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exoflash · 3 years ago

Text

The trainguy beats up a sith lord crackfic

I wrote this at 2 am a few nights ago as a joke. Still cant find the post on here that inspired it.

Everyone is probably SUPER out of character. But this is a joke fic anyways, so that's fine. Don't go around posting me in cringe comps

The weather was cold. And windy.

Very, verrrry windy. Yup.

Where had Solgaleo even taken him? The man's research had given him a lead, and he planned to go full steam ahead to ancient Sinnoh. But this... it seems he had certainly exited at the wrong station.

Regardless, he held that spark of hope- wrapping his coat ever tighter around his body with one hand, hanging onto his hat with the other as he braved the terrible storm overhead. All he had to do was find shelter...

He was sent flying back again by the near-unsurvivable weather.

And straight into some sort of wall.

"A."

Well, that solves the shelter issue! If any other soul was around, perhaps he could get directions back to Nimbasa City? Yup. Someone would know, he was certain of it! Very certain. Verrrrrrry certain...

As he entered into the darkness, he was beginning to wish he'd brought his lantern. He didn't want to send out any of his pokemon- Not in these weather conditions! He wouldn't dare endanger the safety of his passengers!

His eyes eventually began to adjust to the dark. What was that shiny thing on the ground?

His brother would not have advised to pick it up. He was the man's only source of impulse control.

But his brother wasn't here right now, he could do anything he wanted!

His brother... wasn't-

He tried not to think about that as he picked the object up.

"Ah! A flashlight! Verrrry good!"

He clicked to turn it on, and the surrounding area was engulfed in the light of a blue blade.

"...This is not a flashlight. Yup. But it will do. Yup."

He stood there for a few seconds.

Ingo would've been fascinated by-

No, don't think about that right now. Full steam ahead!

He carefully examined the space he was in, the dim light guiding his way. The space was wide, but nobody was here. Probably abandoned.

He decided to continue into the labyrinth, alert for danger.

This place was HUGE, and he didn't want to stay long. If he didn't find anyone, he would see if he could contact someone by phone or internet.

"...I am Emmet. I am getting verrrrry tired of this." He said quietly, to no one in particular.

He was about to give up the search, when...

"-it! Make the sacrifice!"

Emmet's eyes went wide. He would've preferred being stranded to hearing something like THAT.

Without a second thought, he immediately (and carelessly) began to run for the source of the sound.

His hat went flying off as he bolted. It was surprising this hadn't happened much earlier.

He skidded to a halt as he arrived- thank Arceus nobody had heard him.

Because this was definitely some sort of cult.

He stood before a giant open room, the centerpiece a dark throne that gave the former king of Team Plasma a run for his money.

It was set up like some sort of colosseum, cult(?) members in robes standing all the way around it.

In the middle of the room stood a girl holding a sword similar to his own.

Facing her was an old man on life support. Yeah, that checks out. Would creepy old men please stop trying to take over the world for FIVE minutes?!

The girl raised her sword.

The cult members approached her.

This was verrry bad! Unacceptable! No harassment allowed! He had to intervene!

"Hello! I am Emmet."

Everyone halted, turning to the new voice. Even the old man did a double take, he and the girl briefly exchanging a look of confusion.

The old man spoke up.

"How did you end up here, boy...?!"

Eugh, he sounded as gross as he looked. Verrrry icky. No good.

"That is unimportant! You are trying to do something harmful to the safety of all passengers involved!"

"And how do YOU know this?" The old man hissed, voice dripping with more venom than a wild Arbok.

"I am good at reading faces. I have had lots of practice."

He stepped out into the arena, almost flamboyantly. He put a hand on his hip, using the laser sword as a pointing stick in the other. "Rrrregardless! I request that you cease all malicious activities, or else I will have to bring your track to a forced stop!"

Everyone in the arena was just staring awkwardly as the air went still.

Finally, the old man broke into a fit of laughter. Before Emmet could say anything else, he found himself flying into the wall. Again.

He yelped like a hurt puppy, his grin not leaving his face.

The old man made a mistake. Emmet had lost his grip on the strange laser sword, and it had gone flying straight into his overly complicated life support.

Get owned, boomer.

The cultists from the shadows were shouting, and he was unsure if they were screaming or cheering. It reminded him of the televised pokémon arena battles in Galar... albeit in a creepy 'you are about to get sacrificed to a Giratina worshipping cult' way.

As he got back up, he heard the sound of footsteps approaching rapidly.

On instinct, he jumped up, standing straight and saluting the newcomer. The new guy didn't notice, running straight for the girl. Emmet waved anyways.

"Hello! I am Emmet. I do not think the old man is dea-"

The cultists on the ground drew their weapons on the three.

"...Grrrreat."

The newcomer had grabbed the laser sword Emmet had tossed into the life support system- was he watching the whole time too?

Whatever. He had his fists. If he could handle the streets of Castelia city, he could handle weirdos in robes.

A laugh.

Oh dear Arceus above. The old man's not dead.

-----

Rey hardly remembered the fight, and everything that led up to it. She and Ben had fought by each other's side, both of them moving in perfect sync. Everything was going too quickly for her to even think. All they had to do was survive. Trust in the Force. She had risked so much to get here, with only Ben fighting by her side.

...Well, okay. The disheveled postman was a surprise. And he seemed just as confused as she was. But she didn't have time to unpack all that. He was holding his own just fine- probably a resistance fighter.

When everything had slowed down, though. She couldn't even try yo confront Palpatine. The man in white was beating the kriff out of him, and... WINNING?

He was now kicking the former emperor into the ground, yelling something about safety checks and staying behind the yellow line.

"Hey- I, uhm- I think... I think- I think you've gotten him-" Ben chimed in, probably too scared to actually approach.

The man in white froze, and turned to him.

"I am Emmet. I am verrrrry tired of 80 year old megalomaniacs. Yup!"

He continued his beatdown.

Welp. Since this wasn't the big fight anyone was prepared for, Ben and Rey simply looked at each other exhaustedly. They both just decided to wait a couple more minutes.

This was sure gonna be something to explain to the resistance.

#pokemon #star wars #what other tags do ppl use....#i will tag the characters.#rey skywalker #ben solo #darth sidious #subway boss emmet #sorry everyone.

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peach-the-owl · 4 years ago

Note

Thanks for answering my earlier ask.

May I request Essek with a child sorcerer reader who was traveling with the M9 for a while but decides to stay with him because they always get scared when they get into battle. And when the M9 come back to visit Essek has pretty much adopted the reader and does almost anything she asks for.

(人 •͈ᴗ•͈)

I am here for this, it sounds absolutley adorable. First time writing for Essek and I may have gotten a little carried away, it ended up being longer then I thought. Here’s hoping this turns out well 😅

Shadowhands Apprentice

Essek & Child!Sorcerer!Reader

The Mighty Nein had found you locked up after dealing with some creepy cult deep in the Barbed Fields. You told them they used you as a source of energy because of your rare and strong natural magic, using Identify Caleb discovered that you were in fact a Runechild. You had no known family, as far as you were aware of and nowhere to go so they decided to take you along with them. Your experience with the cult had left you very jumpy whenever the group had to engage in battle, fearing you could be taken and used for something awful. When the party finally made it to the city of Rosohna you got to meet the mysterious Essek they’ve told you about. They explained the situation to him once he noticed you cowering behind Jester, and he took quick interest in you since. Visiting frequently during your stay in the Xhorhaus to mostly teach Caleb more dunamancy, you grew quite curious about this new magic and asked if you could learn some too. Given your natural talent it didn’t take much for Essek to agree to start teaching you as well. Letting you quickly get more comfortable around him.

"Do we have to leave?" You whine a bit. The Nein had finished with there stay and were getting ready to leave to attend to duties they'd been called to elsewhere.

"We told you we couldn’t stay long. We have other jobs to do too." Jester tries to explain, you pout and cross your arms to try and calm the nervous shaking in your body. There’s a soft knocking at the door, Fjord goes over to answer it and just outside is the floating drow you’ve become so well acquainted with. After a mutual greeting Fjord steps aside and let’s Essek in.

"I have come to bid you all a farewell and good luck in your travels." He addresses to everyone. "I hope you will keep well to your studies?" He addresses more to you and Caleb, you fidget a bit, the question on your mind eating away at you if you should ask it or not.

"Of course." Caleb gives a nod. Everyone starts making their way out but pause when you don’t follow.

"You coming (y/n)?" Beau raises an eyebrow at you.

"Can I stay here with Essek?" You blurt out quickly, causing the man in question to go stiff and everyone else to stare. After a long pause you speak up again. "It’s scary and dangerous out there, but I feel safe here. I don’t want to leave." They all look amongst each other.

"That would really have to be Essek's decision." You look over at the him with big pleading eyes, making it very hard for him to break eye contact.

"Please, I promise I’ll be a good listener and you can teach me more spells." After a long pause he runs a hand through his hair and gives a quiet sigh.

"I suppose it would be beneficial for this chance to learn more about your natural abilities." He says. You give a smile and with that you bid farewell to the Nein and are left alone with the Shadowhand. "I have some important business that needs attending to first, I shall return once I have completed my duties. In the meantime I suggest you stay here and practice what you already know." You give a nod and watch as he too leaves the Xhorhaus, the chimes jingling softly as he does.

Days slowly turned into weeks and you had setup a nice routine. In the mornings Essek would arrive for breakfast, at first they were silent but after the first week the two of you started to talk more, discussing different forms of magic, the barrage of Message spells you’d get from Jester or how eachothers day was (the latter taking a little more time to work up to). The afternoon was when Essek would have to leave you alone for awhile to attend to his duties to the Bright Queen, though as the days progressed he became more and more reluctant on wanting to leave you alone. Finally he’d return around the evening and you’d spend the rest of your time learning different spells or discovering more about your magical origin before you’d get worn out and head to bed. Sometimes you’d wake up the next day to find that Essek had stayed the night to help keep an eye on the place, or at least that’s what he’d tell you. It was a simple but pleasant routine for you and over time you noticed him become more comfortable around you, going as far as to drop the levitation act whenever he’d visit.

It was a bit conflicting for Essek to be so close to someone, and a child no less too. He had to be careful around you, trying so hard to not get too comfortable around you but with each passing day it was becoming harder and harder. He didn’t want to let you into the darker secrets of his life, but you were the first person he felt he could let down some of his guard to, knowing a child didn’t care if he was being absolutely professional or not. As worried as he was about this there was something else deep down that just felt nice having you around. Seeing you learn new things and showing him your accomplishments filled him with a feeling of pride and joy he didn’t know he could've ever experienced before. The weeks had grown into a solid month and today Essek had decided to do something different.

"Why are we in the market again?" You questioned curiously. Essek gives an amused hum.

"I thought you said you’d be a good listener for me." He gives you a side look, you give him a playful glare as he hovers ahead making you have to jog to catch up.

"You said there was something waiting for us and that’s it."

"Precisely," you open your mouth to say something but he stops you. "Hush now, we’re here." You look up at the building.

"A tailor shop?" You look up at him confused, he doesn’t say anything and enters the shop with you following close behind. Essek talks with the shop owner while you look around at the different outfits that inhabited the shop, looking over the intricate designs of the fabrics.

"Here we are, just as you requested sir." You switch your attention over to the shopkeeper who hands a small folded bundle over to Essek. He nods to the shopkeeper letting them go about their own business and moves over towards you.

"There should be a fitting room just past the curtain, I’d like to make sure this fits you properly." Essek says, handing you the bundle of clothing.

"This is really for me?" You ask, looking from Essek to the cloths in your arms. He gives you a nod, the ghost of a smile on his lips, you beam at him and scurry over to change into the new outfit. The outfit was made of a silky material, with beautiful patterns stitched in throughout and it came with a lovely flowing robe for overtop. You had no problems changing and once you stepped out and had a better look at yourself in the mirror, you could see a close resemblance to Essek's own outfit in yours. "Wow, I look just like you now." You give him a smile.

"Hold on, it appears you are missing something." You look at him confused until he comes closer and lets himself kneel down to match your height. You feel something cool get placed onto you head, turning back to the mirror you find that an intricately crafted silver circlet was the item in question. You just stare in awe as you trace over the design. "This circlet should help you with your focus when you are casting spells." Essek comments, the smile on your face widens and you turn to give him a hug.

"Thank you, I love it sooo much." You can feel his body turn stiff so you let go and after a minute he gives you a gentle pat on the shoulder and gets up from his kneeling position back to floating around again.

"You're welcome. However it’s only best you dress in the appropriate attire if you are to be accompanying me throughout the day." You tilt your head a little as you try to figure out what this meant, when it clicks in your mind your smile returns.

"Does that mean I get to go with you when you have to do your job?"

"You are allowed to stay in the library, it is easier for me to keep an eye on you that way while still preforming my duties." You bounce on your feet in excitment, library’s were cool and filled with all sorts of stories to read and getting to spend even just a little more time with Essek was always nice to you.

You’re escorted to the library and immediately looked through the large selection of books it had to offer while Essek went about his usual business, now being able to check in on you more frequently. You acquainted yourself with the librarian who was able to help direct you to anything they had within your interest. One of the books you were looking for was on a high shelf, so you simply used the provided ladder to reach it. Another occupant in the library was kind enough to offer and help, you thank them but waved them off saying you could do it all by yourself. The book was just out of your reach, however being so high up you didn’t want to climb all the way back down just to move the ladder over a small ways and climb all the way back up. Instead you thought it’d be a good idea to hold onto one of the rungs and lean over a bit to reach your objective, you end up leaning too far and loose your footing, plummeting to the ground with a yelp, taking a few books with you. Quickly throwing your arms over your face to sheid yourself and wait for the impact, when it never happens you slowly, shakily remove your arms and crack open your eyes to see that you were hovering mere inches from the ground. Looking over your shoulder you see none other then Essek, a look of shock and concern on his face, arm outstretched towards you, a faint glow to his hand as he had used his magic to catch you. With a swift and fluid motion you’re gently placed upright on the ground as he drifts towards you.

"Are you alright? Are you hurt?" He asks with concern laced into his words, checking you over to make sure you were okay. Unable to form words you motion with your hands for him to come closer, he immediately complies by kneeling down to reach your height. Without missing a beat, once he’s reached your level you wrap your arms around his neck in a hug and let out quiet sobs. Still not used to the physical contact causes Essek to stiffen up a bit. There's slight tremors that still raked through your body and after a moment he slowly, carefully returns the hug, lifting you both up in the process. Adjusting himself so he can hold you with one arm he waves his free hand placing back the books that had fallen with you and bringing down the one you had been trying to grab and stores it away for later.

"Thank you." Your voice comes out softly as you finally found your words again.

"No need to thank me." He replies just as softly. "Would you like to know something?" You perk your head up off his shoulder to look at him. "The Mighty Nein have returned." This perks you up even more.

"Can we go say hi?" You ask, but get the feeling you already knew the answer.

"Of course." With that, he weaves his way back out of the library and off towards the Xhorhaus, all while still carrying you safely in his arms.

When you saw the Nein they happily greeted you and instantly started to comment on your new apparel, some of them also took quick notice to the change in Essek's behaviour around you and mercilessly tried to question him about it. You asked how their adventures were so far and they told you about them and some of the problems they’re currently dealing with. You then got to tell them all about what you’ve been up to and how your abilities have developed so far. After some more casual banter the Nein prepare to settle in for the night having been through a long day and needing a rest, you start to make your way up as well but are stopped by a hand placed on your shoulder.

"Exactly where do you think you're going?" Essek raises a questioning eyebrow at you.

"Up to bed?" You reply confused. You hear a faint chuckle come from him.

"I think our friends have had a long day and the last thing they need is our early morning routine interfering with their schedule." He explains, surprising you by picking you up into his arm unprompted.

"Then where are we going?" You ask as the two of you exit the abode. His reply to you brings a smile to your face.

"Home."

Did I over do it? I hope not, but I’m really sorry if I did and if I made it drag on too long 😖

#critical role #critical role & reader #mighty nein #the mighty nein #mighty nein & reader #essek thelyss #essek & reader #nothing romantic here

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shimmershae · 3 years ago

Text

My thoughts on Episode 6--On the Inside

Very appropriate title by the way. Works in a multitude of ways.

As always, my randomness is going beneath a cut again to spare the eyeballs of those of you that don’t want to see it at all and also? Help those of you that have somehow stayed spoiler-free in this brand-new age of early release episodes. It is still so wild to me that I’m a full episode ahead of half the fandom. I don’t know what I’m going to do when we get to the final episode and they decide to make us all suffer together--because somehow I do feel they will do exactly that after spoiling us for the first 23 episodes. It is going to be agonizing.

Anyway. Without further ado, Shae’s stream of consciousness review (of sorts).

Not fair, Angela. Opening the episode with that shot of that big ass spider. I hate those suckers. So naturally, they’re an easy sell for setting the horror scene to me, lol.

Okay. Who the hell’s chasing Virgil and Connie? Walker No-See-Ums?

Barely a minute in and the atmosphere for this episode is moody AF.

What is this? Tara Jr. The Walking Dead? LOL. Where’s the Scarlett for this mini plantation house? Anyway. First three minutes of this episode? Just as attention grabbing as the first five episode openings this season. I don’t think people out there are giving our writers enough love for that. Every episode so far has opened like a mini movie.

With the way the Walking Dead logo keeps crumbling away with each successive episode, somehow it wouldn’t surprise me at all if the Carol and Daryl spinoff was eventually titled The Living and had flowers growing out of each letter, lol. I mean, there would be a certain sort of life-affirming symmetry in a show that’s been promised to be much lighter in tone doing just that.

More Carol and Aaron? Yes, please. I don’t necessarily like Carol staying at home and sitting the sidelines like a figurative happy little homemaker in the B story while the rest of the mains are trying like hell to sell the A story, but if she’s going to be totally prohibited from the main storyline until it’s time to blow shit up? I’m going to continue enjoy getting to see her do what she should have been doing for seasons--interacting with others in the community, especially Aaron and the ladies.

Truly. I really am loving my girl getting some quality Aaron and Rosita time. It’s so long overdue.

Bless sweet Kelly. Riding off to her sister’s rescue.

Why isn’t Lydia shown as part of these plans? For someone that could barely read last season, I doubt that big ass map was a piece of cake for her and it’s all just guesswork anyway without her guidance. I mean, why does it feel like they are cutting some of this stuff that might not seem like much plot-wise but would go a long way toward establishing different character beats? Personally, I would have loved to see her involved in the search and sharing scenes again with Carol and bonding with Kelly.

Virgil be having that “I always feel like somebody’s watching me” feeling. Don’t you hate that, lol?

“You haven’t slept in days.” But how many days, Virgil? I’m going to need a number because I’m confused AF about this timeline at this point. What we’re seeing and what different pieces of dialogue is telling us is not exactly lining up. I’m going to find it awful hilarious if it hasn’t even been two weeks since the cave in. For reasons.

Connie’s spidey senses are clearly tingling.

Alrighty, then. She’s clearly got PTSD. Understandable. They’ve all had it. Some have been treated more sympathetically than others, though.

I mean, it never seems to cross anybody’s mind how Carol probably sees Henry’s head on that pike, Mika’s pale and bloody body, Lizzie crumpled face down in a bed of yellow flowers, Sophia with a smoking bullet hole through her undead head whenever she closes her eyes but whatever.

Okay though. But what if Connie had really shitty, impossible to read handwriting? AKA doctor’s handwriting. What then?

Leah’s face honestly twists my insides whenever I see it, lol. It’s quiet a visceral thing. No, that does not make me a horrible person. Not everybody wants or has to drink the awesome, great, redeemable villainess Kool-Aid. IMHO, she’s got a face meant for a Walker. Perfect makeover idea. Eh. Mostly it’s her expression and the deadness of her eyes.

Anyway. Why is it always the fingers? Eff that.

Listen. If ya’ll can’t tell Daryl’s conflicted AF with the situation he’s landed in, you don’t know how to read NR’s face and eyes. He’s not a masterclass like MMB but he’s pretty darn good when he wants to be.

I honestly feel sorry for Redshirt Frost.

“You do what you gotta do.” Frost knows what’s what and he’s willing to walk the walk for Maggie. Impressive loyalty. I’m left wondering how the current, colder incarnation of Maggie inspired it because I’m still struggling to see it. Anywho. My point is the dude knows the score and just gave Daryl the okay.

Daryl taking off his angel vest before stepping into the role of torturer/interrogator=him shedding the persona/the man Judith and RJ and Lydia and Carol know him to be. Pushing away his man of honor status so he can just survive somehow.

Pope never quits chewing whatever the hell he’s got in his mouth. It’s kind of distracting.

Ohhh. We’re back to the Haunted Mansion. I mean house. Where are the Hitchhiking Ghosts?

All the eyes scratched out of those creepy pictures=spooky.

The good old fogged up bathroom mirror shot. Somebody’s been watching and studying their horror movies, lol. Not gonna lie though. I’m legit bracing myself for the jump scares I know have to be coming.

I’m loving the music/score in these scenes.

Truthfully, I could care less about these Reapers. But they are hella attractive, lol. Listen. Angela knows what she’s doing.

Kelly’s horse is so pretty. Prayer chain for that baby.

More dead horses? Why?

Connie’s slingshot? Sorry. I maintain, no matter how much I like these two, that they have the lamest weapons ever. Endless supply of Virginia rocks or not. ��

So. Did Virgil and Connie enjoy a little equine for dinner? Did they kill it before the Walkers fed? What monsters! Yeah, no. Not if they were starving even if I personally could not have. The more probable story is they fled the camp in a panic and left the horse behind and then it went down. Sorry. I didn’t exactly study the wounds on the poor animal because it is so traumatizing to me to continue to see them meet such dastardly ends on this show. I don’t know who the hell has such a score to settle with horses but stop it.

Days. It’s only been days. Not weeks. So many times with all that Daryl and Company have had to contend with since the cave in? Those do not exist, lol. They’re just a convenient, appeasing piece of dialogue thrown at a fanbase primed and ready to read everything into not much of anything. There’s just not been enough time for it to happen unless Daryl has literally been up 24/7 for all of them. You know, strategizing how to attack the remainders of Alpha’s horde, figuring out how to defend Hilltop before it fell, healing from the wound he sustained at Alpha’s hand, sitting on that log all damn night with Negan waiting on Carol to come home, having a lover’s quarrel with his best damn everything, taking care of the Grimes babies and Lydia, being the reluctant leader. Kang, why you playing them like that? Daryl’s a super guy but he’s not a superhuman with clones. So many times my ass.

Seriously. Who been watching Connie and Virgil? The MIA Oceansiders? Beta’s Fee Fi Fo Fum Ghost?

Nice. A Michonne mention. Maybe the truth will start to trickle out.

LMAO at Connie’s “I’m not staying here.” Me neither, girl. I would be outta that house so fast.

They really “Quiet Placing” this episode. Honestly? I’m kinda loving it.

WTF was that? I know she can’t hear but you telling me all the little hairs on her arms, legs, and neck didn’t stand the fuck up and say fuck this shit, I’m gone? Pardon my language, lovelies, but that moment had my heart kicking up several beats.

Okay, okay. To be fair to Connie, every hair on her body been doing that since the front door closed. Maybe they’re desensitized.

Gollum’s chasing Connie!!! He/She wants their Precious!!!

The knee jerk reactions about this episode sight unseen are OTT, honestly. And I mean no disrespect by saying that. I can understand completely where they’re coming from because we’ve been burned so long in this fandom. But it’s obvious the spoiler source has their particular biases and reads into things in such a way that don’t line up with what’s actually being shown onscreen. Daryl’s loyalty in this episode and all along quite clearly lies with his family and his community. He’s been playing Leah since the start and is truly just trying to survive somehow.

Awful thought. The Reaper that’s so suspish of Daryl--haven’t quite caught his name or really cared to. I feel like he might try to get to Daryl somehow. When he realizes that Daryl cares no more for Leah than any human would care for somebody (they thought) they used to know? He’s going after Dog. Or Carol should she finally join this story.

I refuse to believe Carol isn’t going to be a part of this story. Because they messing with her mans, lol.

“You’re ever with us or you’re not.” Now where have I heard those words before? I wish I could find that Daryl gif because that had to be one of the funniest things ever, lol.

Unrealistic suggestion to Daryl, Leah? Breathing oxygen seems to piss off Carver. Oh look. He finally has a name for me, lol.

I love how all three of the ladies--Carol, Magna, and Rosita--look at Kelly with such indulgent, adoring “little sis, you alright?” eyes.

They are seriously the most beautiful quartet of characters. I mean all of them are lovely but Carol and Rosita this season? Ugh. The unfairness of the pretty.

Human bones. Terminus callback, lovelies. How it all would have eventually gone down if Gareth and Co. hadn’t met the business end of Rick’s red machete.

So many horror movie homages in this one.

Virgil’s like “let’s leave this Texas Chainsaw Massacre behind.”

Connie and Virgil have obviously bonded, ya’ll. I’m surprised by how much I’m enjoying their scenes together when the character mostly got on my nerves with Michonne. He’s a good actor and the core of his character is sympathetic, but I’m not going to lie. I wasn’t super enthused when he was the one that rescued Connie because I didn’t know how their scenes would play out. But there’s a nice synergy there.

Okay. Does Carver want Leah for himself? Because I’m sure Daryl at this point would love to scream “take her, I know where I fucking belong!”

Daryl’s digging in deep because Carver has shown him Leah’s potential weak spot. Nuance is truly lost on some people, LMAO. He cares about Leah as a human being probably. He’s Daryl, after all. The sweet one. But he sees her as his way outta this and he’s going to exploit it.

It’s nice to have a silent Negan for once, lol. I can pretend he didn’t take my baby Glenn away from me and enjoy JDM’s pretty.

So. These cannibal people were the watchers? Hmm.

I’m really digging Virgil 2.0. Yeah. Nobody’s surprised more than me.

Sweet, sweet scene between Virgil and Connie. His determination to reunite her with her family brings back the sympathy I felt for him when he told Michonne “I promised her flowers. Every day.”

Damn. How many of those creepy crawly cannibals are there?

How brave of Connie to confront her fears to save someone she’s obviously grown to care about.

The Kelly/Connie reunion gave me chills and made me cry. Thank fuck Angela didn’t cheapen that moment by having it focus on literally anybody else. Kelly is the most important person in the whole world to Connie and vice versa. Just like Carol is the most important person in the whole world to Daryl and vice versa. Angela fucking knows. Everybody does. Except the people busy building castles out of sand while the waves of Carol’s and Daryl’s converging stories keep crashing closer and closer to shore.

Such a beautiful moment given to us by Angel Theory and Lauren Ridloff. So authentic and sweet. Kelly and Connie are home to each other.

Poor Frost. That’s all I gotta say about that.

WTF, though. Was Mel just not available or what? I want to see more of the ASZ characters that I care about, not the Reapers. Like I’d be fine with the story if all the characters not named Maggie, Negan, or Daryl weren’t surviving on crumbs during it. Especially the 2nd billed actress on the entire show. Angela. Please. Fix this.

One last WTF. Seriously. WTF has Maggie done to inspire Pope’s obsession? It better be juicy after all this shit.

Overall impression of the episode--

One of my favorites of the season so far. The horror aspects were fantastic, IMHO. I truly didn’t expect to like Connie and Virgil’s scenes as much together so that was a nice surprise. She got the reunion that felt most true and earned for the character and her story and I thank Angela from the bottom of my heart for that.

I would have loved more Carol but I always want more Carol. I’m okay with her taking a backseat because ultimately? This was Kelly’s moment with her sister. Carol and Connie will eventually have their time to sit down and talk. And pick back up their blossoming friendship because I truly do not feel Connie blames Carol at all.

I do wish Lydia had been included with the girl group. Last episode felt like it was leading up to that.

The Reaper storyline continues to be the weakest link because every time we see them the dialogue and interactions feel totally recycled from the time previous. I feel like it would have totally been helped by a tighter focus and less stretching out because 8 episodes of this is really diluting what I feel like Angela and Co. are going for. I’m not here for Leah being redeemed or being a bigger focus in any of the episodes because she does nothing of interest for me. I’m just peeking in on that story for the Daryl of it all.

Speaking of the Daryl? You lovelies out there gotta stop taking that spoiler source’s recaps at face value because it’s obvious to me at least that there’ some bias at work. Every action and word coming from Daryl is coming from a place of loyalty to his family and wanting to protect them, no matter how he has to dirty his hands. Leah is just a means to his ultimate end. She’s not his future. She never was. His future’s already spoken for and 2023 can’t get here soon enough. But like Daryl, we have to just survive somehow.

Oh goodie. More Maggie and Negan next episode and looks like no real follow up on Connie and the ASZ reunions. Hopefully, this is yet another instance of the previews being deceiving but I’m not holding my breath.

Until later, lovelies.

Hope my word vomit didn’t bore you too much.

#The Walking Dead #Season 11 #TWD spoilers #things that make me smile and cry #for reasons #ignore all the typos #with something this longwinded?#LOL #there's bound to be plenty

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itsclydebitches · 3 years ago

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I got witcher!Ciri too! I kind wonder wha would happen if she died tho, dont wanna put geralt or her through that but I love angst lmfaoo. The game got really confusing at point cause I you have to learn a bunch of politics and how this world works and I didnt pay that much attention so I'm sure I'll get those moments in my second playthrough too I'm playing something in the hearts of stone thnig, it was lower level so I'm assuming you should play that first? a main quest with the asshole ghost in the wedding and wow I fucking hate it, it's so umcomfortable to watch geralt be this gross n weird lol, I'm not too familar when Shani either so watching her get mad when I get geralt to say he wouldnt do what the ghost is doing is so annoying lol, OH AND the ghost is a creepy fuck! shani babe you can do much much better than an asshole who talks about his dick and fucking "maidens" every other sentence!! Geralt really does get thrown into so much shit huh I'm tempted to read the books cause I do rly like the world and most- some characters but yeah reading about yen being yen wold be one of the things to stop me, what are some of the plot points that put you off? if you don't mind sharing And yeah I'd so be up for more content esp with ciri, would be cool to see them work together, even with how combat works in this game with npcs lmao

Woo witcher Ciri ending! :D If you enjoy putting yourself through pain I recommend looking up that other ending on YouTube because there are definitely some nice angst shots in the cut scenes. I watched and then promptly went, “I don’t need to play that for myself” lol. But yeah, hard agree on things getting confusing, especially towards the end. I completely missed stuff like the fact that my actions would actually impact this war, rather than the war simply being backdrop, or that Ciri’s powers were more than just the ability to teleport short distances. So by the time I was getting called on to murder kings and Avallach was taking us to totally different worlds, I had a very John Mulaney approach of, “This might as well happen. Things are already so goddamn weird.” Which, you know, really isn't the game's fault. It's what I get for jumping into the third game first and while I don't regret that at all, the story has absolutely deserved a second playthrough where I actually understand all the basic stuff I should have known going in.

Yeah, Hearts of Stone comes first. You can do any of the side quests you’d like from either DLC, but I’d recommend keeping Blood & Wine’s main storyline for the final push. But yeah, that ghost dude is, uh… something. I quite like the wedding on the whole—I really enjoy Shani, dancing is fun, O’Dimm is being a wonderfully evil dude—but yeah, dead dude is definitely a creep. Which is partly one of the things that turned me off from the books. It has the same ‘Guy trying to write women’ energy of the games but… worse. I’ve read a lot of excerpts over the years and so many of them turn me off. There are a ton of small things, like Triss importantly informing the witchers (who are all like 100+ years old??) about periods and that Ciri can’t train today because of hers (a moment that much of the fandom celebrates as... progressive?), or Triss and Yen getting super catty with one another over Geralt, to much bigger things like Ciri nearly getting raped/being involved in intimate acts with really questionable consent. A lot of the Witcher has a “This didn’t age well” vibe to it which, to be fair, isn’t entirely the fault of the author. The story is the product of 90’s Polish culture and, again, a man trying to write some pretty complex subjects from an arguably ignorant place, which makes much of the work eye-rolling for me at best, outright uncomfortable at worst. (Which I think is why I enjoy the games far more. I have agency in this questionable world, the ability to tailor it somewhat to my own beliefs and desires, which makes moments when that's taken away, like Geralt automatically commenting on how good Yen looks at a funeral, all the more frustrating). I obviously am not a Geralt/Yen fan, which sours a great deal of the plot. From what I got through the pacing felt like a slog and, more importantly, much seems to have been lost in the translation from Polish to English. (I continually hear about how amazing the dialogue is, but sadly that hasn’t come across in translation for me. Much of it is... awkward.) The parts I’ve heard about/read excerpts of that I’m most interested in—Geralt’s hanza—ends tragically and I’m… just not here for that right now. Which isn’t to say it’s badly written or anything, just that it’s not my personal cup of tea, especially nowadays with a pandemic and what all going on lol. I look at what I know of the series as a whole and go, “Do I really want to read five books filled with outdated representation for women, that old-school fantasy violence that turned me off GoT, with a super depressing ending, all wrapped up in an iffy translation and a style I don’t think does well in long-form storytelling? … Not really.”

Still loved most of the short stories and I’ve heard that many people liked the audio book versions when they couldn't get into the text, so I might give that a go someday. I’d prefer to actually have read all the source material for a fandom I’m spending so much time in, but I sadly just haven't had the urge yet. If you do read them, anon, you’ll have to tell me what you think. It’s becoming quite the divisive topic, especially as Netflix fans turn to the books, and—putting aside that everyone’s tastes will always differ—it’s interesting to hear not just whether someone had fallen in love with the books or not, but if they haven’t what about them prevented that. It's very much a case of one person's "That was awful" being another's "Are you kidding me? That's the best part!"

#witcher #mymetas

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anika-ann · 5 years ago

Text

Of Muffins, Coffee and Other Miracles - Pt.1

Of Muffins, Cheeky Vigilantes and Sad Interns

Pairing: Matt Murdock x reader Word count: 3130

Type: Two-shot, reader insert

Warnings: swearing, mention of attempted assault, tons of fluff and cheeky/cute Daredevil

Summary: You’re a secretary at Landman and Zack, having an office on the same floor as the interns. You notice one of them (which you might and might not have a crush on) seems down lately, so you decide to cheer him up the only way you can come up with. You bake muffins; right after your life is saved by a cheeky vigilante.

You stared at the two unconscious men at his feet, still perfectly shocked but relieved, pressing your handbag to your chest.

You were slowly leaving your place by the wall – more like in the wall, because you had been trying to merge with it even since the two men had backed you into it, pulling out their knives and demanding your handbag. That had been before this guy had appeared and put them in a line – and you were pretty sure he put some of their bones out of their natural line, but you couldn’t find yourself to care.

“You… thank you. How— you… saved my life,” you stuttered, watching the man in a black mask wince as if he only now realized you were there.

“You’re welcome,” he said, voice pleasantly low-pitched, looking in your direction. “Though I’m not sure it would go that far if you have just given him your handbag.”

“Well, I couldn’t do that,” you retorted, automatically drawing the item closer to your chest.

He took two cautious steps to you, easing his fighting stance. “I know it would be a lot of paperwork and bureaucracy, but for future reference, it would be much better if you just gave it up.”

“I couldn’t. There’s a… there’s a secret recipe.”

“… a recipe. You… couldn’t have let go of your handbag because of a recipe. You’re joking,” he stated, and the little of his face you could see, free of the fabric of his mask, seemed shocked. And maybe a little amused. How would you know, you could only see his jaw. And lips – their corners were quirked inconspicuously, so yeah, definitely amused.

Well, at least you made him smile since he had saved you and all.

“It’s important! There’s this guy in my work and— never mind. Forget I said anything. I mean… beside the thank you. Wow, babbling is not my usual reaction to stress.”

“Well, if that makes you feel better I don’t usually chat with people I help out,” he said with a shrug, making you raise your eyebrows.

“So why do you now?” Not that I complain.

He shrugged again, coming a little closer again. “Nowhere to be. And you seem fun.”

Huh. Who would think a guy in a mask, lurking in a dark, would be such a nice person? He seemed genuine. You had no idea where he picked up the idea of you being fun, but you guessed he didn’t meet women protecting their handbags for recipes of all thing every night. Did he do that every night? Was that a thing?

You shook off the thoughts. “…thanks, I guess?”

“So, guy at work?” He smiled suggestively, clearly teasing you. You just gaped.

“Oh my god, I’m not talking about that with… with a masked guy! And… and it’s not like that,” you protested, questioning your own claim. Maybe?

“Really? So why that blush?”

You quickly checked you cheeks with your hand. “I don’t-“ You never blushed. You doubted you were now and your cheeks felt just normal-- that little shit. “You know, for a guy who lurks in a dark, you are sure pretty cocky.”

And for a near assault victim, I am pretty chatty and easy-going.

“People also say I’m a good listener,” he offered nonchalantly, a gentle smile on his lips.

You were not doing this, right? You wouldn’t just load that on a complete stranger? Then again, he was a complete stranger, so he couldn’t tell anyone who knew you. Mmm...

“…it’s not like that. I mean, yeah, he’s… handsome, but-- he’s… I barely know him, but he’s just really nice, you know? Like…” You licked your lips, finally letting the handbag rest on its usual place. “The kind of guy who would help you to pick up your stuff, even if he wasn’t be the one who ran into you. And the other day, I saw his telling a joke to someone who seemed down, but usually is a bitch to him. He’s the guy who would hold the elevator for you. Just… really nice. And lately… he seemed down himself. Not even his friend can cheer him up. So… yeah.”

“So… you decided to… cook something for him. For this… nice guy,” he summed up your monologue, looking a bit confused.

“Yeah. My friend met me at the bar and gave up her secret recipe for the best muffins in the world. I already bought the ingredients, guessing, but I didn’t pick up on the vanilla beans.”¨

“That’s really nice of you.”

“Well, it’s not like I’m saving his life,” you said, giving him a significant look.

Why were you smiling? You just almost got mugged! And you were chatting with a man who just broke someone’s bones! To be fair, he was really likeable. Had called you fun and nice. Not something you were used to.

“He could be depressed. So maybe you are.”

You couldn’t but smile wider. “Maybe. Though he probably gets bagels every morning… never mind. …And you know what, you are a good listener. But I should go. Got work to do.”

“Sure. Good luck with your… baking,” he wished you, grinning like a goddamn child. Was it really so amusing?

“If I have some spares, I’ll leave them on the rooftop for you,” you decided, freezing after you realized what you said. “A random rooftop! I wouldn’t want a masked guy to know where I live.”

He laughed. He honest to god laughed. “Of course. Go, I’ll call the police to pick those guys up.”

You didn’t need to be asked twice.

⊱⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊰

You barely managed to sneak into the interns’ office – office? More like a closet – and make it out before they appeared behind a corner. These two guys started there recently, but you instantly liked them. The one with blond hair was smiling most of the time, a cheery smile that made you smile back even when you were busy and nearly harassed by your boss a minute before; the other one, the dark-haired one, had a gentler smile, a warming one – and you hadn’t seen much of it lately. If you were honest, you thought his idealism was being crushed; he was incredibly nice and polite to everyone as far as you saw him interact with people and you were sure that a firm like Landman and Zack wasn’t a place for his fragile soul-- and now you were just projecting.

The pair fell into their closet office and you released the breath you were holding. You resisted the urge to listen in with your ear at the door. It turned out, you didn’t have to; most of the offices were empty due to the lunch break and the blond man – okay, yeah, you heard him introduce himself as Foggy, which was ridiculous, but kinda cute – was very loud.

“Matt, a muffin.”

You bit your lip, a little nervous about not hearing Matt’s reaction.

“Matt, I swear to God, there is a muffin on your table. With a note on a toothpick in it and it says— oh. That’s just mean. Why would someone give a muffin on your desk only to tempt you?” Foggy sounded bewildered and a little hurt on the behalf of his friend.

You giggled into your palm. You had left a written note saying: ‘Don’t you dare to touch it, you, who are reading this.’

The trick was in leaving one more note – in braille. ‘Feel better and be happy. The offices are too dark without your smile. Enjoy.’

Which was an idiotic lie, because the offices were all glass and steel, having too much light most of the time, but the message was clear, you hoped. Not to mention Matt wouldn’t be able to tell. Because he was… well, blind. Which meant he couldn’t read the note not directed at him, but could read his own.

You sneaked from your office, coming a little closer, listening in.

“Dude, your face. Why do I have the feeling the braille version says something different?”

You smiled for yourself, hoping to cause at least a little rise of Matt’s lips while he was reading his personal note (it was a bitch to use the braille printer without no one noticing, okay, you were kinda proud of yourself). His response was quieter, but you pricked your ears and heard it.

“Because it does.”

Later, you were trying hard not to stare too blatantly when they passed your office, but you caught a glimpse anyway. Matt was smiling. Brightly.

⊱⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊰

“This is so stupid, I’m crazy, I’m the craziest person to ever walk this Earth…” you were muttering as you laid a plate with two muffins in the middle of the rooftop. “If anyone’s gonna eat it, it’s gonna be Frank from 2B when coming to have a smoke. Or pigeons…”

“Did the nice guy liked his muffin?” sounded a voice from behind you and you jumped ten feet above— well, not. You literally fell on your ass, yelping in shock, your hand trying to keep your heart inside your ribcage. “Hey, easy there.”

You spun slowly to the source of the pleasant male voice, only to find a man dressed in nothing but black. With a mask on, naturally.

“Not sure. Maybe I just helped him to have a heart attack sooner. But I can ask him if he’s looking for one and refer him to you,” you complained, closing your eyes and taking a deep breath, easing your hand down.

Jesus.

“I apologize. I didn’t mean to scare you.” He offered you a gloved hand to help you up. But it was a warm night and forgetting the fact your pants would be no doubt terribly dirty from the concrete, you were actually fine sitting there. You patted on the other side of the plate instead. He hesitated.

“For some reason I don’t believe you,” you exclaimed darkly. “I’m not sure you deserve these…”

“They’re really for me?”

A shy smile appeared on his lips – you really needed to stop focusing on people’s lips, it was creepy, but to be fair, this guy wasn’t offering many things to go on and staring at his body tightly wrapped in black probably wasn’t much better. He lowered himself elegantly, sitting down on the offered place.

“I figured that you might appreciate it and you’ll burn the calories easily. And since I baked six of these…”

“Thanks.” He tentatively took off his gloves, reaching for one of the muffins. He took a bite.

You blinked in surprise at his trust. “They could be poisoned.”

He froze. “You wouldn’t.”

“How can you possibly know that?”

“No one who bakes a muffin just to cheer up a guy they barely know would try to poison me,” he reasoned, his confidence almost unshaken.

“I could have just made the story up. Or bake two batches, poison one of them and lay a trap.”

He frowned, taking another bite easily. “That sounds like an awfully lot of work, considering pigeons might have eaten this. Or Frank from 2B.”

“You— you heard that?” you asked, surprised.

“I have good ears. And taste buds. This is really good.”

“I’m glad. Maybe one day I can quit my soul-crushing job, steal all of my friend’s recipes and open a bakery. The Hell’s Bakery… in Hell’s Kitchen.”

He chuckled, the sound so light that it made you wonder how the hell this guy was a vigilante. Should he be like… dark and broody? I am batman, I’m the night?

“I would be a regular. I promise.”

You couldn’t help but smile as he finished the muffin and licked his thumb.

“He’s a lucky guy, you know. Having you to look out for him,” he offered casually.

“I told you, it’s not like that…” you repeated, though you were less and less convinced it was the truth. “…and he doesn’t know it was me.”

“You didn’t give it to him?” he sounded shocked. You thought he might have raised his eyebrows. “Just leaving it? Why?”

You shrugged. “I didn’t want him to feel… obligated to be grateful or something. Plus, me noticing he’s smiling less than usual? It’s a little creepy, I imagine. It’s better if I stay anonymous.”

“Huh. You really weren’t trying to… get his attention, were you?” He seemed genuinely surprised. Was it really that strange? “Why? Not your type? Have eyes on someone else?”

“Not my type…” you repeated lowly. “I think he’s everybody’s type.” He tilted his head curiously. “I don’t.”

“But?”

“But nothing. He’s… he’s him. I bet he has someone. He has this whole…” you gestured vaguely with your hands as if it could mean something. It did. To you. “…charming, take-me-home aura.”

“Take-me-home aura?” he parroted, bewildered.

“It’s hard to-“ you stopped in the middle of the sentence, realizing the absurdity of the situation. Muffins. Late night. Dim lights. Boy problems. “Oh god, I’m having a slumber party with a vigilante on a rooftop. I really am crazy.”

“Do you want to braid hair?” he suggested with that boyish grin you remembered from yesterday. “I’m no good at painting nails, but I rock at braiding.”

You looked at him incredulously, watching him for what could be a minute. Then you burst out laughing.

“I believe you. But I’m afraid I’ll have to decline. I’m very picky about who I let touch my hair.”

“Uh-huh Okay. What does take-me-home aura mean? Take home and..?”

“And snuggle him…” you hummed, thoughtful. “Or rip his clothes off, sometimes it’s hard to decide. Probably both in the right order.”

“Oh.”

You burst out laughing once more when seeing him so taken aback. Well, you thought he looked taken aback.

“Oh god, you look so spooked. I’m not gonna do that to you, or him. Have a muffin.”

He pouted, but relaxed and reached for his comfort food. “I’m not… spooked. It’s just… why don’t you?”

“Because I’m pretty sure dragging someone into my home and ripping their clothes off is a crime,” you emphasized, even though the irony was lost on this guy, since he was acting outside the law. Matt, on the other hand… was a lawyer.

“You could just ask him out.”

The smile froze on your lips. You cleared your throat. “Yeah, right. I forgot you don’t know me very well and you don’t know whom I’m talking about. He’s… like… waaaay out of my league. Professionally speaking – one day, I’m sure – and with his looks too.”

He nibbled his muffin, looking thoughtful. It was incredibly cute. “You said he was nice. I’m sure he wouldn’t turn you down.”

“A pity date. Yay for me.”

“…you don’t have very high opinion of yourself, do you?”

You shrugged. “I’m a realist.”

He set his muffin down, turning to you with his whole body. “I don’t have many references to your looks, since we’re meeting at night, but you seem like a great person and… I really don’t talk with people much. Not at all, if I can help it. But you’re easy to talk too. Even if it was a pity date, I’m sure he would have a good time. And maybe you would find out he’s just a guy and forget there are some… leagues or whatever,” he mimicked, sounding a little disgusted. He picked his muffin back, possibly to drown the bitterness of the word league.

Oh my god, how was this guy even real? There was no way he was not chatting with all victims of crime he saved.

“Thanks— what do I call you? Give me something. I don’t expect your real name, secret identities and all, but… something.”

“Huh. I don’t know. Uhm…”

“If you don’t come up with something, I will,” you threatened, your mind racing. He would either have a terrible name, compensating with a nickname, or a plain name no one would look twice at.

“Go for it,” he challenged, licking the remains of chocolate of his lips. You observed him for a minute, wondering.

“Mm. Alright. Thank you for your encouraging words… Clark.”

“Clark? Like… Clark Kent?”

“Yeah,” you confirmed, grinning. “Hero. Secret identity. Ripped. Sweet. Yeah, you’re Clark… you’re not wearing glasses to work, are you? Are you trying to look awkward, or better yet invisible? Unnoticed? Are you a journalist?” you asked quickly to cover up the fact you blatantly told him he had hot body.

“I’m not a journalist,” he said slowly, looking a bit alarmed. Though he didn’t deny the rest.

“Okay, okay, I’ll stop prying. But thanks. It’s… really sweet of you, but… I guess I’m too chicken to ask him out.”

The sentence lied heavily between you for few moments.

“…what if he asked you?”

You snorted. “Right. He doesn’t even know I exist, Clark. Doesn’t know my name.”

“Neither do I. And look at us, sitting on a rooftop, talking about boys.”

This time you laughed. “You just wriggled your eyebrows, didn’t you?”

“Maybe…” he played along mysteriously, before his smile softened. “Can I have your name?”

“Well, I guess there’s no point in denying you now know where I live, so a name wouldn’t add much. But you know what? I picked yours. Pick mine.”

“…okay. Nice to meet you… Lois.” He extended his hand towards you, making your breath hitch.

“Nice to meet you, Clark.” You shook his hand, swallowing the nervousness his choice left you in. The love interest? “Though I’m more of a Jimmy Olsen, don’t you think?” The friend.

He tensed, jerking to his feet, crouching, his head tilted. You almost had another heart attack at the sudden movement.

“I gotta go, I’m sorry. There’s… an assault a mugging in progress. But-“ he turned to you, his tense features softening a little, leaning into your space. “I chose the name on purpose.”

Then his freaking lips brushed your temple and he jogged away, jumping-- jumping off the roof. You flied to your feet as well, running after him, checking he wasn’t a bloody smudge on the pavement. He wasn’t. You saw only a shadow several rooftops over. You brought you hand to the place his lips touched your skin, still shocked.

What the actual hell?

You stood on the rooftop for a very long time, staring at the city lights, still trying to process that Clark had… pecked your temple. When you finally made it inside, you couldn’t fall asleep. After an hour of staring into the ceiling, you got up and… baked. Not wanting to bake the same stuff again, you improvised. You added cocoa powder, switched milk chocolate for dark and added some cherries you had bought the other day, hoping for an acceptable outcome.

When you had one of the muffins for breakfast, you came to conclusion it wasn’t half bad, packing one for lunch, counting on a zero lunch-break again. It turned out it was a good idea.

⊱⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊰

Part 2

⊱⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊰

I know there aren’t many Matt readers with me here, but someone might like it ;)

Thank you for reading :-*

#marvel #fanfiction #matt murdock x reader #daredevil x reader #matt murdock x you #daredevil x you #matt murdock fanfiction #mcu #matt murdock fanfic #reader insert #matt murdock imagine #fluff #of muffins coffee and other miracles #anika ann

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phantomwarrior12 · 4 years ago

Text

A Time To Know Your Enemy

It's been a week since your escapade with the demons and all this time, Sam and Dean have been trying to get Crowley to pick up his phone.

There's been no cases, no indications of anything divine, hell-spawned or even remotely creepy in that time and you're beginning to go stir-crazy. So, between aimless "supply runs", you've occupied yourself with the ribbon Gabriel had left you. You often lose yourself in the foreign, yet eloquent lettering that flows along it's silken threads in a tongue you can't even begin to understand. Your thumb traces along the letters, the ache in your chest longing to know what secrets it holds. Of course, you won't chance Sam and Dean finding out about your little fib - the elaborate tale of your escape - but you haven't been able to get a moment alone with Cas to ask him to translate the writing for you.

It's maddening. You'd forgotten how much the Winchesters stuck to the angel's side. So, you make due, trying not to lose hope as you skim through Bobby's library for a book on Enochian translations. You'd thought you had the house to yourself, the boys having gone on a supply run and Cas? Well, you're pretty sure Bobby had taken the poor angel out back to shoot him with all his condescending remarks and blatant inability to grasp basic human concepts. In any case, you're dying to know what Gabriel wrote and very little will deter you.

Very little except being caught in the act of rifling through Bobby's bottom drawer.

"What in Sam hell are you doing, Y/N?

You tense, glancing over your shoulder at Bobby and the confused angel, "Bobby, I--"

"I'd pick those words very carefully, and what comes out of those lips better not be a lie to so help me--"

"I was looking for a book on Enochian translations." You hold your hands up in mock surrender.

"What the hell for?"

"The...sigils. The markings on my arm. I want to know what they mean," you hope you sound more convincing than you feel.

"I translated them already," Castiel tilts his head, it's almost as adorable as Gabriel's--

"I wanted to try it for myself. See if there's anything we can use for warding," you nod quickly.

"Well, you're out of luck, Sam and Dean have the Enochian book with them. You'll have to make due with this," he gestures vaguely towards Castiel, "hopeless excuse for an ally."

Castiel's brows draw together in confusion, his mouth opening slightly as if he were to protest, but for what reason, he doesn't quite know.

"Y'know, that's a great idea, Bobby," you close the drawer and straighten up, "Might as well go right to the source."

You feel his skeptical gaze as you move towards the angel and hook your arm through his, guiding him towards the front door, "Thanks, Bobby. Sorry about the mess."

"Buncha idjits," is the last thing you hear before you pull the door shut and lead Castiel towards the junkyard.

"What's going on, Y/N?"

"I have a favor to ask of you, Cas." Your free hand rests on the ribbon in your jacket, studying the angel's features.

"Of course. What is it?" He tilts his head curiously as you tug him to a halt behind a particularly large truck.

"You have to promise me you won't tell the boys." You glance back towards the house.

"You have my word," the angel assures you with a gentle nod and it's enough for your impatient ass to tug the ribbon from your jacket pocket.

"Can you translate this?" You hold it out slowly, almost as if you're terrified to part with it. As if releasing the elegant blue ribbon will mean you're letting go of the archangel.

Castiel accepts the ribbon and the shift in his expression draws yours hands level with your ribs, wringing your hands together nervously.

"What does it say?" You rock on your heels, y/e/c trained on his features.

"It's an incantation."

"A - what?"

"Where did you say that you got this?" He asks after a moment of reading the script silently.

"...Gabriel."

Castiel looks halfway startled, "When?"

"I found it in my jacket...the one I wore to the bar that night. He must have left it there, I just didn't think to look," you lie quickly, staring at him anxiously.

He gazes at you skeptically, quirking an eyebrow as he tilts his head in annoyance, "Right. Well, the incarnation is for a spell of some sort. I'm entirely certain of its purpose...there is something else--"

"What?" You step a little closer, your own eyes searching the angel's rapidly.

His gaze falls back to the ribbon, "It says...he expects that thank you next time the two of you meet...given his word choice, it's fairly suggestive, Y/N."

You force back the blush creeping into your cheeks and for a moment, there's a fleeting spark singing along the nerves in your knee where the archangel has rested his hand. You swallow the lump in your throat as you pluck the ribbon from Castiel's hand, ignoring his studious gaze as you summon more composure than you feel.

"Thanks, Cas. You're an absolute angel," you give the confused angel a tight squeeze before moving around the truck and towards the house.

Behind you, you could swear you heard a faint, "That is what I am."

You tuck the ribbon back into the safety of your jacket pocket, fingers still curled around the silken threads as you climb the steps. You need to learn Enochian and fast.

It's the only way you're ever going to get any answers out of that elusive archangel.

------------------------

"Hello, boys."

The graveled voice of Hell's King captures your attention as you lift your gaze from the Enochian book in your hands.

"Crowley. About damn time you showed up. Where the hell have you been?" Dean glares at the demon with a look of irritation and disgust.

"On vacation. Avoiding assassins and all that, or have you forgotten?" Crowley snorts, inspecting the array of whiskey bottles on the counter.

"Oh, I remember." Dean starts to make his way towards Crowley before Sam steps in.

"Crowley, Y/N was attacked by two demons a few weeks ago. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

The demon casts a glance towards you, studying your features until you look away, "Well, they certainly weren't mine. My demons have a big more class than crude torture," he smirks, pouring himself a drink, "Abbadon does have a bone to pick with you two, I'd look there first."

"You don't have to be so damned smug about it," Bobby retorts, watching you shift in your seat.

Crowley snorts indelicately, "Frankly I'm offended you'd think I'd sick my demons on the only allies I have."

"We're not allies." Dean bites back sharply.

"No? How about lovers?" Crowley returns without missing a beat and Dean sets his jaw.

Sam tightens his hold on his elder brother's shoulder before meeting the demon's gaze once more, "Do you know where to find her?"

"If I did, I'd have killed the bitch already, wouldn't I?" He returns as he takes a sip from his glass.

"How do we kill her?" You speak at last, flicking a few stray strands of y/h/c away from your eyes. Your gaze holds a certain amount of sternness, a confidence that demands respect from the King of Hell.

"Sassy. I like her," Crowley flashes a grin at the boys before taking a few steps towards you, no doubt noting the square of your shoulders, "You're going to need an old relic from Heaven's armory."

"And how do we do that? Heaven isn't exactly easy to get into." You returns calmly, studying his features skeptically.

"That's your problem."

"What's the relic?" Dean interjects in exasperation, shrugging off Sam's hand.

"The Sceptor of Gabriel, rumored to be the one thing that can contain a Knight of Hell...as for killing her? That's going to require a little more commitment."

Your frame goes rigid at the mention of the archangel, your fingers brushing absently over the invisible markings along your arm.

"We'll discuss the permanent solution later. For now, that sceptor is going to have to be located," Sam steps in, drawing your gaze to him.

"I'll get ahold of Cas, he'll know where to start." Dean pulls out his phone and starts from the room.

"Well, if that's all I'm needed for," Crowley tosses a look towards you, noting the subtle glow beneath your sleeve, "Enochian sigils, eh? You're certainly important to someone. Is it dear little Cas?"

"That's none of your business," Bobby snaps, stepping up beside you, "We'll let you know if we need you. Now git."

Crowley makes a face of mock offense before setting the glass down on the counter, "Rude." A snap of the fingers and he's gone.

You lift your eyes to Bobby and offer an appreciative smile, "Thanks, Bobby."

He waves you off, "idjit needs to be reminded of his place."

"Cas says we'll have to track down Balthazar. He thinks the sceptor might be one of the items he took when he fled heaven," Dean steps back into the kitchen.

"Guess we're going on a road trip," Sam sighs.

"Get your gear, we're leaving in the morning."

You offer a solemn nod as you stand and make your way towards your bedroom. Your hand finds the familiar threads of the ribbon in your pocket and your fingers trace along the delicate lettering. You take a seat on your bed, closing your eyes and taking a deep breath to calm yourself.

And like a whisper in your ear, you hear his voice. He's not there, but the warmth that flourishes across your skin stems from his engravings and you can breathe again as you lay back and let the warmth soothe your nerves.

It's going to be alright, sugar. I'll be there when you need me.

"You better."

---------------------------

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#gabriel x reader #gabriel spn #sam winchester #dean winchester #bobby singer #crowley spn #crowley king of hell #archangel gabriel #gabriel the archangel #gabriel #supernatural #spn #spn fanfic #spn fandom #spn family #phantom writes

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myglogic · 4 years ago

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Priceless | Bang Chan | 06

Chapter 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Pairing: rich kid! Bang Chan (Stray Kids) x female reader

Genre: Crime, enemies to friends to lovers, angst, fluff

Word Count: 3k

Summary: You and Chan decide to snoop in Chan’s father’s office. Will you find something?

DISCLAIMER: Everything in this fanfic is fiction - that includes Chan’s fictional father who of course does not represent Chan’s real father! ♥

The night you talked with Chan and explained (almost) everything, you slept like a baby. Right after work you had gone to your father to ask him about Chan. He talked fondly about Chan and how he was such a gentleman. He also mentioned something about you dating him but you ignored that comment.

You were currently at work in the office with Minho. Minho’s legs were up on his table and he started yawning. “Damn, I’m bored!”, Minho shouted overdramatically. “Let’s do something!”

“Minho, I’m working on my article. I can’t just leave.”, you said, addressing him informally just as he asked you to. The last few weeks your relationship with Minho became a very comfortable one. He wasn’t pushing you to do any unnecessary work and he didn’t act like he was superior to you, which he was. He said he wanted you to work as comfortable as possible and you appreciated that.

Minho gave you a curious glance as he started walking towards your desk. “Let me see!”

You quickly covered your monitor with your body. “No! I told you that you can read it when I’m done!”

Minho rolled his eyes. “You’re so boring. I just want the tea on Kevin Bang. Is that so bad?”, he snickered as he watched you trying to cover up your screen. “I also want to help you, that’s all.”

You were consistent when it came to your work. “I said no!”, you then closed the document. “Dude, if you weren’t my boss then I would have said something.”

“Say it.”, Minho smirked at you as he challenged you. “I dare you to say it!”, he added and propped his elbows up on your desk.

“Do you want to fire me?”, you asked him in an equally challenging tone.

“Nah. I just want to hear it. It’s fun.”, Minho assured you.

You sat up straight and moved closer to him, so your faces were close. “I will not show you my article so… fuck off.”, you said, internally panicking and quickly moving away from Minho. You didn’t know you said that. He was your boss for god’s sake! “Oh my god, I’m sorry, I-“, you started but heard a loud laugher coming from Minho.

“Nice, you’re feisty! See, if you don’t want something then you need to say so. I trust you and I’m sure your article will turn out great. And when you are ready to show it to me, I will gladly read it and recommend it if it’s good.”, Minho told you and put a hand on your shoulder. “I told you that I’m here to help you, not use you.”

You exhaled in relief and gave him a smile. “I really appreciate that Minho. Thank you.”, you said happily. “I can’t thank you enough.”

“You know how you can thank me? Let’s go eat something! I am starving and I’m hella bored here.”, he practically begged you. “Pleeeease!”

“Okay, okay!”, you sighed and grabbed your things.

Minho was doing a little dance. “I’ll get the car!”, he said as he went ahead. You really didn’t imagine working with Minho would be like this. When it comes to work this man was a different human being. In meetings he was serious and very professional. But when it was only the two of you, he was different. He was more himself and laid-back. You liked that he didn’t pressure you to release the article. You did help with his articles but it wasn’t just editing them. He asked you for help when it came to writing the articles and even let you write one section once and you were credited too in the actual newspaper.

Those were just small accomplishments that you had thanks to your new boss. Normally, you wouldn’t leave work just for food but because Minho gives you freedom at work you adjusted your plans according to his.

Arriving at the café, Minho got a VIP table because he was a regular customer there. After ordering your food Minho started staring at you. “Uh, do I have something on my face?”, you asked him, a little self-conscious.

“No, I just noticed that you have really nice eyes.”, he said as if him complimenting you was normal.

You started blushing a lot. “Oh, uh, thank you?”

Minho smirked. “Don’t be embarrassed!”

You started looking anywhere but Minho. Then your eyes met someone familiar. Chan noticed you too and gave you a confused glance. You quickly looked away and prayed that he wouldn’t come here.

Please don’t come here, please don’t come here, please don’t come he-

“Y/N?”, you heard that familiar voice. Chan. Oh no.

You quickly turned to the boy who was now standing right next to you. He gave Minho a sketchy look and then turned to you. “What are you doing here?”, Chan asked, confused. “And who’s this?”, you added.

“Uh. Hi! Chan. Heeey!”, you said awkwardly. You internally slapped yourself for that weird introduction. “Uhm, I’m here with my friend Minho!”

Minho’s eyes widened a little as he saw Chan. “Aren’t you…?”

“Yeah. I am.”, Chan said before Minho could finish his sentence, knowing that Minho recognized him.

Then Minho turned to you, baffled. “You know each other?”, Minho asked you, giving a weird look.

“Uh, yeah. We are… acquaintances.”, you quickly said. “I should probably introduce you. Chan this is Minho. We kind of work together. Minho this is Chan.”, you awkwardly said.

Chan gave you two a narrow look. “Work, huh? And Y/N, I thought we’re friends? Ouch, that hurts!”

Chan didn’t know what it was but seeing with another guy made him feel weird. Maybe he just worried about you. That must be it. Right? It’s not like you were his girlfriend or anything. Chan quickly shook off that thought.

“Yeah! Uh, Minho. Our break is nearly over we should leave, don’t you think?”, you ushered Minho out of his seat. You then got up and took your bag in panic to avoid more questions.

“But we didn’t eat yet?”, Minho rolled his eyes at you. “I want food!”

“Deliver it to your office, damn it!”, you said as you shoved your boss out of the door. “We’ll talk later, Chan!”, you said, leaving Chan all alone.

After arriving at Minho’s car and getting in he gave you a strange look. “So? Care to explain?”

You sighed. “I… uh…”, you didn’t know where to start.

Minho drove to the next drive through to finally get his food. “Come on, Y/N. What the hell? You are writing an article about his father and are friends with him at the same time? That doesn’t make any sense.”

“Okay… He is helping with my article. Kind of. Basically, I am using him for my article. He doesn’t know that I’m a journalist. I should probably tell you why I want to write about Kevin Bang in the first place…”, then you started telling him everything about the past and what Kevin Bang has done to your family. “Chan is just a pawn in my game. I don’t even care about him. I just want information and where can I get better information than from the source itself?”, you lied. You couldn’t tell him about your plans with Chan. As cool as Minho seemed, you didn’t know how much you could trust him. He couldn’t know that you actually worked with him.

“I’m impressed, Y/N. I didn’t expect you to actually use his son, even though you are being a snitch. Nice. I can’t wait to read the article.”, Minho smirked at you and gave you a high five. “Oh, here. Your burger!”

You felt like something changed in Minho’s demeanor. You hoped that you didn’t make the wrong choice trusting him with your past.

♥

The next time you met Chan was a day after the whole Minho incident. Chan told you to come to his house or mansion or whatever you want to call it. It was a huge villa, basically. Chan wanted to snoop a little in his father’s office while he was gone for a few hours. Kevin Bang couldn’t really leave the house for a long time after all that negative press on the gala. However, today Kevin apparently had a business meeting in person.

The evidence you presented at the gala wasn’t enough to completely get him out of the picture because after all he was one of the richest and most powerful persons in South Korea. You couldn’t show evidence on the whole drug story because back then you didn’t have enough proof to show that he was the one behind the restaurant incident. The employee got evicted back then, not Chan’s father. He somehow turned the media back to his side. For every evidence you presented, he found a solution somehow.

This was your chance to prove it. You were going to his actual house and could maybe find out more about his illegal business. You were thankful for Chan because he helped you do this.

“Are you sure he’s not home today?”, you asked Chan cautiously as you got out of the car, clearly nervous.

Chan locked the car and walked around it to stand next to you. “A 100 percent. I looked at his planner and it said that he’s gone for the next three hours. We should use this opportunity.”

“Aren’t there any cameras, though?”, you asked as you entered the huge mansion. Your eyes doubled in size at the sight of Chan’s high-class house.

“Don’t worry, I turned them off. I’ll tell dad that it was a technical error or something.”

It was weird to hear about Kevin Bang as a father. He was a normal person in Chan’s life but to your he was your worst nightmare. The arrogant look that you see in the newspapers was Chan’s father. The way he always slicked his grey hair back and wore only custom-made suits. That image was permanently engraved into your brain. The way that this man lived a carefree and luxury life when your father had to rot in prison for almost two years made you sick to your bones.

Chan turned to you and gave you a worried look. “Are you okay?”, he said, concerned.

“I guess… me being here is making me feel strange. It’s a little creepy to be in the house of the man you detest. No offense.”, you said to Chan, still taking the huge house in.

“None taken.”, he assured you. “Let’s go to his office. But make sure that you don’t move anything. My father is a freak when it comes to his office. He’ll know when something is different. Be careful, alright?”

You nodded. “Alright. Let’s do this.”

When Chan said that his father was a freak about his office, he meant it. The office was locked tightly with a code lock. Chan, being his son, knew his code. “My father changes the code every month but I saw him typing it in once. This should be it.”, he said as he typed in the code. “Bingo.”

Kevin Bang’s office was clean and very tidy. You had to make sure you left everything as it was. Before you knew it, you and Chan were sitting on the ground with lots of documents right next to you.

The documents seemed pretty normal. You sighed, it seemed like you missed something. Then you heard Chan groan. “I thought that we would find something. I guess dad is smarter than that. Once again, I don’t know him at all, I guess.”

You looked at him, his hair was disheveled from his frustration. “Are you close with him?”

“Honestly? I grew up with nannies and stepmoms who constantly changed. My dad was the only constant thing in my life so I thought highly of him.”, Chan said. He stopped looking through the documents.

“And you didn’t have a lot of time with your mother either.”, you concluded and gave him a sad smile. “I can understand that you didn’t want to let go of him.”

“Now that I think about it. My dad wasn’t really there for me when I needed him. After my mom died, he got remarried within a year while I was still grieving. I got emotional support from our houseworkers but it wasn’t the same as parental love.”, he said with emotion in his voice.

You moved a little closer to him and gave him a short side hug. “But you are still such an amazing person. You can give love to everyone around you if you want to. What happened in your childhood didn’t break you. You are strong, Chan.”, you gave him a genuine smile.

Chan started blushing and cleared his throat. “Uh, I found a document on future projects that haven’t been approved yet. There are actually a lot of them.”

You then took the document and looked at them. “These buildings have weird names. Maybe we should copy these?”, you asked him, just to make sure. He nodded and went to the copy machine.

You and Chan also looked up his computer and found a file that was protected by an additional firewall. “What the hell…?”, you said, confused. “What might be in that file?”

Chan was confused too. “I don’t know… Maybe some drug dealer information? I should ask my friend Hyunjin to have a look at this. He is very talented when it comes computers.”

“So, talented as in he is a hacker.”, you concluded and looked at Chan. He then smirked at you. “Yeah.”

Then there was a silence. It was a comfortable one but then you felt Chan stare at you. “What?”, you asked him, feeling observed by him.

“Uh… about yesterday. Who was that guy again? Minho, you said?”

Oh no. You expected him to ask. “Uh, yeah. He is my colleague. I help him with his work, that’s all.”

Chan blushed a little but looked away. “So, you weren’t on a date or something?”

“Why does that matter? I mean, we were just sitting there.”, you said, not aware of Chan’s reaction.

“Just curious.”, he said still not looking at you.

“If it means that much to you. No, we are not dating in any way.”, you said. However, you thought about that compliment that Minho gave you about your eyes. But that didn’t mean anything, right?

“Oh. Alright. It’s not like I care. You can do whatever you want.”, Chan told you, now finally turning back to you.

“Alright then.”, you smirked a little at his reaction to Minho.

You sighed as you neatly put away all the documents as they were. You got up but lightly crashed into Kevin’s desk which made the only pen on the desk fall to the ground. “Why is there only one pen here?”, you said and put it back in place.

“That’s his lucky pen. Whenever he signs a deal with it, the deal works out for him. I don’t even know why he believes in that.”, Chan told you. “Okay, I think we have everything. We should get out…”, before Chan could finish his sentence, he saw a car in the driveway. “Oh no… he’s back. Early!”

Then Chan quickly grabbed your wrist and pulled you out of the office. “You should get out of here before…-“, Chan started as he walked down the hallway with you.

“Before what?”, you heard another voice say. The voice that ran a shiver down your spine. Kevin. Then it dawned on you. What if he recognized you? You were his former best friend’s daughter! But the last time he saw you was when you were a child, if you’re lucky he might not remember.

Chan turned around to see his father standing right in front of you. “Oh! Dad! You’re back already?”

“I leave the house once and you already bring a girl home?”, he said jokingly. “Who is this lovely girl?” You exhaled at his reaction. It didn’t seem like he recognized you.

You felt sick. You didn’t want any compliments from that slimebag. “Uh- I am…”

Chan interrupted you. “She’s actually my girlfriend, Y/N! Sorry, I didn’t tell you.” Chan put his arm around your shoulders and pulled you close to him.

“Huh, it’s about time you started dating someone after that last girl. What was her name again?”, Kevin started thinking while stroking his chin. “Whatever. Nice to meet you.”

“Uh, yeah. Nice to meet you too, sir.”, you said in a shaky voice. Chan took his arm away from your shoulders but gave you a warm look which was supposed to tell you that he was here.

“One question, though. Your room isn’t in this hallway, Chan. What were you doing here?”, he asked in a serious tone.

Chan froze for a second. You then grabbed his hand and gave him a nod. “Sir, he was actually showing me around the house. I asked him because it’s so big and I wanted to see every corner of it. Should he not have done that?”, you asked him innocently.

“No. It’s fine. I’ll leave you two alone then. Don’t do anything stupid.”, Kevin then walked into the direction of his office.

Chan then brought you to his room where you both exhaled in relief. “That was a close one. Do you still have documents in your bag?”

You nodded. “Yes. You’re sure that we have everything?”

He sat down on his king-sized bed and then laid down. “Yeah. And I’m freaking exhausted.”

You giggled a little as you laid down next to him. “I am too. I felt like a spy in a movie.”

“Maybe we are destined to be spies?”, Chan said and laughed along with you.

“Spy partners or detective partners?”, you asked him jokingly. You both faced each other now. You were looking at his beautiful dimples and you liked his smile. You wanted to make him smile more just to see those dimples.

“Tough one. Spies are more interesting, don’t you think?”

“Huh, I guess you’re right.”

While you were having a debate over spies and detectives Kevin noticed a difference in his office. After entering he saw his lucky pen in a different position than before. “Something is up. I know it.”, Kevin said, sitting down on his chair with a serious expression on his face while picking up his precious pen.

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cateringisalie · 3 years ago

Text

9 years later and we have at last got a new Eva film and the end of the Rebuild project.

Much was made at the start of Rebuild of the desire to introduce Eva to a new audience. 1.0 more or less leant into its original goal and restaged episodes 1 to 6 of the TV series with a bigger budget, CGI, some more blunt and early reveals and a few weird alterations for the existing fan base. The Angel numbering was off; everyone knows Lilith is stuck in the basement, Seele just default to their monoliths. Kaworu is actively introduced at the tail-end rather than alluded to in the opening titles. As an intro, its fine (though most would agree the equivalent stage of the TV series isn’t really a struggle to cope with either), though a few stylistic and environmental changes lead many to conclude this was a direct sequel to End of Evangelion. 2.0 seemed content to build off of the intro but steer away from the relevant section of episodes – roughly 8 to 17. Recognisable moments like the falling Angel, the corrupted Unit 03 and the ribbon angel and Unit 01’s impossible reactivation share the screen with altered relationship dynamics. Now we get Mari one of the few wholly new characters who gets to open the second film in a wildly dramatic fashion. The key of Nebuchadnezzar (which does at least re-enter proceedings in the final film, but I am even shakier on what it is or used for – even fandom seem to have struggle to explain this as anything other than a blunt drop-in replacement for the Adam embryo in the TV series). And come the end its time for Third Impact already, Shinji altering the world around him to rescue Rei from the depths of an Angel. Kaworu uses an unfamiliar spear to incapacitate Shinji and the preview hints at a story further from the rails than ever. 3.0 is as promised more or less completely divorced from anything Eva had done before. Just not the off-the rails version 2.0 advertised. Some will be quick to note that none of the Rebuild previews have entirely accurately advertised their subsequent instalment; 1.0’s features at least one key scene that never happened (Mistao slapping Ristuko in a seeming allusion to the Sea of Dirac Angel) while even the sequences of animation that did make it look nothing alike. Which is fair, but even then 2.0’s bears absolutely no resemblance to 3.0 and even 3.0’s very strange preview doesn’t really jibe with 3.0+1.0 ultimately. 3.0 is post-post-apocalypse and with a whole 14 years just evaporated between films. There’s a distinct last third of Nadia feel to it. About the only part similar to a former incarnation is Kaworu and Shinji’s relationship which while not even roughly mapping to episode 24 serves the same function; to make Shinji distraught before the climax of this story. But 3.0 is also the point where that initial premise of the series slams headlong into the drift from familiar territory. Where the film is a quantum leap away from the mystery terms and slow reveals. The oddities and confusions pile up given the glimpsed state of the world, the strange gridded moon, the sea of Eva corpses, the strange state of Lilith in the depths of Nerv. An awful lot happened while Shinji was (for reasons no one has explained or seems to care about except me) IN SPACE and the film only ever alludes to the sequence of events occurring between these two films in the broadest of strokes. Which if done a certain way can be compelling though I did not find it to be the case here in the slightest. It’s a huge struggle to build up even a vague idea of what went down and that’s with heavy deferral back to the TV series again. If you’re new, none of this means much of anything. Even mixed media doesn’t help. The reveal there was a limited run manga of events prior to 3.0 had a potential for answers, but upon reading a synopsis... Nope. Helps not even a tiny amount. Also this mixed media attitude is never to be encouraged. So, I didn’t like film 3 much at all. Film 4 does little to not be based on where it left off. Which is a small mercy that it doesn’t effectively toss everything out again and skip further ahead in time. And 3.0+1.0 does at least make use of some of what 2.0 revealed and setup in the spirit of trying to get this into something cohesive. It fails, but it tried. Maybe the points it touches on were the intended direction of the films. Maybe Anno changed his mind on this one. It’s not like Rebuild’s failure to cohere should be a surprise – the title of the film is simply confusing in sequence. Titled neither 4.0 nor 4.44, instead we have the pretty inexplicable 3.0+1.0 which is just annoying to type. Even thematically this doesn’t feel right given its more like 2.0 mushed into 3.0 but I suppose that’s technically film 5 so... Unless, 1.0 here is supposed to mean the original TV series or EoE, which... End of Evangelion figures unexpectedly largely in the film. Could be that its meant to infer some collection of the Eva cast (the original pilots + Mari? The Ikari family + Mari? The pilots from 1.0 (Shinji and Rei) plus the pilots from 3.0 (Asuka and Mari)?). The other part of course, is that the three prior films had titles in the form of [Thing](Not)]Thing]. 3.0+1.0 decides to dispense with this entirely and instead is titled “Thrice Upon a Time”. Nothing like confusing matters (and instead media library ordering) by not only giving the film a title that puts it before the 3rd film (since prior to this cinema releases are .0 and the home media (excepting the first release of 1.0) are triple digits of their instalment number) but also has another reference to three within it. It might be some kind of holy trinity allusion, some play on Third Impact, or an acknowledgement that this is theoretically the third version of events surrounding the end of the world (if you take TV series as 1, EoE as 2, and Rebuild as 3). Also potentially a literary reference about cyclical time and messages from the future which is all well and good and fits into a whole other essay about how Rebuild and FFVII Remake are operating on the same basis and making many of the same mistakes by both trying to be fan-service for the new fans and draw in new ones and do the big fan-moments similarly but diverge wildly off in others. Good start! The final film starts with bombast as per 2 and 3 (and thus focused on Mari) though the setup and point of the action is possibly more confused and less explicable (which is saying something given 3.0 opened with retrieving Unit 01 from space. No, I will continue to complain about not getting this. Yes it was very exciting but why was Unit 01 in space? In a strange crucifix coffin. Anyone at all?) – and only vaguely connected to anything resembling the plot. At least 2.0 and 3.0 had some immediate and long term stakes with a cover for Kaji stealing something and bringing Shinji into the plot. This film opens with a scrounge for spare parts in a red Paris that the tertiary cast make no longer red while Mari fights off a massed horde of Evas while battleships are puppeteered from orbit. It’s all terrible cool and everything, but given at no point do we even begin to understand what is going on or what the stakes even are. Which is a problem with the latter half of the sequence. 2.0 might have started with an Eva vs Angel fight but while there was ambiguity over the situation it at least seemed to lead into the eventual plot. Here we’re getting Eva spare parts for later and a whole dose of new terminology the film has no interest in explaining. Which is par for the course for prior Eva incarnations but again, I feel there was more explanation setting the weirdness up. Here we are reduced to keywords that sound important. The film proper opens with our familiar trio of Eva pilots winding up at a village with their old classmates (which of course, to follow the proliferations of 3 all the way down and also match to Tokyo-3, is in fact, Village 3. The far future sequel to Resident Evil 8 presumably). Who are necessarily now 14 years older than them. Asuka is naked (in a sequence to contrast to 1.0 and 2.0) or in her underwear for far too much of this sequence (and just as creepy as 2.0 got with this) as Shinji struggles in the aftermath of Kaworu’s death, Ayanami (critically not the Rei of 2.0) learns about life (and visits a library with – I’m not kidding – a poster for Sugar Sugar Rune on display. I like to think not many in the audience caught this slightly odd reference). 30 minutes of the film are taken up with Rei being happy and contented with her life while Shinji slowly recovers and re-enters polite society (sulks, throws up at the sight of the DSS collar, is insulted and force-fed). There’s a good case for this section just being an unnecessary time filler, though you don’t need to fill time in a film that is 2 ½ hours. But if it was cut down, perhaps it would have the same strange feeling as 1.0 had where the aftermath of Shinji’s second Angel fight lead was mostly skipped and left that part of 1.0 feeling strangely hasty and actively (and badly) abridged. Maybe that’s just my familiarity with the source material again. There’s still an edge of weirdness in the air on the film hits the 45 minute mark; even prior to this gigantic sections of the land are missing, and some things just float around now (apparently because). Past this mark is where weirdness creeps in; the barriers keeping the village from suffering the fate of Paris – the structures a curious match to the Cocytus facility at the start of 2.0. There are headless Eva copies who roam the landscape. An indicator on Ayanami’s suit runs down. Shinji is advised to talk to his father before he loses the opportunity forever. This one made me laugh, and even Asuka comments that given who Shinji’s father is and what he’s done don’t really make this plausible (or sensible). Ayanami concludes her pastoral life and this stage of the film by transforming back to her original white plug-suit; her AT Field then dissipates and she bursts in a familiar spill of LCL. For such a previously central character, Rei or Ayanami or Lilith will have exceptionally little bearing on the remainder of the film. The plot now kicks in properly as Gendo decides enough is enough and he’s going to be doing some world ending. Our Eva pilots are ready but not the same; we have Asuka, Mari and Shinji. And standing orders for Shinji to be shot if he tries to pilot anything (but given we’re at the end of the world and basically the original plan fails to stop Nerv bringing about the end of the world, that people still try to shoot him is... a little weird and an almost pointless resolution of factors the quaternary cast brought up in 3.0). The entire rest of the film is even more impenetrable and confusing than Kaworu’s sweeping explanations of what happened between films 2 and 3. If 3.0 fumbled the ball on being newcomer friendly 3.0+1.0 actively doesn’t care. Not that familiarity with series helps since so much new terminology is thrown at the audience. The entire cast – literally the entire cast – are not only caught up on but also understand the varying levels of psychological, biological and religious nonsense that Eva has formerly wielded as something almost coherent. You, as audience member, are not privy to a fraction of this understanding and thus left to flail for the remainder of the film making what you can of the maddening breadcrumb trail of exclamations and partial explanations. Shinji is no help here and infuriatingly asks barely a single question about what is going on (thankfully he does prompt Gendo to explain a few things – presumably where even the staff had gotten lost on what was supposedly going on). For existing fans, you might get a sense of it by application of known quantities from the previous incarnations (I pity newcomers struggling to make sense of this). What the Lance of Cassius is a thing introduced abruptly into the series – and contrasted with the Lance of Longinus you can muddle through to get some idea of what was going on. 3.0+1.0 however, decides that even that grip on its story is too much and adds a bunch more unnamed spears. Some of them formed from Lilith. This is a thing of some import apparently, though ultimately is effectively buzzword name-checking. We know who Lilith is in context from both 1.0 and the TV series but how that relates to spear formation is beyond me. And then there’s the part where one of the flying ships (there were four made according to Seele’s plan. Seele, the former sinister puppet-masters, who died in film 3, and if the flying ships were their idea or this stated at all, I had totally forgotten it in the last 9 years (checking wikia seems to indicate no one else knew this either so I feel vindicated). Seele feel an artefact of the old Eva Anno has no time for – EoE had what equated to three groups vying for control of the process of human instrumentality. Seele are adhering to a prophecy of sorts, Gendo is trying to subvert that process for his own ends, and Misato is trying to stop it. In terms of economical story-telling, the distinction between Seele and Gendo’s goals in causing Third Impact are so slim as to be basically zero (few critical differences though), I suspect Seele were deemed unnecessary and shuffled out of proceedings hastily despite their continued name-checking at this late stage) is turned into another spear because if all the spears are used up, the end of the world can’t be averted. You will have to forgive me for failing to notice how and where most of these spears (save three) wound up or what most of that means or why or how or anything. But we have a budget to squander and why not channel the Gurren Lagann energy for action one last time? And there is some action, this presumably part of what a good section of the audience have waited for with baited breath, that thing the TV series so rapidly lost interest in; that EoE staged for narrative cruelty. Smashy giant robot action time! So we get billions of Eva enemies for Asuka and Mari to cut through without problem. They explode and fall away despite exhaustively overwhelming numbers. There is a palpable lack of threat here. A few hitches but nothing the pilots can’t cope with. It’s just empty fan-service, a boast about how much can be rendered into a single frame. We get Asuka, unable to stab critically important Unit 13 (looking distinctly Unit 01-like just with four arms), and then hooking into an odd leftover thread from 2.0. Her accident in the activation test of Unit 03 has left her with a part of herself now more correctly classified as an Angel. And like 2.0 for surprise value, her Eva has special Angel blood injectors to again overcharge her Eva (which seems to be a thing in the latter three films – turn the Eva safety off and go beserk. As if Unit 01 didn’t do that all on its own in the first and second film). And this too fails. But this too is just another moment of important and pretention. Where the audience is meant to gasp at Eva/Angel hybridisation (not that the dividing line between Angles and Evas is ever completely clear (not least Unit 03)), at Asuka revealing herself to be part Angel (as if Kaworu and Rei weren’t established examples). So her Eva bloated and animalistic is... just another moment. We saw this in 2.0 with Mari releasing her limiters. We saw it in 3.0 in almost the same way. The distinction isn’t meaningfully different to the last few times the Evas were let off the leash and became more brutal. And just like the prior times this escalation of Eva body horror, ferocity, blood and over-indulged violence doesn’t actually help the situation. Asuka fails in her task as the Unit 13 counter-attacks. She’s saved by getting pulled out of reality moments before her end. Of course this being narrative, this being Eva; Gendo, the architect of this situation, is three steps ahead. Misato’s flying ship is badly and perhaps critically damaged so Gendo can retrieve the limbless body of Unit 01 formerly powering the flying ship. Shooting Gendo doesn’t work thanks to the key of Nebuchadnezzar (which did... Uh. Something? Kaji noted it as the lost number kept as a spare in 2.0 which implied Angel or Eva or... No I don’t know nor can I make sense of what it’s done to Gendo. Wikia informs me that while it’s never seen on-screen past the one time, its case is in some shots of 3.0. How amazing) and he leaves. And thus, of course, Shinji must get in the f-ing robot once more. But we’re back to the confident, more certain Shinji who 2.0 birthed as we enter the last (but still very long) final stage of the film – and restage End of Evangelion. Curious of course; EoE by turns can feel like a legitimate replacement for the final two TV series episodes or a bleakly, darkly, disturbing and flippant retort to the low-budget metaphysic version of the TV apocalypse. EoE to some has been not so much the intended ending (though buying a complete set of the old Eva in Japan will always net you the 26 original TV episodes, the four amended episodes and EoE), but more a poisoned chalice for the people who wanted a less introspective version of the end of the world and the process of human instrumentality. Anno was free to do what he wanted and veer off the tracks here – he can’t get away from the end of the world – this is integral to Eva’s base concept. 2.0’s glimpse of Second and the starts of Third Impact depict a process completely unfamiliar from the TV series’s version (reading Wikia explains some of 2.0’s imagery but is still bewildering with reference to 3.0+1.0’s reveals). In Rebuild, the end of the world is staged in the space below the strange aftermath of Second Impact, in an anti-universe where humans cannot venture. And yet, we are still clearly revisiting End of Evangelion. Not exactly the same, but a lot of imagery (the symbols in the sky, the gigantic form of Lilith at multiple points, the crucifix explosions across Earth’s surface) – to say nothing of some actual sections of animation – are taken straight from the 1997 film. Those moments and images were haunting and disturbing (the more overtly sexualised imagery has been completely removed). Clearly no matter what was said at the time or in the interim, EoE is in fact how the ending must play out; this is, or has become, what happens externally and internally when these characters attempt to force a next stage of evolution. The End of Evangelion will always be the end. ...just not quite the same. Not least it is missing most of the infamous moments (Shinji in Asuka’s hospital room is notably completely absent). There’s no moment where Shinji strangles Asuka, Komm Susser Tod is missing entire (in favour of something similar sounding but in Japanese), the live-action sequences of the empty cinema or the world without Evas aren’t utilised (though some live action footage is included), Rei betraying Gendo and beginning Third Impact outside his control etc. It's actively absurd to type this, but Lilith – Lilith! – has less character here. Which is so astonishingly absurd given the only depiction of Lilith we get is effectively Rei/Rei was Lilith the entire time, but those introspective sequences hinting at something more involved with Rei or the points Lilith does talk directly to Shinji are gone too. This shouldn’t be a surprise – we are after all missing a Rei character at the climax. Mostly. 3.0+1.0 almost expects you to remember the last time you saw Eva end the world and contrast it to this new version. The EoE imagery, the footage of Lilith descending from the crucifix, the looming figure of Lilith rising as humanity ends. Even something like the sequence of the backsides of cels running backward is reused – this footage also cribbed from EoE and played out on a wall between two characters. The animation breaks down into scratchy storyboards and later degenerates from finished footage down to outlines, animatics, and storyboard. The end of the world is this time around is more heavily meta. Both EoE and the TV episodes “staged” the process of Instrumentality (or parts of it) for Shinji. It occurs in filming spaces and on sets, there’s lighting equipment and dolls as stand-ins. The strange artificiality of pulling back the curtain on the TV or film production, or else the effect of setting the camera back further than you should for filming a theatrical experience. But even that’s a false layer given a true pull-back would be to people in front of computers or previously drawing key-frames. Here the staging is more blunt still. It begins with an Eva vs Eva fight between Gendo and Shinji in the anti-universe where their brains make sense of the impossible space with artificially staged areas of familiar locations. A fight in a city has a huge sheet as a backdrop and carboard buildings the Evas kick around. They fight in front of Nerv headquarters and in Misato’s kitchen. A blow knocks over a section of scenery and sprawls Shinji in the studio space surrounding the set. A crossroads of sort where Shinji will move on from Gendo to meet with Rei, Kaworu and Asuka. The major difference to EoE is that the end here is much more concerned with Gendo; we dive into his psyche and his past. His isolation and desire for it. This feels extremely confessional for Anno all things considered given Gendo was always previously kept at arm’s length. This feels revealing about the man behind it all, a reflection of the director. He has admitted during production that at his stage of life he is far closer to Gendo than Shinji – I think this is barely obfuscated here. The flashback is more about understanding Gendo and how Yui changed him than anything about Evas or the end of the world. Gendo’s motivation is revealed to be the same as always; this is how he gets to be with Yui again. Odd details catch as this past plays out. And is that Mari in his memories? Mari, who Fuyustuki calls Mary Iscariot upon meeting her and has prepared something for her. Which feels much more like religious buzz words; there’s an obvious implication coached in that selection of a name, but how it actually relates to the story or the circumstances is really unclear. Nor am I clear on what Fuyutsuki prepared. He explodes into LCL like last time too. The process is so close to EoE but the mood is lighter and the reasoning behind the cast a little different. Asuka is part of a clone series – same as Rei. Just without the physical signifiers that Kaworu and Rei exhibit and the prior short-hand for clones in this universe (as noted, their design is intended to invoke lab rats). Nice consistency there. The beach ending from EoE is re-done under a blue sky; Asuka is saved thanks to Shinji and Mari working in concert. Kaworu’s beach meeting with Shinji is restaged, the newer, confident Shinji discussing the circular system that delivers Kaworu into his place at the end of the world. So Eva has happened before, meta-wise or time-wise or dimensionally. Take it as you will, no interpretation is more valid than another. Only that Kaworu remembers them all. It’s happened before and it’s expected to happen again. But Shinji’s different now, so the end of the world is different. Now it’s time to move on; Kaworu is left with Kaji to tend the earth assured the cycle of Eva productions is at an end – both have been dead all this time. Anno’s attitude to his seeming forever association with this one franchise his and his desire to set it down and move on? EoE finished in space; 3.0+1.0 finishes beneath the Antarctic. The idea of Unit 01 living forever as a testament to humanity is no factor at all Shinji intending (and his parents possibly driving) the final riddance of the Evas from reality – none can be allowed to remain. But now, the film takes an odd turn, and as with EoE, there’s the coda. In EoE this was the beach scene. For Rebuild: The sun shines, the sky is blue. An adult Shinji sits in a train station and meets with Mari. She’s older too now; the pair share a kiss and run from the station hand in hand. So. Uh. Yeah. That happened. There’s Kaworu and Rei seemingly alive and well as adults. And Asuka of course. But Shinji winds up with Mari. Mari who knew everything the whole time and might somehow have been part of Gendo’s group at university and known Yui and no, we are not getting any insight into those peculiarities! (or more plausibly it could be Mari’s mother who looks near identical to Mari but... What are we meant to take from this, really?). Mari who met Shinji in a handful of brief moments and has never spent any actual time with him. Mari won the love-triangle! But this is not some simple alternate reality, a different better take world where the cast existed in something resembling our reality; Shinji still wears the exploding DSS collar given to him before rejoining the giant robot fray. Mari effortlessly removes it from his neck. The film ends with a live-action sequence – this is reportedly Anno’s hometown. The world without Evas; we passed the relevant date while 3.0+1.0 was stalled. Shinji made it to 2014, or more plausibly past it in a world without Second Impact. And he’s happy, well-adjusted, and... Not really recognisable as Shinji. Shinji now exists in the present, not the future as he had for so long in pop-culture. But he’s in a different 2021; a world without the pandemic. And that was Rebuild; a project intended as a new introduction to Evangelion that blatantly had its entire core conceit revised at least twice (the 4th film delayed because of Shin Godzilla and then a struggle to write at all) that increasingly and confusingly leant more and more on its famed initial incarnation even as it veered increasingly and erratically away from the familiar sequences. I liked 3.0+1.0 more than 3.0, but can’t help but still bemoan whatever 3.0 was going to be when 2.0 happened. The alternate other sequence. And despite it all, despite the allusions to a repetition of Eva and of this being the break in the chain, even those working on and involved with the film see even this as a definitive end. Even Anno’s not convinced that’s the last word. Eva will come back all over again; naturally – there’s money to be made here, and what’s yet another alternate take to add to the TV series, the manga, the games, the other manga, EoE, Rebuild and so on. Kaworu apparently is indeed doomed to revisit this forever alongside everyone else and also remember that for once he was gifted a true end. An impossible conclusion for modern pop-culture it feels.

#long post

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foster-fan-club · 5 years ago

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So I have been talking with @sophies-earbuds for awhile about sokeefe vs sophitz and I’ve wrote a little about it before, but now I really want to analyze each character in this love triangle madness->starting with Fitz:

[before I take off into the madness I would like to add a disclaimer: this is not meant to prove one ship “superior”, but at some points it will lean in favor of one or the other or both->it’s just meant to add some character analysis to the whole thing (message me if you ever want to talk more about these ships)]

Fitzroy Avery Vacker:

Fitz starts off as being an easily lovable and very cute character. Sophie falls for him, we all fall for him, and soon enough we are on the edge of our seat to see if Sophitz will happen. But just as we start saying he is our favorite, Shannon gives us a look into a trait that will soon define his character in a whole other way.

Alden’s mind breaks.

Shortly afterwards Fitz is left angry, broken, and feeling enormous loads of guilt-wishing that he could’ve been there for his father. Fitz starts to unload his frustrations onto Sophie and that is the first time Sophitz is truly questioned (besides the moment we learn how handsome Keefe is).

His anger issues are not resolved and he never truly finds closure or comes to terms with it. Instead this anger boils over into Alvar’s betrayal, Keefe’s betrayal, almost killing Alvar *twice*, the whole unmatchable drama, and more.

People argue that Shannon ruined Fitz to make Sokeefe happen. But in my opinion, she didn’t ruin him, instead she has now set him up for self growth and redemption.

By the end of Legacy, Fitz is finally adjusting to the changes in his life, he’s slowly realizing that Alvar is beyond his control, and he is working towards finding closure for his friends.

I feel like Sokeefe will eventually happen and that will present another obstacle for Fitz to endure. But Fitz has already hit his lowest point in Legacy, in my opinion. So now he is going to endure the greatest change. I feel like Fitz and Sophie both have a lot of personal growth they still need to go through apart, before they can even try to start dating again. Part of Sophie’s growth will most likely fall along the lines with Keefe’s recovery/new ability and their newish relationship. Fitz needs to refind himself and spend some more time with his family to help him heal. He will obviously depend on Sophie throughout this time and vice versa, but I don’t expect it to be in a relationship way.

Fitz Vacker is not a villain, even though some people paint him out to be. He is just as confused and as hurt and as betrayed as Keefe. He just deals with it in a not so great way. But Keefe also dealt with his guilt in a not so great way in the beginning too (I mean trying to play double agent against the Neverseen is not the smartest). Fitz and Keefe share many characteristics in common and they both have the potential to essentially make each other’s mistakes. But they don’t, instead they learn from them. They learn together, as best friends (wow I’m tearing up bc of Feefe/Kitz [idk their ship name]).

My prediction for Fitz is that he will start to branch off from the group and find his own way. Only once he has grown as a person, will he have a chance at winning back Sophie’s heart. If he does succeed with it all, Sophitz will end with a lot more value than it had in Flashback and Legacy.

So that was my overall *breif* analysis, but if you want more, just keep reading!

The change in Fitz was explained indirectly and perhaps some people missed it. Guilt is a major theme in the kotlc series and plays a big role in each character’s life. It is said multiple times after Alvar’s betrayal how getting angry is a way Fitz’s guilt is expressed. Just like how Alden’s guilt caused him to lean a little harder on his classic “no need to worry” standby. Brant’s guilt caused him to slowly go insane. The guilt Sophie felt for her human parents, eventually led her to a state of numbness. Keefe’s guilt causes him to be reckless. Grady and Edaline’s guilt caused them to shut out the world after Jolie’s death. Eventually each character finds a way to deal with their guilt. Alden eventually admitted that he was wrong to perform the memory break and was provided closure when Della and him helped Wylie and Prentice recover. Grady and Edaline adopted Sophie as a way to fill the emptiness in their home. Even Brant found closure by facing Grady and Sophie (although by then he was already too lost). Keefe is slowly finding closure by coming to terms with his dad, accepting that he isn’t responsible for his mom, and no longer trying to be the hero. He isn’t fully there yet, but Sophie is helping him get there. (This is very important for why sokeefe is such a strong ship but I already said a lot on that earlier) Fitz has never truly found closure and I think that is why he was so upset that Sophie and Keefe let Alvar go. Fitz feels responsible for being played by the Neverseen under his own roof (similar to Keefe). Fitz feels responsible for the shame he brought on his family’s *now questionable* reputation. [That is probably another reason why he wasn’t too happy about the whole unmatchable thing- not because he didn’t love Sophie but because he couldn’t bear hurting his family any more]

His direct family doesn’t blame him, but other members of the Vackers still look down on him. But most importantly, Fitz blames himself. He really wanted to be able to just finish Alvar, not because he is some dark, killing machine- but because he sees it as the only way to ensure Alvar doesn’t hurt the people he loves anymore. To me this is actually a sweeter side of Fitz that is often overlooked as just a creepy trait. Fitz would risk his own well being, he would risk breaking his mind, he would risk living with the burden of killing his brother- just because he believes he can protect his family, his friends, and Sophie. Now as creepy and weird of a justification that is- it is still a valid reason why Fitz would turn into who he is now so quickly. To me Fitz still has the same intentions in mind, but he is so guilt ridden and traumatized that he has gone to extremes.

When you hear him blaming Sophie for bad things that happen to him, it ends up actually being Fitz blaming himself. But Fitz doesn’t have the humility to admit that yet. I used to watch this tv series as a kid that I still love now that had a character who was very guilt ridden. The character was told that to become who he really is he must let go of his feelings of guilt and shame. The character responds *very hotheadedly similar to Fitz* “I’m not guilty or shameful- I am as proud as ever!” He is then told that pride is not the opposite of shame but it’s source. That has stuck with me through reading kotlc because it pretty much describes Fitz.

Fitz is PROUD to be a Vacker, he is PROUD to be a telepath, even in the beginning of the first book he gets defensive when Sophie makes fun of Foxfire because he is PROUD to be a Foxfire prodigy. All this pride can also result in tons of shame and guilt. He feels that he can not make others proud, he can not truly earn his titles, without leaving around loose ends that could tarnish his reputation. When you think about it, Fitz is as proud as ever. He just took elite level tests and will find out soon if he will get in. He figured out how to transmit long distances to Silveny. Sophie and him have strengthened their cognate connection after getting past their feelings. He found the moonlark. He is able to get past Sophie’s blocking. He has accomplished so much, but still feels guilt. His pride causes him guilt and shame, because when something that is out of his control happens- he does not have the humility to admit it. Instead he wants to hunt down Alvar, he wants to be angry for not being there when Alden’s mind breaks, he gets mad at Biana when she gets her scars from Vespera because he wishes he could’ve taken the hits for her. He really does try to be Wonderboy and sometimes he even shocks me with how skilled and smart he really is. But he is still learning how to admit mistakes and move on. This has been his characters biggest guilt related flaw throughout the entire series, it is nothing new. Each character has their own flaws that develop throughout the series.

When Fitz apologizes to Sophie at the end of Legacy, that is when I see his first true act of humility. He apologizes to her before, but this time it just felt so much more genuine because he finally is starting to realize what his actions are doing to those who love him. This is new self growth is where I see Fitz’s character heading. The end of Legacy has given him a chance for a sort of redemption arc. He was never a bad character or evil, he just needs to grow to be his true self. Fitz needs to let go of his past grudges to be able to move forward. He needs to admit that Alvar is out of his control and that he might not be able to be the hero (similar to Keefe again). I feel like when he says he is no longer looking to kill Alvar and hunt him down, but instead is looking for information about his best friend- that really made a difference to me. He is starting to move past it and work towards the greater good. Maybe post-redemption Fitz will have another chance with Sophie. But for now we are all rooting for sokeefe to have a standing chance.

I am so sorry that this is so much to read, but I was going to post all of this eventually so I decided, why not just spam everyone at once??

Soon I will be posting analysis for both Keefe an Sophie, but it will probably *hopefully* be a lot shorter because there is already a ton of great posts about their characters and I don’t want to be too redundant. My asks are always open if you ever want to send in your own opinions/feedback and/or other characters and plots you want to see more of on here!

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alirhi · 3 years ago

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chapter 10

Title: Winter's Frost Chapter: 10/? Fandom: MCU Rating: R to be on the safe side Pairing: Loki/Bucky Summary: Loki never told anyone the real reason he became so obsessed with Midgard. Much better to let them think he wanted to hurt his brother than draw their attention to the one thing in the universe that makes the God of Mischief truly vulnerable. WARNINGS: not much, really. References to torture, but nothing explicit Notes: as usual, this fic relies heavily on you having seen the Marvel movies (or at least CA:TFA, CA:CW, Thor, and The Avengers, so far) but like... why would you be reading MCU fanfic if you hadn't seen the MCU? XD

He never would have broken; he just hoped Thanos and his idiot henchmen didn't realize that. The torture he endured probably would have broken Thor in about half the time they'd been at it, but Loki was far stronger than anyone had ever given him credit for. If not for Eira, alone on an alien planet with a complete stranger, Loki probably would have held out indefinitely, just to piss them off. As usual, though, he didn't have time to mess with them or test his own endurance. He had to get to Midgard, collect his daughter and her father regardless of Bucky's feelings on the subject, and disappear.

So he pretended to break. He held out for a while for show, and then folded like a poorly constructed house of cards. Thanos – not a very trusting lad, that one – insisted on worming into Loki's mind with that damned scepter, and he had to let him, to convince him that the God of Mischief was truly under his thumb.

It was the most unpleasant sensation, having the energy of that thing wiggling through his brain. He did his best to keep it at bay, only letting the stone in the scepter into the very edge of his mind, but it still felt like a swarm of beetles crawling around under his skull. It, and the energy required to keep it from taking over or to keep himself from shaking it off entirely, left him exhausted and disoriented.

You will have your moment of glory, Thanos had told him with a smirk as he handed Loki the scepter. Just serve your purpose and bring me what's mine.

"I am Loki of Asgard," he announced to the humans between him and that damned cube, "and I am burdened with glorious purpose." They didn't catch the bitter sarcasm in his tone, but that was alright. He hadn't expected them to.

"Loki?" Why did this old man look so familiar? "Brother of Thor?"

Loki just barely stopped himself from gagging, and scoffed instead. Of course. This was one of Thor's little human friends. Well, at least he could have a bit of fun while he was here; he touched the tip of the scepter to Selveig's chest and watched the sickly blue light seep into his irises. See how Thor felt when he learned that Loki had made one of his precious human friends his little dancing puppet! It also helped that Selveig was some sort of scientist; he had some working knowledge of the Tesseract, and that would likely come in handy.

He really didn't give a damn about the Tesseract or Thanos' mad mission; still, it was best to keep up appearances until he could find a way to wiggle free of him once and for all. As long as he could feel the scepter's energy slithering around his brain, he knew there was a chance that Thanos, or his creepy underling The Other, could track what he was doing. The only thing worse than playing the obedient servant would be leading them straight back to Bucky and Eira. His best bet was a 'poorly executed' plan to distract Thor and his little band of human misfits.

Pity he had to fight them. He rather liked Banner and Stark. There was one silver lining to all this insanity, though: The redhead. That bloody slag, Natasha. The moment he looked into Barton's mind and saw her, that woman who'd dared put her hands on his Sergeant, he couldn't wait to make her suffer.

Damn. Jealousy truly was the ugliest, most uncomfortable emotion.

It caught him off guard when they sent her in first. As he gleefully informed her, he'd expected some sort of torture first, and then the woman would be sent in as a 'friend', a balm, and he'd be expected to fold and cooperate. None of them knew the depth of his hatred for this woman, so he was sure they didn't expect him to easily resist her 'charms.'

He taunted her for a bit, reveling in the increasing look of horror in her eyes, the way they filled with tears she fought valiantly not to shed, the way she trembled...

"You're a monster!" she whispered as she turned her back to him, still visibly shaking.

Loki chuckled, the insidious little devil in his heart placated by Natasha's apparent distress. "Oh, no," he gloated, at this point just making shit up as he went along. "You brought the monster." Honestly, what did that even mean?

Suddenly steady and clear-eyed, she turned and looked him right in the eye. "So, Banner. That's your play."

"What?" Oh, right. Barton had told him she had a knack for wrangling the beast within Banner; likely, she'd been the one sent to recruit him. Well, that worked out, didn't it?

He pretended to be shocked by her deductive skills until she was out of sight, and then rolled his eyes. Let them give him credit when Banner lost control of the beast in the fray about to come; it hadn't actually been his plan, but he knew it would certainly happen. These misfits were nothing if not predictable.

Maybe he'd luck out and find her mangled corpse somewhere at the end of all this. Surely Bucky wouldn't care, right? They'd only had a chance encounter... Perhaps Loki just wouldn't tell him. Really, was there any reason for him to know this random woman he'd slept with while brainwashed was dead? No, darling, I have no idea what happened to Agent Romanov! None at all. She's a spy, isn't she? Perhaps she disappeared on her own...

Oh, bugger. He was going to have to make sure she survived this, wasn't he? Even as he mocked Thor and tricked him into the glass cage, he was thinking about that bloody redhead. If the Sergeant remembered her, likely Bucky would, as well. Loki had never lied to him before; he certainly wasn't about to start now. Ugh. Guilt was an even worse feeling than jealousy!

Brother safely sequestered from the fight for the time being, Loki set about retrieving the scepter and the Tesseract, and making sure the vessel the fragile humans were on remained intact long enough for Stark and Rogers to get it at least partially functioning again. It was exhausting, trying to keep up the appearance of attempting to kill these people while simultaneously trying to keep them safe.

He could feel the scepter's hold on his mind weakening, thank Frigga, but he didn't dare even think of going to Siberia yet. Until he was free of it completely, without pushing it away himself and alerting Thanos, he didn't dare go anywhere near Bucky. At least he had command of the Chitauri, once he could bring them to Midgard. They would make a delightful distraction for all parties involved, and if he timed things just right, he could even send a few of them to SHIELD headquarters to turn HYDRA into nothing but a lake of blood and bone fragments.

Oh, Stark had made it home. Secretly pleased to see that he was well, Loki smirked – trying desperately to hide his giddy grin – and met him inside. "Please tell me you're going to appeal to my 'humanity,'" he teased, eager for banter with a mind as sharp as his own for the first time since... Well, since before Bucky had been captured and reported killed in action.

"Uh, actually I'm planning to threaten you."

"You should've left your armor on for that." This man was adorable. Once all was said and done and they were safe, he wondered if it would be strange to invite Stark over for dinner.

"Yeah." Stark's tone was endearingly dismissive. "It's seen a bit of mileage, and you've got the glowstick of destiny."

Trying not to laugh, Loki glanced down at the scepter. I am never calling it anything else again.

"Would you like a drink?"

He couldn't contain his laughter completely; he really liked Stark. Disguising it as mocking and arrogance, he hastily told him, "Stalling me won't change anything."

"No no no, threatening!" Stark gestured to the impressively stocked bar. "No drink, you sure? I'm having one."

One more second, and he was going to break and crack up. Or hug the man. Either way, it wouldn't look good. Hoping to buy a moment to collect himself, he spun on his heel and moved over to the glass wall overlooking the city.

"The Chitauri are coming. Nothing will change that." I wish you, Banner, and Thor would just get as far away as possible before they arrive. He turned back to face the other man, hoping the tremor he could hear in his own voice wasn't audible from across the room. "What have I to fear?"

"The Avengers." Loki must have looked as confused as he felt; Stark rolled his eyes and clarified, "That's what we call ourselves; sorta like a team. Earth's mightiest heroes type thing."

"Yes." Loki smirked. "I've me them."

Picking up the mocking in his tone, Stark chuckled. "Yeah, takes us a while to gain any traction, I'll give you that one. But... Let's do a headcount, here. Your brother, the demi-God-"

Adoptive brother, he wanted to snap as he scoffed and turned away, and barely that!

"A super soldier, a living legend who kinda lives up to the legend... A man with breathtaking anger management issues..."

Loki couldn't help grinning at that description. He liked Banner quite a bit, and the mindless green beast was an endless source of entertainment.

"A couple of master assassins," Stark continued, pointing at the pacing Trickster, "and you, big fella, you've managed to piss off every single one of them."

"That was the plan."

"Not a great plan."

That's because you don't know what the plan was for. He grinned, but his mirth was short-lived as Stark calmly made his way around the bar and approached him.

"When they come, and they will, they'll come for you."

He'd thought of that, but still hadn't thought his way out of it quite yet. "I have an army," was all he could think to say.

"We have a Hulk."

"Oh, I thought the beast had wandered off." He'd likely return, of course, but hopefully in time only to slow the Chitauri, not to capture Loki.

He didn't want to, but as the conversation went on he realized he didn't have much of a choice. Hoping it wouldn't do any lasting damage to that beautiful brain of his, he touched the scepter to Stark's chest... and nothing happened. Confused, he tried again. Still nothing, and now Stark's witty retorts were just grating on him. Spotting the cuffs he hadn't been wearing before and assuming they were some sort of tech, he decided to just vent his frustrations the old fashioned way. With a growl, he lifted Stark by the throat and threw him out a window.

Sure enough, something shot out the hole in the glass after him, and within seconds, Stark appeared in a new suit. Good. At least Loki had managed to vent a little anger without actually harming one of the few humans he respected.

The knock to the head he received when he was blasted back a few seconds later was enough to finally dislodge the energy of the scepter fully. He'd have heaved a sigh of relief if the Tesseract hadn't chosen that exact moment to finally tear open the space above the tower and let the Chitauri through. Unleashing Hell on an unsuspecting city miles from even the closest of his actual targets had never exactly been his favorite plan, but it seemed that was the only one that was actually going to play out.

As usual, even his hated backup plan didn't end the way he'd hoped. By the end of the afternoon, two things were quite clear to Loki: One, he was going to have to take a breather and then find a way to disappear once he was healed.

And two, he didn't much like Banner anymore.

_____________________________________________________

Next Masterlist

#fanfic #loki #mcu #avengers #captain america #bucky barnes #tony stark #iron man #m/m #loki/bucky #reference to buckynat #tom hiddleston #sebastian stan #winter's frost

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ori-flails · 4 years ago

Text

Rewatching Guardian - Episode 07 Part 2/3

Episode List || Part 1 | Part 3

SPOILERS for upto episode 40, SPOILERS for the novel.

Again, WHY THE OMINOUS MUSIC??! This is a funny scene!

I freaking love Chu Shuzhi omfg xD “Ahh” *nods sarcastically*

This confirms Zhao Yunlan was following Shen Wei xD

The two of them do some creepy stuff in the name of love that would be so disturbing without the context of Weilan lmao

Before Shen Wei can even greet her, Zhu Hong just gets straight down to business xD

“Gui Jian Chou” - This nickname was a direct reference to the novel and a nice little cookie for those that read the novel. But it’s just plain confusing for people that haven’t lol

Like, what, is this a hidden jest or roast to Zhao Yunlan’s shamelessness or something?? xD (I read the novel after I watched the drama. Did I mention that? I forgot. :< )

“I was scared into confusion” - My man you lie so easily but at least try-- TRY to make it convincing. I know you can do it.

I love Da Qing. I love that at this point Xiao Guo feels comfortable enough to laugh along with jokes and somewhat relax around Zhao Yunlan. I love this. Beautifuk

Also look at Shen Wei’s smile dgfugwfkwa omfg <3

“...What just happened? Why is he talking about bears? Is this a way to distract Zhao Yunlan from his identity or.....? Am I missing something????”

Yes. I was indeed missing something. I completely missed the fact that Shen Wei was trolling us all. I had no idea what hit me that first time I watched it. What a fool he made out of me lmao xD

I have questions though lol. It’s clear he’s been on about bears for a while. Shen Wei’s trolling for some reason. But, like, Zhao Yunlan just let him???

Just WHY was Shen Wei trolling us so hard?? I bet he was having the time of his life cackling on the inside lmao.

He’s so subtle that something as ridiculous as this went past my BS-radar and my troll-radar completely. I thought he was being serious and sincere. He’s spewing utter unconvincing BS without batting an eye!

I’m telling you, Shen Wei is probably very VERY good at lying and not half bad at politics. He just prefers not to and just becomes an actual wreck when facing Zhao Yunlan and I can’t get over this.

Small brain: Zhao Yunlan’s a troll. Big brain: Ye Zun’s the troll kiing. Mega brain: Shen Wei is the ultimate troll, the troll god.

Just look at his face in the second to last screenshot! That is the face of a man who’s trying very hard not to laugh and is quite pleased with himself.

WHAT A TROLL. xD

Youchu are weaker ghosts from the novel. Cool. I was kind of excited for them after seeing that drawing but that was some profound disappointment.

Also, if Da Qing was already thinking of Youchu, why did he not mention anything until now? Why let Shen Wei keep going on about bears?? xD

Shen Wei himself dealt with the case of Youchu infestation, so he didn’t think about it being a possibilities (hence the bear trolling. I’m never getting over the freaking bears.) because he did manage to send all the Youchu back to Dixing. It’s just Zhu Jiu’s putting them back on Haixing again.

Hah... Hoping this isn’t Zhao Yunlan thinking Hei Pao Shi’s incompetant or some shit. I don’t think so anyway, but still. The thought popped up in my head.

You don’t think it’s strange that Shen Wei knows about these hell gremlins but you draw the line at Shen Wei thinking the thugs don’t have Dixingren qualities?

Shen Wei could’ve been meaning how Dixingren would act on Haixing. A lot of Dixingren probably would be doing illegal stuff and commit robberies and stuff because of poverty. But they wouldn’t be so brazen as the two thugs. They’d take the money and GO. They wouldn’t wanna be taking risks with the looming presence of the SID and Hei Pao Shi. Not unless they’re really strong or after something specific, neither of which apply to the thugs.

But what Shen Wei probably meant was some inherent presense of dark energy or something Dixingren have specifically that either only Shen Wei can sense because of some power he Learnt, or because Shen Wei is strong and skilled enough to mask whatever it is that give away Dixingren to those who know what to look for. Hence why he can easily spot Dixingren but other Dixingren can’t tell he’s one until he gives himself away by lifting whatever invisible ‘mask’ or damper he’s got on. I have headcanons about this. I might make a post for it later. Not sure.

Shen Wei shutting up at this could be because 1) he’s already said too much and isn’t willing to give up more information that’d point to him being Hei Pao Shi.

2) Shen Wei is still hesitent to trust Zhao Yunlan with information that could be used to find a way to detect Dixingren in hiding that are simply just existing on Haixing. Not something horrible but seen as a crime regardless as it’d be a violation of the treaty.

Damn.

“It’s always that most are evil, few are kind” - The same way most people police would encounter would mostly be criminals IN A JUST AND IDEAL WORLD WHICH IS NOT THE WORLD WE LIVE IN, CLEARLY. UGH.

The Dixingren that are not “evil”, as he says, are staying out of trouble and mixing in with Haixingren.

Also when I say “evil”, read “desperate” and “cornered”.

Zhao Yunlan has already partially made up his mind about trusting Shen Wei. I’m glad he noticed that Shen Wei is trying to protect somebody, whoever it is that’s Shen Wei source of information on Dixingren or just himself, by not telling everything to the SID which doesn’t have the best reputation.

I’m also glad to see how despite the anti-Dixingren propaganda of Xingdu Bureau and basically every record there is about Dixing since the war, Zhao Yunlan’s able to try to broaden his horizon.

Zhao Yunlan is a Good Man.

The idea of something so overwhelmingly terrifying and brutal that it causes a person to go mad is not a bad idea.

It’s just that when you hype up a culprit/monster like that, you have to deliver something.

But this is Guardian the web drama. :/

“if he’s an orange or a pear” *flashback to Chu Shuzhi and Hei Pao Shi’s toes*

(Continues in part 3)

#镇魂 guardian #guardian rewatch #guardian episode 07 #shen wei #zhao yunlan #weilan #zhen hun

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nebula-horizon · 4 years ago

Note

🍺 Celeste and Jericho

Send a symbol for a drabble or thread [ Not Accepting! ]

🍺: Our muses drinking together

I listened to Lover is a day while writing this

((In Which Celeste gets dating advice while listening to Lo-fi))

It was an unusually uncrowded night at the bar. Celeste had come alone without her friends just to see and talk to her favorite bartender. Having dressed up a little nicer than she usually did, but nothing too flashy especially with how she did her makeup. A tan colored sweater crop top and high waisted jean shorts were picked out as she hoped to get his attention, but she'd find out that her efforts were wasted.

Darius calling in sick? Who knew a workaholic like him would concede to a cold and call out for the day. Celeste sat on the bar stool she usually did as Darius's co-worker let her know the situation. Her shoulders slumped at the news -- it was hard to not feel like she wasted her time coming here since he was the only reason she liked going to this bar to begin with. The pastel haired woman sat there with her hands folded on the bar counter as she debated whether it was a good idea to go see him or if that would make her look desperate. She grumbled something in Tagalog before putting her head face down on the bar and her arms over her head.

Thanks to the less rowdy energy in the bar tonight, Celeste's ears picked up on the chuckle coming from the person seated a couple seats away from her. She nervously peeked out from under her arm at the source which was a young man with dark purple hair and one arm leaning against the bar. He had a rather chic look to him as he took a sip of his martini which is why Celeste was unsure if he was the one laughing at her. She sat straight up, looking from him and then around her.

“Were you laughing at me?” she asked with a slight accusatory tone. The purple haired man gave another low chuckle which somewhat confirmed it.

“What’s not to laugh at? There’s something amusing about watching someone this grown up acting like a child.” he admitted. Celeste so badly wanted to pout and get defensive, but that would only prove this stranger’s point.

“I’m not childish,” she muttered looking away. “I just feel like I wasted my time coming here…”. Celeste sighed, it’s not like this guy would understand and besides, she just made herself sound desperate. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed him getting up. Oh great, she just embarrassed and weirded out yet another patron -- this was not the reputation she wanted to have at Darius’s workspace.

“Well, do you not go out to bars to drink?”. Celeste looked back up, only to find the same man she thought she weirded out seated on the bar stool right next to her. The pastel haired woman jumped back in her seat a bit causing the man to laugh at her again. Which in turn made her face flush with embarrassment. It’s a good thing that the lights in the club started slowly shifting colors to conceal her reddened cheeks.

“L-look… I don’t… I don’t drink.” she quietly stuttered. “I hate alcohol, it’s a personal preference, but I just don’t like getting even a little tipsy.”. Celeste sighed, listening to the Lo-fi music that started playing over the speakers. “I usually come to this bar specifically because I-I… I kind of have a small crush on one of the bartenders.” she admitted, using crush very loosely.

“A crush, huh? Hahaha… How cute.”. Celeste didn’t know how to respond without sounding like a nervous and flustered mess. She noticed the stranger flagged down the bartender, before leaning towards her just a bit. “What’s your favorite drink here?” he asked, fully intending on ordering her something non-alcoholic.

“M-mango lemonade, why-”. And it just dawned on Celeste. “Wait no, you don’t have to buy me a drink, mister-”. He waved off her protests with a gloved hand as he went to order the drink, leaving Celeste covering her face. Once again, he gave her a smirk, tilting his head to the side acting as though he were confused at her little reactions. It was clear this girl didn’t fit in with the whole bar or club scene; like watching a fish out of water. "What are you even trying to do?" She asked him as though he had some kind of ulterior motives. Still hiding her face behind her hands, she was starting to feel flustered with this guy sitting right next to her this closely.

"What am I trying to do?" He repeated. "Well, I'm typically a busy man, but I figured I'd take some time to entertain myself.". Celeste moved her hands from her face as she watched the man sip some more on his martini.

"Is making girls feel embarrassed how you entertain yourself?". She huffed.

"Not exactly -- it's just mildly amusing seeing drunk people humiliate themselves. I've already seen quite a few tonight.". The bartender came back sliding over the fruity concoction to Celeste. "What’s your name?" The stranger asked. There was no way in hell she was giving this guy her real name.

“...Celeste, and you?”. She took a sip of her mango lemonade as she stared at him; the slow changing colorful neon lights of the club illuminating both of them.

“Jericho.”. He held a gloved hand out to shake hers and Celeste hesitantly reciprocated. “So do you only come here for this bartender?”. Despite being thirsty and infatuated by Darius, Celeste wasn’t going to let Jericho say it out loud.

“A-at first it wasn’t like that. I usually only like going out with friends because I like dancing.” She noticed him raising a brow when she said that, making her look away -- she hated when people stared at her like this. “Then I met Darius here while he was working… He was so nice to me. Protecting me from creepy men and talking with me when I felt scared to head to the dance floor. It’s like he could read me so easily when I was upset and he always knows how to make me smile when I need it.”. Celeste paused for a moment as she felt herself smile softly at the memory of their first meeting. Her mind taking in the music on the speakers as she almost got lost in thought.

♫Suffocated from the radiated air around us

Full of happiness we don't have

Brightness gone so dark

Without you girl♫

She could feel Jericho’s stare on her, almost snapping her out of her trance. Shyly looking back to him to meet his electric blue gaze, Celeste gave a weak smile.

“Sorry, I’m rambling. I just… I know he wouldn’t date me.”. Jericho stared at her then at his empty martini glass, setting it down before leaning his arm against the bar as he spoke to the shy starry eyed girl across from him. It was so oddly comforting to let out her woes to a stranger because in her mind she wasn’t expecting to ever see him again after tonight.

“And why not? You seem like a nice young lady,” he said, catching Celeste off guard. “Have you actually tried asking him out?”. That was a good question and in all honesty, she really hadn’t. There was something almost endearing with the way she thought about the question before looking down at her hands that she had firmly on her lap. “Heh, I’m guessing that’s a ‘No’?”. Jericho stared curiously as the shorter of the two sighed before she moved a strand of her pastel purple hair from her face and looked back at him. Her deep tan colored skin had the neon lights of the club illuminating it as the two of them had shades of blue and purple wash over them from spotlights.

“Yeah… You’re right, I haven’t tried asking him. I guess I’m just not confident enough in myself.”. Celeste watched as Jericho chuckled at her again. “H-hey come on, what’s so funny?”.

“Heh, nothing. It just seems so strange to me that a girl -- who’d willingly put herself out there and dance with such confidence in herself -- believes that she’s lacking in the ability to charm someone.” he stated. It seemed like Jericho was trying to insinuate something to boost her a bit, but was it a genuine compliment or was he just curious to see how she’d react out of boredom? It didn’t matter as Celeste hadn’t picked up on the tone in his voice.

“Well… Yeah. I do think that. You don’t really think I’m actually charming or cute enough to boldly ask him out, do you?” Celeste sighed. That smirk appeared on his face again except Celeste didn’t look away nervously from him again. Her eyes didn’t break eye contact with his own.

“And what if I do?” he asked. “What if I thought you were cute in a demure way?”. Jericho said all this knowing very well she couldn’t respond properly -- it seemed like he was enjoying seeing her quickly become sheepish. Even under all the slow changing colored lights, he can tell her face was blushing at his words. “Haha, you should try asking this Darius fellow out,” he expressed with that laughter Celeste has now come to find sickly captivating. “I’m sure he’d love to see you blush in embarrassment when you attempt to.”.

There was a moment of peaceful silence between them besides the music on the speakers while Celeste quietly sipped on her mango lemonade drink till she was finished.

“Perhaps it was a good thing she wasn’t an alcohol drinker…” he thought to himself. Jericho saw as Celeste slowly stood up, hands fidgeting with the end of her sweater crop top anxiously.

“You’re right, I-I can’t ever know the answer if I never try shooting my shot, you know?” Celeste stammered. “Er… O-Okay! I’ll go home and call to see if I can visit him later…” she shyly said with a nod, Jericho’s words reassuring her. It was a little hard to find a proper response to being enamored by an utter stranger, yet Celeste wanted to give him some kind of thank you. Awkwardly holding her hand out again, the bracelet around her wrist jingling. “Thanks for listening to me… I-it was nice meeting you, Jericho.”.

“The pleasure’s all mine.” he responded without missing a beat, shaking her hand once more.

“U-um… D-do you think I’ll see you again sometime?” Celeste asked. She hadn’t noticed her hand lingered in his hold for a bit before pulling it back quickly.

“Perhaps you’ll see me again,” Jericho lied, knowing how dangerous it’d be if she found out what he did for a living. “Besides, I’m sure I won’t forget your face.”. He really had to get that last jab in, huh? It looked like his last little compliment worked as Celeste gave him one more shy sweet expression, only this time she was smiling. “See you, around, Celeste.”.

“Y-yeah… see ya, Jericho…”. The starry eyed woman left in a hurry, covering her face with the sleeve of her sweater on her way out. Jericho grinned as she left before ordering another drink from the bartender. As the song came to it’s last chorus, he began humming along softly, thinking how nice it would be if he allowed himself to see her again .

♫Time changed

We're different

But my mind still says redundant things

Can I not think?

Will you love this part of me

My lover is a day I can't forget

Furthering my distance from you

Realistically I can't leave now

But I'm okay as long as you

Keep me from going crazy

Keep me from going crazy♫

#Drabbles.#Pending Jericho Tag.#((PHEW this took a bit))#((also i know technically they'd be listening to something more early 2000s on the speakers #but I like this song soooo))#((also I wasn't sure if I had the greenlight to make Jericho flirty so I did half flirty and half not))#cardsbizarreadventure #cσмιηg яιgнт υρ! ☕ (Answers)#((Also shouldve put in the post but Darius belongs to Vvolgarov))

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consummate-deviant · 5 years ago

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I reckon I’m gonna talk about Hordak for a minute

So, I feel the need to talk about Hordak. This is, perhaps, not unusual. Once upon a time ago, writing stupidly long pseudo-essays about characters I rather liked used to be my thing… and it’s still a bug that bites me from time to time. The timing certainly seems right! Homeboy has been the topic of conversation lately, thanks to the recent release of She-ra season 4, and the manifold feels associated with it. I’m fond of Hordak, as it were, so I don’t mind sharing my perspective on the subject, since there’s some confusion as to his appeal.

The two stances I see taken on Hordak most often, by those who don’t like him, I should specify, are as follows:

A.) He’s an irredeemable villain who has done terrible things, and I don’t see why anyone would like him.

And

B.) He’s a lame, nonthreatening villain.

I’m not going to be engaging with mindset ‘B’ quite as much as with mindset ‘A’ in the following post, in part because the reasons why he’s so lame and nonthreatening are kinda tied to what I’ll be discussing by implication, but mostly because my response to mindset B can be summed up with the following: “You are not wrong, at all. However, that’s literally the entire point of his character, so while you aren’t wrong to be disappointed if you were hoping he would be a more measured, megalomaniacal sort, it’s also not a failure on the part of the writers, since his lack of suitability for the role he was trying to play was always going to be what his story was about.”

Mindset ‘A’, though... well... that’s a bit tricky. Ultimately “irredeemable” is a personal value judgment. The threshold a character must cross before one audience member feels they no longer deserve forgiveness can vary quite wildly from another, and while trying to pass one’s personal opinion off as an objective fact is something of a pastime on the internet, I am- and I cannot state this emphatically enough- NOT your dad… probably. At least, I hope to god… Look, odds are really good that I’m not your dad, so… you do your thing and shine like the crazy diamond you are. I probably can’t change your mind, and considering I don’t even know you, it’d be kinda creepy if I thought I could! What I can do, though, for those genuinely curious how anyone could consider him redeemable, is share my own perspective on the character, and why I think redemption is the direction the story is going, based on how I’ve read the text thus far… So I’m gonna do that. Let’s go over Hordak as he has appeared in the She-Ra reboot.

Part I: Season 1 Hordak

Now see, when we kick things off, I totally get where both the ‘A’ group and the ‘B’ group are coming from. Hordak, as he appears in season 1, seems ruthless, intimidating, and single-minded. Hordak doesn’t carry the conflict in season 1, serving as more of a background presence while Catra and Shadow Weaver, who have a more personal investment in the central narrative, do all the heavy lifting of antagonizing the heroes and angsting.

This keeps the attention off of Hordak, which is precisely how he likes things. When people aren’t going out of their way to interact with him, then it’s easy for him to control what few interactions he does have. That’s what season 1 shows us: Hordak, when he has perfect control over his own narrative. Every scene that features him is shot with a low angle, often with his form either concealed in shadows or with his face partially out of frame. When he speaks, he’s always calm and distant… but calm in that ‘he could totally fly into a rage at any instant’ way that keeps people on their toes. Pragmatic, taciturn, perfectly measured and groomed,… pretty tall! By any metric a reasonable person can measure a competent, intimidating villain, Hordak circa season 1 seems like he’d pass the test.

Part 2: Season 2-3 Hordak

Here’s the thing... though... about season 1 Hordak... that we learn pretty quickly when we transition into season 2: Season 1 Hordak is a massive fraud. Like, seriously, he’s a fabrication created out of necessity to hide a single, prevailing truth: Hordak is an awkward dork who is kinda terrible at being an evil overlord.

I’ve seen some people describe Hordak’s season 2-3 character development with the expression “You thought I was Ozai, but I was actually Zuko this whole time!” Now, I like this expression fine. I’ve borrowed it a time or two in the past, but with regard to Hordak, I prefer to phrase it like this: “You thought I was Emperor Palpatine, but I was really the Wizard of Oz this whole time!” The former expression gives someone an idea of the tropes of the character pretty well, but the latter does a better job, I feel, of showing the relationship between season 1 and later seasons with Hordak. Hordak is a competent, unflappable, all-seeing leader… hey, hey! Pay no mind to the man behind the curtain! Hordak’s past… as a mindless clone created to lead other mindless clones in a mindless clone army… has left him laughably unprepared for the task of leading others. He’s smart, like, in a general bookish sense, but he has no charisma, no interpersonal talents to speak of, and doesn’t really seem to have any grasp of how to motivate his underlings, save to reward talent with promotion.

Out of necessity, Hordak keeps his true self buried underneath multiple layers of protection. The first layer is the season 1 illusion: Delegate direct command of his soldiers to a single adjutant, interact with that adjutant just enough to keep them in line, and remain in his sanctum all day, like the geeky shut-in he is.

The first layer is pretty nice, and seems to have bought him quite a few years running the horde… but what happens if, say, some uppity Force Captain decides to pester him with personal status reports… or some absent-minded inventor decides to raid his lab for a six-sided hex driver? Personally interacting with his minions for too long will reveal the illusion he’s been hiding behind! Well, fear not... This is where the second layer of protection comes in handy.

Yes, Hordak’s second layer of defense: blustering, shouting, and intimidating. Threaten them with dire consequences for bothering him, let them visit the planet with nearly-enough-atmosphere for a few seconds… do everything in his power to frighten them so badly they never want to directly interact with him again. What should happen if this second layer fails him, though? They learn of the most terrifying secret in Hordak’s entire arsenal.

...There is no third layer…

Nope. If a minion is plucky enough to peak behind the curtain of his grand illusion, and then bold enough to stand their ground at the explosion of hot air that follows… he has basically no follow-up left. One of my favorite nonverbal scenes in the entire series is the moment where he realizes that his screaming is having no visible impact on Entrapta. There’s a look on his face that seems to say ‘What the hell am I supposed to do now!?’… like, it’s clear the dude has never needed a third step to scare someone away before.

Ah, but you, my savvy reader, have no doubt cottoned on to the error in my argument thus far. Establishing that Hordak is an awkward, introverted nerd doesn’t really change the fact that he built the Etherian horde. The fact that he’s not especially competent doesn’t change the bad deeds his committed! Well, rest assured, you beautiful person who can claim no paternal relation to me, I agree! However, characterizing Hordak like this goes hand in hand with the other big reveal of season 3: his backstory.

Now, cards on the table, I’ve been taking Hordak as he comes, and up until this point I didn’t really have any strong idea of whether they were going the big-bad or redeemed-bad route with him. It wasn’t until season 3, when his origin was revealed, that I genuinely began to suspect that the redemption path was where the writers were headed, because it re-frames his actions in a subtle, but pretty important way.

With no Horde Prime, when one looks at Hordak, they see a man who orchestrated a corrupt and oppressive system for his personal benefit, who holds others in disdain due to self-aggrandizement, and is motivated by a desire to be seen as greater than everyone else. That is a character who would be very hard to convincingly redeem. While I’m loathe to raise the specter of Steven Universe discourse here, it’s a lot like the notion of redeeming the Diamonds… and, while I have no strong feelings about that show one way or the other, suffice it to say I can at least see why their redemption is controversial.

Horde Prime shifts the context of Hordak’s actions, though. Now, Hordak is a man who perpetuates the very system he is, himself, a victim of, because it’s the only system he knows. His conflict with others is born from the projection of his own self loathing. Said self-loathing comes from his chief motivation, which is to be acknowledged as worthy by an authority figure who has no interest or desire in ever offering him that acknowledgment.

Such a character is still flawed and villainous, because of course it is. If a character has done nothing wrong, they don’t need redemption in the first place. It’s a lot easier to accept the struggles of a flawed character if they’re a victim of oppression rather than its source. To borrow the SU comparison one final time, the Horde Prime twist reveals to us that Hordak isn’t a diamond, he’s just another one of the countless gems caught in their system.

By the by, does “perpetuates a system they, themselves, are victims of, suffers from conflicts born of projected self loathing, and desire to be acknowledged by an authority figure who has no interest or desire in providing said acknowledgment” sound familiar? I hope so! It ties into my final point of the day.

Part 3: Season 4 Hordak (aka “Hordak and Catra have basically the same arc”)

Now, implying similarity in the character arcs of Hordak and Catra has, historically, been a fraught endeavor. Even I, Hordak stan extraordinaire, felt that we needed to see a bit more of where the writers were wanting to take Hordak before we went and made comparisons. Then season 4 happened… and guys… the subtitle of season 4 may as well have been “Hordak and Catra have basically the same arc.”

Well, that’s a bit of an oversimplification. Catra had people she could perceive as her peers, which granted her a social circle outside of her direct superiors whom she could feel camaraderie with, which added a dimension to the emotional turmoil she felt, but in broad strokes it seems to be a comparison that the writers are inviting us to make. Their alliance in season 4 is based around their commonality. They motivate one another by feeding into the insatiable hunger both of them feel for external validation… in that regard, they bring out the worst in each other, and thus season 4 ends with both of them brought to their lowest point.

At the end of season 4, if the princesses had never arrived, and Double Trouble hadn’t been there to finally force her to confront the emotions she insistently projected onto others, Catra would have assumed the mantle she claimed from Hordak. She would have ruled the horde, devoid of satisfaction or happiness, and any children she took into her numbers she would have treated in exactly the same way Shadow Weaver treated her, and the same way Horde Prime treated Hordak.

To escape that fate, she needed her chance to face the system that oppressed her, and then the chance to face herself… and only once she had done both, could she start to move forward again. That’s why we see the start of her recovery in the final scenes of the season. Catra did unspeakably terrible things- by the end of season 4 her atrocity count easily rivals Hordak’s- and not everything can be blamed exclusively on others, but we, as an audience, have seen enough of what made her the way she is… that’s why most of us are onboard with her eventual redemption.

Catra is, beneath all the layers of spite and illusions of who she thinks she should be, a sweet kid who ultimately wants to reconnect with a friend she fears abandoned her, and to be respected and appreciated by the authority figures in her life. Hordak is, ultimately, a hikikomori dweeb who, not too long ago, was content to spend the rest of eternity with his gamer girlfriend in his lab, pretending to put together a portal machine.

The villain of She-ra is Horde Prime, and the system he put into place to feed his arrogance at the expense of those trapped within it. For those inside that system, like Catra or Hordak, they don’t cross the line and become truly irredeemable until they are given a clear and unambiguous chance to escape from that system and change their life for the better… but refuse to grasp it. Even then… sometimes it takes them a little while to see the hand being offered to them… and sometimes that hand is in the form of a fist.

In conclusion

Look, guys, I’ll be real with you… I made a play at pretending that I wrote this for some point or another… but I kinda didn’t. When I get into a fandom headspace, words get stuck in my head, y’know? When they do, they buzz around like bees until I write ‘em someplace… so here we are.

I’m not so arrogant as to assume I can change anyone’s mind with my 4 AM word vomit about the emaciated bat villain in my favorite children’s cartoon. This is just a thing I wrote! Maybe if you agree with it it makes you happy, and if you disagree with it then it doesn’t get’cha too worked up! I was gonna include Hordak’s relationship with Entrapta into the proceedings… but honestly, that would have doubled the length of this thing, and would have been kinda tangential to the point. I may do a more shippy essay thing later on… but if there’s one thing I learned from the last time I wrote a bunch of these… it’s that planning them out never works well. I guess if people wanna see it I can write it though.

Anyway, I’m rambling, so I’m gonna letcha go! Thanks for listening to my TED talk. Remember, villains are an artform, people are complicated, and hot cocoa is the best winter beverage. I’m going back to fanfic writing until the next bout of insomnia!

#she ra hordak #entrapdak #hordak #she ra 2019

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