a couple of years before Sal nervously asks Travis if he would be interested in getting closer. Travis doesn't understand and Sal just awkwardly blurts out if he would try dating him... for an experiment or anything. Travis is excited, he wants to be closer and happily hugs onto Sal as his answer.
Larry is a lot ore aggressive. Cornering Travis and glaring down at him. Demanding to know what his game is. Travis doesn't fight he just nervously asks if Larry hates him. Larry almost says he does but gets distracted by the trembling and cowering kitten before him. Fuck, he can't possibly hate Travis. Larry instead starts approaching Travis. At first Travis is afraid that Larry will hit him if he doesn't like something he does. Larry hates to admit it, but Travis infested his mind. Dreams were no longer sacred when teenage hormones and a new love interest were involved. Many a times he had to look away when Travis were a particular skirt or dress because his dreams seemed to run rampant with those items. When they finally talk, Travis initiates it. He Pushes Larry into a bathroom stall and demands he explain himself. He's staring at him like a piece of meat and following him around. Larry is scaring HIS friends. Larry doesn't even hesitate to pounce on Travis. Mouth to mouth and hands on ass. Travis surprised but kinda into it allows the kiss until Larry gets too handsy. He returns to his friends with an angry red hand print on his cheek. It takes a month of apologizing Travis finally agrees to give Larry a chance. (Larry tells his mom and dances around the apartment that night)
First kiss failures: Larry got too into the kiss and starts feeling up the poor boy. Sal pecks him in his sleep and never tells Travis. He just happily holds the memory of kissing his sleeping princess.
First dates: Larry tries to show Travis the fun things to do in this sleepy little town. Travis is excited just to go anywhere other than church and school. At first there are a few hiccups, maybe weather, maybe places are crowded or cancelled. But it still ends well with the boys passed out in the truck, snuggled under a blanket Larry stores with a big smile on their face. Sal is much more romantic. Candles and flowers. Dresses up nice and styles his hair in a neat bun. He wants to impress Travis and assert he can be the man for him by presenting more masculine (Travis snorts and tells him even in a dress Sal could fight a bear). Its a simple dinner at home with Gizmo as their lazy server, sleeping on the couch in a little suit. The night ends well with the boys enjoying a night stroll and admiring the calm and almost desolate surroundings of Nockfell.
First Times: Sal does NOT expect Travis to offer it. In fact, he almost shattered his favorite mug with the tight grip he put on it. Travis thinks this means Sal doesn't want him, but no nono, Sal wants it/ He wants Travis bad. That simp wastes no time scurrying to their room, cleaning his bed and all necessary items are prepared. He was well stocked for... college purposes, but Travis offering to give Sal his first?? (Yes. He did a victory dance and scream in the tree house when he thought he was alone.)
First Time: Larry would waste no time, grabbing Travis and making sure, this is what he wants. Larry may sleep around before they got together but he would never expect Travis to offer his first time so soon. Travis agreeing and Larry in tears hugging onto the confused man. He has never been so gentle with a partner and savored every second, sound and action. It may not have been Larry's first but he was more than happy to say it was his best. Larry would 100% scream to Sal about it later though. He is a man that appreciates his partner and would be an aftercare fiend. Relishing in any reactions Travis gives him while massages and treats the poor tired bum.
Living together: Hell hath no fury like Travis on cleaning day. The boys no not to be in his way if he has his cleaning apron and swiffer. The only one allowed to interrupt his most sacred day is Gizmo and any animals they adopt. Larry has to moderate his metal music or sleep on the porch, he tried to test Travis and found the porch uncomfortable during a rainstorm. No ghost hunting after 11pm. If you even think Travis will allow you in the house after hunting ghosts he will promptly pack your bags and ship them off to your parents. Sal has his own room dedicated entirely to clothes and accessories. His prosthetics he tries to hide at first but after a harsh scolding from Travis (while he literally hand cleans every single prosthetic so Sal doesn't get an infection) Sal starts putting them away where he feels comfortable and clean. They don't expect Travis to be semi nude half the time. Especially before they marry and start a family, no pants. Never wearing pants. Larry hams up the free skin. Sal is too embarrassed of his sinful thoughts.
Proposals: Travis would be terrified of marriage after what happened to his mother. If they were to propose they ould make sure he is fully comfortable and settled in their new life. They would make sure he is loved and never feels any of the fear his father had instilled in him. Larry mentions marriage in passing to gauge his reaction. Ig Travis tenses, he kills the conversation and instead distracts Travis. If Travis reacts positively he would sneak a ring on his finger and just smirk until Travis realizes and smiles. Sal =, however, is sneaky. Keeping close tabs on Travis. If Travis starts showing signs of interest, he would 100% plan the biggest proposal for Travis and make sure he feels cherished during every moment.
#travis phelps#larry johnson#larry x travis#sal fisher#sal x travis#salvis#larvis#laravis#sally face au#sally face#Travis having the absolute power over his simps#Lisa would be surprised Larrys boyfriend is the Phelps boy she saw on the news
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Tumblr Writer Q&A
Written by @make-me-imagine tagged by @witchygagirl
1) How many complete fics/one shots do you have(that you have not published (Yet)? I don't have any finished. But I have a crap ton in progress!
2) How many WIPS do you have right now? I have 8 one shots and 4 full length fics, plus whatever else is in my inbox!
3) Do you take writing requests or write original ideas, or both? I do both!!!
4) If you do take requests, how many do you currently have? I have 23 in my inbox and then 20 in another folder!
5) How many fandoms do you write for? I write for: DC, Altered Carbon, The killing, Marvel, Walking Dead and Cobra Kai
6) Are there any fandoms you wrote for in the past that you no longer write for? Twilight
7) Do you write for ships, reader inserts or other? I only do reader inserts and OC's.
8) Niche fandoms/characters you write for? n/a
9) Do you read fics as well as write them? Of course! I love reading what other people create!
10) What is your favorite genre to write for? Smut lol
11) What is your favorite trope (to read/write)? To read: I really like slow burn, friends to lovers etc. To write: I like writing feelings being admitted whether it's through an argument/hurt/smut anything. Anything to get the characters to admit their feelings.
12) What do you do to get motivated to write? I have different playlists for different characters. And most of the time, I get really motivated to write when I'm at work or at school.
13) Is there a trope/genre you like to read, but not write? Nope! I am open to all!
14) Any characters/fandoms you want to write for that are never requested? YES! One of my all time favorite movies is Glory (1989 with Matthew Broderick, Morgan Freeman, Denzel Washington, Cary Elwes) and I am a fucking sucker for Colonel Robert Gould Shaw and Major Cabot Forbes and I would absolutely love to get requests for those characters though I know people would never since it's such an old movie and I highly doubt anyone would read it.
15) How long have you been writing fan fiction? I have been writing fan fiction since 5th grade. I'm now a sophomore in college. So for 10+ years.
16) Did you read fan fiction before you started writing? Yes of course! I read so many fan fictions its kinda sad.
17) Do you only post on Tumblr, or any other sites as well? I do have an AO3 account but I mainly only post on Tumblr.
18) What do you personally consider the work counts of "Drabble", "One shots" and "fics"? I think for me, "drabbles" are 200-800 words, "one shots" are 900-1.3k words and then "fics" are anything above that!
19) Which do you prefer to write more? HC, drabbles, oneshots/fics, multi chapter stories, other? I love writing all of the above, but I do like writing drabbles the best because you can just get into it and not have to completely build up a story.
20) Are there any stories you have discontinued? If so, why? I don't think I have any discontinued fics (maybe Electric Love), but I do have a lot on hiatus simply because I lose interest in what I'm writing. But once the interest picks back up, the story picks back up.
21) What is one of your main "pet-peeves" as a writer on Tumblr? People who will berate you or tell you you're wrong. First of all, I accept criticism on how I can do something better, but when a person is like "technically blah blah blah", please, find something better to do. Also people who get upset at what you write. If you see it has trigger warnings that could potentially upset you, don't read. Ignore it. Anything except comment about how it got you upset. If you don't like it, don't read it.
22) Do you write a particular time of day? Most of my work comes from 10 pm - 1 am, but I also write throughout the day as well!
23) Do you listen to music, ambiance/noise, etc to write or do you need silence? As I said previously, I have playlists for specific things. So if I'm writing "Bionic Exile" I have a playlist based on that. Same for "Smoking Out the Window" and others. I also have playlists based on characters.
24) Do you outline your fics at all before writing? With my multi chapter ones, yes. With one shots/drabbles no.
25) Do you post your writing as soon as you finish it, or do you schedule it to come out at a specific time/day? It depends on the piece. if it's a multi chapter fic then I have specific days set aside for that but if it's anything other than that then I normally post it right away!
Tagging (no pressure) GFS: @fairchildflag @a-reader-and-a-writer @bewitchedignition @green-socks @greymoonfeelings @velocibee
@knivesareout @babblydrabbly @yelenas-lova @harper-emory-writes @clints-lucky-arrow @loverhymeswith @nerdysuperchick @klmurr @11thstreetvigilante @yespolkadotkitty @heresathreebee @madkovacs @skvatnavle
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Crooked Kingdom Review 🕰️
Holy shit.
(spoiler warning, duh)
Book: Crooked Kingdom (Book 2 of the Six of Crows Duology)
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Rating: 5.5/5
The Plot
This book took me a bit longer to finish because I wanted to absorb as much of the plot as possible because of how much action there was. Every chapter had something going wrong (cough cough part 4) which made it impossible to put the book down. Some parts literally had my heart racing.
There were a lot of interesting moments and I would hardly say they were predictable. At some parts of the book I literally had to just...sit there and just think about how incredible the twists were. I never expected anything to happen, and the way things played out in the end were mind-blowing. I loved the way the plot expanded and it was very satisfying when the book ended.
The Characters
"Where do you think the money went?" he repeated.
"Guns?" asked Jesper
"Ships?" queried Inej.
"Bombs?" suggested Wylan.
"Political bribes?" offered Nina. They all looked at Matthias. "This is where you tell us how awful we are," she whispered.
I fell in love with every single character and watching them grow made me so happy. I think personally I loved Kaz Brekker the most in this book because you really got to see how his trauma left him scarred, as well as how skillful he really is when it came to the missions. The smallest details of Kaz's character just built him into such an awesome character. His backstory expanded, explaining so many things that I didn't even think I needed to know until I read them. Plus the fact that he basically wrote the book. Leigh made up the idea for the plot and Kaz said "I'll take it from here".
"I don't hold a grudge. I cradle it. I coddle it. I feed it fine cuts of meat and send it to the best schools. I nurture my grudges, Rollins"
And that was what destroyed you in the end: the longing for something you could never have.
Inej stole my heart again and again and for what. She really is such a well-built character with amazing determination. The beginning literally had me shaking (It was also the part of the book that had my heart-racing) because I really felt for Inej. Leigh also wrote Inej's kidnapped chapters perfectly, it felt so real. Her showdown with White Blade was so beautifully written and honestly Dunyasha was such a cool character I almost wish she was developed into something more rather than killed.
Anyway, Inej holds a place in my heart and it was refreshing to have such an in depth character, from her history at the Menagerie, to her references of her culture (which were so beautiful). It really made her stand out from the rest of the crew and she was just an incredible character.
"That was how you survived when you weren't chosen, when there was no royal blood in your veins. When the world owed you nothing, you demanded something of it anyway."
"The Suli believe that when we do wrong, we give life to our shadows. Every sin makes the shadow stronger, until eventually the shadow is stronger than you."
Her heart was a river that carried her to the sea.
Jesper was the character I resonated the most with. His backstory was so interesting and structured, but simple. I did enjoy the appearance of his father because it added an element of Jesper's character we didn't see much of before. We got to learn his backstory and learn about his relationship with his father. His unhealthy habits was also something I resonated with so it comforted me to be able to understand this character and connect with him. Also, I love the fact that his ADHD was given more attention to show how and why he dealt with situations the way he did. Also, when he bent the direction of the bullet at the last part...chills. He's my ultimate comfort character and I loved getting to know him.
Guilt and love and resentment were all tangled up inside him, and every time he tried to unravel the knot in his gut, it just got worse.
There's a wound in you, and the tables, the dice, the cards--they feel like medicine. They soothe you, put you right for a time. But they're poison, Jesper. Every time you play, you take another sip.
Nina was definitely one of my favorite characters to see grow. The creativity that was put into her powers was amazing and she was just such a badass. She could literally raise fuckers from the DEAD????? That shit made me lose my mind like how powerful can she GET. She was definitely an awesome character and I really wished we got some more on her powers and her story after they got their money.
She was the Queen of Mourning, and in its depths, she would never drown.
Wylan...sweet Wylan. I love him so much it hurts. He was such an entertaining character and his courage was awesome, he really stood out from the rest of the characters because of how different he was from all of them. He also admired all of the crows and was treated like a little brother by all of them which was so cute. The character development went from "Why am I here?" to "How can I help?" and I loved seeing him become a part of the crows. Also in that last scene where he's just leaning against the wall, beat the fuck up, was so good SAINTS.
Wylan summoned every bit of bravado he'd learned from Nina, the will he'd learned from Matthias, the focus he'd studied in Kaz the courage he'd learned from Inej, and the wild, reckless hope, he'd learned from Jesper, the belief that no matter the odds, somehow they would win.
But they were his first friends, his only friends, and Wylan knew that even if he’d had his pick of a thousand companions, these would have been the people he chose.
Matthias back with his long ass chapters (until chapter 40 LOL) (i'm so sorry that was outta pocket). Anyway, I still had meh feelings for him but I loved him and Nina's relationship. Yes, I shed a few tears when he died that shit hurt come on now. I did like to see his protective side and him overcoming his fears and past beliefs. The character development in him was immaculate.
He was on the ice once more, and somewhere he could hear the wolves howling. But this time, he knew they were welcoming him home.
The Ships
Kanej: cries. literally in tears. bawling my eyes out. throughout the entire book. THEY HELD HANDSSSSSS, HE OPENED UP TO HERRRRR, THE SHIPPPP AND THE PARENTSSSSSSSS AHHHHHHHHHHHHH MY HEARTTTTTT
I would come for you. And if I couldn't walk, I'd crawl to you, and no matter how broken we were, we'd fight our way out together--knives drawn, pistols blazing. Because that's what we do. We never stop fighting.
Wesper: adorable adorable adorable. my favorite gay mfs in the world. Jesper is such a fucking flirt though he had ME blushing. Also when Jesper kissed Kuwei HAHAHA WHATTT, the way Kuwei was like 😏 had me gone. Anyway, the chemistry between these two was something else (so much better than in the first book) and the ending with them was wholesome I'm so happy they got the happy ending.
Wylan shrugged. “Maybe. Not all poisons have an antidote.”
Jesper snorted. “That’s why we call him Wylan Van Sunshine.”
This was the kiss he’d been waiting for. It was a gunshot. It was prairie fire. It was the spin of Makker’s Wheel. Jesper felt the pounding of his heart—or was it Wylan’s?—like a stampede in his chest, and the only thought in his head was a happy, startled, Oh. (<3)
Helnik: cries. again. sobs. This one hurt me so bad, I literally was just sitting in my bed staring at the wall, book in hand, crying. They had such a beautiful relationship and they grew so much together it HURT. The way Matthias was so protective of Nina and was always worrying about her. They planned their future together in their heads all the time. They were SO HAPPY WHY COULDN"T THEY JUST BE HAPPY.
They deserved the world.
I will always protect you, even in death, I will find a way.
You aren't a flower, you're every blossom in the wood blooming at once. You are a tidal wave. You are a stampede. You are overwhelming.
Final Thoughts:
My final thoughts are scattered throughout the review, but overall this book took everything from Six of Crows and made it better. It broke me, made me laugh, had me angry as fuck, but it also left me feeling like I knew these characters and they knew me. It really was so much better than the first book in so many different levels and I will never get over this book. Truly better than waffles.
#crooked kindgom#kaz brekker#six of crows#kanej#the crows#jesper fahey#wylan van sunshine#inej ghafa#kuwei yul bo#pekka rollins#no mourners no funerals#kaz x inej#soc#book review#booklr#helnik#wesper#mathias helvar#queen of mourning#grishaverse
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DBS COLORING BOOK CHAPTER 74 REVIEW
*spoilers* I liked this chapter in isolation.
*spoilery spoilers* I dislike this chapter when comparing it to other chapters.
Here's the battle Vegeta fans have been waiting for...! (Glad I lowered my greatly expectations)
First, let's talk about use of panels real quick. When there is action, Toyo has done better and uses about 6 panels max to convey the fight. But when there is dialogue, he uses too many panels. Like 7 to 9 panels on one page. That is too much for dialogue. And he has pointless reaction shots often.
It begins with the axolotl inspired Sugarians leaving their fishbowl homes through cleaning-tube roadways. I like their aquarium-like city and their buildings.
And here we are on page 2 with the Toyotaro dialogue. 😒 How can I tell? Compare it to Dragon Ball and you can easily tell the difference between Toriyama's dialogue & Toyotaro's dialogue. (Toriyama has been more focused with working on the DBS movies. I highly doubt he contributes as much to the manga as some fans believe.)
Vegeta sounds like Mr. Satan when calling fusion and cloning "tricks" lol. And no, I doubt Vegeta's Forced Spirit Fission would work on Granolah. Granolah split himself in 2 with a technique. It is still all Granolah & he hasn't absorbed anyone. Forced Spirit Fission is useless here.
Granolah sure is chatty again after he kept saying how he really really wants to kill these Saiyans. Vegeta tells him he parted ways with Freeza and he is an enemy now, as to which Granolah laughs. Granolah thinks Vegeta is betraying Freeza to spare his own life. This just let's us know what kind of person Granolah is...
Granolah is a nonsensical idiot who doesn't know how to reason well & doesn't listen to truth because he assumes he is already right. I don't like ppl like him who refuse to grow mentally. I went from liking Granolah, to not caring about his bland personality, to disliking him. 😑
Oatmeel's input is pointless because he doesn't sway Granolah into believing the Saiyans may not be lying. He quickly gives up and becomes quiet. Vegeta informs Granolah that he was a child when Planet Cereal's ppl were killed and wasn't part of the attack. But he doesn't care and Paragus wants revenge against the royal family... I mean, Baby wants revenge on all Saiya... Granolah wants to kill all Saiyans.
Then we get Vegeta saying he will kill Granolah after barely talking to the guy who was willing to talk. I guess Vegeta just wants to fight and test his power instead of trying to redeem himself like earlier chapters implied and fans theorized. Throw that out the window.
He turns SSB Evolution & Hakai's large rocks around Granolah. But Granolah appears behind him and shows Vegeta true hakai. He elevates a big chunk of the ground & blows it up then the force pushes Vegeta to him and Granolah strikes him. Cool way to use the environment in battle.
Also, Granolah knows Hakai. He shows it off by using his own more powerful Hakai & suggests Vegeta's training with Beerus is lacking.
There is some cool looking art. Their fight moves from forest to river to lake. Interesting environment s for DB. Reminds me of the Cooler movie and the fights on Namek a bit.
This entire time, Vegeta is on the defensive and has to run. But, I find pages 16-21 silly.
Why is Vegeta swimming when he can fly through the water?! Swimming is slower & Granolah is firing fast ki blasts at him!
YOU: "But, Vegeta is swimming so Granolah can't detect his ki."
Granolah can see him! His right eye is supposed to see blood flow and stuff. He nearly hits him multiple times. And lets not forget he was sniping them long distance and his Goku in the neck and almost took him out. Why does Granolah need aim assist now? I'll tell ya why. To make Vegeta look more impressive than Goku by making Goku look like a poor fighter. And this was a Goku who was using Ultra Instinct and still got messed up by Granolah while Vegeta is just using SSB Evolution. Character sabotage... 😒
Back to my complaints about Vegeta swimming. The swimmin' would work in OG Dragon Ball but not here. It would work on Namek with Freeza who can't sense ki, but not here with Granolah who can sense ki (& maybe even god ki) & his eye can percieve all kinds of movements of the body.
And why does Vegeta momentarily pop up out the water then go hide back into it? Don't say its 'cause he needs to catch his breath. He aparently did training holding his breath while on the Heeter's ship, so he should be fine holding his breath. It was for a short period of time anyways. It just doesn't fit and is unnecessary in multiple ways.
Vegeta Hakai's Granolah's big blast to escape it and it blows him out of the water. Interesting kinda... Until you realize that Vegeta's training that we were shown was lame. He just Hakai'd logs & rocks! It should've shown him trying to Hakai ki blasts from Beerus. Make his training look cool darn it!
Chapter 70 Established that Hakai has changed. It no longer is just erasing things from existence in different ways. It has to have a *boom* explosion to it. So when Beerus Hakai'd Zamasu in chapter 19, there should've been an explosion instead of turning him into sand? So, now whenever the Hakai is used, there will always be an explosion...? I don't like how Toyo is quick to change what he set up just for his convenience...
Granolah brags about himself then Vegeta brags about himself-...! That's why I dislike Granolah! He's just like Vegeta! Maybe if I stop thinking of Granolah as a "good guy" then he will be cooler? I did like evil Vegeta as an evil character. We were supposed to hate him. So, if I imagine Granolah as an evil Vegeta... It worked! Granolah's unappealing attitude works perfectly if you view him as an evil enemy! (Still kinda preachy tho)
VEGETA: "But I'm still going to win."
Vegeta fans rejoice! Your prayers have been answered by the great Zalama! Vegeta announced victory...! Wait... I've seen this before... Yo... Vegeta fans, prepare for Vegeta to be defeated just in case. He has a record of announcing victory then ultimately losing. Don't get your hopes up too high.
Lol Granolah disses Vegeta's ego 👌. But Granolah is unknowingly talking about himself too XD. Dummies. Vegeta mocks him by calling him "Mr. Strongest" & Granolah has nothing to day. Granolah can dish it out but can't take it.
Goku wakes up and sees Vegeta fighting Granolah. Who cares? How are you gonna be caught off gaurd in a form that reacts on its own? Go back to sleep. I'm not mad at you, Goku. I'm just disappointed.
Vegeta fires a barrage of ki at Granolah and Granolah Hakai's them. Then Vegeta fools Ganolah into destroying an ancient city of the Cerelians.
VEGETA: "I can tell, you know... That you only recently acquired this absurd strength."
GRANOLAH: "How? How can you tell?"
VEGETA: "Thank you for confirming."
There's the Granolah we know. Quick to give out valuable info. Also, this is to make Vegeta appear "smarter" & a "better fighter" than Goku. Realistically, a master martial artist like Goku would be first to notice that Granolah recently acquired this kind of power. But, Goku is being dumbed down for Vegeta's sake.
VEGETA: "Need I repeat myself...? You may be stronger but... there's no gaurantee that I'll lose to you!" *attempts to break Granolah's leg*
So says the guy who always loses unless the opponent is weaker than him. But, he even lost to weaker opponents on Earth before, so....
Vegeta fans calm down, calm down. This is basic Vegeta dribble. Let's be real. When has Vegeta ever defeated an opponent that was stronger than himself? Never. When has Vegeta become stronger than his opponent and defeat them because they're weaker than him now? Always. Does Vegeta ever win when he is too cocky? Nope. This is to hype y'all up. Don't be mad if he loses. Y'all know this routine. The arc ain't even over so the chances of him winning are low.
Now let's examine Vegeta's fight in comparison to Goku's fight.
Goku goes through all his forms & uses Ultra Instinct in base, SSJ, SSG, SSB, & then goes silver haired UI when fighting Granolah. Then, he loses in every form. Vegeta goes straight to Blue Evolution and only seriously gets hurt once.
Goku keeps getting hit despite having a technique that is all about evasion. Vegeta gets hit far less & doesn't have Ultra Instinct.
Goku was struggling to fight a clone that was half the power of Granolah. Vegeta fights Granolah at his full power and struggles less.
Goku complains about his training and how he is struggling using his technique. Vegeta who had less time with Hakai training isn't complaining about struggling with Hakai.
Goku far surpassed Vegeta in the Moro arc, yet they are crippling Goku to let Vegeta catch up & make him look better. Vegeta has literally gotten a handout that he didnt have to work hard for in order to catch up with Goku... This chapter is fine when isolated and you aren't thinking about any other previous chapter. But, it is a convoluted mess when you look back at the previous chapters, the piss poor storytelling, & Vegeta's poor Hakai training that leads up to this chapter.
Where'd that "heroic" Vegeta and that "redemption" stuff go? Its as if Toyotaro decided he should stop tying to make Vegeta the hero & main character instead of Goku being the main. (Thank God.)
But... Vegeta says that he loves fights that are unpredictable?? That I disagree completely with. Vegeta wants fights to go in his favor through all of DBZ and will throw a fit when it doesn't.
In RoF: it was going in his favor so he loved it.
Destroyer Tournament arc: he didn't like that things didn't go his way in the end.
Future Trunks arc: he was upset when losing to Black, but loved it when he thought he was going to win.
ToP: angry when everyone else surpassed him, happy when he gained an upperhand, upset when he lost the upperhand.
Moro arc: Vegeta is upset that Moro is stronger but even more upset that Goku is stronger than him. When he is stronger than Moro he is loving it. Then when he loses the advantage, he is upset.
Vegeta doesn't love unpredictable fights, Goku does! Vegeta loves predictable fights in his favor.
Granolah asks how many lives were sacrificed for Vegeta's carnage. Vegeta doesn't answer. Why? Because its best to ignore the fact that he has killed billions of ppl so that Vegeta fans can ignore his bad actions (Yet many say that Vegeta has developed so much without acknowledging his terrible past). Can't have Vegeta looking like a bad guy in this chapter, right?
Oh boy! Page 37 is more "Vegeta hype!" He doesn't care about strongest or second strongest ('cause he has never been 1st place) & he basically explains Dragon Ball to us.
Roshi already taught Goku & Krillin that there will always be somebody stronger, so they need to keep reaching higher and higher.
If Vegeta is stronger than he was a few minutes ago, would that mean the same for Goku when he was fighting? Why did he perform so poorly? I wonder... 🤔
Granolah jabs Vegeta in the stomach, but Vegeta manages to slow it down (how come Goku using Ultra Instinct couldn't do that?). And cool. Blood. Anime has better writing and cool character development/moments. The manga has blood... Well, I guess blood is cooler to some ppl.
Vegeta is looking like Goku in the ToP before he attained UI. He has his head down & all. Vegeta just isn't talking about hownl much he sucks. Why does Goku keep insulting himself? N-nevermind. This is about Vegeta who keeps complimenting himself.
Why did Granolah become scared of Vegeta suddenly? Wouldn't he just see him as a mad dog and use his amazing power to put Vegeta down before he can do anything? He hates them so much, but keeps letting them live.
Uh oh... Vegeta doesn't like protecting and saving? BuT I tHoUgHt hE wAs a hErO! Where is his development going?? Ya mean the real development he had in the anime or the pseudo development in the manga?
But even after saying all that... I prefer manga Vegeta to be like this instead of a wannabe hero. Wannabe hero doesn't fit. This feels like Vegeta is in character again. I like this. I was just criticizing how Vegeta was written in past chapters in comparison to this one. A more chill Vegeta who loves battles? This is what I've wanted from DBS manga Vegeta for a long time!
Oh snap! Vegeta's transforming? I wonder what it will look like (thanks for the warning from the leaks 👍). Oil... Why are you even in this chapter? We don't care about you right now & you're boring without Maki. Goku says it ain't "any old god ki."
I wonder how Goku never knew about this new form if he and Vegeta trained on Beerus Planet together. Ya think he would've sensed and saw it & even wanted to fight against it.
So is this new form a spur of the moment thing? So Vegeta has a new form that he never trained... And he asks if Granolah has been training his new power on page 34... Sounds hypocritical of Vegeta, or he is being thrown a bone to make him look capable. Is Vegeta gonna pull a Golden Freeza by not training this new form? Or maybe a UI Goku at the ToP and lose the form?
Page 43, Granolah shoots tiny ki blasts at Vegeta's tower of flaming ki and he is surprised it did nothing. Why not try again but this time use that one big blast instead. No? Gonna let the guy of the race you hate finish transforming? Just gonna be scared and shocked to make Vegeta look impressive? Ok.
Pages 41, 44, & 45
Oh! Here it is! The new form...! Aaaand I still don't like it. Also, he healed up like Goku did last chapter too. Odd. Why does transforming heal them now? Didn't before.
No build up to make the form more cool, it's just
"Here, Vegeta. Goku has one more form than you do & he has mastered UI, so we can't let you fall too far behind. So I just pulled this crap transformation fresh outa my butt and gave it to you."
Another undeserved handout. Can you please make Vegeta earn a new form in the manga? PLEASE?!
Vegeta looks like he is in his own UI Omen form (like how Vegeta fans begged for Vegeta to get for the longest time). Dark hair with sone lighter coloured higlights, light coloured pupils, new aura. But this is what I see...
SSJ3ROSÉ of DESTRUCTION INSTINCT OMEN (or just "SSJ-ChexMix" for short)
Looks like in the end, Vegeta needed to resort to his own Ultra Instinct equivalent!
Oh no... I criticized Vegeta's bad writing too much! I bet some Vegeta fans are gonna automatically assume that I hate him because I want him to be written better without plotholes! 😱
IN CONCLUSION:
This chapter is good when isolated on its own. But, this chapter is filled with inconsistencies when you look back at previous chapters. Overall, it's... a mixed bag that I barely like. It's just so retarded that Goku had to be dragged through the mud just for Vegeta to look better. That is insulting to Vegeta and it either shows how much he sucks or or how weak the writing for Vegeta is. But we got what we got...
Wanna know how to make Vegeta look good without making Goku look pathetic? Goku never uses MUI! Goku defeats Granolah's clone with SSB. Then, Granolah merges back with his clone & catches SSB Goku by surprise and knocks him out.
Then, the reason why Vegeta seems to be doing better is because Vegeta is using SSBE, unlike SSB Goku who was caught off guard. Why make the MUI form & Goku both look like trash just to give Vegeta his own Ultra (Destructive) Intinct? Is Vegeta really that trash?! 😓😴
I don't wanna see the Heeters anymore. My hype for them died, but maybe a later chapter can make me like them more. Idk.
Where is my homie, Moniato?! 🐌 (BEST CHARACTER OF THE ARC SO FAR!)
Oh yeah...I was supposed to complain about not seeing Freeza again like I do every chapter... Who cares at this point? If Granolah is stronger than Goku & Vegeta, what can Freeza do? Hide for 3 yrs and let Granolah die?
What are my predictions for next chapter? More Vegeta wanking of course. More gloating & looking down on Granolah too. A battle of overinflated egos. Bad dialogue and decent to good art. I'll probably find it mostly boring but I may be surprised (that could be a good or bad thing). Vegeta will appear to be winning before...
Vegeta gets defeated & certain Vegeta fans will rage & be annoying. Those ones will complain about how Vegeta always gets the short end of the deal (that's what he gets for being shorter than Bulma & 12 cm taller than Krillin). This one should happen imo based off of Goku's performance.
Vegeta's fight will get interrupted before the battle ends so that Vegeta fans don't get angry. Make Vegeta fans feel that Vegeta could've won and keep them grasping on to hope. (How manipulative.) This one is most likely to happen to "satisfy" all fans.
Vegeta will win and Vegeta fans will rejoice & some will be very annoying. Despite the fact that he had terrible training, was handed a new form just to stay relevant, and Goku had to underperform & UI had to be nerfed just to make Vegeta look good. This one may happen just to appease Vegeta fans. (That is the worst outcome imo.) If Vegeta gets "a win/a W" against a main villain, make sure his training looks impressive and he has some sort of connection to the main bad guy. That way the victory feels well deserved.
If the final enemy is Freeza, then Vegeta defeating Granolah isn't "a win" against a major villain. Granolah will just be a bump in the road. He's already set up to not be a "bad guy." In the end, the main bad guy will be either Freeza, Gas, 7-3, or someone. Vegeta fans shouldn't care if Vegeta wins or loses against Granolah. He isn't the "final boss."
#dragon ball#dragon ball super#dbs#dbs manga#manga chapter 74#review#Vegeta#Granolah#Goku#vegeta wanking#wtf toyotaro
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can you talk about chlark beyond chloe? personally i think it's weird that the writers kept adding kisses and weird romantic moments without any pay off. i don't know much about the fandom back then but i think the writers were baiting fans since clark/chloe seems to be the second most popular ship after clex. second i personally think chloe would never be happy with clark or anyone tbh and she doesn't seem like the type of person who would have kids so the finale was weird to me.
this got looooong :)
0. it WAS weird, and the choice to never not once go for it with them was to the story's detriment. I'll get into it a little later on in this post.
Re: shipping in sv fandom. there was definitely drama (clana was HUGE when the show was airing and every ship was basically derailed by it lol) but I stayed in my clois lane with a small circle of fandom friends much like I do now. a good measure of clois fans were fans of lois and clark from other mediums, come to sv just for lois and clark, myself included. we were pretty insulated as a fandom even back then. I do remember seeing more Chlark after the S5 finale (when Chloe kisses him goodbye), but those dropped off after Jimmy was introduced right away in S6. The most drama I encountered was with Chloisers: Chloe fans who believed wholeheartedly that Chloe was Lois. They hated SV!Lois and were convinced she would die so Chloe could take her name and job and place by Clark's side, thus a Chlark endgame. this was a popular theory amongst that fandom even into s9, when the clois ball started to roll for true.
bait and switch
a lot of Chlark is rooted in this notion that chloe WOULD be the best thing for Clark, the ideal Lois, the true best friend, the human hand guiding him through Earth's troubles. she would be could be the BEST possible lois archetype for Clark. it's not a wrong interpretation. she was specifically written as a lois-and-lana-proxy (teenage lana is a reporter in some AUs and even some as an adult as a tv correspondent) and she's given many lois-ish traits (tenacious, secretly crushing on clark and in denial), but this interpretation is deeply flawed. first, because lois does eventually enter into the picture and she has her own defining traits that, when compared to chloe, make chloe seem much shallower than realized. secondly, within the complete context of the story, her position in the greater narrative is not as ~the one who got away, the way it did very early on in S1-S4, but one who clark tolerates.
they're friends because clark is forgiving and chloe has staying power. their friendship is riddled with insecurities and unknowns the characters create for themselves. their dynamic is defined by conflict, not resolutions. this is not made easy by the fact that chloe is such a strangely written character, but ultimately she is positioned as a counter to clark achieving his happiness. not a thematic narrative foil but an obstacle clark eventually relents to.
2. and it has been so from the get-go
S1 is the best season for them and the single season which actually considers Clark's side in this dynamic. everything about them later on can be explained with how they are in this season. and that's the problem. when they're 14 it's nice teen angst drama and works perfectly to establish the dynamic. when they're 24 it's at best a pattern, at worst regression. we expect certain behaviors, dismiss them too, when it's children, at least I do. clark and chloe never move beyond the dynamic they establish in s1 and early s2. in essence, clark and chloe remain children around each other. they have many discussions in the later seasons that make at least one appear petulant.
so S1 clark has just been told the greatest secret of his existence and he imprints on lana hard that same night (right AFTER jonathan tells him, he meets lana at the graveyard and talks to her for the first time EVER, a lot of childhood imprinting going on in SV). all of s1 follows clark's heartache over lana, watching her from afar and figuring out a way to be near her. this pain is exacerbated by the fact that he believes he caused her her greatest grief: the death of her parents via the meteor shower which he arrived in.
here the first beat of the chlark dynamic is established: chloe's job and passion – the wall of weird and her pursuing the meteor infected oddities of SV - directly affects clark in a negative way (he's suicidal for much of s1-s3). so her crush on him is countered with her unknowingly causing him great grief. om top of that: clark becomes part of this passion of hers and she eventually begins to pursue him as a story to be uncovered, very superman yes. here tho, it causes nothing but strife for them and paints chloe in an awful light (and clark too, highlighting his refusal to open up). I personally enjoy this aspect of them in s1. bc they're so young I give em a free pass and it's a good conflict playing around with old superman tropes, but it makes for a fraught friendship.
3. the second beat
is that neither chloe's crush on clark, nor his asking her to stop pursuing his truth, do anything to stay her. her tenaciousness becomes intrusiveness and inconsideration (many of her accomplishments irt the daily planet are directly bc she betrays clark). she simply will not listen to her friend and does not believe his livelihood and autonomy is worth losing a story over. this is literally the opposite of comics/live action lois lane, who in various versions drops the clark reveal story to protect him. this passion turns vindictive pretty early for chloe, who eventually pursues stories about clark out of jealousy and entitlement (against lana also).
4. the third beat
is that clark doesn't ever see chloe as romantic prospect except this time in s1. the tornado trapping lana pulls him away from any solidifying of the clark/chloe dynamic, and that's that. but we know clark was willing to go for it in early s2 when he apologizes to chloe about running off on her. it's chloe who decides not to go on with the relationship. clark is visibly confused, but also 15 so he can't see that chloe is putting on a brave front to protect herself from clark running off again. I liked this too as it's another play on superman tropes, but my sympathy for them stops here.
5. and stays here
these beats are the entirety of this dynamic. everything about chlark can be distilled down to their childhood. it's why I don't hate them completely, bc I have a lot of love for kids who hurt in such a way and that time is never easy. in s8 (I think its s8) when we get a flashback to when they meet as kids (more imprinting!). little tenacious cute chloe kisses insecure clark bc of the funny awkward tension, acknowledging it, and then immediately takes it back because they're better as friends. (also they’re like 11 lol)
every single romantic moment with them is undercut either by chloe herself, or by the presence of other storylines/romances the writers wanted to pursue. the lack of integrity in chloe and the lack of interest in clark, regardless of how sincere their connection or how messed up, is a central part of their dynamic that needs to be reconciled with their friendship. and its exhausting bc there is never a point they are ever truly comfortable around each other.
6. to a fault
knowing the secret doesn't change chloe's methods. it doesn't make chloe clark's great confidante. if anything, it complicates matters for both because their relationship then becomes about the greater good and clark's great destiny. everything chloe does becomes about that, which in theory sounds awesome, but is executed much the same way as s1!chlark: by reiterating behaviors that highlight the negative aspects of that loyalty and the negative aspects of their characters.
the single time they do actively examine what this loyalty means and how chloe's hero complex complicates things for chlark is with s8 and davis. she protects davis with the skills of subterfuge and secrecy she developed as clark's friend. and it costs her jimmy and a lot of her personal integrity as a character. tho ironically it makes chloe the strongest she's been as a character. this is the first time clark is forced to view chloe as an enemy and he never quite recovers from discovering the dark depths she’s willing to go to.
it's an arc dealing with the established beats: how far chloe is willing to go for a kryptonian (very far), how much she's willing to do for him (A LOT and all of it illegal), and what it costs her (jimmy). it deals with her jealousy (always second choice) and her motivations (uncovering the truth). this great want that she struggled with for years is turned on its head and examined, revealing just how weird and dark her hero complex is because obviously davis is not clark. davis/chloe served to highlight more than any other arc how it's really too bad that clark never saw her that way, because she has so much love to give and when channeled, it's a great force. only it's a great force for evil. clark has to confront that it’s not just lex but his other closest friend who is willing to go so far. they backtrack hard in s9 and s10 but they keep this underlying wariness in clark towards Chloe throughout. it’s not anything new, but it’s no longer subtext that clark doesn’t fully trust chloe.
7. And that's the rub
in the end. chloe and clark have many storylines they're in together and chloe's important.... to develop clark and as a counter to clark. clark never instigates anything, not once, for 9 years! when the show did give us Moments TM, clark is reacting, not actively making choices to connect to her. if anything, clark is incredibly awkward about chloe when they become intimate. he doesn't seem to know what to do with her crushing on him (the elevator scene is a great one to show just how awkward chloe makes him feel). more than that. clark never tells her his secret. and later on, chloe doesn't tell him half the crazy wild shit she does to protect him bc she knows he would disapprove. I still hold that the only reason they work is bc clark is a forgiving character and would give her chance after chance after chance. that's the watsonian explanation, but the doylist explanation is that the writers just never cared to explore them beyond this point.
8. and what was beyond that point?
they would've been a great counter to lexana in S6 and early clana (clark finally having a gf who knows). it’s playing the clark/Chloe as a straight lois/clark proxy before actually pursuing lois and clark. it could’ve been the precursor to davis and caused an even more personal conflict! the kiss at the end of s5 was their chance. they could've written chlark devolving much the same way lexana did in s6 (or not). but again. the writers never went that far and clearly never wanted to. it kept chlark forever in this stage of childhood friendship always on the brink of collapsing, tittering either way. it's also tough to speculate bc clark's just not into her. in fact he becomes more and more wary of her, to the point where he believes she can do horrible things, and he's right. the stories continually make their methods complete opposite.
they go out of their way to show chloe realizing how happy clark is with lois. and even play a joke on the fandom by literally turning her into lois and seeing the sparks between her friends. it's almost... cruel but it does serve to show how clark is when he's smitten and he's never looked at chloe that way except during the dance when they were kids. other unrequited dynamics have at least some spark from the desired, but nil from clark. clark is into chloe in late s1, but she shuts him down, and when he seems to be into her again (damn that s5 kiss was a good one lol), she shuts him down again. it's just a weird writing choice all around, and that they kept nuggets of it throughout the show is the thing I cringe at most whenever I rewatch.
9. bait and switch 2
with hindsight it is definitely ship baiting and that sucks for that dynamic bc without it their friendship would’ve been the stronger, or at least not full of so much negativity. all it did was remind everyone that chloe’s been duped since she was a kid and that clark is both stupid and strange for never noticing and letting her get away with shit just bc she’s the most loyal. I don’t ship them and even I get frustrated lol
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what do you think about the aang is possessive comment? about EIP ruining kataang? also about there being an implied (and nonexistent) love triangle thrown in nearing the end of the series as a tease?
I think fandom just likes to complain, lmao, but I’ll address each of these one at a time!
1) “aang is possessive”
This argument is honestly the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard because it’s just so obviously false?? Possessive is literally defined as “demanding someone’s total attention and love,” which Aang never does? Aang always respects Katara’s position in their relationship, especially after the EIP kiss, which everyone knows was entirely inappropriate and wrong of him. Aang recognizes her hesitation and makes no more romantic attempts towards her after that moment. Not one! Katara is the one who initiates them getting together in the finale because the war is finally over and she is no longer afraid of losing him. I beg people, do point to the “possessiveness” you’re referring to, because the closest we get to any character being possessive is Zuko in “The Beach”:
Zuko: [Side-view of Zuko and Mai walking.] He thinks he’s so great. [To Mai.] Well, what do you think of him?
Mai: I don’t have any opinion about him. I hardly know him.
Zuko: You like him, don’t you? [Mai sighs and walks away.]
//
Ruon-Jian: What are you doing?
Zuko: [Close-up. Angrily.] Stop talking to my girlfriend!
Ruon-Jian: [Side-view. Walks up to Zuko.] Relax. It’s just a party.
Frontal view of Ruon-Jian. Zuko knocks him across the room into a vase, which breaks from the force.
Yeah, Aang never acts like that. 🤷
Now, this isn’t to say Aang doesn’t get jealous. Jealousy is a perfectly normal and natural emotion, and honestly I’d go so far as to say that everyone has been jealous at least once in their life. What’s key about Aang is he doesn’t act on his jealousy. He doesn’t throw anybody across a room, for one. Sure, he doesn’t want Katara to kiss Jet, so he makes a little quiet comment about it. Pretty normal, and it ends there. Not dissimilar to Katara’s bit of snark about On Ji! Even the EIP comment, which everyone uses to argue that Aang is “possessive” (which again, blatantly untrue, because he does not demand or expect a relationship with Katara as a result of that scene; also all he does is nod lmao and tbh that’s such a healthy reaction to jealousy I mean he doesn’t grab Zuko and chuck him onto the stage like his name is Ruon-Jian, does he?) - Aang literally just gets upset about the implication from an imperialist play that Katara doesn’t reciprocate his feelings. Why?
Let’s be frank: Aang knows, or is fairly certain, that Katara does like him by this point in the series. That’s why he doesn’t ask her “do you like me”. Instead, he asks:
Aang: But it’s true, isn’t it? We kissed at the Invasion, and I thought we were gonna be together. But we’re not.
By this point the show, the viewers know their feelings are mutual. Katara knows how Aang feels about her, and Aang knows Katara likes him, too - he just isn’t sure about how ready she is for a relationship. So him getting upset about the propagandist, pro-imperialism play implying Katara isn’t interested in him, when he essentially knows she does like him, is honestly kind of understandable? Imagine if you were watching a really rude movie about your life and it included a scene of your best friend who you’re already kind of in a relationship with saying that they’re in love with the dude who used to bully you and only think of you as their sibling. Like, that’s kinda wack? I’d be a little upset - and definitely weirded out - too.
(I’ve also seen people argue Aang leaving Guru Pathik to save Katara also somehow demonstrates his so-called possessiveness, as if his love for her and her love for him wasn’t established mere minutes earlier to be the love of the Air Nomads reborn. I don’t think the show could have been any clearer about how mutual, powerful, and honest their love is through that scene. Also, he proceeds to let her go to enter the Avatar state at the end of what? The next episode? So again, any arguments that he was “possessive” and “didn’t let her go” are thus moot and entirely inapplicable points.)
Basically, Aang isn’t “possessive” and people who think he is are just looking for an excuse to hate on him, lmao.
2) “eip ruined kataang”
The only way EIP could have ruined Kataang would be if all the previous Kataang buildup was either terrible or near-nonexistent. And great news! Kataang was built up very well throughout the series, growing from a close, deep friendship to cute, blushy crushes to a true, lasting romance (pretty iconic of them). Even if someone doesn’t ship them, they can acknowledge that within canon, Kataang had a very strong foundation (it’s one of the core relationships of the show, the other being Zuko and Aang as narrative foils). The implication that one poorly written episode somehow cancels out the previous 56 episodes and the following four is embarrassing.
Now, I certainly wouldn’t have minded if there had been a scene dedicated to Aang and Katara discussing his poorly-timed kiss. I ship Kataang, so there is absolutely no reason for me to be opposed to more Kataang content! But A:TLA has a very clear trend of not showing such discussions on screen - example: Zuko never sits down with Katara and apologizes for using her mother’s necklace to manipulate her; Katara never apologizes to Sokka for her callous comment about their mother - so the fact that Katara is the one to initiate their relationship at the end of the serious clearly demonstrates that she has forgiven Aang for his inappropriate kiss and is ready to be with him. (And I’ve said it before - if she can forgive Zuko for all the shit he put them through, she can forgive Aang, her best friend and the guy she loves, for one poorly-timed kiss.) Narratively speaking, ’twas resolved.
Also, it’s incredibly important to consider EIP within the context of the series as a whole. If someone really feels entirely devastated by that one episode, then… their loss? I’m sorry to hear it? 56 episodes of near-flawless buildup - a slight dip + a healthy, logical finale where Katara chooses to be with Aang because she is at last no longer afraid of losing him = more than good enough for me. People can argue her decision doesn’t make sense all they want, but it actually makes perfect sense when you consider what has been built through every previous episode: she was in love with him! You can’t isolate a single episode and expect it to speak for the series as a whole, after all.
Basically, EIP gets blown out of proportion because some people like to pretend it was the only Kataang episode ever written, lmao.
3) love triangle
I always laugh when I see this because where?? The only love triangle in A:TLA was the one fandom invented. Within the canon narrative, Katara and Zuko were never romantically interested in each other. I don’t care about “shipping-goggle interpretations” or AUs or post-canon or early planning that didn’t make it into the final drafts. If you look at A:TLA, if you look at the creators’ intentions, it’s plain as day that Kataang and Maiko were the only romantic pairings planned for Katara and Zuko. And that’s okay! That’s why fanon exists. But people have got to stop whining about a love triangle and ship teases that just… didn’t occur. If they read Zuko and Katara’s interactions as romantic, well, that’s great and all, but it’s also on them, lol. That sounds so mean oml I’m sorry y’all 💀. I just mean that Kataang was very clearly written into the show from episode 1 and Maiko from Book 2 (or Book 3 if you really, really don’t like the flashback), so expecting Zuko and Katara to get together doesn’t make any sense (to me) when they never had any romantically-coded interactions.
Yes, of course I’ll admit there were a few Zvtara gags, but that’s exactly what they were - gags. There’s three primary instances:
- June calling the owner of the Water Tribe necklace (whom we know is Katara) Zuko’s girlfriend in Book 1. This moment is mainly hilarious because Zuko promptly redirects the conversation to Aang, lmao, but thinking about the context of A:TLA itself? The assumption of the Fire Nation crown prince being in a relationship with someone from the Water Tribe is honestly pretty concerning given how the Fire Nation is an imperialist conqueror and has all but destroyed the Water Tribes (and has certainly worked to sever the connection between the North and South). So, not exactly a great conclusion on June’s part.
- The EIP gag. I ALWAYS laugh at this one because their reactions are so funny? I love the little disgusted nose wrinkles and scooting away. That’s hysterical to me. But again, thinking about the show itself, EIP is an imperialist play full of Fire Nation propaganda. With that in mind, again, the implication that their crown prince was with someone from the SWT, a nation they brought to its knees by killing all of the waterbenders (but one) and thus eradicating so much of the SWT’s culture? Major red flags! People need to consider the implications of EIP as imperialist propaganda, basically, because that’s what it is. Ignoring that aspect means missing the entire point of the play.
- June part 2. What I said above still applies. Also, they both get embarrassed and hotly deny it, which is kind of the opposite of a ship tease to me? They don’t exchange like an “oh, but what if” glance or anything, lol. And June backs off immediately, so... 🤷
People who interpret that as serious ship teases are, bless their hearts, a little misguided. Those are just funny moments! It’s like Katara and Sokka dressing up as Aang’s parents in “The Headband”. It’s funny! It’s contextual! Sokka and Katara are not romantically interested in each other just because they dressed up as husband and wife (ew), just as Katara and Zuko aren’t romantically interested in each other because there were three jokes about it. I really don’t know what else to say lmao.
Now, I don’t know all about what Bryke did outside of A:TLA in regards to Zuko and Katara’s relationship and fans of it. I wasn’t here for that lol. But I do know that A:TLA built a beautiful, platonic bond akin to surrogate siblings between Zuko and Katara (highlighted by the final Agni Kai with Katara and Azula as foils). Not a love triangle. “The Southern Raiders” was an episode about Katara and Kya, not Zuko and Katara. “The Crossroads of Destiny” paints an aching, gorgeous parallel between Oma and Shu and Katara and Aang, not Katara and Zuko. “The Boiling Rock: Part 2” was an episode involving the loyalty and love of Mai and Zuko, not Katara and Zuko. Katara and Aang had romantic parallels, Mai and Zuko had romantic parallels, while Katara and Zuko - within canon - had strictly platonic development. And honestly, fandom should appreciate that more! How often do we get such an iconic relationship between a guy and a gal that isn’t shadowed by romance? (The answer: not often enough.)
Now, this doesn’t mean don’t ship Katara and Zuko. I don’t care what people ship lmao, and there are some interpretations of Zvtara that I really enjoy (post-canon Zvtara has so much potential,, I die a thousand deaths oml)! But insisting there was some love triangle thrown at the end of the series is a discredit to how well Aang and Katara’s and Zuko and Katara’s relationships were written in A:TLA, and I’m honestly tired of hearing such tomfoolery. A romantic relationship between Zuko and Katara within canon would have completely undermined his entire redemption arc, which further emphasizes that their canon bond was meant to be solely platonic, because why would the writers want to undo what most consider the best redemption arc in animated history? (Simply put, I don’t think they would.)
Also, A:TLA had a very clear history of staying away from love triangles. There’s no Aang x Katara x Jet love triangle. No Yue x Sokka x Suki love triangle. So why would there be an Aang x Katara x Zuko love triangle?
Case in point: there isn’t. Fandom invented it.
So that’s my thoughts, anon! It can be summarized as this: fandom makes up a lot of nonsense that simply rewatching the show can dispute, so maybe we should just start providing episode timestamps to people, lol.
A general note - people are free to disagree with this post, but I ain’t looking to argue, so… make your own post if you want to develop a “counterargument”, I guess? I’m just chillin™ lol I don’t want to fight with people. I can give you my PayPal if you’d really like to engage in a proper academic debate? Anyways. Much love! 💕
#adding the line break after i post!!#katara#aang#zuko#atla#avatar the last airbender#kataang#atla meta#the ember island players#amy answers#anon#amy analyzes
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An OBJECTIVE look at James Ironwood
A much needed TL;DR: Ironwood’s story is sad. But it doesn’t excuse his actions just cause we’ve known him longer.
So I’ve made it.... abundantly clear on many many posts that ever since the end of volume 7 and into volume 8, I’ve hated General James Ironwood. I’ve made SOME posts “throwing him a bone” but I usually end up still emphasizing his flaws. So... Here’s a post where I DON’T focus solely on his flaws. Here’s a look at Ironwood’s actions from his introduction in volume 2, to now. And I’ll try to be as, well, objective as possible.
So James’ first appearance is in episode 2 of Volume 2 where he talks to Ozpin and, briefly, Glynda. He clearly has some history with Glynda, maybe a romantic relationship that I personally support 😗... Well I mean not NOW but I did. So Ironwood seems to be a bit of a 3rd wheel to Oz and Glynda, Glynda dismissing him and his compliment and Oz not being PARTICULARLY happy with him and his army’s presence in Vale and after a bit of arguing, James says the infamous line, that’s even quoted in his theme track, “Do you honestly believe your children can win a war?” James bringing his army to Vale, and then later going behind Oz’s back to the Vale counsel to get permission to protect the kingdom, and also get Ozpin in the Counsel’s bad graces? He... meant well. But it was still a betrayal of Ozpin’s trust. Which is ironic considering trust is Ironwood’s whole... thing.
And it also tells us something interesting. He UNDERESTIMATES the capabilities and potential of humans. I know that may sound a bit like I’m reaching but think about it, Atlas mostly sends soldier bots to take care of Grimm attacks instead of humans. And even when he DOES send human soldiers, they rely on surprise attacks to get the job done, like the Ace Ops arresting RWBY and friends at the beginning of Volume 7. And when they DON’T have surprise attacks, Atlas’ huntsman lose. The Ace Ops lost to RWBY, they basically lost to Penny in a 1v4 fight, which Harriet admits in saying “Good work would’ve been capturing Penny.” So yeah they lost, Clover lost to Tyrian and Qrow, which I know is a different scenario but still if he were among the best of the best he would’ve either recognized the bigger threat in Tyrian, or would’ve been able to hold them both off, or, 3rd option, would’ve retreated and let Qrow and Tyrian have it out then come back to arrest them both, or the remaining one considering Qrow vs Tyrian, when we get it again, is GONNA end in a death. Fair Game bias aside, everyone blames Qrow but Clover also could’ve been smarter in his final moments.
In fact EVERY major Atlesian we’ve seen has lost a fight at least once. Winter lost to Qrow in Volume 3, if you count that AS a fight, and Cinder in Volume 7, Ace Ops lost to RWBY and Penny, Clover, as mentioned, lost to Tyrian and Qrow, Watts lost to Ironwood, and Weiss has, notoriously, lost a lot of fights but among the first was against Banesaw, the White fang lieutenant in Volume 2, and most recently, Rhodes lost to Cinder, if you count him. Whyyyy? I’m personally of the belief that it’s because of Atlas’ over reliance on its tech, and I know I’m not the only who thinks this 😗. Atlas has the best Tech on remnant and can easily create robosoldiers or mechs to protect the pilot while also allowing the pilot to still fight. What use is training humans to fight when they have mechs and robots to do it for them?
Phew. That was a little off topic. I’m sorry, anyway, so in volume 3, James brings Penny to Vale to participate in the Vytal festival which, speaking of trust, he didn’t tell anyone about. I understand not making it public knowledge. Soldier bots are one thing but a robot that looks like a little girl? I don’t think that woulda sat right with people. So, yeah not making it general knowledge, makes sense. But not trusting your 3 closest allies, and FRIENDS, in Oz, Glynda, and Qrow? Like Glynda said, it’s time to stop talking about trust and start showing it. That aside, things go decently well. No DIRECT signs of any conflict *looks at Cinder* and the festival goes well until the one on one finals. Yang attacking a “defenseless” student, in James’ mind, is horrible yes, but people’ll move past it, especially cause he disqualified her. But then shortly after that, Pyrrha, Ozpin’s chosen one for the Fall Maiden’s power, dismembers Penny on national TV. That is a huge blow for both the festival and him personally.
Continuing with Volume 3, while he’s calling for reinforcements, the robosoldiers that’re in his plane with him are hacked and cause him to crash land. Also a hit to him personally, HE ordered these be created and the fact that they were so easily turned against him and the people he swore to protect? Yeah... Kinda get it. Although, something else interesting in Volume 3, when he DOES rendezvous with Qrow and Glynda, Qrow immediately turns his sword into Scythe form for the first time in the show. And James’ immediate reaction? “Qrow! This wasn’t my doing!” and preparing his gun for a fight, before turning around and realizing that Qrow actually just saved him from a Griffon. This is........ interesting. Why would he assume a colleague he’s worked with for so long would suddenly be turning on him? I dunno. Just seems a little... paranoid wouldn’t ya say?
Volume 4, we see a new side of James. We see that he cares for Weiss, at least somewhat. More than Jacques, but granted a squirrel cares more about the Schneeblings than Jacques. But yeah, James has some pretty sweet moments with Weiss in volume 4, standing up for her at Jacques’ party, offering her a place at Atlas academy, he’s a pretty stand up guy to Weiss. But, big picture? This volume shows the signs of his paranoia being something serious. He completely shuts down Atlas. In his own words, “No one in. No one out. Not without the Counsel’s permission.” now, he knows about Salem. But he doesn’t know what she’s CAPABLE of, as implied by Qrow last volume. So, from James’ perspective, this DOES seem like the safest course of action. But this is exactly what Salem wants. Separation. Anxiety. Paranoia. FUEL for the Grimm. And this is the first sign of a common theme of James inadvertently playing into Salem’s hands.
Jumping to Volume 7, we don’t see him in 5 or 6 😗, James is still hella, HELLA paranoid, but he’s still happy to see Qrow and happy to have new allies. Now this is where we get a little dicey because volume 7 is a.......... divisive volume 😓. I’m gonna talk about JAMES’ perspective of events. Not necessarily my thoughts because... well... I’ve done that already lol. Many times 😓. So JAMES’ perspective on Volume 7. James sent the Ace Ops to investigate a stolen air ship and arrest the ones responsible for... ya know... stealing the air ship. So the Ace Ops do. And then they go back and take them to James’ office, and it’s the general’s old friend Qrow and his niece’s team and her friends, and a mysterious young man. We can see that James is happy to see Qrow, especially cause of the hug :3, and he’s especially happy to see Oscar, the new Ozpin. He trains Ruby and her friends with his Ace Ops, and allows Winter to help Weiss. And he DOES start to relax more. He starts to, dare I say it, let loose. He allows some lenience, he lets RWBY have the night off. Ruby going to Robyn’s celebration, Yang and Blake going on a double date with Flynt and Neon, and let’s the boys and Weiss have a movie night. He even gives RWBY and their friends their huntsman licenses. These are really great things to do :3
But where things start to crumble is after he announces that Amity is ready, which is a whole speech full of half truths, that he didn’t tell any of his allies about once again, to lure out Watts. It works, they fight, he wins, and we see THIS face.
This is a man who is completely CONTENT. He is happy in this moment. He’s arrested a man who’s always, by his own admission, been a pain in the ass, he has Clover, Qrow, and Robyn on the way back with Tyrian Callows, everything is great right now. He KNOWS that Ruby and her friends lied to him because Oscar told him, but he can sort that out with an honest conversation right? In my opinion, THIS screenshot is Ironwood’s last GOOD moment in the series. That thought process of everything is great goes to shit when he sees the Black Queen piece that Cinder left expressly to fuck with his head. And THEN he gets irrational and, once again, plays into Salem’s hands. He directly ORDERS the divide of the people. He plans to abandon Mantle, leaving them to die in the process, and he plans to completely sever Atlas from all of Remnant basically by launching it into the atmosphere to keep the Vault safe. That only ACTUALLY accomplishes one thing, being keeping the vault, which IS important. But it isn’t more important than keeping the people, ALL of the people, calm and prepared to face this threat, like he did at Beacon. He should have remained calm, like an experienced military official should, and made an announcement to all of Atlas and Mantle saying kind of what he did in Volume 3. “Grimm are all over the kingdom. You can either stay and protect your kingdom, or save yourself. No one will fault you if you leave.”
Ironwood has a thing with fear. He doesn’t want to admit he’s afraid of Salem. As evidenced both times he’s shot someone....... interesting 😓. In the last episode of Volume 7, The Enemy of Trust, this exchange happens. Ironwood: You still think I'm afraid? Oscar: We all are. It's what we do in our fear that reveals--Ironwood: That's easy for you to say!
And then later, in the first episode of Volume 8 Divide, he shoots and kills Sleet once he says... Well... His last words “And what’s this about martial law? Have you lost your damn mind?! Are you that scared of what-- “ And notice, Ironwood shoots after Sleet goes to say “Are you that scared of what might happen?” And he IS right about one thing. It IS easy for Oscar to say “It’s what we do in our fear.” Because Oscar is child who can AFFORD to be afraid. James doesn’t have the luxury. He’s denying his fear because he’s the general. He’s James Ironwood. He can’t AFFORD to be afraid. If he’s afraid, everyone is going to be afraid. And, well, he can’t have that. That would attract the Grimm. He thinks he HAS to have a level head at all times for the sake of the kingdom. But James even generals in the military have feelings.... and sometimes need therapy to talk through some shit 😶. But... well... Maybe too late for that 😶😓.
In conclusion: James Ironwood is indeed a tragic character. A character who has taken A LOT of blows. A character who has always been paranoid. ALWAYS been ready for an attack. But even though he’s always been ready, he still wasn’t PREPARED. He wasn’t prepared for the sheer strength and AMOUNT of Salem’s forces. If he was more calm and more rational, he could have prepared better. He could have had Mantle and Atlas united against Salem, and that’s what can beat Salem, like Ruby said. James Ironwood is a tragic character, he has had it rough. But that doesn’t mean we should overlook his OBJECTIVELY horrible actions through out these last 2 volumes. Like ya know... Murder.
Phew .-. This is DEFINITELY my longest post. This better get attention I didn’t do all this for nothing >_>
#RWBY#RWBY2#RWBY3#RWBY4#RWBY7#RWBY8#RWBY analysis#James Ironwood#General Ironwood#Siddy Rambles#Side note: this whole time I thought Sleet's name was Slate .-.#Turns out Slate is an entirely different character from After the Fall 😶#I have to go back and edit some posts even though it's kinda...#Too little too late .-.
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He Walks in Starlight
Tags: bong jaehyun x reader, vaguely Star Trek inspired, mostly just a sci-fi au
Length: 2.1k words
First time writing a scenario/imagine so excuse my amateur writing. I really just wrote this for fun lol
Your eyes felt blurry as they struggle to open while you hear the tone of your alarm go off. It felt cold and all you wanted to do was lay under your blanket where it was warm and cozy. You sighed as you turned off your alarm. You looked at the calendar displayed on a screen. Star date 21499.2. You flattened down your disheveled hair before getting up to get ready.
The Compass was business as usual. The ship's bustling crew members were all at work. You went down to the records department to start your day of organizing files and data logs when you saw a rather tense figure standing at the door. It was a young man your age. He stood rather agonizingly. Once he got a glimpse of you he looked like a deer in headlights. Confused, you walked over to unlock the records lab. “Excuse me,” he said with a surprisingly deep voice. “Are you in the department of records?” he asked.
“Yes, sir.” you said after swiping your card. The door automatically slid open and both of you walked in. You sat and turned on the computer. He only stood in front of the desk where you were stationed.
“These are my files, I’m new.. just transferred from the Miracle.” he explained while handing over some rectangular discs. You took the discs from his slender hands and put them into your computer for analyzing.
[ Bong Jaehyun
Age: 22 Earth Years
Birth Place: Seoul, SK, Earth
Specialty: Geography and Cartography
*** ]
You looked at his photo and then looked up at him. Spitting image, no doubt he was legit. He’s quite handsome in your opinion. His eyes looked like shiny glass. They were pretty, almost like tiny galaxies were hidden in them. You looked away to finish the processing. You took his discs and filed it under Crew Members subsection ‘B’. “Alright, welcome to our ship, you’re officially part of the Compass now.” you gave him a slight smile. Jaehyun’s lips also curled into a smile.
“Thank you.” he said. He made his way to the door and promptly left.
***
Records were extremely flooded that particular day. Your fingers moved quickly as you processed files and organized discs. Dwarf Planet ZETA110 was being explored. Many records of the flora and fauna were piling in. Not only that but information the planet's makeup and natural climate came in as well. You felt exhausted as you moved back and forth between your computer and the filing wall. Thankfully, it was almost break time. You could almost taste that roasted chicken breast. The thought of food alone made you salivate. You stretched as you got up from your chair. Just then your shift relief came in and you grabbed your keycard and walked out. You tiredly rubbed the back of your neck as you made your way to the elevator.
The dining room was half full. You groaned and weaved through the amount of people sitting. You entered your card into the ordering machine and tapped your choice. It was only a moment's notice until the food came out. You looked around for an empty seat and saw Jaehyun again. He was sitting alone, still with that anxious body language from before. He looked like he was spacing out to a far off world. You hesitated, you weren’t really one to make acquaintances. Yet, you sympathized. Space was lonely and cold. It felt empty and void. When you didn’t have someone to really confide in, it felt even worse. Almost as if you’ve been exiled to a blackhole of self-pity and bitterness.
You walked over and sat across diagonally from him. You glanced at his plate to make conversation. “Spicy pork belly stew, nice choice,” you commented rather nervously. He looked over at you and perked up a bit.
“Hi.” he said, smiling a bit. His eyes glimmer and twinkle. You feel breathless for a moment.
“Hi,” you repeated back. “Are you settled in yet?” it had only been a few hours since you last saw him but you figured to ask anyway.
“No,” he sighed. You watched as he moved the handle of his spoon. “Had to beam down and take a look at the planet’s landscape.”
“How is it?” you asked out of sheer curiosity. You never really got the chance to go to other planets. Most of your companions were people who work on the ship and had no business being on the ground.
“Humid,” Jaehyun replies. “It’s so humid, like a jungle, but there’s not that many trees. Everything just feels heavy...”
You started to eat your food. After eating you got up to put back your tray and utensils. Jaehyun got up as well. You felt shy as you walked beside him. You wondered if it’s okay to open up more. “Hey, when will you be done for the day?” you asked.
“Not sure,” he replied. “Why?”
“Well, if you’re up for it, I’ll be in the break room. We can play a game of 3D chess if you’re interested. Or maybe a friendly 1-on-1 on the arcade machine if that’s more your style.” You suggested. Jaehyun blinked before smiling. He shyly looked away from you. You only took a moment to appreciate his side profile.
“Yeah, that sounds good.” He said.
“Well, duty calls, I’ll see you later.” You excused yourself from him.
***
Jaehyun’s presence was almost intoxicating. You wondered if it’s an effect due to the planet’s troposphere. Nonetheless, as the two of you stood together hovering the arcade machine, you felt warm. The both of you were focused on the game quietly. At one point you felt your hand accidentally brushed up against his.
Afterwards the two of you moved on to 3D chess. You tried to make conversation asking things about him. You found out that he’s a picky eater, he likes music, and fantasy movies. Much like yourself you enjoyed a good movie. The conversation then spiraled into the best movies made in the 21st century.
“Check,” you said while moving your piece to the second level.
“I’m not good at games, huh?” He joked.
“I mean, you’re not awful.” you assured him. Jaehyun held his chin thinking for a moment before making a move.
“Checkmate,” you laughed as you captured his king. He lets out a disappointed sigh before sitting back in his chair. You look over at the clock at the time you usually go to bed. “Well, it’s quite late isn’t it? I’m sure you’re tired.”
“I guess so...” he said before getting up from his chair. Almost immediately he loses his balance. You stood up quickly to hold him.
You put his arm around your neck. “Hey, Jaehyun, are you okay? Jaehyun?” You looked over to see his face had grown pale. His eyes looked dull, it no longer had that shine.
“Head...hurts… so bad…” he groaned.
“Don’t worry, I’ll get you to the medical bay.” you comforted him.
In the medical bay Doctor Lee was busy taking care of two others. You were instructed to help Jaehyun onto one of the beds. You wondered if you should stay with Jaehyun. You obviously worried for him but maybe this was too much. You turned away from him but before you could move you felt a hand grab your wrist. Jaehyun’s fingers were wrapped around your wrist weakly. You looked at him softly. “Stay, please,” he croaked. His cheeks blushed red and he looked anxious. You only stood by him unsure of your ability to comfort him.
Thankfully it wasn’t dire. It turned out that several of the crewmen were affected by the planet’s air quality causing them to have hypertension. Jaehyun was fine. He’ll be back to normal by the next date. You let out a big sigh of relief as you lied in bed.
During your break you decided to visit him. When you entered the medical bay you saw Jaehyun sitting upright. His eyes were looking sparkly again. He almost resembled a puppy who was happy to see its owner. “Hi.” you greeted.
“Hi, good to see you again.” he smiled. He seemed to be in better condition.
“Status report?” you asked.
“All good, blood pressure back to normal, should be able to retreat to my quarters within the next hour or so,” Jaehyun reported. The two of you laughed as you looked into each other's eyes. “Once I’m out of here there’s something I’d like to show you,” he said. You lifted an eyebrow at him. “Meet me in the botanical lab when you’re free.”
The rest of your shift felt painfully slow. You were too curious about what was going to occur later. While your relationship with Jaehyun wasn’t extremely close yet it often felt intimate at times. You sighed as you organized the incoming discs. Everything felt like walking on thin ice. You never knew what exactly to feel other than attraction.
You promptly met Jaehyun in the botanical lab. He was sitting among the countless native flora of different planets. “Hi, again.” you greeted. Jaehyun stood up and signaled with his hand. You walked over to where he stood. You looked in the same direction as him and saw the most stunningly vibrant red plant. It was crimson red and it’s leaves were olive green. You stared for a moment then looked at Jaehyun.
“They call it a Carmesí Florera,” Jaehyun plucked a petal and sniffed it. “It smells like fruit punch,” he held it to your nose and you took a whiff. It really did smell like a fruit punch. It made you feel a little nostalgic. “And they say,” Jaehyun grabbed your hand and put the petal in the palm of your hand. “If you give a petal to someone, they’ll be with you for a long time...” you looked up at him as he gently closed your fingers into a fist. Your eyebrows furrowed as you looked at him. His ears were as red as the flower petals.
“What are you trying to say?” You questioned.
Jaehyun only shrugged. “You’re a great companion,” he said. You frowned a little. Part of you wished this could be a fairytale where next he’ll sweep you off your feet. But this wasn’t a fairytale, this is a science fiction that somehow became reality. However, this gesture was too strange. It didn’t make sense. Jaehyun was staring softly. He worried that he might have said something wrong. You clutch your flower petal and sighed. “What’s wrong?” He asked.
You shook your head. “I don’t understand,” you said honestly. “What do you mean with this? We may be miles and miles away from Earth but this sentiment can be seen as a romantic gesture from any planet, I’m confused...”
Jaehyun looked scared for a moment. As if you said something awful to him. He seemed appalled but then something changed. He straightens out his back and looks you in the eyes. “Okay then, I’ll be honest, I like you, I have a fondness for you, I… want us to be closer, and maybe in the near future we can be more than that.” he admitted.
You blinked a few times. It was a romantic gesture. Jaehyun made a romantic declaration. Your relationship was, in part, intimate. Your face was red at that point and your heart was beating quickly. It happened too fast and you’ve never really felt like this before. You were smiling without noticing.
“I like you too.”
***
Bong Jaehyun walked in starlight. He was as bright as the sun but can feel cold as the moon. Behind his eyes was the universe’s tiniest galaxy. It twinkled and shined for the world to see yet it was tucked away for only the brave to explore. Just when he felt unreachable, he held out his hand just enough for you to reach. He was almost undetectable yet his gravitational pull left you no choice but to adore him. There may be thousands of galaxies out there to discover but you were glad to have discovered him.
Even though the two of you laid flat on the cold observatory room floor staring at the endless void that was space, he was still more breathtaking than the billions of stars littered around them. You stared at him wondering what he was thinking about as he looked up at the vast sky. Was he also comparing you to a star?
Slowly you inched your hand close to his. You wondered if it was okay. Your pinky finger shyly bumped into his. You felt his hand touch yours almost as if it were asking for an embrace. Your fingers interlocked with his and you couldn’t help but smile. Jaehyun turned to look at you. He looked with a certain tenderness that makes your stomach flip. In that moment, you concluded that out of all the stars in the universe he was the brightest.
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LoL Chapter 51- Fallen Angel
(Sorry this is late! i got my vaccine and it mcfucking knocked me out lol)
Masterpost
A Wizard Hermits tale (AU, designs, ideas belongs to @theguardiansofredland)
The hermits return to Eremita from a restocking trip, to discover they have been raided. And one hermit has been taken.
Warning: Capture, slight torture scene
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Eremita has become their safe haven, the last bastion for the guild. Even when the arcane guard chased them all the way to the water’s edge, no sane person would dare follow the hermits into the Ashioll sea. Which is exactly why they lived in its mysterious, misty embrace.
They could no longer simply fly off upon the backs of sky turtles, or even teleport into the towns they frequented. Now, when the hermits absolutely had to go into public for supplies they couldn’t make or grow themselves, they sailed in on Cleo’s pirate ship. And when they had to leave, they made sure that if anyone was following them, they took a roundabout direction back to their home. It adds time, weaving between the islands and through the mists, but ensures no one can guess where they live.
Cleo’s pirate ship beaches up onto the sand, nestling back into place as a wrecked vessel once more. The dream magic fades, revealing broken oak boards, seagrass growing through seams, and splintered masts of the ghost ship Cleo commands. Hypno blinks free from his sleep, rubbing his eyes and yawning. “Already? Man, my dream was just starting to get interesting.”
With the help of rattling skeletons, their bones held together by magical muscle and sinew, the hermits unload food, meats, fabrics, and more. Enough for months, as if they were preparing to be snowed in after a massive blizzard. Almost all the hermits were a part of the flow of supplies.
Almost. Only three hermits stayed behind. Zedaph had an accident with his two explosive friends, and while it wasn’t the first time, Grian wanted to keep an eye on the burns in case the magic lingered. Mumbo stayed behind as well, but for very different reasons. One, he was easily recognizable. Everyone knows the multimage that Dolios wants captured alive. Him and Grian are the only two who Dolios demands be captured alive. He also was in the middle of inventing some new contraption, and was not about to leave it behind and lose all his progress. Last Cleo saw of him, he was extinguishing burning locks of hair. She wonders if he’s made any progress, or if he’s burned all his hair away at this point.
Once Impulse and Tango have unloaded their share of the shipment, they go in search of their friend. Both still feel bad for burning Zed, even if it was by accident. And they’ve all been burned at this point in all their years together. But it doesn’t mean they don’t feel bad, especially leaving Zed behind. At least they brought back a caramel apple from his favorite stall in the market, as well as fresh hay for his barn and animal friends.
“Zed? We have a surprise for you!” Tango calls, his voice twinged with mischief, as if they plan to prank their friend rather than give him a gift. No response comes from the flat roofed barn, except the distant bleat of a sheep. Tango looks at Impulse, fiery hair remaining vertical even as his head tips to the side. “Could he be taking a nap?”
“You know Zed and his sleep schedule, he wouldn’t interrupt it, even when he wakes up on the wrong side of the bed.” Impulse waves it off. “He probably just isn’t listening, or maybe pulling a prank of his own. Let’s go in.”
Impulse waves Tango through the gate, careful to keep the sheep, goats, and other farm animals from getting between Tango’s feet and causing his hair to ignite the dry hay in his arms. A horse nips at the bale, but Tango keeps it well away from catching fire. He’s relieved to lighten the load he’s carrying as soon as they're inside the barn. Both mages look to the bed tucked in the corner, but no Zedaph. Tango tosses the haybale aside. “He should be resting.”
They clamber over the piles of hay, searching every nook and cranny for Zedaph. Even his cookie stash, which they let him believe is still a secret. But Zed is nowhere within the barn he chooses to live in.
Concern pales both Impulse and Tango’s face, and Tango’s hair reacts in kind to the revelation. “Perhaps he’s being treated by Grian?”
Tango doesn’t answer, already following the path across the width of the island, from one shore to another. Grian’s floating cloud, the quartz tower with large archways and a glass domed roof. Perfectly built for a sky angel, his wings and speed. Not so perfect for his roommate, and all of Mumbo’s redstone machinery, his own lanky body climbing up onto the solid cloud and stairs to sleeping quarters.
The redstone workshop at the base of the building has been cleaned up, though a few vials seem to have rolled away, as if they were grabbed then subsequently dropped. But, just like the barn, no sign of Mumbo.
But there is a sound. Echoing from the glass dome, a sniffling, stifling cry escapes from above, followed by a gasping, shuddering breath. Impulse runs up the steps as fast as possible, each bounce from stair to stair accentuated with a tiny explosion to give him more speed. Tango blazes behind, fire burning bright as the sun as energy courses through him. He notices on the way up grey streaks against the pure white quartz.
“Zedaph?” Impulse breathes, screeching to a full stop. In the center of the room, Mumbo and Zed are huddled close, holding on tight. Their eyes wild with fear, and in Zed’s eyes he can see a shared memory. A shared trauma him, Impulse, and Tango all share. Two hermits, holding onto each other like its their last hope.
Only two. “Where’s Grian?”
Mumbo opens his mouth, but a strangled cry only escapes. Tears fall from both their faces, shaking like leaves. Something bad has happened to their friend. Tango slides across the floor, grabbing Zedaph and Mumbo. “What happened? Where’s Grian? Are you hurt?”
They both shake their heads, but finally Mumbo gathers enough of his voice to speak. It’s weak, broken apart like glass shattering. “He took him.”
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A cold, wet air fills Grian’s lungs, biting into his skin like ice on a cold morning. When he tries to open his eyes, the dull ache of his skull becomes sharp, forcing the angel to screw them closed again. Grian grimaces, trying to figure out why he has such a terrible headache. Did he hit his head in training? No, he wouldn’t have been allowed to sleep with the hermits hovering over him. Perhaps he drank too much. Once again, impossible. Grian knows what his hangover is like, and it’s not this.
He realizes he’s definitely hanging, but not from drinking. Cold, hard metal presses flat against his wrists, suspended over his head. The iron bites into his skin, all his weight rubbing his wrists raw.
“Good, you’re awake. I was starting to get bored waiting, though I do quite enjoy relishing in finally having my prize thirty years in the making.” The snide, even tempo of Magistrate Dolios’s voice hurts worse than any headache or wrist, and Grian finally manages to open his eyes. The cavern he finds himself in is foreign, not even remotely similar to the brick and iron dungeons where he last woke up in Dolios’s clutches. So long ago, it feels like. The Championship. At the time, he felt like he was at the top of the world. Now? Now he feels like the world was crushing him.
Grian resists his bindings, but even when he kicks outward, his feet don’t even scrape the dank floor. He tips his head back, until the crown of his head collides with a smooth, hard material. Just at the touch, he can feel the oppressive energy of the crystal. In his vision, he sees the sharp tip of the massive gem. Each wrist is locked tight against the crystal, the nails buried deep in the crystal lattice.
He looks around, searching for other hermits. For Mumbo, the last face he remembers before…
The memories flood in, cascading alongside the fear and panic. He remembers everything, every terrifying second. Leaving Zedaph to meet with Mumbo, he remembers the scent of marigolds on his hands, just after crushing the petals to make a paste for Zedaph’s burns. The quiet island, most of the other hermits gone. He remembers patting his pocket, the note from his best friend telling him to meet at Iskall’s place.
But when he arrived, Mumbo was nowhere to be seen. It wasn’t unusual, Mumbo tended to get distracted and be late. So he waited, plucking orange petals from his clothes, hair, and hands. He should’ve noticed the way the wind shifted, becoming cold and stale, before disappearing completely.
He should’ve realized something was very wrong when the grey stormcloud appeared. But he didn’t. He was so focused on waiting for Mumbo, then on getting rid of the flowers in his feathers, that he didn’t see the husks crawl their way free of the ocean. At least, not until the husk of a soldier came barreling for him, empty glowing white eyes and ashen, flaky form charging with halberd drawn.
Grian squeaked, dodging the attack. Stumbled over the writhing form of a cactus cat, the fading spines still quite sharp, he was saved by a pair of not-grey arms.
Not grey arms draped in wine red fabric, the hems decorated in gold thread. He realized who it was immediately, and scrambled to try and get away. But Dolios’s magic kept a strong grip, vines of black twisting and tying Grian’s wings to his back, while a hazy fog had grown around them.
He remembers the feeling of Dolios’s hands in his hair, pulling him to his feet as he struggled and fought against the vines and the fog that filled his mind. Hands clawing at his binds, even biting the magistrate at one point. He remembers the taste of blood, iron on his tongue and Dolios swearing, blasting Grian with magic.
And the last thing he remembers, before being knocked out and torn away from his home, was Mumbo’s face. Rounding the corner, completely oblivious to the fight occurring. It was at that moment that Grian realized, when his eyes locked with Mumbo’s that it wasn’t him that sent the letter. The confusion, of seeing Grian, the surprise on his face. He was walking towards the infirmary, dropping the box in his hand upon seeing the sight before him.
The fear on Mumbo’s face matched Grian’s own, as he was dragged into the sea. A second later, a swift burst of sonic energy knocked him out.
And now he’s here. Dolios saunters across the room, gathering ingredients and writing down notes. Grian swings his legs, and summons his wings to try and be free. But as soon as the blue and white feathers appear, they crumble into ash. Crushing weight sets in on his head, his shoulders, his lungs, and his magic, and the crystal he’s trapped against hums with power. “You’re quite different from the last angel I hunted. At least you fought back, but in the end they left me without the gift of their magic. This time, I’m not letting anything go to chance.”
The magistrate sets his bowl of guts aside, approaching the crystal and Grian. His hands are clasped behind his back, shoulders straight and head held high. The weight of the oppressive dark magic doesn’t bother him. Grian’s not ready to give up just yet. He attempts to kick Dolios, but the dark mage stands mere centimeters out of reach. So Grian decides to use his words. “You’re kind of an asshole, you know that?”
“I’ve been told that once or twice before, yes. But the rest of Lairyon loves me. And why wouldn’t they? I’ve brought prosperity to this kingdom, done more than that stupid rainbow king could ever do, and all of this because of my power.” Dolios sweeps his hands, vapors of dark magic swirling from his fingers as his fingers clench to fists
“Stolen magic. If the citizens knew, they’d hate you just as much as I do.” Grian reels back his head, and does the best he can to annoy Dolios. He spits on him. The glob of spit lands on Dolios’s cheek, the magistrate flinching, then reaching up and wiping it away. A fresh anger in his eyes.
“And who would believe you? An outcast mercenary orphan? The last of your kind?” Dolios stoops low, plucking a husked feather from the floor. He walks back to the table, mixing the components and ingredients from his jars of death with Grian’s feather. “Your power is rare. Angelic mages are always powerful, a power I crave. You will be a wonderful addition to my collection of magic. The last of the angels to complete my set!”
A fearful shiver ricochets down Grian’s spine. “You’re going to turn me into a husk?”
“Oh, gods no!” Dolios laughs, so loud that it echoes off the cavern walls as he throws his head back, brown curls dancing across rich fabric. “I wouldn’t dare waste such magic to become simple energy for me and my beast. No, no. Do not fret, little bird, you will become so much more. I don’t plan to drain your energy. I plan to steal it.”
The hunger in Dolios’s eyes as he turns, the concoction in his hand, Grian realizes what he's seen all this time in Dolios’s eyes. Hunger. A madman hellbent on taking what he sees as rightfully his.. A predator stalking his prey. And Grian was cornered, pinned. Unable to fight back, unable to fly away. Fear is replaced by terror, a sensation Grian struggles to fight back. He needs to think clearly if he hopes to survive.
“The last angel died before my powers were…” Grian pauses, seeing the coy smile on Dolios’s face.
“I always had a-” Dolios pauses, waving his hand nonchalantly before marking the ground around the crystal spires with dark seal. “-fascination with angelic wizards. A dear friend of mine in my youth was one. Ever since then, I knew I had to have that kind of magic in my collection. So strong, each and every one of you. With magic even the ancient ones revered. And now?”
Dolios steps back, casting his magic circle. Rather than emitting color and light, it absorbs all color to make the pattern of his magic. He raises his hands, and two satellite crystals awaken. Darkness swirls in the lattice of the gems, mist eeking out through pores and filling the cavern with darkness. When the mist reaches the seal surrounding the crystal Grian’s chained to, the spire behind him, pressed against his back, activates. The pressure on his body, his magic becomes unbearable, breaking into pain. Like a harpoon through his chest, the dark magic takes hold. Biting down, biting in.
And slowly, agonizingly stealing his magic. So intrinsically tied to his soul, hsi lifeforce, it feels as if his very being is being dragged from every inch of his body in contact with the crystal. He writhes to escape the painful magic, but the bonds hold firm and he struggles to catch his breath. Dolios steps back, basking with ravished delight at the scene before him. Enjoying the pain that tears at Grian’s skin, soul, and spell. “Now the magic will soon be mine.”
#hermitcraft#hermitcraft au#hermitcraft fanfic#light of lairyon#wizard au#wizard hermits#lol#wizard grian#wizard cleo#wizard zedaph#wizard mumbo#grianmc#grian#zombiecleo#zedaph#mumbo jumbo
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