#Honestly so stoked to see this comic in the show

[five-and-dimes]

So I'm reading through the Sandman comics, and I just got through "Three Septembers and a January" and it is just... SO interesting in terms of the Endless family dynamics.

(This is going to be so disorganized and rambly I just have a lot of feelings I loved this story okay)

Like, yeah okay I'm a Dream apologist, but seriously. Despair calls Dream (not in her gallery and without his sigil- very informal and borderline against the rules- and he still comes!) and challenges him to a game over a mortal's life. Dream is like "No, I don't play your games, I'm a goddamn professional" and Despair shoots back like "WOW you think you're soooo much better than us, not fucking around with people's lives, it's 100% your fault Destruction left" and Dream is like "...fine, hold my beer."

So that alone I'm like. Yeah dude. I get it. And if that's the shit he's been dealing with for all of existence? Yeah I'd be annoyed with my siblings too.

Another part I'm super interested in is seeing when Death shows up and when she doesn't (to be fair, we're following Dream, so it's possible we just don't see certain interactions).

At the very beginning of the challenge, Death shows up to like. Scold Dream for going along with it? She even says "I thought you were an adult" and like. Okay, sure, you think Dream shouldn't be doing this but are you going to talk to Despair and Desire about this? I love Death but a lot of times she gives me the vibe of an adult telling you "Just ignore them they're just doing it to get a reaction" instead of telling the other person to stop antagonizing you, y'know?

At one point Despair says "What's there to understand? He's mortal. He's nothing." And Dream immediately disagrees, and like. That feels like PRIME Death lecture area. Despair doesn't value mortals! The people they serve! Death if you can scold Dream for feeling lost and disconnected from humanity after being tortured for 100 years you can scold Despair for looking down on humans for seemingly no reason.

Desire eventually shows up to try to sway the guy they're following into giving into his desires, but he turns them down. And Desire is SO pissed like "what the FUCK this guy should be mine!!" and Dream's just like "¯\_(:/)_/¯" and then as he leaves is like "Tbh disappointed in you Desire, you weren't very subtle" which to me felt like an "I expected better from you" and, expectedly, Desire gets MORE pissed and as they leave, to themself are like "Oh he wants subtle? I'm gonna make him spill family blood and bring the Kindly Ones down on him!!" Which. To me. Feels like just a bit of an overreaction.

Seriously THAT'S why you want to kill him?? Because he insulted you during a challenge that he didn't even want to be a part of but got provoked into? That's your motivation? Holy shit.

Dream's done some fucked up shit, no lie, but when it comes to the family side of things? Honestly #TeamDream all the way, just leave the poor boy alone, Jesus Christ.

[chvoswxtch]

I finally finished echo so if you’d like to listen to me incoherently ramble about it and my baby maya pls join me below ✨

first off the fact that there were only 5 episodes is fucking CRIMINAL

secondly alaqua cox is quite literally one of the most beautiful human beings I have ever seen

and thirdly I would die for biscuits and billy jack

side note- matt showing up just to be a dick and show off and then dip is so on brand but this isn’t his show and it isn’t about him so that’s the last i’ll talk about him

let’s get into it

not even two minutes into the first episode I was leaking from my eyes, and that happened several times throughout the entire series

the tone of this series reminded me so much of the netflix mcu and after watching echo, I have a lot more hope for future marvel projects that are darker and more gritty

the way this show dealt with themes of grief and generational trauma while also balancing sequences of violence and sprinkles of comedic relief was incredible. nothing felt cheesy or forced, the pacing was a little fast but again we were only given 5 episodes and echo definitely deserved more

the entire quileute tribe being cast is fucking ICONIC

the amount of work that went into making sure the indigenous representation was accurate and presented in a respectful way was very impressive. my father’s side of the family is native american and live in oklahoma and it was just really neat to see something so close to home portrayed in marvel without being over the top or exaggerated

I forgot how much I loved vincent’s version of fisk and getting to see him in the iconic white suit was incredible. i’m also super stoked to see the mayor fisk storyline and how that affects maya

I think they should’ve spent longer exploring how her ancestors echo through her and the healing abilities/powers that seems to grant her. it’s a lot different from her “power” in the comics and I honestly think it’s a more interesting concept and I would love to see them explore it further in the future

I loved that they weren’t lazy with the sign language and that the cast and crew all learned to communicate with alaqua

I loved that they also spoke in choctaw, and started the series with the creation of the tribe to set the stage for the rest of the series

the fact that alaqua herself is deaf and an amputee just proves that she was meant to play maya and she did a fucking PHENOMENAL job

I think they handled her disability so respectfully and perfectly. it wasn’t a hinderance or something that was heavily pointed out, it was literally just a part of who she was and that’s it

she’s so fucking smart and resourceful like she straight up made a gun out of a roller skate???

playing dragula at the skating rink was so real she’s just like me

the way they laced sound in and out of certain scenes to give us maya’s pov of what she experiences was such a neat thing to do

the little easter eggs confirming that the netflix shows are canon??? (fisk’s hammer, the roxxon gas station, etc)

y’all know how I feel about feral brunettes (especially ones in leather jackets)

“kingpin had his run. it’s time for a queen.” FUCKING ICONIC

bottom line is this show was fucking amazing and if you haven’t watched it yet, please do yourself a favor and check it out, especially if you enjoyed any of the netflix marvel shows. you will not be disappointed

i’m humbly appointing myself president of the maya lopez fan club and you’re all welcome to join we’re getting matching leather jackets

I can’t rave enough about echo or alaqua cox (I mean I could) but if you’ve made it this far thx for coming to my ted talk 🖤✨

[pisspurveyor]

Ok so here's a horrifying tale of when I discovered the existence of the movie The Crow 30 years too fucking late this Friday, and somehow never even knew a remake came out for it on the exact. same. day. Bear with me.

Ok so I was on spotify listening to this song (song in question was L.I.S.Å by Taythedxn, please dont look at me) that for some reason had footage of this random ass guy in clown makeup playing in the Now Playing/More Info preview. And I was like - huh! That guy kinda reminds me of my BG3 Tav!!! Nice!!! Naturally I'm pretty interested to find out what the hell is going on with that. So, thinking it's just the music video for that song, I look it up. To my surprise, that was not the music video at all!

At this point I'm massively curious. I am sitting there absolutely dumbfounded and stubborn as shit; I had to find this gorgeous clown man, even if it was 1 am at the time. I was on a MISSION! Finally I managed to muster enough braincells up to reverse image search the guy, and lo and behold, The Crow (1994) pops up. Bingo! There's the gorgeous clown guy!

At first I'm just showing pictures of the main character to my partner like Look!!! Look!!! He looks like my Tav in clown makeup!!!! Woah!!! And then I mention the movie to him, and well- (gonna cut the post in half for you, don't worry 'just browsing' crowd)

My partner being the resident Nine Inch Nails listener pointed this out to me. SO IT HAD THE MARK OF NINE INCH NAILS? I was stoked - Trent Reznor being involved in any soundtrack has always been a great indicator in my eyes. Because of that, I just had to check out the rest of the soundtrack, and I was in AWE.

ALL THESE GOBSMACKING BANDS IN THE SAME SOUNDTRACK. I WAS ABSOLUTELY FLUNG OUT THE WINDOW ABOUT THIS (as seen above).

At this point I was sold, I was GOING to watch this movie. I was deadset on it. And, to my luck, I found it free to watch on youtube... somehow. Still surprised about that. No I'm not linking it, I'm not a snitch, but I assure you it's very accessible. Anyways, I sit down, get comfortable, and get my shit ABSOLUTELY ROCKED. Aesthetically, this movie is everything I love - I had a lot of fun watching it (big fan of the lightbulb scene btw).

Anyways I had the time of my life watching it, really soaking the music and outfits in, absolutely hollering at every indulgently gothy scene. Honestly, what a fucking experience - Eric was a sight to bloody behold. God, I was googoogaga for Myca too!!! The fashion was immaculate, a lot of the costumes are things I try to replicate and wear myself nowadays, so I was beyond stoked to see that right in front of me. I may or may not have a new style guide now!

I finished the movie in a good mood, and ultimately wondered: Why had I never heard of this before? Naturally I check wikipedia, see what production was like and what it was based off of - really neat to see it was based off of a comic, but then as I read on and found out the whole story behind Brandon Lee's death on set, I was very quickly silenced. Suddenly it was way more grave than I anticipated.

Honestly it's a bit weird to mourn a dude 30 years later, but this may be one of the sadder celebrity deaths I've ever heard of. And knowing the effect it had on the original comic artist, who had been through enough shit in his life as is, was absolutely heartbreaking.

So now I sit here, unable to stop thinking about this movie, the comic it came from, and how I managed to stumble across it without even once encountering any advertisements or trailers for the remake that had released on the exact day I had found the original. Don't get me wrong, if anyone discovers the original because of the remake, I think that'd be fucking amazing, because the original deserves lots of love on top of the love it already has - but now knowing the remake was a piece of rubbish, I'm worried people might not look into it.

This may well have been the worst time to discover The Crow (1994) but holy shit, it is forever on my mind from here on out. I wish I had known it sooner, truly. As someone who considers themselves a goth, I did myself a serious disservice by not watching this sooner, I swear.

[sevensoulmates]

A bit bummed buddie is going canon on such a short season but the writers are doing an awesome job (and you guys have waited long enough I just got here lol) so I’m stoked!!! There’s some much potential for fun storylines here I’m so excited!! What are some storylines you’d like to see once they are together? Could be comical or more series

Well, I mean I guess it depends on what your definition of "canon" is. To me, based on the last episode alone, they're already canon (meaning it's basically irrefutable to me that they're going to eventually be in a relationship or be endgame). If by canon you mean "starting a relationship" I actually don't think that's going to happen this season. I think it'll be next season at the earliest. I do have faith that now that the writers/creators are getting a bit more freedom, they're first going to put Buck and Eddie through the personal arcs they need to go through first. For Buck, realizing he's bi and feeling more secure in who he is as a person. For Eddie, realizing he's lived with comphet his entire life and finally accepting who he is and finally living his life in a way that will actually make him happy.

Once they've done that then they'll be able to get them together.

Some things I'd like to see:

-(This might be unpopular but) I want the sperm donor stuff/ Connor/Kameron to come back up. I want Buck to reckon with that choice he made, and truly recognize that he's been a father figure to Chris this whole time. I don't need the baby to be in his life, but just a reference or even a run-in with Connor/Kameron. Something to put a bookend on that storyline now that Buck is settled with Eddie/Chris.

-Chris wants to learn to drive/get a license, and Eddie + Buck have to navigate that worry together

-My heart's biggest desire is for them to just work side by side like normal but just have more small moments that very obviously are indicators that they're together (something along the lines of the scene where Eddie suddenly knew a bunch of fun facts about Goat Yoga, or the scene where they're just chatting while they patched up the dude who broke his leg in the fire at dispatch). Scenes where they work in sync together, but maybe before something dangerous, they share looks or have a private code that means be safe.

-in the same vein MY KINGDOM for Buck and Eddie to have a scene like Bathena had in 2x01 where they meet up between the firetrucks and one of them pushes the other up against the side of the truck and kisses him. My entire life would be made.

-I would like a storyline where Buck gets to meet Eddie's family from Texas a little better. I don't believe that there wouldn't be conflict with them (maybe not straight-up homophobic but I just can't imagine Helena accepting it all so easily. I just know she'd be a queen of microaggressions). I DESPERATELY need Eddie to stand up for himself to his mom in particular.

-(this would be very far in the future) but I want Buck to eventually go out for fire captain. I think he would be a great fit and I think it'd be very interesting for them to have to adjust to such a big change in their work dynamic after X amount of years.

-a motherfucking WEDDING. And I don't want it to be a small thing like a backyard wedding, or a courtroom wedding, or an elopement in the hospital or something. It doesn't necessarily need to be HUGE but I would like a semi-traditional wedding. Idk why but I have a MIGHTY NEED to hear Buck and Eddie's personalized vows to each other and I NEED to see them have their first dance. Honestly, I take back the traditional wedding thing. As long as I get to hear every word of their vows and see them slow dance, they could do it at the firehouse or a dumpster for all I care.

-I'd be interested if Shannon's relatives show up and want to be a part of Christopher's life or something. Or even like, just want to visit him but Eddie's unsure because it brings up bad memories and stuff. I'd be interested to see Shannon's relative's reaction to Eddie with a man.

-OOHOOHOOH EDDIE CHILDHOOD SCENES a la Buck Begins. I want to see what he was like when he was younger to see how much of him has changed since he had Chris, since he went to the military, etc. Dear God I want an Eddie Begins Again.

That's all for now! I gotta make my drive home!

[lockwoodsmouse]

An Official lockwoodsmouse Review of Netflix’s Lockwood & Co.

spoilers... duh

Context: This is coming from someone who is an avid fan of the books, and has been for 6 years. I’ve read them over and over and know many lines by heart. 

Okay, let's start...

SOUNDTRACK: 10/10 

I swear I almost passed out when A Forest by the Cure started playing in Episode 2. That’s seriously one of my favorite songs ever and fit the vibe perfectly. I also love the instrumental soundtrack! I’ve been streaming it a lot. I watched the episodes with closed captions, so I knew all the titles of the songs they included in the show. If you are interested, I have my L&Co. playlist linked on my blog. The ending section includes songs that were on the show (excluding the official soundtrack instrumentals) but most of it is just songs I associate with the vibe/characters/events. 

CGI: 9/10

I don’t really have much to say here, the ghosts were about what I imagined them to be in my head, and I have to say, the Wythburn Mill ghost creeped me out quite a bit. 

PACING: 8/10

Like many of us, I would have appreciated more detail being given to the Combe Carey Hall case. That section felt rushed, but the second half (The Whispering Skull bit) felt just fine. I think if we just had one more episode dedicated to Combe Carey (9 episodes instead of 8) it would have been better. There also wasn't a lot of suspense, and the Red Room/Screaming Staircase didn’t seem like a big deal. Also, Lockwood unraveling the Fairfax mystery is just too good in the book! The show underscores how clever and pensive he is during those parts.

LUCY: 10/10

Oh my gosh. Ruby Stokes. She knocked it out of the house with her depiction of Lucy. She’s smart, feisty, moody, quick-tempered, vulnerable, anxious, and empathetic all at once. I really love seeing Lucy’s flaws, honestly. In the later seasons (FINGERS CROSSED GUYS), I really hope to see more of her strength/finesse with her rapier. I also like how it focused more on her mental health, and it’s clear that she feels safe in her new home, but is still hurting inside. I also love the backstory we get with Norrie. In the books, Lucy seems to deal with some internalized misogyny and some of that is definitely cleared up when she had such a close female friend. ALSO ANGST!!! wowie

*side note: those polaroid pictures of her and Norrie are the absolute cutest

*extra side note: SHE SAYS FUCK!!! GOOD FOR HER!!! 

*extra extra side note: I love how they gave her blue as her primary color! It suits her.

LOCKWOOD: 10/10

Cameron Chapman was AMAZING. He really did well with his depiction of Lockwood, and if you watch any interview with him in it, he’s just hilarious. He’s cooly detached, just like he is in the books, and the suit/coat he wears is EXACTLY how I pictured it. One of the highlights for me was the panic attack scene after Winkman’s auction. This scene was so good that I wish it was in the books! It’s such a great detail and adds more vulnerability/dimension to his character. 

GEORGE: 10/10

Ah, George. The lovable oddball we all adore. Ali Hadji-Heshmati captures George’s awkwardness and nerdy tendencies perfectly. He has kind of a quiet leadership, and I love his dynamic with the rest of the team. That scene where him and Lucy were bonding over pizza was the absolute cutest. True to the books, he is kind of the comic relief, but it doesn't feel overdone. 

Give me more domestic scenes where George is wearing an apron. 

LOCKLYLE: 10/10

Oh my. I was swooning. I had to watch all the episodes when my roommate was in class because every time there was a tender moment it was accompanied by a lot of squeaking and flapping around on my end. Anyways... One of my favorite scenes was the one where Lockwood bandages up Lucy’s injured hand (I’m such a sucker for tender hand holding and this show DID NOT DISAPPOINT). I know people are saying that it did feel a little rushed, but in my opinion, they were like this all the time in the books and Lucy was just really oblivious for a while. I love their dynamic so much and even all the scenes where they were fighting felt very much like you’d expect. ALSO WE GET JEALOUS LOCKWOOD OMG. I know some people think the Kipps/Lucy thing was weird, but it honestly could have been the same in the books, but Lucy is just (again) oblivious. 

SKULL: 6/10

I really like the design of the skull’s jar, as well as the apparition itself. It’s exactly how I imagined. However, the skull from the books is so much more sassy, evil, and wise. That didn’t really come through in the show, but maybe they’re holding back for future seasons? I really liked the skull’s insights on the team in the book, as well as his clever wit, creative insults, and sass. Now that the characters can swear, this allows the skull so much more room for creative jibes. 

honorable mention: GHOST LAMPS!!! 10000/10! we are all obsessed and rightfully so.

CONCLUSION: I will defend this show with my life. I love it so much. 

p.s. if u read through all this, I <3 u. hope u enjoyed my nerdy ramblings.

[pumpkinstrawbrew]

No need to reply to this message, but I’d like to give my thanks for going all this way to provide me a list of thorough yet flexible concepts to work around with. I was honestly expecting either no response or at least one simple idea, though I should’ve seen better coming, because you are after all the most committed Batcrow enthusiast I’ve seen. I simply intended to do a scribble of the pair, instead I find myself drafting a short comic. That’s how effective your help is, and I’m certain it will be of use to other fans out there as well. Although I’m merely working on one of the four you’ve written, perhaps some day I’ll look back and cross off the rest.

Here is a sample! (Pardon my writing skills. It’s been a while since the last time I wrote anything, but I hope you’ll believe me when I say I am a writer too.)

Scarecrow:‬ Allurin’ eyes yers are, akin to aquamarine. Tis a sin I scarcely see it, but why conceal such beauty? Do ya fear someone is…mad enough to drown in it?

hey there, i wanted to reply in private, but tumblr wouldn’t let me message you from this acc, only from my main one. i just wanted to make it known, that i’ve read your message! i’m really happy that my suggestions were of any help! *also if you’d rather this ask / post to be gone, just let me know. i’ll delete it, no problem* but honestly, it wasn’t troubling for me at all! i was very stoked to learn that someone was wanting to do a thing for those two. it felt natural to try an' give you a lil list to pick from, since one can never fully know what will stick, or hit that creative spot.

anyways, it’s amazing that you found your groove! an’ don’ worry, i don’t doubt it, when people tell me they are artists / writers! i don't think one needs a proof in form of posts or stories to back it up. since i know that some folks either don't share much online, unless it's with small group or people, or need more time to decide an' want to do it.

an’ i must say, this right here is a very beautiful an’ saharine' on the tongue. reminds me a bit of the times, when i was in my mid-teens an’ would read all kinds of poetry in my free time. the sort of love, that cannot be said in any other way, than poesy. also jon’s southern accent always makes everything better, bc you kinda feel like he speaks from the heart, when he lets it show. 

but ah, sorry if you didn’t want to make this one public at all, i do sincerely apologize if so. i simply wanted to let you know, that you really have no reason to feel any sort of troubling way about your writing. it’s very enchanting.

[surveillance-0011]

got any Sweezy x Harper hcs?

It’s a very gradual thing and there’s never really a confession it’s just like. Somewhere along the lines they make it official. If there were ever a confession it’d be a major snorplo moment where it’s like “we’ve legit been dating for years now”

they're both stoked tho

I would not be surprised if it's something that happens later in the timeline honestly. if we get swarper for realzies in canon im assuming it's not happening until like. probably later in the sequel. idk if the animated series would be another interquel with all the bounties we didn't see between the game and dlc or more of a retelling of the game orrr??? idk idk??? shrug?? so idk exactly to expect but who knows

maybe they'd only consider themselves together by the time everything w/ Gurgula is said and done and they can actually kind of. truly move the fuck on from everything that's gone down.

Sweezy is actually the more outwardly affectionate one. Also a lot more flirtatious. Likes to see Harper get all mushy and flustered. Harper is a bit on a stoic+awkward side and a little hesitant to get so close to her bc she’s still getting used to being close to people without them. Yknow. (COMIC SPOILERS KIND OF FOR THOSE WHO HAVENT READ IT YET SORGY) Dying getting their memory wiped turning out to be evil etc etc etc

Sweezy too to an extent. I think even though she is very like “hiii babe hugs and kisses love youuu” she is also a bit scared what the future holds and doesn’t want to let her guard down entirely just yet. She’s not very vulnerable and it does take a while for the two to have their more serious chats on what they are how they feel anything super deep etc etc

Though of course I say this relative to their personalities. Harper is pretty sweet and sweezy is still sweezy. Sweezy does still tease her and during tougher patches she can be, well, tough. Meanwhile Harper is usually looking on the bright side and whatnot.

I don’t think they argue much but there’s playful bickering and I’m sure sometimes the tension from bounty hunting boils over a lil ..

When they do fight they take some time to themselves then talk it out and usually get a little treat. There has been one (1) tearful apology. At least

I also do feel like they'd be the sort to be more lowkey about things anyway. sometimes Harper wishes she had an easier time showing her appreciation and love but in general there's not a lot of pressure to act a certain way or whatever

Sweezy fell first for sure. harper probably fell harder but i feel like she'd not pin it for what it is at first,, "wow im so glad sweezy is such a good friend :) idk why my heart is racing rn"

Harper was from a relatively well off family, cozily middle class. Sweezy was from a working class family. there have been some "no harper not everyone can go to a ski resort every winter vacation" moments but mainly harper wishes she still had it to spoil her girl. She likes giving gifts when she can for sure.

though for real she would give sweezy like a thousand cool rocks. she will find a way to give something nice.

Harper does like cuddling but sometimes the gems are a bit pointy. it takes them both a while to get comfy. But it can be their lil ritual

The two certainly have each other's back but neither is overprotective. They're both very capable and one need not try to shield them from the world or anything like that.

I need... antics. Past midnight shenanigans. Getting into trouble havin fun making memories. Please. Please.

sleepovers :3 yes technically atm that's just sleeping on the same shelf or whatever but :3 we can make it happen we can make it work...

Sweezy has a lot of romantic experiences. Many a shitty ex. Played into some of her worries but Harper is a breath of fresh air honestly.

Meanwhile Harper has very little experience and has probably only dipped her nonexistent toes (tip of handle? Barrel? Muzzle?) into the waters of dating with either 1-2 past partners or dates that have never gotten serious. She is very excited but also very nervous and wishes that the people she would have gone to for advice were all still around. And/or of sound mind and body. Yknow. Yknow who I’m talking about :) two or three people in mind here… :) :) :))) but cest la vie

Sweezy is bi and proud bay beeee!! Harper is sapphic and otherwise unlabeled,, bicurious mayhaps,, and a lil shy on the matter... girl pretty... what else is there to say...

Neither really wants to do anything too formal for dates they like doing fun stuff. The bounty hunter has to chaperone/drive/third wheel often NOT LIKE GATLIANS CANT MOVE AROUND IT'S JUST TRICKY 8 TIMES OUTTA 10 but they like to go places like the park arcade aquarium... stuff like that i think...

maybe they'd want to be married someday but either it'd be a small ceremony or getting officiated and then just throwing a reception party and/or and/or never getting technically married but remaining life partners

harper would be into getting married but it would take a while she would be very intimidated by the prospect. sweezy doesn't know if marriage is right for her in general, successful relationship or not.

[hawkguybarton]

exceptional x-men 2 moments i incredibly fuck with:

- call back to kitty joining the x-men in the 80s and also acknowledging her relationship w/ the x-men as a whole and ororo in particular

-paralleling that relationship with her connection to this group of new mutants shes taking in

-emma frost is actually here in full and shes back to being evil. i think? at least more morally dubious than shes been

-kitty pryde on a date with a woman. im normal im so normal about this. i love being normal

-kitty pryde in the classic normal life interrupted by superhero life scenario is great we dont get that enough in comics anymore. put my babygirl thru the ringer <3

-honestly i find all 3 new kids rly charming and cool! x-men is the easiest series to add characters to bc theres so much potential for mutants to just kinda show up but making them actually good characters is another question. exceptional succeeds by every metric its only 2 issues n i feel like i get all these kids personalities really well

all in all i loved issue 2 and i am stoked to see where this series goes! in a sea of fast-paced high action X-titles, its refreshing to have a book this personal that doesn’t feel like its trying to rush into having its characters unified as a team fighting big bads n lets them be people at least for a little bit

[oathofkaslana]

I saww someone ranting about it earlier today; and since you’re the #1 collie fan I know, how do you feel about her treatment from the comics to her appearances in game??💜

GOD. DEAR GOD. ok this will take a moment. be patient w me

short answer: 2 me. in game collei is a poorly done adaptation of webtoon collei (which. i feel the need to note. was not perfect at all i just think her story was done better there). in game collei is wasted potential and mischaracterizes her for the sake of profit over artistic direction which honestly. leads to a bit of ableism and misogyny.

long answer: DEAR GOD. COLLEI. ok. the comics are in no way perfect. they're incredibly racist (particularly with barnabas's design), and they're not at all the perfect portrayal ever of a kid with cptsd. but with webtoon collei we got this story of a little kid who was so angry at everyone because she'd been hurt time and time again to the point where she genuinely believed that other people would always hurt her and she was just inherently a bad person. she believed her chronic illness was a sign of the archons hating her. she believed that the archons didn't care about her. she believed that she was inherently worth less than other people, ESPECIALLY those with visions. so we start off w that lil kid who's so rightfully angry and had to fend for herself using powers she was forced to have (the archon residue that actively feeds and stokes her negativity)! she literally kills people without remorse the first three pages we see her!!!!!! and it only turns around when amber (a vision user!!) is unrelentingly kind to her and keeps reinforcing this idea that collei is a human that is deserving of good and is capable of good. amber makes collei believe that she isn't doomed for some awful destructive fate. amber is the first person that shows collei that she believes her life matters. amber is the first person collei has met that unrelentingly believes in her humanity and goodness and makes an active effort to reinforce it. that kindness! and the want to believe she can do that! (the want to believe in amber) is ultimately the thing that spurs collei to action!!!!! her arc os essentially about kindness, finding humanity in yourself, and finding and believing in agency for yourself. and obv cyno plays a big part here and its the start of her rebirth symbolism ofc. etc etc etc.

then the game. i do think the game got some things correct! like i do generally like the change in character and i think that's expected for someone like collei who idolizes amber so much to the point of wanting to be her. i also really enjoy her character stories and a lot fo ehr voice lines. and i really really like how she's still obviously dealing with her cptsd. i like that it didn't go away! she still has triggers! she mentions anxiety! our first introduction to her was her having a nightmare!!

lsBUT the game also does a lot wrong imo. i think the game has a tendency to reduce collei a lot. while i do think the initial direction w her sweet nice girl facade was intended to show her admiration towards amber and lack of real identity/faith in identity for herself, i think it's been too. vague. and led to this becoming her Actual personality instead of a facade she's attempting to become. like while i don't think its inherently insidious i do think it's kinda suspect that they allow characters like scara (who's very similar to collei) to keep the asshole parts of their identity with their healing arcs but never let collei express that part of herself when it was such a huge part of her original character. (her cynicism being fostered by her environment and a protective thing for her and made her a nice character foil to amber). also the magicuring. i fucking hate how they handled eleazar in the game. like even if it weren't incredibly ableist for them to be treat chronic illness as a narrative device that's always meant to be cured, it was actively corrosive to collei's character bc so much of her arc is realizing her own worth and healing mentally even while her eleazar was getting worse. it means so so much for collei to be at a better state and actually have some sense of compassion for herself when she's experiencing flare ups from her chronic illness that everyone told her was the reason why she was worthless in the first place! and taking that away from her! taking that away from disabled players in general! sucked a lot!!!! i also think the game just does not want to acknowledge what collei's arc actually was and how much anger and exploitation it involved. especially in the 3.5(?) windblume event where she was compared to sucrose because of anxiety when their anxieties are so different (both being incredibly valid ofc but sucrose's social anxiety and fear of abandonment can not aptly be compared to collei's anxiety thats a byproduct of her cptsd from yk. experiencing discrimination and almost dying multiple times and human experimentation etc etc..) it often feels like they're rebranding her entire character to be more focused on this particular anxious nice girl image for the sake of consumerability (its how the fandom sees her and its easy for her to fit into tropes like that), this easy to sell found family w her tighnari and cyno (like i love their unit but dear god. i hate the way they've been written sometimes bc it feels like she's an accessory to those two who are also being flanderized), misogyny (again. collei is so much more similar to scara than she is sucrose and the difference between how they’re treated makes me so sad). AND because she's a four star she's so often side-lined! it's really disappointing to see how little of a role she played in sumeru when. honestly i think adding her to a larger part of sumeru could've benefited the story esp bc she's literally the first sumeru character we've seen and has been teased in the game since 1.0.

basically. collei is colleinations collective oc now :3

[thebestharleyquinn]

“𝕚Ｆ 𝓨ⓄỮ 𝕁𝕌𝕞Ｐ 𝔰Ｈίⓟ 𝕒𝓝𝓭 Ｌｅт 丅нᵉ ✭ⓢｓℍσℓẸｓ 𝐬Ⓣεέℝ, тħẸℕ у𝕆ⓤ’Ⓡέ Ƥᗩ𝓇ᵗ ⓞｆ 𝓣卄Ⓔ 𝐩𝐫𝔬в𝕝ｅ๓.” ♢☆

📷: @jimbembenek

👨‍💻: @dirtcityrebel

💄: @serenitycouture

🦸‍♀️: @amazon

👢: @ezcosplay

Hello 👋🏻 Happy release day of the boys season four! 4️⃣ I’m so stoked and ready for this! The boys is one of my favorite shows of all time! There is really nothing quite like this series, it’s absolutely outrageous, hilarious, unpredictable truly shocking and mind blowing! 🤯😳 Can’t wait to see what happens in season 4! Starlight and Hughie are definitely my two favorite characters! Also how cool and on point is it Starlight aka Annie is from Des Moines, Iowa in the series/comics and we took these photos in Des Moines, Iowa on the woman of achievement bridge! True commitment at its finest! We nailed it! 😁 No notes! 📝 love these photos! Thankyou so much to @jimbembenek for taking the pics and big thanks to @dirtcityrebel for the sweet photo edits! Thanks also to @serenitycouture my makeup artist was so nice and helpful! Who else is going to be watching season 4 of @theboystv on @primevideo? 🤨

Fun fact: I did these pics while I was terribly ill 🤧 it was cold and windy outside also but there was no way I was going to miss this opportunity to do starlight pics in Des Moines, Iowa! Supes don’t get days off lol! Honestly I am so proud of myself because it wasn’t easy and thanks again to @jimbembenek for helping me so much while I was sick and for being out there in the chilly weather to get these pics of me! Apparently, Iowa is still a bit nippy in mid March lmaooo! Anyway, of course I’m doing and feeling much better now! 👍🏻

🌟🌁

[wolfsbanesparks]

Ooh I love being tagged in stuff, so let's see what we've got.

Thanks @the-sprog for tagging me!

Top 3 ships

I'll preface this by saying I'm not a big shipper, but I can and will get behind any pairing with a fun dynamic or interesting story. I dont really have OTPs. And of course the ships I focus on change wildly depending on my mood.

1. Harley Quinn/Poison Ivy (DC): I have a lot of DC ships that I love seeing both in comics and in fanfiction, but these two are not only iconic but also fun. They're like top tier romance 24/7. And they are one of the few ships i have where splitting them up/pairing them with other people just doesn't work for me.

2. Percy Weasley/Oliver Wood (HP): this is one of those weird pairings that I don't remember when or why I started shipping it, but I have adored them since I was probably a preteen. They were roommates, they had a jock/nerd dynamic, they didn't get enough love in the books or in the fandom and I just latched onto them. They give me brain worms and I'm not sure why.

3. Merlin/Arthur (BBC Merlin): I'm such a sucker for stories about magic and destiny and medieval fantasy that this show and this ship just hit a sweet spot for me. Also the fandom especially for this ship, has so many wonderful stories capitalizing on all the what ifs and almosts that just pull me in.

First Ever Ship

This is a tough one, and honestly I'm not even sure. But the first ship I clearly remember having was probably Ron/Hermione back when I was in like second grade. I distinctly remember my older sister finding Harry Potter fan sites and printing off fanfiction for me to read.

Last Song

Bad Guy by Set It Off. I've been low key obsessed with this band and would recommend other people give them a listen

Last Movie

Glass Onion. I finally watched it after seeing so many posts about it. It was really good and i think anyone who enjoys a good mystery would like it. We had a family movie night and had a blast!

Currently Reading

Technically I haven't started it yet but I'm going to read Every Heart A Doorway. I am so stoked about it because I've heard nothing but good things about it!

Currently Consuming

A cupcake that we made for my friend's birthday! It's chocolate and gluten free!

Currently Craving

French fries. This is like my default craving lol.

Now let's see who I should tag. I'm not sure if there are 9 people but it's fine. Also no pressure to answer! This is just for fun

@electricdazeworld @cerealboxlore @strato-viper-raven-blog @stormnox @bladeangelx @billy-and-friends

[xiadz]

Long post, I found a comic book I wrote with friends like 25 years ago and I'm reading it and here are some thoughts lol

In 2nd grade myself and 2 other friends wrote a comic book called Robots Mission to Mars and I thought it was just lost to the ages, a memory where as I get older I'm unsure if I made it up or not. However 2 days ago deep in my grandmother's attic was a random folder that she found and it had 3 different comic books I made and a few drawings, and within it was Robots Mission to Mars. It's surprising cause 1) I was sure it was lost and 2) my grandmother kept NOTHING from my childhood, so it was a complete accident this managed to slip through the cracks. Half of the cover is ripped off but overall the important bits are there complete with elementary school drawings of robots and space ships.

The inside cover even has an advertisement for a future planned "The Star Rocket Robots".

It's obviously poorly written but I'm honestly surprised, we fully came up with a backstory of a spaceship crashing into a kids house, maiming him, or as I wrote, "his arms tore off and his knee down got tore off", and three robots (Musuci, Syber-X, and Gama) survived the crash, saving our hero Johnny by taking him into their underground lab (i mean technically it was underground since they crashed I guess) and the robots fixed him by turning him into a cyborg, they then named him J-7. J-7 then helps rebuild the space station and in the process learns to be a robot. "It had a lab with computers and all that science stuff". By page 4 we are introducing enemy robots with very clear motives, Deathmole, the main bad guy is creating the perfect spy robot, aptly named Spier so he can steal plans. There's a large fight with 3 other evil robots, but since they're robots, Deathmole just makes a stronger and bigger 2.0 version of them.

Anyways I'm just genuinely impressed that as 2nd graders we somehow managed to grasp the concept of semi coherent storytelling and literally the heroes journey, as crude as it may be. It's also ready to be sold to marvel because at one point their space ship blows up and one of the characters simply goes "Well what about our extra space ship Gama? 'Oh I forgot about that one' he responds" Aliens show up for no reason and are unexplained other than they're bad guys. So we're even ready for the MCU.

We even ended on a complete cliffhanger. The last page is just

"Now let the fun begin. Ok let's rock you guys! Computers. Check. Gama screen on. Check. J-7 desk. Check.

I think the desk is meant to be like.. a console lol.

I might scan this and upload it somewhere. Every once in a while I still talk to one of my friends that did the art for some of the robots and we talked about it a few years ago, he'd probably be so fucking stoked to see it. I also think it serves as a neat time capsule into my childhood brain.

In the folder I also have "Scotts Awesome Adventures", which is 2 pages of panel comics that was made by me. Then I also have Pumpkin Man made by the same few of us who made Robots, but I only have the cover for it sadly.

Honestly I think one day I'd like to revisit Robots Mission to Mars. Maybe I'll even finally make that offshoot of The Star Rocket Robots a few decades later, but I don't know if it can live up to the hype.

[lonniemachin]

who's your favorite writer for azrael? and is there an author that you wish that would write him?

i don’t know if anyone will ever dethrone denny o’neil for me. aside from being the one who created the character and gave him the themes he embodied and the purposes he served, i have a fondness for the way you can tell that o’neil poured a lot of passion into azrael and jean-paul, and even if there were quite a few moments that i’m not the biggest fan of and some fumbling down the line, the way he wrote the intricacies of their relationship to heroism, compassion, relationships, rage, power, love, trauma… it’s got a peculiar depth to it that feels earnest.

i appreciate that jean-paul and azrael under o’neil have personalities outside of being The Catholic Guy. hell, most of their writing under him focused more on finding out who they were free of the influences and authorities of others and struggling with their place in the world and ideas about themselves and morality etc. they’d been molded into accepting. they both have distinct senses of humor and lots of little quirks, and some dynamics with others that feel built upon. azrael can speak in sentences that aren’t just “know that men call you defiler” and isn’t in rampage mode all the time. they’re also very very full of flaws both subtle and unsubtle that they never quite move past but try hard to anyway. it’s always a start with them, constant uphill battle, but certain things stuck. denny’s not perfect and some of his choices bug me a lot to be sure, but he defined everything. tough act to follow.

i have complicated feelings on dan watters’ work regardless of how much i love it compared to writers that aren’t o’neil taking on azrael and how happy i am that azrael’s in his hands for the most part. i think he understands the characters in very refreshing ways and knows what they need to progress (sword of azrael 2022’s examination of jp’s very consistent tendency to compartmentalize and project his feelings of rage onto azrael in order to cope badly with views on himself in relation to what the order tried to make him and feelings and actions he does not want to confront), but at the same time some things feel kind of regressive. mixed bag with a lot of positives, still the best modern azrael writer and i’m always stoked to see what he has cooking.

i’d be remiss not to mention alan grant’s azbats writing during the knightfall saga. he did a lot of great work showing the nuances of jp’s thought processes during that era.

as for writers i’d want to write them? i honestly don’t read a ton of newer comics (i do read some! i don’t write ‘em off completely), so i’m unsure, and a lot of the writers i know by name from the things i do read i haven’t thought about outside of what they have done. i’d say ram v, but it seems to be that he & watters are already collaborating to write some azrael in their upcoming TEC issues and he seem to really like the character(s), which i am equal parts insanely thrilled about and nervous as hell for.

sorry this got a little long, but thank you for asking!

[whirlybirbs]

if ur on a bucky kick, how about some bucky/rabbit tension? like,,, bucky being a nervous idiot and rabbit feeding into it and,,, i mean they're in love your honor

ALL BLACK     |     a vacant mirrors drabble

note: listen, we never really saw the horny idiots happen in vacant mirrors so have a taste. love u nonny, this is for all my vm!hoes who have stuck around through my loki chaos. this is short 'n' sweet.

pairing: bucky barnes/f!reader, from vacant mirrors

tags: drabble, a little blurb, rated t, fwb but like bffwb, sexual tension, sidekick action

(  MASTERLIST  )

"I do like the black, y'know."

Immediately, Bucky's breath catches — not enough for it to be noticeable, but definitely enough for the water he's sipping to go down the wrong pipe. Almost immediately, he reaches for the napkin in his lap and rattles out a nervous cough.

Can you fuckin' blame him?

I mean — Christ alive, he's got a lot on his mind. He knows that you, sitting across from him in a stunning little black dress, shouldn't exactly be the center of his attention right now. No, right now he should be keeping an eye out for Micael Sari. Right now, in the dimly lit, upscale restaurant perched somewhere along the New York City skyline, you're both on a bit of a mission.

Call it a mission-date.

You move to raise your glass of wine. You're smirking.

Fuckin' smirking.

Bucky hates the way he hangs on the movement — the way his eyes glue right to your wrist, your eyes, your mouth. He's distracted.

...God, you look great in that shade of lipstick.

He knocks his vibranium knuckles on the table and settle back into his chair. Beneath the table, he extends his long legs. You nudge him with a daringly high, crimson-colored heel.

He does look good — you aren't lying about that. I mean, hell, Bucky looks good even after a three hour boxing session at midnight, when he can't sleep. The man could, objectively, wear anything. Or nothing. He looks good in nothing, too. All of it. And none of it. But, mostly black.

You're a bit giddy with the fact that you can say that.

I mean — he's the Bucky Barnes.

And you're... well, you're best friends... with benefits, but less only the blowing-off-steam kind and more the I-don't-know-what-I'd-do-without-you sort.

Honestly, you and Bucky hadn't broached the topic.

Dr. Raynor and Dr. Hart had been trying — an admirable effort that is — to make the conversation more palatable for both of you. However, if you and Bucky are any two things, it's best friends and anxious.

Right now, this whole... thing... was working out.

It was good. It was... comfortable. And, frankly, you didn't need a label to know how Bucky felt about you. Him being openly flustered over even the slightest of advances tells you enough about where his feelings lay.

"You're teasing, Rabbit."

"Try flirting."

Bucky takes another sip of water. His look is almost scolding. The sort that is comically cynical and almost has you cracking a senior citizen joke. "More like distracting."

"Need me to reel it back in?" you ask honestly.

His eyes dart from your eyes to your mouth, down to your dress, then back up again. Suddenly, you can feel a prick of heat crawl up your neck. The look is... dark. The sort that's usually reserved for moments more intimate and very much well out of public eye.

Oh.

"Not much is gonna change unless you plan on losing that dress," he rumbles lowly and oh-so-casually, "I'll make sure of that later, though."

Bucky leans in the chair, arm draped over the back. He tilts his chin, then finally stokes the burning look. Suddenly, there's a rare surge of pride that washes over him. This time, you're the one squirming. He can see your breath catch — enough to drag the corners of his lips upward. Subtle. But proud.

Micael Sari better hurry up and show up.

You're both very ready for this mission-date to be over.

The sooner it is, the sooner that dress is off. And Bucky's all-black dress shirt and slacks combo will look better on the floor.

[wlwmarvelenthusiast]

Darkest Secrets

Requested by @mcmorgan9794

Summary: Keeping this secret from Wanda has been hard, but you don't have a choice but to come clean when everything is brought to light.

Warnings: None

Word Count: 3,446

You’d always wanted to tell Wanda your deepest, darkest secret. You had been with her for well over a year, after all. A secret like the one you harboured wasn’t something that you should keep from someone you loved so dearly. But your secret was the ugliest part of yourself. It was something you hated, lurking deep within every inch of your body. It brewed in your blood and rested in your bones, uncontrolled at the best of times and unstoppable at the worst. It was a burden you’d never wanted to place upon the girl you loved.

Yet, keeping it from her hurt too. She’d look at you with those soft green eyes, spilling everything to you. Tears would stream down her cheeks as she’d tell you all about how much she hated the powers she’d been given. You’d hold her close and whisper soft words of comfort, wiping her tears away with the pad of your thumb, refusing to tell her you felt the same about your own. She would tell you everything. You wouldn’t tell her anything. You couldn’t tell her anything. She thought she was a monster. In reality, you were the monster. If she knew that, her heart would shatter.

Sometimes, these facts were all you could think about. It was the quiet moments. Wanda was away getting coffee with Natasha, Tony and Bruce were in the lab, Thor was on Asgard, and Clint was home with his family. You were left alone at the compound. You hardly ventured out of your own room. While silence screamed in the dark room, you tried to distract yourself with a book or a movie, but it didn’t last. Instead, the weight of your secret was crushing the oxygen out of your lungs. It always did. You longed to have Wanda back, to have her by your side and thread your fingers through hers. She didn’t know how agonizing solitude could be.

You curled up in your armchair, pulling your knees up to your chest and curling your arms around them. You squeezed your eyes shut, wishing you could will the overwhelming thoughts out of your head. They were screaming at you. They were reminding you of the monster that lay dormant in your very soul, cackling as they pushed images of what you were capable of. Then you imagined Wanda. You could do her so much harm and she didn’t even know it. Were you putting her in danger every day you lay by her side? You swallowed as you tried to force back the tears.

The dark thoughts came next. They always did. You wondered how much better off the world would be without you. You wondered how much better off she would be without you. She loved you. Losing you would break her heart, but she’d be okay eventually. If you hurt her in the way only you knew you were capable of, you knew she would never be okay again. None of them would. The dam broke and tears spilled down your cheeks. Hurting Wanda Maximoff would kill you.

And as you were about to imagine all the ways you could take yourself and your monster out of this world, your phone rang.

You grabbed the phone off the table, wiping the tears from your eyes with the back of your hand. You took a steadying breath before you even dared look down at the screen. The first thing you noticed wasn’t the person who was calling, but the time. It hadn’t felt like it had been as long as it had since the other had left you alone in the compound. The darkness in your head could do that. You lost track of time often when you reached that place. An hour could pass, then two, and then six.

It was Natasha’s face that was flashing on your screen. Worry filled your gut. Was Wanda okay? She had to be okay. You forced a deep breath in, and then out. Her phone had probably died. The Sokovian was notorious for remembering to plug the charger into her phone, but forgetting to plug it into the wall on the other end. After reminding yourself of that a few times, you finally found the ability to slide the answer button and hold the phone up to your ear.

“Hey.”

“Thank god,” Natasha’s voice said. There was a loud screech in the background, the sound of metal grinding against metal. “Listen you need to get to the hospital.”

Your heart dropped into your stomach. Oxygen caught in your throat and you were barely able to let words squeeze past the lump that had formed. “The hospital?”

“The ambulance is almost there. She’s hurt bad. Don’t come anywhere near Midtown.”

You didn’t even bother to respond. In fact, you didn’t even bother to hang up the phone. You simply slammed it down on the table that you’d only just picked it up from, heading for the elevator. A million thoughts were racing through your head. There were so many emotions tugging at your heart that you could hardly decipher one from the next. Fear, anger, and worry were all fighting to take over every one of your senses. You couldn’t breathe. It was as if on autopilot that you made it to the garage and hotwired one of Tony’s cars.

Scenery was flashing by you, mere streaks outside the windows of the car. The pedal was on the floor beneath your foot. You flexed your fingers; knuckles having gone white with the force of your grip on the steering wheel. Your brain was showing you visuals of Wanda lying on the table, shining green eyes dulled in the absence of life. Head too wrapped up in the thoughts that ran through it, you didn’t realize you weren’t headed for the hospital at all. You were headed toward midtown, exactly where Natasha had told you not to go.

You’d never been an Avenger. You would never be an Avenger. Maybe it was selfish, refusing to help others when you had the ability to. People died and you might have been able to stop it. Your own powers scared you too much to allow you to. It was something you’d decided long ago. The lives of every civilian that you could have saved were worth it. You couldn’t unleash that sinister thing that lived inside you. Yet, here you were, rushing toward the fight like you were Tony Stark in his suit of armour, or Steve Rogers with a vibranium shield strapped to your back.

The car screeched as you slammed your foot down on the brake. The seatbelt dug so hard into your ribs that you weren’t sure a few hadn’t snapped beneath the pressure. The adrenaline pumping through your veins assured you wouldn’t feel it even if they did. You fought to keep your breathing under control as you stepped out of the car and took in the destruction around you. Someone here had hurt Wanda, and, honestly, you couldn’t find it in you to care which one it had been. You’d kill every single one.

Gravel and rubble crunched beneath your feet as you ventured further and further into the warzone that had broken out in Midtown New York. They looked human, whoever they were. They were armed to the teeth and attacking every moving thing in sight. None of them had noticed you yet. That was better for both of you, for the time being. You shut your eyes for a brief moment and listen to the sounds around you. Civilians were screaming and car alarms were blaring and explosions roared. Then there was running, and it stopped at your side.

“I told you not to come here. Wanda’s at the hospital.”

You opened your eyes. Natasha was at your side. Blood trickled down her temple, staining her pale skin. She flinched as she put weight on her left leg to move a little closer to you. Wanda might have been the woman you called your own, but the Avengers were your family. Seeing one of them hurting in the way Natasha was only stoked the fire that was beginning to burn hotter and hotter inside of you. Your gaze moved away from her and back to the oncoming forces. They were getting closer.

“How did you know I was here?”

“Tony’s cars have trackers. We got an alert the second you left the compound and another as you came here. Get to the hospital.”

But you’d already stopped listening. The incoming threat had gotten close enough to notice you now. Green eyes followed your gaze until she, too, noticed the men approaching the two of you. She raised her arm, the gun still clutched tight in her grip. You could tell by the bewildered expression on her face that she hadn’t at all been expecting you to stop her. Your hand grabbed her wrist, lowering her arm until it was back against her side. You suspected it was the crimson gleam in your eyes that was the only thing that was keeping her weapon lowered.

You turned back to her once more. Surprise was written across every feature on her face… no, it was fear. She was afraid. She should be scared of you. Your skin began to blacken as you began to fade into nothing. Her eyes were still able to find yours, glowing bright as ever. She flinched when you reached out, backing up as you reached for her hand in an attempt for a final goodbye. You bowed your head, wishing she’d let you feel the warmth of her skin beneath your hand one final time.

“I’m sorry, Natasha.”

Then you turned away from her. The last of your human form faded away. It was hard to make out any shape in the tall, dark shadow that you’d become. Haunting golden eyes cast to the men that were racing toward you. As if to match the scene, a dark cloud rolled in front of the sun. Its shadow cast down onto the city, the darkness concealing you even further and making your eyes glow seemingly brighter. They continued to approach. They didn’t know their mistake. You did. You were dangerous at any time. You were more dangerous now that they’d hurt the person you loved more than you had ever loved before.

You raised your arms into the sky, feet leaving the ground. When your feet had been touching the concrete below them, you’d already been towering over the oncoming men. Now, you looked down upon them. Guns raised to where you hovered in the sky. It was almost comical. One of them screamed, and suddenly they were all firing. Their bullets tore through you, yet they didn’t touch you. Your head tilted to the side ever so slightly as an unsettling grin appeared in your dark shadow, disrupted by the whiz of dozens of bullets flying through it.

“Knock knock,” you said. Even your voice was sinister, a deep rumble that felt like it emanated from every direction, or deep inside of any listener.

The laughter that burst from their chests was strange, at first. It seemed out of place in such a setting. Confusion flickered across each of their faces. Then they laughed harder, and harder. Guns fell to the ground and they howled with laughter, but it contrasted their eyes. There was no sparkle of amusement in even one. It was pure, unbridled fear that you could see shining in them. One by one they fell to their knees, clawing at their throats as they tried to stop. One had tears streaming down his cheeks as he covered his ears, trying to block out the sounds that were torn from his own throat.

They couldn’t get in their comms to tell their men to keep away.

The next group that came for you met the same fate. Soon they, too, were on the ground. You got some sort of sick satisfaction as you watched them fall, unable to control their bodies. You’d taken over, grabbing hold of their heads and their bodies. You’d grabbed onto their lungs and ripped laughter from their chests, absolutely uncontrollable. When they lost control of that, that was when the fear started to take over. Fear would grip at them; you could feel it emanating off them. It would only get worse. You’d watched men take their lives as they lost their minds.

There was a reason you never used your powers. You were afraid of them, sure. The reason you were afraid of them, however, wasn’t because of their strength. Their strength could have saved lives. It wasn’t even because you couldn’t control them. You were addicted to your own powers. You took pride in watching grown men reduced to tears, curled up on the ground, shaking like an abused puppy. Your sick satisfaction was what you feared.

Was this what it felt like to be an Avenger? Were you taking pride in watching the civilians able to run from the scene, or was your pride in the fact that they no longer feared the invading forces, but you instead? The men were rendered immobile as the New Yorkers ran far from the scene. There you were in the centre of it, arms outstretched eyes gleaming, and grin growing wider and ever more evil. Natasha was still hovering just outside of your reach. You could feel her. You turned to face her. You could tell by the look in her eyes that she no longer recognized you. She put her lips to her comm.

“Evacuate the area. Don’t come down this way. Clint, go check on Wanda.”

Wanda.

Your powers ceased. No one rose right away. It would take some time for them to recover. They were gasping for breath. Their arms were too preoccupied hugging themselves tight to bother even trying to wipe the tears that covered many of their faces. Some of them were even rocking back and forth as the effect wore off. You dropped to the ground, human form taking back over. Your eyes were back to normal as you looked to Natasha once more. Neither of you said anything, but you took off running.

*

You pulled your hood up further, gaze locked to your black running shoes. You couldn’t help but feel like every set of eyes was on you. That’s how it felt, you supposed, being wanted by every agency on the planet. With the ability to change your form, though, it was pretty easy to hide in plain sight. Your footsteps echoed on the hard floor beneath your feet as you kept forward. Anyone who saw you would know you were on a mission. You knew exactly where you were going.

She was sleeping when you arrived. The cuts on her body had been stitched and bandaged, and her broken arm had been cast. Sam’s signature was already present on the red material, accompanied by a bad drawing of a bird. You couldn’t help but smile a little to yourself at that. Hopefully, it had kept a smile on her face as her world fell into turmoil, something undoubtedly caused by you. That simple fact would always break your heart. You had to turn to the window to keep the tears at bay.

When you turned back to Wanda, her green eyes were on you. There was something in her eyes that you couldn’t quite read. Her head tilted to the side as she looked at you, in a form that would be unrecognizable. It wasn’t just hiding you from the authorities, but it was hiding you from her. It was protecting her from you. She didn’t need to know that it was you, the woman who had never for a single second deserved to love her or be loved by her. A small smile grew on her lips.

“You forget I can read minds, my love.”

Of course. Wanda had always promised you she’d never read your mind. She would never violate your privacy like that. Right now, though, standing in her hospital room, you hadn’t been you. Obviously, she’d found it appropriate to peek into the mind of the stranger who had been watching her sleep. You should have been mortified. You’d never wanted her to know that you were here. Instead, a large part of you was relieved.

“Hey.”

“Hey yourself,” she breathed out. “So, that was quite the secret.”

Even though you deserved it, it still felt like a knife to the heart when she said it aloud. You nodded slowly, cracking your knuckles nervously. “I’m sorry.”

“I know.”

You studied her face. Wanda really was a saint, with powers like the ones she had. She was kind, thoughtful, and respectful. You were sure if you’d had her powers right then, you’d be digging through her mind trying to find out what she was thinking. Her eyes weren’t showing you enough. They were calm, though, and it was keeping you calm. Your breathing was level and your head was steady on your shoulders, something you wouldn’t have had been able to say only five short minutes ago.

“Are you afraid?” You managed.

“No,” she assured instantly. “Confused. Why didn’t you tell me?”

You breathed out slowly. “I didn’t want to hurt you. My powers? They’ll hurt you.”

“Will you hurt me?”

“Never!” You insisted. “I… I only hurt them because they hurt you.”

She smiled. “Then I’m not afraid.”

She beckoned you. You padded slowly toward the bed, watching as she stared up at you with an amount of love and adoration that you didn't deserve. Wanda glanced at the door, making sure no one was there to see, and then took your hand in hers, tugging on it to get you to sit down next to her. Instant calm washed over you, drowning out any negative, scared thoughts that had been in your head for days previous. It was like her hand was a lifeline, keeping you anchored on the spot. In the last few days, you’d been anything but calm and present.

You’d been a wreck without her, not knowing if she’d hate you… if you even saw her again. You didn’t know if you’d be able to feel her touch again, to feel her hands on your cheeks or to feel her grab onto you and pull you into a searing kiss the way she did. But you had seen her again, and, somehow, she didn’t hate you. Now, it seemed now you could get oxygen flowing through your body again. Still, you were uncertain.

“And can you forgive me?” You asked, voice so quiet she almost didn’t hear it. “Can you ever love me again?”

Wanda took her free hand and put it on the underside of your chin, tilting your gaze up to hers. “I see nothing that has to be forgiven.” She brushed her thumb across your cheek, wiping away a stray tear. “I love you. I will never, ever stop loving you.”

“Promise?”

“I promise you,” she assured.

She leaned forward and then her lips were on yours. It took you a second to realize the salty taste was from the tears that were streaming down your cheeks, but it didn’t seem to be bothering the Sokovian. Both of your hands found hers and you held tight, as if afraid you’d never see her again if you dared to let go. She slipped one hand out of yours as she pulled back, using it to brush a strand of hair behind your ear.

“I’m sorry I kept it from you,” you muttered.

“I’m sorry you were so scared all alone.”

Your heart swelled. You really had found the perfect woman. “You’re really too good to me. You know that?”

Wanda laughed. “You deserve the world. You know that?”

With the way you tucked yourself against her in a hug, it was obvious she knew you felt the same of her. Her hand stroked your hair as you finally, for the first time ever, felt absolute ease and a sense of peace. Hiding that secret from Wanda had been the second hardest thing you’d ever done. The hardest had been coming clean with it. You snuggled a little closer to her, burying your head into the crook of her neck and mumbling against her skin.

“I’ll never hide anything from you again. I promise.”

Wanda pulled you away so she could look at you. “While we’re revealing secrets, I suppose I should tell you about the engagement ring in my jacket pocket.”

[bokettochild]

Okay, so it's just kind of a rule at this point that I share a reaction with y'all when JoJO updates, so here are some of my thoughts:

FREAKING YES!!!! WILD IS A KICK ASS BADASS AND HE TOTALLY MADE MINCEMEAT OF THAT FREAKING SHADOW!

That said, I wonder what that means. Is the shadow dead? Already? I mean, I doubt JoJo would do that, since the shadow is stated to be the main villain, and while we definitely had some tense moments there, I don't think this is a proper climax, so it can't end here, especially since no one knows exactly what the Shadow wants in the first place.

Wild finally got some center focus! Which is freaking awesome! I may be a Legend stan now, but I started out as a Wild fan, and it always pleases me when he gets a little more attention I feel like the full Wolf Trio will be getting more attention from here on out. I hope so any'ays!

The use of stasis had me silently screaming (sleeping room-mate) and I am still thrumming with energy even now! Wild getting to use his special abilities, right after we saw Twilight and Time use theirs...well.... Let's just say it looks like we'll be showcasing abilities in this arc. Twilight got some focus with his abilities as Wolfie, and Time got to show off Din's Fire, Wild is using stasis, Hyrule's going to use his healing, who's next? I'd honestly love to see Sky use something, or Legend (always Legend) but to be honest I just really hope the colors make an appearance soon!

Little details time I guess:

Shoot me, but I am very happy with all the floofy hair we got today :)

Legend mother henning the team and Wars picking it up with a scolding is just... they lead well together, I gotta say. Tag teaming it seems to work with these two and I am here for it!

I'm also glad to see Wild so clearly torn up about Twi, which we all saw coming, but Wind's worry about his big doggie friend is so endearing! I'm also pretty glad it looks like Wars is gonna fill him in. About time the whole team knew, I think only Wind and Hyrule are out of the loop at this point and it seems they are about to find out. Yay!

Also, they were talking about Ordon in the last comic, and a town in this one. It looks like we finally get to see something of this Hyrule the boys are in! And better yet, it sounds like it might be Twilight' world, so we might get to see some new designs and characters as well!

I'm stoked, and utterly and completely happy with this comic. No cliffhanger this time, just a settling down into lesser drama before we, no doubt, pick it up again somehow an somewhere else with someone else.