#I kinda view him as a collective whole when speaking...!

[taintedcigs]

GETAWAY CAR — rockstar!e.m. x f!reader

CHAPTER TWO: WHERE I END YOU BEGIN

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✦ summary: in which reader is upset with eddie for kissing chrissy and more about reader's relationship with billy is revealed. (wc: 5.2k+)

✦ warnings — ANGSTANGSTANGST, pining and slowburn, arguments!!!, strong language!, mentions of alc*hol and smoking , eddie is a bit mean, toxic billy!! he's emotionally ab*sive, kinda car accident? but not rlly

✦ pairings — rockstar!eddie munson x fem!reader, past billy hargrove x fem!reader

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You were sure your entire world had shattered around you. If only you were as cool and collected as you painted yourself out to be, maybe you could get over it. 

Maybe you could get over the fact that Eddie was locking lips with fucking Chrissy. 

You could feel your eyes water, you don’t even know what you mumbled to the two of them before you disappeared off to the backyard.

Nancy, Max and Dustin were too busy in the kitchen to notice anything, but Jonathan had witnessed it all, he wasn’t too far behind you. 

Your hands were clammy as they dug into the back pocket of your jeans, shaking from the anger radiating off your body. It didn’t help when the lighter in your hands caught your attention.

That stupid pink dragon lighter.

The one Eddie specifically painted hot pink right after you told him to do so. And before you knew it, the seething rage consumed you, blood boiling as you threw the lighter in the ground, along with the cigarette on your hand, squishing it with your shoe until it broke apart, tobacco spilling out from the crevices, “Shitshitshit—” you cursed as you stared at the mess you made on the ground.

“Uh-uhm…” Jonathan spoke up, approaching you with caution when you turned around to face him. You slightly huffed as you took another cigarette from your pack, putting it between your lips before Jonathan started speaking.

“You okay?” He asked, the cold look you gave him with the cigarette sitting on your lips was enough for him to throw his hands up in defeat, “Here,” He offered when he reached for his back pocket, offering you a lighter. Murmuring a quick ‘Thank you’ you took it without hesitation, the flame briefly illuminating your face as you lit the cigarette. You knew you were being a bit of a bitch, but you were spiraling, mind fizzling with the thoughts of her all over him. 

“I-I’m fine.” You struggled to get that sentence out, tone betraying you and your eyes were looking anywhere but at Jonathan. You took a deep breath, mind filled with everything that transpired in the last hour, and he eyed you with pity.

“’M sorry, Jon,” You muttered, “I know this is your big weekend and I’m already bringing it down with my stupid drama.” He was quick to shake his head, “Don’t be ridiculous,” He reassured you.

“We’re both really glad you’re here, okay? I know Nance could never get through this weekend without you.” He gave you a slight pat on your back, comforting you further. 

“But what the hell is she even doing here?” You asked, eyes trained toward the sliding door that had the view of Chrissy still giggling at Eddie.

Jonathan swallowed, physically,  “Shit...” He scratched the back of his neck nervously, knowing he was treading on thin ice. “Look, before I tell you this, I should let you know that I don’t think Eddie has any idea of all the shit she said to you during our senior year.” He breathed. 

“So don’t go all you on him yet, yea?” You shrugged, face still sour, you couldn’t promise him anything. It didn’t matter if Eddie didn’t know the whole story; he still knew some of the things she did, and it infuriated you that he still dared to have whatever the fuck they had. Your logic went out the window the second you saw the two of them together; it didn’t matter what Eddie actually knew because it fucking hurt. It hurt to see him be so cold toward you and then snuggle up to Chrissy. 

“You know that gig Eddie’s band had last week?” You nodded curtly, Eddie told you about the gig approximately ten minutes before locking lips with that little traitor.

"Well... Chrissy was at the gig," Jonathan admitted, a heavy sigh escaping him as he braced himself for your reaction. "And they met there, and they've been kinda hanging out since then..." You had never seen Jonathan this nervous, maybe it was the way your gaze turned so icy and intense, or the way your jaw clenched, or your unhinged behavior for the last five minutes.

“Real cute,” You murmured, chuckling dryly, you took another drag from the cigarette sitting between your index fingers as if it were a lifeline.

Jonathan rubbed his forehead stressfully, “Just talk to him…” Your head snapped at him. “I don’t want to,” You replied childishly, earning a scoff from him. 

“Well, I think you’re gonna have to,” He said with a slight snort, causing your attention to divert to where his gaze fell, Eddie was eyeing the two of you as he opened the sliding door, making his way over to you. 

“Fuck off,” You muttered.

“Be nice,” Jonathan warned, brows raising as he brushed past you. He greeted Eddie with a slight pat on the back before he rushed inside, leaving the two of you alone. 

Your eyes rolled unintentionally when Eddie approached your side. You wanted to tell him to fuck off and go find his girlfriend, but you decided to save your petty remarks for later. 

“Got a lighter?” He asked, voice muffled by the cigarette sitting between his lips. You nodded without looking in his direction and pointed toward the ground where you had previously chucked the lighter in a fit. 

Eddie chuckled before he reached down to grab it, freezing the moment he did so. 

Shit shit shit shit.

Was that?

You actually kept it?

"Uh..." he stammered, still caught off guard by the sight of the lighter. "Pink dragon, huh?"

“Hmm?” You hummed, head popping up in his direction to see Eddie holding your lighter, the one he made for you. 

“Oh…yeah.” You replied awkwardly, still unable to meet his gaze fully. 

With the flick of his thumb, Eddie lit his cigarette before handing the lighter back over to you. "You—uh... dropped this," he said, a hopeful smile on his face.

You accepted the lighter but promptly chucked it from his hands with an annoyed 'Thanks,' not in the mood for his nice gesture.

“You were right… Pink dragons are cool.” He tried to gain your attention, but you just hummed again.

“Jesus…” He sighed. “Did I do something wrong?” He asked cluelessly.

Was he joking? Or was he just trying to get back at you?

You chuckled dryly. “No… no… You just kissed my sworn enemy, is all.” You narrowed your eyes childishly.

“Sworn enemy?” He quirked a brow. “What are you, five?”

“Yeah.” 

“She tried to hook up with your boyfriend five years ago, Pinky… Are you really holding a grudge for some shitty mistake she made when she was a teenager?”

Oh.

Jonathan was right; he thought this was just about Billy. So he didn’t know a fucking thing. But that excuse wasn’t enough to quell the seething rage fueling inside of you. 

“You don’t know what you are talking about—” 

“If you’re still holding onto things that happened five years ago, then what about me?” He threw his hands up angrily, interrupting you. 

Jesus fucking Christ. It boggled your mind how quickly your conversations went from calm to angry now, and it made you realize how bitter both of you have become. How unrecognizable he was to you now because you had made him this way. It was all your fucking fault, and those anxious voices in your head echoed the same sentiment, making you feel smaller with each passing moment. 

“What should I fuckin’ do?” He spat.

You weren’t emotionally or physically ready to delve into this now, especially not after seeing him kiss Chrissy. You did want to talk to him eventually, but not like this; there had to be a way to talk about you leaving him without reopening your own wounds. You couldn’t handle that.  

“Should I tear you a new one for leaving me all alone in LA?” 

“Don’t…” You warned, eyes getting glossy just at the mention.

“Don’t what? Tell the fuckin’ truth." He shot back, frustration and resentment coursing through his words.

“Why do I have to protect your feelings when you were so fucking careless about mine?” He was supposed to sound angry, but you could hear the emotion in his tone, his voice slightly cracking as you avoided his gaze.

“You don’t have any fucking idea what you’re talking about, Eddie—” You yelled back.

Eddie wasn't willing to let it go, “Then tell me!” He demanded, a note of desperation in his voice.

“I didn’t come here to do this! To talk about… Jesus.” You sighed, fingers rubbing your temples to relieve the headache this day was giving you.

"Look, Eddie," you began, your tone softening slightly, "I'm here for Nancy and Jonathan, and them only. I know that's why you're here too. I don't want to cause them any more drama than I already have, okay?" Your voice was calm, but the frustration still simmered beneath the surface.

“You—you’re so frustrating.” Eddie breathed.

“You do realize that the whole fucking world doesn’t revolve around you, right?” He added.

With a heavy sigh, you gathered your belongings and stood up abruptly. “Fine!” You exclaimed.

“I’ll be the mature one.” You heaved a sigh, leaving without turning to look back at him, mind tuning out whatever he was saying to you.

When you returned back inside, you could feel Max and Nancy’s curious gaze on you, and you could practically feel Jonathan's stolen glances as he conversed with the rest of Eddie's band and Chrissy.

Her obnoxious laugh was grating on your last nerve; you were being bitter and jealous, and it certainly was not a good look on you. You bit the inside of your cheek when you threw her a glance, the metallic taste of blood flooding your senses, and before you knew it, her annoying cackle came to an abrupt halt as she sensed your gaze, swallowing physically before she followed you. 

Your eyes involuntarily rolled when you felt Chrissy's fingers gently tapping your shoulder. Slowly, you turned to face her. "Hey," she murmured, her eyes avoiding yours as if she couldn't bear to meet your gaze.

“Hey,” You bit back on your tongue; if you didn’t, you’d say a whole lot of things you were sure you’d regret.

“Can—can we talk? In private?” Her eyes met yours now; you could see the emotions they held, but you couldn’t care now.

Why did you always have to care about how other people felt? They’d hurt you just fine; why couldn’t you even do one ounce of the same thing to them? Why was it always you who had to embrace the pain and guilt, while everyone else was absolved of them?

“I—I can’t,” You didn’t mean to stutter, but it was so hard to lie when she was this close to your face that you hurried off to Nancy and Max’s side without another word. 

“You okay?” Nancy asked in a concerned tone. 

“I’m fine!” You waved her off, the crack in your voice and your glossy eyes were enough proof of that being a lie, but they left it alone, nodding understandingly as Nancy gave you a gentle squeeze on your shoulder. 

“I—I think I just need to go home and rest for a bit… That okay with you?” The gentleness of your voice was aching both of them; it had barely been a few hours since you got to Hawkins, and all you had was that pout on your face. 

“Of course!” Nancy replied without hesitation. 

“You need a ride?” You asked, turning to Max.

She shook her head quickly. “I’ve got a car.” She pointed toward the Camaro sitting in the garage. You clearly missed it for some reason. 

“Oh.” You accidentally blurted out, that Camaro was just nightmare fuel for you now, and you wished you had never seen it again. “Right—uh… I forgot you have a license now.” You added with a silly smile stuck to your lips, wanting to change the topic.

“Do you need anything else?” You asked, your tone shifting back to one of genuine care as you turned to face Nancy. She shook her head, a warm smile gracing her lips.

“You sure?” You raised your brows.

“Stop worrying about me!” Nancy playfully exclaimed.

“I’m fine, I swear I’m fine. Mom’s calling me every few minutes to make sure everything is perfect, trust me, she’s taking care of everything.” You nod silently, a smile almost gracing your lips, when she chides you, god, you had missed this small idiotic town. 

“Pinky, when I made you my maid of honor... I didn’t do it because I wanted you to handle the wedding plans. I honestly would actually rather you stay out of it, you’re pretty bad at planning.” You let out a slight dramatic gasp at her words, causing her to huff. 

“Let me get to my point!” She gave you a knowing look. 

“I did it because you are the closest person to me, because I don’t want someone who’s good at planning with me at the wedding, I can do that myself. I want my person by my side. I want you. You’re my family… like a half-Wheeler.” You chuckle, accepting the reassuring grip she has on your hand. 

You give her a nod, silently returning the things she said to you, thanking her and telling her you love her, and she understands, accepts it, and translates your emotions without you opening your mouth. 

“So, I’m assuming you don’t need anything?” You asked with a sheepish smile, causing Nancy to narrow her eyes. 

“Just go!” She orders. “Okay, okay!” 

“I’m going.” You huffed, not realizing Chrissy was behind you again. 

“Can we please just talk?” She was begging at this point, but the last thing you wanted to do was be in close proximity to her. You sighed deeply, your patience running thin. “I have to go, Chrissy.”

“Wait—just five minutes, please,” Chrissy breathed, the desperation in her voice making you huff and turn around to face her. Your mouth slightly opened as if you were about to cuss her out, and if you didn’t shut it tight, something about Eddie was going to slip out.

But right then, of course, Eddie fucking Munson stepped into the picture, slinging an arm over Chrissy’s shoulder before throwing you a daggering look.

You couldn’t tell if Eddie was doing this to piss you off or that he had genuinely started caring about Chrissy in what? A fucking week?

Your guilt against him was turning into rage, and you didn’t know how to handle it. Each of your hands itched to separate them, make sure he didn’t touch her, and make sure they stayed the fuck away from each other.

But this was about Nancy and Jonathan; you weren’t going to cause a scene, and you were going to play nice, at least until you couldn’t handle it.

“I think you’re fine,” You said bitterly, trying to ignore the jealousy burning your insides, and your insecurities were quick to seep into your skin, making you feel worthless.

“No… wait,” Chrissy called out, but you didn’t give them another look.

“See you at Steve’s tomorrow,” You muttered to Nancy as you passed by her, your tears were burning at this point; if you didn’t go home soon, you were going to explode.

As soon as you ran to your car, of course only one thing had your attention. 

The Camaro. 

FIVE YEARS AGO.

The sound coming from the engine was loud—so loud that over Billy’s screams, you could hear it roaring, terrifying you further. Max was in the back, holding on for dear life, when you were gripping your seat, attempting to stay calm to avoid scaring her further. Billy’s screams filled the silence of the car, and his thumbs tapped along to the song ‘Wango Tango’ as he hummed to it. He had been angry ever since the two of you had a fight during lunch break. 

You thought he would’ve calmed down by now, but the way he was driving told you otherwise. You wanted to scream, yell, and tell him to slow down, but no words dared to come out of your mouth when the speed of the car was still rising. Your grip on the car seat was so tight that you could feel your nails painfully digging through it. You always seemed to freeze when Billy got angry, feeling helpless, as did Max.

“Would you look at that?” He hummed excitedly, pointing towards a van, and your head was quick to cock in the direction he pointed, eyes squinting before you realized who the car belonged to.

You could recognize that set of curly hair and that messy van from anywhere, and your eyes widened. Eddie was standing two cars ahead of you. “Billy…” You called out his name as Max’s head popped up at your shaky voice. Realizing what was going to happen, you stood frozen.

“Isn’t that the freak of Hawkins, huh?” Billy smirked, nudging your shoulder. Your eyes were focused on the road, and as Billy was pushing the gas with all the force he had, you bit the inside of your cheek.

“You always hang out with that asshole at school, yea? Let’s see if he wants to see you after too, huh?” He smirked, with a harsh steer of the wheel, he passed the car in front of him, shaking the three of you. 

Your nails dug further into your seat. “Billy, this is not funny.” You screeched while Billy gave you another chuckle, almost as if he was enjoying it.

“Billy.” You spoke up again to get his attention, but he just faked a pout at your terrified face as he kept tapping his fingers to the rhythm of Wango Tango.

“Stop it, Billy!” You yelled this time; your heart was pounding in your ears, and your hands were shaking with fear as you attempted to gain his attention.

The loud noises Billy provided and the roaring engine of the car caused Max to sink into her seat, covering her ears in an attempt to drown out all the voices. 

That sight of her alone made your blood boil. You turned to Billy with a roll of your eyes. “Will you stop?” You asked, eyes fiery, but your voice remained calm; you were still afraid of aggravating him further. 

“Stop what, baby?” Billy said in a mocking tone, his feet further digging into the gas as the speed of the car rose again. He gave you another playful smirk. 

Your eyes squinted in fury; the anger bubbling inside of you was getting harder to ignore, and with just one car ahead you knew he was getting closer to Eddie. 

“Stop it,” you said with a stern voice this time, fingers still shakily holding onto your seat. But he ignored you once again.

“Billy fucking stop it.” You warned with your raised voice, heartbeat picking up when he steered the wheel harshly to pass the other car standing between him and Eddie. 

This was like some fucked up dick measuring contest to him; he didn’t even fucking care that Max was in the car, possibly having a panic attack in the back.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Your clammy hands pounded against his shoulders in an attempt to get his attention, but he was still mocking you, singing along to the song loudly.

All of it made a buzzing sound to Max; she was used to this by now, from her parents and from the two of you. So she shut all of it off, covering her ears, watching almost in slow motion as you kept on hitting Billy, pleading with him to stop.

He was getting closer and closer, and you nervously bit your lips, legs bouncing up and down since you knew Eddie probably had no fucking idea because of how careless he was when he drove with that metal music blasting through his speakers. 

“I told you to fucking stop!” You screeched again, face feeling hot as you repeated it like a mantra. Your whole body tensed as you looked back on the road and saw how close he had gotten to Eddie’s car. He was probably still oblivious, and anxiety gnawed at your insides. You needed to do something, and you needed to do it now.

Your head turned to the side of the road, gaze stuck on how it was mainly grass. Maybe if you could turn the car off the road...

You looked back at Max to make sure she had her seatbelt on and was safe in her seat. You didn’t care if your idea was stupid or careless; your logic went out the window the second you saw how willing Billy was to hurt Eddie in any fucking way. 

With a deep breath, you quickly grabbed a hold of the wheel. With no other idea in mind, you forcefully turned it off the road, shaking the three of you in an instant. Your head hit the back of your seat, but you didn’t care. Eddie was safe.

Billy cursed you out and stepped on the pedal with force. The impact was hard on you, but again, you didn’t care; he couldn’t possibly hurt Eddie now.

Billy’s stupid song on the radio was all that filled the car now, and all you could do was groan. Your head was pounding when you tried to face Max, she was curled up in a ball, shaking like a leaf, and that sight alone was enough for the fear jolting through your entire body to turn into rage.

What the actual fuck was wrong with him?

Feeling suffocated, you quickly opened the door. With a quick struggle, you managed to get out, inhaling a deep breath as the fresh air around you provided you with a little sense of comfort.

But it didn’t matter. You were out of his car, and Eddie was safe.

You dropped your hands to your knees, breathing raggedly as you attempted to calm yourself, ignoring the sound of Billy exiting the car and slamming the door shut rather loudly, cursing you out.  

Your head perked up in anger, and your eyes were livid as you rushed to his side. He was still in shock when you pushed him by his shoulders harshly. Your tears were now escaping freely when the realization of what happened hit you.

“What is wrong with you?” Your voice was loud, and you were a babbling mess with how much you were sobbing. Billy stood still while he hollowed his cheeks in anger, waiting for your tantrum to be over.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” You repeated, and your hands were quick to pound against his chest again, but before you could make any contact, he grabbed both of your wrists in an instant, causing you to look up at him with glossy eyes.

“Me?” Billy asked, chuckling ironically. “You drove the fucking car out of the road! And you’re fucking asking me what is wrong?” He let go of your wrists harshly as he rubbed his hands against his cheek. A humorless smile played on his lips as he let out a short chuckle that burned with anger and resentment.

“Are you insane, Billy?” You asked; you were still yelling, but now your tone was more composed, and your tears were drying out. “Are you fucking crazy?” You asked, not expecting an answer.

“You were going to get us killed! You… you were going to get him killed!” Your muscles tensed.

He laughed sarcastically, shaking his head in disbelief. “It’s about him, isn’t it?” He pinched his brows together, taking a step closer toward you. “You got mad because it was that asshole Munson kid, wasn’t it?” His jaw was clenched, but this time it felt like his anger had turned to hurt.

“Oh, my god.” You chuckled ironically, your hands hitting your forehead in disbelief. “Are you kidding me, are you fucking kidding me, Billy?” You asked, genuinely this time.

“Billy, you could have hurt us! You could have hurt Max! You scared the shit out of her!” You yelled, and Max’s head perked up.

“This isn’t about Eddie, Billy. This is about you acting like a fucking maniac!” You were shaking with anger.

His voice, once filled with anger, softened into a gentle tone as he realized the impact he had on you.

You were afraid of him.

And a wave of guilt washed over him, the familiar wobble of your lips reminding him of his mom, a sense of déjà vu overwhelming him completely and leaving him feeling small and ashamed. “Are you okay?” His anger had disappeared on a whim now.

Your eyes were fixated on the ground now, lips pursed as you were unable to give him an answer. Billy heaved a sigh, ignoring all of what you had said. “Let’s just… let’s get going.” He murmured; his anger was now washed away with sadness, something you rarely saw Billy in. The realization that you were afraid of him tore at his conscience and ate away at him.

He attempted to softly grab your arm, but you withheld, “No! I’m not getting in that car with you.” You yelled, face souring.

“Baby, just... please.” His voice was soft, it was boggling how fast he could go from scaring the shit out of you to being soft all over again.

The nickname further angered you; he didn’t get to use it to soften you after what he did. “No, Billy, you almost fucking hurt us!” You exclaimed.

You breathed before you continued your rant, “I’m done trying to help you, trying to help you do better, because you’re a selfish fuck who does whatever he wants!” You screeched. “You don’t even care who you hurt in the process, Billy! Look at Max, fucking look at her!” You were screaming the last words, and your sobs had returned, Billy was stunned in front of you.

He took a step back, his eyes filled with regret, and he reached out to gently hold your trembling hands, but you flinched.

He swallowed hard; the weight of his guilt threatened to crush him. He finally saw that familiar mix of fear and vulnerability in your eyes, you always looked at him like that after an argument. 

He squeezed his eyes shut to avoid any tears, and to escape the guilt, he couldn’t cry—no, not in front of you. “Just leave me the fuck alone, Billy.” You spat out while Max was still watching from afar.

“I’m… sorry.” Billy let out weakly and you scoffed at him, knowing that sorry would not fix anything that he just did, you turned your back around to start walking away from him. “Please… just come with me, I can’t leave you here.” He pleaded desperately; you had never heard him like this before, and you were doing everything in your willpower to not turn around.

“I’ll… Fuck—I’ll drive slow, okay?” His voice rang in your ears, but you didn’t care; you were going to keep walking away from him and his anger.

At least that was your plan, until Max finally opened her car door.

“Please, just come with us…” She murmured, her tone so meek and afraid that you couldn’t bear to say no to her. 

You didn’t want to leave her alone with Billy. You heaved a sigh of breath, her second ‘Please’ stopping you dead in your tracks before you turned around to meet her fearful eyes. 

You looked back at Billy with a spiteful look, almost to let him know that this was only for her, then you walked back to the car.

The ride home was filled with a dreadful silence, Billy stole a few glances at you to make sure you were okay, your eyes remained on the road, and Max fiddled with her fingers as she pretended to listen to her Walkman.

When he dropped you off that day, you were sure that was the last time you were going to be with Billy.

But as usual, your promises to yourself meant nothing; you couldn’t help but soften immediately when Billy held you as you sobbed in his arms, his fingertips gently caressing your face as he kissed away your sadness, tasting your salty tears on his tongue.

It was always messy. But everything with him was messy. His calloused hands wrapped around your frame tightly, but still, his kisses were gentle.

The fights always ended with you in his arms, bodies wrapped around each other, as he murmured compliments in your ear, affirming how much he loved you and how afraid he was of losing you.

This was the Billy that only you get to see, and it was different compared to the Billy he portrayed himself to be in public; he was still filled with anger, and he was still an asshole, but he always knew what to say to get you hooked on him, and he treated you with kid gloves whenever he noticed how he had fully broken you.

It was a cycle at this point, each time getting worse as Billy’s anger got more uncontrollable. He would get mad at you, it would turn into a full blown argument, and you would be a sobbing, blabbering mess. When he realized how much he had fucked up, he would finally soften, trying to mend what he had ruined. It was a cycle you didn’t dare get out of, suffocating you further.

NOW.

 He would always talk about how afraid he was that he would turn into his father. What a fucking joke, you thought to yourself, wanting to laugh at the irony of that asshole. That haunting memory replayed in your head like some kind of a never-ending nightmare. Your mind was playing tricks on you, and you couldn’t help it. By the time you got home, the only thing you could do was plop yourself on your bed.

Tears streaming down your cheeks weren’t any of your concern; the dusty and mess filled house should’ve been, but all you could do was lay down and let it all out. 

You fell asleep like that, laying in a fetal position, sobbing until your tears dried out. And that’s the last thing you remembered before you heard a faint thud. 

Thud.

Thud.

Thud.

Thud.

Your head snapped up quickly at the sound, groaning as you curiously headed to the source of the annoying tapping noise.

Something—or rather, someone was tapping something against your window and you were going to give them a piece of your fucking mind—

You approached the window furiously, almost yanking the sheer curtains as you saw that curly head, and you knew instantly. 

Eddie?

You opened the window with a roll of your eyes. “Are you insane?!?” You yelled, getting his attention before he threw another rock.

“Thank fucking god! I thought you were dead!” He yelled back, huffing as your face appeared in the window.

“What?” 

“I called your landline like a thousand times!” He breathed; He was wearing one of his own band tees, a guitar pick was adorning his neck, and his curls were more defined now. And you hated how the first thing you thought was how good he looked.

“I haven’t been here in five years, you doofus! I don’t think it even works.” You shook your head, and even though the two of you were supposed to be mad at each other, you couldn’t help it when your lips etched into a smile.

You ruffled your hands through your hair, he threw the pebbles he had in his hand to the ground, dusting them off before he turned his attention to you. “C’mon, let’s go.” His voice lowered this time, eyes hopeful and so beautifully brown that you wanted to drown in their warmth.

“What?” You asked, a baffled look overtaking your features.

“I want to take you somewhere.” He shrugged, head hanging high to keep your gaze.

You sighed. “Eddie, what are you–”

He groaned. “Just get in.” He almost sounded demanding, and your brows pinched together before he muttered out a “Please.”

He could hear your grunts before you closed the window, cursing him out as you hurried off for a change of clothes.

You didn’t know what the fuck the two of you were going to do, but it didn’t matter.

Eddie wanted to take you somewhere, and now you couldn’t help the way your heart fluttered. Because it meant something, it meant that this could be fixed. That there was still some hope. 

[cartierre]

FAST & FURIOUS | ll

SOCIAL MEDIA!AU liam lawson x fem!driver!reader

side note: i have not watched fast&furious

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yourusername monaco is probably one of the most special places... even more so now that i've scored my first podium of the season here! p3 does taste pretty good and the view isn't half as bad either, let's go onwards from here on now! officialmpmotorsport

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user1 it's kinda embarrassing that she's only now been on the podium ⤷ user2 she's literally a rookie calm down for a second.´

user3 it's so sweet that liam came, especially because monaco is such an important race ⤷ user4 and she even got her first podium there!

liamlawson30 so proud baby ❤️💙 ⤷ yourusername see you in shibata!

user5 i love how liam and y/n still find ways to support each other despite their own racing schedules

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yourusername always feeling the proudest when i see my lil dom toretto race his heart out

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user6 girl not her calling him dom stop this is funny ⤷ user7 family

liamlawson30 does that make you letty ortiz? ⤷ yourusername who is that i never actually watched the films

user8 should i download tinder again? i'm too single rn ⤷ user9 girl i'm downloading tinder, hinge and bumble as we're speaking

user10 let me cry in the corner over how cute this

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liamlawson30 letty ortiz in spielberg

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user11 them continuing the fast&furious joke is peak ⤷ user12 y/n gives me more suki from 2 fast 2 furious vibes if i'm being honest

yourusername i think i need to watch fast&furious just to understand the joke i started ⤷ liamlawson30 next time i'm around? ⤷ yourusername it's a date!

user13 i love their unconditional support and the effort they both put into their relationship

user14 they are the it couple fr ⤷ user15 the dom toretto and letty ortiz

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tagged: redbulljuniorteam, officialmpmotorsport, liamlawson30, maxverstappen1

yourusername p2 here in spa right before the summer break feels amazing!! thank you to the whole officialmpmotorsport team for this amazing race! am i doing letty justice? i think so.

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user16 it's so amazing to see y/n constantly get better and collecting more and more podiums. i'm so excited to see her race again after the summer break!

user17 she's definitely going places

liamlawson30 so insanely proud to see you up there ⤷ yourusername guess i'm just that good

user18 i'm in love with y/n's and liam's relationship

dennis_hauger 🥈🏎️ comment liked by yourusername

[iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia]

What do you think M6’s answers would be to the question “is it better to feel all the pain or nothing at all?” I haven’t played all the routes so I can’t answer for everyone but I think

Julian -feel it all

Asra -nothing

Muriel -at the start of his route nothing but as he grows as a character it would shift slowly to feel it all

Portia -feel it all

I’d also love to hear your answer if you’re comfortable with that! As someone who’s felt both my answer is nothing bc in my experience the numbness allows you to still function. Even if the life you’re experiencing isn’t as full as it could be, you still get to experience it. When I become so overwhelmed by Everything I completely shut down and cease to be a person. I am my emotions. And I think in Asra’s route this kinda gets explored in that they choose to not feel as deeply ever again bc a muted life with MC is better than a full one without them. Anyway can you tell I recently reread The Giver lol

Woah, that's a good question friend!!

To be completely honest, I think all the M6 progress from the "numb" to the "willing to feel everything" point throughout their routes - as is the case for many people who are in the healing process! (essay below the cut)

Julian, while fully embracing the misery of his situation, is also running from the part of him that wants a happy ending. Meeting the MC is his slow journey of self-acceptance, realizing that his happiness is valuable and worth fighting for. He stops choosing one feeling to drown out all the others and starts feeling everything in a context of loving and being loved.

Asra's in a similar situation. They don't see giving up half their heart as something to regret, but they still talk about the reduced ability to be attached to people as a loss. Reconnecting with MC, being able to slowly bring down the walls that used to facilitate a drifting, untethered survival mode, allows him to start caring more about the people around him since he has a person to call home again.

When Nadia wakes up, she's lost. Seven years of memory have blipped out of view, she's responsible for a city she knows very little about, and the people who are supposed to help her are only getting in her way. She speaks of a similar numb state, being detached and uninvested in the world around her, until meeting MC and finding a way forward gives her what she needs to flourish again. We see a lot of that emotional progression in her reconnecting with her family.

Muriel is an almost textbook case of complex trauma and the myriad of coping mechanisms that arise from trying to escape it. I've written whole essays on the effects of his deal on that process before, but his journey with MC starts with him just wanting them to forget about him, and ends with him asking MC to help him collect the memories of himself and his people.

Portia isn't quite as much numb as she is stuck. From the moment her parents' ship wrecked, she's lived her life in the orbit of other people. First her older brother, then the children and grandmas of Nevivon, then her older brother again, now the Countess - it isn't until she begins to receive that same attention from MC that she starts to really own herself and discover the true depth of her capacity. While we never see her choosing to be numb, we do see her hesitating to come fully into her own. With MC's empowerment, that's exactly what she ends up being able to do.

And finally, Lucio - he's literally numb. He's spent the last three years trapped between realms in a ghostly form that won't let him feel anything at all beyond hunger. While MC is instrumental in returning him the capacity to feel, it's Lucio's own choice to take advantage of that as a fresh start.

[autism-autobot]

Flower of a Poisonous Seed Part 12:

TW: Slight references to past trauma, depression

Part 11:

"Godsdammit, not again."

Nezha woke up with a familiar feeling in his body: fever, aches, and overall fatigue that would plague him whenever he felt like he could never feel so low again.

And on the day of Wukong's appointment too...

Wukong was sleeping soundly with his new blanket and plushie, at least. It would likely be a while before he gets up. It would give Nezha a few moments to collect himself as much as possible so he could get them through the day.

Wait...

"Shit."

SWK: Are you alright there, bud?

Nezha: I'll be fine. Just... *sighs*

SWK: Just what? You sure you're okay?

Nezha: Yes, I'm just... overheated a bit.

Nezha: Makes it hard to think...

SWK: *puts his hand against Nezha's forehead*

SWK: Woah! Geez Nezhie, I wouldn't call that a bit!

Nezha: Just... don't do anything...

SWK: I'll get you some ice packs!

SWK: *Grabs his blanket and plushie, hops in his wheelchair and leaves*

Nezha: ...rash...

Nezha felt like the whole room was slowly spinning, like some sick drug had been administered to him. Of course that wasn't the case. His vision turned into TV static after he stood up to try to go after Wukong. No go.

He laid back down in bed and tore his shirt off. Wukong wouldn't mind. He could care less about decency, living with Wukong for two months short of a year taught him that much.

Nezha grabbed a nearby remote and turned on every fan the remote could to full blast. He then turned on his favorite playlist on the TV.

And then the phone on the bedside table started ringing.

It was Li Jing.

Fuck.

~~~

Sun Wukong made it down to the refrigerator in the kitchen to collect the ice packs for Nezha. Finally, he could be the one giving help instead of receiving it.

But that didn't mean he stopped having problems of his own.

Wukong exhaled and felt a wave of depression topple over him like a weighted blanket he couldn't shake off. He tried.

"For the sake of Buddha, pull yourself together Wukong, you've been like this for too long!"

No amount of telling himself that was going to make things any easier.

Just for a moment, he breathed and laid his head back on the chair.

He picked it up again when the doorbell rang.

~~~

Wukong opened the door to see Li Jing standing on the opposite side holding groceries.

SWK: What are you doing here?

Jing: I came here to help my son.

SWK: Really?

Jing: Yes.

SWK: ...

Jing: *sighs* I'm not how I once was, if that's what you're thinking. I know about my son's condition, and since he hasn't called in sick for some time, I figured it would be soon.

Jing: Whenever he is in good health for an extended period of time, his condition tends to come back with a vengeance. By the amount of ice packs in your lap, it would seem I was correct.

SWK: Yeah, dude was burning hotter that the furnace you and the others stuck me in all those centuries ago.

Jing: You're still upset about that? It was over a thousand years ago!

SWK: You still think of me as a beast? It was over a thousand years ago! You still felt the need to "collar the beast" back there. You haven't changed your views of me, why would I change mine of you?

Jing: ...

Jing: I believe I deserved that.

SWK: Wait, really?

Jing: Yes. It is rather foolish and hypocritical of me to think you to have moved on from past events when I clearly haven't done so myself.

SWK: I... wasn't expecting that of you... of anyone, really, but especially you...

Jing: I have been working on myself since those days.

SWK: Uh... good to hear! I'm still a little shocked by it, but hopefully it's impacted you and Nezhie in a good way!

Jing: Nezhie? Does my son know you call him that?

SWK: Yeah. He hasn't ever complained, so I think he likes it. Kinda hard to be sure though.

Jing: Indeed...

Jing: Does my son speak of me at all?

SWK: Um... not really... sometimes he'll tell me about occasionally running into you at work or what you say in meetings but not much else.

Jing: I see... I may still have a ways to go before fully mending things with my son.

SWK: Hey, if what you said earlier is any consolation, I'd say you're on the right track!

Jing: You think so?

SWK: Yep! I do my best to stay positive. Kinda hard when I'm like this *pats wheelchair* but I'm trying.

Jing: It would seem you are doing good as well.

SWK: Thanks! Now let's get these ice packs up to Nezha, my legs feel like they're gonna get frostbite!

~~~

"Bittersweet Symphony" played on the TV as Nezha laid chest up awaiting Wukong's return. He had no idea what the lyrics meant as he didn't speak English, but Wukong seemed to enjoy the message, so it likely meant something good. Plus the instrumentals were really good.

As usual, Wukong made the loudest entrance possible.

SWK: *opens door slightly by hand and kicks it the rest of the way open* YEET!!!

SWK: *gently tosses the smallest ice pack to Nezha*

Nezha: *catches ice pack while barely paying attention*

Jing: I have so many questions...

Nezha: Good morning, father.

Jing: Good morning, my son.

SWK: We got you ice packs and some other stuff!

Nezha: Good morning to you too, Wu.

Sun Wukong gently positioned each ice pack on Nezha's body with Li Jing's help. Li Jing helped Nezha eat some breakfast and get some pain medication in him.

The three conversed for hours on various topics: Nezha's music taste, Wukong's fluency in multiple languages and each person's favorite snacks, as well as everyone's current health condition.

All in all, the day went much better than any of them had anticipated. Nezha was just happy that his best friend and his father somehow managed to get along with each other, though that did lead to some interesting conversations...

Li Jing: What is a... yeet?

Part 13:

Masterpost

[onestepbackwards]

So, I’m a huge fan of the idea of the streamer AU, so I can imagine the amount of shenanigans the reader gets into while trying to find a way home. Like the reader squealing over a colony of cute spheals (they are fricking adorable in the game, have you seen the one cutscene with Adaman?) and the reader revealing to have caught a whole army of them and showing them in the background while many people watching their stream are like facepalming.

Or the reader returning to Jublife with an army of cute Pokémon following them, like Spheals, Eevees, fluffy Growlithes, etc. (kinda reminds me of this whole Pikachu army parade I saw in YouTube before)

Or the reader streaming about cute Pokémon chasing them and happily playing around….and then cue the reader on the run from angry terrifying Pokémon.

The streamer Au is one dear to my heart, even if I haven’t gotten to write a lot about it. Its such a fun idea though.

The idea of you can’t communicate really with the future, but you can still just stream??

Imagine explaining that.

“Yeah, God said I have to find every pokemon here or I can’t go home :(“

Depending on the person, you could have so many shenanigans. Especially since you and Ingo are the only ones who know how to communicate with pokemon, and properly train and raise then.

Everyone in the future watching in humor or horror how you are treated for acting normal around pokemon. How you act is like an average trainer, when others in the villages would be appalled you happily collect pokemon.

Like, just imagine walking into a village with an army of eeveelutions. Something so normal, has people turning heads.

Your chat is going wild at the sight.

Especially when they see Sylveon. A pokemon that should not exist at that point in time in Hisui. How the fuck did you get one.

Either finding an Eevee in a time distortion with a fairy move, it just finding a Sylveon outright. You have historians screaming and yelling in your chat.

And the Alpha Pokemon have historians and scientists tuning into your streams, all foaming at the mouth at a real hands on view of Alpha pokemon.

“This is amazing footage! Truly nothing like it!”

“Sir, the pokemon just tossed the streamer into a wall.”

“They seem fine!”

You regularly give people heart attacks. Especially your friends and family who are stuck watching you, unable to help.

Barry sees how Kamado treats you, and books it to Rowans house.

Rowan meanwhile feels a sense of impending doom.

Cynthia is a curious one, incredibly curious about Volo. They resemblances is uncanny. One of her coworkers even joked she may as well be his reincarnation.

Imagine her horror when she sees Volo’s betrayal. She is so glad Cyrus is not here to mock her.

Meanwhile you have almost all of Gear station tuning into your stream after you drop the bomb that you met a guy named Ingo, who you think might be the missing Subway Boss. Emmet is strangling his computer as we speak trying to get you to show him.

“Yeah, he was really nice. Its a shame he lost his memory, but he talks about trains a lot.”

Gear Station is screaming.

[rainysofsunshineao3]

Predictions for whatever the hell is going on with Yaz and Sammy in JWCT

Before it airs tmr on GODDAMN ROBLOX. I've never loved and hated that game so much XDDD

So it does seem like something's going on between them whether it's related to Yaz' PTSD, the fact that she's at college, or because Sammy now has integrated dinosaurs into their daily life (Which loops back to Yaz' PTSD) and it seems kinda weird to me that most of the theories that I've heard have been Yaz-centric, or with Yaz as the larger reason their growing apart.

Maybe not weird but definitely interesting.

1. Because honestly, I can see that if they ever were to break up (I swear to god I'm murdering someone if they do tho) it would be Yaz who ends up doing it. I just can't see Sammy willingly ending things.

2. Because that's somewhat of the problem. Like, JWCC gave Sammy the bare minimum of character and plot development, most of it happening in season 1-2 with her whole "I'm a spy" deal. After that, she sort of just...stays the same. She doesn't have the same amount of development as Ben or Yaz or even Kenji. She's the most consistent character in the series and I'm not sure if that was done on purpose - like, the writers saying "ok, we have 5 really good or decent character arcs, let's have this one stay the same so there's diversity in not having change" - or they just didn't have time to really develop her character outside of the "Looks like a cinnimonroll but could actually kill you"

So something I'd like to see is Sammy having a bit more of a voice than she did in JWCC and I think the writers knew that was a problem and seem to have made her part of the main trio (Darius, Ben, and Sammy) for JWCT.

I made a previous post about the *tension* everyone seemed to get in the most recent clip > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HQffL_R1F4

in which Ben and Sammy go to visit Yaz at her university.

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE that they're diving more into Yaz' PTSD that we get a glimpse of in Seasons 4-5 of CC. She seems like she's doing better and actually trying to help out others who struggled with the same things that she did which is cool.

And then we have this scene =>

And it's cute and Sammy and Ben look fine af and there are so many amazing things about this clip but like...

Sammy's not coming to Yaz' defense, like, at all.

Like, Yaz' thing isn't working and I feel like CC Sammy would have said something like "That's a really cool view!" or "Coool...?" or even like "That's...awesome Yaz!" in her wtf-is-this-but-ima-be-positive-anyway and maybe it's the writers doing what I mentioned before and giving Sammy a deeper personality and the change in demeanor is small enough that it might just be me overspeculating, but there's tension there.

And pair that with the fact that Ben says "Get in-between two girlfriends?" Like, are they arguing?! Sammy's trying to get him to choose sides? Am I getting that right?

*Cough* I mean, though, Ben would probably choose Yaz ngl, they besties. No hate on Sammy but *Cough*

Sorry, what was I saying 😅

And the line right before that when Sammy says "Ben, help me out here!" Makes me think that Sammy has been trying to get Yaz to stop obsessing over this hologram thing for a while, and maybe the only reason they came to the university was to get her to stop her research and come with them since I'm assuming this is maybe when Darius is picking up the rest of the gang. Again, I could be wrong, but that's personally what I think.

Speaking of the picking up of the campers, I love how most of us collectively agreed that the order was Sammy Kenji Yaz. That was just funny to me :)

Anyway, does that mean Yaz is just living at the University doing her hologram shit and Sammy has been trying to convince her to just come home? Cause that would be so incredibly sweet and terribly sad at the same time, like, c'mon :(((

And now there's dinosaurs chasing them again and everyone thinks Brooklyn is dead and now it's not a matter of "I miss you" but "It's not safe anymore"?

God, this show has so much potential how tf am I so invested in animated characters.

This post ended up being way longer than I anticipated so Ima end it here <333

Toodles!

[goldsrc-hl1]

And I think the fact that sienna, the white fang civil rights leader who actually cared about the cause but was willing to use violence to achieve it gets killed off and her worldview barely gets acknowledge

Also I think crwby straight up compared the white fang to the black panther movement/organization?

Wether we want it to or not the show did initially frame the white fang subplot as violence vs non-violence

Plus ghira getting mad tgat adam killed a member of a lynch mob because “this is why they think they can” tells me ghira is on sone level focused in what humans think of Faunus,

Not helping that ghira gets put in charge again without having changed whatsoever

I hate to say it but intentionally or not, the idea that an oppressed minority need to “prove themselves” in any way to their oppressors is kinda racist, it’s at least problematic

Heck it’s a double standard “that we see in the real world as well” that Faunus can be branded like Adam or killed in mines like ilia’s parents to by humans like Jacques, yet humans as a whole don’t need to “prove” they aren’t him,

Because, quite frankly, most humans are entirely permissive of what Jacques and the SDC do

Yeah, Sienna's worldview is barely acknowledged. That's part of the failure to discuss racism and if responding to it with violence is justified or not.

Barbara Dunkleman, who is not a writer, said this

Barbara Dunkelman: So if anybody needs, like, a comparison for what the Faunus are in this world, it’s kind of like if you’re in the 1930s, or 1940s, whatever, and it’s like, the way African-American people were viewed.

Someone else (I can’t identify the voice): You mean like 50s and 60s, like Civil Rights Movement and stuff?

Barbara Dunkelman: Yeah.

Faunus are related to the American civil rights movement. They're certainly not viewed as poorly as African American people were viewed in the 50s and 60s, but they are still viewed and treated poorly and it is still based off of the American Civil Rights movement.

It's not 1:1 Black Panthers though. Sienna KINDA reminds me of them but not too much, Adam definitely doesn't.

The only time it was framed as violence vs nonviolence was in Blake's talk with Sun about why she left. As mentioned, that talk is about why she left, not what the White Fang is doing now. Even as early as Volume 1 and 2 it was clear that the White Fang wasn't fighting for equality.

Blake: The White Fang is hardly a bunch of psychopaths. They're a collection of misguided Faunus.

Weiss: Misguided? They want to wipe Humanity off the face of the planet!

Blake: So then they're very misguided. Either way, it doesn't explain why they would rob a Dust shop in the middle of downtown Vale!

Roman: I'm glad you asked, "Deery"! Now, I'll be the first to admit, humans... are the worst. Case in point. So, I understand why you would like to see us all locked away, or, better yet, killed!

So yeah, the White Fang was always an organization dedicated to just killing and hurting humans. In the past, it fought for equality, which is shown in Volume 1 through Blake's backstory, but it's never states that the White Fang currently fights for equality. The reason Blake left is that she didn't want to take part in the violence anymore (she never says they were wrong to resort to violence though, she just personally didn't want to be the one pulling the trigger), but the goal of the White Fang is no longer equality, as evidenced by Weiss and Roman.

You may say Weiss isn't well informed, which is true, but if she was wrong, why didn't Blake correct her? Roman is literally speaking at a White Fang rally when he says the line cited above, so he clearly knows what he's talking about.

Onto the next point...

Ghira wasn't upset that Adam fought back, he was upset when it got lethal. Ghira has a point, by killing humans, you're giving the humans an excuse to hate you more, regardless of how justified it was. It's something you wanna avoid at all costs. It's unfortunate, but it's the truth.

Ghira is put in charge of the White Fang again, only after he assembles an entire army to stop a terrorist attack in the making. I think it's pretty clear that he's past all the solely peaceful stuff.

The message is that the Faunus need to dispel racist ideas by proving them incorrect. I don't see how that's racist or problematic. Minorities should play a part in proving racist ideologies wrong.

Bear in mind that the Faunus aren't "proving themselves" as in repenting for past mistakes and whatnot, they're "proving themselves" as in "your racist idea that the Faunus are all murderers and terrorists is wrong." No Faunus apologizes for how the White Fang treats humanity. The whole thing is basically a big "you're blatantly wrong" to racist generalization that is extremely hard to ignore.

I don't see how it's racist to promote minorities proving racist ideologies wrong.

Humans in the show already prove that they aren't like Jacques by literally arresting him. They don't condone his exploitation. Hell, his own daughter doesn't condone it.

Most humans are, but by proving racist ideas wrong, the hope is that they will become less racist and ultimately oppose Jacques.

[swoosbadfuture]

ian and erin headcanons . hi im sane

Ian

Barely scraping 5’7

Half Canadian on his mom’s side

Bisexual, male pref

Straight A* student all aside from literature in which he barely has a B. Do not mention literature to him ever he’ll go mad

superiority complex . start the clown music . he needs to prove he’s the best always because if he isn’t the best then he’s automatically the worst

Very very autistic + low empathy. Prefers logic > emotion . Has a kind of “im not the weird one everyone else is weird I’m the normal one” view by accident

Complete Mama’s boy. you would never expect it but he is her little boy through and through

Gets along well w his dad too but they have very similar personalities and kinda clash a lot . Similar ideals just both very argumentative n stubborn . But god they will sit and listen to music for hours and just go full autism mode over it

Both his parents are very chill though. They are also both goths n r very proud of Ian

He's an only child

Voice breaks the moment he shows any emotion he’ll be talking normally n then get emotional n his voice just 📈

Speaking of which he is overly emotional and very bad at expressing it . very volatile person

Loyal to a fault and very justice oriented but also kinda holds these values to everyone without realising not everyone has the same morals . He doesn’t quite Get that not everyone is the same as him

Overprotective in a way that sometimes comes across as possessive . He’s not possessive he just has issues okay 💔

Phobia of the ocean and everything in it u will never see him on a boat ever he’d rather Die

Was good friends with Jason in kindergarten but kinda drifted apart from him as Jason got closer with Kevin. Kevin and Ian have never liked eachother insult eachother mercilessly. Poor Jason had to sit there and watch as they tried to beat eachother to a pulp. You can tell Kevin hates Ian because he rarely ever calls him by his first name

has a boyfriend in secret. Very much denies it. Only Erin and his parents know and he is trying so very hard to not let the secret out

Wants OUT of McKinley so bad . doesn’t even care abt changing his last name. I imagine McKinley is probably a bit of a small suburban town thats a bit of a bedroom community. The theme park is probably more well known than the town itself. Ian knows that if he just moves a few towns over then the name association will Go Away

Wanted to do astrophysics at college :) thinks space is cool as fuck

Resting face is worse than bitch he looks like he’s about to commit a murder in cold blood . Cold stare 0 emotions. And then suddenly he smiles and he’s just :D

Must stick to a consistent sleep schedule or else he’s a delusional nightmare

Stronger than he looks but would also probably crumple into 1000 pieces if he stubbed his toe

Likes horror movies but is lowkey a bit squeamish . would never admit it though. His favourite movie is Saw 2004 and he has to look away at all the gorey parts

Erin

5’8 and uses this 1 inch she has over Ian for Everything.

German ancestry on her dad’s side but doesn really know much about it besides that It’s There

Bisexual w pref for girls .

She/they nonbinary

Dyed her hair blue once and the ends are still kinda stained . Doesn’t care to cut it off because she thinks it looks cool (it does (it absolutely does))

Actual straight A* student and again uses this against Ian and teases him about his many struggles with Shakespeare

Collects bones n skulls n animal pelts and etc. Owns a few taxidermy animals .

Also very autistic n relates a lot to Ian bc of it

Is actually fairly good at socialising! just hates people

Parents do not understand the whole goth thing but are trying their best . Yes they did freak out when Erin brought home a taxidermy rat she got while out with Ian at an arts fair but oh well what can you do

Used to do figure skating when she was young !! still very confident at ice skating n likes to show off whenever she goes compared to Ian whos constantly falling on his ass. Let her have her moments of glory she deserves them.

The one who does the nail polish. Hence why hers is always perfect and Ian’s is always chipped bc she can always touch hers up whenever she needs to and Ian Cannot

Very aware of Ian’s superiority complex absolutely humbles him every chance she gets

Kinda obsessed w shitty low budget horror movies and indie films

Absolutely adores the art of SFX and fake gore / blood / etc n loved doing it herself. Halloween was her favourite holiday and she’d always go all out with it. Or would grab Ian and make him sit there for 2 hours. “come here sit down I need to see how realistically I can make your hand look like it’s been mauled” “Erin ew what the fuck”

Crush on Wendy that she’d never ever admit to. Only Ian knows and they have a deal where if he doesn’t spill about her crush she won’t spill about his boyfriend. Problem solved (they’re at eachother’s necks over it)

Makes friendship bracelets for her friends. Rest in peace Erin Ulmer you wouldve loved the Loom Bands craze of 2014

the both of them

Social rejects but they own it ™️ . Will literally take in anyone who’s also a bit of a ‘weird kid’ and convert them to goth subculture

Unfortunately this happens never it really do just kinda be the two of them vs the world huh

Dated for like a week once in sophomore year. Broke up immediately after their first kiss and decided they’d just pretend it never happened and that that 1 week of their lives just doesn’t exist. Did not happen ❤️

That being said though RAAAH WHAT ARE THE BOUNDS OF FRIENDSHIP. They hug and cuddle and hold hands and kiss cheeks constantly even if only as friends. Very physically affectionate though partially kinda to fuck with people who can’t seem to understand what the hell is going on with them both

“Oh yeah look at us nobody thinks we’re queer” “Ian we’re goth we might as well have it tattooed on our foreheads” “Fucks sake I can’t have shit in the 21st century”

Friendly banter is fucking insane they are just straightup insulting eachother. You know that one Gumball meme where Gumball is in hospital after being hit by a bus and he gets a card from Darwin saying “that bus should’ve ended you. love Darwin” that’s them that’s them that is them

They care eachother so much they are just bad at vocalising it so if they arent sitting there hugging they instead feel the need to be aggressively mean to eachother in loving and caring way

Erin is way more grounded and has more common sense than Ian who meanwhile is batshit insane at times and will 100% do crazy shit for the hell of it

Both of them rockin up to the town next door w their fake IDs to buy a months worth of R rated movies (fool proof plan (Ian almost got arrested once))

If only they had been around when Vine came out …. they would’ve been famous i tell u

[whataboutsimple]

Magnus is kinda bizarre to me because I can understand why he can’t leave, he’s in boom town and he probably was what kept all the griefers from going out and causing chaos unless people don’t care about the whole king thing and since people can access the nether portal as it’s just there, going to the nether to escape might be risky. But at the same time, does he just camp in there forever? Does he have farms in his tower somewhere that keeps him fed and alive? Also a tower of obsidian would have been obvious so did Magnus have fake bases around to throw others off? Does he loot corpses to keep stock or does he risk going out sometimes?

Good questions, dear Anon!

You see, I kind of been thinking about it since my first playthrough since Magnus like a character was very interesting to me.

But my answer is really depends on if we tall about Complex AU or just in-game events.

So, if you don't mind me, I'm gonna speak here about in-game events and post information about towns of my AU later.

Welcome to !!Bo∅mtoWn!! theory!

I'm going to make here lots of assuming, because clearly we don't have enough of screen time for both Magnus and BoomTown to make certain conclusion.

Basically BoomTown was created by greifers for greifers, it's a place where chaos-loving people can let go their morals and fully go into destroying mode, at the same time being fully aware that they can die there.

So we can't clarify moral limits there, since we for sure saw like people were trying to kill Jesse&Axel and they killed some of each other during that. But! After S1Ep2 we didn't see any greifers anywhere just running around and trying to kill other human beings. So I'm assuming that it's not the fact of the crown, that kept them there, but more of the fact that they can freely kill and destroy without being charged for that. The whole "King" thing? Just to keep some excitement between them, but nothing more.

The thing is, yet again, both BoomTown and Magnus had little of screentime, so there's lots of questions that can't be answered. We didn't had enough of view too see if Magnus had other bases or not, but if he did, still, people are not dumb, they would've start checking every base and eventually find Magnus himself.

I'm assuming the "King" and greifers had some kind of agreement: they can haunt him done while he's outside of the base, but they can't enter the base itself and can't do anything inside, if they somehow got there.

Sure we can see they all are looking for him, but that's probably because they don't know when he's outside and when he's inside.

Still, Magnus is dealing with greifers, he can't blindly trust them, so that's why he built the traps inside. But, they had an agreement, so when Jesse and Axel are going down to him, he probably thinks they either are and outsiders who wants him dead somewhy or greifers who still want him dead too badly.

That's about his base and how they didn't "find" him, now about supplies..

We know they have this "Death Bowl" thing, where any griefer can challenge the king for his crown. Now, my guess is that after or before those battles, Magnus goes and collects some supplies, since we know he had them when he and Jesse were getting ready for battle.

Though, we also know that after the battle greifers can start their attempts on killing Magnus without even waiting for a bit, so they probably have another agreement: before the battle they give him some time to prepare.

How come? Well, you see, before we have the scene of the battle itself, they did prepare some supplies for both Jesse and Magnus, though Magnus said he has his own. They also gathered a crowd, found an announcer and only after that they started a battle. I don't think they would manage to do all of that if greifers were trying to kill Magnus all the time. So the only logical conclusion here is that he has some time before "Death Bowl" starts to prepare himself.

But! I'm very unsure that he manages to collect enough food and ect. while he has this free time, because god knows how long it will take him till the next "Death Bowl", so I'm assuming he does have some farms inside the tower. Maybe there are multiple levels, where he can gather resources, sleep and ect.

Now last thought about corpses.. I prefer thinking that no, he doesn't do that, because that would be too amoral. And even if he did, that barely would be enough. Greifers probably run around with little no normal inventory: TNT, eggs, maybe an instrument or two and some food. Doubt that would be enough for him to keep himself from hunger or going out of TNT for example.

Anyway, that's all! Hope that answered your question, dear Anon!

[jacob-in-taiwan]

July 31 - The Great Harbor Bridge, Shoyoen, Kaohsiung Main Public Library, and Liuhe Night Market 

Today started rather slow but eventually ramped up towards the end. After grabbing a bit of hotel breakfast the whole class went to the basement for some classroom time. I don’t know about everyone else, but this was much needed for me. Now that I’ve been in Taiwan for a while, I’m starting to get ideas on what I want my final project to focus on. However, I’ve been so focused on enjoying my time while I’m here that I haven’t really been doing any research or deeper thought. So the fact that we had some dedicated time to focus was really nice for me. 

After classroom time was up we had some time to get lunch, and I decided to check out a Latin place that was just around the corner. Despite going on this trip to Taiwan, I’ve actually spent a lot of time dedicated to learning Spanish, so I was excited to see if I could maybe practice a little. I was both kinda right and wrong. When we got there we were greeted by an older gentleman, who spoke a bit of english but did ask us if we spoke spanish. I told him I spoke a little bit and he gave a friendly laugh back. I was hoping to be able to speak more from there, but our waitress came out and she only spoke chinese. Not a problem at all, but I was a bit sad that I didn’t get to speak to the owner a bit more. 

After lunch it was time to really get the day started. Our first stop was a brief one, the bridge by the hotel. The Great Harbor Bridge was built just a few years ago and cost $10 million USD, but what makes it interesting is how it turns 90º to let ships pass by. We all gathered around and watched as it slowly turned before reaching its point. It was a pretty interesting sight to see, as most times the design is just a simple drawbridge, but this was much cooler. 

After the bridge we took the bus to the Shoyoen heritage building. This Japanese villa has been preserved since it was built back during Japanese occupation. It was really interesting to be able to walk through the rooms themselves and imagine what it must have been like to live there. The building itself also serves as a great reminder how Taiwan is a melting pot of many cultures, and how the country it is today is built off its influences from the past. 

The next place we visited was the Kaohsiung Main Public Library. As I mentioned in a previous post, I love libraries. This was no exception. A nice, big, and quiet library is always a good place to be at. There was really nice natural lighting and plenty of books to read. They even have a sizable collection of books in english. The views, of course, were incredible. Depending on what side of the building you sat at you could either see the city skyline or a great view of the port and river. I won't lie though, my favorite part of the library had nothing to do with any of that. On the roof, if you crossed the sky bridge they had a bouldering wall, which I ended up spending my remaining time at. I love rock climbing, and the fact that they had a wall for free meant that I really had no other option than stopping everything I was doing and climbing. 

To end the night we were dropped off at Liuhe Night Market. The original market we planned on going to was closed today, but I thought this one was pretty good. I got a turkish wrap and banana pancakes, and they were honestly some of the best street food I’ve had while I’ve been here. So if this was just the backup plan, then I wonder how good the original market is.

Earlier today during my classroom time I decided that I wanted my next academic reflection and final project to both focus on ports in Taiwan. One of the first things we learned when we got to Kaohsiung was how vital its port was to not just the city, but Taiwan as a whole. Today, as we watched the Great Harbor Bridge turn it reminded me again of that very fact. Peter told us the main reason for building the bridge was for foot traffic and cutting down on travel times while walking, but the entire purpose of the bridge is to let ships pass. Of course, massive cargo vessels aren’t going to be traveling down this small channel, but the bridge more so represents the spirit of the people embracing their ports. The fact that more money was spent on the bridge so it could turn proves that the people in Kaohsiung prioritize water and all the activities that occur on it. Furthermore the entire area on the pier and around the port is so well developed that it shows active investment of both time and money. Actually watching the bridge turn was a rather unextreme endeavor, but it represented much more than may be obvious. 

[hualianff]

Bonding Trip

Post-canon Xianle trio take on kayaking: MQ in the front, XL in the middle (not paddling), and FX in the back. 

Except they keep going in circles. 

XL is supposed to be giving orders but fengqing keep clashing 😭

MQ: “Fengxin, I swear to god you better stop telling me what to do - I’m literally in the front and have the best view of where we’re going”

FX: “ok but just because you’re in the front doesn’t mean the rest of us can’t see, idiot. I’m doing my part so I don’t know why the fucking kayak isn’t turning LEFT for some goddamn reason-“

MQ: “oh, so we’re doing the blame game now?”

FX: “does blaming have to be inherently wrong? WE’RE NOT MOVING-“

Meanwhile, XL is staring down the stream and thinking to himself:  “hmm, the water is moving faster that way hmm”

It’s a waterfall.

Fengqing: [still arguing]

XL: “waiT gUYS”

Fengqing: [not even listening, not even rowing at this point]

XL whips out the backup paddle and accidentally thwacks both MQ and FX on the head.

XL: “GUYS WE HAVE TO TURN AROUND NOW”

MQ and FX finally seeing their impending doom: “…shit”

Fortunately, all three martial gods manage to row against the current and end back up on calm waters. That is when they finally capsize the kayak because MQ and FX try to take a swing at each other and XL ducks right in time to dodge-

SPLASH! They tip over in a fit of shouts, the last thing heard being: “I hate you SO MUCH!”

It was MQ.

MQ who pops up from the water like a wet cat - NOT a happy camper at all - glaring daggers at FX who bobs up and down a few feet away. 

XL is just chilling. At first, he made sure he still had on the necklace with HC’s ashes, but other than that, he didn’t particularly care about what state his clothes or appearance was in.  

In fact, as XL is treading the river, he thinks the water is actually kind of refreshing. 

MQ: *COMPLAINING AND SCREAMING IN THE BACKGROUND*

FX: *occasionally screaming something back when he’s mentioned*

XL, absentmindedly: “Honestly, the river is kinda refreshing.” 😇

Suddenly, the silence is deafening. 

MQ: “the fuck did you just say?”

XL: “I-i just said that it’s not so bad, isn’t it? It was too hot today-”

MQ, popping a vein: “YOU- YOU- Y-“ 

MQ can’t even collect himself enough to speak. He’s visibly trying not to choke on angry tears, just seriously regretting even agreeing to this so-called bonding activity. (Not really though.)

Minutes later, FX and MQ are still arguing - trying to strangle each other at this point - while XL is floating on his back behind them. 

None of them notice how far away their kayak is drifting.

Also, where did their paddles go?

When they finally agree to swim to the shore, MQ is left behind as he isn’t the best swimmer compared to FX and XL. 

It’s only after telling FX, “At least we’re still together, which equals good memories,” that XL looks back-

Right as MQ’s head goes underwater.

“Motherfuc-“

XL gasps in shock. 

“GAHH MU QING JUST DISAPPEARED-“ XL exclaims, doggy-paddling in place as he points to where MQ was just seconds ago.

FX also turns around.

“Let’s leave him.”

XL: 😠

FX: “oKAY oKAY LETS GET HIM”

***

So something dragged MQ under.

Merpeople? Water dragons ? Human-like sea creatures? Who knows. But there’s a whole underwater civilization that Xianle trio find themselves in. 

The creatures that pulled MQ under were just babies and thought he was pretty, so they kidnapped him. XL manages to communicate through body language and is welcomed enthusiastically - somehow he makes friends everywhere he goes!

And then one of the sea creatures tries to wife FX up. FX is hell-bent on swimming tf out of there, has wanted to leave the moment he was approached. 

World’s away, HX feels it in his bones that XL is getting into some shit: “Someone go collect this man.”

It’s him. HX is the one who ends up finding Xianle trio, tracking XL down to say, “Xie Lian, get your ass back to Hua Cheng, he’s worried about you.”

Because the spiritual energy doesn’t work in the underwater kingdom, XL couldn’t inform his husband of his whereabouts. The Xianle tiro + HX begin to leave, but the creatures apparently want them to stay and try trapping them.

HX is not having it.

HX: “not on my watch- or else that one-eyed freak will have my head”

HX effortlessly helps the Xianle trio escape. As they break the surface of the unsuspecting lake, HC is already waiting above shore as he had received a signal from HX hours earlier.

HC sweeps XL up from the water and immediately dries XL’s clothes and body. 

“Gege seems to have had quite the adventure today.”

XL smiles up at his husband, leaning in for a warm hug.

“A true bonding experience, haha.”

FX, MQ, and HX: 💀💀💀

HC pulls seaweed from XL’s hair: “I’m glad Gege had fun then.”

MQ pointing at XL: “I’m never letting you plan a trip again”

XL: “ok, then Fengxin can plan the next one! 🥰🥰”

MQ: “absolutely NOT”

FX: “HA, HE GOT YOU GOOOOOD”

HC to XL: “invite me next time too”

XL: “of course, my love” :) 

FX: …

MQ: “who’s laughing now”

[msommers]

intimacy, friendship, fate for maeve, riya and meredith!

this time i just forgot to hit post whoops. thank you alana!! xx // oc asks: relationships edition

Intimacy: Is your OC the type of person to engage in long-term relationships, or are they more casual in their intimacy and affection? How do they feel about intimacy and relationships in general?

MAEVE — the thing is that maeve could engage in relationships outside of the long-term, but there would be nothing casual about them given that It's Maeve. any partner of hers is going to be spoiled with affection, attention and goods lmao. 90% chance she's gonna write something about them. i’ve written essays on maeve's feelings on this subject, so to keep it simple: she's in love with love, intimacy is her middle name, she collects relationships like pokemon, and would probably perish like a fish out of water if she was starved of these things.

RIYA — her history has definitely been more casual, there have been one or two people that she'd mess around with sporadically over multiple years, but even then it was just for reliable fun and victor was the first time she entered anything of the Committed type. i don't think she consciously noticed her views on intimacy evolving while with him, but they did and those changes will become more apparent to her now that all she can do is sit with the memories. she'll start to understand there's a difference when it comes to Romantic intimacy and that’s going to be something she misses whenever that it becomes relevant.

MEREDITH — i don’t know if she’d be able to handle a casual relationship. meredith's friendly and relatively open to folk, but if she lets somebody approach anything near intimate then they've been Chosen, y’know. she doesn't want anything fleeting, she needs loyalty and consistency and dedication. she'd sooner take intensity over casualness tbh. she takes comfort in the intimacy that comes from relationships, in knowing someone wants to display affection for her and knows how she'd like to receive it.

Friendship: What's your OC like as a friend? How are they at making new friends? What are the most important friendships in your OC's life?

MAEVE — she's steadily racked up an egregious amount of friends through the years due to her charm and being such a goodie good. that type of person in the group who can go "i know a guy" about nearly anything. i won't give names because all of her friendships are equally valued in her heart (i lied, grey's her most treasured friend 💜). she's kinda the dream friend?? she'll pay for any of your outings, is the kindest shoulder to cry on, is incredibly attentive to your feelings and needs, will bend over backwards to help you whenever necessary no questions asked, etc etc. just don't ask her to help make the holiday dinner the friendship will be ruined just let her host the party

RIYA — the friend who's there to gossip or get petty if you need that energy. happy to include you in her expensive activities because she likes spoiling people close to her. always ready to throw down for you even if you don't necessarily ask for it. riya's either very good or very bad at making friends and that depends on the type of crowd she's in, because uh. she's not everybody's cup of tea. her most important friendships are those with her family members, and now the warden squad for obvious reasons.

MEREDITH — she’ll go on whole ass quests for her friends, feels like that explains a good deal itself. everybody needs that one friend who will defend you in encounters, go to the ends of the earth for you at a moment's notice, and be unafraid to call you out on some nonsense you're pulling lmao. she's superb at making friends, that charisma and insight will take her a long way if she's not speaking to a baddie (derogatory). alistair, nathaniel, leliana and teagan are her most important friendships probs.

Fate: Does your OC believe in destined meetings? True love, soulmates, hearing the bells? Have they ever experienced this?

MAEVE — cannot be stated enough how deeply she believes in it all lmao true love's kiss being magic, people finding each other through fate, having multiple soulmates, you name any sappy trope and she's a believer in it. of course she's experienced these things because maeve's living a fairy tale 90% of the time and it's what she deserves. anything with ilya is the prime example but she's been given multiple soulmate related things bc i myself (and other enablers) like to spoil her 🥰

RIYA — she for sure believes in those things just because she believes in destiny overall. umm. i don't think there's any like #canonevent that has occurred with fated moments so far that,,,but if you think about it,,,,if you squint. kinda wild how riya ended up in the company of a supportive dreamer mage 🤔 exactly when she needed that kind of aid 🤔🤔 kinda sussy. (she’s gonna find a reason to think so many things are destined, people are gonna hate it)

MEREDITH — she’s more of a butterfly effect kind of lady, i think. actions have reactions and consequences that all lead somewhere in the end. it wasn’t destiny that had her marching around ferelden during the blight, it was just highever being the first domino to fall. true love tho, that she can get behind. you don't have to be written in the stars to find somebody who will become your other half with plenty of trust, time and effort.

[trippygalaxy]

Hi there galaxy, got a question for you if your okay with it.

Question: what are your thoughts on the chain separately?

HI DOODLE :D

And my thoughts, hmmm

Time: you already KNOW my thoughts on this man bad ass father figure/leader who is still a little shit and we love him for it 🫶

Twilight: love his design as well as his older brother role he has! Think he’s a good moral compass for the group too. Would love to see how he interacts/views the people of his village.

Warriors: ofc, pretty boy but also one of the most trained/capable fighters! Lots of people play into the pretty boy stick, which is fun, but we should also remember this man is a CAPTAIN in the military! This dude is not afraid of getting muddy. If something happened to Time, id fight to make Warriors the new leader of the group!

Sky: sleepy guy!!! But also GOD KILLER!? I LOVE how love sick he is with his Zelda but also how that isn’t his ONLY character trait! I really like how jojo didn’t forget his wood working skills! ALSO LOVE HOW CULTURALLY DIFFERENT HE IS BECAUSE HES LITERALLY FROM LIKE THE BEGINNING OF HYRULE TIME???

Wild: love the wild child vibes, the chaos is NEEDED but I kinda wish more people recognized how he’s literally like a friendly neighborhood spiderman?? But the neighborhood is a whole ass continent! He’s helped SOOO many people, so he is BOUND to have a whole ass army of allies that are willing to help him!

Wind: PIRATE VIBES ARE IMMACULATE. I honestly relate to him so much?? Most people see him as a child but he’s not?? He’s been through so much and only to get written off as some kid just because of his age?? BUT STILL NOT BEING AFRAID TO LIKE AND BE CHILDISH?? He is definitely one of my favourites

Four: underrated?? Like he’s so cool! AND HIS PLACEMENT IN THE TIMELINE SPEAKS SO MUCH!?! i read one fic where Time looked up to four but only knew him as “the hero of men” so when they all met he didn’t know BUT ONCE HE DID EVERYTHING CLICKED INTO PLACE?? I LOVE how many ways he can just mess with people! Short? Can act like a kid and trick people! Minish abilities? HAHAH get ready for the pranks of life times AND getting you out of tricky situations! SPLITTING INTO FOUR? THE POSSIBILITY IS ENDLESS DUDE!

Legend: hahaha, angy bunny man. But seriously, LOVE how he is the most experienced of the group and everyone is like “wtf haven’t you done?” And he’s just “getting an fucking break apparently.” Also the angst with Marin is PEAK!!! Would love to see him use more of his wild ass items just to freak the others out.

Hyrule: OKAY, might be a hot take but i kinda hate that people baby him so much?? Like, yes he is hard on himself and yes he can be seen as ‘shy’ but he’s probably one of the most harden heroes but is still so light hearted! We see him poke fun at alot of the group (especially Time), he can be chaotic but is still collected when he needs to be. He GREW UP in a literal hell scape, that dude is BOUND to have trust issues and so many bad habits and wounds and scars AND YET HE’S STILL SEEN AS ONE OF THE MOST CHEERFUL OF THE GROUP!! HYRULE IS A BADASS WITH A HEART OF GOLD AND YOU CAN FIGHT ME ON THAT!

[serpentmalign]

do you have any headcanons about Mitsuki's relationship with his family? (his parent, his brother, team taka)

Only some.

Concerning Orochimaru

Mitsuki seems to have a amicable relationship with him, so I'm inclined to believe Orochimaru had a major part in his upbringing. I mean more than the usual "checked on his progress and make sure he's up to standards". Orochimaru did have a passing comment in wanting to be a parent. Whether or not someone wants to argue he did play around a bit with by having multiples, so he's not attached to any particular "child"... then, I think it's better to ask someone who knows Orochimaru far better than I do. Mitsuki is also shown to make comments on how he is like his parent (by collecting a little bit of everything, studying everything, being hyper aware of everyone's abilities and social standings). Whenever he extracted the blood from Boro and created antibodies from it, it felt very Oro-coded. He's adept at the sciences, observant, and has a very lowkey style of persuasion, this is all markings of Orochimaru. He also doesn't appear to be threatened by Orochimaru, given that he freely spoke his mind regarding his Snake Sage awakening (about not caring whatever him nor Log thinks), so I like to think Orochimaru really did try his hand at being a genuine parent by his own means. Leaving Mitsuki with only good impressions of him and, dare I say, have a level of trust with him being his guardian and provider.

Concerning Log

I like to think he's a bit troubled by his existence. Not anything against Log, rather, Mitsuki seems to have lived his entire life thinking he was Orochimaru's sole "son". Seeing a man with a face like his, acting against Orochimaru, still alive, seems to have some previous establishment with his father, it really did sober Mitsuki up to his own situation. Not that it was conventional by any means. Mitsuki knows he is an artificial being, but it's another thing to know you're retry #6, y'know. If he saw him again, I think he'll be polite, but would lack any fraternal fondness for him. Log, just like him, is another manufactured being. More importantly, a total stranger to him.

Concerning Team Taka

I'd actually like to explore this with someone, but maybe one day. If you skim the Wikis, Mitsuki's upbringing is denoted by Orochimaru and Log, but reading (or watching) Boruto shows Suigetsu being highly involved in Orochimaru's office. He lent a hand in staging that whole ruse to force a personality into Mitsuki and becoming a Snake Sage. It So, kind of implies Suigetsu was assisting Orochimaru throughout the whole rearing process. Funnily, I think Mitsuki views Suigetsu like an older brother, in a clinical way, due to this fact. Karin is often shown to interact more with Sarada, so I can't really gauge Mitsuki's relationship with her. I think Mitsuki has a neutral opinion about her, admires her medical talents, but otherwise usually stays in her shadow. I have HC that she also assisted in child rearing, but a little more hands off than Suigetsu. Juugo — Mitsuki has the same kekkei genkai with him, so I think he has some empathy with him. Though I think Juugo is largely absent? I don't know if Mitsuki was ever given much opportunity to talk to him. Overall opinion is also neutral. He recognizes he can be dangerous, but isn't necessarily afraid of him. If you want to include Sasuke as Team Taka still, then Mitsuki admires his strength and ability. I think this is mostly influenced by Boruto's extremely high opinion of the Uchiha. Orochimaru also seems to speak fondly of Sasuke and Mitsuki is extremely polite around him. Though, I think he prefers to keep his distance, but enjoys a good conversation with him. I HC a combination of Oro, Suigetsu, and Karin socializing with him when he was young made him the kinda' nicer, non-abrasive personality he is when he is first introduced. But, additionally, I think they were the only people around him for socializing. I don't think he could wander all too far since Orochimaru was busy curating him and his talents.

[minetteskvareninova]

Minette watches Medici, part 13 (Ties That Bind)

- Eating my words about this show getting better with a heaping dose of bologna sauce (sorry, I don’t know any Tuscan foods). At this rate, I am definitely not watching season 3.

- You know, for a show that hinges so much of its plot on renessaince accounting and record keeping, Medici: The Magnificent is remarkably bad at explaining renessaince accounting and record keeping... Like at this point I just have to roll with anything that the writing throws at me on this subject. The Pazzi bank owes the Medici, and they can collect said debt at any time? Sure, why not. The Medici bank controls the price of alum? Sounds fake, but whatever. Pope can just transfer his account to the Pazzi bank like that? I guess so. This shit’s gotta wait for people more knowledgeable of renessaince economics to debunk. I am just here for the characters and their drama, which... Well...

- Gotta say, of all the things to get right, I did not expect Galeazzo Sforza being a massive dick to be one them. I mean, he was a condottiero, these guys usually weren’t known for their kindness, humility or deft diplomatic touch. Though the whole “your daughter is a child bride???” thing was kinda hillarious when you remember Lorenzo’s sister Lucrezia was married off at 13 (she did actually start living with her husband at 18, but still).

- Speaking of, I actually liked Salviati’s little bluff towards Galeazzo. The man is a villain as cartoonish as old Pazzi, but you can’t deny he’s one clever bastard.

- Old Pazzi and his scheming to get Francesco back on his side actually wasn’t that bad, either, untill something that should at best slowly sow seeds of doubt in his mind made him turn on both Lorenzo and his beloved wife wholesale. And it was such an easy fix, too - just make Francesco already conflicted about Lorenzo’s attempts to undermine the Pazzi bank! Like, Francesco’s father wanted to bury the hatchet with the Medici, and now they are destroying his life’s work, even if it is for understandable reasons (that is, his shitty uncle was trying to destroy them first). His uncle’s manipulations would only feed his already existing doubts about cooperating with Lorenzo, so even if he didn’t believe old Pazzi (because why should he?!) Francesco would still end up turning on his friend. In fact, why not add his dissappointment from not getting Imola to the mix? We could have so much juicy drama stem from this, if only the writers could be a little clever about it! But no, that would risk making Lorenzo look bad, even if only from a certain point of view, and we can’t have that, so now we’re on a fast train to Misunderstandingland, my least favourite plot destination.

- Did I mention Lorenzo is a raging Gary Stu? Because he is. His speech about “true republic” at the start of the episode almost made me quit the show altogether. I wanted to get trough this part with a vodka bottle in hand, but I suspect there’s not enough alcohol on our good green mother Earth to dull my pain.

- Other subplots aren’t any better. Lorenzo’s relationship with Clarice is proving to be lamer by the minute, and Gugliermo with Bianca are sitting on their asses in the Medici mansion this whole time, apparently. The show threatens me by relationship development between Lorenzo and Giuliano when it shows Lorenzo’s frustration with that shitty aimless fratbro, but that fizzles out when he immediately turns to Francesco as a substitute brother. Francesco, who immediately betrays him for no fucking reason, except for the fact that Lorenzo apparently didn’t explain to him Novella was promised to Giuliano first.

- It was admittedly pretty funny to see Simonetta express frustration with the fact that Giuliano is, in fact, a shitty aimless fratbro, even if it didn’t really go anywhere. But then her husband starts suspecting Sandro of an affair with Simonetta, because... He used her as a model in a bunch of paintings the dude didn’t comission, I guess? Truly, noone in this show is safe from the effects of microdosing on stupid pills. On the other hand, it could lead to Giuliano and Simonetta breaking up, so that might not be so bad, aye?

[packook]

BATDR Thoughts

Spoilers below

Just wanted to rant and get some thoughts out there. Overall I enjoyed BATDR. The graphics were great and the gameplay and new sneaking ability was great. I loved the random personalities of different lost ones like the one who wanted us to find their art or the whole Lord Amok part. Having a 4th Butcher gang member was pretty cool too and she was honestly the scariest part of the game to me.

I just wish they worked on the characters and story more. Like while playing I was thinking if we were only getting the game a chapter at a time we’d barely be getting any lore or info and then it felt they just starting throwing the plot out finally during chapter 4. I wish they spaced it out a little more so you could think about it as you snuck around instead of just pushing forward just because where else would we go?

I wish we got to interact with characters more too. Like when we met Porter I was like wow this character seems fun so far. Can’t wait to run into him again. But we didn’t besides a cameo in the end. I liked what I got with a lot of characters I just wished we had more of it. I loved hanging out with tiny Bendy but I wish we could have done more than walk around the city together. Like hide somewhere or basically be like Boris in BATIM where he’s around and hiding and on our side and we can visit him whenever. Or maybe we could have defended Bendy from enemies while he has to work on a task to get us through an area. I know he can’t be around forever because he has to be the ink demon but I felt like the game relied on the fact we were all excited to hang out with Bendy so we didn’t get a reason for Audrey to be with him. Though I guess seeing a character you draw walking around could be enough for Audrey.

Speaking of Bendy what was the point from his perspective to merge with Audrey? Maybe I just need to play it again but I was like good thing you merged together now Audrey can force you to do what she wants. That being said I LOVED being able to play as Beast Bendy but I just didn’t get it form Bendy’s point of view. 

I think it’s really interesting that Bendy was in the real world at the end because basically that’s been the fandom’s whole idea since the original chapter one. An actual toon coming to life. That’s what most AUs and stories people make are about. That was what I felt like the fandom thought was happening before we learned there is a real world outside of the studio. But now what’s going to happen? Like does Bendy just act as his toon self in the real world? As the ink demon? Something completely different? And based off so many different fan stories I know there are so many different options with that. That’s what gets me excited if there is a third game but who knows what direction that’ll go.

I also like and don’t like how the whole loop is different. Like we still don’t know who was writing the invisible ink in BATIM. Who boarded up the ink machine in chapter 1? How do the cut outs move? Who cleared the path for us after running into Bendy in chapter 2? Like I guess none of those theories matter now because new loop new story so it doesn’t matter now we’re moving on. Which kinda makes me sad because I looked at so many theories, made some of my own, and tried to put the puzzle pieces together. 

That being said. I’m still excited to see what holes the fandom will fill. I feel like BATIM was so fun because of the what the fandom created with it. I think a good chunk of us are still around and plenty of new people are here too. So I’m still going to focus on collecting, finding, and sharing everyone’s ideas, art, and  other things and I already got an amv in mind that works pretty well with the story. So even though I wish there were a few differences in BATDR I’m excited to see what we can all make together and what the future will bring!