#children of two characters have so many potential looks that it's hard to be happy with one desssiiign | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

fabuloustrash05 · 2 years

Text

TMNT 2012: 10 Years Later Headcanon

Happy 10 Year Anniversary of TMNT 2012 Everyone!!

On this day in 2012, Nickelodeon officially released the first two episodes of their newest series, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

To celebrate TMNT 2012′s 10 year anniversary I decided to share with you my headcanon future for the turtles and their friends, taking place exactly 10 years later. With the show starting with the turtles being 15, this headcanon future of mine takes place where the turtles are now 25 years old (exactly 10 years later).

I will discuss each turtle (with the inclusion of April, Casey, & Karai) with summaries of their lives, where they are, what they do now, their relationships with specific characters, and how their lives are going, etc. Consider this a happy ending for the turtles instead of that disaster of an ending that mutant apocalypse gave us.

Let’s get started! Here’s my headcanon future/happy ending for the 2012 turtles and friends!

Leonardo Hamato

Like father, like son, Leonardo continues to lead the Hamato Clan as leader and sensei. He remained living in the sewers where he grew up, living with his youngest brother, Michelangelo. In honor of his father Leo rebuilt the Hamato Clan, building his own dojo in New York City and creating a new generation of ninjas. Though the task isn’t easy in this day and age, and his new growing clan still small, Leo works hard to continue the Hamato clan legacy, taking in many humans and mutants alike who are willing to learn and train with him.

Unlike most of his siblings, Leonardo never married, for he was so focused and dedicated to his clan that he never had time to have a serious relationship or settle down. He eventually swore off dating and pursuing romantic relationships entirely, taking a vow of chastity so he can truly focus on his job as sensei and leader of the Hamato Clan. However, despite never being married or having children of his own, Leonardo has many young students that he loves dearly that he has come to see as his own and they love and look up to him as a father figure.

When not focusing on his clan or his students, Leonardo visits his sister Karai, who moved back to Japan, to assist her in her own ninja clan, along with Slash and the Mighty Mutanimals back in New York. The three leaders all run their teams respectively and they all have a bond and strong alliance/agreement to help the other clans/teams if it is ever needed when another dangerous threat comes along, having monthly meetings to update the other teams on progress and such on specific matters. Leo also has status reports and meetings monthly with Karai and Slash on how their respective teams are doing and any updates on certain threats each team keeps an eye out for, or any new potential threats. In his spare time, Leonardo would also visit his best friend Miyamoto Usagi, who (thanks to Donnie) was able to find a way to remain in contact with one another and travel to each other’s worlds when desired. The two friends would chat, share some tea, train, and exchange life lessons to one another. It is one of the only few times Leo truly gets to relax for he is constantly working and focusing on reviving his father’s once dead clan. Sometimes Usagi even travels to Leo’s world to help him train his students and work as his second in command/assistant. Though Leo’s stress of his now busy life catches the attention of his family and friends, and they worry Leo is still putting too much pressure on himself, Leo is determined to continue his work as clan leader and even has his eyes on his niece to be his successor once she is of age.

Donatello Hamato

In his late teens (I’d say shortly after When World Collide), Donatello was offered a golden opportunity he couldn't refuse. Offered by the Utrom Queen herself, he was given a position to work with the Utrom Council, along with working alongside many more intelligent scientists all across the galaxy, exchanging their knowledge and wisdom and working on grand experiments/inventions. This was basically like college for Donnie and soon he became a well known scientist, so much so that he became the Utrom Council’s trusted scientist and adviser for all Earth and Dimension X exchanges and trades, working alongside Bishop in the EPF.

Through his own hard work, Donnie achieved many great scientific accomplishments. Some include: Perfecting retro-mutagen and offering it to any mutants who desire to return to their old lives, finding and rebuilding Fugitoid (who now works with the Utrom Council), and curing Timothy’s mutation. With Timothy now back, Donnie continues training him to be a ninja (later Timothy moved on to being a student of Leo’s dojo so he can get more proper training) and Timothy also works as Donnie’s lab assistant. Donnie’s newest project he is working on is rebuilding Metalhead, creating Metalhead 2.0, with this one looking like a robotic version of himself that he one day plans to download his subconscious into and continue living his life as a robot after his death, the same thing Fugitoid did, but Fugitoid warns him that while he does get to continue his work for an entirety, eternal life as a robot is maddening. (If you can probably tell, this idea was inspired by Mutant Apocalypse Robo!Donnie, aka the only concept from that arc that I actually liked!). His robotic plans for his future justifiable makes his family uncomfortable, the idea of him living forever while they are long gone causing Donnie to rethink his future decisions, especially when he notices it starts to worry his beloved wife, April.

After a long complicated “will they, won’t they?” and teen awkwardness, Donnie and April get together in their early adult life, with Donnie properly confessing his feelings to April before she goes off to college (check out April’s part to know a little more about that). The two happily dated throughout April’s college years and after she graduated, they got married, with Donnie being the second (and only other) brother to get married. The couple now happily live together in April’s apartment in New York, close by to his brothers, Leo and Mikey. The newly married couple are happy together and appreciate what they have and look forward to what the future has in store for them.

(Also sorry Apriltello shippers, but they never have children, the writers themselves confirmed that Donnie and April would never have kids together because it's “impossible and weird”. Their words, not mine!)

Raphael Hamato

With almost all of their greatest enemies defeated and now living in an era of peace, Raphael now lives a domestic life outside the city, a lifestyle everyone, even himself, never thought he would have. Most thought Raph would live a vigilante life, fighting criminals till the end of his days, but instead he settled down and started a family of his own. Being the first of his siblings to get married, Raphael married his true love, Mona Lisa, during his early 20s and as a wedding gift from April, now live together at April’s farmhouse, along with Chompy Picasso (who has grown quite big, the size of a large dog). Shortly after their wedding, the young couple was blessed with a daughter, a perfect mutant-turtle-alien-salamander hybrid. The news shocked everyone, for a new generation of mutants has started, hybrids! Raphael was overjoyed for he always deep down wanted to become a father and start a family of his own, but always thought it would never happen for who would want to be with a mutant freak like him? Mona Lisa proved him wrong.

After the birth of their daughter, Raph and Mona both decided to take a break from fighting criminals to focus on being parents and raising their child, but that doesn't mean they gave up fighting completely. The two still train in their free time, which is little when taking care of a 1 ½ year old. The couple plan to one day to fully train their daughter to become a strong fighter like them, even Leo has plans for his niece to one day be his successor and become the next leader and sensei of the Hamato clan once he retires, but for now, the couple want their daughter to enjoy her childhood, playing with Chompy and her uncles and aunts when they come by to visit. Raph and Mona plan to train their daughter once she reaches the age of six year old, the same age her father started training to become a ninja.

Raph works as the stay at home dad, while Mona Lisa continues her work with both the Mighty Mutanimals and for the Salamandrian military, so often that means she has to take trips off into space for short periods of time to send mission reports and other information. Sometimes, Raph joins her, despite hating space travel, so their daughter can see and spend time with Grandpa Sal. Something Raph finds important since he knows his daughter will never get to meet her other grandfather, Splinter, but he knows his father would be proud of the life and family he has now. Feeling at peace, Raphael is satisfied with the life and family he now has, but unknown to him, his family is soon going to become bigger for Mona Lisa is pregnant with their second child. Spoilers: it's a boy!

Michelangelo Hamato

During most of his teen years, Michelangelo would often sneak out to help Mr. Murakami in his restaurant, whether it's preparing food/ingredients for tomorrow or cleaning up. This went on for many years and the two bonded. Tragically, Mr. Murakami died a few years prior and it was discovered in Murakami’s will that he left his restaurant to Mikey. Mikey now owns Mr. Murakami’s restaurant and with the help of his sous chef, Ice Cream Kitty, it has become the most popular restaurant in New York and the first to serve both humans and mutants. In his free time Mikey also hosts cooking classes.

Michelangelo lives in the lair with his brother, Leonardo. As the only ones who never left home, Leo and Mikey have a closer bond with each other, but still remain in contact with Donnie and visit Raph in the countryside as well as see their niece. As for Mikey’s love life, he and Renet (who is now a fully trained and professional time master) dated for some time, but sadly the relationship didn’t last. Renet knew she couldn’t have a serious committed relationship with Mikey because of the different time periods they are from and her busy job, and Mikey wasn’t ready for a committed relationship, so the two both agreed to break up and stay good friends, but that doesn’t stop them from having a friends with benefits relationship whenever Renet comes to his time period for a visit. Mikey never marries or becomes a parent himself, but he absolutely adores his niece and spoils her to the point of it annoying Raph and often plays/babysits her all the time. He’s the fun uncle.

Michelangelo is also the biggest activist when it comes to fighting for mutants being accepted into civilization. With his restaurant he proves that mutants and humans can coexist peacefully. Mikey also is the head of rebuilding the Undercity (remember that abandoned underground city below the sewers?). With the help of the Mighty Mutanimals (who play a big part in Mikey’s campaigns and organization) the Undercity is will soon become a safe civilization for mutants to live in away from humans who have not yet accepted them (think of it like the Yokai city in rottmnt). With his restaurant, fighting for mutants rights, and head of rebuilding the Undercity, Mikey is considered the busiest and most hard working of his brothers and has gained the highest respect and admiration to all of mutant kind. They often refer to him as “The Holy Chalupa”.

April O’Neil

Before heading off to college (she majored in Journalism btw), Donnie confessed his feelings to April. April admits to him that for a while she had feelings for him too, but was never ready to confront them during those times, scared of commitment, not wanting to ruin their friendship, etc. It wasn’t until the Aeon crystal controlled her and nearly killed Donnie that April realized how much she loves and cares for him, but after that she feared it was too late and he moved on, but her doubts were proven wrong when he confessed his feelings to her. The two began their relationship while April went to college, eventually getting an internship at Channel 6 News. Shortly after graduating, April was offered an official job at Channel 6 and her and Donnie got married (She caught the bouquet at Raph and Mona’s wedding which inspired Donnie to propose a year later).

April’s psychic powers (that she has now mastered thanks to training with the Utrom Council) and ninja skills become useful for her job at Channel 6, getting the best stories and scoops that no other reporter can get. She also loves spending time with her niece, often being Raph and Mona’s babysitter, or co-babysitting with Mikey. And as for the mystery of her mother, April did her own search and finally learned the truth. Her mother was dead, killed by the Kraang during their experiments shortly after she was captured when April was little. The news broke April and also her father, but at the same time put the O’Neil family at peace, finally knowing the truth and no longer having to live a life of fear and wonder. April now lives with a peace of mind, mastering her powers, but still always ready to learn new skills to help others in her life.

Casey Jones

With April and Donnie getting together, Casey was happy for them, for in a way he knew she’d choose Donnie in the end. But in the beginning it was awkward for them, so Casey began keeping his distance from the couple for a while. Casey eventually left New York for a few years, going to college out of state with a hockey scholarship, only visiting his turtle friends and family in the city during breaks and holidays. While at school, Casey met a young woman who works at the local diner near his college (for comic fans, yes it’s Gabrielle), the two fell in love and began dating while they both attended the same university. Casey graduated from college with a business degree and shortly after discovered his college sweetheart was pregnant. The two quickly eloped and moved back to New York to raise their son, and for Casey to start his own business, a car mechanic shop (Casey found his passion in mechanics and car repair thanks to Donnie during the ep Race with the Demon in S3).

Finally back in New York with his wife and new born son, and his car repair business thriving, Casey reunites with Turtles and most importantly rekindles his friendship with April and Donnie. Casey’s life of mutants and aliens was a life his wife wasn’t expecting her husband to have (he kept it a secret from her for most of when they were dating) and at first she feared the Turtles, but slowly she became friends with them. During the day Casey works at his shop, while at night he continues his vigilante gig, something his wife disapproves of, worried that his desire to stop criminals will one day get him killed (a fear that will sadly eventually lead to his marriage’s downfall). Casey assures her that will never happen and he will be careful, but he wife still continues to worry. Casey and Raph are still best friends and hang out in their free time. Most of their hangouts involve playdates with their kids. Casey always jokes that maybe one day his son (who is now 2) will marry Raph’s daughter. Raph hates that idea. Despite some road bumps and challenges Casey still faces in his life, if you ask him, he’s living the dream!

Karai Hamato

After the official death of Shredder, Karai took the opportunity to reclaim the Foot Clan as hers and began rebuilding it to have a more honorable name. She moved back to Japan, keeping in touch with her brothers and visiting them often as she can, with her second in command/fiancée Shinigami (they got together shortly after Kavaxas’ defeat, with Shinigami confessing her feelings to Karai and she happily reciprocated). As mentioned in Leo’s section, Karai joins up in monthly meetings with Leo and Slash to discuss updates and other important subjects within their teams as a part of their alliance. The three all have a strong friendship and alliance for each other their teams.

In honor of her real father, Hamato Yoshi, Karai legally changed her last name back to Hamato, but decided to keep the name Karai. This was her symbolism to honor her family name and father, while also not erasing the memories of her past with Shredder and what led her to become who she is today. With hearing of Leo’s plan of having their niece be his heir of the Hamato Clan, this also inspires Karai to one day consider her and Shini having an heir of their own for the Foot Clan. In the mean time, Karai continues her hard work leading her still growing clan. With Shredder gone, Karai is happily free and the Foot Clan will be a proud and honorable name once again!

Bonus Lighting Round!

Slash continues leading the Mighty Mutanimals while also helping Mikey with his big projects of rebuilding the Undercity as a safe place for mutants to live in and live regular lives. As of now, he runs a small community for newly created mutants with no homes to live in peacefully until the Undercity is complete.

Leatherhead helps Mikey in his restaurant and attends his cooking classes, while Mondo Gecko is Mikey’s number one customer.

Alopex has a 4 year old son from a previous relationship with a mutant who later abandoned her and their child. Her and Tiger Claw are on better terms with each other now, but there is still some tension between the siblings that needs more time to heal. She is now living in New York and her and Slash are dating.

Sal Commander retired and is living a life of relaxing peace, and he also enjoys when his former lieutenant and “grandchildren” come to visit.

Fishface moved back to home in Brazil and continues living life as a common street thief. He formed his own street gang of thugs and is referred to as “The King of Thieves”.

Bebop and Rocksteady are living somewhere in New Jersey working as antiheroes. They’re happily married and adopted 3 mutant children, their names are Koya, Hob, and Sheena.

As for the villains, they are either arrested by the Utrom, dead, or declared a truce with the turtles and friends.

417 notes · View notes

ctrl-alt-cel · 1 year

Note

top ten puppyshipping fics?

so thrilled about this ask...unfortunately i cant give you a list of puppyshipping top 10 without taking like 3 months to reread every joukai fic ive ever loved, but i can give you a handful that ive enjoyed recently!!

Second Chance Christmas by Elexcia (30k)

ex-husbands joey and kaiba are forced to spend the holidays together after 3 years of co-parenting and scrupulously avoiding each other. (atticus and alexis are their kids and its the cutest thing ever!!!!) theres a ton of adorable family shenanigans & how much joey and kaiba work together to ensure atticus and alexis have happy childhoods free from their own personal baggage, mixed with the most heartwrenching late-night conversations between joey and kaiba bc despite everything, they still love each other, but they remember the pain it brought them and don't know if they can endure that again. the emotions and uncertainties are so raw oftentimes i will remember a quote from this fic and my heart will ache all over again its so fcking good!!! its been on my mind ever since i read it!!!

Meeting upon the threshold by Alecto (2.6k)

"kaiba has always been his own worst enemy" -- dsod!kaiba's dimension hopping lands him in an alternate timeline and face-to-face with a version of himself he doesn't recognize. this will always be the quintessential puppyshipping fic to me omg.. the amount of characterization covered in the brief interactions the two kaibas have is spectacular, and its so cool seeing just how different dsod!kaiba's dimension is compared to a dimension where kaiba chooses jounouchi instead. hell yeah

Double Date by thegraeyone (7.2k)

GOD this fic is so funny. kaiba tries so hard to have one normal, business-related work dinner with pegasus, but pegasus is more interested in having a double date between kaiba and his boyfriend joey + pegasus with his boyfriend bandit keith, and like, what else can kaiba do? for the sake of his company, he needs to play along with the most disasterous dinner date of his life if he wants pegasus to sign a damn contract already..!!!! the comedic potential for this specific set of characters makes me lose my mind & theres so many sweet moments within the fic too. i love it so much

Most Thrilling by Alecto (1.8k)

another funny fic! a cute moment with joey visiting his boyfriend kaiba during a lunch break, and silly conversations on how kaiba really does play to win. i love the brand of slight unhinged-ness kaiba has here in regards to jou omg... kaiba is intense when it comes to everything, of course that would include his dating life😭 & i adore how he manages to come across as infuriatingly romantic in his own type of way

The Weight of Water by phant0m (2.2k)

a gentle character piece, jounouchi has just moved out from the apartment he shares with his father, and for all the newfound freedom it should entail, he feels guilty about it more than anything. thankfully his boyfriend kaiba is there to stand by him. it's a kind look into the more somber parts of jou's character and i love the scene it sets :( oh my god jou and kaiba love each other so much..!!! *dies*

Shards by jirluven (2.9k)

more hurt/comfort >:) jounouchi flinches. kaiba isn't supposed to know what it means, its one of the unbroachable topics of their close yet purposely ambiguous relationship, but they both know each other far too well for that. i really enjoy how kaiba's perspective is written, with how he's most comfortable when he's logic-ing things out and surrounded by things he can easily categorize, but hes long given up on trying to categorize jounouchi, and its most evident when pushing himself into the unfamiliar territory of tactfully trying to comfort someone he cares about

Debt to Society by Elexcia (16k)

tech acquisitions lawyer seto kaiba is sentenced to 200 hours of community service after a barfight with rival lawyer & long-time nuisance ziegfried von schroder. to meet those hours, he's assigned to represent children in court as their legal advocate with social worker joey wheeler acting as his supervisor >:) (also featuring judge yugi & the doma arc kids!!) i think this setup is genius omg. with kaiba acting as a protector for underrepresented and vulnerable kids, of course his own personal (and messy) feelings are going to get involved whether he likes it or not!!! plus i love fics where jou and kaiba are colleagues working towards the same goal and moments where kaiba has to trust in and respect joey's skills. and i cant lie. seeing a worldly joey who's good with kids is an absolute treat

Lapse by AndroideQL (4.2k)

blossoming workplace romance!! jou is kaiba's assistant (yes, everyone is surprised about this outcome too) jou & kaiba are undoubtedly attracted to each other, but theres a couple of (important!!) things about it that theyre not entirely on the same page about. the banter and familiarity jou and kaiba have with each other in this fic is sooo charmingly affectionate, and there are several exchanges that make me laugh every single time. its a refreshing and cute fic that has me hopeful knowing that no matter what communication issues they get up to, they'll eventually get their shit straight

Small and Insignificant Things by Lafae (1.6k)

one more for the office romance train >:) joey, kaiba, and the conundrum of getting a good picture for your photo ID. short and sweet boyfriend shennanigans, i love how joey & kaiba play off of each other during these mundane moments between their hectic schedules and i feel like it perfectly captures the excitement of a fresh relationship and fondly discovering the more trivial details about your partner

Working My Way Back to You by SerenaJones (10k)

during an argument between jou and kaiba, jou angrily states that he wishes they never met. kaiba soon finds himself in a universe where they never did, and meets a rougher, more abrasive jounouchi who never quit his gang who just may be the key to his way back. the worldbuilding in this fic is super cool and extensively fleshed out! its so fascinating to experience how different the cast of yugioh and domino city itself would have become if canon had played out differently, and the interactions between kaiba and a jounouchi who isn't his jounouchi but is just charming is so much fun

Orpheus and Eurydice by saiikavon (3.4k)

post-dsod joey dies while chasing kaiba into the afterlife, and by the title, you can probably imagine what kaiba has to do to get him back. very fun kaiba characterization/study here, with how quick and confident he is to challenge death itself and rebuff anything that gets in his way. and! a bit of spoilers but i love when jou gets to be a little mean (lovingly!!!!) to kaiba hehehe

#answered #puppyshipping #fic recs #ngl i think this specific selection of fics is on the tame end haha just for general rec purposes #most of my favorite kj fics are ones where their characterizations r pushed to extremes via intense situations #but ive noticed that theres an extent to how many dramatics u can pull before less genre-savvy audiences start getting scared💀#i love them all really....oughh

97 notes · View notes

goodluckclove · 3 months

Text

Blind Trust Intro!

Hi! I'm a tumblr n00b and I'm not sure if my page updated so I'm throwing this here too! I'm Clove and i am a Write Shape with a Medium-Sized Word Pile I'm self-publishing soon! Read the pitch below! You can read the first 35 pages for NO MONEY and it would MAKE ME HAPPY!

Let's be friends? I have two more books of asexual intimacy and death-positive eldritch madness to share with you!

In this world, magic exists - either granted through birth, or achieved through effort and years of academic study. Rules and answers are hard to determine for certain, and those who claim to know what they’re talking about might have a deeper agenda in mind. All that is certain is that power exists, mainly to a minor degree, but occasionally to devastating effects. But nature has a way of balancing itself out.

Two children are born in a soul bond, meaning they are two parts of the same origin. They were meant to develop together, but something pushed them apart and forced them to develop into two separate and complete human beings. Now, decades later, they are Edgar Gallows, a recent escapee from Academic witchcraft looking to create a life for himself for the very first time, and Scott Skylark Kaufner, a vagabond from a birthright witch town with the soul purpose of finding his literal “soulmate”.

The power Scott was born with is slowly feeding off him, and time is running thin before it takes him over completely. When he finally does meet his long-lost Better Half, what will happen? Can they work out their pasts to create a future for themselves and those they care about? Or will the immense potential of their broken bond burn down the world as it so desperately wants to?

Blind Trust is book one of the Bluerose Trilogy. It’s an asexual romance and comfortcore urban fantasy with elements of trauma healing and a strong emphasis on intimacy and love in all its many forms. It contains an intersex protagonist, an agender protagonist (they won't know till book two but the egg cracks here) and two sapphic side characters. It has a taste of cosmic horror, and two characters that canonically still play Runescape.

Blind Trust will be released for purchase June 20th, but you can read the first chapter here!

#asexual #agender #writerscommunity #asexuality #aspec #asexual representation #nonbinary #intersex #queer community #self publishing #writers on tumblr #author

9 notes · View notes

avaantares · 8 months

Note

📓

Oooh, so now comes the hard part: Deciding which story to share!

The truth is, I have a huge folder of story ideas and WIPs, some of which are just a document with a line or two of notes reminding me of the story's premise. A finite amount of writing time guarantees that most of these stories -- while fully developed in my head -- will never see the light of day. This means I have at least a dozen fics that could fall into the category of "haven't written but you've daydreamed about."

(Of course, this also means that if multiple people send me 📓, at least I won't run out of material... 😅)

Okay -- I've picked one on the basis of @iamtheshriekingguineapig bringing it up AGAIN a day or two ago. (That will teach me to tell her I have story ideas for fandoms she likes, LOL. Maybe if I post the treatment, she'll be happy with that?)

The fandom is Devil May Cry, and this is one of those stories that has the potential to be so big and sprawling that I haven't even bothered making notes for it, because unless we get hit with another pandemic (please no), I will never, ever have time to write it. (See also: Children of the Future Age, my 330K behemoth that was only, like, 60 or 80K until I was stuck in lockdown for a year and a half.) But despite the lack of written outline, this is one of those things that just lived in the back of my head long enough that I mentally scripted entire scenes and blocks of dialogue for it while doing the dishes or whatever.

Here goes:

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

Lucia (who makes an appearance because I got SO MANY COMMENTS on CotFA asking me why she wasn't in the story >.<) gathers the DMC team and informs them that a new -- or possibly ancient, but recently awakened -- evil threatens the safety of the human realm. Lucia remains in the human realm to coordinate teams of devil hunters and deal with the rogue demons who have grown agitated due to the rising malice. Nico stays behind with her, outfitting the hunter teams and engineering defensive systems and weapons to protect human cities from the encroaching demons. The rest of Team DMC (a.k.a. our main cast, inclusive of Vergil) head for the underworld to deal with the malevolent energy at its source.

During their search, the hunters discover a massive star-shaped array stretching across miles of the underworld. The array is generating an impenetrable shield around something at its center, which is likely the source of the demonic energy. In order to gain access, they need to disable the seals at each corner of the array, which are the shield's anchor points. Only when all five are disabled will the shield fall, allowing them to confront the evil creature staging a comeback.

The team splits up for efficiency (and because I mentally structured this story in true video game format, with each area a "level" that characters proceed through, culminating in a boss fight). Dante, Vergil, Nero, Trish, and Lady each head for a different seal. Dante suggests making it a contest to see who can disable their seal the fastest. Never one to let a challenge go unescalated, Vergil makes a parting crack about finishing the final fight himself before the others have even returned to the center of the array.

Combat and stuff happens (I'm condensing for space!) as they make their way through their respective regions. Ultimately, as each hunter finishes off the area boss, they discover that at the center of each seal is another layer of shielding containing a power source. The objects generating the power for the greater array are arcane artifacts. Weapons. Amulets. Old, but not necessarily ancient, though they have clearly seen extensive use. And... oddly familiar, for some of the hunters.

Nero is the only one who doesn't find an artifact at the core of his seal. Instead, when he breaks through the inner shield, he finds an old man imprisoned in the array -- a human, possibly a former hunter by the looks of him. Like Dante and Vergil, his hair is white, though Nero isn't sure if that's because of his age or because he shares their unique heritage. The man's athletic build hints at his former strength, but he's been weakened and aged by the constant power drain. His memory, too, seems to have suffered -- that, or he's being deliberately cagey with his answers. It's hard to say. At any rate, he doesn't give Nero a name by which to call him. He thinks he's been trapped in the array for several years, but time moves strangely in the underworld, and he had no real frame of reference for its passage. What he wants now is to find his way back to the human realm, though he's not sure where the access points linking the two worlds have migrated to in the time he's been imprisoned.

Nero knows there's a major battle ahead and doesn't want to be slowed down, but his conscience won't allow him to leave a weak, helpless old man to fend for himself in the underworld, so he helps him stand and offers to escort him to some place that, if not entirely safe, is at least moderately deserted and well away from the energy-draining apparatus. His plan is to stash the old man somewhere and then pick him up on the way out of the underworld after they take out the Big Bad at the center.

The stranger keeps up with Nero fairly well for someone in his condition, and the longer he's out of the array, the healthier he looks. Nero decides the man is not quite as old as he originally guessed, though he doesn't stop calling him things like "gramps" in place of his missing name. For his part, the man seems very interested in Nero himself, asking questions about the devil hunting business, and then about Fortuna and Red Grave City when he learns Nero is familiar with both. Nero is cautious with his answers, but he can't fault the other man for feeling him out -- or for wanting to speak to another person after being imprisoned for so long -- so he makes polite conversation. It's not like there's anything else to do while they're slogging through the underworld.

Upon learning that Red Grave was nearly destroyed, the stranger falls silent for a while. It's not until they meet up with Lady, returning from her own seal-breaking mission, that he rouses. Lady has retrieved a Devil Arm from her seal, a pair of gauntlets that, while undeniably powerful, is of little use to herself (a dex-based ranger human) or Nero (who already has his own devil power-augmented arm). The stranger asks if he might use them, since he currently has no weapons. This confirms to Nero that the man isn't entirely human -- Devil Arms won't allow just anyone to utilize them -- but he can't think of any reason not to let the guy have some means of protecting himself. At minimum, it will make him feel less guilty about ditching the man while the rest of them go off to fight the Evil Thing.

The stranger expresses the same kind of polite curiosity about Lady that he did with Nero, though he seems more particularly interested in her heritage than her present circumstances. Lady gets a little tetchy when he prods her about her lineage one too many times. In an effort to keep the peace, Nero interrupts to suggest they pick up the pace, or Vergil really will take on the final boss before they've caught up.

The stranger definitely reacts to that name. When he recovers, he feigns polite curiosity and asks who this Vergil is. "My old man," Nero replies, with a hint of vinegar because their relationship is still (understandably) fraught. "He's a hunter, too. He and his brother are down here with us."

The stranger controls his outward reaction to this statement a little better, but he's obviously very interested. Before he can ask more, Lady, still agitated from the probing about her parents, adds a sarcastic remark about Vergil only being a hunter when it suits him -- in between laying waste to entire cities.

The man stops dead and asks her to explain that, which she does: "Vergil's the one who destroyed Red Grave City. Again. Though to be fair, Dante and I managed to stop him, the first time around. He only wiped out one borough back then. But let me tell you, the wholesale district was never the same after Temen-ni-gru punched a hole in Market Square." She sobers. "But even that was nothing compared to what the Qliphoth did. He killed thousands of innocent people when he released that thing."

The man's reaction to this information is difficult to read, but decidedly not happy. He insists that they take him to meet Vergil. Nero balks and suggests that it would be better for him to wait someplace out of harm's way; there will be time for him to meet everyone after they've dealt with the main event. The man says no, he will see Vergil now, and for the first time Nero gets the sense that he may have really, really underestimated this "helpless old man." Because this is clearly somebody who is used to being obeyed, and he does not like repeating himself -- and probably has more than enough power to back it up, when he hasn't been used as a human (or not) battery for who knows how many years.

Lady clearly gets the same vibe, and Nero sees her shift into a defensive stance. But before things can escalate further, they're hailed by Trish, who has finished her own seal mission and detoured to join them when she saw the group coming across the demonic wasteland.

The stranger sees Trish.

And that's when things get... interesting.

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

So, yeah, that's my fic about where Sparda has been for all these years and why there's been no trace of him, and the whole setup is just a petri dish for more angst (Sparda learning of Eva's death and having to deal with Trish's presence, which is probably even more jarring to him than it would have been to Dante; Vergil having to face his father after he Done Messed Up Big Time), comedy (Nero having a cognitive meltdown after realizing he's been calling the OG Savior "gramps," and then having another one when he realizes the OG Savior actually is his grandfather), and family feels (Sparda finding out he has a grandson! Who is the goodest boi! Even if he is the son of Elder Son Who Done Messed Up Big Time). Which is why it promises to be another CotFA if I let it, and why I really, really, really don't have time to write it. 😅

(I am also fully aware that with the right treatment, this could potentially work as a sequel to CotFA, which I fielded a question about last week... but it all comes back to time and energy. Sigh.)

#devil may cry #dmc #fanfiction #writing #my writing #children of the future age & friends #ask game

15 notes · View notes

taizi · 1 year

Text

I posted 5,607 times in 2022

224 posts created (4%)

5,383 posts reblogged (96%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@irldothewindything

@applejee

@elytrians

@americankimchi

@lady-lancer

I tagged 5,605 of my posts in 2022

#text - 2,041 posts

#rottmnt - 392 posts

#video - 362 posts

#op - 338 posts

#blah - 195 posts

#critters - 174 posts

#mdzs - 168 posts

#ghibli - 136 posts

#star wars - 107 posts

#dc - 95 posts

Longest Tag: 130 characters

#and it’s like even if technically this is a virus that is causing people to hunt and eat each other u can still call it what it is

My Top Posts in 2022:

If you’d like another Rise prompt, maybe something about Donnie’s battleshell? If that’s too vague, maybe its origins, or maybe what Splinter thinks about it?

this is also set in the human splinter au <3

When Donatello was a baby, Yoshi didn’t worry quite as much about his soft shell. He and his brothers were all the same sort of fragile, questionable mutation and its potential effects aside, and Yoshi panicked over each of them an equal amount.

They played hard. They always wanted to climb and run and tumble. Yoshi is inclined to blame the ooze that psychotic goat-man alchemist pumped them full of, because blaming him is neat and comfortable and makes Yoshi feel warm inside.

But Yoshi has also spent a not-insignificant amount of his fortune on parenting books and magazine subscriptions, and according to the experts, children are just tiny crazy people who will run at full-speed into a wall multiple times for no reason.

Which is fine. Yoshi has been a papa for almost four years now and it’s quite possible that he’ll never want to be anything else ever again for as long as he lives. His boys have secured their place in his heart and no amount of broken windows or crayon-scribbled walls or gutted kitchen appliances (???) will change that.

The problem is that Donatello’s shell doesn’t afford him the same protection that his brothers’ do. He’s as fast and strong as the other three, and easily twice as smart, but he’s just not as hardy.

Yoshi has no idea what he would do without his credit card and his talent manager-turned-reluctant-godmother. Between the two of them, he has an answer for everything.

“I don’t want to,” Donatello announces before Yoshi has even opened his mouth.

“You don’t want to go roller-skating?” he says, affecting a tone of complete surprise. It causes Donatello’s chubby face to fold into an epic pout, which is adorable, which makes up for how frustrating he can be when he digs his little heels in about something.

“No, papa, I want to go. But I don’t want to wear that dum-dum thing.”

“Your Auntie Hala is going to cry for days and days when I tell her how much you hate the present she got you,” Yoshi tells him solemnly.

Donatello considers this. Then he says, “Don’t tell her.”

Ah, logic Yoshi can’t actually find fault with. He never would have guessed he’d spend his early thirties losing so many arguments with a turtle toddler.

“You are wise beyond your years,” he says, wondering what it will look like when Donatello is a teenager, and whether or not Yoshi will survive it.

The ‘dum-dum thing’ in question is a modified back brace, meant for children with spinal disorders. Yoshi is pretty sure this qualifies. The reason Donatello hates it so much is the modifications Yoshi made to it; namely, the memory foam cover for his leathery carapace. It’s bulky and it slows him down and he hates falling behind the other three. Lately he’s taken to sitting out of their games because he would rather tinker by himself than wear the brace.

Yoshi is a little worried about that. He hasn’t come up with a way to make everyone happy yet, and he’s losing sleep trying to figure it out.

Leonardo pokes his head through the doorway. “Papa you said we were going,” he whines. “How come we’re not?”

“Negotiations have broken down,” Yoshi says, kneading his forehead with his palm.

“Dunno what that is,” Leonardo declares and visibly puts it out of his mind as not his problem. “Don-don, come on. We’re gonna skate.”

“No,” Donatello declares. His mouth is screwed up, brow furrowed, fully ready to be a little monster about it. “I don’t want to go if I have to wear the dumb fake shell.”

Leonardo tips his head to one side, considering this. It’s no secret to his brothers that Donatello has no fondness for the brace. This usually culminates in one or three of them helping him to escape it, and then hiding it somewhere stupid for Yoshi to find like the world’s worst Easter Egg hunt.

“We’re twins,” Leonardo says with all the unyielding certainty of a schoolteacher discussing matters with an obstinate child. “So we have to share. I’ll wear it, and then Donnie will wear it, and then it’s fair.”

Somehow—Yoshi can’t believe this, but somehow the logic goes to work. Donatello’s expression shifts from mullish to thoughtful. The most stubborn little treasure in Yoshi’s entire life is giving ground.

“It’s fair,” he agrees. He and Leonardo turn their big brown eyes up to Yoshi expectantly.

Honestly, Yoshi can’t believe he’s not going to have to wrestle Donatello into the brace for once in their lives. He’s a little embarrassed his second youngest child thought of this neat little solution before him. It costs him absolutely nothing to agree, and he straps the brace onto Leonardo’s back instead. When they get to the rink, one that Yoshi has unapologetically rented out for the afternoon so his kids can play freely, they’ll switch, and Donatello will wear it while the four of them turn inline skating into a contact sport.

And nearly a decade down the road, when Donatello is building advanced technology the way other kids his age are building blanket forts out of the couch cushions and Yoshi’s best sheets (re: his siblings) and he has long-since traded the brace for an armored shell of his own design, he goes from absolutely refusing to put it on to pretty much never letting anyone see him without it, ever, or else.

Because no son of Yoshi’s would understand the idea of a happy middle ground. It’s all or nothing, go big or go home in this house.

This is when the twin thing continues to save the day.

See the full post

140 notes - Posted November 2, 2022

all the things that i could live without

rise of the tmnt pairing: don & leo word count: 1349 title borrowed from if i didn’t have you by banners post-movie

read on ao3

“Hamato Donatello,” Leo said, his even tone riding the line of good humor and sternness both. “How much shell time have you had today?”

Donnie pointedly doesn’t look up from his iPad. Making eye contact in these moments is too risky. Leo can clock a lie with such accuracy that Donnie thinks it must be a secondary mutation or something, because it certainly isn't natural. The only reason any of them get away with anything is because Donnie’s twin is an agent of chaos, more likely to encourage their stupidity than put a kibosh on it.

Shell time, however, is one of Those Things Leo Takes Very Seriously.

“Scoff,” Donnie says. “I’ll take a break in a minute, I want to finish reading this dissertation I found about chronic musculoskeletal pain and physiotherapy. Not all of it can be applied to us, given that it’s written by humans for humans, but—”

“Dude, it’s like four PM.” Leo’s tone has made its choice, leaning away from amused and into firm. Nooo. “You’re not gonna be able to sleep tonight if you don’t stretch out soon.”

“And I will, soon,” Don replies. It’s the pinnacle of absurdity that they’re talking about his stupid spine when Leo is the one recovering from multiple traumatic injuries.

Leo doesn’t think so, because of course he doesn’t. He’s like a dog with a bone. His persistent personality has saved all their shells more than a dozen times but that doesn’t mean Donnie has to like it when it’s aimed against him.

“We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” the slider says with no small amount of showmanship.

Despite himself, Donnie glances up from his tablet. He can feel himself go soft to match his dumb shell, even if it doesn’t show on his face. He loves Leo so much, even when Leo’s being his absolute worst self, and right now Leo is being his best. Warmth unspools like fiber cable in Donnie’s chest, prickly and sparking.

They came so close to losing him. What would they have done without him? It’s frightening to think about. For once in his life, Donnie doesn’t want to know.

He sits back in his chair, ignoring the twinge in his lower back the way he’s ignored it for the past three hours, and says, “What does the hard way look like?”

“You’re gonna hate it.”

“Color me intrigued.”

Leo shrugs and starts to lift himself up. The infirmary bed is raised at an angle, to help Leo breathe and reduce the risk of pneumonia that has kept Don awake at night, but now he’s pushing himself upright all the way, kicking at his blanket with the foot that isn’t casted.

“Oh my god, stop, I hate it,” Donnie blurts, all but flinging his tablet aside in his rush to put an end to this nightmare. “You win, you monster!”

Smugly, Leo says, “I always win. Even when I lose.”

“Oh, you must be feeling better,” Don tells him, easing him back down with gentle hands that don’t match his annoyed tone. “Because once again, you are completely delusional.”

It earns him a chuckle, a wheezing shade of what should have been a loud, lively thing, but it feels like a victory anyway. Don will take it. He won’t let it go.

Leo pats the bed beside him. Donnie sighs performatively, but he’s turtle enough to admit when he’s been outplayed.

The battle shell disengages with a hiss of hydraulics and he sets it aside. It’s such an immediate relief to work out his shoulders, and twist his fragile spine, that he maybe should have taken it off earlier, after all.

“Bring your tablet over here,” Leo says. “I wanna watch that baking show where no one knows what they’re doing.”

Donnie settles in beside him, and he doesn’t outwardly fuss the way Raph and Mikey and Casey all do, but he’s very, very careful behind the casual manner. His brother’s body was so broken, almost beyond repair. He has months of recovery left, and as the team medic, Leo knows that.

But he did what he did for the sake of his family and now he just wants to be close to them. He doesn’t want to be shut away in the infirmary and tiptoed around and hugged so gingerly that the mean voice in his brain is able to convince him that the space and distance and reluctant touches are because he did something wrong.

That mean inner voice that Leo sometimes listens to is as much his siblings’ sworn enemy as the Shredder ever was.

So, after a clan meeting taken when Leo was finally, fitfully asleep, and one educational screening of Patch Adams that made Casey and Raph both cry, they decided to forgo all the values of traditional medicine and give Leo what he needed instead.

They’re hardier than baseline humans are, and if the Krang couldn’t kill Leo in its own dimension than it’s likely nothing can, and these are the arguments Leo makes to be allowed out of bed.

See the full post

156 notes - Posted September 15, 2022

for what it’s worth, it was worth all the while

rise of the tmnt pairing: raph & everyone, raph & casey word count: 2153 title borrowed from good riddance by green day post-movie

read on ao3

Leo’s arms squeeze tight around them for three seconds, four—and then they fall loose. He slumps forward and would have hit the ground if Donnie and Mikey didn’t scramble to support his sudden deadweight.

They push him back upright, and then ease him into a careful lean against Raph’s cracked plastron. Raph wraps sore hands carefully around Leo’s slim shoulders, hyper-aware of every cut and bruise on his little brother’s battered body.

Leo’s head lolls as if he’s asleep, or—as if he’s asleep.

The giddy relief of an extremely close victory drains away in favor of fear. All three of them are shaking with the leftover dregs of adrenaline.

“What’s wrong with him?” Mikey asks shrilly. He’s clutching Leo’s arm like he doesn’t trust Leo to remain solid if he lets go.

“You want that list alphabetically or in descending order of how much each issue complicates my life?” Donnie replies shortly, lowering the lenses of his goggles over his eyes.

If it were anyone else, Raph and Mikey both would have snapped at the inappropriately irreverent tone—but it’s Donatello. They know how he wears his worry. Whatever he’s picking up with his scan, it’s causing his lips to thin, and lines to tighten around his eyes.

He’s an engineer, not a medic—Leo fills that uncredited role—but Donnie is Leo’s usual extra set of hands in the infirmary, so he picked up a thing or two. Raph can tell, from the careful, deliberate way he touches his twin’s neck and feels around the base of his skull, that Donnie is mentally rehearsing everything he knows about head trauma and spinal injuries.

“It should be safe to move him,” he finally says, sitting back on his heels. Absolutely none of that worry, poorly moonlighting as dispassion, has left his eyes. “I want him back home in the medbay immediately. Like, a week ago immediately. But,” he adds, uncomfortable being the voice of comfort and doing his best with it regardless, “he’ll be okay.”

It’s like Raph’s shell was too tight right up until that moment, crushing his lungs and restricting his air. And now he can breathe again.

“Of course he will,” he chokes out.

“It’s not a medbay if it’s not on a spaceship,” Mikey replies absently, doing a decent job of sounding like he’s not on the verge of hysterics as he helps tuck Leo safely into the crook of Raph’s arm. “You normally just call it the spa.”

“Ninety-nine percent of the time we only use that room for mud masks and manicures. So sue me.”

“Alright,” Raph butts in, not unkindly, “we can argue about it later. I’m sure Leo will have some key points to add. Donnie, the tank is out of commission for the time being—do you have any other ride you could call for us? If not, we might need to, uh—borrow one.”

He can’t even bring himself to feel guilty about it. He would do a lot worse than steal a car for his family, even if it sets a bad example. Donnie’s frown deepens as he taps on his holo-gauntlet, which Raph takes as a sign that he doesn’t actually have a secret fleet of vehicles he can summon from now that most of his tech has been soundly smashed by the Krang.

“Way ahead of you, mister,” a voice chimes in from the comms, and as one, the turtles glance at the glowing emblem on Raph’s forearm.

“April?” Mikey’s voice shoots upwards gladly. “Hey! You’re okay!”

“Of course I am, what’s a little city-wide alien invasion? I went to public school. And you boys need to update me pronto! Splints and I have been losing our minds over here! We got Leo back?”

“Yeah, we got him,” Raph affirms. He holds Leo a little tighter. They very nearly almost didn’t get him. “You can thank Mikey for that.”

Their sister makes a choked noise, what was clearly a sob before she strangled it into submission. “Angelo, you’re getting one helluva hug from me the second I see you. Brace yourself, baby.”

“Consider me braced,” Mikey says. His smile is shaky, but he manages to keep it.

“We just picked up Future Boy, and we’re on our way to you now. Give us two shakes—maybe three. Traffic’s kind of not great.”

“Ten-four, Apricot,” Donnie says, and then the comm goes silent, and the three of them just sort of look at each other.

With help on the way, and nothing to do but wait, there’s time for the hurts they’ve been too busy for to finally settle in.

Raph can barely keep his right eye open, it burns so much. His left shoulder is a solid ache. Mikey’s hands are still shaking, and Raph thinks maybe it has less to do with adrenaline than he thought, and more to do with that golden portal he tore open out of sheer stubborn, inexhaustible love. And Donnie is sitting in that tense, stiff way he only does when his battle shell is hurting more than it’s helping, his mouth set in a firm line that Raph knows means he’s gone nonverbal for the time being.

Still… still.

See the full post

164 notes - Posted August 22, 2022

Prompt: rise!Raph’s relationship with sweaters/jackets and how they always tear

Raph is twelve when he finally gets the jacket he’s been dreaming of forever—since he saw it in a magazine April left in the lair weeks and weeks ago.

Pops doesn’t usually go in for new clothes. They’re harder for him to get his hands on, and Raph can definitely understand his school of thought—new clothes would only stay new-ish for a handful of hours, given the rough way he and his brothers tumble around and play.

But Raph really wants this jacket. And he swears up and down that he’ll take care of it, he won’t practice ninja or skateboard or play in it.

April’s mom works at a big fancy department store and she’s happy to use her perks for one of her daughter’s best friends. Pops has lots of ‘savings’ leftover from his old job, even though he refuses to tell them what he used to do, no matter how much they pester him about it. So on Raph’s next birthday, he gets the jacket.

He’s so excited. Normally his presents are things that he and his siblings can all share—and he’s happy with that! He loves to share with them! But this is nice, too. Having something that’s just his.

“Put it on, Raph, let’s see!” April says eagerly over the sound of his brothers’ raucous cheering, so as soon as Splinter hands it over, Raph does.

And it rips.

He can hear the sound of shredding fabric. It seems impossibly loud. It shouldn’t cut through the noise of the party like it does, but it does. Everyone gets very quiet.

The thing is—Raph is built different, just like Donnie. But where Donnie is soft, Raph is sharp. He’s always had to be very careful with his brothers, because one wrong move and he could accidentally hurt them. He’s grown up that way, being careful of others. He forgets to be careful with himself.

“Red, it’s alright,” Pops says quickly, laying a hand on his arm. “We can get you a new one.”

But the same thing would just happen again, no matter how many replacements they buy him.

Raphael is the oldest, and he has to set a good example, and throwing a tantrum or bursting into tears at his birthday party isn’t a good example. So he wrestles for control of his expression and says, “Let me just stick this in my room real quick,” and then vanishes as quickly as he can so the sniffles don’t start until his siblings can’t hear him.

In his bedroom, he slides the jacket back off, wincing when the torn parts of the sleeves catch against his rough skin. He wants to throw it far away from him, but it's still a gift. He sets it down instead, folded inward so none of the tears show.

When Raph gets back to the atrium, he’s managed to come up with a grin, and he waves away his brothers’ worried glances. April has forced the party back into momentum by sheer force of her substantial willpower, though she does spare Raph a soft, big-sister-look that promises they’ll be talking about it later.

Years and years down the road, that particular birthday is a crystallized memory, one he thinks back on a lot. It’s the first time Raph remembers hating something about himself. But he also remembers that the feeling only survived until that same evening, a few hours later, when Leo poked his head through Raph’s bedroom door.

“Raph, c’mon, birthday dinner.”

It’s tradition, by now, for each of them to end their birthday with their favorite takeout at their favorite place in the underground, just the four of them. (This has to be negotiated days in advance of the twins’ birthday, because arguing for sport, and sometimes in song, is one of their favorite hobbies.) Raph’s is easy, though—the City Hall loop station, with its massive arched ceilings and the beautiful broken skylights. Donnie even gets the lights on for him, so the whole place is glowing and warm.

He can already smell pepperoni and garlic. He can hear Donnie and Mikey talking further down the hall, a little more subdued than usual. He should go out there since they’re waiting for him. He doesn’t want to disappoint them, but he isn’t sure if he can find a cheerful face to put on. He thinks he wants to just…stay in his room, maybe.

Then Leo says, “But can I please wear your jacket?? Please please pleaaaaase, Raphie?”

Raph blinks, glancing up at him. The gaping surprise makes his tear-sticky face feel funny.

“The one I just got? Leon, it’s—” Ruined, he can’t bring himself to say. He can’t even bring himself to look at it.

“The coolest thing ever, I know,” his little brother says enthusiastically, pushing the door open the rest of the way and hurrying inside. He snatches the jacket up off the back of the chair it’s resting on and holds it out at arms’ length, admiring the details. “Honestly—can I be honest with you? I didn’t think much of it at first, like, when I saw it in the magazine. But after your modifications?” He whistles low, something he learned to do specifically to annoy Donatello.

“Modifications?” Raph says uncertainly.

“Yeah! DIY style is big, you know! And ripped clothes are in.”

Leo slides the jacket on. It’s comically big on him, and the holes in the arms are mostly hidden by the way the fabric bunches up; the tears along the shoulders are more obvious. It does something unhappy to Raph’s stomach when he sees them.

But then Leo starts posing in the mirror, and pats himself down for a camera he doesn’t have, and hollers down the hallway for Donnie to come get a picture of him.

It must be cool if Leo thinks it’s cool.

“So?” Leo asks with those big puppy-dog eyes he taught Mikey when they were little, to absolutely everyone’s detriment and Leo’s eternal chagrin. “Can I, Raph?”

See the full post

205 notes - Posted October 20, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

have this <3

oh i LOVE this, their expressions are so MUCH, you pulled this scene directly from the story with absolute precision, thank you for the food 🥺😭🙏

248 notes - Posted October 17, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review #its been a very turtle-y year :)

4 notes · View notes

mormonbooks · 2 years

Text

Third Wheel: Peculiar Stories of Mormon Women in Love (Part 2)

Pilot Program by Melissa Leilani Larson

4/5 Stars

A play discussing one of the main things Latter-Day Saints try hard not to think about.

Summary: in a hypothetical future, Abigail and her husband Jacob as asked, by the leaders of the LDS church, to participate in an attempt to reinstate polygamy. They decide to invite Abigail's friend Heather to join their marriage. There is joy and struggle and acceptance while they all try to understand how to make a polygamist marriage work.

One thing I appreciated about Larson's approach to this topic is that Jacob was never painted as misogynistic or power hungry or evil for having two wives. He was a kind, generous, and thoughtful man who genuinely wanted to best for everyone involved. I feel like within the LDS church people often assume polygamist men must have viewed their wives as property and tried to collect as many as possible. Larson imagines that if polygamy were to be instituted within modern LDS culture, that would certainly not be the case. Equality among everyone was a prime concern throughout this play.

Well written: 4 stars. I thought the subject matter was handled well, and the language of Abigail's monologues was very poetic and beautiful. There were aspects of the plot that I felt didn't entirely make sense though. Maybe if I saw in on stage I would understand character's motivations more.

Fun level: 4 stars. It's a slice of life piece. There is tension but it's a low vibration throughout the text. It's a wonderful story but I don't know if I'd call it fun.

Complex faith: 3 stars. Each characters' faith and commitment to the LDS church is never questioned. It's clear that Abigail is working based on an almost blind faith in the desires of The Brethren. As soon as Heather feels the spirit, she lets go of her protests and decides to move forward with dating. Heather is a typical strong independent woman, but she admits that she is not completely happy single. Abigail feels her life is incomplete without children. They are women living outside of the ideal LDS life, but they both wish they had that ideal life we're all told we are supposed to want. There is certainly complexity and I don't you could in any way call this propaganda, but it also doesn't question if this was, in fact, what God desired of them.

Homophobia scale - 2 stars (5 being not homophobic at all). They never mentioned anything LGBTQ. Heteronormativity was assumed, even when broadening that into a 3 person relationship. I would've loved to see how this story would go if Abigail was a bi woman.

Mormon Weird - 4 stars. Just the presence of polygamy gives this a big boost in this area. That, and the causal mentions of calling, relief society, bishops, the description of a temple sealing etc. It may be strictly realistic fiction, but it's certainly not a story that any protestant could insert themselves into, it's a specifically Mormon story.

Diversity of Characters -3 stars. Like the last play, no ethnicities are ever mentioned, so this play could potentially be portrayed with a racially diverse cast, although I don't know if that's what the author had in mind. As mentioned above, there are no queer characters.

Other problematic elements - It is written as through the concept of polyamory doesn't exist, or at least the characters are not aware of it.

Conclusion: I love that this play exists and I wish that more people knew about it and talked about it. I have met girls who shudder in horror at the thought of polygamy, with good reason, but I think that it's an aspect of our history that deserves to be grappled with. Additionally, thinking about how LDS families would look if we embraced modern day polyamory is an interesting discussion. It's just a good story that asks a lot of good questions, and doesn't shy away from the fact that sharing a marriage is hard work.

#mormon books #pilot program #Melissa Leilani Larson #LDS church #religion #Mormon representation #polygamy #play #theatre #book review

2 notes · View notes

kywaslost · 2 years

Text

Newt x Teen!Sister!Reader Going Through Friend Troubles

A/N: The reader is 17 years old in this. I also don’t know what happened to Newt and Theseus’ parents so they’re dead in this. Sorry lol. Also, this may be absolutely terrible, I've been really not good lately and have been having friend issues so this just may seem like a jumbled mess.

Growing up as the youngest of the three Scamander children, you had a lot in common with your two older brothers. You had Theseus’ professionalism and longing for a major future career. You shared Newt’s love for science and magical creatures. You were a Hufflepuff just like your brothers and excelled in defense against the dark arts, potions, alchemy, care of magical creatures, and music. You shared Theseus’ strive to do well in school but had more of Newt’s personality. You were quiet by nature, being riddled with social anxiety so strong it caused you to be selectively mute until you were around 14 years old.

You didn’t have many friends growing up, many following your brother Newt around. He didn’t mind, seeing as he understood how making friends was hard for you. He’d let you help him with creatures he knew wouldn’t be any danger to you, and let you sit in his shed while he worked. Theseus, on the other hand, was not as understanding. He pressured you into going to events with him to try and get you used to the large crowds and potential friends. More often than not, this left you crying in the arms of your other brother as he calmed you down from an anxiety attack.

Now that you have just finished your final year at Hogwarts, you were able to go wherever you wanted. You chose to stick with the one person you had been with your entire life, Newt. He and Theseus were so happy to see you when they picked you up from the train station. You jumped into Theseus’ open arms, giving him a huge hug. When you let go, Newt was waiting for his hug. Your smile was so wide when you dove into him. Newt rarely gave or received hugs.

“I’m so proud of you Y/N,” he whispered in your ear. “More than you could ever know.”

“Thank you, both of you,” you said as you pulled away from Newt.

“What are you going to do now?” Theseus asked.

You looked between your two brothers, hesitating. “Well, um, I was wondering if I could stay with you, Newt?” It came out more like a question and a statement. Newt froze in shock and Theseus was confused.

“Why?” Your oldest brother asked. “Don’t you want to stay with me and get a job? That way you can study for whatever you want to be?”

“Um, I love science,” you confessed. “Sorry Theseus, but over the years I’ve learned that it’s something I’m interested in. I guess I get that from Newt. I’d love to travel with him and learn about all of his creatures and take care of them. Is it ok?” You looked to Newt, eyes filled with hope. You watched as he smiled widely and pulled you into a tight hug. This was so out of his character.

“Y/N, I’d be honored to have you travel with me,” he said happily.

That’s how you became even closer to your youngest older brother. You spent every day with him, helping him take care of his creatures and finding new ones. You kept a copy of his book with you everywhere. You must have read it thousand times to know everything you could about Newt’s creatures. While Newt traveled internationally, you stayed in his case. While he stayed home, you stayed in your bedroom. You spent a lot of time writing to your friends or going out with them. You all met every Friday night for weeks, spending time together. You’d come home late at night, so excited to tell Newt about what you had done with your friends. You’d run around looking for him, more often than not finding him in the depts of his suitcase. He wouldn’t admit it, but he’s so happy to hear you so excited. He knew how hard you tried to make friends, and after 14 years you found a group of people who accepted you and loved you. He loved to hear you talk about them and how happy they made you.

Except now you hadn’t been out with your friends for a month. Newt knew you were home every Friday night for the past four weeks but chose not to bring it up. Instead, he let you help him with his creatures. He kept a close eye on you to try and figure out how you were feeling about it all. Most nights you looked tired, so maybe you decided to stay home? Surely if there was something wrong you’d go to him, right?

On the first night you didn’t go out with them, you told him that your friends were busy and wouldn’t be able to make it. You were all supposed to go to the movies together, he knew. “We rescheduled it for next week,” you said happily. “Emily said she couldn’t make it this week and we didn’t want to watch it without her.” So instead of going to the movies, you stayed in with your brother, helping make dinner and feeding his creatures.

On the second night you stayed home, Newt found you asleep on the couch in his apartment. He shook your shoulder gently, waking you up. “Y/N, shouldn’t you be on your way with your friends?” he asked softly.

You rubbed your tired eyes and shook your head. “No, they rescheduled again. I guess everyone’s been busy this week. They’ve barely written to me.”

Newt frowned. “Oh, I’m sorry. Would you like to come to help me with my creatures?” Newt could tell you were a bit down, seeing as you hadn’t been able to see your friends in a while. He knew how the creatures always helped you feel better.

“Sure,” you said tiredly, sliding out of bed.

For the next week, Newt noticed how clingy you were becoming. You rarely left his side, following him around as he feeds his creatures or went to the store. If he was working in his shack on research or drawings, you were sitting on the cot in the room, reading a book or drawing your pictures. You weren’t saying much either. When you’d follow your brother around, you usually were talking away, rambling about what was going on in your book, or how much you hated this teacher and loved another. But now you were silent.

“I don’t know what to do Theseus,” Newt told his brother one day while visiting. Newt had told you he was going out for a bit but only received a quiet hum in response. “She goes out with her friends every Friday and writes to her friends every day. But now she stays home. I don’t mind, but I’m worried about her. Her friends don’t write to her anymore, and she’s not like she used to be.”

“Have you tried talking to her?” Theseus asked, rolling his eyes. “Remember how she was when mom and dad died? Kinda sounds like that’s happening all over again.”

“I don’t like seeing her so upset,” Newt confessed. “I want her to be happy.”

When Newt came back home, you were nowhere to be found. He searched everywhere in his apartment, but he couldn’t find you. He started to panic before realizing that his suitcase was left open on his bed. He had left it with you while he was gone. Sighing in some relief, he stepped into the case. When he reached the shack, he saw one of his nifflers running across his lab station. He picked it up by his hind legs, smiling softly.

“Trying to steal my tools again, I see,” he scolded playfully. The niffler huffed, his eyes narrowing. “Have you seen Y/N, perhaps?”

Newt felt a tug at his pants, looking down to see Dougal the demiguise gripping his pant leg. The creature reached up and took Newt’s hand.

“Hello Dougal,” Newt greeted. “Do you have something to show me?” The creature pulled Newt towards the door, and the wizard let him. Newt set his niffler down as he left the shack, watching the creature scurry off again. “Where are you taking me Dougal?” he asked. The creature gave no response, still dragging his friend along. They passed the occamy nest, bowtruckle tree, and Frank’s enclosure. As they passed the occamy next, Newt noticed one of the babies missing.

Dougal led Newt into the mooncalf enclosure, dragging him through the grassy terrain. Newt pet one of the mooncalves as he walked by, noticing the disappearance of many of them as well. As Newt was dragged further into the inclosure, he could hear all of the other mooncalves in that distance. Soon enough, he was lead to them by Dougal and the demiguise let go of his hand, running to the middle of the swarm of mooncalves. They parted, forming a pathway for the creature.

Newt panicked when he saw you sitting in the middle of the swarm of mooncalves, hugging your knees to your chest. Dougal had made his way to your side, sneaking his way under your arms and between your knees, hugging you. Your older brother snapped out of his panic, crouching down a few feet in front of you. He reached a hesitant hand out to you.

“Y/N, may I come over to you?” he asked softly. His eyes softened when he saw that you had silent tears streaming down your face. He only received a whimper in response. “Could you nod for me darling? I need to know what you’re comfortable with.” He moved toward you slowly when he saw your nod. The mooncalves moved so he could sit beside you. He placed his hand on your back but quickly drew it back when you flinched. He forgot how you didn’t like being touched. “I’m sorry.”

He sat with you in silence for a while as you cried. You huggled Dougal even tighter, and Newt noticed the concerned look in the creatures eyes when he looked at him. After calming down, you hesitantly leaned towards your brother. “Newt?” His heart shattered at how your voice cracked, soft with emotion.

“Yes, love?”

“Hmm,” you whimpered again, scooting over to Newt and leaning into his side. Your brother let you get comfortable.

“May I touch you?” he asked softly. You nodded, clinging to Newt’s shirt. Dougal still hung around your neck, the weight on your chest helping to ground you. Newt ran a hand up and down your back. “What’s the matter love? What is troubling you?” He pressed a kiss to the top of your head.

“I think my friends don’t want me around anymore,” you said into his shirt.

“What makes you think that, darling?”

“They haven’t written to me in a little over a week, and I think they are all meeting without me.”

“I’m sorry you feel this way,” Newt said. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

“Can you stay here, just for a bit?” you asked shyly.

“Of course darling,” Newt smiled. “Did I ever tell you the story of how I found Picket?”

Later that night, Newt made sure you got to bed safely, assuring himself you were safe and asleep in your room before he went to bed himself. He closed your door softly and went to his room, changing into his night clothes. Making sure he’s creatures were alright one last time, Newt locked his case and set it on the floor beside his bed. Crawling under the covers, he grabbed a book off of his bedside table, deciding to do a bit of reading before going to sleep.

Only an hour passes before Newt hears a soft knocking on his bedroom door. It creaks open and he catches a glimps of tired blue eyes and messy golden-brown hair. “Y/N?” The door openes even more and you step into the room, hugging your favorite stuffed animal that your brothers got for you when you were little. You slept with it every night. “What’s the matter love?”

“Can I stay in here?” you asked hesitantly.

“Of course love.”

During the following week Newt noticed how you barely left your room. He’d come in and sit with you when he could, taking a seat near your window and reading. You enjoyed the company, but little was said between the two of you.

Newt came home from the grocery store one day, noticing his suitcase was left open again. After putting the groceries away, he stepped into the suitcase. As he walked through all of the enclosures, all of his creatures were accounted for. He continued to walk around for a while until he heard a voice coming from the demiguise enclosure.

“I don’t know Dougal,” he heard. “I just feel like none of my friends want me around anymore. We used to talk and hang out all the time, and now I’m just kinda out of the picture.” Newt walked around a tree and saw you sitting on the base of a different tree, Dougal sitting beside you. You didn’t notice your older brother near you, so you continued to talk. “I don’t know how I feel about it honestly. I know our friend group isn’t falling apart. I just feel like I’ve been drifting away from them a bit. Did you know that they all went to go watch that movie without me? Yeah, I know. And no one has offered to come watch it with me. For all they know I’m watching it by myself. I just don’t get it Dougal.” The creature nuzzled into her hand, then hugged her.

“You and Dougal have a special relationship,” Newt said softly, walking over to sit next to you.

“Newt, I didn’t know you were home,” you commented. “Sorry, I just needed someone to talk to while you were gone, and Dougal is a good listener.”

“I’m truly sorry about your friends,” Newt said. “I know how much they mean to you. And I know making friends isn’t easy for you either.” He ruffled your hair. “You get that from me. But that’s why I have all of my creatures. Sometimes they’re better friends than a human could ever be.”

You leaned against Newt. “Thanks, big bro. And yeah, Dougal never leaves me on delivered.” The two of you chuckled. “I guess it doesn’t really matter if I have friends. I have you. You and Theseus are all I need.”

#newt scamander #newt scamander x reader comfort #fantastic beasts #fantastic beasts and where to find them #fantastic beast the secrets of dumbledore #fantastic beasts the crimes of grindlewald #theseus scamander #scamander family #scamander reader #friend issues

145 notes · View notes

al-hekima-madara-blog · 2 years

Text

"Hashirama when did I go wrong ?" 1/2 : Dominate your inner demon

Madara analysis

Since Hashirama is not available, let me put on my therapist coat even if I'm just supposed to be your lawyer.

Madara Uchiha is a difficult character to picture without his context. Even when I read AU fanfiction with him, it's almost impossible to escape his past as a child soldier and warlord. He is literally the product of his time. The loss of every single members of his family was not something he could control (even if he falsely thought so) Many people would had gone berserk if they loose everything dear to them. I'll go berserk too. The difference with us and him, he got the willpower to set ablaze everything in his path. But let's try to decontextualise him (because yeah I got nothing else to do that torturing my mind!) and looking for some of his own mistakes. Let's go !

As often in Kishimoto's work a character's goal is giving to us in their childhood.

For Naruto it was about being Hokage and recognize by all. How ? By working hard while you are a loser and making friends while everyone despise you.

Hashirama wanted to reach peace. How? being strong enough to be heard while he lacks authority and leadership and build a village for children with a bunch of people hating each other for generations.

In Madara's case, reaching peace and protect his family/clan how? Being the strongest and find a way to read people's guts.

And there is his first mistake in my opinion. He reached his greatest potential alone, thanks to his hard work and his natural genius talent. But totally gave up the second part: How to read people's guts, in other words how to trust people.

At first like everyone I've found his inability to pee in front of people quite hilarious. But after a while I was wondering if this detail was not hiding a phobia resulting from a trauma. His conscience overcompensate his weakness by being hyper-vigilante. It's a defence mechanism which serve him well in combat.He is the only Uchiha having a two-faced susanoo, or limbo clones who were invisible and watched his back in this dimension and others. But stress my words he never confronted his weakness, he used it as a tool. And the older he got the heavier his weakness was obvious for those who can see * wink wink Black Zetsu *

Considering the Warring state era, his behaviour might be a PTSD. What did cause the trauma could be anything : stress of sudden attack as a toddler, loosing someone dear in his back, being stab in his back, being betrayed by an other uchiha. Being attack while peeing 🤔? We can only guess.

Time passing this « fear of having someone behind his back » leads to be a social handicap as an adult and as a ninja.

He could not trust anyone expect his brother and only after years of hesitation Hashirama. Ok so... he had one friend in 90 years of life time ?

He could not properly collaborate with other clans, we saw Senjus having strong relationship with Uzumaki clan to the point of marriage, the strongest alliance possible when you fuse two bloodlines. I'm not an Hashirama stan but I admit that he is a great politician. You know what always baffled me? The scene where Madara brought Hashirama to the Uchiha's tablet and explained that opposite working together can give great happiness. I don't know if it's because I'm a woman but I thought immediately about marrying a little senju, inbreed her with 5 to 6 babies. With a bit of chance one will get mokuton or sharingan or rinnegan. Safe bet. Then he rises his offspring who will naturally follow his lead and perpetuate his ambition after him. You can tell he didn't have a single female friends to advise him, and that Konoha didn't offer matrimonial service.

He could not learn from other people, what he got was always by force or stealing information. Hashirama most likely further his knowledges in fuinjutsu from his wife Mito and learned Sage mode with an unknown master outside of the Senju clan.

He couldn't not see other vision that what he experienced himself.

He couldn't see his own limitations, and his arrogance blinded his judgement. Ironic for the most powerful sharingan possessor !

He hardened his heart because he never acknowledged his needs for emotional balance. Family, friendship, in his case, is fundamental to his mental stability and a place where he can lower his warlord's mask, being vulnerable, being just human.

Lost his ability to social interaction. To start with, it was not fabulous but after 60 years in a cave he was really impossible to deal with. How come even Obito who was so kind and helpful to elders still ended up to be suspicious to him while it was so easy to manipulate a child to be your most loyal ally. He saved his life and share the same clan heritage. Obito should have been an easy and docile follower if only he wasn't so blunt. But he failed because mistrust attracts mistrust.

There is so much hidden message under the fear of people behind oneself back but that's how I visualise it :

The fact that there is real artists living and breathing on tumblr and I'm shamelessly showing off my poor paint skills makes me feel kind of bold😁

He enrolled himself in self-defeating prophecy where everything is suspicious and everything may betray him. He failed to be the saviour he though he was because he never challenged his biggest fear : his trust issue, the fright of the Unknown. In contrast, Naruto fought and dominated his own demon (Kurama) and even befriend him. It was scary, painful and long but it was worth it. Madara who once controlled and summoned Kyuubi as his personal little pet, was surprised when he saw what Naruto can do when cooperating with Kurama (sharing chakra and protecting a whole army) while himself back in the days was never able to do such thing and wouldn't even think about it because you know... he was fighting alone ! An other time during the war he couldn't believe the fives nations can work together because he never believed in collaboration. He even couldn't believe that Konoha foundation could attract more clans because he is so self-centered to his own experience.

Pwahaha it's soooo long, I don't understand what happened to me... 😵🤓Ok next in part 2 here "Hashirama, when did I go wrong ?" 2/2 Breath your spirit into the mud

And if you want to read more about my Madara's analysis follow me in my main page here

#Al Hekima post #madara uchiha #Madara analysis #naruto analysis #madara #uchiha clan #Hashirama #Naruto #the founders era #warring states era #naruto shippuden #naruto fandom #character breakdown

133 notes · View notes

blushing-titan · 3 years

Text

My reasons to ship Erehisu

About two weeks ago, I got an anonymous ask that reads:

what made you ship erehisu? I don't ship anyone in the series (and defo not eremika lol) and I want to understand the reasons

...but when I tried to answer it on my app, it turned out that I can only post 10 pictures per post, so I decided to make a longer, regular one with my thoughts on this topic 😄 Erehisu remains one of my favorite ships in the series (...with the other ones being Yumi/hisu and Levi/han), so I really enjoy talking about it (...well, at least I did, before I started moving away from the series after that mess of a finale). Without further ado, my reasons to ship Erehisu are under the cut (just a quick warning: the pictures are obviously not mine, and there are some anti-eremika themes in this post).

They had an actual developement

As we know: in the beginning, Historia was pretending to be this good, selfless girl Krista. Later on, we learn that Eren was not particularly fond of her façade (...keep in mind he was the only person who noticed that she was acting off, too - obviously excluding Ymir, who was Historia's closest person and knew about her secret). As Historia chooses to embrace her identity and stop pretending, his opinion on her changes - he reassures her and appreciates the real Historia.

You’re just normal. Just a normal girl who’s absurdly honest. (Eren, ch. 54)

Eren...that day...the time you called me...normal. That made me really...happy. (Historia, ch. 65)

Later on, after Historia saves Eren in the Reiss cave, his thoughts on her change even further. There isn't just something that he likes about her anymore - instead, he starts to actually admire her strength and actions.

(ch. 68)

(ch. 70)

Even further on, he prioritizes her safety and hides an important piece of information that could help Paradis' cause - only because it could potentially put Historia in harm's way.

(ch. 89)

(ch. 90)

(ch. 106)

Keep in mind that there was a time skip in between these chapters, which means Eren kept this secret for years. He hid it even from Armin and Mikasa. After it's finally revealed, he strongly disagrees with, and fights against Historia becoming a titan for the sake of the island. Eren’s sentiment towards Historia is even noticed by Hanji on a few different occasions - it’s something that Hanji brings up while questioning him, later on.

(ch. 107)

Eren also meets Historia in secret, warns her of danger, and downright doesn't let her sacrifice herself - even when she assures him that she's ready to do it.

(ch. 130)

She's also one of the only people with whom he shares the information about the rumbling. He also brings up her own words that she said to him back in the Reiss cave.

(ch. 130)

I believe he doesn't fight for her just because she's one of his friends. It's a natural progression that comes from the shared experience they had in the Reiss cave. Eren got to know and appreciate the real Historia, so whenever she reverts back to the Krista persona, he's there to remind her that she should live for herself and don't let others use her - just like Ymir told her, and just like Historia told him in the Reiss cave. When Eren stands up for Historia in ch. 107 and blatantly refuses to let her get sacrificed, she's actually touched to the point of tearing up.

Their relationship changes and deepens with time, and it's actually shown in the manga - not just as symbols or small hints, but actual, full-fledged conversations/actions. In my opinion, this should be the base of any well-estabilished ship. We have quite a few one-on-one moments with these two that illustrate this progression. There are also panels in which we can peak into Eren's thoughts on Historia, which makes for an unfiltered source of his opinions on her.

They can relate to each other

Something I find really important as well is that Eren and Historia can find each other very relatable, and therefore - understand each other's struggles better.

Both were used by their fathers, and both caused their demise. Both were fiercely protected by someone. Both felt like the world would be better without them, at some point. Both had a big role to play, despite having doubts if they can do it right (Eren, being humanity's titan; Historia, being the queen). Both wanted to sacrifice themselves for their people's sake - and both intervened, saving each other from actually going through with this decision.

Their relationship is well-balanced

Eren and Historia don't clash when it comes to their personalities. As their relationship grows, they mutually admire, protect and motivate each other, while still remaining two separate characters - with their own goals and traits. They freely talk to each other about their struggles; they also care about each other’s actual feelings on them.

(ch. 54)

(ch. 70)

I can easily see them as partners, which is something I've always had troubles with when it comes to EM. It's just hard not to make this comparison, since Mikasa's character has always been pretty much fully centered around Eren, which - in my eyes - made their relationship look unbalanced and toxic. I've already spoke about my issues with EM in depth in this post, so I won't elongate this one with repeating the same arguments - still, one of the reasons I started shipping Erehisu in the first place is the fact that I immediately saw it as a much more normal, healthy, and well-balanced alternative to EM.

Parallels and relevance to the story’s themes

Parallels are something that, for some reason, make a lot of people mad. I have no idea why - these things appear in the manga, so why not talk about them?

Aside from parallels between Eren and Historia (...please, keep in mind that I didn’t list all of them in this post), there are also a lot of obvious parallels between Historia and the founder Ymir - to the point, when the entire Requiem der Morgenröte ending revolves around this theme:

youtube

I've also already spoke about how Ymir/Historia parallels could possibly be tied to Eren in this answer.

(Historia on the cover of vol. 16/Ymir in ch. 122)

Aside from that, there are a few subtle Grisha/Dina and Eren/Historia parallels, as well. Historia is a royal, hiding as a regular person - just like Dina did, before joining the revivalists. Dina also tears up when Grisha stands up for Eldians, just like Historia does when Eren stands up for her.

(ch. 68)

(ch. 86)

(ch. 67)

(ch. 86)

(ch. 56)

(ch. 86)

(ch. 107)

(ch. 86)

Quite interestingly, in a lot of these parallels Historia and Eren act in an opposite way as to previous generations. While Frida teaches Historia to be a good, selfless girl, Historia ends up abandoning this persona to save herself and Eren in the Reiss cave. She doesn’t want to devote herself to fate - instead, she’s prepared for a showdown with it. While the founder Ymir’s children are ordered to eat their own mother to ensure her power’s succession (...and a few hundred years later, Grisha fights to return the founder’s power back to his wife - Dina), Eren does everything he can to ensure Historia and her children are safe and never even titanised in the first place.

As the story unfolds, we learn about it’s leading themes - some of which are: oppression and fighting for freedom, desire to change history, the mechanism of circle of hate, and how it affects children who are a part of it. In my eyes, Erehisu just perfectly fit with these themes, especially considering how later on Historia’s pregnancy was handled in the manga.

There were countless ways to answer the who’s the father question? immediately, without even starting up conversation about it - for example, I don’t understand why it was needed to bring up the fact that Historia didn’t marry the farmer in the first place. What was it’s purpose, aside from stirring up theories - especially considering how in the last chapter it’s revealed that they are married, after all? Why end up the Eren/Historia flashback on the What do you think about me having a child? question, when the whole conversation they had beforehand was literally about Eren disagreeing with Historia wanting to get pregnant just to save herself? It doesn’t make sense, and led me (and many other readers - judging from opinions I read online and chapter reactions on youtube) to belive that there were other reasons, and that there was more to this conversation then was initially shown.

If the conclusion to this plotline was always supposed to be that she got pregnant just to save herself...then what was this mysterious built-up for? Why show this conversation in the first place, and in such a weird manner, too? Why not have Historia just say it out loud in ch. 130: yes, I got pregnant to save myself in the beginning, and spare us this whole I will not allow it talk...you know, instead of ending the conversation on the What do you think about me having a child? when the whole previous talk was about Eren fighting against it? Where’s the logic?

The truth is - from my perspective, Erehisu had a lot of logical build up that would benefit the story, and stay true to it’s already established themes and both characters’ previous developement. On top of that, I also think they simply had great chemistry.

That’s all from me today 😄 I apologize you had to wait so long for this, anon...life got in the way, and as I said - I think I’m just getting over this series. Hope you’re doing well anyway 😊

#erehisu #erekuri #eren x historia #SnK Spoilers #snk shipping #snk rant #anti eremika #aot 139 #aot spoilers #attack on titan #snk manga #historia reiss #eren jeager #shingeki no kyojin

252 notes · View notes

ahjustroza · 3 years

Note

I saw a hc post abt how Last Legacy love interests react to MC actually going back to Earth,so can I ask some hcs abt this one? I'm curious of what you come up with!!

I actually made the same request to @lucigucci !!

For this ask, I had to play the entire game once again because I couldn't come up with anything. Hope you'll like it!

MC Going Back to Earth Headcanon

Warning: Sad feelings and pain...

Anisa

Before giving in to her emotions she will make sure to not miss anything important for your return to Earth

She'll check with important magical necessaries for the portal

Check if you have everything you would possibly need

If you ate well

Will check twice everything she prepared for you to take with you to remember her

She will also give you the Orlando postcard

It is important to her but also you two shared many memories together talking about Earth looking at the postcard

She knows when you visit Orlando you will remember her

After she is done with everything

The realization of you actually leaving her will hit her HARD

She knew you for only months but fell for you in a way with no return

You became her breath

The meaning, the cause she wanted to live further

The center of her life

Her priority

Her peace

Her shelter, and safe place

If only she could stay in your arms for a little longer...

If only she could find a way to see you again

The smell your scent while she buried her nose to your neck

To your hair...

She misses you always

Even for a couple of minutes without you within her eyesight makes her feel troubled

She misses you to death before even you leave her...

She will use all her strength to not cry in front of you

But the moment you hugged her and kissed her the last time she broke

She never struggled like this

Never felt hurt like this

The devs mentioned that each character will have multiple endings, so I headcanon two different happy endings in this situation

One is being Anisa letting you go while she stays in Astraea

She knows that she might not be able to fit in

You are people of two different worlds

Quite literally

And it shows

Anisa however will never love again after you

She will refuse every potential partner both in her romantic life or in her bed

She will confess her feelings for you and give you her hair ribbon as well as the most painfully mesmerizing kiss...

The other ending being Anisa leaving Astraea with you.

She is half-human and can tell people that her marks on her face are tattoos on Earth

She will see this as an opportunity to start a new life

Without the guilt of who her parents are and what they have done

Without the danger of magical monsters or assassins tracking her all around

She is smart, a quick learner, and curious about Earth

With your support, she can get used to life on Earth and get a job

I am thirsty for Anisa as a workout or martial art trainer

But I can also see her going to college and finish it quicker than expected to work in a school

Counselor Anisa

You two will travel the world together

No matter the lifestyle you live Anisa is happy

She doesn't need a lot of money

All she needs is you

Also another surprise, she doesn't miss Astraea one bit

You are what she calls home now.

Sage

I am a Sage hoe myself but I can't see him leave Astraea with you

He can't fit in to Earth

He has to be free and living on Earth means he has to follow so many rules that he struggles to understand

Also Sage will absolutely refuse to leave Tulsi behind

There are only two people he actually cares about in this world

You and Tulsi

You two are his family and home

He is a family guy

And oh my god does he want to make his family larger secretly

Sage is a character that struggles with emotional confessions

He is also a good liar

So even tho he wants a future with you

If you want children, raise your children together (adopted/surrogacy/biological/a found family...)

Finally settling down and actually live in a home

Sage will experience the feeling of home with you the first time

He never felt safer and not worried about being vulnerable to someone

Having family dinners, family meetings with auntie Tulsi...

Celebrating anniversaries

Getting yourselves in trouble and moving to a different town

Even though he would fight the gods themselves to have this future with you, he will not tell you to stay

He will not say anything at all

He'll watch you and make sure to prepare everything for your return

And to make sure of your security during the process

You will look into his eyes each passing hour, hoping him to say something

Anything

But he will not

He'll only give you his signature soft half-smile with tired eyes

He will drink the entire day before your depart

Spend the whole night with you

Watch you sleep

Memorize your face

Your body

Will listen to your breathing

He will take everything he can get to never forget you

Also, cry too

Silently

Without you noticing

Tears will fall down to the pillow one by one

He wants to scream and tell you to stay but he can't force you to do anything you don't want

Any word out of his mouth might make you change your mind and do the opposite of what you want to do

You have a family too and you have to see them

A life you have to return to...

So if you don't say that you want to stay he will stay silent forever

If you choose to leave, do give him something to remind him of you

A necklace? Your laser pointer? Your foam sword?

He will carry whatever you give him with him

Always

Until the day he dies

Let's say you gave him a necklace, anyone who knew you will feel the pain in Sage when they see him still wearing the necklace after all those years...

He will never love again. It was a one-time thing.

He will not open up to anyone

He will not let anyone see the real Sage the way you did

He might have bed partners but it is not emotional

He is in pain and will either drink or throw himself somewhere to spend the night without thinking anything

But that can only happen if he is too drunk to remember what happened the night before

If you choose to stay, he will feel relieved

Guilty too but mostly relieved

He will build the future he desires with you

But will also look for ways to make you visit Earth and come back

Felix

I don't think Felix can fit in the Earth either

He grew up as the Arcmage's son and spent all his life studying magic

He can't live in a world where magic doesn't exist

He can't live a lifestyle where he will have to learn everything anew

I just think he is too sensitive for our world.

But unlike Sage and Anisa, Felix will ask you to stay

He'll ask you to stay and live a crazy but full of love life with him

He'll promise to take care of you since he is filthy rich

Then admit his fears of losing another lover

If you decide to leave he will feel betrayed and abandoned at first

He'll cry, then disappear for a while, then appear and tell you that you gave him a lot of hope

And disappear once again

He'll get drunk and then cry loudly too...

After Rime, you taught him how to love again

You made him feel safe and supported

Accepted for who he is...

You taught him how to properly love someone

No toxicity

No lies

No rivalry

He only wants to sleep in a bed in your arms around him not wake up for years

The idea of you leaving him hurts like someone stabs a dagger into his heart

He'll start to believe that this is his cruel destiny

To be the one stays while the other leave

He wants to follow you but he knows he can't live with you on Earth

He couldn't even fit in his own house yet...

Once he cooled down he'll admit how important your life back at home to you

And how it is his fault to steal that life away from you by bringing you to Astraea

He will open the portal for you himself

He is not trusting anyone else for this work

Before you leave he will tell you that he loves you and promise to never forget you

Here comes the pain

But he might fall in love again after you

You will always have a different place in his heart and in his memories though!

Felix did try to bring someone he fell for back from death then fall in love with someone else

I just think he will be more flexible with what life brings in front of him

And get even more depressed with time...

If you accept his offer and choose to stay his eyes will see nothing but you from that day and forward

You are officially his spouse now, no ceremony necessary

You will go on the vacation you both need and deserve then get a house to live together

You two will be the scary power couple

People will talk about you two as "the small necromancer and his spouse- yes the spouse. They are the one that fought the Lord of Shadows and the undead Rime. I also heard they got a relic the moment they stepped on Astraea- I KNOW it is crazy..."

Felix will share everything he owns with you, even his thoughts

He is so open to you that he knows you understand him the best

#fictif felix #fictif anisa #fictif sage #fictif last legacy #fictif games #sage last legacy #sage lesath #sage headcanons #felix escellun #last legacy felix #anisa anka #anisa last legacy #anisa headcanons #felix headcanons #last legacy headcanons #some writing

174 notes · View notes

sanjiafsincedayone · 3 years

Text

Why SaNa over other ships?

Now, this is not to hate on other ships or downplay them, because what shipping really comes down to is often simply preference. What characters or dynamics you enjoy and what reasons you might have for liking different things.

No, this is simply my own reasons for why I like SaNa and also why I think they could make sense and thirdly why it’s possible Oda could be setting it up to actually happen in canon. It’s all just my views and I apologize if I forget a moment or add something that is more head canon, but again, this is my reasons and they will always be partially biased. (And there are too many to remember them all properly, so if you want to add feel welcome to do so.)

I think Sanji and Nami is a lovely ship even based just on fan content and the community. But we also get some great moments in the manga, and I personally think there is potential for Oda to make an actual romance work between them.

1. Why I like Sanji and Nami

I personally fell in love with Sanji before I even started to watch or read One Piece, simply based on his voice actor (Hiroaki Hirata), his design and his fighting style. So obviously I already have a bias towards Sanji (SanjiAFsincedayone having a bias towards Sanji? Who knew?). I didn’t ship Sanji with Nami from the start and even now I am a multi shipper who enjoys fan content with Sanji as a main part of several pairs, most prominently ZoSan.

So, when did I fall for SaNa then? Well, I have talked about it in various posts before which you can find in my Masterpost - SanjiAFsincedayone, but for me shipping Sanji and Nami more seriously didn’t start until Thriller Bark.

Sanji took a knife in the back for her as she is dressed in a wedding dress, even this one scene is enough to explain why someone might like to ship them together.

I for sure saw many SaNa moments before that, and felt Nami seemed special to Sanji, but I didn’t think it would have a big chance of happening and I preferred other ships above it when consuming fan material. Again, shipping is after all mostly fantasy and wanting more of something in a romantic/sexual way. Thriller Bark was when Sanji and Nami’s interactions caught my attention properly and I started to look a bit closer and actually note the way Oda wrote them and their moments. Going back after and rereading I think there is a lot of interesting things even before that. But the wedding theme and bridal carry and how Oda showed them in Thriller Bark was just too on the nose to ignore.

What got me into shipping Sanji with Nami were mainly three things.

1. Their dynamics getting more interesting over time and Sanji and Nami being two of the most well written and interesting characters in One Piece. 2. Sanji consistently seeming to have a preference for Nami in combination with my belief that he is after true love and isn’t just a pervert forever doomed to be alone. 3. The manga showing the potential of it actually happening and them finally catching my attention in Thriller Bark. Basically there are moments to follow and look at in the actual story as well, which in turn also leads to more fan content and material for shippers.

So point 1 and 2 really is mostly about my preference and how much I enjoy watching them together and how well I imagine they would fit together. I think their personalities and desires overlap well with them being able to understand and compromise for each other while aslo being on a similar level of intelligence and communication. They also have their kindness and empathy as a highlighted shared theme for their characters.

Them talking about the Children in Punk Hazard or Sanji helping Nami turn in the argument between both Luffy and Vivi and Luffy and Usopp are some examples. Or Nami letting Sanji smoke in her body because she knows how hard it is for him. Small gestures like this show both understanding and a willingness to compromise.

I think they are fun and have a relationship that right now might need working on, but it’s clear how much they care for each other and how they actually appriciate each other a lot.

Simply put I think they are interesting together and I think they could work as a romantic couple in the future, where their dreams and family oriented views migh allign. Again, from how I view them as characters and interpret their wants and possible futures I think Sanji and Nami is a good match. They can have a restaurant either traveling the world or docked close to both Cocoyashi and Zeff, Nami can tend to her mikans together with Sanji and they can manage a restaurant for a living. I also think they are the most parental members in the crew and has shown some possible signs of wanting to settle down with families. This would also work well as a final contrast to their less than happy childhoods (You might also want to check out my post (Part 3) Sanji x Nami hints - Thematic parallels).

There is a lot of potential in their dynamics and how different they seem while they also seem willing to adapt and try to understand each other that make them interesting as characters of romantic plots. At the same time they have enough in common to relate to each other and work well together. Again, as a fictional ship within the fandom there is a lot of great artists, writers etc. that truly explore them and make Sanji and Nami a great and fun ship with an active fandom to engage with.

Of course there are more shallow reasons like them matching in age and being good-looking but really I could ship Sanji with almost any woman if it was only about the looks. I mean, Purin is basically made to be a perfect match for Sanji, but I personally find his dynamic with Nami much more interesting and his dedication to Nami is of course unpraralleled thanks to the time Oda has spent on them over many years.

I love Sanji and Nami as individual characters and with the amount of moments between them there is also a lot to explore and enjoy in the manga. It makes them interesting in a third aspect for me, which is of course analysis and the potential of them actually ending up together and looking closer at the way Oda writes them from a story perspective. For me what we have gotten from Oda in terms of Sanji x Nami moments is very interesting and I see potential there even though it would need more development to truly work for the current story.

But, again shipping doesn’t have to mean anything for the actual story... There are crack ships or slash ships that surely will never happen but that could still be great and fun to explore for the fans. Honestly, everyone is free to ship whatever they want. We all have different taste after all.

So, what about the manga then?

2. Why do I think they could make sense as a romantic couple even in canon?

First, my own view is that Sanji is someone who seeks true love, and as briefly shown with both Violet and Purin it seems like he would take an actual relationship seriously if given the chance. I also think it would make him happy and thus as Oda might want to create happy resolutions for the strawhats I think Sanji ending up with someone has quite a big chance of happening. This is combination with his preference for Nami and in turn Nami truly caring for him (though not yet in a romantic way) is something that makes me think it could happen. Other ships have potential too depending on how Oda decides to develop them, but considering how he keeps adding moments for SaNa in the way he does as of now I still think SaNa is the most likely ship for Sanji.

As I mentioned earlier I also think Nami has shown some possible inclinations for wanting a family (or at least being a great mother if we look at her with children in many arc, not the least Punk Hazard) and maybe even getting married eventually.

If she ends up with someone we will need to see a more obvious attraction and want for romance from her no matter what ship we might consider. She has at this point not shown a lot, but I do think the thematic parallels she shares with Sanji in combination with how their moments are written has the potential to grow into something more.

As a romantic pair I think Sanji and Nami would be happy, he would adore her and take care of her and both of them would probably find that ideal. In fact it’s already a big part of their dynamics and seem to make them both happy. They also seem to try to understand and show interest in knowing each other as seen with several scenes and general attention towards each other’s backstories. They also challange each other in different ways and we have seen them compromise a few times. I think compared to many other relationship in the manga Oda has shown more personal moments between them. So a romantic additional aspect is not too far off. Not that Oda would make it happen now, but that he would lay down the groundwork for it to work by the end of the series.

In short I think they would make each other happy, but also challange and grow thanks to the other. I think their dreams of traveling the world with Nami drawing her map and Sanji cooking on all the seas and finding All Blue and then settiling down together close to both their “homes” in East Blue with a restaurant and family seems to fit them both. It wouldn’t always be easy, but I think they would actually enjoy their dynamics with Nami bossing Sanji around most of the time.

Now this all sounds nice and all, but it’s of course just my imagination based on biased interpretations of the manga. So where do I get it from?

3. The way SaNa is portrayed by Oda

Now this is really the biggest point... Because again, I can ship whatever characters I want and it is just for fun. It doesn’t have to happen for me to enjoy it or I wouldn’t ship Sanji with Zoro. But with Sanji and Nami there are legit reasons in addition to my preference that makes me think it could happen in the manga.

It might take years to actually go through it all in order with my additional interpretations, but I will try to go through the basics themes and moments that to me could indicate SaNa over any other Sanji or Namji ship.

I think the obvious thing to talk about first is simply how Sanji definitely has a romantic (and sexual) interest in Nami. No matter what other character you might see with either of them, this has been shown consistantly over the whole manga. You may argue that Sanji might be interested in others equally, and though I wouldn’t agree it’s a fair point. However from a story perspective it would still need to be resolved. It’s highly unlikely for Nami to end up with anyone unless Sanji ends up with someone else and gets a happy ending too.

As for Sanji’s interest in Nami I personally think Oda has paid a lot of attention to it in a way that makes it the most likely ship for Sanji. He might yet add moments between other ships and develop them (most notably San/Pu of course), but in my opinion the way Oda has added Nami in other potential romantic moments with Sanji it seems Nami is above every other woman so far.

Most importantly I think we have seen:

Sanji leave Violet who actually seemed to show interest in him to run off to save Nami (and the crew, but the point is that Oda chose to highlight and add this moment with focus on Nami to begin with).

Sanji being more focused on Nami even when Vivi and Robin has been on the ship or at the same place. Oda definitely puts Sanji with Nami above other women at least in amount of moments and involvment.

Sanji being very concerned with Nami in front of Purin and being shown happy with her (the bridal carry for example) and saying he loves her right in front of Purin.

Sanji having stronger reactions to Nami than other women. This could just be my way of seeing it, but I do think we have seen the strongest reactions from Sanji when it comes to Nami. Not the least with turning into a literal devil when he heard she was kidnapped by Absalom. For example compare Sanji rushing after Nami in both Skypiea and Thriller Bark even to him going after Robin. Or his reaction to Nami getting sick in Drum. We simply have a lot of strong reactions from Sanji towards Nami in different ways and more importantly Oda seeming to add focus on them.

We also have him reacting to things like “women’s tears” or calls but only indicating Nami might be calling him personally. For example Sanji hearing Tashigi cry or saying he trusts Violet or Robin even though they are lying but for Nami adding things like “I think I heard Nami call out for me” or moments like “I leave my Nami to you”. Basically the way Oda writes it there often seems to be added a more personal stake in Sanji’s reactions and moments with Nami compared to with other women.

So from Sanji’s point of view, and the way Oda has written them so far, I think he puts Nami above every other woman. But more importantly, Oda shows us moments between them that he doesn’t add for other ships as consistantly or in romantic looking ways. Keep in mind that both Nami and Sanji are main characters, but they are not Luffy. Oda choosing to not use Luffy (who will obviously have strong moments with all of his nakama, like how he had his own time with Sanji both in Baratie and WCI) for some of these moments but rather insert Sanji or Nami instead for each other’s stories makes it more relevant. Because it’s not an obvious choice in the same way. It’s a choice based on their characters and dynamics within the world, not because of their roles as main hero or heroine. Here are some examples.

1. Their first meeting. Sanji is for the first time seen in love cook mode and he basically seem ready to leave everything behind for Nami. Right away his reaction to Nami is stronger than what we have seen from him and it seems to hold true even with time.

2. SaNa having interest and plot relevance to each other’s back stories. Sanji getting involved with hearing Nami’s back story and saving his sister. Also, calling her “sister” which indicates a platonic familiarity where he puts Nami above Nojiko romantically (yes, despite flirting some with her). Nami in turn also getting involved and showing interest in Sanji’s backstory, pushing to go with Luffy to save Sanji and being the one to remind us of Sanji’s past and character traits.

3. Sanji getting personally tantalized by using Nami. This has happened several times, the first with Kuroobi in Arlong Park, but also with Mr. 2 in Alabasta, Absalom in Thriller Bark and then in Fishman Island (Zou too, but that wasn’t just Nami) and on Zou. You can check my post (thought not updated fully) Sanji and Nami – Fights and danger for a more detailed view. (Even in movies like Strong World Sanji has a direct talk with Shiki about Nami and it seems most people are aware of Sanji being extra sensitive to Nami.)

4. Sanji asking Nami if she is jealous or if she loves him, indicating again that he is interested to know is she is interested in him. Once even responding “I love you too”. In general Nami responding in these situations in a more “positive way” or Oda showing Sanji interpreting her actions as more romantic. For example the “proposal” or the hug in WCI.

5. Romantic looking moments or themes. Now this is of couse not something that has been done mutually between them and thus aren’t actually romantic scenes. But the tropes and common use for many of the things that Oda has chosen to use for Sanji and Nami are romantic in nature. Of course the two forced marriages are the strongest examples with them rescuing each other from getting married to someone else. But we also have the switch body trope, the slap and of course smaller gestures like the bridal carries or the way Oda drew the hug between them in WCI. I am not saying that SaNa is the only ship with romantic looking moments, because San/Pu And San/Violet obviously has some as well. However, considering the amount SaNa moments and the fact that he has left Violet and Purin in particular for Nami seems to make the SaNa moments trump any other ship. At least for me personally SaNa as it is now and as Oda has portrayed it in comparison to other Sanji ships gets in the way of Sanji ending up with someone else unless Oda starts to make some changes.

I want to make some emphasis on how Nami and Sanji seem to get some “bigger” moments between them in almost every arc. Again, compare this to Sanji with other women, or even Nami with other crew members.

Baratie - Their first meeting and Sanji’s reaction to Nami and interest gets focus. Arlong Park - Sanji shows interest in Nami’s past and Kuroobi mocks Sanji by specfically mentioning Nami. ( Loguetown Arc, Reverse Mountain Arc, Whiskey Peak Arc and Little Garden mostly have small moments, like Sanji asking if Nami is jealous or Sanji giving Nami his jacket.) Drum Island - Nami is sick and we see Sanji worry and care for her and in the end even sacrificing himself for her. Nami worries about him too. Alabasta - Sanji fighting Mr. 2 looking like Nami and lots of small moments like Sanji asking Nami if she loves him.

Jaya - Nami showing interest in Sanji’s back story. Small things like Nami hiding for the bugs behind Sanji or Sanji. Skypiea - Sanji being hell-bent of saving Nami and making the others look for her. Then him saving Nami and Usopp from Enel and Nami being worried in return. (Both times Sanji gets hit by Enel Nami is there and worries.) Then a lot of small moments like him giving her a flower and Nami pulling Sanji’s ear for flirting with Conis. Long Ring Long Land - Nami encourage Sanji be the ball and win, but mostly small moments like Sanji getting annoyed with Aokiji for flirting with Nami or him sitting next to her and trying to kiss her. Water 7 - Sanji leaving his love letter to Nami and Nami being worried for (and impressed with) Sanji. Enies Lobby - Sanji losing against a woman, Nami being understanding and then stepping in to basically revenge him. Also Sanji hearing it as Nami loving him and then him showing up to save Nami and Usopp from Jyabura.

Post-Enies Lobby - Not much, but Sanji stepping in to make Nami and Zoro stop fighting and make Nami understand Zoro’s pov. Thriller Bark - Sanji just being extremely focused on Nami and worried about her throughout the whole arc. Also him getting specifically selected by Luffy to save Nami. Of course the wedding theme with the bridal carry and Sanji’s reaction to Nami. Also Sanji’s Zombie protecting Nami (and later kicking Robin) and his “obsession with Nami” being mentioned. Sabaody Archipelago - Another smaller arc, but we do get Nami worried about Sanji possibly drowning. And smaller moments like Sanji being angry for Nami being put in danger by the Fishman Riders or him telling Franky to take care of Nami as he runs to protect Zoro. When they return we of course also get the nosebleeds, and Sanji daydreaming about Nami’s development.

Fishman Island - Sanji’s reaction to Jinbei and Arlong. Also the fishmen pointing out that Nami might be their weakness due to Sanji’s “over reaction“ to her falling. Punk Hazard - The body swtich, Sanji’s body saving Nami and Sanji being careful with not hurting her etc. Also them working together to save the children, Sanji listening to Nami’s request and saying he loves her more because of her kindness. Also small things like Sanji giving his jacket to Nami again. Dressrosa - Sanji leaving Violet behind to save Nami, insisting that he should be the one to save her and then him getting attacked by Doflamingo and Nami getting worried and not wanting to leave him. Sanji basically tries to sacrifice himself for Nami for the 4th time (Drum, Skypiea x2, also maybe in Thriller Bark). Zou - We get a lot of focus on Nami and Sanji together, and then of course when Sanji is gone Nami is the driving force for his plot. Once again Nami is also used to taunt Sanji (inside Capone). Then Nami is both the one to mention Sanji being from North Blue and to listen to Pekom’s talk about his family. Not to mention her insisting on going with Luffy to WCI and having a fight with Zoro as she defends Sanji. Whole Cake Island - The way she pushes for them to find Sanji, her hapiness when they find him and her hurt and the slap. We even get something like Nami being tantalized with Sanji by both Purin and Brulee. The only strawhat besides Luffy who gets a personal story thread with Sanji and a personal resolution for their conflict is Nami. The tension seems personal and combined with Sanji having another love interest but choosing Nami above her it does seem like Nami is the more natural choice both for Sanji and for Oda.

There is also a distinct increase in romantic-looking moments between them, with them touching more than ever before.

Wano - Even after WCI it doesn’t seem like Oda is stopping the SaNa moments. Sanji manages to save and carry Nami three times in the beginning of Wano. On top of that we have the bath scene and of course a lot of small moments and mentions between them like Sanji asking Usopp to take care of “My Nami-san” or Sanji jumping in abobe Nami to save her from arrows.

How many times have we had Sanji be the one to go after Nami or save her? By his own choice, by being the one present or even by Luffy asking Sanji to go. Oda puts Sanji next to Nami a lot, and I think it’s possible he might be doing it for a reason.

Who knows what we might get, but the fact that we have as much as we do really seems to show Oda having a preference to put them together in various ways.

The point is they have a lot of time and moments dedicated to them from Oda despite them both being secondary characters. At this point it’s possible Sanji is the person Nami has moments with the most in the story besides Luffy (and perhaps Usopp) as they often end up together. Of course this is including them thinking about and talking about each other as well, and not just direct interacting. For example counting the body switch and Nami being worried and focused on Sanji while on Zou. Oda doesn’t have to, but he has chosen to write it like this. On top of that he adds romantic interest from Sanji and romantic looking moments between them.

I could go on, and there are plenty of moments and examples to find between Nami and Sanji that are interesting to look a bit deeper at. You can check out my Masterpost - SanjiAFsincedayone for some of them. But as it is now here are the main points for why I think SaNa at least has a bigger chance to happen than other ships with the two of them as it is now.

One-sided attraction and romantic interest from Sanji’s side that needs to be resolved in one way or another.

Nami seems special to Sanji. Even small things like only using -san for her and -chan for others is a detail that makes her stand out to him.

Great involvement in each other’s stories. Oda likes adding Sanji and Nami in moments together both for interaction and explenation about each other. For example Sanji is also often used to save Nami.

Interactions of understanding and changing dynamics between the two, like them compromising for each other or wanting to know about the other’s past. Matching personalities and a possible future.

Romantic themes and moments, mainly the weddings, but also the amount of times Sanji has saved Nami and things like the hug being drawn in a very romantic looking way with Nami being more focused on.

Tension and urgency. This is basically Sanji and Nami having a lot of focus on each other in dire situations and Oda showing it with specific mentions.

So, to summarize, I like Sanji and Nami both as indvidual characters and together. I enjoy them as a ship and to explore their dynamics in a romantic way no matter what they might end up as in the story. Anyone should be able to respect that people have different preferences. Additionally I think and speculate that they would work well and could happen in the manga as well. This is obviously a biased interpretation and opinion.

I might be wrong, but you should be able to respect that too as we have yet to get anything objectivly confirming any ship. We don’t know if any ship with end up canon at all. Maybe Sanji and Nami will remain a ship that never becomes canon, but even so they are a ship that is definitely worth enjoying.

I hope you found this post interesting and can enjoy your own ship and fandom while also seeing that it’s ok for others to like something different than you. Thanks for reading.

#sanji #nami #sana #sanami #sanji x nami #sanjixnami #sanami theory #One Piece analysis #sanji x nami analysis #sanjiafsincedayone #one piece manga

364 notes · View notes

bookishofalder · 3 years

Text

Saviours Coffee House [Prologue]

Summary: Negan hires a new manager.

Warnings: Language! We’re starting off tame, but get ready because future parts get dark. WC—+2.7k.

A/N: Even if you aren’t a The Walking Dead fan, you might like this story—it’s a coffee shop A/U, I really only take the characters from TWD!

Now

Your eyes were only on Negan as he stalked forward, his normally bright eyes dark with fury as he clenched the baseball bat in his hands. You’d never seen him so angry...you’d never seen anyone so angry. Apprehension coiled in your gut, your mind blank, a doe caught in the headlights. You knew you had to move, to stop him—but part of you almost didn’t want to.

It was the part of you that had been beaten and broken over and over screaming for it to end. Screaming for you to let it happen.

And fuck, you wanted to listen to her.

Maybe you would.

—

Way Back

Negan Dean was sat at his desk, staring at the computer monitor in front of him without really seeing it. His mind had wandered away from the shop's accounting, the task he needed to complete. He had reason to be distracted, though, as he was in desperate need of a new manager, and he had a few interviews lined up that afternoon.

He’d put off rehiring for too long, left the manager position open and simply worked himself to the bone, running the place and leading it. But it had been months.

He’d needed to keep busy, after Lucille...no, he wasn’t thinking of her today. He needed to get the accounts sorted, have some lunch, and then start the interviews.

That was today’s game plan, and he was sticking to it. The extra work had finally caught up to him, as he knew it would. He was ready to step back because he was fucking exhausted and wanted to focus on his role as the owner of the Saviours Coffee House, behind the scenes. He needed a full-time manager to run the floor, someone smart and competent and good with people.

Simon had been on his ass for a while now about it, but he’d resolutely ignored his long-time friend, too stubborn for his own good. He knew Simon was right. But it was going to be on his fucking orders that a new person joined the tea—his family—even if it meant he’d fallen asleep in his office some nights, slumped over his desk in pure exhaustion.

Negan finished his task and stood, stretching out the kinks in his back, before making his way out onto the loft that overlooked most of the shop below. He had a few couches up here, and a little kitchenette next to his office, the area acting as a staff room in many ways; customers could not come up. At the opposite end of the loft, a door led up to the next floor, which was Negan’s condo. He’d bought the entire three-storey after the recession, gutted the whole thing and, working with a crew of mostly friends who had various trade jobs, renovated it entirely.

Negan was proud of Saviours Coffee House, a dream that he hadn’t always had come to life in the walls of what used to be an old, relatively small, textile factory. Now situated in the heart of downtown, it was the perfect spot for an edgy, laid-back place to unwind, meet friends, go on dates. Hell, Negan loved looking down and seeing a customer stay the whole day as they worked, even if they only bought one coffee. As far as he was concerned, the moment you spent a dime in his place, you were a customer for the day. And that had been a hit with many of the locals and students from the nearby university. Open five-thirty in the morning till eleven-thirty in the evening, Saviours welcomed all. So long as you kept your feet off the fucking tables and minded your manners.

In his former life, Negan worked as a high-ranking guard at the nearby penitentiary. It was a minimum-security, well-funded place where non-violent criminals ended up. He’d loved his years there, but after getting stabbed for the second time (the first was when he was young enough that he’d bounced back almost instantly) he decided to retire.

He sunk all of his savings into this dream, and years later had a lot to show for it. He’d also met a lot of down on their luck men in his time as a guard, so after Saviours became successful, he started a hiring program for white-collar criminals who completed a local, not-for-profit reintegration program. He only kept two on at a time, and most moved on after saving up enough.

Currently at the bar was Dwight, who’d been with Negan the longest now, having started just over a year before after getting out from serving time for drug possession. If Negan was proud of anything, it was Dwight. He’d seen the man evolve from a quiet asshole who barely grunted when customers paid, to a friendly bartender who mixed both amazing lattes and delicious cocktails, even if he grumbled about it. He was a fixture here now as much as Negan—and probably more well-liked, but Negan didn’t care about being liked. As long as people were happy, he was just fine.

It was the post-lunch lull now, so Dwight was wiping up the counters and switching the signs around from daytime menus to evening. Maggie, who had been working at Saviours for about two years, was wiping down the tables while Fleetwood Mac played over the expensive Bluetooth stereo system. He’d asked Maggie if she wanted the job, but she’d only laughed before telling him plainly that she had no desire to work full time or see him that much. He’d figured as much, seeing as she was in university, but he had wanted her to know it was hers if she did want it—she’d earned it.

Dwight was happy where he was, and didn’t want to upset the balance in life he’d worked so hard for, which Negan respected. His newest employee, also a convict hire, wasn’t up to scruff to become the manager, as much as he liked Paul, or ‘Jesus’, as everyone called him. He was a nice kid, worked hard, but seemed content working three part-time jobs. That had left Rosita and Tara, both part-time and students, and then Carol, part-time and not interested as she worked as a volunteer at the Children’s Hospital and didn’t want to give that up.

Which left him where he was now, stomping up the steps to his place to have a quick lunch before back-to-back interviews of promising contenders for a job he wished like hell he didn’t need to fill.

“Jesus. Fucking. Christ.” Negan slammed his hands onto the marble counter in frustration as Dwight watched him. He smirked as he tidied up the barista station.

“That bad, boss?” Dwight was shit at keeping the amusement off of his face. Negan scoffed, glancing behind him to ensure no customers were listening, but it was busy enough now with the after-class and work rush that the cacophony of voices and music allowed him to speak privately despite the location.

Negan held up one hand, holding his thumb and index finger a sliver apart. “I’ve got this much fucking patience left. Only one candidate wasn’t a god damned catfish and I didn’t like him,” He sighed, nodding gratefully when Dwight pointed to the espresso machine, knowing Negan needed his usual five o'clock pick-me-up. “I’ve got one last one; Daryl's friend. If she doesn’t fit, I’m going to have to beg Maggie—and you know she’ll love that too much to say yes.”

With a laugh, Dwight nodded in agreement, expertly moving about making Negan’s latte. “Carol seemed pretty sure you’d like her, said Daryl thinks of her like a little sister and when he heard you were looking for someone he was adamant she’d be perfect.”

Negan sighed, “Yeah, and I like Daryl so if this doesn’t work out and I have to start hating him I’m going to be real pissed off. Thanks, D.” He added when Dwight passed over the piping hot drink, still grinning at Negan’s displeasure.

Dwight dipped his head forward, eyes behind Negan, “I think that must be her, don’t recognize her and she’s dressed too nice for this place.” With that, he turned away and started loading dishes into one of the dishwashers. Negan turned, eyes scanning for the potential candidate, and he didn’t have to look far.

Because there you were, right out of a fucking dream.

Dwight had been right, you were dressed far too nicely for Saviours, but perfect for an interview (which instantly gave you points over a few of the previous interviewees). You were weaving by a few men who were standing at a high table and hadn’t yet noticed Negan, which allowed him to survey you.

The pretty green dress paired with a smart leather jacket and shiny kitten heels gave off an air of sophistication, accentuated your curves beautifully, and rendered his mind to mush for a brief moment. You wore your hair down, and it fell in elegant waves around your shoulders. Fuck, though, if you weren’t the prettiest woman he’d ever laid eyes on.

He thought Carol had mentioned you were in your mid-twenties, but you walked with more confidence about you than one usually saw in those formative years. Already impressed, Negan pushed himself away from the counter, stepped forward and smiled.

You looked around, his movement catching your eye, and returned the smile warmly as you approached. No doubt, you’d looked up their social media, seen pictures of Negan. Any smart candidate would do that, and Negan could already tell you were a clever girl. He called your name over the music, and you nodded, extending your hand

Negan took it into his and shook, enjoying how small your hand was compared to his. You were curvy and petite in the best ways, so much shorter than him but fully voluptuous, and you dressed like you knew you looked damn good, fuck whatever society said about beauty standards. “Mr. Dean, it’s great to meet you, sir.”

Negan grinned down at you, then pointed toward the staircase to your left, “Come on up, it’s quieter in the office.” And he led the way.

When he glanced back to make sure you were following, Negan saw you looking toward Dwight, giving him a friendly wave. He gave you a nod, a near smile, a pretty decent result from the house grump. He needed a manager who could get along with everyone, so right there was another point in your favour.

Closing the door brought the loudness of Saviours down to mere background noise, the evening crowds were always loud as shit. Negan loved it, the differences between the start and end of days, the energy. He gestured toward two armchairs he had, hating the process of sitting behind a desk to interview like he was some hot shot lawyer. He preferred the less intimidating, friendly way. It was just a coffee shop, after all.

A damn good one, though.

When you settled, Negan took his seat across from you, suddenly feeling a little distracted under the gaze of your bright eyes. “Well I’ll get straight to it; you come highly recommended by both Carol and Daryl. I won’t lie, I’m a pain in the ass to work for and I’m looking for someone who can handle hard work, long hours and most importantly, get along with my people. You really think that’s you?”

You were sitting with your back straight, legs crossed at the ankles, hands in your lap. You looked entirely at ease, meeting Negan’s eyes straight on as he spoke. When he finished, you leaned forward almost imperceptibly, your response instant.

“I’m exactly what you’re looking for, sir. I love people and get along with everyone. Do you think I’m best friends with Daryl and don’t know how to deal with a pain in the ass?” At this, Negan smirked, “I’m hardworking, and I have no other major commitments, so full time and long hours will suit me just fine.” You had a lovely voice, which was probably why you’d stayed working at the sales call centre for years before now.

In your resume, Negan had noted the year gap in wor—you had stopped working for the call centre just over a year ago, though it was noted you were a freelance writer and kept income that way. But he found it curious that you’d been working since you were a teenager and yet hadn't worked a solid job in a year. And now that he’d met you, he could see you were the hardworking type. Carol hadn’t known why you’d been away from a job for so long, stating that Daryl knew but didn’t tell her. He had said it didn’t matter, and that was good enough for Negan.

“Well, I’ll admit, on paper you’re ideal, which is why I scheduled you last today. I wanted to have time to read you.”

“And,” You interjected, a small smirk on your lips, “You know that keeping someone waiting the whole day for an interview will shred their nerves and leave them more susceptible to letting their true colours out.”

Negan stared, surprised, “Can’t get much past you, eh?”

You shrugged, “It’s a good tactic. But I assure you, I’m just as competent in the evening as the morning, and I think if you give me a chance to prove myself, you’ll be very happy with hiring me, Mr. Dean. I want to work here, you have an amazing place. It’s a part of this community, and the reintegration program is something I respect greatly, I have no issues working with men hired from there.” You paused, adjusting yourself slightly, palms falling open on your legs, “And, I’ll be frank, I want a job that has long days, that’ll keep me busy and tire me out and let me build relationships with customers. When I found out you were hiring, I jumped on the chance for Daryl to have Carol put in a good word for me. It just seems...right, to work here.”

“What about your writing, do you still do that?” Negan watched your face closely, and it didn’t waver, instead, your smile widened.

“I can write anywhere, anytime. And I make my own schedule with whatever commissions I take on, so it’ll be easy to write on my days off, or breaks if I don’t have a day off,” You pointed at Negan’s phone, which he’d set on the wide arm of his chair, “I can also help with writing any social media or website content, I know Carol mentioned you wanted to expand that presence, and I’m comfortable with that sort of work.”

Negan considered you, letting a comfortable silence fall as he thought over your words. You did seem eager, excited, and the fact that you’d researched what he was looking for impressed him further. Breaking eye contact, he glanced down at your resume once more, though he couldn’t think of anything else to ask. If he was honest with himself, he was ready to hire you after the first two minutes.

“I like you,” He said, thrumming his hands on his knees, “When can you start?”

“In the morning? Or I can go home, have my dinner and come back dressed more appropriately for work, if you need me straight away, sir.”

Negan shook his head, both as a response and in an attempt to toss away the thoughts that stirred up in the back of his mind every time you called him ‘sir’. “Tomorrow morning is perfect. And since you work for me now, you can call me Negan, asshole, or shithead, no more ‘Mr. Dean’ or fucking, ‘sir’, okay?”

When you smiled at Negan, it was the most dazzling he’d seen yet, bright white teeth and sweet dimples making his heart stutter. Damn, you really affected him. He needed to get a gri—you were half his age, for Christ's sake.

“Thank you, Negan,” You stood, holding your hand out and grasping his when he offered, your head tilting back to look at him as he stood before you. “Really, I promise I’ll make you proud.”

“Kid, I don’t doubt it.” He replied softly, and for a moment you simply looked at one another. Negan wasn't sure if you felt it, but he did; it was a spark. Fleeting, but strong enough that he knew life was about to get interesting again.

Taglist: @mermaidxatxheart @paintballkid711 @ladydmalfoy 🤍

93 notes · View notes

colourful-void · 3 years

Text

Supporting Satoshi - an examination and comparison of JN36 and XY121

Part One: Snowballs do not cure depression but it was worth a shot

You know that episode of Pokemon where a gym leader beats Satoshi in a battle so hard that one of his pokemon gets mildly hurt (though there's no long term effects) and because of it he becomes depressed, closing himself off from his friends before someone comes along to pull him out of that mental state, and also severe weather phenomena is involved and a reflection of a persons mental state? Or rather, the two episodes?

So when I was watching Journeys, I noticed an episode that had a similar-- but distinctly different-- plot to an xy episode I had seen before. And what was particularly interesting was that while I couldn't stand the xy episode, the journeys episode was one of my favourites. I won't drag this out for you guys, I love the journeys episode and re watch it a LOT and the xy episode sort of just leaves me with a sour taste in my mouth. and don't go claiming its solely ship bias, because i saw the xy episode first and disliked it then.

This will analyze both of these episodes, comparing them against each other. Specifically within the context of how Goh and Serena both help Satoshi through a similar situation There will be some discussion of AmourShipping and Satogou in this analysis. I'm going to be a bit negative regarding Serena's actions and the potential "romantic" weight of them here, but I want to be clear that I Do Not dislike Serena as a character. Personally, I wish the writers had given her more room to grow outside of her romantic interests, but I do not hate Serena as a character. I do, however, disagree with her actions in this episode. Please don't take this out of context and dont be ship fighting in the comments, it's boring. This is a comparison of These Two Episodes, not of Goh and Serena and their respective ships as a whole.

This part mainly focuses on the xy episode and the second will focus mainly on the journeys. It's only divided into parts because of the tumblr post limit.

(If you like the xy episode or hate the journeys episode, awesome! having your own opinions is great. these are mine though, so i hope you'll listen to them)

With that out of the way, let's start. And I'm going to use mostly japanese names here because I'm taking screencaps from the subbed japanese copies.

The set up for each of these episodes is eerily similar as pointed out in the gag at the start.

Xy has a bit more set up before the episode in question though, with the initial loss and retreat into the forest by Satoshi taking place the episode before. The episode opens up proper with Satoshi taking time to breathe to himself, alone in the forest.

Emphasis is placed on him taking a deep breath, aided by the visuals showing them (thanks cold air) and the silence of the rest of the soundscape, with the only other sounds being the wind and some bird pokemon, plus some falling snow.

Journeys Satoshi starts off in a better mental state than Xy, with the episode starting off with him jogging along with his pokemon.

However, we can still see that he's been affected by the last battle he lost, against Saitou, as he's putting a lot of effort into training and doing better.

Which, doesn't go well for him, as he loses his next two battles as well, and drops in the World Championship ranking as a result

And he's pretty upset about it too. Same thing as over in xy. In both cases, a respective friend/love interest notes that Satoshi is upset and expresses concern.

He's got support from his friends in both situations! But that support comes across in very different ways.

But, to understand how that support manages to affect Satoshi, we need to understand the problem at play.

Now, I wanna make something clear here. Satoshi's problem is not that he is a sore loser. I'm not arguing that's not a contributing factor, or that he's not upset about the loss (particularly in the world championships), He's still bitter about the lost part, but the root of the problem is not losing, he's been shown to be fine with losing (if not a bit more motivated to win now) in prior episodes.

Satoshi's problem is that his pokemon are getting hurt. Satoshi's problem is that his pokemon are getting hurt, because they're losing battles. Satoshi's problem is that his pokemon are losing battles because he's not training them well enough. And to clarify, that's not my viewpoint, it's his. Satoshi's problem is that he's not good enough for himself, and he feels that that's something he has to fix on his own.

So how do we help him?

Our weather event in question is introduced in separate points in the episodes, but I'll cover them both now.

In xy, it's this snowstorm, which conveniently becomes a problem directly after Serena returns to the Pokemon Centre.

In journeys, it's a sandstorm! That's in near direct contrast to a snowstorm! Incredible.

Heading back to xy Satoshi, things aren't going great in the forest. Luckily, Serena's run off to find him.

I think it's of note here that Serena runs off with the best intentions, she wants to help Satoshi, plain and simple. It just sort of goes wrong along the way.

It's worth noting that Xy Satoshi tries to bring himself out of being sad by the tried and true method of "stop being sad"

Despite telling himself this, he doesn't get anywhere. Which makes sense, because it's not getting the the root of the problem. It's not even addressing it at all. He's just trying to 'be better', which isn't even a battle strategy. However, it is something I can see him saying, so this isn't a critique of Satoshi's thought process, but me pointing out that this isn't really effective. Which is supported by the narrative, because again, he doesn't get anywhere, he doesn't even move.

I can't show it in screencaps but the lights in Satoshi's eyes are shaking here, something that they consistently do throughout the series when he's feeling a particularly strong emotion. Keep that in mind. It couples well with another trait of his, and that's his hat!

And by that I mean how he hides his eyes with the brim of it when upset, something he does exactly as Serena shows up and calls out to him. Now, he's not upset that Serena is here. He's upset about the pokemon stuff still. He's trying to hide the fact that he's upset from Serena.

Serena starts off with her speech well, trying to appeal to Satoshi to let her in and talk things out. And maybe it's because he wasn't ready for it yet, or because of the way she phrases it (a lot of 'i' and 'me' language which can be helpful but can also come across as though she's making it about her. not her intent i don't think, but a possible interpretation.), it's not her fault for how Satoshi reacts regardless.

But how Satoshi reacts is not good.

Now it's really interesting to note that before this, Serena was standing while Satoshi was sitting, putting her above him in terms of active power, when it comes to how the shot is presented, but when Satoshi stands up, the camera tilts with the movement so that they're on equal level. Neat!

And Serena yells in return, scolding Satoshi for not talking about it. Not the best move, since pushing someone to talk about something that's upsetting them isn't really productive, but she's trying here and she's frustrated.

Satoshi continues to withdraw and self isolate, claiming it is his problem and that he wants to be left be. Now, this is the mindset of a clearly upset person and isolation may not be the best option, but he did make the explicit request to be left alone here.

He's clearly upset as he turns away from Serena's eye and slumps over a little.

And then Serena throws a snowball at him.

Angry as he is, you can see Satoshi's expression change when he sees Serena's reaction.

Serena tells Satoshi that she's not like the Satoshi she knows, who is always full of energy and positive and a leader, and a bunch of other positive traits. The problem here, is that Serena's looking at an idealized version of Satoshi. And while the intent here was probably meant to be something more like "you have so many wonderful traits about you I know you can do this", coupled with the snowballs and the phrasing, it seems as though Serena is scolding Satoshi for being sad.

Or rather, being angry with him for not living up to her idealized version of him, and not wanting him to express any negitave emotions.

Which is sort of a really bad mindset.

The snowballs continue, never once does Satoshi fight back. In fact, he stops arguing entirely after the first one. Serena knocks him off his feet and tells him he's not being himself, before running off. (In the english dub, Serena claims that Satoshi isn't being "the real satoshi" and then demands that the real Satoshi be "given back", so it could be worse)

Satoshi decides to literally run his problems away, because it will help him reach some kind of conclusion, and immediately trips and falls down a large hill. No, I'm not making that up. Something like this just isn't like him. He's just gotta stop being sad!

Now personally, I really disagree with the idea that "being upset" isn't "like a person". That's because based off of my own experiences, I know it can be really damaging to hold the mindset that any negative emotions you feel aren't a part of you and that you shouldn't be upset because you're usually a positive and happy person. Not the case with every person, but I personally really have a problem with shows telling children that they just shouldn't be upset instead of processing their emotions in a meaningful way. (The journeys episode doesn't do an outstanding job of it either, but this is a bit of a tangent anyway. A show that does do this right is "OK KO! Let's be Heroes" which actually deals with this problem in greater depth and does a fantastic job of it.)

But the snowball scene ends here. Now I'll get back to Journeys in a moment, but since Serena has finished her part of the comparison for the most part, I'm going to summarize a bit more of the xy episode.

Satoshi decides to literally run his problems away, because it will help him reach some kind of conclusion, and immediately trips and falls down a large hill. No, I'm not making that up.

The snowstorm kicks in, Serena get back annoyed, then similarly groans and yells, and the whole xy gang + pokemon go running off in search of Satoshi. Pikachu appears the most concerned.

Now Serena tells the others she lost her cool and said something horrible to Satoshi, but explains its because Satoshi is someone she admires. Cool motive, I get it, still kinda bad.

and in the end, it's not Serena's words that get he message across to Satoshi. The solution to this problem was Satoshi finding a way to reaffirm his abilities and instinct.

In the xy episode, he helps some pokemon out of the tree, and when his very cool frog friend shows up, they're able to work together with their bond to save this one from falling off a cliff.

Here's the point. Satoshi learns by doing, by actions. He needs to see first hand that there are ways of getting past his problems, and that it's worth having the courage to keep going. The lesson is about valuing pokemon as equals and partners, and specifically that trying to be better as the trainer alone isn't going to help.

This is essentially where this plot line ends, team rocket is there for a bit as well but as much as i love them they're not relevant here, and some fun stuff with the league, love it not important right now its like 3am and I'm not sleeping until this is finished so we gotta keep things moving.

This was no doubt Serena's intent to get a similar point, but she goes about it the wrong way. She tries to convey this with words, as conversation and motivational words have helped her in the past (Elle's words of praise stick with her, Satoshi's words from when they were kids, etc). It's a good idea, but their different ways of learning and growing from a similar situation are incompatible, and that's why things don't work out in Serena's favour. There's also still the problem of "pulling yourself together" not being helpful in this case.

There's also a very similar line in this scene to the one at the end of the journeys episode, as Satoshi says to his frog that they should start over from scratch. It's essentially the same phrase with different wording. It's great. The Storm ends as he realizes this as well! Wonderful in terms of pathetic fallacy.

The gang all reunites, its nice. Satoshi thanks Serena for what she said after apologizing to everyone, which contradicts what he said earlier but I've already established that I dislike this message here so I won't go over it too much. I guess he's right in a literal sense in that in response to her words he went and ran until he tripped off a cliff but the emotional growth here was because of his own actions (and the frogs), not Serena's. Sorry Serena, you'll get em next time.

So. What about Goh?

Well...

(Part Two here on account of image limit!!)

#pokemon #anipoke #pokeani #pokemon analysis #pokemon xy #pokemon xyz #trainer ash #trainer serena #trainer goh #i dont wanna use the amourshipping tag to put negtivity in it that seems mean #analysis #this was written in the 2-3am area but the next part was written 12 hours later so thats a neat fact #long post

61 notes · View notes

tg-headcanons · 3 years

Text

Touka Was Done So Dirty So I Must Analyze It

I have a lot to say about how poorly Tokyo Ghoul turned out. There was so much wasted potential, so much meaningless angst, so many straight relationships crammed where they didn’t need to be, and so many sudden, anticlimactic plot points. But of all of the mishandling and poor choices, I think that Touka’s treatment is the worst.

Touka was a complex and interesting character. She was raised by loving parents, one of whom died early, the other lived a little longer while doing everything he could to impart lessons to keep her and her brother alive. When he died she was suddenly forced to become her brother’s guardian and rush out into a world that is so much less forgiving than her father was. They got taken in by her uncle and his friends, housed and fed, and she even got the opportunity to pursue an education which is a monumental luxury to ghouls. Despite resenting humans for the way her family was massacred and she is forced to live, she became close to a human, looking past her trauma for a friendship she cherishes. Her brother reacted badly to the idea of her being around such a dangerous person who could have them killed like their parents were, and ran off to join Aogiri, leaving her and her uncle as the last remnants of their family.

Touka is angry, and id say rightfully so. Her parents murder, being forced to grow up far too fast, being forced to live in this war she was drafted into at birth, any one thing would be enough to fuck someone up. She has all that going on, so understandable, she’s going to be pissed at the world. If it ended there it would be perfect, a great starting point for a character to delve deep into the concepts of society shaping identity, but then the worst happened

Touka is an archetype I like to call ”Angry Teen Girl”

Before we talk about the archetype, let’s talk about teen girls in real life, specifically how they’re treated by society. The teen girl in the public eye is simultaneously the epitome of beauty who is seductive and manipulative and lustful, as well as airheaded and shallow and naive and pure. The way that changes has to do with the convenience of the adult male onlooker. She’s A tactical mastermind when she doesn’t want to fuck you and she’s an airhead when she has opinions. She’s a prude when she doesn’t respond to advances and a whore when she wears a t-shirt. Most importantly, she’s a silly stupid baby when she demands independence and respect, and a grown woman who should know better when she acts her age

Teen girls don’t have the same understanding that boys their age do. When a teen boy messes up its “oh he’s 15 he’s still learning.” When a teen girl messes up its “shes 15 shes practically an adult she should know better by now.” Because adult men have decided the teen girl is desirable, she’s forced to grow up faster to save them the shame of acknowledging that she is a literal child. And after being treated like stupid children and sexy mature adults, teen girls are rightfully angry. This is so universal, so all encompassing, that almost every teen girl has this undercurrent of anger and grief at how they’d been socialized. Because of that, it too is brushed off as “stupid teen girls and their silly little feelings.”

This is where the Angry Teen Girl trope comes in. There is so much history behind women’s treatment, so many valid reasons for a teenage girl to be pissed, but this character is almost always played off as a joke. Either a joke or something to fix.

Back to Touka, let’s run through this again, this time through her eyes. Her family was perfect until it was taken violently away, she had to become violent against her dead fathers wishes to protect her little brother, that little brother who she was forced to sacrifice her bloodless life for left her for having a single friend, she lived her whole life knowing that no matter who she is or what she does the world hates her and she’s going to be murdered by the state. She has to deal with all of this, and then she meets Kaneki, who tells her to her face that he’s better than her because he was human, not realizing that not eating people is a privilege from birth that she never had. Touka is angry, and Touka is a child. A traumatized child who isn’t in the right for her violent reaction, but isn’t an adult with a peaceful world who knows better

Now if people just hated her for that then fine, but there is a huge overlap of the people who hate Touka for her aggressive personality, and people who love ayato. For every “she’s a bitch who’s so mean and super violent and shouldn’t be killing investigators when she doesn’t need to and deserves getting hurt” there’s a “he’s a sweet boy who’s trying his best and he killed all those people because he’s traumatized.” More and more, it’s clear that the same sympathy given to ayato, the much more violent and aggressive sibling, is not given to his sister. Right off the bat, she’s easy for many to dismiss because the misogynistic tropes that made her are fully reinforced

She is established as a complex person who simultaneously resents humanity for how ghouls are treated and doesn’t want them dead. She’s aggressive to her loved ones as a way to protect them and kills investigators so they don’t have the chance to threaten them. She’s angry because of how she spent her whole life just barely avoiding death at the hands of a genocidal government, she’s angry that she has to live this way, she’s even angry that she had to become violent at all and couldn’t live the peaceful life she could have had

But because she is an Angry Teen Girl, nothing matters except “But She’s such a bitch”

Now Touka at this point is still a great character, but things go south fast. The focus shifts from the world and complex relationships to Kaneki. Out of nowhere, Touka is pining after him. Out of nowhere, she has feelings for him. It was more convenient to just Insert Romance instead of developing them. Even if it stopped here Touka would still be a great character, but it didn’t.

After she fled anteiku, her character died. Not only was she completely cast aside during Ken’s Plot Convenience And Honestly Lazy Amnesia arc, but everything behind her character was stripped to its bare bones

You see, the Angry Teen Girl is only a teen for so long, and she can become one of two things: Hysterical sad evil woman or Calm Momwife. It’s a problem a lot of male authors have of only seeing a woman’s anger as a character flaw. In order to keep her as a hero, her anger needs to be “fixed,” and even that isn’t done well.

Suddenly, her drive is gone. Her love of Yoriko is completely abandoned, as is her reason to care for average humans. Her ambitions of collage and success are cast aside. Her complicated feeling towards her brother become “oh I get it it’s all cool I love him and just want him safe no hard feelings haha.” By the time we see her in Re:, she is no longer Touka. She is just the Momwife personality she got crammed into because Ishida just couldn’t think of a use for this previously complex character than “Wife And Mom.”

I’m not saying that she should have stayed angry and aggressive, but she should have stayed consistent, she should have changed over time and for coherent reasons. Such pivotal parts of her character are unceremoniously thrown out, we don’t even get a good explanation for why she turned out that way. Yes, she could rebuild her family with her brother, but it should have been built up to. Yes, she could leave Yoriko behind, but it should have any reason for it at all. Hell, I’m a die hard Hidekane fan, but I’d say she could have had a great romance with Kaneki if it didn’t come out of nowhere

She was “calmed” by having her dreams stripped from her after losing anteiku. She was given her “happy ending” by getting knocked up from desperate and uncomfortable pity sex. She was a girl who wanted to go to collage and protect her loved ones, she had queer undertones of being in love with her human fried, she had reasonable aggression as a self defense mechanism. Any one of these things could spring into an arc of their own.

But all that was thrown out in favor of being the most convenient straight love interest for Kaneki, though her personality was so incompatible with him that it had to be stripped bare to even pretend it works

If she had been given the same treatment as her brother and had her anger treated as a byproduct of the way she’s forced to survive rather than a self caused character flaw, she could have been perfect. If she’d been kept in the focus and not shoved aside for so much of Re:, she would have been good. If any part of her character at all stayed in tact, she would have been fine. But instead she’s reduced to either a Bitchy Child or Momwife. She was so interesting, and I wish her character didn’t get gutted for the sake of her male family and rushed love interest

#tokyo ghoul #rant #touka kirishima #ayato kirishima #tokyo ghoul meta #tokyo ghoul criticism

93 notes · View notes

cassarilladraws · 3 years

Text

I’ve seen so many people talking about the possible revelations in Miraculous from Ephemeral and saying “but it can't go TOO dark this is a 'kids show' right?" I wish I could go with that but I can't. The last two "kid shows" I watched had terrible, sad, depressing and outright bad endings. I hate sad endings. I prefer happy endings and can like bittersweet ones, if done well. (HTTYD had a bittersweet ending that was satisfying to me.) The last two "kids shows" I'm referring to are Voltron and Tales of Arcadia. Seriously horrendous ways to end things. These shows have something in common with Miraculous. They attracted audiences that are older than the original intended audience. In some cases, this realization causes the writers to move in a darker direction and add more complex storylines. More depth in a show is a good thing, but sometimes the “dark” part gets taken way too far. With Voltron (spoilers ahead) they decided it was okay to dive into a lot of angst and dark storylines, which is fine... but they ENDED that way too. They ended with bad writing, a convoluted plot that made no sense, a major character dying, and the characters that survived were given horrible to mediocre endings. Then because of the mixed audience you’ve got older fans unsatisfied and rightfully upset and then the kids that DID watch the show wondering why their favorite character had to die? Or why their favorite character is so sad at the end. (I read posts from parents who were fans who had try to come up with a good explanation for their children. Because the show gave no good reason for Allura’s death. It shouldn’t have happened and made no sense. That’s ridiculous.) My sister was pregnant while I was really into Voltron and she was having a little girl! While watching I was excited to one day try and watch the show with my niece. I even suggested the name Allura for her name. Needless to say, if I can help it my niece will never know a thing about Voltron. Frankly, I like and prefer shows that are “for kids” but really have a mixed audience. The widespread appeal is fun and awesome. You get older fans discussing in depth theories, noticing the references kids miss, writing fanfiction, making fanart and making complex cosplays. You also see cute kids looking so adorable in their little Halloween costumes and happily playing with the toys. It’s wonderful! I’ve always been more attached to cartoon characters in those types of shows. When it’s live action or cartoons for “adults” I rarely get attached or truly let myself care too much. I’m like well, they could all die, the actor that plays whoever could want to move on. And the writing can sometimes double down on being dark, edgy, “adult”, and angsty that it often becomes one note and boring. Like people are dying all over the place and everyone’s upset with everybody and there’s all this drama but it’s somehow boring because it’s all the same old thing. Honestly, I have a hard time taking it seriously when shows take themselves too seriously and find myself laughing at things that are meant to be sad or impactful. I want to go on a rollercoaster of emotions with characters and know in the end it’s going to be alright. Cartoons in general are just better at balancing angst and humor and everything else. (I do want to give a nod to Marvel movies as I feel they actually do a good job of this often.) This isn’t to say characters can’t die in these cartoons with such broad audiences, but the main characters shouldn’t--at least not permanently. Shows with this type of audience should feel like something you want to revisit later. Like something the kids watching now want to watch with their kids/nieces/nephews later if they have them. Shows like this have the potential to be long lasting nostalgic and comforting things in the lives of their viewers. It might sound silly but I wish shows and movies had tags like fanfics do. I like angst, actually, but it needs to be "angst with a happy ending." Sad endings are just stupid to me, especially on long running things. (There are obvious examples of this being okay. Movies/shows/books that start out telling you the main character dies and it’s the story of how that happened, shows that are very obviously sad or things based on true events that are tragic. In those cases you know what you are getting into. In a way it’s like the fanfic tags.) But unexpected sad endings just really feel like some writer is out there trying to be edgy. "Thanks for watching/reading for all these years I leave you with pain and regret for ever getting into it!" idk about you but when things end like that I don't want to rewatch/reread and I want to get rid of any merchandise I have relating to it. On the flip side, when things end well I want to continue buying things years later! I want to tell my friends to watch/read it too! I want to proudly wear t-shirts of the thing to see if I can find other fans to talk about it with! Because it’s still fun! It’s still exciting! I still love it! tl:dr Happy endings are good and you’re not being edgy by making your ending sad, you’re just being a jerk to your audience. Especially, if your audience includes kids. This may all be a moot point for Miraculous. Because honestly, Chat Noir and Ladybug give me iconic comic book character vibes. Which means these characters will go through a million iterations and have times with great writing and not so great but be around for decades we may not ever truly see an “ending” and I really want that for Ladybug and Chat Noir so go off if that’s what’s in the future.

#miraculous ladybug #voltron #tales of arcadia #animation #cartoons #rant #ramble #long post #thoughts

24 notes · View notes