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auteurdelabre · 2 months

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So Much to Lose PART SEVEN dark!Joel x f!Reader

story summary: Newly settled into Jackson city and forced to go on patrols with the miserable Joel Miller sets off a chain of events and encounters that have you questioning everything, including your own heart.

rating: 18+

tags: Oral sex (m receiving), allusions to female masturbation, brief description of animal violence, angst, praise, dirty talk, nickname: Good Girl, mentions of postpartum, mentions of trauma, dom/sub dynamics.

a/n: Alright y'all I got some amazing comments from a hilarious person on A03 and it put me in such a good mood that I'm releasing this chapter ASAP. The comments really do make me write faster, as do reblogs and comments here... {hint hint}

I love y'all for following me and since I have almost 850 followers (when did that happen?) I'm planning something special for (if) I hit 1,000 followers here, somethin' real good.

Without further ado, here's the chapter and we find out a bit more about our MC's past and she and Joel finally talk about what's going on between them. . . sorta.

Chapter 6 here

___________________________

Chapter 7: Spoiled

You thought that the fear on patrols had abated. Not only were you on horseback, but you were paired with Joel, arguably one of the best shots in Jackson City.

So when he leads you to a path you aren’t familiar with, the first icy tendrils of fear slipping through you. When he orders you to stop your horse alongside his at the mouth of a forest you feel the overwhelming urge to vomit.

“Where are we?”

You speak so softly he doesn’t hear you, he stops just outside the dense forest, sliding off Midnight and tying him off to a nearby tree. He glances over his shoulder to see you still sitting atop Chestnut, your gun on your back and your eyes scanning the perimeter.

“What’re you waitin’ for?”

“What are we doing here?”

"We need to check the forest for traps," Joel explains to you. "The other patrol group sets ‘em up for large game. We check ‘em every couple of weeks."

"Why can't we take the horses?"

"Too dangerous for ‘em inside," Joel explains. "We take ‘em in just enough to hide them but the roots and terrain are too much for ‘em. Too easy to twist their ankles."

"Why can't the other patrols check?"

"They do," Joel says gruffly. "We take turns every week. This is our week. Now stop complainin' and let's go."

You slide off of Chestnut at his order, but you make no move to go towards the forest. Too much is happening, too many noises and sounds and fears.

"J-Joel, I can stay with the horses." You don’t even hide the panic that’s crept into your voice.

"I said let's go," Joel huffs, gripping you by the upper arm and dragging you into the forest with him. He keeps his grip on you the entire way to the traps, almost knowing that the second he releases you, you’ll go rushing from the horrible dense of the forest.

Your feet drag but his grip is so strong that it doesn’t matter. Eventually you fall in line, marching alongside him. He doesn’t see that your eyes are closed, that he’s guiding you blindly through the forest. You simply lean into his grip, letting him lead as you follow.

When you reach the traps a short while later he finally releases your upper arm. You find you immediately miss the safety of that grip and you are sure to stand close to him as he looks over the metallic traps.

“Why do you put them here?”

“S’where we find most of the game,” he explains distractedly as he surveys them. “Bait hasn’t been touched though, so nothin’s come by recently.”

He makes a circle around the perimeter and you can’t help but follow like a lost puppy. All of a sudden Joel stills. You can see the way his back goes rigid, his body coming to a full stop so abruptly you almost walk into him.

You hear it, the gentle popping noise and you feel your body go numb with shock.

Clickers.

This is it. You're done for. You can’t even reach for your weapon, can’t even move a fraction. You’ve gone rigid, your eyes blown wide.

Joel raises his gun and you wait for the creature to come charging out of the woods. You're confused when it goes off and a large bird falls to the ground away from you, thudding to the ground.

You’re still frozen in spot, watching as Joel walks over to it, nudging it with his foot. Satisfied he takes it by the beak, carrying it back to where you still stand looking terrified. His brows quirk.

“S’wrong with you?”

"I thought it w-was one of them,” you whisper. “A clicker."

"Clickers sound different," Joel tells your blanched face. "More of a wet sound. But these birds sorta sound like em. S'why I kill em when I can."

Joel looks to see your gun still strapped to your back, not even produced and you see irritation cross his face.

"What would you do if you saw a clicker heading your way?" Joel asks you as the two of you walk through the forest back to the horses. "If you had no weapon and I wasn't here?"

Joel isn't one for casual conversation so you're immediately on guard. This is a test. But one you don't know how to pass. You glance around at your surroundings, noting the rocks and fallen branches from the trees.

"Fire maybe?"

"You're gonna hunker down and build a fire while an infected is racin' towards you?" Joel scoffs.

"Oh right," you mumble, feeling shame paint your cheeks. Your eyes scan around you again. "Get a sharp stick? Stab it?"

"You get close enough to stab one you're already dead."

"A rock-"

Joel's deadened stare thrown over his shoulder at you stops you from guessing further and humiliating yourself. The two of you continue walking in silence before he finally breaks it.

"If you see something coming towards you and you don't have a weapon, you gotta think smart," Joel explains. "You climb a tree, a good sturdy, tall one with thick branches. Infected can't climb trees."

"I've seen ‘em climb ladders," you argue. "And cars."

"Barely," Joel says patting the large tree trunk to his right. "And they'll only try to climb if they hear you up there. Once you're in the trees you stay still and quiet. Same goes for Raiders. You hide yourself in the tree and don't move. It's your only hope."

"Okay."

"Repeat it."

"If I am unarmed and in danger I need to climb up a tree," you reply flatly. "I need to remain quiet and out of sight."

“Good.”

You shakily make it back to the horses and continue on with your usual patrols. When you get inside the old building and finish your log notes you pause to look at your dual signatures. How his wide printing almost looks like its shielding your tiny script.

He’s not as sullen as usual and you know it’s because of what’s going to happen. You share your lunch in an easy silence before you’re on your knees between he and the wall, your eyes covered by the red scarf, your hands bracing your thighs. His cock fills your mouth deliciously and you feel warmth blooming behind your ribs.

“Swirl your tongue,” he orders breathlessly and you acquiesce. You love that he tells you exactly what he wants. You love how good it feels to do this right, to have the rest of the world fade away, where all you can hear and smell and taste is Joel. To feel his heavy hand on the crown of your head, holding you gently in place.

He barely talks, just let's you bob your mouth along until you feel that familiar stutter of his hips that tells you he's close. He comes quickly today, his voice gruff.

"Swallow it down."

When you pull off him minutes later he doesn't unwind the scarf right away. You hear him breathing above you as he tucks himself away. Moments pass and you sit patiently, head cocked in curiosity. You feel as if he's staring at you, and you can't understand why.

Finally he comes to unwind the scarf from around your eyes. You expect him to wordlessly walk from you, but instead he’s panting softly, his cheeks stained with red. He looks at your mouth, his tongue trailing over his lower lip.

"Show me your tongue," he demands in a low voice.

Even though this request seems unlike him you tilt your head back, opening your mouth widely and sticking out your tongue to show your clean tongue.

You feel strangely vulnerable pierced by the quiet gaze of Joel Miller. You've done much filthier things than stick out your tongue but you're never been looking at him while you do it, able to see the haunted eyes that stare back at you.

"Good girl," he rasps.

You watch him zipping and buttoning his jeans before he casts one last look at you. He blinks slowly and then strides from the room, his face back in its customary scowl.

You listen for the front door downstairs to open and shut. You can’t even make it to the bathroom before your hands are sliding under your jeans and you’re whimpering as you bring yourself off to the rumbling chorus of good girl that echoes in your mind.

///

Later that week you artfully arrange the paper flowers in an amber wine bottle you got from the Tipsy Bison. You rest it on your kitchen table smiling at the colorful arrangement. After making Maria's second bouquet you found yourself eager to make one of your own to brighten the space. You like looking at it, enjoy seeing the bright colors in your unadorned home.

You take the secondary bouquet of colorful flowers and wrap them in a strip of old cloth. The weather is drizzling and you don't want them to be ruined. You hide them in a small linen bag you use for groceries and then pull on your coat.

The walk towards the dining hall is pleasant despite the drizzle and you're surprised at how many of the children laugh and run through the falling droplets. When you were a child there were always video games and television shows to occupy your space indoors on gloomy days. These children have none of those luxuries but you can’t help but observe that they look more joyful than you ever did.

No wasting life.

Breakfast with Jennifer is a quick affair. She’s with that group of friends you met a while ago. The only one who stands out to you is tall Luke with the easy smile and soft countenance. He makes you feel at ease when you’re around him.

“Have you been practicing your shooting?” Jessica asks, looking effortlessly beautiful in her oversized sweater. Luke glances up from his breakfast, intrigued at the conversation. You pretend not to notice.

“Uh, not really. I don’t have a working gun of my own.”

Jessica is wide-eyed. “How could you not tell me? I have one that I don’t even use anymore! Come by tomorrow and I’ll show you how to use it.”

“Really?”

“Really,” Jennifer insists with a smile that makes you feel warm from the inside out.

You’re incredibly grateful for the kindness Jennifer has shown you, and despite how popular and well liked she is, she’s taken you under her wing. She has nothing to gain from it – except perhaps intel on Joel which you never seem to have. But you’ve noticed she asks about him less, she’s more interested in you.

It’s like she might be your friend. The first real friend you’ve had in a long time.

The walk over to Maria’s place is a quick one. The raindrops have stopped thankfully, but you worry that the swollen grey clouds above you might open up at any second.

The door opens on your first rap as if Tommy was waiting for you to arrive. He gives you a warm greeting, opening the door further and the aroma of fresh coffee floats out to greet you.

"Hi. Is Maria around?"

"Yeah she is, we actually have some folks over now-"

"That's fantastic," you say to him quickly before producing the flowers from inside the makeshift wrapping. "I tried some new designs out. Thought Maria would like 'em. Have a good morning."

He takes the bundle from you before you prepare to take off. You're so happy to hear that Maria is doing better; it makes your heart feel full.

"Wait, I wasn't sayin' that so you'd go," Tommy chuckles, long fingers touching your shoulder to stop you from leaving. "Come inside. We're havin' coffee. Maria’d love to see you."

You pause before you think of what awaits you at home: nothing really. An empty house, no family, no books you haven't already read over and over. What could it hurt especially when it seems like his desire to have you come in might be sincere?

"Okay."

You’re about to toe off your shoes when you notice the scuffed boots and mud splattered sneakers sat next to the door and you feel your stomach flip. You recognize those boots.

Tommy doesn’t notice your sudden reluctance, he simply ushers you into the living room where everyone sits chatting quietly before the fire. Maria and Ellie are deep in conversation next to each other on the couch. Joel sits in one of the armchairs, his ankles folded. He looks so at ease, his eyes on Ellie and a paternal look of love in his eyes.

The second you enter the room however and his dark eyes move to take you in, you see the gentle curl of his mouth disappear.

Good girl.

You feel a flutter of nerves go through you and you force your attention to the back of Maria’s head.

“Look who dropped by with more flowers,” Tommy announces before looking at you. “You want a coffee or somethin’?”

“No, I’m fine thanks.”

Maria looks up from where she sits next to Ellie on the couch and smiles at you. Joel gives you a lazy once over before turning his attention to the gently roaring fire. You don’t miss the tic in his jaw and for a moment you actually feel guilty that you’ve broken up this peaceful morning for him.

“I’m so glad you came back,” Maria enthuses, her dark eyes shining with delight. “Please come take a seat.”

You settle into the empty chair by the fireplace opposite Joel as Tommy hands the flowers to Maria. You haven't seen Ellie much since she got irritated with you about the whole Jennifer thing. You give her a tentative smile from across the room, grateful when she returns it.

"That's so cool," Ellie marvels, touching the paper petals gently.

"I wish I knew how to make these," Maria sighs happily as she gazes at them. "Seeing the other ones every day makes the place feel so cheerful. I'm gonna put these ones in the baby's room."

"I could teach you how to make them if you wanted," you offer gently. "It's not too complicated."

You hope you don’t sound pathetic and needy. There’s something about Maria’s vulnerability that calls to you. It makes you want to protect her in some way. You realize belatedly that it’s not just your Aunt she reminds you of, but your sister.

"I don't think I'd have the patience," Maria says with a gentle wave of her hand. "I just like looking at them."

"I wanna learn," Ellie pipes up, making you suppress a pleased grin. "I like flowers."

"Since when?" Joel murmurs with a smirk. You sneak a glance at him before looking back to Ellie who frowns at her father-figure.

"I've always liked flowers."

"Thought you were dead set on learnin' to bake," Tommy muses over his coffee mug. “I

"Maybe I wanna learn both," Ellie snarks back at him. "Is that a fuckin' crime?"

"Language," Joel mutters in her direction.

"I'm happy to teach you both," you say with a little laugh to yourself. "Thought I can't say I'm an expert on either."

"Really?"

"Yeah, of course," you say before your eyes sail over to the unmoving authority figure by the fireplace. "If that's okay with you?"

"Only if she's done with her chores," Joel finally supplies with a sigh, gripping his coffee mug a little tighter. "And if you don't break the damn oven."

Of course his assumption would be that you'd break something. You try to hold in the grimace that threatens to spill over your features.

Ellie makes a little hiss of victory before giggling at you. You feel the frost from your Jennifer misstep is behind you now. The sound of Douglas’ cries break into the room and both Maria and Tommy quickly move into the bedroom to console him. You look back at Ellie.

"How's school?"

"Boring," she answers honestly. "Can't wait until I'm done with it."

"I miss it," you tell her honestly as you shift in your chair. "I really loved being in class, sharing ideas, learning."

"You're weird."

"Ellie," Joel warns.

"S'fine," you say with a soft chuckle. "I am weird."

Before Joel can reply Maria and Tommy have re-entered the room with Tommy holding a drowsy Douglas in his arms with Maria trailing after the two of them.

"He heard your voice and wanted to say thank you for the flowers," she says kindly.

You smile as Douglas is placed gently into your arms by Tommy while the glossy eyed Maria looks on. You smile down at the sweet angelic face, your voice a soft murmur.

"Well, you're very welcome, Douglas."

The baby blinks, grunting a moment and wiggling. He's warm in your arms, but not heavy. You slowly rock him in your embrace inhaling the sweet scent of milk and that intoxicating baby smell.

"Hello," you coo softly at him as he stretches. Maria joins Tommy on the couch next to Ellie, curling her legs under her.

The rest of the group has begun talking about the movie playing this weekend. Trying to decide between a western and some Disney thing someone found on patrols. You're distracted by Douglas' long eyelashes over caramel skin. The pout of his pink mouth and the way he gurgles a toothless smile up in your direction.

"Adorable," you murmur, grazing his cheek with the pad of your thumb. "Aren't you just the sweetest thing, little Miller?"

You grin widely down at him, wanting to press a kiss to his downy forehead but holding back. He's not your family after all. Instead you take his tiny hand in yours, marveling at the perfection of his small fingers dwarfed by your own.

"He's so perfect," you mutter more to yourself than anyone else.

"Gets his good looks from his mama," Tommy says throwing his arm over Maria's shoulders. He presses a kiss to her cheek as she grins.

"Ain't that the truth," Joel murmurs, drawing a good natured chuckle from Tommy.

"You want kids?" Ellie asks you bluntly, forcing the attention of the room your way. You take a moment to consider the question.

"I dunno," you finally answer honestly. "Never really thought about it."

"I sure don't," she replies easily. "They're noisy, they stink, and they’re just too much work."

"Same could be said for teenagers," Joel murmurs behind his coffee cup, drawing chuckles from everyone but Ellie who gives him a playful shove.

You suppress a smirk before your finger traces down the soft cheek of Douglas''. He blinks up at you, gurgling again.

"Motherhood looks natural on you," Maria says in a voice laced with sorrow. You know what she's thinking. Tommy is glancing at her with concern in his features.

"Not as natural as on you, Maria," you assure her kindly. "I promise."

Maria nods but it's clear she doesn't believe you. You don't know that you believe you either. But she needs to hear it, needs to know that she possesses it even if it doesn't feel like it right now.

Tommy shoots you a grateful smile that you return. You can only imagine how hard it is to love someone so much and not be able to fix them. To have so few options to help now in this new world.

"So you’re interested in the kitchen still, Ellie?" Tommy teases her. "Gonna whip us up somethin’ good? Be a real Martha Stewart?"

Ellie wrinkles her nose. "A who?"

Ellie starts talking about the kitchen but you're distracted by the bundle in your arms. Douglas has fallen asleep again and his tiny snores makes your mouth curl into a bemused smirk.

You feel eyes on you and when you glance up you're surprised to see Joel's steady gaze on you holding the baby. When he catches you looking his way, his eyes snap over to his brother who is explaining all about Martha Stewart.

"We've got stuff to do," Joel says pushing himself up from the chair. "C'mon Ellie."

"I wanna stay."

"You've got chores," Joel tells her firmly. "And you've put ‘em off all week. Let's go."

His tone is stern but his face is pure patience as Ellie sighs dramatically. She comes to a stand sighing again and about to leave when she seems to remember something and steps towards you, her face suddenly animated.

"How about Sunday for baking? You can come to ours."

Go to Joel’s house? The thought has you in a panic, your eyes darting from her to Joel. "Uh, if it's okay with-."

"Joel is that okay?" Ellie claps her hands in front of her dramatically and she turns to face him. "Pleeeeeease?"

Joel moves his tongue to the corner of his cheek, looking thoughtfully at Ellie’s desperate face before sighing wearily.

"Just tell me what I need to get," Joel says to the space beside your head. "Eggs ‘n stuff like that."

"Sure. I'll give you a list on Thursday."

Joel nods, still not making eye contact with you but that's okay. You don't really want him to. Just the mention of Thursday has you slick between your legs. You may not like Joel Miller but the thought of what the two of you get up to on patrols makes it easy to get through uncomfortable interactions with him.

The door creaks shut behind them as they leave and you take a few moments to rock the baby in your arms until Maria gives a soft yawn and you worry you’ve overstayed your welcome.

"I should probably go too.”

"Don't go," Maria insists almost desperately, her eyes wide. "He looks so happy with you holding him."

You see the tears gathering in her eyes and you adjust the baby in your arms before sliding off your chair. Tommy seems to sense that you need privacy because he gathers the empty mugs and walks into the kitchen to wash them.

You stand, coming to sit next to Maria on the warm couch. She looks at Douglas warily, as if he's a stranger's child.

"Hold him, Maria."

"I can't."

"You can," you insist softly. "He's your son."

"I know he is," Maria says, tears gathering at the corner of her eyes. "I look at him and I'm so confused. I carried him; I fed him with my own body. Why don't I feel that connection like other mom's do?"

"You're not the only one," you tell her, hand on her shoulder. "My aunt went through the same thing. Gave birth to my cousin and felt nothing. She wasn't herself for months. You’re not alone, Maria. You’re not a bad mom; you’re not a bad person. This isn’t something you’re doing on purpose. It’s your brain.”

Maria shakes her head, as if the words don’t mean anything. You know she hears them, but she can’t accept them.

“You have a husband and friends to support you. I promise you that you'll get to the other side. I promise."

You know that it's a heavy gamble. But she needs to know that there's hope. She needs to know that this illness has plagued women across centuries. She looks at Douglas’ sleeping frame and after a moment of hesitation she allows you to place him in her arms. You watch as her eyes get soft, her breathing slowly decreasing.

"Some days I really feel like he's mine," Maria murmurs as she drags a gentle finger down the slope of his tiny nose. "Some days my heart feels like its overflowing. And sometimes that's worse than not caring."

You're silent, just listening to her speak.

"Love makes you weak and afraid. I've never been afraid of anything," Maria tells you, rocking Douglas gently in her arms. "But now that's all I am. Like one exposed nerve.”

Fat tears are sliding down her cheeks. You can’t help but run a soothing hand down her spine, rubbing up and down gently. She accepts your touch, even melts back into it.

"We shouldn't have done it," Maria hiccups a sob. "We were fucking idiots to have a baby in this world."

“You aren’t an idiot,” you insist. “You and Tommy loved each other so much you wanted to create life together. How is that stupid? That’s the most beautiful thing in the world.”

Maria sniffles, tears dropping onto the blanket holding Douglas.

“All I can think about is what I'd do if Raiders broke in. Or what if Douglas got bit? Or what would happen if Tommy and I got killed on patrols? I'm terrified to leave him alone. Terrified that something is gonna happen to him if me or Tommy aren't around."

You can hear the clattering of mugs being washed in the kitchen. You wonder if Tommy is listening and you hope that he is, because you worry he might be having the same fears.

“Douglas is going to grow up, just like all the other kids in Jackson City. Happy and safe and loved. He’s going to grow up to be a good person just like his parents. He’s going to be smart and kind and who knows, maybe he’ll be part of finding a cure.”

Maria blinks over at you as if just realizing this possibility.

"Maria I never had kids," you tell her, hand rubbing over her own. "But I had a younger sister and she felt like my kid sometimes. Especially when my parents got separated when we were fleeing the city.

Maria stares at you, rubbing the tears from her eyes.

"When the pandemic started my mom was visiting her Aunt in Wyoming," you explain. "My sister and my dad and I, we escaped to the nearest QZ."

“I never saw my Mom again,” you explain and you’re shocked at how deadened your voice sounds. It’s no longer a hurtful memory, more just a patchwork on the quilt of your trauma. Its life, you’ve accepted it. “The first day I got here I was sure I’d find her here. Sure that she survived somehow.”

“But she wasn’t here,” Maria finishes for you. “I would have recognized the last name.”

You shake your head slowly. “She wasn’t here.”

You think Maria might want to ask more about your history but you hear Tommy's voice filter in from the kitchen.

"Joel, what're you still doin' here?"

Your head snaps to look over your shoulder. Joel is here? Had he heard anything? The thought curdles your insides. It was hard enough sharing this much with Maria. Knowing that Joel might have overheard is much worse.

"Saw Jason out by the gates and he said that the lumber’s coming in Saturday,” Joel mutters. You can't see him in the next room but you hear the scrape of his boots on the wood flooring. "Thought you’d wanna know so you could get a group together.”

The two men mumble back and forth to each other and you hear the telltale sound of the door opening and closing behind Joel. You feel your heart hammering in your chest, suddenly anxious at the thought that Joel knows about your life.

Tommy enters back into the room, his eyes on Maria. He sees her holding Douglas and you can see the sun break into his previously cloudy eyes.

"I should get going." You stand, looking down at Maria’s tear-stained face. "Sorry for showing up unannounced."

"You're welcome anytime," Tommy assures you warmly before coming to sit next to his wife. He slings his arm around her shoulders, looking down at his son in her arms.

"Yeah," Maria agrees with a watery smile. "Please stop by again soon. I mean it."

“Okay, I will.”

///

Joel seems strange on patrols today.

It started with handing him the list of supplies you’d need for baking. Instead of a smart remark he just nodded, taking it from you and shoving it into the back of his jeans pocket. The ride to Teton Village had been in its usual silence, you noticed that the snow from last week had turned into a slushy mess which meant the horses moved a little slower.

By the time you reached the old building with its log book you were more than a little eager. You’d woken up that morning particularly slick between the legs, a Pavlovian response to patrol days.

Joel is still near silent, not even looking at you when he brings out his bag for lunch. He pushes your sandwich and thermos to you, watching you carefully as you eat. Normally Joel stares anywhere but your face during patrols, unless he’s getting angry with you. Today however he seems a bit tense, his gaze a bit heavier than usual.

It makes you uncomfortable. It makes you wonder what he’s thinking.

“I feel like Chestnut was walking a little weird the last mile or so,” you observe to break the silence. “Do you think you could take a look at his horseshoe before we go?”

“Sure.”

“Thanks.”

The quiet stretches on,

“So what was the lumber for?”

“Huh?”

“You mentioned lumber back at Tommy’s,” you say, feeling like the peanut butter is sticking to the roof of your mouth. “I was wondering what it was for.”

“S’for repairs on the window upstairs,” he tells you gruffly, taking a large bite of his sandwich.

“Oh right.”

You decide not to press things; he doesn’t seem to be in the chatting mood. Lunch passes slowly, despite your anticipation for what comes next. Your heart is actually thrumming when Joel wipes his hands on his jeans and tilts his head for you to follow him.

You go into the room with the fireplace and couch and watch him shift into a comfortable seated position. The old frame creaks under his bulk and he stares at you standing, waiting and watching him. He undoes his belt buckle, the clinking noise causing your thighs to press together tightly.

You walk towards him, eyes on his large hands.

"On your knees."

You acquiesce without thought, your jeans biting into the cold floorboards below. Joel watches you from under hooded eyes. The sight of him seated there disheveled, belt unbuckled and legs spread does something to you.

When he doesn't make a move for your scarf or anything else you feel a prickle of insecurity go through you. You blink up at him, swallowing only to have him frown down at you.

"Do you actually like this?"

You don't like the way he says it, like there's something wrong with you if you do. You stand shakily, your eyes on the floor as you give him your murmured response.

"I do, yeah."

Joel is a statue with eyes that burn like coal. You feel them even if you don't see them until you peer at him still seated insouciantly there on the couch.

"You like me orderin' you around?" His voice is grated around the edges, his eyes holding nothing but disbelief. "Tellin' you what to do?"

"I like you being in charge," you correct.

"Why the fuck would you want somethin' like that?” Joel insists, cheeks pinking. “Someone orderin' you around?"

"I think you need it the same way I do. Only you need to be giving the orders. Am I right?"

Joel swallows and you see his large eyes widen a fraction as he takes in your words. You feel strangely emboldened by his lack of response, by the fact that you’ve taken him by surprise. And perhaps since you’ve been doing this for over a month you feel that you can voice this.

"Am I right?"

He still doesn't reply, instead he crosses his thick arms over his chest and just stares you down. It doesn't intimidate you like it once did, but it does prompt you to answer him.

"Because when you make the rules and do the ordering my mind goes quiet," you explain softly. "I'm not afraid, I'm not angry, I'm just... Free. I'm not in control but I'm choosing not to be."

And you know just by the way his shoulders relax that Joel understands. He understands because it's what happens when he has you under his palm, mouth sliding on his cock, when he wraps the scarf around your eyes and tells you not to touch.

The choosing. The control.

You’d known from the very first time he'd given you the order. You'd seen in there in the dark of his eyes that he liked the dynamic.

But you sense the hesitancy in him, a guilt that he shouldn't be enjoying it so much. His eyes take on a large, wounded appearance and it’s so clear that he’s wondering if he’s done something wrong.

"You've never given me anything I didn't want, Joel.”

That seems to get through to him, because he blinks away that little lost boy gaze.

You lower yourself to a kneeling position at his feet again. But you make no move to touch him. You simply bow your head, your hands clasped demurely on your thighs. You hear him shift unconsciously in his seat.

"What're you doin'?"

"Tell me what to do, Joel."

You stare at his boots, never venturing to his face but you can feel him watching you, his large hand twitching at his side on the cushion. He looks down at you with uncertainty as you eventually tilt your face up to him.

"Tell me what to do," you urge him again in a voice barely above a whisper. "Please."

You feel a rush of relief go through you when he nods and you can see the hard length of him through his jeans. You gingerly pull the scarf from around your neck, letting it hang in your grip loosely. You wait for him to retrieve it, eyes on the floor.

"No scarf," he rasps. "I know you'll listen. Close your eyes."

You do, feeling that tingle go through your body at his order. His large hand comes to the crown of your head, fingers snaking through the strands and tugging your face up. You keep your eyes firmly shut, not even considering peering through your lashes to see his face. You have your orders.

"Take me out and suck."

And you do, just as you have every other patrol for the last month. Only now it feels so much better because there’s no confusion. He gives you take, you give he takes. Your submission driving him forward, his domination calming your overworked nervous system.

"You do like takin' orders," he observes with a groan. "Like bein' told that you're a good girl."

Your breathing elevates when you hear that term and you just know the corner of his mouth twitches.

"Yeah. S'what I thought."

His hand is still wrapped in your hair, tugging you gently. Your lips feel rubbery and wet as you take him deeper. Your hands remain clasped on your lap. When you feel Joel twitch on your tongue you give a soft sigh through your nose, a feeling of blissful satisfaction.

"Look at me," Joel murmurs.

You take a moment to consider if you heard him right, but then he repeats himself and you slowly gaze up the length of him. He's tilted over you with heavy eyes, mouth parted. A greying curl is stuck to his sweaty forehead.

"Christ," he grits through his teeth. "Look ‘atcha there, mouth stuffed with my cock."

Desire blooms in you, snaking behind your ribs, down your veins, into your very bloodstream.

"What happened to that soft thing makin' cookies?"

You happened, Joel.

When Joel's quiet rasp reaches you again you physically shiver.

"You like bein' on your knees for me?" Joel grunts as his hips jerk forward.

You nod, your cheeks hollowing as you take him deeper into your throat. He lets out a strangled noise, tossing his head back.

"Fuck!" Joel glances down to see you still staring up at him, lips swollen around his shaft. "Look away now."

It doesn't sound like a cruel order, more a plea. You close your eyes, giving a small noise of protest when Joel brings himself out of your mouth.

"Wanna come on your tits," he instructs with a rasping growl and you hear him stroking himself furiously. "Take em out for me."

Despite this being uncharted territory for you both you don't hesitate. Your hands fumble with your sweater and you pull it over your head, tossing it to the floor. Joel watches as you unclasp your bra, letting it join the sweater. Your nipples tighten in the cool air of the room.

You're still not looking up at his face as instructed; so you don't know what he thinks. All you know is that the stroking is increasing.

"Head back, eyes closed," he pants, his voice tight.

You tilt your head back, eyes firmly closed. You feel vulnerable in this position, an animal who has bared their neck to a predator. Despite this you cup your breasts, offering them to him.

"Good girl," Joel says with a grunt. "Fuckin' good… So good for me."

And the praise hits you so strongly that you whimper aloud. This is what sends Joel over the edge and he comes with a strangled groan, painting your tits with stripes of his warm spend.

Your dual panting fills the room and you wish you could see yourself covered in Joel Miller's come. You wonder what he sees when he looks down at you covered in his essence. Proud? Embarrassed? Guilty?

"Open your eyes."

You blink them open immediately, your gaze flying to your chest covered in him before glancing up at him. Joel is breathing heavily through his nose, looking at you as if he’s still not convinced you’re real.

He reaches towards you and you don’t flinch when you watch his thumb come to gently trace over your right nipple, the spend there clinging to his digit. You feel a shiver run through with the contact of his hand on you.

You watch mesmerized as his palm cups your cheek, his fingers curling gently against your jaw. His thumb hovers scant inches from your swollen lips. Your eyes can't help but dart to his face again and the sight of his eyes blown black makes you quiver.

"Open," he says barely above a whisper.

Your mouth parts, eyes still on his face. He slowly lowers his thumb into your mouth. It rests there on your tongue, heavy and damp.

"Suck."

Your lips wrap around his thumb, licking the digit clean before sucking it suddenly, nestling him into the concave of your upper palate like he belongs there. He watches this all with quiet fascination, eyes strangely sorrowful through it all, like it pains him to do it. You suck, your smooth tongue cradling his wide thumb.

His hand is still cupping your cheek, even when his thumb is removed and drags down your lower lip, his gaze watching its descent. His brows saddle when you sigh gently, eyes locked with his.

And then he yanks his hand from you so quickly that you flinch. You’re completely thrown by the behavior, covering your chest instinctively. He looks at you kneeling between his legs and he shakes his head as if to clear it.

You shuffle backwards as he stands abruptly. You sit there at his feet, covered in his cooling spend, shooting him a confused look.

"We ain't doin this anymore," he tells you brusquely as he quickly zips up his jeans before buttoning it with trembling fingers.

"Why not?"

"Cuz I said so," he mutters before he shoots an ugly sneer your way. "You said you like takin' orders so this must be your lucky day."

You can only shake your head in disappointment as he leaves the room. You don't know what happened but Joel is back to his old, asshole self. The door below slams behind him and you go to the bathroom to clean yourself up. Today there is no sliding your hands underneath your jeans and getting yourself off.

All traditions have been spoiled by Joel's selfishness.

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

taglist: @casssiopeia

@getitoutofmymind

@joeldjarin

@elegantduckturtle

@cosmic006533-blog

@orcasoul

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#joel miller x reader #joel miller x you #joel miller smut #joel miller #dad joel miller #pedro pascal #fanfic #smut #joel miller fanfiction #fanfiction #joel the last of us #joel miller x f!reader #joel tlou #dark!joel miller #dark!joel x reader #dark!joel #dom/sub

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hahahafangirl · 9 days

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gotta put my thoughts down before i forget it but the thing that did it in for me is how spy x family is ultimately and uniquely a “children-focused” work, where the major stakes require that we pay attention to the lives and dynamics of young children so that — specifically — we have to genuinely engage with and invested in their inner lives, motivations, desires, thoughts, emotions, etc.

i think this is a very unique focus in the shounen sphere, where the audience and creators are centered about adolescent boys (the shounen genre, in its name) and thus have a very wide scope of focus that nonetheless has “aged” past “childhood”. usually media about children and childhood are sequestered in its own genre (children’s shows like doraemon, magical girl anime like precure series, etc.) aimed at a different target audience who are in the same demographic as the main characters in the shows. this is, obviously, not a bad thing. but i appreciate the “genre-breaking” focus that spy x family have because it inspires a sort of empathy to children, who are often not the most favorite group of people for the typical demographic of shounen readers, that is specifically vital in today’s climate. (can’t say much about japan itself, who historically has been dealing with declining birth rates, but oh i can speak for the american individualism— ironically where sxf is also very popular in) another thing about this is it’s drive home how intertwined the family life is, and should be. agent twilight and thorn princess’s plot-lines are clearly shounen-esque (a spy fighting for world peace, an assassin weeding out traitors) but they are nonetheless inextricable from the family- and anya-focused story, because by choice or circumstances they are anya’s parents. they’re a part of a larger societal fabric that embedded them in relationships to others — children being one of them. i think that’s pretty neat.

another thing, specially about the depiction of children in sxf: they are fictitious yet realistic enough to portray real children and inspire sympathy for them. a lot of asian home media in general have the problems of portraying young children as “problems”: annoying, loud, privileged, dumb, ungrateful, etc etc. these are such complaints about children that are unfortunately way too common and way too ungenerous and mean-spirited; none of these tropes are present, even in a media full of scions and heiress. complaints about them being brats (red circus bus hijacking arc) was rightfully framed as unsympathetic and unreasonable (they’re children! they can’t help where they were born into— it goes both ways.) i think the crux of this beautiful balance sxf struck in portraying nuanced, dynamics children is sympathy. they can be loud, they can be whiny, cry at the drop of a hat, has too much energy, gross, have bad grades, clingy, inconsistent, academically unmotivated, ran off randomly— and that’s fine, because we know why they do it, we are given space into their inner thoughts, something so rarely afforded to real life children at times. but they can be motivated, they want world peace, they want to have genuine friends, they want their friends to be happy, they have crushes, and most of all they love their parents and they love the people around them.

i think regardless of everything sxf is a work that understands that children are full of love and the majority of the things they do are out of love. i think that alone makes it incredible in the current socio-econo-political climate where sympathy is spared so little and humanity spreads so thin children barely gets what they deserve. i suppose that’s the sort of war we are entrenched in.

#spy x family #spy x family meta #i guess?#it’s late and i have been rereading spy x family obsessively to cope and i just #have a lot of feelings about it #anya forger #damian desmond #becky blackbell #damian’s friends too but i don’t know their full names. sorry kids.#all of these children are so precious and i would die and kill for them and would live to build world peace for them. if you catch my drift

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laladellakang · 1 year

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partners (1/2) ♡

masterlist | wattpad

DETAILS: bold dialogue: english members: ot7, (individual scenes) nrk, psh, lhs, yjw word count: 5.1k add. della in dark blood/bite me

SUMMARY: behind the scenes of dark blood [revamp] hehe revamp like vampires 1/2 + slight continuation of burgundy lipstick on jungwon's part

NOTES: hi! i'm so sorry for being away for so long! i have an explanation here if you wanna see what's been happening BUT NOWW i've come back for this new special birthday + anniversary month chapter! this is basically the partners chapter but revised + more scenes. i was gonna just combine it w part two but it was hecka long and i hate extremely long chapters. oh yea and della's dance in bite me includes a girlie now (but still has a man) please let me know what you think by sending asks/commenting. i look forward to them while writing and they really make my day <3

Della's hand injury at the start of 2023 has caused an obvious shift within Enhypen's dynamics. The fear of another relapse has caused the members to grow increasingly protective and wary of the girl, doing everything they can to get the love of their life back. Displaying it through their constant supervision when Della is in the kitchen, to being assured that she has taken her antidepressants, to an overall improvement in communication to ensure that her negative thoughts don't boil over.

Fortunately, the slump went away faster than they anxiously expected. Following the tour and her plastic surgery, Della had regained her usual self just in time for her birthday and their two-year anniversary. As their bond grows stronger by the day, the eight found themselves back in their honeymoon phase— practically inseperable.

Then the time came for a comeback.

It would have been ten months since their last one, and the group ready to go back into their busy routine with barely any rest but at least looked cute while doing it. They were excited for the change, and even more thrilled to find out that the concept would be something sexy. However, when they were briefed about the potential couple choreography, all seven boys froze collectively.

"We have to see how this goes. This is uncharted territory for us, so we're not sure if it's the best idea," the creative director explained. "BTS' Jimin incorporated mixed dancers, and the response was pretty good. However, 'Like Crazy' wasn't a full-on couple dance, so it might be different this time."

Jungwon, who was sitting to the left of Della, immediately held her hand under the desk, while the other six stole glances in her direction. Their minds were mostly occupied with how their girlfriend would react, as opposed to fully sinking in what such concept would entail for them.

"You'll hear the song in a bit, but since the key point is about a man doting on the woman who turned him into a vampire, we are going to have Della be the killing part," another director continued. "You'll have slightly different lyrics from the boys and you'll have an overall more seductive look."

"Thank you," Della bowed in her seat. "Is it altered to be more feminine?" she asked.

"No, no. You'll be singing from the girl's perspective. So if we look at the next page—" the sound of papers flipping echoed through the room. "Here, for Della's part in the teaser, we're gonna have you bite an actor— of course, not literally," the director's comment made a few people snicker. "—and turn him into a vampire. So, essentially, you'll be singing to two people: the woman who turned you and the man that you turned."

"Ahh, understood," Della nodded calmly. "Thank you," she said once again before caressing the back of Jungwon's tense hand. She glanced over at the others to find most of them looking at their sheet with a hard gaze. She could additionally see Jake playing with the corner of his and hear Jay's foot tapping on the floor.

"Thank you for the question, now back to the previous page—" another round of paper-flipping. "Now given that backstory, Della's partner in this comeback will be the only male—" the comment made Ni-ki choke on the coffee he was sipping. "Are you alright?"

"Ye– yeah! My– apo– apologies." he said in between coughs, turning his body away from the table while Sunoo patted his back.

"Like we said, we don't know how this is gonna turn out. We're sort of taking a gamble by doing this type of concept, but it's certainly going to be different and memorable."

The car ride home was tense. The members made an effort to conceal their emotions in the office, but in the privacy of the car, they saw no need to do so, and thus, they didn't. Though the discussion had to wait until they reached the dorm, as they needed all seven boys to be there. Della, who already knew the reason behind the tension, just calmly played with her phone and hummed to their upcoming title track.

"You really like the song, huh?" Jay commented as he entered the combination to their dorm. Since they had freshly heard it, all Della kept doing was humming the tune and repeating the words 'just come kiss me and bite me',which only heightened the tension among the three boys in her car. She could have chosen any other parts of the song and instead went for that specific line.

"It's one of my favorites of ours. It's so good," Della stopped her humming to reply with a grin. "We're ho—"

"Group meeting!" Jungwon immediately called out.

"As expected," Della muttered to herself. The four new arrivals swiftly put their shoes away and made headed to the living room, where the other four were already waiting. "Hello—"

"Lala, how are you feeling?" Jungwon wasted no time in asking. The question that all seven boys have been meaning to ask for the past two hours.

"I feel great," she replied with a soft smile, sitting on the couch armrest. "The song's great! The concept's great! I really can't wait for it."

"Is there... anything you dislike about the concept?" Sunghoon asked with a suspicious tone.

"Honestly..." the boys all looking at her with curious, yet almost eager eyes. "I think it's our best concept yet. It really represents Enhypen," her words made them collectively sigh in relief. "Were you expecting me to hate it?"

"No, it's just— like..." Sunoo struggled to find the words to explain the situation. "We were worried about the couple concept thing. The couple dance plus all the acting."

"Why were you worried about that?" Della furrowed her eyebrows. "Are you expecting me to be jealous?"

"No!" the seven said simultaneously in different tones. "We were just worried." Della couldn't help but scoff and giggle at her boyfriends.

"You guys have gotten so used to being a group that you often say things in unison," she covered the bottom half of her face, unable to contain her giggles. "So cute!"

"Wait— Lala, stay focused— are you seriously, seriously fine with everything?" Sunoo placed a hand on her knee to grab her attention.

"I'm totally cool! I don't mind you guys dancing with girls at all!" Della said with wide eyes and a genuine tone. "Guys, I used to train in YG— dancing or acting with the opposite sex is nothing! It's all professional," the mention of her old company itself suddenly provided the answer to their question.

"But the concept is quite sexy. We won't just be dancing next to each other, it's gonna be a couple dance with hand touching, at least," Jake explained.

"Honey, have you seen groups like Winner and BigBang? With Riki still being a baby, I doubt any of the parts will be suggestive— the worst thing they can do is have you hold onto the dancer's waist or something," she gave the Aussie a knowing look. "This is the art of dancing! We're exploring new stuff that fourth gen hasn't done before!" her eyes shone with every word she spoke, clearly showing her enthusiasm for the concept.

"I mean... on top of that, we don't love the idea too," Sunghoon spoke up, trying to be gentle. "We— or at least I wouldn't want to dance with another girl, let alone seeing you dance with another guy," Heeseung and Jay pointed to him in agreement while the others nod.

"Aww, darling, it's all professional, I promise!" Della made her way to the Sunghoon and released his crossed arms. "I'm only dancing with him for a little bit! Barely half a minute, I'm sure," she linked her arm with his and stared up at him with puppy eyes.

"It still ain't fun," he muttered, gulping down at the sight of her.

"Della, it's not that we don't trust you or anything," Heeseung sighed. "You have guy friends, for Christ's sake, we really do trust you! It's just... it's just..."

"It just fucking sucks," Jay bluntly completed for him. "—and we really don't wanna do this couple dance thing either. We know it's gonna hurt you."

"I'm not hurt, honest!" Della straightened her posture and widened her eyes. "I mean, we can always try to reason with the team if you guys are rea—" her idea was immediately cut by a string of 'no's.

"Forget about us, we'll be fine!" the other six wanted to smack their maknae on the head for lying. No, they will certainly not be fine. "But you! We don't want to hurt you or anything!" at least his other point was correct.

"I'm not hurt! Look, guys—" Della sighed, sitting down in betweenn Ni-Ki and Jay on the sofa and held their hands. "I'm not gonna lie, I might get a little jealous, but just a little! I'm not gonna be 'hurt', I swear! Just this conversation alone is enough to assure me that you all are seriously the best boyfriends in the world," she said with utmost sincerity. "I have nothing to worry about and— I know it's easier said than done but so should you. I'm completely obsessed with you guys! I don't want anyone else"

"Well, there are seven of us," Jungwon blurted out without thought. "I'm sorry!" his eyes instantly filled with regret while his hand went up to cover his mouth. "I didn't mean it like that. That sounds so wrong, I'm sor—"

"It's okay, darling. I'm not offended," Della got up from her seat and ruffled his hair. "Plus, you're absolutely right! I have seven boyfriends, I don't need any more! Especially when you're all so perfect." she placed a kiss on Jungwon's cheek before heading towards the kitchen. The seven boys all looked at each other in flabbergast.

"Are you absolutely, positively certain you're okay with the couple thing?!" Jay called out.

"Absolutely! I trust you guys! Best boyfriends ever, I tell you!"

The boys eyed each other as the same thought crossed their minds; one that they could never say aloud. "She gets jealous and upset over fan ships with idols we barely (or never) even talk to, yet she seems completely fine when we act with a girl for the screen?"

When the day came to finally learn the choreography, the boys were evidently really tense. They didn't even bother to conceal it in hopes that they might magically cancel the idea due to lack of chemistry. Little did they know that that is what the company prefers; for them to not 'stray from Engenes' hearts.'

The overall lesson came out smoothly, with everyone remaining professional and focused at the task at hand. Yet that was also because Della had not even touched her male dance partner. That part would only come towards the end of the song, on the second chorus, as Della dances with a girl on the first half. It was easy for the boys to cast their jealousy aside, but it certainly wasn't when the man finally came along.

"Della, your partner, Ingyu, as you know," the choreographer introduced the two out of formality. "Ingyu, Della," both Della and Ingyu politely bowed, despite already knowing each other from earlier. "Do you think you can do the moves from memory?" the choreographer grinned at the girl.

"Maybe...? Hopefully?" Della nervously grinned back, causing both the choreographer and Ingyu to chuckle.

Everyone had practiced and (essentially) mastered the chorus dance, but Della needed to be taken aside to learn the part switch she has with her male partner. It was an entirely new set for her, whereas several of the members just had to change partners.

This also provided an opportunity for them to fully observe their girlfriend dancing with another man. How lucky were they to have their full attention on the session they dread the most.

"Let's see what you've got," the choreographer stepped back to observe. "Five, six, seven, eight— it's you and me in this world..." Della did a great job mirroring the moves. Although some details in her leg movements were missing, her upper body ones were practically all correct.

"Damn, we just had to have a break while they are doing their part," Jay mumbled to his fellow members. "If it had happened earlier, we would have had something to focus on. But now it's right up on our faces."

"They have great chemistry, don't they?" Heeseung scoffed with a sardonic smile. Their eyes followed as the choreographer instructed Della on how much she needed to bend, having her hold onto Ingyu for support. "Wow, such amazing chemistry," he sarcastically remarked.

"Did I ever tell you about the time I asked her about the chemistry between my partner and I?" Sunoo asked Heeseung, who replied with a shake of his head. "I asked her how she would feel if I had good dance chemistry with my partner, and she just said, 'That's great! You should switch partners if the dance chemistry isn't there.' Like, what the fuck?"

"Ahh, you mentioned that to me," Jungwon reminded him. "Della really isn't jealous—she even encouraged Sunoo-hyung to make eye contact," he pointed at Sunoo.

"Really?!" Jake's eyes widened. "Even in front of the cameras?!"

"Uh!" Jungwon and Sunoo nodded with wide eyes. "I think as long as everything remains professional, she's completely fine."

"Well can someone tell her that we're not completely fine?" Sunghoon really tried to not glare at the couple but it wasn't like he was the only one.

It took around fifteen minutes for Della to get all the moves down. While it wasn't long by any means, the boys felt like the session ran through a hour. Instead of making the most out of their break, they were using up their energy on the glares that they sent the couple's way.

Both the choreographer and Ingyu (and certainly Della) could feel the potential holes that were burning through the male dancer's skin, yet they decide to brush it off since it doesn't appear to affect Della's performance. They always knew that the Enha boys had a crush on the girl anyway.

The keyword was professional, and as long as everyone remains that then all should be well.

"Are you finish?" Sunghoon asked Della as she finally made her way over for her break.

"Yup," she gave a thumbs up. "Thankfully, it wasn't difficult."

While they were all feeling jealous, they knew that Della had done everything they asked of her and there was wasn't much she could do. So they resorted to the only outlet available for them to express their emotions; teasing and poking fun at her.

"Was it fun?" Sunoo playfully glared at her with a pout.

"Aish, it's all professional," she playfully pushed him.

"So it was fun?" Sunoo pestered further, causing Della to scoff and mutter a "no it wasn't."

"'It's all professional,' but you were fully leaning on his chest?" Jungwon teased as well.

"It was no different from you!" she protested with a point to him. "—with all of you! We maintained our distance and everything."

"Our distance was like this—" Jake opened his arms wide in exaggeration. "While your distance was like this," he demonstrated by getting very close to Jay.

"No, it wasn't!" Della stomped her feet repeatedly. "You guys are exaggerating!"

"In that case, show us how it was," Ni-ki stood up from the floor and got closer to Della. "Demonstrate with me," he smirked.

"Eyy!" the members teased, impressed by their maknae's smooth flirting. "Go on! Show us!"

"Aish, you seven," Della complained with a roll to her eyes but complied anyway. "It's you and me in this world..." she sang monotonously and lazily repeated the moves that she just learned.

"Wah! Look at the large gap when it's with me!" Ni-ki protested to his hyungs. "Wah... seriously..." he pinched his nose bridge and shook his head.

"What the—" Della's confusion was immediately cut off by the members simultaneously jestering her. Choruses of "wah Della!", "how could you do that?!" "with our maknae too!" and "can't believe you play favourites," ran through the circle, making whoever else in the room glance at them with an amused expression.

"What are you talking about?!"

"Riki, riki, what do you think of this? So everyone disappears out of the frame except for you," Della explained her vision, using her hands to mimic curtains opening. "All eyes are on you and then Sunghoon-oppa emerges!" her hand then dramatically raised as if she was Thanos. "Brave heart— pam, pam, pam!" she said Ni-ki's line while popping her chest. "Then you and Sunghoon-oppa couple dance on his part!" the pen in her hand dropped as if it was a microphone and she had just said something life changing.

"Couple dance?" Ni-ki raised an eyebrow. The two dancers were ecstatic when the choreographer had asked them to take part in the process. They have wanted this for so long and were finally given the responsibility of the pre-chorus and second verse. The pre-chorus practically screams Ni-ki's name so it was a no-brainer for the maknae to take the former.

They were experimenting together but didn't interfere with each other's section, simply situated in an empty practice room with snacks and their phones playing the recently recorded song. It almost reminded them of the time when they had their first kiss.

"Not literally, but like... a pair dance, y'know? Something like Given-Taken," Della grinned. "Then Heeseung-oppa emerges! Then I emerge! Then everyone gathers and emerges—"

"What is with you and people emerging?" Ni-ki laughed. He was feeling a little too happy to have his girlfriend all to himself whilst doing the activity they love the most (especially since said activity was recently ruined by the couple dance). It was evident in his clinginess and the shine in his eyes.

"It's the drama! The vampire! The darkness!" the younger could only laugh more, letting his head drop on his girlfriend's lap.

"I'm sure you know what suits the mood, and I think the emergence thing sounds great," Ni-ki can't help but hum when Della's fingers tangled themselves in his hair. "I'm doing something like this; come here and get some—" with his eyes still closed and basking in the soothing sensation, he brought his hands up to form the first part of his original dance. "Something with a cool vibe, y'know?"

「大好き」 Della smiled softly. 「まじ力のスタイル」 she got close to his face to place a sideways kiss on his lips. [daisuki: i love it, maji riki no sutairu: it's seriously riki's style]

「ありがとう」Ni-ki muttered out before closing the gap to deepen the kiss. [arigatou: thanks]

Della and her boyfriends wouldn't call herself a jealous person. However, what she definitely is, is an anxiety-filled, insecure person. Otherwise known as a jealous person.

But she's not envious! She simply overthinks that some girls just suit the boys better than her and that they deserve better. While she's not jealous of the boys acting with Park Jiwon for the trailer, she had to admit that she was a little nervous before the shoot.

'What if they look great together? Especially Sunghoon since he has a lot of scenes with her,' she recognises that she's overthinking it but she really can't prevent herself from doing so.

'Sunghoon and one of your close friends look great together, but they don't give off couple vibes,' she reminded herself. 'You look great with them too, Lala. Give yourself some credit, you bad bitch.'

With the help of her self-pep talk (and antidepressants), her nervousness subdued quick. It also didn't take long for it to completely wash away, resulting from Jiwon being a massive shipper of Enha as a group. It was evident in how she giggled to herself whenever Della and the boys did anything close to being couple-like.

Furthermore, she had caught Jiwon pouting to her manager, questioning; "Is that all we're getting? Della being disappointed in Sunghoon and they don't even hug?" or along those lines.

Needless to say, there was no reason for Della to feel jealous, and that almost annoyed Mister Park Sunghoon himself.

"You're seriously, seriously not jealous?" Sunghoon asked when they had a moment to themselves on set.

"No? Why would I be?" Della said with a borderline sassy tone. The boys have been walking around eggshells with Jiwon and have constantly asked the same questions to Della. A rotation between "are you sure?" "is it really okay?" "aren't you jealous?" and "are you feeling okay?" Although she appreciates the gesture and thinks it's incredibly sweet of them, she has gotten tired of saying the same things over and over again.

"Not even the slightest? Babe, the storyline literally includes me defending her more than yo—"

"And what are you gonna do if I said that I was?" she cut him off, moving closer to him with a low voice.

"I– I mean," he stuttered at the look on her face and sudden close proximity. Even after two years, there are still moments when he finds Della intimidating. "Just wanted to make sure you were okay—"

"And what are you gonna do if I said that I wasn't?" she practically repeated. "You want me to congratulate you?" an eyebrow was raised to challenge him further.

"No! That's not what I meant!" his eyes widened in panic. "I– I was just– a little—" he did have an reason, but the addition of Della's hand pushing his bangs to the side had distracted him from whatever it was he was trying to say.

"Why don't you relay this to the others as well, hm?" she then brushed her fingers on his cheekbones. "I am rarely ever jealous because, at the end of the day, when you act out those scenes or record our songs, I'm the one who's on your mind. You don't think of Jiwon, your dancers, or even Sooha or Engenes. You think of me," she lets out a smirk when he appeared to be in a daze.

"The lyrics that you sing in your songs? Those are all for me."

"I get to have a couple dance with you?!" Heeseung exclaimed when Della broke the news. "Sweet! Nice!"

She really couldn't help it. She just had to reveal to the guy that she sneaked in a tiny pair dance for the two of them. It wasn't much in her eyes but it's more than enough for Heeseung.

"You have to show me! Please!" Heeseung got up from his bed, ready to replicate whatever it was that Della came up with. "It's definitely gonna be the choreo, right?! Like they won't ask you to change it or anything?" Della couldn't help but chuckle at how adorable the older was. His eyes sparkled with eager and hope, incredibly ready to perform his girlfriend's arrangement in pride.

"Nope. Absolute free to do whatever I want," she grinned before standing up as well. "All you do is kneel..." she kneeled on the floor to demonstrate, with Heeseung following suit. "Then rise... walk... then this," what he had to do wasn't difficult at all, so he would definitely still be able to sing live. "That's it."

"And yours?" Della smiled and made her way behind him. It was a tight fit, but the two can definitely make it work with how simple the moves are.

"Go ahead."

"'Come to me, make it right,'" Heeseung could feel himself get even more excited when Della placed her hand under his chin. "'Please connect me again,' woah!" his eyes widened at her hands running down his arms.

"'Devour you,'" Della whispered, leaving goosebumps on his skin. Her face got close to his neck while her right hand mimicked a claw on his shoulder blade. Knowing Heeseung, this move should drive him insane.

"No fricking way," within a flash, Della was back onto the bed with Heeseung lips on the side of her neck. "Gosh, I love this vampire concept."

"Gosh, I hate this vampire concept," Heeseung rumbled under his breath.

"It was all fun and games until we realise what a vampire concept entails," Jake mumbled with crossed arms.

"Yeah, and it's whatever this shit is," Jay huffed, openly glaring at the unfolding scene without a care.

Della was in the midst of filming the scene where she wakes up and bites a passerby. For budget conveniences (since his face wouldn't be visible anyway), the actor was none other than her male backup dancer, Ingyu.

It seems that, although she had made her lack of jealousy clear, her reasons did not resonate with her men. Even when they implement her advice, they still felt that red, hot jealousy.

"If his face ain't even on the video, then can't one of us do it? Seriously..." Sunoo rolled his eyes to avoid looking at Della leaning into Ingyu's neck.

"I know right?" Jungwon and Jay briefly replied, shifting their eyes to the monitor and giving them a closer look at the scene.

"Oh my God!" the boys (with the exception of Sunoo, who was still avoiding the performance), held a shocked look when Della's pretend bite appeared very realistic.

The segment is definitely different from that of Jay's and Sunghoon's. With Della being the one to initiate the bite, the focus is on her face instead of the partner's. The audience could see her laziness-laced body with eyes holding a convincing hunger to them, making it look like she was an actual starved vampire. She looks incredibly alluring, all while looking at another man.

"Oh great, she's amazing at acting too," after a quick glance back, Sunoo let out another eye roll. "Does she always have to give it her all? She should've half assed it," he spat out.

"Sunoo-ya," Heeseung and Jungwon laughed while the other four snorted with grins on their faces.

"You're gonna get us in trouble with that language," Jay chuckled.

"I wasn't screaming it or anything— I'm just saying what you all are thinking," Sunoo shrugged innocently. "You three are way louder than me without even saying anything" he gestured to Heeseung, Jay and Jungwon, additionally giving them a pointed look. The others know they can't disagree, as the trio really placed their heart on their sleeves this time.

"I don't fucking get it. Any one of us could really act this scene, I swear," Jungwon huffed out with a sarcastic smile. He placed his hands in his pockets, turning his body around to avoid looking any further. "Seven boys and they went with someone else for fucking budget reasons when they don't need to pay us fuck all for that scene alone. It's like they're doing this on purpose just so his name is on the fucking credits and Engenes won't ship us or—"

"Woah, woah!" Heeseung and Jake cut him off from his tangent. Jay and Sunoo's eyes simply widened while Ni-ki and Sunghoon held him back as if he was going to fight.

"You need to have a talk with Della or something," Sunghoon pat his left shoulder in attempt to calm him down. On his right, the youngest did a similar gesture by massaging the tense area.

"Or your therapist..."

"A little birdie told me you need to let things out," fortunately, since Della's part was the last shoot of the day, Jungwon's sour mood did not interfere with their work. It also gave them the opportunity to talk in the fully private hotel room.

Jungwon only scoffed out, keeping his arms crossed as he sat on the bed. The man himself doesn't fully understand why he was so upset. The other boys had quickly calmed themselves— unbeknownst to him, it was because they saw how angry their leader was, yet he remained with a scowl for majority of the time.

"Who?" he avoided eye contact when he muttered, afraid to raise his voice at the girl.

"It doesn't even matter because I can tell with my eyes closed," Della mirrored his body language but remained standing before him and leaning on the desk behind her. She has always been nervous whenever any one of the boys are mad at her, but Jungwon is probably the most intimidating. His leader energy is incredible.

"I just don't understand why they need Ingyu to act when there are seven other men who can do it," he went straight to the point. "If his face isn't even showing then any one of us could've done it! Heck— even the director could use his own neck! They couldn't have one of us to do it?!" as he went on, his voice started to raise a little in passion.

Della only stood there with an occasional nod, listening to the tangent that the other members have already heard. He talked nonstop for a few minutes, leaving Della room to ponder through her words.

She noticed that he kept repeating points like 'any one of the members could do it,' 'the bite could've been even more realistic,' and 'why they would want you to imitate a bite on another man.' It all finally clicked to her when Jungwon said, "They scrapped the kiss mark for the jacket shoot and now this? They're definitely keeping us apart on purpose."

"Jungwonie?" she grinned mischievously, to which he stopped and replied with a hum. "You're so cute," she didn't give him much time to react, as she had already hovered above him to connect their lips.

"Wait, Lala—" the younger was certainly not complaining, but he wished that Della would say a bit more than that, especially after he went on and on.

"You want more neck kisses, don't you?" she grinned once again. "You felt special during the jacket shoot and want that again, right? And you're jealous because the concept was scrapped for you yet another man got it. Am I right?"

Jungwon blinked slowly, taking in the observation that the mind reader had made. He didn't even know that he was feeling that way but it all makes sense. His emotions weren't even specifically directed to Ingyu; it's towards a man who wasn't him. He would feel the same if the team had chosen any other member.

A rare occurrence for Jungwon, but definitely not impossible. As much as he loves his best friends and the relationship, he did originally want Della all to himself.

A giggle interrupted his train of thoughts, and when Della asked for a confirmation, all he could do was nod in embarrassment. She let out another giggle before closing the gap between them once again.

"Don't worry, Wonie. I'll give you a million neck kisses if that's what you want."

my writing style has evolved and i'm hating a lot of my old works so i'm going to edit + tweak them soon but i'm still keeping the old ones on wattpad just in case they're someone's comfort fics <3 n e ways i hope you enjoy because i hope my writing style has progressed instead of regressed

part two coming soon

taglist! @afiaaaa19 @riikiblr @one16core @i90snoo @danyxthirstae01 @seulgifted @clar-iii @nichmeddar @jiwlys @duolingofanaccount @nvmbheart [i have removed accs that i can't tag so please send me an ask/message to be in the tallest again]

#kang della #8th member of enhypen #enhypen 8th member #enhypen ff #enhypen reactions #enhypen scenarios #enhypen x oc #enhypen added member #enhypen eigth member #enhypen female addition #enhypen female member #enhypen oc #kpop added member #kpop oc #enhypen female oc #enhypen imagines #enhypen poly fic #enhypen poly

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otomes-and-tears · 5 months

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Wondering what your thoughts and opinions are on the rest of the jerk squad boys, especially Nate?

Know that asking me this was a mistake because I’m RABID for them. I’m FOAMING at the mouth and shaking just at being asked to ramble about my boys because I am plagued by thoughts of them that I’m absolutely going to unleash upon you now.

This is not going to be coherent at all. I apologise for that.

By the way— since I already talk about Shiloh way too much, he’s not going to have his little section here. If you want to see my rambles about him, please check my masterlist!

I’m probably going to talk about Jeremy separately because…. I actually haven’t finished his route. It’s the only one that’s left.

Since you asked about him first, Nate is one of my favourite boys. I have a special place in my heart for him because he kind of reminds me of my girlfriend, and I do think that his dynamic with JB is one of the most entertaining in the bunch. He’s always snapping back at her and it’s so fucking funny. Every time they’re out together I keep getting this mental image of JB being strapped in a baby leash with Nate trailing behind her like an exhausted parent.

Like Shiloh, he’s also a character that I think about a LOT, particularly about the way he handles (or does not handle) his emotions and his obsessive need to have control over everything around him.

I think it’s really telling that Nate continuously strives for perfection and frequently neglects his own emotional needs when he practically raised himself, admittedly saw the school as his home, and when we know for a fact that he was seen and treated as a mini-adult throughout his life.

Like, you cannot tell me he wasn’t praised endlessly as a child for being independent and self-sufficient and then when he grew older people were constantly exasperated that he was too independent and didn’t know when to ask for help when needed! Nate is probably endlessly confused as to why something that was touted as being such a good trait for a good portion of his life suddenly became a problem.

Anyways, I think it’s kind of tragic how he spent most of his life at that school and I legit teared up when they graduated. It’s also very sweet how despite being a perv and living to make him uncomfortable, JB is surprisingly respectful of his boundaries regarding physical touch and doesn’t push him to kiss or hug her. Yeah, she teases him about missing the perfect moment but she’s happy to let him decide when he’s ready to do all of that!

It’s also nice that she tries to support him, even if she isn’t exactly good at it. SHE’S TRYING HER BEST BC THEY LEGIT LIKE EACH OTHER EVEN IF THEY BOTH HAVE ISSUES!!

Regarding Everett… I didn’t expect to like his route as much as I did, but he has SO MUCH ANGST POTENTIAL.

Like, his whole relationship with Nate? The fact that he’s a momma’s boy?? HE WAS REJECTED BY PRAN In like, the WORST way possible??

It’s just, chef’s kiss. A whole lotta angst wrapped inside a tiny, hipster-shaped package. Pure perfection.

My only issue with his route is that the whole time, I felt like JB was getting in between him and Nate. This is my headcanon, but I feel like after high school, if JB and Everett don’t immediately have an explosive, dramatic breakup there are only two possible routes: either he leaves her for Nate or they add Nate into the mix.

I’m sorry, but no other alternatives compute for me, not after their conversation in the tunnel of love. That shit goes way past just a codependent friendship.

I think I’ve mentioned this once before but Bae is likely my second favorite jerksquad guy. I can’t really explain why his condescension is so funny to me, but it might be because my favorite parts of the game were the group meetings and Bae’s borderline paternalistic attitude towards the other characters (because he’s mAtURE and knows what’s best for them) and his sarcasm made for some really great dialogue and some of the funniest scenes in my opinion.

Just as a side note— I played xoxo blood droplets and Bae’s route made me realize how much potential he has to be a yandere in an au! And now that I’m thinking about this I NEED to write about it. Even if it’s just headcanons or something.

I love him in game. I’d probably throw hands with him three minutes into a conversation if he existed IRL. I sent my girlfriend screenshots of his sons of his scenes while I played and she said that I was a bit like him. It made me reevaluate my life LOL

Okay so, I’m going to be real with you: Pran is my least favorite of the boys. I’ll admit that when I played through his route last year I kept complaining about not having that much fun and not liking him a lot as a character. My view changed as I got to the end of the game:

Pran’s is still my least favorite route but he’s one of the most interesting guys to analyze.

In the end, even if it took me a bit to get into it, I still ended up enjoying it immensely anyway.

I think what made me dislike him at first was that, ironically, I think that Pran as a character works best in group scenes. He’s a contrarian and he’s very quiet most of the time, which makes his very occasional interjections some of the funniest moments in the meetings, but that’s also why I didn’t find his dates as fun LOL

I think that with the other characters I had a better time because how they played off JB during their dates, while with Pran it was funny to see JB trying so hard to engage with him or get a rise out of him just for him to barely react (and it makes the instances where she does manage to catch him off guard very rewarding) on the first few times, but it started to get old for me. There’s only so many times I can hear him say no, and that he doesn’t care before it gets annoying.

For me the highlight of his route was seeing Shiloh have a weird, one-sided beef with him. Shiloh pretends to like everyone but this is where he draws the line apparently 😭

Anyways, you might be wondering why I said he’s one of my favourites to analyse if I didn’t have much fun playing through his route. That’s mostly because of his backstory, which I genuinely find to be fascinating.

He’s basically a textbook example of avoidant attachment, which is due to the severe neglect he suffered as a child. Honestly, I could make a whole post about this alone if anyone is interested.

That coupled with having to adopt a mentality where nothing he ever did or said was ever right, because either his parents or grandparents would get upset, which led to him always being quiet or choosing the contrarian option, and you get a pretty fascinating character to think about. It’s interesting to examine his relationships through this lense: it makes complete sense that Pran has a difficult time engaging with JB and connecting to her emotional needs. The few relationships he has maintained exist out of necessity! And he tries so hard to push her away, in the same way he pushed everyone else away, but she just refuses to leave. Refuses to accept defeat. She’s fully determined to figure him out and make their weirdass relationship work and it’s something I admire JB for. That girl is a TROOPER.

#by the way this is going to be a take™️ but I think Shiloh and Nate are more similar than either of them would like to admit #they both need to feel in control of a situation in order to feel comfortable but they express that need in basically opposite ways #I can elaborate more on that if anyone is interested #bee rambles #xoxo droplets #shiloh fields #nate lawson #everett gray #bae pyoun #pran taylor #xod shiloh #Nate xod #everett xod #bae xod #Pran xod #xod

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chaotic-goodsir · 5 months

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Some thoughts about the BBC ghosts finale, because it was inevitable that I'd have some rambling to do after watching:

It seems like there's a lot of annoyance and disappointment around the finale, which is fair when so many people had high expectations. Personally I didn't mind it - maybe it wasn't the show's best episode, but I think it ended the only way it could.

Before Mia, Alison was constantly entertaining and paying attention to the ghosts, because she's a caring person who chose to use her gift to get to know them and try to give them new experiences. She didn't have to do that. She could have moved out sooner, or tried to arrange an exorcism that worked, or taught herself to ignore the ghosts completely. Plenty of people in her position might have done those things, but Alison chose to make a family out of the bunch of dead weirdos she found herself stuck with.

She made time for all the ghosts while somehow also making time for Mike AND finding uses for the massive crumbling house that neither of them asked to inherit - not to mention helping to organise repairs and archeological digs and viewings and so on. That's honestly impressive and it sounds exhausting. There's no way she or Mike could have continued to live that way while also taking care of a child.

Something I love about Ghosts is the way it addresses mundane but important themes - things like home, friendship, family, grief and support for one another. It's not a perfect show by any means and but for a silly fun comedy it's also surprisingly thoughtful and soft, and kind to all of its characters (even Julian and Barclay!) despite their flaws. It deals with topics that most people can relate to, and mostly it handles them in an honest, kind and realistic way. I think that's part of what has made it so popular.

So Alison leaving, and the Ghosts advising her to, makes sense to me. The ghosts might stay the same forever, but Alison and Mike (and Mia) are living people with their own stories ahead of them. Even in found families and close-knit friend groups, things change. Dynamics shift. Not everyone can remain as closely tied to the group as they might have been before.

That doesn't have to be a loss or a betrayal. Things changing doesn't mean that they are ruined. Alison goes back to visit the ghosts for the rest of her life - she makes sure they know that they aren't forgotten. And the ghosts stick around for her as well (or at least, we can assume they all do). Their relationship as friends is not less important than Alison and Mike's new family, it just needs less attention, because the ghosts are adults and can survive (or, uh, exist?) by themselves. I don't think it's out of character or poor writing to show them letting Alison have some space. It's what good friends might do to support a friend who, for whatever reason, can't be around as much anymore.

Overall I didn't completely love the finale. I wish it had been a double episode, and I've seen some posts saying Alison deserved more opportunity to be her usual chaotic self before she became an exhausted new mother, which I agree with. I think the fact they threw in a speech tying everything to Christmas just because it was a Christmas special was a bit annoying, if unavoidable. But it was sweet and a good way to say goodbye to one of my favourite shows.

#honestly alison deserves some space for all that she's put up with #mike too!#and they go back to see them! maybe bring mia to visit as well!#and of course the ghosts understand that things have to move on eventually #most of them have been around for centuries (millennia in robin's case)#theyve done this before #bbc ghosts #ghosts bbc #ghosts spoilers #bbc ghosts spoilers #ghosts finale spoilers

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menheramar · 7 months

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Otogi No Uta Masterlist

This series has like 3 fans so I figured I'd make it easier for people to get into it. The story is told through a series of "movements," CD dramas, and a manga. It also has cute comics, posted on the official Mute Twitter. This list will focus on collecting sources for English speaking fans.

If you don't know anything about the series, you should start by reading this twitter thread by nemuruoogarasu! Feel free to look through the unofficial wiki as well, you can learn a little more about each band and character there. The series is mostly based on the bands and the characters, so pick your favorites :)

After that, listen to some of the songs. I have a playlist compiling them from the official channel here, and I have listed them below as well. There is no specific order you have to listen to them in. Be aware that some of the songs are not uploaded in their entirety, as some have to be purchased through the official drama CDs. The full mp3 files can accessed through amazon.jp.

Story

The story is a bit confusing to follow, and as of writing, not everything has been translated. I will be updating this as often as possible.

Basically, Otogi no Uta is about several bands fighting with special music powers in "Live Battles" against each other. This is in order to obtain "The End," a thing which can grant any wish. Those who posess music powers are called "Utaibito," which could roughly translate to "Melody User," "Musician," or "Music Person" in english (though I left it as is in the manga).

Manga

The manga serves as a backstory for each band and character. You should probably get to know the characters a little through the wiki first so you are not completely lost. Each two chapters go over the backstory of how one of the bands formed and what their goal is and set the group dynamics and personalities.

Also to note, each chapter title corresponds to a song by that band! All chapters have been translated by me.

Ch 0 - Prologue (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 1 - Ensa no Roubitsu Part 1 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 2 - Ensa no Roubitsu Part 2 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 3 - HelLO wOnder WorLd♣ Part 1 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 4 - HelLO wOnder WorLd♣ Part 2 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 5 - Kazoe Uta Part 1 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 6 - Kazoe Uta Part 2 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 7 - Weltreise Part 1 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 8 - Weltreise Part 2 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 9 - Reine Seele Part 1 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 10 - Reine Seele Part 2 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 11 - Jyuroku Yaman Hana Part 1 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 12 - Jyuroku Yaman Hana Part 2 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 13 - Rinnegyo Kei Part 1 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 14 - Rinnegyo Kei Part 2 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 15 - LOUDBRAVE Part 1 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 16 - LOUDBRAVE Part 2 (tumblr) (mangadex) Ch 17 - Epilogue (tumblr) (mangadex)

Movements

There are 45 "movements" (and 2 overtures and 1 prelude), starting here. Make sure you don't miss the tabs on the top of the page to read all of them! I believe it goes over all the bands meeting up to participate in the live battles.

Songs + Drama Tracks

From my understanding, the drama tracks that aren't part of a "vs" CD go over mostly the same as the manga but more in depth.

Note: The wiki has auto translated lyrics for untranslated songs! A lot is still untranslated, but I'll do my best to gather everything here. If you find any links to translations, please send them my way, I'll be sure to add them!

Shuan no Gokumon - Setsudan Club (translated lyrics) Togabito no Shirabe - Setsudan Club (translated lyrics) Ensa no Roubitsu - Setsudan Club (translated lyrics) Setsudan Club DRAMA TRACK 01 Setsudan Club DRAMA TRACK 02

Hitoribōshi - Issun-Bōshi Komo Yūgi - Issun-Bōshi Kazoe Uta - Issun-Bōshi Issun-Bōshi DRAMA TRACK 01 Issun-Bōshi DRAMA TRACK 02

Blinzen Parade - Bremüsik Gutes Fest! - Bremüsik Weltreise - Bremüsik Bremüsik DRAMA TRACK 01 Bremüsik DRAMA TRACK 02

Rosen Melodie - BLASSKAIZ Ritus - BLASSKAIZ Reine Seele - BLASSKAIZ BLASSKAIZ DRAMA TRACK 01 BLASSKAIZ DRAMA TRACK 02

HaPpY uNBirThDAy♠ - AlicexToxic (translated lyrics) HaVE A NicE tRIP♧ - AlicexToxic HelLO wOnder WorLd♣ - AlicexToxic Alice×Toxic DRAMA TRACK 01 Alice×Toxic DRAMA TRACK 02

Liberty - Momotroop Imperfect - Momotroop LOUDBRAVE - Momotroop Momotroop DRAMA TRACK 01 Momotroop DRAMA TRACK 02

Note: I will be shortening "Mushoku no Sora to Warau Ito" to "MSWI" Ochiyuku Hasu No Hanabira Rinne Wo Mitsumete - MSWI Nehan Jakujo - MSWI Rinnegyo Kei - MSWI MSWI DRAMA TRACK 01 MSWI DRAMA TRACK 02

Jyuroku Yaman Hana - Kashin no Okina SPECIAL VOICE DRAMA

Fantasie Nacht - Bremüsik VS Setsudan Club Kaimei no Doukoku - Bremüsik VS Setsudan Club (translated lyrics) Bremüsik VS Setsudan Club DRAMA TRACK 01 (translation) Bremüsik VS Setsudan Club DRAMA TRACK 02

Hitorigoto - Issun-Bōshi vs Momotroop vs MSWI Keep on… - Issun-Bōshi vs Momotroop vs MSWI Rinne no Kubiki - Issun-Bōshi vs Momotroop vs MSWI Issun-Bōshi vs Momotroop vs MSWI DRAMA TRACK 01 Issun-Bōshi vs Momotroop vs MSWI DRAMA TRACK 02 Issun-Bōshi vs Momotroop vs MSWI DRAMA TRACK 03

Möbius - BLASSKAIZ VS Alice×Toxic ♢WoNdeR PaRTy♦ - BLASSKAIZ VS Alice×Toxic BLASSKAIZ VS Alice×Toxic DRAMA TRACK 01 BLASSKAIZ VS Alice×Toxic DRAMA TRACK 02

Oshimai wo Kono Te Ni - all (translated lyrics) Medorē (DJ Remix) feat. Issun-Bōshi - connected the songs of 7 units from the 1st series by Issun-Bōshi Otogi no Uta 〜CHRONICLE〜 ALL STARS - DRAMA TRACK 01 Otogi no Uta 〜CHRONICLE〜 ALL STARS -DRAMA TRACK 02 Otogi no Uta 〜CHRONICLE〜 ALL STARS -DRAMA TRACK 03

#otogi no uta #音戯の世界 #オトクロ #otoginouta #♡ 𝖔𝖙𝖔𝖌𝖎 𝖓𝖔 𝖚𝖙𝖆 ♡

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thestrangestthing89 · 1 year

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The Inversion of Tropes

This show has repeatedly inverted a lot of common writing tropes. They often give you the narrative you expect to see and then the next season flip it upside down. Not all tropes are bad but ST does try to invert the ones that are. An example of one that isn't problematic is the Chosen One trope. I think we will get this with Will but I'm curious to see if there is a spin on it. I googled a list of common writing tropes and read a few of the articles that came up for this. There are a lot so it's interesting to me when people don't see this or they think that they won't do something like break up Mike and El. There is tons of evidence suggesting that they will. This is in 2 parts.

Nerdy boy gets girl/Born Sexy Yesterday These tropes aren't exactly the same but they are similar so I am grouping them together. In the first one, there is an awkward nerdy kid who ends up with the pretty girl (who is often the popular girl). The second one goes a bit further. BSY is the when the female character is naive and doesn't understand the world and needs the male character to show her and protect her. The male character is usually nerdy or overlooked by other female characters They then end up in a romantic relationship and this is meant to imply that all of their insecurities were magically cured by this relationship and they lived happily ever after. Stranger Things gave us this trope with Mike and El. But they start to invert it in S3. We see how unhealthy this dynamic actually is. They are both still insecure, they lie frequently, and they can't really be themselves with each other. It's clear El still has a lot to learn about the world and instead of learning this from Mike she starts to learn from Max. She learns independence and Mike learns he wasn't being himself. Continuing with this trend in S5, I expect to see a confirmation of a break up and El being independent with Mike getting the boy that he's in love with.

The Special Girl Trope El is described as special by many people. She's a superhero. She saves the world. Everyone, even adults, are dependent on her to save the day. But the inversion of this is that El is discovering she doesn't want to be a superhero. She doesn't want to be the person who always has to save everyone. Her reclaiming her lost childhood is more important than her being a superficial hero who always saves the day. Being normal and average is the thing that she wants. Not being special.

The kid in a horror movie does everything wrong trope This was in the very first episode. Typically we see teens in horror doing every stupid thing imaginable when they are being chased by whatever monster/serial killer the show is about. There is often a run and stumble and that person making so many bad choices that you're often yelling at your screen watching. Will doesn't do this. When he realizes he's in danger he does everything right - runs home, locks the door, looks for his older brother and mom, calls 911 when he realizes they aren't there, runs out back when the monster comes inside, and in a last ditch effort to protect himself loads a gun. But he doesn't get a chance to use it. It doesn't help him and he ends up getting taken anyway. This honestly makes it scarier. Knowing that there isn't anything at all he could have changed. The bad thing would have happened anyway. We see this a few times throughout the series too. The group frequently makes smart decisions to get themselves out of tough situations. They are nerds and their intelligence is what saves them.

The girl who has sex in a horror movie gets killed first trope This isn't just in horror movies but the girl who has sex usually gets slut shamed or punished in some way. In S1, Nancy has sex with Steve but it's not her who gets killed by the monster it's her friend. Nancy does get slut shamed by Steve and his friends later. But the twist here is that Steve realizes he did something wrong. They were the bad guys and Nancy didn't actually mess up or deserve to be humiliated like that. He cleans up the spray paint and goes to apologize to her (and Jonathan) for his bullying.

The bully is 1 dimensional and stupid trope Steve is a bully in S1 and does some awful things to both Nancy and Jonathan. But he genuinely changes and has character growth. He learns from his mistakes and doesn't behave this way again. The middle school bully and his friend are different. Troy is a terrible person. Not only because of the bullying but because of how far he takes it. He holds a knife to Dustins throat and forces Mike to jump off a cliff. Typically in movies, the bully has henchmen who are stupid and blindly follow whatever the bully says. But we see Troys friend get freaked out by his behavior. He tells him this isn't a good idea. He's going too far with this and his friend tries to stop him.

The trophy wife/housewife trope When Nancy describes her family she describes Karen as being younger than her. She married someone rich and settled down in the suburbs. Typically this person is superficial and not a great mom. But we see Karen being attentive to her kids and trying to bond with them. She is tempted by an affair with pool boy (aka the lifeguard) but is hesitant when this starts to become more than a fantasy. She realizes it's not like her to have an affair and doesn't let it go further than this. Her family is important to her.

The tomboy trope When Max is introduced she is the typical tomboy - she skateboards, plays video games, and doesn't have female friends. This is often used to show female characters who are what certain male character like. In this case, Dustin and Lucas are fascinated by her because she's a girl and she likes all the things they like therefore she's cool. We've seen a different side to Max though. She does genuinely like those things, but she also has a feminine side and isn't ashamed of this. Typically this trope involves making it seem like being feminine is a bad thing. This girl isn't like those other girly girls. But Max isn't like this. She wants to be El's friend so they can do girly things like shop and have sleepovers and talk about boys. She isn't shown to be silly for wanting this and she isn't trying to hide this part of herself. It makes her more complex and interesting. Not to mention doesn't insult anyone who is feminine.

The knight in shining armor trope Mike as the paladin is an interesting choice. He's nerdy and scrawny and not typically the person who plays a romantic male lead. But Mike has been shown repeatedly throughout the series to be a great leader and resourceful under pressure. Typically this role would be played by someone who looked like Billy. The strong muscular guy who saves the day and gets the girl. Mike's a little awkward and self conscious but he's smart. And it's his smarts and empathetic nature that save everyone and get him the boy.

The girlboss needs to look hot while kicking ass trope I cannot even begin to tell you how relieved I am that Nancy was never kicking ass in a skimpy outfit. So many times, especially with male directors, if they allow the female character to take the lead at all she has to do it while looking hot. Nancy does wear trendy outfits sometimes but it in no way seems like she isn't being herself when she does. And it's never an impractical outfit that no one could possibly be fighting for their lives in (no 4 inch heels or short skirts - I'm looking at Buffy here) She just likes that kind of style. And they never make her look "pretty" (I put this in quotes because obviously all the actors on this show are pretty, it's tv. But they don't go out of their way to make her look like a model unnecessarily). When she's in the UD or fighting for her life in S3 at the hospital she gets messy. Her makeup is smudged, her clothes get torn at one point, her hair is frizzy. They aren't afraid to make her look like she's been through it because she has. It always irks me when you see any kind of post apocalypse show and all the women still have perfect eyebrows and hair but the men are allowed to be messy and grow crazy beards (Walking Dead comes to mind). They let Nancy get messy in a realistic way - she's not surviving an apocalypse so it doesn't need to be an extreme. But they aren't afraid to show her sweating and messy. And this applies to the other female character as well. I never felt like I was screaming "why the hell is she wearing that in this scene" while watching this show.

The bury your gays trope A lot of shows will introduce a gay character and have them be sidelined as the comedic relief or the gay friend of the main character. They are often killed off as well (again Buffy, still mad about Tara). But that isn't happening with Will. There are a lot of indications that he is taking the lead next season. He has a complex backstory and a full range of emotions. He's also not a stereotype and neither is Mike. Having that relationship be the slow-burn romance will be unexpected. Robin fits here too. After coming out in S3 she wasn't sidelined and we see her friendship with Steve develop. He supports and accepts her. She is also starting to develop a friendship with Nancy. She's her own character with quirks and flaws and a full range of emotions. Vicky belongs here too but we don't know much about her at this point so it's hard to say much about her. I also think Henry and Murray belong in this category but I'm going to hold off until next season to say more here. Part 2

#stranger things analysis #byler

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araluen-arrows · 2 years

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underrated scenes from ruins of gorlan

(rereading the entire RA series so prepare for a whole slew of these)

- when Will is angsting over Choosing Day in the beginning and an owl lands next to him in the tree, and Will turns to it and says “at least you know who you are” LMAO

- Halt telling Arald that Will climbed the keep tower “easy as you get on your horse in the morning. easier, in fact”

- the Harvest Day scene for being the literal only time where we get to see all the Ward kids as a friend group. jesus christ this is the content i need in my life

- the scene where Rodney observes Horace at drill practice and interrupts because Horace did a Very Cool Thing with his sword and no one else realizes until Rodney surreptitiously spells it out for the instructors by running Horace through a special sequence (it gave me actual chills this time idk why?? horace is just SO COOL)

- speaking of Horace, the time he gets to absolutely own his former bullies

- Will asks Halt “are we there yet??” for the tenth time in an hour on the way to the Gathering

- Will goes by himself back to Redmont when Halt is hunting the Kalkara and it’s his very first solo mission and I am so proud of him!!

- the first time Halt smiles is when Will turns down a knighthood (everything he’s ever wanted in life) and says “I am a Ranger” and Will stops short, and their dynamic is EVERYTHING

- Halt explains Will’s origin story and gives him the bronze oakleaf and for the first time in his life, he’s at peace.

#rangers apprentice #halt o'carrick #will treaty #horace altman #ruins of gorlan #ranger's apprentice

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spacenintendogs · 10 months

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Sorry for the ask. My brain craves HTTYD-based interaction and the shadowban on my sideblog won’t be lifted for at least a month.

I think the first movie is so special in comparison to everything else. Not only because of Hiccup and Toothless, but because of the dragon riders. They all act so different — like Snotlout is sort of like the leader, Astrid gets along with the twins over the idea of getting a scar in training.

They all just seem to be pretending to be something to all fit in with one another (except, maybe, the twins? Maybe?) and I think one of the main reasons they reject Hiccup is not only because he’s a complete clutz (two left feet, that’s why he lost one) but also because he, too, is pretending… just not well enough. (This mostly goes for Astrid and Snotlout and a bit for the twins, arguably the only one nice to Hiccup is Fishlegs but he’s also pretending to hate dragons, so… I guess this also applies to him.) (I suppose the only one who ever never really dropped the act was Snotlout, which would be why he’s suddenly put in the underdog’s position in the group, even if it’s mostly just seen in the TV shows.)

(Plus, it’s the only one I haven’t got on DVD and I only rewatched it today when it was on TV exclusively for that minute long scene of Snotlout taming Hookfang because I couldn’t find a clip of it on YouTube. Really says a lot about me.)

Yeah. I just think the group dynamics in the first movie are very special. It (from dynamics and atmosphere) just feels so different to the rest of the franchise, including the other two films.

hi! sorry for taking so long! i'm not used to being asked for questions abt this kind of stuff!! i'm usually the one doing the asking or i lurk a bit akdjsjdks

but no u have points abt the dynamics between the gang in the first movie. smth i noticed while rewatching it with some friends is in the beginning when snotlout is making fun of hiccup for messing up the raid through his wrecklessness (tee hee), snotlout after he gets shoved down by gobber, gets back up, and laughs, and looks to astrid. she was also smiling at him, as was fishlegs, as he & the twins made fun of & laughed at hiccup. and then they all just. move on & snotlout deflates

this tiny little smile says SOOOOOO much <3

smth tho i noticed u said is that snotlout is kind of the leader, however the film has astrid be at the center & front of the gang or them all looking to her or making sure she is the one they listen to bc she is the leader of the gang. she's THE ideal model viking bc she has to be. snotlout is the most vocal & the second best by far in training, & similar to how he is in the shows & other films he's pushing himself towards the front when he can to get the attention of others & be taken seriously or to be seen as another model viking (like impressing astrid)

there's an intimacy abt astrid & the gang in the first movie that just hasn't fully shown in the other two films or even the shows with tiny details of them fiddling in the background or even the foreground of a scene when someone else is talking & u see them interact. the great hall when tuffnut is playing with his knife before saying "wait? you mean READ?" astrid is amused by him playing with the knife.

but what you said abt them all pretending: they are. fishlegs is still seen as weird but he's friends & in with the gang. he loves dragon knowledge & knowing abt them, but it's for the art of the kill instead of simply knowing them as creatures. the twins love destruction but with all the talk of being on a team & working together with other vikings they bicker more with each other & end up not getting as far bc they get focused on their own shenanigans. snotlout is trying to show astrid he's the model viking & be a flirty teenage boy at the same time lmao. astrid is the one who changes first when everyone saw her as the most steadfast in her ways. The Viking Way™️.

snotlout in the shows becoming the "underdog" is bc he's not astrid, who learned & changed herself but now is such a tryhard she applies herself to the fullest extent in the opposite direction (i love her). fishlegs can actually enjoy dragons & learn abt them without having to fight them (he's the most skittish of the gang), the twins now have direct ways to blow things up & do their shenanigans (after also having learned to work in a team!!!) without worry of there being a war against the dragons (now just other ppl but ppl can't breathe fire... right? lmao). hiccup is the newest edition of the group, the circle, & now he's just?? the leader. they look to him now after snotlout did everything to get astrid & others attention. astrid is by hiccup's side 100% now & bites back at snotlout when she didn't before. snotlout has changed & loves hookfang, he loves dragons, but he doesn't want to change the Viking Way™️ he's known & tries to force the Old Ways™️ and New Ways™️ together in a way that moreso clashes. he wants to still be at the top but forces instead of working to his advantage. his jealousy of hiccup grows to a point where he's basically self destructing in acting out & causes (unintentional) harm to others but then brushes off the consequences of his actions. & then he learns. he's slower to the take, similar to the adults, but he's also got it more quickly than they ever could. he just hasn't stopped pretending like the other kids.

smth i love abt the first film is the explanation as to why the gang all have american/canadian accents (bc of jay baruchel lmao) vs the scottish accents of the adults. to show the generational difference. they are different from the adults & a very clear distinction is made by the accents of their voices. you can almost say hiccup having the most jarring of everyone's voice (so nasally & distinct) ties in with hiccup being the leader. he commands attention but not in the way that's expected. even "the more viking-like teens" (as gobber refers to them) have distinct voices & even if they're acting how the village expects.

it's not rlly them, is it? not fully at least.

guess sometimes you need a little guidance, & it can come from the most unexpected places. maybe someone who's been in a leader position can give you a little extra push

& even if you're afraid & don't adjust to the change 100%, you can start coming out of your shell & stop pretending. some stop pretending easier than others, & some ppl are stuck in a lot of their ways. but they still feel they can relax abt smth & stop pretending abt that.

it makes everyone happier, right? :)

#sorry this got super like.#idk if preachy is the right word #but idk if this is what u were hoping for #but i love looking at overall arcs & decisions & how characters are #the message it can potentially convey #httyd #eemoo1o #rose answers #hiccup haddock #astrid hofferson #snotlout jorgenson #tuffnut thorston #ruffnut thorston #fishlegs ingerman #sorry for not mentioning toothless & the other dragons 😭 i didn't want this to be too long & they'd be a whole other essay #long post #em tag

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pinkprimrose05 · 9 months

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character asks bc other anon was a coward: blade

HAJFTOVNWHYFAGDYSDNTJ

General opinion/How much I care about them: Ren Blade Yingxing my beloved beloathed depressed miserable angsty bastard aaaaaaa-

This man, oh my god. This edgy mess is somehow the second fastest blorbo to be coined as such in my blorbo-having history, and I think that alone says a lot. But even if not, he has his special little spot for being: 1) my first HSR fave, 2) my current main (the gameplay is ridiculously fun holy shit), and 3) the reason I downloaded the game at all (shoutout to Bronya, of course, but it was mainly Ren).

Also I really like the fact that he's genuinely batshit insane. An unapologetic menace to the galaxies. He can be so unhinged and evil sometimes, and that's a new flavor of fave in my collection. Did I mention the story doesn't try to redeem him at all? Because it's true! Extremely uncommon win on the hyv writers' part there; doubly so because they manage to balance this aspect with the subtle gap moe they love to give to all their stoic characters.

Yes. Ren is simultaneously edginess incarnate and a tired grandpa that sucks with words and doesn't know shit about technology. Oh and he keeps getting roped into Situations by his colleagues- and goes along with them all the time! The dude was literally asked to pose for a movie cover and he just. did that. No questions asked. Nothing.

I care about him a very normal amount. He's so neat and- oh my god I forgot to mention the aesthetic. Black/blue/red/gold is such a banger color scheme. He also has a spider lily motif and that looks very cool! And the pretty ribbon on the back of his coat is a 10/10 design choice. His only problem is that the game keeps forgetting to edit his silly beta design sneakers out of splash art, and that the washed out jeans clash hard with the coat. But otherwise? Perfection. I could (and did) stare at him for hours on end.

A ship I love: Kafblade is one of those pairs that you can read as romantic or platonic with equal efficacy and I love that for it. They're partners in crime! There's a great sense of trust and faith between them! They're each other's guardian and tether and the one who understands them best and they're such an awesome dynamic, good lord.

Honorable mention goes to jingren for the old man yaoi potential to take the relationship in a very (bitter)sweet or very sad way. There's something to be explored here and I wish canon could give it consideration someday.

A non-romantic relationship that I love: Stellaron Hunter agenda!!! They're so awesome individually and as a group, and the comedy is just lovely. You have Ren wrangling two terribly reckless women because in some way, by some miracle, he happens to be the braincell holder among the three. You have him trailing after Kafka on one of her shopping sprees with a whole bunch of bags and coats, you have him going to an arcade with Silver Wolf because she wanted to show him this brand new game she's been talking about nonstop for four days, and you have him in an impromptu shooting session with them both because they wanted to make silly movie covers and needed an extra actor.

They're one small hilarious family and I adore them so so much, you have no idea. Can't wait until Sam and Elio make an appearance in the story so I get more fuel for shenanigans.

The NOTP: None here sir, as long as the ship is normal it's fine by me.

My biggest headcanon about them: Ren is autistic and you will pry this hc from my cold, dead hands. He's stuck in his own head 80% of the time. He doesn't do conversation at all. Back when he was still Yingxing, he used to spend so much time at the forge when inspiration struck him, to the point of tuning out everything until his friends physically dragged him out to touch grass. He's an autistic nerd through and through, and even several thousand deaths can't take that from him.

An idea for a fanfiction I would like to write/read about them: One idea I've been curious about lately is what would happen in a roleswap scenario, where the Astral Express crew find Ren before the Stellaron Hunters do. He may not make for a great archivist, his state of mind may be less-than-stellar, but it's interesting to imagine the dynamics between him and the crew- and hey, who doesn't love taking sad guys out of situations for a change?

I'm filing this concept for later, just in case. Who knows? The writing ghost visits when I least expect it.

Something that makes me think of them: Everything these days The flute, the sound of wind blowing, red spider lilies, and -to the immense detriment of my composure in public- mentions of the word blade in any context ever. Why gee, thanks for permanently altering my brain chemistry.

#damn thanks yuuto this was a blast to answer. if you wish to hear more just say the word :D #honkai star rail #hsr #hsr blade #blade hsr #hsr yingxing #friend's asks

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squid-ink-symphony · 4 months

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ok time to talk about my fav agent ships bcuz i am v normal (also i am a multishipper so i like a lot of stuff)

First off: 4 x 8!!!! my beloveds!!! and they were roommates! i see this sort of a mirror of pearlina in a way since 4 would show 8 around and 4 is also a chaos gremlin(but more competent than pearl in a lot of ways). and 8 rlly looks up to marina i think(pearl too ofc) and i like the idea of marina teasing her like "wow u also have a short squid gf?". also just like.. their dynamic is so everything to me. both of them are so gender like 4 is a boy who is kind of a girl. and 8 is a girl who is kind of a boy. do you see my vision? they are made for each other. and i can see them being like pearlina but in a new era since 8 doesnt have to worry about telling 4 shes an octoling. so both of them can get to know each other and share their cultures in a way that pearl and marina couldnt up until post octo expansion. just like THE PARALLELS OK???? and i dont just like them cuz i also like pearlina. i like them for their own unique dynamic. they just fit together so well. i think they compliment each others strengths and weaknesses while also not being so different that they cant get along.

next: 3 x neo 3. i thought 4 x 8 was underrated... but this??? ig its just cuz 3 has more popular ships and neo 3 is so new. i know a lot of ppl view them more as a mentor situation w neo 3 being much younger. but in my mind i just cannot picture the agents hanging out w 3, 8, and 4 all being late teens/early 20s and then just..... 16 yo neo 3.. it does work sometimes if u view them as like a younger sibling or just the younger one of the group. or even just like.. there. i can see them as an apprenitce of sorts to 3. and thats cool and all but since im not that young and i project on my agents when i play as them in my mind neo 3 is in the 17-19 range. but i see them as 18 specifically. so 18 yo neo 3 and 21 yo 3. and in my mind 3 is kinda silly(have u seen them in splat1?) but trying to be professional and takes a look at neo 3 w all their terrible looking ripped up clothes and questionable hygiene and scavenger swag and goes "how could i not be attracted to that?". and 3 tries not to show it cuz like.. this is their new recruit??? and yet 3 finds themselves going easy on neo 3 andbeing rlly sweet. and callie or marie catches on and probably teases them about it in private. and callie tries to play matchmaker or see if neo 3 likes 3. and on the other end..... neo 3 is probably distracted when they first meet 3. but when they are taking a break at the camp hanging out w lil buddy they finally notice 3. and neo 3 finally takes a look at them. and its like?? not love at first sight like it was w 3. but neo 3 likes them. no offense to agents 1 and 2, but neo 3 immediately lowkey distrusted them since they looked too "pristine" if that makes any sense? so neo 3 sees 3 and is like!!! !!!!! this is my new bestie!!!! and starts becoming attached to 3. and so neo 3 comes to bother 3 at their seat and talk to them and 3 gets so flustered but doesnt show it and only 1 and 2 can tell. and they continue to poke fun at 3. and lowkey try to hint to neo 3. but neo 3 is a brick wall when it comes to sublety. but then eventually they realize they like 3. so they gather a bunch of cool rocks and shiny things off the floor and walk up to 3 and go "here take this and also please be my partner" and 3 is so in love. and they flirt constantly and both of them hate taking showers and have to be reminded to . and also little buddy is their new child (jokingly. i see lil buddy as neo 3s younger sibling) i can see neo 3 coming up to 3 and flirting w them and 3 flirting back and them getting distracted and aro marie coming in to jokingy make fun of them and tell them to get back to work. and when the rest of the agents meet neo 3 they would jokingly get mad that neo 3 gets special treatment from 3.

anyway.... also 3 x 4 x 8 x neo 3..... it is a top tier poly ship. all of them. i think 3, 4, and 8 would get to know each other and date after octo expansion takes place. and then when 3 has to deal w splat 3s story mode they meet neo 3 and fall in love and they meet back up w 4 and 8 and is like yooo..... uhh... what if i just.... expanded the polycule? and the other 2 were like ur literally so swagless (but we love u) how did u do that? and then 3 brings out neo 3 and the other are just like.... oh god theres another one. anyway i think they would get along w neo 3 too and maybe end up dating them as well

ALS MY MOST OBSCURE SHIP YET 4 x neo 3. this one is so good, like both of them are chaotic and goofy. yet 4 is a nerd and neo 3 is probably a war criminal. so like.. opposite sides of the insanity spectrum. they would hang out and neo 3 would ask how bombs are made and 4 would explain it thinking its just curiousity and then look over to see neo 3 contrusting a bomb out of everything around them. and its not like neo 3 is dumb. they are also smart just like.. not in a geeky book smarts way like 4 probably is. more like ... idk how to describe it but different? anyway their dynamic would be SO good. you just have to trust me on this.

#splatoon #splatoon 3 #agent 4 #splatoon agents #agent 3 #neo agent 3 #agent 8 #agent 32 #agent 12 #agent 288 #agent 96

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hyperfixated-fan · 2 years

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Hello, Ninjago fandom, while we impatiently wait for the second half of Crystalized to be released, may I interest you in some good old nostalgic shows with familiar Canadian voice actors to pass the time. Ironically, Sam Vincent (Lloyd’s VA) is in every single one of my suggested shows and in 3 of the 4, he’s got a lead role. XD

Also, I need more people to revive some of these old fandoms! Please hear me out while I info dump! The options get better as we go along since I firmly believe in saving the best for last. I hope you like my long ramble.

First off, we have Slugterra:

This show had a pretty good run with multiple seasons and specials. It’s a good action show and enjoyable for passing the time. I binge watched it while reading through my driver’s training stuff. A solid Saturday morning-esque show.

As far as notable characters and voice actors go, we’ve got:

Eli Shane voiced by Sam Vincent (Lloyd’s VA): he’s the main guy and very comparable to Lloyd since he’s got daddy issues. Poor guy spends forever trying to locate his dad while at the same time filling the role as hero and protector of the Caverns. Also, he’s the reason this show got so many female viewers. Those simps.

Dr. Thaddeus Blakk voiced by Mark Oliver (Garmadon’s VA): he’s the typical big bad villain type. A bit bland but it’s hilarious to listen to if you’re a Ninjago fan because all you end up hearing is Lloyd vs. Garmadon half the time.

Kord Zane voiced by Andrew Francis (Morro’s VA): he’s a troll and the muscle and mechanic of the main group. Not much to say about him. He’s a sweet, protective dude. Also, I just like that he’s got the name Kord Zane since I’m a huge Zane fan.

Trixie Sting voiced by Shannon Chan-Kent (Racer Seven’s VA): she’s neat and seems to be the second in command to Eli. She’s you’re typical strong female character type. Good news is that there’s no annoying trope that she is in love with the main guy though.

Pronto voiced by Lee Tockar (Borg’s VA): he fits the comedic relief trope really well. Unfortunately, he’s borderline annoying for me. I don’t have anything really notable to say about him. You just gotta tolerate him. Occasionally he has his uses.

Junjie voiced by Vincent Tong (Kai’s VA): he’s not a main character but I really love him and the Asian influence the show goes through when he’s around. Cool dude that also has so much trauma packed into him when you think about all he went through. You’ll understand if you watch.

Burpy is the iconic slug of the series. A 10/10 character. Loyal as ever and super adorable. Sassy when he wants to be.

Pros of this show:

Adorable side character slugs with awesome powers

Elemental slugs!!

a whole arc about trying to free a place from an evil emperor (sound familiar?)

Teaches against animal cruelty.

Shadow creatures that for once aren’t evil villains.

So many other familiar side characters with Ninjago VA’s. It’s honestly just fun to see how many familiar voices you can pick out.

Interesting concept, lore, and world building if you dig deep enough and overanalyze everything.

Cool fights and slug shootouts.

Action with a side of found family is always a plus.

Solid team dynamics and brotherly teasing.

A bonus is that there’s very little romance in this show. Very refreshing to see.

Next we have a forgotten classic, Class of the Titans:

This show had two seasons and had a decent ending. It definitely deserved more run time because there really aren’t that many animated shows about Greek Mythology that are kid friendly. A big main crew with a few familiar Ninjago voice actors sprinkled in for the fun of it. Another Saturday morning-esque show but with a better feel of having an overarching plot than Slugterra did in my opinion.

They have so many character tropes that create the whole main crew so I’m going to try to go through them quickly.

Jay voiced by Kirby Morrow (Cole’s VA): the level-headed leader. Very similar to how Cole started out as team leader. Also, it’s just funny for Ninjago fans to see a character named Jay be voiced by Cole’s voice actor.

Theresa voiced by Kelly Sheridan (Gayle Gossip’s VA or better known for playing Barbie): a psychic seer who is Jay’s love interest (reminds me of Barbie and the Nutcracker solely bc of the voice actors). I wish I liked her more, especially since she’s a seer like Zane. Honestly, neither girl characters really stand out to me but they’re nice to have around.

Atlanta voiced by Meghan Black in season one: the action archer girl who has super speed. She’s neat and very strong-willed. (Side note: I find it funny that every main character girl I’ve mentioned so far are all redheads.)

Odie voiced by Doron Bell Jr. (Griffin’s VA): the smart tech guy. He has his uses and sassy moments. It’s also funny to see what was considered high tech back in the mid 2000s.

Herry voiced by Ty Olsson: your typical strong, protective, big brother guy trope. He’s got a really awesome, scrappy grandma.

Neil voiced by Ted Cole: the self-absorbed guy who serves as comedic relief a good portion of the time. Some might find him annoying but he has his high points and is genuinely funny. He’s not a fighter at all and is dubbed “the lucky one.” And boy, is he lucky indeed.

Archie voiced by Sam Vincent (Lloyd’s VA): my personal favorite. He’s an occasional jerk but he’s genuinely an adorkable guy. I relate to his whole “wonky ankle” thing, but he’s a great warrior regardless (and the second fastest on the team? How?). He’s got a huge crush on Atlanta which is amusing and sometimes cringy to watch.

Cronus voiced by David Kaye: the main villain of the show. Typical wicked guy who wants to end the kids who are prophesied to defeat him. I know there’s a good number of simps for him. It’s hilarious how much this god loathes this group of kids but is also genuinely terrified of them, especially Jay.

Pros:

If you’re missing Cole’s voice actor, this is the show to watch.

The entire show is free on YouTube Very imaginative spin on some of the Greek gods like Dionysius to make it kid friendly. And wait til you see Hades.

Still, they aren’t afraid to show the gods can be petty and vengeful.

Greek mythology! What more could you want?

I personally love the way they showcase so many Greek characters and creatures. Is it sometimes off? Yes. Is it still enjoyable to watch? YES!

Interesting battles and solutions.

Will show death and the occasional bloody injury. (Not overtly graphic though so don’t worry.)

The poor kids, similar to Lloyd, are prophecy bound to defeat the evil villain and thus have their lives turned upside to become heroes fighting monsters. Theresa eventually throws a somewhat justified hissy fit over this.

Enjoyable characters and team dynamics. So much sibling teasing between everyone and it’s so relatable to watch.

Also, they’re just teens being teens so they do stupid stuff sometimes and that just makes it all the more fun to watch.

A bonus, there’s two girls on the team rather than your stereotypical one main girl trope.

A big favorite of mine, Storm Hawks:

Oh look, another red head character with green eyes. And he’s the lead character voiced by Sam Vincent! XD Here me out though, this show is actually great. If you can get past the funky character designs and animation, it’s a genuinely fun show. It’s so imaginative and for me, it ticks all the right tropes. I would like to say that if you’re a Ninjago fan, you just might be able to like Storm Hawks. It’s a show that I rewatch again and again and still enjoy it. Fans of it will say it ended to soon with only two seasons and an open conclusion that leaves room for more adventures. I wish there was more. The flow was good and I felt it followed a decent overarching plot with quirky filler episodes thrown in to establish the characters more.

Now as far as main characters go, we have a good mix of interesting ones. Yes, they fall into stereotypical archetypes but for some reason, I really like them:

Aerrow voiced by Sam Vincent (Lloyd’s VA: the young, ambitious Sky Knight of the Storm Hawks. He’s your typical, altruistic hero/leader/chosen one. I love how you can really see how much he cares for his team. He’s got a big legacy to live up to and you know what, he’s absolutely demolishing everyone’s limited expectations of him. This boy survived multiple fights with the supposedly deadliest warrior in the world.

Piper voiced by Chiara Zanni: she’s the intelligent one of the bunch and typically possesses the one brain cell they all share. She’s the navigator, crystal expert, and the second in command. In short, she’s an adorable nerd and my favorite despite having some out of character moments. I also like the little something something she’s got going on with Aerrow. Yes, it’s cliché but it’s open enough that you can interpret it romantically or platonically. And honestly, the way Piper is written, you could almost say she’s bi. But holy cow, that finale with her and Aerrow was everything! Love it.

Junko voiced by Colin Murdock (Ed’s VA aka Jay’s dad): the stereotypical gentle giant type. He’s sweet and strong but constantly doubts his ability because he was bullied. He’s similar to Kord from Slugterra in that he’s got muscle but also serves as the airship’s mechanic. He has a couple of spotlight episodes that do his character justice.

Finn voiced by Matt Hill (Hyper-Sonic’s VA aka that random disco head racer from Prime Empire): on the outside, when paired with Junko, they typically serve as the meat headed comic relief. However, when it comes down to it, Finn is selfless and will make the right choice as episodes have shown. He can get annoying but I highly appreciate that he knows how to buckle down and get a job done and he truly is a great sharpshooter.

Stork voiced by Scott McNeil (VA for many villains in Ninjago): one of the fan favorites for his doom and gloom sort of attitude. He’s the pilot and gives off emo vibes to me. A very relatable character for most pessimists. He’s the oldest of the crew full of kids but he sticks it out through all their wild adventures even if he is completely terrified while trying to survive. Still, he’s got a beserk button so don’t you ever think of touch his precious ship, the Condor. He can and will take out a complete armada.

Radarr voiced by Asaph Fipke: he’s Aerrow’s co-pilot and animal companion of the show. He’s very scrappy and has good intuition. A valuable member of the Storm Hawks. He even gets a couple of his own episodes to shine in.

Now, I gotta mention the villains too since there is a quirky handful of them:

Cyclonis voiced by Lenore Zann: she’s the lead villain and ruler of her kingdom at just 14 years old. She’s very powerful and very intimidating when she wants to be since she’s got a bunch of wacky crystal powers like Piper. I find her interesting just because she’s a young girl who serves as the main big bad villain versus previous shows where it’s a broad-shouldered middle aged guy in a black suit. I wish they showed more on her backstory but a decent villain nonetheless. Comparable to Harumi in that she’s a female kid villain who is deep down broken and lonely and in desperate need of therapy and a friend.

Dark Ace voiced by Sam Vincent (Lloyd’s VA): is the second in command to Cyclonis and is extremely loyal to her. He’s constantly getting beat by Aerrow and can never manage to exterminate him much to his annoyance. It’s hilarious watching their fights because it’s just Sam Vincent alternating between tones. He’s got cool red eyes and I do believe he also has a bit of a following among the female fans.

Ravess voiced by Cathy Weseluck (Patty Keys VA aka that random sales lady): she’s an archer who has a penchant for the violin. I love her leitmotif whenever she comes onscreen. Ambitious but still scared to turn on her 14 year old boss. She does play a helpful role I towards the finale.

Snipe voiced by Colin Murdock (Ed’s VA): he’s the brother of Ravess and serves as the big dumb muscle guy. I don’t really care for him but his sibling interactions with Ravess are funny.

Raptors voiced by a bunch of familiar VAs: I just had to mention this reptilian group because they are reminiscent of the Serpentine from Ninjago.

Pros:

Great side characters and fun episodes.

Good action and adventure vibes

The whole show is free on YouTube.

Again, world building and lore is very imaginative. It deserved a larger budget and more seasons.

Has your typical chosen/prophesied one narrative that we’ve all come to either love or hate.

Crystal magic (kinda like how we’re now on the season Crystalized)

Adorable main cast who all get a chance in the spotlight, and even the annoying ones do have their high points like I mentioned.

Ninjago VA’s are everywhere in this show too. And with the limited voices they have, they really make the most of it but it’s hilarious to see VA’s essentially talking to themselves onscreen.

And once again, there’s top notch team dynamics in this show with good sibling-like interactions between characters. They squabble but still make up and really care for each other’s wellbeing.

Found family trope is in this and it’s great and I’m a sucker for it. It’s heavily implied the three human kid heroes are orphans so there’s that lovely dose of angst I always love.

Something about Aerrow being a leader just hits right. He’s a great one even if he is just 14 years old.

Good balance between high stakes and humor. The main characters are kids and heroes and it shows with all the shenanigans they manage to throw themselves into.

Great finale. Trust me. The show gets better as you continue to watch it and the episodes get less disjointed.

Friends to lovers or just really close friends trope between Aerrow and Piper. I cannot stop gushing about how natural their dynamic feels and how they play off each other’s energy beautifully. They communicate openly and really well with each other. And if romance isn’t your thing, their bond can totally be seen as platonic.

Cyclonis is a curious villain character that is different from your stereotypical guy cartoon villain. I like her and her powers.

Huge bonus that Ninjago has struggled with doing well, love triangles. Storm Hawks has no place for that. In fact, it subverts that trope entirely! Piper does not act all jealous whenever there is another girl character around and this is a huge breath of fresh air from the pettiness many shows contain. Aerrow occasionally acts wary and annoyed when Piper gushes over stuck up guys, but it’s proven justified and he isn’t overprotective or obnoxious about it. Just cautious and comforting when things do go south.

And lastly, this underrated masterpiece, The Deep:

Great news, this show is still ongoing and recently released their 4th season. It’s got a decent overarching narrative of searching for a lost underwater city Lemuria. There are many filler episodes, but trust me, they are fun. Not gonna lie, I’m a huge sucker for any ocean animated shows. This one is just so funny and relatable. It’s got great family dynamics with many familiar Ninjago voice actors. The adventures and creatures are all so cool! It ties myth, mystery, and science all into one great show. The sci-fi fantasy vibe is amazing. But basically, my liking of this show is hugely centered on not just the creativity of it but the strong family dynamics that glues the entire show together. Unlike most shows where parents are absent or there’s only one, this cartoon portrays a lovely married couple and their kids. Seriously, how often does the chosen one/protagonist of the show actually get a decent childhood with loving parents?!

With characters, we have a small main cast with a handful of recurring side characters. This means, you gotta love the main characters:

Antaeus Nekton aka Ant voiced by Vincent Tong (Kai’s VA): he’s the excitable main protagonist child and chosen one of the family. He’s extremely curious and gets into trouble often, but fortunately for him, he’s got an intelligent engineering mind that helps him get out of trouble… most times. Fortunately for him though, he’s got a great family backing him up. I find him to be a likable character as far as protagonists go and good representation of annoying younger siblings.

Fontaine Nekton voiced by Ashleigh Ball (Sally’s VA aka that pink-haired girl from Crystalized): she’s the older sister character. Sometimes she acts as the only voice of reason onboard the ship. I find her extremely relatable. It’s clear that although Ant annoys her, she still very much loves him and will do anything to protect him and that is so wholesome. She’s got a crush on Finn who’s a slick teen pirate voiced by Sam Vincent (Lloyd’s VA) and most of the fandom really loves the flirty dynamic they have. I gotta admit, they are pretty cute together.

William Nekton aka Will voiced by Michael Dobson (VA for many Ninjago side characters): he is the dad and the muscle of the crew. Still, like everyone else, he’s smart. He’s super reasonable and a really great example of a good father and husband. He has his funny moments and craziness too though.

Kaiko Nekton voiced by Kathleen Barr (Misako’s VA): this woman is my personal favorite and I could gush on and on about how totally awesome she is. Unlike Misako, Kaiko is the most awesome mother ever to her kids and is fiercely protective of them. She has a wide skill set from being a submarine pilot, mechanic, and marine biologist. In short, she’s amazing and I’m a huge simp for her.

Jeffrey: he’s the adorable animal sidekick. He’s an intelligent, expressive fish and has helped saved the Nekton family on multiple occasions. Very relatable because he is cookie-motivated. Smarter than your average wannabe pirate.

Nereus voiced by Lee Tockar (Borg’s VA): he’s your typical mystical old dude with a long white beard. Essentially he’s the Wu of this show. Funny but infuriatingly cryptic at times.

Pros:

This show was based off comics so you can go read those. (Kaiko gets an awesome moment in those that I really wish they would have kept in the tv show.)

Vaguely based off the Incredibles.

Non-absent parents who are top notch and actually parent their kids fairly.

Submarines and marine life are always a plus in my book.

Family dynamics are on point. Seriously, this is top notch stuff right here. Also, sibling dynamics are so sweet.

Representation of a good solid marriage. Bonus points because it’s interracial, making their kids mixed. All-round good representation.

Good musical score. (Not as good as Ninjago’s but still pretty good.)

The whole family is smart and super skilled but it shows that they still make mistakes and are flawed humans just like everyone else. Even the parents aren’t shown to be completely infallible and land in their own sticky situations plenty of times and I find that super neat and good of the writers to do.

Great mind-boggling adventures.

The villains are wacky yet endearing sometimes.

There’s villain that is reminiscent of Morro. He’s even got the same voice actor and goes through the same arc of being all jealous of the chosen one.

”Have faith in the fish.” Jeffrey is great animal companion. Who knew you could actually make a fish work as a good character.

Just huge bonus overall with this show because of the solid family representation we’ve got going on here.

Basically, to sum everything up, GO WATCH THESE SHOWS! And let me know if you enjoy them, I would love to hear your thoughts on them.

#ninjago #lego ninjago #the deep #the deep tv series #slugterra #storm hawks #class of the titans #cott #I rambled way too much on this post

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