#age restrictions are useless past a certain point
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the concept of shit being 18+ gets so ridiculous at a certain point. like what do i suddenly get the ability to comprehend gore and sex at midnight exactly the moment i turn 18? what about an hour before? am i still a little baby then? what is supposed to change the day i turn 18
#my dad just told me abt this series he likes but prefaced it by saying i'm way too young to watch it and i just#sat there as he went on abt how vulgar and violent it was thinking ''ohhh fuck hes gonna kill me if he finds out about hazbin''#thats another thing that annoys me right bc queer characters notwithstanding they'll be pissed if they find out i watched it#but like what the hell are they meant to do. wipe the memories from my mind ??#like i already saw and comprehended it. but yet i know they're going to be freaking out if they find out#ughghghhhhh#vent kinda#this devolved by my original point still stands#age restrictions are useless past a certain point
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BNHA History
Alright! I decided to assemble what we’ve been told about how society has changed since the advent of quirks. So here’s a rough timeline + my speculation.
Distant Past
≈200 years ago
The birth of a glowing baby signaled the beginning of superpowers. Considering the tremendous chaos that followed, I think it’s likely that the onset was fairly rapid—the glowing baby was the first of a lot of people all at once born with superpowers (or, it was the first baby born with a noticeable superpower). Crime skyrocketed, the law became meaningless, humanity came apart at the seams.
Why there was such an explosion of crime and chaos hasn’t been directly addressed; presumably it’s because early metas were violently shunned as nonhuman, and because new powers entailed the opportunity to use them.
Under these conditions, All for One rose to prominence. He used his meta power to win slavish loyalty, granting powers to those who desired them and removing them from metas who rejected them. His manipulation of his devotees was so great that he didn’t need to give them orders: they anticipated his will and acted on it. He didn’t tolerate dissent and crushed those who defied him. (ch193)
AfO’s period of de facto rule is not included in history books (he persists as a myth), so it’s unlikely that he occupied an official, publicly recognized position. But his rule apparently stretches from approximately the advent of quirks till the battle of Kamino Ward. (ch59)
However, AfO’s younger brother opposed him. AfO punished him by forcing on him a “useless” power-stocking ability. This power fused with the brother’s latent ability to transfer his ability, and the brother was able to pass it on. Over the next two centuries, the OfA holders continued to pass it on, largely to whoever happened to be nearby when they were dying instead of to selected proteges. (ch59, 257)
Relatively soon after the advent of superpowers, the police foreswore using them as weapons in order to keep the trust of the public. Vigilantes emerged to fulfill this role, attempting to mete out justice, and at some point the government authorized certain people (heroes) to use their powers offensively to enforce the law. Heroes were heavily criticized at first, but they eventually developed public support thanks to their strict adherence to the law (according to police chief Tsuragamae). (ch56)
According to the bnha spinoff Vigilantes, the government classified vigilantes into heroes or villains based on public opinion of them. (ch13)
MLA Era
How long ago was the Meta Liberation Army active?
Ch232: Redestro weakly implies that Destro was born before the beginning of heroes as a profession. This early date would also coincide with writing legislation to authorize heroes to use their powers to apprehend any other meta who used their ability.
Ch238: the MLA was in hiding for generations, plural.
Ch223: Redestro states the MLA has trained for “many generations”
So…somewhere between seventy years ago and more than a hundred years ago?
Regardless of the exact dates, Destro was born into a borderline period when there was intense prejudice against metas and official effort to coexist peacefully. When his mother defended him by claiming his power was a mere “quirk,” she was killed by a mob.
Sometime later, when the government drafted legislation to (supposedly?) promote peaceful coexistence, they recalled her idea of “quirk” and tried to use it as part of their reform. Destro, now an adult, opposed this and their reform, asserting that this was not the world his mother envisioned when she’d said “quirk.” (ch232)
He rallied metas to his cause, to bar any restriction of meta ability use, and the MLA fought the government for several years before defeat. It dissolved, many of its members in jail, including Destro himself. He penned his autobiography and then killed himself. (ch218)
Post-MLA, Pre-Symbol of Peace
Unknown number of years ago
Villain: “Seems like no one’s willing to break the law nowadays. All this whining about not selling out their friends. It’s a real pain. […] Man, I miss the days before All Might came along… I was young, and this country was a way more impulsive place.” (ch57)
Yagi: “I believed that this country needed a symbol so I started dashing headlong towards that goal. A shining light…hope. A wake-up call for everyone. As I ran, I swore I’d become that sort of man. People always had these worried looks. All the heroes in the world couldn’t slow the rising crime rates. Much more than now…they were truly scared.” (ch165)
This was an apparently cutthroat, impulsive period where efforts to curb chaos continued but found limited success. Crime was on the rise, something Yagi attributed to the idea that there wasn’t anyone (a “pillar”) for people to rely on. (ch93)
≈70 years ago
When Ujiko proposed his “paranormal singularity theory,” he was roundly rejected and mocked. Due to his own struggles with housing multiple quirks, AfO recognized how prescient Ujiko’s warning was, and he reached out to recruit Ujiko. (ch270)
(Note: Ujiko’s use of “paranormal” could mean he proposed his theory before “quirk” became the standard term, meaning “quirk” could be a rather recent change of language.)
≈35 years ago
AfO killed Nana. All Might was eighteen; he subsequently went to America to complete his training.
Symbol of Peace Era
≈30 years ago – Battle of Kamino Ward
Deku: “Ever since he appeared on the hero scene, his strength has won him undisputed popularity. Every year that he’s been active has seen a marked decrease in the appearance rate of villains. His existence alone is a deterrent to villainy.” (ch2)
Gran Torino: “[Stain’s] ideals and opinions…they’re gonna get out there. On the net. In papers and magazines. On TV. This age we live in, for better or worse, is one of suppression. But mark my words—people are gonna be influenced by this.” (ch57)
Shigaraki: “It’s not crazy to imagine that someone could commit an atrocity at any given moment. So why do they smile and mingle like this? Because the laws and rules are built on their individual morality, they’re convinced that ‘No one would ever do that.’” (ch69)
Shigaraki: “The reason these fools can smile and live their lives is cuz All Might’s always got that grin on his face. Smiling wide, as if to say there’s no one he can’t save!!” (ch69)
Deku: “All Might. Was there ever a time you really couldn’t save someone…?”
Yagi: “…? … Sure. Plenty of times. Right now, somewhere out in the world, someone could be hurting or dying. It sucks, but I’m only human. I can’t save people who are out of my reach… That’s why I stand tall and smile. I’m the Symbol of Justice. The citizens…heroes…villains…I need to light the way for all of them.” (ch70)
Kid: “Nowadays people expect different things from heroes than they used to. It’s all about the entertainment factor and approval ratings.” (ch144)
Shigaraki: “You heroes pretend to be society’s guardians. For generations, you pretended not to see those you couldn’t protect and swept their pain under the rug. It’s tainted everything you’ve built. That means your system’s all rotten from the inside with maggots crawling out. It all builds up, little by little, over time. You’ve got the common trash, all too dependent on being protected. And the brave guardians who created the trash that need coddling. […] I don’t care if you don’t understand. That’s what makes us heroes and villains.” (ch281)
After about two centuries of chaos, Japan achieved stability after All Might established himself as the Symbol of Peace. All Might was specifically noted to have demolished most organized crime, so that villain teams were relatively rare (ch83, 115, 125). As Shigaraki put it, now people could go about their lives confident of their safety because All Might convinced them that everything will be alright, a hero will take care of them. This was true to the extent that people would flock to the sites of hero/villain battles to take photos and videos.
Whereas, as Twice put it, if you were on the wrong side of the law, then All Might’s catchphrase “I’m here” was a curse, something to fear and loathe. Gran Torino characterized this era as an age of suppression, as in, the symptoms were suppressed, producing superficial stability, but the underlying conditions hadn’t changed.
During this period, the industry of heroism shifted to over-emphasize heroism as public entertainment, rewarding attention-grabbing stunts and PR skills over humbler virtues.
This shift inspired Stain the Hero Killer to enact a purge of unworthy heroes in order to revive true heroism. He deeply impressed society, and, despite his murders, he became a popular figure. His ideals provoked some people to question whether society’s heroes were “true heroes,” while others disregarded his ideals and simply found him cool.
During this era, 80% of the population had a quirk. Whether that statistic was stable or if it was an effect of demographics (ie, most quirkless people are elderly and almost all kids have quirks) hasn’t been specified.
This era could be separated into All Might’s Bronze, Silver, and Golden Ages, each with a different costume.
≈30 years ago
All Might debuted in Japan, and he kicked off an unprecedented era of stability.
5 years ago
All Might fought and “killed” AfO.
Age of Endeavor
Battle of Kamino Ward – Present (ch283)
HPSC: “All Might had it all…power with enough charm to win the people over. The gulf between him and the perennial runner-up was always huge… I doubt we’re gonna find someone that charismatic again anytime soon.”
Mera: While we’re waiting for the next All Might, hero squads with a focus on team unity are gonna have to fill the gap. This order from up high is meant to make some headway on that front… (ch111)
Miyagi (newscaster): “If we’re being honest, I think All Might just got too big for our own good. So big that we lost sight of things. […] As for us, we shouldn’t just passively protect the status quo. Isn’t it our duty to bring back a culture of excitement around heroes?” (ch115)
Kid: “We know what’s up. Mom and dad and the TV all ask the same thing. ‘Are the heroes doing okay?’ …We know. We’re better than them!” (ch165)
Hawks: “That guy earlier, screaming ‘Long live metahuman liberation’…this [rumors of nomu sightings] is kinda like that. They republished some old-school criminal’s autobiography, and it’s flying off the shelves. I’m thinking that’s influencing people. That stuff tends to sell best when society’s feeling unstable, right?” (ch186)
Gentle: “What counts as a spectacle is a question for the current generation. We shall go to the source [UA]—the source that enchants our society.” (ch171)
Newscaster (surveying the stampede of fleeing civilians during Endeavor’s nomu battle): “This is society without a Symbol of Peace!!”
Can’tcha See-kun: “Stop saying that crap already!! Open your eyes before spouting off on TV! Especially at a time like this! Look! Those flames’re still rising up! You see ’em, right?! Endeavor’s alive and fighting!! So don’t give up just cuz the other guy’s gone! There’s still a dude out there risking it all for us!! Can’tcha see?!” (ch189)
Kuraishisu (newscaster): “In the past, a situation like this [the destruction of Deika City], where heroes were forced to make a difficult call, would have earned those same heroes criticism, but I suspect we may be witnessing a critical turning point in this era. A large-scale shift in opinion from criticism to passionate support.”
Uraraka: “Feels like everything’s different ever since the ‘Can’tcha See kid’ did his thing.”
Ashido: “It’s all cuz Endeavor kicked butt!”
Mt. Lady: “Y’think the future’s bright? Not so fast!! It might seem like the winds of good fortune are blowing our way, but if you stop and think about the flip side of all this…it’s actually coming from a sense of urgency—it’s a response to danger! These cheers for the conquering heroes are really prayers—a plea that we emerge victorious! They’ve had enough of the showbiz side of heroism and want us to prove our worth for real now!” (ch241)
Mineta: “Not too long ago, she didn’t give a crap about anything except being on camera…”
Aizawa: “Mt. Lady’s not the only one who has changed. Every hero out there is being pulled up by the number one’s rising ride.” (ch241)
After All Might retired, uncertainty gripped Japan as people wondered what would happen now. A strong consensus agreed that Endeavor wasn’t suited to fill All Might’s boots, something reflected in how the crime rate went up 3% in the month after Kamino, and reflected in how people suddenly became interested in reading the MLA ideology of rejecting heroes and protecting themselves.
During Endeavor’s battle against the nomu, the press attributed the public’s frantic stampede—ignoring heroes trying to guide evacuation—to the public’s lack of trust in Endeavor (and heroes generally) now that All Might was gone. Public trust improved after the nomu battle, especially thanks to Can’tcha See-kun.
Within a month after the battle, expectations shifted. People had enough of showbiz heroism and wanted the heroes to walk the talk and protect the public against villains, to the extent that comfortable armchair criticism was replaced a passionate support driven by fear of villains.
Miscellaneous Questions
When did “hero” become a recognized profession?
When did the hero ranking system begin?
When did the celebrity culture around heroes develop?
When did “quirk” come into common use?
How old is Yagi? How long ago did he debut in Japan and begin the era of peace?
How old is AfO? How long after the advent of quirks did he come to power?
When did AfO recruit Machia?
When were the nomu invented?
When did humanity pass the point of quirk singularity? (ch193)
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Critical Role 126 Discord Convo
Here, my sibling and I talked a bit about Veth, Caleb, the Cerberus Assembly, and Astrid/Wulf in particular (it starts out a bit goofy at first but gets serious):
Sibling: Did you see that animatic I sent you, speaking of that scene?
Me: Yes
Sibling: Like, it'd be great to update it with Astrid and Wulf in a mound just behind the 9
Me: Lol, they would have seen the polymorphed worm, too... And the yeti friends... "They... built snowmen in balenpost?"
Sibling: And had to camp out while they disappeared into the wizard tower... the Beau-shaped hole in Balenpost lol
Me: There was a jester one too
Sibling: LOL. Like, a snowman... a snowman with 2 heads
Me: and sad faces
Sibling: One kicked over snowman and two human-shaped holes in the snowbanks. But seriously, there's no way someone isn't aware that Vess is dead. Her window was open, letting the snow come in
Me: Oh, the assembly knows. At the very least, Ludinus, Trent, and the scourgers definitely know. Astrid "thanked" Caleb because she's assuming he killed her, or she wants that to be the case, at least.
Sibling: Veth is totally missing the point. The writing is on the wall, Astrid is using the shit out of Caleb and I think, at the very least it might be an interesting DQ6 moment where when they come back from saving the world, Astrid's already taken Trent's place and they have to deal with it that way.
Me: Yeah, it's very obvious, especially when you consider how Astrid and Caleb have similarities. Like... Astrid's panic attack in the alley reminded me of Caleb's breakdown in Shady Creek Run. Right after the manipulation is over and they're out of sight, they have a breakdown. Tbh...
If Caleb were to replace anyone on the assembly, it shouldn't be Trent. It should be Ludinus. Ludinus is the root of the problems in the empire, pretty much everyone is certain at this point that that is the case. The king is evil but seems incompetent/useless.
Sibling: I wonder, honestly, if that'll be the conclusion to the M9? If Caleb's arc will conclude it?
Me: But at the same time I don't want him to be in the assembly; I don't think he WANTS to be.
Sibling: Rewatching the table scene
*Veth: (to Wulf) "When the war was a bit more hot... Were you much more busy?"
Wulf: "Not any more than yourselves."
Veth: "No I mean, were you out on the lines like a soldier?"
Wulf: "I'm not much of a frontliner... More of a scout, if you would."*
Wulf is totally tailing them.
Wulf is absolutely the person they sent after them, I'm certain of it.
Me: Yeah, I figured. There's going to be a confrontation in Eiselcross when they're traveling with Essek, I'm sure of it. That's gonna be rough.
Sibling: No, I know that, but it stuck out to me. I feel like Matt's dropping major hint bombs... ex vs current bf?
Me: I wonder if Essek has MET Wulf before.Sibling: I like Wulf more than Astrid.
Me: Me, too.
Sibling: I think I'll be sad if he gets gravity crushed, but he better not lay a finger... on my butterfinger.
Me: I mean, I feel bad for them both, but the problem is that they can't be trusted with power, and if the Assembly falls, they may try to seize power. Tbh I just don't see them surviving to the end and that's pretty sad.
Sibling: I could see Wulf being turned if the party spent more time on things, seeing as he seems to be more of a piece to be manipulated than a major player himself... but their focus is entirely on Trent and Astrid, which makes me think that he'll be canned.
Me: Actually, I'm not so sure about that Wulf thing. I think he may be harder to reach in some ways. See the thing is...
Astrid wants power. That's understandable. But it's not clear if she wants power for necessarily nefarious purposes or if it's just that the life of poverty she led before coupled with how much she's lost drives her to reach for it, and it's not clear what would satisfy her or whether or not she'd be interested in taking her life in a different direction, so that's complicated.
Me: But with Wulf... Wulf's issues are simpler, which I think arguably makes him harder to reach. Wulf and Astrid have both basically shrugged off their parents' deaths at this point, they've both indicated as much in different ways, but Wulf's a servant of the Raven Queen. He can rationalize the death of anything and anyone under her banner. Unlike Astrid, who is motivated by power/ambition, Wulf is the holy soldier... of the death god. That's uh... zealotry.
Me: Worse still, he has religious motivations for going against those who use Dunamancy, which is likely an anathema to the Raven Queen. He was already following her when he was a teenager, because Caleb was looking to see if he had any symbols of her on him when they first reunited. Honestly I really don't think either of them can truly be reached unless Caleb DOES take over the assembly and even then they might do scummy stuff behind his back out of perceived necessity.
Sibling: If his motivations have been so tied up in his religion, it would make it very difficult to reach him, true. But Astrid seems to have invested so much into her ambitions that I wonder if she might try to quiet those talking her out of it. She seems very aware of her actions' consequences, unlike someone like Essek who had ambitions without understanding where his studies would take him. If they're left alive, which I don't think they will be, Caleb's best scenario would be to avoid the assembly as much as possible.
Me: Honestly at this point I feel like the entire government of the Empire needs to be cleared out and replaced, ideally by the Cobalt Soul. Though that would be very controversial, I don't think any other organization can be trusted with filling that vacuum. The Soul is ultimately an international religious organization, but considering they have shown willingness to weed out corruption within their own ranks, it would be interesting if they pooled their resources and had the Empire taken over by a circle of vetted monks instead of corrupt mages, and then have them transition to a democracy eventually.
Sibling: Considering that Matt has reinforced that the Cobalt Soul is attempting to weed out its own corruption, but can't seem to do so for other organizations... I wonder how long it would last. At least they wouldn't have to operate in secret anymore. Maybe that would lift their final restriction?
Me: Well, the thing that really chafes at me with respect to Caleb potentially joining the assembly is that he just DOESN'T FIT THERE. I've thought this before but Caleb would be more at home working for the Cobalt Soul than the Assembly. He's been talking about burning out the rot in the Empire for ages now, and that's basically the goals of the expositors. I wouldn't object to him being involved in the Empire's government... as long as that government did not consist of anything resembling the assembly. A complete restructuring.
Sibling: I mean, you can't really rework the gov unless you're already in a position like Ludinus, but even then, Caleb I still feel like is not the person for that.
Me: But let's be real, ideally he would be the head of the Soltryce Academy... and that's the thing... One of the problems with Wulf and Astrid is that you get the feel that they could rationalize doing anything. And you have to wonder under all that rationalization and manipulation if there is any malice/sadism... there probably is, which sucks because Astrid is actually far better positioned to be an effective politician than Caleb; she's had experience around it for over a decade, she probably knows politics very well. Caleb is earnest and an excellent negotiator but he is not a politician. He would be best off as an ambassador, if I had to pick a political position for him to take.
Sibling: The government does still need to be overthrown for Essek to come hang out with Caleb though, so it must be done.
Me: It must be done. Looping back to Veth/Astrid... Here are some of the posts on Veth's behavior that I've seen. *posts a bunch of links* It's interesting... the Astrid thing. I haven't seen anyone else point this out, but... Veth probably sees Astrid as being Caleb's Yeza. And if Caleb can go back to Astrid and be happy, it's like a test run for her going back to Yeza. Which is pretty messed up. He keeps telling her "Yes, I care for her, but we've both changed" and that's not something Veth wants to think about because it applies to her as well, except that... well, Yeza really hasn't changed. Just her.
Sibling: 1) Ah, skirting her trauma by attempting to address what she sees as Caleb's?
Addressing her issues by proxy? Overbearing mom living vicariously through her son...? ... That kind of makes my stomach churn, but I get it.
2) Another revenge perspective. Considering her knee-jerk reaction to kill people who've wronged her family or the party, I think revenge is totally an aspect that has gone unexplored for her.
3) Eugh, the romance still squicks me out, but I understand. Nott was a different person to Veth, she probably had a hope out for returning to her form and going back to Yeza... But I wonder if she thought he wouldn't accept her, and she had Caleb as like... (ew) a backup?
Me: I mean, it's pretty well-established that she has a thing for Caleb. And yeah, her feelings for him are pretty fucked up because of their dynamic up to the point where they went to Felderwin. The CA did wrong her family, and so did Essek, and Veth is very much a vengeance-minded person in a far more straightforward way than Caleb. Most of the others have told Caleb that if he goes after the Assembly, it should be for the right reasons. Interestingly, Veth, Fjord, and Jester don't seem to agree exactly. Jester sees it as a sort of "why not both?" thing. Fjord seems to have no qualms with vengeance at all (unsurprising considering which parts of his past have not yet been resolved, and yet Fjord has never gotten shit for that like Caleb has, and Sabian has done far less harm/damage than Trent). But Veth? Veth sees vengeance as clearcut, something that ought to be pursued and then when it's done, it's done and she's satisfied. It's interesting that the person who Caleb was most attached to at the start of the campaign is also by far the most unhealthy influence on him in the group at this point.
Sibling: I think it's because Fjord hasn't been molded by Sabian. Sabian wronged him, but the more Fjord found out about himself, the less important that seemed. And the more they found out, the more you begin to call into question whether what he did was to get rid of Vandran, an unsavory figure or... something else? Not to mention, Sabian is insignificant, whereas Caleb's abuser is still abusing people to this day. I can see there are major differences between the consequences of either of their revenge quests.
Me: Yes, but that's precisely my point. Sabian is not hugely harmful in comparison to Trent, so it's interesting that people give Caleb shit for being motivated partially by revenge, while Fjord doesn't get any when that's basically his ONLY motivation for tracking down Sabian.
Sibling: Probably because Fjord might get a reason without killing Sabian. Caleb might be walking into a trap, laid out by his peers. I still am of the opinion that killing Trent is a net positive. Just the act of getting rid of him is necessary to stop the cycle. But what comes next is the most important part. Because if Trent is dead when they come back, and Astrid sits in his place... The perpetuation of this cycle won't come to a close.
Me: Yes. I mean, personally? His entire section of the Empire's government should be outright dissolved. It's absolutely revolting. The thing is that it's not just Trent that needs to go; it's his POSITION. That needs to not exist, and I don't see that ever happening so long as Ludinus exists as well. Edit: Well, you basically said what I meant in a different way, lol.
#critical role#critrole#critrole spoilers#critical role spoilers#episode 126#caleb widogast#astrid beck#eadwulf#veth brenatto#nott the brave#trent ikithon#ludinus da'leth#essek thelyss#cerberus assembly#meta#fjord stone#thisconversationwasallovertheplacehowdoitagthis
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My pain, your thrill, chapter 2
Warnings: Abuse, torture, cbt, watersports.
Please note: This was created on a tumblr prompt given by @outofangband on my main blog.
Prompt: Morgoth/Sauron, Omorashi
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"Where do you think you're going, Lieutenant?"
Mairon cursed inwardly but he knew better than to turn his back on his Lord when he was regarded with that certain icy hiss in Melkor's voice, especially in front of a whole group of orc and Balrog commanders. Oh, so one of those days it was.
"I have a pressing matter in my office to tend to, milord. It will be but a minute." He tried, though he knew how small chances were of convincing his master once Melkor had got it in his head that this was another good moment to remind Mairon of his place.
Of the annoying fact that years after what had probably the biggest failure in Mairon’s career, he still deserved retaliation at every chance, even and especially in the presence of others. Nothing better to keep possibly rebellious minions in check than demonstrating every now and then that not even the highest people in Melkor's ranks were safe from his power. And that very decision being made in this fortress had to be sanctioned from the highest place – not least because last time Melkor had given Mairon free reign, they'd lost their most valuable prisoner.
Melkor could hold grudges for an incredibly long time.
"If there's any dealings more pressing than debating strategies to increase our hold on these lands, Lieutenant, maybe you would be better advised servicing the enemy."
The temperature in the room seemed to drop with every of Melkor's venomous words until Mairon was shivering under the flimsy fabric of the ruby robe matching his hair that he'd chosen for this gathering in the weak hope of appealing to his master's occasional appreciation for beauty in his bedroom.
Another failure, obviously.
While the orcs, too, shivered and ducked their heads at the aggression suddenly roaring through the hall, more than one of the greyish, scarred faces showed a scornful grin.
A weak flame of delight flickered in the red sockets that were Gothmog's eyes from the other side of the room. From the way, the tip of the Balrog's whip wrapped around a leg of the table, Mairon could tell, the bastard was fondling the handle of his preferred weapon, probably daydreaming about Melkor becoming angry enough with Mairon to order him to serve his most hated rival tonight once more.
Mairon had no interest in a repeat performance of that kind and bowed his head in apology, quickly taking his place behind Melkor's chair again, his face blank as he forced himself to listen to every detail for the upcoming attack wave that he'd long memorized anyway. This was not about his uninterrupted presence in a wholly expendable meeting, of course. It was another test of will, of physical endurance.
If he didn't have to be so careful about his lover invading his mind to monitor his thoughts, Mairon would probably allow himself to silently admit that he was getting a little tired of these games. Even coming up with the most attractive and mighty new shapes when the last one got too ruined became tedious at some point, especially when your master had no second look to spare for it.
It wasn't just that Melkor refused to forgive him. He refused to touch him.
Well, that was if Mairon didn't count choking on his lover's cock every once in a while. It felt like at least two Ages since Marin had last been fucked; and since his lover forbade him from finding at least his own pleasure alone, the growing yearning was mixing with more frustration by the day.
Even more so since Melkor had found out that it was a lot more fun, torturing Mairon when he also prohibited him from using any of the powers his folk was gifted with, merely reducing his physical and mental resilience to the embarrassing fragility of an elf.
Mairon wasn't only mildly irritated and impatient any longer. He was miserable.
What had Eru been thinking, bringing something so flawed and insufficient to life? When it wasn't some deep cut in this far-too thin skin from his master's whip that Mairon had to sing together every other week, he ended up mending bones or pushing some organ back where it belonged. It was time consuming, it was most uncomfortable and most of all it was humiliating.
Yet, apparently, his lover was of the opinion, none of that had been humiliating enough yet.
Mairon should have been suspicious already when Melkor had insisted on sharing a couple of cups of wine too many before this meeting. And he still handed him a new one without even looking at him every now and then, though Melkor himself was doing the talking and Mairon certainly had no need for any more wetting of his throat. Debauchery usually was not for either of them.
It was only now, hours in, that Mairon started to feel, he needed a bathroom break rather sooner than later. And how very inconvenient it was when you were not allowed to just cleanse your body out with a few hummed tones from your lips.
It went from inconvenient to distracting after the next cup because Melkor still made no move to end this stupid discussion about arms deployment anytime soon. By now, Mairon's robe was starting to stretch uncomfortably around his midsection, and the muscles in his lower body cramped from the growing need to relieve himself.
Only now, it started to dawn on him why his Lord hard insisted on him attending this gathering from this very particular spot, with no empty chair in sight.
Distraction turned into annoyance and growing anxiety when the first few pairs of eyes turned his way repeatedly because it became more and more impossibly to stop shifting his weight and trying not to press his legs together too conspicuously. Inside his head he was cursing in all languages he knew the choice for this nothing of a piece of clothing, the white and gold color of which would give away immediately if he failed to control even such a primitive, basic function of this useless body for just a second.
Mairon thought, he was doing a pretty good job, still hardly moving a muscle, but whenever he caught just a glimpse of his master's twisted mind in the shredded, cloudy bond between their souls, he could feel the lazy acid bubbling there that was Melkor's sadistic arousal, and he knew, his little, inaudible gasps and the heat of his temperature rising, radiating from his body more by the second, did not go unnoticed.
More than one of Mairon’s own subjects was openly leering at this point, some whispering and chuckling darkly as pale eyes watched the small beads of sweat from strain building on Mairon's forehead.
Gothmog was shamelessly staring at his midsection and licking his lips with his forked tongue, clearly indulging in the perverted fantasies of all the things he would be allowed to do tonight if Mairon managed to anger his Lord enough with his mortal weakness.
It was mostly the stubbornness not to give in to these wordless taunts that helped Mairon, somehow, to hold on to the last of muscle control by sheer willpower alone until the room finally started to empty.
"Am I excused, my Lord?" he got out between gritted teeth, his hands hard fists by his sides just from the effort of not grabbing his bloated midsection, or his aching cock through his clothes, to make sure he would make it the few feet down the hall, to the next free chambers, to finally empty his bladder.
"Not until I decide you learned how not to fail me," Melkor said flatly, still not turning around but busy gathering the last of parchments from the notes one of the orcs had taken during the conversation.
"But if that's what you mean: Since you are obviously not even able to control a weak shape like this for half a day, you may go. Try not to make a mess on the floor."
Another day, Mairon might have returned the provocation, might have stayed just in spite, to prove to his master that he was very much capable of everything his Lord asked him to do.
Only he was not, not when he was deliberately slowed and restricted in his powers. Mairon was ready to prove himself to his Lord anytime, but not if it was only for Melkor's amusement. If he wanted to be a thrall, he could as well have stayed in Valinor.
"Milord." With a rather cool nod, he finally walked past his master, his steps as stiff as his posture.
Not for long though, because just before he could get out of reach, a harsh slap from a huge hand suddenly landed on his behind, hard enough to bruise. Thanks to all his muscles contracting from the unexpected impact, a sinister pain stabbed his midsection. With a small scream, Mairon toppled over and reached between his legs in growing desperation to prevent the worst, but it was too late. His hand came back wet, and another hot, treacherous stream trickled down the insides of his thighs, darkening the front of his robe, leaving a sharp-smelling trace on his skin and dripping from his knee-high leather boots on the uneven, rocky ground.
"Look at that. Here I was just thinking about complimenting your excellent fashion choices, my pet, and you had to ruin it again." The same unforgiving hand grabbed his hair and pulled him back upright before he could regather his composure.
The ominous lights of the Silmarils shining on his master's pale forehead stung in Mairon's eyes when Melkor pulled him close and licked the salt of sweat and tears of humiliation off his cheeks, off his lips, then biting the sensitive skin hard enough to bruise.
The other hand found the bulge under Mairon's now-ruined robe and pushed against it until Mairon cried out, fighting the hold on his braid in vain, shuddering both in disgust and relief when another small trickle of shame escaped his straining cock, the wet patch at his front growing.
He had long learned better than to beg, but his eyes were apparently a clear enough mirror of the torture of the last few hours, because Melkor's sharp-toothed grin only grew; he let go of him unexpectedly and pushed him away to get up, a clear bulge of arousal showing under his own tight pants.
"It looks like we'll have to start teaching you discipline from the very start again, my pet. I will see you in my quarters tonight. I trust you will keep yourself properly hydrated until then."
With that, his master left him to his shame.
*********
Mortified and wrathful as he had been, it turned out, it didn't take Mairon long to wish himself be back in that moldy conference hall full of people amused by his comparatively meager suffering.
"Is this not what you wanted, my favorite pet?," Melkor chuckled when another pained groan came from Mairon's lips at the merciless metal pull of metal rings around his cock and balls, endangering his skin that was already stretched beyond its limits, raw and chafed, more by the minute.
Even if he could have, Mairon would not have granted his lover the satisfaction of an answer. But he tried to turn his head away from the thick metal phallus stretching his mouth open anyway, in vain, when another gush of ice cold water came through the hole in the middle of the toy, flowing fast and harshly right towards the back of his throat. Which left him no choice but to swallow again though his belly was already bloated painfully from too much fluid once more, hanging low from where his master had strung him up by his wrists and ankles, swinging and gurgling lazily with every thrust of his master's enormous cock into Mairon's lube-dripping hole. Swinging, just like the huge bucket that his master had tied to his swollen genitals with heavy chains, positioned in such a way that every unwanted new stream of waste from Mairon's bound cock filled it up further.
It was really only a matter of time until this easily breakable flesh would no longer be able to resist that gruesome tug, and Mairon had a vague idea, his master had no plans of patching the deadly, tasteless kind of wounds up that unpleasant moment would leave. Apparently, another body had run its course.
What bothered Mairon most about spending all his energy once more on another disposable shape, was that his lover was right, of course … This was exactly what he had wanted. Finally being the center of his lover's attention again, being speared open by that magnificent cock, used and abused only for his master's pleasure … He thought he might even have been able to come just from this, in spite of the pain in his groin, if his lover had not once more made sure he couldn’t.
No, the noises from his lips were not of protest.
They were offense.
After all these punishments Mairon had endured today – in all of these last years, really –, the least he deserved was finally being allowed to come properly again.
But his wishes, as was life in Melkor's fortress, were rarely of any concern for his lover, so he had to be satisfied with the telltale twitch of his lover's crooked cock inside of him when Melkor reached under him to feel the grotesque swellings of Mairon's overfilled stomach and bladder and press his sharp-nailed fingertips deeply into the cramping organs until Mairon screamed around his gag and relieved himself unwillingly into the bucket once more.
If it was only the pleasure of his suffering that could close the wound of hurt pride and tactical disadvantage that Mairon's mistakes a few years back had torn, he would happily sacrifice another dozen bodies.
Something tore between his legs that was not supposed to come off when the relentless pull of the chain ripped harder on his flesh, and Mairon was pretty sure, that was no longer just waste in that bucket, but that was also when his lover came deep inside of him, finally, the comforting, too-hot pulse of rotten seed warming his shaking body from the inside. Mairon's trapped balls gave another helpless pulse of their last ruined orgasm before they came off with a wet gush.
As he gave him to the darkness of agony washing over his mind, Mairon decided, his next shape definitely needed a bigger bladder.
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Obsession vs Love
Merry Christmas all!
So I have a gift for you... I wasn’t going to post this until it was finished but I got into a bit of a rut, but I have been sitting on this for months.
Originally this was meant to be a oneshot between Erik and Frollo and it turned into 16 pages of detailing Frollo’s progression of feelings leading up to and after seeing Esmeralda.
Enjoy!
General Mature content warning.
Claude Frollo reached the time in his life when he accepted a lot of things. His thirties were gone and he was grateful. This was a decade where he had been ravenous for status and particularly ruthless in character. Looking back, it seemed his repressed youth had blossomed during that time and his past behavior sometimes embarrassed him to this day. He had been moody yet confident in ways he never before experienced within his personality. Though never being wild, there was a crazed side of him that was manipulative and hungry for power over others, particularly in social interactions. Any witty insult that could roll off his tongue or opportunity to correct someone’s facts were never missed. His parents had been cruel to him and in these small ways it felt good to finally speak his mind without decorum. These were his selfish years.
“I am happy you have come out of your shell, but you have become absolutely unbearable to everyone,” Lucy said to him after insulting a woman who had been taking up his time with idle chatter in an attempt to catch his interest.
“I finally don’t care what anyone thinks of me,” he remembered saying to her. It took him over thirty years to stop worrying about strangers’ opinions.
He had looked at women more. Admiring them, their pretty faces and perfectly toned bodies, but became frustrated speaking to them as most of them were self-serving or not intelligent. In his teenage years he would secretly leer at women, but it was in a more passive and curious manner. The sexual frustration became more exhausting than maddening over the years. No one could keep his interest, no matter how stunning. There was a time when he could charm a woman that would gladly take him to bed. As much as he longed for that experience, the thing he yearned for most was a connection that wasn’t hollow.
So, when his personal assistant began seeing one of the two judges who mentored him, he became envious. Lucy and judge Remy became an item despite their twenty odd year age gap. During this time, Frollo was more distant with Remy than ever before. The elder judge would reach out to him as he had in the past, but Frollo wasn’t interested. It was childish, but to him it was a breach of trust.
Claude was the last one to figure out they were together. Despite knowing Remy was on a break from his wife, Remy always flirted with Lucy, so he thought nothing of it. Lucy should have been above such vulgar charm. Little did he realize they were in a full fledged relationship. Since Lucy was the only female he had ever been attached to, Frollo quietly simmered in his jealousy.
“Why did no one tell me they were together?” Frollo looked ahead and clenched his jaw.
Jean-Pierre watched Claude closely and saw his fight to remain collected. He never expressed himself, but Jean-Pierre easily detected frustration. How could I not see it? Is what the eldest judge imagined him to say instead.
Frollo had a new nickname that was beginning to gain traction in the media. If the young man didn’t change his ways, it would stick forever. The Marble Judge. Jean-Pierre could see it causing issues down the line.
“I’m sorry, dear boy. I genuinely thought you knew.”
In fact, it had become quite apparent, but Claude wasn’t equipped to pick up on these emotional nuances. Jean-Pierre learned this early on when he began mentoring him out of college as an intern. Claude could pick apart a stranger’s motives, behaviors, even business plans like a computer, but as soon as the relationships grew closer to him, all of those observation skills became useless. Frollo had a lack of understanding of any form of emotional intimacy. He gathered it was because his parents never nurtured him. Though they all tried to cross that bridge with him, Frollo proved to have an impenetrable wall around his heart.
Frollo turned to look at the old man. Did Jean-Pierre detect…jealousy?
“How was I supposed to if everyone refused to inform me?”
Jean-Pierre didn’t know how to answer that without offending him. Instead, he sensed a deeper issue. Frollo never approved of Remy’s flamboyant lifestyle and he was quite fond of Lucy.
“Do you have feelings for her? Or is it because you find Remy to be an utter scoundrel?”
Frollo’s skin paled and Jean-Pierre put his hand on the man’s back.
“Why didn’t you tell her if that was the case?” He asked gently, but Frollo knitted his brow in anger.
“That’s not it,” he tried to recover by acting irritated. “It doesn’t make any sense. We all know Remy is going to go back to his wife because he can only go so long without fucking a man. I know Lucy well enough to know she wants monogamy.”
Jean-Pierre pursed his lips and removed his hand. Keeping his eyes on his, he kept the boy’s attention.
“Relationships rarely make sense if you write them on paper, my boy. That is not what it is about. ”
Frollo looked like he was at a complete loss of what to say next, as if Jean-Pierre gave him some profound knowledge...a revelation.
“Even if Lucy knows Remy will return to his wife, she wants to enjoy it while it lasts. He is a good man and I trust him with my life. So, do you think Remy is a scoundrel?” He asked again, to which Frollo shrugged uncomfortably.
“A bit,” Claude grumbled.
“And it is natural to like Lucy, she helps you with everything and is very kind. It can be natural to feel jealous, but don’t be too hard on judge Remy for it. You are fond of her, aren’t you?” He knew Frollo liked women, but never dated. To his knowledge, Frollo was still a virgin.
Claude’s hands were folded on his lap, but they looked more like fists with their tension.
“A bit,” Frollo said more reluctantly. His head had been pointing down for a minute, but he suddenly turned to Jean-Pierre.
“Don’t--” He swallowed. “Don’t tell a soul,” Frollo said harshly.
Jean-Pierre tried to hide the melancholy from his smile. He didn’t have the heart to tell him that everyone already knew.
“I promise not to say a word.”
It wasn’t until years later that Claude realized he had never been in love with Lucy. He assumed Lucy knew that in her heart all along.
Judge Remy and Lucy were expecting their first child after a year. They married, to everyone's surprise. The ‘break’ from his wife turned out to be final. Remy was deeply in love with Lucy and appeared to have settled down from his swinger lifestyle. Remy once made fun of Jean-Pierre for having a child so late in life, only to walk the same path.
However, after some years, Remy began to notice a blossoming friendship between Lucy and a man named Luc. He was doing business that required them to keep in touch and the conversations were growing longer.
Remy asked Luc out to lunch one day and quite liked the man himself. Luc was easy to get along with and very attractive. He had never met someone so laid back and funny. As they spoke about Lucy, he could see a twinkle in Luc’s eye. It was the same as Lucy’s.
Ah, young love, and Remy knew that Lucy would never leave him for another man. Remy invited him over for dinners quite frequently. Lucy believed in monogamy, but in Remy’s opinion, love should never be restricted. Lucy was the love of his life and he wanted her to have the world. Luc was an amazing guy and Remy found himself wishing Luc was bisexual.
After things developed, Remy had a decision to make. He approached Luc first.
“I seem to have noticed that you are in love with my wife….”
The expression on Luc’s face told him what he needed to know. The blood seemed to drain from his cheeks. Luc tried to laugh it off a little too late and Remy placed a hand on his shoulder.
“I will love Lucy until the day I die,” Remy continued. “But I am finding myself missing certain things.” The judge never wanted to be tied down completely, but it had been a sacrifice he was willing to make for Lucy. He was physically more attracted to men, but his marriage to Lucy was the most fulfilling and euphoric experience he ever had.
“You do not seem like a jealous man, Luc. In my mind, she will always be my wife. If you both accept it… I would like to see her from time to time…. If you know what I mean.”
Luc readily accepted it while Lucy seemed conflicted.
“Divorce you…. And marry Luc?” Lucy’s cheeks were flushed. “You spoke to him first?”
“Yes, I did. You don’t have to be shy, my love. I am actually just a little sad that you didn’t tell me. Come on, you know me better than that. Why should I care?” he smiled and continued.
“This could be good for us,” Remy took her hand. “I would still like to have private time with you and I will still speak to you like my wife. I will just be… a mostly gay husband. Luc is absolutely fine with it, as long as you are, but I understand if you would like to speak with him first.”
Lucy blinked and knitted her brows. She was completely stunned.
“Unless you stopped loving me when you fell in love with Luc…” Remy began, which was met with Lucy quickly objected.
“And I thought you knew me better than that,” she said, a bit upset.
“Oh, I was hoping you would say that,” Remy laughed. “So what do you say? We take a holiday every once in a while, I can have my fun with men again, and you and Luc can have the perfect marriage.”
Lucy’s eyes began to water. She didn’t typically cry. She knew how Remy was, but his removal from all forms of jealousy still astonished her. She was just beginning to realize Luc was the same way.
“Truly?” She asked him.
“I will always give you anything you want,” Remy kissed her forehead.Then he laughed.
“And you wanted to be monogamous. Life has a funny way of changing things, doesn’t it?”
~.~.~
By the time Claude turned forty, he gave up on finding a partner. Although, he promised himself not to shut anyone out. He talked to women at parties until he felt his ears would bleed. He attended the theatre often, but as time went on, he stayed at home even more. He went from drinking lightly on occasion to drinking a fair amount at home and at events.
The Marble judge finally felt content once he no longer seeked fulfillment from others. He found more joy in his work, in meals, in his personal reading. He cooked more and generally took better care of himself than he ever had in his life. He lied to himself well about never feeling lonely, but there was to be another development.
Delice came along a year later. A beautiful and young socialite who was charmingly cruel. Frollo knew if she had been around while he was in his ambitious thirties he would probably be poor on the street by now. She would have taken everything from him. Somehow knowing this, she still appealed to the apathetic part of his soul. They would make such wonderful wasps.
As time went on, Frollo became increasingly drawn to her. He was starting to like her and become more comfortable. If it was a trap, he began to care less and less. He ached for someone. They had enough similarities and he adored her air of superiority. Frollo had never been perfect, often thinking there were plenty of people below him. They could judge others and be stuck up together. Delice was the closest thing he had to a crush since Lucy.
Frollo never appreciated just how well his colleagues and friends got at reading him.
“Delice has been on your arm for months and you actually smiled at her! You were eating her up! I’ve never been so disappointed in you,” Lucy chastised him after a political event.
“It’s not like I am going to fuck her, if that is what you are so worried about,” Frollo loathed feeling embarrassed and often acted quite thin-skinned during personal conversations. Lucy called him out on his developing feelings for Delice and at this point, he didn’t even know if what he said was true anymore.
“You say that now! I introduced you to plenty of sweet women and you let that snake in our circle like she is your friend. I know she is pretty, but god damn it Claude! You’ve heard things about her too and you know that she is literal filth. This isn’t high school.”
“I enjoy our conversations and her company. At least when she speaks, she knows the subject. You know how hard it is for me to find a conversation worth having with these mindless people.”
He was defending his actions and feelings more than standing up for Delice and they both knew it.
“That is what you are going to say to me?” Lucy had never been this angry with him and she succeeded in making him feel like a teenager being chewed out by his mother.
“Do you think I don’t know a man’s eyes when they want to fuck someone? Do you think she doesn’t know? I’ve seen you look at women, but you practically undress her with your stare every time she is close. I know you are one of the most brilliant minds in the world, but you are emotionally stupid. She will rip you to shreds with her teeth and spit you out.” She walked up to him and put her hands on his shoulders.
“If you are that lonely, you need to find something else.”
He remembered how broken he felt. Her speech opened his eyes and took away the joy he was experiencing for the last few months. Lucy was only trying to protect him and she was absolutely right. His eyes looked to the floor in shame.
“I’m sorry, dear,” Lucy said sadly and gave him a hug.
He couldn’t breathe. He stood there, unmoving. So, this is what a hug felt like. Wrapping his arms around Lucy, he trembled, keeping his emotions in. He held her tight. He was kidding himself all along. He wanted someone to hold forever. Though he wasn’t in love with Lucy, he knew he would have been happy to spend his life with her, but she deserved the true love she had. She was his closest friend and he clung to those emotions because it was the only time he experienced connection.
When she left, he drank himself to sleep in his despair. His bed had never felt so cold.
His life returned to how it was and he found that he didn’t miss those few months when he had Delice glued to his side. At the end of the day, none of it was real and he again became content living alone, being alone. He limited his interactions with Delice. She saw this and attempted to cozy up with Lucy, but was shot down. This is when he saw Delice become a bit more aggressive and sometimes trapped him in public conversations so he couldn’t leave. Yet… he couldn’t bring himself to even dislike her. He liked her ambition and her persistence and never treated her unkindly.
He remembered the events which led up to the day that would change his perception forever.
Attending a theatre performance, he remembered a new ballerina named Christine. She did fine in performances, but Charlotte, judge Jean-Pierre’s daughter grew impatient with her.
“She’s good, but she is so timid. It is a miracle she can dance in front of an audience. I think her being friends with Meg Giry is the only thing keeping her safe from Madame Giry’s wrath. She would probably cry at the drop of a hat!”
It only took weeks before Christine was no longer in the ballet, but the choir instead. Her voice was undoubtedly incredible. Frollo’s eyes widened in surprise one night when the prima donna had some drama and they needed a fill. He immediately became curious. Rumors were circulating and it didn’t take Claude long to figure out why. There was only one Erik he knew with any clout, though most everyone simply referred to him as the opera ghost. He was the manager everyone feared and never saw.
“Are you teaching Christine?” Frollo asked his distant, but long-term friend. He remembered the near indecipherable smirk on Erik’s mouth just below the mask.
“That sounds more like an accusation than a question.”
Frollo observed him quietly with as little expression as possible. Erik loved to get under anyone’s skin, especially his because he was ‘so uptight that it was foolish.’ Meanwhile, Claude thought Erik’s mischief was childish and petty. He was just an old, lonely man desperate to entertain himself.
“Either way, I would like to know,” Frollo said.
“Why?” Erik was purposefully difficult. “That question was not your intention.”
Frollo turned his lips inward in a hard line with evident frustration.
“Is the interest strictly professional?” Frollo clarified tartly.
Erik poured them some wine for the two of them and there was a solemnity and an amusement sparkling in his eyes that Claude had never seen before. If Christine was timid… this wouldn’t end well for Erik. To this day, even Frollo was wary of the man.
“For now,” Erik handed him the wine.
Frollo didn’t know why, but he actually believed him when he said it. Perhaps Lucy was right. There was a part of him that was emotionally underdeveloped and despite being able to read people very well, he was sometimes easily fooled.
He met Christine before one of the performances. She was incredibly sweet. He thought her apprehension would bother him, but it made it that much easier to be nice to her. She was shy and he made small frequent smiles because of her overall pleasantness. Christine was thoughtful and smarter than he anticipated. However, he got the vibe that the only people who could be mean to her were truly cruel because she had an air of sensitivity and gentleness.
“So, you are friends with Erik, then?” she asked lightly. Frollo gave her a small smile.
“I guess you can say that.”
He could see why Erik would be drawn to her. She was not Claude’s type and he realized quickly that he could never be interested because of a lack of patience -- he was too old for that nonsense!
Apparently Erik could read his mind for even thinking of such a thing, because later that night, he was on a warpath.
Oh, Erik had raged at him so hard he worried the man would have a heart attack! Frollo’s eyes widened in shock at his demonic fury. He had never seen such an outburst. Wait -- now was he yelling at him because he so much as smiled at Christine?
Why did he take Erik’s words for face value? The man was obsessed. Claude felt like an idiot for not seeing it sooner. How many times in his life would he misread the emotions that were right in front of him?
“I just wanted to meet her,” Frollo promised. “If that is the girl you like, you could do infinitely worse. If it means a damn thing to you, I approve,” though she was awfully young.
He was unwilling to admit to his friend that he thought the union would be impossible. The age gap was too large. For someone as particular as Erik, he expected him to fall for someone more mature… Christine was twenty, but there was a girlish quality that left the impression on Claude that she had a lot of growing up to do.
After some time, Erik calmed down. Claude was secretly trembling from the shockwaves of emotions that Erik swallowed him up in like a black hole.The man had a power that was practically supernatural.
What frightened him the most was the despair Erik felt. Obviously Erik didn’t think a relationship was possible, but he was going to try anyway. What a fruitless effort! Claude shook his head when he entered his car. The poor man. Unrequited love was a nightmare that Frollo never really considered. He always imagined love to be a progression. Meet, go on dates, grow feelings over a substantial amount of time… What if one fell within moments?
A cold chill traveled up his spine before reaching out like an icy hand around his heart. His frigid fingers gripped the steering wheel.
If Erik could be afflicted with such blind and unreasonable love, could he also fall ill?
Another week passed and although Frollo wasn’t actively seeking new information about Christine, he quietly observed the woman Erik was enamored with. He didn’t understand why the intense attraction to her, but to each their own. She looked like a doll. She was very sweet, but Frollo found himself wondering how Erik could handle her naivety. Perhaps this proved Claude was the bigger cynic afterall. He was too jaded to try to have a meaningful relationship with a woman half his age. At least women near his age had the same temperament: calm, thoughtful, mature…
Tired.
Fate had a cruel sense of humor. Everything he thought he knew would be challenged. His world was about to spin. Frollo was thankfully by himself, away from his group to order a drink from the bar before returning. When it happened. Standing at the bar top, he did a double take when he saw Christine with….a friend?
Claude’s eyes were glued, his heart came alive against his chest as it never had before. If he had his scotch in his hand, it would have slipped from his fingers. Never before did he see a woman who looked like a goddess-- walked like one! The aura she exuded was so powerful that he followed her movement with his eyes without blinking.
The girl had the fullest, darkest, and most curly hair he had ever seen. Her eyes were bright green which he had never seen a woman of her complexion have. Her plump lips were covered in a beautiful, matte red lipstick. Everything about her was so tasteful and perfect that he wondered if he was dreaming. If he breathed, he feared she would disappear like mist.
Taking the scotch the bartender just poured for him, he used it to cover part of his face as his eyes raked over her body. Her cleavage was full, but not too much and she had such a small waist which led to wide hips. They now walked to the other side of the room. Seeing the full extent of the cut of her dress, her entire back was bare. Frollo didn’t realize a woman’s back could look so attractive. The slit on the side exposed the top of her thighs as she walked and they fit the rest of her body. There wasn’t a single inch of her that wasn’t flawless. The Roman sculptors would fall to their knees and beg to capture her beauty if they saw her.
His scotch was done in an instant. Not intending to sit before, he did so now, thankful that the bar acted as his cover for his leering and….the erection which was hard against his thigh. Thank the maker that he couldn’t get a tent in his suit trousers. He gasped softly, his heart racing. This woman took his breath away.
“Hey, you, I haven’t seen you in awhile,” Delice sat at the bar stool next to him and he was so disoriented, he jumped out of his skin.
“Jesus fuck,” he whispered and turned his eyes to look at her. She smiled prettily. Delice had a nice mouth and beautiful eyes. Instantly, they didn’t seem so impressive.
“That’s a good introduction. Did I scare you?” she laughed. “Buy me a drink and make it up to me.”
At this point he was going to need three drinks before the performance. He would use Delice as an excuse to do so.
“Absolutely,” he said and ordered for them.
He knew Delice’s drink of choice and he could feel Lucy’s eyes boring into the side of his face when he didn’t return after a few minutes. He couldn’t hear what Delice was talking about. He was thinking of the girl. He didn’t see her again… was she getting ready for the performance?
“You men don’t even listen sometimes,” Delice sighed.
Frollo was already on his third round of scotch in a matter of minutes.
“I’ve had a rough day at work, I am sorry, Delice.” He was about to round up the tab when Delice ordered another drink and touched his hand with her fingers. He tensed.
“I don’t think your P.A. likes me,” she wrinkled her nose and sneered. It was surprisingly attractive to look at. He hated that he still liked her.
“Lucy?” he asked vacantly.
“Who else?” she said irritably. “Do you have another one that acts like your mother?”
If Frollo had been sober he would have been a lot more offended by what she said.
“You’re not drunk already. Are you playing dumb? You aren’t usually this unattentive to me,” she pouted. His eyes dropped to her lips. Old habits. She was still tantalizing and she knew it.
Even when she wasn’t being nice to him, he never minded. He actually liked it and he understood why Lucy thought he had a problem and needed to keep his distance.
“I’m sorry Delice, I am not myself today. I haven’t been feeling the greatest,” he lied easily and after paying for her drinks and another scotch, he walked back to his group.
Lucy was glaring at him as if he had fornicated with Delice right there.
“Why did you stay over there?” She asked in concern. “I saw you pay and drink like a fish.” Lucy wasn’t ever this uptight.
Everything that was going on made Frollo incredibly anxious. He took another sip of scotch. He was a little drunk now.
“Please, Lucy, I just need… a break for a minute.”
Lucy frowned in confusion and nodded.
“I am sorry sir,” she took his hand. “I am just trying to look out for you. She is bad news.”
“I know,” he assured her.
They sat down for the performance and his life would never be the same again. Looking at the playbill he casually skimmed through it, but his fingers trembled. Was she here? He blinked.
Esmeralda Trouillefou.
Making her professional debut. He could hear his pulse drummed in his ears. She was the ballerina they hired after Christine switched to vocals. This… this never would have happened to him if Erik hadn’t interfered. His blood ran cold. He could feel the voice of fate laughing softly in his ear. He was doomed.
Watching her dance was agonizing. There wasn’t a single angle of her face or her body that showed an imperfection. Ballerina leotards were always an attractive item, but he had never seen a body like an hourglass in the corps before. Frollo’s blood rushed hotly through his veins and seared his flesh. A bead of sweat to trickle down the back of his neck. His eyes flew over her and only her. Her thick thighs… her thin arms-- her everything. Her massive hair was slick and perfectly contained in the usual dancer bun and her eye makeup was typical of dramatic theatre performances for ballerinas. Crossing his legs casually, he swore his erection never went down for the duration of the play. He felt heady and needed to calm his erratic breathing. He forced himself to stop watching at the end so he could become decent by the time the lights went up.
They met that night and he was so unprepared to see her face to face that he came off cold and silent. She made a face of disapproval because of his lack of warmth and he felt his heart drop like a boulder in his gut because of the disappointment.What a great first impression.
It wasn’t until later that he saw her parade herself like the perfect little trophy to every patron.It infuriated him so deeply that the next time they met, he insulted her without thinking of the consequences. Of course she would be a frivolous theatre whore! Why did he even think she might be sweet and mindful? Thank God Lucy wasn’t there that night, she would have given him a stern talking to.
He began to envy Erik. At least Christine was approachable and modest, with a quiet intelligence that was beyond her years despite her fragility. Meanwhile, Claude was starved for a woman who flirted with the entire room like it was her job! Every man wanted a piece of her. He could see it in their eyes when they looked at her. He had never felt so much rage that his vision blurred.
It happened. Cupid’s arrow pierced his heart. Just like Erik. Obsession gripped him like nothing else had before. He looked for news articles with her face and attended more performances. They were his sick pleasure in the beginning. She couldn’t even be compared to the ecstacy of a drug. She was his euphoria and he spent months in this crazed state where he would consume theatre performances like morphine.
Scouring the papers that month, an introductory bio was published. He was mortified to find out that she had just turned twenty-two. He unconscionably memorized her birthday.
At first, the fact that he didn’t care for her didn’t particularly interfere. It was lust that drove him and in his mind, the fascination would gradually wane. In a few months, he would wonder what was so special about her. For now, he wanted to drink every inch of her with his eyes when he could.
It was then that he began taking Charlotte to and from her performances at least twice a week. Jean-Pierre appreciated the help and Claude couldn’t admit that it was for any other reason.
Ah, but Esmeralda was vile! He hated everything about her! In the after parties, they kept their distance at first, but he always knew where she was socializing. She might as well crawl under the clothed tables with some of these men and service them right there! His fury and irritation soon became as intense as his desire. Any time they came near each other, they couldn’t be civil. Even her beautiful skin color became a matter of vexation. She wasn’t the typical ivory frenchwoman, but he saw her impress men that he knew for a fact were racist. There were a lot of french who disliked brown skin, Frollo being one of them. She challenged every perception he had of the world.
“If you want to act like a theatre whore, at least try to be more subtle about it. You don’t see any of the others being so obvious. Have some dignity” He told her once away from everyone else when she demanded to know what his problem was. Of course she was highly offended and hurled plenty of fire back at him.
By month two, Esmeralda was best friends with Charlotte and Charlotte asked him multiple times why he was so rude. No explanation could cover his behavior, so he blamed it on her being just as rude in the beginning. Charlotte was quick to defend Esmeralda.
“Try to be nicer to her next time you see her or I will tell Papa to set you straight. You don’t know what she is like in private.”
He remembered the day in the hospital when he waited for over eight hours for this girl to be born. The same girl, seventeen years later, was telling him to get his act together, lest she tell Jean-Pierre. He clenched his jaw and agreed to be more civil. He didn’t want to have an embarrassing, personal conversation, which would most likely make him feel ashamed of himself.
His fixation for Esmeralda never went anywhere like he anticipated, only increased as they both seemed to call a quiet truce. At least, when they had to make appearances.
“Coquette,” he sneered under his breath in passing and she almost smiled.
“Cad,” she cooed, unaffected.
It burned his heart, especially when she found out she could ruffle his feathers by being a mixture of flirty and argumentative with him. She loved to flirt! When she flirted with him, it was a particular kind of teasing that set his skin aflame in concealed excitement, but it enraged him the most. It wasn’t real. It was mockery.
Another month went by and things were becoming more difficult. He didn’t realize how close Christine and Esmeralda had become. Soon, the situation turned on its head and everyone but him completely adored her.
“She is so great, I don’t understand why you are so mean to her,” Charlotte whined on the way home from a performance. She brought this up a lot and Frollo was growing tired of hearing it.
“She isn’t particularly kind to me either,” Frollo said irritably.
“So you both have a temper, I’m sure you two can start over. I’ve never seen either of you act like this. It just proves to show that you two got off on the wrong foot. I know you guys are very different.”
“That is quite an understatement,” Frollo muttered through his teeth.
It was month three since he saw Esmeralda for the first time and Erik was becoming more insistent that they meet. Claude avoided this moment for as long as possible. Erik knew everything that went on in the theatre and he was not ready to have a conversation about Esmeralda, or really any of his behavior when interacting with her.
But soon, Erik put a hand on Frollo’s back as one of the performances ended. He hadn’t even seen where the man came from, as if he had teleported. Erik led him to a discreet area in the theatre which required his handprint for clearance. It wasn’t like Claude could run away.
“I already told Charlotte that I would be speaking with you and her dad will be picking her up.”
Frollo’s lips pulled in discomfort instead of the friendly smile he had aimed for. Once inside, they talked about Christine and her progress mostly. Frollo thought he might be off the hook, but he had been too hopeful.It was Erik’s turn to ask questions that he didn’t mean.
“How about you, old friend? Have you found someone you are interested in?”
Frollo’s skin prickled with anxiety. “No. I think I would tell you at this point if there was,” Frollo scoffed. The smile Erik gave was chilling and all knowing. His anxiety went off the charts. He felt like Erik was giving him a lie detector test where he already knew the results.
“I don’t think you would.”
Fear spread throughout Claude’s body and his stomach twisted with nauseum.
“It’s Esmeralda, isn’t it?”
The judge couldn’t hide completely from his reaction. His lips parted in surprise. Erik was the first one to suspect anything was amiss.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Frollo’s voice was tight in his throat.
“You are the one who has been acting ridiculous!”
“And you haven’t?” Frollo said defensively. “Don’t think I forgot you went off the rails because I spoke to Christine. Esmeralda irritates me, nothing more.”
Erik laughed. He laughed!
“You are obsessed! Ah, my friend has the same ailment as me!”
Claude’s face turned white as a sheet.
“Obsession will never be love, Erik,” he spat. It fell from his mouth and the opera ghost had never looked so smug.
“So you admit it, then…And I disagree,” Erik waved his hand in an elegant dismissal.“My obsession has certainly blossomed and I can now say that I am in love. I would make the world spin the opposite direction. Christine must only ask it of me.”
Frollo looked away and took a sip of his wine to refrain from sneering at the emotional soliloquy.That sentence seemed to be more for himself than for Claude’s regard.The thought of romantic love was beginning to repulse him more and more with each breath he took.
“Your obsession might have turned into love for Christine, but that is not to be my fate.This is just an odd phase in my life. Us old men know how that happens. It will pass and I will forget it ever happened.”
It would take Claude months for him to see just how little progress Erik was making with Christine.
“That is not how hell works.”
Erik became so sombre that the hopelessness seemed to overtake the room. Erik’s words were cryptic and they lingered in Claude’s head hours after he left. He would wear the obsession thin. If he was this fed up with Esmeralda now, his irritation would eventually make him sick of her. It had to.
Month four approached.Though it was still his secret pleasure to watch her dance because it excited him to his core, he was beginning to feel less satisfied. It gave him hope that his obsession was finally waning. It was a false flag. Ever since things had reached a temporary calm, his feelings for Esmeralda were merely shifting without him realizing it.
He attended the theatre less this month and most of his interactions with the ballerina were picking up Charlotte from rehearsals or performances. Jean-Pierre was having health troubles and since “Claude turned into such a theatre buff this year,” he asked him to continue helping him with Charlotte. Frollo didn’t tell him that he hadn’t been going much lately, especially when his father-figure looked so pale and uncomfortable. None of them wanted Charlotte to be taking public transport by herself and Claude was the only one without kids.
“Of course I will help,” Frollo assured him.
It was devastating for him, especially when he wanted to avoid the theatre entirely. Sometimes mid-day rehearsals ran long, sometimes they were short. Frollo was always punctual, so it seemed like more than half of the time, he was in an empty theatre sitting with a handful of others waiting for the rehearsal to be over.
He observed Esmeralda, who always sat next to Charlotte on the floor when Madame Giry did her review at the end of each rehearsal. He noticed how sweet her face was despite Charlotte’s constant pestering. More than once, Madame Giry had to tell Charlotte to be quiet. There was never a moment when Esmeralda regarded Charlotte with irritation, which was more than what he could say about himself. He admired her gentle smiles. He had never seen them before. These were the private smiles she gave to friends and not to patrons.
Frollo got into the habit of taking xanax much more frequently. Theatre parties were one thing because he could hide in a crowd. Picking up Charlotte when she was always hanging on Esmeralda’s arm was a more intimate experience.
One night, the rehearsal ran exceedingly late.There would be a new open soon and Madame Giry wasn’t having it. He was waiting for about two hours for it to be finished.. Once it was, he silently thanked a God he didn’t believe in. It was the first time he saw Esmeralda dance in a few weeks and he was yet again surprised by how acutely she affected him. His skin was warm. Distance wasn’t enough.
Charlotte emerged in her regular clothes, approaching with Esmeralda. He couldn’t help but feel tense. Normally, she avoided him. He frowned naturally and saw her look away, slightly miffed, which in turn annoyed him even more.
“Uncle Claude, would you mind giving Esmeralda a ride home tonight? It is dark and Christine didn’t have rehearsal today, so there would be no buddy system.”
Frollo couldn’t help his sigh of annoyance. This was not at all how he planned on spending his evening.
“It’s ok Charlotte, he obviously doesn’t want to,” Esmeralda said in a gentle tone he had personally never heard her use. He had never been subjected to a teenage girl’s pointed irritation before. It was like daggers.
“Uncle Claude, I swear--”
“Alright.” Frollo put his hands up in defeat. He didn’t want Charlotte to finish that sentence.
Charlotte’s excitement was childlike. It was apparent to him that she adored Esmeralda with every fiber of her being. Staying separated from them as they walked to his expensive car, they hopped in the back.
Fate was having a hell of a time making him miserable, as there was an accident which caused the traffic to be more congested than usual. There was no taking an alternate route. Charlotte talked excessively.
Looking in the overhead mirror, he could see Esmeralda up close with natural makeup and normal clothes. She was honestly more stunning now. She smiled at Charlotte again and his heart twisted. She was so exquisite... Another emotion came over him that he had never felt. Then, his heart began to beat faster. Tender feelings flooded his chest and suddenly he yearned for her to smile at him.
His eyes darted back to the road. No… no he couldn’t. This was the fascination talking to him. He didn’t care what happened to her or what she wanted. The night would never end and when they finally reached Esmeralda’s apartment, relief swept over him.
“Thank you for the ride, Minister,” Esmeralda said. Their eyes met and he wondered if this was the first time that they looked at each other without animosity.
“You are welcome.” His voice was reluctant, but Esmeralda seemed oddly pleased. So, he could be civil for literally half a second. She flashed the smallest of smiles as she left.
It wasn’t the large, carefree ones that she gave to others, but it still caused his heart to skip a beat in his chest.
“See, that didn’t kill you!” Charlotte said loudly. Claude sat there for a moment.
“I think it may have,” he said quietly and Charlotte thought he was joking.
“Sure, Uncle Claude. Whatever.”
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BnHA Bonus Rant # 5: All for One for All
Okay guys, so ever since I first read chapter 217, I’ve been thinking about certain One for All things and going “hmm” a bunch. Like so:
hmmm.
hmmm.
hmmmmmmmmm.
And like. I’ve had these bits and pieces of some kind of theory for a while now, and I think I’m finally ready to try and put them together.
So I’m gonna try to make this as straightforward as possible. First off, here’s the “official” story as far as we have been told:
AFO steals a “power-stockpiling” quirk from User X and gives it to his brother (henceforth referred to as Lil Bro).
The power-stockpiling quirk fuses together with Lil Bro’s own latent quirk, which happens to be a passing-down quirk similar to All for One.
The newly created quirk, One for All, allows the user to stockpile power within the quirk and then pass the quirk on to a new user, who in turn can then pass it on to another user, and then another, etc., all the while accumulating more and more power.
Fast-forward a century or two. All Might, the eighth user of OFA, passes the quirk down to a new successor, Midoriya Izuku. Izuku eventually becomes the first user to unlock another secret power hidden within OFA this whole time -- the ability to use the past users’ quirks.
hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
Anyway, so that’s basically it. This is what we’ve been led to believe up till this point.
So now, here’s my alternate take.
AFO steals what he believes to be a minor strength-enhancing quirk from User X. However, upon stealing it, he realizes he’s fallen victim to one of the classic blunders: namely, that if a quirk relies on some kind of “stockpiled resource” so to speak, he can only steal the quirk itself, and not said resource along with it. Much like another quirk-copier we know of:
So now AFO is stuck with some useless quirk that does fuckall for him, and wondering what to do with it. And then a light bulb goes off in his head. Of course! He has an annoyingly rebellious brother he’s been meaning to try and persuade to see things his way... by force, if necessary.
He doesn’t want to give his brother anything too strong, of course. Ostensibly out of kindness and concern for Lil Bro’s fragile state, but in reality he probably just didn’t want him to ever be able to oppose him.
But a quirk like this? One that doesn’t actually do anything? That’s pretty much perfect. He can force his brother to submit to him without ever granting him any actual power. So he gives Lil Bro this supposedly useless quirk, thinking that this is the moment when he’ll finally succeed in getting his brother to join him.
But instead, two things happen which AFO did not expect. Two things which, quite unknown to him, will ultimately work to seal his doom.
Let’s backtrack for a sec and examine just what that power-stockpiling quirk is. It’s actually pretty powerful stuff! Basically it seems like it gradually stores up someone’s power over time and then lets them use that accumulated power in bursts.
But as we now know thanks to Deku, that’s not all that it stores up.
Okay, so now just… hear me out.
All for One steals User X’s quirk. Unbeknownst to AFO, upon being stolen, said quirk immediately goes to work doing what it’s been designed to do: stockpiling the power of its current user. It no longer has the accumulated power of User X, because as we made note of earlier, power can’t be transferred through that method. It is, however, still a perfectly fine quirk, and it’s got a new user now. And so as far as the quirk is concerned, it’s back to business as usual. It’s accumulating power once again, this time from a new wielder: All for One.
So that is Thing # 1 That All For One Does Not Expect.
And here’s Thing # 2.
Like I said -- you can’t transfer accumulated power through stealing or copying or otherwise duplicating someone else’s quirk. For whatever reason, it just can’t be done.
But.
A WILD LOOPHOLE APPEARS ohhhhhh shit.
Listen, I don’t know why this is, but it is, though. We already know; we’ve seen it in action. One for All can be transferred from user to user with its power bundled in free of charge. It’s the only quirk we’ve seen thus far that’s capable of doing that. It is possibly unique in this. But it only works if the user wills the power to be transferred. Otherwise it will not happen. And All for One, in his arrogance and hubris, did in fact willingly grant this power to his younger brother.
So here, finally, is what I’ve been trying to get at. I don’t think Lil Bro actually ever had a quirk after all. I think our boy really was quirkless. That passing-down quirk he supposedly had? The one that supposedly fused together with the power-stockpiling quirk to create One for All?
Well, I think said fusion actually took place when AFO was still in possession of the quirk. In other words, I think One for All actually is All for One.
We have a quirk that stockpiles its users’ power and “quirk factors.” All for One was in possession of that quirk. It stockpiled his power. It stockpiled his quirk. And then without realizing it, he passed that power on to his younger brother. The quirk, along with whatever power it had accumulated from him.
One for All is literally All for One. The power to grant quirks from one person to another comes directly from AFO’s power. No other quirk has the ability to do that. We have copy abilities and shapeshifting abilities and clone abilities, and all of these are capable of duplicating others’ quirks to some extent. But none of these powers is capable of granting quirks to other people. The only abilities we have seen that are capable of that are One for All, and All for One. That’s not a coincidence.
Know what else isn’t a coincidence? The fact that Deku all of a sudden possesses multiple quirks. Not temporarily, but permanently and with no apparent restrictions other than his own ability and stamina. Again, that’s a power we’ve only seen in the hands of one other individual before now.
Yeeeeeeeeah.
So yeah. That’s my theory. This entire time, One for All has not actually been an “offshoot” of All for One, but is in fact All for One itself. And AFO has, ironically, been the originator of OFA this whole time. He is the first wielder of OFA. His brother is the second.
Oh hey wait, yeah. So about that. You know how All Might has been really fucking reluctant to bring up the topic of All for One, even now that he’s finally been ~defeated~ and locked up in Tartarus? Like, remember that one panel I was going “hmmmm” at earlier? “I didn’t want to raise that point…”
Well I think that might be because...
Which would mean... well...
Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeah.
So yeah, Deku. Hate to break it to you kid, but you might in fact have a certified evil dude currently taking up residence in that big ol’ hero brain of yours.
“But makeste,” you point out, “we’ve already seen the other vestiges and none of them look like AFO, and also there are only eight of them and if AFO was included, wouldn’t that make it nine?” All of which are good points which I will acknowledge. But in turn please consider:
(1) AFO has a gazillion quirks, including at least one that’s capable of altering his physical body and appearance (namely, whatever de-aging quirk he’s using). He could be invisible. He could be in disguise. He could in fact even be in disguise as a certain explosive boy whom Deku instinctively trusts! That one’s a bit out there, I admit, but frankly all of the theories related to That Silhouette are pretty out there so I’m willing to roll with it. But my point is basically that there are lots of possibilities here.
And (2), we don’t actually know jack shit about the past users of OFA. We only know Deku is the ninth because each user apparently kept count, because at least they were capable of doing that much. But All Might doesn’t know anything about any of the users prior to number six (whom he only had a vague description of, not even a name), so at some point all of that history was lost. It’s possible that they were keeping track of it but then Shimura or someone else purposely destroyed the information and didn’t pass it along to Toshinori in order to keep the other predecessors’ families safe. She gave up her own family for the same reason, so it wouldn’t be much of a stretch.
But my point being, we don’t actually know that there were in fact eight users following Lil Bro. There may well have only been seven, and they just assumed there were eight because everyone caught at least a vague glimpse of the Vestiges once or twice during their time, and they all counted a certain number of people, and so they assumed (quite correctly) that that’s how many past generations of OFA there were. Their only mistake was thinking that Lil Bro was the first, rather than the second.
What else. -- Oh, the thing with OFA being passed down via DNA transfer rather than by touch can probably be handwaved, tbh. That may have been because Lil Bro only received a little bit of AFO’s power and not the full-blown deal initially. Or it could just be that since saying “here, eat my hair” did work, they never thought to question whether it could be passed down via other methods too. But in either case, it may well be that Deku is capable of doing the touch thing and much more now that AFO has been churning about deep within OFA’s core for a couple centuries, and has, just like the other quirks, gradually been growing stronger this whole time. It may well be that All for One 2.0, Version: Deku is finally ready to rumble.
And if so? If he is? Well then that may just be the perfect solution to this whole damn mess. How do you stop a villain with unlimited power? Particularly if he does finally obtain a healing factor quirk at some point in the game and is restored to his former glory? There’s really only one way I can think of: give him a taste of his own medicine. Fire Lord Ozai style. Set a thief to catch a thief. Poetic fucking justice.
So that’s about it, I think. This is my current theory about OFA and AFO. This also means that, just in time for Father’s Day, I’m now pretty sure that AFO is not in fact actually Deku’s dad (and I may possibly owe @addermoray a beer). Or at least, the one theory probably isn’t true if the other is. So yeah, congratulations Deku, you get to pass on all of the I’m-secretly-the-son-of-my-greatest-nemesis angst after all! In exchange, you get my-greatest-nemesis-is-currently-inhabiting-part-of-my-soul angst instead. Heh. Have fun with that there, kiddo.
#bnha#boku no hero academia#all for one#midoriya izuku#all might#one for all#bnha meta#bnha spoilers#mha spoilers#makeste reads bnha#oh right -- the noumus#almost forgot about them#basically long story short I don't think ujiko's made any new ones since afo got captured#he's probably had the high ends in storage for some time already and is still tinkering with them#so yeah#as far as I can see afo is the only quirk capable of granting quirks to others#though I could easily be wrong about all of this of course#regardless it's fun to speculate#bnha theory#all for one for all#horcrux!deku#ofa the first
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Heart to Heart Introductions : You don’t have to participate in an unending quest for Mr. or then again Mrs. Right, nor do you settle or bargain for any Mr. or then again Mrs. At the present time. In the event that you keep on looking for Mr. or then again Mrs. Right you will unavoidably lose yourself attempting to satisfy other people who can never truly be satisfied.
Heart to Heart Introductions : At the point when you participate in attempting to fulfill the unappeasable you are doing just enabling them to control your life. Obviously the incredible one is the unpretentious deliverer of all your great deeds, and can easily play the game throughout the day regular. It’s significantly more critical to engage yourself by knowing where your adoration truly exists, than it is to be depleted of your vitality or keep on feeling double-crossed and end up surrendered by ceaselessly providing for somebody who isn’t offering back to you.
Heart to Heart Introductions : Rather than making due in the absence of affection where you get yourself alone, you turn your valuable love and consideration towards the individual who most merits it, you! So you can turn out to be deliberately mindful of any internal mending that is important to happen inside you that has made you contribute such an extensive amount yourself with no profits.
Heart to Heart Introductions : Genuine romance is the recognition and minute to-minute application and articulation of self esteem. This distinctions the estimation of you, your perfect gloriousness.
You will need to take care of you to be certain you dispense with anything within you that is making you pull in those external connections that are not exactly noteworthy, deferential and cherishing. Your recuperating can happen rapidly; as when you are occupied with focusing on the genuine affection of self, your heart opens and is eager to get.
The trouble for most in tolerating and recognizing their own genuine romance is because of the agonizing encounters from previous existences and the past right now. These encounters are encoded on a cell level inside you. You dread being completely open with your opportunity of articulation of self on all levels, because of the old agonizing encounters, yet at the genuine causal level starting from when you originally decided to bring down your vibration to stray into issue, human structure when you bought in to inaccurately trusting you are shameful of genuine romance. — Heart to Heart Introductions
At the point when you in bodily form, you came in with a shroud of absent mindedness. You are not aware of this cover, and along these lines, you sense a partition from your source, God/Goddess.
In human structure you have a self image, or the lower mental psyche. This lower mental psyche doesn’t have the limit of understanding like the all inclusive higher brain does. The lower mind endeavors to compute and make sense of everything as opposed to just interfacing with the internal sentiments of adoration. / Heart to Heart Introductions
The lower mind endeavoring to make sense of the vibe of detachment, reasons that you more likely than not accomplished something incorrectly, and your deserting is an immediate discipline for your inaccurately seen wrongdoing. The sense of self doesn’t recall that your spirit settled on the decision to just experience manifestation for the very reason for understanding the adoration it really is. / Heart to Heart Introductions
In this way, it figures in the event that you have fouled up you should be punished for your wrong doing in some way. You take part in one educational experience after another rebuffing self in some structure for doing simply picking life on earth.
Heart to Heart Introductions : These self-mishandling encounters collect and compound as you keep on burnning through this inaccurate conviction of wrong doing deserving of whatever. What you are actually unknowingly doing is making one open door after another to have the option to see the higher truth of being your own genuine affection. Tragically, you just as many have been stuck right now for ages
Heart to Heart Introductions : The self-discipline has a silver covering, because of your different agonizing encounters, you can understand the more noteworthy truth that states you have done no off-base, reality that states you can’t take the blame no matter what since you are and have consistently been love. Love that is making numerous encounters to acknowledge it is love exemplified.
Now is the ideal opportunity, as this is the Golden period of Heaven on Earth, where all will come to understand reality of the genuine romance of self.
Heart to Heart Introductions : You need not hang tight for any other person to move your mistaken convictions into divine knowingness, nor do you have to fear them any more. For those whom are as yet not prepared to completely stir to reality won’t have the option to get anyplace close to you once you pick love. At the point when you are associated with your genuine affection, you won’t experience these spirits, as you have previously; who are deciding to live in a lower vibration and are stuck in treating others severely in light of the fact that they don’t esteem themselves in any case.
Heart to Heart Introductions : You need not fear being defenseless and strolling with an open heart, as the individuals who have not yet figured out how to adore themselves essentially won’t cross your way. The vitality of adoration is a far more noteworthy recurrence and nothing vibrating from dread will have the option to get anyplace close to you. Love can’t experience dread and those players who are stuck in dread will be on various grounds where they will keep on having the vital not exactly adoring encounters, so they can go to a similar acknowledgment of recalling that they were never inadequate with regards to love and need not take it from another.
Heart to Heart Introductions : At the point when you inaccurately trust you are inadequate with regards to cherish, you look for outside of yourself, someone else, spot or thing that will satisfy and fulfill this feeling of lacking. You keep on pursueing others in a steady progression looking for the love you are not ready to give yourself. Here and there you may assume the job of the injured individual by giving and never getting similarly consequently, or you may assume the restricting job of the abuser, where you continually take while never being fulfilled.
Heart to Heart Introductions : At the point when you play the injured individual you give anybody as well as everybody the credits for your vibe merchandise and you likewise venture the fault for your vibe bads. At the point when you are the abuser you basically reprimand everybody for everything hence uprightly permitting your horrible treatment of others.
Heart to Heart Introductions : The inner self is unquenchable in light of the fact that it flourishes with the feeling of need; need is the thing that fills its flames and accordingly you enable to the sense of self of self, in your interminable hunt of another to satisfy the very love of which you as of now are.
Until you are willing, as you have consistently been capable, to remain and ace the inner self and its authority over you and your life by acknowledging you are answerable for all the decisions you have made; you will never come to know and live in the joy of genuine romance.
Heart to Heart Introductions — Your genuine romance is you!
Heart to Heart Introductions — It doesn’t exist outside of you. The one that exists outside of you is referred to all the more regularly as, the cognizant life accomplice or twin fire. In spite of the fact that you will never appreciate the advantages of this entire relationship either until you understand your completeness exists in.
Heart to Heart Introductions — How might you anticipate that an entire individual should want to live with and remain by the side of one who accepts they are a large portion of an individual, or lesser than. It just can’t happen in light of the fact that the vibratory rates are totally unique.
The entire individual is vibrating with a recurrence of wealth of adoration for self and consequently needs nothing. This individual needs nobody, despite the fact that they may decide to impart their life to another. The half individual sees they are in need and in this manner is constantly destitute. The half individual lives in dread and the entire individual lives in adoration, as expressed above affection and dread just can’t experience each other.
You have just encountered the sort of relationship when two dreadful low vibrating people get together. These two resemble separate halfs endeavoring to make an entirety. They might be very pulled in from the start, since they are both searching for something very similar, somebody to make them entirety. In the long run they will unknowingly fight over control of the entirety. Frequently with every half exchanging jobs flipping to and fro from the ground-breaking controlling one to the agreeable one.
At the point when you mistakenly accept that you need something and afterward take part in endeavors to satisfy yourself outside of yourself, you will encounter being encompassed by numerous who appear to not have any desire to give you the hour of day. They expel your supposition as though it is useless and they don’t restore the affection you wish to give or have given to them.
Anybody one who accepts they are not satisfied without the other half is holding a lower vibration and can’t understand genuine affection until they mend their mistaken convictions about being not as much as adoration, not exactly cherishing, not exactly adorable and not exactly cherished.
Contradicting energies can’t meet and remain together for an all-encompassing timeframe except if one or both change to vibrate at a similar pace of recurrence. The higher vibrational individual will never experience the lower vibrational individual except if they are taking part in their lives to mend. In all things considered the relationship is just impermanent except if the lower vibratory individual raises its recurrence to adore as well as the higher vibratory individual brings it recurrence down to fear.
You won’t understand and walk next to each other with that life accomplice or twin fire or potentially peers until you are entire yourself. Each one of those that go over your way are constantly an impression of self. They are delegates to emanate back to you who you are at whatever minute. You will consistently be encompassed by those that speak to who you by and by are, who you were in the ongoing past and who you are turning out to be sooner rather than later, as you stir to the genuine affection of self.
Heart to Heart Introductions : Understanding the mirror people around you are reflecting back to you for your more noteworthy great and quick advantage permits you to separate yourself from another part of the lower mental psyche known as judgment. In the event that you are upset by somebody, view them and see what is in inside self that is so irritating on the grounds that you decide not to be happy to see that the conduct of the individual is either something you are directly doing yourself, something you have done previously, or something you
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In the past, I’ve described Psion technology as highly-advanced and in fact, the most (if not among the most) advanced in the known universe. Simply-put, beyond their exceedingly high level of comprehension of and skill in PSI, Psions are also dangerous precisely because of the technology that they possess, both on a more standardized level (i.e something that’s accessible to the general public) and in the ways of projects that are kept a little more secret for one reason or another. And while it’s a bit much to elaborate on every single technology out there, I felt like it would be nonetheless worthwhile to give a general impression of it by noting a few of the many technological advancements of Psions, albeit mainly under broader categories of things:
○ Psion production machine: as (more extensively) covered in THIS POST, this machine is responsible for producing Psions that are ‘customized’ for specific and predetermined purposes hence why there are certain ‘types’ or classes of Psions at all. In a few words, the way that this machine produces Psions involves a conversion of energy in response to their coded physical traits and selves (or rather the ‘barebones’ of the self which later grows, develops, and changes based off the environment).
In other words, this machine alters the external world through the code input into it and the intermediary that connects the machine to whatever it is meant to alter; ‘blank’ energy in this case whereby the primary purpose is the creation of new Psions. It’s almost like an alteration of reality itself, and because this principle can be adopted and applied in a more general sense, there are several other noteworthy Psion technologies that either alter certain parts of the external world via code input (i.e specific-use tools) or apply this idea on a broader and more general-use basis.
○ Repurposing: it goes without saying that Psions (as far as their ideology goes) hate to let anything go to waste. They want to pull whatever use and benefits they can out of something until there is nothing left to accomplish such a thing before then classifying it as ‘useless’ and discarding it. As such, they have quite a bit of technologies that are dedicated to either efficiently converting one thing into another (for example, the energy from a discarded Psion into ‘purified’ and totally ‘blank’ energy again) or for efficiently breaking given substances (ranging from items to the corpses of life-forms) down into their consistuent elements and storing these elements away for later use as resources. On a broader scale, an extremely noteworthy application of repurposing technologies is that of a kind of resource extracter that gets implemented on conquered worlds and basically sucks them dry of all viable resources… albeit in a way that takes time (compared to most other technologies that fall under this category) because it’s on a planet-wide scale for one thing and for another, it needs to be very carefully extracted as to keep the planet from falling apart before the process is complete.
○ Time travel: Psions have fully developed time travel such that they can harmlessly (i.e without any negative effects on the individual travelling or to time-space itself) transport any entity through time based on some very specific coordinates input into the related machine. And in addition to this, the ones that are utilizing this technology can use it to communicate with other versions of themselves at different points in time or a time-divergent self (provided that said variant has this technology as well) and in the case of Psions, can enable a ‘synchronization’ of information across these differing selves provided that they all originate from the same self source.
That is, self A can become the exact same person as self B (and vice versa simultaneously) because whatever experiences either one is missing from the other can be shared and thus filled-in as though that self had gone through it. During his whole M2 plan, Giegue did this quite a bit. That is, he had information synced across himself and time-divergent selves to better coordinate his insane and rather complex plan aaaaand to uphold the timeline he had created in an attempt to secure victory this time. And so, apart from the 10,000 years he spent in his Magicant following M2’s outcome, he can be said to have even more ‘years’ added onto his overall age by virtue of the extra experiences he received through this syncing.
○ Psion home-planet: as stated on this blog some time ago, the Psion home-planet itself is a greyscale and highly modular world with this dull yet distinctive gleam to it and this angular, simplistic, and very ordered (in a way that seems to suggest an obsession with it) design as far as its surface and underground features go. To elaborate, when I say ‘modular’ I mean that every single parameter as it pertains to the planet’s conditions can be altered using a super complicated control panel at its core. These alterations can range from choosing to have certain weather phenomena (rather than being totally stagnant and void of it as is the norm) at specific points on the planet to determining its air composition (i.e what it contains + how ‘breathable’ it is for other species) to even distorting its physical features such as its shape and where it contains certain structures—which are either morphed out of it to begin with or connected to its surface after being externally built—as is necessary for their given purposes at a time.
And so, much like Psions themselves, the Psion home-planet is customizable due to the way hyper-advanced technology has been embedded into it and as a matter of fact, can be moved like a ship to warp out of one place and into another once the nearby star systems are all depleted of available resources. And while I’m still on the topic of the home-planet, I believe that it’s worth re-iterating that the Psion home-planet itself is always inside of a pocket dimension which is ‘locked’ in a way such that not just anyone can get through… and even when someone (unauthorized) does get through, the pocket dimension itself is structured in a way that gives the Psions every single relevant advantage possible in that space by both the ‘laws’ of that space itself and the very fact that the planetary weapons systems are both integrated into the very fabric of that space itself (i.e essentially every part of that space can be used to kill someone) and in the home-planet itself though its ordinary kept folded away in the planet itself.
○ Psion ships: I won’t get into the deeper details of every single ship that Psions have available for use, but I will say that there are specific ships designed and optimized to perform certain ranges of tasks thereby making some ships better at doing something than others. Beyond these differences however, each Psion ship is capable of three key functions: traversing through space across a broad variety of conditions be they extreme or not, warping its own form both in a strictly external (i.e maintaining its internal integrity as is) and an internal sense such that functions that range from fitting through otherwise inaccessible areas in space to simply creating more seating and control panels can be applied, and capable of traveling at insane speeds through space such that it’s possible to get from one extreeeeeeeeeeeeeeemely distant point to another almost instantaneously once the systems are ready to jump into that speed.
In other words, these ships are highly versatile (even when they’re optimized for a specific set of tasks), durable, and travel very fast through space. And in addition to all of this, it’s worth noting that as is the case with several other technologies (i.e the Psion production machine and the home-planet itself), only Psions can operate these ships in that these ships will not respond to anyone else attempting to control them unless their systems are hijacked in some way or a non-Psion is manually granted permission by the systems. As such, ‘lower’ life-forms that are sent to accomplish tasks outside of the home-planet frequently tend to either be under the leadership of a Psion or have a ‘non-Psion’ (though still produced by Psion construction worlds) ship allotted to them which can more or less be regarded as a less advanced (though still potent) variant of Psion ships.
○ Enhancements: although it is really ‘lower’ life-forms (i.e non-Psions) that get altered and thus ‘enhanced’ by technology… it’s not restricted to said life-forms. Rather to be more specific, non-Psions get these kinds of enhancements in ways that are very invasive and integrate into their very physiology because it is believed that these life-forms are so ‘flawed’ that true ‘usefulness’ and ‘improvements’ can only be brought about in this manner. And while Psions are rarely (if ever at all) subjected to these enhancements, they do use some form of them albeit in a more ‘wearable’ way whereby it’s something that can be attached and removed with ease aka not truly melded to them at all.
These external enhancements tend to be extremely lightweight (due to being rather thin up to being outright paper-thin at times), need no special application other than just manually sticking them onto the exoskeleton and smoothing it down into it, and often tend to be invisible once applied to a Psion until they are removed again or otherwise damaged. In turn, the primary reasons behind using external enhancements at all is to account for situations whereas Psions are in need of an additional function or boost to their current functions (if not made that way from the start) and to broadly make life easier in an equivalent way that things like watches, electronic schedules, etc do. In a sense, given the general format that enhancements for Psions tend to take on as a kind of standard? these enhancements can be thought of as more so akin to function-bestowing patches than anything else.
○ Other: this is more or less a re-iteration of things I’ve mentioned before… but other noteworthy bits of technology include: the general Psion surveillance system whereby time-space anomalies are (on a continuous basis) being recorded by a machine on the home-planet which itself in turn means that Psions know whenever entities or objects enter in and out of the universe –the main reason why you don’t often see them addressing it is because (most of the time) it isn’t considered to be important enough to devote their time and resources towards for one thing and for another, things entering in and out of the universe are actually common occurences; a goop-like substance which actually consists of microscopic machines designed to heal exoskeleton injuries that a given Psion may not be capable of healing themself via analyzing the injury and reconstructing the required component; and a kind of known universe-wide access to electronically-stored information (i.e like the Internet but, spanning beyond a single planet) with especially strong access to points more situated in space under Psion control.
#.headcanon#.worldbuilding#And that's not even getting into all the stuff about the core of the planet--#--where all the super secret stuff occur and more advanced things are made/kept
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pigeonfeather replied to your post “also I really really really want to infodump some dragon ball /...”
I'd say the second one bc I'm always a ho for domesticity
Alright! Here we go! It’s long, but it’s not gonna go behind a cut because I don’t trust this website to actually function properly anymore!
Piccolo Living With The Sons (During the 3 Years Before the Androids) Headcanons:
So, firstly, I don't think Chichi was very impressed by her husband coming home and going "hi!! I'm home, but me n’ Gohan will be training nonstop for the next three years!!! I also brought Piccolo to stay with us!!!", but I also think Chichi was brought up to be really hospitable and courteous to guests, so she like. Begrudgingly accepted that Piccolo was just gonna be there, and she was already trying to work on burying the hatchet re: Piccolo Having Actually Wronged Her Before since Piccolo had at this point saved both Gohan and Goku’s lives a few times.
I also don't think that Chichi would have forced Piccolo to sleep outside-- I feel like Chichi was raised in such a way that to do something like that would be a big mark against her own honor as a person, even with someone she dislikes intensely. I think that Chichi actually was insistent that Piccolo sleep indoors, on the couch/a futon/pile of bedding on the floor, and that Piccolo was the one who had issues with that. I think Piccolo has some amount of residual fear of being in enclosed spaces-- especially dark, enclosed spaces-- leftover from their parent's trauma (being trapped in the rice cooker for a couple hundred years), and it took them ages to feel comfortable enough to sleep indoors.
Come to think of it, I don't think the sons have a couch in canon, but whatever, I want them to have a couch, and Piccolo slept on it once they started sleeping indoors. At first wouldn't even sleep they'd just meditate all night (which wasn't good for them), or slept in the same pose they meditate in, later on moving to sleeping curled up in the tightest ball possible (which is pretty tightly, as Nameks don't have bones.) It took for-ever for Piccolo to feel comfortable enough to sleep in a more open position.
Last thing on that note: Gohan gave Piccolo his old night light when he found out that Piccolo hated being indoors with the lights off. Piccolo of course grumbled about this, but it did actually help them.
Gohan definitely taught Piccolo a lot of things from his studies. It started as Gohan explaining his lessons out loud to Piccolo so that he’d better remember what he’d studied, but Piccolo actually ended up being really good at both listening and asking good questions for Gohan to explain. This is what got Gohan to get the idea that he wanted to be a professor when he grew up, he found out he enjoyed teaching people.
The tree outside of the Son household has clawmarks all over its trunk from Piccolo using it as a scratching post. (Namekians also mark territory this way.)
For that, and other reasons, Chichi took to calling Piccolo a “big, green hairless cat” as a term of endearment, much to Piccolo’s vexation.
Goku is a rambunctious nice boy, so there were definitely times when he, Gohan, and Piccolo were all supposed to be training (or doing other things) where Goku turned things into a game. Like, taking baths or going for swims often turned into splashfights; when flying to a place to train Goku would instigate a race, or a chase-game; and Goku and Gohan would try to sneak up on Piccolo while they were meditating to “sneak-attack” them. Piccolo was... Annoyed by this at first, but gradually grew more receptive to these shenanigans as time passed.
Also, when that was going on there were some initially hang-ups around Goku and Piccolo being of differing alien species and not being able to read eachother’s body language so well. Typically this manifested as Piccolo reading too much into Goku being playful, or just getting overstimulated and reacting badly (like in the Car Episode where Piccolo read Goku driving past them as a challenge and got aggro’d.) But Goku had real issues with reading Piccolo’s more subtle displays of annoyance or anxiety, which led to Goku getting in trouble with Piccolo at times.
Gohan on the other hand, was more-or-less an expert of Namekian body language from living with Piccolo beforehand, and from spending a good deal of time with the Namekians while they were living at Capsule Corp. So Gohan kind of became an interpreter between his three parents, explaining things like “No Piccolo, Dad wasn’t grappling you, he was giving you a hug.”
Piccolo has a lot of weird dietary restrictions as I’ve mentioned at length before (due to their useless Namekian gut), but Chichi was pretty insistent about Piccolo eating dinner with the family, even if that “dinner” was just tea. Cooking for people is how Chichi likes to take care of them, and she over time learned what Namekians can eat without dying or getting indigestion from, and started making special foods just for Piccolo to have (stuff like broths that are more like a tea made with herbs/vegetables/bones, fruit salads, fish, certain fermented foods.)
Piccolo did in fact learn to do their part around the house, after some clarifications on why Piccolo Cannot Just Make New Clothes For Everyone Instead of Doing Laundry, etc.
Chichi made the mistake of starting to vacuum while Piccolo was still alseep, which resulted in Piccolo startling and blowing up the vacuum before they realized what it was. Piccolo had sweeping/mopping duty for a while after that.
Anyways, this period of time was one of the happiest in Gohan’s life, as while his family was in no-way normal, he got to live with and spend time with his three parents who all love him dearly and care for him in their own ways, and who learned to coexist for his sake.
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Prompt #17: Without A Trace
(CW: disturbing themes in this one, because Allagan experiments are pretty fucking awful and Aza also does questionable things)
Aza eyed the rusting interior of the elevator with a healthy amount of scepticism as it groaned and shivered its way down into the bowels of the Allagan Ruins. Unlike Azys Lla or the Crystal Tower, this facility had not weathered the march of time well, having been buried beneath several hundred thousand tonze of ice, snow and granite, discovered only by the ambitious expansion of a nearly exhausted Ishgardian mithril mine in the Coerthas Highlands.
Aymeric had promptly ordered it cordoned off and all access heavily restricted – he had heard enough stories from Aza about the nasty surprises that lurked in those ancient facilities and, understandably, didn’t want a too curious knight accidentally rousing the defence systems and having them spill out into the Ishgardian countryside. For a week, the mine had been as heavily guarded as a fortress, which… well, it probably pinged that something was up with the other Eorzean Alliance members, but from what Aza knew Aymeric was being very coy and secretive about the discovery with his allies.
Aza didn’t get involved. He left politicking to his far more experienced partner. He dealt with spelunking dangerous, ancient ruins of precursor civilisations that had a terrible habit of locking up unstable, powerful Primals; a mission that was always simpler than the treacherous pitfalls of international diplomacy, truth be told.
However, due to recent events, a relaxed yet interesting mission to explore an unknown ruin and potentially deactivate its defences had become something a little thornier. Aymeric, bless him, had been stubbornly insistent that Aza dragged along a group of knights with him, just in case that damnable Calling struck him at the most ill-opportune time. Aza had whined, Aymeric had put his foot down, they squabbled, and the result was Aza ending up with three knights clustered at his heels like little unwanted ducklings as he prowled through these old, rusting ruins.
Well, perhaps that was an uncharitable comparison. The three knights were discreet, skilled and professional. They didn’t touch anything unnecessarily, they didn’t get under Aza’s feet, and they kept a respectable distance, staying quiet as he poked and prodded at certain parts of the security system, just in case they lurched to life.
Which, they didn’t. The facility was eerily, worryingly quiet.
The thing about Allagans was they built their shit to endure. Even if that facility was part of an artificial moon that broke into the atmosphere of another planet and exploded thanks to the very angry Primal sitting at its centre, its remnants still functioned. So rarely did it seem rusted either – the alloy always kept up a silvery, bright polish, no matter its age or the exposure – so to stand in the middle of a positively ancient elevator, listening to it groan and wail, with its walls and floor holey and stained brown with rust was… disconcerting.
The aether moved oddly too, almost as if…
The elevator lurched to a halt, and with a high-pitched screech that had his ears tilting back in irritation, the doors ground open to reveal a wide hallway lit up in the sickly green of emergency lighting. Overhead, a robotic voice slurred out incomprehensible Allagan and teeth-clenchingly shrill static – all Aza caught was “testing” and “laboratory”.
Fuck. He hated Allagan laboratories.
“Alright,” he turned to face his three, heavily armoured ducklings, “It looks like this has an Allagan lab in it. That means we might be knee deep in their bioengineered weapons, so stay on your toes.”
The three knights nodded grimly, and Aza let his gaze trail over them. Josephine, a spear knight that was the tallest of the lot and broad enough that Aza suspected she had some Roegadyn in her bloodline somewhere, Isidore, a sword and shield knight who looked perpetually sleepy, and Clovis, a medic who was thankfully softer and gentler than Allert – and possibly mute, as Aza hadn’t heard Clovis utter a single word since this expedition began.
“Let’s go,” he finally said, satisfied with his inspection, and as one they tromped into the facility.
The hallway was long, and Aza felt his fur prickle at the heavy press of aether. It wasn’t that heralding the presence of a Primal, but the aether felt almost… stagnant? As if the millennia that passed by had just layered more and more and more in the depths of this facility, until it felt almost treacle-like and pressured. Aza didn’t quite like it, and judging by the nervous shifting of the knights behind him, neither did they.
There was a single set of doors at the end – the automatic ones that littered all Allagan facilities. Except these ones had been blasted open by something, dark scorch marks accompanying the claw marks that scored over the interior of the warped, metal doors. Aza paused, feeling his surroundings out, but the Echo gave no warning, no whisper of hostility and danger, so whatever had ripped those doors open long ago was either dead or long gone.
“By the Fury…” Josephine muttered behind him as they cautiously inched past the blasted open doors, and into the murky, spacious room beyond.
It was definitely a laboratory – it was simply massive, the ceiling stretching high with many catwalks and stairs connecting each level that loomed above them, for lining the walls, crammed in as tight as sardines, were hundreds of dimly lit statis pods, almost all of them occupied. Some, closest to the door, were smashed open, as if from the inside, glass littering the floor and leaving a trail of claw and scorch marks all the way up to the door.
“These are… dragons? No, something’s not right…” Isidore said quietly as they gravitated towards the pods with a sense of morbid curiosity, “Those are…”
“Hybrids,” Aza said shortly, utterly desensitised to the abominable things the Allagans did now. Standing before one pod, it was about two fulms taller than him, and twice as wide. Inside was a thick, goopy liquid that shone an off-yellow, thick bubbles floating up to show it was oxygenated. Inside was a creature that looked almost child-like – it was curled up, knees to chest, with its head covered by a metal mask of some sort, hiding its features. It didn’t hide the thick horns that sprouted from beneath the thick mass of floating hair, or the pointed ears that looked disturbingly Elezen-like. Its body appeared slender too, covered in patches of soft scales, with its arms twisted into what resembled closely to Wyvern wings.
Useless wings, looking closer. They were stubby and awkward, and forced its arms into painful looking angles. Its tail was too long as well – twice the length of its curled up body, and its feet looked like Chocobo feet, with thick, ungainly claws that looked too big for its body.
All in all… it looked painful.
“Halone have mercy,” Josephine murmured quietly, “These poor creatures.”
The next pod was just the same – slight difference, smaller wings, or the next pod, bigger wings, the next pod, wings on the back, too big, the next pod, fully scaled with massive clawed hands, on and on and on, until Aza came to a very disturbing conclusion.
This laboratory was where they were perfecting these hybrids. A melding of dragons and… whatever base Spoken they were using. Elezen, it looked like, judging by what little humanoid traits he could see. He didn’t bother thinking of ‘why’, because he’d long come to the realisation that Allagans tended to do horrible things just to prove they could. Always pushing the line, always trying to pervert nature and twist it into something unrecognisable. These creatures? Their very existence looked agonising.
And they were still alive.
He could feel it in the aether – could untangle the layered, dense feeling of it. Pain. Thousands and thousands and thousands of years of pain, just like within the depths of the Coils, where the Meracydians languished in agony to feed Bahamut’s existence. Except there was no reason, not even a bad one, for this. They just existed, abandoned and forgotten, without a single whisper of their trace in history or in the land above. They just sat here.
Aza turned away from the pods, let his eyes skim for- ah, there.
Leaving his knights to uncomfortably gape and snuffle at the room’s prisoners, Aza strode over to the console that sat innocuously in the middle of the room. There were several screens mounted to it, and when Aza reached it and tapped at the console, they flickered to dull, unstable light. One screen was just static, but the others still worked.
Like he said, Allagans built their shit to last.
He couldn’t read Allagan, but he let instinct guide him as he began tapping at the console. There was something, beneath the thorny prickle of painagonyhelpmehelpme that pervaded the very aether itself – something cold and ugly that made it feel like someone had cracked a cold egg down the back of his armour. So many cries for help, so many in pain, all placed into a deep sleep, dreaming and hoping to be put out of their misery.
He could feel it now, all that dense layer. Thousands of years of prayers, of aether gathering and condensing in this single point. The building blocks of a Primal.
Thankfully, everything was too aimless for him and the knights to be in any danger. At the moment it was just a concept, an unintelligent clump of aether that understood something was crying for help but lacking the mind and form to do anything about it. There were no crystals here, nothing to power or give form – except time. Lots of time.
Aza supposed it was a good thing the miners hit this facility. It wouldn’t have happened any time soon, maybe a hundred years, maybe a thousand more, but eventually a Primal would’ve been born here, with only agony and hatred as its base components, and it would have ripped free of this flimsy, rusting facility to devastate Ishgard above.
And the creatures here? That Primal wouldn’t put them out of their misery. It would keep them here to sustain it, and the poor fucking things would just suffer more and more.
He wouldn’t let that happen, now that he was here.
“It’s alright,” he whispered, barely louder than an exhale, heard only to himself, “You can rest easy now.”
And with the gentle urging of instinct, or perhaps the Echo helping him guide his way through the incomprehensible Allagan, he switched off the statis pods.
Instantly, the lights went out in each individual pod, and the low, groaning gurgle of the life support systems went quiet. The silence almost felt like a physical blow at that point, and the aether around him trembled – Aza pushed the feeling aside. He gathered up the awful, sickly feeling in his gut, boxed it up, and put it out of mind. It was for the best. Every Allagan facility he went through, these type of creatures… the moment they were freed, they attacked everything within sight. He could risk it. Couldn’t open them up for what looked to be thousands of bioengineered weapons in hopes that a single one wasn’t in crippling agony and was reasonable.
But this was the kind of shit he had to do, was meant to do. He made these decisions, out of sight, out of mind, so the rest of Eorzea and Hydaelyn remained safe. It didn’t make him feel any better, didn’t help him ignore the feeling of death starting to trickle into the surrounding aether like a stream, but clinging to ‘this was necessary, an awful necessity’ made it easier for him to turn and look his escort in the eye.
“We’ll have to check each pod, to make sure they’re dead,” he said emotionlessly, “These systems are so old it wouldn’t surprise me if some of them didn’t obey the master controls.”
The knights saluted him with impeccable professionalism. If they disagreed or were disgusted by his actions… they said nothing. Good.
The knights scattered, and Aza lingered by the console, looking up towards a ceiling so high it was nothing but a black shadow. Aymeric would understand – he understood unpalatable necessity, but still, Aza was kind of… the Warrior of Light was not very ‘Light’ at all, was it? A true paragon of goodness would have attempted to find a better way than what was easiest, but Aza was slowly accepting that he wasn’t a paragon of goodness.
He wasn’t even a nice person.
Some would argue he was good… but he wasn’t nice. Things like this just cemented it. But that was for the best, wasn’t it? In these times, you needed someone with a decisive hand, someone who would willingly be the monster to fight the other monsters that preyed on them. Aza would willingly be that monster. He already was one in a way, really.
Shaking his head, Aza moved off, steeling himself for an emotionally exhausting day of putting these creatures to proper rest. No one but himself, the knights and Aymeric would ever know of their existence, but they deserved something better than sitting alone and cold in these damnable tubes, forgotten history of the Allagan Empire’s ever increasing crimes against humanity.
#ffxivwrite2018#ffxiv#warrior of light#allagan being allagans#ie awful experiments#some primal lore too kinda#just me messing about in ffxiv world as per usua#fanfic
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How to make this year happier
Every year holds good and bad. It would be unrealistic to expect a whole year to be happy without any setbacks. I have certainly had my fair share of setbacks, especially over the last two years but the setbacks have made me resilient and have also helped me find amazing coping skills that I want to share with you. Here are insightful ways to make this year a happier year:
Don't believe everything you think
Once you realize that your brain is going to be active and send you thoughts all day every day (yes - even when you are asleep - dreams/nightmares), you learn not to believe every thought you think. It's a FACT that we all experience intrusive thoughts but you don't have to believe every thought you think. Actually - you will be a miserable person if you do. Our brains are geared towards threat and therefore we often default to the negative. It's a survival thing. We have insecure thoughts harassing us, like an inner bully telling us we aren't good enough or aren't loveable. "No one would love me if they knew the real me" is an intrusive thought many of my clients have. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy teaches you not to 'buy into' every thought you have. You can't stop the thoughts but you can control your FOCUS. Learning to dismiss negative thoughts is a great mental skill - one they should teach in schools!
Take it one day at a time
There is no point in catastrophising and worrying about the huge 'mountain' in front of you. What you need to do is break it down into smaller more manageable chunks. Instead of worrying about all you have to do for that month or week, break it down into each day and then try to stay in the moment. Our minds love to carry us to the past or make us worry about the future. But the real power lies in NOW. This very moment. The thoughts and decisions you make today will naturally shape your future. The past is done and it can't be changed. Being mindful is a great skill. Immerse yourself in the day, watch your focus and use all of your senses to stay as present as possible. What can you see, hear, smell, touch and taste. Our brain can't manage both - so the more you engage your 5 senses in your surroundings and keep your mind active the less time it has to worry and overthink.
Prioritise friends and family
Being around others releases a wonderful hormone called Oxytocin. It's a feel-good hormone and it lasts longer than dopamine. Dopamine is a short term "high" derived from things like eating food, sex, shopping etc Real happiness comes from being around people and connecting and bonding. It's how we are wired yet society and consumerism has made us believe that we need more stuff, more status and more power. It's not true - that real feeling of being alive comes from connections with others not from material goods. Sure - they do the trick for a while but it's short-lived. Reconnect with old friends and reaching out to others more often.
Maintain a good work-leisure balance
If you want to be stressed out and on edge, go ahead and be a workaholic. Some people (A-type personalities) are naturally more driven and goal orientated but everyone needs to live a balanced life in order to make this year (and every year ahead) a happier year.
Self-compassion is key
Self-criticism doesn't work. It's far more effective to show yourself care and self-compassion. That means treating yourself as you would someone you truly cared about. If someone you loved got fired, you wouldn't tell them that they were useless, you would be supportive and encourage them and this is what you owe to yourself. We all make mistakes and we can learn from them but self-criticism will lead to low confidence and withdrawal and avoidance in the long term. Be kind to yourself, you're all you've got.
Don't take life too seriously
Maintain perspective. I like the coping statement: "This too shall pass". Even when life seems overwhelming, be safe in the knowledge that it won't be as intense as it feels when you're overwhelmed. It's so easy to get caught up in the moment and feel stressed out. This is when it's a good idea to take a step back and ask yourself why you are getting yourself so het up?
Maintaining a sense of humor is important and trying to see the funny side of life can help to protect you from the harshness of life. This sense of security and comfort can also come from connecting with those around us as they are surely experiencing similar feelings. Whilst this nowadays can be tricky due to the increasing restrictions, technology has thankfully played a big role in bridging this gap. An entertaining way to combine the two would is with the age old right of passage of prank calling. Luckily technology has advanced since then - gone are the days of using landlines and you can now download a spoof call app to scramble your information so it looks like you called from a different number. Protect your privacy and change your caller ID today!
Covid-19 has definitely affected everyone and made it harder to feel at ease but there's no point resisting what is. Coronavirus is here whether we like it or not so there's no point in fighting something we can't change. Instead, focus on what you can do within the current restrictions. Shifting your focus will help you feel more empowered instead of hopeless.
Here's wishing you a year that is as good as you make it. I hope you achieve what you strive for and that you are able to reach your goals. Life isn't a race, it's okay to slow down and live life fully rather than racing around with too many to-do lists. Covid-19 has definitely encouraged mindfulness! Try to do something each day that you enjoy to lift your spirits and soon life will change again. One thing is certain in these uncertain times - change is inevitable and we're all getting good practice in dealing with uncertainty.
Mandy X
Photo by Artem Beliaikin on Unsplash
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The Dominance Theory: A Dog Training Fallacy
We as a whole grew up with similar thought of how canines work for large dogs: they utilize actual power to battle to be the alpha, to submit contending canines in the pack. This idea is so engraved in our mind that in English, being the big cheese implies that you are the most 'predominant' around. Indeed, even individuals who have no interest in anything canine related will have without a doubt found out about the significance of being predominant, the pack-pioneer, the alpha.
Indeed, even now, when it has been so totally disproven, to such an extent that most mentors will gaze intently at their noses at any individual who dares to absolute the expression "strength" or - more awful! - "alpha job", this thought that canines are attempting to assume control over the world each proprietor in turn is as yet a tragically pervasive idea among canine devotees.
Everything from pulling on the chain and bouncing up, to eating something you dropped on the floor and pursuing the feline, has been accused on a canine's quest for incomparability or a proprietor's absence of authority abilities.
It truly is a marvel that we consider canines man's closest companion by any stretch of the imagination, what with this alleged companion's consistent endeavor to oust us. You feed him, wash him, care for him and sometimes even dress him, you take him to the vet when he's wiped out and give him a comfortable spot to rest when he's worn out, and how can he reimburse you? By arranging an overthrow! The nerve! In any case, how did this misinformed idea of rank become?
We as a whole realize that wolves overwhelm each other, they have a severe chain of importance where subordinates are denied prime assets and people are continually engaging for strength, correct? All things considered, no, that is not actually how it functions. Incidentally, our past ideas of lupine social conduct depended on hostage wolves. People from various packs had to live in nearness of one another, a profoundly unnatural condition for them, prompting exceptionally unnatural conduct. The bloodbaths over assets were the aftereffect of stress, while in the wild, there are no adversary packs since space isn't an issue.
In the wild, a wolf pack is comprised of a monogamous pair and a few ages of posterity, who leave the pack after arriving at sexual development (at around two years old). Free-running canines, particularly those in a more metropolitan setting, incline toward a lone life. They are astute scroungers eating pieces of food sources to a great extent, they don't have to chase in gatherings since they don't chase huge prey.
In wolves, all individuals from the pack are associated with somehow in raising the youthful and acquiring food, though canines are not monogamous and just the mother is liable for raising her puppies. In specific regions (ordinarily provincial) where canines have been found to meander in free gatherings ('enrollment' is just impermanent) a pregnant female will isolate herself from the remainder of the gathering to conceive an offspring and care for her young. Along these lines, you can see the undeniable imperfection in applying wolf conduct when considering canines. Canines and wolves are far off family members (notwithstanding being of similar species) and hence not ethologically tradable. It isn't so much that these gatherings do not have any similarity to structure, it's that order is just significant in a couple of circumstances, much like it is for us people.
Since it has been "regular information" for quite a long time that wolves are continually engaging for predominance, it's straightforward in what way many canine proprietors could confuse a basic absence of habits with an endeavor to move up in position, however in all actuality your canine is not any more prevailing when he runs out the entryway than the individual who just zoomed by you to make sure about that last little spot in the lift you were going to stroll into. He's not any more an alpha when he jumps for the food you dropped than the woman who grabbed up that sweater you just put down briefly. These people aren't attempting to state their strength, they're downright impolite: they've put their necessities in front of the requirements of others. Canines, similar to individuals, who aren't instructed to carry on appropriately can't be relied upon to realize how to do as such.
Does this mean your canine shouldn't be shown any limits or rules? Obviously not. In any case, clinging to the predominance hypothesis isn't the way accomplish this. It is extremely defective, and used to legitimize the utilization of impulse in canine preparing. A canine won't satisfy a solicitation for three primary reasons: she is scared, uncertain or what to do or essentially more inspired to accomplish something different... Not on the grounds that she is predominant! Much the same as people, canines improve a generous good example and pioneer, as opposed to a dictator.
Before I go on, I should recognize the huge number of rankled coaches who are tingling to call attention to that, all together presently: "canines are not fuzzy people!" Very evident, but rather all things considered (particularly the part consigned to epicurean practices and the satisfaction of necessities), we are fundamentally the same as, notwithstanding the conspicuous distinction in appearance. Creatures are gluttonous essentially; considering first oneself is an early stage endurance strategy that has stayed with us and won't probably ever leave. I should take note of that this doesn't imply that philanthropy doesn't exist in certain species (one of which is the canine), however that veers off from the object of this article.
The canine that sits prior to being let out or trusts that something will be offered to her isn't demonstrating a type of subjection, she's simply a 'neighborly' canine. Clearly she has no real idea of social decorum, yet she's been instructed that specific practices (sitting, remaining, stopping to cry or bark... ) are the best way to get what she needs (treats, fondness, opportunity... ).
It is a typical misguided judgment that canines attempt to 'assume responsibility for the stroll' by pulling on the chain, as just the pioneer strolls in front. Canines, even those that are the most awesome aspect companions, don't walk next to each other. Canines aren't pack creatures, however even in wolves, status isn't controlled by where an individual strolls, every creature stays out of other people's affairs. It's the same when they're out on a stroll with you: a canine that pulls is simply attempting to stay out of other people's affairs decently well while fastened to a drowsy biped! To request a canine to spend the span from a walk wandering frustratingly gradually close to you is asking a ton; it is not necessarily the case that it is unthinkable, however it takes a great deal of restriction to not pursue the vehicle, fowl or jogger that has gotten her attention, or explore that pee, Skittle or corpse a foot from her nose!
A huge issue emerges when we think about that, as people, we have this assumption that our canines be capable comprehend our communicated in language. Most canines go their entire lives not understanding what the word 'no' signifies, despite the fact that they hear it consistently for the duration of the day. Above all else, canines get on tones more than singular words, which is the reason I can call my canine 'Wilderness Breath' and he'll run right to me. Also, advising a canine not to accomplish something is for the most part useless on the grounds that no doubt he's doing numerous things immediately, and you've quite recently advised him 'don't'. Don't what, precisely? It is substantially more profitable to mention to him what he ought to do, it rules out understanding. This basic wellspring of miscommunication is the thing that causes so many canine proprietors to accept that their canine is either prevailing or outright dumb. Aside from "no", "calm" is the main word individuals appear to anticipate that their canines should know. Interestingly, shouting will really get most canines to bark considerably more! In case a sharp "calm!" really surprises the canine into quiet, the proprietor's reaction typically isn't to convey that the suspension of commotion was the thing they were requesting (with the utilization of a prize), however to return to what they were doing, which tells the canine nothing. All things considered, at times, they'll even be accidentally remunerating the canine for woofing: he barks and they give him consideration, he's calm and they overlook him.
A conversation on canine strength just wouldn't be finished without a whoop to the alpha job: the crazy act of sticking your canine to the ground to build up yourself as his boss. Agreeable canines show their tummies constantly, as do wolves. On the off chance that they do it in nature, for what reason wouldn't we be able to adventure and copy it? For one thing, is anything but an agreeable signal, it's a mollification motion. A canine uncovering his mid-region is communicating finished innocuousness, he's ended up in an apparent tense circumstance, and is endeavoring to make it exceptionally certain that he intends no damage. Second, never at any point will you see a canine flip another canine on his back (besides in instances of unseemly play). This signal is offered, not constrained. Constraining a canine to the ground will fail to help your relationship, best case scenario, it will startle her, even from a pessimistic standpoint it can leave you with a piece of your face missing. The alpha job was sustained by the Monks of New Skete and enormously advocated by Cesar Millan, every one of whom have since professed to lament both utilizing and promoting said practice.
Some other time you may see a canine go "midsection up" is during play. In any event, during play, it is the canine on the ground that starts the conduct, his non-verbal communication will be locked in yet liberated from strain (no shaking or humiliated) and he is allowed to get up when he satisfies.
Realizing the reasons canines do what they do may appear to be a technicality, however it can fundamentally influence the result of your preparation. A canine that devastates the house since he has detachment nervousness will probably not advantage only from having something additionally fascinating to do, while a canine who obliterates out of fatigue generally will. Similarly, rebuffing a canine for being a canine will never really yield disappointment and scant outcomes. Coaches who vilify canines by causing wrong cases about progression and strength to do as such to legitimize not exactly sympathetic preparing strategies, yet - fortunately! - that is not the manner in which many canine proprietors decide to see their canine companions.
The most widely recognized analysis I hear concerning the utilization of non-conflictual preparing strategies is that it will make the canine become subject to treats, declining to do anything you ask without the conviction of a prize. Tr
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Todoroki and Zuko Parallel
So, I was seaching tumblr for this, and I’m surprised that I couldn’t find anything, so here, a meta between me and Mod Monoma. Enjoy!
Personality
Both Todoroki and Zuko are pressured to act a certain way and are forced into these roles set by their fathers who both have ridiculous standards for their sons. With Zuko, his conduct needed to be suited for a prince and he was very restricted to excelling (but is also constantly put down). He was also not allowed to make his own decisions and needed to sacrifice himself for the greater good of the kingdom. For Todoroki, he needed to be the better version of Endeavour, essentially an upgraded version of his father. Endeavour’s pettiness and denial against the fact that All Might earned his position as top hero needed someone to beat him. Todoroki was forced to master both of his abilities and be top tier, even as a child. From he was born, up until now (and still), he was expected to be better and stronger than All Might
They both are introduced as stoic, straightforward characters with a very specific goal in mind. While for Zuko, it was to kill the Avatar, Todoroki’s main goal was to become a top hero, something that he has to fight his way through to accomplish.
Later on, as each their stories progress, they become more comfortable with speaking to their friends and family. Todoroki struggled with speaking to his classmates for a long while, until finally getting to know people like Izuku on a more personal level. Soon he was portrayed to be more involved in the class’s activities, much like how Zuko was later shown to be working with Aang in order to defeat the fire nation.
However, they were still keeping secrets from those who are close to them. Due to the unresolved trauma of their pasts, their trust issues become a huge problem for not only them but the people who are close with these characters. For Zuko, it caused a rift in a few of his personal relationships, like with Mai, while for Todoroki it was less of secret keeping and more of an unwillingness to display his innermost feelings and the reasons behind them. In the way that they have been presented, it wouldn’t be a surprise if they shared something important in their current events when it gets so bad that they’re pestered for it (ex. Dramatic backstories and whatnot)
((WHY ARE THEY SO STUBBORN LIKE PLEASE CAN YOU JUST LET US HUG YOU. ALSO- YOU KNOW WHAT’S ANOTHER COMMONALITY?? THE FACT THAT THEY DON’T EXIST. *highkey crying*))
[Family] General Description
Now, since this is just a parallel, not everything is going to be perfect of course. Comparing Azula to Fuyumi isn’t going to work out at all since they’re basically polar opposites. But in general, their family situation is fundamentally similar, with the tyrant dad and the absent mother, along with siblings that were never really there for them. Todoroki and Zuko were both very distant with their family, and didn’t see/get along with their siblings often. For Todoroki, he was separated at an early age, which meant that he could never form complete ties with his brothers and sisters who were rarely around as well. Fuyumi has begun to bridge this gap between them, and he does begin to allow himself to rely on his older sister now, unlike in the past where he couldn’t. For Zuko, on the other hand, Azula was his only sibling, and she definitely wasn’t good for him at all. Their relationship is covered in fractures, but there are parts in ATLA where she does show some sort of concern for his well-being (not before her’s though), like when she pretended that Zuko had killed Aang instead of taking the credit (although she really was setting him up there). There’s no taking back the things that could never happen in their past
Father x Son Relationship
To outsiders, their fathers were considered heroes in one way or another. They prioritized their image and other people over blood, seeing them as simply something dispensable. They were considered villains to the people who actually knew them and oppressed everyone in order to establish dominance.
Both Zuko and Todoroki’s scars were a result of their fathers’ mistreatment, despite being inflicted in different ways. Because of Zuko’s unyielding pressure from his family (more often than not, his father) to progress and become a better firebender than he already was, he overworked himself and eventually fought his father in a match he was almost sure to lose at his current skill level. This is a direct example of his father causing the scar, but for Todoroki, it was more indirect. His mother was abused to the point of finding anything involving her husband to be ‘painful’ to look at, causing her to be startled by Shouto’s sudden appearance and making her throw the boiling water on his face. While Endeavor didn’t throw the boiling water, it was because of him that she felt so startled.
The fathers had abused their wives as well as their sons. We learned this from the manga and we saw it reasserted in the anime. This caused their mothers to be distant and slowly giving them less and less affection. It could be asserted that they were the reason they had become less inclined to trusting others, as they assumed their fathers would stop them from forming meaningful bonds. While they might not have been there physically, there always was the background thought that their fathers would not approve of the friendship, instantly making them less likely to be willing to make friends.
Todoroki didn’t really find the need to seek out his father’s love and approval in the series, but one of Zuko’s main motivations was to impress his father and be once again accepted into the family. In this way, they couldn’t be more different.
It is also worth considering how the boy’s opinions of their fathers change as the plot progresses. Zuko shows us that his relationship with his father is distant and Ozai is a fearful, oppressive figure in his life. However, the firebender learns that his father is actually less of an allpower figure in his life, and more pathetic than anything else. Shouto grew more and more apathetic to his father, finding that it was possible to not let himself consider his father’s looming presence. He learned that it was possible to become a hero because of his own will, and not with his father’s influence.
While Endeavor found that Todoroki was the perfect ‘product’ of his and his wife’s quirks, Ozai actually felt resentment towards his son, calling him a failure. Endeavor placed a great amount of faith into training his son to eventually become the next top hero. Ozai, however, didn’t find much use in his son’s existence (gottam Ozai) and didn’t invest much time in Zuko’s childhood.
The fathers themselves, are, to put it shortly, complete jerks who shouldn’t be raising children.They not only have hotheads ( ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) ), but they show a general lack of empathy for their children. Ozai’s natural inclination is to find use in his children, especially when it comes to their firebending abilities. Endeavor keeps pressuring his wife to bear him children in hopes that one day he will find someone who he considers strong enough to surpass All Might, and Shouto ends up to be that child. They put them through unbearable physical and emotional abuse that causes them to distance themselves and make them wary of getting personal with others. Overall, they’re pretty bad dads (and that’s an understatement)
Mother x Son Relationship
The mother and son relationship of both characters have been a significant part of who they are and because of their past, it had also initially warped them
Now, obviously, both Zuko and Todoroki’s mothers weren’t present for their childhood, and only played the most minor role as they grew older, definitely taking a back seat to ‘terrible parenting’ with their dads driving that vehicle (essentially running both our beloved boys over time and time again), but there is a lot more on that similarity
It wasn’t as if the mothers of both series decided to simply give up on their child. It has been shown that they did originally have a ‘good’ or at least ‘functional’ relationship at first. Unfortunately, that would be changed due to the awful fathers of both Zuko and Todoroki. Todoroki’s mom did not want him to turn out like his father and told him that his ice ability was his, not something that belonged to Endeavour. With Zuko’s mom, she often protected him from Azula’s harshness and defended him when Ozai called him ‘useless’ or a ‘failure’ when he couldn’t firebend in a polished way like his prodigal sister. In the end, with pressure to be a mother and the pressure of simply being there as a trophy wife, they both ended up caving and vanished from their son’s life and being treated less than they actually deserved. They also left due to interefence from their husbands (with Todoroki’s mom being sent to a psych ward and Usra, Zuko’s mom, needing to leave due to a deal made with Ozai for Zuko)
Although this is slight spoilers, both mothers do end up showing up again later on in both series, with Todoroki going to visit his mother after the UA Festival after rethinking his past due to Midoriya’s valiant (and slightly intrusive but pure of heart) actions. It’s not as if everything is fixed, but it is the beginning of their relationship being healed in the very least. For Zuko, his despised sister actually leads him to where his mother had fled too with Team Avatar. Conflicts arise, but in the end, it does lead to Ursa and Zuko having a conversation to correct all the hurt in the past
Both mothers could not handle the abuse towards their children, as a result of trying to be manipulated and bent to the respective father’s will. Todoroki’s mother unfortunately caved to the pressure, but Zuko’s abuse was the unintended consequence of the discourse between Ursa and Ozai. They too were abused by their husbands mentally, if not physically as well.
It’s pretty awful to be honest, but their actions, when misunderstood by their sons, were taken in such a wrong way that also painted them as the villains of their past, which isn’t the case. It was because of other events leading up to the singular event that traumatized both the mother and the son (ie pouring the boiling water on Todoroki’s face and leaving Zuko to fend for himself in the jungle that was the palace). They were blamed for many things as well (turning their sons into something twisted/ wasn’t there to be moral support and protect and love them). Their relationship with their sons were originally terrible, but once the reader/watcher’s eyes were opened, they, along with the characters themselves, could understand why it even occurred. It’s not to say that it wasn’t a shitty move, but being pushed into a corner could drive many people to do things they didn’t think they were capable of.
I hate to say it, but it’s true- they were both forced to marry people they didn’t want to be wed to due to a marriage of convenience. Both men wooed their wives into marrying them with the end goal of simply producing superior offspring, which ended up not fulfilling their selfish expectations in the end (after rebelling hardcore). They got married because of what they could give in the relationship, but with all the egocentricity, their relationship was a huge example of parasitism. Only one side benefitted while the other was harmed in the process. Their abilities and kindness were taken advantage of, damaging the individual and the people around them, in the process
They tried to love their sons to the best of their abilities and it is not their fault that world decided to screw them over and say that ‘Hey, no, I’m sorry. We can’t have a decent parent in the house, so we’re going to destroy that part and create angst and trauma within these seven year olds’
In short, the mothers both tried their best to raise their sons in a way were they would have done much good and kindness to society, but instead, their assholish husbands decided to be dicks and completely fuck up their son’s future in order to further push their stupid ideals and degrading these poor woman to something less than a dollar store toy or a one-trick pony
[Friends] Character Interactions (imperfect comparisons)- Midoriya/Aang
Midoriya and Aang were both shown as the two boys’ rivals. When Shouto first interacts with Izuku, he challenges him to do his best in the Sports Festival arc, asserting that he will win. Zuko’s main motivation during the first book was to find the Avatar and kill him, in order to seek his father’s approval.
Over time, the relationship between these characters changed from hostility to grudging respect as both Midoriya and Aang continually tried gain their trust and understand their perspective. They do end up becoming allies first with grudging respect earned from their actions and eventually friends. Zuko sides with Aang to fight against his father’s oppression and basically his former way of life, while Todoroki, in the manga, rushes off to Midoriya when he’s in need of help and is willing to go with him whether asked or not
When they start to fight with each other, Zuko and Todoroki begin to learn that they are more than what their fathers made them out to be. In a way, Midoriya and Todoroki helped show each other what it meant to be a hero, much like how Aang and Zuko both realized that they had to do what’s best for the outcome of the world.
Midoriya and Aang are both the main characters of their respective series, and are both positive figures in the stories. They both are meant to be inspirational to the rest of the cast, and that definitely shows after they speak to the tragic heroes of each story.
These two stay very positive and are always open to what the other characters have to say. If they can get out of the conflict peacefully, they will, but they don’t hesitate to stand and fight when and if push-comes-to-shove. Midoriya and Aang give Todoroki and Zuko another chance after the initial cold treatment and go out of their way to break down their walls and befriend them
Momo/Mai
So, in ATLA, Zuko and Mai get together at the very end (once again), and although we can only speculate what will happen between Momo and Todoroki, although they have gotten closer from the times that they have interacted in the manga, and I think (personally) that they could be considered as friends or acquaintances in the very least. Well, I’m straying, but Yaoyorozu is the closest person I could think of in joint with Mai
Both Momo and Mai hail from rich and powerful families who have lots of power in the universe that they belong in. Mai’s parents are politicians who are also very much in Ozai’s favour. As for Momo, her parents are heroes who have a great deal of influence as well. Because of this, it’s safe to assume that although they were definitely well off, their interactions with their family are kept to almost a minimum
These characters were initially assumed to be cold and indifferent, or at least in another world compared to everyone else. However, looking past that, they are both extremely loyal individuals who stay true in what they believe in and rarely ever falter. If there is something that needs to be voiced, they are usually the ones to do it. Mai and Momo are strong on their own, but they are much stronger in groups (ex. Team Todoroki and Azula’s group)
Momo and Mai are very resourceful (ha because of Momo’s quirk ;) okay, I’ll stop) and are quick-witted (well, for the most part), and they have a wide knowledge of many, many things. Momo needs to understand and be able to put to use informations about molecular engineering in order to create things using her quirk. They are both really smart and are able to apply their knowledge in all types of situations
Todoroki and Momo, along with Zuko and Mai, met in similar circumstances, although they are pretty different when cross-examining the shows. Todoroki and Momo got in due to their recommendation letters, probably putting them at the top of their junior high classes. Zuko and Mai are in the dominant families that oversee the Fire Nation, which means their commonality would be their blood
It’s clear that Zuko and Mai’s relationship is definitely more romantic while Todoroki and Momo’s is platonic, but both males are willing to help out when they have a problem of any sort. These two (or well, four) work well together as a unit and they’re fairly good with strategy and fighting
Bakugou/Sokka
Sokka and Zuko… didn’t really get along much in the beginning of the series. Bakugou and Todoroki? They got along even less.
Bakugou and Todoroki later, however, don’t necessarily grow closer, but learn to at least tolerate each other. Zuko and Sokka work together a lot to reach a common goal but they don’t exactly consider each other close friends.
These four bickered/fought like there was no tomorrow in the beginning of both series. Like really- never would have anyone thought that they become allies at all
Reluctant acceptance takes place of the mutual hatred and annoyance. They do end up acknowledging each other’s strengths later on and even sometimes helping each other
Although Zuko and Sokka couldn’t be considered good friends in the animation, they were definitely allies and trusted each other. Sokka and Zuko get closer as they get older, with Sokka being the Avatar’s advisor and having a role on the council that had been put together in order to maintain peace (Legend of Korra right there). Although that can’t be said for Bakugou and Todoroki where the anime/manga stands, they are past the simple ‘I despise you’ stage
Both Sokka and Bakugou know about Zuko and Todoroki’s past, although Bakugou hasn’t exactly brought that up with Todoroki yet (because he was eavesdropping during the festival)
They trust in each other’s abilities, and have actually gotten jealous over what the other person has, like Zuko wanting to belong and be trusted while Sokka wanted to be powerful. And well, Bakugou and Todoroki with their abilities and etc
((THIS IS LIKE THE LOVE-HATE BROMANCE. They’re chill but it’s not like they’re going to hop onto the braid train. Oh also, I hc that Zuko and Sokka hang out to complain about Katara and Aang being all lovey-dovey and so they go out on bro-dates. More to come on Bakugou/Todoroki friendship :3 ))
Iida/Katara & Toph
Iida is almost always portrayed as the voice of reason in the series (except during the Hero Killer arc *sweats*) and Katara and Toph try to set others on the right path, while struggling with their own personal insecurities.
In this relationship, Iida and Todoroki both respect each other’s abilities and often seek each other’s help in times in need, like in the Sports Festival arc. While Toph doesn’t interact as much with Zuko in the series, Katara and him both fight comfortably together, despite having incredibly different personalities.
Shouto also worries about his classmate’s mental health. Iida is shown to go through countless struggle after struggle, and Todoroki understands and even helps Iida through these times. In ATLA, however, Katara and Toph are less inclined to show their feelings. Katara sometimes finds it in herself to tell her closer friends, like Aang, her brother, and Zuko, about things that were troubling her, like her worries about her tribe and abilities. However, in the last book (season) of ATLA, Katara allows Zuko to accompany her to take revenge on the person who had killed her mother, while Toph goes out of her way to be partnered up with Zuko in their search for Aang to talk about her family (although Zuko couldn’t exactly console her or do anything about it)
Because of their willingness to grow as not only good people, but also as people that will help others, they are portrayed as strong characters with a very precise set of morals. All three of these characters have honestly been through a lot, and deserve happy endings that they won for themselves, thank you very much.
Well, there was supposed to be another part for what we might see in the future in alignment with ATLA, but we figured it was too long, but don’t worry, it’ll be here soon ;)
#boku no hero academia#bnha#atla#avatar the last airbender#meta#todoroki shouto#prince zuko#mod todoroki#mod monoma#all the feels#send endeavor to the shadow realm
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You Can Make $400 Extra Per Month Donating Plasma, Here’s How
Would you be willing to donate your own blood plasma for money?
Below I am going to walk you through the answers of how much you get for donating plasma, where is the best place to donate depending on where you live and what are some of the hacks to making the most money for your time.
The best part–you can actually make up to $400 extra cash each month by donating your own plasma!
This is the reason why donating plasma has become one of the fastest and most lucrative side hustles. If you are someone who doesn’t mind getting poked with needles, this may be one of the most passive side hustles we have found.
Now, that’s a pretty good payday if you ask me, and if you help somebody with a medical need in the process, then it’s a true win-win!
Need a Little More Cash? In addition to donating plasma, you can earn even more when you share your opinion with Survey Junkie. Survey Junkie has a TrustPilot Rating of 8.8 out of 10 and over 3 million members earning cash daily!
So, if you’re willing to set aside two hours of your time at least once a month, you have a really unique opportunity to make a quick, honest buck!
Table of Contents
How Do I Donate Plasma?
What Are the Benefits of Donating Plasma?
How Much Do You Get Paid for Donating Plasma?
How Do Plasma Centers Pay You?
Which Plasma Donation Centers Pay The Most?
B Positive
Biolife
Biotest Plasma Center
BPL Plasma
CSL Plasma
Grifols
Interstate Companies
GCAM Plasma
KEDPlasma
Octapharma
Your Local Plasma Donation Center
Donate at Your Local Red Cross Chapter
Helpful Tips to Become a Plasma Donor
Maintain a Balanced Diet
Pass a Medical Exam
Bring Proper Documentation
Does Donating Plasma Hurt?
How Long Does It Take to Donate Plasma?
Bonus Hacks: How to Donate Plasma Faster
Stay Hydrated
Squeeze a Stress Ball
Avoid Saturated Fat
What Happens During a Plasma Donation?
How Often Can You Donate Plasma?
When Can I Donate Plasma?
Make a Second Plasma Donation to Get Paid
What Can I Do If I Am Rejected as a Plasma Donor?
Temporary Deferrals
Permanent Deferrals
Alternatives to Donating Plasma
Flexible Side Hustles
Alright, Now You Ready to Donate Plasma and Make Money!
How Do I Donate Plasma?
Contrary to popular belief, donating plasma isn’t exclusively for cash-strapped college students. While your local donation center might be conveniently located near college campuses, you can donate if you meet the following requirements:
Must be between 18 and 69 years old (at least 19 years in Alabama)
Weigh at least 110 pounds
Clear of certain infectious diseases and have adequate hemoglobin and blood levels
Possess a legal government ID or Social Security card to prove citizenship
Keep in mind the standards can vary from state-to-state, with some of the most common added restrictions of being tattoo or piercing free, older than the standard 18-years-old, or waiting up to weeks between donation visits.
If you meet these basic requirements, the next step is to get in the car and drive to your local donation center.
What Are the Benefits of Donating Plasma?
There are many reasons you should donate plasma:
Help save lives
Get paid weekly
Flexible donation times
It only takes an hour to donate
Encourages you to pursue healthy behaviors
You’ll find out more about these benefits–especially how you can make money donating plasma–as you read through this article.
Another benefit of donating plasma besides making money and saving lives is that you can also donate blood too. Yes, you’ll have to wait eight weeks after donating whole blood before you can donate plasma again, but it’s something to keep in mind if you don’t have to rely on the regular payments from plasma donations.
How Much Do You Get Paid for Donating Plasma?
You can earn up to $50 per donation, but there are several variables:
Individual donation center payment policy
Is this a first test or subsequent test?
How much plasma you can donate
Although you must weigh at least 110 pounds to donate plasma, you might not be able to donate as much as somebody that weighs 180 pounds because FDA guidelines allow heavier people to donate more plasma; talk about an unfair advantage!
Donation centers pay each donor based on the size of the donation.
So, you might only make $20 or $30 per donation instead of $50 if you weigh less and cannot physically donate as much plasma.
You’ll also get paid more for your first donation because it takes approximately two hours for your first donation because of the onboarding process.
Subsequent donations only require up to 90 minutes of your time–one hour in most instances–so you get paid less per donation, but it’s still easy money. And, some centers pay more if you have a special, high-demand protein or you are a frequent monthly donor and qualify for your center’s monthly promotions!
How Do Plasma Centers Pay You?
The most common payment method for plasma centers is a prepaid debit card. Some donation centers offer rewards points that can be redeemed for cash or merchandise rewards.
Each donation center contracts with a different prepaid debit card provider, so you’ll need to read the payment terms and conditions to make sure your cash balance doesn’t expire. Most cards are reloadable so regular donations mean your balance will never expire, but your balance can expire if you go at least 30 days between donations or you don’t log into your rewards account in at least 180 days.
Which Plasma Donation Centers Pay The Most?
There are more than 400 plasma donation centers all across the United States and most of them are operated by the ten companies listed below. The most common payment method is a prepaid debit card.
Most of these donation centers pay a bonus of up to $50 per donation for your first five visits. If you have at least two centers in your city, take the time to call and find out how much they pay for your first visits and subsequent visits to see which center pays more long-term.
Visit a private donation center to make the most cash. Red Cross donation centers accept plasma donations in addition to blood, but they don’t offer cash payments for your donation. And, the Red Cross only let you donate once every 28 days which is another bummer if you want to make a regular weekly income by donating plasma.
The following is a list of plasma donation centers in alphabetical order, not necessarily the highest-paying. However, most centers offer similar payments and you can expect to make up to $50, on average, for your first donation.
B Positive
Maryland and New Jersey residents might live near a B Positive donation center. All payments are deposited on a B Positive Visa gift card. According to the B Positive website, all donors earn $50 for their first five donations made within the first 30 days.
What makes B Positive exciting is that they pay progressively more for each monthly donation. You might only earn $25 for your first donation each month and $45 for your eighth donation.
Payment per donation: $50 for each of your first five donations, then $15 to $45 per donation
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: MD and NJ
Biolife
There’s a good chance there’s a Biolife center near you as they serve 28 states. Payments are made on the Biolife prepaid debit card. The payment per test varies from center to center, but you usually get a bonus your second weekly test. Since your plasma is useless without the second donation within six months, Biolife gives you some added incentive to come back later in the week.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 per donation
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AZ, AR, CO, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, MI, MN, MO, MT, NC, ND, NE, OH, OK, PA, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Biotest Plasma Center
Biotest Plasma collects plasma donations in 12 states. All payments are made to a reloadable prepaid MasterCard debit card. Each time you donate, Biotest loads your payment onto the card.
You can also get a refer-a-friend bonus by getting your friends and family to donate plasma too. They also have monthly sweepstakes that let you win additional cash and prizes too.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 for your first five donations, then $35 to $45 per donation
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AR, FL, GA, IA, NC, NE, NM, OH, PA, SC, SD, TX
BPL Plasma
BPL Plasma pays up to $50 for your first five visits. How much you make after the initial donations, depends on your weight and your center’s payment policy. Seasonal promotions are offered to earn bonus payment too. The most qualifying donors will earn up to $300 per month after monthly promotions and active fees are accounted for.
The maximum donation age for BPL Plasma is 65 years old and free from excessive tattoos and piercings in the past 12 months.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 for your first five donations and up to $300 per month
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AR, AZ, CO, FL, IL, KY, ME, MN, MO, NC, NM, OH, OK, TX
CSL Plasma
With donation centers in 35 states, CSL Plasma is also likely to have a center near you too. And, they also pay good money for your plasma and you can make up to $400 per month. Like the other donation centers, you’ll earn iGive points that can be redeemed for cash on a prepaid debit card. Plus, you can participate in the monthly promotions to earn extra points.
Unlike some of the other donation centers, your iGive points can also be redeemed for merchandise rewards if you don’t need the cash at the moment.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 per donation
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AL, AZ, CO, DE, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MD, MI, MN, MS, MO, NE, NC, NJ, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, UT, WA, WV, WI
Grifols
Grifols is a conglomerate of the following plasma donation brands:
Biomat USA
Grifols
Plasmacare, Inc.
Talecris
You might only make up to $200 per month which puts Grifols at the lower end of the pay scale, but according to a Grifols employee, you actually will get paid within 30 minutes via a prepaid card if you simply make it back to the room to get stuck! To earn double the income, compare the payment schedule if there’s another plasma center in your town or within driving distance as most centers accept donors that live within a 50-mile radius. On a positive note, you can make extra money by referring friends.
While it should be a non-issue unless you’re a procrastinator, Grifols requires at least 48 hours between donations. Other donation centers only require a break of at least 24 hours.
Payment per donation: Up to $25 per donation or $200 per month
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 48 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MD, MI, MN, MS, NC, NV, OH, OK, OR, PA, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, WI
Interstate Companies
The Interstate Companies have 22 plasma donation centers located in 13 states. Most of their plasma donation centers carry the Plasma Biological Services or Bio-Blood name.
When looking for a donation center on the Interstate Companies website, pay attention to what donations are accepted at your nearest center as they either accept plasma only or whole blood only.
Maximum payment varies by location, but you can expect to earn up to $50 for your first five donations, then $250 per month. Like Grifols, you must wait at least 48 hours between donations.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 for your first five donations
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 48 hours between donations
States with donation centers: FL, IL, IN, KY, MD, MI, MO, MS, PA, TN, TX, WI
GCAM Plasma
GCAM Plasma operates donation centers in four states and you can earn up to $30 per donation after waiting 24-48 hours between donations. If you earn $30 per test, you can expect to earn approximately $240 a month by donating twice a week.
Payment per donation: Up to $30 per donation
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: CA, ID, TX, WA
KEDPlasma
Attention plasma donors in Buffalo, NY…KEDPlasma really wants your plasma if you have Rh-negative blood and live within 90 miles of Somerset Laboratories. If you meet these basic requirements, you can make a little extra cash by participating in the Anti-D program.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 for your first five donations
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AL, FL, GA, LA, NC, SC
If not, KEDPlasma still accepts plasma donations from several states in the eastern United States. You can expect to earn up to $400 per month and receive a bonus for your first five donations. All payments are made to a Wirecard prepaid debit card.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 for your first five donations
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AL, FL, GA, LA, NC, SC
Octapharma
Octapharma has plasma donation centers located across the country and Germany if you know anybody there that wants to become a plasma donor too.
In addition to getting paid to refer a friend to donate with Octapharma, you earn rewards points that can be redeemed for tiered rewards including express passes, gift cards, and sweepstakes entries, or a prepaid MasterCard debit card.
Payment details vary by location, but you can expect to make up to $50 for your first five donations. After that, expect to make around $300 per month or approximately $40 per subsequent donation. As a frequent donor, you can qualify for monthly bonuses too.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 for your first five donations and $300 per month
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AL, AR, CA, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, LA, MD, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NE, NV, OH, OK, SC, TX, UT, VA, WA, WI
Your Local Plasma Donation Center
The ten donation centers listed above are the largest companies with a multi-state presence. There are also independent donation centers–like ADMA BioCenters in metro Atlanta– across the country that pay you for plasma donations too.
The easiest way to find your closest plasma center is searching by the keyword, “highest paying plasma donation center near me.”
If you’re lucky, you’ll have more than one option and you can call both centers to compare payouts. When I performed the web search, I found two different centers in my city that pay for plasma donations.
Taking a few seconds to explore all your options can be well worth the effort as you can make double the amount at a donation center across town.
Donate at Your Local Red Cross Chapter
If you don’t live near a plasma donation center that pays, you can still demonstrate your giving spirit by donating to your local American Red Cross. You won’t get paid, but donating plasma is still a great way to “pay it forward” to help out a neighbor.
You’ll only be able to donate plasma once every 28 days or 13 times a year, but you can still donate whole blood and blood platelets during the waiting periods.
Helpful Tips to Become a Plasma Donor
Most people just can’t walk into a plasma center and make your donation because you might faint from lack of food or dehydration. Instead of being told to come back tomorrow, follow these tips to make sure you arrive prepared and you’re allowed to donate.
In most states, you must be at least 18 years old to donate plasma; the lone exception is Alabama where you need to be at least 19 years old.
Maintain a Balanced Diet
Eat a hearty meal and drink plenty of liquids before you donate
Avoid a fatty or high cholesterol foods
Don’t drink alcoholic or caffeinated beverages at least 72 hours before a donation
Getting into the habit of eating healthy might seem like a chore at first, but look at it another way; you’re getting paid to be healthy when you donate plasma.
If you don’t think it’s possible to eat healthy without breaking the bank, listen to Episode 84 of the Money Peach Podcast as Erin Chase tells you how to make every meal a $5 meal. After listening to Erin’s money-saving secrets, your plasma donations can cover most of your food bill!
Also, you will definitely want to shop with Ibotta to get a $10 cash bonus and save every time you buy groceries.
Pass a Medical Exam
Before each donation, you need to pass a basic medical exam that consists of questions about your general health, checking your blood pressure, and pricking your finger to check your iron and hemoglobin levels.
Maintaining a balanced diet also helps ensure your iron levels and blood pressure are adequate.
The testing center might prohibit you from donating in these circumstances:
Weigh less than 110 pounds
Insufficient iron or hemoglobin levels
Recent tattoos or piercings
Carry certain transmittable diseases
Take select prescription medications
Recently traveled outside the country
You will need to ask the center which illnesses and prescription medications disqualify you from becoming a donor.
If you have HIV, hepatitis, eczema on your arm in the donation site, diabetes controlled with medication, the donation center won’t let you donate. You also won’t be able to donate if you have been pregnant within the last six months.
If you are currently on prescription medication it may not be an automatic deal breaker, but you probably can’t donate if you take medication for acne, cold sores, infections, or vaccines and immunizations.
Never try donating plasma if you don’t feel 100% from allergies, the flu, or the common cold. You also won’t be able to donate if you currently have a sprain or stitches.
Bring Proper Documentation
You must be able to prove your identity for your first visit. In fact, the donation center staff won’t begin checking your vitals until you show you’re a legal citizen. Your individual center might have slightly different document requirements, but the most commonly required documents include:
Social Security Card or Border Crossing Card
Valid picture ID (driver’s license, student ID, or military ID)
Proof of residency (bank statement or bill issued within the last three months)
Bring what documentation you normally bring when you need to renew your driver’s license or apply for a passport. After the initial donation, you may only have to bring your regular photo id to verify your identity.
Does Donating Plasma Hurt?
With each donation, you don’t get pricked with a needle not once but twice. For your plasma to be used by another, you need to make your second donation within six months so you’ll technically get pricked four times.
If you’ve donated blood before or don’t mind having blood drawn for testing, donating plasma is a very similar experience. Many donors say the needle feels like a mild bee sting; it’s not as fun as relaxing at the beach but it’s for a worthy cause.
One of your fingertips will be pricked first to test your iron and hemoglobin levels. If they’re up to par, you’ll proceed to the donation area where you will get pricked the second time by a phlebotomist in your arm to begin donating blood.
If you feel discomfort while donating plasma, immediately speak with the phlebotomist who might only need a minor adjustment to the needle or plasmapheresis machine.
Because the plasma center is only collecting your blood plasma, the donation machine is actively separating your plasma from your blood and returns your blood with saline additive back into your body. This return process can give you a cold feeling, and it’s recommended you bring a jacket or light blanket to wear if you feel cold.
How Long Does It Take to Donate Plasma?
Your first ever plasma donation visit usually takes twice as long as your subsequent visits. One reason is all the paperwork you have to fill out before you can begin the actual donation. Until you find your groove while donating, it can also take a couple visits to acclimate to having a needle in your arm for an hour too.
Expect your first visit to take between 90 minutes and two hours, however the actual donation time will only consume an hour of that time.
For your future visits, you can expect the entire donation to last around an hour because you only have to complete a basic medical questionnaire to ensure nothing has changed since your last visit that only takes a couple minutes to complete.
Since it only takes an hour in most instances to donate plasma, this is a quick and easy side hustle you can partake in between classes, after work, or on your days off.
Can you set aside two hours of your week to potentially make $100? I can!
Bonus Hacks: How to Donate Plasma Faster
Plasma centers pay you a fixed rate based on how much you donate. It doesn’t matter if it takes you an hour or two hours, you’re only going to make $50. So do you want to make $50 or $25 an hour? If you want to make $50 an hour, you need to follow these hacks below on donation day.
Like other side hustles that pay a flat rate, how much time it takes to donate plasma is just as important as how much you make per donation. Centers pay you more when you go for your initial visits because of the extra time required, but you need to learn how to work smarter instead of harder to maximize your earnings for subsequent plasma donations.
Stay Hydrated
Not drinking enough water before you donate slows down your donation speed because your blood is “thicker” and it’s harder for the machine to collect your plasma. In fact, dehydration is one of the most common reasons for slow donations because blood plasma is 90% water.
Just remember that you only have a finite amount of time for each donation session and after a predetermined amount of time the phlebotomist will begin unhooking the collection equipment whether you’ve donated the daily limit or not.
If you’re hydrated, you can donate your full amount within the donation window but being dehydrated might only let you donate three-quarters of your donation limit and you get paid less as a result.
Remaining hydrated can be a double-edged sword. Drinking too much water can cause your blood iron levels to become too diluted and you’ll be disqualified when they check your iron and hemoglobin levels.
Squeeze a Stress Ball
Regularly squeezing your hand or a stress ball boosts circulation. The quicker your blood circulates, the sooner you donate enough plasma. Find what works best for you so you remain comfortable while donating so you don’t try to “force” the donation and actually end up donating less.
What happens if your blood doesn’t circulate quickly enough?
The machine sounds an alarm and the phlebotomist must make some quick adjustments to clear the blockage. If they can’t, you’re not able to donate plasma for the next six months!
While this scenario is the exception to the rule, don’t forget to squeeze your fists periodically during a donation to keep yourself out of the unemployment line.
Avoid Saturated Fat
Eating a greasy cheeseburger and fries before you donate can slow your plasma flow too much. This is because these two foods are high in saturated fat that clogs your veins and produce “cloudy” plasma that can clog the plasmapheresis machine. If your plasma flow is too slow, your donation session will end prematurely and you’ll be paid a reduced rate.
Avoid saturated fat at all costs by not eating these foods before you donate:
Burgers
Fries
Cheese
Milk
Candy
Processed foods
Instead, seek foods with unsaturated fat which can actually speed up your plasma flow and help you donate in a shorter period of time; 45 minutes instead of 60 minutes for example.
Some examples of foods with unsaturated foods that you can eat and won’t leave you hungry are:
Avocados
Natural, non-hydrogenated peanut butter
Almonds
Fish
Beans
Eggs
Try to buy fresh ingredients including raw fruits and vegetables instead of pre-made items you get from the grocery store or restaurant. They’re healthier overall and cheaper.
What Happens During a Plasma Donation?
If you’ve donated blood before, the entire plasma donation process is very similar.
In a nutshell, here’s how it works:
Arrive at the donation center
Pass the iron and hemoglobin test
Phlebotomist connects the plasmapheresis machine to begin the donation
Finish the donation and schedule your follow-up donation time
From start to finish, you should expect to be at the center for 60-90 minutes depending on how long it takes you to complete the paperwork and donate your plasma. The most skilled donors only need 45 minutes to make the actual donation after checking their iron and hemoglobin levels.
When donating plasma, you’re sitting in one place for about an hour. The donation center is paying you for your time, but is it possible to “double dip” and make more money?
Most centers play movies and let you watch tv, so it can be an opportune time to rest, but many centers now offer free public wifi that you can use to stream your own content, read great books, study for an exam or promotion.
Another option to increase your hourly rate is taking paid online surveys. Since the average online survey takes 15 minutes, you can complete four surveys during a single donation.
How Often Can You Donate Plasma?
You can donate plasma twice a week, but you must wait 24 to 48 hours between donations. This rest interval gives your body time to replace your plasma count. Drinking plenty of water ensures your plasma levels quickly return to their normal levels and you’ll maintain a high energy level too because coffee, tea, and soft drinks dehydrate you further.
Donating plasma isn’t as intense as donating blood because the plasmapheresis machine puts saline back into your body, but your body still has to replace the plasma you donate.
In between donations, remember to avoid junk food and sugary drinks too. And, you still need to avoid alcoholic and caffeinated beverages for at least 72 hours before your second donation as well. While you shouldn’t go hog wild after your second weekly donation, you can relax your eating habits a little more afterwards.
Like you should drink plenty of water to avoid the negative effects of dehydration, eating healthy food provides multiple benefits besides faster donation times.
When Can I Donate Plasma?
Most donation centers are open every day of the week from 7am to 7pm during the weekdays and through mid-afternoon on weekends.
You can pick the day and time that works best with your schedule whether it’s before work, after class, or during your lunch break. Some centers also provide free childcare so you can donate plasma if you bring your children along too.
Your donation center might have designated time slots for first-time donors because of the additional time required to complete the additional paperwork. Afterwards, you can pick the donation time that works best for you because you only need to set aside an hour to donate the plasma since your name’s in the computer system.
Make a Second Plasma Donation to Get Paid
There are many similarities between blood and plasma donations, but one of the largest differences is that you don’t get paid until your second plasma donation is collected.
That means you must donate plasma twice before the donation center hands you a prepaid debit card loaded with cash. In most cases, you have six months to make your second sample.
Donation centers don’t do this to be mean, but they need two separate plasma donations before your plasma is usable. Holding payment until the second donation prevents ill-intentioned hustlers from donating once and running away with the cash while the center is stuck with a useless donation.
Think of your first donation as a “security deposit” and the second donation as your monthly rent payment; you make rent each month and your landlord is kind enough to let you stay for another month.
If you earn $50 per donation, the donation center will pay you a $100 lump sum payment; $50 for the first donation and $50 for the second donation.
Remember in order to receive the new donor bonuses–$50 per donation compared to the usual $40 donation payment–you usually have to complete each donation within the first two months.
Because I’m sure you like making money and helping people in the process, you’ll have no problem making your second donation ASAP!
What Can I Do If I Am Rejected as a Plasma Donor?
Maybe you want to donate plasma but can’t at the moment because of a current medical condition, you’re pregnant, or you recently got a tattoo or piercing. Whether you’re waiting a few months to become an eligible donor or donating plasma just isn’t your cup of tea, there’s no need to worry.
Temporary Deferrals
Maybe the center gave you a temporary deferral because you don’t feel well, are still recovering from a recent medical procedure, or your iron counts were too low. Whatever the reason, follow the center’s advice on how long you should wait and if there’s anything you can do to help speed up the waiting process.
If your iron count is low, you can start consuming more iron-rich foods to boost your count. It might take a couple days, but don’t give up hope if you have a temporary deferral. Your opportunity to donate will arrive sooner than you think.
Permanent Deferrals
Maybe you’ll never be able to donate plasma because of a certain medical condition that can harm your body or the plasma recipient.
If you believe the donation assigned a permanent deferral in error, you can try to overturn the deferral by getting a second medical opinion and following the center’s appeal process. It’s worth a shot if you’re serious about donating plasma.
Alternatives to Donating Plasma
Maybe you’ve decided plasma donation isn’t for you or you need to pursue an additional side hustle on the days you aren’t donating plasma.
Thankfully, there are many different options that won’t affect your donor status.
Flexible Side Hustles
Donating plasma might sound appealing because of the flexible donation times. All you have to do is set aside two hours a week that are most convenient for you; those are the best side hustle options because you name your own hours.
While this is only a partial list of flexible side hustles, you should consider these options first:
Online surveys on Survey Junkie or Swagbucks
Driving for Uber or Lyft
Delivering food with UberEats
Freelance writing
Graphic design
Transcribe two-minute audio recordings
You can easily do these side hustles in addition to donating plasma. Several of these online-based hustles can be pursued while you’re donating. If you’re a rideshare driver, you can donate plasma between gigs which means you don’t have to make a special trip to the donation center because you’re passing by it anyways.
Alright, Now You Ready to Donate Plasma and Make Money!
I think we all understand donating plasma won’t make us rich, but it’s a great, flexible way to supplement our regular income. And, we get the opportunity to pass on the gift of life in the process.
In fact, if you really break it down–donating plasma is one of the few ways you can legally “sell” your body for medical purposes and get paid!
If you’re ready to make some money by donating plasma, don’t wait. Your local plasma center is waiting to schedule your first donation!
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You Can Make $400 Extra Per Month Donating Plasma, Here’s How
Would you be willing to donate your own blood plasma for money?
Below I am going to walk you through the answers of how much you get for donating plasma, where is the best place to donate depending on where you live and what are some of the hacks to making the most money for your time.
The best part–you can actually make up to $400 extra cash each month by donating your own plasma!
This is the reason why donating plasma has become one of the fastest and most lucrative side hustles. If you are someone who doesn’t mind getting poked with needles, this may be one of the most passive side hustles we have found.
Now, that’s a pretty good payday if you ask me, and if you help somebody with a medical need in the process, then it’s a true win-win!
Need a Little More Cash? In addition to donating plasma, you can earn even more when you share your opinion with Survey Junkie. Survey Junkie has a TrustPilot Rating of 8.8 out of 10 and over 3 million members earning cash daily!
So, if you’re willing to set aside two hours of your time at least once a month, you have a really unique opportunity to make a quick, honest buck!
Table of Contents
How Do I Donate Plasma?
What Are the Benefits of Donating Plasma?
How Much Do You Get Paid for Donating Plasma?
How Do Plasma Centers Pay You?
Which Plasma Donation Centers Pay The Most?
B Positive
Biolife
Biotest Plasma Center
BPL Plasma
CSL Plasma
Grifols
Interstate Companies
GCAM Plasma
KEDPlasma
Octapharma
Your Local Plasma Donation Center
Donate at Your Local Red Cross Chapter
Helpful Tips to Become a Plasma Donor
Maintain a Balanced Diet
Pass a Medical Exam
Bring Proper Documentation
Does Donating Plasma Hurt?
How Long Does It Take to Donate Plasma?
Bonus Hacks: How to Donate Plasma Faster
Stay Hydrated
Squeeze a Stress Ball
Avoid Saturated Fat
What Happens During a Plasma Donation?
How Often Can You Donate Plasma?
When Can I Donate Plasma?
Make a Second Plasma Donation to Get Paid
What Can I Do If I Am Rejected as a Plasma Donor?
Temporary Deferrals
Permanent Deferrals
Alternatives to Donating Plasma
Flexible Side Hustles
Alright, Now You Ready to Donate Plasma and Make Money!
How Do I Donate Plasma?
Contrary to popular belief, donating plasma isn’t exclusively for cash-strapped college students. While your local donation center might be conveniently located near college campuses, you can donate if you meet the following requirements:
Must be between 18 and 69 years old (at least 19 years in Alabama)
Weigh at least 110 pounds
Clear of certain infectious diseases and have adequate hemoglobin and blood levels
Possess a legal government ID or Social Security card to prove citizenship
Keep in mind the standards can vary from state-to-state, with some of the most common added restrictions of being tattoo or piercing free, older than the standard 18-years-old, or waiting up to weeks between donation visits.
If you meet these basic requirements, the next step is to get in the car and drive to your local donation center.
What Are the Benefits of Donating Plasma?
There are many reasons you should donate plasma:
Help save lives
Get paid weekly
Flexible donation times
It only takes an hour to donate
Encourages you to pursue healthy behaviors
You’ll find out more about these benefits–especially how you can make money donating plasma–as you read through this article.
Another benefit of donating plasma besides making money and saving lives is that you can also donate blood too. Yes, you’ll have to wait eight weeks after donating whole blood before you can donate plasma again, but it’s something to keep in mind if you don’t have to rely on the regular payments from plasma donations.
How Much Do You Get Paid for Donating Plasma?
You can earn up to $50 per donation, but there are several variables:
Individual donation center payment policy
Is this a first test or subsequent test?
How much plasma you can donate
Although you must weigh at least 110 pounds to donate plasma, you might not be able to donate as much as somebody that weighs 180 pounds because FDA guidelines allow heavier people to donate more plasma; talk about an unfair advantage!
Donation centers pay each donor based on the size of the donation.
So, you might only make $20 or $30 per donation instead of $50 if you weigh less and cannot physically donate as much plasma.
You’ll also get paid more for your first donation because it takes approximately two hours for your first donation because of the onboarding process.
Subsequent donations only require up to 90 minutes of your time–one hour in most instances–so you get paid less per donation, but it’s still easy money. And, some centers pay more if you have a special, high-demand protein or you are a frequent monthly donor and qualify for your center’s monthly promotions!
How Do Plasma Centers Pay You?
The most common payment method for plasma centers is a prepaid debit card. Some donation centers offer rewards points that can be redeemed for cash or merchandise rewards.
Each donation center contracts with a different prepaid debit card provider, so you’ll need to read the payment terms and conditions to make sure your cash balance doesn’t expire. Most cards are reloadable so regular donations mean your balance will never expire, but your balance can expire if you go at least 30 days between donations or you don’t log into your rewards account in at least 180 days.
Which Plasma Donation Centers Pay The Most?
There are more than 400 plasma donation centers all across the United States and most of them are operated by the ten companies listed below. The most common payment method is a prepaid debit card.
Most of these donation centers pay a bonus of up to $50 per donation for your first five visits. If you have at least two centers in your city, take the time to call and find out how much they pay for your first visits and subsequent visits to see which center pays more long-term.
Visit a private donation center to make the most cash. Red Cross donation centers accept plasma donations in addition to blood, but they don’t offer cash payments for your donation. And, the Red Cross only let you donate once every 28 days which is another bummer if you want to make a regular weekly income by donating plasma.
The following is a list of plasma donation centers in alphabetical order, not necessarily the highest-paying. However, most centers offer similar payments and you can expect to make up to $50, on average, for your first donation.
B Positive
Maryland and New Jersey residents might live near a B Positive donation center. All payments are deposited on a B Positive Visa gift card. According to the B Positive website, all donors earn $50 for their first five donations made within the first 30 days.
What makes B Positive exciting is that they pay progressively more for each monthly donation. You might only earn $25 for your first donation each month and $45 for your eighth donation.
Payment per donation: $50 for each of your first five donations, then $15 to $45 per donation
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: MD and NJ
Biolife
There’s a good chance there’s a Biolife center near you as they serve 28 states. Payments are made on the Biolife prepaid debit card. The payment per test varies from center to center, but you usually get a bonus your second weekly test. Since your plasma is useless without the second donation within six months, Biolife gives you some added incentive to come back later in the week.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 per donation
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AZ, AR, CO, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, MI, MN, MO, MT, NC, ND, NE, OH, OK, PA, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Biotest Plasma Center
Biotest Plasma collects plasma donations in 12 states. All payments are made to a reloadable prepaid MasterCard debit card. Each time you donate, Biotest loads your payment onto the card.
You can also get a refer-a-friend bonus by getting your friends and family to donate plasma too. They also have monthly sweepstakes that let you win additional cash and prizes too.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 for your first five donations, then $35 to $45 per donation
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AR, FL, GA, IA, NC, NE, NM, OH, PA, SC, SD, TX
BPL Plasma
BPL Plasma pays up to $50 for your first five visits. How much you make after the initial donations, depends on your weight and your center’s payment policy. Seasonal promotions are offered to earn bonus payment too. The most qualifying donors will earn up to $300 per month after monthly promotions and active fees are accounted for.
The maximum donation age for BPL Plasma is 65 years old and free from excessive tattoos and piercings in the past 12 months.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 for your first five donations and up to $300 per month
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AR, AZ, CO, FL, IL, KY, ME, MN, MO, NC, NM, OH, OK, TX
CSL Plasma
With donation centers in 35 states, CSL Plasma is also likely to have a center near you too. And, they also pay good money for your plasma and you can make up to $400 per month. Like the other donation centers, you’ll earn iGive points that can be redeemed for cash on a prepaid debit card. Plus, you can participate in the monthly promotions to earn extra points.
Unlike some of the other donation centers, your iGive points can also be redeemed for merchandise rewards if you don’t need the cash at the moment.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 per donation
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AL, AZ, CO, DE, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MD, MI, MN, MS, MO, NE, NC, NJ, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, UT, WA, WV, WI
Grifols
Grifols is a conglomerate of the following plasma donation brands:
Biomat USA
Grifols
Plasmacare, Inc.
Talecris
You might only make up to $200 per month which puts Grifols at the lower end of the pay scale, but according to a Grifols employee, you actually will get paid within 30 minutes via a prepaid card if you simply make it back to the room to get stuck! To earn double the income, compare the payment schedule if there’s another plasma center in your town or within driving distance as most centers accept donors that live within a 50-mile radius. On a positive note, you can make extra money by referring friends.
While it should be a non-issue unless you’re a procrastinator, Grifols requires at least 48 hours between donations. Other donation centers only require a break of at least 24 hours.
Payment per donation: Up to $25 per donation or $200 per month
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 48 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MD, MI, MN, MS, NC, NV, OH, OK, OR, PA, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, WI
Interstate Companies
The Interstate Companies have 22 plasma donation centers located in 13 states. Most of their plasma donation centers carry the Plasma Biological Services or Bio-Blood name.
When looking for a donation center on the Interstate Companies website, pay attention to what donations are accepted at your nearest center as they either accept plasma only or whole blood only.
Maximum payment varies by location, but you can expect to earn up to $50 for your first five donations, then $250 per month. Like Grifols, you must wait at least 48 hours between donations.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 for your first five donations
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 48 hours between donations
States with donation centers: FL, IL, IN, KY, MD, MI, MO, MS, PA, TN, TX, WI
GCAM Plasma
GCAM Plasma operates donation centers in four states and you can earn up to $30 per donation after waiting 24-48 hours between donations. If you earn $30 per test, you can expect to earn approximately $240 a month by donating twice a week.
Payment per donation: Up to $30 per donation
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: CA, ID, TX, WA
KEDPlasma
Attention plasma donors in Buffalo, NY…KEDPlasma really wants your plasma if you have Rh-negative blood and live within 90 miles of Somerset Laboratories. If you meet these basic requirements, you can make a little extra cash by participating in the Anti-D program.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 for your first five donations
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AL, FL, GA, LA, NC, SC
If not, KEDPlasma still accepts plasma donations from several states in the eastern United States. You can expect to earn up to $400 per month and receive a bonus for your first five donations. All payments are made to a Wirecard prepaid debit card.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 for your first five donations
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AL, FL, GA, LA, NC, SC
Octapharma
Octapharma has plasma donation centers located across the country and Germany if you know anybody there that wants to become a plasma donor too.
In addition to getting paid to refer a friend to donate with Octapharma, you earn rewards points that can be redeemed for tiered rewards including express passes, gift cards, and sweepstakes entries, or a prepaid MasterCard debit card.
Payment details vary by location, but you can expect to make up to $50 for your first five donations. After that, expect to make around $300 per month or approximately $40 per subsequent donation. As a frequent donor, you can qualify for monthly bonuses too.
Payment per donation: Up to $50 for your first five donations and $300 per month
Donation frequency: Twice per week with at least 24 hours between donations
States with donation centers: AL, AR, CA, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, LA, MD, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NE, NV, OH, OK, SC, TX, UT, VA, WA, WI
Your Local Plasma Donation Center
The ten donation centers listed above are the largest companies with a multi-state presence. There are also independent donation centers–like ADMA BioCenters in metro Atlanta– across the country that pay you for plasma donations too.
The easiest way to find your closest plasma center is searching by the keyword, “highest paying plasma donation center near me.”
If you’re lucky, you’ll have more than one option and you can call both centers to compare payouts. When I performed the web search, I found two different centers in my city that pay for plasma donations.
Taking a few seconds to explore all your options can be well worth the effort as you can make double the amount at a donation center across town.
Donate at Your Local Red Cross Chapter
If you don’t live near a plasma donation center that pays, you can still demonstrate your giving spirit by donating to your local American Red Cross. You won’t get paid, but donating plasma is still a great way to “pay it forward” to help out a neighbor.
You’ll only be able to donate plasma once every 28 days or 13 times a year, but you can still donate whole blood and blood platelets during the waiting periods.
Helpful Tips to Become a Plasma Donor
Most people just can’t walk into a plasma center and make your donation because you might faint from lack of food or dehydration. Instead of being told to come back tomorrow, follow these tips to make sure you arrive prepared and you’re allowed to donate.
In most states, you must be at least 18 years old to donate plasma; the lone exception is Alabama where you need to be at least 19 years old.
Maintain a Balanced Diet
Eat a hearty meal and drink plenty of liquids before you donate
Avoid a fatty or high cholesterol foods
Don’t drink alcoholic or caffeinated beverages at least 72 hours before a donation
Getting into the habit of eating healthy might seem like a chore at first, but look at it another way; you’re getting paid to be healthy when you donate plasma.
If you don’t think it’s possible to eat healthy without breaking the bank, listen to Episode 84 of the Money Peach Podcast as Erin Chase tells you how to make every meal a $5 meal. After listening to Erin’s money-saving secrets, your plasma donations can cover most of your food bill!
Also, you will definitely want to shop with Ibotta to get a $10 cash bonus and save every time you buy groceries.
Pass a Medical Exam
Before each donation, you need to pass a basic medical exam that consists of questions about your general health, checking your blood pressure, and pricking your finger to check your iron and hemoglobin levels.
Maintaining a balanced diet also helps ensure your iron levels and blood pressure are adequate.
The testing center might prohibit you from donating in these circumstances:
Weigh less than 110 pounds
Insufficient iron or hemoglobin levels
Recent tattoos or piercings
Carry certain transmittable diseases
Take select prescription medications
Recently traveled outside the country
You will need to ask the center which illnesses and prescription medications disqualify you from becoming a donor.
If you have HIV, hepatitis, eczema on your arm in the donation site, diabetes controlled with medication, the donation center won’t let you donate. You also won’t be able to donate if you have been pregnant within the last six months.
If you are currently on prescription medication it may not be an automatic deal breaker, but you probably can’t donate if you take medication for acne, cold sores, infections, or vaccines and immunizations.
Never try donating plasma if you don’t feel 100% from allergies, the flu, or the common cold. You also won’t be able to donate if you currently have a sprain or stitches.
Bring Proper Documentation
You must be able to prove your identity for your first visit. In fact, the donation center staff won’t begin checking your vitals until you show you’re a legal citizen. Your individual center might have slightly different document requirements, but the most commonly required documents include:
Social Security Card or Border Crossing Card
Valid picture ID (driver’s license, student ID, or military ID)
Proof of residency (bank statement or bill issued within the last three months)
Bring what documentation you normally bring when you need to renew your driver’s license or apply for a passport. After the initial donation, you may only have to bring your regular photo id to verify your identity.
Does Donating Plasma Hurt?
With each donation, you don’t get pricked with a needle not once but twice. For your plasma to be used by another, you need to make your second donation within six months so you’ll technically get pricked four times.
If you’ve donated blood before or don’t mind having blood drawn for testing, donating plasma is a very similar experience. Many donors say the needle feels like a mild bee sting; it’s not as fun as relaxing at the beach but it’s for a worthy cause.
One of your fingertips will be pricked first to test your iron and hemoglobin levels. If they’re up to par, you’ll proceed to the donation area where you will get pricked the second time by a phlebotomist in your arm to begin donating blood.
If you feel discomfort while donating plasma, immediately speak with the phlebotomist who might only need a minor adjustment to the needle or plasmapheresis machine.
Because the plasma center is only collecting your blood plasma, the donation machine is actively separating your plasma from your blood and returns your blood with saline additive back into your body. This return process can give you a cold feeling, and it’s recommended you bring a jacket or light blanket to wear if you feel cold.
How Long Does It Take to Donate Plasma?
Your first ever plasma donation visit usually takes twice as long as your subsequent visits. One reason is all the paperwork you have to fill out before you can begin the actual donation. Until you find your groove while donating, it can also take a couple visits to acclimate to having a needle in your arm for an hour too.
Expect your first visit to take between 90 minutes and two hours, however the actual donation time will only consume an hour of that time.
For your future visits, you can expect the entire donation to last around an hour because you only have to complete a basic medical questionnaire to ensure nothing has changed since your last visit that only takes a couple minutes to complete.
Since it only takes an hour in most instances to donate plasma, this is a quick and easy side hustle you can partake in between classes, after work, or on your days off.
Can you set aside two hours of your week to potentially make $100? I can!
Bonus Hacks: How to Donate Plasma Faster
Plasma centers pay you a fixed rate based on how much you donate. It doesn’t matter if it takes you an hour or two hours, you’re only going to make $50. So do you want to make $50 or $25 an hour? If you want to make $50 an hour, you need to follow these hacks below on donation day.
Like other side hustles that pay a flat rate, how much time it takes to donate plasma is just as important as how much you make per donation. Centers pay you more when you go for your initial visits because of the extra time required, but you need to learn how to work smarter instead of harder to maximize your earnings for subsequent plasma donations.
Stay Hydrated
Not drinking enough water before you donate slows down your donation speed because your blood is “thicker” and it’s harder for the machine to collect your plasma. In fact, dehydration is one of the most common reasons for slow donations because blood plasma is 90% water.
Just remember that you only have a finite amount of time for each donation session and after a predetermined amount of time the phlebotomist will begin unhooking the collection equipment whether you’ve donated the daily limit or not.
If you’re hydrated, you can donate your full amount within the donation window but being dehydrated might only let you donate three-quarters of your donation limit and you get paid less as a result.
Remaining hydrated can be a double-edged sword. Drinking too much water can cause your blood iron levels to become too diluted and you’ll be disqualified when they check your iron and hemoglobin levels.
Squeeze a Stress Ball
Regularly squeezing your hand or a stress ball boosts circulation. The quicker your blood circulates, the sooner you donate enough plasma. Find what works best for you so you remain comfortable while donating so you don’t try to “force” the donation and actually end up donating less.
What happens if your blood doesn’t circulate quickly enough?
The machine sounds an alarm and the phlebotomist must make some quick adjustments to clear the blockage. If they can’t, you’re not able to donate plasma for the next six months!
While this scenario is the exception to the rule, don’t forget to squeeze your fists periodically during a donation to keep yourself out of the unemployment line.
Avoid Saturated Fat
Eating a greasy cheeseburger and fries before you donate can slow your plasma flow too much. This is because these two foods are high in saturated fat that clogs your veins and produce “cloudy” plasma that can clog the plasmapheresis machine. If your plasma flow is too slow, your donation session will end prematurely and you’ll be paid a reduced rate.
Avoid saturated fat at all costs by not eating these foods before you donate:
Burgers
Fries
Cheese
Milk
Candy
Processed foods
Instead, seek foods with unsaturated fat which can actually speed up your plasma flow and help you donate in a shorter period of time; 45 minutes instead of 60 minutes for example.
Some examples of foods with unsaturated foods that you can eat and won’t leave you hungry are:
Avocados
Natural, non-hydrogenated peanut butter
Almonds
Fish
Beans
Eggs
Try to buy fresh ingredients including raw fruits and vegetables instead of pre-made items you get from the grocery store or restaurant. They’re healthier overall and cheaper.
What Happens During a Plasma Donation?
If you’ve donated blood before, the entire plasma donation process is very similar.
In a nutshell, here’s how it works:
Arrive at the donation center
Pass the iron and hemoglobin test
Phlebotomist connects the plasmapheresis machine to begin the donation
Finish the donation and schedule your follow-up donation time
From start to finish, you should expect to be at the center for 60-90 minutes depending on how long it takes you to complete the paperwork and donate your plasma. The most skilled donors only need 45 minutes to make the actual donation after checking their iron and hemoglobin levels.
When donating plasma, you’re sitting in one place for about an hour. The donation center is paying you for your time, but is it possible to “double dip” and make more money?
Most centers play movies and let you watch tv, so it can be an opportune time to rest, but many centers now offer free public wifi that you can use to stream your own content, read great books, study for an exam or promotion.
Another option to increase your hourly rate is taking paid online surveys. Since the average online survey takes 15 minutes, you can complete four surveys during a single donation.
How Often Can You Donate Plasma?
You can donate plasma twice a week, but you must wait 24 to 48 hours between donations. This rest interval gives your body time to replace your plasma count. Drinking plenty of water ensures your plasma levels quickly return to their normal levels and you’ll maintain a high energy level too because coffee, tea, and soft drinks dehydrate you further.
Donating plasma isn’t as intense as donating blood because the plasmapheresis machine puts saline back into your body, but your body still has to replace the plasma you donate.
In between donations, remember to avoid junk food and sugary drinks too. And, you still need to avoid alcoholic and caffeinated beverages for at least 72 hours before your second donation as well. While you shouldn’t go hog wild after your second weekly donation, you can relax your eating habits a little more afterwards.
Like you should drink plenty of water to avoid the negative effects of dehydration, eating healthy food provides multiple benefits besides faster donation times.
When Can I Donate Plasma?
Most donation centers are open every day of the week from 7am to 7pm during the weekdays and through mid-afternoon on weekends.
You can pick the day and time that works best with your schedule whether it’s before work, after class, or during your lunch break. Some centers also provide free childcare so you can donate plasma if you bring your children along too.
Your donation center might have designated time slots for first-time donors because of the additional time required to complete the additional paperwork. Afterwards, you can pick the donation time that works best for you because you only need to set aside an hour to donate the plasma since your name’s in the computer system.
Make a Second Plasma Donation to Get Paid
There are many similarities between blood and plasma donations, but one of the largest differences is that you don’t get paid until your second plasma donation is collected.
That means you must donate plasma twice before the donation center hands you a prepaid debit card loaded with cash. In most cases, you have six months to make your second sample.
Donation centers don’t do this to be mean, but they need two separate plasma donations before your plasma is usable. Holding payment until the second donation prevents ill-intentioned hustlers from donating once and running away with the cash while the center is stuck with a useless donation.
Think of your first donation as a “security deposit” and the second donation as your monthly rent payment; you make rent each month and your landlord is kind enough to let you stay for another month.
If you earn $50 per donation, the donation center will pay you a $100 lump sum payment; $50 for the first donation and $50 for the second donation.
Remember in order to receive the new donor bonuses–$50 per donation compared to the usual $40 donation payment–you usually have to complete each donation within the first two months.
Because I’m sure you like making money and helping people in the process, you’ll have no problem making your second donation ASAP!
What Can I Do If I Am Rejected as a Plasma Donor?
Maybe you want to donate plasma but can’t at the moment because of a current medical condition, you’re pregnant, or you recently got a tattoo or piercing. Whether you’re waiting a few months to become an eligible donor or donating plasma just isn’t your cup of tea, there’s no need to worry.
Temporary Deferrals
Maybe the center gave you a temporary deferral because you don’t feel well, are still recovering from a recent medical procedure, or your iron counts were too low. Whatever the reason, follow the center’s advice on how long you should wait and if there’s anything you can do to help speed up the waiting process.
If your iron count is low, you can start consuming more iron-rich foods to boost your count. It might take a couple days, but don’t give up hope if you have a temporary deferral. Your opportunity to donate will arrive sooner than you think.
Permanent Deferrals
Maybe you’ll never be able to donate plasma because of a certain medical condition that can harm your body or the plasma recipient.
If you believe the donation assigned a permanent deferral in error, you can try to overturn the deferral by getting a second medical opinion and following the center’s appeal process. It’s worth a shot if you’re serious about donating plasma.
Alternatives to Donating Plasma
Maybe you’ve decided plasma donation isn’t for you or you need to pursue an additional side hustle on the days you aren’t donating plasma.
Thankfully, there are many different options that won’t affect your donor status.
Flexible Side Hustles
Donating plasma might sound appealing because of the flexible donation times. All you have to do is set aside two hours a week that are most convenient for you; those are the best side hustle options because you name your own hours.
While this is only a partial list of flexible side hustles, you should consider these options first:
Online surveys on Survey Junkie or Swagbucks
Driving for Uber or Lyft
Delivering food with UberEats
Freelance writing
Graphic design
Transcribe two-minute audio recordings
You can easily do these side hustles in addition to donating plasma. Several of these online-based hustles can be pursued while you’re donating. If you’re a rideshare driver, you can donate plasma between gigs which means you don’t have to make a special trip to the donation center because you’re passing by it anyways.
Alright, Now You Ready to Donate Plasma and Make Money!
I think we all understand donating plasma won’t make us rich, but it’s a great, flexible way to supplement our regular income. And, we get the opportunity to pass on the gift of life in the process.
In fact, if you really break it down–donating plasma is one of the few ways you can legally “sell” your body for medical purposes and get paid!
If you’re ready to make some money by donating plasma, don’t wait. Your local plasma center is waiting to schedule your first donation!
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You Can Make $400 Extra Per Month Donating Plasma, Here’s How published first on https://mysingaporepools.weebly.com/
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The Image
(Moscow, 1995 – me (right) in front of the dormitory of the Moscow Conservatory)
“We might say now that chewing gum is the television of the mouth. There is no danger so long as we do not think that by chewing gum we are getting nourishment. But the Graphic Revolution has offered us the means of making all experience a form of mental chewing gum, which can be continually sweetened to give us the illusion that we are being nourished.”
Daniel J. Boorstin, The Image
Last Tuesday, after a meeting in Berlin with the director of a PR agency, I found myself standing on a train platform next to two American men who were probably in their mid-30s. Americans seem to pop up everywhere these days in Berlin, and it was impossible for me not to listen to their conversation. "Hey Dave," said the one to the other, "Did you see Comedy Central last night?" He then took out his iPhone, pulled up the video from YouTube, and held his phone under Dave's face so that Dave (and everyone else in their vicinity) could hear what turned out to be the opening monologue of Trevor Noah. The two chuckled along, happy to be in their world and oblivious to the dour faces of the Berliners looking at them for being so obnoxiously loud.
It was a fairly innocuous moment, one that you will encounter anywhere these days, but for some reason it made me stop in my tracks. The irony of turning 50 this past year is not only the realization that I have been on this planet longer than I wish to admit but the memory that there was a time in my not-too-distant past where such a moment would have been impossible.
Not that I wouldn't have done the same as Dave and his friend. As an expat living in Europe for nearly three decades, I too have embraced digital technology over the past years to reconnect with America – downloading ebooks, signing up for a digital subscription to the New York Times, enrolling in online writing programs, Skyping with my parents, signing up to a VPN provider to watch YouTube without the proprietary restrictions, and maintaining the entire experience with a high-speed Internet provider so that this “nonstop virtuality” doesn't come to a crashing halt.
I have been grateful for this digital lifeline. Nowadays, one doesn’t need to be home to “be home.” And yet, I often find myself thinking back to my stone-age past, wondering how I survived back then and wondering if Dave and his friend would have fared so well had they not had their iPhones at their side all of the time. Not to say that "things were better back then" for me, far from it. When I was a student in Basel, pretty much all I had access to (apart from a limited supply of books, which were expensive) was the BBC on shortwave radio and the occasional copy of The Herald Tribune from the newsstand (again, too expensive). But I do wonder if this lack of virtual access to America 24/7 allowed me to experience life differently, and perhaps more intensively. Would I have taken so many evening walks along the Rhine? Would I have spent so much time in the art gallery, standing hours on end riveted in front of Hans Holbein's Body of the Dead Christ in the Tomb while thinking about how Dostoyevsky used it in his novel The Idiot? Would I have written so many entries into my diary with a leaky copperplate fountain pen, lost in my thoughts, happy of the smudges of ink on my fingertips? Would I have made an effort to copy out Stephan Zweig’s Schachnovelle by hand to improve my German? And whenever I think about that, I am taken aback at how much of a limb I was going out on when I came over to Europe in 1990. Communication, in the modern sense, was practically non-existent back then. I had no laptop, obviously. The Internet meant nothing to me and placing a call to the States was horrendously expensive. I was effectively cut off from the world as I knew it, living as a self-imposed castaway in a Loony Tunes land of Swiss German.
But somehow, I did survive. And I had memorable experiences – experiences which I think made me the person I am today. A case in point: back in 1995, I was invited by a Russian recorder player to perform at the Moscow Conservatory together with a trio I had formed with two fellow students of mine at the Schola in Basel. Without getting into the specific (and sometimes embarrassing) details of the trip, it was one of those moments in life where I found myself at the mercy of my keepers – specifically the interpreter, who in turn was nothing more than the mediator of a half-baked, badly-organized project that stumbled from one mishap to another in a country teetering on the verge of anarchy. Sadly, her English was all but useless, but she was pretty and seemed more than willing to take us everywhere (we visited the Lenin Mausoleum, the inside of the Kremlin, and several bars) and answer all of our questions before she passed out on a couch at a party the night before we were supposed to fly back to Switzerland. How we got back to the dormitory remains a mystery – somehow, at 2:30 in the morning, we managed to hitch a ride back in a car that had driven by the apartment where we left the party.
Rachmaninov Hall - Moscow Conservatory
Fast forward to 2014, when I returned to Moscow for 48 hours with Akamus. Rather than a pretty interpreter at our disposal, we had a young, well-educated man who had attended high school in Alabama for a year and was fluent in English. When I asked him how far it was to the conservatory from the hotel, he located it on my smartphone and dropped a pin before I set off in the direction he told me to go. I walked to the conservatory with ease, navigating my way through the side streets using the ubiquitous blue dot found on Google Maps, trying to find my past self in a transformed society.
That blue dot, apart from being an indicator that we are being tracked all of the time, seems paradoxically symbolic of what our lives have turned into over the past twenty years. It allows us to orient ourselves without the necessity of taking in our surroundings in full, which in turn effectively pulls us away from the possibility of "getting lost" and experiencing auratic moments. Not that I minded when I was in Moscow five years ago – I didn't have the time or the muse for a repeat performance of what I had gone through in 1995. But the juxtaposition in my mind of past and present – not only to see just how much Moscow had changed over the past two decades but also to see how I was seeing the city now against how I had experienced it back then – struck me as odd. Granted, I was seeing more on my own and risking more than I probably would have had I been left to my own devices twenty years earlier. But I noticed that I was experiencing less, that what I saw was something that was being filtered through “the screen.”
This idea of "more but less," which the American historian Daniel Boorstin refers to in his book The Image: A Guide to Pseudo-Events in America, is a point that keeps on popping up in my mind. And to be honest I don't know which is better – experiencing less, but with greater intensity, or getting a taste of everything without the memorable experience. For example, I have pictures of the 2014 trip stored on an external hard drive, which – like the hundreds of other digital pictures stored safely away in the 1TB plastic box, I look at now and then. But they don't evoke half the memories I get whenever I see the few pictures that my colleague took of us with her camera.
Boorstin, who was responsible for coining the term “pseudo-event,” was far ahead of his time when he wrote the book in 1962. He writes about how the propagation of images in media has succeeded at altering our sense of reality, creating an alternative world that not only do we compare ourselves against, but use for “reshaping our concept of truth”:
“More and more accustomed to testing reality by the image, we will find it hard to retain ourselves so we may once again test the image by reality. It becomes ever harder to moderate our expectations, to shape expectations after experience, and not vice versa. For too long already we have had the specious power to shape “reality.” How can we rediscover the world of the uncontrived?”
It is a disturbing thought, particularly if one thinks to how much modern society has grown used to buying into the world of illusion on a daily basis to achieve a sense of belonging. Boorstin, who died in 2004, was able to foresee what was coming, but I think even he would have been aghast to see how quickly the epidemic has spread in the last decade, and how readily we have given up our privacy for the privilege of taking part in that illusion.
We know full well that companies such as Google, Facebook, Instagram, and Spotify are tracking us, taking the information gained from our online activities and targeting it to manipulate everything from our purchasing habits to our political opinions. And we know the consequences of this – not merely through the erosion of democracy in the past several years, but, perhaps even more frighteningly, the erosion of a certain “quality of life” – the mere ability to think for ourselves, be creative, read, and engage in deep and meaningful conversations with each other. Instead, we (like the information we provide to such companies) have become nothing more than a “disposable commodity.” And if you really want to carry that thought one step further, could not one argue that the ultimate aim of “deepfake” technology, which is being used these days to get the better of our core values as a society by blurring the line between fact and fiction, isn’t all that much different from the approach taken by the Tyrell Corporation in Ridley Schott’s 1982 science fiction film Blade Runner? In the film’s futuristic world of 2019, "replicants" - the slaves of the film's dystopian society – were implanted by the corporation with false memories to create "a cushion or pillow for their emotions." Indeed, we may not be replicants at birth, and our memories may be ours – but could it that the barrage of information, misinformation, and desire is now weaning a generation who, in the future, will be even less resistant to the difference between fact and fiction?
“There is no cure for illusions. There is only the opportunity for discovery.”
If there were a credo for finding our way through the 21st century, it should be this. Maybe it is time for us to think about the second half of Boorstin's sentence and consider what we are missing by not taking the chance to discover life on our terms. The New York Times recently published an article titled "In Search of Lost Screen Time": "More than three-quarters of all Americans own a smartphone. In 2018 those 253 million Americans spent $1,380 and 1,460 hours on their smartphone and other mobile devices. That’s 91 walking days; that adds up to 370 billing waking American hours and $349 billion." The alternatives presented in the op-ed article offer food for thought, so much so, that when I read the article I considered my own dependency for a moment and thought about all of the other things that I would like to do with the remaining years of my life – listen to music with the intensity I did as a teenager, read more, go to museums again, go for long walks. At any rate, what I don't want is to be hooked. And yet, the paradox of my own life is the realization that the laptop in my hand is my means of communication to the outside world. But still, I cannot let it get the better of me.
At this point, I see that it's 5:30 in the morning. The first light of the morning has cast the garden on the other side of my window in soft, pale greys, blues and yellows while the birds engage in their morning ritual of welcoming the day. And yet, I have been so wrapped up in writing this essay that I didn’t notice it. It’s time for me to close the laptop and start the day.
“We must awake before we can walk in the right direction. We must discover our illusions before we can even realize that we have been sleepwalking. The least and the most we can hope for is that each of us may penetrate the unknown jungle of images in which we live our daily lives. That we may discover anew where dreams end and where illusions begin. This is enough. Then we may know where we are, and each of us may decide for himself where he wants to go.”
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