#I haven't been especially moved by any other theories I've seen of him though

[undercoverxs]

((TRYING TO WRITE MY KAZUI THEORY AND TUMBLR DELETES IT. UNFAIR.

Whatever. Hi. This man baffles the mind but I wanted to get down my thoughts on him before his s2 song drops. I'm gonna skip over providing evidence cuz I'm not writing all that shit again. If you want elaborations just ask!!

S1 Kazui theory below & if I'm far enough off base I will die in a parking lot!!

-

The details of the actual events are muddy and I'm scared, and not the main point of my analysis anyway, skip below for the juicier stuff, but my theory goes as follows

He and his wife get married, all is fun and lovely

Kazui is a liar boy tm. more on that later.

She starts feeling distant and sad :(

He pursues his career. in the process he meets Bar Lady

As he does this, he's spending noticeably less time with wife. She doesn't know what's going on. It adds to the worries she's already fostered, watching him lie through their marriage and all.

Networking with Bar Lady becomes vital for his growth in Career(tm)

He doesn't cheat on his wife. (at least not emotionally? Things might have escalated, but I don't think he fell for her. The way he acts is cordial. He wears his ring blatantly. If it did escalate, it's probably because she wanted it to, and he didn't see a problem with it because he didn't actually love her. It's a chess move.)

He tells his wife about it. "I've failed before when prioritizing emotions. I'll never act on my feelings ever again." -- I think he either started feeling guilty and confessed, or his 'networking' worked and got him an impressive gig, and he told her in excitement.

As said, she's been watching his tendencies for a long time now. Worrying for their relationship, trying to communicate but getting nothing out of him. She might even have started worrying that something is wrong with her? He always acts like the perfect man, and never shows the dark underbelly that humans have- worrying about her own troubles next to his 'perfection' isn't out of he question, in my opinion. But learning about this- straws and camels, you know

All that, and, or, it's possible that he did fall for the Bar Lady, whatever. Maybe he told wife he didn't love her anymore. Or maybe she told him she knew something was up with him, and he needed to sort himself out. Maybe wife died, maybe bar lady died, maybe he died. I can't claim to know exactly what went down, what I really want to tackle is how I think Kazui approaches life

That is, it's all a play. All of it.

Growing up, and becoming a 'good, responsible adult' -- This is something he idealized, internalized, obsessed over, and acted out as perfectly as he could manage.

And that's the problem. He's never not thinking about his role in society, even here, in the minor 'society' of this prison-- He's so focused on this role of his, but he never actually understood what goes on behind the scenes of a 'good, responsible adult'.

It became a matter of ignoring every emotion. And his fatal flaw, as he sees it-- what killed another, and what ruined the 'perfect life' he was achieving, was emotion. He 'dared to dream' -- I interpret this lament of his as being about his career, aspiring for 'bigger and better' rather than settling for the average 'pays-the-bills' kind of work that a typical 'responsible adult' might do.

That, and speaking to his wife honestly for the first time about it. Imagining that he could bring a bit of truth into this 'picture-perfect marriage' , reveal a bit of what laid behind his curtain, get emotional, just a little, and that- as far as he can tell- leading to her death. When we affirmed him, it affirmed these ideas-- So he still has yet to wrap his head around exactly what had happened.

In his mind, lies are good. Normal. Everybody does it.

Emotions are useless. Remorse is useless. Things like that only bring about pain.

In the preview of "Cat", he seems frustrated-- Of course he is, because the worldview he was assured is right just doesn't line up with reality. The fact of that has been brought front and center through milgram, and some part of him understands, on some level, that lying as much as he does isn't good. It's killed someone. But he doesn't know the first thing about how to cope with that, to even accept that, really-- and I think being told he's 'forgiven' has only worsened his ability to make sense of it.

Right now, while he's trying to act unbothered and be a rock for the younglings, I think he's actually feeling very frustrated and confused. But as he does, as he always does, he suppresses and ignores it until milgram yanks it from the depths of his heart.

-

one more note, since I'm not sure where to smoothly fit it- I can't say I'm convinced he actually loves his wife. He seems to care a great deal about her, has fun with her, and maybe thinks he loves her? Maybe. But proper love, the kind that she deserved, is something that he just can't grasp with his current approach to emotions.

I also think it's very possible that he only married her because it's 'what you do'. The ideal image of an adult, in his mind, is married. He liked her enough to play house... But for her to go and die, and plunge his life into all this-- While I think he might be genuinely grieving, at least a little, he still seems to be kind of cold about it? Hard to tell amidst his lying habits, but I wouldn't put it past him to sort of blame her for his current situation. Everything was going to script until she up and died, after all.

Can't say for sure if he's that dark, but I wouldn't be surprised either way, is what I'm saying.

.

All in all, though-- Life is a play. Everything follows a tried and true script.

Going off-script is something that always has- but especially now- left him baffled, lost, and very scared.

I think he's going to cling to his role with everything he has, until Milgram has not only ripped away his mask, but torn it to a thousand pieces.

[artificialchaoscola]

CW for mentions of inc*st/implied inc*st + (hopefully unintentional) misogyny in the fandom space in discussions regarding Maria and Shadow's relationship. Serious yap session, please be wary and please read everything if you choose to do so:

I made the horrid mistake of opening Twitter, and I'm shoved headfirst into the horrible world of... Shadow/Maria discourse... Fucking ew.

Typically, when I see something I don't like, I'm a firm believer of the "block and move on" mentality. However, as I'm very passionate about Sonic as a series, I felt the need to weigh in on something I feel a strong distaste for. Another disclaimer: this isn't about anyone in particular but rather a collection of stances about this topic I've seen over the years in this fandom. It's much easier to write out my thoughts here than on Twitter, so sorry to subject you guys over here to the drama happening on the other side! Hopefully, it's coherent. I'm running on NO coffee today////

First and foremost, it goes without saying that misogyny is a huge problem. The hatred of women/non-men manifests itself in all aspects of life, unfortunately, with media being no exception. The perception of women/girls/female presenting characters is undeniably corrupted by the sexualization of female presenting concepts. Be it the way women love, the way they dress, the way they walk, talk, behave. The age, the type of relationship they have with the men around them, etc. does not shield women from sexualization. A lot of media will intentionally lean into perversion regarding ANY relationship between a man and a woman as a result. This is all worth criticizing and analyzing, and it's a topic I've written a ton on in my life.

Regarding Shadow and Maria's relationship specifically, I'll be straightforward: I find it disgusting to depict them in ANY romantic manner, and the defenses I've been seeing of it remind me of the sexualization I mentioned above.

There are so many claims that it is "obvious Shadow loves her more than platonically" because they believe "romantic love is more powerful"... in the same series where Sonic the Hedgehog himself represents a love for life, the planet, and its people. Hell, talking about the same relationship in which Maria held that pure idealistic love for the entire world she never got to return to. This love pecking order always bothers me, as though people haven't moved mountains for family, friends, strangers. It's just aggravating. Even if romance was intended here it's just a stupid thing to say regardless.

Maria and Shadow's interactions on the ARK over the years have been intentionally kept a mystery for the most part. I hope they keep it this way, as I feel it adds to The Point™ that is Shadow's life, but the tidbits we've seen in Dark Beginnings have been showing us what we've known: Shadow was made to cure Maria. Shadow feels insecure about his origins and his inability to cure Maria. Maria is a source of comfort and morality in his formative years, but he was made for her. I'm seeing people claim his devotion is an indicator of romantic love which is just... it's illogical. Romantic love isn't "better" than platonic love as I've stated. Shadow is distraught that he couldn't do the one thing beaten into his head at "birth". He saw her life end right in front of him, helpless to do anything. He's traumatized. Longing for a life in which an innocent girl got to live is not implying anything, I feel most normal people would feel that way.

"Shipping Shadow and Maria makes sense, especially since Sonic is a reincarnation of Maria--" idk wtf I'm reading. If you believe that Sonic can be a reincarnation of Maria, that's fine ig, but you can do this without making it weird. I don't buy into this theory personally, as I Sonic and his friends moreso represent the love Maria hoped Shadow would find on Earth one day, but like... you can make this not weird. Plz ffs--

I have a hard time understanding why anyone would see romantic implications when their interactions have no subtext implying that? I know shipping is for fun and doesn't have to rely on canon, but the entire reason this current discourse is even happening is that people think Shadow daydreaming about Maria being alive and leaning against him is inherently romantic??? tf LMFAO I'm a subtext girly, and I've read SO many things where I wish the romantic subtext didn't exist so it's not like I intentionally ignore it, but it just doesn't exist here. I'm not an end-all-be-all of knowledge of course, and I'm always open to being wrong about analysis in general, but the only thing they have to offer is things that aren't romantic by nature. Things people do with their siblings.

Some people bring up that Shadow's creator and devs at SEGA ship it... and to that, I say who gives a fuck what a writer says if it doesn't exist in the text? Shadow and Maria have never had romantic implications unless you think devotion to someone/their beliefs = romance, which we KNOW is not the case. I don't know where this is coming from exactly either, but I have seen people mention Shadow and Maria were apparently inspired by a couple from Please Save My Earth. I haven't read this so I can't comment on that story, but I have to once again mention the specific context of Shadow and Maria's actual story? If that was the OG intent back when SA2 was released, it's long lost to the direction SEGA ultimately went with. If the current status of their relationship is meant to be interpretable, they failed miserably.

People, rightfully, look at you weird if you ship Sonic with Tails because they're found family (and the age gap but that's obvious lol). Although not related by blood, they've grown together, fought together, and laughed together, forging a bond where they'd literally die for one another. They're brothers without a doubt. So why, then, are Shadow and Maria up for debate? Part of the implications of Shadow's tragedy in SA2, the reason you can compare him and Sonic so easily, is you get to imagine a world where Tails was robbed from Sonic so brutally. Sonic and Shadow are different people, but the reason Shadow is so snarky and cool in SA2 is that he and Sonic may not have been so different if life had been kinder to him. Hidden behind the angst are a ton of qualities Sonic also possesses. And the way I've always read it is that a huge part of why they are the way they are is due to the influence of their siblings to varying degrees. I have to ask: If everything was the same except Sonic or Tails was a girl and the other still a boy, would people suddenly debate if their love is romantic despite all their interactions being the same? If Shadow was a girl, and Maria was still a girl, would everyone suddenly agree they're siblings? I think the answer to both is obvious.

To wrap this all up, I'm just extremely grossed out by this interpretation of their relationship. I personally feel Shadow/Maria is just another case of people not knowing what platonic love is, as well as viewing ALL relationships between men/women in this specific way. I just needed my thoughts thrown out into the universe. Thank you for reading <3

[autismprotocol]

TMAGP Theory Board (Episode 8-9)

Hi guys sorry about the missed week of theory crafting my schoolwork has been extra demanding and I haven't been able to get around to updating the board until now so here's the updated board

Episode 8 especially was insane so I'm gonna break the episode breakdown into two sections.

What Happened in Episode 8: Running On Empty

New Norris Statement! it's been a while since we heard from our buddy and he did not disappoint. though there's not much to say story-wise this was just a cool incident report I loved the way they described the Lonely as a constantly hungry entity. I also noticed that the pattern of Norris's statements having to do with lost love continues to be true. it's much more subtle than his previous two incidents but the statement giver does mention losing his wife because of divorce. which I believe still follows the pattern I've theorized is taking place. 

Something up with Alice. She seems more depressed and serious than she usually is in this episode. (through episode 9 I think I know why but I'll get to that later. I don't believe she is completely in the dark like some of the newer employees and after hearing about Gwen's promotion she is getting suspicious. we have yet to know if Alice knows what's happening. but her behavior in this episode might give us a hint about how naive she actually is.

Colin is Absent. After his freakout in EP 7, Colin is MIA. according to Lena, he's on a mental health break but I would not be surprised if that is a lie.

Gerry and Gertrude are Alive!! Probably the most exciting development in this episode was meeting an alive Gerry Keay and Gertrude Robison. Sam is on the hunt for info about the Magnus Institute after the emails Jon has been sending him and he and Celia end up meeting Gerry who in this universe is considerably more happy and lives with Gertrude. I'm interested to know what role Gertrude plays in this universe is she at all connected to the Institute? I definitely think something is up with her because of the way she tries to deflect Sam's question to Gerry.

Celia Lore. after the meeting with Gerry leads to a dead end for Sam, Celia asks him to help her with her mystery. "I'm trying to look into... Weird physics stuff: time travel, other dimensions, teleportation" More proof for this Celia being from from Archives. why else would she be looking into other dimensions specifically if she wasn't trying to figure out what happened at the Panopticon. (Remember as far as we know Celia before the change in Archives was just a normal person she had no connection to the entities or the Institute.) when Sam asks, she says it's for her friend's podcast but I think she's lying. or not telling the full truth.

Georgie Barker Perhaps? speaking of the friend. our last reveal of the episode is Georgie in protocol. I don't think she is from Archives because Georgie appears after Jons's sacrifice in MAG 200. 

And thats it for episode 8 so im gonna move on to Episode 9

What happened in Episode 9: Rolling With It

Sam is back to filling out onboarding paperwork but the questions on it are strange. asking about past traumas, how many dead things you've seen recently, and the infamous question why? similar types of questions that appear in TMA job interviews.

A Magnus Statement!?! After Celia tells Sam she can't find anything at the Magnus Institute Sam considers cutting his losses and letting it go. But then Chester without any prompting begins reading a Magnus statement incident to Sam. I still believe Chester is Jon and he acts as a mentor to Sam trying to keep him safe by providing him with bits of the answers he's looking for. (this way Sam won't be in danger of looking for answers elsewhere and maybe he won't be targeted by this unknown force that had killed RedCanary and driven Colin to extreme paranoia.) the statement reveals that the institute collected and stored artifacts much like the Institute in Archives. 

What's the deal with the Institute? the statement Chester shares this episode is pretty standard Magnus stuff, magic fear dice is just another Thursday for TMAG enjoyers. but what I found most interesting was the pre-statement info. What does this viability survey mean? viable for what? I and my roommate have a kind of joke theory that the Institute in this universe is a hub for training and creating new avatars but now I'm starting to think this might actually be the case. I think they are looking for people who have the potential to become avatars as subjects. for the agents, they might be employing avatars to work for the institute and the catalyst has to be finding an avatar that can complete the ritual and bring the Change. The unknown statement giver in this episode can't be a subject because they are already claimed by a power from the dice (still unsure what power it is ) they have low potential to become an agent because based on the end of the statement they now want nothing to do with the dice stepping away from their identity as a fear avatar and then dying. and for some reason, the institute must see some potential that this individual can serve as a catalyst for the ritual. I'm hopeful we'll get another avatar statement and maybe we can revisit this Viability survey again 

Gwen's First assignment. Gwen gets her first Liason assignment and it has brought up a major player from the protocol ARG. Mr Bonzo is this weird mascot character that showed up multiple times in the ARG that was launched back in the fall of 2023. Gwen is tasked with delivering an envelope with a name and address to Nigel Dickerson someone who according to Gwen is known for Mr. Bonzo. Basically, I have no idea where this is going but I definitely think it must be important. 

Poor Alice. Alice meets with Teddy to catch up. Nothing story significant happens here but we do learn that maybe Alice still harbors some romantic feelings towards Sam.

The Ruins. After her conversation with Teddy Alice is approached by Sam with a request. He wants to go to the old Magnus Institute ruins and wants Alice to come with him. This is definitely a bad idea but she agrees and that's where we leave off

and thats it for now. The story is getting so good and I'm already attached to all the characters so im terrified to see what Sam and alice dig up at the ruins (Sam clearly didn't heed the warning of the RedCanary)

[sapphire-weapon]

Idk if this is of any interest to you, but I remember way back you mentioned RE 7& 8 were hard to play because of the first person thing. I despise that style too. 7 and Skyrim took me forever to fully adjust to and I just generally dislike not seeing my character lmao. Anyway, RE8 does actually have an official third person playing mode now, and plays the same way as the other games. I just thought I'd mention it in case you were unaware and wanted another try or whatever, but I assume you likely know already.

Also, I'm adding on a headcanon that I've had since playing. Nobody else has said it, so I'm sure I'd hear a lot of disagreement. Many point out that Leon and Ethan would've been great friends or had shipping potential, despite them never meeting. I've always seen it slightly differently though, I think Ethan actually shows what Leon could've been if he wasn't traumatised (well, before Ethan got his own hefty dose obviously lmao). I really like E and do think the characters would mix really well, but it felt to me like they might've taken some early, bare bones Leon concepts and built a different character off of it. I don't know, that's just what went through my head before.

Also, is it really true that the Winters story is completely done!? I'm seeing that passed around a lot, but it's completely nonsensical. Rose is not a finished character and the DLC made it very clear that she has a huge role to play in the future of RE. I'd be so disappointed if that whole story was dropped, especially because she's so likeable...

So, real quick -

Yes, I do know that RE8 has a third person mode. I still haven't really had the desire to play it, though, because from what I've seen, it's a bit clunky. The game was not designed with third person in mind, which makes certain sections of gameplay artificially harder and/or lose their thematic impact.

The Winters' family story is done, but that doesn't mean that Rose will never be used again. Like, when the Raccoon City arc was done, that didn't mean that all of the legacy cast went away. They just moved onto the next story arc. Rose can still move onto the next story arc; it's just that the story arc won't be about her family.

As for the middle part of your ask...

I disagree that Ethan is a look at Leon's character if the Raccoon City outbreak didn't happen.

And I say that because -- and this is a theory that I've held close to my chest for years and have never really spoken about -- I think that Sebastian Castellanos (the protagonist of The Evil Within) was, in part, Shinji Mikami's creative exploration of where Leon's character could have gone if he'd stayed a cop -- which is why TEW plays so similarly and is structured so similarly to RE4 in the first place.

Sebastian started his career as an idealistic overachiever who was so good at and so dedicated to his job that he became the youngest officer ever in the KCPD to be promoted to Detective. But, in the end, he broke, too, and went off the deep end into a horrible spiraling meltdown that culminated in him turning into a paranoid conspiracy theorist with a drinking problem who nearly lost his job -- several times -- for insubordination, violent outbursts, and illegal investigations into the corruption within the KCPD. The only thing that saved him was his incredible reputation and spotless record from when he was younger.

If you're interested at all, I have a compilation of Sebastian's in-game journal detailing the rise and fall of his career here. There's also a visual representation of the good times -> the breakdown -> the result that the DLCs put into the game that you can watch here.

Basically, I think that Leon's character was always bound for tragedy, one way or the other, because I don't think that Leon ever had it in him to have a healthy response to grief and hardship in his life to begin with. All roads lead to the same place.

Ethan survived (well, "survived" LMAO) several different traumatic events and arguably came out stronger. I don't think Leon ever would have or could have done the same.

[scripted-downfall]

How do/did you feel about the SPN series finale?

Hello! Thanks for the ask!

However, this is a bit of a tough question. I haven't actually seen it --- I'm currently at the tail end of season 12, and I had to take a pause on watching it for a bit because of an unfortunately timed family issue --- so, in some regards, I'm unfortunately unclear on my emotions regarding it. In some ways, I simply can't address everything, and my stance right now might shift substantially whenever I get there for real. (Consider this the disclaimer section of my answer.)

Additionally, when I first heard about it... I didn't feel especially strongly. I watched a few clips --- mainly consisting of the driving-in-Heaven-and-atrocious-wig section --- and that was about it; I certainly didn't get why everyone was so aggravated. Partly, I suspect, this is because I had only just started watching the first season and, thus, hadn't grown as attached to the characters as I now am; partly because I have a tendency to rationalize things. If I can't change something, I'll try to make my peace with it.

All this being said, I'm now about 99.99% certain that I hate the finale. (Again, I haven't seen it yet, so I don't know for sure... but I made a post earlier about my transition from my state of eh, it happened and I expected it to happen so that's fine to oh bloody goodness, this is horrible, as well as some of my rationale for the latter point of view, and that's available: here.)

However, my main stance is as follows: it's not a happy ending. If that was intentional (e.g. it was supposed to be in line with the "Chuck won" theory I've seen floating around)... idk. I guess they did what they intended. But if they wanted it to be a happy ending --- and everything I've seen about the behind-the-scenes stuff suggests that they did (but, again, could be wrong) --- then I can't help but feel that they very much missed the mark.

First, there are the personal endings for both characters. I... honestly don't understand how anyone is happy. Obviously, I far prefer Dean of the two brothers, but I don't even think that Sam had a good ending. Dean died early in hunting, in the same lifestyle and same manner that would have happened years earlier, if he'd died in season 1. He didn't get a normal life --- despite the dog and the home and the job (or something like it) application sitting on his desk --- and it basically came across as though his sole 'peace' came from his death. And this is especially bad because a large part of the series --- especially back when he wanted to take on the trials during season... 8? I think? --- had featured various characters trying to convince him that no, it wasn't reasonable for him to die like a "grunt". Sam, meanwhile, moved on and got the same normal life he'd have had if nothing happened in season one, which might seem like a good thing. Except. He repeatedly (earlier in the series) expressed a dissatisfaction with normalcy and just moving on, and some of his biggest ostensible regrets from the show are his periods where Dean was dead (or in Purgatory) and he had to keep going. It's just a reprise of what Dean had to go through with the season 5 finale, except permanent, and the aftermath of Swan Song had never been shown to be a good thing, so... I'm really confused as to how it's supposed to be one now. Eileen isn't present --- nor is any other fully-developed love interest that would make it believable for him to have a happy life --- and it's a struggle for me to see that this qualifies as a happy ending.

But also, one of the main arguments I see in favor of the finale is that "the show has always been about the brothers." And I guess I get it? Or, at least, I get what they're trying to say. I just don't agree with it. One of the most quoted lines in the show is "Family don't end in blood", so it seems far more reasonable to say that "the show has always been about family." It's been about the idea that blood family isn't the end-all, be-all of what matters, and yet the entire finale basically just said: psych.

Jack is barely mentioned. Cas is barely mentioned. (And, while, yes, I've made no bones about the fact that I ship Destiel, that's not what's motivating this. I struggle to understand how the finale was liked by anyone, even from a platonic viewpoint.) To the extent that they are mentioned, it (to my knowledge) solely consists of saying that their worth consists of what they could do. This is the same message the show has been resisting in terms of Dean, in terms of Cas, et cetera, and going back on it now feels, frankly, like a bit of a betrayal. Bobby's the only actual family member to show up. (I recognize, however, that COVID interfered with this to some degree, and I can't say that I know all the ways in which it did. I would argue that it's still a bit weird that they couldn't even bring in Cas/Jack, especially since I'm pretty certain they'd been on set for another thing not long before... but, again, I could be wrong.) The presence of John and Mary in Heaven is suggested to be a good and reasonable thing. (I would also mention that it's kinda amusing that Dean finds out his parents are there and then drives in the other direction... but that doesn't really redeem much, so.)

And, in short, the entire message of the show... combusts. The idea has always been to never stop fighting. That's the point of season 3 (even though it fails), season 4 (even though it fails), season 5 (even though it fails), and so on, and so forth. That failure on a season-by-season basis sucks... but they keep going. They keep fighting fate. And then fate takes control and the whole struggle becomes completely pointless because... fate wins. Dean dies a season 1 death. Sam dies a season 1 death. And all their fighting to avoid that? At root: essentially pointless.

All this being said, this is just my personal opinion. If people like the finale, all the more power to them; I'm glad it was satisfying (and, no pressure, but it'd be cool to hear alternative viewpoints... as long as they're kind and logical instead of the slurs and threats of late). And, of course, a lot of this is at least half talking out of my hat, since I haven't seen it (either in full --- e.g. not in clips --- or in chronological order with the rest of the series), but I suspect that my overall feeling shan't really change, and only the specifics will. Regardless, I'm sure I'll make posts about it whenever I get there :)

Thank you again for the ask, and I hope that did answer the question to some decent degree!

[heyovivi]

Gwyn and Azriel and Prejudice

Hello, back again with some possible theories and this time it's about one of my favorite Valkyries, Miss Gwyneth Berdara and some more controversial subjects such as the prejudice that surrounds her and other characters.

Now I'm sorry I haven't been posting a lot--though I'm sure not people even notice seeing how we have a large community of readers who also come up with some amazing theories! But I needed to slow down on posting my wild theories and imaginations because I felt that some of my readers who read my fan fiction were starting to catch onto the plot of "A Court of Shadows and Scars"--but I've been waiting to post about this one because I think it's important and because I've already addressed it in my story.

Moving on.

Gwyneth Berdara.

Although she was very much a newly-introduced secondary character to Nesta's story she is oh-so important and beloved by our reading community. Gwyn has stolen the hearts of many with her wit, charm, and inquisitive personality--and not just readers but her fellow characters as well.

All except a very few including Merrill and the main antagonist of ACOSF, Queen Briallyn--though there are many others I could mention, such as the Illyrians, but my main focus will revolve around Merrill and Briallyn and their prejudices against Gwyn along with other characters with their own prejudices such as Beron and even our own brooding shadowsinger, Azriel.

Yes, Azriel.

Now we know the story of Gwyn and we also a know a bit of her past as well.

Gwyn's grandmother was once a river nymph who seduced a High Fae male hailing from the Autumn Court and fell pregnant with Gwyn's mother who was sent to be raised at the temple of Sangravah because she couldn't dwell in the rivers of Spring Court and was too wild to be confined in the Forest House of Autumn Court.

"My mother was unwanted by either of their (Gwyn's grandmother and grandfather) people. She could not dwell in the rivers of the Spring Court, but was too untamed to endure the confinement of the forest house of Autumn. So she was give in her childhood to the temple at Sangravah, where she was raised..." (Gwyn Berdara, A Court of Silver Flames, pg. 316)

Now what we know about nymphs is extremely limited in the ACOTAR world. But in Greek mythology--from which they hail from--nymphs were idolized as guardians of nature. They were revered as the spirits of specific natural features and were often identified with parts of nature such as the Oreads (mountain nymphs) and the Hamadryads (tree nymphs).

The name "nymph" comes from the Greek word that means "young woman", and so naturally these beings were considered to be female. Indeed, they were represented as young, beautiful, musical, amorous, and gentle youthful creatures. And while there is some question about whether they were immortal or not - Hamadryads in particular were linked with the lives of their chosen trees - it is believed that they were extremely long lived.

A beautiful, ever-young creature that inhabits the lovliest of all wilderness places including clear lakes, streams, and crystalline caverns. They do not like any form of intrusion but there is a 100% that a nymph will be friendly if approached by another good creature. Nymphs are exceptionally intelligent and are very rarely found.

Gwyn's lineage of nymph, according to Greek mythology, would be categorized as a Naiad, the nymphs of streams, rivers, and lakes. The Naiads, or water nymphs, dwelt beside running water. Like their cousins, the Nereids and Oceanids of the oceans, the Oreads of the hills and the Dryads of the forests and trees, they were usually sweet, benign spirits. Naiads, especially, were helpful and healing, nurturing fruits, flowers and mortals. Yet the youth Hylas who went to draw water from a pool was lured by the nymphs into the water and was never seen again--meaning that despite being creatures of nature they also possessed darker roles in certain legends.

I interpret this as Nymphs being hostile around creatures who were unwelcome in their lands for being ill-intentioned.

Many times in Greek mythology, nymphs were often seen as the symbolism of beauty and love; such as Aphrodite--and because they were always describe to be beautiful and graceful women with soft, sweet appearances they often drew the attention of the Gods creating legends of romantic affairs and infidelity.

Their very beauty caused the Gods to lust after them to a ravenous extent, making the Nymphs sometimes turn to the Goddesses for help. However, not all Goddesses were kind towards the nymphs--such as Aphrodite or Hera who grew jealous of their beauty when their very beauty and natural loveliness challenged the fidelity of their lovers.

In this case, let's assume that role of Gods, of higher beings, were the High Fae in the ACOTAR realm.

In the ACOTAR realm, it's easy to assume the nymphs are somewhat--if not--wholly the same as they are described in classic literature. When Gwyn tells the story of her grandmother she states that her grandmother seduced a High Fae, resulting in the birth of her mother. If this is the case then I think I can understand why characters such as Merrill and Briallyn look down on her lineage so much because again, Nymphs, in the eyes of major Goddesses such as Aphrodite and Hera, were essentially home wreckers (even though many confrontations with Gods and Nymphs were not always consensual).

With the reputation of being male-thirsty seductresses, nymphs are looked down upon as lower-beings, that and their lack of immortality (more often then not Nymphs linked their lifelines to an object in nature: a tree nymphs links their life to a tree, water nymph links their life to a stream (but I suppose that makes them immortal?)).

With this devious reputation placed on her lineage, Gwyn is often the butt of insults with being call half-breed and all by the likes of Briallyn and Merrill.

"But you made it easy for me: you went right to her house in Windhaven. Spared me the trouble of luring you. I let those witless Illyrians take her and the half-breed as an amusing bonus." (Queen Briallyn, A Court of Silver Flames, pg. 721)

"I am descended from Rabath, Lord of the Western Wind...Unlike Gwyneth Berdara, I am not lackey to be dismissed." (Merrill, A Court of Silver Flames, pg. 315)

Merrill glanced between her and Gwyn before saying, "get back to your work, nymph." (Merrill, A Court of Silver Flames, pg. 315)

Okay--so Merrill doesn't specifically call her a half-breed, but dismissing her as a lower race and simply calling her "nymph" is basically comparable to an insult.

Now, that we've got Gwyn out of the way, let's move onto Autumn Court, more specifically Beron.

Beron is an ass--plain and simple. He is the personification of a conservative abuser and is honestly one of the most disgusting characters I have ever had the displeasure of reading. However--I suppose the problems he brings do push certain character formulas forward such as Eris and Lucien. Such as executing Jesminda for simply being involved with Lucien and for being anything but High Fae.

"Lucien fell in love with a faerie whom his father considers to be grossly inappropriate for someone of his bloodline. Lucien said he didn't care that wasn't one of the High Fae, that he was certain the mating bond would snap into place soon and that he was going to marry her and leave his father's court to his scheming brothers...His father had her put down. Executed, in front of Lucien, as his two eldest brothers held him and made him watch." (Tamlin, A Court of Thorns and Roses, pg. 160)

I don't think I need to go ahead and explain Beron and his prejudices against those who are not High Fae--his actions speak enough as is. But what I do want to do is go back to the specific wording Gwyn uses when explaining how her mother ended up in Sangravah, she says: "She could not dwell in the rivers of the Spring Court, but was too untamed to endure the confinement of the forest house of Autumn."

Confinement.

Not dwell. Not live. Not prosper. Confinement.

Now, we haven't navigated Autumn for all it's beauty and culture. We've only seen the Autumn Court through the eyes of Feyre when she is traversing through the courts in ACOWAR.

But I wonder how he approached with dealing with those who are not High Fae? What if the Autumn Court is much like the Summer Court where the court works around a system of class where High Fae are put at the top and anything but is put at the bottom? Therefore assuming that the treatment of such beings is cruel and unjust, creating a defining line between the races in which they can never reach equilibrium.

If that is so that brings me to the idea that many courts outside the jurisdiction of Night Court have assumed systems such as this, making there a limited amount of options for people like Gwyn's mother to prosper peacefully. Because we already know that the main reason why the first war with Hybern happened was because Hybern demanded to keep human and low fae as slaves, placing High Fae at the top. Spring sided with Hybern, because remember Amarantha and the former High Lord of Spring were close friends, Summer Court most likely fought to keep slaves as they still continuously oppress lesser fae, so I imagine it was worse for humans. And let's be honest, Autumn remained "indifferent" but one look at their current High Lord tells me that they weren't that indifferent--not unless Beron wasn't the ruling High Lord at the time.

So with that in mind, Gwyn and her family couldn't flee to Summer, nor Spring or Autumn. Night was probably never an option--as their reputation of being dark and gloomy more than likely frightened the idea away. Winter Court was obvious seeing how it's a winter wonderland of frozen lakes, streams, and rivers. Then there is Day Court which based on their current High Lord and aesthetic, is a desert land of sand and heat--with little to no water supply for any Nymph.

However there is one court that still remains. Dawn Court. From what we know they are a more than neutral court among the courts of Prythian and mostly value innovation. Geographically, Dawn is a lush, eternal countryside rich with the weight of summer upon it. The towns were red-roofed villages with sparkling rivers--a perfect destination for any relocating half-nymph- half-High Fae born child. However we also have to take into account the time period of when Gwyn's mother was born. Remember, prior to ACOTAR, Prythian was under the rule of Amarantha for fifty years--and even if that wasn't the case Summer was under the rule of a High Lord who didn't harbor the same compassion to change the unequal class system like Tarquin did when he assumed his place on the throne. Autumn was being ruled by Beron by that time already who'd probably have her confined. And Spring was under the traditional rule of Tamlin--and despite that Gwyn's mother would've still be considered as unwelcomed by the other nymphs.

If you take the time and current dilemma of Prythian--then there was really no where to go but Sangravah--putting into question the prejudices certain courts have against beings that are of the Low Fae variety.

I predict that despite being beautiful, charming, and compassionate, Gwyn still faces so much prejudice for simply being 1/4th nymph--which to the High Fae is a stain in her lineage to be a descendant from such a deviant being.

Now, let's move onto Azriel.

Azriel, as we all know, has his own conflicts with the Illyrians. Of course, that is to be expected, especially after learning of his backstory with being abused by his family and then later forced into training with the Illyrian army. The only comfort he had ever received was from the likes of his chosen family and so I believe he is projecting his own, personal experience of being an Illyrian into his hatred of Illyria--seeing the Illyrians as no more than a means to end due to their constant reluctance to move on with the times.

Don't get me wrong, I love Azriel. But I think a big part of his character is accepting who he is. He is an Illyrian--and I believe that with the combine power of him, Cassian, and Rhys they can bring the kind of change that Cassian had only ever dreamed of to Illyria. Yet, his own prejudices against his people hold him back and that's probably because he hasn't fully faced his trauma and instead skitters back at the mention or thought of it. I think if Az was healed he wouldn't be so reluctant to visit Illyria or wish for it's demise.

"A rare visit from the shadowsinger. Both myth and terror. Az looked just as displeased to be here, but he'd come when I asked...It was healthy, perhaps. For Az to sometimes remember where he'd come from. He still wore the Illyrian leathers. Had not tried to get the tattoos removed. Some part of him was Illyrian still. Always would be. Even if he wished to forget." (Rhysand, A Court of Frost and Starlight, pg. 222)

"Cassian rolled his eyes. But they both knew Azriel would sooner disband and destroy Illyria than help it. Convincing their brother than the Illyrians were a people worth saving was still a battle amongst the three of them." (Cassian, A Court of Silver Flames, pg. 42)

Now, moving onto the conclusion, finally. If Gwynriel's story was to happen, I think there is a sufficient amount of evidence to claim that Azriel's plot would revolve around the Illyrian conflict.

I'm just going to drop down this link: https://yazthebookish.tumblr.com/post/648449405425516544/the-illyrian-conflict-being-set-up-in-acosf-along

@yazthebookish highlights textual evidence that hints at a possible story arc for an Illyrian plot line because yes, there is still so much to uncover in Illyria and although I believe a large part of that was suppose to be Cassian and Nesta's story I also understand why it could go to Azriel.

Azriel needs to learn to accept his race, and the Illyrians need to learn how to accept change. I think they can learn something from one another and I believe Gwyn will play a role in Azriel's adventure. Do I think she's going to be the face some enlightenment in Azriel's journey--no. That's stupid. And if you twist my words, read it again. I believe because of Gwyn's past with prejudice against her and what she is, she can level with Az and understand him in a way that can potentially help him develop better as a character. Yes, she might be there for guidance or to give Azriel counsel, but in the end I think it's Az's job to tackle down the Illyrian conflict while Gwyn, with the help of Azriel, tackles down her own, whether that be discovering her lineage or where she came from or even healing from her trauma as a SA victim.

Please be respectful and leave your thoughts in the comments.

[miss-smutty]

The Destructive Secret

Chapter 3

A/N- The secrets out! Well to you guys anyway 🤫

Summary- You've got a secret to hide and it's going to cause complete and utter destruction. It's only so long until your lies are going to catch up to you.

Word count- 3,258

Warnings- Swearing, lies, deceit, cheating

Pairing- Chris Hemsworth X you / Liam Hemsworth X you

18+ only!

Disclaimer: This is an entire work of fiction/AU and has no affiliation to real life what so ever! This is a fictional story about fictional characters who happen to share names and faces with some real people.

Posted: 25th May 2021

Taglist-: @innerpaperexpertcloud @pandaxnienke @chickensarentcheap @mostly-marvel-musings

Chapter 1 + 2

"Morning babe, I tried to let you have a sleep in. I didn't wake you did I?" He asks, preoccupied with the washing up.

"No, I actually had a good sleep for once." You say nonchalantly while searching through the kitchen cupboards for a mug in a half asleep haze. "That's not going to last long when I have to spend the weekend in a hotel bed though."

Finally finding your favourite mug right at the back of the cupboard, you slam it on the counter a little more aggressively than you expected, startling you out of your daziness. Your boyfriend raises his eyebrow at you questioningly and you just shrug your shoulders back at him. It was definitely going to be one of them days, those days where nothing goes right. You would question what you'd done to deserve it but you already know the answer to that.  You were just going to have to put up with karma kicking your ass at any given moment for the rest of your life.

"Aww I know babe, at least it's only two night's though." He comes up behind you, resting his chin on your shoulder and wrapping his arms around your waist. "You've just reminded me -" He presses carefully, the way he shifts his composure telling you he's uncomfortable with what he's about to say and your heart begins to beat a little faster. " - I know you're going away tomorrow and I really wanted to have the night alone..." He pauses again.

"Just tell me, what is it?" You ask, trying to keep the annoyance from your voice.

"My brother called this morning, he sounds in a bad way so I said he can come over and hang out tonight. You don't mind do you?" Now your heart stops beating completely, what the hell is he playing at? 

 "I'm worried about him, he's not been right lately and he's going away for work tomorrow night too so it's the only time I can see him really." You're angry with him for saying he's going away too, how more fucking obvious can he make it? You're just both suspiciously going to be away with work at the same time. You can't protest about it now, you don't want to raise any more questions.

"No of course not, babe." You agree reluctantly, still seething with anger on the inside. "Right, I'm going for a shower and then I better start packing." You sulk.

"Do you want some help?" He ask as you kiss him on his cheek while you're passing. 

"It's ok babe, you know how meticulous I am with my packing." You say smiling softly at him.

"Gotcha, I am not getting involved with that. Give me a shout if you want a coffee." 

"You're the best." 

                         ****************

Using the tap to muffle the sound of your voice while you make a call. This was starting to become a habit now, the sound of running water in the background whenever you speak to him, a memory that you will never forget. Whenever you run your bath or fill the sink you're going to be reminded of your lying and cheating. Great! Just another thing to add to the list of things to look forward to in the future.

You never thought you'd be a cheater, especially to someone you loved and cared for so deeply. You'd always despised people who cheated, could never understand how people could have multiple lives and cheat multiple times. Naively thinking that if they weren't happy they should just tell the person they are with and stop all the hurt but it doesn't always work that way. You didn't suddenly think 'hey I'm not happy, I'm going to go fuck someone else'. You certainly wouldn't have chosen his brother if that was the case. Over the years it just happened and you hated yourself for it. You weren't even unhappy in your relationship, so that throws all your theories of 'cheaters' completely out of the window. The sound of the dial tone snaps you from your thoughts.

"Hi babe." He answers almost immediately, leaving you with no time to regain your composure. "Hello?" 

"Oh erm.... Don't 'hi babe' me." Not a great start, you have to admit.

"What's wrong?" You can tell that Chris is amused with your tone of voice and it makes that anger resurface.

"You know exactly what's wrong, why the fuck are you coming over here tonight?" 

"Erm to s-" you don't even give him time to speak before you interrupt him. You don't believe that he's just coming to see Liam, you know he's coming to see you no matter what he says.

"As if it's not awkward enough without having you both in the same house together... You have to cancel." The thought of them both being together with you filled you with fear. How were you supposed to act around them both? The idea of it fills you with chills.

"I'm not cancelling. I haven't seen him in a while and he invited me. It'll be fine, I'll be on my best behaviour, I promise. I get you all to myself tomorrow anyway." 

"Exactly so why do you need to come over here and make everything all awkward?"

"Babe I'm coming to see my brother, you get me to yourself tomorrow. Don't be selfish" you could hear the amusement in his voice, you're sure he enjoys this.

"Pfft." A huff is about the only thing you could manage right now.

"You get to have both your favourite people in the same room, at the same time... Hey maybe we can have a threesome?" 

"Fuck off." You murmur, although you have to admit the thought of it does turn you on slightly. In a perfect world that would be the best possible outcome but it's not a perfect world and that most definitely would never happen.

"I'll see you tonight, wear something sexy." He laughs.

"This isn't funny." You reply before hanging up the phone and you're left alone with the tormenting sound of flowing water.

This is going to be a disaster, you can't help but think that tonight is the night it all comes out. Surely this isn't what he has planned, he wouldn't want to hurt his brother in such a viscous way. To announce at dinner that he's fucking his girlfriend and that they've been going behind his back and fucking for years. Surely not?  You're pretty sure you're being paranoid but know you're going to be on the edge of your seat all night, frightened everytime he opens his mouth to speak.

                                 **************

You're sure you've downed almost a full bottle of wine before he's even arrived, you try to remember how many glasses you've had when you finally hear the dreaded chime of the doorbell. Your head is dizzy with bubbles already, your stomach churning at the thought. It wasn't the cleverest of ideas to drink so much already, not when you need to be sharp and aware of what you're doing and saying. Fuck.

The way Chris' eyes light up when he sees you reminds you exactly why this is all worth it. You feel your nerves settle slightly now the first step was over and it wasn't so bad was it? You don't know what you were actually expecting, him to walk through the door and kiss you passionately sounds about right though.

"Chris! Hi, how you doing?" You act, standing on your tiptoes to hug him. It's so hard acting like he's your brother in law and not your... Boyfriend? Lover? You don't even know what to call him.

"Hi, beautiful." He whispers into your ear, making your stomach flip when you feel his lips graze against your neck. "I'm good thank you, how are you guys?" He says louder, moving away from your arms reluctantly and standing against the counter. The glint in his eyes and the smirk on his lips make him look sexy as hell, you bite onto your lip as hard as you can. Hoping to draw blood so you can concentrate on the pain and not the fact you want to rip your boyfriend's brothers clothes off.

"We're great" Liam replies.

"I'm sure you are." Chris says sarcastically under his breath, luckily Liam didn't hear him. You give Chris the glare, reminding him to be on his best behaviour.

"But how are you? You didn't sound too good the other day." Liam asks, opening a bottle of wine.

"I was probably just tired bro, you know how it is. I don't get much sleep nowadays." 

"Oh yeah, is a woman involved by any chance?" Liam asks, laughing to himself.

"Yeah, something like that." Chris subtly grazes your hand as you walk into the kitchen to help Liam. You freeze on the spot, looking into his eyes you see a desperately pleading look. You know this is torture for him, that he just wants to grab you and hold onto you. Even though he tries his best not to, he hates his brother for it, he hates that he gets to have you.

"Anyway, it smells great in here. What you making?" Chris says locked in eye contact with you. 

"I've just thrown together some dinner." You say casually, although deep down your heart is tugging and your hands are shaking.

"Her food is fucking amazing, I probably should have made sure you hadn't eaten first though?" Liam puts his arms around you and kisses your cheek as you carry on stirring the food on the stove. You're glad you have your back to Chris because you dread to think of his reaction. How you have to pretend you don't know each other on that deep level. You had tried to warn him that this was a bad idea.

"Yeah, no that would be awesome. Thanks" You can tell by the way his voice broke that this is causing him pain and there's nothing you can do about it. 

                              **************

"Do you want a beer or are you ok with wine?" Liam asks Chris as you sit down at the table ready to eat.

"I'd love a beer bro" Chris replies. You watch from the corner of your eye as Liam heads to the fridge, your heart beating a little faster now he's out of sight. Looking to Chris nervously.

Chris takes the opportunity while Liams back is turned and grabs your hand under the table. Stroking your palm with his thumb he mouths the words 'love you'. You can't help but feel sorry for him, this horrible situation you're all in. You mouth the words back to him before he lets your hand go when Liam comes back into sight.

All the way through the meal Chris can't take his eyes off of you, you're worried Liam will notice but he's paying no attention. Obviously he has no reason to doubt his loyal girlfriend and protective big brother, why would he? Which makes your betrayal even more unbearable.

"This is great Y/N." Chris says after tasting your food and moving your dress a little higher so he can place his hand on the top of your bare thigh under the table. The shock makes you jump and you hit your knee on the top of the table.

"Are you alright?" Liam asks looking slightly confused.

"Sorry, yeah. I just burnt my mouth." There's a slight hint of amusement in your words, you're a bad person but the situation is just too much not to find it slightly funny. The feel of Chris' hand on your thigh makes you feel butterflies in your stomach at the same time as the deep sick feeling of dread, your mind in a giant conflicted turmoil of feelings.

You can see Chris is also trying to hide his laugh as he takes a sip from his beer, one hand still on your thigh. Why the fuck am I sat in the middle? You hadn't thought about it when you'd sat down but now realise it was a massive mistake and also subconsciously the perfect place for you. The playing piece in a match against brothers, only one player is unaware there is any contest at all.

Chris finishes his beer and puts it down on the table loudly, filling the awkward silence between you all. You can understand the awkwardness between you and Chris but why is Liam not speaking? He wanted to see Chris to figure out what was wrong with him but he's not asking any questions. Has he figured it out? Did he see Chris touch your hand earlier? Had he seen you both whispering? You wriggle in your chair, feeling deadly uncomfortable and hoping Chris would move his hand. He didn't take the hint.

"Do you want another?" Liam asks Chris, already getting up from his chair and not waiting for an answer. Something is definitely wrong. Chris's hand moves further up your thigh, grazing the lace of your panties with the tip of his long finger. He's also completely oblivious to your awkwardness, drinking too much is numbing his senses and becoming dangerous. He's playing with fire. 

You fling your chair back from the table, standing abruptly, your cheeks flushed red with embarrassment and nervousness.

"I'm just gunna get some more beers from the basement." Liam announces, Chris sat cooly in his chair with not an ounce of nervousness.

"It's ok I'll go, you guys have a chat." You say, desperately needing to escape for a minute to catch your breath.

"Don't be silly, it'll only take me a minute." Liam says, already walking towards the door.

Chris takes his cue again, standing from his chair and moving over to you. Standing closely so he can whisper in your ear, his arm pressed to the small of your back while he holds you against him.

"I can't wait to have you in my bed again tomorrow Y/N. I've waited too long." 

"Chris, shh." 

"No, you shh. I wish I had you now, right here. I could just sit you up on this counter and fuck you right here -" He moves his hand up your skirt, gripping your ass in his big hands. "- You want that don't you? Tell me." His teeth graze the skin on your neck, making your head hang back loosely. You want it so bad, all your tension melts away as your muscles relax in his arms.

"We've got all weekend Chris, we can't do this here. It's too risky." You sigh, carefully wrapping your arms around his neck and listening for any sign of Liam.

"Fuck I know but it's so hard being here with you and not being able to fucking touch you." He moves away from you, running his hand though his hair in frustration.

"I told you how hard it'd be." You say.

"How hard what would be?" Liam asks breathlessly. Fuck. You hadn't heard him coming back, how much more had he heard? 

You're lost for words, completely frozen in shock. If he hadn't heard or seen anything it was still way too close for your liking.

"To shoot this ball of foil into that bin from all the way over here." Chris replies hastily, you're incredibly impressed with his quick thinking.

"Let me have a go then." Liam says, taking the foil from Chris. Typical competive brothers. Chris turns to you and winks devilishly, you're perfectly aware of how desirable he looks but you try to push that thought aside. You can't be thinking about that, the things he had just been saying and the thrill of almost being caught, all at once. 

"My turn." You say raising your eyebrows at them both as you swing your hips, confidently over to the fridge. Chris bites his lip as he watches you walk over. "Watch and learn boys." This is quite possibly the strangest situation you've ever been in but you might as well make the most of it.

You shoot your shot and land the foil ball straight into the bin. Turning around and bowing, you're wide eyed when you straighten back up. They both moved towards you as if they were going to kiss you, luckily Chris stopped himself in time.

"Only you could've landed that shot." Liam says, picking you up in his arms, leaving you with no choice but to wrap your legs around him while he kisses your lips deeply. 

You risk a glance at Chris over Liam's shoulder and he's seething with anger, you can see it written all over his face. 

"I'm gunna go outside for some air." Chris announces blankly while Liam sets you back on the ground, a look of concern on his face.

"You alright bro?" Liam asks with no reply from Chris as he walks out of the door.

You get on with the cleaning up, distracting yourself and hoping Liam hadn't noticed Chris' reaction. You can sense Liam behind you, stood on the spot thinking. He's working it out, he's putting together all the pieces and finally working it out.

"I've worked out what's wrong with Chris." He comes up behind you, emptying the plates into the trash. Fuck, here we go.

"What do you mean?" You ask gently, not really wanting to hear his conclusion.

"You know, the reason why he's been moping about all the time." You don't turn around, you just listen, hiding your face and any reaction you're showing. "Well he's quite obviously jealous of us." He adds. There we go, he's worked it out or he's definitely worked out Chris' part in it all.

You felt your stomach drop, Chris was so obvious it wouldn't take a genius to see something was wrong.

"What makes you say that?" You press, carefully. Your back still turned to Liam while you clean the surfaces.

"Don't tell me you didn't notice how he just acted when I kissed you." Of course you noticed, you just hoped Liam hadn't. It won't be long until he puts all the pieces together and figures this all out, if he hasn't already. You pour the last of the bottle of wine into your glass, gulping it greedily. Lord knows you're going to need it.

"He needs a girlfriend, can't you fix him up with one of your friends?" You can't describe the relief you feel right now and a small twang of jealousy at the thought of Chris with one of your friends.

"I'm sure your brother isn't short of admirers Liam, he doesn't need me to fix him up" Your tone of voice was a little too short. Pull it together.

"I suppose you're right but he doesn't have the best taste in women does he?" You can feel your cheeks burning, you're fighting the urge to defend yourself. Telling Liam his brother had the same taste in women when it came to you, wouldn't go down quite so well would it? 

"I'm seeing someone actually Liam." Chris says, overhearing your conversation as he came back in after finally composing himself.

"Oh really? You never said." Liam asks curiously.

"Yeah, we're keeping it to ourselves for now... Until she tells her boyfriend." What the actual fuck? You can't believe he's just said that, he looks at you defiantly, completely over this whole thing.

Liam nearly spat his drink out and you're sure your cheeks are beetroot red, you don't have a clue what to do in this situation. 

"Is she married? Do I know her?" Liam questions further. You're hoping and praying he stops with the questions, Chris is ready and willing to come clean, you can tell by his expression.

"No not married but you do know her. You know her really well actually." Chris says while avoiding your gaze purposefully...

[being-worthy]

Sunday Home Cinema: Army of the Dead!!

I haven't done one of these reviews in a long time (thanks to Covid-19 ¬¬) but I'm glad this film was the one to get me back in doing these reviews.

Honestly, I found out about the film about two weeks ago when I clicked on it on YouTube out of curiosity. It looked good and I'm an all big fan of zombie films and series and every zombie-themed film/series, even if it's extremely bad made (e.g. Z Nation but it's so funny to watch).

Sorry for any mistakes or things that make not much sense but I'm writing this at 2.30am and I just wanted to write this down while it's still fresh (I might review it later on if I feel like it).

> SPOILER ALERT AHEAD!! <

Apparently, Zack Snyder's Army of the Dead (here's the trailer), which can be watched on Netflix, is the prequel of Dawn of the Dead from 2004 also directed by him, which was a remake of the George A. Romero classic. I've got a hard time seeing this due to the zombies being so different but well, let's just roll with it.

Scott Ward (played by Dave Bautista) is offered/hired for $50 million by Bly Tanaka (villain/businessman played by Hiroyuki Sanada) to break into a walled Las Vegas after it was overrun by a zombie outbreak starting at the outskirts of the city with patient zero aka alpha zombie Zeus (more to the different zombie types later on) to "apparently" retrieve $200 million that is stashed in a safe at the casino's basement. Basically, it's like Ocean's Eleven but with zombies giving the film a nice touch.

I knew from the moment Tanaka offered Scott this job that there was going to be more to it. Why else would a stinking rich guy like Tanaka need to have a group to retrieve some money when: a. the insurance paid him some of that money back. I know he mentions he can't use it but come on, people like him know how to find either a way around whatever rule there might be or even wash it. And b. he looks like a guy who understands how business works and is well off, so you're telling me he wants to send a group there just for $200 million? B*tch please, I'm sure that's just petty cash to him, and there's surely more to it, especially after one of his goons (Martin) "invites" himself to tag along with the group to "make sure" they get the job done.

If I was offered that kind of money to go to a completely sealed city ruled by zombies, I wouldn't accept it no matter how bad my situation might be. The probability that something might go sideways is too high not to mention the risk that the virus spreads out to the rest of the world, I wouldn’t be able to live with that on my conscience.

In order to pull off this heist Scott assembles a team for the mission:

Vanderohe, the tank and chainsaw man. There'll be a little paragraph for him since his fate doesn't make entirely sense to me.

Marianne Peters, the pilot.

Maria Cruz, the mechanic.

Kate Ward, a volunteer in the quarantine zone. She's Scott's daughter and the only (human) survivor in the film.

Geeta, the mother. She ventures into the zombie-infested Vegas to find money in order to pay for safe passage out of the quarantine zone for herself and her children. I believe she dies in the helicopter crash but we don't see her body, so she might be alive somewhat?

Ludwig Dieter, the thief/safe expert, and I love how he questions everything lol!

Lilly "The Coyote", "the one who knows her stuff" aka zombie expert. Somehow interesting that she's got a conscience/good heart.

Martin, the inside man, and Bly Tanaka's right hand and got the death he deserved by kitten Valentine.

Mikey Guzman, the Sharpshooter and a YouTuber.

Chambers, the muscles and Guzman's sidekick (sort of). Her death was very predictable and her own fault! Girl, why the hell would you tell Martin that you don't trust him directly to his face?! That's such a rookie mistake!!

Burt Cummings, also the muscle for like 5 minutes before turning into the bait/bargain chip for a "deal" with the zombies in order to pass their territory. Overall, he's just a big jerk.

We see the first five people are survivors of the outbreak when Vegas was "freshly" being overrun by zombies and barely made it out of the city before it was completely sealed off. The rest of them are new characters. Almost none of them have any deep character story/feeling/development, most of them are quite plain and you don't care whether they survive or not. I've got also a hard time seeing any father-daughter relationship between Scott and Kate. I get that they haven't talked to each other since Scott had to put down Kate's mother after she got turned into a zombie but if I hadn’t seen the beginning I'd say they're just two strangers who met during the outbreak and he saved her at some point.

I very much like the fact that they introduce different types of zombies! On one hand, we've got the standard zombies aka shamblers who move slowly and are dead if you blow their brains out and if they bite you you become a shambler too. Then, there are the alphas who are fast (so fast that they can dodge bullets), they can also think, take orders, and are very organised. If you're bitten by one you become an alpha too but they also die if they're shot in the head which is easier said than done! We've also got a zombie horse, that's more bone than anything else, and a big tiger kitten called Valentine who used to be part of Siegfried & Roy's show (which also throws in the question, during which year is this movie set? They've both already passed away and they haven’t been retired from the entertainment world for a while before they passed away, and we see Tanaka carrying a modern mobile, so it must be during the past 2-3 our years.)

Their leader is patient zero aka Zeus who we see at the beginning being transported by a convoy of soldiers from Area 51 to somewhere else but never makes it there because he breaks free due to part of the convoy crashing into a car of a recent married (while the guy gets a blowjob and doesn’t watch the road!). He also takes the Bride as his queen (later on she's beheaded and her head still alive), who we see to be pregnant!! HOLY COW!! This throws in sooo many questions! For instance, how do zombies reproduce? The same way as we humans? What will the baby look like? Full zombie? A hybrid, half-human half-zombie? What power would they have? Do I even want to know or see this? Probably. Probably not. How many times did I wish they'd have introduced something like this in TWD (before I stopped watching it). At some point the virus that makes people zombies is supposed to mutate, every virus mutates at some point. We did already see a zombie baby in Dawn of the Dead but that was different since the woman was already in the late stages of pregnancy when she got bit. This one was one that was produced from zombie sex. I’ve got a feeling that their sex must be quite violent to say the least. Also, they way how the care for each other, especially Zeus for his Bride and child and seeks vengeance for both their deaths showing they’re capable of feeling and caring for their people. Maybe, just maybe want to find a way to survive without having to turn people but I think they’ll still need humans as a source of food. I don’t think they’re capable to live from eating normal food.

I've to make a special mention about Vanderohe. Besides, the fact that he's very attractive, there are a few things that don't make entirely sense to me.

He survives the nuclear blast of Las Vegas since he was looked inside the safe, which I can see being possible but (a little more possible than Indiana Jones seeking shelter in an old-fashioned fridge from a nuclear blast in Indiana Jones and Kingdom of Crystal Skull)... the whole city was nuked! And I mean big smoke of mushroom nuke! So, shouldn't the place, I don't know, be radioactive or something like that? And shouldn’t he find the nearest decontamination shower? Furthermore, it doesn't make sense that he gets infected, i.e. bitten. He gets into a fight with Zeus while they're in front of the safe and I watched that part several times and in slow motion too and we don't see Zeus bit him. There's one time where Zeus almost bites him but his teeth don't end up sinking into the flesh. He has Van in his hold, dislocates his right shoulder, and almost bites him there but only almost! In that same moment, Dieter hits Zeus in the head and pulls Van into the safe closing the door behind him (and most likely gets killed/turned by Zeus). I repeat there's no "visible" scene of Van being bitten by Zeus or any other zombie in another scene. So, where the f*ck did he get the bite and from who? I've also read that there's a theory of Van being immune because he's not turning as quick as the soldiers at the beginning of the movie when Zeus escapes the convoy (he still might be able to infect others though). He starts to feel lightheaded/dizzy and his body feels cold to the touch on the plane, and around the bite we see the veins turning black but that's it.

As much as I love the concept of the movie, it's very predictable as well as easy to figure out who makes it out alive and who makes it out the other kind of "alive" and it also reminded me a bit of Resident Evil (the first film was good and the rest just a waste). Tanaka wanting a fresh sample of an Alpha to make a virus that enables him to create an army of zombies he can control and take over the world. He could be Wesker's twin and his company the equivalent of the Umbrella Corporation. It's worth to watch but it doesn't compare to other zombie films such as 28 Days Later or even Dawn of the Dead (the classic and newer version), and many others.

[rixxy8173571m3w1p3]

The Little Big Things (1/4)

(@ricksanchezdwc) So like we had done not too long ago, me, @hoodoo12 @porkchop-ao3 @rickstexaschick are doing the same prompt cause we all loved the idea.

__________

Chapter 1: The Phyto Princess

Within the span of time it took for him to pull out his portal gun, and type in the coordinates, you had already imagined about a dozen places, and twice as many scenarios.

Rick made it look so easy; twisting dials, and pressing buttons in order to get from point a, to point whatever, but without the proper coordinates and code input, one could scatter their fragments all across the cosmos, without the hope of joining back together all in one piece; the thought often a source of uncalled for anxiety. True, this wasn't like star trek, with its one episode plots, or backstory to reference when you least expected it, but a valid concern that you had yet to address; you blamed it on your curiosity. Having read the notes of Zeta-7s early portal gun schematics, there was the blemish of fear that arose when you least expected it. Sometimes, it didn't feel like it mattered all that much, especially when you were in one of your moods, but more often than not, you hoped Rick would never mess up; or be two cups of coffee short. Contributing factors to your anxiety included the day to day annoyances, time, or how your hair looked that day, but in another one of his attempts to brighten your spirits, he made plans for a surprise adventure; your assumption being anywhere away from buildings or people.

You knew he was trying his best to keep you happy, but you wondered sometimes what he'd say if you told him he didn't have to. It wasn't his job, but you refrained from telling him, because if it weren't for the fact that you trusted and adored Zeta-7, then you would have refused in favor of staying local more often, especially when you weren't in the mood. Oh, but where was the fun in that? Maybe, it'd help; likely it wouldn't.

Today, there were other things the matter, like the doubt which appeared when you recalled the memories from a false dream, and you were confused about what had been the reality and what had been the dream. With thoughts of the past, also came the remembrance of old regrets; many you thought you had buried under reasoning and change, but you were terribly human. You weren't a genius, and you didn't always think about what you'd say before you said them, so you made mistakes; a lot more than you'd care to admit. Because of this, you had been a source of concern, and added to Zeta-7s stress, and this made you stressed because he already had enough on his plate, and this made you worry for his well being. Waves of dread which would wash over you at the thought of getting lost, or forgetting him, misunderstanding, even while gripping his hand as sure and tight as you could when you stepped through the portal were but impediments to your happiness; the worry you felt for scenarios that hadn't occurred, these too fed the monster of anxiety.

It would be okay, you'd say to yourself. It should've been okay, to step through the portal as you had done so dozens of times before, but then there was your heart beating a mile a minute, begging otherwise. You've watched Zeta-7 do it hundreds of times as well, coming out safe and sound, so you could do this, and would do it. Still, what reason did you have to worry or doubt?

Well, there were places no one came back from; you've heard the stories, you listened to Ricks theories, but again they were stories; cautionary tales that taught lessons. And like now, you fought that lingering fear, the tingling in your limbs, the bloom of tightness in your chest, and made sure you still felt Rick's long, thin, bony fingers laced with yours, holding on for dear life while repeating you're little mantra. On the other side he was still there, and you felt his relief, and with your other hand, you shielded your eyes from the resplendence of the sun, until they could adjust to the scene around you. “Rick,” you gasped, glancing a little at everything; your confidence building as delight overcame your anxiety. “where have you taken me?”

This must have pleased him, cause when he smiled, every wrinkle spoke of his laughter, and his electric blues were brimming with happiness.“W-why don't you look and - and see?”

Curiosity got the better of you as you let go, but reassured by his gentle smiles, you explored what was all around you; his warmth one of the best certainties. All around, the landscape stretched, it curved and there were bends a little ways ahead; you could smell hints of petrichor, and the ground fertile and verdant, with patches of silver grass which whistled when touched. You wondered if they could do more than whistle; laughing because many thoughts of yours had been but a velleity, and you almost moved on, but when the fuzzy blades of grass leaned forward to pat you on the head before returning to their place, you gasped. Were they supposed to do that? Nearby, exposed roots shimmered, and when you approached them, they pulled away from the ground, and bowed in obeisance before returning to their place. You flashed Rick that look that said you were confused, and his mouth hung open in astonishment. Still, he hadn't said a word, and watched on; his hand moving a mile a minute as he took down notes.

Above your heads, were bell like flowers that changed their tune whenever you passed them, and the walkway was littered with mushrooms that made your skin tingle pleasantly when you sat upon them; as unsettling as it was, you were feeling good, as though they absorbed all the negative feelings, and left you with the good ones. Where your feet hung above the ground, an indigo milk cap sprung up so that you could step off. At this point you began to wonder if the forces and plants around you were bending at your will. Considering Rick hadn't warned you yet, or impeded your curiosity in anyway, then he was either waiting for you to ask, or he was studying you; as he usually would. “Rick,” you wondered, as you stepped over the small stones that buzzed like worker bees. “did we shrink, or has the world gotten bigger?”

“Well,” he chuckled, eager to hold on to your hand again. “it’s - it's neither. Everything here is bigger, while w-we remained the same. Neat isn't it?”

Neat was an understatement.

“It is,” You agreed, which made him stand a little taller, and smile a bit brighter. ���but I could have sworn we stepped into a Honey I shrunk the kids movie or something. I guess not, but something strange is going on. Haven't you noticed? You probably have, but I just want to check.”

“You're right, I-I-I have, and it makes me wonder what w-would happen if you wanted the flowers to walk? I-I guess that sounds silly.”

“No,” You softened. “it doesn't, but I don't think it works that way. I'm not a god or anything, and I'm pretty sure fairy dust ain't going to cut it, and make these giants move. But if you want me to, I could try.”

The only giants you had ever seen were the western sequoias. You had walked amongst those natural giants, whose respective histories were their own, and you wouldn't question how they came to be; for they existed before you, before Rick. They were the testament of endurance, withstanding centuries of rain, fire, and growth, but here….like many things he showed you was a first. Curious as to what might happen, you thought about the orange star like flowers moving, and bending down to your level. And, because it was your will, they did.“Rick,” you continued, after your initial shock passed. “I'm not imagining things am I? Did…. did that just happen?”

Reading the results from his scanners, and checking the footage from his camera, he exclaimed. “It - it did. It really did!”

“Is that good? I don't know.”

With raised brow, he chuckled to himself, and put away his scanner, and notepad. “Gosh, y-you're just full of - of surprises aren’t you?”

“Honestly, I have no point of comparison. So you're going to have to be upfront with me, and tell me if I'm going to be okay.”

“Y-you're more than o-okay, you're perfect.”

____________

The sun bathed the earth in delicious warmth, the sparkling dew feeding the thirst of the green.

The pleasant sounds of humming, and their songs had become an uplifting melody. Like kisses upon your skin, the wind made you ticklish, and you needed Ricks assistance so that you wouldn't fall over laughing. It seemed you were sensitive to the environment, which made you go through waves of pleasant emotions, but it was exhausting. Hopefully your life force wasn't being absorbed by them.

“Rick, I think I hear music. Can you tell me why? Or is it my imagination?”

“I'll ugh - I'll be able to tell y-you in a jiffy.”

Flipping through his notes, his brow was raised in confusion. “Um, t-t-to be honest, this is the first time I've seen them act this - this way. They seem t-to be imitating a song, possibly from your subconscious. Do y-you recognize it? Does it - it remind you of anything?”

You stopped in your tracks, and took a moment to earnestly listen before you answered. “It reminds me of your ukulele being played on a refreshing afternoon.”

Eyes wide, you knew he was eager to hear more, curiosity coloring his response. “Is th-that so?”

“Yeah. I love hearing you play,” Which was very true. Rick was a wonderful musician, able to play almost any instrument he picked up. Other Ricks were probably just as talented, but unless they were the legendary Steinway, you doubted anyone could play with as much emotion. You continued. “and the happy sounds that are made in between your laughs, and the strumming of strings, and the way you look at me when you play. Goodness, it warms my heart, and makes me love you even more. You…you always have a way of stirring my emotions.”

“Y-you really like it that much?”

“Like it? I adore it, and your guitar playing too. Why, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you practically seduced me with those serenades on the front porch, and those evenings indoors when it was raining. I have no idea what you were thinking about at the time, but hopefully it was of me.”

Sentimental words always made him pliable, and he never really knew how to answer, or what the correct words should be, but he tried, and in his earnestness, he'd lean towards you as though he were about to kiss you, but he'd stop before doing so. As though he were reigning himself, he'd close his eyes, taking a few deep breaths before he'd continue. Pressing a light kiss on your forehead, he softened. “I - I always have you on my mind, though I-I didn't - it wasn't my intention back then to….I didn't know you felt that way. I'm not in the habit t-to seduce anyone or….” He faltered, his cheeks dusted in a lovely blush.

Silly man. One of these days, maybe he'd understand when you were flirting and teasing him, and not misconstrue your delight with accusations. You cupped his cheek, encouraging him to look at you. “You're so sweet. I know you wouldn't do that. But either way, I enjoyed it all the same.”

Leaning into your touch, you saw the beginnings of a smile, but his blush was still going strong. “Gosh, now I'm not s-s-so sure, but I - maybe I - oh, I'm s-sorry.”

“Don't be sorry dear. If I didn't want you to, I would have stopped you at the point when you first asked me over for dinner. I mean, I never really thought you were trying anything either. We were just friends, having a good time, and I fell in love with you. Maybe we should thank that ukulele of yours for all the happy hours we had singing silly little songs.”

“I ugh - I should have brought it with me then, because y-you like it.”

“There's always next time. Though, it's been awhile since you played. You must miss it.”

“I-I do,” he admitted, passing a hand through his hair. “but it's because I've been b-busy. I'm sorry a-about that too. I've been away and w-we haven't had much time to ourselves.”

“Rick it's okay, I understand. You have important stuff to do”

“You - you say that, but it bothers me when I have t-t-to leave you for extended periods at a time. I don't like it, and I-I guess maybe I'm being silly. That's what happens when y-you get old. You either want t-t-to be alone or have company all the time. What am I even saying? I'm going off on a-ag….”

Pressing a finger to his mouth, you quieted him. “You already do a great job in trying to make me happy, and I'm not disappointed.”

“Y-you're not?”

“Of course not. I mean, I can't help but miss you, but you've always been a busy guy. How you manage to make time for me and still have time for your hobbies is beyond me, but that's the thing about you Rick, you're not like most people. And every moment with you is wonderful. The question you should be asking is what have I done for you? What can I do to make you feel better?”

“By p-p-putting up with me.”

Pressing a kiss on his cheek, you giggled. “If you mean by loving you, then I'm on it.”

_____________

After a series of small, quick experiments, Rick had come to realize that these plants listened mostly to you and not so much him. Oh, he had his theories, a few of them making you giggle, but for the most part, this is what he understood.“These plants here, I-I had thought they were empathic, but they must - must be trying to trigger a response. I believe they are fascinated b-by you, because I've already spent many happy hours here on - on this planet, but you haven't.”

Placing your hands on your hips, it was your turn to raise a brow. “Rick, if you put it that way, then it means I'm trending.”

“Gosh, I-I-I suppose. Is that the terminology these days? Does it mean you're popular?”

Zeta-7 really could be adorable when he wasn't trying to be, especially when he wasn't always aware of what was current. “Yes, but what are you really saying?”

“That they must r-really like you,” he smiled, jotting down a few notes, before taking out his scanner, and checking the results. “and if I'm correct, then they prosper off these pleasant emotions of - of yours. How fascinating.”

“Can they hear my thoughts?”

“N-no mi corazón,” he chuckled. “they can feel you. Plants are - are surprising organisms—without brains and central nervous systems, they are still able t-t-to sense the environment that surrounds them. They - they can perceive light, scent, touch, wind, even gravity, and are able t-to respond to sounds, too. These plants here are a-a little different, and can sense your every emotions, reflecting your feelings, which I-I guess means you're currently in a pleasant mood.”

“Of course I am, it's beautiful here, and I'm with you.”

After you had said this, a gust of wind rushed by, which rustled the golden leaves, the force of it almost knocking you over, though Rick was quick to grab you by the waist. “Are y-y-you okay?”

You could hear the bell flowers ring, and quietly you thanked them and the forces at work around you, which seemed to bend and curve at your will; whose comedic timing was cliché to say the least. “I am now. Thank you Rick.”

Scratching the back of his neck, he let go, and made himself busy by scanning the branches and plant debris. “L-l-like you already said it's ugh - feels like a-a land for giants. I know their size is attributed t-t-to the mineral rich soil. And I-I thought it would be nice to spend a-a day here, but you look tired. Not t-to mention the plants behavior.”

“I'm not that tired. But man, it's incredible to be able to will the elements, but I'm sorry Rick, I kind of don't know what I'm doing here or whether I have any control over it. Imagine, that kind of power in the wrong hands could be dangerous. So, I'll try not to cause too much trouble.”

“It's okay, I'm sure y-you won't. I-I do wonder if they can understand what we're saying.”

With a shrug, you replied. “It's worth a try.”

You smiled up at the canopy of leaves, admiring the way the light filtered through the spaces in between. “We appreciate the hospitality, and the lovely music, as well as your stimuli. Oh, and as much as I appreciate you playing matchmaker, you don't have to try so hard. You see, we're already together,” you winked at Zeta-7, who blushed at the gesture. “but secretly, I think Rick's enjoying it. Either way, I hope you'll be kind to us.”

When you had finished, a mushroom ran by, and dropped a gift at your feet before returning to its place. You waited for Ricks approval before peeling back the leaves that were held together by dried vines, revealing a pair of matching bracelets, that seemed to be nothing more then weaved, golden branches. “I think this is for us. See?” you pointed to the inner branch. “This one has your initials.”

Scanning them, Rick found that they were safe, and you two proceeded to try them on, and all at once, you felt warmth wash over you as you glanced at Rick. And when he glanced at you, a vine began to grow and flower, decorating his bracelet in magnificent, lapis blue blooms. “Wow, that's - I've never seen anything like it.”

You haven't either, but that was thing, you always experienced new things when you were with him. Like now, you felt all jittery, and nervous, and when he took your hand to kiss it, your bracelet bloomed, and you just had to pull away, because it felt strange; like a little piece of you was taken away. “Rick, this place is something else. Are you sure it's safe?”

You wanted to be sure, because having him near you all of a sudden was overwhelming, like a dozen butterflies fighting the wind. What was with this place?

“Mhm, I'm sure. I've done extensive research over th-the last couple of weeks t-to make sure we can relax.”

“Really? Nothing toxic or poisonous? No animals or creatures to worry about?”

Taking your hand in his again, you felt a great calm, and the bloomed flowers grew, and vines spread; everywhere they touched, made you feel cozy, and sleepy. So, so sleepy. Perhaps you should say something, but he was happy, and you didn't want that smile to fade, and you allowed him to explain. “Creatures? No, not - not yet. Maybe in a-a couple of years, but not now. This planet is still fairly new, and there's no telling when it - it will be inhabited. For now there's just us, and these w-wonderful plants.”

It was going to be fine you told yourself, and smiling up at him, you replied happily, with a voice soft with affection. “Okay, whatever you say Ricky.”

And like a deep yearning, the vines on his bracelet grew three times their size, and stretched out, just to kiss your face a dozen times; they wanted to delight you. It scared Zeta-7 a bit, but you could only giggle, cause they were just like him; earnest, eager, and sweet.

TBC

[prettytragcdies]

Scarlett, rank the following men in order from most likely to convince you to get married to person you never want to see again: Eddie, Gavin, Weston, Colt, Bryan

DON’T BE SHY, SEND MY MUSE SOME NOSEY ANONS!

Well, that was certainly an interesting question and one Scarlett hadn't ever really found herself putting much thought into until now. It took her a few minutes to contemplate, but she finally came to a conclusion she was satisfied with, despite the fact it might not have necessarily followed all of the rules exactly.

"It's no secret that our two families don't exactly get along with one another very well, but there's something about Weston that's incredibly...intriguing." To say the least. Maybe it was the fact that he was somewhat older, or maybe it had to do with the conundrum of him being a business rival who refused to allow her to have her way and come out on top, yet also exactly the type of man her father would approve of, should she ever give the whole marriage thing an honest chance. Surely the Ryder men weren't as hard to live with as the Ewing men were.

"He's already done the whole marriage and kids thing once, so who even knows if he'd be interested in a round two, but --" What was she saying? Scarlett Eleanor Ewing had vowed as a child that she wasn't ever going to get married no matter what after the chaotic mess of dysfunction she'd witnessed between her parents who couldn't stay married to each other twice, much less other people even once, so why was she suddenly so intrigued by the potential idea of one day being the next Mrs. Weston Ryder?

Moving on.

"Certain things might've changed with time, but Eddie and I still come from two completely different worlds. He's got a whole other life out in California, and I certainly don't plan on leavin' Texas anytime soon. I can't say I haven't ever wondered what bein' Mrs. Eddie Diaz might be like, but at the end of the day I just don't feel like we could make it." Not only that, but Eddie also had Christopher to think about. She might not have had much practice to backup her theory, but Scarlett was fairly certain she wasn't the best when it came to other people's children, especially at that particular age.

"While there's clearly no rule that says you have to marry for love, I'd probably have an easier time convincing Gavin to marry me instead of the other way around. He's a fun challenge when it comes to business, but like I mentioned earlier, the Ewings and the Ryders definitely aren't each other's biggest fans. Honestly, though? I just don't see us havin' enough in common. I feel like I'd be bored all the time, unless there was more to the story than just your average Romeo and Juliet." Been there and done that years ago already with Bobby and Pam.

"Colt and I have always been close friends and nothing more than that. I've always seen him more like another brother than anything else. Our families go way back, and as much as our grandmothers might've enjoyed the idea of seein' us together, it wasn't ever going to happen." Well, at least not for her anyway. Surely Clayton, Miss Ellie, Punk, and Mavis would've understood.

"Unfortunately for Bryan, he ruined any chance he ever had of convincing me to marry him by not tellin' me he was already married. I don't date married men, much less help them become bigamists." As for never seeing him again, though? That was a bit more complicated. As much as Scarlett wished she could quit him cold turkey with a quick snap of her fingers, she'd sadly found it to be a hell of a lot easier said than done.

[bardicious]

Nothing to apologize for at all. Excuse me for gushing, but having your input on anything is always a treat. Pretty sure we think very similarly on Loki! ❤ Also speaking of stealing, totally going to rob your format for response. It's a really nice format, okay.

^^ This is such a good point! Like, by themselves the comments were homophobic bc they implied that shipping two heterosexual men would be "wrong" and/or a relationship between two men would be "wrong" but now with this confirmation it's like - wait, so, why is it exactly that Loki can't like Mobius and have it be a legitimate narrative choice? What, exactly, is wrong about interpreting "they've got a love story" to be a romantic one between two men when one of those men is confirmed to be bisexual? The mind boggles.

Freaking YES. I hated it already from the get go, because it was super homophobic, and I imagine sexist? Because often people who say stuff like that are thinking of the "fangirls" and we all know those people apparently have no rights or are delusional, right? 🙄 /s

It was just so annoying to hear he'd say something like that. And especially after this reveal??? Like, okay, stupid? What does that even mean then? Gives off the impression that oh yes, they will imply that Loki is lgbt+ but never show it. Which is such a norm for Marvel/Disney (well, most media in general).

I found the ooc parts to be much more frustrating than I had before; for some reason, I'm not able to overlook them as easily as I was in episodes 1 and 2. I think it's bc for one thing, the narrative has actually called him out on acting like an idiot but for another thing, I could excuse the ooc notes as the show got itself established, but we're halfway through now and I guess, unless they've got an ace up their sleeve, that Loki is just Like This now and I'm very much not thrilled about that.

I do agree, though, that getting drunk in this case was a trauma response to everything he's been through and he is not coping well at all - I think that if him getting drunk and fucking up the "mission" like this were an isolated ooc thing, it would be easier to accept/overlook. (I do like how, when Sylvie yelled at him about ruining the mission, he shoots back, "Mission? What, your glorious purpose?" bc clearly we can see that Loki is still struggling with the absolute falsity of it all.

I totally get you. I mean, this is exactly why I divorced myself from this Loki's characterization in the first episode, I didn't expect them to bring back our Loki at all. 😔 I am happy with the crumbs we got of the first and second episode. This episode had way less, somehow? Also, I dont know, but do you think he's somehow more ooc in this than he was in Ragnarok? I haven't watched that movie in a while, so I'm not sure.

Yep! Agreed too, on the "Mission? What, your glorious purpose?" I liked it for the same reason.

I liked the singing (I've never heard Tom sing before! I'm not a great Tom stan; I haven't seen his other movies where he sings) but the clearly romantic framing of it was a little much for me. I think they went way too heavy-handed with the "romance" in general, but Marvel has never done romance well (or rarely does it well), so ... fair enough. The selfcest is an interesting choice, though, considering that it's Disney. Then again, they could just be checking off the "address romance" box and will move on without taking it any further.

Oh me neither! I SO didnt know he could sing! That was a treat to find out. :D I have tried to watch his other stuff but for me personally it never took.

Huh! I actually didn't see them as romantic framing, you're probably right. But straight up it didn't click for me. I have my own headcanon/theory on Sylvie though. That I hope proves to be accurate. 🤔 Like I saw it as more familial love. Which makes me feel like - if Sylvie is not Loki - that she knew him and that maybe that him is the older Loki we might be getting. She seems to be straight up fond of him. And I hope the reason isn't romantic.

Also LMAO. Yeah, definitely a weird route for Disney. Wouldn't have expected it. 😂 Though that's also the reason I'm banking on her not being a Loki.

I missed Mobius, too??? I don't even like Mobius, lmfao. His absence was felt, though. Also, my jaw did drop with the TVA reveal but I'm not that smart, so, lmao.

I am literally so sorry. 😂 Nah, just a lucky guess on my part. I didnt expect the ship to be broken like that for instance, I feel like I should have, but literally my jaw dropped at that point. lmao.

Did you just -

Yes, yes, I did.

I never thought of that headcanon, either (Loki witnessing Thanos's murder sprees), but it would absolutely make sense and so I'm adopting it and tucking it into my own headcanon pile as well.

Wooh! 😘 Have fun joining in my misery!

I thought that it would be some ending scene where Loki and Mobius are, like, sharing drinks and reflecting on The Adventure of it All, so that was wrong, but also -

I must have seen it from your post then! I was really hoping for it. 😭 Like super excited for the meta of it all. I am very disappointed it didnt turn out to be what you speculated.

I really, really want Loki to have a found family, too. Ravonna's not invited to my personal found family headcanon group, bc I don't care for her, but Mobius, Sylvie, B-15, and Casey are the dream team.

One of the things I meant to make a post about at some point and didn't is how the TVA's framing as a "protagonist" can be contributed to the fact that the named characters - ie, the ones who we the audience are supposed to get to know and presumably sympathize with - are all agents of the TVA (besides Sylvie), but it makes much more sense now in the context of the TVA being the Big Bad that has to be destroyed and Loki forming a found family with the newly-freed people who have, apparently, been brainwashed or mindwiped and manipulated into working for a fascist organization.

I'm thinking Ravonna might change her stance? Not sure yet. But so far lots of characters have surprised me. I didn't like Mobius in the trailers, but I ended up really liking him in the show, I got a bad impression from B-15, but she changed my opinion of her in the next episode, Casey was always good - lmao, and Sylvie I had mixed feelings about. So who knows what they'll do with Ravonna. 🤷‍♀️

But yeah, so far, she's on my shit list. 😂

Thank you for writing this out; I read this and was like, this! This too! and I'm sorry for the breakdown of each of your points but they helped me work out some of my own scattered thoughts as well.

Thank you!!! 🥰 No apologies necessary. Like wow, I really like this format. Definitely stealing this. 😂

Loki S1E3 Spoilers

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First, I want to start by saying, I clearly have issues, because my heart wouldn't stop beating in excitement till I watched the episode. lmao. Loki is literally the only thing that gets me this excited even if I have reservations about the show, anyway.

Thank you creators of the Loki series for confirming that Loki is bi/pan? (The comment about him being with princes and princesses! Wooooh!!) I'm literally so freaking happy about that. I know it's a crumb, but I'll take it. (Which makes me even more peeved about what Waldron said, because hello? Why the fuck can't Loki like Mobius like that then? His comment still comes across as homophobic*)

*comment about how people in the Loki fandom will take Loki and Mobius' relationship the "wrong way". As less friendship and more romantic. As if judging them for being silly fangirls- might be wrong, I didn't see the comment personally, I heard people talking about it.

I'm still not convinced she's a Loki who simply changed her name to Sylvie. She's always lying. lmao. But omg! I love her as Sylvie! I wasn't sure with the first episode she appeared in, for a Loki she came off as ooc (but to be fair, Loki's also ooc in this show) but she's got so much personality, and she's such an interesting character! I look forward to finding out what she's actually about. Cause I agree with Loki, another Loki wouldn't have such trouble identifying with being Loki.

Next thing is, Loki is still ooc as stated before. Sylvie calls him a clown because he was drunk, but I barely noticed a difference? Meta wise, it's interesting to watch Loki get shit faced drunk because he's not dealing with the death of everyone he loves and how nothing really matters well. (lmao, like wow, I dont even have to project on to Loki anymore, he's literally just becoming me)

Tom/Loki singing!! Confirmed Loki's got a beautiful voice. Speaking of which, who ever was in charge of music, literally has the same taste as me. Like it's freaky. I haven't heard a song from there that I didn't want to jam on my playlist with.

I miss Mobius already. 😔 The news of all those people having lives before the TVA isn't surprising, I basically suspected after Mobius' talk about the jet ski - he's probably from that time in human history - also is Mobius human??? omg. The other tip off was the other TVA officer asking if it was real. It's messed up, I like it. But also not particularly jaw dropping writing wise.

Loki getting to use his magic! He's not using much of it, which is weird, depending on what they will do with it. I mean, you can use the excuse that he was drunk (but imo, that would make him use it more I feel - if he's just refraining from using it). I've always had the headcanon that Thanos severally injured Loki to the point where his magic could no longer work as well as it did. Like it's still there, but he has a tougher time accesses it. (This was me attempting to cope with the lack of magic from Loki in all his mcu entirety - and works extra because of how angsty it is)

That said, I'm happy for what we saw, which was energy blasts, telekinetic, illusion-shifting, teleportation. Oh, and he's obviously downplaying a lot of his skills constantly. When we see him fighting Sylvie, and losing, only for a second later to get the upper hand on her. He's probably doing that with everything honestly. If I were more optimistic, I'd say that's what he's doing with his personality, but like, lmao, that ship has sailed, much like the one in the show didn't.

When the ship broke, it broke my heart, all those people that had hope to get out of that planet, and all the ones down below that were being left to die (Wait, this is just the Titanic but in space.) I do get the impression that Loki's fighting back some kind of flashbacks - which ALSO works in my favor because I have that headcanon of Loki witnessing Thanos murdering everyone on some planets.

Lastly, the turtleneck has shown itself, uh, meaning that scene in the trailer wasn't the end? Can't remember what the speculation around it was, but now I know I dont have any hopes for the end. lmao. Honestly, I would prefer that Loki be in his own team with Mobius, Sylvie, Hunter B-15 - or whatever her actual name will be, Casey, and possibly Ravonna - not sure which way she's leaning towards yet.

I just want Loki to have a found family okay? And he'll clearly never get that with the rest of the mcu. (Even if this is an ooc Loki, I can have fun imagining original Loki interacting with these people. Lmao, he would die of exasperation)

That's that on that. Loved the visuals, thought the writing - dialogue and scenes were a bit meh, the general idea of the episode is great, and the ending was so sad. 😭