⸻ 7/? of mel Mondays ft. her Friendship With Elora.

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UH

Maybe!?

Seiai Academy: Headcanon Edition

(latest update 3/9/21: additional course numbers info, basic uniform/costume info, hc addictions + minor hc changes)

Since BNHA refuses to give my favorite filler non-canon girls any attention whatsoever, my one braincell decided to do it myself. Take this long, convoluted headcanon dump for the Super Sapphic academy! I do warn you, it’s… pretty wordy.

Note: I literally copypasted half of this from my full masterdoc. 

The Academy

Seiai Academy is a females-only hero boarding school. What makes them unique is their insistence in their students having great intellectual talent: the academy only accepts students who are consistent academic achievers. In fact, Seiai is more well known for the high academic success of its students, rather than for its hero course. 

Of course, Seiai is still a good enough hero school in its own right. The Hero course is especially excellent for students who intend on becoming support or rescue heroes; if anything, this is one of the top schools in Japan for women aspiring to specialise in either of those two options, due its challenging yet flexible course.

The entrance exam for the school consists of two main parts, a specialised written exam and a practical (students wanting to enter the support course also require a portfolio of work). However, the written part of the exam is considerably more important, making up a majority of a student’s final mark. The written exam is rather challenging, on a very similar level of difficulty to UA’s, yet ends up being one of the easiest assessments an aspiring Seiai graduate will end up taking in their time at the academy.

The practical requires students to show the full capabilities of their quirks in front of a panel of assessors. They will be required to answer questions and hypothetical scenarios asked by the assessors, explaining and demonstrating how they’d apply their quirks in these various scenarios. Students are primarily assessed on the general ability of their quirks, their answers on how they apply and use them, and other factors depending on the student. Students don’t necessarily have to be fighters due to how the course works: it’s application and potential based on what the student has to work with that determines entrance. Though grades in the examination play a large part (this is how Intelli and Senkai got in).

Once students pass the exam, they still are required to partake in an interview with one of the members of the staff board, to properly gauge their motivations and aspirations. If a student is seen as excessively undesirable, they may be rejected from Seiai Academy. However, exceptions are sometimes made in the case of a ‘troublesome’ student being exceptionally gifted, or if the student in question or their family or other connections have a high public reputation (or are just very rich).

Students who successfully make it into Seiai choose, or are assigned, a course, depending on their future goals. These courses are similar to UA’s department system. Other than its Hero course, Seiai also offers Support and General Studies courses (Business Studies is a compulsory subject taught in all programs). All courses have necessary required subjects, each of which are academically demanding.

Whether a student can enter the hero course depends on their entrance exam and interview results. Someone who scores high enough to enter Seiai, but not enough to qualify for the Hero course, can only choose between the General Studies or Support courses. However, a student who can qualify for the Hero course is permitted to instead pick General Studies, if they prefer. In fact, many people go to/are sent to Seiai for its advanced academic curriculum, for reasons almost completely unrelated to heroics, so this option is often chosen.

Hero classes at Seiai are relatively small: ten people per class, with four classes per year, rather than two classes of twenty. The standards are very high; the smaller class size makes for better team bonding and allows teachers to teach the students better and more personally, though simultaneously makes the competition between each of them much more intense.

There are more general studies students than hero course students, as expected. The support course, however, also has a surprisingly high number of aspiring applicants. 

Students are expected to wear their school uniforms to most extracurricular activities (in addition to pre-approved support items necessary for facilitating their quirks), as a way of representing the school. The uniforms themselves are surprisingly versatile and hold up well to physical exertion such as combat. The school does have sports uniforms, though, for internal school activities.

When it comes to hero costumes, students typically collaborate directly with with one or two assigned school staff that specialise in costume design (usually those in charge of the support course), working with and eventually getting approval from them. Once costume concepts are approved, they’re sent off to one of the professional support companies Seiai has connections with. This whole service does cost additional on top of student fees, and the costumes usually are more formal/slick/utilitarian and less silly or out there in design. Students can opt for other external options, though they may risk less quality as a result, and are expected to take care of maintenance and all other costs to do with their costume by themselves. In addition, DIY costumes still require certain elements to be sent to and/or approved by Seiai (quality checks, specifications, etc).

The school’s public image is a mostly high-class, professional-looking one, exuding an air of extremely high standard. The general vibe of the school, at first, certainly feels posh, but it’s not strict to the point of being military-esque (though it can be close at times). Students are expected to embody everything their school appears to be whenever off school grounds, especially if they’re in uniform.

Some students got in through hard work and dedication. Others were just gifted enough. Some were both. Most of the girls are pretty well-composed by default. However, quite a few were sent to Seiai to be straightened out and gain responsibility. Honestly? Behind the formal appearances, most of the Seiai girls are just tightly-strung and stressed and need to let loose once in a while.

The Students

Now this is where the fun begins. I’ve only put attention into the Seiai girls we know currently exist, because doing otherwise would just be making full-on OCs! Since this is already pretty long, though, I’ve put it under the cut!

Keep reading

Montresor (and Willtresor) is the Bad Ending of the White Raven IV: the saga continues

Okay, now that these chapters have been released I can talk about this issue. I must say that this twist has been just the way I like twists: no, the surprising thing is not that it happened, but that, when you look back, it not only makes sense, it also recontextualizes some little things that stick around.

A person who is not there

There's one thing that's cross-cutting to these four idiots: they're absolutely desperate for someone to look at them. And when you think about it, it kind of makes sense: Lenore has lost the one person who seemed to even slightly care about her and locked up like an animal, Annabel is a hypocrite so terrified of being perceived as crazy that she's a breath away from collapse, Will is the kind of guy who blends in with the walls to such an extent that hardly anyone remembers his face, and Montresor has been seen as an devil since fucking birth.

However, the fine line that separates the Annabel/Will and Lenore/Montresor duo is drawn into something quite complicated: who are on the edge of the abyss and who can't fall any lower.

Both Montresor and Lenore, for different reasons, are trapped in inescapable situations: Montresor will never be anything more than a shit-talking charlatan in anyone's eyes and Lenore will die before she shakes off the label of a madwoman.

Then, they come along. These two people who have not only been able to look them in the eye, they are also people in whom they can see themselves reflected: a weak pushover who can't fend for himself and a lady who is one mental health slip away from being put in a straitjacket.

They have been that person. And their desperate cries for help have never been answered.

But this time may be different. If Lenore and Montresor can save Annabel and Will, in a way, they are also saving themselves. A 50/50 between a selfless motivation and a huge reassertion of one's own ego.

Which leads to the first difference.

Where Lenore offers Annabel a deal on equal terms, a “you and me against the world, baby”; Montresor has with Will a relationship based on subordination: it is he who must take care of Will and, thus, Will is beneath him.

What Annabel and Will understand from the arrangements of this deal are two very different things: where Annabel must live up to the extraordinary person that Lenore is in order to accompany her on equal terms, Will must make sure that he is a weak individual that Montresor can take care of and mistreat in order to feel superior when necessary.

This is not a problem for either of them because there is one little thing that Annabel and Will are able to mold as if it were plasticine: their identity.

Fragmented identities

These scenes have exactly the same purpose.

And I absolutely love them for that.

But let's take them one at a time.

Both Annabel and Will are two invisible people who at least feel like they've been saved by their favorite person. Lenore is Annabel's knight in shining armor and Montresor is the bad boy capable of moving forward despite everything that Will longs for.

They love them. And they need them.

Because Annabel is just a pretty accessory incapable of thinking outside the golden cage she's lived in all her life. And Will is incapable of thinking for himself because he doesn't want to deal with the responsibility of doing so.

So they build this perfect mask to please their special people. A carefully chiseled mask tailored to be loved based on what they believe their special person wants from them.

In both scenes, Annabel and Will have their world fall apart as they realize that the mask they have created for their loved one is not only unwanted, but viewed with disgust and contempt. So the mask slips for an instant to reveal what lies beneath only for their special people. But to very different ends and consequences.

Annabel drops her self-imposed role as unbeatable queen, begins to cry her eyes out, has a panic attack and even -to Lenore's surprise and horror- comes to doubt that she is loved. She is far from living up to the role she should have: she is scared, lonely and, from her reaction, probably doesn't even want to do this.

Of course, Lenore swoops in to comfort her because her beloved damsel in distress is in a vulnerable moment. But all it takes is for Lenore to suggest that Annabel can approach other people for the unbeatable queen to come back: even pushing her to the limit hasn't gotten her to get what's really going on out of her. And after Annabel would rather have Duke and Pluto throw her off a balcony than allow Lenore to reveal herself as a traitor to her friends, it is definite that Lenore has lost this battle: she has already exhausted all her options which have ranged from pleading, to loving words and, in this scene, to verbal violence. The unbeatable queen is in a place where she can't reach her and any future attempts will only succeed in putting the two of them in a more complicated situation.

On the other hand, Will has a small moment of vulnerability with Montresor, giving her this little speech that works as a confession: this confusion about whether he wants him or wants to be him is, as I read in some places, a fairly common situation among gay men. Before he dies, he ends up stealing Montresor a kiss.

But all this has been nothing more than to see his reaction. Because Will is not dead. Not at all.

Although he's put his feelings on the table, he doesn't seem to expect Montresor to return his affection. Just knowing that he cares seems to be enough for the moment, because he plays dumb after it all happens. But Will's made it pretty clear that he is capable of an enormous level of manipulation and that he works with a subtlety that even Annabel couldn't dream of.

Now that they've gotten a peek at what's beneath the masks, Lenore and Montresor find themselves trapped with monsters of their own creation that they are unable to comprehend: Lenore can't even fathom why Annabel continues to do this despite how much she's suffering and Montresor doesn't even know what Will's intentions really are.

Kind of deliciously ironic because didn't Lenore want her partner in crime? Didn't Montresor want his little mutt to fight a little?

Weren't they the ones who wanted to be their number one?

And, as the icing on the cake, they are alone in this, because the monsters they have created only let them get close. Everyone else in the world has been fooled by Annabel and Will's perfect masks, so if they wanted to (or even could) tell anyone about this absolutely no one would believe them.

Even if Lenore wanted to convince her friends that Annabel isn't a homicidal maniac, it's virtually impossible for them to believe her after what happened with Duke. And Montresor can't even begin to explain what Will did.

Love and control

Here I need to stir up the duos a bit.

Montresor and Annabel are not only blonde charlatans with parental problems, they have also learned to relate to the world in terms of control: they protect themselves by moving others around like pieces to get them to do what they want (at least in Nevermore, Annabel in life would not have been able to do these things as far as we know).

Where Annabel puts herself at the center of the board as a queen, Montresor is all about pissing off everyone around him because that's the only way he feels seen.

But they are not the ones with the upper hand in their relationship.

Will and Lenore have demonstrated by actions -we can't be sure in Lenore's case it's a conscious thing- that they are capable of giving all the affection, security, and loyalty if they get what they want from Montresor and Annabel.

It's hard to know what Will wants from Montresor at this point, but he seems quite content for his bad boy to remain his bad boy who has something resembling a soft side to him. In Lenore's case, this waltz between having doki dokis every time Annabel exists around her and being absolutely furious seems to be tied up in her desire to have Annabel by her side: when Annabel plays queen and walks away, pushing Lenore away from whatever is going on; she immediately becomes wary or, at worst, aggressive; but is caring and responsive when Annabel shows a vulnerable side.

This ends up generating a funny situation where the relationship between Montresor and Will is more functional than Lenore and Annabel's because there is one side subordinate to the other: Will has Montresor by the balls, but lets himself be mistreated; while Annabel refuses to put Lenore's desires above the danger they are both in (and even refuses to tell her what the fuck is going on).

Conclusions

Okay, I have to admit that I have been a bit dramatic in some parts of this essay and I have to rectify that so that you are not left with the wrong idea.

The first (and most obvious) thing is that it looks like Annabel is going to get to have honest relationships beyond Lenore. Of course, her friendship with Ada and Prospero can't really begin until the “allies till battle royale do them part” deal is dissolved and she's confronted for putting them both in a sticky situation. That yes, they signed up to be allies of the Machiavellian mastermind, but to Caesar what is Caesar's: no real friendship will form here until those bumps are crossed.

And speaking of Annabel, if there's one person who has a microscopic chance of believing Montresor the fucked up shit Will has done, it's possibly Annabel. My only argument is this:

Like, she doesn't say Will is harmless, she says isolation makes him pliable. And although she is underestimating him and not knows Will is a threat, but maybe she'd be willing to think Montresor isn't crazy if she finds out what happened.

Another point is the conclusion she ended up coming to in all these trials: the line that separates things is drawn on who has their heart in the right place and who doesn't. So, where Montresor is terrified of Will while Will holds a threat over Montresor's head, neither Lenore nor Annabel is afraid that the other might hurt them. And while we don't know what Lenore's feelings are about how she's been treating Annabel in some respects (this for the date I've uploaded this essay), if her face in this scene and the little spoiler that was uploaded to tumblr tell us one thing: It's that the answer is probably guilt. Let's see what comes out of that.

Finally, there's one not too nice thing I'd like to say about when I saw spoilers from the fast pass. Okay, I know this comic is moving at a snail's pace and that while it's been a few days for the characters, this chapter came out like fifty weeks ago. But people, with all my love: I want you to see the difference between Ada and Will's reactions in this scene. Ada is obviously uncomfortable and guilty; while Will has an “upsi” face.

And when Lenore confronts him, Will has the face to complaining that he is scared. He at no point in this confrontation shows a single shred of real remorse.

I know there are people who have been through abusive relationships who have identified with Will and I don't mean to go on to bring that up. But what these scenes raised at the time is that there is something off about this guy, something that should give you a bad feeling because his behavior doesn't fit that of a person who has been forced to do something terrible.

Another thing I've seen someone point out at the time is that Will feels different in his character presentation and has been getting more pathetic as we see him more screen time. We now know that he has been learning how to behave.

Add to that that his reaction is the only one we don't see when it's revealed that there's only a second life available and we only see it when Montresor shakes him. But he doesn't seem particularly affected beyond the chaos that's going on around him.

All these little things keep telling you that there's something wrong with Will. And what Chapter 120 does, is show you what the thing that didn't add up was: what we've been seeing so far is a mask worn by a much more twisted individual and, now that we know that, we can start to figure out who he is and what he really wants.

This, people, is William Willson in all his glory. And Will turns out not to be the protagonist, but the doppelganger tormenting him. I don't remember who said that theory, but: you were absolutely right.

Anyway, this has gotten long. Thank you very much for making it this far.

Happy birthday bbg 🎉

enough "overhaul loves character because they don't cause him to break out in hives when they touch" and more "overhaul loves character enough that he wants to have them around even in spite of his germaphobia". is it not more romantic to have him say "it's okay if it's you" as he willfully ignores his innate reaction to skin-to-skin contact just so that he can be with you.

Momokarun save me, save me momokarun

I'm afraid I'll eat you alive, so I'll place you on a pedestal, away from my jagged teeth and broken heart.

Create Bungou Stray Dogs memes of the DailyQuests variety.