#there's less people being noisy with takes i disagree with

[novantinuum]

Anyways, I declare this era as Steven Universe Fixation 2: More Fun, Less Bullshit

#the fandom is more peaceful finally #there's less people being noisy with takes i disagree with #my fics are going to get less traffic thus less chances of rude commenters #i am Not majorly active in any SU servers #i do Not have to deal with my ex friends #instead this is a happy and joyous time for creativity #like legit... i got seven pieces of art done in the past two weeks #and i've written over 5K words since the beginning of the year #it's been so nice to reconnect with old stories #and to start dreaming up new one-shots #i just feel like sometimes i need to grit my teeth and go 'it WILL be different this time' #bc there's nothing i'd hate more than to drag myself into the same patterns and let the same things bother me again #so nope! #we're going to be Better than that #we're going to block when things mildly annoy me #we're going to stop looking at youtube comments #we're going to stop looking through the tags #we're going to focus on creativity instead of comparing to others #so speaketh jen #jen rambles

[sunshine-overload]

[BSTS] Main Story S4Ch1 ‘Setting Sun’ - Final

Part 1

Chapter 5

cw: blood, heath in pain

-backstage-

saki: (I wonder if Heath-san's feeling any better since last time...)

-black screen-

unei: Thank you for waiting. Team B's show will be starting now.

-stage, B performing-

guest 1: ...Hey, isn't something off about them tonight?

ran: Heath...

kongou: This isn't good.

mizuki: Oi Heath, you good?

heath: ...Ugh.... (struggling)

mizuki: Heath?

heath: ....Geh... Ugh... Nn… Ack!!

heath: (coughs blood and collapses)

mizuki: —HEATH!!

-black screen-

unei: Apologies for the interruption. We will be taking a short break, please wait a moment...!

-restaurant-

guest 1: What was that just now!? Blood!?

saki: (Heath-san!)

-backstage-

ran: Kongou, make sure his throat isn't blocked with blood!

kongou: On it...! Good, it's not—

heath: Ack... Agh... Ggh... (coughing)

ran: Fuck, get it together Heath! Help will be here soon!

mizuki: Why... Why the fuck is this happening!? Heath, c'mon, get a hold of yourself, open your eyes already!!

-saki runs up-

saki: Heath-san!

heath: ...Ah...Uu... Ugh... I'm go...ing... back to... the stage.

kongou: What on earth are you saying, don't move! You can't perform like thi—

heath: It's fine... I'll... sing—

mizuki: Dumbass, you ain't fine at all!!

ran: Mizuki...

mizuki: Nothing about this is fine... Godammit... GODAMMIT!!

kei: Carry Heath to the rear entrance. There's a car waiting outside.

lico: Huh? There's one here already...?

kei: I had called one already. I could foresee that things were going to turn out this way. Hurry now.

ran: Kongou you take his legs, I'll support his shoulders.

kongou: Got it, let's lift him together, 1, 2, 3.

lico: ...Kei, you're taking him to the hospital right? Let us go along too. Tell Unei-chan to cancel B's show for today. Then, immediately change it to be K instead.

kei: As you wish.

mizuki: ..….... (frowning)

lico: Mizuki, let's go.

-they leave-

saki: (Heath-san... There was so much blood...)

kei: Are you ok, Saki? That must’ve been frightening. Instead of being in the noisy hall please rest in the office. It appears we have no choice but to wait for them to contact us again later. I must go and speak with Unei now... My apologies.

—end

-

Chapter 5 extra

-rehearsal room-

yakou: Huh? Oh, Kokuyou. I didn't know you were in here.

kokuyou: Done with your show? Wait, you came straight to the rehearsal rooms after performing. Who are you, Menou and Mokuren?

yakou: There's still a part I'm not happy with, so I came here to try it again. Could I use half of the room?

kokuyou: Do whatever you want. You're a cast member too after all.

-time pass-

yakou: I think I've got it now... I'll ask Gui to join me tomorrow. Once I can work this part out the result should be different.

kokuyou: Oi. 

-throws towel at yakou-

yakou: Huh? Woah!? (catches it) ...A towel?

kokuyou: Your sweat is gonna drip all over the place.

yakou: Oh, you're right. I didn't even notice.

kokuyou: The show's over yet your concentration is still strong. You're really trying huh.

yakou: It's because I was able to join as K's number 5. I don't want it to only be for this performance either...

kokuyou: Oh?

yakou: ...No one here really seemed to have a reaction to me returning. I can't say it was unexpected though, that's the sort of place this is.

kokuyou: That's cause it's basically a gathering spot for people who couldn't care less about other people's business. If you want to say something you have to say it yourself.

yakou: Ah no, there's nothing I want to say... It's just... There's no reaction despite the fact I disagreed with my team and then quit after starting a versus with them.

kokuyou: You came back cause there's still things you want to do here right?

yakou: ...Yes.

kokuyou: There's no one here that would care about the fact someone left and returned anyways. We're a bunch of thugs who only think about ourselves. Doing what we want and taking what it is that we desire. Anyways, I'll be heading out now.

-kokuyou leaves-

—end

-

Chapter 5 SideA

-starless hallway-

unei: Ah, Takami-san. Good work today.

takami: Same to you.

unei: Could you be going to see the boss?

takami: Yes, those are my plans.

unei: Let me warn you that he's in a terrible mood right now, be careful. "You're so slow at doing damage control, is your head full of sawdust!?" That's what he just said to me...! What does he even mean by 'sawdust'? This is verbal abuse is it not?

takami: Indeed... He basically called your brain empty.

unei: Empty!? I was only slow because even I'm worried about Heath-san you know~! I really tried my best to keep everything under control after the show!

takami: It was thanks to you that I was able to complete the refund list. You were a big help, thank you.

unei: Aw, Takami-san~! If only the Boss could show me some appreciation as well... Speaking of, he should respect all you cast members too shouldn't he!? If he's so angry about whether or not you're healthy then he should conduct a regular check— Wait, that's it! Let's do a physical checkup on all of the cast members! I'll look for a nearby clinic right away, I'll part with you for now, Takami-san. Fight the good fight in there!

-unei walks off-

takami: His ability to speedily switch between topics is at a level that even I could learn from.

-haseyama's office-

takami: Owner, I have completed the list of customers who requested refunds. Please look it over.

haseyama: Jeez, that bastard really had to go and expose such a disgraceful sight. It would've been better if he'd gone and collapsed backstage, but he went ahead and did it in the middle of a performance. Let's see just how much profit was lost thanks to him...!

-haseyama looks at list-

haseyama: Huh...? There were more customers there than this, this list is incomplete.

takami: Rather than requesting a refund there were a lot of guests who asked for a rerun of the performance at a later date.

haseyama: I see... That's a relief. I'd love to fulfil such a request that those paying ladies are asking for however... There's no way we can do it with him in that state.

takami: ...You mean Heath, yes?

haseyama: He doesn't look to be suffering from something you can just return from in a couple days. He's been looking like a zombie lately. Coughing up blood all over the place even... There's no way I could have him working on the floor let alone the stage. Anyways, look into his medical history and have a medical certificate or a report written up.

takami: I see... Depending on what is found, you could forcibly remove Heath from the store. That's what you're thinking right?

—end

-

Chapter 5 SideA extra

-starless restaurant area-

sinju: For some reason this versus performance has felt so long... I'm glad it seems it'll be coming to a close soon.

nekome: Team K are all fired up aren't they.

sinju: Ah, yeah. K's quality is amazing... Huh? What!? W-why are you..!

nekome: Hey hey, chill, don't use such a loud voice. It'll bother the guests, right? I'd heard talk of it but this is what a versus performance looks like then. Hmm, it looks interesting. It's only something you can do now cause there's more teams huh. Since if it was back at the old store it would only ever be W vs P.

sinju: Ah... Um, yeah.

nekome: So the winner is decided by whoever garners the most support hm? Does the winner get some kind of bonus?

sinju: Huh? Ah, umm... We get paid a little bit more I guess.

nekome: I see~ So even if a team wins a lot they're not given any special treatment.

sinju: Uh, um... Why are you here?

nekome: Oh have you not heard? I'm happily gonna be working here now. Which means we're coworkers again, let's get along, Sinju. Oh, and my name is still Nekome like before. Oh right, we got the OK to start serving drinks and dessert. I'll go pick them up from the kitchen?

sinju: Yeah... That's fine.

nekome: Got it, I'll be off then.

sinju: Ah, yeah do your— Wait no, that means I need to serve them too! ...Wait woah, I almost dropped my tray that could've been bad... Damn it, my hands are sweating so much...

—end

-

Chapter 5 SideB

-hospital room-

heath: ...I'm sorry. For the show to turn out like this... I really mean it, I'm sorry.

kongou: Don't worry about it, for now you just need to rest.

ran: Yep, get some sleep an' recover quick. Then we can all run wild again.

heath: ...Yeah.

lico: Make sure you obey the doctor's orders.

mizuki: .....

heath: ...I'm sorry, Mizuki.

mizuki: It's fine already just sleep.

kongou: You can't sleep with all of us here right? We'll head out for today.

ran: True. We'll come by again soon, Heath. I'll bring snacks!

-kongou and ran leave-

lico: Mizuki, are you not coming with us?

mizuki: I'll stay.

lico: Whatever.

-lico leaves-

mizuki: ...Are you feeling any better?

heath: Hm? Yeah, I'm fine.

mizuki: Get a good rest, eat lots of food and heal up. B's gonna put on another grand show, and we need you there to do that.

heath: ...Yeah.

mizuki: Also, quit lying to me. Sayin' that you're 'fine' or ‘don't worry', that sort of thing.

heath: ...Sorry.

heath: .......... (sleeping)

mizuki: ...Don't apologise. The one who should be apologising… is me.

-street, night time-

lico: ...This is so shit. I knew it was impossible. What about him was fine, and a versus on top of that? Quit messing around already! I don't know what he was so confident about but this is the result? That's so freaking lame, I can't even laugh about it.

kongou: I understand your frustrations, but we're partly to blame for not trying to stop anything.

lico: Excuse me? Don't lump me in with you. I said we should accept the postponement. Selfishly starting their own versus only to implode like that. If they'd just listened to me none of this would've happened.

ran: Can ya really talk? When ya were beefin' with Kei ya got Heath to help ya out.

lico: Huh? That's obviously a different situation. No matter how you cut it Heath clearly wasn't healthy from the start of this show.

-phone rings-

ran: Ah, time out. I'm gettin' a call—

ran: ....... (suddenly serious)

kongou: Are you going to answer it?

ran: Well for now let's all just start anew tomorrow! See y'all later!

-ran leaves-

lico: ...What was that all about? For a split second there he had one scary expression.

kongou: I'm not sure either.

—end

-

Chapter 5 SideB extra

-back alley, night time-

-phone ringing-

ran (on phone): Ah, ya it's me. What, ya can't even say 'long time no chat'? What a cold father ya are~ 

ran (on phone): Huh... Ya don't gotta say the same thing twice. Uhh, what I wanna say? Not much... Uwah I get it I get it, I gave ya my word! Ah nah, I can't return back there yet, I have my own circumstances too ya know. Anyways, did somethin' happen? —What?

ran (on phone): What do ya mean by that? No, who was it that 'disappeared'? ...Sorry, Dad. I'll turn up there soon. I'll explain everything so just wait a bit longer... Yeah, see you.

-hangs up-

ran: Shit, how'd this happen. It's that old store location... ain't it? Just what the hell is at that place. Not to mention, who the fuck did that? Who's the bastard that dared touch my stuff? —I'll kill them.

-ran punches and kicks stuff in the alley and walks off-

sotetsu: Looks like I just witnessed something pretty special. I don't think that was something you should be talking about in such a loud voice.

—end

note: ran dropped his kansai-ben towards the end of the chapter 

-

Chapter 6

-backstage-

saki: (These performances felt so long, even though they weren't any different from usual...)

haseyama: Looks like you punks are all here. Well then, get on with the results.

unei: Yes, I will announce them now. The winner is, Team K!

saki: Congratulations, Kei-san and Sotetsu-san.

haseyama: As expected it's Kei-sama's Team K, hm? 

kei: I simply did as was needed. This was a predictable result.

sotetsu: Isn't putting it like that right now in bad taste?

haseyama: Jeez what a boring versus, you lot don't even look happy when you win. Don't you agree, little lady?

saki: What happened to Heath-san was awful... So I can understand the lack of enthusiasm.

haseyama: Oh right, I forgot to mention, about that Heath guy. He's banned from the store, make sure you pass on the message for me.

mizuki: What? Oi, what do you mean by banned? Tell me!

lico: Stop it, Mizuki. Don't make things more difficult.

mizuki: HUH!?

haseyama: Oh? B's number 2 seems to understand the situation well, impressive impressive. I take it you understand what exposing such a disgraceful sight to the customers entails?

unei: U-um, basically for now we'd like to prioritise Heath's wellbeing. In addition, we'll investigate what it was that caused him to collapse and put in place some measures so that he can make his return fully recovered. Otherwise I would feel bad for those who came to watch B's show…

sotetsu: Banned though? Do you mean he's on hiatus from work then?

unei: Yes, exactly.

lico: That’s the most reasonable conclusion to come to. 

mizuki: ...Godammit.

-hallway-

ran: I see, so he's on break. Well, can't be helped can it? He collapsed right in the middle of the stage for all to see.

mizuki: But still, that stupid shitty owner. He's seriously the worst, saying he's banned and shit..

kongou: I think Heath will make a faster recovery if he's forced to rest. I don't think it was the wrong call.

lico: ...... (sigh)

ran: What's up, Lico? Do ya have an issue with Heath bein' banned too?

lico: Of course not, he needs to rest. It's just... Nevermind, it's nothing.

-office-

kei: Basically, Heath will not be returning to the store for a while.

yoshino: I hope he gets a good rest. I was so shocked when I heard what had happened.

takami: K suddenly had to perform and it was chaos backstage.

gui: Sleep helps you heal, so Heath should get lots of sleep.

sotetsu: You've said that once before haven't you?

ginsei: Heath started looking pretty unwell around the middle of the versus.

yakou: It's all said and done now, but I wonder if we should've cancelled the shows midway through.

sotetsu: No way that would've worked. They were the ones who picked the fight in the first place. There's no way they would've backed out midway. What I'm curious about now though... Is what a Team B without Heath will be like. Do you really think that owner of ours will just leave them be?

kei: You mean he may scrap B don't you? It is a possibility.

—end

-

EX 1

-haseyama's office-

haseyama: Ooh, Kei and the little lady. I'd been waiting for you.

kei: What is your aim calling her in here?

haseyama: Can't be helped can it? This little lady is a very important guest to this store after all. She's a super super super VIP. It'll be helpful to have someone like that as a witness.

saki: (Witness...? What is he talking about?)

kei: (sigh) ...Please just get on with it.

haseyama: Say, little lady. As a human you agree that it's bad to make a sick person do heavy labour right? They should rest up, recover and only then be considered, don't you agree?

saki: Y-yes...

kei: Quit trying to shift responsibility to her. If that is all you wanted her for, she will be leaving.

haseyama: As this store's owner I need to make sure Heath's able to work. The description I heard from when he collapsed on the stage sounded pretty bad, no? And so, I requested for a medical certificate.

kei: ...Did Heath comply?

haseyama: Huh? The situation was urgent, so I personally requested it myself. I have some connections with that hospital y'see. And here it is, the certificate is in here.

-starts opening envelope-

haseyama: Let's see here, we'll have to treat him accordingly to whatever's written on here. Health comes first after all. We'd just returned to having five teams yet it looks like it's going back to four huh~ Can't be helped can it? We need to listen to the doctors after all!

kei: .....…..

haseyama: Heath's condition is... Findings of bronchitis.

kei: ..…….. (shocked)

haseyama: Heh heh heh... Wait what, that's all? Oi, this can't be right, that was just bronchitis!?

kei: Let me see.

-takes certificate-

kei: Findings of bronchitis. That really is all that's written.

haseyama: As if! He coughed blood and fell right over, there's no way it's just that!!

kei: Wait, there is more written at the bottom. It says it shall require at least two weeks of rest.

haseyama: HUUH!?

kei: Well then, let's gladly follow Haseyama's treatment orders. You've become a witness too.

saki: Y-yes. I hope Heath-san takes his time to rest up and come back.

kei: Indeed.

-behind starless, night time-

takami: Hm...? That expression of yours, the worst possible outcome was avoided I take it? If you present the other document that was enclosed in there he'll still get paid whilst he receives treatment too.

kei: So it really was your doing. Are you sure you want to show your hand like this? Your information found its way to my ears after all.

takami: I was prepared for that, I had no choice though. Since the wandering cat that was supposed to be a bargaining chip has returned.

kei: What is it that you desire? I'd like to pay back the debt in full before I incur any interest.

takami: There's too much to list but don't worry, I won't make you wait long.

—end

-

EX 2

-voice training room-

akira: Woah, Heath?? Why are you here? Shouldn't you be resting at home?

heath: I just came here to get a book, I'll go straight home.

akira: Liar. You were writing lyrics just now weren't you? Jeez, if you go collapsing again I seriously don't know what'll happen.

heath: Oh right, the next show is going to be W isn't it?

akira: Yeah. I guess it would've been B if that versus didn't happen. Did you really have that big of a reason to snap at Kei?

heath: Who knows. There's sharp fangs stabbing at my throat. I thought I should use them while I'm still here.

akira: Fangs huh... But still, shouldn't you put your life first?

heath: That's what I'm doing.

-kongou, lico, mizuki walk in-

kongou: Ah, he really was in here.

mizuki: Oi, I'll walk you home, let's go.

heath: I can manage getting home by myself.

lico: We can't trust you at all. You'll go off and stop by somewhere else, write more lyrics and before you know it it'll be midnight.

heath: By the way... Where's Ran?

lico: Who knows, he doesn't seem to be at the store today. He probably went and picked a fight somewhere.

kongou: We'll probably make a fuss about not getting to see Heath off.

-kongou and lico leave-

mizuki: I'll come check on you, don't worry.

heath: ...You don't have to.

-mizuki and heath leave-

akira: He has something he wants to dedicate his very life to, huh... I don't get that at all.

—end

-

EX 3

-starless office-

takami: You all might have already heard, but the next show will be W.

kokuyou: Rehearsals start tomorrow. It'll be intense so prepare yourselves.

taiga: Eugh, there it is, his 'intense' warning.

sin: In the end B didn't transfer their show.

takami: Heath has to rest at home so them doing so won't be possible. After his two weeks of rest he'll be assessed and return to work it seems.

akira: ........

taiga: Well, that's how it is. Though, I definitely thought it was something worse. When I heard he'd coughed blood on stage I was expecting it to be something more serious. So I'm a bit relieved.

takami: He pushed himself too far in many ways.

kokuyou: You don't have time to be worrying about them, I'll send everyone the training schedule by email tonight. Make sure you read it before we meet tomorrow. That's all.

-behind starless, daytime-

akira: ........ (smoking)

sin: What's been set afloat to make your soul sink?

akira: Who knows... It’s what they call life, is it not? Unfair, or something, things never turn out right. I'm happy if the ladies all make a fuss over me because of it, but other than that I'm not that crazy about the stage. I've stuck with saying I love singing and just gone along with it at this store the whole time. I'm not like him. It's not like I'm looking for pity, but I'm feeling kinda down about it.

sin: Hmph... Are you unsure about discovering the solution? That too could be called 'life'.

akira: What now?

sin: You said it yourself, that it's unfair and unequal. People throw countless things into the fountain, but all of their questions remain unanswered. Heaven and hell both only exist because we humans wished for them to.

akira: Are you talking about me? Cause I have no idea what you're saying.

sin: I suppose telling you to 'cheer up' would be a simpler term.

akira: Wait wait, that was you trying to console me? Whilst you were talking about hell?

sin: A needle can only sew with the thread it's been threaded with. Farewell.

-sin leaves-

akira: Hey, don't just end it with more of your Sin language!!

—end

#bsts main story #bsts team b #bsts team k #bsts kei #bsts translation

[lordymaru]

I'm about to refute this entire essay with the simple explanation being:

The only interaction we've seen of these two is when she's a freaking 8 year old. Your self insert shows no boundaries.

And this is probably the last time I'll make a post about the stupidity behind the way the pair is viewed:

Note: I know there's people out there with a brain who ship these two in a more conventional way. In the end you do you, ship whatever you want, no one can prevent you from doing that, just don't be gross about it.

One of the parts being the Significance of their first encounter:

She’s a poor peasant girl who’s suffered immense trauma, suffering, and loneliness. Her initiative to help Sesshomaru came from her generosity

Exactly, she's alone for her family had been killed before her eyes, the villagers treat her like garbage. When she meets Sess he's wounded and simply in a bad state, both mentally and physically. Both of them are, the difference being he's a demon, a powerful one and for him to have ended in such a bad shape only stabbed at his pride- Rin on the other hand is a child, a human tiny child who is vulnerable and to him she poses no threat. Both of them are weak then.

At this point, it’s observable that despite knowing her story, her scars, and her difficulties, humans do not even empathize, let alone sympathize with Rin. It is the feudal era, after all. She’s a young, disabled orphan and the villagers only see her for what she lacks: a voice, a family, and a place of belonging.

Again with your feudal era shit. I can assure you the world is just as ugly today as it was before you and I existed. Next.

When he asks about her bruises, this is the first time anyone had ever afforded her a second glance.

This was a huge step forward for Sess, a huuuuuuge one for he showed interest in another living creature, not just any creature but a human. And for her it was probably like Christmas, for no one had showed her any mercy or interest. Ok you get a point. But oh, boy, how I'm about to spit on the next one:

The audience can see Sesshomaru calculate her body language, recognizing that she is mute. Instead of pressing her further or ignoring her outright, he attempts to comfort her (in his own way), making her feel that it is okay if she chooses not to answer him; that her desire to reply to him should only be a desire, not an obligation. I think, on one hand, that was the first moment of something that would resemble compassion that Sesshomaru had ever administered, trying to put himself in her shoes — if someone had asked him to do something that required, for example, his left arm, he probably would have appreciated them saying “you don’t have to do it if you don’t want to” so to provide him agency for something that he actually cannot do. And the same goes for Rin. He recognizes her disability, maybe even resonates with it and decides to empower her with a choice. Choice is important when it comes to the Sesshomaru/Rin dynamic and it’s a word that will come up often. 

Ok why are you comparing the loss of his arm to her not being able to talk? Not all disabilities are the same, you moron. Or am I dumb for thinking this way? If so, feel free to call me out on my lack of common sense kr whatever you wanna call it. Sess physically couldn't do shit with his left arm because well- it was gone! That's a physical disability. Rin had "lost" her voice after what she witnessed and so she wouldn't speak anymore. Have you heard of Psychogenic Dysphonia? If not, you can click here and give it a reading or do your own research. The more you know: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0892199703000158

So you say he "empowers her with a choice" that is "important when it comes to the Sesshomaru/Rin dynamic" let me get this straight, a choice because why? She's a child? A female? Because you said so yourself, it's the Feudal Era after all and therefore women had no choice in life, no voice, no agency, no nothing. So he was being magnanimous then? You know... This is where you start edging into the gr00ming territory. Can't you see? No? Alright, moving on.

BRUH WHAT THE FUCK?! Are you fucking good? See how you self insert? Bye. Next

The next time Sesshomaru sees Rin, it is suggested that he actively sought her, whether it be by curiosity or concern for well-being

He did... It is not suggested, he actually did asdfhkl. For both curiosity and he probably was worried. He also states he wants to test out his sword, what a perfect chance to do so for Rin is pretty much dead and that's the only way to make his sword work. So she was both being a guinea pig and an itch he wasn't quite sure how to scratch. Next.

Silence Rin.

Rin screams endlessly, annoying Sesshomaru. Firstly, this is the first time we hear him call her by her name. Secondly, Sesshomaru is visibly annoyed by her noises, however, he does not tell her to “shut up” as he normally would with Jaken or even InuYasha. He simply says “enough of that Rin, stop it.” (In Japanese he says, “Silence, Rin. You make too much noise.”) Even analyzing the Japanese dialogue, it is evidently softer than Sesshomaru’s usual ‘kisama’ (貴樣) manner of speech that we see depicted usually. This is the first time he’s had a companion who is not a demon, someone with compassion, and who has had his general best interests at heart with no expectations in return. His softer tone is a logical deduction to make.

Ok... "someone with compassion, and who has had his general best interests at heart with no expectations in return." Bruh... As if he would even consider meeting someone's expectations. Are you sure you're talking about Sess? Another thing is, he always speaks in a calm tone, he rarely yells or loses his composure- he had no reason to be rude to her either, you're excusing his regular behavior simply because she ain't Jaken. Anything else?

Rin doesn't change Sesshomaru overnight, it's a gradual and long process

Well duh!!! Just like you don't lose the pounds you gained from eating in one sit 12 donuts a week ago. Stating the obvious and for what? What's exactly your mf point?

The silence part is important, idk how to tell you there is a power imbalance in their relationship from the moment he tells her to be quiet. He didn't say please, he didn't ask her to, he told her to be quiet. Like a parent would, if I could count the times my mom told me to shush.... That's your first indicator he is not her friend, he is not her equal.

Letting you Be Yourself: The Panther Demon Arc

the first frame the audience sees in the anime sets the scene, painting the Sessshomaru entourage in a serene manner, indicating a level of comfort between group members (episode 75). This is vastly different from our last depiction of Sesshomaru and Rin’s relationship. In episode 44, he was unable to withstand her (albeit annoying) childish antics. But here, it’s observable that Sesshomaru can accept her and her package of unconventional fun. Not only does he tolerate and even more so, accept Rin, but he accepts her influence on his vassal, Jaken and allows them to be free around him.

Is called developing patience. I can assure you that when you're a parent or an older bro/sis and your kid/younger sibling is noisy af you either learn to tolerate that or get used to it for kids are kids abd you have to let them be kids. Next.

She's a child, she's not stupid.

The Abducted Rin: Calling her Name

The respect that Sesshomaru shows Rin is insurmountable. However, the InuYasha franchise is clever to portray the subtlety of Sesshomaru’s respect for her. KV on Twitter points out how highly he regards his companion and never relegates her to anything less than the value that she as a person embodies (@KVndie via Twitter). He consistently humanizes her. 

He only sees how important she is to him after her ass dies a second time. What do you mean? He respects her enough to not coddle her, she is independent and taught her to be self sufficient from the very start. That's respect. He consistently humanizes her because... She ... Is ... Human! OMG WHAT A SHOCKER!

As Naraku remarks on his hostage to Sesshomaru, "Naturally, the girl you're looking for is not here…,” he continues, “the girl is in custody outside of the castle..." Naraku never makes an attempt to give her personhood, leaving her unnamed, disposable, and relegating her to a mere "girl." But Sesshomaru doesn’t take any of this. He is a cold-hearted Daiyokai, yet he still makes an effort and upholds his principle to refer to her as Rin — not a replaceable “girl.”

Naraku is a mf genius. It didn't quite click until now he wanted to see if she was important or not to him and to what extent. For he planned his moves that way, making people turn against one another. While he wouldn't have made Rin turn against Sess he set everything up so he would end up wanting to kill Kohaku and in doing so, Inugang would have engaged against Sess.

Sesshomaru’s insistence on using Rin’s name isn’t only highlighted in this isolated incident though. It pays off. It is an ongoing theme in their dynamic throughout the series.

That's her name ... How you want him to call her? Baby?

I could go on and on but... This is a fucking essay. And then I stumble against more bullcrap:

The second point I want to highlight here is Sesshomaru’s reaction to Rin’s fall and her risky expedition. At this point, it’s unquestionable that Rin has a special place in his heart.

Of course she has a special spot in his heart. I won't deny that. What worries me is how you're trying to justify the way she's important to him since she was a child. As if his way of seeing her had changed.

I'm gonna disagree by agreeing with you in a few pointers. Kagome and Kikyo were rivals, they both romantically love the same guy. Kagome being the only one who could save Kikyo chooses to help her, knowing damn well Inuyasha would have suffered if Kikyo had died- further more, if it was in Kagome's hands to do something about it.

Rin on the other hand, I will applaud to her how she grew past her fear of Kagura after being kidnapped by her, she saw her body in the river and said fuck it and did her best to try to pull her from the water. I loved how stubborn and brave she was, even tho Sess had to pull everyone out of the water- she deserves a gold star. You go baby girl!!!

Rin later makes a cheeky comment, noting Kagura’s romantic interest in Sesshomaru. Jaken brushes this off as childish naivety. But for the spectator, this establishes two things: (1) That Rin does not see Kagura as a rival for Lord Sesshomaru’s attention, let alone affection; and (2) that Rin is still a child. Rin is certainly a child, with a youthful and fresh outlook on life that brings out the best in people. But even as a child, her relationship with Sesshomaru is incredibly healthy, clear, and surprisingly communicative.

Why would she? She's not a spoiled brat

Nah? I thought her double D indicated otherwise. OF COURSE SHE'S A MF CHILD.

Why do you keep mentioning is healthy? Do you need reassurance of it? Communicative in what way? Cuz if you wanna talk about communication let's talk about how he didn't even acknowledge her ass when she gave birth. He didn't even say her name, didn't even look at her. Tell me now how they are communicative and healthy?

I could go on, I really but all I'm getting from this load of bullshit I'm forcing myself to read is how you do in fact need to reassure yourself thr ship is god tier and is... How you said it was? Ah, healthy.

Anyways, thanks for reading and if you see any typo ... My apologies, I tried. Also if you have any input or I was out of line in some way, my apologies once more.

#anti sessrin #antisessrin #anti-sessrin

[eirist]

Little Bits and Pieces of Heaven

EVENING OF THE SEVENTH

One-shot #: 29

Disclaimer: One Piece (and its characters) belongs to Eiichiro Oda-sensei.

Reminder: I have no beta-reader. Any grammatical and spelling errors are solely mine.

Warning: OOC possible. One shot.

Rating: T

Note: For @bloodshot13​. You wanted a Japanese Festival. AU. So here it is. I must say it is an awesome suggestion and would be a pity if it’s only going to be a drabble. Besides the story itself wanted to be a bit longer so I yielded. Enjoy!

I used the Japanese Tanabata Festival for this hence the title. And for wordplay reason as well. I think this festival is a good choice of setting for these two’s not-so-perfect first date.

Summary: Not all first dates are perfect. And with Zoro and Nami… this shouldn’t come as a surprise at all.

“You’re late.”

A pout appeared on pinkish lips before a familiar I-knew-it-look appeared on Nami’s face as she stared him down.

Zoro scratched the back of his head. “It’s nothing new,” he retorted—a bit weakly though—trying to justify why he made her wait for him for a good fifteen minutes.

“I shouldn’t be surprised,” she deadpanned. “It’s a miracle you even made it here.”

Zoro glared at her for that comment.

Nami glared back… more viciously. “Zoro, this place is just a ten minute walk from your apartment! Fifteen from mine and I still got here before you!” She explained with a huff.

“I’m here now aren’t I?”

Nami regarded him with eyes promising excruciating pain solely for him.

“If this is your idea of dating a girl, you definitely suck Zoro.”

“Oi!”

It didn’t occur to the green-haired idiot that Nami hated standing alone at festival’s entrance, waiting for him to arrive. It didn’t helped that a lot of couples who passed by gave her lingering, wondering gazes before whispering to each other making her feel uncomfortable.

“Let’s just go,” Nami spun around to leave him still scratching his dumb head. “We’re wasting time.” She said it in a rather curt tone that made Zoro feel dread coiling inside his stomach.

Damn it! They barely made it past the festival entrance and Nami’s already mad at him.

It only took three strides for him to catch up to her as she entered the festival street. It was filled with people of all ages. Japanese lanterns hung overhead lighting the whole place, along with decorations made from colorful papers in different shapes. There were ornamental balls with their colorful streamers everywhere while stalls for food, games and other items for sell bordered both sides. Children ran around them, as their parents breathlessly tried to catch up, warning them that they might get lost.

“Oi Nami,” he called as the orange-haired girl pouted her way through the festival’s jam-packed and noisy street. “Come on. Wipe that sulky look off your face.”

“Hmph!”

“Fine!” He huffed, feeling his temper flare at her tantrum.

Nami tried to hurry away from him and Zoro rolled his eye as her effort was futile while wearing a yukata.

He followed her with a scoff as she continued making her way through crowd, ignoring the stalls around them. She was heading at the end of the street where a bridge leading to the temple was situated. It was lit up with the same lanterns that were hanging above them. Bamboo trees lined up its sides decorated with tanzaku in different colors.

“Nami.”

“What?!” She hissed barely glancing at him as she continued walking, her wooden sandals clicking angrily at every step.

“Why are you angry? I arrived here didn’t I?”

She stopped in front of a stall selling candy apples and chocolate bananas and stared at him in disbelief.

The idiot had forgotten that they agreed to meet an hour earlier than what their friends had set so they could enjoy the festival together without any interruptions.

Nami didn’t bother reminding him of that. What’s the use? Instead she just pressed some fingers to her temple to subdue the impending headache that is Zoro.

They still haven’t made it past ten minutes together and she’s ready to kick the living daylights out of his moronic ass.

“Ugh. I give up,” she groaned after a few seconds, shoulders slumping dejectedly.

“What now?” Zoro growled at her.

Nami lifted her eyes to glare at him again. This was supposed to be a sort-of-‘romantic’ evening between the two of them.

They finally agreed to try and move their relationship one step further a week ago… from long-time friends to lovers finally…

She thought that this festival is the perfect opportunity to test the waters for their first ‘date’.

Did she honestly she believed things are going to be easy with this man? Not when it looks like Zoro still has to grasp the concept of ‘dating’.

This will definitely take a lot of work. A damn LOT of work!

She let out an exasperated sigh and Zoro’s brows furrowed.

“Let’s just go hang wishes on those bamboos and wait for the others so we can enjoy this festival.” Nami mumbled as she turned away from him for the second time that night, practically giving up the thought that they can pull off anything akin to a date at this festival.

Zoro frowned at what she said. Wait for the others so they can enjoy tonight?

Her statement actually hit a spot.

Weren’t they were supposed to enjoy this together? Wasn’t that the plan?

He ran a hand along his hair in frustration and followed her silently.

This time Nami was not hurrying away from him. She strode ahead in a cool manner, head shifting left and right as she observed the stalls lining the street.

His frown deepened.

Ok, maybe it’s his mistake for being late. But it’s not his fault he kept ending up on the other side of the street from the where the festival is taking place! It was too crowded and the directions posted for its location were confusing.

He had circled the area thrice before he spotted Nami—looking really pretty in her mikan-patterned, light-green yukata with her hair up in a side bun and decorated with a bouquet-like kanzashi, its dangling beads swinging slightly from her movement.

There were curling wisps of her orange hair framing her face and it made him want to reach out and touch them just to feel their softness against his fingers.

Zoro clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth, mentally chastising himself as he recalled the look on Nami’s face earlier as she peered in the crowd waiting for him to show up.

It dawned into him that he didn’t like that expression on her.

He reached out to grasped her hand in his, stopping Nami in her tracks.

“Hey… I’m sorry ok?”

Nami looked surprised with what he said. She looked down and blinked at their joined hands disbelievingly before shifting her eyes up at him.

Then she pursed her lips as if trying to stop herself from smiling at him.

“You’re an idiot Zoro.”

“Yeah, I know.”

This time she didn’t fight the smile that wanted to appear on her lips.

“I should’ve expected this,” she said with a roll of her eyes as she squeezed his hand that was still clasping hers. “Next time… I’ll just pick you up in your apartment to save us time.” She stared straight in his eye, daring him disagree with her.

“Fine.” He answered and Nami looked startled at how easily he agreed. “If it saves me from your pouts and sulking as we—OUCH!”

Nami deliberately stepped on his feet with her wooden sandal with a cheeky smile on her face.

“I’ll make you regret saying that.”

It was Zoro’s turn to groan.

She tugged at his hand, urging him to continue moving forward into a less crowded spot near the bridge.

“Honestly… I’m looking forward spending this time with you,” she admitted quietly as they stood near the stall that sells tanzaku.

“I know,” he nodded and gazed at her seriously. He reached out to touch the curling wisp of her hair with his fingers. He was right. It was soft. “Me too.”

This one hour spent alone with him is precious for her and it is the same for him. They are still at beginning of their relationship… their friends still doesn’t have any inkling about the change in their status yet.

Nami had the right to be pissed at him earlier because he just wasted some of what was supposedly their time together.

They smiled at each other before Nami gave the sleeve of his yukata a rather hard yank.

“Let’s go Zoro! We still have a lot to do before the others are here.” Her tone immediately turned domineering as she pulled him towards tanzaku stall. “We need to hang our wishes on those bamboos first!”

Zoro just snorted and she grinned back at him.

“And you still have to treat me with some yakitori and candy apples!”

“Hah? Why should I do that?!”

“This is a date Zoro! The guy usually shelves out the cash when you’re out on a date!”

“You witch! You’re just trying to get back at me for being late!”

Nami gave him her most dazzling smile.

“That too… And we still have to check all the stalls with those games. You promised me goldfishes remember?” She pointed at the stall for goldfish scooping.

“I have?”

“Yeah… you did…” Nami glowered at him. “You’re bragging about your scooping skills the other day. And we made a bet on how many you’ll really be able to catch.”

Zoro laughed. That they did. “Fine, I’ll catch you some alright?” He conceded and gave her a soft smile that made Nami melt on the spot.

He reached for her hand again as she lead them towards their first agenda for the night.

They still have half an hour to enjoy their date without their cheeky friends intruding. Well… if worst comes to worst… he and Nami can just sneak away from them to enjoy the fireworks and the rest of the festival together.

#zoro x nami #ZoNa #zonami #zonalove #zona fanfiction #zona one-shots #zona prompt requests #zoro nami fanfiction #roronoa zoro #nami

[djmarinizelablog]

hi! read your last ask and you said that you took up creative writing classes so you might have a wider knowledge about this but i was wondering when u mentioned different writing styles (like minimalistic, hightened imagery, linear vilennete and all of that) could you maybe explain the difference and what they really mean and maybe examples in our own levihan nation and writers? this might be asking for too much but i was pretty lost and i'd like to know more about all that. however you are def free to ignore this too!

Did you just ask me to write a comprehensive poetics essay, Anon? (I love writing about writing lmao)

Super long post ahead, and I’ll be citing certain fanfics that I’ve read so far and those that I think somehow exemplifies all the different writing styles I mentioned in the previous post. 

First off, the ones I listed beforehand (minimalistic prose, heightened imagery, poetic language, linear narrative, non-linear vignettes) aren’t the only types of writing styles. There are more if you consider the variations of tone (humor/comedy, sentimental, macabre, noir etc), narration/perspective (first person, second person, third person omniscient/limited), and language (dialogue-heavy or action/scene-driven). And the nice thing is that you can actually use of one or two of them in your work---or all of them, if you’re feeling bold. 

As Hange always loves to do: “Let’s experiment!”

--------

I’ll start with minimalistic prose. It is what it is: short, clear, and concise. Think less is more. You have an economy with words where you disregard most adverbs and focus more on the context to make way for meaning, thus allowing the readers to create their own interpretations of your writing. I think the method here is to write your intended draft first, and then cut the unnecessary words to flesh out the scene even more.

Notice how @stereobone wrote this paragraph of Black Dog (an Eruri fic):

Isabel's voice wakes him, brother, brother, has him sitting upright in bed and grabbing for the knife under his mattress. He braces himself for the attack before he realizes there isn't one. There is nothing in the darkness but him and his heavy, panicked breathing. Levi's heart feels like it's trying to beat its way out of his chest. He drops the knife on the mattress and shuts his eyes and tries not to think about Farlan's bloody resigned face before he was eaten. He tries not to think about how he left them. How it's his fault.

It’s very simplistic in language; the paragraph lets you focus on Levi’s innermost thoughts while he deals with an external action (ie, having nightmares). The author hasn’t unraveled the rest of the plot yet, but you already know where the tension is coming from.

Next is heightened imagery. If you’re familiar with the different figures of speech (metaphor, simile, personification, hyperbole, etc), then this is where they all come into play. I think the challenge here is being able to balance it well with the text itself and make sure that the imagery actually clarifies the context of the paragraph instead of convoluting the intended meaning. 

Here’s an excerpt from A Dangerous Game by just_quintessentially_me:

Hanji watched Levi, standing there, head bent and bloodied handkerchief pressed against his arm, and was reminded, irrationally, of a night years ago. When her parents had taken her to the circus. [. . . .] Holding her parent’s hands, she’d gaped, head craned back as she watched the spectacle, a cacophonous mixture of sound and color. At the center of it all, she’d spied a boy. Among the twisting colors and tricks, he alone, was still. [. . . .] The boy was high above, balancing on a platform atop a long pole. In front of him, stretched an audaciously thin rope. Below, no net waited to catch him.

[. . . .]

When Levi looked up, his expression was set - like the boy before the tightrope. And she knew, with sinking certainty, he was going to take the step. Into thin air.

Gray eyes met her gaze and held it.

“Yeah. I’ll go.”

At the door, Kenny smiled.

See how the powerful imagery of the boy on the tightrope was able to fuel the tension in that moment among Levi, Hange, and Kenny? 

I think poetic language is akin to heightened imagery, except that the former is more focused on the actual language. It’s very lyrical, wherein you can actually hear the lulling song of the sentences in a rhythm. One of my favorite works that does this is Deep sea baby by @smallblip. Here she makes use of various setting and scenery to create this entire atmosphere of Levi and Hange’s relationship:

Hanji knows whatever life they've led, this is her favourite.

The one in which her and Levi see the sea for the first time together.

The one in which she’s the Commander, and him, her Captain. And between them, a river of words left unsaid threatening to break the banks.

One day they must cross the ocean, but today they visit the shores again, without the kids this time. And Levi learns why when he watches her peel at her clothes. Her harness comes off first, then her blouse, then everything else, like a little dance for an audience of one. Levi tries not to stare, but he’s already seen her by candlelight in the dead of the night. And yet she never fails to take his breath away.

She makes her way to where the white foams dredge the past up the shores of the present.

"Come on Levi! The water is warm!" she says, and he hears it like a call to come home- where the heavens collide with the sea.

He takes off his clothes and folds them in a neat pile beside Hanji's mess. He swims out to join her.

It’s hauntingly poetic, the way the author is able to connect the metaphor in “a river of words” to the actual body of water right in front of Levi and Hange. Good poetic language is able to tighten up the texts together while keeping the sentence structure flowing with apt figures of speech.

When it comes to narratives, it only comes down to linear or non-linear. See how @lostcauses-noregrets does her opening statement in Trains (also an Eruri fic):

Levi hates trains. To be fair, Levi hates all forms of public transport, but he reserves a particular loathing for trains. They’re dirty, noisy, smelly and worse, filled with people. People who, heaven forbid, might attempt to speak to Levi, engage him in conversation. Levi’s worst nightmare is being stuck on a train with some friendly fuck who wants to pass the time making small talk. Admittedly it’s not a problem he has to deal with too often, his general fuck off demeanour deters all but the most aggressively friendly and hopelessly inebriated. But that doesn’t stop Levi from hating trains.

It’s a short fic and it’s very dependent on the linearity of events happening. But with that banger of a first sentence, the beginning already gives you enough of an idea of Levi’s pet peeve in the story, which in this case, is trains.

Here’s another hot and steamy fic called keep him waiting by keobuns that shows a linear narrative: 

He’s sitting with them in the back of the lab, nursing a cup of tea — it’s still pretty full, and even cold now, for he was far too distracted listening to Hanji talk to properly drink — when he sees it. Hanji’s too preoccupied with overexplaining the same Titan experiment they’ve gone over a hundred times to notice his stare. They just continue on and on and on, gesturing with their hands, pointing with their fingers, flexing their wrists…

Ah. Levi has to bring his teacup to his lips to hide the way his lips tremble. Hanji has incredibly nice hands.

The entire story just revolves around Levi simping for Hange’s hands and how it all goes down from there. But you as a reader are kept wanting more with every paragraph and every sentence that the author constructs (and trust me, it’s not just the sexual tension between Levi and Hange that keeps us going).

Now, as much as I love the straightforwardness of linear prose, non-linear writing brings a different round of ideas onto the table. It can create recollections from flashbacks, heighten the perspective or interior turmoil of a character due to trauma or grief, or even just re-invent what-if scenes that the characters have imagined themselves. 

Gnossiene by @thatalmondgirl​ is one of my all-time favorite Rivetra fics. In this excerpt, you will see how she switches between the past and the present, and how it affects Petra’s POV as a conflicted character:

Contrary to popular belief (fuck Auruo) Petra actually didn’t cry easily.

Alright, she could admit that at some times, she was...emotional. It was far from a weakness, but even she could admit that they sometimes got in the way and walled off all rational thought. Anger, frustration, sadness, hell, even happiness. The only one she could easily compartmentalise away was fear, which probably stemmed from her military career. Even so. It was never easy to separate all the others from her actions, think from a clean slate like the Commander could do, like the captain. [. . . ] Petra groaned, splayed out across her bed. She drew her arm across her eyes, willing the tears to go away. She’d already blown through her tissue box.

“Petra, a woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle.” Mama sat on the end of her bed, with Petra on the floor between her legs. Even though Petra argued firmly that she was old enough to brush her own hair, Mama had insisted. Unfortunately, Petra wasn’t old enough - and probably never would be - to disagree with her mother.

“I know, Mama.” Petra grumbled.

“I don’t think you do. Else you wouldn’t be crying, would you?”

[. . . .]

“But a man shouldn’t complete you when you complete yourself. Maybe he’s an extension to your house. So you’ll be sad if the extension is compromised or burns down. But you still have the main house. And if it’s strong, the main house can still be standing even after the worst storm.”

Aside from Mama’s crazy metaphors that sometimes didn’t make sense, her message hit home. Even if it hit home years later.

See how it switched in between the before and after? 

An off-shoot of non-linear writing are vignettes (a layering of scenes separated by section breaks) wherein this writing style allows writers to curate scenes in terms of fragments, creating some kind of mosaic for the readers once they finally see the big picture. Nakimochiku’s I’m leaving, are you coming with me? stacks up scenes of interactions between Levi and Hange, enough to depict the kind of relationship that they have as young lovers in a school setting. You can string these fragments together, rearrange them in a different order, but in the end, you will still get the author's clear goal of highlighting how Levi and Hange’s relationship develops over time.

Those are the styles that I mentioned in my previous posts, but as I’ve told you, there’s more to writing than those, so I’ll give a short run-through of other methods in writing. 

Whether it’s dialogue-heavy works such as from my window to yours, or action-driven scenes like Carnivores (a Levi x Reader fic by CaptainDegenerate) that propel the story forward, we as readers should be able to follow through the actual storyline that the authors intend to take us. 

A third-person limited (we listen to Hange’s thoughts in Clockwork by @tundrainafrica) vis-à-vis an all-knowing/omniscient narration (the moon is dark by @sayonarasanity alternates the perspective of Levi and Hange) should be able to make us understand why the author chose this particular kind of point-of-view in order to tell the story. 

And lastly, having a solid and consistent tone throughout the work (the macabre of Even Humanity’s Strongest could make mistakes by Rimeko versus the sweet sentimentality of Flowers for You by @fanmoose12) should be able to set the atmosphere that the authors want us to imbibe as we read through their works. 

So there’s your crash course on writing and reading. Enjoy? :) 

#levihan #writing #fanfic #fanfictions #fanfiction #ao3 #djmarinizela #mine

[messymessyml]

Sometimes a premonition is destined to happen

Hi all, 

This is the craziest thing I’ve written in a long while and the strangest part about it is that my top three oddest pieces of writing have all had a Greek Mythology worldbuild. It’s what the ancient Greeks would have wanted.

This is my Secret Santa 2020 gift for @bunathebunny and my prompts were ‘Percy Jackson AU’, ‘turning into cats’, ‘no soulmate AU’,  ‘Jason x Luka’, and ‘Stephanie x Marinette’. There were a few other requested ‘fors’ and ‘against’s’ I was able to include here, but I have to say, this was the most reader-specific thing I think I’ve ever tailored. I hope you like it!

FYI: “~~” indicate POV changes, and while I ended up breaking this into chapters, this is essentially a oneshot. I curse when Jason is the narrator since I can’t see Jason as Jason without it so if that’s not your thing be forewarned. This is also cross posted on AO3.

@maribat-secret-santa-2020

Chapter 1

The camp was noisy, with people’s inner songs reaching out to the treeline in a mess of chaotic synergy. Word had arrived that Artemis and her hunters had just reached the outer edges of the barrier around the camp and the camp-goers who were not busy with sentry duties or away from camp were frantically working to put the finishing touches on the new lodgehouse erected for Artemis’s feast. Artemis was one of the more frequent godly visitors to Camp Half-Blood, but it was rare that she deigned to make the visit official, much preferring to conceal herself as another half-blood or a visiting instructor under a different guise. As son of Apollo, Luka was aware of a more mischievous side of his father’s twin sister, and the grating cacophony of sound combined with the foreboding feeling he felt down to his bones stemming from this impending visit was just on the edge of overwhelming for him. 

Finding a quiet area was relatively easy, all told, though his senses tried to disagree with him as they quailed from the near sensory overload all he had to do was move to the outskirts of the lake as he followed a very familiar and well worn path. As Luka approached his boyfriend’s House, that marrow-ache he always felt from prophesy tightened in tandem with the relief that enveloped him as blessed silence cloaked him in it's comforting embrace. It seemed that the adventures of today wouldn’t be as easy to dodge as he’d hoped, but it was comforting to know that his boyfriend would be along with him for the ride.

~~

Jason was having a no-good gods-be-damned day. 

He’d been woken by Emma and Darcy who had managed to get into what appeared to be no holds barred fight to the death a four in the fucking morning. Emma, the eastern screech owl he’d found a few years before making his way to Camp Half-Blood, was hooting up a storm and fluffed to Elysium while Darcy, the mustard-bellied snake Luka had given him about a year and a half into their relationship lunged at Emma’s clawed legs with his teeth extended. Suffice to say, he wasn’t happy to wake up like that, and it served them both right that they were now separated on either ends of his lodge by a verifiable army of skeletal mice. It made a sort of macabre justice to see them cornered and policed by their own undead meals as he had left his lodge after breaking up the fight. 

He was currently in the mess hall grabbing food, but it wasn’t much of an improvement over his living quarters. The raucous environment grated on his ears after a less than full night’s sleep and the fact that it was mostly the higher pitches of the girls making most of the noise didn’t help matters. The porridge he’d grabbed was looking less appetizing by the minute. 

He’d just decided to give up on his breakfast when Jason heard a familiar voice call out “Hey bozo, whatcha up to this fine morning!” at the same moment another body hit his side. Jason faintly registered the girl who hit him let out an “oops'' as this action pushed his hand into his spoon and sent mush into his face. Miraculously, not a drop landed on the perpetrator, which gave Jason enough of a clue to know the identity of both the girl hanging from his shoulders as well as the girl still approaching from behind him. 

“What. The. Fuck.”, Jason deadpanned. Taking a napkin from the center of the table, he did his best to wipe up the mess even with his tag-along making the stretch all that more difficult.

“Aww, don’t be like that, Jay. Marinette didn’t mean to do it, you know that.” Saying that, Stephanie slid on to the bench on his other side, leaving Marinette to cage him in from the right.

“Sorry, Jason. Next time I’ll check my landing!” Marinette added with a cheeky little grin.

The nerve. Jason couldn’t really say this minor level of chaos was out of the norm for his friends, but after his early wake-up call Marinette’s clumsiness wasn’t appreciated. 

“Why the fuck are you two so energetic today? For that matter, why are all the girls acting like Eros came for a visit?” Jason asked. 

Marinette piped up stating, “Artemis and her hunt are set to arrive today! Steph and I aren’t on sentry duty so we won’t get to join the welcoming party, but that just means everyone who isn’t on duty can join Artemis on her hunt later today!”

“I think she’s looking to recruit some new huntresses, and after her last visit to the Amazons, this is the next spot scheduled.” Stephanie confided. “Obviously everyone only means all the girls, so that’s why you’re hearing mostly girls talking about Artemis’s visit.”

“Knowing your luck, you’ll be offered a spot and rope Steph here into joining too.” Jason directed to Marinette with a raised eyebrow. 

“I may have luck on my side, but I doubt Steph or I will actually join.” Marinette responded, continuing over his head with a smile, “I’m too happy with you to give all this up.” 

Jason could see Steph smile from the corner of his eye as he wiped the last of the oatmeal from his face as she replied, “Babe you and me both.” 

“Not that this isn’t exactly what I want to hear before eight in the fucking morning, but I need to get back to my cabin; I left Emma and Darcy in time-out and I need to re-up the power behind the undead mice keeping them away from each other.” Jason reluctantly got out.

“Ha, what the fuck? I thought those two got along, did they decide to wake you up, Mister Grumpypants?” Stephanie teased him even as Marinette relinquished her vice hold and scooted to the side to let him up. 

“Sure as the Underworld, they decided 4AM was the best time for it. I swear, good ole pops must have remembered I existed for once and decided to have E and D play messenger or somethin’.” Jason grumbled as he got up and grabbed his tray. 

“Don’t be a stranger! You won’t like the consequences, Jay!” Stephanie called out.

“Yeah-yeah-yeah, I got it. See you guys.” Jason said as he waved over his shoulder and dropped his bowl off at the clean up station on the way out.

Jason made his way back home, not in a hurry to arrive but not making any stops on the way. His father didn’t do him any favors in the PR department, and most camp-goers avoided him on principle. It wasn’t like there were many demigods with Hades as a father, and most avoided children of the Big Three out of practicality if not fear. Jason soon found himself entering his cabin, pleasantly surprised to see his boyfriend Luka calmly sitting waiting for him on the bed, gently strumming his guitar. Less pleasantly, it seemed his broken concentration at breakfast cost him a few skeleton mice enforcers whose bones were strewn across the floor and a clear path of destruction was shown leading from the corners each animal were previously penned into to the center of the room. He couldn’t see any blood and it looked like Luka had been able to calm them down as Emma and Darcy were now perched on his shoulder and leg, respectively, but it didn’t take a genius to see that they both weren’t done fighting.

“Hey love, I didn’t expect to see you until later today, what had you up so early?” Jason queried.

Giving one last strum to his instrument, Luka pulled a hand away to capture Emma in one hand, preventing her from diving down to the snake anklet just visible from under Luka’s pant leg. Darcy seemed content to stay where he was curled around Luka’s warmth. Sometimes it was eerie watching his boyfriend’s knack for precognition in action. Mostly, it got him hot.

“There were too many conflicting songs near Apollo’s cabin this morning so I woke up early. I came over here for some peace and to see you.” Luka calmly replied.

Nodding, Jason moved over to the washbasin, washing his face and hands, a simple “wait a sec” enough for the time being. He wanted to hug his boyfriend, gods dammit, but he didn’t want to do it with porridge on his body. 

“Marinette struck again.” Jason complained, “She managed to land on me without me hearing her or her shadow reaching me first and got me covered in my breakfast. Not a drop landed on her, Luka! Luck shouldn’t be that powerful, babe.”

Luka’s eyes twinkled as he grinned and said, “What did you expect, mon beau, she is the daughter of Tyche.”

“The minute she and Steph got together it seemed they were a match made specifically to punish me. I swear, if Steph uses her powers on me one more time to rig another prank in her girlfriends favor, I will fill her bed with dancing bones.” he said as emphatically (read: dramatically) as he could.

“Sounds like a plan.” Luka full-out grinned, hardly able to get the words out. Once he’d gotten a bit of a handle on his response, Luka continued, “What do you say about joining me on our date a little early? Since we’re both up, let’s try to get to the river fort a little early; we might be able to watch the hunt from that vantage without incurring Artemis’s wrath.”

“Ugh, yeah, lemme just…” Jason said as he pulled power from the ground, focused on the mice bones scattered around his cabin. Commanding the dead to do his bidding wasn’t all that hard, but he wanted to make sure both Emma and Darcy stayed away from each other so he also instructed the shadows to form a barricade, making sure that the shadows understood that they needed to remain opaque and in between his companions while he was gone. That done, he turned to Luka and caught the tail end of his softened expression which never failed to soften his own brow in return. 

“Ready, love?” Jason asked.

“With you? Always.” Luka replied.

Chapter 2

Jason found himself following after Luka as he moved through the forest like he belonged. Most of the time, he found himself bringing up the rear as it was easier for him to keep in contact with the shadows a step or two away from his child-of-the-sun boyfriend. Jason felt more secure being able to keep in touch with his shadows as they acted as an early warning system for any ambush. His time on the run while he made his way to Camp Half-Blood gave him a healthy dose of fear for the unknown and a respect for the utility of his powers to keep himself and others safe. With how distracted people had been that morning, there was no telling what might have slipped past the sentries divided attention. 

Luka was up ahead, likely channeling the song of the forest as he usually did on these hiking dates of theirs. Today’s melody was a bit more playful, with individual notes that rang out loudly every few chords. With one last set of instructions to the shadows, Jason left them and pulled abreast of his boyfriend.

“Were you able to eat before you made your way to my cabin, Luka? I didn’t see you in the mess hall.” Jason began.

Still strumming, Luka responded, “No, I had a feeling that we should stay together today and try to get to the fort by the waterfall as quickly as possible. It feels like one of those omen-filled days.”

Small chills went down his spine as Jason digested that information. The fort was pretty far away from the residences and probably the furthest training ground in Camp Half-Blood. They would sometimes go to it on their days off since the location was hardly ever visited so he hadn’t thought much when the spot was originally proposed, but Luka’s intuition was never to be taken lightly. Even though they’d been walking for an hour or so, talking or enjoying each other’s presence, there was still a way to go to reach the fort. Time to get a move on, then.

“In that case, babe, let’s get moving.” saying that, he placed his hand on Luka’s hand holding the guitar, making eye contact, and after a gentle squeeze he let go.

~~

Luka knew that the music would have helped, but he was weak. They’d been dating for over three years at this point and friends for almost five and he was still weak to those eyes.  Sometimes Jason seemed to reach inside his chest and squeeze his heart to pulp, the only thing left the breath in his lungs calling him to sing. Sing his feelings and leave all else to the wayside. 

It meant he wasn’t paying attention to where he was going.

It meant he didn’t feel fate grab hold.

Jason with laser focus on the path ahead and him with his head in the clouds, it meant they stumbled upon the hunt in progress without realizing it. 

~~

Chaos. Stephanie couldn’t have stopped the trainwreck that just happened to save her life. Unfortunately, her friend’s lives might be at stake at this point, so that just wasn’t gonna cut it. Time for damage control.

Stephanie and Marinette had joined the hunt after Artemis called for volunteers for the day stating that a training session was in order. They’d been tracking the golden buck that was the star of the hunt for almost two hours at this point and it was getting close to midday. The sun was shining almost directly down on the buck as it paused in a clearing where the animal trail intersected with one of the paths more commonly used by camp-goers. Stephanie and Marinette were shadowing Artemis while Artemis’s third-in-command waved three other girls to fan out to surround the clearing, both groups moving in tandem to corner the buck and lead him on a chase to the river. The purpose of the training exercise was to learn how to pursue large prey and tactically block all escape rather than a simple kill the buck, otherwise their team of demigods and goddesses would have finished the hunt over an hour ago.

Unfortunately, it seemed her dumbass friends didn’t get the memo and stumbled directly on the clearing, obscured from view until they were directly in the sunlight. As they came into view, the buck stiffened and the game was up; the buck’s nostrils flared and the animal ran in the exact opposite direction as intended, straight for Artemis. 

Artemis swiftly shifted from the red-haired youth she had chosen for the hunt to a body with an Amazonian stature, her hair shifting to a sleek brown and her features shaping into an adult countenance. The buck, startled, reared up and attempted to hit the goddess, hooves aimed to cut and bruise. Artemis swiftly moved around the buck’s shoulder, pulled a knife from its sheath at the base of her spine and slit the buck's throat as it’s feet came down, spasming as it fell to the ground.

Sternly, moving to face her friends, Artemis’s booming voice could be heard: “What nonsense goes here? Who are you to dare ruin this hunt?”

Stephanie bit her tongue to avoid speaking on their behalf. Her own powers beat with Artemis’s thirst to mete out her comeuppance on the boys. 

Her eyes cut from Artemis’s back to Jason’s as he straightened his spine and stepped further into the clearing to state: “Apologies, Artemis, we didn’t intend to interrupt your hunt. I was hiding myself and my partner in the shadows to avoid startling your prey, but it seems luck wasn’t on our side today.” 

“Son of Hades…” Artemis said thoughtfully. “Your father has been kind to my children lately. I may be lenient on your punishment because of this. However,” here, Steph could see Artemis’s head tilt to fully view Luka, “Apollo has been quite impertinent lately. You, I do not feel so kind toward. You, I may turn into a boar for today’s hunt and I might not guarantee your safe return to humanity.”

The threat hung in the air. Stephanie so badly wanted to intervene. Perhaps...her eyes cut to Marinette’s and a moment passed between the two. Darting her gaze to Jason’s, she mouthed the word ‘luck’ and ‘Tyche’ to her girlfriend, hoping Marinette would be able to pick up her plan.

“Artemis,” Stephanie spoke. “Perhaps a middle-ground would be satisfactory. Marinette over there is the daughter of Tyche and I am the daughter of Nemesis; perhaps she could help you verify their claim about luck and I could propose a suitable punishment?”

Artemis half-turned around to view her as she contemplated the offer, her eyes piercing as their color shifted with her thoughts. Stephanie could feel her breath catch in her throat as she waited for Artemis’s response. 

“Hmm, I suppose you all are still young, perhaps my usual punishments for men who interrupt a hunt can be bent.” Artemis’s gaze turned in Marinette’s direction. “What say you, daughter of Tyche? Are your powers strong enough to judge their statement true?”

Stephanie could see her girlfriend straighten her spine and tuck her chin determinedly before she replied, “Yes, I can do that.”

“And you will answer truthfully? You know I will know if you lie.” Artemis warned.

“Yes.” Marinette swore. 

“Hmm. Very well, show me your skills.” 

Marinette stepped forward, circling around the fallen buck and towards the boys. Jason was leaning just the slightest bit forward, while Luka seemed at ease. Stephanie’s eyes caught Luka’s and the amount of Zen in them was calming. Hopefully, he was calm because he had foreseen this gamble pay off. Stephanie could see Marinette’s hand raise to face their friends and a light pink glow started to emit from her hands, forming the Greek words for ‘ominous end’ over Jason’s head and ‘bright mayhem’ over Luka’s. Below, a timer formed, showing Luka’s current luck to have started at sunrise that morning, while Jason’s was marked in years, days, and hours. It wasn’t clear from what Stephanie could see whether Jason’s timer was moving backward or forward. It gave her chills either way.

Marinette’s voice rang out with her verdict: “Their luck was at fault today. It appears the Muses found these two to be fun to play with. Chance was at play.”

Shaking herself out of it, Stephanie stepped forward and pulled that sense of vengeance and judgement to the forefront of her mind as she spoke, “Since the hunt was not interrupted maliciously and was due to bad luck shared between the two, a shared punishment would be best. I propose the boy’s take the place of the buck in the hunt, but ask that they fall to no harm and their punishment ends at sundown. Do you agree this punishment is fitting, Artemis?” 

A mirthful chuckle left the goddess’s lips while a yelp exited Jason’s. Stephanie kept her eyes on the goddess’s; the boys were on their own if Stephanie let on she wasn’t as impartial as she wished to appear to be to the goddess.

“If a time limit is what’s called for, daughter of Nemesis, then so be it.” Artemis said. “I agree to your proposed punishment and am willing to ensure no permanent harm befalls them so long as they stay within the boundaries of Camp Half-Blood, but if we only have until sundown, they’d better work hard to keep the hunt challenging. You two won’t be prey animals, oh no, let’s see what predator’s you’ll be.” 

Artemis didn’t wait to hear from any of the campers present, including the boys, waving her hands in their direction even as Jason opened his mouth to argue. Jason’s comically open mouth shifted along with the rest of his body into the form of a mountain lion, leaving a large cat with a panting mouth in his place. Luka’s form shifted to that of a European lynx, even that unflappable friend of hers looking ungainly and awkward from the suddenness of the change. 

Both boy’s clothes and bags had disappeared in the shift and Stephanie couldn’t help hoping that they’d return with the boy’s human forms when they were changed back at sundown. She shuddered at the thought of leading two whining toddlers back to camp in nothing but their birthday suits, and if Luka lost that guitar he wouldn’t be able to play for her anniversary dinner with Marinette. There’s no way she’d be able to propose to Marinette without Luka’s musical help. Stephanie sent a prayer for continued good luck towards her soon-to-be mother-in-law, stepping back as Artemis said, “Let the hunt recommence!”

Chapter 3

This was worse than any stint he’d pulled in the Underworld. He’d lost Luka a while back when another hunting party found them. Luka had bounded for the trees and he’d headed in the direction of the river. His powers weren’t working in this form and it bit him pretty deep as it felt like an entire sense of his was missing. Since he’d ‘woken’ back up from his near perma-death after his mom had died and learned to access his control over the shadows and bones around him, he’d come to rely on them pretty heavily without realizing it. 

That was probably why he’d gotten Luka and himself into this mess in the first place; he didn’t realize that the clearing was entirely devoid of shadows and it was too close to midsummer for the clearing to allow him to hide in the shadows like he was used to. He’d managed to escape the hunting party on his tail but he was worried for his partner; moving in a new body and effectively becoming prey wasn’t exactly a walk in the park.

~~

Luka could tell that this series of events was what his intuition was telling him would happen when he woke up this morning. All told, it wasn’t the worst thing he’d ever gotten himself into, and it was kinda cool to be able to leap from tree to tree and traverse the forest at this pace. It seems like most of the hunters had moved towards the river, as he hadn’t encountered any other hunters after losing his tail near the cliff face further inland. He was currently making his way towards the fort, figuring Jason would manage to follow the river to their intended destination without too much worry. For now, he’d enjoy this new body and feel the new rhythm he could feel through his paws and his nose while he waited for sundown. 

~~

Fuck.

Fuckity fuck fuck. 

Claws were not for him. Whoever (read: himself and most definitely Steph) got him into this mess, they’d pay. That was the fourth hunting party he’d encountered and the second time he’d had to cross the river and backtrack to hide his tracks and he was sooo not down for the feel of wet fur. This just went to show how feathers and scales were so much better and why Emma and Darcy were the only pets for him; he could tell he wouldn’t want to pet an animal with fur for months after this.

Currently, he was hiding in a tree, taking a page out of his boyfriend’s book and hiding in the trees rather than at ground level. He could see Marinette and another girl from a different hunting party conversing about 10 yards away; there was no way he was getting down or giving away his position anywhere near where Artemis’s party could be found. That psycho goddess had it out for him, lenient his ass.

~~

Marinette could tell Jason was hiding in that tree, the water puddle slowly forming underneath him was a dead giveaway. She loved the goofball too much to actually hunt him though which was about the only bit of luck he’d seen today (she could tell). Honestly, he’d have been caught at least seven times by now if she hadn’t miraculously shifted the tides of luck surrounding him or redirected other hunters like she was doing now. Mirabelle was a nice girl, but a little too vicious to let her in on the game she was playing, so she was focused on sending her off on a wild goose (or cat) chase as soon as possible. 

“If we pincer attack, we can pin him down. “ a branch broke off from Jason’s direction and fell on the ground, causing Marinette to pause and do her best not to glare and give away the game. “...does that makes sense?”

“Yeah, I think the best bet would be for me to go down and try to pick up the trail, and run him back to you. Sounds good?” Mirabelle said.

“Yep, let’s do this!” Marinette sweetly smiled in reply.

Mirabelle nodded, turned, and Marinette watched her go, waiting until she was out of earshot to say, “You are the absolute worst human-in-cat-form I have ever seen.” 

Marinette marched over to Jason, seeing him freeze and look her dead in the eye. It wasn’t exactly easy to tell what Jason wanted to say, but she could fill in the gaps for him.

“You, monsieur, are going to give yourself away at this rate. I’d like to keep you in one piece if it’s all the same to you, so here’s what you’re going to do: head inland and away from the river. We were driving our prey towards the river to trap it, so any hunting party worth their salt will be crawling along the riverbed. You are going to head to the fort upstream and hide; not many other camp-goers go there as frequently as you and Luka do and it’s your best chance to stay out of Artemis’s sight. Stephanie and I will continue to run interference, but you are acting like a teenager going through a growth spurt with how clumsy you’ve been, and that’s saying something coming from me!”

The big cat scoffed at her, but leapt to the next tree, struggling a bit to land gracefully but not with too much trouble and continued on like that further inland as directed. Marinette didn’t watch for too long; she had a job to do.

~~

Luka ends up outpacing most of the hunters he’s encountered, but one is hot on his tail, following him at forest level as he makes his way through rocky outcrops to the fort. He’s not sure if it’s an official member of the hunt or another camp-goer, but he tries his best to wind his way  around boulders and choose outcroppings that blend in with his fur color to avoid his pursuer. 

Taking a small break, he waits in the shadow of an outcropping, watching. His pursuer is good; that he can tell, and he doesn’t want to lead them directly into the fort and make it even hard on him and Jason to get through this debacle. It seems, it’s time to call for help.

“Apollo, hear me please. Your companions the Muses have struck a game between Artemis and I, and I need your help. Grant me aid avoiding my pursuer.”

“Luka, son of mine.” Apollo’s amused tone filtered through his mind. “You’ve gotten yourself trapped by one of Artemis’s hunter’s I see. Very well, I will help you this once, but I will be joining as a spectator for this one. Artemis’s main trouble is with me, after all, and I’d like to see her face when she realizes you’re under my direct protection.”

Soon after, a flash of light appeared, blinding his pursuer, and Luka moved onward while she was distracted. 

~~

It was close to sundown, and Jason was finally in reach of the fort by the waterfall. After his encounter with Marinette, he’d seen evidence that Stephanie was also redirecting heat away from his passage through the forest, but it was still slow going. His bulk had almost ratted him out more than a few times, and he’d taken to any groundcover he could when possible as it was almost impossible for him to figure out how to move through the trees without sound. He was stealthy enough on two legs to give assassins a run for their money, but put him on four legs and he was worse than a toddler was at stealth. He hadn’t seen Artemis since the beginning, but knowing his normally catastrophic luck, that was only due to Marinette’s aid. 

Crawling forward, he inched his way around the watering hole below the waterfall in the direction of the fort, when suddenly an arrow passed in front of his paw and hit the stump he was crouched by….Clearly, Marinette’s blessing was wearing thin. Taking his chances, Jason bolted.

Arrows pelted behind him, and the aim they held was mocking in its accuracy. Just close enough to scare but not close enough to injure. The direction they came from was just as confusing as they seemed to originate from the water. 

Diving behind another tree, this time close enough to the fort to see his boyfriend peering from the battlements, he peered out in the direction of the water to see none other than Artemis hovering in place, this time in a blended form that combined the youthfulness and agelessness of the two forms he encountered her in earlier. She was also holding a really fucking scary recurve bow, so there’s that. 

“Come out and play, kitties. You know you know a good hunt is part of your deal with me.” Artemis crooned.

Jason wasn’t fucking moving, dying was not part of the deal. Unfortunately, it seems his slow arrival also allowed Artemis to set up an ambush as two women lept at him from the shadows (the traitors, he was going to train so much to overcome this dependency he’s built on them), forcing him to emerge. Jason kept his eyes pinned to Artemis, even as he heard others leave their hiding places to encircle the clearing at the base of the waterfall. 

He was trapped.

~~

Luka watched as his boyfriend was driven into the open. He was also being ushered out of the protection of the fort and into the open himself.

“Now would be a good time, dad.” he whispered his prayer.

~~

Marinette was about to lose the game she’d decided to play, and she was NOT happy. Nothing she could really do about it; she could see that the balance of luck and fortune were too stable to shift. 

She was so focused on trying to parse the threads of fate that she almost missed the flash of light that signaled Apollo’s arrival. Marinette did see Artemis whirling around to glare at the newcomer, though, a bright man in a Hawaiian shirt and chacos. Apparently, being a deity did not automatically give you god-tier fashion sense. 

“Artemis, dearest, what’s this I hear about a grudge against my son and his partner? I thought you left the animal transformations back in the Hellenistic period.” Apollo drawled. 

“You! I can’t believe you have the audacity to show up now of all times! Where have you been?” Artemis yelled.

“Sometimes a god has to go on vacation too;  you — of all of us — leave Olympus the most, dearest, so I assumed you’d understand.”

“Sometimes?! Sometimes doesn’t happen midway through a war council when you’ve promised to share a prophecy pertinent to the fight at hand! Ares about had my head about wasting the council’s time on petty matters because you flaked out to — where, Tahiti???”

“What can I say? Sometimes the sun in this hemisphere just isn’t it. I’ve got to share the light with everyone.”

“Apollo, you — !” screeching, Artemis brought her bow to bear on Apollo, shooting faster than even the demi-gods present could see.

Apollo was shifting around, using the last rays of the day’s light to bend away from her arrows, periodically reminding her “This is Camp Half-Blood, dearest.” and “You don’t want to hit one of your precious hunters, do you?”

Giving one last yell of frustration, Artemis released her quiver and lowered her bow and arrow, pinched her brow and said through gritted teeth, “Apollo, you insufferable child. You. Are. Coming. To. Olympus. With. Me.”

With a brief glance at the sky and a one-handed vice grip on Apollos bicep, Artemis stated, “A fine hunt, your debt is repaid.” Then she waived her hand towards the big cats seemingly frozen in place and teleported away. 

~~

Stephanie was closest to Jason and saw as his form crumpled to the ground, shifting back into human form. Stephanie ran to help him up even with the shadows swarming around him as his powers returned in a sudden influx. She grabbed him and hoisted him up onto his feet, keeping her hands firm and grounding while he readjusted to his normal form again.

Stephanie just thanked the gods that her friends weren’t naked after returning to normal.

“You two need to stop getting into so much trouble; you’re lucky Marinette and I were there to help.” Stephanie commented, finally releasing her hold on Jason to let him stand under his own power.

“Yeah, fuck you too.” Jason growled out.

~~

Luka picked himself off the ground, checking his guitar for any damage. He saw Marinette approach from the corner of his eye with her palm facing him, granting him good fortune, so he wasn’t too surprised that he couldn’t find any damage to his instrument on close inspection.

Luka glanced up at her and said, “Thank you, Melody. This day would have turned out much worse without your help.” 

Marinette just smiled softly at him in return. “Let’s go home.”

#Jason Todd x Luka Couffaine #Stephanie Brown x Marinette Dupain-Cheng #maribat #maribat-secret-santa-2020 #gift fic #secret santa #fanfic #ML x DC #percy jackson crossover #mlb x dc

[lorei-writes]

Match-Up #8

Hello, @nan-chi​​! Thanks a lot! <3 Let the match-making begin, haha! ^^

We ran into a small hiccup at first, so just to keep it clear: some qualities were added later and those I put in as just text. ^^

Optimistic - not afraid to take risks

I think it wouldn’t be an overstatement if I said that all the warlords had suffered plenty, one way or another, which left all of them hurting in the real-time of the game. As such, I believe all of them would appreciate an accepting partner, even if for different reasons (for example: Kenshin could benefit from somebody acknowledging his struggle and seeing that he actually strives to get better, while, with Ieyasu acceptance of his flaws and reminding him that they don’t make him any worse could be appreciated). 

All warlords (+)

Adhering to politeness and being generally kind to all people, however, seems to be less universal. I presume suitors known for valuing openness and truthfulness, alongside with living accordingly with one’s feelings, could be not so much put off by it, but perhaps... It wouldn’t spark their interest? It could be a possible point for conflict too. Perhaps being a little rude towards some of them (cough, Nobunaga, cough) is one of few things that can get them thinking as well... However! I also can’t see some relationships even starting without this particular quality.

Ieyasu (+) Yukimura (+) Masamune (-) Nobunaga (-) Mitsuhide (-) <- he does lie, but it doesn’t change the fact that he values openness in his partner

Also... Well. Yes! Tsunderes! Our dearest Ieyasu and Yukimura! Yes! I can’t put it in any other words: optimism may be needed, at least at first! Taking risks as well, as there are a lot of walls to break through here! I think it’s similar with Kenshin as well - he seems to struggle with letting himself be loved.

Ieyasu (+) Yukimura (+) Kenshin (+)

To finish this part off: I do believe that taking risks and being a hard worker is something some of the more adventurous suitors in particular may find appealing... As well as people as meticulous as Ieyasu.

Ieyasu (+) Masamune (+) Nobunaga (+) Mitsuhide (+)

Clumsy/messy - my pride is bigger than life - the jealous type 

Huh, I really do wonder why stubbornness is brought up so often as a flaw while it can be such a great quality to have. Similarly here - combined with pride, I’d even go as far as to say some relationships would be hard to start without those two.

Nobunaga (+) Yukimura (+) Ieyasu (+) Hideyoshi (+) Kenshin (+)

I don’t personally see being on the clumsy/messy side as much of a problem, given that most of the suitors don’t seem to be too particular about it. However, there’s one exception to that - I believe it could get a little out of hand with Mitsunari. 

Mitsunari (-) 

Now, as for jealousy: I can see it being an issue when considering suitors who at first have more casual approach to relationships. On the other hand - I wouldn’t say that being with somebody extremely jealous would be a good thing either, given how it could possibly escalate the issue. 

Masamune (-) Shingen (-) Kenshin (-)

1st Summary:

Ieyasu ( + + + + + ) Yukimura ( + + + + ) Kenshin ( + + ) Nobunaga ( + + ) Hideyoshi & Sasuke & Mitsuhide ( + )

REST OF THE MATCH-UP & THE CONCLUSION BELOW THE CUT.

Points distributed for likes: Shingen ( + + ) <- star gazing, art Masamune ( + + ) <- star gazing, art Nobunaga ( + + + ) <- star gazing, art, nature

As an afterthought: most probably, both Hideyoshi and Shingen would enjoy taking their partner out on dates - possibly to cafes. I presume that if ice-cream was available at the time, they’d both love it... More so Shingen, I presume.

Shingen (+) Hideyoshi (+)

Points distributed for dislikes:

Yukimura (-) <- a loud person Masamune (- -) <- crowded places, usually he is surrounded by rather noisy people

2nd Summary:

Ieyasu & Nobunaga ( + + + + + ) Yukimura & Shingen ( + + + ) Kenshin & Hideyoshi ( + + ) Sasuke & Mitsuhide ( + )

Only characters with ( + ) by their name will be considered in the final stages.

Kenshin ( + + ) <- sometimes he finds it had to listen to somebody else (mostly when in his panicked state), some of his behaviours aren’t exactly healthy and he is a god of war - violence may be a part of life with him (and suffering it, although not necessarily at his hands; “not necessarily” - as much as he tries to get better, he hurts MC at the beginning) Nobunaga ( + + + + + ) <- not listening, violence (he did use MC as a bait and took her with him to the battlefield)  Mitushide ( +) <- lying Shingen ( +) <- lying

No points were distributed for pet peeves. 

Hideyoshi (-) <- he is rather nagging at times, may struggle with giving others personal space Ieyasu (-) <- may seem disrespectful at first Yukimura (-) <- is a little disrespectful (though as it later turns out, he just says “you dummy” when he means “I love you”, oh well).

Hmm... I presume Masamune and Shingen would be similar to some extent? Although they have already fallen out of the match-up by themselves, haha. 

Thank you for participating! <3 

Final Ranking:

Ieyasu ( + + + + ) Yukimura ( + + ) Hideyoshi ( + )

Ieyasu:

To the outside world, it may seem that falling into good graces of lord Tokugawa is quite a feat to accomplish - perhaps you wouldn’t disagree, your relationship being rather rocky at first. However, your stubbornness prevailed, your pride telling you not to ever give up. Oh, you didn’t prove yourself worthy to him, quite the opposite - you, kind and polite as possible, did it for yourself... And for some reason, it seemed to be just enough to make his heart melt. 

Ieyasu isn’t exactly open about his feelings, something you can probably understand to some extent. Words are hard to use, much more so to communicate - and it only gets worse if you can’t show your lover that you’re hurting inside... At least at first. Ieyasu isn’t used to being accepted as a whole and being welcomed with optimism. Learning that, I presume, would be freeing to him. However, if there’s one thing true of him, it is that he will try. He isn’t a type to give up once he gets serious about his feelings - and he has eyes only for one person.

Possible conflicts may arise around lack of effective communication. That, however, is something Ieyasu would be aware of. Free time ideas: collecting herbs together, being taught by Ieyasu (archery, recognizing and categorizing plants), silently sharing space while working on your own projects, playing with Wasabi in the garden

Yukimura: 

Perhaps there was a time you wished he took Shingen’s advice and learnt it by heart, perhaps you did dream of sewing his mouth shut at certain points - but, this is in the past, isn’t it? After all, he is the greatest fools of all, for he has fallen in love so deeply he won’t ever be able to get out... Even though he still seems to insist “you dummy” means “I’m yours”. Oh well.

Yukimura may struggle with words, but he is rather well-connected to his feelings. He works hard, is diligent about keeping his space organized, always rushes to care for others... Yet in all of that, he tends to forget about himself and his own limits. If anything, a stubborn and well-meaning person is someone that could ground him enough and stop him at the path to self-destruction (as his expectations towards himself grow rather high at times). He is not a person who gives up easily and he is capable of establishing relationships with rather emotionally removed people, and...  He certainly wouldn’t intentionally spark jealousy. I presume some of his communication methods could prove rather efficient as well (as much as he is a boar man, he’s direct and honest).

Possible issues may arise around his usage of “dummy”. (Please, do let your pride put Yuki in place. Shingen would approve of it). Free time ideas: hiking trips, visiting tea shops around town to eat sweets together (he does buy those for Shingen, he’s bound to know where to get something good), playing with Mursamasa, moon gazing while cuddled together during a camp 

#ikesen #ikemen sengoku #ikesen matchup #match-ups event

[hiatus-for-forever]

Katsuki Bakugou x Reader

Summary: For his birthday, Bakugou gets a date with his crush while they set up a party at the dorms

A/N: This is late cuz I had writers block during his birthday.

Quirk:  You can control plants and make them grow from the ground. You need a base through, like a seed or root and you can make it grow from that. You can move it and make it grow bigger and taller than it is (i.e. you can make a flower huge if you wanted to). If overused, you get dizzy and could pass out.

Warnings/Genre: fluff, cursing, suggestive content somewhere, ooc Bakugou

WC: 1,711

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You were in the common area as they were explaining the plan to you. The doofuses, also known as the entirety of class 1A, made a plan called Operation: Blaze It which was trying to surprise Bakugou with a birthday party. People were planning how to set everything up and decorate a cake you made beforehand. 

At the moment, the said hot-headed man was training with Todoroki, knowing there was no way he would turn down a chance to beat the half-and-half bastard’s ass as a birthday present . As the rest of the class trying to convince you to go through with distracting Bakugou, you were sitting there shaking your head.

“Nope, not doing it” you said, lips pressed to a thin line

“Please!” Kaminari pleaded

“Nuh uh”

“But all the other girls are busy, you already did your part by making the cake”

You liked Bakugou, that part everyone suspected but you never confirmed. Rightfully so as they only occasionally bothered you about him. But it was these times when they pushed you together you regretted enjoying the special treatment he gave you. He yelled and cursed at you less, even being caught helping you out with lessons or training from time to time. 

“Why does it need to be a girl? Can’t Kirishima do it? Y’know being the only other guy he doesn’t completely hate!?” You tried to reason

“Nope, he’s using his teeth to help open packaging later” Sero adds

“What about Jiro? She never annoy Bakugou and she’s not annoying” You suggested

“I disagree” Kaminari butts in, passing by while holding a box of decorations to be hidden.

“As you said, they never talk, it would be uncomfortable”

You grumbled, after going through a list of anyone else but you. They gave out excuse after excuse, hiding the real reason they wanted you to do it this way. In reality, the Bakusquad promised Bakugou a date with you. You didn’t know, of course, as they didn’t know for sure if you liked him back and just used this excuse. 

“Oh yeah and the reservation is under your name” Kaminari said

“.....What?” you seethed. They said to distract him, not to take him out on a date!

“So you take him out to a cafe and keep him away from the dorms until about 6:30 pm” Kaminari said as you tried to swing at him

“So this was set in stone and I had to argue for nothing!? You bitch!” Ojiro had to step in and hold you back with his tail as Kaminari cowered behind Tokoyami and some others in charge of buying more stuff. 

“You should get changed, they’re gonna be back soon” Ojiro sweat-dropped as you glared at him. You sighed

“Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you, the dumbass Pikachu is the only one with a death wish here” you growled as Kaminari ran to ‘uh- check on the stuffs’. Ojiro let you go and you stormed off to your room.

You put on a some denim pants with a simple black off shoulder shirt. You wore black boots and stuffed your phone and wallet into your purse. You finished light makeup and brushed your hair. You headed down and as you exited the elevator you heard a whistle from Kaminari

“Whoo Y/N you look hot. Looking pretty for your date I see” he smirked

“Dumbass Pikachu” you grumbled and sat on the couch with your arms crossed and a scowl on your face. Kirishima came and sat next to you, “Bakugou’s just getting ready, here, to pay for your date” he handed you some money.

“It’s not a fucking date” you said lowly and Kirishima chuckled, “sure” he said and walked away.

You slumped back down in the couch and took out your phone and scrolled through Instagram. The elevator was heard opening and Bakugou stepped out and Kaminari hollered at him too, this guy does not stop bugging you two. 

“Wow Bakugou, it’s the first time I’ve seen you wear something this nice” he said. Bakugou glared at him as he cowered away, “Your date’s over there” Sero snickered and pointed at your direction, Bakugou already making his way over.

“SHUT THE FUCK UP” you and him yelled simultaneously as they did so. You directed your glare at the floor and grabbed Bakugou by his wrist, missing the way his cheeks tainted pink. “Let’s go” you said and pulled him outside.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The walk to the cafe was quiet, the cafe itself being really busy and known for its amazing treats and coffees. You can’t really walk in in the middle of the day expecting to find a seat as to why they had to call in for reservation. The place was pretty much full, not being as noisy as the people respected the fact it’s a cafe people come to enjoy their time. You told the busy waitress your name as she directed you two to a table and excused herself to get back to her work. 

You sat across from Bakugou and looked at the menu. You looked up from the menu and met Bakugou’s eyes. Deciding to break the ice he sighed, “Sorry you were dragged into this” 

You smiled nervously, since neither of you knew how the other got in this position internally screamed at yourself ‘DOES HE KNOW ITS A DISTRACTION? WHAT DID THEY TELL HIM? SHRUG IT OFF SHRUG IT OFFFFF’ 

“It’s fine, they gave us money to spend so let’s waste it all” you laughed as you swore his lips curved up a little. A waiters and waitresses were talking and sent a waiter to your table. You noticed this and told Bakugou to be ready with his order. Then you got an idea to mess with him. 

You jokingly gasped and he looked up at you, “Do I dare? Do I dare tell the waiters it’s your birthday?” You teased

His eyes widened and gave you a scowl, “Absolutely the fuck not” he said

You giggled and shook your head, “I’m just kidding, I won’t”

The waiter was called to a different table and he told a waitress to take care of your orders. She walked up to you, “So, what can I get for this lovely couple?’ she smiled

Your faces turned red as you looked away from each other, “We’re not dating” you said as Bakugou shook his head with a ‘nope’. 

She apologized as she took your orders, yours being a parfait and his being coffee jelly. She wrote it all down and walked away as you two were left with an awkward silence. You pulled out your phone and discreet picture of him and posting it on Instagram with the caption ‘aww he’s not screaming 💥💘 @bakugou_katsuki #BlazeIt’  You said, hinting at his party

He was scrolling through social media too and saw the picture he looked up at you and you giggled. He smirked and took a picture of you too laughing your ass off and posted it with the caption ‘This bitch is so annoying get her away from me 😠 fuck you @Y/N-the-flower’

You pouted at him and went to your phone to comment

‘no u’

You smirked at him and laughed. He snickered with you, the awkwardness finally fading away. You turned off your phone, refusing to look at the comments of yours and Bakugou’s pictures

U 2 having fun? 😚

Get some!!1!

Yall should just fuck already

The tips of his ears turned red as he read the comments and mumbled, “These fuckers”

You pushed his phone to his chest, “bitch, don’t mind them” You smiled and he put his phone away. The treats came and the waitress set down a milkshake, “Um, we didn’t order this” you said politely.

“Oh excuse me, it’s on the house for those cute couples who haven’t got together yet” You blushed again, and he scowled at her as the young girl chuckled, “Thought so”

She placed the parfait in front of you and the coffee jelly in front of Bakugou and the milkshake in between you two while setting down two straws. “Enjoy!” she said happily and left you two. You looked at him and shrugged as you pulled the parfait closer and stuck the spoon in the chocolate strawberry treat. You brought some of it to your mouth and brought your lips around it, moaning at the sweet taste. 

Bakugou’s eyes widened slightly at the whole thing, blushing and feeling his pants tighten. You looked at him, “dude, why aren’t you eating the food here is so fucking good” you said, unintentionally making a suggestive comment. 

“Uhm...” he said slowly taking a spoonful of his coffee jelly. You got another scoop of parfait and kept the spoon in your mouth a little longer. Bakugou was watching you with a weird abnormal expression in his eyes. You gazed at him with questioning eyes, “What’s wrong? Do you want some?” you asked and scooped some in the same spoon you used and brought it to his lips. 

The cool metal hitting his lips snapped him out as he reluctantly let you feed him. “You’re right, it is good” he grumbled. “Why were you acting weird anyway?” You asked, noticing how uncomfortable he looked. You slipped your foot out of the boot when you realized why, and rubbed it against the bulge you knew was in his pants. “Stop it!” he growled as you laughed and slipped your foot back in your boot.

 You smirked, “aww hell yeah, I fed Bakugou Katsuki without dying and I teased him” you cheered

He shoved a spoon of coffee jelly in your mouth to shut you up. “Now were even, and not a fucking word about this to the others!” he told you. You just giggled and nodded, swallowing the coffee jelly. You went back to eating as you just realized you indirectly kissed him...twice. You shook your head to push the thought to the back of your mind and ate another spoonful of parfait. 

You finished your parfait quickly as Bakugou did with his treat too. You both stared at the milkshake until you decided to speak up. “So, we gonna share?” you asked handing him a straw and taking the other for yourself. You grinned at him, “Wanna do that thing when we share and drink at the same time?” 

He shrugged, trying to hide the fact his heart was pounding. You took the straw from the paper and stuck it in, mixing up the contents of the tall glass. You then brought licked the unmixed whipped cream that remained on the top part of the straw, leaving some milkshake on your cheek. 

He called your attention, “You have a little something there” he said and pointed to your cheek, you licked as far as you could tasting some on your tongue so you thought, you got it. 

“Is it gone?”

“Ugh, dumbass”  he groaned and reached to swipe the drink off your cheek

“Thanks” you mumbled, turning a bright shade of pink

“Oh, what happened to confident little Y/N? Does touching your cheek make you blush?” he mocked

“Shut up, idiot” you said and grabbed his straw and put it on the other side of the milkshake. “Let’s take the picture”

“We’re taking a picture?” he asked, “Hell no”

“But it’d be cuuuute” you whined

“Fuck off”

“Please?” 

“No”

You stayed silent, “fine” you pouted pushing the drink away from you

“UGH” he groaned, “FINE! I’ll do it. No pictures!” 

You smiled and pulled it to you slightly, leaning on the table as Bakugou did the same, trying to keep his eyes from your cleavage. You both took a few sips and he pulled away first. You pulled away after a few more sips, “See! Harmless” you stated and pulled the milkshake for just you to drink.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The milkshake was finished, you and Bakugou taking turns drinking from it. You looked at your watch, 4:03 pm. How the fuck were you supposed to distract him for 2 and a half more hours!? You payed for the treats you ate and stapped outside with Bakugou. 

“L’right, let’s go back now”

“NO!” you yelled unintentionally He looked at you with an eyebrow raised.

“I-I mean, uhh let’s go somewhere else”

“No, I’m tired”

“But I wanna go shopping” you said reluctantly, though you hated shopping

“No you don’t”

You sighed, “Yeah no I don’t...  But I wanna train”

“I already did earlier, plus you can’t train after we just ate”

You sighed and looked around for a distraction as he started walking away. “Wait!” you turned to your last resort

He looked back at you, “What?’

“Uh, um... I like you” You said quietly, but loud enough for him to hear. 

He chuckled, “After today it’s pretty obvious”

You scowled, “Shut up”

“I like you too dumbass, ‘s why the dumbasses promised me a date with you”

You realized why he agreed to go with you and your eyes met with him. “You said you were tired, right?” 

He nodded and you smiled, “Come” you said and grabbed his wrist once again. You led him to some woods and found a familiar trail of red carnations (that symbolize love, pride and admiration) that you followed, dragging Bakugou along. You reached a part of the woods that was just a big open space. It was full of flowers of all kinds, sizes, and colors. You let go and ran to the middle of it. He slowly walked to you as you giggled at the tumble you took. You saw him and pulled him down, a bed of daisies grew fast enough to catch him. He shook the shock out of him as you talked, “Daisies convey loyal love or could also be used to symbolize ‘I will never tell’ so this place is our little secret” you said.

He nodded and took in your features, your bright eyes, smooth hair, and perfect smile. You flipped over and looked at the sky, your face, relaxed and calm. “When no one knows about it, it stays quiet and peaceful, kinda weird bringing you here” you chuckled

He looked at the sky and put an arm behind his head, his other hand moving down to intertwine your fingers with his. “So, what’s up with this place? How’d you find it?” he asked quietly

“An old woman used to live in a house here and she was an old friend of my grandma. She allowed to come here and told me that when she passed away not to use the house since it was dirty, dusty, and full of pollen so she just told me to bury it in the soil and expand her beloved garden. So I did” you breathed out with a smile

He smiled when he looked at you and you met his eyes. “Wanna do something cool?”

He smiled, “Sure” and sat up. You didn’t stand up though, “You don’t need to move, I think there’s one here” you said referring to one of the tulip seeds you planted everywhere. You pressed your palm to the ground and activated your quirk

The ground rumbled as a huge tulip grew from underneath you. You laughed excitedly as it lifted you and Bakugou up, resting you two inside its halfway open petals. You rested against each other, your torso fell on his chest as he leaned back on a soft but firm petal. Your laughs softened as you got comfortable on his chest. He wrapped an arm around you and closed his eyes, allowing you to gaze at him and stealthily set an alarm for 6 o’clock. Soon you dozed off too.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The alarm sounded loudly, waking you and Bakugou, the latter groaning and moving to stretch. “Sorry, sorry” you said, voice croaky from the nap, turning th alarm off and getting up. You rubbed your eyes, getting used to the light of the setting sun. Shaking Bakugou awake you suggested to get back before it gets dark and hard to get out of the woods. He nodded while groggily getting up, you using your quirk to get the tulip to drop you two down on the soft grass. 

You shivered from the lower temperature and Bakugou took notice. He wrapped his jacket around you and you put your arms through the holes. The sleeves that only reached halfway through Bakugou’s forearm, reached past your wrists. He thought you looked adorable, being small and all, but the moment is ruined when you decided to mock him, “Wow, didn’t know the Katsuki Bakugou was a gentleman”

“Shut up before I take it back” he grumbled

“Okay, okay” you threw your hands up in surrender

“Also,” he started, “Call me Katsuki” he whispered

“What was that?” you asked, feigning innocence

“CALL ME KATSUKI GODDAMNIT”

“Hey, hey, no need to yell, Katsuki” you said, his name rolling off your tongue

“Shut up, let’s get going” he secretly did like hearing you say his name. But he hid it whilst tugging you to the direction of Heights Alliance. You laughed and held his hand, leaning onto his arm. The walk was nice and comfortable, the both of you at peace with one another.

You reached the dorms, forgetting about the surprise party as you walked in the dark building, still latching onto Bakugou’s arm. The lights were suddenly turned on, everyone jumping out of their hiding places. 

“SURPRISE!!” everyone froze on the spot, seeing you clinging onto Bakugou, wearing his jacket.

“BAKUGOU GOT A GIRLFRIEND!?” everyone erupted into cheers as you buried your face into Bakugou’s chest as everyone tried to pry information out of you.

#katsuki bakugou #bakugou katsuki #katsuki bakugo x reader #bakugou katsuki x reader #bakugou x reader #katsuki x reader #bakugou birthday #happybirthday #kacchan x reader

[merakiaes]

Noisy Thoughts - Bucky Barnes

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x soulmate!reader

Requested: No

Warnings/notes: This is the first part of the soulmate mini-series. It’s shit because I’m so high on pain meds right now so I might rewrite it once I’ve finished the other soulmate pieces, or write another on for him. But I hope you enjoy it for now, let me know what you think! Your comments make me absolutely ecstatic 

Wordcount:  2718

Summary: Soulmate!AU where you’re able to hear your soulmate’s thoughts, Bucky’s soulmate’s thought happening to be particularly loud. 

Having a soulmate whose thoughts he could hear, really wasn’t like Bucky would have thought it to be. Unlike everyone else, he hadn’t started hearing the voice when he was eighteen. Instead, he had started hearing it about seven years ago.

It didn’t take long to figure out that this was probably because his soulmate hadn’t been born at the time when he was eighteen, and that the reason for him suddenly being able to hear her, was because she had turned eighteen, triggering the bond between them that had been faulty up until the moment of her eighteenth birthday.

It had been really nice to a start, after the shock had worn off from the sudden new presence in his head. Whomever his soulmate was, her voice was beautiful and as soft as silk, and despite her thoughts usually being really weird ones, they were soothing to him in the times he stumbled back into the bloody memories from his Winter Soldier days.

But as weeks went by, he found himself wanting to slam his head into a wall every time her voice entered his head. He wanted nothing more than to just pick up the phone and call her to tell her to be quiet, but obviously, he didn’t know her name, seeing as your own name would be censored in your soulmates head.

So, he had to settle with shouting at her to shut up in his own head, something he seemed to be doing every single night nowadays, because she really never shut up. All night, every night, he would stay awake with the sound of her loud thoughts echoing off the walls of his head.

And maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad to hear her voice day in and day out if she at least thought about nice things, but the things she thought of were just so weird.

“Maybe fire breathing elephants? No, that’s too weird. But dragons seem so basic, everyone has dragons. I want something no one else has. Dinosaurs maybe? I wonder who made up the sounds dinosaurs make, they could have a southern accent, for all we know. I mean, whomever made up their sounds had never heard them. How could they have known? No, no dinosaurs.”

A pause… A small smile rose to his lips as he thought he would finally be able to sleep, but then…

“Maybe a magical object? A ring? No, that’s already been done. A goblet? No, that’s taken, too. How about a keyring? A keyring is a handy little device that allows you to lose all your keys at once. How would that ever count as a magical object? Maybe I should just follow the trend and settle for aliens. Maybe Earth could be that creepy small town gas station tourists try to avoid. No, I need to sleep now. I have an early day tomorrow.”

….

“Maybe an epidemic? A virus? Some kind of parasite, or fungus? Living people eat dead mushrooms and living mushrooms eat dead people, how weird is that? Maybe something about being stranded on an island? 70% of the earth is covered in water but in movies spaceships always crash on land, why is that? There’s no logic in that concept, whatsoever. Maybe something with a jungle, or a safari, with giraffes. I wonder how long it takes for a giraffe to throw up. Ew, no, don’t think of that. You’ll get sick of the thought. Speaking of which, how come no one ever mentions the fact that when you’re sick, the advice you get is to literally do drugs and stay out of school? Okay, really need to sleep now. I need to go to the store and pick up some more cheese in the morning. Cheese. It’s basically loafs of milk. I need to turn my fitbit in for repair, too. It’s like a Tamagotchi, except the stupid little creature you have to keep alive is yourself. Not that I’m doing a very good job at that with the road I’m going down now. Sleep deprivation is not a good look.”

….

“Oh! I should get some watermelon, too! I noticed there was a discount. Maybe I should get two, or sixty. No, the only time you can buy sixty watermelons without anyone asking any questions is in math. Now that I think about it, I might not get a watermelon, at all. Mark is always hanging around the fruit and vegetables, I don’t think I’m going to be able to turn him down nicely if he asks me on a date one more time. Dating is practically just hanging out with someone until you figure out what’s wrong with them. No thanks, that’s not a time well spent. Especially not now when he’s shaved his beard off, that was more or less the only attractive thing about him. Although, telling someone they look better with a beard is basically just saying they look better the less you can see their face. But then again, maybe that was the exact reason I found him more attractive in it.”

….

“Okay, I need to sleep now. Like, really. Why hasn’t someone invented some kind of machine with which you can record your thoughts? Tony Stark should get on it already, I mean, how hard can it be when you’re a genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist? I’ll never be able to fall asleep like this.”

….

It was safe to say that when Bucky got out of bed the next morning, he hadn’t gotten a single minute of rest thanks to the constant voice in his head. By the time it had actually gone quiet around four o’clock, he had been too aggravated to fall asleep, anyways.

Now it was ten o’clock, and Bucky was shuffling into the kitchen with a sour expression on his face, feet dragging behind him.

The rest of the team were spread out over the room, eating breakfast and having their morning coffee. This was one of the few days they had gotten to sleep in seeing as they had no mission to go on, but Bucky obviously hadn’t been that lucky.

Sam’s eyes snapped up at the sound of his friend entering, his eyes widening as he took in the state of him. He let out a low whistle. “Well, you look like hell.”

Bucky didn’t have the energy to tell him off, not even to glare at him, only muttering a low, “Tell me about it.”

Steve pushed off the counter he was leaning against when Bucky approached him, giving him the space he needed to make himself a cup of, very much needed, coffee like the one he held in his own hand.

“She keeping you up again?” He asked while watching his best friend pour himself a cup of caffeine, eyes furrowing together in worry as he took in the deep, dark bags under his eyes.  

“Yeah, is she keeping you up?” Tony joined in on the conversation suddenly before Bucky got the chance to answer, as he walked into the room with Pepper at his side and a sleeping Morgan perched on his hip.

Bucky lazily turned to look at him with an unimpressed stare, taking in the suggestive smirk on face before turning back to Steve, ignoring Tony’s remark. “When isn’t she keeping me up?” He grumbled, raising the cup to his lips and taking a big gulp, not even bothering to let it cool off first.

Steve hummed, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back on the counter again now that Bucky had gotten what he came for. “What was it this time?”

“Oh, you know, the usual.” Bucky shot back sarcastically. “Fire-breathing elephants, magical keyrings and epidemics with people-eating mushrooms. Oh, and she thought about Tony, too.”

Tony perked up at the sound of his name, holding his hand up to his chest in a feign-flattered manner. “Well, what can I say, I’m just irresistible like that.”

Bucky rolled his eyes and Pepper slapped his chest at that, giving him a glare before turning to Bucky with a curious expression. “What was she thinking about Tony?”

“She thinks he should get on inventing a thought-recorder so that she doesn’t have to get to get up a hundred times every night to write up her thoughts. And I agree. If it was up to me, you would be locked into that lab of yours right now.” Bucky grumbled.

Tony had to resist the urge to laugh out loud at the annoyed expression on Bucky’s face, finding it all too amusing. “I could do that.” Tony thought out loud. “But what would be the fun in that?” He smirked.

When only getting a cold stare and a few sighs in return, his grin only widened.

Sam spoke up then, kicking his feet up on the table in front of him and crossing his arms over his chest. “Oh, come on. Why does this chick feel the need to write down her every thought, anyways?”

Bucky didn’t answer, too tired to move his lips, but Tony didn’t seem like he was about to stop anytime soon.

“Maybe she’s a patient at some mental institution somewhere.”

“No.” Pepper disagreed. “They wouldn’t let a mental patient have a pen in their room, meaning she wouldn’t have been able to write her thoughts down. You know, possible weapon and all.”

Bucky grumbled. “She said, well, thought, that she was going to pick up cheese from the store, and last time I checked, they don’t have stores at a mental institution.”

“Okay.” Tony answered, shrugging his shoulders. “Maybe she’s just plain crazy, then.”

Before anyone could say anything else, there was a rumble from the elevator at the other side of the room, pulling all of their attention from the previous subject.

“We expecting anyone?” Steve asked, eyebrows furrowing together as he pushed himself off the counter again.

“It’s probably Natasha.” A voice came from one of the corners then, making them all jump.

They turned to look at Clint where he was sitting in an armchair, munching away on an apple while flipping through a magazine. “Man, have you been here this entire time?” Sam asked, to which Clint only gave him a blank stare.

“I was here before you got here, you said good morning to me when you walked in.” He deadpanned, before motioning with is finger to the elevator that was quickly raising in level. “Natasha is bringing (Y/N) over to meet you. You know, the girl she met in the store a few months ago. I already met her a couple of weeks ago.”

The elevator dinged then, announcing their arrival, the doors sliding open to reveal Natasha and a beautiful girl, the latter clutching books to her chest as they walked in.

Your heart skipped a beat in anxiety at the sight of Earth’s mightiest heroes. You weren’t a fan, per se, but it was something about being in the presence of celebrities that made your palms sweat and your heartbeat speed up.

“(Y/N)!” Clint exclaimed as you walked into the room, slapping the magazine down on the table and standing up from his seat, coming over to meet you halfway and pull you into a friendly embrace in greeting.

“Hello, Clint!” You responded just as happily, letting him hug you as you weren’t really able to let go of the notebooks in your arms. “How’s Laura and the kids?”

“They’re great, the kids miss you, though.” He smiled, pulling away to look at you at arm’s length, a frown coming to rest on his face a second later. “You’re not looking too hot, though. Rough night?”

Natasha snapped out his name at that, slapping his arm as a kind of scolding at the half-insult, but as you weren’t one to get easily offended, you just smiled lazily.

“Tell me about it, someone should just invent a thought-recorder so I can get some shut eye.”

Bucky froze at the sound of that sentence slipping out of your mouth, eyes instantly snapping in your direction from having been looking into his coffee cup, unbothered of the situation going on just a few meters away until now.

The rest of the people in the room exchanged looks silently, looking between you, Bucky and each other, Clint’s face falling into one of shock and causing him to take a small step back.

Natasha, obviously noticing the sudden change of mood in the atmosphere, ignored it and put a hand on your arm, putting on a bright smile. “(Y/N) is a writer, hence the heavy stack of notebooks she’s always carrying around.”

You smiled shyly, pressing said books closer to your chest as you rocked on the balls of your feet. “I like to be able to write down my thoughts, you never know when you’re going to think of a killer idea.”

“Yeah, well, maybe you would be willing to consider tuning those thoughts down a notch? They’re really loud.” A new voice suddenly joined in, causing you to jump at the volume. Following the voice, your eyes landed on a man at the kitchen table, leaning backwards in his seat with a cup in hand and a tired, sour expression resting heavily on his face.

“Ooh.” Natasha suddenly went from beside you, realizing what was going on and letting her hand drop from yours, realization lighting up her face.

You didn’t miss a beat, the pieces falling into place and the situation clicking in your mind, making you realize what was going on almost immediately, as well. A sheepish smile arose on your lips as you slowly shrunk into yourself out of the big amount of attention that was suddenly thrust on you.

The room was quiet, everyone waiting for you to respond or do something. Feeling nervous under their heavy stares, you were barely able to find your voice.

“Oops?” Was the only word you could get out finally as you looked to the side to meet your soulmate’s eyes, instantly getting lost in the deep pools of blue.

As the two of you continued to stare at each other in silence, the other Avengers slowly walked to gather at the back, watching you with different expressions on their faces.

“Well.” Tony spoke up suddenly as they watched you approach Bucky where he sat, eyeing the notebooks as you put them down on the surface. “I guess I can admit that writer makes more sense than a nutcase.”

The team continued to watch you from afar, chatting quietly about the situation at hand, but every sound around you fell deaf to your ears as you sat down across from your soulmate.

“So.” You started shyly, fiddling with your fingers in your lap and looking down briefly before turning your head to meet his eyes again, offering him a gentle smile. “You’re the one who’s been telling me to ‘shut the fuck up’ every day for seven years.”

Bucky flinched at the mention of it, realizing then how harsh he must have sounded.

“Sorry about that.” He apologized quietly. “You, uh… You’re very loud.” He repeated his earlier words, not really sure how to act in this situation; he hadn’t actually thought that he would ever meet you, the block in your minds that stopped you from ever finding out each other’s names making it a very rare thing to find your soulmate.

“It’s okay.” You chuckled. “I guess I owe you an apology, too. The best ideas always come when I’m about to fall asleep, and I always forget them if I don’t write them up.”

Bucky could only smile, for the first time in a long time actually enjoying your voice. He reached his hand out over the table, his smile only widening at the feeling of your skin against his when you took it in your own.

Wrapping his hand around your much smaller one, he squeezed it gently. “I’m Bucky, Bucky Barnes.”

You smiled brightly, nodding your head. “Nice to meet you,  Bucky Barnes. I’m (Y/N)(Y/L/N), and from this day on, I promise not to think so loudly.”

But obviously, that wasn’t a promise you could keep. But now that he had actually met you, he didn’t find it as bad.

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky x reader #bucky barnes #bucky barnes imagine #steve x bucky #avengers #avengers imagine #avengers x reader #avengers one shot #marvel imagine #marvel x reader #marvel one shot #marvel #bucky barnes x soulmate!reader

[doctorstrangeaskblog]

One thing I’ve noticed about haters is that they basically dedicate a lot of time just to spread hate, making their target’s fans sad, they often want to impose their opinion, they often misinterpret the facts, make up facts or even exaggerate on interpretation of facts, and that’s not the problem, the problem is that they want to IMPOSE their thought on people, prevent them from having fun with what they like, as if the whole world had to hate what they hate, and this is wrong, because it attacks the other’s right to like something. People have the right to hate stuff, but they cannot harm anyone else’s right with their actions (and arguments), because that way we fall into intolerance, and not just racism, sexism or homophobia, but also social exclusion against personal tastes and opinions. They also sort of invade spaces that were supposed to be fun, such as tags on Tumblr and other social media with hateful, negative and even fake posts. A good example was people blaming Benedict for Doctor Strange whitewashing, while the character in question was the Ancient One and not Stephen per se, and then they start the “Doctor Strange should be Asian” movement, with so much superficiality, because we know we can’t just change the characters’ nationality and be like “see? We’re inclusive”, because that’s just so lame. People who suffer with exclusion feel every day the problem can’t be solved with simple replacement, but with the development of good, well built characters, good stories, with cultural inclusion and all the focus the character deserves, etc. Anyway, it’s not a simple matter, and suddenly haters were blaming the entire racism of the cinema on Benedict (?) while the guy has a big importance when it comes to inclusion, donations, charity, pacifism and a lot of relevant points I won’t list here because just google it.

Anyway, haters end up carrying misinformed people into hating people who actually are doing good things out there, with great projects and charity initiatives etc. (Keanu, Capaldi, Benedict, Hiddleston...). Also, whenever a hater comes to discuss about why the person or character you admire is the worst being in the world, they often get aggressive when you start pointing out logical arguments, they end up getting emotional and coming for the personal side and forcing some interpretations (example, a lot of doctors, actors, psychologists etc. study objects, animals and people so they can work and improve their profession, like, doctors study people with disabilities, from incapacitating ones to very light ones so they can understand the matter and work more efficiently, etc, I’ve seen people turn Benedict into a monster for observing people with autism, because he more than once had to play a role in which the character had autism. If we think about it and keep acting with such hateful attitude, we’ll end up agreeing with censorship, and autistic people wouldn’t either be characters in movies or we wouldn’t get actors working on such roles, meaning the characterization would be way more limited etc. anyway, it would be bad for culture and critique in general, there would be less representation, because even if autistic authors were called, it would make it harder in occasions where that wouldn’t be possible, movies would end up exploring that subject less, etc.), this was an example, but project this into wider areas of cinema and society in general, using your personal opinion to judge people and consider them the ultimate evil, to want to make the whole world hate that person and harming anyone who disagrees with the haters, that’s really bad!

I used some haters speech about Benedict as examples here because that’s what I’ve seen (and been attacked with) the most, because my blog is a Doctor Strange blog, anyway, but I’m talking about all the kind of haters. But understand a thing, being a hater is not the same as disliking something! Everyone has the right to dislike stuff, and people normally just stop there. People dislike something, people avoid that thing, if asked, they say they don’t like it and that’s it! People normally don’t spend hours making toxic posts about what they hate or spend hours arguing with strangers about how they should hate something! People tend to spend their time with things they like (or things they have to do), so if a hater comes to you and keeps babbling, just say you’re not interested or ignore or end the conversation, because normally these people aren’t well intentioned! Haters normally can’t be convinced, there will ALWAYS be a reason to justify their hating, while the truth probably is that they identified with a group and feel important there. Also, haters tend to spread high expectations about people, and that’s just toxic, we can’t judge someone’s entire life by something they said or did, people commit mistakes and that’s why LAW exists, if someone commits a crime, it’s up to the system to judge them, not people! When people assume that role and start writing stuff, a lot of fake news come out, and a lot of people actually believe it, and everything becomes a big hate toxic ball that hurts tons of people who had nothing to do with anything.

We do have to criticize actions we consider evil or wrong, as well as we have to think about  society and about cinema and racism etc. but we can do that with logical conversation, checking the facts in sources we can trust, we don’t have to become haters and hurt others to defend what we believe and trust every tabloid website in order to sustain our arguments, and I’m not even talking about extreme things such as racism and homophobia, I’m talking about something way more “silly” and superficial such as fandom hating, celebrity hating, ship hating etc.

To point out how it’s not normal to be a hater, let’s imagine a situation: there’s an actress or singer (etc) you like who said something really bad on TV, live, everyone saw and it’s impossible to claim it’s fake. You kind of used to like that person’s content before, but what she said really let you down, you don’t like her anymore and you’re sad. What’s your natural reaction? The reaction most people would have? Well, unfollow that person, stop reading their posts, stop listening to their music, stop recommending that person to friends, stop buying their stuff and little by little, that person would have a smaller and smaller space in your life, until you simply forget about that celebrity (they become irrelevant to you), you just avoid their stuff, you don’t even notice them anymore, you have other interests now and that’s it, things barely changed for you, you’re just indifferent. Now, what does a hater does? They create a page (or fill their social page) of stuff with hate against their target, they spend hours reading about how terrible that person is, they talk to that person’s fans to tell them they have to stop liking that celebrity, they invade all the tags of series, songs, movies (anything) the celebrity is in and spam it with negative things, such as “it’s a terrible singer” or “they should have  cast another actor”, anyway, anything really negative that would induce the fans to either quit having fun or start hating the celebrity as well, and that’s just soooo sad and toxic, because spamming a safe, fun environment like that can be considered imposing and even aggressive depending of the content they’re posting, that’s why social media websites often ban accounts that spam tags or other users.

Anyway, haters who spread fake news or aggressive thoughts or accusations often forget they actually could be sued by the celebrity/singer/actor/writer they’re hating on, that’s where personal opinion differs from being a little authoritarian offensive aggressive person. I can totally say “I don’t like that singer because they did X” or because “their song is bad” or “I don’t like their style”, however, we cannot accuse people of stuff they didn’t do, things they didn’t say or even write they thought something or said something they didn’t, because then we’re invading their space, and they have the legal argument to sue you. Normally celebrities don’t lose their time suing small silly haters on social media, however, if a hater writes something offensive about them, including false accusations, they totally CAN sue the hater, or report them so their account gets closed anyway. Haters often forget that some of their actions are criminal, cyber bullying is crime, false accusations and humiliations can be interpreted as injury, and that can be serious, specially if the person being offended is going a hard phase or suffers from psychiatric disorders, the consequences could be way worse for who’s suffering the stalking.

Something that’s very common is Benedict haters taking pics of him and making photoshops making fun of his appearance (they FIND) and making fun of his name. Benedict kind of seems to be okay with that during interviews, considering a lot of his fans also do that, but still, imagine people taking pics of you, making an offensive edit and spreading it in the tags about you or tags about the things you do and like, HOLY CRAP THAT WOULD BE HELL, I WOULD HATE THAT! I WOULD SUE! And not only the celebrity has to endure that as well as all the fans have to scroll past the sooo many hateful posts which are contributing to NOTHING at all. The only ones happy with all that are the little noisy hater communities, who keep spreading all the offensive things, being rude to people and satisfying their ego, because they often feel way superior to the people they hate (and the fans, and anyone else because they feel they have the right to impose their thoughts). Hate tags do exist, and fans normally won’t visit them because they don’t want to read hate, but even so, haters get expansive and spread all their hate to healthy tags as well, and that becomes toxic. That’s why hate posts and spams are really close in many Guidelines of social media, and such posts CAN BE REPORTED, because they kind of break the “behave online, respect people and don’t harm other people” guideline.

In conclusion, if you’re a victim of a hater(s), don’t quit what you like, just report and block the haters. If it turns into stalking, keep reporting, call the police if you feel threatened, cyber bullying is CRIME, and spamming people is considered a bad attitude on most social media. Preserve your well being! Don’t lose your time discussing with fanatic haters, they won’t listen to you. (If someone hates an actor/singer etc. because they are misinformed, they tend to be like “really? I didn’t know it was a lie. I’ll check it out” when you first tell them /or comment on how the information they’re sharing is fake. Misinformed people normally don’t want to impose their thought, normally they’re just confused or lost, and most of them won’t attack you).

If you’re a hater, please, stop that and if you feel you need, go search psychiatric help, because what you’re doing probably is hurting someone, and hate doesn’t make good at all, not to you, not to anyone. You’re free to have your personal group where you hate on stuff together, of course, but try to be careful to not hurt people or to be toxic to others. Some stuff you hate mean the world to other people, so respect their view just like they respect yours.

Just reminding this text isn’t about extreme things such as racism, homophobia, sexism etc. this text isn’t about that. (Wanting to kill someone because of their gender or color isn’t accepted in our society, it’s crime, and I’m not talking about this here.).

That’s it. Stay away from haters, they will try to make you feel bad for not listening to them , they will accuse you of being authoritarian for blocking them, but no, you don’t have to listen to them, you don’t have to spend you time listening to their hate, you have the right to preserve yourself and ignore them, that’s why the function “block and report” exist and you have the right to use them.

#about haters #doctor strange #benedict cumberbatch #benedict #movies

[herladypresent]

𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞  𝐮𝐩𝐨𝐧  𝐚  𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞  …  clotho  was  known  as  the  whimsical  &  erratic  moirai  fate  with  a  reputation  for  being  a  adelaide  kane  doppelganger  .   but  now  ,  under  the  stress  of  the  war  on  the  horizon  ,  the  natural  born  unaffiliated  goddess  has  become  widely  known  for  being  rather  reserved  &  deceitful .   let’s  see  how  long  the  kingdom of olympus  native  will  last  during  this  war  .   after  all  they’re  only  twenty - nine  /  existence of time  years  old  .   +  character  she/her  &  agender in general terms, but as she grows closer to humankind, she’s developed a sense of self that differs of her sister’s ,  greek mythology .

hello friends!  i’m ailie ,  i’m 21yrs old ,   gmt -3 timezone & she/her pronouns !     below i leave some headcanons about clotho + wanted connections !!    if you wanna plot ,   like this / hmu on ims ??

clotho's temper and character changes as the times do change .    as she's the eye of the present ,    wherever she sets her all-seeing eye on ,   she will get a full view of the situation ,   people's acts ,   their feelings and the bonds that tie them like webs to one another .     in merrier times ,   the goddess was known to be the merrier one of her three sisters ,   being branded as a   " child "   as she danced around the court and backyards of the different nobles that would have them .      she'd adorn her head with handmade flower crowns and dabble in long conversations with anything that would speak to her .        now ,   as of late ,    a dark mist seems to have descended upon the youngest one of the fates .      she speaks less ,   and when asked something that concerns her all - seeing eye ,    she can only answer in riddles that come out incomprehensible labyrinths ,   prophecies that perhaps someday other ears will retrace to her and interpret .        as the future is uncertain ,    the present is confusing .

upon that confusion ,    the goddess spends lots of her time avoiding the matter ,    or sulking deep in her thoughts ,    or cursing her eye for not being able to    tell .       one day ,    she will wake up with an inkling ,   be it to whatever side the scale is tipping ,   and that will be a good day in which her temper will recede and give way to her good humors again .      but as quick as that can come ,   it can go ,   it can all be erased by the sweeping action of another that'd set off an entire chain of events to cloud her vision again . aside from that ,    clotho is the one that's closest to the humans ,    that's closer to the creatures they look over .     she's not rigid nor burdened like her sisters ,    at least not constantly .      clotho is like water ,   and like water she goes .      she's a terrific dancer ,    able to dance and dance until everyone's dropped out .       an avid thinker ,    but restless .      she's not fond of quiet and calm ,    she much prefers the noisy clatter and chatter ,    despises to stay still .

she laughs when she's nervous .     a low ,    child - like snickering that emerges like bubbles and it gets worse and worse as she tries to repress it .      she walks barefoot through every surface .     while there are human customs she's grown to accept ,   and some even like ,    she disagrees with everything in regards to the bodies of men and women ;    she enjoys her own nudity ,    and enjoys walking barefoot even through the plowing snow in winter .    walking with the soles of her feet away from the ground feels like walking blind .

different from ancient times when worship was a must ,   clotho has felt a bit set aside when big decisions need to be made ,    when someone comes to consult them on a matter ,   they're often looking for her older sisters and not her .       and as a matter of fact ,    it hasn't given her that much freedom in comparison to them ,    just a different understanding of matters human .       so ,    the same burden ,    the less the recognition .      she spins and spins the lives to live from her thread ,    and comes out tangled and confused .

times are deceitful ,   the present is uncertain ,    and so is the shape that clotho takes on :     a cloaked woman with hooded eyes and a glisten in her eyes that changes at every turn ;     one moment she'll be looking merry and well ,    the next mischief will be adorning the sweet features of the woman ,    and the next perhaps a deep sadness would swell up the dark ,   misty irises .      and it might all be a ruse .       while the present is unstable ,    so is clotho's situation and her sense of self .

WANTED CONNECTIONS !

friends ,    people that   understand ,   or try to .     that share with her .    that dance with her ,   kingdom - hop with her .

best friends / partners in crime ,    sometimes clotho will get into some sort of mischief or disobedience ,   and  -  well .    partners in crime .

someone that’s used her / that wants to use her .     for whatever gain .

lover/s / exlover/s .     cannot go wrong on that one .

connections in other kingdoms !       clotho enjoys going around the kingdom’s courts and surrounding towns ,   she enjoys knowing people ,   and be it whether they like her ,  dislike her ,   know her or   of   her or vise versa ,   give me .

political connections pls !       clotho is and will remain neutral ,    but she so wants things to clear up like   damn .     she is a moirai and as so has tremendous power and traction in the outcome of things . 

someone that clotho’s taken under her wing for   whatever   reason .

someone that’s taken clotho under her wing also .

that’s it for now  ----  i think .     i’ll def do more headcanons & meta ahead in time ,    and if you have any doubt pls !!! tell me !!!   i love 2 meta for days .

#tales.intro #* intro. #* intro: clotho.

[feral--bog--witch]

Alright, Ive got some time between editing and chores where I can sit down and actually explain some discourse I was in a bit ago with a vegan radfem. I stated that animals dont have human emotions and that I lived on a farm and they stated I was not an animal lover if I owned a farm and that yes animals do have human emotions. I wanted to clarify my position.

I am not vegan or vegetarian, first thing out of the gate. I eat meat, eggs, honey, and drink milk. Do I have issues with the over production and handling of major agriculture and livestock centers? Abso-fucking-lutely. Over consumption has created an unsustainable and brutal system that needs to be fixed. I agree with this. However the use of animal products is something I will always disagree with. Specifically because of how I view life and death.

My view of life is that no matter where you go or who or what you are, you require death to sustain you. From the plants that grow to the tigers in the jungle, something must die or decay to feed life. It's a natural and inescapable circle. Fungus and bacteria feed of of decaying bodies, breaking them down to the barest forms. Plants grow while feeding off of those decayed remains, growing off of the nutrients left. Herbivores and omnivores eat the plants to sustain themselves, taking in that life to grow and flourish. Carnivores and omnivores eat the herbivores to sustain themselves, to grow strong and old. Eventually they all die, once again bringing us to the beginning of that cycle. There is no place on this earth where you can live without death. Every living being on this planet is alive because of death because death sustains us.

In a cosmic or spiritual sense I do not hold one living being as superior to another. To me I feel the same reverence towards the plants that I eat as I do to the chickens that lay the eggs I eat as I do to the steer whose flesh I consume. Each one of those creatures is revered to me, their death or work brings me life, sustains me, and each of them is important and none are more important than the other. They do not hold more or less value to me based on who they are. The garden I plant get the same love and affection as the animals I raise. Why should I love and revere one and not the other when both will end up giving their lives for the cycle we live in? I know I will one day die and my body will return to the earth and the cycle will begin again with me being consumed by the very things that I had consumed in life.

We all sustain ourselves on death, the death of a plant or an animal does not matter, it is still death. And each of those deaths has meaning and matters as each of those lives had meaning and mattered.

So now that I've explained that so you have a better understanding of how I view the world, let's discuss animals and emotions. Animals and plants do not have human emotion. They don't and no one can convince me otherwise. Why? Because a dog has dog emotions, a cow has cow emotions, a tree has tree emotions. They each have their own way of perceiving the world and we shouldn't forget that. When we get so intent on seeing ourselves in animals we forget to see them. We look for only ourselves and become blinded to just how special their perception of the world is. I don't want to know which dog emotion mimics human emotion. I want to know exactly how a dog perceives its world and processes it. I don't want to see me in a dog I want to see that dog as a dog, as a life perceiving its world around it in its own unique way. I want to connect with it not because I see humanity but because our perceptions overlap and I can see the world through its eyes, not my own.

I feel the same way about plants. They all perceive the world in unique and vastly different ways and when you look at the world and try to see humanity in it, you ignore and are blinded to the things that are removed from that narrow scope. Plants do have feelings and perceive the world but it's so vastly different from ours we say they have none. But if they did not then the rose would never have grown thorns, the tree would never scar, the grass would never release hormones to warn others when it is cut, the dandelions would not tell others to duck when they are cut either.

Plants have a vast world of communication and feeling that we do not see because we are so blinded by looking for ourselves in nature we refuse to see the perceptions of the things that are just too different to comprehend.

So no. Animals do not have human emotions. Animals have animal emotions, plants have plant emotions,and that's great and wonderful. Each of those perceptions of the world are so important in understanding life and each other. To think otherwise shows the human superiority complex we have. We believe we are the mould in which intelligent life itself is cast from, if it is not like us, if we cannot see ourselves within it, it is not truly living or feeling. It's useless and stupid and is not worth the time to understand because there is nothing there to understand. All because we tried to look for ourselves rather than simply see what each living thing perceives of the world.

Onto my farm and the accusation that if I own a farm I cannot love animals. Im not going to give away too many irl details but we inherited the farm back in 2000 when family died. We moved out here and have been here ever since. I spoke of generations of animals and I was telling the truth. A majority of the animals on our farm can be traced back to rescued animals. We have a great love of finding the poorest, most neglected little beasties and rescuing them and bringing them home. We took care of them, loved them, and let them flourish. Cull sheep, orphaned calves, cage hens, abused cats, neglected goats, meat horses, you name it, we probably rescued it at one point. We even had a few years where we would buy barn pigeons stuffed into tiny boxes simply to let them fly free.

Those first animals became our bedrock and we grew on them. They had babies and their babies had babies and they grew old and they died and their family line lives on. A vast majority of the animals on our farm can be traced back to a rescue we did. We let the animals be animals and that included having babies. Yes we will sell some and you could twist it and say we participate in the corporate industrial meat industry but not really.

We never sell to feedlots or through massive operations. It's farm to freezer. We sell directly to consumers or people who have consumers to sell to (some of our buyers have people who live provinces over so they facilitate the deals we couldn't under normal circumstances). These animals are well loved and taken care of to the moment they are sold and butchered. We dont run 600 head or 1000 head. We run less than 100 and some people prefer it to buying stock from a store. At least with us they have the opportunity to come and see where their meat is from and see how they are treated. (Let me tell you people get really excited when they see you can go through a sheep or goat herd with the animals trying to love on you for scratches because you hand raised most of them and know you always scratch the best.)

A vast majority of our butchering is done locally as well. The one shop we mainly use does on the farm slaughtering meaning you don't stress the animal out by shipping it to a huge plant where it is noisy and quite frankly terrifying or even shipping them all over to a new enviroment. They stay at home and they die at home as painlessly as possible. They arent stressed and they never have to leave the place they were born. I prefer it that way. I don't like my animals to get stressed or scared. Neither do the rest of us here.

Im an animal lover 100%. If owning a farm negates that in some people's eyes I have to ask why? Is it because cows aren't cute enough to love or own? Is it because sheep aren't good enough to be on posters? Is it because I choose to extend my love to the unconventional animals? The non-cuddly ones? Why does living on a farm negate my love of other beings? Should we have left their ancestors to be abused and neglected? Should we have sold off the native prairie pastures we have to be torn up into single crop farms rather than allow our animals to roam free? Should we have left the cage hens in their cages rather than let them have free range on the farm to do as they wish (seriously though. Our ladies eat all the bugs. I haven't had a tick in years. They eat them all)?

Yes we have to sell some for meat but that is how we sustain ourselves so we can continue to survive and buy feed for all those that are left. I dont care what people think about our farm or our animals because nothing will change the fact that we have goats that give you hugs, chickens that treat you like one of the girls and try to feed you, to cows that want to bounce and play with you, horses that think teasing you is the greatest fun in the world, and sheep that will bowl you over trying to get attention and love.

Our animals are happy, healthy, and well loved. And in this world, that's the best thing for them.

#farming #radfem witch #radfem #i love all my animals and no one can tell me otherwise #gotta love the noncuddly ones too #at least my beasties have room to run around and play #local meat and produce is the most ecologically friendly form of consumption but no one wants to talk about that

[dwarrowdams]

In The Bleak Midwinter

Set in Winter, Year 1.  Dawn gives Elliott the first of many pomegranates.  Literary chit-chat and Dawn’s backstory ensue.  

TW for discussions of past ableism.

Dawn stomped the snow off of her boots as she entered the library, opening her backpack to pull out the books she’d brought.  “Here you go,” she said as she set them on the counter.

Gunther frowned at them.  “Where did you find these?”

“In the dirt,” Dawn said, waving her hand vaguely.  “I cleaned them off the best I could, but I think they’ve been buried for a while.”

“Well, thank you for bringing them here,” Gunther said as he leafed through them, his brow furrowing as he saw the sorry state of some of the pages.

Dawn’s eyes darted to the right as she began to edge away from the desk.  She peeked past the shelves, hoping that Elliott was here, as he often was on winter afternoons.  Sure enough, he was seated by a bookshelf, his nose buried deep in a book.

“I’m just gonna check out the collection,” Dawn muttered as she wandered off in Elliott’s direction.  She moved slowly, meandering her way towards him  as she hoped that it wasn’t too obvious that he was the main reason she’d come here.  She made a little more noise as she approached him, adjusting her backpack and clearing her throat when she was a few steps away.  Sure enough, he looked up, his mouth curving into a small smile when he saw her.

“Hello Dawn,” he said.  “What are you doing here?”

“Just dropping off some books I found,” she replied.  “And—oh, while I’m here—I have something for you.”  

She set her backpack on the floor and dug inside, praying that the fruit hadn’t been crushed.  Dawn had been extra careful today, but the best-laid plans often went awry, especially with someone as klutzy as her.

Her hand closed around the fruit and she breathed an internal sigh of relief as she pulled the unpunctured pomegranate from her backpack.  “Here,” she said as she handed it to him.

His brow furrowed.  “How did you find this?  It’s the middle of winter.”

“Fruit bats,” she said.  “They leave things behind in my cave sometimes and I thought this might be something you like.”

Elliott’s hands closed around the fruit, a grin spreading across his face.  “Dawn, this is a wonderful gift!” he said.  “Thank you.”

She shrugged, trying not to show how pleased she was with his reaction.  “I’m glad you like it,” she said.  “Otherwise I’d need to find some other way to lure you to the underworld.”

Elliott chuckled at that.  “So you’re a fan of mythology?” he asked. 

“Oh, I adore it,” she said.  “I was gonna major in it for my bachelor’s—or something close, like Classics or English—but that didn’t pan out.”

Elliott’s brow furrowed.  “Why not?” he said.  “If you don’t mind me asking.”

“Not at all,” Dawn said as she sat down beside him.  “The plan was to get my associate’s at community college and then transfer to a four-year university for my bachelor’s.  I was all ready for my first semester and it was great...for a whole two days.  Then it all went to shit.  I couldn’t focus, I was fucking up deadlines, and half the time I didn’t bring the right notebook to class.  I flunked out at the end of the semester.”

She looked away from Elliott as she continued.  “I thought I was just dumb and lazy, but my parents knew something was up.  I wasn’t top of my class in high school, but I did all right and they never had to get on my case about schoolwork.  Long story short, appointments happened, assessments happened, and I was diagnosed with ADHD.”

She ventured a glance up at Elliott, who was listening attentively, showing no signs of shock or distaste at her revelation.  “But you went back to school, I assume?” he asked.

Dawn nodded.  “I started at a different school next fall with the same plan,” she said.  “I thought it’d be great—my meds were working well and I had accommodations that’d make taking tests easier for me—but that’s because I assumed that people would actually follow those.”

“But isn’t ignoring someone’s accommodations against school policy?” he asked.  “And the law?” 

“Oh yeah,” Dawn said.  “Massive ADA violation.  But it was a small school where most of the administration wanted to be somewhere else, so they didn’t give a whole lot of fucks about a freshman with an invisible disability.  I got most of my profs to let me take my exams in a quiet room—which is what they were supposed to do anyways—but some of them didn’t.  My fucking stats professor said he didn’t think I needed the quiet room because it always looked like I was paying attention in class, so I was probably just faking so I could cheat.”

“He actually said that?” Elliott asked, his eyes wide in horror.

“Yep,” Dawn replied.  “I cried for hours that night because I started wondering if I was actually faking it.  Never mind that I spent five hours being evaluated by a trained professional to make sure I actually had ADHD and not something else.”

“Where do they find these people?” Elliott muttered.

“The trash, presumably.”

Elliott laughed.  “I can’t say I disagree,” he said.  “Anyone who’d treat a student like that sounds like a pile of human refuse.”

“You can say that again,” Dawn replied.  “Anyways, my mythology professor was the only one who actually did more than the bare minimum to help me and who helped me figure out what ways of studying and taking notes worked for me.  She let me write an essay instead of doing a final exam, which was a huge help because I didn’t have to deal with the noisy exam room.  We stayed in touch after I graduated and she even writes to me sometimes.”

Elliott reached out to lay a hand on her knee.  “Well, I’m glad that there was someone who recognized how brilliant you are.”

“Aw, you’re sweet,” she said, ducking her head to hide the blush making its way up her neck.  “I’m really not, though.  I just got lucky that someone with a little compassion offered a class on my childhood hyperfixation.”

“Hmm,” he mused.  “So I suppose you getting your associate’s was luck?  And you managing to turn an unused plot of land into a thriving farm in less than a year is also luck?”

“Well yeah,” she said.  “That and people helping me along.  I wouldn’t even have the farm if it wasn’t for my grandfather.”

“But you’re the one who turned it into something again, Dawn,” he said, looking her directly in the eyes.  “Without your planning and hard work, it would still be just an overgrown plot of land.”

“Okay fine, I’m the one who made the farm something,” Dawn said reluctantly.  “But that doesn’t mean I’m brilliant.”

Elliott’s lips curved into a smile.  “Oh, I beg to differ,” he said.  “You’re brilliant, Dawn Abner.  I only hope that someday you can see it for yourself.”

“All this because I gave you a pomegranate?” Dawn said half to herself.

“No, not at all,” Elliott said.  “All this because it’s true.”

Dawn sighed.  She knew that she was unnecessarily hard on herself, but that didn’t make taking a compliment any easier, especially if it came from a cute writer with the most gorgeous hair she’d ever seen.  Still, she appreciated Elliott’s kindness, even if it was just because he pitied her.

“D’you mind if I stay a while?” she asked.  “I could use a break from being out in the cold.”

Elliott smiled at her.  “Please do,” he replied.  “I’d love the company.  And if you’re looking for reading material, I think there’s a collection of Ovid’s works somewhere around here.”

“Perfect,” Dawn said as she pulled herself up off of the floor.  The library was still sparsely stocked, so she was able to find it quickly.  She sat down beside Elliott and flipped through the book, looking for the start of whichever myth struck her fancy.

“Dawn?” he said softly.

She looked up, meeting his eyes.  “Yeah?”

“I’m glad you ventured out here to see me.”

Dawn looked over at him and smiled.  “So am I.”

#hush Bree #dawn abner #dawn x elliott #also my tag for Elliott is #manic pixie dream husband #not putting this in The Actual Tag bc idk how hard the fandom will jump down my throat #also I know technically it's the museum but it seems weird to be like 'the museum' when Dawn's bringing BOOKS #and then reading with Elliott #anyways I usually don't write shit this early in a fandom but it happened so whatever

[calleo-bricriu]

For FB verse Calleo in the early 1990s: What's the most incorrect bit of advice you've been given by someone older than you?

I think the most incorrect one ever repeatedly told to me by people from all walks of life was that I would become more conservative as I got older.

That all of my views on social matters would take a sharp swing away from progressively liberal to conservative or, worse, reactionary--you know the sort, the ones who sit around and lament the loss of the "good old days", with most of them being several decades too young to have experienced them as, if they had they would not miss them nor would they call them the "good old days" unless it was with heavy, visibly dripping sarcasm.

The older I get, the more entrenched I become in the progressive left and the louder I get about being there because, the thing is, the older I get, the less I care what those who disagree or those in power might think.

What are they going to do about it?

Kill me? That hasn't been a threat since the 1920s, even if they're successful, it's still not a threat or a deterrent. I could do with a change of scenery and I may even be kind enough to take a group of them along with me just for the company.

Throw me in prison? They could try but, at that point, they'd be making a hostile move against the Department of Mysteries and that historically ends badly for anyone who thinks they can bring it to heel.

And even if they were successful, I'd hardly care; I know the few tricks that cause Dementors to not notice your presence, and much of my own property warding is based heavily off of what's used at Azkaban and Nurmengard. There's a good chance, with those two things kept in mind, that it would take very little effort for me to simply leave and disappear--and make no mistake, I have always kept an updated list of countries who refuse to extradite to the Ministry of Magic based solely on the Ministry's continued use of Dementors and solitary confinement as its main means of punishment.

I'd just pack up, settle back down in one of those places, and continue taking shots from a distance.

But, we'll pretend I get stuck there; I'm now closer to 110 than I am to 100, it's not as though I'd have long to sit there and be bothered by it before I'd be dead anyway.

Not really a threat.

The third most obvious tactic would be to silence me but when that route is taken, it's often taken with the threat of death, imprisonment, or both behind it and neither option is something I view as a threat.

I have nothing to lose, and those who often push hardline conservative views have always been little fear aggressive dogs yapping at a fence; they know they stand to lose a great deal if they don't 'win' as it were, and use that fear aggressive behaviour to try and frighten others into going along with it.

Aggression spawned from fear is--only fear, and it's easy to snuff them out as their only strength lies in tricking the less observant into thinking their fear and its aggression are strength. There is nothing behind it, not strength, not power, not even what I'd consider skill as it's so blindly applied and in such a clumsy manner.

They're the personification of a house of cards.

Those of us who've spent a lifetime working with fear as the basis of what we study can smell them by their words alone.

So, let them try.

They wouldn't be the first.

Objectively more skilled people have tried. Repeatedly.

I'm still here and as noisy as I've ever been.

I will continue reminding the Department of Magical Law Enforcement that their Zero Tolerance policies toward the Dark Arts are what allow people like Voldemort to gain followings. Their policies and every Minister’s administration that’s supported and enforced them are directly responsible for the last war and the one looming and I have no intentions of allowing any of them to forget that for one second. It ought to be something that haunts them well into the next life.

I will continue reminding the nasty little bigots in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures that werewolves are, in fact, people and ought to be treated as people with a chronic condition that is manageable if the Ministry would regulate the price and distribution of the Wolfsbane potion and that, continuing on the same course will only push them toward people like Voldemort.

I will, as I have since 1912, continue to very openly tell the Muggles I live around that I can, in fact, use magic because desensitisation works and has been working since I started experimenting with it to see if it did work. By proxy, I will continue pointing out how outdated and crippling the Statute of Secrecy is to both those who can use magic and those who cannot, sometimes to the point of splitting families apart should there be Muggles involved.

I will continue silently...charming...those who start going on about Purebloods being somehow superior so that any time they try to say the word “Pureblood” it inexplicably gets pronounced “highly inbred”.

I will cheerfully continue calling that little rag of a paper the Ministry all but owns nothing more than propaganda mixed in with ridiculous fluff designed to make you forget the ‘news’ they report is carefully worded government propaganda. I’ve been through two wars, I know damn well what government propaganda looks like.

Second only to...charming...people to pronounce Pureblood as “highly inbred”, I will continue to have no qualms about simply laughing at or openly mocking objectively bad opinions to the point that those who hold them become too embarrassed to express them where they think I might hear.

And I have no intentions of stopping for anything but Death itself.

#v: ftbawtft #hp rp #politics #(106 year old Calleo left all of his fucks back in 1943 and never bothered to pick them back up) #old man yells at cloud #(You know if he had a clear shot he'd definitely straight up curse one of the Malfoys to always say 'highly inbred') #(just to listen to them try to talk about the topic to literally anyone) #(He definitely turned into a Always Punch Death Eaters and Their Supporters type)

[miraculously-dedicated]

Ikari Gozen

🚨 HUGE SPOILER WARNING 🚨

The whole episode was played during the Miraculous Ladybug panel for SDCC so for those that wish to wait for the proper release, I will keep everything hidden under the “keep reading” tab. (it’s going to be super long anyway)

You still here?

Great, LET’S GET INTO IT!

HOLY SHIT I LOVED THIS EPISODE❤❤ (I say that for pretty much almost all episodes but can you really blame me?)

The friendship challenge sounded like a such a cute and cool concept that I personally really liked. Like you know how we have so many National something days that nobody really cares to much to even remember? PARIS DOESN’T HALF-ASS ANYTHING Y’ALL. They take the concepts that TRULY matter and make sure it is celebrated, respected, and appreciated to its fullest. Making sure to remind everyone about what’s truly important, keeping their faith in humanity strong, strengthening the communities bonds, just like in Heroes Day! It’s honestly just such a sweet feeling and I really wish people would talk about this concept more. I can’t wait too see what other fun events the show has planned.

Tomoe continues to be a badass. A good mother? ......UHHHH 😬😬

Aaww, Kagami just wants more friends.

WTF, THEIR CAR??? OKAY THEN. I guess I really shouldn’t be so surprised since they ARE rich. (Especially since Gabriel has a freaking hologram in his car, so that really makes the Tsurugi’s pale in comparison)

Ooooohhh clever girl. I love how both Kagami and Adrien are rebellious against their commanding parents.

“OH NO SHE’S CUTE”-Marinette Dupain Cheng 2019😂

I am Mari in public🤣🤣

“She’s such a weird girl” You’ll get used to it sweetie 

MARINETTE NO, WHY??? COME ON! (She REALLY has serious jealousy issues)

“Okay on second thought, maybe you shouldn’t play the game” YOU AND ME BOTH TIKKI

(No hate towards Marinette, I love her with all my heart, but the girl still has to seriously work on her emotions)

KAGAMI TRYING TO SMILE IS MY FAVORITE (everyone is a constant mood in this show)

I love how there are so many awkward characters, and how the writers did such a good job showing how different characters with different upbringings have different ways of displaying that. Just like with any other emotions or personal issues, it is a wide spectrum and never just one-dimensional thing. I appreciate it so much is because as a very awkward person myself, I can relate. It feels nice to have something like that be acknowledged and positively included and definitely helped boost my confidence when I was younger🥰.

Okay Marinette is definitely 100% me I’m really indecisive as well  

*Kagami listing down Marinette’s traits to determine her blood type*              “Split personality” Excuse me?? The reason it stuck out to me the most is because the definition of split personality is:  Another term for dissociative identity disorder; A rare psychological disorder in which two or more personalities with distinct memories and behavior patterns apparently exist in one individual. In this case the different personalities have no memory or even knowledge of the others existence.                                                                          ...WELL I’m pretty sure Marinette doesn’t have DID but if you think about it... What if Kagami meant it as a, less extreme, figure of speech to describe Marinette’s behavior? Marinette is filled surprises, so much so, that I honestly have a hard time figuring her character out. She may seem like a simple, typical  shoujo-esque character but OH NO MY DUDE. I HEAVILY disagree. (But that’s a different post all together for another day)

“HEY”

Cue montage of Marinette trying to screw everything up but Kagami still wins with ease (aka Chaotic Neutral vs No Bullshit🤣)

“Trust exercise. Exchange unlocked phones with your partner.” OH NO. PHONE THIEF MARINETTE MAKES A COMEBACK

MARINETTE DON’T GO THROUGH HER PHONE

Wait Kagami doesn’t even have Adrien’s contact? And she even searched up how to make friends.  AWW MY POOR LONELY BABY, MUST PROTECT AT ALL COSTS.

Not to mention how proud I was of Marinette for immediately realizing her mistake and wanting to fix everything between the two of them. I will definitely make a future post about the relationship development between Marinette and Kagami, but all I can say now is that there has been HEAVY miscommunication between them up until this moment. Both girls did not have a good impression on the other leading to false interpretations and a overall poor thought of character towards each other. In Marinette’s case, she thought Kagami was full of herself with her bold and and competitive streak, due to her many success in the the past. She thought Kagami literally couldn't care less about others but learned it was quite the opposite. Kagami yearns for friends and companionship but is just awkward at showing it. Learning that, Marinette changes her idea about Kagami completely and wants to make her wish come true.

“Are all humans this noisy?” Marinette just smiles awkwardly. AT LEAST SHE’S SELF-AWARE (Seriously I’m glad their bringing up this unhealthy behavior, my girl needs to CHILL) 

AW NO SHE SAW THE VIDEO, NO BABY, FUCK OFF HAWKMOTH

AH SHIT HER MOM FOUND OUT SHE LIED

MARINETTE IS PROTECTING KAGAMI. 

KAGAMI IS GENUINELY GRATEFUL FOR THAT AND CHEERS UP

I’M GOING TO CRY THIS IS SO BEAUTIFUL 

I honestly love how in a second, their relationship took a complete 180. Marinette just suddenly becomes very protective and attentive towards Kagami. She is taking full responsibility of her past actions by genuinely caring for her new friend and the best part is, I think Kagami saw that as well! I love my girls, their friendship is so sweet.

OH MY GOD IKARI GOZEN’S DESIGN IS SICK

Did...Did she just EAT HER DAUGHTER???

WAX ADRIEN MAKES A COMEBACK😂

A movie ticket??

Wait Fu works at the movies???

WAIT HAWKMOTH KNOWS WHO HE IS, WHAT I’M SORRY WHAT ELSE DID WE MISS???????? AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH

HELL YEAH DRAGON KAGAMI FOR THE WIN

Bath-bombs now????

YEET

OKAY I’VE KNOW LONGG FOR LIKE THREE SECONDS AND I ALREADY LOVE THEM

Best transformation phase so far

AAAHHH RYUKO IS LOOKS SO BEAUTIFUL I LOVE HER

AND HER POWERS ARE AWESOME

AND SHE’S SUCH A BADASS I’M IN LOVE💖💖

SHE’S PERFECT

 Ladybug being a true mentor, supporting Ryuuko 😭❤❤

AH SHIT NOT CAT NOIR TOO

Ok that was a really smart plan

“I have good teachers” MY HEART

THE DRAGON MIRACULOUS HAS SUCH COOL POWERS I WANT IT

My new FAVORITE akumas and battle in the show so far 

THAT POUND IT😭😭❤

AH NO PLEASE LET KAGAMI USE THE MIRACULOUS AGAIN IN THE FUTURE

“I don’t have many friends.” “ What matters isn’t having lots of friends, but the ones you do have are true friends.” I SWEAR THIS SHOW IS GONNA KILL ME WITH ITS SWEETNESS. Also I swear, Ladybug proves time and time again she is the emotional support everyone needs.

“The game is over. We lost.” “No. We won the right to get orange juice together! If you still want to that is.”  MARI, YOU’RE AN ANGEL I LOVE YOU💖. Seriously I’m really proud of Marinette for always being so mature at the end of the day. Even when Kagami mentions how Adrien was right about Marinette being a good friend, you can see Marinette was a bit upset over it, BUT she immediately got over it and focused on having a fun time with Kagami. I LITERALLY HAVE NO WORDS FOR HOW I FEEL AFTER SEEING THAT.

Also the long awaited question since day 1 has been answered. Marinette’s zodiac sign is a snake.

THAT CUTE SELFIE AT THE VERY END

So yeah! That basically summarizes all my (MANY) feelings about this wonderful episode! I loved the theme of friendship, the development between my two best girls, the akuma battle and dragon miraculous, all the asian cultural references, there was just so much to digest. Ikari Gozen was definitely a character heavy episode that adds so much more context and depth to the overall understanding and arcs for both Marinette and Kagami, there is only so much more to go from here! With that said I will definitely do my best to come up with a full blown analysis post for both girls and how their relationship developed and some for Kagami alone as well (Mari too of course, that just might take a bit longer). There is already something I have in the works😉...

#ml s3 spoilers #ikari gozen #marinette dupain cheng #kagami tsurugi #how many times have i written both their names in this post?

[sweetmoxiety]

Behind This Mask is a Desperate Heart (Part 5)

Hospital AU

AU Summary: A fall. A single fall. It may seem like nothing until it’s all consuming. What happens when the doctors struggle to diagnosis the disease responsible for Virgil’s rapid deterioration?

Characters: Virgil, Patton, Roman, Logan, and sympathetic Deceit.

Pairings: Moxiety and Logince.

Word Count: 1800

Warnings: Deceit.

  “Still?” Patton eyed Virgil scrolling through his phone again, voice delicate like silver bells, “what happened to putting the phone away?” Virgil’s back had been facing Patton as his fingers slid across the dimly lit screen, dawn already seeping through the window.

       “Insomnia’s a bitch.”

       “How long have you been up?” Patton edged closer, watching Virgil flop with an exasperated sigh onto his other side.

       “Well, considering that its 6am now, I’d say about 27 hours?”

       “Virgil Poole!”

       “Like I said insomnia’s a b-”

       “Bad,” Patton scrambled, interrupting to correct him this time around, “it’s bad.”

       Virgil laughed throatily, sputtering like an old water faucet, “sure thing.”

     Wagging his finger with disapproval, Patton strode towards the windows to shut the clanky blinds permitting the blooms of dawn. Pausing, Patton peered out to catch a glimpse of snow layered on the ground as if it were sheets of stringy, white felt. Instead of the apricot horizon he watched bathe skyscrapers morning after morning, he witnessed gray skies and powerful gusts slinging ice and snow. He knew Logan was right when he said that it would be a bad storm, but the worst storm in the history of NYC? It would certainly seem that way now.

     Finally closing the blinds, Patton held up one finger, an idea springing forward, as he darted out of the room, leaving Virgil alone again. He knew just what Virgil needed to fix his sleeping issue. And when Patton reappeared, Virgil was back to skimming posts on his phone like a Tumblr addict. Now stepping back into the room, Patton carried with him a pair of ear plugs and an eye mask, and most importantly a gummy grin.

       “These might help,” Patton offered, extending his hand holding the ear plugs and mask out to Virgil.

       “Ear plugs?” Virgil asked, his fatigued voice littered with confusion.

       “Well, it does get plenty noisy here! It should help block out the sound a bit to make it easier to sleep.”

       “...Thanks,” Virgil slowly grabbed the two items from Patton’s outstretched hand before finally looking back up at him.

       “No problem!” Patton was more than happy to be of help, “and if you still can’t sleep, you let me or someone else know, okay?”

       “..Okay,” Virgil fiddled with the ear plugs, waiting for Patton to leave before he plucked up the courage to put them in or the eye mask on.

       “Good, try and get some rest now, yeah?” Patton waited for Virgil to nod before sauntering towards the hallway and quietly shutting the heavy, suite door.

       Now ambling away from Virgil’s shaded room, Patton steered himself towards the elevators. To meet Logan in the cafeteria, he would need to go up one floor. So, tiredly, now much more aware of how much he felt like a worn-out shoe, Patton stepped up to press the elevators’ shabby, call button.

       “Hhhello, Patton,” a low voice crept up from behind him; if it were a snake, it would have bit him.

       Jumping at the voice’s proximity, Patton looked back, startled. But he immediately relaxed, a sigh of relief tumbling from his lips, when he recognized the deep scar darting from one corner of the figure’s mouth to their cheek, “you gave me quite a scare there, Dee!”

       “My bad,” Dee chuckled, moving to stand beside Patton as they waited for the same elevator.

       “It’s a’okay!”

       Nodding, Dee shifted on his heels, waiting for the elevator like one watched paint dry, “you look exhausted.”

       “Yeah, a twelve hour shift will do that to ya.”

       “Gross, how about I buy you a cookie or something sweet since you’re off now?”

       “Oh no, that’s no-” the elevator dinged, and the top triangle on the hall lantern lit up a dull amber color. After which, the doors skated open to reveal an empty, silver elevator car. “That’s not necessary, but thank you,” he finished.

     Accepting Patton’s response, Dee stepped into the box first, eyeing the way in which Patton followed after him, “Where to, Patton?”

       “The second floor.”      

   “Cafeteria?” Dee languidly reached out to press down the second floor button.

       “Yeah, ‘had a few things to take of first before finishing my shift.”

     It only took a few seconds for the doors to begin rattling shut with Patton and Dee inside, corralling them into the metal cage. And with doors shut, the floor rumbled its ascent as Dee leaned back against the cold, elevator railing. And within a moment, the elevator was suspended on the second floor, settling before the doors unhurriedly unsealed to divulge the cafeteria.

     Dee watched as Patton parted from him to survey the cafeteria in search of Logan. Patton didn’t see him standing by the food counter hunched over a display of muffins and deli sandwiches. And he didn’t see Logan by the hot chocolate machine or the coffeemaker. Instead, he found him tucked away with a steaming cup of cocoa in the far corner with a weathered book by himself.

     “Lo?”

     “Hm?” Logan hummed, turning his head as Patton quietly pulled a chair out from underneath the table to join him.

     “I see you got some hot chocolate and a book,” Patton inspected the mug, watching as Logan shut the navy book before pushing it out of the way and to the side, “but no marshmallows!”

     “Patton, they consist of almost entirely sugar. Most importantly, they add nothing to your daily intake of beneficial nutrients.”

     “Soooooo?” Patton disagreed, “they’re delicious.” If Patton had grabbed a mug of cocoa before sitting down with Lo, it would have been filled to the brim with minimallows just as he liked it.

     “They are unhealthy, Patton.”

   “Roman was right when he said you need to live a little,” Patton giggled, voice gentle like a warm ray of sunshine on a summer afternoon.

     Rolling his eyes at Patton’s remark, Logan looked away as he took a sip from his hot chocolate.

     “Oh, you know I’m only joking, Lo,” Patton reached out to touch Logan’s arm as he tried to suppress his giggling like a dam holds back water, “Here, let’s change the topic: how was your week off?”

     “It was adequate.”

     "Oh come on, Lo, tell me more.”

     “I saw my sister, so it was tolerable.”

     “Oh?” Patton inquired, hoping Logan would put everything out under the sun. But at times, Logan was like a locked door; rarely would he open those doors to share his past with anyone, even if that person was his best friend, Patton.

     “We were able to have a conversation this time.” A little bit slipped out. For the most part, he kept to himself; convincing Logan to talk about his sister was like pulling teeth without anesthesia. That conversation he had about the patient in the E.R with Roman had been an exception; his emotions, emotions that were like a kite tangled in the branches of an old oak, were scattered and running high.  

     “Guess it’s better than the last time, huh?”

       “Might we talk about something a little less emotionally charged? I am quite drained from today, Patton.”

       “Oh- yeah, sorry,” Patton cringed, heavy with regret for pushing Logan, “I know you don’t like to talk much about that...” He knew better than to keep pestering Logan over something he clearly wasn’t ready to talk about. He couldn’t expect Logan to unseal that locked door of his today.

       “It’s fine, Patton,” Logan waved it off like nothing had happened, “How was Virgil Poole when you checked up on him?”

       “Oh!!” Patton’s expression softened like butter left at room temperature, “he couldn’t sleep at all.”

       “Insomnia?”

       “Yeppers,” Patton sighed wistfully, “it’s the worst.” Being trapped with your own thoughts before daybreak was deafening; Remy always said that the shadows made lonely company.

       “If not, it’s something to look into. Not getting enough sleep can impair attention, reaction time, motor coordination, decision-making skills, and immune system functioning.”

     “Yeah.., I know what sleep deprivation does to the body, Lo,” Patton said a little distantly, eyes blanky transfixed on a spot over Logan’s shoulder.

     To the untrained eye, someone else would just assume Patton was only overtired from a long-lasting shift, but Logan knew better. He knew much better; he was acutely aware of what a Patton imprisoned in a field of distant memories looked like.

     “Pat?”

     A moment passed before Patton snapped out of it, “Yeah? ..sorry.”

     “Are you okay, Patton?” A flicker of concern skipped across Logan’s face; he wanted to oust the memory that had Patton tethered to his thoughts.

     “Just thinking…”

     “About?”

     “...Remy,” He admitted timidly.

     “Oh,” Logan was frozen into silence; Patton’s thoughts stood in the shadows no more. But Logan’s response had Patton shifting in his seat; he could feel the silence wafting in their secluded bubble as Patton darted his eyes to watch people seizing nearby tables.

     “Yeah…”

     Logan soaked it up before he could let an even more uncomfortable silence befall them, “How come?”

     “What do you mean ‘how come’?”

     “What made you think about Remy?”

     “I don’t know…,” Patton trailed off, fiddling with his fingers as he tried to avoid the inspecting gaze forcing him to take the center stage.

     “He reminds you of Remy, doesn’t he?” Logan remarked softly, watching as Patton’s gaze became transfixed on the table top. Unbeknownst to Patton, though, Logan’s eyes shifted slightly to see his own attending walking in their direction.

     Without looking up into Logan’s scrutinizing eye, Patton started, “Well, kind-”

     “I don’t mean to interrupt, but--”

     Startled by that voice a second time, Patton snapped his head up to spot Dee standing at the end of the table holding a couple of cookies wrapped in clear plastic before flittering his gaze between Logan and him.

     “I know you said you were fine, but the least I could do for jump scaring you earlier would be to buy you a cookie,” Dee set the cookies down, the plastic covers crinkling loudly. And from just a quick glimpse, Patton knew that they were his favorite type: chocolate chip.

       “That’s very kind of you Dee, but you know that you really didn’t have to, right?”

       “It was no problem,” Dee beamed, oblivious to the heavy, gray atmosphere looming silently over Patton and Logan, “I wanted to.”      

     “Thank you, Dee. I really appreciate it,” Patton smiled faintly up at him before reaching out a hand to grab one of cookies from their place on the center of the table.

       “Well, I’ll leave you to it,” Dee nodded, eyeing Logan before he turned on his heel to depart the pair, “I’ll see you in a bit, Logan.”

       “Certainly, Dr. Whittaker.”

       And with that, Dee sauntered away from the table and out of their personal bubble.

Tag list (ask to be added): @opaque-puppet @yayyyyanxiety @anxious-angel-wing @b0bsy0urunc13 @shysquishyemowithglasses @buckydeangirl91 @bunny222 @ felicianoromano  @ llamaly

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