#or anything that would indicate how Will would do this thing

[writingroom21]

Omg I love Boys Bathroom!! Idk if you're doing a pt 2 but if you need ideas, how about sumn based on Jacqueline and Hamilton's relationship from the 2000s tv series Young Americans? (if you haven't seen that show, it's fine. I barely remember it, myself, other than the fact that Ian somerhalder has never not been fine).

Where rafe and reader continue to sneak around, and it gets to the point that people start to suspect them, not because of her identity, but because they're a little too close to be just dormmates but no one says anything as they're scared of what rafe might do 👊 if they confront him for something 'he isn't ready to come out with yet' if you catch my drift, lol and just like the scene in She's The Man (I love that you used this movie for inspo, that movie was my childhood), when it comes time to do the kissing booth, and all of rafe's friends line up at the chance to kiss y/n, that he finally steps in and sets them straight about who she is and what she is to him <3 I'd add more but this shit is long enough as it is.

If you write this, pls tag me: @ineedtosusoutmyreadinglist

A/N: I giggle so hard at the thought of Rafe's face finding out people think he's seeing her brother.

Cat's Out of The Bag

Warnings: 18+, smut, fingering, oral (m receiving), squirting (Rafe's can't get enough), unprotected sex(wrap it up), (let me know if I missed anything)

Wc:2.9K

Since that night in the bathroom it was a free for all on fucking. With your dorms right next to each other it was easy to sneak in and out. Rafe had gone back to his room that night thinking what the fuck did he just get into. There are two things he knows for certain. One being that you were one of the best lays not just because he’s been pussy deprived. Two he doesn’t know what he will do after this week is up.

The day after was a little awkward. You didn’t know if he regretted it, he may have suggested doing it again but that doesn’t mean he would. It wouldn’t be the first time a guy said something to you for them to take it all back. The only indication that he meant it was in biology. He was already there when you entered the classroom. He looked really good and the school polo fits him snuggly. 

He smirks at you as you sit down, pulling your chair a bit closer to him. It’s a little jawing seeing you dressed as a guy after last night. Even more jawing that he still feels attracted to you. Not because you look hot as a guy but because he knows it’s you under there. “Hey.” You whisper to him. “Hey.” His fingers brush against your thigh. 

The two of you are trying to keep cool when really you just want to skip class and sneak off. The class goes by, small smiles being shared. Even dared to touch the other while no one was looking. Brushing your hands together on the desk or knees bumping under the table. He just wanted to be closer to you, taking whatever he will get.

He walked you to your other classes in the disguise of just talking to a friend. A friend that stands too close so your hands can accidentally brush against each other with each step. A friend that later sneaks his way into your room when you think it’s late enough for people to be asleep. Pushing you in the room as soon as the door opened a crack.

He’s kissing you, kicking the door with his foot. “You know how bad I wanted to kiss you today? Almost lost my cool.” His words melt into your throat, his lips going to suck on the skin. “Can’t leave any marks.” You warn. “Been wanting you too.” Your hands pull at his shirt, yanking it over his head. Sinking to your knees, you spread kisses down from his chest to his stomach. Nipping at the skin right above his sweats. 

You look up at him, palming him through the fabric. “Can I show you how bad I wanted this?” The way your eyes are looking at him, he would agree to anything. Rafe groans when you give him a little squeeze. Reminding him that you are still there willing to please him. He made you feel amazing last night and you want to do the same. Nodding his head, his hand makes a ponytail with your hair. “Go for it baby.”

Without another word his pants and boxers are on the floor. Discarded to find later on when he’s scrambling to rush out early in the morning. But for now he’s only worried about the feeling of your mouth wrapped around him. The way that you hollow your cheeks as you bob your head up and down, focusing on his tip. His back hits the door helping him stay upright as his knees want to give out.

Your mouth feels like heaven. He could die at this exact moment and die a happy man. The hand holding your hair starts to help guide your movements. Giving you tugs when the pleasure is too much. Your hand that isn’t assisting your mouth slides its way into your sleep shorts. Massaging your clit and teasing your entrance with a finger. “Are you touching yourself?” His voice is shaky, getting dangerously close to cumming in your mouth. 

He takes a deep breath when you disconnect, a pop sounds in the room. “Mhmm. Felt too good.” You go in again to suck it back in your mouth. He hates that he has to stop you from continuing. Rafe would love for nothing more than to be in your mouth, watching as you gag over it. Or for you to sit on his face as he eats the shit out of you. The last thought is tucked away for later use.

“Get on the bed. Ass up and you chest to the sheets.” His words emphasized with a light tap to your face. You do as he says, stripping your clothes as you walk across the room. Rafe kicks off the pants from his ankles, shirt being tossed along with it. He likes seeing you like this. Willing to do anything just to scratch the itch you can’t sedate yourself. It’s the same way you looked last night.

You wiggle your ass when you feel the bed dip, his hands finding your ass. He wants to slap it, leave it with red hand marks. Make it so you can’t sit down in your classes tomorrow. Ironically enough you are thinking the same thing. Wanting him to mark you in every way that he can. Deep down hoping he wouldn’t care what people will hear and just take you the way he wants. The rational part knows he won’t and shouldn’t but is still disappointed. 

“Fuck just look at you.” His large hands are playing with your ass cheeks like their dough. Spreading them he sees your entrance fluttering, begging to be filled like a good girl. A glob of spit leaves his lips, falling right above your entrance to slide down. You moan as his thumb circles it around, making you nice and wet. The digit slips in and out, giving you just barely enough to feel full. 

“Gonna be a good girl and be quiet for me.” He kisses down your spine to get to your ear. “I think you can do it. Wouldn’t want everyone in the hall to know how big of a whore you are.” An involuntary moan slips out. His thumb was replaced with his middle and ring finger. “Knew you would like being called that. Can feel how much your pretty pussy likes it.” Rafe’s fingers are stretching you out nicely.

Fingers curling to stimulate your g-spot. The feeling from yesterday starts to creep up, making it seem like you are going to pee. “Rafe I.” You are trying to warn him but the words can’t come out. They don’t need to because he already knows. Can see it written on your face. Lips parted, eyes pinched shut, and your face digging into the sheets. That’s what he wants for you to lose control to the point you drench everything.

“It’s okay baby. Let it go.” With the confirmation you do. The gushing noise filling your ears, the sheets underneath you getting wet. In hindsight he knew he should have put something down, he just didn’t care. He kinda wanted you to be left with the reminder of what he can do to your body. Your hands are gripping the sheets for dear life. All of your energy being taken out of you.

“Never going to get tired of making you do that.” He gives your left ass cheek a kiss, biting into the flesh. A shriek tears it away from your throat. “Sorry, I can't mark your neck so gotta mark something.” “It’s okay.” Your voice is soft, the post haze of your orgasim still has you under a spell.

Rafe chuckles as you push yourself back on him. Getting the hint that you want him inside, he lines himself up. “Wait, should I use a condom?” He didn’t think about that yesterday but he sure is today. You groan, taking him in your hands and pushing back again. You both moan as he fills you. “Birth Control just pull out.” He doesn’t need to be told twice. 

Fleshing pounding into flesh can be heard from the hall, if anyone walked by you would be caught. It probably wouldn’t even matter at this point. Rafe’s hands can’t stay still, having to touch every inch of your skin. You were a mess, having to bite down into your pillow to swallow every moan that leaves your lips. 

In this position he feels bigger than he did before. Hitting a place deep inside you, the pain only makes the experience better. He flipped you around, wanting to see your face again. You make a face when you feel the wet spot on the bed, disgusted to be laying in it. The displeasure fading once he was in you again.

The weight of him was intoxicating. Holding you in place as his hips ram into yours. He brings a hand down to play with you, trying to get you there before him. “Come on, you can do it. I know you want to cum again.” He places kisses on your neck, your fingers intertwining with his hair and pulling. Now that you fulfilled that desire you can say you want to do it again.

With a couple of more thrusts you cum, trembling as he holds you. Only pulling out when he was toeing on the line of cumming inside you. He jerks himself off, rubbing his head on your lips, rutting into your clit. He paints your pussy, making a mess of your bottom half. Out of breath you both lay there. “We should probably clean this bed.” Looking down he can see the huge wet spot you left behind, his cum adding to the mix as it drips down.

“I’ll put them in the wash. You can go sleep in my room.”

The following few days were the same. You would wake up, get dressed as a man and go to classes. Flirt with Rafe any chance you're alone or no one's watching. Pulling each other into empty classes or janitors closets to makeout. The weirdness of kissing someone who looks like a guy left Rafe pretty soon. Only focusing on the fact that the person beneath that was you.

On the last day you two skipped your classes, pretending to be too sick for them. It was wrapped in sheets. Sweating out any toxins from the vigorous exercise. That night he went with you to meet up with Max. Telling your brother everything he was kinda confused at first. He thought Rafe had a thing for you dressed as a man and decided fuck it when he found out you were a girl. But with the reluctant sharing of information he soon realized that was not the case. 

The new plan the three of you created was simple. You and Rafe would still see each other and Max will butter up your parents to be nicer to you. It was the least he could do for all this trouble, which he reminded you didn’t seem as bad considering the facts. It was going well too. The boys get the weekends free, able to go out of campus and hang out. You would go visit on the weekends and hang out with them. Then go back to Rafe’s dorm at the end of the night, staying the weekend.

Max was sick of hearing the two of you from the thin wall shared between the two boys. But he was more sick of the nagging questions everyone asked. He will be walking around campus and people would just stop him to talk. “Hey man. How’s Rafe?” He looked at the guy like he was dumb. “Um, good? We watched the game last night.” The other guy would just smirk and nod. “Right the game. Good for you two.” Max would be confused as the guy walks off. Thinking what the fuck is that guy even on.

It was worse when it was girls that would talk to him. He only had access to them on the weekends and they never seemed interested. “Where’s Rafe today?” A girl would ask. “Oh he’s out with my sister right now.” He would mentally check if he looked good, thinking this might be the time a girl gives in. “That’s so sweet how close they are together. I wish my boyfriend was close to my family.” Either Max doesn’t pay attention or he really is that stupid because he was confused why you would want that. 

Yeah your partner should be close with your family but Rafe is literally fucking his sister, not just having lunch. “Yeah it’s nice seeing them like that.” He would then sit there as the girl talked about her boyfriend, clothes, girl drama, you name it. Max would make the way to his dorm that night stopping at his door when he saw the two of you down the hall. “Hey Cameron.” The two of you greet him. “Anyone say anything weird to you?”

Rafe just shook his head. “Man, everyone here is weird. I don’t pay attention to what they say.” With that you two would be in his room, locked away from the rest of the world. Max just shrugs thinking nothing more of it. That was until the day of the carnival.

Rafe had been defensive when he heard that you would be working the ticket booth. Telling you that there’s no way his girlfriend will be kissing other guys. He only calmed down after you explained why you had to. “I told my mom I would do this weeks before we even met. If I don’t she’ll be upset.” Rafe still wants to argue but from what you’ve told him about your parents he doesn’t.

Let’s be clear. He HATES the idea, he just hates the idea of you being sad even more. So he gives up letting you do it. Which is where you are now. In that stupid booth as guy after guy lines up to kiss you. The first shift was some random girl he doesn’t know so it was fine. Then she went on a break and it was your turn. The first few guys were chasist kisses, if you could even call them that. Then this asshole came in and tried to makeout with you. That was his breaking point.

“Where are you going?” Max questions as Rafe leaves his side. “Going to go kiss your sister. Don’t like how that guy was kissing my girl.” Max groans. It’s been like that since he got back. The two of you and then him, your third wheel. He’s still trying to get used to it. Max trails behind Rafe, agreeing with him for a different reason. These guys seem a little too demanding for some carnival booth.

Rafe cuts the line in the front, some boys from their school protesting. “Why are you even here?” One of them shouts. Rafe turns around shooting them a death glare. “To buy bread. What the fuck does it look like I’m doing?” The boys look at each other then at Max and Rafe. “Are you also going to kiss her?” One of them questions Max. “Ewww no. That’s my twin sister.” He starts to gag just thinking about it.

Their confused faces turn to ones of shock. “You’re letting him makeout with your sister?” They all shout at the same time. The line keeps getting shorter, Rafe’s almost at the front. The one guy in front of him and the one currently kissing you. “Why would I care? What they do is their business.” 

The line moves again, your eyes twinkle at Rafe over the guy's shoulder. He turns back to the group behind him. “Not trying to be rude. Obviously your relationship is your own issue. But you really let your boyfriend kiss your sister?” Rafe and Max share the same look, seeing if they heard the boys right. “What the fuck are you on?” Rafe is irritated now. All he wants to do is kiss you but there’s this shit.

Next

“Well no one wanted to say anything but we know you two are together.” This caught your attention. “What do you mean?” The group looks at you. “Well they’ve been seeing each other. There was a straight week were we thought that would fuck in front of everyone. They got better at hiding it.” You can’t help but laugh at this. The whole time you and Rafe thought you were careful and you weren’t.

“This isn’t funny.” Rafe and Max yell at you, only making you laugh harder. “I’m not gay.” Max states. “It’s okay, You don’t have to hide it.” One of them tries to be nice. “He means it and neither am I. I’m dating her.” Rafe points back at you. “The only sex I am having is with my girlfriend. Now I’m you excuse me I think it’s my turn.” 

Rafe walks up, handing you the ticket and kissing you. His hand engulfs your face as he deepens it. “Who kisses better, me or Max?” You joke when he pulls away. “Shut up and kiss me again.” He slams a roll of tickets on the table. 

Looks like you’ll be here a while.

✷✷✷✷✷✷✷✷✷✷✷✷

Tags:@ineedtosusoutmyreadinglist

#rafe cameron #rafe x reader #rafe obx #obx #rafe cameron smut #drew starkey smut #outer banks smut #rafe x you #rafe imagine

[runerapier]

If you don't mind me asking, what makes you interpret Angeal as anything other than a straight man? He's the least gay character I've ever seen and he doesn't act gay either.

I'm going to assume this isn't sent in bad faith but this is pretty on point with the definition of stereotyping. I mean if you’re defining being gay by how someone looks or acts that is your first problem. Angeal has very outwardly masculine actions and appearance, I’m not really a fan of the insinuation that masculine men don’t “look” gay enough. Angeal isn’t even a hyper masculine or toxic masculine character, he is almost always described in a way that is seen as nurturing or caring. His own fan club compared his hobby of cooking to that of a wife. Things like gardening are often seen as more a “feminine hobby.” This isn’t to say Angeal breaks insane boundaries but Angeal isn’t this rigid masculine character in the first place. Besides my personal headcanons, Angeal and Genesis' stories take quite a bit from The Fall of Mankind (and religious and mythological symbolism in general but I'm going to try to stay on track). They purposely made two male characters represent Adam and Eve, and this isn't the first time they have done something like this in a final fantasy game. For example: while they are more developed than Genesis and Angeal, characters like Fang and Vanille are based on the Nordic myth of Ragnarok. There is a lot of information that couldn't be included in the final game of Crisis Core but is still intended canon, I'm going to be using a lot of that as a reference point. The full explanation is pretty extensive and I'm also not an expert on The Book of Genesis. I tried my best to do research for this, but it is possible I am still missing things and that this can still be expanded upon.

I'm going to start off by giving a deeper explanation on how Angeal represents Adam and how Genesis represents Eve. Genesis already has a very strong connection to The Book of Genesis because of his name. Rhapsodos comes from rhapsody, his full name is literally "genesis reciter". Genesis and Angeal were the first two attempts at an artificial “cetra” created by Shina representative of Adam and Eve being the first humans created by god. (While there is some debate if the first woman is Lilith, she is often been seen as a demoness.) The kanji for Shinra already is a direct reference to god, and is symbolism for how they like to play god themselves. The image below has a great explanation that is much better than what I can do, but to keep it short 神 (shin) literally means god or divine and 羅 (ra) is derived from 網羅 (mōra) which means "encompassing".

The fruit of knowledge is typically portrayed as an apple, which connects with banora whites. It represents temptation, Genesis offers the apple to others when talking about truth and revelation. Instances like in Nibelheim, Genesis offers the fruit to Sephiroth after telling him the truth of his origins. Sephiroth rejecting the fruit is a sign of him rejecting the truth, and we see he continues to go along with a story he is happier with. Sephiroth decides to believe misinformation that is less painful, the rejection of knowledge is indication he is not Adam or Eve.

Banora is heavily connected to the flow of the lifestream, which is what makes Banora whites grow any time of year. The lifestream is said to contain knowledge of the planet and its people, that being what powers the fruit further reinforces the idea that they represent the fruit of knowledge. Banora being the source for what is essentially miracle fruits powered by the planet, it is clear Banora is meant to be Eden.

Minerva is said to be sleeping in the caves of Banora, she represents the will of the lifestream. Though Minerva is connected more to Roman Myth and Sophia from Gnostic belief, I would still say she emphasizes the holiness of Banora's land.

Angeal has a story about not stealing to reflect Adam trusting god and not taking from the garden. God's words to Adam were "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, for when you eat from it, you will certainly die." (Genesis 2:17) Angeal stole from other trees besides the big one that had the most delicious fruit. While it can be argued Angeal didn't steal from Genesis in general, Angeal's story focuses solely on the biggest tree with the most tempting fruit, that tree represents the tree of good and evil. At the end of the game, Zack eats an apple under this same tree with Genesis, protagonist and antagonist sharing from the same tree. Shortly after eating the apple Zack learns the truth about how long it's been and leaves to meet his fate.

Hollander approached Genesis with the truth of his origins, convincing Genesis to help him with his plans in exchange for a cure that Hollander never had. Eve was afraid of eating the fruit and dying because of what God told her, but the serpent convinced her she would live. “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:4-5). Both being deceived, they were convinced that they would live if they defied God, and become the catalysts for knowing the truth. Eve did not want to be alone in her defiance so she looked to Adam, much like how Genesis approaches Angeal to persuade him to take revenge against Shinra.

Besides Eve being referred to as Adam's wife, Adam also placed his trust in Eve above god. He decides to listen to her and trust her despite his creator telling him he will die. Angeal places his trust in Genesis above Shinra when he decides to defect, believing he can rationalize with him despite this being high treason.

This has happened before already, Angeal placed his trust in Genesis above Gillian and defies his mother to join Shinra. Gillian didn't want her family to be connected to Shinra and despite how highly Angeal respects his mother he still defied her wishes for the sake of following a dream with Genesis.

This leads into the next part, less about how they parallel The Book of Genesis and more about how they parallel other characters in the narrative. This makes me a little nervous to talk about so I’m going to put a small disclaimer that I am not arguing for any canonicity of ships because I think it is a waste of time. However, I think discussing characters' feelings that push their motivations is important.

In the narrative, Angeal also greatly parallels Cloud, I feel like this isn’t something that is talked about enough in general. They share a great deal of small parallels like both enjoying landscape photography, being associated with wolves, and elementally representing lightning. Besides surface level things, both Angeal and Cloud have a guilt complex and feel responsible for the people around them. The main parallel that’s important to this conversation is their childhood friend from the same countryside town.

Cloud was inspired by Sephiroth and his desire to protect people he loved like his childhood friend, Tifa, to join soldier. This is similar to Angeal joining to be with Genesis; their childhood friends are motivators for both of them.

This is something that’s pointed out in DFFOO as well, Angeal hears about Tifa and immediately draws the connection.

Both Cloud and Angeal feel responsible for protecting and looking after their loved ones, Angeal is seen as a caretaker type for this reason. Both Cloud and Angeal want to help fulfill the dream of their childhood friend, Tifa's was being saved by a hero and Genesis' being to share an apple with his hero Sephiroth. We see this when Cloud berates himself for not being the hero Tifa wanted and Genesis telling "Angeal" the dream has been fulfilled implying it has been something he knew about and wanted to help him achieve. Angeal's will in Lazard only fades away after Genesis said the dream came true, like there was a sense of fulfillment and that he could finally pass on after holding on for so long.

I find it interesting they intentionally draw parallels between Genesis & Angeal and Cloud & Tifa, people who have more explicit romantic feelings. I think Angeal and Genesis are supposed to represent a more “genuine” version of Cloud and Tifa’s relationship. Angeal represents the story cloud wanted to have throughout ffvii, having a childhood friend who never grew apart, who stayed together, and who followed a dream together. Angeal genuinely made soldier, and for a time he felt like he was in control of protecting others unlike Cloud. This contrast stays until the end, Cloud and Tifa learn to repair their relationship while Angeal and Genesis fall apart. Despite having everything Cloud wanted, it was not enough to sustain. This contrast is important in emphasizing that it is not about your background or your past, it is about what you do now and having people to fall back on. None of this is meant to be used as proof Genesis and Angeal are canon, but rather talk about Angeal's strong devotion and feelings for him since he was at least a teenager. They do not perfectly replicate the fall of mankind but it is interesting nonetheless. Here's to hoping we get to see more of how they interact in ever crisis.

#angeal hewley #genesis rhapsodos #final fantasy 7 #final fantasy vii #crisis core #ffvii crisis core #ff7 crisis core #sorry this took so long executive dysfunction smile #removed link because I forgot tumblr hates that whatever

[femalefemur]

Confessions.

18+ MINORS DO NOT INTERACT

warnings: depression, face picking, changing for someone else, please let me know if i missed anything!

word count: 900

synopsis: Johnny agonises over his confession to Simon.

A/N: I don't know I just wanted to make him sad, also I am very sleepy so if you see a mistake no you didn't <3

Something about Johnny slowly falling in love with Simon, all the little quips and jokes he makes winning Johnny over. He loves how Simon is the only one who ever calls him Johnny, loves how Simon always checks on him first after a mission no matter how well it went. He loves that he's the only one who gets to call Simon LT, that he's the only one who can press up against the infamous Ghost and live to tell the tale, that he's the only one Simon trusts enough to see him regularly unmasked, not even Price gets that privilege. Every single thing just making him fall more and more in love with the man.

So it comes as no surprise when he finds himself standing outside of his Lieutenant's room late one night, a light flush to his skin as he knocks twice on the door. He beams up at Simon when the man answers, stepping aside for Johnny to enter his room before closing the door and asking what he's doing there so late especially the night before a mission. It makes Johnny fidget with his hands as he swallows and looks Simon in the eyes before letting the confession tumble from his lips, watching for any indication of what Simon may be feeling. He sees nothing cross the man's face and all he gets in return of his confession is a nod before being told to go to bed.

It eats at him the entire mission, the comms quieter than usual and Simon only speaking to him when necessary. He's met with silence when they reach the extraction point, Gaz being the one to ask him how he is instead, mumbling out a reply before he sits and watches Simon pass him to sit next to Price. It continues to eat at him as he watches himself slowly be pushed out of Simon's life, the touches, the jokes, the late nights becoming non existent over night.

The rejection and heartbreak worming its way into his heart and festering. Johnny watches himself slowly shut down, he smiles but it no longer reaches his eyes, he laughs but it's forced, he slowly becomes less and less of himself as he watches the man he loves distance himself no matter how much he's tried to fix things. It doesn't matter how many quips he makes over comms all he gets in return is silence, or how many times he tries to sit next to Simon, the man just getting up and moving or leaving entirely, he never gets to see him unmasked again.

All he has left is his sketches of all the moments they've shared together, the touches, the smiles, Simon's face. He falls asleep thinking of the memories of moments where they were so close together that Johnny could hear Simon's heartbeat, letting the slowly fading sound lull him to sleep. He thinks of it so often that he's not entirely sure the sound he hears in his memories is what it actually sounded like. Sits in bed and thinks about what he did wrong, how he would take back every word if it meant he got to share space with Simon again. He bites his nails down to the quick as stares at the drawings of Simon laughing, lets his fingers bleed onto the paper and smudge his sketches. He tugs at his hair and digs at his face as he lies awake at night and regrets every word that left his mouth that day, letting his fingers dig and scratch away his thoughts, covering his face in bloody scabs.

Johnny lets himself slip more and more into his own head with each passing day, if Simon notices he says nothing, not that he even looks at Johnny anymore. It all becomes too much when Simon walks onto base with another man in tow, arm looped around his waist as he presses the short man into his side and introduces him to the team as his boyfriend. He watches the other man with burning jealousy, takes in the way Simon leans into him and laughs at something he said. He looks at how the man has bright blue eyes and dark hair, how he's shorter than Simon but just as muscular, how he's soft spoken and on the quieter side, how there's a lilt of a Scottish accent in his voice but how it's not overly prominent, how it's not like Johnny's own accent, how he's like Johnny in every way but also the opposite.

He lays in bed that night and wondering if he was less brash, quieter, if his accent wasn't as prominent, if he wasn't everything he was now then would Simon like him? He lets the thought eat away at him and fester until he's a hollow shell, until he's withdrawing and becoming quieter, letting his hair grow out from his signature mohawk and he starts evening out his accent and making it more neutral. Watches as Simon's eyes start to meet his again while Johnny flutters his eyelashes and looks away so he isn't staring too long like how he used to. Listens as Simon starts to make small quips to him over the comms again, he replies in kind but in a softer voice and nothing as vulgar as he used to say. Preens as Simon compliments his hair and gives it a small ruffle as it grows out, he throws out his electric trimmer that night. Watches as he becomes less himself more someone else, someone he doesn't recognise, someone who wasn't ever him or who he thought he'd become.

#ghost #simon ghost riley #simon riley #soap #johnny mactavish #ghoap #soap x ghost #cod #call of duty #tw face picking #tw depressing thoughts #tw depression

[biggest-geo-oogami-enjoyer]

Imagine a poly relationship w/ geo and crowe just to spite sol 😹

The More the Merrier (Crowe + Geo x MC/Reader - Relationship HCs)

I'M NOT DEAD I SWEAR I'M JUST WORKING ON 4 ONESHOTS SIMULTANEOUSLY!!!! (2 of them will be out by the upcoming Tuesday I promise <3333)

Anyway, to the two anons who requested this, I pray you'll enjoy. I actually kinda cooked on this one muahahaha. >:]

- Signed by biggest-geo-oogami-enjoyer T.W.: Mentions of sex, nothing explicit.

The more the merrier: a proverb indicating something is more fun with more people.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is your formal reminder from me as to how lucky you are to have scored both of these pretty tumblrsexymen.

Crowe is essentially the furnace of you three. He’s warm, fuzzy and comfortable. and hot

He basically serves as the mediator for conflicts, and his charisma often means he gets people to like you lot more (because he’s nice af plus rich)

Geo’s the cold one, and he is often the ‘bodyguard’ of you and Crowe, he often looms behind you both with the most ornery side eye anyone has ever seen. He’s also your #freepass. Literally anywhere he goes, he gets VIP (and so do you and Crowe muahaha)

Did I mention rich? 

As in…both are so fucking wealthy it gives you a brain aneurysm????

AS IN BOTH CAN AFFORD PRIVATE JETS AND IT NOT MAKE A DENT IN THEIR ACCOUNTS?!?!??!?!?!!?!!?!??

It’s actually crazy.

Unfortunately, being rich means you’re all targets, mostly you though, because you’re the most financially ‘average’ of the trio.

Geo often has his bodyguards supervise you and Crowe 24/7.

This guy will set rottweilers on his enemies if he must, preferably the ravenous ones. <33

Crowe and Geo (especially Geo) are the type to wear extremely stylish things if needed, so you know your fashion sense is in good hands.

However, they both also have extremely comfortable homeclothes (imagine Geo being stuffed into an oodie or smth that’d be so funny…someone draw that right fucking now)

I headcanon that Crowe knows French and Italian, so you’ve got him rizzing you up in European romantic languages and then Geo lovingly dissing you in Japanese.

They’re opposite extremes on the spectrum. And you got the best of both worlds, so.

Remember that.

>:]

Anyway, when it comes to domestic life Geo is the cook, he just chills in the kitchen and prepares the most elaborate fancy food anyone’s ever made in the history of the universe (Geode powers activate!!!)

Geo also knows how to do makeup extremely well, while I’d say Crowe is more skilled in the hair department (they’re both magical when it comes to cosmetics).

Crowe would be the one to do shopping and get surprise gifts for you both.

Geo would only really buy fake plants for himself (real quick shout out to past me for coming up with the #bonsaibaby term for the eventual tree child Geo and I will have), so the home will be opulent and fancy (because of Crowe), while maintaining a somewhat minimalistic and naturistic appeal (because of Geo) and just being a generally comfortable residence (because of us >:})

You are kinda just told to not do anything except exist. They both feel obligated to ensure you’ve got the best life possible, and you bet your attractive ass you’re getting a banger life.

Oh also, just a quick heads up, if you and Crowe are having sex, make sure Geo is far away. You do not want this man to be projectile vomiting for the next two thousand minutes, it’d be very ungraceful for someone like him.

Speaking of sex, you and Crowe just kinda have it when you both feel like it.

You both sleep together I’d feel, Geo’d sleep elsewhere. Not because he doesn’t like you both (he loves you both lol), it’s merely the cultural differences between Asian and most Western/European nations and the fact that you and Crowe can just have sex whenever and he doesn’t wanna be involved or remotely nearby if that happens.

If you and Crowe solemnly swear to never fuck however, then Geo may or may not spawn inside your bed at some point and just squish you both into his much taller frame (usually you). he may or may not make you sign a contract on celibacy /hj

At this point you’re trapped between a living refrigerator and a breathing heater.

omg temperature play!

You'll hang out whenever and wherever it’s peaceful. Like y’all can just be stu(dying) and/or nonchalantly reading together and it’d be amazingly serene.

Geo will also be drinking tea 24/7. This man breathes…no, inhales that shit. He also will totally not blare Scaramouche's boss theme around your residence.

Geode is a Scaramouche kinnie I refuse to hear backlash on this.

He also is the most knowledgeable when it comes to medicine, so if one of you three gets sick, he’s gonna be the doctor (he is his own doctor ffs this man is too based to be lying in bed and dying).

Crowe is essentially the emotional support for you three, like he and Geo are polar opposites but that’s okay. One's weakness is the other's strength and vice versa. Whatever they both lack (having and being a pussy), you make up for.

At this point you don’t even know if you’re the hinge or not, you just serve as the ‘hearth’ of this relationship.

And frankly, good for you. Like that’d be fucking awesome.

And just a final thing…

Did I mention that they're rich fashionistas?

#reminder that geo is superior #the kid at the back #tkatb #tkatb vn #geo subaru oogami #geo oogami #tkatb geo #tkatb x reader #crowe ichabod #jericho crowe ichabod #tkatb crowe #ngh #geode oogami

[hoejosatoru]

Off Limits Part 2

Pairing: fem! y/n X Bonten Ran, y/n's skin/ hair color and texture not specified

Summary: After your brother catches you with Ran, whom he forbid you to date, things get complicated. This is a follow up to this fic. (sorry this took me five million years)

Word count: 5.5k

Warnings: Abduction, Hanma being a creep, guns/shootings (reader is unharmed), blood mentioned, oral male receiving, p in v sex, cream pie, not proof read

The tension in the room could be cut with a knife. You held the blankets firmly up to your chin. Not just to cover your nakedness, but as a shield of sorts to protect you from whatever was about to go down. Your body was taught with anxiety, but Ran appeared calm and cool. Almost smug as he slipped his boxers back on.

"Get out of my fucking house," Mikey snapped, his voice so icy it sent a chill down your spine.

Ran buckled up his pants, taking his time. "Can't we discuss this like civi-" BANG!

The sudden firing of the gun made you yelp. The bullet was buried into your wall, mere inches away from Ran's head. Mikey was a hell of a shot; if he wanted to hit Ran, especially this close up, he would have. That was a warning. If Ran was scared, he didn't show it. In fact, he appeared bemused. If you were so rattled, you would have registered how his unflappable attitude was hot.

"I'm not fucking kidding Haitani. Next one goes in your head," Mikey said, his eyes filled with pure hatred. "Now get out."

As much fun as this was for Ran, even he knew when to not push things further. Mikey didn't bluff and he was certainly pissed enough to make good on his promise to kill him. Ran through his hands up innocently, before picking up the rest of his clothes and making his way towards the door. Mikey's eyes followed him carefully with each step.

Once he disappeared into the hallway, his eyes flicked over to you for the first time since he busted in. The anger made your stomach flipped. "Get dressed. We are going to talk once I'm done with him." He slammed your door shut before you could reply. Not that you had anything to say; the whole situation left your head spinning. What did he mean by when I'm done with him? He couldn't really kill Ran, could he? Your stomach churned with anxiety as you quickly redressed. Your ears were straining for the sound of a gunshot, or anything that might indicate what Mikey was doing with Ran. All you heard was another door slam and angry footsteps return to your door.

"Are you dressed?" Mikey asked. Not even the door could filter out the anger in his voice. Ugh, you were in for it.

"Yes," you mumbled. Your eyes fell sheepishly as he swung it open. You were embarrassed your brother had walked in on you, but who it was with made everything so much worse. Mikey just stood silently for a few minutes, the anger rolling off of him. It made you uneasy; you'd rather him just yell at you and get it over with.

"Really y/n? Ran? In my fucking house?" He seethed.

"Did you kill him?" you could helped but ask.

"Are you seriously worried about that right now?" Mikey asked. When he saw you were he continued, annoyed, "No I didn't fucking kill him. Not yet anyways."

"Mikey please you can't-"

"I can do whatever I want," Mikey cut you off. "He's my employee and I gave him explicit rules. He knew what he was risking." Mikey saw how you balked. "Don't tell me you're stupid enough to be in love with him."

You bristled at his words. You weren't in love with him, but you did really like him and you didn't like that Mikey thought he had the right to dictate who you could be with. "I'm not stupid," you snapped. "And I'm not one of your employees. I can do what I want. Who I want." You tossed the last line in for the sole purpose of pissing Mikey off, which worked.

"You think he gives a fuck about you?" Mikey questioned. "You're just a game to him. He wants to get at me and you're the easiest way to do that. Really fucking easy, apparently."

Your cheeks burned at Mikey's insult. "So you're saying I'm a slut?"

"I'm saying you fell into his little trap. You don't know him like I do, y/n. He's a piece of shit and doesn't care about anyone but himself. He's gonna take what he wants from you and toss you aside. You're more naive than I thought if you believe any different," Mikey replied.

His words stung, but you bit back your tears. Crying right now would not help your case. "Now you're just being an asshole," you grumbled, "I'm an adult, Mikey, I can handle myself."

Mikey softened, but only slightly. He loved you and didn't want to hurt you, but he knew there was no other way to get it through your head. "I'm just trying to protect you. I've kept you away from my lifestyle for so long to avoid shit like this. But now you don't realize the seriousness of this. Even if Ran was a saint," Mikey paused, his lips curling like he tasted something bad. "I wouldn't want you with him if he was in this line of work. It's too dangerous for you to be connected to this."

Despite what your brother thought, you weren't naive. Though he kept you away from his work, you had a pretty good idea of what it entailed. Though you may not know in detail, you knew that it would be a dangerous to be connected to it in anyway. However, you couldn't get yourself to care when you thought of Ran. You wanted to be with him. Maybe he was playing you, but you wanted to figure that out for yourself and not because your older brother forbid it.

"Please just don't kill him," you said. "I don't want that on my conscious." You played at Mikey's emotions, knowing he wouldn't want to put that burden on you.

Mikey scowled a bit, but replied, "I will think about it. But you are to never see him again, understand? If I catch you with him there will be no second thoughts. I will kill him." You grumbled that you understood and Mikey finally left you alone.

Mikey's head pounded as he returned to his room. He wasn't surprised that Ran had gotten to you, but he was surprised that he had the fucking balls to do it in his own home. He just couldn't help but find knew ways to be a sleazy piece of shit.

He pinched the bridge of his nose as he tried to figure out what to do next. As much satisfaction as it would give him to kill Ran, realistically it was a bad idea. Rindou would be beyond pissed and he was sure he would defect to the rival gang, taking Bonten's secrets with him. With you already in danger, he couldn't risk more information about you getting out. Killing both of them wasn't a great option, either. He couldn't be down two men at a time like this. Especially when he, begrudgingly, had to admit they were good at what they did. Firing them put him in the same predicament, so he had no choice but to keep them. He would not, however, let Ran get off easy.

***

The next week Mikey practically had you on house arrest. He left only a handful of times for a few hours, but it was pretty clear you were expected to stay put and behave. Not that you had many options, Mikey had taken your phone and blocked Ran on everything. You didn't bother fighting it, Mikey was as stubborn as they come. Plus, you knew the more your fought it the less he would trust you and longer you'd be stuck at home.

Finally, a little over a week later Mikey said you were returning to work with him. There were, of course, some new rules. You were not allowed to be one on one with any of the men anymore, nor were you allowed to be with Ran at all.

Despite Mikey's attempts to keep you from Ran it was a small office and you saw him in passing the first day back. You couldn't help but gasp when you saw him. He had a black eye and a slip lip, which you knew were the work of your brother. You shared only the briefest eye contact as you passed, but it was enough to make your stomach flip. Ran kept his face unreadable, though, and it was killing you to not know what he was thinking. Had he decided you weren't worth the trouble? Did he really just get what he wanted from you and now had no interest? The uncertainty ate at you.

The first few days were awkward to say the least. You knew between the changes Mikey made and his obvious beating up of Ran the guys had put 2 and 2 together. No said anything directly to you about it, fearing the wrath of Mikey, but you felt the curious stares, heard the stifled snickers between members. You hated being alone with Sanzu the most. He was the only one your brother allowed to be alone with you, as he trusted him the most. He didn't even try to cover the judgement in his eyes.

Today, however, Rindou was with him which only made it marginally less awkward. Mikey had been keeping Rindou at a distance as well, considering his closeness to Ran, but he'd been paired up to watch you a few times. You didn't dare ask him anything outright, but you tried to send him looks, hoping he'd pick up on your desperate pleas for information. So far, he seemed not to notice, or at least not acknowledge them.

Until today. "Shit, Mikey needs to talk to me," Sanzu said looking at his phone. "Seems important."

"Oh yeah?" Rindou asked in a voice that indicated he wasn't all that interested.

"I think he's made some progress on finding the guys that were looking for her," Sanzu responded. You hated how he referred to you like you weren't there.

"You do realize I can hear you, right?" you grumbled, as you kneaded dough. Mikey thankfully was letting you bake still. You would have gone crazy without something to keep you busy. Rindou's lips twitched.

"Funny, Mikey told me you weren't a very good listener," Sanzu commented. It was the closed anyone had gotten to referencing what happened between you and Ran. You rolled your eyes, not wanting to get into it with him. "Keep your eyes on her, Rindou. I'll send someone down to help you while I'm gone."

Rindou yawned. "I think I can manage." Your mind raced as Sanzu left the room. This was the best chance you had to get information on Ran or have a messaged passed to him. But someone could walk in at any moment. What if Sanzu came back for something? He would certainly rat on you. You weren't sure about the other guys, but you couldn't take the risk. Rindou was the only person you could potentially trust.

"Y/n," Rindou's voice broke the silence. Your head whipped up, meeting his calm, cool gaze. He looked like Ran in that way. "I would check the cake tins before you leave today."

"Oh... okay," was all you could think you reply. You knew he was trying to tell you something, but you weren't sure what. You didn't even have a chance to ask, as Takeomi entered the kitchen.

The rest of the day dragged as you were dying to look at the cake pans. Takeomi and Mochi were watching you now, though they weren't paying much attention. "Mikey said it's time to go," Takeomi said, barely looking up from his phone.

"Okay, I just have to put some stuff away," you replied, which earned a grunt in acknowledgement. You scurried over to the cabinet you kept all the baking tins. Your heart hammered in your ears as you dug out the cake pan, finding a disposable phone. You bit back a gasp, quickly slipping the phone in your pocket before with of Mikey's underlings could notice.

You popped up, a little pep in your step. "I'm ready to go!"

That evening you tried to keep calm and stick to your normal routine. It wasn't easy, as you were dying to look at the phone that was left for you. It practically felt like it was burning a hole through your pocket. You knew your brother was incredibly observant, so you couldn't give him a reason to be suspicious.

"Sanzu is coming over soon," Mikey announced. That's right, its Thursday. This was perfect timing, Mikey would be distracted by his drinking with Sanzu.

"I'm gonna head to my room then. Have a good night," you replied. Mikey nodded, knowing you preferred to keep to yourself whenever Sanzu came over. The second your door closed, the phone was in your hand. There was a singular message from an unsaved number that read: it's me, text me when you get this. You quickly sent out a hello. Ran responded almost instantly.

Ran: Miss you, can we meet tonight?

You were instantly flooded with relief knowing that he wasn't ditching you.

You: How?

Ran: do you trust me?

You: of course

The two of you created a plan. You would wait for Sanzu to leave the house, wait another hour to ensure Mikey was asleep, then sneak out to see Ran. Ran would be waiting in his car a few blocks away to pick you up. It would be risky, if Mikey caught you sneaking out you and Ran would both be dead. But it was absolutely worth the risk.

It felt like forever, but an hour finally passed after Sanzu left for the night. It was about 1am when you texted Ran you were heading out. Your heart thudded in your ears as you tiptoed from your room to the front door. You eyes never left the hallway that led to Mikey's room, half expecting him to appear asking what the hell you were up to. However, you slipped out the door without issue.

When you finally got to the street, you were practically skipping you were so giddy. You were a few blocks away from where Ran instructed you to meet him, when you saw a man walking towards you. At first you thought it was Ran. Your brows turned in confusion. He had said to meet him in is his car, right? You pulled up the messages, confirming that was the case.

Your eyes flicked back up to the man approaching you and you felt your heart leap. It was one of the men who had been looking for you that day in the bakery. Your legs felt like jelly. Was this some crazy coincidence? Did he even recognize you? You knew running would bring too much attention to yourself. There was still enough distance that if you walked quickly, and prayed this just a freak coincidence, you could get back to Mikey's unscathed.

The second you turned around, your stomach dropped. Coming up the other direction was the other man who had been looking for you. He had a sinister smile on his face that sent a shiver down your spine. You were completely trapped. You felt the phone buzz in your hand, it was Ran asking where you were. Without thinking, you hit call.

"Hey what-"

"Help me!" you yelled into the phone. You were running across the street now, trying to get distance from the two men.

"What, y/n? What's happening?" Ran asked frantically.

You were about to answer when two strong arms wrapped around you. You let out a scream. "They've got me! It's them!" you cried. You didn't get a chance to respond, as a blonde with glasses ripped the phone out of your hand and crushed it on the ground under his boot.

"You won't be needing that," he said coldly. "Get on with it Hanma." Before you could let out another scream, there was a cloth over your face. You choked on a chemically-scent before everything faded to black.

***

The first thing you noticed when regaining consciousness was the pounding in your head. It took your mind a few second to catch up to reality, your body stiffening as the events that preceded your loss of consciousness flooded back. You tried to move, but quickly realized you were tied firmly to a beam in some sort of industrial warehouse.

"Oh, you're up!" a voice cheerily announced, as if this was some friendly gathering. A lanky man with brown and blonde streaked hair appeared before you, his golden eyes alight with excitement. The look made your stomach churn.

"W-what do you want?" you stammered, your heart thudding in your chest. You were trying to stay calm, knowing that you would need your wits about you for a chance to escape. But looking at the man standing in front of you, you didn't like your odds.

"Aw don't look so scared sweetheart," the man replied, "We are going to have fun together." He knelt down in front of you, at your eye level. You tried to shrink away as he reached for you, but there was nowhere for you to go. He took your chin in his hand, grinning. "You're a pretty thing, I see why your brother tried to keep you hidden."

"You're wasting our time, Hanma," sighed the blonde with the glassed. You startled at his voice, not noticing that he had been sitting a few yards away. "We should get moving to another location. She's our most valuable tool to use against Mikey."

"You're so boring, Kisaki," Hanma yawned. "Mikey's probably out looking for her now. It's safe to keep her hidden here and enjoy our time together." He flashed you a faux smile, tucking hair behind your ear. You bit back a gag.

Kisaki sighed. "Whatever, just make sure you're 'fun' includes getting some information out of her. And keeping her fucking quiet." Kisaki turned his attention to his phone, knowing there was no point in arguing with Hanma when he got like this. It would be better to let him get it out of his system.

"Well, aren't we lucky then," Hanma smiled. He pulled a gun out of his waist band, making your heart start, but he placed on the floor next to you. He didn't miss the fear that flashed in your eyes. "Oh, don't worry y/n, I don't plan to use that on you. As long as you behave, that is." You hated that he knew your name, it made you wonder what more about you did he know.

"You will be good for me, yeah?" You nodded, but it wasn't enough. "I except a response when I speak to you," Hanma stated.

"Y-yes," you managed, which returned the smile to his face.

"Good. Now we are going to play a fun little game," Hanma began, "I am going to ask you a question and you will answer honestly. If you refuse to answer or lie to me, I will remove a piece of clothing. I hope you won't end up naked, but that's up to you." Hanma was grinning like that was exactly what he was hoping for you. You had a sick feeling that it didn't matter how you answered, that would be the end the result.

Hanma was staring at you, waiting for a response. "Okay," you all you could bring yourself to say.

"Great! Let's start easy. Are you a virgin?"

You blinked. You were expected questions about Mikey or Bonten, not something as trivial as that. You felt like you were playing some stupid high school game of 20 questions, but you knew this game was not so innocent. "No," you replied honestly.

"With a face like that, I didn't think so. But it would have been fun to be your first," Hanma sighed. "Now wh-"

"Wait! Shouldn't I get a chance to ask you things if we are both playing?" You asked. You were trying to stall, anything that would delay the inevitable end to this.

"Sorry sweetheart, that's not how this game works. You'll have to figure out a different way to get me out of my clothes," Hanma grinned. If you weren't so scared you'd have rolled your eyes. "Next question, where is Bonten's headquarters?"

"I don't know," You lied.

Hanma's eyes narrowed. "Guess you won't be needing your pants."

"I'm not lying!" You insisted, "Mikey never took me. He didn't want me to know where it was."

"You're not a good liar," Hanma replied, sliding your pants down your hips. Your cheeks burned red as he looked at the black lacy underwear you had put on for Ran. "Pretty," he grinned with a sinister glint. "Where does Bonten keep their weapons stash?"

"I have no idea," you answered honestly.

Hanma sighed, "You're making this harder than it has it be." He pulled a knife out from a holster at his ankle.

"I swear I don't know, please!" you begged. Hanma made a quick slash, cutting open your shirt. He just barely missed cutting your skin.

"If you're going to lie to me, maybe I should just cut to the fun part," Hanma said, the knife toying with the strap of your bra.

You shuddered, feeling desperate. "Please-"

Your pleas were cut off by a door slamming open. Relief washed over you as your saw Ran rushing in with murder in his eyes. Hanma and Kisaki sprung up like cats, brandishing their weapons. Kiskaki let out a shot, which made you yelp, but Ran dodged it, taking cover behind a cinderblock beam. Curiously, he fired his gun into the air twice. When the rest of Bonten burst through the door, you realize it was a signal.

Hanma and Kisaki shot at the other member as they tried to make a retreat without getting hit themselves. They made their way to towards you, hoping the members would be less likely to fire at them with you in the potential shot range. They were right, as Mikey called for his subordinates to stop firing.

You thought they were both going to run, but Hanma turned to you, his gun raise. It happened too fast for a scream to even escape you, but your eyes closed and your whole body tensed in anticipation.

BANG!

You cried out, waiting for the pain to hit you... but it never did. When you opened your eyes, Ran was in front of you, gripping his shoulder. Blood spilled between his fingers. It took your brain a minute to catch up and realize he had jumped in front of the bullet for you.

"Ran!" you screamed, thrashing furiously against the ropes the bind you. Hanma was rushing past both of you. Mikey sent Sanzu, Mochi, and Takeomi after them.

"I'm okay, y/n," Ran said, plastering a soothing smile on his face. He crouched next to you, pulling your pants back up your body. He winced as he moved the arm that was shot.

"You're not okay! You were shot!"

"It's just a little scratch," he replied, but his voice was off. He lost a decent amount of blood, making it hard for him to undo the ties around you.

"I'll take it from here," Mikey stepped in. "Rindou, take Ran to be taken care of." Rindou nodded, helping Ran up.

"Don't worry about me, y/n, I'll be okay. I promise," Ran said. You wanted so badly to believe it, but you were scared for him. You've never seen anyone get shot before.

"Y/n are you okay?" Mikey asked. He worked the knots out quickly and you collapsed into your brother, holding him tightly as you cried. "I'm so sorry this happened, but I'm going to take care of this. I will burn their whole fucking gang to the ground, I promise." He slid his jacket over your shoulders, proving you some extra coverage. "Did they hurt you?"

"No, not physically. I was knocked out by something and woke up here," you explained, still shaking.

"Okay, let's get home, then." He helped you up.

"What about Ran? Is he going to be okay?"

"He will be fine, we have a nurse on our payroll to take care of this sort of thing," Mikey explained. You felt a little better knowing he would be taken care of by a professional. Mikey led you to a car where Koko was behind the wheel. You went to HQ instead of Mikey's house, Mikey explaining that HQ was better hidden and better protected at the moment.

Mikey ushered you into one of the bedrooms kept at HQ for when members needed to stay onsite. You wanted to see Ran, but you were afraid to push it. You knew how Mikey felt about you being with Ran and you knew he was going to figure out, if he hadn't already, what you were doing out of of the house. You were terrified Mikey was going to blame Ran for this and what he would do to him because of that

Mikey mistook the fear on your face. "Don't worry y/n, you're safe now. One of my men will be posted outside your door all night. I promise this scum bags will be dealt with. Just try to get some rest, okay?"

"I will," you nodded. Mikey told you to call him if you needed anything at all, before stepping out of the room. You didn't think it would be possible for you to fall asleep, but the exhaustion of the nights events caught up to you. You feel into a fitful, dreamless sleep.

When you woke you cleaned yourself up in the bathroom connected to your room. You were still processing everything that happened, but you did feel calm enough at the moment, thanks to the safety of HQ. You were thinking about what you would say to Mikey about this situation when he knocked at the door.

"How are you feeling?" he asked. He had bags under his eyes, like he hadn't slept at all. You immediately felt bad for creating this mess for him.

"I'm good all things considered," you replied.

"We should talk about what happened."

Your stomach dropped. "Okay, sure."

"I know you were going to see Ran."

"Mikey I'm sorry I-"

Mikey held up his hand, silencing you. "Listen, it was stupid and risky what you did. But if I hadn't given you such a hard time, you wouldn't have done it."

"Mikey, it's not your fault," you replied.

"I know, but still. I was trying to protect you and it backfired," Mikey said, "I don't regret what I said about being involved with someone in my line of work, but I should have trusted you as my sister and at least talked to you about it."

"It's okay Mikey, I know you were just trying to protect me," you replied, "Even if you were being an ass about it." You could help but toss that in, glad it had the desired affect of making Mikey crack a smile.

"I obviously still have my reservations about you being with Ran, but he took a bullet for you. For that I will forever be grateful to him. I have to believe he is going to try to treat you well," Mikey said. You felt a rush of love for your brother. You knew this wasn't easy for him to say and you appreciated him giving it a chance.

You wrapped your arms around your brother, hugging him tightly. "Thank you, that means a lot," you said.

"Of course," Mikey replied, patting your back. "I can take you to his room, if you'd like." You nodded and Mikey led you down the hall. Ran was inside laying in bed shirtless, but his shoulder was wrapped in bandages. All things considered, he looked good.

"Y/n," he smiled when he saw you. You couldn't help yourself, you ran to his side. You wanted to hug him, but weren't sure if you could so you gently squeezed his uninjured arm.

"Are you okay?" you asked, searching his body for any signs of injury you missed.

Ran nodded. "I'm okay. It's you I'm worried about. Are you hurt?"

"I'm not, I promise." Mikey cleared his throat and you both turned to him. You instinctively let go of Ran, though Mikey wasn't keep you from him any longer.

"I'm glad you're okay, Ran," Mikey began, "I will be forever indebted to you for saving y/n's life... And I've decided I want you to be happy together, if that's what y/n wants." The last part sounded hard for him to get out, but it made you appreciate him even more. Your brother was tough, but at the end of the day he just wanted you to be happy.

"Thank you, sir, I will take good care of her," Ran replied.

"You better, Haitani, because if you don't I will deal with you. And I'm a much better shot than Hanma," Mikey replied, only half joking. But the message was crystal clear and Ran nodded in understanding. "Speaking off, I'm heading out to hunt that bastard down with the rest of the gang. You take care of her while I'm gone."

With that, you and Ran were alone. All the emotions you had been keeping locked started to bubble up.

"What's wrong angel?" Ran asked seeing the change in your face. He patted the spot next to him on the bed, prompting you to sit.

"You saved my life," you replied, "And you almost died in the process."

"It would take a lot more than that to kill me," Ran said with a grin, "Don't worry about it, okay? I would do it again without a second thought." His thumb circled your thigh gently as he spoke, soothing you.

"Okay, but I have to make it up to you," you replied.

Ran perked up, "Oh? And how would you do that?"

You climbed on top of him, straddling his lap. "I'd rather show you, if you're up for it."

"There's literally nothing I would want more." Ran tried to sit up, you to pushed him back down, shaking your head.

"No, I'm taking care of you." You leaned in, pressing your lips to his. His hands slid around your waist comfortably as your bodies were flush against each other. Your hands tangled in his hair, deepening the kiss as your desire quickly rose for him. Your rocked your hips against his, feeling him start to harder in response to your touch.

You kissed down his jaw, his neck, his chest, stopping just above the waistline of his sweats. You slid them off him, revealing his hard on. Your eyes flicked up to his as you licked up the length of him.

"Fuck pretty girl, you're gonna kill me," Ran groaned. You glowed at his praise, taking him into your mouth. You hollowed out your cheeks as your bobbed your head on him. Ran's hands found your hair, gripping it at the root as your sucked him off. Your tongue swirled over his tip, teasing the sensitive spot.

"Shit you gotta stop that or I'm not gonna be able to cum inside that pretty pussy of yours," Ran breathed. Your lips made a popping sound as you pulled yourself off him. You were more than eager to oblige, your pussy throbbing at his words. You stripped yourself under Ran's hungry gaze. "So fucking pretty," he mused, running his hands up and down your naked body.

Normally you'd feel shy, but his gaze made you more confident. You took the base of him in your hands, sliding his tip through your wetness and teasing him at your entrance. Ran wriggled impatiently.

"C'mon baby don't tease me. I took a bullet for you," Ran complained.

"You trying to guilt me into fucking you?" you laughed.

Ran grinned. "Only if it's working." And it was, if only to sate your own needs. You slid down on him, a low moan escaping you as you stretch around him. Ran's fingers dug into you as you rolled your hips. He let out loan groans watching himself slide in and your of cunt.

"God I missed this," you sighed, feeling him press into the deepest spots inside you. Your hips were moving faster now, chasing the euphoric release that was building in your lower stomach.

"Missed you too, baby," Ran replied, "Missed feeling this press pussy squeezing me." His thumb found your clit, rubbing circles over the sensitive spot. Your head fell back as the building you felt swelled and snapped, sending pleasure surging through your body.

"Fuck, Ran," You whined, continuing to fuck him through you high.

"So good, y/n, shit," Ran's hips flexed up as he released into you, his warm cum filling you. You both continued to grind into each other until you were fully spent. You collapsed on top of him, catching your breath. "Shit I might try to get shot more if these is what I get after."

You smacked his chest lightly. "If you promise me to never get shot again, you can have that whenever you want."

Ran grinned, "Promise."

#ran haitani smut #ran haitani x reader #tokyo revengers fanfiction #tokyo revengers headcanons #tokyo revengers hcs #tokyo revengers smut

[tiyoin]

omfg i saw your female mc post in nrc before it was bombarded with the bad attention. have these people ever thought "oh, this doesn't align with my personal experience, i'll just scroll"???

if you were raised in an environment without somewhat strict gender rules and your sex wasn't an indicator of what should be expected of you or what you'll go through in life (or you've exited an environment where these things weren't commonplace), good for you!!! but don't act like the differences don't exist. sadly, gender DOES define us in the way we were taught how to act and what is allowed of us, and i can tell you that the average NRC guy won't do half the things tiyoins original post say because of the way these fictional characters were brought up too. look at me in the face and tell me Ace would hold Deuces hand while walking without calling it gay.

THANK YOU!!! chuu out here with logic bombs.

yall really think azul is gonna lock arms with you and skip down the hallway? yall really think the guys wanna hear about periods??? cause the few guy friends i have are not fans of that 😭

there are activities girls are able to partake in together because they’re girls. yes that’s a privilege because (example) my ex bsf and i used to smack the butt of the person in front of us when going up the stairs. you do that with a guy people will think you’re either dating, like each other as friends, or that you’re good friends. but usually that last one is reserved for family friends and even sibling behavior.

and especially for me gender stereotypes were heavily enforced where i’m from. and i’ve had MUCH more girlfriends than guy friends.

and this is in fact, the internet. people are going to share posts intended for certain audiences, if you don’t like what i posted SCROLL. people don’t scroll away from posts they hate and i find that so weird.

like they’ll actually comment and say shit 😭 even tho you don’t?? like?? the?? post??

i promise you’re not missing anything if you scroll😭

it’s scary that people can’t accept others have different opinions, life views and experiences.

#FINALLY SOMEONE WHO GETS IT #“thank you chuu’’ we all say in unison #‘we love you chuu’ we all say in unison #IF YOU DONT LIKE- SCROLL😭

[raayllum]

The Celestial Elves & Aaravos' Plans

Going into s6, there's been two big questions at the forefront of my mind: what can we expect from the Celestial elves, and what exactly is Aaravos' plan?

I've speculated briefly on the former, so I want to clarify further what I mean when I say the latter.

Aaravos' plans, seemingly, have at least two pretty clear steps, if you will:

To be freed from his pearl prison

To get revenge on the Startouch elves for his banishment / some other wound

This was as much spelled out to us in TDP's short story, Patience, before S4's release:

I have not seen the stars in centuries. But when I see them again—when the stars are forced to look upon me, their dark brother—they will know how I have waited. And when everything they have built lies shattered, I will savor their fall from the sky. For I have been patient.

I don't think Aaravos has much of a plan beyond revenge, as the Cycle is thematically and literally unsustainable in comparison to rebuilding and the Narrative of Love. What would be left for him, after all, besides seeing his 'family' (and Xadia) suffer further for what they've done to him? And I'm not here to say that there's a secret third step or anything (though there might be).

What I want to talk about is Aaravos' Plan timeline in regards to getting what he wants.

We know that around 1,000 years ago, humans were exiled from Xadia for dark magic use. It isn't clear if Aaravos was banished before or after this event, but given that Ziard saying "one of the Great Ones" doesn't seem to immediately give away Aaravos' identity, there seem to have been a few still kicking around, although this contradicts the Midnight Star poem, which clearly indicates the Stars leaving ("Elarion, unworthy whelp, / Wept as the stars turned black the sky, / They donned their masks / They turned their backs, / And left Elarion to die") and then humans receiving dark magic ("‘till the last star / Reached from afar / His touch: a blaze, a gift, a spark / [...] Elarion, black-eyed child, / her twisted roots spread deep and far, / The humans’ might").

It is possible, of course, that the Startouch elves could've left but hadn't actually expelled / cut contact with Aaravos directly, but that gets even dicier timeline wise.

Either way, to stay on topic: there's roughly a 700-1000 years, if not more, between Aaravos' banishment from the First Elves and achieving his final aims (which we'll likely see the beginning of in late S6).

Why?

Why does this period of time in between Banishment and Revenge exist? If Aaravos is so powerful...

Even after [Zubeia] and Avizandum allied ourselves with the other Archdragons, we could not risk a direct confrontation. We had to beat Aaravos as his own game. [...] We had to conspire and plot, and deceive this deceiver so that at the exact right moment, he would lower his guard, and we could imprison him forever.

then what could've possibly existed that he couldn't just take outright? Why even make nice with the Archdragons at all, and not stay focused on using his human mages in the west? And what, why, was he using them in the first place pre-imprisonment?

A young human girl uncovered a great secret of history. A dangerous deceiver was revealed: it was one of the Great Ones, the Startouch elf, Aaravos. For a thousand years, Aaravos had been pulling invisible strings like a puppet master. Every great crisis the world faced had seemed the work of some ingenious and powerful leader, but in each case, it was secretly Aaravos, whispering in their ear.

Now, of course Aaravos just could be a sadistic bastard who enjoys messing with people (and I'm sure there's spades of that) as well as ideas of being "elegant and efficient" in that why take things by force when you can convince other people to do stuff (and take the fall) for you. But in my mind, there's one main reason to maintain secrecy around people you're trying to use or convince: you want to maintain their trust, and you want their trust because you want their Knowledge.

Additionally, the more I've thought about it, the more sure I am that Aaravos was ingredient collecting for Something before his imprisonment (300 years ago, and still a thousand years at least into his grand plan). We see two powerful figures disappear close together — Luna Tenebris, who "mysteriously died" and Queen Aditi, who vanished — and we already know Aaravos "swallowed" the latter.

We know from Viren and Claudia that dragons, particularly archdragons, are incredibly powerful. Zym, just as a baby and with the staff as a conduit, would've been enough for Viren to "transcend his moral form" and presumably let Aaravos out of the mirror permanently by... taking over Viren's body, maybe? The details are fuzzy, but the intentions and initial endgame stage (freedom) was probably plain.

Moreover, if Aaravos did need a Powerful Sun Object and a powerful Archdragon (moon? sky?) Object to get things underway, it'd also explain the choice to go to Lux Aurea to get the Sun staff and corrupt it, as that choice inadvertently led to another 'downfall' (if he and Viren hadn't gotten the staff, their army probably would've had enough time to take the Storm Spire before the dragons even arrived; they were only held off so long because the Sunfire elves were there).

Like before, with Aditi, there's also a potentially powerful Sun source in both the sun seed itself and in Sol Regem, particularly if either or both become corrupted. Zym still exists as a possible source of energy to exploit, and there could be something Moon wise with Luna Tenebris' unsuitable heir or even Rayla.

I'm also not going to pretend to have definitive answers. That said, given that everyone else has been on a perpetual chase for knowledge throughout arc S4 and S5 ("I don't even know if she's alive" / "How do you know?" / "Having knowledge isn't the same as knowing it" / "If Akiyu knows helped make it, then she must know where it is" / "To love is simply to know this...") it wouldn't surprise me if the Mystery of Aaravos is about him, yes, but also one he's been trying to 'solve' all this time.

And on the one hand, this has also already been sort of true, given that despite his powers, Aaravos genuinely seems to 1) have no clue of where he was imprisoned or 2) in what (the pearl). The idea that his powers and foresight as a Fallen Startouch elf weren't extended far enough for him to be able to go back to the 'Heavens' whenever he wanted, that the Startouch elves are somewhere currently beyond his reach... That would kind of track and explain the 1,200-1,000 year interim and Why it's taken him so long to figure certain stuff out.

If he doesn't need Objects (which might play into the lack of coercion or construction, perhaps?) or at least not entirely, then Knowledge of something he's missing may be partially the clue needed to go back Home and wreck shit up. Not needing objects per se could also explain why things that may be useful to him — like the Nova Blade, if he wants to kill his own kind; or potentially the cube (but who knows) — weren't confiscated as it were before his permanent Fall to earth.

This is where we get to the Celestial Elves.

The Celestial Elves, in spite of being a late stage addition to TDP's lore in comparison to most other elements, have always felt very purposeful. As laid out in my post above, there's some very particular choices made about them that seem Obviously intentional in a way that say, other design choices regarding the elves aren't necessarily.

For example, original concept of Aaravos featured him bald, in robes, and blindfolded, but were scrapped for being "too obvious" / on the nose, leading to a very different final design. While blindfolds in TDP don't have much of a negative association largely thanks to Lady Justice and Harrow, the idea of not being able to see clearly (hi Viren!) is absolutely a motif the series returns to over and over until it reaches fruition: "I finally see the truth."

As mentioned in my linked post, the fact that all the Celestial elves are Skywing elves feels intentional as well. Sky (freedom) in the series is the opposite to Star ('destiny') if we're just going by primals and not looping in dark magic. The choice to make the Celestial elves Skywing specifically, when they could've been any kind of elf or even a grouping of different kinds of elves living together (which we haven't seen before) is probably because their understanding of the Sky arcanum and the concept of Star magic is going to be radically different than Callum's; I wouldn't be surprised if they've partially turned their back on the idea of "nothing is pre-determined" by instead saying everything is, which is his ongoing worst fear with the possession plot line.

Then there's the fact that they are devoted to Stars, and Startouch elves have had (as far as we know) little to no contact with anyone since they all left a thousand plus years ago... except for Aaravos, who would have an interest in the Nova Blade at the very least (and maybe the Corona of the Heavens belonged to him, too). The way they're called "an ancient sect" of Skywing elves is also not a point in their favour given that outside of Ancient Draconic, everything else that's been labelled that way has been negative ("the relic staff" / "the cube is an ancient relic" / "wounds from an ancient and disturbing practice" / "Infantis sanguine. It's one of the old spells").

Furthermore, the true sight serum Viren poured in his eyes in 2x02 is also what inspired the bulk of today's thinking meta, as the season two novelization states:

He held the last of an unusual liquid that he had inherited from Kpp'Ar. The liquid was a rare serum that the Oracles of Ophidia were said to have used long before the fall of Elarion in order to see through the illusions of the world. They would harvest venom from the fangs of eyeless vipers; and it was said that the venom had to be extracted on a moonless night. All it took was a single stray beam of moonlight to taint the serum and bring out its most dangerous qualities. Instead of clearing one's illusions, a dose of tainted serum would drive a person into a permanent, irrevocable madness.

Oracles are fortune tellers, which is already very Star arcanum-y adjacent. Ophidian is derived from the Grecian root for snake, which is very dark magic-y accordingly. We know that the Oracles were ancient if they predate Elarion, and we don't know whether they were humans, elves, or both. The fact that this lore is 1) here and 2) connected to Kpp'Ar, who it seems Viren likewise 'inherited' the staff from AND who had a perfect twin box that matched the one Aaravos has in his mirror... None of it bodes well, and I think there's reasonable speculation that the Oracles had some connection to a Startouch elf at least, once upon a time, and possibly ties to the Celestial elves as well.

All of this to say is that whatever the Celestial Elves stance on Aaravos is will inform their practical role in the story, yes, but will also inform what he's been Waiting patiently for all this time, I think.

If the Celestial elves are largely against Aaravos, then them hiding themselves and hiding these powerful and dangerous objects makes sense; cloaking themselves from him would take time and effort and if he's not willing to go back to 'Heaven' without being able to kill people, then maybe he's been waiting all this time to locate the Nova Blade (which Callum is now taking him directly to; great!) or one of the quasar diamonds is his missing piece, or whatever.

This would give me more pause as 1) said info was found in like one afternoon of searching in the Great Bookery, which Aaravos presumably would've had access to and 2) the Starscraper is probably the Star Nexus if there is still one, so I'd imagine Startouch elves would know where it is. That said, Callum and Zubeia never made the mirror connection (Callum had no reason to think it was stolen, and Zubeia had no reason to think that if Viren still had it Callum wouldn't have noticed upon inheriting the mage study right away, so wires got crossed) so who knows. Sometimes story's gotta story so reality's gotta bend a bit!

If Aaravos has been looking for information and/or an object outside of the Starscraper's walls (a spell? the cube?) then the Celestial elves pivoting to being a more antagonistic force makes more sense to me. If they have no reason to hide from him, then they have significantly less reason to be narratively Opposed to him. That doesn't necessarily mean they're exclusively evil or anything (though they could be!), but I could see internal fracturing and having our one named Celestial elf, Astrid, be a contrarian force for good as things go to shit (much like how Ethari is our one Silvergrove villager because he breaks the Ghosting spell, or we spend more time with N'than because he's willing to go against drake rider traditions).

We know regardless of anything else Callum and Rayla can't just waltz in and have everything they want immediately handed to them on a silver platter without a hitch, so at best there might be a trial or two to pass (which speaks to some ambiguity about the danger Aaravos poses) and at worst, they might lure the two in with a false offer of help and security / trials only to actually just rip the floor out from under them.

Conclusion sort of

The good news is that by the end of S6 we will probably know most of these answers, excitedly enough! Given that the Merciful One has their stardust quote to Aaravos in 6x01, and that 6x09 is called Stardust, Aaravos referencing that line while he gets some of his vengeance would track accordingly (especially because know he says it at one point, thanks to the first teaser trailer).

Additionally, it's likely that since the end of S6 is the most 11th hour "worst possible things ever are happening" moment, Aaravos getting to have some of his revenge is I think a fair expectation to close out the season, and give us lots of high stakes for S7. Whatever he's been patient over, his waiting will finally be over, and the apocalypse of sorts will start, for the Stars that he's finally strong enough to 1) return to and 2) wreck havoc upon but also for everyone else, too.

But yeah - this was definitely a more rambling meta than most and I hope it got you thinking! It's hard to believe that in under two months we'll have answers to some of these questions we've been asking for so long, and I can't wait to find out what they are!

#tdp #the dragon prince #predictions #analysis series #analysis #worldbuilding #celestial elves #tdp aaravos #aaravos #pre series #deep lore dive

[lazerv4]

Thoughts on Game Changer (Seasons 1 to 5)

Just my raw thoughts not a review or anything

A.K.A. a small love letter to dropout.

One day you are a simple person scrolling through shorts/reels/tiktoks, just mindlessly looking for something entertaining to watch for like a minute at a time, suddenly you stumble upon a weird game show with ridiculous stipulations and incredibly funny rants in the middle of it, you think to yourself wow I really wanna watch the full show but then you find out it’s exclusive to a streaming network called Dropout and you don’t really want to spend money on it, but you keep stumbling upon the shorts and suddenly you start getting other shows like Um, Actually, Dirty Laundry and Dimension20, your curiosity gets the better of you and you subscribe on either the main page or become a member on their youtube channel and boom, your world has been turned completely upside down by a new hyperfixation that might be some of the best and highest quality streaming every made, a community of people that truly care for each other and feel like they are creating things they really love, this is about one of those, the darling of CEO and host Sam Reich, the always entertaining Game Changer the only game show where the game changes every show, my favorite show on Dropout and just one of my favorite shows of all time. But as we know the only way to learn is by playing, the only way to win is by learning and the only way to begin is by beginning.

Season 1 is short but a swat and beautiful little beginning, it starts with the iconic Lie Detector episode where a lot of the popular clips come from, a brilliant idea by Sam to bamboozle his players with the twist that the robot indicating if they are lying is really their partners in the next room just pressing a button, a very ingenious and funny concept that would be fully perfected in season 6 but for now it starts the show with the right leg with both concept and contestants as this is also the debut of all time favorite Brenan Lee Mulligan, one of the most fun to watch comedians in general be it improv or not. The episode is followed by a 3 time game samer that would eventually turn into its own show making some noise which I will probably explain further if I cover the full show. Being two for two is fantastic but the show still hit us with some other great episodes such as a Game of Prizes which sees the contestants guessing what prizes are real and which are just made up words put together to sound appealing, Whodunnit which is a who would have thought a whodunnit and finally Nom Nom Nom a flavor guessing game with a big disembodied mouth approving or disapproving their choices. The selection of Season 1 was small but a strong start for the show and setting what we would come to know as the game changer formula plus it gave us a lot of the shorts that we still see promoting it to this day even 4 years and 6 seasons later.

Season 2 begins with a game samer that being the previously mentioned second part of the segment that would turn into Make Some Noise which is a little strange of a start but the waters where still being tested and Dropout was still CollegeHumor which was owned and operated by IAC, a company that expected ridiculous profits from the young streamer that even with its high quality programming was nearly impossible. Episode 2 in a way is revenge against IAC as Sam very clearly is just giving away money for making the contestants do ridiculous challenges testing the good old phrase, how much money would you do that for to it’s full extend, this is follow by Sleeper Agents, one of my favorite underrated episodes where the contestants must go outside and talk to random people trying to trigger a response from a set of questions to see if they are hired actors playing the titular sleeper agents or just normal people walking down the street. Another banger and progenitor of some of the other popular clips is A Sponsored Episode were in a fun twist the contestants must become infomercial hosts and sell Sam on some ridiculous and stupid products like the iconic only p keyboard or flavored toilet paper for eating ass it’s just hit after hit and even with all that it’s not the best episode this season. Next we get another underrated episode with The Everything Factory where contestant most essentially become workers with an assembly line and construct different contraptions all to the glee of Sam and his wicked imagination but as fun as it is being sandwiched between the sponsor and the finale is a tough spot as the grand ending to season 2 brings us possibly the most iconic Brendan moment and by extension the greatest rant in the history of game changer with the episode Yes or No which I implore you to watch before I spoil the twist. The episode is simple, Sam will keep asking continuously yes or no and awarding points with seemingly no rhyme or reason with the objective of figuring out the rules of the game and why he awards points, at first it seems completely random until something weird starts to come to our attention, Brenan isn’t scoring points, which in game about 50/50 you would think would be impossible and you would be right as it is slowly figured out by everyone and finally by Brenan himself that the rule is simply that he cannot win anything which trigger the mother of all monologues as he compares himself to Icarus flying too close to the sun as a competitor and a statistical wonder before delivering the punchline at the end and wrapping this season with one of the greatest moments in the show’s history as the ending theme kicks in and Sam says goodbye until season 3 arrives.

Season 3 was heavily affected by the covid19 pandemic as episodes had to be filmed remotely via zoom or an equivalent, a lot of is a little forgettable as the struggle to make the show work was front and center but still a few gems came out of it like the premier Tell Us About Yourself in which they have to figure out the identity of a secret masked individual (who turns out to be Tony Hawk), the game samer Sell Outs which is a repeat of the sponsored episode, the always fun Secret Samta duology in which well they do a secret santa spin on a competitive game to a really hilarious extend, a personal favorite in Make It Fashion which is about well making outfits out of nothing, Tome of Terror follows as a horror story maker and the finale Next Slide Please which weaponizes random ted talk slides to create funny presentations in a very Jackbox way that is still very entertaining regardless. Overall Season 3 struggled but it did the best it could with the hand that it was dealt and Sam should be commended for his handling of the situation and the way he still made the show work and be fun while people needed it most, it hits a little different now that it’s all over but it is by no means a skip and has the same classic laughs even if they are from different points in the map.

Season 4, one of my favorite preview graphics of all time that I really really want as poster Sam please I need this. S4 gives us many many iconic episodes, possibly the highest number of them to date and some really special episodes so this section might be a little long as I want to talk extensively about this season. First off it starts with Sam Says that while pretty tame this time around grows into possibly the single best series of game samers in the entire show with the ways it twists such a simple game as simon says into pure chaos and fun which is then followed up by another progenitor for a game samer with Like My Coffee which birthed some incredibly iconic clips like the green virginal one from Grant and was just incredibly funny the first time around and also when it came back again, now we just need a third one to wrap up the samer. Noise Boys follows which at this point I’ve explained enough and you should know what it is and then another game samer (are you getting tired of reading game samer yet) with the last and possibly greatest Secret Samta which just ups the ante by making it happen in the actual studio this time and works wonders on giving this samer a proper closure. Filmed Before A Live Studio Audience is one of the most interesting and experimental episodes yet with essentially a clap and boo track slowly leading the contestants into a sort of sketch action by action and thrive on their bewilderment at the situation they are in. Then comes one of my favorite episodes with The Official Cast Recording and this one is special, the sheer amount of talent being shown by improvising an entire musical even with it’s wonky story is fantastical, the numbers are all so incredibly good and the ongoing jokes make me laugh every time, it is truly a wonder that it was even possible to create this entire game which also spun off into it’s own series with Play It By Ear. The episode is just a marvel to behold and while not a recommendation to introduce people to Game Changer it is an incredible showcase on what makes this show unique and interesting so enjoy your temporary stay on Mounport. We then reach one of the most beautiful displays of love you can ever see with Don’t Cry, the episode starts of as a seemingly normal challenge about not crying with some games but as it goes on it starts to get really emotional and lovely till it reveals itself to be a tribute to Jess Ross their friend who had a really rough pandemic that canceled her wedding. This episode is so special, it never fails to make me cry and just makes me feel like so incredibly happy. I won’t spoil much more because it really is an experience you should have but I do wanna say that if there is anything I can ever ask for in life it is to be loved by the people around me at least a little like how everyone at dropout loves Jessica Ross.

Resuming the normalcy in this random collection of words I’ve been rambling on for a while now we have Race to the Bottom which also turned into a game samer, can you tell this season is good? it’s basically a reverse bidding war with the twist that the contestants have to unionize to win the game, which is kind of a really cool and interesting message  that was somehow given through a game show. It’s a great episode and will hopefully turn into a great trilogy when the third one drops. Then we have the final two parter, another progenitor of game samer and of technically it’s own mini season during season 5 Survivor which puts the contestants in a game of well Survivor, a simple but really fun idea since Survivor the actual show is an incredibly entertaining reality but with the unhinged cast of dropout anything can go so further beyond, particularly because Brenan is in this episode and it turns out he really loves Survivor so he will do anything to win and the twists and turns this creates are so mesmerizing and shocking you won’t know what to expect until the season ends and you are watching the extra episode on the things this season Cut For Time which is a new addition that has Sam talking you through everything that happened during the episodes and what they couldn’t show, think of it as extra features on a DVD/Bluray. It is quite short but it wraps an incredible season just reminding you of how great of a run it was as you see small parts of all previous episodes and at this point you can just smile as Game Changer has been fully realized and shown that it is one of the greatest pieces of TV to ever exist.

Now it’s a little awkward to go into Season 5 after how I ended the last segment but rest assured the momentum didn’t stop and it will never stop as we kick off the new season with Sam Says 2 a game samer from last season that is as funny as it was previously with new running jokes and some incredibly smart and weird prompts from Sam to keep the contestants on their toes even in a game as simple as simon says. If you are watching this in a playlist you’ll immediately see this season’s new feature in the BTS videos which are short 6 to 10 minute episodes about well the making of the episode with Sam explaining the origin of the game and the why of the selected contestants which in general is just very interesting ad a cool extra feature that we got along the Cut For Time at the end so it’s a general gain plus it’s pretty good. A game samer into a game changer it’s Karaoke Night a kind of spiritual successor to my beloved The Official Cast Recording but with pop music instead of musicals and there is no structure it’s more about impersonating styles of several musician correctly and well this is another incredible display of raw talent and a very fun episode that while it starts a little slow it wraps up magnificently into a crescendo of it’s own making which drops us off into the next episode, another game samer with Like My Coffee 2 a funnier and stupider evolution to a very simple concept that somehow keeps finding ways to entertain and just bring me joy whenever I click on the video on dropout. So far we’ve had two samers and one changer which means that we need a changer and what a game changer we got with an absolute top 5 Name A Number which comes with an all time cast rivaled by few in Becca Scott, Izzy Roland and Erika Ishii bringing in pure chaos to a game that at first seemed simple with just prompts that they had to name how many times they could perform until midway through the game the prompts become unknown until the number has been named, the absolute diabolical connivingless of Sam has been fully realized and deliver some of the absolute funniest of laughs and some incredibly hard to watch cringe. I hope Becca got her money for the feet stuff. A Game Most Changed seems to be a somewhat divisive episode that people either really like or don’t seem to care for at all, it’s an improvised shakespearian play with random prompts throw in about the topic and things that need to be mentioned which just in the raw concept you should know if that appeals to you or not so moving on to the next episode which is another instantly iconic one As A Cucumber which in case you can’t tell it’s an episode about remaining calm but with Katie, Brennan and Carolyn onboard you know shit is about to go down. The way this episode works is by attaching heart rate monitors to the players and by maintaining their resting heart rate below 20 above they can score points and hence win the game. The approach taken by each one of them was varied with Katie’s not so good attempt at just remaining cheerful and normal, Brenan’s competitive enlightenment and Carolyn’s laid bad chill switch we see all kinds of reactions and ways people can be driven to madness, particularly in what might be the peak of all Game Changer clips is the name that bird segment in which Brennan completely loses his temporarily acquired enlightenment in a sort of calm rage as he gets more and more upset as the segment continues before it’s revealed to be roose to upset Brennan and break his streak. This episode is just great, I hope it become as samer with season 7 later this year and so we move to the next episode which happens to be a double parter, the first non finale one which is The Bi Bachelor a show that does well The Bachelor with Grant O’Brien being the contestant and having to choose from a pool of candidates to go on a trip to Cabo San Lucas.

The game has so many twists and turns that covering it would just be a retelling of the entire thing and you don’t need that, you need to sit down and watch this great parody of trashy tv with an ending you are just not ready for. The finale not finale is Escape The Green Room, why finale not finale well because the true end of Season 5 is an extended semi season that will get it’s own spot after this but now Escape the Green Room, Game Changer’s take on the escape room. The episode begins with the contestants on a room that is not the normal show floor awaiting the order to go proceed downstairs and begin the episode, Sam is there with them until he is called downstairs mid magic trick and then the door locks and the screen turns on, the game begins. Secretly the entire room has been customized and modified around the classic escape room concept that if you’ve ever been to one you know how the episode will go with the exception that Siobhan, Brenna and Lou just really don’t give a shit and will tear through everything to get out in another banger of an episode that had my laughing the whole way through, this one also has one of the most interesting BTS videos as it goes into the making and design of what was basically making a escape room from scratch. I would love for this to be made into an actual place I can visit but at least I got to see it happen and it was wonderful. This sort of ends the season as the next few episodes are kind of it’s own thing but the Cut For Time episode is after them in the playlist but it also has its own playlist so I’ll just handle it like a limited series sort of event that will be talked about as a single episode instead of the 5 episodes it is.

Game Changer Battle Royale a 3 hour plus spectacular semi samer to the original survivor episode that takes all that made that episode great and dials it up to 11, as the show is longer, the totems are harder to find, the challenges are harder and there is more on the line than ever before. Everything about this mini series is gold with it being incredibly funny and sometimes even impressive in what it’s capable of doing and a very funny surprise guest that showed up out of nowhere, the one and only fault I can think of that is not even a fault is that Ana Garcia who was making her debut in Game Changer got injured on episode one and we missed out on her antics since she has proven to be an incredibly funny comedian in every other show she has show up on dropout. Battle Royale was just so much fun and reached the apex of the reality idea for Game Changer which I’m not sure if it can be topped but it can for sure be iterated upon and I do hope we come back to see it again every few years.

Now to wrap up this massive massive post I just wanna say that I love dropout, they are a wonderful set of people that truly do care and deserve all the support they get, a lot of entertainers and comedians have been recently trying to leave youtube and copy the dropout system without getting what made dropout great to begin with, it is the charm, the effort and pure love they put into everything they make that makes it so great, not the production values or how much money they spend on it, it’s about the people it gives a home to and what they are able to accomplish when you give a genius free reign to make whatever they think is best, dropout is a special place and Game Changer is a great signature show to lead the brand, I will always love it and be here to support it, it is as Brennan once said to Sam “You’ve made a home where my favorite people get to show the world how brilliant and amazing they are.”

#dropout #game changer #tv shows #rambles #ramblings

[dinitride-art]

Does anyone else stare away from their document while writing and think “what would Mike/Will actually say…” and just start flipping through their mental library of Stranger Things until they find an expression or line of dialogue that supports/changes what they’re writing? …or is that just me

#byler #guys please tell me someone else has a catagory #that’s just stranger things #and a subsection that’s just mike or Will #because I was writing something about Will #and I was like #I want him to do this thing for Mike #but how would will actually do this? #and I started searching for any occurances of a similar situation in my brain #or anything that would indicate how Will would do this thing #and I decided on #oh okay he cares about people a lot #but he also doesn’t put up with bullshit #but usually in an unintentionally kind way #because that’s just who he is #but also he’s going to stop whispering and just say aloud to anyone who can hear him #that Mike is being stubborn #and he’s going to get Mike to sit down so he doesn’t pass out #without having to do all the work himself #and idk if that’s ooc but #I flipped through my brain for that #…do you guys write like this?

[piningpercussionist]

Soooo for the future AU with married Kim and Ramona, who do you think would take whose last name?? Or would they double barrel them?? Or not mess with their last names at all? Was literally lying awake thinking about this last night it means far too much to me

Oh man... much to consider...

Obviously, the funny/correct (/j) answer is they end up hyphenating it as Pine-Flowers.

But honestly like.. either of them taking the others name is also so cute? Kim Flowers, Ramona Pine.... they make me very 💞💞💞

(Flowers-Pine is also a fine order for the hyphenated take, and arguably more funny since Pine-Flowers is right there, but I think Pine-Flowers has better flow, ya know?)

Of course, this is taking at as a "legitimately married" au as I have taken you to posit here,, whenever I think about their future selves, personally, I've been thinking about it like "yeah Ramona's still married to Scott actually. This changes nothing for me" ahfduksfjdh

#like i see them still giving eachother rings and maybe calling eachother by their own respective last names while they go about whatever it+ #+is they're doing... #they cant file formally since ramona isn't divorced but it only gnaws at Kim sometimes because it's Scott Fucking Pilgrim- Ramona otherwise+ #+gives no indication that Kim has anything to worry about. and she doesn't! imo anyway #(idk so far as im concerned until bryan tells us what Future Kim is up to i am considering them Canon your honor shjfshjdhf and thats how + #+that works out in my mind considering canon statements made) #((plus is explains to me why even older scott would drag kim there for the final showdown...)) #spto #kim pine #ramona flowers #ship stuff #kimona #pineflowers #ramkim #kimram #kim x ramona #ramona x kim #thats all im doing maybe. we'll see if i decide to add more/longer ones #ooc #txt #cassmouse #tysvm for the ask! <3 i also lay awake thinking abt them... they are everything to me.... #((also i generally need to be thinking abt future kim for a Thing. sans pineflowers Tragically but For A Thinggg....)) #asks #(forgot that. whoops.)

[pochapal]

revisiting the "bodies with no faces" argument to prop up a faked corpse theory is. hrm.

#umineko liveblog #thinking back to the first twilight and how everyone except for two people had their faces destroyed #which leaves you with two options. either suspect krauss and/or shannon or suspect everybody except those two #battler's thinking pushes you to the four but none of the siblings or gohda really indicated the ability to do a murderscheme like this #shannon almost definitely knew more about the witch narrative than she let on #but that makes it clear she was killed by mistake and was probably intended to survive for longer than she did #krauss is sly enough to maybe do the fake death thing #but he's not in on the witch narrative so there's no way he could have done any of this #and there's no way genji would permit number one failson supreme to survive #going to the other four. gohda is not relevant enough for this kind of plotting #rosa's character arc was tied up with maria and not the wider series of murders #rudolf had unfinished business with that 'i'm gonna die' thing we never got resolved #but i think if anything that mystery'll tie into solving the epitaph's riddle rather than the actual murder stuff #and kyrie was a tutorial character there to introduce some of the story's themes #she was a little sly and calculating but her whole thing was about how status triumphs over smarts on rokkenjima #so really none of the dead six fit a culprit profile nicely even if it is plausible

[brookheimer]

……starting to think a lot of you do not know what the word empathetic means

#i have a lot to say about this but it is going to have to wait a few days until i’m no longer up to my ears in work #but here’s a little thing to tide you over: empathy does not a good person make #a capacity for empathy is in no way a capacity let alone willingness for good #empathy and intense horrendous cruelty are not mutually exclusive #if you think that evil comes in a single form if you think evil is just pure callousness coldness spot-it-a-mile-away inability to love #then no fucking wonder people keep doing evil terrible things like in real life and your response is always ?! W hat ?! #shocking: terrible evil people are still people. they are not robots of pure malice. they were once babies with coloring books #that’s not saying we should feel bad for them or anything at all!!! just that you guys seem allergic to acknowledging that it doesn’t take a #category 5 sociopath to commit an atrocity #everyone go read arendt’s banality of evil and go watch act of killing by joshua oppenheimer #no wonder trump keeps winning. y’all don’t view his supporters as people with any qualities other than Racism #like i know this is a fictional character but the response here is so indicative of this much broader issue that makes me want to scream #i get it. you’ve lived in a bubble your whole life and never interacted with people vastly different from yourself and had to acknowledge #their personhood as much as their viewpoints disgusted you. talk to a conservative once in your life it might be mind blowing #not bc you’ll be like WOAH :o THEYRE NOT SO BAD AFTER ALL! no!!!!! because they ARE that bad and they are also regular normal people!!!!! #you are all so incapable of viewing anyone you dislike as having internal lives! christ! #this is how trump won! how do you not see this! #seriously go watch act of killing go watch anwar who murdered hundreds of people in cold blood warmly scold his grandchild for poking a duck #too hard. like the most horrifying part of horrible ppl who commit atrocities is that they aren’t caricatures of evil #we wish they were it would make it easier to understand #agh i’m rambling i’ll shut up #god watch ppl be like Uh why are you defending trump/genocide/fascists etc #dumb fucks i’m telling you the most terrifying part about those people is that they are actually people that’s what makes it so hard to #comprehend bc atrocities are so much easier to swallow when you can pretend a force of pure evil is behind it #okokokok good night lol

[archduke-enver-gortash]

posting on here is like my sisyphean boulder i'm constantly rolling tbh

#god i am trying so hard to just have fun and be myself #but when i do that i'm immediately a strange outsider creep #and since i can't really mask my version of masking is just not talking and then obviously you don’t find any joy in fandom spaces either #i will always be a shitty unlikable freak no matter how much i pretend otherwise. it was obvious from the start that getting involved in #fandom spaces was a fucking mistake. it's always a mistake because you're some laughing stock at best and a horrifying freak at worst #i don't blame people for not liking me i've realised what an awful person i am long ago #but it's always so hard witnessing something like fun social groups from the sidelines knowing you'll never be a part of it #this is why my mental state has been deteriorating so severely in the last few months. that Realisation once again nothing fucking changed #i know it's stupid to get so upset over fandom but it's only a pattern for me #i stopped trying to be friends with people when i was a teenager because it hasn't worked a single time #this attempt at integrating myself into the wotr and bg3 fandom by sharing my shit was just one mistake #gortash/zeke is so different from anybody else’s work and i wish i could find joy in something that it isn’t fucking deranged but i can’t #like yes it’s just fandom bullshit! gortash/zeke is a fucking oc x canon ship! why am i getting so upset over it! #i love writing them. i’ve never been this happy writing anything. and it’s entirely indicative of a common pattern in my life #when i earnestly share parts of myself/things i’m passionate about people get creeped out. and honestly? rightfully so #i would leave the discord servers i’m in because it’s fucking crushing me dude. this is so petty but i’m so jealous of what you people have #but in one i am server owner and i don’t want to just dump that responsibility onto someone else and then dip #and in the other two i’m not sure anyone would even notice that i’m gone but i still worry about being rude #though i’m not entirely sure i didn’t get invited to one of those just so people could laugh at me. idk probably just being paranoid but i #it’s been gnawing at me #ok no if i’m being this vulnerable on tunglr.com i can also say that part of me staying is also still having the hope that i could fit in #one day. logically i know it won’t happen but it’s nice to have hope sometimes #watching you all from through the window having fun like a creep #so yeah. i’ve always felt like this but it’s been rapidly getting worse with my failed attempt at the bg3 fandom #idk just been crying non-stop for the last few hours. went through an entire pack of tissues in an hour it’s very disgusting #they’re all lying around me as i’m typing this like a pillowfort of snot lmao #so yeah. idk. if someone could come over and lobotomise me that’d be nice. orin where are you when we need you most #i never had any friends irl so i foolishly gave this a shot. i’m sorry #also doesn’t help that i can see someone dropping me for people that are easier to be around in irl rn #it just hurts because it’s always like that. someone you are around when you have no other option at best. not even that sometimes

[true-blue-sonic]

What is even the point of Silver living in the future? It’s not his future anymore and he has no friends or family there. There’s nothing for him there. Now that he has precognition he should just live in Sonic’s time and get visions of disasters. 

Seriously there’s no point in his future or time travel. We’ll never see it, Silver only cares about the state of it and he can only go to Sonic’s time anyway.

I find this an interesting question myself. The best answer I can give as to why Silver keeps returning to the future is that him being from the future is "his thing", just like how having PK is "his thing". It's just something very much intertwined with his character; basically every bio he has makes mention of it, for example. But I also agree with the notion that him being from the future opens up some issues. I've seen statements that it is difficult to make Silver relevant if he must travel to the past every time, for example, which I don't disagree with (but for me, the same could then be said about Blaze and the Sol Dimension or Knuckles and the Master Emerald). Adding to that, I do not believe we know for certain if its state is generally 'destroyed' or 'saved' and if Silver grew up in a destroyed world (said in multiple bios) or a good one (I'd argue that is implied in Rivals 1, with Eggman Nega almost certainly having stolen the camera from someone else and Onyx Island being both a paradise and having developed industry on it that I do not believe Angel Island currently has). Furthermore, the Rivals games are also not very consistent to me about if the future has actually gotten rewritten or not (but it tentatively seems to lean that way, since Silver says at the end of Rivals 2 he hopes the new future is a happy one), and we legit just do not know how its alleged destruction goes. Does Silver indeed intervene before something bad can happen, or does the future actively turn bad before his very eyes and he goes back in time to undo that again? I am truly not certain if there's ever been a clear-cut answer from a credible source, though I am pretty sure there's multiple conflicting explanations from non-credible ones... but that really doesn't help make things clear. And lastly, we also do not know what he has in his own era when it comes to friends and family, nor is it ever clearly shown or said how he time-travels in any game other than '06. With all that combined I can see why having him return again and again gets... well, confusing, haha!

In that regard, I also feel there is merit in the idea of him just staying for good in the past. His friends are there, it's consistently where the action happens anyway, and Team Sonic Racing indeed hints at him having a sense of precognition. The Japanese version actually dives into it more, with Silver asking himself at the very end when Eggman's battleship is going down if that is what was causing his bad/nagging feelings. Considering he was necessary there to help carry people and racecars off it to safety, it does imply to me that that scene might have intended to show it as a genuine skill of his. Shame the English version cuts that moment out entirely. So yeah, the point of Silver being in the future is, to the best of my explanations, legit just the fact that's how he has been conceptualised, making it "his thing". But it does cause confusions for me, because of how much there is not clearly explained and all the contradictory information out there from non-game sources. I think having Silver stay in the past for good could make for a nice move on Sega's part, assuming it is within his own decisions (so not forced by A ThingTM that is entirely unexplained to us and removes all his agency, for example). I think it'd be a nice resolution for Silver to see his heart lays in the past, and he can still protect his own world from there too!

#*A Thing*TM is a reference to that Fast Friends Forever website that said Silver travels to the past with portals these days btw #How. Why. What are these portals. Where do they come from. Who is making them. How do they manage to send Silver to the right time- #-in the past when disaster is striking and why are they apparently also totally cool with him going Extreme Gear racing. #bonus points for Silver in the games never having indicated that it is not *himself* sending himself to the past #and a Sonic Channel artwork from way back in the day saying he uses Chaos Control #*and* the comics suddenly writing that Silver cannot control his time-travelling (which directly makes them contradicts themselves on top: #in issue 12 Silver says he is staying in the past as he does not think the real threat is gone; aka actively sticking around by choice- #-which to me does not at all imply that he cannot control his time-travelling for whatever reason.) #but it is contradictory information from various non-game sources like these about topics the games do not explain properly or extensively- #-that do make things more unclear‚ I would say #I myself try to stick to the games as best I can with Sonic Channel as further source‚ but the problem there is there's just not a lot said #definitely things implied clear enough (like Silver just being able to go to the past whenever he wants) but not explicitly shown #and to add to that: I don't think Silver is *important* enough of a character for Sega to begin changing him up in such a way to begin with #I do not think him having the resolution of staying in the past would add something to a story‚ because he is hardly in any focus anyway #so unless we get a story wherein he plays a huge role and gets much attention‚ I doubt anything in this situation will change.😅 #silver the hedgehog

[dutybcrne]

Kaeya is rather touch averse, cringing away from casual contact people give him under the guise of being distracted or idle movement. He's used to it, the Ragnvindrs and Adenlinde got him used to frequent affectionate physical contact, but it can still be entirely Uncomfortable if he's touched by someone outside those he is close to or someone he's otherwise Allowed to touch him.

#hc; kaeya #//Mentioned before; but am Elaborating on other aspects since Aven get brain juices flowing for this #//Unlike Aven; he's FAR more tolerable of people who touch him unprompted. & more willing to indulge for himself outside his comfort people #//Unless he himself had actively given the indication he doesn't want it; in that case THEN he's likely to anger & retaliate #//But yeah; his response is usually Discomfort & trying to get away from it one way or another. Can tolerate it to appear friendly; sure #//But would rather not want people to touch him so easily. Is decently okay with brief touches tho; like shoulder pats or the like #//Will actively lean into it & encourage further touching ONLY as a means to an end; adjusting any wandering hands only when going too far #//Esp if he can use that like a carrot on a string–if they concede to what he wants; they can touch him more. Maybe MORE than just that too #//He won't initiate any touch unless he deems it Absolutely Necessary; WILL internally scream if they Immediately reciprocate the contact #//Uses it as a 'reward' sometimes; a little pinch of the cheek; a hug; getting right into their space; if he sees they'll react favorably #//Maybe more if they have connection enough; like Huffman or one of his longer-running liaisons. Is p ok w/ sleeping w/ them as reward #//Sometimes he forgets some people don't like that he does this; like Rosie. Tries the tactic to get a favor then Remembers #//Absolutely apologizes; feels mortified when she scrutinizes him for it. Esp since she'd be one of few ppl who KNOWS just how Averse he is #to it in the first place. Him slipping up like that in front of HER is smth he'd STRESS over. She could hold over his head for all he knows #//How can he even joke abt it? Worse if she asks abt his way of doing things or indicate she doesnt Like that he uses himself as bait #//Has absolutely accidentally tried to seduce/bait sb like that who he absolutely should Not have. Like Jean. Ended up playing it off like #a joke between friends; but damn near had a panic attack from the guilt the moment he was safely in his office. bc Jean is SPECIAL to him #could he treat her like THAT? How could he almost let her SEE that side of him? His casual charm and facade are ONE thing #//But him actively doing something like THAT; esp for Jean of all people; is COMPLETELY off-limits; no matter his feelings #//Actually; especially BC he harbors feelings for her. Ppl like Lisa on the other hand; he is VERY comfortable doing this with/to #//She GETS the flirty habit & dishes it back without losing image of him in the way someone he regards at Jean's level possibly could #//And as far as Lisa knows; it's Only a playful habit; not a means to an end. The ones who prolly Know might be certain folks in the church #//But that's just bc he gets frequent checkups after every lil Rendezvous of his. Which is why he's got dirt on Every Single Person There #//Except Barbara; but he absolutely makes SURE she's not the one he's dealing with whenever he goes. Wants to spare her his messes #//Damn; veered a little but it's alright. 'A little'; HA. Nah; my tags are but the cluttered corkboard of my thoughts jhdbfjdf #//Diluc; Addie & Jean are the people he most Fears finding out abt his methods. Doesnt wanna THINK abt how they'd feel/regard him after tha #//Knows for SURE it'd be painful if the way they treat him changes even a SLIGHT. ESP Addie; he can bear the other two; but Addie??? #//Nah; he'd be fucken DEVASTATED. That's the ONE person he knows hold true unwavering unconditional love for him; no matter what #//To do anything to damage that? He'd be so fucken GUTTED. He expects everyone to get fed up with/disdain him at some point. But not HER #//Keeps this shit on the down low by always having dirt on the people he gets Involved with; if not using keeping it up as an incentive

[wonder-worker]

It is difficult to argue that [Edward IV] was wrong in what he did. His advancement of [Richard of Gloucester] can be criticized only by those who believe that the only good nobleman is an impotent nobleman. Medieval kings did not think in these terms. Gloucester’s power was valuable because it ensured royal control of a significant and troublesome part of the country. Nor can Edward be blamed for not foreseeing the ends to which Gloucester might put his power. The duke had been a loyal upholder of the house of York, a central figure in Edward’s polity*; there was no obvious reason why he should not occupy the same role under Edward V. In this respect, precedent was on Edward’s side. Previous minorities had seen squabbles over the distribution of power, but no young king had ever been deposed. Even royal uncles traditionally drew a line at that, something which explains why Gloucester’s actions seemed so shocking to contemporaries and, perhaps, the reason why he got away with it so easily in the short term.

In the immediate sense, Gloucester must take final responsibility for what happened in 1483. However one explains the motives behind his actions, things happened because he chose that they should: there is nothing in the previous reign which compelled him to act as he did.

-Rosemary Horrox, "Richard III: A Study of Service"

*Richard was also, yk, Edward's own brother who had been entirely loyal to him during his life. The problem wasn’t that Edward trusted Richard (why wouldn't he?), the problem is that Richard broke that trust in a horrible and unprecedented way to usurp a 12-year-old. Please understand the difference.

#wars of the roses #edward iv #richard iii #edward v #my post #The arguments of Ross and Pollard (et al) are so profoundly unserious and ahistorical #casting an unforeseeable turn of events as a predictable ('structural') one as David Horspool rightly puts it #Ross specifically is entirely dependent on his own horrible view of Elizabeth Woodville and her family as the basis of his analysis #but anyway. as Horrox points out later in the book: #''although earlier events [during Edward's reign] cannot be said to have caused the crisis they did have some bearing in how it developed' #namely Edward's legacy of forfeitures in the 1460s; manipulation of property descents; and fluctuating royal favour. #the most prominent and politically important of all of these were the manipulation of the Mowbray and Howard family fortunes #This is often used to enhance the unserious and ahistorical arguments of historians like Ross and Pollard that Edward doomed his son #But as Horrox points out: Edward's reign did not exist in a vacuum and needs to be analyzed by actual historical context. #from a broader perspective his actions were not especially transgressive as far as English kings were concerned #NO MONARCH (Edward III; Henry VII; etc) died with every single one of their nobles 100% content and supportive #they weren't living in Disney movies and there's no point holding Edward IV to fairytale standards that did not exist. #More importantly Horrox points out that Edward's actions (eg: the Mowbray and Howard cases) need to be put into actual perspective #They were not perceived as problems and did not cause problems during his own reign. #They did not cause problems after he died before Edward V arrived in London. #They only became problems after Richard decided to seize power and deliberately exploited them as bribes for political support #Had Richard decided to support his nephew or work with the Woodvilles - Edward's actions (@ the Mowbrays and Howards) would be irrelevant #(It's also worth pointing out that we don't know WHEN Richard decided to usurp. It if it was a more gradual desire then his depowering #of the Woodvilles by exploiting Mowbray & Howard discontent would not have not affected *Edward V's* ascension or prospects) #ie: the problem isn't that discontent existed with a few specific nobles (that was normal) the problem was how Richard took advantage of it #In theory this sort of thing would have been a potential threat for ANY heir to the throne whether they were a minor or an adult #In itself it's not really unique to Edward and it's silly when historians criticize him and him alone for it. It was more or less standard. #(if anything the fact that he was able to do them so successfully is an indication of his authority) #We come back to Horspool's point: 'Without one overriding factor' - Richard's initiative and actions - 'none of this could have happened.' #which is where this analysis of Horrox's comes in :)