#sasha is NOT a villain and she never was!!!!! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

mdhwrites · 21 days

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Honestly I personally believe Sasha Waybright character arc was better written and engaging than Hunter and Amity’s arcs combined mostly because there was more agency in her arc and while the other two characters who go from enemies to allies to friends just didn’t engage me as much as Sasha’s.

I’m especially dissatisfied with Hunter and how his story while interesting wasn’t as cool as it could’ve been

So I've talked a lot about this in the past but the angle I'll take this time is simple: Sasha is more compelling as a villain to ally arc because the show let her be a villain.

That might sound simple but it's clearly something TOH itself struggled with. One could argue that ALL of the redemptions in TOH follow a pattern of one bad action followed by them being tenuously on the same side and then on the same side. Amity is out of character for her first episode and then Luz is actually at fault for Covention, even if Amity takes it too far. Then Amity is weirdly antagonistic during Hooty's Moving Hassle and then NEVER AGAIN. Three episodes into knowing her and she is now the person we are supposed to sympathize and want around and her biggest crime feels entirely out of character for the rest of her portrayal.

Hunter is similar. His first appearance is not Hunter. It's the Golden Guard who is WAY more fun a character than Hunter ever was and kind of a bastard. Then the mask is removed in his second real appearance (not counting the stinger in Escaping Expulsion) and he is someone to start sympathizing and working with. He is the sad but mad boy by his third major appearance and his second appearance makes him somewhat sympathetic, just like Covention did for Amity... Or For the Future does for The Collector despite lines like "I can't wait to play amongst the bones!" in Hollow Mind that feel, drumroll please, OUT OF CHARACTER TO THE REST OF HIS WRITING!

Lilith is the only to subvert this... Kind of. No, they actually go out of order but still the same essentially with her. Her first appearance makes her sympathetic and not properly a threat because she's still willing to play ball with Eda for a one on one competition, then she spends the second half of S1 just palling around in shenanigans she should not be allowing but is because... Fuck you. Then we get her one truly evil action in kidnapping Luz, coupled also with having been the one to curse Eda but that's also used to show she's a good person now so the kidnapping is the bigger deal here. Then... She's just a good guy afterwards.

This all makes for the most shallow, bullshit uses of this trope I think you can do while being allowed to claim you did it. After all, a key point to all of these redemptions aren't "Then they sided with the good guys," it's just "Then they're a good person." They don't bring who they were as a villain with them. The strengths that led to their villainy are just gone and they're hard to say what they were in the first place, what they add to the narrative in their redemption and joining of the main party because who were they before they joined. What are they actually fighting against as a person instead of just deciding not to be evil anymore or wanting the cookies that the light side offers?

It'd be like if after Sasha was redeemed, she was as bad as Anne at being able to lead and use people. If the show went "To better erase all the crimes she's done, not only will we say Sasha only is a bad person because her father is Ultra Satan but also she now is entirely incompetent in what she was good at before." Amity loses her intelligence. Her plans are always the most straightforward after she starts getting a crush on Luz and she canonically started having her grades slip. Hunter is the most pathetic character in the main cast with I think zero wins in his belt besides his first appearance despite being the only one with combat training. Lilith is just... Sad in how much they reduce all she was for over forty years of her life to go "Now she's a silly nerd girl. Fuck ambition."

And, of course, their bad sides being blamed on mother, uncle, mother kind of for Lilith actually, just that the exposition for that comes after her redemption, and the Archivists and Belos for the Collector. They aren't bad people, they just were forced to spend time with the wrong people. Now that they're nerds and led by nerd Jesus, everything is okay.

There is a VEEERY real problem in TOH of Us vs. Them mentality that comes from these arcs that's really gross. Swap Luz to a white, male jock and suddenly the show becomes WAY MORE UNCOMFORTABLE!

Sasha dodges all of this because no one tries to excuse Sasha. Sasha never tries to pretend she's anyone other than who she is except for when she's explicitly putting on an act. This means everything compelling and good about her as a villain can cleanly transition to when she is a hero, even if it's hard to believe that which the show even calls out.

There is no Sasha's Angels in TOH. That might be a weird one to reference to you because it doesn't include much Sasha but it nails on the head what makes this trope so exciting. To Anne, Sasha letting others do the work while she gets to theoretically kick back looks like the same old Sasha that she now is suspicious of. Someone who is self serving and so Anne lashes out. However, it's not the case. Sasha's ability to manipulate always came from being able to read a person's weaknesses and strengths. She's a MUCH better manipulator than Belos in this way because she doesn't leverage on you or for you to already be siding with her. She can read you like a book and tear apart your pages until she plays with your spine. And as a hero, that's going to mean she's a great delegator. She's the sort who would go "Nah, we don't need to save them from what you see as certain doom. I know he can deal with it." And she's right. Not because of blind faith but because of the same skills that made her villainous.

Something that wouldn't hit nearly as hard, or feel reasonable on Anne's part, if we didn't get so many examples of this being who Sasha is. Of the fact that Sasha uses other people for her own means. And even now, you can claim the same... Except it's not for her means. It's for their needs.

It actually is part of what makes her becoming a therapist so pitch perfect. A good therapist can call you out when you're trying to hide behind something to not get to the core of your problems. They can catch what is at the root of your issues even as you don't see it yourself. They also can see your value and use your strengths to help combat those problems after helping you identify them. It's actually pretty close to how she tried to get out of Toad Tower in her first appearance. Bring in someone, earn their trust, use their passions against their weaknesses and make them better. The only difference is that now she cares about making them better.

Amity, Hunter and Lilith could never have such a satisfying future because again: What are their strengths? Hell, post redemption, that statement stands true. You can call Amity good at magic I guess but Hunter and Lilith are pathetic people who kind of luck out in being useful at times and that's really it. These aren't people who have anything going for them. They're as good as goons with one of them being an elite in a one off episode as far as villain forces go and that's not very compelling for a redemption of this sort. Not unless you're really going to get into that and A: Lilith was one of the strongest mages on the Isles and studied her ass off so you'd think she'd mocked less for sucking at her job and being a fucking moron and B: they didn't even try for half a second with Hunter who I don't really know if they intended to make look as pathetic as he did skill wise.

So their futures are just random factoids introduced during the story. Does Amity being an inventor say anything about her redemption? No. In fact, it really sucks because Odalia would have LOVED her daughter to follow in her father's footsteps because that's the most profitable option for their company. Good job show. Hunter just takes up the job that connects him with the only thing we know is explicitly Caleb related, no conjecture needed, which sucks for a character who was supposed to be his own person. Then Lilith is... A historian. Because she likes that I guess. Does that have anything to do with her time as the coven head? No. Her ambitions? GOD NO. It's just a random choice that puts her in line with the inoffensively nerdy cast.

And before ANYONE says anything about the shortening, I want to say I've done a blog comparing the fact that Amity, in S2A (so before the shortening) has as many appearances as Sasha does in Sasha's entire redemption arc. You didn't need more time to do this better, the show needed to actually commit to its concepts. Actually needed to be willing to do its tropes rather than slapping it on for marketability and to make lazy analysts happy.

Because enemies to allies is not one of those tropes you can half ass. Not unless you want none of its power and boy, these are some weak character arcs. At least we've got Sasha.

======+++++======

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

A Twitter you can follow too

And a Kofi if you like what I do and want to help out with the fact that disability doesn’t pay much.

#amphibia #sasha waybright #the owl house criticism #toh critical #amity #Hunter #Lilith

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fandomnerd9602 · 6 months

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How You Met…

Female Justice League Headcanons

Kara Zor El / Supergirl (Sasha Calle)

You were a warrior, trained by your mother Diana to fight the battles humanity never could. You joined Kara, Batman, and the two Barrys in their battle. You saved Kara’s life and she’s been stuck like glue to you ever since. Even after the big universal reset, you and Kara found your way back to one another.

Barbara Gordon / Batgirl (Leslie Grace)

You were a villain, a low level one. But the moment you met Batgirl’s eyes, you knew you wanted to change sides. You saved her as she saved you.

Bailey Allen / the Flash (Chloe Grace Moretz)

You worked in the same crime lab as Bailey. You were the one person who loved seeing her and naturally you gravitated to one another. Then she told you she was the Flash and now you work as her person in the chair.

Allison Currey / Aqua Woman (Bailey Bass)

Despite being a fierce fighter, Allison Currey found herself tangled in one of your father’s fishing nets. She swears she did it on purpose just to meet you but you’re never quite sure. Hasn’t stopped you from loving her.

Diana Prince / Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot)

Diana wanted to stop and enjoy all that life had to offer. That’s how she ended up in your little coffee shop. Her smile enchanted you. Her giggles at your terrible jokes made you fall in love with her. She became a frequent daily visitor. What you didn’t know was that she flew half way across the world every day just to see you.

Mary Bromfield / Shazam! (Grace Caroline Currey)

You were a student of Doctor Fate, assigned to keep track of all magical based heroes. You took the role of a fellow student at Mary’s college, became fast friends and then crime fighter partners and then lovers. Doctor Fate is not exactly pleased with that last one.

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kdinjenzen · 4 months

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Now I'm curious WRT how 'Barbie' didn't hit for you.

I’ll say this first. If you liked the movie, I’m happy for you and I’m not here to tell you to hate the movie. I’m glad you enjoyed it and hope you continue to enjoy it.

That said… this movie was NOT for me and I did not enjoy its story at all. I loved the set design, costume design, the performances, the music, the dedication to creating the world, all that stuff was great.

The plot itself. It felt circular without actually purposefully dealing with the issues it tried to talk about.

The fact that Doctor Barbie, who is trans, is the one who is told to “go seduce Ken by telling him you feel don’t feel pretty” - as if this isn’t something that leads to violence toward trans women in the real world and also why her to be the one who doesn’t feel pretty? Wtf?

The Kens of Barbieland are basically all losers, are grossly incompetent compared to Barbie, treated poorly, and our main Ken (aka Beach Ken) has severe self worth issues… so naturally all the Kens become the villains and are able to overthrow all of Barbieland later on in the movie by doing …. they never explain how. Somehow a world full of, and built by, the most capable women ever are overthrown by like 20 dudes who they treated poorly and who aren’t very smart. Beach Ken’s root problems are only barely resolved and none of it feels meaningful.

Gloria and Sasha, the human characters who work with Barbie to fix Barbieland, are just as much caricatures and tropes as Barbie herself. Sasha, the daughter, is a mean Gen Z who just openly lashes out at Barbie (a stranger), and everyone else who is actually nice to her, for no reason. Gloria is “a sad mom who pretends to be happy” but they never explain why at all, it’s assumed that it’s because “she lives in a patriarchy”, but the only person who’s directly mean to her in the film is… her daughter.

Gloria gives a speech to each Barbie, individually, to snap them out of the Ken’s brainwashing (which like AGAIN how did that happen? It makes no sense at all and just confuses me) - the speeches are not empowering at all, they’re just about how women in the real world suffer a double standard on how to exist and SOMEHOW with all those depressing revelations thrown at them it… restores their self-confidence/self-worth and undoes the brainwashing?

Weird Barbie, whom everyone says is ugly and gross and they have violent “EW!!!” reactions to her face, is played by Kate FUCKING McKinnon. Meanwhile Stereotypical Barbie, while having an ugly cry breakdown about (again) not being pretty anymore, is played by Margot FUCKING Robbie. A fact that the movie points out as “the wrong casting choice to have this scene and cast Margot Robbie as Barbie saying she’s ugly.”

I heard so much about how it was a “queer positive movie” but there’s nothing queer about nor really in the movie. So it got to cling to the rainbow and scream “allyship” and everyone praised it for essentially doing nothing.

Everyone is like… mean? Everything feels so mean and mean spirited. It’s supposed to be very tongue in cheek, very snappy and quick, and everyone has a comeback for every situation but… it just really feels like everyone is just being mean for the sake of being mean and it makes moments where you’re supposed to feel sympathy for any character just drop immediately when they say the rudest shit ever for literally no reason.

They talk about Midge, aka the pregnant woman in the Barbie line, and then say “no don’t look at her anymore, she’s weird and creepy” … which AGAIN feels like that statement undercuts the point of women empowerment that the movie wants you to take away from watching the film?

It tries to balance jokes and seriousness in a way that undercuts the message of “society is kind fucked up and broken” that they’re trying to talk about. The “good guys” are also constantly mistreating other people, the “Barbieland bad guys” became bad by going to the real world and leaning “patriarchy”, the “Real world bad guys” literally do nothing except take up movie time for random gags and really don’t service the plot at all, and as much as it’s like “TAKE THAT MAJOR CORPORATION” at every turn… the movie was fully approved by Warner Bros Discovery AND Mattel… so it’s never actually going to say anything worthwhile about corporate greed and corruption without putting on kiddie gloves to do so.

The only person who I felt true sympathy for, understood their reasoning, and felt they deserved a happy ending was ALLAN, aka Ken’s Best Friend, who is treated equally like shit by basically everyone in the film. Allan points out that Barbieland and the Real World both kinda suck, how life is only just slightly more miserable there after the Ken’s took over, and how he just “wants to run away” and when given the chance does so, only to defend Sasha and Gloria from a bunch of Ken’s single handedly and telling them to “get out while they can”… and then is subsequently brought back to Barbieland by Sasha and Gloria to fix everything and… AGAIN none of this pays off because Allan’s purpose is dropped immediately when they get back to Barbieland. And Allan is played by MICHEAL CERA. I feel like I’m losing my mind at this point.

It feels like the movie wants to talk about the issues women face in all walks of life, but is never able to punch hard enough to make that message matter nor stick. It talks around gender issues, self worth issues, and problems in society without actually saying something real about them. The meanness of all the dialogue makes me really not care about pretty much anyone in the movie because… man I’m just so fucking tired of everything and everyone having to be “mean” in movies to prove a point.

The movie ends with a gynecologist appointment.

I dunno what to tell you. The plot is “not for me” and I didn’t really connect with anything.

The movie just made me sad and disconnected because of how much everyone praised it, saying it “made me proud to be a woman” or “it’s inventive, immaculately crafted and surprising mainstream films in recent memory - a testament to what can be achieved within even the deepest bowels of capitalism.”

And it didn’t feel like that for me at all.

Maybe it’s because of all the “that’s womanhood” talk throughout the movie. Because I’ve had so many women in power give me that speech after I came out as trans only to be abused directly by them in the same way that they said men abused them all while I was still ALSO being abused by the same men who abused them too. So like YIPPEE this fucking SUCKS and it was kinda trauma triggering!!

Maybe it’s because I’ve worked in the entertainment industry for 17+ years and know how stuff like this gets made and how many corporate approvals you need for it to make the “take THAT major corporations and CEOs!” jokes land like a dead fish on the floor. The people they are directly calling out said “yes, this level of joke at the expense of our richness and power is okay” and that’s the ONLY reason any of those moments are in the movie. So it doesn’t even really fucking matter, it’s all manufactured, it’s all there to make you feel like it’s doing something when the people with all the power just allowed it to happen. It’s not a “win” or a “heavy blow to their ego”, they literally don’t care.

So I DUNNO, this movie kinda just made me feel depressed and made me remember how badly I had been treated by people after coming out regardless of that person’s gender. The movie felt mean in a way that was too “on the nose” and real for me but then praised most of the characters for their mean actions or words.

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moonsanoverthinker · 6 months

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Some more TMA headcanons because I’ve thought of some more. Also apologies if this list is a little more chaotic than the other one x (Here’s the first list I make incase anyone’s interested)

Also if people have their own that they’d want to add feel free to because I love reading other people’s x

There’s probably going to be some spoilers for but I’ve tried to keep it as broad as possible :) x

Tim used to steal Jon’s pens - Not because he needed them he did it to annoy Jon

Tim once hid a plastic spider in Jon’s desk then pinned it on Martin

Gerry liked to make puns, Gertrude didn’t like Gerry’s puns - Or at least she pretended not too

Peters changed the locks multiple times but Elias just keeps finding his was back in

Georgie has that really nice kind of swoopy writing - I kind of feel Sasha did as well

Distortion Micheal likes the animated Alice in Wonderland film - Can’t think why… (If I had any artistic talent I’d draw him as the Cheshire Cat but I sadly I don’t have any)

Melanie used to make loom band bracelets - She never gave them to anyone but she’d use specific colours with specific people in mind

Elias likes to shout peoples names then not answer them when they shouted back asking what he wanted

Jon owns a few packs of some nice playing cards (Like the ones with cool pictures and stuff) but no one’s allowed to use them - He let Tim use them once but after he slightly bent the corner of one they became off limits to them all

Jon drinks black coffee because it seems like the mature thing to do

Tim drinks the super sweet coffees because they taste nicer and look pretty

Elias has one of them big spinning office chairs - He’s definitely done the James Bond villain spin

Daisy once told Martin she knew a great place to hide his body - She then proceeded to leave notes around the archives to remind him - Jon would also take the notes down

Not necessarily a headcanon but I just imagine series 5 Jared Hopworth in the garden with a necklace of various body parts and bones

Occasionally Basira would just look out to the fourth wall - I’m imagining it like fleabag style

During their travelling Gerry brought Gertrude a mug from a tourist shop - She kept saying she didn’t like it but once she was back in the archives she would use it all the time

Just Jon wearing some sparkly green nail polish

On the topic of Jon’s nails imagine him with those pointy acrylics - He’d either be in his element or he’d have the same vibe as a dog trying to walk in shoes

Both Micheal and Helen just pinging rubber bands at the backs of peoples head (I’ve got no real explanation for why they do it but then again neither have they)

Jon appreciates badgers - He got a little desk calendar with different pictures of them every month

When Martin was staying in the institute Jon gave him a blanket. He took the blanket with him when he started living at home again and started using it

Tim kept every card Sasha ever gave him

Sasha has a little pot of fake flowers on her desk

Jon pretends to he surprised every time Martin gives him a present - Especially if it’s an out of the blue ‘I saw this and thought of you’ present

Sasha and Tim went ice skating together one Christmas - They claimed it was as friends but Tim did give her flowers

Also some random side notes - Slight spoilers for series 4/5

Listened to 170 and immediately started crying at the end / The descriptions in 172 made me feel physically ill as someone who really doesn’t like spiders / Also I saw a thing on TikTok where someone took Gerry asking to be called Gerry and paired it with I Bet On Losing Dogs by Mitski and it was more upsetting than I was expecting xx

#tma headcanons #tma shitpost #the magnus archives #tma headcannon #i love using tumblr to brain dump things because then i don’t have to explain the lore of characters for them to make sense #sasha james #tim stoker #martin blackwood #jonathan sims #jonmartin #gerry keay #tma podcast #tma spoilers #the magnus archives headcannon #the magnus archives spoilers #the magnus archives memes

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driven-to-abstraction · 9 months

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So a theory I've developed that I surprisingly haven't seen anywhere else on the internet (by which I mean here on Tumblr bc I'm not actually anywhere else on the internet these days) is this:

Will Ferrell's character. The Mattel CEO.

This guy. This guy is a Ken who wandered into the real world and stayed there.

Think about it. Despite being framed as very much the villain of the story (at least the part in the Real World), the CEO never has any aggression toward Barbie. He wants her to go back to Barbieland because he's concerned for the ramifications to both realms if she doesn't. When they meet in person he is awed and respectful and-- dare I say it-- understanding of what she's been through since she came to the Real World. He isn't surprised when she doesn't know how to drink real water. He never threatens or commands her. He suggests she get back in the box so she can go home, but even when she evades and asks to go to the bathroom first, he lets her go without question. Because why would he ever question Barbie?

Even when Barbie escapes and the executives are chasing her through the building, the CEO comes face-to-face with her at one point, but does he grab her? No. She screams, and he screams, and they both keep running in opposite directions.

That feels like Kenergy, but maybe that's just me.

Also, he knows how to get to and from Barbieland. I can see how maybe, if it's something that can happen, Mattel executives might get briefed on the possibility of a Barbie entering the Real World and what to do if it happens, but I can't imagine the particulars of the journey itself are common knowledge. Yet this guy knows it immediately.

ALSO also, the bit that sticks out in my mind is his conversation with the other executives as they start making their way to Barbieland (which is now transforming into Kendomland). When they hear about the success of the Mojo Dojo Casa House playsets and the new Ken movie and everything that's changing, he's upset. The other executives even say, "what does it matter if we're still making money?" and he has his whole mini-rant about how that's not the point. He's not in this for the money, he's in it for the little girls, and the imagination, and the power that Barbie should have. Now, that doesn't sound like the opinion of an (admittedly bumbling) executive in the otherwise painfully accurate Real World. It sounds more like a holdover of a Ken's ingrained adoration of Barbie and everything she represents.

Not to mention that Allan explains to Gloria and Sasha (when he's trying to convince them to take him with them to the Real World) that others have left Barbieland and stayed in the Real World. At the time, he's referring specifically to Allans, but who's to say it couldn't happen to a Ken? In the original order of things, Kens aren't much more important than Allans, and might be equally unlikely to shift either world in a noticeable way. And if a Ken did manage to wander into the Real World, is it such a stretch to think he might have had a similar patriarchy awakening as the Ken we know, and also ended up at Mattel (like Barbie did), but instead of being captured, he could have talked his way into a position there (thanks, patriarchy) and worked his way up from there?

And he knows there are no real weapons in Barbieland. And I'm pretty sure he's the only man in the Real World (including Ken) we ever see wearing iconic Barbie pink. And, in the end, he's just happy things got back to normal and he's willing to give Barbie whatever ending she wants.

Anyway, thank you for coming to my TED talk.

#barbie 2023 #barbie movie spoilers #fan theory #ken #barbieland #rambling #barbie movie #spoilers #will ferrell #Mattel

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starstruck-flames · 9 months

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Please can we go see the Barbie movie?? - Villains headcanons (+ Hawks)

Dabi:

“What the fuck- why?!” “Because I want to.”

He thinks on it for a few days, he probably doesn’t want to go but… you want to, and it’s not a luxury you often have.

“I’m not wearing fucking pink.” “Okay but I am.” “Whatever. …Make sure it at least looks hot.”

You’ve got on the 90s flames somewhere on that outfit of yours. Probably showing off a bit of skin too, a nice piece of eyecandy for him while you enjoy your snacks and movie.

…Okay this is very bright.

“Do you guys ever think about death” 100% catches him off guard but he secretly loved that line.

He’s a little invested in the plot.

Mostly in your outfit tho-

He has fun! Even if it’s mostly bugging you while you’re enthralled in the movie.

Favourite character? Sasha.

Shigaraki:

He’s a liiiittle more immediately willing to see the movie. It looks funny and he’s more than willing to use “awe man my PARTNER really wanted to go” as an excuse.

You’re not getting him to match you though.

Okay fine he’ll wear ONE (1) pink accessory. Probably a pin but it’s for you, and he’s a fan of you and making you happy.

You on the other hand went FULL out, full pink, holding the gloved hand of your emo ass partner. “✨ Two tickets to the Barbie movie please! 🥰” while the poor cashier is getting death stares from your man.

It’s very bright and happy huh. Some of the jokes are lost on this man, he’s just enjoying the calmness of being at a cinema with you!

Haha Ken’s pretty funny, what a loser-

Wait.

He glances between Ken and you. Oh god.

Is he Ken?!

Though, that’s more of a paranoid thought. While you’re simply perfect and part of his life, it’s obvious he has much more of a life than just pleasing you.

He can’t help but kiss your hand during the movie, smiling towards you fondly. It’s a rare soft moment, one you don’t understand but this stupid movie and this sticky floored cinema means everything to him right now because it’s a calm with you.

(He loves Allen.)

Twice:

“BARBIE?! FUCK YEAH” “FUCK NO!”

He would be… so into this idea. He’s 100% wearing something pink. Earlier seasons? He can’t wear much due to needing to keep his head covered but he’ll work with the accessories. Later seasons? FULL PINK. Man found the cowboy hat he refuses to not wear the cowboy hat.

Unironically he loves Barbie land. Why can’t he be a sentient doll that never needs to eat or sleep and can have girls night every night?

“Wouldn’t you be a Ken?” “Nah, definitely a Barbie.” He’s your Barbie ❤️

Actively boos at the real world in the movie. Barbie is the only redeeming quality of the real world.

At first the themes of the movie go over his head completely, he’s just here for the shenanigans/snacks.

Halfway through the movie he seems to get a bit more invested. Wait- the Barbie movie has a message?!

Oh it has a message.

He’s 100% bawling at the Barbie movie.

He’s changed his mind, he loves being human and holding your hand and feeling these intense emotions towards the stupid doll movie. He loves this stupid doll movie, he won’t stop crying.

Favourite character? The Mattel board members, especially Will Ferrel’s character.

Toga:

“REALLY?? REALLY WE CAN GO? YEAAHHH BARBIE MOVIE IM STEALING THE CUTEST CLOTHES!!”

You’re perfectly matched. It’s the most coordinated set of outfits of all time.

She’s 100% snuggled into your arm regardless of relationship. She’s always wanted to go to the movies with the people she loves!

Barbie is so pretty…

Though, Toga is particularly interested in Ken and Barbie having this odd dynamic of Ken being interested and Barbie being… not so interested.

She worries that maybe her love for others is eclipsing her personality but…

Toga had learned a lot from the LOV, she’s her own person. Always growing. Being with everyone is just a bonus, a huge one.

She LIVES for all the music. I personally believe she’s a CharlieXCX fan-

Favourite character? Gloria. She’s a good, tired mom. Toga would have loved to have a mom like her!

Hawks:

He’s surprisingly agreeable to the idea of seeing it “once it comes out.”

What the dick doesn’t tell you is that he was invited to the premier, and so are you now.

He’s such a show off. He’d paid for you both to have accurate Barbie and Ken fits. It’s a complete surprise to you as you whisper into his ear that if he ever does this again? You’re stealing his credit card and fleeing the country.

Though, for now? The very fancy popcorn (in its biggest serving size) will be enough for your forgiveness.

Past the awkward encounter of dealing with the *pink* carpet, it’s a pretty regular movie date. You get a good spot, in a mostly empty cinema with plenty of snacks.

He’s not the most into this movie, but he mostly enjoys glancing over to you to see how you’re reacting to it.

That and he bought a big hot dog. Normally he’s not supposed to indulge in lower quality foods but lord, it hits a spot.

Ken’s plight is very funny to him.

He also highly appreciates the props, they just look neat.

Admittedly he’s looking at the Mattel higher ups in the movie, he knows it’s meant to be exaggerated but they remind him of the commission.

After the movie? He’s taking you home to really… really appreciate that barbie outfit he got you.

Favourite character? Weird Barbie. I won’t elaborate.

#dabi #mha headcanons #dabi headcanons #dabi mha #bnha shigaraki #tomura shigaraki #shigaraki fluff #shigaraki headcanons #mha toga #bnha toga #toga headcanons #twice #twice fluff #mha twice #barbie #barbie movie #bnha hawks #mha hawks #hawks headcanons

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the-owl-tree · 9 months

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Aside from the incredibly unjustified, poorly written forgiveness Feathertail (and Mistystar) grant her, what do you think about Leopardstar? In spite of everything, I’ve always liked that they gave us an extremely morally dubious she cat in power, who’s main motivation isn’t dependent on kits or tom cats. I feel like if the writers leaned a lot more on/ accepted that she’s awful most of the time, she could’ve been a much stronger character. And I do like how in spite of everything she agreed to do with Tigerstar, she was gunning hard for Sasha, and clearly liked her a lot. I just think there’s a lot of unexplored potential there

Big agree, I like Leopardstar as a villain. She's got a great presence in the first arc: she's intimidating and whenever she enters the scene, you KNOW somebody's going to get hurt. She goes for the throat and isn't afraid to kill, code be damned. She's ambitious and ruthless and I love how she's set up as this hungry cat who ends up being so blinded by her pursuit of power that she runs right into the claws of an even bigger predator. There's something so interesting about the way she plays right into what Tigerstar wants and yet every inch of power he gives her, he takes another for himself. Love it, fantastic set up and ending for the character in arc 1.

.....and then her involvement in the execution of Stonefur is never heavily brought up and scrutinized in the mainline books (then forgiven in the graphic novels) and she dies a very noble and brave leader. Bleh. Boring. She rubbed elbows with Tigerstar happily, why are we not playing her as a villain? Why is she just there? Her depiction post-TPB is boring and unsatisfactory, both she and Blackstar get away with waaaaaayy too much. Definitely find something interesting in her taking such an interest in Sasha, in particular her mentoring Hawkfrost and even considering him for deputy. It's that bit of wiggle room I like but I think requires more fan work than canon work for me to really wanna delve into.

side note, i LOVE the fanon idea that Leopardstar had something to do with Crookedstar's death. Poisoning him slowly, sneaking yew in his prey and weakening him slowly, all that.

#deer rambles #leopardstar tried to kill fireheart a few times lol #and i love that i just wish EVERY OTHER ARC FOLLOWED UP ON HER BEING A BAD PERSON #i've not read leopardstar's honor whatever #because i figured i wouldnt like it #and i had that same gut feeling about crowfeather's trial #and im sure some of you enjoyed me putting myself through that misery #but im not doing that with leopardstar's honor....yet #give me half a month to recover

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hayscodings · 7 months

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some thoughts.

it doesn't matter how terry found out that svetlana was pregnant. we were never told, so assumptions aren't canon. that being said, it could have happened any number of ways. we know that sasha deducted all sorts of expenses from the girls' pay so she or that one dude who worked the front desk could have mentioned something to terry as we know for a fact that he frequented the massage parlor. it could have also come up if terry booked a session with svetlana. maybe she was experiencing morning sickness, who knows. it doesn't ultimately matter. even if she did tell terry unprompted, why shouldn't she? it was his fault she got pregnant in the first place.

to blame svetlana for terry's arrangement of the marriage to mickey is gross. svetlana is not responsible for anything that terry did or set into motion. no one is responsible for terry's actions but terry. svetlana was a victim. she did not "ruin" mickey and ian. and if you think that she was calling the shots in any of this mess then i urge you to educate yourself because a 19 year old, undocumented, sex slave that was trafficked into the country does not have any bargaining power.

mickey was of no concern to svetlana? she wasn't of any concern to mickey either. svetlana belittled him? he belittled her too.

and if you think that how svetlana acted when she was fighting for the survival of her child after being forced into an extremely traumatic situation is a true reflection of who she is as a person then the worst things your favorite character ever did is who they truly are deep down, too. if svetlana is defined by the lines that she crossed when she was in fear for the safety and survival of her and her child, then mickey is also defined by his most egregious wrongs.

i find it really interesting how certain people in this fandom will grant their fave all of the grace in the world but then when it comes to svetlana they will jump through hoops (misogynistic, victim-blaming hoops, no less) to cast her as the villain in order to validate their dislike of her. or in order to make mickey's wrongs against her seem justified.

that is all.

#I am so fed up with svetlana antis #blaming her for the actions of her rapist...y'all are seriously sick fr #DO NOT interact with me if you think any of these things I am so serious #shameless #svetlana yevgenivna #shameless text #tw rape #tw sa

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grendelsmilf · 4 months

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i'm so mean about the owl house on here but i do want to clarify that i have seen the whole show, and i think it is cute and charming and has good politics and i'm glad children (including my brother, who really liked it!) have this to grow up to. i don't actually think that as an adult i have an obligation to like every piece of children's media i show to kids, or that as a lesbian i have an obligation to like every piece of "representation" we are given. this show is not for me, but it's still good for what it is, and deserved better from the network. i respect dana terrace a lot and think she did a great job with the resources and limitations she had. i enjoyed watching the show, and thought parts of it were even brilliant (eda's struggle with her chronic illness, the implications of christian missionary colonialism as being the original sin at the heart of the united states, luz's relationship with her mom, the collector as a villain along the lines of anthony in "it's a good life" by jerome bixby). the only reason i disparage it as often as i do is because i grew bitter over seeing how many people my age were genuinely fawning over this show and its largely shallow and cliched cast of characters. maybe i'm missing something and it simply never clicked for me (besides eda, who is the goat), but there was something very irksome to me about the way people compared it to its sister show amphibia as if it was the obviously superior child [of gravity falls]. amphibia may have been less plot-focused and less superficially compelling, but it was a show that truly understood its characters and took its time to develop them thoughtfully and carefully. luz noceda has nothing on anne boonchuy, amity blight has nothing on sasha waybright, willow park has nothing on marcy wu, gus porter has nothing on sprig plantar, etc etc. (ok fine eda clawthorne may have something on hopediah plantar, but i can't help loving disabled milves it's literally written in my contract!) so my point isn't that the owl house is bad (it isn't!), but simply that i found it somewhat hollow at its core. it was clearly a labor of love, and i have nothing but respect for dana terrace, alex hirsch, and the rest of the crew for making the most with what they had. so if you love it, more power to you! i wanted to love it so badly. anyway stream amphibia

#o.tv #frogshowposting #it's also just kind of fun to dunk on things. sorry

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msweebyness · 2 days

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💖💖💖Myvan May Headcanons💖💖💖

Hello, all! I’m celebrating my favorite couple in the Miraculous universe with some cute headcanons for them in canon as well as all our various AU’s! Enjoy some Myvan cuteness as a kickoff, before we officially get into Myvan May! (I just learned that’s a thing and am so happy!) I’m gonna be releasing a lot of Myvan content this upcoming month! The parentheses let you know when I’m switching to a different AU! @artzychic27 @imsparky2002

(‘Canon’) Mylene often comes over to help Ivan babysit Sasha, as she finds the girl to be the sweetest, cutest thing in the world. The three of them always have so much fun playing games and going on little outings together. They even did a little group costume for Halloween one year, with Sasha being Boo, Ivan as Sulley, and Mylene as Mike.

Ivan sometimes still worries that other people, especially Mylene are afraid of him. He knows he didn’t have the best control over his temper in the past, and he was the very first akuma. Whenever he starts to sink into these kinds of thoughts, Mylene is quick to remind him of all the reasons she could never be afraid of him now, and how much she loves him.

(Class of Heroes) The first time QuasiIvan met the seven dwarves he was incredibly nervous because he was sure they weren’t going to like him, that they would think he wasn’t good enough for Snow Mylene. To his surprise, they didn’t care about his appearance and accepted him as part of the family pretty much off the bat. Even Grumpy liked him! (Snow Mylene was similarly nervous upon meeting Esmeralda for the first time, but left that day with a bevy of cute and embarrassing stories about when her boyfriend was a child. Esme loved her.)

After their marriage, besides ruling over the kingdom of Mylene’s family, they start a side project based on something they’re both passionate about: helping animals. They set up a clinic to care for wounded creatures in a smaller wing of their palace, where they help critters of all shape and size.

(Class of Villainy) Of all the villainous couples, Ivan Oogie and Mylensula are the absolute WORST when it comes to PDA. At least once a day, they start making out in the middle of the hallway with no regard for the discomfort of the people around them. Most people know better than to say anything.

Whenever the school gets fumigated, Mylensula is usually the one who ends up having to care for Ivan Oogie if he accidentally breathes it in and gets high as a kite. She doesn’t mind this though, because sometimes he just randomly says the cutest things (in her opinion) and he mostly just gets really cuddly with her.

(School for Monstrous Youths) Ivan Bumble has a strong bond with MyLeaf’s ‘babies’, who he often helps her take care of during his free time. He’ll usually bring sticks to play fetch with Brutus and Gigi, and Cookie loves when he brings his drumsticks to play music for her. He’s a pretty good Plant Dad, to be sure.

Most students at DuPont avoid upsetting or harming MyLeaf in any way at all costs, because her Bumble almost seems to have a sense for when this is happening, and will be there faster than you can blink, with the Yeti Death Glare™️ and ready to deal with whatever threat is presenting itself before carrying his flower away.

(Creepsters) Ivan’s temper in his full werebear form can be considerably more volatile than in his normal state, but this is nothing cuddling from his witch of nature can’t fix. Mylene loves how fluffy and soft he is in his huge bear form, and he’s very gentle with her.

(Ghoul Squad) Ivan Kong and Mylentasma first met when they were younger and some bullies had upset him so much that he took on his full Kong form. Her singing calmed him down and the two just kept spending time together from there.

Mylentasma confessed to Ivan Kong that she loved him by way of an entire operatic piece that detailed everything she loved about him. By the time it was done, he was in tears because he was so happy and he loves this girl so much. She still performs the piece for him on their anniversary every year!

(MiracOlympus) As the god of blacksmithing, some of Ivan’s best work have been gifts for his beloved girlfriend. He made Mylene the golden wreath of wheat sheafs with flecks of amber that she wears almost every day, as well as numerous other gifts. In return, she created a new species of flower for him, the gladiolus, which today symbolizes strength and honesty.

Mylene is fiercely protective of her boyfriend and does NOT tolerate any disrespect being shown to him. Once, a mortal king made the grave mistake of leaving Ivan out of the statue line-up in a temple honoring the Olympians, because he didn’t want ‘the ugly one’ to ‘ruin the image’ of the temple. A furious Mylene turned him into a goat for the insult, and he was forced to spend the rest of his days on a run-down old farm.

(WereMiraculous) As the pack medic, Mylene is responsible for treating the wounds of her packmates. One of her most frequent patients is, much to her dismay, her own mate. She understands that Ivan is doing his job as a guard to protect her and the pack, but it still pains her heart to see him hurt.

(DC/Arkham AU) When Venom Bringer first met MalevoLyricist, he was just so slightly jealous of his closeness to Nightmare Weaver, all the affection they showed each other and the multitude of inside jokes. Mylene was quick to notice this however and assured Ivan she saw Jesse as a brother and that he had nothing to fear.

(Marvel AU) Ivan and Mylene have a game they play on slow days where he throws his shield up in the air and she tries to nail the center of it with one of her arrows. She’s never missed, so he tries to throw it in different ways to make it more challenging for her.

(Phantoms of Paris) In Ivan’s opinion, Mylene has one of the most beautiful and haunting singing voices of any of the phantoms. After a particularly stressful akuma battle, his favorite thing to do is lay down with his head in her lap and listen to her sing some of the soft lullabies she uses to calm the children they rescue.

(Batraculous) Ivan and Mylene are one of the only couples that don’t use the lounge space for making out. They like to cuddle in the Bat Quad’s comfy seats, and there’s less of a chance of someone bursting in on them. They also like to drive out to the parks for picnics, where they help community groups with clean-up efforts.

(Land Before Time AU) Ivan once got his tail stuck in a tree he was ramming with Alix and it took hours to get him free. Mylene sat with him and kept him company the entire time until the others were able to find his parents to help free him.

(Actor AU) Ivan actually gets incredibly nervous in front of the camera, so Mylene does breathing exercises with him before takes. She’ll also hold his hand to keep him calm when they’re not in frame. Sometimes when they are too.

(Akuma AU) Stoneheart carries Horrificator pretty much everywhere, no matter how long or short the trip. It’s easy for him since he’s enormous and incredibly strong, and he just finds her too cute not to want to hold her all the time.

Very few people know that Horrificator, the ‘Queen of Fear’, actually has a fear of thunderstorms herself, and she plans to keep it that way. However, whenever a storm rolls through Paris, she prefers to spend the duration of it curled up in her boyfriend’s arms, listening to his heartbeat through the stone of his chest. It keeps her calm.

(Shadyverse) Ivan has a serious jealous streak when it comes to his girlfriend, and everyone knows about it. Most guys avoid even talking to Mylene because they know they’ll get pummeled into the dust if Ivan catches them. (Mylene thinks it’s adorable when he gets jealous and often actively creates situations that would have that outcome.)

Here’s to arguably the most wholesome and healthy ship in the entire show! Leave your thoughts in the comments and reblogs!

#miraculous ladybug #myvan #mylene haprele #ivan bruel #mlb AU #Myvan may #Headcanons #fluff

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mdhwrites · 7 months

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Considering you've criticized Owl House for trying to give Amity and Hunter abusive homelives for explaining their antagonistic behaviors initially and praise Amphibia for not trying to give Sasha having bad parents for her behavior, what do you think of how Zuko's redemption on Avatar the Last Airbender? Considering they also do the redeemed person had a terrible homelife with him having an abusive father in Ozai, what did you think of how they did Zuko?

Zuko is AMAZING. The big difference between TOH and Avatar with this arc is easy too: Avatar doesn't use it as an excuse and they don't brush it off. It's merely where everything began for Zuko and changing from that point is HARD.

Zuko always had a choice. He could always give up the quest for the Avatar and live a peaceful life. Even Iroh is pushing this from literally episode 1. It is Zuko's choice to chase the concept of honor that his father and his culture pushed on him. We feel that scar on his face by his determination. We feel the priorities of the fire nation by him constantly trying to prove himself. By trying to go alone to prove he's strong or do what he thinks will bring him honor.

It takes an ENTIRE BOOK for Zuko to start even questioning this stuff. We understand the weight of his decision to cut his hair and try to just live peacefully with Iroh because we saw the struggle he had to even consider giving up the warpath. It's not even easy for him then as he still wants to resort to the old ways and constantly has it reinforced what those old ways cost. The fear it put in people. The pain his culture has brought. It constantly reinforces the question that Zuko eventually has to answer: Is the Fire Nation's definition, and by extension his father's, of honor actually honorable? Is it the definition he wants to live by.

And then arguably we get the most important part of his arc... His 'victory'. He gets that parade back home. He gets everything he has wanted for so long. The only price he has to pay is that he will never have any other definition of honor than the Fire Nation's. And that is no longer a definition he desires and so despite having love, family, stability, etc. like that, he leaves to do good, even if he himself knows that it will be hard because he is so trained and used to being bad.

The length, dedication, questioning and cost of his arc are all deeply compelling. The show doesn't hold back on the fact that he was genuinely a member of the fire nation and what that meant.

Besides their first appearances... When do Amity or Hunter feel like a product of the Isles or their parents? Amity admittedly gets ONE more with Covention but that's it. Both of them very, VERY quickly give up on even the concept of being villains (Hunter at the START of his second major appearance, before anything has coerced him to think otherwise, is already rebelling against Belos teaching by looking into wild magic) and what is the price and actual arc of turning good for them? How difficult is it for them to actually get away from the lessons instilled upon them?

I already mentioned Hunter but Amity first brings up her parents in Understanding Willow where she talks about them controlling her friends and the like... And then immediately embraces Willow back into her fold as if her parents won't care. Two episodes later, she will destroy her ENTIRE friend group that her parents put onto her. Then, her NEXT APPEARANCE after that has her parents make their first proper appearance and... Then Amity, in an episode she's barely in, rejects them outright because Luz is pretty. It's not that she condemns their morals, how they look upon life, etc. like that. It's just "Hey, I'm being selfish too because I want my own friends." Which with how she entirely ignores actually trying to reconnect with Willow for half a season comes across much more like it's purely because Luz was going to die. Either Gus or Willow and she wouldn't give a damn. She'd get to console Luz then! Because Luz is all it took for Amity to change, it came easily, and it's all she cares about afterwards.

She NEVER loses it like Zuko does during the first part of Avatar's finale because Zuko actually cares about something. He is going to push back on them because he didn't change for Aang or Katara, he changed for himself. He is still the same person with that diehard fire in him that isn't gone just because he's a good guy now.

Hunter has a lot similar complaints but with much more of the severe need to address his moral issues. After all... How many witches did Hunter murder as the Golden Guard? Or led to their execution? It makes Amity's active choice to bully Willow for YEARS when she didn't need to seem almost quaint but both facts are swept under the rug just as easily. It's why one could claim the Golden Guard is not the same character as Hunter because they both require severely contexts to FUNCTION.

But we cannot do that. Hunter did take away people's rights. He did hunt them down. He was a member of the Emperor's Coven. He held its beliefs as fact... And we never see them question those beliefs. The closest is Hollow Mind where he spends the entire time telling Luz she's wrong, even as facts are presented in his face until proof that Belos will kill him is presented to him. At which point, the decision isn't "I don't believe in your ideals and regime, I'm going to rebel" like Zuko's but instead "Oh fuck, I'm going to DIE if I don't turn good." In fact, it's the opposite case for Zuko because the boy was effectively guaranteed to live a cushy life if he DIDN'T turn good.

And so once again, we have another turn to good that happens too easily, too quickly and mostly selfishly AT BEST. Even when Hunter fights of Belos' possession, it's all about how it's nice to have friends and have fun rather than, you know, it being wrong to persecute an entire class of people just because you don't like them. In neither case do the characters act like they've actually changed or learned anything. They were just flipped to good and that's that.

I also might not be so butthurt about it if not for the amount of TIME this stuff takes and how TOH itself takes itself so seriously so often. It obviously wants to have these arcs be a good deal and is willing to spend an exorbitant amount of time on them, to the point where they start causing Luz to not have time to spend with characters like King or Eda, and yet they're also not exploring anything. They're not saying anything. It's just... There. On the most shallow level.

So yeah, if I haven't made it clear: I don't dislike the trope of bad parents leading to bad children who are eventually redeemed (in general, I think there are VERY few tropes that are inherently bad). There's a lot that can be done with it and it is a good explanation for how a young person can be so angry. You just, you know, actually have to do something with it instead of using only the surface level elements and expecting to be rewarded for it. Worse yet if you try to pretend that it took literally agency from the character when they clearly weren't actually that indoctrinated to have a lack of free will or so much fear as to not consider any other option.

And no, I don't blame the shortening. By Eclipse Lake for Hunter, and WELL before S1 even finished for Amity, both characters were obviously already 80% of the way to good people, if not already there for Amity. The show just had no patience and no willingness to explore its own concept and that ALWAYS sucks. It's the worst part of the writing for My Adventures With Superman too. *sigh*

So yeah, don't scapegoat, actually explore your concepts and don't erase your characters during their redemptions. Then maybe you can try to claim to have a character as good as Zuko.

======+++++======

Grain of salt here: Some of this is second hand because honestly, a rewatch of Avatar doesn't sound like a bad idea. It's been a while to put it mildly BUT just the structure of Zuko's arc is infinitely better than how most people do redemption arcs honestly so I think the thoughts still stand despite that.

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

And finally a Twitter you can follow too!

#toh critical #Zuko #hunter toh #amity blight #character arcs

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dammarchy211 · 2 years

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OKAY BETTER OLDER DESIGNS FUCK

I hate shoving a bunch of art into one post bc it never does well but w/e im doing it anyway</3

So! Raz and Lili are taking a more long term mission in a big city! So they have their own tiny apartment and Dogen is there too sometimes as their “man in the chair” type deal but I haven’t drawn him yet lol. As for other characters! They befriended Kitty when they were about 13-14 (was very hard they were all mean to eachother at first) because she had entered the intern program and was assigned to Cher! Now her, Lili, Frazie, and Lizzie are in a shitty mostly cover band bc I said so. Norma went very headfirst into the whole agent thing, but mostly takes up detective type missions, she just finds them more fun. Naturally Dion stuck with the circus, but Frazie’s mostly doing her own thing, kinda trying to find her calling for the most part, this stresses both Dion and Norma out gjfhdk. I have design stuff for other characters like Sasha n Milla as well as some oc stuff but I’ll post those later

!Blood/light gore/needle warning under the cut! Scar backstory ish baybyy

Tumblr has been kicking my asss with this one picture so if you see it twice or smth or if u don’t see it sorry</3

I wasn’t gonna post the Dex half of this but fuck it it just might not be on the insta post fjfhdkdh

Ever think about how villains and such wouldn’t be a able to go to the hospital for major injuries and such due to just generally being villains because yeah

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neopuff · 2 months

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ALWAYS ON MY MIND

chapter seven: broaden the mind ships: sasha/milla characters: milla, sasha, oleander word count: 7311 ao3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/53435410/chapters/137330218

[chap 1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]

Many things came naturally to her.

Dancing, having great hair, friendly conversation, caring about children…

…and best of all - being a psychic secret agent.

Within a year of working with the Psychonauts and working alongside Agent Nein, Milla had become an agent of significant renown. Everyone in the Motherlobe knew her by name and reputation and by her brightly colored dresses. They even started to call her the Mental Minx. Psychonauts from around the world knew of the exploits and successes of Agents Nein and Vodello.

They had the highest mission success rate of any partnership in Psychonauts history. They saved countless lives. They solved mysteries long forgotten. They uncovered psychic secrets. And best of all - they looked good while doing it.

July 6th, 1980 Liverpool, England

“Sasha,” she communicated psychically, not wanting to give away their position, “I can feel them up ahead. Two minds full of turmoil - though one is much more disjointed than the other.”

He nodded at her and they continued towards the door, making sure to stay invisible the entire time. “No matter what happens, make sure you work as quickly as possible.”

“Of course, darling. We’ll get Owens out of here safely.”

They went silent for a minute, focusing on the creaking and shifting sounds made by the abandoned factory. It clearly hadn’t had anyone inside in a very long time - the hustle and bustle of new activity was probably dangerous. If the bomb didn’t kill everyone, the building could just fall down on its own.

Up ahead, the two agents spotted a large, triangular door. It was already open, and they could hear someone talking quite loudly. More than talking, actually - he was bragging. Bragging about his evil exploits.

Milla shook her head and could practically feel Sasha rolling his eyes behind the sunglasses. They’d faced a good number of villains together, but they never got used to the showboats.

“Just a few seconds to go, mon cherie!” boomed the haughty voice from the other room. “And now it’s my time to say…adieu!”

Milla and Sasha locked eyes and decided there was no better time to get moving - they’d struggled to find the location and wasted too much time getting inside. There was no more time to lose.

Together, they burst into the room, not surprised to see Owens tied crudely to a large explosive device and Vaillant attempting to sneak out the window.

“Sacre bleu!” Vaillant shouted. He started to scurry, moving his arms and legs faster than ever.

Sasha reached out a telekinetic hand to grab onto his shirt. “I’ve got him, Milla - get the bomb!”

“Already on it!” she responded quickly. She created an extended time bubble, giving herself extra time to use telekinesis and take apart the bomb from the inside. She’d studied this. She knew exactly what to do. Didn’t make the situation any less nerve wracking - but Sasha staying so close by was helpful. He was letting her know how confident he was in her ability to save them all, and she wouldn’t let him or anyone else down.

The time bubble ended and one more second passed before the timer finally stopped - with 0:01 left on the screen. Milla took a deep breath and pretended not to notice the drop of sweat sliding down Sasha’s face.

“Excellent work, Agent Vodello,” he said with a smile, still holding the wriggling and ranting Vaillant in the air.

“Thank you very much, Agent Nein!” Milla responded, reaching down to untie Owens.

The short, portly man was hyperventilating until she untied the rope, then he jumped into the air gleefully. “Oh, thank you! Thank you both so much!” he shouted, wrapping his arms around Milla’s waist and hugging her tightly. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

She looked surprised for a moment, then patted his back. “We’re just glad you’re safe!”

Sasha stared at them, unable to hold back a pout. He didn’t one hundred percent understand why he was pouting, but there it was. And he couldn’t look away from the man latched onto his partner - she didn’t seem uncomfortable, but Sasha still felt an urge to pull him off of her. Some people were too presumptuous, initiating such significant physical contact with strangers.

He thought back to the first time Milla had hugged him and then turned away from her, running a hand through his hair. They knew each other a little by then, at least. It wasn’t remotely comparable.

“Darling, what’s wrong?” Milla asked, suddenly standing next to him. “Did we miss something?”

“No.” He glared up at Vaillant, who was still cursing at the three of them loudly. “He’s giving me a headache, is all.”

She smiled at him and laid her hand gently against his arm. “All the more reason to get him to the local authorities as quickly as possible!”

Normally they’d bring caught villains back to the closest Psychonauts facility for processing, but Vaillant wasn’t actually psychic. He’d been faking it for months in an attempt to steal from the locals, not realizing he’d caught the eye of the Psychonauts by doing so. For a while they’d just monitored him, but his recent murder attempt was significant enough to warrant their interference. Local police wouldn’t have gotten to Owens in time, so it was worth the exposure risk to save at least one innocent life.

“That sounds like an excellent idea,” he answered with a smile.

Hollis was right, working with Sasha had taught Milla so much about being a Psychonaut. He was patient with her when she struggled and encouraging when she needed a boost. He was intelligent and worldly and knew exactly how to handle the homicidal psychics that tried to stir up trouble.

That being said, Milla liked to think she taught him things, too. Sasha socialized more often since their partnership began, and he was more confident when it came to certain types of missions.

April 18, 1981 Pretoria, South Africa

Milla enjoyed dressing up. Everyone knew that about her - she was always dressed to impress, after all, and had a comprehensive selection of beautiful clothes to choose from every day. It was one of those little things that made her feel better, especially when she was having a bad time.

Getting to dress up for a mission was a special treat. And even more special, was getting to see Sasha dress up, too! His clothes were modest, conservative, and repetitive. He had several of the exact same jacket and pants to prevent wasting any time getting ready in the morning. But for their current mission, he had no choice but to play dress-up with her.

She’d chosen his outfit for him - the villainous party they’d be attending was glamorous and avant-garde, two things that Sasha Nein did not know how to dress for.

Luckily, his partner was well-versed in all things fashion.

Milla was making some last-minute adjustments to her outfit - deciding on which earrings to wear always took her the longest amount of time - when she heard shuffling behind her. She smiled and decided on the long, large dangles when a voice spoke up behind her.

“You, um…you look lovely, Camilla.”

Getting compliments from Sasha Nein wasn’t rare - in the past year, he’d begun to compliment her more and more on her skills and occasionally her hair when she put some work into it. But it still made her feel very, very good. She smiled brightly and turned around, putting the earrings in. “Thank you, Sasha! Maybe I’ll try this hairstyle again sometime.”

She finally took a good look at him and Milla couldn’t fight the smile that came to her face. Which then turned into a giggle that she had to cover up by putting a hand over her mouth and turning away.

Sasha frowned, his cheeks turning red. “What? Is the mustache too much?”

Milla shook her head and walked closer, reaching up to adjust his large, bulbous hat. “No, darling, it’s perfect. You look very handsome.”

He grumbled and turned his face away from hers. “...thank you, but looking handsome isn’t exactly the goal.”

She laughed at that and moved her hands down to his coat, tugging gently on the lapels. “No, of course not. You look very menacing, too. We’ll blend right in, I’m sure.”

At that, Sasha turned back to her, and Milla suddenly became very aware of how close their faces were. Sometimes it scared her how much she enjoyed being close to him, especially considering how well they knew each other. They’d been inside each other’s minds on countless occasions - it was intimate in its own way, but so, so different from really feeling each other.

She smiled at him again and backed away, walking to their hotel room mirror. “I think we should add some jewelry to your outfit Mr. Barroso,” she said cheekily, referencing the fake name he was using to get into the party.

He let out a deep breath behind her and slowly followed. “Whatever you say…Mrs. Barroso.”

When she’d first started at the Psychonauts, fellow agents told her he was stiff and unfun and overly serious all the time. Milla would give them stiff - especially when she hugged him or kissed him on the cheek - but certainly not unfun and he was perfectly capable of loosening up and joking around with her. It took them a bit to get there, sure, but when she saw him crack a smile or heard his laugh, it made her feel like her day was a success.

The most important thing about him, though, was how safe she felt with him.

Milla didn’t have any fear going into unknown territory. Sasha was always by her side and they’d keep each other safe - whether facing a villain of unknown strength, sneaking into a club with dozens of known criminals waiting for an opportunity to shoot, or even just chatting with a man whose eyes wandered more than necessary.

And even if he wasn’t right there with her, she felt safer knowing he was a part of her life.

March 3rd, 1982 9,500 Miles Over Lake Tanganyika

“Sasha!”

His head hurt.

There was a piercing noise in his ears and a bright light in the center of a pitch black tunnel that was his vision, but mostly all he could focus on was the pounding in his head.

“Darling, please open your eyes!”

He tried to move his arms and twitched a few fingers, too exhausted to do much else. Trying to move on from the distracting headache only made him realize that his entire body hurt, too. Why did it hurt so badly?

“Come on, Nein!”

A different voice spoke that time, and then he realized: there were voices speaking to him. Both in his head and in his ears, two voices repeatedly shouting his name. It was kind of agitating, if he was being honest. Why were they shouting? He could hear them just fine.

Sasha scrunched his eyebrows together and heard a gasp as he did. It sounded almost like a happy gasp, if he had to guess.

Then there was suddenly a heavy weight on his chest, and he was all but forced to open his eyes and finally take in whatever was happening around him.

“M-Milla?!” he coughed out, trying to catch his breath.

She pulled back, letting one hand rest on his shoulder while the other cradled his cheek. “I’m so glad you’re alright, Sasha! I’ve never seen you get hit like that before!”

“I knew he’d be fine.”

“You can barely walk, Morry, go sit down!”

“Bah! Fine! But you’re not the boss of me!”

Sasha blinked repeatedly, slightly blinded by the sudden brightness of the room and definitely confused by the conversation he was hearing. “What’s…going on?” he said slowly.

She took a deep breath before answering. “You were shot, darling. A few times.”

He frowned and took a deep breath. That would explain the pain he was in. The memories of their current mission started flooding back to him as he tried to figure out what parts of him were aching and throbbing the most. “Where?”

“Ah, um…your right shoulder was hit, and your right calf was grazed a few times.” She paused for a second, stroking her thumb against his cheek. “Your shield protected you from getting hit in the head, but one bullet grazed your temple.”

Sasha sighed. “Can you move me into a seated position?” he asked, hoping he didn’t sound as miserable as he felt.

“Of course,” Milla answered softly, doing as he asked.

Sasha opened his eyes properly and took in the view - Milla was sitting on her knees in front of him, not a scratch on her, while Morceau was laying on a bench behind them covered in bruises and blood. The man was cradling one leg, giving Sasha the impression that he’d been shot as well. At least he had plenty of experience with that.

“What happened with Peters?”

“His helicopter is still out there!” Oleander shouted from his seat. “But Milla here wanted to make sure you weren’t dead before she took him out!”

“Morceau!” she said sternly, glaring at the man. “You make it sound like I did something wrong!”

Sasha shook his head. His partner struggled to leave behind injured teammates, and as much as he appreciated her help, there were times when her concerns got in the way of finishing the job. “He’s right, Milla. You need to stop him. There’s no time for this.”

She sat there silently for a moment, staring at him. The way her eyes bore into his own made Sasha realize that his sunglasses were gone - no wonder the lights were hurting his head so much worse than usual.

“But I-”

“Camilla.” Sasha closed his eyes, trying to focus. He was in a lot of pain. “We’re fine. Go.”

“...alright,” Milla said softly.

He could hear her stand up and felt a surge of pride that she was listening to him, but before she took her leave from the jet, Sasha felt a pair of warm lips brush against his forehead. His entire body would’ve gone stiff if he had the energy for it - instead, he opened his eyes just in time to see Milla giving a similar smooch to Morceau.

“I’ll be back.”

Sasha watched her go and let out a deep sigh. He and Oleander needed to tend to their injuries as much as possible. But he also wanted to take a minute and think about how he could still smell Milla’s perfume against his skin. It was slightly intoxicating.

“Ha! What did I say, Nein? You’re not special!” Oleander shouted, a pained smirk on his face. “She’ll kiss anyone who needs it!” Sasha’s face turned bright red as he realized Morceau was referencing and completely misinterpreting an earlier conversation they’d had. “That’s not what I…ugh…just shut up, Morry.”

It was hard to think that they'd ever been strangers.

Over three years into their partnership and Milla couldn't imagine her life without Sasha Nein as part of it. She still did her own thing on free weekends - she'd go out with friends and party or have a few drinks and it would be a lovely time. But it wasn't the same as when she and Sasha would go to the bowling alley together and just…talk.

There was one evening they spent together where Milla found herself unable to tear her eyes from his face. He'd been talking about aliens - a subject he was quite passionate about that Milla did not find particularly interesting - but she couldn't bring herself to interrupt him or add anything.

She just wanted to listen to his voice.

When they parted ways that night, she realized that she was in love with him. It was a bit embarrassing - not the love she felt, but the knowledge that she'd probably been in love with him for a long time and not noticed.

As a Psychonaut who was meant to pay close attention to what was going on in her head, Milla felt clueless. She hadn't had such strong feelings for another person since she was a teenager, and she definitely didn't know what to do about it.

She really doubted that Sasha felt the same way about her. He appreciated her and maybe even loved her, but in love seemed like a stretch.

Milla sighed and floated towards Sasha’s office. She knew he was working behind that door even though he told her he was going home. She knew him better than that.

She glanced at the door next to his - which was currently an empty office after Second Head Forsythe moved to her new space and then Agent Yeomans moved to the Psychonauts base in the United Kingdom. Maybe, if she played her cards right and kept being an unstoppable team with Sasha, Milla would be the next agent to earn it.

“Darling,” she thought, reaching out to Sasha’s mind nearby. “Try not to stay up all night.”

There was a slight hesitation before he responded. “Of course. Goodnight, Milla.”

Those two sentences were a regularity for them - Sasha loved working through the night, forgetting to eat or sleep because he was so focused on a project. His dedication to his work was admirable, but he needed to take better care of himself.

She sighed and floated away from his office. The few drinks she'd had in the bowling alley were making her mind repeatedly fall back to the subject of love and she knew she'd need to sleep it off, then hurry up and organize her thoughts in the morning. If she made Sasha uncomfortable around her, she'd never forgive herself.

August 20th, 1983 Melbourne, Australia

It was a long chase.

A long, long boat chase through Port Phillip and Milla was so glad it was over. It felt like they’d been on their feet for hours and if Charno’s boat hadn’t run out of gas, they probably wouldn’t have caught up when they did. Thankfully, their own boat was powered by Sasha’s psychic powers and with the help of a few PSI pops, that was practically unlimited.

Neither of the two villains were psychic - simply interested in psychics and attempted to capture some psychics for experimentation - so Milla and Sasha were stuck dealing with local law enforcement to collect them. They’d likely have to come back for some psychic interrogation, but due process was important.

Milla didn’t particularly enjoy dealing with police. Her experiences with them as a teenager had been bad enough, but dealing with them as an adult hadn’t been much better. Especially not when she was standing around in her bikini.

She frowned, listening while Sasha explained the situation to Officer McKenna. The man was taking notes while his partner handcuffed Charno and De Lacey and shoved them into the back of their car.

They were dressed for the beach, not for a jail cell. Milla felt bad for them, despite the fact that they’d tried to kidnap her earlier in the day. Maybe Sasha was right, she was too forgiving sometimes. But it was simply how she was.

“Your girlfriend doesn’t have anything to add?”

Milla glanced up to see that the police officer was addressing Sasha still, pointing to her. He’d probably introduced them as concerned citizens who came across a bad situation, rather than the Secret Agents they really were. Many countries refused to recognize the authority of the Psychonauts despite all the good work they did, so it was easier to just pretend they were citizens half the time.

“No.”

The two officers looked at each other, almost like they were having a psychic conversation of their own.

Sasha piped up again. “She doesn't speak much English.”

“Alright, whatever,” the officer responded.

They could both read his simple mind very easily and knew he didn't believe Sasha, but also that he didn't care. And that he was mostly interested in talking to Milla because of her looks.

As they walked away with the villains in tow, Sasha walked back over to Milla and quickly took off his jacket, placing it gently on her shoulders.

Milla already had her arms wrapped around her chest and smiled as his hand lightly brushed hers. She tugged on the jacket and closed her eyes, comforted by how much it smelled like Sasha. Who knew the scent of cigarettes could ever be so enjoyable?

“Thank you,” she said softly. The bikini was starting to feel a little uncomfortable while they stood around for so long.

He shrugged in response. “You looked cold.”

Though Sasha was a master of keeping certain thoughts to himself, Milla could pick up little hints from his mind that implied he didn't like the way those officers and other random passersby were looking at her. It was very sweet.

She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek, pulling back in time to see him visibly stiffen and his face turning bright red. Milla smiled and turned away to give him enough privacy to calm his nerves down. “And now I'm not cold!”

He took a moment, taking enough deep breaths to get the normal greenish color back to his cheeks.

Milla decided to tease him a little more, only because she enjoyed it so much. “I think I may keep this, actually. I've never felt so comfortable!”

Sasha turned to her and pouted slightly, the pink on his cheeks coming back. “I…that's my favorite jacket,” he said matter-of-factly.

“I guess you'll have to get a new favorite,” Milla responded with a bright smile on her face. She looked back at their boat and it finally hit her that they were miles and miles away from where they'd parked the jet. “We should start heading back before it gets dark.”

He frowned, confused by the sudden change of subject. “Yes, I suppose we should.” After a pause, he added, “I'll want that jacket back eventually, Milla.”

Getting to know Sasha Nein was a slow process. He was a very private man, and even when she was in his mind there were things he kept away from her.

She knew about his situation with his father. It was awful, but, in her opinion, their relationship was definitely fixable. But she didn’t want to stress him out by asking too many questions, despite the fact that she really wanted to help. Milla’s father passed when she was a teenager and she would’ve loved the opportunity to see him again if she could. But Sasha’s situation was different.

By the fourth year of their partnership, she’d come to know more details about Sasha’s mother, too. And the details of why Sasha ran away from home.

He was so young. Only a few years older than some of the orphans that’d been in her care. It was heartbreaking to know that he was so confused and scared and uncomfortable that he didn’t want to be around his father anymore. And by the time he fully understood what had happened, too many years had passed to go back without explanation.

She was so moved when he told her that he and his father had some brief contact through letters over the past several years. It was small, but she was proud of him. His experience was strange and unique and traumatizing and she was glad he was working through it one step at a time.

Anytime she expressed those feelings, he’d dismiss it and compare it to the terrible things she’d been through. He even told her, once, after a few drinks, that her strength to move forward inspired him to keep trying with his father.

She could’ve kissed him for that, but it was probably for the best that she didn’t.

Still - it was nice. Nice to know that what she’d gone through and how she’d grown was having a positive impact on one of the most important people in her life.

December 25th, 1983 The Motherlobe, California, USA

He didn't particularly enjoy the time of year.

Sasha was an atheist, first of all. So celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ held no interest for him. He had very little family, and what he did have was thousands of miles away. And he didn't have many friends to celebrate with, either.

So instead of a time for joy and jubilance, to him it was a time of crowds and loud music.

Which was all the more reason for him to stay in his office and work extra hard - especially when he and Milla were in the middle of tracking down the Noodler.

He was a despicable man who used his psychic abilities to jumble people’s minds. He'd turn their thoughts and ability to form words into an absolute mess, making a person refer to shoes as fish or doors as cats. His latest victim had lost control of his limbs - when he tried to command his leg, it would move his arm instead.

It was a dangerous and advanced bit of mental power. Sasha would've been impressed if he wasn't so disturbed by it.

The Noodler last struck on December 16th at the Santa Cruz County National Bank. After three days of repairing damaged minds and getting information, Sasha and Milla were back at headquarters to analyze the data and see if they could figure out the next spot he'd hit.

But as they sat in their respective offices, Sasha looking for patterns in spots the Noodler attacked and Milla mentally reaching out to see if anyone could help her find him, he wondered if this was cruel.

Just because he had no interest in Christmas didn't mean Milla felt the same way. She probably had standing invitations to at least a dozen Christmas parties, and he was practically forcing her to stay at work with him instead.

With a deep breath, he reached out towards her mind with his own. “Milla?”

It was only a few moments before she responded. “Hello, Sasha!”

Her cheerfulness always made him smile. “I just wanted to say, um…I appreciate you working late with me, but if you have anywhere else you'd like to be right now, I won't be offended if you leave.”

This time there was a much longer pause, one that made Sasha briefly worry that he'd said something wrong.

“Ah, right. It's Christmas Eve, isn't it?”

He sighed. It wasn't surprising that Milla was focused so intensely on their search for the Noodler - one of his victims was only twelve years old and she was always extra sensitive to the endangerment of children. “Almost seven o’clock on Christmas Eve.”

He could feel her mind sorting through something for a few moments until she responded again. “I was thinking of going to Sherri’s little Christmas party, but it doesn't sound like it'll be a good time.”

“Why's that?”

There was a bright happiness radiating off of her words. “Because you won't be there, of course!”

Sasha's cheeks turned pink and he severed the connection between their minds for a few moments so he could collect himself. He was never quite sure if Milla was serious or just teasing him when she said things like that, but either way he knew he'd have to quickly take the memory of those words and file them into one of his many folders dedicated to Milla Vodello.

He reconnected their thoughts and continued the conversation. “I, um. I appreciate the sentiment. But you really don't have to stay if you don't want to.”

She hummed a Christmas tune in their shared thought space and chuckled. “You know, Sasha, at a certain point it'll feel like you want me to leave!”

“I certainly do not,” he answered quickly, not wanting her to get the wrong idea. Sasha enjoyed spending time with her and he liked how dedicated she was to their work, but he didn't want her to feel obligated just because he was a workaholic (as she so lovingly put it). “Just want to make sure you know that I don't expect you to stay all night.”

“You don't have to stay all night, either, you know.”

“I can assure you, I've nowhere else to be and no one else to talk to.”

There was a brief pause before Milla sent out another thought. “What about your father? You told me you'd been wanting to get in touch with him again.”

Sasha felt nervous at that, shame and guilt creeping over him. And thanks to their shared mental connection, Milla could no doubt feel his shame and guilt, which then made him feel even more ashamed and guilty. It was an unfortunate cycle. But she was correct, Sasha had every intention of reaching out to his father again. After the Wrong Address Debacle of a few years earlier, he'd sent out one letter apologizing for the delay and then…that was it. He hadn't heard back.

But he was able to confirm through a contact in Germany that his father was alive and well.

So Sasha was stuck: send another letter? Call him? Or assume that the lack of reply was its own response and their relationship was done forever?

“I'm sorry, darling, I didn't mean to bring up bad feelings.”

Sasha sighed. The holidays were a time for family - it was inevitable that his father would come up in one conversation or another. “It's fine. I've just been…putting that off.”

A small part of Sasha wondered if it would be worthwhile to take a trip and see his father in-person for the first time in two decades, but then he felt abnormally small at the thought of making such a big step. Perhaps with his partner by his side, it wouldn't be so bad, but he'd never place that burden on her shoulders.

“Well if you ever want to go see him, you know I'd be happy to come with and support you!” Milla chirped, sending a wave of positive energy his way.

He smiled as the warmth fell over his shoulders. It was uncanny how well she could read him in only a few years time. It was no wonder he enjoyed her company so deeply. “I'll keep that in mind. Thank you, Milla.”

Milla had very strong feelings for him.

She didn’t want to make him uncomfortable, but she also wanted him to know. Just in case there was a small chance that he had similar feelings for her. He was shy and a bit awkward sometimes, so if she made her feelings clear then perhaps he’d feel more confident about his own.

Assuming there were feelings to be confident about.

It was difficult to tell. He spent more time with her than anyone else, but they were partners. He complimented her often and smiled at her and laughed with her, but they were friends. None of that was particularly damning. Not to mention his lack of interest in physical touch or romantic movies and books…Milla wasn’t sure if he had any interest in romance at all.

She was toeing a complicated line. She couldn’t be too obvious about her feelings because he’d get uncomfortable and it’d be a whole situation and then she could potentially lose the most important person in her life. But if she didn’t do anything at all, then…well, it wasn’t like Sasha Nein would ever make a first move. Especially if he wasn’t sure how she felt.

They didn’t have to get together, of course. She was perfectly happy just being partners and friends. But if it was possible, then she wanted to try it. She wanted to be with him more fully. She wanted to kiss him and see the adorable look on his face while he tried to hide the burning in his cheeks.

Part of her was a little scared about the possibility. They worked dangerous jobs and lived dangerous lives. Any day could be their last.

But her feelings for him were already so strong. Losing him as a friend or losing him as a lover would be equally difficult. Her life would feel empty either way. But knowing that didn’t make it any easier to talk to him about it.

So she hesitated. She flip-flopped on what to do. She wanted to tell him, she didn’t want to tell him. She wanted to be with him, she didn’t want to risk it. She wanted to kiss him, she didn’t want to make him uncomfortable. She wanted to hold him, but even more than that, she wanted him to hold her and that was a completely different situation which she had no idea how to create.

Until she could make a real decision on the matter, Milla stuck to her usual. Hugs, cheek kisses, light flirting. Little things that helped Sasha peek out of his shell and would hopefully help him understand just how much she appreciated him.

March 12th, 1984 Venado Tuerto, Argentina

The suit was a bit much.

Sasha was used to his partner wearing bright and colorful clothing, but it was usually very loose and flowing and comfortable-looking. Dresses that fell gently over her shoulders or skirts that danced around when she spun in the air.

What he wasn't used to were some of the clothes Milla chose to wear on missions. She certainly dressed for the occasion, no matter what that occasion was. Fancy ball gowns, sure. A little black bikini, alright.

But the skin tight leather catsuit was where he started to draw the line.

Though Sasha obviously had no say over his partner’s wardrobe, he felt very nervous while she had it on. He could clearly make out every curve of her body and the fact that a small part of him enjoyed the view was making him extremely uncomfortable. He didn't want to be the type of man to sexualize a woman on the job, but…well.

It was very tight.

He watched carefully as Milla lowered herself closer and closer to the caiman pit. She opened up the jar and telekinetically retrieved the president’s brain, quickly floating it up to her partner.

Sasha grabbed the brain and took a deep breath, happy that he finally had a distraction from the view. He knew he was being very disrespectful towards his partner for feeling such a way, but…well. He was only human. And she was very attractive. And he had come to terms with that fact a long time ago.

He re-cranialized the president as Milla made her way back up to the roof, scaling expertly. After so many years of working together, he didn’t even spare her a glance, knowing she’d land on her feet without so much as a misstep.

The shorter man staggered a bit, rubbing his forehead aggressively like he was fighting off a major headache. Being de-brained was an unpleasant experience, Sasha had been told, though he’d never dealt with it himself.

“How are you feeling, Presidente Alfonsín?” Milla asked, hand on the man’s shoulder. “¿Cómo está?”

The man shook his head and took a deep breath, pausing for a long moment. “Malo. Muy malo.”

Sasha heaved a deep sigh. If he was answering questions, then the re-cranialization process was successful. “Mr. President, can you tell us your birth date? Or the name of your wife?” He paused, then looked over at Milla. “Maybe you should lead this.”

She smiled at him. “My Spanish is not perfect, but I’ll try my best-”

President Alfonsín suddenly groaned and fell onto his back, spread-eagle and staring up at the sky. “Doce de marzo.” He paused and closed his eyes again. “María.”

Sasha walked over and took a seat next to the tired man, knees up and arms laying on top of them. “Good. Sounds like you’re back to normal.”

“Not yet,” the president said quietly. “Still in pain.”

Sasha stared down at him, about to continue the conversation or offer some sort of pain medication, when he heard a loud zip! behind him. Naturally, he turned around to see what was going on, and was greeted with the not-so-unexpected sight of Milla unzipping the back of her catsuit.

He turned away immediately, his cheeks a deep pink color.

“Sorry darling,” Milla said quietly, though there was a distinct chuckle in her voice. “It’s just so uncomfortably tight.”

“Mhm.” Sasha looked straight ahead, wondering what he’d done in a past life to deserve such punishment. “I noticed that. Looks very, um. Uncomfortable. As you said.”

She sat down and shivered as the wind hit her newly-freed back. “It was helpful getting through the lasers, though.”

He could feel his neck and hands getting sweaty. “Of course. That makes sense.”

She really did love him.

October 1st, 1984 Kowloon, Hong Kong

Levitating was very different from flying, which was very different from falling, which was very different from hurtling through the air surrounded by debris and heading straight for the ground.

Milla levitated almost as much as she walked. It was second nature to her - she didn't even have to think about it.

She was very comfortable while flying. The Psychonauts came into some money and had recently upgraded their jet - making it faster and safer than ever before.

Falling wasn't fun, but it was easy. Recoverable, usually.

But in the aftermath of an explosion - one they were very lucky to have gotten away from - Milla found that it wasn't as easy to recover when falling at such speeds. Sasha was right next to her, thankfully not injured any more than herself, but they both knew that was about to change.

She barely had enough mental energy left for a shield. It was safe to assume that Sasha was in the same boat. So they'd have to save what little energy they had for the exact moment they hit the ground. Prevent as much damage as possible.

They didn’t even need to communicate psychically to decide that taking hold of each other and combining their shields would be the best way to land. Milla grabbed Sasha and Sasha grabbed Milla and they squeezed each other as tightly as possible as the ground got closer and closer.

Shields went up, ground was hit. They landed intensely, rolled around for a moment, then finally stopped. Debris was still falling all around them. But Milla wasn’t too concerned.

Her focus was entirely on the man under her - whose arms had been wrapped around her waist just a moment earlier. Her hands were on his chest and her legs had managed to land on either side of his.

She was completely straddling him.

Which would’ve been the most notable and embarrassing part of the entire situation if not for the fact that their faces were mere inches from each other’s. It was much more distracting at that particular moment.

Especially when she noticed the blush coating his cheeks, complimenting the shy smile on his face. He looked good under her like that. He looked handsome. He looked se-

Milla knew she had a blush on her face as well, and smiled back at him. This was different. They’d been in plenty of intimate situations, been stuck in a small closet together, been thrown into one another and landed in a heap of limbs. But this was different.

Different in that she really, really wanted to kiss him.

It was a good thing she knew how to close her mind off to Sasha, or else he’d probably be scrambling away from her as quickly as possible. The thought made her laugh internally, and her smile grew wider.

Which made him smile a little more, too.

That was encouraging. She didn’t need encouragement. What she needed was-

“Nein! Vodello! Where the hell are you?!”

…that. She needed that.

The two of them were immediately shaken out of their stupor - Milla quickly sat up straight and looked to the left to find Morceau coughing and waving smoke out of his face.

Sasha sat up as well, but she was still straddling his waist so he could only get so far.

Oleander squinted his eyes at them and nodded, still coughing. “Are you two alright? That blast was intense!”

“We’re fine,” Sasha answered quickly. But then he turned to look at Milla again. “You are fine, aren’t you?”

Milla smiled at him. “A few cuts and scrapes. Nothing serious.”

Sasha smiled back. And then they were stuck in the same boat from earlier, except for one notable difference.

“Then let’s get the hell out of here before the local fuzz show up! I can’t get arrested again, not after last time!”

“We’ll be right there, Morry,” Milla answered, waving some smoke out of her face. There wasn’t much debris falling anymore, though the building they’d leapt from was in bad shape. It probably wouldn’t stay up for too much longer.

“Ahem, um. Milla, if you could, uh…”

She looked over at Sasha and tilted her head, then remembered she was quite literally preventing him from getting up, and quickly stood up and shook her head in embarrassment. “I’m so sorry, darling, let’s get out of here.” She reached out a hand to help him up.

Sasha took it and they were both perfectly aware that their hands lingered longer than necessary.

“Let’s go already!” Oleander shouted, leading the way.

Sasha Nein did not like to exaggerate. He did not like to over- or underplay the seriousness of something. He did not like to make mountains out of molehills, or molehills out of mountains, or anything like that.

But when it came to Milla Vodello, sometimes he just…wasn’t sure how to quantify his feelings.

They were strong, stronger than he’d had for anyone else in his entire life. And he knew through reflection, advice, and analysis that he was one of the most important people in her life, if not the most important. She was affectionate and kind and reached out to him often. They chatted telepathically more than frequently - after half a decade of working closely together, they’d simply fallen into a habit.

When she woke up in the morning, she’d immediately reach out to let him know. Even when they were miles apart, their minds were connected like they were standing right next to each other.

It was a level of intimacy he’d had to get used to, but once he had…there was no going back.

He’d started mentally reaching out to her more often. Some days it felt like they were always talking in one way or another - her comforting presence would linger in his mind while he was working, and she seemed to enjoy when he’d curiously peek into her mind while she was working. Their partnership had blossomed better than he ever could’ve expected. They worked so well together it was like they operated as a single unit.

Sasha had also begun to understand over the years that he was probably in love with her. At least a little bit. Which was absolutely terrifying - love, being in love with someone, reminded him of his father’s misery after his mother died and Sasha never wanted to be stuck in the same situation.

But it was too late. The love was there and it wasn’t going away, whether he held her hand or kept his distance.

Sometimes she would spend so much time in his mind that he would swear he could smell her perfume.

He loved her quite a lot.

He probably wouldn’t ever tell her. Better to pine forever than potentially hurt their partnership.

Being around her was enough for him.

#psychonauts #sashamilla #milla vodello #sasha nein #science party #lunchtime yoga #carrofics #ok. this is my last attempt #i have removed all but one picture #now WORK!

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