#( props to him I hate Arnold but props to him )

[cabbxges-and-kings]

COPLER

( ooc ): Rewatching t.urn because I miss Hewlett, and s3e2 "Cold Murdering Bastards" is so underrated

[benrahman]

end of year dyke conclusions about the england nt

pickford: i love him, i hate him, i want to bite him, he just drives me fucking insane but he gets props for bunda and kebab pizza propaganda

sam johnstone: oh man probably in my top three butch lesbians in this team, i love his buzzcut and his cheeky lil grin hes got that big soft meat man energy

kyle walker: right i know everyone thinks he's a twat and HE IS and ill never forgive him for tattooing his own name on his hand but. funny man run fast

john stones: miserable little gay best friend. wet and pathetic. adore him. paid £2 for his match attax card and it werent even shiny.

harry maguire: idc man

luke shaw: another butch buzzcut kween!! plus he has the same accent as me so kind of a winner

ben chilwell: i said this like a month ago he is a posh horse girl's dream gay best friend and im a #hater.

tyrone mings: oh you KNOW how i feel about this man. she is my dream butch gf i want her to throw me around like a ragdoll IDC

trent alexander-arnold: he's my special little guy and i love how pressed he gets when he loses. such a funny little man.

conor coady: third butch queen i love him sm he reminds me of my old gay coworker if he'd been scouse plus like his leadership his support his banter UGH baby girl

declan rice: perpetual source of anxiety re. west ham and transfer rumours but what a fuckin top geezer. i did convince myself he was gay for a brief period but that's over now i think i got confused bc he's actually funny plus those tiger print speedos.

mason mount: kind of king shit tbf he's very soft and feminine and he plays very nice football so

kalvin phillips: when i tell u this man is SO FINE. also that sliding tackle he made against maybe poland (?) lives in my head rent free

[avenirdelight]

Stop Searching | PART 5

Trent Alexander-Arnold

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Trent remembers the exact moment he thought “God, I love her” for the first time. They were sixteen. He didn’t want anyone, especially her, to know about it because he didn’t want to ruin their friendship.

The first couple of months were really hard for him. He struggled to suppress his feelings, scared for his life that somehow she would find out about it, since he was battling himself not to act strangely or differently towards her and he was afraid that it would show. But eventually he got used to the feeling and he sort of came back to normal. He figured out that to love her, he didn’t have to change anything. He only had to be himself, protecting and taking care of her like he had always been doing but for a little bit more now, and it came out naturally anyway.

After the confession, they broke the news to their families and friends. They were out of words when they realized that none of them were surprised that they got together. He has heard “we could see it, you both were just blind to it” five times; he doesn’t understand why everyone never mentioned anything to him if they really could see it. He can’t help but start to wonder what would happen if he confessed sooner, maybe years ago, and the question keeps lingering on his mind.

“Do you think I should’ve told you sooner? That I love you?” Trent asks, breaking the comfortable silence in the living room. They are enjoying each other’s company, cuddling in the sofa, legs tangling, sharing each other’s warmth while being wrapped in a fluffy grey blanket.

“No,” she mumbles to his chest.

“Why? We could’ve been together since high school.”

“I was denying my feelings so hard, Trent, for years. I’d tell you that you’re stupid for falling in love with me and I’d blame you for ruining our friendship.”

“That’s what I feared,” he says as he takes her hand and starts playing with her fingers. “What made you change your mind, then?”

“Well, at some point, I gave up on searching. Because I realized that it’s proven,” she wriggles out of his cuddle, turning around, now lying on her stomach and propping herself with her arms so she can see his face clearly. “That no one would love me the way you love me. That you’re the one that I need and I want.”

She fell in love with Trent in high school, and she hated herself for that. If they somehow become a couple and they break up, there’s no way that they would get back to normal, she thought. So she started dating other guys to deny her feelings.

Two relationships later, she realized that she truly did love Trent. Not only because she had known everything about him, but also because Trent was everything she had ever looked in a man. Someone reliable, loyal, who loves his family, and the most important thing, treats girls with respect.

But everything was perfect as it was supposed to be. Trent was happy with his girlfriend, and he was doing really well in his career. There was nothing she could do other than kept running from her feelings and burying it deep. She continued her journey of finding her man, trying to make herself believe that her “one” was somewhere out there. She didn’t even realize that she had started looking for someone like Trent.

It was until last year when she felt that everything started to get tiring. None of her relationships worked, she never lasted a year with someone, and she began to get irritated with herself for having such an impossible standard.

But then John came, and she was intrigued to the possibility that maybe John was the right guy. She promised herself if things don’t work out with John, she would give herself a break from dating. And maybe, maybe it was okay for her to finally accept that she loves Trent. Maybe it was okay to hope that Trent somehow feels the same way.

She never thought that he really does feel the same way.

“I’m glad that you waited… God, it must be horrible for you to listen to me talk about those boys…”

“I got used to it at some point,” Trent chuckles. He wants to say that it’s nothing compared to watching her getting all touchy or kissing them in front of him, but it doesn’t even matter now. “It’s not your fault that you always have choices. You’re pretty and popular. There’s no one that doesn’t want you.”

“Were you ever jealous?”

“All the time, babe, all the time.” She giggles as Trent turns to his side, placing his hand on the small of her back. They both lean in and share a kiss.

Trent feels his stomach flutter. He’s still not used to the feeling of kissing her. He stares at her lips when he pulls away; those beautiful lips that he didn’t even dare imagine to kiss because he didn’t want to disrespect her. But now those lips is the one who greet his when he goes home from a match, the one who whispers sweet things to his ears when they share intimate moments in her bed.

“You should’ve seen my signals you know, that I have feelings for you. I practically pushed away every girl who liked me,” he continues as he tucks strands of hair behind her ears.

They both chuckle, thinking about how Trent had only been in one relationship. After that, he never looked for a girlfriend and denied a hundred girls who tried to approach him. He always said to her that he just wanted to focus on his career, but now she knows that it wasn’t the only reason. He was loving her in silence.

“Yeah, maybe I did think about it a couple of times… But still, I was too scared. And I guess I didn’t want to hurt my own pride by admitting that I fell in love with my best friend. I really believed it would ruin everything,” she shakes her head. Everything sounds silly to her. “But I’m glad we’re here now.”

“But how if I didn’t confess?”

“If you didn’t, I definitely would at some point. I’d really give up on searching and say f*ck it.”

“Yeah, me too. I used to think that one day in the far, far future, I’d tell you I fell in love with you. But thank God I got impatient.”

They both smile, staring right into each other’s eyes, feeling happy that they finally found their way to each other. She has stopped searching and he has stopped waiting. Both were too scared, but now so eager to find out about what the future has in store for them. They wouldn’t have it any other way. She believes that every heartbreak brought her to him. And Trent never regretted that he was there for her through every single one of it.

—

thank you so much for every single one of you guys who read this mini series. for all the support, every single like, comment, and reblog, for sharing this to your friends, thank you so much.

this was supposed to be only 2 parts, but it grew to be a 5-parts mini series. this mini series was like my playground and i fell in love with it. i hope you liked it. see you on the next story!

My Masterlist🤍

[carnationcreation]

Can you do a fem reader x carrie where the reader is one of the tech people at a concert 👉👈

TITLE: Help (Carrie Wilson x reader)

✌🏻Masterlist Taglist, Requests, and Works in progress!

Please check bio to see if requests are open before sending any in!

Request: (Tumblr) Can you do a fem reader x carrie where the reader is one of the tech people at a concert 👉👈

(Wattpad @thelizziebooks) Ok so the reader is often abused by her father because her mother left at a young age. Not to mention she’s also bullied by Carrie (sorry Savannah. Love her) notices her wince one day and asks her about it. That’s all I got.

Prompt/summary: Carrie confronts the reader about her dad after the school play.

Word Count: 1,659 

Authors Note: I decided to combine these requests! <3 and woahhhh I didn’t intend for it to be this long whoops :)

***Warning*** mentions of abuse and bullying, please read with caution and if you’re experiencing anything like this please reach out for help! Stay safe y’all.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Behind the scenes of school plays always got chaotic.

I tried my best to keep everything on track, being stage manager and all. Occasionally something crazy would happen that was just completely out of my control.

Today was one of those crazy days.

"Guys please don't hang off the set pieces! Can y'all move those boards over there? Arnold what have I told you about touching props that aren't yours? Go put it back EXACTLY where it came!"

It was officially opening night, call time was at 5 and most of the cast had shown up on time except for a select few.

"Nick said he was going to be a little late, car troubles."

I huffed and turned to Sophia the lighting director, "Fine. Tell him he better be in his costume as soon as he walks in, no messing around beforehand we're going to be pushing showtime anyways."

I turned back around to the soundboard to finish mic checks with my sound assistant.

It was finally 30 minutes till showtime. Everyone was in the dressing room getting ready or in the hallway behind the auditorium doing last minute rehearsals before the curtain went up.

"Hey girls," I said popping my head in the dressing room, "Places in 15. Wait, where's Carrie?"

The girls looked at each other before shrugging at me.

I let out a frustrated groan, "Someone call her, if she's not here then Savannah you're going on."

Her understudy let out a huff and turned to grab her cellphone to call the missing diva.

As I turned to walk down the hallway a very mad Carrie came storming down.

"Where have you been?"

She turned to me with a death glare and snapped, "Car troubles."

"Ugh why is everyone saying that tonight?" I groaned.

I tried to turn away but just as I did Carrie grabbed my wrist tightly, "I could've just not shown up. You're lucky I even did."

The action made me hide my face out of habit, when I finally grounded myself I ripped my wrist out of her grip before taking off down the hallway trying to rub the pain away and shake off the panicked feeling in my chest.

The show went on without a hitch. Luckily Carrie could get into costume and wig quickly so there wasn't any delay in opening. After curtain call I quickly cleaned up my stuff, saying goodbye to our drama teacher as she left for the night leaving me to check the dressing rooms to make sure no one else was here before I left.

The boys room was a wreck, tomorrow during class I should make them clean it out. Gross.

I check the middle dressing room reserved for anyone who didn't want to be in either girls or boys only dressing room. I turned the lights off before moving on to the last one.

I barely missed her, if she wasn't wearing the bright yellow dress I wouldn't have seen her sitting on the counter.

"Carrie? What are you still doing here?"

She frowned, "I wanted to ask you something."

"What Carrie?" I huffed lightly.

"I'm just trying to be nice," she rolled her eyes.

"You're never nice to me," I said, grabbing my keys off the hook on the wall, "And it's getting late, I wanna get home. What's your question?"

"You winced."

"What?"

"Earlier when I grabbed your wrist, you winced. I didn't mean to hurt you but I didn't grab it hard enough to truly hurt you. What's going on?"

I sighed and went to turn the lights off, "Nothing Carrie. I don't see why you even care."

Carrie hopped off the counter and walked out the door I was holding open, "Can't you just tell me? For once I'm worried about you."

"Yeah, and that one time is completely random."

"(Y/n)," she said, grabbing my wrist. Out of instinct I winced and immediately tried to cover it up by pulling my arm out of her grasp but then she held on a little tighter. It didn't hurt. In fact, it was almost... gentle.

"What Carrie? I wanna go home."

"Not till you tell me what's going on," she said, her eyes seemed to glue to something on my shoulder, her free hand reached forward and pull down the collar of my shirt past my right shoulder revealing a purple bruise I had tried to keep covered for tonight.

"(Y/n)-"

"Carrie it's just from working on the set pieces-"

"Bullshit," she snapped, "It wasn't there yesterday when you were wearing that halter top. Don't lie like this (Y/n)."

I rolled my eyes, "I don't even see why you care."

Her eyes went soft as I finally pulled my arm from her grip.

I turned to walk away.

"I see you walk to the bus everyday."

I stopped and looked back at her, "What?"

"You pass by my house when you're walking to the bus everyday. And walking home. Everyday I see you linger outside like you hate going home. I noticed it a while ago, but tonight just confirmed my suspicions. (Y/n), he hits you doesn't he?"

Tears welled up in my eyes, "Carrie just stay out of this."

"(Y/n)-"

"No Carrie, I don't need pity. Especially from you."

I couldn't describe the look in her eye, "(Y/n) it's not pity it's concern. Please just let me help-"

"I don't need help. Especially after all you've ever done to me. Just leave me alone."

And with that I turned on my heel and rushed outside.

The next day I wore a chunky turtleneck sweater into class. Carrie's eyes immediately flew up when I entered the room, falling directly to the shoulder that was completely covered up. Class seemed to go by like an eternity. The school day was even longer.

Finally it was the break before my last class of the day and I walked out of the bathroom stall, looking myself over in the mirror.

"Green's a pretty color on you," Carrie said, she was standing two sinks down from me. Staring at the spot on my shoulder again.

I sighed, "Thanks."

"(Y/n) please-"

"I told you to stay out of it."

"You need to get help, it's just going to keep getting worse and you know it."

"He's in rehab," I sighed, placing my hands on the sink and leaning forward.

She sighed, taking a pause to stare at me, "(Y/n), if you need a place to stay you can always come to my house."

"I don't need anyone's help."

I flung my bag onto my shoulder before turning and practically running out of the bathroom.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I don't know why tonight was worse, but it just was. Maybe it was because I knew someone knew what was going on, or maybe it was because he pre-gamed with his friends before going out to the bar.

When he got drunk he got... rowdy. If I was in his way in the kitchen he'd shove me out of his way, sometimes making me hit the counter top. IF I didn't do the chores like I was supposed to he would give me a smack on the face. And in extreme cases he'd push me into the wall before barking at me to go to my room.

I've probably gotten a concussion before.

Tonight was different though.

It felt like he just didn't let up on me. First it was a smack over the dishes, then I didn't get him his drink fast enough resulting in being shoved into the wall. Finally the shove so hard I fell hitting my hand on the table and collapsing onto the floor left the wind knocked out of me. When I finally got my lungs working again I ran out the door. It wasn't until I got a few blocks away from my house that I realized my hand was bleeding badly.

I just walked. I didn't intend to go to her house, but here I was at the gate of the Wilson residence. I pressed the buzzer and waited.

"Who is it?"

"Hi Mr. Wilson, it's (Y/n). One of Carries friends."

Carrie finally came over the intercom, "(Y/n)?"

"Hey, um- sorry this probably isn't a good time. I can leave-"

"(Y/n) just come inside," she said, the gates finally opened and I walked up the driveway and onto the porch.

Carrie opened the door, seeing the bleeding on my right hand immediately.

"Oh my god (Y/n), what-"

The tears in my eyes must've given me away, because she quickly pulled me into a hug.

"Let's get you cleaned up," she whispered.

She lead me inside to the bathroom and sat me on the edge of the bathtub. She grabbed the first aid kit and gently cleaned the cut on my hand and put a giant bandage over it when she was done, "Hopefully you won't need stitches."

"Yeah."

She led me into her room and we both sat on the bed, she just watched me as I looked around the room to avoid her gaze.

"(Y/n), what happened?"

Tears finally started to slip as she pulled me into a hug again.

"It's okay, we don't have to talk about it right now. I'm just worried."

"It was bad Carrie, more bad than normal. I can handle it normally..."

"You shouldn't have to 'handle it'," she said softly.

I couldn't say anything because of the sobs that were racking through my body. She just held me and gently petted my hair until I finally calmed down.

"You can stay here tonight if you want to."

I smiled tightly, "Thank you."

"It's the least I could do," she said, "You really need to tell someone."

"I know... I'm just not ready."

She grabbed my left hand and gently squeezed it, "That's okay. But I'll be here with you when you are."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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[bamfdaddio]

X-Men Abridged: 1969

The X-Men, those dino-obsessed mutants that have sworn to protect a world that hates and fears them, are a cultural juggernaut with a long, tangled history. Want to unravel this tapestry? Then read the Abridged X-Men!

(X-Men 52 - 63) - written by Arnold Drake, Roy Thomas, Linda Fite and Don Heck, drawn by Werner Roth, Barry Smith, Tom Palmer and Neal Adams.

step aside, Wall-E, these Sentinels have nothing on your range of emotions (X-Men 59)

When we last left our X-Men, they were smack-dab in the middle of a big, convoluted plot! Let me refresh your memory:

The X-Men had to beat a hasty retreat;

Polaris had joined her father Magneto

Magneto was injured;

Iceman had quit the team because he still had faith in Polaris;

Eric the Red appeared, making overtures towards Magneto.

And the whirlwind continues! The X-Men (sans Iceman and Cyclops) sneak back into Magneto’s base! Eric the Red reveals himself to be Cyclops! They set a trap for Mesmero! Which is sprung by the wayward Iceman! But he has pertinent information! Lorna is not Magneto’s daughter, she’s just an orphan! Bobby (hilariously) has the papers to prove it!

magneto has now fucked up the relationships he has with all of his children before any of them knew he was their father. mad props (X-Men 52)

Lorna breathes a sigh or relief, glad that she doesn’t have to be evil anymore. (Because obviously, evil is hereditary. And even though she keeps sensing everyone’s ‘evil vibrations’, she stayed with Magneto out of her own volition. SO.) Without Polaris’ power to back them up, Magneto and Mesmero flee.

After this, the X-Men come back to live at the mansion again. No muss, no fuss. Roy Thomas, who’s returning to the book, wastes very little time undoing some stupid decisions made last year. In fact, 1969 has a pretty strong showing, with plotlines flowing almost naturally into one another, a bigger cast and the introduction of one of my favourite villains. It’s pretty palatable.

The one snag is a superfluous issue where the X-Men fight Blastaar and Jean kills someone. (Never comes up again, don’t sweat it.) I wouldn’t even mention it, were it not for this moment where Jean uses some super duper mind machine:

does this remind you of... anything? no? just me then (X-Men 53)

So, anyway, remember Scott’s beloved brother Alex?

i love that jean is all smiles about scotts terrible and all-encompassing ability to repress everything (X-Men 54)

I can sort of understand why that whole third Summers brother was such a huge secret for so long, considering Alex was not even kept a mystery and it still took SIX YEARS for him to be revealed.

Alex is barely introduced before he gets the old plot-bat to the face, getting mixed up in a fight when some pharaoh claims all mutants are pharaohs, being children of the Sun? Apparently, all of them are powered by cosmic rays i.e. the sunlight. Alex is kidnapped, as is Cyclops, and just as Cyclops ponders how happy he is that Alex is not a mutant despite him having the X-Gene, he is attacked by the pharaoh and Alex saves his brother using newly minted energy powers! Oh, the irony.

when I say that I want Alex to wear his old costume, I obviously mean this sexy Egyptian skirt-ensemble (X-Men 55)

Alex and the pharaoh are apparently two sides of the same coin, being charged by the same cosmic rays: when one waxes, the other wanes. The pharaoh locks Alex away in a tomb, cutting him off from those sweet, sweet sunbeams and taking all the power for himself. Like a Power Ranger villain, he grows in size and becomes… the Living Monolith! The X-Men take him down while Alex accidentally blows up the Living Monolith’s temple.

Alex, afraid of his own power, flees into the desert and is apprehended by… the Sentinels?! Surprise, bitch! Lorna is also abducted by them out of her New York apartment. Their next victim is Iceman, and they deliver him to… Larry Trask! (Son of.)

My favorite thing about Sentinels is that, despite the fact that they are objectively huge, they are still able to sneak up on people. Apparently, these murderous periwinkle toaster ovens are so quiet, you only notice when they rip open a roof to get at you. (X-Men 59)

Larry Trask hates mutants because:

They killed his father;

He’s a racist.

Determined not to repeat the sins of his father, Larry has a helmet with which he can use to take direct control of the sentinels, so hopefully they won’t rise up and rebel this time. Somewhere, Asimov is rolling his eyes.

On live television, Larry Trask baits Iceman into attacking him, trying to smear him and mutantkind in general. In the mean time, the Sentinels strike everywhere, taking Unus, Angel, Banshee, the Living Monolith… Even Wanda and Pietro. It´s a literal who´s who of sixties mutandom! The only exempt ones are the Changeling and Magneto, the latter only because he’s been a robot for a while now. Mesmero is just as shocked by this unnecessary retcon as we are.

Just as Larry orders the Sentinels to kill every mutant in the compound (including Bobby, Lorna and Alex), a family heirloom is ripped off his neck. Apparently, this medallion was some kind of protection: the late Bolivar Trask knew little Larry was a mutant and tried to hide this fact from the Sentinels.

The Sentinels turn on Larry faster than you can say “Is being betrayed by AI a hereditary trait?” The X-Men intervene and, after unleashing the might of Havok, they end up in a debate with the Sentinels, turning their own logic against them:

Protecting humans is more important than killing mutants.

So, to protect humanity, they must destroy the cause of mutation.

The Sentinels promptly launch themselves into the sun. Neat.

On a side note, the relationship between Jean and Scott is shelved for now? It seems like they’re dating, but also not? It’s such weird storytelling, especially because their annoying will they or won’t they has gotten so much focus in the past and the relationship between Lorna and Bobby is crystal clear:

Scott. Jean. Is it really going to take Chris Claremont to DTR you two? Fuck’s sake (X-Men 60)

Because Havok’s powers still threaten to overwhelm him, the X-Men contact a former colleague of Professor X… Professor Lykos.

Let me tell you about the sheer, amazing sixties wonder that is Professor Lykos. Originally, Thomas envisioned him as a vampire, but the Comics Code forbade vampires. So, instead, Lykos ends up a human who was bitten by a magical pterodactyl at a young age and who can only survive by draining other people’s life force. He can also hypnotize people into doing his bidding.

Yes.

Lykos suspects mutants might be the cure to his strange, strange ailment, and begins to drain Alex. But to his (and our) sheer delight, he turns into a pterodactyl!

I just love this damn idiot so much (X-Men 60)

Be like Sauron! Choose evil!

The X-Men barely figure in this plot. Ordinarily, I’d be bothered by the fact that these three issues are more about the villain than the heroes, but given that it’s Sauron, I’ll let it slide.

See, Sauron’s tale is a tragic one. Not only is he a weird pterovampire, he is also in love with a sweet girl whose father forbids him from seeing Dr. Lykos, because he is… poor! Gasp! (Those billionaires, not even a doctor is good enough for their daughters.) Sauron, slightly corrupted by his dino-side, realize that it’s a lot easier to just kill Tanya’s father than to impress him by robbing banks for cash.

When he attacks the man and sees the reaction of his star-crossed lover, Lykos realizes Sauron is far too much in control. Sauron is too evil! Lykos/Sauron promptly flees to a cold, distant region, the same place where he got bitten all those years ago, figuring he’ll stay in isolation and starve himself of the human energy he needs. But, just as he is utterly ravenously out of his mind, Tanya finds him! In order to protect her, Sauron sacrifices himself by throwing himself off the mountain… straight into the Savage Land..

The X-Men (sans Angel) follow him into the Savage Land. (It’s unclear why? To retrieve his corpse? Annoyingly, in the next arc, Sauron is not brought up again.) There, they run into Ka-Zar, who’s embroiled in a fight with… prehistoric mutants?

Angel, meanwhile, follows the X-Men in their footsteps, only to end up on the other side of the fight, with a strange white-haired man named the Creator who claims to be the mentor of these Savage Land mutates. Angel pledges him his wings, gets a snazzy new suit and flies off to fight the X-Men. Only then does the man secretly reveal himself: he’s… Magneto! (The true one, not a robot.) And he wishes to rule the savage land!

Angel and the other X-Men briefly fight, but soon the situation is sorted out and the X-Men go and confront the Creator. Magneto, who is way too hammy to ever hide his true nature for too long, reveals himself and the fact that he created these… mutates, including the creepy Brainchild. (He’ll become important later.) The X-Men defeat Magneto and he seemingly dies again.

Without Magneto there, the mutates revert to just being regular cave(wo)men:

I love that Ka-Zar, WHO HAILS FROM THE SAVAGE LAND HIMSELF, has no scruples othering his own kin. (X-Men 63)

The comic accidentally ends on a sad note: the X-Men confessing that they’d give up on their powers in a heartbeat. Not to nitpick, but while I buy that coming from Beast and Cyclops, this issue is less clear-cut when it comes to Jean and Bobby, who have a much better handle on their powers and, more importantly, present as human. It could potentially be an interesting issue to explore, but instead, it is swept under the rug, presenting the team (once again) as a boring but unified front. It remains one of my critiques of this era: the X-Men barely get fleshed out as individuals, other than the broadest of strokes (Leader; Rich Boy; Joker; Smart Guy; Girl). Pity.

Didn’t you take Art History? One thing that has definitely improved is the overall art-style. Artists experiment with panels and splash pages, stepping out of the traditional 2 by 3-grid that Kirby loved so much. It makes the stories more dynamic and, because the writers get more issues to tell their stories, the artists get more space to do their art.

I mean, check this ish out:

Fuck yeah, mental powers represent. (X-Men 57)

Ugliest Costume: None! I really like Havok’s black bodysuit with white stripes and the Sentinels design looks so much less dorkier than before. A+.

Best new character: Sauron, duh. Does he team-up with Dr. Doom at some point? That would be some ham-to-ham combat.

Most audacious retcon: There’s a second Summers brother?

What to read: 57 to 59, which is the plotline dealing with the much improved Sentinels. 60 and 61 if you have a soft spot for vampiric pterodactyls.

[monoxidecahedron]

febuwhump day 3- imprisonment (whamilton)

this is really late, I know! I did a fuckton of research that ended up being obsolete :/ anyways have this! it’s nearly 2000 words and I’m proud of myself!

cw for depictions of getting beaten up

When Alexander begins to regain consciousness, the first thing he notices is that he can’t see- a black cloth is wrapped around his head, covering his eyes. Certain that this is not some sort of prank, especially not something his friends would pull in the middle of a war, he gets up slowly, feeling the wall he’d been propped up against. It’s plaster,  the kind of wall that you’d find in a permanent home. Odd.

He parses his memory. All he comes up with is getting into his cot and actually trying to sleep for once instead of working some more. And look where it got me, he thinks dryly. I’m never sleeping again.

A door creaks open and then slams shut. “Well, well, well,” a man’s voice says. It’s somehow oily, if a voice could be oily, and Alexander cringes away from the source. “Look what we have here,” he continues. “Washington’s little pet.” Alex’s first, panicked thought is how does he know?, and then he realizes this man cannot possibly know just how deep his affection for his commander runs. Besides (and much to his chagrin), it’s not like Washington’s ever done anything about it, no matter how certain Alexander is that his feelings are reciprocated. He’s too virtuous, Alex often thinks. But then again, he’d never have him any other way.

“Stop smiling,” the man snaps. Alexander instinctively smiles harder, grinning and exposing his teeth in a mocking Cheshire-cat-like expression. That was a mistake, he notes as the stranger slaps him hard, expression scrunching up as the stinging pain spreads across his cheek. It’s not so much a sudden, sharp pricking of pain as it is a million little needles poking at him at the point of contact, almost tingling. He observes this all with an odd sort of detachment, absentmindedly rubbing at his cheek as the person withdraws. 

“Are you done messing around?” the man growls, and suddenly it all comes back into focus and Alexander is very, very aware that he’s likely not in friendly hands. Which means he’s a hostage. He supposes it could have been worse- he’s not on one of those prison ships, which would practically guarantee his slow, inglorious, practically unnoticed death by sickness or suffocation- but even so, this is a situation in which he should tread carefully.

So he tilts his chin up and nods, not saying a word. “Good boy,” the man sneers, and Alexander has to physically bite his tongue to stop himself from saying something. “Now. What is your army’s next move?”

This time Alexander can’t help himself, snorting, “you really aren’t a subtle one, are you?” 

His cheek is still smarting from the first hit, and it hurts even more when the man backhands him across the face, bony knuckles knocking into soft flesh. 

“None of that. Tell me, now.” Alexander gives him the best incredulous look he can manage from behind a blindfold.

“Bitch, I’m not telling you,” he says. The next thing he knows there’s a fist connecting with his stinging cheek, adding to the pain. He groans as his head jerks sideways and knuckles connect with his jaw, knocking his teeth together. He can feel it practically in his bones, dull throbs reverberating through his skull, and it hurts. Still, he clamps his mouth shut.

“So that’s how you’re playing it,” the man says. “Well. I can’t say I expected less.” A punch to his stomach, knocking the breath out of him as he leans forward, doubling over and wrapping his arms around himself. The man laughs. Shoves him onto the ground. He manages to catch himself, but the floor is hard, and he can almost feel the bruises forming on his palms. A foot comes down harsh on his back, slamming his stomach onto the ground. He thinks he might be screaming. Another kick to the face. If there wasn’t blood before, now it comes streaming out of his nose and he isn’t sure why he isn’t feeling any pain there until it comes rushing in, sharp and insistent and oh god it hurts. So bad. 

“I could do this for hours,” the man says nonchalantly. Kicks him again. “Exactly six hours, in fact. If you don’t crack by then, well, bye-bye to you, we’ll just drag John Laurens in here and do the exact same thing. How’s that sound? Hm? You gonna die for nothing and let your buddy die too?” Alex gasps, trying to breathe through the fog of pain. No. No. Not John. Anyone but John. Anyone but John and- “Or maybe that dear Marquis,” the man continues, light and cheerful as he shoves his boot into Alex’s stomach. “Do you think he’d talk? I would hate to ruin that pretty face, of course, but you know, we all make sacrifices in war.” Alexander wants to scream. Familiar rage comes rushing in. This stupid Loyalist knows nothing of sacrifice. Nothing. 

“Fuck- you,” he manages to get out through gritted teeth. Instead of snarling at him, the man just chuckles, and somehow that’s worse, the icy edge of the sound digging into him. 

“Oh my, oh my. I was expecting Washington’s right-hand man would be smarter. But then again, perhaps it wasn’t exactly your wits that got you to where you are,” he says. Another harsh kick accompanies the blow to his pride. “Not denying it? Hm. What a whore,” he continues, tone as light as if he were carrying a nice conversation with a casual acquaintance. Alexander writhes on the floor. 

“You’re actually quite lucky, you know,” the man says. “I wanted to bring out the knives. Arnold wouldn’t have that, though, says it’ll be better to have some physical proof that you’ve been in pain.” Alex inhales sharply. What? Arnold as in Benedict Arnold? “Ah yes, that’s right! How delightful. You still don’t know about dear Benedict!” the man says cheerfully. “Well, he’s ours. I’m surprised you hadn’t figured that out by now. But then again, of course, you know nothing about us. Yet we-” his tone drops significantly, and he leans down to Alex’s ear- “know everything.”

He’s rescued, of course. He holds a high position and someone was bound to notice his absence fairly quickly, and put the pieces together. But it’s not quick enough to stop him from accumulating bruises all over his body, purpling up around the edges and reminding him of his pain with even the slightest pressure. His nose is broken, and there’s blood all over his face, and he’s spent the last five hours taunted and tortured. He thinks he might have a broken arm, but he’s not sure. They put him on Washington’s bed, presumably because it’s one of the only ones that actually have a mattress and it’s isolated, and he drifts off, glad for the escape from his own hurting body.

~~

They bring Alexander in. Washington is immensely worried, and clearly not in any state to make any sort of decisions, and Lafayette, seeing this, immediately takes charge (bless him). He’s very capable, and Washington trusts him. He sighs. He should have seen this coming. No matter how much they put on an air of bravado and condescension towards the revolution, the British know they’re in a bad place. They’re getting desperate. He should have anticipated they’d make a move like this. 

He looks at Alexander again from his seat at his desk. He would look almost peaceful, if it weren’t for the smattering of purpling bruises across his face. Washington shakes his head, trying to quell the surge of protectiveness he feels at the sight of his boy so hurt. He still hasn’t woken up.

It gets late, but Washington stays up, kept company by his own persistent thoughts. He should have done something. There must have been some way to prevent this, some sign that he’d missed. 

“George,” he hears. He whirls around. Alexander is smiling at him, more pained grimace than happy expression. He’s never called him that before. Washington decides he likes it. “George. I need to-” he breaks into a round of coughing. 

Washington is at his side instantly. “What is it?” 

“Arnold,” he manages to get out in between coughs. “Be- Benedict Arnold- traitor-” 

Washington is more worried about Alexander. “Okay,” he says, because Alexander is trying to emphasize his point and it’s worsening his coughing. “Okay. I believe you.” If Arnold is a traitor- and he surely is, because his Alexander would not lie about these things- he must be dealt with. He writes a quick letter and gives it to Lafayette, who is just downstairs. He will handle it. 

“Alex. Alexander. It’s okay,” he says. Alexander is still trying to speak. “It’s alright.” He shakes his head fervently. 

“No-” he manages, although his voice is hoarse and rough- “no- one more- one more thing- I-” He stops. “M’- gonna- sleep- but-”

“Alexander. Just sleep. It’s okay.”

“I- I love you,” he blurts. Washington answers without hesitation, almost on impulse.

“I love you too.” 

Alexander seems to deflate, as if that was the only thing keeping him hanging on. “M’ sorry,” he mutters. 

What are you sorry for?  “Don’t be sorry.”

~~

Alexander recovers fairly quickly. Lafayette is grateful, although he cannot help but note that he still limps, and winces if someone bumps into him too hard. He worries, of course, but nothing in the world could separate Alexander Hamilton from his work except physical restraints, no matter how much his friends might try to dissuade him. 

There’s other changes, too. He seems much more protective of Lafayette and John, taking to following them and always inquiring as to where they are, and panicking when he doesn’t receive a definitive answer. John jokes that it’s like having a guard chihuahua, but both of them make sure to stay within Alexander’s sight whenever possible.

The biggest change, however, lies in Alexander’s relationship with their general. John is not particularly perceptive, and thus continues unaware, but Lafayette has spent his whole life observing and taking invisible cues in order to insert himself in the right places and charm the right people, and he sees it almost as clear as if it were written in bold for him to read, so glaringly obvious in the way Washington pulls him closer when they’re not in public, the way Alexander leans into him, the glances they share from across the room, heavy with intimacy and care. 

Even so, even with it laid out in front of him, he turns away, covers his eyes. Maintains plausible deniability. What those two have is fragile, new, and he won’t ruin the new happy spark in his friend’s eyes when his general is mentioned. 

So when a month goes by, when Alexander is healed enough for more exerting physical activities, when he passes Washington’s door late at night and hears them whispering together, tender and affectionate in the privacy of Washington’s office, he blocks it out, walks right on by, hopes Alexander knows what he’s doing.

i really just went “mmm ✨commas✨” didn’t I

comments are very very very very much appreciated, as are reblogs! 

[youngbounty]

I didn’t think I’d be listing anything I’d wish to expect from AA7, but judging from the recent official art, there is a chance that Godot may return. If that happens, the one thing I would like to see from AA7 is the return of Iris.

Let me say I do not or have ever liked Iris, but I do see great potential in her getting a better character arc than just the gullible ex girlfriend with an evil twin sister. Because of this, I want to see Capcom give this girl a better character arc and have her get a second chance with Phoenix. Yes, you heard this from a Narumitsu fangirl. I want Phoenix to have another chance with Iris and I want Iris to have a better character arc.

There will be an increase in Phoenix x Iris fanbase and I will happily join it. I’ve always favored canon ships, even despite how weak they were. Yugioh, Danny Phantom, Hay Arnold, Kim Possible, Danganronpa, Spider-Man and hell even Dragon Ball, I always loved the canon ships and carried them to my grave. The moment I began favoring noncanon ships was when the canon ships lost that spark of what made me love about them and I realized now what that was: Commitment.

Even the weakest canon ships weren’t always fluff and rainbows. Some focused on lusty reasons they were together or just never seemed capable. Dragon Ball had its good share of ships that had dumb reasons they were together and didn’t make a lick of sense (Goku X Chichi anyone?), but the fact they stuck it out and loved each other made it all worth it to favor them. Hell, after Goku died, Chichi raised her boys on her own and never wedded anybody else. Goku once had a nightmare of the villain murdering Chichi in front of him and that was considered the most traumatic for him. You gotta give them props for loving each other and sticking it out despite all the shit they deal with out of the other.

I want to see a canon ship that will stick it out and love each other. If AA7 can bring Iris back and have her date or marry Phoenix at the end, that ship will have my absolute blessing. Hell, I may consider being a fangirl of that ship (I’ll still stick with Narumitsu too, but I’ll consider it crack). For anyone that want Phoenix to end up with Edgeworth or Maya, they were never canon to begin with. At least a majority Narumitsu fans are self aware that their ship isn’t canon and don’t care. Narumayo shippers, though, I can’t say for certain. Most I see on here seem to enjoy making fun of Narumitsu shippers for using “Unnecessary Feelings” and claiming theirs is better and has more proof it’s canon (some with Narumayo in their names have blocked me from commenting, even though I’ve never talked to them lol). If Phoenix X Iris does become canon and the Narumayo shippers go apeshit, I will invite all the Narumitsu shippers to come dine with me and watch the chaos unfold lolz.

Jokes aside, no one should hate any ship or character for getting in the way of your OTP. The reason I dislike Iris is because I felt her character got the short end of the stick. I would love to see Iris get a better character arc and Phoenix to finally have his girl. And hey, maybe Maya could end up with Godot (don’t judge me!).

Don’t worry, I do want Athena to have her own game and Apollo to discover his mother and Trucy being his half sister, but I see way too many of those. If Phoenix had his game in AA7 where Godot returned and he got to finally have his girl, that would be the perfect way to end Phoenix’s character arc.

[frasier-crane-style]

Terminator: Dark Fate

I have no idea how TSCC came up with two seasons’ worth of innovative scenarios about Terminators and these cinematic universe motherfuckers can only redo T2 with more CGI.

This movie is plotless. It has no real plot. It’s like Now That’s What I Call A Terminator Movie! There are so many callbacks and borrowings from all the other Terminator movies that it passes the point of homage and just becomes plagiarism. The bad Terminator is the same as the T-X, metal endoskeleton with a T-1000 shell. They kill him with a Terminator power core. They say Come With Me If You Want To Live and I’ll Be Back (twice! It’s the first thing Sarah Connor says and it makes no sense in context, it’s just something people say in Terminator movies). In fact, it has anti-plot, since it undoes a lot of the story developments in Terminator and T2.

The premise is basically just we’re going to remake Terminator 1, but people don’t like reboots, so we’re going to bring back Linda Hamilton and make it a technically kinda sorta sequel (sure, Skynet was wiped from existence, but another, completely different, yet exactly the same AI called Legion was created and did the exact same thing. Which also happened in T3, but they had the decency to still call it Skynet). But otherwise, it’s entirely people being chased by an evil robot from the future and trying to destroy it. 

That’s it. That’s all there is to it. T2 had the whole thing about preventing Judgment Day before it happened. T3 had Judgment Day actually happen. This one, nothing. There is nothing going on under the surface other than a bunch of action sequences and explosions. Even T3 got some mileage out of the idea that Judgment Day was inevitable. Here, our cast learns that Judgment Day was already ‘averted’ once slash that it’s destined to be repeated and they basically go “Eh. Figures.” I’m not kidding.

Wait, that’s not fair. Let’s count out the TWEEESTS.

1. In a very contrived way, the script waits an hour and a half to actually explain why heroine Dani has been targeted for termination--you know, the thing Kyle Reese explained to Sarah Connor the moment they were out of danger--all to set up this big ‘reveal’ that Dani isn’t the NuSarah, she’s the NuJohn (yes, they actually say this aloud, just so you soup sandwich motherfuckers in the audience get it). Hear that, neckbeards, John Connor is now a woman! And Mexican! And she’s got a bit of a gay vibe, because it’s 2019 and God forbid we have a heroine that isn’t a bit bicurious. If she has a cock and balls, my bingo card will be a winner.

2. Months after killing John Connor and thus completing his mission, an Arnold-model Terminator started a family (wow, that was quick) and learned the value of human life and eventually switched sides. This is a crazy new idea that also happened in Terminator: Genebissss, so it’s done and dusted in ten minutes, even though Arnold is the most engaging character. (He’s saddled with a lot of yuk lines about how he’s a comically serious Terminator, yet (teehee) works as an interior decorator, but at least he has a personality.)

3. The other good Terminator is Grace, who needs meds to keep up her cyborg strength or she’ll crash (this never affects the plot) (it’s like they read something about Rey Palpatine having no flaws and so they decided to give Grace the ‘flaw’ of literally having her own Kryptonite). She’s not a Terminator, she’s an augmented human, which means she can make MCU-style wisecracks every five minutes. (”I didn’t hear anything.” “That’s because you’re not a cybernetic super soldier from the future.” Actual dialogue.)

4. Linda Hamilton is back, baby! Yes, that’s right, they dragged her away from doing guest spots on Lost Girl! Can you believe???? She’s become a Terminator hunter that ambushes Terminators as they come back from the future and destroys them, because Skynet was both able to send back an infinite number of Terminators AND because now they can easily be destroyed by one five-hundred-year-old woman. 

This makes it a bit confusing why they have so much trouble taking out Ghost Rider, given that he’s a T-1000 skin with a creamy T-800 center. It seems like if you hammer him enough, he’s got no endoskeleton, and that’s all she wrote. That’s what happened to the T-X. Can his liquid metal skin just walk around without the other half of him? If so, what’s the point of the endoskeleton? The T-1000 managed without it and that seemed a lot harder to kill. At one point, Sarah hits the bare endoskeleton with a bazooka, which seems like it should’ve been a mortal blow, but it’s the first act, so I guess not.

And is it supposed to be funny that the opening takes place in a car factory where (in 2019!) the human workers are losing their assembly line jobs to machines? Because they’re all Mexicans? None of them ever look at a Terminator and go THEY TOOK OUR JOBS, but man, that one is all teed up for the Rifftrax boys.

For a movie with, as I said, no plot, it’s very rushed. They seem to be saying “yeah, it’s a dumb Terminator movie, you know the score,” (even tho it’s halfway aimed at people who aren’t Terminator fans; more on that in a minute) because it seems to take all of ten minutes for both good guys and bad guys to find Dani and start getting into CGI stunt double fights, which means the story has very little time to breathe and we have very little time to get to know any of the characters. The bad guy spawns practically at Dani’s front door! And pretty much does everything by massacring a bunch of people and then hacking a computer. The T-1000 had some intelligence, some charisma. This guy’s a big nothing.

And the Dani character is useless. She starts the story already super assertive, is barely traumatized at all by her loved ones being killed and her own life being endangered. There’s none of that relatable feel of an everyman suddenly being told they have a grand destiny and an incredible responsibility, because right from the start she’s standing up to her mean boss and doing the Nevertheless She Persisted thing. And all this while being literally five feet tall and looking all of twelve years old. 

I love these Spy Kids movies.

And at least the original two movies were smart enough to leave the future John Connor mostly to the imagination. This one actually shows us Dani as grizzled military badass, beating up guys and delivering inspiring speeches (would it surprise you to know that humans fighting among each other “is exactly what Legion wants”?), and it’s just--oh man. If ever a political leader is enough to make people think back to the good old days of Trump and Biden...

And if we’re going to talk shit (rightfully) about Jai Courtney’s Kyle Reese not being at all scruffy or traumatized or feral, it should be noted that Grace seems pretty well-adjusted for a post-apocalyptic guerrilla fighter (who all wear Starship Trooper uniforms). Aside from a tendency to smash the face in of everyone she comes across, whether they’ve done anything to deserve it or not (Sample dialogue, to a doctor who is looking at her X-rays after performing life-saving surgery on her: “Did I give you permission to look at my private parts?” SMASH. No, really!)

They really go all in on this cringey, woke af “You’re not the mother of some MAN, Dani. YOU ARE THE FUTURE!” And yet, there’s a hilarious amount of toxic masculinity in this movie, just without the dongs. About every other line Sarah and Grace have is generic tough guy bullshit about how they’re going to kick someone’s ass, how they’re suspicious of someone, how they’re hostile towards someone. If they had dongs, you would think they were the smallest dongs possible, because they are compensating for something, BIG TIME. Between the T-800 and Sarah and Grace, everyone in this movie seems to outright hate each other, to the point that Arnold’s killer cyborg is one of the more pleasant characters. It gets to where you just want someone to order a fucking decaf. Does the fact that Sarah Connor has a vagina keep it from being ridiculously over the top how she spends all her time either blowing up robots or drinking herself into a stupor? C’mon. You can’t complain about male characters having ‘man-pain’ then give Bad Grandma a pass over her ovaries.

And that’s it. It’s a Brundlefly shit between yet another dumb girlpower reboot for the people who’ve never seen a Terminator movie and a sequel with Sarah and Uncle Bob to try and get that last drop of blood outta this stone. They’re trying to make something that appeals to both people for whom this is their first Terminator and people for whom this is their latest Terminator and it just doesn’t work. The newbies don’t have any emotional investment in these characters and the Terminator fans don’t like it that all the old movies were rendered meaningless to prop up Grace and Dani.

Hilariously enough, I actually played Terminator: Resistance recently, which is a fun little mid-tier shooter that was meant to tie in to this movie... and it completely ignores all the Dani/Grace/Legion BS to take place in John Connor’s future war and tie in to the first two movies. That’s how forgettable this movie is. Its own damn video game adaptation pretends it doesn’t exist. Fuuuck.

Oh! Oh! Oh! And in that big, bad, sexist original Terminator, which was so unwoke and problematic, Sarah saved herself and finished off the Terminator herself. Here, Dani has to be saved by Arnold at the climax. The 35-year-old movie is more feminist than this one. Fuck you very much.

[chezforshire]

Danny stretches as far as his spine could go before he drops back down onto the bed with a groan. 

“Do you want a hot pack or something?”

He glances at Sam as she drops down next to him. She swats at his chest until he groans and takes off the binder under his shirt.

“Nah, I’m good really I just want to lay here in misery.”

"Alright theater kid,” she scoffs.

Tucker sits onto the bed next to him and places a bowl of buttered popcorn on his chest and settles a bowl of caramel popcorn with syrup on his lap. Danny scrunches his nose at that and wonders how much Tucker’s dentist must hate him.

Sam chews on the straw of her milkshake as she flips through the movies on screen. “What are we feeling today boys?”

“The Mummy,” Tucker automatically responded.

“No, I’m tired of looking at Brendan Fraser’s ass. It was great the first few times but now I’m just bored.”

“First off.” Tucker points a sticky finger at Sam. It was directly above Danny’s face and he could see the light sheen of syrup on it. He makes an even more disgusted face. “One can never get tired of looking at Brendan Fraser’s ass. It’s great. Second, I’m here for Arnold Vosloo this time. Him as Imoteph? God.” He feigns a swoon and Sam makes gagging noises at him.

“Doesn’t the shitty CGI bother you, though?” Danny asks. “Like, I can never stop thinking about the fakest flames I’ve ever seen in the intro.”

“To be fair it was good for it’s time. We’re just older now and have better tastes.”

“Older, yes. Better taste, debatable.” Still, she starts up The Mummy Returns.

Danny grabs some pillows and props his head up to see better. He shifts his body a bit and cringes at the sensation of blood.

“This kid is fucking stupid,” Sam mutters.

“Listen with parents like Nick and Evelyn, of course he’ll just be wandering around some abandoned temple.”

They lapse into silence again. Despite Sam’s teasing, she was really focused on the scenes with Evelyn and Anack-Su-Namun. Though they all had a collective gay panic at Nick throwing back that knife to disposable-and-a-probably-racist-depiction villain number one. Then a gay death from watching Evelyn and Ardeth kick some ass.

They may or may not have repeated scenes from that fight more times than is socially acceptable.

Around the jungle scene Danny sits up and mutters about going to the bathroom to change. Sam looks up to check the time. “You hungry? We should get something to eat.”

“Nah? I mean, I’m not hungry and it’s not long before the movie finishes.”

Tucker tips the rest of the popcorn into his mouth then gives him a pointed look. “The last time you ate was breakfast, Dan. It’s like almost dinner time.”

“Oh.”

Sam sighs dramatically and makes a show of getting off the bed. “What will you ever do without us.”

“Go full ghost?”

“A dude can only wish.” She slings an arm around him and nods towards the door. “Let’s get some greasy as shit burgers.”

Tucker walks up to them with the empty bowl of popcorn and raises an eyebrow at Sam. “Can vegan burgers even be greasy?”

She shrugs. “It’s a burger.”

After Danny takes a quick detour to the bathroom, the three of them find themselves in the kitchen. Danny plucks out the ingredients as Tucker sets up the sound system. Sam looks into the fridge over Danny’s shoulder. She nudges him and asks “You wanna drink a bit?”

“Burgers and beer sounds so american I’m kind of feeling my skin get whitewashed.”

Tucker bursts out laughing and Sam gives him a disappointingly proud smile. “We’re not drinking beer, we’ll bust out the big guns.”

“Busting out the vodka at-” Tucker glances at his phone- “five PM Mx. Manson? What a rebel.”

She smiles widely at him. “You know it.”

Danny rolls his eyes and pushes her away. “Not today. I don’t feel like having a hangover in addition to all this stupid body pain.” He phases his hand through the drawer and pulls out a pan.

Sam nods and pulls out a beer for herself. She tilts her head at Tucker and after a shake of his head closes the fridge. They make their dinner with the soundtrack of How To Train Your Dragon playing in the background.

A plate of hamburgers in one hand and their respective drinks in the other, they meander back to the room to continue watching their movie.

Danny demolishes his in less time that is humanly possible and Tucker even gives him one of his as well. They load up another movie once The Mummy ends and give a bit more running commentary now that they have food in them.

Somewhere around 8 PM Danny retracts his initial decline of the alcohol but sticks to just a bottle of beer to sip at. Tucker grabs his own bottle as well along with Sam’s second.

They give up on the movies and set up some games. They argue over what to put in before they decide to just let Sam play Resident Evil as the two of them try to minimize their backseat gaming. They still yell and scream at the monsters and jumpscares despite literally just facing off a ghost who used its entrails to trap people.

“Hey Sam do you have overnight pads?” Danny asks offhandedly as he watches her shoot a zombie in the knee.

“Yeah, but I think I moved them. They might be- fucking bitch give a fucker a warning next time jesus christ- they might be in the drawer of the closet.”

He nods and goes to look. After a bit of moving some unfolded clothing, he found a pack and excused himself to the bathroom. When he came back, Tucker was on the controller and screaming at Mr. X.

He smiles softly at them. These times of the months always sucked ass but at least he had some buddies to make it less worse.

He tells Tucker that he should probably not use the handgun and goes to sit next to him again.

[malicerewatchesdoctorwho]

The Web of Fear - Episode Six

Written by - Mervyn Haisman and Henry Lincoln       Director - Douglas Camfield     Producer - Peter Bryant    

Episode Six

("You gave your word that no one would be harmed." - The Doctor to the Great Intelligence, after threatening to snap Jamie's neck if the Doctor doesn't cooperate.)

Likes

- The Doctor and Anne not even telling Jamie what is going on with the yeti to begin with, because he is with the Colonel and they have no idea who is being controlled. 

- The Doctor playing his recorder again.  I have no idea why I love it so much, but I do.

- After the Doctor does tell Jamie about having one of the yeti as an ally, just Jamie's "well, that's a great help" once he is told that the Doctor lost track of which one was theirs XD

- Jamie hiding in a box to escape being taken and it working XD  I just found it rather nice that someone in this show actually found an effective way of hiding!  For once.

- The Doctor using the control box on the yeti and taking the mind control helmet and fiddling with it so it wouldn't work.  hahaha, nice.

- The difference between normal Staff Sergeant Arnold and the Great Intelligence model.  Seriously, I find that some great acting.  No jerky or awkward movements, no great huge differences in personality until he was found out, just a guy suddenly being the bad guy when he was thought to be a good guy the rest of the time.  I liked Staff.  I thought he was a great character.  He didn't deserve what happened to him for getting taken over. 

- That the Great Intelligence wasn't actually beaten, just cut off.  It leaves him as a bad guy that can come back.  And yeah, we all know he does, since he is in Modern Who.

- The Doctor having a mini meltdown for not having things go his way.  I have no idea why I like this.  He just doesn't get angry or make a fuss about much as Two and he just goes off at the end.

Dislikes

- Evans the coward disobeying orders and running away like the coward he is.  The Colonel is right.  That's desertion.  Does that mean at the end, he gets dishonourably discharged?  Please say yes.

- Wow, Travers is a bit of an asshole in this one to Victoria.  I don't like it, especially since he's been pretty much nice to everyone so far.

- Uuugh, why is Chorley back?  I don't like him either... 

- Oh god, I find this hilarious but it's going on the dislikes, because Chorley.  Anne getting stuck with him at the end to explain the TARDIS to him.  I felt so sorry for her, while also finding the whole thing funny.

Awesome

- Going on the awesome list, because I like the simplicity of it.  The pyramid control seat thing the yeti have in their control room, the Great Intelligence has built.  I just think it's nice that not everything has to look super awesome to still be effective as a plot device and prop.

- And yes, also going to add the super cute Yeti here again, because look at those claaaws. Why do I find monsters cute?  When I was a small kid I wanted one of the dogs from Ghostbusters as a pet, because I thought they were super cute. 

- I liked the fade in from one view to another where Anne is staring intently at the Doctor as they sit in silence. 

- The end titles no longer has the web!  The Great Intelligence was beat and instead of going with the web of the rest of the episodes, it went back to normal.  Nice.

Shitty

- That beard is the bane of all life in existence in all universes that are, were or ever will be.

- Chorley's glasses. Seriously, I probably would have liked and/or trusted him a lot more if he hadn't had them on.  Welp too bad for him.  No trust gained.  This says a lot about human nature if anything.  Not necessarily that people in glasses look untrustworthy, but that Chorley looks like a completely different, more nice and personable person, without them.

- Oops, I see a zip line for one of the yeti costumes near the end.  Which is odd, because they were so good at hiding them otherwise.  

In Conclusion

Another great episode, though probably not the best in the serial.  Probably my second least favourite, but who's counting :P

Plenty of action at the end after Jamie set the Doctor's yeti on the yeti and Staff.  The Doctor getting angry enough to start yelling and fussing that things didn't go his way.  Some nice character moments between the Doctor and Jamie and the Doctor and Anne.

I enjoyed most of the characters in this, except for the two obvious ones.  Colonel Lethbridge-Stewart was probably at his weakest in this episode, because he didn't really have much to do, but he kept them rallied as best he could for a bunch of civilians under his care, so kudos to him. 

Victoria and Travers were way underused for that matter.  They're basically just bait here.  But I still like them as characters.

Anne was great, though. As was Staff.  Poor Staff. 

I didn't really have much to say about this one, as I was a bit too busy watching to see how this one ended.

A bit abrupt and with the bad guy getting away, but I still liked it.

Body count - 1.  Staff Sergeant Arnold.  Poor Staff. He didn't deserve any of this.  He was a great guy until he was taken over. Killed by yeti set on him by Jamie. Ouch.  But he likely would have died when the Great Intelligence left anyway. RIP Staff.

The Web of Fear as a Whole

Watch this one. Not even kidding, just watch it. It's great from start to finish. Great characters you love and characters you also love to hate.  Plenty of action, plenty of character building, lots of side characters you get to know and like or hate. 

The plot for the main part is tight.  We know about the yeti and Intelligence already from the Abominable Snowmen episodes. So it's like the first true sequel in Doctor Who. 

It's basically a base under siege story with the army fighting a monster while stuck in the train system lines of a deserted city.  I mean, come on, how awesome is that?  Sounds like a sci-fi action movie.

So, yeah, watch this one.

And I just realised my Web of Fear as a Whole segment is basically me pimping this one out.  It's that good.

[wonderfulworldofmichaelford]

Is It Really THAT Bad?

I’m going to warn you all now. This one is going to get a bit angry at the end. Normally I would try and remain as professional as possible, but in this case, I don’t feel like I would be able to.

Batman & Robin is a film that has lived in infamy since its release in 1997. Upon release, it was critically reviled, and this hatred of the film continued long into the modern day, where it frequently tops “worst films of all time lists” to the point where it actually is listed on the Wikipedia page for “List of films considered the worst.” It was nominated for at least 11 Razzies but only won a single one, and it went on to be a frequent punching bag on the {REDACTED] Critic’s web show, where he would get irrationally angry at the mere mention of the Bat Credit Card. In contemporary reviews, Mick LaSalle of The San Francisco Chronicle stated “"George Clooney is the big zero of the film, and should go down in history as the George Lazenby of the series,” which is less of a criticism and more of a compliment, if I’m being totally honest.

Most of the stars would take a negative stance towards it as well, with legend stating that if you tell George Clooney that you saw the film in theaters, he will refund you for your ticket out of his own pocket. Chris O’Donnell likewise is not particularly fond of the film, stating "It just felt like everything got a little soft the second time. On Batman Forever, I felt like I was making a movie. The second time, I felt like I was making a kid's toy commercial." And, perhaps most depressingly, Joel Schumacher himself was apparently very apologetic for the film, though this may or may not have come about because of years and years of vitriol being directed at him for making this film.

In the wake of Mr. Schumacher’s passing, I decided to re-watch the film, as I am famously rather fond of it, and I am going to tell you all why the answer to the question “Is it really THAT bad?” is a loud, resounding, NO.

THE GOOD

There’s honestly quite a lot to like here, more than you might think. I think first and foremost what you need to understand going in is that this is a silly, cartoonish take on the Burton style, blending the silliness and camp of the West series with the drama and aesthetics of the Burton films, all while adding some over-the-top, colorful flair. John Glover, who appears in the film as a cartoonish mad scientist, even has gone on record as saying "Joel would sit on a crane with a megaphone and yell before each take, 'Remember, everyone, this is a cartoon'. It was hard to act because that kind of set the tone for the film”… the last sentence makes the statement very baffling, but at least even the actors were aware of what they were doing. If this doesn’t sound appealing, well, the opening is sure to warn you off, as it is a suiting up montage with various shots of the firm butts, large codpieces, and stiff batnipples of the Dynamic Duo. The movie is very upfront about what you’re in for.

On the subject of the infamous batnipples, Schumacher stated "I had no idea that putting nipples on the Batsuit and Robin suit were going to spark international headlines. The bodies of the suits come from Ancient Greek statues, which display perfect bodies. They are anatomically correct." It seems a very odd choice, but it’s pretty clear that he meant it as an amusing little design choice and nothing more. Of course, this hasn’t stopped everyone and their mother from spewing homophobic comments about how he was purposefully making the film gayer, even from star George Clooney, who has said that he played Batman as a gay man and was told by Schumacher Batman is gay. It’s so disgusting that people did and continue to do this, because honestly, the costumes are fine, and even if they are meant to be fanservice… so what? O’Donell and Clooney’s asses look nice, as does Alicia Silverstone’s when she dons a suit. The fact hers is just as form-fitting as the other two really shows that the whole idea Schumacher did it because he was gay is ridiculous; the man was very egalitarian about the fanservice in the movie.

Whatever else Clooney says, he does a pretty great job as Batman and Bruce Wayne. His speech at the end of the film where he talks to Mr. Freeze and reminds him that he is a good man and offers to help him is honestly one of the few moments in any Batman film where Batman actually feels like the one from the animated series, a man who fights crime but also wants to help the people he’s trying to stop. Clooney just has a very natural charisma that lends himself to playing a hero, and while there are a few awkward moments in the performance, he captures the fun and charm a more lighthearted Batman should. Michael Gough’s last turn as Alfred is also surprisingly poignant, and a lot of mileage is gotten out of his genuinely tearjerking subplot.

Of course, the very best part of the film is the villains. Uma Thurman is clearly having a ball as Poison Ivy, and she gets to have a ludicrous amount of costumes as well as numerous moments of fanservice. She also has the power to turn every man around her into a simp, which is absolutely amazing and leads to quite a few scenes of Batman and Robin slapping each other over her. But f course, there’s really no doubt that the best part of the film is Mr. Freeze. He’s a combination of the sillier Mr. Freeze from the West days and the more modern take of the character most are familiar with, the tragic anti-villain who wants to save his wife; such a character would take a talented man capable of comedy and drama in equal measure. And who better than Arnold Schwarzenegger? Joel Schumacher wanted a man who looked like he was chiseled from a glacier, and Arnold certainly fits that description. He spends the movie juggling some of the most corny puns you can imagine and a lot of truly powerful, understated drama, and it really does work. You honestly get the sense that Arnold really gets Mr. Freeze and what makes him a great character. Also, that suit he has is amazing.

As a final note: the Bat Credit Card is absolutely not stupid. Linkara has defended it in the past, giving reasons why and how it could actually work, but really, all that needs to be said is… is this any more ridiculous than Shark Repellent Bat Spray?

THE BAD

So don’t get the wrong idea here; this film is far from perfect. As is the case with any comedy, the humor can be hit or miss; not all of the puns land, not all of the jokes are great. You’re never going to get a perfect comedy no matter how hard you try, and this is no exception.

As for performances, I think O’Donnell’s Robin and Silverstone’s Batgirl are a bit wonky. O'Donnell has long been a source of derision for his whining, and while I think the hate is a bit overblown, he does spend a ludicrous amount of time in this film being snippy, miserable, and arrogant. I think he actually fights with Batman more than any of the villains! Still, his performance isn’t horrible, he just gets a bit too whiny at a few points.

Silverstone is a bit of a bigger problem, but she’s not quite as bad as even I remembered. She’s pretty much Batgirl in name only, since she’s related to Alfred in this, but she’s mostly okay. The issue really is that her arc in the film is relatively bland and feels a bit shoehorned, which comes to a head where she fights Poison Ivy in a designated catfight, obviously because they didn’t want Batman to punch a woman in the face I guess. There’s just one issue with that:

On the subject of Ivy, while she definitely does have plant powers here, they’re strangely underplayed. She rarely uses them even when it would probably be beneficial, instead relying on Bane to do most of the fighting for her. Ah, Bane… Bane is one of the few things about this film I can’t really muster up any sort of defense for. While his creation scene is rather cool, it doesn’t lead to much of interest, as this version of Bane is pretty much a mindless supersoldier lackey who serves Poison Ivy. Now, this was still relatively early in Bane’s existence, as he had only debuted in 1993 and was really most famous for his signature “breaking the Bat” move, but it still is baffling why, with that famous thing fresh in everyone’s minds, that they would just choose to go and basically make Bane into Evil Diet Captain America. Surely they could have either saved him for a sequel or utilized him in a way more befitting of the character? I think this Bane is kind of responsible for the negative perception of Bane as this big, dumb bruiser, something that works like The Dark Knight Rises and Arkham Origins have thankfully gone a long way to rectifying. Bane is at his best when he’s a cunning genius bruiser; here, he’s nothing but a glorified prop.

Is It Really THAT Bad?

The answer is no. No it isn’t. AT ALL.

I’ve always felt this film came out at the wrong time. It was towards the end of the 90s, during the Dark Age of Comics when everything was dark, gritty, and edgy. The world didn’t want a movie like this back then; they wanted stuff like Blade, who would come in shortly after this film and show us how to make that aesthetic work. I guess in terms of Batman they wanted something more like Dawn of Justice, which really speaks volumes to how awful the 90s were for superheroes. 

Look, I’m not trying to convince anyone this is the greatest Batman film ever. Even I don’t think that; Batman Returns, The Dark Knight, and Under the Red Hood are all much better films. But is this really the worst Batman film now that we have the deeply misogynistic and disgusting The Killing Joke and the relentlessly bleak and unpleasant Batman v Superman? Hell, it’s not even worse than Batman Forever! At least the Batman in this film has some kind of emotional range beyond “plank of wood!” And even calling it the worst sequel ever is just… so baffling. Again, this is definitely better than Batman Forever, lack of Jim Carrey notwithstanding. And can you honestly look me in the eye and tell me that this is worse than any of the Terminator sequels after the second film? Worse than Iron Man 2 or Thor: The Dark World? The almost half dozen Alvin and the Chipmunk sequels? This is only the worst sequel or even a bad sequel if it is the only sequel you’ve ever seen in your life.

A lot of the hate for it from back in the day carries a strong undercurrent of homophobia. Much like the infamous backlash against disco, it’s seriously uncomfortable, and it definitely is cruel how accusatory people were towards Schumacher’s intentions for the suits of the heroes in the film. The fact that even the two main stars have gotten in on it is a bit disgusting, though O’Donnell questioning why there needed to be a codpiece is certainly less offensive than George Clooney saying he played Batman as a gay man for… whatever reason. Was he implying that Batman being gay made the movie worse? I’m not sure what he’s on about there. Even The New Batman Adventures made a cruel dig at the film; notice the sign and the effeminate-looking boy. You could only get homophobia this good in the 90s!

The hatred of this film is absolutely overblown. It’s so ridiculous. #70 on the bottom rated movies of IMDB? #1 on the 50 worst films of all time list from Empire? Doug Walker’s personal punching bag whenever he needs to talk about a bad sequel, to the point where he literally said no one wanted a comedic take on Batman in his worst sequels video? Come the fuck on.

Joel Schumacher may or may not have ended up hating this film, but he certainly was made to feel like shit for making it… and it is honest to god not that bad! But he was just absolutely eviscerated, to the point where this was a fucking headline when he died:

Literally fuck all of these people. Fuck io9 for their insensitive headline. Fuck Empire for rating this as the worst film ever. Fuck Doug Walker for his constant bashing and his shitty old “chimp out over the Bat Credit Card” gag. Double fuck Mick LaSalle for shitting on George Clooney’s performance while also trying to say George Lazenby’s Bond was bad. In fact, fuck George Clooney for his weird idea that playing Batman as gay is a bad thing (sorry George, but I can’t defend this). Fuck the Razzies. Yes, it was nominated, but I just feel it’s always a good time to say “Fuck the Razzies.”

I will never say you have to love or even like this film, but the sheer amount of vitriol and hatred for it is absolutely beyond me. At worst, this film is just a bit too goofy, and at best, it is a fun tribute to the campy days when Batman just couldn’t get rid of a bomb. I didn’t take off my score this time. I’m proud to say I gave this an 8/10, personally. If I’m being honest, a 6.6 – 6.9 is more appropriate, because it does have quite a few issues, but god, this film is not bad at all. It’s silly, goofy, campy, and fun… but bad? Not by any stretch of my imagination. And fuck the critics for convincing an entire generation that this is Batman at his worst, when we have Batman fucking slaughtering his ways through criminals and fucking Barbara Gordon on rooftops these days. I will always take stupid ice puns over misery, murder and creepy intergenerational sex, thank you very much.

I hope you can rest easy, Mr. Schumacher. Maybe you didn’t love your film in the end but, wherever you are, I hope you know I loved it.

[elderxprice]

It is hot in the district’s outdoor kitchen.

Kevin sits on the ground with his back against the wall, knees drawn upwards towards his chest. He hugs them, blinking sweat from his eyes as he stares into the fire. There’s rabbit cooking, and goat, and it hits him all at once this is the last meal he will eat here.

The first meal he ate was more-or-less the same: posho with beans and rabbit. He remembers staring down into his bowl, missing Kraft macaroni and cheese more than he missed his own mother - and now, in two days, he will get to have both. But he will no longer get to have this. Kevin still is not sure how he feels about that.

His heart and his head are conflicted. He both loves it here and hates it; and will miss far more than he is glad to be rid of. But he cannot be happy here, and Kevin wants to be happy. He needs to remember what that feels like.

“Elder Price, I have been looking all over for you.” Nabulungi ducks her head as she steps into the kitchen, waving the smoke away with both of her hands. “What are you doing in here? It is impossible to breathe.” She sits down beside him, legs outstretched; she is barefoot, unlike Kevin.

“I wouldn’t say it’s impossible,” he says, placing an arm around her shoulders. She moves in closer; rests her head against his chest. “Otherwise, we’d both be dead.”

She laughs and smacks his thigh. “You are foolish,” she teases. “You also did not answer my question.”

“Only because I know you’re gonna laugh at me,” Kevin admits.

“Try me.” She lifts her head and smiles, and Kevin quickly commits it to memory because he knows there is no one in Utah with a smile quite like hers.

“I want all of this,” he says, waving towards the food and all the smoke; “to get into my clothes, so they smell like this place. I don’t want to forget much, and I think it’ll help.”

Nabulungi hums, leaning in to press their noses together; “See, I am not laughing.”

But then she does laugh because Kevin starts to tickle her. It is easier than explaining the why and who for. They end up rolling around in the dirt, laughing so hard they both cry.

“That was not fair,” she says, breathless. “You made me laugh, so you could say I told you so like you always do.”

“Not true,” Kevin says, propping himself up on his elbows. He shrugs; “Maybe I just like the sound of it.”

Nabulungi beams, sitting on her knees. “Then I will keep laughing, just for you,” she says, offering Kevin a hand. He grabs it, allowing her to help him sit up.  “It will not be hard to do since Elder Cunningham is staying.”

“Yeah.” Kevin feels his smile fade, the moment she reminds him.

“You are going to miss him,” she says. “Arnold.”

“Of course, I am.” Kevin presses the heels of his hands to his eyes and tells himself it is because the smoke is starting to irritate them. “He’s my best friend. He’s-” everything, Kevin thinks to himself. My whole, entire life.

“You do not have to worry about him.” Nabulungi leans in closer, hooking a finger beneath Kevin’s chin so he has to look up. “I will take care of him for you. I will make sure he is alright.”

It is exactly what Kevin is afraid of; but she does not know that, and he does not want to tell her. “Do you promise?” Kevin asks, holding up a pinkie. “’Cause I really don’t think he can take care of himself.”

She stares at it, confused, for a moment, until Kevin hooks it around one of her own. “This’ll show me that you promise,” he explains, offering the most genuine smile he can muster. “You do, right?”

“Of course, I do.” Nabulungi tightens the grip around his finger, before pulling Kevin into a hug he only somewhat wants. “I swear it.”

[brideofedoras]

Soulbound

 Disclaimer: the usual...  I only own my OCs

Word count: 3200+

Rating: 18+

Warnings: Stalking, mentions of self-harm/scarring

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Her chest grew tight again at the detective’s words.  “That case… haunted him,” she gripped the table Arnold was laid out on when her knees wobbled.  “He…  Daddy always called me every night to let me know he made it home.  It didn’t matter how late.  I knew by the tone of his voice if it was a good day or bad, if the case was solved or if it was a rough one.  He hated that the trail went cold on him.”  She winced when her lungs rattled on a breath.  “But he was like a dog with a bone.”

“He wouldn’t let it go,” John nodded.  “Marty and I helped Sam on that case when we could, but a big lead on inSyndicate dropped right into our laps.  Sam tabled his investigation to join me on that raid.”  Haunted hazel eyes met hers.  “I should’ve told him no.”

She shook her head.  “Daddy always did what he wanted, you know that probably as well as I do,” her voice rasped as her lungs constricted.  She patted at her pockets as she pushed the words she needed to say out, “He talked about you... a… a lot, Detec...tive, he thought the w… world of you… and y… your dad.”  Her vision greyed at the edges.  

“Emily, where’s your inhaler?”  Rudy’s voice sounded muffled.  

“She left it on her desk,” John shoved away from the table, jogging to the desk and returning quickly.  “Here,” he uncapped the inhaler before he pressed it in Emily’s hand.

Emily’s hand shook as she lifted it up to dose herself.  “S-sorry,” she rasped out.  “Anx-anxiety is sky-high.”

“Do you have medication for the anxiety?”  Dorian asked, cupping her elbow to guide her to her desk.

She nodded as she sank into her desk chair.  “It doesn’t help.”  She wrapped her arms around her stomach.  “What did you find on our friend Arnold’s ownership history?”

“Three owners have been registered, but I don’t believe the last owner legally acquired him,” the DRN looked over his shoulder at John.  “I’ve sent everything I’ve uncovered so far to you but I need to look at his memory again.”

John nodded.  “I’ll call Maldonado and let her know what we’ve found so far,” he stepped back as he pulled out his phone.  “You gonna be okay?”  He turned back to Emily.

She lifted her eyes to his, surprise flooding her to find genuine concern in his hazels.  She shrugged, “I just need to keep busy.”

He frowned.  “Can you get me a list of the…” he motioned toward her computer, “... uh, product that uses the same type of synthetic skin and a list of stores that carry those things?”

“I was already working on it before you guys arrived,” she twisted her chair to face her computer.  She reached for her notebook instead, not willing to turn the monitor back on if Kennex was still standing behind her.  “I’ll get the list to you before I go home tonight.”

“Thanks.”

When he didn’t walk away she turned her head to look over his shoulder.  “Is there anything else, Detective?”

He hesitated before shaking his head.  “No…  Actually, yes.”

Her brow furrowed as she avoided meeting his eyes.  

“Sam preferred using notebooks to tablets and computers for his notes,” he propped his hands on his hips.  “Always wrote everything down before typing them up for official documentation.”

“He said by writing things by hand helped him retain information better,” she shrugged.  “And typing them up further ingrained the information into his memory.  Sure, he could record the interviews and review the audio and visual later but this way he could jot down facial expressions, make notes on body language, tone of voice, eyes, little details you can’t see clearly when reviewing any recordings of the initial interviews.”

“Huh,” John frowned thoughtfully.  “Never thought of that.”

“Daddy was old school,” she shrugged.  

“And you?”  He motioned to her notebook.

“It’s easier.”

It doesn’t irritate the scarring on my left arm.

She kept that to herself.  “I’m sure you have more important things to do than discuss the merits of archaic forms of taking notes, Detective Kennex,” she tugged at the cuff of her left sleeve when she realized she could see the faint line of an old scar.  “I need to finish compiling that list for you, anyway.”

She waited for him to walk away before she turned the computer screen on.  

“It’s Kennex,” she heard him as he paced away.  “Hey, you remember Sam’s last case?  The Community U murders?  I need everything we got on that case.  We’ve got a new lead.  That android at the bank heist this morning?  Dorian accessed some old footage from one of the murders.  I want to be lead on this one.  We’re still at Rudy’s, why?  She’s stunned but otherwise fine, she’s working on getting a list compiled for me on the android.”

“John, you need to see this,” Dorian spoke up.

“Sandra, I’ll touch base once we get back to HQ, Dorian’s got something for me.  What is it, D?”

Emily turned away from her computer and the unpleasant task of scrolling through sex toys (why the hell would anyone use toys that felt like that?) and made her way over.  She halted in her tracks when both Dorian and Rudy looked at her, shaking their heads.

“Emily, you don’t need to see this,” Dorian immediately shut down the footage he was projecting.

But not before she saw the images.

Not before she saw her own face.

“That…  That was me,” she stammered.  

“Yeah,” Rudy nodded.  “It looked like you were at Community University.”

“Dorian, pull it back up,” Emily approached the table.  

“You don’t want to see this, Ms. Williams,” Dorian shook his head, his blue eyes flicking from hers to John when the detective moved to stand beside her.

“There for several months I felt like I was being followed,” she folded her arms over her stomach.  “I’m not sure when it started but I remember a couple of my visits to the hospital, to see…”  She shot a quick glance at John before looking away, “to see you, Detective.  I mentioned it once or twice that I felt like I was being watched.”

“Do you remember when it started?”  Kennex stepped in front of her.  

She shook her head, tightening her arms around herself.  “I was in a funk for a while, with losing Daddy and trying to keep going with my education and my dreams.  There at first I thought it was my anxiety making me feel things…  It may have been happening the entire time, I don’t…  I don’t know,” she looked up with a silent apology in her eyes.  “I just didn’t really realize it until a few days before I interviewed for the internship with Rudy, didn’t say anything to anyone until I told…”

“Until you told me,” he finished for her.  “Why tell me, why tell someone in a coma?”

“I told Sandy,” she flashed an uneasy smile.  “She knew.  But without any proof, other than me getting anxious, there was nothing she could do.  The department was already stretched thin, she couldn’t spare even an MX to shadow me.  I made sure to always be vigilant about my surroundings.  I was either at school, here at the lab, or at the hospital.  I always texted Sandy to let her know where I was, and every night when I got home I made sure every window was secured and the door was locked up.”

“Emily has three locks on her door,” Rudy interjected.

“Do you have a gun?”  Kennex shot Lom an exasperated look for the unnecessary interruption.

“Daddy’s guns are locked up in a safe in the back of my closet,” she frowned.  “I don’t know how to handle a weapon.”

“You’re gonna learn.”

Her eyes widened at the do not argue with me, you’re gonna do it whether you like it or not look he leveled on her.  “I don’t like guns.”

“Doesn’t matter,” he grumbled.  “Can’t believe Sam never taught you.”

“He was afraid it would trigger my anxiety and my asthma,” she pointed out.  “I was afraid, too.  Guns scare me.  Just the thought of actually holding one in my hands is enough to spike my anxiety.”

“Ms. Williams,” Dorian spoke up, drawing her attention from the hard hazel eyes of the detective towering over her.  “John’s right, you need to learn how to handle a gun.  I can work with you to help you overcome your anxieties regarding firearms.  With this case reopening, I’m afraid you’ll be stalked once more.  Whoever it is thinks you know something.”

She shook her head, “But I don’t know anything about it,” she turned her attention back to John.  “Daddy never told me any details about any of his cases.  When he talked to me about his day, he would tell me if it was a good one or a bad one, if he was getting anywhere or if the lead turned cold, but he never told me anything else.”

“Sam was a damned good detective,” Kennex nodded.  “He knew how far to bend the rules to get results.  But you’re his daughter, they know that.  And with you working with Rudy, working with us, that puts you in the spotlight again.  We’ll make sure you’re safe, but you need to get a gun and learn how to use it.”

“And tell us immediately if you feel like you’re being watched or followed,” Dorian added.  “John, I’ve downloaded the footage.  I would feel better if Captain Maldonado was viewing it with Ms. Williams.”

The detective nodded in agreement, his jaw ticking.  “No arguments, Emily,” he leveled that look on her again.  “How long will it take to finish your list?”

“There are too many stores in the city for me to write them all down,” she reached up to massage her temples.  “Most… the sketchiest ones are near the Wall and in the Koln Avenue District.  I’ll get it typed up and sent to you--”

“If I could see the list, I could scan and send it out,” Dorian suggested.  “You won’t need to type it up.”

“Finish up that list and head to the precinct,” John instructed her.  “And call me when you’re on your way.”

“I don’t have your number,” she pointed out.

He sighed heavily before turning toward her desk.  He pulled her notebook toward him and leaned over to write something down on a blank page.  “I should get your number, too.”

Emily joined him at the desk, carefully taking the pen he held out to her.  She wrote down her number before adding her name and gingerly tore it from the notebook.  “Don’t lose it, I don’t give my number out to just anyone.  I don’t want it falling into the wrong hands.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t lose it,” he promised as he took a step back.  “Let me know when you’re heading to the precinct.”

She nodded, looking up to meet his hazel eyes.  “Detective?” 

“Yeah?”  He stopped his retreat.

“Am I in danger?”  She blanched at the slight tremor in her voice, but it could not be helped.  Dorian’s refusal to let her view the footage he’d uncovered scared her.

“I don’t know,” he shook his head, his brow furrowing.  “Sweetheart, I’m not gonna lie to you.  I really don’t know if this is just old footage or if there’s more to this than we know or understand.”

She wrapped her arms around herself, one hand on her shoulder, the other on her hip in a defensive hug.  That one word hurt, a stinging reminder of the chilling rejection weeks before.  She closed her eyes and drew in a slow, steadying if rattly breath before exhaling.  “I… um…  I appreciate you being honest,” she cleared her throat to speak.  I’ll arrange with Dorian about learning how to handle a gun, even though I don’t want to.”

“Emily,” he stepped forward.  “I won’t let anything happen to you.  Your dad was--”

Emily held her hands up, “If that’s the only reason you’re protecting me, because of some sense of duty to my dad, don’t bother.  If you’ll excuse me, I’ve got work to do.”

“Emily--”

“I will call when I’ve got the list finished, Detective,” she turned her back to him and dropped into her chair before he could see the pain reflecting in her eyes.  She reached for her notebook and pen, determined to focus on the job and not dwell on the hurtful words she’d stopped him from saying.  But when her eyes dropped to the half-torn page and landed on the phone number and the words John had written down she clapped her hands over her mouth to keep from gasping out loud.

Put this in your phone and memorize it too.  If you ever feel like you’re being watched or followed, call me.  I don’t care what time it is. I’ll answer.-- John. 

Tears burned and blurred her eyes as she reread the note.  She knew that handwriting.  She was achingly familiar with it.

It perfectly matched the words imprinted on her thigh.

 Her dismissal stung.

John bit back a sigh before turning away from Emily to join Dorian and Rudy once more.  “We should head back to the precinct.  I need to talk to Maldonado and get that case file.  And we need to figure out why that thing,” he pointed at the android on the table, lowering his voice, “was surveilling Emily.”

“I am running background checks on his previous owners,” Dorian murmured.  “Perhaps there is a connection between one of them and the case Detective Williams had been working on.”

Kennex nodded.  “Look for a connection to any of the cases he’d worked, including the ones he helped me with,” he suggested.  “Rudy, keep me posted on anything else you learn about the T-1.”

“I am curious about the liquid in the hypodermic needle,” Rudy nodded toward the upgraded hand.  “Once I’ve removed the hand I will take it to the crime lab.”

“Don’t leave Emily here alone,” John’s hazel eyes narrowed.  “I don’t want her by herself.”

“I’ll wait and deliver it when she heads to the precinct later,” the scientist promised.  

“Good.  D, let’s go,” John tipped his head toward the stairs.  

His eyes landed on Emily’s back as he turned to head out.  “Let me know when you do, Rudy,” he tossed over his shoulder.  “And have McGinnis call me with the results, too, will ya?”

“Sure thing, John,” Rudy replied.  

Kennex reluctantly tore his eyes from Emily before jogging up the stairs behind Dorian.  Once they stepped outside he glanced over at the DRN.  “What else did you see, Dorian?”

“The earliest footage I’d found of Ms. Williams showed her with her father having dinner at a diner,” Dorian opened the passenger door of the car.  “I also found footage of Detective Williams with you, your old partner Martin Pelham, and Captain Maldonado.”

John braced his right hand on the roof of the car as he glared at his partner.  “On a case?”

“Yes, and at McQuade’s,” the android frowned worriedly.  “There’s also footage of you in the hospital, John.  With Ms. Williams.”

“How the hell--”

“Surveillance,” Dorian’s jaw tightened.  “They hacked the surveillance.”

“How?”

He shook his head.  “I don’t know, but I’ll figure it out.”

“You do that,” the detective muttered before climbing into the driver’s seat.

“The conversation you were having with Ms. Williams earlier seemed intense,” Dorian spoke up moments later.  

“She thinks I’m only interested in protecting her because her dad was a friend,” John admitted.  “She shut me out.”  He reached up to pinch the bridge of his nose before dropping his hand to the wheel, “I remember one night Sam, Marty and I were on surveillance.  Sam’s wife had called, something she never did unless it was an emergency.  Lizzie was upset with herself for pushing Emily too hard about something and she shut down, shut her out.”  He glanced over at Dorian before turning his attention back to the road.  “Sam called Captain Hennings and pulled a few strings to get someone to replace him so he could go home.  Hennings called my dad to come in.  Sam didn’t open up about that phone call until shortly after Lizzie died.  She was sick, Emily wasn’t taking it very well and when Liz wanted to talk about it, Emily shut down.  It was…  Sam said it was her default way of handling situations that upset her.  She would shut down, shut everyone out if someone pushed her into opening up.”

“Like you?”  Dorian watched his partner grimace.  “You refuse to speak at the anger management classes.”

“That’s different,” John shot him a glare.  “I’m not opening up to a damn stranger about my problems.  Yes, I said problems.  I’ve got ‘em.  No group therapy session is going to help me come to terms with any of this,” he gestured toward his leg and head.  “I shut down any attempt to get me to open up, I don’t completely shut down and shut everyone out for days on end.”

“No, you just threaten to throw them out on the freeway or you go to the shooting range to blow off steam,” Dorian shook his head.  “How can you know for sure Ms. Williams shut you out?”

“The look in her eyes,” the detective frowned.  “She was stunned, upset, scared, hurt, then nothing.  It’s like she flipped a switch on her emotions.  The blank look in her eyes told me she was shutting me out.”  He gripped the steering wheel in a white-knuckled hold.  “This case is already opening up some old wounds.  I don’t want to add to it.”  Any more than I already have, he added silently.

“Your concern for Ms. Williams seems to go deeper than her being your mentor’s daughter,” the DRN looked out the passenger window.  

John’s grip on the steering wheel tightened.  “I’m remembering bits and pieces of her visits,” he admitted.  “Her conversations.”

“Is she your soulmate?”

Kennex glanced over, meeting his partner’s eyes.  “I don’t know.  She’s familiar to me, very familiar, but I don’t remember anything more than her scent, her touch, her voice.  Her laugh.”  The pillowy press of her lips on his stubbled cheek.  Dorian did not need to know that.  He cleared his throat as he focused on the road.  

“She wrote her number down, didn’t she?”

“Yeah, it’s in my pocket.”

“You gonna compare her handwriting to your soulmark?”  Dorian reached up to touch the St. Christopher’s medal still dangling from the rearview mirror.

John glared at the pendant.  “No.”

He already knew Emily’s handwriting matched his soulmark.  She’d left cards for him at the hospital for his birthday and for Christmas, even one for Valentine’s Day.  Those were safely tucked away at home, along with a short note she had written and apparently discarded before Sandra had grabbed it and slipped it into his bag the day he was discharged from the hospital.  

He huffed out a breath.  “Even if she is, D, it’s not real until I remember.”

Dorian gave him an understanding smile.  “Do you want her to be?”

“She’s too good for me,” he grumbled.  

The DRN’s smile widened into a grin.  “That’s true.”

“You’re not supposed to agree with me, Dorian,” he grumbled.  

“And you didn’t answer my question,” Dorian pointed out.

“Not going to, either,” John pressed his foot down even more on the accelerator.  “Let’s just focus on the case and find out why someone’s had Emily under surveillance.  I have a feeling that damned android was planted at the crime scene and I want to know why.”

[skarletterambles]

The Mummy Returns Re(-re-re-re-re-) watch blog

I might be short a few “re-”s there, as I know I saw this four times in the theater, and plenty of times on DVD, but close enough.

Below are my thoughts, typed as I watched (while eating the pizza leftover from last night’s viewing of the first movie)...

[Disclaimers:  Spoilers for both The Mummy (1999) and, obviously, The Mummy Returns (2001)  Expect lots of squeeing and/or crying over Imhotep/Anck-su-namun.]

And here comes The Rock in his first film appearance.  All those big movies he’s been in since owe a debt to this one.  *insert sound clip of “You’re Welcome” from Moana*

Anubis needs to feed his warriors better.  They’re way too skinny.

Got to love the detail where there’s a carving of Anck-su-namun and Nefertiri in ritual combat on the wall Evy and Rick are excavating.  One of those things you don’t notice on first viewing.

“No harm ever came from opening a chest.”  Evy, I know you’re doing a cute callback, but you were there when the Americans suffered the consequences of opening the canopic jar chest in the last movie.

Since Evelyn is actually the reincarnation of the Bracelet’s official guardian, why did her taking it trigger the booby traps?  I guess that kind of role doesn’t carry over.

Oh joy, more scarab beetles.

I know we have to be able to recognize him, but it’s silly that Ardeth was spying on the Hamunaptra digsite with only a hood on.  Someone--especially Meela--would have recognized his face tattoos.  ... Wait, did I just suggest covering up that gorgeous face?  Never mind!

Rick/Ivy = relationship goals

Meela:  “And your point is?” Jonathan:  “My point is I told you so you wouldn’t kill me!” Meela:  “When did we make that arrangement?”

I wonder if she collected her snake before they left.  Otherwise the O’Connells (or their housekeeping staff) will have a nasty surprise later.

I could listen to Rick, Ardeth and Jonathan bicker and banter all day.

Notice how Alex gets annoyed when Rick ruffles his hair.  So it’s not just Imhotep’s head-ruffles he hates.  Heh.

In my drooling over Rick, Ardeth, and Imhotep I had almost forgotten that Lock-Nah is built like a brick shithouse.  Nice.

There’s a camera shot that appears to show the POV of Imhotep inside the hardened goo.  So I guess he could tell what was going on...sort of.

Both Alex and Evy recognize Curator Hafez from their time in the British Museum.  There’s room for some wacky prequel stories there.

I love that little “Eew, whatever,” reaction from Hafez when Imhotep is done declaring his love for Anck-su-Namun.  LOL

I still want to know how Meela managed to snap her fingers with her gloves on.

Imhotep recognizes Rick and roars “YOU!” and Rick clips him in the shoulder with a hail of bullets, knowing full well it won’t hurt him, just as a big “eff you, too.”  Love it.

LOL @ “Honey, whatcha doin’?  These guys don’t use doors” and “Oh, I hate mummies...”  So many funny lines in this part.

That’s twice--no, thrice--the bad guys have drawn blood on Ardeth tonight.  Leave him and his glorious body alone, you big meanies!  :P

Alex has a good point:  props to Jonathan for driving that bus safely through all that mummy battling.  (Well, mostly safely.  Better than I would have done, anyway.)

Ardeth geeking out over his first bus ride is too freaking adorable for words.

I just noticed the parallel between Rick hanging on the edge of the drawbridge, near tears in desperation as he watches the kidnappers driving away with his son, and, well...you know which scene.  Sigh.

I could watch that flashback kiss between Imhotep and Anck-su-namun a dozen times on repeat...if I could manage to time it perfectly so I could rewind before he morphs back into a mummy.  Because eew.  LOL, but eew.

Imhotep tried to be nice to Alex, talking to him as gently as he could (which is still raspy and scary, but he was trying) and explaining how the bracelet works, and in return Alex told him how his dad would kick his ass.  I don’t blame Imhotep for taking off his mask and scaring the kid then.  :p

Then Imhotep takes off his robes before attacking the mercenaries.  Freedom of movement?  The cloth wouldn’t survive the magic regeneration?  He wanted to be naked because he knew his girl was peeking through the door?  All of the above?  Who knows? 

LOL @ Meela squeamishly tip-toeing around the desiccated corpses of the mercenaries.  It’s worth it to get to the now-normal-looking Imhotep, though.  ;)

I want to slap the editors for inter-cutting the big, romantic reunion with Alex tampering with a filthy toilet.

I know Imhotep wanted to stop his minions from shooting Alex, but yeeting those guys into the pillars was totally unnecessary.  I bet he was showing off for Meela.

...  And I was too busy holding my breath and freaking out during the big duel/regicide flashback to type anything.  Oh well.

I did notice one moment where Imhotep is watching the women fight and something goes wrong for Anck-su-namun and he gives this little involuntary gasp.  Subtle, but neat.

What I like to refer to as The Look(tm) is such a great moment, though.  They actually slow down the film as Imhotep and Anck-su-namun make eye contact, drawing out that stolen, subtle moment of intimacy just like it must have felt for them.  *swoon*

Back to modern times... Once again Imhotep watches out for Alex by making Lock-Nah put him down and stop threatening him.  I mean, yeah, he’s also about to try killing the boy’s parents, so he’s not perfect, but still...  I thank that attempted head-ruffle was his way of apology...  *polishes villain-fangirl goggles*

It’s been awhile since I mentioned how breathtakingly good-looking Ardeth is.  But he is.  Just sayin’.

Imhotep looks conflicted and even a little sad when Hafez says they don’t need the boy anymore.  He doesn’t give the order to kill him, either.  Just makes a vague statement about needing the bracelet.  It may be a coincidence, but he even smirks right after someone says “The boy!”  (i.e. Alex is making a run for it).  It could just be my fangirly brain playing tricks, but I really think a case can be made for Imhotep having a soft spot for the kid.

I see Jonathan has learned the “scream at things” technique from Rick.  Alas, it didn’t save the red-robed guy from the pygmy mummies.  (I swear I know that actor from somewhere...  The red-robed guy, not the pygmy mummy.)

I can’t believe I still get a tiny bit misty-eyed at Evy’s death.  I’ve seen this movie at least ten times, and even the FIRST TIME I knew she wasn’t going to stay dead.  But man, the actors sell it.

I just noticed that after he loses his powers, but before he takes off his black robe, Imhotep and Anck-su-namun were holding hands while walking through the pyramid.  Awwwww!

Mighty brave of Rick to attack Imhotep without knowing he had lost his powers.   Luckily Imhotep’s split lip bleeds, tipping Rick off right away...and then the blood disappears in the next shot.  Yay, continuity!

Everyone remembers the Scorpion King himself as being the CGI lowlight of the film, but those Anubis warriors don’t hold up very well, either.

God bless Arnold Vosloo for doing this fight scene in a loincloth.  I’ve read how punishing it was to film without the padding that Brendan Fraser had under his costume, but the eye candy was worth the sacrifice.  Heh.

I was too busy watching to type much during the climax, but that’s just as well, as it’s hard to articulate “YAY NO OMG WOOHOO NO LOL WHAT AAAH YEAH NOOOOOOOOOOO DAMN IT.”

After the Anubis army went poof I was like, “Okay, great, we won, let’s all call a truce and get out of here before anyone else gets killed.”  But did the stupid movie listen to me?  Noooooo.  Instead, there are Rick and Imhotep, hanging onto the cliff for dear life.

Time for the worst experiment in reverse psychology ever: Rick:  “Go!  Save yourself!” Evy:  *does the opposite* Imhotep:  “Help me!” Anck-su-namun:  “does the opposite*

Sigh.

Fight or flight is a deeply ingrained response, and I just can’t bring myself to hate Anck-su-namun for going with the wrong reaction in that moment of panic.  It’s simply another facet of the tragedy that is their love story.  That doesn’t make it hurt any less to watch, though.  There are tears in Imhotep’s eyes right before he lets go.  Actual tears!   Even Rick and Evy look like they feel sorry for him!  Aaah!  I can’t take it!

As he was letting himself fall I maaaay have screamed at the TV, “Don’t make me write fanfic to fix this--oh wait, I already did.”  Heh.

Better luck next reincarnation, you two.

Then the good guys escape and live happily ever after, yada yada yada.  The end.

(And no, we don’t speak of the third movie.  It doesn’t exist.  I saw it once, was amused by Jonathan opening a nightclub called “Imhotep’s,” and found the rest totally frustrating and forgettable.  So nope, there are only two movies in this series.)

[the-gemini-systemii-blog]

Memories from our headcanon...

A BTAS sequel where Scarface meets Peyton Riley...  Originally typed out in a chat on Discord so it’s a little choppy but the boss did his best!

Arnold Wesker is the original ventriloquist and scarface is a "haunted" ventriloquist's dummy you will find out soon for a fact that he is haunted

 Arkham Asylum is steadily being renovated as a treatment center for the mentally ill

 and they were in OK hands but it was still called "Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane" at the time

 Big sad feels from the Boss, hearing that name

 I'm a Virgo, by the way

 my birthday is September 22nd 1993

 "I was extremely disabled, without my ventriloquist.  He brought me to life... But I had my own mind.  My own dreams.  I'm not speaking out loud anymore, by the way.  I'm communicating my moving my lips with my tongue."

(I'm gunna speak in parentheses by the way so the boss can tell a story!)  

Oh, thank you! I got real depressed thinking back on Arnold and the Asylum and to cheer me up Peyton went upstairs to work on my puppet.  He has a button eye now, and I got to meet Joanne, our staff member at the supportive housing where we live now... I slur like a drunk, haha, but Peyton’s going to be a great ventriloquist.  We're gunna make it big. 

It was still about making it big, back then, about three years ago, I was still with Arnold in Arkham Asylum.  It was about making it big in my tiniest wood grains.  But the immediate fight was much harder.  I needed to prove I had rights.  We were in therapy, and Harleen was saying "You think you'll still be Scarface without Arnold?" 

I remember banging my fiist on the table.  "I want to try!" I said. 

 "Give me the puppet, Arnold,” she said.

 Arnold splutters.  "This man... is very fragile... he does not believe..." 

"ARNOLD!"  she sais. 

He bows his head and hands me to her.  She does some dopey man voice, it's hard to resist with my iconic dummy, and says "Hur durr, I'm Scarface!"

 Arnold says "Try... opening your mind... a little..."  And as I turn my head to face her... as she turns the dummy around... she starts to get a really creepy feeling inside.  She gets a really good look into my eyes. I'm a posession spirit, and albiet weakly, I managed to posess Harleen Quinzell She takes the dummy off her hand, shaken, and her hand is stiff and white.  Arnold takes me back, and I sigh, thinking it was useless.  Thinking her mind was too strong.  Knowing what happens next. They put my puppet into miniature restraints and walk me and the ventriloquist down the hall to our room.  They lock me in.  They don't do that anymore.  But the doors were locked back then.

 I guess I should talk about me and Arnold, even though those weren't happy times. I'm staring out the door.  He's quiet.  He has asked, in the past, Do you want to talk, scarface?  And I always bark "Quiet!" I think he's a curse.  I should have treated him better.  But I needed brains. I was staring out into the hallway And the guards start teasing me...

 "Should we inject the dummy?" 

"Haha which one's the dummy?" 

I've heard it a million times.

 There's a new guy though, he's a little confused, but he's read my file. I'm a patient too he says "Hey, he's locked in, shouldn't we take him out of his restraints?" 

That depends on who's on duty. Jonathan Crane is very kind but often, we're restrained for hours. I'm just lucky they couldn't fit a straightjacket on my dummy. And they start talking 

teasing 

all kinds of ideas 

they talk about taking me away from Arnold 

about passing me around among the guards to see if I can break out

 I want them to

 I want them to so bad 

but they're too scared 

I feel my face --it's wood. The jaw moves. The eyes blink. But I feel a sneer. Usually when I become overcome with emotion, it bleeds into Arnold but this time it isn't Arnold sneering; it's Harleen. I see her in my mind's eye and then I hear her voice. My heart leaps.

 "HEY!  You dopes clear out! I got therapy with this one! " She’s running down the hallway with an empty sack over her shoulder.  I press my hands up against the glass.

 "Sorry Arnold,"  She says, "Your cellmate has a private session."

 I can't quite describe how I experience reality when I'm posessing someone 

her hands over my wooden body  I'm very aware of my form but I can feel her breasts bounce as she runs

 I knew from that moment that I wanted a woman to come into posession of me

 "Alright" she says, propping me up and looking into my eyes.  "You can stop that."

 I'm silent.  Playing dumb. "Creepy doll..."

  She closes my eyes and puts me in a bag. 

The next thing I know, I'm on my back, and there are fireflies in the air. My eyes are going crazy, my jaw is opening and shutting.  I put up a hand to steady myself and say "Arnold, are you drunk???"

 One of the dark silohuettes puts a finger to my lips and says "She's only a child."

And that's why I can't tell you what happened in the garden 

they say I'm not allowed to access the memories I made while posessing Poison Ivy's daughter

 her name was honeydew or raindrop or something like that

 and they said that I had been a dryad in a past life

my name was Woody Vines

They made my wood green again, and I got past life memories... strolling through poison ivy’s garden. I wore a brown fedora then. I  walked with a cane.

 bunch o' hoodoo ... maybe it's true 

either way they wanted to get me personhood

 but the best they could do was to drug arnold  with the same coctail they used on Harv and Batman to bring the alternate personality out and dominate the mundane controlling personality, to supress Harvey and Arnold and Batman’s civilian identity, whoever that is

 it involves fear toxin, but I don't know any more than that  I was transferred to the care of Jonathan Crane, who stopped restraining me and told me that he believed Poison Ivy to an extent and that at her request, if my dreams of finding a new ventriloquest didn't work out, my dummy would be laid to rest in the garden and Arnold and I wrote out extensive offers and contracts, but we couldn't get me independant personhood in the end... and I'm ashamed of this... I agreed to be sold as an object

 I talked to Jonathan 

I wanted a clean slate

 someone I could mould and train 

a woman, 

and I made my wishes known to some of my old mob connections, but it didn't work out at first

 Arnold wanted his money's worth

 the debate on weather or not I was an independant person had only driven up my publicity and my price tag and I got sold to someone sleasy from America's Got Talent who visited me for several sessions in the asylum, where he insisted he didn't want me restrained. I remember crossing my legs unsteadily as he tries to get his hand up my back. My stomache in knots, putting his stomache in knots. He probably didn't expect to be frightened. I was very nervous, and I could tell he was shocked. 

 His first words to me were "So the rumors are true... you do have a mind of your own." 

And I said "Could you say that again where the press can here you please?"

 He never told me his real name.  Only his stage name.  Burt Laughingstock. When I scoffed he shook his finger at me and said “names had power “Scarface...” 

“Woody...”  I said.  “We’re offstage.”  I loved having a real name.  I’m leaving out a lot of legitimate rehabilitation I went through in Arkham.  I was so tired of being tied to Arnold’s fears and repressed violence, and that name, Scarface, I don’t hate it, but he’s a character. I tried to make the best of it. But the first show he took me on turned out to be some kind of tell-all Behind-the-laughter crap, and when I found out... I bit his finger off. 

Little did I know, the sap had several documentations of his sound mental health and non-violent history, and he said if the dummy turned out to be evil, he wanted it destroyed. But Dr. Crane came through for me, saying that I hadn't committed an executionable offence.  I looked like hannibal lecter when they brought me to court with Burt as my ventriloquest... strapped to a board by my hands and legs... cage around my mouth... but I didn't struggle... I knew I had my personhood argument in the bag... and I like being feared.

 A mob lawyer came through for me and got me off on misdemeaner battery, with the heartrending defence that I had been sold to Burt as property when I had requested an open-minded female aide.  They paired me up with a female cellmate as a favor to Sean Riley, and that's how I met Peyton Riley... and that's how I ended up where I am today (That's the end of the boss's story!) Yeah, that's the end of my story. 

[ask-sanders-school-of-the-arts]

This is all based on my own experience at an arts school! It was...an interesting experience to say the least.

(If people like this, I’ll continue with it. Maybe make it into a story!)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Roman:

-theatre core

-his teacher is Mr. Vick and he’s great

-interruptive but fun

-always serious when need be

-only sings and listens to show tunes

-always auditions for the school musical and always gets in (only twenty+ kids audition every year so everyone who auditions gets a role)

-wears makeup to school and is really good at it

-has mediocre grades, he isn’t failing but he’s barely passing

-pretty buddy buddy with a lot of the teachers

-somehow knows everyone in the school

-everyone in the school knows him too

-played the cowardly lion in his theatre groups very bad production of the Wizard of Oz

-Logan, Patton, and Virgil snuck up to the balcony to watch him from the back row

-Mr. Vick caught them but he didn’t really care

-he just told them not to be too noisy

-Roman couldn’t see them while he was on stage but he could hear them laughing and cheering throughout which was comforting

Logan:

-Strings core

-his teacher is Mrs. Arnolds

-he plays the cello

-teachers favourite

-is loved by the foreign language teacher, Mr. Rodriguez (takes French)

-takes every high school credit class provided by the school (geometry, English honours, French, and Orchestra 1)

-one of the shortest kids in strings, but plays one of the biggest instruments

-works light board for musical theatre and for most of Mr. Vick, and Mrs. Baldwin’s plays.

-that’s where he met Roman

-he met Virgil on the first day of grade 6 when he was late to class. There was nowhere else to sit, so the two of them were forced to sit together

-they partnered on every project from that moment on

-works yearbook committee with Mr. Thompson

-he pops into the classrooms to take pictures of the students working

-school tour guide for sixth graders

-morning show committee

-that’s where he met Patton

-they were filming for the next days morning announcements while one of the teachers, Mr. Walsh, was goofing off in the background

-the software only lets you record once so the next day you could see Patton and Logan laughing as Mr. Walsh was messing around in a rolling chair behind them

Patton: (I’m projecting, this is based on my own choir)

-Vocal core

-his teacher was Mr. Richardson for sixth and seventh grade and then switched to Mrs. Morton for his last year at SSA

-tenor who has the range of a soprano

-has gotten a female solo before and it was glorious

-has a very diverse singing tone

-loves the old Latin songs that they sing (Gloria, Et en Terra Pax, Alleluia, Agnus Dei, etc.)

-always dancing during rehearsals

-class sunshine! (Remembers birthdays and wishes them happy birthday, brings in treats for the class, cheers people up through nostalgic songs)

-always suggests singing bitter sweet songs on the last day of school

-everyone cries during Bridge Over Troubled Water and Danny Boy

-there are only four boys in their year and he has to sing harmony alone a lot of the time, but he can still be heard and he can blend with everyone beautifully

-an icon with dynamics and sight reading

-Roman, Logan, and Virgil go to all of his performances and bring him flowers

-they then go out for ice cream, from the tradition of the director telling them to do so after each concert

-cries a lot during powerful and emotional songs

-this makes the other three boys cry

-there was a boy in their school who passed away so to commemorate him, they sang homeward bound and there wasn’t a dry eye in the chapel

-is on the welcoming committee and also preforms for the pep rally’s

-does fun challenges and helps to plan how things will go

-lives for spirit stick

-can’t put on his bow tie correctly but helps everyone with their cummerbunds

Virgil:

-art core

-his teacher is Mr. Morrissey

-hates still life’s but is really good at them

-really likes the pop art unit that they do in eighth grade

-put his sculpture in the kiln and it exploded

-he had to fix it the day before the art gallery

-did a live painting for the BHM assembly and showed the style of Harlem artists in the 20s

-it was pretty shaky and no one knew what was going on, but the painting wound up looking good regardless

-he loves going to the art galleries and art walks because no one else goes to them

-loves all of the ghost stories about the school that Mr Mo tells

-help with props for all of the plays and helped design pamphlets for the winter concert

-doodles in class

-Mr Rodriguez once asked him to draw him and then poked fun at the art style he drew him in

-he was pretty traumatised after that

-keeps a quote book for weird and funny things people have said

-he doesn’t give them context, he just writes them down

-some of his favourites are “yummy yummy grandma flesh” “my mom was the hottie with a body” “this is like bible paper” and “I have a cracker!”

-Patton had never made it into the quote book, so the very last quote in it was, “Sis! Put me in the book!”

-once cried over losing the straw to his juice box

-he also laughed uncontrollably that one time Logan dropped a grape and had a very confused look on his face as it fell

-tries deep throating bananas every time he gets them

-once he put six grapes in his mouth and almost chocked, but he was happy that he could fit six in his mouth

-Roman once asked for some skittles so he shoved all of them in his mouth at once

-he almost threw up

Group memories:

-they met near an old palm tree everyday and would stand around making fun of each other

-they would regularly hold depression sessions

-in other words, they would stand in a circle and take turns talking about why they were sad. They’d then try to work through it together

-they’re the group who isn’t popular, but everyone knows who they are

-lost of underclass friends (mostly Patton but the others are friends with underclassman as well)