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ahoge-fish · 2 years

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BEFORE YOU READ, this is spoiler free. I discovered The Witcher because a friend of mine told me to watch the netflix series. So I did, but later on I discovered that in the series a lot changes, so now I'm looking forward to watch the gameplay of the 3 games and probably read the books too! And to make the stories for all the Crusaders, I did a lot of researches that took me like 3 whole days XD So basically if there are some incorrects statements, it's because I don't know a lot. Feel free to correct me if you want! Now, you can click the "read more" button ;) Enjoy!

┌── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──┐

Jotaro from Daevon

Jotaro was only a child when he, the baker Holly and the bard Sadao were at the Blue Mountains trying to return to their home in Daevon.

They had taken a break from the long walk, but Jotaro was a very curious child and so he decided to explore the area a bit.

The thick snow and the strong wind increased by the minutes, not making him realize that he strayed too far from his parents, getting lost.

He kept walking to find them, until he lost his strength and fell to the ground. He woke up in an unknown place, surrounded by some adults and other children of his own age.

That place was Kaer Morhen, one of the places where Witchers were mutated and trained. As he regained consciousness, he heard the adults say absurd things: they were assuming that his parents had abandoned him or if they were looking for him they would've died because of the sudden heavy storm.

Once fully recovered, Jotaro said that he was from Daevon and that he was lost, that his parents were sure looking for him. The storm was too strong to go looking for them, so they decided to do it once it calmed down. But when they did, they found no one either at the mountains or in Daevon.

By now Jotaro was considered to be an orphan, and therefore became one of the people that saved him, a Witcher, growing up and training to kill monsters around the continent. Since then, Jotaro has never visited Daevon because of the pain of the loss of his parents.

Alexandra from Blaviken

Alexandra is the daughter of the merchant Michael of Blaviken and his housewife Isabella. The night of her birth was one of the many nights Michael and Isabella quarreled, leaving the woman alone at home while the man was hanging around all night doing who knows what.

This time, however, it was the last time to all of this.

That same night happened that there was also an eclipse, making the newborn baby become "cursed by the Black Sun". Michael was one of the strong supporters of this curse, so Isabella knew that if he knew of her birth he would've immediately have the child imprisoned, so she decided to escape, letting only her best friend know of her disappearance.

She found herself wandering in the vicinity of the Buina River when she saw a house, and decided to try to enter in it. Inside was the carpenter Touma who, seeing that she had a baby girl in her arms, didn't hesitate to let her in. Isabella started living in that house and the two fell in love, growing Alexandra together and never returning to Blaviken.

In 17 years Michael had some affairs with several women, including Isabella's widowed best friend, who accidentally mentioned the birth of his daughter during the Black Sun.

Michael threatened to kill her if she didn't tell him where Isabella had gone, and so the scared woman told him everything. Michael decided to pay a bunch of men to get some help, and some time after they found a house on the banks of the Buina River.

They tried to break in, only giving Alexandra time to hide. Once inside, Michael threatened to burn the house down with them inside if they didn't give him his daughter, so Alexandra came out and gave herself to him and his men only to be locked up in a tower. After Alexandra was taken away, the couple's possessions were stolen, causing them to fall into poverty.

How Jotaro and Alexandra met

Two months passed from the imprisonment of Alexandra, now thought dead by her mother and stepfather.

Touma had heard of a kikimora wandering in a nearby swamp and that anyone who killed it would've earned some money. So he decided to carry out this very dangerous mission, ending up badly injured.

He was saved by a man in black armor, killing the kikimora and taking its head. The man put Touma on his horse, also black, and had themselves taken to the house of the wounded man.

Isabella let him in and immediately began to heal her lover's wounds. After that, Isabella also took care of the man who saved Touma's life, exchanging a few words in the meantime. The man said his name was Jotaro and that he was nearby for the same reason as Touma, but now knowing that they were in a bad economic condition he decided to withdraw the money and then give it to the couple.

Isabella and Touma were grateful for his compassion and courage and wanted to repay him with something, but having practically nothing they proposed to him to accept the Law of Surprise.

Jotaro hesitated at first but when he finally agreed, his surprise immediately came bursting from the door. It was Alexandra, wounded and out of breath, who had managed to escape from the tower and the tortures.

Isabella and Touma couldn't believe their eyes, not expecting such an arrival. After a lot of tears of joy, they realized that Alexandra was now destined to leave with Jotaro. Staying with him would have been safer anyway, since not too late the tower guards would've noticed Alexandra's disappearance, and so the next day the two set off on horseback away from Blaviken.

∘₊✧───The Crusaders───✧₊∘

The group formed after about two years from Alexandra and Jotaro's first meeting.

Joseph from Beauclair

Joseph is a famous winemaker in Toussaint, married to the weaver Suzi Q. and they had gone to visit someone at Daevon.

They were riding their horses when they saw in the distance a black horse with on the back a man in a black armor and a young woman with long, dark red hair going in the same direction as they were.

Joseph continued to stare at the man, who, bewildered, accelerated the horse's pace. Before he could leave though, Joseph stopped the man to get a better look at him. His turquoise eyes and thick black hair made him feel like a bond between them had grown tighter.

Joseph asked him if by any chance he had a star-shaped birthmark at the base of his neck, to which Jotaro said yes. Joseph could not believe it, because Jotaro was his grandson that went missing about 22 years ago at the Blue Mountains.

As Jotaro tried to remember who he was, Joseph pulled his horse close to his and hugged him tightly. Jotaro somehow recognized his hug, which he returned with a lighter one; same for his grandmother.

Joseph later told him that he was going to visit his parents, and Jotaro was shocked. He thought they had died in the storm while they were trying to find him.

Joseph in turn was shocked by what his grandson told him, looking forward to having them meet again after a long time. So he took both him and his surprise girl to the Witcher's birthplace, where he reunited with his parents believed to be dead for a long period of time.

Despite this, Jotaro decided to continue his life as a Witcher, with the difference that from that day his grandfather occasionally joined his adventures.

He still has to understand how he finds them every time...

Jean-Pierre from Novigrad

Jean-Pierre is a bard from Novigrad who was always around looking for inspiration for his sung poems.

Sometimes he was alone, while others he followed people who seemed to have interesting lives, taking the nickname "singing barnacle".

Most of the time he was chased away by the latter, being considered annoying and invasive with his excessive talking and wanting to know the business of others.

One day he'd decide to follow a Novigrad guard who patrolled the territory at night on horseback, angering him with his questions. So the guard had a plan: the bard seemed too distracted from speaking to see where he was going, and so he took him away from Novigrad.

Once they had gone far enough, the guard sent the horse off at top speed towards the city and ran away. Jean-Pierre was unable to keep up with him and so he soon found himself alone in the middle of the forest in the dark of night. There were signs indicating the ways to the different castles around, but it was too dark to read the names.

As he wandered around trying to return to Novigrad, he saw the light of a bonfire in the distance accompanied by a female voice.

Jean-Pierre decided to get closer and saw that there were two people around the light source. He was delighted to see someone in that situation, and therefore did not hesitate to join them.

After some uncertainty in sharing their names with the stranger, the two figures presented themselves with the names of Jotaro and Alexandra. The girl was the one who exchanged most of the words with the bard, recounting her past experiences at that time with the Witcher and his fights.

Once dawn broke, all three went to Novigrad and when Jotaro and Alexandra had to leave, Jean-Pierre invited himself into their adventures to transcribe them as songs.

Noriaki from Liddertal and Muhammad from Ofir

Noriaki is originally from Liddertal and from an early age he demonstrated various magical abilities, so his parents enrolled him in the school of magic Gweison Haul.

But when he was tested at the age of 7, he was not deemed capable enough to attend the next years of school, so after teaching him the basic skills he was sent home, with the possibility of being recalled in the future.

Noriaki felt a little down in the dumps after this, as he was very excited to be attending this school. He remained with the hope of being called in the future for many years to his teens, but that invitation never came.

During these years, however, Noriaki became passionate about creating potions, and one day when he was looking for a certain plant, he met another wizard. His name is Muhammad and he came from Ofir. He had attended Hakam Academy boys' school of magic and was a potions enthusiast too, just like Noriaki.

Muhammad was a researcher and therefore traveled frequently, and Noriaki saw this as an opportunity for him. He then spoke to his family about it and, after Muhammad's confirmation, Noriaki became his assistant during their travels.

One day they searched for a Bryonia plant in the Armush Mountains, but were suddenly attacked by a manticore. Being taken aback, Muhammad was wounded and Noriaki had to protect him.

But he wasn't an experienced wizard like him, he was helpless. But luckily both were saved by a small group of people, led by a Witcher. Once the manticore was killed, one of the group members recognized Muhammad's face. It was Joseph, who said he had known him since he came to visit Toussaint some time ago.

After Muhammad recovered, Joseph, knowing that the two traveled everywhere like them, proposed that they join the group. Muhammad and Noriaki agreed, becoming the wizards and alchemists of the group.

Yanyu from Asheberg

Yanyu was born in Asheberg from a poor couple, made up of a human named Dawei and a Dryad named Ah Cy.

She didn't get to know her parents well, as they had to abandon her at a young age. The couple did not have enough money to eat and so they tried to steal something, but they were discovered.

Ah Cy not being human, she already had the hate of Asheberg's civilization against, so when they found out she was trying to steal they didn't hesitate to kill her along with her partner.

The couple tried to escape from the guards, but failed. But before they got caught, they managed to get little Yanyu to safety by having her carried away by the current of the Dyphne River, that connectet to the Pontar River.

Luckily the little girl was picked up by an old woman from White Bridge, who adopted her and raised her safely. Luckily Yanyu didn't have much of a Dryad's traits, apart from the pointy ears that the old lady mistook for an elf's and always told the girl to hide them with a hood.

After 16 years, the old lady died of old age and Yanyu was left alone. She had grown up with the knowledge that she was an elf, so she decided to leave for the south, where tolerance for non-humans was better than that of the north.

She found herself walking through Brokilon Forest, when suddenly an arrow was shot in front of her feet, causing her to fall backwards. From the fall, her hood fell back down revealing her pointy ears.

Whoever had fired that arrow came out into the open, revealing herself to be a green-skinned Dryad, who then brought Yanyu to the others of her kind. The oldest among them explained the origins of Dryads to her and recognized that Yanyu was one too but not from her ears, but from her sweat that smelled of willow leaves.

Yanyu then decided to stick with her fellows, learning various magical skills, until she met the Witcher group. They had gone to Brokilon to pay back one of the Dryads who helped the Witcher in the past, and Yanyu was immediately curious about them. So she decided to leave the forest, secretly following the group.

When they caught her, Yanyu just said that she was interested in what they were doing and that if she could join them.

After some hesitation and suspicion, they gave in and finally the Dryad Yanyu joined the group.

∘₊✧───Map───✧₊∘

I downloaded the map from this reddit , then I simply edited it from my stories :)

└── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──┘

HDJSSNEJSNSKA I have to reblog this because I have one more pic to put, that is their outfits NGNGNGBG

BUT ANYWAY! I really hope you liked it, because MMMM I fell in love with this au, and because as I said this took me 3 whole days to made, but it was very interesting to make all of the researches! I had some difficulties, both with the researches and even with the drawings, but oh well it's done now XDD

Have a nice day/night my dudes, remember to stay hydrated and love yourself ;)💖💖💖

#jjba au #the witcher au #jotaro kujo #alexandra parker #joseph joestar #kakyoin noriaki #jean pierre polnareff #muhammad abdul #yanyu tee #jjba #•🐠's comics•

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quincyhorst · 1 year

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(Scrapped Tweet Thread)

Inspired by my 2022 WC tweets and posts, regarding how similar both keeper looked.

I like to headcanon that while Jean and Ladji have both their left eye covered by hair, the reasons differ between them. Jean's a very stupid reason, but Ladji's one... Is quite serious.

(Note, but this post was meant to have an "adult content warning" for alcoholism in this post just in case; but it apparently made the blog impossible to browse through. Although it isn't severe, I'd still say to proceed with caution.)

Ladji's father is mainly a gardener, but he's also a worker at Vigne du Clos Montmartre, a vineyard located within the parisian neighborhood. Typically the wine harvested gets auctioned off, but he has enough contacts and good relationships for him to get few bottles in secret. He typically keeps it hidden until it's party time, which for him happens like... Every season. In these occasions he likes to invite his friends, play music, and joke around till they all get drunk. But sadly, due to his tendency of drinking too much, the man can get pretty weird in attitude; rambling nonsense, singing loudly, or playing around with objects. However until now, he had done nothing that could endanger his buddies, his wife, or his only son.

...But one day, this wasn't the case.

Typically while these parties happened, Ladji and his mother would go into separate rooms, just not interested on joining. But in that dreaded day, little Lad realized he had left one of his art supplies where the man was partying, so he quickly went to retrieve it. Unfortunately, and perhaps due to fate's cruel hands, his father had gotten drunk too early, and noticing a spider on a wall, he threw an empty wine bottle at it in hopes to kill it. This was just an eccentric choice which could be cleaned up later, but... Unfortunately, as he hadn't noticed the nearby child either, one of the glass' shards fell right into his son's own face.

The child's painful scream was enough to make the old man re-gain his consciousness and he inmediately tried to undo his mistake, attending Ladji alongside his buddies. Unfortunately, the damage was already done.

By a miracle neither of Ladji's eyes were hurt nor any other improtant parts of his face, but he had gained instead a mild scar over one of his eyebrows. It eventually healed away, although on the time it took Ladji couldn't help but feel nervous just by seeing it. So, he let his hair grow in hopes of covering it, even if it meant worsening his own view. Ironically even with the wound gone, Ladji's eye vision would start to decrease either way, so now he had a proper excuse to cover said eye. At least let's look at the bright side; nor scar nor blindness were enough to stop him from making such beautiful art.

But while the physical wound was healed, sadly the incident left an emotional one in Ladji and his father's relationship (Which would get even worse as time went on), even if he has tried to excuse himself with "It was just an accident". At least after discussing it with his wife, his drinking habits decreased, so it will most likely not happen again. Hopefully.

To this day, neither of Ladji's friends know the true reason of his "emo" fringe, and he's better off keeping it that way. But the secret often leaks out in the form of a mysterious nelophobia (fear of glass) he developed post-incident, which does awaken some questions from Pierre or Émile. Who knows if he'll ever open up one day.

----

Now, as for Jean... His unseen eye isn't covered because of an injury, a vision problem, or something similar... He just has a very slight heterochromia. That's it. It has a more blu-ish tone than the visible one (Dark sea green, inherited by mom), something barely noticeable...

Nonetheless, when he was pointed out this by his caregiver, little Jean felt rather embarassed by how uncommon it was. So, he constantly tried to hide it, choosing his fringe as the best method. Fortunately as time went on he came to actually accept his heterochromia, yet... His hairstyle was just too cool to cut it out.

Only said caregiver, his mother, and his friends Nice + Reef know about his other eye color; and soon Quincy will join them as his own curiosity grows further. The public is still unaware about Jean's heterochromia though, but its not like he cares much anyway. In fact, he benefits from having his eye hidden, as he gives it an excuse for people to theorize and gossip about what he could have under that eye. A perfect excuse to growing his fame.

Two things added here:

I wanted to add more characters here but honestly... Justifying why SO many have one eye covered feels rather overwhelming. I'll leave it ambiguous for anyone outside these two unless I have an interesting idea to offer.

...And honestly, sorry if all my Ladji headcanons so far have been pretty grim. He's just like that. But worry not, I've decided to add something more lighthearted for tomorrow :`)

#HC:Ina11 #Big Waves (Ina11)#Rose Griffon #Ladji Paara #Jean Baker

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star-going-supernova · 2 years

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Ilene Chen! I really got a vibe from them in KotM that there was potential for something there. And several fics where Mark is involved in Monarch post-KotM has them as friends and I my little shipper heart just wants MORE.

(continued from this ask) I hope this satiates your shipper heart, friend! I know it’s not much, but I gave it my best shot! Takes place in what is essentially the If You Give a Titan a Brownie ‘verse, tho I’m not sure if this is something I’d add to the official series.

Moving On

Maddie sat in silence for a long few minutes after they broke the news to her, biting at her lip, anxious. Beneath the picnic table, her knee bounced erratically. She kept her eyes on the empty pizza box sitting between her and the two adults on the opposite bench.

Her dad and Aunt Ilene let her process in peace.

They were together. Dating, Dad had said. And—and Maddie wasn’t stupid, okay. He’d explained last year that he and Mom were getting a divorce. She knew there was no way they’d ever get back together, that the three of them would never be a full family the way they’d been when there were four of them.

But that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt to see solid proof of that. That her dad was thoroughly moving on.

And… well. It wasn’t like Mom hadn’t moved on from Maddie already. From both of them. The last time she’d seen her mom—the only time she’d seen her since accidentally running away—still haunted her bad dreams.

Maybe that meant it was okay for Maddie to move on, too. Aunt Ilene being Aunt Ilene—she might even make it easy.

She finally nodded to herself and looked back up at the two of them.

“You all right?” her dad asked, and she could tell he was on the verge of getting up to circle the table to hug her.

As nice as a hug sounded, Maddie couldn’t be entirely sure she wouldn’t start crying if he did, so she nodded again. Taking a deep breath, she tried to shake her melancholy and instead took a page from Uncle Rick’s book to slyly ask, “So you got a crush on Aunt Ilene, huh?”

Aunt Ilene laughed, casting a matching glance at Dad. “Yes, Mark, do you have a crush on me?”

“This is a new record for making me regret something,” he bemoaned, smushing his face into his palm. “In what world is it ever a good idea to tell an elementary schooler your weakness?”

Getting into it, Maddie sang, “Dad and Aunt Ilene, sittin’ in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g!”

Grabbing a handful of grapes from the open tupperware, Dad launched them at her, making her squeal and duck down for safety. She just barely heard Aunt Ilene playfully mutter, “You don’t want any kisses?”

Maddie peeked up over the edge of the table and marveled at her dad’s red cheeks. “Whoa,” she said, “I didn’t know you could blush!”

“Kill me,” she thought she heard him plead into his hands.

Still smiling, Aunt Ilene winked at her, then pulled a ten dollar bill from her purse. “Why don’t you get some ice cream for us all to help your father cool off, hm?” She inclined her head in the direction of a Dippin’ Dots stand at the other end of the park.

“Deal!” Maddie cried, scrambling off the bench. “I know what Dad likes, but what about you?”

“We can share a banana split,” Dad interjected, hunched over like he was begging an uncaring god for freedom from his merciless eight-year-old daughter.

“…two spoons, though, right?” she asked suspiciously. ’Cause otherwise, eww, cooties.

“Yes,” Dad whined.

“Make it a large,” Aunt Ilene added. “For yourself, too.”

Maddie paused. Leaning toward her dad, she loudly whispered, “She’s a keeper.”

She dodged his blind swipe at her, laughing, and ran off across the park.

• • •

Mark waited until his demon of a child was gone before emerging from his despair. Ilene was smiling somewhat smugly at him, and she was a cruel, cruel woman.

“Was that a no on the kisses?” she asked.

He could only be glad Maddie hadn’t continued the song with its second verse, because talking about things like love and marriage and children wasn’t in the cards yet. He might actually have had a heart attack if Maddie had asked about any of those things.

Grumbling, he leaned closer to her and ignored the accursed burn across his face when she kissed his cheek. No way was he chancing Maddie seeing anything more than that.

“I think that went well,” Ilene said, leaning one elbow on the picnic table.

“Yeah,” he agreed. And it had; her quick acceptance was worth poking into later, but for now, he’d be grateful for the lack of tears and/or screaming. “So, that’s the easy one of the way.”

“Ling will be happy for us,” Ilene insisted for the nth time.

Ling already suspected something was up and had been giving Mark the stink-eye for the past week, no matter how much Ilene claimed he was imagining it.

That it was only the past week was a testament to their subterfuge, though. They’d tentatively—officially, for all that it made him sound like a high schooler—started dating two and half weeks ago. It had felt far more natural than Mark had been prepared for. And far better than those last months with Emma.

The sporadic texts and emails with updates about Maddie in the beginning had slowly turned into Mark semi-regularly sharing updates about himself, had turned into frequent small talk, had turned into meaningful discussions, and had ended only when they were living in the same base. Because then the late-night texting became late-night chats in the lounge, the dark ocean shifting shadowy blue tones across each others’ faces. Sitting across a table became sharing the couch.

And then it was all shoulders pressed together, pinkies tentatively brushing, and shy eye-contact.

Forget those last months with Emma. Nothing about his time with Emma had felt like this. She’d been a whirlwind, all perpetual motion, a mind so frantic she could barely contain it. They’d been young, and he had barely known how to take a break himself, so it’d been fun.

But never peaceful. Never this bone-deep contentment.

Mark would never really regret his time with his ex-wife. He regretted the way it ended, but not those bright years they’d been together, burning like a pair of torches ready to blaze a new trail into the world. Certainly not his children, not Maddie and not even Andrew. For all the heartache, he’d never regret any of it.

But he could move on. He could admit that his fire, especially since San Francisco, had settled into a smaller, steadier flame while Emma’s had gone roaring into an inferno. Mark wanted these quiet moments with his daughter, not the hustle and bustle of progress. Emma could dive deeper into the mysteries of the Titans, always searching, always unsatisfied, aways hungry for more. Godzilla as the family pet was more than enough for him.

He peeked over his shoulder to check on Maddie, just in time to see her twist around and point back at them. A woman with a toddler on her hip followed her finger.

Mark raised his arm to wave at the concerned mother. Beside him, as she intertwined their fingers together, Ilene, smiling, did the same.

#i answered a thing #anonymous #godzilla fic #if you give a titan a brownie au #star's stories #life and times of star

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wonderfuldeath · 1 month

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.o| It's a small world : VII |o.

Warnings : Violence, injury, graphic depictions, sex

Please, consider supporting me on Ko-Fi ! ♥

« - Doctor Kim, a patient asks to see you.

- Give me the consultation room, I'll go now.

- Actually... He's in one of the rooms. »

Elyzabeth nonchalantly hands him the patient's file, before turning on her heels to go and take on a new emergency, visibly exhausted from her last shift. With a small shrug of his shoulder, Taehyung ticks all the same when he realizes that said patient is not a child, but obviously an adult accepted for emergency care. A breath passes his lips, wondering who could have asked, before he heads for the rooms on the other side of the building, ready to send the poor person packing. But his blood ran cold when he noticed that the man lying in the hospital bed was actually Min Yoongi, visibly wounded on the side.

« - You're Jimin's friend, aren't you, Yoongi?

- Doctor Kim, I didn't know if you'd come. »

Yoongi tries to sit up straight, but the stabbing pain in his ribs is obviously causing him terrible pain, and he has to take a deep breath before sitting up a little straighter, without moving too much. Running a hand through his hair, Taehyung searches for the cause of the man's hospitalization, before coming to take a seat in front of him.

« - Gunshot wound?

- Wrong place, wrong time.

- What can I do you for? I'm not really in this department. I don't do grown-ups.

- I just wanted to know if you could warn Jimin. He hasn't spoken to me for a week now.

- Warn him that his booty call took a bullet in the ribs? No.

- His booty call? »

Yoongi wrinkles his nose, looking coldly at the doctor who returns his gaze, before looking again at the file and placing it against the foot of the bed, before turning back, rather annoyed at the Min's behavior, joining the exit door without further ado, before having to turn around when he hears the beep of trouble coming directly from a Yoongi who had tried to follow him. An expletive passed Taehyung's lips as he shouted some command to the nurses, forcing Yoongi back against the bed, before administering care to stop the stitches the Min had ripped out.

« - Please, just warn Jimin. He and I need to talk.

- I'll see what I can do. I'm not promising anything, Jimin doesn't listen to me all the time. »

A nod of understanding passes Yoongi by, as he settles down a little better, looking less nervous and calmer, certainly helped by the injection of sedatives to care for him. Calmly, Taehyung sent several messages to his best friend, telling him that Min Yoongi had been hospitalized for a problem, and that he wanted to see him. But before Jimin could respond, Dr. Kim's emergency pager went off, forcing him to get to his ward quickly. He quickly reached the consultation room, where several members of staff were obviously running around like little ants.

« - Taehyung... Taehyung, Kiyeon he has...

- Calm down Jungkook, stay outside, we'll take care of it.

- He'll be all right, won't he? »

Taehyung doesn't answer him, going over to the little medical bed to look at the child who obviously can't breathe, his lips turning blue proving that he's been in respiratory distress for a while now and he's acting in a hurry, ordering things around, finding it hard to concentrate, trying to focus on the child rather than on his lover asking three thousand questions a minute. And when the heart rate shows a flat line on the monitor, Taehyung's voice gets much louder.

« - Get him the hell out of here! »

After what seems like an eternity, at last, Dr. Kim emerges from the room, his gaze cold, closed, as he signs several papers before rejoining Jungkook, who looks like he's about to implode. With a softer look, Taehyung starts the conversation, giving him the papers he needs to sign too.

« - Kiyeon hasn't been hydrating enough, a stone has formed in his artery. It hasn't ruptured yet, but it could at any moment; he needs major surgery soon.

- Yes, all right. Anything for my son.

- I'll ask a colleague to do it, he's the best in the business and has never failed.

- Thank you. Taehyung. »

After Jungkook had signed the papers quickly, Taehyung took out his phone and walked away to tell his friend about the problem. Before smiling at Jungkook, telling him that the operation will take place in an hour by the time he arrives, reluctantly leaving his lover to get back to work quickly.

-x-

« - Are you sure? »

Hoseok looks at the papers in front of him, as if he can't quite make them out, passing the cards to the person in front of him, before looking again at the information before his eyes, remaining silent for several moments before simply running a nervous hand through his hair. He straightened up, pushing the coffee table with his feet, before letting out an expletive, again showing the documents to the man in front of him.

« - Who else knows about this?

- Just the two of us. And probably her too. At least I hope so.

- Well, all right. Perfect. »

Hoseok's handgun rises to take aim at the man in front of him and before he can say anything, the bullet passes between his eyes, killing him instantly. Hoseok simply steps over him, angrily clutching the papers in his hands, before exiting the disused building, heading for the old port. Carefully, he throws the bundles of papers answering all his questions into a can smelling of rust, before setting fire to them and watching the sheets burn away, when he's sure the papers are now illegible. Taking out his telephone, he quickly dials a number, before putting it to his ear.

« - Don't think you're untouchable. Your informant is waiting for you. Don't be late. »

Before hanging up, leaving the scene without even listening to what his interlocutor was saying. Hoseok drove on without really thinking about where he was going, before parking in front of the hospital, watching the people move like puppets, coming and going in a steady rhythm, before the young woman's powdered hair came into view. Visibly exhausted and ready to kill someone. And Hoesok smiled. Jumping out of his car, he quickly joined her, discreetly following her to the empty employee parking lot. When Elyzabeth reaches her car, Hoseok jumps on her, putting his hand against her mouth to stop her screaming, but not pointing any potentially lethal weapon at her. His anger shows in his eyes, and he turns her to look him straight in the eye.

« - Fine, I'll talk, you listen. I know about your little secret, and why you divorced your armored lawyer. No one but you and I know, so let me be clear; from right now I'm a parent to the little one. I want to meet my daughter. You can't say no, or I'll make your life a living hell. Do I make myself clear?

A nod goes up as she tries to breathe calmly, trying not to cry.

- Perfect. I'll pick Lilya up for Kiyeon's birthday this weekend. »

Elyzabeth tries to speak but he doesn't listen, turning his back on the young woman already ready to get back into his car. And when he's out of sight, Elyzabeth lets out an anguished breath and runs a hand through her hair.

« - Kiyeon is hospitalized. »

#bts os #bts #kim taehyung #min yoongi #yoonmin #love #jung hoseok #elyzabeth ivanovich #hoseok x elyzabeth

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thebarefootcajun · 1 year

Text

Marceau Michel, Marcy

He strolled along the bayou kicking an old can of carnation pet milk. A young adult orphan losing his Dad to tuberculosis and just recently his Mom to lung cancer. It was a bloody death for both parents when in the end it appeared that they were spitting out liquid body parts red as blood. He was the only child, barely a young adult at 19. He inherited what his parents had, an old one room lean to shack. Solid as all get up! Made from cedar, it had withstood all major hurricanes without damage or leakage, and during storms the house didn’t budge.

Lest I forget the young adult is Marceau Michel. He goes by the name Marcy. He and his mom were best friends. Her death left him devastated and strolling the bayou prairie lands like a zombie. Marcy had no idea how to continue with life. Pretty much he stayed tethered to his surroundings like he thought maybe his mom would rise from the dead. Marcy had heard stories of a man named Jesus that arose and maybe his mom would, too.

His family had made a living on the land, one acre including the land. Vegetables are what they grew. The only meat they ate was what they hunted on the Cajun Prairie, mostly they ate catfish fished right on the Bayou Tonnerre, thunder, behind their house. There was a storage built up off the ground for root vegetables, onions and garlic, not much more than an enclosed shed. In the event of a more severe winter, the veggies in the shed would sustain Marcy and his mom through the winter, now it would just be Marcy.

Marcy wasn’t sure how to live apart from his mom. It was all he knew. Even in her illness she was what gave Marcy a purpose in life. This day on Bayou Tonnerre, Marcy considered jumping into the middle part of the bayou where the water was deepest and tying large stones around his ankles to sink him to the depths of the bottom of the Tonnerre, but as he was tying up the stones with twine, he had this thought, “Suppose Mom is like Jesus and comes back alive, I’ll miss her. That would be a fate worse than death!”

After that thought, dream, however we want to name it; most were convinced it was divine intervention. God had a plan for Marcy to honor his mom through caring for others as he had cared for him mom.

That night as Marcy lie under the open skies in a marigold garden that he had cultivated.

Marigolds are like bug repellent, and during the day of the 1930’s bug repellent wasn’t widely sold or used. People came up with their own remedies to

fight off mosquitoes. Marcy slept right smack dab in the middle of that orange and yellow garden full of the most beautiful marigold flowers, mosquito free. I can just picture him now, purring gently, under the open skies, no bother from pesky mosquitoes.

During the night after he had that vision from the Lord Marcy had another vision in the form of a dream. Marcy was to be a community helper in supplying what he didn’t need to the elderly, the sick and the homeless. Marcy awoke the next morning feeling a bit lighter and less burdened by his loneliness. He knew exactly what to do.

He set out to assess his garden. Remember that earlier in the story we said he had about an acre including the old lean to shack that was his home. He knew that he could do better with his gardening now that so much of his time didn’t go into the care of his mom. Next he went to the raised cellar for his root vegetables, onions and garlic. Marcy assessed his seeds and roots to decide what he might be able to use.

Refocusing his loss and pain in helping others made a world of difference in this young man’s life. He saw others in need. Marcy knew that helping others was honoring his mom and that made his mission even more special. Very quickly his mission grew, others wanted a part of his glory in sharing with those in need. Caring for others doesn’t fill a void, but that void has time to heal itself while pouring energy into caring, loving projects such as feeding the hungry.

Marcy knew that his mom’s spirit worked right alongside. He understood that she probably wouldn’t rise from the grave, but he understood she was alive in Jesus, the man he’d heard about who had risen from the grave. His mom was alive in spirit, and he’d see her again one day with Jesus.

Why not pour your sorrow and pain in self-service to others. Slowly by giving of yourselves that pain is washed away and you see it through a different lens.

John 15:12, This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.

#pain of loss #Jesus #refocused pain of loss #story about caring #caring through social services

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slut-4rotxo · 1 year

Text

By the waves

🔞‼️Minors do not interact‼️🔞

I feel as though there isn’t enough Roxto in the fan fiction world. He is too cute to not be written about so I have decided that I will change that. Also I have not written anything like this in YEARS so give me some grace while I dust off the old written skills. Also this will be smut with plot and will have SEVERAL parts. Like a book. Will definitely write other Roxto stuff in different stories tho. All characters are aged up and considered adults in the Navi world(except for Tuk she’s still a child)

Characters:Rotxo x omaticaya oc, Roxto, Aonung, Neteyam, Lo’ak, Kiri, Jake, Tuk, Neytiri, Ronal, Tonowari

Synopsis:The Sully family seek uturu in the Metkayina clan. Hoping to find peace for their family after the Humans return to Pandora.

Vineya pov

Honestly I couldn’t remember the last time I wasn’t a Sully. Jake and Neyteri took me in when I was just a little girl. I was already best friends with Kiri since a young age so I’m sure that helped them take me in, instead of being handed off to another Navi family.

Everything is a mess, we’re all having to pack up and flee.Jake hasn’t said anything about where we’re going other than away.

“Hey Vineya are you ready to go?” Kiri pokes her head into my hut.

“Yea just about, is everyone else ready to go?” I reply

“As ready as we can be. I’m pretty Sure lo’ak is trying to get away with not going but the whole reason we’re leaving is so we can be safe” she rolls her eyes at our idiot brother. “Yea regular Lo’ak, you want to head towards their hut now? See if we can hear him getting scolded.” I giggle

We walk towards the main hut that Jake and Neytiri live in. Neither one of us wanting to hurry, just walking slow taking the forest in since this possibly could be the last time we are here. By the time we reach the hut everyone else is outside with the village. They all came to see us off. No one really makes a sound, it’s a somber day for us all. I see Mo’at talking with Neytiri and Tuk. We make our way over to the family. I’ve always liked Mo’at she never treated me any differently from the other Sully’s. I’m just as much one of them in her eyes. The rest of the clan while they treated me nice never treated me like the other Sully’s I guess it’s because they knew my actual parents.

“Alright kids are y’all ready to head out?” Jake looks around

“Yea I guess as ready as we can be” Kiri shrugs.

“I know guys this is less than ideal but we have to do what’s right for us and what’s right for the clan” Jake sighs.

We all say our goodbyes to the clan and hop on our Ikrans. This is going to be a long trip. We fly long into the night as it’s not safe to stop during nightfall. Finally Jake agrees to let us stop for a rest as the sun starts to rise over the mountains. “Alright family meeting before we all take a nap” Jake calls out as soon as he dismounts his Ikran.

“Alright so we’re headed to one of the clans near the ocean. We should be there after another day or so if flying maybe 3 if we really go slow.”Jake says

“But dad why are we going to the ocean we should just stay home” Lo’ak complains.

“Lo’ak you shouldn’t argue with Father over this I’m sure he has his reasons”Neteyam reply’s always the perfect son.

“That’s right Neteyam. Im always looking out for this family. Family is above everything else. I hope y’all remember that.” Jake says as he pats Neteyam on the back.

Me and Kiri just listen to the conversation not wanting to get involved because we both know Jake wants what is best for us even tho we disagree about leaving home. We all settle down into our own little spaces so we can get some sleep. Neytiri and Jake stay up discussing what they should do. We all know that Neytiri is upset about leaving her home but there’s not much she can do about it as she knows it’s for the best of her children.

“Alright kids the eclipse is starting so get up and get ready to fly. I want to get to the ocean soon.” Jake comes around and wakes us all up. I know that they took turns taking watch while we all slept. I can’t help but to feel bad as this isn’t what any of us want. While Neteyam, Lo’ak, Kiri and I all passed out rites of passage and now are considered adults to the Navi people. Jake and Neytiri don’t consider us adults and we’re still their children. I feel bad for them when one of us decide that we want to mate. Even tho that’s the furthest this from our mind at the moment.

Riding though the forest on the Ikrans is such a beautiful experience. I just wish we weren’t doing it for the reason we are. Me and Kiri used to take rides back home but nothing like this and they were usually during day. Jake always had a strict curfew for us kids. Kiri and I have been silent almost the entire time. I think we’re both still in shock over the whole situation. Plus I know that she’s grieving the loss of Spider, I’m pretty sure he’s still alive but who knows at this point. I’m not sure if Kiri liked him back or if it was a one sided crush but everyone knew that he was in love with her. We ride all night up until the sunrise again. This time we only stop for a couple of hours because Jake says that we’re close. I can smell the faint saltwater. So he’s not wrong but it’s still probably a while away we probably won’t arrive till early afternoon. The closer we get to the ocean the more and more of the sun we see. Back home in the dense forest we never really got to see the sunrise and sunset.

Next thing I know we’re flying through a clearing onto a beach. Horns are signaling our arrival as we land on the beach. We’re immediately surrounded by the ocean clan. Kiri grabs my hand and squeezes it, silently telling me that it’ll be okay. They look different than us. While we are tall and slender they are more stocky and stout. They also have a wider tail than we do. A group of boys come up and start laughing while pointing at us. The Olo’eyktan and Tsahìk come from the ocean riding on a flying creature I’ve never seen before. Or at least that’s who I think it is anyways they seem important. They quickly get off the creature and walk up to us, hands on their weapon.

“We mean no harm, we’re here to seek Uturu.” Jake yells out to the olo’eyktan.

“Who are you and where have you come from” the olo’eyktan says

“I am Jake Sully and this is my family, we are from the omaticaya clan.”

“Ah the Jake sully, we’ve heard about you. Why have you come here to bring war to our land!” Olo’eyktan yells back

The tsahìk walk up closer and starts poking at us. Kiris hand is ripped from mine. “They have demon blood. Not even true Navi” she says while holding up Kiri’s and Lo’aks hands. “Listen I’m not hear to bring war to your land. I just want my family safe. We won’t cause problems and we’ll pull our own weight. We’ll learn the way of your people.” Jake pleads. I look over at Neytiri who is holding tuk and surprised to see that her and the Tsahìk are hissing at eachother. Oh boy could this get any worse. “Ronal back off. They don’t mean any harm. I’m Tonowari the Olo’eyktan and that’s my Tsahìk Ronal. Since you say you are not bringing war and only want the safety of your family. We will grant you Uturu. You will learn the way of our people. My children Aonung and Tsireya teach your children. We will show you to a marui that you will stay in.” Tonowari decides

Everything happened so fast, next thing you know we’re walking across the beach towards a floating structure. Well it’s not floating it’s just built on top of some tree roots.

“This is the marui you will be staying in. I hope you like it, be up early tomorrow for your lessons. See you in the morning” Tonowari says then walks away.

“Alright kids let’s get settled in. I know this is all new and difficult but please be on your best behavior here. Mostly talking to you,Lo’ak.”Jake says has he settles in the middle of the marui.

“Why do you think that I’m gonna be causing trouble it could always be Vineya!” Lo’ak argues. He has a fair point, I get in trouble as well just not as much as he does.

“Way to call me out dude.” I say

“Lo’ak we ALL know that you get into the most trouble” Kiri speaks up

“Oh what is this everyone against Lo’ak day!” He exclaims

“ now now let’s not fight we just got here. I would like to get everything settled before we eat” Neytiri speaks

Since Neytiri spoke we all started putting our stuff away into our own spots that we choose in the marui. Once Neytiri speaks there nothing else to do but listen, what she says goes. We all settle down and eat before heading to bed since we’ve had a long couple of days.

Once everyone is asleep I sneak out of the marui to go to the beach. I’ve never seen a beach before so I want to explore before the others do tomorrow. I step outside and immediately feel that the sand is a lot cooler than it was when I arrived. Wiggling my toes in the sand before walking further down the beach away from the marui. The marui that was chosen for us a little bit away from the others. Seeing other marui’s in the distance and wonder how many people live here. I stay away from the marui closet to us as I don’t want to get caught. I feel that the sand is damp now meaning that I’m getting closer to the water. Not wanting to go in the water I decide that I’m close enough and sit down in the damp sand. Looking out at the ocean I see a variety of colors under the water. Bioluminescent plants or corals peaking out from the dark water. I look at the sand around me to see if there’s anything around me and spot a shell a little ways off. I stand up and start heading towards to shell. I hear footsteps behind me and before I can even turn around I’m shoved to the ground. A chorus of laughs break out as I hit the group.

“Wow I guess they really are fragile” a boy laughs. I spit out some sand and stand up

“what is your problem” I hiss

“ you and your family are a bunch freaks. You don’t even belong here.” He spits

“We JUST got here. Not even a full day yet. We’ve caused no problems for you”I say

“Didn’t even deny that y’all are freaks” one of the other boys say

“Just because we don’t look like you does not mean we are freaks!” I say

“You know what I think we’re gonna start YOUR lesson early. Since obviously you dont know manners”the one with a bun says

Three out of the Four boys come charging at me but before they reach me the other boy stands in front of me. “Come on guys it’s late, didn’t they teach you not to hit a girl.” He says

“Ugh come on Roxto, why are you taking up for the freaks” the boy with a bun says

“It’s not right, it’s her first day here and she wasn’t doing anything wrong until you came and pushed her Aonung. Just let it be.” The boy I now know as Roxto says

“Aonung? The Olo’eyktan son!?” I whisper. I thought he was going to be nice since he has a reputation to uphold for his father.

“Fine! Just wait until one you slip up. You don’t belong here freak!” Aonung says then turns and leave with the other boys.

Roxto stays behind as soon as they are far enough away he turn and asks me “are you okay? I’m sorry about them! Aonung just has a big ego to uphold.”

“Yea I’m okay, you didn’t have to do that. I could’ve handled it. I don’t want you getting into fights with your friends over someone you don’t know” I sigh

“It’s not right what they did, I would hardly call the other two my friends. Aonung isn’t all that bad when you get to know him. He just doesn’t like change.” Roxto sighs and scratches the back of his neck. A nervous habit I’m guessing.

“I get that, I don’t understand how he thinks that we WANT to be here. We didn’t WANT to leave our home. We didn’t WANT to have to come here. But we did. And there’s no changing that now. How does he think it’s okay to call other people freaks when they don’t look like him!” I exclaimed quietly because people are still asleep

“If it counts for anything I don’t think you’re a freak. I’m Roxto by the way, it’s nice to meet you.” He says shyly

“I’m Vineya, it’s nice to meet you Roxto. It’s probably time for me to head back as I have a long day as I’m sure you do too. See you around, Roxto.” I say waving goodbye and back to my family’s marui.

If it was any brighter out I would’ve noticed that his cheeks were a shade of purple. Showing just how shy he actually is.

The next morning I wake up just when the suns are coming up. I quickly get up and run outside so I can see the sunrise. The first one ever. When I step out on the sand I’m awestruck, the sky is a beautiful arrangement of pinks, oranges, and blues.

“Wow” I whisper

“Wow is right kid. Now are you gonna tell me where you snuck out too last night?” I hear Jake day from behind me

Sheepishly I turn around and say “I didn’t think it was going to be a big deal. How did you find out?”

“The lovely couple a few marui’s down heard a ruckus last night and saw that the Olo’eyktan son and friends were picking on you. They came to me this morning when I got up to see the Olo’eyktan early.” He says

“Oh, are you mad?” I ask

“Not at you Vineya, not at you. However I will see that those boys are dealt with later.” Jake sternly says

“Jake it’s not that serious. I can handle it, no different than back home” I sigh

“I hate how you never tell me things till it’s too late. You are one of us and you should be treated as such.” He growls

“It’s fine Jake. I’m a big girl now, heck an Adult back at home. Plus it doesn’t matter anymore. Just let it rest.” I say

Jake sighs and the motions for me to go back to marui. I look at the sunrise one last time seeing some boats on the ocean before turning and heading to the marui. Stepping inside I see everyone else is up getting ready.

“ Goodmorning Vineya!” Kiri announces bouncing her way over.

“Are you excited for today!” I ask her

“Well duh I get to meet new people today!” Kiri explained. Ah classic Kiri always the people person.

I laugh and go over to Neytiri “Goodmorning! You need any help preparing morning meal?” I ask

“Goodmorning my child, no not this morning it’s pretty simple till we go eat with this clan” she replies shaking her head. I nod and go back over to my spot making sure I look presentable and nothing is hanging out that shouldn’t be. While most female Navi in the clan back home are flat chested I am not. Now I’m not saying I have the biggest in the world but I have more than enough and people take notice of that. It was one of the main things I got made fun of back home. The girls were ruthless when I started to develop and they hadn’t or even when they had developed and I was still developing. I had to make my own tops because the weavers never made them quite right where everything is covered. Other Navi doesn’t mind to have a good bit of skin showing but in my case it has only ever caused me problems.

After adjusting my clothes I join the family in the main part of the marui.

“Alright kids first day of training. Behave and don’t cause trouble I really want to be able to get along here. Me and your mother will be with the Olo’eyktan and Tsahìk while you all will be with their children. I think that since it’s 5 of you kids they might have another warrior helping out since they only have 2.”Jake says looking around at each of us. We all agree to be on our best behavior and start heading out the marui.

Ending it here! Next part will be out soon! I will try to figure out how to link the next part when it’s out! Hope y’all like it!

#roxto x oc #avatar #anoung #atwow rotxo #fluff #smut

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beaumont-ague · 2 years

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V, A, N, G, O - 2, 5, 7, 10, 13, 20, 24

V - Visionary - Do they have a plan for their future? How imaginative or creative are they? Do they have vivid dreams?

Toulouse is in school to focus on his abilities as an artist and to find his creative purpose. He wants to be a famous painter one day, but he is often self conscious about his work and doesn’t think people will understand or appreciate it as much as he does. Toulouse has always been incredibly imaginable, and his dreams are almost always vivid and clear.

A - Advocate - How do they show their support for others? Are there any causes that they publicly support? Why?

One of the best parts about having Toulouse as a friend is that he is incredibly loyal and down for those he cares about. He will always drop what he’s doing to help a friend in need, or make sure that others can always depend on him. Toulouse is definitely a proud member and supporter of the LGBTQ+ community, but also tries to get involved in things that he or his friends care about. He helped Charlie build a campus club based solely on the other’s interest in aliens and space exploration. He will always support his friends and try to hype them up as much as possible.

N - Navigator - What’s their sense of direction like? Do they have a set path in life that they’re planning on following? What do they do if they’re knocked off course?

It might seem like Toulouse is a very go-with-the-flow kind of person, but that was something he had to (and still does have to) work hard at. Because he has ADHD, Toulouse often struggles to stay on task and finish things through. He also will bounce from thought to thought, action to action, etc if he can’t focus his mind. He has a great natural sense of direction as far as navigating physically, but mentally he struggles a lot. It takes a toll on him whenever he gets too distracted or thrown off. However, due to past trauma, Toulouse made sure that he would never allow himself to physically get lost ever again, which comes in handy when meeting new townsfolk who get a bit confused in the hustle and bustle.

G - Growing - How have they changed over time? How has their self-image changed? Are they more or less of a risk-taker? Has their approach to romance changed?

Toulouse went from an insecure young child who always tried to prove himself and his self worth to an adult who tries not to let things bother him as much anymore. Growing up, Toulouse didn’t have a lot of friends and was always getting into fights with some of his school mates. Most of them were verbal disagreements, but he did have a few minor physical altercations. However, after maturing and moving past those insecurities, Toulouse is much more calm and rational now. For the most part, anyway. He gained a lot more confidence as the years went on, and became less afraid of taking risks. Quite literally, he reached a point where he just said fuck it, why not? Romance was never something he took too seriously when younger. He grew up having a severe aversion toward men based on his family situation, and didn’t have many examples of loving relationships to look at. He knew what love was supposed to feel like, from his siblings and family, but romantically? That didn’t happen until much later. He became a wild flirt the older he got, but loved the attention more than maintaining a relationship. It wasn’t until he met Rachel that Toulouse finally felt that he understood what a romantic relationship was supposed to feel like.

O - Organizer - How organized are they? Do they have any unusual organization systems? What would cause them to be uncharacteristically (dis-)organized?

Toulouse practices what he likes to call “organized chaos”. He is not organized in the slightest. If you looked at his room, you would find bits of things everywhere. A science notebook beside the bed, history notebook on the window sill, all of his painting supplies scattered throughout... Nothing would seem to be in place to any average person. However, Toulouse always knows where everything is. One time, his grandmother moved a belonging of his thinking that she was being helpful. However, Toulouse couldn’t find the item for almost a week, because it wasn’t where he left it.

2. what is your muse’s favorite joke?

Why are most artists struggling with finances? Because they have no Monet.

5. what does self-care look like to your muse?

Self care for Toulouse would probably be taking a break from the world and just sitting alone either sketching or playing guitar. He also loves to just take naps and listen to podcasts.

7. what would your muse consider a perfect day?

Any time that he got to spend quality time with his friends doing something they enjoy. He’s not picky, but if you know his favorite things, that’s perfect enough.

10. who does your muse consider their best/closet friend?

Rachel and Charlie, hands down. He’s also quite fond of Tina, though he won’t exactly admit that out loud.

13. what would your muse consider their best physical feature?

His smile.

20. what is a way that your muse shows love and affection without words?

PHYSICAL TOUCH. He’s a slut sucker for physical touch, both giving and receiving. He will also go out of his way to plan special things or give someone a gift.

24. what is your muse’s favorite animal? have they ever gotten to see one in person?

Toulouse likes all sorts of cats. Big cats, particularly, but house cats are nice too. He loves visiting the zoo to see the lions, cheetahs, jaguars, etc.

#mental health tw #neurodivergent tw #;memes;#answered

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the-lone-witch-and-secret-room · 3 years

Text

Camila Noceda and Flawed Parenting

A perspective by a flawed person with loving but extremely flawed parents

I’m genuinely baffled at some people’s hostile reaction towards Camila. Like… do any of you have flawless parents that always know the best solution instantly, make no mistakes and never get emotional?

My parents are great. They’re super supportive and I love them very, very much. Overall I think I got very lucky in the parents department.

But god, they are far from flawless. I still live at home, and despite all the good, there’s moments when I can’t take my dad anymore. He’s the kind of dad that stayed up until two am to help me with homework when I was in school, and he does so, so many things to make sure I’m happy. I know that. But despite all of this, I have told my mom in emotional moments before that I’m not sure if I can keep living with him, because for all his good sides, he has a couple of fatal flaws that sometimes make him unbearable.

My mom listens to me and is very open to being educated on certain topics, but she has her flaws, too. She hates when I fight with my dad, and gets so torn up about it that I’ve once apologized to my dad out of fear of her getting into a car crash otherwise. She’s very vocal about certain flaws of mine, and sometimes uses the things she does for me as leverage against me when she gets very emotional.

And both of my parents pay a lot more attention to my brother because he needs it more, because he’s more of a “problem child” while I “seem so capable” even when I’m not.

And guess what? I’m not a perfect child. I make mistakes sometimes, some of them pretty severe. Just like Luz, I’m the kind of person that struggles to communicate certain issues of mine to her parents. I’m stubborn, and when I get emotional, I say very hurtful things sometimes. So do they.

And this has nothing to do with my parents being horrible or abusive. They’re neither of those things.

The takeaway from this should not be that my entire family is made up of terrible people, but that we’re all flawed in our own ways, despite loving each other and trying our best. There’s things about my parents I wish I could change, and there are things about me that my parents wish they could change. And to an extent, that’s perfectly normal.

In our strengths and flaws and frustration with each other, we’re all human.

Specific, spoiler-y Camila and Luz things under the cut since this got very long.

We have no indication that Camila has a pattern of emotionally manipulating Luz. Her “emotional manipulation” as I’ve seen some people put it, is people for some reason thinking that the second you become an adult, you’re suddenly perfect and can no longer make mistakes, lest you’ll be dubbed horrible and abusive.

The whole concept is absurd to me. There is no perfect way to parent. There simply isn’t. Of course, there’s some genuinely abusive patterns that are horrible and inexcusable. But out of the parenting styles that aren’t, which one works depends on a number of factors, one of which absolutely includes that every child is different and has different needs. Camila is an amazing parent for Vee, giving the kid everything she’s ever longed for. She’s not an ideal parent for Luz. And that’s because Luz and Vee have fundamentally different needs.

Likewise, Luz is a pretty great child for Eda, but not a perfect fit for Camila. Luz relates to Eda a lot more than she relates to her mom, and that’s why the two of them have an easier time understanding each other. Both of these mother-child relationships exist, and one is not more doomed to fail than the other, but I think you’ll agree that the better you understand someone and where they’re coming from, the easier it is to communicate, pick up on certain signs, etc.

As mom and daughter, Camila and Luz are both flawed and have issues seeing the other’s perspective because of how different they are. And we should simultaneously acknowledge both of their roles in the issue and give both of them the space to learn and grow past those issues.

Luz struggles to communicate her problems. She doesn’t want to burden people in the demon realm, and it’s a given that this started out as not wanting to burden her mom. So she keeps quiet about her issues. Camila tries hard but can’t read her daughter’s mind, so there’s only so much she can do to understand and help the way Luz needs her to. Hell, Eda, who Luz is a lot more open with than her mom, struggles to help her, because Luz doesn’t tell her what’s wrong. I don’t see anyone calling Eda a terrible mom for that.

Camila tries her best, but she struggles to understand her daughter because of this, and because of how fundamentally different they are. She loves Luz’s creativity, we actively see her supporting it in the new episode—she keeps the weird stuff Luz made because she thinks Luz will regret throwing it away, and even plays along in what she assumes to be some elaborate role play because “she’s glad Luz kept her creativity even though it’s not made things easy for her at school”. But at the beginning of the show, said creativity got out of hand and people got hurt. Luz could’ve gotten hurt. So of course Camila had to interfere. I love Luz dearly, but she thought it was okay to bring snakes to school and set off fireworks inside a school building. Creativity is great. Doing reckless stuff that causes people to get hurt is not.

In sending Luz to camp, Camila tried to have someone else fix her issue because she didn’t know how to help Luz. That was a mistake, and a bad one at that, but she’s realizing that. She looks disheartened when Vee tries to throw out Luz’s stuff, because she never meant to change her daughter or take that part of her away. She just thought Luz needed a reality check—which, for the record, is something the narrative actually agrees with.

Luz spends her time in the demon realm getting reality check after reality check, realizing that even her ideal fantasy world where she has everything she always wanted doesn’t mean she’s free of consequences. She goes overboard constantly, causing:

-Eda to be forced to fly into a trap because Luz is chasing a fantasy (Witches before Wizards)

-Eda to almost be branded by her sister because Luz doesn’t think through why Eda doesn’t use magic to publicly announce her presence constantly (Once Upon a Swap)

-Eda and the twins to get kidnapped by a Slitherbeast because Luz stole Amity’s wand (Adventures in the Elements)

-Her friends to get hurt when she goes overboard trying to help Willow (Wing it like Witches)

-Eda to be captured and almost petrified because Luz thought she could just steal from the Emperor with no consequences in an attempt to help (Agony of a Witch)

I’m like 90% sure these aren’t even all. None of those make her a terrible person, for the record, but as all humans are, she is flawed and makes bad choices. She learns from these experiences and matures, just like her mom had hoped she would at camp. She’s also made friends there, which was another thing Camila wanted for her daughter.

You’ll probably realize that a lot of Luz’s behaviors I mentioned follow one of two patterns: 1. Luz’s idealized fantasy world causing problems, when she walks around with rose tinted glasses and gets people in trouble in the process because she hasn’t thought about the consequences, and 2. Luz trying to help someone she loves, but instead making things worse in the progress. The issue with this one is often that she doesn’t communicate her ideas/listen to the people she’s trying to help—like when Willow and Gus said they’ve had enough of Grudgby, or how she never actually talks to Eda about the healing hat idea before doing something reckless.

…does the latter one sound familiar to you at all? No? Because it’s the exact same thing that Camila did.

Some of the things Luz does are reckless and actively endanger others and herself, and that’s something that I think we need to acknowledge before judging Camila. As Luz’s mom, it’s Camila’s job to interfere in those situations. That she made a mistake while trying to protect Luz doesn’t make her a terrible person, especially as, again, the narrative proves her right to an extent.

I’m not saying her making Luz promise to come back and stay isn’t something that hurt Luz—it absolutely is. But it was born out of desperation. She’s emotional and in shock. She’s so full of pain and regret. She just wants her fourteen year old daughter home safe, and there’s nothing abusive or even morally ambiguous about that.

From Luz’s perspective, what she says is absolutely heartbreaking, but from Camila’s, it’s perfectly reasonable. I doubt Camila has the full picture, but even if she does, she’s had a full fifteen seconds to process that her daughter has not only been lying to her for months, but chose to leave her, and is in the demon realm of all places. Of course she’d be emotional and upset about that! Who wouldn’t? Camila isn’t a robot. If she’d been calm about this I’d be way more concerned, honestly.

My parents don’t get mad that easily, but if I would lie to them for weeks on end, they’d be pissed off too, not even taking the running away from home part into account. That’s a normal thing. People don’t like being lied to. Camila is absolutely devastated in that moment because she’s scared that Luz left because she hates her, when Luz actively states that her leaving wasn’t about her mom—which is another thing we should really be acknowledging.

Abusive parents suck and abuse should obviously never be apologized or trivialized, but saying something hurtful in the heat of the moment isn’t the same thing as being an abusive parent. My parents have done this. I’ve done this. And yes, those things can be emotionally manipulative, but there’s a huge difference in whether that’s a habit or a person speaking out of hurt and desperation in a very specific context. I doubt there’s anyone on the entire planet that hasn’t had a bad moment where they’ve said something like this because they were hurting. People lash out when they hurt, and they beg for reassurance when they’re scared. That’s something we all do.

The whole mindset of “all parents have to be perfect and can never get upset or make any mistakes” is harmful as hell, and honestly also very unrealistic. No parent is perfect, and especially people like me who have a relationship with their parents that’s very good overall should know that.

Once you have a child, parenting is a non-stop learning process, every day for the rest of your life. Taking away that room to grow and expecting perfection isn’t helping anyone, especially not struggling single parents.

And I see Camila as someone who is very willing to learn, because at the end of the day, all she wants is for Luz to be happy. Let’s give her some time to wrap her head around this whole situation. Let’s see what she says once she sees for herself how happy Luz is in that world, may it be via the videos eventually coming through or Camila visiting and meeting Luz’s found family, her friends and her girlfriend.

Ultimately, I don’t think Camila will force Luz to stay at home, but we have to give her some time. She wants what’s best for Luz, and she’s gonna need some convincing that a dangerous magical world is what’s best. I feel like that’s very normal considering the circumstances.

Her and Luz need to work on their communication on both ends, they both have things to learn, but I’m certain they’ll manage to fix their relationship in the long run.

If the bunk bed is any indication, I think Vee is gonna stay in the human realm permanently while Luz sleeps at home but keeps attending Hexside in the daytime. That feels like a solution that keeps everyone happy, and allows Luz to spend time with all the people she loves. I can’t see her being forced to choose at the end.

As a closing statement: Eda isn’t an ideal mom, Amity isn’t an ideal friend or girlfriend and neither is Luz, Lilith isn’t an ideal sister… but that’s because no one is ever an ideal anything. Being flawed is a big part of being human. Everyone has different facets to their personality. Their flaws are what makes them such great, relatable, believable characters.

And I feel the same way about Camila. She’s an extremely believable character that reminds me of my own parents, flawed but very loving nonetheless.

(Also honestly, I think it’s pretty telling that some of you guys immediately bash the black single mom that’s obviously trying her hardest while giving the benefit of the doubt to Alador, who has been portrayed as neglecting and threatened his six year old daughter on screen. This was already a thing before we knew much about either of them, and I’m disappointed but unfortunately not very surprised that it still is.)

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phoenixyfriend · 3 years

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Commander Buir

Follow-up to this post. Not in any particular order, just spitballing ideas, with contributions from several friends on discord.

Like presumably it takes long enough for them all to meet up again that Anakin and Cody do, in fact, end up treating each other like family, just so I can have that good good "well, guess I'm Dad now" energy. Shmi isn't entirely sure what's going on but she's not a slave anymore and her kid seems to like this rando mando, so.

Anakin gets to have a mom and two dads, though one of the dads is arguably younger than him.

Also when they all meet up again and Cody explains the "General Skywalker got shrunk" thing, there are three reactions: (General) Obi-Wan: Oh, Anakin. Obi-Wan: [gestures to take him, ends up with an armful of clingy padatoddler] Anakin: You can't blame this on me, Obi. Obi-Wan, a little teary, because babies cause emotions: Of course I can, you absurd human being. ------ Rex: That's... my general. Anakin: I am, Captain. Rex: Cool cool cool I'm gonna go stand where I can't, uh, break you. Anakin: I'm not THAT fragile! ------ Ahsoka: [gasp] Skyguy is SKYKID! Anakin: Padawan, this is-- Ahsoka, grabbing him and cuddling: Oh my goodness you're adorable this is the best day ever. Anakin: This is humiliating, Snips, put me down. Ahsoka: Never.

Anakin hates being a toddler because of the lack of independence but Cody keeps picking him up when he's cranky and just holding him until he falls asleep and that's... nice.......

- The brain limitations aren't quite as bad as the situation with Sokanth and Ylliben in the other AU, but - Even if his brain is mostly adjusted he’s still got a tiny body with different needs that he’s not used to. Like, he needs to sleep more but he’s got more energy than usual when he’s awake and it’s all weird.

Cody carrying around toddler Anakin like "God you give me ulcers but you're adorable, you little shit."

Inconveniently tiny body aside, Anakin has a pretty great time in this au. His family are all together and safe and within reach. His wife isn't around, but toddler brain means he doesn't have the Romance Drive, so that's not as bad as it could be It could be significantly worse.

@atagotiak asked: Does Anakin get annoyed about being called cute? - To which I say, He bites the first few times but Shmi tells him that's Naughty so he stops. - Babies are cute so you packbond with them before they’re annoying, Anakin is cute as a self defense mechanism - He’s extra annoying so he needs to be extra cute

You know how you need to keep an eye on toddlers so they don't, like, fall down the stairs or put something toxic in their mouth? - They need to keep an eye on Anakin specifically so he doesn't rewire the ship they're in while they're in hyperspace. - He has less self control on account of being smol. He still has all the mechanical knowledge! Just less comprehension of y’know, consequences.

Anakin, with a sippy cup: This is demeaning. Ahsoka: Your hands don't work great enough to avoid accidents yet. Anakin: It's still embarrassing.

General Kenobi can't just kill Maul, not when Maul is baby right now (sixteen, which is baby enough) so he just. Kinda. Kidnaps a baby Sith. (It's fine. He's fine.)

General Kenobi (not to be confused with Padawan Kenobi) decides to declare Maul his new padawan because someone has to deal with this teenager, and Plo already claimed the rest of Ahsoka's training. And Anakin's three, so.

"What do we do with Maul?" "Eh, I can handle him. I dealt with teenage Anakin getting arrested for illegal pod-racing twice a month, I can work with this."

Maul bites, but only slightly more often than Anakin, it's fine

Ahsoka definitely bullies Maul whenever possible

Consider: Rex holding very still because Anakin wanted to be tall, so he climbed Rex. Being unexpectedly climbed is better than being unexpectedly yeeted. It's still extremely nerve-wracking. - Cody is perfectly capable of running around with a backpacking toddler General, but Rex freezes like a statue. - Ahsoka finds this hilarious

You know how little kids like to be thrown around and swung in circles and stuff like that? This must get even more ridiculous with force users. Can throw a child real high and catch them safely. - Rex panics whenever Ahsoka throws her chibified Master

Literally everyone except Rex loves being yeeted. Even Maul can appreciate a good tactical yeet no shut up he's not having fun this is TRAINING - Rex is Suffering - Cody, a very Tired Dad, deserves to mock his vod'ika a little, as stress relief - Rex, a certified Little Brother, shoves Cody off something tall. Jokes on him, Cody thinks freefall is fun too.

Tia asked: So the people who didn’t exist yet got flung bodily back in time and Anakin did the mental time travel. Why did Obi-Wan not become Padawan Kenobi? (I mean “because I want it that way” is def a good enough answer I’m just wondering if there’s any reason.) - Which, well, it really was mostly "I want to" but here's two options, both of which come down to Blame Daughter and Father. 1. They figured a responsible adult Jedi Master was needed to convince people. 2. Nobody was supposed to get de-aged but Daughter figured they needed to make Anakin less liable to kill things for a few years. - Also IDK the Force God-Manifestations also took away any risk of rapid aging and early death from the clones because uhhhhhhhhhhh I said so

Rex and Ahsoka are fumbling their way through a relationship where ages are just really confusing and awkward, so they're keeping it to just kisses and cuddles for a bit.

Cody is so tired he doesn't even realize anyone's hitting on him until it's been three years of co-parenting with Shmi and his General. - Somehow Anakin knows Cody is in a relationship before Cody does. Cody has never been so embarrassed. - How did he manage to be less observant than Skywalker? -- it was sabotage; all his brain cells were taken up in managing said Skywalker -- Because Skywalker was up at three in the morning whacking a training droid with a stick so he didn't have the energy for Relationships

Also Shmi's come-ons are super subtle, while the General's are... well, Cody's gotten very used to ignoring anything ambiguous on that end because fraternization rules, and also because Obi-Wan flirts a lot with everyone. So.

Please imagine Cody and General Kenobi walking around with Anakin tucked into a toddler sling while they do whatever work they've ended up with at the Temple. - Yes, Cody is helping the Jedi figure out the best plan of attack to take down this slave ring because his grasp on tactics is phenomenal and he knows how to deploy people at greatest efficiency, but also he's got a nosy toddler on his hip who keeps offering his own insane-but-competent ideas. - General Kenobi ends up with a Council Seat just on account of, like, being the kind of person he is. As often as not, he's got Anakin tucked into his robes, chewing on the ear of a stuffed tooka or something.

IDK what Shmi's doing but apparently Legends had it that some of the administrative and support positions in the Temple were held by non-Jedi civilians? So probably something like that.

GENERAL KENOBI LECTURING PADAWAN MAUL WHILE ANAKIN'S BALANCED ON HIS HIP AND GLARING AT MAUL FOR STEALING HIS DAD

General Kenobi: Ahsoka's babysitting. Anakin: I'm her master, I don't need babysitting, this is-- General Kenobi: Fine, then you need supervision, so that you don't blow up a training salle again. Anakin: And you think Ahsoka would stop me? General Kenobi, eye twitching: Fine, I'm leaving you with Plo.

Even if he’s mentally an adult Anakin always needs supervision Look at canon! Anakin was left without supervision for like two days and he became a Sith

Quinlan gets distracted by how attractive General Kenobi is and tells Obi-Wan "dude, you're gonna be so hot once you can get rid of the stupid haircut" and Obi-Wan pushes him into the nearest pond.

They end up with this weird "Uncle Jango" situation (uncle to Anakin, via weird brotherhood-ish to Cody) because Rex and Cody are just like "Uhhhhhhhhh yeah okay" about him eventually, and Jango just like. Drops by. Trying to Earn Affection Of Blood Kin by bringing weird gifts for them and their (ugh) Jedi.

"Okay, Rex'ika, I stopped by Shili--" "What?" "--and apparently this is a delicacy there, so just... your girlfriend will like it." "She's not my girlfriend." "..." "Okay, I can't call her my girlfriend. Jedi have rules about that sort of thing, and--" "This will make your Jedi happy, probably. Just take it, kid."

Baby Anakin got his arm back but for some inexplicable reason still has The Eye Scar. He matches Buir.

#disaster lineage #Anakin Skywalker #CodyWan #Commander Cody #Obi Wan Kenobi #Ahsoka Tano #Captain Rex #Shmi Skywalker #Maul #Darth Maul #Rexsoka #time travel #de aging #baby characters #Quinlan Vos #Phoenix Posts #Commander Buir

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kohanayaki · 3 years

Text

.:Time And Time Again:. (Marauders Era x Reader) Ch 1

Old habits die hard— and so do feelings, apparently. Relive moments high and low from your life with the Marauders and co. as you tell your godson, Harry, about all the mischief you got up to back in your school days. Takes place mainly in the Marauders era but also has content congruent with the Order of the Phoenix timeline, with some cannon divergence, of course~

- Main pairings: Sirius Black x Reader, Severus Snape x Reader, James Potter x Reader, Remus Lupin x Reader, slight Regulus Black x Reader, and a bunch of friendships! Gender neutral pronouns :)

LINKS: CH 1 CH 2 CH 3 CH 4 CH 5 CH 6 CH 7 CH 8

____________________________________________________________

Ch 1 .:Memories And First Meetings:.

12 Grimmauld Place was cold.

Not in the temperature sense of the word, especially in the heat of London summer, but something about it felt distant. Perhaps it was the cookie cutter exterior, dreadfully drab, although you knew its true nature was anything but. Despite its grandeur, the interior was as ornate as it was dull and unsaturated, like a black and white photograph in all its monochromatic glory. Maybe it was the fact that you knew what had happened here in the past, or the fact that you knew who was waiting here for you in the present.

You felt the strange sensation of stepping through the thick blanket of protection charms surrounding the house, as if your body were moving through molasses for a fraction of a second. The moment you were fully inside, you began to hear the hushed bits of a conversation echoing through the entrance hall from the dining room whose door was slightly ajar. The words became clearer as you neared the door.

“Harry's not ready! Have you gone completely mad?”

You found yourself grinning at the first voice, Molly Weasley's stern tone unmistakable.

“He's not a child, Molly.”

You froze as you heard the second one; you'd know it anywhere.

A heavy wave of emotion surged through you as you got near enough to the entrance to see the face of Sirius Black through the gap in the door. His time in Azkaban had taken a toll on him, you could tell. Heavy bags hung from his face, his cheeks hollow; although his gray eyes still held that spark in them. His hair was longer, somehow even more wild and unruly than before, but it suited him.

“Well he's not an adult either! He's not James.”

You caught a flash of ginger as Molly crossed the room, using her wand to aggressively clear away the plates on the table as she made her point.

“I know he isn't, but he can handle himself,” Sirius said, “and I'll be there to protect him.”

“How touching, Black. Perhaps the boy will grow up to be a felon just like his godfather.”

Your stomach dropped at the third voice. Shit.

Your presence remained unannounced, but as you peaked your head around the corner of the door frame you were met with Severus' stoic face, an imperceptible crease of distaste in his brow as he regarded Sirius. As your view widened you saw that Lupin sat to his left, a human wall between the two former foes.

You stilled at the door, taking a deep breath in an attempt to settle your irrationally rioting nerves. It's not as if you didn't know they would be there, but it had been so long since you'd seen any of them. So much has changed. . .

“You stay out of this, Snivelus. I don't care what Dumbledore has to say about your supposed reformation, but I know better.”

“Don't you have to go play fetch elsewhere?”

“Oh come on, you two,” Remus sighed.

Well, maybe not much has changed after all.

“Still resorting to playground bickering, are we?”

Several heads snapped in your direction at your words, and you were met with various reactions. Molly's face immediately split into a smile and she rushed around to table to greet you.

“(Y/n), dear! So nice to see you again,” she pulled you into a surprisingly strong hug and you couldn't help but join in her laughter.

“It's good to be back,” you admitted, “Charlie says hello, by the way.”

“Oh, I'm going to give give that boy a talking to,” Molly huffed, “you aren't his owl, dear. The least he could do is write home and say so himself.”

“Romanian mountain ranges keep a wizard busy,” you grinned, “He says he tries to keep in touch.”

“Sending home a bag of petrified dragon scales with a note that says 'look at this!!' is hardly keeping in touch,” she retorted, fussing about with your jacket's collar that had become wrinkled from her embrace.

Even from across the table you could feel Sirius' eyes on you, grateful that you had Molly's whirlwind greeting as a scapegoat for your flushed face.

“(Y/n). . .” he said softly, getting up from his seat.

“Hey,” you smiled, fighting the lump in your throat as he wrapped his arms around you. He was so warm, still wearing that damn leather jacket he'd somehow been reunited with after his imprisonment.

“What are you doing here? They told me you were out working in America,” Sirius said, eyes twinkling as he held you at arm's length.

“Well, I suppose I'm sort of working everywhere these days,” you said. As his words registered in your brain you turned to Molly with narrowed eyes. “You didn't tell him I was coming?”

“I thought it would be a nice surprise,” she said coyly.

You shook your head, turning back to Sirius.

“I'm so sorry, Molly said I could stay here so I thought she already ran it by you—”

“No, no, of course you can stay!” he said enthusiastically, “I'm glad you're here.”

He seemed gentler than he was before, certainly more mellow than in his youth, but that energy that was so quintessentially him remained buzzing beneath his skin, and Merlin, you'd missed it.

After realizing how long the two of you had spent practically holding each other you coughed awkwardly, slowly drifting apart. As you looked around the table your eyes caught Severus' and you thought your heart stopped for a moment. To the untrained eye he probably seemed just as uninterested as ever, but the look of shock in his eyes was so blatantly apparent to you that it threw you off guard. You managed to cast a small smile in his direction, but his expression remained unchanged while yours dropped. You felt your stomach twist up in knots as you thought about what had happened the last time you saw each other.

Lupin looked between the pair of you before getting up from his own seat and coming to your rescue. He extended his arms with a kind smile, and you happily shifted your attention to him.

“It's about time London had its best auror back in town,” he said.

“Flattery will get you nowhere, Moony,” you said playfully, hugging him tight, “It's good to see you too.”

“Are you hungry?” Molly asked, pulling a chair out for you.

“Oh no, I had something on the way here,” you said, taking a seat, “thank you, though.”

It felt surreal to be back here, where it all started. The faces were different—some new, some missing—but the same determined feeling remained.

“Now, where were we,” Sirius said, his confidence returning to his shoulders as he addressed the table.

“We were just talking about how Harry isn't ready to be tangled up in all this,” Molly said sternly.

“I think he should decide that for himself,” Sirius said adamantly.

“Well of course the boy would say he wants to fight, he's—”

“Listening in right now,” you pointed out, jutting your head in the direction of the open door where Harry stood, half obscured by the shadow of the stairway.

The boy flushed, backing away slightly as he was caught. But his eyes lit up as they landed on you, and you felt a tug at your heart as you saw your best friend in their bright green hues.

“(Y/n), you're back,” he said in disbelief.

“And here to stay for a bit, apparently,” you said with a smile.

Molly looked between the two of you before letting out a sigh.

“You know what, we should stop for the night anyways,” she said with a wave of her hand, “We've kept the children up long enough with our chatter, and (Y/n) ought to get some rest as well. Off to bed, the lot of you.”

Some of the other adults exchanged some knowing smiles as she shooed them out of the room. People slowly trickled out through the doorway, goodbyes exchanged, and before long it was just you and your godson left.

You had been lucky enough to meet Harry at the end of his third year, and he'd broken the news about Sirius' innocence to you. You so badly wanted to be there for Harry sooner, but between your strained relationship with the Ministry and cleaning up the mess with MACUSA in the States, you always seemed to be called away from the boy. You wanted nothing more than to take him away from that horrid house—you knew how nasty Petunia could be firsthand. Nonetheless, he seemed to be doing well, and you were happy that you'd grown closer over the last few years even if you couldn't be there in person all the time.

“I've got another little souvenir for you, by the way,” you said, having migrated to the living room.

Harry seemed to perk up at that. Since your visits had been so sparse, you began to make it a tradition to bring him back something magical from whatever part of the world you'd been working in.

“You mentioned you were struggling in Potions the last time we spoke,” you said, rummaging through your bag, eventually producing a small, gold-rimmed vial full of a deep maroon liquid. Small black clouds seemed to tumble in a miniature cyclone inside the glass.

“Dragon's breath essence,” you grinned, “nicked it off of Charlie before I left Romania. Put a few drops of this in your salamander blood the next time you brew a Wiggenweld potion and you're set to pass with flying colors.”

“Brilliant!” Harry said, eyes wide, “that's on our O.W.L.S. this year.”

“I know,” you said cheekily, “you didn't hear it from me. Personally, I think an Outstanding in Potions as a requirement to become an auror is utter rubbish. Don't get me wrong, it's important to know your way around a cauldron, but to hold someone back who excels at Defense Against the Dark Arts and Charms just because they can't cook up a sleeping draught? I don't know, it doesn't sit right with me. And I've heard Severus is hard enough on you guys as it is.”

Harry seemed surprised at your casual address of his professor but shook it off quickly.

“But you're ace at Potions, and it seems like you really like it,” he said.

“Yeah, well I—” you faltered a bit, “I learned from the best. . .”

“Professor Slughorn, you mean?” Harry questioned.

Your eyes widened at that.

“Yeah,” you lied, recovering fast, “Well, Slughorn was a great teacher but terrible at throwing parties. He had this thing called the Slug Club and the dinners were just awful. Your mother was the first of us to join and she ended up roping me into it, and before we knew it we were all standing around in these ridiculous outfits taking swigs of the firewhiskey your dad snuck in just to get through the night.”

You smiled fondly at the memory, and you could see Harry living vicariously through the emotions on your face. You were grateful for this moment; this was the longest you'd actually gotten to sit down and talk together in a long time.

“Were you always friends?” Harry asked, “with my parents, I mean.”

You had to laugh at that question.

“With your mum, yes. Your father, well, not exactly. . .”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1971 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Your body swayed gently with the movement of the Hogwarts Express as you walked up and down the isles, looking for someplace to sit. Most of the carriages were packed tight with large groups made up of upperclassmen not exactly looking to expand their circle.

As you approached the back of the train a mostly empty car caught your eye, occupied only by two children your age, or at least that's what you guessed from their black ties and basic robes that marked them as unsorted first-years like yourself.

One of them was a brooding looking boy with messy, shoulder length black hair and shockingly pale skin, leaning against the wall of the train and halfway through a book that seemed well beyond his years. Sitting across from him was a pretty red-headed girl who was admiring the rapidly passing scenery through the window.

“Excuse me, do you mind if I sit with you?” you asked, sliding the screen door open.

The boy's brow furrowed, clearly about refuse when the young girl beat him to it.

“Of course not!” she beamed, her smile infectious. You didn't miss the sharp look she shot over to the boy who simply rolled his eyes in response. After you muttered a small 'thanks' she scooted over closer to the window so you could sit next to her.

“My name is Lily,” she said, extending a hand, “Lily Evans.”

“Nice to meet you,” you smiled, “I'm (Y/n) (L/n).”

The boy quirked a brow at your last name, his expression shifting to something unreadable as he blatantly studied you over the spine of his book. After letting this go on for some time, you glanced over at Lily.

“Does he speak?”

“Perfectly well, thank you,” the boy said coldly.

Lily sent a disappointed look his way and his heart fell slightly, but he didn't need to be friends with anyone else, and he certainly didn't want other people becoming friends with Lily either. An irrational thought, he knew, but it was how his stubborn little brain worked at the time. They didn't need anyone but each other. Wasn't that enough?

In any case, he expected his behavior would be enough to scare you off (it usually worked on other people), but to his complete and utter surprise, you began to laugh. It started off as a light giggle, soon growing into full on laughter. He stared at you in open confusion as you were nearly brought to tears from your fit.

“You're funny,” you stated honestly, managing to speak through your chortles.

The boy was taken completely aback by your candor, actually at a loss for words. Lily joined in the laughter at your simple remark.

“So you do talk, I guess you must have a name too, then,” you said teasingly.

He blinked once. Twice.

“. . . Severus Snape.”

“That's a cool name.”

The heat that crept onto the boy's face surprised no one more than himself, and he buried himself in his book quickly to hide it. Another surprisingly frank statement from you, and not one he'd ever heard before.

If he thought you were full of surprises then, he had no idea what was coming to him.

_____________________________________________________________

The minute the Sorting Hat was placed on your head, it was immediately intrigued.

“Now here's an odd one,” it chuckled, “loyal, compassionate, empathetic, and yet a razor wit. A calculating, ambitious mind, and yet a relentless sense of adventure. All this, and with your bloodline to take into account as well. Your family has quite the history here, (L/n).”

Hushed whispers fell across the Great Hall among the older students and even some of the faculty at the hat's words, and you shifted uncomfortably in your seat.

“Though, I sense a different sort of mentality in you,” the hat continued, “you desire to challenge the old ways,” it paused for some time before going on, “do you truly have no preference, child?”

You were surprised at the question. You knew your family's reputation— it had been ingrained in you from a young age— but that didn't sway you, nor did it scare you. When you really thought about what house you wanted to be in, you truly couldn't think of an answer. It wouldn't change who you were, after all. Whether you donned red, yellow, blue, or green, you stood firmly in the knowledge that you would always be (Y/n) (L/n). Having made up your mind, you shook your head at the hat's question, and although its face was obscured from your view, you could almost sense its grin as it knew you were telling the truth.

“Well then,” it chuckled, “It is truly rare that I get an opportunity such as this. Let's make it interesting, then, shall we? Better be. . . Slytherin!”

Snape sat, slack-jawed, as you bounded over to the applauding Slytherin table and plopped down next to him. You rested your chin atop your folded hands, looking largely unbothered, a glint in your (e/c) eyes. He chuckled under his breath despite himself.

Full of surprises indeed.

___________________________________________________________

Your first encounter with James Potter was of a different sort.

It was the very beginning of your third year when you'd first met him properly. You had a few classes together, and Lily would rant about him constantly pestering her; occasionally you'd see the Gryffindor, along with another unfamiliar boy in his house, sprinting through the corridors, Professor McGonagall not far behind and demanding them to stop. But other than that, you'd never really interacted with him.

Ever since you'd met on the train you and Lily started to hang out more and more, with Snape “begrudgingly” tagging along. The Slytherin had been slow to warm up to you, but you were relentlessly kind and infuriatingly persistent, and eventually he found himself enjoying your little quips and comparatively sunny disposition. By the end of your first year, the three of you were nearly inseparable, and your bond only strengthened throughout your second. But third year is when things started changing.

Snape sat in the shade among the thick, overgrown roots of the old oak tree by the Black Lake, nose deep in an advanced Potions textbook he'd swiped from a fifth year as he waited for you and Lily to return from Transfiguration, the only class you didn't have together. This became your usual spot, with Lily sitting in the grass beside him and you on the branch above him, legs swinging as you absentmindedly sketched in your notebook. A comfortable silence would settle between you, something you'd all grown to enjoy; there was no need for constant conversation, it was enough sometimes to just enjoy each others' presence.

The silence he was reveling in alone, however, was promptly interrupted as rowdy laughter reached Snape's ears. Sure enough, a few figures emerged from the curve of the hill, revealing none other than James Potter, flanked by the curly haired boy he'd been seen running around with earlier along with two other Gryffindors: a short-statured boy with dirty blonde hair and another, taller and leaner, with long scars that ran along his face.

Snape didn't pay them much mind until he realized that they were heading straight for the tree— straight for him. Snape had noticed right away how the Potter boy had tried to befriend Lily as soon as she was sorted into Gryffindor, and it was safe to say he was less than fond of him despite having never really spoken to him before.

“You've got to be joking,” James snickered as he walked up to the tree, looking Snape up and down, “This is the guy Evans has been ditching us to see?”

Severus' eyes narrowed. So now he had a reason not to like him.

“Get lost,” he said, turning back to his book.

“What, you think you're too good to talk to us, huh?” James scoffed at him, clearly miffed.

As if on cue, the curly haired boy snatched the book out of Snape's hands, holding it out of his reach as he fumbled to get it back.

“Toss it, Sirius!” James called out. The boy, who he now knew as Sirius, threw the textbook like a frisbee, and Potter caught it easily.

As Snape angrily rose from his seat to get it back, the two boys continued to throw it between themselves so he couldn't grab it. Fed up, the Slytherin drew his wand but was quickly outmatched.

“Expelliarmus!”

Snape's wand flew out of his hands and straight into Sirius', who held it above his head. Just as the black haired boy jumped up for it, another spell flew towards him, this time from James.

“Winguardium Leviosa!”

Snape grit his teeth, staring helplessly at his wand as it hovered higher and higher out of his reach.

“James, come on, I think that's enough,” the taller boy near the back said.

“Don't be a bore, Remus, we're just having some fun.”

“I-I think he's right, guys.”

“Shut up, Peter.”

While his gaze was trained on his wand a harsh shove threw Snape to the ground, tears of frustration welling up in his eyes.

“No way, is he really crying?” James taunted.

“He is,” Sirius goaded on, “just look at him snivel.”

“You're right, maybe we should call him Snivelus, it suits him better.”

“Nice one, James.”

Snape winced as he was harshly pulled to his feet by James who sneered at him.

“Come on then, Snivelous. What are you gonna do?”

“Relashio!”

James' eyes widened as he suddenly felt himself repulsed back by some invisible force, his grip on Snape's robes forced to loosen as he was flung backwards. You stared the shocked Gryffindors down, wand at the ready for another spell as you ran to stand between Severus and them.

“Accio!” another voice called out, Snape's book and wand whizzing past their faces and into Lily's hands.

James staggered to his feet, trying to look unbothered by the fact that he'd just been knocked down, and by a spell that he hadn't even heard of yet.

“Look at that, boys,” he said, feigning confidence, “guess Snivelus needs a couple of girls to come to his rescue. You should ditch this loser, Evans.”

Before Lily could lash back, you stepped between them.

“What's that supposed to mean?” you scoffed.

“I'm sorry, who are you?”

You felt your forehead twitch, itching to smack that smug grin off his face.

It was Sirius who spoke next, recognition filling his gaze.

“Wait, you're the (L/n) kid, aren't you? Well that's just perfect, you two freaks can go study the Unforgivable Curses together.”

That struck a nerve in you.

“You don't know anything,” you said, not lowering your wand, “now get out of here before I knock you down too.”

“Aw, I don't know, Sirius, they're kind of cute all flustered like this,” James smirked.

You felt anger flare up in your chest, and it was Lily's turn to step in for you.

“Leave us alone, James,” she ordered.

When none of them moved you exhaled sharply, taking another step forward.

“Or I can just turn you into a flobberworm instead,” you said, “might be more fitting.”

Sirius laughed off your threat, but you could have sworn you saw a twinge of concern in his eyes as he looked over to the rest of his friends for backup.

“Let's just go, James. Come on,” the one named Remus said, trying to be the voice of reason.

The bespectacled boy frowned, shoving his wand back in his robes.

“Fine,” he said, “they aren't worth it anyways.”

He turned promptly on his heels, Sirius right behind him and Peter scampering after. Remus stayed behind for a moment, regarding you three.

“I'm sorry about them,” he said, “really.”

Your brow creased in suspicion, but you nodded, not quite smiling but offering up a neutral expression at least before he turned to catch up with the rest of his group.

“You were kidding about (L/n) being cute, right?” Sirius said as they headed back to the common room. When he was met with silence instead of a clear 'of course I was' he nearly had a stroke.

“Are you kidding, James?” Sirius said incredulously, “They're a Slytherin! They're just another dark arts dabbler who doesn't care about anything but their blood status.”

James only shrugged.

“Normally I'd agree, but they seem different,” he said. When he turned to see Sirius' unwavering expression he sighed, “I was just saying that to get a rise out of 'em. Don't worry, this won't be the last time we mess with them and Snivelus.”

Meanwhile, you were still out sitting by the tree, brushing the grass out of Severus' hair.

“That was amazing, (Y/n),” Lily said, wide-eyed, “How did you manage to learn that spell? And you already learned the worm-morphing jinx too?”

“Sev isn't the only one who's been learning ahead,” you said, “but that worm thing was a total bluff.”

“I didn't need your help,” Snape muttered.

You blinked down at him, shaking your head and unable to fight the smirk that crept onto your face.

“Sure you didn't,” you huffed, helping him up to his feet despite his protests, “don't be so dramatic, we won't tell anyone if that's what you're so worried about. Now come on, we're gonna be late for dinner. If Wilkes hogs all the Yorkshire puddings I'm blaming you entirely.”

Severus said nothing, only taking his book and wand back from Lily before you three walked back to the castle arm in arm, the smallest hint of a smile playing on his lips.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“It seems like so long ago,” you said, reminiscing, “Although I suppose it was, but I don't want to think about that too hard— I'll start to feel old, Merlin forbid.”

Harry's eyes were full of disbelief at your story.

“So you, my mum, and. . . Snape were friends?”

“Believe it or not,” you grinned, “unlikely trio as we were, it just sort of worked somehow.”

Until it didn't, you thought grimly, but forced the thought aside. You could tell by how quiet Harry had gotten that something was bothering him.

“My dad really did that?” he asked quietly.

Your gaze softened and you turned to fully face him.

“He was dumb and immature at the time,” you said, “we all were. There's not much else to be when you're thirteen. Each of us made plenty of mistakes, too many to count. And your mum. . . she was good for him. He always told me that she made him want to be a better person. People can change. In my opinion, there are few things someone can do that makes them truly irredeemable, and your father never came close to doing any of those things.”

You thought it better to mention that Snape probably didn't feel the same way.

“In any case, we should be getting to bed,” you said, getting up from the couch, “if you ever want to hear any other stories about your parents, I've got plenty of them.”

“Yeah,” Harry said, smile brightening his whole face, “yeah, definitely. Thank you.”

As Harry walked off to his room you sighed, making your way as quietly as you could up the creaky stairs. Just as you were about to retreat into your own guest room, your eyes snagged on the slightly ajar door at the top of the stairwell.

You stalled in front of it for a moment, wondering if you were out of your mind or not. When you had unapologetically settled on 'yes', you moved to knock on the door when it suddenly swung open. You practically leaped back at the proximity as you were met with Sirius standing in the doorway, stormy eyes wide. He'd shed his leather jacket for the night, leaving him in a dark maroon button up with the top few undone. Your senses were draped with the heady scent of his cologne, and you found yourself grasping at words to say.

When Sirius got over his initial shock he laughed sheepishly, running a hand through his curls out of habit.

“I was about to see if you were awake,” he admitted with a small grin, “Seems we both had the same idea.”

Read chapter 2 here !

#harry potter #the marauders #marauders x reader #sirius black x reader #james potter x reader #remus lupin x reader #regulus black x reader #sirius black #james potter #remus lupin #regulus black #harry potter x reader #marauders era #severus snape #snape x reader #severus snape x reader #multi chapter #harry potter fanfiction #marauders fanfiction

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grewlikefancyflowers · 3 years

Text

JC’s deeply rooted resentment of WWX, JFM’s parenting, and the inevitability of the falling out of the ‘Yunmeng bros’.

In discussion of the breakdown of JC and WWX’s relationship, their falling out is often regarded as a mutual failing on both sides to properly communicate and maintain their relationship. I’m making the case here that their falling out was a foregone conclusion from the start, and in no part due to the actions of Wei Wuxian.

This is because YZY has instilled in JC the idea that JFM dislikes him, something he believes before WWX arrives in Lotus Pier, JC already feels inferior, thus as soon as potential competition for JFM’s attention comes along in the form of WWX, JC resents him, believes JFM prefers him, and looks for reasons to justify this.

Summarising their very first interactions - from chapter 71 - WWX arrives at LP, sees JC with his puppies and is so terrified that he refuses to come down from JFM’s arms the entire day. The second day, JFM gives JC’s puppies away.

Now, I would like to think that no one seriously believes that this is an act of favouritism, but I have seen this case being made so I just want to make clear that WWX is obviously traumatised by his previous interactions with dogs. After trying for a whole day to comfort WWX, with no success, JFM does not exactly have any other choice than to give the puppies away, WWX cannot be expected to live in constant terror in the place that is supposed to be his home.

Consequently, ‘This angered Jiang Cheng so much that he threw a big tantrum. No matter how much Jiang FengMian comforted him gently, telling him that they should ‘be good friends’, he refused to talk to Wei WuXian.’

JC’s reaction is fairly understandable for an 8 year old. JFM comforts JC, and does not treat him callously or dismiss him, however it takes several days until JC will even talk to WWX.

When JC does start to warm up to him, JFM thinks it’d be a good idea for them to have a sleepover, JC is on the ‘verge of agreeing’ to this, which JFM is overjoyed by - so much so that he picks WWX up.

This is not an example of favouritism, JFM doesn't repeatedly give affection to WWX and not JC, he holds him twice - the first instance being purely because WWX was too terrified to leave his arms, the second being this one. These are the only two times where JFM is described as being affectionate towards WWX, JC is still in the lead on this count. But JC interprets this as JFM preferring WWX.

This results in the JC shutting WWX out at night.

At that time, Wei WuXian didn’t know what Jiang Cheng was mad about at all. After a pause, he replied, “I didn’t steal anything. It’s Uncle Jiang who told me to sleep with you.”

Hearing that he was still bringing up his father, almost as if he was purposely showing off, Jiang Cheng’s eyes reddened as he yelled, “Go away! If I see you again, I’ll call a bunch of dogs to bite you!”

This is the important part - JC sees WWX in the worst possible light, and rarely thinks of WWX as a person outside of how he directly impacts JC - he concludes that WWX is purposefully antagonising him, this is a trend that continues well into adulthood.

Then, when WWX flees LP after JC threatens him with dogs, JYL tells JC to find people to help search for him. However,

‘If any other disciple or servant learned about this and told Jiang FengMian, after Jiang FengMian knew how he threw Wei WuXian’s sheets out and made him hurt his leg, Jiang FengMian would definitely dislike him even more. This was also why he only dared chase after them alone and didn’t get anyone else.’

JC has obviously behaved wrongly here, and JFM would be right to scold him for it, but JC interprets this as JFM disliking him. We haven’t seen anything to suggest that JFM actually dislikes JC, he always treats him quite gently, actually. But JC is already at the conclusion that JFM dislikes him, and twists events to suit this - if his dad scolds him for misbehaving, it’s because he dislikes him. This pattern repeats after the Xuanwu Cave arc too.

This is because Madam Yu has ingrained into him the idea that JFM dislikes him, because he’s her son. This has nothing to do with WWX - because both her and JC already believe that JFM dislikes JC prior to WWX’s arrival - she only sees him as additional fuel to use.

The only other person who mentions JFM supposedly treating WWX better than JC is JZX. I’m sure it's a coincidence that he’s the son of YZY’s best friend.

‘“Doesn’t he treat you better than treating his own child or something?”’

Note the ‘or something’, - JZX doesn’t seem to know this with certainty - he’s repeating what others have said, despite having visited Lotus Pier several times (as stated in ch.69), JZX hasn’t seen evidence for himself that JFM prefers WWX.

‘“Maybe I should’ve let you hit him, while I stand aside and watch. This way, Uncle Jiang might not need to come. Oh well, I really couldn’t hold back!”’

We know that WWX doesn’t see JFM as favouring him - so what does he mean by this? Well, LQR has had it out for WWX from the moment they met, and has already sent a letter to JFM complaining of his behaviour - at this point WWX doesn’t know that this results in them breaking the JZX/JYL engagement either, so he’s probably purely thinking that LQR summoned JFM to CR to discuss WWX’s repeated offenses. JC hasn’t done anything to invoke LQR’s ire (or rather, he’s gotten away with everything he has done), so WWX thinks that if JC fought JZX, it would not have been treated so seriously, compared to WWX, who has repeatedly misbehaved.

Contrary to fanon interpretation, WWX is not oblivious to other people’s feelings, he’s very empathetic, and additionally understands JC very well. He doesn’t see how JC is feeling here, because JC’s feelings are just so illogical...

‘Although it was only Wei WuXian’s casual words, he held mixed feelings, because he knew that this wasn’t a lie.

Jiang FengMian had never hurried to another sect in one day for anything related to him, no matter if the issue was good or bad, large or small.

Never.’

Once again, JC’s at the conclusion that JFM dislikes him, he twists events to support this. He’s looking at this scenario very strangely - JFM didn’t rush to CR because he likes WWX, he was called there by LQR, to discuss JYL’s engagement with JZX. Secondly, we’re never given any examples of scenarios where JC does anything to warrant JFM rushing over. As far as we know, they never even stay with other sects. Knowing JC’s personality, his dislike of doing anything to rock the boat, it’s extremely unlikely that he’s ever done anything to warrant JFM rushing over like this. Moreover, it’s a bizarre thing to be jealous of, WWX is in trouble, he’s not on the receiving end of positive attention from JFM.

JC’s flawed reasoning is once again illustrated after the Xuanwu Cave arc...

‘Jiang Cheng’s expression was complicated after he had finished listening.’

This is Jiang Cheng’s reaction after WWX credits LWJ with killing the tortoise of slaughter - this is before JFM congratulates him. Before JFM says anything, JC is purely resentful about WWX having done something heroic, more so, resentful that WWX is willingly to let LWJ take most of the credit - he’s annoyed about this, most likely feeling that WWX is rubbing in his face that he doesn’t need the recognition that JC so desperately craves.

‘Jiang FengMian nodded and said, “You did well.”

Killing a giant 400-year-old beast at only 17 was way beyond what one would call ‘doing well.’’

JFM knows about JC’s… issues, he knows how he’ll react to WWX’s receiving recognition, he likely purposefully downplays his praise to avoid upsetting him. (Who’s really being favouritised? Lol)

But, even to this, JC reacts badly, he lashes out at WWX, once more interpreting him in the worst possible way.

‘Jiang Cheng hissed, “Too fucking bad, then. You shouldn’t have been so damn stubborn and you shouldn’t have cared so damn much about such a trivial thing. If you’d never moved in the first place –”’

JC’s response is to basically tell him the entire incident was his fault. Which is objectively not true - WWX only gets involved in the conflict after it has already started, and then he acts deliberately to try to end it, rather than impulsively fighting. He also starts to say that WWX should have left their allies - LWJ and JZX - to die. This is where JFM cuts him off, and tells him it’s not appropriate to say such things - he’s not scolding him harshly, JC is not being unfairly treated here, he’s done wrong, and JFM is trying to teach him why, you know, parenting. But JC, and YZY, take this to mean JFM dislikes JC.

JFM tries to teach JC about the Jiang sect’s motto once more - this is of course, not just about the motto, but about the values that JFM wants to instill in him, as a parent.

This is where Madam Yu arrives.

“Yes, he doesn’t understand, but what does it matter, as long as Wei Ying understands?!”

Of course, what she says is nonsensical, it does matter to JFM that JC understands the motto, that’s why he’s trying to teach him. If he did not care, he would have given in already.

This is further supported...

‘Jiang Cheng’s appearance and temperament all resembled his mother’s. Jiang FengMian guided him from childhood, but no matter how much he tried, he still couldn’t change his son’s nature. As such, it always seemed like he disliked his son.’

JFM has never been dismissive of JC just because he’s YZY’s son, he’s always tried to teach him, but JC always had his mother’s nature - YZY’s nature being harsh, standoffish, foul tempered, with no care for others - Note that is says it ‘seems’ like he dislikes his son, solely because he’s trying to teach him to be a better person. He has good reason for doing so - as a kid, JC never had friends, he doesn’t seem to as an adult either, he only has Jin Ling, whom he pushes away with his foul temper. JFM was just trying to raise JC to being an even-tempered person, capable of functioning in society, which is kind of what parents are supposed to do. But once more, this is taken as dislike.

Note that during JC’s outburst, every single thing JC claims about what JFM thinks of him, he’s parroting what YZY has said, none of these points have any actual evidence.

The next point to consider is how JC blames WWX for the fall of LP, despite it objectively not being his fault - JC knows this too.

‘In his heart, Jiang Cheng knew clearly that back in the cave of the Xuanwu of Slaughter at Dusk-Creek Mountain, even if Wei WuXian hadn’t saved Lan WangJi, the Wen Sect would have found some reason to come over sooner or later’

Even if WWX’s actions did prompt the Wens to act sooner than they otherwise might have - coming sooner or later would have made no difference at all because YZY outright stated she had no intention of preparing for an attack, even after WWX suggests they should, and JFM was still going to the Wens asking for their swords back - they were still uselessly trying to suck up to the Wens, thinking it would save them.

Despite knowing deep down that WWX was not to blame - he still uses it to fuel his resentment of WWX, because the resentment was there from the beginning, the only uncertainty is the means he uses to justify it.

During the ancestral hall confrontation - he uses this excuse again.

‘Jiang Cheng responded contemptuously, “You really are forgetful. What’s called a shameful person? Let me remind you. Just because you decided to be a hero and save this Second Young Master Lan, the entire Lotus Pier including my father and mother was buried. If this wasn’t enough, after the first time, you still want a second time, even wanting to save Wen-dogs and implicating my sister and her husband, how noble of you. Even nobler, you are so magnanimous to bring these two to Lotus Pier. Allowing the Wen-dog to stand at the front of my gates and letting Second Young Master Lan offer joss sticks, purely trying to antagonize me.’

Obviously, WWX did none of these things to antagonise JC, in fact he was going through a complex emotional journey of realising that he has feelings for LWJ, and that LWJ probably has feelings for him too, he doesn’t go to the ancestral shrine to mess around - he’s ‘introducing’ LWJ to JFM, YZY, and JYL, because he’s thinking about marrying him.

The problem is, JC never really sees WWX as a person, WWX has always been more of a concept - someone to compare himself to, the reason his father doesn’t like him, the reason his mother uses to berate him. It doesn’t occur to JC that WWX is a person outside of what he is to JC, and he is therefore incapable of empathising with what WWX might be feeling right now, instead the only possible conclusion is that he’s antagonising JC.

He follows the same line of thinking when WWX defects with the Wens. JC knows what he and WWX owe them, in fact JC owes them, far, far more than what WWX does - it was his parents whose bodies Wen Ning retrieved, and it was him who WN had to rescue from LP. But JC thinks, he can get away with not paying this debt, so why should he? JC is selfish, he doesn’t understand why WWX would want to help others when he doesn’t have to, so JC concludes, this is WWX showing off, ‘playing the hero’.

Because from the moment they met, JC has never tried to know WWX for who he is, whatever WWX does, JC interprets in a negative light - when WWX tries to get LWJ’s attention, (despite it being painstakingly obvious that WWX has a crush on him) JC concludes that WWX is messing around foolishly, without reason (parroting the untrue things YZY says about WWX always seeking trouble). When WWX wants to help people, he’s playing the hero, one upping JC. JC only ever thinks of WWX in relation to himself - when WWX disappears for three months, JC’s immediate complaint is that WWX kept him waiting, that he’s put JC out by making him search for him. You could argue that JC was just worried about WWX, and not able to express it - and on some level that’s true. But there’s a very intentional contrast between how LWJ and JC react to WWX’s return - LWJ is worried about WWX, about how his cultivation method is affecting him, moreover, WWX is very clearly not himself. JC, however, does not care for that - he only sees WWX, and modao, as a tool for killing Wens.

It takes almost nothing for JGS to manipulate JC into turning against WWX in ch.73 - he readily believes every negative thing JGS says about WWX, despite being called out directly for lying by LWJ. JGS talks as if he is a servant who has forgotten his place, unlike JYL, JC does not defend him. He refuses to speak up for him - he claims that no one will - yet LWJ and MianMian did. JC didn’t turn on WWX because it was impossible for him to speak up - he was living proof that WQ and WN did not support the Wen sect in the war, he drops him the moment he can because he’s resented him from the beginning.

Another interesting tidbit about JC just fundamentally not understanding who WWX is as a person, is that he only blames LWJ for the Xuanwu Cave incident - not JZX, despite him behaving no differently to how LWJ does. This is probably because he realises WWX’s fixation on LWJ, and supposes that this is the reason that WWX got involved in the conflict. But of course, WWX would have done something whether it was solely JZX, or just a random person.

Taking all this into account, it seems almost inevitable that WWX and JC would fall out eventually, because JC was, from the start, looking for reasons to dislike WWX, he turns against him at the first opportunity he got. For the ‘Yunmeng bros’ to have a healthy relationship, JC would simply have to fix his entire personality.

JC is unable to see WWX as a person, right up until the very end of the novel - when he recalls how he impulsively put himself at risk in order to save WWX. Finally, for the first time, JC is able to understand why WWX stood up for others in Xuanwu Cave, why he helped the Wens, because JC did the same thing, put himself on the line for WWX, probably the only time JC has ever acted so selflessly. And this is why he lets him go, he lets go of the things he blamed WWX for. For the first time, he is able to empathise with WWX, he understands that WWX was never ‘playing the hero’, seeking praise or recognition, he understands that WWX helps people purely because he feels in the moment that it’s the right thing to do. This is what enables him to finally let go of WWX.

I’m always a bit baffled when people claim mxtx never gave JC a happy ending, because this is his happy ending - him being able to realise that WWX never wronged him - when he finally lets go of this, he can live freely.

#mdzs #jc wank #mdzs meta #jiang cheng

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