#ostracization | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

mysticdragon3md3 · 8 months

Text

I noticed some dialogue from the Nimona movie, and now I'm wondering if Ambrosius was bullied by the other Institute kids in his class. And did Ballister and Ambrosius end up so close, partially because they were ostracized together?

During that scene with the knights surveying the collapsed statues, Todd declares "This is his fault!" And then other knights joined in with Todd, to gang up on Ambrosius. You can hear them almost booing Ambrosius, while agreeing with Todd. The one clear "Tell him, Todd!" gets subtitled. But you can also hear "Yeah, that's right, Todd."

It sounded like all the other knights in Ambrosius's class were eagerly waiting for any excuse to attack him. Really sinks in the pressure Ambrosius felt to conform. They probably hated him because of the special treatment he gets as the direct descendent of Gloreth. Even in that very scene, the Director gives him special treatment, instantly giving him command of the mission to arrest Ballister, as soon as Ambrosius expresses interest in leading the mission. She even cites "We have a descendent of Gloreth to lead us!" Even though Todd was much more enthusiastic and probably reflected more of the same motivations/sentiments as the Director, she still chose the descendent of Gloreth.

Now it becomes clearer why Ballister and Ambrosius became close: They may have both been ostracized by the rest of their class, and only really had each other.

(Instagram post by the official storyboard artist estebravo mentions that Ambrosius and Bal met as children and agreed to go to school together, but I mean their likely mutual ostracization probably brought them even closer, since they would have been isolated together, from the rest of the class. https://www.instagram.com/p/CvK56M3vCEo/)

Ballister gets ostracized because he was the one commoner, "intruding" upon a space filled with the nobility class. Ambrosius gets ostracized because, as the descendent of Gloreth, he was always going to get special treatment. And considering Ambrosius's lack of motivation to become a knight (citing estebravo's storyboards that were cut from the final movie), the rest of the class probably hated him even more. Ambrosius probably didn't have to work as hard as Ballister, to prove he was worth taking up his spot in the Institute class, but Ambrosius would have had to work hard to make the special treatment he was likely given, probably seem more earned. After all, if his skill could justify his special treatment, almost or as much as his status as Gloreth's descendent, then the rest of the class probably would have to admit it was at least partially valid.

That probably wouldn't stop the bullying, but it would probably stop the bullying from being overt, constant, or from as many classmates. They'd at least hesitate before sabotaging his equipment or something. Or they'd worry about the consequences of getting caught going after the Director's "golden student". Maybe it'd be enough to get half of the would-be bullies to chicken out.

On the other hand, if they couldn't take out their frustrations on Ambrosius, it just might make them take it out onto Ballister even more, since he was the more "acceptable" target. I wonder how often that gave Ambrosius a guilt trip, or motivated him to beat them up in return. Imagine little Ambrosius having another parent-teacher conference in the Director's office because he keeps getting into fights, "disgracing Gloreth's legacy", and disappointing his parents, who I assume are very invested in their pride as Gloreth's descendants. No wonder Ballister has to hold Ambrosius back from defending him in the movie. Not just because Ballister cares about Ambrosius getting into trouble, but also because the ones Ambrosius beats up, probably come back to bully Ballister even harder for it. It's a bad cycle, that I'm sure they learn to navigate better as they grow older. Unfortunate they act like they have to placate it, even during that "locker room" scene.

I've heard some reaction videos call Ambrosius his class's number two knight, after Ballister. But if they're referring to ranking by skill level, I realized, do we ever actually hear the movie state Ambrosius's skill ranking, compared to his classmates? We know Ballister was number one, and he worked harder than everyone else. But I like the idea that Ambrosius would have also worked hard to make his special treatment seem justified. Maybe not just to keep off the bullying, but maybe also to prove it to himself. Maybe with Ballister's personal training being so demonstrably effective, Ambrosius would have asked Ballister to help him train, get tips, or just spar together a lot. If Ambrosius trained most often with Ballister, then I could believe Ambrosius as the second most skilled knight in his class.

#speculation #headcanons #processing thoughts #goldenheart #ambrosius goldenloin #netflix nimona #ballister boldheart #skill level #bullying #ostracization #shunned by the rest of the class #pinkfluidnf #ambrbalnf

117 notes · View notes

aspenforest732 · 3 months

Text

Bello Licentiae Chapter 8: Imagining Is Better than Remembering

Summary:

tw: heart attack, stockholm syndrome, deadnaming, threats of violence, coercion, child abuse mention, grief, loss, death mention, ostracization, quirk elitism, ableism, classism The promised drama :D part one of the provisional licensing exam 'text' JSL Text thoughts

Akira stared at the calendar for a long moment, guilt churning in their gut. They forgot. Now three days away, they started the advance meal prep for dinner that night since they wouldn't have time during the day. At least I won't have to see Asami. She should be at Wren Stadium. A confusing swirl of emotions washed over them. On one hand, Asami would be punished if she didn't get her provisional license. On the other... she'd at least be safer from their mess.

When not training, Akira threw themself into the search for Kurogiri's identity. They wrote even the smallest details in their nomu notebook. Anything could hold the final piece of the puzzle of his former life. They tried to break down the separate quirks that made up Warp Gate from what they remembered of the file and observations. Something about clouds, a sight-based warp, and something to do with coordinates or geography. One of the augmentations was a stabilizing mental fortitude quirk that seemed a common type among the more aware nomu.

Akira set reminders to eat, dodging their classmates and even Mad Banquet when they could. There were almost always leftovers and quick or ready-made meals in the fridge.

Saturday night, they made their way back to their room with dinner leftovers, sidetracked in the logic of quirk weaving. Stepping out of the elevator, they sighed and paused at the sight of Mad Banquet standing awkwardly at their door. Akira shifted the bowl into one hand and opened it, gesturing the group inside. ' Did you want to talk? '

"Are you okay? You've been isolating yourself from everyone," Koji asked, shifting awkwardly.

' I'm fine, ' Akira dismissed before taking in the tired, worried postures of their friends. They set the yakisoba on their desk and leaned back in their chair, letting their eyes close briefly. ' This is a hard time of year for me. I know I'm hard to be around, so I stay out of people's ways. '

Hitoshi bristled as Fumikage and Shoto grew more concerned. "Who told you that? If this is a hard time, we want to be there for you."

Cracking an eye open, Akira smiled slightly. ' No one said it, but I could tell. I don't want to talk about it, but I'll be fine. '

"If talking would not help, how can we help you?" Fumikage asked.

' Just let me take the time, and I'll make it up to you afterwards. September first is an important date to me, and I'll come to you guys when I'm ready. '

"If you can pass this test and get your provisional licenses, then you novice eggs will become chicks. You'll hatch into semi-pros. Do your best," Aizawa said after they finished collecting their costume cases from the bus undercarriage.

Akira looked curiously at the group of Shiketsu students approaching and shied away as one of them tried to join the class chant. They glanced to Aizawa as the student dramatically apologized, but the teacher only seemed mildly annoyed as he explained who Inasa Yoarashi was. Akira did a double take at the blonde girl's mild fascination with the blood now dripping from Yoarashi's head, but without any other signs, they decided to just keep an eye on her.

"Eraser? It's you, isn't it, Eraser?!" a shrill voice called out, immediately setting Akira back on alert as Aizawa flinched.

Drifting closer to their teacher, Akira gave a subtle sign for ' danger? ' as the colorful woman approached. Aizawa shook his head, but his open disgust spoke volumes before his mask of indifference slipped back into place.

They heard a quiet "fuck" from Hitoshi on their right as she got in Aizawa's space. ' That's Ms. Joke, she won't take the hint to back off ,' he signed when Akira looked to them.

"Let's get married," she said. Hitoshi made a choking sound, and Aizawa said no, his mask momentarily slipping into anger. "No? Good one!"

Akira stalked forward, mouth set in a hard line. 'Ms. Joke, do you realize you're making him uncomfortable?' they asked bluntly.

"Oh, don't worry about Shou! That's just our relationship," she laughed.

Aizawa's eye twitched as he said, "No, that's just you."

Ms. Joke stopped, confusion knitting her brow as she said more quietly, "I thought you enjoyed the teasing. If you want me to stop, I will and apologize for making you uncomfortable. I had no idea."

Akira pivoted back to the class as they quietly cleared a few things up, nerves even more frayed as they tried to intentionally relax their muscles. Ms. Joke called out Ketsubutsu Academy's second years as they caught up to her.

"I'm Shindo! U.A. this year's had trouble after trouble, so it must've been tough!" one of the kids at the front of the group started introducing himself by clasping hands. His smile didn't quite reach his cold, calculating eyes. Akira backed away as he got to Katsuki.

They bit back a grin as the fiery blonde burst out, "Stop pretending. What you're saying doesn't match the look on your face!"

Kirishima tried to apologize for his rudeness, but Akira just signed, ' He's right, though. '

"Hey, change into your costumes and go to the orientation. Don't waste time," Aizawa called out as a girl from Ketsubutsu started asking for autographs.

In the changing room, Akira heard a soft gasp and looked up to see Aoyama looking at their wrist, specifically a twine bracelet of red, white, and yellow with six beads. He went to say something, but Akira cut him off, ' Can't talk about it right now. ' Midoriya also noticed as they walked out but one look at their face had him respectfully nodding with sadness in his eyes and turning away.

Once Mera explained the rules of the first part of the exam, Mortis placed their targets on their forehead, the top of their right boot, and the inside of their left forearm. They didn't have as many options for unobstructed placements since their costume relied on constantly moving tassels to obscure movement.

"Everyone, don't get too separated! Let's move as a group!" Deku called out.

Mortis sharply nodded and confirmed that their classmates' coms were on the same frequency as theirs. Shoto and Dynamight with Red Riot split off so they could have space for their quirks, but the rest of the class started jogging away from the center. Mortis snorted at several students only just now realizing the bloodbath it would be since everyone knew about their quirks from the sports festival.

' My clones duplicate equipment, ' Mortis rapidly signed as Anima interpreted. ' I can start tagging the other groups once we start, but I'll quickly lose the element of surprise. Tell me over coms when you're ready for me to pass. '

"Isn't that cheating?" Creati asked. "And why aren't you using your coms?"

Mortis rolled their eyes. ' No, it's efficiently using my quirk. Signing is faster and more accurate right now. '

"Will a ball hitting your clones' targets count against you?" Deku asked, starting to slow as they approached the mountainous area of the stadium.

' I don't know, but I can block or dismiss clones as needed to avoid that, ' Mortis signed. Their capture scarf snapped up with their surprise as Mera announced the start of the exam. The group skidded to a halt. A hoard of students rose from the rocky outcroppings, a hail of balls catapulting toward 1-A.

Mortis warped behind cover and rapidly created clones from the first, warping them into engagement with the cocky and insecure kids to land a hit or two on each before dispelling.

With most of their focus on directing the dozen clones, Mortis didn't notice the steps coming up behind them until the person was a couple meters away. Mortis took a hard step as they warped on top of the rock formation and narrowed their eyes as Trophaeum rounded the corner.

Her gold and pink armored costume glinted in the sun, the red Wren symbol proudly worn on her chest. A pair of electrified escrima sticks – standard for non-offensive quirks in the family – hung from her waist.

"Hey, Umbra! Long time no see," she grinned.

Mortis slid down as Earphone Jack's Heartbeat Distortion dispelled their active clones, revealing their location. They fought to keep their expression neutral, and some of their anger seeped into their eyes from how Trophaeum winced. ' The hell are you doing here? You're supposed to be at Wren Stadium, not Takoba National. '

Trophaeum shrugged easily, "The family wants to start over with you, promote good relations. I'm here to make sure you pass the exam and to start repairing our relationship."

Mortis saw red and walked themself through a breathing exercise as they sharply signed, 'They lost any chance of good relations when they killed Minori. Did they even let you remember him?' Mortis scoffed and continued, 'What's the bare minimum you need to accomplish to not be punished?'

"Of course they did!" Trophaeum's expression cracked into hurt. "Minori died in a tragic training accident. I miss him every day."

"Mortis, are you alright?" Tsukuyomi asked over the coms, voice slightly distorted with his Dark Abyss move.

"Yes, Tsukuoymi. Sister here."

"I'm on my way," Siren ground out.

"No," Mortis immediately shot back. "Not obstacle."

"I... Are you okay, Aki?" Trophaeum took a hesitant step forward.

Mortis' capture weapon immediately rose to hover about their shoulders. ' Stay back, and yes. Again, what do you need to not be punished? '

Trophaeum gave them a sad, disbelieving look. "I don't know what weird notions you have of our family or why you think they control what I remember, but-"

Mortis waved them off as their capture weapon resettled. ' I know exactly what your family does, and I'm not interested in causing you pain. No matter how justified you think it is. ' After a tense moment, Mortis forced their expression to soften a little, ' Mission parameters. Give me your mission parameters for this. '

Trophaeum relaxed marginally and explained, "Establish nonhostile contact. Ensure you get your provisional license. Get my provisional license. Improve relations by a minimum of two factors."

Mortis sharply nodded and slapped a ball away with their capture weapon, warping as they danced to the side. A few students they hadn't met yet bore down on them while grinning maliciously and palming balls.

"You really shouldn't be talking so loud in an exam," the redhead said. "Never know who might hear."

Mortis warped again as the ground started to shake, getting sufficient clearance to see over the formations. Once they spotted Shindo at the epicenter, Mortis warped again onto the tip of a thinner formation while effectively giving their mid-air clone a heart attack to dispel it. They crouched like they'd seen Eraser do many times, letting their capture weapon hover about their shoulders to add to the gargoyle-like pose. Mortis grinned as their clone dispelled with the earthquake and several people nearly fell over at the sight of them.

"Did you seriously just... Mortis!" Siren groaned, and Mera announced the first person to pass with 150 taken down. "You're good to pass. We're split up, so you'll be less effective running support."

"Understood, good poo. Luck ," Mortis warped from their perch and quickly took out the redhead and blonde while invisible before dispelling their clone.

They turned back to Trophaeum as their targets lit up green, ' Consider this one factor. I won't target you unless you go after me. ' Mortis stalked off towards the break room, tassels rustling in the slight breeze of their own making and capture scarf restless with their tumultuous emotions.

Mortis did a double take as they noticed Primordial shoes on a student joining them on the walk to the break room. They offered a small smile and shook their wrist so the bracelet slid down enough for the other to see.

Eyes wide, they held out a gloved hand to shake, "I'm Anka or Apex. She/her."

Mortis shook her hand before signing, ' Akira or Umbra Mortis. They/them. Are you aiming to be the first Quirkless hero? '

Anka grinned, "Sure thing! I'm doing a double track with support so I can make my own items." She rubbed the back of her neck as her smile turned a bit awkward. "Not everyone wants to work with us, y'know?"

' If you ever need other work done or want another eye, Mei Hatsume will be open to working with Quirkless people once she graduates. She actually prefers working with quirks that aren't flashy. '

"I'll keep her in mind," Anka chuckled. She turned serious after a moment, expression falling. "Don't feel like you have to answer, but... are you more of a flowers or games person?"

Akira gently rubbed their bracelet a moment before responding, ' Games. ' The rest of the walk passed in reverent silence between the pair in contrast with the explosions and shouts ringing throughout the stadium. Akira rarely needed to use the code Haru taught them, but they regularly reviewed it in the evenings just in case. Colors for memorial bracelets were easy: red meant quirkless, white death, yellow family, and blue star trusted Quirked person. Each bead represented a year since the person's death. Flowers were representative of late bloomers and games of people who underwent Forced Quirk Manifestation. Going to a Quirkless person' party was being there for their final moments, usually before they jumped off a roof.

Akira exchanged numbers with Anka and emphasized that if she was ever in trouble or danger, they were a message or call away. No matter the time. They spilt off as they entered the break room, neither eager to draw attention to the other. Yoarashi was animatedly talking about a new hero on the scene with another prospect who looked somewhat uncomfortable, and more hopefuls trickled in after Akira.

They grabbed a selection of mostly seafood from the buffet, a tradition they held since it could be pretty cheap and there was no grave for Akira to visit. They quietly people watched as more prospects filtered in, especially keeping an eye out for underground heroes, but most were very clearly limelights between their color schemes and equipment.

When Shoto drifted in, Akira waved him over. They frowned as his expression shifted to confused curiosity and followed his gaze to Yoarashi, who was glaring at him. ' Do you know him? Besides the recommendation test? '

Shoto shook his head and sat down with a plate of soba. "I don't know if I did something to bother him."

' I can ask if you'd like. That way if it does have to do with your sperm donor, you won't have to deal with it. ' After a moment, Shoto nodded.

As their legs twinged, Akira pulled out the crutches from their utility belt and pressed the buttons to extend them. They walked over to where Yoarashi was still talking about Stamp Man and caught his eye.

"Ah! It's wonderful that you passed, too! You must have great passion," he broadly grinned.

' You could say that, ' Akira smiled awkwardly. ' I was wondering if you have a problem with Shoto? I'm a friend of his. '

Yoarashi's expression dropped into cold anger, and Akira winced but resolved not to waver. "I hate him and his father, Endeavor. While his behavior's changed since the entrance exam, Shoto has the same eyes."

Akira bristled and matched his glare with their own. ' Have you not been paying attention to the news? I thought Shiketsu would teach their students better. Endeavor is a flaming pile of shit who abused and neglected his children. If you ever make that comparison to Shoto to his face, ' Akira emphatically tapped their crutch as they got in his space, ' I will personally make sure you don't pass and will make your life a living hell. '

Yoarashi took a step back, surprise and a touch of guilt flashing across his face.

Akira sharpened their gaze and took a menacing step forward, "accidentally" jamming a crutch into his foot. ' Am I clear? '

"Crystal," Yoarashi muttered and slunk back to his classmates.

Akira pivoted back to their table and retracted their crutches as they sat down. ' Don't pay attention to that asshole, he hates Endeavor and you by extension. '

It didn't take long for students to start flowing in, rapidly increasing the room's volume. Akira tapped the lower button on their coms to turn on noise suppression and made their way over to the mini fridge to top off their costume reserves as the number of people who passed climbed to 82.

They turned around to spot Yaoyorozu limping in, mostly supported by Shoji and followed by Jiro and Tsu. Tumbler under their arm, Akira quickly made their way over and noticed Tsu was a bit sluggish and shivering. ' This should help Rich Miss reup her lipids quickly. Frog Girl, there are covered hot dishes on the far side of the buffet. Ear Jerk, Tentacle Boy, is there anything you need? ' Akira pulled a fresh bendy straw out of their belt and held the tumbler emphatically towards Yaoyorozu.

"I'm fine, thank you," Shoji said quietly after interpreting as Jiro shouldered past Akira.

"Thank you, ribbit," Tsu said and started slowly making her way to the buffet. Akira watched her for a moment before Jiro moved to offer some support.

' Peppermint and I already have a table if you'd like to join us, ' Akira offered. ' I don't know what your base line is, Rich Miss, but I can help monitor for fluctuation complications. '

"Why are you helping me?" Yaoyorozu asked with suspicion shining in her eyes.

Akira shrugged and started guiding them to the table, ' I can set aside personal feelings for first aid, and I know how much it hurts being in that state. Since I passed pretty quickly, I don't need much to top off my costume's stash. '

As Tsu settled at the table, Akira's brow knitted in confusion at their phone dinging. Soon, most people were looking at their phones. There was a headline notification: "Wrens announce new hero in training at U.A. Akira Mori's identity revealed and why they've been..."

Akira stared at their phone and sped through the article, anger simmering as they saw their dead name throughout it. The heads of the family had even implied in the press release that they'd be taking the Wren surname now that they didn't "need" to hide their identity. Their parents, Kanaye and Chinami, even spoke of how proud they were of their daughter. Akira directed their glare up as they caught sight of a familiar gold costume approaching.

"Hey there, I'm Asami Inoue or Trophaeum Wren. Yaoyorozu, good to see you again. I take it you're my sister's friends?"

' Sibling. ' Akira sharply corrected. ' What the hell are they doing? '

Asami grinned, "Come on, Aki, everyone's just excited that you can officially be in the lineup. It's great you wanted to prove you can do it on your own, but with the villain attacks, it makes more sense for you to be under the family name. Who would kidnap you now?" She laughed brightly.

Akira bristled but was keenly aware of the eyes on them. ' My hero name is Umbra Mortis. I'm going to be an underground hero, and I will be independent from the Wrens, ' they firmly signed while emphasizing the use of watashi over atashi. ' I will not be taking the surname. '

Notes:

I know Aizawa could tell Joke off, but I get the awkwardness and not wanting to make a scene. Akira absolutely will be and has been the extrovert in those situations. The code is based on SYITM : Everyone Has Someone by broken_radio on ao3. Idk how much I'll use it, but I like the idea.

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

1 note · View note