#also more recently i've been having trouble thinking straight
Text
there's a lot of reasons more people aren't into yuri that are troubling to consider, but equally, I genuinely think it cannot be understated how much of it comes down to most yuri being boring as hell. Like truly. I've been reading the front page of Dynasty Scans like it was the newspaper for 15 years I am not exaggerating I can show you the download file data 15 years.
You know what the complaint about yuri by yuri readers was back in 2009?
"wow that really was just 5 volumes of them blushing at each other and then they don't even kiss"
You know what the complaint about yuri by yuri readers is today in 2023?
"wow that really was just 5 volumes of them blushing at each other and then they don't even kiss"
Don't get me wrong, Yuri has grown a LOT in that time, to the point that most people today wouldn't even understand a Maria-sama reference if it were dropped in front of them (thank God). It's expanded and evolved to encompass more stories about adult women, wider varieties of scenarios, a greater acknowledgement of real life lesbianism, and is more comfortable showing girls kissing with tongue and having sex.
Yuri Manga is maybe the best is it's ever been, and it's also getting the widest readership it's ever had in the English speaking world. The titles we carry at work are always on back order with long queues, and, when I've asked them, most weebs of all gender or sexualities report keeping up with at least a few Yuri series.
At large though? Most of it is still really boring. That's not a bad thing necessarily. I like it because it goes down easy. For the most part any series you pick is gonna be pretty chill. Even shit from Sal Jiang which is PRETTY EDGY for yuri is a pretty breezy read. More serious ones like How Do We Relationship? cover some pretty real subjects about how intimacy is actually quite difficult even when both of you love each other, but it's not like... Exciting. Yuri isn't where you go to pump your fist or get perched on the edge of your seat.
So when the comparison is made to yaoi, well, I mean, have you READ any yaoi? Even in some of the more restrained titles those boys are likely to be sucking and fucking balls and all within the first volume or two. There's gonna be drama, intrigue, shit is gonna get messy, passions are gonna get heated, clothes are gonna be ripped off, people are gonna get sold to One Direction, it's stuff you can sit down with a bowl of popcorn with you know? Stuff you can message your friend and gush Hey Can You BELIEVE? A lot of it is pretty trashy, but that's the appeal. The generic state of yaoi is torrid and exciting and sexy. Ultimately, as a species many of us like to see pretty people fuck. In yaoi you'll get that. In yuri you won't. Nothing wrong with that, but it is gonna be a major contributing factor to their relative popularity.
It's also worth making the comparison to hetero romance manga, which has undergone a renaissance of it's own in recent years. There's now a whole meta around crafting a handful of mean shitty grouchy dysfunctional bully women and flinging them at the protagonist of the day who, unlike in years past, may actually have a face and personality. Most of these are also very trashy and truly scrape the bottom of the bucket in terms of writing.
AND YET?
I would bet money on the fact that you'll have heard of these women and probably even have a good idea what they're like without ever having touched a page of their manga.
I'm sorry but the straights are whipping donuts around the yuri girls in terms of delivering a wide variety of weird compelling fucked up women. How many yuri leading ladies by comparison can you point to as standout recognizable characters even divorced from their story? There's definitely a few, but not many. I'm not talking quality or depth of writing, I'm talking straight up pure recognizability. There are many beautifully written women in yuri, now more than ever. I can't think of many who'd like, get a figure made or have their face splashed on merch, though.
I don't really have a conclusion here. I love Yuri a lot, but at the end of the day this is just kinda the state of things right now.
342 notes
·
View notes
Note
Hi :) I read The Tragedy of Heterosexuality and loved it — do you have any other books you’d recommend about gender/sexuality? Thanks <3 I love reading your long posts, you have really insightful ideas and I think we view the world very similarly
Glad to hear that! Here's some context for anyone not in the loop: The Tragedy of Heterosexuality is a book about Heteropessimism, or rather, finding a way out of it. The notion is that heterosexual love is doomed because men and women are just different by nature, and it manifests through relationship self-help books, incels and pickup artists, and the memes and ramblings of countless straight women who they wish they could just be lesbians. Jane Ward think heterosexuality as we know it self sabotages through what she calls the misogyny paradox: straight men love women, except they don't love women. But she doesn't think heterosexuality is doomed or prop up political lesbianism as a solution. She calls for mutual respect and actually leaning into the heterosexuality of, well, actually liking each other, rather than try to "queer" it. This is part of a really interesting turn in queer theory where heterosexuality has emerged as a subject of study--another good example is Hanne Blank's Straight: The Surprisingly Short History of Heterosexuality.
So I want to start out by disclaiming I'm not actually that well read. This is something I've been trying to work on more recently. That said, here are some gender and sexuality recs:
Two essays by Gayle Rubin: The Traffic in Women and Thinking Sex. I don't completely cosign everything she says, but these are monumental texts. Thinking Sex is topical especially as the "sex wars" keep playing out.
Gender Trouble by Judith Butler. Everyone's heard of this, so my specific recommendation is to skip to part three and the conclusion, where the text is at its most concise. Butler's theory of gender performativity has exploded beyond their initial reach, so they've since had a lot of interviews and given talks that address a wider audience. People who have read both Gender Trouble and Bodies that Matter tend to recommend the latter text, but I still need to.
The Trouble with Normal by Michael Warner, or if you want a shorter version, his essay "Normaler and Normaler." Even if you're not against marriage in its entirety, his criticisms are so incisive and helpful, especially now in countries where gay marriage was passed but proved to be a dead end. It also really gets into gayness as identity versus behavior, which seems to have exploded into a huge conflict recently. This is how you get people who are on board with queerness in the abstract but appalled by its real-life specifics. I also still need to read Fear of a Queer Planet.
Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde, is a collection of speeches and essays by one of the most influential Black feminist writers. "Uses of the Erotic" especially stuck with me, where the erotic is taken not so literally but as a sort of creative synergy with political implications. If you've ever heard "the master's tools will not dismantle the masters house," that's included in this collection.
Close to the Knives by David Wojnarowicz, also a collection of speeches and essays, is one of my favorite books on AIDS. The rage is palpable and crucial, and the essay "Do Not Doubt the Dangerousness of the 12-inch Politician" is eerily resonant today as politicians still stoke violence on TV (and now social media).
Lately I've been getting more into trans writing, with Transgender History by Susan Stryker and Whipping Girl by Julia Serano. The former alarmed me with how much I didn't know, and the latter blew my mind. It was written at a time when trans people, for better and for worse, weren't really in the public eye except for in niche circles, and academia about trans people was about or at the expense of them but not by and for them. Her mark is so tangible today. My next read will be Reverse Cowgirl by McKenzie Wark after hearing rave reviews. I think I'm going to like it.
I am also accepting recs!
193 notes
·
View notes
Text
Brother’s best friend- Hector Fort
WC: 2.5k
One rule 'no dating my teammates'.
One rule 'my sister is off limits'.
We each had one rule to follow but of course you always want what you can't have. I didn't mean to break the rule it really wasn't my intention but when Marc took me to one of his training sessions I was drawn to Hector straight away. Not only was he by far the most attractive guy there he was also really sweet to me and maybe a little flirty which only made me want him more. For a while I held back as my brothers words circled round my brain every time I thought about getting to know Hector better but eventually the attraction was too much to ignore it was like we were drawn to each other.
It started out innocently we would just talk to each other while he had a break in training and I'd hang out with him when Marc invited him over. That innocence didn't last long though as when we finally exchanged numbers, without Marc's knowledge of course, all we did was flirt with each other which led to us arranging a secret date. I was nervous for the date as I want sure if we would have a real connection or if it's just easy for us to flirt with each other but we actually got on really well and there was definitely a connection there. We went on a few more dates before he asked me to be his girlfriend which was a good 6 months ago now. Over those 6 months we have only told a total of 3 people one of them was my best friend as I use going to see her as an excuse to see Hector and the other two are some of Hector and Marc's teammates as they caught us kissing after a game once. Everyone that knows is sworn to secrecy and so far they've kept that up because they know if Marc finds out they knew they'll be in trouble too.
As much as it's been hard to hide things from Marc it's definitely worth it. Seeing as it's the one rule he set if he finds out he's definitely going to be mad at both me and Hector. He's a great brother but he's definitely over protective but I guess that comes with being my older brother even if it is just by a few minutes. There are times that I worry he'll find out without me even saying anything because he'll sense that I'm lying. They say twins always have a special connection which is definitely true for me and Marc but he's yet to figure out that I'm hiding something from him which is almost unheard of as I've never kept a secret from him for more than a week before.
Recently it's become harder to hide everything as Hector and I want to spend more time together but that means I have to have more excuses to go out or sleep somewhere else and I can only think of so many. To try and help keep things under wraps Hector has been coming over more as he can hang out with Marc and then secretly break away to spend time with me. That's exactly what's happening today Hector wanted to see me so he made out like he wanted to spend time with my brother so he's coming over and I'll join them so I can be with Hector.
Time seemed to really drag on but eventually I heard the front door and two voices downstairs which meant they were finally home. As much as I wanted to run down straight I couldn't as that would be weird and Marc would definitely ask questions so I waited a bit before grabbing my water bottle and heading downstairs. Like always my brother ignored my existence but Hector looked over and smiled so I smiled back and even kissed the air as my brother was far too focused on turning on the Xbox. Once I filled my water bottle I sat myself on the sofa next to Hector as there was still space next to him and he helpfully sat closest to the kitchen.
"Oh hey I didn't know you were home" Marc said finally acknowledging my presence
"You never do but I had homework to finish so I decided to stay in today and get it done" I said
"Well you can join us if you want that's if you want to be beaten again" he laughed
"Maybe I'll beat you this time I've been practicing" I said
"Since when?" He asked
"Oh while you're at training I've been practicing" I replied
That was a lie I've been playing with Hector at his place but luckily I can think quickly and Marc still seems none the wiser. We all played fifa for a while and of course I didn't beat Marc but I definitely did better than I used to so Hector's coaching has really helped me out. I took a break from playing to make dinner for everyone but the boys kept playing after dinner. Eventually it got dark and time went on so Marc suggested that Hector stay over as it was late and they both had training in the morning. Sometimes it's just too easy this is exactly what I was hoping would happen and yet again my brother pulls through in helping me break the one rule he set for me which he does more than he knows.
I left and got myself ready for bed then all I had to do was wait. My phone kept me entertained until my bedroom door opened slowly to reveal my lovely boyfriend who was trying to be as quiet as possible so that my brother wasn't alerted that he was here. Once he made it past all the squeaky floor boards and to the other side of my bed he hopped in and opened his arms for me. Of course I immediately attached myself to Hector and he wrapped his arms around me as tightly as he could. He peppered kisses all over my face before his lips finally met mine in a passionate kiss which I've been waiting for all day.
"I've missed you" Hector said kissing me again
"I've missed you too" I replied
"You know maybe we should tell Marc we've been together for a while now and I hate not being able to see you as much as I want and having to sneak around is getting harder" I said
"I would love to not have to hide things but I value my life too much you know he would kill me if he found out that we're together especially for as long as we have been" he said
"I know but one day we have to say something we can't live like this forever" I pointed out
"I know but let's leave it a bit longer if he hasn't found out when we've been together for a year we can tell him then" Hector reasoned
"Fine but until then you better give me lots of love" I laughed
"Don't you worry I will give you everything I've got to give" he smiled
Hector and I stayed up longer than we probably should've but we just wanted to make the most of the time together. We had to wake up early too so that Hector could leave my room before Marc wakes up but spending the time together was definitely worth the lack of sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~
Marc didn't catch me and Hector when he stayed in my room the other night and last night I said I was staying with my best friend but really I spent the night at Hector's. We had a great time he set up candles and cooked dinner so we could have a romantic meal together which was really nice as we never get to do that because we can't go out together. I really enjoyed getting to spend a romantic evening with Hector as we don't get to spend much time together and we never really get to have proper dates unless Marc is away which isn't very often. Hector really stuck to his promise too as he made me feel so loved and definitely gave me everything he's got all night long.
Sadly he had to leave for training quite early but he let me stay until I needed to leave for school and let me lock up with the spare key he gave me a little while back. As soon as I arrived at school people were giving me weird looks which I thought was odd but sometimes this happens when Marc does something good with the team as people know we are twins. It was only when I got the same look from my friends that I started to consider it was something to do with me that was garnering all this attention. To begin with they wouldn't tell me simply just giggling thinking that I was joking around but I wasn't I had no idea what was so funny.
"Seriously guys what's going on what have I done?" I asked
"Have you seriously not noticed" one of my friends laughed
"Noticed what?" I asked getting annoyed
"The hickeys on your neck I mean they are everywhere and they don't exactly blend in" my best friend finally said
"Shit I didn't notice I got ready really quickly this morning I didn't really pay any attention" I panicked
"Is it really that bad?" I then asked
"It's definitely bad you will want to try and cover them before you see your brother if you don't want him to kill you" another friend said
"And Hector" my best friend added
"Wait these are from Hector" one friend said
"I thought you weren't allowed to date your brother's teammates" another added
"First off yes Hector we've been dating for a while but we've been keeping it quiet clearly until now and second no I'm not supposed to date any of the boys in the team which is why Marc will kill us both if he finds out" I spiralled
"Don't worry about it right now you should get home first just put some concealer on and keep it on until the bruises are gone" my best friend said trying to calm me down
"You're right and remember no one say anything about Hector as you'll be on trial for being involved in our murders ok" I said
They all promised me and we headed to our first class. In every class I sat with my hand covering my neck as I don't need anyone else wondering who seemingly assaulted my neck and I definitely don't want the teachers seeing. It was a long day with all the looks I was getting the boys teasing me asking who the lucky guy was as usually no one comes near me as they are all scared of Marc. Eventually though the end of the day came and I practically ran home to cover up the bruises which only seemed to get worse throughout the day.
When I finally got a good look at myself in the mirror I could see what everyone was looking it was bad like really bad. As soon as I get the chance I'm definitely going to kill Hector for this as not only was it embarrassing to look like this at school I now I have to be really careful not to rub off the concealer I'll need on my neck for the next few days. Once I started applying makeup to my neck I realised that not even my best concealer was going to fix this. You could still see the deep purple marks under no matter how much I put on so in the end I just took it all off. I'd rather have Marc see the hickeys as they are than see my attempt to cover them as I know he'll be more suspicious if I'm trying to hide them. The only thing I did was put some cream on that will hopefully help the bruises go away a bit quicker. Seeing as there was nothing I could do I just had to wait to see what would happen when Marc came home.
The front door opening and closing startled me as I wasn't expecting Marc to be home for another hour but in he came along with Hector. Marc barely walked a few steps in before he stopped and silence filled the room. He looked at me then my neck and I looked at him then at Hector who's jaw might as well have been on the floor he was that shocked looking at what he'd done. Then it happened Marc turned to Hector and saw his expression and suddenly the vibe in the room changed. I watched Marc as his hands balled up into fists and anger filled his eyes. I don't know how but he knew he finally figured it out.
"Are you serious" Marc broke the silence
"Have you seriously been fucking my sister behind my back" he pretty much screamed
"What no why would you think that" Hector said clearly panicked
"Well my sisters neck looks like a vampire attacked it and you had scratches all down your back this morning so unless this is a huge coincidence there is something going on here" Marc continued to scream
"Ok fine I'll admit that I did that but it's not just sex I promise" Hector said
"Yeah we've been together for over 6 months now we aren’t just fuck buddies we are actually together" I added
"There was one rule for both of you and you broke it and then thought you could hide it from me how long did you plan to keep this a secret forever until you were married" Marc raged
"I'll admit we should've told you sooner but we both knew we were breaking the rules and didn't want this to happen but I can say with full confidence that I love your sister I really do I would never dream of hurting her she's everything to me so I'm sorry we hid this but we just didn't want to anger you" Hector explained
"Do you really love her?" Marc asked calming down slightly
"I do she makes me so happy and I love her a lot" Hector said
"Do you love him?" Marc asked me
"Yeah he treats me well and he puts a smile on my face" I said
"I guess if you two are happy together there's nothing I can do but no kissing in front of me or I will kill you both and if you ever hurt her bro I won't hesitate to beat your ass" Marc threatened
"Understood" Hector said
"Thank you for understanding we really are happy together I'm just sorry you had to find out this way" I said hugging Marc then going over to Hector
Hector smiled at me and held my waist gently which actually put a small smile on Marc's face. I don't think it will be long before he comes to terms with our relationship and lets us be but for now I don't think I want to test that theory.
170 notes
·
View notes
Text
So like... truly not a single individual asked for even anything remotely this but I've had it sitting partially unfinished in my drafts since the day I started this blog. I'm debating turning it into like a 3ish part mini-series but please do let me know if you guys think I should just leave it alone or keep going! If I did continue this, know that future parts would be juicier and likely include a bit of angst as it would kind of work perfectly with a request I have in my inbox!
Without further adieu, I hope you enjoy :)
Something More
Harvey Specter x Reader
--------
You were in such a rush to get to work that you hadn’t bothered to check your phone until you were already on the train and headed to your office. If you had, maybe you would’ve put a bit more attention into your appearance on that particular day. Once you were in your seat, you finally pulled out your phone and noticed a rather… compelling message from none other than Harvey Specter. Your heart nearly beat out of your chest.
You’d very recently become a junior partner at the firm, which meant you’d be working just a bit more closely with him than when you were simply an associate. This thought both excited you and also freaked you out just a little. Harvey was the biggest of the big dogs in corporate law, and to say you weren't intimidated would simply be a lie.
The message Harvey had sent you was simple, as he didn’t tend to beat around the bush or waste any time when it came to much of anything.
“Come see me when you get in, I want to chat. Don’t worry, you’re not in trouble. Oh, and there’s something waiting for you in your office.”
You pictured the smirk he had while typing out that message, knowing he'd made you nervous.
You fluffed up your hair a little and checked your lipgloss in the reflection of your front camera and before you knew it, you found yourself pressing the elevator button up to Pearson Specter, and clicking your heels as you walked to Harvey’s office. You decided to go straight there, wanting to get whatever this was out of the way. You paused when you reached Donna’s desk, unsure of whether or not you needed to check in with her first. You'd never been summoned to Harvey's office before.
“You can go right on in, hon. He already told me he’s expecting you.” She said with a slight smile, not even needing to look up from her screen to see who was there.
“H-how’d you know it was me?” You asked, visibly thrown off by her skill. You didn't have a ton of interaction with Donna when you were an associate, only here and there and you’d heard she was good at this type of thing, but damn.
She looked up and gave you the “Do you really have to ask me that” face.
“Right. Thanks, Donna” you said as you turned toward Harvey’s office, only slightly embarrassed.
You knocked on his door, which sat slightly ajar. He was reading from a file folder, but closed it when he saw you enter.
“She Donna’d you, didn’t she?” He asked with amusement present in his tone.
“That she did. But umm, you... wanted to see me?" Your stomach was doing flips, despite him saying you weren't in any trouble, you felt like you were anyway.
He smiled, gesturing at the seat in front of him at his desk. You cautiously sat down, your guard still up.
“I told you, you're not in trouble. You can relax, Y/N. I don't bite. I just wanted to congratulate you personally on making junior partner. I know we’ve never really crossed paths much since you started here, but I really look forward to getting to know you. From what I've heard, you do great work, Y/N. It definitely doesn’t go unnoticed by me, or any of the senior staff. You’re going to do great things here.” He said earnestly.
You were floored. Of anything you expected Harvey to call you into his office for, this wouldn’t have even cracked your top 20 guesses. Up until your promotion, you weren’t even confident he knew your name let alone knew about and recognized the hard work you constantly put in.
“O-oh! Really? Thank you! That means everything coming from you.” You replied.
"Of course 'really', I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it." He said with a chuckle.
You relaxed your shoulders and sunk a tiny bit lower in your seat.
Harvey opened his mouth to say something else, but as he did, Donna poked her head in to let him know he had a call from a client.
You quickly stood up and smoothed your dress out.
“I’ll let you take that, but thank you again, Harvey. I really appreciate it.” You told him.
He smiled warmly and stood now, too, walking you the few feet to his doorway. You mentally noted how gentlemanly this was, saving the thought for later.
By the time you got to your office you had completely forgotten the other part of Harvey's message from earlier, that he had left something on your desk. Neatly placed in front of your laptop was the most beautiful bouquet of flowers you’d ever seen, and a stack of business cards, embossed with your name and the new title. A post-it note sat on top of them with “Congrats!” written in Harvey’s handwriting. You smiled widely. To you, even these cards meant more than you could possibly describe. They were a physical manifestation of all the hard work you'd put in, everything you'd gone through and overcame. As for the flowers, well, they definitely were a shock to you. You didn’t take Harvey as a flowers guy.
You settled into your desk chair, smiling down at the stack of cards before signing into your computer, and getting started on the slightly mountainous pile of work you had to take care of. With a promotion of course came more cases and harder work, but regardless, you were still glad to have been promoted.
You were deep in your laptop typing up a brief for one of your cases when you noticed a presence standing in your doorway.
“Oh, Harvey! Hey, sorry I was just in my head. I was going to come by earlier and thank you for the flowers and the cards. They’re beautiful”
Harvey grinned and nodded his head.
“Of course, you deserve them! Though I can’t exactly take credit for the floral arrangement… that was all Donna.”
“What can Donna not do?”
“I’ve been asking myself that for the last twelve years."
"Did I hear my name?" Donna said, appearing seemingly out of nowhere and making Harvey nearly jump out of his skin.
You smiled brightly, greeting the redhead and thanking her for the flowers. She lit up and told you all about her florist, telling you she'd get you a business card asap.
As the week went on, you found yourself having more run-in's like this with Harvey than you'd had in the entirety of your employment at the firm. Surely it was a coincidence, or at least that's what you'd convinced yourself anyway.
The remaining Harvey-free parts of your week didn't nearly live up to how your first morning as a partner had gone. You had been hitting dead end after dead end in all your cases and nothing was going the way you'd planned. The deposition you had scheduled for Friday got moved, so at the very least, you were able to head home a little earlier than you planned. You were wrapping up and grabbing your coat when a knock on your office door made you jump, the tension from your rather hellish week still rattling you.
"Hey sorry to scare you, I just wanted to see how your first official week as a junior partner went?"
You huffed a sigh in response, not wanting to make a big deal out of the tough day that surely you'd get over.
Harvey chuckled at this.
"That bad, huh?"
"I'll be fine, I’ll get it figured out it’s just everything I tried to do went exactly the opposite of how I wanted it to go."
"I would tell you we've all been there, but I wouldn't want to lie to you," Harvey replied, smirking as he straightened his tie. "Harvey Specter always gets what he wants"
"Mmm, I'm sure he does.” You mused. “Well Harvey, as much as I'd like to chat more, I was about to head home and have a very large, very strong drink."
"Funny, I was about to ask if you'd like to join me for a drink."
You paused for a beat, weighing the pros and cons of going for a drink with Harvey. On one hand, he was technically your boss and it wouldn't be the worst idea to get to know him better. On the other, it made you a little nervous having any alcohol in your system around him. For totally work-related reasons, of course, and no other reasons.
"Fuck it," you thought to yourself. "live a little."
“You know what Harvey? Sure. I'd like that.”
Harvey grinned in a way that made your stomach erupt with butterflies.
"Good, let's get out of here." He said, grabbing your coat off the coat rack and handing it to you.
You grabbed it from him, put your bag over your shoulder and flicked the lamp on your desk off.
Harvey stood by the door to your office, holding it open and letting you go first.
"Wow, and to think just yesterday I thought you were only a pretty boy with an ego. Harvey Specter is actually a gentleman?" You questioned teasingly. Harvey raised an eyebrow, smirking as you both walked toward the elevators.
"All I'm hearing is that you think I'm pretty"
"Not the point, Specter."
"It's the only point I caught. Did you say something else?"
"And suddenly I'm regretting saying yes to you"
Harvey chuckled now, pressing the lobby button as the elevator doors closed.
Not an hour later, the two of you were seated at a small table in whatever fancy bar it was that Harvey had taken you to. You'd forgotten the name, but apparently, it was somewhere Harvey frequented if the exceptional treatment from the staff and the fact that they knew his name was any indication.
You ordered the drink you always ordered, a whiskey ginger with a lime, and Harvey nodded approvingly before ordering his own drink.
Once your server walked away, he turned to you with an impressed look on his face.
"You're a whiskey girl?"
You shrugged. "I've become one, I used to be a vodka girl in college though." You said with a giggle, remembering all the nights stumbling home from parties with your college roommate after way too many vodka lemonades.
"I was a 'whatever gets me drunk the fastest' guy myself," Harvey said, making you both laugh. Your drinks arrived and you held your glass up to cheers before taking the first sip.
You were surprisingly having a great time with Harvey, he was really getting to know you and you were even able to squeeze a few stories out of him, too. As time passed and the more drinks you had, the more you let your guard down and finally admitted to yourself that Harvey wasn't the same cocky guy you'd heard about from the rest of the world. He'd already started to show this in the workplace, but now that all the stress of the office was gone maybe, just maybe, you were even starting to admit to yourself that you wanted something else between the two of you. You pondered this while Harvey ordered another drink for each of you, your fourth of the night.
"Okay that'll have to be my last one, I can assure you, you don't want to see drunk Y/N this early into knowing me. She can be a handful" You warned with a smile.
Harvey chuckled in response, nodding in understanding.
You each sipped your drinks as you chatted some more, giving him some more bits and pieces about your life.
Harvey flagged down the server when you were both finished and before you could even offer to pay for your drinks, Harvey had already handed over his Amex.
"You didn't have to do that, I'm more than capable of buying my own drinks." You stated, standing and draping your coat over your arm. The heat from your slight intoxication warming you enough as it was. Harvey followed your lead, standing from his own chair before responding. He stepped slightly forward, much closer to you.
"I know you are, I just wanted to celebrate you making junior partner and show you that I really enjoyed your company tonight," Harvey said softly, a genuine smile on his face.
Your cheeks felt like they were on fire at his admission, and at the lack of distance.
"I happened to enjoy your company too."
You knew it was risky, and likely unrequited, to feel the way you felt right there in that busy yet intimate bar. You rationally knew that he probably was just being nice because he wanted to get to know you better for working purposes, but the drinks you'd had were starting to catch up with you and you didn't know how long you'd be able to take this closeness.
Harvey spoke, interrupting your train of thought.
"Look, I know it might cause some talk around the office, but I'd like to have something more with you. So, if you're feeling what I'm feeling, I'd really like to see you again. I mean, I'll see you at work obviously. But I'd like to take you out again, more planned this time-" He stammered, making you smile.
"Harvey?"
"Hmm?"
"Stop talking."
Before you could think twice you were pulling him close, planting your lips on his, and he wasted no time returning the gesture. When you finally pulled away, slightly out of breath, Harvey tucked your hair behind your ear.
"So is that a yes?"
"That's definitely a yes."
#harvey specter#harvey specter x reader#suits fics#harveyspecter#harvey specter suits#suits#NOT A REQUEST omg who am I
292 notes
·
View notes
Note
Lucifer is getting the strap
I don't know if you've ever seen any of the theory posts but a lot of people have pointed out Lucifer's obsession with the circus and how his Hell is based off of a circus troupe. You've got him as the Ringmaster and he even pulled Charlie into a giant circus tent in "More Than Anything", Asmodeus with the contortionists, Bee is the animal shows, Mammon is... the musicians? Or the concessions lmao, although Bee does have cotton candy which is a common circus concession and she IS Gluttony so it could just as easily be her?
Anyways, I've been constantly thinking recently of Lucifer with a female Reader (obviously) but the other day some specific kind of clicked for me and like,
Lucifer is just watching Reader help out with the hotel construction and he's Trying To Be SO Normal as he's watching your arms flex when you lift things and the ways the muscles in your back move and MAYBE JUST MAYBE you aren't thinking straight when SUDDEN ACCIDENT and something is falling from above and, you just yoink him up off the ground and tug him back before something falls on him. It all happens so fast that you don't realize he could've defended himself totally fine and you're setting him down just SO embarrassed and meanwhile he's just looking up at you "so you're pretty strong, huh 😳👉👈"
I can just see Reader making some sort of joke later on, "well, don't most circus troupes have a strongwoman?" and Lucifer just looks up at you with the most 😍 ass expression because, you're basically like calling yourself a member of the crew, his daughter's crew really, but, he's part of it, so, like, you're basically saying you guys are great friends! And also feeding into his little... hobby obsession thing! He loves it ❤️
Of course then we have to have an incident where, Reader having freakish strength or not, you eventually need to be rescued. OR YOU STAND UP FOR LUCIFER AND IT DRIVES HIM WILD. Can you imagine being in a bar and some MASSIVE mountain of a dude starts giving you trouble and you're acting getting kind of scared and. Here's tiny Lucifer, "hey you shouldn't speak to her like that! Apologize!" And this guy just laughs in his fucking face and starts mocking him, talking down to him, Lucifer's face is turning RED--
and you just fucking slug the guy, "you can't fucking speak to him like that!!" Like imagine you're growling at this guy to get up and apologize to the King of Hell and it's like HE CANT YOU KNOCKED HIM UNCONSCIOUS and Lucifer's just, twirling a piece of his hair around a finger, "oh golly, you really gave it to him huh?" and grinning like an idiot
Tiny Lucifer loving when you wear heels and get EVEN TALLER or loving watching you work out or just DO things. No, please, by all means, wear those baggy shorts while you go for a run outside, he isn't drooling over your legs or anything! Maybe he's a little more sober when he "drunkenly" invites you to arm wrestle, just to feel your strength against him. SINGLE BRAINCELL BOTTOM LUCIFER WHO YOU SAVE FROM AN ACCIDENT SO HE INTENTIONALLY CAUSES MORE ACCIDENTS SO YOU SCOOP HIM UP MORE.
All I'm saying is that I work a manual labor job and I've been really slimming down and getting biceps and someday we're gonna enter our Muscle Mommy Reader era where she's just running around domming dudes and getting into bar fights and throwing cars at bitches. Vox or Val gives you some lip and you're grabbing them by the throat and pushing them down into their seat and telling him to stop being such a bad boy or you'll have to punish him, before suddenly remembering You're At Work and frantically apologizing before running off while they wonder when the fuck you got so strong and... also how much would they have to pay you to do that again--
97 notes
·
View notes
Note
hi, I was wondering if you could do a part to your grace lives au that’s like right after the first movie and it’s her finding out she pregnant and the aftermath of the war. No pressure of course, I would just love to see you take on what happened.😊
(Guys fr there need to be more Grace gifs)
At first, Dr. Augustine is in denial.
She noticed the signs in her body but stubbornly ignored them since it was scientifically impossible for her to be pregnant. Since she wasn't physically showing, she was able to ignore it for a long time, juggling her work, the Na'vi, and the one-year-old human boy she recently adopted. It wasn't like she could trust any of the idiot scientists who worked for her to raise a child, so she "begrudgingly" became the baby's mother.
Since Spider wasn't big enough to fit into a breathing mask, Grace had spent the majority of her days squished inside the small rooms of Hell's Gate, doing her best to raise him while also trying to continue her work. Now that she didn't have any RDA pigs breathing down her neck and monitoring all her research, she thought she'd have all the time in the world to do whatever she wanted. That is, until Spider.
It happened on one of the rare occasions Mo'at had stopped by the compound to see her old friend. The tsahik of the Omatikaya was more than happy to sit cross-legged on the ground of the lab to keep Spider company while Grace did her work. The scientist thought she'd be able to get stuff done with Mo'at keeping an eye on her son, but she was wrong.
"How long has he been doing that, Kìreysì?"
Grace looked over her shoulder to see what the tsahik meant. Spider was bent over, keeping himself steady on his hands and feet, planted on the floor while he tried peeking his head between his legs, looking up at Grace, and giggling with his cute little toothless grin.
She analyzed her son with a small smile, satisfied that he wasn't in trouble or in danger, then returned to her teeny tiny microscope, "He's been doing that for about a week now."
"Do you understand the significance?"
Grace shrugs, half distracted as she answers, "Well, back on Earth, there was a superstition. Babies who did that were said to be trying to tell their mothers they were pregnant."
Mo'at hums thoughtfully, a smile beginning to grow as she watches the little human baby in front of her continue to giggle between his own chubby legs, "Perhaps we are more alike than we originally thought. The Na'vi believe this superstition as well."
"I don't."
"Why?"
The avatar scoffed with mirth in her tone, "Because that would mean Spider thinks I'm pregnant. And I'm not."
"Are you certain?"
"I haven't been with anyone, Mo'at. It's not possible."
Mo'at rose, but not to her full height in order to avoid colliding her head against the ceiling. She crouched, shuffling her way to Grace, before offering her hands out to the other woman, "May I?"
Grace looks over her shoulder once more, clocking the tsahik reaching out to her and sighs, resigned to this conversation, "Mo'at. There's no need--"
"Indulge me, my friend."
She sighed, defeated, and turned to face the Na'vi woman. Mo'at inspects Grace with methodic, experienced healing hands, poking and prodding along the sides of Grace's breasts, and pulled away when the scientist winced from the tenderness. Mo'at eyes Grace with suspicion before moving her hands down toward the woman's stomach, below her belly button, before huffing with confidence and pulling away.
Fully facing Grace with her conclusion, albeit a bit smug, Mo'at smiled with joy and amusement as she tsked at her old friend, "Kìreysì, you claim to be a woman of practicality and yet you didn't even realize how your body was changing to make room for the life inside you."
Instead of shock, Grace went straight for defiance and denial, "No. I realize that my body is changing. I've known for a while now, but since it's not even remotely possible, I coughed it up to stress. I mean, why wouldn't it be? You know what it's like, right? To work with morons alongside doing your job and raising a child, let alone the two that you raised? Are you telling me you've never felt stressed?"
"If I recall, I went to my mate whenever I felt such stress," Mo'at eyed her with curiosity, "But you're saying you haven't gone to anyone?"
"No," Grace snarled with slight irritation, annoyed with having to repeat herself but kept her emotions semi-in check in Mo'at's presence, peering up at the ceiling to restrain herself from snapping, "I haven't been with anyone in years."
~~~~~~~~~
Despite what Grace did or didn't believe, she finally had to come to terms that she was, in fact, pregnant once her stomach visibly grew and a small fist decided to hit her from the inside. Once she recovered from freaking out over that feeling, she begrudgingly decided to admit to Mo'at she was wrong and then proceeded to let her peers and friends know the news.
"Are you serious?" Norm voiced everyone's initial thoughts, but he was the only one to voice it. Max and the other human scientists were much more afraid of confronting Grace, especially now that she was in her avatar form permanently. Nevertheless, neither Max nor any of the other scientists could hide their shock from her.
Jake, the ever-prominent little shit that he was, scoffed with a small grin, arms crossed in front of him, "So who's the lucky guy?"
Neytiri smacked her mate's arm, bouncing a newlyborn Neteyam in the sling that was strapped to her chest. The sight of her former student now with a baby only reminded Grace she was old and that her situation felt more impossible than before. How can sweet, little Neytiri now be a mother? Where has the time gone?
Despite her love for Neytiri, Grace sneered at the idiot she chose for a mate, "I'm not like you. I don't shack up with the first Na'vi I meet."
Jake loudly choked on his own spit, and despite the crudeness, Neytiri eyed Grace with a small spark of amusement. If there was one person Neytiri could rely on to put her mate in his place, it was Grace.
After Jake recovered, he voiced what everyone else was thinking, "But... then how can you possibly be...?"
"I don't know!" She snaps, swiftly handing Little Spider to Neytiri so she can lay into the jarhead she took under her wing without startling her son, "It's scientifically impossible, Jake! I don't need to have The Talk with you about the birds and the bees now, do I?"
Norm and the other scientists began to cough to hide their laughter under their breaths, especially at the horrified expression on Jake's face.
A/N: Sorry for the long post! I got carried away XD
#avatar!grace lives au#grace augustine#dr grace augustine#sigourney weaver#avatar headcanons#atwow headcanons#adopted spider socorro#adopted spider#spider socorro#avatar spider#miles spider socorro#avatar the way of water#avatar 2#atwow#avatar 2009#avatar#james cameron avatar#avatar imagine#atwow fic#atwow imagine#james cameron#atwow kiri#kiri te suli kìreysì'ite#avatar kiri#kiri#jake sully#neytiri te tskaha mo'at'ite#neytiri sully#mo'at#neytiri
99 notes
·
View notes
Note
'Ello, 'ello, 'ello! I just saw your post about making GO2 x readers. I was wondering if you can make an Aziraphale x reader? The reader is a rank lower than Aziraphale, but more chaotic when they got on earth. Reader's a freaking simp to Aziraphale and tells everything they like about him to Crowley.
Bonus if Crowley literally yeets the reader to Aziraphale for swooning too much.
Word count: 1335
Paring: Aziraphale x reader
A/n: Thank you for requesting I hope you enjoy it. It was nice dipping into the Good Omens fandom for writing. Requests are currently open, just make sure to check my rules and character list before requesting thanks, and enjoy. Also very small season 2 spoilers so read at your own discretion. MINORS AND AGELESS BLOGS DO NOT INTERACT
Having been on earth for the past 6000 years has been wild. I have witnessed and maybe participated in multiple wars, seen the rise and fall of empires, but the best thing I have witnessed on earth is my fellow angel, Aziraphale. I just love his fascination with books, and the workings of human society. The fact that he even is so kind as to help the demon Crowley with tasks that they both happen to be assigned to is amazing, he is such a kind individual and needs to be protected.
Over the years I have noticed that whenever I’m around him my brain goes fuzzy, like it becomes impossible to think of anything other than him. I have no idea how to tell him this, I mean it’s not like he would feel the same about me. After all that we have been through together I think it’s best if i just keep these feelings to myself, as I don’t want to jeopardize our friendship.
Well keeping it to myself is far easier said than done as I was currently pestering my favorite fallen angel, and some things may have slipped out.
“I don’t know when I started feeling this way, I just think he’s so sweet. And the look on his face when he thought his books were destroyed in that church back in ww2, he was so sad and then he realized you saved them he was so happy. I love how he takes care of his books like they are the most important things in this world.” I said, talking the demon's ear off as he just rolled his eyes at me.
He just continued to sit on the park bench while we were waiting for Aziraphale, watching me pass in front of him. “Why are you telling me this, I don’t care.” He said hoping I would just sit down and shut up.
I just rolled my eyes and continued knowing it would probably still be a few minutes before the angle showed up. “I just wish I knew what he was thinking in that pretty little brain of his.” I sighed as I sat next to Crowley. “Who am I kidding, he would never like me like that. I’m one misstep from being a demon, he’s so straight laced while I like to cause trouble. He wouldn’t even look my way if we weren’t both angels.” I said exasperated.
The demon next to me just sighed before hoping the other angel would show up already. “Just because you are more of a morally gray angel doesn't mean he wouldn’t look at you. I mean look at me, I’m a demon and he talks to me.” Crowley said, jestering to himself. “ And trust me he does like you, talks about you whenever you aren’t around.” He said, trying to cheer me up.
“Yeah right, there is no way Aziraphale, the perfect angel who runs a book shop that is really just a cover for his hoarding problem, would like me. But it’s whatever, I've resigned myself to watching from afar. I’m fine watching him light up every time he finds a rare book, or finds a new food he likes.” I said in a dreamy voice. “Anyway I’m done talking about it, he should be here soon.”
Just as I finished the sentence, said angel walked up to us. We both greeted him before checking in on whether any of us have heard from hell or heaven recently, thankfully not. After about ten minutes of quick catch up, Aziraphale stood up and turned to us. “Would either of you care to join me for lunch?” He asked with a bright smile.
I was about to decline when Crowley spoke up with a wicked smirk. “Oh I’m not in the mood to eat right now but our dear Y/n would gladly join you.” He then pushed me off the bench towards the angel ignoring my glare.
“Well then, shall be off than Y/n.” Aziraphale said as he reached for my hand. I hesitantly accepted it, not missing the thumbs up Crowley shot my way as me and the angel walked away.
As we approached the small dinner we had picked for lunch Aziraphale took notice of me being more quiet than usual. “Is everything alright? You’ve been oddly quiet.” I could hear the concern in his voice as we took our sets.
I gave him a small smile before responding,”Everything is fine just feeling a little under the weather I guess.” I said hoping he would accept the answer and leave it at that.
“Oh, are you sure you are up to getting food then, we could go back to the bookshop and I could make you a nice cup of tea?” The angel asked, making my heart swell and blush rush to my checks. “You do look a bit warm.”
I silently cursed myself of course he would notice me blushing. I tried to think of an excuse. “I’m fine really, it’s just a little warm. Let’s just order.” I watched as he let out a sigh before waving down the waitress and placed our order. I relaxed slightly hoping he finally let it go.
After about thirty minutes, we had finished eating and were now walking back to Aziraphale’s bookshop. It was an awkward silence, I could tell he wanted to ask me about something but I wasn’t sure what. As we turned a corner on to a less crowded street he stopped suddenly, I turned and looked at him confused. We were only a couple blocks from the bookshop, why did he stop all of a sudden.
“You’re hiding something from me.” He said out of nowhere, his tone wasn’t angry but more concerned. “I heard you talking with Crowley before. I didn’t hear everything but I could tell it was something about me because you ended the conversation saying ‘he should be here soon.’. And I don’t want to over step but if there is something you need to tell me please just tell me, I promise to listen. I’m really good at Listening.” I could tell he was worried that it was something bad.
I froze for a second before walking up to him. “It’s nothing bad, I just don’t know how to tell you this.” I said, looking away slightly. “Look, you don’t have to respond now or ever actually, but I like you, a lot. And I know you probably don’t feel the same but I just needed to get it off my chest. I love how much you love books, and helping people.” I finally got the words off my chest hoping to at least still have one of my best friends.
There was a pause before he smiled at me and grabbed my hands. “How could I possibly not feel the same way? Yes you tend to go about things in a less than angelic way but that’s part of what makes you so amazing. I love that about you, I love that I can talk to you about my rare books and you will listen, I love that you get along with Crowley cause let’s be honest he’s not the easiest to talk with. It’s amazing to have you here. So I do feel the same, and never be scared to tell me your feelings. I am here to listen.”
I just looked at him in shock. Crowley was right, Aziraphale does feel the same. I was at a loss for words but I settled on giving him the biggest smile I could before pulling him in for a hug. As I pulled from the hug, he placed a hand on my cheek and smiled. I knew that whatever came next, we would have each other's back. Little did I know that what came next was a very naked Gabriel who had no clue who he was or why he was here. This was gonna be fun.
159 notes
·
View notes
Text
King Magnifico: Reimagining A Good Baddie Into Disney Villain Excellence.
I did not plan on doing another post about King Magnifico but dammit, the man just compells me. Since I recently drafted a revision treatment for the story of Wish, dubbed The Fully Fulfilled Edition, and it got me thinking more about Magnifico and the iteration of the character that I envisioned for my version of Disney's sentimental centennial tale. I've covered the troubles with the finalized official Disney character enough times already; I feel like the handling of his character and execution of his role as the story's villain was like a basketball wobbling along the rim before falling through the basket rather than a straight slam dunk. He's easily the most well-realized, enticing, entertaining, and developed character of the whole picture, the only one who comes close to being three-dimensional. But even he could've been better. If all the kinks were to have been ironed out in him, what might that actually end up looking like in practice?
Note that for this undertaking, I did not want to super drastically alter Magnifico's character to the point where he'd become completely divorced from what we got in the film and just be Magnifico in name only. I make just enough expansions, alterations, and fixes necessary to turn what I find good enough into what I'd consider truly great.
For starters, his tragic origin story being told to us upfront right out the gate helps to clear the air early into the picture, when we've not yet met King Magnifico but are given the background information of the man who became King Magnifico, wed Queen Amaya, and built the kingdom of Rosas. In my take on the backstory, the young would be-King Magnifico's family lived in a harbor town, working slavishly on what's implied to be export and trade. It's said that one day the young man, wanting his family to be happier and have more time for him, made a wish upon a totem for his family's burdens to be lifted. Well, that ended up being a vague wish that in a way did come true, as the town was soon attacked by a band of greedy marauders. In the storybook images the town would be shown going up in green flames as young Magnifico takes a boat to survival. Unfortunately, the boat ended up getting wrecked landing on a desert island, and the story would tell us that the youth lost everything he had in the wreck...even though he'd clearly be holding onto something in the accompanying picture. It is then said that Magnifico understood well the value and the danger a wish can hold, which inspired him to learn the arts of sorcery and magic that can extract a heart's deepest and most precious wish as a tangible substance held within a magic orb. Eventually he and the loyal wife he'd married built a great kingdom on that very island Magnifico had landed on, the kingdom of Rosas, where the citizens wishes are given, protected, and granted in the benign rule of Magnifico and Amaya, the "long lived" king and queen.
With that backstory and the reasons for why Magnifico founded Rosas and created the wish giving system established, the first in-universe look at the king we're given is in statues, in murals, in his face painted in various locations, even in the cookies Dahlia bakes. The face looks very kind, dignified, wisened, majestic, and above all gorgeously handsome. His presence is also subtly felt in what we'd be shown of the average Rosas citizens - some who are overly happy and enthused in a very cult-like manner and some who are only half-awake and half-heartedly trying to stay into it. This is heavily implicit as being a result of the system and society in Rosas, where the happier people are the ones who've had their wishes granted or have such good standing with the royals that they feel they're likely to have their wishes granted in the near future, while the lethargic ones are those who've given their wishes away, cannot remember what they even were to start with, and have been tirelessly waiting for when the time comes for Magnifico to grant them in a wish ceremony.
So then when we’re properly introduced to King Magnifico after all the build-up, it'd be immediately striking how the appearance of the man himself doesn't quite measure up to what we'd seen depicted in the kingdom's arts and crafts. We were told he's beloved by all, yet the man we meet here would come off very...Stephen Strange-ish. He'd be very smarmy, disgrunted, and patronizing towards Asha, visibly or verbally condescending to her and treating her like a silly, hapless child who he doesn’t believe will attain the apprenticeship. However, he is coming off of another interview that ended poorly, so we think maybe he's just in a mood and we shouldn't immediately assume too badly of him. If we hold onto hope for his better nature to win out, it seems to pay off when he appears to empathize with Asha after she's told him of her deceased father and all the ways in which he'd inspired her to dream big and to love Rosas; it's almost like the king sees some of his younger self in Asha, and through that, he recognizes that she could be a good fit for the job of working for him as his apprentice, someone he can shape into being more like him and following his ways. He'd do the "I too suffered great loss at a young age due to the selfish wishes and actions of greedy thieves and built Rosas as a place where that would not happen" thing like in the movie, but not only do we understand that more due to having been given the whole backstory, it'd also be more noticeable just how...calculated it feels. Like, Magnifico might as well say "I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. Y'know, my late son, Beau..."., y'know those shows of pseudo-empathy that political leaders love to do.
Once Asha has the job and returns to the castle for her first day of apprenticeship, King Magnifico would show us that oh, this guy might actually be worse than we'd thought he was before. He's now in full Handsome Jack from Borderlands mode, acting more giddy and animated because he just loves his apprentice's first days where he can "dazzle them with all his splendor, and win over their love and devotion and appreciation for all his royal duties." And he just acts completely unkind and insensitive to Asha, making her do all sort of minor chores the way Lady Tremaine would do to Cinderella. He lets Asha into his sanctum of wishes, where he holds, throws, balances and caresses some of the various wishes in a way that seems unsettlingly possessive, much akin to how Mother Gothel stroked Rapunzel’s golden hair, and as he does he sings these words:
If happiness was a tangible thing, it would be you
If you'd have told me the feeling you'd bring, I'd think it untrue
And people search for a wonder like you all of their lives
You still amaze me after all this time
You pull me in like some kind of wind
Mesmerized by the hold I'm in
Leave you here, I don't wanna
I wanna promise as one does
I, I will protect you at all costs
Keep you safe here in my arms
I, I will protect you at all costs
At all costs
Then the shoe drops. Magnifico reveals that he doesn't just collect these wishes to safeguard them and grant them in ceremonies: he uses the magical blessings cast upon the wishes as means of keeping his own magic powers charged every day, and it's also how he has sustained such slow aging and long living for himself and his wife. Yes, the royals feed off of the souls of their own subjects in order to keep their lifespan going, with the wishes extracted from the beautiful innermost part of those souls serving as convenient battery power for them. Unnerved as this makes poor Asha feel, the subject of a long life span naturally calls her almost 100 year old grandfather to mind, and she makes the dreaded "nepotism favor" request that the king consider granting Sabino’s wish at the ceremony. Magnifico, disappointed but not surprised, declines this request, rationalizing the wish could be too vague and might pose a threat to the kingdom. Asha then realizes Magnifico intends to never grant most of these wishes yet refuses to return the ungrantable wishes to their owners. She openly questions the king, telling him it's unreasonable of him to keep the most beautiful part of his subjects very selves from them if he truly has no inclination to grant them with his magic, and he should return those wishes to their owners so that they'll remember them and gain the drive to at least try to work towards fulfilling them themselves. Magnifico lashes out at her in fury ("I decide what everyone deserves!") and as consequence we get the ceremony where Magnifico pulls the spiteful fake-out with the wish granting just to shame and humiliate Asha, and let her know that her family's wishes will be kept by him forever, never to be granted. Also just barely noticable in the same scene would be that Magnifico reveals the wish of the person he grants it to and how it had been worded, but what he gives is notably a distorted alteration of the original wish. For all his high horsing about "be careful what you wish for, wishes worded too vaguely might go wrong when granted and that's too much of a danger risk", he himself exploits vaguely phrased wishes in order to twist them into something with benefits to the kingdom, his rule, and his image. For years, he's really only been using this system of wishes to make his own wishes come true, and has been routinely dishonest and hypocritical about it as he defrauds his people, committing theft by deception. What a self-obsessed bastard.
After Asha's made her wish to the stars and called Star down to Rosas, Magnifico and Amaya, having witnessed the wave of magic it brought, fear an unknown magic source that might threaten their kingdom and the hold they have on all the magic and wishes, but they find no answers in their books and scrolls to what this strange light might be. Magnifico starts acting furiously paranoid, remarking about how much he hates craven thieves and traitors. Due to how things went over with Asha, she is his primary suspect who he fears is now out to usurp his power and might not even be acting alone. As he starts to be overcome by desperation, Magnifico turns to his tome of forbidden dark magic and goes to unseal it. Fortunately for him, Amaya remains level-headed and is able to talk him out of it, to which he gives a very transparently half-hearted "thanks", followed by the "I am a handsome king" bit when Amaya tells him that, as they cannot baselessly accuse and arrest Asha for treason, they use the people’s love of him as their monarch to get them to reach the truth for them.
Of course, during the briefing with the public, people start asking how and why their wishes might now be in danger, which leads to questions about why Magnifico established the system the way that he did, which leads to deeper questioning such as why everything in Rosas is so tailored towards the king despite his role being to protect and provide for the people - like, why does the king need to have his handsome face plastered everywhere? When everyone feels the next wave of magic from Star’s evolution, it proves definitively what Magnifico told them: that this magic didn’t come from him, and that only creates a sense of disillusionment among the people. A furious Magnifico warns of a traitor within the kingdom conspiring to use this magic to steal all wishes and topple the monarchy, who must be found and punished, and then he shuts the doors back into his castle, frantically pacing about and looking to see if the magic came from somewhere within. Visibly aggitated, Amaya tries to soothe her petulant husband urging him to calm his mind and cheer himself up by gazing at his reflection in the mirrored walls. Which leads to....
"This Is The Thanks I Get" (Revised version)!
In between the second chorus and the bridge, Magnifico walks in front of the forbidden magic tome and vocalizes that in his years long reign, he has been far too soft on his people, spoiling them into becoming greedy, entitled ingrates who are all no better than thieves, so he needs to harden his heart and exercise more power “for their own good”, to tighten his grip over Rosas and preserve his power. So he unseals the book, opens it up, and gains power from its corruptive influence. And he made sure to do this when his wife wasn't around to stop him from doing so. This was his choice. He wanted this. In his desperation to not let his power over Rosas slip from him, he turned to what he knew as wrong primarily for the convenience of it enabling him to shed anything within himself that was restraining him before, and grant to him more destructive, awesome power to squash all dissent with. This is what takes him from "big jerk" to "true villain."
After being told by Simon that Asha was indeed responsible for Star's summoning and has been plotting against him, Magnifico goes to Asha's family's home and assaults Sabino and Sakina with magic that’s holding them down when Asha and Star return. Declaring he must arrest the whole family for both high treason and harboring a criminal, Magnifico also takes time to relish some cruelty towards Asha, not only stepping on Sabino's already broken lute in front of her but bringing out Sakina’s wish and using his new dark power to shatter it in his grip, making Sakina reel in agony as the energy from her wish, a sacred part of her soul, gets absorbed into Magnifico’s black magic. Realizing how much power he can claims from the wishes delights the vainglorious monarch, who says had he known this, he would've broken wishes ages ago! So now Magnifico has a singular goal: to absorb the magic of both Star and all the wishes in order to become an all-powerful tyrant, motivated purely by pride, spite, desire for retribution and control, and the power high he's on.
Forging his new dark magic scepter, Magnifico addresses the public once more, revealing the traitor to be Asha and Simon to be the one to sell her out under the promise of having his wish granted. But be careful what you wish for, Simon! Magnifico twists the wish once again ("to be one of the king’s greatest, bravest and most loyal knights"), this time using his new dark magic to bewitch and brainwash him into a magitech knight. He then puts out the reward of another wish granting ceremony for the wish of whichever of his subjects helps the knights capture Asha, with the added threat that the longer it takes for Asha to be captured, the more wishes he will break so no one may get their wishes granted in the end, which makes the masses erupt into carnage and division between the fearful but still adoring loyalists to the king, and those who see this is not right and want no part in it. To quell this disorder, Magnifico unleashes more magic, desecrating the area and putting lives at risk, prompting Amaya to suggest he reign himself in better. To her surprise, Magnifico points his staff at her, telling her to never again second-guess him or give him orders or else. He then orders all dissenters to be rounded up and thrown in the dungeon. So it's pretty clear by now that Magnifico is far gone, and this time the needless "looking for a way to save Magnifico from the thrall of the dark magic only to learn it can't be done" plot point is omitted, as this Amaya knows from the get-go that once you open the book and read from it even once, your addiction to the power it grants is unbreakable.
At the climax of the story, King Magnifico ascends the castle’s tower, sucks the life out from every wish that has been released into the night sky through his sanctum's open ceiling, and absorbs it all, sending droves of people in the kingdom into agonizing pain, anguish and despair. With no wishes to charge himself with, he gleefully traps Star in his scepter to act as the new living magical battery for his power. He thanks Star and Asha for how they've challenged his rule, because if they hadn't, he'd not have learned how much more gratifying it was to take all that he wants rather than "pretend to care and lightly snack on the magic of those wishes only in desperate moments". Asha's attempts to stop him are easily overpowered, as he uses his dark magic to block out the sky so that the citizens never again may wish upon stars, then KO's his wife with a magic blast for her betrayal, then creates magical chains from out of the ground that bind all the citizens in place, and when the knights rush to stop their mad king, he not only chains them too, but unleashes waves of dark magic that set Rosas ablaze with green fire, madly declaring that he will oppress the disspirited masses forevermore: "No more hope, no more dreams, no escape, no chance to rise up, no one to tell any tales, and no one to challenge me ever again! And I would gladly much rather see my great kingdom burn and physically crumble to Rosas' soil than give up this awesome power I so majestically wield!"
What happens next...well, you all probably know that by now.
So that's Magnifico's progression as the villain in my revision of Wish, but there's one last tiny yet hugely significant touch I'd add to fully bring his character together. A little before the big climax, Amaya would make reference to the fact that sealing the forbidden black magic inside “that heirloom” was among the first fundamental cornerstones of Rosas, but Magnifico has now totally backtracked on that and betrayed his oath to his people and their wishes. Hearing the book called an "heirloom" and then looking back at the storybook images of Magnifico's origin story at the start of the film makes the two pieces click together. That tome of forbidden magic belonged to Magnifico's family, the marauders sought it out and opened it up, which is what actually set the town ablaze, Magnifico took it with him as he fled to the boat, and it was the only thing he had that survived the boat's wreckage onto the shores of what would become Rosas. Throughout the story, Magnifico would have lines expressing his disdain for "thieves", "traitors", "cowards", "ingrates", and "weaklings". ...But this did not really come from just his trauma with the thieves. It's because he felt as though he himself, as a youth, was all of those things. He was a thief who stole his family's book, he was a traitor for making that vague wish that brought the marauders there, he was a coward and an ingrate for fleeing and leaving his family to burn, and he was a weakling for lacking the power to stop any of that from occurring and get things under control. To us on the outside looking in, it's easy to see how irrational it is for Magnifico to blame himself like that and have such self-loathing for boyhood mistakes and things beyond his control that were not really his fault. But tragically, no one ever told him this, not even Amaya. So what drove Magnifico forward in life was a pathological need to change his self image, to become someone greater and more powerful than that thieving little coward, to assert himself as the height of perfection, someone who could be loved and who could love himself in turn. He needed to be a king, for back in the day, a king was considered the only flesh and blood mortal human on Earth close to or secondary in power to the divinity of God Himself, for they had "the divine right to rule", the mandate of Heaven. So not only could Magnifico be that, but his magical power, the extension of his life via the wishes, and the system for taking the secret hopes, dreams, and prayers of the commonfolk to protect and decide which among them to grant, could put him that much closer to being a god among men. That is the core of what King Magnifico wanted; to feel like he was God, so as to erase his own inner pain over the fallability of being human. He was for years perpetually feeding his own power and ego, and yet it was never going to be enough. And he became so enthralled in his own God-and-Savior Complex, in playing at being the highest power in all the land, that he became a greedy, immoral, disruptive and destabilizing individual who brings suffering to the lives and wishes of others, like he'd once been the victim of; he became the very threat to Rosas that he’d been so wary of. And so, he got rewarded as such a threat deserves.
Dammit, now I'm low-key pissed at Disney! Say the line, Peridot!
#Disney#Wish#disney villains#King Magnifico#analysis#fixer upper#what could have been#they wasted a perfectly good character
34 notes
·
View notes
Note
Hello hello! I've recently acquired the Mike Logan brainrot and I LOVE the fics you've written and I ADORE your tags about him!!
SO. I was wondering if you maybe, possibly, hopefully were willing to share any headcanons you have of him? 👉👈 If not then just delete this ask!
Thank you muchly!
it’s my birthday today, and it’s been a terrible one at that, but this ask literally made my face light up. I feel gifted by you — I would be HAPPY to provide headcanons of this gargantuan idiot, this hunk of massive Catholic guilt, my emotional support beleaguered detective
₊˚.༄ Mike Logan Headcanons
₊˚✦ he’s like, an adequate cook? Most likely good at breakfast in the morning and maybe some basic dishes, self sufficient so he doesn’t solely live off of takeout (but it’s like a quarter of his diet). I can’t say he can’t cook because it’s just not realistic. Boy’s gotta’ eat, y’know?
₊˚✦ Mike has trash coffee taste, takes it straight with maybe some cream or a sugar packet but refuses to try other things like blended drinks, will drink a cappuccino or an americano but hates being in a Starbucks
₊˚✦ UNLESS he gets spoilt and used to better coffee but then he’s doomed and cursed to the shit coffee at work and complains even more than usual. Which is a lot.
₊˚✦ I’ve got a feeling that, with being super progressive in his views, he definitely was one of those police officers in the beginning that everyone was shocked by. This little stinker, a raucous trouble maker, an OFFICER? PUHLEASE
₊˚✦ he’s so quick to fight for one (scrappy more like) he’s just got no fit outlet, so work became his outlet (terrible decision really) — but he’s got such hyperactivity and restlessness, probably born from some childhood PTSD and ADHD/ADD, that it just gnaws at him and lets him get too caught up in his emotions
₊˚✦ the boy needs therapy + AND NOT WITH LIZ
₊˚✦ cuddle bug but doesn’t look like it immediately — like sure he’s probably got some weird stuff with intimacy beyond sex (I can do a WHOLE other set of headcanons about this man’s issues with intimacy, both sexual and non sexual)
₊˚✦ but literally a cuddle bug, he will YANK his partner back into bed. he’s a lazy weekend guy and stands by it — it’s when he catches up on sleep and gets to take his time. He doesn’t shave on weekends either so he gets the perfect “I know I’m hot but I make it look effortless” stubble which is damning. Like fuck.
₊˚✦ I think when he works out he does cardio and maybe weight training but not all too much? Like above the minimum since he’s required to like, apprehend people, run chase and whatnot — but he’s not living at the gym if you catch my drift
₊˚✦ snores. he fucking snores look at that man and tell me he doesn’t snore.
₊˚✦ gets nightmares but doesn’t cope well with them — or have much if any good coping mechanisms honestly. Maybe later in life he’ll adapt some better ones, but everything he’d recommend to others, he wouldn’t do for himself.
₊˚✦ definitely not a “decorate his place for the holidays” person unless his partner is, then he’ll play along and get some fun out of it, but I doubt he’s got a box of decorations tucked away in some closet.
₊˚✦ speaking of closets — this man, oh I swear to god, has owned the same damn ties for like, 12+ years. What magic is in that fabric because I know he’s too cheap to buy good quality shirts and ties, maybe decent suits but still like department store, Macy’s suits. Joseph A. Bank maybe? I’m doubtful on Brooks Brothers, like there’s blood and probably brain matter on them all but fuck it, NYC dry cleaning. There’s also mustard stains, canonically, on them. He’s a slob, someone get this man a tide pen.
₊˚✦ lol all I can see now is him trying to iron his clothes in his apartment with the whole board and iron in like, a tank and boxers and mid-calf socks as he gets ready before work. Oh Dick Wolf you had so much promise with this man.
₊˚✦ he definitely has played and probably would play in the police recreational baseball league, it’s mentioned in an episode and he’s passionate about the Yankees. I’m torn between him actually sporting baseball gear or if it’s really casual with jeans and jerseys and baseball caps. (Pls pls pls PLEASE)
₊˚✦ ooh I’m not sure when he changed it but he used to wear a gold crucifix, fuck my life, but stopped wearing it later on and I’m wondering if it’s due to him taking a bigger step away from Catholicism? Like he’s absolutely a lapsed Catholic with terrible experiences in both home and church, it makes sense for him to be conflicted if not repelled from religion. I’d like to think out of habit he may still go to holiday midnight masses, and sometimes on his own for the quiet and the near-anonymity.
₊˚✦ I’m thinking that leather coat of his he wears around all the time, even in the snow like a fucking moron, may have been a gift or one of his bigger purchases for himself. Like something he saved up for or found and just, let himself have the little luxury. Coats like that are expensive and high quality, he wears the same damn one nearly every episode in both the original series and when he was on criminal intent.
₊˚✦ it may just be me projecting, but I feel like he’s got a record collection. Probably some old record player and some nice speakers, milk crates full of records that he has to bend over to sort through, groaning about his back all the while. Definitely a lot of jazz standards and the greats like Sinatra, as he mentions in the series at some point, Martin, Baker, Fitzgerald, Armstrong, Cooke, Davis, etc plus some classic rock, stuff like the typical dad rock™️ — doesn’t peg me as a frequent flyer for concerts but goes for really good shows, he’s a medium venue person not the intimate ones but not the giant stadiums either. He likes Billy Joel but isn’t vocal about it.
₊˚✦ he’s got clutter in his place, a little too cramped but it makes it homey, not decorative but at least lived in. Things are more out in the open than put away, he’s more visual and muscle memory based than having things stored away.
₊˚✦ lastly, a massive sweet tooth. A snacker, keeps things in the drawer of his desk to munch on between meals. He’s got more snacks than ingredients to cook with in his home kitchen and I stand by that. He looks like he would enjoy pretzels a lot, like a lot. And other salty snacks, but definitely an ice cream, eat out the tub kinda’ guy. I’m betting Raspberry, Chocolate, or Strawberry. Maybe a chocolate fudge if he’s feeling a little wild.
Note: I’d literally be more than happy to expand on any of these if not write even more headcanons
#law and order#mike logan#asked and answered#thank you lovely!!! literally made my night thank you so much#mike Logan headcanons#mike Logan law and order#L&O#michael logan
17 notes
·
View notes
Text
Henry and one-way mirrors
(not really a theory or anything here, just some observations that perhaps a larger brained Henry theorist would care to chew on)
so I was thinking how gates sorta work like holes that are mirrors.
take Chrissy's gate: the UD kids and the RU kids both go to Eddie's trailer and look through the gate in the ceiling, and they see each other in the same room they themselves are in, just the other dimension's version of it.
(there aren't matching shots in one scene which is annoying but just to illustrate like you didn't already know:)
neither group is seeing the sky above the trailer, as they would be if that gate was a hole that worked how holes usually work.
if you go to the spot in either dimension where that hole would lead if it worked how holes work, it's not there.
when Eddie and Dustin go up to the roof to play Master of Puppets, we see the place where Chrissy's gate would come out, and there's nothing.
so gates are mirror-holes that can only be seen from one side of that surface but not the other. it's not a perfect analogy, but this makes me think of a one-way mirror.
which has been on my mind because baby El throws Henry through a one-way mirror where the first gate opens.
they could've had Henry get zapped against any of the walls of the rainbow room, in fact it would've been easier to film that I'm sure, but instead they went to the trouble of hurling his ass through a one-way mirror into an observation room, and set design isn't random and meaningless.
so I thought some more about one way mirrors. how do they work?
it's a sheet of sorta reflective glass, and to make it do the thing, one room has to be light and the other dark. in the brightly lit room, the subject will see their own reflection. but from the dark room, the observer will see straight through to the subject.
dark vs light is way too broad a theme on ST to begin listing examples, not that I need to, but this made me want to dig around with a focus on mirrors and light/dark mentions as it could maybe be applied to the mirror idea.
some observations in no particular order:
nodding. okay. Henry as the dark observer
of course, hiding in the light means focusing on happy memories and love and yatta yatta which is the way to defeat darkness which is what Henry uses to prey on people.
but in keeping with the mirror thing, does Max "hiding in the light" actually benefit her? because the brighter you are, in this analogy, the more clearly observable you are to the dark viewer.
just saying, this plan ultimately didn't work for her and he literally could not have emphasized the "I see you" thing more
Henry fed El this plan, I'm not sure whether he specified what to tell the orderly or if she came up with that on her own because of her recent concussion, but I lean towards Henry. the plan leads the two of them down to the lab's boiler room or whatever, the only dark place we've ever seen in the building.
I've lost track of whether light is good or bad in this post
idek what this is but intensely bright light emanates from Henry's body and disintegrates him into dark ash or whatever. also you can see the shards around El reflecting the observation room, because it's now the brighter one.
it's another one-way mirror that baby El throws Two against, cracking it all foreshadowingly.
and another one-way mirror that we observe El through as she's questioned by Lenora police.
have to go to season 1 for a clear view of a lab mirror as far as I can remember. Brenner watches El's experiments through one-way mirrors from observation rooms, although with lighting that allows them both to see each other.
one-way mirrors are so heavily featured in 4 when both of the likeliest viewers (Brenner and Henry) are usually in the room with the kids. who's watching 👀
Joyce and jancy detained in what I would swear is the same room but it's not. this isn't the point of this post but why. the mirror is narrower. did they scrap and then 99.9% recreate the same set? Nancy chooses to say "hey asshole" to the camera instead of the mirror, which I trust she's aware of.
Nancy why did you say this in the same episode where Henry talks about mirrors
oh btw, if the lighting is equalish on both sides of a one-way mirror, it just becomes a window, and both people see each other.
Victor saw himself, but Virginia saw Henry.
my melatonin is kicking in so somebody take this from here
#analysis#henry creel#aemiron-main if I know you you already have a coherent version of this in a google doc somewhere#mine#long post
82 notes
·
View notes
Note
 I had this idea image of a LOV headcannon story about? Dabi, Shigaraki, Mr. Compress and Spinner meeting a female S/O who’s quirk is ‘Ghost Rider’  I wanted to write the story myself but I’ve been struggling with other stuff, and I wanted to ask if you could do it? And just have fun and go crazy.😅
Sometimes I like to help offer ideas to others who are having trouble with coming up with their own ideas for their headcannon Stories so sometimes I like to help out by offering ideas to others if they need the help and they can just have fun and go crazy with it?😁
I've actually got a post about this from a couple of years back, but it's with some of class A. I did the characters together since you wanted more than 3 and I wanted them to interact with each other too. So I just did it as platonic, instead of the reader being anyone’s s/o. I recently watched Agents OF S.H.I.E.L.D, and the Ghost Rider is in that too, so I went more with that version than the movie one, because I haven’t seen the movies. I don’t think there’s much difference though
•The members of the League figured you had a quirk of some kind but they couldn’t figure out what it was for the longest time
•You were fireproof, that became clear when you got caught in the crossfire with Dabi
•But you also have some sort of weird connection to your motorcycle and the chain you carry as a weapon seems to defy the laws of physics sometimes
•Your quirk comes out especially when you get angry, so when Dabi one time annoyed you enough, you yelled straight to his face and your head set on fire, and it all happened so fast he fell on his ass, because he was so surprised
•He wasn’t scared of you or anything, he was just so shocked he stumbled backwards and fell
•You soon turned back to your normal human form and Dabi was pretty much like “What the hell was that?!” before threatening to show you some real flames
•You’ve got nothing to fear from him, since you’re fireproof, so unless he wants to start throwing punches, there’s nothing you need to fear from him
•Mr. Compress is just sitting on the couch like “Ah yes, another normal day with the League” because he honestly isn’t surprised by much anymore
•Shigaraki comes in from the other room, wondering why Dabi is yelling at you, but not caring enough to ask
•Dabi of course demands you show “your real face” to Shigaraki too, because he thinks he’s not going to believe him otherwise
•Compress is like “Now, now. It’s their business what their quirk is” and kinda comes between you and Dabi because he feels like someone is going to throw a punch
•Shigaraki asks what the fuck Dabi is talking about, and you’re getting annoyed with the whole thing so you just let your anger take over and would you look at that your head is on fire and you sound sort of demonic when you talk
•Spinner happens to come in when you’re explaining the whole thing with your quirk, and he pretty much just yelps in shock when you turn to look at him
•You sigh, calm yourself and the fire goes away, and you’re back to your normal self again
•Dabi seems to be the only one to have an issue with you, but that’s mostly because you managed to startle him, and not because of your quirk
•Spinner is more interested about the whole thing going on with you and your motorcycle, because he’s honestly kind of jealous about it, he’s always wanted a motorcycle and yours is really cool looking
#bnha#mha#my hero academia#boku no hero academia#spinner#shuichi iguchi#dabi#bnha dabi#mha dabi#shigaraki tomura#mr compress#atsuhiro sako#bnha headcanons#mha headcanons#bnha x reader#mha x reader#mha fanfiction#bnha fanfiction
41 notes
·
View notes
Text
Chortle headlines.
Some of these are interesting. I don't know if it bodes well if Paddy Young is the absolute best rookie comedians in all of Britain, but he definitely had a good show last year (that got streamed on NextUp from Edinburgh). I have trouble believing anyone wrote a show that's better than both Paul Foot's Dissolve and Ahir Shah's Ends, but to be fair, I haven't seen John Kearns' show and he is very fucking good at these things, makes me hope even more that he'll be doing something in Edinburgh while I'm there. Alex Horne got an award for Taskmaster being an outstanding achievement, not quite sure what that means but I think it's accurate. I think if you look up the definition of "breakthrough act" you'll just find a note that says "see Sam Campbell's career throughout 2023", so that couldn't really have gone any other way. I've heard Kiri Pritchard-McLean compere a bunch on NextUp things, she is in fact very good at clubs. I haven't seen any of the other nominees but I'm still sure that James Acaster deserved to win that best tour one. I couldn't stomach the amount of Celebrity Glamour in Joe Lycett's new show but he is a great comedian and he is definitely made to be a TV comedian, which in some ways could be an insult but I really mean it as a compliment, he's great at that, good for him. Munya Chawawa posts highly amusing song parodies on YouTube. Fern Brady's is one of the best comedian books I've read. Three Bean Salad I was unable to get into, but maybe I'll give it another shot sometimes, after I finish with the winners of that radio award, John and Elis - well done to them for getting over ten years and not completely falling apart. I usually find it hard to get into sketch comedy (or anything that isn't straight stand-up) but Lorna Rose Treen made me laugh with character things last summer, so she probably deserves that one.
Those are my unsolicited opinions on that. The existence of Taskmaster is definitely an outstanding achievement for all involved.
This a special feature that happens every once in a while, called "Chortle publishes the contents of Daniel Kitson's mailing list". I find it gets funnier the less it sounds like Steve Bennett knows about the news items beyond the contents of the mailing list email, and in this case, that is clearly fuck all. But anyway, it's a great show and exciting announcement, anyone who has the opportunity should go see this tour. He said in the email that he might try to get something going in NYC later this year, which would be incredibly logistically difficult for me to get to (8.5-hour drive each way if I can borrow a car from someone, which would be tough, 14 hours on the bus otherwise, I've been told I can't take any more vacation days in 2024 because I used them on the London/Edinburgh trip), but still, I have found myself wondering how I might be able to make that work if he actually announces it.
Fucking hell. I can't believe this. My local comedian Facebook group is going pretty wild in response to this news. That's fucking huge, a massive amount of stuff is centred around this. To be honest I'm still not clear on the scope of this news so I won't go into it too much, I'll just say, fucking hell. Truly shocking. That's like a sport just canceling its national championships halfway through the season.
Excellent. Everyone should read this. His 2023 show (which I think he's still touring) is one of my favourite comedy shows ever. And the one before that, which inspired this book, is also very fucking funny, though not as good as his latest one.
Also, I am up for a trend of one comedian per year writing a book about their relatively recent autism diagnosis. Who do we think it'll be in 2025? I have approximately four to five suggestions.
9 notes
·
View notes
Note
Trick or treat! Can you tell me anything about / post snippets from celrond arranged marriage or boundless sky? 💙💙💙
hi hi hi <3 happy halloween!
por qué no los dos?
Here is a bit more of the Fox scene that I've recently been working on in the Arranged Marriage AU, and then also a little snippet of Boundless Sky :)
From the arranged marriage AU:
Neither of them knew quite what to say after that. Thankfully, they were saved from further embarassment a moment later by rustling in the underbrush. Elrond’s hand shot to his sword hilt.
Out popped a set of orange, pointy ears, followed by a snout. A fox jumped into the clearing. Celebrían gasped in delight. Elrond relaxed, then dropped to a crouch, tugging her with him.
Then, to her surprise, Elrond stretched out his hand and called the fox hither, his voice sing-song and sweet and so enchanting that even Celebrían, in spite of herself, shuffled a little closer until they brushed shoulder to shoulder, kneeling there on the loamy soil. The fox’s ears swiveled toward him, and then slowly he began to creep over.
In the distance, the sound of the barking, baying hounds began to grow louder. Celebrían realized with horror that the Hunt had swung back around to head straight for them, and that this little fox was, indeed, their quarry.
Elrond urged the fox closer, then cautiously closed the distance, murmured something under his breath that sounded like a spell, and scooped the creature up and bundled him beneath his cloak.
“The hounds will still smell him,” Celebrían said, getting to her feet and dusting off her knees.
Something sly the color of pure starlight flashed in Elrond’s eyes. He smiled and answered: “Don’t worry for the fox, Lady Celebrían. I have a way with dogs. Come stand by me, won’t you?”
She did, eyeing the little squirming creature nosing its way up through the collar of Elrond’s cloak. He gently pushed it back down into hiding and muttered something soothing to it, and then it stayed very still.
-
and from a future chapter of Boundless Sky:
“I am not asking you to trust him,” Elrond said quietly. “I am asking you to trust me, just as you have all these long years. He wants nothing save to be left in peace. He is sworn to me now; he is loyal to me.” His mouth tightened into something that was not quite a smile. “You know a Fëanorian will cleave to his oath.”
Istiel’s face was hard. Her fist stayed curled on the arm of her chair. She looked away from him, thinking.
“If he stays in your house. If he does not venture into the city unattended. You keep your dog leashed.”
“You have my word,” Elrond said, though he bristled a little at the metaphor.
“Then…” Istiel ground her jaw. “Fine. I am able to live with that.”
Next to Elrond, Erestor leaned forward and pressed: “And the others?”
“They won’t be happy… but they won’t make trouble.”
“That’s all I ask,” Elrond replied. “Thank you.”
#celrond#elrond#maglor#(mentioned)#erestor#beneath a boundless sky#celrond arranged marriage AU#thank you!!!
15 notes
·
View notes
Note
My head has been spinning recently just thinking about the sort of backlash that Laura and Marisha would get from fans if Imogen and Laudna didn't end up together.
For example, I can imagine them roleplaying a conversation in which one of pair reveals they have a crush on someone else in the party, and the other supports them fully in that endeavour. I can only imagine the people who would say "she looked away when she said that line so she's lying!!!" or "they're just denying their feelings for each other"
C3 is the first campaign I've managed to catch live, so I'm not sure if this sort of shipping happened in C2 or C1. I feel like Beau/Yasha would be most likely to have caused similar reactions, but even then, I don't think I've seen this amount of protectiveness over a ship that is this vague. Marisha and Ashley at least made it clear from e1 that their characters had (at the very least, one-sided) romantic interest.
Hi anon,
I've gotten a few questions to this effect and have declined to answer some because it does feel a bit like borrowing trouble, even though I will fully admit some of my private DMs look not unlike this. So I'm going to try to answer this with as much sensitivity and thoroughness as I can despite a number of frustrations (not with you, to be clear) and let this serve as my answer going forward unless anything drastically changes. I am making it non-rebloggable, under a cut, and will be blocking any clownery.
Let's rip off the bandaid right away: for some reason, and I have my theories but they are unconfirmed at in some cases, rather ungenerous, Marisha and Laura's characters have been heavily shipped in all three campaigns despite a chemistry I would call middling at best. I think the most generous way to put it is that while Ashley was working on Blindspot, they were often the only two women at the table (though one must look a bit askance at how Veth is often ignored as a female character, despite unambiguously being one). So I suspect that a lot of it comes from simply wanting an F/F romance between main cast PCs during Campaign 1 and having no good options, and then...remaining fixated on that particular cast dynamic, despite, as stated before, chemistry that has never particularly impressed me.
I did not watch Campaign 1 live, so I don't know what the discourse was at the time. I did watch Campaign 2 live and your prediction is accurate. The ship that caused similar reactions was actually Beau and Jester; you can still find people who claim it was a "mistake" to pursue Beauyasha instead and that Beauyasha "came out of nowhere" and was "for the straights." You are also entirely correct that people will grasp at the weakest of straws to support a ship, though, in all fairness, this is not remotely limited to femslash shippers but is a general shipping problem. (The worst offender during Campaign 2 for that, in my opinion, were people who shipped Caleb and Jester and who became creepily obsessed with Laura's expressions late in the game; that is also incidentally still the ship that I think has the most parallels to Imogen and Laudna in terms of canon character relationship vs. fanon perceptions.)
I do expect that if Imogen and Laudna do not get together, for whatever reason, there will be considerable denial. We've already seen some misplaced vitriol towards Ashton, and the response among shippers towards Imogen has, as I've pointed out over the past two weeks, been wildly inconsistent and deeply ungenerous in a desperate attempt to twist her actions in favor not just of the ship, but towards a highly specific idea of the ship as soft girlfriends against the cruel world, instead of a complicated codependence with the potential for becoming something more. I and others have also pointed out that the ship has gone from "they are already in love" to "a QPR would also be totally cool" which is rather unkind to QPRs.
I should also acknowledge the elephant in the room. I am well aware that I am probably public enemy number one on the Imogen/Laudna server where they come up with such bon mots as "bone-dry takes". I suspect this is because I genuinely enjoy both Imogen and Laudna as individual characters and write about them a lot, but in doing so, acknowledge the cracks and tension within their relationship. So on some level, even though the ship could absolutely still happen, they've already kind of started with some of the behaviors you mention, which is rather disappointing.
Anyway, I think this is all to say that this is a general problem in shipping across the board that is not confined to Imogen and Laudna nor F/F ships, but because that specific ship is both, as you say, vague, and yet has an extremely popular and extremely narrow fanon interpretation, it's in particular focus this campaign. I think you're correct that there will be backlash should it not happen, though I would be pleasantly surprised and deeply humbled if there is not. Fortunately I have found that Critical Role is fairly impervious to fandom backlash in terms of the decisions they make in-game, because let's face it, people will push back on anything, including such necessary parts of story as "dramatic tension" and "conflict." If you listened to them you would make the world's shittiest story, and because there are frequently multiple conflicting ships, you can't please everyone. I'm here to watch a story, and I do think ships are intrinsically part of character arcs, so if the ships serve the characters, whatever they are, I think it will be a worthwhile endeavor.
68 notes
·
View notes
Note
I've been thinking about it lately, but what about the other genius kids in the city? You know, Baxter and the dragons, I vaguely remember you saying the dragons would reappear at some point, and I was wondering if that still going?
I haven't really been talking about the other kids because they're...kids. And shit is really real right now. I know it's a dystopian trope to have teenagers at the forefront of everything, but realistically they'd be so lost. There's army guys in Central Park. A secret scary government organization at work. Yeah, Baxter is a genius child. He's also ten. Kendra might be a tech whiz but she has like 10-12 years of experience. They both think they're hot shit because they're smarter than pretty much everyone they go up against and haven't realized how little they truly know in the grand scheme of things. They don't know how to be cautious. They don't realize how vulnerable they really are. Because the EPF has geniuses too, and they have better funding, collaboration, and purpose. And they've been doing this a lot longer than Kendra has. They would be either swallowed up by the likes of the EPF or steamrolled over.
Also, some of the human characters straight-up aren't in New York anymore. Especially the kids, people with kids would definitely be more likely to flee when this all started. A lot of April's classmates have left the city. I've mentioned that Dale is still in the city and still simping for April, and he's been getting himself in trouble because Dale is a moron. (hopefully he doesn't get shot, but he probably will) I think I decided that Jeremy's family left? So it is just the two dragons right now, and they're from kind of a rich area so there was some law and order going on up there, at least until recently. I don't know why they haven't left; maybe Kendra's dad has some important job he thought he couldn't abandon until it was too late. I don't plan on making them important to the plot or anything; I was just going to have Kendra harass Gale and let him commit bodily harm against her. At most maybe Leo will work with Jace a little bit on infrastructure stuff.
I'm not really sure what I want to do with Baxter. I mean, I do want to include him at some point, let him annoy the hell out of everyone, but I just haven't decided how to bring him in line with doth canon where I try to make sense of this nonsensical TV show.
For one-I've decided that his last name really is Stockman, but he really leans into the stock-boy thing because he's a loser and thinks it's funny.
I also want to make his dad a conspiracy theorist. Like, the guy who yells at people on the sidewalks about the world ending, but like 1% of his predictions are scarily accurate. I'm unsure if this is the same guy as the grocery store owner, maybe his mom remarried but Baxter has little to do with his biodad because 'insert everything' and his stepdad has been the main father figure in his life. Or maybe he's like Jace and just considers the stepdad to be a bonus dad and calls them both his dad. (Kendra's dad and Jace have 100% adopted each other and have an 'awkward but still cute' father-son relationship. The same cannot be said for Kendra and Jace's mom)
Maybe Leo puts Baxter in charge of making propaganda videos on how totally cool mutants are. That sounds like something Leo would try to do and would backfire on him.
12 notes
·
View notes
Note
Long post request: how do you feel about BG3?
I didn't realize a new patch came out on final fantasy for about a week because Baldur Gate o Baldur Gate
currently in act 3 and trying to stock up on shit since I recently cleared out the bank. I'm TRYING to hold myself to not starting a new character until I finish this one but I see so many monk items and i want themmmmm (I have a half elf monk open in character creator right now)
Since I played a lotttt of dragon age origins, parts of the structure of bg3 felt very familiar to me like the camp itself and like how u interact with the companions. Like coming home in a way.
I'm also playing 5e a lot so that part of the structure of it was very easy to adapt to. I do still have trouble with like certain interface things like oh man gotta select the version of the spells BEFORE TARGETTING NO GALE WHY ARE YOU RUNNING TO THEM GET BACK HERE WHY ARE YOU HITTING THEM WITH YOUR 8 STRENGTH BACKED STICK
But its great and I do like the changes made to better facilitate it being a VIDEO GAME. Like I'm a Divination Wizard. My main Thing is portent dice. (There's also detect thoughtsing my way through all social encounters which is SO GREAT honestly scratches an itch I've always wanted to do but it would be such a pain in the ass for tabletop. Like first first ever dnd character I cooked up was an illiterate mind reading sorcerer that like got by through just that. But that would be so annoying to do with like.... PEOPLE AT THE TABLE of like 'so im just constantly getting ur surface thoughts...... i can't entirely control this... i'm sorry....' )
ANYWAY portent dice!!!!! in bg3 they have it at level 6 you fulfill little prophecies to get ur dice back to make the big boss miss their BIG attack or make SURE you hit (or my favorite, make the rogue crit on a sneak attack) instead of having it that when u cast a divination spell u get a spell slot back. since theres so few divination spells especially like using IN COMBAT so I understand the change.
I also like the variety of shit you can do. like my partner is one to summon 9 creatures btw the whole party so theres a small army of creatures following their main party. (also several buffed with mage armor and everyone has a higher level aid cast on them so they also have a decent amount of health its really funni to watch) I like wrote off the summon guys moves because I just dont like to have extra guys usually.
Something I wish I did on my first playthrough tho was simply long resting more I think I fucked myself out of a lot of social link scenes in act 1 bc I straight up didn't rest enough. The game is like 'oh no time is ticking' but things aren't REALLY like that (cept for like... 2 instances I can think of) bc its a videogame and thats fine.
It WANTS you to use all your abilities and not be dum like me and just cantrip my way through most the first act 'just in case i need my slots later' why am i like this. both short and lone rest more and just use all your moves its FINE
speaking of social links and companions theyre all great. I love them all. I DO wish some things weren't like... romance locked it feels??? well more like you HAVE to reject them???? idk I had a scene with gale when he's like 'but we're not THAT close tho' and i felt bad bc like... I want to be wizard friends with you. I'm SORRY I'm so weak to both vampires and elves.
heard some shit about astarion having like so much content compared to all the other companions and man imma feel so spoiled on my playthroughs where i dont smooch the vampire. I do wish everyone else had more scenes too its a shame.
something about bg3 thats HILARIOUS to me personally is that its all like 'recruit allies against the cult' and in another irl campaign im in thats been in hiatus for years but I still hope to come back its REALLY similiar. Oh no a huge looming death cult threat to the city. oh no the city has its own fuckmess of bullshit to deal with. OH NO a shapeshifting killer. Anytime theres strong parallels to that campaign it sparks joy.
A few technical problems I've had tho were around switching characters in and out of the party. like in a building and I wanna run back to camp to tag in someone. Wait why are they on the roof????
Or I tag in someone and WHY ARE YOU CLIPPING THROUGH THE FLOOR? Tbh the game is so enjoyable I just sigh and say "Video. Game." out loud and load a save. Like the last time that was REALLY frustrating is when it just would NOT let me out of a restricted area like please I persuaded u 3 times let me go I was on my way OUT.
Also why do all these 8 strength men have abs. This is Wrong. I'm bad with figuring out the technical shit of modding but holy shit I need them to not have abs.
Anyway I had this and the character creator open for like 2 hours now so Imma start that now.
9 notes
·
View notes
Last Seen Blogs
hellcaught-blog
S U R V I V A L
hellcaught-blog
S U R V I V A L
grgie
dump buddy
myhairymanfetish
Hot Hairy Men
subby-sab
Subby_SAB