#once again he slayed literally and figuratively | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lieslab · 1 month

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Love is a spider

꘎♡━━━━━♡꘎ ꘎♡━━━━━♡꘎ ꘎♡━━━━━♡꘎

Pairing: og8 X gn reader

Genre: Comfort/hurt

Word Count: 9.5K

A/N: To the requester, I may have went a bit overboard by a bit. Can you blame me? Anyway, in these drabbles, you're a bit of a people pleaser and the guys kind of clock you for it. Some of them are softer than others. Hyunjin's is a little angsty because a little angst adds some spice.

I'm so sorry this is out a little later than planned. I have had literally one of the worst weeks of the entire year. I hope that never happens again. Never fear, life goes on and we keep trudging along. I hope everyone is slaying and finding their own versions of happiness. It's almost over now, but happy six years to the band!!

You can ignore the rest of this, but I'm going to ramble because people pleasing can really suck. I wish brains weren't wired that way because people pleasing is not the least bit swell when it's destroying you from the inside out. Some of you baddies out there need to hear that it's okay to put up boundaries and focus on your own happiness.

I wish someone would have screamed that in my face at some point when I was younger. It is okay and normal to put up boundaries. It is not okay for people to walk all over you, belittle you, and cause you mental or physical harm. You are allowed to take up space.

There is one quote that says "stop breaking yourself down into bite-sized pieces. Stay whole and let them choke." I love that quote. I used to be one of the biggest people pleasers around and it made me so miserable to the point where I quite literally had a full mental breakdown. We're only meant for so much until we break.

Practice makes perfect and the more you practice saying no, the better you get at it. The better you get, the easier it is to reinforce boundaries. The stronger the boundaries, the more strength you have, the easier it is to say no. It's so much easier said than done, but I swear, once you start it, it makes life so much easier.

Also the title of this drabble is inspired by the song 'Spider' by Kai Bosch. It's so good and actually one of my favorites at the moment. I keep looping it because that's how much I like it. Now that I've rambled, please enjoy <3

_ _ _

Chan:

Dating Chan had its pros and cons. On one hand, you never had a better relationship with anyone before. Since he was so used to being out in public and interacting with multiple different people, Chan wasn’t afraid of your romantic relationship.

He knew what he wanted and he communicated everything perfectly. Every want, every need, every like, and every dislike, you knew them. On the other hand, you were still figuring out how relationships worked properly. The last romantic relationship you fell into, it left you scarred in more ways than one.

That’s why it took you so long to finally agree to meeting the rest of Chan’s band. It was a huge step outside your comfort zone. The whole day, Chan had been gushing and practically bouncing on the balls of his feet.

You weren’t just nervous, you were terrified. Your stomach churned uncomfortably with anxiety. You kept zoning out and internally freaking out. There were so many thoughts inside your head.

What if they didn’t like you? What if you made an awful first impression? What if you screwed something up and made a fool out of yourself? What if they thought you were insufferable? On and on, the thoughts spiraled out of control.

Before you knew it, Chan was driving you to his dorm. It was the place where he figured you’d be the most comfortable. Plus, the guys could scatter about and do their own things. All the attention didn’t have to be on you.

It seemed to be going alright for the first few minutes. Chan introduced all the guys to you and a few minutes later, you needed to use the bathroom. Glancing around for Chan, he had moved out into the kitchen to help Lee Know and Felix with cooking.

Left alone amongst the other guys, you sucked in a deep breath trying to contain your inner panic. A few feet away, Han picked up on your discomfort and asked if you were alright. Upon realizing that he knew your mood, you quickly apologized.

He brushed it off and more time went by. Eventually, you were led to the bathroom. When you came out, you bumped straight into Seungmin. Apologies flew out of your mouth rather quickly. He laughed and brushed it off.

You apologized multiple times throughout the night, even when apologies weren’t needed. Like the time you accidentally spilled your drink. When you sat in a seat that was apparently reserved for Jeongin. When you grabbed a paper towel for Chan and accidentally tore a rip across it.

Chan knew you struggled with anxiety sometimes, but as the night went on, he started realizing just how much you were apologizing. Every time you did it, you looked terrified, almost like you’d be yelled at or lectured. It was to the point where it was getting concerning.

Felix made brownies for dessert. While eating one of them, crumbs fell on your shirt. When Hyunjin pointed them out and began laughing, along with an added joke from Seungmin, you looked like you were about to cry.

Beside you, Chan shot the two of them a warning glare to knock it off. They quickly changed the subject to taunting Jeongin for a terrible dance move he performed during practice. The attention went off of you and onto the three of them.

While the guys were distracted, Chan grabbed your hand and tugged you into the safety of his room. It smelled like the cologne he always wore. Comfort flooded your system easily.

“I’m really sorry,” you started after a few moments.

Chan frowned, feeling confused, “for what?”

“For messing up this thing with the guys. I understand if you want to break up with me. Actually, I can just let myself out.” You reached an arm out and headed towards the door.

Chan leaned forward and grabbed your wrist gently. “Baby, what are you talking about? You haven’t messed anything up.”

“I’m a mess. I’ve ruined so many things tonight. I’m sorry, I-” A lump began to form in your throat.

Chan gently pushed a finger towards your lips. “Why are you apologizing so much? You haven’t done anything wrong.”

You moved your head away with a sniffle. “Yes, I have. I’ve done dumb things and made people uncomfortable. Apologizing is the right thing to do.”

“Made people uncomfortable? You haven’t hurt anyone’s feelings.”

“I took Jeongin’s chair for dinner.”

“That’s not a big deal, baby. The guys never have assigned seats. They were just screwing around like they always do. Did something happen somewhere that made you feel like you always have to apologize?”

“But it’s the right thing to do.”

“Yeah, when the time is right. You don’t need to apologize over the small things, sweetheart.”

“The last person I dated kind of made me feel really shitty a lot. They didn’t like a lot of the things that I did and they weren’t afraid to tell me.”

“So…you apologized?” Chan guessed with a raised eyebrow.

You nodded.

“From now on, you’re not allowed to apologize for little things. Every time you apologize for something little during the rest of the night, I’m kissing you in front of the guys.”

“We can’t do that! I’m sorry, but w-” You were cut off with soft lips against your own for a few moments. When Chan pulled away, your cheeks were dark red. You swallowed and tried to regain your composure.

“Aw, you’re so cute when you blush. I guess you’d better stop apologizing, I mean, unless you want the guys to see us kissing.” A teasing grin began to stretch across his face.

Without even thinking about it, you reached up and playfully slapped his chest. Realizing what you did, panic flooded your face. “Fuck, I’m so sorry! I-”

You were cut off once again by his lips against yours.

_ _ _

Minho:

With a sigh, Minho kicked off his shoes and placed his car and house key onto the stand by the door. He jerked off his jacket and hung it up on a hanger. Trying to be as quiet as possible, he crept towards your shared bedroom door.

His feet slid over the floor through the darkened house. His fingers grabbed the brass knob to the bedroom and he slowly opened it. The soft hum of the fan filled the air. The room was pitch dark. He pushed the door open further and stepped inside.

“Minho?” Your voice called out. You popped up out of your bundle of blankets and turned on the bedside lamp. Both of you blinked at the sudden brightness.

“You’re up?” He asked. “You’re seriously up, again? Baby, it’s really late and you have work early in the morning. I know you want to see me, but you need to get some sleep.”

“I know, but I wanted to see you.” A frown filled your face. “I missed you so much and I just couldn’t wait.”

He moved over to the dresser and pulled out a pair of pajamas. You watched his bare back as he ripped off his shirt and slid into a different one. Realizing you were staring after a few seconds, you averted your eyes. “So how was your day?”

“It was alright,” he shrugged.

“You’re not going to give me the specifics?”

“Nope. Not now. We can talk about that in the morning. Right now, you need to get some sleep.”

“But I-”

“Nope. Have you seen yourself lately? You look like you’re sleep deprived.”

“But I’m not!” You tried to argue back.

“Is that why you keep taking naps on the weekends?”

“Well…” You couldn’t fight back because he got you there. Staying up after midnight really was taking a toll considering that you had to be up at six in the morning. The days you stayed up later, you struggled through exhaustion.

Lately, you spent your days nursing coffee and energy drinks, trying to bring back the momentum, but they could only do so much. Recently, it seemed like you were more irritable and Minho was right. Brown bags sat beneath your eyes, your energy was low, and your co-workers kept making sure you were alright.

“I don’t want to make you unhappy,” you finally got out. “I really love you, you know? You usually look really excited when I’m still up. I like greeting you when you get home. I just want to make you happy.”

Minho headed over towards the bed, pulled down the blankets, and slipped beside you. “You make me happy in a lot of ways and I love you too. Trust me, you won’t hurt my feelings if you’re sleeping when I get home. In fact, I want you to be sleeping.”

“I love seeing you, but you look really cute when you’re asleep too. Imagine if you woke up in my arms. That sounds so exciting. Imagine you get enough sleep and you wake up to me holding you. The perks? You get enough sleep and I get to snuggle you.”

“And you’re okay with that? Because I could continue to stay up and I-”

He leaned up and lightly flicked your nose. “You need to get some sleep before your co-workers show up at our house. Yesterday, you said you were really freaking one guy out because you kept falling asleep while standing up.”

You finally nodded in agreement. He tugged you towards his chest and plopped down on his pillow. “When we wake up, we’ll have the most amazing breakfast and I’ll tell you all about my day and you can tell me about your day.”

“Promise?” You asked.

He nodded and shut his eyes. You laid there soaking in his warmth until you shifted. You shut your eyes, but nothing happened. You shifted again and again until Minho opened his eyes again. “What are you doing?”

“I can’t get comfortable and my brain won’t shut off.”

“Probably because I came home an hour earlier tonight. Your body is used to going to bed around the time I come home later.”

“I can’t help it!” You huffed clearly annoyed as your lips stuck out in a pout. “I feel like something is missing, but I don’t know what.”

“Maybe if you wouldn’t have been a brat and stayed up until I got home,” he started.

You stuck your tongue out at him and shifted again. Silence filled the room as the two of you tried to sleep. After a few more minutes, you jerked into a sitting up position. Beside you, Minho frowned with his eyes closed. “I think you’re right, something is missing.”

You thought about it for a while before your eyes widened. You jerked off the blankets and scrambled to get out of the bed. Beside you, Minho finally sat up and watched you nearly faceplant as you left. “Where are you going?”

“We forgot to get the cats!”

“The cats?” His face twisted in confusion. “The ca- Holy shit! We forgot the cats!” He shoved off his own blankets and scrambled after you.

Twenty minutes later, the two of you were sound asleep. Snuggled in different parts of the blankets were Soonie, Doongie, and Dori. The five of you fell asleep rather quickly comforted by the warmth of one another and the tranquility that transpired around the room.

_ _ _

Changbin:

During the first week that you dated Changbin, you bought him a shirt he mentioned he wanted to you in passing. When he unwrapped the soft pink wrapping paper and he unraveled the shirt, the happiness sparkling in his eyes locked in your brain.

During the second week of your relationship, he mentioned he really liked a new drink that he found at the grocery store. When he joked that it was the only thing he wanted to drink from now on, you took that seriously. You bought him multiple packs of it to keep in his dorm refrigerator.

When the second week wrapped into the third, you bought him a new pair of Airpods because he lost the last pair. You couldn’t stand his frown and how bummed he was about it. When you replaced the exact case that he had also lost, he nearly hugged you to death.

He didn’t realize what you were doing at first. At first, he thought your actions were cute. He knew some people showed their love through giving gifts. Sure, he felt a little guilty about it, but you looked so happy when you handed them to him. You were practically a little ball of sunshine that he couldn’t resist.

The last thing you got him, you took your time wrapping it, and you brought it straight into the JYP recording studio. You knew that he’d be there finishing up his recordings. As you were going in with your box, Chan and Han were coming out.

“Oh,” Han’s eyes lit up, “what’s that?”

“I bet it’s another gift,” Chan teased.

“Wow, Changbin is so lucky.”

“You really know how to spoil him rotten.”

You laughed and responded. After talking for a few more moments, the two walked off to head back to their dorm. Apparently, Changbin was still inside finishing up the last few lyrics of a song.

You knocked a few times before you pushed open the door. Changbin was in a black t-shirt with a face mask tucked beneath his chin. His eyes were narrowed down in a notebook and his pencil scribbled rapidly. “What did you forget this time?”

“Uh…nothing?”

“Oh!” His face lit up. “It’s you! Hi, baby! Give me a moment to finish writing these lyrics. How did you get inside? I didn’t think security would have let you in.”

“Well, they probably wouldn’t have, but Felix was talking to the security guard when I came up. He told him to let me in because the two of us were dating. The security guard seemed hesitant, but Felix does what Felix does best.”

“Melts the hearts of everyone around him with his angelic being?”

“Yeah, something like that.” You laughed and placed the wrapped box down on the studio couch. Changbin continued scribbling for a bit and you stood patiently with your hands folded in front of you.

“Alright, I’m finished!” He pushed his chair away from the wooden desk he was crouched over and glanced back towards you. “Should we go get dinn- oh, what’s that?”

“It’s a present.”

“That looks like an awfully big present. Should I be scared?” He raised an eyebrow as he studied the light green wrapping paper. There was a big silver bow on the top of it.

“I think you’re really going to like it.” You picked it up and handed it to him. He was shocked by just how big it was. The thing easily fit across the length of his lap.

He hesitated before he grabbed a piece of the folded paper along the side. A loud rip filled the air as he jerked it. At first, his face lit up as he revealed the internal packaging, but it didn’t take long before his face fell.

You purchased him the lego set that he had been admiring in the window of your latest trip to the mall. The lego set was pretty big and it easily cost a couple hundred bucks. At first the gesture was sweet, but this was too much.

“You don’t like it?” Your voice came out softly.

“No, no, no! I-I do, but I…” He sighed and sucked in a deep breath. “Baby, why do you buy me so many gifts?” His eyes went up to meet yours. There was genuine curiosity on his face.

“You don’t like the gifts?”

“I do like the gifts, but I’m starting to think you’re spending way too much money on me. Why do you feel the need to buy me so many gifts? A lot of what you’ve been buying costs quite a bit of money. I don’t want you to waste your hard earned money on me.”

“I’m not wasting my money on you.” You suddenly felt like the size of a grape. All that happiness and joy in your heart, all that excitement slipped out of your heart like a deflated balloon. “I just wanna make you happy.”

“Honey, you make me feel like the luckiest man in the world, even without these big gifts. I like that you want to make me feel happy, but this,” he tapped the box of legos, “this is too much. I feel bad for receiving this. This costed so much of your money.”

You couldn’t help it, tears filled your eyes. He instantly frowned and shifted. You frantically blinked trying to keep them from falling, but they dripped onto your cheeks. You wiped them away as Changbin placed the legos onto the floor. He leaned over and pulled you close to him.

“Hey, hey, hey, please don’t cry. I didn’t mean to make you cry. That’s the last thing I ever wanted to do. I don’t want you to spend all this money on me. I want you to spend all this money on you. I want you to be selfish for yourself.”

He wiped more fallen tears and tugged you onto his lap. You sniffled and allowed him to. “Why do you feel like you need to buy me such large items?”

“I-I don’t know. I guess I just feel like I’m not good enough. Maybe if I buy you things you really like, maybe you’ll stick around. Maybe I can buy your love and I-”

“Woah, woah, woah. Buy my love?” He gently cupped your cheeks between his hands. “Sweetheart, you don’t need to buy my love. Not at all! I’m with you because I love you. I wouldn’t be with someone if I didn’t like them.”

“I’m afraid you’ll leave,” you whispered.

His heart broke even more and he shook his head. “If I was ever thinking about leaving you, I’d bring it up to you. I wouldn’t keep you in the dark about anything like that. Relationships are very serious things and I’d never shut you out or try to hurt your feelings on purpose. Never.”

“So no more gifts?” You asked.

“Well, I won’t say that. You seem like you really like giving gifts, right?”

You nodded your head. He wiped his thumbs beneath your eyes again. “If you’d like to give me gifts, how about something small? Like maybe one of my favorite snacks? Or you could do something else.”

“Like?”

“We could go on adventures together. We can go half and half and go on fun dates. Hyunjin just recently told me about a couple’s private pottery class that his pottery teacher hosts. How about something like that? We’ll make memories together, have fun, and we’ll have a shared experience.”

“I guess that does sound pretty good.”

He smiled and gently poked your cheek trying to cheer you up even more. You blushed and couldn’t help, but smile back. Your eyes went down to the lego set beside your feet. “Are you really going to make me take it back?”

“Why not?”

“Because I really want you to have it and I spent good money on that. Plus, I don’t want to go back to the mall. They’re going to ask why I want to return it and I’m not good at lying. I don’t want to admit that my boyfriend didn’t want it.”

“Well…” Changbin’s eyes followed yours. “It is a really cool lego set and you did spend a bunch on it. I would like you to take it back, but I will admit that it’d look super cool in my room.”

“So will you keep it just this once?”

He sighed before he caved. “I suppose, but this is it! If you do something like this again, I’m forcing you to take it back. I’ll hold your hand and drag you into the store. I’ll make it as dramatic as possible, so you’ll be too embarrassed to ever do it again.”

Your cheeks went red again as you nodded in agreement. Changbin’s gaze went back up to you. “So how about we take this back to my dorm with the rest of the guys? I’ll order us food and we can put this together. Maybe we can have the other guys help us because this is going to take hours.”

“That sounds like fun.”

“Maybe even a full year to put together.”

“I don’t think that’s how this works.”

“You don’t know that. What if it takes a century? How about a millennium?”

“Okay, now you’re just being dramatic.”

“I can’t help it!” He tossed his hands in the air. “I live with Hyunjinnie! What did you expect to happen? 3racha doesn’t just rub off on Hyunjin, he rubs off on us too!”

_ _ _

Hyunjin:

“You’re being such a fucking bitch!”

They were just words, but it might as well have been a slap in the face. The look of hurt on your face was one that Hyunjin would never forget as he stormed out of the apartment and slammed the door after him. He slammed it hard enough that the walls shook.

You shut your eyes and sucked in a deep breath trying not to cry. You were under a lot of stress from work and he was under stress from some stupid controversy that had happened with his band. It was a minor thing, but the management team was grilling all of them behind the scenes.

The argument was just a simple miscommunication on both your ends. You were both irritated and frustrated due to external factors. It wasn’t much of a surprise when the two of you started to argue, but you didn’t think it’d get this far.

With your head down, you walked over to the couch. You collapsed onto it and curled your head into the arm. The mixture of high strung emotions whirled into a tornado and now both of you were hurt. Your heart ached due to the cursing and all Hyunjin could feel was guilt.

You cried and cried and cried until you ended up crying yourself to sleep in the living room. Outside, Hyunjin went on a walk trying to clear his head. He couldn’t believe he had said something like that to you. He was absolutely gutted about it.

If there was an award for the world’s shittiest boyfriend, he’d have it in the bag. He couldn’t believe he fucked up this badly and it was absolutely unforgivable. His brain started to spiral out of control.

What if you broke up with him? What if you never wanted to see him again? What if you went to the public and released this information to the press and the fans? He nearly had himself in tears as he took off running back towards the apartment. God, what would his band members think? They’d never forgive him for this.

Nearly tripping over his feet, soaked in sweat, he shoved open the door and rushed inside. He walked through the brightly lit living room and was about to head towards your room until he found you curled up into a ball on the edge of the leather couch.

For the first few moments, he was smitten. Your back moved up and down slowly as soft snores came from your mouth. He couldn’t have been outside longer than twenty minutes.

It was quickly ripped apart when he remembered what he did. Remembering it was like a knife fileted across his stomach. He sucked in a deep breath, moved over to you, and gently shook your shoulder. He softly called your name trying to get you to wake up.

You shifted at the touch and hummed softly. Your eyelashes were clumped together from tears. When you jerked your head and blearily opened your eyes, Hyunjin’s heart crumbled at the sight of your bloodshot eyes.

“Baby?” His voice called out softly. He gently stretched a hand out towards you. He held his breath waiting for your reaction.

“Hmm?”

He sat down beside you quickly and tugged you into his lap. “I’m so sorry for yelling at you. I’m so sorry for calling you a bitch. I-I don’t know how to make it up to you, but it’ll never happen again.” His eyes became glossier as he spoke. His voice wavered as if he was on the verge of tears.

“It’s fine,” you weakly got out. “We were both upset and you snapped. It’s not a big deal.”

“But it is a big deal. I hurt you terribly and said something that never should have come out of my mouth. Darling, I’m so, so, so sorry.”

“I’ve been called worse,” you mumbled. You were still half asleep with your head on his chest. “I was kinda being a bitch, so you weren’t wrong.”

“No, you weren’t! I was being an asshole. Please don’t ever accept me calling you names. Never accept anyone calling you names. It’s pathetic and it’s low. You’re so much better than that.”

“Not really,” you shook your head, “it’s okay, seriously.”

Tears dripped down Hyunjin’s cheeks. Not only had he done the unimaginable, but now he realized you had low self-esteem. He shook his head, unable to accept your words.

“No, it’s not okay. You are beautiful and you are lovely. You are a wonderful person and you’re very intelligent. You’re someone I can’t live without and, best of all, you’re my muse. I’m so sorry that I hurt you.”

“I-”

He cut you off, “no. You don’t get to say mean things about yourself. You don’t get to accept what I told you. I was a fucking piece of shit and I hate that I can’t take back the words. I’m sorry, so please, if it’s okay with you, just let me hold you for a while.”

The tears were back in your own eyes as you nodded. You had been called a variety of names in your lifetime. Once upon a time, with an awful friend, you accepted every awful thing they said about you. You were too afraid to stand up for yourself, so you took in the words constantly.

You heard them so much that you began to believe them. Internally, those words had damaged you far more than you’d ever admit. There were thorns in your heart that still jutted out.

Sure, Hyunjin’s words and the actions that followed, they really were wrong. Nothing he could say could take them back, but, at least, he was trying to make it right. You couldn’t stand the way he looked with tears in his eyes.

You adjusted yourself and wrapped around his torso like a koala. He hugged you against his chest tight and rested his head on top of yours. He was so glad that you were still here and were willing to hear him out.

_ _ _

Han:

“I’m really sorry,” you got out with a grimace. “I know, I know I shouldn’t, but she’s my friend. I can’t leave her hanging all alone. She’s a mom now and I bet that’s really exhausting.”

Han frowned while watching you lace up your shoes. For the third time, you were canceling the date that the two of you were supposed to go on. All he wanted to do was spend time with you, but your friend kept taking advantage of your kindness.

It was okay, at first, and he understood. Parenting could be hard and it was healthy to take breaks. However, your friend kept constantly asking you to watch her kid. She never paid you for it and she asked in the spur of the moment. There was never time to preplan anything which kept throwing off what you had with Han.

Your boyfriend’s patience and understanding only went so far. In your eyes, you were trying to be a good friend. In his eyes, you were being used as a free babysitter because your friend didn’t want to deal with the responsibility of having a kid. It was frustrating and it was annoying, especially when it kept ruining your date nights.

“I’ll be back later,” you managed to get out. You were starting to feel upset about the situation yourself. Dealing with a baby, one that was only a few months old, was a lot of work.

After being at work all day, you wanted to lie down and cuddle with Han. You wanted to go with him to do some low energy activity and then come back home and cuddle. Both of you were introverted and you liked it that way.

Dating an introvert was the best decision you ever made. Sure, occasionally, the two of you liked to go do something you both enjoyed. Most of your time was spent at home where you were relaxed. You weren’t overstimulated and you weren’t overwhelmed.

“What’s the reasoning this time?” Han grumbled, unable to stop himself from being bitter. He was tired of your friend’s bullshit. If she wanted you to watch her kid so much, the least she could do was pay you.

“Um…” You trailed off knowing that your response would upset him.

“Is it something dumb?”

“I-I guess,” you shrugged, “she wants to go to the bar.”

“Are you being serious?” He whined. “Baby, that’s not fair! She can wait until the weekend to get plastered, it’s literally only Tuesday! I made restaurant reservations in an hour and now I have to move them again!”

“I’m really sorry, but she’s my friend.”

“She’s using you!”

“But she ju-”

“Why are you making excuses for her? You know that I’m right. This isn’t helping your relationship with her. You’re not getting paid for this either. You’re babysitting her child and now, when she gets home, you’ll have to babysit her too because she’s going to come home drunk.”

“What am I supposed to do? She’s my friend! I can’t just leave her to suffer alone and I-”

“Woah,” his eyes widened in shock, “since when is parenting suffering? Your friend knew what she was getting into and you know it. She planned this pregnancy and she went on and on and on about all the baby books she read.”

“I know that it’s hard to be a single-parent. It’s overwhelming and it’s awful, but you know what? I love you!” Your face scrunched up in confusion from his words. “And I don’t like seeing you being taken advantage of because you’re too kind.”

“You keep chasing after your friend and you keep giving her an excuse to abandon her duties as a parent to go have fun. It’d be different if this was planned in advance and if you were being paid for it or something, but she keeps doing this!”

“But-”

He held up his hand to silence you. “This time she wants to go to a bar. The last time, she had a nail appointment. The time before that? She wanted to go to the bar again. When you’re a parent, you have to do what’s best for your child and sometimes that means sacrificing things for yourself.”

You stayed silent hating that he was right. Ever since your friend gave birth, she had been leaning on you a lot. It made sense, in the beginning, and you didn’t mind, but it was starting to become a huge issue.

It’s not that you didn’t like her child because you did. He was adorable and he listened well, but you didn’t want to have a kid and the responsibilities that came with it. At least, not at this time.

“I don’t want to hurt her feelings,” you finally admitted. “I feel really shitty if I say no. I just…I don’t want to be an asshole.”

“I know you don’t.” Han walked towards you, grabbed your hands, and tugged you off the couch. “But does it really make you an asshole if you’re putting yourself first? Sometimes you have to give people some tough love. Your friend can’t avoid her parenting responsibilities forever.”

You let out a sigh and nodded your head. “I’ll go talk to her. I’ll come back and-” You paused before your eyes met his own sparkling eyes. “Is it alright if I meet you at the restaurant?”

“Really?”

You nodded again.

He screeched in delight and jerked you over his shoulder. You shrieked as he spun around and bounced a few times. Your shrieks turned into laughter as he cheered.

Once he finished, he put you back down. “I’m so proud of you for creating boundaries.” He reached over and planted a gentle kiss on your lips. “I’ll text you the restaurant location and then we’re getting drinks to celebrate. Now,” he shoved you towards the door, “get out and go talk to your friend.”

“I believe in you and you can do this! No matter what happens, even if it backfires, you’ve got this! Honeybun, you can do anything and handle any problem that comes your way. Wait!” He rushed towards you and placed a kiss on your cheek. “For good luck!” He beamed.

You laughed and thanked him as you left the apartment. Once you were outside, you sucked in a deep breath. This was terrifying and anxiety-inducing. You were sure your friend would be upset at your decision, but Han was right, you couldn’t keep bowing down to your friend and watching her kid all the time.

It wasn’t making you happy. It wasn’t fair to the baby because you weren’t their parent. It wasn’t fair that your friend was able to keep avoiding responsibilities either. As you approached your car, you reminded yourself silently that Han believed in you. In turn, it made you believe in yourself too.

_ _ _

Felix:

It was all going wrong. Everything was going wrong. Felix’s birthday was today and you were screwing up massively. You had everything planned out perfectly and then your mother ruined it.

Usually, you put aside extra money to splurge on things. You weren’t the best when it came to money. In fact, you struggled with it. Every time you had money, all you wanted to do was spend it. It was a bad habit that you had just yet to break.

Lately, you had bought a few gifts for Felix. You picked out a few new games for his Nintendo Switch that you’d thought he’d like. Plus, you found a few new articles of clothes that were his style. You even managed to purchase a bottle of the fancy cologne he liked to wear because you realized he was getting low on it.

You splurged on the wrapping paper and the gift bags. Gift wrapping wasn’t your forte, but you were determined to impress Felix. This was the first year the two of you were dating and you were excited to throw him his own small party between the two of you. You spent nearly three hours on YouTube studying the perfect way to wrap gifts.

When you found the video you liked the most, you took another two hours following along and neatly following the tutorials. You kept the gifts hidden beneath your bed and away from Felix for a few days, so he had no idea.

You went out of your way to design a special cake. There was a bakery in the area that had raving reviews. They made custom cakes and you already had an idea of a cake you wanted to create. Since he spent so much time playing Animal Crossing and listening to Animal Crossing music, you wanted to get him to follow that theme.

You were making a simple sketch of what you wanted. You planned to take it down to the bakery and have them create it. You had a price range and everything. Everything was perfect and then your phone rang.

You were on your way towards the bakery, it wasn’t far away. When you picked up the phone, you realized it was your mom. You swiped the call and pressed the phone up to your ear. “Hello?” You answered.

You paused and listened for a moment before your face fell. “Did you seriously? Mom!” You cried out. You couldn’t help the frustration that built up in your voice.

“Don’t you ‘mom’ me!” Your mother shot back. “You’re old enough that you should be giving back to me. I helped raise you! I put food on your plate and a roof over your head! I fed you and I gave you an education.”

You gritted your teeth and rolled your eyes at her response. After a while, you hung up the phone frustrated and upset. You returned back home and tried to fall back into your usual upbeat persona. You must have done a good job because Felix didn’t realize that something was wrong.

The day before, you went to your mother’s house to help her make a meal. You put the small backpack you carried with your jacket. What you didn’t realize was that while you were out cooking, your mother got into your things and stole the cash you pulled out of the bank, specifically, for Felix’s cake.

She constantly harassed you for money and sometimes you gave in. You couldn’t help it. Every time she pulled out the excuse of raising you, you felt guilty. It was like a kick to the back of the knees and you collapsed every time.

You struggled to figure out what to do. You didn’t want to borrow money from anyone. You definitely weren’t going to make Felix buy his own cake. You didn’t want to wait until the end of the week before your next paycheck came in, so you decided on the next best thing.

The next best thing, apparently, wasn’t the best idea. You thought you were making the recipe right for homemade cake, two days later. Everything was going alright until you tasted the batter. You instantly gagged and spit out the mixture.

As you flipped back through the recipe, you realized that you had followed the recipe perfectly. However, you somehow managed to mix salt with sugar. The supposed sweetened batter was now a salty wreck.

You cursed beneath your breath and dumped the mixture. You pulled out another bowl to remake and remeasure everything. While you were trying to recreate the recipe, Felix walked right into the kitchen.

His sudden appearance caught you way off guard. You jumped while pouring flour and suddenly the bowl of half-made liquid cake was coated in way too much flour. A lump sat in the back of your throat as your face fell.

“Oh,” Felix frowned, “I’m so sorry, baby. I thought you heard me come through the door. What are you making? I’ll help you remake it.” He sent you a reassuring smile, reached over, set a hand on top of your head, and playfully messed up your hair.

All you could think about was how much he would have loved the Animal Crossing cake. The cake would have been moist and light. The frosting wouldn’t be too sweet and it wouldn’t overwhelm him.

A strangled squabble came from your throat. Felix blinked in confusion and raised an eyebrow. “Baby, are you alright?”

“I was supposed to get you a cake!” You blurted out. “I had this plan to get you an amazing cake with Tom Nook on it. I was going to recreate your little house and your character. It was going to be so cute and t-then-” you sucked in a shaky breath feeling like you were going to cry. “My mom took my money when I was at her house. I-I’m so sorry.”

“It was going to be a cute cake. It was going to be custom made and it was supposed to be here, but I couldn’t even pay to have the bakers make it. I wanted to put it here and surprise you. I was going to make you a homemade one to try and make up for it, but I keep fucking it up.”

A soft smile filled Felix’s face. “You were going to get an Animal Crossing cake for me?”

“You love that game a lot.”

“And I also love you a lot. It was an incredibly sweet idea, but don’t beat yourself up over it. I’ll be more than happy to have anything you bake me. I know you’d bake a homemade cake with plenty of love. That’s something that Tom Nook doesn’t know anything about.”

You suddenly broke into a laugh as tears filled your eyes. “I’m sorry,” you finally finished. “I’m just really not having a great day. I should be having the best day ever. You popped out of your mom��s womb on this day and that was the greatest gift of all.”

“Woah, okay, how about we stop right there?” He laughed. “We really don’t need to talk about my mother’s womb.”

“I should call her and thank her.”

“I don’t know how she’d respond to that. So anyway, what about your mom stealing your money? Is she going to give it back?”

And so, you and Felix worked side-by-side making a third cake batter and placing it in the oven. He listened to you ramble about your mom while the two of you tossed ingredients into a bowl. You explained how guilty she made you feel and how you’d occasionally give her money because of that guilt.

“Sweetheart, I don’t think that’s healthy. You don’t owe your parents anything. As a parent, it’s their responsibility to provide for you. They shouldn’t be making you feel guilty for that.”

“I can’t help it, it’s the people pleasing part of me.”

“I understand because I’m like that too sometimes. You’ve just gotta do what’s best for you. Your mom can be a little…um….”

“Crazy?” You finished for him.

“Well, I was looking for a nicer word, but yes. She can be a little much sometimes. You seem to be a lot happier when you don’t interact with her. I think you should focus on what makes you happy.”

The two of you continued to talk. When the cake was baked, Felix leaned over to pull it from the oven, and you rushed to your room to grab the presents you had. He placed the cake on the stove to let it cool. When he turned back around, he blinked in shock.

A few wrapped presents and a gift bag sat upon the counter that the two of you had just cleaned up a few moments prior. When his curious eyes met yours, you smiled at him. “Just because I couldn’t get the cake, it doesn’t mean I couldn’t spoil you with gifts. Happy birthday, baby.”

_ _ _

Seungmin:

Seungmin’s heart stopped beating when he heard you sobbing. He just came home from the studio. There wasn’t time to take off his shoes. His brain instantly went to the worst thing and he sprinted towards the sound.

He didn’t knock, he just shoved the bedroom door open with wide eyes. You were a wreck with your face in the pillow. He rushed towards you in a panic. “Hey, hey, hey, why are you crying?” He hurried over and plopped down beside you.

His hand instantly went towards your back to comfort you. Upon hearing his voice, you cried into your pillow harder. There was something embarrassing about being vulnerable in front of your significant other.

“Baby, please talk to me. I don’t know what’s wrong if you don’t tell me. Did something happen?” He gently scooped his hands beneath your stomach and shifted you into a sitting position.

A thousand what-ifs were locked into his head. You sucked in a shaky deep breath and let out another sob. He frowned and wiped your tears away. You hiccuped through the final few sobs.

“I-I’m sorry,” you stuttered in a shrill voice. “I-I just-”

“It’s alright, you don’t have to apologize. Just tell me what’s wrong. I hate seeing you like this.” He frowned and wiped away your tears.

“M-My friend,” you managed to get out.

“Your friend? What happened? Did they get injured?” Fear struck his heart. “Did they die?”

You shook your head again frantically and your hair shook from side to side. “T-They just keep saying things a-and-” You burst into another sob.

His eyebrows scrunched in confusion. His arms wrapped around you while you sobbed. While he held you close to him, there was a vibration from beside you as your phone received another notification. Your fingers clenched around his arm and you cried harder.

Seungmin tried to console you, but you were a mess. He pressed his lips against the top of your scalp and continued to fight off your tears. He shushed you and rubbed your back. When your phone vibrated again, he finally glanced down at your phone.

Your head was buried in his chest. You were a wreck from what your friend was telling you. More quick vibrations filled your phone with every text sent your way. Seungmin’s eyes didn’t leave the screen as more and more text notifications filled the screen.

“Baby, who’s texting you?”

You didn’t respond. Your fingers clutched onto his shirt tighter. You buried your head in his chest more as if it’d help you escape your inner turmoil. The tighter you clung to him, the more worried he became.

He’d never seen you to the point of being unconsolable. Sure, you had your rough days before, but not like this. When your phone vibrated again, he didn’t ask. He reached over, unlocked your phone, and he glanced at the text messages.

He wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but he definitely wasn’t expecting to find one of your close friends screaming every obscenity at you imaginable in capitalized letters. His jaw instantly clenched and his hand tightened around your phone screen.

“Baby, why the fuck are you being cursed out?”

“B-Because,” you hiccuped, “I said I didn’t want to hang out with them.”

“So why are they cursing at you?”

“They’re always like this when they don’t get their way. I’m h-having-” you hiccuped again, “a bad day and t-this just-”

“Was your tipping point?”

You sniffled and nodded. Seungmin frowned and scrolled through a few previous text messages. “They’re really always like this?”

“They’re kind of mean when they have a bad day.”

“Kind of?” Bewilderment stretched his eyebrows up. “Kind of?”

He read a little more and gasped. “I know this dumbfuck didn’t just call my significant other ugly. Now we have our own little beef. Ugly? Have they considered looking in the mirror? The love of my life is no such thing.”

He didn’t even ask, he just responded. When he was quiet for a while, you pulled your head out of his chest with wet cheeks. “What are yo-”

“Putting this cunt in their place.”

“Seungmin!” You cried shocked at the insult.

“Don’t ‘Seungmin’ me. They just said you looked like you were inbred and they have a big storm coming their way. I won’t let an ugly cunt insult the love of my life. Not when they look like they were shaken in the womb and came out disfigured in more ways than one.”

“You cannot be mean back!” You reached out and attempted to grab your phone. He jerked it out of your reach. “Seungmin!”

“I’m just getting to the good part, baby. Wait until I tell them that a New York City rat has more manners and class than them.”

“Seungmin!”

“Swing low and I go lower,” he shrugged innocently, “maybe they shouldn’t have been so mean. They can start it, but I’m ending it.”

You sighed, but you let him go. He seemed to be really focused on your phone. His eyes were narrowed and his thumbs moved frantically over the screen. He typed for quite a while before he hit the send button.

“Do I even want to know what you said?”

“Nope. Don’t worry,” he pressed a few more buttons, “because now you never have to deal with them again.”

“What did you do?”

“Blocked them after giving them a long insult that will be sure to affect their family for multiple generations after them.”

“You didn’t have to do that.”

“I’m not going to sit by and let an asshole insult my favorite person.”

You softened instantly and glanced up at him with heart eyes. “I’m your favorite person.”

“Maybe. It might have just slipped out. Anyway,” he stood up and grabbed your arm. You followed along and let him lead you into the bathroom. He pushed you in front of him and stood with his hands on your shoulders. You stood staring at your reflections in the bathroom mirror.

“What are we doing?”

“You’re going to repeat after me.”

“But I-”

“Nope, you’re not getting out of this. We’re going to stand here for five minutes and recite positive affirmations to dust off that negativity. After that, who knows, I might put a curse on that motherfucker.”

“Seungmin!”

“I’ll let Changbin beat them up and allow Lee Know to shove them in the air-fryer. Just wait until Felix finds out what they did to my precious gem. The sunshine is going to turn into a tornado and rip them apart. Now repeat after me, I am beautiful.”

You hesitated at first, but after a while, you were repeating the affirmations through laughter and smiles as Seungmin tickled you. Maybe he shouldn’t have gone off on your friend, but you were precious to him and he hated to see you cry. He’d do anything to cheer you up.

_ _ _

Jeongin:

Another day meant another chance to thrive. In your case, it was another day to sleep whenever you could fit it. Today, it was in your car. You barely got into the driveway and got the car turned off. You instantly slumped forward and pressed your head against the cool steering wheel. You fell asleep rather quickly and were like that for a while.

Jeongin was used to coming home and finding your car in the parking lot. You got home an hour before him on most days. It wasn’t much of a surprise when he saw your familiar car in the parking lot. He parked his car behind you and shut it off.

After climbing out, he yawned and lifted his arms above his head in a stretch. There were a few quick pops from his spine and he hissed. Today, the band had dance practice. His body was sore in more than one area.

He shook out his limbs and began to head towards the apartment until he saw something out of the corner of his eye. With a frown, he glanced over towards your car. It took him a moment before he made your slumped figure out in the driver’s seat.

His eyes filled with horror and he rushed towards your side of the car. He gripped the side of the car and tugged on the handle. Unfortunately, it was locked. Panic engulfed him and he knocked on your window frantically.

You groaned at the noise interrupting your sleep. You shifted, but you didn’t lift up your head. Upon seeing this, he knocked at your window harder and tried to tug the handle again.

Realizing someone was attempting to get into your car, you finally glanced up to find your boyfriend at your window. His eyes were full of concern as he gestured for you to unlock the car.

You reached over, hit the unlock button, and you yawned. Jeongin flung the door open and hurried to your side. “Are you okay? Baby, please look at me.”

When your sleepy eyes met his, his worry increased. He gently grabbed your chin and turned your head to the side. His eyes scanned for a head injury. “Are you alright, sweetheart? Did you hit your head? Did you pass out or something? Have you eaten anything?”

“Hmm?”

“You were unconscious in the car.”

“Oh, yeah,” you shrugged, “I fell asleep.”

He let out a sigh of relief, stroked your chin a few times, and finally let go. “You scared the fuck out of me. I thought something had happened and I was going to have to call an ambulance. If you wouldn’t have unlocked the car, I probably would have broken the window.”

“I’m alright, I swear. I’m just tired, that’s all.” You rubbed your eyes with another yawn. “I’ve gotta head inside and get some sleep. My boss is probably going to want me to come into the office again early and stay late.”

“Baby, with all due respect, you’re like a walking zombie. I know you like pleasing your boss and the money is good, but this isn’t healthy for you.”

You let out a groan, but Jeongin stood his ground. “I know you don’t like hearing it, but you know I’m right. You need to focus on what’s best for you. Sometimes that means making sacrifices that might make other people unhappy, occasionally.”

He reached over and tucked a piece of hair behind your ear. “Let’s get you inside and taken care of. Have you eaten anything today?”

“I haven’t had time, honestly.”

He frowned again, but he didn’t lecture you. “Let’s start there and then we can go on. Let’s get you a quick bite to eat and then get you to bed, alright?”

You nodded in agreement. He held out his hand and you intertwined your fingers with his. You let him slowly tug you towards the house. Still half-asleep, you didn’t mind the babying he was doing for you. He plopped you down in a kitchen chair.

You rested your head in your hand and nearly fell back asleep. He quickly made the two of you instant ramen cups to share. You were teetering on the edge of conscious and unconsciousness. He gently shook you awake, so you can eat.

The two of you managed to have a decent conversation despite your yawns and tired voice. You managed to get halfway through the ramen before you nearly knocked it over as your body twitched while falling asleep.

He chuckled and moved your ramen away from you. “Alright, come on, let’s go.” He stood up, grabbed your hands, and gently tugged you up. “Let’s go get you all tucked in, sleepyhead.”

You hummed in agreement and let him lead you to the bed. He helped you out of your work clothes and into a pair of pajamas. When he was finished, he led you towards the bed and he tucked you beneath the covers.

Bending over you, he planted a soft kiss on your forehead. “I love you so much.”

“I love you too,” you sleepily mumbled with your eyes shut.

“Promise you’ll start to work less overtime? I don’t want you to fall asleep on the road and get into a car accident. I want you to be safe and healthy.”

You weakly nodded your head in agreement. He planted another kiss on your head before he laid down beside you. Happily, you snuggled into his warmth. His arms wrapped around you and he rested his head on top of yours.

You fell asleep rather quickly, but it took a little longer for him to follow. He was nearly asleep until your phone chirped with a new notification. Groggily, he reached over and grabbed your phone off the side table.

He stared at the text message from your boss and then he glanced over at you. You were sleeping rather peacefully and he didn’t want to wake you up. Taking his time, he slowly removed himself from your bed and crept with your phone out into the kitchen.

Far away from you, he called your boss and explained that you had been overworking yourself. When your boss heard about how little sleep you were getting, they were instantly struck with guilt. Jeongin got permission for you to take off the next two days.

You now had Thursday and Friday off, so you could catch up on sleep and recover. After that, you were free during the weekend. On Monday morning, he made sure you were able to go in at normal time.

Maybe, you’d be able to work overtime as long as you didn’t overwhelm yourself with it. Jeongin couldn’t help it, he was worried about you. If you were upset and thought he’d overstepped his boundaries, that was a conversation the two of you could have the next day.

For now, he placed your phone back on the side table. Climbing back into the bed, he wrapped his arms around you. He tugged your sleeping form close and let out a sigh of relief. With a calm mind and a fluttering heart, he’d finally join you in the land of dreams.

| ♡.﹀﹀﹀﹀.♡ | ♡.﹀﹀﹀﹀.♡ | ♡.﹀﹀﹀﹀.♡|

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#stray kids #stray kids drabbles #stray kids fanfic #skz fanfic #kpop fanfic #bang chan #lee know #seo changbin #hwang hyunjin #han jisung #lee felix #kim seungmin #yang jeongin #stay

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risingscorchingsuns · 13 days

Text

“At least… we’ll never be truly alone.” 🔨🪲

“Two young men who understand each other, finding comfort in brotherhood.”

little gift for @ackie-slays !!!!

hiiiiii guess who’s been absolutely brainrotting for the current rp thread with @definitelynotgideon 😭 i literally can’t stop thinking about them, they’re such good brother figures for one another that it actually makes me insane. Karu is the figure of support Gideon’s always needed, and Gideon is the younger sibling Hikaru didn’t realize how desperately he missed. they help each other, they keep each other grounded. what if i go insane. me when it’s always been about siblings, that the bond of family transcends blood alone. god. i need to write more analysis essays.

anyway as per usual, this started as a doodle on a base, just to get the idea out, and then it’d been three days and id fully rendered it. some of it looks a little funny, but im still pretty happy with it!! once again hikaru and co have me in a chokehold, and I wouldn’t have it any other way <3

#oouuuhhhhh the boys …….#hikaru eritora #gideon azulyss #leon scribbles #demon slayer #demon slayer oc #kny oc #kny #others ocs

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muzzleroars · 1 year

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Me remembering a random russian proverb and going like "oh. that reminds me of gabe actually"

The proverb in question is "Перед смертью не надышишься" (Pered smert'yu ne nadyshish'sya), literally "Can’t breath enough before death"

It can mean:

"Putting it off won't make it any easier"

"At the last moment, you can not manage to do what you had to do beforehand"

"You can't make up for lost time"

"It's too late for that now"

And it's also sometimes interpreted as like,, "well it's too late for that now, so no point in trying anyway"

And this made me think of AUs/HCs where Gabe actually Dies™️ (and I've pretty much accepted that it's the most likely thing to happen in canon too. who knows for sure tho, maybe not)

Like. He has so much stuff to do, so many topics to think of, so many emotions to go through (esp if he has Feelings™️ for V1, or anyone else for that matter), but whelp! too late for that loverboy!

And him either desperately trying to do at least something with the little time he has left, OR just. Giving up. Shutting down and waiting for everything to end

And about the "putting it off" part, makes me think that Gabriel must've had at least some trauma/issues related to the Council (about the time when they took the light from him, if nothing else), so it could've been hard for him to go back here, and actually deal with it, face it head on, but he did it anyway because it's not gonna get any easier if he waits

me rotating gabe in my head like in a microwave rn

as much as i obviously enjoy exploring gabriel as a fallen angel, i 100% agree that he's going to die in canon as ultrakill sees the world at the end of its lifespan and that goes for just about everything in it. and on a character level for gabriel, i think it makes sense for the exact reasons this proverb brings up: gabriel has had an end of life epiphany and, like everything else, it is too late now. his world has crashed down around him in his death throes, and all he can do is what is most important in the precious few hours he has left while the rest, all of the personal trauma he must harbor, will now remain forever untouched. but we've already seen whatever gabriel will do with that time remaining will be worthy of it.

the majority of the day he has left has likely already been spent, but he has used it fully to contemplate his long existence and then hearken to newfound autonomy - after which, he swiftly dispatches the entirety of the council to liberate heaven from their rule (the way he chooses to slay the final councilor has interesting parallels now to his execution of sisyphus, and i'm sure that figures into gabriel wishing to right wrongs he can't take back). we know after this he will depart forever from heaven, and his only destination can be hell to meet once again with v1 as he promised. gabriel has so much he could do, so much it could be argued he needs to do, but with his death impending and the very world around him crumbling with it, there is actually very little left for him to do realistically. gabriel is leaving a life full of regret that he will never remotely understand because he has no time for it, but he's ensuring that whatever can be tangibly, immediately addressed is. his life will never be put into context for him, but his death will be.

because gabriel leaves behind a cruel, bloody life that he once thought to be one of supreme order but is, instead, a mess. his time spent serving god had wronged so many, it had likely constantly gone against his own internal morals (that he no doubt punished himself over and over for, torturing himself over sins he now understands were compassion) - yet those feelings don't matter because ultimately he upheld god's will, he carried his banner of violence against humanity, and now there is no one to confront or repay with god and humans all dead. and under the rule of the council, he became a dog he must be disgusted with - they were not god, they never held that ultimate authority that at least he may have been able to shift the blame onto somewhat. they were angels just like him, perhaps higher in rank but not his ruler and certainly not his maker, yet he conformed to their every order, he furthered their political gains again at the expense of his morals. secretly he cared for those in limbo. secretly he cared for the ferrymen. secretly, perhaps, he was some kind of friend to hell. but then the council came and he obeyed them as unconditionally as he had god, reining terror on the citizens of hell and becoming their blight after ripping minos's crown from him as judge of hell. these are the festering regrets he will never account for, will never make reparations for - they are all dead, and he is dying.

so what can gabriel do except address his death and what brought him to it - a poor substitute for making sense of an entire life now left undone, but he seems to working within what he has instead of giving into panic or despair. and all he has left, all he has time for and all he knows he can manage in the hours remaining, is going to see v1 one last time. i'm sure with this, gabriel has a definite goal in mind: i think foremost is fully immersing himself in his feelings for v1 and just what this machine did for him. ultrakill, despite all appearances, is a love story in many ways, and i strongly believe gabriel's feelings toward v1 will be woven into that theme. he wants to feel his love as fully himself and now that he has realized it, to wrap himself in it after the revelation has occurred and allow it to flow through him with acceptance. it happens through a fight, of course, but what i don't know is what gabriel's ultimate goal for that fight will be - does he want his last act to be stopping v1, to have them die together in a sense, or does he desire to be killed by v1 rather than letting that loss of light take him? maybe gabriel would be content with either, but i think of him as a character with now well-defined ideas of what he wants, so i believe he's more likely to want something concrete.

#either way i think this man is gonna lose his head #the decapitation theme with him is just too strong #i would say there's a SLIGHT chance based on the narrative that gabriel actually lives #depending on the story they want to tell #but it's slight bc i think everyone is. gonna die lol #cake answers #gabriel

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misslavenderlady · 4 months

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I'm here with some questions about our girl Bree~!!!

How did she find out they were vamps in the first place? I mean, did she figure most of it put on her own, or did the boys show their true side to her?

And what are the Frogs + Sammy's thoughts on her? If the Frogs know her at least. 👀

CHERRYYYYYY!! This is my first ever ask about Bree!!! I'm so excited! Rest assured, I will have an actual side blog up for her soon but in the meantime I am more than happy to answer any questions about her here

🥺🥺❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

So Bree is a registered nurse, meaning she has plenty of medical knowledge from her studies and experience. It's easy for her to figure out when something is wrong. She met the boys the first night they ever popped into the doctors office she works at. David asked for her to examine his wrist because he crashed his bike while doing a stunt (a little callback to the injury kiefer got before they started filming)

Obviously during the exam Bree noticed there was no pulse in his wrist, and feared something was wrong. She tried to listen for his heartbeat with her stethoscope but found nothing. When she excused herself to get another stethoscope and try again, David and the boys had mysteriously vanished.

They returned again another night. She tried to ask questions, but the boys lead her in circles with their mysterious words (that or they just didn't answer her, opting to just giggle playfully). Dwayne, Paul and Marko all got checkups too. Whether it was asking for a flu shot, getting a cough checked or just making up some disease to get her to touch them, they adored playing games. Each time they did, she found something new wrong. The biggest kicker was when she drew blood at David's request, and was shocked to find the blood was glittery and dark.

She fainted from the shock, and was found and cared for by Michael after she woke up. The boys had left by that point.

At first she thought there had to be some logical explanation. She's a bright woman that values science and research. In a way, she was more fascinated than she was horrified. She thought they were all some kind of medical anomaly. Four boys with an unknown illness.

But then the visits started. Or rather, the "dreams" as she thought they were.

Bree would have moments in the dead of night where she'd hear voices whispering to her. Images of the boys in her room, asking if she wanted to be one of them. To know what they were. They told her to turn away from her medical journal and look more to her beloved monster books. When she awoke, she did just that. She poured over all her favorite stories, particularly Dracula and Camilla. Everything began to make a lot more sense.

At the moment, David and the boys have not outright said what they are, as they're biding their time for the right moment (especially with Michael still a part of their game). But there's this unspoken agreement between them and Bree. A bond made by a shared secret. She knows what they are, but she's not frightened. She's interested. Curious. Attracted to them.

She wants to get to know them more, and they feel the same about her~

Since Michael works at the same doctors office, the other Emersons pop in to say hi to both him and Bree. During the summer Sam and the Frogs come by for the school physicals, which are done by Bree. She thinks Sam is a nice kid, but find the Frog brothers a bit odd. They give her cryptic warnings about monsters and that they suspect the return of vampires they once slayed. When she tries to ask Sam about it, he tells her that Michael isn't very comfortable with sharing that story.

To her, the Emersons are just as mysterious as the Lost Boys. Granted, they're very kind and wonderful to be around, but she wishes they would open up to her. She really likes Michael and he likes her. It breaks her heart to see him and his brother struggling with their demons from the past.

Little does she know that such a thing is more literal in the sense.

In the meantime, she's happy to chat with the kids, so long as they behave. She also gives them stickers as a little gift. They claim they're too old for stickers, but secretly love them.

#tlb insert Bree #tlb self insert #the lost boys #lavender lady rambles #asks

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lixieluvr · 9 months

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enhypen as fnaf animatronics !!

cause i have brain worms and want to combine my hyperfixations 👍

i tried my best to find pics that kinda go with each animatronic lol

heeseung as glamrock freddy !

do u SEE the vision.

they are both so cunty on stage they’re literally twins

go vocal kings ‼️😋❤️

jay as foxy ! (specifically the one from pizzeria simulator)

this just makes so much sense in my brain idk how to explain it

jay could be a pirate u never know

they’re both so goofy i <3 them

jake as helpy !

they’re both silly lil guys !!!

helpy and jake both do little funky dances for no reason 🕺

once again this just makes so much since to me

sunghoon as ballora !

ITS LITERALLY HIM !! idc what anyone says ballora is sunghoon

i think my brain put this together cause he’s a figure skater so like figure skating 🤝 ballet

dude is literally majestic so this match-up just makes sense

sunoo as glamrock chica !

this is a PERFECT pair u can’t tell me u can’t see it

they’re both so cool they slay so hard

they would be bffs irl ☝️ take my word for it

jungwon as funtime foxy !

groovy lil guys !!!

as a funtime foxy lover and jungwon lover this pairing makes my brain happy 😋

idk what else to say but i hope u see the vision 🙏

niki as balloon boy !

this makes me laugh so hard riki i’m so sorry

both are unhinged and purposely annoy the people around them for fun

just tell me u can’t hear niki going “hello.. hi!” I KNOW U CAN 🫵

bonus jakey and helpy dance 🕺

ty 4 reading i hope u enjoy my silly goofy brain rot

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neikikardartv · 6 months

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Buffy Still Slays with its use of Supernatural

Buffy The Vampire Slayer is a cult classic TV series that aired from 1997-2003 with 7 seasons. The show follows the titular vampire slayer Buffy after she is chosen to be the slayer by fate “to battle against vampires, demons and other forces of darkness”, as the theme song goes. After becoming the Slayer she relocates from LA to Sunnydale California, which is located on a “Hellmouth” (meaning demons are attracted to the area). For her highschool is Hell literally. Buffy has to fight both literal and figurative demons alongside her friends who are affectionately referred to as the Scooby Gang. The format of the show is mainly ‘monster of the week’ style with each season having an overarching ‘Big Bad’ villain plotline. The cult following of Buffy has actually garnered lots of academic attention and scholarly articles, being referred to as “Buffy studies”.

Unlike how the article described Penny Dreadful I don’t believe that Buffy is anti-feminist in its subtext. I believe that Buffy instead uses the supernatural and gothic tropes to portray the complexity of the adolescent girl experience and coming of age.

What concepts of Gothic doubling function to define the natural from the supernatural?

Buffy as a series has many Gothic elements with its themes and supernatural settings and even pastiche characters. Buffy herself is a modern Gothic heroine, while she is still virtuous she also possesses physical and mental strength. Many Gothic doubles are featured in the show as supernatural beings most notably being the vampires that terrorize Sunnydale. In the show vampires are the epitome of one’s shadow self, they are all “id”, once someone turns they become a cruel sadistic version of themselves with no soul or humanity. There is usually a very clear line between the natural and supernatural with vampires as there are countless scenes of Buffy staking each vampire she sees in her slayer duties that protect the town. The show uses visual effects to completely “other” the faces of vampires when they are attacking humans and vampires aren’t meant to be humanized at all.

youtube

(Buffy slaying stop around 30s)

There is one notable exception to that rule in the early seasons that comes in Buffy’s first love interest Angel. Angel is unique in that he is a 200 something year old vampire that has been cursed with having a soul. This makes him feel remorse for all the evil acts he committed prior to the curse. When Buffy first meets Angel she is appalled to find out that he is a vampire and immediately wants to stake him. Once he proves himself to be “a good vampire” he and Buffy form a relationship and he attacks other vampires alongside her.

Angel is a very interesting character in that his gothic double is a part of his vampire form as well, he has an alter ego that comes out when he is soulless that goes by “Angelus”. Angelus first comes out in a pivotal scene after Buffy loses her virginity to him, next thing we know he’s become that guy who changes into an asshole after sex. This scene happens the morning after they had sex (he was gone when she woke up).

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(skip 40s in).

As you can see Angel’s gothic double Angelus is a stereotypical asshole. Prior to this he was a loving and protective boyfriend, afterwards he becomes one of the seasons “Big Bads” who terrorizes Buffy’s friends and family and tries to destroy the world. In his Angelus soulless form Angel is back to being ‘othered’ and Buffy ends up having to kill him in the finale (he does come back as Angel again, spoiler). Through this dichotomy the divide between supernatural and natural becomes clearly defined, the Angel/Angelus gothic double shows that it actually is a lack of humanity that truly separates the supernatural from the natural.

In what ways is gender performativity tied to the supernatural?

Gender performativity is tied to the supernatural in that character’s Gothic doubles often represent extreme stereotypes of masculine and feminine gender performativity. The doubles can sometimes even be manifestations of someone’s desire to ‘perform gender’ which is amplified by the supernatural. One such instance of this occurs in Season 3 episode 4 titled, “Beauty and the Beasts” . In this episode another Jekyll/Hyde like scenario occurs in what seems to be a normal highschool boy named Pete, who is responsible for a string of gruesome murders. Pete is dating another student Debbie and it is revealed that he has been taking a potion that transforms him into a monster. As seen in this clip.

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(1:00m in)

As you can see here it is pretty on the nose with the abusive boyfriend turning into an actual monster metaphor. In the clip it is revealed that Peter made the monster potion to, “Be the man [Debbie] wanted”. Pete has created a potion that forces him to perform gender and it leads him to become a monster double of himself. By having supernatural entities be extreme representations of gender performativity Buffy is able to demonstrate how gender stereotypes can be harmful.

How does the series use the supernatural to liberate characters from oppressive normalcy?

Buffy’s supernatural strength and fighting abilities that come with being the “chosen one” as a slayer, liberate her from oppressive normalcy. Prior to being a slayer Buffy was a popular cheerleader at her old school. After she is granted her slayer duties she struggles with not leading a normal life anymore.

This struggle between accepting being a slayer and wanting to just be normal is Buffy’s main internal conflict in the earlier seasons. While, at first she doesn't find abilities liberating she soon is able to accept her fate and enjoys her power in slaying and saving others.

Another character that is liberated from oppressive normalcy through the supernatural, is Buffy’s best friend Willow. Willow starts out in the series as a shy, studious girl. While she continues to be studious she begins to use her brains to also learn witchcraft. This escalates when Willow goes to college and joins a Wicca group on campus. While expanding her powers with the group she also meets another Wicca named Tara who becomes her love interest; leading her to realize she’s a lesbian (prior to this she had a boyfriend). Willow’s journey with growing her witch powers also aligns with her self discovery and coming out, liberating her from oppressive heteronormativity.

In what ways do Gothic doubles allow characters to transgress scripted gender that society imposes on them?

Early on in her witchcraft abilities, in the episode Doppelgangland, Willow casts a spell that accidentally puts her Vampire doppelganger from another universe into their world. This scene occurs before that happens.

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(2:00-3:00 min).

As you can see Willow is upset with how she is characterized by others. The article states that,“the double can be liberating for women (Saxey 2010), as it can allow them to transgress the traditional gender boundaries imposed on them by society”. Willow’s vampire double is the opposite of her and her desire to be less like herself ends up backfiring when her double terrorizes Sunnydale.

Clip from after she is captured.

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(2:20-3:20).

“That’s me as a vampire? I’m so evil..and skanky.. and I think i’m kinda gay…”

As shown, Willow’s gothic double transgresses Willow’s gender script of being sweet, innocent, and wearing fuzzy pink sweaters. Her doppelganger has dominatrix tendencies and is much more confident and sexual. Interestingly, the first hint of Willow being gay is with her double, showing that her double has been able to transgress the heteronormative gender script as well. As Angel’s, “Well actually...” suggests Willow’s gothic double is a representation of her most buried desires.

How are characters rewarded or punished for subverting their expected character traits?

Willow’s want to subvert her “old reliable” self ends up with her being punished as her plan backfires. Her extreme gothic double ends up being killed immediately via stake after she is returned to her original dimension (Interestingly, Willow didn’t want them to kill her double and instead casts a spell to return her). At the end of the episode we see that her gothic double actually helped her achieve her goal of not being forced to do her athlete classmate’s homework, as he is now intimidated by her. Her gothic double is punished for her gender digressions but her assertiveness ends up benefiting Willow by not letting her be ‘walked over’ anymore.

Buffy’s subversion of her expected feminine character traits are rewarded by her heroism. Her supernatural strength keeps her and her loved ones from being killed and also allows her to easily attack her unsuspecting creepy male classmates, who are always taken aback by her strength. This leads many of her male peers to refer to her as a “freak’ and someone to avoid, despite her looks and wit. However, this doesn’t phase Buffy as she enjoys the freedom that comes with her ability to protect herself.

Questions

Do you think that mythologizing the issues that come with ‘coming of age’, in the form of having the supernatural represent teenage woes, make these concepts more universal and accessible to young viewers?

Why do you think the show made Buffy’s two main love interests (Angel and then former nemesis Spike) vampires, even though her whole thing is that she’s ‘the slayer’?

Do you think that Buffy continuing to ‘other’ and slay vampires even while dating one is ethical? When they could also be potentially redeemed?

How do you think the face altering visual effects contribute to the ‘othering’ of vampires in the show?

@theuncannyprofessoro

Some Articles I read:

#oxyspeculativetv

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sooepz · 2 months

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favorite kpop group(s) tag game!

tagged by : @writingmochi thank you for the tag lissie!! (and ofc for always having me included in these!)

sorry i cuss a lot

who is your favourite kpop group?

oh boy.. i hope i’m able to answer this without having to list down more than 10+ groups all at once (i’m being serious) but if having favs that you’re constantly updated to then : bts, txt, le sserafim, enhypen, nct dream, riize & aespa!

which member sparked your interest first?

i’m having the toughest time now but here we go

bts : JUNGKOOK! who else other than our used one of the main rappers (WE LOST TO RAPPER JUNGKOOK BEFORE 2015 AND IM STILL BITTER but out of honesty that sadnesses washed away the moment when he decided to birth outro : love is not over and let’s just say i’ve never been fine since then) bro has been an all-rounder since day one and to that he was the one that made me to discover bts (touché)

txt : yeonjun (duh) i was once a bts popper so the moment we were getting a new boy group under bh i just knew i had to check them out. i mean yeonjun is literally every moa’s first love so it’s almost understandable for him to be the first member for you to be interested to LOL

le sserafim : huh to the yunjin (are we serious? that woman slayed on her first day job) it’s mesmerising to see that source music *blood coughing* decided to give us a closure…………… but miss it girl yunjin, duh she’s a starstruck i know it’s getting out of the phrase but i’ll always be grateful that she becomes an idol. the world (read kpop) wouldn’t be the same without her existence.

enhypen : SUNGHOON!!!!! ON AN ICE RINK!!!! SKATING!!!!! LIKE ???? IVE NEVER SEEN AN IDOL WHO WERE AN ICE SKATER BEFORE LIKE ??? THATS THE MOST PUREST BEAUTIFUL FORM SOMEONE COULDVE BE???

nct dream : mark! bc he was one of the members that were introduced first as part of the nct u sub-unit. i first watched him performing the 7th sense debut performance on music bank and was surprised to see him in the other remaining sub-unit under sm (but then i figured it out that nct IS a group that consists few sub-unit) (i was confused, still am)

riize : wonbin. any attractive man with long hair never not makes me HOOKED on a first sight. he’s majestic. AS HELL. he plays the guitar very well too??

aespa : karina!! also i think this was everyone’s normal occurrences of having karina as the first member that sparked your interest in aespa bc same. i only know her first in aespa like she’s mentioned in every fic or edit or on stan twt like… she’s everywhere it’s crazy. (the power she holds)

who was your first bias?

INTERESTING

bts : hoseok. man do we need to replay my first love? HE WAS THE MAN OF MY LIFE.

txt : soobin,, ARE WE SURPRISE AGAIN

le sserafim : chaewon! i think the answer is there.

enhypen : sunghoon (forever will)

nct dream : jisung. bro when i say that i used to have a serious crush on him? 2018 zu was a jisung’s whipped era.

riize : sungchan! 90s love was a life experience. (man decided to just make a cameo and slay as fuck) i know we are suppose to talk about sungchan in riize but he’s my first bias in riize ONLY because i knew him first alongside with shotaro (sungtaro slay)

aespa : KIM MINJEONG. YOU CANNOT TALK TO ME ON HER. SHE WAS MY FIRST LOVE???

who is your current bias?

basically just the same except for bts & nct dream :D

bts : yoongi (i am a joke)

txt : soobin (salute for being this loyal)

le sserafim : chaewon

enhypen : sunghoon

nct dream : renjun (....... surprise surprise)

riize : sungchan (eventho i highly think this won’t last long….fuck)

aespa : ningning

what makes them your current bias?

bts : I KNOW CRAZY. i’ve been there for hobi since 2014 esp around those times when no one was there to appreciate him truly as one of the members (DARK TIMES FOR ME, we do not talk about that) but then 2017 yoongi came in. it’s just something about yoongi himself that soothes my soul in peace. the way he thought of things in his own perspective without disrespecting anybody and the way he’s just a full walking comfort a person could be for anyone, for me particularly. his godly, incredible amount of times he’d shown off his talent in rap, producing and things he’d done. i can talk about yoongi that people wouldn't be able to understand bc he’s so ?? what a person is supposed to be. is there anything to prove why i decided to change a bias?

txt : when soobin was introduced as the second member of txt (gurl) when i told you that soobin introduction film was… a first love at sight moment, it was true. soobin has been the love of my fucking life since then. actually no there’s so many things that i love about soobin. so many things, it’s unexplainable. i can confidently say that his voice caught me off-guard on a first listen. i know it’s dramatic as hell (ANYTHING I SAY ABOUT MY BIASES ARE SO QUESTIONABLE BUT I AM BEING SERIOUS) he has the rarest vocal on his falsetto? he’s doing it effortlessly too? if that’s not enough to actually prove my point of him being my bias then idk what is. man is majestic as hell too. (BONUS POINT!)

le sserafim : AAAAHHHHHHHHHHH god chaewon… honestly, i wasn’t a wiz*one bc produce 48 was shitty as hell. (I WATCHED EVERY MNET SURVIVAL SHOW EXCEPT FOR THIS) neither do i like the final debut lineup for iz*one. i just couldn’t pinpoint what was missing but that’s not the point of that rn. well. for me, i think the majority of people would have agreed with me about this but chaewon is better off with le sserafim. (AUDIENCE GASP) i COULD NEVER say that she caught my attention even the tiniest bit when she was in iz*one, but she did ON A FIRST SIGHT OF HER DEBUT IN LE SSERAFIM. the way that she kept on improving and i didn’t even know that she can dance so well???? (this woman is literally everyone’s type and it’s FUCKING understandable) i watched their documentary too and i love her even much more than i should’ve? i think having chaewon as my bias, it’s emotional. i am emotionally attached to her and i don’t want to seek therapy.

enhypen : *internally crying, hysterically screaming* are we ready to hear the part of me losing almost entirely of my sanity? i was away from home for the first time for my college, and never really bothered to get updated with my kpop life. those days were.. hectic (as everyone did) but long short story i was on tiktok, at my room, at home since for so long, AFTER my hectic first sem and i just so happened to stumble upon a sunghoon edit on an ice rink, skating WITH THE TIMOTHEE TREND SONG (2020 WAS 4 YEARS AGO TOO?? GOD) AND IM LIKE ??? WHO IS THIS? I NEED TO KNOW WHO IS HE. yk i haven’t watched iland yet at that time (and probably shouldn’t so that i wouldn’t have to endure the trauma that show gave me), and only decided to watch it bc of him. I JUST LOVE LOVE skater park sunghoon a lot more than myself (that should be considered as normal btw) and i never regretted checking out on iland bc if i don’t i wouldn’t have known just how unique his talent is? you can ACTUALLY tell he has the most unique way of dancing, as if he’s dancing with every bit of his skating method and combining it to his dancing style and it’s just ?? beautiful… god park sunghoon i love him a lot.

nct dream : crying as i type this, i love renjun a lot. man is so demonically pure. i haven’t been on nct shit for SO LONG until last year (only applicable for nct dream) and i am attached as shit as they wanted me to be. i think re-stanning nct dream (i will say this forever if i’ve to prove how much they mean to me) was the peak of the third quarter of my life last year. but as for renjun, he’s just so easy to love? for me, his own persona to things as a person always never makes me so deeply attached. (like the fucking loser i am) renjun have a lot of things you can say a lot of things to, like his vocals? (ik you can confidently say that sm has the most vocals out of that shitty company) but i LOVE to listen to his voice. he’s singing with his emotions and my soul thaws in silence every time. HES ALSO SO ROMANTIC LIKE??? MAN CASUALLY JUST ASKED HIS TEAMMATES TO HAVE A MATCHING FRIENDSHIP RINGS LIKE?

riize : as for sungchan, i think i'm still learning about him. I know i’ve seen him a few times (more than 10 times on screen as for the appearance of the inkigayo and being part of nct) but i still have a lot of things to learn before i can list things down. (gurl you’re in love with another member)

aespa : i love everything about ning yizhuo. i honestly have no idea how i changed my bias but i could never say no to people who can sing well. her vocals?? i can listen to her singing on a daily basis. shes a stunner, a mother=my type. well, her whole existence stands out the most when i first discovered aespa. i just love ningning, she’s so loveable, i love her except for she idolized that one problematic rat.

who is your bias wrecker

bts : i love them all equally. (jungkook)

txt : taehyun. stfu

le sserafim : kazuha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i love my woman a ballerina

enhypen : jungwon.

nct dream : zhong chenle (hes so attractive???????????)

riize : eunseok

aespa : minjeong……………………

which member are you currently obsessing that aren’t your bias/bias wrecker

bts : i’ll skip them (they be on military, i’ve no one to be obsessed to recently)

txt : beomgyu. (DAEGU MEN STAY AWAY FROM ME)

le sserafim : YUNJIN. she needs to stop

enhypen : heeseung. i think i’ve problems with the 01 liner.

nct dream : none i guess. (i'm still obsess with renjun)

riize : ….. sohee. i think out of the groups, sohee has the most valid reasons and i'm fully to blame for this. i watched the lee hyori’s red carpet to their sampled track of love 119 (THEIR BEST SONG YET WHAT THE FUCK) which is none other than the infamous emergency room ost AND WHEN I TELL YOU IVE BEEN OBSESSED SINCE. and that obsession didn’t stop there, i decided to check more to his vocals compilation and i stumbled upon his predebut covers… WORSE: his sofa cover has been playing on my mind all day since i first heard of it, it’s unhealthy. i’m gonna k word myself

aespa : none too.

when did you first discover the group?

bts : 2014. boy in luv was a superior era.

txt : 2019…. that guessing the morse code at the end of introduction films of every member's era? good old days

le sserafim : on their debut

enhypen : end month of september 2020! (funfact : enhypen was formed on my birthday)

nct dream : on their debut (them hoverboard era)

riize : on their debut days

aespa : early year 2022 (embarassing as fuck)

have you ever been to one of their concerts?

bts : gurl, no. they did a tour for the red bullet on june 2015? THAT ONE TIME ONLY. what did you expect from me? to go? i was 13.

txt : they don’t even know my country exists? so no.

le sserafim : no. (hybe better put malaysia when they do tour one day or else im burning down the whole building as it should’ve)

enhypen : no. (they skipped us.)

nct dream : they did a tour last year in may…… but miss girl decided to only stan them back in june and was obsessed and mentally ill for not attending. (ONLY BC I AM NOT A FAN) i was late to the party, im sorry and now they be skipping us.

riize : no.

aespa : ???????? NO

what are some of your favourite songs by this group?

i’ll list 10 songs!

bts : butterfly / dimple / coffee / love is not over (full length version) / epilogue : young forever / pied piper / outro : do you think it makes sense? / the truth untold ft steve aoki / spring day / hold me tight

txt : 20cm / dear sputnik / 0X1=lovesong (i know i love you) ft seori / maze in the mirror / ghosting / skipping stones / fairy of shampoo / blue orangeade / farewell, neverland / eternally

le sserafim : impurities / easy / perfect night / no celestial / antifragile / smart / blue flame / swan song / good parts (when the quality is bad but i am) / sour grapes

enhypen : just a little bit / criminal love / mixed up / chaconne / not for sale / blockbuster ft yeonjun of tomorrow x together / shout out / blind / given-taken / bills

nct dream : dive into you / teddy bear / 7 days / boom / my youth / better than gold / dunk shot / arcade / poison / love again

riize : …. i’ll list from most to least fav (I LOVE ALL OF THEIR SONGS) love 119 / talk saxy / get a guitar / memories

aespa : lucid dream / dreams come true / drama / thirsty / next level / life’s too short / don’t blink / i’m unhappy / illusion / better things

tagging : @my313 (no pressure bestie!) / anyone who want

#sooepz.x #tag games!#nobody is gonna read alllat #but little bit of me #kpop

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natsumasterlist · 5 months

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𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐬𝐮'𝐬 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐧

♥︎First of all I would like to apologize for the unexpected hiatus that I took, I would've post more but there hasn't been a lot of content from the manga that I could analyze. I might take more in the future depending on how the manga goes from here. Now that that's out of the way, let's get onto the analysis!

I spoken about how I think the other guild mates can kind of courage his reckless behavior here but after a quick reread of a couple chapters in 100 year quest I've got more insight on the topic.

In chapter 18 of 100 year quest Karameel asks Natsu to kill Mercphobia since he was the only one who possessed dragon slaying magic. Natsu doesn't want to do this since killing people he considers good goes against his own morals. This puts the burden of killing someone entirely on Natsu despite his protests. Even when they met with Mercphobia the first thing he said was if he was a good guy, they would have to figure out a different way to complete the quest. Natsu was never going to kill him if it had been his choice alone.

In the next scene literally everyone pushes Natsu into a corner practically forcing him to take on this burden. Even though he pleads with the others begging for their understanding, they all stayed silent. Eventually he just sucks it up and decides to do it anyway. No one in this scene understood the weight of what they were putting Natsu through. Although he was the only one capable of killing Mercphobia, no one offered their understanding. Carla does try to say there's no other way but they were all still putting him against his own moral. No one else had to directly deal with getting their hands bloody which explains why Natsu was so pissed at Karameel since her meddling is what caused this chain of events. Her choices are what led to Mercphobia's demise but it was Natsu who eventually had to deal the final blow.

The fight goes on fairly well and Natsu makes sure to stop Mercphobia since he personally told him that he wanted to keep the town safe. Natsu almost gets wiped out by a whirlpool but Ignia saves(?) him last minute.

(Something I wanna quickly mention is that we can see early signs of Natsu's PTSD here after seeing Ignia but it's only short lived.)

Anyways Ignia destroys the town and rants about Igneel which pisses Natsu off so he decided he doesn't like him. Ignia offers his flames but Natsu doesn't want to eat them. The entire scene is played off to be comedic but they were once again putting all their bets on Natsu even before Ignia offered his help. Not to mention, by accepting those flames he was also inadvertently agreeing to the fight that Ignia offered. It's like he made a deal with the devil in exchange for power.

They were depending on him so much that he almost died and yet they still relied on him despite that. No one checked on him and no one thought that they should fight alongside him either. I know Wendy's magic isn't offense based but I'm positive that her and Natsu's magic together would've worked better than her just being support since they are both dragon slayers.

The next scene is what bothers me most about this arc though. After Natsu eats the flames that he did not want to, defeats Mercphobia which he also did not want to do, the power somewhat takes over him and he goes into overkill. At this point he had to remind them that he doesn't want to fight alone and that they should be helping. It kinda seems like E.N.D was triggered from the flames he ate. This is a direct consequence from eating Ignia's flame yet Natsu is demonized in this scene despite not wanting to eat his flames! Also his hands are practically destroyed after using them. He's left a bit traumatized after the even because of course he is. The entire arc is him making very difficult decisions because no one else bothered to even try to think of alternate solutions.

This panel is one of my favorites because it shows Natsu deep in thought after all he had to deal with. He doesn't remember what happened but he asked happy if he said anything strange. Happy said he did but he also said things he'd normally say to which Natsu simply responds with "I see".

His curt response is very different from the usually happy go lucky type of response we see from him. This was him being vulnerable since he was upset with what happened. It's obvious Natsu feels this way because of his connections with E.N.D. I don't think Mashima made Happy mention how he was both like and not like himself for no reason. Natsu doesn't want to lose himself to E.N.D but there's also a bit of himself that can be seen within it.

The next scene also bothers me a ton because Lucy basically says to figure out the issues unless he wants it to happen again which was a very poor way to change the mood. Lucy was one of the members who was pressuring him to eat the flames yet she still blamed him for the consequences he couldn't control.

I think this arc highlights the major issues with Natsu's complex of needing to be strong and toughen up very well. No one takes him or any of his issues seriously which is why he bottles so much inside. It also make sense as to why he still only turns to Happy when he's feeling down like this. I have hopes that after this recent chapter they learned to appreciate Natsu a little more and hopefully give him a break. Internally, he has a lot more going on than anyone would expect.

#natsu dragneel #natsu #fairy tail #character analysis #analysis

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mylifesascarymovie · 1 year

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@ofdetectiveseeking

{My life... It was like its own live action horror movie. For awhile, each year it was a new form of horror. First my mother's death, then on the one-year anniversary of my mother's death, my psychotic boyfriend Billy and his demented best friend, Stu went on a murdering spree through the town of Woodsboro; intending to tie off their Ghost Face killing spree by slaying me and pinning it all on my father. For their parts, they came close to pulling off their plan. Fortunately for me and my father both, Gale Weathers stepped up and saved the day. Gratitude toward Gale Weathers was honestly not something I ever thought I would be expressing, since I recall once saying we'd all be better off without Gale Weathers in our lives, but at that moment, I was relieved to be proven wrong. Just when I thought my life could go back to normal, or at least some semblance of normalcy, I should say, I went off to college; only to be haunted by a new Ghost Face... A few years later there was another killer. It was like a never ending cycle of Ghost Face horror. Long story short, I had nearly given up on having a normal life altogether. I even gave dating another chance... Something I had avoided after my first boyfriend turned out to be a murdering psychopath, and then the next boyfriend was murdered by a new Ghost Face; leaving me to the unsettling realization that anyone who comes into my life is destined for death. I couldn't put anyone else through that, so although I did date Mark briefly after my half brother was unmasked as the last Ghost Face, I couldn't get past the risk I knew I would be putting on him, simply by him being in my life, so I ultimately ended it, moved away, and focused on making a life for myself that kept the people I loved at a safe distance from me. Again though, and just like everything else in my life, that goal also didn't go as planned. Well, it did for several years... Long enough for me to write a book, get it published, and ultimately bringing it to the present where I was starting my book tour. No surprise, the tour began in Woodsboro, which made sense, given my book was based on my horror story of a life, but the thought of returning to Woodsboro literally made me sick inside. For good reason, it would seem, since I no sooner returned to Woodsboro to start the tour, when the new string of murders started happening. The new Ghost Face was just as predictable as the last. Go after people I care about first, to eventually get to me when they believed I was at my weakest point. They went for my aunt and cousin first, but that plan got foiled when I stopped them. Grant it, they stabbed me and then pushed me out of a second-story window, but the good news was, my aunt and cousin were safe, for now. In normal Ghost Face fashion, they managed to get away before Dewey and the police arrived on scene, but at least Ghost Face was stopped before they could murder someone else I cared about. I thought to myself as I laid in pain on the ground; feeling lightness in my head from the combination of pain and the loss of blood. Not my first stabbing or injury though, so I knew the sooner the hospital patches me up and doses me with some pain meds, I'd get back here to join Dewey and Gale on the quest to unmask the newest installment of Ghost Face. Moments passing as Dewey and Gale came into view to help me, and then the EMT's rushing over shortly thereafter to assess the severity of my injuries. As they worked on me in preparation for transport to the hospital, I found myself more determined than ever to figure out who the new Ghost Face is} "Don't worry, Sid. We'll find him." {Dewey said as he gave my hand a squeeze just before the EMT's loaded me into the ambulance; knowing the sooner I get in and out of the hospital, the sooner we could stop this asshole. I just hoped it was before Ghost Face could hurt or kill anyone else}

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dark-night-star-light · 1 year

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Spirit Animals: Hunted (Reread pt. 2)

DISCLAIMER: WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR BOOKS ONE THROUGH SEVEN AND BOOKS ONE THROUGH FIVE IN SECOND SERIES.

Masterpost

Chapter 1

“ . . . he would never admit he was afraid of the dark” (1). LMFAO.

“He had prepared his whole life for this . . . ” (2). How do you prepare to have a spirit animal???

Damn, he’s also scared of spiders???

“In that instant, he felt no terror. He only felt that he could create terror” (4). So the Bile makes you feel more arrogant-esque emotions in the moment instead of getting a small taste of your animal’s powers.

Chapter 2

Greenhaven is described as “a sprawling stone castle built on top of a waterfall” . . . how do you build a castle on a waterfall???

“Four knots in the strands symbolized sun, fire, water, and wind” (6). I think it’s interesting they skipped the traditional fourth element, earth, in favor of “sun”.

“ . . . she’d been recruited by people who were secretly in cahoots with the Devourer . . . ” (6). The writing style seems less formal than the first book already??? Like the words “cahoots” would definitely not have appeared in the first book. I guess it makes sense, given that they are all written by different authors.

Also, this book is the first time the Devourer’s followers are referred to as Conquerors.

“ . . . she donned the green cloak that meant she had sworn to defend Erdas” (6). Three of the four main characters are Greencloaks, yet we still don’t know how the initiation ceremony works. Do they just hand you a green cloak and say “Cool, you’re one of us now”?

“Abeke felt the Greencloaks’ eyes . . . she knew what their responses would be” (9). Abeke overthinking what she thinks the Greencloaks would tell her is so trauma-coded. Also, for some reason I remember the Greencloaks being a lot more angry than they actually are.

“A portrait of a girl smiled at her from one wall, while a mural of a man leading dozens of unfamiliar animals through a field covered another” (11). Who are these people? I feel like I should remember them. The original Greencloak leader? Finn’s family?

“Rollan . . . frowned at her” (12). I mentioned this in my Wild Born reread, but he seemed fine with her and her choice at the end of the first book. (Though he did seem out of character.)

“‘This one won’t scratch up your noble hands.’ Meilin smiled prettily. Removing the frying pan, she handed it to him. ‘And here’s one for you. Doesn’t require much brains to figure out how to use it.’ Rollan pretended to bow” (14). Just kiss already.

“Meilin sat on the shoulders of her opponent, the silk handkerchief wrapped around her assailant’s eyes” (16). Meilin defeating her opponent in ten seconds be like:

“‘Sorry!’ Abeke said. He looked confused. ‘For what?’ ‘For this!’ . . . Abeke thrust the broom bristles into the swordsman’s face” (16). Abeke is once again slaying with the whole talk-to-distract-someone-during-a-fight thing.

“They don’t trust me, Abeke thought” (18). But this is just practice??? All it's going to do is get them scolded by Tarik.

Chapter 3

Definitely more italics in this book.

Dawson’s handwriting looks like Devin’s but jigglier. Canon.

“‘I’m sure they’ll be all right,’ . . . ‘Giving you up to Briggan is just their sacrifice to save Erdas’” (25). The cook (and the Greencloaks by extension) are literally so manipulative? I don’t remember this detail at all from my first time through. They won’t even spare some food for a starving family???

Chapter 4

“Meilin traced her finger to Zhong. It wasn’t very far at all. No wonder Zhong was the first to be attacked” (26). Nilo is closer to Stetriol, though? Unless you count the Hundred Isles as part of Zhong (which it technically is . . . ), but still mainland Zhong is way farther than Nilo.

“Meilin dragged her finger from Zhong to Eura. It seemed like a much farther distance than Stetriol to Zhong” (26). Are we looking at the same map??? Genuinely am wondering whether we’re about to find out that the map Meilin is looking at is inaccurate or something.

“She wasn’t surprised the others were slower” (27). Woah, that’s Rollan-in-the-first-book levels of passive-aggressiveness.

Meilin: My father taught me how to pack. Meilin a page later, out loud to Rollan: Actually, I taught myself.

“‘Four tutors taught you how to fold your clothing’” (28). The beginnings of the iconic tutor inside jokes.

I like that they have Meilin’s outlet be anger. It’s too much of a stereotype that girls have crying as their outlet, especially East Asian ones.

“The servant, the orphan, the traitor, and the warrior who had given up war” (29). They really changed so many things about Meilin from the first book. She’s already angrier, whereas in the first book she was somewhat emotional, sure, but mostly she was logical and composed. And in the first book, she was confident, but not quite arrogant. But I guess it's understandable, considering Zhong fell.

I forgot Finn didn’t fight for like the first 85% of the book.

“Jhi would have looked right at home with that public Meilin” (31). Word choice: they used looked instead of been.

“‘My bond is fine,’ Meilin replied crisply” (31). *sounds of laughter ensue*

“‘Opposites,’ Finn said. ‘But both part of the same whole’” (33). So the yin-yang symbol is supposed to be a representation of balance between an animal and a human in a bond?

“‘I was supposed to accomplish so many great things’” (33). All because of a legend? Finn’s panther wasn’t even a Great Beast.

FINN BONDED NATURALLY??? How did I forget that . . .

“Drums gathered near paintings that had to do with earth and objects made of leather and wood. String instruments were near metal sculptures and mirrors and paintings of water. Woodwinds, paper objects, and anything having to do with air seemed to be grouped together” (36). This is the second time three of the four major elements have come up in this book. Also, it’s kind of funny earth isn’t called erdas.

“You’ve made the wise decision, [Meilin’s father] said, instead of the smart one” (37). This book has some bomb lines.

Chapter 5

“ . . . one of the whales called to the other. It was a hollow, echoey sound that seemed both very close and very far” (39). Kind of like Abeke to the other three kids.

“‘That’s basically the beginning, middle, and end of it, anyway: homeless guy, rat, magical falcon. Happy ending’” (41). He forgot about the homeless guy’s bet.

“‘A fool’s better than a traitor’” (41). Inej Ghafa would disagree.

Rollan semi-understands Abeke now???

THE ICONIC ROLLAN-HORSE RIVALRY BEGINS.

“Now he had stopped worrying about meals and was instead concentrating on getting a smile out of a snotty general’s daughter” (44). LMFAO.

Everyone acts like it’s shocking to see a bunch of people with spirit animals outside the Greencloaks . . . which would make sense, given that it’s rare . . . except for the fact that they already faced a bunch of people with spirit animals in the last book and had no such reaction. Another way the tone changes from the first book to the second book.

Rollan calls a horse a “grass-burning chump”. No comment.

“‘Where’s your sense of loyalty, horse?!’” I imagine him clipping the horse like he doesn’t want to say the word.

Meilin turning down Abeke’s help . . . okay, girlie.

“‘Unfortunately for you,’ said Rollan, ‘I don’t trust anyone’” (49). Cannot explain how glad I am that Rollan doesn’t let the Conqueror go out of honor or We’re better than you, so we have better morals kind of rhetoric. I hate it when characters do that. It’s just plain stupid.

The snake that bites Tarik: the same kind that bites Olvan in Heart of the Land? Parallel?

“‘Sometimes she pretends to be deaf.’ . . . ‘I am deaf’” (53). HA.

Lady Evelyn repeatedly misnaming Tarik and Finn is giving Dionysus’ Perry Johnson and Annie Bell energy.

“‘Luckily, I never rest and am constantly attentive’” (56), “‘Do you children know what a map is?’” (57), and “‘You’re thinking, that’s far north, and up there they paint their faces blue and eat foreigners’” (57) have all cemented my liking for Lady Evelyn.

Chapter 6

“[Meilin’s] heart was a battlefield” (61). And planets surrounded by moon-choices, apparently.

“‘I was doing fine,’ she retorted, spitting out another glob of dirty grass” (64). Meilin was not like this in the first book. She wasn’t cocky or arrogant, just sure of herself. There are many places in the first book where she admits she needs the help of others??? First book and second book Meilin feel like two different people. And it’s not even because Meilin has an attitude towards Abeke, because Finn was the one who actually pulled her out, and it’s established that Meilin respects Finn. Anyway, from now on, I’ll just accept second book Meilin as canon Meilin.

So Hawkers sell fake Nectar. Not Greencloaks, like Gar mentioned in Wild Born. So the Conquerors are putting just a bit more blame on the Greencloaks than they really deserve. Shady.

“Abeke and Meilin shot irritated glances at each other” (66). At this point, I’ll take the scraps.

“There’s a prophecy that says a boy will bond with the black wildcat and deliver the North from persecution and poverty!” (67). Oh, is that why Finn was supposed to be great? Because of a . . . prophecy?

Also, shouldn’t people have heard that the prophecy has already happened? Sure, Finn bonded naturally in some obscure town, but he also joined the Greencloaks, so word should’ve gotten around that the prophecy was already fulfilled, right?

“‘I think it’s plenty large enough for a house cat’” (68). Meilin is also actually hilarious, you guys. Also, don’t the Hawkers know that spirit animals only come as adults? Maybe the Bile is different?

“Meilin stood over him, pointing his own knife at his throat” (70). Meilin is iconic. Slay, queen.

Chapter 7

“‘My father rudely up and died on me, so I reckon he’s the worse parent’” (74). The competition continues.

“Devin held out his arm. Without a second’s pause, the panther vanished. A tattoo appeared on Devin’s arm” (77). Devin is literally such a show-off. He should’ve kept the advantage to himself.

I definitely don’t remember the town’s children helping Rollan and Conor escape.

Devin’s insults are literally so uncreative, it hurts. Rollan’s are at least good.

Chapter 8

“If someone was going to hurt that boy, she wanted it to be her” (83). Iconic, but also a little toxic?

Okay, it’s heavily implied that Finn was in the Howling House. I don’t remember this . . .

For some reason, I remember Meilin and Abeke overhearing Zerif and Co. while at Glengavin, not Trunswick.

Kind of funny how Zhong’s water dragon was the only “legend” not endorsed by Zerif. And Zhong was also the first continent targeted by the Conquerors.

“The table was quiet, probably because none of them knew what exacerbating meant, including Zerif” (93). Zerif continues to use flowery language to try to make himself seem smarter.

Chapter 9

Why doesn’t Conor let Briggan out once they’re in the cell? It’s not like the guards would know.

“‘What’s wrong with your hands?’” (100). I don’t remember this plot point??? I wonder if it’s important . . .

“Rollan’s voice was tinged with awe . . . ” (102). Aw, are they finally warming up to each other?

“Every spirit animal there turned all attention to the wolf” (107). Okay, so Briggan does have some amount of leadership over non-wolf animals.

Ooh, all the four fighting together first time!

“If they got out of Trunswick alive, he could devote more time to wondering if their absence was due to cowardice or strategy” (110). Our boy’s getting better at the whole leadership thing.

Chapter 10

“Meilin had crossed her arms and turned to stare at him expectantly” (115). I imagine her thinking, HA, loser.

“Meilin didn’t actually smell - Rollan suspected girls sweat - but the panda did have a distinct musky odor” (116). Rollan: Ah, yes, the female species, I do in fact know of them.

“Rollan finished, ‘It’s nice to have such a warm welcome’” (118). Was that a dig at Conor??? I doubt it, but . . .

“‘Rollan, you look clean,’ Meilin said. Her gaze still seemed to linger on him a bit longer than usual, a fact that didn’t bother Rollan a bit” (121). Oooooooooooh. But I’m also pretty sure it’s mentioned that Rollan is good-looking in the first book, so maybe he’s just attractive?

“ . . . Rollan had learned that a smile could sometimes hide wicked thoughts better than a sneer” (123). He literally uses this to his advantage in the first book.

“He noted that there was no Lady MacDonnell in evidence” (123). Who is the kids’ mom then??? She never comes up?

“And he noticed that seat was covered with dust” (123). What if the lord just doesn’t have a spirit animal? Aren’t those rare?

Okay, about Essix getting trapped: Why didn’t the harpist just ask Lord MacDonnell to help with Essix? It’s not like he would’ve just left her there.

I remember on my first time reading through the book, the harpist scene made me so angry, like Lord MacDonnell is so shallow? And I don’t think the harpist ever gets any justice?

Chapter 11

“With a muffled shriek, Meilin leaped from the ground. She pinned Rollan against the wall, her hand against his throat, her hair dripping” (134). I imagine her looking like a demon or something with the hair.

“But he was certain Meilin would never cry while awake” (135). First Abeke, now Conor? Meilin literally cried after Barlow’s death, and both of them and Rollan were there.

Chapter 12

“‘Give up?’ Devin scoffed. ‘Look at our beasts! We’ll take it’” (138). Devin is so cocky it’s embarrassing.

“‘My spirit animal chooses the Greencloaks.’ ‘But is she right?’” (140). Even if she wasn’t a Great Beast, animals do tend to have stronger instincts than humans. And trusting your spirit animal is important regardless, right???

Karmo’s hammerkop can paralyze people??? I guess that makes sense, given it’s called the lightning bird . . .

Chapter 13

“The older man’s expression had gone very un-jolly, but it snapped back into good cheer when he noticed Meilin watching” (144). This guy doesn’t even understand the bond that well??? Or maybe he’s just jealous . . .

While we’re on the topic of last names, it’s interesting that last names seem to be a sign of status in Erdas. Devin Truswick are Lord MacDonnell are the only known people with a last name. I also wonder if Teng is General Teng’s first or last name, because it it’s last that’s another person of high rank that has a last name.

“‘War’s useless if you don’t know how to live with peace’” (145). Oh, I see. He’s one of those smart-but-stupid people.

“But what about those musicians last night? The ones that are now scrubbing pots?” (145). GETTEM, ROLLAN.

“No, Conor, Meilin thought. You’re forgetting Briggan. You can’t take a wolf among the sheep” (146). Something, something, this is a metaphor for how Conor will not be able to be a simple shepherd again after the war, something, something.

Lord MacDonnell is a lot like Devin. Both were “cruel and proud” and sons of lords. Both were disappointed with their outcome at their Nectar Ceremonies. Both became crueler after. And both regretted their actions afterward. Wonder if their relationship after the war could’ve been explored.

How did Abeke tie “Help. Devin hunts Rumfuss” into her bracelet when she was literally paralyzed and without Devin or Karmo noticing?

Chapter 14

“‘Why are we standing here? We’ve got to help her’” (151). Rollan warming up to Abeke???

While Conor is the one to suggest a trade to Lord MacDonnell, Meilin is the one to suggest the hare as the trade. I think it should’ve been Conor, because he had the dreams and it would’ve shown him coming into his own.

Rollan stealing the soldier’s sword is not something I remember happening? Huh.

Chapter 15

Wow, Conor found the hare awfully quickly.

“‘Because,’ Conor said. ‘Do you know what’s on the other side of this wall?’” (159). How does Conor know where they are and Finn doesn’t? Finn canonically has a better sense of direction than Conor. Also, Conor’s never been to Lord MacDonnell’s room???

“Well, he reminded himself glumly. You were a shepherd” (161). Now he's getting it.

Chapter 16

“Abeke thought it had probably been a long time since he’d spoken to any humans” (165). That literally goes for just about any Great Beast. Also, can Great Beasts speak any language? Probably.

“Devin had snuck Conquerors into Glengavin” (167). Right, but how?

Chapter 17

“Jhi was safely in passive state . . . ” (169). During the fight???

Oh never mind, she is being used.

“Then he saw the wolf” (171). Repeating lines from book one???

Chapter 18

Donn is bigger than Elda???

Why didn’t Rumfuss just run Lord MacDonnell over after he refused to let him out?

Chapter 19

What happened to the harpist??? I’m still salty about that situation.

“The second talisman was in Greencloak hands” (181). HA, not for long.

Wait so, that means . . . Conor’s family is free of their debt now??? Huh.

Chapter 20

“Hadn’t she wanted to go to Zhong for her family when she’d had the chance? Hadn’t he been the first to tell her to stay with them?” (184). Does she see him as a hypocrite???

So Meilin leaves even knowing it’s a bad decision.

Meilin forcing Jhi into passive state: so not the way to go, girlie.

“She was going back to Zhong” (185). Is she going to steal a boat or something? Because Greenhaven is on an island . . .

Final thoughts and rating:

I definitely noticed a change in writing style, which makes sense given that it’s a different author. I like that they decided to have Conor make a hard decision. Without this, the books would be very formulaic: quest for talisman, trials for each of the four to show off skills, talk to Great Beast, battle, return victorious. Making Conor give up the talisman is also a show of morally gray behavior, which I think is great to have in a children’s book series. Meilin going back to Zhong was also definitely a choice that enhanced the story. This book was definitely a Conor book, it mostly showed Conor having to make hard decisions and learning to become a leader.

I think it would’ve been interesting if the black panther being the second ‘sacred’ animal of Eura was more foreshadowed in the first book? Like they did with the Hawkers? Thought that would’ve been interesting. I also found it strange that nobody realized Finn was the boy of the prophecy. I know he was from a remote town, but still??? Meilin as a character definitely seems more emotional this book, which makes some amount of sense, but she still feels off. It’s also sort of unsatisfying that we never get to see the harpist from Glengavin get her justice. That feels like an unfinished storyline. I know it’s only there for Rollan to express anger at Lord MacDonnell, but a simple one-liner describing Rollan having a short conversation with her and Lord MacDonnell reinstating her to her position would’ve been nice . . .

Rating: 9/10

#draeyem rereads spirit animals #hunted #spirit animals series #spirit animals books #sa spoiler #abeke #conor #meilin #rollan #finn #zerif #devin

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