#[ which was good karma who had no fucking problem killing people who got in her way ]

[plurcspopulus]

you thought because i grew up in a vault i’d be weak. i’d be soft. but i was willing to do anything to get my father back. and then you took him from me. what do you think i’d be willing to do to avenge him. independent | selective | the lone wanderer from fallout 3

[stellar-lune]

*KOTLC incorrect quotes*

Anyways, a long list of incorrect KOTLC quotes, feel free to use these for anything if ya want!

-

Glimmer: Arson? Oh, you mean "crime brûlée".

-

Fitz: Oh, so when crows remember people who wronged them and hold grudges, its “intelligent” and “really cool”.

Fitz: But when I do it, I’m “petty” and “need to let it go”.

-

Keefe, holding up his class notes: And then this doodle of a burrito because when I first read Aristotle, I thought it was pronounced like “Chipotle”.

Marella, in shock: Wait a minute, is it “Chip-o-tottle”?

-

Sophie: I wasn't hurt that badly. Elwin said all my bleeding was internal, that's where the blood's supposed to be!

-

Police Officer: You have the right to remain silent.

Marella: I choose to waive that right!

Marella: *screaming*

-

Brant (whoops sorry bout this one): Do not come over to my house. If the house is on fire you may knock once, if I don’t answer assume I set the fire and I want to burn to death.

-

Sophie: I would never say that my best friend is a bitch and I don’t like her. That’s not true… Biana is a bitch and I like her very much!

-

Lex, Bex, Rex: If I can't cause tiny bits of chaos every day, I think my body will shut down.

-

Keefe on Tuesday: *glues a dime to the sidewalk* Heh heh heh.

Keefe on Wednesday: *walking down the street* Ooh hey! A dime!

-

Forkman, to the squad: And remember, if I get harsh with you it is only because you’re doing it all wrong.

-

Keefe, tearing up the room: Where are they?

Keefe, looking under a pillow: Who moved them? Who moved my children?

Keefe: Somebody moved my E.L. Fudges, and now I am going to run away again.

-

Tam: Your existence is confusing.

Keefe: How so?

Tam: Your presence is annoying, but the thought of anything bad happening to you upsets me.

-

Sophie: I have one foot in the grave but in a kind of fun flirty way, the way one might slip on a fishnet stocking.

-

Linh: I've never encountered a problem that can't be solved by an spontaneous musical number.

-

Dex: Dracula had it right, sleep all day, live alone in a castle, and explode into bats to get out of all social situations.

-

Sophie: Fuck capitalism. It's a rigged system that keeps us poor and it isn't fair. You shouldn't need to work three jobs to afford basic necessities.

Sophie, playing Monopoly: Sorry, if you wanted to win you should have tried not being poor.

-

Dex, to Stina: If karma doesn't hit you, I fucking will.

-

Sophie: My life isn't as glamourous as my wanted poster makes it look.

-

Dex: If I'm extra sarcastic with you it probably means I'm flirting with you or you really annoy me and I can't handle your crap... have fun figuring out which one, Wonderboy.

-

Marella: As someone who has a long history of not understanding anything, I feel confident in my ability to continue not knowing what is going on.

-

Fitz: I'm a firm believer in "if you're going to fail, you might as well fail spectacularly."

-

*out grocery shopping*

Linh: *takes a free sample twice*

Linh: Robbery and fraud. I am a Rebel (TM) .

-

Sophie: Sometimes I wonder if I’m hearing voices.

Sophie: Then I remember that’s the last bit of sanity I have trying to get me to fall asleep at a reasonable time.

-

Sophie: Does anyone know how to relax? Asking for a friend.

-

Demon: Hey, I took your soul last month and-

Tam: No returns.

Demon: *sobbing* But it's making me sad...

-

Dex: So, according to my university, it is, quote, “my responsibility if there is an internet outage to contact the faculty and the department.”

Dex: Now, if you’re a critical thinker like me, you might be wondering one thing.

Dex: HOW THE FUCK AM I SUPPOSED TO EMAIL THE DEPARTMENT?!?!?!

-

Tam: Hey, what’s the name of the other guy who lives with Tiergan?

Linh: His cats' names are Walter and Rose.

Tam: That's not what I asked.

Linh: That is all the information I have.

-

Keefe: Ro, remember when you said you weren’t going to interfere with my love life?

Ro: No, that doesn’t sound like me at all.

(alternatively, Alden)

-

Linh: Ayo, what the FUCK is this?!?

Tam, sitting down, surrounded by corpses: I won Mafia, that’s what.

-

Marella: I'd roast you, but my mom says you can't burn trash.

Marella: *slow-mo walks out of the room*

-

Biana: I'm gonna get my piolet's license. I've already got a driver's license and a cosmetology license, that's two of the big five licenses.

Fitz: The big five licenses?

Biana: Driver's license, cosmetology license, pilot's license, fishing license, and… license to kill! I can't wait to get that one.

-

Dex: You are irrationally angry 365 days a year.

Fitz: Well, that’s just your personal opinion, I don’t have anger issues. Biana, do you think I have anger issues?

Biana: Well, I wouldn’t really call it an issue. An issue is something you can fix.

-

Keefe: So how’s the food Sophie made?

Fitz: It's great! Compliments to her.

Keefe: *goes to the kitchen*

Keefe: You're adorable.

Sophie: *blushes*

-

Biana: And now for a gay update with Linh and Marella.

Marella: Getting gayer.

Biana: Thank you, Marella.

-

Sophie: Hey, do you know the password to Keefe’s computer?

Biana: I love you, Sophie.

Sophie: Aww, that’s so swe—

Biana: No, you misunderstood, the password is "iloveyouSophie".

Sophie: Oh, no numbers? Not very safe.

-

Fitz: Hey, Biana, are you free on Friday? Like around eight?

Biana: Yeah.

Fitz: And you, Tam?

Tam: Umm... yes?

Fitz: Great! Because I'm not. You two go out without me. Enjoy your date!

Biana: Did he just-

-

Sophie: Do you cook?

Biana: I made a cake once.

Fitz: Yeah, it was good.

Biana: Really?

Fitz: Don’t make me lie twice, Biana.

-

Dex: Nice rock.

Keefe: Thanks, Tam gave it to me.

Tam: I threw it at you!

Keefe: Isn’t he the sweetest?

-

Juline: I just had a long talk with the triplets about hitting and now they are yelling “it’s my turn to perpetuate the cycle of violence” before hitting each other.

-

Sophie: I made you all playlists!

Sophie: Tam, yours has only heavy metal and punk, and is dark like your soul.

Sophie: Keefe, yours has sad songs and blues to pair with your crippling depression.

Sophie: And Biana has the ABBA Gold album.

-

Fitz: A pessimist sees a dark tunnel.

Biana: An optimist sees light at the end of the tunnel.

Dex: A realist sees a freight train.

Tam: The train driver sees three idiots standing on train tracks.

-

Mr. Forkle: For self defense reasons, I'm going to pretend to be a burglar and you guys have to act wisely.

Biana, Keefe, & Sophie: Okay.

Mr. Forkle: If you don't want to die, give me all your money.

Biana: Bold of you to assume I have money.

Keefe: Bold of you to assume I don't want to die.

Sophie: Bold of you to assume I can die.

-

Sophie: My life is a little too much panic and not enough disco.

Keefe: My life is a little too much fall and not enough boy.

Dex: My life is a little too much chemical and not enough romance.

Marella: My life is a little too much imagination and not nearly enough dragons.

-

Biana: What’s it like being tall?

Marella: Is it nice?

Sophie: Can you reach comfortably for the cupboards?

Fitz: We live in constant fear of the short ones who, in my experience, will climb four chairs, two boxes, a small coffee table, and six oddly placed stools to get what they want.

-

Stina: You have friends and I envy that.

Marella: You're welcome to share my friends.

Stina: *looks at Dex and Sophie*

Stina: I don't want those.

-

Della: Tommorrow's garbage day.

Fitz: I can't believe you made a whole day dedicated to Alvar.

-

Linh: Bottling up negative emotions is bad for your health, so you shouldn't do it.

Tam: I know, that's why I bottle up all my emotions, both positive and negative, so it cancels out.

Linh: Th-that's not how that works-

-

Marella: Do you want to know your gay name?

Linh: My... my gay name?

Marella: Yeah, it's your first name-

Linh: Haha. Very funny Marella-

Marella: *gets down on one knee* And my last name.

Linh: Oh- oh my god.

-

Glimmer: You know you've made it when you see your picture everywhere you go.

The Black Swan: Those are wanted posters!

-

Biana: Are you mad?

Tam: No.

Biana: So sharpening your knives at 3 in the morning is just a hobby?

-

Keefe: Astrology is fun because i can pretend that all of my behaviors are just a result of being a Gemini and not symptoms of mental illness.

Biana: Being a Gemini is a mental illness. That’s not hate it’s just a fact.

-

Biana: *on the phone* Hey Fitz, do you know my blood type?

Fitz: Of course, it's A+.

Biana: Oh, I guessed wrong. Excuse me, nurse-!

-

Fitz, to Sophie: Are you ready to commit?

Sophie: Like, a crime or a relationship?

-

Literally Anyone: Hey, aren’t you Sophie Foster?

Sophie: You a Councillor?

Literally Anyone: No.

Sophie: Then yes, I am.

-

Sophie: I typed "bitch" into my GPS and guess what? I'm in your driveway.

Stina:

Sophie: Vroom vroom, come out already.

Stina: I’m gay—

Sophie: Not what I meant, but cool.

-

Keefe: Remember that time you dared me to lick a swingset?

Sophie: No, I said "Keefe, don't lick that swingset" and you said "Don't tell me what to do" and licked the swingset.

-

Mr. Forkle: I’m not so sure you’re stakeout material.

Sophie: I’m a chronic insomniac, I was born for this.

-

Juline: I only have two emotions: exhaustion and stress. And I’m somehow always feeling both simultaneously.

-

Marella: *gets set on fire and screams in agony*

Marella: Nah, I’m just kidding. Fire does nothing to me.

-

Biana: Maybe the true treasure was friendship all along. But I hope not, because I can’t spend friendship on new clothes

-

Dex: Do you want to play 20 Questions?

Fitz: Sure!

Fitz: Whats your favorite color?

Dex, laser fucking focused: Triangle. Do you like men?

[moral-turpitudes]

College Headcanons: Modern!Peaky Blinders Edition

Part 1 | Part 2

Grace Burgess:

Major: Criminal Justice Minor: Fashion Merchandising

10/10 would join a sorority. She has the look and loves the parties.

Has beauty and brains, surprisingly.

Works part time as the barista at Starbucks.

Loves sticking her nose in people’s business so her major is pretty fitting.

She loves a challenge so when she gets to know Thomas Shelby, she knows he’s gonna be fun to figure out.

Studies a decent amount but uses her spare time to try to look into the Shelby’s and why they practically run campus. A little birdy told her about them.

Knows Tommy’s coffee order by heart.

Always DTF.

Is suspicious of Tommy’s inability to use technology but goes along with it cuz she wants to get to know him more.

Didn’t think she’d fall for the mysterious man with a smoking problem but here we are.

When introduced to his family, she asked too many questions about their finances and such, making them think she worked for the cops or something.

Polly still didn’t trust her despite it being a while since they first dated.

Her professor likes her, and encourages her to keep investigating as part of her project on corrupt institutions. Only her professor is a little too enthusiastic. She passes the class, but tells Tommy about him being creepy from time to time.

The next day the professor isn’t there. Hmm. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Almost fought a guy who spilt his coffee on her new dress.

Dreams of being well-off and having a fashion line of her own. Envying Ada’s knack for clothing.

Gets drunk with her sorority sisters on the weekends at the bar and does karaoke. It’s not the best, but she gets an A for effort.

About halfway through her junior year she has to leave cuz she’s dramatic and Polly may have blown her cover. So in a rash decision, she leaves Tommy on his own, making him have a fit and almost getting himself suspended but it’s fine. Polly tells him he’ll meet someone else.

Esme Lee

Major: Horticulture

Her friends all have crazy majors but she wanted something simple, so she chose horticulture. It also lets her get out of the dull college life for a while, or so she thought.

Knowing she can get her mind set on her studies, they decided to help her out and invited her to a frat party.

Everyone who was popular was there so she felt a bit out of place, until she met John randomly when she went to grab a drink.

She’s a wild one kind of like John so they mesh well together. They ended up getting drunk and dancing the night away, letting all their college worries leave them.

In her spare time she can be seen roaming campus with John or hanging out with her friends, and occasionally yelling at some people to get away from her plants at the schools gardening area.

She got along with the blinders really well, except she liked to challenge Tommy at times.

She may be small but she’s one hell of a yeller. She intimidated John the first time she yelled at him.

No one messes with her unless they want to be beaten up by her boyfriend.

Polly likes to chat with her about the business sometimes, sparing some of the details, but she knows Esme can be trusted, and besides, Esme can always force it out of John if it’s something too shady.

Apart from her social life, she does quite well for her studies, and runs a small etsy shop where she makes jewelry.

Her favorite part is uploading aesthetic photos of them to her insta and trying to get John to model for her pictures.

She, like the rest of the family, knew Grace was a snake, and always got bad vibes from Linda…smh.

When she heard news of Grace leaving, she shared a glance with John and did a happy dance internally. In regards to Linda, she wanted to claw her eyes out a bit but she held herself back. Linda would eventually get what came to her. Karma really is that bitch.

As time went on, she found herself agreeing on a whim to marry John, and later falling pregnant with her first of many children. But she’s fine with this situation as long as he helps her live her cottage!core dreams with a bunch of chickens running around while they raise their 10,000 kids.

Linda Shelby

Major: Agriculture

Minor: Religious Studies

Unhinged™

Joined a philanthropic sorority, so she mainly focuses on serving people at shelters and charities instead of serving looks at frat parties.

Claims to be a Christian.

Has the eye for anyone with a penis.

Spends most of her agriculture classes daydreaming about shooting Arthur.

Prays she has the knowledge to pass her exams instead of actually studying for them.

Just wants to live on a farm and be a housewife.

Gives off major bitch vibes no matter how many crucifixes she wears around her neck. Polly tolerates her, and so does the rest of the family, but it’s only a matter of time before someone snaps.

Textbook good-girl-gone-bad trope. Everyone knows her around campus for preaching about no sex until marriage but she be doing the nasty with her side-bae after prayer night.

Enjoys eavesdropping on the Shelby family’s conversations. She supplies Grace with information in exchange for free coffee.

Gaslighting is her second language, speaking in tongues is her third.

When she’s not planning things, she can be seen talking to Grace at Starbucks or stress-baking. She hooks her friends up with weed brownies and later switches to coke because of her boyfriend’s family *cough* Arthur.

Binge drinks on Saturdays and crawls to church on Sundays.

Gets clingy and manipulative at times.

Loves doing her religious studies homework in the chapel or the huge library on campus.

She’d do okay up until finals week, then she’d have many a break down that only cocaine could fix.

Drunk calls Arthur and lets it slip she’d been sleeping with someone the whole time they’d been together. Has 2 working braincells at that point.

He goes off on the dude as they both went to the same bible study. He begged for mercy in the middle of the church floor for Arthur to stop with the punches but we all know hell hath no fury like a person who’s been cheated on. May have almost killed him but it’s fine.

Linda finds him bleeding almost as much as Jesus did.

After crying to Grace on the phone, she snorts a couple lines and downs some shots and heads to Arthur’s dorm. Sos Linda’s got a gun.

Gets shot and lives to tell about it.

She leaves to find god perhaps after all this...or more coke, and just says “fuck it” to her degree. College isn’t for everyone, it’s ok Linda.

Poor Arthur is confused in the weeks leading to the shooting and Linda leaving. Isiah tried to warn him since he was her partner for some projects but he didn’t listen. He wanted to question Tommy’s barista bae about her too but she dipped tf out. The world may never know.

Lizzie Starke

Major: English

She’d taken up an assistants job at the business college and so she worked for nonother than Professor Polly Gray.

She got along with her well, and on Friday nights when she’d be invited out for drinks, she’d overhear Polly divulge one too many secrets about her business.

She kept her circle small so she never felt the need to tell anyone, also fearing that she wouldn’t live to see tomorrow if she did.

Polly trusted her with all her paperwork, often having to proofread and go over Tommy’s insanely long assignments and political debate notes.

Tommy would often be seen around the office, talking Polly’s ear off about business and legal issues, all while she’d get lost in his eyes as he spoke.

She knew she was out of his league, at least while Grace had him wrapped around her finger, but Polly said her day would come so she believed it.

In her spare time, she’d read poetry and sip tea, and on occasion try to teach Tommy about the world of laptops, but even she gave up after a while.

Her major took up a good deal of her time, constantly writing papers and re-reading books, but there was always one silver-lining. Tommy would often skip getting Finn’s help and go straight to her. He said it was because she gave good advice, but his demeanor said otherwise.

When he’d arrive, she’d notice him gradually improving his appearance, much like he did with Grace. And when he’d leave, Polly would shoot her a knowing look.

She may be quiet, but she’s smart, and knows when to make her moves, which both impresses Polly and intrigues Tommy.

Ends up being one of the only ones able to call Tommy out on his shit.

When she’s not around the Shelby’s she’s with her friends or hitting up bars and bookstores.

When she and Tommy finally get together, some students turned their heads at first, but they were good for each other in the long run, it just took Tommy longer to see it.

Gina Gray:

Major: Business Management

Minor: Fashion Merchandising

She came in the picture shortly after Grace’s departure. She was studying abroad but decided to come back for her business classes.

When she first laid eyes on Michael she knew he was the one, but she had to go through Polly, her professor first.

They dated for a while until he popped the question one weekend, leaving everyone in shock.

When she wasn’t fooling around with Michael, she could be seen around campus with her sorority sisters and some of her close friends. Since she was a fashion minor, she always made sure she was dressed to the nines and turned heads almost as much as Michael’s cousin Ada, almost.

Gives off bitch vibes 24/7. No one can really tell if she’s genuine in her feelings, not even Michael, poor bud.

His family thought she was suspicious like Grace, and Polly still can’t put her finger on why she feels she may have a trick up her embellished sleeves.

Michael tends to follow her like a lost puppy of sorts, but she loves the attention, and when he mentioned how his family worked she didn’t seem very phased by it, coming from a somewhat dysfunctional and power-hungry family herself.

She tries to study a decent amount but she’s always hanging out with Michael or getting herself into trouble with the cops when her sorority sisters throw parties.

She’s smart and very convincing, but Polly sees right through her, leading up to a very heated discussion between the two women after class one day.

It’s safe to say that her grades for Polly’s class are holding on by a thread, much like Polly is to her sanity.

She loves a game, whether that’s messing with people’s heads, or trying to beat her friends on game night. She always enjoys watching how they work through their problems, picking out the weakest ones in order to beat them while they’re down.

When she’s not scraping by in her business classes, she’s brainstorming fashion ideas for her numerous projects she’s left until the last minute. Somehow she’s passing the class with flying colors though.

Like Michael’s cousin Tommy, she’s always scheming over something, and so it’s only a matter of time before she fucks something up.

Aberama Gold:

Profession: Philosophy Professor

Side Job: Hitman

His teaching styles are eccentric, often taking the class on field trips to immerse them in the experience.

Goes on for hours about various stories and theories, often losing the class after 30 minutes.

Sometimes he gets called out of class by the teaching assistant because he got an “important” phone call.

“Important” phone calls mean hits and he can’t turn them down unless he wants beef with his rival gang members or people involved in the mafia.

For these reasons, he has two phones. One for his usual work and family, and one for the dirty work.

His son always teases him about having hella phones, but he ain’t no drug dealer, although he most definitely knows some by association.

Asks hard questions to his students and expects good answers.

Doesn’t believe in homework, but makes the classes very challenging and hard to skip.

In his spare time he helps out at the boxing ring, teaching his son the ropes and prepping him for competitions. Other times he helps Arthur and Finn train, all in an attempt to get them to mention their aunt Polly.

He’s in love with the woman but is a bit shy like his son. It takes him a bit to get the courage to meet her but once he does they hit it off.

Polly wasn’t turned off by his dangerous lifestyle, in fact she was turned on by it as she’s lived the same life.

When he wasn’t with Polly or helping his son, he could be seen roaming campus in his signature hat, resting in alleyways or leaving campus abruptly, obviously to go kill someone.

He’d often spend nights away from home alone in the forest, away from Polly and his family, using “philosophy research purposes” as an excuse so he could stake out targets.

He always kept his end of the bargain up, even when he had to deal with Polly’s family and their gangly family business.

Bonnie Gold:

Major: Sports Management

One of the more quiet, reserved students on campus. He can get mouthy when challenged though so watch out.

Would definitely hang with the art and english students, they’re chill.

Can be seen carrying his boxing gloves between classes and doing routine jogs around campus.

All the bitches love him but he only has his eyes on his future. He just wants to win his matches and then he’ll think about love, or so he says. He has the eye for someone in class though and it’s not long until his dad finds out.

He’s health-conscious af.

Has never eaten Ramen noodles a day in his life and doesn’t plan on it. Even if his friends Finn and Isiah try to bribe him. It’s one of the peak college experiences after all.

May have gotten drunk at a frat party and fought a tree.

Would throw hands if someone was being a dick to someone he cared about.

Takes his major seriously. He studies decently well given his dad is always on his ass about it, but when he’s done he goes to parties or hits the ring.

Often has his head in the clouds, dreaming of being a famous boxer, or at least managing a very successful sports team.

Helps his dad on hits. Not many people know this so it’s hush hush.

When he’s not shooting at his fathers enemies, he’s in the ring practicing for the big competitions.

Often spends weekends with his dad, helping to plan attacks and meeting with his blinder friends.

Almost got suspended for knocking out a couple guys cuz they insulted his father.

Attends his dads lectures just to keep an eye on things for him and because he actually finds the subject interesting. May also have a “thing” for a girl in the class but most likely won’t make a move because he’s shy af most times.

Isiah Jesus:

Major: History

Minor: Religious Studies

Despite his wild lifestyle, he likes learning about religions and how they all came to be, given his dad is a preacher.

He may not be a saint but he tries to do well in the classes at least.

Can be seen fucking around with his buds Finn and Bonnie, and going to one too many frat parties.

Finn and him would do lines of coke as soon as Arthur helped move a new supply in, and he’d try to bribe Bonnie to try it but he’d refuse and say he “has to stay clean for his matches.”

When he’s not doing coke or studying for his history or religion exams, he’s out helping the blinders on various jobs.

He often gets in trouble with security because he’s always sneaking about the dorms with some girls he met at parties.

Call it divine intervention, but he couldn’t help but feel something was “off” with the girl Arthur was seeing, cuz he’d gotten partnered up with her for some religion projects in the past and her ideas were concerning. He told Arthur to be careful but we all know what went down.

He likes joining the blinders on their business trips, often leaving his schoolwork until the last minute, just to get the opportunity to help in the business.

He and Finn rant about them not getting enough exposure to the family business but Polly quickly shoves the ideas from their heads saying they need to focus on school, at least then maybe the family could have some other potential.

Daydreams of being a full-blown leader like all the ones he’d read about in his history books. He often looks up to Tommy just as much as Finn does, which sometimes gets them both hurt.

He can be seen often at the ring training with Finn and Bonnie.

He sticks up for his family and friends, even if it means putting himself on the line. No one messes with him unless they want trouble from him and everyone he knows.

[drwcn]

Not to bring up the distasteful teenager memory of Twilight LMAO, but yall remember that part of the story where it is revealed after Rosalie turns into a vampire she goes and devours every single one of the men who r*ped her.

Fierce Corpse!Qin Su coming for Jin Guangshan’s life.

JIGGY was always looking for ways to make a fierce corpse wasn’t he? Well consider this.

Madam Qin confronts JGY, but it was already too late. Qin Su was already pregnant. JGY, being the dumbest smart person, realized he has fucked up, but what to do? It’s not like he can tell Madam Qin he knocked up his own sister accidentally. Unknowing of this, Madam Qin then went to Qin Su to tell her the truth. Surely even if that degenerate won’t stop this marriage, once Qin Su finds out they are related, she wouldn’t go through with it.

Well, little did Madam Qin expect, once Qin Su finds out, she’s so overcome with disgust she takes her own life (canon compliant, I think? idk what that episode was about to be honest. I always assumed Jiggy drugged her to keep her quiet, but Qin Su was the one to take her own life. Jin Rusong is at best a ball of cells at this stage and abortion is a staple trope of cdrama don’t @ me. I take no criticisms.)

Well shit, now Qin Su is half a step away from death. Jiggy discovers this first, and is like O.O oh feck, but also... opportunity????  He recruits evil gremlin extraordinaire Xue Yang, and beginner’s luck takes them to a successful resurrection.

*cue Mary Shelly shaking her head from beyond the grave or... in the future....technically.*

Qin Su is rightfully like wtf JGY, but Jiggy is like aight sis i know you’re mad, but hey now that everyone knows what’s the deal here, I think we have a common enemy: Jin Guangslut. Should we kill him or should we kill him?

Xue Yang: yo so .... you still gonna get married or what?

Qin Su: if you even think about getting married i swear to god -

JGY: ....okay, how about “fake” marry. Once dear old Dad is dead, we can...idk have an amicable separation. I can even set you up on a date with a guy I know in the fierce corpse community. His sister is still in my basement come to think of it -

QS: what

JGY: what

QS: you are a fucking nutjob, Jiggy, you know that? I can’t believe I was attracted to you.

JGY: first of all that’s hurtful, but... hey at least you didn’t insult my mother.

QS: why would i? our mothers are innocent. *deep sigh* okay fine, how should we kill JGS, I vote for castration. Also *points to the black veins on her paste-y complexion* this is gonna be a problem.

XY: *quirk an eye brow* realllly starting to see the family resemblance now. Don’t worry I got make up to cover that up. Also gotta find you some blush, so you don’t look so ... undead.

~

JGY “so we get prostitutes -”

QS “No. Jiggy, I’m sensing some internalized classism. Let’s just sic Xue Yang on him and be done with it.”

JGY “....you were less bossy before.”

QS “I was also less dead before. Also, Xue Yang doesn’t mind, do you dear?”

XY *eating the candied pastries QS got him* “Nah, not at all, jiejie. I can wear a dress and get dolled up if you want, but I want silk and the dress needs to be tailored. Bespoke. *points to his plate* These are great. Do you have more?”

JGY: *facepalm* what have done.

QS: created a fierce corpse you can’t control. Karma’s a bitch, isn’t it brother?

~

QS “I feel bad for Chifeng-zun. If I had to sit and watch you and Lan Xichen make eyes at each other over the guqin day in and day out....”

JGY “Oi, you’re not even my real wife.”

QS “Doesn’t mean I can’t nag you. Also, you have an issue, you know. You can’t just murder your way to the top.”

JGY “I wasn’t -”

QS “Save it. If you give Xue Yang enough candy, he’ll tell you anything.”

JGY “NMJ is a problem. He disrespects -”

QS “You think maybe the reason he thinks you’re a untrustworthy little shit is because you are...an untrustworthy little shit? Also he’s always violent and aggressive towards you...yeah ‘cause you’ve been playing Terrible Temper Tango on repeat for weeks.”

JGY “.....................” *well sis does have a point, maybe i should re-evaluate my strategy “Then what do you suggest I do?”

QS:  I believe Xue Yang calls it “when it doubt, fuck it out.” 

JGY: ...............................you two need to stop hanging out together. 

~

Jin Guangyao and Qin Su spend many nights in the secret chamber plotting together. Apparently the Jin crazy can both be inherited and developed. Qin Su decides her second life is rather nice, and having power is nice too, but she’d rather have some friends. 

*Jiggy and Qin Su’s Ten Step Plan to Un-Fuck the Cultivation World*

Aka Jiggy’s illegal but necessary emergency U-Turn. 

Step 1: Start playing some nice music ffs, and maybe when NMJ is in a better mood, the venerated Triad can be the venerated Triad. ;) 

Step 2: start treating MXY better. He could be useful as a loyal brother. 

Step 3:  Sic him on Nie Huaisang. They seem like they could do well together. Also, the easiest way to get through to NMJ is through his little brother.  

Step 4:  Make Jin Guangshan disappear.

Step 5: Speaking of little brothers, they’re gonna have to eventually deal with Lan Wangji. Even Qin Su’s 78 year old grandma with cataract can see he’s just a liiiiittle hung up on Wei Wuxian, who is unfortunately....dead. 

”How do you suppose we fix this particular problem?” 

”Isn’t there some cultivator prisoner found guilty punishable by death in your single minded cleansing of your political enemies?” 

"Of course. Go on I’m listening, mei-mei.” 

”So while you were off being shady, I did some research. There is a spell. I think a potential trade off could be made if we bargain right. Their soul, which was forfeit anyway, in exchange for a lifetime of protection and financial stability for their families.” 

“>:) dear sister, where have you been all my life I’ll never know.” 

Qin Sun, “Just make sure they’re not too hard on the eye. Lan Wangji doesn’t seem to be the shallow type but one never knows.” 

Step 5: Jiang Wanyin needs an emotional laxative like... last year. Look into resurrecting Jiang Yanli. Once she’s alive, all that Yunmeng Bullshit will resolve, and you will also have a Lotus Pier forever grateful for Jin Guangyao and Qin Su’s kindness. If that doesn’t work...idk get Jiang Wanyin a dog. 

“Okay, hooow are you going to get a woman to give up her soul to -”

“Can we fierce corpse her? Wei Wuxian had a bunch of undead ladies hanging around right?” 

“........worth looking into.” 

Step 6:  Jin Zixuan. Yikes -

JGY “I didn’t kill Jin Zixuan. Wei Wuxian did.” (note: CQL washed WWX of any responsibility for the deaths of others by making it so that the Song of Turmoil caused him to lose control. This, in fact, is not what is written in book canon. WWX did lose control by himself without external influence. I can cherry pick the plot points I want to keep.) 

QS “..........but you sent him to his death.” 

JGY “..........”

QS *Deep sigh* “Who can we throw under the bus this time for Jin Zixuan’s death, Jigs? Someone that won’t be missed...got it. Su She.” 

JGY “He’s loyal to me, he’s an ally -” 

QS “Listen here, once you resurrect Jiang Yanli and Wei Wuxian, you will have the eternal gratitude of Yunmeng Jiang and Gusu Lan. Who gives a shit about Su Minshan that simpering turd.” 

JGY: True. *he’s understood by now that he could get rid of those who would talk shit, belittle, and disrespect him...but he could always do more with a couple of important influential people who would spread words of his goodness. Stubborn righteous cultivators like the Jiangs, Nies and Lans.* “Also Jin Zixuan’ll be an undead, not able to inherit. We’re safe.” 

QS: “Exactly.” 

Xue Yang: eating candy......... *eye roll* 

Step 7: Because Step 6 didn’t work out, forget about Jin Zixuan. 

JGY: “you know... maybe Jin Zixuan moved on.” 

QS: “Would explain why we couldn’t call his soul back the way we called back Jiang-gu’niang.” Qin Su glances back at Jiang Yanli’s soul-infused clay body in the process of being reanimated (lifted this idea straight from Inuyasha - ahem- kikyo.) “It’s probably better this way. I don’t like the thought of sharing the control of Lanling Jin with more people.” 

JGY:  “Ah, blood of my blood you are indeed.”

Step 8:  Reveal Jin Guangshan’s evil deeds. Once they kill Dear Ol’ Dad, they can just blame EVERYTHING on him and have him be the disgrace of the entire cultivation world, and them the unfortunate children left to do his bidding and trying the best they could to salvage what they can from his trail of ruins.

Step 9: Reunite Wen Ning and Wen Qing. Lie. Blame it all on Jin Guangshan who is too dead to argue in his own defense. If Jiang Wanyin finds out about Wen Qing...well, information gets around. 

JGY “So about that Date.” 

Qin Su: “Yes I distinctively remember you promising me eligible young men of the Fierce Corpse Community.” 

JGY: >:) I’m here to make good on my words. 

Step 10: Reap the benefits of a world restored. 

[tomb-bloom-noctem]

Were there any episodes in season 3 where you felt they could've been written better? I'm only asking because I had some ideas I wanted to share with people about fixing them since, to me, the season started becoming a mess around The Phantom and the Sorceress. And the episodes don't need to be outright bad, there could just be parts in it you didn't like.

Oof. I've been a bit loud and obnoxious about certain episodes for sure 😅 I'll try to briefly sum up a few.

Also I'm just gonna say, some of these are just I don't like what they did rather than any huge fundamental problems like the finale.

Also disclaimer. This is not an attack on anyone who likes these episodes! Nobody has to agree with me! If you like these episodes cool! Glad you got something out of it! This is just Tombs being a nit pick loud mouth.

Rumble for Ragnarok

I can't complain too much about this one as it was still entertaining. Norse is part of my heritage and I'm a fan of the mythology which was on full display this episode. My only real issue this episode is that the message gets a little lost at least on me. And then two is I think out of all the episodes this one is the one that could absolutely be thrown out without losing anything really important. Trade this episode for something different. Something more important.

The Forbidden Fountain of the Forever Glades

Scrooge's behavior and leaving Webby in the jungle was painful to watch. (Much as I don't like the finale twist, the twist actually makes this episode worse.) [Also so much for Goldie's "fresh start" when in Split Sword of Swanstitine later showed she once again attempted to double cross Scrooge. Yeah. Fresh start. Totallyyyy.] Goldie is a fun character and I can't hate her too much. The episode has its merits and definitely still think this episode should be around but Scrooge's behavior here really kills me. Thankfully at the end he does better but ugh. It's low on the overall ranking for me based on how he behaves and treats Webby.

New Gods on the Block

I actually really love this episode but Storkules was pissing me off too much 😂 Nit pick for sure. I love this himbo but got dangit he was making me so mad. I get it was kinda important for the overall plot but come on we got so little Donsy content that it was frustrating that he was so intrusive.

The First Adventure

Nit picking again. I think it's kinda random how in the span of a few hours a hard ass like Scrooge went from "my obnoxious niece and nephew" to "my heirs and beloved family." I guess it's possible but not a fan of that kind of writing. For me it would make more sense that they had several adventures or at least more time with them before they became "his heirs" in his eyes. Extreme nit picking on my part though, the episode isn't bad at all really. Also no Hortense and Quackmore. Yes they were named. (Or she was) No we never got to see them. Rude! This was actually a really good episode though overall again I just have some minor nit picks.

The Fight for Castle McDuck

Okay this one is also kind of a nit pick but it's more like based on the episode's timing. I think it is absolutely ridiculous that Webby "Knower of all things Clan McDuck" has no idea that a family of Scots fights a lot. I can somewhat forgive it though as she's young and isn't as familiar with this side of the family in the flesh. But it's so weird how this late into the show we're seeing this?? I think I would have liked this episode more if it had popped up earlier into season 3 rather than so late? It just was a kinda weird episode and not the most enjoyable but the timing I think made it worse. Also the no mention of Hortense again. Referring to Matilda as the youngest when that's supposed to be Hortense? It's really not the worst episode. It just feels a bit off to me and again to me mostly the timing of it. Could have been better, could have been worse.

How Santa Stole Christmas

THROW THIS EPISODE INTO THE FUCKING GARBAGE. HATE HATE HATE IT. THIS ONE ACTUALLY MAKES ME RAGE.

This episode is actually worse for me than the finale. Literally I consider this episode the worst in the series. I just hate it!!!

I hate that this episode was about Scrooge and Santa. I really don't give a fuck why Scrooge hates Santa and this story in no way compelled me. (Also why was Scrooge and Santa's dialog weirdly shippy??? Thanks to this episode got another huge NOtp, "scranta" is gross, sorry, hate it. Absolutely cannot board that ship at all, I have the tag blocked.) I see absolutely no reason why this was the story we got when there was literally an option to follow up The Last Christmas now that Della was finally home????? MISSED OPPORTUNITY!!! I hate the weird crazy ass capitalist message going on throughout the episode, I get Scrooge is a capitalist himself but he didn't change from this episode? He walked away from Jennifer's obvious poverty life and went "ah as long as she's happy" instead of I don't know, maybe a message about helping the less fortunate??

Look maybe I'm just bitter from my own life. I've lived in extreme poverty my whole life. My parents home has literally looked so much liked the ruined place Jennifer lived in during the episode. And I live in Alaska so I KNOW COLD. I know how it feels to go cold for days on end, no food, no water, nothing. Extreme poverty. Scrooge could have done something. He wasn't like Donald who doesn't have much either. He's a freaking billionaire. He could have helped. And instead the message he walked away with is "if you're happy life is fine" or something. Whatever the message that was supposed to be from this episode is completely lost on me because all I see is a miserable rich old miser who hates letting kids have fun and won't help someone in need. Absolute garbage episode. I really wish they had instead just followed up on The Last Christmas. Or had some kind of family centric episode at least! I seriously fucking hate this episode so much. I would legit erase this episode if I could it is the WORST.

The Lost Cargo of Kit Cloudkicker

Nit pick again. Didn't love what they did with Kit. Okay I get the idea he grew up to idolize Baloo so he turned out more like him. It...wasn't great. Didn't like that much at all. Felt like they just tried to shove Kit into a DT87/DWD Launchpad mold. I didn't love that Baloo and Kit's relationship was mentioned weirdly casually? Like Kit called himself Baloo's sidekick??? Except in Talespin Kit calls him Papa Bear??? Also great, got another tag to block from this episode, the delkit ship. Not a fan, thanks.

Kinda weird for me with this episode I didn't really catch the meaning of it. To me it felt like the message was "defy expectations...by meeting them." It didn't really click and I kinda hated it for that plus the weird characterization of Kit. Actually I was on Twitter and someone was complaining about this episode and I responded in agreement and then FRANK REPLIED TO US 😅😅😅. Frank explained that the point was more of "if you're good at something, don't give it up" rather than "you can do anything you set your mind to" type message that appears a lot in kids media. (Also Frank please don't look at me when I'm criticizing the show 😂😂😂😂😭 I promise overall I do love it I'm just a loud mouth when I don't like something some times 😅)

After Frank explained that it did click a little better and I can see the message a bit more clearly. But I'm still not really in love with this episode like I wanted to be. I freaking love Talespin so that was a bummer. But as I've said a dozen times. I'm mostly nit picking my personal opinion.

The Life and Crimes of Scrooge McDuck

Another one I wanted to like more than I actually did. And mostly this boils down to Louie having to apologize to Doofus when Doofus is the one who's like some wild sociopath or something. I get it Louie hasn't been completely innocent towards Doofus. He did try to use him and con him but Doofus flat out has tried to hold him captive and torture and even kill him. Doofus' sins outweigh Louie's. Louie having to apologize to prevent the tension and all just...feels like victim blaming? This one is harder for me to describe why I don't like it and I think others have explained it better than me. I think it could have been better if Louie AND Doofus both apologized and agreed to start over and let what happened between them before be water under the bridge. At least this way they're equals? Maybe it wouldn't have been the best fix but I feel it would have been better than Canon. This one I don't want to call a nit pick. This one feels like there is something fundamentally wrong with it but I struggle to explain. Mostly other than that though I think the episode was fine. A little weird that the karma court scale needed to be told the villains hearts rather than able to just know them (mostly looking at the Ma Beagle one here) but that part is more nit pick.

And finally...The Last Adventure

I have things I love about it. The individual character moments. The references and call backs. The music. This finale was clearly made with love and care.

But that damn Webby clone daughter thing twist changes things. I know some people say it doesn't but to me it does! I feel it messed with the family dynamic and the characters in a needless way. I feel it didn't add anything to but rather did take away from. I don't wanna say too much on it as there's already been so much talk on it so in keeping it brief- not a fan, didn't like, why the hell, no.

The thing with Bradford kinda threw me off too. His logic and insistence on not being a villain made him so interesting. He was truly a villain to rival Scrooge. Then in my opinion he was pushed into a weird middle ground. He didn't feel like he completely abandoned what he previously stood on but also didn't go full villain either? I get a villain like Bradford isn't easy. The writers have to truly bring their all for someone like him. But Bradford suddenly getting armor and the Split Sword and becoming a battling giant was kinda ????? inducing. Threw me for a bit of a loop. I probably need to watch this episode a few more times before I finally settle on where I sit with the Bradford thing but at least at this time I just feel kinda mixed on it. Maybe I missed something there.

Other nit picks from the finale. Donald's writing was a little weird, he sounded like he was going on vacation but then Della said he was moving out and Donald talked like "well you have the boys and Uncle Scrooge..." it just really sounds like he's leaving the family?????????? Especially at a time like this? Rude! I mean yes somebody please get this man a vacation but the writing here left me kinda confused and there is no reason Donald would ever just leave and act like "oh well their mom is back so my work here is done." Nope. DADnald for life.

Lena and Webby never getting shown to have made up after their fight. I imagine the giving June and May the friendship bracelets kinda implies it but come on. Even just a hug would have been good. Also...why are they giving up their friendship bracelets??? Confused, not a fan.

And also...in addition to the Clone twist, I really don't love that April, May, and June were all clones instead of Daisy's nieces. I really wanted to get to see them in the show and now I just feel like thanks I hate it! I admire the guts to make a twist like this and all but I really hate it.

Overall please let me say I LOVE Ducktales. The show as a whole to me is a huge important thing I love. This isn't an attack on anyone who likes these episodes. I am just once again being loud and obnoxious with my own opinions and nit picks and things I just would have liked to see or not see.

no idea if any of this rambling answers your question Anon but here you go. Hope it works.

[fallout-lou-begas]

Elevated Extras: Ranger Ghost Companion

You a Courier? If so, this might be your lucky day...if you don't mind walking a bit and your eyes are good. 

(Original sketch by @tarberrymentats / based on the OC Companion Meme by @falloutfandomeventhub / if you borrow this concept please tag it as #fallout elevated extras)

General

Name: Ranger Ghost

Location: Mojave Outpost

How to obtain: Complete the sidequest “Keep Your Eyes on the Prize,” then begin the sidequest “Giving Up the Ghost” to get her reassigned from the Mojave Outpost. Once freed of her assignment, she can travel with the Courier to monitor Legion activity throughout the Mojave.

Companion Quest: “Giving Up the Ghost.”

Ranger Ghost, like everyone else, is sick and tired of being stuck at the Mojave Outpost. Unfortunately, orders are orders. With the courier’s help, though, she just might be able to come down from that rooftop, but dealing with NCR bureaucracy might be a worse ordeal than Legion crucifixion.

Companion Wheel

I think we should travel together. You probably can’t tell, but that’d make me very happy. Let’s get the hell out of here.

Let’s talk about your tactics. Sure. Lecture the ranger on tactics. Go ahead. / What’re you thinking?

I want you to change your combat style. (humoring) Alright. / If you insist.

Use a melee weapon. Close combat, then. / Sure. We can hold their hands and tuck them in while we’re at it. / (Wild Wasteland Enabled) Try to remember the basics of CQC.

Use a ranged weapon. (stating the obvious) It’s what I do. / You going to spot for me? / (deeply sarcastic) Aww. Finally remembered I’m a ranger?

Be passive. Sure, give peace a chance. / Don’t go pacifist on me, now.

Be aggressive: Locked and loaded. / (mocking the company line) Right, and with “extreme prejudice.”

Enough about tactics. Agreed. Anything else? / Are we good, then?

Let’s talk about how close you’re following me. Is there a problem? / What are you...implying, exactly?

Wait here. Right. Things to do, places to be? / Holding down here. / I’ll keep watch here.

Follow me. Let’s roll out. / Finally. Don’t like waiting. / Right. Skip to my fucking lou.

Stay close to me. (sternly cautious) Define “close.” / Got it, on you. / Just don’t bump my gun.

Keep your distance. Positioning, got it. / Yeah, covering you. / (facetious concern) Don’t get lost, now.

Let’s trade equipment. Don’t get fucking handsy, now. / Just don’t hog the ammo.

(Overburdened). I’m not your fucking pack brahmin. / (exasperated) I’ve only got so many pockets.

(Sneaking). Staying low. / (wryly imperative) Quiet, now.

(In Courier’s iron sights). What the fuck is wrong with you? / (slowly, emphasizing) Watch your trigger discipline. / Don’t make me take that away.

(Courier lays mine). I’ve got my eyes on that. / You’d better have a plan for that.

It’s time for us to part ways. It’s because i’m a bitch, isn’t it. / Such sweet fucking sorrow, I bet.

I’d like you to go to the Lucky 38. Hm. Sending the Ghost to the haunted house. See you there. I’ll try not to spook the Securitrons.

We can meet again at the Mojave Outpost. (sucks teeth) Guess I’ll report what I’ve got back to headquarters. Hopefully by now they’ve got someone else watching the brahmins shit full-time.

Injured: (seething) SSShhit. / Didn’t want it like this. / (with conviction) I didn’t get off that roof just to fucking bite it.

Damaged Limb: (shout of pain) Fucker clipped me! / Sure could use a fucking medic.

Regaining Consciousness: What...what the hell happened? / (trailing off) Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck...

Death: (death rattle) / (weakly) Ghosts...can die, huh...ha...

Attributes

Aggression: Aggressive.

Confidence: Brave.

Assistance: Helps friends and allies.

Karma: Neutral.

Perks

Ghost of a Chance: When Ranger Ghost is by your side, so are the odds. In addition to gaining an extra 3% chance to critically hit, any single attack that would kill you may instead leave you just barely alive and invulnerable for a brief moment..

Drops, if killed

Ranger Vest Outfit

Ranger Grey Hat

Authority Glasses

Cowboy Repeater

Combat Knife

Iguana Bits

Grognak the Barbarian

Dialogue, Quest Details, and Ending Slides:

Dialogue

Why do they call you Ghost? What, don’t I scare you? Boo? Nothing? (beat) Well, if you gotta know, it stuck pretty quick back in basic. Not like there were many other albinos in boot camp. The all-white spooky bitch who shoots better at night? Yeah, that’s a ghost, alright. Pissed me off at first, but I came around when it started giving privates the heebie-jeebies. Just a little kick, is all.

What’s an albino? Albinism is a pigment disorder. You know, the color of your skin and hair? As in I don’t have color. Pale as a sheet.

[Medicine 35] A sharpshooter with albinism? Isn’t your vision affected? Done your homework, huh? Well, these big, bad sunglasses aren’t just for intimidation, doc. They only come off when I sleep. Sucks enough being photosensitive in the goddamn desert, but like I said. I’m a lot better at night.

What’s your real name? (the thousandth time she’s answered this exact question) If I told you that, I’d have to kill you.

Aw, come on. Curiosity killed the courier. Don’t push it.

[Speech 40] I’m just trying to understand my partner better. Then “understand” that I don’t owe you shit except loyalty. Just call me Ghost, and you’ll get that.

[Cherchez La Femme] Surely you’ve got a name to match that lovely personality. (flustered) Are you d-...I-...Yeah, I do.But you can just keep calling me Ghost. (quietly) For...for now.

What’s the deal with Ranger Jackson? Man hasn’t got a thought in his fucking head...which is why he’s such a good C.O., from the top down. He’s a nice enough guy on a good day. He’s...principled, for sure. But the man wouldn’t budge on an order from brass if it’d save his life. Stranded caravaneers get so bored and restless because of the impasse he’s overseeing that he’s started (excessive emphasis) “hiring” the rowdier ones for odd jobs off the grounds, which is why we’ve been “losing” supplies for a while. Gets shit done, I guess, but wish he’d show half that drive when bitching to HQ, but no. They tell him to sit tight, he says yes sir, and then he takes it out on us when we get frustrated at the frustrating bullshit.

Do you know Major Knight? (standoffish) Yeah. Good guy. Known him a while. Hell, he’s been at M.O. longer than I have.

What does he do? Repairs, mostly. With all the caravans backed up, we sort of have a monopoly on maintenance and upkeep. And believe me, he does damn fine work.

[Confirmed Bachelor] Is he...you know…? Is he...oh. Between you and me? Yeah. He and I are...alike. I mean, I’m the bitch everybody hates, so I don’t really give a shit, but beneath that…(thinking how best to describe him, ribbing him a bit)...accountant exterior of his, he’s really the soft, sensitive type. Needs someone to talk to sometimes. I’m that someone, sometimes, but if you get the chance...it’d do him good just to know he’s not that alone out here.

How can I best use your skills? Hard to find a way that’d be worse than all the wasted time at M.O., but I’ll make it easy for you: give me a target and let me shoot it. If it’s too close to shoot, I’m trained in hand-to-hand, and if it’s too far to shoot, it’ll never see me coming. Standard repertoire for a ranger.

What’s your opinion on the NCR? High enough to keep me enlisted, low enough to where I’ve got plenty to mock. We’re a good country, a damn good country. We’re the only real country actually left in the West. We’d be the best thing to ever crawl out of the bombed-out ruins of this war if it weren’t for all the bureaucratic bullshit, and the brass getting duller the higher you go. It’s all just song and dance and sloganeering to them out here. Whatever looks good on paper. They don’t give a shit what really happens to people out here, and if Caesar doesn’t kill us, that might. At least on the inside.

What’s it like being a ranger? Ranger training is the best, most brutal gauntlet this side of the Colorado. Hours and hours of days and days spent shooting, drilling, fighting, bringing the body to its breaking points, pouring blood and sweat just to get an inch past the wide-eye hopefuls who were always going to just wash out...and all of it just to stand on a fucking rooftop staring at ants and malnourished raiders on the interstate. I swear, if you gave headquarters a golden egg, they’d fucking cook it.

Were you at the battle of Hoover Dam? Was going to be, but believe it or not, I sat out sick. Got the fucking flu right before and was stuck at McCarran the whole time, half-lucid. Let me tell you, the whole tent of coughs and sneezes crowding around that radio, listening to the reports...when Hanlon ordered that retreat out of Boulder City, we were grabbing our rifles and getting ready to march out on foot, even if we could barely stand. We thought that was it. Of course, it wasn’t, and we cheered so loud when they radioed about the explosion that I hope Caesar damn well heard it.

Do you wish that you had been there? Of course I do. If I miss the next one because I’m stuck at the Outpost or some shit, I’m deserting with a dozen fed-up caravaneers to flank his fucking fort myself, if only for some goddamn excitement.

How do you feel about the Legion? Love ‘em. Joined the NCR because I just wanted to meet them that bad. Their new Legate’s such a heartthrob, I hear.

You’re not serious. (sucks teeth, deep sigh) Look. You saw Nipton. It was just a taste of what they do. I’ve seen good men die on crosses, and that’s a mercy compared to the good women. I hear when women sign up now, they get about five extra “are you sures?” from recruiters. Not officially, of course. Brass would never let people back home know how bad it is. But it’s just another thing that makes me glad I’m a sniper, sometimes. Engage at range. Out of reach.

What about Legion society? Do you know anything about life across the river? There’s nothing across that river. Nothing. (beat, pondering) Do you remember the Enclave War? Bitter, bloody, big explosion at Navarro? And the Brotherhood campaign out here? Even worse of a shitshow, but still, we won that out, too. But the Enclave and the Brotherhood at least stood for something. They were societies, or at least promises of one, and if things had shaken out the other way for the NCR at least something would still be standing here. The Legion isn’t like that. They aren’t “something.” They’re one big razor across Arizona, shaving everything down. And if we don’t stop them here, we never will.

What about their Legate? (with contempt) Lanius, “The Monster of the East.” Caesar must’ve plucked him out of hell or something after his first legate blew it at Hoover Dam. Word from recon is that the only reason we’re all still twiddling our thumbs there is that he’s out making friends for Caesar someplace, and he’ll be bringing them all back for a whole ‘nother goddamn jamboree soon. (tension broken by a funny thought; spoken dryly) Or should I say a Damboree. Since it’d be at the Dam.

Do you know anything about Mr. House? No. Closest I’ve ever been to the Strip has been McCarran, where I was too proud to get wasted on expensive booze in the casinos. As punishment, I got stuck with nothing to do but get shitfaced on cheap booze at the outpost. All I know is Mr. House runs the whole Strip himself, and there’s one casino, the Lucky 36 or something, that’s supposed to be all his. No one’s allowed in, no one’s ever come out. Frankly? Just strikes me as fucking weird.

Companion Quest: Giving Up the Ghost

After completing the sidequest “Eyes On the Prize” (in which the Courier checks Nipton for survivors), Ghost will remark that the Mojave’s going to hell, and all she can do is sit and watch. The Courier will reply that she ought to stop watching and travel with them, to which she’ll respond that her orders are absolute—but if the courier can change her orders somehow, she’d be indebted. The quest then begins.

= = = Stage 1: Deal with Jackson = = =

First, the Courier must speak to Ranger Jackson and convince him to consider Ghost’s reassignment. They can do this through the following dialogue options:

[Speech 80] This outpost is just waiting to be overrun by Legion. You’ll be the next Nipton unless you’re proactive.

[Speech 55; completed “Can’t You Find It In Your Heart” beforehand] Maybe I could tell your superiors about where I “found” these “lost” supplies, then.

[Barter 80] Ghost is an exceptional asset to the rangers. Stationing her here is a waste of valuable NCR resources.

[NCR Fame] There’s work to be done for the NCR out there, and Ghost is who I trust to do it with me.

[Black Widow] I’ve ways of making men come around...especially handsome men in uniform. (The Courier must then sleep with Ranger Jackson)

Note that the Courier can not simply complete the quest “Can’t You Find It In Your Heart?” as a favor to Jackson for Ghost’s reassignment. While he’ll let a caravaneer go, it’ll take more than clearing some ants from the road to get him to compromise his standing force and let go of a ranger. 

Alternatively, Jackson’s death will advance the quest.

Kill Jackson. Similar to Cass’ companion quest, Jackson can simply be killed. However, Ghost is far less sympathetic to this course of action and will confront the Courier over the murder. If Jackson is simply killed, the Courier will either need a convincing alibi [Speech 90] to argue that they weren’t responsible or admit to the murder. If the Courier fails the Speech check or admits to the murder, Ghost will turn hostile (“Maybe you didn’t fucking think this through, but do you know what we call someone who kills an NCR ranger? An enemy of the NCR rangers. Now, eat shit.”). Alternatively, the Courier can intimidate Ghost into silence with a [Terrifying Presence] option, after which a shaken but seething Ghost will simply ask the Courier to leave the outpost and never come back. Passing the Speech check is the way to not fail the quest from this option.

Kill Jackson and frame Cass. If the Courier kills Jackson themself, attempting to loot Jackson’s body will trigger a message suggesting that they could frame Cass for the murder by splashing whiskey on the body (so long as Cass is not currently the player’s companion and is currently at the Mojave Outpost, not the Lucky 38). By adding a whiskey bottle to Jackson’s body without themself or the body being discovered in the meantime, they can successfully implicate Cass for the murder, and explain as much to Ghost. She’ll buy it, since Cass was one of the most frustrated residents of the outpost and was drunk almost all the time. Cass will then disappear from the game, and if Lacey, Major Knight, or Ghost (if the Courier left the outpost before speaking to her again) are asked, they will explain that Cass was arrested by the NCR.

Have someone else kill Jackson. A desperate, fed-up caravaneer named Paul by the brahmin pens is willing to kill Jackson for 5,500 caps. This price can be negotiated down to 4,000 with a [Barter 60] check, and 3,500 with [Barter 75]. At midnight that night, Paul will attempt to sneakily kill Jackson. Alternatively, Paul can be incensed into attacking Jackson immediately and for free with a [Hot Blooded] trait check. In either case, though, there is no guarantee that Paul will succeed, and if Paul is killed then the Courier must advance the quest another way (though they can loot their spent caps from Paul’s body). When spoken to afterwards, Ghost will remark that she saw the Courier speaking to Paul and ask if they had anything to do with it. By passing a [Speech 50] check, the Courier can convincingly lie that they were trying to talk him out of it. With either the [Black Widow] or [Cherchez la Femme] perks, the Courier can lie and say that Paul very foolishly did it to try to impress them. With [Low Intelligence] the Courier can earnestly say that they thought “taking care” of Jackson meant doing something nice for him.

Somehow allow Jackson to die. If Jackson just somehow dies in an unaccounted way, such as from a spawned-in deathclaw eviscerating him in his own office, Ghost will remark on the strangeness of the situation but won’t blame the Courier. This is a failsafe option to prevent quest breakage.

= = = Stage 2: Find a Replacement = = =

If Jackson is alive, he’ll agree with the Courier that he ought to let Ghost go, but he’s still under orders to maintain a standing force at Mojave—a standing force which includes a highly trained sniper. If Jackson has been killed, Ghost will mention that Major Knight is next in command and would be glad to give her clearance, but that he won’t be able to do so without a replacement sniper, either. Either way, the Courier is tasked with finding a suitable replacement. The Courier can ask her for advice:

Who should I look for to be your replacement? They have to be NCR, obviously. Ex-NCR might work, too, so long as they’re in good standing. Any Dick or Jane off the road is a no-go, since brass put the kibosh on officially contracting mercenaries. Oh, and anyone you get would have to be well-trained. Not necessarily a ranger, but good enough to replace one, even for a sit-on-the-shitter job like this. Only the best and brightest get to stare at this fucking road all day, apparently.

Where should I look for your replacement? If you checked out some of the ranger stations around the Mojave, they might be able to move some people around. Hell, take it all the way to McCarran if you want, or with Hanlon. If you’re going to give them shit on my behalf, by all means, go nuts. A lot of higher-ups can be greased with enough favors, anyway. Whoever you get just needs the right credentials. Legion attacks get dragged asses and twiddled thumbs, sure, but bad paperwork would set a goddamn fire at headquarters.

The following characters can be recruited as the Mojave Outpost’s new watch:

A generic ranger. By speaking to the commanding officers of at least three of the NCR ranger camps across the Mojave with sufficient [NCR Fame], the Courier can speak to Chief Hanlon to arrange for Ghost’s replacement with a generic ranger. This option is impossible if “Return to Sender” has already been completed.

Craig Boone. If the Courier has completed “I Forgot to Remember to Forget” in a way that makes Boone repentant over his past, he can be persuaded to take over Ghost’s position as a good way to put his skills to use. Otherwise, he will refuse, either preferring to stay in Novac where he lived with Carla or not wanting to be stuck as a watchman again when he could be out killing Legionnaires. If selected, Boone’s home marker will change from Novac to the Mojave Outpost.

Manny Vargas. Novac’s other sniper can be convinced to take up Ghost’s post, but only if the Courier has completed “One For My Baby,” “Come Fly With Me,” and eradicated the Legion presence from Nelson. Once convinced that Novac seems safe, for now, he’ll be willing to reenlist if paid a generous salary. The Courier can either pay Manny 5,000 caps to reenlist now, pass a [Barter 65] check to explain that it’s a provisional reenlistment and reduce their bribe to 3,000, or if the Courier has already passed the [Confirmed Bachelor] check in dialogue with Knight, they can tell Manny about the cute little major sitting behind the desk all day there by his lonesome. Once convinced, Manny will relocate to the Mojave Outpost and take Ghost’s place.

Bryce Anders. This keen-eyed ranger can be recruited to Ghost’s position if he is rescued from the Vault 3 Fiends by the Courier. Once spoken with in Camp McCarran, the Courier can explain that the Mojave Outpost needs a new ranger stationed there. He will defer to Colonel Hsu’s authority on reassignments, and with a successful [Speech 60], [Medicine 40], or [NCR Fame] check, Hsu will agree to the reassignment on the grounds that it’s a useful position still sedentary enough to not complicate the ranger’s recovery.

Little Buster. The listless bounty hunter at Camp McCarran is looking for another career path and would be willing to take over Ghost’s do-nothing position. However, the only way to recruit him is to fabricate both credentials and enlistment records by either stealing personnel files from either Colonel Hsu’s office at Camp McCarran or from the filing cabinets at Camp Golf, or speaking to Daniel Contreras, who “knows a guy” who’ll take care of it if the Courier has already acquired access to Contreras' expanded inventory by siding with him in the unmarked quest “Dealing with Contreras.”

Private Halford. The sole survivor of Camp Guardian mentions that he wants to head back home through Mojave Outpost after being rescued from the mirelurk caves, at which point the Courier can mention no one is allowed to leave through there, and ask if he’d like to take Ghost’s position there instead. At first he’ll refuse, but with a [Speech 45] or [NCR Fame] check he can be convinced that a quiet, do-nothing watch assignment would be a lot better than anything else after what happened at Camp Guardian, to which he’ll agree. He will also relocate to the Mojave Outpost after being freed anyway, getting stuck like everyone else so that the speech check can be re-attempted. However, Halford isn’t considered well-trained enough for a ranger’s job. The Courier must speak to Jackson (or Knight, if Jackson is dead) and pass a [Speech 80] or [NCR Fame] check to make a strong endorsement, or a [Survival 55] check to explain how impressive it is that he survived an attack from so many mirelurks. Alternatively, the Courier can fabricate impressive enough credentials through the options required to assign Little Buster.

Once Ghost’s replacement has been assigned to the Mojave Outpost, the Courier only needs to speak to Ghost again. She will explain that she’s been “reassigned” to open patrol across the Mojave, ostensibly to track Legion activity, so long as she does so with the Courier. She also gains an additional dialogue option dependent on your choice of replacement:

What do you think of your replacement?

(Generic ranger) For this job? Any ranger’s as wasted as any other. I almost feel bad, I doubt she’ll like that fucking roof any more than I did...almost feel bad. Doesn’t quite cancel out the relief.

(Boone) First recon is one hell of a pull. Took right to it, too, like he was already used to it. Strikes me as the...quiet, contemplative type. Likes to think. Not much else to do up there, anyway. I bet those brahmin pins have never felt safer.

(Manny) First recon is one hell of a pull. Took right to it, too, like he was already used to it. Seems like a nice enough guy, and seems to be getting along with Major Knight. Hell, you love to see it.

(Bryce) A good man. Heard about what the Fiends did to him, and after all that, he certainly deserves a break. Didn’t think of this shit job as much of a vacation before, but seems like it’ll do him good.

(Buster) Not sure where the hell you found this guy, but if (Jackson / Knight) gave the okay, then...okay. I would’ve put a goddamn brahmin in a beret up there if it could have gotten me another assignment.

(Halford) The mirelurk guy? Yeah, he seems alright. I’ve never actually seen a mirelurk, but after hearing his story, I don’t think I want to. I didn’t even know we had a camp that far up there.

Speaking to Ghost after her replacement takes her position completes the quest, and from then on, she can now be recruited as a companion. However, similar to Boone, she will only remain the Courier’s companion if they maintain good reputation with the NCR, and as an active-duty ranger, her intolerance for anti-NCR actions is even more strict.

Ending Slides

If "Giving Up the Ghost” is started, but never completed:

NCR Victory. Ranger Ghost remained at Mojave Outpost, dutifully, thanklessly, and restlessly. When the rangers there received word that the Legion had made their move on the dam, the entire outpost went silent. Waiting. From her rooftop perch, at least she was the first to see the bearer of good news come up the road. In the moment, at least, it was worth everything to be there.

Legion, House, or Independent Victory. Ranger Ghost remained at Mojave Outpost, dutifully, thanklessly, and restlessly. When the rangers there received word that the Legion had made their move on the dam, the entire outpost went silent. Waiting. From her rooftop perch, she was the first to see the NCR’s retreat, as civilians and troopers alike began fleeing through the Long 15. She was right: this whole time, all she could do was watch.

Ghost is dead. Ghost, bitterly, died as she lived...(deep sigh) at the Mojave fucking Outpost.

If “Giving Up the Ghost” is completed:

NCR Victory: When legionnaires by the score descended upon Hoover Dam, Ghost was proud to have been one of the many rangers in the battle that kicked their shit in back across the Colorado. She celebrated with the rest of them, even a smile creeping onto her face every now and then. Still, Ghost returned to business before long, as part of a squad out East tracking down the straggling remnants of Caesar’s retreating Legion.

Legion Victory: Ghost was among the many rangers who fought at Hoover Dam, but when the army of legionnaires led by the Courier, to whom she owed her very presence there, proved unstoppable, she was ultimately among its many casualties. Their advance was too sudden, too overwhelming, for a clean evacuation, and a grisly duel with a centurion trapped her near the front. Still, the Legion never took Ghost alive. She made sure of it.

House or Independent Victory: The arrival of the Securitrons at Hoover Dam was a surprise to every NCR trooper stationed there, including Ghost. Their sudden turn against the NCR, and their allegiance to the Courier, even more so. The triumph of vanquishing the Legion was short-lived, then, as Ghost joined the forced retreat, one pale face in a sea of many. 

Ghost is dead: Despite her name, there was no supernatural flourish when Ghost died. She simply died like a ranger, fighting to the end. That’s all that mattered.

(Bonus) Cass’s Ending Slide if the Courier frames her for the murder of Jackson:

Rose of Sharon Cassidy spent all of her time at the Mojave Outpost in a drunken stupor, which is why when Major Knight oversaw her arrest for the murder of Ranger Jackson, it took so long to get exonerated. By the time the alibi was pieced together and the evidence was admitted as circumstantial, the battle of Hoover Dam shifted NCR’s attention elsewhere, and the crime was never solved. For a few months in the clink, though, at least Cass got what she wanted: home, and finally away from the outpost.

[smol-and-grumpy]

Cross My Heart - CH.18

Pairing: Bodyguard!Dean x Reader; Chuck Shurley x Reader

Summary: After opening up a letter, the life as she knows it, changes forever. Her husband hires Dean Winchester to protect her but is Dean really who he said he was? And is her husband really worried about her safety?

Warnings: Fluff

WC: 2068

A/N: This is it. The end. Again. I’m always so sad when a story ends. Please, please let me know what you think about it. Feedback keeps me going. Thank you for reading the 18 chapters. I know it was a lot. I apparently can’t write short series anymore. 

SERIES MASTERLIST

Y/N has offered to pay and cover for Cas’ expenses if he wants to stay here while Dean’s still in the hospital — she got her bag with her things back too, because Bobby came in to see Dean before he left, and left her bag with Dean. She’s a little sad she missed Bobby, hadn’t really got to officially meet that man that Dean’s so fond of. He came in when Cas and her were out to find her some pants. Cas politely declined, though, because he needs to get back for his new job as a car salesman. 

She can imagine him selling a lot of cars to single women, to be honest. He has that charming smile and eyes that are blue as a clear sky on a sunny day.

*

The next day, when she goes in to see Dean, he’s already sitting up and talking on the phone. She slips into the room and sits on the empty chair beside him. 

He’s doing incredibly good for someone who almost died. It’s only the wound on his stomach that’s still hurting and he’s on painkillers. The doctor’s are happy with the progress he makes, and said that it’s rare that they see someone with his wounds recover that well. Guess Dean’s a super human, at least that’s what he is to her. 

Dean’s frowning while he talks but he smiles at her with his eyes, she can see it clearly. She likes that, likes the way he smiles and she’s able to see the smile reaching his eyes. It’s so rare to see that in a person. 

Y/N takes out her new phone which she bought this morning and begins to set it up while she waits for Dean to finish his call. She can hear that he’s talking to Benny.

She knows what Benny's telling him because she went in to see Benny this morning, as he’s still in town to wrap the case up. 

Apparently, Chuck’s company isn’t doing well (surprise!), and he’s close to losing it. And instead of selling or getting investors on board, he decides that it would be easier to kill off his own wife. She’s glad that her soon to be ex-husband is facing life in jail, to be honest. Because that’s what Benny has told her. They’ve got a strong case and the chances of Chuck ever getting out of jail alive, are slim to non-existent. That’s good. Really good. It’s just, she doesn’t look forward to going up into the witness stand. Especially when they could bring up her relationship with Dean, which could lead to other suspicions and would raise more questions, but knowing Dean, he’s going to be great in the courtroom. It’s her that’s going to need some coaching.

“Yeah,” Dean says, “Thanks for everything man. I owe you. Of course. Yeah, we should. Okay, bye.”

He hangs up and rubs at his ears. He’s probably been on the phone for a while, “Benny says hi.”

“I like Benny,” She says, looking up from her phone to grin at him.

“Yeah?”

“He ties with Cas on the list of my favorite people.” She shrugs.

Dean raises his eyebrows, “Who tops the list?” 

“Um,” She says, pretending to think, “There’s this guy.”

“Yeah?” He pats at the space next to him on the bed and she gets up and sits closer to him. He rubs over her thighs. Up and down.

“Yeah,” She smiles, “He’s quite alright. He took care of me so that brings him to the top of my list.”

Dean chuckles, pulls her closer by the neckline of her shirt to kiss her. 

He breaks from it and grins, before his face gets serious, “Jesus, I love you so much, you know that? It terrifies me. I’ve never felt anything like it.”

He’s so blunt about it, it blows her mind. Her cheeks start to flare up. 

“Me neither.” She says, because it’s true. What she thought was love? What she had at the beginning with Chuck? It was never like this. She leans forward, kisses him, smells him, tastes him, and smiles against his lips, “So, will you do the honor of being the first number I’ll save into my new phone?” She grins, holds the phone out for him to punch in his digits. 

Dean chuckles, takes the phone and thumbs over it, writes his name. When he’s done, he hands it to her and she looks at the contact.

“D?” She looks at him, “D. This is all you wanna be known as?” 

He shrugs, “Yeah, I don’t like people knowing everything about me.”

“But D, ugh.”

“Hey, I could have written The best D you ever had but that would have been inappropriate.” There’s a cocky grin on his face.

She sighs, “Fine, but ugh, I wanna put a heart next to it at least. So I won’t mix you up with all the other D’s that I’ll be having on my phone.”

“Hey!” Dean has to laugh, and is now holding his stomach and then he tries to think of something not funny, she can tell, because his lips are pressed into a thin line and after a couple of breaths, he manages to calm down. After a couple more minutes of even breathing, he reaches over to get his phone, and hands it to her, “I need your number too.”

“Why? Will you send me a dick pic?” 

Dean snorts at that and she can’t help but giggle. He’s holding his stomach again, and maybe she should really not be a pain in his ass. She just can’t help it and seize the opportunity when it’s there.

He raises one eyebrow then, “Would you like me to send you a dick pic?”

She should have known that karma will get her, because now, the one who’s blushing is her. With a shrug, she says, “It depends who’s dick it is,” 

“What do you mean, who’s dick it is? I don’t have pictures of other dicks. At least I don’t think I do,” He grins, pretending to think and she rolls her eyes.

Grabbing his phone out of his hands while he’s still lost in thought, she gets off the bed and begins to type in her number, had to search for it on the receipt she got, because she can’t really remember it by heart. But when she finishes, she sits back on the empty space she just left and hands the phone back to Dean, a grin so wide, like she’s really proud of it.

Y/N watches as Dean looks at his phone. His eyebrows meet in the middle and there’s a slight lift of one of them. 

“BAE LOML? So many hearts?” Dean looks from the phone to her and she really, really tries not to laugh. “What does that even mean?”

“You could google it?”

“I don’t think I want to know,” Dean places his phone back on the charger and turns his attention back to her, “I’ve talked to Sammy this morning.” 

Ah, he’s changing the subject because he’s embarrassed that he probably quite likes the name she just gave herself. At least it doesn’t seem like he would want to change it.

“Yeah?”

“He’s going to handle your divorce. If you still want to divorce that son of a bitch, that is,” Dean pauses, pulls her into him, so that she’s half on the bed and half on top of him on the side that he’s not hurt, “Which, I would hope that you will, because he’s kind of a dick.”

She has to chuckle.

“Sam’s going to prepare all the paperwork so the only thing you have to do is signing it.” Dean kisses her forehead.

“I will,” She nods her head. She wants to do it. Wants to move forward.

He looks at her, his hand tucks away a loose strand of her hair, “Do you want to go back to your house after all this? Live in the city?”

It’s the first time that he mentions the life after this nightmare. Honestly, she never thought about it. She doesn’t know what to do with her life at all.

“No, I don’t want to go live in that house anymore.” She says. She couldn’t possibly go back. There are too many memories. It’s too big, it’s too fancy. It’s too Chuck. Plus, she doesn’t have anything in the city anymore that could hold her there. No friends, no family, no Chuck. 

Dean’s smirking, it’s probably the answer he was anticipating to hear, “Can you imagine coming back with me?”

“Well,” She says and Dean’s smile turns into a straight line. She really doesn’t want to play with him when he’s still recovering, but it’s so easy to rile him up, “I don’t know,” She sighs, for the dramatic, “You’d have to buy me a drink first, I’m not that easy, Dean.” 

“Jesus fucking Christ, you almost gave me a heart attack,” He mumbles, curses some more but then he grins, kisses her lips bruisingly hard.

“Ugh, Liz won’t like me living there, though.” 

“Liz doesn’t really like anyone, and besides, that’s her problem and not yours.” Dean scoffs.

“She likes you.” 

“Baby,” Dean holds her face between his palms, squishing at her cheeks so she has a fish mouth and then he grins, “What do I have to do to make you see that you’re it? Huh?” He pecks her fish lips and then he lets go of her face, strokes her cheeks instead, and he gets serious again, “All I saw was you. I think I even dreamt of you when I was out and unconscious. And even in my dreams I made sure that you were okay. When I was there on the floor? I was angry at myself, you know? I was thinking that I was fucking stupid to have thought that Chuck wouldn’t have a back up plan. And when I heard the shot, I hoped and prayed that he didn’t shoot you.”

She says, leans in, nuzzles her nose against his stubbled jaw, “Okay, I move in with you.” Moving up on the bed a little, she lays on his shoulder, buries her face into the crook of Dean’s neck. 

“We could get a house. I mean, it won’t be as big as the one you’re used to living in but we can get a reasonably sized house in a reasonably good neighborhood.” 

She has to chuckle at that, “Sounds reasonably good. I don’t need big things.”

“That’s because I’m already quite big.” 

“Oh my god.”

“It’s Dean.”

Y/N punches his chest and he has to laugh and flinches at that. Good. He deserved it.

“Don’t you think it’s too soon, though? I mean, we don’t know each other for very long,” The question is not really weird? Is it? It’s true, they know each other for what? Two weeks tops? She doesn’t really know anymore but it feels like a lifetime. Although it’s only a question to rile him up a little more.

“I think I know you better than I know anyone else.” Dean says, and adds, “But I’m not pressuring you. I just wanna add that I’m here no matter what and you should know that by now.” 

She smiles, it’s so easy with him really, “If you know me, you should know that I’m ready to follow you anywhere by now.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

Dean places a soft kiss on her lips, “You let me keep you?”

She nods with a smile, “Promise me that you will,”

“Cross my heart,” Dean huffs out a breath, kisses her again, it’s soft and tender, pours all his love into it and she feels it. Feels it too. Feels the butterflies, feels the little bubbles getting bigger in her heart. And she thinks that Dean’s right. Sometimes things do happen for a reason. She looks forward to a new future, it might not be gold and glitter, but that’s not what she wants anyway. She wants someone who sees her as his equal, she wants someone who treats her right, who makes her want to be the best version of herself. She wants someone who can make her laugh, she wants someone who has her back, no matter what. She wants Dean.

FIN

[hellyeahheroes]

Let Molly Punch Wolverine: Why I’m worried about X-Men appearance in Runaways

I want to preface this by saying that I have strong trust in Rainbow Rowell and while I am behind her series due to financial and pandemic related reasons, I trust her to deliver the best story she is allowed to. The worries I express below come from the fact I do not trust X-Men editorial and Jonathan Hickman enough to believe they will allow her to tell the best story.

The way I see it, Runaways are the quintessential Millenial comic in that it perfectly captures Millenial generation’s disillusionment with world and society built by Baby Boomers. A disillusionment that was to be expected in face of failiure of American defenses to prevent 9/11, the government and mass media wholeheartely embracing islamophobia and homophobia in it’s wake and American war crimes in Afghanistan and Iraq, on top of myriad other problems that were already present in the 00s and only got worse as we went ahead. 

This is not seen just in the core premise of the original series, the idea that the parents kids are taught to respect and look up to are actively evil and damning the world for their own benefit. But also in the general potrayal of adults and adult superheroes in the series, who are mostly useless or outright malicious in case of Doc Justice. Sole exception being somewhat Spider-Man, who himself is portrayed as having gone through what Runaways have and so having insight and empathy other adults lack. 

While that theme has become more gray over the years, as Runaways managed to gain a good footing with teachers and students of Avengers Academy alike, and Nico and Victor were on Avengers offshot teams, even then it was clear that the older heroes are not these perfect ideals too look up to, but flaved in their own way. Entire Avengers A.I. is about fixing one of Hank Pym’s screwups and A-Force’s premise is the team doubles as a support group, every member having gone through traumatic experience in the past and being on different stages of healing process (not to mention how it crashed and burned due to mistakes made by Carol in Civil War II). Even X-Men themselves started as outright antagonistic to Runaways under BKV. And then uder Yost went into the mutual “MAYBE they aren’t THAT bad” relationship with Runaways. Every meeting so far had Molly punch Wolverine.

In current series most of the team moved from teenagers to young adults and their experiences still reflect those of late Millenials. There is this feeling in current series of powerlessness, Runaways making it to the adulthood only to find all it gets you is more problems and all ability to fix the world have been systematically wrestled from your hands by the very people who broke it just so that you cannot fix their mess. It is a story about trying to live in a messed up world with that realization and how your found family can help you carry on whatever it will throws at you. I think in this way is why I can turn a blind eye on things like Nico in Strange Academy - it makes sense she would want to at least try to help kids who are going through what she did to not have as much a hard time. And, you know, Strange didn’t invite A NAZI WHO ACTUALLY WORKED AT AUSCHWITZ WITH MENGELE to help him run the school.

I do not beleive X-Men editorial can play along with that. Right now X-Men and their fandom are at the height of drinking their own kool-aid, portraying their stupid sex island as the msot perfect and best thing ever, to the point they ignore the blatantly fashy things happenning like making up new minority groups (precogs and clones) to oppress, or abovementioned inviting of Nazis, mass murderers and islamophobic crusaders who want to “take back Jerusalem”. They are so into the “mutants are a minority” metaphor that they outright demand that every other book touching on it portray negatively anyone who does not immediatelly bows down at their feet. Something we have seen in X-Men interactions with Fantastic Four, where Sue Storm’s legitimate complaints about X-Men’s current position are caricaturized to cast her in a “uniformed homophobic mom” stereotype just to keep the metaphor working. Even in Fantastic Four’s own book. In wake of this I can somewhat see why the infamous “Franklin is not a mutant” retcon took place.

I cannot beleive that current X-office could allow X-Men to be shown in a way that adheres to themes of Runaways. I mean for Pete’s sake, look at their treatment of New X-Men Academy X - another Millenial at heat series. And another one that tackles disillusionment of that generation with Baby Boomers’ run world with its own 9/11 equivalent in form of a terrorist attack that killed many of its students and traumatized the rest. It is a known secret editor Jordan White considers this a “mistake” because it made old X-Men look bad. And under him in particular X-Books had a history of undermining and derailing NXM kids to show them as inexperienced, dumb kids who never had any hardships and do not know what it really takes to be an X-Man, who see it as all the glamour and no work. All in spite of the fact they may have suffered more than all their elders except Karma, writers’ favorite punching bag. Now the books are outright lobotomizing the surviving kids while bringing back dead ones not to explore any stories with them or how such return could affect the ressurected and their friends alike and maybe allow a possibility to heal. No, this is done solely to erase that massacre from ever happenning because it make Jordan White’s heroes look bad. 

I’m supposed to believe this editorial will allow Cult Sex Island to be shown as imperfect or not a place that would “obviously” be much better for Molly? That it will allow Runaways to not be cast as “bigots” for not wanting to handle Molly to “real family” (as determined by genetics) same way X-Men treated Fantastic Four? As things stand now X-Men, a franchise and fandom that is ever entitled to special treatment to the point it cried Marvel wants to bury them when having “only” four books a month. One that has demanded for Kamala Khan to be handed over to them and made a mutant just to spite Inhumans over some perceived slights. A fandom that has wished death members of every superhero team with a mutant who refuses to hand the mutant over and celebrated brutal murder of a kid with a reprogrammed Sentinel. This blind entitlement is not jsut a fandom thing but also infects creatives working on it. Need I remind you how Jason Aaron made a big deal out of making Firestar join the X-Men? He took a character who canonically didn’t care much for the team and wanted to do her own thing and retconned her to be a total fangirl who dreamed of joining but was never before truly “worthy” of this “honor”. Right now we have more and more evidence every franchise interacting with X-Men needs to bow down and play a secondary role to it. but the respect here is a one-way street, Jonathan Hickman outright complains about having to adhere to work of other writers. I have absolutely zero trust that editorial will not try to force the story in Runaways to also be worshiping the ground X-men walk on. Worst case scenario they insert themselves like they did with Fantastic Four, becoming recurring plot thread and casting rest of Molly’s family as evil for not wanting her to join what is effectively a cult.

I wish I’m being wrong here. I do not want Runaways to become a glorified advertisement to a bigger franchise that has become souless and vile and whose fans turned into bullies. I have faith in Rainbow Rowell but that faith is outweighted by my distrust in Jordan White and Jonathan Hickman and their egoes. I hope I’m wrong. All I want is a story that ends with X-men fucking off and Molly staying with her real family, the Runaways. And of ocurse, her punching Wolverine. Which I do not trust White and Hickman to allow either.

PS: Some of you are probably already typing some sort of “if you don’t like the X-men, just don’t read them” response. To you I say: I would be glad too. Too bad they keep forcing themselves into things I actually like. Like a mold. Which is a good metaphor for what this old, gross thing the franchise has become.

-Admin

[thevoilinauttheory]

MAHI Prompt: Needed No More

[ Using the words: DON’T, UNSEEN ]

[ back at it again at krispy kreme boys- things aren’t necessarily slowing down, but they aren’t as fast or stressful as before... for now. In this down time, I’mma introduce my newest character because I hate myself and want another one. ]

The Five Part “In the Dreams of Ashley” series is done! Go read the others here! {Prelude} {In the Dreams of Ashley: The Wind} {In the Dreams of Ashley: The Fire} {In the Dreams of Ashley: The Water} {In the Dreams of Ashley: The Earth}

[ Content Warnings: Death, oblique drug mention ] [ When (because I fucked up the timeline and need to get it straight lmao): Before the WoL’s infiltration of Castrum Centri ]

====

“Ash, yer needed ‘gain.” “Ugh… can’t they just… I dunno, give us the information? This is so much work…” “Then why in th’hells did you sign up for this! Get yer arse out there, lazy whoreson.” “Yeesh, calm down, calm down…”

Ashley was never the type to work fast, everyone of his team knew that; but when they needed an expert, they always turned to him. For some reason. Plenty of other experts out there, plenty of more willing people. He needed to make money somehow, though. He stood himself up, snuffing out whatever he was smoking this time (they’ve stopped guessing, at this point, it seemed to be the one of the definitions of entropy); then took his good sweet time stretching, joints cracking here and there.

“We don’t really got much time, buddy. Airship’s leavin’ soon.” “Slow’s the name of the game, buddy. Go too fast and you’re like to mess it up.” “I ain’t talkin’ ‘bout th’job, I’m talkin’ ‘bout th’godsdamned airship! Th’fact that we gotta rely on ye’ is a fate crueler than torture… gettin’ inta this sorta job, never sober.” “Sober enough to know that you are about to miss your airship. I can get there myself if I gotta, but you’re not rushing me.”

The man did just that, he let out an annoyed huff and joined the rest of his group to shove them towards the airship landing - while Ashley quietly gathered up his belongings, throwing the packs onto his back. The last of his smoke was stuffed into a repurposed flask as he meandered his way to the bar. One last request, of course, a drink for the road. And then, to join his team.

In the opposite direction.

No, instead, he left towards Black Brush on foot. While he was never given the information of where they were going, he knew the general direction of where the lead they had gotten was. He took this time to enjoy himself, drink a little - stop by the next bar for another - then took himself into the North.

==

“Whu- how in th’hells did y’get here ‘fore us!” “Honestly, I’m more surprised that he didn’t teleport here.” “Eh. Too much effort.” Ashley took his place… beneath a tree, shutting his eyes for a moment. “Says the guy who walked here from Ul’dah! Right through a damned Imperial Castrum! The one we’re supposed to be surveying, too.”

His eyes opened again, taking the time to reflect over his current team. Infiltration was their game, and they would’ve appeared to have been the least qualified for the job. 

A heavily set, heavily clad beast of a Highlander - Hunter - sporting a massive axe that, honestly, he could’ve swung with one hand. Never the best with people, yet he oozed “you can trust me with your life”. Colette was an Elezen woman tasked with keeping them alive, not the best healer in the world, but she had a handle on things when they got rough. She’d rather keep her nose in books than the world around her, but she was the most attentive than the rest of them… not including himself, of course. Then there was Ruta, an Auri woman from Hingashi - she was the real stealth behind the whole operation. In fact, they wouldn’t have called on him if they thought she could get it done. The fact that they thought she couldn’t was worrying enough. Both she and Colette entered the group as a couple, and there could’ve never been a better pair.

“Ugh.. okay. Fine. I’ll lead us in.” Not even two minutes of rested eyes before he got up again… even more stretching, much to the dismay of Hunter. “Gods above, yer gonna be th’death o’me.” “Nah, worse. You’re gonna deal with me for the rest of your very long life.” “Great. Sounds like a helluva time.” Hunter slammed a palm on his back, forcing him forward. All in good fun, found-family is like to mess around - and after years of working together, it was hard for any of them to not smile or joke around. Even in the face of danger or on a job.

==

“Ruta, wait!” Ashley called out a whisper to the woman as she took the lead, staying low and out of sight - mostly out of sight. Wisps of her hair were caught as she moved, giving a few soldiers some confusion and a need to investigate. She, thankfully, made it out of sight - with the rest like that as well. When she peeked back at her group, Ash narrowed his eyes and scowled… but he couldn’t really say much. “You two, stay here - and do not fucking move.”

It was rare that he ever seemed so urgent - that’s what caused both Colette and Hunter to stay still and quiet, to wait for a motion to call them over. Ash poked his head out from around the corner, watching and processing. He took in the amount of time between each patrol, which way the security and cameras faced, when they turned- he moved the moment he knew it was safe, keeping himself low to the ground as he set himself beside Ruta. “What in the hells are you thinking, you could’ve gotten yourself killed.” “But I didn’t. You can see better from here anyways - so call them over.” “And get them killed too? Piss off. I’ll get them over here safely, thank you. No wonder they called for me…”

Again, he waited with his head around the corner. Just two ticks before it would be ready, he held up one finger, then beckoned one of them over. It was Colette first. They needed her most to keep them from being injured. She ducked her head down and quietly tipped her way over to them - immediately scolding Ruta as well, when she was safe to. Ash took to watching again.

“Swivin’... they’re in the middle of a shift change. That’s- that’s real bad for us, right now.” He turned his attention to where the next soldiers were pouring from, where he might be able to find an opening. When he did - and gods, did it feel like an eternity - he beckoned Hunter over. The man was getting impatient, but there was no room for that in this job. He was surprisingly silent for a man dressed in heavy armors… but it was the catch of his pauldron against a wall that set everything in motion.

Ashley could see the outcome from a malm away. And it ended in Hunter standing his ground against a rush of soldiers and machinery. “Hunter, dammit, get over here! We can face this as a group- we’re better together, now get your arse over here!” “N’ get y’killed too? No way, get th’information we need n’get out - I’ve got this.” “Like hells you do!” “Ashley! Come on- just listen to him!” Ruta tugged on his belt, forcing him back. “You’ll get us caught if you keep yelling like that.” “Hunter, I’m gonna kick your arse when we get outta here…” “Lookin’ forward t’it, buddy.”

The real end came when they turned to head the opposite direction. Fear never showed itself to him, not usually. Maybe fear of getting his behind handed to him on a rusty platter by Hunter, or his hair and ears tugged on by Colette, or Ruta stealing his smokes-- never fear of getting caught, or killed, or failing a job. But that fear was there now.

And Colette was the first to fall. On immediate sight was a bullet to her head.

“Colette!” Ruta tried to reach for her, but it was he that pulled her back and away. “Ruta you need to run, now! Get out of here!” “No, no! I won’t leave her!” “She’s dead, Ruta! It doesn’t matter if you leave or stay, so you need to leave!”

This was the problem with having a romantic relationship with someone on your team, he had always figured. The pain of possibly watching them die. She didn’t listen. …Then she was next. There was no way of her escaping three imperials on their tails. He did what he could and ran for Hunter again. He, much to Ash’s relief, was able to hold himself well. Beat up and bloodied, sure, but alive enough to keep fighting.

“Ash! I told y’t’get outta here!” “Colette and Ruta are down, we need to get outta here!” “What-” “Don’t question, go!” There was no more questioning - while he and Hunter always butt heads, the man wasn’t stupid. Now wasn’t the time, and he could see that. That’s all it took for their boots to hit the ground towards the exit. They seemed in the clear to get out of there, so close they were, even as the gates began to close. It was as if all of their accrued bad luck came into play in one moment. 

With another fire of a gun, Ashley found himself face first into the metal road; his foot was the victim, and standing was going to be hells. “Ash, get yerself up!” “I’m tryin’! Shite, gods, get to the exit!” “Like hells!” Instead of watching him struggle, Hunter scooped him up into his arms to run twice as fast towards freedom - only to realize those few seconds cost them greatly in terms of time. Ash had little time to really comprehend the situation. Right after he had been picked up, he was thrown - forced to roll through the gates, watching them close just before Hunter could make it. The last he saw of him was a smile and thumbs up.

The next sounds he heard were the poor souls who thought they could get close to the hulk… and then silence.

==

“Were you able to get any information?” “...No.” “I thought you were supposed to be the best.” “Karma decided to compromise our positions.” “Not blaming your own failings?” “...You said it yourself, we were the best. It was… a series of unfortunate coincidences.” “Coincidences don’t get information.” “Yeah, I coulda told you that. Now, are you gonna keep berating me while I’m grieving, or am I free to leave?” “Guess we’ll have to find someone better than the best, get out of here.” “Thank gods.”

[teaveetamer]

Please do explain Dimitri, Edelstans, Fundamental Attribution Error and the Just-World Fallacy if you have time?

Okay so think of the most common anti-Dimitri arguments you can think of. I think, at the end of the day, all arguments boil down to two very broad points: “Well he did bad things so he was a bad person” and “It’s okay because he deserved it.” These two conclusions are excellent examples of the Fundamental Attribution Error and the Just World Fallacy at work.

For a brief rundown of what I’m talking about, here’s how both of these fallacies function.

The Fundamental Attribution Error

The Fundamental Attribution Error is, essentially, assuming people do things because of who they are as a person (dispositional factors), not because of what’s going on around them (situational factors).

For example, let’s say you’re driving your car somewhere, and as you’re getting on the highway a big SUV cuts you off. Now obviously you’re pissed and you think “wow, that person is a really bad driver! They must be really careless!”

That’s you assuming SUV guy’s observed behavior (cutting you off in traffic) is directly attributable to some part of his personality (carelessness). Thing is,  his pregnant wife might have gone into labor and he’s distracted while driving because he’s trying to get her to the hospital, or maybe his kid got hurt and he’s trying to get her some help, he had a bad day and was trying to rush home from work, or maybe you were just in his blind spot and he couldn’t see you before he pulled out in front of you.

Point being, there could be any number of factors that caused him to cut you off in traffic, but by jumping to the dispositional factor right out of the gate you have made an error in your thinking (and, in the process, likely assumed the worst of someone before you’ve even met them).

The Just-World Fallacy (& Cognitive Dissonance)

The Just-World Fallacy is essentially believing in karma. Good people will be rewarded for being good and bad people will be punished for being bad.

However, there’s just one little caveat... the world isn’t fair like that. So what happens when you see good things happening to bad people, or bad things happening to good people? Cognitive dissonance.

Cognitive Dissonance is what happens when what you believe or think does not match up with your observations or behaviors. There are two solutions to cognitive dissonance: change your behavior/understanding to match your thoughts, or change your thoughts to match your behavior/observations.

Let’s use an example of the Just-World Fallacy to demonstrate that. Say you’re walking down the street and you see a homeless person. You’ve been taught for pretty much your entire life that you better work hard so you don’t end up like those people. Hard workers get what they deserve (money, stability, promotions, etc.) and lazy people get what they deserve. So you see this homeless man and think to yourself, “Wow he must be really lazy.”

Your thought process might be: You see he is homeless (something you see as a consequence of laziness) -> Believe he is lazy. There is no cognitive dissonance because what you believe (hard workers are not homeless) is not challenged.

But then say you sit down with him and find out this man is a veteran that served in some war. He tells you his story all about how he escaped poverty by joining the military, worked three jobs to take care of his family, got injured, and then lost his health insurance so he could no longer work.

Now your thought process might be: You see he is homeless (something you see as a consequence of laziness) -> Discover that he is actually an extremely hard worker (something you do not associate with homelessness). Cognitive dissonance emerges because what you believe (hard workers are not homeless) has been challenged.

Cognitive dissonance is uncomfortable for people, so we’re going to have to resolve it somehow.

Option A) Realize that you were wrong to assume all homeless people are lazy. Revise your definition of homeless people to include “good people fucked over by the system.”

You see he is homeless (something you realize can happen to anyone regardless of work ethic) -> Discover he is an extremely hard worker that ended up homeless despite his best efforts. There is no cognitive dissonance because the observation (a hard working homeless man) does not contradict the belief (anyone can be homeless regardless of work ethic).

Option B) Double down on your thoughts and change your behavior/perceptions to match your thinking.

You see he is homeless (something you see is a consequence of laziness) -> Discover he is actually an extremely hard worker (something you do not associate with homelessness) -> Assume he must have done something to “deserve” being homeless (like showing up late or just not working hard enough to keep his job). There is no cognitive dissonance.

Now Option A seems like the easier path, but remember that humans are stupid. We tend to take the path of least resistance, so if it’s easier to pick Option A we tend to pick it, and if it’s easier to pick Option B we tend to pick that instead. Your primary aim is consistency, not rationality.

Okay, I hear you saying, but what does this have to do with Dimitri and the Edelstans?

Well let’s look back at those two major arguments I listed up at the top.

“Well he did bad things so he is a bad person.”

This is the Fundamental Attribution Error at work. They’re taking a behavior (killing people) and associating it with Dimitri as a person (he’s bad) rather than looking at the situational factors (he was protecting his homeland from violent invaders).

“It’s okay because he deserved it.”

Just-World Fallacy here. Dimitri is a bad person (see above) therefore it is okay to kill him (because bad people deserve to be punished).

It’s impossible to talk about these separately because these two fallacies work in tandem. Dimitri is, fundamentally, a good person that has very very bad things happen to him. This causes severe cognitive dissonance, and the Fundamental Attribution Error is many people’s solution.

So let’s take a look at it like this.

Problem 1:

Dimitri is a good person (good people don’t do bad things) -> Dimitri does bad things. Cognitive dissonance.

Solutions:

Option A) Dimitri is a good person (good people don’t do bad things) -> Dimitri does bad things -> Dimitri wasn’t a good person after all. No cognitive dissonance.

Option B) Dimitri is a good person (good people don’t do bad things) -> Dimitri does bad things -> Recognize that sometimes good people do bad things because of the circumstances. No cognitive dissonance.

Problem 2:

Dimitri is a good person (bad things don’t happen to good people) -> Bad things happen to Dimitri. Cognitive dissonance.

Solutions:

Option A) Dimitri is a good person (bad things don’t happen to good people) -> Bad things happen to Dimitri -> Dimitri wasn’t a good person after all. No cognitive dissonance.

Option B) Dimitri is a good person (bad things don’t happen to good people) -> Bad things happen to Dimitri -> Realize bad things sometimes happen to good people. No cognitive dissonance.

The beautiful thing about this is that you can interchange pretty much any character name into this framework.

Which brings me to Edelgard.

See, while most people who like Dimitri are most likely to opt for Option B, if you were to swap in Edelgard’s name then the people who like Edelgard will also be most likely to opt for Option B. Remember how I said we tend to take the path of least resistance to solve our cognitive dissonances?

It’s easier to change the intensity of your emotion than it is to change the valence. That is, it’s easier to go from negative emotion -> more intense negative emotion than it is to go from negative emotion -> positive emotion. They like Edelgard and dislike Dimitri already, so it’s far easier for them to choose Option A for Dimitri (because it makes their negative view more negative) and Option B for Edelgard (because it makes their positive view more positive) than the other way around.

And let me be clear. It doesn’t have to be “if you picked option B for Dimitri you must automatically assume option A for Edelgard” or anything like that. You can recognize that both of them are affected by their circumstances and the world isn’t really fair to either of them.

Now how does this fit into the stans specifically? Well, the stans, for whatever reason, seem to connect these two things. For Edelgard to be good Dimitri must be bad. I can only assume it’s because they realize that if Dimitri is a good person that has bad things happen to him then they’ll have to acknowledge where those bad things come from. More specifically, who does those bad things to him. That’s a whole ‘nother layer of cognitive dissonance on top of the original cognitive dissonance.

Which I guess at this point it’s all speculation, but it’s something about the way they talk about the game that pings my radar. Notice how a lot of Edelstans will discuss her bad actions in the passive voice? It’s to put distance between Edelgard and the action. They constantly try to put distance between Edelgard and her actions or they hone in on some bad act of her opponents to use it as justification for her actions.

Except... Crimson Flower Dimitri doesn’t really do anything bad, does he? He wasn’t deposed, didn’t spend five years wandering the countryside killing Imperial soldiers, didn’t have his mental breakdown, anything. He was just a guy in charge of his country doing his best to keep things together as an imperial invasion bore down on him. He doesn’t deserve to die because he hasn’t done anything wrong.

This is probably why we get terrible takes such as “Dimitri was a rabid dog that has to be put down” or “Dimitri is just too mentally ill it’s a service to put him out of his misery” or “Dimitri is an oppressor because he was shielding Rhea.” Pretty much anything they can find to make it seem like he  “deserves” to die.

So, in conclusion, I think you can trace pretty much every anti-Dimitri argument back to one fundamental question: how can I make him deserve it? And once you break it down to that it’s pretty easy to see through their twisted logic, and a lot of their theories and speculations start making sense.

[redxblueihateloveyou]

Hi! I really like your blog. Your analysis posts about ships or other things are really interesting and your gifsets are super cute! I have just finished reading your two anime recommendation posts and I was wondering if you plan to write a third one about the remaining animes you like? I would LOVE to read it.

Hi:) Thank you so much! Haha these were more like “bromance anime recommendations” lists. I’m glad you liked them romances. Here’s part 1 and part 2 :)

14. Hakkenden Touhou Hakken Ibun.

The relationship of the couple in this anime are one of the best on so many levels. They’re one of those “even the darkest part of me can’t hurt you” superior ships. They’re two of the main characters, 2 out 8 of the reincarnated warriors (who are all handsome af haha) that are meant to.. you know… save the world.

They’re both on the verge of death at the beginning and one (Shino) in order to survive agrees to live with a demonic sword inside of him which prevents him from growing old and growing per se (which is really sad for many reasons plus you’ll see him once in his 18-year old body and he’s so gorgeous), the other (Sousuke) takes half of a life from a dog, so he can tranform into it whenever he wants.

The problem is that during all of that Sousuke has split and lost his shadow aka the dark part of himself. His shadow works for the dark side, but all he really wants is Shino. The most amazing thing is that Sousuke loves Shino so much, that even his dark part would never ever hurt him. Like his shadow does some pretty terrible stuff to others like once he has made a deal with a girl so she would gave him her eyes just because Shino has said that they’re pretty lmao (I’m sory but its kinda funny), but he gets so pissed when Shino is hurt. So it’s the same as Akashi & Kuroko and Gauche & Lag: even for the darkest part of him the other one is his weakness. 

Also this is one of the animes where LITERALLY the power of gay love saves the world by the end. (p.s. sorry, Genpachi, I love you the most and I know you like Shino too, but your flirting can’t beat such deep feelings lol).

15. Assassination Classroom.

Not gonna spoil anything about plot, so I’ll say it’s about “problematic” kids trying to kill their teacher who has superpowers and that’s it. This anime is full of controversial stuff, like I really questioned things and what’s right or wrong, but one thing for sure is that no matter of what you think about the situation, you will 100% cry at the end. I personally think it’s a kinda happy ending considering all the stuff, but opinions are very different when it comes to this anime.

Now for the ship. Let’s just start with the fact that both Karma and Nagisa have ehhhh… psychological problems haha (but who doesn’t in this anime? lol). So Karma is a sadist (like for real, he likes to get creative with torturing) and I think he’s also a yandere when it comes to Nagisa. He threatens to kill those who even talk bad about Nagisa and once has almost beaten to death those who bullied him (which I didn’t mind tbh lmao). He never does anything if others ask, but when/if Nagisa says “please”, he immediately says yes (which is also funny). 

They both are in awe with each other and think the other one is absolutely incredible so it’s like a two-sided fan club. Karma is really scary, but when it comes to Nagisa he can be fluffy af. He also doesn’t care about people much, but Nagisa is his everything. Like the “I give up” moment will melt your heart, that was so cute. 

So this is one of those “you’re the only exception” ships. Bc Karma is a person who will enjoy skinning ppl alive, but when he’s with Nagisa he likes to hug, pick him up and coo about Nagisa’s height, play tag, discuss his fav movies and tickle fight. I’m like… I’m just… this is great.

16. Bungou Stray Dogs.

This one is about a detective agency where everyone has superpowers who are “enemies” with the mafia group where everyone has superpowers, but actually they’re all friends and half of the detective agency date the mafia xD (I’m sorry, but it’s the truth). Like I still don’t get why they won’t just make one organization, this is getting ridiculous.

I’m not a huge fan of the anime per se tbh, because like it has way too many characters who I can’t even feel for cause supposedly they’ve had a dramatic past, but what past nobody tells, so I like can’t empathize to someone who’s an asshole without knowing why he is that way. Plus there’re many characters in animes who have had a horrible childhood/past but are incredible people (hello to Todoroki and Levi). And some characters there for some reason are degrading instead of progressing which is the worst for me. But it’s pretty entertaining to watch if you won’t think much about stuff, powers are cool and it’s drawn beautifully (but there is one scene that was repeated 28 times 28 TIMES!, we’ve counted just for laughs, guess which xD, that’s like.. they could’ve made time for a whole new episode instead of this)

There’s one character whose progression is so incredible though that I’m happy to watch just for him. It’s Akutagawa. He’s like grown so much and I love everything about him, how he went from trying to kill Atsushi to risking his life for him and letting him use rashomon, how he’s homey with his sister and how he’s so good with feeling his powers, how Kyouka tried to kill him and he was like “I’m so glad you’re happy now”. Bitch, like that’s the character progression I’m asking for! Man, he’s just… he’s my favorite, I love seeing many sides of him. He made me so happy in s3 when I was ready to turn it off lmao

So there are two main ships in this anime. Dazai and Chuuya. They are one of those perfect combinations. But not in a usual way you think.. like characteristically. Chuuya’s full power is uncontrollable and the only one who can stop him is Dazai, cause his ability is to nullify other’s abilities, so he’s the only one who can stop Chuuya and also save him from being destroyed by his own power. So basically Chuuya trusts Dazai with his own life when they work together (which is.. I’d be scared if I was in Chuuya’s place lmao). It’s not like I’m scared that Dazai’s gonna let him die or anything, but stuff like “let’s watch a bit longer how Chuuya is going nuts cause it’s funny” doesn’t seem funny to me.

Let’s just say, I do ship them, I think they’d be perfect together if Dazai was like a fanfiction Dazai, you know. But the truth here is firstly their relationships progression is zero to none, like yeah, it’s fun to watch them bicker, but it like won’t give you any deep feelings. Plus Dazai was the most humane and emotional when he was with Oda (which I really don’t get, Oda was a dumbass tbh, like who makes a children shelter while working in MAFIA???! ofc they were fucking killed). Like Oda’s so special for him but then he treats Chuuya and Akutagawa like shit. And he had more feelings for Oda’s matchbox than for Chuuya in the last season. So my heart just won’t lie there fully, you know. Because there are no moments there that indicate like he’s the one for him.

Now to Akutagawa and Atsushi. This is a classic enemies to lovers stuff. Like they go from trying to kill each other to risking their lives for each other. They warm my heart on so many levels. So they’re both struggling to get over of their past and can’t. But then by the end they help each other to let go of their demons, they give each other what others couldn’t. Like I still can’t believe Atsushi came in like a wrecking ball and said the words Akutagawa wanted to hear for ages (his face, his face lol he was like “w-w-what?”). Atsushi himself admitted that Akutagawa is his cure in the last season. 

These two are like also hilarious bc they both think that they’re trash so their arguments are like “you’re the best”, “no, you’re the best”. Like Atsushi literally goes “Akutagawa is so strong and amazing, but he still thinks he’s weak” what a bae xD and Akutagawa thinks that he’s nowhere as good as Atsushi so it’s really funny. The relationships progression is like insane. They went from beating each other into a blood puddles to covering each other from bullets and being like “honey, don’t you dare die, I was going to kill you myself” lol

I still can’t believe Akautagawa gave Atsushi rashomon… he was wearing rashomon. I mean his ability, which is a part of him was okay with Atsushi using her. I mean.. maaaaaan fanfiction does come true! And they’re like the representation of yin and yang characteristically and even appereance-wise and I think it’s super cool. Plus the “lawnmower” is the cutest pet name I’ve ever heard lol

Anywho, this anime has like 20 bromances, so pick whichever you like.

Damn, that got long and I’ve only mentioned 3 haha, sorry. That way it’s gonna be like 50 parts xD

[dontcare77ghj]

Run

Natasha x reader x Steve

Masterlist     Sleep Series Masterlist      Halloween/Supernatural Masterlist

You’d met Natasha first. Your past wasn’t exactly all rainbows and puppies. You were born a mutant, raised to follow orders and trained to kill; you didn’t know any better.

You’d met Natasha on a job. Coincidently she had been sent to kill the same target. It hadn’t been a friendly relationship to start with, you’d both had tried to kill each other before you decided you could work together. You’d formed a partnership, which over time had turned into a relationship.

Clint had found you both on a job in Budapest. His original orders were to terminate you both, but he saw something in you both that made him believe you could change. Instead of killing you both, he’d brought you back to SHIELD. When it came time that the Avengers were needed, Fury had immediately put the three of you on the team.

This where you’d met Steve. To start with he was just a teammate. Over the period of the next couple months, he became a friend. You and Natasha had been drunk the night you both admitted to liking the solider. Wanting to strike the iron while it was hot, the next day you’d cornered Steve and asked him his feelings.

He’d felt the same and readily joined your relationship when Natasha told him what polyamory is. And that’s the story of how you all came to be. You’d been together for nearly two years and you knew everything about each other. 

Especially the things that caused minor arguments between the three of you. More specifically, the waking habits.

“Steve.” Natasha whined, rousing you from your sleep. “What are you doing?”

“Go back to sleep, doll.” Steve soothed, running his hand down her arm. “Everything’s fine.”

“Why are you out of bed, Stevie?” You asked, finally opening your eyes. Steve was sitting on the edge of the bed, fully dressed, gazing at the two of you with a guilty look. The room was still dark and the clock on the bedside table read 4:45.

“Sorry girls, I thought I was being quiet. I’m just going for a run with Sam and Buck.” He explained, kissing both of you before standing up. “I’ll be back soon.”

“No, Stevie, get back in bed.” Natasha complained, sitting up and knocking you off her chest. “Sorry Y/N. Steve it’s the ass-crack of dawn and it’s cold. Come back to bed.” She added, settling you back onto her chest.

“Doll, I promised them I’d go with them.” Steve protested. “And you know I hate breaking a promise.”

“Did you say the word promise?” Natasha asked, raising an eyebrow at the blonde. “Because if you didn’t actually say the word promise, you can come back to bed no worries on your conscience.”

“Doll, that’s not how it works.” Steve sighed, shaking his head at the red head. “I promised them that I would go for a run with them and if I don’t go, I’ll end up being forced another day.”

“Stevie.” You whined, shifting your head off Natasha’s chest. “Come back to bed. It’s cold and if you don’t Nat’s going to be moody and ruin any chance of me going back to sleep.”

“Come on Steve, that’s both your girlfriends who want you back in bed.” Natasha said, raising an eyebrow at him. “I suggest you do the good thing and come back to bed.”

“You two are going to be the death of me.” Steve sighed, running his hand down his face. “I promise when I get back from my run, I’ll come back to bed.”

“Why can’t you just run in the middle of the day like normal people?” Natasha asked, rolling her eyes slightly. “Okay Stevie, you leave me no choice, I’m playing the guilt trip card.”

“I thought that’s what you were already doing?” Steve questioned, looking at the red head confused.

“No, that was not a guilt trip. This, this is the guilt trip. Steve, it is Y/N’s birthday and you are leaving her in bed on her birthday. If it were not for the fact the two of us woke up, you would have left her in bed while you go for a run.”

“Why am I the guilt trip?” You murmured, having forgotten yourself it was your birthday.

“Because Nat’s right.” Steve said, leaning down to kiss your forehead. “I would’ve just gone without telling you. I promise to make it up to you when I get back from my run.” He added, moving away from the bed. “Nice try Nat. I’ll make it up to you Y/N. Love you two.” He called, making you laugh as he didn’t give in to Natasha.

“I swear that would’ve worked.” Natasha grumbled, glaring at the doorway.

“Like he said, nice try Nat.” You said, settling back down on her chest. The two of you began to drift back off to sleep before you shot off her chest. “It’s not even my birthday!” You exclaimed in realization.

“Steve Rogers, I swear to god, if you don’t get your ass to bed, I will throw up on you.” Natasha groaned.

“Natasha I’m sorry, but I promised Bucky I would go with him.” Steve said, voice apologetic. “Bucky only wants to take a short run around the park.”

“I am dying Rogers.” Natasha argued. “And you want to go for a run and leave me on my death bed.”

“You are not on your death bed.” Steve sighed. “And even if you were, Y/N is sleeping right next to you.”

“Not exactly sleeping anymore.” You grumbled, sitting up and narrowing your eyes at the two. “It’s five in the morning and I’ve already heard the word death twice. What the fuck are you two arguing about?”

“Steve wants to leave me on my death bed so he can go for a run with James.” Natasha tattled, making you roll your eyes and let out a groan yourself.

“Why do you two have to argue about this so much?” You complained, flopping back down onto the bed. “I just want to sleep.”

“I’m sorry doll.” Steve said, taking a seat next to you. “We don’t mean to argue about it and we certainly don’t mean to wake you.”

“Maybe if you just stayed in bed, no-one would be awake at this time of morning.” Natasha said with a pout. “Come on Steve, just come back to bed. Come back to my death bed.”

“You’re not dying Natasha.” You sighed and turned to face the woman. “What even gave you that idea in the first place?”

“I almost coughed out a lung two days ago. My body’s been leaking, and I have felt fatigued for a couple of days.” Natasha said, dramatically throwing her hand over her eyes.

“Coughed up a lung? Body leaking? You threw up once two days ago and your body’s been ‘leaking’ because the ac broke two days. We’ve all been sweating for two days.” You said, rolling your eyes fondly at the red head.

“When did you get so dramatic?” Steve asked, chuckling at the pouting woman. 

“When you started getting up at the ass crack of dawn and in turn got me up at the ass crack of dawn.” Natasha snarked, making you sigh.

“And in turn the pair of you started getting me up at the ass crack of dawn.” You added. Steve had the decency to look apologetic, but Natasha just waved her hand at you.

“You wake up when you hear a dog bark three miles away. It’s the perks of once being a spy.” Natasha said, giving you a small smirk. “Now back to the original topic, Steven Grant Rogers, you get your ass back in bed or I will throw up on your pillow.”

“You threw up once two days ago.” Steve said, shaking his head. “You’re not sick Nat. I promised Buck a run and now I promise I’ll be back in a couple hours.”

Before Natasha could respond, you rolled over and onto Natasha. You wrapped your arms around her and then turned to face Steve.

“Run, Stevie. I’ll hold her for you.” You said, giving him a wide grin. Steve smiled and leaned over to kiss the two of you.

“Thanks doll. I’ll be back soon.” He promised before leaving the room.

“Did you really just resort to laying on top of me?” Natasha asked, wrapping her arms around your waist. You hummed and buried your face into her neck. “Good move.” She commented, kissing your head.

“What are you two doing up? It’s the middle of the night.” Steve complained, rolling over and leaning on his elbow to watch the two of you dress. “Come back to bed.”

“Can’t Stevie, we’ve got to head out. We’ve got a mission out of country. You know that.” Natasha said, clipping a gun onto her belt.

“Tash do you remember where I put my lucky gun?” You asked, sighing as you finished looking through the closet. Natasha didn’t say anything as she handed you the gun before you finished your sentence. “Thanks.”

“No problem. If that guns so lucky I don’t know why you always forget where you put it.” Natasha said, shaking her head with a smirk.

“You won’t need to remember where you put your gun, if you just come back to bed.” Steve said, drawing the two of your attentions back to him.

“Stevie we can’t, we have to go fix the world.” You told him, sitting next to him on the bed. Steve shifted and laid his head on your lap.

“The world can wait. Come back to bed.” Steve whined, making Natasha smirk. 

“How tired are you Stevie?” Natasha asked, sitting on the bed next to you. “Normally you’re all for us saving the world.”

“Well right now what’s more important? The world? Or coming back to bed with me?” Steve bargained.

“The world.” Natasha said, standing and pulling you up as well. “Think of this as karma for all the times you’ve left us in bed.” She added, grabbing her duffle.

“We’ll be back in two days. We’ll try and call you tonight. Love you.” You told the blonde, grabbing your own bag.

“I love you too.” Steve said, standing and pulling the two of you into a hug. Slowly the three of you began walking backwards.

“Oh no.” Natasha said, pulling back. “Don’t play that game with us.” She scolded. “We have to get going now. We’ll see you soon. love you.” Natasha added, grabbing your hand and pulling you out of the room.

As the two of you left the bedroom, you could hear Steve grumbling complaints.

“It’s karma.” Natasha reiterated. “Maybe now he’ll think twice of waking up at dawn to run.”

“And maybe no, the two of you will let me sleep in the morning.” You added. Natasha smirked and leaned over to kiss your cheek.

Ah yes, karma indeed.

Taglist

@piper-koko-barnes-rogers @skeletoresinthebasement @hopingforbarnes

Show your support. Give it a like. Leave a comment. Share with your friends and reblog. Inbox/Message me any comments, ideas, pairings, if you would like to be added to the taglist or anything you want.

Coming soon;

Natasha x reader x Bucky

Steve x reader x Bucky

Bucky x reader x Sam

Steve x reader x Sam

Natasha x reader x Sam

Natasha x reader x Bruce

Steve x reader x Sam x Bucky

Natasha x reader x Steve x Sam

Bruce x reader x Thor

Pepper x Reader x Tony

[sweetlittlegingy]

Just Chris

One-shot

|Dad!Chris Evans x pregnant reader|Dad!Chris Evans x Evans kids|

Summary:

You and Chris had been married for 4 years now, prior to that you had dated for 2. You had met on a vacation to Disneyworld, your little boy had disappeared from your sight and caused you to have a near mental breakdown. In the moment you didn't know it but he would become your whole world. Gaining not only his affection but also his unwavering commitment and love for the both of you. 6 years in and you couldn't be happier. With 3 wonderful kids and another on the way you had everything a girl could ask for. Together you made the choice to not make your relationship public, for the kids sake, your own and Chris as well. He had always wanted to have a family, a safe place where he could be known just as a husband and father. He made sure that you never felt lonely and tried to be there for every milestone. 

Word count: 3,900

6 years ago: Orlando Florida

It was a big step,  I knew that. Deciding to come to Disneyworld with just James and I. But he who shall not be named doesn't care about us anymore and James deserves some small amount of happiness in this dark time. Taking a deep breath I grabbed our park tickets, thanking the park member and head towards the entrance. 

     "Momma are we gonna see Mickey and his puppy." I hear James ask as he tugs me forward. 

     "Yes! Are you super excited? We can go on any ride you want bubba." We moved through the entrance line fairly quickly heading straight for fantasy land. 

4 hours later

I haven't seen him smile this big in forever. He might be little but he knows something is going on and a big change has happened in our lives. I can't wait to share the pictures with my parents that I got of James and Mickey and Minnie. 

     "James, buddy what do you wanna do now? More rides or are you hungry?" I ask as we walk towards Cinderella's castle. 

     "Momma can we go get a Mickey balloon pretty please? You said we could later and it's later." He replies like the sassy little stinker he is. It's kinda terrifying how much he is like me. He is definitely gonna be my karma for all the headaches a gave my parents. 

     "I guess I did say that. Come on let's go, I think there was someone selling them in front of Main Street." Together we walk hand in hand finding the cart easily. "Ok bubba what color do you want?" I ask patiently waiting for him to look over every color and choose. 

     "Can I have the blue one please momma?"  He asks after barely looking them over. I should have known, blue is our favourite color currently. Turning back to the man selling them I ask for a blue balloon and get cash out of my wallet to pay for it. 

     "Here you go ma'am, have a good day now." He tells me. Wishing him a good day as well I turn around ready to see the biggest smile on my munchkins face and he's gone. I look around quickly but there's so many people and I can't see him. Spinning around to see if he's with the balloon man, but he's not. I can feel my heart speeding up, I feel like I can't breathe. 

"James baby!" I call frantically. I feel tears welling up in my eyes. My baby's gone, I just had him here with me. How could he disappear that fast, what if someone took him. I feel a panic attack coming on, my world feels like it's caving in on me. Then I hear it. His little voice shouting about superheroes and Toy Story. Rushing forward I break through a group of people and see him in a man's arms.    

     "Momma!! You got my balloon" he yells launching himself into my arms. Catching him I hold on to him for dear life hold back the tears because I have him back in my arms. 

     "James you can't do that ok. Never walk away from mommy, I thought I lost you baby." I tell him while stroking his head. 

     "I made a friend though momma, he likes superheroes too!" He tells me not understanding that I almost just had a mental breakdown. 

      Looking up I see my  saviour staring back at me sheepishly, unsure of how to approach me. I probably look like an absolute mess right now, but completely overwhelmed I can't stop myself from hugging him. Holding James with one arm, I wrap my other around the man and rest against his chest. He must have been completely blown away because he doesn't react at all. Then all of the sudden he wraps his arms around the both of us and in that moment I couldn't handle life anymore. I completely break down in tears, while he just holds me tighter and whispers that it's ok now to me. Through everything that happened recently I've had no one. I was alone in this divorce, sure I hand my parents but they weren't there to hold me and make me feel safe. To tell me that every choice I had made was ok, that I wasn't wrong in wanting a better life for James and myself. But this angel of a man, that knows nothing about me at all. He knew somehow exactly what I needed. Pulling back after I've stopped the tears I can't help but to feel so embarrassed. 

     "I'm so sorry. I don't know what even came over me. I just… thank you. I don't know what I would have done if you didn't have him." I quickly speak trying not to look like a complete idiot but I can feel my cheeks heating up. 

     "Don't worry it's no problem at all. We were having a great time weren't we buddy." He replies winking at James. 

     "Yeah momma. Me and Chris were talking about heroes and Woody to! I told him you were getting me a balloon ." James replies like it's the most obvious thing on the planet. It's at that moment you realise I never told him my name. 

     "I'm y/n by the way. Though with his guy it seems my only name is mommy. Which I definitely can't complain about." I say in laugh while tickling James. 

     "Oh right yeah. I'm Chris, but he already told you that." He chuckles reaching to shake your hand. God he has an amazing smile. I can't remember the last time I had this many butterflies in my stomach just from someone smiling at me. 

     "You wouldn't wanna maybe come get a Mickey ice cream bar with us? That was our plan before everything happened." I ask hopefully but then realise he might be here with family and I don't want to interrupt. "Unless of course you're busy. In that case just thank you." 

     Chris laughs a little.  "Well I am here with family.." before he can even finish, another guy interrupts him.

     "Hi I'm Scott, Chris brother. He's got no plans, we were all just gonna head back to the hotel and rest for a bit. Chris would love to come with you." He smiles sweetly at me, then turns to Chris giving him the eyes that can only describe as don't fuck this up eyes. 

     "Yeah I would love that. Plus me and this little guy have lots to talk about. Especially the fact that he thinks Spiderman is the best superhero! I mean buddy what about Captain America?" Chris beams at James playfully. It's in that moment though I realise who exactly I've been talking to. But none of that matters because as far as I'm concerned he's just Chris. I don't want him to be anyone else because so far he's been absolutely perfect.

Present: Concord Massachusetts

     I think I've made it through the worst. I woke up feeling amazing with no nausea. It's a winning kinda day, it's been too long that I haven't had a day that I feel like dying and I'm just over 30 weeks. Thankfully Lisa took James and the girls today so I could have some time to rest. But like always I can't seem to relax so here I am cleaning. Bending down to pick up one of the girls barbies and her dream car I hear a low whistle come from behind me.

     "Now if that isn't the perfect view to come home to, I don't know what is." Spinning around I see him, my Chris. 

     "It's that view that got us in this situation in the first place Christopher." I say gesturing to my belly. 

     "The best situation baby. Now come here so I can kiss my favourite girl and tell my little princess hello." He tells me pulling me in for the sweetest kiss. I missed this so much, the feel of his lips on mine. Being able to feel his unconditional love from one kiss. As soon as he pulls away he gives me a quick peck on the nose making me giggle. Then he's down on his knees pulling my top up so he can see my belly. "And how are you doing my sweet angel? Have you been good for momma?" He asks my belly then presses his ear against me, because apparently they can talk to each other through the womb. Running my fingers through his hair I feel like I can officially relax now. He's been on the go so much after promoting Kives Out. Then going to award shows left and right, but now he's home for the rest of the pregnancy. 

     "She's missed you baby. So has James, Eleanor and Adeline."

     "Oh really, only the kids have missed me? You sure you haven't missed me even a little bit?" He says while standing up to look me in the eyes. "I hope you missed me baby, cuz I know I missed you too damn much. It was hell not having you in my arms everyday. Especially with you being pregnant. It killed me knowing I wasn't here to take care of you." 

     "I missed you more than anything. You should know that though from the amount of times I called you crying in the middle of the night." I whisper into his neck. I feel horrible that I called so many times and made him feel bad. But we made a promise that we would always share every single emotion we were feeling with each other. "I love you Christopher so much. I feel whole again with you back." 

     "I love you more baby. I'm home now ok and will be for as long as you need me. There's no way in hell that someone could pull me away from you and the kids now. Especially since little miss Everly will be showing up soon enough." He tells me while rubbing my belly. I look up at the clock on the wall and see that it's almost 2. Lisa was gonna bring the kids back around 3.

     "The kids should be home in an hour or so. Your mother, bless her heart for taking the kids this morning. She is truly a God sent." I pull away from him putting the barbie and her dream car in the girls toy box. 

      "You know she loves you and the kids so much. I think she might love you more than she loves me." He chuckles. "How are they doing anyway? Anything new that I need to be made aware of?" 

     "Why do you say it like that?" I ask with a hint of disbelief in my tone.

     "Because you my darling are always up to something? Are the girls still taking ballet or have we changed our minds to something else? What about James, baseball should be starting soon." 

     "Excuse you but I have been on my best behaviour thank you very much. Ell is loving ballet. Addie is still not sure. But then again her attention span is horrible, I'm gonna keep her in it though. They are both doing wonderfully when they want to, I'm sure you will get to have your own private show. Yes baseball starts next month, I've already got him signed up. He's gonna be so happy that you're gonna be home to practice with him." I pause then for a minute because I hate to bring it up when he's just home. "Babe. James asked again last night." 

     "What's he asking you about this time, that you can't handle." Chris asks, with an amusing smile on his face. He quickly understands though when I glare at him. "I'm sorry babe, all jokes aside. How'd he bring it up this time?"

     "Apparently he saw Robert and Susan promoting Dolittle. I guess they were talking about finally doing a film that all the kids could go to. I don't even know how to go about it anymore, he completely broke my heart hunny. He asked if you were ashamed of us baby. I of course told him no, that you love them more than anything. It's just getting really difficult now. I mean we are gonna be a pretty big family soon, it's getting harder to hide." 

    "I know. God I know, I've been thinking about it alot. I just love how with you guys I'm just Chris or daddy. Are you even ready for that baby? I don't even know if I'm ready, I love having you all to myself." He states while rubbing the back of his neck. "How would we even reveal that to the world? I don't want any backlash coming on you and the kids. Fucking hell." Walking over I wrap my arms around him. I can see how much this stresses him out and we just need to get it out of the way, face it head on. 

    "Hey look at me." I state lifting his face so he looks me in the eyes. "We will be fine as long as we stick together. I don't care about anything the press might say. So long as you and our babies are safe and happy. Nothings gonna scare me off babe, you're stuck with me forever." 

     "Ok I guess we're doing this. How do we wanna go about it? We could go live on Twitter or just make a video and share it on my page. I think making a video would be best though so we can make sure that we have it perfect." He states calmly. 

     "I think that's an absolutely perfect way to introduce our family to the world baby. I think we should do something silly though and not make it so much like 'Hey look I have a family' just an easy going playful video with a witty caption 'Quick catch up on the last 6 years' don't you think?" 

     Hearing a knock one the door, then the door opening. You hear little feet running down the hall giggling. "Momma we're home!" Both girls yell out to you.

     "Come here guys, I'm in the kitchen. I've got a surprise for you." You call back while quickly pushing Chris into the pantry. Just as the door closes you see the girls rounding the corner. Heading straight to hug your legs, with Lisa and James coming behind them. "Hello my babies. How are you both doing?" You say kisses each of the girls on the head. Looking up after they tell you that they're great you smile, having a hard time not telling them then that daddy's home. "How are you doing buddy, did you have a good time with grandma?" You ask James.

    "Yeah. Grandma and grandpa were great." He says softly while Lisa wraps her arms around him giving him a soft hug and kiss on the top of his head.

    "James, sweetheart what's wrong?" You question trying to figure out what could have happened in the short time he was gone.

    You see him turn more into Lisa. "He's just missing dad today, Scott was helping him practice throwing today." She tells you with a sad smile. 

     "Well it's a good thing I came home early then. Can't be missing baseball practice with my best bud." At the sound of Chris's voice James head pops up, letting go of Lisa he runs for Chris. Soon after the girls follow squealing, running right for his legs. 

     "Surprise!" You say with a laugh looking at Lisa then the kids and Chris. He's got the girls in one arm, both of them kissing his cheeks. James is tucked in his chest holding onto him tightly. You knew he missed Chris, being the only guy in the house was tough. They were inseparable from the beginning of your relationship and everytime Chris left it got a little harder for the pair. You saw him whispering something in each of their ears. Both girls giggling and James burying himself farther into Chris chest. Setting the girls down Chris wrapped both arms around James. 

     Knowing they needed this time together, you walked over to the girls. "Why don't we take grandma to the living room and show her your new barbie dolls we got yesterday?" You asked the girls who happily ran for Lisa, grabbing her hands and skipping to the living room. Looking back over your shoulder you wink at Chris as you see him mouth 'Thank you' to you. With a smile you mouth back 'I love you' and head in to be with Lisa and the girls. 

    Sometime later the boys come into the living room, both smiling. Lisa had left 10 minutes before saying she wanted you to have family time and that she would see Chris tomorrow to give him a proper hello. 

     "So what's everyone thinking for dinner? I was thinking instead of having momma cook, we order pizza. Hmm… how's that sound?" Chris says. 

     "Yes!" All three of the kids cheer. We don't get pizza too often, so I knew it was gonna be a unanimous decision. Deciding on a Meat Lovers and a Cheese pizza I get the phone to call it in. Hanging up the phone I go and tell everyone it should be here in about 45 minutes. Settling back on the couch to cuddle with Chris while the kids play with Dodger, I breathe a sigh of relief rubbing my bump. At this little miss Everly starts moving around. Stretching her little body out. Grabbing Chris's hands I place them on my tummy so he can feel her.

     "She's sure is active tonight. I'm so ready to meet her and to be a family of 6." He whispers softly into my ear before kissing my temple. Our relaxing cuddle is soon interrupted though. When the girls come bouncing on their toes over to us. 

     "Can we have a dance party before dinner? Pretty please?" They ask with the sweetest smiles. They already know that it's gonna be a yes. After giving that face to their daddy, he's so wrapped around their fingers.

     "Of course we can. Why don't you take mommy upstairs to get your tutus on. While you get ready, me and bubba will set up the speakers."  Chris tells the girls. With smiles they start up the stairs giggling while I follow after them making sure nobody falls. Picking out which tutu each of them was gonna wear was easy. Pink and purple with sparkles for Ell and rainbow for Addie. But they couldn't just have their tutus we had to get in their leotards too. As well as princess crowns had to be added, finally we were ready to go back downstairs. Chris of course didn't miss the fact that I have a crown on. If the girls could get my tummy in a tutu, I would be in one all the time. I'm just happy that they didn't make me try and put it in this time. They must have learned after I got stuck last time when I was just 25 weeks and momma's belly almost broke the tutu.

    "Don't you two just look beautiful." He says to them. "Don't think I forgot you. I love the crown babe." He says before giving me a quick peck on the lips. He walks away to press play on the speakers and all of the sudden I hear Under the Sea from the Little Mermaid coming through the speakers. Both girls happily jump and squeal at their father's choice. Excited because it's their favourite movie at the moment, completely oblivious to the fact that it's also their dads. Laughing at their wild moves I see them grab James making him dance as well. 

     "Momma come on dance. Everly loves this song!" Ell tells me point blank

     "How would you know that Ell? Everly isn't even here yet to know what music she loves." I tell her.

     "Because we are her sissies and she loves anything we love." Addie then says coming to her twins aid. Standing up I grab both girls hands twirling them while they hold my fingers. Looking up at Chris I see him laughing holding up his phone. 

     "Looking good momma!" He tells me with a laugh. 

     "Daddy look at us spin!" Addie says before they both grab hands spinning in circles. James comes to stand by me cuddling up to my side as we sway back and forth. With the song change I start laughing as Truth Hurts by Lizzo comes on. Only Chris would have those two songs on the same playlist. The girls don't mind the change and pull James to dance more with them. Walking over to Chris singing the song, doing a little dance. I gotta say mommas got moves still. Laughing at myself Chris calls at me to smile, facing the camera at me. Smiling sweetly at the most amazing man in the world, how did I get so lucky. 

     "Now let me see Everly babe!" He tells me while doing a spinning motion with his finger. Stepping back I give him a side view of my bump laughing at how cute he's being. He quickly pulls me to him. Flipping the camera to the front he gives me the biggest kiss, making my toes curl. "I love you Mrs. Evans." He says resting his forehead on mine.

     "I love you so much more Christopher." 

Later that night

    After finally getting done with dinner. I was able to get the girls in the bath and in jammies without much hassle. James was already in bed so I gave him a kiss goodnight as Chris read to the girls. Heading to our room I see Dodger already up on the bed with his lion. 

     "Hi bubba. I know you didn't like all the dancing tonight. Have you been up here sleeping the whole time? Such a good boy. Just let mom get changed and then we can cuddle. Sound good." I ask Dodg as I head to the bathroom. After washing my face and brushing my teeth I head out to get changed.    

     "Hey baby I'm just gonna get ready then I'll be in bed." Chris says as he kisses me on the cheek. Nodding my head I crawl in bed getting tucked under the covers. Not long later Chris comes back in getting under the covers with me. Pulling me to his chest I relax into him as we caress my bump. 

     "How did the girls like the story?" I ask

     "Oh they loved it, even added their own little bits to it." He tells me softly kissing my head. "You know the video I took of you all dancing?" He questions. Nodding in a response already drifting off. "I posted it baby." He says hesitantly.

     "Ok. Nothing will ever change how I feel about you Christopher. I love you and our family more than anything in the world." I tell him softly. 

     "How did I get so lucky? I love you baby." He says as he wraps me up tightly both of us falling asleep. The last thought I have before falling into the darkness is how I couldn't have asked for a better man to live this wonderful crazy experience we call life with.

Taglist: @icanfeelastormbrewing

A/N: I've never wrote for Chris. Let alone I have written in like a year and a half. I dont even know what my opinion on it is yet, so let me know what you think of it! Also if you have any requests inbox me or ask. Why not have some fun with this. Much love xx

[ghostmartyr]

SnK 124 Thoughts

Have some faith, Reiner.

As if we’d ever forget Han Solo.

The only nice thing about what’s happening now is that it’s forced the right priorities on people. Despite Eren saying, way back in Trost, that people all uniting to face one enemy is too rosy an idea to have a place in reality, for this one island, in these final, traumatic moments, no one wants all these people to die.

With various faces painted on it, most of our main cast on either side has always been focused on one thing: survival. Now Eren rejects that entire concept for the protection of one group. In the barest of bones, that is what every single villain of this manga has always done. Of course the only option is to reject him.

And of course Gabi, who has always been compared to Eren, who has had the most traumatic series of experiences of her young life, stands up and starts fighting.

(One in shadows, one in light. Winning all the high school book reports here.)

This is the best of Eren, in a child who has been ruined by this world just as thoroughly. Gabi will bring back her friends.

Eren chases after slavers to save a girl he doesn’t know.

Gabi runs into streets full of monsters and saves someone who hates her.

I’ve always enjoyed Eren as a protagonist (his dip into antagonist, not so much). In Trost, he takes on the burden of being a symbol of humanity’s hope, but I’ve always felt that his true symbolic nature is that he’s the one who lays claim to humanity’s outrage.

There are things in this world that are simply wrong. Righteous fury without limits is a satisfying reaction to that, and at the start of the manga, it’s something that all of Paradis has basically lost. They’ve grown complacent with their lot in life. Even when the titans invade, they don’t dream beyond reclaiming the territory that they’ve always known.

Eren’s status as a rage monster is very much a meme, and he’s very much more than that, but it has always been fitting that the main character is a bonfire that lights the sparks of the rest of the cast. Eren inspires motion. Before he has any touch of competence and plot magic, he talks and his comrades find themselves listening.

Gabi takes up that torch here.

Reiner is done (again. sorry, Reiner). The world is probably done. Gabi has spent this whole arc being some kind of done.

Gabi gets up, and goes to look for her friend. Falco follows her onto an airship; she follows him into hell.

Gabi gets up, and protects the girl who wants her dead. She faces down a titan with a weapon not meant for the job, and she wins.

Just like the young woman she murdered.

Sasha joins the Survey Corps after Trost. She comes face to face with a titan, and she falters. She fails to kill it, and it comes after her, and she’s scared. She wants to leave. She considers leaving.

Dot Pixis’ speech reignites her will.

Sasha stays, and a month later she saves her little sister.

Her little sister protects a pair of enemy child soldiers.

One of those child soldiers saves her life.

Paradis begins without a spark. Even the people who are signing up to be soldiers are mostly doing it so they won’t be seen as cowards, or so they can go further into the walls as Military Police. People who want to go outside and kill the titans are nuts. The Survey Corps is nuts. They’re a waste of taxes, and anyone who wants to join them is a suicidal idiot.

Enter Eren. Enter enough fury and impact that the fire can’t be contained in one person, and the sparks start spreading. The people who have been left to tend their own fires for years are given kindling. The people who don’t know what it’s like to not be freezing cold are given a taste of warmth.

For a series that begins in stagnation, a protagonist devoted to movement is going to inspire the most change.

Then he decides to commit genocide and ruin everything, but hey, look at how much that’s inspiring people to get along!

Eren, you’re a fucking disaster.

Niccolo basically hands us the series’ thesis on a silver platter, so I’ll refrain from trying to fit his quotes into anything resembling a paragraph.

Niccolo is not Eldian.

Eldians are the one with the ability to literally transform into monsters. A physical manifestation of the horrors all humans are capable of if you take away their reason. That’s why the world calls them devils. They’re all a bunch of ticking time bombs just waiting to go off; why wouldn’t the world condemn, hate, and fear that?

Those ticking time bombs always take at least one more person willing to start the timer for them.

In the current era, Marley has been the force happily strapping bombs to children’s chests.

Niccolo hits on the truest point. From someone who is not Eldian, who cannot physically manifest the horrors all around them that could not exist without certain genetics--

Niccolo has a devil inside of him, too. He’s given in to it. He has been a monster, so lost in his despair that he’s willing to kill children.

The true enemy of this world is not titans. It’s falling prey to the demons every human carries inside. That is the universal human experience, and everywhere people fall in that fight, evil follows.

Titans exist because a man rapes a slave and has her children eat her.

That evil is a fault of human nature, not blood.

Niccolo and Gabi have been the monsters.

Unlike most titans, they have the option of coming back. They’ve had the fortune to live long enough that they can come back. Hell, it might be because she hits the bargaining phase, but even this chapter Gabi goes from suggesting killing Eren to talking to him and using his power for something actually useful.

-pats Gabi on the head-

Not bad, kiddo.

To the left, we have Jean and Connie.

Hell.

Connie’s simplest (as well as the most exciting, because he’s running off to Wall Rose territory with Falco, who has Ymir’s memories), and rather devastating. For four years, his mother has been a titan. Unable to move. She’s his only remaining family. Everyone else in his village, Connie spent their last night alive praying that they would die. He’s one of the three people left who remember Utgard.

Being trapped on a tower in the middle of the night, being hunted for sport by people he’s known all his life.

On Zeke’s command.

The man Paradis is forced to consider an ally. The man Connie is not allowed to touch. The man who is still, years later, turning people into titans. The man one of his closest friends ostensibly betrays them for.

After all that, his friends have someone who can save his mom, and they try to tell him no. Because that might hurt the feelings of their enemies. People like Reiner, for instance. The guy Connie still cries for in Return to Shiganshina.

Don’t worry about your mother, Connie. Worry about the feelings of everyone else.

Also Sasha is dead and this kid’s bestie pulled the trigger.

But seriously Connie, chill.

[chill not found]

Connie has, frankly, done a fantastic job holding everything together. The fact that he’s only snapping now speaks greatly to his character, and leaves me not too concerned about Falco. Connie ranks as one of the lowest on who’s left of people who would be willing to kill a child. Even if it’s for his mother, if Falco’s awake, I don’t think Connie can do it.

...If he can, the manga will have actually found a way to get even darker, which, if we’re being honest, I sort of thought we were beyond at this point, so flip a coin I guess.

Jean likewise has some of my favorite material in this chapter. He’s grown into a far better commander than he was at Trost, and having the terrain duplicated so well only emphasizes it.

But as ever, the true entertainment comes from Marco.

Who is also dead.

Yes, still.

“You’re not a strong person... so you can really understand how weak people feel.”

Jean is not wrong that destroying the rest of the world sort of fixes Paradis’ main problems. The issue is that it’s horrifically immoral, not that it wouldn’t be effective (until a civil war breaks out).

Because everyone spent all their time hating them, their only protection was murdering them all. And it’s all on one person’s decisions. They’re hardly involved, aren’t they? If they sit back and do nothing, it’s just karma, right? What could they possibly do at this point?

“But you’re also good at recognizing what’s going on at any given moment. You know exactly what needs to be done. I mean... most humans are weak, including me... But if I got an order from someone who saw things like I do... no matter how tough it was, I’d do my damnedest to carry it out.”

Jean’s right. They do reap the benefits of this horrible choice. No more complicated politics. Just a blank slate to do better on. Everyone on Paradis gets to live. Without putting too fine a point on it, that’s an argument we’re probably all familiar with, and here a character is, pointing it all out.

This fixes all their problems. Good, right?

No.

Because standing back and doing nothing while genocide is committed is fucking wrong.

That’s a question this series has grappled with from the beginning; which is more important, survival or doing what’s right?

In the start, we have a protagonist who is fully comfortable throwing his own life away in the name of doing what’s right. At the moment, he’s giving every appearance of being fully comfortable throwing away everyone else’s life in the name of keeping the people he cares about alive.

This chapter, we have Connie arguing for his mom’s life over someone more politically relevant’s.

Bringing back another fandom favorite, Serum Bowl pretty much locks these arguments in a cage and pokes them gently with an assault rifle.

Survival says Erwin. Armin doesn’t matter, except to Eren and Mikasa. Erwin matters to Levi in a way he doesn’t to them. What’s right falls to the floor except to be brandished like a machete against the other side’s wants. Hange has to swoop in and pick it up, and by then Floch’s involved and clubbing everyone over the head with his newfound fanaticism.

Once it’s gotten to that point, humanity’s continued survival still says Erwin.

It’s still saving a man’s life.

A man who will die without this intervention.

For the reason of bringing him back to life to suffer in everyone’s place.

It’s pragmatic, and it truly is best for humanity’s survival beyond the walls.

It is also deeply unkind.

Send these thousands of people to their deaths so  the rest can live. Eat each other. Die, die, and die until someone can live. Anything that promotes survival is, in fact, the right choice.

In the Female Titan arc, when Armin and Jean are watching the full extent of Erwin’s plan in front of their eyes, Armin says that Erwin might very well be evil for it, but given where they are, that’s a good thing. That someone strong enough to be that measured with their few remaining lives is in control--even if he’s committing a moral evil, he’s protecting something more important.

It is the preliminary version of Floch’s eventual conclusion.

They need a devil to ensure their survival.

Levi ultimately rejects that.

He doesn’t bring a man back to life so that he can bear their burdens.

It’s one of the smaller goods of the series. After a life of suffering through what is necessary, Levi chooses to release Erwin from it, even though he’s still tactically essential. Again and again people have discussed how much it would help if one more strategist was out Paradis’ table in these times. Levi’s decision is what prevents the most experienced from taking a seat.

Levi picks to be kind over making the choice that more properly secures survival.

Because the survival of what? More choices leading down the exact same road? The endless cycle of sacrifice that’s turned human bodies into resources instead of recognizing them as people?

Titanization at its core?

In the Serum Bowl, Levi doesn’t choose who he wants to survive. He chooses what. He chooses to recognize a man as human instead of a commodity. Something the two brats screaming at him couldn’t let go of. Something he couldn’t let go of.

Do you want to survive, or create a world worth surviving in?

Eren’s actions will destroy the world beyond the walls he always wanted to see. Indiscriminately. Some of it deserves destruction and worse. The parts that don’t will be swept away all the same.

This plan creates the world the First King told them they all lived in; there is Paradis, and nothing beyond it. The rest of humanity is dead.

Thanks to forfeiting all humanity.

And I guess if anyone on the island has a problem with it, kill them too. Also anyone who encourages anyone to have a problem with it. Just set up your secret task force, give the names, and keep those named living in terror for a century until one of them becoming a serial killer in response seems perfectly reasonable.

For those in need of the reminder, Karl is a douche.

Karl thought genocide was such a bad thing that he committed genocide over it, but it’s okay because his genocide was smaller.

Eren thinks genocide is such a bad thing he’s set up to commit genocide over it, but it’s okay because his genocide is going to be so big it’s going to end all genocides. Until Floch remembers he has a gun, probably. Which seems to be always. In which case this genocide will lead to a series of smaller genocides, eventually leading to not enough people being alive for genocide to be committed.

Curing the world of genocide once and for all.

Yay.

.

What I’m saying is that genocide is bad.

Full stop.

Genocide is bad.

-draws underlines-

-draws angry grrr face-

Bad.

Perhaps maybe these people should stop doing it.

For all the moral reasons, sure, but since we’re clearly beyond that point, maybe someone could just quietly suggest with the force of the world ending that maybe imitating the exact behavior that led to literally all of our cast’s problems is not the best move.

Also, Floch shouldn’t get to point a gun at Yelena’s head. Only Yelena gets to hold guns to people’s heads. She makes it cool. Floch makes everyone wonder why Floch still hasn’t died, only to remember that ah, yes, of course people like Floch don’t die.

BUT HEY, AT LEAST THEY KILLED ALL THE TITANS THAT USED TO BE THEIR COMMANDING OFFICERS. I’M SURE THAT’S NOT RELATED TO FLOCH’S GOOD MOOD AT ALL.

You know, it’s not that things are continuing to get worse. They are simply following the roadmap of horror we were handed in the brochure for this arc. None of this is new, it’s just now in play. So it’s not getting worse, it always was worse.

...Yelena, just take the gun and shoot Floch before you die. I feel like that’s the fastest path to something good happening.

Let’s see... points to all our kidlets being a dominant force against titans now. Them Trost Redux feels. Points to Jean realizing that Eren has power of friendshipped himself into villain status (allegedly). Points to Armin remembering how Pixis gave the humans of Paradis their first victory. Points to all of Sasha’s family because I like them.

Then that’s the chapter.

HOW YOU FEELING, ANNIE FANS?

[chickensarentcheap]

Sanctuary -Chapter 12

WARNINGS: POSSIBLE TRIGGERS: DOMESTIC ISSUES, ARGUING, ROUGH SEX, DARK TYLER.  NSWF. 18+.

Tagging: @valkyrie-of-the-light, @alievans007, @c-a-v-a-l-r-y, @innerpaperexpertcloud

They sit in silence in the kitchen; guest long gone, Ovi in in his basement apartment, kids fast asleep. A laptop and empty bottles of beer joining various computer print outs, photographs, writing paper and pens that litter the tabletop. The only sounds in the room the soft hum of the of the fridge motor and the slight drip of the tap.

It had been difficult to get through the rest of the evening. Faking smiles, attempting to show interest in the small talk that comes with getting to know someone better, trying to hide the tension that Nik’s text messages had created.  But they’d wanted to make the night pleasant for Ovi; he’d been through too much in the past five years and he deserved some happiness. It was quite obvious that he was crazy about the red head that had spent the evening glued to his side; their hands clasped tightly as they rested on top of the table, a permanent and genuine smile plastered across his face. He hung onto every word she said. She was well spoken and intelligent; she loved the kids and wanted to spend more time with then and she’d been enthralled about Tyler’s stories about growing up in Australia. She was genuine. Sweet. And obviously just as smitten with Ovi as he was with her.

So they had decided to just dig in and grin and bare it. For his sake. Putting on a good show for the new love in his life. Despite the fact everything seemed to be falling apart.

“I don’t know what you want me to say,” Esme says, breaking the silence, running her palms along the side of her wine glass. Was it her fourth? Fifth? Maybe even sixth? She’s lost count. She’s drained the bottle and he only thing that matters at this point is that there’s still a full one chilling in the fridge.  And she isn’t above breaking that one open and polishing it off as well.

“Something,” Tyler responds, leaning back in his chair, legs stretched out in front of him.  “Anything.”

“Oh I don’t think you really want that. Because the things going through my head right now aren’t very nice and we will both end up saying shit we regret. So…” she downs the remains of her drink, frowns at the empty now empty glass, and then pushes her chair away from the table. “…I think I should just keep my mouth shut.”

He watches as she stalks over to the fridge, tosses the door open with enough force to shake the contents inside, snags the bottle of wine and then uses her heel to slam the door. He sits forward, elbows on the table, hands clasped together and his chin resting against them. Normally this would be a sign of a wild night: a drunk Esme truly does make for an uninhibited Esme. And if sex is off the charts amazing while she is sober, it is just otherworldly insane when she’s not. But tonight…well he’s just hoping to get through it in one piece.

“What?” she snaps when she notices him watching her. “What do you want me to say, Tyler?”

“I don’t know,” he admits with a shrug. “I honestly do not know.”

 He’s alarmingly calm. Is it the half a twenty- four case he’s already finished by himself? Or the fact that he owes her this? The epic meltdown that he knows is just on the horizon. Normally he’d fight it; he’d lash out at her for being a raging bitch and it would escalate into a massive blow out in which all kinds of petty shit would get held over each other’s heads and they’d pull out the stupidest and most hurtful crap possible. It happened at least once a year, every year, for the past five. Where something would cause either one of them to just snap and lose their shit.

“How the hell would you even get brought into this?” she fills her glass to the rim before setting the bottle on the table and slipping back into her seat. “Like where do you come into this? How does he even know who you are?”

“You know how big the circle is when it comes to the job. Word gets around. Stories get shared. You build up a rep.”

“And what’s yours? The guy who says ‘fuck my family. I’ll do your dirty work for you’?”

“I don’t deserve that and you know it. I always put you and the kids first. Always.”

“Oh really, Tyler? Really? Because I seem to remember you making the decision to go back to the job all on your own. I distinctly you remember keeping it a secret until the night before you left for Colombia. Do you remember that? Waiting until you got your rocks off to say, ‘oh by the way, baby. I’m going to infiltrate a drug cartel tomorrow. I’ll be back in a week’. Because that is exactly how you handled it.”

Sighing heavily, he runs his hands over his face and leans over to grab another beer from the case resting on the floor beside his chair.

“I was six months pregnant,” she continues. “With twins. And you decided to just run off to some god forsaken shit hole to solve other peoples’ problems.”

“We needed the money,” he attempts to reason with her. “We just got this place. We had Millie and a baby on the way. Two babies. We weren’t going to get by on what I was making doing renos and handyman shit and you knew it. What did you want me to do? Did you want us to  keep living with your parents? Or in some shit motel? Like the one back in Dhaka? Is that what you wanted?”

“I would have lived in a goddamn cardboard box if it meant I was with you. So don’t throw the money shit in my face because it has never been about money. You like doing the job. Why don’t you just admit it? Why don’t you just look me in the eye and tell me the truth about it for once. That you enjoy what you do. That it’s a rush. That you don’t want to let that rush go. And how you never thought you’d be able to do it again and now you feel like you have something to prove. Not just to other people but to yourself.”

He leans back in his chair once again, sipping at his beer.

“You can’t do it, can you. You can’t look me in the eye and tell me that because you hate that part of yourself. You hate that you enjoy it so much. That you actually like killing people.”

“That’s not fucking true and you know it,” he manages to keep his composure. “I kill people because they fucking deserve it. Because it’s either me or them. And I kind of like coming home to my family.”

“But does it really bother you, Tyler?” she challenges. “Do you really lose sleep over it? Do you sit back and think about them after you do it? Give any thought to who they don’t get to go home to? Because if you say you do, you’re a fucking liar.”

He remains silent, picking at the label on the bottle in his hand.

“You can keep bullshitting yourself, but you can’t bullshit me. You went back to the job because you enjoy it. You get a sense of satisfaction out of what you do. It’s karma. You get to go in there and kick the shit out of people and even take their lives and you get a sense of justice out of it. It’s exciting. It’s fulfilling. To be able to take the life from some piece of shit that likes to hurt women and kids. It’s the perfect ending for people like that. And you get to be in control of it.”

“Yep,” he smirks, voice low and steady. “That’s exactly it, Esme. You always have all the answers. You always know exactly what is going on in my head.”

“Oh fuck you, Tyler. This…all this…all this bullshit…is totally on you and you know it. You told me you wouldn’t do this. You promised me.! You swore you wouldn’t take another job for two weeks. That we could have you here…home where you belong..for at least fourteen days before you’d even take a call from Nik. Your kids miss you. I miss you.”

“And what?” his tone sharpens, volume rising. “ I don’t miss you guys? You think this is one sided? That you’re the only miserable one? That I don’t wish every second that I was here with you? With my kids? You have no idea what I go through when I’m away. It’s just all about you. About how lonely you are and how scared you and all this other shit that you dump on me the second I walk through the door.”

“Oh so how I feel about you is shit? Well that’s nice, Tyler. I’m glad to see you give a shit about how I feel about you.”

“That’s not what I meant and you bloody well know it. The second I walk through the door it’s all about you and  what you were going through and how worried you were and how scared you were and I sit there and take it. Because I get it. I do. It’s not easy. And I hate that you’re going through it. But do you ever once ask me what it does to me while I’m away? How much it fucks with my head?”

She blinks at the sincerity in his voice. He’s angry. Irritated. But heartbreakingly real and honest.

“You never do. You never even think about that, do you. You think I’m out there just loving every goddamn second of being away from you and the kids. I’m out there…putting my ass on the line…for people that don’t even know me. And ninety percent of them are ungrateful fucks who don’t even say thank you for nearly getting killed saving someone they love.  Who don’t even stop to think that maybe the guy who just went through hell to get their kid or the spouse back just may have kids and a spouse of his own who would like to see him walk back in the door.”

She taps a fingernail against her glass, eyes riveted on the liquid inside as she considers his words.

“But I’ve always got to the strong one, right? Because that’s why you need. You need me to be the one that holds shit together. You need me to be one  that’s there for you and makes you feel safe and protected and all that shit. I’m the one that has to make up for the fact that your ex was a complete and utter tool that made you feel like garbage.”

“He has nothing to do with this. Why would you…?”

“I have spent five years trying to make up for his mistakes. Five years trying to prove to you that I’m not like him. That I’ll never be like him. I’m sorry he was a dick. I’m sorry that he did the things he did to you. That you lost a baby and he didn’t even give a shit. But I shouldn’t have to spend the rest of my life trying to make up for his mistakes.”

“That’s seriously what you think? That I’m punishing you?”

“I never said that. I never said you were punishing me. I said that I’m the one that is here and I’m the one that is constantly trying to prove to you that I’m not him. When does that stop, huh? When does your hate for him stop and your love for me kick in?”

“You…have…got…to…be…kidding…me,” she spits out every single word.  “Don’t you ever…ever…question how much I love you. How dare you even do that?! How dare you just sit there and accuse me of not loving you.”

“Stop!” he orders. “Stop putting words in my mouth. I did not say that. I don’t doubt that you love me. I know you do. And I know I don’t deserve that. Because I’m a shitty human being whose made shitty choices and…”

“Oh here we go. Tyler and his issues. Tyler and his self loathing.  Not everything is about some decision you made ten years ago when you were married to someone else. You bitch that I make you feel like you have to over compensate because of what my ex did. Yet for five years I’ve been living in this shadow of your ex wife. I get it. What she did was shitty. What she continues to do is shitty. But what you did was equally shitty. If not worse.”

“Just let it out, Esme. Just say what you really feel about me. You’ve been holding it back for what? Almost six years now? Go ahead.”

“I love you, you insufferable bastard! It happened. You made the decision you did and your son died and your ex took off. But I’m here and so are those four babies sleeping upstairs. And you need to let your shit go, Tyler! If not for me, for them. Because they deserve to have a dad who is all in. Not one who seems them as a replacement.”

“Don’t…” he holds his hand up in a plea for her to stop. “…bring them into this. Don’t hold my kids over my head. Don’t be like her.”

“I’m not like her. I’ve never been like her,” she spits. “I will never be like her. Don’t you dare compare me to her. Why can’t you just let me love you? It’s been five…almost six…years of this, Tyler. Of trying to prove to you that I love you. When is it enough?”

“You don’t have to prove anything to me. I know you love me. For fuck sakes…” he takes a massive swallow of beer. “…we’re just going around in bloody circles and repeating the same shit. I know you love me, Esme. And I know…or at least I hope you know…that I love you. More than I ever thought I could love another human being. You know that, right? Tell me know that.”

“Of course I know that,” she quietly concedes. “But…”

“Nothing good comes after that word,” he sighs. “Nothing good ever comes after the word ‘but’.”

“You act like you are the only one that’s ever had to just suck it up and be strong. That’s had to sacrifice their own well being and their own mental health for someone else. I gave up everything for you. Without even knowing where I even stood with you. I was the one that moved half way around the world and gave up my entire life as I knew it. For some guy that could have just told me to fuck off when he opened his eyes.”

“Holy shit,” he gives a wry laugh. “We’re going that far back are we? We’re going right back to Dhaka. Are you serious right now? You really want to open up that can of worms? Because we both know the truth will really come out and some of that shit is going to hurt like hell. Is this really what you want? You want to bring Dhaka into this?”

“Not really,” she admits. “But maybe we need to.”

“Why? So we can just say shit because we’re upset? Because you get off on me hurting your feelings?”

“Just forget it,” she downs the wine in her glass and stands up. “Do what you want, Tyler. I’m done. Help or don’t help this guy. I don’t give a shit.”

“Just sit down.”

“You’re going to do whatever you want anyway. So why take this further.”

“Sit down. We’re not ending it like this. You’re not walking away from this. From me.”

“Just do what you want. I’m tired of this. I’m tired of competing with the fucking job. Make up your own mind. And while you’re at it, why don’t you call Nik and see if she’ll put you up for the night. I’m sure she has a spot in her bed you can fill.”

It’s a low blow. One that kicks him square in the nuts. And first all he can do is watch her stomp through the kitchen. Brain trying to piece together just what the hell had happened. And then words hit home…the implication behind them…and he snaps. Jumping up from the table with enough force to send his chair colliding with the wall behind him. Crossing the kitchen in only three long strides and snagging her by the forearm. He’s much bigger, stronger, and his fingers bite straight to the bone.

“What the fuck, Tyler?!” she rages, when he forces her to turn around and face her. “What is your major malfunction? That hurts!”

“What the hell is wrong with you?!” he roars. “You stoop that fucking low?! You want to push me away that bad that you’d say something like that?! About me and Nik?!”

“So that’s what it takes to get a reaction out of you. For me to say something about your precious Nik.”

“Don’t…don’t do this…don’t go where you’re about to go…”

“Maybe it isn’t your ex wife or the job I’m competing against. Maybe it’s her. Maybe it’s really Nik you’ve wanted all along. You just couldn’t have her. So why not just latch on to her pathetic and needy and desperate friend.”

“That isn’t true and you know it. I’ve never wanted Nik in that way. It was sex. That’s all it was. It never meant a goddamn thing. And I didn’t latch onto you. I fell in love with you.”

“But she wants you. In that way. Don’t lie to me and tell me she doesn’t.”

“It doesn’t matter what she wants! I don’t give a shit what she wants.”

“Have you fucked here while we’ve been married?”

“What?” his grip on her tightens, her arm twisted behind her back.

“Have you? Have you been with her since we’ve been married? Tell me the truth, Tyler. Look me in the eye and tell me the goddamn truth.”

“I haven’t been with her since I met you. I don’t want to be with her.”

“Even now?”

“What does that mean? Even now? What…?”

“You hate me, don’t you. Right this very second.”

“No. I don’t hate you. I could never hate you. I love you. How many times do I have to say it before it gets through your goddamn head?”

“Tell me the truth,” she challenges.

“About what?”

“About Nik.”

“I just fucking told you!” he lets go of her wrist but now reaches for her throat. His chest heaving from anger, eyes dark and intense. And she doesn’t even blink or fight back against those fingers biting into her flesh. “I would never do that you. With Nik. With anyone. Is that really what you think of me? You think that little of me that I’d do something like that? You’re my wife!”

“This remind you of anything Tyler? Five years ago? This exact same thing happening?”

He swallows hard. It’s a hard thing to forget. The first time they’d ever been together. In that dirty Dhaka hotel room. When they’d fought so passionately that it nearly came to blows and he’d snapped; losing all sense of control as his hand wrapped around her neck in the exact same way. The way she just stood there staring up at him with those huge dark eyes begging him to challenge her. To do something. Anything.  And he’d taken her up on it. All common sense flying right out the window.

“You fucked me like you hated me,” she says now.

The words make him shudder and his cock harden. And he knows he should be ashamed for having that kind of reaction.  He knows damn well what’s coming next; it’s in the way her lips curl into a smirk as she looks up at him. And he tells himself that he should just walk away before the words even come out of her mouth.  Reminds himself how much he’s going to hate himself in the morning if he gives in. Just like he’d hated himself five years ago for not stopping it when he should have.

“That’s what you want right now isn’t it Tyler. You want to fuck me like you hate me.”

He shakes his head, but his fingers tighten around her throat even more.

“Do it,” she challenges. “Show me. Show me how much you hate me.”

A growl erupts in his throat and he kisses her, hand still on her neck. Fingers pressing into her flesh as his tongue savagely pushes its way into her mouth and searches for hers. Every nerve ending on fire as she returns the kiss with just as much fervor, her hands sneaking between them and her fingers quickly working at undoing the buttons on his shirt. What should be a simple task turning frustrating from the mix of wine and anger.

“Fuck sakes,” he mutters, breaking the kiss in order to pull off his shirt and toss it aside, the hand that was on her throat moving to the back of neck, a hiss escaping his lips when her nails scrape down the his chest and onto his stomach. Her eyes sparkling as her fingers fall on his belt buckle. “What the hell is wrong with us?” he asks. “Why are we like this?”

“Because we like it,” she replies, as her hands undo his belt.  “Because it’s part of who we are. Part of what makes us so amazing together.”

“It’s fucked up is what it is.”

“Maybe,” she says. “Because it always has been, hasn’t it? Right from the beginning? Do you regret it?”

“I don’t regret a goddamn thing.”

She smiles at that, then slips her hand down the front of his boxers and palms his erection. “Fuck me, Tyler. Like you did five years ago.”

When her hand tightly grips him through the fabric of his boxers, that last shred of resolve finally dissipates. Holding her face in his hands as he kisses her, using his height and strength advantage to push her through the kitchen and out into the dark hallway. Grabbing both of her wrists in one hand and pining them above her head as he pushes her against the wall.  Lips moving to her neck; biting and sucking and licking while she hastily pushes his pants and boxers down his hips and over his ass. Cold fingers a striking contrast to the heat that seems to emanate off his cock as she strokes him; a firm, slow grip that has him bucking his hips against her and a groan rumbling in his chest.

He releases the hold on her wrist and curling an arm around her waist, free hand pushing up the bottom of her dress and bunching it at the small of her back. Lips on her throat when he pushes inside of her one solid, powerful thrust.

“Tyler…fuck!” she cries out, a mix of the sudden penetration and the back of her head colliding with the plaster behind her. Her arms wrapping around his neck and her head falling back as his bites at the soft flesh of her throat, over the marks that his fingers had previously made.

It’s crude and messy. Uncomplicated and unapologetic. Two people using one another for release. Just like it had been almost six years ago in Dhaka. When they’d first discovered that they could help heal one another.

That they could help ease the loneliness and repair some of the brokenness they both felt.

 ****

“Can we talk about this now?” he asks sometime later, as they lay together on the couch in the living room.  Him on his back, her naked body resting between his splayed legs. “Like rational adults?”

She nods, resting her chin on his chest. Her hair a wild mess, eyeliner and mascara smudged. Yet still the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen.

“I don’t want to fight anymore,” he says, and heaves a weary sigh. “I hate when we fight. I always feel like complete and utter shit afterwards. Like a total asshole.”

“Even after we make up?”

“Even then,” he admits, running a hand over her hair and pressing a kiss to her forehead. “I’m serious, Esme. I don’t want to fight.”

“Neither do I. But I honestly don’t know how rational I can be about this. What am I supposed to say Tyler? What is it you want to hear from me?”

“I want you say that you support me. No matter what.”

“I do. I may not like your decision or agree with it, but I still support you. You should know that. I just don’t  understand how the hell this guy even knows your name.”

“Like I said, the circle when you’re in the game is huge. And word travels fast. Certain guys have reputations. They’re known for certain things. I’m probably known as the guy that fucked over Amir Asif and should have died but somehow miraculously didn’t. The guy who went from certain death to having a smoking hot wife,” he grins down at her, and she pecks his lips.

“But how did he find you? You cover all your bases. You don’t leave paper trails. Any trails for that matter. How would he track you down?”

“Maybe he paid off the right person to get the information he needed. Everyone has a price.”            

“Nik or Yaz? I doubt either of them would do that you. Both of them are crazy loyal to you and they’d never put me or the kids at risk like that.”

“Someone else on the team then. Someone that could easily be bought off. That’s up to Nik to find out. All he needed was an address. It wouldn’t be hard to just go in my file and look that up. Doesn’t matter how locked down things are if someone has the right access.”

“But why you? There’s tons of guys out there that could help. Why you?”

“Because I’m the best.”  It isn’t being cocky. It’s the truth.

“But this is the IRA, Tyler. These people are far more powerful than the Amir Asif’s and the Mahajan Seniors of the world. They’re far more dangerous and they’re far more deadly.”

“Doesn’t mean they can’t be beaten, though.”

“But does it really have to be you that tries? Can’t you just tell Nik no?”

“This isn’t about Nik. This is about him. This Michael McMann. He’s the one that wants to talk to me. The one that wants my help.”

“But why…” she laments, and groans against his chest. “…can’t he walk into someone elses life and steal their husband away? Because I’m getting tired of this shit. I’m tired of it always being my husband,” her hand slips down onto his side, fingertips tracing the tattoo on his rib cage. “Do you really hate being home that much?”

“You know that’s not it in the slightest.  It has nothing to do with not wanting to be home.  But it has everything to with keeping my home and keeping a roof over my children’s heads and food in their bellies.”

“I could also go and get a job. We could pay Ovi to watch the kids.”

“Do you know how long we’d both have to work to get the kind of money one job gives us? It would only take one or two really good paying jobs to pay everything off. And still have tons left over to work with. Anything else I make doing renos and handyman shit would be extra.”

“Your life versus money in the bank? I’d rather you keep your life, thank you.”

“Instead of looking at it fatalistically, look at it realistically. The kind of payouts I could get in just six months. That’s money we wouldn’t be able to make the entire rest of our lives doing normal shit. I have to do what I have to do. For you and the kids.”

“You’re not going to be much use to us if you’re crippled up. Or dead.”

“But you’d have the money.”

She pulls back to look at me. “Please tell me you just did not say what I think you said.”

“It’s true. If something happened, as long as I get the mark out safe and sound, you’d get the money.”

“Oh my God, Tyler. Really? Why would you even say that?”

“Because it’s the truth and you need to know that you’d be okay. Financially speaking. And let’s face it. You’re strong. The strongest person I know. You’d be fine. If it ever came down to it and you had to this all on your own, you’d be able to handle it.”

“And that’s supposed to somehow comfort me? That I’m strong and I’d be able to deal with it?”

“No. But it comforts me,” he says, emotion choking at him, the threat of tears burning his eyes. “Knowing that you’d be okay…that the kids would be okay…makes it easier to accept. That if something does happen to me, I know that you’re strong enough to deal with it and take care of the kids. It makes me feel better knowing that.”

“Baby…” she lays her hand on his cheek and turns his face towards her. “…do you really think about these things?”

“All the time,” he admits. “Every night when I can’t sleep and I just lie there watching you and I worry about how it’ll be you that goes before me and how I know I’d never be able to handle it. That I’d just fucking lose it. I’d never be the same. And then I’d lose the kids too because their dad is a fucking mess and can’t take care of them properly.”

“Tyler…don’t do this…please…don’t do this to yourself.”

“And then when I’m away from home and I can’t sleep and I think about how it much it would suck if I didn’t make it home. How much I’d miss you. But that I know you’d be fine. And the kids would be fine. Because you’re so much stronger than I am. You don’t even realize that, do you? That you’re the strong one.”

She doesn’t respond, propping herself up on her elbow and using gentle fingertips to clear the tears that rests on his cheeks and trickle down the sides of his nose. Then combing her fingers through his hair, she presses her lips to his forehead, each eye, along the bridge of his noise, and then finally his lips.

He kisses her, a hand on the back of her head, pulling her back down into him.

“I have to do this,” he says. “I have to help him.”

She sighs. “I know.”

“It’s his wife. And his kids. I’d want someone to help me if I was in his shoes.”

She sighs and reaches for his hand. Laying her palm against his, smiling at the enormous difference between their hands. His strong and calloused and hers seeming impossibly tiny in comparison.  “At least go into this meeting with an open mind,” she says, as he presses a kiss to the inside of her wrist before entwining their fingers together. “Don’t just go in there and say yes right away. Go and listen to what he has to say and then make up your mind from there. Can you do that for me? Promise me you’ll do that.”

He places his lips against her forehead. “I promise.”

She nestles her face into the space between his cheek and shoulder, tightens the hold on his hand.

Never wanting to let it go.

[giveamadeuschohisownmovie]

After going the Ace Attorney games again, here are my rankings of the six main series prosecutors:

(Side note: Still haven’t played any of the Investigations games or the Great Ace Attorney series)

6) Nahyuta Sahdmadhi

Poor Nahyuta. I hate to place him in the last place slot but after going through Spirit of Justice again, he still hasn’t grown on me. Let me just say, I don’t really like Spirit of Justice. There are a lot of aspects of that game I was not fond of, such as the final case being a repeat of Farewell, My Turnabout and the underwhelming Khura’in Civil War storyline. However, in Nahyuta’s defense, I don’t hate the character.

Nahyuta has a decent storyline and he has a unique gimmick. It’s just when compared to the other 5 prosecutors, he doesn’t really do anything for me. His storyline with Apollo feels like a rehash of the previous games (oh, the prosecutor was close friends with the defense attorney? Hmm, where have I heard that before *coughPhoenixandMilescough* *coughAthenaandSimoncough*). Also, he’s not as fun or as interesting as his counterparts. 

Basically, I don’t think Nahyuta’s a bad character, he’s just my least favorite of the prosecutors.  

5) Franziska von Karma

This one hurt me, mainly because I love Franziska. She seems like a fun character outside of the main Ace Attorney games based on her appearances in the Investigations series. However, if we’re going purely with her role as prosecutor in the main series, then I have to place her in the 5th place slot. But it’s not because I think she’s a bad character. She’s great! She’s a fun character to interact with and she has an interesting backstory. The problem is Justice for All.

In my opinion, Justice for All is the worst Ace Attorney game in the main series. It’s to the point that it affected my placement of Franziska on this list. First off, it’s already bad that one of the main cases she’s the prosecutor in is Turnabout Big Top aka the worst case in the entire franchise. But then there’s Farewell, My Turnabout, which absolutely screws over her character by making Miles Edgeworth the focus of the finale. 

Now let me back up. Before you Miles Edgeworth fans jump down my throat, I am aware that Miles is not the prosecutor for the final case in the first game. I am NOT saying that Franziska needed to be the prosecutor in Farewell, My Turnabout. I am NOT saying Miles ruined the story. The point I’m making is that even though Miles wasn’t the prosecutor in Turnabout Goodbyes, he was still the main focus. Everything in that episode revolved around Miles’ past and his relationship with Manfred von Karma. He still got a complete character arc even though he wasn’t the rival. 

In Farewell, My Turnabout, Capcom just went and said, “Go fuck yourself Franziska” and made everything about Miles again. Franziska was barely a presence in that final episode and by the time the game ended, her arc felt incomplete. Yes, the writers attempted to make her relevant to the story by having her be the one to deliver the evidence but just think about that for a second. She’s the main prosecutor of the 2nd game and the most significant thing she did in the finale was deliver items. I honestly feel her appearance in Trials and Tribulations was damage control for how shit she was treated in Justice for All.

Thankfully, it looks like the Investigations games treated Franziska better. But as for the main series, she deserved a whole lot better. I’d love to place her higher but with the storyline she got, I have to mark her down.  

4) Klavier Gavin

I don’t have much to say about Klavier. I think he’s a cool character and he has a kickass gimmick. However, he’s just a mid-tier kind of character for me. Like with Franziska, it’s mainly to do with Apollo Justice / Ace Attorney 4.

People have already pointed this out but the storyline in Apollo Justice feels more like set-up for something bigger. When I first went through Apollo Justice, it felt like there was going to be more to Kristoph Gavin, more to Klavier Gavin. Phoenix Wright was at the start of a different kind of character arc and the Gramaryes/Trucy Wright would be the main focus of the Apollo Justice trilogy, just like how Maya and the Feys were the focus of Phoenix’s trilogy.

In fact, just going off on a little tangent, I already made a post about this but I was thinking that the abandoned Apollo Justice trilogy would lead to Phoenix becoming a Godot-type character. He had the seeds of that character arc planted, with his darker behavior, willingness to bend the legal system to get what he wants (using forged evidence and trapping Kristoph with the jurist system) and a similar reason to become an anti-villain (Godot was poisoned by Dahlia, Phoenix was disbarred thanks to Kristoph). He would then show up in the final game as the main rival, leading to a Phoenix and Apollo showdown.

Sorry, this was supposed to be about Klavier. The point I’m trying to make is, Klavier is a cool character but he feels wasted. Since the 5th and 6th games didn’t follow-up on the 4th game’s story, it feels like Klavier was left behind as a result. That’s why he’s low on the list. 

3) Simon Blackquill

Ah yes, the twisted samurai. For the record, Dual Destinies is my favorite Apollo Justice-era game, so it’s not a huge surprise that Simon is my favorite Apollo Justice-era prosecutor. For me, what makes Simon stand out is that he’s the most “complete” of the three AJ-era prosecutors.

My issue with Klav was that his storyline feels incomplete while my issue with Yuty was that he wasn’t that interesting of a character. Simon doesn’t have those problems. For one, he has the best gimmick between the three of them. It’s an interesting concept to have a prosecutor be an actual death row inmate. What’s cool about that is that the death row inmate gimmick worked for Simon’s character arc.

Dual Destinies set Simon up as the embodiment of the dark age of the law. He was a death row inmate who constantly talked about killing his foes. That’s why the reveal that he’s actually an honorable man who never killed anyone works so well, it’s a strong contrast to how he’s set up. Also, it’s a twist that works with Simon’s character as he’s supposed to be a psychology expert. He plays up his image of a crazy killer to intimidate his enemies. 

Other than that, I also feel like Simon had the best storyline of the AJ-era prosecutors. Also, even though his appearance in Spirit of Justice was a bit silly, it was still fun to see this character in a more lighter tone. 

2) Miles Edgeworth

Yeah, of course Edgey is this high up on the list. Like I wrote, I can’t count the Investigations games as I haven’t played them but even then, Miles had a pretty good run in the main series. He had a strong character arc in the first game, a decent return in the 2nd game, and a strong return in the 3rd game. It was great that you actually got to play as Miles in T&T and that he was the acting defense attorney. For me, Trials and Tribulations felt like the end of Miles’ character arc as he finally became a defense attorney, just like his dad. 

And honestly, Capcom should’ve left him at that. I’m not saying this is why he’s only 2nd on the list but I just want to say, I don’t think he needed to be in Dual Destinies and Spirit of Justice. Yes, I am aware that Miles’ appearances in those games were just fun guest appearances for people who want that AA original trilogy nostalgia. However, I felt that his appearances in 5 and 6 slightly ruined his character arc. 

Why? Because he was back to being a prosecutor. Last time I checked, wasn’t his entire character arc about him becoming a defense attorney? He wanted to be a DA like his dad, he developed a misguided hatred of defense attorneys due to the DL-6 Incident, he was misled into believing that the number one goal of an attorney is to win court cases by Manfred von Karma, he was rescued by his friend Phoenix which led to him reassessing his life goals, he goes on a trip around the world to find himself, and then in the final game, he becomes Iris’ defense attorney, overcoming his initial hatred of DAs and fulfilling his childhood goal.

Maybe it’s just me but having Miles come back as a prosecutor in the AJ-era games feels like a step back in character development. But once again, that’s not the reason why he’s 2nd on the list. I like Miles, but I like the next guy even more. It should be obvious who it is by now.     

1) Godot

Yes, I know, this is potentially a controversial choice. I just wanna say, I don’t care if you love, like, dislike, or hate Godot. Let me write the reasons why Godot is my number one prosecutor.

When I was writing this list out, I was measuring the prosecutors based on several factors. Story, character arc, design, strength as a rival, humor and so on. Just to be clear, I don’t think Godot is the best of all those categories. For example, when it comes to strength as a rival, I’d say Miles and Franziska were stronger opponents. Godot is definitely a mid-tier rival, which makes sense as he’s supposed to be a rookie / defense attorney out of his league. 

So, why Godot then if he’s not the best in every category? Honestly...I’d say it’s the character overall. Regardless of your feelings towards the character, I feel that we can all agree that Godot’s story is the most tragic. 

Let’s recap; Godot’s story is of a good man who was destroyed by a wicked monster. He was then abandoned by the people around him and lost the love of his life. With no one to help him, he let his grief consume him to the point that he became a bitter shell of his former self, obsessed with shaming the people he feels are responsible for the death of his lover. It’s only at the end when he realizes that all of his hatred and anger was just him projecting his own self-hatred onto someone else. That even though it wasn’t his fault, he still holds himself responsible for his lover’s death. However, it’s too late to make amends as he’s damned himself. In a moment of blind rage, he doomed himself by committing murder. 

That is some HEAVY material for a game series that features the main character cross examining a parrot and conveniently developing amnesia just to set up a tutorial sequence. 

Going on another tangent, you know who Godot’s storyline reminded me of? Jax Teller from Sons of Anarchy. Both characters started out as honorable men who were deeply in love. Then, tragedy struck. They lost the love of their lives and, in their final character arc, they took their rage out on everyone. Sons of Anarchy season 7 is still some of the most devastating TV I’ve ever watched and part of the reason was because of how sad it was to watch Jax fall. He fell so deep into his rage and anger that by the time he got his revenge, he burned so many bridges that the only place his character could go was death.

Same with Godot. He’s a damn Shakespearean tragic protagonist in that he was ultimately undone by his own rage and anger. You can sympathize with him based on how he came to be but at the same time, he destroyed himself. It’s a devastating character arc and, as someone who loves Shakespeare and all things theater, I absolutely loved it. It’s the one character arc that has stuck with me after going through all six games over again, even more so than Miles and Simon’s arcs.

In addition to all of this, the fact that Godot’s character arc tied the entire trilogy together is definitely worth noting. From his storyline, the game tied together Mia Fey’s death, highlighted Mia’s importance to the main storyline, and even set up Trials and Tribulations’ main villain, Dahlia Hawthorne. I love it when stories do that, when the character arcs actually work hand-in-hand with the story that the writer is trying to tell. 

On some smaller notes, Godot definitely has the best character design in my opinion. Also, the best character theme (I still have the Fragrance of Dark Coffee playing in my head). Lastly, he has the best case in the original trilogy (Bridge to the Turnabout), as well as the best moment (the original pursuit theme plays when you expose the knife wound underneath his mask). 

So yeah. In my opinion, Godot is the best Ace Attorney prosecutor. Those are my reasons, feel free to disagree if you want.