#I am emphatically NOT a Meg fan

[provincial-girl]

So, when I get really into a new show, I like to go ahead and look up the meaning of character’s names. Often there’s not much of interest there, or the name doesn’t say a whole lot. Then, every once in a while, I come across some neat stuff, which is what happens when you look into the meaning of names for A League of Their Own characters, particularly Greta and Meg's names. 

The first very first thing I found when I started down this specific rabbit hole is that Greta means “pearl,” which honestly makes so much sense for her. A pearl is this pretty, shiny object,  but it's created when a grain of sand or food particle gets stuck inside the shell of the oyster. To protect itself from the irritant, the oyster secretes a substance that will harden around the grain of sand and eventually become the pearl. Greta is exactly like the pearl in a lot of ways, because she’s shiny and charming, but her outward appearance is very much a product of all the things she does to protect herself from getting hurt. She has this secret that she knows is dangerous, and she constantly cloaks herself in this protective layer, putting on a performance to keep herself and those around her safe. The product is pretty to look at, made to be looked at even, but it is a hard outer shell meant to protect Greta from suffering any more pain than she already has.   

In an interesting twist, Meg means “pearl” as well, because both names appear to have roots that can be linked back to the name Margaret. We know so little about Meg, Carson’s sister,  that any attempt to draw parallels requires a certain amount of speculation. If the parallel is meant to be intentional though, it would suggest that there’s something similar about Carson’s sister and Greta that we don’t explicitly see.

 One possibility is that perhaps Meg’s fixation on behaving acceptably in the eyes of those around her comes from the fact that she thinks it will offer a layer of protection from censure. That’s why she marries and has kids right away, and bakes the pie that Carson promises the woman at the train station to save face (Greta’s end of the phone conversation with Meg suggests as much). That behavior and her insistence that Carson conform is a defense mechanism, a hurtful, damaging, deeply misguided attempt to protect herself and her family from the same sort of pain that comes from their mother failing to conform when she leaves them behind. She might actually be more concerned about protecting the family than herself, as she specifically mentions their father having to answer questions, as he probably had to when their mother left. She even says she wishes their mother was around so Carson wasn’t her problem, which suggests that Meg wouldn’t be reacting in this way if their mother had never left. Is Meg simply suggesting that their mother might’ve made this call instead? Maybe, but the fact remains that Meg behaves in the way she does, calls and yells at Carson for running away because their mother isn’t around, and she feels it’s her duty to do it to maintain an acceptable image of their family. It's a misguided attempt to protect them from censure and the same pain that comes from their mother leaving. 

The natural reaction may be to say, well, Greta and Meg are nothing alike, because there are a lot of ways in which they’re not alike at all. To start, the repercussions of not performing properly are so much higher for Greta than Meg. Meg doesn’t face the threat of physical harm that Greta does, and the censure she faces is much less intense than what Greta faces if she’s discovered. The fact, however, remains that a lot of their behavior is a reaction to societal pressures to conform and an instinct to avoid pain. None of this is to say that Meg’s behavior is remotely acceptable, or that Meg could ever be as compelling and well-rounded as Greta. What we know of Meg isn’t even a little bit flattering, but I don’t think Meg has to be likable to be understood. This potential parallel  simply gives a bit more depth to Meg, makes the story as a whole a bit more interesting. It suggests that every female character, even the ones as minor and unlikeable as Meg, face some kind of societal pressure to perform in a certain way or face repercussions, and their behavior and treatment of others is often shaped by that pressure.

Again, this all involves a certain amount of conjecture, and may very well be a coincidence, but ALOTO is such a thoughtful show that I just can’t help thinking there’s a real possibility this was an entirely intentional choice. Greta’s name meaning and the Meg parallel were the most compelling ones I found, but there’s also a whole bunch of other name meanings that I’ve found that are actually perfect for the characters, which suggests to me that at least some of these character names are very intentionally chosen for their meaning, and I could definitely see more meta potential in that list. Whether the name choices are fully intentional or not, I enjoy thinking about the way that small details contribute to a story’s larger, overarching themes, and love that this show continues to offer up opportunities to do just that. 

[my-writings-and-musings]

First off I'm a big fan of your writing style and Ii absolutely love how you write the bots. I was wondering if you would be opening to writing more for that one prompt where a bot's S/O can't accept compliments easily. I'd would really love it if you did it with Megatron, Swerve, and Fort Max if you can. 🥺

Thanks again for all the work you do 💞

Thank you! I do try to stand out a bit but keep it close to canon! I can also definitely write Megs and Swerve, I'm trying to limit the number of characters so I can get through asks faster, hope that's okay!

Megatron

"You're learning at exceptional speed, I've never had a better student."

The words were so startling, even if hardly unprompted, that the data pad in your hands nearly slid free.

"Oh, I doubt that!" you replied, smile that didn't meet your eyes forming on reflex. Sitting at the very desk you were seated on, Megatron unfortunately didn't take your response in stride, and instead blinked in surprise. Your words hadn't managed to throw him off as they did so many others. Pretending you didn't notice, you went right back to scanning the prose he'd praised you for coming up with just moments before.

"I can assure you..." he began, a little more softly. The prickle of anxiety made you tense on the spot, like a cat preparing to jump for dear life. Personal experience was telling you that this wasn't safe, that praise was always a false flag for something foul, but you were left frozen on the spot. Warring emotions of self preservation and fondness for the mech kept you still as he continued. "I have had the opportunity to work with many individuals, and I am quite certain you are among the most gifted."

"I don't think-"

"Y/N." he interrupted, soft and gentle yet firm. You flinched, and he left his own data pad to lift your chin with a digit. Tears gathered in your eyes on reflex, and you tried to rub them away, twisting between feeling foolish for crying and being wary still of untrustworthy words. Yet there was little anyone could doubt in his kind red optics.

"I know what it is, to doubt anyone could say anything pleasant on your behalf." You sniffled at how cleanly he cut into the heart of the pain. "But please trust me when I say; I find you a remarkable individual, and you deserve to hear it."

Swerve

"I don't think anyone has ever mixed a drink that well on their first try!"

Uncertain how the bot could find the odd smelling concoction to be at all tasty, you brushed off the words both out of habit and disbelief, as it wasn't too hard to believe Swerve was just sparing your feelings. He did consider you his favorite squishy, after all.

"You don't have to pretend, Swerve." you replied more or less playfully, the small bit of pain at your perceived failure easy to quash down after a lifetime of practice.

"There's no need to pretend, this is top notch!" he replied emphatically, taking another deep drink to emphasize his point. You were more than a little baffled by his commitment to the part. There was no need to keep it up, and most people would see that by now. Uncertainty made you shift on the bar, your hands pushing the mixers you'd used back into some semblance of order so that they might be occupied with something productive.

"Seriously, you're not going to hurt my feelings." you said a little more softly, looking away from him while you spoke. There was a powerful desire to end the conversation here, lest it go somewhere that could hurt you, so you prayed the barkeep would stop pretending and let it be. For your sake, at least...

"But I mean it." he insisted, making you double down on looking away. Before you could indulge your instinct to flee a tender hand cupped your tiny body, the bot equivalent of a loose hug for your small human self. Vulnerability powerful enough to make you tremble also made it impossible to look at him as he spoke. "Hey, don't be sad, I really mean it okay?"

A gap toothed smile met your gaze when it finally raised, and you allowed yourself to be pulled in for a proper hug to his broad front.

"I know better than anyone how hard it is to hear nice things about yourself sometimes..." he said, leaving it at that as his embrace did the rest of the talking. He wanted you to know he meant it, with all of his spark, and he was willing to wait as long as it took for you to believe him.