#the first being that i need to figure out a way to demonstrably show that the ghost is an abstract concept and not a fuckable entity

[satoruin]

➣ matchmaking or meddling?

pairing: satoru gojo x gn!reader

word count: 1.6K

summary: you find out just how much your students have been meddling in your love life, though you can’t really be mad.

notes from lee: i’m afraid to make this look like an award acceptance speech so ill be brief. had to make a fic for the namesake of the blog and a very late hbd to boo (@2018-01-20). kinda wish i had more interactions with the kids, but i ended up w/ a lot of gojo pov also unedited

Looking back it should have been obvious what these kids of yours were up to. Yes, they were the reason you were in this god-forsaken closet with a blindfolded fool.

You’re only really aware of their meddling now as you hear their snickers from the hallway, so you can’t quite tell when their meddling started. But it makes sense that they were plotting something, but was it in collaboration with Satoru? Because it seemed like every mishap or coincidence between your two classes, Satoru took it in stride and turned it into his advantage. Just like he was taking advantage of the situation now…

Thinking back, your first clue should have been with the sticky notes. A note scrawled on a pink sticky note, in actually legible handwriting, addressed to you like a valentine. Reading, “from: Satoru ;D to: (y/n) <3; do you look this good every day or do i just not remove my blindfold enough????” It’s on top of a stack of papers handed over by the ever-stoic Fushiguro. Surely to get your guard down, and it did.

When you interrogate your fellow teacher about it later, he keeps his normal all-knowing grin plastered on his face. Now they, being the kids who orchestrated it, don’t need to do any work as every day after that there’s a new sticky note somewhere for you to see. They vary in color, most in some shade of pink, some with bad pick-up lines, others with a stick figure drawing, or the very rare ones hidden away with words that make you spit out your drink.

Or maybe another tip off should have been the ‘coincidental’ times you’d have the second years out on the training field and he just so happened to also plan a demonstration for the first years at the same time. But then again you don’t hear their snickering above your irritation at the white-haired man as he lets you jab a finger into his chest, with his annoying smirk.

But they notice you don’t care anymore that he peeks his head over your shoulder to look at your teaching outline just so he can do the ‘coincidental’ planning now.

And still the biggest hint that you fall for every time, is when they leave you at the cafe with just Satoru after begging for a weekend meetup. And again, when they ask to have team dinners, study sessions, or extra training, it's ridiculous. Your gullibility and trust in them is commendable, but it’s become laughable as you still trust in the kids to show up. And they do, just in disguise from across wherever you are as they watch Satoru come to your rescue every time.

Maybe the more ridiculous part is when the rare glimpse of their teacher’s eyes is pointed, peeking through their poorly crafted disguises, at them from across the room with a smirk.

He’s noticed for a while now that the kids are playing matchmaker, and their skills are much better than those his clan hires. And to be honest, he doesn’t mind, if anything he finds it cute that they think he needs the help. Though admittedly they do have some good ideas. Each one never fails to fluster you, in your own cute and angry way, as he takes over their schemes. His six-eyes catch the flurry of texts sent every time he does so, which he’s sure just encourages them further.

Satoru’s not quite sure when his feelings for you developed. He’s always found you attractive, especially when you were his cute kouhai (he still likes to call you that in order to annoy you until you begrudgingly call him senpai once again.). Everything he learns about you only adds to his initial interest. He’s a sucker for getting to know the little things, like your favorite dinner spot after a tough mission or what your ideal day off is. Once you accept his feelings he’ll put the knowledge you deem useless to good work.

But there’s a moment that sits so starkly in his memory as the first time he realized he was in love with you and not just intrigued or infatuated.

It was maybe around the time Tsumiki had gotten sick and though Megumi was self sufficient, Satoru didn’t feel that he should be alone. He knows he’s not the best at comfort, hell he could barely comfort himself, so he sends you.

And he’s not overly worried about you, you’re a teacher so he’s sure you’ll get through to the ever prickly Megumi just fine. Plus you’ve always been significantly better at handling emotional situations, he knows first hand. So when he comes to check on you after finishing his mission, he smiles at your success.

Megumi’s head rests on your lap, asleep, and you’re slumped over the armrest. There’s a twang of jealousy that pricks at his mind, wishing it was him in your lap instead, but all he can think about is having you greet him as he comes home and Megumi and Tsumiki sitting for dinner and that would be yours and his alone.

He’s never felt like someone that would settle down or want a family, especially given the circumstances of his status. But you, in this moment, make him want to move past the shrewdness of the higher ups and his clan, and just have you. He longs for something that is just his, not part of Jujutsu Society, the higher ups, or his clan, or even Satoru Gojo, he wants things just for Satoru, just for him.

You are that something, that someone, he wants, he’s convinced that he needs you like the air he breathes. The weird surge of emotions that have been kept bottled up since a dark day suddenly seems to make sense and it has a name, it’s love.

So when he’s reminiscing on his feelings, it really has been there all along, but it’s that very specific moment in which his love for you was defined.

And the apex of all his work in gently guiding you to realize your feelings, that he’s very sure are there, is in a closet of all places. His blue eyes glow dimly in the dark of the closet with the snickers of his students on the other side.

“Hey,” he breathes out, much less confident than he intended, but you make him nervous.

You meet his bright eyes briefly before looking away and returning the greeting, “Um, hi.”

His breath hitches and his mind blanks, every funny line or flirty remark he could make right now is gone. He can’t think about anything other than you, how cute your expression is, how good your hair looks even slightly messed up, but mainly your lips and how much he needs to kiss you before he leaves this cramped closet. “How are you?”

You blink at him incredulously, “We’re in a closet, Gojo. How do you think I am?”

He tosses his head back and groans as you use his last name, he thought he’d gotten you to call him Satoru like pretty much everyone did. “C’mon (Y/n), you know I hate when you call me that.” He whines and pouts, jutting his bottom lip out like a toddler.

He watches the guilt flash across your face briefly, surely it’s you remembering how he confided in you about hating the weight that came with his last name. “Sorry, I know. I know,” you pause and he senses your hesitancy and waits, “Satoru.”

He’s got a big shit-eating grin on his face that differs from his usual smirk as he rocks on his feet with his heart fluttering.

“You really like it that much when I call you ‘Satoru’?” You ask, eyeing up his body language with a skeptical look.

“Maybe.” He answers in a sing-song tone, he’s back to his usual self, “But you know what I’d like more?”

He leans in close and glances down at your lips. No matter how many times he does this, it always results in him pulling away with a teasing smile. So when he feels your hands wrap around the neck of his uniform and pull him closer, it’s certainly a surprise.

“You want a kiss?” You ask and he nods meekly, if possible, and you do, you kiss him. Satoru’s eyes flutter shut as his heart flutters in his stomach. His big hands reach up to cup your face and keep you glued to his lips. Gods, it’s everything he’s dreamed about and more.

When you part from him to catch your breath, he’s smiling. “I hope you know I want much more than a kiss.” He waits for you to breathe and to watch your reaction before smashing his lips onto yours again.

Satoru feels your arms wrapped around his neck and how your hands crawl through his undercut to tug at his hair. And he’s similar, the hands once holding your face have traced down your body to your hips so he can hold you close.

The knock on the door cuts your time short, your tongues and bodies having to part. Satoru watches as you smooth over your clothes and hair before he pulls up his blindfold. The door opens not a moment later to reveal the two classes waiting with bated breath to see something scandalous.

They are disappointed, fortunately for you and your image as a teacher. None of the students have the time to catch the heavy blush on his face as he slips away while you lecture them. But they do notice how flustered you are when you get a text from Satoru, “dinner 2nite?”

#gojo x reader #gojo satoru x reader #satoru gojo x reader #jjk x reader #gojo satoru #gojo #jjk #gojou satoru x reader #jjk gojo #gojo x you #gojo x y/n #satoru gojo #gojo x gender neutral reader #jjk satoru #gojou satoru x you #gojou satoru x y/n #! satoru gojo #[ lee's writing ] #[ + ] jjk

[sugar-grigri]

Miri does the chair as much as Denji

The chapter confirms the suffering of the hybrids who turn out to be the "weapons" (thank you Fujimoto for confirming at least one of my theories).

But let's go into a bit more detail in this chapter, which only talks about alienation and never about freedom.

What better title than 'A Chair's Feelings', which is a perfect antithesis.

I have the feeling that something specific has happened, let me explain.

Firstly, Fumiko Mifune plays her role as Denji's guard perfectly. She's not protecting him as a person but as the property of the public hunters.

How does she do this? Firstly because she sticks to Denji, but more importantly she seriously disrupts the discussion between Denji and Sugo.

Every time Miri puts an advantage on the table, she questions it. A high position in the church? Chainsaw Man deserves to be guru.

Steak every day? We're getting tired of it, other dishes would be preferable.

The public hunters represent the opressor who uses Denji as a tool. In other words, the entity that Miri is trying to remove Denji from.

But what's particularly interesting is that Miri doesn't demonstrate free will and spits out someone else's arguments.

What's even more fascinating is that Miri thinks he's going to convince Denji with his own arguments, which turns out to be in vain.

Miri seems like someone who operates on principle and has taken on board concepts such as dignity and freedom, which he now intends to protect. Denji doesn't think like that; he needs concrete arguments to engage him.

For example, Miri presents Denji as his liberator. This has no effect on him, as he was unaware of it because it was Pochita who was fighting. Once again, we're projecting onto the figure of Chainsaw Man the image we'd like him to represent here: the first weapon to free himself from the oppressor that was Makima.

But Miri is far from imagining that not only was Denji not conscious, but that he consciously 'saved' Makima by allowing her to become a new version of herself who would be cherished and loved. Because Makima was never the oppressor, she was merely the object of the Japanese government, which surely also used a few weapons.

That's why I think Miri's way of presenting himself is a step backwards. I don't know if it's intentional, but the way his name appears in the dialogue bubbles and the suspension points…… The syntax is important. Miri knows that his name is just a number given to him by his former oppressor.

In fact, that's why he calls Fumiko "sushi-woman" or refers to the students as rubbish; he doesn't think of them as they never thought of him.

Sugo has no intention of forming a relationship with the humans, whom he seems to reject, which clearly shows that weapons are used by humans, not demons.

But Denji grimaces when he sees that he is so easily popular and integrated, and that he would prefer to be rejected.

Miri rejects humans, wanting only to make friends with weapons, while Denji continues to define himself only by humans. One holds a grudge and wants revenge, while the other still prefers integration. Which already demonstrates a fundamental difference.

Swordman's arguments move from the abstract to the concrete. He starts by talking about abstract concepts such as gratitude (Denji saved him), freedom and having a community, and then starts to integrate the concrete.

He already includes food by using the precise line that Denji had used, namely steaks.

Miri isn't interested in the debate about food, deploring Denji's interest in it, and reiterates in a cruder and more brutal form what he was saying before, "being used by bastards", instead of talking about instrumentalisation and freedom. And again, he has to push Denji to confirm this.

It's obvious that Miri, who presents himself as the messenger of the church, either sent by someone or is carrying out someone's order, is contradicting himself and is not yet free. As Fumiko points out.

When Miri confronts Denji, who is still in the chair position, Denji has a more interesting response than it seems: being a chair suits him because he can feel buttocks against his back.

Being a chair means contact, and physical contact with girls. Even if it's a rather perverse line (and far from the most poetic), it shows that Denji is once again interested in being a chair if it allows him to make contact with his own kind. That he has no abstract concept built in like self-esteem or claiming his dignity.

Even becoming a friend is too abstract for Denji, who doesn't react. He will only react when new physical contact is mentioned, reacting unusually comically.

Miri mentions this last argument as a last resort, leaving as if he was already sure it would be pointless. It's as if someone had told him to mention low, childish things like steak and sex because they were the only things that would convince Denji.

There's a clear dichotomy in Miri's speech between the arguments that convinced him (surely used by the church to hire him) and the other kinds of arguments that would convince Denji, whispered to him by someone in the church who knows Denji.

Who knows Denji? No hybrids, they don't have any memories, so surely not Reze.

I like to imagine that it's Kishibe, since the steak and sex with several girls are explicit things that Denji mentioned in front of him when he proclaimed his dream.

He was also the only one to observe the fight between Pochita and Makima. So he's the only one who can tell us about the hybrids' past. If we support his link with the hybrids through Quanxi...

It all ties together!

If we go back to the title... A Chair Feelings. It takes on a whole new meaning.

Note the use of the indefinite article "a" and not "the" when only Denji is doing the chair? Wouldn't a chair be a broader metaphor and category? The chair would be the form of alienation accepted by the weapons. Still not freedom.

In short, Fujimoto questions one thing: is the man who claims to be free so far removed from the man who makes the chair ?

#csm 139 #csm spoilers #chainsaw man #csm part 2 #csm #denji #miri sugo #swordman #kishibe #makima #my thoughts

[threadsun]

i was wondering…. I KNOW YOURE ON BREAK AND I DONT MEAN TO BE A BOTHER but i just got my tongue pierced and i was wondering how the sdj boys and no would react to seeing mc with a tongue piercing

Not a bother at all!!! I love this idea tbh, tongue piercings are great!!

Thinks It's Cool

Joseph - Piercings will always get an immediate excited reaction from him. Yeah, he'll get flustered and horny about it later, but right now he wants to know who did it, if it hurt, all the details!

Shaun - Look, I'm not gonna say he's not immediately horny, just that it's overshadowed by being supportive and telling you how cool it looks. He genuinely loves it, and needs you to know.

Nick - You match! He's showing you his (even though you've probably seen it a thousand times) and comparing notes about your piercers and whatnot. He also wants to know if you have plans for more.

Bo - He doesn't know what it'll be able to do just yet, so he's not horny about it. He's mostly curious about why you have metal in your mouth and whether or not it's safe for you to have it.

Gets Hard Immediately

Jean - He knows what a tongue piercing can do and he's excited to try it out with you. He's absolutely also taking it as an excuse to stick his fingers in your mouth under the guise of "inspecting" it.

Rory - Why would you get one if not to make blowjobs feel better? He's excited to find out just how good it feels! He's just gotta figure out how to get you on your knees for him first...

Barry - He's pushing you to your knees and pulling your mouth open. You're going to give him a "proper demonstration" of your new accessory, and he won't take no for an answer.

Fully Short-circuits

Jack - There's a lot going on in his brain. Between trying to forget about his past and thinking about you sucking him off, there's really way too much going on in his brain for him to react at first.

Ian - Everything about you makes him short-circuit. But you showing off your tongue to him, with a shiny new piercing... he's so painfully hard he can't think about anything but his cock and your mouth.

Elias - He's never seen one before. He's trying to figure out why someone would want to pierce their tongue, and once he puts two and two together... well, he needs time to process.

Taylor - He knows. He knows what tongue piercings are for and how good it would feel when you— Shit. He can't think about that. It's not fair, how badly he wants you and how scared he is to show it.

#kitty-paws0 #sdj #swwsdj #something's wrong with sunny day jack #dachabo #the groom of gallagher mansion #tgogm #sdj jack #sdj ian #sdj shaun #sdj nick #sdj joseph #sdj jean #sdj rory #barryposting #elias gallagher #taylor potts #sunny day jack x reader #ian duff x reader #shaun durand cofer x reader #nick herraras x reader #joseph haberdae x reader #jean laurent x reader #rory rainberry x reader #Barry the Manager x reader #bo x reader #elias gallagher x reader #taylor potts x reader #gn!reader

[lunaescribe]

A Biracial Reading of BlackBeard

It came to my shock-a lot of white fans of OFMD seem to have not caught up on the fact we're explicitly shown Edward Teach is a man of color from biracial origins in Our Flag Means Death. And that identity, goes so much into how his character is written and reacts to situations. I would argue Episode 4 and 5 are extremely deliberate in their showcasing of how his identity has informed his choices and the way he behaves around others. I want to highlight just a few moments, that stood out to me as a someone who is also biracial and light skinned-that I don't think some people have picked up have a deeper meaning.

From the get-go we're introduced to two sides of Blackbeard. Either as 'the terror of the seas' or an extremely clever-but at times irritatingly eccentric man. There's an element of duality, multiple faces, and most aptly code-switching to him the moment he is introduced. This  post really wonderfully goes into all the elements of performance and multiple identities Ed seems to juggle. Code switching is something many POC learn though-which is learning to behave one way with white people-and another with people of your own race-or other races, and so on.

We see from flashbacks Ed is biracial, with a white Father and Maori mother (the same biracial make up with genders swapped, of Taika himself). The framing of this shot above is so significant. He and his mother cowering from his white Father (patriarchy, colonialism against indigenous peoples like himself and his mother), and Ed is positioned slightly closer to his mother in the middle of them-another demonstration he is closer to his indigenous/POC side than his white side.

It's wildly significant the first murder he has to commit is his Father, very much showing that attempt to resist colonialism-as an institution and the side of him descended from it. And it leads to those fracturing identities.

Being biracial puts one in a position-you are not as excluded as darker skinned people of color who have very limited access to white spaces in this time period-but nor are you ever seen as belonging in those white spaces either. We know he grew up in proximity to whiteness hence having access to even see things like the red silk in the first place-but he never felt allowed to be part of it. It puts Edward in a place where he is both an outsider with other POC and in white spaces. So how do you cope with that? Do you soften yourself as much as possible to be non-threatening enough to pass in a white space? Or do you lean into white perceptions of your 'otherness' and play it so you can't be further mocked or excluded-you are choosing your own isolation and denying them the chance to do it to you. Hence Edward's need to make himself a larger than life fearful 'monster like' figure like the Kraken. However it’s the fact he is light skinned-that privilege that has probably lended himself to be able to become as successful he is-capable of earning respect from white pirates (Calico Jack, Izzy) and those of color (Ivan, Fang, and many on his crew). 

Which doesn't mean he enjoys that image at all. Becoming "The Kraken" began as an attempt to fight off white violence and has continued so long into life. Especially where we meet Edward in the series-he's grown weary of being so stereotyped as the 'beastly POC'.

When Edwards' shown this image-he gets especially upset. It's worth noting he's referred to as a "Devil" in the image too. And while yes it is a scene of him exhausted of the weight of reputation of "Blackbeard" it's also an image of a man of color being shown a racial stereotype of himself.

The fact he calls himself a 'vampire clown' and is frustrated at the amount of guns he's shown to carry-he's showing outrage over how he is stereotyped as an othered monstrous and hyper-violent caricature- something men of color are often forced to deal with. The fact he is a man of color-is probably what has allowed his reputation to become so fearsome. White people will automatically assume he is more violent because he is brown. All the more significant his bathtub confession that he personally dislikes the act of murder-and rarely personally ends a person's life. It's only because of this racial stereotype that rumor has been able to grow so large that he is killed HUNDREDs like Black Pete says in episode 2.

It makes all the more sense in the next episode he is very anxious for an attempt to join a white upper-class party. Especially after being called a "donkey" when attempting to learn about dinner party etiquette. Another example of white people excluding him due to his mixed race status.

The fact he is mixed is part of the reason he's even able to get into the room with the rich aristocrats rather than be confined to the servant's quarters-or immediately othered like Frenchie and Olu are ('you're so much better than my african servant!')

However it's extremely significant he only becomes popular and gains the attention of the white aristocrats (and he is the only person of color in the entire party) when he makes a joke about violence. From the get-go they're laughing and amused because he is again (Not realizing it this time) playing into their stereotype of him. A violent man of color-but presenting it in playful manner they feel un-threatened, much like white people watching minstrelsy shows in the 1800s-but still being so afraid of black men they had numerous laws to keep them separate.

And immediately, when Edward catches on they're not amused by him as a person-but by the caricature they see of him he's humiliated and leaves the party. It's an example of a lesson he learned long ago. He has to be either extremely non-threatening-a joker-if he wants to be tolerated in a white space, or he can be extremely threatening, play into their stereotype-and use their fear to avoid being further hurt. We see a touch of that in episode 4 when he dodges Izzy’s questions by being especially eccentric and difficult to read-making jokes and random statements than give sincere straightforward answers that can be mocked. It’s very deliberate he takes out his knife when answering Izzy’s threat/demand he needs to make choice-it’s a refusal to be openly intimate-and a reminder not to tread too closely. 

Edward's not stupid/or socially inept for not realizing he was being mocked from the start-he had really believed Stede's lessons and clothes had given him practice to blend into a white space. So the first thing he does when realizing he's being mocked is code switch back into violence-pull out his pistol. Stede talks him down-but it only works because he knows he's outnumbered in this scene. If he showcases any violence or anger as a man of color he would be jumped upon immediately and thrown in that ships holding cell.

It's all the more significant Stede is a white man too-when he leaves Edward in the end of episode 9. It's not just a break up, it's an example of Ed once again feeling not good enough-and excluded from the society Stede chose to return to. Part of the reason Ed fell in love with Stede is Stede was willing to see Ed as a whole person-he admired his anger AND sensitivity-and as a person who has also been an outsider due to his very overt queerness-Stede can form a kinship with Ed due to their mutual ostracizes from society.

While there's been multiple good readings about Izzy pining for Ed, and Izzy's frustration against Stede being driven because he is a rich person invading a working class space-as this post pointed out, Izzy is still a white man asking Ed to behave as that hyper-violent caricature that has been carved out for him. That is where he sees Edward's worth. The fact Izzy immediately begins mocking him for missing Stede-it reminds Ed so clearly, he can not drop his act around white people. Or he will be harassed, mocked, and threatened. 

Edward has to become the Kraken to survive in his mind. Hence why he uses a caricature image of himself as inspiration. To survive heartbreak, to survive the white people who would rip him apart if he isn’t threatening, to maintain control of his life. There’s a reason he has to kill Lucius-who he revealed too much of his heart to, vulnerability is not an option for him. When you’re biracial-the closer you are to whiteness, the more acutely you will be held up for failing at it. It is much easier for him to be guarded, threatening, and give into the perception of him-rather than have his heart broken over and over-told how he is not good enough-too sensitive, 

Which is why this Kraken image-Blackbeard-it’s all a tragedy. Edward knows-as much as being Blackbeard makes him safe-it makes him painfully lonely. And it’s an identity he has only fallen into because it was assigned to him-and because he feels convinced at the end of this season there is no space for him, as a queer man of color to have life full of love, softness, and emotional availability.

I certainly hope this reading is enlightening for folks who never read Edward or the show this way! I think it may cause people to rethink how they characterize Edward in their own writings or artwork, since the amount of people who seem to love leaning into an element of making him monstrous, well that’s exactly why he is suffering in the show. He doesn’t think a man of his identities has any other choice.  

#our flag means death #ofmd #blackbeard #edward teach #ed teach #ofmd meta #poc of ofmd #im begging you all stop with all the fics and art where he's a literal kraken its gross when his story is so wildly tragic #my writing

[iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia]

Would you write for the M6 with an MC who's touch-starved and craves affection? Thanks in advance!

The Arcana HCs: M6 with a touch/affection-starved MC

Sequel is here! M6 with an MC who's been bottling up their affectionate tendencies

~ honestly I don't know why I didn't think of writing this one sooner, these kinds of headcanons are always my favorite to read and now I get to write some! many thanks @lemon-len ^.^ ~

Julian

If you think he didn't notice the way you melted into his touch when he healed you of that vampire eel bite that first night, you are wrong

He totally noticed

Most of it he chalked up to chemistry, but it definitely piqued his interest

He's also a champion at writing off his own impact on people, so the whole time you're unraveling the mysteries of the Red Plague and stealing moments with each other he's assuming it's the adrenaline high

It doesn't become apparent to him until after, when he's checking over all the bumps and bruises you've accrued, that he sees the way you lean into his touch

He's told you he loves you, and he knows you love him too, so he doesn't have to be hesitant (though really, when was he ever?)

Now he's folding you into his chest, wrapping his arms around you as snugly as he can and tucking your head under his chin

You're all surprised and tensed up at first, until he presses a gentle kiss to the top of your head and you melt

He can feel the tension draining out of you and the way your fingers are tying themselves into the back of his shirt, and how you're burrowing into his chest

He's always been "too much" in his relationships as to how much physical touch he likes to initiate, but now he's found someone who wants what he has to offer and it's the person he's promised his life to

You can fully expect him to make you a solemn vow to never let you go uncuddled again

If you thought he was already generous with the PDA, it's about to get waaay worse

Asra

In case it's not obvious, their love language is touch

One of the hardest parts of hiding his affection for you those three years was not letting himself touch you

They already knew it was something you craved, it was obvious when they were your caretaker

But the first time he pulled you into a pillow pile with him to snuggle the familiarity of it rocketed you into inhuman levels of pain, and he wasn't going to risk that again

Once it became clear that you had grown enough to learn about the past and accept their affections, it was on

You have five minutes? cuddle time

There's a seat next to you? He's sliding into it and falling into your lap

You're walking by while he's sitting down? They're pulling you into their lap

You're getting ready for the day? He's doing your hair

You're having a conversation with someone that they're not a part of? They're standing behind you with their arms around your waist and their head on your shoulder, letting you take their weight

He has been known to fall asleep on you in public like this, most notably in the town square during a royal proclamation

If you're each doing your own unrelated tasks, they're either sitting beside you with your knees touching or behind you so you can be their backrest

He also knows how people tend to associate the feeling of different clothing articles with the people who wear them

So anytime they leave the shop while you're asleep you can expect to wake up wrapped in one of their shawls

He fully expects you to let him take your clothes with him on long journeys too, which is fine for the most part except for when it's one of your favorite pieces (you still want to wear that!)

Nadia

Her favorite way to love people is to provide for them

It demonstrates her commitment to being an important pillar in your life for you to lean on

Which is why she is completely tuned in to picking up on any of your needs, so she can satisfy them

So she figures out early on that physical contact is a desired and effective method of showing affection to you, but she can't figure out why you never ask for it

She guesses this could make a fun game, so she tries holding back a little and waiting for you to initiate

And then she watches you slowly withdrawing for a whole day, the confidence you always show in her is wavering slightly, and by the time dinner rolls around you're picking at your food with a face full of hurt and confusion, but you haven't said anything!

That's when it clicks for her that there could be another layer to this

Maybe one of the reasons you cherish affection so deeply is because you know what it's like to live without it

Now she's bodily lifting you out of your chair and dragging you to a more secluded spot to make up for her mistake

She feels awful, she should have known not to trifle with depriving you of something that obviously meant so much to you

She has you reclining in her lap, insisting on feeding you your dinner and apologizing for making you worry

Words are very important to her though, so she's going to ask as many questions as you're comfortable with answering about why you don't ask for affection and how to help you get there with her

Now she checks in with you every day by taking both your hands in hers and not letting you go until you've requested some gesture of affection from her

Muriel

He is so generally touch-averse that it took a long time for him to feel comfortable with giving or receiving any kind of physical affection

This didn't bother you too much until your trip south into the tundra

Because it was so cold down there you were incapable of keeping yourself warm at night, and needed to share a blanket and sleeping space with him

Oh my, that did things for your heart

Every night for several weeks you got to finish a day of uncertainty and training and exhaustion by sliding your back right up against his and melting in the waves of body heat he produces

It got easier as he relaxed around you, sometimes you'd wake up to his arm slung around you in his sleep and then you'd happily suffer through Morga's unimpressed stare as you savored the moment

But he was still so self-conscious of how big and intimidating he was, and you were still too hesitant to initiate contact whenever you wanted it, so things stalled for a bit there

You also have to be careful navigating his own relationship with his body

He's got so much trauma from the physical pain he was put through and the deprivation he endured that he's still learning how to taste the food he eats

Eventually you're able to ask him why he doesn't want to touch you, to which he responds that he's not used to touching someone without hurting them or them being afraid of him

It's progressing slowly, but now you have permission to initiate or invite cuddles, and it's changing the world for him bit by bit, because you're showing him that his touch can be a good and precious thing

Portia

She notices how much you love it when she touches you, but she doesn't really get why it's such a big deal at first

She grew up with a sibling and a grandmother and a town of friends and she does manual work elbow-to-elbow with a multitude of palace servants, touch is normal

Until she's sneaking another chapter of a favorite novel and encounters a character for whom touch is not normal

And now she's drawing connections between you and the character, is this why you relax as soon as she puts her hands on your face or your whole body sags when she hugs you?

She can't imagine a life without hugs and tussles and elbows to the ribs and tripping over other people's toes

As soon as you're both back in the cottage that evening she's pulling you onto the couch with her for cuddles

She's telling you all about the book character and listing all the ways you're similar to them, how you don't touch people often but you melt as soon as somebody does, how the character was that way because they weren't used to being touched

Was it the same way for you? Who gives you hugs? How many hugs did you normally get? Did you also get locked in a tower and use glass slippers to climb a beanstalk out?

You're surprised by the onslaught of questions, but her tone is purely curious and slightly concerned, without an ounce of judgment

Once you tell her more about why you crave affection so much she's determined to give you as much as you can handle

This is her partner in crime, her ride or die, you have always had her back and she is going to watch yours

Besides, she thinks you're the most attractive human to walk the planet, who wouldn't want to cuddle you for hours?

Lucio

He clued in faster than you expected him to

He's not very emotionally intelligent, but he is physically intelligent

He grew up in a warring tribe and spent his youth as a mercenary, interpreting people's body language for strengths and weaknesses is second nature

So here you are, dragging him through mystical realms he's completely vulnerable in, and he's watching you like a hawk

And he picks up on it quickly, any time you two make casual physical contact your guard slips a little

At first he's thinking of ways to use it against you, but your charm gets through to him fairly quickly and he never acts on it

It's the night you spend in the labyrinth that settles his doubts for him

You're stumbling every few steps but you're too hyped up to rest, until he sits next to you and pulls you into his side

He watches the way you tense and then completely relax, falling asleep on his shoulder while he's still holding an open weapon in one fist

He's briefly wondering if he'll have to make a habit of this, pausing everything to guard you so you can sleep

And then he's getting an emotional punch to the gut by feeling just how much trust it takes for someone like you to fall asleep on someone like him

He can't remember the last time somebody trusted him at all, much less this completely

By the time your eyes are fluttering open he's decided he'll be willing to keep watch while you sleep as often as you want him to

He's not shy about showing affection at all, so once you two save the world and start your new life together you can expect to receive some kind of physical affection several times a day

(an extra note from brainrot - this prompt has me inspired for a second one, which would be the M6 with an MC who has a lot of affection to give, but has been bottling it up and is just now getting to share it with someone who wants/appreciates it. Would anyone like to see that?)

#ask arcana brainrot #the arcana headcanons #the arcana hc #the arcana #asra the arcana #julian the arcana #nadia the arcana #muriel the arcana #portia the arcana #lucio the arcana #the arcana shitpost #the arcana game #asra alnazar #julian devorak #nadia satrinava #muriel of the kokhuri #portia devorak #lucio morgasson

[pedrithink]

jealous ✩ kylian mbappé

summary: all these women hitting on Kylian makes you uncomfortable and he makes a point of assuring you that he only wants you

requested: yes/no

notes: just a little bit of angst, but a cute end :)

"You look amazing in that outfit, Ky." You catch a glimpse of a black-haired woman saying this to your boyfriend. Ky? Who does she think she is?

You and Kylian decided to take this Saturday off and get away for a while, there was a party going on for a close friend of yours and why not? You were excited, but after you arrived you only continued to regret coming.

Kylian just lets out a half smile and a thanks briefly. "He's beautiful, Julie." Says a redhead who was standing near the other woman.

"Oh, thank you." You move uneasily and make it obvious to anyone your discomfort about these comments, but Kylian doesn't seem to notice and it irritates you.

Two other women arrive and start talking about how Kylian was their ideal type of man and how he is the "perfect man" for any woman. That's enough and you just stand up on your heels, letting Kylian's hand slide down your thighs. He lifted his gaze to your figure walking quickly away from him and the other women who were approaching him.

Obviously, he stood up and went after you. "Hey, where are you going?" He holds your wrist as he manages to catch up with you.

"I don't know? I thought I was in the way of your conversation with those girls." You stare into those dark eyes and almost flinch as you realize the expanded confusion in his gaze, you just wanted to get out of there and away from those women.

"What do you mean? I don't understand you. What did I do?" He doesn't take his hand off your wrist because he's afraid you'll run away and disappear among all the people at the party.

You just let out an incredulous smile at how Kylian didn't even notice the way those women were brazenly hitting on him. "What didn't you do, right Kylian? That's the right question to ask."

He let the look of confusion spread over his face once more and tried to read in your eyes what you necessarily meant. He has always been able to read you very well, but this time, he even feels very stupid for not being able to distinguish what your extremely hurt eyes mean. Kylian just wants you to get that look of disappointment out of your eyes as soon as possible. He would never deliberately hurt you.

"Those women were practically throwing themselves at you, and you didn't seem to care." You move your shoulders to show your annoyance about this and in the process Kylian's hand slips from your wrists.

"What do you mean?" He crosses his arms in a relaxed manner and frowns at you. "They were just complimenting me, I didn't see a big deal." He lets out a small smile. "Baby, there's no need to be jealous."

"Jealous? This isn't about being jealous, Kylian." You run your hand over your face, irritated that he doesn't seem to understand. "You're unbelievable."

When you show that you are going to leave him there, he takes you by the arm and pulls you close to him again. "Please don't leave like that. Let's talk it over and work it out." He runs his hand through his own hair and makes it more apparent how confused he is by your reaction. "I'm really confused."

You let out an irritated sigh, being incredulous at such "innocence" in Kylian's attitude. "Are you kidding me? Them coming in there and shamelessly complimenting you and making sure to ignore that I was there, is that normal?" You pause for a deep breath and continue, "You'd have to be pretty innocent to think it's normal for random women to compliment you while rubbing their hands on your leg and telling you how good you must be in bed." Having said this, he widened his eyes. He hadn't heard that part.

Kylian puts his hand under his forehead so as not to try to undo his own frown and just then moves closer to you. "First of all, I am sorry." He looks deep into your eyes to demonstrate his immense sincerity. "I really hadn't noticed, and if it made you uncomfortable, then obviously there was something I missed." He holds up both your hands and brings them close to his mouth for a kiss. "I'm going to pay more attention to these things and make it clear that I don't want to see these kinds of attitudes."

You let out a sigh after this statement from Kylian and finally manage to relax, it's so strange. Your fear of losing him hurts constantly. "I'm just afraid that you will realize that you don't need me and that you can be happy without my presence in your life." You whisper feeling your eyes water at the thought of the possibility that Kylian might not want you by his side.

He oozes surprise after your declaration and feels mostly guilty for having caused this tremendous insecurity in you by his lack of attitude. "My love, no. Please don't. I beg you, don't even think about it." He exasperates as he holds your hands more tightly as you bring them to his chest. You can feel his rapid heartbeat. "I can't even express how much I love you and how happy you make me just by waking up and seeing you sleeping next to me in bed, all my nights and days are filled with the wonder of your love. I love you and I want to be happy by your side, every day until the infinity of time. There is no greater love than this that I feel in my heart. I want you by my side forever and I beg you to never give up on me, on us. Because together we will be the most inspiring love story that has ever existed."

You don't even know what to say, you can only hug the figure of your boyfriend tightly. "Don't be afraid of losing someone who feels lucky just to have you."

At the end of it all, Kylian will always make it a point to show you through gestures and words the immense love he feels for you and the assurance that you are loved is always something nice to see.

#kylian mbappe x reader #kylian mbappe fluff #kylian mbappe angst #kylian mbappe #kylian mbappe x you #kylian mbappe imagine #kylian mbappe fanfic #football one shot #football x reader #football fanfic #kylian x reader #kylian imagines #football imagine

[walliedarling]

Heya there!! I was wondering how you think the crew would react to the reader being able to speak a different language or pronounce certain things differently (accent and stuff)! I'd imagine they'd notice it at first and not seem bothered by it, but after some time they do ask and they learn! (I'd imagine along with them trying to figure out what's "inside" the reader, since they're a human, they'll also try and figure out *why* is it something that you can do in the first place, and might need some time to wrap their head around it once the reader tried to explain it to them the best they could. One thing I imagine is that eventually they'll ask the reader what a tree is called, or what an apple is called, or how you greet someone, etc etc. Just something that came to mind and wanted to tell, hoping that it would be fun to try. Sorry for the long message tho and apologies if it was already written about ^^')

-Sincerely,

Someone Who Has English As Their Second Language.

As someone who Also has English as their second language, I'm happy to write for this :D!

I like to think that the cast of Welcome Home might already know multiple languages! Though it would depend on the popularity of the show, as it's related to which languages the series has been dubbed in. They typically all speak English to each other, as this is their 'original' language, but if you spoke one of the languages they unconsciously know, they'll switch to it without noticing! They don't really register themselves speaking any differently, until you might point it out.

They wouldn't point out your accent. In the neighbours' eyes, everyone is special and unique, you already a little more so than the rest of them, and that way of speaking is just Yours! They accept it completely. It's a bit difficult for them to grasp the idea of people being unable to understand what each other are saying, because they've never encountered such a thing before. Though speaking your native tongue then will be a quick demonstration.

They all pick up little bits and pieces here and there, but some are more interested than others.

Eddie is the one who most quickly grasps the idea of different languages. He's delivered to all sorts of places, and they've spoken in different ways there as well! ...Maybe? He can't quite remember. Anyway, he's really delighted to learn! The idea of different words for the same things is just interesting to him. If you happen to know a language that uses a different script than the one he's used to, he's especially fascinated. He had never even considered such a thing before! What if he someday gets a letter to deliver in a language he doesn't understand...? He has to remedy it! Eddie struggles a little with language learning because of his less than stellar memory, but he's trying his best.

Frank likes categorizing things in general, and so he's the one who's most likely to walk around the village with you, pointing at different things to find out their names. He'll carry around a little notebook, jotting all of it down as you speak. It's no surprise that he asks for the names of different bugs and plants before anything else! He likes to sprinkle words he's recently learnt into everyday language to make himself seem smart.

#welcome home x reader #welcome home arg x reader #human reader au #eddie dear #frank frankly

[worldsetfree]

Tarot Readings: The Star in Love

Some headcanons about how I think my #specialinterest would be in love. I've sort of framed it as x reader, and I have to admit I'm feeling quite shy about posting this, but I'm trying to build up to posting more than headcanons.

Feedback and discussion is always welcome. :)

I must begin by saying I think it's very difficult to win Kujo Jotaro's heart. He is extremely introverted and often apathetic.

Unless

Attraction is born from intrigue and somehow, you surprised him. What's wrong with you? He needs to dig deep and figure this out.

Falls so wholly and completely in love without even realizing it. Wait a damn minute, he can't live without you. When did you become so important to him?

He'll need time to accept and be comfortable with that. Won't you get burned being too close to him? Isn't he too cool for this crap?

Opens up like a flower, in bits and pieces. Probably lets you in too deep and that's the moment he starts questioning why he's so comfortable. Good grief.

When Jotaro makes a move (and believe me, he will make the first move), it's with a one-liner and a gesture so completely unexpected it leaves you breathless.

He is, after all, a "go big or go home" type of guy when it counts.

Impulsive but always intentional, Jotaro is the type of man to kiss you to get you to stop talking for a minute. He's pleasantly surprised to find it makes you stop thinking altogether.

His heart can't handle this, what the fuck is he doing?- until you kiss him back and he forgets about the whole world for a moment.

This impulsiveness of his will certainly manifest in other situations, too.

In a relationship...

He is deeply devoted but struggles to express it.

Jotaro has demonstrated (in Parts 3 and 6 especially) that his loved ones will compel him to move greater distances than anything in the universe.

Affectionate in ways that may be missed or misunderstood.

Watchful. Notices when you're suffering and will be your champion in times when you can't support yourself (in his own abrasive way, of course).

Needs to be your rock. Nobody else will do. He's been taught that this is part of being a man (something he takes very seriously, despite how toxic that can be).

Expect small acts of service and gifts in place of words. Dinner's already made, the house is clean. He brought home something that reminded him of you.

Do you actually need him to do all of this for you? Only you know. But Jotaro feels secure in a relationship if he can take of you.

Part 6 shows how he pushes himself away when he feels like he can't.

To be honest, I think he would want to maintain his independence and try not to think about you too much when he's away.

But he melts into you when he's home and he might not be aware of how much he really missed you. He's never been very emotionally intelligent.

His partner is his peace in the storm of his life. Never doubt the lengths he would go in order to preserve that sanctuary.

#jjba #jojo's bizarre adventure #jojo no kimyou na bouken #jotaro kujo #jjba headcanons #kujo jotaro x reader #stardust crusaders #diamond is unbreakable #diamond is not crash #stone ocean #ramblingsfromzawarudo

[am-i-interrupting]

Hi! I hope you have a safe trip!

Idea for Husk. So maybe fem reader tries to learn a magic trick for Husk as a surprise? Whether it succeeds or fails in a cute funny way is up to you ^.^

I might send a few throughout the day depending on how busy it gets for me 😆

Queen of Hearts

Slowly but surely you’d gotten Husk to open up about himself. He was normally far more of a listener than a talker. However, through weeks of consistently showing up at the bar with board games to play, you got more information about the bar tender.

He grew up in Las Vegas. He spoke multiple languages. He fought in a war. The one you hung on to though was he was a fan of magic.

It was something that seemed so mundane in a place such as Hell. He liked magic. Not the kind that was used by Alastor or Charlie or any other sinner or hellborn but the simple close up magic. Slight of hand tricks.

You could recreate a place like Las Vegas. You didn’t speak as many languages as he did. There was no way you could undo the trauma of being drafted. You could do magic tricks though.

At least, you could try to do magic tricks and that’s what you intended to do.

You weren’t trying to do anything big. Just a simple card trick. It shouldn’t be too hard. You did, after all, look for the easiest tricks to do but you were having problems nonetheless.

You weren’t dexterous. You weren’t quick. You were fumbling with the cards in the lobby.

“Alright—“ you jumped up and dropped all the cards in the process— “what are you doing?”

You turned your head and saw Husk with a drink in hand, leaned against the back of the couch. He had a smile on his face that he hid with a swig as he watched you scramble to pick up the cards.

“Well, I was trying to figure out how to do something, asshole,” you said.

Husk bent down and helped you pick up the cards. “And what was that?”

You couldn’t look at him. Your cheeks began to flush in embarrassment.

You’d thought the lobby was empty. That was the only reason you’d decided to get the cards out in the first place. You weren’t supposed to be caught in the act. You were supposed to have it mastered.

“Practicing a card trick,” you mumbled under your breath.

“What was that?” he asked.

“I was trying to practice a card trick,” you said.

He huffed a laugh. “Well, you’re doing a pretty shit job at it.”

“I know,” you said as tried to swipe the cards from him but he was quicker, he kept them in his paws, “that’s why I was practicing.”

“You don’t even know how to properly shuffle a deck,” he said.

You flipped him off as you slumped down onto the couch. You didn’t look at him even as he sat down. He easily took the rest of the cards from your hands.

“There’s a trick to it,” he said. “You’ve got to a split it in half, place them in one hand with your thumb along the longer edges and your other fingers supporting below.”

He moved his hands in front of your face to demonstrate even if you didn’t look at him.

He continued on, “Then you just control the shuffle—“ you could hear the cards smack together— “and square the deck.”

The deck was placed in your hand, perfectly shuffled.

“Of course, that’s just how I do it,” he said. “There’s other ways though. I know ‘em all if you need a bit of guidance.”

He patted your shoulder as he got up and left you staring down at the deck of cards. You turned the deck over, revealing the Queen of Hearts on top.

#hazbin husk x reader #husk x reader

[wanderinginksplot]

One Shot: Captain Fordo + Gear

Captain Fordo x gn!reader. Flirtatious.

Word Count: 5,800

Warnings: fear of heights, descriptions of panic, awkwardness, flirtations both verbal and physical.

---

One of your favorite parts of working with the clone troopers was figuring out everyone’s interests and passions. Some were obvious - Cog liked anything mechanical - while others were well-hidden, like Pierce’s skill for baking. 

It had been strange in the beginning, watching men who were known across the galaxy as lethal warriors coo over some small thing that had caught their attention. Now, you found it charming and utterly endearing. 

You had been in the hangar for less than two seconds when someone called your name. The commanding tone and friendly pitch told you immediately that it was Captain Fordo, but you still made eye contact and let him beckon you over before you changed your course to approach him. 

Fordo was one of the troopers you had been working with the longest. He was an Alpha ARC, one of the first troopers the Kaminoans had ever produced. He was taller and broader than most of his brothers, though you suspected some of that was the way he held himself to keep the kama around his waist from getting in his way. That bearing was one of his most unique traits, a remnant of the training he had received from Jango Fett himself. 

And, when you were being truly honest with yourself, he was your favorite of the men. He was certainly the one to whom you were closest - every time you were in the same area as him, Fordo made a point of speaking with you, even if it was only for a few minutes at a time. 

You had barely gotten into earshot when Fordo started waving something at you. “Have you seen these yet?” 

“I can’t even see it now,” you pointed out. 

After he rolled his eyes at your comedic squint, Fordo lifted the object up for you. He held it carefully, using his fingertips at the very bottom of it so you could see the entirety of whatever piece of new gear he had managed to pick up. 

Because that was his passion. In fact, ‘passion’ might still be putting things lightly. Captain Fordo verged on obsession with the gear that made up his kit. He could always be counted on to find new, obscure things that he thought should be added to the standard gear all troopers carried around. And, since he tested everything himself - on and off the battlefield - he was usually right. 

And it wasn’t just weaponry. Tactical gear, survival gear… anything Fordo thought was interesting, he fixated on. He needed to dig in, find out how it worked, how useful it was, whether he could create anything better, and then how it could be incorporated into the current collection of standard gear. He had come up with countless ideas in the past, several of them so clever and helpful that the GAR’s Procurement Department had consulted with him to find the correct materials to purchase. 

“Well?” Fordo pressed, one brow arching impatiently. “You can see it now, can’t you?”

You laughed despite the inherent rudeness in his question. He didn’t mean anything by it, it was just how he always was. Fordo was a man of many contrasts. He could be brash and impatient, but he always had time to help a friend or get into the specifics of a piece of gear for someone who didn’t understand how to operate it. He could be flippant, but he also visibly brightened when he saw you. Many people described him as too professional and businesslike, but he always took a moment to show you the newest gadget to have captured his attention. 

“I can,” you admitted readily. “But that doesn’t help me much. I have no idea what that is.”

“Let me just demonstrate it for you.”

“Sounds good to me,” you agreed, trying to hide your smile. The brash, flippant, business-like captain was nearly vibrating with excitement as he prepared to show you what the new piece of gear did. 

Abruptly, your smile disappeared and you found yourself trying to stifle a gasp instead. Fordo reached out and towed you close as soon as you had agreed to his suggestion. He even wrapped an arm firmly around your waist, holding you against the plastoid of his red-touched armor. There was the noise of a clip and a brief popping sound, but it was nothing more than a backdrop to your raging thoughts.

That simple contact was the first moment you considered that your feelings of favoritism toward Captain Fordo might run a little deeper than pure friendship. The sudden flash of realization made you feel unsteady, like your knees weren’t actually supporting your weight anymore. 

And then you looked up. 

And then you looked down. 

You had noticed that the ceiling of the expansive hangar bay looked closer than it should have as you looked past Fordo’s face, but you still weren’t quite prepared to see the floor so very far below your feet. 

The casual, half-startled grip you’d had on Fordo’s shoulders turned much, much tighter as you bit back a squeak of alarm. Past the blood rushing through your ears, you could hear Fordo explaining the new gear to you. 

“-about time we developed an ascension cable with the capability to hold two people. It’s gonna make hostage retrieval a lot easier. Or Seppie retrieval. Either way.” Fordo’s shrug made the edges of your vision go white with terror. 

The only reason you weren’t screaming was because you were hooked to the cable as well. To be in the hangar bay, all workers had to wear a harness. You had always thought it was a stupid policy, since you weren’t about to climb anything tall, but the way it was supporting your weight as well made you mentally thank whoever had decided on the policy. Of course, if you hadn’t been wearing a harness, Fordo probably wouldn’t have launched you up into the air without more of a warning…

Fordo was oblivious to your fear, glancing curiously around the hangar instead. To be fair, he probably hadn’t seen it from this angle before. You certainly hadn’t, and you would give all of your credits not to be seeing it then. “And the cable itself is longer. Previous versions had a maximum vertical firing distance of seventy-five meters. I just fired this cable at double that distance and there’s still some available to spool- What’s going on?”

“I’m just-” Your explanation broke off in an embarrassing squeak as you rotated slightly. “I don’t- don’t like heights.”

“You didn’t tell me that before I pulled you a hundred meters into the air?” Fordo bit out. The condemnation was sharp, but you knew him too well to be fooled. There was concern behind it. His free hand moved to the small tube that had caused the whole mess, expertly manipulating the buttons.

“If you had told me it was an ascension cable, I would have,” you countered. 

Your thoughts were starting to feel a little distant. You had never liked heights, but there was something about this situation that seemed particularly bad. Several things, actually. 

These hangar bays were built to hold large ships, and were among the largest free-standing structures in the galaxy in order to accommodate those ships. The demonstration would have been equally bad if you were a dozen feet in the air, but the legitimacy of being scared of such a large drop made you feel extra panicky. 

Beyond that, you hadn’t realized how much it would bother you not to see the tail of a rope hanging down below you. That was part of the appeal of ascension cables - nothing for the enemy to grab onto below you. Still, the only thing it meant right then was that you would have no chance of saving yourself if you were to slip. 

Finally, a distant but still existent factor was that you didn’t want Fordo to think less of you. He was one of the most competent troopers you had ever met, and you knew part of his tolerance for you was because you did your job well. It hurt to know that your reaction was probably making him think less of you, but the terror raging inside of your chest was too strong to ignore. 

A weird pressure came over you, and it took a moment to realize that it was from Fordo tightening his arm around you. “Stay with me.”

“Wh-?” Why was talking so difficult all of a sudden? You struggled to gather your thoughts, then to push them in the vague direction of your mouth. “What do you mean?”

“You look a little…” Fordo trailed off, dark eyes traveling across your face. “Just stay with me.”

Oh. Fordo thought you were going to faint. "I'm fine, I promise. Just scared." You winced at the admission even as you watched Fordo's expression turn to something you couldn't quite place. Scared? That made you sound like a child. "Nervous, I mean." 

"Don't worry, little one," Fordo assured you. "I'll get you back down as soon as I can." 

Any irritation you may have felt at being called 'little one' was immediately soothed by Fordo's tone. It was almost… gentle. That was strange for him, but appreciated in the present circumstance. Maybe you would just focus on getting through this. You could impress Fordo with your returned abilities when you were back on solid ground. 

"Thank you," was the response you settled for. You opted to close your eyes rather than decide between watching the ceiling, watching the floor, or staring at Fordo.

An abrupt lurch made you gasp and you couldn't help your reaction. You reflexively turned, tucking your face against Fordo's chestplate. Plastoid was never the most comfortable material, but it felt like a bit more shelter. 

Then you came to your senses and tried to pull away."I'm sorry-" 

Fordo's free hand rose to press between your shoulder blades. "Does this help?" 

Between his hand wrapped around you and the one keeping you close, Fordo's grip on you did help. There was only one problem: 

"How are you holding on?" 

Fordo took a moment to answer. When he did, you could hear the smile in his voice. "The ascension cable is attached to my belt." 

"And it's sturdy?" you checked. The question was nonsensical, but you couldn't help it. You weren't leaving anything to chance. 

"Very," he assured you, his hand gently rubbing your back. "That's what they're designed for. The lift mechanism is too powerful for most humanoids to grip while it's active."

“So the only thing keeping us up here right now is a plastoid belt?” 

The shrill question made Fordo pause again, but he was quick to ease your concern. “A belt designed by the GAR to be able to hold myself and any Seppie we might have to retrieve. Including any and every dense-beinged species in the galaxy. Just stay where you are and we’ll be fine.”

You let yourself relax despite the nerve-wracking situation. The slight swaying of the ascension cable was lessening as you got closer to the ground and you couldn’t seem to hear the whir of the mechanism lowering you anymore. 

“I have to admit,” you said, begrudging. “I can hardly feel us moving, it’s so smooth.”

This time, the silence before Fordo’s answer stretched uncomfortably long. Almost long enough that you relinquished your place against his chest plate to look up at him. In fact, the only reason you didn’t was because his hand against the back of your head kept you where you were. 

“...Fordo?” you asked, uncomfortable with the tense quality of the silence.

“Don’t…” Fordo sighed. “I need you to stay calm for me, okay? We… Well, we’re not moving.”

“Not-?” You tried in vain to pull your head away to look, but Fordo’s grip was firm. “Fordo!”

“I’m sorry, just-” He interrupted himself to bite back whatever he had been about to say. “Just promise me you won’t panic, yeah? This is a delicate situation.”

You didn’t have time to reassure him before his hand lifted away. When you glanced around, you realized that he had been telling the truth. You really weren’t moving any more. And when you looked down, you found that you couldn’t have moved much in the first place. If you were any closer to the ground than when you had started, you couldn’t see the difference. 

The ominous creaking of plastoid was the only clue you had that your fingers had started tightening around Fordo’s arm and waist. He didn’t seem concerned about the armor at all, however. No, Fordo’s concern seemed to be for you and you alone. It was apparent on his face, and particularly easy to see in his eyes. 

A soft chime rang through the space between you. By the time you recognized it as a wrist comlink, Fordo had already begun raising his arm to his face. 

“Captain, you activated your distress signal,” a trooper informed him. “What is it?”

“The dual-carry ascension cable is stuck,” Fordo reported.

Needless to say, the laughter from the other end of the line was not comforting. 

Fordo growled something into the comlink, his voice too low and fast for you to catch any individual words. The response came quickly, though you could still hear the amusement in the other trooper’s voice. “Sorry, sir, but Procurement told you it was only a semi-functional prototype.”

“Yeah, then why did they let me take it?” Fordo asked, clearly grumpy. “They had to know I was going to test it.”

“Not with a civvie in tow!”

“Sergeant…” Fordo warned.

Ah, so that was it. Sergeant Chute was Fordo’s second-in-command. He was well-known in the GAR for his careless attitude. Perhaps ‘careless’ was the wrong word. Chute cared intensely about the things that mattered, but everything outside of what it took to stay alive? He simply didn’t have time. Of course Chute would find this situation amusing. 

“Sorry, Captain,” Chute said again. After another moment of quiet, he asked, “What do you want me to do about it?” 

“Get us unstuck.”

“How?” 

Fordo made a low, irritated noise in his throat. “I don’t particularly care how, Chute. Just do it!”

“Okay, let me see what I can figure out.”

The call disconnected and you watched one of the armored figures at ground level walk purposefully away. Without the distraction of eavesdropping on a call, you were left alone with Fordo and the intrusive thoughts of what would happen if the cable stayed stuck… or worse, if it became suddenly unstuck. 

Your fingers tightened on Fordo once more. The grip was strong enough that you watched your knuckles pale under the pressure of your own terror. You weren’t entirely sure why you were holding on so tightly - if the cable were to suddenly unsnag and leave you plummeting toward the ground, Fordo would be utterly unable to help you. 

“I’m sorry I got you into this.”

The blunt, unprompted apology was a jolt to your internal spiral, pulling you from those thoughts and back into the moment. As much as you didn’t appreciate this particular moment, it was better than being inside of your mind. 

“You couldn’t have known,” you assured him. “I don’t really tell people about my fears.”

Fordo shook his head, a wry grin curving his lips. “Not about the heights, but I should have known better than to pull a civilian into testing new gear with me.”

“You didn’t, not really,” you argued, shaken by the implication that Fordo had been callous and careless. “You’ve never treated me like a crash test dummy or anything like that. You just get excited about new gear and you like to show me. And I like that you like to show me. We’re- Well, it makes me feel like we’re… friends.”

“Friends, huh?” Fordo asked, one brow cocked. The satisfied curl of his lips eased something in you, reassuring that he wouldn’t tease you for presuming that your relationship was more than it was in reality. “Yeah, I would say we’re friends.”

You smiled, Fordo’s agreement temporarily pushing back the panic in you. Before you could attempt to articulate your pleasure at hearing that, Fordo’s comlink crackled to life once more. 

“Captain, when you’re ready, we’ve come up with a few solutions for you.”

“Finally,” Fordo complained. “What do we have?” 

“Easiest first,” Chute told him. “Can you use your jetpack?”

“I don’t have it on me.” His brow creased with something like guilt. “I didn’t want the extra weight.”

“What if we brought it up to you?”

“It’s modified for speed, not carrying capacity. It wouldn’t support both of us.”

You let out an involuntary shudder at the idea. Fordo glanced at you, pulled the comlink away, and said, “Don’t worry, we’re not doing that.”

“Could we bring you an unmodified jetpack instead?” Chute asked. 

“We both know the jetpacks aren’t designed for use by multiple people,” Fordo reminded him. “It wouldn’t be able to carry two of us, and I’m not about to sign off on giving a jetpack to a civvie.”

“Suppose not,” Chute agreed. “What if you didn’t go for a sustained jet to the ground? You could feather the engine to slow your drop, then roll when you hit the ground.”

That, somehow, sounded worse than all of the other options. You began to resign yourself to the fact that you were going to live the rest of your life - such as it was - suspended halfway between the floor and ceiling of a hangar bay. 

Fordo’s thumb stroked soothingly over your shoulder. “Do you have any plans that don’t center around using a jetpack, Chute?”

“One: We fire a traditional ascension cable beside where you are. You release your cable and climb down that one instead.”

“Interesting…” Fordo said slowly. “How will you account for the distance? Normal ascension cables won’t be able to reach the ceiling.”

“Good point,” Chute admitted. “I think Procurement said they have an ascension cable that’s only been modified to include extension.”

“So it isn’t meant for two people.”

“No.” The sergeant didn’t sound overly concerned about that fact. “But you don’t need it to ascend, do you? You’ll just be using it to climb down. It should be fine.”

“I don’t like ‘should’,” Fordo told him, voice dark. 

“Look at it this way, Captain,” Chute said, clearly close to laughing again. “What are the odds that two pieces of equipment will malfunction in one day?”

“I don’t want to think about it.” Fordo sighed, a muscle ticcing in his jaw as he stared at the ground and considered your options. “Okay, get the extended cable.”

“I’ll comm you when everything is set up.”

And then the connection cut. Fordo was still in ‘comforting’ mode, soothing you with, “Sorry about all of this. If I had my helmet, you wouldn’t hear the whole conversation and I could bring you a solution without all of the extra fuss. Just a few more minutes, okay? Then we’ll be back on solid ground.”

“I’m worried about that, too,” you told him. “Fordo, I don’t know if I can lower myself down a rope for that long and not lose my grip.”

He frowned at you. “I’m not having you go down the rope alone. Are you joking? You’re getting harnessed to me and I’ll lower both of us down. I’m not careless enough to let someone with a bad fear of heights climb that far on their own.”

Despite the sass and the rude noise he made at the end of the statement, Fordo’s correction left you feeling… known. He cared enough to consider your feelings and abilities when he was making his plans, even when he was operating in a situation that was stressful and time-sensitive.

“Thank you, Fordo,” you told him, gratitude ringing through your voice. “If there’s ever anything you need from me, tell me. You know, in the name of friendship.”

The handsome captain had started watching you intently halfway through your offer, and - though your addition had made him smile - there was still something serious in his expression. “Since we’re stuck up here for as long as it takes my men to find an extended cable, I’m going to take you up on that right away. Will you answer a question for me?”

“A question,” you repeated nervously. “You can ask me anything any time, you know that. Just don’t make it too tricky. Most of my brain is still busy calculating the odds that I’ll die in the next hour.”

“You’ve always been very open with me,” Fordo agreed. “I just wanted the chance to talk with you when my men aren’t wandering around, trying to overhear.”

That piqued your curiosity, and you found your attention pulling away from the ever-present awareness of where you were. “Ask whatever you like.”

Fordo took a breath. Not a quick one, nor particularly deep, but it was telling. It meant that something about his own question made him nervous. Your interest only grew. “You’re always watching me.”

Strictly speaking, it wasn’t a question, but then, it didn’t really need to be. You knew what he wanted to know. The only question was how truthful you were going to be in your response. 

“Because I admire you,” you told him frankly. Yeah, the phrasing was old-fashioned, but it was just vague enough for you to figure out how to proceed once you’d seen Fordo’s reaction to it. 

“I- admire you, too,” Fordo said. “You’re smart, and good at your job, and you always ask the right questions when it comes to the gear. You care.”

“Thanks,” you accepted, feeling an uneasy lump in your throat. It should have been nice to hear that you were admired in return, but there was something hollow in it. The only reason you should want to hear something more is if… well, if you felt something… more…

Oh.

Fordo, oblivious to your internal realization, started to move on. “I think I can see Chute. He should have things set up by now. By my estimate, we’ll be ready in-”

“Wait,” you interrupted. “You got the chance to give reasons that you admire me. I want to do the same. You’re excellent at your job and I can tell you care about the men. You always go a little further than you should to complete the mission and it makes me worry, but you’re very good at analyzing the risks, so no one gets hurt. And your love of gear always makes me happy to see. It’s something you’re passionate about, and it makes me feel good that you want to share that passion with me.”

Fordo was staring at you. He didn’t seem inclined to reply and it was starting to make you nervous. You cleared your throat. “But you were saying? How long do you think until we can switch cables?”

“You worry about me?” he asked instead of answering your questions. 

“Of course I worry about you!” You took a breath, attempting to calm down slightly. “You have an incredibly dangerous job and I’m stuck here on Coruscant. I usually don’t know what’s happening with your missions until you get back, unless I hear some of the troopers talking. I worry all of the time. I care about you, Fordo.”

“Captain, we’re getting ready to fire the secondary ascension cable.”

Chute’s interruption should rightfully have been a relief, since it signaled your impending descent from the stuck cable. However, Fordo had seemed to be getting ready to reply to your profession of care for him and you found yourself wishing that Chute had taken a little bit longer to get ready. 

Fordo, of course, snapped immediately into Captain mode. “Okay, when they fire the ascension cable, they’ll need to check that it’s secure. After that’s done, I’ll switch your harness connection to me instead of our cable. Then I’ll swing us over, attach my harness to that cable, and lower us down. Any questions?” 

“Why don’t we attach our harnesses to that cable instead?” you asked. 

“Because the attachments are at the base of the cable,” Fordo explained. “To keep it from immediately snapping closed and hanging uselessly from the ceiling, Chute will keep the other end of it at the floor.”

“And he can’t let go once we’re on the cable?” 

Fordo’s patience was apparently limitless, since your nervous line of questioning didn’t seem to bother him in the least. “There’s really no point. You’ll be attached to me, so it’s not like we’re going to fall. The biggest unknown right now is whether the extra ascension cable is going to get stuck or not. Maybe you feel differently, but I don’t particularly trust any GAR equipment right now. Especially since we don’t know whether Procurement has any other backups for us to use.”

“I don’t know if-” 

Your nervous protests were interrupted by a whoosh, followed by a dull thump as the ascension cable was fired and soared past you to connect with the ceiling. Fordo watched it, then studied the men on the ground with a critical eye.

“It’s time,” he announced after a few moments, turning his attention to you once more. With a steadying touch on your shoulders, he gave a nod. “Just trust me. I’ll have you safely on the ground in a minute or two.”

As hard as you tried to disguise the nervousness, you could feel the way your brow crumpled with a single glance at the duracrete floor so far below. 

Fordo’s fingers tightened, pulling your attention upward. His dark eyes were soothing, as was his low voice. “You can be brave for me. Right?”

You nodded, though it felt jerky, like you weren’t fully in control of the movement. Fordo beamed anyway. “I know you can. Deep breath.”

Before your chest had fully expanded, Fordo had wrapped an arm under yours, muscles flexing while he unclipped your harness from the ascension cable and clipped it to his harness instead. 

“Okay, there’s the tricky part, already done,” he told you. “Now, I need you to hang on as tight as you can for the next part. You’re attached to me and I won’t ever be away from a cable, so we’re not going to fall either way. But a sudden shift of weight can make things more of a challenge. Do you think you can hold on to me?”

“You’re lucky if I ever let you go,” you told him. Your voice was audibly shaking, but Fordo grinned anyway. 

“Thanks for the incentive,” he teased. “Hold on. Swinging over in three… two… one.”

The whole hangar bay seemed to sway sideways and your breath caught. But when it steadied, it seemed more solid than it had the entire time you were on the ill-fated dual ascension cable. The metallic sound of a clip reached you and then you were slowly making your way downward. 

You wanted to speak, to ask how Fordo was doing, but you were terrified to distract him in any way. So you kept silent… until you felt your clammy hands beginning to slip against Fordo’s armor. 

The ground was far closer now - not close enough that you could hold on until you had finally reached it, but close enough that you wouldn’t die if you fell. In fact, you may not even break anything. Of course, that was all assuming that the harness didn’t hold, but your faith in GAR kit had taken a beating that day. 

“Fordo,” you started. Due to your nerves, it came out in a murmur, but he heard you anyway. 

“Almost there, I promise,” he assured you, his voice in a low tone that matched yours. It also made you feel incredibly tingly, especially when he added, “You’re doing so well. I’m proud of you.”

The high from that - and the dizzy, stifled fantasies about other situations in which he might say the same thing - almost glued your lips together, but you managed to pry out, “I’m slipping. I don’t want to throw your balance off. Do you need me to unhook myself? I think I can fall from here and be okay…”

You really didn’t want to fall from there. The reluctance was plain in your voice, but you made the offer anyway. It wouldn’t be fair to risk both of you falling, not when you were clear from the worst of the danger. 

Fordo’s torso lurched in your grip and you looked up at him, alarmed. That alarm turned first to confusion, then to betrayal. Fordo was laughing.

He glanced down at you, still grinning. “You’re so dramatic.”

Before you could give that the reply it deserved, Fordo stopped your descent, gripping the cable over his head with one hand and using the other to wrap around your side. And then you were biting back a shout. The devastating motion had seemed like you were falling, but it was actually the opposite. You were being pulled upward, further and further until you landed with a thump that left you breathless. 

Your new vantage point let you see the way Fordo was gripping the cable between his booted feet, feeding through a bit at a time as you started down once more. It was only when the wolf whistle from the floor reached you that you realized that Fordo had slung you over his shoulder. 

Even worse, he kept only one hand on the rope. The other was holding the back of your leg, keeping it pinned to his chestplate. You were grateful that his grip kept you from slipping off of his shoulder entirely, but you wished his fingers weren’t quite so close to the top of your thigh.

“Are you serious right now?” you demanded, trying to reposition yourself so that your butt wasn’t sticking quite so dramatically upward. 

“Watch it, civvie. You almost gave me a knee to the face.” You immediately stilled, though Fordo didn’t seem overly concerned about the possibility of injury. “Would you rather fall?”

“I thought I would rather do anything than fall,” you muttered. “This is making me rethink the possibilities.”

Fordo had a nice laugh, even if it was at your expense. At the very least, it gave you something else to focus on instead of the troopers on the ground. They seemed highly amused by the way Fordo was transporting you and were happy to shout out additional suggestions that ranged from bad to worse. The only saving grace was that the rest of the trip was swift.

“Shut up, all of you,” Fordo grumbled as his booted feet touched the ground. 

Chute was grinning, you could see it from the gap between Fordo’s chest and arm. “Congratulations on a successful rescue, Captain. You two looked pretty cozy up there, and even more so on the way down.”

“Shouldn’t you be doing something else right now, Sergeant?” Fordo asked sharply.

“I don’t have anywhere to be until fourteen-thirty,” Chute told him, sounding extremely smug about it. 

“Good.” Fordo snatched the handle of the ascension cable from him, pressing a single button and letting the small cylinder soar up until it hit the ceiling with a barely audible thunk. “Then you and the men can work on getting those cables unhooked, respooled, and returned to Procurement.”

Chute wasn’t smiling when Fordo walked away. 

“Can I get down now?” you asked. You were starting to get a little dizzy from the angle of your head, but that wasn’t the full cause of your lightheadedness. If only Fordo would stop stroking his thumb against your skin!

“Of course, just let me get a little further away from those idiots.”

True to his word, Fordo carried you just a little further toward one side of the hangar bay. You could still watch the troopers attempt to figure out the ascension cable conundrum - and did watch, with glee - but you were mostly out of earshot. 

Fordo took a gentle hold of your hips and let you slide down from his shoulder. It was a slow process, since he was clearly taking pains not to frighten you or make you feel like you would fall. Unfortunately, the major effect was that his fingertips dragged over you as you moved further and further down. Nothing inappropriate, of course, but you still felt flustered. 

When you were finally on solid ground once more, you gave Fordo a nod and a half smile. “Thank you, Fordo. I’m glad that worked out as well as it did.”

“Hold on, little one,” Fordo commanded, apparently having sensed that you were going to rush off. “We’re still connected.”

You watched in sheepish interest as he unhooked your harness from his own, Fordo’s strong hands working the clasps in a way that encouraged your intense study. 

“And before you disappear, we should go to the mess.”

That made you blink. “The mess?”

“You’re probably feeling a bit of adrenaline from that, aren’t you?” Lying wasn’t an option, not when Fordo was already giving you a skeptical look. When you nodded, Fordo echoed the motion. “Yeah, I figured. When it starts to leave your system, you’re gonna feel terrible. It’s better if you have something to eat and drink. Let’s go.”

When he put it that way, it made sense. And, you had to admit, you were feeling a little hungry. “Okay.”

Fordo held the door for you, following as soon as you had stepped through. 

“Remind me while we’re eating and I’ll give you my comlink frequency.”

Your head snapped over toward him so quickly that your neck protested. “Why, exactly?”

Fordo watched you evenly, a hint of a grin on his face. “Well, now that I know you worry about me, I want to make sure you can reach me any time you need to.”

“And if you’re in a war zone?” you asked. To your surprise, your voice sounded normal, even when it was coming from a mouth that had suddenly gone dry. What exactly was Fordo trying to do?

“I won’t answer,” he said with a shrug. “But any other time, I’ll pick up and put your nerves at ease. And… you know, even if I’m on-planet, I’ll pick up. I never mind making time for one of my favorite people.”

Your heart seemed to stutter in your chest as you gave Fordo a sidelong glance. He was doing the same thing, both of you trying and utterly failing to be subtle. 

Before the moment could turn awkward, you grinned at him. “You’re going to regret that, Captain. I get very worried…”

Fordo beamed at the way you had bumped him with your shoulder. “Looking forward to it.”

---

Author's Note - This was my first time writing Fordo and I had a bit of trouble with him! Sorry if he's OOC, but I had fun. He just strikes me as being really sincere, even when he's teasing!

I discontinued my taglist, but you can read my writing on @wanderinginksplot-writes or find my masterlist here!

#star wars #star wars fanfiction #star wars legends #captain fordo #clone captain fordo #star wars the clone wars #reader insert #fordo #fordo x reader #fordo x you #reader insert fic #reader #ink's fics #clone troopers deserve better

[metalheads-trash-bin]

!! MORE NOTES FOR TROLLS FANFIC WRITERS!!

These consist of observations, facts, and headcanons :)

Volcano Rock City

Riff & rock trolls:

Breathy giggle, shy almost

At college for musical theory/art

Immune to lava - see it like hot water

Change in music doesnt change where they were raised w - (Pink heart, but diff style)

Volcano rock city arenas lava is now rainbow to show all genres

High fives show harmony and connection

Daycare in pop village - poppy teaches them the history of the whole world tour situation w barb as a guest

Riff uses air drums w drumsticks to dance w head bobbing when just chill dancing

Hard dancing is ofc what you think it is

Riff has three siblings, hes the favorite sibling since hes the baby. He spends time with his mom. He has two sisters and one brother. The brother is the eldest.

Food item: Fiber energy juice boxes

Barbs full name is Barbara

Creek notes:

Creek being creek “a little positivity would go well with that vest.”

Gets grabbed by chef

Chef forces creek into king gristles mouth

Creek figures out how to prevent himself being killed, calling out and gristle spitting him out. Creek begs for his life.

He strikes up a deal with chef. Through that hes taken out of the amulet for good.

Chef catches the snack pack, putting them back into the cage.

Chef pulls out creek, and they have the whole strangle moment.

Creek tells them he sold out everyone, showing no remorse so they dont try rescuing him. He even says to her theres no other “not him getting eaten” way, and chef agrees.

Instead of poppy focusing on the kingdom she becomes empathetic towards Bridget, turning back after being let go and helping her out. Poppy explains to the bergens that theres other ways to be happy. Then demonstrates that.

The bergens believe her, having a happy ending where they realize they dont need to eat trolls.

Chef gets rocketed out on a grill, creek in her fanny pack. She tries to eat him, the creature below them waking up. They get eaten by said monster.

“If poppy had only listened to you, if she took you seriously..if we all did. This would’ve never happened. If she just focused on the kingdom and not saving me, you all could’ve escaped and ran off. Finding a new haven. I know in the end it was a good plan..and lead to good things. But..she didn’t know that, no one did. You all almost died.”

“I’m sorry I never took you seriously, I’m..so sorry branch.”

Mount Rageous- rage dome

Bruce canonically listens to true crime podcasts

Jds canon in the sad book club

Floyd had a canon solo career

Mount rageous has an adult area called “the bowl” under the clouds

Floyd worked there doing modeling, playboy esque. Alongside singing solos in bdsm clubs

Teens found out eventually as gossip is.

Scarring under JDs gloved hand

Branch cracks under pressure after introducing floyd to creek, spiraling in front of poppy and sobbing to her about his feelings on everything. She panics and tries problem solving, branch snapping and then them walking away. They came back to eachother the next day, talking it out and deciding health wise its best to just be friends. They became platonic soulmates to eachother like riff and barb, the separation and experience of being together bringing them closer anyhow. Being in different levels of life just, cant work long term.

Creek says things like “Mother Destiny” or “Mother” as his connection to the earth.

John Dorys first thing when the gang separated was neverglade trail

Johns killed someone, he followed them on a hike and tried bashing their head with a rock. The person had a self defense pocket knife because of the wild animals. They slashed his left hand, john trying to push them off a cliff (waterfall cliff). Person grips onto his jacket, pleading for their life and how they dont understand what they did to deserve this, hanging off the cliff only not falling because hes gripping onto johns jacket. Johns gripping the ground, reaching for a rock and smashing their eye until they let go. Person falls, not dying because the water wasnt shallow enough. He runs down with a hunting knife, stabbing the guy to death. This was his first kill, only doing it so he could eat as he was struggling.

Edit: BY EAT I MEAN GETTING MONEY AS HE WAS A HITMAN NOT A CANNIBAL AAAAGHHHHH

Doug is the lawyer jd’s acquainted with at the bowl since hes the only lawyer that handles other species disputes.

Jd loves fish, especially fish sandwiches.

Notes on trolls three and poppy:

poppy seems super pushy and non empathetic to branch, literally appearing as if she cant put herself in someone else’s shoes.

2. She consistently tests his comfort and boundaries. Even being manipulative in some instances to get him to do what she wants.

3: it seems like she was more interested in investing in JD and the mission because they’re BroZone, not because she cared about branch or his trauma.

4. Yes at sometimes she comforted him and convinced him to continue with the mission, but that doesn’t make up for her lack of empathy simply because she shows sympathy.

5. I understand being a huge fan of BroZone, but some of her behaviors absolutely cross the comfort of the members. JD kept the funderwears for memorabilia, not because of some scent thing. Yet poppy’s borderline lustful reaction implies she would’ve kept them for that reason.

6. Sometimes she still struggles to listen to him, projecting her familial issues onto him and saying how grateful he should be. She was so fixated on the facf she craves more from her family, that she couldn’t even fathom the fact someone wouldn’t like their family members or have a more complicated relationship.

These are all of course little things, but they can build up and they can cause long term built up issues. It’s saddening to see that even if they sorted out her not listening to him, she still has a lot she needs to fix. And Branch, especially after all of his trauma being forcibly resurfaced, most likely can’t handle all of her flaws she needs to work on.

These all were brought up to her when they separated, she didn’t react the best initially until a few days later when she finally gained some sort of empathy and guilt for her neglect towards my brother.

#trolls band together #trolls world tour #dreamworks trolls #trolls movie #trolls #barb and floyd being best buds #dw trolls #riff trolls #trolls 3 #trolls world #trolls fandom #my trolls headcanons some sad some random #trolls headcanons #headcanon #trolls3 #trolls dreamworks #brozone #branch trolls #trolls creek #creek trolls #trolls branch #trolls poppy #poppy trolls #trolls john dory #john dory trolls #trolls fanfiction #trolls fanfic #ao3 fanfic #fanfiction #trolls jd

[fandoms-writings]

i have one for u !!!

7 from angst & 6 from smut with bucky barnes? i angsty/smut is like… 🤭🤭

Pairing: ceramics professor!bucky x fem!student!reader

Word Count: 2.4K

Warnings: SMUT 18+ ONLY, unprotected vaginal sex, p in v sex, pet names: sir, sweetheart, baby. a little angst, but i was having a rough time with the angst so i did what i could.

A/N: listen - i know i said that the event was for drabbles but i get very easily carried away sooooo yeah - i hope you enjoy!! &lt;3

Masterpost || Bucky Masterlist || Event Post

Bucky hadn't meant to get so. . . involved with you. At least, not the way it had turned out. 

At first it wasn't a problem, you were just someone in the bar at the beginning of summer who caught his eye and let him shoot his shot. He'd fucked you in the bathroom of that very bar before taking you back to his place to do it again. 

You'd become fuck buddies over the summer, hooking up whenever you could, but trying to keep it on the down low because neither of you wanted a real relationship at the time. 

And it was fine, it worked. 

Until summer was over. He told you he was going to be busier than usual and you said the same. Neither of you had given the other a reason as to why, but it didn't take long for the both of you to figure it out. 

He went to work, to bide his time until he would allow himself to call you, setting up at the front of the studio. Copies of his syllabus were laid out on the tables, his throwing wheel was cleaned and ready for a demonstration, though he wouldn't be demonstrating anything today. That would be later in the week. 

The first few classes went by without a hitch, and he was glad to have almost all of the students filling his room actually interested in being there. Usually, the fresh college kids didn't really want to be there at all so there was minimal effort, but they actually seemed like they cared this year. 

He'd reset up the room again for the last group of the day, erasing the information on the board and rewriting his name. He may have been old school like that, not many of the other professors did it, but he knew some people had trouble hearing so it helped to have a visual. 

Students started filing in one by one, some of them already in small groups of two or three, but there was one laugh that had his blood turning to ice in his veins. He took a calming breath, as calming as it could be, and peaked over his shoulder behind him, finding you. 

You were smiling and laughing with who he assumed was a friend of yours, and he was sure you hadn't even noticed him yet. He watched as you looked at the syllabus on the table in front of you, reading it over but not really paying it any mind. 

He hadn't told you his first or last name during any of your time together. He was just 'Bucky' to you so why would you take notice of his true name on the paper? 

After finding his focus again, he decided to just go about the class as if it was any other group of students. Ignoring the elephant in the room that only the two of you knew about. 

When class was over though, you stayed behind, waiting for him to finish speaking with everyone else before you approached him, even allowing those who'd come in after you to ask their questions first. 

"So," You walked up to his desk, being mindful to leave an appropriate amount of distance between the two of you, "Guess this means we stop, huh?" 

He looked up at you then, properly looked at you for the first time that day. There wasn't a single sign of anger or negativity on your face, only pure understanding and patience. And maybe a little disappointment. 

"Yeah," he said, "I guess so." 

You nodded, "Well, just don't be a stranger, kay?" He could see the sadness starting to flood in your eyes as you waited for his confirmation. 

"I promise," he nodded, and you gave him a sad smile before turning around, walking out of his room. 

Things continued like that for a while. He'd come around when you needed help, showing tips and tricks he'd picked up over the years. Bucky tried keeping it a professional relationship, but it was harder than he thought it would be. 

He couldn't be around you for too long without feeling the need to touch you again. He couldn't stare at your hands for too long, working the clay, or he'd remember how your hands felt on his skin, raking down his back. 

But he just needed to make it until the end of the semester, and he could do that, right? 

~

Fall break, your saving grace from feeling like drowning in work and it was only the first semester. How were you ever going to get through this? 

The campus was almost deserted, practically everyone had gone on vacation or gone home to their families for the break. You stayed behind, hoping to get a head start on the next quarter's assignments and notes. 

And you'd been doing that, until the little voice in your head had gained some courage and made you want to ask the question it had been asking you for weeks. Since the first day of the semester. 

You needed to find Bucky, and you were pretty sure you knew where to look. 

Gathering your bag and your purse from the table, you deserted the library and headed for the art building. You knew the building would be open, for those students who hadn't gone home, like you. What you were worried about was if his door would open. 

And it didn't. It was locked. But there was one more place you knew to check. 

~

There was a knocking on the door, and when Bucky looked up from his sculpture to see who was on the other side of the glass door, his heart all but stopped. 

There you were, holding your sweater around you tight as you fought off the chill the wind brought. Your legs were bare beneath your skirt and he just knew you were freezing out there. What were you doing here? 

He wiped his hands off with the clean rag as he made his way over to the door, the smile on your face when you saw him through the glass made his breath hitch and his heart stutter as he unlocked the latch. 

"What're you doing here?" He asked, stepping aside so you could come in out of the cold. 

"I need to ask you something," You said, the urgency in your voice setting off alarm bells. 

"How did you know I was here?" 

"I know you, how else do you think I found you?"

He nodded, "Right." You did know him. He tried to forget how well you knew him sometimes. "So what's your question?" 

"Do you think," You started, fidgeting with the cuffs of your sweater, your nerves starting to take over. You bit your lip as you thought about your question now. You really shouldn't ask it, you know you shouldn't. But you needed to know. And hell, you came all the way down here, so you may as well. "Do you think we could restart what we had over the summer once the semester is over?" 

His body tensed as his eyes locked on you. "What?" 

Your heart was racing and you could hear the roar of your blood rushing in your ears. "You heard me." It came out barely above a whisper, but that's all you could muster yourself to do. You couldn't ask it again, there was no way. 

He hugged a breath out through his nose, "But why?" 

You tried not to let it show in your eyes how hollow your chest suddenly felt. No matter how badly you wanted to back away, you stood your ground, but you could feel your shoulders shrinking in on you. "What do you mean why?" 

He looked to the ground, his hands settling on his hips. The silence was deafening as the pit in your chest only grew in anticipation. The longer you waited for an answer, the more you could feel the dam breaking, the tears welling in your eyes. 

"Bucky?" You whispered and he finally looked up at you, looking just as wrecked as you felt. 

"Why me?" He asked, his voice hoarse. "Do you realize how beautiful you are? Anyone would be lucky to have you - someone your age." 

You let out a breath you hadn't realized you were holding. It wasn't that he didn't want you - it was the morals of the whole thing. "Maybe," You walked up to him, standing mere inches from him as you looked up to meet his eyes, "But none of them are you." 

"It's wrong," He muttered, holding impossibly still as you took another small step forward. 

"I can keep a secret." 

"I could lose my license." 

"So we wait," You whispered, your lips brushing against his as you spoke, "We wait until I'm not your student." 

"Yeah?" He asked, a hint of a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. 

You nodded, "yeah." 

You looked up to see his eyes locked onto your lips. You nudged his nose with the tip of yours, getting his attention back to your eyes and you barely registered the crack in his resolve before his lips were on yours and his hands were cradling your face. 

It was an all too familiar exchange, one you two knew well as his hands roamed your body, guiding you back towards a table. But it was different this time. There was a new feeling in your heart as he picked you up by your hips and set you on the table's surface, your knees parting for him to stand between them.

His hands dove under your sweater and your shirt, palming your breasts, pulling you as close to him as he could get you while he let your tongue taste every corner of his mouth. 

"We shouldn't be doing this," your words were swallowed by him and he groaned. 

"One more time," He whispered, moving to your neck, "Just one more." His mouth attached to your skin, sending shivers down your spine. 

"One more," You agreed, reaching for his pants, unbuttoning them so you could fit your hand past the waist line and into his boxers. Wrapping your hand around his length, you gave a small tug, earning a groan into your neck. 

His fingers moved to the hem of your skirt, pushing it up to your hips and cupping your sex over your panties, groaning at the dampness already there. 

"You're already wet, sweetheart," He smirked at you as he pulled away to look at you. "You missed my touch that much, hm?" 

You nodded, whining out, "Yes - need you." 

He cooed at you as he pulled the fabric of your panties to the side, swiping his fingers through your folds, smirking at the whine that escaped your throat. "God I missed this." 

You shoved his pants down, freeing his cock and letting it land over your clit, the sensation sending a jolt through you. He groaned as he swiped his cock through your folds, gathering the slick he could before lining himself up and pushing himself in, holding the side of your neck as he did. 

A whine broke free from your lips and his hand around your neck tightened, "I know baby, I just couldn't wait, need to feel you around me." He pushed further in, watching as your cunt sucked him further in. 

You gasped as he bottomed out, pushing in all the way to the base, making you remember how full he made you feel. 

"Fuck," he groaned, his head tipping back, "you feel amazing." He started rolling his hips, doing shallow thrusts, savoring the moment as your walls fluttered around him. 

But you wanted more. You needed him to move. 

You hooked your feet behind him, your legs around his waist, and you pulled him towards you. 

His head came back down as he looked at you. "Desperate baby?" 

You reached forward, fisting his shirt and pulling him down towards you, whispering, "Show me how much you missed me." 

His hand on the side of your neck moved down to rest over the lower part of your stomach and his other one wrapped under one of your legs, propping your ass up. "You wanna feel how much I missed you, huh?"

You nodded, the excitement bubbling in your stomach, your walls clenching around him. 

"Okay baby." 

He set a brutal pace, pushing down on your stomach to make you feel him even deeper. 

"Oh fuck -" You tried to hold yourself up on your elbows, the bits of dried clay digging into your skin, but you didn't notice, not with how he was pounding into you. 

"You're so good for me," He grunted, leaning forward and moving his hand back up to your neck, wrapping around the front of it, keeping you from falling to the table. "So fucking good around me." A loud moan tore from your chest when he angled your hips down and he smiled, "Fucking made for me. Aren't you?" 

All you could do was nod as you tried to catch your breath, regardless of how useless that would be. 

"Use your words," He demanded, and it made the band in your stomach tighten. 

"Yes!" You got out, "made for you - fuck - just you." 

"That's right," He let your throat go, moving his thumb to press on your clit, "and while we wait, no one else gets to touch you, you got that?" 

You nodded, "Yes, sir." 

His thumb circled your bundle of nerves, "You wanna cum sweetheart?" 

"Please," You all but cried, "please please please, sir." 

"Give me a good one then," His thumb pressed down harder, circled in time with his hips, "Give me one to think about when I'm missing you, yeah?" 

Your jaw went slack as the band snapped, your walls clenching around him as your orgasm washed over you. The blood was rushing in your ears and you almost - almost - missed what he said. 

"Wish I could cum in you," He grunted, watching your cunt swallow him back in, over and over. 

"Do it," Your voice was hoarse and you were panting, but he heard it. You know he did because his pace faltered, but only for a second. 

"Fuck," his hands gripped your hips, sure to leave bruises. "Fuckfuckfu- " 

He buried himself as far as your cunt would allow him, holding your hips to his as his cock twitched before painting your walls with his spend. You moaned with him, loving the way it felt. 

Neither of you moved for a while, just looking at each other, taking in as many details as you could. 

It was going to be a long few months. 

But it would be worth it. 

#professor!bucky #professor!bucky barnes x student!reader #bucky x reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky barnes x f!reader #bucky barnes x female reader #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes fanficiton #bucky x f!reader #bucky x y/n #bucky x you #bucky x female reader #professor!bucky x student!reader #fandoms writings #marvel fanfiction #mcu fanfiction

[antianakin]

what do you think are some of obi wan's character flaws

Throughout TPM and AOTC, his flaw is primarily a lack of faith. He questions Qui-Gon's just "belief" in the Force's will and the prophecy etc in the first film, it's one of the reasons Qui-Gon tells him he has "much to learn of the Living Force" or whatever. In AOTC, it's more specifically about faith in Anakin and that Obi-Wan has done as much as he can do to help Anakin be a good person and a good Jedi and at some point he has to just trust that Anakin will figure the rest out for himself and Obi-Wan has to let go of his worries and doubts.

The lack of faith tends to manifest as arrogance a little bit, as a belief that he knows better than other people like Qui-Gon and the Council and Anakin, and it's pointed out several times in AOTC as specifically that.

This is the character flaw that he actually has OVERCOME by ROTS and that's why a lot of people have apparently decided that Obi-Wan is "too soft" on Anakin or whatever as a character flaw. I don't really see that as true, especially given how much of a nag he is and how quickly he puts Anakin in his place throughout AOTC. In ROTS, he is CHOOSING to have more faith in Anakin and not be quite as harsh because he wants to believe that Anakin can and will always make the right decision in the end, even if he struggles. So yes, he doesn't put Anakin in his place as much when Anakin throws a temper tantrum about not being made a Master and he vouches for Anakin in the conversation with Mace and Yoda later (an obvious parallel scene to the AOTC one where those roles are swapped) and he desperately wants to believe he can change Anakin's mind and save him after Order 66. But he also isn't like Padme in his refusal to believe that Anakin did the things we know he's done and he doesn't try to let Anakin get away with it either.

Obi-Wan isn't soft on Anakin, he just learned to have faith and that faith happens to not be rewarded because Anakin is, well, a selfish turd.

And if we go into the Kenobi show, the lack of faith actually comes BACK as a character flaw, but this time it manifests not as arrogance but as defeatism. He's lost everything, his faith last time was horrifically proven wrong, and he doesn't have a single ounce of support anywhere from anyone anymore. So he pins his entire identity on looking after Luke, but he doesn't trust himself OR Luke much because the last little Force-sensitive Skywalker kid he tried to train ended up ruining everything and Owen presumably picks up on some of that desperation and that's why he's not super keen on letting Obi-Wan spend time with Luke, even without the context to understand it. By the end of the series, he has to let go of all of those worries and doubts again and just trust that he gave Luke to good people who will ultimately raise him into a good man and that Luke won't make the same mistakes Anakin did and that Obi-Wan won't make the same mistakes either.

The lack of faith is a really important and relevant character flaw because Obi-Wan by ANH is Luke (and the audience's) whole introduction to the Force and the Jedi and their faith. He IS faith personified, he has to get LUKE to trust and believe in the Force in the first place so that the audience can believe in it, too. He is calm, settled, confident, and sure, but in a way that we need to believe is completely earned. That faith is the CORE of his character and it's why watching Obi-Wan learn to KEEP faith, even in dark times, even in the face of loss, is so so important. It doesn't just help us understand how he came to be the character we know from ANH, but it obviously also helps him be a foil to Anakin who never has faith in anything, especially in dark times and in the face of loss.

(This is also why I really really hate the whole backstory with Satine and how he nearly left the Order for her because it just demonstrates such a lack of understanding of who Obi-Wan actually is as a character, his place in the narrative, and why he's a foil to Anakin at all, but that's a different post.)

He can also get cocky in his own abilities sometimes and he's obviously something of a sarcastic bastard who enjoys pointing out other people's mistakes as a form of teasing friendly banter. Neither of those things are quite as narratively relevant as his lack of faith, but they're fun to play with.

#star wars #obi-wan kenobi #obi-wan kenobi series #sw obi-wan kenobi #sw owk #star wars prequels #kenobi series

[sarucane]

How did Stede leave pirating so easily?

So in the space of 2 episodes, Stede goes from being "the motherfucking man" to an innkeeper, and there's really not *much* in between there--all his scenes are primarily about other characters in the finale. So I wanted to rant about what I think fills in this gap.

Why did Stede become a pirate in the first place? Well, because he wanted to be a "real boy." He wanted to have a life that felt like his own, a life that wasn't swaddled in comfort (completely, at least). He wanted to break the monotony, the despair of a life without room for deep emotions or agency. And he became a certain kind of pirate because he wanted to be someone important and good in the lives of others, not just a marginal figure.

But why did Stede become a pirate the second time?

Ed.

Sure, there were other reasons: he didn't belong with his family anymore, didn't fit in his old life, and trying to have his cake (having run away) and eat it too (coming back) was just hurting everyone. He changed, and they changed, and a foundational truth of this show is that you can't change back.

But the reason he didn't belong with his family anymore was that he had gotten his original wish. He'd become a "real boy," someone who felt things deeply, who didn't need to keep one foot in his old life by hanging onto his wealth. He'd become important and valued in the lives of his crew, which they demonstrated when Chauncy challenged his right to the Act of Grace

But the moment Stede crosses the line forever between his old life and his new one is when he tells Mary "his name is Ed."

When Stede leaves, he falls in with the marooned crew--but he spends more time pining for Ed then talking to them. There's a place for him with his crew, and he fits in it, and we see in E5-6 that he cares deeply about doing right by them.

But neither Ed nor Stede fully fit into the crew when everyone's back together. Ed's caught up in his own self-reckoning, and Stede's splitting attention between the crew and Ed. In a way, they've outgrown Stede: they no longer need his help to enable the community on the ship. They've reached a point where they can deal with the conflicts in E4 by themselves, can absorb Archie and then Izzy and give both of them space to relax and integrate. They like having Stede as captain, but they don't need him anymore. In E7, Stede takes Olu leaving as a betrayal, but even that goes back to Stede being more focused on Ed than on the crew, and acting out over hurt feelings from a fight.

The only thing left that Stede can only get through piracy is the lure of fame. And that's a real perk--Stede genuinely enjoys his taste of infamy in E7. It's fun, it's a fulfillment of a childhood dream.

But it's also hollow, and it's a trap. It's hollow because Bill isn't Stede's real friend, and the loss of Steak Knife wasn't worth Stede dying by challenging Zheng (nor was Stede's ego worth Steaky's death, but that's another thing). And it's a trap because Stede really is a terrible pirate. Stede has to deal with the pirate world without Ed three times during the show. The first time, the Spanish almost kill him; the second time, Spanish Jackie almost maims him; the third time, he challenges Zheng to a duel and refuses to back down, then tries to "ambush" British officers who kick his butt. Stede's fantastic when he stays in his lane of nontraditional piracy, but if he became a really successful traditionally infamous pirate, he'd no longer be Stede.

So Stede doesn't need the infamy of success as a pirate, any more than he needs is pretty clothes (though he likes both). Stede doesn't need to stay a pirate to keep his relationship with the crew, and they don't need him either. Stede doesn't need to go out and be a pirate to feel real things, or think he's "adequate" enough for his father.

But Stede does need to give his relationship with Ed a real chance, to be what they want it to be. And Ed just cannot be a pirate anymore--there's too much damage and pain. Plus, living on the ship, their lives in danger all the time, heightening everything, pushing their actions out of their control. Their relationship was crushed under that pressure in S2, and it's still a pretty fragile thing. They need space and time. And by leaving the ship, they can have it.

For Stede, piracy meant belonging, love, and fulfillment.

He has those things now: He's got Ed. He doesn't need piracy anymore.

#ofmd s2 spoilers #ofmd #ofmd s2 #our flag means death #ofmd spoilers #ofmd meta #ed teach #stede bonnet #blackbonnet #i love the finale and i'm eternally grateful a cancellationwon't be straight traumatic but just FIVE MORE MINUTES oh well life is what it i

[mst3kproject]

Goncharov

Why the hell is an MST3K blog rising from the dead to review a forgotten Martin Scorcese film?  I'd never heard of this movie until it suddenly became a meme, but I had a day off work and I figured I might as well see what all the fuss was about.  Now I want to talk about what I saw, and this is the only movie blog I have, so I'm doing it here.

Ivan Goncharov is the biggest, baddest motherfucker east of the iron curtain, richer than a tsar and colder than a Siberian winter.  He's got a beef with Neapolitan mafioso Mario Giglioli, so he heads to sunny Italy to confront him in person. His closest confidante, Andrey, thinks it's suicide to do this on Giglioli's home turf but accompanies Goncharov anyway out of loyalty. What follows is a two-hour dick-measuring contest as Goncharov and Giglioli try to out-intimidate each other, culminating in an orgy of gunfire where only one will be left standing... and this is the kind of movie where you can't take it for granted that it'll be the guy whose name is the title.

That's the ostensible plot, anyway.  What makes Goncharov a far more interesting film than such an outline might imply is that the argument between the mobsters is just a backdrop.  Having set up Goncharov's hard as steel, cold as ice reputation in the first act, the movie then sets about deconstructing it.  Goncharov goes from a terrifying figure devoid of all morality to a tragic antihero, a man who has come to believe his own hype so completely that he can no longer let himself be human.

This is demonstrated mainly by watching the breakdown of his relationships over the course of the tense three days in Naples.  The most important person in Goncharov's life is Andrey, the only one he comes near being vulnerable with. Their relationship is depicted as very touchy-feely in a literal sort of way, with Andrey helping Goncharov with his coat and shoes, lighting cigarettes for him, and touching his shoulder or arm as Goncharov confides in him.  The framing emphasizes these touches in a very homoerotic way, and I don't think I've got my tumblr goggles on here.  These guys have fucked.

As Goncharov becomes more and more obsessed with being tougher and more ruthless than Giglioli, whom he sees as an effeminate softie, Andrey tries to persuade him that the other man is not worth this sort of obsession.  Whatever Giglioli did to insult Goncharov (we never find out), Andrey is of the opinion that they should just leave a dead horse in the asshole's bed and move on.  Goncharov's pride will not allow him to do that, and the less subtle Andrey is in his attempts to dissuade him, the more Goncharov pushes him away, finally abandoning him entirely.  The tragedy of the ending comes from the fact that Andrey refuses to abandon Goncharov in turn.

We also see Goncharov with his wife Katya.  He is frequently cruel to her, and she tolerates it because he gives her expensive gifts and because she is seeking a vicarious mending of her relationship with her abusive father - she was never able to earn his love, but perhaps she can earn Goncharov's.  This is doomed to failure, as much because of Goncharov as because Katya doesn't actually want it to succeed.  Nursing a black eye, Katya pours her heart out to a bartender, Sofia, who tries to help her escape... but this cannot work out, either.  As Katya herself says, she doesn't know who she is without her issues.

I am pleased to note, by the way, that every single major character in the movie is named and I can remember them all, which is a bit of a treat for me (I need to watch good movies more often).  The only exception is Goncharov himself.  The end credits list him as Ivan, but nobody ever calls him that, not even Andrey or Katya.  In a flashback scene with his parents, neither calls him by name.  This flashback, fascinatingly, is filmed in the first person, looking through Goncharov's own eyes.  We are not allowed to see him as a younger, softer man.  He refuses to show that side of himself even in the privacy of his memories.

These quieter moments contrast with scenes of ever-escalating brutality, as the Russians and Italians try to force each other to back down by the murder of underlings.  The fact that it is literally a contest, and that Goncharov is aware of this and describes it as such, makes the worsening violence ever more meaningless.  The death of Giglioli's confessor is particularly awful, and the way Goncharov's goons treat the chapel has to be ten times worse if you're Catholic (fun fact: this scene is apparently removed from the Italian version on Netflix, which must make what Andrey says while waiting for the train into a hell of a non sequitur).

At the climax, the two really can't do anything but kill each other, because it's the only place left to go.  Giglioli's priest and mistress are dead.  Goncharov's men are almost all dead or out of action, and Goncharov believes Andrey to be dead.  The initial insult, whatever it was, is no longer relevant.  They have pushed each other to a place where reconciliation is unthinkable.  Whoever blinks first loses, but both have already lost so much that victory means nothing.  Worse, each recognizes that the other is in the same position, and neither can acknowledge it.

This means Goncharov can also moonlight as an examination of violence in media.  Why do movies showcase violence, and why do we watch it?  The initial posturing serves a purpose - Goncharov wants Giglioli to know he's here to personally demand an apology, and Giglioli wants Goncharov to know he's outnumbered and should quit while he still can.  But once it becomes an exercise in one-up-manship, the 'messages’ vanish and the men are now killing for the sake of killing.  Violence in movies can often be gore for gore's sake, pulling out more and more stops in the effort to shock an audience that has been desensitized by years and years of this.  That is what Goncharov and Giglioli are doing to each other.  Truly distressing moments like the fate of the priest, or what Giuseppe "Icepick Joe" Cozzolino (dressed as a maid!) does to Sofia when he assumes she's Katya because she was in Katya's hotel room, make us wonder why we're watching this - and the mobsters wonder why they're doing it.

In the end, it's all just a blood-soaked version of the sunk cost fallacy.  Goncharov had come too far in his vendetta to stop now.  Andrey has followed him too far to turn back.  Katya has been married to him too long to leave.  Of course, any of them could quit at any time and escape from this terrible spiral, but they are unwilling to entertain the possibility.  Like Goncharov himself, Andrey and Katya are prisoners of the identities they have built for themselves, and because their identities are so tied to him, they have to go down with him.

One thing I haven't seen a lot of discussion of on tumblr is the way the film uses the contrast in climate.  Goncharov in Moscow is in his element.  When you see his breath in the wintry air it's as if he's breathing smoke like a dragon.  While other people huddle in the cold he stands up straight and tall.  In Naples, on the other hand, he is out of place.  He wears lighter clothing, but continues to choose long coats and upturned collars, while Giglioli goes around with his shirt unbuttoned.  This should serve to emphasize Giglioli's home field advantage and yet, as we see through Goncharov's eyes, they just make Giglioli look soft.  His apparent weakness makes Goncharov want to appear even stronger.

On a related note, it is interesting to me how sunlight is treated as something very unfriendly.  In Russia, it glitters on ice crystals in the air and lights up condensation, harsh and white and giving no warmth whatsoever.  In Italy it bakes and shimmers on stone and asphalt, casting harsh, black-edged shadows and emphasizing creased brows and frowning mouths.  Outdoor scenes are, as far as I can tell, always hostile interactions.  Even indoor scenes in natural light: the priest dies with harsh sunlight streaming in through the broken chapel window.  When characters are softer with each other, it is always under artificial illumination.  Sunlight is too bright, too revealing.  People like this need some shadows to hide in.

Did I like this movie?  That's a tough question.  It's not really the type of movie you 'like'.  It's definitely powerful and well-constructed, thoroughly absorbing and all that.  There's a taste of Greek tragedy in the inevitability of the ending and the way Goncharov is eaten alive by hubris.  But I wouldn't say I liked it.  The characters are all terrible people whose arcs involve them getting worse, and the whole thing feels deeply claustrophobic, as if I, too, am trapped in Goncharov's downward spiral.  When characters realize their mistakes, it is only when it's too late to correct them - but only in their own minds.  It's a very pessimistic story, about human beings who are overcome by the very worst parts of themselves.

Is Goncharov deserving of all those glowing reviews?  Yes.  Was it unfairly snubbed at the Oscars because the academy was turned off by the violence?  Probably.  Will I ever watch it again?  Fuck, no.

Excuse me, I have to go watch some Pixar movies if I ever want to smile again.

#mst3k #reviews #episodes that never were #goncharov #70's #there are horses in this movie #unreality #in case you've been on twitter or something all day #this movie doesn't exist. #i read six text posts and pulled this out of my ass at one in the morning

[i-guess-im-into-this-now]

The Apothecary Diaries

First watch of first episode

At a glance, I knew I would like this show, but after one episode I'm pretty sure I'm going to love it.

Btw, do y'all like it when people give their first impressions of your favorite shows/books/media? Or their thoughtful analysis? Or their shit posting?

I do. I'll try to do that for you here.

So I'm watching this on Crunchyroll with English dub. Right off the bat I can tell you that I'm in love with Maomao. The voice actress is terrific, but also the character is intriguing. She draws you in right away with her intelligence, competency, inquisitiveness, daring, sense of responsibility, need for justice and expansive caring for every including strangers. She's got a whole lot of A+ character traits to absolutely love. Considering she wants to keep a low profile in the palace that's going to be a problem. I'm pretty sure everyone in her orbit is going to be sucked in by her and either love or hate her. There isn't a lot of room for indifference with a person this interesting.

The very first scene I knew there was something atypical about this show because a charming conversation between a daughter and her father suddenly had a black and white still frame of the the girl being abducted. The hell?!

That paired with the next scene taking place in a brothel helped me grasp the tone of this show. This show is going to have some more mature themes. Now, I know, I'm ready for it. I think. (I'll be alright as long as there is no boiling of people. I've already had two shows I've watched this year cook people and I'm done with human soup).

So we see a courtesan ask Maomao without surprise:

Have you been wounding yourself again?

To which Maomao replies, as if it's obvious:

Well, yeah.

Okay so self harm is something Maomao does. Perhaps in service of her medical research, but if she's willing to harm herself for this, then she might also be willing to put herself in harms way under other circumstances as well. I think the show is trying to demonstrate that she's self sacrificing here. Love that in a fictional character.

She panics and runs when the brothel ladies tease her about becoming a courtesan. Why? Is she intimidated by intimacy? Has she witnessed the courtesans suffering? Is she afraid that future would derail her own plans? Does she always get this flustered when teased? I'm not suggesting she consider becoming a courtesan but her panic is telling of something more.

She immediately gets kidnapped, which due to foreshadowing we knew was going to happen, but what gets me is her blasé attitude about it. Like it's just an inconvenience and not a terrifying ordeal. I immediately thought they would sell her to a brothel, but she instead ends up doing laundry at the palace. So we learn that Maomao can stay calm in a crisis and this makes me even more curious about her reaction to the teasing by the courtesans.

We find Maomao settled into a life of servitude at the palace. She's accepted what happened even if she is unfulfilled. She misses her old life, including the brothel, wonders about her father and longs for meat screwers, but she's already figured out the ecosystem she's in and how best to navigate it. She's so savy here. She compares the palace to the brothel and applies her knowledge of that complex social system to navigate palace politics. Maomao has already analyzed what would happen if she revealed her competencies, and has decided to lay low until she is able to extricate her self in a couple years.

She tells the viewers what we need to know about harem life and mentions that if one isn't careful they could end up as a concubine. It's a future she wants as little as that of a courtesan, even though she mentioned that low ranked concubines are treated better than the servants. I have to wonder if this is foreshadowing or if it is commentary on the roles of women in this society.

Palace gossip! Oh there's a handsome new eunuch in the palace? Maomao couldn't care less. Well okay.

I'm going to make a few completely unfounded predictions here just to see how far off I am when I watch the rest of the series.

Regarding the hot eunuch:

He's not a eunuch. He's got all his bits and bobs.

He's not just a palace manager. At least not completely. He's probably a bastard son or royalty in hiding or something. He's not nobody.

Maomao is going to be down bad for this dude.

What a waste. Grade A quality genes and no way of proliferating them. -Maomao on Jinshi's appearance

So Maomao can't be bothered to spare a second thought about handsome eunuchs, or nonsense about curses, but medical ailments? Now you've got her thinking. And I love that about her. She knows how to diagnose and treat ailments and she cares so much! She's trying to lay low but her passion and integrity can't be tempered by her very rational plan to protect herself by staying inconspicuous. She knows how to help and feels a responsibility to do so even if that help puts her at risk. Hero qualities right there.

Also, I love a character that is just... better than every one else. Maomao is more informed, experienced and able to diagnose than the court physician. Competency porn yes, please!

Speaking of competency... We need to talk about Jinshi! Our handsome "eunuch" (he's getting that word in sarcastic quotes until I receive proof otherwise). Out of the 3000 people living in the back palace, he deduces which one of them sent a warning to the concubines, and rangles a confession with nothing more than a scrap of cloth. He observed Maomao muttering about needing something to write on, and her mended skirt. He recognized that scrap of cloth as belonging to a servant girl's clothing. He understood the importance of her literacy and cleverly used it as a means to draw her out. Jinshi is every bit as capable as Maomao, and he's out maneuvered her in this. Maomao has met her match.

To Maomaos horror she is promoted to lady-in-waiting and I am here for it! Girl you are in the shit now! She seems really panicked about the new promotion, because she is smart and knows that this new position is fraught with dangers even if she doesn't know precisely what they are. She seems pretty smart and capable but the fact that Jinshi was able to so easily draw her out and expose her means she will need to sharpen her skills. I'm hoping the concubine and Jinshi will be allies to her in the palace.

Her panic about entering the court reminds me of earlier in the episode when she ran from the brothel. Perhaps she fears becoming entangled with any type of social/political group? Does she have more secrets that she's trying to keep hidden?

I just know that this character is going to be put through some trials. But she has so many great qualities and strengths, that I'm confident she can adapt and overcome. I am looking forward to watching her persist and triumph. And maybe cause a little trouble.

There are some qualities that Maomao just can't mute. Curiosity. A thirst for knowledge. And a sometimes troublesome need to right that which is wrong. - Narrator

Episode 2

#the apothecary diaries #apothecary diaries #maomao #jinshi