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#otp: death keep off; i am your enemy
brekkie-e · 9 months
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Horizon Asks
Thanks for the tag @maybirdie I salute you
1. Ride or die ship (your otp): Ereloy. Duh. Not even a question. Brain rot of the most severe nature.
2. Most annoying ship: I stand by the sentiment that we all need to stop with the shipping war drama in this fandom. So before I say anything more, I don’t find any of your ships annoying. I’m putting these down as “scroll past them” ships because they don’t suit my personal taste. Kotaloy and Kotallo/Talanah. His inclusion in these might come off like it’s something against him which is ironic cause he’s actually one of my favorite characters? I think the weak point of them for me is that they both feel like hot jock/hot jock, and apparently I cannot appreciate a ship that doesn’t in some capacity adhere to opposite’s attract. But I can see why it works for other people and if it makes you happy, I support it.
3. Second favorite ship: Abadund/Morlund, and for whatever reason Ourea/Sylens. I love imagining Sylens’ ears absolutely burning while he eavesdrops on her conversation with Aloy about what she had thought of him.
4. Favorite platonic relationship: I am OBSESSED with the dynamic between Kotallo and Alva. Obsessed I say. They are precious to me.
5. Underrated ship: It isn’t a ship, it’s a half built dingy that I am assembling myself but lost the instructions for. Talanah/Ivvira. In a very “enemies to lovers” scenario where Ivvira keeps finding this arrogant Carja traipsing through her lands and tries to kill her, but Talanah keeps defeating her and it’s driving her up a wall.
6. Overrated ship: Honestly I don’t really have opinions about other ships??? Like if it isn’t Ereloy or one of the other’s I’ve listed then genuinely it’s just sitting there, and I don’t care about it. Now if they were to make one end game, and it feels like I’m blindsided by it? Maybe I’ll have an opinion. But atm not so much. Just let me sit in my corner with my ships in peace.
7. One thing I would change in canon: Seconding the “one?” Vibes. There are a lot of nit picky things I would like to alter about how they handled Erend in Forbidden West, but ultimately he did play a good role in some of my favorite scenes. So I think if it came down to choosing the one thing I would change, it’s hands down Varl’s death. It felt like a lot of character development wasted and it’s frustrating to know that we won’t get to see the relationships he was developing grow any deeper. I think if you have to rely on character death to create an interesting story or to traumatize your characters, then youre not being creative.
8. Something canon did right:
Alva.
9. A thing I’m proud of creating for the fandom:
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My darlings.
10. A character who is perfect to me: I guess Alva’s already taken so…… hmm. I love Joruf’s vibes ngl. The man is so tired, and I just adore how he and the other vanguard treat Aloy like she’s one of the gang. The energy of Aloy showing up in the Daunt and Joruf acting like his coworker came in mid-shift to help him with a disaster was top tier.
11. The character I relate to most and why: I had to really think about this. I think I’m going with Zo? Mom friend to the core, but also known to cause problems of my own when the need arises. Like’s plant’s and nature and has a creative side. Values her community, but also criticizes the faults she sees in it.
12. Characters I hate the most: I mean the obvious, Faro sucks ass. But boy howdy did the Ceo give me the creeps too. Also I have a complicated relationship with Avad. Like the dude has done incredible stuff for his people, and I think he’s a great guy. But his blunders with Aloy (which i think are more an issue with how his interest in her was written than with the fact he’s interested period) and his dreams of handing off responsibility to his little brother rub me the wrong way. But it’s complicated, I can appreciate him.
13: Something I’ve learned from the fandom: To focus on what makes me happy, and stay in that lane. I think fandom is best enjoyed when you know what you want out of it, so you cater your online experience to that. Mary Kondo your blog. Block tags that don’t work for you. It doesn’t need to be because you absolutely hate something and the people involved. It just ensures that the content you see is catered to what sparks joy for YOU. If youre only dedicating so much time in a day to being online, don’t you want it to be time spent engaging with stuff that makes you happy?
14. Three tags I see out on ao3: hurt/comfort and slow burn? I don’t seek out enough tags lol
15: A song I strongly associate with my otp/favorite pairing: Bloodsport by Raleigh Ritchie, NFWMB by Hozier, Giant by Rag’nBone Man and Saviour by George Ezra. This question made me so happy. I am actually working on an Erend playlist rn that has a bit of an Ereloy spin on it. Oh also She’s Always a Woman by Billie Joel. Still a gem.
Tagging: I think everyone I know in the fandom has already been tagged?? But if that is untrue and you see this, please feel free to jump on board and consider yourself tagged by me!
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dangermousie · 3 years
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Hello !
I was wondering whether you could rate and tell us of your top 5 favourite webnovels/cnovels of all time ?! (Sorry if this has already been answered lol😅)
Thank you, stay safe and have a nice day🖤
Awww, thank you and that is such a lovely ask!!!
From n1 to n5, here they are (they happen to be all danmei.)
1. The Husky and His White Cat Shizun (2ha) - my n1 forever and ever.
Taxian Jun, the horrific cultivation emperor of the world who razed cities and destroyed sects, is surrounded on his mountain. The righteous sects are terrified to confront him but tired of living, Taxian Jun consumes poison and dies by suicide at the age of 32. And opens his eyes as 16 year old Mo Ran, Mo Ran long before he became Taxian Jun, Mo Ran who is excited at a chance to save the one person he loved and lost. Oh, and to deal with his loathed shizun, the unapproachable and strict Chu Wanning, his past life’s biggest enemy.
I have no idea if it’s objectively the best on this list but it hits every trope I love, its bleak worldview (the world will change only incrementally but that’s enough, average person will not appreciate the sacrifice but it’s still worthwhile, and love is worth everything) mirrors mine, and the sheer complexity of the plot and cascade of plot twists each of which is insane and yet completely logical, is amazing (this is a rare novel where it’s even more fun to reread than read for the first time because you keep seeing all the hints and trail crumbs laid out that you did not see the first time.)
And the characters!!! I mean, this novel has multiple universes/timelines, a side trip to the Underworld AND the demon realm, a plot more twisted than a store’s worth of pretzels and yet the thing that hits me the most are the characters. Mo Ran is my favorite web novel character of all time and I love Chu Wanning so. All the secondary characters are wonderfully written (and some of them made me bawl) and they are all complex. My opinion of all of them changed many times over; the novel doesn’t make it easy to love some of them but then you do and it’s so worthwhile! That slow change is one of the delights of the novel - I started out disliking the unpleasant, superior Chu Wanning and cruel, callow Mo Ran and then I loved them so so hard and cried for them so so hard and was in awe of their heroism and sacrifice and selflessness and capacity to love.
Oh, and the fact that this novel does something almost impossible - it has its protagonist start out as so clearly irredeemable and then slowly and painfully and thoroughly redeems him (without ever letting the reader forget what it is he needs redemption for.)
Also, for a novel that made me cry so hard I felt ill, this book is just so damn funny with the most sarcastic sense of humor imaginable (the serious angst doesn’t even kick in until 90+ chapters!)
Anyway I should stop or I will write a dissertation. But this is the one web novel that I would put in my top 5 not just web novels but any novels in any shape or form. The plentiful trigger warnings are there for a reason so stay away if they are an issue, but if not, if anyone hasn’t read it yet, what are you doing with your life?!
2. Stains of Filth (Yuwu) - another novel by the author of 2ha. Clearly she just pushes all my buttons every time. This one is much shorter and has a plot that is twisty but less twisty than 2ha. Still, all that means is that intensity and the pain are more concentrated.
Aristocratic Mo Xi and former slave Gu Mang were both legendary generals of the empire and lovers. But Gu Mang betrayed the country and switched to the enemy. Now he is back as a peace offering by that country and Mo Xi has to deal with the fact that his feelings are as strong as ever.
This novel!!! So much pain and intensity!!! So many amazing plot twists and supporting characters. The same bleak world view, the same unjust society, the same protagonists doing right things despite the cost. Mo Xi’s intensity and inability to let go (he’s imprinted on Gu Mang and that’s it) is romantic, bone-shakingly intense, and tragic all at once. And oh Gu Mang! So many times I just wanted to reach into the book physically to protect him. The novel deals with unjust societies, memory versus personality, what it’s like to be good in a bad universe etc. And it both made me sob and giggle, repeatedly, and sold me on literally death-defying (but not honor-defying!) love.
Oh, and special shout out to the fact that like 2ha, you may start out hating some characters and end up a rabid fangirl (cough Murong Lian!)
3. Qiang Jin Jiu - a dense political tome that takes a while to get going but then it’s a runaway train.
In a fictional dynasty, Shen Zechuan, the only remaining son of a disgraced aristocratic family and Xiao Chiye, the younger son of a family of generals guarding the border join forces (and then something else) to get power and pull down the dysfunctional system.
This is so elegant and smart (a rare web novel I’d recommend to anyone who just loves solid period fiction) and you probably need a notebook to keep track of the politics and military strategy. These characters are very very smart not just because the author says so.
As to the characters, there is a large cast and I love many of them, but for me the novel is made by Shen Zechuan and Xiao Chiye. SZC is gorgeous and delicate and icy and can kill you before you have time to blink. Saddled with the sins of the family he had no pleasant interaction with, he claws his way out of hell (seeing the sinkhole he was trapped in, literally as well) to take down those who wronged him but also to amass power so all the tragedy and corruption won’t happen again and the whole rotten system comes crashing down. XCY is a military genius who is trapped as a hostage in the capital because the court doesn’t trust his family. He longs to return to the plains of home and to take his rightful place. The two men start out as bitter enemies, then reluctant and sniping allies, then as friends and eventually as one of the most gorgeous, tender, swoony OTPs.
Anyway this is one is a bona fide masterpiece, equal parts smart and emotionally intense.
4. Wu Chang Jie - are you an emotional vampire? I am and this novel is a banquet.
In a highly fantastical setting, we meet our protagonists - the sunny Xie Bian and the intense and surly Fan Wushe. Xie Bian is a human who assists his master in conveying souls to the underworld and making sure no mishaps happen. Bian is concentrated sunshine in human form and to meet him is to love him. When the novel opens, his drunk master brings back another human to be his shidi and assist with duties - said human is uncommunicative, intense and surly Wushe. Bian is excited to have a shidi but little does he know that a story dealing with the horrors of past lifetime is about to start.
Anyway, why WCJ? So many reasons. It has such a dark bleak worldview - this world is a horrifying system where powerful cannibalize each other’s cores for an impossible chance to ascend, where gods have sealed off their realm and all that’s left is neverending human misery and hell (the only way you’d see a deity is if they’d been sent down to suffer over and over and over), where even reincarnation doesn’t fix things and bad acts are often unpunished. And the novel then asks - is it worth being a good person in such a world? More, is it worth being a good person in such a world when nothing good has ever happened to you and you have been repeatedly betrayed due to your goodness? And the answer, on Bian’s part, is an uncompromising yes.
Ah yes, the other reason to love this novel - the protagonists and their fucked up fucked up relationship. Bian (who was Prince Ziheng in the past life) is so genuinely good. But he is that rare thing - good but not saintly, noble but not cloying. So much of the novel is his getting taken apart over and over and barely able to put himself back together every time but his soul is still as amazing as ever.
And then there is Wushe (who was Prince Zixiao in past life, Ziheng’s not-bio-related brother.) Wushe is not a good person. He is a monster. And he loves Bian/Ziheng more than his life and his soul and the entire world but he’s also the one who hurt him more than anyone else ever could and did it over and over. His love survived a literal century of torture in the worst kind of hell and refused the usual memory loss of new life. But it also humiliated and broke Ziheng down to his constituent parts.
One of the things that is so fascinating to me about this novel is the question of what can be forgiven/what should be forgiven/what kind of expiation is enough/can you ever love someone who you loved so much and then he hurt you so badly and is now repentant? And it never sweeps trauma under the rug or hand waves it away but deals with it head on.
If you want healthy relationships, you should stay far away from this novel but if intense insane ones with a feral barely human one capable of destroying the world leashed by love and guilt to the sane deeply good one is your bag, come right in.
There is also the world building and the fact that yes, the big fall out between Ziheng x Zixiao is based on not knowing all the facts but it’s not “why can’t you talk?! This is dumb!” But is totally in keeping with both events and their characters. It’s reasonable for Ziheng to do what he does and for Zixiao to misunderstand and decide Ziheng is now his biggest enemy (but still one he’s fixated on) and for Ziheng to never be able to clarify.
Anyway, once again this is trigger warning central so please heed those, but if they are no issue, this one is wonderful.
5. OK, this is hard and switches between Sha Po Lang, Heaven Official’s Blessing and The Golden Stage depending on my mood. So what the hell, I am gonna write about all of them.
Sha Po Lang - so smart and so much clever world building. There is enough politicking to satisfy a Qiang Jin Jiu fan, it’s steampunk, and our two protagonists - Gu Yun, the empire’s most powerful general, who’s loyal to the empire despite being badly wronged by it, and Chang Geng, a cursed prince with barbarian blood and horrifying childhood - are wonderful separately and together. This is a huge slow burn but it’s totally worth it! They fall in love with each other’s hearts and brains and ability as much as anything. (Yes, this is the one with the yifu thing. Gu Yun is made Chang Geng’s foster father when he rescues him and brings him back to the capital as a way to keep CG safe in imperial strife. They are 12 and 19 at the time so clearly it’s never a parental relationship.)
Heaven Official’s Blessing (TCGF) - I love it’s sprawling narrative and cast, I love its inventive setting and picaresque story. It’s hilarious and can make me cry. But the novel’s place on this list is due to Xie Lian who is part Kenshin part drama WWX part pure goodness wrapped in heartbreak and trauma wrapped in sunshine.
The Golden Stage - two smart and principled (yes, they both have principles different though they may be) men navigate their arranged marriage, their past friendship and their past break up, become a super couple (one of the healthiest danmei couples I’ve ever read and proves healthy doesn’t have to be boring), save the country and bring down the emperor or two and just generally this is my rainy day book.
I guess I didn’t write as much for the three n5 candidates as I did for 1-4 but my brain is beginning to curdle so...
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krastbannert · 2 years
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And one more for the ultimate ship meme. Zutara.
Ah, Zutara.
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Just kidding - sorry, I couldn't resist. It's my responsibility as a Maiko shipper to regard your heathen lovely ship as my arch-enemy.
(Okay to those people reading this who ship Zutara, and don't know me: I actually am joking. Just having a little fun.)
General:
Rate the Ship - Awful | Ew | No pics pls | I’m not comfortable | Alright | I like it! | Got Pics? | Let’s do it! (I actually do like it; I'll admit that sometimes I get tired of seeing constant ZK content, and I'm much pickier about ZK fics in general, but I like the ship) | Why is this not getting more attention?! | The OTP to rule all other OTPs
How long will they last? - So, the way I normally think about Zutara, it happens in one of two ways: a hard and fast burn with a less-than-stellar ending (I think them being exes-turned-best friends is hilarious), or they get together when they're older, after Aang and Mai are gone, and live out their golden years together. So, in canon, it's either a few months, or in the years until their death. I could see them working well together fairly well in an alternate universe, though. (The other sections of this ask assumes this AU version because fuck it, I can).
How quickly did/will they fall in love? - It took them a hot minute to get there; years post-war. I figure maybe in their early-to-mid 20s. They were best friends for years before that.
How was their first kiss? - Probably frustrated, mostly with each other. They're each dancing around their feelings and one of them just says "fuck it" and plants it on the other.
Wedding:
Who proposed? - Zuko would, eventually. He'd definitely give Katara a beautiful betrothal necklace, and make a lovely proposal under the Southern Lights, or maybe in the Crystal catacombs (first place they saw the good in each other).
Who is the best man/men? - Same answer as I did previously: Sokka, and Aang would be one but he's helping Zuko's former crewman Koji officiate.
Who is the braid’s maid(s)? - Probably Toph, Suki, and Mai (yes, I know this might sound strange, but think about it: Katara and Mai being best friends? Hilarious.)
Who did the most planning? - Probably Katara, she seems like the type to get really into it.
Who stressed the most? - Zuko. He knows that Katara loves him.
How fancy was the ceremony? - Same answer as my Maiko one: I figure they'd have 2, 1 public and 1 private. Back of a pickup truck | 2 | 3 (their friends, Hakoda & Ursa (are they dating? Maybe), Iroh, Gran-Gran & Pakku, and Zuko's old crew) | 4 | Normal Church Wedding | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Kate and William wish they were this big (they're royalty; huge wedding is required)
Who was specifically not invited to the wedding? - Um. Well. Ozai is pretty obvious. Other than that...I really can't think of anyone. Jet, maybe, if Katara and he never make up post-war (although I like to think they would, eventually).
Sex:
Who is on top? - Katara's often on top.
Who is the one to instigate things? - Hmm I feel like it would be Zuko. He can't resist; Katara's just beautiful.
How healthy is their sex life? - Barely touch themselves let alone each other | 2 | 3 | 4 | Once a couple weeks, nothing overboard | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | They are humping each other on the couch right now
How kinky are they? - Straight missionary with the lights off | 2 | 3 | 4 | Might try some butt stuff and toys | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 (they like to change things up a lot, keep it fresh, and with two benders...well, they have to put their abilities to use, you know?) | Don’t go into the sex dungeon without a horse’s head
How long do they normally last? - For some reason I get the feeling they'd do a lot of quickies, so that's the norm, but when they want to go all night? They really do go all night.
Do they make sure each person gets an equal amount of orgasms? - Okay, I feel like the answer for all the ATLA guys is the same: yes, they damn well do.
How rough are they in bed? - Softer than a butterfly on the back of a bunny | 2 | 3 | 4 | The bed’s shaking and squeaking every time | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Their dirty talk is so vulgar it’d make Dwayne Johnson blush. Also, the wall’s so weak it could collapse the next time they do it.
How much cuddling/snuggling do they do? - No touching after sex | 2 | 3 | 4 | A little spooning at night, or on the couch, but not in public | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | They snuggle and kiss more often than a teen couple on their fifth date to a pillow factory.
Children:
How many children will they have naturally? - I feel like they would have at least two (Izumi, because of course, and I like the common headcanon of Kya being one), and I could see them having 1 more.
How many children will they adopt? - I could maybe see them adopting a kid in a modern AU, but in the canon timeframe I don't think they adopt any.
Who gets stuck with the most diapers? - Zuko might be the Fire Lord, but the wife is still the boss. Zuko's busy but Katara makes sure he does his fair share. (He wants to do his fair share, he just gets lost in the work sometimes.)
Who is the stricter parent? - I feel like Katara would be, publicly, even Zuko's actually the strict one. Katara doesn't mind the kids getting into a little trouble, she just wants them to be safe.
Who stops the kid(s) from doing dangerous stunts after school? - Katara. Zuko's getting in trouble with them because he's doing them, too.
Who remembers to pack the lunch(es)? - Servants do it. Modern AU is probably Katara who does it more often; she's a night owl so she's up, anyways. Zuko does it, too, though, he just has to beat Katara there.
Who is the more loved parent? - Honestly, it's about equal. Katara and Zuko are amazing parents, and their kids know it.
Who is more likely to attend the PTA meetings? - Uh both, honestly.
Who cried the most at graduation? - No matter who you pair him with, it's gonna be Zuko, I swear. He can pretend to be a bad boy all he wants, but he's a softie. (Katara totally cried, too.)
Who is more likely to bail the child(ren) out of trouble with the law? - Zuko's the one who got them into trouble. They don't get caught when it's Katara leading them.
Cooking:
Who does the most cooking? - Probably Katara; she teaches Zuko a lot, but he just can't get Water Tribe food right (he inevitably adds spice to it), and Katara loves her WT food.
Who is the most picky in their food choice? - Katara because she can't quite handle Fire Nation spice. She doesn't mind low-to-medium levels, but Zuko likes the spicy stuff and Katara thinks he's out of his mind. (Azula agrees.)
Who does the grocery shopping? - Well, servants do it in-universe, but in a Modern AU it's probably Katara, and she brings Zuko out whenever she can.
How often do they bake desserts? - Katara has a sweet tooth, especially when pregnant.
Are they more of a meat lover or a salad eater? - Zuko is all about the meat (Sokka really approves of this), and Katara likes salads as a side, but she loves meat, too.
Who is more likely to surprise the other(s) with an anniversary dinner? - Zuko, probably, since he's a sweetheart.
Who is more likely to suggest going out? - Katara. She's not very familiar with the Fire Nation, especially at first, so she really enjoys going out and walking around.
Who is more likely to burn the house down accidentally while cooking? - Considering Katara is a waterbender and can pull water from almost anywhere, it ain't gonna be her. So, Zuko.
Chores:
Who cleans the room? - Servants, most likely, but they both clean when they can.
Who is really against chores? - They're both just kinda used to it, so they don't mind too much.
Who cleans up after the pets? - Servants, probably.
Who is more likely to sweep everything under the rug? - Between them, probably Zuko.
Who stresses the most when guests are coming over? - Katara; she wants to make sure everyone's taken care of. (Zuko's almost as stressed because he's an awkward potato.)
Who found a dollar between the couch cushions while cleaning? - Katara. She invested it. Made an absolute shitload of money. Now she's in charge.
Misc:
Who takes the longer showers/baths? - Hmm I figure it's probably Katara. She likes the water.
Who takes the dog out for a walk? - Katara, same reason as in "more likely to suggest going out".
How often do they decorate the room/house for the holidays? - Katara loves decorating, and she never got much of a chance to as a kid - life was always about survival in her tribe - so she decorates for every single holiday, Water Tribe and Fire Nation.
What are their goals for the relationship? - Grow old. Be happy. The usual.
Who is most likely to sleep till noon? - Katara, the resident night owl.
Who plays the most pranks? - Hmm between them, I get the feeling it would be Zuko.
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Master Post of things I wanted to post while reading ACOSF- mostly humour/ crack lol (Spoilers... Duh...)
First, general opinion: I liked the book generally. I knew it would be very Feysand friendly and I was prepared for that. Not my first choice but I get it. I really had to take a few hours off with the whole hiking scene. That really fucked with me to see Cassian so pissed and militant despite already knowing where Nesta was coming from and how betrayed she felt (ESPECIALLY once I learned that he had guessed they were mates already). I know that self loathing was a major theme but I do think it was laid on a little too thick for too long. I also think there was so much Nessian interaction when things were angsty and then when they were happy I was just WAITING for that full chapter of soft happiness and I feel like a lot of that got lost to Nesta’s relationship with her sister. Above everything though I gotta say that it BREAKS MY HEART that Cassian never actUlly says I love you to Nesta at any point in the book. I know it’s meant to be that he’s always loved her and it’s his actions that show it etc etc but it’s still kind of a blow for him to never say it... never even outright think it in his own perspective (go back and look the closest he gets is saying he’s acting like a lovesick puppy. We only get to see Cassian loving Nesta from her perspective as she realizes it which I get and is beautiful but maybe ONE DECLERATION THANKS). Anyway, I am hoping that opportunity arises in future books. Although.... I don’t think I will read the future books. Maybe I will, but honestly this was just SO MUCH. Like... I think there was too much in the book. Each of these quests could have been its own book and I was happy to keep going because I’m obsessed with Nesta, but I just don’t think I’d be interested enough in the other characters to read something so convoluted again (like I’m sorry the blood rite started with basically 100 pages left that is WILD). It was also so clear that so much of this book was setup for future books and that’s fine but it was kinda messy just being honest. ANYWAY onto more specific thoughts/ jokes:
Chapter 2:
Cassian: I just hope that Nesta knows we are doing this for her benefit, because we care.
Feyre: I don’t care this shit ends now. I’m burning your apartment to the ground.
Also Cassian: *Let’s Nesta fall down a flight of stairs*; *calls Nesta pathetic every day*; *tells Nesta everyone hates her*; *walks around slamming doors all pissy as if he’s the one being held captive*
Chapter 11:
Nesta:Rhysand is an asshole
Me:
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Cassian: well everyone fucking hates you
Me:
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The way that Cassian thinks about Russet Potato is just straight up not healthy. Like I get looking up to a sibling or whatever but I’m starting to think that Rhys is Cassian’s one true love. Cassian being THAT blind to every one of Rhysand’s flaws is a character flaw of his own. Even Feyre isn’t THAT blind.
Chapter 11 Pt 2:
Nesta from day one: I’m not training in that camp. I hate that camp. I’m not training there. Fuck that camp
Cassian: this is because you hate me, isn’t it?
Me:
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Like I’m sorry did we really need Feyre to show up to help him crack that code???
Chapter 10 (and beyond):
My OTP? Nesta and the House of Wind.
It’s a solid enemies to lovers story (chapter 6 she says even the house hates her then later it’s her only friend and ally. Great love story.)
It reveals its heart to her before Cassian does
It knows what she needs
Gave her water on the steps instead of watching her fall down them
Pushes Nesta gently by keeping the fire so Cassian can see that she is afraid and haunted instead of empty and broken. Encourages her to go to dinner with people by barring the library but doesn’t FORCE her to go. The house does not judge her.
Spoils her and is silly with her while she has her sleepover.
Takes an active interest in something important to her and shares one of her hobbies
Side note- this book even has me pissed at the IC about how they treated a damn house!! Like how dare they say no one likes going there! How dare they be so rude to my new #1 favorite book character??? The house just wants to give you cake and books and run you a bath. Perfect partner IMO.
Chapter 17:
Me when Cassian does the bare fucking minimum and tells Rhys to calm the fuck down and stop threatening to kill Nesta:
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Chapter 21:
When Rhys said that Nesta always has a choice here I said, out loud, “that’s fucking rich rice ball”. My dog looked up. That’s all.
Chapter 21 (and beyond) pt 2:
Prythian: mating bonds are very rare
Archeron sisters: survey says that was a lie
Prythian: fae fertility is very difficult. Conceiving can take decades
Archeron sisters: survey says that too was a lie
Prythian: No High Fae can survive the birth of an Illyrian winged baby
Archeron sisters: once again, the survey is not on your side here
Chapter 42:
Rhys: this is a bad idea
Cassian: that should be written on the Night Court’s crest
Me, wine glass raised to mouth, scoff more bitter than necessary: yeah it Fucken should”
Chapter 42 pt 2:
Yknow I was genuinely shocked by one thing in ACOSF. I was shocked that Rhysand and I agree on something.
He absolutely fucking shouldn’t be High King.
The mere SUGGESTION that Nesta’s power and fight and trauma and depression and war and entire FUCKING STORY has all been so that Rice cake and French fry can be a high king and queen literally set my blood BOILING at exactly the point in the book that I was starting to VIBE
Side note- Can we please just Fucken stop with the stars blinking in and out of existence in Rhys’ eyes. Like calm down. Rice pilaf has purple night eyes we get it. Just like... simmer please.
Chapter 46:
I GET that it shouldn’t have come out like that and that Nesta’s reasons weren’t right, but get ABSOLUTELY FUCKED RHYSAND for thinking that it is your right to HIDE THE DANGERS OF LABOUR FROM A WOMAN WHO DOES NOT KNOW YOUR SPECIES!!! This had me truly wildin and I think it was a disservice to Feyre’s character too that she didnt lose it more.
Chapter 55 (and earlier):
Cassian: *bows to death as Nesta emerges from the black depths on a throne to rule her undead armies*
Cassian: *watches bleeding as Nesta plucks the harp and wields her Made sword of death to murder Lanthys and claim the ability to stop time itself*
Nesta: So, now I go after the crown
Cassian:
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Chapter 57 (and earlier):
Kelpie: You shall be my bride before you are my meal
Helion: *rides enchanted horse up to shoot his second shot with Nesta*
Lanthys: Tries to seduce Nesta into being his Queen even as he attempts to kill her
Eris: I’ll give you anything in exchange for Nesta as my bride
Cassian watching every male being in the universe trying to get with his mate:
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Chapter 60:
Emerie: we’re not entering the blood rite, are we?
Cassian: Only if you want to
Brialynn:
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Chapter 80:
Nesta: *Saves Cassian’s life in the war*
Rhys: I still hate you and will never forgive you for what you did in not hunting as a child.
Nesta: saves Feyre and Nyx
Rhys: I bow before no one and nothing but my crown and now I shall fall to my knees before you oh mighty saviour queen of all
Side note- can someone please compile a list of all the things that Nesta Archeron had done/retrieved/gone through for the Nigh Court because that shit is astronomical at this point and I really need everyone to start sipping their Respect Nesta Archeron Juice RIGHT FUCKING NOW!!!
Anyway I’m emotionally wrecked but shoutout to anyone who made it this far into my ramblings!
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tiecladartist · 3 years
Note
Barok for the Character Headcanons! :D
Coming from you, this feels like the ask came from Barok himself!
Character Headcanons:
1: sexuality headcanon - May be projecting for this one, but I see him as either ace or demi. At the very least I don't think he'll even be thinking about relationships until he's better worked through his trauma (losing your ability to trust others for several years makes being vulnerable with a S/O a little difficult methinks).
2: otp - Barok X Arts and Crafts. I'll be honest, even though Albert/Benjamin was the first character to pop into my head, I didn't really see them as being romantically involved. And so, this is my OTP. I see making the diagrams for cases as something almost therapeutic for Barok. Considering he spends a lot of time tense and on high alert, I feel like it's probably nice to be able to just sit and work on something like that in the safety of his office. He'd take pride in all the little details, perhaps so focused he doesn't notice when he gets some paint on his face from moving his hair out of his eyes (wiping it off as soon as he notices though because an English gentleman can't walk about with a dirty face). I just want Barok to be able to relax from time to time, and art (even for the sake of work) is a nice outlet/distraction.
3: brotp - And this is where Albert/Benjamin comes in! I loved their dynamic. That belief Barok had in him, defending the instant kinesis machine so much because even if it was utter nonsense it was important to Albert/Ben. Not to mention sending his only real friend back to Germany despite having the opportunity to catch up and have some positive and happy interactions for once, all out of concern for his friend's safety? Like, Albert was more or less all he had left from his happier past (I know Tobias was there too but they seemed to interact on a mostly professional bases now), Albert/Ben was someone Barok knew he could trust in a world filled with perceived enemies. He was someone that genuinely made him happy! And yet, Barok was willing to put his own happiness and this chance for one good day aside because he was so worried the Reaper's curse would take Albert/Ben away and it'd be Klint all over again. He cared about his friend that much!! I have many many feelings about their friendship and how great it is but I am going to stop myself now xD
4: notp - Barok X Sholmes - As entertaining as it is to see the dynamic of serious/closed-off and "I'm just here to start s***" I could never do this to Barok. I feel that over time the two of them could have the occasional evening of fun debate, or maybe even intellectual discussion with the right topic, most likely because Iris is pushing for them to get along better, but it would probably only work if it's in small doses, so a relationship would be out of the question.
5: first headcanon that pops into my head: This man sleeps at a desk more often than a bed. Office aside, I feel like back at his home he gets ready for bed, glass of wine in hand, bed ready to go, and thinks "I'm not quite tired yet" and heads to his writing desk instead, working on paperwork, or perhaps reading a book that's caught his attention. Then, before he knows it, he wakes up with his pen in hand or a book on his lap. I feel like it started when he was taking his break, since he was no longer on a work schedule, and perhaps the poor sleeping habit stuck around. Or alternatively, it's a result of him not wanting to be alone with only his thoughts before bed. He needs to keep his mind distracted or he begins to think of Klint, or the curse, or if he'll be taking a safe enough route to get to that meeting tomorrow, perhaps he's less likely to get jumped if he takes that street instead? or...
6: one way in which I relate to this character: Barok seems to try to avoid getting close to people. It took two whole games and a jailcell for him to open up to Ryu about his past, and even that took some effort. While it's not to the degree of our wonderful god of death, I also find it difficult to trust or open up to people out of a fear of it hurting more when they inevitably leave. I'll say what's needed in the moment, what's expected of someone in whatever relationship I have with them, but I find it hard to properly open up about my feelings and allow myself to be vulnerable despite seeming honest on the outside. And then, just as he did in the final case, one day someone with enough persistence crosses that invisible threshold and I'm like "alright time to exposition dump if you're clearly sticking around anyways"
7: thing that gives me second hand embarrassment about this character: His "passive aggression" (to put it mildly) to Ryu is probably the biggest culprit. I could go on for hours analyzing the causes of, mindset behind and thematic purposes of his treatment of Ryu, but it doesn't change the fact that he does say some pretty rude and uncalled for things at times. Explanation does not equate to excuse after all. Though, I don't remember it being as bad as the fandom portrays, so I'll be paying more attention to it on my Twitch playthrough. (At the very least, he isn't physically assaulting the defense like some other prosecutors, as low of a bar as that is to reach). That being said, I also appreciate the fact that the characters in this game have flaws! People aren't perfect, and the less appealing sides of the Great Ace Attorney characters make them feel all the more real.
8: cinnamon roll or problematic fave? Enemy of his liver, Old Bailey janitors, Japanese Lawyers and his own emotions, I have to declare him a Problematic Fave xD
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the-bee-graveyard · 3 years
Text
The Fine Line
Chapter Two
Hello! So this is my first chapter fic. It’s a Newt's and Brendresa fic (I’m hoping to write a Kitty one soon, sorry for my neglect to the TDA fandom recently) so um yeah I hope you like it
Sorry for any misspellings/grammar errors I did proofread, but I’m super inattentive so I probably missed stuff.
WARNING: Major Spoilers for The Death Cure
Story Summary: Newt and Teresa both survive the destruction of the last city and are brought to the safe haven with all their friends. Newt is welcomed back with open arms, and most people learn to forgive Teresa, all but the one person she wants to forgive her the most. Oblivious!Newtmas and Enemies-to-lovers!Brendresa. Minho and Sonya are sick of their friend’s being stupid. A little bit of Soniet and Mingally because I’m weak for them. Sonya and Minho are an unexpected Brotp I now can’t live without. Might actually be even more chaotic than my last fic. Combining movie and book logic because I feel like it. Pining because I said so. I might make a playlist for this fic because I like playlists.
Chapter Summary: both Teresa and Newt unexpectedly wake up in the safe haven, and Minho and Sonya don’t even give them time to catch their breaths because they’ve spotted their OTP’s and they won’t stop until they get them together. 
Chapter One: Fine Line Between Love and Hate
Part One: Teresa’s POV
Teresa used to think she knew everything. She’d been told so by many people. Those same people fed her so many lies, but it took her long to figure out that was one of them, maybe because that was the only lie she’d ever truly believed down deep in her heart. Thomas used to say she knew everything too, and maybe once he stopped believing that she did too. No matter the cause, she  now knew that there were a lot of things she didn’t know, but she did know this one thing:
She was supposed to be dead.
The last thing she remembered were the walls of her lab in the last city coming down on her. She saw a large chunk of concrete hit Janson right in the face right before she hit her head on the floor and blacked out . She could assume the rest of the building went down shortly after that. That was the end of her life, right?
So you could imagine her confusion when she woke up in a cot, not in hell.
“Great, you’re alive,” A sarcastic voice said from beside her bed. She’d recognize that voice anywhere, it had plagued her dreams and nightmares for months in the last city, for reasons Teresa didn’t understand. But now the voice was more than just a nightmare. She’d assume she’d actually woken up in hell, but the person who spoke hadn’t died and sure as heck would not have ended up in hell. They were everything Teresa could not be, and for the longest time Teresa had hated them for it.
“Brenda,” Teresa gasped. She sat up, pushing the blankets off herself and swinging her legs over the bed. As soon as she lifted her head off the pillow she regretted it, her head pounding. Brenda sat on a stool next to the bed, her legs crossed, looking bored. Teresa must have flinched from the pain or something since Brenda threw her an ice pack.
“Concussion, you hit your head pretty badly back in the last city. When Minho and I got you out of there we thought you might be already dead. The medic’s say you’ll make a full recovery, you’ve just got to take it easy for a few weeks,” Brenda explained. Brenda looked different since the last time she’d seen her. She’d cut her hair again, not as short as she had it when the two first met, but shorter than it was when Brenda and all of Teresa’s former friends kidnapped her and forced her to tell them how to get into WICKED’s headquarters.
Brenda being alive was good. Brenda being alive meant that she made it out of WICKED headquarters, which meant at least a few others had to have. A wave of grief suddenly hit Teresa, not for Brenda but for Newt. Thomas never came before the building came down on her. Maybe they could have made another cure for their friend once they got out of the city and to wherever they were now, but Teresa remembers how Newt was the last time she saw him. He had an hour left in him, that’s if they were lucky. There’s no way he could have made it wherever they were without cranking out, and Newt would have never allowed himself to get that far, to get that close to hurting his friends.
One way or another, Newt was dead. Another person’s blood on Teresa’s hands, someone Teresa long ago considered to be one of her best friends. And he died hating her, and she'd given him every right too. 
“Can you explain to me what happened?” Teresa asked once she could make herself speak again.
“You came over the speaker and gave a whole thousand word speech on how Thomas could save Newt. When we got to Newt with the serum Thomas had knocked him out to keep him alive. We gave him the serum and Thomas told us to go get you and the cure, so we did, but the building kind of fell apart. We got out just in time, we found you clutching the cure,” Brenda explained. Teresa exhaled, Newt made it. She didn’t have to add his name to the long list of those she killed. “I suggested we kill you, we got what we needed from you and someone else could recreate the cure. You can thank Thomas for being alive, he insisted we didn’t do anything to you. He was even hesitant about letting me take my shift watching over you, I guess he thought I’d strangle you in your sleep or something.”
“Where is he? Thomas?” Teresa asked.
“With Newt, we haven’t been able to peel him away from him since we got back.” Teresa couldn’t hide her grin, she always knew there was something going on between Newt and Thomas, even before the maze. She and Minho used to bet on them as children, betting their pudding cups on if they’d walk into a room holding hands or something like that. 
But thanks to her none of her friends remembered that.
“I’m sorry Brenda, I really am. I know you have no reason to believe me, but I’ll do anything to prove it. I hurt you all, and you should hate me for the rest of eternity, but I really wanted to be your friend at one point. I still do.” Brenda stood up.
“Save it for someone who cares Teresa, ‘cause I sure don’t. I never liked you.” Brenda began to walk about of the shack they were in. Teresa didn’t know why the words hurt so much, she’d never liked Brenda either. They did though. Brenda turned around in the doorway. “I’ll let the others know you’re awake though, they’ve been worried, even if they won’t admit it.”
Part Two: Thomas’s POV
Thomas was half asleep when he heard Newt mutter something. He sat right up in his chair next to Newt, waiting. It had been over two weeks since they’d gotten back from the last city, and both Newt and Teresa hadn’t woke up. 
“Tommy,” Newt mumbled.
“I’m right here Newt, it’s me,” Thomas said, leaning in closer. He felt guilty about it, but he hadn’t even gone to visit Teresa, wanting to be there when Newt woke up. 
After a minute Newt’s eyes opened, and they were clear. The black veins had faded from his body shortly after they injected the cure into Thomas, but he hadn’t opened his eyes since then so Thomas saw the insane look in them every time he closed his eyes.
“Oh my god Newt, you’re alive,” Thomas threw is arms around his friend, pulling him into a tight hug, afraid to let go. Newt laughed in Thomas’s embrace. 
“Still a bit confused on that part, care to explain how?” Newt said. A wave of relief hit Thomas again. He didn’t know what he would’ve done if Newt died, he couldn’t make it in a world without his best friend.
“Teresa,” Thomas said. “Teresa made a cure. It was my blood the whole time, she just figured it out first.” Thomas sighed. “I feel like an idiot Newt, I could have spared you all that pain the whole time.”
“Oh shut up you twat,” Newt said. “I would’ve died long before the flare without you. You save me every day just by being there. You-”
“Thomas!” Minho called, interrupting Newt’s statement which Thomas really wanted to hear the end of. “Teresa’s awake and looking for you.” Minho came into the tent.
“Good to see you too,” Newt said, rolling his eyes sarcastically and grinning fondly. Minho gasped and hugged Newt tightly. 
“I was so worried,’ Minho said. “Don’t you ever scare me like that again you ugly shank.”
“Can’t breathe,” Newt gasped. Minho let go of Newt and laughed.
“Hold on, Gally and Frypan are with Teresa, but there’s one other person who’s been waiting for you to wake up,” Minho said before dashing out the tent. He came back a few minutes later with a familiar blonde girl by his side.
Sonya had explained to them all that when WICKED took her and Aris they’d given their memories back, but she’d never been able to tell Newt she remembered they were siblings before he ran off to follow Thomas.
“Do you remember me?” Sonya asked timidly from the doorway. Newt didn’t respond for a minute, and Sonya’s face fell. “That's a stupid question. You’ve met me after the swipe, you remember me as Sonya, but why would I think you’d remember me as-”
“How could I ever forget you Lizzy?” Newt said, his voice cracking. Tears streamed down Sonya’s face as it lit up and she attacked her brother with a strong embrace. “The flare must have damaged the swipe. I don't remember everything, but I remember some. Enough.” Thomas suddenly became conscious to the fact he was holding Newt’s hand. 
“We’ll leave you two to catch up if you’d like,” Thomas offered. Newt squeezed his hand tightly.
“Please don’t go,” Newt said. “I want you to stay.” Thomas knew the words were directed at all of them, but it felt like they were meant just for him. His heart skipped a beat at the thought.
Part Three: Minho’s POV
Minho had always been a guy who was relatively fond of people around him falling in love, but he sure as hell wasn’t fond of people around him being completely oblivious to the fact that they’re in love. 
Minho usually had his routine “Newt and Thomas were fools before all this and Thomas is an even bigger fool now because he still hasn’t realized his feelings for Newt” rant with Brenda and/or Gally, but Gally had gone to take his shift accompanying Teresa, who said she still wasn’t ready to face Thomas and Newt, and Brenda had stalked off after telling them Teresa had woken up.
So when Sonya plopped down next to Minho on the log he sat on in front of the bonfire and said, “Can Newt and Thomas just kiss already?” Minho figured she’d have to do.
Minho quickly stole a glance over to where the pair sat laughing on a log with Jorge and Vince. Thomas had his arm around Newt and Newt had his head rested on “Tommy’s” shoulder. When Minho made a comment on it they said “it’s just a bro thing”. Over the past few weeks Minho had sat like that with Gally multiple times, and it was most certainly not a bro thing. 
“It’s so annoying isn’t it?” Minho said. “I was trapped in a maze and the scorch with them, I’ve been dealing with it a lot longer than you have.” It would cause Minho to rip out his hair, but his hair was so beautiful he couldn’t bring himself to do it. 
“Even Aris caught onto it, and it took him to see Harriet and I kiss in front of him five times before he realized we were together back in the maze,” Sonya rolled her eyes. 
A brilliant idea came to Minho. Of course, all of his ideas were brilliant, but this one was even more brilliant than the others.
“How about we put an end to this pining?” Minho asked Sonya, grinning wickedly.
“Got anything in mind?” She asked him. Sweet Sonya, sweet innocent Sonya. if only she knew he had not one thing in mind, but multiple things in mind that were all incredibly risky and might cause Vince to banish them all, but they all had the same result: Newt and Thomas getting together.
“I do, but we can’t do it alone. Get Harriet and Aris and I’ll get Gally, Frypan, Teresa, and Brenda and we can all meet at the beach tomorrow after curfew.” 
“Should I be scared?”
“Probably, but not that much. I’ve done crazier things, and look at me, I’m still here.”
“Okay then.” Sonya was also grinning like crazy, and Minho knew this was the birth of a beautiful friendship, one built on interfering in other people’s for the better.
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morkofday · 3 years
Note
for the character ask...OUR FAV BOY LIU SANG
(*´∇`*)/💖
i had to come answer this one bc!! my son!!!! aaaaaaahhhh!!!!!! so thank you sob now i can talk about my second sour grape boy,,, wait. ok well, hissy kitten  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  spot the difference (you can’t)
give me a character
(placing this one under a cut too bc oh boy. i have things to say about liu sang)
How I feel about this character
Good lord. I feel so many ways about Liu Sang. He is absolutely amazing but he also just drives me insane every day. No other character has ever given me such headaches, he must be proud. Finally someone suffers as much as him (because I bet those ears cause him a permanent migraine). I feel sorry for him. I’ll take this pain gladly if it helps him in any way. 
But well. As simply as with Jiang Cheng, I do love Liu Sang. I shouldn’t really be surprised (at this point) that I fell in love with him but back when I was watching Reboot, he hit me like a truck. Which,,, he probably drove that truck himself, judging from the way he was handling the car chase with Jiang Zisuan. Just ruthlessly drove me over. I never stood a chance, not in front of that arrogance and stubbornness and enormous puppy eyes. 
And with all of himself, good and bad, he makes me feel so many things. One of those, probably the strongest one, is protectiveness. He needs someone to protect him from himself because he has a nasty self-destruction streak going. Boy has not known love since he was born. He has gone through way too much to try handle it alone. I can’t even remember how old he is supposed to be in Reboot (maybe 29?), but that is way too many years of fighting a battle he was never supposed to win. But he pulled through. Cynical and prickly and absolutely terrified of any human contact but he fucking pulled through. I want to fight some battles for him now. He deserves to rest. He deserves some peace and quiet and unconditional care. I want to tell him that he doesn’t deserve all the pain he’s going through, all the pain he himself is putting his body through because he thinks he can only be used as a punching bag. I want to tell him he deserves friends. I want to tell him that it’s okay to trust people again. I want to... just protect him. And maybe this is why – because of all this fragile mess I’ve discovered from inside of him while trying to figure out who he is – I struggle so much with writing him. I feel like I’m bringing up things no one is supposed to see. I feel like I’m pulling out words from him like teeth. But at the same time, I know he’s desperate to tell these things. 
So I struggle because I love him. Willingly. But oh boy does he annoy me sometimes, under all that protectiveness and fondness I have for him.  
All the people I ship romantically with this character
I am quite sure at this point that I don’t really ship Liu Sang with anyone. No one clicks with him in my head so well that I could feel myself slipping into the proper shipping territory. But I haven’t minded any of the ships I’ve seen for him, not Pingxiesang (which makes me super soft) or him with Kanjian (which is so sweet) or even @kholran’s pool noodle Risang (which is very interesting and I will read your fic, friend, when I am out of my Pingxie pit! I just need to feed these beasts first). I am mostly just very intrigued by all these ships people come up with because it really plays to my wish to just explore his dynamic with every other character that is available for him. 
But to put it simply: Not one perfect match exists for him yet in my head. Let’s give boy some time to figure out freindships first. 
My non-romantic OTP for this character
Well, this one I love because! This is what he is all about for me, somehow. So I will mention three: Xiaoge, Bai Haotian, and Pangzi. 
First, like I already mentioned in my Xiaoge answer, I adore Liu Sang’s dynamic with his ouxiang. They are both so damn awkward. I feel like I’m following a train wreck happening in slow motion any time I see them interact but instead of death and flames and screeching metal, it’s. surprisingly soft and sweet? They are both very tentative when it comes to people so they somehow get each other? Even if Liu Sang is a mess when it comes to Xiaoge which I totally get because I have once in my life met a person I consider a celebrity and who I look up to a lot and I was just shaking. And giggling. And acting dumbly. So I don’t blame Liu Sang for any of that; I’m actually quite proud that he’s keeping his cool so well and despite the rough start, manages to be a huge asset to his ouxiang. I am so happy that he gets to have this budding friendship with Xiaoge because they both need it.
Then! Bai Haotian. I’ve been thinking about them a lot lately and the more I rewatch some of their scenes together, the more I notice that they really develop a bond during Reboot. They are in a very similar position: brought in because of their idols, young, sometimes overlooked, struggling, and usually falling behind. And oh, definitely in need of some saving and with tragic backstories. They could be such amazing friends, and I think they come to trust and care for each other during their trip to Thunder City. Bai Haotian is so caring by nature and then Liu Sang is just right there. And Bai Haotian is so lowkey about her care; she doesn’t push if people don’t want her to, which works so well for Liu Sang. She’s there when needed. She doesn’t ask too much. She knows how it feels to look up to one of the members of the Iron Triangle and then curl your own life around them. (She also knows how it feels to have a crush on that same member and then notice that crush will never lead you anywhere, though I guess Bai Haotian comes to realize that during their trip instead of years before but well, details.) She doesn’t judge Liu Sang and somehow Liu Sang comes to rely on her a lot. 
And last but not least (never the least!): Pangzi. God I adore these two to bits. Their banter is just *chef’s kiss* and when I look at them, all I can think about is a big dog trying to pat a hissing kitten with its paw. Which then turns to the kitten play fighting the dog’s big paw. And then getting tired. And falling asleep. While the huge dog just curls its body around the kitten to keep it warm, and maybe the kitten swats at the dog slightly for show but actually it enjoys it. Because it’s nice and soft and very warm. So yes, I love it how Pangzi and Liu Sang start off as enemies but come to care for each other. I cry about the peanut scene every day. Yes please adopt this poor stray kitten, he deserves a loving home ;; Give him food and a blanket and maybe he will hiss a little less (Pangzi also gives great hugs and Liu Sang deserves a dozen. For starters.) 
My unpopular opinion about this character
Once again I am at a loss with this. I don’t really know what this fandom thinks about Liu Sang? I feel like our tiny Liu Sang hyping corner here on tumblr is very much unified with the opinions. We all love him a lot and want the best for him, case closed. So maybe I’ll just talk about my hypersensitivity headcanon for him? Let me do that for fun haha
So, I know he’s sensitive to sounds. Understandable, with his skills. And I feel bad for him for that because it must be horrible at times (we get introduced to him through him vomiting because he can’t handle a train station with all the noise, christ) but I also somehow relate to that. I get sensitive to sounds sometimes too. A simple click of my mouse can be annoying at times. I require absolute silence quite often, and this intensifies if my emotions are on the negative side. So, somehow I’m taking things from that. Touch hurts when he’s feeling bad about himself. Noises annoy him when he’s angry or scared. Lights look too bright or he feels like he can’t focus his gaze when he’s sad or panicking. Smells and tastes are intensified when he’s stressed. I dunno, just simple little things. Him feeling through his senses. Him just generally being sensitive with his feelings because this world is a demanding place and pushes you into feeling things. And I feel like a lot about him is already tied to his hearing so why not his feelings too? I’ve read so many nice takes on him which somehow support this so I feel like this just fits right in. 
One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon
Liu Sang joins the final celebration!! Him just disappearing doesn’t make sense at all!!!! Let him get hugs!!! Let him be happy!!!! Oh my god. I was so mad about that and still am because no way did he just leave and not join his new friends for this final evening!!! Dammit. No matter how much he feels like he doesn’t belong and like he’s just “a hired talent” among them, he’s not that dull!! He got those damn peanuts and some hugs and shoulder pats from people, he was there saving the day, he managed to create bonds!!! And god, knowing Wu Xie, he would never allow Liu Sang to think that lowly of himself!!!! He would be there to offer Liu Sang the world if he wants it!! Gaaaahhhh
So yeah, give Liu Sang his moment with his new family or I am throwing something, for fuck’s sakes
thank you again for sending me these asks ♥ i’ll answer the rest during these next few days! you’re amazing!!
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recurring-polynya · 4 years
Note
9, 13, 19, 23 for RenRuki OTP meme!
9. Have they made each other cry?
Neither Rukia nor Renji are criers by nature, but absolutely yes.
I looked it up, and weirdly enough, Rukia does *not* cry in the manga version, but she does cry in the anime when Renji tells her to go to the Kuchiki. Regardless, I think they both had some wet face syndrome in the days following that.
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Rukia was having a pretty tough time in the Academy, and Renji was in a constant state of unconsciously rubbing it in. I bet he made her cry at least once, although she is way too stubborn to actually do it in front of him, I think she did it in private, later.
I’m not sure crying over someone is the same as them making you cry, but I believe with 100% of my being that the “fear she was trying to avoid” in the As Nodt fight was Renji-related, and even though she held it together pretty well at the time, I hope homegirl went home and had a good cathartic sob after the fact.
In the same vein, it’s very believable that Renji had at least one tearful breakdown at some point in the Soul Society Arc. I imagine he came home and puked his guts out after he had to arrest her and throw her in a holding cell and there could have been some tears that went along with that, and possibly also after he found out that Byakuya had no intention of lifting a finger to stay her execution. (I just realized this is not the first time I have headcanoned Renji puking out of grief and it’s true, I think he does, it’s great, I love my brain, thanks)
I would bet money that Renji (possibly both of them) teared up a little when Ichika was born, and/or when they found out about the pregnancy.
Also, not to ruin the vibe, but it seems highly likely that at some point in their acquaintance, probably in their Inuzuri days, Rukia kicked Renji in the nards hard enough to make tears come out of his face.
13. Name something they would never do for the other person.
Like the dealbreaker question, this one is really hard because they are both really intense people who are absolutely ride-or-die for each other (as well as everyone else they know). I am still sticking to my guns that Rukia became a shinigami in the first place for Renji’s sake, and Renji’s entire first character arc involved him binning 40 years of hard work and career ladder climbing to be with her.
That being said, though, they do maintain a fair amount of personal autonomy that I think they would stick to. Renji would never get his brow tatts removed, for example, no matter how much Rukia hates them (or conversely, I think he didn’t tell her before he got them because he knew she’d tell him not to, and he was determined to get them and wouldn’t have listened to her anyway). Likewise, if she asks, he will refrain from wearing a particular pair of extra-terrible sunglasses to a Kuchiki family picnic, but he’s not going to get rid of the sunglasses collection for her. I honestly can’t imagine her seriously asking him to do either of these things-- she’d rather just drag him for them.
I think the part in WDKALY where Rukia decides to keep “Kuchiki” as her professional name was written in a kinda stilted and dumb way, but I do not disagree with it. I am reasonably sure that this was decided at an editorial level, because if they have a Bleach continuation, they would want the character to keep her more familiar name, but then they added the fact that she took his name more generally because people are weird about women who don’t take their husbands name (and then people argue that her keeping her name is “evidence” that she doesn’t love him... so, honestly, there’s no winning either way). Personally, I didn’t like that they waited until they were actually in line at the Soul Society DMV to have this discussion (with Byakuya standing around, no less), but but otherwise, I think it’s a nice compromise, and that Rukia would want to use the names of both the men she considers her family. Renji seemed vaguely disappointed that she wasn’t taking his name entirely, and I can see that, but also, it’s her choice and he doesn’t make a stink about it, which rings true to me.
In all of these examples, the principle is that, all else being equal, each of them will take input from the other, but they would stick to their guns when it comes to decisions about themselves. That doesn’t mean they are going to die on these hills out of sheer stubbornness. I wrote a fanfic once where Byakuya died and Renji married Rukia in order to help her consolidate power in the family, and he took her name and very vehemently made everyone call him by it. 
Also, I am sure there are some household chores that Renji would like done to some particular specifications, and Rukia just will not. Like, she refuses to rinse the dishes before she puts them in the dishwasher and she won’t squeegee the glass after she showers, or whatever the Soul Society equivalents of these things are.
19. If they could each write a single line in their marriage vows, what would they be?
I cannot emphasize enough that Byakuya paid for their entire fancy Kuchiki-ass wedding and even though they are constantly on their best behavior around him, he knows how they are and he would never, ever let them write their own vows.
So, here is a dispatch from some secondary drunken, backyard wedding that they had for close-friends only (Byakuya was also there, but Isshin slipped him a pot brownie and he was feeling very at one with the universe at the time)
Who the heck writes a single line of their wedding vows?? I gave them each a paragraph.
Rukia:
People have been joking a lot, every since we started dating, how lucky you are, but the fact is, I am the lucky one. I’ve been so fortunate, in my life, to have such good friends and family, but I feel luckiest of all to have you-- you’ve always been there to cheer me on, to pick me up, to make me pickles. You’re brave and you’re handsome and you have really, really great hair, and I feel like the luckiest person in Soul Society that I get to marry you. I love you so, so much, you big dummy.
Renji:
I used to think that I would be content if I could just love you from afar. That just being able to see you and hear your voice and know that you were happy was enough for me. But I was wrong, as it turns out, because being able to touch you and kiss you and tell you I love you a hundred times a day has made me happier than I ever thought I could be. I expect that being married to you is going to make me more powerful and obnoxious than anyone here could possibly imagine and I am absolutely not sorry. I love you so, so much, you little dummy.
See, Byakuya, that wasn’t so bad! (maybe it was)
Bonus! In the dead Byakuya fanfic I mentioned above, I had them get married under Gotei authority and I wrote some (partial) shinigami wedding vows that are basically perfect for them and also I was really proud of them:
How will you meet your enemies? As one, we shall meet them, as one, we shall fight.
And how do you swear this? We swear on sword and soul.
Let it be so. With this, you are forged together, a single blade. May your battle be long, and when you fall, may you fall together.
23. Write a ~300 scene between them with no dialogue, only body language.
Wow. Dang. This felt like a personal attack. Anyway, it was really hard, and I did it, but I didn’t like it.
Here’s the scene right where Renji hauls Ichigo off to go fight Ywhach, because I am always thinking about this scene and willing it to make sense (Rukia should have gone with Ichigo, I will die on this hill!!!!), and I think it only works if there’s a bunch of unsaid subtext. It’s depressing, but it’s only 511 words, which is very much like 300 words, almost exactly the same, honestly.
~
The others don’t see it, because they are busy watching Orihime restore Ichigo’s sword, his swords, for maybe the last time, but Rukia does, because she needs an explanation.
Renji’s shoulders slump, his chin tips down, his hands are open at his sides.
He is sorry.
He better be sorry! Rukia clenches her jaw, her eyes burn at him. She is the one who should have yanked Ichigo to his feet, she is the one who should go with him to his death.
Renji’s eyes slide upward and meet hers. His jaw is set.
He is right, and she knows it.
Orihime is hurt. Her lungs are making ominous bubbling noises as Zangetsu pieces itself back together under her care. Rukia is exhausted, but she can manage the kaidou that will save her friend’s life. Renji cannot.
It is more than that, though. Rukia’s bankai is perilous. Ichibei warned her that she should use it sparingly-- that it will take many hours of practice before her body can handle the wrenching temperature shocks. She has used it too many times already in the last 48 hours. She still can’t feel all her fingers and toes since she came back from killing As Nodt. Another go at it so soon may kill her before she even has a chance to be useful. It could kill her and everyone in her blast radius, which might be helpful, but probably...not. Her hand rubs nervously at the hilt of her sword. She tries to flex the dead pinkies, but they deny her.
Renji sees the motion, and he grips Zabimaru confidently. His bankai is new to him, too, but Hihiou Zabimaru was like a weighted practice blade-- So-oh Zabimaru is familiar enough and easy in comparison. Sode no Shirayuki and Zabimaru are both temperamental blades, but Zabimaru has always been at their most dependable when the odds are stacked against them.  
Rukia reaches out and gives Orihime’s hair a gentle pat. She will stay, but she will not like it. 
The side of Renji’s mouth ticks up in a rueful half-smile, and his eyes glitter with the last bit of humor he can muster. She can beat him up all she likes when he gets back.
Rukia flings an arm around Orihime, and stuffs her face into her friend’s shoulder. None of this is fair. 
Renji’s eyes soften briefly, and his eyes are filled with so much love for her. He knows he has the easy job. There aren’t any words to thank her enough for letting him go on a suicide mission with Ichigo while she stays back to give them something worth fighting for.
Then he stiffens, and squares his shoulders once again. He jabs Ichigo impatiently with one foot and screws up his face into the same scowl he always uses to armor his heart. 
It won’t work, Rukia thinks, as Orihime finishes her task and slumps backward. She will keep Renji’s heart here with her, and Orihime will keep Ichigo’s, and no matter what, none of them will die alone.
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FICTIONAL CHARACTER ASK: ROMEO MONTAGUE
TAGGED BY: @princesssarisa​
@ardenrosegarden​ @giuliettaluce​ @gravedangerahead​
Favorite thing about them: Oh my sweet boy, he is a sensitive poet that only wants to distance himself of violence and to share his love (for Juliet and for love itself) with the world.
Least favorite thing about them: That fact that when Tybalt kills Mercucio, he blames Juliet for “turning him affeminate” (weak) and decides to kill Tybalt in relation, believing this will prove that he is “man enough”. This obviously is the biggest mistake he ever commited.
Three things i have in common with them:
-His melancholy.
-I also can sometimes find dificult to communicate my true feelings to friends and relatives.
-I also love Juliet Capulet.
Three things i don’t have in common with them:
-Nobility status.
-Training to fight with a sword.
-I can’t improvise poetic dialogue the way he can. And i don’t have his french.
Favorite line:
“I fear, too early: for my mind misgives Some consequence yet hanging in the stars Shall bitterly begin his fearful date With this night's revels and expire the term Of a despised life closed in my breast By some vile forfeit of untimely death”.
 “What lady is that, which doth enrich the hand Of yonder knight?
O, she doth teach the torches to burn bright! It seems she hangs upon the cheek of night Like a rich jewel in an Ethiope's ear; Beauty too rich for use, for earth too dear! So shows a snowy dove trooping with crows, As yonder lady o'er her fellows shows. The measure done, I'll watch her place of stand, And, touching hers, make blessed my rude hand. Did my heart love till now? forswear it, sight! For I ne'er saw true beauty till this night”.
“ If I profane with my unworthiest hand This holy shrine, the gentle fine is this: My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss”. 
“But, soft! what light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Juliet is the sun. Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon, Who is already sick and pale with grief, That thou her maid art far more fair than she: Be not her maid, since she is envious; Her vestal livery is but sick and green And none but fools do wear it; cast it off. It is my lady, O, it is my love! O, that she knew she were! She speaks yet she says nothing: what of that? Her eye discourses; I will answer it. I am too bold, 'tis not to me she speaks: Two of the fairest stars in all the heaven, Having some business, do entreat her eyes To twinkle in their spheres till they return. What if her eyes were there, they in her head? The brightness of her cheek would shame those stars, As daylight doth a lamp; her eyes in heaven Would through the airy region stream so bright That birds would sing and think it were not night. See, how she leans her cheek upon her hand! O, that I were a glove upon that hand, That I might touch that cheek”!
 “She speaks: O, speak again, bright angel! for thou art As glorious to this night, being o'er my head As is a winged messenger of heaven Unto the white-upturned wondering eyes Of mortals that fall back to gaze on him When he bestrides the lazy-pacing clouds And sails upon the bosom of the air”.
“ Shall I hear more, or shall I speak at this”?
 “Amen, amen! but come what sorrow can, It cannot countervail the exchange of joy That one short minute gives me in her sight: Do thou but close our hands with holy words, Then love-devouring death do what he dare; It is enough I may but call her mine”.
“Ah, Juliet, if the measure of thy joy Be heap'd like mine and that thy skill be more To blazon it, then sweeten with thy breath This neighbour air, and let rich music's tongue Unfold the imagined happiness that both Receive in either by this dear encounter”.
“This gentleman, the prince's near ally, My very friend, hath got his mortal hurt In my behalf; my reputation stain'd With Tybalt's slander,—Tybalt, that an hour Hath been my kinsman! O sweet Juliet, Thy beauty hath made me effeminate And in my temper soften'd valour's steel”!
“ This day's black fate on more days doth depend; This but begins the woe, others must end”.
“Alive, in triumph! and Mercutio slain! Away to heaven, respective lenity, And fire-eyed fury be my conduct now”!
“O, I am fortune's fool”!
“Thou canst not speak of that thou dost not feel: Wert thou as young as I, Juliet thy love, An hour but married, Tybalt murdered, Doting like me and like me banished, Then mightst thou speak, then mightst thou tear thy hair, And fall upon the ground, as I do now, Taking the measure of an unmade grave”.
“ It was the lark, the herald of the morn, No nightingale: look, love, what envious streaks Do lace the severing clouds in yonder east: Night's candles are burnt out, and jocund day Stands tiptoe on the misty mountain tops. I must be gone and live, or stay and die”.
“ Let me be ta'en, let me be put to death; I am content, so thou wilt have it so. I'll say yon grey is not the morning's eye, 'Tis but the pale reflex of Cynthia's brow; Nor that is not the lark, whose notes do beat The vaulty heaven so high above our heads: I have more care to stay than will to go: Come, death, and welcome! Juliet wills it so. How is't, my soul? let's talk; it is not day”.
 “Come hither, man. I see that thou art poor: Hold, there is forty ducats: let me have A dram of poison, such soon-speeding gear As will disperse itself through all the veins That the life-weary taker may fall dead And that the trunk may be discharged of breath As violently as hasty powder fired Doth hurry from the fatal cannon's womb”.
“Art thou so bare and full of wretchedness, And fear'st to die? famine is in thy cheeks, Need and oppression starveth in thine eyes, Contempt and beggary hangs upon thy back; The world is not thy friend nor the world's law; The world affords no law to make thee rich; Then be not poor, but break it, and take this”.
“I pay thy poverty, and not thy will”.
“There is thy gold, worse poison to men's souls, Doing more murders in this loathsome world, Than these poor compounds that thou mayst not sell. I sell thee poison; thou hast sold me none. Farewell: buy food, and get thyself in flesh. Come, cordial and not poison, go with me To Juliet's grave; for there must I use thee”.
“How oft when men are at the point of death Have they been merry! which their keepers call A lightning before death: O, how may I Call this a lightning? O my love! my wife! Death, that hath suck'd the honey of thy breath, Hath had no power yet upon thy beauty: Thou art not conquer'd; beauty's ensign yet3040 Is crimson in thy lips and in thy cheeks, And death's pale flag is not advanced there. Tybalt, liest thou there in thy bloody sheet? O, what more favour can I do to thee, Than with that hand that cut thy youth in twain To sunder his that was thine enemy? Forgive me, cousin! Ah, dear Juliet, Why art thou yet so fair? shall I believe That unsubstantial death is amorous, And that the lean abhorred monster keeps Thee here in dark to be his paramour? For fear of that, I still will stay with thee; And never from this palace of dim night Depart again: here, here will I remain With worms that are thy chamber-maids; O, here Will I set up my everlasting rest, And shake the yoke of inauspicious stars From this world-wearied flesh. Eyes, look your last! Arms, take your last embrace! and, lips, O you The doors of breath, seal with a righteous kiss A dateless bargain to engrossing death! Come, bitter conduct, come, unsavoury guide! Thou desperate pilot, now at once run on The dashing rocks thy sea-sick weary bark! Here's to my love”!
“O true apothecary! Thy drugs are quick. Thus with a kiss I die”.    
brOTP: With Mercucio and Benvolio.
OTP: With Juliet.
nOTP: With Rosaline, Benvolio, Mercucio and Tybalt.
Random Headcanon:
-His favorite colors are: blue, green, white and silver.
-His favorite fairy tale is Rapunzel.
-His favorite greek myth is the love story of Orpheus and Euridice.
-In a Modern Day Everybody Lives AU i made in collab with @giuliettaluce​, he becomes an English Lit and Poetry professor. To know more about it, read it here:
https://giuliettaluce.tumblr.com/post/617050378210590720/modern-headcanon-romeo-and-juliet
Unpopular Opinion: Yes, Leonard Whiting is a good actor and he was a very good casting choice for the role of Romeo in the 1968 movie. But the cuts of many of his lines, like the one where he thinks that killing Tybalt as a regaining of honor and his dialogue with the apotecary, tones the characters actual complexity and intelligence way, way down, and is the cause of the popular misconception that Romeo is an impulsive bratty teenager.
Song i associate with them: 
Flor, Minha Flor (Grupo Galpão), wich is the theme of Grupo Galpão’s montage of Romeo and Juliet: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koIO15cI-8Y
Favorite picture of them:
Sir Ian Holm, 1967
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Dolhai Attila, 2001
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Adetomiwa Edun, 2010 
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Eduardo Moreira, 2012/13
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Lucien Laviscount in the Still Star-Crossed series, 2017
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ilguna · 3 years
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Meliorism Talks
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EUNOIA
the title is interesting
METANOIA
the dawn of time
metanoia is a boost for self esteem
slowburn teaser
when did they find out they were soulmates?
gale + rosecelli, friends?
how i came up with the last name
tanith is gone
rip tanith
their soulmate words
is rosecelli a dom or sub?
songs that give me vibes
who would finnick choose, gallows or rosecelli?
inspiration for prevaricate
one bed au
finding out the definition of prevaricate
liking how it’s going so far
reaction to the minefield
reaction to chapter 17 of metanoia
after i murdered hydri
relieved at prevaricate ending
loving the ending!
cute as HECK
happy with the metanoia ending
excited when i posted the moodboard
identifying with personality/moodboard
what would rosecelli study in college?
is rosecelli and gallows the game storyline?
canon name reveal
personality vs looks
what happened to rosecelli, happened to annie
how to pronounce rosecelli
aftermath
why did finnick get mad at rosecelli and not johanna?
i suggest an angsty AU
please don’t kill him
anon loves the idea
i am unrelenting
no, i will never let them be happy
cry my children
bargaining for a short story
photo album short story?
roscelli’s to-be axe
the axe fits rosecelli’s aesthetic
rosecelli would go feral
rosecelli is That Bitch
living through rosecelli
i suggest a metanoia prequel
rosecelli is AMAZING
metanoia prequel
rosecelli’s fancy weapons
random convo
pet names (or lack thereof)
rosecelli showers finnick in gifts
trident is iconic
a gift idea that rosecelli bought finnick
finnick talking to annie about living situations
finnick and rosecelli moving in together
annie staring at rosecelli in chapter eighteen
chaotic power couple
finnick leaving annie
rosecelli warned finnick
finnick breaking the news to annie
who’s annie’s soulmate?
might be true
poor annie
beginning of the hate fuck convo
spicy couple
would rosecelli shower finnick in sugar cubes?
what if finnick/rosecelli had fucked in district 13?
finnick would’ve been smug after the hate fuck
annie watched finnick flirt in the arena
flirting wasn’t obvious
what’s up with tigris?
what happened after rosecelli killed the peacekeeper?
what if finnick left like rosecelli wanted? - AU
would annie leave finnick for her soulmate? - AU
what would’ve happened in chapter fourteen
would finnick still get married in that case?
would rosecelli and gallows get along?
would finnick regret marrying annie anyway? - AU
who would win in a fight? rosecelli or annie?
finnick’s girl can whoop some ass
did finnick and rosecelli get along during rosecelli’s victory stop?
rosecelli’s favorite ice cream flavor?
zavian would get frozen yogurt
and peanut toppings
tanith and zavian being soulmates
and the immediate regret after
smh anon has grown attached
same anon
who would win in a fight? gallows or rosecelli?
content anon think she’s trying her best
didn’t rosecelli have male cousins? (fight idea cont.)
disappointing that everyone calls rosecelli a bitch
she’s not always like that
rosecelli would have to eat all the sugar cubes to piss finnick off
them fighting? i think u mean making out
fighting is their foreplay lmao
finnick would stick around even after death
the encounter in 13 is canon? no but i can make it be
only play fighting tho
nasty spat to make out session in front of panem
canon would be nice but annie...
breaks up w annie for that good puss puss
everyone watching back home like....
gallows/rosecelli crossover - AU
what about the other way around?
how rosecelli would react
gallows would pull a knife on rosecelli
what would she smell like?
definition of metanoia
who would they be?
something rosecelli would say
idea where rosecelli killed peeta and johanna - AU
liking that idea
rosecelli was unfazed
the worst time to find your soulmate ever
poly of rosecelli/gallows/finnick?
feminist icon!!
what if rosecelli and finnick had a baby?
reminds her of a brooklyn99 quote
roscelli not letting finnick help
them being parents!!!
beetee as godparent???
im loved <3
comprimising in choosing katniss?
rosecelli being poc friendly
FASHION SENSE
a sad ass idea
her star signs!!
explanation 1/3
explanation 2/3
explanation 3/3
her EXACT birthday
i am rosecelli
new au incoming
here it is - AU
more to it
even more to it
it sounds cool though
rosecelli slander
rosecelli keep 6ft away challenge
planet anon and i are rosecelli
his speech to her was cute af
he was dropped as a baby
krampus before santa
as she should
the motherly voice...
malefic - AU SHORT STORY
i expanded on it some ^
and a little more
its not her fault!!
they scared the shit outta each other
new idea for rewrite
rosecelli = new toy lmfao
baby talk is back, bless up
finnick’s self care trips 
omg the mfing godparents
what if rosecelli/gallows were tributes in the same games?
her internal diaogue lmao
AKRASIA
i suggest the idea
more off the idea
excitement about the title
short story idea - AU
another short story idea - AU
annie finds her soulmate post-metanoia
what if annie found her soulmate after metanoia? 
running into finnick/rosecelli 
don’t have to compete for annie 
ROM-COM 
finnick is the face of the rebellion 
i write out a blurb if rosecelli/finnick died together
plutarch getting them both out?
rosecelli is a handful but she’d be helpful
rosecelli begrudgingly accepting the fact she’s “mockingjay”
rosecelli would have to be shitfaced to do anything
finnick as the face also makes sense
trying to find a name for rosecelli’s rebellion title
how it would change rosecelli/finnicks relationship
more to the pretend relationship
re: pretend relationship and kissing
gale being nosy
the rebellion name?
annie having to watch her ex fuel the rebellion
what if rosecelli is tasked with protecting finnick? - AU AU
further explanation of above
a scenario in which rosecelli protects finnick
another funny one
rosecelli kills katniss/peeta to protect finnick (bodyguard)
reaction to that
rosecelli comforts finnick after mags
the thought of that is feel worthy
even more feels
song suggestion for rosecelli
rosecelli just wants to be loved
finnick is a literal puppy
finnick is the only annoying puppy she wants
them kissing the arena and then remembering the cameras
draco/roscelli and harry/finnick parallel
pyrrhic
only she is allowed to kill finnick
AU for Roscelli/Johanna being lovers
enemies to lovers with johanna? - AU
omg if they were soulmates - AU
sexual tension <3
finnick/rosecelli are otp BUT johanna and rosecelli--
the hate sex????
imagine johanna’s face when they speak to each other
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thesmalltowngal · 4 years
Text
Snowbaz 25- More
Otp Prompt #26: It's eighth year and Simon doesn’t understand what he and Baz… are to each other, anymore. A confrontation ensues. 
~ I have a nasty concussion, so this might not be my best. But I’m pretty proud of it. Enjoy!! ~
*Simon’s POV*
“Do you really think the merewolves are out to get you?” I ask Baz, a grin spreading on my face. 
We had been walking back from the Wavering Wood (from different places, of course), Baz walking swiftly in front of me to avoid contact when it happened. He was crossing the bridge, just a few steps ahead of me when a merewolf leaped out of the bloody water, soaking Baz. Of course, instead of helping him, I stood there, doubled over with laughter as the merewolves tugged him about and he cussed me out. Of course, he didn’t need to ask me for help. He got out of it just fine himself, and came back out on the bridge, all of his uniform clinging to his figure. (I ignored the feeling of my blood rushing from my toes up.) But he spelled it right quickly and we walked the rest of the way up to Mummers, him complaining about the merewolves the whole way there. 
“No,” He grumbles, toweling off his hair. (He had taken a shower right when we got back- said he s’posed he smelled like the filthy scum in the lake.) He peers out of our window now, looking down at the bridge and merewolves in the water under it. “I just think they aren’t particularly fond of me, Snow-” He leans out and spits down at them. “And the feeling is bloody mutual!” He yells. It’s so odd seeing him losing his composure like this when he usually keeps so cool. His hair falls in lazy waves, framing his face, and I wish he’d wear it like that more often. It suits him. 
“Well you don’t seem to be fond of them, either.” I state simply, drawing out a quirk of an eyebrow from him. 
“Don’t be a prat,” He says, wearing an infuriatingly perfect smirk. “Of course I’m not fond of them. But I don’t go out of my way to harm them.”
“Right. That’s reserved for me,” He gives me an odd look.
“Precisely, Snow.” He settles on his bed and I do the same across from him. Things have been… oddly calm between us lately. He hasn’t seemed to be plotting as much (Penny says maybe I’m just becoming less paranoid) and we haven’t fought as much, either. (Penny also says things with the families have started calming, which might have something to do with it.) We even have a bloody smile every so often, now. And it feels- well it feels right odd, yeah? Because there will be times like this, when he would have cursed me for just talking to him, and I would’ve gone off as soon as he called me a prat. But now? It seems as though our conversations have had less bite. And I want to know why. 
“Y’know, we could go down sometime and tell them to bloody back off,” He furrows his brow at me and I hastily add, “Even if it is funny when they make you fall flat on your arse.” I smile a bit, testing the waters. Baz scoffs and looks at me like I’ve grown another head. 
“Why?” He spits and glares at me. (Are we already back to this?) I stumble over my words, looking for a reason other than because you tit, I want to know if we’re friends now.
“Well, erm- I s’pose I thought that maybe we, um- I mean… because if you want-”
He cuts me off with an eye roll. “Sure, Snow,” He smirks again. “We’ll go talk. To the merewolves. Together. Sounds like a grand old time.” His words carry an edge to them, like he’s teasing me.
I have to resist the urge to move over to his bed when I say, “Baz?” Softly, like maybe I’ll break him. (Maybe he’s already broken.) (Maybe we’re already broken.)
He looks over at me lazily, his eyebrow raised to his hairline. “Yes, tosser?” I can’t help but feel heat rise to my skin and the oxygen steadily leaving my lungs. Maybe I’m suffocating. (Maybe he’s suffocating me now, with only just a look. He has the power to.)
“What are we?” I breathe, sitting at the edge of my bed, holding his gaze even though I want to look away. He sits up on the edge of his bed, mirroring me. He looks pale. (Paler than usual, anyway.)
“Pardon?” He asks, drawling his voice. 
“What are we?”
*Baz’s POV*
I’m suffocating at the hands of Simon Snow. He’s stealing my air- ripping it right from my lungs with three words. He’s sitting there, facing me, after we just had a conversation about the fucking merewolves, asking me what we are. I’ll admit- things have been different, lately. It’s been a bit tedious, our relationship balancing precariously on a line between enemies and friends. (How I desperately want it to be more. So, so much more.)
I play dumb. “We? You’ll have to clarify Snow, you’re not always clear in your inarticulate ways. Who… is we?” I have to steel myself to stop my words from quivering. He looks at me dumbly, like maybe I’m the bloody chav that could barely pass first year. Do I blame him? No. Do I hate him? Yes. Do I love him? Also fucking yes. 
He shakes his head as he holds my eyes, saying, “Us, Baz - you and me - we. What… what are we?” The air is sucked from the room and there is no explanation for why I am still breathing, other than the simple fact that Simon gives me life as he takes it. 
It takes everything in me to scoff instead of spitting on him. And then licking it off and kissing him and telling him I love him. (Because I’m disturbed. Ask anyone.) “We are enemies, Snow. It’s always been that w-”
“Bullshit.” He tugs at his hair and stands up. And because I don’t like being shorter than him (and because I’m weak), I stand to face him, bringing us closer than we were before. (Curse the bloody close proximities of our beds.)
“Excuse me, Sn-”
“You heard me. Bull-bloody-shit.” I shake my head like I don’t understand. 
“Pardon my inability to comprehend what you’re saying. We are enemies indeed, Snow. Always have been. Always will be.”
*Simon’s POV*
I don’t understand why it’s so important to me for this answer to be anything but enemies. (Penny would - will - likely have something to say about it, but she’s not my focus now.) I also don’t know why I keep calling his bluff when he tells me outright that he still considers us enemies- but I have trouble believing that when things have been so… so good, lately. 
“I don’t think that’s true, Baz.” I take a step closer to him. 
“Don’t be daft,” He pauses for a moment as he thinks, face changing (softening) only just so much that I can tell. (P’raps because I know every curve of his face from watching him plot all these years.) “What else would we be?”
I don’t remember moving my hand. I’m not even bloody aware that I’m doing it until it takes Baz’s hand, turning it over to face his palm up. I look down at our hands while he still looks at me. His hands are rough and calloused and surprisingly shaky as I trace the lines in his palm with my fingers. (To my surprise, he hasn’t hit me yet. And I don’t think he’s going to. I might be right dead from the neck up for thinking that. But… I know him. He won’t hit me, yet.) When I look back up at his face, he looks scared. (Of what?)
“More.” I whisper, simultaneously sure of myself and not sure at all. Suffocating.
“Ex-enemies?” I smile and shake my head, still looking into his eyes. (How have I never noticed the flecks of blue in them before?)
“More,” I’m even quieter as I take one step closer. (I don’t think he’s breathing.) (Am I?)
“Friends?” He’s never sounded less sure of himself. Less cocky, more incredulous. Something pulls at my gut when he says ‘friends’ and I realize, no. Friends is not what I want. Friends has never been what I wanted. 
I’m scared he can’t even hear me when I get centimeters from his face as he looks down at me and I whisper, “More.” But when he kisses me, still unsure, I know he did hear me. But I’m sure. This is what I want. 
*Baz’s POV*
Cause of death? Suffocation. (In Simon, Simon, Simon.)
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“Elliot.” His voice was soft, and closer now, and she saw his hand come up in her peripheral; he guided her to turn around and face him. “You know I’m right.”
“Don’t,” she said, steeling her voice, “okay? Don’t. I’ll wait until your stupid search party gets back, but—” 
He was so close—when had he gotten so close?—and she knew what he was doing. “An hour, hour and a half tops. Kian probably wants to hold onto her and make a big show of it.” He paused, and then added, “I told you I’d help you find her, didn’t I?”
Her throat felt tight. “So help me,” she managed out.
“I’m trying,” he murmured, and she thought don’t fucking do it, don’t do it. 
“You have to let me.”
had the insane pleasure of commissioning @redreart​ for this little snapshot moment of ancient names ♡ i still think about this (often) and sometimes wish i hadn’t finished AN for the sake of enjoying moments like this a little more; but per usual rei was an absolute delight to work with and helped me capture this moment in their story so perfectly! the sweater!!! their expressions!!! i just cannot get over it, i’m so in love. PLEASE commission rei if you haven’t already; i can’t recommend them highly enough. so so so delighted with this piece. i’ll be staring at it forever <3
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dangermousie · 3 years
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Heelo mousie! Love your blog! Do you mind recommending some of your favourite Chinese BL novels or shows?
I've seen the untamed and read it. I'm currently reading heaven's official blessing and I saw the donghua. Anything other than these two?
Awww, thank you!
Novels: I am gonna be lazy and literally copy/paste the entire danmei section of my top 10 web novels post (except MXTX’s stuff since you are already reading it.) Let me know if you need help finding any of these.
Lord Seventh - I am only partway through this so far, but it’s already on the list because it’s smart and somehow intense AND laid-back (not sure how this works, but it does) and is honestly just a really really solid and smart period novel, with the OTP a cherry on top of a narrative sundae. Plus, I love the concept of MC deciding he is not going for his supposedly fated love - he’s tried for six lifetimes, always with disaster, and he’s just plain done and tired. When he opens his life in his seventh reincarnation and sees the person he would have given up the world for, he genuinely feels nothing at all. (Spoiler - his OTP is actually a barbarian shaman this time around, thank you Lord!)
Golden Stage - my perfect comfort novel. Probably the least angsty of any danmei novel on this list (which still means plenty angsty :P) It also has a dedicated, smart OTP that is an OTP for the bulk of the book - I think you will notice that in most of the novels in this list, I go for “OTP against the world” trope - I can’t stand love triangles and the same. Anyway, Fu Shen, is a famous general whose fame is making the emperor   antsy. When he gets injured and can’t walk any more, the emperor gladly recalls him and marries him off to his most faithful court lackey, the head of sort of secret police, Yan Xiaohan. The emperor intends it both  as a check on the general and a general spite move since the two men   always clash in court whenever they meet. But not all is at is seems. They used to be  friends a long time ago, had a falling out, and one of the loveliest  parts of the novel is them finding their way to each other, but there is  also finding the middle path between their two very different  philosophies and ways of being, not to mention solving a conspiracy or  dozen, and putting a new dynasty on the throne, among other things. It always makes me think, a little, of “if Mei Changsu x Jingyan were canon.”
Sha Po Lang - if you like a lot of fantasy politics and world-building and steampunk with your novels, this one is for you. This one is VERY plot-heavy with smart, dedicated characters and a deconstruction of many traditional virtues - our protagonist Chang Geng, a long-lost son of the Emperor, is someone who wants to modernize the country but also take down the current emperor his brother for progress’ sake and the person he’s in love with is the general who saved him when he was a kid who is nominally his foster father. Anyway, the romance is mainly a garnish in this one, not even a big side dish, but the relationship between two smart, dedicated, deadly individuals with very different concepts of duty is fascinating long before it turns romantic. And if you like angst, while overall it’s not as angsty as e.g., Meatbun stuff, Chang Geng’s childhood is the stuff of nightmares and probably freaks me out more than anything else in any novel on this list, 2ha included.
To Rule In a Turbulent World (LSWW) - gay Minglan. No seriously. This is how I think of it. it’s a slice of life period novel with fascinating characters and  setting that happens to have a gay OTP, not a romance in a period  setting per se and I always prefer stories where the romance is not the only thing that is going on. It’s meticulously written and smart and deals with  character development and somehow makes daily minutia fascinating. Our   protagonist, You Miao, is the son of a fabulously wealthy merchant,   sent to the capital to make connections and study. As the story starts, he sees his friend’s  servants beating someone to death, feels bad, and buys him because, as  we discover gradually and organically, You Miao may be wealthy and  occasionally immature but he is a genuinely good person. The person he buys is a barbarian from beyond the wall, named   Li Zhifeng. It’s touch and go if the man will survive but eventually he does and You Miao, who by then has to return home, gives him his papers  and lets him go. However, LZF decides to stick with You Miao instead, both  out of sense of debt for YM saving his life and because he genuinely  likes him (and yet, there is no instalove on either of their parts, their bodies have fun a lot quicker than their souls.) Anyway, the two  take up farming, get involved in  the imperial exams and it’s the life of prosperity and peace, until an invasion happens and things go rapidly to hell. This is so nuanced, so smart (smart people in this actually ARE!) and has secondary characters who are just as complex as the mains (for example, I ended up adoring YM’s friend, the one who starts the plot by almost beating LZF to death for no reason) because the novel never forgets that few people are all villain. There is a lovely character arc or two - watching YM grow up and LZF thaw - there is the fact that You Miao is a unicorn in web novels being laid back and calm. This whole thing is a masterpiece.
Stains of Filth (Yuwu) - want the emotional hit of 2ha but want to read something half its length? Well, the author of 2ha is here to eviscerate you in a shorter amount of time. This has the beautiful world-building, plot twists that all make sense and, at the center of it all, an intense and all-consuming and gloriously painful relationship between two generals - one aristocratic loner Mo Xi, and the other gregarious former slave general Gu Mang. Once they were best friends and lovers, but when the novel starts, Gu Mang has long turned traitor and went to serve the enemy kingdom and has now been returned and Mo Xi, who now commands the remnants of his slave army, has to cope with the fact that he has never been able to get over the man who stabbed him through the heart. Literally. This novel has a gorgeously looping structure, with flashbacks interwoven into present storyline. There is so much love and longing and sacrifice in this that I am tearing up a bit just thinking of it. If you don’t love Mo Xi and Gu Mang, separately and together, by the end of it, you have no soul.
The Dumb Husky and His White Cat Shizun (2ha/erha) - if you’ve been following my tumblr for more than a hot second, you know my obsession with this novel. Honestly, even if I were to make a list of my top 10 novels of any kind, not just webnovels, this would be on the list. It has everything I want - a complicated, intricate plot with an insane amount of plot twists, all of which are both unexpected and make total sense, a rich and large cast of characters, a truly epic OTP that makes me bawl, emotional intensity that sometimes maxes even me out and so much character nuance and growth. Also, Moran is my favorite web novel character ever, hands down.
Anyway, the plot (or at least the way it first appears) is that the evil emperor of the cultivation world, Taxian Jun, kills himself at 32 and wakes up in the body of his 16 year old self, birth name Moran. Excited to get a redo, Moran wants to save his supposed true love Shimei, whose death the last go-around pushed him towards evil. He also wants to avoid entanglement with Chu Wanning, his shizun and sworn enemy in past life. And that’s all you are best off knowing, trust me. The only hint I am going to give is oooh boy the mother of all unreliable narrators has arrived!
The novel starts light and funny on boil the frog principle - if someone told me I would be full bawling multiple times with this novel, I’d have thought they were insane, but i swear my eyes hurt by the end of it. I started out being amused and/or disliking the mains and by the end I would die for either of them.
The Wife is First - OK, this one did not make my top 10 web novels but it’s a sweet, fun gay cottagecore fest. Our ML, a royal prince, and his spouse, a smart if delicate aristocrat, keep house, eat noodles, play with their pet tiger, make out and spoil each other rotten, while occasionally fighting battles and outwitting their court enemies. It’s so very mellow. That couple redefines low drama - they are both nice and functional and use their brains. It’s as if a nice jock and a nice nerd got together and then proceeded to be wholesome all over the place.
I mean, the set up could be dramatic - our ML the prince, lost his fight for the throne and is about to be killed. The only person who stayed loyal to him is his arranged husband the aristocrat guy who ML never treated nicely since he resented marrying him (marrying a man in that world is done to remove someone from the ability to inherit the throne.) And yet the husband stood by him not out of love but beliefs in loyalty blah blah. Anyway, he transmigrates back into the past right after their wedding night and is all “I got a second chance OMG! I don’t want the throne what is even the point? I want to live a good long life and treat the only person who stood by me really well!” And he proceeds to do so to the shock of the aristocrat who had a very unpleasant wedding night and generally can tell the man he just married would rather eat nails than be married to him. But soon enough (no seriously, it’s not many chapters at all) he believes the prince is sincere blah blah and then  they get together and they pretty much become cottagecore goals.
In terms of dramas, I only do period dramas (or novels) so I am not the person to be able to recommend any modern BLs. There is a flood of upcoming (hopefully) period BL dramas but it’s relatively thin on the ground now. The two I will recommend is Word of Honor (which is AMAZING) and Winter Begonia (which I just started watching but which owns me already.) I have a tag for both - the one for the former is huge and I cannot recommend either strongly enough. I’ve heard good things about The Sleuth of the Ming Dynasty, but I am not big on mysteries so haven’t watched it for myself.
In terms of the upcoming BLs, the ones I am most looking forward to are Immortality and Winner Is King, but The Society of the Four Leaves also looks promising.
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pilferingapples · 4 years
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TMA S2 Natter I guess!!
LORE LORE LORE LORE WHOOO
under the cut for massive major spoilers of course
- I’m really glad I’m binging this, it helps me remember things to have a big chunk of story and lots to pick up on all stacked together and reinforcing itself. I still have to check and double check the Fan Wiki for names here and there, when I hear someone I KNOW I recognize from earlier; I’ve inevitably run across some spoilers that way, thanks to the structure of the wiki, so I’m really glad I’m needing to do that less and less as the show goes on; I don’t think I had to check anything in the last ten episodes, thought I did still have to go to the wiki to get links to the Transcripts, because 
- I find the tunnel-echo effects make the dialogue pretty unparseable no matter how loud I have the show, unfortunately. I could understand Michael,and not much else. (I mean,I could understand Michael’s voice, the Spiral’s motives and all are fairly opaque to me still.) The voices and acting lend so much ambiance, I would have been happy to watch along on the YT vid with subtitles , but it doesn’t have subtitles? Frustrating, but I do  really appreciate there being transcripts! 
- Michael makes me really, really sad. He was just a kid who stayed out in the rain a second too late! It wasn’t even his idea! And he got Marked and he lost his whole damn life to this thing before he was even old enough to have a good grasp on what reality is in the normal swing of things. Poor kid. Poor Michael-that-should-have-been. (ETA so I don’t answer this multiple times: I’m aware Lightning-and-Tower Michael might not be Hallways and Hands Michael, but this is just name-association, really.  Also, there’s a growing horror in S2 in finding so many people who seemed to escape their encounters showing  up again in much worse shape in other Statements...)
- Thanks to Tumblr Osmosis , I’m  sure the Endgame OTP (at least so far) in Jon/Martin, and while I’m currently not a fan of that (though totally prepared to change my mind according to character/relationship development!) I am  delighted to be able to enjoy Jon and Basira’s relationship without worrying that her character is going to be suddenly smashed flat to make her The Love Interest. I love their weird uneasy alliance!  I hope she comes back but also hope she goes somewhere Far Away and lives Ordinarily Ever After. 
-on that note, Daisy Daisy Daisy bring back Daisy, I don’t usually get into cop characters but WEIRD CRYPTID FORCE COPS are apparently a potential weakness for me  (..also I know, I know  they are probably Hunt-aligned. I’ve already said I’m unfortunately Weak for The Hunt ).  
-I miss Actual!Sasha >:
- Tim is seriously the only person in this whole damn institute with any self preservation either supernatural or normal??  “Yeah you’re right I don’t like the boss who stalks me and keeps secrets about a situation which is directly about my own personal safety like I was the enemy and takes his trauma out on me directly while I’m recovering from,in this case , exactly the same trauma thanks “
Martin: Wow Tim you’re so selfish, how can you even think about fleeing our supernatural hellscape, why aren’t you more concerned with the guy who is very overtly considering you a potential enemy and crossing all boundaries in a way that, in any normal job, would right off be enough to get HR and maybe the cops involved?  WHY ARE YOU BEING SO UNREASONABLE, TIM??...Now excuse me while I run to my probable death with no preparation in defense of a guy who seems to go out of his way to hit my very obvious emotional weak points and considered me so useless  he thought I might be dead already, because unlike you I am making good decisions!!! LEEEROY JENKINNNSSSSS”
-honestly the apparent connection between why the Institute/Elias accepted Martin as sacrifice an employee and Martin’s emotional Everything is both screamingly apparent and worth an essay all on its own , that’s some Good Charactering
-I never trusted Elia-- Never Trust the Boss Of Shadowy Organization With Mysterious Backers, that’s my motto-- but HE KILLED THE INFODUMP SOURCE. HOW DARE. INSTANT LEAST FAVE.
- I KNEW LEITNER WAS A RESEARCHER I KNEW IT I KNEW IT, who has a vast occult library BUT never really figures in any accounts of actually DOING anything?? AN OCCULT NERD DOING RESEARCH.  (I say, well aware that *I* did not do my research as fully as I’d like here, to avoid spoilers, and thus may be forgetting a Big Thing he apparently did)
- I did NOT know he was still alive?? and totally didn’t see him working with Gertrude (it was actually Gert’s Occult Book Hunting that made me slap my head and go OH RIGHT about Leitner!) 
-I want to know more about Gertrude 
- The OH NO moment I had during Leitner’s description of obvious multiple entities working together to just wreck his shop!!  BAD, BAD, THE INJUSTICE LEAGUE OF AAAAAH IS BAD 
- also now I know for sure that the Web and the Stranger are enemies? this puts at least 2/3 Fear Entities that could, I am aware , pretty much have me as a pawn for a cheap ice-cream cone allied against the one  Entity that makes me absolutely go into Screaming Phobia Murder Mode, I don’t know if everyone’s feeling the same way or if this is just the show happening to find my particular keys like that 
-...listen Elias is THE WORRRRSSSST and I am sure The Institute is Not Good but if The Stranger existed and was A Thing like this then they wouldn’t have  to Play me to get my assistance on taking it out , every single episode about it makes me go Mad Raccoon in A Box ,  I want it gone, the enemy of the Stranger is my ...slightly less enemy 
-Jonnycakes Sims is the Avatar of the Human Trainwreck, but I did not realize until this episode that he does not drink coffee??  I’m torn between thinking he should and thinking all caffeine should be taken away from him forever. 
-Also, Dammit, Jonet, this “keeping info about supernatural horror schemes from my team For Their Own Good” nonsense?  BAD , you are not a Victorian patriarch and they are not your children, GIVE THEM A FIGHTING CHANCE YOU GOOBER, DID YOU EVER READ ONE GOTHIC NOVEL, IGNORANCE IS DEATH 
- ..HOW DID YOU DECIDE TO SMASH THE TABLE YOU. GOOBER PIE.   I take it back, definitely Jonny needs to drink all the more caffeine. 
--in conclusion, ELIAS TOOK MY LORE HOOKUP AND HE MUST PAY FOR HIS CRIMES. 
(Supplemental:P) 
I'm getting the impression, from responses to my earlier little post, that people don't? like Tim ?? and I am Afraid this means he is Something Horrible?? but he's fun and friendly and smart and reacting like a human with normal human self-preservation instincts + a touch of Heroic honestly?? why do people not like Tim, is he a secret Horror, NO DON'T ACTUALLY TELL ME but  D:  NERVOUS NOW
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Undeniably Stoked | Charlie & Matteo fanfic - aka the epic, enemies-to-lovers romance no one asked for.
Welcome to the not-so crack!fic of Charlie & Matteo - the epic, enemies-to-lovers romance of SS Titanic that no one asked for!
Backstory: I made a joke about how Charlie/Matteo would make a great enemies-to-lovers pairing somewhere on Storyscape’s reddit, and now the joke’s on me coz I couldn’t stop thinking about it.
So lo and behold, here is my first fanfic on the most unlikely, but awesome pairing that never existed.
I initially set out to write this as a crack!fic but my brain had other ideas, dammit.
I also love these boys. I don’t care if they aren’t my OTP - this was so much fun to write!
P.S: Apologies for the title. I liked it too much to find a more appropriate one! Also apologies in advance for the formatting and style of the piece. I didn’t have this edited by someone else - this is literally a brain dump.
PSS: Don't write fanfiction when you're half asleep, folks!
Disclaimer: I own nothing. NOTHING! This is a just a bit of fun!
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Undeniably Stoked
Genre: Drama/Romance
Pairing: Charlie/Matteo
TW: Character death, Unsinkable sinking ships, misleading happy title is misleading
[Charlie]
I saw you.
Through the lift gate. Towering above her in a descending lift, suit sharply cut, and a smirk as slick as your hair. You were her blackmailer’s valet, her prison warden. You were not to be trusted. But around you, you carried a curious air - a stately presence that you were to be seen and heard. It was clear as day you wanted more, to be known as more.
I quietly marvelled at how quickly you saw me as a threat, at the walls that went up, the cruel humour a mask you hid behind to assert your dominance that I barely registered the insult. Bland? Was that what you were worried about becoming? Invisible?
But what startled me the most, was your desire to get a rise out of me. A sly quip, haughty bright eyes, drawn shoulders and a raised eyebrow. Little did I know that this would later characterise our subsequent exchanges. You sought me out, you always did. Looking, seeking my reaction.
The boy that hid behind his suit. The boy who wanted to belong.
You don’t need a day to get a measure of someone. Sometimes it only takes an hour. Or a moment.
And in that moment I did.
I saw you.
[Matteo]
I heard you.
Making promises you couldn’t keep. Bold in your false confidence and naivety. I know your lot. Promising the world. Promising things will be okay if you worked hard enough. Tried hard enough. The ridiculous notion that a good heart, good work and self-belief will prevail against all odds.
What a childish, dangerous fallacy. And what a childish, dangerous thing to do - to raise her hopes up.
I was like you once. Briefly, before reality set me right. The real world does not work that way. I learned that a long time ago. Good hearts and hard work do not always prevail. Sometimes, life is just unfair and you need to do what you can to survive.
I look at this woman. I know her background, her gumption, her aspirations. But more importantly, I know her chances. And I know what she has to lose.
There is a reason why you believe you can thrive. You still trust the world. The world hasn’t let you down yet.
And I seethe. Your words, your false promises echo long after I leave her side.
‘…Trust me…I won’t let you down…’
I heard you.
[Charlie]
I heard you.
Your complexion, red. Your eyes, skirting. Your hands below the table, cards held in loosely fidgeting hands. You watch the scene unfold between your master and her, quietly. Lump in throat.
Your betrayal was loud and clear.
Only one other person knew about the circumstances and could have told their master.
And I was looking at him.
My blood begins to boil as I see this woman’s life fall apart, her eyes darting between her blackmailer and sister. How could we have gotten it so wrong? Was the prison warden a willing executioner in disguise?
Your eyes connect with mine, and I do not look away. The man clamouring for clout and status is gone. I see a shamefaced boy, and I pause.
This act did not give you pleasure. No smirk in sight, no air of arrogance. I see you, deflated, head hung low, back bent.
Suddenly, I am no longer concerned about what you did, but what it cost you.
And all I hear is silence.
[Matteo]
I see you.
I see what she sees in you. Your steadfast support, unquestionable loyalty in the face of temptation. Your fire. An unnamed emotion grips my chest as I watch how easily you sacrificed your livelihood for your principles.
Foolish boy. I squirm in my seat.
Can’t you see you can’t win?
When he finally leaves, I look at the three of them, and I try. Try to tell them what I know is true. That you can’t win, you have to adapt and survive.
That I didn’t want anyone to get hurt.
My master is the devil, and he owns my soul. But if they were wise, if they listened….
You came toe-to-toe at me, your white uniform reflecting the afternoon sunlight, golden buttons glistening brightly. I watched the fire in your eyes, ablaze with disappointment. You did not back down. The unnamed emotion comes by again, this time striking me in the throat. I belatedly recognise that that emotion is admiration.
I take in the scene before I leave, the door held ajar. I see the unvoiced question in your eyes.
‘What did it cost you?’
A rising tide of emotion overwhelms me. I move my hand, finally letting the door close between us.
[Charlie]
I hear you before I see you.
Your gait and polished, leather shoes always had a certain staccato rhythm that I’ve come to associate with you.
Clack, clack, clack. And a pause.
You’ve finally seen me.
[Matteo]
I see you before I hear you.
The first thing my eyes are drawn to are the gold buttons on your uniform. They don’t shine as brightly as they did against the white.
I feel a plummeting sensation in my stomach, and I hadn’t even set a step beyond the lift gate.
Your face betrays no surprise by my presence, and with the ways things ended between us last time, I would have expected a colder reception.
You meet my gaze with a short nod, and ask me for my floor.
Not a flicker of emotion. You are a fortress.
I look away as you close the gates. My emotions turbulent and roiling as the sea in a storm.
The lift starts to descend.
“For what it’s worth, you have my sincerest apology.”
I watch your face. For a moment, I am worried you hadn’t heard me, but the thought flies out of my head when your eyes meet mine.
“Why did you do it?”
I shake my head. My heart is in my throat.
“I had to.”
“Did he force you to? What kind of hold…”
“No, Charlie…”. You startle at my use of your first name.
“I mean…”. I sigh.
“Just my livelihood.”
The words hang awkwardly in the air. The painful irony of sharing my potential loss of livelihood to a man who has sacrificed his so willingly isn’t lost on me.
Suddenly, it was getting harder to swallow and breathe.
“Hey, I get it”.
I look at you. Gone is the inscrutable expression on your face. Instead, I see your kind eyes. Your earnest expression.
If anything, it made it harder to swallow and breathe properly. I look away.
“I heard you the last time you know. About not just being a Londoner, a Brit.”
Your voice is low and soft. I take a chance and look at you. You refuse to look away.
“I get that my life is not the same as yours. I’ve had better and worse jobs. I’ll be fine.”
Your voice drops. I find myself staring at your gold buttons, waiting for your next words.
“But your world is different. You’re treated differently. We’re not the same.”
You pause, a sad smile pulling at the corners of your lips.
“No one can blame you for needing to survive.”
“For what it’s worth…” you smile as you throw my words back at me, “I don’t”.
“That is why I have to fight, even if no one asked me to take up arms. Everyone deserves to survive.”
I jolt at your words.
“I shouldn’t have said that. You’ve gone above and beyond your duty. Adele is fortunate to have you in her corner.”
The words come tumbling out, unbidden and loose. Your eyes widen at my heartfelt address. I mentally scold myself for my casual delivery but before I can act, your eyes crinkle and lips curve into a beam.
“I’d do it for anyone. Everyone needs someone in their corner.”
The lift comes to a halt but I’ve barely registered we stopped moving. By the time I realise what is happening, I clock your kind smile and eyes. But I can’t breathe properly. My throat is working overtime. What is worse, my eyes are wet and my vision begins to blur.
Without saying a word, you close the lift gates back and we make our ascent to the top floor. You take a step closer to me. I feel your warmth, your steady breaths and calmness. I don’t know how long we stand in companionable silence, but I know one thing.
You’ve finally seen me.
[Charlie]
An unspoken truce and friendship emerges.
I see you several times later that day, my eyes looking to find you on every floor I’ve dropped you off.
And while I haven’t seen the lonely boy behind the suit ever since that morning, I’ve seen glimpses of the man you’ve hidden away. Nods turn into warm smiles. A preference for standing behind me no matter how crowded or empty the lift is. A glance at me behind you whenever you disembark.
Unknowingly, you take up more space in my thoughts as the day goes by. I start to question my newfound fascination with the boy who wore his suit for an armour. Something has changed. Something has cracked and allowed warmth and light to shine through.
The answer comes quickly enough.
The boy has found a place he belongs.
[Matteo]
The party is in full swing. Ladies and gents decked in their finest silks, lace and jewellery have come to celebrate the birthday event, and were dressed to the nines.
Once upon a time I would have revelled in being amongst such company; mingling, and holding many a vacuous conversation about gambling or other various forms of entertainment that was popular with their like.
Now I can’t help but feel it a tedious undertaking.
Tonight is the night, and I am filled with restless energy. I look for James and Adele in the crowd, and nod in their direction when they make eye contact. Out of the corner of my eye, I spot a familiar blue figure with gold buttons. I smile, watching you assist an elderly gentleman across the decks. I am not surprised, you were always one to go above and beyond.
[Charlie]
After assisting Mister Washburn to the right side of the deck, I find myself taken in by the sight of the stars.
I make my way to the railing and stare at the heavens. Looking into the night sky reminds me that all my problems are smaller than they seem. I take a deep breath. I hear a faint but familiar staccato rhythm as the smell of your spicy pomade hits my senses.
“What’s wrong? Didn’t enjoy the party, Matteo?”
You smile at my use of your first name.
“Preferred this party instead.”
I nod. You join me at the railing, hands splayed on either side. A finger taps rhythmically as you stare into the vast darkness. I note that you’re restless, like myself.
“You reckon she’ll be alright?” I let slip.
Your eyes find me in the semi darkness. A pause, and then a handsome smile erupts.
“Either way, we’ll fight. And we’ll take up arms.”
I bark out a laugh. Your smile reaches your eyes. At the same moment, we look at our hands. Our finger tips are a few inches apart.
I’m swept by the sudden urge to grab your hand. And so I do.
“We’ll fight, we’ll take up arms, and we’ll survive.”
[Matteo]
“We’ll fight, we’ll take up arms, and we’ll survive.”
I can’t stop staring at our joined hands. I can scarcely believe it. I can hear my heart pounding fiercely, my face is warm and my ears are filled with white noise.
I blink rapidly as I look at you. A flush spreads across your pale face, but your eyes flash with determination. I feel my hand being squeezed tighter.
“Our relationship has been rather - well - complicated, shall we say?” I start.
“At the very least.” You smile to yourself.
“How do you look back on our exchanges, Charlie?”
You purse your lips. I am unable to look away.
“We haven’t exactly made each other’s lives easier, have we?” a grin blossoms.
I look into your eyes, taking in your long lashes.
“In a short space of time, you have mine.”
I grip your hand back in emphasis.
“I pride myself on my judgement, but it failed me entirely when I met you. I didn’t see you or hear you. I had no idea. I must have been a fool not to see it at once.”
I step closer to you.
“You are utterly extraordinary”.
I look at past you at the horizon, not daring to look at your face as I complete my thoughts.
“I am a cynic, but I hope…must hope, that your feelings are returned.”
I take your hand and raise it to my lips.
“I need to know, if your feelings are the same?”
I finally dare to meet your eyes, and am surprised to see the intensity of your gaze. Before I know what to make of it, I feel your warm palm cup the back of my head and pull me towards your face.
Your lips are soft and pillowy as I knew they would be, and soon I melt into your broad, warm embrace.
[Charlie]
We break apart and try to catch our breaths, as they float away as puffy clouds in the frigid night air.
You straighten up and shoot me a gentle, shy smile.
“Foolish boy”, I say in jest as you give me a surprised smile.
“I think I fell for you the moment I saw you at the gate.”
We stand there smiling at each other like goofballs until we hear the whistles from the crew pierce the night air.
Suddenly, an iceberg emerges on the horizon and in horror we brace for impact.
My heart thuds heavily into the pit of my stomach. I look at you somberly. I can see worry cloud your face.
“Do you think…”, you drift off, unable to finish the sentence.
“I need to be sure.” I say simply.
You nod, unable to hide your concern. You hold both of my hands against your chest.
Swallowing hard, you hold my gaze. I can practically see the thoughts whizzing through your brain. The words are caught in your throat.
“It’s okay. I’ll be back” I smile as assuredly as I can.
You say only one word.
“Hurry”.
[Matteo]
We are in the belly of the beast.
After you left, I dove straight back into the party and found Adele. You found us, and Hileni, and now we are in the unenviable position of arming ourselves for a fighting chance of survival.
I watch you as you plot and plan, helping us find a path that would guarantee our lives. I am quiet, filled with that familiar emotion of admiration. Instead of doom and gloom, I found that there was no other place I’d rather be than right here with this motley crew.
I belonged right here in the thick of it, by your side.
As if hearing my thoughts, you turn around and smile at me as the girls climb past their way into the engine room.
“How are you doing?” you ask.
“Never better”. I make a quick grab of your hand and squeeze it tightly.
Suddenly cries erupt from a boiler room adjacent to ours. Trimmers rush in, with harried cries to close the door behind them.
With a quick squeeze in apology, you release my hand to head down to those men.
The worse case scenario emerges. Our path ahead has fallen.
[Charlie]
I look back at the three shiny faces that depend on me, and take a breath.
Time is ticking away, the ship is about to sink, and I have to help us escape. As I start going through my options, I can’t help but take in the sights and sounds of the trimmers at work. I look at the Carrems and you, lit aglow by the dancing firelight. My decision has been made.
I beckon you to come with me while I leave the sisters in the boiler room.
We walk into the cavernous air vent and into the spot of moonlight, its rays casting shadows across your solemn face. As I walk you through the plan ahead, I feel you withdrawing away from me.
I pause. You raise an eyebrow.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
You snort inelegantly.
“Were you ever going to tell me?”
I halt.
“Don’t even think about it, you’re coming with us”.
“Please understand. My whole career started here in the boiler room. These are my people. I have to stay.”
“YOU’RE WRONG!”. I’m taken aback by the ferocity of your statement. You grab my face none too gently, forcing me to look at you in the eye.
“You are my people. We -“. Your voice breaks, tears tracking down your face. You close your eyes in anguish. My heart dies a little.
“Adele, Hileni and I are your people.”
You grab me by the shoulders and hold me close.
“Stay with me.”
I look at the man in front of me, and I know he will be okay. He has found his people, and learned to open his heart. Gone is the boy who used his suit as an armour against the world. He has finally learnt how to belong and love.
“You will be alright, Matteo - ”
You look up at me with a flash of anger.
“Your stupid, stupid promises. Stop making promises you can’t keep.”
I can’t prevent the chasm, the wound or the world of hurt on your face. But I can’t afford to lose my resolve, and pray for strength.
“Please listen -“ I cut you off before you can interrupt. “I cannot walk away. That is not who I am.”
This stills you. You give a pained laugh, shake your head and finally look at me; an upturned corner of your lip through the tears.
“You were always one to go above and beyond, you foolish boy.”
The words don’t sting. But your tortured face? I couldn’t decide which was more devastating, your anguish or your reluctant resignation. 
My face is wet. I give a watery smile back.
“Fight. Survive. And, from time to time, spare an occasional thought for a poor English boy who loved ships. Do that, and I’ll be happy.”
I hold your hand and put it over my heart.
“And stay with your people. They need you.”
[Matteo]
I walk back like a zombie, in a haze of defeat and grief.
All the whilst holding your hand.
Upon seeing our return, the sisters gather around us, Adele being the first to notice our clasped hands.
“What is going on?”
I take a deep breath and look into my beloved’s face. You warily look into my face, assessing my state.
At that moment, I decide to show you I can and will fight for our survival. That you can have this peace of mind.
As calm and removed as I can, I explain to the Carrems that they are to follow me. You graciously take the burden of explaining that you will stay. I know I couldn’t bear it.
The sisters predictably break down in tears. I am a hair’s breadth away from giving in myself, when I feel your hand squeeze mine. Through the hugs and the tearful goodbyes, your eyes are never far from mine.
The floor tilts, we exchange looks.
I take charge, and move the girls along.
As they head towards the vent, I make my way to you as you shrug off your coat.
Instead of urging me to go back, you raise your arms wide open and welcome me in a tight embrace. I grab your face in a kiss full of desperation, hoping it will convey everything you mean to me.
Too soon we break apart. And you say only one word.
“Survive”.
[Matteo]
I look in horror at the ship as it tilts towards the heavens, my heart breaking as I start to see the lights flicker out.
I came onboard this ship wanting to survive and make it in cruel world; hoping to make myself undeniable in reputation, worth, and status in the eyes of those who mattered.
In the end, none of it mattered.
Rich or poor, famous or unknown, it does not matter who you are, or what you own. We all die the same.
A much needed lesson I had to learn from you.
Because it isn’t the personal effects, the wealth, or my social standing I find myself caring about.
It is you.
My beloved, who I know does not have long left.
I watch as the last of the lights flicker out and my stomach bottoms out. Adele clutches my hand tightly. A fresh wave of despair grips my heart.
My beloved, a foolish boy who in a few short moments taught me how to love.
To thrive. To still trust the world. That the world hasn’t let you down yet.
It amazes me at just how quickly you came into my life and changed it.
Because you don’t need a day to make a difference to someone. Sometimes it only takes an hour. Or a moment.
I see and I hear the ship sinking below the waves, taking my beloved from me. But not completely. I silently brand our memories and love into my consciousness - an oath to remember and honour the boy who loved his ships, loved his people, and saw what I truly needed. To belong.
A/N: Sooooo.... things took a pretty melodramatic twist, and all the crack-y, silly humour left the window the more I got into it. Sorry!
Also, my brain did a weird thing with the tenses. Went for a style while I was writing it but now I'm second guessing myself. Either way, I'm always down for some con-crit! Send some my way if its not working for you! I swear I wrote and finished this 7 hours past my bedtime (fanfic>sleep, amirite?), coz this damn plot bunny wouldn't leave me be. Here's hoping it entertained some of you!
Let me know what you think of this pairing! 😂
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drunkin-kong-donic · 5 years
Text
Zavazz: A GUIDE
HEY, so I promised I’d make a ‘tutorial’ on the new OTP that’s swept me by storm since others seem to want to get into it too. This is a helpful guide diving into Zavok x Zazz and why i like it! Two of the Deadly Six from the game Sonic Lost World. If you’re here, you are already interested in what these two murder zeets can offer. So I’m not going to get into how underrated the zeti are. That will be for another time, so I won’t get into the zeti’s lore very much in this guide because I’m assuming anyone reading this already know the basics. Anyway, LET’S INTRODUCE the two of them. I predict this is going to get kind of long, so the rest will be under the cut. I’ll be using mostly canon evidence for the ship’s dynamics in this thread. I’ll make one that incorporates more of my headcanons later down the road otherwise this would be even LONGER than it already is. Note that this OTP ain’t exactly your sunshine and daisies kind of ship. They’re both evil and sadists so keep that in mind, and if that ain’t your cup of tea there are plenty of other OTPs the sonic fandom has to offer. Now then, without further ado...
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Zavok, is a 148 year old zeti and current leader of the Deadly Six, who live on the hidden world of the Lost Hex. 
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and Zazz, is 127 year old zeti that presides over the Windy Hill Zone on the Lost Hex, the first area Sonic enters in the beginning of the game which makes Zazz the first boss.
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So let’s get right into it shall we? If you aren’t aware of the plot in Sonic Lost World, basically Eggman invades this hidden mini-world that is floating in the atmosphere called The Lost Hex that Sonic and Tails happen to crash land on after Eggman shoots them out of the sky. Eggman has enslaved the natives there (the zeti) to do his bidding which a mystical shell called the Cacophonic Conch and set them to collect animals for his robots and destroy Sonic. 
After Sonic starts showing his presence on the Lost Hex, Eggman tells Zavok to take care of him before he can start messing with his plans.  And before Zavok can even go beyond contemplating what to do or which of the Deadly Six to send out, Zazz jumps at the chance to volunteer. Now this is where we get into the meat and bones of Zavazz. Because we see it from Zazz’s first appearance and it continues throughout the rest of the game and other media that features Zazz.  And that is that Zazz will do absolutely anything for a chance to impress Zavok. And Zavok KNOWS THIS.
Look at how Zazz’s expression changes during the course of this exchange with Zavok when he’s being complimented by his leader. Going from ‘aw yeah im ready to kick some Sonic ass’
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Straight to genuine excitement like a puppy dog who did something good. 
Now, Zavok is a total bastard, and this shouldn’t come to anyone’s surprise. He’s a villain after all, and he is EVIL, as are the rest of the zeti. And Zavok is shown countless times manipulating and using the other Deadly Six (besides Master Zik) for his own gain. And for Zazz, it’s mostly using him as battle fodder to gain information on his enemies so he can better learn on how to defeat them. This is seen more than once, as Zavok boosts Zazz’s confidence by showering him in compliments and then sending him off into death traps which Zazz eagerly jumps into. (anything to please the boss) It’s in Sonic Lost World AND in Sonic Runners, a mobile app that had several Zazz Raid Events.
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A quick summary of the Sonic Runners 2nd Zazz Raid event (which you can watch yourself here)  Is that Zazz is trying to get back at Sonic and his friends for defeating him during the first Raid event. And after each time you defeat him, he goes and consoles each member of the Deadly Six to get advice on ways to get more powerful, thus upping the difficulty of his boss fights every time you face him as a player. It’s actually really cool because it had cutscenes of all the Deadly Six interacting with one another! And they’re all so good. But when I was watching it, I noticed the stark difference between the way Zazz behaved around the other zeti compared to Zavok. When he was talking to Zomom, Zeena, Zor, and even Master Zik, he was his usual chompin’-at-the-bit, ready-to-let-lose-and-kill ragey self. Even with Master Zik, who was trying to get Zazz to calm the fuck down and meditate. (seriously, he ends up absorbing the power of the power rings by punching them LOL) 
I don’t want to clog up this thread with screenshots, but I’ll post the transcript below between Zavok and Zazz, in which Zavok convinces Zazz that he’d please him more to die for him in battle than to run away from the fight which Zazz eagerly agrees to after getting gassed up by Zavok. 
Zazz: "I don't believe it! I just... I just don't believe it! All these power ups, and I still can't beat that rodent!"
Zavok: “Sonic seems to be giving you some trouble, Zazz...”
Zazz: "He ain't givin' me trouble, it's just... I can't seem to beat him, that's all."
Zavok: "Really, Zazz? That little hedgehog is too much for you...?"
Zazz: "No! It's not that! It's just... Next time! I'll get him next time!" 
Zavok: "You know that we consider defeat to be unacceptable, Zazz... But there's no shame in being wiped out in battle."
Zavok: “The only shame is in running away! Hiding from reality! Refusing to fight on!"
Zazz: "Fightin' on, huh... But... It's just..."
Zavok: "I know how determined you are to win, Zazz... I wouldn't have you in the Deadly Six otherwise..."
Zavok: "Now come on... Show me. Show me your determination... Show me how much you want to win..."
Zazz: "HyaaaAAARGH! Yeah... Yeah, this is it! I'd forgotten about this feelin'!"
Zazz: "Hyaaah hah hah! That was my problem all along! I didn't want to win bad enough! Well now that's changed - now I want it really bad!"
Zazz: "I'm gonna show you what I'm really made of, Sonic! I'm gonna drag you down to the very depths of hell!"
Also note that Zazz is his most powerful after his exchange with Zavok. :) But even so, right after Zavok has the following exchange with Master Zik. Once again showing that Zavok will have no problem sending off Zazz into a fight he know’s he’s going to lose.  Zik: "Are you sure it was wise, telling him all that, Zavok? I mean, it doesn't matter how much he wants it. He's not going to beat Sonic..."
Zavok: "I am well aware of that, Master Zik. I know poor Zazz doesn't stand a chance..."
Zavok: "However, he WILL allow us to collect all sorts of useful data that may lead to us beating the rodent one day."
Zavok: "After all, the Deadly Six always win in the end, don't we..." Zik: "Yes. And success is our only source of pride... Don't worry, I haven't forgotten." 
Zavok: "Heh heh... Sonic may think he's got the better of us, but we're just biding our time. When the Deadly Six finally strike, that rat is done for!"
I can see how this seems like Zavok doesn’t give a single shit about Zazz or what happens to him, but evidence within context states that even though Zavok’s aware that Zazz can’t stand up against Sonic, he knows that he’ll be fine in the end because Zazz can handle it. After all, Zazz seems to be indifferent to pain. 
Because it’s curious to note that out of all the Deadly Six, Zazz is the only one during boss fights in Lost World that won’t run away or return to his mech once he’s knocked down. (Excluding zomom who’s cornered rather than confronted) Instead he rushes at Sonic full force, uninhibited by the fear of getting the crap kicked outta him.  However, saying this, it’s also interesting to notice that despite Zazz having no qualm to physical injury. He does indeed have a fear of disappointing Zavok and getting beat by him instead which you can see from the quote  "The boss is gonna beat me!"—Zazz after being defeated for the last time. (taken from Zazz’s wiki page) Now, there’s no evidence that Zavok actually does this. In fact, I tend to lean more towards that it’s just self-inflicted fear that Zazz has if Zavok ever finds out because that would disappoint Zavok. And that would just be the absolute worst thing that could ever happen to him. But I could be wrong, after all the zeti are extremely sadistic creatures and take pleasure in inflicting all kinds of violence. I’m just not sure if they do it to each other.
And I'm like 90% sure Zazz the only one who has dialogue referring to Zavok when Sonic is fighting him. So as scatterbrained as Zazz is, he’s still worried and has in mind about what Zavok’s and the others are gonna think. Zazz’s desperation for impressing Zavok is well... Impressive, and he actually seems to be the only zeti in the Deadly Six obsessed with the notion of it. After accidentally capturing Tails instead of Sonic, Zavok berates the others for a hot second. And I noticed that Zazz is the only one who visibly cringes from being yelled at by Zavok. (it’s very slight, but you can also notice him reel his tongue in as an added reaction)
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HOWEVER, despite Zavok being a total bastard most of the time, (don’t forget! he’s evil!) I can also prove that he isn’t entirely heartless. Zavok has shown many times within the games to care about the Deadly Six above anything else. (I’d say the only thing he’d put above his fellow zeti is himself and whatever ulterior motives he has hidden up his sleeve.) The first thing he commands the Deadly Six to do after breaking free from Eggman’s control is revenge. After this, he spends the rest of the game fucking with Sonic and Eggman before ultimately trying to destroy the entire world. All because Eggman and Sonic thought they could fuck with his Deadly Six.   
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Also back to Zavazz dynamics; Zazz ONLY cares about impressing Zavok. When under the command of Eggman, Eggman was openly berating their performance and how disappointed he was in them being unable to defeat Sonic, and the only thing Zazz does is yawn. So even with another ‘boss’, Zazz only cares about Zavok’s approval and is loyal only to him. 
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Even this small little detail, when Zavok is standing up for himself and the other Deadly Six, Zazz is shown behind the safety of Zavok making faces at Eggman. (this screenshot is from the japanese dub since Zazz actually makes little noises during this cutscene and makes his teasing more evident)
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Anyway, I really do think that Zazz is Zavok’s right hand, yes man, and is most definitely his most loyal member of the Deadly Six. (This excludes Master Zik, since he’s the former leader of the Deadly Six and is in a semi-retirement phase and kinda acts as advisor for the bunch of them) Zazz is the only one who doesn’t need to be convinced to follow orders and is even seen with Zavok in the Frozen Factory Zone when they’re gloating to Sonic and Eggman about destroying their world, 
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even laughing together after Zavok steps back and allows Zazz to have some fun tormenting them too.
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Zavok loves carnage and destruction, relishing in others having the same nature as well. He’s a lot more cool headed than Eggman and other villains, showing respect to those who impress him with their viciousness. This is very evident in his dialogue from Team Sonic Racing, where he frequently seems to compliment other racers when they attack him. Here are a few as examples:
“Vicious, Amy... I approve!” 
“You’re a savage competitor, Blaze.”
In Lost World he states he would respect Sonic if he didn’t hate him so much, given the frustration of trying to defeat him the entire game.
"Tenacious little hedgehog. I'd respect you if I didn't hate you so much."—Zavok taunting Sonic during Sky Road Zone 4.
Also if you defeat him in boxing in the Mario & Sonic 2016 Rio Games he actually shows the player a decent amount of respect for being stronger, welcoming the challenge.
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Speaking of the Mario & Sonic Olympics and other Sonic spinoff games that feature the zeti, Zavok and Zazz are ALWAYS together. Thus proving more that Zazz is totally Zavok’s first go-to in terms of the other zeti. They are BOTH the only zeti featured in Rio 2016, the mobile app Sonic Forces Speed Battle as the Kings of Carnage, and now the new Mario & Sonic Olympics 2020 Tokyo Games.
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And shown in the Mario & Sonic Olympics 2020 Tokyo trivia section, Zavok cannonly sees and trusts Zazz as a brave and powerful warrior.
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This also leads me into my next point, which are Zavok’s feelings towards Zazz since we mostly just covered Zazz’s side of the sweet sweet Zavazz.
Now, Zavok is a villain, and like all villains, he’s tied with an incredible ego even if he doesn’t outwardly show it as often as someone like Eggman would. 
Zavok admires Zazz because he is always just so eager to jump at a chance to fight whenever Zavok wants him to, and Zazz just generally wanting to do anything for him. A RIDE OR DIE...LITERALLY. I think Zazz being so eager to please him DEFINITELY strokes that ego in him, even if he’s not aware. Like getting blind loyalty and determination from Zazz compared to the other Deadly’s Six general lack of interest definitely allows Zavok to take more notice in Zazz. And it's probably what would attract him the most to Zazz and why he keeps going back to him. Zazz has Zavok’s respect, and it’s so mutual it hurts. Not only that, but Zazz is the most intense zeti out of all of them in terms of ferality, wrecking violence, and havoc. It is stated that even by zeti standards, Zazz is “the meanest and most psychopathic of his entire race”,[3][6]  And Zavok is someone who revels in destruction and savagery, admiring it in general even when it isn’t from himself. So, to have the most destructive and violent of the zeti at his complete command? Zazz lives to destroy, and he’s basically Zavok’s attack dog. What wouldn’t he love about that.  I also think that Zavok finds Zazz entirely endearing, and trusts him the most out of the rest of the Deadly Six. Zavok could be rough with him if he wanted to, and he knows that Zazz would be able to handle it no problem, given their size and strength differences. And you know Zazz would love any bit of attention Zavok shows towards him.  Now, I’m starting to get into headcanon territory so I’ll end this thread here. I think I covered everything. And if not, guess I’ll have to make a part two. I didn’t even get into the comics, so we’ll see what happens. THANK YOU FOR READING THIS ALL IF YOU MADE IT THIS FAR, it makes me incredibly happy that ya’ll have shown interest in this sleeper of an OTP. Now go enjoy some Zavazz! 
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