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chaifootsteps · 9 months

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(Patreon anon) Here's the last of what I have of my QnA archive, I don't plan to repledge so cheers to whoever uses their money to snitch like me.

-HB season 1 takes place within one year

-Wally Wackford won't appear much in season 2 but will be important in the future.

-Vivzie would love more Wally merch but her merch lead doesn't feel confident in it selling well.

-Vivzie hasn't consider making pride merch because "It's the kind of thing that big corporations to try to appeal to a generation they're not normally involved in."

-Vivzie claims the whole show is a celebration of pride and doesn't feel the need to make pride merch but would be down to making if there's a demand for it. (With the amount of fan merch I've seen, there is)

-She claims to do general research for the HH character time period but doesn't integrate the history into their backstories as of now.

-Viv's open to oversea convention appearances and has been trying to get a booking agent to travel more for European conventions.

-Paimon's a big shapeshifter and is only an owl because that's what he needs to be.

-There was a time where Vivzie hated Zoophobia, saying if something doesn't work out, keep trying new projects that excite you.

-One hell year equals a lot of Earth years, so stolas existed well before 1985.

-Vivzie actually loves Mammon's design, she conceptualized it and had someone else finalize it. Sort of like how Oz was designed by someone on the team with Vivzie finalizing it.

-Vivzie wanted to show men can be abused too with Stolas

-Jeremy Jordan might join be cast by Vivzie since she knows him

-Stella may not want Stolas dead right away anymore, just at a later time. (This was asked pre-Western Energy)

-It's currently unclear when we'll get HH merch with their full series designs since they're owned by A24. (This was months before the recall of that Sir Pentious keychain that used the full series design)

-At the time, they were aiming for a three month wait period between HB episodes for season 2.

-Unlike HH, HB isn't considered a musical to Vivzie but will have elements to it in season 2.

-Vivzie doesn't remember what the golden feathers in epsiode 6 meant. Adam saids the artist come up with a bunch of ideas.

-Sinners technically don't need food and water to live, it's mostly out of habit and indulgence. Electronic sinners like Vox find a way through cartoon logic.

-Because of how long episode 8 was taking, Vivzie and Adam have started making HB comics of what happens between the episodes. They're still figuring it out with HH.

-If Oz ever met Valentino, he would hate him. The team jokes that Val would be very "notice me senpai" with him.

-Stolas is confirmed to be 8ft tall with Blitz at 5ft.

-Fights between an overlord and a goetia would barely happen so Vivzie wouldn't know which one would win.

-Tilla was removed as a sibling because Blitz's family was still in the early works, she's going to be renamed.

-Vivzie doesn't have a specific favorite villain archetypes, she enjoys ruthless mean girls and dramatic, and theatrical messed up villains like The Joker.

-Episode 6's collaboration was fun for Vivzie but complicated because she had to manage an entire second team, There were file issues and they had to go back and forth to make sure they were correct.

-Vivzie's interested in making more Zoophobia merch but doesn't wish to for other older projects. She mentions it'd be hard to convince her merch lead that anyone would want to buy anything from her older works.

-Stolas does have guilt with his affair and he has a lot of turmoil related to it.

-Leviathan will have a cameo in season 2

-Vivzie can't give specifics but Stolas doesn't have many friends who we might see them in the future. Stella has two friends who at the moment of that QnA don't have names.

-White marks on Imps are scars, and can be added for aesthetics (Unsure if she means design wise or in-universe cosmetics, possibly both with how Barbie looks)

-Stolas's job is to look into the skies of Earth and find prophecies in them and inform Hell of what's to come in the future, he doesn't do much other than that.

-Oz has a broad range of powers, there were too many to list in the timespan of the QnA.

-Octavia takes after Stolas in that she's socially unaware, Vivzie claims she also unaware of her parents's relationship because of Stolas trying hard to make it seem things are fine and does that to a "good extent".

-we'll see what Octavia and Stella's relationship is like later.

-Vivzie would like to release an artbook bigger than their con-exclusive one for HB after season 2 and when the team is free to organize the production art, she's unable to do one for HH at the moment.

-DHORK will return

-She's still figuring out the sins but don't want them to be fallen angels since it doesn't matter in HB, but it will for HH. So she wants to wait until HH to decide. (Possible they figured it out with HH season 1 done)

-She finds people saying the childhood friends trope with Stolitz being fanservice frustrating. (As seen with her recent rant of the overall story)

-Vivzie adopted Pixel a year and a half after she graduated SVA. She didn't explain how she got Honeybee and Nugget.

-full quote "There would be demons from the ring of Lust who would be asexual, and they will get to that in the future. But she generally imagines that lust demons wouldn't think it'd that much of a taboo. Lust demons would generally be confused by the concept, but they wouldn't have any hate.

Asmodeus would be an example of someone who wouldn't understand asexuality"

-She would like region-free dvds of HB but it would require re-negotiations with everyone who was involved with the show, if they do release it, it'll be difficult to make it region-free.

-Stolitz didn't interact at all between the 25 years apart.

-She put a lot of her life into Loo Loo Land, and yes...Viv's dad was openly horny in front of her and her sisters growing up, Viv found it funny but like I told Lemon...There was no mention of how her sisters felt about it.

-Viv put aspects of herself into Octavia but claims to not be a self-insert. Fizz has an aspect that is directly from Viv that we'll see in season 2 that she feels needs to be shown.

-HB was spun off because IMP was originally for HH, with Vivzie thinking they were better off as their own thing. HB's also about exploring Vivzie's hell like the demons that possess people.

-HB/HH was inspired by Batman and various musicals with the idea that she wanted a worlds with nothing but villains.

-The fan interpretations of Andrealphus were pretty close to what she's written for him.

-Vivzie's interpretation of Stolas's "I used to think that I was bold, I used to think that love was for fun" is meant that he's never gotten the chance to experience true love with him being gay and he had an arranged marriage.

-She wants Stolas and Stella's relationship to be something that's debated.

-The Von Eldritches will not appear in HH season 1

-question "How did Viv get to where she was? How did she get Hazbin and Helluva produced?"

answer: "She has reps who set her up with people very interested in her show. It was the producers who pitched their interest in her. This is what happened with Hazbin in that production companies showed what they would do for that show. When A24 showed interest in Hazbin, that's when she started pitching it to others (No mention of that those others are)"

-The certificate on Loona's adoption paper was signed by Beelzebub.

-HH will have the same level of NSFW and dark as HB is at the time of season 2's beginning, (I'm not sure why people are thinking it'll be even more if she has to obey S&P with a TV show) she admits to not having a good gauge of what's too extreme as she just does what she wants to do to tell her story. HH is new territory since it's more story based than HB.

-YT doesn't allow the use of the word "cunt" so Mammon will be heavily censored with the amount of time he saids it. There's also a scene in HB that a storyboard artist went too extreme on and Vivzie was afraid it would be rejected but turned out to be okay. (This ask was in September 2022, she didn't mention which scene but if I had to guess it might have been the dildo room)

-Oz is aware of Fizz being an imp, but Vivzie doesn't know if it's an open fact and she might use it as a story element someday.

-Rosie is an overlord, that's all Vivzie can say when asked what kind of demon she is.

-At the time Vivzie was still figuring out how time works in hell, Sinners are stuck at the age they died as while Hellborns do age.

-Stolas would have thought of Blitz a lot after their day together and has a problem separating fantasy from reality, Blitz would have never thought of him.

-Blitz's horse obsession started as an inside joke among the team

-Vivzie can't say if season 2 will have a Stolitz kiss

-Episode 6's collab started 4-5 months before the episode came out, There's no plans for season 2 to have one but Vivzie would love to do it again.

-When asked if any new characters will join IMP in season 2 Vivzie said "Not this season!"

-Stolas can transform into other things, but Vivzie is still deciding if it's something he can do on his own or needs the grimoire for it.

-Vivzie uses Google sheets to write and takes the complete draft to something called Final Draft to finish it

-That white cyclops guy that shows up in Cherri Bomb's segment of Addict is likely to change but that's all Vivzie can say.

-Striker was confirmed to be a hybrid hellborn.

-The client giving birth button in episode 1 was an oversight on Vivzie's part but did say that IMP had hellborn clients before

-Any remaining reveals of HH characters will be minor characters from the pilot, the final reveal will be a brand new character. (This was before the Adam reveal, so he could have been the final one)

-The thing about the sins being a pseudo-family with "nice and asshole" ones were accurate to what's been told to you, same with them technically being goetias, they're just in a different category.

-We'll see Oz and Mammon's relationship in the middle of season 2.

-A lot of material things have been made in the greed ring, it's very industrial, full of banks, smoggy and crime ridden like that was seen in the Chaz episode.

-HH and HB are planned out but said that there's "wiggle room' in that they figure out as the show goes by how they get to the events.

-Vivzie's still deciding what special powers Striker would have as a hybrid.

-If Vivzie had unlimited funds, she would love to make a movie for HH and HB and to speed up her production pipeline. she had issues in 2022 with her working more on HH.

-Claims that HH will definitely come out in 2023, but she also mentioned season 2 of HB will have a more consistent release schedule at the same time.

-Vivzie would like to make a height chart for the HB characters but claims the team doesn't need one because they know the size of them already.

> Vivzie hasn't consider making pride merch because "It's the kind of thing that big corporations to try to appeal to a generation they're not normally involved in."

Says Vivzie as she can't put out Sallie Mae merchandise fast enough, despite her having one speaking line and about five seconds of screen time.

> -HH and HB are planned out but said that there's "wiggle room' in that they figure out as the show goes by how they get to the events.

She's flip-flopped on how planned out the show is so many times it's not even funny anymore.

> Stolas does have guilt with his affair and he has a lot of turmoil related to it.

Figures this was before both scenes where he says he has zero guilt and would feel bad if he thought he did something wrong but doesn't.

> -Stolas would have thought of Blitz a lot after their day together and has a problem separating fantasy from reality, Blitz would have never thought of him.

What a fascinating character trait that we were all looking forward to seeing more of after Blitzo told him off in Ozzie's and popped his delusional bubble! What a shame it was downgraded to "Stolas, as always, did nothing wrong."

> -She wants Stolas and Stella's relationship to be something that's debated.

Liar.

> -She put a lot of her life into Loo Loo Land, and yes...Viv's dad was openly horny in front of her and her sisters growing up, Viv found it funny but like I told Lemon...There was no mention of how her sisters felt about it.

> -Vivzie doesn't remember what the golden feathers in epsiode 6 meant. Adam saids the artist come up with a bunch of ideas.

Remember when we all thought that was important? Oh Vivzie, you fucking hack.

Thank you so much for all of these, Patreon Anon. Hopefully someone else will step into your shoes but for now know that you're braver than any Marine.

#Anonymous #Helluva Boss #vivziepop critical #helluva boss critical #actual blog post #Patreon anon

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duskyashe · 1 year

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NaNoWriMo Day #9

[masterlist]

Prompt found here

Thanks @stealingyourbones!

=========‹«⟨��··•••∞•••···⟩»›=========

There were a lot of old, weird, or old and weird things Tim's parents had picked up over the years, but his favorite was the ornate, almost delicate looking mirror in the entry hall. Most of the time, it was just a very fancy mirror, but at three am, when he's just pulling himself back in from a night of photographing vigilantes, it showed something different, something not of this realm. Of course, it didn't always happen; when it was especially overcast out or it was a new moon, the mirror wouldn't show the swirling green void with the occasional floating purple door. But when conditions were just right, he would sit on the chaise across the entry hall, and watch as doors drifted in and out of the mirror's view until he fell asleep.

He'd just sat down with his homework to finish a few last problems before laying back to watch the mirror, when something... Different happened. He heard an echoey voice, coming from the mirror of all things.

"What the—? I could have sworn this was a mirror earlier... Why are you showing the entry hall of a manor? And at night, no less... Is that—is that a kid?" Tim looked away from the mirror at that, then froze. If whoever was on the other side of the mirror was seeing him, then him moving in response to them talking was beyond stupid, why did he do that? "Ah frick, kid, can you hear me?"

Tim did his best not to move or show he could, in fact, hear the other person. He'd gone on an internet spiral a few months back and ended up learning all kinds of things about fey-like beings and creatures, and he was fairly certain that responding to someone, or something, that was talking to him through a freaking mirror would bring nothing good to him.

"Right, stupid question, even if you could, who knows what's showing on your end of whatever connection this is. For all I know, you can't see anything at all, and you're just hearing a disembodied voice in your entry hall. That would freak anyone out, so yeah, I'll give you a pass on answering that... Though I would like to know why you're awake at, what, two, three in the morning? Just going off the position of the moon in the window and the fact I doubt you're anywhere in Asia with a house like that." Tim rolled his eyes without meaning to and cringed at the cry of victory his interaction invoked. Ohh, he was going to get himself into so much trouble, he could just tell.

=========‹«⟨···•••∞•••···⟩»›=========

Over the course of the next few weeks, Tim cautiously started interacting more with the voice from the mirror, who'd introduced himself as Danny the next night. Tim had yet to work up the nerve to verbally respond, no matter how many quips or sarcastic remarks he had to bite back, but tonight was different.

The past week and a half had mostly been a bust on vigilante stalking hunting, but today he'd leaned why. Jason Todd was dead. He was dead and his funeral had been announced during the evening news. Considering how Batman had nearly beaten Joker to death two nights ago, Tim was willing to bet the Clown Prince of Crime was at fault. Jason his Robin was dead and he wasn't coming back and—

"Woah, hey kid, I don't know what's wrong, but I need you to take a deep breath for me, alright? Can you breath in—hold—and breath out, that's it, breath in—hold—and breath out, a few more times for me buddy, breath in—that's it—and breath out, breath in—you've got this—and out, one more time, breath in—there we go—and out. There, much better, right?"

Tim nodded, shakily rubbing at his tears as sobs shook his chest. At least he could breath, now. "Jason's-s de-ead," he managed through the emotions lodged in his throat. "My-my neighbor's kid, J-Jason, is dead, a-and he has been fo-or almost a-a week." And I didn't know, was unspoken.

Danny cursed softly and let out a sigh. "I'm sorry to hear that, were the two of you close?"

He shook his head, nearly making himself dizzy with how hard and fast he was shaking it. "No," he grunted, "we weren't, b-but I really looked u-up to h-him. He was doing things I could only hope to be able to do, a-and he was h-helping so many people, but now he can't anymore because he's dead, and I can't do anything about it! His dad's in so much pain right now, but I can't help him cuz he doesn't know me and I barely know him, but R-Jason was my hero and I want to help, but I don't know how!" Tim was breathing heavily by the end of his tirade, his eyes burning and his head throbbing, but no longer actively crying, so that was something. Focusing on his breathing, he slowly unclenched his hands. He hung his head in defeat as he whispered brokenly, "I never know how to help."

=========‹«⟨···•••∞•••···⟩»›=========

Over the next few months, Danny and Tim talked as much as they possibly could, making plans and figuring out all the ways those plans could, and likely would, go wrong. Through careful questions and even more careful answers, Tim had revealed that Jason had an older brother who might be able to help him help Bruce, so Danny had taught Tim how to approach to a grieving older sibling for help. Tonight was the culmination of all their preparation.

Tim took a deep breath before releasing it. Well, he thought, here goes nothing. He stepped forward and knocked on Dick Grayson's door.

=========‹«⟨···•••∞•••···⟩»›=========

Well. I'm not exactly happy with that ending, but I started writing this really last minute, plus I made dinner at one point, so ¯⁠\⁠_⁠༼⁠ ⁠ಥ⁠ ⁠‿⁠ ⁠ಥ⁠ ⁠༽⁠_⁠/⁠¯ this is what came of it! It got pretty angsty cuz I kinda didn't have an actual plan for this beyond "Tim likes to look at the ghost zone through his magic mirror, but Danny is a chatterbox and wants to protect the little kid on the other side" and I needed somewhere for this to actually go, so boom. Tim's first steps towards becoming Robin with a spooky twist (⁠^⁠～⁠^⁠;⁠)⁠ゞ I feel like now would be a good time to mention I don't actually know the actual timeline of when Jason died and Bruce nearly killed Joker in response, let alone how long it took Tim to go to Dick with his concerns, so if things were too rushed or out of order, I apologize and claim creative liberty (⁠；⁠^⁠ω⁠^⁠）

Now, obviously, with Danny's influence, Tim will have a different story from here on out. Danny has become a confidant for Tim, even though Tim's never actually seen Danny, so eventually Danny's going to find out about the vigilante thing and start training Tim in other skills he'll need to be successful (things a human can replicate (⁠◠⁠‿⁠◕⁠)) which will likely broaden his skill set quicker in my humble opinion. Not sure if I'll add more to this, though, so if anyone has thoughts, please, add them!

Have a good morning/day/night!

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bi-bard · 11 months

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When It Surfaces, Just Hold Your Breath and Swim - Dick Grayson Imagine [HBO's Titans]

Title: When It Surfaces, Just Hold Your Breath and Swim

Pairing: Dick Grayson X Reader

Based On: Silhouettes

Word Count: 1,495 words

Warning(s): mention of death

Summary: (Y/n) never expected Dick to come back to Gotham. When he does, they wanted to forget all that had happened between them. However, after Dick gets into a fight with Bruce, (Y/n) finds themself remembering the things that led him to run away in the first place.

Author's Note: I rewatched parts of the first episode of season three and I forgot how annoyed I got by Bruce in such a short amount of time.

Part One of "May" [Release Date: 5/14/2023]

Part Two of "May" [Release Date: 5/16/2023]

YEARBOOK - SLEEPING AT LAST WRITING CHALLENGE MASTERLIST

--------------------

After Jason's death, I spent a lot of time in Wayne Manor.

Bruce needed the support. He would never admit it out loud, but I could see it. In how tired his eyes looked, how his shoulders slumped, how he couldn't seem to get a single thought together.

I just wanted to help.

I knew Jason pretty well. After Dick left, Jason took over as Robin. It wasn't the same as the connection that I had with Dick, but he was a nice enough kid.

And I made sure that Bruce knew how I felt about bringing on a new Robin. I warned him about the dangers and what I would do if everything went wrong. I thought something had clicked. Something had changed.

Jason was changing too. I knew it. I could see it.

At least, I thought he was. Before he went after the Joker alone. I didn't know what was all happening when he got back to Gotham. No one told me. I wish someone had. I could've helped.

I knew it was a waste of time to sit and dwell on it, but I couldn't help it.

I could vividly remember Bruce telling me that he had called Dick. We were sitting at the table in silence. I could see his hands fidgeting a bit. If you had told me that admitting something to me was going to make Batman nervous, I would've never believed you. But here he was, guilt now coming from two sources.

I nodded. "Good. He and Jason were close."

"You're- You're not upset?"

"Bruce," I said. "This is your family. Dick and Jason were pretty much brothers. I can't dictate if Dick comes back. I know that."

"I just... I know that you two-"

"Don't worry about us," I explained. "I'll be civil. Now's not the time to worry about me and whatever I still feel about the whole thing."

"Thank you," he mumbled.

"You're welcome, Brucie-"

"Don't call me that."

I chuckled. "Sorry."

Like father, like son.

That was the last that Bruce and I spoke about Dick. When he showed back up at the manor, I was polite. I greeted him, expressed how sorry I was for his loss, and then moved on.

He did the same, but I would catch him looking at me every now and then. Just staring at me with these big, sad eyes. I would ignore it. Again, not the time to worry about any of that.

I didn't think that Dick and I were ever going to have any substantial conversation. Mostly because I didn't want to.

Every time I saw him, I kept thinking back to the time before he left. The sweet moments. The kisses and the nights at my place and the apprehensively planned date nights. It all just played on a loop in my mind whenever I looked at him.

I thought that I could avoid it while he was visiting. That I just had to wait it out.

And then, he showed up at my door.

"Dick," I said as I opened the door.

He forced a chuckle. "I was wondering if Bruce forced you out of this little studio of yours."

I ignored the comment about my living situation and my stubbornness. "What are you doing here?"

"Can I come in," he asked.

"Why?"

"I... I got in a fight with Bruce. It was bad."

And despite my anger and need to avoid him, I stepped to the side and let him in. I pictured the nights when this happened before. The nights just before Dick left when he'd show up and beg to stay with me for the night.

It was all very familiar.

Dick sat down on my couch and covered his face with his hands. I heard him sigh. I closed and locked the door.

"Want anything to drink or eat or something," I asked.

"Some water. Please."

I nodded.

When I put his glass down, I stepped back and leaned against the wall opposite him. I don't know why I couldn't sit next to him. I couldn't tell if it would simply remind me of too much or if I couldn't trust myself being so close to him.

"What happened?" I crossed my arms over my chest.

"He was looking for replacements," he muttered. "Already."

I took a sharp breath.

"I was trying to tell him about this chemical that I found in a loft that Jason had. But I found a file of names."

"Dick, I'm sorry."

"I thought that this changed him. I thought that... that if me running away didn't make something click, then losing Jason would."

I closed my eyes and looked down for a moment. "I thought he had."

When I looked back, Dick was watching me with his eyebrows furrowed.

"After you left and Bruce took on Jason, I kind of... I kind of ripped him a new one," I explained. "I went on and on about him chasing you away, how he better not screw it all up, and how if he did screw it up then I would make his life hell... he seemed to care. A lot.

"He wanted Jason to stop, but he wouldn't explain why. I think that just made Jason feel like a screw-up. I wish that I had yelled at him when Jason died. The only reason that I didn't was because I thought he was truly mourning... that he was changing. I held my tongue out of kindness."

"Bruce didn't want kids. He wanted soldiers."

I didn't argue with that. I knew it was true. "It's not your job to get Bruce to change. It never was. He has to do that on his own. No matter how painful it is."

Dick let out a sigh.

"I wish I would've stood up for you the way that I stood up for Jason."

"I was far too gone for you to help me," he muttered. "It's not your job to fix Bruce either."

"I think I'm learning that."

"Yeah... me too."

There was a long pause between the two of us.

"Can I... Can I stay here tonight," he asked. "I... I'll sleep on the couch if that makes you more comfortable."

"Okay," I nodded. "I'll get you a spare blanket."

"Thanks."

The rest of the night was quiet.

There were a few words exchanged, jokes about me still listening to the same playlist to go to bed, apologies for how uncomfortable the couch was, small inside jokes from before he left. It was nice. It was nice to not have to be awkward with him. Some kind of connection between us was stronger than the hurt from when he took off.

I woke up late that night when a phone started ringing.

It wasn't mine.

I saw Dick sit up as he answered the phone.

I didn't catch much of the conversation. Just Dick asking about what was going on. And then he cursed a bit when the call seemed to drop. He tried to call the number back, but there was clearly no answer. He got up and started passing around the room.

"What's going on," I asked as I sat up.

"Bruce did something dumb," he muttered. "I think he's leaving Gotham. I... I don't know what's happening. He just told me to be better than him and then hung up."

"Let me get some shoes and we'll head out there-"

"What's the point?"

I paused as I stood up. "Because Bruce just did something dumb."

"He will be out of the city before we get out there."

"Then, let's go out there and see if we can figure out what happened," I insisted. "Just in case he hurt someone... or himself."

"Okay," he nodded.

I nodded back before going to grab my shoes and jacket. I grabbed my keys before walking toward the door. "Alright, let's go."

"Thank you," Dick muttered as I locked my door behind us.

"No need-"

"(Y/n), I'm serious," he grabbed my wrist. I turned back to him.

"I know," I promised, placing my hand over his. "You shouldn't have to deal with this. You didn't pick this life. And you're still getting pulled into Bruce's crap. I'm sorry."

He didn't speak, but he also didn't let go of my wrist.

"Dick-"

I was caught off guard when Dick leaned forward and pressed his lips to mine. I froze, torn between leaning away from him and staying where I was. He pulled away before I had to make that choice.

"I'm sorry," he muttered.

"It's alright," I mumbled. I grinned a bit as a memory of our first kiss played in my mind. "Come on. We've got places to be."

He finally let go of my wrist and nodded. A small grin pulled at his lips.

Those replaying memories suddenly seemed far less overwhelming... they were comforting.

And that was all the change that I truly needed.

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Navigation Guide

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Some Original Characters

#imagine #fanfiction #x reader #dick grayson x reader #dick grayson fanfiction #dick grayson imagine #dc fanfiction #dc imagine #dc x reader #titans x reader #titans fanfiction #titans imagine

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borisbubbles · 15 days

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Eurovision 2023: #04 & #03.

04. BELGIUM Gustaph - "Because of you" 7th place

youtube

Decade Ranking: 11/116 [Above Måneskin, below Monika Liu]

HOED BEZIG DADDY!1!!1!1!!

Another wonderful example of 2023 gaslighting doing its work - I decided around April last year that Gustaph could get a top 10 and because of the, um, reception he got online, I gaslit myself into thinking 10th was his absolute ceiling. Maybe, maybe on the cusp of left side?, I thought.

In reality:

Remember when they tried to break him? Well look at him now :-)

I love a good underdog arc and the best arcs are served with casual Surprise (not rly) Top Tens, defeating the underwhelming fanfave beasts along the way. There WERE murmurs by certain fans about how PUZZLING it was Gustaph got a SEVENTH PLACE (often lumping him in with Alika, Vesna and Voyager) over TeyaLena and Blanca and (mild cringe) LaZarra and (megacringe) Iru. WHY IS IT A TOP TEN SONG? Here's a question babe. Why was it not a top six song? This is what finished ahead of Gustaph:

Let's see: A boring default winner, Käärijä, evil nepobaby with the worst song ever, italian himbot with a some song, pulpy tiktok nonsense, miserable ukrainian song about the war. What A Wonderful Top Six, how could anyone like Belgium enough for top ten.

Fortunately as the months ticked by, the sensibles concluded that yes, "Because of you"' slaps and is iconique. Which is ofc, the conclusion I reached before the liveshows😘 Yeah okay that's supercilious of me, but I'm living the moment, let me have it, okay! Seeing the light took less time for me because granted, I am Belgian (and worse, Flemish) so I always have to convince myself our entries work if I like them (lmao tough luck Mustii!!), and when they work, they work, you know. "Because of you" IS Eurovision to its very core:

A CHARISMATIC LEAD WITH A GREAT VOICE AND A MEMORABLE STYLE

AN UPBEAT BOUNCY TUNE CELEBRATING A POSITIVE NURTURING TOPIC

A GREATLY STAGED, VISIONARY ACT (which is mandatory nowadays)

ADD SOME ░P░ U░S░S░ Y░I░ N░B░I░O ░

(and the not unimportant accolade of being the new jingle for misja eurovision...x)

It came together better than Imagined. The live was a meteor shower of slays and serves. Daddy slayed, his hubby that made the graphics served, the girls slayed, PussyServeCunt slayed AND the jury rightfully served up three twelves (including the Greek one lmaooo - pwnt Andrew!!) to commemorate this beautiful triumph over prejudice, pettiness and internalised homophobicuntitude. His hecklers can touch grass by faceplanting into it.

This was the best Belgian entry in a long time. Easily the best one since the terminally underrated Blanche (who is still the best winner we've never had) and that is good grief, already six years ago? Seven after the current contest? We were overdue for a good result.

Anyway, this was an erratic write-up, but honestly, I don't feel like I need to explain much anyway. Gustaph rose from an act most people pretended to dislike from an entrant that is universally well-regarded and beloved by both the fandom and critics. If that is not a satisfying growth arc, then I don't know what is. SERVE, HAT KING, SERVE.

in sum, see you in Antwerp for ESC2026 after we win it with a GUSTAPH x MEROL collab...x:

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03. SLOVENIA Joker Out - "Carpe Diem" 20th place

youtube

Decade ranking: 7/116 [Above Barbara, below Daði]

:GASP: Only third?! Boris how could you - shush shush bish calm ur teats, my opinion on Joker Out has remained completely unchanged. Maybe that's the point? "Carpe Diem" is still probably my favourite 2023 track. On-curved indie rock with on-trend styling, what is this? Almost too good for the contest, that's what.

MI BOMO CELO NOC PLESALI LUBILI SE IN SE IGRALI KOT DA NAS JURTI VEC NE BO

And well, let's also be very clear here - Joker Out lived up to exactly what I wanted from them. It's one of those entries that does exactly what it says on the tin (see also: Pasha). The older I get, the more I appreciate the Actual Songs in Eurovision for their reliability and "Carpe Diem" was a really good song. Three minutes of unbridled indierock fun, that quickly turns addictive if you're not careful - it does get better than that, but it's a high bar that not many other entries pass. Besides, the live was you know, living up to my expectations and that's worth a lot in 2023, where most acts let me down. It was a joy to watch. Bojan devoured that live -

but it still felt like a group effort, as and the rest of the gang more than pulled their weight. Jan and Kris as the silly foils to Bojan's seductive self -

and Nace and Jure (who can both so get it 👉👈) as the two who would whip up the crowd making "Carpe Diem" well and truly feel like the concert that it was.

THEY WERE FUN

THEY HAD "RIZZ" (i really hate this word btw - or rather i hate how ESC.tv used this word to appear "cool" 🤢)

AND THEY HAD A TRUE EUROVISION LOVE STORY

(it is still wildly amusing to me that my two preshow favourites entered a bromance so electrified by reciprocal, yet unfulfilled sexual tension it felt like watching a Basement Yard Podcast 😍 Bojan x Käärijä 5ever💚)

So yeah, this was just all sorts of excellent, really. Ofc, 20th place is um... really disgusting and outrageous, specifically for an entry that brings me so much joy, but hey that's democracy for you. Results are being decided way ahead of time so the people with godawful taste that lead happy lives feel like they are relevant, or summat.

However, Joker Out didn't lose Eurovision 2023, they won it. Out of everyone, it was their fanbase that grew the most after the contest ended, so much that they're now considered a welcome staple at ESC preparties, alongside the likes of Daði Freyr, Go_A, Senhit and Anna Bergendahl, which is not a bad line-up to be a part of. They'll be back as Slovene reps in a few years, hopefully with a more immediate song and will do significantly better. 😁

Finally, yes, Slovenia went from first to third on my ranking, but eh. I figured out quasi immediately after the finale that my top 3 would be Czechia, Finland and Slovenia, and figured out just as fast that Slovenia were third in that equation. I hope it's been made clear that my feelings on Joker Out just stayed the same, while Vesna and Käärijä were subject to positive morphs, and the novelty of those arcs is worth a splitscreen ending.

WILL IT BE THE GREEN FIN OR THE PINK SISTERS?

it was actually... a very, very close call. 😲

THE RANKING

#Eurovision #Eurovision 2023 #ESC 2023 #ESC #Eurovision Song Contest #Liverpool 2023 #Belgium #Gustaph #Because of you #Slovenia #Joker Out #Carpe Diem #BorisBubbles

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sorryitisandy · 8 months

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Teddie might unironically be the P4 character that develops the most like a P3 character. His SL being automatic lets him react to the main plot and let’s his arc move alongside it. He also takes steps towards regaining his lost memories without the suggestion or help from the protagonist. Only IT member that evolves his Persona without the protagonist, too.

Morgana does this too somewhat but his link being almost always at night with Joker makes them feel more secluded from the plot imo

Yeah. I think the fundamental lesson that Persona 3 leaves us with, in terms of narrative structure is the following points:

1) Things need to happen with these characters outside of their designated block in the main story. In P4 and P5, Every character in the game continues to contribute to the party dynamic, but the main story is USUALLY done with them outside of their social link in terms of development. I.e: Ryuji and Ann with regards to Kamoshida

2) Things need to happen with these characters that the main character is not privy too sometimes. My best example is Akihiko reconciling Shinji's death on his own terms. This gives the sense that these characters have some existence outside of their group dynamic.

3) The persona evolution, at least the FIRST one should happen in terms of the main story. For example, in Persona 5, I would likely have changed Makoto's storyline that she evolves her Persona sometime during the Sae's palace arc as she reconciled with who her sister had become. Actually Makoto is one of the only characters we often see operating in any capacity away from the group, particularly with regards to her home life.

Those are really the three points I think Persona 3 leaves us with in terms of narrative structure. I fundamentally understand how we got here, because the events of Persona 4 and 5 involve some specific enemy related to the real world. Like in Persona 3, the threat as you understand it is just vaguely "Tartarus and Shadows". Persona 4 and Persona 5 involve characters who are victims of crimes, so they get a specific block of the plot of that is hyperfocused on them. Which isn't inherently a problem so long as the plot remembers they exist after the fact (though I do think they erred in having the Morgana/Ryuji conflict intrude on Haru's entry into the game).

I do want to clarify I prefer the overall narrative concepts in Persona 4 and Persona 5. I am in love with the world building that revolves around the TV world and Mateverse. Shadows born from fucked up desires and or the repressed selves of others. I generally prefer that to the more esoteric ideas represented by tartarus, nyx, etc about death and the value of life. As a result of this I actually like 4's overall narrative the most. But I think 3 leaves us with a lot of lessons in structure and narrative design that 4 and 5 could have benefitted from.

Burning question: What about social links? Don't they need to reward the player for their choices?

This is a fair question. I think the answer to this is that in terms of GAMEPLAY, Persona 5 did a really good job in making sure the player was rewarded for their decisions. They ensured that every social link was rewarded with something tangibly useful beyond extra fusion exp, even when they weren't party members.

As for narrative satisfaction? I don't have a great answer for this one but I recall the ladies having their persona evolutions seperate from their social links in Persona 3 and that worked out fine. So I have faith!

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jokeroutsubs · 10 months

Text

youtube

Joker Out on Croatian RTL. Translation by drumbeat

In addition we're adding the accompanying article translation:

They are the most popular Slovenian band. After the Eurovision Song Contest, the concert in Zagreb was sold out in five hours

One has a degree in chemical engineering, the other in philosophy* (T/N: mistake by the article, it's actually sociology), and he says he could imagine himself as a professor at a university.

Do you remember those five guys who represented Slovenia at the Eurovision Song Contest? The audience and the jury didn't like them too much, they finished only 21st. But the Croatian audience loves Joker Out. They announced the date of the concert in Zagreb, and sold all the tickets within five hours.

They want to dance all night, and everyone wants to listen to Joker Out today. They only finished 21st in the final of the Eurovision Song Contest, so even the band members themselves did not expect to be recognized on the streets of Zagreb.

"We already had many fans in Slovenia, we know how to deal with that. But it's incredible that there are fans outside of Slovenia as well," says Kris Guštin , a member of the band.

These five sold out London, Liverpool, Belgrade, Sarajevo and Zagreb, which was gone in just five hours. They thought it would be much more difficult, that they would be selling three thousand tickets for months, but they didn't and now they are getting ready for their first big tour.

"In England, we will use a tour bus for the first time, and we are looking forward to that more than anything else," says Guštin.

Bojan Cvjetićanin adds: "A tour in Slovenia looks like this: you pack your suitcase and go to a concert. If it's more than an hour away from home, then you sleep there, so you don't need to return back in the middle of the night. So this is the first time we go outside the borders of Slovenia where there is no returning home on the same day".

There is no turning back because 10 million people have already listened to their song on Spotify. Europe has learned Slovenian since May, so carpe diem was sung in Helsinki, where Bojan performed with Käärijä, the Finnish representative from the Eurovision Song Contest.

"He invited me as a guest, I sang Carpe Diem and it was incredible that people sang in Slovenian. Later, they stopped me on the street, they asked to take a picture with us," claims Cvjetićanin.

They became friends with the Finn, but also with Let 3, so the invitation to group sex was also mentioned as a joke.

When asked about Let 3's impression, Guštin says: "As people, they are great. As far as I'm concerned, they were in the top 5 of visual performances. They were superb. And they admitted to us that their daughters are fans of our music".

Yes. Younger audiences love them, especially female fans. Bojan is already being called the Slovenian Harry Styles , and there have also been marriage offers.

"I already said that once, if everything fails for us - we can certainly get married," points out Cvjetićanin.

Until a month ago, few people talked about them, today they are an internet sensation who is preparing to be the opening act for Franz Ferdinand at Špancirfest in Varaždin. And what if they hadn't become a musical hit.

"We all have university degrees, I'm a chemical engineer, so I guess I would work in a factory, but luckily we became musicians. Thank God. Bojan graduated from sociology," Guštin points out.

"If I were to become a professor at the university, I wouldn't mind," concludes Cvjetićanin.

They wouldn't mind, but they're sticking to the music - at least for now. Well, maybe we will join them at the next concert.

#joker out #bojan cvjeticanin #kris gustin

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globetrotter28 · 2 years

Text

Another Cover Up (Part 4)

Fandom: The Boys

Pairing: Soldier Boy x Fem!Reader

Summary: After Herogasm, Butcher, Hughie and Soldier Boy realise they might need more reinforcements. After doing more research, they discover the woman who was also injected with Compound V alongside Soldier Boy back in the 40’s. Everyone also thought she was KIA that day at Nicaragua. But if Soldier Boy was still alive… maybe she was too?

If you DO wish to be tagged for future updates, please let me know.

If there is a line, the tag didn’t come up for you.

Tags: @msbadgirl @queenofspades20 @mimzy1994 @erinnkenobi @goldngguk @ateliefloresdaprimavera @roseblue373 @acarboni21 @sexyvixen7 @buckybarnes-1917 @valkyrie418 @multishipper @bxwitched @capswife @bluedragonflylady @leigh70

Chapter Warnings: language, discussion of previous character’s sexual assault

Yes, Butcher will come off OOC this chapter.

Series Masterlist - Part 3

You and Butcher left at 6am sharp the next morning.

You had barely slept since arriving Stateside, so although Butcher was walking out to his shit box of a car, attempting to sneak off quietly, you were already sitting in the front seat.

He didn't see you until he opened the driver's side door and huffed a heavy breath as he sat in the seat and you made your presence known.

"Nice try." You said.

"Bollocks!" He shouted as he jumped in his seat, turning his widened brown eyes to you. He saw a wicked grin on your face, one that matched his own when he was up to something.

"Is that any way to talk in front of a lady?" You sass.

"Jesus Christ...," he took a deep breath to steady his beating heart.

"Are we going or not?" You say, pulling the temperamental seat belt down from over your shoulder and clicking it into place.

"You're a bloody Supe and you still put the belt on?" Butcher asks, confused eyes staring at you.

"I may be a Supe, but I still feel pain. And let's be honest, William... you know I don't have reason to trust that you won't try and throw me through that windshield." You say as you point to said windshield, eyebrow raised.

He only grunts as a response before turning the engine over and pulling away from the house.

You both drive in silence for almost three quarters of an hour before you reach to turn the radio on. Although you didn't care too much, Butcher's mind was quite a fucking mess and you didn't really want to listen to it much more.

"You ever heard of asking?" Butchers gravelly voice breaks through the tune of an old song crackling through the speaker.

"Control your thoughts better and maybe I would." You quip, side eyeing him. "Besides... didn't think you'd care too much if it took my focus of your fucked up brain." You look out the window seeing shades of green pass you by.

"Hughie said you were having some troubles." He mentions.

"Hmm... it's not easy when they fuck with your brain... sometimes feels like they were trying to scramble some eggs."

The song on the radio changes to one you were very familiar with. The high pitched piano notes send chills through your body taking you a second to recognise the song. The melodic male voice singing 'turn around' before Bonnie Tyler's distinctive husky voice joins in, and you're quickly reaching for the tuner to adjust the station.

"As lovely as she is," Butcher says, gently tapping the dashboard of the vehicle, "the radio is on the blink." Butcher says with a severely sarcastic tone.

You reach for the volume to at least turn it down as low as possible, but it only gets louder.

"You're joking?" Your voice is thick with frustration as you look at Butcher, turning it the other way to turn it back down, but it only goes to the same volume it was when you first started.

"Nah, not too much of a joker, love." He smirks at you. "Her audio settings are simple; one station, on, off, loud or louder." He chuckles as he looks at your face that you can only imagine is one that looks like you would readily kill him. He only laughs heartier.

You go to turn it off then, but he smacks your hand away.

"Un-uh! You wanted it on, princess, it's on."

You look at him, flabbergasted that he just smacked your hand. The chorus is playing now and to your utter shock, Butcher starts belting it out in his cockney voice.

"Oh my god, fuck me..." you mutter in frustration as you sink into your seat.

You knew Butcher was doing this to annoy you, but he starts doing air drums and is very clearly getting into the song. You know you could easily turn it off, but you can't help but feel your frustration slowly morph into enjoyment at his terrible singing and just start to giggle, soon joining him in the love ballad.

By the third verse you're singing by yourself. What you didn't realise was that Butcher was listening to the lyrics. He was picking up that they clearly meant something to you as your voice was becoming extremely emotional, even cracking on the odd occasion.

As the song was fading out, Butcher reached forward and clicked the radio off.

"Gotta love me some Bonnie." Butcher says somewhat jokingly before switching his tone quickly. "A'right. What was that?" He presses you.

"What was what?"

"Why didn't you want to listen to that song." He gestures to the radio, his left hand still on the steering wheel.

You release a large sigh, trying to find the words. You soon settle on, "I helped write it."

It's quiet for a moment, you sensing Butcher's complete and utter confusion. He really didn't see that one coming.

"You helped write that?" He clarifies.

"Yep." You confirm, glancing at him.

"No you didn't." He looks at you, eyes furrowed in disbelief.

"Get your little device out and look it up." You suggest.

"Yeah... yeah a'right, I'll do just that."

Butcher reaches into his pants pocket and pulls out his phone, keeping one hand on the wheel and looking at his phone as he attempts to type on it.

"You've got to be fucking joking...!" He bellows, glancing at you briefly in disbelief.

"Told ya." Your smirk.

"'Total Eclipse of the Heart' was written by Jim Steinman [and Y/N Y/L/N] and released by Bonnie Tyler in 1983."** Butcher reads. "This has gotta be one of the most famous love ballads..."

"Glad it did well." You say.

"Supe's don't have talent like that." Butcher states.

"Ha! You're not wrong... have you seen any of Ben's movies? Or heard his songs? Fuck, they're terrible!" You laugh.

"You didn't have any- well..."

"No, I refused to be a dancing monkey. This was the only one I co-wrote and produced." You tried not to, but you could hear Butcher questioning why you were even a Supe. So you decided to answer him. "I saw these... powers... as a way of me actually trying to make a difference. I never wanted to be in front of the camera. I never wanted the notoriety." You pause for a moment. "This was meant to be a gift. I was turned into this... thing... what I was sold is not what it was... they wanted a weapon that would easily be turned into a profit for their convenience."

"You sound like bloody Starlight." Butcher grumbled.

"Starlight?" You questioned. "Oh... Annie..." you can't helps but see this Starlight in his mind, recognising her from Hughie's visions. "At the risk of you getting pissed, what is your issue with Supes? At least the good ones. This Starlight seems pretty alright."

"You lot can't be trusted." Butcher's tone quickly turns sour.

"Fair statement." He looks at you confused once again. "Hey, from what Hughie has told me about him getting into the game, they haven't really changed much in forty years. Vought's still blowing that smoke up their asses, covering for their idiocy. But you know... before they were injected with that poison, Compound V... they were human. Just like normal humans... not all of them are winners. But there are some... like Hughie, who aren't so bad." He only grunts. "Maybe Starlight isn't so bad."

The silence is deafening. Well... at least if you couldn't hear Butcher's thoughts. But again, they were a fucking mess...

Butcher soon breaks the silence with, "Are you..." he coughs. "Are you in me head? Right now?" He glances over at you then back at the road.

"Not really. I'm trying not to be. I wasn't fucking around when I said your brain is pretty fucked." He scoffs, what you believe to be in agreement with you. "But it's hard hearing everyone's thoughts. All the time. Before Russia, I could turn it off in a way. It's taking me some time to get that skill back." You explain, not only for him but also for yourself. "So I'm trying. I wouldn't appreciate someone plying around inside my fucked up brain either." You say, truthfully but also trying to make it not so serious. Butcher seems to appreciate that, if only a little.

It's silent for about a minute before he breaks it again.

"I never really understood Supes." He says, bringing your focus back to him. "Never got why they were always put up on this bloody pedestal." He scoffs scornfully. You don't say it, but he knew you already agreed with him, which he only confirms. "Always thought they'd be better off actually being heroes, out there really saving people. Not profiting from it. But my wife-" he clears his throat. "My wife actually worked at Vought Tower. She was in the Media and Communications team. PR, did their social media."

You were about to ask what 'social media' was, but decided it'd be better to ask Hughie. You didn't want to interrupt Butcher sharing his story.

"She was fucking good at it too." He smiles gently, a flash of pride colouring his harsh features. "Was the best bloody woman I ever knew." His voice tightens.

"Knew?" You ask gently, having a pretty good idea where this was going.

"A Supe hurt her. Raped her." You swallow thickly and look down at your lap. "She disappeared for years. I never believed she was dead, but... a part of me always thought..." he stops for a moment before continuing. "But she wasn't. Turned up just over a year ago. Vought had her as a prisoner in a fake town with her son."

"Son?" You question, thinking only for a moment how that was a nightmare of yours. Getting pregnant from such an act of violence.

"Ryan. Actually a sweet kid. I see so much of my Becca in him." His voice is slightly watery from his sadness. "He accidentally killed her. Trying to protect her from Stormfront."

"Fucking Nazi bitch..." you sneer under your breath. "It was Homelander." You state, already figuring out the monster that did that to Butcher's wife. "That's why you want Ben to kill him."

Butcher's eyes stay glued to the road, but he swallows thickly before nodding once. Although it was clear from the beginning in exchange for helping Soldier Boy kill the old members of Payback, he would kill Homelander, Butcher was still worried the original Supe would feel used.

"Then I'll do whatever I can to help put him down." Butcher's eyes turn to meet yours, seeing the anger and sincerity in your face. "He deserves what's coming to him for all the pain he's caused."

Butcher nods once again in a silent thanks.

~~~~~~~~~~

Turns out three of the safe houses were a complete bust. You still had eight to go, but both you and Butcher were fed up with the day. So you made the long drive back to Legend's house.

Butcher's phone starts to ring, so he puts it up to his hear and you can hear Hughie's voice make it's way through the speaker. Your enhanced hearing makes it easier for you to hear, but you try to tune it out.

You focus on the passing trees again, a field soon breaking through. You see a large property with a beautiful country style home sitting in the middle. There's a few cattle off to the side in one of the paddocks and you see two adults, the woman holding a young child on her hip as both her and the man point at the animals.

You can't help the small smile that breaks out in your face as you imagine what your life might have been like if you had never been injected with V. Maybe you would have got married, had a family of your own. You always imagined it would have been with Ben, but... you decided it was too late for you now.

"Have to make a small supply run, love." Butcher's voice breaks you from your thoughts and you realise you're looking at a forest of trees once again.

"Yeah. Okay."

"Won't take long, only a few things for your- ah for Soldier Boy." Butcher cuts himself off, realising that what Hughie asked him to pick up was not being used between you and Ben.

No one ever really described Butcher as an 'awkward' man. But he certainly felt awkward in that moment. He didn't have to be a genius to know that you had a hard on for the original superhero. He could read between the lines that you wrote those lyrics to that Bonnie Tyler song about your relationship with said hero.

To be honest, Butcher was pretty surprised you and Soldier Boy weren't actually an item with the way he coddled and nursed you since finding you in Russia. Which is why he felt pretty shocked that Soldier Boy was wanting to screw the women on Legend's staff with you right there. And having Hughie ask him to pick up more Astroglide only added to his bewilderment.

Part 5

** https://genius.com/Bonnie-tyler-total-eclipse-of-the-heart-lyrics

#fanfic #read on ao3 #fanfiction #original female character #the boys tv #the boys fanfiction #soldier boy x reader #soldier boy fanfiction #soldier boy #read on wattpad #william butcher #billy butcher #female reader #soldier boy x female reader

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symphonic-scream · 10 days

Text

Updated AU post for the Triad of Okujima AUs!

These were my first Persona 5 AUs, and so of course it's the first au to get an updated post!

Okay, so this au is actually three mini AU's that all were able to fit into one bigger au

Starting firstly, with, the already dating au

This one starts a few years before Joker even comes to Tokyo. Two lonely girls slowly become friends, entwining pinkies in their middle school library. High school is slowly approaching, and wordlessly, their relationship seems to shift

Shujin first year Makoto Niijima finally puts a name to it, asking to be girlfriends. Shujin first year Haru Okumura seals the deal with the first of many gentle kisses.

They meet up on Sundays, browsing book stores and finding small cafes. They spend their lunches together, sitting thigh to thigh on the stairs to the roof, holding hands beneath a textbook. They text unsaved numbers, smiling as their dreams take forms of happy futures

Okumura's desires distort. Sae buries herself in work. Haru is promised away. Makoto does as she's told.

They rarely see each other through their third year. Haru has to spend her Sundays with Sugimura. Makoto hunts the Phantom Thieves during lunch. Everytime Makoto goes to the roof to find Haru, she's already left for the day. Their messages are sent less often, typed but then deleted

Until, Makoto does the stupidest thing she's ever done. Until, a new Phantom Thief discovers their personal rebellion. Until, Makoto Niijima becomes Queen. Until, Johanna.

The next day, Makoto runs up to the roof, and her Persona's engine roars in her ears as she can't help but grin at the sight of Haru tending to her plants. They share the first hug they've had in weeks, and Makoto promises to free herself up for lunches again.

It doesn't fix everything, but, slowly, it starts to feel like before. Sneaking kisses on the stairs, goodnight texts, arrangements to spend time together. After the fireworks show, Makoto jogs up the street, soaked from the rain, and half stumbles into a dark corner to press a laughing kiss to Haru's waiting lips. They've said it before, but the echoing rain carries their tender "I love you"s

And. They stand there for as long as they can; Makoto soaked to the bone, rainwater dripping from her kimono, her hair, her face. Haru was completely dry, now damp where her love held her face, skin shiny, a mark left to prove it all was real

They don't get to meet up much over the summer. Makoto has her friends, for when Haru is locked away. She still misses her, of course. But she feels alive, for the first time since they shared that first kiss on the school roof

Hawaii.

A few days, sharing a hotel room in paradise, sharing a bed for the first time. The room has two, though there could've been fifty and they would've still used just the one. Haru in a light nightgown, sitting on the edge nervously, when Makoto emerges from the bathroom in her Buchimaru PJs. The adoring smiles, laced with nerves, as they start with a tender kiss

Johanna's engine purrs in Makoto's chest when she wakes up the next morning, the light from the window painting Haru in a warm, golden glow. She'll fight until her last breath for this girl, even if she doesn't wish to spend her life with her. Haru's happiness is all she needs

Then, a Beauty Thief appears. For a brief period, they're able to share glancing looks in the Metaverse, hands brushing together.

Okumura dies, and we move on to the second part of this au

Which will be UNDER THE CUT

Part two is, the living together au

The night Okumura dies, and Haru runs off, Makoto doesn't sleep. She lies awake, staring at her phone, waiting for a response from that unsaved number she's had memorized for so long. She wanted to run right over, but feared being unwelcome, or swarmed by cameras

Haru isn't in class the next day, but she is standing in the lobby of her apartment building. It's easy for them to sink into a hug, and an apology doesn't feel right. Makoto invites her upstairs, makes her some tea, and grows concerned when Haru falls asleep on her shoulder on the couch

It's an easy thing for her to offer. It's a little harder to convince Haru to say yes. It's even harder to get Sae on board. But, Makoto kisses Haru's forehead as she drifts awake, and softly asks her to stay, live there

There's a futon on the floor of Makoto's room for two months, and it goes unused. The young couple share her little twin bed, tangled and curled close enough that it's hard to distinguish where one begins and the other ends. Slowly, Haru bleeds life into the stiff Niijima apartment

After November 20, Sae comes home to two shaken teens, the TV hastily turned off, both turning to her for any confirmation that their crazy plan worked

Sae pretends not to see the way Makoto presses a kiss to Haru's temple. She pretends not to notice that Haru is wearing one of her sister's shirts. She knows they'll tell her when they're ready. It's about time she started trusting them, after all

On Christmas Eve, they reach towards eachother. Their fingers pass through the others'. Their reunion hug is painfully tight. Makoto swears to tell Sae, if they win. Haru corrects her; when they win.

Sae Niijima gets home late. Haru has gone to bed, leaving Makoto half asleep at the table. She keeps to her promise, and the elder sister asks to take her and her girlfriend out for Christmas dinner to celebrate

Maruki messes with things.

They graduate together, both accepted to the same school for post secondary. They have their futures ahead of them

Little pitstop for Strikers. Everyone knows they're dating, so they share one sleeping space in the camper van. There would be a funny moment where they discuss their upcoming anniversary, and one of the others says something about the first anniversary being special

Haru: what? It'll be our third anniversary in August?

Makoto: did we forget to say that? Whoops

And, now the third au

A skip to a few years later. Both have graduated, and feel secure in their jobs. Makoto works as a councilor for at risk youth, working with her bestie Ryuji to offer sports programs to every kid. Haru has her cafe, which has been raising in popularity.

So, they talk. Ten months after they talk, Makoto comes home to Haru crying joyfully in the bathroom. They're going to be parents

They have the support of the other Thieves along the way, and eventually welcome the smallest of Thieves to their growing family; their firstborn, their daughter Nonoka. And her younger twin brother, Keima

I don't have as much to say here. I think they'd be adoring parents, especially with the help of their friends. Their little Princess, and their little Prince

Anyways. Yeah. This was the updated overview of it. Let me know what you thought, any ideas you have, or just anything I love getting asks and stuff about my AU's

#makoto niijima #haru okumura #persona 5 #okujima #okujima triad au

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laufire · 2 months

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Hi! 9 and 13 for the salty ask list if it's not too much of a bother? The fandom would be dc(but batman stuff i guess) and the unpopular opinion would be abt jason. Have a nice day!

Most disliked character(s) [in DC]? Why?

Sometimes I do enter new beefs depending on what I'm reading at any given time, but the Joker, modern Joker to be precise, will always win the gold. It's less a "personal" hate for who he is (zero inner life) or what he does (a villain is a villain) and more about how I've grown loooong past being incapable of tolerating him as a character construct. He's whatever we'd call a Villain Stu. He's a genius! He influences the lead's journeys years in advance! He's a mastermind type!

He is so static and agravating. I really can't stand it lol. Or the fact that he's getting a "year one" arc (did we need another joker's origin story??). And that it's three issues long when Oracle: Year One didn't even get a full issue by itself.

(do read it though, it's great. It's in Batman Chronicles #5)

Another candidate that's annoyming me at the moment is Black Mask. In this case it's less about canon and more about how he's shipped with Jason in fandom. I really don't get the appeal lol. Black Mask is just. Nothing to Jason. Of all the guys to go with a villainship for him... to me this is like if you decided to ship Bruce with Condiment King. Except that could actually be a fun crack fic. But instead people portray him as this daddy dom that totally owns Batman. Okay. Sure. Whatever.

(tfz is pretty imperfect and didn't really nail their dynamic, but maybe if more people read it they'll at least go for Jason/Two-Face which is juicier... otoh fandom does enjoy a father-son dynamic with those two, of all things, so probably not).

Unpopular opinion about [JASON TODD]?

I've talked about this with you before, but one of my most unpopular opinions within Jason's own fandom (I'm not considering other people's opinions at the moment) is that whenever I think about Jason getting a higher education I always push my stem!Jason agenda xD. Yes, he loves literature and philosophy, yes he's a thespian~. He can like more than one thing! And I simply like going against the grain with this one. I think there's canon basis for it, and I enjoy how it allows me more creativity.

#replies #gecemi09 #my thoughts #talking to the void #dc #dc thoughts #antijoker for ts #antiblackmask for ts #jason todd #ty!

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the-official-account · 1 year

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Episode 22 3o❤️s

I've just been sitting here rotating them in my mind so I'm gonna do another episode

What I love about podcasts is how they make me permanently associated a certain feeling with this opening music in a pure Pavlovian response. The absolute adrenaline hit I got from the Desperado opening music was craaazya an now three of Hearts makes me 🥰🥰🥰

Essay's ability to repeat the word "crystallis's" is astounding.

Namesake AND relative. Okay. Okay okay okay I'm normal I'm so normal!

Diamond agreeing with the plan or not is the difference between consensual kidnapping and uhhhh kidnapping.

"If diamond doesn't trust queer creeper we might be able to get away with just heisting diamond, we don't need diamonds cooperation" HFODGSODGKZVSZ THATS JUST KIDNAPPING BUT OKAY!!!

"we can kidnap diamond consensually or by force" 😂😂😂😂 okay I get this as like a witness protection thing but damn

"a find my phone but for the people you've adopted" VDODHKSBSKD. I love this podcast about vellum, spar, and their strange child who is their age

Loving this strange shadowy room that definitely has nothing lurking in the corner

"STANDING IN THE CORNER IS A PERSONS OUTLINE" BECAUSE OF COURSE

Bxksgskdgs he says EXCUSE ME

NOT THE STEALTH CHECK JOKER IM DEAD

A HILARIOUS introduction to voracity

Ipswitch is such a nerd... WHEEEEW GETTING CAUGHT IN THAT WAS NAAAARROWLY AVOIDED

I get this nagging feeling that no matter what diamond is not gonna be with the agents by the time shit shakes out.

"diamond has a method of circumventing free will" is diamond altered? This was definitely mentioned in just not sure. But that means they mind controlled Kurt or something, right? I wonder if voracity can suck people's alterations out of them or something.

Ooooh locate person spell yeah...

Spar just *goes*...yeah. yeah that's spar. Go get 'er!

"if something happens and spar gets murdered, whatever" NOT WHATEVER. I WILL CRY

Here I am like oh, I love this little fight it is so cute and harmless and really shows off who they are as people so nicely and then—

"are you saying I'm not a good enough fields agent?"

"yes. I am" spar noooo

VELLUM PUNCHES HIM? OKAY KING MAYBE NOT THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE EMOTIONALLY BUT IM SO HERE FOR THIS. THE DRAMA. TAKE NO INSULTS!

TWO SUCCESS TO PUNCH. TWO TO RESTRAIN. OH MY GOD.

"and kaolin vellum can't throw a fucking punch" okay part is me is SO MAD right now but the larger part is me is eating up all this info about spar, I didn't know he got like this

JAKUB THIS IS NOT GREAT TIMING IM FUCKING DEAAAAD.

'if you're gonna be dead can I at least uhhhh do my job?'

"This is what I'm for" ugh. Ugh. OUCH.

"I care too much about you for you to get hurt, you know that right?"

"SPAR DID NOT KNOW THAT"

... "HE DOESNT WANNA HAVE TO TELL ANY OF THE OTHER FELSPARS THAT SOMETHING HAPPENED TO SPAR WHEN HE WASNT THERE" OH IM SHAKING.

I was warned about this episode but I was not warned

"You got it kid. Sir" that's cute.

Wow I have so many emotions in my body right now.

HE CHECKS HIS TIE AND DIEBDKDBSKDBDISVS

"be careful"

"I always am"

"that's a lie—DAMMIT SPAR"

But the cheek kiss. Oh my god the cheek kiss. I feel like people get so wrapped up in mouth-kisses that they sometimes forget the simple shit like hugs and kisses on the cheek can be just as emotionally impactful if not more in context. The cupping his face. This. mmmmmmmmmmMMMM!!!!!!!

God I love them. I love them. I love them so much.

Spar and Xbala's friendship is so precious. Everyone is so precious. I'm gonna cry. but SPAR STOP DUCKING JOKING ABOUT THE IDEA THAT YOU'RE LOVED! GODDAMN!

I'm still loving the groove, this time I am bopping and weeping.

Okay but thinking about a last name in a hypothetical marriage that they hypothetically decide to want they'd probably keep theirs??? For work reasons?? But idk. I was just thinking that "Velspar" is a cool shit name. Kaoliam. Merlin. Maybe not merlin fksgsksgdjdgs

[spar bakes tiny pixie sized cakes for Sorel as he organizes her birthday yearly, doesn't org. His own lets someone else. He's confident in his cakes but otherwise can't really cook]

Ipswitch is a mood, I also love tasks.

Maybe my volume is slightly higher than normal but this end of midtro music seemed extra groovy

It just hit me that there was no heavy content warning at the start of this episode so spar's fine at least for now. I'm not feeling particularly anxious today but knowing that would definitely help a lot of j was :D

"she's not gonna blow up the car" awhhhh

I know he's fine and I'm still worried, but like, in an exciting way

He cuts the radio station in half <3.

I'm imagining Anya giving the guards bad legal advice because I think it's funny. Anya is a "vengeance is best served cold" kinda gal

I love spar saying he wants to pick Anya up because I know she is the size of maybe 2 footballs (exaggeration)

I LOVE THAT THEY KIDNAPPED CARNATION ALSO LMAO. sorry you got muzzled tho bestie that makes me sad....

How are we transporting carnation in the sedan? Or maybe carnation is just really fucking fast because pigs are fucking scary. And then this one has ANTLERS oh my god. I also need to draw carnation

Eughhhh I don't like where this incoming car is going

There are animatics in my head of all the fight scenes that I will never be able to make but know that they are VERY cool.

I WAS SO FUCKING SCARED ABOUT VORACITY BUT THE FUCKING BEARTRAP LMAOOOOOOO

This does imply voracity has some sort of physical ability maybe.

>:( the hosts need to stop being funny they keep making jokes before I can make the jokes. But still "playing whatever card game is the gayest" is SO much fun.

The :0 face..... IPSWITCH!!!! ASK FOR AN ALTERNATIVE DATE OR SOMETHING OH MY GOD

the suits manual (which I know exists but I maintain does not exist exactly because it is funny) — "MAKE PEACE WITH YOUR GODDEX" FFFFUCK.

One success has ME making peace with my goddex.

IMAGING GETTING A BEAR TRAP THROWN AT YOU

"IF NEEDED SPAR WILL FASTBALL SPECIAL ANYA TO THE CAR" 😂😂😂😂

SPAR SPAR SPAR SPAR SPAR STOP FUCKING BEING SELF SACRIFICIAL THAT IS A BLOOD SUCKING VAMPIRE MY MAN WHAT THE ABSOLUTE FUCK SPAR WHAT THE FUCK

JORDAN THE MINUS ONE FLIP WHAT THE FUCK JORDAN WHAAAAAA

Oh shit cool sword shit I love cool sword shit.

THEIR BLOOOOOD TURNS TO STONE? THATS SO FUCKING COOL.

Spar I love you but your hubris —TWO JOKERS. The deck said "fuck you. The timeline."

Ooooh it won't kill a Felspar........SO HE'S GONNA FUCKING SHOOT THEM? VELLUM DEFINATELY DIDNT FUCKING AUTHORIZED THIS BUT I IMAGINE ITS ASSUMED—NO SUCCESSES

HHHHHOLLLLLY FUCK.

VORACITY KNOWS—FUCK YOU VORACITY STOP TALKING ABOUT HIS PARENTS FUCK YOU. CHRIST. GOD. THIS. HUPEHDLJM?

Xbala's gotta be fucking flooring it.

Wheeeeeeew. What a fucking episode. Fuck. Wow. Fuck.

@threeheartscast

#holy....wow. wow. wow wow wow. Wow. hooooooooo #edil chats #three of hearts pod #three of hearts #edil liveblogs three of hearts

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noonegetsleftbehind · 1 year

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Get To Know The Mun

------The Basics!

Name: J

Pronouns: he/him

Zodiac Sign: libra

Single/Taken: taken by @viralstars for the last 10 years as of mar 23 and married for 3 as of oct 31 lol (ewww gross it's like i love you or something)

------Three Facts!

1- i cosplayed ledger's joker for years and used to appear outside of the theater i lived above to hand out candy on halloween as him (incidentally, the euphoria i had from wearing that costume was my egg breaking) i also wrote him for for about 10 years in some way shape or form (he was my first indie blog on tumblr and how i met my wife.) i now write 2019's joker here @smilewithapurpose (the joker is my all time favorite fictional character and i cannot put into words what the character means to me)

2- i have a tattoo of freddie mercury and it means the world to me

3- my hair has not been its natural color since like... 2016?

------Experience!

Platforms Used: started out doing fanfic so fanfic.net and AO3 then moved to tumblr and also use discord for it too

Plotting / Winging It / Memes: all of the above tbh. i like doing all of them. sometimes it works best to have a plot or at least a small idea of what we want to do. then other times it works out to just wing it and see what happens and all of a sudden you have something that's so awesome and you're obsessed with. i cannot tell you how many of my favorite ships and threads have started with a meme.

------Muse Preference!

Gender: i typically would say about... 95% of my muses are male and i lean more comfortable writing male as a preference. most of my friends growing up were male too and i still find it easier to speak to and befriend males so i suppose that's part of why it's most comfortable to me.

Multi or Single: so lol i do have an re multi here @infectati and my long ignored regular multi that i would love to be able to go back to here @writingxonthewall but i often have trouble keeping centered on a multi. it's a me thing because i start having an overload of aesthetics and info etc and i get weird about my muses having their own space. however.... i LOVE writing with multis and i fully support them! <3

Least Favorite Faceclaim(s): ....? listen... i don't have time to give a shit. you do you. it's your muse. your blog. i don't have to like them or agree with them.

------Fluff / Angst / Smut!

Fluff: godddd i love fluff. admittedly lmao i probably spend the LEAST amount of time writing it of anything. i should probably spend a little more time with it, but that angst is just so damn good!

Angst: listen. not only is it the name of one of my favorite rammstein songs, but goddamn. i. LOVE. writing. ANGST. it's my favorite. i feel it catches my attention the most and i am able to explore aspects of my character and their relationship with other muses involved so deeply when writing it. i feel it is is my strongest creative drive.

Smut: yup. it doesn't have to be spicy sunday in this bitch. i love writing smut. there. i said it. i love it. sometimes it can be really in depth and emotional. something raw and intense. sometimes just all out naughty. sometimes sweet. there's a lot of depth to it and it can also bring out depth and emotions in my characters that i otherwise wouldn't get writing anything else. it's a valid genre and one that needs a fuck ton less stigma to it.

Stolen From: @idolkills and @deadkenndy Tagging: allllll of you <3

#|| bsaa file: ooc ||

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bianmao · 1 year

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Catwoman during the Golden Age of comic books

Reading list + reviews

#1 Batman (March 1940) issue 1: "The Cat"

I decided to read every Catwoman comic book in history and of course I'll start with Batman #1 where she makes her first appearence.

She is revealed as the well-known criminal of the underworld: The Cat, someone even Batman says he heard stories about. The moment we first meet Selina (aside from her strong personality) two things are clear to us about her... or three:

1) She is a great thief;

2) She is great with disguises;

... and,

3) Batman is a big simp for her.

I think we tend to forget just how good she is with disguises. We never learn "The Cat"'s true identity in this issue, just the fake identity she impersonated in this heist: Mrs. Peggs. With her great skills she manages to fool everyone on the yacht where this story takes place into believing she is just a harmless old lady.

On a side note, we also see a glimpse of her, let's say, modus operandi. We don't know exactly how she got in contact with Denny Travers, we don't know if he hired her or if "The Cat" herself, (interested in his aunt's necklace) found him, realized he was interested in it as well, and proposed a deal to get it together.

Either way we get to know a clever and beautiful young woman with a strong reputation amongst criminals in the Gotham underworld (entirely made up of men at this point) and great at her job, wether we are talking about stealing priceless emerald necklaces or hearts.

#2 Batman (June 1940) issue 2: "The Joker Meets the Cat-Woman"

This issue is, for some reason, less known compared to issues 1 and 3 but I still think it's very important for Catwoman's early characterization. Let's start by saying that this is the first time we see the name "Cat-woman" in her comic book history, that her master of disguise trait is still present and that we see her, once again, using a man to get what she wants... but the thing I want to focus on the most is her interaction with Robin and Joker.

I think that some writers (one in particular) working on recent comic books really need to read this issue instead of giving new readers the idea Catwoman and Joker ever had comic book history together. Catwoman was never nearly close to Joker's ideas or methods. Compared to every other villain introduced in these early issues, she really stands out for being a non violent, very talented thief, in no way a killer. She was this early ready, and without second thoughts, to give up her loot in order to save Robin's life. She is shown to be specially protective over Robin, doing her best to keep him safe until Batman's arrival. This almost motherly trait will appear again in future comics.

#3 Batman (September 1940) issue 3: "The Batman vs. the Cat-Woman"

We see more of "The Cat" and the way she works, either for herself or for the people who hire her, to whom she asks a quite generous share. We see how her excellent skills are making the police lose credibility and we realize that Gordon's hostility towards Catwoman has ancient roots.

The two most prominent things in this issue are Catwoman's first, let's call it "catsuit", ever seen in a comic book (although, for now, it's just a furry mask shaped to resemble a realistic cat's head) and the first kiss Batman and Catwoman share in their long and iconic relationship.

(By the way, you know, this is Batman's first kiss in general ever since Detective Comics 27)

#4 Batman (May 1942) issue 10: "The Princess of Plunder"

We jump to issue 10 to see the Catwoman in action once again, introduced for the first time with the title of "Princess of Plunder". This time The Cat has a name: Marguerite Tone and, posing as a hostess during high society events, has started an illegal business of lost and found items she would first steal from her guests and then return them in exchange of money. This issue highlights her cleverness in studying and executing her robberies, also thanks to the help of the first four henchmen we see working for her (the simple concept of a woman giving orders to men in the 40s is really special to me).

Even if this is just her fourth chronological appearance we already have the idea of a strong, clever woman who doesn't follow anyone orders and acts according to her personal wishes and ideas, other than being a good leader. But we also see a bit of her attraction and romantic interest towards the Batman and for a brief moment we see a, let's say, "preview" of the dilemma that characterizes her the most: does she really fit the "criminal" side of the spectrum?

It's also nice to see the second time in history Batman and Catwoman shared a kiss after Batman issue 3.

#5 World's Finest Comics (May 1942) issue 6: "The Secret of Bruce Wayne"

This issue features just a really small Catwoman cameo, still in her very first catsuit but the only thing she says is a nice summary of the relationship between her and Batman.

#6 Batman (March 1943) issue 15: "Your Face Is Your Fortune"

This time we meet the Cat under another name: Elva Barr and we are presented with her daily routine as a hard worker at a beauty salon. We see how she lives the normal life of an average girl and we wonder, along with Bruce , if this means she eventually decided to give up her crimes as the Cat-woman ... of course, this is just what she wants us to think: in truth her job only made it easier for her to "steal" her customers' looks and voice in order to use them for her robberies. In the first few pages we see Catwoman's first nameless pet cat and we have a first highlight of Bruce's interest, as a detective, in the Cat-woman's mystery. Before this issue we've seen Catwoman feeling some sort of romantic attraction towards Batman , in this issue she falls in love with Bruce Wayne, to the point of telling Batman she could even give up her crimes for him. To this, a flattered Batman decides to play along with it, and with the second 'oops' followed by an "accidental" tripping in just 5 issues of Catwoman's appearances, Batman, as Bruce, starts dating Elva Barr and the two get engaged (even though Bruce already has a relationship with Linda Page). The Cat-woman soon starts doubting Bruce's feelings for her and, disguised as Linda, finds out the truth by deceiving Bruce. This makes her change her mind about going straight and this eventually leads to Batman arresting her (for the first time).

#7 Batman (April 1944) issue 22: "The Duped Domestics"

... I wish I could skip this issue... but I keep reminding myself we are talking about literature from 80 years ago...

Anyways, Catwoman assumes another identity: Belinda the maid who is making all the butlers in the neighborhood fall in love with her to manipulate information out of them she can use to plan robberies in their masters' mansions... including Alfred. To hit on her Alfred will say he knows Batman and even steals Bruce's spare suit when she asks him to make her meet Batman. I don't even want to mention the ending of this issue that kind of calls back to the infamous "quiet or papa spank" Batman tells her in issue 1... but unfortunately this won't be the last time we see Catwoman dating... not so young men.

[Detective Comics (June 1946) issue 112: "The Case Without a Crime"

DISCLAIMER: the Catwoman, the character as we've known her in previous issues, doesn't appear here, just her costume worn by Corinne, a seamstress involved in a "case without a crime". Still, I think this issue is worth mentioning because it marks a first evolution of Catwoman's cat-suit. The furry cat-head is gone now and we finally have a prototype of one of her most iconic looks: purple dress and green cape.

Also, if I have to be completely honest, I might like this costume even better.]

#8 Batman (June 1946) issue 35: "Nine Lives has the Catwoman!"

As anticipated in my last post, Catwoman reappears wearing a new lilac catsuit with a simpler (and cuter) mask design this time. Her hair has a new shade of blond as we see her escaping from prison (where she is mocked by her fellow female inmates) and trying to win back her henchmen's trust by setting-up a non-existent power: the legendary nine lives of a cat. Speaking of cats, this is the first time we see Hecate, her first recurring pet cat with a name... and not a common name either! Hecate is, in fact, the name of the greek goddess of magic and witchcraft. Hecate is not the only Catwoman associate that receives a name in this issue. For instance two of her henchmen, her most faithful ones, now have names: Mike and Pete, whose precious help let Catwoman build her new hideout, the Cat-acombs, a maze built in order to trap Batman and Robin the moment they step in.

I want to note down a couple of last things: the first one is Batman chasing Catwoman on top of the dirigible... it reminded me of their usual rooftops chases in a particular way. The second one is that we see a Cat-O-Nine Tails in this issue (unfortunately I couldn't fit it among the other panels)! It's Batman who uses it to disarm her but still I feel like this can count as a first appearance of her good old whip as her weapon of choice.

#9 Batman (February 1947) issue 39: "A Christmas Tale!"

This Christmas issue, in which Catwoman is mentioned on the cover page for the first time, begins with Batman and Robin being sent by Gordon to investigate the disappearance of three pet cats: a red persian cat, a long-fur white cat and a tail-less manx cat. One thing the three of them had in common was their owners love for them. Batman and Robin will find out that Catwoman "catnapped" those cats in order to perform a couple of capers by using those cat's peculiarities.

After first seeing a Cat-O-Nine Tails in the last issue we analyzed, we finally see it in her hand now, noticing how it has become a part of her costume as she wears it around her waist like a belt. The thing about this issue that interests me the most, though, is Catwoman stopping her henchman from killing Batman. It's especially interesting if we think that in issue 35 she almost killed him with a gun. I like this characterization a lot. Lastly, in a part I unfortunately couldn't fit among the other panels, we almost had a kiss under the mistletoe... almost.

#10 Detective Comics (April 1947) issue 122: "The Black Cat Crimes"

This issue is rather important: not only Catwoman makes her first, official, appearance in the Detective Comics run, not only she also finally debuts on the cover page but this is the first time we see the (almost) definitive version of her iconic pre-Crisis catsuit... and the news aren't even over yet! Her iconic Kitty Car also makes its first appearance in this comic book: a vehicle designed to outspeed the very Batmobile itself. There are two main things I want to highlight in this issue in which Catwoman builds three capers on the old saying that "black cat" also means "bad luck": first of all that she herself makes her own gadgets (like the Claw Gloves that appear in this issue), and then that once again, after Batman 2, we see her worrying about Robin whenever he is in dangerous situations, like on top of the Statue of Liberty (or is it what will later be known as "Lady Gotham" or "Lady Justice of Gotham") in this issue. Her worries extends to Batman to the point of making Robin remark, with a smile, how she is really bad at hiding her fondness towards him.

#11 Batman (August 1947) issue 42: "Claws of the Catwoman!"

In this issue (which marks the first cover appearance of Catwoman in the Batman run) Catwoman takes inspiration for her capers from a book called: "Famous Felines: Immortal Cats of Fiction", which lists some of the most famous cat-tales in history. We can find the following references in this issue:

- "Ten Little Kittens"; a nursery rhyme.

- "Puss in Boots"; an italian fairy tale.

- "Dick Whittington and His Cat"; a british tale.

- "The Black Cat"; a short story by Edgar Allan Poe.

- The Cheshire Cat from "Alice in Wonderland".

- "The Cat and The Fiddle"; another nursery rhyme.

This issue also gives us: Catwoman in cowgirl boots, the name of another one of her henchmen: Slug, a new full body-catsuit, another chase with Catwoman that ends in Batman and Robin getting caught, Batman dancing at a cat-themed party, an epic fight against Catwoman on top of a giant violinist-cat statue... and another instance of Catwoman rejecting killing and caring about Batman and Robin's lives. She walls them without their utility belts but she cares about letting air flow so they wouldn't suffocate and implies that she was going to free them as soon as she was done with her crimes (and leaves Hecate on purpose to give them a chance to escape).

#12 Batman (February 1948) issue 45: "The Lady Rogues!"

Okay, well... If I worked at DC the first think I'd do would be a remake for this issue.

Just like the last issue I analyzed, this issue is very interesting because it includes mentions of well-known tales in real or fictional history. This time the focus is on all the most famous, or rather, infamous "lady rogues" like Lucrezia Borgia, Medusa, Circe, Lady Macbeth, "Snow White"'s Wicked Queen and Delilah. The extremely successful book that collects all of their stories by Neil Weston, however, doesn't include the name of someone who is proving herself to be at least worth a mention: Catwoman, this is why, out of spite, she decides to ruin the performances of Gala Kazon, the actress chosen to play every villainess from that book.

As always I like to point out all the abilities that Catwoman shows in the issue I'm analyzing, but, this time, the thing that impressed me the most about her wasn't the way she outwits Batman and Robin, managing to escape from their pursuit and showing once again to be an extremely smart and a very capable strategist and quick thinker, or Catwoman showing off another one of her flawless disguises: the beautiful Snow White together with her seven dwarfs, or even other skills like riding a bike or climbing... it was her comebacks and snarky remarks. She is particularly witty and humorous in this issue and that might be the part of Catwoman I like the most.

#13 Batman (July 1948) issue 47: "Fashions In Crime!"

I'm not going to lie, this might be my number one favorite comic book from the Golden Age.

Another prison breakout (thanks to Hecate and the content of her "utility collar"), another fake identity (Madame Moderne, whose blonde wig and attitude inevitably remind me of Selina from Batman: The Animated Series, still far in the future) and another clever way to steal jewels and valuable clothes from wealthy ladies. Which way? Well, launching a new fashion magazine all by herself that gains extreme popularity in no time giving her enough influence to bring wealthy people to expose their valuable fashion-related possessions by declaring them "The Style of The Month".

Catwoman is shown to be so resourceful in this issue: not only she is a great thief, mistress of disguise, lithe and athletic, able to set up her own prison break, with enough of aces up her sleeve to engineer all her thefts in success and still with henchmen at her service, but she is also a tasteful and extremely talented artist, stylist, publisher and marketer, all by herself.

Sure, today's Catwoman would rather die than own and wear a real fur coat but still this issue is a real pearl and it also includes another stolen kiss to Batman, their third one in comic book history!

#14 Batman (December 1950) issue 62: "The Secret Life of the Catwoman!"

I personally believe this is one of the most important issues for Catwoman's development in her comic book history.

We are talking about the issue where, after all the other names Catwoman has used in the past, she finally introduces herself as "Selina Kyle", the definitive name for her civilian alter-ego. But the name also comes with her first backstory: a stewardess who survived a plane crush but getting amnesia due to the trauma, only remembering her connection to cats due to her father formerly owning a pet shop.

But there's a lot more to point out in this issue!

First and foremost how Mister X remarks Catwoman's aversion to killing, since he needs her help to execute his "jobs" without any kill and he noticed that she is an expert at robbing people without even hurting them by using cats, then how selflessly, even before regaining her memories and rejecting her life of crime, she is ready to face death in order to save somebody else, Batman in this and in many more cases in the future, and lastly how, although being introduced as a rogue, she is already helping Batman and Gordon on the side of justice rejecting crime. It doesn't last for long, but she is the first rogue to receive this kind of development and it's a good reminder of how, even in the Golden Age, it was very hard to label Selina as either a hero or a villain.

#15 Batman (June 1951) issue 65: "Catwoman-- Empress of the Underworld"

The cover for this issue is one of my favorites because it encapsulates Selina's innate tendency to be difficult to "label" and/or "categorize" as well as Batman's consequent puzzlement, interest and even curiosity to understand and "solve" her. This is one of the BatCat couple's most recognizable traits but it's nice to remember it has always been like this, even back in the Golden Age, although nowadays most people tend to remember her as nothing more than an ordinary villain. But she was never just an "ordinary villain" and this issue is a proof to that: we left her in issue 62 revealing to us her real name and backstory, deciding to move past her crime-life and starting again by opening a pet-shop, thereby following her father's steps. At her shop, she receives the visit of a slumlord who has been evading arrest for years due to lack of proof known as "Whale" Morton who taunts her and invites her to turn back to her life as a villainess. Although she completely rejects the offer, Gotham is victim of a series of cat-related crimes and newspapers point the finger at Catwoman calling her the main suspect for these crimes. Gradually, everyone begins to suspect her, even herself as a few evidences lead Selina to believe that she might suffer from more episodes of amnesia in which she committs crimes as the Catwoman without being left with any memory of it.

The only one who never stops believing in her is Batman.

Batman's undying faith in Catwoman is the thing I want to focus on the most when talking about this issue. Even though Robin was the first one to have lost faith in her, Batman never stopped believing, or, at least, hoping, that there was a good explaination for what was happening and that she had a plan after all... until his hope was fulfilled in the end: it's revealed she was doing everything in order to frame Morton and finally get him arrested.

Lastly, I want to at least mention Selina's cleverness and courage in putting up this entire plan all by herself and her incredible agility and strenght as she climbs on top of the ZBC building with nothing more than her claws.

#16 Batman (February 1952) issue 69: "The King of the Cats!"

Although Selina has already left aside her past life as The Catwoman, Gotham finds itself dealing with a new series of cat-related crimes yet again, this time by the hands of a new villain calling himself The King of The Cats who also began sending gifts at "Selina's Pet Shop", causing a misunderstanding that makes Batman and Robin believe that their new foe might be Selina's lover. We see him driving her Kitty-Car and she also seems to know him personally as she calls him with his real name: Karl, other than trying her best to protect him from Batman and Robin. In the end we learn the truth: Selina is actually Karl's sister who just wanted to see him reform just like she did.

But my favorite part of this story must be the ending: Batman and The King of the Cats end up in two different cages, trapped with ferocious tigers and Selina has to choose on which beast use the last knockout gas pellet left. She chooses to put the tiger attacking Karl to sleep but she refuses to leave Batman alone in his cage, although she is confident he has the ability to save himself on his own, thus she jumps in his cage, fighting alongside him. I love seeing how she was always a selfless, brave and heroic woman, always ready to make sacrifices, since the very beginning of her comic book history.

#17 Detective Comics (January 1954) issue 203: "The Crimes of the Catwoman!"

Although this is the issue in which Selina Kyle, after a short but extremely important arc (in which she gave up her life as a thief to serve justice helping Batman and the police), wears once again her Catwoman costume to reprise her characteristic cat crimes, I feel like this issue is very important for the relationship between the Bat and the Cat.

Selina makes this choice after a continuous and long lasting torment inflicted to her by the media and members of the criminal underworld who keep reminding her of her past life as a criminal. We see Batman as the only one who doesn't judge her and the issue even starts with Batman protecting her from the upteenth pair of crooks who came at her pet shop to mock her, which I find really cute. Batman is shown to be really worried about her and saddened by her return to crime, even Robin and Gordon make comments on these feelings Batman has been showing for Catwoman. On her part, Catwoman can't bring herself to hurt Batman and doesn't let her crooks kill him like they wanted, which makes Batman and Robin question her feelings towards him. Batman also makes a lot of comments on Selina's clevernss and she even outsmarts him at some point!

With Selina's return to crime we also see the return of some of her old accessories and equipment like her notorious whip, the Cat-O-Nine Tails and her iconic Kitty Car, as well as now ones, like a Cat-apult, a Catboat and a Cat's Cradle she uses as a bridge during a new rooftop chase with Batman. We also see her finding herself a new lair, her new Catacomb, and, for the first time, a Catsignal, shines on the skies of Gotham... and just like in the past, a new ambiguous fate for her in the ending of the issue that makes us wonder if cats really have nine lives.

#18 Batman (June 1954) issue 84: "The Sleeping Beauties of Gotham City!"

Fully returned to her life as a criminal but thought to be dead by most people, including Batman and Robin, Selina Kyle returns to her pet shop claiming that there is no evidence to prove she is the woman behind the Catwoman mask... but she is secretly planning a heist inspired by the fairy tale of Snow White.

Everything begins with Selina being chosen, among a total of 100.000 applicants, as one of the five contestans for the "Queen For A Day" beauty contest, sponsored by the W. Ross Cosmetics Co. while, suspicious, Batman and Robin try to catch Catwoman in the act of committing a crime so they can put her in jail once and for all. The dynamic duo fails to catch her in her attempt to steal a Dalivarius violin at the Museum of Music but intend to confront her the day after... only to find out she somehow fell into a deep sleep catching huge media attention, while medical professionals, who got interested in her case, began studying this yet undiscovered illness by full-time watching over her dormant body through a glass showcase. But, to Batman and Robin's puzzlement, while Selina Kyle has an ironclad alibi, Catwoman is still at large committing crimes, also drugging the other contestants and trapping them in the same kind of deep sleep Selina still hasn't awakened from. And it's just as Batman sees Catwoman coming out of one of the last contestants' apartment (through what Robin calls a "Cat-Walk") that she manages to outsmart him once again and trap him. When he finally manages to escape from Catwoman's trap she has already been crowned as the winner of the beauty contest but he's still on time to prevent her from putting her hands on the prize (that she had agents in Europe switch with imported diamonds).

One thing that I really love about this issue is the part where Batman warns the GCPD about Catwoman because:

1) it's a nice summary of all her gadgets, skills and abilities;

2) ... Batman... where exactly do you keep that HUGE Catwoman painting?

#19 Detective Comics (September 1954) issue 211: "The Jungle Cat Queen!"

This issue marks Catwoman's last appearance for around a decade due to the Detective Comics and Batman titles adopting the strict Comics Code regulations which saw Batman flirting with a criminal who would frequently elude arrest as "too problematic" and, possibly, also to give Batman more love interests like Vicki Vale and Kathy Kane. Yet, this story, which may count as a temporary farewell, leaves us with a smart and skillful Catwoman who still isn't evil enough to kill.

The story begins with Catwoman flying away on her Catplane, which makes its first appearance in this issue, after stealing a shipment of diamonds. Batman and Robin guess her destination and follow Catwoman on their Batplane towards a tropical island, but their aircraft gets heavily damaged by the Catplane so they have to make an emergency landing on said island. There they make the acquaintance of John Jarrow and his colleagues who are working at a diamonds mine... and, unfortunately, working with Catwoman too. They manage to deceive the dinamic duo and even trap them eventually. When Selina appears she is accompained by a panther, a lion, a leopard and a tiger and suggests to let the beasts hunt down Batman and Robin, stripped of their suits and utility belts stopping the "miners" from trying to kill them. While escaping the felines the dinamic duo is able to spot Catwoman's new Catacomb, an ancient cat-temple in which she's keeping all her beasts. Batman guesses they must be tamed circus felines so he uses taming techniques to make them go back to their cages. John and the others arrive and with the help of a giant gorilla manage to subdue Batman and stun Robin. The "miners" want to kill Batman by throwing him off a waterfall and Catwoman suggests to put back on him his costume and utility belt to make all evidences of their involvement in the homicide disappear. She reassures them she took away all of his bat-gadgets from his utility belt before giving it back to him... except, she didn't. This helps Batman freeing himself, find salvation and find out what was going on on that island: there is no mine on that island, they were just bringing there stolen diamonds from all over the world and pretend there was one. With Robin's help they manage to catch all the criminals except for Catwoman, who escapes with the help of her tiger, then leaving on her Catplane.

Her choice to save Batman's life by leaving all his gadgets in his utility belt makes the dinamic duo point out once again how she just can't bring herself to kill.

[Batman (October 1958) issue 119: "The Secret of Batman Island!"

As I already mentioned in my last post, after Detective Comics issue 211, Catwoman, a.k.a. Selina Kyle, stops appearing in comic books for around a decade.

I still wanted to mention this cameo she makes in 1958: she is remembered as one of Batman's most relevant foes in the Batman Museum on A. K. Barnaby's "Batman Island".]

[Detective Comics (1963 - 1964)

- Issue 311: "Challenge of the Cat-Man!"

- Issue 318: "The Cat-Man Strikes Back"

- Issue 325: "The Strange Lives of the Cat-Man"

Thomas Blake, a.k.a. the Cat-Man, is the closest thing we have to a Catwoman in this period of comic books. He explicitly states to have been inspired by her into becoming a cat-themed criminal, remembering her as one of Batman's greatest foes". He even makes a cat-suit (with supernatural powers, just like his own) for Batwoman, whom he has a crush on, hoping she would join him becoming his Cat-Woman, which happens even if just to trick Cat-Man.

He basically copies her entire aesthetic committing cat-related crimes, driving a "Cat-Car" and calling his hideout a "Catacomb"... everything except his suit, which still looks pretty different from hers, and his attitude...

P.S.: about the blatant sexism... Tommy, dear, this "mere woman" kicks your butt every time she crosses your path, what does that make you? 💅🏼]

#20 Batman (December 1965) issue 176: "Complete Sunday Newspaper Syndicated Story"

This short story is actually the reprint of a newspaper comic strip released in 1946 and it shows Catwoman challanging Batman to catch her in a chase across the United States.

Unafraid of Batman, Catwoman decides to take advantage of his interest in putting her behind bars and proposes an extremely well-crafted plan to crimelords whose crooks are becoming more and more terrified of Batman thus making committing crimes more difficult.

Her plan consists in ruining Batman's grim reputation by sharing with different newspapers a detailed route across the USA, inviting Batman to catch her. In this way she can show the world how the frightening Batman can't catch a thief like her even while knowing all her movements in detail.

This might be one of my Golden Age favorite moments, for many reasons:

- Catwoman being one of the few characters being completely unafraid of Batman is a very important element of their dynamic;

- Batman calls her a "master of disguise" in this story and he is so right: Catwoman keeps changing her disguise every time she appears publicly on transports and Batman has to do the same in order to spot her and I think this is what makes this story so fun;

- for the same reason this story has probably the greatest fashion moments in the entire Golden Age era and I really love seeing Catwoman looking so good in each panel;

- I also think that Catwoman's characterization is done perfectly here, from her snark to her cleverness: I never get tired of seeing Catwoman outsmarting Batman!

☆ Batman (January 1966)

The extremely popular Batman TV series that brought Catwoman on a screen for the first time, relaunching her character after her ten-years-long absence from comic books, started airing in January 1966. Catwoman was portrayed by Julie Newmar in seasons 1 and 2, Eartha Kitt in season 3 and Lee Meriwether in the movie adaptation.

Catwoman appeared in the following episodes:

SEASON 1:

- Episode 19: "The Purr-Fect Crime"

- Episode 20: "Better Luck Next Time"

SEASON 2:

- Episode 37: "Hot Off the Griddle"

- Episode 38: "The Cat and the Fiddle"

- Episode 44: "Ma Parker"

- Episode 63: "The Cat's Meow"

- Episode 64: "The Bat's Kow Tow"

- Episode 67: "The Sandman Cometh"

- Episode 68: "The Catwoman Goeth"

- Episode 74: "That Darn Catwoman"

- Episode 75: "Scat! Darn Catwoman"

- Episode 83: "Catwoman Goes to College"

- Episode 84: "Batman Displays His Knowledge"

SEASON 3:

- Episode 108: "Catwoman's Dressed to Kill"

- Episode 110: "The Funny Feline Felonies"

- Episode 111: "The Joke's on Catwoman"

- Episode 119: "The Entrancing Dr. Cassandra"

#catwoman #batman #robin #dc comics #batcat #selina kyle #bruce wayne #dick grayson #alfred pennyworth #joker

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gwendolyn-of-loxley · 1 year

Text

2185.

He kept staring at it. 2185. The original Normandy was attacked by the Collectors in 2183, leaving twenty crew members--and her commander--dead.

When he had spare time, Shepard tried to catch up on current events, but disorientation was a common adversary. The way he'd perceived it, he was spaced one moment, and waking up from fading sedatives the next. Unfortunately, the state of it was that he missed two entire calendar years. Two years of birthdays, holidays, workdays, and bad hair days (granted, regulation hair was fairly manageable) missed and irreplaceable. But it didn't feel that way. He'd been on the clock when he'd gone under, and he was on the clock again now that he was up. But his crew was gone. The Citadel was crowded and strange (technically again, but it was different this time). He was at once a legend and a fugitive, and the Collectors didn't even have the decency to kill him on the New Year. He'd already mislabeled three reports.

Shepard looked up from his terminal, watching the CIC bustle with activity dressed in Cerberus colors. It was eerie; the atmosphere was not dissimilar to what it had been on the SR-1, but the very presence of the organization’s insignia, the skew to orange instead of blew, was foreign and disconcerting. Glancing over at Kelly, he caught her suddenly looking away, as if she’d been watching him. Narrowing his eyes, Shepard felt the sensation of being cornered. If he was being honest, he could use a break from it. He could use some familiarity.

One elevator ride later, he stepped out onto the engineering deck, letting a breath cycle through his lungs. Garrus had been busy with calibrations (as usual), and Joker was in a bickering contest with the Cerberus AI, EDI, so he decided to head down to the only other face hw recognized.

As the automatic doors opened, Shepard let the scent of eezo drift into his nose. It wasn't a bad smell in the slightest. Most biotics tended to give it off at some point, and it was almost always present in the air of Alliance engine rooms. The Normandy's Tantalus drive core was certainly no exception, especially when it was designed to vent into the engineering compartment when overtaxed (Shepard still couldn't understand how Cerberus engineers could have let that happen with the resources available to them). Either way, the commander had come to tolerate it well enough. It wasn't why he was there.

She was.

Shepard's eyes softened as they found the familiar patterns of quarian fabric. Turning to face him, Tali'Zorah's violet faceplate flashed in the blue light of the drive core, prompting the commander's lips to rise into a smile. He'd always enjoyed Tali's general fashion, but regardless, it matched quite pleasantly to the backdrop of her workplace.

"Shepard," she said. He couldn't help but enjoy how she rolled the "r" in his name, something even their translators couldn't phase out. "Something I can do for you?"

He shrugged, leaning against the wall next to her station. "Been seeing a bit too much white and orange. Needed a change in scenery."

Across the room, Daniels spoke up. "If you need us to clear the room, you can certainly ask, Commander."

Before Shepard could respond, Tali's speaker lit up. "We can try to step away," she said, turning to Shepard. "I hope you don't mind. The core's oscillationary cycles have been staggering, and I'd rather we have eyes on it until we figure out what's wrong."

"Fine by me."

He followed her deeper into the workings of the ship, closer to the drive core. It thrummed and hummed and made a lot of other sounds that were better replicated with a printer than with speech. If Shepard was being honest, he found them relaxing. In the event that the Normandy's mission was complete and the ship decommissioned, the Tantalus drive could easily become the galaxy's most expensive white noise machine.

Tali stopped at the end of the walkway, lazily placing a hand on the safety railing. At first, she looked up at the tremulous orb in the center of the room. Shepard joined her, careful not to blind himself looking at the various nodes.

"I appreciate you sparing some time, Tali." The commander let his hip rest against the rail.

The quarian turned her gaze on him. "Of course. Is everything okay?"

Shepard shrugged. "Still trying to get the calendar to make sense," he said. "Have you ever overslept on a really important day?"

Tali shook her head. "I'd like to say yes out of sympathy, but if I'm being honest, I have the opposite problem. I usually wake up too early for things, and can't get back to sleep."

That got him to chuckle a bit. "I guess you were never born with an off switch, huh?"

"Not many quarians can afford to be," she replied. "But I do know what it's like for things to have changed. After my pilgrimage, I was assigned to the Neema, and began to work with my father. For the first time in years, it felt like he was truly acknowledging me… but there were downsides, too. Not many of my people believed you about the Reapers."

"Yeah," he bit, though not at his friend. "I got that much."

Tali shrugged. "It was hard, for a while. I watched while you talked to Sovereign. I know they're real. But every time I tried to talk about it, my shipmates either wanted to change the subject or laughed me off. 'The geth are advancing' they said. 'He's a human; they don't think too much' they said." She took a deep breath, letting out a heavy sigh. "Some of the science team had doubts. They knew the Reaper-tech was foreign, but either they were bullied out of talking about it, or they didn't think it was enough to back you up."

Shepard smiled a bit. "Thanks for trying to have my back."

"Of course, Shepard," she said, softly. "Thank you for trusting a quarian with your fancy new drive core."

That made Shepard's smile disappear. "I'm sorry you've had to put up with that kind of treatment."

She waved him off. "Unfortunately, it comes with being born in an entirely nomadic culture whose ancestors built rebellious AI," she said, her voice damp with bitterness. "I can either be torn up about it, or I can help you stop the Collectors."

He pushed an amused breath out of his nose. For a moment, the pair stood in silence, enjoying the sights and sounds of the Tantalus drive. It wasn't long before Shepard remembered something, and realized he might want to share it with Tali.

"You know," he said, "I actually got a message from your father."

Tali straightened her back, abandoning any indication of relaxation. "You did?"

Shepard nodded. “It was formal, but he was clearly worried for you. He practically threatened me," he said, smirking to make it clear that it didn't bother him. "I thought it was sweet."

Tali scoffed. “Of course he chooses to be sweet when I’m gone…”

“I remember you telling me that he was hard on you,” said Shepard. “I guess that didn’t change too much.”

“Like I said before,” Tali replied, “most quarians can’t really afford to take it easy. But when your father is both on the Admiralty Board and your lead project coordinator, you’re expected to be your best on all fronts.”

"I bet," he said. The commander put his full weight on the railing. "Lucky for me, I know what you can do, best or not. The Collectors should be running scared."

Tali mimicked Shepard's posture, releasing the tension she'd assumed at the mention of her father. "If you get my best, the bosh'tets sure will be."

#mass effect #commander shepard #tali'zorah vas normandy #shepard x tali #tali'zorah nar rayya #pre relationship #shali #mass effect 2 #hurt/comfort #i'm really sorry I can't figure out how to do a Keep Reading and I'm tired

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