#I have literally just one scene in mind in which the freelancer works with Damien to find legal cases

[teddybasmanov]

You know with all that marriage business I'm getting just a bit closer to actually writing (I never will, but still) that continuation for "Miracle of Judaism" in which Gavin and the Freelancer fight tooth and nail to actually get legally married.

[rowankingsleyy]

Like this if you want to plot with Rowan and I’ll come ramble

NAME: ROWAN JESSAMINE KINGSLEY

NICKNAMES: Ro, Winnie (close friends only)

AGE: 28

PRONOUNS: She/Her

OCCUPATION: Published Author/Freelance Baker

HEIGHT: 5′1

BIRTHDAY: May 11th, 1992

ZODIAC SIGN: Taurus

PARENTS: Cassandra and Tony Kingsley

SIBLINGS: Damien Kingsley

ALIGNMENT: Neutral Good

MBTI: ISFJ

MORE UNDER THE READ MORE =)

TW: domestic violence, sexual assault, anxiety, eating disorders, mention of death, illness, drugs

SEQUENCE OF EVENTS

Rowan was born to Cassandra and Tony Kingsley in the early summer of 1992, at which point things were already strained between the two-some because of Tony’s alcohol problem and Cassie’s generally meek personality.

Rowan’s brother took a leading role in her care from a very young age, not just because her dad was useless, but also because their mother was so distracted by her need to please Tony that she dropped the ball often.

Both her brother and her saw things they certainly shouldn’t have, were told things that no children should be told, and occasionally went without for no reason other than Tony liking control, but he never hurt them physically.  However, he did hurt their mother.  

Less than a year after her brother turned 18 and moved out of the house, their mother died of an aneurysm suddenly and unexpectedly.

Despite how Rowan’s father treated her mother, the loss of her broke him and send him on a 3 month bender that only ended because he was booked with vehicular manslaughter and his 3rd DWI.

Luckily, Rowan only spent a few weeks in foster care before the court allowed her brother to assume custody over her.

From the moment her brother joined, the Valencia became her family.  The women, wives and daughters of the organization were the people who taught her everything she knows about being a girl, doing make up, doing her hair, navigating boys.  (This is probably why she went through a blue eyeshadow phase at 17)

Rowan is a textbook overachiever and perfectionist, she always had all As, was always in 6 clubs, and held officer positions in every single one including the dance team.  While she did hold officer positions, she never really was one to take front and center--she prefers the positions of the people behind the scenes keeping things together.  (secretary, treasurer, anything that has to do with organizational skills.

While over her high school years she wrote a lot, and even published one of her short stories in a local newspaper, she didn’t write her first full novel until she went away to college at 18.  No one ever read that novel, it hit the trash during its 5th round of editing.

At 18 she received a full scholarship to the University of Nevada--Reno and left Red Ridge for the first time to go to school first time.  She lived in the dorms all 4.5 years and graduated with a degree in English, minoring in Psychology.

If you ever ask Rowan what she’s afraid of, she’ll tell you losing control again.  She notes two prominent times of completely losing control over her life, one fairly recent, and the other while she was away at college.  While she was away, she went out fairly often with her friends and one night someone slipped something into her drink.  Nothing happened, she made it home without incident, but the way it made her feel, the way she felt victimized or the potential of being so set her off.  She had two drop three of her classes and extend her time in college an extra semester because of how hard she spun out, trying to control things that she wouldn’t typically even think about.  She started her senior year 20 pounds lighter with 0% of the friends she had started her Junior year with.

While she was away at college her brother became a father, which meant frequent trips home to visit and help out with her niece who quickly meant enough to her to be her own.    

She returned home from school at 23 and worked in a bakery until she could live off of her cookie business (at 25 her cookie business was self sufficient).  

While she was growing her bakery cookie business, she began writing her first professional novel and completed it at 26.  She sold it that very same year, and published it at 27.

While it changed her life or the better and got her foot in the door with the publishing world, publishing her book also led to the the single most traumatizing thing she has ever experienced.  

While she was marketing her book, the marketing manager became very demanding of Rowan and her time, which often led to them being together very late at night.  One night, while out of town for a book reading, he pushed himself on Rowan.  This assault led to the second occurrence of Rowan losing complete control and her life suffering because of it.

After the assault, Rowan threatened to blow the whistle, and in return he threatened her career so she is still with that publishing company with him as her marketing manager.  

As of now, Rowan is in the process of getting her second book published, filling in as mom as best she can for her niece, running her cookie business and holding cookie classes, and trying to make amends for the bonds she broke when she spun out last.

TENDENCIES

Because of how contentious Rowan’s early childhood was, she has a pretty anxious mind that is always running on 100.  Her thoughts come a mile a minute and they can be pretty difficult to stop.  Melatonin is her best friend.  

When she loses control over things in her life (hELLO we meet again control-less childhood) she controls everything she can, and that manifests differently every time.  Controlling what she eats to the point of malnourishment, controlling every single word of what she’s writing, putting herself on lockdown until whatever she’s working on is      p e r f e c t.  

She fixates on her mistakes, in high school if she answered to the wrong name during roll she would be thinking about it for the rest of the day.

She bakes in excess when she’s trying to think through something, the measurements and muscle memory movements help calm her brain into being able to process whatever is on her mind.

She’s always been a writer, from the very first time she had to write in her 4th grade ELA class.  That only grew through Middle and High School creative writing classes.  She’s always loved exploring the stories and that it was something that she could perfect through six or seven round of editing.

Sticky notes cover her bedroom walls because of how quickly her thoughts come and go, her ideas for books do NOT come in order and she can often be found starring at her walls with her little scribbles trying to figure out what order they should go in.

For someone who would be considered the ‘bright & shiny’ type, she has a thing for researching and watching shows about serial killers.  She can rattle off facts like its her day job.  

Because of how quiet she can be, sometimes folks assume she’s innocent or that she doesn’t know anything, but in reality the opposite is true.  She’s spent so much time watching and analyzing everyone and everything that she knows much more that she lets on or that any civilian should.

She learned how to play guitar in college (not very well) and is a pretty damn good singer, but she’d never be the type to want to be front and center in front of a crowd.  She mostly uses these talents as a means to an end in writing mini stories with lyrics.  It appeases her in the in between period of having finished a book and being able to start a new one.

All floral, all the time.  Enough said.

GENUINELY afraid of birds and giant frogs

I’ll probably add to this it’s 1am and I’m tired.

WANTED CONNECTIONS

**ex boyfriend, who she really fucked up with.  message for more**

high school friends/enemies

someone who works in the bakery with her

women who influenced her growing up within Valencia

Valencia members who are like family

someone who mentored her in her baking

friends she lost when she spun out during college

literally anything

ESTABLISHED CONNECTIONS

wherever i go, you bring me home Damien Kingsley// her brother.  her parent.  rowan is extremely close to her brother, as kids they were all each other had.  he’s done everything he could to give her a normal childhood, to make up for her parents’ lapses.  she would do just about anything for him or his daughter.  

can't stop staring, at those oceans eyes, burning cities, and napalm skies. fifteen flares inside those ocean eyes Lev Yegorov// no title.  but he’s the only man who has ever quieted her brain long enough for her to both lose her breath and catch it.  they’ve kissed a few times and have something comparable to a magnetic field between them, but lev broke it off out of respect for her brother.

i'll stand up with you forever, i'll be there for you through it all Natalie Cassadaga// her sister.  they may not have grown up together, they bonded to an extent that would have been unfathomable had she not experienced it.  barring childhood, they’re sisters, no buts.

i’m a mess, i’m a loser, i’m a hater, i’m a user Freddie Dawson// her confidant.  this is the only person outside of nat who gets to see rowan admit to being a mess.  freddie gets the 100% honest version of rowan, usually with a little bit of liquid courage.

you can leave me in the dark if that's all I get from you ??????? OPEN // her ex.  they dated in secret for 8 months before her assault.  when she spun out after the assault, she didn’t tell him and she pushed him away.  she fucked up the relationship, but she’s a little bitter about how easily he gave up on her.  

'cause they’re gonna tell you all the rules to break, to take away that light OPEN // her roommate.  the boldness to rowan’s softness.  how different they are makes them work, they bring balance to each other (and rationalize the one another when they go too far).  

If you’ve made it this far, you deserve a baby Rowan picture, here.

[aeon-wolf]

Legends of Tomorrow | 4x05 Thoughts and Feelings

Probably one of my favorite Legends episodes this season!!!

Loved this episode so much to be honest. I think, for me, who usually watches shows for ships that’s a testament to the awesomeness that is Legends that Sara and Ava can have literally no scenes together in an episode and that episode can be amazing. And in fact, one of my favorite of the season so far. 

So much happened in one episode, probably due largely to the fact the season only has 16 episodes, so they have to cram a bunch of story into single episodes, which I have mixed feelings about. Obviously I wish there were like 21-22 episodes in the season like other Arrowverse shows, but I also like stuff happening each episode to make the character development and plot move forward and not have filler episodes. 

So I guess we’ll start off with my favorite part. NORA FUCKING DARHK. I’ve made it quite apparent in my previous recaps that Nora is one of, if not my absolute, favorite villain(ish) character of any Legends season. And I’m glad it's her that’s getting the full redemption arc. I’m glad they’re still having her grapple with her father’s death because although Damien was an awful, awful person, she still loved him in her own way and for her to still be grieving, especially because she recognizes that despite everything, he loved her enough to sacrifice himself to give her a second chance. And that staying out of trouble and taking the second chance he (and Ray to some extent) gave her, she’s respecting his memory and grieving her loss. 

Then to have Ray basically beg her to save Constantine and her being really not into the idea in the beginning, not because she didn’t necessarily want to, but because she thought she was cursed to only have dark magic and that it couldn’t be used to help anyone. And if she used it, that she would be tempted back to the darkness. But both Ray and Constantine helped her realize that her magic is what she wants it to be, she’s not controlled by it. And in the end, Ray offering her the chance to run away (again) and instead, she turned herself in because in realizing that she’s not cursed to forever be a villain, she realized that she does have to atone for the wrongs she committed. Like Constantine said, she had to do that for herself. Not for Ray. Not for Constantine. For her. And that’s why I think this arc will go well. She’s not doing this because she’s in love with Ray. She’s not doing this because she’s selfish (as far as we know) and wanting to lay low, get free and then do evil things again. She truly knows that this is the only way for her to be free of her past. Other shows *cough* Supergirl *cough* can’t relate to a redemption arc written this well, even within the first episode of said arc. (We obviously don’t know if there will be betrayal or anything down the road, but so far, I can’t really see a justifiable reason for it. Though bear in mind, it’s early. Plus the writers and actors have never even hinted at that idea. It seems to be Charlie’s arc, not Nora’s). This is everything I want in a redemption arc. Recognition that past actions were wrong, full stop. Wanting to change and be better for themselves, not for anyone else. And doing the right thing without prompting from other characters (bonus points for going against said other character’s urgings to save themselves). I very much wanted her to stay on the Waverider and join the Legends, but seeing her turn herself into the Bureau and tell Ray that she needs to stop running and face judgment and repent for her past sins, I’m very much okay with this plotline and can’t wait for it to continue. I just hope there comes a point where she is released into the custody of the Legends or something similar and we get to see her more often. I even find myself interested in Ray/Nora ship, even though Ray is my least favorite Legend. 

Ahhhh, Nora is probably going to join my regular blog content. 

Ok, so let’s talk about the magical aspect of the episode. It was good. I think it was one of the better ones actually. It got a little bit away from the fugitive storyline and set precedent that not all magical encounters the Legends face will be fugitives that broke free from prison. Which I think is good. It gives them more freedom to play with magical artifacts and things like that. It also gave us some gems of Sara and Charlie bonding, as well as Zari and Mick. 

Sara and Charlie was one of the dynamics I was most interested in. Obviously, Charlie is sort of a rebel character while Sara, despite being the coolest captain in the Arrowverse, does want her people to listen to her (rightly so). But I think she’s hasn’t really added true new members (I don’t really count Constantine as a new member. He’s a Legend, but he and Sara have a different understanding than the others) in a while and Sara has been used to her team listening to her without any real question. And here comes Charlie, kind of similar to Zari in S3 who doesn’t have that same respect for Sara’s leadership and Sara has to learn how to work with Charlie and integrate her into the team. Sharing a drink at the end of the episode and Charlie seeming to start warming up to Sara was an encouraging sign. And if we end up with a betrayal somewhere down the line, I’m going to be so sad. 

Then Zari and Mick. I’m glad there’s a callback to the time loop episode where Zari finds out Mick is a talented writer and that, ultimately, is what saves the day. There’s not a whole bunch to say about it, beyond in true Legends fashion, they’re really leaning into being absolutely weird as fuck and having it completely work. 

Note, Zari and Charlie’s sexual tension in this episode was off the charts. 

I also appreciate that they, briefly, talked about Hiroshima and the atomic bombs. I think in history, we talk about that, largely in America, with such a detachment because America was the one to drop the bomb that we often neglect how the Japanese felt during that period of time. And for Legends to take a serious moment to talk about it and give the other side a real examination, as brief as it was, is important. Legends is largely silly, but they definitely can have their serious moments and pull them off well. 

Then Ava and Nate and the Time Bureau piece. Ava, my child. I am glad that, even though it's a short time period (probably), Ava is in a headspace where she can crack jokes about her parents and being a clone. It’s kind of a coping thing I’ve found when things are kind of traumatic. There are times where it really overwhelms you, like in the last episode. And there are times where you joke about it, like this episode. And those things can exist at the same time. 

So it seems we’ll be seeing more of Mona now that she’ll probably become a part of the Time Bureau considering she has such an intricate knowledge of magical creatures. I’m curious to where that will lead. And although I ship Constantine and Gary, I think Gary and Mona is equally as cute. 

And then we start getting a glimpse of the (likely) overarching point of conflict that will be a theme throughout the season. Project Hades. It seems, from the very brief conversation we saw between Hank and, likely, another government official, the Department of Defense has a secret project that involves utilizing magical creatures as weapons or something similar. He wants them controlled and used. And as these storylines go in other shows, it’s the evil government agency exploiting the supernatural to bolster their firepower in some way. And I think in coming episodes, that’s going to throw in a direct deviation between Hank and the government and the Time Bureau itself, probably specifically Nate, Gary, and Ava, (very likely Mona as well). I think the one that will probably grapple with it the most is Ava, followed closely by Nate. Ava is and always has been a stickler for rules and protocol and likely going against the government will be difficult for her and may even lose her the Director position. Though I think when push came to shove and she was faced with that choice, she would leave the Bureau of her own free will and join the Legends to stop whatever Project Hades is. And then Nate who very much wants to have a better relationship with his father but when his father is the antagonist, that’s going to full at him. Again, I’d fully expect him to side with the Legends (if indeed that’s where this plotline is going. It’s early). But it will be a struggle I’m sure. This is all speculation on literally a 30 second conversation so take it with a grain of salt, but that’s my prediction at this point. Will definitely be revised as we get more information in future episodes. 

All in all, amazing episode. I’m super hyped that we’re bringing in Mona and Nora to have more appearances, seeing a bit more of Charlie’s interactions with the Legends, and getting more context to the Bureau and the stuff that goes on there. They were always sort of, again, this largely antagonistic entity for a lot of season 3. And seeing more of the inner workings and politics of it, I think gives a lot more context to it and helps humanize the agency to the audience. 

I know the next episode is Hank basically coming on the Waverider and observing the Legends in action because apparently, the Department of Defense is questioning their efficiency? Which, I’m not pretending to know, but doesn’t the Legends basically do this freelance? Like they aren’t funded by the government/Bureau. As far as I’m aware, they don’t really get paid at all. Oh well, I’m sure that question will be answered in the next episode, which I’m looking forward to.