#he really did that and I have nothing but respect
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Twst Unveil Event Part 6
Philomela: You want to change the location you've chosen?
Silver: Yes. If it is possible.
Philomela: Hmm... I would've granted your request; however, you're up next. It would be difficult for me to make last minute changes.
Silver: But... Didn't you say that it isn't a problem to you?
Philomela: ...
Philomela: *laughs*
Philomela: Clever kid! Alright! Let me hear your reason first!
Silver: ...
Silver: I realized that the location I've chosen is nothing compared to what Sebek and Floyd had chosen.
Philomela: Hm? You think that Enchanted Garden is nothing?
Silver: Huh?
Philomela: Listen here, Silver.
Philomela: It might seem that it doesn't pose any threat, but trust me. That garden is one of the places you should never underestimate.
Silver: ...
Philomela: Still, if you really want to change it, then I'll have to respect it.
Silver: ...
Silver: No, it's fine. I'm sticking to my chosen location.
Philomela: *smiles* Good.
Leona: Yuurin!
Yuurin: Leona-senpai?
Leona: What was that, huh?!
Yuurin: ...
Ruggie and Jack: ...
Leona: *looks pissed*
Yuurin: ...
Yuurin: I won the second match, Leona-senpai.
Leona: Yeah, congrats. But that's not the point!
Ruggie: Shishishi!
Malleus, Sebek, Epel, Floyd, and Jade: ...
Epel: Is Leona here to scold him or what?
Jade: He must've been worried.
Floyd: Eeeehhh~ So Sea Lion is here for me too~?
Sebek: It might be! Because you attempted to drown Yuurin!
Floyd: Hehe~ You're just jealous that our match was more exciting than yours~.
Sebek: WHAT DID YOU SAY?!
Malleus: Sebek, calm down.
Sebek: Krk... Yes, Waka-sama...
Epel: *sigh*
Yuurin: *has introduced Leona to Philomela*
Philomela: Ah, you look strong! You should join our wrestling competition next time!
Leona: No, thank you. I'm too lazy for that.
Yuurin: Philomela, can I ask you to prepare a room for Leona-senpai?
Philomela: Of course. But isn't he here to watch?
Ruggie: Nah. His heart is too fragile.
Jack: *nods in agreement*
Leona: *glares at them*
Ruggie and Jack: ...
Philomela: I see. So he's like Akane, huh?
Leona: Huh? What about Aki— I mean, Akane?
Philomela: She always worries for Yuurin. It never came across to her that her brother received blessings from the gods.
Yuurin: ...
Yuurin: Aren't we all, Philomela?
Philomela: Yes. That's why I will never understand your sister.
Philomela: Us from the Kingdom of Heroes have always been adventurous!
Philomela: Danger excites us!
Yuurin: ...
Yuurin: I have to disagree on that.
Philomela: That's your opinion. Haha!
Leona: ...
Leona: Let's change the subject.
Leona: Who's the next person to fight Yuurin?
Philomela: Silver.
Leona: Huh.
Ruggie and Jack: ...
Ruggie: *whispers to Jack* He's already crossing out Silver from his list.
Jack: *whispers back* List of what?
Ruggie: Yuurin's potential suitors.
Jack: ...
Philomela: Our third match is about to begin!
Philomela: Are you ready fighters?!
Yuurin and Silver: Yes!
Leona: *frowning*
Malleus: You do not need to worry, Kingscholar.
Malleus: Yuurin will be alright.
Leona: I don't need your reassurance, lizard.
Sebek: How dare you?! You should be grateful that Waka-sama is showing some concern to you, human!
Leona: I don't need it. And I don't care.
Malleus: *smirks* Well I hope Yuurin win against Silver.
Leona: ...
Leona: Huh?
Malleus: Silver has been trained by Lilia.
Malleus: There is a chance that Yuurin might lose this match.
Leona: Are you making me laugh?
Malleus: I'm only stating the possibilities.
Leona: Grr... *smirks* Then I hope your Silver won't lose.
Malleus: *smug face*
Epel, Jade, Ruggie, Jack, and Floyd: ...
Floyd: Looks like Damselfish can't afford to lose now~.
Epel: So is Silver.
Jade: Hm. Everyone, has anyone seen Rook?
Epel: Oh, Rook-senpai is doing some warm-up exercises in preparation for his match.
Jade: I see.
Yuurin and Silver: *have been sent to the Enchanted Garden*
Silver: This is...
Yuurin: ...
*The Enchanted Garden is a place straight out of nightmare — with heavy storms and lightning striking the ground.*
Leona: What the heck?
Philomela: Ah, one of the most beautiful places in the Kingdom of Heroes. Hahaha!
Ruggie: This is going to be difficult for both of them.
Philomela: I doubt it.
Leona: What do you mean?
Philomela: That place is being taken care of by a nymph, who Yuurin rejected.
Leona and the others: !!!
Silver: I don't understand. This is not what I imagined this place to be.
Yuurin: ...
Yuurin: It is a beautiful place. Though you'll get to see it after the nymph who's protecting it is no longer mad at me.
Silver: I see.
Philomela: ENOUGH TALK! START FIGHTING!
Yuurin and Silver: ...
Yuurin and Silver: *proceed to take their fighting stances*
Sebek: SILVER! DO YOUR BEST AND WIN THIS!
Epel: Sebek, can't you just watch quietly?
Sebek: Hmph!
Malleus and Leona: ...
Ruggie: Damn. These two look so serious.
Yuurin and Silver: *seems to be thinking the same thing*
Yuurin and Silver: *charges at each other, aiming to grab other's shoulder*
Yuurin and Silver: *fends off each other*
Yuurin and Silver: *creates distance then attacks again*
Epel: Holy shit—
Malleus: *smirks*
Leona: ...
Leona: What's going on? Why does it seem to me that Yuurin is slowing down?
Philomela: The garden is restricting his movements, providing an opportunity for Silver.
Leona: ...
Epel: Yuurin is slowing down?
Philomela: Yes.
Philomela: Watch closely.
Yuurin: *her steps look heavy whenever she moves*
Epel: Wait... Is the gravity... different for him?!
Philomela: Haha! You have a keen eye! Yes!
Leona: ...
Ruggie and Jack: ...
Yuurin: !
Silver: *has finally managed to grab Yuurin's shoulder*
Silver: *quickly pulled her leg and pushed forward; both of them falling to the ground* *then stayed on top of her*
Leona: That little—!
Malleus: Looks like the match has been decided—
Yuurin: *uses sweep; knocking Silver off-balance by hooking his hip with her leg, then used her other leg and upper body to create a momentum and flipped him over*
Silver: *is genuinely impressed*
Malleus and Leona: ...
Leona: What were you saying again, lizard?
Sebek: SILVER! THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO BE AMAZED!
Philomela: *laughs*
Yuurin: *doesn't waste any second and immediately applies the Ezekiel choke by gripping his collar with one hand and sliding her other arm under his head, positioning her forearm against his neck*
Yuurin: *applying downward pressure with the hand gripping the collar while using her forearm to compress his windpipe*
Silver: !!!
Silver: *tries to escape*
Yuurin: *doesn't budge no matter how he tries to move*
Silver: ...
Silver: I... give up.
Yuurin: *lets go of him* *sighs in relief*
Silver: *coughs; catching his breath* .
Silver: I need... to train more.
Yuurin: Just say when and I'll help you.
Silver: ...
Silver: *smiles* Thank you.
Philomela: Our winner— Yuurin!!!
Silver: I'm sorry. I lost.
Malleus: *smiles* That is alright. You did your best.
Sebek: Hmph! I told you to win!
Leona: Yuurin, how are you feeling?
Yuurin: ...
Yuurin: My body feels sore.
Leona: ...
Leona: You should rest a little.
Philomela: Yuurin! That was amazing! *picks her up and hugs her tight*
Leona: !!!
Leona: Hey!
Yuurin: ...
Philomela: One more match! *laughs*
Yuurin: Please let go of me.
Epel: I feel bad for Yuurin. His match with Silver must've exhausted him.
Jade: Honestly, I think it was more of the garden's fault.
Floyd: *nods in agreement*
Rook: Oh la la~.
Rook: *amused smile*
Rook: Our match will surely be interesting, Monsieur Tranquille.
#twisted wonderland#twst yuurin#twst silver#twst rook#twst floyd#twst sebek#twst leona#twst ruggie#twst jack#twst epel#twst jade#twst malleus#twst oc philomela#twst unveil event
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i told my mum about dr ratio and she called him a cad. so i wrote a drabble about it.
“I told my mother about you,” you say, quietly watching Ratio work away at the papers he was marking. You watch as he circles a big, fat ‘0’ in red in the top right hand corner of the paper, before putting it aside. He looked up at you. “And what did she say?”
You pause, dropping your gaze to the table top, unsure of how to go about this. "...She called you a cad."
Silence. No scribbling pen, not even a sound of an inhale or exhale from the man sitting in front of you. The table top is the most interesting thing you've ever laid eyes on right now. Ratio is so still, you'd think he'd have turned into one of those sculptures he made and taunted enemies with.
"...We...I haven't even...met her." For the first time in all the years you've known the man, he's utterly unable to formulate a single coherent sentence. Looking up, you see him staring at you wide-eyed, slack-jawed, and he looks devastated. "What did you say?"
"I—! Nothing! Nothing incriminating! I just told her that your life's purpose is eradicating idiocy and that you..."
Okay, I did kind of tell her that you're massively self-assured and that you walk around with an alabaster mask on all the time. But you don't want to break his heart too much. And that I hated you so much I love you.
His eyes narrow into slits. "Let me guess. You told her I throw chalk at people."
The ceiling fan's patterned movement is suddenly very fascinating.
"Aeons, woman, are you trying to get your mother to break us up?" Ratio drops his pen and stands, his hands on his hips. "I can't believe it! You probably made me sound like some lunatic that impales his students with sticks of chalk when they get a question wrong!"
"You..." kind of do. But pointing that out probably wouldn't be wise. Fumbling for something to say, you come out with, "I just told her that you need to be humbled! And that I'm...in the process of humbling you! Nothing too bad."
He rubs a hand over his face in exasperation. "Darling, please don't tell me you told her I drop a pillar on my opponent when I'm in a battle."
"I..." Yes, I did. You probably should've kept your mouth shut. And then your mother exclaimed, 'so he murders people!' and you had to scramble to explain that he kills aliens and such, not people. She didn't have a bar of it.
"Wonderful! Now she thinks I go around crushing people with columns for fun!" You had a feeling Ratio's reaction wouldn't be good. But not this bad.
"It's okay, maybe you two can meet and you'll put on your best behaviour and won't call her an idiot." You get to your feet and pat his arm comfortingly. "Treat her with respect, and she'll like you."
He actually looks like he's about to cry. "It's hopeless. Your mother probably hates me now. She called me a cad! A cad! All because you told her I hate idiocy."
"You're not going to...leave me for this, right?" Your voice is small, and you're suddenly very afraid that you really took it too far. "I'm sorry..."
"No! I'm leaving you over this. I just...need to think of a way to convince her that I don't run around stabbing people with chalk." The papers he was marking are now forgotten and he begins pacing. "What does she like? Cookies? Macarons? Apple pie?"
"My mother likes wine and cheesecake," you respond, watching him walk back and forth, back and forth, back and forth in quite the tizz. "White wine. Likes champagne, too. Um...and she loves chocolate. She'll force you to marry me if you give her chocolate."
"Perfect! Well, then, ask your mother if she is alright with meeting me, and I'll come along with gifts of champagne, cheesecake and chocolate. How about it?"
Good thing my father wasn't in the room when I smack-talked Ratio to her. It would've been much, much worse. "Uh, yeah, alright. Just beware, though, you're going to have to woo my father, as well."
Ratio gave a long-suffering sigh. "What does he like?"
And suddenly the Doctor of Idiots was running around collecting all these gifts for your parents. Perhaps it did work out for the better, since now you're sure he's desperate to stay with you.
#hsr dr ratio#dr ratio#dr ratio x reader#hsr drabbles#honkai star rail x reader#honkai star rail#hsr#star rail#honkai star rail dr ratio#dr ratio hsr#is this a self-insert? nah not really#but yes everything i wrote about my mother is real#i love her so much#she's so iconic omg#and wow 2 fics in one day im on a ROLL#and yes that dr ratio longfic is coming along. just wait a bit longer the chapter planning is almost done <3
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Gift of Belonging
Luffy x GN Reader
Life didn't have a purpose without Luffy.
Warnings: Fic from my 100 followers poll!!! can be read as either platonic or romantic, mentions of self deprecating thoughts but nothing too severe, just some short, feel good, reassuring hugs from our favorite straw hat-wearing captain <3
Taglist:
@bokutosbiceps | @luffy0s | @surgeonoffish
You were at the end of your rope when you joined the straw hats, but who wasn’t? You weren’t special in the grand scheme of the world’s most infamous pirate crew. You couldn’t compare to the tumultuous lives of the rag-tag bunch that had quickly become your lifeline, you had nothing on being the child of an abusive royal family, or the last survivor of a decimated nation, or the unfortunate witness to the killing of a friend or parent, or a literal god. You weren’t a cyborg or an animal or a reincarnated being hundreds of years old. You were just… simple.
And yet, the Straw Hats made you feel accepted.
They made you feel wanted.
And no one had wanted you more than Monkey D. Luffy.
You still struggled to accept the boisterous boy’s words when he welcomed you aboard his grand ship. You had put up an argument, insisting that you would only get in the way, that your strengths paled in comparison to the rest of the crew, that you had no business being a part of the inner circle of one of the Emperors. But not a single eyelash was batted in the direction of your plight. Simply endless stares of patience, waiting for you to finally bite the lure and climb up the gangway and officially join the Straw Hats. And when you finally did, Luffy had said the words that had stuck with you since then.
“I don’t care who you are. You’re special and you deserve a spot in my family.”
It was as if the world opened up around you for the first time. Instead of seeing your surroundings in black and white, colors infiltrated your retinas in ways you had never experienced. Suddenly, the sunshine that beat down on your skin felt like a pleasant hug from the world, rather than a punishing burn against your weary being. Food you ate and drank every single day tasted extra good because it was always cooked with love and affection, the flirtatious cook not caring at all where you had come from. Luffy and his crew made it known from the second they met you that you were deserving of love, respect, and friendship.
And you couldn’t lie… the first few days were overwhelming.
The Straw Hats were loving. They were really loving, and their unique ways of showing they appreciated you were slowly building up in your veins like a disease until one night, when you were on watch, you cracked.
You broke down.
You sat on the stern of the Thousand Sunny, gazing out from the white-painted railings and over the vastness of the dark ocean and seamlessly blended in with the sky above you, the only light shining on you being from the twinkling stars millions of light years away. Quiet, salty tears flowed down your cheeks, your shoulders clenched as you wrapped your arms around yourself, sniffling into the collar of your shirt. You loved your crew, you really did. You began to realize that you loved them more than you ever loved anyone else in your life, and that thought somehow scared you. Like you were unprepared. Like your heart had been so deprived of love for your whole life that the overabundance of it in such a short time caused your brain to short-circuit. And you cried. You weeped on the Sunny’s back deck, into the calmness of the night.
Until the sound of clopping flip-flops climbing the steps to where you sat alerted your attention, causing you to freeze up, holding your breath, wishing your tears could evaporate away.
“Hey, what are you doing up here alone?” It was Luffy, his usually exuberant voice a rare form of calm as he approached you. He wasted absolutely zero time in plopping himself onto the hard deck beside you, extending his legs and holding his arms out, hands behind his head.
You stayed hunched into yourself, trying to hide your shame in your hands.
“Hey… are you alright?” he asked, his voice somehow even softer.
A faint sniffle from you was all your captain needed to hear. He sat up with a start and grabbed your shoulders with his calloused hands, yanking you around to face him. Your eyes were wide with shock at his actions, but you stayed frozen. It’s not like you could run anywhere, the man was made of rubber.
“Why are you crying?” he asked, his eyes narrowed and eyebrows furrowed, an intense stare that bored into your skin. “Did someone say something to you? Did someone hurt you?”
You shook your head, wiping your tears away on your arm. You took a deep, shuddering inhale before finally forcing your shoulders to relax. “No… no one said anything to me.”
“Then why are you crying?”
Luffy, despite not being overly emotional in normal circumstances, was scarily good at reading people. It didn’t matter if you couldn’t outright say what was bothering you, he would eventually figure it out with that convoluted tunnel system of a brain. His adorable lips curled into a pout as he analyzed your face, picking apart every twitch of your muscles.
You inhaled once more, turning your face away from him slightly. “I’m just… not used to this.”
“Not used to what?”
His questions, and the feigned clueless tone of his voice almost made a smile crack onto your face. Another talent of Monkey D. Luffy: he was like a wrecking ball for the walls you built up around yourself.
“I’m not used to… this.” Your hands circled around you, gesturing to the ship, causing Luffy to finally drop his hands from your shoulders. “Being a part of a crew. You guys are… too nice to me.”
Luffy was ready with a response immediately. “We could never be ‘too nice to you.’ That’s impossible. We love you.”
Your lip quivered slightly. “That’s what I’m not used to.”
“Being loved?”
There it was. You feebly nodded. “Yeah. That.”
Your captain scooted across the deck closer to you, if that was even possible. He was basically flush against you at this point. He wrapped his arms around your shoulders, pulling you into a warm bear hug, his fluffy black hair tickling the skin of your cheek. “We love you because you’re special to us, we don’t need a reason for that,” he described. His voice faltered, as if he wanted to say something else, as if he was trying to add to his words. Instead, he squeezed you into him, closing his eyes as he felt your muscles grow limp. ‘We love you, but I love you more.’
“I just wish it was easier for me to accept that,” you whispered into his shoulder, struggling to hug him back.
Luffy’s embrace didn’t relent. If anything, he tried to pull you in closer. The force of his hug made you lose your balance on the floor, falling over on top of him, your chin hitting his shoulder. But he still didn’t let up. He held firm, squeezing you as if you would fade away into dust if he let go.
“Luffy–” you wheezed against his skin.
“What?” He sounded completely oblivious. “I’m going to keep hugging you until you don’t feel sad anymore. No more crying,” he demanded. “Captain’s orders.” His last sentence held a hint of playfulness, the smile he surely wore on his face coming through the sound of his voice.
He must have been contagious, because your own grin slowly grew on your lips. After what felt like hours, you finally reciprocated his hug, curling your arms under him and letting yourself finally relax in his embrace. You knew Luffy had odd ways of showing he cared, but this was definitely unexpected. Unexpected, but not necessarily unappreciated. His presence emitted a warmth akin to summertime air, his existence like the calming breeze of the open ocean that wafted around you and circled you in comforting drafts. Luffy never judged, never wavered, never ceased to let his crew, and now you, know how truly grateful he felt to be able to live his life with his favorite people.
You made a slight movement to stand up, but Luffy’s arms tightened their hold around your back. “Not yet,” he grumbled. “I don’t wanna stand up yet.”
“Is this how you comfort everyone on the crew?” you asked, your voice coming out muffled as you spoke into his neck.
“Hmm… not necessarily. Everyone’s different. Chopper really loves hugs, and Zoro lets me hug him, but sometimes Nami and Robin can take them or leave them. Usopp likes hugs but doesn’t like to admit it.” A smile crawled to your face as your captain rattled off the preferences of your fellow crewmates, the ways in which he perceived their unique and individual personalities bringing a comforting reassurance to your heart. “I feel like you really like hugs, and you clearly needed one right now.”
You bit the inside of your lower lip, trying to bite back the tears that formed in the corners of your eyes. The tension escaping your body dissipated in large waves, leaving you with nothing but warmth and comfort in the arms of the man who had surely saved your life.
And for the first time since officially joining the Straw Hats, you began to feel truly, unconditionally loved. It was miraculous. All it took was a single hug from the nicest, most selfless person you had ever met.
Someday, you’d be sure to return the favor for Luffy, even if he wouldn’t accept.
#x reader#reader insert#fem reader#one piece x reader#op x reader#monkey d luffy x reader#luffy x reader#monkey d luffy#luffy oneshot
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Little Girl Gone- Emily X GN!Reader/BAU X GN!Reader.
Synopsis: Being back in your old town, it’s no surprise you’d have to see a person you never wanted to see again, the only difference is this time is that you can handle yourself.
Warnings: Insinuations of past abuse but no details given, misuse of reader's pronouns by abuser not the team, talks of not handling past trauma but Emily is there for us, we’re really just a badass.
Word Count: 1.6k
A/n: THIS MAY HAVE A TRIGGER FOR ANYONE WITH PAST TRAUMA AND I DIDNT INCLUDE ANY DETAILS FOR THAT REASON, IF THAT MAY BE TOO MUCH FOR YOU PLEASE SKIP THIS ONESHOT. Other than that, yes this is based off a song leave me alone 🥰 You guys have no idea how long I’ve wanted to get something out for you guys, hopefully more will come soon!
☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎
You had heard he's back in town, and clearly, he hasn't changed a bit.
He was sitting there, appearing clueless, with you staring at him behind the glass. Your anger was boiling to the surface, and while it was clear to the team you were upset, they had no idea.
Your attention snapped back when a mention of your name was heard, the reason was beyond you, "That's what this is about? That bitch Y/n?" He chuckled and it made you sick. "Please, that little girl has nothing on me."
Hearing the way he said your name brought back some unfriendly memories you tried so hard to forget.
But when he muttered your name again, seeing how much it pissed Derek off, you knew you needed to do something. You have heard enough, it's not about you. It's about the 3 murdered girls.
You opened the door of the observation room to see Hotch standing there, "I'm going in there."
"That's not a good idea, you know that. He's trying to get under your skin."
"Hotch, with all due respect, I wasn't asking. Besides, I'm not the small child he last saw me as. I'm going in the there."
Hotch just quietly stood back, maybe a familiar face would get him to give them something they could use.
You walked into a familiar scene, Derek towering over the unsub shouting at the top of his voice, and the unsub pretending it's doing nothing to them.
"YOU HAVE NO BUSINESS-"
"Derek!"
With your interruption, both men stopped and looked towards you. Derek knew it was up to you, but he didn't like that idea.
And him. Oh, him.
He looked like he thought he'd finally got something he wanted if only he knew. Well, he would soon enough.
"Derek, I've got this. Go take a breather, I think Garcia has something she wanted to go over with you."
"I'm not leaving you in here with him." He stood tall in protest.
The man stood, suddenly filled with some form of faux confidence, "Yeah, little girl, you don't wanna be left here with me, unless you do?" His sadistic simper took over his face, his arm reaching out to touch you.
You grabbed his wrist and instantly snapped it back, flipping his arm behind him and then slamming him into the metal interrogation table.
"Oh, you wanna fight me now?" You pulled his arm further. "That little girl is gone. So tell me, are you big enough?"
"Fucking bitch!" His pain filled his voice and you tried to hide the joy it brought you.
"Do you feel that? Me twisting your arm until it breaks? Do you see how much stronger I've gotten?" He was struggling under you, and you were handling him with ease.
Derek was proud watching you, knowing the things that happened to you.
But the rest of the team was behind the glass watching carefully, they knew about him but not the things he'd done. But they did know your strength.
But now, he was groaning and mumbling something.
"Say that again, I didn't quite hear ya! You messed with the wrong 'bitch' in the wrong era!" You pulled him up off the table and shoved his face into the wall in a quick move, moving closer to him, "Honey, I changed so much since I last saw ya."
"I'm gonna say it, I'm proud of them." Rossi wasn't hiding his proud smile either as he watched you move him around like a rag doll.
You once again pulled him from the wall and slammed him back into the table.
"You know, maybe I will leave. I think I'd grab a cup of coffee, want some L/n?" Derek asked, knowing you definitely could handle yourself.
"I'm good, I'm awake now."
"NO NO NO! She'll kill me! You can't leave me alone with her!" He pleaded, as much as he could with his face smashed into metal.
"You know, I don't really think that's a bad thing. Do you, L/n?"
"Not at all."
He tried moving from your grasp, "No!"
"Then tell me where the girl is!" Derek slammed his hands on the table in his face, though he was still firmly pinned to the table all thanks to you, you could still feel the way he flinched.
Within the moments you walked into that room, the man finally showed how scared he actually was, realizing that now he truly is nothing.
"BOAT!"
You pull him off the table, holding him to face Derek and the team behind the mirror.
"What was that?" You asked, hearing what he said but needing more details.
"The girl. She's on a boat. Down at the marina, slip 7."
"Ah, so you do know what's good for you." Derek said as he left the room.
"No! Wait!"
A smirk came to your face, and you knew that if you weren't an active agent you'd definitely get your revenge.
In a swift move, you had him pinned to the wall by his throat.
You took a split second to look at the man that robbed you of so much.
My god did he look like shit.
Years didn't do him good, and the illegal things he tried to hide likely didn't help.
"You. You got lucky. I've got too damn much to lose if I go after you now," You were practically seething. "But know this, you are nothing. You are shit. I took all of what happened to me, and I made something of myself. I did. Me. So don't you think for one second that you ever had an effect on me." He definitely had an effect on you, years worth of effects. But he wasn't going to know that. He didn't need that.
He may have ruined the child you were, but he doesn't get to even be near the person you grew into.
You simply released him, part of the child that's still inside you wanted to do more but the other part of that child was so proud of how far you came.
You left him for the uniformed officer to take, walking out of the interrogation room to get some air or a drink, only there was something in your path.
Or rather, some people.
Half the team to be precise. David, Emily, and Reid were still in the precinct. And they just witnessed basically everything.
"I'm proud of you kiddo," Rossi spoke first, and only then did you release the breath you were holding.
"Thanks."
"I think this calls for a celebration, tonight. Your pick." He spoke with a head nod and walked out.
Reid just did his smile thing, and you knew you'd both likely have a conversation later.
But Emily, she stayed put, letting you go to her.
"You know you can let it out now, only if you want of course." She said finally as you walked up to her.
A shaky breath left you and you attempted to hide it with a faux chuckle.
She did know you the best.
"Come on, out with it. You know you can talk to me." Her damn eyebrow raise had you wanted to spill everything like always.
"I was so scared, Em." Another unstable breath came from your lips.
Emily reached up to wipe a tear you hadn't felt escape.
"God, I'd be worried if you weren't. You're only human." Her hand went to cup your cheeks, and for a second you simply looked into her eyes.
You didn't really know what to say, so you said nothing. You feared the only thing that would come out would be a sob.
"You handled that so well, and I speak for the team when I say I'm proud of you. It was hot the way you handled him." A small chuckle left you, she always knew how to get you to laugh.
"It just, brought back so many things I've tried for so long to forget." You looked to the floor with shame, ashamed it still got to you.
"Hey, look at me," She pointed your chin so you'd look at her. "Don't think that there's ever a right time to just 'get over it' because there's not. Everyone has their own timeline, and their own way of coping, that makes us human. And the fact that you didn't give in to the revenge you know you were thinking of, just shows how much you've grown."
She was right. Of course she was, when wasn't she? She knew the ins and outs of you. Every curve and every line. She knew your soul better than your body did.
"Come on, the team will finish the paperwork and we can go back to the hotel, you can shower and we'll meet them after for drinks." Your head rested against her shoulder as she put her arm around you while you both walked out of the precinct.
While you both arrived at your hotel room, the team safely got the girl from the boat, though she was a bit shaken up, she was unharmed. Physically, at least.
While the shower helped relax your tense body, it didn't help much with the resurfacing memories. You were simply disassociating at a cracked shower tile until Emily took it upon herself to be your distraction in the shower.
And of course, it certainly helped.
And later on, the team did their best to talk about pretty much anything but the case. Not like you were really upset about that honestly.
Having the people who you cared about around you, that's what helped the most. Having your love by your side and having your family around you.
🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮
Taglist: @v3nusxsky @just-your-casual-nerd @pebbleswritessometimes @bigolgay @scream-queenlover @darkth1ngs @hxzxrdous @sgelessoanddoveykissing
I feel like I’m forgetting a few people on my tag list so comment if you want to be a part of my updated tag list!
#emily prentiss x you#emily prentiss x y/n#emily prentiss x reader#emily prentiss#bau team#criminal minds#badass reader#fanfic#oneshot#sapphic#fluff#bau x reader
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Unhappy Reunions
Celestial!Yuu finds what was lost
Angst
Humans are cruel and so are gods.
I was once the silver god who embodied love, marriage, and fertility. I was supposed to be the mother of gods the bringer of a generation of godlings.
I believed in my role fully and understood that it was for the good of the world. So I created. I made gods from stardust and clouds. So many wonderful creations. Fully formed and whole on their creation they took to the heavens and created more life. And I was happy.
I was creator, not mother to them. I was respected and revered.
Another god as ancient and powerful as I set his eyes on me. If I became his bound in vow I would be promised more power than I imagined. That might have worked on a lesser goddess but I was too powerful for that to work. But gods have tricks.
Lured in by my reflection on the ocean he trapped me in a black silk blanket. The moon disappeared from the sky until I agreed to be his.
I made the most of it but he demanded a child of me. But I was a god, I couldn't make a child without it. I had no love for him. Especially when he had children with mortals and goddess alike. I was resentful. Born to be the goddess of motherhood but not allowed to be mother to none. Dispite it all I converted my title to God of heroes. I looked after his demigod children, the blameless.
There were jealous goddess who wanted my place and they turned their children's blade against me. But I still wept when those children died to serve the purposes of more selfish gods, hen my husband didn't even shed a tear for his fallen children.
My anger and loneliness bore fruit. Perhaps in spite my womb fashioned new life. From it, my first and only true child was born from me. A child of smoke and ink with a face shrouded in hair. This thing I had birthed from my negative emotions was still beautiful but the nurse maid reached in horror at my child. I demanded that she say the child was dead and hid it away in my most isolated corner of my heavens.
But he found them. He scorned me for birthing such a hideous creature. He took them from me.
He said I would have to pay for my actions and if I had done as he said this would never have happened.
There are many stories of gods doing horrible things to children, even their own. There are just as many with mortals.
But I can not explain the fracturing of my soul the moment he tossed my child to the wild beasts of the land after cutting them to pieces.
I still have not recovered from that day.
My nameless child was blameless.
I abandoned the heavens and have never returned. I left him and abandoned my titles of marriage goddess and mother goddess. I had neither now. I abandoned my very nature. It was no different than carving up my very being but I had already felt that pain.
How pathetic is it for a God to wander the earth calling for a child that no longer lives? Searching endlessly for what can't be found.
I'm not proud of what I did after. I wanted a child to fill the void in my heart. Silver became that for me. I wanted to be a mother again at any cost. I fought Lilia for him. He was mine by right.
I didn't intend to fall in love with Lilia. Perhaps I had always loved him at least a little. A strange thing for mortals to grasp that a God can love someone they have never really met. But it's true all the same. Still, there was a time I contemplated making a demigod of my own.
But I started to heal with him. I recovered that parts of me could be salvaged. The pain can never disappear with a memory that was infinite. Still I moved on.
Still, life found another way to curse me.
My child had returned. I found them. No. They found me.
My beautiful child of smoke and shadows. Neither God or mortal. Not demigod or monster. They stood shrouded in darkness before me but they did not know me. They were drawn to my side but knew nothing of their birth.
Perhaps it was for the best. I had failed them already, I should not be remembered.
Child was quiet, just how I remembered them. They spoke like the rain in the night and walked like fog.
I hope they know I love them. I hope they would forgive me. I wished I had been by their side. The pain they must have suffered must have been unimaginable.
My poor baby.
#celestial!yuu#(???)!yuu#yuuniverse#twisted wonderland#twisted wonderland x reader#lilia vanrouge x reader#lilia x reader#twisted wonderland lilia#twst lilia
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DR RATIO ANALYSIS PT 3 BUT IT'S JUST GAY
Now, you might be saying - "Aurae, you've done part one, and part two, so why do we need a part three?" The answer is because of two things - one. I made a deal with the Tumblr Peoples that if one of my posts hit more than 50 likes I would do this analysis. Two. Mihoyo is making this shit canon. I CAN'T MAKE THIS UP. So, let's delve into my usual disclaimer, as we might have some new people joining us for the first time with my insanity.
I have been researching psychology personally for about six years, so although I am not a professional (crawling my way there through the education system. I will be one, one day.) I do have some experience with analyzing homosexuals. Psychology hours, my children. They don't call me "chronically cooking" for nothing. Maybe I should change my url to that...
NOW THAT MY LONG AHH DISCLAIMER IS OVER, LET'S GET INTO THIS! It's time to deconstruct these homosexuals like a modern airplane, because they might as well be taking off with how canon they are.
"It can't be canon," they say, but then Mihoyo DOES PAID SPONSORSHIPS WITH THESE FUCKERS BEING GAY. We've all seen the paid partnership edit. We've all seen the video where Aventurine has the audio of "nice rack" as he talks to Dr. Ratio. PAID SPONSORSHIPS. Now, if that piece of evidence isn't enough for you - let's dive into their actual relationship, which is just a HOMOSEXUAL MESS. I will be focusing more on how Dr. Ratio sees this guy as this is a Dr. Ratio analysis™, but hey, the crumbs.. we eat 'em all. Amen.
Let's start off (I say as I write this part three days later) about how people are like, 'Aven is Ratio's favourite idiot' WRONG. Ratio does NOT consider Aventurine to be an idiot and knows that he is smart and capable in his own right. While Ratio is book smart, Aven is extremely street smart and holds his own very well. Ratio does not consider Aventurine to be an idiot as he takes off his plaster head around him and actually indulges in his whims around him. This is a blatant showcase of fondness because although he is emotionally constipated and can't be affectionate through words without sounding semi-backhanded because he's never had true affection in his life, he showcases his love through actions rather than words. He's just bad at showing love, okay? But he does love Aven. Or like him, to some extent, if you don't want to see them as romantic, which is fine. However, no matter what you label their bond as, it's obvious that they care for one another.
Also, the fucking ZEST FEST that was 'keeping up with Star Rail'. He says, "wait a minute - MUTUAL?" which indicates that he has respect for Aventurine in the first place. He LITERALLY TOLD US that he respects Aventurine and he was commenting on Aventurine's playstyle & everything.. also, at the end, he was here because 'I appreciate this show's dedication to knowledge' - his TONE. Kudos to the VA because that was not convincing at all. Bro was NOT here for the knowledge, bro was here to be GAY!!! Also his little own bathtub couch. We all know Aven bought it for him. Trust, I am John Hoyoverse.
"The Charming Audacity" HUH? BRO? Okay this is hilarious to me because this is the first time that we ever really see them interact with one another, and we get absolutely bitchslapped in the fact that Dr. Ratio calls this guy's audacity 'charming'. That's GAY. That's HOMOSEXUAL.
Also, comparing him to a peacock.. a very beautiful bird.... Must I say more?
Now, the part that I really want to focus on is the part where he gives the Doctor's Note to Aventurine. This shit is important. And I agree with the people who are like - Acheron helped him. Because she did. She was a big part of it and she helped Aventurine get back on his feet in the void. Dr. Ratio is not his only reason to live, but the note, showing that someone will stay by his side? Showing that someone truly cares for him? Someone who's waiting for him when he get back? This bond that he has with Dr. Ratio isn't fake. He already has a starting point to get back to - an anchor to return to. Dr. Ratio is his anchor. Whenever he goes off to do crazy shit, Veritas Ratio will be there when he returns. Because Ratio is loyal. Ratio cares. He cared enough to almost jeopardize their plan to make sure that Aventurine was going to be okay. He cares so damn much about Aventurine that he decided that this man's emotional state after the fake betrayal was more important than all of fucking Penacony.
If you want an example of "I would let the world burn for you," it's Ratio. He's a romantic not in the traditional sense, but he cares and loves Aventurine so damn much it makes my heart hurt. "Do stay alive," he says, knowing that Aventurine struggles with living. Those three words mean the whole fucking world to someone who struggles with suicidal ideation and suicidal thoughts. Someone wants you to live. Someone wants you to stay. Someone wants you by their side.
Dr. Ratio cares. Let me say that again - he cares. He banters with Aventurine, tries to create an environment where Aventurine can feel a little bit more comfortable with the two of them, even in a place as dangerous as Penacony. He will put his own life on the line for Aventurine.
He cares. He cares so damn much. I hate gay people. They make me VIOLENTLY homophobic.
Dr. Ratio after expressing his care indirectly and complimenting Aventurine indirectly: Did I do it?
Aventurine, who has caught none of the hints:
Anyway, thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.
#aurae analyzes#hsr#aventio#honkai star rail#dr ratio#ratiorine#aventurine#veritas ratio#raturine#golden ratio#aventurine x dr ratio#analysis#character analysis#relationship analysis#these bitches gay#good for them
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The Helaemonds/Helaegons need to calm down.
Don't get me wrong, it's always refreshing to see some people fill in the gaps of a basically untold relationship such as the one between the green kids in general, but this goes beyond basic obsessive shippy discourse. Leave this poor girl alone. Why's there an obsession with having her be romantically paired with her brothers, one worse than the other?
I understand the show has basically shown so little of her to the point where we didn’t even have a coronation for her on screen, so therefore you can self insert through her and have fun with headcanons regarding Aegon and Aemond. Really, I'm not faulting their girlies, you can be head over heels for whatever actor in character you want (unless you put them on pedestals and start acting like they did nothing wrong and pounce on whoever contests them, THEN we have a problem) but I assure you, Helaena would barely want anything to do with either of them.
Aegon is a sex pest turned sex offender, a drunkard and a neglectful father and husband at best. Her infamous toast in ep.8 has us believing that he cannot for the life of him interact with her unless he's horny drunk or that he forces himself on her at worst.* He was ready to leave them all in ep.9 before he was caught. Even the book is subtle about their relationship: all we know of them is that they sleep in shared chambers, that she was someone important and reliable in Aegon's council before B&C, and that he named her and Alicent the true Queens of his reign.
*(⚠️TW: PERSONAL OPINION⚠️ I'm not saying this last one isn't a possibility but it's sill outrageous for the way people speak about Helaena in defence of this "claim". No, she wouldn't joke about her own r*pe in front of the whole table full of people she doesn't know and right beside her abuser, and despite the hour-long metas I've read about how she's basically "too sheltered" to know what r*pe even means, I assure you she's a high-functioning autistic, not 5 years old. She can understand it perfectly.)
Helaemond is a pure show invention, I honestly wasn't expecting this many people to go up this kind of train. They barely interact, and most of the time it's Aemond saying he'd "perform his duty" should Helaena ever be wed to him, or that stare in ep.9 when he enters her chambers toiling after Alicent. It's, as always, the Aemond girlies who think poor Helaena would live her best life with Aemond, or that they are already romantically involved behind the scenes. The amount of "if one possesses a thing, the other will take it away" edits from people that are FULLY CONVINCED "the thing" is Helaena and that "the one" and "the other" are Aemond and Aegon respectively is honestly concerning.
Fics that are all about Aegon doing the worst and unspeakable things to her so "Aemond can come and save her" are y'all okay? Out of all people, HE has to save her?
Babes, I'm sorry to break your bubble, but this isn't Aegon IV/Naerys/Aemon on steroids. Aemond didn't give two shits about Helaena. No, he wasn't jealous when Jace came to ask her to dance, he just wanted to stir some shit. If we talk about the books, he didn't fucking hesitate to leave King's Landing, his sister, his mother and whatever he was doing for the Riverlands the second he heard that Daemon was there. And he brought the only means of defence they had with him. If he knew how important Vhagar was for the city's defence, he's evil, if he didn't realize it, he's dumb as fuck. Which one is it, Aemond girlies?
People beat each other to the curb about Jaehaerys, Jaehaera and Maelor's paternity like it's the Wars of The Roses. They put Helaena and Alys against the other like they have personal beef with one of them.
Stop mentioning this sweetheart only when it's about praising or hating one of her brothers. No, it's not the only option you have because she's underdeveloped as a character. There's actually another one.
LEAVE HER THE FUCK ALONE.
#house of the dragon#fire and blood#helaena targaryen#pro helaena targaryen#helaena deserved better#aegon ii targaryen#aemond targaryen#anti helaemond#anti helaegon
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just saw somebody saying that cas is a pushover for dean…. obviously that’s not true. but can i have some solid evidence just to make me feel more sane?
I mean Cas's baseline state is ignoring what anyone wants him to do imo. It's just when he ignores what most people want him to do, he makes this face: 🙄
And when he ignores what Dean wants him to do, he makes this this face. 🥺
But anyway:
"You should show me some respect. I dragged you out of Hell. I can throw you back in." (4.02)
ANNA: "Uhm, guys, the angels are talking again. / SAM: What are they saying? / ANNA: It's weird. Like a recording. A loop. It says: "Dean Winchester gives us Anna by midnight, or we hurl him back to damnation." (4.10)
"[I tricked you into coming into town] Because whatever I ask [for you to turn an innocent person over to me for execution], you seem to do the exact opposite [protect them from me]." (4.15)
After kidnapping Dean to make him torture for them: "This is too much to ask, I know. But we have to ask it." (4.16)
[Kidnaps Dean and locks him up] (4.22)
[Flies away abruptly because Dean asks a question he doesn't want to answer] (5.01)
"I killed two angels this week. My brothers. I'm hunted. I rebelled. And I did it, all of it, for you, and you failed. You and your brother destroyed the world—and I lost everything, for nothing. So keep your opinions to yourself." (5.02) (Note: Cas blaming Dean for everything going wrong here is also some major bullshit).
CASTIEL: May I borrow [your amulet]? / DEAN: No. / CASTIEL: Dean. Give it to me. / DEAN: All right, I guess. (5.02)
Cas flies off to kill Jesse when Dean and Sam are in direct moral opposition. (5.06)
ANNA: I'd say the Winchesters don't trust me. / CASTIEL: They do. I don't. I wouldn't let them come. (5.13)
You're not gonna finish that? [Takes Dean's burger without waiting for an answer] (5.14)
[Kidnaps Dean and locks him up] (5.18)
"Maybe they're desperate. Maybe they wrongly assumed Dean would be brave enough to withstand them." (5.18)
[Beats the shit out of Dean in an alley] "I rebelled for this?! So that you could surrender to them?" [kidnaps Dean and locks him up again] (5.18)
DEAN: Whoa, wait. You’re gonna take on five angels? / CASTIEL: Yes. / DEAN: Isn’t that suicide? / CASTIEL: Maybe it is. But then I won’t have to watch you fail.
CASTIEL: You think I came because you called? I came because of this. [The Staff of Moses] / DEAN: Oh, well, it's nice to know what matters. / CASTIEL: It does help one to focus. (6.03)
CASTIEL: I need your help. / SAM: [ Scoffs. ] That's rich. Really. / CASTIEL: [ Grunts, tosses the jar of locusts at SAM. CASTIEL performs air quotes during this speech. ] Sam, Dean, my "people skills" are "rusty." Pardon me, but I have spent the last "year" as a multidimensional wavelength of celestial intent. But believe me, you do not want that weapon down here. Help me find it. Or more people will die.
[Flies away abruptly when Dean asks anything he doesn't want to answer] (6.03)
Cas tortures a child while Dean pleads with him not to do it (6.03).
[Yanks Dean's wrist over without asking and slices his palm open to use his blood for a spell] DEAN: Whoa, whoa! Hey! Ahh! Why don't you use your own? / CASTIEL: It wouldn't work. I'm not human.
[Flies away abruptly when Dean is mid-sentence] (6.06)
Cas ghosts Dean for days while Dean pleads for help in prayers (6.05-6.06)
Those are some moments of note up to my current rewatch episode.
Less organized but past current rewatch point some random momence:
The entire plot of season 6 where Cas is going behind their backs the whole time culminating in him refusing to let go of his plan while Dean pleads him to do just that.
Fun lil Deancas bitchy compilation set here
[Beats the shit out of Dean flies away with the angel tablet]
Refuses to come out of Purgatory
Ignores Dean's nightly prayers in Purgatory
Ignores Dean's prayers and calls all of the tiiiiiiiime sometimes for weeks
Locking Dean in the dungeon... again. (S9)
DEAN: I'm glad you're here / CAS: *Leaves* (10.03)
Keeping Demon Dean from doing demon things :(((( (10.03)
Works with Sam to decode the Book of the Damned behind Dean's back.
CAS: No fighting. / DEAN: Tell [Claire] that. / CAS: Both of you.
"YEAH you know what I like about him? It's that he's sarcastic, but he's THOUGHTFUL and APPRECIATIVE too."
"If I plan to do anything else stupid, I'll let you know."
CAS: So I should just sit here? / DEAN: Pretty much. / CAS: NO.
[Look of utter loathing] "Dean. You are NOT a talking dog." (13.16)
"At least I don't look like a lumberjack."
Steals The Colt to kill Kelly Kline when Sam and Dean want to save her -> Does a 180 into wanting to protect Kelly and still won't include Sam and Dean, instead knocking them unconscious (12.19)
Locks Sam and Dean out of the dungeon so he can torture Donatello for information (13.14)
Also: #hot girl cas. And anyway, if Cas decreases his bitchy basline tendencies to be bitchy around Dean and Dean only, and instead indulges him occasionally by doing things like dressing up like cowboys, we should be fond of this because the angel the size of a Chrysler building who has killed thousands lets Dean put him in little outfits to make him happy and there is something very cute about that.
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Cute little Bamf
Kurt Wagner x fem!AFAB!reader
Words: 1.3K
Summary: Kurt is absolutely smitten by his little daughter.
A/N: I used a gif of Alan Cummings Nightcrawler, however it works coompletely fine with any Nightcrawler, really.
As gently as he could, Kurt brushed a strand of hair from her face that was stuck to her forehead and smiled slightly as he looked down at her sleeping form. She looked exhausted, which she was, and her hair was messy with sweat, but he was glad to see that some colour had returned to her cheeks.
Lightly, so as not to wake her, he ran his hand over her cheek. No matter how exhausted she might look, for Kurt his wife was the most beautiful woman on earth, an angel sent by God.
His attention briefly shifted to the small bed beside hers, and a surge of emotion washed over him. Here lay not just his beloved wife, but also the embodiment of their love—a pure, innocent soul they had brought into this world together.
When she had first brought up the subject of children a few months after their wedding, he had been sceptical, unsure.
On the one hand, he wanted nothing more than to have a family with the person he loved above all else, a testimony to their love.
On the other hand, he didn't know if she was aware of the full consequences. She was human, not mutant, and so far there had hardly been any offspring between mutants and non-mutants, especially not with mutants, whose physical appearance was so different.
Kurt himself had taken a long time to come to terms with his outward appearance, and the thought of a child, his child, having to go through the same problems because of him didn't sit well with him.
She had shown remarkable patience and understanding, gently nudging him towards their shared dream of parenthood with unwavering reassurance. Never once did she pressure him, always respecting his hesitations and doubts. She made it clear that if he truly didn't want children, she wouldn't press the issue further.
After two years of marriage, their mutual longing for a family outweighed his reservations. The journey to parenthood had been arduous, with Kurt feeling torn between his desire to fulfill his wife's wishes and his fear of the unknown.
He watched as his wife endured the challenges of pregnancy with strength and grace, feeling powerless to ease her burdens.
The birth itself had been a taxing ordeal, yet, in that moment when their daughter was placed in her mother's arms for the first time, any traces of pain or exhaustion vanished.
Their daughter.
Kurt's gaze shifted to the small cot beside his wife's hospital bed, ensuring she remained peacefully asleep before gently disentangling his hand from hers. With cautious steps, he approached the cot, his heart swelling with emotion at the sight before him.
She was perfect and the sight of her alone was enough to bring tears to his eyes again. When she had placed her little girl in his arms for the first time, he had been unable to stop the tears and had silently sent prayers of thanks to heaven.
In that sacred moment, he had made vows to cherish and protect this precious gift with all his being. And as he beheld his little Rachel, he felt a profound sense of responsibility and love wash over him, promising to fulfill his role as her father with unwavering devotion until the end of his day.
His wife had suggested the name because, on the one hand, it was a biblical name to honour Kurt's faith, but at the same time it was a normal name in both German and English, albeit pronounced and spelled differently.
Kurt would have married her again at that moment if he had been able to.
Rachel slumbered peacefully, mirroring her mother's deep rest, granting Kurt the opportunity to kneel beside her bed, captivated by her presence. As he observed her features, a mix of his own and his wife's, he marveled at the unique blend they had created. Though she inherited many of his distinct characteristics, they were softened by her mother's genetic influence.
Her complexion, not as deeply indigo as his own, resembled a more fainter blue, while her hair cascaded in a shade darker than his signature black-blue hue. Her eyes, previously open wide and full of curiosity, gleamed gold, not as intense as his, with larger pupils than he possessed.
She had one more digit on each hand and foot than he did, but they were just as long and slender as his. And while her body lacked the fur that adorned his own, the presence of a small tail with its distinctive spade-like tip unmistakably marked her as his.
Kurt felt a surge of gratitude that his wife had agreed to give birth at the Institute, recognizing that their daughter's unique appearance might have drawn unwanted attention in a non-mutant hospital. Just like her father.
Kurt lost track of time as he sat there, mesmerized by his daughter's stirring movements. When she finally awoke, her tiny face contorted in a mixture of confusion and discomfort, he swiftly rose to his feet. As she began to emit soft, plaintive sounds, Kurt instinctively hushed her with a gentle shushing noise.
"Shhh," he murmured softly, scooping her into his arms with a tenderness born of love and instinct. "Beruhige dich, mein Liebling. Sonst wecken wir Mama." He knew she couldn't understand his words, but the soothing tone seemed to have a calming effect on her. Her cries quieted as he rocked her gently, his movements lulling her into a peaceful state. Instead, she looked at him curiously out of her large, golden eyes while her tail whipped lazily through the air.
A tender smile graced Kurt's lips as he gently nudged Rachel with the tip of his tail, ensuring not to cause her any discomfort.
To his delight, she responded by wrapping her own tail around his, emitting soft sounds that tugged at his heartstrings.
Kurt continued to rock her gently, minimizing any noise that might disturb her fragile peace.
In his arms, Rachel seemed impossibly small and delicate, igniting a fierce protective instinct within Kurt. The overwhelming urge to shield her from harm, to safeguard her against any obstacle that dared cross her path, surged through him like a tidal wave. It was a primal instinct, a father's love in its purest form, driving him to do whatever it took to ensure her safety and happiness.
He didn't know whether this thought should frighten him or whether he was justified as a father after all, so he pushed the thoughts aside.
A soft rustle drew Kurt's attention, and he turned to see his wife awake, her gaze filled with warmth and affection. Despite the traces of fatigue, a broad smile graced her lips as she looked upon them. Kurt hurried to her side, Rachel cradled in his arms, concern evident in his voice. "Did we wake you, Liebling? I'm sorry-"
He glanced towards the bedcovers, but his wife reached out for his hand, squeezing it lightly. "Don't be," she reassured him, her tone gentle. "I had the pleasure of waking up to this beautiful view." Kurt smiled slightly and turned in a sitting position so that she could look down at their daughter as well.
Kurt's wife continued to stroke Rachel's forehead tenderly, drawing out a few indistinct sounds from the baby. As Rachel's tail tightened around his own, Kurt let out a yelp of surprise, a sharp twinge of pain shooting through him. His wife couldn't help but chuckle at his reaction, the sound filled with affectionate amusement.
"Headstrong and cheeky like her Papa," his wife remarked, affection lacing her words. "And she looks like him too. If I hadn't given birth to her, I wouldn't even know if she was my child."
Kurt pressed a tender kiss to his wife's forehead before leaning against her, his tail finding its place around her hip. "Maybe at first glance. But she looks more like you than you realise," he murmured, his gaze drifting back to Rachel, who was lazily lashing her tail and blinking her eyes, yawning softly.
"To be honest, I don't care what she looks like," she whispered, her voice barely audible as they watched their daughter drift off to sleep. "She's our daughter. She's perfect." Kurt looked down at the little blue bundle - now asleep again - in his arms and smiled slightly.
" Indeed she is.“
#x men#x-men#x men comics#x men 97#nightcrawler#kurt wagner#nightcrawler x reader#kurt wagner x reader#x men x reader
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A knight's foolish play
Words: 1683
Note: For @a-wild-seungberry
T/w: Use of tools, yes
Lee: Know
Ler: Hannie
Lee Know has once said on a fancall, he was not a princess, but a queen. A sign of royalty that he wore high above his head, even if it sometimes crumbled with his kind and playful demeanour. Regardless so, his chin was high in the clouds, his eyes sharp with an intelligence that none of his peasants would question, lest they wanted to be put on the stake.
"Minho-hyung, I didn't know you were this great at acting!" Han called out beside him, his smile wide with his cheeks puffed up. Of course, Minho wasn't actually a cruel ruler, but under his watchful gaze of acting, the cat wasn't hesitant to have your blood served as fine wine in a golden goblet of what remained of you to drink for supper if he could.
"It's king Minho to you, Han Jisung." Lee Know hisses out coldly, pointing the end of his metallic blade at the younger's throat, where his adam apple popped up. The quokka's eyes widened in amazement and admiration, wondering how he manages to keep up the cold personality. Meanwhile, as much as Lino enjoyed being pampered and spoon fed on a sliver platter, he felt incredibly guilty for treating his members like peasants, nothing but rats to stomp on and a rug to walk upon to his throne.
However, with being an idol comes with great responsibility, even if it meant he had to act as if he was going to slice those that dared to defy his order, those that dared to duel with his sliver blade would fall spell to his iron grip, head severed onto a plate for his next meal.
"I mean...King Minho, we still have a small break before your next scene, would you like me to be my accompany to your room?" Jisung giggles softly, kneeling down before royalty himself with a shy smile. Minho's heart fluttered in embarrassment, knowing that outside of their acting they were good friends, yet Jisung insisted on treating him this way. With a soft chuckle, Lee Know lifts his blade to tilt the younger's head towards his piercing gaze, one that froze anyone that came in its path.
Still, the quokka held his ground, gripping the fabric of his tights in his hands, crumpling it slightly in all his hidden anxiety. To the 'king', he was nothing but a lowly knight, a servant to his call with a duty to serve and protect his majesty.
"Come then, let us trek the halls of my castle, Knight Jisung." Minho caves in, sheathing his blade into its respective scabbard, his cape draping across the floor to guide the knight along its path, his intentions clouded by the thick fabric of his clothes along with the golden crown that strode in path with him.
Jisung followed behind with a twinkle in his eyes, squealing when his blade almost fell out at the speed he ran towards his majesty. He waddled timidly beside him, Minho really did look intimidating, with narrowed slits of his eyes glaring at anyone that came to block his path, his cape covering his shoulders and down his back to symbolise his pride and confidence, and the crown that was atop his head, worn proudly by his owner.
"Sweet cheeks, why the long face? Y'know it's just acting..." And just like that, 'King Minho' was no longer present, replaced with the Lino the members knew and loved. His face softened into a downturned smile, keeping up his code of conduct in chivalry despite the acting having already ceased. Jisung just stared with wide eyes, his brown eyes reflecting his passion to stick to his role, the armour that his wore was his vow to protect the older no matter what may come between them.
Minho let out a hearty laugh under his breath, creaking open the door to his room. The younger took hesitant steps into the room, both of them absorbed into their roles. Escaping the mundane walls of dancing their life away to songs on a stage that encapsulated everything but the singers themselves, another ruthless night onto their bodies.
"Majesty first." Jisung hums with a bow, making the 'King' smile as he waltzes in. He tosses his cape on the floor, settling the shiny crown that he was reluctant to tear from his head, but placed it onto the night stand before tossing himself onto the bed. He was very much tired, exhausted from having to maintain his icy and blood lusting demeanour in front of the camera, he could sometimes see true fear in the member's eyes as they quake beneath him, making the cat kneel and beg for forgiveness afterwards, even if assured it was alright.
"You tired, my majesty, you need a massage from your peasant knight?" Minho grumbled at the use of royalty terms, he hated it. In his eyes, Jisung was more royalty to him than himself, and so were the members. When the knight felt the awkward tension that spread throughout the room, he was quick to settle down his scabbard onto the rug carefully, afraid to damage any fabric of hair that was held dearly by the 'king'.
Hands wrapped around the cat's waist gently, hoisting him up from his previous position of suffocating himself in dozens of pillows that costed millions, at least in the set it did. The cat shrieked and hissed, squirming under the knight's hold until eventually melting into a puddle when his head was settle onto the younger's lap, letting a hint of a smile on his face graze him.
"Would you like to indulge in some banter?" Jisung smiled innocently down at Lee Know, who gazed back up in confusion. It was only until hands landed under his arms to his armpits did the majesty fall prey to such childish things.
"N-No! I don't wish to- WAHAHAIT! PLEHEHEHEASE JISUNG!" Minho shrieked when the fingers got to work in scratching his blunt nails over the surface of his armpits, at least the fabric of his costume made it more bearable. Too bad, as when he felt the thick buttons of his shirt unbutton he was doomed.
"Your majesty! You didn't tell me you looked so defined with muscle!" The quokka pretended to be in awe as he looked upon Minho's bare waist, his thighs trapping his arms that once had freedom now no more. The older turned a bright red, getting oh so flustered at the use of still being treated like royalty even after the set, and boy was Jisung having a field day with this information.
"Nohoho don't! Plehehehase- ACK!" The cat squealed when he felt something cold placed onto his waist, eyes widening in horror when he realised it was body oil. He tugged at his arms under Han's thighs, shaking his head with giggles when it was rubbed all over his waist and spine.
"My majesty deserves only the best of massages in the kingdom." The knight mutters with a smile, pressing a tiny kiss to the cat's forehead to soothe him for what was to come. Minho simply shook with giggles, shrieking when fingertips traced along his sides, a mess before it begun.
"I ahaham nohot a king! Stahahap saying thaHAHAHT! JISUHUHUNG!" Minho howled with laughter when fingers rubbed at clawed at his ribs, the oil just making his skin all the more easy to move around, and slide right in between the crevices. The younger hummed an acknowledgement through the laughter, smiling down at the cruel 'king' torn apart at his fingertips.
"Yes you are! And I treat royalty with the utmost respect, excuse me." Jisung tutted, pretending to be offended that Lino dared speak himself so lowly. As punishment, a finger plunged into his navel, the other kneading into his waistline. Minho threw his head back in hysterics, crinkling his eyes with witch-like cackles he was sure the entire castle could hear.
The older thrashed and squirmed, the oil right in his navel making it unbearable as the finger swirled and scratched gently, making him go hazy with laughter, while the kneading on his v-line made him feel like he was going to ascend with crazy laughter.
"ARGHAHAHAAHAH! STAP! PLEEHEHEASE MAHAHAKE IT STOP!" Minho screeches with hysterics, his ears burning with blush from how badly he was being torn apart by something as simple as tickling, torn to pieces while he had beheaded several peasants that defied his rule. His grown hair sprawled across the younger's thighs messily, too much squirming to be kept neat and tidy.
"You're so cute, we should do this more often." The quokka mumbles with a giggle of his own, earning a very strong opinion and shout of no in return, making him smile. He loved when the older let loose like this, laughing so carefree without thinking twice of whom he affected, he wished things remained like that every time.
"NOHOHOHO! NO MORE! AHAHAH-!" Eventually, the older's laughter cut off into silent cries of mirth, kicking out his legs as he tried everything in his power to squirm away from the agile fingers that glided across his torso torturously gently, sending him into quiet, ticklish agony as tears streamed down hs face.
Alas, everything has to come to an end, Jisung pulling his fingers away to properly massage the oil in, earning a lot of giggling and protesting. He still held the rouge cat down, just in case its claws would extend for a hunt of revenge, something he often worried about whenever he messed about in playful banter.
Pulling him into a tight hug, the younger embraces the older in safe, warm cuddle, buttoning back up his cloak when he felt Minho shiver and shudder. They both definitely didn't fall asleep in a tranquil of peace, and both definitely weren't cooed over and nagged by the members for missing their shoot, with cuddles.
The knight was definitely 'burnt at the stake' the next day by his majesty. Worth it though, says Knight Jisung as he screamed out another squeal of desperation when his majesty finds his ribs interesting.
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Crack idea but like
I was reading a thread that was going over all the possibility for horror in Hell as an immortal sinner, and a comment mentioned Alastor’s bit of somehow being special in “disappearing” sinners presumably with the lack of angelic instruments and capturing overlords and their voices to be used for his broadcast- you know, all that stuff.
I’ve imagined that he possibly really sends them over to Roo/Eve which is how they stay trapped, but for this instance I thought about what keeps being taken.
The Root of All Evil & the Sin of Knowledge Perceiving
Relating to the maxim of “See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil”, if we are to assume Eve and Roo are separate beings, what if the proxies/agents of Roo are to be compared to them as twistings? That they have methods in which a sinner could be permanently killed and extract respective parts or receptacles of evil from them, or maybe Roo or at least an extension of her/their power is used to tear a sinner’s soul apart the different sensitivities are given for the different proxies to govern.
Why not say that eyes and the voices are entirely directly related to Roo?
Roo needs proxies (aside from a possible plot of being trapped somewhere and needing external forces to break out like the difficulty of getting out of an egg vs breaking in) because Evil only exists when there is Will to pervert, it lies inside humanity and only humanity (and similarly sentient beings) has the free will to act upon it. Ways for her to be perceived and to be enacted upon, the keys to her prison. So she has them as vessels of her power.
Seeing Evil - Eve acts as Roo’s eyes (because what is an Eye if not an Eve that had extended a root-) , to observe the Earth and all of the Afterlife and learn of the corruption around. Brings suffering to the world by manifesting as that spine chill when you think someone’s looking at you, imagine eyes in the dark, or feel the weight of a hundred eyes fueling your anxiety when giving a presentation.
Al can fit in with the theme, acting as a vassal for
Speaking Evil - The trapping of hundreds of voices, to scream of pain and misery that would await death and after death, Alastor bringing forth unsilenced terror. He may act as a conduit or microphone from which Roo would whisper her sweet nothings and everythings to Earth- she definitely was able to do that before, without him, but who’s to say it wouldn’t help with the poisoning to have some kind of anchor? (Who’s to say she hadn’t had a different mouthpiece before, that Alastor was neither the first nor would be the last?)
This is just a fun thing that could be done for fanfiction- I don’t really think that a pattern like that is gonna happen for Roo followers, but it might be fun.
We’d still have “Hear No Evil” to compare to—I mean I guess you can put Roo themself as that but ehh—, maybe someone in the next season could fit the bill though I’m not sure how like ears manifesting could really look any kind of horrifying rather than weird compared to Eyes or Mouthsand/orScreams.
There could also be more to the types of followers in the pattern, if we take up the possible fourth monkey additions of “Do No Evil” or the good ol’ “Think No Evil”, or even “Smell No Evil” (yes that’s a variation).
Could be a good alternative to having a 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse theme!
[or maybe do both at the same time, that’s what Cult of the Lamb did and what totally wasn’t further inspiration for this drabble]
👀
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Hi, everyone! So, I know there's a lot of controversy about Rhys's behavior Under the Mountain (at least in Brazil fandom it's a hot topic), a discussion that is valid and definitely needs to be had, so I did a lot of research on the subject and compiled the three texts that influenced me the most into a compilation that I'll share here — along with my thoughts and additions.
These texts that serve as my supports were made here on Tumblr and can be found under the following titles, although the third one is the most comprehensive of them all:
*Rhysand's Defense Post (The author had only read A Court of Thorns and Roses when she wrote this).
*The Difference Between Tamlin and Rhysand: The Man on the Throne and the Man in the Arena — Acotar and Acomaf's Excerpt Analysis (The author was following the small teaser quotes for A Court of Mist and Fury and analyzed them).
*Understanding Tamlin and Rhysand — A Post-Acomaf Reconciliation of Rhys's Actions Under The Mountain in a Culture of Defeat.
In addition to discussing Rhys's behavior, however, I'm also going to discuss Tamlin's behavior and compare the two. It's going to be quite fun… Just a heads up that I don't want any hate messages. Do you want to share your thoughts agreeing or disagreeing? That's fine, but with respect. Any offensive comments will be deleted.
Now here's my defense post for Rhys:
Leadership is a heavy burden. When you're a leader, especially when it's not your choice but comes to you because of the family you were born into, for example, responsibility can be a burden. But when you're a leader, there's something very important to consider when making a decision: those who follow you.
All of Rhys's actions as High Lord of the Night Court must be thought of to put the well-being of those he is responsible for first. And when he, Tamlin, and the other High Lords are Under the Mountain, he decides that he will be Amarantha's whore to ensure that his Court is in the best possible condition within the situation — he lets himself be raped to ensure that his people and his family remain safe when he could have done nothing.
But from the moment Feyre strikes the deal with Amarantha, he is the only one who is truly in a position to make a difference: the other High Lords do not have enough of Amarantha's trust for her not to suspect anything if one of them tried to bargain with Feyre as Rhys did, for example. If any other High Lord — Kallias, Thesan, Helion, etc. — tried the same thing as Rhys, Amarantha would have been suspicious.
So in this case, he is the only one who can truly act.
But he doesn't have to. The point is that his Court is reasonably safe because of his role in the court Amarantha built, so Rhys doesn't really need to help Feyre win. But he does it, not because he wants his power back, but because he's the kind of leader who will do everything achievable to change — for what he believes is the best — the lives of his people.
And I'll talk about how admirable that is later on when we're talking about the culture of war and defeat, and about Tamlin's behavior.
So, he decides to act, and he tells Feyre in A Court of Mist and Fury:
"I decided at that moment that I would fight. And fight dirty, and kill and torture and manipulate, but fight. If there was any chance of freeing us from Amarantha, it was you." (A Court of Mist and Fury, page 550, Brazilian edition)
He knows, then, that the fight he would have to wage was not the beautiful, heroic, noble thing we're so used to seeing: Rhys knew that his actions to ensure victory — for Feyre and Prythian as a whole — would be horrible and would probably haunt him for the rest of his life. He knows that. And he doesn't excuse himself for a moment. He doesn't invent, he doesn't embellish, he doesn't paint himself as a hero. He knows he's not and he really isn't a hero.
A hero is someone who sacrifices themselves in a grand gesture to save the entire population, a true hero doesn't really sacrifice one person to save others. And while Rhys does have his own share of sacrifices, that doesn't excuse him from the horrible actions he took Under the Mountain:
So, the first part of his questionable behavior in Under the Mountain comes to light: the moment he twists Feyre's injured arm to convince her, to scare her enough to accept his bargain. This is a minor moment and my description alone makes it understandable: he does what he does to keep her alive and charges an insignificant price (which he planned to release her from later, as he himself says) to keep up appearances.
And Rhys needs to keep up appearances because his whole game to defeat Amarantha depends on how he appears to her and to other people: no one can notice while he moves the pieces on the board to bring the advantage to them. No one, not even Feyre, who is the "lamb to the slaughter," so to speak. And she can't know for several reasons:
Feyre is not in a mental condition to act and pretend to hate him as much as he needs her to pretend. So if she knew what he was doing, she would probably let something slip, or wouldn't be convincing enough, because honestly? Who could?
Rhys spent the last 50 years fighting alone and being surrounded by people who constantly despised him for being Amarantha's whore or for those who tried to ingratiate themselves with her through him, so he doesn't trust others easily, even though he was falling in love with Feyre, as he says in ACOMAF.
He couldn't trust that Feyre wouldn't trust others — Lucien and, therefore, Tamlin — with this knowledge. With their mutual hatred, they would surely end up messing things up.
Feyre was there to protect the High Lord who killed his mother and sister — and Rhys didn't know that Feyre didn't know the history behind his and Tamlin's relationship — so, in theory, it made sense that he wouldn't want to show his "true face" to her.
That's exactly what the book is about: like a retelling of Beauty and the Beast, the book is about how appearances deceive. If Feyre found out that Rhys is a decent person right away, it would be the same as throwing the whole intention of the story out the window.
So we have the second — and most controversial of all — point: the dance and the wine. I'm not going to mince words about this: It was sexual harassment. Period. But with this, Rhys manages to:
Get Feyre out of her cell, which is driving her crazy, as she says in this part: "I was alone, locked in silence — although the screams in the dungeon continued day and night. When they became unbearable and I couldn't ignore them, I looked at the eye in my palm." (A Court of Thorns and Roses, page 356, Brazilian Edition). And let's face it, anyone would go crazy in an environment like that.
Keep an eye on Feyre so that no one else could harm her — something he disguises with a comment about not liking others to touch what's his — and that's a curious thing because Feyre never expresses concerns about being abused by others after Rhys starts taking her to these parties (it's also interesting to note that despite the various traumas of what happened Under the Mountain, Feyre never showed any signs of trauma from sexual abuse, as far as I know — and again, not that this excuses Rhys, it's just a factor to point out that maybe she understood his game better than we did).
To leave Tamlin full of anger — which he claims is the main reason for all that theater during A Court of Thorns and Roses — so that he wouldn't hesitate if he had the slightest chance to kill Amarantha in the end or between challenges, no matter as long as he didn't hesitate. Because from Rhys's perspective, Tamlin is the noble golden prince who might spare Amarantha's life to demand some kind of trial or something. Which I consider he might have been dumb enough to do too.
Divert Amarantha's attention, as, thinking that Feyre was already humiliated and abused enough during those nights, she wouldn't give Feyre those ridiculous tasks anymore (like cleaning that filthy hall or collecting lentils from Rhys's fireplace). And if you reread ACOTAR, she really never gives those small tasks to Feyre again after that.
Send a message to those who could read, as Rhys himself says: he crowns Feyre every night, and for the cruel ones, this would be a subtle kind of mockery, but for those who could see beyond the evil, Rhys was declaring Feyre the champion of them all. He declared that he believed in her and in her potential to free them all.
Convince Amarantha that he's still playing on her side — a belief that was shaken by Rhys betting on Feyre in the first task and closing that bargain to heal her arm. This might be the most fundamental of all points: the one that allows the game to continue toward victory. He needs to prove to Amarantha that he's doing it for fun, out of cruelty, considering Feyre as the whore of the whore, someone lower than the lowest of courtesans. Thus, Rhys clears the way to act when the time is right.
By taking Feyre with him to those parties, he moved not one, but six pieces of the game to be in his favor. He killed six birds with one stone. Strategically, it's an incredible tactic, by the way. But morally, this act leaves something to be desired.
So why the wine and the dance? Because Rhysand plays with appearances. Everything in his game depends on it.
Feyre wouldn't play the whore of the whore while conscious, no one with a shred of self-respect would accept that without knowing the reason behind it, and Rhysand, for the reasons I mentioned, wouldn't tell her anything. So he makes her drink the wine to keep the whole purpose of that show and keeps her close to prevent her from being touched by anyone other than him.
But besides that, the wine is a form of escape, a way to forget about the horrors, as Feyre herself says at the end of the chapter where all this happens:
"[…] and I began to long for the moment when Rhysand would hand me the goblet of faerie wine and I could let loose for a few hours." (A Court of Thorns and Roses, page 381).
In fact, Rhys sees it this way: when he is forced to kill the High Lord of the Summer Court (not Tarquin, but his cousin from whom he "inherited" the title, Nostrus), he himself drinks the wine with Feyre — it's an escape from the character he so carefully plays because not even Rhys can bear everything without letting the facade fall, even if only a little.
Note: not that I'm saying this would be a healthy way to deal with all that trauma and accumulated stress, but considering the place they were in and the situation, perhaps it was the most… effective way.
I have to say, however, that all of this doesn't justify what he did: it was still sexual abuse and it's still very bad and very serious. However, I need to point out to you: what we do to survive often does not reflect what we would be in a normal situation (normal being their everyday life without Amarantha, in this case).
When we are confronted with a situation like this, where to survive we end up needing to do something horrible, many say they would never do and would take the noble path of dying before giving up their values and principles, which is great, it proves that you have a very good character. The problem is that Rhys doesn't have the choice to think only of himself and how much this abuse will cost his dignity and principles because every decision he makes affects his people.
So here's my question for you: could you love someone who chose to preserve you instead of saving thousands of innocent — children, women, and men — who are under their responsibility?
Because I couldn't love someone who did that. And that's how I make peace with what Rhys did to Feyre Under the Mountain: I couldn't love someone who condemned the world to save me from abuse that I know I can endure — even if it causes me terrible harm.
Of course, it's entirely valid if you decide not to forgive him for what he did, because, after all, it's a morally gray action when you consider the whole situation they were in and what Rhys did. So, no one is really wrong for not forgiving Rhys for what he did, but those who forgive him aren't wrong either. It's very important that we understand that.
Now, an argument that is often used and that annoys me every time I hear it is that Sarah "changed Rhys and Tamlin's personalities because of shipping", so she ignored everything Rhys did Under the Mountain to make him the hero just because fans liked him.
There are so many things wrong with that that I don't even know where to begin, but let's analyze all of Tamlin's, Feyre's, and Rhys's behavior throughout the ACOTAR and ACOMAF stories and show why I know Sarah did absolutely everything with careful consideration:
There is a trait that is very striking in Tamlin from the beginning of the ACOMAF story and is especially explicit when Alis tells the whole story about Amarantha, Tamlin, and the curse, which is the fact that Tamlin can't deal with the consequences of his actions:
The first time he does this is at the beginning of the curse when he gives up sending his soldiers to die for him, thus Tamlin simply gives up not only freeing himself but all of Prythian, all the people who live there, and still condemns the human lands in the process. He only started sending the soldiers out of desperation after 46 years, look at Alis's speech:
"For two years, he sent them, day after day, needing to choose who crossed the wall. When there were only a dozen left, Tamlin was so devastated that he stopped. He canceled everything." (A Court of Thorns and Roses, page 294, Brazilian Edition).
The second time I can point out is Feyre herself (this because I'm ignoring the events during her stay in the Spring Court, as I don't remember what happened): he takes Feyre to Prythian with the intention of making her fall in love with him, but at the first glimpse of direct danger from Amarantha — in this case, the scene where Rhys makes him kneel — he sends her away.
He gives up saving Prythian because he can't stick to the decision to put Feyre in danger so that she could break the curse, so much so that he condemns himself for it, because Feyre only doesn't say that she loves him — and breaks the curse — precisely because she's leaving:
"— I love you. — He said, and stepped back. I should say — should say those words, but they got stuck in my throat because… Because of what he needed to face, because maybe he wouldn't find me again, despite the promise…" (A Court of Thorns and Roses, page 261, Brazilian Edition)
These are the main events, and perhaps I could list more for you if I reread A Court of Thorns and Roses. But what does this show us? That every time Tamlin makes a decision, he freezes and backs down at the first sign of an obstacle. He retreats and avoids anything that shakes him.
So it makes sense that Tamlin's reaction Under the Mountain is paralysis — a common behavior among leaders in times of war and defeat, by the way, which aligns not only with Tamlin's personality but also with the reaction of a true leader in such a situation.
Alright, let's stop there and go back in time to analyze Feyre's behavior:
Right from the start, we learn that, even being the youngest of three sisters, Feyre was the one who, when they were starving, took action and sought a solution, which shows us right away the kind of person Feyre is: she's the kind of person who acts when forced to face danger, whether it's something intangible, like death by starvation, or tangible, like Amarantha.
This is proven repeatedly throughout the books: when she seeks answers with the Suriel, when she tries to fight off the bastards who tried to rape her at Calanmai (because paralysis can also be a reaction to abuse of that kind), when she goes to Under the Mountain to fight for Tamlin without even hesitating, when she heals from the traumas of Under the Mountain as soon as she has something to focus on, something to dedicate herself to.
And this is one of the fundamental differences between Tamlin and Feyre: while he paralyzes, she acts, and whether we like it or not, differences create friction. Especially with what happened Under the Mountain because she and Tamlin were separated, and neither of them experienced trauma together. Paralysis generates a different trauma from the trauma of someone who is acting, so the end of their relationship begins when she goes to save him Under the Mountain — and Tamlin freezes.
Then we have Rhysand, who is exactly like Feyre: he acts when confronted with danger or defeat and has thousands of actions of his that exemplify this:
As soon as he becomes High Lord, he bans the wing clipping of Illyrian females regardless of the reaction of the Illyrian lords or what they thought about it. It's not that he doesn't care: Rhys, unlike Tamlin, is willing to pay the price that comes when a decision is made.
He becomes Amarantha's whore to protect his people from her getting too close to them. He doesn't care about the cost to himself simply because Rhys knows he's doing some good for his own people by letting himself be raped.
When he sees in Feyre the chance to do something to free all of Prythian, he goes all in knowing that that game would be total defeat or victory. He acts.
When Hybern starts threatening Prythian, he is willing to do whatever it takes — lose a potential friend, hand over the city he loved with all his heart to horrible women, give up his own life — so that they wouldn't fall into slavery again.
When the war comes anyway, he faces it head-on and uses every card he has to stop the King of Hybern: monsters of all kinds, all his power, his own life, and the truth about himself, about who he is.
And these are just a few examples. The fundamental difference between Tamlin and Rhys, just like between Tamlin and Feyre, is how they respond to situations and traumas.
Quoting Teddy Roosevelt (btw, this is a direct translation of the Portuguese version of the quote, so it can be different from the original):
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat."
Feyre and Rhysand are the ones in the arena, they are the ones who fight to be able to act in the face of evil — Amarantha. And it's interesting to note that those who condemn Rhys for the dubious actions he took Under the Mountain never say anything about Feyre committing murder there as well, which is a crime as heinous (or at least should be when it comes to innocent people) as Rhys's.
I'll tell you why: when we're faced with a gray and complex character like Rhys — and we don't know his heart, instead we're "infected" with the main character's partial view — we tend to connect him directly with evil, instead of understanding that this character is neither wholly good nor bad. We forgive soldiers for killing people in a war — that's also a combat in Under the Mountain, so why can't we forgive both Rhys and Feyre?
We forgive Feyre because we know how sorry she is, we know her heart, and we love her. But Rhys? He's the High Lord of the Night Court — which alone triggers some unconscious alerts within us — and he's playing dirty, hiding, and being a horrible person, so why should he be forgiven?
That's what our brain unconsciously thinks sometimes, and it makes us judge some characters more severely. Understanding the duality and complexity of a character is not an easy task; it requires a lot of empathy and an open mind.
But why am I saying this? Because it's important to understand: Rhys and Feyre are extremely similar, and they understand each other at a fundamental level because of that. Tamlin, on the other hand, has a completely different personality. He's the one who freezes, who paralyzes.
Rhys and Feyre experience the trauma Under the Mountain together, so Feyre and Tamlin are separated, which, combined with the glaring difference between the two, makes it difficult — perhaps impossible — for them to heal together because, out of loyalty to the character's nature, Sarah can't make Tamlin talk about what's happening like Feyre needs.
Even after Under the Mountain, Tamlin's instinctive action is to freeze. So he doesn't talk about Feyre's nightmares, he pretends not to see her despair, he turns away from her need to talk about the subject — because looking at her trauma would be the same as acknowledging his own.
And he can't do that because it's part of his nature to freeze. But this isn't healthy, hence the explosions of anger, and hence he locks Feyre up the moment she tries to assert herself: these are the consequences of forcing someone who deals with PTSD by freezing to actually deal with their traumas (that and the fact that he's horrible).
I can understand that (not in his relationship with Feyre, I'm talking more generally here, about him as High Lord, he can rot otherwise) but I can't forgive it like I did with Rhys because, unlike the actions Rhys took, paralysis only allows evil to continue to grow and end up imprisoning us (this is, in fact, one of the reasons why Tamlin didn't try to fight like Rhys while Amarantha was killing Feyre: his lack of previous action left him unable to take action when it was time to "put up or shut up").
While Tamlin's paralysis pushes us down while doing us harm, Rhys's actions, as horrible as they may be, are done in the hope of something good, they're done to move us forward. I can forgive him because I'd rather be someone who does horrible things in the hope of creating something better than be someone who allows evil to continue to grow until it imprisons me.
It's that simple.
And Feyre is exactly that kind of person. She needs to act, she needs to talk about it to heal. She needs to have a purpose, not be coddled like Tamlin — and his trauma — wants her to be.
The relationship between her and Tamlin becomes abusive the moment he tries to stifle her feelings to maintain a state of paralysis. And that's something you'd expect from a character like Tamlin, that's how he was built. But this happens long before Under the Mountain: I remember that on the first day Feyre yields to the dresses Tamlin gave her in ACOTAR, I think it was the morning after Calanmai, she warns herself to be gentle, to be kind, when dealing with Tamlin and Lucien.
But after Under the Mountain, Feyre can no longer accept that her feelings be stifled simply because her traumas are consuming her from the inside out. So she fights back. And that's what completely ends their relationship.
But the point is: both Tamlin, Feyre, and Rhysand follow exactly the line of their personalities throughout the story. They are those kinds of people from start to finish. There's an evolution, of course, but it's an evolution of beliefs, opinions, and perceptions — their essences remain the same.
That's why Sarah is brilliant in these books: by being completely faithful to her characters' personalities, she created a story that discusses abusive relationships, the varied responses of certain types of people to trauma, and the various reactions of leaders in times of war and defeat.
But the point is: none of them were changed to fit a ship, simply because they weren't changed. All three of these characters act exactly the way they should within the limits of their own personalities.
Rhys is the High Lord who plays dirty to create a better world, and Tamlin is a leader who can't make a tough decision. And there's another fundamental difference between them:
While Rhys knows that, from time to time, he'll be forced to make decisions that will end up harming part of his people (and will choose the lesser of two evils), Tamlin still struggles with the enchanted vision of a superhero who saves everyone without exception. And when that doesn't happen — because it's never possible to save everyone no matter what you do — he prefers not to act.
I think the two things that illustrate very well the kind of person Rhys and Tamlin are is the Illyrian tradition of cutting the wings of their females and the Tribute:
Rhys risks a revolt to improve the lives of his people and sticks to that decision, willing to pay the price for it if the result is a better life for the Illyrian females, while Tamlin fails to abolish an extremely unnecessary tax because his inability to act makes him cling to archaic traditions like the Tribute.
So, yes, I forgive Rhys for what he did Under the Mountain, because I couldn't love someone who freezes and leaves me to die. I prefer to love someone who cares so deeply about something — a dream — that they're willing to fight and play dirty for it. And then go to battle to defend it.
Hope you enjoyed it! Feel free to point out points that I didn't comment on; I'll try to respond to everyone's comments!"
#acotar#rhysand#feyre archeron#feysand#rhys acotar#books#fantasy books#sjm#sarah j. maas#sarah j maas#cassian acotar#a court of thorns and roses#acomaf#a court of mist and fury#a court of wings and ruin#tamlin#tamlin acotar#morrigan
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The reason I think Alastor should be in the wrong(or at least mostly in the wrong) in his and Vox's falling out is that I don't think their relationship would be worth exploring as deeply as it sounds like it will be next season if Vox was the primary reason they started fighting, because it would do NOTHING for Alastor's arc.
Like- okay, Alastor's arc is very clearly going to be about learning that trusting people is Okay and not a sign of weakness, right? He's literally the only character in the show that is very clearly about the power of friendship who refuses to accept any sort of help, like even the VILLAINS are constantly hyping eachother up! If they fell apart because of something Vox did, and their relationship is going to be super important next season, wouldn't that not really do anything for Alastor's arc? Unless Vox pulling some weird shit is the ROOT CAUSE of Alastor's trust issues, but, given what we know about his past and how his ego seems to be the biggest contributor to said issues, I don't think it is. Alastor would HAVE to have contributed SIGNIFICANTLY to their falling out if their relationship is going to mean anything to his arc, because otherwise it just feels more like a weird aside then anything else? Like "oh yeah we used to be friends but then he did some weird shit and now we're not friends anymore". It adds nothing. There's nothing emotional for Alastor to confront in this scenario.
Which makes for a more interesting story, the relationship between the mc and someone from their past who, while they miss, isn't the kind of person they want to be around anymore so they don't really feel bad about cutting them off who ALSO doesn't pose any real Active Threat to the mc, or the mcs relationship with someone who they respected a lot but cut off because they felt the two of them were getting too close and we can't have THAT, now can we? It's the second one. It's the second one because the second one HAS HIGHER STAKES! The first one makes for a good one episode plotline, but for a season long arc? Takes where Vox is in the wrong actually make VOX a more interesting character to follow then Alastor, because that makes HIM the only one with an actual emotional stake in the conflict. But this isn't Vox's story. It's Alastor's story. Alastor is the main character. Which means, for their relationship to provide anything of value to the plot, Alastor needs to have emotional stakes in the situation too. The best villains are the ones that force your characters to grow and become better people(unless you're doing a silly little monster of the week type of show but THAT'S NOT WHAT HAZBIN IS-), and the only way Vox being the main antagonist next season is gonna cause any kind of growth is if Alastor is being forced to reconcile with his past.
Anyways uh, yeah that's it. I could do a tangent about how their relationship lowkey parallels Fizz & Blitzø(a comparison I made in this post but didn't actually go into depth on bcuz it wasn't relevant to the post beyond supporting my argument + didn't have much backing at the time), but I do NOT have the brain power to go in-depth comparing and contrasting that stuff rn, bcuz, despite the similarities, whatever the fuck Vox & Al have going on seems to be a LOT more Complicated and Sad then an accident and some dad-induced miscommunication. So I'm just gonna leave it at that :)
#hazbin hotel#hazbin alastor#hazbin hotel alastor#alastor hazbin hotel#hazbin vox#hazbin hotel vox#vox hazbin hotel#staticradio#radiostatic#alastor x vox#not rlly ship but Im not actively shitting on the pairing so I might as well tag the ship lol#late night ramblings#gal overanalyzes random shit
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I feel bad for Starlo. (pt. 9)
Star's the Papyrus (both are idealistic & seen as naive) of this game (Martlet is another possible parallel), even though he's got similarities with Undyne too. No matter how broken Ceroba seemed he asked himself WHY she did what she did and I think that's SUPER important.
Ceroba didn't do this. Her first instinct was to be harsh (after being harsh with him even BEFORE he attacked Clover):
called his personality "damaged" before this scene
... you never asked yourself WHY he did the whole sheriff act.
.... you never asked WHY he didn't want to grow up. If it was a coping mechanism, if he wanted to help his community in a way he couldn't as a farmer? It was never on her mind.
Yes he has baggage but he's dealing with it all while uplifting others, Ceroba has baggage but is well taken care of by Star and at least has him, he has no one but himself and his optimism to pull him out of negative feelings, and still gets insulted.
Yeah Ceroba's been through stuff but apparently it's been some time since Chujin passed and Kanako fell down, she should have at least started to support Star emotionally like he's been supporting her (sure, he did so with distractions, but as he said "aren't distractions what's best for all of that?" He did his best). Problem is she DIDN'T realise he was ever struggling with self worth and only assumed he was goofing off. Either that or she did nothing about it aka was too occupied with her own problems (which are valid but still... she should have tried at least a little) Cer's character flaw is being too stubborn and devoted to Chujin. She trusted him blindly and wholeheartedly. Everything else came in 2nd place. This is clear as day.
It hurts knowing Ceroba could never respect Starlo the way she still does her husband. Not saying she shouldn't admire Chujin, but the way she sees Star as a goofy manchild whose lifelong passion can go "too far," the way she sees all this Wild East stuff as him "just having fun," the way she thinks that only someone whose brain isn't developed would ever consider dating him just... ticks me off, tbh. That's why I think the guy needs someone who will be gentle and patient with him, even if that other person is going through tough times.
She DID call Starlo the best sheriff she's ever known (honestly the only sweet moment between them, but it is very brief, especially in neutral where he just gets cut off; also I hope she was being genuine here) and said how everyone adored him (but hated his persona, which I've already covered: basically they either hated 'North Star' as a whole, which I hope isn't true, or just how excited he was to meet Clover, which makes no sense to me; already covered it as well)
Bonus: Dina didn't know who Star really was or what he looked like, not before the end credits rolled (when he shows up as himself & she's also seen there; makes sense that he finally came clean to her):
So he's literally been playing this role 24/7, ever since she became the bartender; ever since this town started to exist. It's impressive how he could keep up an act AND use this fake accent for so long
Bonus #2: Star was SUPER worried about Clover's safety; that's what REALLY upset him (he cares about that child sm). THAT's what drove him off the edge (unless he naturally has a temper, i don't think this is it tho). Either way, he was way more patient w Ceroba than I think most would have been in that situation. Sure he snapped a few times, but there was a good reason to. He still TRIED to reason with her. Why did he attack? Worried for Martlet & Clover. I honestly think Star's the type to only get super angry if someone he loves is in danger (minus the stuff that happened which led him to cracking)
#uty#undertale yellow#starlo uty#uty starlo#ceroba uty#uty ceroba#ceroba ketsukane#anti staroba#dina uty#uty dina#not saying ceroba is a horrible person for not understanding star#every character carries some sort of baggage#just that she doesn't understand him#and that he needs somebody who will#he's an idealist she's a pessimist#pairings like this CAN work#but i dont think that' the case here
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⚠️ addiction, child abuse/neglect, death
Takumi Hoga was twelve years old when he first entered the ring. What else was he to do, really? He had just found out that he would be held back another grade again. Usually kids like him would hear the same old "You're not stupid, you're just lazy" speech over and over again, but not Takumi. He knew what the teachers thought of him. The current ones, that is. The teachers at the last two schools he was expelled from were probably relieved to never waste another thought on him again, after what he did. Bit a child here, broke a bone there. Bruises. Bloody noses. "Beast types", teachers would sneer whenever Takumi caused another "incident". Other than that, nobody paid much attention to him, even in class. You see, Takumi was born with abnormally large and abnormally many teeth very similar to a shark's. Whenever he opened his mouth to say something, teachers and students alike would cringe at his impeded speech, the latter even making fun of it in front of the former. So Takumi just stopped speaking altogether. His grades steadily worsened. His job prospects looked bleaker and bleaker each year. His parents didn't care. His mother was busy with drugs and whatever affair she had going on currently and his father often left for "work" for days at a time, leaving his son to fend for himself more often than not. There was nothing in his life that could've prevented Takumi from entering the ring.
On that fateful day after school Takumi was prowling the streets, homework and upcoming tests being the last thing on his mind. Some kid, a few years older than him, approached him. A fellow "beast", with sharp teeth and blue scales on his skin. He was wearing a cool leather jacket and expensive sunglasses. Takumi liked them.
"Hey, buddy. You look bored.", the guy said.
Takumi nodded. He was bored.
"I know a place where kids like us can have fun and earn cash on the side. Interested?"
"Like a job?", Takumi asked.
"Yeah, but more fun.", the guy answered.
Takumi was unsure. His teacher had told him that he'd never have a good job with his lousy grades and long attack record. "No respectable company will want to hire a beast like you.", she said. So how come this guy now wanted him for a job? And a "fun" one, at that?
"What do I have to do?", Takumi asked.
Everything moved quickly after that. The guy introduced him to "the boss", a man in his thirties who loved expensive food and loud cars. He even let Takumi sit on the passenger seat and choose the music they listened to on their drive to the ring. When they arrived, Takumi was handed a simple white shirt and shorts which reminded him of the clothes he had to wear in gym class. "Now all you gotta do", the boss said, "is beat up this guy over there." Another beast was in the ring, not much older than Takumi. He waved towards the excited crowd beyond the cage that surrounded the ring.
"Beat him up?", Takumi asked, "I'm allowed to do that?"
"Yeah. Beat him, scratch him, bite him, do whatever you want until he taps out or you hear the alarm."
"What if I have to tap out first?", Takumi asked. The boss grinned and handed him a tiny plastic bag with some powder inside. "I don't think you will."
The guy from before didn't lie: This was fun. Takumi didn't even break a sweat during his first fight, knocking the guy out cold. The second fight was against an older girl who transformed into a wolf, Takumi grabbed her nape with his teeth and shook her until she tapped out. At the end of the evening the boss gave him his payment and drove him back. He handed the boy a phone and said he'd text him if he had another fight for him lined up. Takumi stuffed the phone and the money in his pockets and went to buy himself a leather jacket and sunglasses.
Takumi Hoga was thirteen years old when he adopted the stage name "Armageddon". The boss had turned him into a rising star in the local business. Bets were made on whether Armageddon won or lost the fight and the boss always gave him a cut of the winnings which Takumi would spend on food, video games and clothes. Sponsors would sometimes pay him directly to write messages and contact details on his white shirt in permanent marker, displaying them in the ring for all to see. After the fight, the boss would get him cleaned up and drive him home. Takumi then spent the next day eagerly awaiting a message from the boss. On nights without fights Takumi felt horrible, writhing around in his bed, sweating bullets and sometimes even throwing up. But as soon as a new fight came up and Takumi got his hands on that powder the boss always gave him beforehand, the world was alright again. He felt light but focused at the same time, fearless, excited and full of energy. He had finally found something he was good at. And he loved doing it.
Takumi Hoga was fourteen years old when he almost died in the ring. The boss didn’t tell him beforehand that the reptile-looking beast he was about to fight had venom. Armageddon knocked out his opponent, but then sunk to the floor, foaming at the mouth, breathing raspily. “This wouldn’t have happened if you just killed the fucker before he bit you”, the boss hissed into his ear. After some back and forth the manager of the reptile guy decided to hand over some antivenom. Even with that, Takumi felt horrible for days afterwards, unable to move the bitten arm. But when the boss texted him again the week after, he jumped at the opportunity to get back in the ring.
Takumi Hoga was fifteen years old when he fought his first adult opponent in the ring. He was hesitant, but the boss said that nobody wanted to pay to see Armageddon wipe the floor with boring ol' kids who couldn't even fight back. "There's just no money in it", the boss said, "and you wanna keep making money, don't you?" When Armageddon entered the ring, he saw a young man in front of him. Some kind of fish beast with claws and glowing spots on his skin. "Please", the man whispered, "I have debts. I need to get out of here. Please just forfeit, I need the money. I really need it." Armageddon shook his head. "Please", the man said, "Don't hurt me." Armageddon was fifteen years old when he took his first life in the ring.
Armageddon was sixteen years old when he first tried to leave the business. He kept having nightmares about the man he killed and the side effects of the powder started getting to him. But he craved it more and more and that tiny little packet the boss always gave him just didn't cut it anymore. He would've just bought himself more if he knew what it was. The boss wouldn't tell him. So one day, Armageddon stopped answering texts from the boss. He prowled the streets instead, picking fights, doing anything to distract from the withdrawal symptoms plaguing him. Eventually, he collapsed on the street and woke up again in the hospital. Police were called, his parents were called, social services were called. Lots of big words were thrown around that he didn't understand. Negligence. Addiction. Custody. Takumi Hoga was sixteen years old when he was removed from his parents and placed in temporary care with social services. But he didn't stay there very long. They wanted him to go to rehab, anger management classes, school. They took his phone and his hard earned money and placed him on a strict schedule with an early curfew. And Takumi tried. He really did. But he just couldn't live the life everyone else was expecting of him. Takumi Hoga was sixteen years old when he escaped back to the only life he knew how to live well.
Armageddon was seventeen years old when he fought “Razortooth”, a masked volunteer from the crowd. It was a rare occasion. Usually the boss decided who would fight him and the fights would be advertised in the business days in advance. Sometimes the book would drive him to private fights in some rich guy’s basement where Armageddon would fight and kill exotic animals, other beast-types or just random people who probably wronged that rich guy somehow. But tonight was open cage night in the ring, so whichever brave soul thought they could kick Armageddon’s ass was allowed to. Razortooth was a green-skinned beast wearing a short-sleeved hoodie and a ski mask. Armageddon immediately noticed that she fought wildly different from what he was used to. When you spend a lot of time in the ring, you tend to adopt a certain style. Flashy. Violent. Ruthless. But Razortooth didn’t seem to be here for the show. She dodged a left hook and rushed him, wrapping an arm around his neck.
“Hey”, she whispered into his ear as he struggled to get free.
“Hey”, he whispered back. He then punched her in the back, but the angle was weird, so it didn’t hit as hard.
“You want out?”, she whispered and shifted her weight, letting him stumble backwards towards her leg and kicking him in the back of his knee.
“I can’t”, he whispered back.
“He’s got you on Flick? That powder?”
“Yeah. Powder.”
“Alright. Sink to the floor and punch me in the kidney.”, she whispered.
“Why?”
“I’ll slip you my number and then I’ll forfeit.”
“Why?”
“I wanna help you get out.”
So Armageddon sank to the floor, then used her lowered defense to punch her. He then grabbed her and pushed her against the cage wall. Her arms flew up and he noticed something brushing against the pockets of his shorts. Razortooth forfeited.
Takumi Hoga was eighteen years old when he joined the Purpose Program. It was a long back and forth with Hitomi, the beast who had fought him in the ring under the name “Razortooth”. He thought about calling her for weeks after the fight, but something always came up. When he finally did, he didn’t expect her to be actually serious about helping him. But she was. They met up in secret and just talked for a bit.
“Are you a cop?”, he asked.
“No.”, she said, “Cops won’t help much in a situation like this.” Takumi nodded.
It felt great to talk about all this to someone. Hitomi never judged him, even when he talked about how he enjoyed hurting people in the ring. Or when he told her how he once woke up almost choking on his own vomit the night after a big fight (and big dosage of Flick). She showed him where to get Flick so he wasn’t dependent on the boss for it anymore. But she also told him what the drug actually did to his body, how he was cutting his life short if he continued consuming it. Takumi didn’t wanna die. But he also didn’t know what to do with his life if it wasn’t in the ring. Hitomi then offered to go get him tested, no strings attached. Takumi remembered how he did get tested once in elementary school, but not much was revealed there besides “big teeth” and “stronger than his peers”. The tests of the Purpose Program were different, though. It really felt like the scientists were interested in him, in what he could do. Apparently he was able to breathe underwater all this time, it just required a little surgery to open the gills in his neck. The first time he dove into the pool at the research center was heavenly, it was like he had discovered a piece of himself that was always hidden away from him. He was also strong, which he already knew, and had a lot of endurance. And the cherry on top was his excellent sense of smell underwater. He could locate a drop of blood on the other side of the pool while blindfolded.
“Water rescue” was the verdict. A job. For him.
He didn’t take it. He was scared. He relapsed multiple times, going back to the ring on nights where his mind just wouldn’t stop racing. But instead of the boss, it was Hitomi who picked him up. “Recovery isn’t linear”, she’d say. “But if you wanna enter the program, you gotta commit, Takumi.”
“I don’t wanna be Takumi anymore.”, he said, “But I also don’t wanna be Armageddon.”
“So who do you wanna be?”, she asked.
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Enjoy Upthere for the both of us
TW - panic, separation, mention of death.
“M-man, it's strange being back in the Underwhere after so long. Sure brings back memories, eh bro?” the green capped man lightly nudged his distracted brother and gave him a weak smile.
It was really strange. They knew their time was limited, they dreaded it as time grew near, but now that death had ironically taken them both at the same time they weren't as scared. The knowledge of where they were to end up and that they would still be together must have helped ease their nerves, plus they were thankful that their passings were calm and peaceful.
The brothers held hands as they walked down the hall and passed D-men who barely spared them a glance to get to the queen of this realm. Queen Jaydes. She stood tall as she patiently watched them approach her and give her respectful bows.
“My condolences, Mario and Luigi.”
“We hope you and Grambi have been well, Jaydes” Mario politely said after rising back up to look up at her.
“We are and it is thanks to you two and your friends that we are allowed to continue doing so. We also thank you for not letting our daughter's sacrifice be in vain” the queen responded, giving the two a small smile of gratitude.
Mario offered his own smile but it wavered a bit. He took a deep breath and asked her, “Do you perhaps know how Peach has been? I hope she is being treated well in the Upthere. I really miss her…”.
Peach's passing hadn't been easy for anyone in the kingdom, especially Mario. He missed her more and more each day he lived and though he may not be able to join her in the afterlife, he hoped her spirit was happy as a Nimbi.
“She's doing well, last I heard from Grambi. She really misses you.” answered Jaydes, receiving a thank you nod from Mario.
“Now, we must delay no further. Your judgements shall be revealed” announced the queen of the Underwhere, taking a bit of time to go over their actions and deeds in life.
Mario held Luigi's hand tightly and shut his eyes as he waited. He really wanted to enjoy Upthere with Peach and Luigi, but he wasn't going to hold his breath. Sure, the two had saved countless lives and suffered many dangers during their adventures but that could not lessen their crimes. They had ended up here when they fought Count Bleck back then, unlike Peach, and they could not deny their fates. At least he still had Luigi with him. Nothing could harm them as long as they're together.
Finally, Queen Jaydes gave her judgement. “Fate has smiled upon you, Mario. Peach will be delighted to hear the news of your arrival to Upthere”.
He opened his eyes and stared at her in utter shock. Was this…was this true? Was he truly going to the Upthere? Was he going to see Peach again? He couldn't believe it.
He laughed happily and thanked Jaydes profusely, turning to Luigi and grabbing his shoulders in pure joy.
“D-did you hear that Lu?! We're going to the Upthere! We're all going to be together again! We'll be Nimbis like Peach and live on clouds! Isn't that amazing?!”
Luigi didn't show the same excitement as Mario did, only giving him a small smile. It was a happy smile, of course, but it was also sad. This confused Mario and brought his own excitement down.
“Luigi? Hey, what's wrong? Aren't you excited?” Mario asked his younger twin softly, growing more confused when Luigi took a step away from him.
“Tell Peach I said hi when you get there, ok bro…?” was all Luigi said.
It finally clicked at that moment. Jaydes had only said Mario's name, not both of their names. But why?! He had done as many crimes so why was only Luigi getting the short end of the stick?!
“What's going on? Why can't you come along?! How is this fair?!” Mario asked in a panic, looking between Luigi and Jaydes for an explanation which the queen provided.
“Your brother really loves you, Mario. He was adamant that you deserved to be in a better place than this. He made a deal with me to ensure your place in the Upthere while he stays here in the Underwhere with me”, explained Jaydes.
“Don't worry, bro, I'll be fine. Besides, I'm glad I can still be useful by helping Jaydes with the roudier souls…” Luigi tried to calm Mario's rising panic.
Mario was not willing to listen, “Have you lost your mind?! Do you have any idea who you will be stuck here with all alone?! You can't do this! End the deal, I'm not going anywhere without you!” shouted Mario.
This declare was taken as a sign that the D-men would need to step in, getting ahold of Mario and started dragging him away to the gates of the Upthere. Mario struggled against them and demanded they let him go, pleading with Luigi to not leave him and begging for Jaydes to not do this.
All Jaydes did was bow her head in guilt as Luigi tried to keep a smile on his face despite the tears running down his face. Mario could feel feathery wings form on his back the closer he was dragged to the gates but his focus was on his brother and his transformation into a Shayde. He started crying, his begging growing louder and more desperate as struggled against the D-men and reached out towards Luigi.
“Enjoy Upthere for the both of us, bro. I love you…” Luigi softly said, his voice quivering from trying to keep his sobs in.
The gates opened and Mario was forcefully thrown past them.
“LUIGI!!!”
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So um... I don't know, I remembered an old comic dub on YouTube and thought of this. Hope you enjoyed!
@istadris @itsavee4117 @vulpixfairy1985 @billinshoes @silenzahra
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