#But she definitely could’ve handled that situation differently

[sunsetsandsunshine]

So we can all agree that Rio Morales was a massive bitch to Gwen right? And just a massive judgemental bitch in general?

Im perfectly fine with dying on this hill alone either way.

I’m sorry Anon, but you are dying on this hill alone 😬😅

In my opinion, Gwen was in the wrong when first meeting Miles’ parents. Her first words to Mrs. Morales was literally, “Rio! Hi 😃!!!”

Idk how ur parents raised the rest of y’all…but you do not, DO NOT, call an adult but they’re first name…ESPECIALLY if this is you’re first time meeting them. That’s just downright rude and disrespectful. End of story.

(Some adults are comfortable w/ kids addressing them by first names but Miles’ parents obviously weren’t. And either way, this is her first time meeting them so that was an L move on Gwen’s part, bro…)

And then Mrs. Morales found Gwen’s jacket in Miles’ room…how fun 🤩😀😃- definitely doesn’t raise suspicion as to what the two were doing. The audience obviously knows what happened when the two together in Miles’ room, but Miles’ parents DON’T.

Go into Miles’ parents shoes for a second: You’re son brings a girl over and her jacket is just CHILLING on his bed. Not suspicious…not suspicious at all 🤨🤨🤨

[ofspacecrafts]

Didn’t know if I was going to wade into this territory but you know what , why not ?

I have thoughts about why Buck & Tommy are so appealing to some of us (me) , more than Buck’s other relationships.

I’m going to break it down .

Abby

Abby is introduced first on the show , so the audience has a connection with her. I like Abby & having familiarity with Connie Britton made me like her more.

I enjoyed Abby’s relationship with Buck at first.

I liked both characters separately so on my first watch as a casual viewer of a new show I was like ok this is cute but that’s all it was.

I didn’t really feel chemistry there.

But they never compelled me. I was indifferent to her leaving and wasn’t sad to see their relationship end. (Only felt bad for Buck)

On my rewatch , the relationship felt weird to me. I’m not sure if I was biased knowing how it ended or not but I enjoyed it less the second time around.

Ali

The flirting was cute but we didn’t see enough of them actually together.

Her character existed to be saved by Buck and date him . When it’s obvious that that is a character’s role and they don’t have any individual arc, it doesn’t create a relationship I care about.

I appreciated her honesty in why she broke up with him instead of ghosting or leading him on.

But it was a half hearted portrayal that I don’t think anyone expected to be endgame .

Taylor

Taylor and Buck actually had some chemistry. I loved their flirting and their banter.

I don’t hate Taylor the way a lot of people do.

I thought she was an interesting character and liked how they played off each other.

Taylor was fleshed out and a real fully developed character and I enjoyed her arc.

But as Buck’s love interest I think the seed was planted early on that her ambition would always come first.

And honestly, after he kissed Lucy I’m not sure I blame her?

There was some chemistry but it still wasn’t ever enough for me to root for them .

I wish they stayed friends because I did love their dynamic.

Lucy

There’s not much to say here except that I actually think Buck and Lucy had great chemistry and if their relationship started differently and the show had decided to go that direction when she was introduced I definitely could’ve seen myself rooting for them .

Natalia

Honestly her character just felt so flat to me and it was very very obvious she was filler.

There was no chemistry and I never considered her a legitimate option.

Which brings us to Tommy.

To be honest, before my rewatch I didn’t even remember who Tommy was. So watching 7x03 I thought he was brand new.

He was compelling right away, on his own . The deadpan humor, the fake mouth static , flying into a hurricane for his friends.

In 7x04 right away I was like wait… are they flirting ??? The chemistry was so there.

We find out about Tommy’s interests , see little tidbits of his personality throughout 7x04 culminating in the conversation at Buck’s apartment and the kiss.

The way 7x05 and the date was handled was so interesting to me. The situation was so well thought out and the way we see Buck act here is something I don’t think we’ve seen since Abby. Buck acknowledging his feelings in a very real and nuanced way.

Ever scene Tommy was in from 7x03-05 made me want to get to know him as a character, separately from his relationship with Buck .

In order to actually care about a relationship you have to care about both characters separately first !

The chemistry during their kiss and the coffee scene is so so strong.

Viewing it all again under this lens, knowing who Tommy was and is, honestly made me like him more . Seeing a character grow and change to be able to build better relationships is so entertaining!

The hugs in 7x06 and that kiss just attest to the insane chemistry Lou and Oliver have .

[jacks347]

i feel like there actually is an extreme difference between milo and darlin’s situations which caused the different reactions. I mean for all we know milo and sweetheart could’ve never told the pack about the real story of how they met. But anyways- regarding the situation with milo, yes he did throw himself into a dangerous situation, but he wasn’t alone, he was with a trained professional (sweetheart) that knew exactly how to deal with it. And we both know that this pair don’t let rules dictate how they keep everyone safe (milo & the inversion), so maybe telling everyone about the circumstances of their meeting could get them in trouble with the department rather than just david and the pack and/or gabe.

i feel like this is the main difference between their situations, because milo and sweetheart not telling the pack doesn’t put the pack in danger. However, darlin’s situation included lying about quinn’s arrest, fighting his minions (lol i don’t know a better word for this), all while not telling the pack/david about it. The weight of both of their situations is extremely different, because quinn was still an imminent threat to the pack, whereas for milo and sweetheart, the one shade was already dealt with.

i do agree with you that david handled the situation wrong, but i feel like milo and darlin’s situations are so different that they don’t deserve to have the same reaction.

I love the amount of people getting in on this argument, it's honestly a lot of fun to read.

Anyway, yes you make some very good points. The situations are very different and don't deserve the exact same treatment, that wouldn't be fair. But it more so comes down to the principle of the situation.

Both threw themselves at a life or death situation that they didn't necessarily have to be in with no regard for their own life or safety. The big difference is Darlin went solo while Milo had help, yes, but it was with someone who maybe wasn't totally prepared for the situation at hand. Which is why he had to go in the first place.

Yes, the real story of Milo and Sweetheart probably stays under wraps. One of those stories you only tell when you're drunk and someone starts prodding. But considering the circumstances, I think they told Gabe. Like, legally, they had to. Because it was a Department investigation that involved the pack. I know Sweetheart didn't talk to him about the event but I know for damn sure there was probably some legal stipulation that they had to tell him about the pack involvement in the investigation. Therefore, Gabe probably had to know the real story and Milo definitely got his ass handed to him about it.

Yes, Darlin's situation was far more dangerous and posed far more of an actual threat to the pack, I understand that. But it misses the point. I'm not saying Millo deserves the same level of getting ripped into by the pack that Darlin did, but I am saying he deserves to have some level of getting ripped into by the pack. He went into an extremely dangerous situation with no backup other than a brand new investigator who was definitely under qualified for the job they were trying to do. He could've died and no one would've known. Would Sweetheart tell the Department? Would they have to? And if they did, would the Department have to tell the pack? Or would they simply cover it all up and act like nothing happened? If it was covered up, would Sweetheart feel too guilty and tell the pack themself? The legalities of the situation get very complicated very quickly.

I'm not saying he should go full social pariah like Darlin was. But he does deserve just a little bit of it. He deserves for someone else to know and call him stupid. Preferably his mother since I know she would do it best. He deserves judgement for his actions. Maybe it would've caused him to take at least a little bit of pause before nearly frying his core to a crisp at the Inversion.

[hexisssssssss]

This is a very unorganized rant but just felt like posting abt this. I feel like the writers fucked up a lot of the potential so many season 2 characters had. I just think they handled some of their heavily traumatized characters very poorly. The most prominent example is definitely Sarah. Like the poor girl was also so young when everything started and has had to suffer just as much sorrow and loss as clem. And yet she’s so hated by the writers, just for processing her trauma differently than clem which was their choice. Why give a character ptsd just to hate them for having it???? I also never understood why we can be given the option to teach her how to shoot if she never gets to use it. I would’ve loved to see her actually work towards overcoming her issues and being able to defend herself or run when need be. In my play through I personally was always as nice to her as possible, we don’t see clem come across a lot of kids around her age (roughly) often especially not one’s who are also girls. I would have loved to see her form a friendship after losing duck and ben in the previous season. I think they could have both benefited from that friendship. Clem could learn that there will be people who react differently than her to trauma and situations and how to handle that in a way thats not killing. And Sarah could have ideally learned to manage her ptsd better and have more of a fighting chance. And a lot gets stolen from these girls life experience because of the apocalypse i feel like them having the ability to experience sisterhood through friendship with another girl allows them to reclaim some of what they lost and i would’ve loved to see that. Like i saw a post once about how they were originally supposed to have like a sleep over in Sarah’s room. Like hello???? That would have been so sweet why did they take that away 😭. All in all i never saw Sarah as a baby, just someone who responded differently and needed a little more support. And someone who could’ve been a potential buddy for clem. And i always thought it was so frustrating that even if you talk her out of her panic and don’t leave her to die she still ends up dying in the most stupid and easily avoidable way. I don’t like how they treat her as a burden when i can think of only one time she actually held up the group. Otherwise she was just a kid she was just there and scared.

My girl deserved better <3

[nestastits]

Why can’t people admit that Nesta was going down the wrong path in acosf and that what the ic did, even if it wasn’t handled in the right way, did help her?

I cannot speak for everyone, but personally I think Nesta being placed in the house of wind was one of the only ways to help her heal. I know many try to compare Feyre being locked up by Tamlin to the IC locking Nesta in the HoW, but these two situations are not comparable honestly. Tamlin locked Feyre up despite her constantly trying to reach out to him and telling him what she needed, he wanted to keep her safe yes, but not in a way that would’ve been healthy/safe for Feyre given the narrative. Nesta was placed (I know many say she was locked in the house but she had a way to leave and a choice to leave different from Feyre, even if it wasn’t the most easygoing way) in the HoW out of fear of her wellbeing and it was done to help her. It has helped her. Nesta being isolated from the outside world helped her heal because she was taken away from what she was using to hurt herself. She had to be cut off from her bad coping mechanisms. I do truly believe that if she had stayed in that apartment, even if her financial income had been cut off, she would have died. People have to understand that Nesta didn’t care if she survived at the start of acosf, her apartment only enabled her to continue this cycle of existence that only hurt her. Now I think the way the IC/Feyre handled the situation was wrong, it could’ve definitely went out with more care for Nesta. But you also have to take into account that Nesta is stubborn and she believes herself unworthy, and she doesn’t want help from anyone. If Feyre had approached the situation as a sister instead of a High Lady, I am sure Nesta would’ve been angrier as she doesn’t want anyone to care for her at the start of acosf. However, if Nesta hadn’t of been isolated she wouldn’t of had a safe place to take a look at herself and want to do better, she wouldn’t of had a safe place to truly work on herself and find worth in living. Building bonds with others (Gwyn, Emerie, and yes Cassian) helped Nesta heal as well. In fact a lot of her self worth revolved around how she treated others and how they treated her back, this is why the Valkyrie friendship is so important for Nesta. Those girls loved her and helped her love herself, they supported her even without knowing what Nesta was going through. It is clear in the Blood Rite how important Emerie and Gwyn are to Nesta, if Nesta had never went to the HoW she would not have been able to become friends with them. I do agree that Nesta needed people to be gentle with her and understanding, and I believe that’s why she got her friendship with em and Gwyn, however I think she needed someone to also push her (cassian). Nesta needed someone to keep pushing her and engage her, to not break when she pushes back. I felt like Cassian did a good job at doing this for Nesta. Cassian as well inserts himself and tries to be what Nesta needs. He’s one of the few people (practically the only) who sees Nesta being harsh as a way to guard herself and works on himself for her, tries to fit into what she needs. These bonds could only have been explored with Nesta being in the House (though I am hoping for nessian having a second house in the Illyrian mountains <3). Nesta having these relationships with people who truly matter to her helped her heal. Now, by the end of the book Nesta has a preference to the HoW (calling it her home), to the point she was scared of going back into the outside world (starts an argument over it in fact). She doesn’t want to develop any bad habits again, and she knows the HoW has been a positive haven for her. Plus, the House loves Nesta, she literally Made it.

I have seen people try to explain why the “intervention” was wrong by bringing in real world examples/ethics. IMO this is wrong… as these are fantasy books and well, I doubt there is an ethical standard in Prythian nor a therapist (though some of these characters need a few therapy sessions here and there lols). I think people love Nesta to the point they want to make her this perfect girl/pick apart the book to make her morally correct (please do not attack me this is just my opinion from my experience in the fandom) so many make an issue without truly looking at rather it benefitted Nes or not. Some I feel don’t even really like Nesta or pay attention to her thoughts… but to each their own🤷🏼‍♀️.

[deathofpeaceofmiiind]

high infidelity | seven

My baby's fly like a jet stream, high above the whole scene, loves me like I'm brand new *Ellie’s POV* I woke up in a panic, forgetting where I was. I felt clammy and delirious. My hair was knotted and my face felt greasy since I forgot to take off my make up last night. My eyes wondered over to the tattooed arm that was beside me and relief washed over me, it was Noah. “Good morning.” He says putting his phone down and kissing my forehead. Suddenly my hangover hit me and my head felt like it split in two. “Morning.” I mumbled. “I feel awful.” “Tequila?” He asks as he scrunches his face up. I just nod, even the word tequila made me want to gag. “Well I hate to make you feel worse but I got us flights back to up to Vancouver, we leave in three hours.” “Oh god.” I moaned and I buried my head back into my pillow. He laughs and walks over to the bathroom. I hear the shower running and he comes back over to me with Advil and a bottle of water.

“I’ll order us some breakfast.” He smirks, I could tell he was trying not to laugh more at the state I was in. “Go shower, it’ll wake you up.” I wanted to protest, but a shower felt like a great idea. I grabbed my stuff and headed into the bathroom. After my shower I threw on my hoodie from last night with leggings and put my hair up in a claw clip with minimal make up to make myself at least look human. I came out of the bathroom and our breakfast was already waiting for us. We had coffees with pancakes and bacon, my favourite which also seemed to be Noah’s. After we were done eating we ordered an Uber and made our way to the airport. *Noah’s POV* I had to admit Ellie was handling her hangover better than I could’ve. I held her hand the entire ride to the airport and kept stealing glances at her. I couldn’t help myself. I’m still trying to figure out how I landed myself in such a lucky situation. Nick texted me to say they were just leaving Seattle and it felt weird I wasn’t there with them. He was right, this was definitely a different routine but if it meant having Ellie with me I was more than happy to switch it up. Once we got to the airport we checked in, made our way through security and found the first Starbucks we could find. “I’ll have a grande nitro brew and …” “A venti iced matcha with oat milk.” Ellie chimed in.   “God, you’re so basic.” I laughed as I gave the cashier my credit card. I looked over at Ellie and she told me to go fuck myself, which made me laugh more. We couldn’t stop making each other laugh and we were acting like this wasn’t our first time flying together. Ellie was just so incredible and she was easily one of the funniest people I’ve met without even trying. I felt like my heart was going to explode.

 “This is a very strange first date.” she chuckled as we got on the plane. “I know.” I replied as I reached over and helped her with her belt, not breaking my stare from her. “except you can’t go anywhere.” “Noah Sebastian, is that a threat?” She smirks. “Could be.” I replied with a deep tone.  She put her hand on my lap and I could feel myself getting hard, which wasn’t ideal. I always used to rush into things and with Ellie I wanted to slow down and establish something cause this was so delicate. I was ready whenever she was. “I was thinking about starting Demon Slayer again, do you wanna watch it?” I said, distracting myself from feeling like a horny teenager. Ellie just nodded and I pulled my iPad and AirPods out of my bag. I passed her an AirPod and she rested her head on my shoulder and I pressed play, mind you I was too focused on her thumb rubbing circles on my thigh. “You’re not gonna know the plot looking down there.” She chuckles as she looks up at me. My face got hot and drew my eyes back to my iPad. She was driving me absolutely crazy. The flight was only an hour so we got to Vancouver before we knew it. We were waiting at baggage claim for my suitcase, which I realized was a stupid idea for only being gone for two days. Ellie was making a joke about me being high maintenance but her phone interrupted her. She stopped dead in her tracks and her face went white. Tyler was calling her and I instantly saw red. “Hello…why do you think I’m divorcing you…I’ve known for a month…no I’m done Tyler…where was this effort when I raised our son on my own while you were out with her…call my lawyer to figure out a date…I’m not sorry…I’m done…yes I’m in town still…no I’m staying at a hotel right now…whatever.” She hung up the phone and was a lot more calm than I would’ve been. I pulled her into my chest and felt her take a huge breath. At least I knew she was safe with me and nothing would hurt her.

[taegularities]

this is gonna be an unpopular opinion but lowkey I think OC should’ve apologized instead of Nara. I love my girl but she made a scene at someone else’s wedding that she was a guest at and idk I just really feel like she overreacted. And I hate that both JK and Nara ended up feeling guilty about it when they straight up did nothing wrong. Especially when Nara mentioned that they’ve been friends since they were kids like someone being in a new relationship shouldn’t change that. It’s not like they hang out all the time this was a one-time occurrence and then they probably won’t talk again for a long time. I know OC has trauma and insecurities but I truly don’t think she was being fair. Obviously things could’ve been handled differently by all three parties but overall I felt like OC was being immature about the situation. Obviously she grew up very differently than JK so maybe she just doesn’t see it the same way. I just really hated JK taking all the blame and then later Nara when OC herself admitted she was being irrational (in her inner monologue).

oh, i definitely see your point!! oc did apologise (but to that a lil later). i think when it comes to this dilemma of being friends with your ex, everybody has a different opinion and i think all of them are valid. like, i personally don't keep in touch with an ex when i'm with someone new, mostly for my partner's comfort — but then again, my exes and i were never in a position to keep talking anyway. i know some ppl stay friends with exes and are fine with it!!

i feel like i wouldn't like it if an ex kept touching my bf at a wedding. i think oc's biggest problem with it was how nara got too cosy touch-wise, and she also didn't vibe with how excluded she felt. that's an insecurity for sure and a her-problem and she got super worried jk might remember the feelings he had for nara. to me, her frustration was valid in a sense that nara got too comfortable in front of his new gf, and i think that's just a respect thing yk — i wouldn't be touching my ex if he was out somewhere with his new girl.

but you're also right in saying she shouldn't have overthought it at someone else's wedding; she was just so disappointed with herself for feeling like that at an event she'd been looking forward to. she also knew there are bigger issues, which is why she did apologise to jk later, too, if you remember. and then, to nara, she also said she doesn't want to ruin a long friendship, so they still can be friends (oc wouldn't love that but she's ready to compromise and trusts jk anyway) but nara herself knows stuff is over and they'll never go back to their childhood dynamic anymore. and she and jk are both okay with that and happy!! so yeah :D it took a bit but oc saw all sides later on, too.

[chidoroki]

Maybe it's a unpopular opinion but i think that, whatever Isabella thought about it, shipping Ray would have destroyed her. She tried to keep her distance from him, because she was afraid to love him like her son, because she was unable to save him. She says "i couldn't dote on you" but she also thinks "i love you so much". She loves him so much when she tried to not. So i'm pretty sure that giving him to demon ans seeing him die (because she sees the kids die) would have broke her heart forever

Oh for sure. I don’t think anything could break her as much as Leslie’s departure did, but having to ship out Ray would definitely land a critical hit on her heart. No one would ever know this, of course. Isabella would hide her true emotions on a daily basis, as she does with every other kid she sends to the gate, but despite their very unusual and complicated mother-son relationship, she still cares for him as much as any other kid she had the chance to raise. We just don't get to see her loving nature towards Ray much because.. well, she's real damn good at her job.

I believe she only distanced herself after she learned that Ray was her actual son. Before Ray made the deal with her, there was no reason for her to treat him any different from anyone else. She thought he was just another kid she had to raise to be eaten for some demons to ensure her own survival. It sounds bad, I know, but it also means there was no point in acting fake around him. Everything she did pre-agreement was as genuine as she could get, given the circumstances of the house. For the first couple of years, she was nothing but a mom to him, just like she was to the other kids.

The distance between them grew once the deal came into play because they now saw each other as enemies. That actually helped them in regards to them handling their different situations and their own emotions, as the deal gave them different roles to act in. The whole shepherd/sheepdog idea made their interactions more civil and blunt. Sure they both ended up despising one another and plotting for the other’s downfall, but the agreement ultimately made it easier for them to deal with each other, as all their actions, words, thoughts, etc were as fake as could be. They learned that by twisting their relationship in such an insane way would help keep their emotions out of the picture so they can each pursue their goal in their never-ending game of chess, sneaking around their formalities to gain advantages over the other.

If they had to act like a real mother & son to each other with all the knowledge they both had about the farm, it would certainly make those last six years mentally and emotionally exhausting, no matter how hard they tried to hide it. Makes me wonder if Ray never offered up himself as her watchdog, would Isabella have shipped him off early instead? She kept Ray around since she could still control and use him as her own puppet, but I dunno if her love for him would’ve been strong alone to save him. She takes her caretaker job so seriously that love certainly couldn't save any other kid of hers, so despite Ray being her actual son, I wouldn’t doubt that she might’ve shipped him out prematurely here. His test scores could possibly gave him the chance to stay a bit longer, since she favors results more than the rules of the house, but there’s no way she could’ve ignored a kid who knew the secret and have them walk around the plantation carefree either. That would’ve created several problems. In the end, the deal was a huge benefit to them both. Obviously it spared Ray's life, but it also saved Isabella from getting even more emotionally attached to him by tossing their precious relationship aside.

Of course I know she does love him deep down. All I need to prove it is this one page that still manages to break my heart in several pieces and oh my god y’all I love them so damn much aaaaahhhh. Damn it Shirai! Did you really have to do this to them? And to me??

Aside from all the occasions I’ve spoken about Isabella loving her kids & Ray, ch 181.7 also throws the truth right in our faces once more thanks to Ray’s goodbye note. I recently mentioned in my 182days posts how touching it was for Isabella to hold onto the children's stuff because it shows us how near and dear they all were to her heart, so while she does eventually use the note to gain trust from Matilda & the other ladies, I firmly believe she kept it as a memento of Ray first and foremost. We see her holding onto that note here as if it’s just the most precious thing in the world and it warms my heart knowing that she kept it on her person the night of the escape since the entire house literally went up in flames and everything else in it was lost. If her love for Ray was this obvious to the four sisters who barely knew a thing about her, then it had to be clear as hell to her actual kids.

The love she feels for her kids (& Ray most importantly) should also be common knowledge to us readers as well, but I see some people doubt it every now and then still. It's fine, really. People will always see her as a villain and that's understandable. But *gestures to everything I ever said about this woman* hello?? Pfftt. ANYWAYS! Thanks for letting me ramble on about these two! (and if you're the same anon who sent the other ask that came in right after this one then I'll be answering that one shortly.)

[clovermunson]

here’s a tamer one:

gimme all your unpopular stranger things opinions, pretty please!!

sav, bestie you know i love being controversial (sometimes) and i know that some of these may get me tumblr-cancelled or cause a fandom riot because most of them will be about billy (and by extension, max), but that’s not my problem.

billy and max genuinely cared about each other. i know, some of you are gonna look at that and say “how the fuck is that true??” but trust me. it is. both of them were forced into a shitty situation, and often took things out on each other because they were both misguided and trying to navigate things on their own. neil and susan obviously favored max, often neglecting billy and making him grow up on his own and way too fast. he was handling full-fledged adult responsibilities by the time he was sixteen, and he shouldn’t have been. now while i think susan may have tried to evenly delegate her attention to both kids, neil completely prohibited that under some false pretense such as “billy needs to grow up” or “he doesn’t need a mother anymore”. any time max screwed up, billy was left to deal with it instead of neil and susan handling it themselves, like parents should, not older siblings (though i believe had it not been for neil, susan would’ve taken care of max herself— i have some very complicated opinions on susan, but that’s another story). every time billy acted out in violence, it was a defense and survival mechanism for him; and he probably did it quite often to protect max because he cared for her, and for the fact that if he didn’t, he’d face neil’s wrath for the nth time (i.e.: the fight at byers’ home with steve— which, in billy’s defense, was totally justified from his point of view). anyway, max and billy cared about each other in their own weird little way.

more on the topic of billy, he wasn’t racist and he didn’t target or dislike lucas simply because he was black. that’s just a bullshit reason that 98% of the fandom uses to justify why they hate billy because they couldn’t read context clues and use some critical thinking skills. he disliked lucas because he witnessed lucas and max arguing in the school parking lot, and lucas was upsetting max— and billy knew that it would be his ass if neil found out about it.

i think the whole “girlboss” angle they’re trying to do with nancy kinda sucks and it’s ruining her character. she was definitely a stronger character in season 2 than any other season.

the series started with will, and it should end with will. i said what i said.

max stabbing billy with a needle and syringe with no idea what was in it is not the girlboss moment y’all think it is. what was in that syringe could’ve killed him for all anyone knew.

the sauna scene was genuinely billy begging for max to help him because he didn’t know what was going on, until it wasn’t, and max knew that was billy and not the mindflayer.

speaking of the whole mindflayer thing, y’all can’t tell me that max didn’t genuinely care about billy when she said “i really hope it’s not you” in reference to the party suspecting that billy was the host.

oh and in season two when billy’s “threatening” to run over the boys?? y’all are delusional for thinking he really would lmao he’s an older brother and older brothers mess with their sisters like that. and he’s a seventeen year old with a cool, fast car. there’s no way he was gonna willingly get himself a vehicular homicide charge in a bumfuck town in indiana. y’all are dumb as shit for thinking he would. and did y’all notice when max grabbed the wheel and made the car swerve to avoid hitting them? billy could’ve easily gone against her force and kept the car on course, but he didn’t.

stancy shippers are essentially romanticizing a toxic relationship between two people who very clearly want different things for themselves and could never actually work, from a logical and realistic viewpoint.

on that note, stancy should not happen in season five. or ever again for that matter. fight me about it.

karen wheeler’s actions in season three can’t be justified. i’m not even gonna argue on this one with anyone because y’all know what happened. sure she chose her family in the end, but she was really about to go hook up with a freshly-18 year old man while being in her 40s��absolutely not, ma’am. don’t even get me started on the other pool-lurking moms.

it’s game night, send one of these!

[destinyc1020]

Late wordy confession! I’ve been thinking about the differences of the 2 press tours from Zendaya this year specifically how she interacts with the Challengers boys vs. Timmy for Dune.

Sure when Dune first came out there were people who shipped Timothee and ZendayA but that’s also because people heavily believed tz were pr for spider-man. it’s been 3 years since that. So I was definitely shocked how she acted towards Timothee during the tour. Also the fact they were hardly paired together during interviews even though this movies big push was the love story. I think she requested to not be paired alone with Timmy unless absolutely necessary. But I also think that the separation is what helped fuel a lot of their kissing questions. If they had been paired together i think they could’ve handled the topic and redirected to the actual film plot similar to how they handled those type of questions during the first press tour to the point that wasn’t the focus after a while. It felt heavier this time because they were separated and having to deny it with co-stars who had nothing to do with the situation in a movie that was pushing a love story we rarely got to hear the leads talk about together!

Then you have the separation for Jesus when they were on the carpets and press calls where Z didn’t even turn towards Timothee like he was there at all. It felt more obvious than the first tour where she at least seemed like she wanted to be there. I really would think maybe she does hate him because something happened in the months from Darnell’s party to the tour and the accounts on here are correct about her dislike for him. but there are videos of them interacting more comfortably when there aren’t cameras focused on them at various events during the press tour. So they are still friends and they’re acting like that why?

When you compare it to Challenges where Z is easily interacting with those guys and it feels more like her energy from Dune 1 I was even more confused. I was assuming that after how she was with Dune2 she would be even more stiff with the guys for this tour considering the reception of that first trailer, but she hasn’t been. there’s still a boundary in that trio but it’s more approachable.

Why at this point is Timmy the only one getting this distance? They never did anything to make people believe anything was going on with them (not line the Bones &All or Queen Charlotte leads etc). There doesn’t seem to be any bad blood between them. Like they even matched their fashion for the tour and he’s one of her only co- stars even game to attempt that. Those jumpsuits in Korea were so good for a reason. It’s her boundaries to set and I am happy that Timothee doesn’t seem like an asshole who purposely would try to make her uncomfortable in public and just engaged more with other co-stars so the distance didn’t seem weird to the gp.

i just don’t get how long she’ll push this with him specifically. Or what is really prompting her to be as far from him as possible in public. It can’t be one group of z fans who hate Tom everyone stalks on here from Twitter bffr. We of course will never truly know but looking back at it now I really don’t get it.

Whew! This was a long late Sunday Confession Anon lol 😅

Like I said earlier this month about this topic, I really don't think that the interactions btwn Z and Timmy were as "weird" as some fans are making it out to be during the Dune Part 2 press tour.

I already provided significant evidence in my post here (below) that they (the entire cast imo) seemed just fine with each other?? 😅

I've theorized however that I think Z and Timmy tend to keep their "distance" (if you can even call it that) when the cameras are rolling on them because they are very acutely aware of the insane shipping of their two huge fandoms. I personally think it makes them a bit uncomfortable.

Also, I don't think Z asked to NOT be put with Timmy during DP2 press... WTH?? 😅 You don't usually get to make those types of decisions when it's the studio who's PAYING you to promote THEIR film. I never expected WB to have them paired up with each other for all of the interviews in the first place....esp not when they have added two additional new characters to the film. Timmy & Z already did a ton of interviews together for Dune 1 press. Why would WB do that yet again??

And why would she need to request something like that in the first place? They're FRIENDS! They don't have anything against each other. Z is closer to Timmy than even Josh and Mike. She's also known him longer. You can just look at their bts filming shots.

When they're not in front of the fans with all eyes on them however, they are way more comfortable around each other because they know that their every move and interaction w/each other isn't going to be dissected to death. 🙄

Timdayas have nobody to blame but themselves lol.

Personally, I think they were just fine during the press tour (way less rigid than the first press tour imo), but I do think Z is very keenly aware of the weird shipping, and she doesn't want to add fuel to the fire.

Z doesn't hate this man...They're FRIENDS. I don't know why people think she's "dissing" Timmy when she's not. To me it seems obvious that the attention they get from fans/Timdaya shippers is a bit much, and they don't want to feed into it. But it's clear that they're buddies.

[manyothermusingsofmine]

Masquerade of Units || Chapter 4/5

Prev: Chapter 3 Start: Chapter 1 Fandom: Xmen

Warnings: None

Wordcount: 4866

Summary: Four idiots show up on the scene. Chaos inevitably ensues. Some things also require some talks Lance's greek outburst mean "shit, man" but like derogatory on both counts yknow? from what I understand anyway -------------------------------------------------------

 “Well? Mind telling me why you feel the need to push my friend around, lady?” Pietro just looked her over, almost bored with the situation already while keenly aware that being as close to her as he was made her visibly uncomfortable; almost like that was the point.

“Will you stop making it sound like I can’t defend myself?” Todd protested in the back, hands on his hips as Pietro shot him a look, before he casually looked back to Miranda as he had decided on how to deal with this in a split second.

“Anyway, next time you feel the need to save the evening and get the AC running with Forge and whoever else you brought along; Gambit? Gambit makes sense, you’re with the X-men, for a run like this I would also bring someone who can blow the lock clean off a door- Which by the way you could have done instead of manhandling my friend out of the way-“

“Not with me in front of it?!”

“Shush, Todd; like I was saying you could’ve had him handle the case instead of assaulting my friend over there, that’s kind of a criminal offense; we would know. Haven’t seen you before anyway, which one are you, don’t remember any of them having invisibility before, you’re pretty by the way, you here with anyone special or what-“

“Jesus Christ, do you ever breathe?!” Miranda asked, genuinely exhausted by the sudden onslaught of words thrown her way as she firmly pushed against his chest to try and get him away from her, but he either didn’t move or immediately got back into the position he was before- it was hard to tell.

“No, I breathe beforehand.”

“… Wow. I hate that. Get away from me,” she muttered, trying again to push him back but definitely failing this time around, as the man in front of her didn’t budge for even a moment, her eyes flicking to Todd in the hopes he would at least call his friend back. And for what it was worth, the brown eyes of the frog mutant met with hers before they shot at his friend. Todd agreed in his head that Pietro was deliberately way too close to her, and it was working a bit too well for even his liking.

“Dude, ease up on her, it’s not that serious; I’m fine.”

“Mh? At the very least she could apologize for shoving you. You’re fine, sure, but what if you did get hurt? We could have another feud on our hands, and I doubt miss new Xmen I don’t know of over here would want that on her hands, what with-“

“Maximoff,” a low voice in a threatening tone came from the hallway behind the door, as Miranda let out a breath she hadn’t realised she was holding; heavens above was she glad to hear that voice again seconds before she would have swallowed her pride and actually called for his help, “get away from her, or else.”

“See, Remy, knew they would bring the lock pick guy to a situation like this so it’s still ridiculous she decided to make it physical- Or else what?!”

“Or else, Gambit will make ya,” he replied, flipping a card in between his fingers in case he had to escalate things, but the threat of it alone was enough to finally make Quicksilver back off enough where he could place himself between the two and shield Miranda behind his 6’2 frame.

“Oh, you’re vouching for this one then? Well as her senior chaperone for the evening, do you want to start a new feud between our groups for old times sake since she decided to make it physical? I thought the lot of us agreed that as long as we all keep our hands to ourselves nobody needed to get into old arguments over which group is better, but maybe the lot of you need to do a better job at explaining that to-“

“Pietro,” a different voice altogether.. rumbled? That was the only way Miranda could explain the sheer projected volume that made the window panes tremble for a second, despite the voice somehow not shouting his name no matter how loud it was called, “Nobody is starting any feuds tonight; especially not when I’m not looking. If you feel like picking a fight with the X-men, I would appreciate being in the loop about it first, man.”

“She started it,” Pietro huffed while nodding at Gambit because he couldn’t exactly point out the woman he was shielding behind himself, “there was no need to assault Todd.”

“Dude, it’s not that deep or serious, I’m fine, I just brought you here to make sure I wasn’t going crazy and to check that the place isn’t actually haunted, not to harass a woman who did little more than scare me, or pick a fight with Gambit!” Todd replied sharply, fed up with having things made more serious than they were and with Pietro talking for him instead of letting him talk, looking to Fred who had come over at this point as well to stand by his side- only to then have his attention drawn back to Pietro who opened his mouth again after switching his confrontational attitude to pleasantly amused entertainer at the drop of a hat.

“Oh I know, I’m just fucking with you, you should know that by now,” a collective annoyed groan came out of the other three at it.

“I can’t fucking bring you anywhere, man, why did I even bother?! Next time something like this happens again, I’m bringing Lance as back up instead.”

“The better choice by far,” Lance dryly remarked.

Miranda barely listened to the way the four argued between each other. While Pietro had been removed from her personal space, the lingering intimidation tactic he had applied to deliberately make her uncomfortable didn’t let up that easily. She lightly pressed herself closer to Remy, feeling and knowing she had little right to seek his protection or comfort right now, but needing it all the more

“I’m glad you came back,” she whispered loud enough for him to hear but not for the other four to overhear as they continued arguing amongst themselves, with Gambit ever so lightly looking over his shoulder before rolling them back a little and standing up straighter to appear broader and hide her further from the inherent chaos of the Brotherhood

“I’d never let you deal with this lot on your own,” he replied in an equally soft but audible to her whisper

“Thank you. … I’m sorry.”

“Right back at ya, we’ll talk that through later, alright?”

Pietro still yapped the most out of the four, at this point making the whole thing into a joke. There was some lowkey understanding between all that he never would’ve seriously done anything to Miranda, but the collective glares of his friends told him enough.

“Oi, lady, sorry about all that. I’ve been told before that I get needlessly defensive over my friends; especially Todd-“

“To my ever growing annoyance.”

“People pick on you all the time, man, you know I don’t stand for that, besides, Lance brought up a fantastic point in all of this- Why the fuck were you at maintenance door acting like you were getting paid to guard it? This is supposed to be a ball event where you’re meant to have fun with the friends who came here to hang out with you, not stand by some door tricking X-men into thinking like they have to get past you to deal with the AC that isn’t working making everyone’s lives miserable- And speaking of that right on cue that one is back on, thanks Forge-“

“Pietro! Skatá, maláka; I know that after all these years you still don’t come with a mute button, but shut the fuck up, will you?!”

Pietro just flipped the bird at Lance in response, the whole thing feeling like banter between people who had known each other for years rather than swapping actual insults back and forth, as the silver haired guy casually put his hands in the pockets of his dress pants before tossing his gaze over to Todd, who had been having a conversation with Fred on the sidelines to catch him up to what had been going on, halting when he felt a pair of eyes staring a hole into his back.

“Wha- don’t you fucking dare,” and without waiting for his speedster friend to change his mind Todd jumped straight up and away into the air, high enough to land in one of the light fixtures, almost chandelier like structures though smaller, and making it sway with his added weight while looking to Lance for an alliance against Pietro. Lance just looked up, rolling his eyes and groaning at this was again getting out of hand.

“Get down from there. He talks like nobody’s business but he’s right, we didn’t come here for you to sneak off and pretend guard a door for no reason.”

“I wasn’t pretend guarding anything, I was just standing there minding my own business, why are you taking chatterbox’s turn of events over mine anyway?! Maybe I’ll just stay up here instead-“ he realised what that would lead to, clutching onto the light fixture right as he saw the look in Lance’s eyes change from only half invested into what was going on to fixated on him. Keeping said gaze firmly locked on Todd, Lance casually stuck his hand out, palm pointed to the floor; and within seconds the ground began to tremble and shake

Gambit heard the startled gasp behind him, putting one of his arms further back for Miranda to hold onto and steady herself; feeling how she clutched on for dear life while he watched the scene unfold further. Lance pulled his hand back up, with a bored flick of the wrist ending the tremors he had started; still looking at Todd while casually crossing his arms over his chest.

“Awh, and here I thought you were going to keep going until you shook me-“ Todd’s own yell of surprise interrupted him as Pietro plucked him out of the light fixture, with Fred catching both of them on their descent down from the ceiling after already having been the one to boost and throw Pietro in the right direction during Lance’s distraction.

“I don’t need to shake you out by brute force, Todd, that’s beneath me and you know it,” Lance said, watching as Fred separated the two and held each one in an arm like he was carrying two baskets; no matter how much either struggled to break free. Fred looked at Gambit, or rather at the few pieces of red dress that were slightly peeking out from behind the Cajun, his expression softening before deliberately turning his silver haired friend towards the two X-men affiliates.

“Apologize to her-”

“Bro I already-“ a wheeze left the speedster as Fred changed his hold to apply just a smidge of pressure; by his strength enough to genuinely push a decent amount of air out of the other’s lungs

“A genuine apology, Pietro, not the half assed ones you like to give.”

Breathing in the moment Fred eased up, Pietro huffed and glared up at his friend for as far as he could, looking at Todd and then at Lance before he realised he was outnumbered in the apparent democratic voting that he had taken it too far with this girl.

“…. Fine. Hey, uh, lady in red?”

“Miranda,” Fred corrected before Gambit could, to which the Cajun just half nodded in agreement as he felt her still holding onto his arm though less intensely at this point.

“Miranda,” he repeated, ”I do take things too far. A lot. Often. Many times. Was a dick move on my part to deliberately get all up in your business like that when I realised it was effective in upsetting you. Sorry.”

“… Apology accepted,” she replied, the best way to react to hopefully and finally get out of this situation she had stopped wanting to be a part in from the moment she had opened her eyes only to look directly into his. Fred nodded, knowing it wasn’t going to get any better than that, and carrying his two friends back to the ballroom while ignoring the argument that went on in both of his arms. Lance let out a deep sigh, turning to look at Gambit instead.

“By extend, take my apology as well. I’m surrounded by a gaggle of idiots as you can tell; unfortunately, they’re my gaggle of idiots, and I do care a lot about all three of them. I’m willing to not take Pietro’s overblown words that this was the actual attack start to a new feud between us, if you’re willing to ignore his idiocy in making any problem twenty times worse by getting involved in shit he should keep his nose out of. We good?”

While he was with the Xmen longer than her and could technically overrule whatever her feelings on the matter were for the sake of keeping peace, Gambit very lightly tapped one of the hands that were still clinging to his arm with his free hand; silently asking for her input on the request and feeling her ever so slightly nod against his shoulder in reply. It was good enough for him.

“Oui, mon ami. No hard feelings on either side. The throes and woes of family, even when chosen, hm?”

“Oh, don’t get me started. See you around sometimes, if luck will have it,”  and with that, Lance casually gestured a goodbye, before following his self-labelled gaggle of idiots to the ballroom to hopefully keep them out of any more trouble. The silence that returned to the place was only slightly interrupted by the whirring of the now functioning AC unit, with Forge emerging from the room long after he was done as he had betted on all of this mostly sorting itself out and to not get involved further unless he had to.

“I’m going to check if that did the trick, if not, I’ll be back,” he simply said before also vanishing in the direction of the ballroom, leaving Gambit and Drifting as the only two still there. Her sigh inevitably broke the awkward silence as she faceplanted into the back of his shoulder

“Wow. And I thought our set up was messy. Leave it to the… what’re they called?”

“Brotherhood.”

“Brotherhood, to show me the found family can be even more chaotic and on each other’s ass than whatever the fuck was happening between us back there.”

Gambit couldn’t help but let out an amused huff before responding; “Mh. ‘S the one thing they got the X-men beat at. Chaos. By but a slight margin, but still.”

“… I’m sorry, Remy. I was acting like a bitch because this whole night tossed me in seven different directions all together and didn’t once go in any way I wanted, and I was taking it out on you. That was uncalled for.”

“Same here, Miranda. I’m sorry, too. I just fueled the fire to whatever you were throwing my way because my night has been just as bad of a gamble, honestly, but it wasn’t fair that I started fighting with you about it.”

She finally emerged, standing at his side instead of hiding behind him, both looking off in the way everyone else had disappeared as she inhaled and exhaled deeply.

“Well. That took, what, seventy percent of my social battery for the rest of the evening? Jesus Christ, that Pietro guy really doesn’t shut up, ever, does he?”

“Be glad I showed up when I did, that social vampire would’ve drained all of your introverted social battery otherwise.”

“I am. Glad you showed up when you did, I mean. I would’ve started calling for you had you taken any longer; he wouldn’t get out of my face.”

“And you trust Gambit would’ve shown up the moment you started calling for his help, hm?”

“Yeah. I know you’ve got my back, even when we get into fucking stupid arguments over practically nothing. For what it’s worth, I’d do the same for you, if you ever need me.”

“Really now? Promise like that ‘s worth more than you’d think.”

Green eyes met red ones in a quiet understanding with a hint of amusements to both parties. Miranda slowly stuck out her arm, reaching her hand towards him and merely holding her pinky finger out to him; unmoving. He blinked, rolled his eyes, before hooking his around hers in silent acceptance before he spoke up

“A pinky promise, really?”

“They’re binding. Not like you’d sign any legal document I’d shove in your face anyway.”

“Eh, fair.”

She let go, and so did he, watching as she walked in- the actual opposite way of the ballroom. He blinked, tilting his head a little before taking a few steps after her. She must’ve heard, because she turned back to him.

“I’m going to find the one you claim ‘owes’ me a dance, Gambit. I don’t need you to trail after me for that.”

“Great, mon ami, but the dance floor is that way,” he remarked, pointing over his shoulder and raising his eyebrows as she gave him a mysterious smile that didn’t actually gave anything away.

“And you think I’ll find him in the room that nearly boiled him alive like a lobster in a seafood restaurant? Please, Remy, surely you know better than that. Don’t worry about me, he’s easy to find.”

“Easy? Out there, in the dead of night? No he’s not.”

“He is, if you know what you’re looking for.”

“… Don’t be going ‘nd getting lost in a set of glowing yellow eyes as they light up the night sky, now. That’s how you end up in a fae story if you’re not careful.”

“Oh, so you do know the strategy as well; anyway, don’t you have someone else’s dance to worry about instead of mine?”

That was a fair point; it was probably better if he worried about actually talking to Shadow for a minute, having spent the whole night trying to avoid her was not that great of a look on him if he wanted her to believe he cared for her. That whole situation was still complicated, sure, but at this point he was at risk of ruining his own evening completely by focusing all of his energy in every other place he could think of but his own life. As he watched Miranda leave through one of the doors back into the garden, he looked at the direction of the ballroom and went that way instead.

Shadow had seemingly picked her conversation right back up from where it had left off with Forge, but he excused himself as soon as Gambit appeared and approached, to which she turned back around to face him.

“Oh, hey! Forge told me you helped out with the machinery; good job, it’s finally starting to feel like a normal room.”

“Did he now?” Gambit muttered, looking over her at Forge as the other man did not turn around, instead mingling with another group of mutants and chatting with them. Gambits eyes slowly looked back at Shadow, who yawned a little.

“Shame all of this took so long; I’d already had my fill for most of the evening, so I’ll probably turn in for the night-“

“Don’t mean to interrupt you, mon ombre,” he said softly, looking her in the eyes and genuinely not realizing how much she got lost in his as soon as he addressed her, “but will you dance with me? Just once, before you retreat upstairs for the night?”

“Well, Remy, you’re well aware I don’t know how to dance.”

“Nor will you ever if you keep rejecting every chance to try. Shadow. … Please?”

“… You know what, sure, if you promise to not laugh when I make a fool of myself or step on your toes.” “I would never do that to you, chère.” The cold of the night was as unforgiving as before; while Miranda still made her way through the cold the parts of her exposed immediately showed their dismay by turning into angry goosebumps all over her. At some point she halted, rubbing her arms to get some of the warmth back when she heard a soft 'poof' next to her. A warm jacket was near immediately wrapped around her, as someone gently held onto her arms.

"You'll freeze out here, Süßer," he whispered to her, "clearly you're not meant for either extreme."

The warm tone of his voice made a shiver run down her spine; something she would definitely explain away as just being a reaction to the cold if he asked about it. Miranda turned around to face him, looking him over once before meeting his eyes.

"Aren't you cold?"

"Nein; perks of having fur. This still feels like a pleasant evening to me."

"... They fixed the AC."

"Oh? Great. Want to go inside, then?"

It should've been an easy yes. The easiest yes of her life. But Miranda found herself looking over her shoulder at the mansion behind them, the glass doors to the ballroom showing the party going on inside. There were so many people now in there enjoying the evening as the atmosphere being fixed had fixed everyone's mood as well. There were.. so many...

"... I'm exhausted," she muttered, before looking back at him. Standing out here with him in the quiet night, the only think audible the distant music from the room and the slight chirping of crickets was far more suited to her drained energy than the dance floor, "I'm sorry. I was hoping you'd show me the waltz you say you have to your skillset but.. I guess I'm taking a raincheck on that, after all. I.... I don't know. Maybe I'm better off calling it a night all together. I'll.. see you tomorrow at breakfast." She turned around and took a few steps away, before a very familiar tail gently curled around her waist and lightly pulled her back in a slight twirl so she was facing him again

"I'll let you go if you really don't want to be here, but if you don't want us to get caught like you say you don't, you can't be running off with my jacket. Besides, do you really want to turn in for the night?" His hand brushed over her skin as he softly placed it on her cheek, enough contact to warm her skin where the jacket couldn't protect her from the cold air. She shivered a little, placing a gloved hand over his to hold him in place, "or are you just tired of the people in there and need some reprieve from everyone?"

"..... I ran into Pietro Maximoff."

"Ach, yikes. How'd that go?"

"About as well as you think. I hope he's doing something with the energy he drained from me; it's not like I needed that or anything."

The soft sound of his laugh would never not warm her heart as Miranda granted herself another moment to think about it. There was still some energy to her left, enough for one dance she figured; as long as she didn't have to deal with conversational background noise or clusters of eyes watching her every move. The only eyes she actually wanted to see were- Her gaze got caught up in his, the swirling hues of yellow and amber reminding her of a fireplace's soft glow: just as warm and inviting. She felt his hand trail down her neck and over the curve of her shoulder, not stopping him for a moment as he went down her arm only to take her hand and pressing a soft kiss to the glove that covered it.

"You can go if you wish. But if you decide to stay.... will you dance with me?"

"What, out here?"

"You can hear the music too. Maybe not as well as I can, but... no one said we're only allowed to use the dancefloor."

".... Fair point. I... Yes. I do want to dance with you. I think I have enough energy to spare for that"

"Then follow my lead, okay?" he said as he gently adjusted her hold on him to the proper way while holding her as she tried to not think too much about his hand against the curve of her back. Guided by the slow and somewhat distant beat of the music they both heard coming from within the mansion, he showed her exactly what he had been saying was true- he knew how to do this properly.

As soon as the music track ended, so did their dance, the soft rustling of her skirts as they swayed along to her movement coming to a halt, and for a moment they just stood there, chest to chest close as if they were meant to share their heartbeats like that. The silence interrupted by the next track played snapped them out of whatever trance they were in, as Miranda took a small step back.

"... Thank you for that. I think I can safely say that saved my whole night."

"As it did mine." He let go of her, but found himself ever so lightly rolling his eyes as she still tried to leave while pretty much confiscating the-

"Miranda. You're still trying to leave with my jacket. You really don't have the thievery skill needed to pull that off."

"It's warm. and comfy. Surely they'll forgive me from borrowing a jacket from a-"

"Friend? I think that excuse isn't bought by anyone anymore; no matter who it’s applied to at this point," keen eyes scanned the outline of the building as he walked over to Miranda, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder before whisking them both off to a side door that he immediately pushed open so she could enter. She did, but lingered in the doorway as she returned the jacket to him.

"You coming as well?"

"Mh, I think I'm staying outside for a little bit longer, I had the great luck and foresight to pick a bedroom without an AC unit. Actually, I might go to the ballroom and talk to some people I haven't seen in a while. If Pietro is poking around, Lance should be here too, and I've hadn't had the chance to have a debate of faith in a while."

"He's Christian?"

"Greek Orthodox. No longer practicing, but his ideas and insights still are fascinating."

"Right. Don't have too much fun; try not to start a new feud like I almost managed to accomplish."

"Well, that's a story I'd love to hear sometimes," and with that he pressed a light, quick kiss to her cheek, "goodnight, Miranda. Before I go; need any help with that dress?"

"I'll be fine, I'll have it off in no time."

He had no reason to not believe her, so she watched him walk off in the direction of the ballroom before mentally kicking herself. The fuck did she mean, she'd have it off in no time?! Shadow specifically told her that she would need assistance with it, so why hadn't she- She was suddenly aware of how her arms rested over her chest as they clutched on a little tighter, cheeks burning as the implication of asking that of someone she was into suddenly clicked.

She knew on some level that she could trust Kurt to just help her, but the sinking pit in her stomach worsened as her mind repeated at her that asking that of the guy she had complicated feelings for, came with implications and expectations of the way the night would turn that she didn't want. She was better off asking literally anyone else, or so her mind insisted. Or just do it herself. Somehow.

Clambering up the stairs to get to her room didn't really help her mind in bringing up someone she could ask as she didn't really feel much for interrupting anyone's night. Surely Shadow's insistence that she would need help was exaggerated, right?

'No, no it was not,' the muscles in her shoulders loudly complained as she was trying to contort them in ways they didn't agree to in order to get to the ribbons on her lower back, to the point where she actually verbalized an 'ow' when the muscles rebelled in a pang of actual pain. Okay, she did need someone's help; she didn't have the grace or the flexibility to pull this off, she wasn't an acr- Shaking off the thought immediately, Miranda went back out of her room to try and find someone who could reasonably get her out of this contraption. She didn't need flexibility, per se, just someone with steady hands. And her eyes fell on someone else lingering around the corridor as sleep hadn't gotten its claws into him yet.

"Gambit? Can I borrow you for a minute?"

[alyjojo]

June 📿 2024 Monthly - Pisces

Preshuffle: Chaotic energy 🫨 You’re overflowing with emotions because you can’t handle everything coming at you at once, or it’s unreliable. It’s like you can’t commit to one lane for more than two seconds before something else needs your attention, and rather than getting a card of feeling overwhelmed, it’s feeling more like you’re about to act out emotionally, or…cry. Scream into the void. Snap 🫰

Meditation: It was a well, you know, for water. A deep one. Couldn’t even see the bottom. I was afraid of falling in. And I heard the song title “A Deeper Well”. Literal and to the point, that’s it. I really don’t know this song at all, but it must resonate to be so literal.

Main energy: 5 Cups

This energy is very tricky because of what I’m seeing - which won’t apply to everyone. I’m seeing “survivor’s guilt” first off, if you don’t know what that means then you’re lucky. There’s a possible car wreck, some kind of disaster where someone else got hurt, and you didn’t. But should have? I’m also seeing prison. Probably involving a friend, Friendship is focused here. Maybe you can’t afford to pay someone’s fine or help them get on their feet, but you really want to. For some a person may simply have made their own bed 🛏️ and what can you do? They’re stuck with it now. But this causes you to feel deeply sad, remorseful, focused on regret, pain, and what is lost. If you’ve had to separate from people for whatever reason, it’s made you sad, and I’m definitely seeing regret on your end for where that applies. Regarding what - I don’t know. Could’ve should’ve would’ve - if I knew, sort of energy.

What’s going on in June:

The Magician:

You’ve manifested a stable connection, home, relationship with someone that is a fuckboy/girl at heart, unreliable, non-committal, doesn’t take things seriously, reckless with their impulses, does stupid shit and has no control over themselves. Maybe moved in with them? Could be family. You didn’t know that when you made this decision (who does?) Or perhaps you were the one impulsive, in order to help someone else. Could be love, but I’m getting more of a roommate or friend - platonic with shared interests, maybe a coworker kind of vibe. Could be switched and you’re the one that flakes out of something that was solid - or that was the goal at least.

9 Wands rev:

It’s possible you spent a lot of money on a person or situation - I’m seeing a savings for disaster kind of fund, being dipped into for the sake of saving someone’s ass. And that you didn’t or don’t necessarily have it to give. If not money, then you’ve been forced to release something you’ve held onto very tightly. Could be the connection itself. 4 Swords rev following can show something that *can’t heal* - and there is a lot of independent energy here. Spontaneous actions fucked something up for sure, and it could be financial, a whole relationship, or even the worst case scenario - someone’s life. Having to let go could be literal. 5 Cups can be mourning, if that’s you I’m sending you big hugs & I’m very sorry.

4 Swords rev:

This can show already being healed - but with 5 Cups running the show it’s more like something that can’t fully be healed. Someone is beyond pissed, this Queen of Swords may be you or the other person - because regret is here if it’s you. Sadness if it’s not, while simultaneously being pissed off that someone would put you in the positions you’ve been put in. This Queen is guarded af, she’s very smart and protective over her heart - which is there, and big, but it’s under quite a bit of logic first. She uses her head to deal with problems - not her heart, which this person has (had to?) become for whatever reason. It’s not being more specific so, different reasons for all. One thing is for sure: you don’t appreciate people making stupid decisions that mess with *your* life and relationships. I mean, who does? For most it feels like them. If it’s you, it was unintentional or wasn’t supposed to play out in this way - but it’s over with now and there are regrets. There’s no fixing this, whatever it is, someone goofed up and the other person has their sword up, ready to strike.

6 Swords:

Moving on is the only thing you can do, for most again this is someone else’s problem, someone else’s monkeys, they done fucked up and all you can do is release it. Move on. Easier said than done. I don’t see any emotions or depth to this connection, so this could be like…you have a roommate that sells drugs, you have no idea, they get caught up in some bs and you’re now having to go to court, be a witness, get all involved in something you didn’t even do, don’t appreciate, and there’s no reciprocation for this thing. You don’t get time back, repayment for damages, an apology even for some, it’s just throwing in the towel, *fucking wasted*. Effort, money, time, emotion, a lease, that’s what I’m seeing with this. The Moon at the bottom shows things being hidden from you, you probably don’t have the whole story, and maybe never will.

Temperance rev & The Tower rev:

There’s not much wiggle room with these interpretations. You’re pissed off 💯 as much as sad. You avoided the worst of it, that’s a good thing, or it could have been worse and you should be thankful for that…but I don’t see you seeing it that way. You’re focused on the failure, the wasted effort, time, money, love even, everything that’s falling out of these 3 Cups…friends. Friends may hurt you, ones you wanted to keep but couldn’t, and in many cases they did it to themselves or can’t forgive you for something you’ve done, either/or. Temperance rev shows no reconciling, which is a repeated message, no healing, no fixing, there’s just - the end. Forcibly. That could be super fkn traumatic depending on the situation so…

Advice: The Hermit, and with that I heard the Serenity Prayer, which idc what you believe in or don’t, it’s your call - but that’s what I heard. Stay out of this one, there’s nothing you can do. 333 may mean something for you.

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”

Signs you may be dealing with:

Scorpio, Gemini, Sagittarius, Aquarius, Libra & Aries

Oracle: ✨

33 Integration 🧬

We are a sum of all of our experiences in this and other lives. We all bring forward a wealth of knowledge, talents, and wisdom. One of the challenges is remembering who we are. We are bombarded every day in every way with messages on who we should be, what we should do, what we should wear, how we should live…

These messages coming from the media, society, our family and friends, and even strangers can drown out who we are really meant to be: who we have grown into lifetime after lifetime. Find some quiet moments in your day to identify and start a relationship with that small, strong voice inside of you. Pretty soon you won’t hear the other messages. Many times in your interactions with others, you hear that small voice tell you something is not right. Your logical mind tells you stop it, nothing is wrong, you’re being silly/dramatic or overreacting. You may ignore your inner voice in a quest to fit in, be loved or admired. You do not realize that your inner voice is warning you that the other person’s energy is not matching their words or actions. Listen to your instincts about this situation or person.

We enter into June as:

The Lilac Key 🔑

“The last thing out of Pandora’s Box was hope.”

Change is coming. It is imminent and cannot be avoided. The desire to run from this situation is tempting. However this is a necessary challenge for you. You are going through the labor pains of birth. This may indicate a painful divorce or partnership ending bitterly. In all situations it represents a death of an old way of living, thinking, and surviving. Lilac Key appears when mere survival is not enough for you. Your will to live is what is forcing the change. It is a change of consciousness, which in turn will lead to a balance of harmony in all areas of your life. Cleaning up the past is a process that is often painful; yet hope and joy are the after effects. Remember, once the key has been used to open the door, once you have entered this new consciousness, you cannot go back. You will be left with a new way of living, one without keys - for where you are heading there is no need for locks 🔒

What is to be learned in June:

Sun Sparkler 🎇:

“Integrity is what turns on the light.”

Sun Sparkler reminds us that it is through kindness to others and being of service that we are abundant. Are you living your life as fully as you can? Are you being honest and kind to others? Do you hold the door open for people on the elevator, or let it close? Do you let people merge over in traffic, or pretend not to see them? When we put a blinder on one area of life, it creates the same blind spot in every area. You can’t shut out pain without shutting out pleasure too. Sun Sparkler reminds you of the miracle of honesty, it leads to integrity. You may have done work for another but do not expect a reward, revel in alignment with Spirit, self-esteem is the gift. You’ve been elevated to a new level spiritually, continue to serve others and life will prosper beyond your wildest dreams.

Yellow may be a lucky color 💛

[folkloristico]

7, 8, 9, 17, 18 and 25 for the choose violence ask game? 👀

I’ve already answered #7, #8 and #18 here!

9. Worst part of canon

Uh… anything past season 3, 4 at best?

I don’t want to sound like a hater, but this show has a lot of problems. I could probably give you several different answers, but I’m particularly disappointed at how they handled the revival of Domino. The prophecy was complete nonsense, Sky didn’t deserve to be the hero of the situation At All and the overall plotline deserved to be addressed in a different way. It never sat right with me how Bloom spent three seasons worrying over finding her biological parents only for the whole thing to be over like that to never be addressed again. The Winx are the main characters, but there are so many things they could’ve done with the other characters without tossing the Winx aside—if anything, it made more sense than ever to expand on the girls’ home planet, not only Domino, given the fact they became Guardian Fairies. 

17. There should be more of this type of fic/art

I’ve already ranted a lot about Daphne and CoL, so for the sake of not sounding like a broken record, I’m gonna say that I would really, really like to read more about other people’s takes on the Winx universe outside the ‘mainstream’ places such as Alfea. 

25. Common fandom complaint that you’re sick of hearing

Whether Bloom is a Mary Sue or not. I do think a good amount of criticism about her is well-placed, but on the other hand, the definition of what a Mary Sue is is so widely used that it’s lost its original meaning.

First of all, Bloom isn’t a self-insert, as Mary Sue’s generally are. Secondly, Mary Sue’s lack any significant flaws, or if they have one, it’s depicted as being a positive trait—but season 1-3 Bloom does actually have flaws. She’s insecure, impulsive and jealous.

It’s true that everything revolves around her, and while that can be annoying, she’s the main character, so… what do you expect? 

It’s also worth mentioning how many key points of the Winx Club plot are similar to popular media like Naruto or Harry Potter, but I rarely see either of those being called Gary Stu’s. Bloom has the most powerful source of magic in the entire universe? So does Naruto. Last of her kind? What about Luke Skywalker? You can find all of the things Bloom is bashed for in male characters twice as popular, but they’re less likely to be called Gary Stu’s.

I guess I’m just tired of seeing any female character remotely disliked being labeled as a Mary Sue, and I feel like season 1-3 Bloom deserves a better treatment than just being called that. I’d rather read someone’s take on how the writers failed to handle conflicts when it came to what should’ve been the key points of her character—her Enchantix and the revival of her people to mention two of them.

[fandom-fae]

okayy so i just finished watching that new disney peter pan remake (“peter pan and wendy”) (also spoiler warning btw-) and honestly. i liked it actually- like the pacing was a bit weird/kinda too fast imo and i’m not a fan of the ending (but to be fair that’s just bc i generally don’t like the ending where the lost boys leave neverland but peter doesn’t so that one isn’t the films fault), but other than that i think it was really good and fairly well made tbh. i would’ve liked some more musical numbers- like the two pirate sea shanties are okay and i don’t wanna complain but damn there’s so much music potential for a story like this tbh. like you could’ve had a song where peter pan actually sings or wendy (im ignoring the lullaby bc i want a song actually about her yk?) or maybe even a duet with them!!!!! i had hope for new music but well meh.

anyway!!! i loved almost all the visuals in the movie and the instrumental background music was really good too! i liked that it was very obviously inspired by the background music of the original tbh!! and i liked the casting tbh, i actually think all the actors did pretty good jobs !!

and the special effects were really good imo! like- not to compare this to the 2003 peter pan movie, but in that older one i always kinda cringed when characters flew around bc i just idk didn’t like how fake it looked- like obviously that’s bc of technical or budget (or both) limitations but still idk- but this time i actually rly liked the way they did the flying for the most part, especially in the scene where they flew to neverland. i also think the set design was really good!!

AND!!!!! i like how literally every aspect (except for the ending lmao) that i disliked in the animated movie was changed- like tinkerbell isn’t blinded by jealousy anymore, the native characters (or well in this case character, since tiger lilly was kinda the only plot relevant one) aren’t such flat caricatures anymore and hook didn’t act so unbelievably ridiculous yk? also i generally just like how well tinkerbell and wendy and tiger lilly got along tbh, because in the older film as we all know they were written in a almost misogynistic way tbh with the way they were reduced to jealousy so much yk? except for wendy kinda but eh. this modern version is SO MUCH BETTER at that, like i don’t think there was any scene where any of the three were really jealous at all unless i missed something lol.

like idk i just like it. it’s definitely different from the original story and from the older movie but not in a necessarily worse way. its similar enough to be familiar and nostalgic but different enough to have its own charme yk? like its no carbon copy and that’s a good thing because it doesn’t try to be and it doesn’t need to be. it humanised almost every character more (even though the pacing again was kinda not ideal lol but it was still enjoyable)!!

i just think it would’ve been good for the movie to have some more transitional scenes or to drag some moments out longer tbh. like there was no moment in my opinion that was really too long, which is good, but there were a few that i think should’ve been longer tbh. it felt not like the movie was rushed but like the viewer was rushed through the plot yk? like there weren’t really any moments to dwell on a situation or to let it sit, except for when wendy was swept onto that beach and when she walked the plank. those two moments were imo well timed. but like especially that scene in james’ peter’s room could’ve handled a few more moments, or the scene before peter left london again when he was talking to wendy yk?

anyway uwu the cinematography was rly well done too imo, and i definitely liked the fight scenes and that scene when they all arrive in neverland :3 and the set design was very good too !!! i also think i liked all the costumes except maybe wendy’s and hook’s jackets cuz like idk, they’re fine but i’m not vibing with them lol. anyway yeah sjdkdjkdjdk- peter pan’s and tinkerbell’s outfits were really good tho imo. and tinkerbell in general was rly good!! idk the actress’ name but she did a great job and whoever did the casting for this whole movie also did great !!!

[elendsessor]

okay i really really hate what was done with amane during naoya/kaido’s 8th day scenario, at least when going the don’t kill people route.

i mean i really like this scenario but god it’s not nearly as good as it could’ve been and amane’s treatment is part of that. her entire character arc is learning to be her own person and form her own beliefs, with remiel helping her come to that conclusion, not forcing her. while i appreciate how desu handles the angel depictions in some ways, it’s turned into a completely black and white issue which is the biggest problem with how law is treated in the franchise. i like how it’s acknowledged that angels don’t exactly have the same power with humans as opposed to up in the heavens n shit, only giving them a choice to side with them, while also acknowledging that a lot of this aid can be seen as manipulative when coming in times of desperation, which can be seen as a critique on religious indoctrination as a whole.

of course, a lot of the info regarding god and the angels comes from naoya’s definitely biased view and he does, in some ways, groom the protag into accepting the king of bel status, plus he’s an overall shady and manipulative guy despite being shown (especially in amane’s 8th day) to care deeply for abel regardless of differences. but it’s kinda just treated as objective fact throughout the entire bonus plot. you don’t see the belief challenged at all, and that’s perfectly captured with amane, as despite all she learned, all she did just to escape a terrible situation, she decides “oh shit my dad is right” at the last second without any buildup and the one explanation as to why is “remiel disappeared from my thoughts oops anyways let me join you.” even if her dad had humanity’s best interests in mind, he was using her, showed no real affection towards or positive relationship with her, and clearly had some sort of ulterior motive. that’s how cults are. this is basically saying that the years of manipulation and abuse without choice was okay all because god bad.

at best, what should’ve been done is her sticking to her beliefs (as a lot of them are just be kind to people which is the same across most beliefs religious or otherwise), but acknowledging what the protag is doing in the don’t kill people route isn’t entirely bad, that what god is doing isn’t good either, and sort of agreeing to disagree. no conflict with her side of the shomonkai, no joining the party, maybe assisting the group at some point, but have her decide to start spreading her own belief as god has proven to be a bit of a dick and people may need some newfound guidance in a war zone to treat others with respect n join together in times of strife.

(do note that i haven’t finished the 8th day scenario yet but this is still not good writing regardless.)

[carcharsaur]

finally finished something else to put in my got damn tag, let’s go gamers

norn9: var commons an interesting game, charming and understandably a classic from the vita era, but over-ambitious and kind of unfocused and bloated, with a few rough spots

without spoilers, I legit think my perception of this game got really skewed at the beginning based on the play order I did... I would not recommend kakeru first HAHA

I think best off for overall plot elements would be something like: Senri -> Heishi -> Sakuya or Itsuki -> Masamune -> Kakeru -> Akito -> Ron -> Natsuhiko -> epilogue but the only one that is super super required is natsuhiko last, I think. I definitely think them putting kakeru on “recommended” was a MISTAKEEE it left me so dazed about stuff playing it first

part of the game’s problems is just that right there... too many damn routes! a lot of them had endings that felt really unfinished, and there’s a fandisc being localized later this year for the first time but! ideally a game should stand on it’s own merits rather than needing a sequel to feel properly resolved v_v that said, I am rather excited for the FD regardless because I’m invested now lol

on a positive note, I loved all 3 heroines! they’re all characterized distinctly and thoroughly, helped by them all being voiced which I love love love to see in this genre. it helps their characterization a ton, and makes me so much more attached to them. they interact frequently, and have each other’s backs in the stressful situations they find themselves in, rather than squabble over things which was really good. I struggle to pick a favorite from the 3, they all have different charms points and mild frustrations for me. mikoto got the most tears from me overall, I adored koharu and her well-executed (imo) neurodivergent vibes, and I could relate too well to nanami’s emotional wall she builds around herself and her, well, PTSD? T_T haah

my fav pairings for each were: Koharu and Senri, Nanami and Heishi, then Mikoto and Natsuhiko!

-getting into spoilers now-

I also really loved this game’s setting/world lore! it was really interesting, but at the same time it almost feels like the premise of all this would’ve been better served with something that’s not a romance game. it feels like the background and over-arching issues should have had more time and development rather than being brushed over in the course of 10mins in most routes... I know it’s heretical to say for otome games but that’s how it had me feeling. by the time you get to the epilogue it makes thematic sense that the love is an important part but it really, really, does not set that up and build on it well before then so I was left kind of wishy-washy on the game in the middle. I dislike comparing games like this; but the scenario director’s later work, Even If Tempest, handled the romance being integral to the overarching plot much better. though that also was a linear single-perspective story rather than 3 POVS with 3 routes each. orz

getting into more critical things now, the age stuff was a little weird and I just. ignored it most of the time but if that’s something that’s uncomfortable for you (16-17 yr old MCs getting with 20+ yr old guys =_=;) then yeah I strongly do not recommend. they don’t mention it too much but when they do it’s just. man was this necessary. man why did you make nanami 16 when she acts more maturely than the other 2 girls... though that might be the PTSD more than anything AGH. speaking of, I disliked that all of nanami’s routes either have the potential to, or just do straight-up mistreat her... not much to be said about it other than it sucks! it’s not unrealistic but well, forgive me for wanting my romance games to be a bit more idealistic unless they’re going for full tragedy/thriller/etc.

also I think 2 of the routes could’ve been straight-up dropped and had almost no impact on the overall game. ron’s just had... virtually no insight into him other than how awful he is which is like. a matter of taste I guess but god it was more boring than it was shocking or appalling. mundane in his slimy-ness? just magically fix your horrible mans by erasing all the memories that make him who he is. and when he wakes up, he’s somehow the same dude but without all the sadism? wateverrr -_-

and then masamune, I really really like him as a side/support character, and in a bubble I like his character too, and I LOOOOVE his voice actor but man. his dynamic with koharu was uncomfortable. not outright bad but just not a good vibe even if she was never uncomfortable with him it doesn’t sit right. and despite being one of the more ‘important’ characters to the overarching story his route had very little about that stuff in it.. ended up feeling pretty lacking. extremely ironic considering his whole power is being able to see the past of people (and objects?) he touches with his right hand (WHICH ONLY GETS USED ONCE?????). I ended up liking his bad end MORE than his normal end because it focused more on koharu’s relationship with mikoto in a way I liked, even though it was still a tragic circumstance.

they’re just good friends : )

my other least favorite route, which I admit at least has important plot and character and background information, is sakuya’s. I was enjoying it somewhat until he straight up ASSAULTS mikoto in a way that was too visceral and realistic for me, immediately made me want to dumpster him and the lack of real consequence or even anger from the MC in response made him irredeemable to me and I was sick of him by the end. even as a side character he chafed me rather than his overprotective comments being funny or... anything else. common yandere L

on the other hand, I think my fav character overall is heishi. his bad end is a little... huhhh... but I try not to judge too hard on those because most feel like insane non-sequitur anyway.. it felt ooc for him even with his emotional instability. I did enjoy that it was longer than basically every other bad end, though. most are throwaways but his felt like there was some real effort behind it, at least in regards to the decisions nanami brings herself to

but anyway, I could understand people not loving his route or being frustrated with the route it takes with his genki-seeming character. but I find his struggle to control and suppress his negative emotions out of legitimate concern for those around him relatable and compelling! regardless though, when he’s a supporting character he’s MVP for me, no doubt. I didn’t expect him to grow on me so much!

alright after all that I think I’ve run out of steam and thoughts for now...

other than, the epilogue being about robot love was cute! love giving even robots the power to make their way through life: really cute! but the shit about rebirth and exact dna.... man nah. good and bad I guess. I had a mostly good time though

masamune go bald in 5 years