#Gale after she murders someone: well that's not great but we can still work with this

[championsofthegate]

//I start Gale as true neutral, even tho he does lean towards neutral good even in the beginning, specifically because boy will overlook a lot. Like a lot, a lot if he cares about someone.

Like, yes he (generally) tries to do good and be good, but if someone he loves does something bad? Well, he can't just abandon them, can he? They're more important than any arbitrary rules about good and bad.

And that's how he talks himself into bad things very easily lmao

[blackbirdswhispers]

It is time for a mostly done with Act 2 Astarion ramble. Spoilers, discussion of trauma, and general too much thinkery ahead

So I ended up redoing a chunk of Act 2 specifically so I could turn down the drow and get the alternate dialogue for Astarion’s romance scene. I’ve seen both cutscenes ahead of time. Games with this many choices and so many things that can be missed give me mad anxiety, I just plan my route ahead of time to remove the stress of missing specific moments I want to see.

I’ve seen it said that some people strongly prefer one course of action over the other, and of course there is a lot to dig into in the first real steps Astarion takes to be more genuine with Tav. Personally, the drow related dialogue for me hits well because it isn’t just him rambling at Tav again.

He’s nervous in both scenes, but in the non-drow conversation he’s particularly unsettled. He’s working through what he has to say but it comes off to me as he’s been overthinking for so long he just had to spit it out.

Full disclosure I think both sets of dialogue are peak writing, truth be told. I have a fondness for each of them for different reasons. But it’s the clarity with which Astarion thanks Tav for standing up for him that really gets me. There’s a little bit of awe in it, which I think is what makes Astarion so afraid still.

How do you really admire someone but not become beholden to them? He, who has had no one to admire in two centuries, fell in with a group of people who are all beholden to gods and devils and ideals. And they’ve, most of them, been betrayed already or are in the process of being wounded by those very bonds.

I haven’t played with Minthara but, obviously she’s been trapped by the Absolute. I think Halsin is the only one Astarion might see as truly free from the shackles that hold everyone else.

I also think it’s why he shows so much dislike when Tav is quick to do the good thing selflessly. The lack of self preservation! What if you get tangled up in some horrible trap! What if you piss off the wrong bad guy!

And we all know the Bad Guys are much, much worse than the Good Guys can ever counter. Who in 200 years was Good enough to help him? Who in 200 years even touched an evil so great as Cazador?

But here comes Tav, doing good (depending on the playthrough, but accurate enough for mine) and surmounting a curse laid on a land for a century. Even at this point where we haven’t made it all the way to the end of Act 2, we’re really doing it.

And for my Tav (Zane), he’s been helping the companions break free of their bonds through it all. Encouraged Wyll to try and get out of his pact. Scolded Gale for thinking of following Mystra’s plan. Stood by Lae’zel as her goddess outcast her. Implored Shadowheart to really think about following through with Shar’s murderous request. Sought out the metal to help Karlach to boot, with her ‘master’ yet to be handled.

Their futures already on a knife’s edge with mindflayer tadpoles buried in their brains, yet Zane’s out here quietly demanding they talk on personal growth as well as worldly peril. And isn’t that just life for you?

Sooo yeah, why *wouldn’t* Astarion be terrified to find himself catching feelings for someone like that? At first it would have seemed the safest option, bait the bleeding heart to bleed for you. For you alone if you could manage to captivate them well enough.

And bleed they do. Bleed right into your mouth each and every evening just to keep you Happy.

But they keep bleeding for everyone else too. They aren’t afraid to ask for help. They cheerfully stroll up to Shadowheart every morning, shamelessly asking to be restored after you’ve taken a chunk out of them, again. Everyone knows it’s happening! It should feel like you’re the one keeping them! But does it?

They keep taking requests for everyone they meet. They drag you out and about for far far too long each day, making you party to their endless favors.

One night they come to you, bruises all over them, their eyes shadowed because they were literally beat to death in a fight, spared by Shadowheart because you were on the other side of the room handling some other Absolute minion. They come to you in such a state, and offer again to bleed for you. What a freak, how can you not feel for them?

And then you get to this drow, and they’re another person asking for a favor. Another person wanting something. Sure this time it’s specifically from you but, it’s not even a hard task, from the outside. You’re a vampire, biting other creatures is literally what you do. And she wants it for a boon to the party.

Surely they’re going to try to convince you. It’s not even a task you have to fetch anything for! You’re standing right there with them! And when they express their surprise to you, of course you get defensive and brace yourself for the worst!

Part of you starts to crack a little as the Good lays it’s oppressive hands on you. Of course this is how it’s going to go. When has it ever gone differently. There are ideals to uphold. Tasks to help with.

Then you look them in their eyes, and they’re looking right back, careful and a little sad, watching as you prepare to put up a fight or give in to despair. And they’re speaking and….genuinely mean it when they tell you it’s your decision. To do what *you* want.

They subvert all your concepts of Good. They don’t call you selfish, they don’t even push back at all. They just support your decision. They don’t make you do the one thing vampires do best. They don’t hold it over your head. They just, let you make your decision and carry on with the rest of their life.

Oh gods you were going to obey them if they ordered you to do it. You would have, but why? Your natural order is to be under someone’s thumb, but the whole intention was for you to have them under yours. You slipped into your place without a second thought, even while panicking about getting stuck back there again.

For me, the romance conversation happened the same night. My next long rest Astarion was immediately pulling Zane over to thank him. To thank him!

Not the through gritted teeth thanks for helping him fulfill his deal for Raphael. Astarion genuinely desired to express gratitude. He still gives some background as to why he’s making such a show of it, but it feels less hurried and anxious. Or at least it did to me.

Anyway this is another hot mess post by 2am me so it’s time to sleep. I will not be reading over this before I post so sorry for the absolute stream of consciousness, or near unconsciousness as it were.

Good night

[gayshitfuckers]

This has accidentally touched on one of my favourite things about Minthara/current hyperfixation abt her. She is, and I honestly believe this, kind of the biggest loser in the group. Here's my semi-exhaustive list of why she's (in my opinion) competing with Gale for camp loser:

She has some truly awful dad jokes, I just know the Webbing one is one of HUNDREDS she's got stocked in there

Also chuckles at her own jokes even if they aren't that funny

Also also says 'I jest' 'I joke' after any silly comment she makes...just so YOU know she can be a silly goose

Cries once (and only once) in the game and it is over the grown woman who sleeps with a teddy bear and bears (heh) with pride

She might complain about her parents (well mother) more than any other companion but completely ignores the fact that she's literally...every stereotype of a drow woman and more than likely a carbon copy of her mum

Will rant at you about how literally 1000's in menzoberrenzen want to shag her if you dare to say no to her before shortly telling you that you disgust her. Baby girl is a proper red-pill alpha podcast bro (her version of 'oh you won't sleep with me? Whatever ugly bitch I was doing you a favour anyway')

And very pathetically she'll still sleep with you literally right afterward if you just say 'changed my mind pookie'. I mean come ON Minthy even I wouldn't do that especially after the whole spiel you gave

When Ketheric asks what she would have done to the goblins who failed her, this dumbass steamrolled right past his point and said "murder and torture them for failing me??? Like what else???" Then had the AUDACITY to look surprised when Ketheric says "great so we agree, time for you to die a painful death". Seriously how did she not see that trap coming, really failed her insight check there

Spends her time "contemplating a skull". That is loser shit, if I saw someone contemplating a skull I would immediately think "what a pretentious loser" and I do

Says she has 'something of a feline nature' pop off cat girl, lemme grab a spray bottle any time you're doing Evil Shenanigans. Pure cringe. 10/10 love this woman.

Legitimately believes she's smarter than Minsc but um...babes has a -1 to intelligence and +0 in wis...at least Minsc has some wisdom to him. Her and Wyll are the dumbest characters. Don't listen to anything she says, nearly every character (yes including Karlach, she's actually quite a but smarter) is more intelligent in some aspect. Give her a basic algebra problem and watch her STRUGGLE

Like Gale, is down with the squid. Good for them but it is weird. Both of them could do with toning down how into the squidness they can be. Objectively a cringe thing to try and explain to someone else

If you lose scratch (God forbid) she says "Everyone thinks I killed the dog. I liked the dog" so sad, truly a heartbreaking line...but also quite a pathetic one. Honey something isn't right if people think you killed the dog. Talk to people about your feelings and they won't think you'd do shit like that

Says to origin Karlach who doesn't want to go back to the Blood Wars "would you have me navigate the hells without a guide" while smirking like she's played some sort of gotcha. Then 10s later will cry if you don't agree with her. It's so sweet and jarring and also very pathetic. Babes goes from 'hah! Now you have to live...my evil plan is working' to snivelling and fighting back tears in literal seconds.

AND LAST BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST, MY PERSONAL FAVOURITE - If you don't join her and go off somewhere else post endgame after having romanced her she will angrily tell you she is "thriving" without you. To your face. But she doesn't stop there, oh no. What cutting words does she have for you after telling you how happy she is without you? She...basically asks for you back. Is it charming and adorable? Yes. Is it also so utterly pathetic that it completely undercuts her entire speech beforehand? Yes, a thousand times over. Do I only know this because I've done similar? Also yes, so I know how bad this is on a very intimate level. Someone get this woman some standards

I love minthara so much as a character and a big part of why is because she is such a little weirdo. She acts so menacing and it is in part true, as a fighter and on paper she is terrifying. But the real picture is a lot more developed (and a good chunk less cool).

okay, no shade, but youre missing out on SO much good characters moments if your girlbossify the bg3 women too much. i get it, they're big, strong, badass, but they are, like all bg3 companions, incredibly cringe in their own ways that i think we could stand to appreciate more.

lae'zel throws the worlds biggest meltdown anytime you do anything not directly related to the githyanki creche, only to almost get her shit immediately rocked. lae'zel on modern day stan twitter would be a shitshow and you cant convince me otherwise. and thats before we even mention her fighting you in act two and then immediately crying about it. babygirl its okay, we were only playing. AND TRYING TO KISS HER IN PUBLIC?? she acts big and bad in act 1, fighting rough with you the entire time, but as soon as you ask her for a little kiss? immediate embarrassment. she could absolutely wreck my shit, but shes still a meow meow.

shadowheart is just fantasy catholic. she gets mad if you pick up a statue of selûne bc shes just that catholic. dyes her hair white in a desperate emo crisis of faith moment. recites smut in public. makes jokes that land incredibly flat. is acting way cooler and more chill than she actually is to hide the fact that shes scared. SHE CHOSE THE NAME SHADOWHEART. need i say more?

karlach may be cringe but she is free, i will give her this. she gets the zoomies. she almost blows up a firework shop with her in it because shes so excited. she has a teddy bear called clive. she hasnt read a book since secondary school. she does a little dancy dance if you leave her alone for too long. her inner monologue is just about how horny she is for most people. bisexual failgirl. i love her.

and then the biggest cringefail of them all, minthara. the fact that she absolutely cannot see that every companion at camp actually does grow to really like, love, and respect her bc shes expecting treachery (bc thats what SHE would have done) is as sad as it is just a liiiiittle bit funny. darling. my wife. people like and care about you. not to mention the fact that shes been poisoning you the entire time shes been travelling with you???? cant communicate for the life of her. regularly threatens to kill you but then gets mad if you die. emotionally stunted loserbabe. we will have a july wedding........

what im SAYING isnt that the girls ARENT badass and compotent and cool, what im SAYING is that the lads shouldnt have a monopoly on complexity and depth. you get me?

[gale-gentlepenguin]

Gale Reviews: Miraculous World: New York

(The following review contains spoilers, and if you would like to not be spoiled, I would recommend watching the episode before reading)

(I had to pause a LOT to get through this special)

-Oh s*** Cosmo bug and Astro Noir. That is so cool.

-Okay maybe its my audio, but their voices seem a bit deeper. No big, just something I noticed.

-Okay the yellow flower was cute. Good on you kitty.

- Also, side note. This is very nice animation. Very crisp.

- Marinette is moving on... kinda. Well, she is trying. Its not easy getting over someone you have a thing for. I guess that means Miracle Queen did happen and I will need to suck it up. But.... I am not moving on yet either.

- The puppet show was perfection. And honestly on par with what you would expect from middle school projects. (I almost thought it was the adults showing them and was like WTF)

-BACK THE F***. Madame Bustier is PREGNANT! PREGNANT?! I am so lost? What is the story!? Who is the father! Is she married? Is it artificial insemination! Is it the principal?

-Adrien so moved by Marinette’s outburst of Friendship. Marinette ‘Just a friend’ Dupain-Cheng is going the Tia Gardner method of friendship. Lol

-Marinette ready to fight and Gabriel just like ‘Yea sure whatever’ (Gabriel’s smile murders puppies)

- Kagami trying to cheer adrien up. If you love adrigami, get that juice. (That looked like a kiss kiss, but the angle seemed off, so I am not counting it that way.)

- Kitty Clicker is wonderful. This entire scene is gold.

-  Gorrilla doesnt like planes, poor baby

- Plagg, you are a devious little s***. I love you so much. As a writer, his dialogue on how to convince adrien is so devilish its amazing. Using technicalities to tempt adrien.

-Lukanette shippers get your juice... even if it was still tainted a bit by Adrien inclusion. You still get a kiss.

- Okay, can we appreciate that Adrien is also having the same amount of trouble as Marinette moving on, but also include Guilt into the equation? I love this because you KNOW Chat noir is going to get an ear full later.

-Marinette has totally moved on from Adrien.... Oh my poor sweet little girl. You havent. You havent even a little. This ride is litterally the reverse of Startrain and its amazing. Alya is NOT helping. Also, give the person that drew Marinette’s Daydreams a f***ing raise. They earned it

-Marinette pulling herself OUT of the situation. Now adrien is slightly bummed out. Well i am sure that this is the last awkward experience with Adrien she will have. It isnt like the two of them will get lost in NY together... thats whats gonna happen isnt it?

-Marinette walking past all the couples sleeping together. JULROSE GET YOUR JUICE!!!

-Ah yes, nothing like watching the sunset with your good friend. Yes, you good pal, Adrien. Who is Just a friend. Wow, the realization that Marinette used the word friend in this movie more times then Adrien did in the entire series so far. (Or at the very least close)

- Adrien, STOP! Marinette is trying to move on from you! Stop making it so damn difficult for her. (I am not serious, i am eating this s*** up like Sushi)

-Nino confirms he loves Adrien. ADRINO COME GET YOUR JUICE! But yea, I feel alya and Nino’s pain. So they are going to help them both.

-Adrienette hugs. Yes, good.

-And thank goodness for Techno Pirate! Saving everyone from awkwardness by trying to bring down a plane... thats heading for NY...

-OH SWEET! BATMAN RIP OFF AND Captain Marvel rip off! And their sidekicks, Robin rip off and... Medusa girl? Okay Neat.

-Jokes aside, Majestia and Night Owl are boss as hell.

-Wow, I know that Ladybug and Chat noir got powerups now. But these United Heroes make their powers look so bland in comparison.

-Get rekt France!

-ADRIEN! DONT USE YOUR PHONE ON AN AIRPLANE! Well, unless he is using the in flight wifi, then he good.

-How come New York has a f*** ton of superheroes in this universe? America really gets all the cool stuff regardless of what fictional universe your in.

- Why are the superheroes so keen on watching over Marinette’s class? Do they know? Do they know Marinette and Adrien are there? Or is it like they just want to prevent an international incident. PLEASE LET IT BE THE LATER.

- I have only had Aeon for 15 seconds and I would violently murder anyone who harms her.

-Oh my Sabrina! GET YOURSELF AN AMERICAN BOY! ... And Chloé is going to ruin the fun. Oof tough break roomies.

-The entire class! I cant even! Not even a second after the door closes they out to party on the roof!

-Aeon, “See? They are made for eachother!”

- Damn, now that’s some guitar playing! Plus Her design is boss as heck. America really just has better versions of EVERYTHING.

-American boy basically snuck in to see Sabrina! GET IT GIRL!

-HOTDOG SUPERHERO! WITH MAGIC HOTDOGS!!!!!! BEST NEW YORK EVER!

-Nino and Alya be tag teaming this!

-Wow Zag, you stuffing me full of Adrinette goodness. Gorilla is a beautiful sunflower.

- Marinette and Adrien havent been in the US 24 hours and they already have two shippers of them. Also, what do doors have against them?

-Jess is Shipping it too hard. “Lets put them in danger!”

-Jess is having way too much fun with this.

-Hawkmoth akumatizing an actual Super villain. FINALLY!

- “Wouldn’t you rather have an Atomic Bomb?” I love Techno pirate.

-”Super Heroes should never use their powers for personal gain.”  Hmmm I wonder how this will back fire on everyone involved.

-”OH S*** HE STOLE THEIR CANNONS! BOOM GOES THE CANNONS!”

-Okay, I take back what I said, these heroes need some Miraculous asap.

- Ladybug is 100% justified in being angry with Chat Noir. It is his fault.

-AEON!!!! NO!!!!!!! Okay, guess i have to kill that techno pirate, and Chat noir

-MAJESTIA IS F***ING PISSED! WRECK HIM MAJESTIA!

- Seems they really hammering it in that Chat noir f***ed up. They right though, but at least Ladybug isnt angry enough to agree that Chat noir should give up his miraculous to some rando. FLEEING FROM THE LAW!

-So lucky charm can only fix damage due to specific villains. It cant fix things when the villain is gone or they are out of range. I always knew it had limitations, but damn. Chat noir REALLY screwed the pooch on this one.

-Adrien no! Oh s***! He cant just... I mean.... He can but...

__________

-Gabriel stole the Eagle! The Kwami of Freedom. The irony is so delicious here.

- So night Owl and Sparrow are both chick with Masculine superhero appearances. Thats actually pretty damn smart, great way to keep people off their identity.

-Welp, i am depressed. Adrien doesnt have Plagg.

-EVEN THE PRESIDENT IS A SUPER HERO! AMAZING!

- So an akumatized person can USE A MIRACULOUS WHILE AKUMATIZED! WHAT THE F*** THATS AWESOME. Also why didnt catalyst do that?

-Gabriel actually getting adrien out of there while before s*** hits the fan. That is actually kind of a decent parenting move. Granted he is going to cause it, but appreciate it.

-Marinette the bike thief is back! And she is an international criminal!

- She tried so hard. Welp I am glad that Marinette is clearly over... actually no. This trip made that clear.

-Liberation, Wow. That is the most American power I have ever seen. I LOVE IT.

- Okay, so I never thought i would say this. maybe there is such a thing as too much freedom? Or at least Freedom that lets you impede on Other people’s freedoms.

- I know what Zag is up to, and it is working. I want a tv series Of Jess and Aeon. They are wonderful.

-So Majestia can casually move the moon. Yea, thats amazing and terrifying! I love her.

-Quantum masking! So there is a glamor effect! I knew it! So Aeon knows who ladybug and Chat noir are.

-DID I F***ING MENTION I WOULD MURDER FOR AEON!

-aeon will never see Tikki or plagg. Thats so sad.

-At least Adrien learned an important lesson.

-Cute LADYNOIR REUNION

-The was clever, using the keychain

- Eagle jess is epic.

-and Majestia can catch missles. Considering she can move the moon. Not surprising.

-OH DAMN, Night owl and Sparrow are LEGACY HEROES! Thats like the Phantom, Or like Jojo.

-That was sweet of Marinette and the class.

-Oh so the guardian of those miraculous came back to claim it.

-But now sounds like the set up for a new series.

____________________________________________________________________

Overall, I did greatly enjoy this movie. Though there were times i wanted to know more, and times I wanted to know less. I know this takes place sometime during season 4, but the exact time is vague. It did tell a really cool story. It felt like a three episode saga combined into one. It was kind of interesting. And damn the drama was higher.

I give it a 7.5/10.

I would rate it up there with my favorite ML episodes.

[ziracona]

With every movie my love of sidney grows. She working for a crisis hotline ;-; fuc milton hes disgusting. also she is more immediatly prepared for FIGHT also i love how much more soft towards sidney gale is this movie. Thts ur surrogate baby sister now ma'am uwu

Also i loved gales weird friendship with jennifer lmao. One of my fave chars of the triology lol . Also can everyone in the seried leave MAUREEN ALONE D:< the poor woman is dead stop fucjing demonizing her jfc. Im glad sidneys come to terms with loving her despite her flaws and despite everyone trying to make her see otherwise (or thats what it came off as to me anyway) also. Sid verbally destroying roman GET IM!! GET IM!!

Yeah no I totally agree!

GOD, Sidney is my GIRL! I love her so much! The working at a crisis hotline to help women, and how thoughtful and kind she is doing it TuT, her big puppy. And god, she left. She did everything she could to make herself no one someone would have reason to kill, and it’s not enough, people still come. Her PTSD episode with her mom, and how scary and alone it all is. AH and I’m glad they brought her dad back and had him visiting and being worried about her being so alone. TuT

I loved Gale and Dewey getting back and the scene at the END??? “You’re a brave man, Dewey Riley.” “Yeah, well, I’m really scared right now.” I SOB it’s true love TuT my dumb otp. And fkn Jennifer is great! Fale—fake Gale. Love it. The Gale Fake-Gale duo kills me, and fkn Jennifer’s delivery of every damn line is superb. (Wild as shit to see her as the antag in Lost in Space. I was like *leans almost vertically forward in seat* FALE??? ). And yess!!! How sweet Gale is to Sid and how she’s like, no conflict Gale just Gale to kick ass time >:-] Gale said “Fuck Ghostface, all my homies hate Ghostface” and then came to finish the job. Love the Sidney-Gale-Dewey friend team. God, they need each other so bad. Best family!

Also fkn LovED Kinkaid. Baby Patrick Dempsey, lol. *Production Room Meeting*

Casting Director: Okay. So. We need a potential love interest for Sidney, but we’ve hit a problem.

Producer: What problem?

CD *whips out human sized printout* :

Look at her! We can’t find anyone hot enough to even be believable anymore.

Producer, sweating: Shit. What do we do?

PA with a eureka moment, already making mockup posters: Okay so I got /1/ idea.

And it was the best they could do. She’s a goddess on Earth it would be hard to cast a leading partner opposite her. But god bless. Fkn LOVE. Kincaid. He gets back up like four times and every time just gets the shit beat out of him. 🤣 *Kincaid, dragging himself up to go pick a lock with blood dripping down his shoulder from a stab wound to his chest bc he hears Sid screaming.* Me, screeching from the audience: NO! Baby go lay down you survived what looked like a fatal hit just stay down I want you to make it through the movie! 😭 *Kincaid: keeps going because it’s his duty to try to save them. Immediately laid flat and injured worse.* Me: :’-]

I love that he’s like a family member too (lol, if you survive Ghostface, you get adopted by Sid, Gale, and Dewey now) and watching movies at Sid’s house it’s so cute. Fun fact! Kincaid was supposed to be in 4 too, but couldn’t be bc of a preexisting shooting schedule conflict with Dempsey. But I’ve always taken that to mean they got/stayed together and he’s just not on the tour/at work during 4 (tbh, off screen is safer to characters who survived a film anyway so maybe it’s good 🤣), and are maybe married or dating, and if not interested that way are good friends who still check in & hang for movie nights a lot. TuT

And yeah! I think that’s how it was meant to read. Maureen made some mistakes, but it doesn’t mean everything about her was bad, and also, a lot of the shit she went through was done to her, not by. She had a really rough life and tried to do better, and backslid by cheating and hooking up with married men when Sid was a teen, but she wasn’t a monster. Just a sad woman with a lot of facets. Some good, some bad, some neither. But the lies didn’t mean the good Mom Sid remembered was a lie or she can’t still love her. Bad didn’t negate the good, and she loved her mom, and she should get to. TuT

(And for real, like, cheating is fucked, but everyone quit blaming your murderous rampages on the dead woman who never killed a single person frfr it’s you.)

And yes!!! GOD! That shoutout scene with Roman is maybe my favorite scene in the franchise! Roman’s my fave Ghostface because he’s funniest to watch, and also the most interesting. He a fucking bastard like the rest, but he’s the only one who ever shows even a second of guilt for their kills on-screen or off, and it’s when Sidney goes off on her “Fuck your bullshit Roman! You got no excuse you’re just terrible!” rant, and I love that like, not just does she say that, but you can see he knows she’s right. 👌 Ultimate victory. He’s as evil as the rest (except 4. >.> 4 takes the cake but I’ll say nothing else), but I think he’s the only one (mmmaybe one of two? : / ehhh, I’ll think on it) who still sees humans as humans instead of just things, so he’s more interesting to watch/more interesting as a villain. I also fkn love his stupid “Do you think this wasn’t a message?” With the broken award 🤣—the way his actor delivers lines is exactly how my best friend would have played the role, so it’s tripple funny to me to watch it. God, and Sid holding his hand while he’s dying, after everything he did to her?

Like. Obviously he did not deserve that kind of kindness, but it’s so fucking sweet and such a statement to Sidney’s character that she’d do that in spite of it all because he’s her brother, and she just doesn’t want even the worst one possible to die alone. I’m tearing up. Sidney is so good she’s so amazing I’m gonna weep. 😭

Also. Will any moment ever be more iconic than:

No! The answer is no! Shout this at all horror villains fuck y’all, blame whatever you want cry me a river, it’s you! You did this! I fucking LOVE Sidney Prescott!!!!

[justlookatthosesausages]

“In the eye of the storm” ◊◊◊◊ a post-Frozen 2 fanfic ◊◊◊◊ CHAPTER 2: Twister

"Morning."

"M'ning." Muttered Anna, rubbing her eyes as she entered the room.

She noticed not only that Elsa was already cleaned and dressed – though that last step took only a couple of seconds when you were the Snow Queen – but that she had helped the servants to prepare breakfast, easily guessed by the way she was standing by the table and arranging everything to be at the exact place. Anna preferred to keep her remark about her sister's perfectionism for later.

"You're already awake? How the heck?"

Elsa chuckled lightly at her vocabulary, and her smile filled Anna's soul with as much vitamins than if she had started to eat.

"I'm used to wake up at the first lights of dawn." Said the blonde. "And as you don't have shutters at the windows..."

"You saw light passing through the clouds? All I see is a gloomy weather. With such a storm, the sun is hidden all day."

Elsa realized she didn't register the second half of her sentence.

"You should put shutters or panels at the windows. I know it's not the season to do so, but soon the glass might shatter. I can feel that the wind only will blow more and more in the following days."

"M'kay." Murmured Anna, hugging her then sitting down.

She bit in a yawn to at least have a minimum of decency in front of the maids, even if most of them had known her since she was a child.

The Queen then remembered at the word 'season' that she wanted to talk to her sister about something related to it. But she couldn't grasp what it was. She blinked and shrugged, stretching out her hand to get a slice of bread.

Elsa sat in front of her, like they always did back then when she lived in the castle.

"Thanks for preparing breakfast." Said Anna after she swallowed her third toast.

The blonde smiled behind her mug of tea. "You're welcome. It's the least I could do to thank you for sheltering me on such short notice."

"Sheltering you?" Repeated the younger with shock and amusement in her voice. "Do you hear yourself? Elsa, this is your home too, you're always welcome here."

Elsa smiled, and resumed to drink her black tea. She recognized in Anna's words the ones of her husband, and was touched to see that unconditional hospitality was one of their numerous common traits.

"Where's Kristoff? Don't you wake up at the same time?"

Anna pointed at the door with her thumb while she gulped her coffee with the ferocity of a beast. "He went to Eydis' room to wake her up. She takes like, ten minutes to get out of bed, so he helps Gerda."

Elsa laughed. She remembered well the state and posture of her niece when she had left her bedroom earlier in the morning. "Well, the apple doesn't fall far—"

Anna hit her leg with her foot.

"Ouch!"

"Yeah, don't even dare."

The blonde giggled as she massaged her tibia, now sore, but it was all worth it.

"Good morning darlings!" Smiled Kristoff as he entered, a robe on his pajamas while Anna didn't bother wearing something above it.

He rubbed a hand in Elsa's back and then walked to Anna to kiss her.

"What's that 'darlings' about? You don't call me honey today?" Teased the redhead.

Kristoff smiled. "There's a pot of it on the table already. I didn't want to bring confusion."

Anna eye rolled, but her sigh was also tender. "You really are the worst at puns on mornings."

He sat next to her, shrugging. "You know my brain doesn't work as long as I haven't drunk my coffee. Just like you."

They scrunched their noses staring at each other, teasing with glances.

Elsa smiled looking at them, her cheek laying on her fist.

"AUNTIEEEE!"

"Oh, the little star is here." Commented Elsa, not even turning around.

They all giggled and Eydis hugged her idol powerfully. She then did the same with her parents, and Kristoff almost swallowed his coffee the wrong way.

She ran around looking for the cushion she used to take to sit on a chair and be at their level, and then she ran back to the table once she found it. Eydis was exhaling so much childish joy on mornings that Elsa couldn't help but melt at the sight.

She comically climbed on the chair that was at the end of the table. "Auntie, do you think that Nokk and Gale will make up?"

Elsa blinked as she bit in a cookie. She did not expect that question as the first thing of the day.

"Uh... I don't know, sweetheart."

"Can't you sense it?"

Eydis insisted with her gaze, but her tone hadn't been sarcastic. She was fascinated by the connection the Spirits had between them, and now Anna and Kristoff had lifted their eyes to her to know the answer too.

Elsa felt ashamed to not have what they were looking for.

"I don't... Sense anything else than the fact they put all their power in a conflict. I'm sorry."

Anna frowned with emotion. "Hey, don't apologize. You did nothing wrong."

Elsa gulped.

"And I suppose that it's the first time ever that you feel anger emanating from them, isn't it?" Guessed Kristoff.

Elsa nodded. "Indeed. And it's..." Her right hand clenched on the table. "...really unpleasant."

Anna reached for it with her own hand. "It's gonna be okay. It will all end up well, eventually. We'll find a solution today."

The blonde smiled back, and Eydis bounced on her chair.

"Yeah, it will all be okay!"

The adults smiled at her genuine positivity. The girl exclaimed:

"When Nokk will be happy again, will we ride together, me on my pony and you on Nokk?"

Elsa smiled, ruffling her already messy hair. "Sure. I miss them just as much as you do."

She especially loved those rides with her, because she always spent a joyful time with her niece, and also because it drove the Water Spirit nuts to see how slow Eydis' pony was.

=======

Later in the morning, they all sat down in the living room to discuss about solutions. Mattias had joined them, much to Elsa's satisfaction, because she saw him rarely. Either she only had time to come for game nights and go back to the Forest right after, so she didn't get to visit him and Halima in the village, either he was busy training with the Arendelle's army.

"General Mattias. It's always a pleasure."

The man nudged her a bit as they embraced. "Please. Don't tease me. Just go for Mattias."

Elsa giggled. "I still think that this grade suits you well. It does have a ring to it."

Anna entered in the teasing game. "Oh, I only made him general because of how it sounded. Not because of his skills and wisdom. Of which he has none."

The black soldier looked at the dorky sisters with a smirk. "Are you two done?"

"And the fact he's my counselor only is for personal reasons." Kept going Anna, grinning along Elsa. "Not because he helps me in strategic meetings."

"Yeah, I heard you help Anna pick her dresses, is that right?"

They both giggled, and Mattias, even if he was amused, eyed the King from where he was.

"Kristoff, how can you even deal with those two?"

The blonde shrugged. "I don't. I actually plan to murder them with Olaf's help next week. But shh, don't tell anyone."

The sisters laughed even more, now holding to each other.

"What is going on?" Asked Eydis, entering the room with a book under her arm, finally getting out of her morning lesson. She had heard the word 'murder', which she didn't know, and would love to find out.

"Nothing", chuckled Mattias. "How are you, little Princess?"

"Great!" Beamed the little girl. "We started a new course today!"

She showed the book she had been holding.

"It's called trigged... Trigo..."

"Trigonometry?" Helped Elsa and Mattias with one voice.

"Yeah!" Exclaimed Eydis.

"Ooooh, I loved trigonometry when I was your age." Beamed Elsa. "You know, triangles are fascinating. The sum of their angles always equals—"

"Oh my goodness, please someone stops that nerd before she starts talking about fractals." Eyerolled Anna behind Mattias.

"Hey!" Grumbled the blonde, standing up after bending to her niece.

Anna stuck out her tongue as she sat on the couch next to Kristoff.

Mattias bent to Eydis. "You know, it's a really interesting and important class. I'm sure your aunt uses its rules when she crafts structures in ice. In fact, we use knowledge of it in military as well."

The princess' eyes sparkled. "Awesome! And is it practical in handiwork as well?"

The man nodded. "Of course. It's where it's the most useful, I think."

As she jolted along him, Elsa looked at her sister while she sat in the sofa by the couch. "Handiwork?" She repeated with a frown.

Anna waved her hand in the air. "She plays handiwork a lot lately. It's more 'pretend' than actually building anything, but she loves it. Craftspeople all around the village offered her tools so she could have a little kit."

"That's adorable." Smiled Elsa.

"Yeah, well, when she taps against door frames and stairs railings late in the night saying "this needs to be fixed!" and then mimes to bang nails in it or saw some parts, it's less fun."

The blonde giggled, sorry for them but deeply amused.

"This is as cute as dangerous", said Anna, "but don't worry, she hasn't broken anything on purpose. Yet."

"Lately she said she got a new hammer, and I suspect Oaken to have given him. Let's hope she'll not use it soon." Smiled Kristoff.

"I'll maybe confiscate her toolkit..." Sighed Anna, looking at her daughter talking with Mattias.

Kristoff frowned.

"Don't, that would break her heart. She loves handiwork just like you love to read novels, Anna. It's her passion."

They smiled at the father's wisdom.

"You're right." Admitted Anna.

"And I know someone who was just as dangerous when she was her age..." Teased Elsa.

The Queen lifted her eyebrows. "Who? Me?"

The blond chuckled, turning to her. "How many times did you say you made the armors fall apart again?"

She pushed him away, but her tiny hand on his muscular chest didn't make him move an inch. "Alright, alright. I was a constant mess and she inherited from me. Here, is that what you wanted to hear?"

The two others laughed a yes.

Mattias joined them and they started to think about all the possibilities to compensate the magic storm. The discussion went on for a full hour, and as Elsa now was nervously fidgeting with a cushion as she declined all of their suggestions because of how impossible to do they were, Anna was just as nervously standing up. Pacing back and forth in front of the lit fireplace, she searched for a solution to help her sister, but also her kingdom which was starting to get impacted by such a weather condition. Arendelle had known many terrible natural events in its history, but this one had been going on for many days without a pause. It started to tire the people and reduce the resources. She turned to her elder.

"Elsa, you know the best way is to get to Ahtohallan and get their opinion on this."

The blonde lifted her eyes to her, a bit annoyed.

"And Anna, I told you a dozen times already that I can't cross the sea."

The Queen agitated her hands. She wasn't going to give up easily.

"We should try together. We'll cross the Dark Sea despite the storm. We're the Bridge, nothing can stop us! I'm going to ask to prepare a ship from my private float..."

Elsa widened her eyes.

"Anna, no. That's out of question."

"Why? I should help you! I want to help you!"

Elsa now frowned.

"You will not go in a ship to Ahtohallan!"

"What?"

"Especially with a weather like this."

"WHY?!" Erupted Anna, enraging.

"BECAUSE I DON'T WANT YOU TO GO IN A STORM ON A SHIP!"

Elsa's voice filled the room with force as she suddenly stood up. Kristoff and Mattias turned to her with shocked faces. Eydis retracted on the couch, holding her knees against her chest in fear. All got startled by how Elsa had suddenly raised her tone, something she very rarely did. Breathing heavily, she locked her eyes with her little sister.

Anna definitely was the most stunned of them all. Standing still by the fireplace, her lips trembled. She stared at Elsa intensely, but unlike the blonde's eyes which were panicked, hers eyes were sad, and filling with tears turning her vision blur. She saw that Elsa's eyes were teary as well.

She could also tell that, in that gaze, was almost printed the mental image of an Arendellian ship grimly lit by a lightning bolt and sinking in giant waves, never returning home.

The redhead gulped, gasping in a breath she had been holding.

"Elsa, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to..."

The elder sighed. "Yes, I know..."

She closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. "But still, please never bring up that suggestion again. Ever."

The room remained silent, and she picked up the cushion she had made fall to the carpet when she stood. However, she didn't sit to hold it against her. She put it back on the sofa, and walked to the door.

"I... Sorry, I need a break. I'll meet you guys later."

Anna gasped.

"Elsa..."

Her voice was weak and devastated, and she bit her lip in a pout as the blonde left the room.

The two men exchanged a look, not daring to add a word, and Eydis stared sadly at the spot where her aunt's back had turned to the corridor.

The Queen crossed the room to go after her, but Kristoff held her arm. He stood up to be at her side. He shook his head.

"Don't push her. You know you have to give her some space."

"Yes, of course." Murmured Anna grudgingly.

She lowered her gaze, and agreed with him. Anna could only clear her throat and change the topic, so they would talk about something else until she felt the time was right to go talk with her sister.

=======

"The past is in the past", Elsa had often said through the years since they got closer again.

The redhead held to this promise with dear life. By experience with her sister, Anna knew that her time alone wouldn't be long, and that she was allowed to gently ask to burst her bubble.

As she walked up the stairs, she felt like it was entirely her fault if Elsa was nervous after their argument and needed to isolate herself. She should never have suggested this stupid idea of going on a ship! Why did she suggest this stupid idea of going on a ship?!

Anna was so angry at herself that her knock on the wood of the door actually was stronger than she meant. However, Elsa didn't respond. Usually, she would say "Come in", or just "Hmm" to indicate Anna was welcome to enter. But here, nothing.

The younger's heart clenched. Persuaded she was the problem, she didn't dare to open the door, even if it looked unlocked.

"Elsa..."

She gulped. Why was it so hard to do that again? She knew that years had gone by, that their relationship was completely different and open now. It was so difficult to dive into this setting once again. Anna had known this situation for ages, but nothing could have prepared her to return to it.

Her hand clenched in a fist against the lacquered wood.

"Elsa, please, answer me. Please."

Without realizing it, her breathing sped up.

"Elsa..."

The Queen was rapidly having a panic attack. Not again. Not this situation. Please, gods, anything but this situation again. She couldn't go through it again.

Her legs felt like cotton, and she fell to the corridor's floor.

Anna's nails rasped the door.

"Elsa, I'm—"

"Anna, what are you doing?"

The redhead gasped loudly, and in the gesture, she swallowed a water drop, which was a tear that had fallen on her face and she hadn't noticed.

She spun around, falling on her butt as she did because of how fast she turned, and saw that Elsa was walking to her with frowned eyebrows and a concerned face, closing the book she visibly had been reading.

"Why are you here crying on the floor? What is going on?"

Anna had to gulp to form an answer, and in the meantime, the blonde's eyes darted to the door. Everything clicked in her mind like a puzzle.

"Oh Ahtohallan, you thought I shut you out?"

The redhead was unable to answer something else than a bubble of cry, her lips twitching in a tearful pout. She nodded, trembling. Elsa urged to go crouch to her.

"Anna... Hey, hey it's okay. Come here."

The younger didn't wait for a second call. She launched herself in her arms and sobbed silently on Elsa's shoulder. The Snow Queen recognized the too-familiar behavior of a panic attack, and she passed a hand along Anna's back and in her long hair to soothe her breathing. Acting like magic, and maybe it was, the redhead calmed quickly, melting in Elsa's embrace. The elder held her tight.

"I'm so sorry. I went to the library to get a register, and..."

She didn't add more. What was the purpose? She felt terrible for making Anna believe she didn't want to see her.

Elsa delicately parted the hug, and looked at her sister in the eyes.

"I would never, ever shut you out, okay? I know I'm still very bad at making it clear on why and how I need time alone, but... It's never to abandon you."

Anna nodded, gulping loudly again, and gasping because she still had her throat twisted by her emotion.

"Sorry for doubting it." Admitted the younger.

Elsa gasped in an exclamation as she rubbed Anna's tears. "You're really not the wrongdoer, you know!"

Anna had a smile at the corner of her lips. Minutes passed as Elsa made sure that her little sister retrieved her normal breathing. Finally, they stood up, and after she cleaned her face, Anna saw the book she picked from the floor.

"That's a register?"

"Hmm-hmm." Nodded Elsa, showing it to her.

As Anna turned the pages and realized what it was meant to take in account, Elsa continued: "Our argument earlier... That actually gave me an idea. Follow me."

The redhead blinked in confusion, but walked behind her elder through the castle, until they reached the servant's room where she knew Kai and Gerda would be at that time of day. Elsa asked if they were available, and the four of them went to a silent spot in the corridor.

"Kai, Gerda... You're the oldest servants we have. What I mean is, you were there when the accident with our parents happened."

The two widened their eyes, and Anna turned to her sister with emotion.

"Do you remember if the storm that happened that night was the same than the one occurring when Mother and Father were lost at sea?" Asked Elsa.

The maid looked at the ceiling as she thought. "Hum... Maybe..."

Her gaze then went from one sister to another. "Can't you tell?"

Elsa had a sad smile. "Anna was too shocked by the loss to remember it in detail, and me too, but I also was locking myself indoors, so I could tell even less about the weather..."

Anna turned to her sister again. She knew how shocked she was? Of course she knew. But that still was touching.

"I see..." Nodded Gerda.

"Well... We can't really know." Said Kai, looking sorry. "It was a stormy night like any other."

Gerda agreed. "I only remember that ships were unadvised to go sail that night and all stayed on the harbor, but the ship of your late parents had already departed an hour or so before..."

Anna lowered her eyes. "The wind had come up after they left. It was just misfortune."

"Yes."

Something held Anna's hand and it surprised her. Elsa squeezed her touch, and the redhead smiled sadly. "It was a good idea to investigate on that. But apparently, the two events don't coincide."

Kai looked at them. "Indeed, the storm which happened that day wasn't magical in any way."

Gerda turned to Elsa. "I have yet to understand fully the nuance between the magic of the Spirits of Nature and the science of meteorology, but the storm that happened that day more than ten years ago truly wasn't the same that we endure today. It was less intense and shorter."

Elsa nodded. She also paid attention to the subtext Gerda gave when she said she still was confused about knowing that there were Spirits associated to elements, and that the soft and shy little princess she had seen grow up had become a goddess able to command them.

"Thank you for your precisions." Smiled Anna.

Once they both bowed and returned to their activities, she turned to her elder. "It was brilliant that you came up with that conclusion."

Elsa looked at her, her eyes a bit lost in a reflection.

"I can't tell if the news that this is not the same kind of storm makes me relieved or worried..."

Anna winced. "Me neither."

=======

Eydis, however, was extremely relieved to see her aunt back after her other class of the morning, jumping at her sight at the lunch table. After the first course, she asked her to make a dome to cover her plate because she heard her mother on the other side of the table say that she was capable of doing everything with her magic. Elsa smirked, and flicked her wrist in the air. A glass-like cloche made of ice fell on her dish with a satisfying 'click' like it was tailor-made.

"Waaaoh!" Exclaimed Eydis, and she clapped in admiration like Elsa just did something utterly incredible.

The Snow Queen grinned however, because coming from her, it was a lovely compliment.

"Eydis, eat your vegetables. If you let it too long under Elsa's dome, it will get colder." Warned Anna.

"Yes, Mama." Pouted the girl, grabbing the cloche with her tiny hands to put it aside.

Elsa bit her lip and wiggled her finger, and in a crisp of frost, Eydis hands got stuck to the ice. She noticed it by the sensation and the fact she now was unable to put it down, and she giggled loudly.

"Auntieeee!"

Elsa laughed openly. Eydis continued to shake the dome up and down to get rid of it, laughing even more.

"Elsa, please let her eat."

The blonde rolled her eyes at Anna being a killjoy, and vanished it. The princess was disappointed, but the Snow Queen pointed at the vegetables to remind her it was important for her to eat them.

Elsa and Anna chatted lightly and after a while, it reminded the little girl of the argument they had a few hours before.

"I can build a ship."

Elsa turned to her. "Pardon?"

"I can build a ship to bring you to At-the... A-tho..."

"Ahtohallan." Smiled Elsa.

"Yeah. That."

"You can build ships? Entire ships?" Teased Elsa.

"Yes I can!" Exclaimed Eydis, thinking she doubted of her. "I've become really good at building stuff! I have all the tools! I even have screwdrivers! And I have rulers, and a new hammer, and I even got a chisel and—"

"A chisel?" Suddenly worried the blonde.

"I took it away from her."

Elsa sighed at Anna's sentence, easily imagining the fiery princess running around the castle with such a blade.

"But I need it to help the village's carpenter!" Pouted Eydis, shocked to know her mother did such a thing.

"You'll help him by assisting him", calmed Kristoff, finding a compromise.

It seemed to work, because the girl grumbled but returned to eating what was in her plate.

"Every Wednesday, she goes in the village and he teaches her some stuff. The architect working with him once said that she's got good pen stroke skills. Apparently, she already got perspective, which is rare at her age."

Anna chew on her piece of cheese and pointed at her elder.

"That is something she inherited from you."

Elsa smiled with delight, and she felt her cheeks get warmer in pride. She looked down at Eydis, and her smile disappeared when she saw that the girl currently was pulling her steak with her teeth. Anna sighed.

"Elsa, could you help the carnivore cut her meat?"

Eydis whined and Elsa complied, giggling.

After she did, she turned to her sister and brother-in-law.

"I'll take notes of the weather's intensity today, and see if it gets worse tomorrow. In the morning, I'll go investigate to see how big the storm is, and to which scale it extends."

"I'll come with you." Announced Anna.

Elsa frowned. "No, don't let me go on how dangerous it is for you."

"I don't risk anything if I'm with you." Underlined the redhead, knowing well what arguments to use with her.

The blonde got speechless.

"Touché." Muttered Kristoff as he drank his glass of red wine.

"Will you request for the other Spirits' help?" Inquired Eydis.

"Maybe I'll ask for the Giants to give us a hand, yes. Quite literally." Smiled Elsa.

"And will you need my help?"

The Snow Queen heard in that question that her niece was desperately asking for her to say yes to bring some adventure to her daily life, and the following day surely was filled with boring classes. However, she had to say no. She would never risk Anna's life, all the more for Eydis.

"No, but you'll be very helpful once you'll learn everything about trigonometry to help the carpenter."

"Really?" Beamed the princess, not even realizing she diverted the topic.

"Yes! And if you're nice, I might buy you a spirit level. It will be your most precious asset in handiwork, trust me."

Eydis' eyes sparkled even more. "Is it magical?"

"What? No, it's based on a bubble—"

She then realized what she had just said, and that she was talking to a child.

"Yes. Yes obviously. It's magical. It's a spirit level, of course it is."

"Awesome!"

Eydis then returned to her plate, and Elsa exchanged an amused look with her parents.

"Spirits magic really is awesome." Muttered Eydis, chewing on her meat.

=======

"Can I sleep with Auntie tonight as well?"

Kristoff snorted. "This is becoming a habit, uh?"

Eydis pushed the storybook he was reading her by the fire in the living room and turned with an adorable pout.

"Pleeeease."

She then looked genuinely sad. "I don't see her often."

The King melted at the sight. "Sure, I'll go tell her."

He stood up and she clamped to him like a baby koala. "No, wait, stay."

Kristoff smiled. "Why?"

As an answer, the wind outside started to blow, making the windows tremble. It made a haunting sound when it passed by the chimney, and the flames danced a bit. They didn't notice the storm much by day when they were inside, because they were busy or talking, but now that night had fallen, the castle was quiet, and it emphasized its violence.

"You're scared of the storm?"

She shook her head to say no, but her red cheeks and glittering eyes stated the opposite. Kristoff held her tight.

"Hey, it's okay. It's just wind and rain. You're safe in the castle."

"But it's magic."

He passed a hand on her hair. "Yes, but this magic will never harm you. I promise."

Kristoff then smiled. "Is it company you look for? Do you want me to sleep with you tonight?"

Eydis grumbled, stepping out of the embrace. "No! I'm a big girl now. I don't need you to take care of me like a baby."

Her father understood that she was referring to him and Anna. "Okay."

She hugged him again however, and Kristoff took note that sleeping with her aunt, even if she was close family, didn't make Eydis feel like she was smothered.

When he joined Elsa later and he told her her wish, he also shared his thoughts.

"Yeah, it's very common for children of her age." Nodded Elsa. "Many Northuldra kids ask for a separate hut before they even are ten years old. It's normal, and it will pass. Trust me. Neither Anna or me were like that at her age, for we had a... Quite special childhood... But I'm certain that it's normal for Eydis."

"I'm not really a reference either." Chuckled Kristoff nervously, for he got raised by trolls.

"I'll sleep with her and keep an eye on her, don't worry. It makes me happy too."

"Great."

An hour later, Eydis and her were under the sheets, and this time the princess didn't request a chime, for the wind had calmed down to the benefit of rain, now a downpour. Thankfully, the drops weren't pushed to the windows, so it was a rather calm night, and Elsa smiled when she saw how soundly her niece was sleeping. She soon closed her own eyes and let herself drift to sleep.

=======

Eydis coughed lightly when she swallowed something tiny and cold. She frowned, her eyes still closed, and rubbed her mouth. As she did, the girl felt the familiar sensation of sharp touches of a snowing day and wondered why she felt it on her skin then. It must be a very realistic dream...

She fell to sleep again, turning on her pillow, but was woken up by a second tiny and cold thing falling in her ear this time. With a groan, she shook her head and wagged her arms around to get rid of what she thought were flies. Confused, she opened her eyes, and what her brown irises sparkled at the sight of a billion snowflakes falling in her bedroom.

They magically formed under the ceiling, then dropped slowly to the floor, vanishing just before hitting the carpet and the parquet. Eydis forgot to blink for a moment because of how jaw-dropping she was, and winced with clenched eyelids when she remembered that she had to. She kneeled then stood on the bed, watching what was happening in awe. Like silver dust, the snowflakes started to form a forest, and two people running around the trees. They didn't look very real, thought Eydis, and it reminded her of the illustrations in the storybooks her father read to her. She wondered if she were dreaming, and pinched her arm. After a wince, she noted that she definitely wasn't; as awesome as it was, what was happening in her bedroom really was happening in her bedroom.

Eydis hummed. She had heard multiple times from her mother that Elsa would sometimes conjure snow when she's upset. The little girl felt sad for her, and looked down at her aunt's face, but she was sleeping peacefully, even smiling. Everything clicked in the princess' brain: Elsa's smiles and moans were in sync with what was happening in the air. Was she controlling that show? Was she pranking her? No, she looked like she was genuinely sleeping, even if she had a calm breathing, just like her father when he had naps on the couch.

Eydis stood up, admiring the scene, not daring to touch the little characters at first, but then interacting with them with her fingers, following the trail of the forest that got drawn here. She squinted as she tried to understand who the two persons were. One looked just like Elsa, and the other, she couldn't quite understand, because they kept jumping on tree logs while the magic-drawing-Elsa clapped at her. She heard them both laugh, and it sounded weird, like it was distant and pitched like a bell.

The princess turned around the room to see more. The two were playing 'catch me' and giggling louder and louder in the forest. Eydis turned when she heard Elsa laugh slightly in her sleep. Suddenly, the magic-drawing-Elsa got caught by the other person because they had been hiding behind a tree, and Eydis finally recognized who it was when they talked, still with a bell-like voice.

"I won! Told you I could get you in no time." Laughed Honeymaren.

"Okay, okay, one point for you. I'll do the dishes."

Eydis heard Elsa laugh again in the bed, and she beamed at the scene. So it was Elsa and Honeymaren playing! She saw the mini-Elsa picking up pots and spoons and walking to what looked like a river, wide and going through the whole bedroom. It flowed like actual water with all its tiny snowflakes strolling in one move, and Eydis couldn't help but touch it with a "Woaaaw..."

She had to show this to her parents. She ran to the door, her forehead going through ice projections of branches, and she blinked with a giggle when it fell to her eyes. Eydis shook her head and ran in the corridor to her parent's bedroom.

"Mama! Mama!"

Anna grumbled at the sudden intrusion, noise and weight on her as Eydis jumped on the bed.

"Your daughter is awake", muttered Kristoff.

Anna sighed. "Sorry, but I technically have 'People of the Sun' blood, so before sunrise, she's your daughter."

"Mama!" Insisted Eydis, shaking Anna's shoulders specifically.

"What, sweetie?" Murmured the redhead.

"Elsa does magic!"

"Yes, we're aware."

"She is having visions! She has magic all over! The whole bedroom has ice in it!"

It took Anna a second, then her eyes opened wide.

"What, WHAT, WHAT?"

Those three informations were very alarming.

"Come, quick!"

No need to tell her twice. Anna jumped out of bed, hurrying. She was way faster than her daughter, and opened her bedroom's door wide. She gasped when she saw the scene. Just like Eydis, she couldn't help but contemplate it. She looked at every detail, at the trees, at the rocks, at the way they were made of what looked like a billion of stars. Emotion roamed in her heart and in her guts. It simply was one of the most beautiful things she had ever seen in her life.

"Incredible..." She whispered.

Eydis finally arrived, and bumped headfirst into her back.

Stumbling, her mother then walked to Elsa still sleeping soundly, and was about to wake her up, but she looked so happy and peaceful with a smile matching her dream that she didn't dare to.

"Mama!" Exclaimed Eydis, rubbing her forehead. "Why did you stand there? It hurts!"

She had been talking with a regular voice, and Elsa stirred in her sleep. She frowned as something woke her up, and her dream projection softly vanished. The sparkles of magic disappeared, much to Anna's and Eydis' disappointment.

Elsa blinked, and suddenly widened her eyes when she saw her sister and her niece staring right at her in the dark.

"Uhhh... Hello?"

Anna inspected her face, like she was checking for fever signs by a simple gaze.

"...What is going on?" Worried Elsa.

"Are you okay?"

"I... Well, yes. I'm perfectly fine."

A smile even stretched her lips. She actually felt great. She couldn't tell why, but her brain was filled with happiness.

"Why are you two looking at me like this?"

Anna sat on the sheets in front of her sister.

"Elsa... Your dream was materializing."

[mahou-furbies]

On the teams in Magical Girl Raising Project : Restart

When reading MagiPro Restart I paid attention to how different the dynamics in each team were and how fun it was to read about them, so here’s an appreciation post. (note that this is based on just the two Restart novels; I haven’t read most of the side stories about these characters).

Team Daisy

The team whose dynamics most resemble the more common magical girl team where there is an upbeat, friendly and supportive vibe going on. When reading from the POV of a character in this group I get the feeling that they all enjoy being together, and don't have any major disagreements. Especially the enthusiastic and outgoing NyanNyan and Genopsyko get along really well and behave like longtime friends even if they only just met, and being invested in Genopsyko's well-being becomes a very defining character trait for NyanNyan as the story goes on and even causes her to act irrationally and recklessly. And the young and unassuming Nokko-chan inspires protectiveness from everyone, but she still manages to hold her own in a pinch.

There is more to the team dynamics than just everyone being nice though. The former magical girl celebrity Magical Daisy had been living a lonely and dull life after the anime in which she starred ended, and now finds herself enjoying the fact that she ended up as the group leader and has people depending on her again. I feel that her relationship with her team is a bit shallow, and that she sees them in the role of an audience to some degree and doesn't form that close friendships with them as people. There is also some charming childishness about her; like she often thinks about how she wants to use her flashy beam attack for the sake of it, and her reaction to being forced to compete in a game is not only that she wants out but that she would also like to win.

This is not to say I think Daisy is an egoistical or arrogant person; like sure she cares about her team and never thinks badly of them, and the narrative doesn't show her in a bad light either. I also find her enjoying the attention very human, like she's been alone and starved for validation for long, so it's understandable that meeting fans who gush about her show would be flattering. She's like a little skewed version of your typical pure and heroic magical girl lead in that she knows what a good magical girl is and consistently acts upon the expectations, but isn't quite committed to the spirit. Which shows in the way everyone sees her as a mature and competent leader, but the readers get to know that she likes that the game lets her use lethal force on the AI enemies without moral repercussions.

Team Clantail

Team Clantail has a lot more conflict than Team Daisy. Rionetta and Nonako aren't afraid to voice their opinions, and that causes constant quarreling. However they aren't identical in their bitching, with Rionetta being more confrontational and snippy while in Nonako's case it's more like she just says what's on her mind without caring how insensitive it might be. Meanwhile Clantail is the calm and reliable leader who gets stuff done, but she remains distant and doesn't do much to mitigate the drama. Finally there is the timid and anxious Pechka, who has low self esteem and is useless in battle. At first Rionetta and Nonako don't even try to hide the fact that they're only letting her be a part of the team out of social obligation and wouldn’t mind seeing her leave, and Clantail does nothing to make her feel better either.

However the team dynamics drastically change when Pechka reveals her magical cooking ability, and the delicious meals together greatly boost the team's morale. The more competent fighters start to see how Pechka is valuable in the team in an unexpected way, and the tension mitigates and the arguments turn into friendly bickering. As the story goes on, Team Clantail starts to feel more like a tight group of people who care about each other and does well in the game with their teamwork, but the little quarreling and Pechka's self esteem issues keep it from becoming boring and stale.

Team Bell

For the most part these guys come across as having a more practical and business-like relationship and working together just because it's useful, rather than the typical magical girl squad where everyone is best friends and ready to protect the others with their life. They do work well enough together though and advance well in the game, but they have fundamental disagreements to how much they should progress at the expense of the competing teams. At one point Detec Bell even hopes her own team would lose a contest so that they would get better along with the other players.

Detec Bell doesn't have the fighting skills or the required charisma and appears to only be the leader nominally, since ultimately the proud and mysterious Melville does what she feels like and the childish Cherna Mouse only takes orders from Melville. Detec Bell is one of the more mature characters in the book though, and does her best to maintain her team's cohesion and relationships with the other teams. However Team Bell starts to fall apart when suspicions of the unknown killer arise.

All the talk about a dysfunctional team of course doesn't apply to Lapis Lazuline, who is ten times as chummy as the other three put together. She is super cheerful and friendly with everyone and acts enthusiastic and emotionally about everything. Thus she acts as the glue that makes Team Bell stick together and feel like an actual team and not just a bunch of people who happened to stand close to each other when it was time to team up.

Team Pfle

I feel a lot of negative energy emanating from this team... As the story goes on we discover that there's deception in the other teams as well, but in this case we get to follow it closely from within. Pfle is very smart and manipulative, and the first thing she does after being thrown into the game is fake injuries in order to gain empathy and get others do her dirty work. I really like the contrast between Pfle maintaining a friendly and co-operative public image, while we get to read Shadow Gale's narration where she constantly roasts Pfle for being self-absorbed, arrogant or even sadistic.

As a fine lady and her long-suffering friend/servant, Pfle and Shadow Gale are the only girls who knew each other before being transported to the game, and the trust and familiarity they have really shows. While Pfle often doesn't tell what she's planning and sometimes is outright pretty rude towards Shadow Gale, and Shadow Gale's thoughts towards Pfle are often pretty unkind even when her behaviour is polite on the surface, when reading about them I feel secure that they can count on each other. Also in Pfle's defense even if she manages to keep her emotions well in check, she can go to great lengths for those who she considers a part of her in-group.

And then there's of course the third member of the group, Masked Wonder, who is exactly the kind of pure hearted defender of justice who falls for Pfle's fake injury act and becomes the group's muscle. Her straightforward and altruistic behaviour looks even more heroic next to Pfle's scheming, and she also pairs up really well with the equally enthusiastic Lapis Lazuline for some funny scenes.

In conclusion I really like how different every team is in terms of internal relationships and how they relate to the other teams, and handle being forced to compete in the game. And then there's also the fact that when the characters start dying, the survivors form new groups both permanently (like someone whose entire team has been killed gets adopted by another team) or temporarily (when a common goal needs more manpower), which gives even more team dynamics to read about.

Of course the fact that this is such a dark series affects the mood, so a lot of the interaction involves deception, doubt, fear, and violence and death. But I find that the starting point is striking enough that the characters would be interesting to follow even if you put them into a family friendly series, where the point really is just to clear a video game and those who are initially uncooperative learn the power of friendship by the end (and everyone lives). So I really wish more magical girl shows would utilise character writing like this; like obviously I don't mean that next year we should get Murder! Battle Royale Precure<3, but that there are other options besides everyone being best friends from the moment they join the team.

[everlarkficexchange]

The Price Of One's Soul

Written by: @peetaspikelets

Prompt 65: “You did all this for me?” Submitted by anonymous via @katnissdoesnotfollowback

Betaed by: @sponsormusings

Rating: M, for adult themes and coarse language.

A/N: This is the first part of my new story. There will be one or two more parts to come which will feature the prompt. It’s been awhile since I’ve written anything, especially Everlark and I’m so glad I decided to go for it. I’ve really missed these two beautiful souls. 

This story was heavily inspired by Mockingjay and Brooklyn 99 because I have no idea what it’s like to work as a police detective. 

Summary: 

“I’m proud and relieved to say that due to the FBI’s efforts, and Mellark’s outstanding work, Operation Mockingjay was a success and last night the FBI arrested Snow and 16 of his associates with a number of charges longer than my arm.”

Everyone in the room applauds and shouts out in glee. It’s not the most professional reaction you would see in a police station, but knowing Snow has finally been arrested brings an enormous sense of relief to everybody who’s ever come across his brutal handiwork.

Katniss, however, remains silent, her mouth unable to form words. She feels overwhelmed by the news and what Peeta was a part of. Luckily, Finnick looks over and must be able to read her mind as he’s voicing the only questions she wants to be answered right now.

“Does that mean Peet’s back? It’s over? He’s back at the seven five?”

Katniss eyes Haymitch with a wide, hopeful expression. Beside her, she thinks she feels Gale tense up, but she’s too engrossed in what’s happening right now to linger on it. Finally, Haymitch meets her gaze and his lips curl into a small smile they don’t see very often. “The boy is back.”

Really? Are you sure about that Haymitch? *EVIL CACKLE*

Enjoy! Let me know what you think :)

CHAPTER 1

“Everdeen! Hawthorne! Where the hell have you been? The daily briefing started 10 minutes ago.”

“Sorry, Captain,” Katniss replies, dropping her backpack on the dirty floor of the briefing room and taking a seat at the front. “We thought we could get in some shooting practice before work. Instead, Gale spent most of his time flirting with Recruit Officer Undersee.”

“I was not,” Gale huffs, taking the empty chair beside her. “She didn’t know how to hold her gun properly, so I thought I’d be a nice guy and teach her how to grip it correctly.”

“Yeah right,” Katniss answers dryly. “With all the giggling I heard in her booth I bet that’s not the only thing you helped her with.”

“What, are you jealous Everdeen?” Gale asks, shifting in his chair to face her, his eyes glinting with smugness. “Because really you don’t need to be. I could always take you out the back and show you how to grip my –”

“That’s enough!” Captain Abernathy snaps, his voice booming off the rooms yellow stained walls. He looks around the group in annoyance. “It’s like I’m stuck here on a daily basis babysitting a bunch of kids.”

“Aww don’t say that, Dad. You know you love us,” Detective Finnick Odair chimes in from across the room. He starts swinging back on his chair and looks over to Katniss, giving her a cheeky wink.

Katniss rolls her eyes and shrugs her braid off her shoulder. She knows when Finnick gets in this type of mood there’s no point in trying to stop him from riling people up. Even someone as superior as the Captain doesn’t miss out on his juvenile antics. It can be annoying at times, but with the seriousness of the job, she’ll admit there are some days she’s grateful for his jovial character.

 “Finnick, be quiet,” Annie hushes beside him.

“It’s okay, sweetheart,” Finnick reassures his girlfriend. “We all know deep down the Captain is like a big cuddly teddy bear. He pretends to act all gruff and indifferent when I know for a fact the other week he gave Effie from Human Resources a big –”

“If one more person speaks out of turn again, they’ll be on desk duty for a month,” Captain Abernathy snaps, interjecting into the conversation. A vein pulses in the middle of his wrinkled forehead for emphasis.

Sighing, Finnick falls silent and tilts his chair forward, so all legs are safely back on the ground. He stares at the front of the room with a pout like he’s a child who’s been scolded by his favorite teacher.

“Now children, eyes to the front, and let’s get back to discussing the Coin murder case.”

Everybody straightens in their chairs, giving him their full attention as he turns on a large television. Katniss stares as a number of photographs pop up on display, showing the latest crime scene the precinct is investigating. She hasn’t seen these before, so she leans forward in her seat to examine the images of the body.

After all her years of working as a police officer and then being promoted to detective, most crime scenes don’t faze her anymore. It’s like she’s been immunized to the absolute horror human beings can inflict upon one another and today, this case is no exception. The female victim got repeatedly shot with a crossbow. It isn’t a pretty sight, but her mind has the ability to compartmentalize.

After a few minutes, Katniss feels bored as she isn’t one of the lead detectives on the case. Instead, she turns her head to where Finnick and Annie are sitting across the aisle from her. Both are great detectives and good friends of hers. They’re also known as the precinct’s most nauseating couple. Katniss can count on multiple hands how many times she’s caught them at work in a compromising position. She’s had more views of Finnick’s bare arse than any other guy she’s dated. Not that there’s been many, as she’s too committed to the job and not a big socialiser. After a 12-hour shift investigating murders, assaults and robberies she never feels the need to get dressed up and go out. She much prefers going home to her small but comfortable apartment, sitting around in her pyjamas, drinking hot chocolate and watching Netflix.

She doesn’t have many friends. When she was a teenager, she lost her beloved sister Prim and her parents in a car bombing, and ever since then she’s had difficulties in learning how to trust and be vulnerable around people. Even now years later, the hurt is still raw, but she knows - thanks to years of therapy - that she can’t live as a hermit for the entirety of her life.

So, over time and working in close proximity with Gale, Finnick and Annie she’s slowly taken baby steps and allowed them to worm their way into her heart. Even if she wanted to run and hide, their tenacity and loyalty have made it impossible for her to leave. They have her back and she has theirs.

Even Captain Abernathy plays an important role in her life. When they were growing up, she and her sister used to call him Uncle Haymitch, as he was good friends with their parents. He was always a permanent fixture at family barbeques and any big social occasion. Like her, he didn’t handle the nature of their deaths well. Where she purposely isolated herself from the world and didn’t eat or speak to anyone for months, Haymitch turned to white liquor for comfort. In the end, it got so bad that he could barely function. Now years - and a few stints in rehab later - he’s proudly sober and continues slaying that demon daily.

There is another person in Katniss’ life. Certainly the most important person. But these days she tries not to think about him too much.

From the moment Detective Peeta Mellark started his first day at the 75th precinct in Panem, he made it impossible for anybody to hate him. When he first stepped out of the elevator with his carefully styled blond hair and shining blue eyes, it was like he’d just come from a GQ photo shoot. His friendliness and charisma soon followed and caught the attention of everybody immediately, especially the women. Katniss tried to hold it against him, as she was wary of people who had that kind of influence, but his detective skills were too damn good to ignore. In the first few weeks of his arrival he helped her bring down Seneca Crane, a cybercriminal mastermind she’d been hunting for 2 years. After that, they’d worked multiple cases together and he quickly rose from being her casual drinking buddy and trivia teammate to her best friend and confidante.

On their shared days off they would often have lunch together at his family’s bakery before Katniss took him to the local park to teach him how to use a bow and arrow. He wasn’t very good, but he was always keen to join her every week. He had a habit of trying to make her laugh in order to throw her off, but it never worked and the day always left a big smile on her face.

But while he may not have been good at archery, one of Peeta’s many talents was baking. A taste of one of his flaky cheese buns always had her moaning out in pleasure. It soon became a weekly ritual for him to bring in an assortment of baked goods for the whole squad to massacre.

Those were the good old days filled with wonderful memories.

And then things changed.

The day Peeta told her he had to go away for a case and he wasn’t sure when he would be back had come as a shock to her. He had become such a permanent fixture in her life that she felt a sudden rush of loss and sadness. The rational side of her understood and knew the job came first, but the whole situation sucked. After they finally managed to say their goodbyes, she watched him walk away with nothing but a box of his belongings in his hands. But before he got into his car he’d paused and turned around to face her. She swore she saw intense longing staring back at her, an emotion she’d never seen from him before, and it had caused her to freeze in place.

As weeks flew by, she continued being haunted by that moment and spent most of her days trying to decipher what it meant. But ultimately, cases piled up on her desk and she soon stopped replaying the moment, coming to the conclusion that it meant nothing.

“Now, O’Dair. Cresta,” Haymitch barks, pulling Katniss out of her thoughts. “How’s your investigation going on John Cato and Rebecca Clove?”

“We don’t have anything solid on them yet, Captain,” Annie answers with disappointment.

“It won’t be long though,” Finnick adds. “They may be cunning, but they’re also overly confident. It’s a bad combination. They’ll slip up eventually.”

Haymitch nods, satisfied. “Hopefully it’s sooner rather than later.”

“According to our informant, they’re supposed to be meeting with their supplier in a couple of weeks. This could finally be our opportunity to arrest all their sorry asses,” Finnick tells him.

“Good. Keep on them for the next couple of weeks. If you need back up call Everdeen and Hawthorne.”

“Aye, Aye, Captain,” Finnick says, giving him a mock salute.

Haymitch groans in annoyance and closes his eyes. His mouth starts moving slightly, giving Katniss the impression he’s trying to keep his anger in check by counting to 10.

“Hey, Everdeen,” Gale whispers.

Katniss looks over and notices his chair is too close to her own. His muscular thigh is now touching hers, and she can feel the heat radiating off him like he’s trying to burn a hole through her pants.

“You feel like getting some breakfast at Sae’s after we wrap up here? My treat,” he adds, his gaze penetrating.

She narrows her eyes and wonders what the hell is going on with him lately. She’s not sure why he’s basically sitting right up against her and she can’t crack the ardent look he’s now giving her. Over the last few months, she’s noticed the increase of social invitations from him, all of which seemed to be on the romantic side. Only last week he invited her out to dinner to the swanky Panem Bistro. Luckily she’d been sick with a cold, so it had been easy to get out of it. But it hadn’t prevented him from stopping by her apartment with a container of soup.

The shooting range they attended earlier this morning was his idea, but as it was work-related, she didn’t see any harm in saying yes. But now the whole situation was getting confusing - one moment it seemed he was asking her out on a date, and the next moment she’s witnessing him flirt with Recruit Officer Undersee. She doesn’t get men - or more specifically, she doesn’t get Gale Hawthorne.

“Now, before I dismiss you I have an announcement to make,” Haymitch says, turning off the screen. Both Katniss and Gale straighten up in their chairs, forgetting their conversation for a moment, taking note of their Captain’s serious tone. She swears there’s now a look of pride etched upon his face as he looks around the room. And she must not be the only one who notices the change, as all voices in the room cease, and look up at him with renewed interest.

“Now, what I am about to tell you we’ve never been able to discuss as the details were highly classified. But as you all know, 18 months ago Detective Mellark left us to be part of an undercover operation with the FBI.”

Katniss’ body freezes. The sound of his name hits her hard.

“What you didn’t know was that Detective Mellark agreed to infiltrate the Capitol Mafia.”

There are surprised gasps all around the room, the loudest coming from Katniss. She knew he was going undercover, but she had no idea who or what it was for. Obviously, he couldn’t tell her anything and she understood that. But the Capitol Mafia?! That was huge. They’re the worst of the worst. Their leader Cornelius Snow is a sadistic bastard, who runs a highly dangerous underground gang who engage in money laundering, murder, kidnapping, drugs, and bribery. He’s known as the most notorious criminal in Panem, and he was good at covering his tracks. Whenever the precinct investigated one of his crimes there was barely any evidence to link him and when a witness did come forward they were always found poisoned with Nightlock days before they could testify in court.

“It was called Operation Mockingjay,” Haymitch continues above the hushed whispers. “It was originally supposed to be a 6-month stint. However, there were…complications and Detective Mellark was forced to stay undercover longer than we would have liked.

Katniss grips the table, her knuckles turning white.

“I’m proud and relieved to say that due to the FBI’s efforts, and Mellark’s outstanding work, Operation Mockingjay was a success and last night the FBI arrested Snow and 16 of his associates with a number of charges longer than my arm.”

Everyone in the room applauds and shouts out in glee. It’s not the most professional reaction you would see in a police station, but knowing Snow has finally been arrested brings an enormous sense of relief to everybody who’s ever come across his brutal handiwork.

Katniss, however, remains silent, her mouth unable to form words. She feels overwhelmed by the news and what Peeta was a part of. Luckily, Finnick looks over and must be able to read her mind as he’s voicing the only questions she wants to be answered right now.

“Does that mean Peet’s back? It’s over? He’s back at the seven five?”

Katniss eyes Haymitch with a wide, hopeful expression. Beside her, she thinks she feels Gale tense up, but she’s too engrossed in what’s happening right now to linger on it. Finally, Haymitch meets her gaze and his lips curl into a small smile they don’t see very often. “The boy is back.”

“Yes!” Finnick yells, jumping from his chair and fist bumping the air.

“When can we see him? Where is he?” Katniss bursts out, thankful her mouth is finally cooperating with her brain.

Haymitch pauses for a moment, a flash of hesitation in his eyes before he says. “You’ll find him in my office.”

Before Katniss knows what she’s doing, she’s leaping out of her chair and racing towards Haymitch’s office. She hears Finnick’s loud, hurried feet rushing up behind her.

When Katniss reaches her destination she’s confused for a moment, and wonders if in all the excitement and shock she’s accidentally run into the wrong office. She looks up at the name plaque on the door and knows immediately she’s in the right spot. But sitting on the opposite side of the Captain’s desk with his back to them is a man with broad shoulders and ink black hair. His whole body stiffens at their sudden intrusion before he slowly stands up and turns around to face them.

Katniss’ mouth drops open in shock. After Haymitch’s announcement, she was expecting to find her best friend with his signature grin waiting for her, before running over and wrapping his arms around her in a tight hug. But to her utter disappointment, none of that happens. Instead, the person in front of her looks like a stranger. He has Peeta’s familiar blue eyes, but they’re now etched with harshness and shaded by dark circles. His cheekbones are also sharp and defined like he’s lost some weight and his overall demeanour is wary and guarded.

“You’re back?” Katniss says, her tone coming out more like a question than a statement. 

Peeta takes her in silently for a moment. His eyes narrow in quiet contemplation as they travel down from head to toe, mapping her out, trying to become reacquainted. His shoulders relax slightly and he nods his head in acknowledgement. “Katniss.”

His voice is rough and deep like he’s been smoking a pack a day and he makes no other effort towards her. He’s just standing there, staring at her intently and it makes her feel lost.

“Wow, Peeta,” Finnick says, coming up to stand beside her, and taking in his friend’s new hair and dark leather attire. “You’re a brunette now.”

Peeta smirks and runs a hand through his hair, the action making it scruffier. “Yeah, well I thought if I’m going to join the dark side, I may as well put the effort in and go all out.”

Finnick chuckles nervously and leans against the door frame. It’s clear he’s not sure how to take this new Peeta Mellark as well.

“You didn’t join the dark side,” Katniss blurts out before her brain can catch up with her. She doesn’t like the way he’s talking. “You’re a police detective who went undercover to bring down one of the worst criminals in Panem’s history. What you did in the last year and a half was incredibly brave and the operation was a success because of you.”

Peeta looks over to her and shakes his head.

“Peeta, you’re a great detective –”

“Katniss, stop,” Peeta says, raising his hand suddenly, cutting her off. “I don’t want to talk about this now. So don’t go there.”

“It’s okay Peeta,” she continues, ignoring his wish and taking a tentative step towards him like she’s approaching a baby deer. “You’re home and you’re safe. It might take you awhile to forget about Snow, but –”

Peeta suddenly charges towards her, making Katniss freeze mid-sentence. He’s up in her face, looming down at her with a twisted and grotesque snarl. A rush of fear floods her insides.

“Forget, about Snow? Really, Katniss? You say it like it’s so damn easy, but you have no idea,” he spits out. She hears him take a few deep breaths, his eyes still piercing hers, before he transforms his face into a look of indifference. “Has it ever occurred to you that maybe I don’t want to forget? That I don’t want to forget Snow? That I don’t want to forget my time with him?”

His words scare her and suck the breath out of her lungs. His cold, unfamiliar glare awakens her need to run and lock herself in a cupboard like she used to do when she was younger. No matter what she ever said, the old Peeta would never have treated her like this. He’s not her Peeta anymore. She can’t even see a glimpse of the old him. He’s acting like their friendship never existed.

The atmosphere in the room is left cold and uneasy as Peeta takes a few steps back and looks down at the floor. He rubs a hand roughly across his forehead multiple times like he’s in pain or agitated.

“So, ummm…you’re back for good then?” Finnick asks carefully in the soundless space, hoping to break the discomfort.

“For now,” Peeta replies simply, not caring to extend his answer as he leans back against Haymitch’s desk. “So, enough about me. What have I missed around here?”

“Nothing much,” Finnick shrugs. “We got a new vending machine in the break room and the department finally updated our surveillance equipment. I wanted to take the new body cams home to try on Annie, but she wouldn’t let me.”

The corners of Peeta’s mouth curl up. “I’m glad to hear you’re still together. I would have thought by now you’d have fucked things up.”

A look of hurt flashes across Finnick’s face before he puts his signature smile back on. “Nah, man. Annie’s my reason for living. She’s my everything.”

Peeta’s eyes soften slightly at the sentiment and he nods his head. He briefly looks over to Katniss, but before she can meet his eyes, he’s turning back around and giving his attention to the new face standing at the door.

“Hey, Mellark. Good to see you, man,” the familiar voice of Gale rings out as he saunters into the office and stands beside Katniss.

“Gale. Nice to see you,” Peeta replies curtly, his eyes narrowing at his old colleague.

Although back in the day the two never fought and worked well together when they had to, there always seemed to be an underlying tension between them which Katniss never understood. She found it difficult sometimes as they were both her friends, yet if she wanted to hang out with them, she usually had to do it separately.

“I like the look you’ve got going on at the moment. It suits you.”

Katniss and Finnick turn and give each other perplexed looks.

“Thanks,” Peeta answers tightly, his jaw tense and eyes cold.

“Yeah, so you’ll notice some changes around here,” Gale continues, swinging his arm around Katniss’ shoulders, and bringing her in closer to his body.

She grows rigid on the spot, too surprised by the public display of affection to push him away.

“We moved some people around in the bullpen after you left on your…mafia holiday. Katniss is now at your desk next to me, but there’s an empty one near the kitchen you can have –”

“No!” Katniss cuts in and wriggles herself free of Gale’s grasp. “Peeta can have his desk back. It’s fine. I’ll take the spare one.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Peeta replies back gruffly. “I’ve already spoken to the Captain and I’ll be moving a desk down to the records room.”

“The creepy basement where no one ever goes?” Finnick asks surprised.

“Yeah, it’s perfect. Besides, open spaces don’t agree with me anymore.”

As he says this Katniss looks down and notices his left hand is shaking like it’s in spasm.

That’s new.

She watches the action sadly, feeling a sudden rush of warmth towards him, which is unexpected after their disastrous reunion. It’s a vulnerable moment (which the others choose to ignore) and it reminds her of the old Peeta. Yes, their first meeting has gone horribly, but once he gets back into his old routine he will remember who he is again and will be back to the Peeta Mellark they all know and love.

She’s pulled out of her reverie by Peeta who’s picking up a ratty box from the floor. She’s curious to know what’s inside, but he quickly balances the weight against his muscular chest before she can sneak a peek. As he heads towards the door, he stops calmly in front of Katniss and Gale.

“So, I’m assuming you two are together now,” he states evenly, his expression giving nothing away.

Katniss’ eyes widen at his assumption but before she can correct him, he’s already walking past them and calling out unkindly over his shoulder. “Sending you my condolences.”

The words sting and Katniss feels tears start to well in her eyes.

They watch him walk down the stairs to the basement, without even a backwards glance. Finnick turns to her in disbelief, while Gale mutters out, “I always knew he was an asshole,” before stomping out of the office.

Katniss wants to run after both of them. She wants to yell at Gale to find out what’s going on with him. And she wants to shake Peeta so hard that he comes back to himself, but her body won’t move. Instead, she feels exhaustion set in and it keeps her rooted to the spot.

“It will be alright, Kat,” Finnick tells her kindly, putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “We all know you and Gale aren’t a couple and never will be. And even if it was true it’s none of Peeta’s business anyway. What he said was really uncalled for.”

Katniss nods her head, refusing to show any emotion. Instead, she says, “Thanks Finnick,” and heads towards the bullpen in a daze.

“He’ll come around,” he calls out behind her. “Just give him some time.”

Quietly, she sits down at her desk, ignoring the worried looks being sent her way and opens her top drawer, pulling out a handful of colored photographs. For years the squad used to display pictures of themselves all around the precinct. Some were from Christmas parties, training days, or simply goofing around with each other in between cases. When Peeta went undercover, Haymitch made her take down all the photos that featured him, in order to protect his cover. And they’ve laid in her drawer safe and sound ever since.

She stares sadly at the bundle in front of her, each colored memory seeming like a lifetime ago. In every photo, Peeta is either making a funny face or staring at the camera with an easy-going smile. She wonders when she’ll see it again and then a painful thought occurs to her.

What if they’re wrong? What if he never comes around?

A single tear falls quietly down her cheek. What if Peeta Mellark is lost to her forever?

[writeyouin]

ITS QUANTUM ANON BACK FOR MORE....I'd love to see a scenario in which Jack and the reader have a scary movie night and the reader can barely handle it, the damn movies are incredibly scary and she gets clingy when she's scared. Jack is very amused. (sounds cliché but it's me when I watch scary movies ok) Scared cuddles and dog videos of calming ensue. (also if you could please put in a tag somewhere or a little quick post saying you got this n tumblr didn't eat it that would be appreciated

Jack Joyce X Reader – Hold Me

A/N – I will never in my life apologise for making Will a meme-loving fuck. I have a big sister, so I know exactly how to be a younger pain in the ass.

Warnings – None

Rating – T

Life as you knew it had been completely changed since the incident between the Joyce brothers and Paul Serene. Although Monarch Solutions wasn’t as big of a threat as it had been before, Jack and Will still worried about what remained of it. You knew they were also concerned about the threat it posed to Will’s research, and more importantly, to you because of your affiliation with the brothers; maybe if you and Jack weren’t romantically involved, there wouldn’t be a problem, but that wasn’t the case.

Since the brothers needed to protect what remained of Will’s research, in case Monarch got any shifty ideas again, the pair moved into the old community pool building. It wasn’t long after that that Jack asked you to move in with them. Although you would have rather continued your regular life in your previous apartment, you knew it would tear Jack apart to have to watch over Will’s research and you; to spare him any worry, you agreed to stay with the pair.

To be fair, life wasn’t so bad in the dilapidated pool building. Will and Jack respected your boundaries, and even turned one of the old changing rooms into your own personal bedroom; it didn’t go unnoticed by you how much prettier your room was than their shared one which had previously housed Beth Wilder. Every little thing the pair did for you made you love them all the more, Jack romantically, and Will as a little brother.

Despite their efforts however, it was still hard for you to think of the old building as a home instead of a hide-out. You knew you were bad at hiding your emotions, but you hoped that neither of the pair would notice quite how much you missed living a normal life. Jack of course, noticed everything where you were concerned, and that brought you to your current predicament. With Halloween coming up, Jack thought he could bring the holiday to you, since he didn’t dare take you to it; with so many costumes and chaos, it would be all too easy for Monarch to pull some kind of dirty trick he couldn’t protect you from. As such, he’d just offered you a date night, filled with all kinds of the grotesque horror films he loved so much.

He was being sweet. You knew he was, and yet you wished he would stop it and return to being his usual sardonic self; whenever he was overly sweet, you knew it was because he was worried about you and didn’t want you to catch on.

“What do you say?” Jack asked, drawing you out of your reverie.

He looked so apologetically awkward that you had to smile. How could he so suddenly switch from the slick smart-talker you knew so well to someone as insecure as Will? When Jack was being this sincere, you knew you didn’t have the heart to say no to him. Yet, you also wanted him to think you were braver than you felt, which would never happen if he saw how you were during horror films. In all the years of your friendship, you had always managed to avoid the film genre Jack loved so much, claiming horror films were far too overrated, when really you were just too scared to watch them.

Now, in the relationship you had craved for so long, Jack appeared almost bashful in offering to share this piece of himself with you.

“You know what,” Jack said at your lack of a response, “You’re probably right. Horrors are overrated anyway. We don’t have to-”

“I’d love to,” You blurted, sparing Jack any hurt feelings.

His face lit up brighter than any Jack-o-lantern ever could, evidently proud at having cheered you up. “Yeah? I’ll get the movies and meet you at the projector. It’ll be just you, me, and good ol’ Charles ‘Chucky’ Monroe.”

“Great,” You grinned, then once Jack was out of earshot, “Just perfect.”

You sat rigidly on one end of the two-seater sofa while Jack set up an old film projector so it would play the movies on the entire wall the two of you faced, like a cinema would.

“So, which do you want to start with?” He asked distractedly.

“There’s just so much choice,” You answered mechanically.

“I know, isn’t it great? How about the Grudge, or maybe Saw? I bet you can find a few things in Saw that Will would probably invent himself, if he could. God knows he hates people enough to want to torture them.”

Neither choice really appealed to you, but you didn’t want to spend the next month imagining Will as a murderous sociopath, so you opted for the Grudge, whatever that was.

Not even twenty minutes into the film and you were already terrified by the evil ghost creature that haunted the screen, or in your case the wall. Every so often you would subconsciously reach out for Jack, then snap your hand back, afraid that if you let him hold you, he would feel how badly you were trembling.

You froze at the sound of heavy footsteps, though you quickly realised they were not coming from the speakers in front of you; it had to be Will, returning from the town. He came up the stairs where you and Jack were, lugging a heavy bag of shopping onto the counter behind you.

“What’s going on here?” Will asked, dropping the bag with a thud.

“Horror night,” Jack answered curtly, annoyed by Will’s sudden arrival.

“Huh, cool. The Grudge? Good choice. Not as good as Saw though,” He said a little too wistfully. “Okay, I’m in, scooch over.”

Will forced himself between you and Jack, further cramping the two-seater.

“WILL!” Jack shouted. “WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?”

“You’re right,” Will nodded, missing the point that he wasn’t invited. “(Y/N), do you mind? There’s a chair over there small enough for you.”

“HEY! No way. (Y/N) stay, he’s gonna leave now.”

“(Y/N) stay?” Will repeated disgustedly. “(S)he’s not a dog Jack, and why do I have to go anyway? You’re the one that forgot to invite me.”

“I didn’t forget. This is a date you idiot! Get out!”

“IDIOT? At least I’m not an ingrate. You could have told me beforehand.”

“READ THE ROOM!”

“YOU KNOW I CAN’T VIBE CHECK. Then again neither can you, because you didn’t even pick a romantic horror.”

Jack threw up his arms exasperatedly, “What does that even mean?”

“Films like this are all scare. In a horror like The Boy however, there is a romantic subplot. In this essay I will-”

Jack grabbed Will in a headlock, pulling him up and dragging him to the staircase. Will flailed uselessly, trying to hit Jack’s arms. Finally, Jack pushed him away, nearly tripping him down the stairs, “Out, Will!”

Will grumbled as he stomped down the stairs, “I just came out to have a good time, and I’m honestly feeling so attacked right now.”

On his way back to you, Jack shook his head disbelievingly, “Sorry (Y/N).”

“It’s alright,” You laughed, glad that the commotion allowed you to miss around ten minutes of the on-screen horror.

“Hey, this is your first time seeing the Grudge, right?”

You nodded.

“Don’t worry then, I’ll go back so you don’t miss anything.”

Dying inside a little bit, you gave Jack a quick thumbs up. As promised, Jack rewound the film, picking up where you’d left off before Will had come back. Although you longed to isolate yourself on one side of the sofa again, Jack held up his arm for you to sit under. You smiled meekly, laying against him, somewhat comforted when his arm wrapped over your side.

You thought the film had been scary before, yet with each passing minute further horrors were introduced, each worse than the last. Jack was glad you couldn’t see his face as he held back gales of laughter at your fear of the film. More often than not, he would look down to find you squeezing your eyes shut, and gripping tightly to his thigh, barely holding back whimpers.

When the film started, he had no idea you were so scared of horrors. The idea you were petrified of a ghost story and too afraid to tell him was hilarious. You had literally survived Monarch’s terror attack by his side, yet somehow the evil work of on-screen fiction was scaring you more than previous real-life encounters.

By the end of the film, you couldn’t even look at the screen anymore. You were clinging onto Jack as if your life depended on it, burying your face against his chest to avoid looking. Finally, it was over, and although you clearly couldn’t handle another film, Jack couldn’t resist poking fun at you.

“A real masterpiece,” He said, stroking your arms. “I mean, did you see the detail when the Grudge tore that woman’s jaw off? Just a quick snap and it was gone.”

You cringed, peeking up at Jack so you didn’t have to reimagine the gore in the madness of your mind.

“And what about the part with the kid in the bathtub? That is some good film making right there. Oh, but listen to me rambling on, what was your favourite part of the film?”

You desperately wanted to continue clinging onto Jack and tell him that the only watchable part of the film was the credits which were slowly rolling onwards. Instead, you mumbled agreement about the torn jaw to shut him up. You reminded yourself how excited he had been to share this with you and managed a weak smile that didn’t reflect what you felt on the inside at all.

“I’m glad you liked it,” Jack grinned, having entirely too much fun. “So, what should we watch next? I’ll even let you choose again.”

“I couldn’t possibly,” You squeaked, your throat going dry.

“You’re right, I could see your excitement there. The clear winner is the Grudge Two.”

You shivered involuntarily. Taking the opportunity to scare you further, Jack leaned forward, blowing lightly against your neck. You screamed, jumping up from the sofa and scratting at your neck frantically. Jack fell about laughing at the sight, having the time of his life.

You couldn’t help tearing up a little bit. You weren’t usually so sensitive, but the film had drained you of any usual resilience. You folded your arms, hugging yourself quietly and as suddenly as he had started, Jack stopped laughing, though he was still smiling when he enveloped you in a strong hug.

“Sorry,” he chuckled. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“I know,” You whispered in a small voice.

“Hey, did it really scare you that badly?”

You nodded shakily, reminding Jack of when he was barely a teenager and he’d just seen his first horror film; at the time, he was so scared that he spent an hour throwing up before bed.

He stroked your arms soothingly, resting his head on top of yours. “Would a night of dog videos help?”

“Can we watch Turner and Hooch?” You mumbled.

Jack kissed the top of your head, “Every Halloween from now on.”

“Okay.”

“Alright, come on, we’ll go get Turner and Hooch.”

“And Will?” You asked, risking a smile.

Jack groaned, “Will, really?”

“He really likes Turner and Hooch.”

Jack rolled his eyes and heaved a dramatic sigh, “Fine. Will can come too, but he’s sitting on the floor.”

You giggled, “Okay, sure, we’ll see how long that lasts.”

“I mean it,” he grinned mischievously, picking you up bridal style. “He has to stay on the floor, so I can hug my beautiful partner all night long.”

You pecked Jack’s lips, thankful that he was so understanding, “I love you.”

“Happy Halloween (Y/N).”

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[princessjaqulinechess1031]

My Peeta Mellark Essay That Is About What, Five Years Late To The Party? But Here We Are, Why Peeta is The Best Male Romantic Lead I Have Ever Read

My sister is watching The Hunger Games non-stop because she finally is old enough to read the books and wanted to see the differentces between the films and book series, and I’m now being sucked back to my middle school years where my whole personality centered around explaining why The Hunger Games is the best piece of modern literature.

I also remember being the only one that thought Peeta was even a worthwhile character, because literally everyone was like ‘he’s too helpless’ or ‘he sold out the rebellion in the third book’ (because of the brainwashing) and I remember just being very confused why everyone really liked Gale ‘Let’s Murder Innocent Civillains And Not Ponder The Implications of Our Actions’ Hawthorne. Like Gale is a great character but let’s not fool ourselves into thinking he gave a damn about the civilians in the Capitol that died (“If I had a button to kill every person in the Capitol, I would push it right now. No hesitation” I believe is the actual quote he used) and tried to apply a black and while morality upon a gray world. In fairness, I think Gale Hawthorne is ultimately a good person, if a really angry person.

And I just never understood why people in my life were so against Peeta until my brother said something about Peeta being emasculated by Katniss a few days ago. Literally the first thing I thought to myself is that Peeta would not give a damn if Katniss emasculated him — Peeta doesn’t care that Katniss is physically stronger or more survival oriented than him. Peeta is just so happy that Katniss even exists on the planet that he does not care about all that.

I think what it comes down too is what Peeta represents. Peeta is not the typical romantic lead — he is strong yes, but also very emotional and comparatively more privileged than Katniss (let’s not kid ourselves — Peeta was totally better off than Katniss and Gale at the start of the series, but he was NOT living in the lap of luxury that like some people would like to believe. He may have eaten everyday, but let’s not act like it was always fresh and hot food with dessert. No, he was eating what his family bought off Katniss and Gale — which was not always guaranteed food — plus stale bread.). Most romantic leads in these novels are traditionally masculine, with strength, speed, survival skills, and an inability to be charming or charasmtic or show any emotion, and more often than not an underprivileged or oppressed person in comparison to the more well-off or less restricted female protagonist (I.e. Cassia and Ky in Matched)

Peeta blows all that out of the water. He is strong (he is in-universe a great wrestler and he won The Hunger Games alongside Katniss, even if at the end he was being helped by Katniss, Peeta killed people and even took on Cato before he teamed up with her. One does not win the Games without some bit of strength), but he is also very emotional and compassionate. He’s not stoic at all — he wears his heart on his sleeve. He lets his emotions rule him. He ignores Katniss and pouts for six months before Catching Fire starts, but then he comes to her and tries to reach out to her, saying that this is a complicated situation and that he should have been more understanding of what she was feeling and why she did what she did. It’s also never framed like he has no right to be angry — he was led to believe that Katniss, the girl he was madly in love with, wanted to be actually be with him. This wasn’t malicious on the part of Katniss (or Haymitch, because he had a hand in this too) but it still happened. He had a right to be at least a little upset.

But the fact of the matter is, at the end of the day he came back to Katniss and recognized that it was survival. She never meant to hurt him and that this is a complicated situation. He was upset, recognized why he was upset, and realized that it was not Katniss’s fault. She didn’t owe him anything. After the Games, she didn’t owe him a relationship, even if they were pretending to be a couple. He was content to just be her friend through the shit-show that would be their new post-Games lives.

Compare this to Gale, who also pouts and is upset at Katniss after the Games. He too is madly in love with Katniss and thought that Katniss had fallen in love with Peeta. I’m not saying that Gale didn’t have a right to at least be saddened by this — thinking the person your in love with is in love with someone else is a heartbreaking experience, so yes, I do think Gale had a right to at least be mildly saddened by this revelation.

But the face is that: he was angry at Katniss about this. He was angry at her for choosing survival (pretending to love Peeta) rather than dying (going out on her own). Now, Katniss could have won the Games with or without Peeta and I think arguably Peeta could have one without Katniss if Haymitch had somehow gotten medicine to him in the arena via sponsor, but the possibility of him winning alone is not the topic of discussion. Gale was angry at her for loving someone else.

Gale had believed that one day he would be Katniss’s husband. That’s an unshakable belief of mine. From literally the first time we meet him, he’s talking to her about if she ever wants kids. That is classic ‘I want to get married talk’. This was his last reaping and he was about to enter the mines. He was gearing up to ask her to marry him at some point in the year following, based on my reading of the text.

And when Katniss showed up, ‘Boyfriend’ in tow, Gale was pissed. He thought that after everything that had happened Katniss was his. Without the Games, it’s entirely possible that Katniss would have married Gale eventually, even if I think personally that she never would have had kids or gotten married if the rebellion hadn’t happened. But you can interpret a future where Katniss and Gale getting married happens based on your reading of Katniss’s character.

The Games did happen though. Katniss was unofficially betrothed to Peeta and instead of being sad but supportive because she’s being forced into something she doesn’t want but has to go through with, Gale gets angry at her. Gale straight up kisses her one day and then ignores it like nothing happened, gets angry at her for keeping up the charade with Peeta to keep her family and Gale’s family alive (because Katniss deeply loved Gale’s family as her own, you can’t deny this fact, so Snow would target them).

He wanted her. He wanted to be here. And their’s nothing inherently wrong with wanting to be with someone, but there’s something wrong when you get angry at someone for either a)loving someone else or b) doing something to keep themselves from dying.

This sounds like I’m bashing on Gale, so I do want to say that I do genuinely think that Gale is a good person. I think he wants things to be fair and just, that he wants everyone to be given a fair shake. I honestly don’t think he minds working hard, he never complains about the actual work just the quantity of it and the proportion to what the workers get in return. If he worked his ass off and got a fair shake in return, like equal treatment, safe working conditions, and actual payment that could take care of his family, I don’t think he would have a problem.

We do, however, have to compare Gale to Peeta, because within in-universe he is compared to Peeta by Katniss. So we have to talk about the two together, because they are entwined as characters. We hardly ever see them interact on page, the only time they interact one-on-one (that we get to see, as in not in Catching Fire where Gale helps them train) is in Mockingjay, where they are on the same squad.

That infamous conversation where they talk about Katniss has to be menitioned here. Gale and Peeta seem at least friendly with each other, discussing who she’ll eventually choose to be with. They eventually agree that she’ll pick who she can’t survive without.

This conversation is one of the most important from a character stand-point. From this, we learn that neither Peeta or Gale begrudge the other for loving Katniss. Why is this so important?

Because we had previously seen Gale being angry with Katniss about possible being in love with Katniss, we can glean that Gale blames Katniss for not loving him. (Which isn’t true, I firmly believe that at least before Prim’s death that a small part of Katniss honestly was in love with Gale, even if the part of her that was in love with Peeta was much larger.)

Gale is angry with Katniss for loving someone else.

At this point, I’ve talked about Gale for the last five minutes and you’re probably wondering when I’ll get to my point but I’m getting there.

So now we have to couple the fact that Gale is angry with Katniss about this with Peeta’s reaction to Katniss kissing Gale after the whipping post.

Peeta is upset, yeah, but he’s not angry with her for kissing Gale. Gale has been her best friend since forever and surely somewhere along the line Peeta had assumed that she was with Gale. When she kisses Gale, Peeta doesn’t act prissy or act like he in any way deserves her. He is her friend and a partner in this post-Games life. He doesn’t get upset with her, actually continues being her friend and visiting her in the aftermath.

Peeta is best romantic lead I have ever seen because he doesn’t care about being her romantic lead. He loves her deeply so much that all he wants is for her to be happy. Several times he seems ready to step aside if it means letting Katniss be happy.

But we have to talk about the elephant in the room.

The kids.

In the epilogue, Katniss says that after fifteen years she agrees to have kids with Peeta. Many people have interpreted this Peeta pressuring her into having them, but with the context of the series as a whole I interpret this not as a giving in but as Katniss decieding to have one too. Peeta, based on everything we know about his character, would be totally content to have a life with just Katniss, but he is also an independent person with thoughts of his own, he would have brought up that he wanted kids to Katniss. But this part of the epilogue is so quick and it’s never really explained, being the ending, so it’s fair to interpret this in a more negative light than the conclusion I came too just because we only get a recap of fifteen years pre-kids and not the scenes, so we don’t know how it went down.

At this point, you’re probably wondering what all this has to do with my middle school friends not looking Peeta and wanting Katniss with Gale. And this wall of text has probably lost it’s point at least twice at this stage of this informal essay. So, I’ll digress.

I think the fact the Peeta is the exact opposite at what we have come to expect out of our male leads. He’s mature with his feelings, kind and compassionate, more feminine, and just genuinely a nice guy. He’s not demanding love or sex from Katniss. He just wants her to be happy.

Gale is who we have been programmed to see as the male lead, strong and tough and gritty and traditionally masculine. Theirs nothing wrong with these traits inherently, being a feminine man or masculine man is not better than the other. But the fact that Gale is preferred over Peeta is I think of reflection of what he expect out of media — the ‘strong’ man gets the girl while the ‘weak’ one is alone.

Now, at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter. I’m not here to attack people for liking Katniss and Gale together as a couple or for disliking Peeta as a partner for Katniss. But after sitting here, writing this out, I can’t help but reflect on the fact that Peeta is one of my favorite characters. I really enjoyed him and reading him and watching him, and I don’t really think I can forgive him being pushed aside because he is the ‘gentle’ one.

Now, The Hunger Games is a series about politics, oppression, slavery, war ethics, the ramifications of warfare, and the effect of trauma on a personal and social level. At the end of the day, it’s not about romance or a ‘will they/won’t they’. I love this series and it forced me to look at the politics of my world with a keen eye.

But I still love Peeta Mellark and I will defend him to the end.

[moonprincess92]

One, two, three... 

Jyn is terrible at Salsa. Cassian teaches dance for a living. Bodhi ships it.

(AKA: the Salsa AU that I am 100% going to regret posting but #yolo). 

Read on AO3 

Chapter 1 

If she’d had her way, Jyn would be at home wrapped up in a blanket burrito with tea and three seasons of Victoria.

As it was, her feet were involuntarily tapping to the beat of the music that she couldn’t understand, too hot and too tired to even try and stop it. The Muddy Farmer was always a pulsing mass on a Friday night, a wave of heat that managed to sit low over the dance floor even if it was blowing a gale outside. She still didn’t understand why an Irish pub hosted a Latin dance night of all things, but there were stranger things in the world, she supposed.

“Come onnnnn,” Bodhi had practically whined earlier that evening, attempting to forcibly unroll her from her blanket burrito. “I need a partner to dance with!”

“You know I’m shite at Salsa and half the bloody class goes out to Muddy Farmer every week,” Jyn had argued right on back. “There will be someone you know there.”

“Look,” Bodhi had huffed. “You and I both know that as soon as Luke arrives you can go home.”

“Oh no,” Jyn had shaken her head. “You said that last time, only I was forced to stay because you were too chicken to ask him out for the tenth time!”

“It’s HARD, ok?”

“He literally told you he had a crush on you.” 

“…still.”

Yes, still. She still somehow ended up here, on the edges of the crowd and watching Bodhi and Luke tear up a storm across the floor. Luke Skywalker’s perfect blond hair whipped around as he span, almost blurring as Bodhi led him through the crowd. Some heads still turned at the sight, but most of the social scene was used to the two dancing by this point, not to mention that the well known masters, Baze and Chirrut, still came out every once in a while as well. The couple had been the original ones to get Bodhi into Salsa in the first place, Jyn naturally being reluctantly dragged along behind him as the dutiful best friend/roommate. 

(Sometimes life just threw you curveballs). 

She took another gulp of her beer, watching the steps, turns and dips. There was everything from beginners just learning to cross-body, to seasoned veterans who could spin no less than five times in a row. She could barely hear herself think over the live music, it thumping and rattling in her eardrums. The scent of greasy pub food hit her as the guy next to her at the bar ordered a basket of chips and she debated the merits of getting some herself versus just going home. She’d been here long enough now that she could probably get away with it, and Bodhi barely noticed anything when he was dancing.

Though the chips really did smell good…

In the end, the decision was made for her when someone accidentally stepped too close and shoved into another dancer. Chips went flying as they stumbled right into Chip Guy, nearly throwing him off his stool. Jyn debated the morality of eating the chip that had landed on her chest for a hot second or two, before deciding to go with the conscience and toss it aside so that she could offer to help him up.

“I’m so sorry!” the dancers exclaimed several times over.

“It’s fine, it’s fine,” Chip Guy insisted, somehow taking the battering with a smile. “Not the first time I’ve been danced into.”

“You all right, mate?” Jyn asked him.

He glanced over at her as the dancers went back to their partners. “I’m fine,” he insisted once more. “although I might need some help eating these now, my friend is weird about eating things off the floor.”

“Just don’t tell him, who has to know?”

He thankfully laughed a little, offering the basket up to her. Figuring it would be rude not to take one at this point, she quickly shoved a chip into her mouth, suddenly wishing that she’d actually made an effort to look decent that night, rather than stubbornly remain in her dirty jeans and t-shirt combo. The guy looked vaguely familiar, which was confirmed when he then asked her,

“I think I’ve seen you around, what’s your name again?”

“Jyn,” she said around her chips. “I’ve seen you too, I’m pretty sure.”

“I’m Cassian,” he replied. “Sorry if I’ve told you before, I’m pretty bad with names and there’s a lot of people–”

“Oh god, don’t even worry about it,” Jyn insisted. “You don’t need a name to dance so I forget everyone pretty much as soon as they introduce themselves.”

He smiled in solidarity. “I know a lot of faces, and I know a lot of names, but I’m at the point where I don’t know which name goes with which face.”

“That’s exactly it.”

“You don’t come out often, right?”

“Nah, only when the flatmate drags me,” Jyn gestured across the dance floor. “Do you know Bodhi?”

“Oh, THAT’S Bodhi!” Cassian said, face lighting up in recognition. “I’ve actually spoken to him several times! Good guy, although I had no idea what his name was until now.”

Jyn found herself wanting to laugh a little, which was clearly the strangest sensation she could ever feel on a Friday night when she should be at home alone with her historical dramas. She certainly knew of Cassian before now, even if she hadn’t ever properly spoken to him before. He was apparently from Mexico, he was pretty damn cute and he was insanely good at Salsa. She had danced with him a couple times as they’d all switched partners during the classes that Bodhi had forced her to do with him, and she could remember the way he had shaken her hands, claiming that she was way too tense, and how he had taught her how to switch the tension to her arms so that her frame stayed locked and easy to lead. He had been easy to chat to and easily her favourite to dance with…

But the thing with favourites is that she wasn’t the only one. Cassian insisted on her continuing to help him eat the contaminated chips and she noticed the eyes from across the pub, people wondering and craning heads, trying to figure out who she was and why she was the one who got to sit and eat with Cassian the Infamously Amazing Dancer. She tried to focus on what she was saying, answering her question of what she did as a job, instead of acknowledging Bodhi who was practically hollering at Luke at the sight.

“It’s not that interesting,” she tore her eyes away. “but I’ve got good work colleagues so it’s not too bad.”

“Are you kidding? It’s so cool you work in a police station!”

“Admin doesn’t solve murders, remember?” she said.

“Still,” Cassian pointed out. “You’re Gina from Brooklyn Nine-Nine.”

Jyn nearly choked on her chip.

“I don’t – I don’t think I’m quite like Gina,” she coughed. “Although to be fair, she is an inspiration to all.”

“I love that show.”

“Me too,” Damn it, she was smiling too much. Their basket of chips was nearly empty now as she asked, “So what’s your job?”

“I teach dance.”

“Never would have guessed that,” Jyn said, dryly.

Cassian laughed (god, he was cute when he laughed). “Not just Salsa, other styles too,” he added. “I actually mostly teach kids classes, although sometimes I help out with the adult ones if there’s an instructor away or an uneven amount of people or something.”

“I bet there are kids even better at dancing than I am.”

“There are some kids better than me,” Cassian pointed out. “Still… I think we demolished these chips, by the way.”

She glanced down at them. “Oh, definitely. Your friend won’t be pissed we ate them all?”

“He’ll be pissed, he’ll get over it. Want to dance?”

“Oh–” Fucking shit. He was holding out his hand and jumping down from his bar stool and suddenly she wished she hadn’t eaten quite so much. “but we just ate–”

“We’ll burn off the calories.”

“I’m honestly shit at Salsa, like I could barely keep up with the beginners class–”

“If I do my job and lead you properly, then you’ll be fine I promise.”

Jyn reluctantly slid off her stool. “And if you fuck up?”

Cassian smiled. 

“I’ll buy you a drink to go with the chips.”

She… couldn’t argue that.

So despite her better judgement, she ended up taking his hand and following him to a relatively spare space within the dance floor. She hoped to god that Bodhi wasn’t still witnessing this because she would no doubt never hear the end of it, although it was kind of the least of her worries. There were too many things cycling through her head to pay attention to much else. She prayed that she didn’t fuck up her ankles in these heels, she hoped that no one accidentally stood on her or that she didn’t crash into anyone. Hell, she begged to all the primordial forces out there that she didn’t just fuck up in general.

At least the basic step she could do.

Cassian held her hands as she concentrated on getting the beat right – 1-2-3, 5,6,7 – and she could feel the sweat starting to gather at her hairline already. She practically held her breath during the first turn and he shook his head once she was back facing him once more.

“I can practically feel the anxiety coming off you,” he pointed out.

It was always hard to talk on the dance floor, what with the cacophony of the live band, people talking, glasses clinking and bar stools scraping. However, Cassian had made the effort to yell over it all and so she felt compelled to reply.

“That is a skill I am proud of, I’ll have you know,” she yelled back.

He just snorted. Instead of stepping forward he stepped back on the next bar, moving them through an open break turn and not even pausing before swapping their hands and leading her through a cross-body turn. “See?” he pointed out once she had thankfully not keeled over. “It comes naturally, you can do it!”

Ok, maybe a part of her knew it.

She knew she wasn’t absolutely completely fucking terrible, as she was determined to make it seem. She wasn't great either, but after a few of the beginners classes she had found herself picking up the rhythm. She struggled with anything fast, but eventually learned how to make her steps smaller and tighter. She wasn't bad…it was just hard to not compare herself when she was fully aware of the fact that she was currently partnered with an actual goddamn dance teacher. He moved into a close hold, hand curving up to rest between her shoulder blades as he swept her around and she tried to ignore the heartbeat currently slamming in her throat. This was supposed to be fun. She was supposed to be swept up into the music, uncaring of those around her, just moving and feeling. She could be fun, goddamn it! She supposed the tension in her arms was good at least for something as he continued to lead her this way and then that, changing the line depending on the crowd. With so many people, it was impossible to not stand on someone occasionally. She ended up half gasping, half laughing when Cassian lead her in a cross-body turn and she ended up slamming right into someone she recognised from Bodhi’s dance classes.  

“Oh, shit!” she mouthed to Cassian once the initial apologies were over.

“You ok?”

“I am,” she answered. “I don’t think my shoes are. Shit, do I actually have a dent in it?”

They took a moment to pause and glance down at where the other woman had literally stomped down on the back of her heel. Sure enough, running her fingers over the dance shoes that she had bought second hand online she could feel a dip. She grabbed his hand without thinking to ensure that he could feel it too, and she gripped his arm to keep her balance as she stood up on one foot.

“You have battle wounds now,” he teased.

“I guess so–”

She hastily cut herself off as the latest song apparently finished and her yelling was suddenly much louder as the music faded. The crowd cheered and they both clapped politely, several people leaving the dance floor, others coming to join. It was a mass of movement and Jyn hovered awkwardly for a moment, unsure of what she was supposed to do now. Etiquette said that they should thank each other for the dance before going and finding someone else, but some weird part of her knew a fucking vibe when it saw it, and wasn’t denying that it wanted to stay. For a wild moment it looked like he wanted to stay too, but unfortunately the next song that was strung up sounded off, and it took her several moments to click.

“Oh,” she screwed up her face. “this isn’t Salsa anymore, is it?”

“No, this is Bachata,” Cassian nodded.

“Christ,” she sighed. “I don’t know how to Bachata at all.”

“Do you know the basic step?”

Jyn cringed at the memory of the one Bachata dance she had attempted, the last time she had been dragged out social dancing alongside Bodhi. Thank god it had been with him. If it had been with anyone else she might have died of mortification, but remembering how she had awkwardly attempted to move her hips the right way made her want to throw up a little.

“It’s 1-2-3-hip or something, right? Or is it a tap, I can’t remember–”

“It just depends on which style you’re using, but honestly,” Cassian shrugged, tugging on her hands once more. “Just move your body, and you’ll be great.”

He started moving then as if to prove his point in the basic side to side motion that Jyn had to actively think about in order not to mess up. All around them, couples were already pressing up against each other’s bodies, rolling and grinding. Jyn was pretty sure that wasn’t the traditional Bachata, but then again much of her internal meltdown was probably because she was certain her hips just simply didn’t not move that way. She didn’t even realise how much she was glancing around anxiously until she caught Bodhi’s eye only several couples away. Now dancing with a girl that she recognised from classes with long brown braids, he mouthed at her in astonishment,

“WHAT THE FUCK?” 

“I DON’T KNOW.”

“THAT’S CASSIAN!”

Thanks, mate. She had no idea.

She was pulled away from the non-verbal conversation when Cassian lead her into what was probably one of the most simplest turns she’d ever had to do and yet she still somehow managed to botch it. Stepping with the wrong foot, she ended up on the wrong timing and exclaimed in frustration,

“Sorry! I told you I don’t know what I’m doing!” 

He stopped them. For a moment her heart pounded, sure he was about to politely call it quits and send her packing across the dance floor so that he could sweep up some other woman into his arms… except instead, he steadied her with his hands sliding down to her hips.

“You think you’re terrible, fine,” he started to grin. “Crash course in Bachata.” 

He started counting. His hands moved her hips with the beat of the song and shit, if she had blood, it was currently rushing to her face. Was anyone watching this? Another quick glance around however showed her that Bodhi had apparently already moved on and was now totally absorbed in having fun dancing with his friend and that literally no one else gave a shit. While a little disappointing to know no one cared, it was also admittedly… liberating to know that she could thrust her hips as awkwardly as she liked and no one would make fun of her for it. It took a while, but soon they were adding in the footwork and then her hands were being picked up again, the two of them finally having found their rhythm.  

“That’s it!” he said, happily.

She wasn’t quite sure how the knot in her throat managed to dissipate (and to be honest, she didn’t think it was going to entirely go away) but she did feel a hell of a lot better than when she had first stepped out onto the dance floor, and that said something. This time when Cassian led her in a turn, her feet automatically kept up the rhythm and she found herself with her back to him, arms crossed in front of her as he kept a hold of her hands. 1-2-3-tap, 1-2-3-tap…

It was slower than Salsa, which helped, not to mention less spinning like a top and more turning within his arms. When she was eventually brought back around to face him, he span himself before moving in and bringing her into a close hold. Jesus Christ. This close, their legs overlapped to avoid their knees banging into each other, and it may or may not have been causing a slight heart attack, she still wasn’t sure. They moved in a 360, around and around until she was let go and allowed to breathe again.

Maybe it was her mind just wrecking havoc inside her, but it almost felt lighter inside the pub now. She supposed it was the atmosphere of connecting with the person in front of you and tuning out the rest, or at least it was certainly hard to concentrate on anything else. She could imagine that drink Cassian had promised her, imagine that they danced together every weekend, that his hands sliding against her hips were familiar to her and that the chest she was pressed against was always warm and solid. She felt like she could let go and just fucking dance, and she wondered whether maybe he could feel it too. She was pulled into his body once more, his arms lifting hers up before his fingertips traced back down her sides. She slung her arms around his neck, her body settled firmly on his thigh. After a moment he bent her back so that she swung around, Jyn letting her head tilt back so that she could see the ceiling of the pub and the ends of her hair brushed against his arms. Pulled back up, she smiled into his shoulder.

He must have recognised the song enough to know when the end was coming. After feeling his leg sliding between hers, after swinging her hips in time with his, he eventually turned her around and with her back pressed to this chest, brought each of her arms up and over his head. Leaning to the side to see her, Jyn realised that he had ended their dance with perfect timing, left standing with their noses inches from each other, hands still clutched in his behind his head as they struggled to breathe. Jyn might have ignored all the polite claps and cheers for the band, might have even had the guts to say a giant fuck it in her head before closing the distance between them –

– when suddenly, her phone started buzzing in her pocket.

“Oh – shit, I’m sorry–” She pulled away and he hastily snatched back his hands, taking a step back. One glance at the caller made her stomach sink. “Fuck – I have to answer this – but thank you for the dance and the chips, it was really good! The dance, I mean, the chips too but the dance was – fuckity fuck–”

She made for the exit before she could glance back and see what was no doubt utter bemusement left on Cassian’s face. She hit answer on the way, finally speaking once she was outside the pub and out on the cold city street.

“Hey, Papa,” she said, wrapping her spare arm around her like it could retain the heat of the dance floor. “what’s up?”

“Jyn! My darling daughter–”

“Yeah, yeah,” Despite her slight disappointment, she smiled a little at hearing her father’s voice. She also heard rustling and clicking, along with Galen cursing under his breath every now and then.

“You aren’t busy, are you?” he asked. “I know it's kind of late, I can call back later or tomorrow even–”

“Nah, it’s fine, I’m just out with Bodhi,” Jyn immediately said. “How are you?”

“Oh, I’m grand – got the new T.V. finally!”

“The T.V. you’ve been meaning to buy ever since it went on sale two months ago, you mean?” Jyn teased.

“Har, har, you know how I am with crowds,” her dad scoffed. “I’m just trying to connect it now, but turns out it’s harder than I thought. There’s so many damn cords and – shite – I’m no good at this sort of thing at all! Technology was all your mother’s territory–”

She just knew what it must be like, her dad sat in the middle of a pile of cables, pretending to be ok with the fact that he didn’t have a wife to help him with this kind of thing anymore. He had been doing reasonably ok since the funeral – or rather as ok as anyone would have expected him to be – but he still called every day and there were still moments Jyn knew he was really only calling because he needed to have her near, rather than because he actually needed her help. She closed her eyes a moment, making the decision before her mind could consciously think about it.

“You’re terrible, Papa. Need me to come help?”

“You wouldn’t help an old man, would you?”

“I’ll be there soon,” she told him.

She hung up quickly so that she could give Bodhi a call to explain. He eventually picked up in the bathroom, still not entirely quiet, but at least able to hear what he was saying. “I gotta go help my dad,” she explained. “You all right if I leave?”

“I’m totally fine – are you, though?”

“Oh, you know,” she let out a long breath. “I think I might have to take up Bachata lessons again, mate.”

“I fucking saw you dancing with Cassian, SHIT, Jyn!” She could just imagine Bodhi practically hopping up and down in glee.

She smiled despite herself.

“Shit sounds about right.”

[comicteaparty]

June 3rd-June 9th, 2019 CTP Archive

The archive for the Comic Tea Party week long chat that occurred from June 3rd, 2019 to June 9th, 2019.  The chat focused on Galebound by Respheal.

Featured Comment:

Chat:

RebelVampire

COMIC TEA PARTY- WEEK LONG BOOK CLUB START!

Hello and welcome everyone to Comic Tea Party’s Week Long Book Club~! This week we’ll be focusing on Galebound by Respheal~! (http://www.galebound.com/)

You are free to read and comment about the comic all week at your own pace, so stop on by whenever it suits your schedule! Remember, though, that while we allow constructive criticism, our focus is to have fun and appreciate the comic. Below you will find four questions to get you started on the discussion. However, a new question will be posted and pinned everyday (between 12:01AM and 6AM PDT), so keep checking back for more! You have until June 9th to tell us all your wonderful thoughts! With that established, let’s get going on the reading and the chatting!

QUESTION 1. What has been your favorite scene in the comic so far? What specifically did you like about it?

QUESTION 2. Why and how do you think Conan has some of his own memories sealed? What did Altiria see that caused them such distress? How does this factor in to why Altiria thinks Din’s plans won’t pan out?

Respheal

In Altiria and Conan's defense, Din's plans fall to pieces if a butterfly crosses his path unexpectedly

RebelVampire

I accept the canon that Din can be tripped by butterflies

RebelVampire

I also accept a canon where Din starts yelling at the butterfly that it's 5 seconds too early and totally off schedule

Respheal

Yes

RebelVampire

Crack theory for #2: Conan was Felix all along. He doesn't know cause of the memories being sealed. and as Din befriends Conan, he will be torn between killing the friend hed come to love and the enemy he hates most in the world.

MJ Massey

Maybe the real Felix was inside us all along

RebelVampire

sorry Din, you've got felix germs inside you

1) the scene where Pascal shows up on the bridge to fight them. The look on everyone's faces is too priceless. And then everyone gets to have a nice chat and we get to see Pascal is just a great boy whose murder pants were a little too tight. 2) The memories are probably sealed for his own protection by someone who loves him. Cause why would anybody want to have to remember Felix? Altiria probably saw that Conan was the one true nobleman who was set to conquer them all. And that Din can't backstab conan so easily because of that.

Kabocha

MY FAVORITE SCENE! Is that one where Conan drowns after Alty tries to take him as a bri--- Wait that wasn't canon? Dammit, Conan! Realistically, though, I think it's currently the one here, starting at the end of Page 151: http://www.galebound.com/comics/2783990/151/ There's just.... a lot of weight. Pascal wakes up, and instead of really freaking out about nearly dying, he comforts his brother. You can learn a lot about Din and Pascal's relationship from these panels alone, and it's... something. (To me, it reads as Pascal being the one who buries a lot of his emotions - he never got a chance to really expect much out of life as a magician, before Din did what he did...)

Kabocha

Why does Conan have memories sealed... For... plot... reasons. You know, maybe Alty saw Conan's parents doing something. Maybe his parents are old enough to have been involved in the War of the Blind Kings--- What's that you say? No? :'D But on a serious note, one must wonder if Conan did something that necessitated his memories being sealed. A birth secret, perhaps? Maybe Conan's actually a part of the Gale that someone stole and put in a human body to learn the suffering of those under the system, to help give agency and consciousness to the arbiter of the Obligation. ...Hm. (Because right now, the Gale just... exists.) Alty, being a daemon, wouldn't like this naturally, right? If Conan's part of the Gale, she has a vested interest in making sure he returns to the cycle as he is. Anyway, Altiria's just expecting Din to get so judgemental that he misses everything going on in front of him. It nearly happened already with Pascal.... Rather than explaining things, he expected Conan to be another nobleman, and simply just hoped he could take care of things.

tl;dr: Conan ain't human, Din doesn't learn from his mistakes

Respheal

Hahaha that also addresses the question of why Alty didn't just tell Din (Communication, what's that?). Something that wild....Din wouldn't believe it even if (or perhaps especially if) Altiria just told him

Some things you gotta see for yourself xD

Or maybe they just wanna see Din faceplant

Kabocha

Well, that, and if Conan's even a fragment of the Gale, then that leaves him open to manipulation by magicians... Conan: I give command Din: I follow command.... BY USING YOU Conan: noes

Respheal

>:D(edited)

Kabocha

Also for the title, it makes sense? The Gale is bound....

Jo Michelle

Oh gosh, the end of Chap 5. YES. I was trying to figure out my favorite scene, but that would totally be it.

RebelVampire

tbf altiria could just believe both. that din wouldnt believe her and that she loves the idea of din faceplanting

Jo Michelle

Wait. If Con is Felix with the memories locked away, then, Conan's like "nice Light" in that section of Death Note SPOILERwhere he forgets about the book and is genuinely helping the police....END SPOILER ..... Oh no. Felix. What trap have you set for the world as soon as you get your memories back? This actually works well with my "Conan turns into a sociopath" theory..... jess sayin'

RebelVampire

i like this twist

that its cause felix has an awful plan in store

Kabocha

I dunno, I'm personally a fan of Conan being the Gale in human form.

Jo Michelle

Maybe he is, and he's also lost his memory of that?

RebelVampire

he can be both

Jo Michelle

He's the "power of the hurricane?"

https://genius.com/Frank-wildhorn-jack-murphy-and-ivan-menchell-hurricane-lyrics(edited)

That was a REAL reach there.... but, lyrics from the Death Note musical, sung by Light.

Don't underestimate my ability to reference three different things at once, and make a crack theory for Gb.

RebelVampire

Felix realized he was a part of the Gale but that the time was not right for the Shadowlord. So he sealed his memories, de-aged, and became Conan so that once the seal broke, it would be time to become the Shadowlord, merge with the Gale, and bring true destruction upon this land.

Kabocha

Bwahahahaha! The Dusk is an unjust land. The Gale can end it all peacefully with the power of the Shadowlord. It all comes tumbling down, tumbling down, tumbling down~

Respheal

To reference a crack theory from the GB server, if Din is destined to become the Shadowlord, I love the idea of Conan being the Gale

I'm a sucker for that sort of dichotomy

Kabocha

You say "Crack theory," I say "I've seen this before"

Jo Michelle

well, then, I feel obligated to copy/paste these lyrics:

I'll bring the rain

I'll bring the wind

I am the mighty hurricane

The human stains

And all their sins

Blown away

I'll bring the pain

So be afraid

I will bring the power of the hurricane

Conan's new life song?

Respheal

>:D

MJ Massey

I stan Conan as a Gale piece

MJ Massey

that would explain why he has no memories

maybe he's not Conan at all

Respheal

Okay before I gotta get to work I'll answer the questions, too because why not 1. Favorite scene....I tend to like scenes where the onion layers of a character get peeled back a bit and you get to see who they really are. For...well, kind of both Conan and Din, this is after the Pascal Incident™, when the dust is settling and the shock starts to wear off. We see Din as he is, a broken and terrified man stuck in an unfair and cruel system, backed into a corner. Conan, a young man thrown in a situation way out of his depth, but also a dutiful person willing to admit and correct his mistakes.

RebelVampire

#ConanDidNothingWrong

Respheal

http://www.galebound.com/comics/2681466/125/ http://www.galebound.com/comics/2683677/126/ <- these two pages specifically(edited)

Well not knowingly xD

......I'm going to avoid answering question 2 because my powers of bullshittery are weak and of course I know the real answer But Conan being the Gale.....well, trapping something that powerful in a human body would probably wreck havoc on that person....Wiping that person's memories as a result is plausible (edited)

RebelVampire

the real answer to number 2 is that Altiria realized that the entire comic is just a DnD campaign cause they were able to see the real life person who is controlling Conan. and they saw Conan's stat sheet, compared it to Din's, and realized Din got shitty rolls. cause Altiria is controlled by the DM.

Kabocha

But Alty's comparing a Magician to a Nobleman... Noblemen generally have a pretty good charisma modifier

RebelVampire

i feel sort of bad im the only one who picked a not super sad scene

im sorry for choosing to be happy everyone

Jo Michelle

I think you're in the wrong webcomic if you want happy....

SPOILER What did Altiria see that caused them such distress? END SPOILER

Okay. Here's what I think. Alty discovered that Conan's already signed a contract with Ursula, and they're like, mortal enemies with her.

Respheal

SURE

Jo Michelle

Instead of losing his voice, he's lost his memories until he can make Din fall in love with him.

And we all know.... that's never gonna happen.

RebelVampire

you lost be at din

this does not suit my conan/pascal ship

Jo Michelle

But, see, if he had his memories, all he'd need to do was tell Din to, since he's still got his voice.

no, see, this is why Con's doomed to fail.

Since, we all know that would never happen.

And when Ursula gave him the contract, she's like, "see, I even left you your voice to use as a Nobleman."

Respheal

> Contract Confirmed, Conan is a Warlock

.....or a Magical Girl

Jo Michelle

A MG who's doomed to fail.

Because, of course he is.

Kabocha

...Conan is Homura?

Jo Michelle

That doesn't feel quite right as a fit.....

Okay, but which ever one he is, his transformation into the Gale or Shadowlord will be when he gives into despair, and realizes his hopes were doomed from the beginning.

MJ Massey

why not both a warlock AND a magical girl. two times the tragedy

Respheal

>:D

I am okay with this

Kabocha

Everyone is doomed

Sarai

ok there have been a lot of great scenes in Galebound so far, but i think the one that always jumps out to me is where I first jumped into the comic, when Pascal snuck into the Inn during the dark hour

For me, that scene is what shifted my opinion from "oh this is neat i wonder what happens next" to "DANG SON THIS AUTHOR MEANS BUSINESS"

MJ Massey

I think that's my favorite scene too

Sarai

also i think i found it on a thursday or something, because by the time i caught up there was a new page Din in all his yellow magician-y glory, and Pascal in the middle of a swear XD

Jo Michelle

"You kiss your momma with that mouth?" Oh, yeah. She's dead. Never mind.

Respheal

That wouldn't stop Din from threatening Pascal with soap

MJ Massey

it's more like "would you kiss ME with that mouth? how dare...!"

Jo Michelle

oh that's just weird.

MJ Massey

that Din expects brother kisses?

Jo Michelle

I feel like Din is definitely one of those "do as I say not as I do" parenting styles.

RebelVampire

Din: Don't sell out magician children to the Nobleman. Pascal: But- Din: Do as I say, not as I do!

Kabocha

"You can't seize the means of production without being NEAR the means of production!"

Sarai

oh shoot i realized i never answered the second question

as far as theories go, i don't really have any I haven't been given enough information to really form an idea other than conan's dad leaving, him getting sick, and then his memories disappearing, are all connected somehow

OTHER THAN THAT i'm just along for the ride

Jo Michelle

Oh, they're connected. Felix definitely poisoned him.

A side affect was losing his memory.(edited)

Sarai

o-oh.....ok

But why tho

Jo Michelle

Does Felix need a reason? Other than he's Felix?

Sarai

you got me there

I was thinking it was something magic-related, not necessarily a mundane childhood illness or someone else's doing

Jo Michelle

He used a magical potion.

Sarai

but really, all i know for sure is that i'm young, dumb, and a complete sucker for sick fics

Jo Michelle

A memory destroying potion. Getting sick was the side affect.

Sarai

or sick cannon, as it be

Jo Michelle

He needed to destroy his memory, since Conan knew ...... something.....

give me a minute.

Sarai

he walked in on felix SPOILER getting pollinated by a flower daemon END SPOILER

HE SAW TOO MUCH

Jo Michelle

That'll give anyone an automatic sickness and memory loss.

Sarai

maybe that's why altiria was so mad

Jo Michelle

But, for real..... I think Conan knew something about a BIG baddie's plan, and Felix gave him a memory blocking potion.

Note, for real should have been written "for real" ..... since I know things. :puffer:

Sarai

oh yeah, i forgot you weren't a lowly pleb like me XD

Jo Michelle

:puffer:

Sarai

you patreon people with your fancy spoiler privileges and early scripts

Jo Michelle

For real though, I actually don't know why or exactly how he lost his memory. I have guesses, but nothing's confirmed.

So I'm going with memory potion.

And he knows SOMETHING big. I'll bet that's why Alty freaked out too.

HE KNOWS A THING THAT MUST NOT BE SHARED.

Respheal

This is true, even patrons don't have the exact details yet

Muahahahaha >:3c

Jo Michelle

I'll bet it's the secret to bringing down the Gale, but that would also destroy the world.

And Alty's like "nope. No way."

"Your memory's a ticking time bomb."

Sarai

I'm assuming.....we'll be revisiting that moment from childhood at some point, right?

Respheal

I do sometimes describe Conan as SPOILER a time bomb END SPOILER ....

Uhhhhhhh

Probably not in full flashback form unfortunately

Jo Michelle

I'm RIGHT. My theory is now confirmed.

Conan has a secret hidden in his childhood memories that could destroy the world. And Alty figured it was better to make sure it's never revealed.

Respheal

"Not again"

Is a thing Alty yelled

Jo Michelle

Wait. WHAT?

Mahotou

http://www.galebound.com/comics/2529569/086/(edited)

Jo Michelle

.........

Mahotou

c:

Jo Michelle

I have no idea what to make of this.

Mahotou

i have fears

Respheal

:3c

Mahotou

c,:

Jo Michelle

Well. I'm just gonna assume Felix managed to do something REALLY horrible to the dang ocean and Conan knows how he did it, if he'd only remember.

When in doubt, I always blame Felix.

It's worked so far.

Respheal

That's fair

Sarai

one fear

Jo Michelle

To be fair, if something destroyed the ocean, that would definitely hurt the Dusk, sooooooo RIP Conan. The world needs its ocean more than another Nobleman. Sorry. No hard feelings?

AND. Felix, after nearly destroying the ocean went off to face the Gale, and ....... well...... he's had a bit of a revolving life ever since.... :puffer:

I lied. Felix didn't administer the memory potion. It was Conan's mom. To protect the world.

Felix was happy to have his son learn how to wreck havoc and destruction on the planet.

Sarai

i know we've slandered her before but it always feels so wrong

Jo Michelle

I'm not slandering Conan's mom. Just saying she made a hard choice between her son's memory, and the world.

Felix is the one who made her have to make such a choice.

Still totally his fault. He just left her to deal with the aftermath when he left to take on the Gale.

Kabocha

You know how I said Conan is the Gale? Maybe people tried this before. What could a lone nobleman with a daemon fragment inside him do... ...enrage Alty, that's what.

Jo Michelle

WAIT. Was that what happened when he got sick?

Felix was inserting a daemon into him?

Respheal

Having a literal hurricane stuffed into a child's body would probably have that effect(edited)

Jo Michelle

In the eye of a hurricane

There is quiet

For just a moment

A yellow sky

I was twelve when my mother died

She was holding me

We were sick and she was holding me

I couldn’t seem to die

I couldn't resist

Kabocha

What daemon hell has Felix wrought...?!

Respheal

Oh

Oh that song

Mahotou

Is felix systematically destroying the world one element at a time? Ocean, Gale, .. what next. Fire?(edited)

Respheal

Oh shit Conan was twelve at the time(edited)

Kabocha

I mean

Jo Michelle

Wait. WHAT?

I thought he was like, 7 or 8

Respheal

No that's when Felix left xD(edited)

Kabocha

@Mahotou if he's taking the elements... ...then. that explains where his heart went

Is he trying to make captain planet

Mahotou

negative captain planet

reverse captain planet

Kabocha

He wants to start dusk on a rotation

Mahotou

If i change the gale, i can get the world spinning

Kabocha

He's getting captain planet to make all of dusk habitable

Although everyone will freak out at their newfound nights...

Mahotou

#SAVETHEPLANET

D:!?

WHAT A TWIST

FELIX IS UPSETTING THE WORLD TO SAVE IT

Respheal

Irony (edited)

Kabocha

Gotta crack some eggs to make a cake

Jo Michelle

Eh. That's just cause his mom told him one time that he couldn't live in the Shadow or the Galelands.

And he doesn't like being told "no"

Mahotou

aaaand we're back to the normal slander. ;D

Kabocha

No, Felix's DAD told him no

Jo Michelle

Sure.

Kabocha

Felix has daddy issues, because his dad disappeared for years....

Mahotou

we haven't talked much about Conan's grandparents. makes me think about them now lol

Jo Michelle

It's a whole legacy of being horrible fathers.

I mean, they ARE Noblemen.

Mahotou

and then what of the mom's side. how was she raised?

Kabocha

His father had a reason though: international business

Jo Michelle

Oh. I see. One of those guys who destroy some other country for cheap labor. Yep. Sounds like a Nobleman.(edited)

Kabocha

She was arranged in that marriage

Jo Michelle

Oh, yeah. She didn't have a choice.

Sarai

heck even in non magical families abuse gets handed down through the generations - i wouldn't be surprised if Felix had an equally bad relationship with one or both of his parents

Kabocha

Oh, she might have had a choice

Jo Michelle

What, you think anyone would choose to marry Felix?

Kabocha

It might have been to improve her own circumstances... Or because Evenheim was closer to Cymaria... Or.... [Makes up bullshit about Felix's parents]

Oh, I was talking about Felix's mom

Not his wife

Jo Michelle

Oh, I thought we were talking about Conan's mom.

Mahotou

@Jo Michelle only if he's ... some how... not Felix?

xD

OH me too i thought we were talking about conan's mom too(edited)

Jo Michelle

I stand by the "some parent or person forced her to marry Felix" theory.

Kabocha

But what if she LIKED Felix

Respheal

gasp

Jo Michelle

What, LIKE Felix?!?

Mahotou

SLANDER?

Kabocha

Alternatively, she could be like... Charlotte Lucas, who married, but arranged Mr. Collins' day so he was out of the way...

Jo Michelle

You realize that if she actually cared about Felix, him leaving would be even more painful. I prefer to think of it as a relief to her.

She got a happy few years with her son and no Felix.

Kabocha

Maybe she liked the idea of Felix, but he was actually really annoying and overbearing

Felix wanted a life in the clergy

Jo Michelle

Oh, I'm sure he was super annoying and overbearing.

Sarai

don't forget neurotic

Everything had to be done just so

Jo Michelle

Oh yeah. She had to do it exactly the way he said.

Sarai

"no conan, you can't plant the lettuce 2 inches apart they must be 2 1/2"

Jo Michelle

"yes papa."

-Get's measuring tape from house to make sure-

See? Why would anyone marry that out of choice?

Definitely an arranged marriage. Or something like it.

Sarai

wait res, how many years ago did felix and celia get married

Kabocha

I hope we don't run into anyone worse than Felix

Respheal

Uhhhhhhh

24 I think

Yeah

Sarai

ok so not marriage of convenience then

Jo Michelle

:puffer:

Sarai

just running through all our options here

Kabocha

In this week's chat: All the Felix hate

Jo Michelle

And @RebelVampire isn't even here to defend the jerk.

Mahotou

There s so much slander happening lol

Respheal

Mostly about Felix xD Which is....fair....Based on what we know so far of him, surely he isn't up to anything good

Darkhalo4321

Hey

Felix is a good dad deep down i am sure...

i refuse to believe otherwise

Jo Michelle

Oh, yeah. Leave his kid to plant and morn his mom alone. But he's a good dad deep down, so it's all good. It's all good.

Kabocha

He had neighbors

Darkhalo4321

He was in good hands.

Sometimes a good dad lets better people raise their kids.

keii4ii

I'm walking in and am somewhat confused by the whole room just BURNIN' with Felix hate

insert 'pizza guy walks into a room on fire' gif

Respheal

Keiiii

Felix is just a very polarizing character.....for someone who hasn't actually shown up yet lol

keii4ii

Dedicating the following emoji to Felix tonight:

keii4ii

I bet some of the characters would approve of the Felix hate though

RebelVampire

Felix is gonna turn out to be a great dude and @Jo Michelle is gonna eat a hat out of frustration when that happens

im saving all my felix propaganda for the felix question thats later in the week O_O

Kabocha

Hahaha!

The basis of Felix hate really hinges on two pages

http://www.galebound.com/comics/2432399/059/ And http://www.galebound.com/comics/2674968/123/

http://www.galebound.com/comics/2683677/126/ this page also maybe helps, but I don't trust Din to see things well under duress

keii4ii

^ Same (No offense, Din.)

RebelVampire

you couldve left that at "I don't trust Din"

that's all that needs to be said

RebelVampire

QUESTION 3. At the moment, who is your favorite character? What about that character earns them this favor?

QUESTION 4. What do you think will happen once Din and Conan reach Cymaria? Will Din’s plans unravel, or will the two manage to slay the queen? What will be the consequences of either path?

RebelVampire

3) Felix who is the best character who is trying to save the world. It's definitely not Pascal. It's not like Pascal is the best dresser and basically is the dude that gets the short end of the stick throughout the comic. Not to mention Pascal definitely isn't just adorable or anything. Plus, Pascal isn't even the most reasonable of the characters who is filled with surprises yet just wants everone to be alive and happy for his parties. 4) Everyone will sit down for tea. Realistically? Din's plans will fall apart because of whatever reasons Alty knows. Plus, I think Din overestimates his skills as a magician and underestimates the difficulty in killing a monarch, not to mention a nobleman. and thus Conan and Din will be in jail or wanted men or something. And then Pascal will become an accomplice and they'll all flee Cymaria trying to outrun their wanted posters and searching for Felix to punch him in the face. So ya know, Galebound will just be the most epic fantasy road trip, maybe with bank robberies. Honestly, does anyone actually think Din is going to succeed? I feel there isn't anyone who has faith in him.

Jo Michelle

I was called OUT last night.(edited)

Fave Character? Definitely Pascal. Most intriguing character, as in, onion layers of emotion I'm anticipating seeing stripped away? Din.

Reach Cymaria? Oooohhh, that's a good question. I think the queen is secretly super evil, and actually working for scary grin lady in the prologue. But she's also super smooth talking and smart, and will trick Conan into listening to her, poor sap that he is, and get him to turn on Din. MAYBE, Conan will even start to think he's falling in love with her – but then find out she's been using him, and make him even more upset, when he realizes he almost cheated on Lucie for this person.

RebelVampire

Lucie couldve been Conan's mistress at least.

Jo Michelle

OH no. I don't see her being okay with such an arrangement.

RebelVampire

tbf we havent met the real lucie yet. maybe shes secretly a gold digger who knew conan was a prince all along and just wanted that sweet evenheim gold

Jo Michelle

Hum. That's a good point.

And I already said what I think of Conan's judgment with women, so I guess I can't fall back on "but Conan wouldn't have loved her if she wasn't good."

Okay. Point made. Fine.

RebelVampire

the one good thing din did for conan

saved him from proposing to the wrong girl

Jo Michelle

Re: Felix is a Good Dude: I'm just using the Sirius test:

Sirius shook his head and said, “She’s got the measure of Crouch better than you have, Ron. If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”

.... You want to know the measure of a Nobleman? Ask a Magician.(edited)

There's no reason to hide your true nature from a person who has to do literally whatever you tell them to.

RebelVampire

but the only magician we can ask is din and din is a biased source who is basing his hatred on info that is years out of date

Jo Michelle

Eh. How an adult treated you as a child is not a bad estimate either.

I'm not saying he couldn't have changed. Just that I'm gonna have to see some darn good evidence of that change.

In Din's case, he was in the inferior position as both a Magician and a child.

To be fair, full disclosure – I don't think Felix is the worst person ever. Heck, he might be pretty typical of Noblemen. I mean, his treatment of Din could be totally normal. But that doesn't make it any better, or excuse him one bit.(edited)

RebelVampire

thats fair. i more think its better to assume neutrality and give benefit of the doubt that he isnt the same person. which gives room also for him to be far worse too, but hey gives him a chance

i will point out though that conan barely didnt anything wrong on purpose and din hated him on principle

din is himself not the best person XD

Jo Michelle

Din is what Felix made him.

Felix, and others.

Din was a lost, confused, hurting, traumatized boy.

But let's not forget who, at least, contributed to that.(edited)

RebelVampire

Din is also an adult now and in charge of his own choices though. And his adult choices are garbage. If Felix had been abused and locked in a closet, would that excuse the choices he made? XD

Jo Michelle

Oh, I'm not excusing Din now. That's the problem with pain and trauma – the way it spreads.(edited)

BUT, the person with power here is still Felix.

Even if Din is responding totally wrong, the people with the power are still the Noblemen, so the greater responsibility for ending the violence still rests on them.

It's like the moral equivalency fallacy of [spoiler blocked for those who don't want to think about politics] SPOILER of white supremacists and anti-racism bombings, such as in South Africa. No, killing innocent people isn't right and will just produce more pain and suffering, but the two aren't equivalent, because of power. END SPOILER This is why I judge Felix more harshly than Din.

RebelVampire

That's fair.

I can't take the same path cause I don't think all the evidence is in order. Cause we haven't met Felix, don't actually have a factual account of what he even did to Din, and so forth. So while I can agree that Felix can be judged more harshly via power in certain contexts, I think its unfair to cast judgement at the moment.

Kabocha

Question: How do we know that whatever Felix and Din's interaction was, that it wasn't like... Self defense?

It was clearly BAD, but Din was a child

Jo Michelle

That's also fair. But, for me, the burden of proof will be on Felix.

RebelVampire

yeah thats another reason i dont trust Din's account of everything and label him a biased source. Cause he was a child at the time of whatever happened just by the context clues

cause kids dont generally have all the info to a situation.

cause adults dont tell

also cause they have kid brains

not to mention were expecting din's account to even be accurate after years

and memories are faulty

even when trauma is involved

which again

Felix may be the most awful person in the world

I just pass no judgement based on Din's account

as far as im concerned, din is no better than the boy who cried wolf right now

which acually is a better analogy then i intended. cause his hatred of conan really damages his case against felix.

which inevitably makes me sorry for Din if Felix is as awful as he thinks

Din is undoing his own case

Jo Michelle

No, Din is just proving my point about power and Noblemen in general. I recently heard and wrote down a great definition of racism: Prejudice + Power to enforce your Prejudice = Racism That's why oppressed people can be prejudice, but not racist. So, sure, Din is prejudiced against Noblemen in general, and Felix in particular, but that's mostly from experience. Conan seems to be his first encounter with a Nobleman that didn't confirm his expectations.

RebelVampire

i think this convo is going a bit too political at this point so im gonna reign it in

Jo Michelle

Okay, sorry.

RebelVampire

no its fine. im just reigning it in before it goes too far to real world.

cause at this point were touching on a very sensitive, relevant real world topic.

and thats inviting chaos

Jo Michelle

Should I spoiler hide that last comment?

RebelVampire

nah cause when i archive it, itll be visible anyway.

Jo Michelle

ah.

Really?

good to know.

RebelVampire

yeah. someday i will address that if i get a real website for CTP, but right now things are just archived as plain text.

At least we can agree that Pascal is the best

I mean umm...Felix. Yes. Definitely not Pascal.

Pascal the angel

Respheal

The abuse of greatness is when it disjoins remorse from power

Not gonna lie, I didn't expect this story to touch on some real world problems when I first started writing it x'D this was just going to be a road trip(edited)

RebelVampire

tbf you overthink anything too much and you can put real life themes on it.

which is whats supposed to happen

it is the mark of good fiction

Respheal

Yeah, and it...worked? x'D but I do realize that because these Very Real Themes are a part of it now, I have to be able to handle those themes respectfully.(edited)

I will answer question 3 in a bit and make you all mad that the answer is Felix (edited)

....actually nvm I should answer based only on the current canon ahahaha

RebelVampire

yes pick Felix O_O

i cant pick felix cause hes not in the story yet

maybe someday

Respheal

Felix actually is my fave, but yeah he's not in the story yet. Although he has clearly had a huge impact on it so far. He's like a massive object and every other character is sucked into his gravity well

If I had to pick from current canon (which is like the boys and Altiria).....that's a tough call

RebelVampire

obviously altiria since they can just drown everyone

Respheal

You're right. The only sensible choice

I am actually struggling to pick so let's go with that

Kabocha

3. At the moment, who is your favorite character? What about that character earns them this favor? Altiria! I'm sorry, Alty's natrually quite salty. It just flows out of them seamlessly... Altiria seas and knows all in the world, for Altiria is all water... Water we waiting for, we should all cheer for our water god! 4. What do you think will happen once Din and Conan reach Cymaria? Will Din’s plans unravel, or will the two manage to slay the queen? What will be the consequences of either path? AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAAHHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAA Conan's gon' die. Unless they opt for an infiltration - Din only has to bring Conan to Cymaria... Right? I guess it depends on how that command's interpreted

RebelVampire

maybe they never make it to court. maybe they stop at burger king on the way but pascal wont let them leave until he gets all the toys from the kids meal

and nobody told him you didnt have to buy the meal to get the toy

MJ Massey

4. What do you think will happen once Din and Conan reach Cymaria? Will Din’s plans unravel, or will the two manage to slay the queen? What will be the consequences of either path?

I think they'll intend to slay the queen but then find out she's not the true villain. She's actually pretty cool, but it's the royal vizier/high priest/magician who's the REAL villain. They'll team up to try to stop them, but the queen will inadvertently die in the process and it turns out SPOILER she was Felix the whole time END SPOILER

Jo Michelle

SPOILER Not gonna lie, I didn't expect this story to touch on some real world problems when I first started writing it x'D this was just going to be a road trip END SPOILER

I thought the same thing, friend. We all did, I think.

Respheal

As for question 4......well, we're not even all the way through act 1 so of course things are gonna hit the fan

RebelVampire

the bigger question is how can galebound end happily

Jo Michelle

Things, huh? :cornytea:

Kabocha

The bigger question is: CAN it end happily

Respheal

That is actually a good question

Kabocha

I posit the following: No.

MJ Massey

I agree

no way Res is gonna let the cast off that easy

RebelVampire

everything will turn out fine. then a rogue meteor will come and crash into the planet, pushing it out of orbit

Jo Michelle

I'm trusting in Res's enjoyment of the end of "Speak".... it's literally the only evidence I've got going for my hope in a "happy" ending...(edited)

Kabocha

@RebelVampire This isn't Final Fantasy!!

RebelVampire

thats just what res wants us to think

felix is the meteor

Respheal

A sufficiently large meteor might kick the planet out of its tidal locking therefore eliminating the extreme focused heat that fuels the Gale

RebelVampire

ya know i was mostly just joking, but then res came in and said that

i think this is as good as canon

Kabocha

ominous chanting

Respheal

If this were Final Fantasy the eclipse planet would come crashing down but right before it hits--surprise it was a giant dragon's prison all along so it's death by dragon instead of by meteor

RebelVampire

and felix was the imprisoned dragon?

which is where hes been all this time

Respheal

Yes

Kabocha

...So it's not Final Fantasy, it's Fire Emblem

RebelVampire

Fire Fantasy

well just combine them

Mahotou

Final Emblem

RebelVampire

Fire Fantasy V: The Final Emblem

Jo Michelle

Felix is a dragon. I can live with that.

RebelVampire

ok so its been approved. Felix is a dragon canon is a go.

can sleep on his pile of gold and kidnap princesses

and eat them

Jo Michelle

Like Conan's mom. She was a kidnapped princess.

Respheal

......So Conan's part dragon now?

RebelVampire

yes

see

Jo Michelle

Confirmed.

RebelVampire

this canon gets better and better

conan is gonna wake up one morning and wonder why he can breathe fire

Jo Michelle

That literally happened in a kids book I read once.

Kabocha

reads chat

...So Conan is a Manakete, which explains why Dusk time seems so weird to him if their solar cycle is............ rapid

It's not that dusk is fast, it's that Conan is old

WAIT CONAN IS GRIMA

Respheal

You caught me

Jo Michelle

I need to see a Conan art with dragon fire or wings now.

Sarai

There was a story I read where dragons took human form and could only access their dragon form through a magic device passed down through their family

I'm not saying conan's pocketwatch lets him turn into a dragon but

Mahotou

Are these hypothetical dragons... daemons?

Respheal

They probably would be

Mahotou

xD more Conan Hybrid Theory

Sarai

But important to note, in that story only full-blooded dragons could transform

Half-dragons ended up with horns and tails and lizard-like ear flaps

RebelVampire

conan hasnt hit dragon puberty yet. din is in for a nasty surprise

Sarai

BUT since we're talking about Conan, I'm gonna say he's my favorite right now, in an answer to question 3

I'm in love with Pascal and the sun shines a little brighter every time I see him, but Conan is one of the few characters I can point to and say "hey, he thinks like me!"

Mahotou

#relatable

Sarai

We have a strikingly similar way of processing things and making decisions, and I don't see that a lot in fiction

Especially fantasy

Jo Michelle

Good job Res!

Sarai

That's why I couldnt get mad at him for the Pascal Incident™

Its exactly what I would have done

Jo Michelle

That's fair. .....

Kabocha

(guys I think the inside jokes are escaping)

Jo Michelle

which ones?

I mean, other than Shadowlord.

Felix is the worst

Kabocha

The SHADOWLORD CANNOT BE CONTAINED

hybrid theory

conan is secretly going to end the world... etc

................... Carry on

Jo Michelle

Okay, I see your point.

RebelVampire

oh man if were basing fave character on who we relate to the most, idk who to pick

maybe lucie for me cause shes the character who is just back at home not getting involved with all the adventures

Respheal

yet

Mahotou

what's lucy going to do when she finds her best bud is missing? for two/three dark hours(edited)

Kabocha

Rebel, how do you handle spoiler tags in archives?

Jo Michelle

Well, that would be Checkers.

RebelVampire

they are visible as plain text

Respheal

I'm okay with that being visible, I'm half saying it out of humor xD

RebelVampire

cause there just isnt a good way to do them in regards to tumblr's setup

@Mahotou im gonna repeat a thing i said on the server for in regards to what lucie will do: just assume he went and pulled a felix and get herself a new boyfriend

Mahotou

OH NO

xD

looking at the questions, I don't know who's my fav as a character. but I like Pascal as a person c:

sweet boy cant catch a break

that's like his description too or something

Respheal

It is xD

Mahotou

too good for this world. cant catch a break

xD

oh and for question 4. What if! Conan got kidnapped by the Cymaria Court and he gets a WHOLE OTHER view of this situation? they try to convince him of their side away from Din.

Mahotou

I think i got this idea from Fire Emblem. Birthright/Conquest

two sides of one situation O: dun dun dunnnnn

Jo Michelle

Ooohhhh

That would be a twist.

Mahotou

# NOW who's the bad guy? Conan technically has limited information but he DOES have experience with the magic and obligation on magicians. and the weird amulet

but what if truths are twisted? Who should he side with O: dun dun dunnnnn

... he'd prolly wanna go home to his Lucie and forget this lol(edited)

RebelVampire

semi off topic, but arcein. arcein is the bad guy.

if they talk like a villain, smile like a villain, and do creepy vague shit like villains, theyre probably a villain

Mahotou

/subvert expectations OH LETS MAKE HER THE GOOD GUY XD

300 year old spirit thing with creepy grin in an amulet. was trapped like a Genie when she tried to do a good but it did a bad/

Wish we knew more about her in canon. She could be a fav character O:

Kabocha

gotta wonder how many people in galebound are actually good guys

and Din's just the one who wants to burn the world

Sarai

conan is a goode boye

and so is pascal

he tried to be mean once boy nearly put himself into an angst coma

enshogirl

The Good: Artemis (#1 good), Pascal, Conan The Bad: Din, Felix, Altiria and The Ugly: Arcein, King Cymaria

Respheal

Altiria as bad? xD

RebelVampire

i mean

i dont think you can say altiria is good either

Respheal

I guess for the most part I consider daemons to be neutral(edited)

RebelVampire

thats fair although from a story perspective she has attempted murder of conan on her book

Respheal

Truuuuuue

enshogirl

I don’t trust her

RebelVampire

QUESTION 5. What has been your favorite illustration in the comic so far? What specifically about it do you like?

QUESTION 6. How do you think Pascal will adjust to being both deaf and cut off from magic? How will he wind up helping or hurting Din and Conan? Ultimately, do you think Pascal’s life will be better or worse for what happened?

Kabocha

For question 5... http://www.galebound.com/comics/2449333/064/ THIS PANEL Holy shit Res really pulled off magic with this one!! I just love the energy and the sense of Din's sheer power here. In retrospect, you have to wonder if it was amplified because he was really following two commands at once? As far as Pascal goes... I think Pascal's honestly going to adjust. He's adaptable, and strikes me as the type of person who takes life as it comes. So this sort of outcome might actually be a bit freeing in some respects... ...Although in the meantime, I'm sure there'll be lots of worrying about what he's good for, what'll happen to him, and such... He's no longer useful to anyone as a magician, really.

(That is to say, I'm looking forward to Pascal fostering kittens. That's clearly what he's got to do with his life after this!!)

MJ Massey

I feel like Pascal has strong strangling hands

Jo Michelle

I CAN'T choose a page! Or an illustration. But it would definitely be one of those in the end of chap 5 ... ALL THE FEELS THERE.

MJ Massey

so he's going to become a pro strangler

Jo Michelle

Although I'm kinda super partial to the illustration that's going up for today It's so heartbreaking and pretty, okay?!?

Actually, I think Pascal is going to go through a quarter life crisis, buy a muscle carstrong horse and take off on a road trip across the Dusk to "find himself."(edited)

Freedom, baby!

Jo Michelle

But I'm kinda in love with Din's half lit expression from this page: http://www.galebound.com/comics/2771099/147/(edited)

Respheal

Quarter life crisis

Jo Michelle

I mean, he's not quite at a quarter life, but..... he's getting there?

And I LOVE the body language in this one: http://www.galebound.com/comics/2780569/150/

Especially Len. My new favorite side character. The adult this problem child needs.

Kabocha

As far as head canons are concerned... All we know at the moment is she was SHOCKED that Din did what he did.

Jo Michelle

Oh, you know I can build an entire life history from a face shot and three paragraphs about Felix. I've got way more about Len here.

Kabocha

https://tenor.com/view/tea-shade-goth-halloween-gif-4637758

RebelVampire

5) For favorite illustration, I gotta go with Pascal gets his butt beat #1 http://www.galebound.com/comics/2369956/040/ The lighting on this is really great. Plus I really like the slanted angle it has going on. I think there's something about that choice that really makes you empathize with Conan. Cause much like the angle is expressing something is kind of not right in terms of the balance of the world, this is the first time extreme magic is at play. So it really puts you in Conan's shoes where you're like "Is this happening my life is a lie" 6) Deaf I think he'll go with easily cause I think for Pascal that one will be easier to roll with the punches for. Magic? That sounds harder if you've basically relied on it for most of your life. Cause at that point I'd think it'd be an instinctual thing that's gonna hurt when you try to fire blast someone but forget you cant actually do that anymore. Pascal's life will probably be better. He can chameleon into the crowd now and party all the parties. As for helping or hurting Din and Conan, I feel like hurt might be more likely. Just cause Pascal is kind of a distraction for Din. Cause Din was doing okay but everytime Pascal showed up he had to change his plans. Which I guess is me saying Pascal is Din's bad luck charm.

Jo Michelle

Oh, yeah, that's a GREAT moment. It's actually one of those that came to mind.

Respheal

I'm still really happy with Conan's expression on that page

Jo Michelle

Oh yeah. "Shi--" just hit the fan there.

RebelVampire

i think everyone's faces looks there. one of the few pages where im like "Din isn't that bad a dude" O_O

RebelVampire

overall i like any page that's a double spread for illustration. cause while mobile design is the way to go, it means theres less and less double spreads going on. so when i see them i squee

Respheal

I enjoy doing those pages, too xD Ironically they tend to be faster to make since they're just 1-2 panels, so I try to go more all out with it >:D

Mahotou

5. Favorite illustration? well i have one that got me rolling back into doing art after a huge time away from it. break-my-heart its pascal's face here (second to last panel) : http://www.galebound.com/comics/2592094/101/(edited)

my fave pics are very emotional i think

Sarai

that page also features Din angrily buttoning his waistcoat as he tries to glare his brother into silence XD

Mahotou

http://www.galebound.com/comics/2639011/115/ oh and o boy this one. the whole page.

RebelVampire

i counter your sadness with hilarious pascal http://www.galebound.com/comics/2484303/072-5/

Sarai

that one is great

Mahotou

6. How do you think Pascal will adjust to being both deaf and cut off from magic? I think, not being a Magician will be ok for Pascal. He may enjoy using magic or be good at it but he can only use it when commanded so I don't believe he'll feel totally lost without it. And maybe he can be sneaky and Queen Cymaria will attempt to command him because he's supposed to be a Court Magician but then he'd be liek nahh and she'd be surprised and TeamGrump can get the upperhand. O: but also now he has to have the amulet always with him too. He has to always be touching it or else he'll start dying again so i kinda feel like this physical object may be troublesome. (but i'm sure he'll be a smart cookie and thing of something to keep it in place.) How will he wind up helping or hurting Din and Conan? hmmm. well he's MORE of a free spirit now, as he's outside the Obligation. and he's always been a ninja (good climber --> (roof boy: http://www.galebound.com/comics/2358585/032/) so he can be helpful by going on errands. but heeeee wouldn't notice if he was being noisy... so he's losing stealth points. Deafness... he'll probably miss his hearing but I think he's a talented learner and will come up with hand signals between himself and friends/Din and also practice lip reading. @Rebel: He can chameleon into the crowd now and party all the parties. but he cant hear the music at the parties now D: i've just made myself really sad.... Ultimately, do you think Pascal’s life will be better or worse for what happened? Better because he won't have the Obligation around. ... or... or worse because he now has to have this amulet so now instead of the Obligation being a part of his life, he now has to care about this amulet for liek... the rest of his life. and he has be careful to always be touching it in some way. Maybe that's ok tho. and life will be fine and the brothers will just take care of each other.

woops that was a loaded #6.

i think i rambled but i won't edit this xD

keii4ii

@enshogirl 's listing of Artemis as #1 good does make me think, though (and I agree with the sentiment )

I like Artemis a lot, almost weirdly so, and I'm starting to see why

This is a story where you can't trust anyone -- I mean Pascal may be a good boy, but you might not be entirely safe around him. So having someone you can trust is meaningful, even if that someone isn't a human X'D

and that says a lot about the story truly being a web of schemes!

Jo Michelle

It's totally true. You really can't totally trust Magicians.....

But then, they can't even trust their own brains and motivations....

Respheal

That's a good point, @keii4ii I wish I enjoyed drawing Artemis more, because she is important to Conan as a character. She's the lodestar of stability and sanity for him in this quest into the unknown

......what are those reacts lol

I feel like you read that as me being like "it'd be a shame if something happened to her :3c"

Jo Michelle

Oh, no, I was thinking about Conan.

Respheal

Oh hahaha

Jo Michelle

How a horse is the only person he can find stability and relational safety in.

Kabocha

@Respheal don't you dare take that horse's boy away from her

Mahotou

XD Club "Keep Artemis Safe"

RebelVampire

QUESTION 7. Which characters do you enjoy seeing interact the most? What about their dynamic interests you?

QUESTION 8. What do you think Din’s ultimate plans are? Is it killing Felix or is there a bigger story to his ambitions? How does killing the Queen of Cymaria even factor into them? What even motivated his plans in the first place?

Jo Michelle

Character interaction dynamics. Hum. I mean, we've only really seen Din, Con, Pasc, and Alty. But, I've got to say, I really like the Din/Alty dynamics. They know things about Din, and the way they tell him what's what is good.

And the Din/Pasc. The way they care about each other as brothers, but also bicker about stuff. That's fun.

Basically, I think I really like character interactions that draw out Din's emotions and force him to say and do things that reveal what's going on inside.

. Speaking of. Din's plans. I mean, he's out to kill Felix for sure. That 16YO Din wasn't acting. That was seething rage there. But I think his end game is to bring down the system somehow.

But I don't know enough about it to really say how he might be going about that.

MJ Massey

Din and Pascal have an interesting dynamic I want to see more of, both in flashbacks and in the present day

like how did Pascal get involved in everything and trying to kill Conan? Are he and Din on good terms or no?

Sarai

Pascal with anyone quite fankly

Considering the characters that have been introduced, his nature of pure sunshine conflicts so hard with everyone we've seen him talk to

But he just.....keeps on going

Respheal

Pascal's fun to write interactions with because he's good at keeping people just a little off balance--he talks fast, hops between topics, and just his overall sunshine demeanor bewilders xD I like to think Conan and Din play off each other well.....in, uh, better circumstances, maybe.

RebelVampire

7) I'm gonna go with Alty and Conan. I like how their interactions always really emphasis Alty is basically just on Alty's side. Cause they arent remorseful for trying to kill Conan, and even imply a bit they can still drown Conan at anytime. Yet at the same time Alty is also the person willing to warn Conan that Din is basically a dumbass. So whenever they interact theres always this uneasiness. I think a lot may be a change in the power dynamic cause even if Conan can command Din, theres only so much you can do to stop the ocean. 8) Din's plans are basically Step 1- Kill Felix Step 2 - ??? Step 3-Profit. Which is my way of saying i think calling what Din's "plans" plans is misleading. Rather, I think he has goals and just vague ideas of how to get to those goals. Like a kid with a treasure map who is finding the X but forgot to bring a shovel or backpack to carry back the treasure. I agree that Din probably wants to bring balance to the system. But I also think in his crazed mind he thinks that killing Felix is the way its gonna happen. I think Din gives Felix waaaaay too much credit. Although, honestly, I can't figure why he needs to kill the Queen. Like certainly this frees him from needing to be a court magician there. But unless theres a secret command from them that says "nah bro don't kill felix" i dont see how overthrowing a monarch works in Din's favor at all.

Mahotou

7.

@jo: And the Din/Pasc. The way they care about each other as brothers, but also bicker about stuff. That's fun.

Basically, I think I really like character inte

ractions that draw out Din's emotions and force him to say and do things that reveal what's going on inside. yasss 8. Din seems like a focus one track person. He wants to kill Felix. and he's still trying to reach that even tho Cymaria has him doing other magician errands first. But sounds like he almost got the command he wanted: "Bring me the head of Evenheim's heir" http://www.galebound.com/comics/2764870/145/ but he found Conan before Felix? maybe he thinks he can work with conan to convince/trick conan into giving him commands he wants.

Kabocha

7. Which characters do you enjoy seeing interact the most? What about their dynamic interests you? Din and Conan, honestly. I got friggin BAMBOOZLED when I started reading this. I was like, "hey they're staying in an inn, some shenanigans are gonna ensue!" AND THEN NOPE, MURDER ATTEMPT. So, what I thought was gonna be a fantasy buddy comedy turned out to be very much not that. And I kind of look forward to seeing how Din and Conan progress from snarky strangers to friends... Assuming Din doesn't get killed first.

8. What do you think Din’s ultimate plans are? Is it killing Felix or is there a bigger story to his ambitions? How does killing the Queen of Cymaria even factor into them? What even motivated his plans in the first place?

Din has a plan? Ever since Conan figured out he was able to command Din, it's kinda gone to shit, so... I think Din's ultimate plan was probably to kill the Cymarian nobility AND to kill Felix. http://www.galebound.com/comics/2332038/022/ Although I guess Conan didn't tell Din to tell him the truth, so... Din's a very angry man, probably motivated by the inherent injustice in the obligation. I think if he could have anything in life right now, it would be that he could be a normal person. He got the slightest taste of normalcy as a child, and... Well. :\

anyway I just need to say @Respheal how dare you bring us in thinking comedy and break us all like this so far

Respheal

>:D

RebelVampire

QUESTION 9. What sorts of art or story details have you noticed in the way the comic is crafted that you think deserves attention?

QUESTION 10. Who or what is the Arcein that Conan saw? Why do you think she seemed to know Felix, and how did Arcein’s Ignorance come to be? Also, what do you think Myosotis is, and why does Arcein want it?

Jo Michelle

Q. 9: Res's foreshadowing is really great. Little details that you only notice on reread. And snatches of dialogue or character actions that suddenly are WAY different when you know what's really going on.

RebelVampire

9) The careful choices in wording because command phrases are super OP. Like I would super hate writing a main cast who are a nobleman and a magician cause one ill choice of dialogue and poof, there goes continuity. So the fact its done so well is nice. 10) I'm assuming the Arcein we saw was basically a Horcrux. I assume by the nature of being mythical, Arcein is connected to the Gale in ways we don't understand. And the Gale is like big brother and is watching everyone, especially Felix. Idk what Myosotis is, but I'm sure Arcein wants it to destroy all nobleman or something like that. If Arcein isn't the pure evil one in this comic, I will eat my hat.

Respheal

But she was so helpful in saving Pascal~ :'3

RebelVampire

for now

unless pascal is locked away in a tower guarded 24/7 but the most elite soldiers, i will never believe Pascal is completely and truly safe in that world

Jo Michelle

But that's not safety. that's isolation, which isn't safe or healthy for any human.

There is no "complete and true safety." Life is risk.

RebelVampire

well put artemis in the tower too

then they can be alone together

and safe

also i said safe, i wasnt necessarily aiming for healthy there O_O

Jo Michelle

But unhealthy isn't safe.

And humans need more relationships in our lives than just one other creature.

And relationship always brings risk.

Respheal

also the alleged horcrux is strapped to his neck

Jo Michelle

I mean, there's risk.... and then there's..... risk.

that dang price

RebelVampire

i feel like you just insulted artemis by called her a risk as a relationship

secretly artemis had like 10 sugar daddy horses back home and spent all their money

conan is also her sugar daddy

literally cause he probably gives her sugar cubes

also see, to deal with arcein you just gotta cut the tower off from the gale. make a huge bubble area of ignorance

Mahotou

9) I totally understand why Res insisted on using full color. those auras need to be noticeable and different from each other. And its really niceeeee. I love the use of double-spreads because to me it feels like the stretching of a moment aka time slows down and you can just take in the scene. <3 Also the "scene in the amulet" is really creepy and spooky and what does it all mean!? /o\ after all this time, i feel we should expect foreshadowing in almost everything. xD 10) Arcein isssss 300 years old according to Pascal so the amulet is.... HAUNTED [or Rebel's Horcrux theory]. Maybe Felix had the amulet before and maybe they spoke together/concocted a plan together. Or maybe they disagreed? I have NO idea what Myosotis is in her context. Googling it, its a forget-me-not sooooo i guess she wants to be remembered? big shrug she seems dangerous. just look at her grin.(edited)

Respheal

nyahahahaha >:D

There is a whole lot of foreshadowing, and I appreciate what Jo said about "details you only notice on reread" xD Because a lot of the foreshadowing, I'm aiming it to be like it was staring us in the face the whole tiiiiiiiiiiiiiime

Jo Michelle

That's the best kind.

Other than the Horcrux thing, I have about zero formed ideas or theories on Arcein myself. That's a whole giant ominous question mark in my mind.

Mahotou

And also the amulet is called Arcein's Ignorance. I believe it was named for how it disconnects an Obligated from The Gale (and thus be Ignorant of the commands) but... Was Arcein Ignorant about something too? I wouldn't put it past Res for double meanings. Did Arcein do something Ignorant by making this amulet?

Kabocha

People are ignorant of Arcein, therefore her price of "Forget-Me-Not" is... to make her known? Remembered? avenged?

Sarai

((Forget-me-nots also mean true love, so make of that what you will))

Jo Michelle

What if the amulet was made by a Magician and a Noble who loved each other, and wanted a way to have a relationship that was free from Obligations?

Kabocha

oh That... that could have happened in this world...

Mahotou

i like that sound O:

Sarai

As far as what the "price" is, maybe Arcien's broken the seal that's locked away conan's memories?

Not so that they'll come back all at once, but she's triggered a sort of chain reaction so that very soon, he's gonna start remembering things

RebelVampire

QUESTION 11. What do you think are this particular comic’s strengths? What do you think makes this comic unique? Please elaborate.

QUESTION 12. Where has Felix been for most of Conan’s life? Why do you think he left Conan, and will Conan and Din actually be able to find him? Assuming they do find him, what do you think would even happen?

Sarai

Before I leave for vacation: 11. Worldbuilding is definitely one of Galebound's strengths. The decision to make this a tidally locked planet (and actually develop how that would impact and affect all facets of life) was a really good one, and it really adds a unique flavor to the story. From the color pallete of the outdoor scenes to the inclusion of the dark hour to the plot, it was enough to catch my eye and make me want to know more my first time reading. -bows to Res-

Respheal

:'D

will Conan and Din actually be able to find him

It's also a question of if half of that set even wants to find him

Jo Michelle

Con: he's my dad and I don't care. Din: He's my No. 1 target.

Kabocha

Galebound's strengths... Well, the sheer growth it's had from its start. Both in art and storytelling... While I know the story was prepping for its first WHAM moment, the art really caught up with it in a way that helped amplify that imo. Res has improved an incredible amount in a comparatively short amount of time

...I'm absolutely terrified to see how much the art will grow in 5 years, especially as the story intensifies. I get the feelin' a storm's brewing... And it's not the Gale.

RebelVampire

QUESTION 13. What are you most looking forward to in the comic? Also, do you have any final thoughts to share overall?

QUESTION 14. What aspect of the Obligation system in the story do you find the most interesting? What about it specifically interests you? Alternatively, what horrible implications are you hoping to see or not see regarding it?

RebelVampire

11) I think the strengths lie in the question and answer formula. While there are a lot of comics out there, in my experience not all of them offer good material for theorizing. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but can make for dull convos when talking about the comic elsewhere. Meanwhile, Galebound has tons of questions, tons of info spread out in various places, etc. So you get to get out the magnifying glass and look around for the answer. 12) I sincerely believe Felix left for Conan's own good to help him with something. Not that I think Felix is altruistically out to save the world or anything for sure, but I do think Felix would want to save his son. As for whether Conan and Din finding, honestly, I think it's more likely Felix will find them first XD We've established Din isn't great at the plans so Din is gonna bump into Felix when he least expects it. And be like "I'm in my underwear right now I'm not even ready for this."

keii4ii

13/14 I'm looking forward to meeting that one character SPOILER who is both a Noble and a magician, aka Person Doomed To Juggle Chainsaws For Life END SPOILER

RebelVampire

13) I am looking forward to people reading the next chapter so the galebound fandom collective can gasp in the same way that patrons get to gasp. 14) my favorite aspect of the obligation system is just the fact that it plays on language and contains loopholes. so you can constantly find new ways to use and abuse it based on how something is worded or how far you push the system. cause that gives it a good balance of being powerful but still being bounded by consistent rules.

Respheal

Oh yeah, the next chapter's gonna be all sorts of fun xD(edited)

Kabocha

The obligation system is certainly easily manipulated for anyone who might be looking For loopholes. Din is dangerous because he was taught to think >:D

RebelVampire

"Din is dangerous" is a complete sentence.

Kabocha

FAIR.

For every time Din subverts an obligation's expectations, he also manages to hurt someone he cares about.

RebelVampire

good job, din. this is why everyone loves you.

Jo Michelle

Mostly to himself and to people who care about him, I think.(edited)

Kabocha

Today I learned: Everyone in Din's life is a masochist(edited)

Respheal

For putting up with him?

Kabocha

Yeeeeeeeep.

Respheal

I almost feel like I need to come to his defense now

I certainly don't condone his actions, but......boy needs an adult

And by adult I mean therapist

Kabocha

He won't get better if nobody gives him good consequences

At the very least, the Ocean could have been like, "Oh hey, KNOCK IT OFF" and smacked him

RebelVampire

tbf even with good consequences theres no gurantee.

Kabocha

Fair! I mean, let's imagine the Galebound discord is right, and Lenora (the King's Magician) had a chance to try to set Din right. ...if he's still after his goal of revenge after some grade-A mom-ish intervention, he's not gonna be easily deterred.

And now I'm imagining Din... "My name is Dinigo Montoya... You killed my father. Prepare to die." (Only we can't be sure if Din's father died at Felix's hands....)

RebelVampire

these are excellent points.

to change din, i think he needs to wake up many days in a row and find out his entire life is a lie

Respheal

He lies to everyone else, but doesn't realize he lies to himself, too

Kabocha

I wonder how many lies we'll discover he's told himself over the years.

It's gonna suck! Din had all these good things he threw away in pursuit of revenge... He really can't figure out how to appreciate the things in front of him until they're taken from him.

RebelVampire

the biggest lie he told himself was that his name was din. really he was felix all along

Respheal

That's some next level self-hatred there

Kabocha

Oh no... So, if Din is Felix...

Respheal

I'm assuming he's also actually ten years older

Kabocha

.... ... That makes him ineligible to be the Shadowlord, sadly...

Respheal

Because otherwise.....eek

Oh?

Kabocha

Felix is the creator of the Shadowlord.

Not the Shadowlord itself.

Sarai

13) What am I looking forward to? The answer to all of these questions really XD

There's so much we don't know, and I'm really looking forward to snapping up all the information about the plot and its mysteries as it trickles in

also clawing the tragic backstories out of everyone's cold dead hands

Mahotou

13) I saw a list of character names and chapter names. I"m excited to meet EVERYONE. Get to fall in love with some and get to violently LOATH some. some sweet sweet hatred on fictional character. I agree with Rebel: Meanwhile, Galebound has tons of questions, tons of info spread out in various places, etc. So you get to get out the magnifying glass and look around for the answer. Sweet mind games and investigation. THERES SO MUCH DEPTH I CAN SWIM IN THIS LORE FOREVER. xD

14) Aspects of the Obligation system? Din's sweet mindbending/word-twisting comprehension ability of commands he received. How far can it go? How far DID it go in his loophole finding ability? But also, what can they achieve together? Conan and Din. If they can work together then there's SO MUCH possibility!

Respheal

Hehehehe I've got all the chapter names (and a lot of the character names) in the wiki :3c They are subject to change until they're actually written (I've already merged a couple chapters together), but I like having those up as sort of a teaser(edited)

As with many things, I didn't really realize I was setting up sort of a question/answer format until I got some momentum going, but I really enjoy how that's worked out xD

Mahotou

(They tease me hard)

Respheal

I am looking for a gif to use as my answer to 13 xD But no such luck

So meh I'll just go with chapters: Ch 6, Ch 14, Ch 18 Those have some of the major turning points I'm most looking forward to :3c

And for question 14.....probably one of the more interesting things, from my perspective, is how the system came into being in the first place

-runs back into the spoiler cave-

Mahotou

LORE/ORIGIN STORY

:partypascal:

Sarai

14) the thing I like about the system is how simple it seems, yet how absolutely bone-chillingly horrible it is when you give it a little thought

It really is a wolf in sheep's clothing

Sarai

Like, when it was first introduced my first thought was "wow this is really constricting and an awful lot of angst over a magic system that can't be used that much"

But those implications hit you like a narrative 2 by 4

Respheal

If I manage to get the book published, that's the sorta quote I want on the dust jacket

RebelVampire

Actually I change my answer

I'm most looking forward to Felix

so we can learn hes not awful

RebelVampire

COMIC TEA PARTY- WEEK LONG BOOK CLUB END!

Thank you everyone so much for reading and chatting about Galebound this week! Please also give a special thank you to Respheal for volunteering the comic and creating it! If you liked Galebound, make sure to continue to support it via some of the links below!

Read and Comment: http://www.galebound.com/

Respheal’s Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Respheal

Respheal’s Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/Respheal

Respheal’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/galebound

[geanmin]

I haven't seen Peeta since I found him planting the primrose in my backyard. As I slowly come back to life, so does my realization of his absence. It must have been the way I ask for it that made Greasy Sae understand I was referencing Peeta's, because the next day the bread she brought me had little flowers on them, done by his hand.

Once Greasy Sae left, I remained alone in my house, once occupied by my sister, and my mom.

As I look around, it's like my memories come to life before me. I look at my fire place, and see my sister asking me to wait for her to try on wedding dresses. I look at my table, and see Gale lying there with his back bloody, my mother carefully tending to him. In my bed, I see Peeta holding me, as I fall asleep, nursing my broken ankle.

Peeta.

Even after he returned to District 12 a victor of the Hunger Games, his family never moved in with him. And after becoming a tribute for his second go, he never saw them again.

Empty. His house must be so empty of memories.

The bread he made was fresh this morning. How early did he wake up to bake it for me?

And when will I wake up to do something for him?

"You could live a thousand life times and never deserve him."

It feels like decades have past since I assassinated President Coin and Peeta prevented me from taking the nightlock. But, in reality, maybe it has been half a year of waiting for the end of my trial, and sitting alone in my house.

But it has been much longer than that since I have seen Peeta, my Peeta. The one that existed before the Capital got to him.

I hold my pearl, thinking of the Boy with the Bread, the boy who went into two Hunger Games with the sole agenda to protect me. And how did I treat him after he was hijacked? I gave up on him. Like he was dead. Like my Peeta was gone. And the whole time he was fighting, fighting to come back to me.

Of course, I may have had other things on my mind. Snow programming Peeta to be a muttation to murder me. President Coin putting him on my same mission to murder me, and of course being in a war, with random people trying to murder me. It was all difficult to navigate, but I could have been more kind.

Peeta was always the one with the words of our duo. How did I ever survive without him?

As I look at my pearl in my hand, and the locket on the table, something in my brain must have finally had the peace it needed to click.

No more Hunger Games. No more Snow. No more Coin. Just peace and quiet, that's all my brain needed to understand that not only could I never have survived without Peeta, I never will. And he feels the same.

We need each other.

I put my pearl safely in my pocket, and leave the locket in my room. Carrying around the faces of my loved ones is still a little too heavy at the moment.

I leave my house and cross the short distance to his, lessening the space between us.

I knock on his door, which feels oddly formal. But I don't want to come in unwelcome.

I know he would welcome me in, forgive me even. But that's not what I want. I don't want Peeta only thinking of keeping me alive. I want him to think of keeping us alive. Together. A team. A unit. A couple.

But we need to air out some grievances for that to be reality.

Finally, the door opens, and I see his face. Not washed out by the summer sun when he was planting, but clear in the shade of the porch roof. He no longer looks like the scared boy whose name was called at the reaping. Two years of Hunger Games will do that to you. He even has some stubble on his face for the first time.

“Katniss,” he says.

And I am overwhelmed. I slowly approach him, and wrap my arms around his neck. He accepts my embrace, holding me, just like he did on our train rides, sturdy and with care.

With his arms around me tightly, I feel butterflies in my stomach. I've felt this feeling before: in the cave in our first Hunger Games, on the beach in our second. Without the intense feeling of starvation, or anxiety of life or death, like my brain, my stomach now has the peace needed to figure out how it feels.

We must have stood there silently holding each other for ten minutes. If I had it my way, I would never let go. The last time I did that, he was lost to me.

There are no tears. We are well past that in our embrace. The grounding of reality is the true release.

Eventually he invites me in and I realize I have never been inside his house. Of course, it looks identical to mine and Haymitch's in layout, but Peeta has given it his own personal touch.

His paintings. You can't go anywhere without seeing one of his paintings. Either hung on the wall, or placed on the floor. He has flowers and houseplants in each batch of sunlight. And his kitchen, of course, bares no resemblance. Effie or someone must have installed a large baker's oven for him. It looks like a little paradise.

But the most stark difference is the smell.

Unlike Haymitch's house, which reeks of vomit and trash and alcohol, or my house, which used to smell like my mother's herbs, and now must smell like my personal body oder, Peeta's house smells sweet, like fresh bread. The clean air from the open windows lifts the sent, evening out the temperature. The entire place is heavenly.

He shows me in, and offers me a seat at his kitchen table as he puts hot water on for tea. He lingers by the stove a little too long I think. Maybe he doesn't know what to say. That can't be right... Peeta always knows what to say.

Oh, dummy. You're the one who came to him!

I wait for him to bring over the tea pot and cups (after refusing my help of course) and then I'm the first to speak.

“Peeta... I'm.... I'm sorry.”

How pathetic! After he was tortured to near death after you abandoned him? After he went through two Hunger Games for you? After he protected your secrets to the entire country for you? The only thing you have to say is I'm sorry????

Peeta smirks a little and catches my eye. I let out a small laugh. He does too. He was always better at this than me.

“Do you want to start over?” He smiles at me.

“Yes, please."

And there he goes again, so gracious, so forgiving. Haymitch was right; I don't deserve him.

"Uh... Peeta, I... where do I even begin..."

"Katniss, I know what you're trying to do. It's not your fault."

I want to say he's wrong. That everything that's happened to him is my fault. It's my fault I separated from him in the Quarter Quell. It's my fault I acted so cold to him when he came to District 13.

But it's not my fault he was reaped. That was the Capital. And it's not my fault he was deployed back into action when he was still mentally disoriented. That was the Rebellion. So much suffering he has endured by the hands of powerful people who never cared about him. But what about what I did, someone who was supposed to protect him?

"I think it's time we figured out what is and isn't my fault. I think it's time I apologize. For everything."

"You don't have to. I told you once, I can't hold you to what you did in the Games to keep us alive and well, I think that still stands seeing as the Games lasted longer than we thought."

I know what he's talking about. The Capital watching us closely after our victory of the 74th Hunger Games. Our return to the arena for the 75th. And of course... the 76th. With no downtime in between...

"I don't want your forgiveness. Well I mean... if you want to but... Peeta, I just need you to know the truth, of where my head was, where my heart was. If we're gonna move forward I need you to know the truth, to actually know the truth-"

"We?"

"Well, of course, 'we', I-" And as I repeat it, I hear it myself. We. Us. Together. "Yes. We."

And all of a sudden, the table is too long, the distance between us too great, and the vastness of my mistakes come alive.

How do I explain to him that I've figured it out? I say my brain finally made a decision? That seems cold. That my stomach is now clear-headed? That's a little...crude and confusing.

I may still get nightmares. And still struggle with needed...assistance from morphling. I may still lay in bed for the whole day. I may still wander around aimlessly. But it's far better than it was. I actually answer my phone when my doctor calls. I bring back game when I go hunting. And when I eat, I can actually taste the food.

I may have so much more work to do, but I can't do it alone. Because the work is in front of me.

It's not a matter of Peeta's forgiveness. Of course, he'll forgive me. It's not a matter of his understanding. He's the only one who even could. It's all a matter of my explanation, and we all know I'm not very good at that.

I look down and realized I haven't even touched my tea.

"Peeta... you know I'm not very good at...uh..."

"Expressing your feelings through words?"

"Yeah, that's the one."

He smiles at me again but this time, our eyes meet. When was the last time I had Peeta's eyes look at me so clearly, so presently? I will never take this gaze for granted again.

"You don't have to, Katniss. Or at least... not right this second. We have all the time in the world you need to find the words."

And just like that, the last organ in my body had what it needed to make its decision: time.

Before, our days were numbered. The future itself seemed horrific, and gruesome. The act of marrying Peeta was a charade for protection from Snow, and the idea of a family and kids was filled with fear of hearing their named reaped themselves. Too many people wanted me dead. Too many people wanted to use my image. I had too many lives on my shoulders, too many lives I had taken to warrant any hope of a future. But now that Panem has entered a new era, my heart has made its decision.

And now I know how to explain myself to the Boy with the Bread.

I reach for his hand across the table. Of course, he accepts and takes mine in his. I use my thumb to caress his knuckles. I'm here. I'm present. I want to give back, I say with my touch. He squeezes my hand in return, accepting my affection.

I remember our first reaping. We shook hands, and he squeezed mine. He was always looking out for me, even in the beginning.

The beginning.

"I'll have to start from the beginning."

"I know," he says, already a million steps ahead of me, as always.

How did I ever get so lucky with someone like him? Deep down, he really is better than the rest of us. Truly empathetic, truly selfless.

He guides my hand up, and my body follows.

"Come on," he says. "I want to show you something."

He leads me upstairs, into a small study. The same room in my house that President Snow visited me in before our Victory Tour. But everything is different in Peeta's house, because it has his touch. He's turned the study into his own personal painting studio.

I want to look around and take all of it in, but I can't. My eyes are glued to the largest canvas in the center of the room. So clearly, so beautifully, in a way that could only have been done by his hand, rests a portrait of my late sister, dead, but encased in flowers.

I walk up to the canvas, meaning to touch her face but deciding not to. I don't want to smudge the perfection.

She looks so young, so innocent. But of course, by the time the bombs came, she had grown up so fast, a necessity of war. The flowers surrounding her body and laced in her hair like a crown, are primrose. The various colors radiate around her, lifting her from the canvas. She looks like how Rue did when I said goodbye. But the flowers she holds in her hands are different.

"Katniss," he says. I realize I never let go of his hand. Peeta stands next to me, never eyeing his work, but looking at my face. "She's holding katniss flowers."

Of course, she is, I think. The white flowers with the purple and yellow specs rest on her heart as she so delicately displays them.

"I know before you said you hated my work but, I've started taking a different approach."

He's right that the first time I saw his paintings I hated them. They were so real, too real, depicting the horrors of the first Games we experienced together. I saw the images enough in my own nightmares, to see them reflected on canvas was painful.

"Peeta, she's perfect."

And I turn back to him, wanting to give him a kiss. But do we do that now? I don't want him to think I only would because of Prim. So many kisses I have given him in the past with unclear intentions. I will not do that to him moving forward.

"There's more, if you want to see."

And as I turn around and the room illuminates. Finnick. Mags. Wiress. Rue. Even Clove, and Cato. Everyone radiates off his canvas like gorgeous angles, resting in peace.

I look back at Peeta, who of course has never taken his eyes off of me. And I am reminded of a time when he forgot he was a painter, forgot his ability to capture the most delicate of moments. When the Capital succeeded in turning him into something he's not. Yet, here my Peeta stands before me.

"You're painting again."

"Thanks to you."

And he rubs my knuckles with his hand. I want to tell him he wouldn't have forgotten how to paint if it wasn't for me in the first place, but somehow I sense that not going to go over very well.

I notice our bodies have gotten closer together, almost magnetically. I feel the urge to kiss him again, but am afraid it's not the right moment. Too many staged kisses on my part in our past, I don't want to send mixed signals. We've gone through so much trauma, the last thing either of us needs is more confusion or gas-lighting. We should take this slow.

"Maybe we could go for a walk?," I say, attempting to break our trance, "Haymitch might be getting up soon, and we could-"

And that's when he kisses me. His hand, so delicate against my neck, coaxing me towards him. And our lips, fitting together with such familiarity, as if they've never been apart. He drops my hand as his slowly slides up my waist to my lower back. Not only do I allow it, I pull him in closer. My one hand courses through his hair while the other grabs his shirt on his chest.

It's a kiss of firsts: the first time we kiss since he's had stubble, and the little hairs tickle my cheeks. The first time we kiss alone, with no audience of the Capital or our friends. And the first time we've kiss with no ulterior motives of survival.

Of course, it's electric. I think back to our very first kiss in the cave, my very first time kissing a boy. Nothing could have prepared me for kissing Peeta now, as he holds me and doesn't let go. There's no hunger, no starvation, no fear. Just electricity coursing through my entire body.

When he breaks away, we're holding each other so tightly, as if we were in a cramped little closet. His eyes scan my face, like he's still in utter shock to have me. He gives his classic Peeta smile, filled with charm and charisma. How that smile didn't win me over alone should have been my defense for mental disorientation.

"You wanted to kiss me, real or not real?"

Did the doctors give him the power to read my mind or something???

"Real," I whisper as I pull him in for more.

There's no one to stop us. No Gamemakers to worry about, no one to bust through the door. We're completely alone, completely free.

Our hands find one another, and we hold them between our bodies. Peeta's strong embrace still making me feel safe and secure.

From our moment with the bread, to our Hunger Games, to District 13, Peeta and I have always found each other again. When I look at him, it feels so inevitable. It was always me and Peeta. I could never have won those games without him, secured our sponsors, even lead a rebellion. A mockingjay needs a jabberyjay, a fire needs a spark, and I need Peeta.

I go in for more, but Peeta stops me. He doesn't let go, but he loosens his grip on me. My feet bring me back to reality.

"I still get flashes, you know. I'm better of course but... it might not be safe for you to be alone with me like this."

"Peeta, I'm not leaving you again."

"And I'm not gonna lay my hands on you again."

"Peeta, that wasn't you."

"Yes, it was. Maybe you should-"

I dig into my pocket and pull out my pearl.

"You never once gave up on me. And I'm not giving up on you. Peeta, it's always been you."

Peeta's gaze follows my hand, back up to my eyes. Did he know I kept it? Held on to it every day, hoping for his return? He cocks his all-knowing smirk.

"I heard something the other day... how did it go? That if you press coal hard enough it turns into a pearl. Coal-expert, Dr. Everdeen, is this fact real, or not real?"

"Real, Dr. Mellark. Actually, it's highly improbable, but I've seen two pieces of coal merge to make one pearl with my very own two eyes."

"You don't say? Well, in that case, we should keep this pearl very close. It's one of a kind."

He chuckles and gives me a quick little kiss.

"I don't know how you managed to keep that little thing all this time."

And I look at him shocked, confused. Because it's the most obvious explanation of all.

"You have no idea the affect you have on me," I tell him.

"Show me, then," he says.

And that's exactly what I plan to do.

[takadasaiko]

Demons at the Door: Chapter Five

FFN II AO3

Summary: Solomon searches for answers, Nez and Dumont find some troubling news, and Tom receives a phone call that can only add to the chaos in the Keens' lives.

Chapter Five: Going Home

He hadn't slept in at least twenty-four hours. Dumont was working through both the information from Kat's laptop and the cloned phone they'd brought to him. He had reminded them in true Dumont fashion that genius couldn't be rushed, but he was uncovering information that might prove useful if they could verify it.

On Liz's end, Tom had found out that Aram had been arrested for being in contempt of a grand jury investigation into the Task Force, compliments of Julian Gale and Kate Kaplan. They'd tried to force him to testify against the Task Force and the poor guy had ended up in holding when he refused. They had a plan, but what that was Liz hadn't divulged. The call had been interrupted by Dumont needing his attention.

"This is looking more and more like a set up," Nez murmured as they walked through the doors of where Scottie was being held.

"How'd that lead you were following down pan out?"

"Still waiting," she answered as they pulled their IDs for the guard and slid them over.

"Anyone I know?"

"Sorry, Mr Keen. Your access has been revoked."

Tom's attention pulled immediately to the guard. "What?"

"It's a short list. You're off it."

He felt his temper flare. Howard. He hadn't spoken to him, but he'd sure as hell done something about it.

"What about me?" Nez asked and the guard shrugged.

"You're credentials are still good to go, ma'am."

Tom's phone buzzed and he squeezed his eyes shut, trying to get control of the anger. "Go," he growled and hit the accept button for the phone. "Keen."

"Tom, I'm glad I was able to reach you."

A chill swept through him at the voice. "Kaplan?" he breathed, immediately going for the door. The last thing he needed was someone eavesdropping on this conversation. "Liz has been looking for you."

"I found her, but I need to take… steps to ensure that everything is taken care of in the event that things go badly."

Dark blue eyes swept the street. "How's that?" he asked carefully.

"Everything I've done has been to protect her. To protect that little girl of yours, but I was so focused on keeping Raymond away from them that I..." Her voice caught and she sounded tired. So tired. "I'm meeting with her shortly and I'm going to show her the truth. If something happens, if Raymond finds a way to kill me before that happens, I need you to make sure she sees it. I need you to make sure she knows."

"Knows what, Kate?" Tom managed, and for just a moment she was the woman who had risked everything to get them away from Reddington, not the one that was continuing to turn Liz and her team's lives upside down.

"The truth. Listen closely. If I die, I need you to follow these instructions to the letter."

Kate Kaplan walked him through it carefully, detailing out the bus station, the locker, and the combination. He would find a suitcase there. He was to take it to Liz. Under no circumstances could Raymond Reddington get his hands on the suitcase or Liz would never find the answers that she needed about her past and who he was to her.

"You know how hard Raymond will fight to keep his secrets."

"Can't you just tell her? I mean, I get contingency plans, but-"

"Will you do this for her, Tom, or won't you?"

"It's Liz's past. You know I'm going to help, but-"

"Someone will be in touch," she said sharply and the call ended, leaving Tom standing on the sidewalk with the phone pressed to his ear and a terrible feeling clawing at him. He'd hoped that the war between Reddington and Kaplan might have different resolution for Liz's sake if no one else's. From the way Kate Kaplan had just spoken, though, she thought she was going to her death.

The lights flickered on, startling the man chained to the chair in the middle of the room. He looked up, eyes wide and terrified, and he started to struggle against the restraints again.

"Yeah, that's not going to work," Solomon's smooth voice sounded from the corner he'd been crouched in, long fingers working through the tools he'd brought with him. The location wasn't ideal, but he had had to make do. Halcyon's protection had kept him safe from the Cabal while he'd worked for Scottie, but with Scottie Hargrave sitting behind bars and Howard Hargrave at the helm, he counted himself lucky that they weren't actively pursuing him. Especially with Tom Keen as the long-lost son finally come home. He should have put a bullet in the little bastard's head when he had the chance. It would have saved them all a lot of trouble.

"What do you want?" his captive's shaky voice brought him back around and he stood, a chain wrapped around his left hand and a wicked looking knife in his right.

"I want a great many things," Solomon said, circling around from behind and watching the man cringe. "Today, though, I want something you can give me."

"I don't have anything."

"Everyone has something, and you, my good man, have information. Now, you have two options. We can have a civilized conversation. Questions, answers. You know the drill. Or-" he let some of the chain loose, the heavy metal unraveling and clanking - "this could get messy. Your choice."

"I-I don't even know what you want from me," the man stammered.

"You were part of a team that built a Quantum Computing prototype. Who was it for?"

The engineer blinked hard. "I was always told it was for Ms Hargrave and Halcyon Aegis."

"And was it?"

He looked terrified. "Dr Banning would know. He was the one that worked with Ms Hargrave. I'd never seen the woman outside of news interviews until you and she came into the lab a few weeks back."

"Banning?" Solomon clarified.

"He's the lead engineer on the project. Please," he swallowed hard, "that's all I know."

Solomon flashed him a charming smile, letting the chain clatter to the floor and watching the man wince. "I believe you," he said simply, tucking his knife away in an inner coat pocket.

The man barely had time to look relieved, much less register what was happening as Solomon pulled his gun from its holster and left a hole between his eyes. He couldn't risk loose ends where he was.

She didn't like the way things were adding up. It was no coincidence that Tom had been on the short list of people allowed in to see Scottie and that after one visit he was off. It felt like an intentional roadblock to the investigation, and as far as Nez knew there were only a few people with the power to do what had been done. The FBI could have done it, but they had no reason to. Agent Lamb was open and relatively friendly with them, keeping them apprised of the case against Scottie. If the guards at the jail had felt he was a threat, they might have some pull, but that didn't seem to fall in line either. That left either the Board or Howard himself, and as far as Nez was aware the Board had no idea who Tom was, therefore no reason to be uncomfortable with him speaking with Scottie when the investigation he was on linked to hers. They'd know soon enough. Tom was on his way to Howard's office, and she wondered if he was having to work as hard as she was to not jump to a conclusion without all the facts.

"Tell me you have good news, Dumont," the weapons specialist sighed as she took a heavy seat in an empty chair in his work space.

He glanced over, almost like he hadn't heard her approach at all. "Good and bad. Which do ya want first?"

Nez cringed. "Let's go with bad."

"There's a hell of a lot of information. It's going to take a lot of time to sift through everything without help."

"Our trust pool is getting smaller."

"Yeah? Who's in it right now?"

"You, me, and Tom."

"Cozy," he chuckled, and seemed to know better than to ask why Howard wasn't in there as well. "So, good news is I found a number that I'm ninety-nine percent sure will link us to our John Doe'a employer."

"There's more bad news?"

"Yeah. Burner and long since deactivated, but-" Dumont's fingers flew over the keyboard- "with a little luck and a hell of a lot of skill, I was able to track down a collection of texts. I sorted through them and found a place where they met physically to exchange information. The Network wasn't overhead at the time, but New York has more than a few surveillance cameras. Ever get the feeling you're being watched?"

"All the damn time," Nez answered. "So?"

"So, I got into the systems and the image is rendering. As soon as it's done, we're gonna have a face to connect as Kat's murderer's boss."

"How long?"

Dumont shrugged. "I've got it running top priority, but the file's big." He pulled up a file and Nez could see the image, clearing up pixel by pixel. It looked like two men at a food truck by a park. One, if stature was anything to go off of, was their Trevor Sanders.

"Can you speed it up by focusing in on that guy?" Nez asked, pointing to the blob of a man standing next to their murderer.

He gave a grunt of affirmation and punched in the command. The rest of the rendering froze, all the program's effort put into the parameters that Dumont had set around the man's face.

Nez brushed the back of her hand against her nose and leaned forward, elbows on her knees as if being closer would speed it up. "I reached out to Mattie."

She saw Dumont stiffen. "Why?"

"Because he's good. Because he can fly under radars even we can't."

"Is he?"

"He's checking into things for me. He said he'd reach out."

Dumont swallowed hard. "You told Tom yet?"

"I'm trying to figure out how to," she admitted softly. "I think it was the right move, but Tom's got a lot to deal with right now. I mean, that's a hell of an emotional overload, and he and Solomon don't exactly get along."

Dumont snorted. "Understatement, but I'm not sure you can blame them. Solomon nearly killed his wife when he worked for the Cabal. Threatened to filet her or something like that."

Nez winced. "He does have a flare."

"Then Agnes nearly died when she was born."

"Tom never told me that."

"Yeah. Apparently that and the fact Liz nearly died then too is what earned Solomon a bullet to the gut, then we have everything that happened between them here… Lots of bad blood." He looked up at her. "Don't give him a reason not to trust you."

It sounded like a plea and Nez cringed. This had been hard on Dumont. He could take secrets, but he didn't take well to betrayal. "I'll tell him," she promised, and the beeping in the computer pulled both of their attentions to the video where a man in a cap stepped up to the trick where Trevor Sanders was ordering something. The angle was bad and Nez frowned, willing him to turn. It took a moment, but he did, and she felt her breath catch.

"Dammit," Dumont grumbled.

"Get it off our systems. Now."

"Done and done, sister. Where's Tom? He should know."

Nez's pale gaze remained on the image of Howard Hargrave on Dumont's screen. "In with him now," she murmured.

"You don't think he'll hurt his own kid, do you?"

She closed her eyes, a breath escaping. "I don't know what that family is capable of anymore."

"Sir, he's in a meeting. You can't go in there."

Tom ignored the secretary as he pushed the office door open, finding Howard sitting with a man that he vaguely recognized as one of the Board members. Both men looked a little started at his sudden appearance, but Howard recovered first. "Tom. You met Albert, didn't you? He's been with Halcyon for… what?"

"ThIrty-three years next month," Albert answered.

Howard flashed a friendly smile. "One of our senior Board members. This is Tom Keen." He paused for just half a beat, as if trying to decide how he wanted introduce his son whose death certificate was still on file with the state of New York "He's leading the investigation into Kat Carlson's murder."

"That's what I'm here about," Tom said tightly, offering only the briefest of nods at the Board member before turning his sharp gaze back on Howard.

"Great. Albert and I will be done here in ten or twenty minutes."

"This really can't wait."

Howard didn't look startled by his tone, necessarily, but his eyes did narrow just a little.

"We were about done anyway," Albert said as he stood, buttoning his suit jacket. "Good chat, Howard. I think Halcyon is heading in the right direction. I'm looking forward to seeing where you take us."

Tom kept his expression even as he watched his father shake the man's hand and remained exactly where he was until Albert had left. He heard Howard loose a breath. "What on earth is so important that you barge in her in the middle of a meeting with a man that has influence to sway the whole damn Board?"

"I told you that I'd stay on to find out who attacked Kat. I put off going home to my wife and child because I thought Kat deserved that. I thought you agreed."

Howard stiffened, his gaze becoming a bit more guarded in light of Tom's tone. "I do."

"Then why the hell are you putting up roadblocks to it?" His temper was boiling to a dangerous level and he hadn't realized just how pissed he really was.

The older man held his gaze for a moment before speaking in much calmer tones. "Tell me what's happened, son. We'll get it fixed."

Tom snorted. He knew a manipulation tactic when he saw one. "You shut off my access to see Scottie."

"Ah," his father breathed and he turned, moving to the office's bar as he spoke. "She can't give you anything of value in the investigation."

"That's not for you to decide."

"Tom," Howard said slowly, offering him a glass of amber liquid with a couple of ice cubes clinking together, "I know you want to trust her, but Scottie is where she is because of what she's done. She's lied and she's manipulated and she'll continue to do it if you give her an outlet."

A soft buzzing sound came from his pocket and he risked a look, seeing Liz's face lighting up the screen. He hit decline. He hated not taking her calls when they came, but this needed to be dealt with. "I want to trust you, Howard, but every turn I'm taking you keep giving me reasons not to."

His father winced at the tone and leaned against the bar. "That's not my intention."

"Then fix it. Don't get in the way of the avenues I need to take to get to the bottom of this. I'm good at what I do. You've seen that. If I think that interviewing Scottie is a viable avenue to take, then I'm going to take it." He set the still-full glass Howard had given him on the counter, the screen lighting up on his phone from a text. Call me when you get a chance. He wasn't sure what had happened, but Liz rarely texted right after calling. Something was wrong. "I have to call Liz back."

He turned, but Howard's voice made him pause. "I'll get your name back in the approved list of visitors, but Tom? Please, be careful, son. You don't know her like I do."

Tom didn't answer, but put the ringing phone to his ear as he passed by Tanya's desk. "Hey, babe. Everything okay?"

There was a short pause before she answered, her voice worn and tired. "Kate's dead."

Tom pulled in a steadying breath. "I'm on my way."

"You don't have to-"

"I have to tie up some loose ends, but I'll swing by and pick up Wing Yee's on the way in for dinner. How does that sound?"

"Perfect," she breathed on the other end, sounding relieved.

"See you in a few hours. I love you." He ended the call and risked a glance back. This investigation, Howard, everything would need to wait, at least for the moment. Liz needed him and he'd made her wait long enough. He was going home.

Notes: I was so excited when I finished writing this chapter because the first four were a constant balancing act of trying to make sure that I had the timelines straight. I think there was likely some overlap with where Redemption ended and the main show picked back up after its Spring Hiatus. I guess we'll see next season when it comes back and we find out what Tom was doing for multiple episodes that overlapped in filming. For the sake of this story, though, there was some timeline overlap and we are now finally caught up :D

There should also be quite a bit more Keen2 and Team Keen moving forward, which makes this writer's heart very happy.

Next time - Tom and Liz face what the bones could mean for Liz's revelation about Reddington and Nez takes a trip to DC.

[notesandcoffee]

Opinions 4.19

Psychotherapy is hard to write well, Gale continues to provide more entertainment than any TK plotline, and I try my hand at figuring out how to forget things.

There was so much going on this episode that it was actually hard for me to start somewhere. Everything is just such a good idea. The execution ranges from questionable to excellent, but there's nothing I would consider irrevocably "bad", as we've seen in some previous episodes. Definitely stuff I feel could be improved, so I guess we'll start there.

The "therapy" that's the centerpiece of this episode, where Dr. Krilov stages an abduction and then implants memories in Ressler's memory is okay, given what comes afterwards is both absorbing and entertaining. The payoff is worth the suspension of belief for this part, but I feel like the therapy could have been done better and closer to, you know, actual science. In the scene in question, Krilov goes from narrating Panabaker's language in Ressler's "dream", for lack of a better term, immediately to explaining to his colleagues what exactly he's doing.

I feel like this was done for time purposes, rather than believability, but that doesn't really make it better. Combined with the cut idea that Ressler's memory was supposed to be triggered by Sriracha scent rather than auditory input. There's no real way to do that on-screen without losing at least part of the audience or taking up a lot of time, so I understand why it was cut. But immediately going against a rule that was just made doesn't really seem cool either. It would have kept the audience enrapt if Krilov had only voiced Panabaker in the "dream", and maybe if the colleagues had spoken to themselves, quietly, off to the side. It would give the impression that Ressler is completely hypnotized to the sound of Krilov's voice and is inputting memory rapidly (which he would have been, according to the scene). 

That's my strongest real criticism, though. I wasn't really feeling the tension at the beginning, but I also didn't realize quite what the plan was for Ressler and to have him go directly against Panabaker by himself, but it ultimately brought about something that I hadn't expected. Again, there's a bewilderment and a payoff that was more than worth it for me. 

Ressler, while trying to talk Gale out of pursuing Reddington through the bodies on the ice rink, receives a call from a detective in Philadelphia about the Reven Wright case, which of course he pursues. Jailing Panabaker for Wright's murder has been a longtime goal of Ressler, one that we've seen him struggle with numerous times in the show after Wright's demise. There, he meets Linda McFadden, who saw Hitchin carrying a body out of Wright's house, presumably her body. Shortly after, the area is SWATted, and everything goes dark. Ressler is picked up by a flip Panabaker shortly after, and pushes her for answers on Wright and McFadden. The two go back and forth for a while, before Panabaker excuses Ressler and instead calls in a threat against McFadden from her own cell phone. 

The cell phone Ressler drops doesn't ever payoff, though. I don't think that's really worth pursuing, in this case. 

Gale continues to impress with his relentless pursuit of the truth, and he finally meets Liz, after trying to reach her by phone numerous times. He wants her to see the body-filled ice rink to guilt her into telling him where Reddington is and the story. He's already got a great grasp of what happened, complete with memorized dates. He's made a timeline with dates and evidence, all of it through records and without the characters we've known and fallen deeply in love with. He's an acknowledgement that Reddington is still a criminal, in addition to all of the other things we know him to be. He's not a direct threat to Liz, but presents a threat to Reddington, which puts Liz in yet another conflicting position.

However, unlike previous scenarios with TK, the conflict isn't based on Liz's romantic feelings for anyone., something that the audience cannot share. It's about Liz's loyalty, and what she wants to find meaning in. She either protects Reddington and values him as more than an informant, or she finds justice for the victims on the ice rink and turns him in properly. For the first time in years, the audience is asked questions that aren't centered on "what is abuse?" but rather, what's morally more meaningful. Murciano is great at speaking quickly and not allowing Liz or Ressler enough time to think about a reaction before his next statement, even if it caused problems for me personally when I tried to watch the episode sped up.

There isn't enough Aram in this episode. Aram and rest of the P.O. sans Ressler take a backseat, though they're next in line as Gale continues to rip through the task force in order to get to Reddington. With Ressler sidelined, it's anyone's guess as to who Gale targets next. Cooper would be an interesting choice to go after next, as he could use the task force as a shield or insist on taking on Gale himself.

We did get a peek at how Saram is doing, with Aram's line: "... and these days, [Navabi and I] don’t really agree on anything so, you know, it’s gotta be good advice." They've been fighting about a lot, and as colleagues, that's not particularly good for the P.O. as a whole. But because they can come to at least this agreement without much of a conflict, they both care about Liz (and by extension, Reddington) enough to want her to stay away from Gale.

Based on what we know from the Katai Fellowship ordeal and Janet's appearance in the P.O., Navabi has had issues addressing Aram plainly, something Aram isn't comfortable with at all, stuttering and peppering his speech with more fillers than usual in this particular line. I'm still a bit unclear as to why Navabi has such a distaste for her colleague, but it's nice to know that something that trivial will not break up the team... yet. With the pressure Gale is using as a weapon in this arc, it'll be interesting to see how that affects Saram, which it ultimately will.

Red mentions how Kaplan's personality has changed, something longtime fans have noted since the beginning of the arc. It's an acknowledgement that it's not quite the same Kaplan we've seen in previous episodes of the show, for better or worse. Now that it's a noted adjustment of Kaplan's personality, we can start looking as to why her personality changed drastically so quickly, and what changes can be retroactively made to the flashback episode, if any. Last Opinions I theorized that the new personality was the result of an untreated TBI, but because we're working slow closely with memory, I thought it was worth a second look. 

But we see something new here -- Krilov mentions that he saw Liz two years ago, not twenty-five. And he doesn't seem to be lying about it either. @eaglechica19 has a great thesis on Caul hiring Krilov and how it intertwines with Red's relationship with Liz, and if you haven't read it yet, open a tab for it here.

And because I was curious, I wondered if Kaplan remembered things differently than how they actually occurred, inspiring her change in personality and autobiographical memories being disjointed. If that were the case, it would be similar to how Krilov's implanted memories in Liz and Ressler worked. Except, as I mentioned previously, Kaplan's access to medical attention, be it nefarious or not, was incredibly limited. If Kaplan's fake memories weren't implanted by Krilov or Orchard, how did she get them? And could we use that to learn about Liz's memories?

Disclaimer: I am not a neuroscientist. I'm a fucking nerd with an internet connection. Please consult actual fucking medical attention if any of these things might apply to you.

This is on the Mayo Clinic's website for amnesia: 

Another rare type of amnesia, called dissociative (psychogenic) amnesia, stems from emotional shock or trauma, such as being the victim of a violent crime. In this disorder, a person may lose personal memories and autobiographical information, but usually only briefly.

Reading this looks like a terrible plot device, I'm aware, but this is a real thing that happens to real people. It's worth reading up on, in my opinion, for that reason alone. 

But in our world of fiction, we've been exploring two different people's memories. Both of whom have survived traumatic incidents -- plot-dependent incidents -- that we've only seen in that autobiographical memory. Liz's memory was toyed with intentionally, at least once by Red. If those memories are wrong, then we’re not viewing the story completely. So where can we find that story?

From WebMD, emphasis mine:

Dissociative amnesia is not the same as simple amnesia, which involves a loss of information from memory, usually as the result of disease or injury to the brain. With dissociative amnesia, the memories still exist but are deeply buried within the person's mind and cannot be recalled. However, the memories might resurface on their own or after being triggered by something in the person's surroundings.

This fits with what we've seen so far from Liz, in her shooting Connolly. We also see this in how Kaplan recalls her past, with bits floating in and out as she goes on her grotesque road trip to dig up bodies. The memories themselves are shattered, and while certain parts of the memory are intact, some of the most crucial bits are fuzzy. As @eaglechica pointed out, we don't know for sure who is fighting in Liz's memory. Certain parts of Kaplan's memory are missing as well, such as the long time gaps that were barely covered by a cut on-screen. 

As noted, Krilov's psychotherapy is a bit of a farce on Ressler, easily broken by Liz, which leaves me to wonder what exactly he did to Liz to make her forget... whatever he was told to. When successful, how does his psychotherapy actually work, and can we learn anything from it? Is there any way for someone to completely forget something happened? 

It's tempting to say "repression" in the same way Freud imagined it -- that is, traumatic experiences were sealed off but left behind a specific behavior associated with it, like depression, anxiety, sexual dysfunction, etc. This concept has largely been disproven by the scientific community. Long story short: victims telling someone they forgot what happened was more beneficial than coming out with the truth for a incredible amount of time. Likewise, I wasn't able to find a psychotherapist who specialized in making people forget experiences, but an incredible amount of hypnotherapists who specialized in dealing with the effects of trauma. 

As far as I can tell, there hasn't been a documented experiment where a person was able to successfully completely forget an experience. However, it's well-documented that every feeling you have, every thought, is a result of a series of neurons firing off at the right time with the right signal. Mess with the timing, mess with the signal or how its carried, mess with the part firing off in the first place, and the results can be vastly different. The closest to having someone intentionally forget an experience that I was able to find in academia was an experiment in 2010, where a drug was able to block "fear" signals when mice encountered a loud noise. Because our communication with mice is limited, we don't know if they "forgot" what a loud sound means in the same way that humans might forget a phone number or a grocery list. We do know that when we drug mice, they don't have the same chemical reaction that would cause them to feel fear or anxiety after they've had a bad experience. For our purposes, they know what happened previously when there was a loud noise, but they excuse it and continue with their day, while on drugs.

If Kaplan's working with a traumatic brain injury that's fucking with her memory, Liz needs to be on drugs consistently to wholly forget hers. We haven't been with Liz 24/7, but I'm going to go ahead and say she hasn't been on memory-altering drugs for most of that time. Instead, Krilov has used a combination of hypnotherapy and drugs (as seen in Ressler's "dream") to make the emotions associated with that memory less traumatic and harder for her to recall.

If Kaplan is suffering from dissociative amnesia, we might be able to get the whole story soon, similar to how Liz is revealing her memories. If Liz happens to hit the right trigger, we'll get the memories that we desperately want to see.

[justanothercinemaniac]

Epic Movie (Re)Watch #121 - Back to the Future

Spoilers below.

Have I seen it before: Yes

Did I like it then: Yes!

Do I remember it: Yes.

Did I see it in theaters: Yes.

Was it a movie I saw since August 22nd, 2009: Yes. #383.

Format: Blu-ray

This is super long. You have been warned.

1) I love this movie. With all my heart. With a burning passion. It is my favorite film of all time. I first saw it...well, I was probably 7 when I first saw it but I didn’t remember it much. I first saw it and remembered it on my 13th birthday and watched it with my family and freaking fell in love! I ended up watching it once a month for the next year, I’ve seen it easily at least 20 times, I even got a chance to see the entire trilogy in theaters on October 21, 2015! And I think that’s all because it is connected to a time in my life when I needed an escape like this. Back to the Future provided me with comfort during a year in my life which was one of the hardest in my life. I would not be a film student today if it were not for this movie, I could probably write a book on the trilogy! I’ll do my best to keep this shorter than a book though.

2) The opening pan of Doc Brown’s lab is a great way to start the film. The high number of clocks puts an emphasis on times (with the clock of Harry Lloyd hanging from the hour hand being particularly foreshadowing), and we get a lot of information for smoothly.

Doc Brown used to be rich but his mansion burned down.

We know the film is set in 1985.

There is some missing plutonium.

Doc is an inventor, as seen from all the inventions he has in the lab.

It’s a simple, memorable way to start the film and I love it.

3) Michael J. Fox as Marty McFly!

Marty McFly is honestly you’re average guy without being boring. He’s got people in his life he cares about and who care about him, he’s got ambitions even if they’re not “change the world” ambitions, he has anxieties, and he’s just very relatable. Also he’s pretty cool, and his introduction establishes a lot of important things about Marty. It shows us his love for music, a sharp wit (“Rock ‘n Roll!”), and an ability to roll with the punches (for example, being flung across the room by an amplifier and then saying, “Rock ‘n Roll!”).

Honestly Marty NEEDS Michael J. Fox. Eric Stoltz was originally cast in the role as Fox (who was the filmmakers’ first choice) was busy on his TV show “Family Ties” at the time but Stoltz was just NOT working out. It’s easy to make Marty sort of annoying on paper. There’s a Back to the Future comic book running right now and there was an arc starting around issue #6 where Marty started to bug me. And that’s because he was PURELY writing, there was no Michael J. Fox to bring that x factor Marty needs so badly. Fox (who ended up working on both “Family Ties” and Back to the Future at the same time) is what MAKES the character. There is no Marty McFly without Michael J. Fox.

4) Doc tells Marty that his, “experiment worked! [The clocks] are all exactly 25 minutes slow!” How is that an experiment? Can’t I do that with my clocks?

5) “The Power of Love” by Huey Lewis & The News is a great theme song for the film. I personally prefer “Back in Time” which plays towards the end of the film, but there’s no underestimating the power of “The Power of Love”. It’s a memorable, slick tune, which plays under a scene which very easily gives us a sense of what the town of Hill Valley is like. Another key ingredient to the film.

6) Freaking Strickland.

Strickland is not on screen for much time but he’s memorable. And that’s because he’s a raging asshole. Actor James Tolkan is able to play Strickland well in his few scenes because he makes his assholish nature funny. Much like Jeffrey Jones’ character in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Strickland is someone MAD with the little power he has. I mean look at that GIF above! Personal space, dude! It’s hysterical, and the character forever changes the way I hear the word, “slacker!”

7) Hey, look Huey it is! (I’m so sorry.)

8) In there few scenes together, Michael J. Fox and Claudia Wells make you feel that Marty and Jennifer REALLY love each other. There’s a quiet trust and honesty to their performance, an ability to talk with each other openly while being true to who they are. Do you think Marty would tell ANYONE else his fears about his rejection? His parents? No, no he wouldn’t. It’s a shame we didn’t get more Jennifer in the film, but the little we do is much appreciated.

9) This film really excels in the exposition department, because it gives you the information you need to know in smooth natural ways. You don’t feel like the film has paused to tell you, “This information is important,” it just makes sense! Whether it’s done for laughs or because it’s an honest character moment, it just works! This is true in:

The “Save the Clocktower” scene.

Lorraine telling her children how her and George met.

Doc Brown giving us ALL the exposition we need about his time machine.

10) Oh Biff.

Biff [after we learn he wrecked George’s car]: “I can’t believe you lent me your car without telling me it had a blind spot in it!”

I’ll talk more about Biff once we get to 1955.

11) Thomas F. Wilson, Crispin Glover and Lea Thompson all day amazingly playing the old age versions of their characters. You don’t feel like you’re watching 20 somethings play adults, you feel like you’re watching adult performers! And then it feels as natural when they’re playing the teenagers in 1955. It just works and I give massive credit to not only the actors for pulling that off but also the makeup people for not making the old age stuff look too ridiculous.

12) Okay, what 47 year old man calls someone a butt head? Like, how juvenile is that? I mean that’s probably the point, because it’s Biff, but still!

13) It’s a running gag throughout the series that Marty’s uncle/Lorraine’s sister Joey is in jail. Except...WHAT IS HE IN JAIL FOR!?!? I MUST KNOW!!!! MURDER!? ARSON!? FRAUD!? FALSE ADVERTISING!? WHAT IS IT JOEY!?

14) So, Lorraine in 1985 seems...pretty miserable to me. With watching it 20+ times I see that she’s pretty much an alcoholic, she’s always morose, she rarely smiles, and the look on her face after she recounts the story of how she and George fell in love...like she does NOT look happy!

And then that line becomes sort of greater after finishing the film. By 1955 standards she “chased” Marty as Calvin Klein, meaning she probably felt that she chased George too. Now she regrets that and wants to A) create some revisionist history and B) make sure other people don’t make her perceived mistakes. Thank god for time travel to make her life better though!

15) Remember this sign:

16) Alan Silvestri’s INCREDIBLE score does not kick in until 18 minutes into the film, first appearing when the DeLorean first shows up. That’s because up until this point life was normal. Marty went to school, got busted for being late, Biff was an ass, a normal day. Then the extraordinary enters the picture and Silvestri’s score signals us of that.

17) Christopher Lloyd as the iconic Doctor Emmett Brown.

(GIF source unknown [if this is your GIF please let me know].)

Lloyd is spectacular in the role. Be is able to mash up the mad scientist archetype and bring to it a warmth and childlike glee to every moment. He is EXCITED! He’s passionate about all he does and that is his dominating personality trait. He’s not mean or condescending like Dr. Frankenstein, he’s just this guy who wants to do something great with his life and he finally accomplishes that! Lloyd is great through and through, bringing that essential warmth and energy to every scene Doc is in. He feels over the top but he never feels phony. And his chemistry with Fox is off the charts.

Fun fact: Doc’s signature hunched over stature came about because Christopher Lloyd (6'1") is significantly taller than Michael J. Fox (5'4½") & they had to appear in frame together.

18) There is a fan theory out there that Doc was actually trying to commit suicide the night of the DeLorean test. He had himself and Marty placed right in front of the car, was joyfully surprised when it actually worked, and in 1955 comments that he, “finally invent[s] something that works!” That makes the film way dark way fast so we’re going to move on.

19) The DeLorean going into the future is just such an iconic image.

(GIF sources unknown [if these are your GIFs please let me know].)

Everything about that visually is so iconic and incredible. From the flames to the pair turning around, and ESPECIALLY the spinning license plate! All great!

20) The DeLorean.

Marty: “Wait a minute, wait a minute Doc! Are you telling me that you built a TIME MACHINE...out of a DeLorean?”

Doc’s immediate response was that he wanted to build a time machine with some style, and then goes on to say, “The stainless steel construction was perfect for,” and is cut off by the DeLorean returning to the present. WHAT IS THE STAINLESS STELL CONSTRUCTION PERFECT FOR DOC!? WHAT!?

According to IMDb:

Writers Bob Gale and Robert Zemeckis actually received a fan letter from John DeLorean after the film's release, thanking them for immortalizing his car.

21) The interior of the car is just as sleek and simple as the exterior. There is nothing superfluous in this film, and everything that’s necessary is fun!

(I know this GIF is from Part II but it’s the best one I can find of the readout.)

22) I read a post on Tumblr which you can find here which said:

One of my favorite phrases my Creative Writing professor had for when you’re writing fantasy is ‘giving your story a Flux Capacitor’.

Because it’s not real, it doesn’t exist. But the way it’s thrown into Back to the Future, at no point does it throw the audience off or suspend any more disbelief than time travel would. You believe Doc when he says he created the Flux Capacitor - the thing that makes time travel possible, because the universe never questions him.

So it essentially means like, there are going to be elements to your universe that are just not gonna make any sense, even if you set up a whole system based on it. And the only way to make it work is completely own it. You cannot second-guess your system or else the reader will too. You can give it the strangest explanation, but write it like you own it.

23) Foreshadowing!

Doc [after he says he’ll visit 25 years in the future]: “I’ll also be able to see who wins the next 25 world series!”

24) The car chase between Marty and the Libyan nationalists is the first showcase of the film’s excellent action. In the action-y parts of the film the audience is kept tense at every turn. Every little moment has a cause and an effect and you’re just waiting on the edge of your seat to see what happens because of it. That’s great.

25) Robert Zemeckis has said that he and the filmmakers talked about having the time travel sequence be long and cool, but they realized it should be instantaneous. That when you travel back in time, you travel back in time in the same spot you’re in. It’s not like a TARDIS which moves you through time and space: if where you are was a farm 30 years ago, then when you travel back 30 years in time you’ll be in a farm.

26) Remember this:

27) The scene where Marty is wandering through Hill Valley in 1955 is done so well, and it establishes Hill Valley’s character. Because that’s what this town is: a character. Marty never travels back to Ancient Rome or Capone’s Chicago, it is ALWAYS Hill Valley and we get to know the town and its history because of that.

28) Biff and his crew.

Biff is shown at his most villainous in 1955, when he’s a big freaking bully! But Thomas F. Wilson also makes him enjoyable to watch. You like it when he gets punched and embarrassed, and Wilson brings a lot of humor to what could be a very cold role. I’ll talk about one important improv later.

PS: That guy with the toothpick is Billy Zane!

(GIF originally posted by @d-white211)

29) Crispin Glover SHINES as 1955 George.

He’s a total weirdo in the role but that’s what makes it work! He’s socially awkward and a pushover and THAT’S his character, but Glover also makes it believable that George goes through the transformation he does by film’s end. It’s a shame they couldn’t really get him for the sequels.

30) Man, just wait until Lou gets to 2008.

Lou [after he hears that Goldie Wilson wants to be mayor, which he becomes]: “A colored mayor, that’ll be the day.”

31) This film handles the ideas of expectations vs reality well (like when Marty finds out his dad’s a peeping tom), and that’s where it shines. This isn’t some time travel film about time bandits or something. The science fiction is just the device to tell this really interesting, human story about a kid realizing he’s got more in common with his parents than he thought. And THAT’S why it’s so special!

32) Wait...

Sam Bane [after Marty pushes George out of the road and gets hit by his car]: “Stella! Another one of these damn kids jumped in front of my car!”

ANOTHER!?

33) Okay so the fact that Lorraine has the hots for her future son Marty is creepy (that’s the point), but it also makes sense. As I understand it human beings are naturally disposed to experience physical attraction to our own genetics in other people. So if you don’t KNOW it is your family member, than you just think it’s someone who’s cute because they look like you.

Also the way Lorraine handles herself around Marty (ie: over the top attracted to him, pushing him into a chair next to her, being so shocked by him showing up at school she falls back into her locker) makes me think she may be REALLY sexually repressed. Like, unhealthily so. Freaking 50s, man.

34) And there’s only one way Doc Brown could possibly open a door: looking like this.

35) A fun fact about this line:

Doc: “Then tell me, future boy: who’s president of the United States in 1985.”

Marty: “Ronald Reagan.”

Doc: “Ronald Reagan!? The actor!?”

President Reagan loved that line so much he asked the projectionist to play it again, and even used the quote, “Where we’re going we don’t need roads,” in his 1986 State of the Union address. I miss having a President who was secure like that.

36) Me too Marty. Me too.

Doc [after hearing they need 1.21 gigawatts of electricity to get the DeLorean to work]: “1.21 GIGAWATTS!? 1.21 GIGAWATTS! GREAT SCOTT!”

Also, did you notice that this is my 121st Epic Movie (Re)Watch? As in 121. As in 1.21? ;)

37) Roll credits!

Doc: “Next Saturday night, we’re sending you back TO THE FUTURE!”

38) Doc’s bemusement at Marty’s slang is so great to me. It feeds into his idea about what the future will be like.

Doc: “Why is everything so heavy in the future, is there a problem with the earth’s gravitational pull?”

39) I never got why Strickland called George a slacker for being bullied but he never calls out the bullies. Granted this has been happening in schools all across America for years now and I don’t get that either.

40) Remember how I said Lorraine’s marriage to George was unhappy?

Doc [about Marty’s parents]: “What are their common interests? What do they like to do together?

Marty [after a beat]: “Nothing.”

41) The idea of this being a boy who gets to know his parents really comes through when Marty learns that George writes sci-fi stories but doesn’t share them with anyone for fear or rejection. In the original timeline, did George keep writing sci-fi as an adult? Did Lorraine know? Did he tell ANYBODY and get rejected and that just made him stop writing? I have so many questions!

42) Thomas F. Wilson improvised this iconic line of Biff’s:

43) According to IMDb:

Universal Pictures head Sid Sheinberg did not like the title “Back to the Future", insisting that nobody would see a movie with "future" in the title. In a memo to Robert Zemeckis, he said that the title should be changed to "Spaceman From Pluto", tying in with the Marty-as-alien jokes in the film, and also suggested further changes like replacing the "I'm Darth Vader from planet Vulcan" line with "I am a spaceman from Pluto!" Sheinberg was persuaded to change his mind by a response memo from Steven Spielberg, which thanked him for sending a wonderful "joke memo", and that everyone got a kick out of it. Sheinberg, too proud to admit he was serious, gave in to letting the film retain its title.

44) George is absolutely hysterical in the diner scene.

DUDE YOU’RE A WRITER!!! DID YOU REALLY THINK THAT’S WHAT YOU WROTE DOWN!?!?!?

45) When Marty is confronting Biff at the bar and then in the skateboard chase around town, he plays it smart not tough. He distracts Biff before his one punch of the big brute and then maneuvers him around town in a way that’ll be beneficial to the young time traveler. It’s another excellent action scene which keeps you riveted at every turn.

46) There are probably so many GIFs out there of just Doc Brown reacting. This is one of my favorites:

47) Marty and his mother don’t get to know each other as well as George and Marty do, primarily because she’s trying to seduce him during his entire stay in 1955. But the scenes of George and Marty together as friends are great.

48) Also this line is attributed to Doc in the beginning of the film but we never hear him say it. Jennifer says it to Marty, Marty to George, and then George to Marty in the future.

49) Doc and Marty’s friendship in this film is great, as Marty is trying desperately to save Doc’s life in the future despite Doc not wanting to know. Marty respects Doc’s wishes but will be damned if he does nothing (hence the letter). Their friendship is developed as the trilogy progresses but it starts out strong.

50) Marty tries to prevent Lorraine’s alcoholism by keeping her from drinking when she’s 17. I appreciate that.

50.1) One of the best bloopers ever.

51) (Trigger Warning For This Note: RAPE) Okay, I love this movie but as I grow older I find that it kind of glosses over the fact that Biff is trying to RAPE Lorraine. And later in 1985 she’s totally fine having her attempted rapist come by their place regularly to wax their cars. Like...that’s super weird.

52) I always felt this scene could have either gone two ways: George becomes a self confident hero, or George becomes Norman Bates.

That’s like a really murdery face.

53) This is a very Hitchockian rule: it’s never over when you think it’s over. George punched out the bad guy and he’s going to the dance with Lorraine. All’s well right!? Well...no. Marty has to play guitar otherwise it’ll all go to shit. Marty, who’s super self conscious about rejection when it comes to playing guitar.

54) Johnny B. Goode!

The filmmakers described this scene as Marty’s victory lap. He just got his parents together! He’s playing the school dance! He’s going to go back to the future tonight! He’s going to have fun, and that’s what the number is. It doesn’t feel superfluous or unnecessary, it adds to the heart and excitement of the film. It’s amazing!

55) According to IMDb:

In the original script, Marty's playing rock and roll at the dance caused a riot which had to be broken up by police. This, combined with Marty accidentally tipping Doc off to the "secret ingredient" that made the time machine work (Coca-Cola) caused history to change. When Marty got back to the 1980s, he found that it was now the 1950s conception of that decade, with air-cars and what-not (all invented by Doc Brown and running on Coca-Cola). Marty also discovers that rock and roll was never invented, and he dedicates himself to starting the delayed cultural revolution. Meanwhile, his dad digs out the newspaper from the day after the dance and sees his son in the picture of the riot.

I don’t know how accurate that is but it’s fun to think about!

56) Not only am I going to include this next quote, but I’m also going to include what I said the first time I watched this movie with my family.

Doc [waiting for Marty to show up]: “Damn where is that kid?”

Doc [waiting, then checking watch]: “Damn.”

Me [with my family]: “Man, there’s a lot of swearing in this movie.”

Doc [checking his watch again]: “DAMN DAMN!”

That scene is so much funnier to me now just because of that instance.

57) The Clock Tower Climax is spectacular and it follows an age old rule of conflict: everything that can go wrong does go wrong. The cable comes undone, the car won’t start, Doc falls off the ledge (remember that foreshadowing I mentioned in point #2?), the cable is stuck on a tree, all while the clock is literally ticking away at their once chance to get this. It is glorious, and using the clock tower just reinforces the idea of time in the film (it was originally going to be a nuclear test site, à la Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) but they went for this iconic scene instead. Thank you filmmakers. Thank you.

58) Remember how the mall was called Twin Pine Mall in the beginning of the movie, and then when Marty went back in time he killed one of Peabody’s pines? Well when he goes back to the future something is a little different.

59) So now that Lorraine and George are happily married and George pursued his writing career, they family is like upper middle class (I don’t think they’re upper class). Crisping Glover did not like the fact that the films ending directly tied together money and happiness.

60) This film’s iconic ending was originally NOT meant to set up a sequel, but instead just tell the audience that the adventure kept going. Of course Robert Zemeckis and writing partner Bob Gale would return and finish what ended up being a trilogy in 1989 and 1990. But until then we have this perfect finishing line.

If my love for Back to the Future isn’t clear after the sixty notes you just read, let me reiterate: I freaking love this film. I love everything about it. I love the acting, the story, the direction, the music, the heart, the humor, the visuals, the themes, I love it all. I can’t imagine it not being my favorite film ever. Everyone needs to watch it as soon as possible. Seriously, everyone.