What Can I Say - Tumblr Posts - Page 2
Just a quick reminder:
Link loves ✨Lesbians✨
And
Lesbians
Love
Link
I hate in books when it’s like enemies to lovers and the person is like “he was so rude to me… gah I wish he wasn’t so stupid hot!!! I hate him!!!” It’s like when someone is mean to me their face instantly becomes ugly and their features haggard and they crumble into stone. Idk what the hell you guys are talking about
i like to think i am a professional unprofessional
*jigs away*
Look to the clock on the wall hands hardly moving at all, I can't stand the state that I'm in sometimes I feel like the wall's closing in. Oh Lord what can I say I'm so sad since you went away time, time ticking on me ALONE is the last place I wanted to be.
the fact that johnny fuckin seo could easily be a really big fuckin nerd that loves video games and building fuckin lego star wars sets while also being a big fuckin sports jock that wins championships and everyone fuckin loves is really fuckin annoying because how much more goddamn perfect could you fuckin get
Family portrait!
…
What? Didn’t you know I adopted Makoto? I be a proud parent of my silly son!
Thank you so so much for indulging me @snivyartjpeg and drawing this for me! It’s so adorable and I love it to bits! I’ll treasure this for a very long time, guaranteed.
Fluoxetine my beloved
ephemeral moments
jing yuan x f!reader
word count -> 1.5k
tags -> fluff, established relationship, jing yuan referred to as a-yuan, fu xuan cameo, fu xuan referred to as xiao xuan by reader, pet names!! (my love, my dear wife, my dear(est)), dialogue heavy by accident, 3am proofreading so don't expect much, clingy!jing yuan, reader implied smaller than jing yuan, implied age gap (but does it matter when they're both multiple centuries' old), lore may be a little twisted its been a while since i played the first xianzhou quest
haha when i say this man is the reason why i can't escape hsr i mean it the brainrot is bad i love him he's the only unit i have that came home before 50 pulls even if i had to lose my 50/50 before that!! that asides wow for once i write something that's not rawdogged straight into the tumblr drafts i consider that an achievement in itself
“…I think that’s all to be discussed, General.”
“Good.”, the man yawns, rising from his seat, “In that case, shall we adjourn this meeting?”
“General-“, Fu Xuan attempts to interrupt him, her eyes glaring pointedly at him.
“Later, Fu Xuan. If it didn’t make it to the list of topics, it can be discussed later.”
He ignores the grumbling of his colleague, languidly dismissing the officials that had come to the meeting. Yukong takes a moment to attempt to assure Fu Xuan, offering her own insight, and the diviner finally agrees to leaving, though not without a huffed announcement of,
“The longer you delay this the longer you’ll be harassed about this, general!”
“Yes, yes,” he laughs, watching as everyone leaves, save for the lady who sits on his right, nothing but boredom and mild amusement evident on her expression as she sits at the table, holding her head up.
Once the last official has left, and the doors to Jing Yuan’s office slam shut, he makes his way over to her.
“Why the long face, my love?” he asks, pressing a kiss to her hair and smiling as she finally looks up to face him.
“I’ve just come to the conclusion that I really can’t stand these meetings.”
Her blunt admission is met with more chuckling from the general, as he takes a seat once more and urges her onto his lap. His actions are met with a glare, but she complies nonetheless, relaxing into his chest as he wraps an arm around her, the other gently grasping her hand.
“They’re tedious work, aren’t they?”, he finally murmurs after a few minutes of blissful silence.
She nods.
“Alas, what can we do? You won’t listen to Xiao Xuan any other way, so it’s quite safe to say that it’s your fault.”
Now this, Jing Yuan must admit, is rather correct. Though meetings at the Seat of Divine Foresight weren’t infrequent, they certainly had picked up in frequency over the years that Fu Xuan had taken her position, the young lady seeming more motivated towards her job than anyone would ever think Jing Yuan could be. Despite this, the man felt an urge to defend himself. After all, once you live for long enough, you learn to take things slow. Though both Fu Xuan and his beloved, who currently sat on his lap, a hand gently untangling his absolute bird’s nest of a head of hair would beg to differ greatly.
“Aiya, don’t blame your poor husband for this. It’s Fu Xuan’s fault that she won’t let me take my time with most of the information she provides me.”
His redirection is followed by a light smack to his chest.
“What poor husband! You’re just the laziest general the Xianzhou has seen in centuries!”, she retorts, and yet by the smile on her face, he can tell she’s not particularly peeved.
“That indicates there was a lazier general prior to me, no?”, Jing Yuan teases, watching as his lover falls silent for a moment.
“I retract my statement. You’re the laziest general the Xianzhou Luofu has ever seen.”
“Oh, how your sharp tongue wounds me, my dear wife!”, he gasps dramatically, burying his face into the crook of her neck as she yelps at the unexpected movement.
“A-Yuan!”, she exclaims, the hand in his hair jolting slightly before relaxing.
She sighs as the man protests her attempts to push him away.
“Let me stay here for a moment. It’s been a long day.”
Unable to truly resist him, she gives in, stroking his head as he continues to nuzzle his face into her neck.
A moment of silence falls before them, and though Jing Yuan has lived for centuries, it’s small fractions of time like this where it seems as though nothing in the world matters apart from the warmth of his beloved encompassing him, slow, relaxed breathing soothing his soul. It makes him wish that this moment in time would last forever, and he does what he can to carve the feeling it leaves him into his heart for the umpteenth time, wishing to treasure it forever.
Though they both live lifespans longer than the average human, and by no means is she older than him, it’s a fact that of the two, she’d be the first to pass on, and the thought of it twinges Jing Yuan’s heart slightly. The man wordlessly tightens his grip around her, and though she can never quite tell what he’s thinking of, she was able to make a good guess, and the thought of it elicits a second sigh as she presses her face into his hair, breathing in the scent of shampoo that she knew he’d stolen from her just a day ago.
“I love you, my dear,” he eventually mumbles, slowly closing his eyes as she reciprocates with ease.
“And I love you too, A-Yuan.”
His grip on her waist doesn’t quite loosen, even if she feels his head become heavier and his hand slowly lets go of hers, sleep obviously getting the better of him once more. The feeling of him leaning further into her makes her smile a bittersweet smile, and she gently kisses him, having known him long enough to know that it was merely a wordless manner of telling her,
Please don’t go.
Thus, she indulges the General, allowing him his rare moment of true vulnerability where he could set down the easy going act despite constantly being on high alert, the Luofu’s safety concerning him at all times despite his… unconventional manners of displaying it.
What was meant to be a short moment is then extended to an hour, Jing Yuan actually managing to doze off, much to her chagrin. Though content to be wrapped in his embrace, Jing Yuan is as heavy as he is large, the weight beginning to bear down on her once more. She’s tempted to awake him, but upon a self reminder of the time he’d returned home, she decides against it, opting to merely bear his weight.
It doesn’t take long before her saviour in the form of a frowning Fu Xuan bursts into his office, jolting the General awake with a yell about a new case for him to handle. She stops abruptly upon noticing the mildly compromising position of the two individuals she knew as her superiors, the hand not carrying the case files quickly meeting her face with a sharp thwack! as she takes in the sight before her.
“Truly, that man has no decorum!”, she huffs as Jing Yuan shakes himself awake, bleary eyes focusing in on Fu Xuan as his beloved sighs in relief at the quite literal weight off her chest.
She laughs at Fu Xuans words, fondly gazing at the man in question.
“How right you are, Xiao Xuan. If only the General would take your words to heart.”
“Hey, don’t gang up on me as soon as I’ve woken up!”, he protests, directing his attention to Fu Xuan as she begins to explain the case.
It’s a relatively minor case, but given the nature of the fact that it involved the Santus Medicus, Jing Yuan’s expression only hardens the more Fu Xuan speaks. Once she’s done, she hands over the case files and he spares no time looking through them.
“it’s not hard, just tedious.”, she finally finishes, her tone matter-of-fact.
“Indeed.” Comes Jing Yuan’s reply, “I’ll deal with this as soon as possible.”
“Good! Please make sure it’s sorted by the next week!”
She takes a look at the case, curiosity overcoming her. It coaxes a similar reaction out of her, and before Jing Yuan can react, she pulls his cheek.
“Please get it sorted in the next two days.”
“I personally believe that’s too soon of a deadline, my dearest. Won’t you extend it by a few days?”, he protests.
She stops for a moment, as if considering his plea and for a moment Jing Yuan believes he’ll be saved before she damns him once again.
“No.”, she says, a smile on her face as she watches his expression fall.
However, it doesn’t last long as she gently leans forward to peck his lips.
“I’ll have something ready for you if you finish it in two days.”
“Oh? And what would that be?”, his interest now piqued, he leans closer, returning her peck with a much fuller kiss.
“Wouldn’t be a surprise if you knew, A-Yuan.”. With that, she stands, quickly dusting herself off before following Fu Xuan out the door.
“I look forward to your results, my dear husband,” she calls, leaving the man in question staring blankly at the door to his office, mind blanking slightly as he processes the fact that his beloved was no longer in his arms, and he was set to face the pile of work infront of him.
It elicits an amused smile from Jing Yuan, and he too stands from his seat, stretching. It was time for him to finally earn his keep, it seemed.
Outside the door, Fu Xuan finally turns to her.
“Who would’ve thought that was all it took to get him off his ass?”
She snorts at the crassness of Fu Xuan’s words, before shrugging.
“A little bit of love goes a long way, and it doesn’t quite help that our dearest General is a bit of a hopeless lover.”
It doesn’t really look like me, so I drew a somewhat more accurate rendition in my own style lol:
The picrew was too skinny and I DONT GO TO THE GYM FOR THAT KIND OF SLANDER. Also I’m sorry but I have a big nose and that tiny dot of a picrew nose was not doing it for me lmfao
I’ve been a lil nervous to actually post art of myself online because I think I’m pretty and I don’t want the opinions of random internet ppl to change that, but honestly my lil circle of moots and friends on here are so great and I feel officially confident enough to try! (I don’t want to sound egotistical when I say I think I look good, but I haven’t always liked the way I look and it’s an awesome feeling to genuinely love myself, so I’m trying to enforce it with positive self talk!)
challenge: make yourself in this picrew
tagging people: @sleepycat63 @vynx-darkforest @vo1dsea @churrorat-art @whippiekippy @a-rabid-snake
THIS IS SO SWEETHEART!READER AND ELLIE, JUST TWO SILLY WILLIES IN THE WRONG UNIVERSE KILLING ZOMBIES INSTEAD OF MAKING OUT AT THEIR WEDDING. 😭
I keep thinking of sweetheart!reader who keeps on getting ellie worked up and going insane just thinking about her, how you may ask? Just by smiling to her and giggling at her dad jokes. Both of you are dumb and dumber, and ellie is here for it all <3
Sweetheart!reader who has a whole bag full of emergency kits — that are filled with bandages that have hearts and bears on it that you collected from abandoned nurseries and other necessary stuff — and snacks and cute little weapons that joel says will not do justice when you are in an emergency and two sets of Nintendo switches just for funzies :3
Joel groaned as he felt a sharp nail press against his shoe, causing him to freeze at his place and sit down quietly before taking the shoe off and finding out that it poked his foot's skin to the point it's bleeding.
You quickly came to him and looked at him with your eyes widened, kneeling next to him and getting your emergency kit out while ellie stood by the door to guard you guys from any zombie. Pulling out the bear bandage since joel acts like one and putting it on the wound and patting joel's shoulder lightly, ignoring the fact that he's glaring at you offensively.
"There you go, all good now! Could you walk?" You ask while smiling widely, your dimples making it's presence known. Ellie turning around to see the bear bandage on joel's feet, holding her laugh with all the power that she has, visually shaking.
Joel groaned and sighed, "I'm fine, I could walk."
Later on that day, Ellie kept on calling Joel 'baba bear' which made Tom confused and curious to see why Joel was called that. And god, he joined Ellie in bullying Joel out; making Joel feel more humiliated than he ever did in his whole life.
Sweetheart!reader who straddles ellie's hips while she's lying down and doing her nails and make up, with ellie just looking you starstruck, her eyes turning into hearts as she sees you leaning closer to her body, feels the warmth of your thighs against her hips, craving that body contact of yours with hers.
You hum a song melody that you heard in the bar, tilting your head to the side as you leaned closer to ellie's face, focused on not missing up the thin coating of your cherry lip balm on her lips. Poor ellie, just getting more and more redder as you leaned closer, her hands pressed against on her bed's sheets like she was sewed on it.
"Ellie, could you put your hands on my hips so I dont fall, please?" You ask with your soft voice going through ellie's ears like an on-going melody.
"Mhm–"
She obeys you and lands her trembling hands on your waist, that you soon corrected and lowered them to your hips, freaking ellie out to the point if you look inside her mind you will see her braincells fighting every urge that has to do with you.
Sweetheart!reader who just a ball of sunshine walking around the town, smiling to everyone as if life was nothing but unicorn dust and cotton candy. But hey people in town quite of a fond with it, smiling back to you each time you pass by. You gave them hope of a new future and they loved it, but not ellie, cause she thought alot of creeps are not worth your gorgeous smile to be in their direction even, she would always put her hand on your mouth and snatch you to her with her arm on your shoulder, taking her words to heart.
You walked around with ellie, hands in hands as you waved to joel's friends on the street. Both of you were walking to the bar to have a drink as a prize for finishing 4 commissions in one day, ellie was okay with it until you turned your head to one of the guys that were rumored to be perverts. Pulling you to the other side so the guy doesn't look over at the skin your shorts were showing, and putting your hands down as you were about to wave to him. A dumb act out of you.
You looked up at her with your doe eyes, "Hey, I was–"
"Don't." She warned, "just not for him."
You giggled, tilting you head to the side, "you jealous?"
Ellie glared at you for a moment and closed her eyes, sighing as she nodded to you, "yes, very." Before leaning down and kissing your forehead.
All rights reserved to @stary-darlin , please do not copy, rewrite, translate my works on any other platform.
I may or may not have a type
first one is from an au that is. a wip but hopefully I’ll get more info ab it soon for u guys. th rest r doodles from this past week bc i have no idea what to draw!!!!!!!help ples.
my toxic trait is thinking that moving to a different country will solve all my problems
I must be suuuuuuper super hot or somthn cause these bots keep hitting up my inbox like a bunch of horny teenagers
The Case for Toshinori Yagi Living and What (Could) Happen Next
Now that MHA 386 is officially out in English as of 4/23/23, @aoimikans and I can talk about our discussions and theories of what comes next. This is mainly an argument for (and reassurance of) Toshinori Yagi living through the coming fight with All for One with evidence from the series—as well as some related theories and predictions.
Buckle in, because this is a long one.
An outline for the sake of having an abbreviated list of what we intend to cover:
The Case for Toshinori Yagi living through this fight and why.
Toshinori’s character arc - What we know, and how it has been presented - A Callback to a Previous Meta: “Narrative as an Active Force […] True Heroic Ideals” / Toshinori’s Heroic Spirit
Shigaraki vs. Izuku - The One for All Mindscape - Bakugou completes the whole. Save to Win. Win to Save.
Toshinori’s last fight and its nature - Won’t cost him his life, but may cost him a limb.
The proximity of Hero Killer: Stain - Also, does he have the Green Goblin hover glider?
The Question Posed: Can a Quirkless Person Be a Hero? - The difference between “Hero wa dekimasu ka?” and “Kimi wa hero ni nareru.”
Nighteye’s Vision and Twisting Fate - How it’s worked before
Citizens of MHA - How they could help
All for One’s Hatred and Self-Inflicted Demise - He isn’t the same AfO
Quirks: What we know, and how we know it - What are Quirks - To be Quirkless - To have multiple Quirks
How All for One could screw himself over in the end - It’s too late for him
Whereas Toshinori has decided to live…
What we know: Toshinori grew up as a Quirkless young man living in a state of terror with a strong drive to do something to change the world and make it better. His mentor, Nana Shimura, was like a mother to him and passed the power of One for All to him. She was killed, and Toshinori was forced to flee until he was strong enough to take down AfO’s empire. He returned and in his first fight with AfO he believed he killed him. He was injured to the point his sidekick Sir Nighteye suggested retirement and revealed a vision of a terrible death at the hands of a villain. Toshinori refused to retire, but he became disheartened even while he continued his work as a hero with a shortening time/endurance limit. Then he was inspired after meeting Izuku. Izuku changed his outlook, particularly during and after the Kamino fight.
How it has been presented: Perhaps some of the most defining moments of Toshinori’s character arc are scenes in which he declares his desire and determination to live despite the hardships of his post-Kamino existence. Let’s take a look at some:
It has not been an easy road for Toshinori. After making the above declarations, his self-worth took a major blow when he fell behind, unable to keep up and support Izuku in the way he felt he needed to. But then, he was given an intervention from some unexpected sources—Hero Killer Stain and the last person All Might saved—who gave him back his will to live, and he reaffirmed his drive to live and support his students.
Toshinori’s character development—particularly post-Kamino—has been all about being Toshinori Yagi and having a life after losing his ability to be All Might. Toshinori Yagi is flawed, not the physical powerhouse he was as All Might, but he has worth and the desire to live as himself.
Toshinori lives and his character arc and development all mean something. The mentor-dies trope died with Nana Shimura in the last generation of heroes. Sir Nighteye’s vision of a certain, terrible future died with him (see the Nighteye section below for an expansion on this). Toshinori’s character shows a life after being a career hero, being a Pillar of society, and being a Symbol of Peace. He didn’t lose his value when he used up the last of One for All. Toshinori has inherent value and should be allowed to live out the rest of his natural life.
Toshinori dies… and then what? What was the point of his declarations? What was the point of his development and overcoming hardships? These were personal victories witnessed by very few people in private moments. Just from a story-writing perspective, his death would be so incredibly unsatisfying. And if he dies, what happens with AfO? Does he just move on to the next fight? No, death doesn’t make sense here.
I once wrote a meta post titled “Narrative as an Active Force and Izuku as an Embodiment of Heroic Ideals”. In the post, I briefly discussed how those that left the path of a True Hero typically faced suffering punishment (usually an injury or an encounter with Stain). In the case of Toshinori, his first fight with All for One resulted in his injury because he fought—if only for that final blow—for revenge for Nana Shimura. AfO taunted him, insulted Nana Shimura, and All Might “killed” him.
Toshinori’s choice to go and face All for One for a third time without a Quirk was an act of bravery, sacrifice, and True Heroic Ideals. This alone would, in a way, atone for his previous actions of fighting with wrath and intent to kill.
This altruism—not a Quirk, not power, not fame—is what makes him a hero.
Whereas Shigaraki is Izuku’s foil and foe, not All Might’s…
Just as Toshinori told Naomasa Tsukauchi that he was always meant to fight All for One (and told Todoroki to return to face Touya/Dabi), Izuku is meant to fight Shigaraki. It is also important to note that Naomasa was also present when Gran Torino told Toshinori that he could never fight Shigaraki because he would not be able to see him as a villain, but as Nana Shimura’s grandson.
Each party is pairing off to face the foe they are meant to face.
Toshinori lives and faces All for One, helping take down the villain whose evil acts formed Toshinori’s youth and career. He is the best suited in this moment to tie that loose end.
Toshinori dies… and then what? He would join the other vestiges of One for All holders past. But what good would that do? Flame Vestige Toshi already receives input from Toshinori with him still living.
Flame Vestige Toshinori (Aura Might) has access to all of Toshinori’s memories. He is Toshinori Yagi within the vestige mindscape, one and the same, wholly Toshinori while being separate from the living body of Toshinori. Toshinori is already there. They are one and the same. And Flame Vestige Toshi can communicate with the other vestiges, so if there was something critical that Izuku needed to hear, the vestiges could pass that message along.
If anything, if Toshinori died and became a clearer image in the vestige mindscape, it would be a major distraction and an unspeakably devastating loss for Izuku—who, may I remind you, is fighting after seeing Bakugou pretty visibly dead-looking and losing control of his emotions immediately. Even ignoring that, what would Toshinori be able to add to Izuku’s knowledge or power that his Flame Vestige or the other vestiges haven’t already? What could he add to Izuku’s knowledge that he hasn’t already taught him in person? Nothing really. So! With that said, there would be no point in having Toshinori enter the One for All Mindscape.
Shigaraki is Izuku’s foil, his foe. From the beginning of the story, Izuku has been pitted against Shigaraki who is the final Big Bad. Izuku has also shared his desire to somehow reach and save the child—Tenko Shimura—that is trapped within the twisted person of Shigaraki-AfO.
This is his fight… but not his alone.
Save to Win. Win to Save. Izuku is one half. Bakugou completes the whole. Ultimately, the final fight—if we are to trust how things are foreshadowed so far—will be Shigaraki vs. Izuku and Bakugou.
Not only that, but they may finally do what is necessary to be whole themselves. Bakugou may Save to Win (i.e. he may save Izuku when things seem dire and turn the tide of the fight). Izuku may Win to Save (i.e. defeating this Shigaraki-AfO hybrid to save Tenko and everyone he knows).
Toshinori has already told them they could be great heroes together. This is their fight to prove it, together.
Whereas Toshinori doesn’t need to defeat All for One, he just has to stall…
We understand All for One is on a time limit. He is rapidly regressing/de-aging and will likely disappear given enough time. We also know that as he regresses, All for One’s emotions and mental focus are slipping out of his careful control. He was in a hurry to get to Shigaraki so that Shigaraki could take in the main body Quirk and All for One would then be able to live on and take complete control of the Shigaraki-AfO hybrid.
Toshinori understands the absolute need to keep All for One from reaching Shigaraki (and also Izuku). Toshinori understands no power thus far has kept All for One from going where he likes. And even those in the control room attempting to coordinate the fighting and the evacuation of civilians understand that there is no one else who could stop All for One.
Importantly, Toshinori understands All for One’s obsessive hatred for him. No powers necessary, Toshinori was able to stop All for One in his tracks by just being there. Toshinori’s presence alone was enough. The rest is stalling AfO until his time runs out.
Also, this fight is taking place at Kamino. Toshinori Yagi’s place of origin, the starting point of Toshinori post-All Might. You don’t fight there again, with that significant backstory, and lose. (I swear, I will cry if the chapter is Toshinori Yagi: Origin or Toshinori Yagi: Rising.)
This Toshinori is the fulfillment of him being himself. He is the “mighty ally” waiting to stop All for One. This man who has struggled with self-worth and the will to live post-Kamino, he calls himself mighty! Quirkless Toshinori faces the greatest threat of generations with a fierce grin and the confidence of one who will put his whole back into this fight. He will win—and AfO will lose—because he must.
Aoimikans and my “Cost an Arm” Theory: Even though we believe Toshinori will not die and ultimately AfO will lose… we don’t necessarily think this will be a clean fight. Sir Nighteye predicted a terrible death, so what might he have seen leading up to it? Loss of limb, perhaps.
Toshinori will be in some kind of mech armor that AfO will probably need to—maybe after some badass fighting—tear apart. We’re fairly certain that given Horikoshi’s track record of heroes getting pretty gnarly bodily injuries, AfO is going to take one (or part) of Toshinori’s arms in the fight to get back at him for all the punching and smashing All Might did.
That and we know that information from Toshinori’s body/mind is fed into the vestige mindscape already via Flame Vestige Toshi. Perhaps Toshinori will lose the arm, the arm appears from the flame of Toshi’s vestige, distracting Izuku enough for a negative turn in the battle, which then leads to an opening for Bakugou’s reentry into the fight to turn it for the better. Drama! Suspense! Weeks between chapters with tense uncertainty!
Also, Horikoshi has a love of Star Wars and getting a limb cut off is just in vogue.
But don’t worry! If this does happen, Toshi will probably get a badass prosthetic like other similarly injured characters.
Also… just think of all the Hurt/Comfort fan-fiction that could stem from this… the possibilities…
Whereas Hero Killer: Stain is nearby and has a death wish…
In the same vein as the “Cost an Arm” Theory, a prolonged fight with All for One, regardless of how cool the mech armor is, will likely lead to Toshinori injured and appear to be at risk of a death blow. (There must be distress for the positive turn of the battle to be an amazing relief.)
Enter, Hero Killer: Stain who has been shown to be in an area resembling Kamino where Toshinori will be fighting.
(Is that the Green Goblin flying thing Stain has?)
Stain can do two things that could alter the direction of the fight:
One, Stain’s Quirk only needs a single drop of blood to temporarily paralyze All for One, giving them much needed time to stall.
Two, Stain could very well take a death blow in Toshinori’s place. Stain has repeatedly said that All Might is the only one who is allowed to kill him… but he may just have to settle for dying for All Might instead. Given how Stain is the way he is, it isn’t difficult to imagine this playing out.
Whereas Toshinori revisits Izuku’s question from the very beginning…
In MHA 386, Toshinori remembers Izuku’s question from the very start of the series.
Izuku at the start asks “個性がなくてもヒーローは出来ますか!?” “Kosei ga nakutemo hero wa dekimasu ka!?” “Even without a Quirk, can [I/someone without a quirk] be a hero?”
When Toshinori answered this question and offered Izuku the chance to earn One for All, he said “君はヒーローになれる” “Kimi wa hero ni nareru.” “You can become a hero.”
Aoimikans pointed this out to me when reading the Japanese version. There is a difference in what both Izuku and Toshinori are saying. “Can be” is different from “become.”
Izuku was asking: Can a Quirkless person be a hero?
Toshinori’s original answer was essentially: No, but you can become a hero if you have this Quirk.
This is so, so very significant in the context of Toshinori’s final fight and thematically for the story as a whole. He is about to give Izuku the answer he was originally looking for: “Yes. Yes, you can be Quirkless and a hero.” Toshinori is personally trying to prove to Izuku that Quirkless people can be heroes.
Izuku was Quirkless, and was a hero from the moment his body moved on its own in chapter one. Toshinori is Quirkless now, and he is a hero.
What does that mean in the overarching world of MHA? If a Quirkless person can be a hero in a world where Quirks exist, anyone can be a hero. More on this in a bit…
Whereas Nighteye’s vision of a certain terrible death died with him and Izuku isn’t the only one who can twist fate…
In trying to get Toshinori to retire early after his first fight with AfO, Sir Nighteye blurted out that he had looked into Toshinori’s future and saw his terrible death at the hands of a villain. Toshinori and Nighteye both were convinced that what Nighteye sees is the hard truth—once it is seen, it is set in stone.
This idea is thoroughly challenged when Nighteye foresees his own and Izuku’s death during the fight with Overhaul, and yet Izuku does not die. Nighteye says that it may be possible that the will—the thoughts and beliefs—of so many people altered fate.
Nighteye’s vision of Izuku’s death was proved wrong, and in dying Nighteye took with him the certainty of his visions (and the ability to double check for a certain changed future). So, Toshinori’s own predicted terrible fate is not so certain anymore.
It’s important to note that Izuku doesn’t have to be the focal point of this bending of fate. It just takes the will of many people. Which leads to a possible prediction…
Whereas civilians did not all go underground to evacuate…
While there has been a good amount of focus given the civilians that took refuge with the help of U.A. and are currently in moving sections to evacuate the area, not everyone chose to follow that lead. Some have been seen to have hunkered down elsewhere in attempts to protect themselves. Not to mention all the civilians Izuku encountered during the Dark Deku arc.
There is the possibility that those civilians may get the message that or witness Toshinori fighting without his Quirk and decide collectively to step in and try to help. Their bodies may also move on their own and they may act heroically in this crucial moment. And, as mentioned above, it takes the will of many to change fate. All the heroes fighting, all the civilians evacuating, all the civilians possibly out there trying to weather this storm, those are the kind of numbers that could alter fate.
And Toshinori has physically checked in on them. He’s gone to the civilians in person after his encounter with Stain.
Aoimikans would also like to mention that Naomasa Tsukauchi just yelled, “You’re Quirkless!!!” for the whole world to hear. It wasn’t just the internal radio. La Brava has been broadcasting the fights in Japan for the ENTIRE world to see. Not only will the civilians in Japan wish for Toshinori Yagi’s success, but people around the world are glued to their screens at this very moment watching what’s happening in Japan.
This theory that civilians will perhaps provide the backup needed for Toshinori to succeed in prolonging the fight to stall AfO is not unrealistic… Well, Aizawa said it best.
What is more brazen and cocksure than Toshinori going out to fight All for One, alone, while Quirkless? Of course the civilians Toshinori met personally would be inspired to action by him.
Additionally, we have an additional theory as to how a crowd of civilians could help (beyond the hoping and wishing and and possibly watching on screens if someone is out there to record the fight) and it is connected to altered fate, the will of a person, how Quirks work, Quirkless people being heroes, and All for One’s current condition.
Whereas All for One has known motives and flaws…
What do we know about All for One?
We know he grew up idolizing the villain from his younger brother’s comic books, believing they would win despite him not reading to the end of the story. We know he was obsessive over keeping his brother to himself.
We know he grew in power and influence by using his Quirk to steal other Quirks and gave Quirks to those seeking power in exchange for their service. He bought loyalty when he could and dished out terror when he could not. We know he created mindless servants called Noumu with the doctor’s help.
We know he has been chasing the vestige of his brother and has killed the other holders of One for All in his pursuit.
All for One is an apt name for his Quirk and himself. He wants to take all things for himself and take revenge on those who get in his way: the previous One for All users, any person that betrays him like Nagant, and—most notably—All Might.
However, the All for One we are most familiar with is the 200+ year old man who has time and patience to spare, the All for One who plays the long game. That All for One no longer exists.
What do we know about the current All for One?
The current All for One is on a time limit. He is vicious and powerful, pushing the Quirks he has taken to their fullest power. He takes Quirks without hesitation when he can get a hand on someone, whether he needs them or not.
This All for One is impatient and acts without that same careful consideration of the All for One that played the long game. He is rushing to get to Shigaraki in order to save himself, and still he could not resist the pull of his anger, his hatred for All Might.
This All for One is not the rational thinking villain he was, and he cannot contain or fully control the Quirks in his body. Toshinori knows this, and this spells AfO’s doom.
Whereas understanding the nature of Quirks is critical to this fight…
Aoimikans and I love talking and theorizing about Quirks. Just take our ongoing fan-fiction with @toshinoumu. We only used what we knew was canon, expanded on those ideas, and ended up predicting the High End Noumu (years in advance), the Doctor’s involvement, and a number of facts about Quirks. Quirks are really cool to explore, and understanding how they work is crucial to understanding the overall story.
What are Quirks? Quirks are not just powers, they are a vital part of the person that has one. 個性 or “kosei” has a more literal translation than “Quirk.” 個性 “Kosei” translates to “individuality.”
Why is it significant that they aren’t just abilities or mutations? Quirks reflect the person and the person is often compelled by the kind of Quirk they have. The most prominent examples are those persons with Quirks that affect their actions in a negative way. Toga’s Quirk drives her desire to drink blood and become another person. La Brava’s Quirk requires her to love someone and to express that love in order to be used, which was detrimental to her relationships in her youth and critical for her partnership with Gentle.
Quirks can and have affected the thinking of the person who has them. It’s a little chicken-before-the-egg when it is the person’s own Quirk, but it is critical when we consider those given Quirks that either “don’t suit them” or when we look at the multi-Quirked Noumu.
Ill-suited Quirks. In the case of Quirks that don’t suit a person, let’s look at Aoyama and Shigaraki. Aoyama was Quirkless before AfO gave him the Navel Laser. His body was physically pained by the ill-fitting Quirk. That’s a physical drawback. How about mental? We have theorized since Tenko’s backstory was revealed that AfO was the man in the doorway and that he gave Tenko the Quirk Decay (and may have taken Air Walk from him, see previous meta post MHA: Fling Theory for the section on Tenko and the man in the doorway). The trauma of awakening Decay as well as the introduction of whatever mental influence having Decay, a Quirk that’s only use seems to be destroying, turned Tenko into Shigaraki, the villain that wants to destroy everything.
What’s up with Noumu? Noumu are the product of having multiple Quirks forced into one body. The mind becomes overwhelmed and the Noumu becomes an obeying puppet who acts according to the will of their master at the sound of their voice.
How being Quirkless makes a difference: In addition to what we know about Noumu, we know from the record of the previous users lives that One for All was difficult for the previous users to carry and live for very long—the longest lived being the 4th user who died of old age at 40, not an old age. The only users who were not as impacted in this way were Toshinori and Izuku who were Quirkless.
It’s clear that Quirks—particularly multiple Quirks—can negatively impact the wrong body, and it is more than physical. It’s mental and it’s in a way spiritual.
Quirks carry the spirit of the person, their dreams, and their will. That piece lives on and persists.
We know because of One for All that the will and spirit of the previous OfA users lives on with thoughts and wills of their own. We have seen the vestiges of not only the OfA users, but also the ghostly silhouettes of the Quirks within All for One and the parasitic All for One that is within and attached to Shigaraki. We have seen what happens when Shigaraki-AfO takes in a Quirk whose will challenges his own—Star’s Quirk revolted inside his mindscape and destroyed some of the Quirks within. We have seen AfO attack the Quirks’ ghostly vestiges that tried to stop him when he was fighting Jirou, Tokoyami, Dark Shadow, and Hawks.
All for One even elaborated on his own experiences with the consciousnesses of those Quirks he stole and explained how OfA carried the consciousnesses of the users forward.
With that understanding, it isn’t hard to see how a Quirk like All for One could influence or match All for One’s desires and actions. He is driven to take Quirks. And given that AfO himself admits to be haunted by the consciousness from other people who can rebel against him, it makes sense that he has had to practice some kind of focus to keep himself from experiencing the drawbacks of having Quirks that rebel within him.
A mental focus, current All for One lacks.
Whereas All for One wrote himself out of the story chapters ago…
The All for One who played the long game gave himself one last tool to rewind his body to its prime, but it was one and done. One use, no going back. Yes, in using this card, he was able to grow more powerful with the knowledge he would disappear. No, I don’t believe he used it with a full understanding of what that would do to his mind.
In using this last ditch card, he wrote himself out of the story.
All for One is as self-serving as he always has been, but now he is being rash. He’s looking to reunite with Shigaraki-AfO to become one again before he really does disappear. As he regresses and de-ages, he is not in full rational control of his desires. He takes Quirks without needing to, he isn’t holding the Quirks he uses back, and when faced with Toshinori Yagi, he cannot help but stop regardless of his time limit.
Aoimikans and I have theorized for some time that AfO could be overwhelmed by Quirks he takes into himself. This could, if we are correct about a number of predictions, be a key factor in the coming fight.
What would happen if he is stalled, short on time, not in control of his desires and acts irrationally, and his fight with Toshinori doesn’t go as well as he wants?
What would happen if a crowd of civilians acted with heroic impulse to help Toshinori? And what would happen if all those people shared a singular idea, a singular focus of will, to help save Toshinori and defeat All for One?
What would happen if All for One acted on an uncontrolled impulse and decided to take and take and take those Quirks from people who come to help Toshinori?
What would happen if his focus slips and the rebelling spirits of Quirks he stole—including Hawks’ spirit—fight back from within?
What happens when Toshinori proves a Quirkless person can be a hero? Could someone, or many people, become heroes by becoming Quirkless?
Could the man who takes everything for himself be defeated by Toshinori, the man who gave all of himself for the world, and all those who may give up a piece of themselves to help Toshinori?
Whereas I stop being so long winded and summarize…
This is the final fight between Toshinori and All for One. Toshinori is at the greatest height of his post-Kamino character arc—Quirkless, heroic, confident, and determined. All for One may be at his physical best, but he is at his mental weakest and doesn’t have long before his own actions rewind him out of existence. Toshinori only has to stall, and he will be successful in that endeavor—though may be injured in the process. Toshinori will possibly get some help from Stain since he is nearby and wants to die by All Might’s hands anyway, might have to settle for dying for him.
Toshinori will live because his character arc bends in that direction, no other outcome makes sense or would be a satisfactory ending. His death wouldn’t help Izuku, wouldn’t add to the story, and so cannot happen.
The pairs for the last big fights are coming together. The Todoroki family vs Dabi/Touya. Toshinori Yagi vs All for One. Izuku and Bakugou vs Shigaraki. And probably back to Toga and Uraraka at some point as well as Kurogiri, Mic, and Aizawa.
All for One’s current mental state puts him in an internal dilemma. He is not in full rational control of himself and therefore is ripe for rebellion from within! All the vestiges of Quirks stolen—past and present—could very well help to confuse/stall him during the fight with Toshinori. As they already have in his fight with Jirou, Tokoyami, and Hawks.
Citizens could also come to Toshinori’s aid and add their will to his, which could very well help alter Toshinori’s “terrible death” fate. Also, they could possibly become Quirkless if AfO lets his dark urges take control and takes their Quirks (which would only make his mental situation worse), and be heroes in that moment with Toshinori.
All for One will fall at Kamino. He will rewind and rewind…
We aren’t sure what happens to AfO if he reaches a child-like age. Will he be the same person, only less controlled? Or will we see a sad, childish side of All for One that just wants his brother back? If so, would Toshinori sit with this lost child until the end? Horikoshi has a tendency to show the child within the characters so far, it isn’t impossible AfO will get the same treatment.
Either way, everything supports the case for Toshinori Yagi living. We’ll see what comes next.
Thanks for reading! :3