#Cassandra could have been used better was pretty much all I was saying

[exhausted-archivist]

Yeah, I was speaking strictly from a doylist perspective and ended with what I thought would have been more compelling for BioWare to have done with her. Because I think they under utilized her (and Cole and Vivienne but that’s a whole other thing).

Personally, I always go Vivienne for Divine like I mentioned in my tags. Because she has the most big picture view, especially if you listen to her talk about concerns for Leliana and Cassandra in the role. As you pointed out the narrative goes out of its way to vilify Vivienne and make her opinions the ultimate bad. When if you actually listen to her, hear her concerns, and read the codices about mages, the war, and templars; she’s not. Which is part of the problem, so much context is packed into codices that isn’t condensed into the base story - which isn’t new player friendly.

If you got the impression I thought Vivinne was presented as an equally good choice, that wasn’t my intention. I was just trying to focus on Cassandra and my thoughts on her narrative uses. My whole thing was just the doylist perspective of how things are geared for Cassandra to not only be the best choice to the player that they just about railroad her into the role despite the entire game showing she sucks at politics, doesn’t want to do them, doesn’t have an open mind, is critical of non-Andrastians, doesn’t work to understand people who don’t share her world view unless forced to, is super big on loyalty to a fault, is act first and ask questions later, runs with the guilty until proven innocent, believes in “holy mandate” to where if you don’t she lashes out is someway, and Cassandra herself mentions that her trainers told her she was brash.

I don’t find her to be a good candidate nor do I like or prefer Cassandra as Divine. But objectively, from a doylist angle (and arguably a watsonian depending on whose perspective/opinions in-world you’re looking at) is the best choice when you’re considering new players. Particularly if you want a simple, non-branching storyline that you’d likely get with Leliana or Vivienne in certain regards. As well as all the stuff I mentioned previously.

When I say she’s the best choice for new players is, I mean that she doesn’t introduce nearly as much new status quos that need context nor is her worldview and opinion buried in codices or previous games. Cassandra isn’t even centrist, she’s stagnant. Which, is helpful for the BioWare canon when introducing the series to a new player.

Not that the BioWare canon doesn’t reflect aspects of the world the writers prefer: King Alistair for example. But simplicity and not introducing highly quantum aspects is also a focus. Why Alistair rules alone in the BioWare canon.

Which is what I was talking about.

As for all the aspects I wished they explored, Cassandra’s story in Inquisition makes it seem like no one knew about the reversal (which isn’t true, we know from ambient dialogue. Dialogue that comes from Avexis and Mother Giselle). I wish we saw something of how finding out Justinia hid going against the Seekers, and more specifically hid it from Cassandra, from 9:35-9:40. I wish that factored into Cassandra’s half baked storyline of becoming disenfranchised from the Seekers. That should have meant something, considering Leliana was in the know to the point where she was helping the mage circles rebel. So knowing that Justinia was putting a bid to get mages more freedom to a degree, since she clearly wasn’t fully supporting the Templars let alone the Seekers.

If what Justinia did/planned on doing really mattered to Cassandra, as her monologue in the prologue suggests and how she goes on about how “we need to act as she would have acted”. Then why didn’t that influence anything? Why does Cassandra put things right back as they were essentially?

I was just questioning Cassandra’s story and musing how if it had explored things it would have at least made her more nuanced and interesting. To me anyways.

Cassandra = worst choice for Divine.

1000% for sure without a doubt!!!!

... at the same time, i do feel like bioware was clearly rooting for her to be divine.

there's no war table option to support leliana's candidacy, which means getting leliana to become divine is entirely dependent on your in-game choices. if leliana and cassandra have the same number of points, leliana defaults to a win -- but that only balances out the fact that the wartable mission gives cassandra +10 points support.

the portrayal of the templars as necessary comparatively to the mages in sealing the breach, and then the subsequent portrayal of the templars as innocent victims is intended to push the player to recruit the templars as allies, which is the outcome that gathers the largest support for cassandra

getting a public truce between briala, gaspard and celene gets no support for leliana

supporting leliana as divine can only happen after you've completed her personal quest, which can happen very late game; by then, you might have already supported cassandra or vivienne instead

at the winter palace in trespasser, leliana as the divine gets an agent to call you outside, only to then call a recess herself, which is a bit confusing -- she could have just called a recess without needing to make the inquisitor look bad by walking out in the middle of negotiations. this sequences of events only makes sense with cass as divine, or even vivienne as divine.

so, uh. yikes.

if bioware had forced that decision on us, like they did with almost EVERYTHING ELSE in this game, could you imagine??? your inquisitor fighting tooth and nail to use this shitty position they've suddenly got to do some real good, enact some real change, only to have the divine just reset everything pre-breach again...

hmmm... turning this concept over in my mind like a rotisserie chicken now...

[vigilskeep]

Do you have any kind of analysis of Cassandra's character? I find how you talk about her so interesting and different from how the rest of the fandom refers to her

i wouldn’t say i know her very well; i’ve never yet done her personal quest and i don’t bring her out a lot. here are... some notes? displayed messily

cassandra is first and foremost a violent person. when she doesn’t know how to solve a problem, she leads with violence; her interrogation of varric, her reaction when he brought hawke to skyhold, threatening to execute solas simply for failing to produce results with his tests on the anchor when the herald was first found. chancellor roderick says this outright—and you are a thug, but a thug who supposedly serves the chantry—but her use for divinia justinia was as a blunt tool, not capable of subtlety or diplomacy. unlike other members of the inquisition, she is not very capable of exerting power in other ways than violence, and she has spent her entire life expecting to hold power in any situation

cassandra could have been the inquisitor. she’s pretty much the obvious choice. she has to be actively dodging that to go on a wild goose chase to find the hero of ferelden and then the champion, and then still to evade it further and hand it over to the herald, who she may not even approve of. at haven, she at least appears at the war table. at skyhold, she doesn’t, having further and further removed herself from the role. if she does get along with your inquisitor, it suggests faith in your choices, following your lead. but it has a kind of different unique effect if she doesn’t rlly get along with your inquisitor, where it really feels like she’s been pushed out or allowed herself to be pushed out of the movement she started. either way her movement to be divine feels related to not having taken that lead position before

she gets very caught up in her own perspective on a situation. i think often of when she laughs at the herald and says “is that what you see?” when they ask if this isn’t still part of the chantry, which is what literally anyone normal would see. or her infamous comment to lavellan about whether or not there’s room among their gods for one more, completely missing that this would be a bizarre thing for them to ask of her. or describing varric’s andrastianism as “deep down, his heart is virtuous” to a non-andrastian inquisitor. etc, etc. it doesn’t occur to her to censor herself or consider how her words come across to other people who don’t have the same beliefs she does. she probably has mostly only been exposed to people who don’t have the same beliefs she does as idk antagonists and opposition, as the “criminals” she has to interrogate

she overthinks the consequences of her actions, the weight of history bearing down, in a way that suggests a kind of preoccupation with the assumption that her actions and life will be written of. nobody who reads as many of varric tethras’ books as she does isn’t kind of into that, despite her complaints. when a character constantly self-criticises but you only get approval from saying “no you’re totally good and cool and did the best you could!!!” and disapproval and sudden defensiveness from saying “yeah that was a bad move i’m glad you’re thinking about it”, i think i can come to some pretty safe conclusions about what that character really thinks and what they want to hear

her comments about “change” in her vision for the chantry are confusing at best, considering that she distinguishes herself from leliana almost exclusively by saying that leliana would change too much. her point is largely to restore things as they were, but all the things she’s restoring will, you know, somehow be better now. with very little discussion of how that could actually be achieved, as far as i can tell. even if i did agree with her end goal, i don’t think she would instil confidence

i don’t dislike cassandra i think she’s quite interesting but i don’t find her either admirable or sufficiently entertaining in order to want her approval or to hang out with her really so she does get a little left to the wayside in my attempted playthroughs personally

[misterbartender]

Mortal Kombat 11 x Dark! Caster Reader Intro Banter

(Gender Neutral)

The Reader in this scenario will be a Dark Caster (a dark witch/wizard/warlock/sorcerer/etc..) paired with Mortal Kombat 11 characters. Yes, retconned Sindel will be used here because I thought it would be better for this scenario.

Kombatants: Kano, Erron Black, Skarlet, Shang Tsung, Sindel, Johnny Cage, Cassie Cage, Noob Saibot/Bi-Han

Warnings: (Some suggestive themes) not proofread

KANO:

KANO: I intend to make a fortune by taking your head.

Y/N: And I intend to make you my slave.

KANO: (with a filthy, smug grin) Kinky.

-

Y/N: Like hell I would let you tear out my organs.

KANO: Oh there’s another way I can rearrange your guts, love.

Y/N: ...How big is that knife?

-

Y/N: So you are the head of The Black Dragon? How filthy.

KANO: And dangerous, love. You’d also make a fine Black Dragon.

Y/N: Hmm bet I can tame you then. (smirks)

ERRON BLACK:

ERRON BLACK: You casted a hell of a spell on me darlin’.

Y/N: And now you’re mine, cowboy.

ERRON BLACK: You’re wicked… I like that. (smirks)

-

Y/N: How much is on my head, Erron Black?

ERRON BLACK: Billions, and I won’t quit just ‘cause you have a pretty face.

Y/N: Glad we’re on the same page, pretty boy, I’ll make you plead for mercy.

-

ERRON BLACK: I could take you out for a ride ’round Outworld.

Y/N: I’m more interested in the “save a horse, ride a cowboy” deal.

ERRON BLACK: (tips hat with a smirk) Say no more sweetheart.

SKARLET:

SKARLET: So much power running through those veins.

Y/N: I could give you a taste, Skarlet.

SKARLET: And more?

-

Y/N: Join me, Skarlet, and I will teach you the secrets of Blood Magic that not even Shao Kahn knows.

SKARLET: You think I would betray Shao Kahn as one of his daughters?

Y/N: He has been holding you back, my dear.

-

Y/N: That hunger of yours can also be a weakness.

SKARLET: Blood has made me powerful. (narrows eyes)

Y/N: With my powers, you will feel hunger no more.

SHANG TSUNG:

SHANG TSUNG: Together with our powers, we could be ruling the realms.

Y/N: And how will I know you will not betray me?

SHANG TSUNG: Only a fool would do that to a beautiful creature like you.

-

Y/N: Are you here for my soul, Shang Tsung?

SHANG TSUNG: Only your heart, Y/N.

Y/N: It is black as the darkest of nights.

-

SHANG TSUNG: I could give you anything you desire.

Y/N: For what price?

SHANG TSUNG: You, by my side.

SINDEL:

SINDEL: The great Dark Caster.

Y/N: Beautiful as you are wicked.

SINDEL: Coming from you, that is the highest praise one could receive.

-

Y/N: You’re still with that oaf?

SINDEL: He is far greater than that weakling Jerrod.

Y/N: If I come back with his head, will that sway you?

-

Y/N: Well well, Empress Sindel (turns around and smiles)

SINDEL: Kneel. (smirks)

Y/N: I do not kneel. But I can provide other...services...if you wish, my lady.

JOHNNY CAGE:

JOHNNY CAGE: Are you the bad kind or the sexy kind?

Y/N: Both. (smirks)

JOHNNY CAGE: Woo! Well I’m in trouble.

-

JOHNNY CAGE: So uh... did you use a broomstick to get here?

Y/N: Cage, we do not all use brooms.

JOHNNY CAGE: Well if you need one, you can ride mine.

-

Y/N: That power you possess comes from a line of powerful warriors.

JOHNNY CAGE: Awesome-ness is in my blood.

Y/N: I’ll gladly take it from your hands you arrogant fool.

CASSANDRA CAGE:

CASSANDRA CAGE: So… are we playing Light as a feather, stiff as a board?

Y/N: (rolls eyes) Just like your father, living in your movies.

CASSANDRA CAGE: Maybe I should start calling you Nancy Downs

-

Y/N: So you’re the one that defeated Shinnok?

CASSANDRA CAGE: Impressed? Or scared that you’re next in line for an ass kicking?

Y/N: Oh but you stand before a beast far greater than Shinnok by many levels.

-

CASSANDRA CAGE: Come on, stop with the villain shit so we can go out.

Y/N: Negative, darling, wreak havoc with me.

CASSANDRA CAGE: Is that really all you do?

BI-HAN/NOOB SAIBOT:

BI-HAN: Come join us in the darkness.

Y/N: My time above is not yet over, Bi Han.

BI-HAN: We will conquer it together with our army of shadows.

-

Y/N: The dark is where I belong, in the end.

BI-HAN: The shadows yearn for your touch.

Y/N: The touch of death?

-

BI-HAN: There is only room for one force of darkness.

Y/N: Me. Now go home to your brother.

BI-HAN: You know nothing!

[exhaustedauthorarc]

Caitlyn Kiramann was Always a Fucboi: A Factual Account

Hey, the discourse around Caitlyn’s supposedly fast move on from Vi to Maddie has made me realize something. That yall didn’t realize that Caitlyn was, is and always has been a fucboi so welcome to my Ted Talk, lemme break it down.

Exhibit 1 A: When Cait comes home through her bedroom window her mother and father hear her and rush upstairs, her mother fully armed, then they see their daughter with a woman in her arms and breathe an almost exasperated sigh of relief. Cassandra says Cait “found a stray”. Why would she see her grown, police officer daughter come home through the window with a whole nother person and just call them a stray unless they are used to it happening a lot?

Exhibit 1B: Later when Caitlyn explains what’s going on Cassandra tells Caitlyn, “You and your… friend can address the council yourselves”. Why the pause and dismissive hand wave at the word friend? Well Caitlyn had already expressed incredulity at Vi being referred to as a stray and Cassandra is a well bred high society woman. And what do such women do when trying to say something crass delicately? They pause to find an appropriate word. If she meant friend she would have said friend, that’s not a hard one to find, but what do you do if you know your daughter brings home girls on the regular to hit it and quit it? Well you can’t say slut, or whore or fuckbuddy, so you say friend. Same thing happens down here in the south when old southern folks are tiptoeing around being crass (source: Lived in Louisiana and Georgia).

Exhibit 2A: Okay so maybe this slipped by yall, Imma break it down. Caitlyn went to Stillwater under the false pretense of working for her friend and newly appointed council member, Jayce, to talk to a Silco goon that turned out to be unable to speak. The reason being injuries sustained from a seemingly unprovoked attack from another prisoner. A prisoner who was such a problem she existed in the very bowls of the prison. Now we know Vi and what she didn’t do but Caitlyn doesn’t and Vi tells her nothing, in fact Vi doesn’t even tell her why she attacked the guy Cait came to see. This person could be Hannibal Lecter for all she knows and since she believes so much in the criminal system it would behoove her to think that whatever this woman did was worth locking up and throwing away the key. But she makes a deal, breaks her out and takes her to the undercity, a place this mystery prisoner knows better than Caitlyn ever can. Then they go into a whorehouse and Vi gives her the slip, now I don’t cite that as the evidence, but if you combine the knowledge that there is a – for all she knows- Jeffrey Dahmer clone walking around on her, and subsequently Jacyce’s, orders what does she do when she realizes she’s been given the slip? Something that may well have dire consequences for herself, her closest friend and innocents walking the street? She gets distracted by a pretty lady in a skimpy outfit.

 Exhibit 2B: Next we need to note what actually happened in that brief moment between her and the girl. First we see Caitlyn has the mask customers can use to hide their face, but clearly she wants her face seen cause it’s in her lap, she and her family are prominent so this is clearly a part of the Kiramann ‘Do You Know Who My Family Is’ Rizz package. Next let’s consider the dialogue, the woman with her is saying “I’ve only ever imagined the gardens. This is all I’ve seen.” meaning Caitlyn was talking, likely bragging, about having been to some rather spectacular gardens to impress this chick. Tack onto that she, a by all accounts very observant detective, lets what could likely be a reincarnation of the Unibomber wearing red with bright pink hair walk directly in front of her, pause and walk away. All while doing the modern day equivalent of spinning her car keys in her hands and asking a girl “Hey, ever driven in a Lambo?”

Ladies and Gentlemen Caitlyn Kiramann has always been a chronic fucboi, I rest my case.

[nyctophiliq]

AHHHH can you do arcane milfs and reader with age gap? Like maybe something that explores how they feel about being older than reader. Thanks<3

✮ — 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐈𝐑 𝐎𝐏𝐈𝐍𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐀𝐆𝐄 𝐆𝐀𝐏 ; cassandra kiramman, ambessa medarda, enforcer grayson, renata glasc, sevika

content warning. afab! reader, sfw ! — lowercase writing intended, age gap, mention of suggestive themes(?), characters are worried, and the reader is a bit oblivious to it

moss' notes. this is such an amazing idea, moss wants to kiss the anonie on the lips (only if anonie lets moss ofc) another note, moss doesn't think they did justice so they might just come back to this later :)

— CASSANDRA...

it wasn't uncommon between her peers to fool around with a much younger partner, to crave the companion of a young person so they themselves can feel a little younger. she sees it as a normal thing in the world, back then in the older days there were teenagers marrying men in their fifties and up, nowadays that doesn't happen but it's somehow still there in a much healthier way.

it doesn't bother her but the ill talks about your relationship fuel her anger. those nights she has a hard time going to sleep, rambling about how it doesn't matter, that they are lies, and that the two of you will never end up like all her comrades do.

x "no matter the gossip, no matter the looks, i love you with all my heart my darling, nothing can change that."

— AMBESSA...

at first, she wouldn't be too worried about the age gap between the two of you, giving no special thought to it because she had plenty of girls as young as her own daughter or even younger before. but when she thinks about having a family, a long life with you the fearless warlord can't help but be scared of what is to come. she had never really thought about her own mortality, she decided if death is to take her to battler then she will be pleased, but with you in the picture, she is not sure if she would like that either.

x "i live in great fear now with you by myself, but i don't dread it, i just hope it will ease. i love you, my dearest y/n."

— GRAYSON...

she can't, she faces so many dirty people on her job, people who take advantage of younger people and call them stupid just because of the age gap is just unacceptable in her opinion. she has a hard time accepting her feelings for you, struggling every step of the way and even now that you have been together for a while she still feels that she needs to apologize if she has ever made you feel like you were just a pretty young thing, a toy that she could use as she pleased. she begged for your forgiveness if she made you feel like that, crawling on her knees in front of you. it is a heartbreaking sight to see someone like her be in such a wrong space of mind.

x "i hope you know that i would never treat you differently just because you are younger, that i don't see you as something to play with, but i see you as my life... i'm sorry."

— RENATA GLASC...

renata might be even more worried about the years between the two of you than anyone else. she hates to think that you might feel that she is too old for you or you are too young for her, that because she is already successful in her line of work she will never appreciate the small things you achieve before the big ones roll in. she wants you to feel equal next to her, to not think that at any given time she is trying to use that horrible line that mothers use, the "i am older than you, i know better, i know what's right for you and me" - she might know more than you, but isn't to say that you are not smarter than her in other topics.

x "we are equal, regardless of our age or knowledge, i love you despite anything they say. i want you for who you are, not because of what you are, my sweetheart."

— SEVIKA...

sevika isn't immune to the worry that comes with the age gap between the two of you, but she takes it less seriously than the others. she has accepted the fact that she has little control over who she falls in love with, who makes her heart flutter and make her realize that she doesn't need to be a god for someone to love her, that she can be human and you would find her nothing but lovely. she thinks very little of how the years between the two of you would affect your relationship.

x "you and i are a team, nobody can take us on, they just have to deal with it."

tag list ; @roguescarlett @mxyx-rx444 @darlingmisa @einrosa @sevikasangel @nopealoupe @pixiegirlz @gonegonethankyouuu @xthescarletbitch @orang3-ish @bigboobslilheart

[starwarsmum]

Day 18's prompt is singled out!

@maribat-calendar-events

Tim had been working almost nonstop since arriving in Paris and he was pretty sure it was messing with his head. First, he still hadn't tracked down Hawkmoth, which felt like a failure on his part. Damian was being slightly cagey about the details of his investigation, which was hindering Tim's own.

Second, he was having trouble finding Ladybug. She never seemed to hang around after battles and she had started randomising her patrol a lot more. It was a smart move but it was very frustrating for Tim, who had planned to catch up with her during one of them.

The third thing that made Tim feel like his sleep deprivation was hitting a new high was Damian's behaviour towards Marinette Dupain-Cheng, the newly found half sister of their own adoptive sister, Cassandra Cain. Not only was he spending time with her but he had practically declared that he was interested in her romantically. To a roomful of strangers.

“He could be playing into a whole ‘Brucie’ thing while here,” Dick said when Tim voiced his concerns. Tim gave him an incredulous look before going back to typing furiously on his laptop. “Hey, I'm just saying that it's a possibility. The other option is that he's genuinely into her, so tell me which you think is more likely.”

“Whatever, let's focus on what we're covering with B and the gang,” Tim said, dismissing the conversation with a wave of his hand. “Demon Spawn hasn't exactly been forthcoming with the information he's supposedly gathered whilst he's been here.”

“As if you don't keep information back when you're working a case!” Dick argued, giving Tim a look. “He's doing fine, he says he's got it under control. And I'm sure he'll be back in time to cover all of this himself anyway; when has he ever been late?”

But apparently there was a first time for everything, because when the call started, Damian was nowhere to be found. Tim covered as much as he could whilst sending the occasional pointed glare at Dick to let him know he told him so.

It wasn't until twenty-eight minutes later that Damian stalked into the room, making no mention of his tardiness and giving a brief description of the status of his investigation. Before Tim could jump on him, Jason decided he wasn't going to let the kid get away with waltzing in half an hour late without an apology.

“Yo, Demon Spawn, what gives?” Jason demanded, glaring into the screen. “Don't get me wrong, we've all been late before, but since you throw a fit every time it happens to one of us, you could at least explain yourself.”

Damian was silent for a few moments and if Tim didn't know better, he would think that he was coming up with an excuse on the fly. But that couldn't be it because when Damian was on a mission, he lived and breathed for it. So, wherever he had been, it would have been mission related. Why was the kid so dead set against telling them anything.

“I was…speaking with a former temporary hero,” Damian said slowly. His eyes flickered towards Cass's screen in something like an apology. “The girl with whom I was photographed earlier in the week was a temporary hero called in as a last resort. She has not been asked to use the Miraculous since, but she does have vital information for the investigation.”

“And why did Dick and Tim not tell us that?” Bruce probed, showing that he had noticed the lack of information given about his youngest's absence. There was a very telling silence following the question and Bruce sighed. “Damian, you have a team with you to make things easier. You should be telling them what's going on in your investigation.”

“Tt, yes father. I apologise for my tardiness and will make an effort to be more open with the progress of my investigation,” Damian said, although it looked to Tim like he was forcing the words out. “Now, if we are finished focusing on me, perhaps we can return to the problem at hand?”

The rest of the meeting was fairly straightforward, although Tim saw Cass frowning at Damian several times. He didn't want anyone to know that he'd spotted it, so he didn't mention anything amiss and, when the meeting ended with Damian asking to speak with her, Tim made a show of saying he was going to get some sleep.

Dick followed him out of the room, presumably to make sure he did actually go to sleep and not to pick up another cup of coffee. If Tim wasn't so interested in what Damian was going to say to Cass, he would probably be annoyed at the way Dick was hovering over him. 

He made a shushing motion at the older man, who raised an eyebrow at him but complied. They settled next to the vent system in the adjacent room, listening quietly. For the first few moments there was silence but finally he started to pick up Damian's clipped tones.

“...pictures that will be released shortly. Marinette is concerned that you will be upset and I am…apprehensive of the same. I know I have mentioned to you previously that I admired her mental quickness and unwillingness to allow what she perceives to be unfair to continue.”

“You did,” came Cass's tinny reply, and Tim had to strain slightly to hear her. From what he could hear, she sounded amused, and he wished he could see the expressions on both of their faces. “I take it you finally acted upon the attraction you experienced when you first met her.”

Tim blinked at Dick, watching as an elated smile lit Dick's face. He was practically vibrating with joy and Tim had to shush him so they could hear Damian's reply.

“I- yes, I have communicated my desire to pursue a romantic relationship with her,” he admitted, and Tim would put money down that the brat was blushing. “You were aware?”

“Body language,” was the simple reply and Damian released a breath he had apparently been holding. “You mentioned pictures? Has someone else taken photos of you and Marinette out of context?”

“Tt, not quite. Marinette was asked to attend a photoshoot with our lead suspect's son. Whilst there, the photographer offered to take photographs to help set the media straight regarding Marinette's romantic history.”

“And you felt the need to warn me because…” Cass said, trailing off pointedly. Tim snorted involuntarily, remembering the poses Damian had been asked to do with Marinette. He heard Damian freeze in the other room and decided it would be in his best interests not to be found in the act of eavesdropping.

By the time Damian found both of his older brothers, they had relocated to the kitchen in their suite, arguing over whether an extra cup of coffee would send Tim into overdrive. He shot Tim a poisonous look and Tim just grinned broadly back at him. Knowing he had already been caught meant that he could needle his brother.

“A romantic relationship, huh?” Was the only thing he got to say before Damian launched himself over the kitchen counter. Tim cackled as a disapproving - but clearly very happy and proud - Dick pried the younger boy away.

[moony-2001]

Lore Olympus ep. 252 critique

Before all you stans get mad I generally thought this episode was pretty okay. But maybe that’s because not a whole lot happened.

Cassandra

So going in the order of events, first up is our favorite gal Cassandra.

Gotta say, already like her loads.

I don’t have a whole lot to say about her general existence, beyond the fact that it’s stupid that Apollo is using her as a walking incognito tab. My main criticism more lies around the idea of when did Apollo even meet her? He obviously couldn’t have met her during the time skip because there were no interactions allowed between realms during that time and he was kicking it in Olympus.

We also have no indication of when he actually met her post-punishment. There’s no definitive timeline for how far we are post-time skip, but by my estimation, we can’t be more than a month past when the embargo officially lifted. Idk I can already smell the mess that is this storyline a mile away.

The SA plot line

Holy fuck. I don’t exactly know what the hell Rachel is exactly trying to achieve with the SA plot line but I can tell you that the handling of it has been piss poor.

Uhhh... this is great and all except for the fact that Persephone never thought this. There is not one shred of evidence that Persephone ever liked or actually found Apollo handsome. Not even in the very early chapters. She didn't even say that he made her feel special. She said that she liked the way Hades made her feel. Hades made her feel special by grooming her but that's a whole-ass post on its own.

Even after her assault, she continued to express at minimum a clear discomfort for him in front of others and at maximum immense hatred for him when by herself or with only him. And now suddenly Rachel wants to flip the script? Why? What purpose would that serve? Why is she suddenly backpedaling on a plotline that was established within the first 25 episodes/the second day Persephone is on Olympus? The SA plotline is the longest-running and the "big bad" that has yet to be resolved. But now it only pops up when the story needs a little conflict or an extra boost to drive it forward. Plus now she wants to portray Apollo as this misunderstood ex-love interest/boyfriend with whom the audience is supposed to sympathize? It's disgusting. @genericpuff who I really need to stop tagging in these posts I'm so sorry made an excellent essay about how Rachel is burying the SA plot line that basically takes what I've said above and greatly expands it. Go read it, they made a lot of excellent points.

Melinoe

Ah yes. The mystery deity that was really Hades’ inner child/actual child all along!

So I actually had a conversation with another LO critic about how weird I thought this "inner child -> actual canonical child" pipeline was. Now, granted, I could be reading into this way too much but when I first read this, I honestly thought it was some kind of weird/unintentional representation of parents projecting their trauma onto their children.

We've seen this little ghost buddy in past chapters and a lot of people (myself included) thought that our ghost buddy was a representation of Hades' inner child. A little Hades if you will. And it was portrayed that way. We often saw our little ghost buddy/little Hades who was extremely traumatized by Hades' past experiences. The part of Hades that just can't let go despite what he may claim about "moving on" or "being better". But if this little ghost/Hades is actually their kid Melinoe, that means they saw everything that Hades went through. All his traumas, all his struggles. Everything. And now also with Persephone and her little jaunt through the mind-scape and the shit she saw. So now we have to recontextualize all of those scenes where Hades interacts with this being and tbh the scenes kind of become very ick? This is such a strange direction to take this particular storyline. Something about it just rubs me the wrong way and I don't know if it's my above complaint or something else.

But yeah. Pretty tame in comparison to some of my past posts and posts that will come. Until the next chapter and/or my next post.

[flowerfletching]

Alright so I've seen someone post about how Jenny x Gilan is a bit weird, which I do agree with, but since I don't really focus on their relationship much I don't really have much to say on it, plus what I would have had to say was better said by other people. That being said when I looked on the reblogs I also noticed that someone brought up Halt x Pauline and how there are some things weird about it because of how they met but I also have more to add to it. And since this is really long I decided to make it my own post since I have a LOT to say on this. Plus it's just a bit different than their reason for mentioning it so I figured it'd just be a better idea if I made it an individual post-

First, to the person who mentioned it, I agree. There is absolutely NO WAY Halt would have fumbled that hard and I don't care how pretty she is, it just makes absolutely no sense whatsoever for him. There's also the fact that, a little bit after, Halt said that he was tempted to tell her about his royal background but ultimately decided not to. And you want to know why he decided not to? Why, that's just because he thought that she wouldn't be impressed. Not because he just spent all that time escaping to begin with and didn't want to risk her stabbing him in the back, no it was just because he thought she wouldn't be impressed. Keep in mind, I'm pretty sure they had literally JUST met. Like, bro. Seriously?

Then there's also the fact that their relationship just kinda feels shallow and undeveloped. I feel like it's shallow because it was literally love at first sight, which was essentially loving the other immediately without knowing the other person literally AT ALL. We also don't really see them growing together much before they actually get married, and the little moments that we actually DO get to see still don't have very much development and don't really show good examples of the love that is allegedly there. I get that there was a lot of the relationship that was built behind the scenes but still, you really couldn't show us much proof of those developments, could you? Plus it also just feels like their marriage in general was just used as a plot device, providing as a huge event that got disrupted to lead into the main plot of the book.

Alright but that could be mostly excused if the relationship was actually nice, cute, and functioning in the end, right? Well, while there are some scenes of them having a good relationship, there's this one scene that absolutely DESTROYED any chances of me actually enjoying that ship.

My final reason for not liking this ship, which is actually kinda why I just don't like Pauline in general, is in the Lost Stories (I believe the section it's in is Purple Prose and it's the first chapter of it). I mentioned not liking this section when I rebloged someone else's post and mentioned that I had another reason for not liking this section, and this is that reason. This is actually the main reason, actually. The idea is that Halt, Pauline, and Will are all having dinner together, right? Will decides to read to them what he plans to read at Horace and Cassandra's wedding for his speech. Will's wording was a bit extra and Halt didn't hesitate to let him know. Now I will admit, I feel as though Halt was being a bit rude in this scene. And while his personality of being blunt and grim doesn't really make that behavior okay, his behavior absolutely does NOT justify Pauline's response to it.

How it ended was by I believe Will mentioning the way that Halt was acting, and then Pauline ominously (literally the word that was used, I'm not joking) said that she would talk to him later. And how did Halt react to that, exactly? Well when it comes to his reaction, it says that the wolfish smile was wiped off of his face and that he looked scared. Halt, the war hero, the one that had been betrayed by his own family, and the one most famous for hiding his feelings, was scared of his own wife. I've seen the trope of men being scared of their wives but I feel like if Halt, of all people, has to be scared of his wife, then there's a problem. Not to say men having to be scared of their wives ISN'T an issue, it is, but for someone like him to be scared it MUST be bad. Especially after she literally just hit him... TWICE. This scene alone proved that Pauline would hit Halt (proven by the first hit), she WOULD do it again (proven by the second hit), and that there's probably more that goes on behind the scenes that we don't see (proven by Halt looking scared when Pauline ominously mentioned talking to him later). Once again, Halt was being rude in the way he let Will know that he didn't approve of the way that he decided to go about his speech. That does NOT, however, justify Pauline's behavior in response to it.

And the thing is, Pauline is the stupid either. She's smart enough and is good enough with people that there's almost no POSSIBLE way that she doesn't know what she's doing. And yet, she does it anyway. This is either borderline, signs of, or is straight up abusive behavior. You might think I'm exaggerating and I hope wouldn't really blame you, with the way he wrote it it wasn't really depicted as serious since that probably wasn't the way it was intended. That still doesn't change what actually happened.

And yeah, that's the reason why I have such a hard time actually liking this ship. To me it feels shallow, underdeveloped/forced, is borderline abusive, and is basically built on an interaction that was just ENTIRELY out of character to begin with. And while yes, there are some good moments, I feel like there aren't NEARLY enough to make up for all of the flaws in it.

[funky-gobbo-art]

Donolinc/Cringe!AU pt. 3

Trans!John headcanon post HERE

Cringe!AU pt. 1 HERE

Cringe!AU pt. 2 HERE

Once again I'll give the same CW as the last post: if you don't wanna see any references to trans male pregnancy please blacklist the terms "mpreg" and "tmpreg", similar content to whats in Mafia 3 normally like violence, bigotry of the 1960's, war, etc.

General disclaimer: I'm still not good at drawing babies/young children and I'm not much of a writer personally so sorry if things are clunky.

John got home sometime around mid-November, laying low and skipping around the states altering his appearance a bit until he felt the heat died down enough he could return to Louisiana with no issues. Once he got home he was greeted by a very intense Lincoln alone at Sammy's while Dani was at Nicki's being watched. Lincoln was feeling a lot of stuff at once, like anger, but also just holding back emotions a bit, hiding at first that he was happy to see John coming through the door.

Obviously things got pretty intense emotionally a bit after John got into the house, but things cooled down (or heated up lol) and Lincoln immediately started teasing him for his more "messy" appearance, said he looked like a hippie.

Adjusting back home was pretty comforting for a bit, John's happy he can just stay inside, catch up with Dani and be lazy. Already he was naturally anti-social so staying in wasn't that much of an issue, just watching T.V and most he does is if Lincoln needs his help on something work related.

Wasn't too long until John started feeling sick again, waking up early to run to the bathroom, or accidentally throwing up at the worst times. He immediately had a "oh this better not be what I think it is again" and after a visit to Lincoln's personal doctor, yep, it was exactly what he thought it was.

Despite appearing angry, he was more annoyed and just wanted to give Lincoln a hard time. They were both fine with this because John's going to be more a homebody now and Lincoln can support them all. Dani, despite being 2, seemed pretty happy with the news, she kept saying "baby!" after being told.

John definitely wants to get serious about finally getting a hysterectomy after this kid though. Still kicking himself for not getting one earlier but oh well. Like the last pregnancy he was moody and wasn't allowed to smoke or drink, fell back into annoying Lincoln by popping gum around him constantly.

Rhys Clay was born August 10th 1972, Lincoln Clay and John Donovan his parents and Danielle Clay his older sister. Not named after anyone again but both parents were looking over names and just got attached to that one. Once again the baby was delivered at home with the same doctor as last time, only difference is that Dani could meet her new little brother as soon as they were able to.

Lincoln was very happy being a father of 2 now, though it was dawning on him that he needs an actual house for them now, but he has some time before both kids are big enough to get their own rooms. John feels a little weird knowing he's technically had 3 kids already but gets serious about getting a hysterectomy a bit after going back to normal after Rhys is born. Both John and Lincoln have to settle with a story now to tell people especially if John is seen walking around with both kids. Lincoln finally comes out about it all to the other 2 underbosses (since Nicki already knows), he's a father of 2 and the other parent is a trans man who happens to be the gangs advisor that's been working from the shadows ever since the beginning.

Vito and Cassandra don't take too kindly knowing that their bosses advisor is a now ex-C.I.A agent, and it does break out into a big argument between the underbosses, Lincoln and Donovan. Lincoln being so used to this now, he was able to get the argument under control by telling John to keep his mouth shut and telling the other 2 if he wasn't trustworthy, then why on earth would he willingly raise 2 children with him? It seems to work.

Some time passes: Dani starts school, shows a bit of an artistic streak while also showing signs of being very stubborn when she feels like it. Rhys shows signs of being autistic and is nonverbal until he's nearly 4 years old. The Clay Crime Family starts doing some good for the local area, renovating and building places, but also expanding their operations. Lincoln is basically untouchable now, which means his family is safe and sound as long as their around him.

John still goes around the city with both kids and visiting Robert, but can't seem to stop Robert from making snarky comments about both him and his kids, meanwhile Father James notices a lot of similarities between Rhys and Lincoln from back when he first came into the orphanage. Both very quiet boys but different circumstances.

Donovan takes a good break from his "side project", he's letting the heat die down since the whole senate hearing incident and he wants those folks he sent that message out for to get a false sense of security and think nothing more is going to happen, but John is planning on striking when they least expect it. He's not going to act for awhile though, doesn't wanna miss any birthdays and still be present during the kid's childhoods, also Rhys still needs a lot of attention.

Dani and Rhys are very close, and Dani always tries to get him involved with games she plays, Rhys is pretty quiet still and shy around new people but does start talking more to his family and other adults that come around, mostly Father James or Nicki Burke.

Rhys is the last kid and John tells Lincoln if he wants more, he can just figure that all out himself.

Both kids are still in development, character wise. I have some thoughts about Dani in her teen years, like going on with her friends a lot, as for Rhys, I'm still wondering what personality he has, though I see him getting into puzzles a lot. I'm open to any thoughts honestly, writing kids isn't really a strength for me and these are my first fan kid oc's for a piece of media I like.

But yeah, that's my cringe au! Been cooking it for awhile and finally got the guts to release it to the wild, like I said previously.

[camlannpod]

Character Playlist: Dai Thomas

Happy off-week! Episode 2 will be with us next Monday, so in the interim I'm going to be taking these first few off-weeks to talk about our character playlists!! As you might have noticed, episode one is very much themed around Dai - so here's his playlist.

It's Called: Freefall - Paris Paloma

Anyway, you say you're too busy Saving everybody else to save yourself And you don't want no help, oh, well That's the story to tell

Despite appearances, Dai cares a lot about other people, and considers himself to be the emotional caretaker of the group. He knows Perry and Morgan have got the practical stuff covered, but he also knows that sometimes they're so busy surviving they forget how to live. That's what he's there for. He's the morale guy!

2. Waking Up The Giants - Grizfolk

We're the rhythm of the darkest nights We're the truth that's been left unspoken We're the shadows far beyond the lights We're waking, waking, waking up the giants

This one's pretty self-explanatory, and could be used for the show itself. We're in the apocalypse! There's a lot of stuff that our gang doesn't know yet about how all this works. And, from a folkloric perspective, giants are a huge part of Brittonic stories and literature.

3. Dear Fellow Traveller - Sea Wolf

Dear fellow traveler under the moon I saw you standing in the shadows and your eyes were blue You put your hand out, opened the door You said, "Come with me, boy, I want to show you something more"

Of the whole gang, Dai is the one who most wants to see the sheer wonder in this apocalypse. He refuses to believe that it's relentlessly cruel or relentlessly deadly. He doesn't see it as rot or poison so much as transformation. There's a part of him that's genuinely excited to explore this strange new world they're all living in.

4. Wolves of the Revolution - The Arcadian Wild

Stay awake, oh, from the wolves you run barefoot With their libellous venomous words, they shoot Pulled and panicked, the door is locked And you're trapped inside of your own heart

This one's for Dai and the Knights. As a Nameless survivor, Dai had a very hard time when the trio were with the Knights, and felt horribly powerless and horribly scared. Despite his bravado, and his determination to believe in the good of other survivors, he is just as afraid of going back as the others are.

5. Free the Beautiful - Harletson

Tell them to free the beautiful Our words are more than critical Tell them to free the bеautiful

As a character for me, Dai has a bit of Cassandra to him. Again this is about his determination to see the light in this apocalypse - to find beauty and magic in it, to believe in the kindness of others. Morgan and Perry are justified in their skepticism, but Dai knows they need to be reminded to hope for something better. Otherwise what's the point?

6. Should We Let the Fire Die? - Branches

Should we let the fire die? The sparks still have a flicker and the night is growing thicker, but Should we let the fire die?

So obviously this is about Dai's fire, and his hope with it - his refusal to give up entirely on the old world and all the people that were in it. But it's also very much about what a deeply romantic, deeply loving person he is. The kind of man who wishes for an evening to last forever, if only he can spend it with the person he loves.

7. Fuck It I'm A Flower - Crying Day Care Choir

Fuck it, I'm a flower Growing taller every day Getting greener by the hour And I don't care what people say

Dai has never been the most macho man in the room. His power doesn't come from physical strength and skill, he isn't a natural born leader, he isn't really forceful in anyway. Growing up in a fundamentally sexist world, that was a source of insecurity for him, but as he got older he began to defiantly celebrate this aspect of his personality along with his queerness. He's emotionally intelligent, kind, gentle and funny. He's the group's heart.

8. Hallelujah - Oh Wonder

Some days I don't think my mamma thinks I'm good enough to be a superstar But one day I will show her I'm a diamond in the rough, I'll be a superstar

Everyone underestimates Dai all the time. In the apocalypse that's a lot more literal, because he's Nameless, and groups like the Knights only really care about people's Names. He gets sick and tired of this, and frustrated with people constantly assuming he won't be capable of taking care of himself and others. This song is about Dai embracing the power he's had all along.

9. We Will All Be Changed - Seryn

We can write with ink and pen But we will sew with seeds instead Starting with words we've said And we will all be changed

This song is on all our core characters' playlists! In some ways yes, literally, they will all change by the end of the series. But it's also about them moving from fighting and surviving to living, healing and growing. They think they might have finally found somewhere safe to weather the apocalypse. What do they do now?

[forgedroyalseal]

His Worst Nightmare

Chapter 9

Halt stood patiently as Horace silently paced back and forth in front of him. After leaving Will at the cabin, they walked out to a clearing, not a single word muttered between the two. Horace had been trying to gather his thoughts for quite some time, but Halt did not rush him, did not push.

“Ok.” Horace says finally, staring Halt down. “I kind of hate you.”

Halt nodded, “I kind of hate myself too.”

Horace frowns, “That, that doesn’t make me feel better.”

Halt shrugged, “That doesn’t change the fact that that’s how I feel.”

“It’s just,” Horace groaned in frustration, “Will is like my brother. And I am sick and tired of him getting hurt again and again because of the rangers. Because you feel guilty about what happened to his dad. Because you took a shining to him when we were kids. Because he’s desperate to impress you, even if it kills him.”

“Will has impressed me every day since we first met. He could have decide to be a farmer instead of a ranger and I’d still be proud of him.”

“Does he know that?” Horace asks, but they both know the answer.

Halt had the decency to look somewhat regretful. “I should tell him more.”

Horace scoffs, “If you start now he’ll just think it’s out of pity. Or guilt.”

“I want you to know that I really appreciate all that you’ve done for him these past couple weeks.” Halt redirects the conversation, trying to get it back on track. “You’ve succeeded where I’ve failed him. Neither of us will ever forget how you’ve taken care of him. And I can’t imagine how hard it is for you now that we are all here. But everyone in that cabin,” Halt points down the path, “are here to help both of you.”

Horace feels his hackles rise in defense. “I can take care of him.”

“I know, you’ve more than proved that.” Halt placated. “But you deserve help. There’s not a doubt in my mind that if you had to, you and Will could be perfectly fine all on your own. But you aren’t on your own, you don’t need to do it alone.”

Horace sniffs and turns away from Halt. “I don’t know how to be ok with you.”

“You don’t have to be. I don’t expect you to be.” Halt gently turns Horace back to face him and wipes the tears that had fallen onto his cheeks. “I just ask that you let us help. And if the most helpful thing I can do is stay away, I’ll do it. But know that I’ll always be here for both of you.”

Horace sighs. “It’s not fair to Will if I ask you to stay away for my own comfort. He missed you. And after everything, he doesn’t deserve to have any more suffering.” Horace straighten, “So, you’re not going to stay away. You are going to be here. You are going to show up for Will because you need each other. And if it gets to be too much or too hard, and you abandon him again, I’m going to hunt you down and kick your ass.”

Halt bit down a smile and nodded seriously, “I’d expect nothing less.”

__________________________________________________________________________

“-And so I was like, I don’t know who you think you are, but my brother is engaged to the crown princess so I’m pretty sure that means I out rank you.”

Horace and Halt catch the tail end of Jenny’s story as they step back into the cabin. The group is sprawled out around the room, with Will tucked between Jenny and Alyss, and Gilan leaning against the couch behind Jenny. George has pulled a chair over to sit in front of Will, and Crowley and Pauline watch the entire interaction from the kitchen table where they are sipping coffee out of steaming mugs. The scene is so warm and domestic, Halt momentarily forget what called them all together.

Horace passes by Halt with a groan. “Jen, how many times do I have to tell you, Cassandra and I aren’t engaged yet, you can’t keep telling people that, at some point, someone is going to believe it.”

“That’s the point! If you’re going to drag your feet about this whole thing, spreading rumors about you might actually be forced into getting a move on!” Jenny protests.

Will grins, “Yeah man, what’s the hold up? You wait any longer, Cass might come to her senses and find someone in her league.”

“Ugh, I forgot how awful you two are when you gang up on me. Alyss, make them stop.” Horace flung himself to the floor to lean against Alyss’ knees. She instantly began scratching his head just as she used to when they were children and he couldn’t sleep.

“Don’t tease him.” She chastised Will and Jenny. “It’s not his fault he’s a bit slow.”

“Hey!”

The wardmates continued their bickering as Halt took a seat beside Pauline.

“How was your walk?” She asked softly.

“Which one?”

“Both.”

Halt let out a heavy breath. “Hard. Those boys, they, they’re struggling. And it’s my fault.”

“Halt,” Crowley said sternly, “you did what you had to do to save Will’s life.”

“That’s not what I mean. They are struggling because I left them. I left Will when he needed me the most. I left Horace to try to figure out how to keep Will alive and sane all by himself. I put my own feeling above their needs.”

Crowley and Pauline glanced at each other, and Halt has known them long enough that he could read the look they shared.

“And you both know I’m right.” He sat back.

“The only reason to look behind is to guide your steps forward. There’s no point in rehashing the past. What are you going to do moving forward? That’s what’s important.” Pauline says.

“To start with, I’m moving back in. Tonight.”

Crowley nods, “I’ll speak with Rodney first thing tomorrow morning. He’s had a knight or two lose an arm. I’ll see if he’s got any suggestions for making Will’s life a little more accessible.”

“And most importantly, you both need to ask Will how he wants to move forward. Find out if he’d like to retire or if you need to start looking into how he can maintain an active role in the Corps.”

Halt and Crowley both frown at Pauline. “How could he still have an active role? Pauline, he can’t-“

Pauline cuts Crowley off, “We don’t know what he can or can’t do right now. Will is extremely clever, if anyone could work out how to live their life in this condition, it’s him.” She looks over at the young man, whose head was now dropped on Alyss’ shoulder, a sleepy smile painted on his face as he watches Jenny hit Gilan over the head with a pillow. His eyes shift to her and he offers a little wave. Her voice softens, “He just needs to be reminded that he still has options, that he can still have a happy future. That his life isn’t over.”

[elecilaombre]

To learn normal from abnormal : Tim is losing his grip on reality and keep letting himself talk aloud about stuff that are normal, right ? Aren’t they bonding ?

“Falling asleep is exactly like some scenes in horror movies. It’s laying down, alone, in a dark room, trying to control your breath, to not be too loud, to fall asleep before something happens. To hear your heartbeat, beating like crazy, pumping as hard as it can, to hear it in your ear, to feel it in your stomach, see it in the corner of your eyeball. It’s hoping it will be fast and trying to ignore all the adrenalin in your veins, the tension in all your muscles. Hoping it will be done quickly because it’s so terrifying.”

Everybody fell silent. Tim had said that without even looking up from his files, like if it was a trivial fact. As if it was normal.

“The fuck replacement ?”

The young man hummed in response, not even paying attention. His eyes were highlighted by dark rings. They seemed at their place on his face. They suddenly made sense. 

“Sometimes I don’t know who is talking. Usually I choose who can speak for ourselves. But someday, when we think about it, even if it’s mid-sentences, sometimes we don’t know which one is in control. It’s like in “ And then there were none”, when they all look at each other, the ten only persons on the island, but still someone else’s, an eleven seem to be somewhere, tricking them. It’s exactly that. We ask each other, ‘if it ain’t you either or the others… Who is it?’. It stresses us that sometimes we don’t always notice this other one.”

Cassandra looked weirdly at her brother. She might not know everything, but she knows for sure that those informations are unusual. There shouldn’t be a ‘us’ in her brother, just a singular person, him. 

But she doesn’t have time to process all of it, to ask anything, Tim is already onto another subject.

“ They don’t love me, god they don’t even like me. I shouldn’t be living with them. I’m just a stranger here, an odd error. I’m pretty sure I can hear them talk about me in my back all the time. I keep disappointing them, they told me so many times. And I can’t even imagine what horrible things they might say about me behind my back. How much I might disgust them. I’m still not sure if I just shouldn’t run away, disappear from their lives. It would be so much better for them… …. … … Sure Kon, I can sleep at your place if it can reassure you, I’m making my bag and telling Alfred then you can pick me up…”

Damian is in the corridor, listening to Drake, baffled by all the lies he is currently saying to his boyfriend. Since when the Waynes had been trash talking to him ? It’s very unlikely, even Damian wouldn’t do it, so the other couldn’t. They all hold so much respect for the third Robin, for their greatest detective. Maybe they should tell him more often. Because Drake shouldn’t believe those things. For a detective, he could be kind of dense sometimes.

“I feel so empty you know, like if I had been bleeding myself all over the place and there’s just not anymore me left in this body. It’s weird, like if I was just reduced to being an automat, to faking all my action, my emotion. It’s not me, it’s not someone. It’s just reminiscent of what I used to be. There are days when I can put some mask on and they will stick. I will be someone for one day, until the mask slips and there’s nobody actually behind it. And there’s days where none of the masks want to stick, so I have to walk around with everybody seeing how empty I am. Somehow, I prefer the fake facade rather than the second option. Sadly, I don’t have any control over it.  I wish so hard to be able to fill this nothing, anything could do the trick, I don’t care. But it won’t work, nothing is enough to fill this emptiness in me. So I just kept being my automatic self. You know, like everyone does…”

Nobody does that. Jason wants to tell him it’s not normal, no one feels like that. But how to turn it without sounding mean. Without triggering Tim who for once said something personal to Jason. That is so wrong, so wrong, he will need to get to the end of this subject. How sad is it to know he isn’t even 20 but already so broken ?

“ You know what is funny ? I can’t even recognize myself in a mirror. Somewhere deep inside my brain we know it’s me, Tim’s face we are seeing. But we also know we don’t remember it looking like that. It seems odd, out of character. Since when our eyes look like that. Do we really have such a tiny waist ? We’re sure we don’t have beauty marks here on our lips… But it is our lips… Like if it’s me, Tim, but in other hands, it's more like a mockery of it, wrong everywhere but kind of close to its original. And each time it’s the same thing, yesterday my eyes seemed too tiny, today too big, tomorrow the right size but wrong color. Never good enough, never alright. I’m tired of being so wrong. it’s us but it’s not us.”

Dick is trying his very best to make his tie look good, next to Tim in the mirror, looking at his younger brother worriedly. Tim looks like Tim for him, a tired version of Tim but that’s his normal with their lifestyle. Nothing seems wrong in his face, or abnormal. But those thoughts are raising so many red flags in Dick’s head. Maybe he should spend a little more time with the other boy, make sure he is alright or if there’s other things that don't sound right. 

“ I’m never truly hungry. If I wait enough, hunger goes quickly away and most of the time it turns out I was just bored. So I never know if I should eat or miss it. When was the last time I ate a real meal ? Do I deserve to eat ? Do I really need to ? I used to be fat when I was younger. My parents hated it, hated me, hated my body. They found me disgusting. Now that I’m thinner, I kept wondering if I should eat or not, if it will make me fat to eat now or if it would kill me to miss it. And each time I guess, I always guess wrong. It’s exhausting, you have no idea, I hope it doesn’t do that to you very often.”

Duke didn’t know what to answer. They were eating take-out on a rooftop. And now he was worried Tim was developing or had already developed an eating disorder. He should try to do some research about it, and watch Tim more closely. Even if he already had guessed his relation with food was messed up, it didn’t feel good to be right. So, not knowing how to answer, Duke just offered the rest of his part to Tim.

“ It’s so selfish of me to stay alive. I’m not useful. I’m easily forgettable and replaceable.”

“ Do you remember what I'd just say ? Because I don’t. Most of the time, I have no clue what I’m saying. There are words coming out of my mouth, sentences I thought of, but nothing that my brain did proceed. It sometimes feels like it’s not me who said that ? If I don’t remember things happening ? If I don’t remember being there … Having said those things ? Can I be held accountable for it ? Because, to me, it’s just like it didn’t happen. Words seem to flow from my mouth, but without being asked to, without my permission. Sometimes I even wonder if I say things that I actually think or if it’s just coming from nowhere. It’s not me who’s talking and … Excuse me, what was I saying ?”

Stephanie tried to not show on her features the fear burning inside of her. That was wrong. Since when Tim had lost himself that much ? Did he even register that he confessed that to her ? Does he even mean everything he can tell them ? Are they losing him ?

“ I feel so alone. Even when I’m surrounded by all of them, even when people talk to me, I feel alone. Alone because people don’t really know me and don’t want to know me. Alone because in the end, I’m not even there and it doesn’t matter. I could not be here and nobody would notice ! I’m a ghost. Nobody listened to me, I kept getting ignored. Nobody looks my way anymore. I’m decaying in front of the whole world,, but nobody notices, nobody is truly close to me. Some part of me wants to disappear discreetly, to make my point : nobody will notice I’m not there because it doesn't matter. On the other hand, I’m so afraid to disappear without anybody noticing, nobody to mourn me, as if I never even existed. If nobody noticed me alive or dead, did I even exist ? Or was I truly just a shadow ?”

Bruce swallows dryly, hidden in the corridor, listening to Tim behind his half open door. The young man is talking sadly, while pacing back and forth in his room. His phone is on speaker, abandoned on his bed and the person on the other end of the line just hums a little “ Whatever Timothy”, proving his point. Nobody seems to listen to him truly. Bruce believes Tim's eyes start to shine in the dimly lit room, shine from unshed tears trying to free themselves. Tim is right, realize Bruce, closing soundlessly the door, incapable of facing his son, he does be alone in this world.

“Sometimes, I phase out. I’m not here, but my body is still there. It’s like I’d gone hide myself in some corner of my brain. And so, given that I’m absent, nothing happens. And no, it’s not sleeping because I’m aware of everything, I’m awake. Just not there. Just rejecting everything. And those absences are physically exhausting. It means staying in the same place and exact same position, muscles all tightly stretched. I think One day I just won't come back to front and stay to putrefy inside my own head. I hope nobody finds my very alive and decaying corpse. It’s better if I disappear in the woods without one word.” 

He whispered his thoughts silently. With a bit of sadness piercing through his voice, just a little dot. Barbara wanted to hug him tightly, to beg him to stay with her. But he was on the other side of the city on patrol and she shouldn’t have hacked on his com. Now she had the crushing guilt of knowing Tim needed help and knowing she would never acknowledge her hearing his private thoughts. Maybe it would had been easier if she hadn’t heard him at all.

“ Do you truly know Timothy ? Because I sure don't. We are all different personalities and we take charge of the exchange given who is in front of us and what they expect. I’m Tim the little brother but I’m also Tim the older brother. I’m Tim the perfect student and Tim that follow no rule? I’m Robin, no not anymore I’m Red Robin. I’m a well known vigilante. I’m Timothy Jackson Drake, the heir, the CEO of Wayne Industry. I’m Tim Drake. I’m whoever they need me to be. I’m polite to her but not to him. I’m so calculated but too impulsive. I’m cold but too much on the other side of the spectrum. Switch switch switch. I’m broken. The masks won’t stick anymore and now we have been discovered, us, the Tims. We ain’t truly one, we are just working in concordance. It’s like a ballet, one touch of anger, then passive aggressive and final on the exhausted Tim. Each one try to work hand in hand to make the best approximation of a real functional human.” 

Alfred stopped next to the young man. He had pushed Tim outside in the garden to keep him company while he was gardening. What was all that talk about switching. He knows Tim, he is the young boy who imposed himself as Robin, whom he considered as his grandson. He didn’t know this odd young man seated across from him, talking about personalities. Maybe his work, both at day and at night, might finally get to him. He must be exhausted once more. Alfred looked at him, studied him. Tim was entranced by his own hands. He seemed so lost. Alfred would forbid him to work tonight and make him go to bed early. That should fix it, right ?

“ If I only exist through pain and medications, what is the point of keeping the facade up ? No one want to be around me, I’m unsupportable. I can’t keep saying, Im’ fine, I’m ok, while yellling inside that I want to dissapear. Do they realise the sacrifice it is to stay by their side. Sure it’s easier for them, easier to have me alive, even though I don’t exist in their world, to know I existe somewhere. But I’m tired. It’s been 4 years takings pills, seeing professional… why do I still have no answer ? Why I still feel like I shouldn’t be here ? I’m quite sure I belong inside a casket, or even a box, hidden from everyone sight. I kept dropping, breaking over trivial things. My world resumed by other’s world. I’m not the main character, I just live in the background. Worst is knowing that I’m fake in every part of me. I tried so hard to be someone, that I ended up being nothing, a big pretty liar. But nobody see that, no one want to see it. I’m gonna dissapear. That is all I want. Everything had ad always been so heavy, so hard for me. I’m tired of faking it, of being ok, of being pushed away. I just want to dissapear the same way I lived, discreetly and whitout noise. To be gone is what I truly wish, what I truly aspire.”

Ra’s took a shaking breath. The Detective, His Detective, was showing signs that were alarming. Maybe he needed to step in and take Tim with him. His so-called family was clearly failing him. If not he would never have said any of this shit even less to Ra’s who is his enemy. Shouldn’t he confess to his close friends or even family ? Ra’s tried to catch his arm, and Tim stayed still. He couldn’t. He couldn’t take the young man with him like that, just kidnap him. He needed to prepare for him and for the opposition he would encounter from the vigilantes. So he left with regret filling his head. He would be back.

“ I want to matter,” cry Timothy, eyes unseeing, deversing tears, hot burning tears. “ I want to matter. I want to be noticed. I want to be loved. I want to be held. I want to be seen. I want ! I want to exist, damn” he murmurs. “ Please, don’t forget me. Don’t let me disappear in indifference. Please… I want to … I want to exist” he ended up sobbing. Nobody hears his pleas, nobody sees him drop to his knees, clutching his chest in a mock embrace, rocking himself back and forth while he cries and sobs in despair. Does he even know what he is saying ? Has he slept recently ? Has he eaten in the last two days ? Is he in control today ? 

The mask won’t stick anymore. Nobody has confronted him even though he kept talking about everything that felt wrong. He doesn’t know how to ask for help anymore ? He tried, he talked over and over. Maybe it was just normal stuff. Maybe he was making a big fuss about nothing. Maybe everybody felt that way. They must have wondered why he was whining so much then. Yeah that must have been what was happening. He was a bother once again. He kept making remarks that were obvious. He was so dumb. 

He was shaking. That was going to be it. Tim was at his point of no return. He had hit rock bottom. All those weeks talking to everybody, trying to open up, only to pass for an idiot. He was so dumb. That was gonna be it. It might be normal to feel like that. He might have bothered them with his little identity crisis, with his silly story that everybody had to live through. Except he couldn’t anymore. He couldn’t put on anymore mask, feel himself, his selves, slip through his fingers. He couldn’t be afraid of sleep, of staying awake, of eating, of starving. He couldn’t let himself be a nuisance for others, no more. He was done. He had tried his hardest but sometimes even the simpler thing could be too much for the weakest soldier. 

Maybe someone would care after it ? Maybe he might be mourn ? Maybe Batman could have better vigilante. Maybe Dick could focus on his only younger brother fully. Maybe Jason will forgive him. Maybe Alfred wouldn't have to care about him. Maybe Kon could be happy with Cass and find happiness in the arms of his old crush. Maybe Stephanie would finally be less awkward when hearing his name. Duke could easily take his place and be more integrated in the family. Maybe Ra’s will let him go. So many maybe, an absence of answer. He was hopeful they always managed to land on their feet. 

His hands were still shaking. He still managed to take all the meds. Over the last four year he managed to stock up on prescription drugs, quite a lot actually, unfinished tabs, started treatments then abruptly stopped leaving vials full or half full of meds.

For Tim it didn’t matter which one was going in. He just started taking pill after pill, emptying the vials, and going through another. He started feeling a little out of it after his third different medicine. He kept going at it, until he had to sit against the couch cause it was moving too much around him. Then he just opened the bottle and let the little pills roll on his coffee table, eating them like candy. 

He never felt himself go.

After everything, when all ended, it would haunt all and each one of them. They knew.

If you read if all, thank you. I hope you liked it. This one is dear to me because it has an odd way of narrating that I love.

All those thoughts your just read are mine, so don’t read too much about it from a canon perspective. It's therapeutical for me to put my abnormal thoughts on some type of media. If you ever had those thoughts, please seek help, or even message me. Those are not normal or insignificant. 

I wanted someone to help Tim, but I'm better at sad ending. 

Please forgive me my broken english, I’m actually french and writing in another language is challenging. Please give me your thought, I will greatly appreciate it.

[dalekofchaos]

Things I would change about the Mafia Trilogy

The Mafia trilogy is one of my all time favorite game series of all time, but if I could change anything about the game, this is what I would change

Mafia Definitive Edition

I would basically add in the ability to extort shops and take over and build on rackets like in The Godfather games.

Fast Travel by train/tram cars like in the original game

Keep in the Knuckles Duster

Keep in Yellow Pete

The ability to go on dates with Sarah, show a sex scene and show Tommy and Sarah's marriage and actually give names and show Tommy with his kids. I just feel like not enough was shown.

Show more of the Salieri-Morello war. I feel like not enough was shown. Sure we killed Sergio and Ghillotti and eventually Morello himself. But we never got to see the full scale war. It felt small. So my proposal see the Morello family hitting the bar and eventually Tommy, Paulie and Sam hit them back. The mission would end with Tommy, Sam and Paulie wacking Lou and Dino and torching Morello’s bar to the ground. I think this is something that should have happened cause we never got to see Lou and Dino again after the second mission and I think it would be Tommy properly paying them back for trying to kill him.

Show us Tommy Angelo's testimony against the Salieri Crime Family. Make it like the Goodfellas trial scene

Mafia 2

There is an entire cache of cut content that shows us a better game we almost got, but I'll just share a select few.

Respect & Reputation. In the beta version of the game players would experience Empire Bay differently based on the level of respect Vito gained from completing missions.

Monique. Vito's cut girlfriend that Vito could take out on dates

Fast travel via Taxi before you get made and via Limo after you get made

Gun License

Fight Club and Hound/Horse races

Side missions doing jobs for Derek, Harry and Mike

Keep in the cut content suggesting that Henry would be revealed being set up and not a rat. My two pieces of evidence. Evidence 1. Evidence 2. Also it was originally intended to have Henry be framed.

Mafia 3

Keep in the cut prologue

Replace Cassandra with Laveau or Lincoln rules the Black Mob. I feel like Cassandra had promise, but her execution was terrible and she just ended up becoming unlikable. Cassandra is hypocritical, self-righteous and endangers the people she claims to protect. She gives all this talk about protecting black people, but she endangers them the most and pretty much made New Bordeaux a ghost town in her ending. As for why Laveau? Laveau is a man of principals and honor. Black revolutionary and Black Panthers vibe. Plus the fact that Lee Everett himself voices him makes me like him all the more. I'm not sure how Laveau's ending would go, most likely New Bordeaux would've been turned into a safe haven for black people, something like that. I also like to think he could voice his own ending and say "Remember, when New Bordeaux speaks, you better listen." I feel like if Laveau was one of the underbosses, then I actually would feel conflict about choosing who to run New Bordeaux instead of just always choosing Vito. Or the simple solution is for Lincoln to recruit the survivors of the Black Mob and rule the Hollow by himself and further cements his rule by rebuilding Sammy's.

Make Agent Maguire apart of the story. My pitch is that he is on the hunt and would be leading the feds against Marcano and Lincoln respectfully. At some point, I don't know what mission, but Maguire has Lincoln right where he wants him, but chooses to let him go and his reasons were that Lincoln was the only one who did a damn thing against Marcano and thought letting him go was best for New Bordeaux as a young and foolish agent. In the documentary portion of the game, he later reveals he was wrong. It was so weird that this random FBI Agent had such a hard on for Lincoln when they never even crossed paths, so Maguire feeling guilt about letting Lincoln go would work imo

Give Lincoln a crew. Simply put advancing with Vito, Burke and Laveau or the Black Mob would give Lincoln individual crew members from The Movement/Black Mob, Italian and Irish Mobs. You can send them to accomplish the list of shit you need to do, fight with you and even send them to collect the collectibles in the district.

The ability to divide up the Bayou to give to your Underbosses. A way we could add in more earn for the Underbosses is to add in rackets in the Bayou. Enough for all 3 Underbosses

Use Signs Of The Times, Faster Baby and No Stone Unturned locations as territory to give your Underbosses. You'd be giving Sinclair Parish, the Sanitarium and the Island to your Underbosses. By doing this and the Bayou, you should have enough to give your Underbosses enough earn to unlock their perks if you are looking to keep everyone loyal and unlock everything

Cancelled Vito DLC makes it in. Not sure what the specifics of this cut DLC were or could've been, but most likely we would've found out Joe is still alive, maybe find out that Eddie was the one who was killed instead of Joe and maybe Vito would see Frankie again. Maybe it could've ended with Vito getting Joe free from Leo and killing Frank Vinci since that was cut from Mafia II. And at the end, perhaps Joe could tell Vito that Lincoln is his son and thanks his old friend for looking out for him.

[indianasolo221]

CATS U.S. Tour 6 (02/04/23)

My thoughts on the show I saw yesterday! I was supposed to see the show last weekend as well, but I was unable to go, so I can't really talk about that one here.

Before I get into the meat of the post, I just want to talk about...guest ettiquette? These were the best seats I've ever gotten for a show at this theatre, but I missed part of the Gumbie Tap and almost the entirety of Sillabub's "Moment's of Happiness" solo because someone had to crawl past me to get to their seat. It's really a good thing I decided not to break the "no recording" rule, or I would've been caught by the usher's who were shining lights down the aisle for all the late people...

Now on to the interesting stuff! I didn't catch as many background moments this time as last, as I mainly focused on each character as they were having their moment (and of course, I couldn't help but be excited about Sillabub).

I saw Hank Santos as Tugger, and his energy was everything I want from a Tugger performance. He seemed the most comfortable with his fellow castmates, and he had little moments with almost all the Queens. He danced with Demeter during his own number (Tuggmeter lovers will enjoy their little moments!), he danced with Bombalurina during his number and they were paired together for the Jellicle Ball. He talked Cassandra's ear off during someone else's number, and he even danced with Victoria at one point! At the opening of his own number, he poked Munkustrap in the stomach and laughed when he doubled over, which is a total bro move. He also swung at Alonzo after the "terrible bore" line. Oh! And during the last bows, Hank and Tayler did a neat little handshake that I'm pretty sure someone caught on camera. Overall, I really love Hank as Tugger. My aunt told him he was her favorite Tugger, and he gave her a little paw bump. I could say more about his performance and I probably will, but seeing it yourself will be better than anything I can describe here.

Nora was Demeter, and I was very torn on how I felt about their performance. I like to be open-minded and not compare every performer to the last, but that's easier said than done. Their energy and vibe were perfect, but they have a very unique voice that takes just a little getting used to. I loved their moments with Hank as Tugger. Nora and Erica were super close and had the perfect Bomba/Deme thing going, and I absolutely loved them together. Nora was an awesome Demeter.

Erica was Bombalurina, and she might just be a favorite of mine. She also has a very unique voice, but it's very Bomba. She definitely has the right vibe going, and I absolutely adore how closely she stuck to Nora. Her performance very much reminded me of Rosemarie Ford's, and I think that's why I liked it so much.

I can say without a doubt that Sam Bello is the best Sillabub I have seen live. Her voice was angelic, clear, pure, and literally everything I could possibly want from a Sillabub performance. Every time she sang I would almost cry her voice was so beautiful. She's definitely up there with Helen Massey as a favorite Sillabub voice for me. She was such a little kitten, and I very much got the idea that she's the one troublemaker who pesters the older kittens and sometimes gets into little spats with them. Skimbleshanks was very protective over her when Grizabella came onstage, and she was usually found hanging out with (or pestering) Pouncival and Victoria. During Skimbleshank's number, rather than appearing that they're just horsing around, it feels more like Silla and Vicci got into a little tiff and Skimble had to break them up. Oh, and please, for the love of all things Jellicle, if you go to a show and have the chance to see Sam as Silla, please get audio for your friend Indy. I would appreciate it.

I saw Taryn as Rumpleteazer! She is the most adorable 'Teazer, and super nice if you get to meet her. She actually stopped to take a photo with us on a very busy two-show day, and I'll never forget how friendly she was.

I got to see Ibn play Misto. He was probably the cutest Misto I've ever seen, and he and Hank switch off when it comes to wanting to be the center of attention at all times. Their Tugger and Misto are absolutely obsessed with each other (like every Tugger/Misto should be), and Tuggoffelees shippers are really gonna enjoy that. Ibn was also super friendly and took a photo with us, was the most chill guy.

I can say without any reservation that this cast was just as good as the last, and I was so happy to see those who returned. Tayler absolutley slays Memory every single time, and when I met her the first thing out of my mouth was, "You were amazing!" She was so sweet and came straight to me to talk, telling me she liked my cosplay. She asked my name and I told her, but she accidently slipped and said, "Hi Tayler, my name is--" before realizing she got it backwards. She was absolutely lovely. Overall, everyone had a great performance and if you get the chance to see them you should absolutely take it!!!

I also got some signatures on my second playbill. Hank's smudged, and I forgot to ask for Tayler's, but I also got Kade's and he was super sweet (and also an amazing Munkstrap!!!). I also saw Brian (Mungojerrie), who asked me if I was cosplaying as Jemima or Sillabub (he grew up on Cats, too!) and that made my day.

I could go on about other characters/cast and how great they were and how hard they work, but you really should go see the show instead of letting me spoil it for you. I will share some photos here, though:

So yeah, U.S. Tour 6, 2023 was a 11/10 experience. I loved it and I can't wait to get back to the Junkyard!!!

[mermaidsirennikita]

Since you were talking about which Kleypas' heroes are conventionally attractive, what is your ranking for how attractive you find Kleypas' heroes?

I mean, I think that physically all the ones I've read are fuckable. But for me personalllly

Derek Craven--always, forever, every day of the week, Monday though Sunday, breakfast lunch and dinner, anytime anyplace anywhere. I love his physicality, I love his competence, I love his inability to love but also his deep capacity for love, I love his trash sense of interior design, I love his gauche new money nature, I love when he tells Sara he wants to punish her a little.

Kev Merripen--big, self-loathing, feels like he's gonna break her with his giant dick.... yeah, I think I fuck with him

Sebastian St. Vincent--also fucks so hard but he has to overcome the fact that he a) is blond and b) can't fight good, big sins in my book, and the fact that he does speaks to how hard he fucks

McKenna--I really like a revenge plot and I also like that he told her to shut up while he was going down on her

Westcliff--ugly hot, as we've discussed, but the fact that Westcliff can show up in the midst of literally any problem and solve it in five minutes makes him hotter; you'd be like "Westcliff I'm so confused I've had this problem for eight weeks" and he'd just press a button and it would be fixed

Leo Hathaway--always in forever in my heart as a hot man because a) he used to be so sad b) he makes the heroine say pussy in a way that is mildly degrading and I'm about it

Rhys Winterborne--NOT FIVE FUCKING MINUTES is pretty hot, though I will admit that his hairlessness freaks me out. He overcomes this admirably by being hot in every other way, and I also like that he's like, a Kohl's King

Simon Hunt--has a foot fetish, gets immense points for this

Jack Devlin--very sexy hot, also did extremely mild butt stuff which is super compelling

Gideon Shaw--he was actually very sad and I loved him, I appreciated the work he did to be a better man and his general guilt complex

Cam Rohan--I have my general fetishism issues with Kev and Cam's portrayals, but I will say that Cam being hyper competent and also like, one of the chillest Kleypas heroes is very sexy of him; he had to be chill because Kev got all the family angst

Keir--I know people have issues with his book and his very existence, but I think the fact that Keir is so hot that he has to grow a beard to be in public is so funny

Gabriel Challon--honestly, a shadow of his dad and not as kinky as he could be (sad :() but still very charming

Devon Ravenel--seduced me a bit with his general douchebaggery I gotta say

Harry Rutledge--should honestly re-read this one, but I think I had issues with his heroine and I liked that he was generally horrible

Nick Gentry--would be hotter if not for some unfortunate implications about his backstory, but I did love how competent he was

Tom Severin--actually pretty hot, hampered by my general "meh"ness on his being paired with Cassandra

Ross Cannon--he was fine I guess but didn't make a huge impression on me, too nice and too staid, also named Ross

Matthew Swift--he's.... fine, but he's too sweet for me

Grant Morgan--I mean, I'm not against the amnesia trickery but I preferred it when Lorraine Heath did this

Christopher Phelan--I need to re-read his book because to be honest sorry to this man I remember like... not much at all besides being a bit annoyed by what he was annoyed with

West Ravenel--controversial but brave, I think West would've been much more interesting if Phoebe had met him pre-reform, as it was he came off as a much more boring Leo Hathaway

Ethan Ransom--I just.... wasn't... that into him

Hunter, Earl of Hawksworth--great name, iffy book, not a huge impression made

[jake-and-amy-are-married]

For the choose violence ask game: 1, 7, 14, 23 :)

OMG - thank you so much for indulging me haha pretty long answers below, be warned -

🔥 choose violence ask game 🔥 1. The character everyone gets wrong:

Uuuurgh this is tough!

I think as far as andor goes, everyone is a bit too harsh on Vel? I think she did the best she could in the circumstances she was put into - especially for the Aldani mission - she seems younger than a lot of her team, but she managed to keep them afloat pretty well, and she was a solid leader - the mission was a success after all.

I think as far as the MCU goes.... I have an entire desseration written about tony stark lol - like seriously SO MANY PEOPLE get him wrong! They either write him too arrogant or too lovey dovey - but forget the angst?? I'm not talking about the smaller bits of angst - I think it would be utterly scary and worrisome and MISERABLE and sad to live in his head.

Where is the angst?! Where are the daddy issues? Where is the "I was better than my dad since I was 4 so he HATED me and would have maybe even killed me so I latched onto to the other father figure, turns out he also didn't really like me that much, he was an enabler looking for a meal ticket?" where is the UTTER existentialism?! Where is the Cassandra levels of depressed screaming at the tower, chained, DOOMED to know the future but never to be believed?!

7. What character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how the fandom acts about them? I don't know if HATE is the right word, but there are way too many dean stans in the supernatural fandom lol - the whole point is that they are all fucking fucked up beyond repair - Dean IS an asshole, and selfish a lot (in my opinion) - and he expected way too much of Sam, and Cas, and he was kind of an asshole sometimes - not to say that he didn't also suffer but yk - just opinions. 14. that one thing you see in fics all the time

3 letters - OOC.

23. ship you've unwillingly come around to

I would have to say I'm a bit boring when it comes to ships lol - I tend to ship the ships that are a little bit more obvious? and easy? like most of my ships have been pretty popular ones, I'm not sure if there's an answer here - I used to never really read destiel until Nov 5th, but I got it? Sambucky seems to be the closest, but even then I get it? most of my shipping opinions are pretty basic I think lol.