Canon inhun: hate each other, arch nemesis, will kill one another, one or both of them may die in s3 š„ŗ
Fanon inhun: in love, old married couple, have 10 kids and having twins on the way š¶š»š¶š»
I love this fandom š„°
IT'S A COPING MECHANISM šš
and trust even if they both die in s3, i will still be making aus where they are having their 13th kid together š«¶ the power of old man yaoi is too great to fail before canon!!!
but also, lets not talk abt gihun dying okay? i need my shayla to live!!! š¤§
this post got a chuckle out of me š also my baby ga yeong šš
close ups
No because I am the niche. Or maybe the niche was made for me. Honestly, what am I even learning in college if I cannot even articulate this properly?
AnywayāI am obsessed with the Star Wars prequels and Squid Game, and when I say I have been thinking about this exact crossover too?? I am losing it. I need to write this immediately. They really do have so many parallels and both pairings make me want to sob š
In-ho as Anakin | Vader and Gi-hun as PadmƩ? The emotional devastation. The tragedy. The drama. And now I cannot stop thinking about who the rest of the cast would be in this AU. It is over for me. I have no choice but to write this.
this is so incredibly niche, but i don't even care anymore.
inhun and anidala, as couples and as separate people, have quite a few parallels, and i need to talk abt them.
the way that inho's front man outfit and the darth vader suit are similar. a mask hiding their faces, modifying their voices, making them seem unhuman with its features. the way that both suits set them apart from the other workers and the way they completely hide the person beneath it.
inho and anakin both being on the "right" side, a cop and a jedi. people who protect others, who should be a positive force in the world. but both the police and the jedi have a lot of problems in how they can intervene during certain situations.
both of them wanted to save their pregnant wives and both failed, with anakin believing both padmƩ and their child died, while inho's actually passed away.
they both have an older man who serves as a mentor and introduces them to the dark world they will soon be a driving force in (palpatine with the sith, and ilnam with the games). in both cases, anakin and inho are the successors when said mentors die.
anakin tried to recruit luke to the dark side, and inho tried to recruit junho to join the games.
padmƩ and gihun are both idealists who sacrificed their personal lives to make the world a better place. they are protectors and nurturers.
padmƩ accepts the role of senator because she needs to try to change the current status quo, and gihun pursues those who are being the games to bring them to justice for what they have done.
gihun watches as the man he loves becomes unhinged and cruel (sangwoo), and the same happens to padmƩ as she witnesses anakin's descent into madness. both plead with said men to turn back, and both almost die at the hands of these men.
padmƩ and gihun both thrive for justice and for those who harm others to be brought down, and they are both key players in trying to destitute a power-hungry leader (padmƩ creating the rebel alliance against palpatine and gihun leading the revolt against the front man).
and, finally, the speech anakin gives padmƩ in aotc:
From the moment I met you, all those years ago, not a day has gone by when I haven't thought of you. And now that I'm with you again... I'm in agony. The closer I get to you, the worse it gets. The thought of not being with you- I can't breath. I'm haunted by the kiss that you should never have given me. My heart is beating... hoping that kiss will not become a scar. You are in my very soul, tormenting me... what can I do?- I will do anything you ask. ...If you are suffering as much as I am, please, tell me.
and later on, padmƩ's response:
I'm not afraid to die. I've been dying a little bit each day since you came back into my life. [...] I love you. [...] I think our lives are about to be destroyed anyway. I truly... deeply... love you and before we die I want you to know.
these are so inhun coded to me š©
inho can't stop thinking about gihun after first seeing him yell at the cameras abt deok-su killing that player (for me, this was when inho's fascination with gihun began), and now that gihun is near him again, he can't breath, haunted by the friendship and camaraderie and love gihun handed him when he was "youngil".
and gihun loves inho, even as his life is being destroyed around him. he doesn't want to love him but he does, so much. he's not scared of dying, he's scared of his feelings for inho, of how much he loves this seemingly cruel man. and now gihun needs inho to know that everything gihun gave him was real.
I thought Leo always chose to make sacrifices for his brothers and protect them? Sorry I am trying to understand the must I always suffer in your place line. Like didnāt he always choose to do that? He didnāt have to do anything for them. Then again I am a middle child so I guess I donāt get it.
In the 2003 iteration, Leonardoās role as the eldest and leader is deeply tied to self-sacrifice. Throughout the series, itās shown and even outright stated that he carries a heavier burden than his brothers. Heās held to a higher standard by both his master and himself, pushing him to train harder, expect more from himself, and make decisions that prioritize his family above all else. In the series, this responsibility is something he accepts willinglyāhe views it as his duty and his way of protecting his clan.
For the story, however, I wanted to explore what happens when that unwavering sense of duty is pushed too far. Being resurrected as a flesh-eating monster by his own brother becomes a breaking point for him. Itās not just the horror of what heās become, but the deeper betrayal of his own valuesāsacrificing his humanity to save his brother.
The line āBut now, it seems like for so much of our lives, I must suffer in your placeā reflects that shift. Itās Leonardo recognizing how often heās had to endure pain, not just for the sake of his family but in place of them. This moment of clarity is not about resenting his brothers but realizing the toll of always being the one to bear the burden, the consequences, or the suffering so they donāt have to. In this particular context, it cuts even deeper because his younger brotherās decision to resurrect himādespite knowing there would be consequencesāwas ultimately driven by not wanting to endure his own suffering.
I hope this helps clarify the meaning behind the line and the emotions itās meant to convey! Thank you so much for the askāitās always wonderful to dive deeper into these moments!
Seong Gi-hun: Jun-ho, after a string of doomed, toxic relationships, I think Iāve finally found a healthy, stable partner in Young-il.
Hwang In-ho (a.k.a. "Young-il"): [smirking like a cat that just swallowed a canary] Hello, I'm Young-il. It's nice to meet a friend of Gi-hun's.
Hwang Jun-ho: [stares at In-ho, then at Gi-hun, then back at In-ho. Slowly facepalms.] Oh my Godā¦
Seong Gi-hun: [nervous laugh] Wait, why are you making that face?
me if gi-hun dies in s3
I love the idea that the 2003 iteration of Leonardo is so intent on being a mother hen that he tries to take care of literally everyone around himāeven grown-ass adults. I especially love the idea of fifteen-year-old Leonardo mother henning Casey and April, who are in their mid-twenties.
Leonardo: [hands an apple and a protein bar to Casey] Here. You might get hungry during patrol, and itās important to keep your energy up. I also have dark chocolate or peanut butter if you finish those.
Casey: [staring at the snacks, confused] Uh⦠thanks, Leo?
Raphael: [snickering]
Casey: [frowning] Does he always do this?
Donatello: [with a straight face] You have no ideaā¦
Michelangelo: [letting Leonardo peel an apple for him with his katana] Oh yeah, all the time. Itās kinda niceāhe cuts the apple into perfect little pieces.
Raphael: Look at him, all serious and disciplined. Bet you anything heās drinking straight black coffee.
Michelangelo: Pfft, nah, bro. Heās definitely the type to drink, like, boiled water. Nothing in it. Just⦠water.
Donatello: Heās more likely to go for green tea.
[Leonardo calmly takes a sip from the festive red mug in his hands. The faintest trace of whipped cream smudges onto his upper lip.]
Donatello: Is that⦠whipped cream?
[Leonardo, unbothered, takes another sip. A few colorful sprinkles glint faintly against the rim of his mug.]
Michelangelo: No way. NO. WAY.
Raphael: Our brother is drinking hot chocolate. With sprinkles.
Michelangelo: I think Leo's possessed.
Donatello: [barely looking up from his coffee] Oh, fantastic. Thatās just what we needed.
Raphael: [grumpily rubbing his eyes] Itās seven in the freakinā morning, Mikey. Can we not start with your nonsense already?
Michelangelo: Iām serious! Look at him!
[Leonardo sits at the table, calmly eating a spoonful of Cheerios while reading The Art of War.]
Raphael: [deadpan] Wow, Leoās eating breakfast. Better alert the Vatican.
Michelangelo: He doesnāt eat breakfast!
Donatello: [squinting at Leonardo] I mean⦠he usually doesnāt, but maybe heās turning over a new leaf? Healthy habits?
Michelangelo: Healthy habits my shell! Itās not what Leoās eatingāitās what kind! Cheerios over Lucky Charms?! Everyone knows he has a sweet tooth he tries to hide from us, and those are his favorite!
Raphael: [throwing his hands up] One meal. Thatās all I ask. ONE. Without Mikey accusing somebody of being a zombie, or a werewolf, orā
[Michelangelo suddenly holds up a crucifix and points it at Leonardo.]
Michelangelo: BEGONE, DEMON!
[Leonardoās eyes flash black, and he lets out an unholy roar, flipping the chair over as he collapses to the floor.]
Raphael & Donatello: [screaming] WHAT THE HELL?!
That means so much to hear from youāthank you!!
I adore merpeople AUs too, and I'm thrilled you're enjoying this one! I canāt get enough of imagining Gi-hun with his striking red hair and a deep green tailālike the same shade as the Squid Game tracksuits, which feels so poetically fitting. And oh wow, I hadnāt thought of In-ho as a Prince Eric parallel until you mentioned it, but now I canāt unsee it and Iām obsessed. It fits him so well!
Poor Gi-hun, truly. In my headcanon, heās the child of two merfolk himself but was abandoned youngāleft near the ocean floor to fend for himself, hunt, survive. So like you said, he knows nothing about raising a child, specially not one with a human parent, which is completely unheard of in mer society. I imagine Gi-hun was genuinely heartbroken to leave the baby with In-hoāhe just didnāt know he had a choice. No one taught him otherwise.
Because the baby is half-mer, he can breathe underwater, but Gi-hun, being used to the way merchildren are, handles him with a kind of reckless affection that would horrify a human parent. Merbabies develop fast and are tough, so Gi-hun will just casually drop him in the water or even toss him in the air and bop him gently with his tail like a dolphin playing with a ball. The babyās completely fine (maybe even giggles), because in mer culture, thatās considered normal caregivingāfor the two whole days they do keep their kids š
Looking ahead, I love the idea of Gi-hun eventually finding a way to gain legs so he can be with his baby and his eventual husband-slash-co-parent-slash-accidental soulmate. And once he learns how to really care for a child, he takes to it like he was made for it. He adores that baby with his whole heartāand mourns, quietly, that he never knew love like that himself. But heās so grateful to In-ho and Jun-ho for showing him that thereās another way.
Thank you again for letting me rambleāit means the world! Iām definitely going to keep building this story out. Iāve got so many ideas!
Also, just imagine Gi-hun doing this with zero context and In-ho having a minor heart attack.
I need someone to rant to about a potential story idea for In-ho x Gi-hun inspired by fanart on Pinterest, which I have included below, so I hope you do not mind. To begin, In-ho and Jun-ho live on an island and work as police officers but do a lot of fishing together in their spare time. One time while out, they witness another fisherman heartlessly throw a kitten in a sack into the water, and when they go to rescue it and plan on going after the fisherman, a massive green tail emerges from the sack with the kitten in it, and they think it is a big fish trying to eat it, so they net it and drag it in with the sack. Only to find it is what appears to be a merman with bright red hair who takes the kitten and resuscitates it and tries to keep it away from the brothers, thinking they were planning on harming it too.
This merman cannot speak but does understand human language, having watched them from afar for so long, so they communicate and eventually become friends. In-ho names the merman Gi-hun since his actual name is a series of unreplicable screeches. Well, In-ho, Jun-ho, and Gi-hun develop a deep friendship, though In-ho and Jun-ho only get to see GI-hun a couple of months of the year since he moves based on the seasons. Well, eventually Gi-hun and In-ho catch feelings for one another, and one thing leads to another, in a cave specifically, but Gi-hun has to leave for the winter afterward. But In-ho waits patiently for him to come back.
Gi-hun comes back months later with In-ho and Jun-ho waiting for him eagerly; only he has a basket he obviously scavenged from the water, and in it, a newborn baby with human legs and dark hair. Of course, In-ho, who had no idea mermen could carry, nearly faints into the water while Jun-ho loses his mind. āYou fucked a merman???ā When both finally calm down and turn back to the water, they find Gi-hun gone.
Turns out merpeople are absentee parents, so they mate with other merpeople or humans and then dump their offspring on them, thinking it is like a gift. Well, next time In-ho sees Gi-hun, he patiently explains how humans are expected to raise their children together and not just dump them on one another ššš So they learn to co-parent their half human half merperson baby with Uncle Jun-ho.
Sorry for the rant but as soon as I saw the fanart below this whole story came to me. I obviously want to finish other things first but what do you think?
please never apologize for ranting at me!!! i love it šš
i love merman aus so much!!! š i'm also loving that between the green tail and the red hair, gihun is looking exactly like ariel... plus his love interest is a dark-haired charming man with a four-letter name....
i absolutely love the story!! it has a lot of potential going forward since u can expand on the fact that gihun, due to merpeople being absentee parents, would have no idea how to raise a child. nor would he have any idea on how to raise a child with humans.
since the baby is half-merperson, im assuming it can breathe underwater but imagine inho and junho's shock when gihun grabs their tiny baby and just dunks it into the water š
also - totally get if u haven't thought that far end - but would gihun ever, little mermaid style, make a deal with a witch and get legs so that he can walk with inho, junho and their baby?
AND OMG I LOVE THAT GIHUN LOVES CATS IN EVERY UNIVERSE!!! HE SAID CAT PERSON 4 LIFE š©šš¤§
131 posts