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etheriadearie · 4 years ago

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Shadow Weaver’s Death, Her True Abusiveness, And Her Final, Beautiful, Gift To Catra

::The resistance fighters stand in the failsafe chamber. Catra has just called Shadow Weaver out on her manipulation. Shadow Weaver reluctantly explains the danger of the failsafe, and then implores Adora to take it: even if she fails, Shadow Weaver says, she will save her friends, and the universe. As literally every other person in that room cries out against Adora taking the risk, Adora turns and says she will do it. Catra, dismayed, runs to her telling her that Shadow Weaver is sacrificing her, and demands to know why she's letting her do that. Adora tells Catra "Because even if she is, it's better than Prime getting the Heart and destroying the universe." Catra trembles in deathly fear, her face consumed in terrible realization: if Adora does as SW wishes, she will die. Shadow Weaver is trying to kill Adora. She knows this to her very soul, because... she is Shadow Weaver... And Adora is letting it happen…

Hi there, my name is Joel, and in this segment I'll be looking at Shadow Weaver's death, her being a child abuser, her terrible manipulations of Catra and Adora and the monstrous pains the two girls have to conquer to save themselves from her.

The main premise I'll be trying to explain here is that, like Horde Prime, Shadow Weaver is a villain of utmost seriousness. And, like Horde Prime, the girls will treat her as one, surpassing and defeating her once and for all. But it won't be with violence, but instead with love, creating a beautiful story of two people transcending their trauma and hurt through coming together over their love for one another.

I feel obliged to warn readers: this post will cover child abuse, even predatation (*not sexual, ie). It may be hard to read. Also warning: tl;dr, please consider at least sitting down to read this!

Finally, I know there are Shadow Weaver fans out there; that's good. Shadow Weaver is, at times, cool af. But, definitively a terrible person within the plot of the show.

So, even if you're a fan of Shadow Weaver, I still encourage you to read along because as we reveal her truth and the damage she deals to Catra and Adora, it makes her final moment so, so much more beautiful… and it gives entirely new meaning to her final... two… words….

Disclaimer time: Taking on Shadow Weavers death is ambitious for a first post, I know. But understanding her is crucial to understanding most of the major moments in this show. Still, I should say here that while this may seem a bit ‘head’ canon-y, I assure you my conclusions come from watching the show carefully and referencing the entirety of the rest of the show back to this one moment. I'm instead positing these as theories, and let's just say I feel I have the data, and Data Never Lies! Please *do* ask questions or seek calcifications in the comments or Ask me anything (I'm new to Tumblr).

----Part 1: Catra, Micah, and the Truth----

To start this journey we will travel backwards in the series to investigate the what and why of the terrible child abuse Catra suffered growing up under Shadow Weaver's care. We will be looking chiefly at the Light Spinner episode in the 2nd season. We will cover Catra's confrontation and SW's -supposed- explanation for her abuse, then the tale of Micah and Shadow Weaver's manipulation of him, and then the terrible truth of why Catra -really- was abused.

>A terribly alone Catra asks her abusive mother why she did it. Why did she treat her so badly ?

Shadow Weaver answers: "Because you remind me of myself. You always have. Nothing was ever easy for me either. I wasn't born to power like Adora and... others. I had to earn my power, fight for it. Why should it be any different for you?"

This is a very typical reason for an abuser to feel they are acting out their abuse on others: no one in this world understands my pain, so therefore I will inflict my pain upon a child so that they will know my pain as well. For many people this is essentially the truth of their abusers. I can't see any other reason for MY abusers to do what they did, other than this. It is, however, not the truth about Catra. We will discuss this in detail later.

We then watch as Catra does a very strong and eloquent job of rejecting and condemning it. She shows great emotional pain as she does so, and we know that her trauma is severe from watching her. Catra exclaims, her face full of emotional hurt and pain at Shadow Weaver's betrayal: "I was a child when you took me in. What could I have possibly done to deserve the way you treated me? I am nothing like you. You are old, and bitter, and weak."

Everything she says is perfectly true. As a child, there is no way she could have deserved the abuse Shadow Weaver inflicted on her. There never is. And she's also right when she says she's not anything like Shadow Weaver. Where Shadow Weaver is an unfeeling monster (as we will see), Catra feels deeply. Catra is inherently good, and while she will make terrible mistakes to come, she feels intense remorse. Shadow Weaver simply does not.

So, Shadow Weaver gives Catra a believable reason for the abuse, which, again, is a lie. But... there is meaning which we need to take from her choice of words: Shadow Weaver feels others, like Adora and Micah, are given an unfair advantage over people like herself. We will come back to this important insight soon...

Before we get to the real, harsh truth of why Catra was abused, we need to understand the tale of Micah and ‘Light Spinner’-‘s manipulation of him to get power.

>The story of Micah seems to be full of whimsy and childlike innocence. A young boy is talented beyond his years, a true prodigy. SW trains him, giving him access to teachings beyond what a sorcerer of his age should have. She tells him he's special, a true talent, like her. When she tells him "the guild needs talents like OURS more than ever before" she manipulates him, making him feel apart, better than all the other students and teachers, and that only SW can understand. It's SW's greatest talent: dividing people against each other, and this is part of her lifelong manipulation of Catra and Adora. Note: Castaspella accuses SW of mind controlling Micah (s5e8) to which SW responds "My gifts were always far subtler than that” - SW controls young Micah through mind games.

>SW hints of something of great importance, but then says "you're not ready". Micah demands to know, he's a special boy after all, right? He's so incredibly naive and innocent, doing things like chewing on magic crystals and acting out in class. He is, in fact, exactly the kind of privileged child who SW so greatly hates. This is where we get real meaning out of SW's supposed explanation for abusing Catra: Micah has inborn power that SW feels he is unworthy of possessing...

She preys upon his naiveness, showing him the Horde army. He, of course, demands they be stopped, and he's playing right into her hands. When she tells him the plan and of the upcoming meeting she tells him "I only hope that Norwyn and his followers can see the threat as clearly as YOU do." Again, she is making him feel apart, as though he's better than others. After all, he's a special little prodigy, right ?

SW gives her presentation at the council, trying to prey upon their fear by saying that the Horde have a rune stone. As she speaks of the spell of obtainment, her eyes are full of lust at the idea of so much power. But it is forbidden, and for good reason. As she looks over her shoulder at Norwyn her look is severe, accusing. She has no respect for him. And he's right to say that the problem will be handled: the war, in fact, does become a stalemate and stays that way all the way up until we are first introduced to Catra and Adora. Angrily, greedily, she demands they get power so they can 'have a planet to protect'.

She fails to convince them, but of course Micah sees her leaving the meeting, angry and frustrated, so he comes to her aide. "They never listen to me. After all I've done I still haven't earned their trust". Again, SW is set apart from them. When she says "they just want to hold the rest of us back" she's including Micah, making him feel separate, better, like her. She's indoctrinating him in her plan.

>We get a scene between Catra and SW here, where Catra tries to get SW to give her a reason to save her. All SW wants to know is when she's being sent to Beast Island: she realizes she has to escape that night. She sets out to manipulate Catra into giving her the reagent she needs to escape. SW talks up how weak and powerless she is, preying on Catra's lingering pity, desire for connection. A emotionally desperate Catra unfortunately gives it to her. Catra tells her "you don't get to ask things of me anymore" but she's desperate and depressed, feeling totally alone after so recently seeing Adora and consequently nearly dying the episode before, only to be saved by Scorpia's caring about her.

>And apprehensive Micah asks SW if she's sure this is a good idea. She tells him "WE need this power, it's the only way to protect our people". It's a lie, but Micah thinks he's special because he's SW's apprentice, and so he agrees to do it.

As the spell begins to work, we see a terrifying eldritch horror type of creature summoned. It soon breaks free even as Micah helps SW try to contain it. SW acts surprised to see it, but she always knew this spell. Micah runs, and SW stays, yelling angrily at Micah for leaving. She experiences fear as it consumes her, but she knows it's part of getting her power. This is the price she pays to become powerful. She tells Micah he betrayed her by abandoning her and yet, what other possible outcome was there but for them BOTH to be destroyed or corrupted? Norwyn tries to stand up to her, telling her "bringing you into our ranks was a grave mistake". She counters calling him a fool. "You're all weak. None of you deserve my help".

I often see people say this show doesn't show death, but what happens next is undeniably so: it is murder. She annihilates two sorcerer's in one hit, consumes the head sorcerer to give her more magical power. It is pure evil. As she realizes her new power she exclaims "The spell worked. I am stronger than ALL of you." She menaces Micah.

This. Was. Always. The. Plan. The spell worked, she says so herself. Micah tries to defend himself weakly against her, he's entirely at her mercy. He expects death, but instead she caresses his cheek, touches his ear. Then she gives him a look of disdain. It's no mistake she covers half her face even at this point in her history, so we can't know her full emotions. But it's clear, she condescends to him: he was a naive little pawn, not meant to survive, or at minimum, he was supposed to become corrupted like her. But it doesn't matter. She got what she wanted. So she leaves him to live knowing what he's done. The tale of ‘Light Spinner’ has ended: her better persona was just an illusion, useful in her goal of obtaining more power. An empowered Shadow Weaver then shows up at the Fright Zone, killing the guard as a demonstration of power. She declares herself for Hordak, and at least a partial truth is apparent: she wanted the vampiric power so she could channel the Black Garnet. Changing sides bothers SW not at all.

I point out SW’s violence because it is the only time they show any graphic death in this show, and it's therefore meant to show that SW is different, and dangerous. There really was no ‘Light Spinner’, as at multiple moments during her time at Mystacor her true emotions show through (such as pic1, top) and they are both vile and malicious, to put it lightly. Furthermore, note that SW going to the Horde doesn't end up ensuring their victory over the princesses, so yes, in fact, SW was lying to Micah all along. Last, keep in mind Micah’s opinion of her later on: SW is never to be trusted.

Now it's time to get back to the real reason Catra was abused and it's important implications for Adora's abuse as well.

>The scene following Catra's confrontation with SW, we see baby Adora having just arrived in the Fright Zone. SW walks past her, not particularly interested... and yet she sees something in her. And so she takes interest. She knows, in some way, that Adora will wield powerful magic, and since it also becomes clear to us that SW knows all about the past history of She-ra and the Heart of Etheria, it's a logical jump to say she probably thinks Adora is She-ra. Either way, Adora is a powerful orphan child with inborn talent beyond any normal expectation.

Sound familiar? The tale of Micah is there to inform this moment: SW meeting baby Adora. She is in a position to wield ultimate control over a magically privileged child. And the implications are not good...

Apologies to readers here, this next part is intense. Just a quick warning. The total implication of this is that SW never loved Adora, just like she didn't care about Micah. It is all manipulation, and it should be noted that at this point SW has switched to a full mask, conveniently hiding all emotion except a sliver of her eyes (as well as hiding her corrupted features). It's now almost entirely impossible to accurately read her emotions. I don't think she wants you to, as she really has no feelings of actual compassion. She only sees Adora as a privileged child she will use and then discard for her own power.

This means she is, in fact, a child predator. In this case, she's a predator of children of privilege, but the effect is the same: she sees such children as easy targets for her to manipulate for her own gain. Worse, the strong emotional feelings which Adora naturally feels towards those around her makes her easier to control, and SW manipulates this vulnerability against her, as a child and then again as they are headed for the failsafe.

So, returning to the real truth of why SW abused Catra. Let's take a look back at Catra’s condemnation of SW's explanation for her abuse, and it's just one line we need to understand: "I was a child, what could I have possibly done to deserve the way you treated me?" As it turns out, Catra -did- do something, and you have to adore and appreciate this show because we don't get this answer until the very end. Before season 5 was available, it would simply be impossible to understand Catra's story fully. The creators want you to come full circle of so many understandings, the story is that deep.

It's that one, beautiful, follow on line when Catra confesses her love to Adora- She says "I always have"...

Adora was Shadow Weaver's tool, her next prey. So, along comes Catra, who experiences romantic love for Adora right from the start. Beautiful, total love and devotion. SW sees this, and she decides that she can't let Catra be a hindrance to her plans. And yet she knows she can't kill Catra outright or risk losing Adora's affection. So she hurts Catra, tries to make her weak, to diminish her. She is trying to crush Catra's spirit, her will to live, all while making sure to instill a sense of duty and ambition in Adora which makes her less available to Catra. The abuse works, but not on Catra. Catra stays loyal to Adora, and is so secretly strong within herself in such a way that SW fails to destroy her spirit, although Catra has such incredible trauma from it that we see her struggle with it throughout the rest of the series.

But the abuse does work on Adora and so she grows apart from Catra in such a way that Catra eventually comes to feel Adora doesn't love her. And when Adora so clearly breaks the final half of the promise she made to Catra, Catra too, grows apart from Adora.

Catra therefore represents a person in this story who would have been so entirely below SW's notice that had she not loved Adora the way she did, SW would never have taken the time to hurt her. It wouldn't have been worth her time, and Catra would have had a happy(ish) childhood if not for loving Adora. By the way, this truth of SW's abuse of Catra is indeed confirmed in the show, but we don't have time to cover it here and it deserves its own theory post, anyways.

Before we get back to s5 let's take a brief moment to address SW's abuse of Adora: Adora is the kind of person who can't help but empathetically feel the pain of others when they feel it, and it's what makes her to be so unable to balance her own needs against those of others who are hurting. And so SW making Adora have ambition, to want to win at the expense of others, is actually a frightening manipulation. SW teaches Adora to believe she has to do this in order to be the leader, and then as the leader she must protect everyone else from harm. Adora goes on to show great emotional confusion over this, as she doesn't really feel she’s qualified to be that leader. It makes her feel alone from everyone else, and makes Adora worry about every decision she makes. SW essentially saddles Adora with a lonely burden of leadership, one which she's not well suited for. Adora has a very ADHDish (I’m no expert on ADHD) response to this where she bounces around trying to satisfy everyone else’s feelings, such as within their unit, and so her relationship with Catra suffered because of this.

To sum up, the abuses SW inflicts on the two of them results in their division from each other, and it's a division which tries to tear down both girls spiritually throughout this series. They each have specific traumas relating to Shadow Weaver's abuse of them. These are different, damaging fears SW instilled in each of them to make them easier to control. Because of this, both girls contribute to their separation to the two different sides of the war, and it's only through the great emotional learning of each of them that they are able to start putting it back again in season 5. And so, we will see that when SW returns in season 5, she immediately tries to pick up where she left off… to drive them apart from each other and manipulate them, once again, for her own gain.

Side note #2 before we get back to season 5: SW has a complete and total lack of love for Catra as well. Her callous manipulation of Catra, followed by leaving the fright zone like she did, was a spiritual blow and then a death sentence for Catra. SW would know this and yet she simply did not care. Furthermore, when they meet in Moment of Truth (s3ep4), SW again tries to kill Catra, only stopping short because Glimmer can't withstand the magical drain SW is taking from her. She's just not good people... And if she has such a total lack of love or compassion for Catra, it's a logical jump that she has just as little love and feeling for Adora.

Anyways... let's work on that season 5, phew, I know this is long. We're not done yet, though...

----Part 2: The present up till SW’s Death----

Alright, so returning back to season 5 where we began...

Catra is certain that SW is killing Adora. And the reason Catra is so certain of this is because she understands this fundamental truth behind the childhood abuse of of her and Adora. She knows that SW intended to use Adora, and was grooming her in order to use her to gain more power. And, she knows the true nature of SW’s abuse of Catra herself, that it was meant to destroy her so she wouldn't get in the way of SW using Adora.

How exactly Catra knows this I won't cover here, it would take too long and it deserves its own theory post. But, it is pretty well confirmed in the show as well. No distractions! Moving on...

So… when Adora tells Catra she will take the failsafe even though SW is killing her, it's Catra’s knowledge that SW is for certain doing this to Adora which leads Catra to shake in fear, and then refuse Adora once she returns with the failsafe. This moment goes much deeper than just Catra knowing she can't live without Adora, although that is also true.

Ok so here it is, the big theme we will now delve into, that explains so much:

The all important, crucial thing that Catra isn't seeing is that in order for SW to sacrifice Adora, it is entirely dependent on abusive manipulations is SW doing to both of them, starting from the moment they first see SW in season 5, which are intended to make sure Adora doesn't survive deploying the failsafe.

I know it's a tough implication to accept, but I promise to explain. So why? Why would SW not want Adora to survive? This, atleast, should be obvious: She-ra could stop SW once she has the power, so She-ra is an enemy that SW needs to eliminate to achieve ultimate power. So, SW's goal is to get Adora to bring the failsafe to the heart, but then be too weak to survive the process... leaving SW the uncontested champion by her magical vampiric powers. And so... SW manipulates the two girls, doing her most familiar trick: driving them apart, making them feel isolated from each other.

Her manipulations begin from the very moment Catra and Adora see her in season 5, and they continue up until Adora accepts the failsafe and a bit beyond.

So let's lay this out from the beginning, shall we? Episode 10: When SW walks into the room, saying she knows where the failsafe is, Catra is at first surprised at her appearance, she's thrown off guard. Catra very much wanted to stop SW once and for all, but never got the chance. And now, the new, more feeling Catra is faced with her oldest enemy: she can't hide her hatred and anger at her. It pretty much takes everything she's got not to violently attack her right there and then. But this new Catra isn't going to sink to that low. And yet... SW will intentionally aggravate and attack Catra to reactivate her trauma.

What I find very interesting about that scene, though, is that both Glimmer and Adora immediately look to Catra, knowing she will be upset, both trying to help her. And yet, it's Glimmer who looks first.

Even though Glimmer never says it out loud, Glimmer knows SW played and manipulated Glimmer herself, and that her manipulations were ultimately the reason that Glimmer made the mistake of activating the Heart, which brought Horde Prime's fleet down upon Etheria. Glimmer also watched SW torture and almost kill Catra in s3ep4, so I think Glimmer knows very well how dangerous SW is and how badly she's hurt Catra in the past. Instead, we can take the story of Glimmer and SW as another stand out example of how, once again, we saw SW manipulate someone, Glimmer in this case, with no concern for her well being.

>Adora is also thrown off by SW's reappearance, she doesn't enjoy seeing her either. But then, she also sympathetically looks to Catra, knowing this is a hurtful moment for her. All of this is to say that Catra actually has strong allies against SW, unlike in the past. And it's very important that Adora is such a staunch ally to Catra against SW, in fact it's everything. But, Adora doesn't quite do a good enough job in showing Catra how strongly aligned she, too, is against SW. Unintentional though it may be, as we will see.

>Episode 11: Continuing on, Glimmer immediately opposes SW's desire to use the heart's power. Castaspella tries to say SW is the lesser of evils, but of course, Castaspella is just a pawn. Catra jumps on Casta's words, calling SW evil... SW taunts her back mockingly and we see Catra's anger start to get out of control. But, Adora knows, one way or another, that SW is the root of all of Catra's pain, and so she comforts her, showing her that she sees her pain, and that she's got her back.

Again, it's very important that Adora is Catra's greatest ally against SW, as she has learned to treat SW as a de facto enemy because she has seen the pain and torment Catra experienced because of SW’s abuse; in addition to her own knowledge of how SW manipulated herself as a child.

>Adora confronts SW, asking why she even needs their help getting the failsafe. SW answer is a lie, but plays to her manipulation of Casta, who she needs: she says she can't get past Micah. (Note: who she actually needs is Adora.) As SW tells her plan she leans into Adora's emotional fears of letting others get hurt and reminds Adora she has to be the hero, SW even touches Adora, which we see Catra react angrily to. But, SW successfully manipulates Adora into accepting her plan, and Catra can't stand to watch it as she knows it must somehow be a dangerous manipulation. Catra quietly leaves to try to process her anger. We then see Adora slap SW's hand away, showing defiance, but as Catra has left, she probably doesn't see that. Adora looks around and sees that Catra is gone, which SW responds to by trying to manipulate her into leaving Catra behind, as she knows Adora is more vulnerable without Catra around. But Adora is wary of SW's manipulations, and goes after Catra. SW is aggravated by this.

>The two girls have a very good, emotional talk about SW. Catra is dismayed, but Adora is always brave for others, so she tells her she's got to try. Adora acknowledges Catra's pain, their pain, from SW's abuse. Ultimately Adora convinces Catra to come. Together, Adora says SW can't hurt them anymore. Catra reminds Adora how dangerous SW is, but the girls have reaffirmed their bond, their promises to each other. Which is important later, as this will come up again.

>As they infiltrate Mystacore, Catra is apprehensive and stays at the back. But as the mission progresses she drifts towards the front, trying to be the lookout so she can protect Adora. This, unfortunately, puts her in physical proximity to SW when they check the ritual chamber. Catra checks the chamber, but then a sorcerer appears out of nowhere (literally, how??) and SW grabs her in a way that's very reminiscent of s1ep2, traumatizing her.

I can't help but conclude SW is being intentionally hurtful in order to unnerve Catra. She could have just pointed, or put her hand to Catra's mouth, after all. Catra throws herself away from SW, demanding she not touch her, and makes the mistake of dropping the spell and revealing their presence. Look closely at this scene and you see Adora actually shows great anger, even violent intent towards SW for doing this to Catra, but it's so quick Catra probably doesn't see it, as she's staring down SW instead.

Under a track, Adora tries to become She-ra, but she's too emotionally conflicted since the episode before when they returned to the Fright Zone and Adora started to realize she's been letting Catra down, leaving her hanging. And SW's hurting of Catra also blocks Adora, she's trying to help Catra and yet she's accepting SW's guidance again, which she knows Catra hates and doesn't trust.

>As they pass through the door and continue down a corridor, Adora sees Catra is in emotional pain and holding herself, so she lends her emotional support. She knows SW touching her was incredibly abusive. She tells Catra that it'll be ok, and to trust her, hitting her with her dearest look of love and care for her. She knows SW is Catra's enemy, and she's got her back. Catra looks back, trying to trust her, to put her fear aside. But the moment is cut short when SW interrupts them, guilting Catra for revealing their presence. Adora walks on, saying they have to keep moving, and her face says she's doing it to stop SW from talking to Catra, but again, Catra doesn't see Adora's face. Catra feels left behind, that the moment was cut short. It's by the barest off margins Catra is missing how strongly Adora is coming down against SW for her sake.

> We get more information about SW's corruption next, that it's a way to bypass the crystal of Arxia and get at Heart of Etheria's energy, and we know this because it's discussed immediately after Castaspella tells them about the crystal of Arxia. So, if the magic is released, SW will have practically unlimited power. SW just mocks Casta when she tries to guilt SW over using the spell, she gives no apology. We see both Catra and Glimmer seemingly have a deeper realization about SW and her powers and that both of them look disturbed by it.

>Continuing on, we get the scene where Catra saves Adora from fire, which is so cute but I'll skip the romantic implications: as Catra walks through the fire, Adora stops and frets over not knowing what to do about Catra, how to give her what she wants. Adora is worried she's going to fail, that she could die. It's Adora's biggest, lifelong fear as the bearer of She-ra, and she struggles with it continuously throughout the series. To her, it therefore doesn't make sense to her to get Catra's hopes up too soon.

>Adora's thoughts naturally turn to her inability to transform... and SW pounces on the opportunity in order to exploit it.

Consider now, if Adora's problem is becoming She-ra, why does SW immediately give her a hard time about Catra, instead? Adora rejects SW's criticism, but SW flips the conversation telling Adora she can't be a weak She-ra and seemingly blaming it all on Catra. She tells Adora that her weakness means she's letting everyone else down. SW tells her she has to focus, and Catra makes her weak. This is terribly the opposite of the truth and SW knows this. What she’s really doing is a deep manipulation of Adora that leans on her early abuse of her: Adora has to be perfect for everyone else, and as she's the only one who can do it, she's totally alone in this burden. The truth is that Adora has always needed other people, that's where she draws strength from. Catra loves Adora simply for who she is: she represents the strongest, smartest and most dedicated person, ie, she's the most powerful person to help Adora with her emotional need for support.

Which SW knows, so she does her best to try to separate them, to make Adora think she's alone. SW does this by grouping Catra with everyone else: save everyone, or no one. Then she delivers a direct assault of Adora spiritually by saying "the world needs She-ra right now, not Adora". She's telling Adora that she doesn't matter, only She-ra matters, and she needs to be willing to give it all up to be that hero. We see Adora search SW's face, she's not satisfied and then she does her best to reject her, pulling her hand away in anger while saying she will stop Prime “no matter what.” Catra is eavesdropping on this, but can't see that Adora stands up to SW so strongly... as usual. Catra knows SW is up to no good with it, though. Doubt takes root in Adora, and it aggravates her fears that she's not good enough to be She-ra.

>Arriving at the failsafe chamber, SW gives away just how much she already knows about the Heart. SW explains the failsafe, and so we know she always planned on getting Adora to accept the failsafe, risking it all. Adora approaches, trying to be brave for everyone else.

One of Catra's most important moments follows: she stops Adora from accepting the failsafe, and calls SW out for her bullshit. She's not going to let Adora walk into a trap when she knows better. Catra flips it on SW, telling her to take the failsafe, making SW tell them why it's dangerous, why SW won't do it herself. She points out how SW knows too much, yet didn't pursue the power of the failsafe. Catra is totally certain that SW wants to hurt Adora, and so she's calling her out to get SW to reveal her manipulation of Adora.

SW instead tries to guilt Adora, saying she alone understands that this is the only way to stop Prime. But Catra stands firm, she protects Adora from SW's manipulation as best she can.

Confronted and trapped by Catra's having seen through her plan, we see literally every person in the room ally themselves against SW. SW is forced to admit the truth: using the failsafe will mean death even for She-ra, if she isn't strong enough.

And so Adora realizes what's coming, that She-ra is the only one who can do it. She's terrified and sad at the thought that this could, will, be her end; that she really will have to give it all up for everyone else. She's always thought she'd have to. It's a deep held belief that she's alone in her burden as She-ra.

Adora asks the obvious question: What happens if I die? SW's next words prey upon Adora's every weakness, her lack of belief in her self worth, and innate need to protect others: "Then the magic will be restored to Etheria, through your sacrifice. You will give us the power to bring us to victory. Prime will be defeated. Your friends will be free." SW is listing out every last thing that will happen if Adora doesn't do it, and each is a part of her greatest fears. Adora is unable to resolve between her distrust of SW and need to protect and be brave for everyone else's sake. SW has her trapped by her own emotions.

Catra looks on, watching the manipulation, seeing the consequences of Adora attempting this. Everything about this moment speaks to manipulations SW has used on Adora before: she preys on emotional need and weakness, she isolates Adora in her burden, she even does the dreaded ear touch. If Adora does what SW says, Catra knows it'll be the death of her.

As SW completes her manipulation, everyone in the room cries out against the unfair decision Adora must make. And yet, Adora doesn't see a choice. Catra puts it best, saying: "you don't care about Adora, Adora can't even care about herself!"

But Bow's words also have meaning: "Theres no way we're risking Adora like that." For all that Bow and Glimmer have done for Adora, she's still supposed to be the champion that's going to save them. They need things from her, not simply Adora as herself. All in all, Bow and Glimmer did their absolute and kindest best to help Adora, often emotionally supporting her through her depressions and fears of not being a good She-ra. But in the end, they still needed her to be She-ra.

But Catra is different, all she wants is Adora, and for her to be safe and loved, and ideally, to be with her. Catra's opinion in this moment is the true one, the most honest. But Adora can't overcome the thought of failing everyone, and so she pushes forward, saying she will take the failsafe.

Adora is feeling alone, trapped by fate. Catra runs to her, literally shaking her in order to try to convey how sure she is that Adora is going to die if she does this. But Adora can't let the universe die, and she's She-ra. She (Adora) doesn't matter. It's only what she can do to try to fix things for others that matters, her hero's burden. Adora pushes Catra's hands off her, in a lifetime of pain and sorrow Catra has never looked so sad. Adora really is pushing her away, not seeing how seriously Catra feels, how badly she needs Adora to understand her in this moment. A dissociated Adora looks internally, accepting her fate, alone again, isolated.

Maybe Catra could have found a way to get through to Adora, but they run out of time. A chipped Micah shows up and begins to systematically defeat them, and Adora has no more time to choose. SW is easily taken down by Micah, it shows his anger at her. He taunts her, she's got nowhere to hide. This is interesting, but not our focus..

Adora again tries to summon She-ra and fails. She simply can't resolve between her sense of failure to Catra and her need to be brave for everyone else. She looks to Catra, decides to do the brave thing as herself, not as She-ra, even if it means she will fail, and hurt Catra. After all, since she’s She-ra, she has to try, right? This is her burden.

As SW turns to Adora and says "the failsafe... we... we can't" Adora is pressed by urgency, doing what she can. Catra tries one last desperate plea: "Please. It doesn't always have to be you!" Adora can't accept this, internally she is certain she has to save everyone. Even if this includes SW herself, and so when Catra later says Adora chose SW, not her in this moment, Catra is right, except that Adora believed she had no choice. Adora is also the only one in this moment who can reach the failsafe, and so it seems like fate is against her. Adora knows she's probably choosing to die, and if she does, she knows Catra will probably die of a broken heart as well. She really does choose SW over Catra, in a way. It's a tough moment, but taking the failsafe is the right thing to do, given the circumstances.

Receiving the failsafe is intense, and as Adora tries to withstand it, Micah binds the entire party with dark magic. Interestingly, this means SW indoctrinated Micah more than we're shown, and now that he's chipped, he is uninhibited.

Adora sees everyone is in danger, if she doesn't come through now it's all over. It gives her that singular focus she needs, summoning She-ra is easy because if she doesn't, Catra, all of them, are about to die.

Failsafe achieved, Micah vanquished, Adora offers Catra her hand, she's trying to show Catra she's there for her, they are together. But Catra rejects her, she's too sure that SW has won, that Adora will die. In this moment all the old trauma Catra carries is too strong, and SW has unnerved her too greatly. As Catra runs from her, Adora realizes that Catra was trying to tell her something deeper, but somehow she's missed it.

>Catra watches Adora sleep, she's emotionally distraught at the thought of her dying. So, she tries to sneak away. Adora finds out, and manages to confront Catra before she can leave. This is one of the most heartbreakingly beautiful scenes about love in this show, but I'll just cover how SW's manipulations come into play...

>Adora tackles Catra, and demands she explain why she’s leaving. Catra throws SW's words back at Adora, that she's a distraction, that she makes Adora too weak to be She-ra. Catra knows this was a unfair manipulation by Shadow Weaver, but she couldn't see, only hear, what happened between Shadow Weaver and Adora. She doesn't know that Adora rejected Shadow Weaver so strongly, both spiritually and by violently pulling away from her. Adora tries her best to get Catra to see that she's not doing this because of Shadow Weaver's manipulation, that she's trying to rise above SW's control of her. But Catra pushes her away, instead trying to speak to a more central truth: Adora's need to serve everyone else's needs, her inability to regulate her desire to make things better for others who are hurting or will get hurt, and balance that against her own needs and safety. She's speaking to the part of Adora which Shadow Weaver is exploiting to get what she wants from her, to control her. It doesn't really matter in this moment to Catra whether Adora is doing it for Shadow Weaver or not, because either way Adora is allowing Shadow Weaver to win. Catra wants Adora to be better than a slave to her emotional need to help others no matter the cost or danger. She's asking Adora to be strong in herself in a way Adora has never been able to be. She challenges her, asking "What do you want, Adora?" The obvious answer, Catra believes, is her. But Adora is too worried she will die and let Catra down to let her romantic feelings about Catra manifest and make it real between them, and taking the failsafe has made Adora all the more doubtful of her own survival. Adora counters "I have to do this Catra, I'm the only one who can." It's all to say that Adora is alone in her burden, and she accepts it and its consequences because she's She-ra. Adora doesn't believe she has value, or deserves happiness unless she can save everyone, including Catra.

Adora believes as She-ra, she is totally alone in her burden. This is wrong of course, Catra does see her and understands her burden, and is the one person in the world who wishes to share that load with her, unlike the other princesses who need Adora to be a hero and save them. But both girls are weak from their deep traumas which Shadow Weaver has reaggravated, and they can't overcome them. Catra resigns herself to the belief that Adora is unable to rise above her most basic emotional need to serve others, telling her "Then do it. That's what you want, that's what you'll always choose." She can't stand to watch Adora kill herself so willingly to serve everyone else, all while letting SW win. She rejects Adora, and turns to leave. Adora desperately begs Catra to stay, wanting her to uphold their promise and telling her she needs her, but is unable to vocalize her desire to be with Catra romantically. Meanwhile, in Catra's mind, Adora is just going to let herself die, and if she does, then Adora never really needed her after all... all Adora cares about is being She-ra. It's harsh, but true... even if what she's doing about it is so wrong.

It's a painful moment for both of them, and it's horrible because Catra is so clearly breaking their promise, the one that Adora restored to Catra she came to rescue her from Horde Prime. And yet, her leaving will work in the end. Catra gets Adora to see how crucial it is that she not let Shadow Weaver win, to let Shadow Weaver get whatever she wants by taking that cost from Adora's own life. And it's how Adora finally becomes too strong for Shadow Weaver to ever manipulate again.

>As Adora returns to camp, still crying from Catra's abandonment, Shadow Weaver tries to swoop in and make her manipulations of Adora take their final hold. She tells Adora she "made the right choice, don't let Catra convince you otherwise, she's never understood." Dreaded ear touch and all. By saying Catra can't understand, Shadow Weaver tries to make Adora feel alone in her burden as She-ra, seeking to weaken her spirit. But we see a total shift in Adora's attitude as she rejects SW’s cruelty and manipulations entirely. Her words carry incredible weight and speak to how she's so clearly seen through SW's malicious manipulations of the two of them. "Stop. I will never forgive you. You ruin people. You ruin any chance they could ever be happy." Adora just watched Catra reject her and abandon her because she couldn't stand to lose Adora again over SW's manipulations. It's by knowing Catra's pain that Adora is able to finally deny Shadow Weaver any sliver of control over her. As always, Adora couldn't do it for herself, she couldn't resolve between her deeper need to save everyone and SW's plans to use her for her own gain. But Adora is strong for others, and so she's strong for Catra. By leaving, Catra has given Adora the ability to rise above any manipulation Shadow Weaver can do to her.

Adora stands up to Shadow Weaver once and for all in her next words: "I'm going to take the failsafe to the heart, and I'm going to save Etheria. But I am not doing it for you. I'll do everything I can to make sure you never get your hands on the magic." (pic1, fyi) Note the exact words Adora speaks here as we will return to them later, they are important. While Adora has seen past SW’s manipulations, and seen that Shadow Weaver only ever desired power, she doesn't realize how SW's childhood abuse of her and attempts to manipulate her in the present are making her too weak to survive deploying the failsafe. To get past that, Catra must help Adora.

EPISODE 12: We watch as Adora struggles to become She-ra, but eventually manages it. She's seen through SW's plan after all, and so she does her best to believe she is strong enough to win on her own, to survive the heart. But she misses Catra desperately. She rallies her people, and ends her speech by saying resolutely that she will take the failsafe to the Heart and destroy it. It's an incredible speech, Adora has become a wonderful leader, but then she looks up and sees Shadow Weaver hiding in the back. As SW meets her gaze, She-ra's form falters and we see Adora's face for a split second. She's furious at her, that she hurt Catra so badly that she ran away.

Adora moves away from the group so they don't see her lose her She-ra form because of the turmoil she feels over Shadow Weaver and losing Catra. Bow and Glimmer check on Adora, knowing she has a tendency to try to sneak away so people won't see her risk her life. Glimmer is perceptive and asks about Catra, she knows it's Catra that Adora needs, that her being gone is tearing Adora up inside. Glimmer is a great friend to the both of them. Adora voices concern for their safety if they come with her, but Bow and Glimmer know Adora needs support. And so they will try their best, even though they know Adora is heartbroken from Catra leaving her.

>Buoyed by their support, Adora goes to the ruins to try to face her final task, to overcome it through her own strength alone. Bow and Glimmer take her hands, we see Adora does her best to set her fear aside. And yet, as they enter she wonders where Catra is, whether she will come back to honor their promise.

>Catra looks back, also experiencing pain over their separation. She has not been able to overcome her trauma, and manage her feelings. Well isn't it just nice to have a telepathic therapy pet! Melog stops, and forces her to actualize her feelings and process them. At first Catra tries to deny them, saying she won't go back, but Melog sits on her. She cries, saying out loud her deepest feelings. Let's take this one in steps. "You saw what happened, A-Adora chose Shadow Weaver, not me". In a very real sense Adora did do this, she pushed Catra away in the failsafe chamber. She ignored Catra's warnings and, in Catra's mind, committed herself to death at the hands of SW's manipulation. The next line is one of the most important in the series, but we will only cover it briefly as it's romantic implications are best discussed elsewhere: "Adora doesn't want me, not like I want her." We get to see one of the most honest truths about Catra: she is an intensely romantic person, and has always had the most incredible dreams of them being together. But a lifetime of pain has told Catra that it can't be real, or atleast, not for her. It is deep seated trauma that blocks her, trauma Shadow Weaver started and then aggravated against her, making her leave Adora just moments before. Catra is, in a word, furious that she's come this far, having dared to dream once again that the two of them could be together and in love, only to have SW come in and take that from her once again.

Let's take a moment to consider how Catra is doing as she adapts to her new emotional way of dealing with the world, as she has shifted her perspective since rejoining Adora: The old Catra might have simply struck SW down, maybe even killed her to remove the threat. But now, Catra doesn't want to do that but is expected to trust in Adora’s ability to overcome the threat through her inner strength, and the through the strength of her community. But, as far as Catra could see, Adora just accepted her death as necessary rather than fighting SW’s manipulations. And this worries her, and it's why it's so important to Catra that she not let Shadow Weaver win, so Catra leaves to make sure Adora gets the message. She's wrong to do this, and she realizes this after opening up to Melog. Adora needs Catra to have faith in her, because without her support, there's no chance Adora overcomes what Shadow Weaver is trying to do to her.

>Glimmer watches the doubt play across Adora's face. She doesn't know how to make it better, since Catra isn't with them. She asks her if she's scared, and Adora answers back as truthfully as she can: "No, I just really hope this works." She's putting on a good face while trying to believe there's a chance, but when Bow tells her it's going to be a whole new world when she's done, Adora doubts. Can she even survive? Will Catra be gone forever? The next scene is, of course, very romantic. We see that Adora has always loved Catra, just like Catra loves Adora. The magic is trying to remind Adora of her own desires, her wants. Let's not get too distracted though: as Adora moves on, vowing to not let the magic distract her, we see her She-ra form falter, she's still fighting despair and loneliness. Bow and Glimmer don't know what to do...

>Catra sees Horde Prime begin hacking the planet and knows Adora is in grave danger of not succeeding in her last, unselfish mission before Prime stops her. Catra can't let this happen, also, since Melog has helped her process her emotional pain, she's ready to support Adora in any way she can, even if it means her hopes and dreams of them being together will be unfulfilled. She tries to rush to her side.

>Adora is panicking and unable to resolve her feelings of failure to Catra, She-ra is in danger of fading again. She sees the sword as she saw it back when she first left Catra, her hand goes to the failsafe on her chest, the thing that made Catra reject her after she accepted it. She tells Bow and Glimmer she can't escape her destiny. The words "I'm losing her" speak to a deep held belief by Adora that she's not worthy of survival because she feels that she has never been able to help the one person she truly loves, making her no hero. All of the manipulations of Shadow Weaver, Horde Prime, even Light Hope are crushing down on her. She believes she has to accept her fate, to die to fulfill her duty as She-ra. It's the price she has to pay for not being good enough, for hurting Catra when she left her to become She-ra. She thanks Bow and Glimmer for their love and support. "I never could have done any of this without you." Bow and Glimmer did everything they could to prop Adora up, get her out of her depressions when she felt she wasn't good enough to be She-ra. But they still needed her to be She-ra, and therefore they can't help her get past her deepest insecurities. To do that, she needs someone who has unconditional love for her. She needs Catra. Adora leaves Bow and Glimmer behind, trying to protect them, so that only she will have to die.

>Catra finds Shadow Weaver patiently waiting to receive her power, to be able to achieve dominion over everyone else. SW tells Catra "She's gone to the heart of Etheria to free the magic and become the hero she was born to be." The dead hero, that is. As SW tries to guilt Catra, calling her selfish, she glares back. She stands up to SW, rejecting the manipulation: "Enough! This isn't about you and your messed up power trip anymore!”

In this moment, Catra shows us how clearly she understands SW's goal. She calls her out perfectly. She tells SW that Prime is infecting the planet to take the heart, which changes everything, including for SW.

>As Catra leads SW, having forced her to cooperate, they see Prime's broadcast and Catra knows they have to act. She demands SW take them to Adora, and doesn't accept her lies. She knows SW can do it with magic, and demands she comply. Her words hit home "So do something good with it for once and help me save Adora before it's too late." Notice the similarity to when Glimmer asks Catra to be better on Horde Prime’s ship. SW is trapped, she has to comply. If Adora doesn't reach the heart, no magic for SW, universe ends. Catra accepts SW's hand, though it hurts her to do so.

>Catra and SW arrive in the corridor. As Catra gets the truth from Glimmer, she's dismayed. "Of course she's gone, that's what she does, isn't it?" She knows in this moment that Adora is consumed by fear, her inadequacies. As she finishes briefing Bow and Gimmer on the situation, she tells them she will stay to help Adora, and she invokes their promises to each other. It's an important moment, as it is the two of them together, their promises to each other, that gives them the strength to surpass SW's manipulations of them. Glimmer knows Catra is in love with Adora, so she leaves Adora in Catra's care. Bow’s words are important as well, speaking to the power of the Best Friend Squad. It gives Catra a boost to her morale, a belief that maybe there's a chance she and Adora can overcome the odds they face.

>Adora looks out over Etheria, seeing its beauty. Mara joins her. Adora tries to promise Mara that she will save the world, everyone, at any cost. Mara flat out rejects this as wrong, she doesn't let Adora promise. Mara confronts Adora on her decision to die for everyone else. When Mara asks her what she wants, Adora says it doesn't matter, that she's She-ra. Again, an isolationist view, a lonely burden, just like SW wants her to believe. Mara tells Adora that she, Adora, has value as a person, not only as a hero, and that she deserves love, too. As Mara tells to not lose hope, Adora is emotionally moved but you can tell she's still struggling to accept Mara’s words because of her feelings of inadequacy and loneliness. Mara manages to pass some courage to her, but then Horde Prime cuts them short.

Prime leans into Adora’s fears, threateningly. Like SW, he knows how to exploit her. He was in Catra's head and so he knows what Catra knows. He tells her that her failure is imminent, that she is already defeated, like the other She-ra's. The guardian monster then strikes and infects Adora, and she finally loses her grip on her She-ra form. He tells her even her own people didn't want her to make it to the heart, telling her the whole world is against her, and that she's totally alone. She tries to counter this with defiance, but the virus has her. She knows she's in trouble.

----Part 3: Final Moments, and Death, of SW----

>Episode 13. Adora is in pain, trying to understand the nature of the infection. The monster towers over her, it has only to reach out to deal the killing blow, she's defenseless. Suddenly Catra shows up, engaging the monster. Adora's only concern is for Catra's safety, telling her to leave her because it's too dangerous. But Catra has decided: she will do whatever it takes to give Adora her chance to save the universe, if that's what she wants. Even if it means Adora has to die. She tells SW to get Adora to the heart, which Adora objects to. SW is looking closely at Adora and seeing her illness, evaluating. As Adora begs for Catra to not leave her, Catra tells Adora she'll catch up. After all, they are the best friend squad. Bow's words have given Catra a small amount of hope that maybe it'll be ok. Adora, now that Catra has finally shown up, is desperate to not lose her again, and knows fighting this monster is too dangerous for her alone. But she's sick, and unable to help her. SW takes Adora unwillingly towards the heart.

>Catra is doing her best, but the monster is too much, even for her. She tries to slip away, seeing the virus continuing to spread. She's trying to get to Adora, who’s alone with SW. Horde Prime stops her (no keep running!!) and she gets caught. He mocks her, telling her he expected better. But Catra has already surpassed his greatest expectations, and she'll stop him yet... as the monster catches her, she cries out in anguish. It seems the cruelty of the universe has caught up to her again, after all...

>As SW tries to bring Adora to the heart, Adora's sickness is rapidly advancing. She demands SW wait, but she's too weak to resist. The thought of losing Catra again is weakening her spirit and allowing the virus to take over. SW tells her not to lose her focus, she's still hoping Adora will deploy the failsafe before dying. But then the virus seemingly attacks Adora's heart and SW watches the failsafe nearly fade out. SW looks up, she's close enough to already siphon power from the heart. Her lust for power is apparent.

As Adora hears Catra’s scream, she forcefully pushes herself from SW, and starts to go back for Catra. SW calls for her to wait, but Adora leaves her behind.

This is it, the turning point. The great moment of truth: SW now realizes, in utter totality, that she's never going to get to have the power. It's one of the most important moments in the series, and what happens next is the culmination of all of the hard emotional growth the two girls have been doing.

>>Quick interjection: we’re about to get emotional here... (well, I do). Just a light suggestion to check your surroundings. <<

Shadow Weaver now realizes that, even if she were to drag Adora to the heart, she would be too sick and heartbroken to deploy it. It's over for SW, either she dies now, with everyone else in the end of the universe, or she dies giving everyone else, including the girls, a future.

Remember as well, Adora has told SW that she would do everything she can to make sure she never gets the power. Adora is too strong against SW's manipulations, something Adora learned from seeing the pain Shadow Weaver caused Catra through her abuse. I mentioned that the exact words Adora used when she rejected SW the night before were important, so let's return to them: Adora told SW she would deploy the failsafe, and also that she will block SW from getting the power for herself. But as she said all of this, about saving the world, the universe, she doesn't say one, very important, word.

Promise.

Adora may have dedicated herself to being She-ra, but somehow in that moment she knew not to promise to SW that she would deploy the failsafe to save the universe, instead only saying that she was going to find a way, while making sure SW doesn't get the power. We saw that Adora later tried to make this particular promise to Mara, but Mara threw that out, telling Adora to be better, to rise above her lack of self belief.

A promise was made, though. She promised Catra. Their beautiful, childhood promise, the one she so casually broke way back when, her greatest mistake. And so Adora goes back for Catra, to be there for her, to try to help. If this Catra's end, she will be there for her... even if the cost is this high. She can't just let her die alone. She is honoring their promise...

And so… Adora finally… after all this time, puts Catra above her duty as She-ra. Her love for Catra is more important than fulfilling her heroic duty, and so SW can no longer manipulate her into giving up her life so SW can get the power. The girls have, in fact, transcended her manipulations, and as Adora leaves SW standing by the heart, SW is totally alone and without anything, anyone, left. She is, in fact, defeated by the girl’s love for each other... and so as SW looks towards the heart, she finally... makes... the right... choice. She gathers enough power from the heart to fight the monster...

>Horde Prime mocks Carta as she tries in vain to resist being pulled towards her death. When he invokes Adora's name, saying she will die, Catra shows her sadness, disappointment, at having come so close to being with her. He mocks her again, asking her if it was worth it. Catra shows defiance, then sorrow. The answer is yes, of course. Catra was willing to lay it all down to give Adora her shot at saving the universe, she's honoring their promise as best she can even if this is Adora's final act before her, and their, deaths. Catra has total belief that in this moment, that she needed to sacrifice herself for Adora. It seems like the natural outcome of fate, of the cruelty that is SW's and the universe's betrayals of the two of them their entire lives...

Heroic. Fucking. Music. SW shows up, charged from the Heart to take Catra's place. She's going to do one heroic and worthy thing of remembrance before she goes, since she is defeated and knows she won't get to have the heart's power.

Carta's disbelief is total, she can't understand how SW would ever do this for her. Her manipulation of them their whole lives was so total, so unfeeling. And yet, here she is. SW tells Carta to get to Adora and run. She forces Catra back and blocks the door. Catra still can't understand... and we finally... see Shadow Weaver show some actual real remorse for how empty her life is. She begs Catra to take Adora to the heart, to set the magic free. The one thing SW is dedicated to is magic, and she knows releasing the magic will restore the planet. Catra points out the obvious, that SW will die. Part of the reason Catra is so broken up by SW doing this is because Catra had just accepted her fate of dying in order to give Adora her chance to save everyone: Catra was willing to die for Adora even if Adora never found the courage to want Catra the way Catra wants her. And now SW takes her place? It doesn't make sense to her, as SW is a greedy person.

Shadow Weaver’s next series words are some of the most important in the entire series. And this is also the one redeeming quality she has... that she is a teacher. And she’s about to tell Catra something very, very... important.

She says: "It's too late for me." All her manipulations towards getting the power at the cost of the girls lives have been torn down, they've completely moved past her, she has no place in their lives anymore. The girls have learned to love each other so loyally that SW is done, finished.

"But you... this is only the beginning for you." Catra listens to this, searching for the deeper meaning... "I'm so proud of you, Catra." I think we all agree SW being 'proud' of Catra is a devastating line, Catra doesn't need or probably even want her abusers approval. I also think it is a lie, everything about SW says she's unable to feel actual compassion. But SW is a mastermind, and I think she's telling Catra she has respect for her. Catra ended up being the greatest enemy SW ever faced, she was so smart that she saw right through every manipulation SW made, and in the end, SW couldn't touch her. But theorizing aside, we see Catra cry... somehow, someway, SW finally seems to be showing Catra some amount of good in her, and so she cries, wondering where it comes from…

As Catra brings her hand back to uselessly flail at the barrier, Adora catches it. Catra looks back at Adora, surprised at her reappearance...

… right then we see Catra suddenly look away from Adora. It's quick, but we're seeing a dissociative moment: this is Catra realizing something very deep, and very meaningful...

Catra realizes, that in this moment, SW has chosen to do something that is much more than just dying in Catra's place.

She has given Adora to her.

All of Catra's life, Shadow Weaver has stood between her and Adora, love was a thing Catra was not allowed to have. But the girls, together, have transcended all of her abuse and manipulation. They have seen through her plan and risen above every cruelty, and have blocked SW's manipulations to use them for her own gain. And so, a defeated SW chooses now, to give Catra the most beautiful of gifts...

Catra puts it all together, filled with clarity: SW is telling her that Adora doesn't have to die, she can survive this. That they can survive the Heart!!! And Catra is the key, as SW has told her: "This is only the beginning, for you."

Catra is now given this knowledge freely by SW, and thus given hope. SW stands before them, totally defeated, in awe of Catra's incredible growth and cunning and that she was able to see through her plan, and how strongly the two girls have come to love each other. So, SW is giving Catra her fullest respect, and as a last act before her death she is passing Catra newfound hope that the two of them can overcome this, that they can survive...

Shadow Weaver removes her mask, showing Catra her face. It's not a face of manipulation, as we expect, no, there's respect, even, dare I say, gratitude. SW didn't have to do this, Catra knows that. And yet, Catra managed to show SW something she never expected to see. And so, by outthinking and so totally defeating her, by making SW see that all her manipulations were discovered and therefore wouldn't work no matter which way she turned, and by getting Adora understand the urgency of not letting SW win, Catra has won this final, beautiful gift…

“You're welcome…”

As Catra watches SW make her final sacrifice... her one good deed... she looks on, stunned. Life is never quite so simple as you think it is, and since returning to Adora, Catra has seen so many acts of generosity she didn't really believe were possible... and now... this...

Catra lets Adora cry for a moment, then tells her they have to go. Catra is filled with new urgency... they will face this final challenge together. As she resolutely carries Adora towards the heart, she knows she's now in charge of their fate... and as they face this final task, Catra is searching for a way to save Adora, and to save their love once and for all...

All of this has huge implications for what then happens with the girls when they reach the heart chamber, but that's a topic better discussed another time…

Some final notes here. It's my belief that Shadow Weaver is the overarching villain of the story, who spans all seasons of She-ra, and is far more important to the plot than Horde Prime is. Furthermore, understanding Shadow Weaver as this kind of villain is a stepping stone to explaining many other important plot points in the series, and we can build on it to understand a lot of the most important moments in the show.

My personal belief about this story is that the writers had such a diverse room of people of LGBTQIA+ and other backgrounds, each with their own trials and pains they had to overcome, that as a team, their goal was to bring to light as many of these struggles that they could. But as for this most central story, my guess is they wanted to tell us a story about overcoming real darkness that exists in our world, as well as Etheria, because sometimes that's how it is. And so the right thing, the only thing to do is to overcome and move past such people, to not let them control your life.

All this is to say that I think the moral of Shadow Weaver in the story isn't about finding the good in her, but about rising above her and the fundamental darknesses that we all sometimes face. And our girls do this through love, at no point do they use violence. And that makes this story very, very... special.

Thanks for reading. Until next time…

~EtheriaDearie

P.S. :: as I am new to tumblr, if you enjoyed reading this, please consider giving me a reblogg! Thanks!! 🙇💛

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mythicaldemigoddess-of-deltarune · 3 years ago

Photo

PAPER TRAIL FAN ART: Coralie The Tomboy Princess

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Credit for Paper Trail goes to Lynxgriffin

Credit for Undertale & Deltarune goes to Toby Fox

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first I want to say that even though I really did want to go on a type of hiatus where I wait until a few months to post some stuff on here, and until then I can just check out other stuff by other people on here and heart their work, and even send asks to their tumblrs.

but while reading Paper Trail AU Comic,

and well I’m still in the middle of reading it

and I plan to read and fave all of the pages in one day.

but I guess I will still make sure to take a break when needed, you know like get some food and do some other stuff too.

I did do another fan art of a dark world Asriel, that has red clothes on.

I think I will post that version another time, maybe...

unlike Ralsei,

Coralie doesn’t have a heart pattern on the front of her robe

but instead has the Delta Rune symbol on it instead.

The Meaning of the Name Coralie, Is Maiden.

I also decided to have the tags for this to have Coralie be a Deltarune OC,instead of a Paper Trail OC....well technically she is, but she is just a Fanon OC and I’m not sure if there will be a Red version of Ralsei or not. but who knows if there will be a Red Ralsei or not.

the “Dead Name” of Coralie, would have to be a Anagram of Asriel,

but Coralie had long threw away her Anagram-Asriel name.

I also want to mention that the name Asriel,

can be both a boy and girl name,

most names are gender neutral.

turns out Asriel is both a Boy & Girl Name.

as for how Coralie looks without her hat,

I would say a Younger Version of Toriel but with longer hair.

I do suspect that Undertale Toriel might not be as innocent of a goat mom as we are made to believe.

and I believe that she does know about the Resets

as well as the theory that she and Sans have been working together,

that she has been killing the humans that came to the underground

and sending their souls to her ex-husband...

and all the lost items of the humans that came before Frisk,

were given to Sans from Undertale-Toriel, to hide around the underground outside the ruins, the only two that were missing

were the red ribbon and knife,

which the only reason why Undertale-Toriel might not of picked up the knife is because it was made of plastic.

I think that the Monsters in Undertale, might be allergic to plastic.

so it makes sense why she left that alone, but could of made a plan to try to get it later by getting gloves.

but she couldn’t find the red ribbon.

not a lot of fans have to agree about this theory about Undertale-Toriel.

but I believe King Asgore is innocent from the deaths of the human children that fell in the underground.

I don’t believe any of the human children made it past Toriel,

and were all killed by her when they tried to leave to go out of the ruins.

this would keep happening, even to the point where Sans came into the picture and she trusted him to take the human souls to her Ex.

Sans most likely left that out of his story to Frisk, on how he met Toriel.

leaving out parts about Toriel giving him containers that contain the human souls.

even if Deltarune-Toriel can be a bad mom at times,

like not noticing that Kris is unhappy or how their side of the room looks that might give some clues that something is wrong.

or that her own son might of cheated at the video games they played together with Kris, most likely giving them the knockoff game controller. if you check under Asriel’s bed you will find out that it will say that there is a knockoff game controller with the normal controller.

Deltarune-Asriel could of at first been a jerk to Kris,

but over time started to act like a caring older brother to them.

I can’t help but view Toriel from Undertale AU,

as suspicious, after realizing that she has known about the Resets the whole time, and that is why when the Player/Frisk gets ready to leave in a Pacifist Timeline, she asks us not to come back.

and that if we choose not to go live with her, as her adoptive child.

she will make another hint that she knows whats going on.

Toriel in a Pacifist Timeline, knows whats going on

and the reason why she doesn’t show up unless it’s a True Pacifist Run

where we befriend everyone, is the only time she does stop the fight between Frisk and Asgore.

she doesn’t do so in the Genocide or Neutral Timelines,

only in the True Pacifist Timelines.

almost like she knew...not everyone has to agree with this,

but if the Canon Toriel is secretly behind the deaths of the humans that came before Frisk showed up, then it would make sense that she hides this out of guilt.

she grew guilty and even went as far as to place the full blame on her husband.

it is possible that Canon-Toriel from Undertale is really a Clone of the Original Toriel, who left Asgore after he declared war on humanity.

but how could Toriel have seen Asgore commit into the act of killing the humans, if she had never returned until stopping Asgore and Frisk’s fight in the pacifist timeline...?

the answer is that Asgore never took the life of any of the humans,

even if Toriel did mention that if Frisk/Player left the ruins,

Asgore would kill them, but Asgore never killed any of the humans.

at least that is my theory, I believe the true culprit was always the caretaker of the ruins aka Toriel, also known by Papyrus as Asgore’s Clone.

in the Fanon AU of Undertale, Toriel could be innocent of such crimes.

but in Fan Headcanon, I believe Toriel of Undertale is the true culprit of the humans who lost their lives.

so if this theory is true, the best version of Undertale-Toriel

would be the ones in the Fanon Undertale AU.

it’s really fine that not many agree about the theory.

anyway I want this to be the last drawing I post until in a few months.

I do plan to post this at the other place I post fan art at too.

if Coralie had a home,

it could be in the Dark World in Asriel’s Dorm at College.

so if Asriel does come home to see his family,

he might end up bringing the Dark World that Coralie lives in with him, as well as Coralie.

of course Coralie is a Fan OC,

this is still suppose to be a Paper Trail AU Fan Art.

if Coralie was truly all alone in the Dark World she was born in,

with no other Darkeners but her around,

then it might of been a very lonely life for her.

I think Coralie would be a inch shorter than Ralsei.

I’m not 100% sure if there will be a Red Version of Ralsei,

but if there was one and it was going to be another boy,

who might be called “Strawberry” I think it would be interesting.

I don’t think I ever seen a Red one, but if there was one,

maybe they work with Knight...?

but not of their free will.

I also want to say that I don’t mean to seem to break my promise about not post anything until in a few months, but I wanted to draw this fan art

even if it is of a noncanon character that I named Coralie.

I just wanted to draw a Red version of Ralsei.

anyway once again Coralie is not canon, so please do not misinterpret.

I think I will sign off for a bit,

and then go back to reading Paper Trail once I sign back in.

I’m just gonna go watch the Resident Evil Village Walkthrough,

and also eat some food too.

so I’m just gonna hope that this time for sure will be the last post until a few months....and I will just check out other stuff on tumblr.

if I’m not back in a few hours, I will back tomorrow.

so see ya later and stay safe everyone.

#paper trail fanart #deltarune fanart #deltarune oc #princess coralie_deltaruneoc

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apocalypseornaw · 4 years ago

Text

Always be Yours- 17

Word Count: 5,481

Story Summary: follows Dean and the reader through season 9 into season 10

Chapter Summary: Cas calls for help on a case. Dean starts showing more effects from the mark and not just his unwillingness to be away from the first blade.

Warnings: cursing, fighting,death

Back to back hunts had never been a favorite thing for you. Yeah you liked staying busy and when things needed to be killed you were the first to pull your boots on and say let’s hit the road but dammit you’d just gotten back to the bunker not even two hours before Dean was leaning across the bed shaking you gently “Sweetheart, wake up” you flinched awake already in a protective stance before your brain caught up with your surroundings. You glared up at him “Dean I love you but why the hell aren’t you asleep? We got in like two hours ago” he shrugged “Not tired besides we got work unless you want to sit a case out?” you yawned as you were climbing out the bed and pulling your boots onto your feet “Not a chance, besides I can catch a cat nap on the way to wherever we’re headed” He shot you a wink “That’s my girl” then turned to walk out the room. You called behind him “Where are you going?” “To wake Sammy up!” he replied, never breaking stride.

You met up with Sam in the kitchen. He handed you a cup of coffee so you both went in search of Dean who had somehow gotten your gun out of your go bag without you noticing and was giving a once over to it and another bag of weapons as you and Sam walked into the library.

“Ok baby, we are bright eyed and bushy tailed. What’s up?” He glanced up from the bag in front of him “I called Cas. He said there’s something going down in Missouri” “What kind of something?” Sam asked and Dean shrugged “Said he couldn’t talk about it over the phone” “Why?” you questioned offering the cup of coffee to Dean who took a swig then handed it back “Because he is a weird guy ok? He’s a weird, dorky little guy” “With an army of angels behind him” you reminded sitting down on the table next to Sam. Dean nodded “And even though I hate to say it, if we’re gonna take a shot at Metatron, those angels might be useful”

You noticed Dean wrapping the first blade up and silently bumped Sam’s hand. He followed your line of vision and gave voice to the question in your head “Do you think we’ll need the first blade? Why don’t we just leave it here?” Dean’s eyes flicked towards you before he said “We talked about this and we decided..” you cut in before either of them could say anything else “No in all fairness there was no we..not you and Sam we..not me and you we..You decided”

Sam touched your hand gently and you let out a breath finishing the coffee and sitting the cup down harder than you should’ve when Dean reasoned “I Decided that a hockey stick that can kill anything might come in handy, so both of you sue me” “How many times have we been around this block?” Sam asked and Dean gave him a questioning look so you spoke up again “Magic that powerful comes at a price and we have no idea what that price may be”

Dean softened just slightly at the worry in your voice “I’m fine Y/N. I’m fan-friggin-tastic” “And we’re glad, honestly. I’m not saying to bury the thing, just save it until we really need it” you nodded in agreement with Sam and added “We only need it for the big boss fights. It’s not needed all the time is it?”

“Just leave it, please” Sam pleaded so Dean met your eyes as he laid the wrapped blade down on the table “No problem, see?” “Thank you” Sam told him so he nodded and held your gun out to you “Let’s get going”

------

Halfway to the scene Dean pulled over at a truck stop for all of you to change into your fed suits. When he pulled to a stop at the scene he glanced back at you “You good sweetheart?” you leaned across the seat and left a quick kiss on his cheek “I’m good”

You followed him and Sam across the parking lot to the deputy that was standing just outside the yellow police tape. She glanced up the moment she saw the three of you “Agents Spears, Aguilera and Carter? FBI?” “That’s us” you replied and she nodded “Your partner said you’d be along” then held the tape up. You thanked her and walked under first leaving the boys to follow you.

You spotted Cas the moment you stepped into the diner and he nodded. “Thank you for coming” Sam glanced around before asking “Agents Spears and Aguilera?” you bit back a smile considering you’d at least gotten the moniker of Carter. Cas shrugged “I’ve noticed your alias are usually the names of popular musicians” “You did good Cas” you assured him and he nodded back towards the scene “Come here. Take a look at this”

The body on the stretcher was clearly an angel kill. Cas explained that all the bodies were the same burnt out husks. “So this is what? A mass smiting?” you guessed and Cas shook his head “I don’t know what this was. I’ve never seen anything like it” that definitely didn’t help your feelings that you’d come across something to do with angels that was leaving Cas clueless?

He stepped away from the stretcher so the three of you followed him “Six humans died here..” he squatted down and pulled the sheet away from a body on the floor “And one angel” you leaned over to look as Sam asked if the dead angel was one of Cas’. Cas confirmed that the angel was in fact one of his. “I knew he wanted a war but this is abhorrent, even for him” you knew the he in question was Metatron but considering he’d done everything from kicking the angels out of heaven to making Gadreel into his own personal murder weapon you wouldn’t put anything past the little weasel. “Well I know with a squadron of angels three hunters may not seem like much but however we can help you, we will” you offered and he half smiled “Thank you Y/N and the three of you? That is plenty”

------

You followed behind the guys into Cas’ command center. A brunette angel smiled when she saw Cas “Commander” “Yeah still creepy” Dean muttered so you nudged his arm with a shake of your head. Cas stopped in front of her “Dean, Y/N, Sam this is Hannah” she smiled “The Winchesters, I’ve heard so much about you. You as well Y/N” “Coming from Cas, I’m guessing it was good?” you asked with a smile.

Another angel took the box of evidence from the crime scene and walked away. Before you could question where he was headed Hannah told Cas that Josiah missed roll call that morning. “Roll call?” you asked and Cas sighed “They like to hear me say their names” “Yeah can’t blame em you do have an amazing voice” you responded with a grin that earned you a sideways look from Dean. Hannah spoke again getting all of your attention back on her “No one’s seen Josiah since Ezra was murdered..we think” Sam cut her off by questioning “You think Josiah was the killer and is the mole?”

She nodded “Well, who else” she turned back to Cas to add “We searched the ground but he’s vanished” “Not without wings. He’s an angel but he’s still got to travel like a human” Dean said and Hannah crossed her arms over her chest watching Dean with an attitude that simply rubbed you wrong so you cut him off “Which means he had to walk, drive, leave some sort of a trail”

Sam was already setting his laptop up “All right, what was his vessel’s name?” “Sean Flynn from Omaha” it didn’t take long for Sam to find out someone had just used the vessel’s credit card at a gas-n-sip in Colorado” Dean smiled at Hannah “And that’s how we do things in the pros”

The angel who took the box of evidence called out “Commander?” and when Cas looked at him he motioned back to his computer screen “I have something”

------

You stood next to Cas while the angel played the clip off a cellphone. It showed the angel from Cas’ ranks saying he was doing this for Cas then sat off the equivalent of an angelic suicide bomb which resulted in the carnage all of you had seen earlier.

Dean pointed at the screen “What the hell was that?” Cas was clearly distraught “I don’t know..I didn’t..I would never ask an angel to sacrifice himself to kill innocents..I’m gonna be sick” you instinctively reached a hand out to gently rub his arm “Cas why would he do it?” you asked softly. Hannah held up a finger “Hold on..” then told the other angel to roll the tape back.

Turns out there was another angel in that shop, one of Metatron’s and that was who the angel from Cas’ rank was apparently after. “So this was some kind of hit?” Sam questioned and Cas shrugged “I don’t know” “Stop saying you don’t know” Dean fumed and that made you look at him in question “You can’t think Cas is ok with something like this” He looked from you to Cas “He tries to be a good guy. He tries. But this? This is a frickin cult” “Dean” you spoke harder than before but he shook his head “Last time you had this kind of juice Cas you did kill angels and humans and you did nothing but lie to all of us the whole damn time!”

You’d moved to stand next to Sam and was noticing the looks being passed between Hannah and the other angel. Looks, you didn’t like being pointed at Dean. You slid between him and Cas “Ok fellas, let’s take this somewhere else” they glared at each other over your head but followed you and Sam into Cas’ office.

------

You stood between them while Sam said “Dean, stow the baggage” then you spoke up “We got a damn case, let’s work it shall we?”

Dean waved as if to say go ahead so you turned to Cas “Did you know the angel in that video?” he nodded “Yes his name was Oren. He was a new recruit. He worked in community outreach” “And what does that mean?” you questioned and Cas clarified “Some of my troops are stationed at a local hospital. They help where they can. Minor miracles it’s nothing that would cause attention” now that sounded like the Cas you knew.

“So what was he doing in that video, with the stabbing?” Sam asked. “That was enochian on his chest, what did it mean?” you questioned glancing back at Cas who nodded “The runes..I think they were meant to focus energy. When he stabbed himself it unleashed all that power” so just like you thought. An angelic suicide bomb.

“So what about the girl? What happened to her?” Sam asked and Cas shrugged “If she was the target, If the blast was focused on her then more likely than not she was atomized” “Shit” you breathed before Cas asked “Well what do we do now?”

Dean shook his head “You don’t do Jack..Me, Sam and Y/N will head to the hospital. See if we can find someone who knew this walking nuke” “Hold on. These are my people. I can help” Cas argued and Dean replied “That’s sort of the problem. I mean the manson girls aren’t gonna give us straight answers with Charlie in the room. Just hang back”

“So I should just sit here?” Cas asked and Dean nodded “Pretty much” “Then I’ll follow Josiah’s trail to Colorado” Cas reasoned and Dean nodded “Fine then Sam’s going with you” “Because you don’t trust me?” Cas questioned and Dean shook his head “To help. Now do I need to send Y/N too?”

You scoffed “I think they can handle it. They’re a grown hunter and angel. Now if you want me gone I can make myself scarce” “Don’t be like that. I’m just trying to handle all this” Dean replied so you shook your head “Fine Sam and Cas head to Colorado. Me and you will hit the hospital but none of us are doing shit sitting around here” you cut your eyes down at Dean’s right arm where you knew that mark was before turning to walk out not saying a word to either three of the men.

------

“What was that about?” Dean asked once he joined you in baby. You shrugged not even looking in his direction when he pulled out onto the road “Oh you mean the part where you apparently think you’re the only person who’s capable of doing this damn job anymore?”

“Wait,what?” he seemed genuinely confused so you let out a harsh breath “After you killed Abaddon I heard what you told Sam about keeping me out of her crosshairs and about not wanting the blade far away from you. I get that you’re juiced up from the mark and the blade, I get you want to protect me and christ I love you for that but Dean I’m a hunter too. Sam’s a hunter and Cas is a frickin angel we’re all capable. I just need to know if you’re capable of towing the line when it’s needed because when you got into it with Cas back there those angels didn’t like it and I really don’t want to be in a position where they decide you’re a threat because I’m going to fight at your side whether you like it or not, so is Sam” he nodded and reached for your hand so you met him halfway lacing your fingers together “Sure you’re not just sick of me?” he asked and although his tone was joking you could sense something else just under the surface so you squeezed his hand gently “Takes a lot more to get rid of me Winchester, now let’s get the doc Cas pointed us in the direction of and see what she knows”

------

The plan was for you to hang out front with Hannah and the other angels. Simply put, you were more diplomatic than Dean besides you didn’t really want to interrogate an angel again considering Ezra had been such a bust. Instead you chose to wander the halls between the main area of the control center. You told yourself it was just a precaution in case Metatron may have yet another mole, not to keep an eye on Dean.

You heard the sound of what was clearly the table flipping and ran to the door of the interrogation room ripping it open to show Dean had the angel “Flagstaff” flat on her back with an angel blade to her throat. You ran over and grabbed his arm to stop him from doing anything that would cost all of you as she begged “Please, dont” he cut his eyes at you so you asked her “Oren, friends?” “Constantine and Tessa” “Tessa, the reaper?” Dean questioned obviously having recognized the name. You vaguely remembered her then it struck you that she’d been there when Dean struck the deal with Death for Sam’s soul.

“You know her?” Flagstaff asked as you pulled Dean backwards then helped her to her feet “We’ve met her a time or two” her eyes never left yours as she said “Thank you” you didn’t try to lie so you simply said “I didn’t stop him for you” “But you stopped him” she replied then quickly scurried out. You turned to look at Dean who was standing a step or two away from you “So now you’re literally my humanity and plan to pop up wherever you think my judgement is failing?” you shook your head before saying “Dean, I love you. I’d do anything for you and Sam but the moment you decide you don’t want me here just let me know because I refuse to see you make a decision that will end up with you dead. I’ve lost too much already” you started to walk out but he grabbed your arm before you could “Thank you Y/N” “For what?” you asked with a sigh.

He motioned to the chair that was still on the floor “For reminding me to pull back when needed” you nodded then walked out the room with plans to try to track Tessa down.

------

Flagstaff pointed you towards the hospital in search of Tessa. When you and Dean got there she was missing and so was an ambulance. You hacked the GPS and used it to track her to a meeting hall.

Luckily Dean managed to restrain her with the enochian cuffs before she could pull off her planned hit so the two of you took her back to Cas’ command center to interrogate her unfortunately Constantine had already pulled off his hit.

You walked in beside Dean who was guiding Tessa and felt your stomach knot in worry at seeing Flagstaff talking to Hannah and the other angel who wasn’t the biggest fan of Dean’s. “Tessa? What are you two doing?” Hannah asked, clearly pointing the question at you. “Well Tessa you want to tell her or should I?” when she didn’t reply you pulled the collar of her shirt down far enough Hannah could see the carvings on her.

“Oh god” Hannah breathed to which Tessa replied “There’s no god. There’s only Castiel” “And you’ve lost your public speaking privileges” you said then nodded at Dean to take her to the interrogation room.

------

Hannah, Flagstaff and the other angel followed you and Dean. “He wounded her” Hannah accused so after Dean had pushed Tessa into the interrogation room you spun around to face the brunette angel “He defused her, ya know so she couldn’t be an angelic bomb?” “And now? What will he do to her?” the male angel asked you. “Get answers” you replied and Flagstaff scoffed “You uphold him torturing her?” Dean stood at your back stoic despite the fact that all of you were talking about him as if he wasn’t even standing there “We need to know if there’s other bombers out there. Aren’t all angels your siblings? If we can get answers out of one to stop multiple deaths isn’t that worth it?”

She shook her head “And to think I considered you different” “That was your mistake sugar not mine” you told her but Hannah spoke up “I won’t allow it. I know what Tessa was planning. It's horrible but there’s only one person who can punish her” Dean rolled his eyes “Let me guess, Yea big, trench coat, sensible shoes?”

“Both of you need to understand Castiel is the only thing holding us together. A month ago, half the angels in this place were trying to kill the other half. Castiel has given us a purpose but more than that he’s given us a way to live in peace. We have rules, order” you clocked angels walking up behind you and Dean and angels walking up behind Hannah as she spoke. “If I let you take matters into your own hands, What’s to stop one of us from doing the same? He can talk to her, he should talk to her but he leaves the blade outside and you stay with my people Y/N as a sort of collateral”

“You asking or telling?” Dean questioned. The male angel spoke up “We’re not asking” You saw Dean’s jaw clench slightly so you eased the angel blade out of his hand then held it out to Hannah “Here’s the blade and I’ll stay” she smiled “Thank you Y/N” you cut your eyes at Flagstaff before repeating the words you’d said to her earlier “I didn’t do it for you”

------

You were sitting in Cas’ office when Flagstaff came in and drug you to your feet with an angel blade to your throat. “What the hell? Put me down you winged bitch” you struggled against her but two more angels were backing her up “Seems your Winchester isn’t as fond of your life as you thought” “What?” you asked and the blonde angel who’d walked in explained “He killed Tessa”

“DEAN!” you screamed as they drug you out into the main area and heard him scream your name followed by the sounds of a fight. A blonde angel backhanded you and you went down hard. You glared up at her but when Flagstaff said “Calm him and we won’t kill either of you until the commander decides” the fight left out of you. You couldn’t risk them killing Dean or him fighting even harder because he heard you.

------

You were nearly carried into the hall and dropped at Dean’s feet. He was being tied to a chair and you could see the rage in his eyes when he saw your split lip and swollen jaw. They’d taped his mouth but you could see the question in his eyes. You nodded weakly “I’m fine” and sat down slowly on the floor next to him as the angels finished tying him up then looked at you. Hannah shook her head “Leave her”

Once you were alone you glanced up at Dean “Did you kill Tessa?” he shook his head so you nodded again then laid your head over on his leg. Neither of you could do anything until Cas got there. Not even Dean could fight over two dozen angels and walk out the winner.

------

You weren’t sure how long passed until the door opened again. It was Hannah followed by Cas. “They put up a fight” she explained when Cas saw the both of you. “Get out” Cas fumed.

Sam was already to yours and Dean’s side. He looked down at you as he took the tape off Dean’s mouth “Y/N are you ok?” you nodded “Jaw’s gonna be sore but I’ve had a lot worse” you climbed to your feet to stand next to Sam as he untied Dean.

“Should’ve seen the other guys” Dean joked. “They said you killed Tessa?” Cas questioned and you were curious as well to just what had happened considering you hadn’t actually spoken to Dean. He looked at you when he answered Cas “She knifed herself” “Yeah? Why would she do that Dean?” Sam asked and given what you’d been dealing with from the effects of the mark, you couldn’t blame Sam’s skepticism but you spoke up to say “Sam they had me. Dean knew if he killed her, they had me in a room alone with half a dozen angels and no weapon”

“He had the first blade Y/N” Sam said and you felt your heart fall to your feet. “What?” you asked softly. Dean didn’t meet your eyes as he spoke to Sam “They told ya about that huh?” “We had a deal!” Sam reminded him but Dean scoffed “It was a stupid deal” “One that if you would’ve stuck to it Tessa would still be alive. Without her we ain’t go jack. Not to mention what if Hannah would’ve decided not to wait for Cas and took out you killing one of theirs on Y/N! Ever think about that?” Sam was angry you could feel it rolling off of him and for once you had no intention of stepping between the brothers.

You knew something had been off but you’d told yourself Dean had hidden another angel blade or the demon knife but no he’d smuggled the first blade not stopping to think of the consequences.

“You think I don’t know all of that? You think I wanted to lose our lead? Do you really think I wanted Y/N in any sort of danger?” Dean threw back but Sam retorted “I don’t know Dean did you?” “Stop it! Both of you” Cas warned and you purposely stepped closer to him.

The door opened to show Hannah. She looked around then said “Commander, I’m sorry but you have a call..from Metatron”

------

You walked closer to Sam than Dean as the three of you followed Cas into the main control room. Metatron’s face was on the screen “Castiel! I bet you’re not happy to see me” “Is anyone ever you little weasel?” you snapped at him without thinking. “Y/N! I see Dean’s b-grade eighties action movie wit is rubbing off on you”

You glanced at Dean before Sam asked “What do you want Metatron?” He smiled at all of you from the screen “Just to tell Ass-tiel. There that I’m still alive. His bomber failed” “My bomber?” Cas asked and Metatron nodded “The crazy guy. Big knife? Kablooey? I’m fine thanks for asking but Gadreel is wounded and Tyrus.. Well R.I.P. His followers are not your biggest fans by the way. They’ve all come over to my team”

“I didn’t send anyone to kill you” Cas insisted and you knew him well enough to know he was telling the truth but Metatron scrunched “Oh, stop lying Castiel” “Who are you to lecture me on lying? Your deception led to the fall” Cas retorted. “I did what I had to do” Metatron reasoned leaning up to add “I have always done what I have to do, for god and the angels”

“Sure, you’re mother Teresa with neck beard” Dean replied but Metatron was undeterred “What I did was neither good nor bad. It was necessary a small hardship to make us all stronger, to make us a family again.” “Except for the angels you had Gadreel kill?” Sam asked and Metatron rolled his eyes slightly “Ok, yes. Maybe I got a little carried away at first, but those days are over. A near death experience makes you re-evaluate. So one time only, I’m offering amnesty. Every angel, no matter their sin, may join me and return to heaven. I will be their god and they can be my heavenly host”

“Why would we follow you?” Hannah asked. Metatron started to laugh “Look around. You’ve seen earth. You’ve had a taste of free will. I got to ask you, do you like it? And the way you’ve flocked off to follow Castiel tells me you need to follow someone. It’s in your dna” you slowly looked around at the other angels and it horrified you to see Metatron’s words were having the desired effect on them.

“But Cas, he’s not what you think he is” he continued “He sends out angels to die. Have you told them about your stolen grace, Castiel? How it’s fading away and when it burns out so will you?” When no one gave any response he nodded “So, no then. I’m not the best but I’m the best you’ve got. You want to stay with Castiel, fine, but he’s playing you because at the end of the day the only thing he cares about is himself and the Hardy boys and Nancy drew there. You’ve got a choice to make. Make the right one” he ended the video call and you could hear a slight murmur go through the crowd of angels who were staring at you, Sam and Dean.

“He’s lying” Cas spoke and Hannah was the first to ask “About the grace?” Cas cut his eyes at her “It’s complicated” “So he wasn’t lying” Flagstaff questioned. “He was about everything else. He..” Cas trailed off when he realized every angel’s eyes were on him. “You believe me, don’t you?”

Hannah stepped closer to him “I want to believe you but I..” she looked back at the crowd then corrected her words to say “We need proof” “Name it” Cas replied. She glanced at Dean “Punish him. He murdered Tessa. He broke our rules” “Y’all can all go to hell” you snarled stepping over next to Dean before Flagstaff added “She was collateral so she should die as well”

“Wait a second” Sam tried but five angels had already grabbed Dean and three had grabbed you. Hannah looked at Cas “You gave us order and we gave you our trust. Don’t lose it over two humans” She held the angel blade out to him. “This is justice” You watched in horror as Cas took the blade from her hand. “Cas” his name was barely a whisper from your lips as he looked from you to Dean.

“No. I can’t” you felt a tension run through the angels before Hannah said “Goodbye, Castiel” the angels released all of you and followed her out. You stepped closer to Sam as all of you watched them leave.

------

You sat silently next to Cas in the backseat of the impala. No one spoke a single word on the drive back to the bunker.

You let everyone go before you down the stairs then slowly followed them. You heard Sam ask “Dean, are we gonna talk about this or what?” “About what?” Dean asked throwing his bag down on the table in the map room before turning to face Sam “Yeah I lied but you were being an infant” you raised an eyebrow “Wow” then followed Cas into the library. You heard Sam say “No Y/N’s right even for you that apology sucked”

You sat your bag down on the table then walked back into the map room about the time Dean said “That blade’s the only thing that can kill Metatron and I am the only one who can use it. So from here on out, I’m calling the shots. Capisce?” Neither of them had noticed you so you remained silent through Dean saying “Look, until I jam that blade through that douchebag’s heart, we are not a team. This is a dictatorship. Now you don’t have to like it but that’s how it’s gonna be” “Nice to know” you finally spoke and they both looked surprised to see you standing there. You shook your head then grabbed your bag from the library and headed down the hall.

You threw the bag into the room you used to sleep in before you and Dean started sharing one room then sat heavily on the bed. Why were you even staying? Hell at this point did he even want you here anymore? From the looks of it you were simply becoming more and more of a liability to him.

------

You stood to head back to the library with plans of simply thanking Cas but froze when you spotted Gadreel. “GUYS!” Sam was the first behind you then you heard Dean and Cas come running up. “I’m not here to fight” Gadreel promised with both hands up to show he was unarmed.

You stepped back closer to Sam as Gadreel took a few steps towards Dean and Cas “I thought about what you said. You’re right Metatron..he’s..something needs to be done” you wanted to believe he was in earnest, you truly did. “And we should trust you why?” you asked glancing back at Sam. “Because I can give him to you. Y/N I know where Metatron is.I know everything. I know the bombers. They were his agents not yours Castiel” he glanced around at the four of you before saying “You don’t trust me, fine. I understand. I’ve made mistakes but haven’t all of you. At least give me a chance”

Dean cut his eyes at you then Sam. You gave a slight nod, so did Sam. Dean walked over to Gadreel and held his left hand out seemingly to shake. You knew something was wrong the moment Dean offered his left hand “DEAN NO” you screamed but in the blink of an eye Dean had already slashed Gadreel’s chest open with the first blade.

Tags: @facadeformyrealblog @akshi8278 @brilovesdeanwinchester

#spn fanfiction #supernatural fanfiction #dean winchester x reader #dean winchester fanfiction #dean winchester x female!reader #always be yours

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peppyanddeadly · 4 years ago

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STILL NEEDING BACKSTORY HERE

[ v1; she who hangs out in cemeteries ]

Based on seasons 1 through 5 of BTVS. Mainly canon, with room for divergence. For all intents and purposes, all events include the existence of Dawn (as all memories have been modified by the monks). It goes up to the point of Buffy’s death at the end of s5.

[ v2; i think i was in heaven, and now i’m not ]

Based on seasons 6 and 7 of BTVS. Mainly canon, with room for divergence. Starts off when Buffy is brought back from the dead by Willow’s spell and covers all the way up to the destruction of Sunnydale in the fight against The First. Heavily focused on s6 and Buffy’s struggles with finding herself again after being brought back.

[ v3; tell me that i’m wrong ]

AU starting off on season 6. While Buffy does come back as herself, the spell being interrupted before Willow was finished means part of her soul is left behind. Having to claw her way out of her own grave isn’t just traumatizing, but it’s also the first step to what will be the full splintering of her psyche. No one really realizes it at first, not even Buffy herself. She assumes her detachment and numbness are the result of having to face the harshness of the world, after having experienced absolute contentment while in heaven. It is when she kills Katrina, or rather when she thinks she does, that the trigger finally goes off. The idea that she may have taken a human life doesn’t make her feel guilty. As a matter of fact, she doesn’t feel anything at all. That sets her off. She becomes obsessed with making herself feel, whether it’s good or bad, she doesn’t care. She becomes reckless, hedonistic, thrill seeking, and careless. Completely unraveling, destiny and duty stop having any meaning, she no longer fights for the powers of good, but instead merely serves her own purposes.

[ v4; what are we gonna do now? ]

After the complete destruction of Sunnydale and the activation of all the potentials, Buffy travels around the world searching for the new Slayers. She works alongside with Xander, Willow and Andrew to find and train as many of them as they can. They put together a makeshift organization referred to as the Slayer army. Aside from training the other girls, Buffy organizes and commands operations all around the world. So location can easily be adjusted based on plot.

[ v5; i thought i may try violence ]

Based on early season 11. In a world where the supernatural is no longer hiding in the shadows, but rather out to the public eye, Buffy is living in San Francisco and acting as a supernatural consultant for the SFPD. The gig allows her to have an income while carrying out her Slayer duties on a full-time basis. The Slayer army dismantled, she does stay in touch with some her former soldiers but is back to working mainly on her own, with the assistance of the Scooby gang.

[ v6; goodbye stakes hello flying fatality ]

Harry Potter based AU. Buffy is a Hogwarts student belonging to the Gryffindor house. The year can be adjusted according to plot. Inspired by this post, if you want to read the whole thing.

[ v7; minimal damage of the fighting kind ]

Shadowhunter Chronicles based AU. Joyce Carstairs, younger sister to John, was cast out and stripped of her marks when she decided to marry the mundane Hank Summers. It was evident at a very early age that Buffy had been born with the sight. Despite her being banished, Joyce decided to raise her daughter as a Shadowhunter, as much as she could. It was done in secret at first, until Hank decided to leave the two and then the two Summers women didn’t have to hide their extracurricular activities anymore. She trained her, taught her to fight and about the Shadow World. Except, Joyce left out everything related to the Nephilim and runes. Instead, she called Buffy’s fighting against dangerous Downworlders slaying. After the Mortal War, with their numbers so significantly depleted, the Clave sought out to recover as many lost Shadowhunters as they could. That is how she was found. Joyce having passed away by then, and finding out for the first time she had a younger cousin called Emma, Buffy agreed to move into the LA institute and be trained as another Shadowhunter. While she can easily keep up with all the fighting, she has a long way to go when it comes to runes and the more magical parts of their nature.

[ v8; i’ve reached my quota on someones ]

During the events of The Girl in Question (AtS s5e20) Spike does actually find Buffy. The two of them spend the night together. When morning comes Buffy asks Spike to stay with her in Rome, but because he has given his word to Angel, he says he must go back and help on the upcoming fight. He promises he will come back for her when it is all over and asks that she waits for him.Originally, Buffy intended to wait for him, but a couple months later she finds out she is pregnant with his child. Knowing of Connor and everything that happened with him, Buffy is afraid someone may come for her and her baby or try to hurt them. Plus, leading the Slayer army puts her in way too much risk. So Buffy goes underground, settling down in a small California town of the name of Monterey, near the ruins of what once was Sunnydale. She tells no one the identity of her child’s father, except for Willow, who she asks to investigate into how it is possible for her to be pregnant with a vampire’s child.Eventually, she gave birth to a baby girl, who she named Joyce in honor of her own mother. Buffy made it a point to keep the father’s identity a secret from the entire world, even her own child, afraid that if the truth got out it would put her in harm’s way. When Joyce was around 2, Spike finally finds the two of them. He believe’s the kid to be someone else’s, and Buffy lets him, still in fear of letting the truth get out. However, she does allow for Spike to be as part of Joyce’s life as he wishes, and he is there throughout the entire time she is growing up.When Joyce was in first grade, the first clues to indicate she was an activated Slayer finally showed themselves. This scared Buffy, who realized being a Slayer while also being the daughter of the leader of all Slayers put her child in more risk than she knew how to deal with. So Buffy packed her bags and left, going back to her role as the head of the army, leaving Joyce in the care of Dawn and Willow.It is when Joyce is 18 that Buffy finally comes back to Monterey. While she says she is there for business, she takes every chance she can to make up for lost time with her daughter.

| exclusive connections for this verse; @bloody-peroxide (Spike) @wickedlehane (Faith Lehane) (verse not available for others of these characters) @dhampirslays (Joyce Summers) (no other oc children will be accepted for this verse)

#[ all available verses; ]#[ will be updated as i go; ]#[ human rules don't apply; ooc ]

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bytheangell · 5 years ago

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I’ll See You When the Violence Ends

(Read on AO3) Square Filled: Enemies to Lovers for @shadowhunterbingo Pairing: Meliorn/Isabelle Rating: Mature – Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Tags: Enemies to lovers, alternate timelines, background character death, canon-typical violence Summary: With tensions rising between the Nephilim and the Downworlders, Isabelle finds herself inexplicably drawn toward the enemy... or rather, one in particular. -------------

The first time Isabelle comes across a Downworlder on her own she’s ten years old. She sneaks out in the middle of the night, long after her parents’ normal second round of checks on her and her siblings to make sure they’re actually in bed and not ignoring curfew by going up on the roof or to each other’s rooms.

She’d seen plenty of Downworlders brought into the Institute by the older Shadowhunters - ones who were caught breaking the laws. She often wonders why they can’t just listen, like she does, and stay in line. They’re sentiments she’s heard voiced by her parents: the Downworlders simply don’t know their place, if they’d fall in line they wouldn’t be hunted, wouldn’t be hurt. Isabelle believes that because she doesn’t know any better. After all, she follows the rules and knows her place, and she’s just fine.

Isabelle is too young to be out alone, fresh off her first rune ceremony the week before, but she goes anyway. She’s curious. She doesn’t intend on being seen, she just wants to see, to catch a glimpse for herself of a Seelie just out and about, doing whatever it is they do when they aren’t… well, in trouble.

“You shouldn’t be here,” comes the voice behind her.

Isabelle spins around with a gasp. She hadn’t heard anyone come up behind her, how--

It’s a Seelie Knight. She sees the way he looks down at her, though despite the tone of warning behind his words he looks… amused.

“Aren’t you a little young to be out claiming victims alone at night?” He looks around then, as if expecting someone else to come out of the shadows behind her. “Or is this a set-up? You scream for help, I get taken in for attacking a poor, defenseless Nephilim child?”

“What?” Isabelle manages, confused by his reaction. “No. Why would I do that?”

The Seelie only shakes his head.

“You’re not going to, are you? Attack me?” Isabelle asks uncertainly. She didn’t take any of the weapons because she didn’t want anyone to notice one missing, but now she regrets the decision because the Seelie’s description is right: she is defenseless, at least against someone like him.

“No,” he says. “Contrary to what your people may want you to believe, we aren’t all monsters.”

Isabelle feels relief at that. Seelies can’t lie, so he has to be telling the truth.

“Why are you here?” The Seelie asks her curiously.

Isabelle wonders if there’s an answer she can give that isn’t going to get her into trouble. “I wanted to see for myself,” she admits, a bit cryptically but better than nothing.

“See what?” The Seelie prompts.

“Magic,” Isabelle nearly whispers the word, foreign and taboo.

The entrances to the Seelie realms are meant to be a sort of magic, as are the wards guarding them. And she knows the Seelies themselves are capable of magic too, usually involving nature… she hoped if she saw some of them, and they didn’t realize she was watching, she might get to see some of it herself and know what all the fuss is about.

She expects him to be angry, but he surprises her again by laughing.

“Magic… like this?”

Isabelle watches as he bends over the smallest bud of a flower to the right of where they stand, cupping his hands over it with so much tenderness and care, then pulling them away to see a new, full bloom.

Her first thought is that it’s beautiful. Her next thought, as sharp as a mental slap, is that she shouldn’t think it’s beautiful. The magic the Downworlders have is a threat, the demonic blood it’s born from an abomination.

Isabelle turns without another word and sprints back to the Institute, checking behind her every so often half-expecting him to be in pursuit.

The Seelie doesn’t follow and Isabelle doesn’t tell anyone about her encounter, not even Alec.

-------------

Isabelle sees many Downworlders after that, sometimes with others but sometimes alone, and every time ends the same: with her target in custody or a trophy in her hands. She doesn’t think twice of it: her training ensures that any sympathy she has for those with demon blood is wiped away entirely, her success as a Shadowhunter depends on it.

There are expectations placed upon her as a Lightwood. They are, after all, second only to the Morgensterns in terms of family legacies. There are a lot of benefits to being a Lightwood, but only if she earns them.

And earn them she does. She and Alec are forces to be reckoned with. Alec and his parabatai, Jace Wayland, are nearly unstoppable soldiers in the field. Isabelle and her parabatai, Clarissa Morgenstern, are just as deadly. The four of them are the top of their class, easily surpassing their peers and earning assignments of their own as early as thirteen years old.

Isabelle is 15 when she sees the Seelie Knight again.

She faces him in a dark corner of a park where the Seelies Clarissa is meant to be tracking will run towards to flee back to their realm. He’s the first to cross her path.

“You’re not alone tonight,” he says simply, eyeing her fighting stance and activated runes. “And no longer defenseless.”

She remains silent. For a moment she remembers his kindness before but instead of softening her eyes narrow.

Isabelle tenses as he shifts his position to be near a large tree, and she wonders if it’s to draw magic from it. She knows Seelies can call weapons from the earth and she pulls at the bracelet around her wrist, the adamas shifting into a whip in her hands.

“What? Don’t you want to witness my magic again?” he asks, a harsh edge to his words as a vine drops down from above her, pulling her feet out from under her as it wraps around her ankles and tugs. Isabelle gives a shout and falls, watching him move easily past her. Using his magic to access the Seelie Realm he vanishes from sight while she dangles upside-down by the tree.

He could’ve killed her.

She would’ve killed him.

Isabelle is more than a little confused and has a lot of time to stew in her thoughts before Clary comes to cut her down and take her home, keeping the particulars of how the Seelies slipped away from their follow-up report .

------------

Isabelle is sixteen when she sees the Seelie Knight again. The altercations between the Shadowhunters and the Downworlders turn more frequent - reports of another start coming in almost every other day at this point. She can feel the small encounters building in tension and severity, wondering when they’ll turn to battles, and when those battles will turn to a proper war.

She’s part of a raid that will serve to be a turning point for all involved - one on the Dumort itself, staged at midday so the vampires had little chance to flee. She doesn’t like it - something about the whole set-up doesn’t sit well with her. They’re told the building is harboring fugitives to the Clave, but they’re given no specifics on who or what crimes they’ve committed. They’re not told who inside may be innocent, or given specific targets, and no one asks.

It isn’t a raid - it’s a slaughter. The vampires fight back, because of course they do, and the few who don't flee through secret exits and underground tunnels die bloody.

There’s so much going on that even those who get kills don’t have the time or opportunity to stop and take their spoils - but Isabelle comes across the dead body of Camille in her attempts to find her parabatai in the wide expanse of the hotel, and stops to slide the ruby necklace off the vampire’s neck and hold it delicately in her hands.

When she looks up the Seelie Knight is there, staring at her with just a hint of surprise underneath his otherwise neutral expression.

The vampires must’ve called backup. And if the Seelies are here, to help the vampires of all Downworlders, Isabelle doesn’t like the implications of that for the Nephilim in all of this. Keeping them divided and equally at odds with each other as they are with the Shadowhunters was always a strategy hammered into them from a young age.

It takes Isabelle a second in her panic to realize that his look of surprise isn’t at her, however.

“Camille...” he says the name softly, sadly, almost like a goodbye. Then his eyes catch on the necklace in Isabelle’s hands and he’s across the room before she can blink, the blade of his spear pressed against her throat.

Isabelle’s eyes widen. “It wasn’t me,” she says instinctively. She doesn’t know why - she’s here, after all, she’s a part of this whether this particular life was taken by her hand or not.

It has the desired effect, however, and the Seelie hesitates.

A voice calls from the hallway, shouting “Meliorn! In here!”

The Seelie Knight looks Isabelle over, considering her finally, before lowering his weapon and turning to follow the call out of the door and down the hallway.

On her way to warn the others to retreat she slips the necklace into her pocket and files the name away in her mind for the future.

Meliorn.

---------

Isabelle is out on a routine patrol when she sees the warlock child. She knows the girl is a warlock because she’s seen her with the others on occasion, both on and off the battlefield. For a split second Isabelle considers following her to a less public area to kill her - one less warlock to kill the Nephilim later, after all. Except this isn’t a battle, and while there are no strict rules governing chance public encounters - and while Isabelle knows that many others would certainly seize this opportunity and judge her for allowing it to pass - she can’t bring herself to kill in cold blood.

“Hey,” Isabelle says instead, making her presence known and approaching the warlock with her weapons sheathed. “It isn’t safe for you to be this far alone. Do you know your way back home?”

The child nods.

“Head that way. And travel with a friend next time.”

“I can take care of myself,” the girl states, magic flaring at her fingertips, and for a second Isabelle wonders if she hasn’t made a mistake in judgment. But then the magic is gone again after the quick display, and Isabelle relaxes.

“I’m sure you can,” Isabelle says, and turns to head back to the Institute.

A few moments later she hears footsteps behind her, and then a voice.

“Why did you do that?” Meliorn asks.

“Do what?” She questions, though she already knows.

“Try and warn her?” He clarifies.

Isabelle frowns. “She’s a child, and she’s alone. You really think so little of me to think I’d kill her where she stands? She’s done nothing wrong.”

“She’s been in the battles. I’ve seen her,” Meliorn points out.

“So have you and I, and yet here we are,” Isabelle counters.

Meliorn smirks. “So we are,” he says.

There’s a charged moment between them during which Isabelle’s fight-or-flight instinct flares within her. Allowing the child to walk away was one thing, but Meliorn?

He seems to consider the same thing, sizing her up, that casual smirk of amusement never faltering.

Without a word he turns to leave.

Isabelle hesitates, once more uncertain if she should allow him to so easily, but reminds herself that he’s doing the same for her. Should they come to arms she may very well lose, and she doesn’t favor the idea of dying alone in an alley on a routine patrol.

She watches him go, curiously, before leaving herself.

--------

Isabelle sees Meliorn more often after that, though she wishes she wouldn’t. As she feared, the occasional fight turns into the occasional proper attack, and though the Seelies stay out of it more than the vampires, werewolves, and warlocks, they can no longer stay entirely removed as their Queen would prefer.

Isabelle watches Meliorn pierce through the hearts of Nephilim - fellow Shadowhunters, people she cares for, friends - while he witnesses her take talons and pointed ears and warlock marks as spoils of her own battles won. Despite the times they met in the past and walked away from one another she has no doubt now, as their eyes meet in a fiery glare, that should they meet alone again it would end much differently.

And it does, but not in the way she expects.

It’s meant to be a fact-gathering mission: Isabelle is alone, intending on keeping a safe distance and following undetected behind the Seelies as they leave the meeting they had with Magnus Bane and return to their realm. She’s meant to find and report on the location of the entrance, as well as note how many of them attended and the sort of weaponry they seem to be outfitted with. Simple intelligence gathering.

Or at least, it should be.

She’s following behind when she notices that there’s one fewer Seelie in front of her than there should be. Almost instantly she feels hands grabbing roughly at her shoulders, pulling her into a shadow-covered side street.

“Why are you following me?” Meliorn demands - and of course it’s him, Isabelle thinks. Except… maybe this can work in her favor.

She doesn’t answer at first, her mind working in overdrive to plan her way out of this.

“I should kill you for this,” he points out. He could. They’ve both killed for less.

She can’t get to her weapons fast enough, or her stele to activate any runes. She’s at the disadvantage, so she either talks her way out of this (which seems unlikely) or…

“Why don’t you, then?” She challenges. It’s a gamble, banking on the fact that he let her live before and little else, but if it works it could buy her the distraction she needs to not just stay alive, but still get the intel she came for. The fact that he doesn’t react immediately is all the encouragement she needs to try.

Impulsively she leans forward, clearing the space between them to press her lips against his. He tenses but doesn’t move away. After a moment he pushes forward and she thinks, just for a second, that he’s going to kill her anyway. Instead he presses her against the wall behind her forcefully as he moves into the kiss. It’s a heated moment, over as quickly as it began when the sound of approaching footsteps reach them and Meliorn tears himself away as intensely as he’d surged forward.

“Go,” he says, and she pretends to, disappearing around the corner as he goes back to his people.

Except she doesn’t actually leave.

Isabelle waits, watching him go, and then re-activates a rune to quiet her steps to follow behind more carefully this time, watching him step into a tree trunk, vanishing from sight. Isabelle counts to 30, slowly, before following behind. She goes through the entrance and finds herself in the Seelie Realm, trying to take it all in --

--turning to see Meliorn waiting for her, looking disappointed.

“I thought you were better than this,” he says, lifting his hand up. Instead of raising a weapon he opens his palm and blows a powder… no, pollen… into her face. Isabelle barely has time to register what’s happening before she tilts to the side, drowsy, and then falls unconscious into Meliorn’s waiting arms.

She wakes up on the ground beside the tree, and when she stands to touch it the entrance is closed, the tree solid, and no trace of Meliorn or the Seelie Realm besides the slight itch of pollen in her nose.

Damn.

---

Shortly after, Isabelle is called into Valentine’s office.

“Put on your best dress, Isabelle,” he tells her. “You’re going to the Seelie Realm.”

Isabelle freezes. Did someone see her with Meliorn? Had he said something, and now she’s being turned over… as what? A bargaining chip? A trade?

A sacrifice?

“For what purpose?” Isabelle asks, keeping her voice steady.

“An act of goodwill. The Seelie Queen has information regarding a vampire den turning children, but will only give it to us on her terms, one of which is that we come to her for it, the other a temporary truce with her people in return for continued intel.” Valentine looks pleased, and she can see why. It’s a good trade for all involved.

“Why me?” Isabelle can’t help but ask. She’s young, inexperienced in the finer matters of political dealings. This is absolutely not something she’d normally be sent on. There are many more skilled than her, many trained for this very task, who should be going instead.

“You were requested specifically,” Valentine says, eyebrow raised. “Any idea why that may be?”

Isabelle shakes her head despite her very strong suspicions. Valentine hums in response but doesn't push the question.

“It should be straightforward. Give her our word for our end of the bargain, get what information she has currently, leave. We’ll brief you before you go, tell you what you can and can’t agree to… you know how their kind can be, playing games with their words. You’ll need to stay sharp, but you’re a fine Shadowhunter, Miss Lightwood. One of our best. I have no doubt you’ll be fine.”

Isabelle forces a smile and nods. “Of course, Sir. You can count on me.”

---

The next day, with as much training as they could cram into the short span of hours, Isabelle finds herself at one of the ever-changing entrances to the Seelie Realm.

Meliorn is there to meet her. She expected to see him, of course, but she also expected to see more than just him. A test, perhaps, of the Shadowhunters’ ability to be trusted with their promise of truce, to not have a full guard on her for the journey? Isabelle hesitates only a moment before following him into the water in front of them.

The Seelie Realm is beautiful and Isabelle stares in wonder around her. The last time she managed to sneak in for just a moment it wasn’t long enough to get a proper look, but now her eyes linger on the trees and flowers, the bugs that seem abundant but never crowding or overwhelming. She’s so entranced by it that she nearly forgets why she’s here, with Meliorn several yards ahead before she starts after him.

Though they travel in silence, with Isabelle following only half a step behind Meliorn once she catches up she finds it’s less of an escort and more of a pleasant walk. His weapon is relaxed at his side, she notes, her own hand grazing over the holster she wears under her dress just in case.

The million questions Isabelle has all seem to die on her tongue as she realizes she’s more afraid of getting an answer she doesn’t want than being left to wonder.

She isn’t left to wonder for long.

Mere minutes later Meliorn directs her into a tent. It quickly becomes clear that this is a home, a bedroom.

“Why am I here?” Isabelle asks finally, unsure if she means ‘here’ in the Realm at large or ‘here’ in this room specifically.

“Because I wanted you here,” Meliorn replies simply. She sees the desire in his eyes, brazen and without pretense.

“The meeting with the Seelie Queen--” Isabelle starts.

“Is very real, as is the deal to be struck. This is simply a detour, should you agree. I thought it a shame to waste the truce between our people for however little time it may last.” Meliorn sets his weapon down in the corner of the room.

Isabelle takes a tentative step forward from where she paused by the entrance.

“But you can’t possibly like me…. Or trust me,” she adds for good measure. How could either of them after watching the other take the lives of their friends and family countless times? She’s surprised then, after a moment of reflection, to realize she doesn’t actually blame him personally - not when he’s in the same position she is, simply a soldier carrying out orders. There were many times she doubted her assignments, questioned her own actions, even regretted them… did the same hold true for Meliorn? Did he regret the Nephilim lives he took?

“I don’t have to trust you to make love to you,” Meliorn doesn’t bother with trying to ‘woo’ her or anything as mundane as that. “And ‘like’ and ‘desire’ are two separate emotions.”

She huffs out a breath of a laugh in disbelief. He isn’t wrong, it’s just the last thing she’d expected to be faced with after all the worrying and careful planning put into this trip, agonizing over her every action, her every word to the Seelies in their realm. And now…

...now, Meliorn stares at her, waiting patiently for her to give any sign of agreement of what he’d like to happen next, with a fire burning bright in his eyes. She feels it too. There’s been a spark between them since long before that encounter in the alleyway, something that sends a shiver down her spine every time they lock eyes and heat rippling through her every time he draws near. She wondered if he felt it, too, and now she knows he did. He still does.

“Alright,” she says finally, moving forward toward him, stopping just short of touching. They lock eyes again, those sparks mirrored in them, while slow, eager smirks spread across each of their mouths before they meet fiercely. There’s no slow start, no steady buildup before Isabelle pulls Meliorn with her as she takes several steps backward until the back of her knees hit the edge of the bed. He falls on top of her and, in the back of her mind, Isabelle is dimly aware of a muted instinct to panic at being crowded and pinned down by the Seelie.

It’s silenced by the waves of pleasure that wash over her with each brush of teeth, of hands, of lips and tongue. Could it be this simple, this black and white?

Isabelle never imagined any decision could feel this effortless… but she hasn’t made all that many decisions before, has she? It’s always been orders and protocol and expectations.

But not this. This is something different.

She isn’t a soldier here, or a sister, or a parabatai. There is no love demanded of her, no expectation or trust or devotion.

There’s only temporary truce and desire, a combination Isabelle’s growing more fond of by the second as she, for the first time in a very long time, loses herself in something entirely her own.

#melizzy #meliorn #isabelle #shadowhunters #shadowhunterbingo #long post #meliorn/isabelle #elle writes a few deadbeat lines

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echoes-of-the-clockwork · 4 years ago

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Book Four: War (Gladiolus x Reader) Chapter Five

(Y/n) headed back to the chocobo with the boys hot on her tail. She wasn't upset that they found out who she was because she would've eventually told them sooner or later. Although, she did wish it could've been a secret just a little longer.

"Hold on, (Y/n)!" Noctis shouted.

War stopped, spinning around to face the boys. An emotionless expression was glued to her face. "What?"

"You really can't expect us not to ask questions after that bombshell, are you?"

"Why does it matter?" She sneered. "All of that's in the past and I'm trying to forget it."

"Can you at least tell us a little bit?" Prompto begged.

"Like what?" She groaned.

"Y'know, your kingdom!"

Her (e/c) eyes stared off into the distance as memories of her birthplace played inside her head. Seeing as giving them some information wouldn't hurt, she told them about her kingdom and the time of her rule. "Vanaheim was the sister kingdom of Niflheim. I was crowned queen when I was only twelve because my father died of an illness. Some...things happened and now Vanaheim lies at the bottom of the ocean."

"What did Gentiana mean by the crimson queen?" Noctis pried.

A sorrowful frown manifested on the horseman's face. The nickname brought back bloodied, painful memories of her tyrannical rule. The guilt from what she did as queen returned tenfold. "If I told you the truth, you'd probably never wish to see me again."

Noctis was about to ask another question, but Ignis stopped him. "We've pried too much. Our apologies, (Y/n)."

"It's only natural to be curious of the unknown," War mumbled. She turned her back to them. "Sorry, but I need to clear my head. I'll catch up with you guys later..."

Teleporting, War traveled to Galdin Quay. She appeared on the sandy beach, collapsing to the ground. It made her happy to see the rain caused by Ramuh wasn't affecting the Leide region. She laid on her back in the sand with a heavy, melancholic sigh. Staring up at the sky, an image of one of the many innocent people she killed in Vanaheim resurfaced in her mind. Her sword pierced the young woman's chest, blood splattering across the white marble floor in the throne room. She remembered watching the life vanish from the woman's eyes as she fell lifeless to the floor.

Covering her face with her arm, (Y/n) hid the tears that formed in her eyes. Although she wanted to blame Gaius for manipulating her, it was by her hand she killed so many. Her love for him blinded her from the truth. He was the puppeteer and she was the marionette he manipulated. By the time she reached her senses, it was too late.

"Ahhh," a voice sighed. "I miss lounging around on a beach."

War recognized the tone of voice and lowered her arm. "Not sure how good it'd be for you to lounge on the beach with how pale you are, Death. You'd fry easily in the sun."

"Hey, I wasn't this pale in my previous life," Death retorts playfully. "Then again, I still burnt pretty easily back then too."

(Y/n) chuckled in amusement. "Sunburn sucks."

"I agree one hundred percent." Death laid beside her sister on the sand. "So, what's bothering you?"

"The boys know who I was in my previous life," the redhead confessed.

"Is...that a good or bad thing?"

"Neither. I really don't care that they know."

"Then why're you out here, crying?" Death inquired.

"Just...old, painful memories resurfacing..." War answered.

"Ah, I know that feeling all too well," the inky-haired girl said. "But I know my memories are not as painful as yours. Out of the four of us, your past is the most painful. If I could go back and change what happened, I would."

"I was my own downfall," (Y/n) whimpered. "Blinded by love, I didn't see the monster standing before me. But still, I was the one who did the killing."

"You were a puppet used by Gaius. He did all his dirty deeds through you because he couldn't get his own hands dirty."

War pushed herself up into a sitting position. "That bastard convinced me so many people were plotting against me. In the end, the one I should've killed was him."

"But in the end, you were victorious!" Death chanted. "You were able to summon Leviathan and stopped Gaius from claiming Vanaheim for Niflheim!"

"I destroyed the entire kingdom!" The redhead bellowed in anger. "I ordered a god to drown everything! I may have stopped Gaius, but only at the cost of all the people who called Vanaheim home."

"I wish I could say I know how you feel, but I can't," Death sorrowfully muttered. "But please, don't let the past blind you and stop you from seeing what could become of your future. We may be immortal, but that doesn't mean we should give up on our futures."

(Y/n) hugged her knees against her chest. "How is it you, Famine, and Pestilence always find the time to be happy and philosophical?"

The inky-haired girl giggled. "Once you leave the past behind, you'll be able to find happiness. And, of course, be philosophical all you want. But for now, just take some time to gather your thoughts. If you ever need any of us, you know how to contact us."

"Thanks, Death," the redhead smiled.

Death smiled back. "Take care, War."

(Y/n) watched her sister disappear before throwing herself back on the sand. She gazed up at the sky, focusing on the white puffy clouds sailing by. "My own happiness..." She whispered to herself. "Is that even possible for me...?"

<------------<<<<<

A few days later, (Y/n) composed herself and her thoughts. She accepted some of what she did when she was a queen, but not all. Deciding to regroup with the royal retinue, she did her best to detect the summoning orb. When she did, she decided to give herself some more time and summoned Ares. Hopping onto the horse's back, she rode in the direction she sensed the orb.

In the afternoon, the Horseman arrived at Sothmocke Haven. She dismounted Ares and walked up to the top of the large rune-carved stone. Seeing the tent set up and the boys relaxing around the campfire, she couldn't deny the fact that she was happy they were safe. With a stoic expression, she made her presence known. "Hey."

All eyes fell on her. Prompto waves at her with a smile while Gladio smirked as she sauntered over towards them. Noctis and Ignis were happy to see War was safe and back together with them.

"Welcome back, firecracker," Gladio grinned.

"Again with the ridiculous nickname," she grumbled. Looking away from Gladio, she met Noctis' gaze. "I see you've claimed the Mark of the Fulgurian. Now you've received the favor of two Astrals."

"Yeah, well, I was getting sick of the rain," Noctis sighed. "Speaking of Astrals, you once earned their favor."

War blinked in surprise. "How'd you know that?"

"I spoke with Gentiana again." He leaned forward in his seat. "Does it ever get any easier?"

"No, it doesn't," she answers honestly. "It'll only get more difficult from here on out. That's why I'm gonna teach you a few things. It's the least I can do."

"You mean like with the armiger and warping?"

"Yes."

"How can you even do all that?" Noctis asked.

"Lucis isn't the only kingdom that was gifted a crystal. Vanaheim was also gifted one. But now my kingdom's Crystal lies at the bottom of the ocean with the rest of Vanaheim. I was only able to retain my abilities because the Crystal is still active." She combed a few crimson strands of hair behind her ear. "But before we do any training, why're you four camped so close to an imperial stronghold?"

"Cindy found the car!" Prompto announced gleefully.

"Which is currently inside that stronghold," Gladio added.

"You plan on infiltrating such a heavily defended stronghold?" She crossed her arms. "That's a hefty task for just the four of you."

"You plannin' on joining us?"

A mischievous glint shines in her (e/c) eyes. "Only if I get to destroy things."

"I don't see why not."

"Then will you serve as a distraction, (Y/n)?" Ignis asked.

"Leave it to me," she replied.

"Since that's settled..." Noctis stood up. "Show me some of your tricks, (Y/n)."

War and the prince walked a short ways from the haven. Gladio and Prompto tagged along, curious as to what the Horseman was going to teach Noctis. Ignis remained behind, deciding to get a head-start on dinner.

(Y/n) took a few steps away from Noctis. "Let's start with the armiger." Out of the blue, myriads of weapons materialized around the girl.

He stared in amazement at how many weapons she had and the large variety. "Damn. How many weapons are there?"

"Thirty. But unlike your ancestral weapons, mine are those of the enemies conquered by Vanaheim. Each one has a dark origin tied to it. But let's leave that for now and focus on your armiger. It may lack the weaponry like mine, but that means nothing if you know how to wield it." She dispelled her armiger, grinning widely. "Hope you're ready, Noctis. I won't go easy on you."

Gladio and Prompto watched from the sideline as (Y/n) taught Noctis how to wield the armiger in different ways. Both were amazed at how the prince's full attention was into the training and how he wasn't complaining after an hour.

Another hour passed and the Horseman moved on to warping. She taught Noctis a few of her techniques that she knew would be beneficial in the future.

By the time she ended the lesson, Ignis finished dinner. Noctis and Prompto dashed off, their stomachs growling simply just thinking about food. (Y/n) watched the two run back to the haven while combing a hand through her crimson locks.

"Hey." Gladio walked over to her. "Thanks for teachin' him."

"Like I said, it's the least I can do," she sighed. "I know what it feels like to have so much weight on your shoulders. I pity Noctis yet I envy him."

"You envy Noct?" He scoffed lightly. "Why?"

"Because he has people like you, Prompto, and Ignis by his side. When I was queen, I thought I had someone I could share my burdens with. Turns out he was just a manipulative asshole who was using me to accomplish his true goal."

"This guy..." Gladio's voice lowered. "His name wouldn't happen to be Gaius, would it?"

Her (e/c) eyes widen in horror. "How the hell did you know that?"

"The nightmare. It's becoming clearer. So, you gonna tell me who he was or do I have to wait for this nightmare to get worse?"

Her eyes narrowed into a glare. "Why do you even care?"

"Because every time I close my eyes at night, I see that asshole kill you," he remarked.

"Listen, I don't know why or how you're having this nightmare, but what you're seeing is my death over and over again. While I was queen of Vanaheim, a boy I knew since childhood was appointed as my advisor. We did everything together and I eventually fell in love with him. I confessed my feelings and so did he. For five whole years, I thought he loved me. Turns out, he never did and was only trying to take Vanaheim away from underneath me. That bastard twisted my mind and made me believe every word that came out of his mouth. The moment I was no longer of use to him was when he stabbed me from behind." (Y/n) clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging into her palms. "Now that I've told you, are you satisfied?"

Gladio heard the hurt in her voice as she spoke about her past. He regretted asking, but at the same he was happy to know a little more about her. "Yeah, sorry for pryin'."

"I'm going to scout the stronghold," she said, desperate to change the subject.

"You don't wanna enjoy Iggy's cooking?" He asked.

"I'm basically a walking corpse and no longer need to eat. What would be the point?" She didn't wait for Gladio's response and left.

<------------<<<<<

Once finished scouting Aracheole Stronghold, (Y/n) returned to the haven where the boys were waiting for her. She told them what she learned, earning a thank you from Ignis.

After sharing everything she knew, the group departed from the haven. Back at Aracheole Stronghold, the Horseman excused herself in order to begin her diversion. She wandered into the stronghold, setting her sights on the one area that caught her attention during her earlier scouting. A grin made its way onto her face as she stood in front of the lines of mechs that were freshly assembled. She looked around, noticing the MTs and soldiers on duty had yet to notice her presence. Cracking her fingers, she held out her hands. "I've always wanted to do this."

Using her powerful fire magic, War created a large fiery vortex. She watched with a wicked grin as it toasted the large mechs. The hunk of metals and wires turned into piles of molten metal because of the extreme heat while others exploded. Because of the fiery vortex and the loud explosions, she was able to gain the attention of every enemy within the stronghold.

The Horseman was quickly surrounded. Soldiers aimed their guns at her while the MTs waited for their orders to attack. She tapped her chin, humming in curiosity. "Swords, bows, pistols..." Her eyes widen as she grinned, snapping her fingers. "Javelins!" Summoning a handful of javelins, she manipulated them with ease. The javelins soared through the air, impaling the imperial forces.

Within seconds, she killed a majority of the enemies surrounding her. A few bullets pierced her body, but she was unfazed as they were absorbed into her body and the bullet hole wounds healed. Seeing this, the remaining soldiers retreated in fear. Unfortunately, the MTs didn't follow their allies and continued to attack her. She easily wiped them out with her javelins before dematerializing her weapons. Looking around at the various bodies splayed across the ground, she sighed. "This wasn't as fun as I thought it'd be..."

Moving to another part of the base where they were manufacturing airships, (Y/n) got to work destroying them. She dragged her finger across the side of one of the airship, creating a large crack in the exterior. Backing away, she smirked in satisfaction when seeing flames erupt from the crack. Before long, the air vessel exploded and destroyed even more airships. The fiery explosion lit up the night sky, fueling the girl's need to destroy even more.

Setting her sights on the horde of MTs running straight for her, War summoned a bow and fired arrow after arrow. Each one pierced the metallic skull of an enemy. She watched in amusement as they fell like flies.

Suddenly, (Y/n) felt a familiar god-like presence. Looking up, she saw Ramuh. The feeling of overwhelming power washed over her as the Astral used his power to kill the remaining imperial forces residing within the stronghold. A small smile appeared on her face. "Looks like Noctis did it."

Just as the Fulgurian vanished, the sun peeked over the horizon. The redhead ridded herself of her bow, hearing nothing but her heart racing from the adrenaline rush. Seeing her job was done, she decided to search for the royal retinue. Wandering around the entire base, she finally found the boys and the car they'd been desperately searching for.

From her peripheral, she saw a person she'd encounter on a couple of occasions while traveling across Eos-Ravus Nox Flueret. He'd been a pain in her side due to his and the empire's interference in her mission to slay the monsters that escaped from the Inner Sanctum. She knew exactly why he wanted the creatures and wouldn't allow him to do as he pleased with such dangerous, unpredictable creatures.

From her perch, she watched Ravus approach the boys. She kept her eyes glued to them, keeping her distance. Her plan was to avoid interfering, but that idea went out the window when Ravus threatens Noctis with his blade. The heterochromia-eyed man slowly raises his sword above his head, then brings it down fiercely. Gladio briefly blocks it with his own sword before Ravus parries the weapon away and slams the pommel of his sword into the shield's chest, sending him flying into the side of the Regalia. Prompto runs to check on Gladio while Noctis gets between them and Ravus.

Unable to stand by any longer, (Y/n) summoned multiple javelins and sent them towards Ravus. Sworn to not harm any mortals, she manipulated the javelins and created a makeshift cage around Ravus. The moment the man spotted her, she hopped down from her perch and sauntered over.

"You..." Ravus growled.

"Still being a pain in the ass, I see," War groaned.

"Your presence on Eos is a plague, Horseman," he spat.

"I'm pretty sure many would say the same about you," she hissed.

Suddenly, Ardyn appears and joins their conversation. "Now, now. I'd say that's far enough. A hand, Highness?"

"Not from you," Noctis spat.

"Oh, but I'm here to help."

Ignis was skeptical of the chancellor's sudden appearance. "And how is that?"

"By taking the army away," he explained.

"You expect us to believe that?" Gladio growled.

"When next we meet, it'll be across the sea. Just so happens we have business of our own with the tutelary deity. Don't we?" Ardyn looks at Ravus before glancing at (Y/n). "My dear, would you..." He gestured to the javelins entrapping his ally.

Reluctantly, War released Ravus. The javelins vanished, allowing him to go free. Ardyn thanked her before looking back at Noctis. "Fare thee well, Your Majesty, and safe travels." Ravus and Ardyn walk away, leaving the group behind.

Prompto looked around at the faces of his friends. "You guys know that guy?"

"Ravus Nox Fleuret, first son of Tenebrae...and elder brother to Lady Lunafreya," Ignis said.

"How do you know him, (Y/n)?" Noctis asked.

"Bastard's been a thorn in my side ever since I came to Eos. He's allied himself with the empire and desires to use the monsters from the Inner Sanctum as puppets. I'm not sure why the empire believes they can control such creatures. They're not like daemons or the beasts native to Eos. They're unpredictable and dangerous. That's why they were sealed away within the Inner Sanctum. And if we thought mortals could handle them, there wouldn't be any need for me and my sisters to be here." She walked over to Gladio and offered him a helping hand.

The shield was surprised at her gesture but accepted it regardless. She helped him to his feet, where she healed him and the others. "Thanks for that, (Y/n)," he said.

"Let's just get the hell outta here."

#ffxv x reader #ffxv #final fantasy xv #final fantasy xv x reader #gladiolus amicitia #gladiolus x reader #gladio x reader

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goldtinged · 4 years ago

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EMMA CARSTAIRS // A CRASH COURSE

❝ kit thought about emma with her sword, emma saving his life. emma hugging cristina and looking at julian like he hung the moon ❞

CONTEXT

emma cordelia carstairs is a character appearing within cassandra clare’s shadowhunter universe. she is a shadowhunter (half angel, half human warriors mandated to protect the world from demons)

she appears as the central character in THE DARK ARTIFICES, a trilogy published in 2016.

She also appears in THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS, specifically as a side character in city of heavenly fire (book 6). she is 12 years old during the events of the original trilogy

If you’ve seen shadowhunters TV - she does not appear in the show but some people related to her do. JEM CARSTAIRS (aka brother zachariah) is her uncle and HELEN BLACKTHORN is the sister of her parabatai, Julian.

CONTEXT PT 2: IMPORTANT EVENTS / TERMS

the dark war: civil war between shadowhunter factions which led to the destruction of large swarths of shadowhunter society and the death of family families. Emma’s parents (supposedly) died in the dark war. evil side is led by Jonathan Morgenstern. This shit is basically based off of Harry Potter so just think deathly hallows adkakd

the endarkened: shadowhunter’s who were turned from angelic to demonic, and became part of Jonathan’s army. Some did so by choice, others by force.

the clave: shadowhunter government, whose seat is in Idris. Idris is the shadowhunter capital, a small city hidden somewhere between france and germany that cannot be accessed by non-shadowhunters. all the good characters hate the clave (and rightly so)

downworlders: name givern to non shadowhunters. eg, werewolves, vampires, warlocks fae ect.

the cold peace: a policy enacted by the clave at the end of the dark war, that punished faerie’s for supporting Jonathan Morgenstern. Leads to the exile of shadowhunters with fae heritage, regardless of their allegiance during the war. it makes interacting with faerie’s illegal. basically any character who is decent fucking hates this policy

parabatai: soldiers who take a vow to become twinned and fight side by side until death. After the vow they are bound together magically for life. It is physically painful to be apart from one another, and the pain of losing a parabatai is considered to be unendurable. They are closer than siblings, and fairly rare within the shadowhunter world. it is illegal for them to fall in love and doing so is punishable under the strongest laws. eg, stripping of runes and exile

BASICS:

Emma was born in 1995. Her parents are John and Cordelia Carstairs. She emigrated to Los Angeles at the beginning of the Dark War as her parents wanted to help assist the Shadowhunter’s they knew there.

She was raised alongside The Blackthorn family, training at the institute they run. Her childhood best friend is Julian Blackthorn.

Emma is a skilled shadowhunter, regarded by some to be the best of her generation, and the successor to Jace Herondale of the title.

She is the current owner of Cortana, a shortsword held within the Carstairs family, forged by Wayland the Smith, it is said to be one of the great swords and therefore is her most valued possession

SKILLS + ATTRIBUTES + RANDOM CHARACTERISATIONS:

extremely dedicated and driven. is considered the best not because of her raw talent but because of how hard she trains. considers the same for herself, she cares most about being good so that when the time comes to enact revenge for her parents she will be successful

distant within the blackthorn family: although she grew up with them, and they consider her their extra sister, emma does not feel comfortable within the family. partially because she misses her own, partially because she believes they don’t consider her family. always refers to them as “julian’s family” “julian’s siblings”. realises by the end of the series she is integral to the blackthorns and how much she loves them / allows herself to be loved by them

funny and blunt: she is sarcastic, both as a means of deflecting attention but also because it’s her sense of humour. she is extremely blunt, bad at lying, and will pretty much always just say what she thinks. not one to maintain relationships she doesn’t value

she is confident and outspoken, especially in terms of her sexuality

skill with music is a family trait but emma can’t play the violin for shit which makes her feel bad.

FAMILY:

Her biological family: John and Cordelia Carstairs (parents, deceased), James Carstairs (uncle), Mina Carstairs (cousin)

Her adopted family: The Blackthorns

consisting of;

Mark and Helen Blackthorn: the eldest Blackthorn siblings, half siblings to the rest. They are both half faerie, half shadowhunter. Both are exiled at the end of the Dark War as part of The Cold Peace (a policy to punish all fae for the involvement of faerie in working against Shadowhunters)

Julian Blackthorn: the eldest sibling living in the family home during the war. He is Emma’s parabatai

Ty and Livvy Blackthorn: twins, two years younger than Julian.

Dru Blackthorn: the youngest girl, four years younger than Emma and Julian

Tavvy Blackthorn: the baby of the family

OTHER IMPORTANT RELATIONSHIPS:

Cristina Rosales: Emma’s best friend, who is on a trip to LA from Mexico during the event of the series (international postings are part of shadowhunter training)

Jem Carstairs: her uncle and the only living Carstairs left beside herself (until his daughter Mina is born).

Tessa Gray: a powerful warlock, Jem’s wife

Clary Fairchild: also her best friend and a mentor. Clary helped her and Julian after the war

Jace Herondale: her mentor and someone she admires

Kit Herondale: Comes to live with the family during the events of the book. He and Emma relate to feeling both family to and separated from The Blackthorns. Sidenote, kit is a legend and I love him

Cameron Ashdown: Emma’s on and off again boyfriend

Diana Wrayburn: tutor at the institute, only person in the series with braincells.

CRASH COURSE OF THE EVENTS OF THE SERIES

CITY OF HEAVENLY FIRE + THE NOVELLAS //

emma and julian become parabatai, so that emma isn’t sent to the shadowhunter academy (school for war orphans lol)

We could—” he started, then stopped, swallowed, and started again. “We could become parabatai.” He said it shyly, half-turning his face away from her, so that the shadows partially hid his expression. “Then they couldn’t separate us,” he added. “Not ever.” Emma felt her heart turn over. “Jules, being parabatai is a big deal,” she said. “It’s—it’s forever.” He looked at her, his face open and guileless. There was no trickery in Jules, no darkness. “Aren’t we forever?” he asked

julian kills his father in the dark war after he is endarkened, to protect his siblings. the clave puts him through a gruelling trial that turns both emma and julian against the clave, embedding a deep seed of resentment and mistrust that fuels a lot of their actions through the rest of the series

julian’s uncle takes over the institute but unknown to everyone, he’s mentally unable to manage it. julian starts running the institute age 12, in secret, so that his family can stay together. emma does not know about this

LADY MIDNIGHT //

emma discovers the body of faerie children, murdered in the same way as her parents were. She always suspected her parents weren’t killed in the war, but killed under the cover of the war. she begins to investigate the murders, and hopes she can enact the revenge she has dreamed of fulfilling

meanwhile, a faerie contingent who have also heard about the murders ask for emma’s help solving them. Because this is illegal, they offer to return Mark Blackthorn to the family in exchange for the shadowhunters help

meanwhile meanwhile, emma and julian realise they are in love and they fuck, even though that is ALSO illegal because parabatai cannot fall in love with each other (though no one knows why). their powers start to change as their feelings for eachother grow

emma solves her parents murder. she kills the person who killed them but realises she gets no satisfaction from it. too late realises she’s based her whole life around getting revenge and now she has nothing

emma talks to jem about the parabatai law and finds out it’s illegal because there is a curse that becomes active when parabatai fall in love. emma thinks the reason her and julian’s powers are changing is because the curse is starting

she receives some frankly terrible advice from tessa and decides to make julian fall out of love with her by breaking his heart

does so by telling him she’s dating his brother, mark

asks mark to fake the relationship, mark in turn offers they just date for real, which she goes for. END BOOK

LORD OF SHADOWS //

emma and mark are dating but it’s fallen back into fake dating because they realise they’re better friends and, mark is in a love triangle between his ex fairy boyfriend and cristina

eventually when emma is sure julian sufficiently resents her they stage a massive break-up

this is a whole ass book of emma and julian angst,,,,, and it’s delicious

julian finds out about the curse and why emma lied and he’s mad, but also, he can’t fully be mad because the curse is deFINITELY WORKING NOW

back to the actual plot: a group of pro cold war supported with extreme anti-downworld takes (they are legit just fantasy fascists) start to rise to power within the clave. honestly there is way more actual plot but it’s not relevant to this blog or emma’s characterisation so moving on

back to emma and julian: they come up with a plan to deal with the curse. emma will beg the inquisitor to exile her but not strip her runes in exchange for them not telling everyone paratabai are cursed which he agrees to

UNTIL ..... the cohort initiate violence during a clave trial and the inquisitor is killed. so is julian’s little sister, livvy. END BOOK

QUEEN OF AIR AND DARKNESS //

i hate this book so there’s that

the leader of the cohort is made inquisitor and starts enacting shitty policies

julian is worried about the curse and how it’s starting to affect him so he just goes and gets all his emotions removed and so he feels nothing for anyone

ty spends the book bullying kit into helping him bring livvy back from the dead (AND IT WORKS LOL)

800 pages of bullshit I don’t have time to get into

the curse comes to fruition, turning emma and julian into giant nephilim with great powers but no feelings (think like, aang in the avatar state) they basically nearly kill everyone but then their family saves them

conveniently, the heavenly fire burns off their parabatai runes thus solving their problem

the cohort take control of the capital in protest of alec lightwood getting made inquisitor. all the shadowhunters who aren’t weirdos abandon the city

helen blackthorn is allowed to return and she decides to take over running the institute, freeing julian from his obligation

emma and julian decide to go travelling the world and the series ends

EMMA + JULIAN:

they are a MESS but I love them.

essentially, they know each other better than anyone. emma understands the pressure julian is under, the weight on his shoulders, his insecurities but also his strengths. julian see’s how emma puts on a facade of strength, gives her a safe space to be vulnerable, and provides a haven of unconditional love

used to sleep in the same bed as kids to help with nightmares, developed a system of communication only they understand, tell eachother everything (until lady midnight anyway)

emma understands how much of his life revolves around his family because hers does too

“you don’t have to do this for me” emma was saying, softly but earnestly, in a voice cristina had never heard her use before“I think I do” julian said “I think I remember making a vow to that effect”“whither thou goest, I will go, whatever stupid thing you do, I will also do? was that the vow”

I LOVE THEM!!

best friends to lovers EXCELLENCE

THIS is the biggest crash course ever and I hope it makes sense. It’s hard to condense so much information not only from the books (and each is like 800 pages) but also from the entire world and lore. But I hope this helps somewhat and I’m always willing to answer questions for anyone who has any.

#bio #EC / CRASH COURSE #aofiduakfakfk here u go non TDA moots #hope this makes sense !!!

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samesanegirl · 5 years ago

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100 Otp Questions - Scorose Edition🌹🦂

the-moon-dust-writings

1. Who loves flower crowns more? - Rose

2. Who is the one who likes to cuddle? Both

3. Who has awful taste in music? Rose likes R&B and Dream Pop while Scorpius likes old and jazz music. You decide!

4. Who is the meme lover? Scorpius

5. How did their second date go? They went to dine at Diagon Alley and had a great time. Rita Skeeter published an article entitled “Potential Death Eater dates Rose Weasley. Is it true love or the effects of Amortentia?” Rose egged her house the day after

6. How many children do they want/have? Rose would want 2-4 kids while Scorpius is comfortable with 2.

7. Who hides the weapons? Rose

8. Who is the better dancer? Scorpius, he probably had ballroom classes when he was younger

9. Do/Did they have a theme wedding? Quidditch themed

10. What do their parents think of them dating? Draco and Astoria love Rose as she helped Scorpius grow (Lucius and Narcissa are not impressed.) Hermione and Ron are happy but he is moody that he is now in-laws with Draco

11. Are they a super sappy couple? They show minimal PDA when they are in public. However, they are kinda sappy when they are alone

12. How did they get together? Scorpius saved Rose in a Quidditch game when she was knocked off her broom. She realised she loved him in that moment and kissed him

13. Who asked the other to get married? Scorpius, although Rose was planning a proposal as well

14. Who stays up too late and makes stupid jokes? Both

15. Who is the nerd? Both

16. Who knows the most obscure facts? Rose. She learned some from Hugo

17. Who makes the other a flower crown? Rose as Lily Luna taught her

18. Who likes to read? Both

19. Who bothers the other person while the other person reads? Scorpius

20. Who tutors the other? Scorpius tutored Rose on astrology and potions. Rose tutored Scorpius on ancient runes and muggle studies

21. Do they have similar taste in movies? Yes. They like psychological thriller, crime-mystery and foreign films

22. How do their personalities compliment each other? When emotional, Rose can be quite impulsive and hot tempered. It takes a lot for Scorpius to punch someone out of anger. So he keeps her in check. Scorpius craves acceptance from the Wizarding World, and Rose offers him that and never questions his morality. Rose needs someone who is open and honest. Someone who loves her instead of her ‘Golden Girl’ image. Scorpius has never seen her through those lenses. They offer comfort, support and acceptance. Their determination and ambition match, so they support each other’s dreams

23. How do they tell everyone that they are going to be having a kid/adopting a child soon? They reveal the news at The Burrow at a birthday/Christmas/New Year’s Eve

24. Who has better fashion sense? Scorpius

25. Who will punch someone out if they are rude to their partner? Rose

26. What songs do they sing together in the vehicle? The Weird Sisters’s biggest hits. They do end up singing Muggle songs once Scorpius learns the lyrics from Google

27. What other couple would your otp get along with? Jim & Pam, Jake & Amy, Aragorn & Arwen, Elio & Oliver and Mr & Mrs Smith

28. Who likes to prank the other? Rose

29. Who is the one who loves to take pictures? Both, but Scorpius takes more than Rose. 30. How would they react if they found out they were soul mates? Scorpius would cry with tears of joy. Rose would shrug and say she knew all along.

31. Where would they live? I never imagined them living in Malfoy Manor, due to their bad memories of their family feuds. They would live around the luscious forests in England where they are surrounded by nature.

32. What type of dragon would they own, if they could have one? They would adopt a Antipodean Opaleye. However, Rose would beg Scorpius to let her adopt an Ukrainian Irobelly and a Swedish Short-Snout

33. If they were both vampires, what type of vampires would they be? Rose would be a dhampir and Scorpius would be a moroi

34. What would they dress up as, for Halloween? Mr & Mrs Smith or James Bond and Vesper Lynd

35. Can they name each other’s favourite food? Yes. Rose loves ratatouille and Scorpius loves risotto

36. Do they have pet names for one another? Rose: Rosie, Rosebud, Weasley, Weasel, Mi Amor & Love. Scorpius: Scorp, Scorpion, Scorpy, Malfoy, Darling, Baby, Idiot & Dickhead. 37. How do they cheer each other up? Scorpius would give massages, bubble baths and would throw Rose on his shoulder until she laughs. Rose would cuddle him and roast any of the people who are responsible for putting him in such mood

38. Do they show a lot of PDA? Scorpius is a reserved guy and Rose respects that. They show minimal PTD such as holding hands, forehead kisses, quick kisses and putting their arm around each other.

39. How old were they when they got together? In their sixth year, Rose was 16 and Scorpius was 17.

40. Who is the one that would bring the puppy home? Rose. She’s a cat person but she knows how much Scorpius wants a dog

41. Can they do yoga couple’s poses? They are badass Quidditch players. I’m sure they can handle any curveball being thrown at them.

42. What is their song? A Song For You - Donny Hathaway (Scorpius’ favourite song)

43. What does their room look like? Rose would decorate their room with fairy lights and meaningful photos. Scorpius would paint their room blue and include arm chairs where they can both relax. Both of them would have bookshelves on their room so they could read.

44. Who would be the one to kill zombies while the other keeps them grounded? Rose kills the zombie while Scorpius keeps her grounded

45. Who makes the other breakfast in bed? Scorpius.

46. Who loves kids more? Rose

47. Do either of them have a crazy ex? Surprisingly, Scorpius’ exes are quite chill, and they leave the relationship on civil terms. Rose’s ex is possessive and jealous.

48. What are their favourite colours? Rose is lavender, while Scorpius is blue

49. Who likes to cook? Scorpius

50. Who is the forgetful one? Scorpius

51. Does either of them know how to fight? Scorpius is better at duels than physical violence. On the other hand, Rose is fierce with hexes and could dropkick the fuck out of you.

52. What do they do for Valentines Day? They would go to a nice Muggle restaurant, not wanting to be bombarded with the Wizarding press

53. Who swears more? Rose

54. Who has the better comebacks? Rose. But Scorpius has sarcastic comebacks up his sleeve too.

55. Who would start a fight with another parent at a bake sale? Rose

56. Who reads buzzfeed? Rose likes the quizzes

57. Who is the hopeless romantic? Scorpius

58. Do either of them know how to do a handstand? Rose

59. Who can rap better? Rose since she listens to it more

60. Do either of them want to go sky diving? Rose because she loves being in the air

61. What do they usually text about? They text about their weird work stories

62. Who is the dramatic one? Most people would say Rose due to her energetic personality but Scorpius has had his share of dramatic moments

63. Is either one confrontational? Rose when she’s had enough of your shit

64. What is their favourite cuddle position? Honeymoon hug and Rose sitting on his lap with their arms around each other

65. Who are their favourite musical artist(s)?” Scorpius - Donny Hathaway, Etta James & Ray Charles. Rose - H.E.R, Clairo, The Weird Sisters and Lana Del Rey

66. What are their parenting styles? Rose would be affectionate but would remain a strict parent. She would be teaching her kids life advise and guide them on a good path while still acting adventurous around them. Scorpius might actually spoil his kids but will be very stern when they are in trouble. He would make sure that they listen to Rose and never disrespect her

67. Who would be the more laid back one? Scorpius is very cool-headed around stressful times, but Rose is more laid-back when she is socialising

68. Who listens to more vulgar music? Rose, probably

69. Do either of them have secrets even the other doesn’t know? That Rose’s first crush was Teddy Lupin when she was a kid and that she dated Viktor Krum’s son for a while. Scorpius would not tell Rose that the Malfoy's were partially responsible for Hermione’s torture

70. Who is their go to couple for a double date? Albus, of course

71. Do they tip the waiter/waitress on their date? No

72. How do they work out a fight? They have different temperaments so nothing can be too intense. They try to be very calm about it and balance their reasons with logic and emotional until they come to an agreement. If its a small fight, they shag afterwards

73. Who brings home an illegal pet? Rose would bring a baby dragon and a Hippogriff on the same day

74. What side of the bed do each of them sleep on? Scorpius left and Rose right

75. What is their favorite photo of them two together? Their first kiss at a Quidditch match. One where Scorpius playfully picks up Rose in The Burrow and several photos of them and Albus when they are travelling Europe

76. Who takes longer in the bathroom? Scorpius

77. Who has more songs on their ipod? Rose

78. What movie did they first see together? Star Wars with the Weasley-Potter clan

79. What do they like to see each other in? Rose likes to see Scorpius either in a tuxedo or topless. Scorpius likes to see Rose in a Montrose Magpies sweater because it annoys her

80. Who makes jokes during inappropriate times? Rose. And Scorpius feels guilty of laughing.

81. At what age do they discuss the possibility of children? After they are at the peak of their careers. Realistically, around 28 years old

82. What do they love about each other the most? Rose loves that Scorpius is kind and very respectful. She loves that he completely understands her and always supports her decisions. Scorpius loves Rose’s warm nature and her willingness to cheer people up when they are down. He also loves her adventurous spirit and never gets bored when he’s with her

83. Who is the one that sees the big picture, while the other focus’s on the small details? Rose sees the big picture while Scorpius focuses on small details

84. What would they write on their partner’s social media’s for their anniversary? Scorpius would post photos of Rose and write a paragraph about how much she changed his life. Rose would post an embarrassing photo of Scorpius (like when his ice cream cone fell on his pants) and says how much she loves him

85. Who is bad at math? Rose

86. Who googles everything? Scorpius

87. Who does stuff on impulse? Rose. Luckily Scorpius is always present

88. How do they comfort each other when they are helpless to do anything about the situation? Rose would just cuddle Scorpius and try to lift his mood by suggesting a playful Quidditch game. Scorpius would listen to her and would offer a massage to relieve stress

89. What is an inside joke they have? Dirty minded jokes

90. Who makes the other smile with almost no effort at all? Rose

91. What is their favourite holiday? Rose loves Christmas and Scorpius loves New Year’s Eve

92. Who is the one that is calm and collected while the other is angry and destructive? Scorpius is the calm one and Rose is the impulsive one

93. What is their favourite board game to play? Wizarding chess and exploding snap (not a board game but still

94. Who accidental sets something on fire? Rose when she loses her temper

95. Who has the car ready while the other is robbing the store? Since Rose has a Muggle license, Scorpius would have to rob the store

96. What artist/group did they go to for their first concert? The Weird Sisters

97. Who sleep talks? Scorpius

98. Who is the more social one? Rose. Scorpius is more quiet and reserved

99. What are their karaoke songs? Any songs from The Weird Sisters

100. Who would get up on stage and make a fool of themselves just to make the other laugh? Both

#scorose writings #scorose is my OTP #scorose #rosius #rose weasley #Rose and Scorpius #Rose Granger Weasley #scorpius malfoy

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leahxx129 · 5 years ago

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The Last Descendant (Sam Winchester x Reader) pt.5/Final Chapter

Disclaimer: Tumblr is being weird again so if you’re using the app, the ‘Keep Reading’ cut off line may not be visible inspite of the fact that I always insert one.

Hi everyone! I originally planned on posting this on Friday but your girl is a busy bee and had some personal stuff to take care of. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the final part to this story, I had lots of fun writing it.

Summary to pt.5: You’ve managed to win a battle against Michael in the woods, but the war is not over just yet. He’s powerful - more than anyone you’ve ever encountered - but you also have some aces up your sleeve.

Warnings: slight cursing, character death

Word count: 2.140-ish

PART 1. PART 2. PART 3. PART 4.

As the angels have disappeared, the force holding you flat against the trees dissipates, causing you all to fall to your knees. The first thing you realize when you get up is that there’s only three of you left – Kaia’s taken off without prior notice. Your blood runs cold for a minute but then you find the spear in the tall grass where you threw it. Sam makes sure everyone is well enough to travel and following Jody’s suggestion, you drive to her place.

It’s already dark when you pull up in her driveway. Neither you nor Sam have said a single word throughout the ride and as the engine dies, you feel an urge to change this.

“Sam...” you put a hand on his thigh “I’m gonna do everything I can in order to replicate the spear and we’ll get him back, okay? I promise.”

He puts his large one over yours and squeezes it.

“I know, Y/N. Now, let’s get inside and take a look at your wound.”

The interior of Jody’s house reminds you of your childhood home, and a sense of nostalgia washes over you, mixed with hope that one day even you can have something like this. Maybe with Sam. Who knows?

“Alright, the guest room is ready.” Jody informs you, pulling you out of your thoughts. “A bathroom opens directly from it, clean towels can be found in the cabinet. And if you’re hungry there’s food in the fridge, knock yourself out.”

“Thanks, Jody.”

“As for you, Sam, I’m sorry, but I don’t have any more guest rooms, so you’re stuck with the couch.” she pouts.

“It’s okay, uhm, we’re kind of used to sleeping together.” Sam flashes an awkward smile.

Jody appears startled for a second but soon regaines composure.

“In that case, excuse me for a second. I need to prepare another set of pillows in the guest room.”

When everything’s all set you decide to scrub off the combination of dirt, blood and sweat that’s defiling your body. Usually you shower with an almost boiling hot water, but this time you must settle for medium temperature as the scars and bruises don’t really appreciate the heat. You nearly punch Sam in the face when he pulls the floral shower curtain open, but realizing it’s him, you’re able to stop yourself in time.

“God, Sam, do not do that again! I ain’t the screaming kind of scared, I’m the might-break-your-nose kind of scared.”

“Noted!” he smiles, stepping into the bathtub.

You don’t question what he’s doing in there with you. Maybe for the first time ever in your life, you let someone else take control of a situation, and to much of your surprise, you discover it’s not that bad. He gently cleanses every inch of your body, with special attention to the scars.

“You know, I really think your shoulder could use a couple of stitches.” he whispers. You can hear a little worry in his tone.

“Nah, I’ve had worse I didn’t patch up and I’m still around.” you reply, swiping aside a wet strand of hair that was sticking to his forehead and you kiss him softly.

When you’re all finished, you dress up in the clothes Jody left you on the foot of the bed and pick up the spear from the corner of the room.

“Whoah, what are you doing?” Sam asks incredulously.

“Well, what does it look like I’m doing?” he opens his mouth to speak but you continue “You know what, don’t answer that. I’m gonna go to the garage and try to replicate this.”

“No, you’re not. Look, sweetheart, let’s be sensible here. You haven’t slept in a long time and I can assure you that the world’s not gonna end in those few hours when you do. I talked to Cas and he was able to track down Michael in Missouri. If anything happens, we’ll know firsthand. You need to be strong both mentally and phyisically to do what you’re about to… you know I’m right, so don’t fight it!” he delivers a lecture while taking the weapon out of your hand.

You pull a face but give in to his reasoning anyway. This time you manage to get three full hours of sleep before the nightmares start tainting your subconscious. Terrifying images you haven’t seen in a long time flood your mind, and you successfully wake the whole house up with your screams. You can hear Sam’s soothing vocie and Jody’s nervous inquiries about your well-being before you fully come around.

“I’m…I’m alright. I’m fine, really.” you stutter unconvincingly while running a hand through your hair. “Uhm, Jody?”

“Yeah?”

“Could you please show me your garage? I’ll collect the tools from Sam’s car and get right down to work.”

The weapon contains an ancient magic you’ve never encountered before, or even anything similar to it. The runes carved into the shaft belong to a language uknown to you, making your job all the more difficult. Nevertheless, you try your best, as always. First, you recreate the shape of the spear and its head, then join the two together. Replicating the runes requires the most time – you only realize just how much when the first lights of morning illuminate the garage and Sam brings you breakfast. You take a few bites of your toast and drink your coffee in one gulp.

“Okay, so here goes everything…” you mutter as you begin performing a spell, which should transfer some of the magic from the original weapon into the replica. The incantation you recite next supposedly enhances the transferred magic.

“It looks like the same to me.” Sam states when you show them your work.

“Yeah, and it also possesses that creepy vibe the original one does.” Jody nods in agreement.

“Good. Hopefully, it’ll work just as well, too. Let’s visit Missouri and kick some archangel ass, shall we?” you propose.

You must give it to Michael – he has exceptionally good taste. Both the exterior and interior of the building he chose as temporary residence radiates elegance. You meet up with Cas and a boy in the underground parking lot. You furrow your brows.

“Who’s the kid?” you glance between Sam and the angel, the latter moving infront of the boy as you speak.

“Uhm, his name is Jack. Also, he happens to be the son of satan.” Cas replies.

Out of reflex, you touch the side of your overknee boots looking for your knife but ease off almost immediately and extend an arm towards the boy. Cas eyes you with suspicion.

“Don’t worry, Castiel, I’m not gonna attcak him.”

He seems hesitant but eventually steps aside, allowing you to shake Jack’s hand.

“I’m Y/N. Y/N Colt.”

His eyes widen.

“Colt? Are you related to Samuel Colt?” your nod sends him over the edge “Oh, wow! This is soo cool! I’m Jack! You must have some awesome stories to tell! When this is over, could you tell me all of them?”

“I’d absolutely love to, Jack!” you smile at his child-like enthusiasm, doubting that a sweet kid like him could be related to the Devil himself.

“Alright, I think we should go over the plan one more time.” Sam changes the subject.

You talk everything over one last time - including the intel on the monsters Sam got from a friend named Garth - and enter the elevator that takes you to the top floor. You feel like the tension could be cut with a knife.

An empty, silent hall welcomes you as you exit.

“Michael is the only one I can sense.” Cas whispers.

“I’m not sure if that’s a good thing.” you whisper back.

You all take feather light steps until you reach a double-winged door and Cas nods, confirming the archangel’s location. Sam kicks in the door in a blink of an eye. A well-dressed Michael is staring out the window, holding a glass of some probably expensive booze.

“Welcome!” he greets, turning to your direction. “Well, well, well… what do we have here? The Three Muskateers? If so, I have to admit, Y/N, you are the loveliest d’Artagnan I have ever laid my eyes upon.”

“Oh my God, just cut the crap or else I’m gonna vomit!” the words slip out before you could think them through.

As a result, Michael’s face hardens even more and he extends an arm in the height where your neck would be, casting an invisible force that pulls you straight into his grip.

Sam yells out your name in desperation.

“Oh, don’t worry, Samuel. I am not going to snap her pretty little neck. Although, my fingers may leave a bruise.” Michael exclaims innocently then averts his gaze back to you.

You find it hard not to try stripping his fingers from your neck with both hands, but there’s no other way. One hand is on his but with the other one you sign three behind your back – the catcher singal for a slider in baseball. Sam catches on, takes the spear out of Castiel’s trenchcoat and throws it to you. But before you could sink the tip in Michael’s body, he snatches the weapon and breaks it in half with one hand.

“Did you honestly believe it was going to be that easy to take me down?” he asks with utter disbelief. “The way you underestimate me is quite offensive.”

“Let her go, Michael.” Jack speaks up.

“I don’t think so, child. In fact, here’s what’s going to happen!” he looks right into your eyes “I am going to kill all of them – in which order, that’s your call – and then I will release my monster army on this city with you by my side. I think this vessel is handsome enough, you’ll grow used to him, darling.”

“Yeah, he may be handsome… but I kinda have a thing for his brother, asshole!”

Before he can react, you stab him in the chest with the knife from your boots. He looks down at the shaft smiling but it soon fades into an expression of sheer panic. He lets go of you and tries to pull the weapon out.

“Did you honestly believe we didn’t have a plan B? The way you underestimate us is quite offensive...” you retort.

“What’s happening?! I demand to know!” he bellows, confused.

“I upgraded my favorite blade a little. Now it has the magic of the spear from that other dimension, too. You like it?”

He screams out in agony while his whole body is lighting up with a blue-ish white blaze. You take a couple of steps back and bump into Sam, who envelopes you in a shielding embrace. Cas and Jack try to cover their eyes as the brightness has risen to an extent that’s almost blinding. Michael’s shrieking finally dies out with a huge energy explosion that busts out all the windows in the suite.

He is gone and the only thing he left behind is a very much so bleeding Dean Winchester on the floor.

Dean is slowly opening his eyes. The fluorescent neon lights, the white walls and the beeping of machines tip him off regarding his whereabouts – he’s in a hospital. He tries to rip the needle out of his arm, but Sam prevents him from doing so.

“Hey, no! Stop!”

“Sam? Wha- what happened? Where am I?”

“Uhm, long story short, Y/N killed Michael and injured you in the process, so you are in a private clinic in Missouri.”

“Private clinic? You know damn well we can’t afford that stuff!”

“You may not be able to, but I can.” you appear in the door with two cups of coffee, one of which you hand to Sam while sitting down on a chair next to him.

“Uhm, we appreciate the offer, really, but we can’t accept it.” Dean says in protest without a beat.

“Hey… I almost killed you, I believe this is the least I can do.”

There’s a stare-down between the brothers and Dean’s the one to break the connection first.

“Alright, thank you.” he mumbles eventually, then checks his bandage by looking down the inside of his hospital robe.

“Uhm, question. Based on the place of the wound, how am I not dead right now?”

“Well, I know how to stab someone without killing them... Which is probably the weirdest thing I’ve ever said to anyone, so let’s pretend it never left my mouth, please.”

Both men chuckle lightly, and you feel a little heat rise to your cheeks.

“Hot, feisty and funny? Sam, you better not mess this up or I’ll snatch her right out of your hands.” Dean comments jokingly and this time, it’s your turn to laugh and Sam’s to blush.

“Don’t worry about that, Dean…” he intertwines his fingers with yours “I won’t. I kinda have a thing for her…”

#sam winchester x reader #Sam Winchester #reader #sam x reader #SPN #spnfic #supernatural #fanfic #series #final chapter

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agonizedembrace · 3 months ago

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poses 🥃 + your opinion on yone , ma'am , in any verse you'd like .

Send me ‘ 🥃 ‘ + plus a question, and my muse will answer it while drunk.

" that ol' bounty hunter? " words that slur together, a delightful chuckle that rumbles from her chest. down goes her glass, making the counter hum in response before she leans against it, chest present. " almost feel sorry for 'im, really. "

" stuck between life 'n death, isn't he? can't say that i pity 'im, but i welcome the presence. too bad ol' gragas wont let me make a lay outta him. " cue a dramatic huff. " suppose it don't matter, he ain't my type. should get 'im on stage with me -- think he could sing a duet with me? "

#» WHO DOES A GIRL HAVE TO KILL TO START ANOTHER RUNE WAR? ( ASK )#windchaser #» HATE AND LOVE ARE JUST TWO WORDS FOR PASSION ( IC )#» V. { HN }#eve just blabbering along like : D

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crimson-mage-02 · 5 years ago

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Voltron Legendary Defender Written in the Stars A Thousand Lifetimes

Summary: Voltron and Honerva come together at the source of all realities in the ultimate battle between good and evil for the survival of the universe.

Note: Here it is, the very last chapter of Season 8! Hope you had enjoyed all three stories i have made along with making my own character Kaela. Hope you all enjoyed her character. Enjoy reading! Hope you enjoyed the journey!

@spacelion-loveshermulletson, here it is! The very, very last chapter! Hope you enjoyed the journey!

The battle against Honerva continues in alternate reality of Altea with many Alteans down below watching the fight. Honerva shoot a blast at the Castle where Zarkon was shielding his Lotor away from the attack and Voltron depleted the attack and saved them from the blast with their sword.

Honerva knocked down Voltron the ground proceeding to attack them. “We have to take the fight as far away from here as—” Keith started as he saw Honerva coming their way and lunged her sword at them but they all moved out of the way, getting away from the Alteans, not wanting to harm them or getting anyone hurt.

They clashed blades together and fought on with Honerva tripping them using the tail and tried to stab through Voltron using her drill. She pounded them into the ground. Allura gritted her teeth as she let out angered battle cry and blasted Honerva off them.

“Now let’s finish this!” Allura growled, preparing to fight back. “This is for Kaela!”

“Incoming!” Lance shouted seeing one of the wings are coming their way and stabbed them from the back. And two came and stabbed in the lower abdomen, falling down on the ground.

Then all of the flaps of the wings were creating a portal up in the sky along taking away the quintessence from Voltron. “We can’t let this happen. She can’t get away.” Shiro said. They all pulled out the flaps of the wings out of them and went after Honerva through the portal.

“Is everyone okay? Allura?” Keith asked. They all responded much to his relief and haven’t heard from Allura.

“I’m here, Keith.” Keith sighed in relief, glad to hear that she was alright.

“Does anyone has eyes on Honerva?” Shiro asked, looking around for her. They all saw strands in front of them and glowed brightly.

“What is this place?” Lance asked.

“I-I’m not sure.” Allura said. They all gasped hearing Honerva from behind them.

“This is the beginning.” Honerva said as she charged at them. “And the end.” She shot one of the strands making all of the paladins seeing the people that lived in another reality.

“Can—Can you all feel that?” Allura asked, looking up ahead where the strands were. “These strands are...”

“The only remaining realities left in existence.” Lance said.

“This place is the source of time, of space, of…” Pidge started as she looked at the strands.

“Everything.” Hunk finished as he held onto the controls tightly.

“I will end this once and for all!” Honerva snarled as she shot down all of the reality strands. Removing them from all of existence. Voltron flew in and then felt the wave of the explosion seeing all of the innocent lives in another reality.

“She’s destroying all realities!” Allura grunted.

Honerva kept on destroying all of the strands until there is nothing left. And there was only one more strands left. “She’s destroyed everything. There’s only one reality left.” Keith said.

“No. Please.” Allura gasped seeing Honerva was going after the last strand.

They all clashed blades with Honerva to prevent her from destroying the last strand. Destroying the remaining reality. Honerva thrusted Voltron forwards towards the last remaining strand.

“If Honerva destroys this final strand all of existence will end with it!” Allura exclaimed. Then Voltron had created extra booster with enough fire power to push Honerva away from the last remaining strand. Then the light appeared and shone brightly coming from Voltron and Honerva’s mech.

(~)

Honerva was teleported in a void with light orbs floating around her. She gasped softly as she saw Kaela standing in front of her with her hair down and was in a white dress. She had this unreadable expression as she walked towards her.

“Where are we?” Honerva demanded.

“The connected consciousness of all existence.” Allura said to Honerva until she saw Kaela in the void and the paladins gasped, seeing Kaela standing in front of them.

“You think you’re safe here? Soon, all will cease to exist.” Honerva said.

“You have to stop this.” Kaela pleaded. “You have to stop all of this destruction.”

“All these worlds, all these realities, they deserve to live.” Hunk said.

“Those realities are flawed and weak, living out the same pathetic cycle of war and pain.” Honerva said.

Allura walked up to her. “There is beauty in their flaws. I lost my father, my mother, my planet, to this war, but I’ve gained a new family and a stronger than any I could have imagined.”

“Humans began very flawed. There were wars, hate. But each with mistake, they learned and grow.” Pidge said.

“Now we reach out to other worlds to pass on those same lessons and spread them across the universe like your people once did.” Shiro added.

“And with every new world touched, the message grows.” Hunk said.

“Every world, every reality. We wouldn’t exist without the others.” Keith said.

“Our differences are what makes us stronger.” Lance added.

“You think your words mean anything to me? I’ve lived multiple lifetimes, and all of them filled with pain and loss. If I cannot experience the simple joys of life, why should anyone else?” Honerva asked, glaring at the Paladins and Kaela.

Allura put both of her hands on her temple and Honerva gasped seeing all of her past memories with King Alfor and her adventures before she was corrupted. “There was a time when you loved more than just your family, a time when your fascination with how vast the universe is gave way to your desire to help others and uplift others.”

Honerva got her Altean markings reverted back to normal as she turned see the memories of Lotor. “You tried to help him. He was happy. He deserved better. You deserved better as well, Kaela. Better than I could give. I am so sorry that I had killed you in cold blood.”

“Honerva, you were as desperate as Zarkon when he tried to save you. And you were desperate to find your son. You loved them. You still have love for your family. And what I did was out of love to save my brother and you did the same when you were trying to find your family.” Kaela said.

“Lotor may be misguided, but, ultimately, he wanted to preserve life. Honour your son. Help me change this.” Allura said.

Honerva felt tears rolling down her cheeks. “I’m sorry, but the damage is done. There’s nothing left to save.”

“I can change the Quintessence within your vessel. Your son helped me learn how to transform it from a destructive force into a life-giving force. But I cannot do it alone.” Allura said, offering her hand to her.

“But that would require-…”

“I know the risks.” Allura said as she offered her hand, but Kaela’s held hers. Much to Allura’s confusion. She looked over at the young mage princess as she gave her an unreadable expression on her face.

Kaela stood quiet for a moment in silence. She helped Honerva up to her feet and turned to her and the paladins. “I know you knew the risks. But you don’t deserve this, Allura. And…I am the only one who can also do this.” Kaela said.

“W-What are you talking about Kaela?” Allura asked as she stuttered and trembled. Feeling her body going numb all over and clasped her hands together.

“I have broken one of the laws by using dark magic and that my runes are disappearing because of it.” Kaela confessed as she held on to her arm and shown her runes were disappearing.

The paladins gasped with Keith knowing why her runes were disappearing. “But you did that to save us.” Lance said in disbelief after hearing that she had used Dark Magic to save the universe and them. Along with the fact that her runes were disappearing, and she didn’t tell them. Or either of them.

“I had to pay the price, Lance. I…I have to deal with the consequences on my own.” Kaela said. “This is why I never told you what had happened during that last battle on Earth. I wasn’t ready to tell you then. But it is happening right now.”

“You knew? And that was the reason why?” Keith asked sadly as he narrowed his eyes, feeling hurt that she didn’t tell him about her runes were disappearing aside from her telling that she had absorbed Dark Magic. For the very second time.

“Yes. I knew.” Kaela nodded and then looked at everyone who had crestfallen looks. “All I want for you all is to live your lives to the fullest and never throw it away.” Kaela said.

“No, there has be another way.” Allura pleaded desperately as Honerva walked towards her and stood beside Kaela.

“You have a life to live with your family and friends. And with one man you love. I shall use the remaining Quintessence I have left to save all realities. My mission…Our mission ends here, right here and right now.” Honerva said.

“And I have my last remaining mana to restore all of existence.” Kaela said to the paladins. “I have to take it. It is my purpose. Your paths go on. Mine ends here.”

“There will be no Voltron without you.” Hunk said as tears started to form in the corners of his eyes. He will miss Kaela so much, but he knew that the sacrifice must be made.

“Voltron will always be needed, Hunk. The rest of the work is up to the people and you all. They’ll have you to guide them and bring them together.” Kaela said with a sad smile as they shared their last hug.

Kaela turned to the weeping Green Paladin. “Goodbye, Pidge.”

“I’m gonna miss you, Kaela.” Pidge sniffled as the two girls hugged tightly. They both recalled back to their memories whenever they were helping each other in the Castle of Lions. And how Pidge was the first person to accept her aside from Shiro when they all first met.

“I’m going to miss you too, Katie. Please stay curious and fearless.” Kaela said. “Here, I want you to have this.”

Pidge looked at the green pendant with two purple crystals in her hand. “You sure?” Pidge asked as she was about to take it from her.

Kaela nodded and put the pendant around her neck. “You look beautiful, Katie.” Pidge’s tears wouldn’t stop flowing down as she hugged her again. Kaela broke the hug as she wiped her tears before going to Shiro.

“Most of them won’t know the sacrifice you made so they could live. You won’t be able to see what they had done to honour you.” Shiro said.

“I will always be watching over you, Shiro. I will always be there to guide you. I wish you full happiness and a peaceful life that you deserved and needed.” Kaela said as she hugged him. “Thank you for giving me another chance to meet my brother.”

“You never have to thank me for anything, kiddo.” Shiro said as tears formed in the corner his eyes.

Kaela smiled and moved in front of Lance and looked away for a moment until they looked at each other. “It has been a quite an adventure.” Lance said, looking away from her not wanting to let her see his tears. But it was too late. They were already rolling down his cheeks.

“It has.” Kaela said as her voice cracked and wiped his tears away. “Stay safe and fulfil your dreams, Lance.”

Lance felt a lump in his throat. “And thank you for everything you had taught me. It has been a greatest pleasure to fly with you, partner.”

“At first, I thought you were a nuisance, but you proved me wrong otherwise. You proved yourself that you are more capable to do great things as a Paladin of Voltron. I am proud of you, Lance. It has been an honour to being your partner and sister.” Kaela said as they both hugged tightly. “Take care of Katie, or otherwise, I’ll hunt you down.”

Lance let out a teary chuckle and they broke the hug with Lance kissing her on the cheek. Kaela let go of him as he comforted Pidge, he wrapped his arms around her. Pidge hugged her boyfriend tightly with her arms around him. They comforted each other in a tight embrace.

Kaela saw Allura was in Keith’s arms and they were comforting one another. She noticed how close they were and realized that they are now together. She came towards Allura as she hugged her tightly. “Please, please, don’t go.” Allura wept as she already knew she had died to save them, but she doesn’t want her to go just yet.

“Allura, I have to. And you know what has happened. For the sake of the universe, Allura. I’m doing this for all of you. You deserve to live. And to rule Altea and continue your father’s legacy.” Kaela said as she held her hands. Allura gasped as she saw Kaela taking off the crown. The crown she had given her after her capture. After they declared their friendship that lasted. Kaela was willingly to give back to her.

“I won’t be needing this anymore.” Kaela said as she put the crown on her forehead. Allura’s tears flowed down and Allura smiled. They pulled away from the hug as Kaela used her powers for the last time and got the dark entity out of her with Honerva destroying it. Allura gasped softly and saw that she was free from the dark entity at long last.

“Thank you. I am so proud of what you have done for us. I will truly miss you. Thank you for being my friend, Kaela.” Allura said with tears rolling down.

“And thank you, Allura for everything. Thank you for being my friend. Thank you for giving a second chance.” Kaela smiled and held her hands. “You have my blessings.” Allura smiled brightly knowing what she had meant. She had given her blessings for being with Keith. The two girls smiled at each other and hugged each other again before Kaela went over to her brother.

Kaela held his hands tightly as Keith rubbed the back of her hands and he saw her arms were no longer covered by her mage runes. “This was it, wasn’t it? Your nightmares?”

“Yes, it was.” Kaela replied with tears rolling down her cheeks.

“W-Why you didn’t say anything, Ella?” Keith asked as his voice started to crack.

“I still die either way and this is all we have. I know that the lions have enough quintessence in them. The universe will always need Voltron and you.” Kaela said, caressing his cheek, seeing that there were tears forming.

Keith put his forehead against hers. “But you have so much to see. So much for you to explore.”

“I know.” Kaela said as tears flowed down. “But I already have you and mom along with a wonderful family. I had everything I ever needed. You made that happen when you first found me.”

“Kaela, when you accepted me, it helped me to accept myself. I am proud to see what you have become. I am proud of what you had done. You helped us to save the universe. And you saved countless lives with us.” Keith said with a sad smile.

“You have helped me to believe in myself in using my powers and I want to thank you for all the moments we had shared together. And no matter what happens, I’ll always be with you forever.” Kaela said as she put her hands on his shoulders. Both of them closed their eyes with their foreheads pressed against each other.

Then appeared purple and red aura, twirled and danced around them. All of her mana were all transferred into Keith. Kaela pulled away as she cupped his left cheek and brushed her thumb against it. Appearing a new marking on his cheek, while wiping his tears away.

Keith opened his eyes with tears were flowing down his cheeks. He looked at his sister one last time and kissed her on the forehead gently. Once they pulled away, Keith saw a purple diamond appearing on her forehead. He chuckled and he wiped her tears with a smile. It was the symbol that symbolises that Kaela is now a true Master Mage and the Great Ikri. Kaela and Keith shared their last hug one last time until a warm light and the spirits appeared.

The paladins of the Old, King Alfor, Zarkon and Lotor appeared with Serene who offered her hand to her. Kaela and Honerva walked towards them with the paladins watching and all of Kaela’s runes were disappearing one by one. Honerva was reunited with her son and husband at last. Both son and husband were now reunited with Honerva and had warm smiles.

Kaela had tears falling down while remembering her memories with the Paladins. She looked back at them seeing Hunk was being comforted by Shiro, Lance and Pidge were in each other’s arms, smiling at her with tears flowing down their cheeks. Keith and Allura were in each other’s arms, looking at her with bittersweet smiles. Kaela smiled gratefully seeing Allura was wearing her crown. With final look, she closed her eyes with a single tear rolling down and joined into the light with Serene.

(~)

Then the shape of the phoenix appeared and screeching with the wings were stretching out to all strands of realities that were saved and the phoenix light and essence died out. The spirits were flowing around the Atlas and the lions and they were back into their normal form floating in open space as purple essence danced around the lion and the Atlas. “Is this?... Are we?” Keith asked as he opened his eyes.

“Yeah. This is our reality.” Pidge said while wiping her tears away. Allura cried and mourned in her lion as she felt coldness on her forehead and realised that Kaela had given her crown to her. She cried as she held it close to her heart.

“She did it. She saved us all.” Lance said as he looked down at the group photo they took with Kaela in the Castle of Lions. She was smiling and had her arms around Pidge and Allura with Keith, Hunk, Shiro and himself in the background smiling and Coran was looking at all of them fondly with a tablet in his hands.

“I don’t remember that planet being there before.” Hunk said as he wiped a tear.

The paladins all looked out of their lions with Allura gasping softly with more tears rolling down her cheeks. “It’s Altea.” Allura said. She silently thanked her friend for reviving her beloved home planet.

Keith looked down sadly and felt something in his hand and opened it. He gritted his teeth and held the shining object in his hands. It was the bracelet he bought for her when she stayed with them after he saved her. He realised that Kaela added red crystals to the bracelet. He looked out to the spirits and he could feel her essence. She’ll be there to protect us. Forever and ever

In the hangars, James held the locket in his hands as he saw the spirits were shining brightly above them and disappeared. He looked down at the locket in his hands and saw another photo where they had taken in Clear Day, he noticed that she wore the hair pin he had won for her. He saw that Kaela had written something. “I’ll always search for you in a thousand lifetimes.”

One Year Later

“With the return of Planet Daibazaal, the Galra Empire is at a crossroads. For so long, the people of this extraordinary civilization have been manipulated by a dictatorship, that placed a misguided sense of self-preservation above all else. It was a tragic, unfortunate series of events, that led us down this dark, never-ending pain of power and greed. But now…. We, the citizens of the Galra Empire have an opportunity.” Keith said and looked up at a shining star above them.

“To make right all of the injustices set into motion by our forefathers. Because of the sacrifice made by my sister, Mage Princess Kaela, we have been given a second chance, to come together in rebuilding the Galra Empire by joining the galactic Coalition and ushering in a new era of peace.” Keith concluded with the Galra cheering and chanting his sister’s name.

Keith turned to look at his mother who was looking up at an evening star in the sky. He comforted his mother with a smile and a side hug. “I hope she is here with us.” Keith said.

“I am sure she is always watching over us.” Krolia said. “Always.”

(~)

In the Atlas, the chancellors were arguing over the table as Shiro tried to calm them down until Hunk came by at the table with two trays in hand. “Chancellors. Please, sit. Dinner is served.” Hunk said.

He placed the plates on the table to eat the meals. “The filet of bandrillo, spiced with seasoning from the plains of planet Mabo, alongside pilaf of long-grained forlongian brill from the vast fields of Antidoll.” Hunk smiled. “And it’s accompanied by a cider made from the petals of Altean juniberry flowers and Plumberry flowers that Mage Princess Kaela once loved. Bon Appetit.”

Shiro and the Chancellors took a bite of the dish and smiled brightly as they tasted something so delicious. “It wouldn’t be possible without cooperation of all three planets of Xritoo system. Much like my cooking crew, comprised of aliens from all across the cosmos working together to bring you this delicious meal.” Hunk said as he gestured to his crew.

“Mage Princess Kaela, the very person on this day, once said, “We all must not give up hope.” Hunk said proudly. “If the people of your planets work together, so much more can be achieved.”

“Let’s honour her by following in her footsteps and walk in the path towards peace and hope.” Shiro smiled.

(~)

James was walking around Plaht City, wandering around the city as he saw some couples walking in hand and hand. He looked away immediately, almost thinking of his days with Kaela. His best friend and the person he had loved since childhood.

Then a blue petal blew by and looked up, seeing the tree that Kaela had healed and grew. He walked towards it and looked up. He smiled as the blue flowers reminded him of her. He looked at the trunk and saw a flower crown in front of a memorial with writing on it. Everyone had heard what Kaela had done for them and for the universe.

James saw a little girl putting a flower on the crown and ran back to her parents. He walked towards the tree and put a hand on the trunk. He smiled a bit, feeling some of Kaela’s essence from the tree. He turned to the side and imagined her standing by her side, with a smile. With a warm and care-free smile. Her eyes would sparkle every time.

James then fished into his pocket and got Kaela’s locket. With the engraving, “I’ll always search for you in a thousand lifetimes.” He smiled and then decided to wear it, to keep her closer to his heart and he did promise he would try and find her in a thousand lifetimes.

(~)

Lance wiped his sweat on his sleeve, putting the tools down and looked at his girlfriend. “Hey, Katie. Are we almost done? You know we can’t be late.”

“All done.” Pidge smiled as she took out a drive and walked towards her boyfriend and brother.

“So, peanut, have you been thinking of any names?” Lance asked, smiling at her and kissed her on the cheek.

“Yeah, I was thinking of Chip.” Pidge grinned. Matt and Lance looked at each other with smiles on their faces.

“You and your puns.” Matt chuckled in amusement.

“And this is why I love your sister so much.” Lance said, looking at his girlfriend lovingly. Pidge smiled at him brightly and gently nudged him on the arm. Lance kissed her on the forehead and was about to kiss her fully on the lips, but Matt cleared his throat. Last time they kissed he walked into them by accident. Seeing them in uncompromising positions as he referred.

“Katie, your father’s got the teludav all warmed up for you. Better get going. You two don’t wanna be late.” Colleen said, calling out to her daughter and Lance.

“Don’t worry, Pidge, I’ll have chip all ready to go by the time you get back.” Matt promised.

“Just don’t initialize until we return. I want to witness Chip’s first moments of consciousness.” Pidge grinned as she given her brother the flash drive and Lance grabbed her hand to get ready.

Lance and Pidge were in their armours and lions getting ready to visit their friends. “Have a good time, you two. But not too much fun.” Sam said to the two paladins.

“We will, Dad.” Pidge smiled.

“Don’t worry, Mr Holt. Katie’s in good hands here.” Lance said with a charming smile.

“Come on, sharpshooter! We’re going to be late!” Pidge chuckled as they went through the wormhole.

(~)

“Construction is on course, your highness.” Merla confirmed to the new Queen of Altea.

Allura smiled brightly as she watched the construction of the new Castle of Lions in front of her. “Most excellent. How are the preparations for tonight’s birthday celebration coming along? It has to be perfect. This will be the first Altea’s victorious celebration and most memorable birthday.” Allura said as she looked over the preparations.

“It is going along very well, Allura. And the rest of the paladins should be coming very soon.” Merla replied. “And I wish I would’ve met her. She seemed to be a very brave Mage Princess.”

“She is one of the most bravest, stubborn and courageous Mage I have ever met. If she were here, she would’ve taught the Altean children about healing.” Allura said, remembering how she watched Kaela attentively as she healed the paladins with her magic. Allura wore Kaela’s crown with pride and love as she also wore a purple and white dress in the honour of her.

“She sounds like a wonderful person.” Merla smiled.

“She is too.” Allura replied with a warm smile. “A most wonderful and courageous woman I have ever met next to my dearest friend Pidge.”

“Oh, and Allura, we can get access to the location, we can begin set up.” Merla said.

“Perfect. As soon as Coran is finished with something.” Allura said looking at where Coran stood.

“…and had Mage Princess Kaela not seen that there was still good left in Honerva, we most likely would not be sitting here today. She grew to understand that there is good in anyone also seeing the bad.” Coran said to the children. ��She would always find a way to save people and bring out joy, hopes and dreams. She could see that in every person.”

“Even her adoptive father, Emperor Zarkon?” asked one of the children.

“Perhaps.” Coran replied with a small smile as he looked at the statue in front of him.

“Do the paladins miss her? And do you?”

“Yes, I do believe that the paladins misses her greatly as well as I. She had taught us to never lose hope. And that her spirit will always be guiding us. Also teaching us on how to move on forward to the future.” Coran replied with a smile.

The children all smiled as they were about to ask more questions. “All right, everybody. I think Coran has someplace to be in a few doboshes. And you all have class to get to.” Said an Altean teacher.

The children groaned with Coran laughing in amusement until he heard three wormholes opening and saw the Black, Red, Green and Yellow lion coming out in front of Kaela’s statue and landed near the New Castle of Lions. Allura smiled and greeted her friends as Pidge hugged her. Lance and Hunk greeted her warmly along with Shiro. She met with the eyes of the man she loves, and she cupped Keith’s face and kissed him passionately on the lips. “Hello, Keith.” Allura said as she pressed her forehead on his. “You have everything we need for the birthday celebration?”

“I have. Mom made me bring other things.” Keith said, showing her a bouquet of blue flowers. “Also, her favourite cake from Earth. It’s a cheesecake. Well, a blueberry cheesecake.”

“Hey, I brought something for her, as well!” Lance exclaimed happily as he pulled out loaded boxes of flowers. “I didn’t even know what was her favourite flowers so I uh, sort of ordered different tons of flowers.”

“Oh, I think she’ll love the flowers, Lance. But Plumberry flowers are her favourite.” Allura smiled, gesturing to the bouquet that Keith had brought.

“What? She never told me that.” Lance said as he scratched his head.

“Yeah, remember how you saw her writing something in her journal and she got mad at you for trying to read it?” Pidge smirked at her boyfriend.

“Yeah, I remember that. She punched you so good that she gave you a black eye.” Hunk chuckled. “Classic Kaela.”

“And that’s why she never shared anything with you or tell you anything about her until you two are friends.” Keith smirked. Lance groaned in annoyance much to everyone’s amusement.

Coran came and smiled at them. “Great, everyone is here. Shall we get started?”

(~)

Everyone laughed out loud as they all sat on a blanket in the juniberry field. Pidge was sitting on Lance’s lap while Allura was leaning on Keith and Shiro was sitting next to Keith. Hunk was munching on some food with a smile. They were watching a vlog that captured Kaela’s most memorable memories. They all saw Kaela pinching Lance’s ear in the kitchen. She was helping Hunk cooking with Pidge in the background fixing something.

And the video changed to where Kaela and Keith were training, and Kaela had Keith pinned down. She had him in a headlock with a brightest smile they all ever had seen. The slide were showing the sibling moments. Keith putting Kaela into bed, Keith reading her a book and Kaela helping him on cooking with Hunk. And another slide shows Kaela with a grin as she pointed at the direction where Keith and Allura were in the hallway gazing into each other’s eyes. Both Keith and Allura chuckled at that memory.

The other slide shows Shiro and Kaela were looking at the stars together in the Atlas. Them dancing in the ballroom while Kaela was in a light blue and purple dress with her hair in a braid. Keith and Shiro lecturing her all night in her study and had a pile of books all over the table.

Allura giggled when she saw Coran fixing the corset for Kaela when she was fitting in a dress for a diplomatic meeting. She could not breath properly during the whole meeting. Later that day, she ripped the corset into pieces with Coran crying over the loss of the dress. Kaela was never going to wear any corset. Ever. She despised corsets ever since then. And in the background, Allura was comforting Coran with a sheepish smile.

It also show where Allura and Kaela were looking at the stars with Pidge at the beach on a planet. The girls all had their arms around them with Pidge in the middle. Then the slide changed to Keith was carrying Kaela in his arms with bright smiles on their faces. Everyone gushed at that memory, but Keith’s expression can be noticed and that he misses his sister every day.

Then the video changed it to where Kaela was speaking. “Lance, no. I don’t wanna do this. Besides we both know you’ll end up being pinned down by my brother.”

“I’ll be fine. I can take it. Come on! It’s fun! Every kid does this to their older siblings.” Lance whispered as he passed the marker to her.

“But this is Keith, we are dealing with here. You know how much he gets mad after that.” Kaela hissed as she looked at Keith who was sleeping in the lounge. Lance beckons Kaela with a grin to take the marker.

Kaela raised an eyebrow and opened the lid. She started to draw on Keith’s face. After a few moments, Keith woke up to seeing Kaela was covering half of her face with her book. “Ella? Are you okay? You look red.” Keith said.

“Uh-huh, I am fine.” Kaela nodded, trying so hard not to laugh out loud.

“Then why are you acting like there is something in my face?” Keith asked as he rubbed his face until he felt ink on his fingers. He looked back and forth at Kaela and the ink on his hands. He heard Lance’s laughing.

Keith growled. “You are so dead!” He chased Lance around the Castle with the rest of the paladins watching in confusion and Kaela laughing in amusement.

Keith glared at Lance who smiled sheepishly. “Okay, I was teaching her the stuff she missed out as a kid. She needed that.”

“Yeah, anything besides that.” Keith said.

“But Keith, at least she was having fun with us.” Allura said as she calms him down.

“Yeah, it is nice to see her smiling again.” Hunk said.

“And she inspired us all. She even convinced my dad to do the impossible with the garrison tech to infuse it with Galran and Altean tech. I mean, seriously, though, Earth has come a long way. It’s a hub for all alien activity now that my dad’s stabilized his teludav technology.” Pidge said with a smile. She was handing him another piece of a birthday cake for Lance.

“That’ll make travel on the Atlas much easier. We’ll be able to reach more sectors with the improved mobility. Not to mention the supplies we’ll save with the shorter journey.” Shiro smiled as he set down the plate.

“Yeah, yeah! We’ll have so much room for the cooking ingredients. People are just so much easier to reason with when they’re full.” Hunk said. “Man, this diplomacy thing isn’t nearly as easy as you and Kaela made it look.”

“I am sure you are doing a fantastic job, Hunk.” Allura said with a proud smile.

“Then you and my sister made everything look easy.” Keith teased Allura as she punched him on the arm playfully. Keith smirked and kissed her on the cheek, making her blush.

“She said she wanted to learn a few things about politics.” Allura smiled playfully at Keith. “She had done a fantastic job. But her strongest point is as a Mage Healer.”

“Speaking of which, how are things in Daibazaal?” Shiro asked.

“We’re calling for an election to select the Galran representative for the Galactic Coalition. So that’s step in the right direction.” Keith replied with a smile.

“Let me guess. They asked you to be their leader and you said no?” Lance asked raising his eyebrow while he had his arm around Pidge.

“Yeah, pretty much.” Keith replied with a smile.

“Classic Keith.” Lance smirked and everyone laughed in amusement.

“I am so proud of your decision, Keith. Kaela and I knew you would always be the key to the Galra’s future.” Allura said as they intertwined their hands together.

Coran smiled at the paladins and the new Queen of Altea. He smiled proudly and thought how they came a long way when they first met and when they first met Kaela. “Just around this table I see so many lives touched by her actions. For some of us she was a healer, a counsellor, a confidante and a sister. But to those of us around this table, she will always be family.” Coran said as he grabbed a glass and raised it high. “To Kaela!”

“To Kaela.” Everyone said as they all looked back at the statue of Kaela from behind them that had photos and flowers in front of her. They also had the statues of the Paladins of the Old along with Mage Princess Serene standing in behind Kaela.

Keith smiled as he hugged Allura as she wrapped her arm around his waist, smiling at the statue. “Happy Birthday, Ella.”

(~)

Everyone went to sleep for the day until Keith woke up and saw a white feather coming into his room from his window and then saw the spirits had appeared. Allura woke up beside him also felt her presence and heard the lions roaring.

The paladins and Allura all went outside to see the spirits appearing before them with the Lions all drifting above them. They all saw different kinds of colours in the sparkling night sky with the spirits lighting up the dark as they all white orbs coming down and two spirits appeared as King Alfor and Queen Melenor. Allura’s tears rolled down her cheeks as she ran to them and wrapped her arms around them tightly. Shiro gasped when he felt a hand on his shoulder from behind him and saw Adam. He was smiling at him fondly. Shiro had tears forming overjoyed to see him.

Keith, Lance, Pidge and Hunk all smiled seeing that Allura and Shiro were reunited with their loved ones. They heard a white phoenix squawking above them and landed in front of them and appeared Kaela in spirit form and wore a white dress. Keith’s breath hitched seeing his sister after a year and saw another spirit appearing and saw their father was standing beside her. Kaela walked towards him smiling as she caressed his cheeks and wiped his tears.

Keith smiled and they hugged in a tighter embrace and she looked back at their father who walked towards Keith. Keith gasped softly as he felt Kaela holding his hand tightly until their father went up to his children. There were no words need to be spoken and he simply nodded, he was proud of what he had done as a Paladin of Voltron and for everything he had done for the universe. The three hugged each other with everyone watched with tears flowing down.

Allura looked at her parents as they began to fade. Her mother and father both embraced their daughter one last time. Shiro looked at Adam who was smiling at him sadly and started to walk away from him. Shiro looked at Keith who had his arm around his sister and father. Their father smiled at Keith one last time before he started to walk away and joined the other spirits in the night sky. The paladins all looked at their lions one last time as they reminisce on their memories as Paladins of Voltron and their memories they had shared with Kaela. The joyous memories they all had treasured.

Kaela and Keith pressed their foreheads together with Keith shedding one tear and let go of her as he watched she running towards the lions. She transformed into a white phoenix and flew with them with the spirits shone bright in the night sky with the paladins smiling and with tears flowing down.

After a year, everything had changed for the better with The Holts family established the next generation of Legendary Defenders. Hunk created a culinary empire, bringing the universe together, one meal at the time. Lance took Kaela’s wishes to heart and followed his dreams as he became a teacher in the Garrison and teach the young generation of becoming great pilots with his girlfriend, Pidge, by his side, Krolia and Kolivan became the Galra representatives to the Galactic Coalition. Keith helped transition The Blade of Marmora to a humanitarian relief organization with the help of his girlfriend. Queen Allura of Altea, who encouraged the Alteans to become peacekeepers and brave diplomats in the universe while respecting Kaela’s wishes as she continued her father’s legacy and ruled Altea. Shiro found happiness with Curtis and finally left the battle behind.

Somewhere in deep space, all five lions followed the white phoenix and led them far away from Altea to a planet with pillars around it, serving as a gate way and the spirits glowed brightly, responding to the white phoenix and the Lions.

(~)

“My lord, we just got word.” Said one of the soldiers, he had his jet black tied up back neatly as he bowed down in respect. “It seems that the Great Ikri has fallen.”

The soldier watched his lord and master swung his spear across the room and then slashed a tapestry that was on the wall, cutting it in half with Mage Princess Serene and her family image on the tapestry. “Is that so?”

“Yes, my lord.” Replied the lieutenant.

The Lord chuckled evilly as he looked at the cut tapestry of Mage Princess Serene. “Hmm, looks like the story and the legend is not ending, after all, Mother. Gaius, begin preparation and summon the Elders. It is time to bring back what is rightfully ours.”

“Yes, of course my lord, Prince Adelram. At once.” Gaius complied as he went and do as he was told to.

“Soon, Mother, I will take everything you have. And then I shall rule Zelza and it will all be mine Looks like the story is not over just yet.” Prince Adelram chuckled evilly as he overlooked his soldiers building and creating weapons of their own in an abandoned mansion.

#kallura #kalluracanonsince1984 #junibalde #plance #flirtyrobot #VLD #kaela oc #kaela kogane #my oc #my fanfiction

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