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menacing-anon · 1 year ago

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My Predictions Masterpost, Pre-2x08

For posterity at this point, this is an update on all my predictions after episodes 6 and 7! Here are the compilations from before the season, before 2x04, and before 2x06.

In new material is this promo.

THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR 2x06-2x07.

I'll sum up what I got right and wrong in my previous masterpost, excluding between-ep adjustments, which are only recorded in my reaction videos.

Episode 6: Calypso's Birthday

What I got right: Ed only wears black, because he's been allowed to change back, and Stede wears his red, then green shirts. Stede doesn't make Izzy first mate. They talk on the Revenge, sort of about their plan to make landfall and what they'll do there. Izzy and Ed talk on the deck before they leave. They go to the market and get decoration for the party, which was the goal (and we don't know whether the crew made the banners); I'll give myself that one even though I didn't include other supplies. Ed does offer those kids knives. Stede first wears green when we first see him back on the Revenge. The performance is neither the talent show nor Lucius and Pete's wedding, but its own thing. Izzy doing drag comes about naturally. The record Ed beat is the one he intended to in 2x01, and it's density of raids. Edward Low is defeated without external help. The crew ends the episode on a positive note. Banes reappears. The shot of him with the white and blue prosthetic and Zheng smiling down are from the same scene.

What I got wrong: The conversation early on is about landfall plans — it is about intentions that lead them there, though. There's a new first mate, and it's Oluwande. The show is a concert — it's actually a party more broadly. Wee John doing drag doesn't come about naturally — strictly speaking, it's planned. Izzy is cheered on to sing — he just goes for it. Izzy gradually changes his approach to coping or is prompted to by an event; this could be connected to the performance — there's no explicit update on that. The overarching threat, not Edward Low, makes Ed feels like a storm is coming; his statement precedes the explosion, or the attack on the beach. Stede screams during the Edward Low storyline. Ed and Stede sneak off near the end of the party for their sex scene and their distraction makes it possible for Ned to attack. The crew executes a lighthouse fuckery-like solution to beat him. They don't continue the party after the attack. Banes reappears at the end. His "gentlemen" speech happens later, before a big mission. He wears the white and blue nose prosthetic first, and they don't change back and forth.

Episode 7: Man On Fire

What I got right: The morning scene is really early in the episode (and we don't know whether that's strictly Stede's robe Ed is wearing). We learn their plans for the day, and they head to the Republic of Pirates. People probably trying to kill Stede explains that one guy who smashes a bottle. The "we" who've been through Hell together refers to the crew of the Revenge; more specific, but it's so close I'll take the point. The indoor and outdoor fights are actually one that moves outside, and happens close in time to Zheng and Oluwande's "fool me once" conversation. Banes explodes buildings, causing chaos in the street. This is the end of the episode!

What I got wrong: We open with the morning scene. They make plans for the day — Izzy actually gives insight into their existing plans. (The alternative that this conversation fits into the end of the previous episode, followed by Banes plotting.) There's a change in public attitude towards Stede — I literally just misheard Ed's line as "something's different, they're probably gonna try and kill you." He falls out of favor because word got out about Banes's plans. Banes is seeking pirate allies, and his conversation with Zheng is in this episode. First, there's nothing out of the ordinary at Jackie's, then Ed and Stede return to find that people are out to kill Stede — the latter is not a second visit. They go on their fish shop date in between — the date comes first. (The alternate order that people want to kill Stede the first time around, he talks to the group on the stairs and wins them over, then they all go to the bar for the "I'm a sea God" bit.) Afterwards, Stede hangs out with the people he met at the bar earlier, and Ed sees him out and talks to Izzy. (The alternative that Stede just goes in first on their first visit, because Ed wants to take a moment to observe the boat.) The folks Stede hangs out with on the steps suggest he get an earring — not exactly, but it's close; it does happen over the course of them hanging out. Ed goes down the stairs from the platform after all of the above — it's actually before "we've been through Hell together." Around that time, Stede tells someone being a failure isn't so bad. With the stairs group's support, Stede appeals to Jackie at the bar — it's actually to Zheng. Banes explodes Jackie's, out of revenge — the finale reveals that he actually destroyed pretty much everything except Jackie's. The episode ends after Stede and Ed talk at the cabin.

The Rest:

What I got wrong: The party doesn't introduce fireworks that are involved in the explosion in 2x07. My handy-dandy chart 2.0 was wrong as well, but only a little 😄

In my defense, where the freak was Stede's earring during the conversation with Zheng? Oh, and when he screamed? *squatting squinting woman meme* Also, the Regular Dude outfit will extend for a teensy bit longer.

The first of these was just gonna be a rough chart for myself, then I figured it would be helpful for readers too, but now there are few enough outfits left to keep track without one. I've grown a little attached, though, so, see you in season three, handy-dandy chart 🥹👋

But before we get there, O O F,

Episode 8: Mermen

I already saw the title, so I might as well predict on it here and not just at the beginning of the reaction. It seems self-explanatory enough: it means saviours, maybe psychological or imagined ones. Because it also references someone you're in love with, and Stede specifically, I intuitively want to say that it refers to Ed and Stede being each other's saviours, Ed being a figurative merman for Stede too. More on that shortly.

It's no wonder I was like, "how does this all fit into two episodes?!", 'cause now I'm like, "how does this all fit into one episode?!" 😅😳 Let's take it step by step.

As stated, Ed has a couple more Regular Dude scenes, where he looks out at the water and where he stares up at smoking ships from a tiny boat. I would place it in that order: the next time we see him is before he heads out to fish, and he's probably reflecting on his life and the future he's realizing for himself.

After looking out at a view with nothing alarming, Ed rows out and sees the destruction. I put a pin in the idea of him imagining it to think about why he says Stede's name, and was comfortable not settling on much when it Hit Me. The ships are Zheng's, and this is the first Ed sees of the explosion, so his quiet "Stede" is an expression of his fear for Stede, not himself.

Ed calling to Stede because he stumbles on something frightening would be the path of least resistance, and he does sound that way. Plus, counterpoint, the ships don't have red sails... Still, what are the odds that there are unrelated smoking ships? This is a figurative heart-versus-brain thing, and my brain is winning two-zero so far — Anne doesn't kiss Stede at dinner and the beach battle surely comes before "there's a lot of them" — so I'll trust it again!

Whether there's more to that scene and whether Ed appears again in-between, which if I had to guess, I might say not, he does show up to fight at the beach, emerging from the sea, having donned the old leathers once more. Maybe even these consecutive shots from the trailer are consecutive!

Already, this reminds me of some really interesting analyses, but this ain't the post for those 😅 Back to mermen, however, this could be what prompts the symbol: Ed arrives to fight alongside Stede, possibly even in a critical moment, and does so in such a fantastic, symbolic way that until the headbutt, I thought it would be part of a dream sequence. He throws his clothes associated with piracy and Blackbeard to the ocean floor, then literally rises from it wearing them. That's enough for merman comparison for me! It's also an interesting flipside to mer!Stede swimming down to Ed, who is underwater.

Again, he's dry after, so... maybe it is a dream sequence, which would make it all the more merman-comparable, but I don't think so. I'll just be joking for the rest of my life that it's a 1x08 callback. Imagine we get a "never left" 2.0... Then I will leave. To deal with my emotions 😅

I also think there might be a callback to Stede "sending" Ed bottled letters, because I'm pretty sure this is the first time we find ourselves on a beach since then, excluding the gravy basket, and it might be the same one. Maybe Ed will even — and this would be so dramatic — receive a bottled letter after all, perhaps in his lil fishing boat, and that will also prompt him to return. Since I made the point, I might as well elaborate on it: I think we're more likely to see that before than have it be revealed after, but they would probably still circle back to their episode 7 conversation with Ed now confessing that he did receive one 🥺 At that rate, I think they would find a way for him to keep the bottle that whole time so he can straight-up produce it. Anyway, I'm not holding my breath for more than verbal connection to the beach, just wanna be covered in case it happens 😊

They fight, run to each other, reunite (thank you! I don't need another hiatus with Gentlebeard apart; it's enough that we're already apart from OFMD), then help out Zheng.

I'm not sure how Zheng and Stede end up at the beach together, but perhaps that's still to do with Oluwande, Jim and Archie. Something like, Stede finds Zheng assessing or mourning the damage, and having confronted a much more significant event last night, plus with some time to calm down and return to heartbreak about Ed over anger about more people leaving, Stede comforts Zheng by affirming the crew's freedom to be captained by whomever they please. At which point Zheng goes, *mirthless chuckle*, what am I captain of anymore?

Alternatively, Banes sends some men to capture Zheng — she's still a pirate, after all — who might be near the beach because she has no ship to return to, and Stede is somehow positioned to come to her rescue. Maybe he's spying on the shore for Ed, like in 1x08.

I already argued that the beach battle happens first, with Ed wondering about Zheng, then they team up nearby, and show up all together to wherever they run into the soldiers. Now I'm all the more confident, 'cause I think we can all agree the beach interaction is Gentlebeard's reunion. They hang out on the sand after the battle, but I changed my mind on the order: business first so Ed and Stede can end up staying on land until sunset, at which point they end up at the shack, which will have been shown earlier for setup.

To repeat: it's an excellent setting for Stede to give his last day on Earth speech though not the most appropriate time, and it probably has some greater meaning. Here I was, typing away about how surely Stede didn't hang around the Republic of Pirates as a child without us hearing about it before, even when he and the crew lived here, and he didn't bring them he— this is Stede's cabin from 2x01, isn't it? 😅 Mystery solved. He's gonna be like, and this is where I lived, and this is where I pretended you were sleeping next to me, and this is where I looked out onto the beach and thought about when you kissed me... 🤭 Jk, but, I definitely think the conversation will be about their relationship, and thus necessarily also about at least some of Ed's recent struggles, 'cause it will be their first extended chance to talk alone. And yeah, we might have part three of merman and bottle confessions with the cabin, and the bottled letter connection as discussed above.

This might also be when Ed says that he's truly present for the first time, which is a lot like "the most fun I've had in ages"; he's engaged in his life with Stede, maybe? 🙂 In the promo, it's combined with Ed facing the wreckage and preceded by "I used to view the sea as a battlefield." If either or both of those are the context in the show, Ed is probably talking about the new threat, saying that he's long viewed piracy as full of conflict and danger, but this is the first time he actually feels like he has something to lose: Stede and his own hopeful future.

Re: the failure conversation, I did see someone confidently say that it's with Izzy, but that might just be strong opinion, not based on, for instance, photos I didn't look at, and I don't see why Izzy would say that he's failing when he's probably feeling and behaving better than we've ever seen. Zheng, on the other hand? What an aprupt, thorough defeat. Foreseeable enough that she could reasonably tear herself apart over letting the signs slide. I don't know who would feel more like a failure, and we just Do Not Have Time for a one-off character. It also para||els nicely with Stede briefly living under this same wall after he lost the Revenge. In terms of placement, I did just spot someone next to Stede, and unless that barely-in-the-shot tat disproves it, I'll say that's probably Ed sans jacket.

Stede is clearly addressing someone else, but it would have to be after the battle. What's weirder, them leaving the beach, or them having this conversation the next day? ...I'm gonna say this is the next day, in a convenient location to find out that everyone else, except Jackie and the Swede, have been captured.

These shots are probably from when Banes comes to talk to the crew, basically to gloat about erasing them and their legacy. I think Izzy replies in the shot where the camera and people around are drawn to him, and what he says makes Banes decide to talk to him more.

A conversation in which Izzy says that piracy is "about belonging to something," and that their "spirit will last, throughout your entire fookin' empire" even if Banes kills them all, is an appropriate follow-up to Banes talking about pirate's tales and saying that all their stories will be lost. Alternatively, though I'm not betting on it, Banes has more practical goals, like getting information, and chooses Izzy for a conversation he would've had anyway. That's how Izzy ends up in a room full of soldiers when the trio shows up.

I'm pleased to seemingly have been right that this isn't Jackie's. The new footage of the trio running in with sabres already drawn suggests that the encounter with the soldiers is not a surprise: they're on a mission here, they just don't expect to be so outnumbered. They're lured in, and Jackie and the Swede are presumably captured soon too.

Then, they plot the suicide mission, which involves everyone disguising themselves in their enemies' uniforms. Sometime around here is another good time for Stede's last day on Earth speech. They run away from wherever they're held, on land, but have to get past a whole patrol of armed soldiers in the forest near the shore. Cue all the individual sneaking and fighting from the finale ad, and finally, fleeing the scene towards the Revenge. W accidental alliteration 😏💅

My hold-ups with this capture and escape timeline are that the whole group is never seen in the room with bars, and it's strange for Ed to point out that the escape plan risks their lives if the alternative is, what, death penalty? Or would they all take the Act of Grace? 🤪🤭 Lowkey... that would befit a comedy. Then again, Ed could say it before the trio try to break the crew out, though I think not, plus no alternative I've cooked up makes even close to as much sense, so... I guess they're just all moved to a different space. And while they surely didn't leave them in a room full of possible disguises, the planning and Stede dressing up sure look like they happen in the same building, maybe the room they barged into. This is to say that they don't plan this way in advance.

They all make it to the Revenge alive. Then Izzy dies.

I've seen a few comments, none of which say that, but from which I'm pretty much certain. I know people predicted it, but only through posts being like, "no he doesn't," so I don't know why. Now I'm noticing things that could relate to it. From the different-colored legs, I think Izzy is the one being supported by two people as they run, then based on the blue-screen leg thingy, he lies on the deck between Ed and Stede.

It crossed my mind that Izzy's death might relate to whatever he alone has going on with Banes earlier, but he obviously rejoins the crew and partakes in the escape plan, so he must be singled out earlier in the episode to take the final opportunities to develop his character and conclude his story. I assume Izzy is simply injured during the escape. I would imagine that he sacrifices himself, the peak of his movement towards caring about the other characters. It's probably for Ed and/or Stede specifically, also because no footage of them in this part has been shown. There are those shots with both actors on the beach, with Con O'Neill in uniform, so perhaps Banes catches up to them and Izzy fights him, fatally injuring himself, but maybe also Banes, providing a longer-term resolution to the conflict.

Ed holds up his hand, covered in Izzy's blood, probably as part of a statement about his death.

I noticed the probable reason that the crew, Zheng and Auntie are looking down when they stand together: this mound.

It looks like they hold a burial, and I highly doubt that there are two significant deaths in one episode, plus everyone but Jackie is accounted for, so it must be Izzy's. It also makes more sense for the Swede to still be with them at this point than before the capture. Izzy having died saving Ed and/or Stede might also explain them hanging back as the crew walks away.

...On the bright side, ass tonight 🥹🥴 Based on the pic Alex Sherman tweeted where his costume is labeled "Bare Butt Guy #1," his character can only be so significant, and I don't believe I've spotted him in any videos, so... I guess he plays a soldier who has his pants pulled down during a fight. I would bet on the escape as opposed to the beach battle: there are more people and more stuff going on.

After the burial when Ed and Stede stay back is the other possible time they have their conversation at the shack, and Ed saying that he's truly present for the first time does befit a conclusion. This might also be when they sit with Zheng on the beach, or when the failure conversation happens. They offer for Zheng to come with, unless Stede does that way back before they get attacked, but I'm not betting on the rest.

Based on Zheng next to Oluwande in the shot of everyone doing their tasks on the Revenge, I think we might end on a peaceful note, but that seems like something they would do if they thought this might end up being a series finale, which I don't believe is the intention. Then again, any setup would have to be a new threat, right?, and that would land like an afterthought. So maybe it pretty much ends on the crew (mostly) living to fight another day, and I would predict and hope that the post-credit scene checks in on someone else, ideally a seagull 🥹

That's it for predictions 😭 I'll just be back to recap what I got right and wrong here.

#predictions masterpost #our flag means death #ofmd #our flag means death season 2 #ofmd season 2 #our flag means death predictions #ofmd predictions #my post #tw explosion #tw violence mention #tw sex mention #tw cursing #tw murder mention #tw suicide mention #tw gun #tw death penalty mention #tw death #tw blood mention

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oflgtfol · 5 years ago

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i cannot fucking get over the overall vibes of the young blood chronicles like i never noticed it the previous times i watched it but the sheer dissonance of the music and what was happening on screen in terms of like, the emotions, it’s just. it’s so good i love it so much like i’m listening to miss missing you and i cannot stop thinking about that scene where patrick is literally winter soldier mode trying to kill pete and get the suitcase back and the entire song is just them fighting and running through like a TRAILER PARK of all things with THIS SONG over it and it literally ends with them BOTH KILLING EACH OTHER and yet there’s THIS SONG!! LIKE ITS JUST. GOD! it’s so good. and with where did the party go its literally patrick again in winter soldier mode hunting his friends through an abandoned hospital and yet he keeps like seeing dead people partying?? and there’s this song playing over it even though hes literally trying to kill his friends it’s just. GOD! THE VIBES!!!

#LIKE I KEEP DESCRIBING IT AS WINTER SOLDIER MODE BC IDK IF HES LIKE DRUGGED AND BRAINWASHED OR IF ITS LIKE?#DEMONIC POSSESSION? I GENUINELY DONT FUCKING KNOW BC THATS HOW BATSHIT WILD THIS PLOT IS. IT COULD BE EITHER #EITHER WAY HE ISNT IN CONTROL OF HIMSELF AND IT TURNS ON AND OFF AT THE SOUND OF LIKE. WHATEVER THEY PLAYED #VERY SIMILAR TO THE WINTER SOLDIER!#and yet look at the actual winter soldier movie! its a fucking TRAGEDY . it is INTENSE and EMOTIONALLY CHARGED and TRAGIC #YET THE YOUNG BLOOD CHRONICLES?!?! ITS PARTY MUSIC! UPBEAT POP PUNK SHIT! THERES GHOSTS PARTYING IN AN ABANDONED HOSPITAL BRO WHO CARES #LIKE ITS JUST SO WILD ITS SO SO GOOD #pete and patrick killing each other at the end of miss missing you is like on par with the steve and bucky fight scene at the end of the #winter soldier and yet patrick and pete LITERALLY succeed in killing each other yet its still so upbeat #meanwhile just the act of beating each other up for steve and bucky is like some shakespearean tragedy #i dont mean this to shit on the winter soldier bc Truly it is one of the best movies in the mcu its such a good movie #its just that i have such a thing for having this kind of emotional dissonance its so iconic i love it so much #you expect to see two friends fighting to the death as some tragedy but in the young blood chronicles its just like. fuck it bro #AND THEYRE LITERALLY FIGHTING IN THE MIDDLE OF A TRAILER PARK! LIKE THE SETTING IS SO ICONIC AND THE PEOPLE #JUST CIRCLE AROUND THEM AND CHEER THEM ON DURING IT LIKE AHAHSRTGFHJGFDSFGHJ #brot posts

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prettytoxicrevolver · 4 years ago

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Ball | Colson Baker

Requested? Nah

Warnings? None? It’s super long and idk if it’s good

Summary: After quarantine and covid seems to be lifted, the hollywood scene wants to celebrate through a masquerade ball. Being a somewhat famous pop singer you attend with your best friend and meet Machine Gun Kelly where the night certainly becomes interesting

Word Count: 2,651

(y/h/c) = your hair color

(y/e/c) = your eye color

Part 2 is here

“Who the fuck throws a ball nowadays?” Colson asks, fixing the sleeves of his suit for the millionth time and turning to his friend.

“I don’t know man,” Pete says shrugging his shoulders before moving to the mirror Colson was standing in front of to check over his suit one more time.

The two best friends were invited to a ball in Hollywood and by the advice of their managers, decided to go. They both thought it was ridiculous, rich people dressed up in suits and dresses for no fucking reason other than they were bored was dumb to the pair. But they had to make an appearance because according to their teams “everyone would be there” and it’s important to make an image.

It hopefully wasn’t going to totally suck, they at least could hang out with each other all night. The only thing they knew is that it was going to be a few speeches, some food, and lots of dancing. Hopefully, they could leave early.

Even though you would never admit it, you’ve always wanted to go to a ball. You had grown up watching Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, and Tangled where all these princesses had beautiful gowns and romantic first dances that you always dreamed of having. You thought you would never experience that but tonight you just might have the chance.

"I can't believe we're going to a masquerade ball!" your childhood best friend Ava cheers excitedly.

Ever since you became somewhat of a pop star, you never wanted to attend the parties your manager asked you to. Your anxiety always ruined them and you left early. But quarantine was officially over, you had Ava, a stunning dress, and a mask to hide your identity. It was perfect.

“It’s really fucking cheesy but I’m still excited,” she tells you, and you nod.

The idea of a masquerade ball was super cheesy right now. After spending over half a year quarantined, and wearing masks everywhere for safety, wearing a decorative mask to cover your face for the ball was super cliche in a way. However, you were just happy to get out of the house, going to your first ball, and seeing some of your industry friends after months.

“Okay, last checks,” Ava announces turning towards you.

You look over each other, checking that your dresses were all set, heels strapped, purses had everything inside, and you were ready to go. You link arms and head downstairs where your limo would take you to the ballroom. During the drive, you and Ava talk about who would be at the extravagant event, who you might meet for the first time, and what other things they would have at the ball.

No matter how big you had gotten, you were still starstruck whenever you met some of your favorite celebrities. Ava loved seeing your reaction, which contained you not knowing how to speak, shaking and holding onto your face as you repeated the same words over and over as the other person sometimes either did the exact same thing or looked at you like you were crazy.

What could you say? This wasn’t your lifestyle. You grew up in a small town and loved it there. That was more your speed some days and other days you couldn’t think of leaving LA. It was a balance.

When the limo stops, the two of you carefully step out and are instantly bombarded by paparazzi trying to figure out who you are underneath the mask. You link arms once more and security helps push through the crowd to get you to the red carpet.

Your publicist tells you to go first, take some photos, pose, and then have Ava join you. When you’re finally finished, you head into the ballroom.

Colson and Pete really didn’t feel like dealing with the paparazzi when they got to the event. So, they pushed through the crowd, headed to the red carpet, and before they could shove their way through, Colson’s manager stops him.

“Just a few pictures,” he says and Colson rolls his eyes internally but nods instead.

As the two friends wait, Colson’s eyes wander around to the other celebrities surrounding him. Underneath everyone’s “masks” he was having a hard time trying to figure out who was who. While he and Pete decided to attend the ball, they opted out of wearing masks, practically ignoring the theme altogether.

Finally, his manager lets him go and Colson takes a few pictures, before joining Pete for pictures, and then they’re finally allowed into the ballroom. It’s practically packed to the brim with people and the two friends look at each other before giving the signature best friend look. The one that says “fuck, I really don’t wanna do this” but here they were.

They head straight to their table, stopping occasionally to greet friends and other stars they knew. When Pete sits down, he takes a quick look around before pulling out a blunt and offering it to Colson. The older man immediately takes it, thanking his best friend before lighting it up and passing it back to Pete after taking a hit.

You had felt calm up until you reached the top of the stairs above the ballroom. There were hundreds of people dressed in black and white. Not only did crowds make you nervous, but you were dressed wrong.

Clad in a fiery red dress with a slit up the thigh and black heels to match, you were the only one not in black or white at the ball. Ava looks at you curiously as you pause at the top of the steps. Her gaze follows yours and something like realization flashes in her eyes.

"Babe, you look hot," she reassures you and you turn towards her. "Besides if anyone says anything I’ll tell them to fuck off."

With a giggle and a nod, you two link arms for one final time and head down the steps.

"Who the fuck is that?" Pete's voice pulls Colson out of his zoned out state to look at his best friend. He nudges Colson and points out two girls coming down the steps.

Colson does a double take as he watches them encapture the room with every step. His eyes are drawn to the girl in the red gown, quite literally standing out among a sea of black and white. Her (y/h/c) hair falls down her shoulders and moves effortlessly as she looks across the hundreds of party goers, and it's like he’s drawn to her in some way.

He can’t see her face underneath the mask but he’s certain of two things. Those are the most gorgeous (y/e/c) eyes he had ever seen even from across the room. And he thought she was fucking stunning, mask or no mask on. He’s breathless watching every step she takes and at this point he doesn’t care if he’s staring.

He can't tell if she meant to or not, but her dress code defiance had caught every eye including his. And he had to know who she was.

"Who do you think it is?" Pete asks, breaking Colson out of his stupor once more.

"No clue. But I wanna find out."

You were starting to believe that everyone in Hollywood truly did like to hear their own voice. You had been listening to speeches for what felt like hours and you were certain you'd have to fake an illness to get out. Thankfully as you're rehearsing a speech to get out of there, the music starts and so does the real fun.

"Let's go dance before I die of boredom," Ava says dramatically before grabbing your hand and pulling you onto the makeshift dance floor.

The two of you sing along to the lyrics, dancing around and overall making general fools out of yourselves. It was the best you had felt in a long time, finally able to enjoy a night out with minimal anxiety and your best friend next to you. Nothing seemed to be better than this moment and you were grateful.

You danced and danced until your feet begged for a break and you're dying for some water. You tell Ava where you're headed and she doesn't hesitate to accompany you to the drinks station.

"Bro, I need to find that girl," Colson says grabbing Pete the minute the speeches are over and the music is blaring.

"What girl?"

"The one in the red dress walking down the stairs earlier. I don't know man, I just feel like I need to meet her, talk to her."

Colson hadn’t thought of anything else but the girl ever since he laid eyes on her. He was practically bouncing up and down in his seat from nerves throughout all the speeches. He knew if he didn’t find her soon he might never and that wasn’t an option.

"You're fucking crazy dude. You don't even know her," Pete says brushing his friend off.

"Come on man just help me find her."

"Fine. But only cause I wanna find her friend."

The two best friends set off into the crowded room and search all over for the two girls. They start off wandering the outside, wondering if they ditched the dance floor for something more interesting. As they search, Colson wonders why this girl has such an effect on him but can't get a hold on why as he looks.

And then he sees it. A flash of red passes by and he sees the girl headed straight for the drinks table and her friend right beside her. They look out of breath, and Colson realizes they really must have been dancing all night and Pete and Colson are a bit dumb for not checking there first. He’s stuck watching her for a second when he breaks out of his trance and heads back over to his best friend.

"Bro," Colson says pointing and the younger of the two turns to see the two girls finally grabbing their drinks. The two best friends give each other a look before starting to head over to the two girls.

"Dude this drink hits," you tell Ava and she nods as she takes another sip. You take a deep breath as you survey the room and all of the people going hard on the dance floor.

As your eyes sweep the room, you're suddenly choking on your drink as two people make their way over to you. You set down your drink quickly and turn to Ava who’s watching people on the dance floor, completely oblivious as to who’s coming your way.

"Ava!" you squeal and she gives you a confused look. You smack her arm and try to point subtly and when she sees them she’s freaking out too.

“Oh my god that’s-” she begins but neither of you can freak out too much considering the two men were practically a foot from you.

"Ladies," Pete says upon walking up to the two of you. You both stand there for a second, starstruck when you remember he doesn't know who you are under the mask and take it to your advantage.

"Hi," you say smiling widely. You watch as Pete's eyes can barely leave your best friends figure and you're practically screaming in excitement for her. “This is Ava,” you introduce and Pete’s face breaks into a wide smile.

"May I have this dance?" he asks, gesturing his hand to Ava and you have to nudge her to react.

"Of course," she says, back to her smooth exterior. Her hand slides easily into his and as they walk away, she turns back for just a second to mouth a quick 'oh my god' and you giggle.

"Uhm," you hear from next to you and you almost pinch yourself to make sure you're not dreaming.

"Hi," Colson says and you've decided this is the best day of your life.

Growing up, you listened to a million different types of music and even more different types of artists. Around high school, the harder part of your life, you found Machine Gun Kelly's music. The lyrics hit different like no other artist and you found yourself relating to each word and each song and connecting on such a different level. You looked up to him probably more than anyone else in the industry.

And here he was. Standing in front of you. It was practically a miracle you weren’t freaking out.

"Hi," you finally get out and he smiles sheepishly. That damn perfect smile that he claims he doesn't like.

It also didn't hurt that you had a massive crush on him too. He was in an all black suit, the button down popped open at the top and you can’t help your eyes from running over the exposed tattoos. His hair falls over his piercing blue eyes and the minute they meet yours you’re breathless.

"You look beautiful," he says and you're definite that you could die happy right here right now.

"Thank you," you respond blushing furiously under your mask and looking down at your shiny black heels.

You try to think of something, anything to say, how much you loved his music, how excited you were for the nex album, literally anything but you were drawing a blank. You wondered for a moment if he had any idea of who you were underneath the mask and if he didn’t, why was he interested in you if he had no idea who you were?

Colson was certain he might pass out just standing near you. You were even prettier up close and while he still had no clue who you were he didn’t care. Even the small silence between you two was enchanting and he couldn’t help but enjoy every second spent in your presence.

"Do you wanna dance?" Colson finally asks when the song changes to a slower one and you’re practically two seconds from passing out on the spot.

"You don't even know me," you tell him and he shrugs still extending his hand making your heart race even faster.

"I think that makes it a bit more fun right?"

You're at a loss for words as you nod and take his hand in yours. Your hands slot together perfectly as he leads you towards the dance floor and you're breathless the minute his left-hand lands on your waist and your opposite hands intertwine. His eyes are locked on your as he starts to move the two of you and you’re somehow hyper aware of his every touch on your body.

You spin throughout the ballroom, his gaze never leaving yours, or your body, and you never want it to end. It's a simple waltz, but the dips and spins leave you practically gasping as you can't even wrap your head around the fact that you just met Machine Gun Kelly and now you're dancing with him.

Colson was euphoric when his hand met hers and he knew she was something special. He had never felt so calm and energetic around someone in his entire life. Gliding around the ballroom felt like something straight out of a movie and while Colson never believed in love at first sight before he was starting to now.

The music comes to a close and Colson pulls you close. You want to say something, anything, even just tell him your name but you're so entranced by him and his movements you're rendered silent.

His hands move slowly from your body to your cheeks and his fingers dance dangerously close to the edge of your mask.

"May I?" he asks and you nod unable to speak. His left-hand drops back down to your waist as his right-hand pulls the mask off and you're officially exposed underneath his striking blue eyes.

"Ms. (y/l/n)," he whispers. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

#machine gun kelly #colson baker #pete davidson #mgk #kells #machine gun kelly imagine #colson baker imagine #pete davidson imagine #mgk imagine #kells imagine #machine gun kelly x reader #colson baker x reader #mgk x reader #imagine #bravebesson

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amazingphanisnotonfire-imagines · 4 years ago

Text

Riverdale//without you i’d be nothing

Request: Reader plays a Northsider River Vixen on Riverdale and when the show’s on hiatus the cast takes a trip to New Orleans and her boyfriend Douglas Booth invites them to see him film a scene as Nikki Sixx for the Netflix movie The Dirt and he and reader are super cute after he finishes the scene and the cast totally ships them. The scene is from the YouTube video The Dirt - Shout at the Devil/with backstage (Turkish subtitle). Nikki’s bass guitar in the opening of the scene is really cool.

hey! i really hope you like this!! and i also hope you’re having a good day!

“Hey guys! It’s me, Madelaine and welcome to the last day of shooting before our hiatus!” Madelaine beams into the camera and you lift your head up from your phone to watch her talk excitedly at the camera.

“I’m sort of sad because I’m gonna miss all of these.” She does a twirl to show off the rest of the cast sat waiting to start filming and they all take a break from talking to wave and smile at the camera. “But I am very excited for the break. Plus, we won’t really be away from each other for long because in a few days we’re going on holiday!! Aren’t we guys!” She asks and zooms in on Charles while he scrolls through his phone.

“Huh?” He asks when he feels everyone looking at him. You all stifle a laugh before looking back at Madelaine again.

“Okay, let’s see what everyone is doing.” She smiles playfully and wiggles her eyebrows before flipping the camera and choosing who to annoy first. “KJ. What are you doing?”

“Eating.” He replies through a mouthful of food before glaring at the red-head.

“Vanessa?”

“Ignoring you.” She replies, not bothering to look up from her phone.

“You know, you all think that Vanessa is lovely, but this is what I have to put up with.” Madelaine frowns. “What about you Y/n?” She asks and you glance at her before sending your text.

“She’s texting her boyfriend.” Jordan teases as he looks over your shoulder and you roll your eyes at his childishness. “Aww, they’re sending each other kisses. And now she’s opening Instagram and liking a picture of him-wait, that’s not his real hair is it?” He asks and you send him a look.

“Of course not.” You laugh. “It’s his costume, for the Mötley Crüe movie.”

“Ohh.” He replies. “Okay.” He starts again, faking a British accent and you roll your eyes again. “Now, she is liking the photo of her boyfriend and his cast members. She’s typing something and now she’s going into her notes and typing something else. It’s for me, and it says Jordan...fuck off.” He trails off and a playful pout replaces his smile.

“Somebody please send help.” Madelaine deadpans as she flips the camera back. “I’m gonna have to put up with all of this for another week.”

“Holy shit.” Madelaine mouths as she shoves the camera in her backpack. The rest of the cast are just as mesmerised with the stage set up in front of them.

The stage is more light than actual stage and for a while you can’t really decipher between the lights and the many, many speakers they have. Four microphones are dotted around the black stage, just waiting for sound. The guitar amps wait to be plugged in and you remember watching Douglas walk in and out of your bedroom as he tried to master the way Nickki Sixx would walk on stage. Tommy Lee’s drum sits at the back of the stage and the pentagram really brings the whole dark aesthetic together.

It genuinely looks like one of their shows. After Doug was offered the role, the two of you sat and watched countless videos of their shows together, just so he could really get into his role.

Normally you’d join them in staring wide-eyed at the bright set, but you’re too excited to see Doug that you can barely take in anything surrounding you other than him. Your eyes scan the countless people passing by. Crew members carrying large speakers and microphones back and forth, and hundreds of extra’s mill about around you, making you feel like you’ve just walked through a time machine.

You feel eyes on you and it’s only when you look back at them do you realize you were bouncing slightly.

“Be cool.” Jordan shakes his head and you flip him off making him feign offence.

“Can I help you guys?” A woman asks and you quickly direct your attention to her.

“Hi!” You beam. “Douglas Booth invited us to watch him. He said he got the okay from the director. I’m Y/n, his girlfriend. Nice to meet you!” You smile and stick your hand out in front of her. She blinks, trying to process what you’ve just said in the short space of time before a small smile twitches at her lips and she introduces herself.

“I’m Amy.” She replies. “And I’ve heard a lot about you. It’s nice to finally meet you in person instead of being shown countless of pictures of you.” She teases and your cheeks heat up.

Cami and Lili share a look before nudging you and you stare at the floor, too embarrassed to look at them again.

“Come with me.” She tells the rest of the group. “And help yourself to snacks and drinks.” She says and everyone’s head’s perk up at the mention of food. “We’re just about to film, they’re putting the final touches to everything, but if I see Doug I’ll let him know you’re here.”

“Thank you!” You grin and sit down. Behind the camera’s are a bunch of seats, none of which match and it’s a race between the ten of you to get the comfiest seats first. It ends in KJ and Casey standing and they grumble quietly to each other while the rest of you smile sarcastically back at them.

“Okay. Quiet on set!” Someone shouts and you stand up to crane your neck over the camera’s. For a second everything’s quiet, and then the lights go up and everyone screams.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, from Los Angeles, Mötley Crüe!”

Douglas looks out into the crowd and your sure he’s seen you, despite the room full of people. Then the lights come up and the spark machines go off leaving all you to stare in awe at what is happening.

The sound of drums pound along with your heart while you watch your boyfriend transform into somebody else in front of your very eyes. He strums the guitar in time and hops backwards while looking out into the darkened crowd and you follow his gaze, wanting to see what he’s seeing.

You watch as the camera zooms in on Douglas’ strumming and you nudge Cami excitledy as you point proudly at him. She stifles a laugh before the two of you continuing watching.

“Title track is from our up and coming album. We call it ‘Shout At The Devil’” Danny shouts and the crowd goes wild. The camera zooms in on Iwan playing guitar.

‘Shout, shout, shout!” They sing, the camera zooming into each of them, focusing longer on Colson as he twirls the drum sticks around in his fingers. “Shout, shout, shout! Shout at the devil.” Danny kicks his leg out and does a spin before starting to sing again and you can’t believe what you’re seeing.

They all look so cool! Especially Douglas and you can understand why bands back in the day had so many groupies if they did stuff like this on the stage. The atmosphere is electric and it’s not even a real concert, so you can only dream of what it would feel like to be at a real one. “He's the wolf screaming lonely in the night. He's the blood stain on the stage.” Danny points out into the crowd and you hear a few screams and squeals making you laugh. “He's the tear in your eye. Been tempted by his lie.” Douglas rocks back and forth, and despite your earlier teasing through texts about the wig, it does look good when he’s up there head banging. “He's the knife in your back, he's rage!” Colson raises a hand in the air before banging the drums again.

Danny leans forward, his voice going up an octave and you watch impressed. “He's the razor to the knife. Oh, lonely is our lives. My head's spinning 'round and 'round.” He points out into the crowd again and you catch Pete Davidson’s eye.

Colson throws a drumstick in the air again before drumming, and you don’t know where to look anymore. There’s so many incredible things happening and you wish you could film this or take a picture or something so you can remember. It’s going to be amazing when you see it in the actual film, but to see it being recorded in real life, that’s something you don’t think any movie theatre will be able to live up to.

“But in the seasons of wither, we'll stand and deliver. Be strong and laugh and-”

“Shout, shout, shout. Shout at the devil! Shout, shout, shout!” Flames erupt from the stage during each beat and all ten of your eyes widen when you see someone flash the band. They head bang and jump around and your eyes widen each second that passes.

But it’s over far sooner than you’d like it to be. You could spent forever watching your boyfriend pretend to be a famous rockstar, and you’re surprised at how at home he looks up on stage.

The band shout and cheer, before the director shouts cut and they suddenly all erupt into laughter. Douglas and Iwan high five before they disappear off stage and previously still crew members start moving again. They hurry past you, with props, costumes and coffee in hand.

And you wait excitedly for Douglas to appear.

“So, we’re on the set of a super important Netflix movie. We’ve just watched them film literally the best thing ever. Like I have goosebumps, look. Anyway, I’m not gonna show you much, but I am going to show you this.” Madelaine whispers, a soft smile lighting up her face before she flips the camera and zooms in on you and Douglas.

You wrap your arms around him and he picks you up, twirling you around making you squeal. He puts you back on the floor and wastes no time in capturing your lips in a kiss. You’ve been waiting months to kiss him again and it was definitely worth it, even if he is wearing that ridiculously large wig.

“I’ve missed you so much baby.” You mumble against his lips.

“Me too.” He replies and kisses you again.

Madelaine flips the camera back to her and she pouts in response to how cute the two of you are.

“She hasn’t shut up about him since he invited us out here.” She says and rolls her eyes. “It’s been the only thing we’ve heard. Hasn’t it V?” She asks the shorter girl as she walks behind her.

“What?” Vanessa asks and takes a sip of the coffee Cole stole for her from the snack table.

“Y/n and Doug.” It’s only three words, but it sets Vanessa off into a whole ramble about how excited you’ve been to see him.

“It’s a good job they’re cute.” She replies making Vanessa giggle and the two of them watch as you and Doug catch up with each other. You move his wig from his face and he smiles thankfully, before kissing your cheek. “Something that isn’t cute though is these two.” Madelaine interrupts her own vlog by swapping the camera again and zooming in on Jordan and Drew taking pictures of each other with badly put on wigs.

Her and Vanessa shake their head and watch as they laugh loudly and try to knock the other ones off their head. However their laughter soon dies down when a crew member comes over and scolds them for tampering with props, and now it’s Vanessa and Madelaine’s’s turn to laugh.

“I can’t wait for the internet to see that.” Vanessa giggles before sending a disapproving look at the two men now pouting sadly in the corner.

“Knowing them, it’ll just make more people love them.” Madelaine rolls her eyes. She turns the camera off and lets Vanessa lead her to where the majority of the cast are.

“Hi guys.” Douglas introduces himself nervously and the conversations slowly die out. You stand beside Doug, your hand in his to keep him calm and a reassuring smile on your face.

He’s never normally nervous when meeting new people, however he’s only ever met a few of these people a handful of times and he knows how important they are to you so he wants to make the best impression he possibly can.

Although, you’re pretty sure he already has done with that they’ve just watched. You’re sure that could turn even the most cynical and hard to impress people, so you’re not worried.

“Hi!” They all reply, each of them moving to shake his hand first.

“Can I just say, that was great. I’ve never seen anything like it!” Drew gushes and Doug waves him off bashfully.

“Seriously. Y/n is very lucky.” Jordan replies making you shove him lightly.

“I’m definitely the lucky one.” Doug replies and kisses you gently. Your friends roll their eyes and gag in response, but you know they’re doing it out of love.

“So, how are you all enjoying New Orleans?” He changes the subject.

“We haven’t really seen much of it. We got here yesterday and we spent the majority of it sleeping.” Casey explains making him frown.

“Why don’t we go sightseeing.” He smiles. “Before you guys get kicked out.” He adds and looks at Jordan and Drew who smile back awkwardly.

“You guys go ahead.” You interrupt. “We’ll catch up with you.”

“Ooo.” KJ teases and you flip him off making him laugh loudly. “Get out.” You shove him and Lili grabs his arm pulling him towards the exit. The rest of the gang follow until it’s just you and Doug standing in an empty room. You’re only company is the very large snack table and various chairs dotted around the room.

“I’ve missed you so fucking much.” You admit and wrap him into a tight hug. He wheezes at the force but hugs you back and warmth fills your chest. “You were also amazing up there. I mean, it was like I was at a proper concert!” You ramble proudly and he rolls his eyes. “You are so talented.”

“Nah.” He shakes his head and you send him a glare. “It was all you, you’re my good luck charm.”

---

March 18, 2019, ArcLight, Hollywood.

The fabric of your dress, bunches and un-bunches in your clammy palm. The pale blue silk is soft against your skin and it’s quite a comforting feeling, it’s good to know that you can still feel something, even if the rest of you does feel numb.

Camera’s flash outside the tinted windows of the black car, and you can hear hundreds of people shouting and screaming. The last time you were at a movie premiere, it didn’t feel anything like this, and it’s not even your movie. You wonder if you maybe need to do more than two acting jobs to get used to stuff like this, maybe you never get used to it.

The more you think of it, the weirder it feels. All of those people lining the streets and wanting to take pictures of you. Riverdale premiers feel a whole lot less scary than movie ones. You thought it was because you always have your friends around you, or maybe because you’ve been to every single one of them since the show started, you kind of know what to expect as they’re all the same.

But then you glance at Doug and you feel a whole new set of nerves creep up on you. He looks so good in his suit, and you watch his fingers tap anxiously against his knee as the two of you wait for the door to opened.

Maybe you’re more nervous because it’s him. You have no reason to be though, the small part that you saw being filmed was amazing, and if the whole film is like that, then he’s got nothing to worry about. But you know he’s nervous and maybe that’s what’s making you feel the same.

“Doug?” You place a gentle hand over his, stilling the movements of his fingers and he looks back at you, his expression softening as he takes you in.

“You look beautiful.” He smiles and presses a kiss to the back of your hand.

“You don’t look so bad yourself.” You reply and he rolls his eyes. “Are you okay?” You ask and the question seems to take him by surprise.

“Yeah-I. Why wouldn’t I be?” He stutters and you send him a look. He knows you can read him like a book, it’s something you seemed to have mastered by the first day you met him.

“You just seem a little nervous.” You shrug and give his hand a squeeze.

“I’m okay.” He shakes his head. “Maybe just a little bit. But nerves are good.” He finishes and you look at him unsure. “Why? Are you nervous?”

“A little bit.” You admit and drop his gaze. His finger hooks under your chin and pulls it up again so you can look at him. His hazel eyes seem to see straight through you and the way he’s looking at you makes your heartbeat increase. For a few seconds, it just feels like the two of you sitting in the tiny cab.

The rest of the world disappears, it’s just you and him, and that’s all you could ever really need.

“Come on, you’ve done scarier things. Remember when you found out you had to do that British accent. I’m pretty sure you told me, you’d considered dropping out of the film.” He says and you nod your head.

“I suppose, yeah.” You agree. “That was very nerve-racking. Especially when I had to do it in front of the cutest British boy I’d ever met.” You add and he rolls his eyes playfully. The two of you giggle quietly to yourselves

“We’re ready for you.” A tall man dressed all in black tells you once opening the door. You look at Doug and the two of you take a deep breath.

“Are you ready?” You ask and he nods slowly.

“As I’ll ever be.” He grins and you mirror it. The nerves turning to excitement when you think about how proud you are of him. “Wait!” He shouts and you freeze, dropping your purse in fright. “Sorry.” He apologises awkwardly and you roll your eyes at him. “I just wanted to get a picture with you before we’re both whisked off by our adorning fans. I want to show off how lucky I am, and I want Danny to see what he’s missing.”

“Where did you say he was again?”

“He’s off filming some other film. But I think he did a video message or something, basically thanking everyone.” He replies.

“Oh, that’s sweet.” You nod. “Anyway, adorning fans?” You repeat and he nods, a playful smile tugging at his lips. “You know this is a premier for a film that you’re in right? I’ve got nothing to do with this.”

“One. We all know that the majority of the people here, are here for you because they just assume you’re coming with me.”

“They assumed correctly.” You nod and cross your arms. You raise an eyebrow as you wait for him to continue with this point that you know is going to be stupid.

“And two. You have everything to do with this.” He says and your roll your eyes, pushing him bashfully. “I’m being serious Y/n.” He says, making you look at him. “If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t be here. I wouldn’t have had the confidence to say yes to all the offers I got, I wouldn’t have been able to recover from the many no’s. I wouldn’t have been able to learn my scripts and come to you for advice and support and just for a hug. This has everything to do with you, and the way you looked at me when you watched me film, gave me all the confidence I needed to keep going, even when the hours were long and I missed you like crazy.”

“Douglas Booth, you’re going to make me cry and my makeup is perfect.”

“And you look beautiful.” He replies and wipes a stray tear away. A curl falls in front of your face and he tucks it behind your ear, his fingers leaving a trail of heat along your jawline. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” You laugh and wipe away another tear.

He gives you one last smile before grabbing your hand. You step out of the cab and into the bright flashing lights and the overwhelming sound of your names being shouted. He looks back at you, concern growing in his eyes but you grin back at him and he mirrors it.

The two of you make your way up the red carpet, posing together and separately as people shout your name from all angles. The camera’s always disorient you, but as soon as you’re back beside Douglas and he wraps an arm around you waist, you feel yourself become more comfortable with the sheer amount of press.

Douglas talks to a few of his co-stars and you take the few minutes of zero attention to really take in the moment. There’s so many people here, all of them to see your talented boyfriend and his friends and you feel like your heart is going to burst with pride.

Your gaze catches Jordan, Drew and KJ, all three of which are staring wide eyed as the real Mötley Crüe walk the red carpet. You watch as they try their hardest not to implode and a chuckle escapes your lips when they finally realize that you’re watching them.

“Holy shit!” Jordan mouths and you roll your eyes. Drew points awkwardly at them and KJ makes small talk with Tommy Lee before he stares at you in shock.

“Be cool!” You mouth back and roll your eyes at your friends. The three of them just stare back at you in shock before they notice Vanessa and Madelaine having a full on conversation with all four members.

It looks like they’ve just bumped into each at the grocery store with the way they’re talking to each other, and even you must look a little surprised.

“I’ve seen you’re show!” Nikki says and your jaw drops. “It’s fucking weird.” He adds making the girls laugh.

“Yeah.” Madelaine nods. “It sure is.” She adds before they walk away to get their pictures taken. Madelaine and Vanessa stare at each other, frozen for a few seconds before they grab each others arms and squeal.

“Your friends sure are weird.” Vince says and it takes you a few seconds to realise he’s talking to you.

“Oh yeah. There are.” You laugh awkwardly and the rest of the band greet you. You take a second to glance back at your friends who are all staring at you with varying degrees of shock on their face.

“Are you ready to go in?” Doug pulls your attention away from the silent conversation you’re trying to have with Vanessa, and a soft smile graces your lips.

“More than ready.” You nod excitedly. “I’m so proud of you baby.” You whisper in his ear and a blush creeps up his neck.

“Not as proud as I am of you.” He replies and nudges your arm. The two of you take a deep breath before stepping through the door, ready for whatever adventure is waiting for you next.

support my writing! if you want!

#riverdale #riverdale imagine #lili reinhart #cole sprouse #camila mendes #kj apa #vanessa morgan #madelaine petsch #casey cott #jordan connor #drew ray tanner #charles melton

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strsburn · 5 years ago

Text

concussions and crushes

summary : in which the reader gets hurt during the Washington Monument incident and is not only sporting a crush but a mild concussion

see also : reader thinks peter doesn't like her, the way she likes him, but that is far from the truth.

pairing : peter parker x fem!reader

genre : fluff, fluff, and more fluff

words : 1,467+

side notes : I literally started writing this while I was watching spiderman homecoming today, like BOOM idea as soon as the elevator scene came on, inspiration struck and suddenly I've written over 1k words lol. Also this is kinda rushed so sorry not sorry for any errors.

also I changed things because I didn't want this to be an EXACT copy of what happened in the movie so don't be like "bUT tHiS dIdNt haPpEn iN tHe mOvIe"

_______________________________________

"You look like you got hit by a truck." The familiar dry tone has you looking up from your phone, meeting the eyes of a slightly amused Michelle Jones.

"Thanks, that's the look I was going for today." You respond, sarcastically causing MJ to break into a grin. You had spent all of yesterday watching compilations of cats falling off of things, in hopes of getting rid of the nerves that plagued you due to decathlon the following day (today).

"So, what's got you all shaken up? By the way, don't move this would be the perfect sketch to add to my "people in a crisis" collection." MJ asked nonchalantly as she pulled her pencils and a sketchbook out.

"Decathlon is today, and uh I'm just really nervous because well, Peter was the smartest person on the team, but now that he left everyone is counting on me and I don't know if I can do it." You rambled. MJ didn't even flinch as she continued to draw out your features that were pulled into a small frown.

"Y/n, you're one of the most intelligent people I know. You'll do fine, now hold still I'm almost finished with this sketch." Strangely enough these words were enough to put your mind at ease and you slowly relaxed into your chair, causing MJ to cheer as she could finally finish her masterpiece.

_________________________________________

"Alright we are now at our final question, which will determine who takes home the trophy for the state championship." You held your breath as the lady read the final question, you held hands with MJ who slightly bit her lip in anticipation.

Her eyes lit up when she realized she knew the answer to the final question and before you could blink her hand was hitting the silver bell on your table.

"Midtown high?" The lady raised her brow questionably.

"Zero." MJ stated in an obvious tone, her curls bouncing as she shrugged. The lady blinked in bewilderment as she re-checked her cards.

"That...is correct." Your team cheered giving hugs to MJ who tried to feign annoyance but the smile on her face said otherwise.

You were able to sigh in relief as you realized it was all over and you could finally be at peace.

"C'mon, y/n we are going to go and see the Washington monument." Liz called, waving you over, you nodded hesitantly and went over too afraid to remind her of your fear of heights.

"See, I told you guys we didn't need Penis Parker." You heard Flash comment and you gasped just realizing Peter hadn't been at the event, despite re-joining the team a day prior.

Your thoughts went back to the curly haired boy whom you had spoken to only a handful of times. He was rather awkward, and fidgety but he had a kind heart. You found it rather cute. Although Peter didn't seem to like you very much, if him running away everytime you initiated a conversation, was anything to go by.

You were brought out of your thoughts by MJ who insisted she'd rather read than go to the monument that was built by slaves.

"You sure? Do you want me to stay with you?" You asked her, not wanting her to be by herself. Unfortunately she waved you off, telling you to go have fun. You smiled and headed after Liz who was already taking pictures, despite the large sign stating that any sort of photography was forbidden.

As soon as you were all in the elevator, you headed for the corner to hold on to the rail, your stomach in a knot knowing you were only going higher by the minute.

You looked around in order to distract yourself when your eyes caught sight of a bright purple glow emitting from Ned's backpack, that only seemed to grow brighter as the minutes passed and you moved forward out of curiosity.

"Hey Ned, what's that purple-"

Before you could finish your sentence a loud boom rang throughout the elevator and you were slightly thrown back at the force as the ceiling exploded. Ned threw his backpack to the floor, smoke drifting from it and you pushed yourself closer to the wall, looking at the ceiling in trepidation.

"Nobody panic, we are all safe." The tour guide said monotonously, not calming your nerves in the slightest bit.

Just as she said this, the doors to the elevator slid open and officers began to motion you all to climb out. You decided to go last, too afraid to take any sudden steps. You watched as your classmates filed out. Leaving only you, Mr. Harrington and Liz.

Just as the rest of you prepared to move, the elevator creaked and then plummeted sending you all to the floor. You screamed, your vocal chords straining at the pitch and volume as you felt your heart drop to your stomach.

Just then, everything jerked to a stop and you looked up at the lack of movement your eyes widening when you came face to face with a familiar red mask.

"Hey, it's alright I got you. I got you." Spiderman reassured his white eyes narrowing as they focused on you. You could only nod, your hands still clenched tightly around the rail.

"Alright, move. Everyone out, faster people." Spiderman urged, you pushed lightly on Liz's back motioning for her to go first. She smiled in thanks trailing after Mr. Harrington who pulled her up. They both turned to you expectantly but you gasped as the elevator once again dropped, causing you to cry out as you fell, hitting your head on the rail, causing it all to go black.

"Y/N!" You heard just as your eyes slid closed.

_________________________________________

"Y/n, can you hear me?"

Your eyes opened at the sound of your name and you moved to sit up, your head pounding.

"No, no, no. Stay still, you have a mild concussion." You furrowed your brows at the slightly familiar voice and you squinted your eyes, trying to gather your surroundings. You turned to face Spiderman who gently held your hand in his, a paramedic standing by your side.

"W-what? What's going on?" You mumbled.

"You hit your head on the railing, when the elevator fell. I'm so sorry you got hurt, y/n." Spiderman spoke. Your eyes furrowed more in confusion as it all came back.

"How did you know my name?" The whites of his eyes widened at the question and suddenly Spiderman was speaking a mile a minute, saying he hoped you felt better, but unfortunately he had to go. Without another word, he shot a web out of his hands and swung out of the area, leaving you with the paramedics and a still slightly bruised head.

________________________________________

"Hey, y/n good to see you're still alive. Had me worried, I'd have to draw a portrait for your funeral." MJ commented bringing you into a hug. You could hear the slight undertone of worry in her words and you smiled at her.

"Thanks, MJ. Glad to be here." You continued to walk to class as she started to once again speak about some case of the black dahlia.

You nodded and turned to head into English when you bumped into someone causing you both to let out sounds of pain.

"Oh, I'm so sorry y/n." You met the eyes of Peter Parker, his cheeks burning in embarrassment.

"It's alright Pete. Missed you at the decathlon." You smiled.

"O-oh yeah, sorry about that. I was uh...sick. yeah like, super bad." He shook his head.

"Right..well I'm glad you're okay now. See ya, Pete." You added after MJ pulled on your sleeve impatiently. You smiled at Peter before walking around him to class.

Just before you could enter, you felt his hand wrap around your wrist.

"W-wait.."

You turned to face him, leaving MJ to slip into the class with an amused grin.

"Yeah, Peter." You asked hesitantly.

"W-would you maybe, uh like to go to homecoming with me? That is, if you don't have a date- not that you wouldn't! I mean, cause you're beautiful so I under-"

He stilled as you carefully stood on your tip toes to kiss his cheek.

"I'd love to go with you, Peter." You watched as his cheeks once again turned a bright red and he grinned widely.

"Awesome."

You matched his grin, turning to enter the class. You knew you were more than late but at that moment you didn't care.

"See you later Peter. Try not to run away from me this time." You said teasingly as you walked away from him, missing the small fist pump he gave as he watched you leave.

Perhaps he liked you after all. You smiled at the thought. The day had turned out a lot better than you expected. Mild concussions and all.

#peter parker x you #peter parker x fem!reader #peter parker #peter parker fluff #platonic michelle jones x reader #michelle jones #tom holland spiderman #spider man homecoming

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trashinaglass-archive · 6 years ago

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I’m Not Okay

Y/n sees Endgame

Warnings: Endgame spoilers!!!

A/n: When I left the theater, I immediately began to wonder how Tom or the boys would react to everything I cried over during the movie.

I will mention the scenes that made me cry- I won’t go into much detail, but I will mention what happens to cause the tears. Don’t read if you haven’t scene Endgame yet!!

You were currently in Atlanta with Tom when Harry, Sam, and Dom flew out to visit. Tom thought it would be fun to go watch Endgame while they were together- it would’ve been their second time seeing it but your first. You were so excited about the film when it was first talked about, but you hadn’t had time to watch it.

That’s were you found yourself now- walking into the theater and taking your seats to watch the movie. You were so excited, but you were also so scared because you didn’t know what to expect. You were left basically traumatized by the last film and expected this one to be just the same. You were sitting on high emotions.

Everyone began to quiet down as the lights went dark and the film started. Sat between Tom and Dominic, you got comfortable as you watched what happened on the screen. After a short introduction scene, you saw the Marvel Studios logo flash across the screen.

“Oh my gosh,” you whispered looking toward Tom. You could feel tears well in your eyes simply from seeing the name and clips.

“Oh, you are going to be sobbing,” Tom whispered back seeing you already teary eyed. You lightly hit his knee and looked back to the screen. You didn’t realize how bad you would be watching the movie- but you were not okay.

You got teary eyed throughout basically the entire movie. That was okay with you because you could hide that. What you couldn’t hide were the sobs from a few different scenes.

You watched as Nat and Clint went to retrieve the soul stone. After being told the requirement of the soul stone, you watched as they began to fight over who was going to sacrifice themself. You felt sad as you watched because you loved both characters, but you weren’t prepared for what you were about to see.

You covered your mouth with your hand as you saw Natasha falling to her death- you really expected it would be Clint. You felt a few tears begin to fall as you saw her body laying on the ground lifeless. You wiped your tears and calmed yourself down, Tom putting a hand on your thigh to comfort you.

A while afterwards you watched as Cap fought Thanos, who brought in a huge army of bad guys. You had been waiting for their arrival, and it finally happened. T’Challa, Shuri, and Okoye walked up followed by all the other beloved characters that had been gone far too long.

Tears began to fall as you watched everyone on screen. It was such a surreal and powerful moment, and you couldn’t keep it together. Tom’s grip on your thigh thightened as he noticed you crying. He silently laughed before whispering in your ear.

“This is the happy part, you’re suppose to smile and cheer,” he teased you. You laughed at yourself as you continued to cry. You couldn’t help it at this point.

You eventually settled down, your tears ceasing, and you thought the worst of it was over. You couldn’t be more wrong. You watched as Tony took the stones from Thanos, snapping his finger and dusting all the bad guys away- Thanos included.

You watched Tony move back, falling off his feet. Tears began to well in your eyes, again, as you realized what was happening. Tony was dying and there was nothing anyone could do for him. Tears began to fall as you watched Peter talking to Tony and begin to cry over him before Pepper interjected.

“We’re going to be okay. You can rest now.” Pepper’s last words to Tony before the light on his chest went out- that did it for you. You continued watching the screen as you watched the man who started it all die. You grew up watching Iron Man and the different Marvel movies, and you couldn’t believe they brought it to such an ending.

You pulled your knees to you as you continued to cry. You felt Tom lift the arm rest between you and pull you into him. You cried into him for who knows how long before you finally looked back to the screen, tears still soaking your face. You saw Happy talking to Tony and Pepper’s daughter, you didn’t really notice what they were saying, too caught up in the emotions to pay attention.

You continued to lean into Tom as the movie wrapped up, the credits rolling. A few extra tears fell seeing the six original avengers names come across the screen. After the film was over, most everyone in the theater stood up and began walking to the exit.

“You good?” Tom asked you. You hadn’t moved from your spot, still needing a second to decompress.

“No,” you said as your voice broke a little. “How could they do that to him?”

Tom chuckled as he watched you, still crying. He stood up from his spot and pulled you into a proper hug, rubbing your back.

“It’s okay, darling,” he said as he tried to comfort you. He felt bad but accomplished at the same time. You weren’t a crier and knowing the movie did this to you meant that it was a damn good movie.

“How about we get a bite to eat? Get some drinks?” Sam suggested. You willed yourself to stop crying, pulling away from Tom as you wiped your eyes.

“Yeah, I could use some strong liquor right now,” you said making the boys laugh. You began to walk out of the theater, stopping by the bathroom on your way out. You checked your face seeing that your eyes were irritated, but your makeup wasn’t smudged too bad.

You walked back to join the boys and grabbed Tom’s hand that was held out for you.

“I can’t believe I really cried that much over a superhero movie,” you said. “If Harrison knew, he would make fun of me so hard.”

“I wanted to make fun of you, but I know Dad and Tom wouldn’t be happy if I did so I passed this time,” Harry said making you laugh.

“Oh, we all know you cried when you saw Iron Man die, too,” Dom said teasing Harry.

“You didn’t have to tell her that,” he argued making the father shrug his shoulders. You continued to walk as you held Tom’s hand.

“I didn’t even get to enjoy you in the movie because I was too busy crying,” you absentmindedly told Tom.

“That’s okay- Pete didn’t get too much this time,” Tom replied. “I’m shocked by how much you cried, though.”

“I am too. I feel exhausted,” you said as you rubbed your irritated eyes. “But it was really good. I’m glad Cap got a happy ending at least.”

“Yeah- Old Man Steve. They all deserved a happy ending.”

“The one that deserved it most, didn’t though,” you said. You wouldn’t let Marvel live that down. “Literally going to have him say ‘I don’t want to die; I want to be with my family’ and just kill him like that.”

“He knew what was going to happen. He did it knowing he would save everyone, including his family. A true hero,” Tom said, almost sounding like he was talking to himself.

It made you feel slightly better hearing Tom describe Tony’s death that way, but you still couldn’t believe it. The man, the character that you were basically raised on had found his ending. It was crazy to think about. You loved the movie though, and you couldn’t wait to see what would happen next.

Yall, real talk, my face stayed wet the first time I saw Endgame.

And you know a character is iconic when he can die and say absolutely nothing and everyone still cry over it. I will never not get over that scene. What Pepper said to him?? Done. Waterfalls.

#tom holland #tom holland imagine #tom holland one shot #tom holland blurb #tom holland x reader

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snickerl · 5 years ago

Text

Of Monsters and Men, and a Woman - Part II.

- Wine smells better than smoke. -

I was asked to write a sequel. I’m sorry it took me so long. Life, work, and a three-week-vacation in Scotland got in the way but here it is now. If you want to familiarize yourself with part I, you will find it here.

Tagging @today-in-fic

————————–

Jackson didn’t know how long he had been looking outside lost in thought. Next to him in the back seat of the car, Dana was sleeping peacefully. Her head was tilted to the side so her face was turned to him. Jackson studied her face and recognized features he saw when he looked in the mirror: the freckles on her nose, the high cheekbones, the angular jaw. His hair had been reddish as a child but had become darker once he had hit puberty. The color resembled Mulder’s more now, who was sitting in the front steering silently. Jackson looked at the back of his birth father’s head and realized their hair was pretty much alike: dark brown, thick, shiny. He hadn’t shared any resemblances with his mama and pops. Of course not, they had been his adoptive parents, these were the parents whose genetic material he shared.

Maybe he should stop talking about them like this, labeling them his adoptive versus his birth parents. Maybe it was time to accept he had two sets of parents. One that had raised him and had given him the best childhood he could think of, and one who had always been there and had always cared about him but only now had the ability to act as parents. It broke his heart when he thought about how cruelly the Van De Kamps had been murdered but it also filled him with immense relief to know that he wasn’t alone. And this Mulder-and-Scully duo (he still found it a bit weird that they called each other by their last names) gave him the impression they knew what they were doing. They seemed capable of standing up to his enemies. They sure stood up against that smoking jerk, especially Dana, no matter how hopeless their situation had appeared to be or that she was so much smaller physically.

The car was coming to a halt in front of a steel gate. Mulder turned around and looked at him. “Would you mind opening that gate for me, Jackson?"

"Not at all,” Jackson said unbuckling his seat belt. “Do you see the input box at that pole over there? The code it 1013. And close it again behind us, please. Make sure it’s securely locked.” “Yes, sir,” Jackson couldn’t help replying to the more than explicit request. He jumped out of the car and pushed the gate open. It was heavy and creaked quite a bit. He wondered where they were. It was pitch dark, the headlights of the car were the only source of light, they hadn’t come by any sign of human habitation for the past half hour, and now these security measures. Jackson asked himself where they were taking him. Mulder drove slowly through the gate Jackson was holding and waited until he had pushed it back shut. The boy heard a click and rattled it a little to check if the bolt had latched completely. The light at the input pad, which had turned green when he had typed in the code, switched back to red. Everything seemed fine, so he hopped back in the car. “When Dana said you had a house in the countryside I didn’t expect it to be that far away from human civilization,” Jackson deadpanned while buckling up again. He had no idea how much longer the trip would be. Mulder chuckled. “Yeah, well, we’ve come to appreciate a certain quiet and isolation from the rest of the world. There was a time we didn’t want to be found. By anyone.” Jackson let the words sink in. What was he to make of them? Had they been in a situation like this before? Having to flee and hide from people pursuing them? He didn’t have time to ponder about it much longer as a few minutes later a house came into view. A nice two-story building with gray roofing shingles, green wooden window frames, and a porch. A lamp illuminated the steps leading up to the front door. The place looked cozy and inviting. It actually reminded Jackson a bit of his first home, the Van De Kamp farmhouse in Wyoming, only that it had been much larger with stables for cattle and pasture lands surrounding it, but the place had evinced the same emotions in him: homecoming, comfort, safety.

Mulder parked the car in front of the porch and cut the engine. He turned around in his seat, looked at Scully who was still sleeping, smiled, then squeezed her knee gently. “Hey, sleepyhead, wake up. We’re home.” It was inconceivable that she was able to sleep after what had happened, Jackson thought. She either had been totally drained or so full of trust for that Mulder guy. Said Mulder guy obviously knew what Jackson was thinking. “She can stay awake for more than 36 hours straight if need be, on a stakeout or at a patient’s bed in the hospital, but in a car when she’s not driving or reading a case file, she’s asleep in no time. It’s a gift. I wished I was able to do that. I am a notoriously bad sleeper.” Mulder got out of the car, opened the door in the back and bent down to pull her sleeping form out when she stirred. Her eyes opened abruptly, she lifted her head and straightened herself up. “Mmmm, I must have dozed off for a second,” she said, her voice a sleepy mumble. “Yes, sure, Scully. Just for a second, as always,” Mulder said. Jackson bit back a chuckle. This was obviously a well-known, recurring pattern in their lives. Scully shook her head a little to get rid of the last remnants of sleep and swatted Mulder’s hand away from her knee. “Now let me get out. You weren’t thinking of carrying me, were you?” Mulder put his hands up as if he had been told to freeze. He got up from his bent posture, stepped back and sighed. “No, of course not. Heaven forbid that you are not in charge for a split-second.” Mulder was annoyed for a moment. Why was it so difficult for her to let him carry her, either figuratively or literally? She had allowed herself to be weak in his arms a few times lately: in the morgue after she had given her speech to what they had believed was their long-lost son in a body bag or in the motel when she hadn’t been able to sleep during that hangman case. She had even admitted her fear that he might find someone else one day. Someone else…what nonsense! As if there could ever be anyone else for Mulder than Scully. Jackson noticed the slight tension between them but was distracted from thinking about it by a high-pitched barking. “You have a dog?” he asked, his memory going back to the dog he had as a child: Champ, a Golden Retriever who had followed his every step.

“Yes,” Mulder answered, “his name is Daggoo. He’s Scully’s actually. She stole him from a crime scene.” “I didn’t steal him. I saved him from the animal shelter,” Scully defended herself. “Secretly scheming to move him in with me because you weren’t allowed to have pets at your place.” “Oh come on, you’ve got so much more space and you can’t deny that walking him three times a day is doing you good.” “I’ve always loved how you’re able to manipulate people into thinking something’s good for them when it’s actually good for you,” Mulder said with a smile on his lips. “I don’t have to remind you what happened to Queequeg, Mulder, do I? You owed me.” Mulder only sighed at Scully’s stern look.

Jackson had followed their banter, glad on the one hand that the moment of tension had subsided, but also irritated that they had been talking of my place/your place. He had thought they were living together, that they were a couple. They had had him, made him ‘in an act of love’ as Dana had said, they had to have been together at some point. Had they ever been married? Their different last names left him guessing. Mulder had opened the front door in the meantime. A white/brown terrier was jumping down the stairs yelping happily and wiggling his tail so much that his whole body was shaking heavily; as if he knew they were coming home from a dreadful endeavor and needed some cheering up. Jackson’s eyes lit up when he saw him and because dogs sensed instinctively who liked them and who didn’t he made toward the boy immediately and jumped up against his legs. “Daggoo, down!” Scully berated him but Jackson wasn’t minding the animal’s affection one bit. “It’s okay, I love dogs,” he said kneeling down petting him behind his ears. “Good boy,” he cooed, “you’re such a beauty, do you know that?” Daggoo licked his hand in return. It was love at first sight between them obviously. Mulder and Scully exchanged a short glance, relief written on their faces. Their dog (they could banter as much as they wanted about 'my dog/your dog’, he really and truly was theirs) had conjured a bright smile on their son’s face for the first time since they had been reunited and they enjoyed seeing him so cheerful. Each of them made a silent promise to themselves to do everything in their power to make Jackson’s life happy and carefree again. They watched the boy and the dog for a moment longer, then Mulder ushered everyone inside. Jackson looked around and felt instantly at home. The living room wasn’t tidied up, there were magazines lying around everywhere, a greasy pizza carton resided atop a coffee table and a blanket had been thrown haphazardly on the couch, but that was exactly what made the place homey. Scully saw it slightly differently though. “Goodness, when did you last clean this place up, Mulder?” Bang! Another sign she wasn’t living here. Jackson slowly familiarized himself with the idea that his birth parents - his parents - weren’t a couple. What would this mean for him? Would they take turns caring for him? Like his best friend Pete spent his weekends alternately at his mom’s and dad’s? Maybe it hadn’t been such a good idea to have called for them after all. But where would he be now without them? With the Smoking Man? Believing this asshole was his father? Jackson’s insides tied a knot. No, he was definitely better off with them than without, no matter what the status of their relationship was. In any case, they were on good terms with each other, that much was clear. They would have to join forces to make this work for him. They owed him that much after they had given him up for adoption, didn’t they? “I don’t mind the mess,” he came to Mulder’s rescue. “No, of course, you don’t,” Scully mumbled more to herself than to Jackson, “you’re also a man. I will never understand how one can live in such a mess. What has gone wrong in evolution to burden us with such a neglectful gender when it comes to housework?” She sighed deeply, picking up the pizza carton and throwing it into a trash can. She opened a cabinet, took a cleaning rag out, opened another one which contained the cleaning agents, soaked the rag with water and dishwashing liquid, wrung it out above the sink, then started wiping the coffee table. At least she knew her way around the place, Jackson thought. If she really didn’t live here, she was a frequent guest at least. She definitely moved around as if she was at home. She was folding the blanket now and placed it on the couch’s backrest before she took care of the throw pillows, shaking them out and arranging them in an orderly fashion. “See, this is something we men will never understand. What is the purpose of an exact arrangement of pillows on a sofa?” Mulder asked shedding his dirty jacket and throwing it carelessly on a chair. “Can you explain to me the scientific nature of pillow arranging, Dr. Scully?” “It looks nice and tidy, Mulder. It’s aesthetic. It makes the place appear maintained instead of neglected and run-down,” she explained slightly irritated. And as if to strengthen her point, she lifted the jacket off the chair with two fingers and left the room. A moment later a loud thud could be heard, most likely the door of the washing machine.

Jackson threw Mulder a glance who only shrugged. This was all very familiar to the boy, he had witnessed interactions like this a million times between his parents. His other parents. Jeez, having four parents instead of two wasn’t easily put into words. Scully re-entered the living room where Mulder and Jackson were still standing at the same spot, only Daggoo had moved and was making himself comfortable on one of the cushions she had just arranged. She looked at him and sighed, “et tu, Brute?” Jackson didn’t know what that meant and he also didn’t care that much. He was hungry. He hadn’t had a decent meal in days having been on the run from his pursuers. “Uhm, you said we could have something to eat,” he reminded them. “Right, sure. I’m afraid the fridge isn’t well-stocked,” Mulder said and Scully chuckled loudly enough to strengthen her point about men and housekeeping. “But we can order something in. What would you like, Jackson? Italian, Thai? Or a burger maybe?” “A burger would be great. With bacon and cheese, if it’s possible.” “Sure. Fries?” Jackson nodded and watched how Mulder pulled out his phone and dialed a number. Wasn’t he going to ask what Dana wanted, he wondered. She didn’t seem to ask herself the same though. Uninvolved in the process of deciding on the food, she slipped out of her shoes, put her feet on the coffee table, reached over to Daggoo and started petting him gently. Jackson listened as Mulder placed his order. “Two deluxe double bacon cheeseburgers, please. Onion rings, two large orders of regular fries and one of the sweet potato fries. Make the sweet fries unsalted. A mixed salad with extra arugula instead of the radicchio, no onions but mushrooms, and the non-fat Italian dressing. … Deliver, please. The name is Mulder. 227700 Wallace Road, Farrs Corner. … Yes, I know how far out it is. Tell Pete to give me a call when he’s at the gate. I will meet him down there. He knows the procedure. … Thanks. Bye.” He winked at Jackson when their eyes met and added, “Pete knows he gets a generous tip.” It didn’t go unnoticed by Jackson that Mulder knew exactly what to order for Dana, and her choice wasn’t exactly mundane. The sweet potato fries were also for her, he presumed. Which real guy ate sweet potato fries? Unsalted, to top it. And if messy homes were typical for men, salads with non-fat dressings were typical for women. No wonder she was so tiny and thin. If her diet had consisted more of greens than anything since her youth, her body had simply lacked the nutrients to grow. At least that was what mama had always told him. “Eat your steak and potatoes, Jackson, so you grow up fit and strong!” He was glad he had inherited his height from Mulder and not from Dana. Small women were cute and evoked a man’s protective instinct (Jackson was sure though that she hated her stature had this effect on men) but small men were a target of mockery. He was even taller than Mulder, and he was only seventeen. Maybe he would still grow a couple of inches. When Mulder got back with dinner, Scully and Jackson had already laid the table. They ate mostly in silence, Mulder and Jackson eating with their hands gobbling down their food like hungry wolves, Scully picking listlessly at her salad with a fork. The unsalted sweet potato fries remained untouched but Jackson watched how delicate manicured fingers made their way into the box with the regular fries. She put a handful of the salty, greasy food into her mouth, chewed and swallowed, licked her fingers with relish, which was then followed by a satisfied hum. Mulder didn’t even look up as all of this happened, he registered it out of the corner of his eye and just smirked slightly. Jackson couldn’t help but think that they acted so much like a married couple; as if they had known each other for years and years. How could they not be living at this place together? Well, he would get more hints about their relationship once the sleeping arrangements were discussed. When they had finished their food and Scully got up to clear the table, Mulder grabbed her wrist and made her sit back down. “Nuh-uh, Scully, let the neglectful gender take care of this. How about you make yourself comfortable on the sofa with Daggoo?” “Nice idea, Mulder, but someone has to change the sheets in the guest room. I can’t see you taking care of this after my last sleepover.” With this, she vanished into the hallway and left Mulder and Jackson alone with a very uncomfortable silence. Finally, Jackson addressed the elephant in the room. He needed clarity anyway, he might as well ask.

“I thought you guys were married.” “Uh, no, we’re not.” “So you’re divorced.” Jackson simply assumed they had to be divorced if they weren’t married. They had a child together, him, so they had to be married sometime in the past. He wasn’t prudish or anything, he knew people had sex without being married, but where he came from people got married when they wanted to have children. “No. We…erm, we never got married.” “Well, it makes sense then,” Jackson said. “What makes sense?” “That your last names are different.” “Our last names don’t have much to do with it, actually. Even if we had gotten married, I doubt we would ever have been Mr. and Mrs. Mulder. I guess we simply missed the right moment to tie the knot. I asked her once to marry me but she didn’t believe I was serious.” “Were you?” “Hmm…I don’t know. Maybe not a hundred percent. But if she’d said yes, I wouldn’t have regretted asking.” “And the topic has never come up again?” “No.” “Not even from her?” “No.” “Strange. I thought all women wanted to get married and have kids.” “Scully isn’t like other women. Her independence is very important to her. We weren’t any less committed to each other because we weren’t married, that’s for sure. Maybe that’s why. Our commitment to one another was so strong, we didn’t need a wedding certificate to prove it.” “Whatever, you spared yourselves an ugly divorce with your separation.” “What makes you think we’re separated?” “Well, you’ve been talking about 'mine’ and 'yours’ a lot, like separated people do. Daggoo is her dog that cannot stay at her place but needs to stay at yours. The mess we stumbled into also was yours, Dana made that clear. And she sleeps in the guest room. All of that cries out 'separation’. I have a good power of observation.” Jackson had seen it happening to a friend’s family. Everything that had belonged to the family before became branded with 'mine’ and 'yours’ all of a sudden. His friend’s mom even sawed through the leather couch with a chainsaw just to get even with her former husband who had cheated on her. “Hmm, you have a point but…uhm, how is the fact she’s called this our house when we were in the car fit into your theory?” “Freudian slip?” Mulder chuckled. “That would never happen to Scully.” Looking at Jackson’s puzzled face he added, “I’m sorry, pal, this must all be very confusing. This is our house, we bought it together and lived in it together. We lived like a married couple for many years and people mistook us as married many times but we never actually were married.” “Lived. Not live. Like in we did that in the past but not anymore.” Mulder sighed heavily before he answered. “Right, that’s over. Look, Jackson, our lives have always been…difficult and complicated. Due to our work. There was a time we thought we could leave it all behind us, at least Scully did. She wanted a restart so badly. She’d lost so much because of our work, most importantly you, and all she wanted was normalcy. A job, a home, a partner to share her life with. And I tried to give it to her, all of it, but I failed her. I couldn’t let go of my quest for the truth, and I ruined everything. So, one day the inevitable happened: she packed her things and left to save herself from being pulled underwater with me. She needed to get out of here to be able to breathe. But Scully wouldn’t be Scully if she left me to my fate. She still cared. She looked after me and helped me find my way again.” “And what’s your status now? I mean, you take care of her dog, you know exactly what food to order for her, she stays over…” “We’ve never stopped being friends. We’ve never stopped…caring deeply for each other. She just doesn’t live here anymore.” Mulder felt a bit awkward talking to his son so openly about his romantic feelings for Scully, that they had never stopped loving each other, but the boy deserved to know, didn’t he? “I just don’t want to impose.” “Impose?” Mulder didn’t understand. His face apparently showed his puzzlement because Jackson explained, “I don’t want to force the two of you together, you know. I don’t want you to think you have to do all this,” he was fidgeting with his hands in the air making clear he meant what was happening at this very moment in this house, “just because of me.” “Just because of you?” Mulder parroted, disbelief threaded into his voice. “Are you crazy, Jackson? You are the best thing that ever happened to us. You’ve been our miracle. The time you were with us was the happiest time of our lives. It was much too short, especially for me, but neither of us ever wanted to miss it. We’ll figure this out. We’ll figure us out. You simply have to trust us. I know it’s not easy after what we’ve done but…” Mulder stopped abruptly when Scully’s purposeful steps could be heard on the floorboard. She was making her way back to them and he wasn’t sure he wanted her to know of Jackson’s concerns about their relationship and his staying with them. “Your room is all set, Jackson,” she said entering the living room. “It’s upstairs on the right. I left a towel on the bed in case you’d like to take a shower. Is there anything else you need?” The delight in her eyes told Mulder how much she enjoyed doing this and the thought that their son felt uncomfortable about it clasped his heart with a cold fist. “Thanks,” was all Jackson mumbled. He didn’t even look at Scully. She either didn’t notice or didn’t want to acknowledge it. She continued undeterred, “if you need anything, we’ll be down here. Just ask.” He did ask, laying his finger right into the wound. “Where are you guys sleeping? Just in case I need something at night.” The question was dangling between them for a moment, both Scully and Mulder taken off guard by the directness of it. Jackson held his breath, quite aware it was a delicate issue. He wondered who would take the initiative and answer, and, of course, how. It was Mulder who was able to find his voice again. “The master bedroom is also upstairs, at the other side of the hallway,” he answered, avoiding the issue of who would be sleeping in there. He wasn’t sure what Scully’s sleeping arrangement would look like. They had shared a bed a few times recently - platonically and two times not so platonically - but she hadn’t moved back in. On her nights over she had always insisted they slept apart, Mulder in the master bedroom and her in the guest room. They were far from resuming their romantic relationship. He wasn’t even sure if they were in anything other than a relationship of friendly co-workers. Or co-working friends? Well, they were co-working best friends formerly lovers, if he was precise. To him, she was still his constant, his touchstone, that had never ceased to be the truth, but he wasn’t sure what she saw in him. Well, he could go around the status of their relationship over and over until he went mad, whatever it was, it was so them: complicated, in-flux, undefined. Mulder caught Jackson’s questioning look and held it, hoping he would leave it at that. He didn’t want Scully to feel obliged to explain or even defend herself. They were all exhausted from what had happened in the factory, now wasn’t the time to discuss their long-term future. They needed sleep and when they were replenished, they could have a talk. To Mulder’s immense relief, he watched how tiredness was overwhelming Jackson. His eyelids drooping, he yawned extensively. Mulder let the breath out he had been holding when Jackson finally acquiesced. “Okay, I think I should get some shut-eye.” With this, the boy turned around and headed for the stairs. Mulder and Scully looked after him. Their eyes remained trained at the top of the stairs until their son disappeared from their view. They listened to a door open and close and eventually to the shower being turned on. “Goodnight, my son,” Scully whispered to herself, hiccuping a sob which awakened Mulder from his trance-like state. He looked at her and realized she was shaking. The last few weeks were finally taking their toll on her. Mulder knew how much it took to make Scully break down. What had happened since she had realized her seizure was caused by her lost son who tried to communicate with her definitely was enough to make her falter. She was inches away from shattering into a million pieces, like a crystal glass bursting to a high note sung by an opera singer. Mulder turned toward her and pulled her into an embrace. The willingness with which she was giving in told him he had assessed the situation correctly. She melted into him, laying her head against his chest. She wasn’t wearing her heels anymore and their height difference was at its maximum expression. Mulder had always loved it when she was like that, bare of all the paraphernalia of Professional Scully. She allowed only a handful of people to see her without the makeup to hide her freckles and the sensual mole on her upper lip, the business suit to cover her feminine curves, and the heels to make her taller than she actually was. And he was lucky to be one of those few people. They stayed like this, mute and still, for a long time. Eventually, Scully took a deep breath and pulled back, a clear sign she had regained her strength. But she didn’t let go of Mulder completely. She looked into his eyes and smiled. “How about a glass of red wine, Mulder? I think I’m too stirred up to be able to sleep although I’m totally drained. Do you have a nice bottle somewhere?” “What about the one Skinner gave us when we signed the sales contract for this house?” “You still have that bottle?” “It’s a Châteauneuf-du-Pape, it needs to rest a long time. Wine of this quality gets better with age. Just like us,” he added with a smile. “I’ve waited for the right moment to open it and if this is not a good moment to have a first-class wine I don’t know what is. You make yourself comfortable on the couch, I’ll go and fetch it.” He knew exactly where the bottle was, where he had put it all those years ago when Skinner had handed it to him with a smile on his face. Their boss had been as happy and confident as them that settling permanently into a house would be the beginning of a new life for them. It hadn’t come quite as they all had hoped. With Mulder sliding into a depression and Scully thriving as a doctor in her new job they had slowly grown apart. Funny that a relationship so unique as theirs had been susceptible to a development so cliché. But that had been then and now was now. Their son was sleeping peacefully upstairs, they were on the right track repairing their relationship, this was the perfect moment to open this bottle. When he returned from the pantry where he had indeed found the 2008 Châteauneuf-du-Pape exactly where he thought it would be, Scully had already resumed her place on the couch next to Daggoo who was snoring slightly in his sleep. A corkscrew and two red wine glasses were waiting for them on the coffee table, most certainly placed on coasters. Scully hated stains on the table’s surface. Mulder placed himself next to her and leaned his back against the backrest. He was holding the bottle in his hands and looked at the label. Skinner had written something on it which had faded over time and was hardly legible anymore. He pulled his new glasses out - progressives, no bifocals - and tried to decipher the words. He had never been good at reading Skinner’s scribble, Scully was so much better at it. “Scully, can you read this?” he asked, passing the bottle to her. She looked at the label and squinted. “I think so,” she said. She didn’t even need glasses. “What does it say? Are you going to tell me?” “It says, 'Always remember who your friends are. Skinner.’ That’s it.” Mulder took the bottle back to open it. He carefully inserted the corkscrew, cautious not to damage the cork which could be brittle after such a long time. After he had pulled it out, he checked for a corky smell but it seemed fine. He poured some of the red liquid into their glasses, the rest into a decanter. The wine would need time to breathe to develop its full taste. He handed a glass to Scully, they clinked, then put the glasses to their lips. Scully only hummed when the liquid was running down her throat, Mulder clicked his tongue. “Jeez, this is good,” he said. “It sure is,” she agreed. “What he wrote on the label makes me think, Mulder.” “Think what?” “That Skinner has always been our friend. That we’ve been unfair to him probably, having thought he betrayed us. Remember when he came to the hospital after my seizure and you started a fight with him?” “He’d acted weird and he did smell like smoke.” “Yes, he did, but we should’ve given him credit instead of assuming he’d be working against us. Looking back at it now, I believe that he was indeed coming to us after a meeting with the Smoking Man, a meeting where he had probably been told about Spender’s deluded idea that he was Jackson’s biological father. Skinner tried to keep this information from us, Mulder. He tried to protect us from it. He has always been our friend, and we were too paranoid to see it.” “We weren’t paranoid, Scully. The threat was real. I had just stopped a man from suffocating you by cutting his throat and then Skinner came stumbling in after having been unreachable for hours, smelling like smoke and wearing a face so explicitly blank…what were we supposed to make of it?” “And still, we should’ve known that he would never switch sides. He’s an honest soul who’s covered our asses more than once.”

“That’s true enough, but when it comes to you, Scully, I will never risk trusting the wrong people.” “Trust no one, huh?” “That motto saved our lives a few times.” Some of the occasions he was referring to came to Scully’s mind. She put the glass to her lips with a sigh and took another sip. The wine had breathed enough already to develop some of the rich, red-fruit aroma and herbaceous note for which it was famous. Scully hummed delightfully. “This really is a good wine, Mulder. I’m glad you remembered you had this in your pantry. You’re not stocked as badly as I thought,” she teased him. Under normal circumstances, Mulder would have taken her remark as the opening of one of their casual banters but the circumstances weren’t normal. His son was resting safely upstairs in the guest room, or rather the son he had always believed was his. He had heard things tonight that made him doubt his fatherhood. “Is it really true, Scully?” he asked abruptly without any adequate introduction. “Is what true, Mulder?” “That I am his father?” Scully took a sharp intake of breath. She set her glass aside, turned toward Mulder and looked him in the eye. She then took his glass out of his hand and placed it next to hers on the coffee table. Taking his hands in hers, feeling his slight tremor, she gave them a reassuring squeeze before she started speaking. “Yes, you are his father. I’d been feeling it so strongly from the moment I was told that I was pregnant. You were missing, then gone, and for so many months I believed the baby growing inside me was to be my only connection to you. I knew it was yours.” “But you ran multiple tests anyway.” “You know me, I seek proof of what I want myself to take as fact. And I got myself proof. I am a thorough scientist, Mulder, my proof is one hundred percent reliable. You are Jackson’s father, the DNA doesn’t lie. If you want, and if Jackson is okay with it, we can do another paternity test.” “No, I trust your scientific evaluation, Scully. I always have.” They smiled at each other briefly before Scully’s expression changed. Mulder’s face had been the one marked by worry a moment ago, now it was hers. “Do you think he will stay with us?” she voiced her concern. “I hope so.” “We just got him back,” Scully whispered close to tears, “I don’t want to lose him again.” “Me neither, but I guess him sleeping upstairs is a good sign. He trusts us. He protected me when he…erm, got rid of those Purlieu people coming after us.” “You mean when he made their bodies explode?” “Yeah, well, our son does have extraordinary abilities. Given all the weird stuff I’ve seen, this wins first prize but what I was getting at is that he made sure I wasn’t harmed. And today he also got us out of there. He wants us to able to be there for him.” “I hope you’re right. If I could be his mother again…” Scully hiccuped. “You have always been his mother, Scully. Maybe he isn’t aware of it, but I am.” “Thank you, Mulder.” They gazed at each other and Mulder’s heart was overflowing with compassion for Scully. How much had this woman had to endure? How come she was still sane and hadn’t gone completely mad after what life had burdened her with? He admired her so much for her strength. “Jesus Christ, I so want to kiss you right now, Scully. May I?"

Anxiety over possible rejection was creeping up Mulder’s spine when a tear started running down her cheek but he had to finish what he had started. When she nodded, more tears spilling, he brought his lips to hers and kissed her as softly as he could. This wasn’t about passion but about companionship, about a life lived together, about an unwavering feeling of love for her.

"We will make this work, Scully. I am sure of it. You, me, and Jackson. We will make this…this family thing work. Maybe he will never call us mom and dad but somehow we will manage to be parents to him.”

Scully leaned into Mulder and put her head on his shoulder. She hummed silently and took another sip of wine.

“This is nice, Mulder. You and me together here on this couch, this wonderful wine, our son upstairs in the room I had always thought would have been his if things had been different.” Mulder thought back to his earlier conversation with Jackson, how insecure the boy had been about their current relationship and how he fit in.

“Let’s give it try, Scully. Let’s give Jackson a stable structure, something which comes close to what he had with his adoptive parents. He still is a kid, he shouldn’t have to doubt where he belongs. I want him to feel he belongs to us. Move back in.” His words echoed in the silence that followed. Mulder couldn’t see her reaction to his bold suggestion as Scully’s head was nestled against the spot where his shoulder met his neck. He already feared he had pushed too hard when he heard her whisper, “but there’s no extra room for me anymore.” “Do we really need an extra room? The guest room has always been intended to be his, not yours. Our bed is too big for me alone, it never felt good sleeping in it on my own. I wish for nothing more than us being together again. Not only as co-workers but as partners. Life partners. We could make it legal even, maybe adopt him back if we can. We could be a family. Officially, for everyone to see. The Mulders. Or the Scullys, if you want. I don’t care. I only care about us, us three being together.” Scully straightened and pushed herself back from Mulder. She looked at him with wide eyes. Putting her hand on his forehead, she stammered, “are…are you running a f-fever, Mulder?” “I’m in my right mind, and I am serious.” “Fox William Scully?” she offered, giving him her trademark arching eyebrow. “Mr. Dana Scully,” he replied with a boyish grin, “sounds good to me.” Scully brushed a tear off her cheek and laughed. “I’ll ask you again tomorrow when you’re down from your high; whatever caused it.” Mulder left it at that. He knew there was no use arguing now. She probably needed time to let his suggestion sink in, or rather his proposal. He had really and truly proposed to her! How many years had he waited now to pop the question a second time? What an irony that again she didn’t believe he meant what he said, that he was under the influence of something clouding his judgment. She couldn’t be further from the truth. He was as sober and clear in his head as humanly possible and he had no problems at all asking her again tomorrow. He would ask her as often as necessary until she considered his proposal to be credible. Scully nestled back into Mulder’s side and put her feet on the coffee table. He placed his long legs alongside hers, his thigh touching hers. When her head was back at its prior resting place on his shoulder he kissed her hair. This was exactly how it was supposed to be, he didn’t need more to be happy. Scully in his arms, hopefully, his wife-to-be, his son upstairs in the second bedroom, and the prospect of a family life. It almost ached physically to imagine a happy future was waiting for him around the corner. And then Scully said something that made his heart skip a beat.

“You should ask Skinner to be your best man.” Now it was Mulder who dissolved their snuggling position. Sitting up straight with eyes wide as saucers and his heart in his mouth, he stammered, “what? Was…was that a yes, Scully? Do I have to check you for fever now?” She laughed wholeheartedly, a sound which had always made his heart swell. “If you could only see your face, Mulder! There’s terror written all over it. You haven’t seen this coming, have you, Mr. Scully?” “You always keep me guessing.” Mulder resumed his prior position next to her. He took her free hand which rested on her thigh and intertwined their fingers. “So? Are we engaged now?” he asked tentatively. “I think so,” Scully answered. “Wow.” “Yeah, wow.”

On the landing at the top of the stairs, there was another person thinking the same: Wow! They are doing this for me! Jackson had been on his way down to get a glass of water when he had heard his name. He was touched by how anxious they were about him and how much they wanted to make this work. And suddenly they had been talking about marriage and Mulder had even suggested reinstating their parenthood by reversing the adoption. Jackson wasn’t sure what he thought about it, if it would feel like he betrayed the Van De Kamps if he became a Mulder. But no, wait a minute, if at all, he would become a Scully. Jackson Scully…it sounded unfamiliar but okay. Another idea sneaked itself into his mind on its own accord. What if…? No! That wasn’t really an option, was it? Maybe, it was. Maybe it was exactly the right thing to mark this new phase of his life. What if he took his old name? His birth name? If Mulder was willing to let go of his name to mark their family bond, he could do the same, William Scully didn’t sound so bad. William Jackson Scully. He let the name roll off his tongue in a whisper. Fox, Dana and William Scully. The Scullys. It would be the three of them against the rest of the world. It was a soothing thought that made Jackson smile. He abandoned his plan to get some water and retreated to his room. He didn’t want to disturb them downstairs. If they were to kiss again, he didn’t want to be ogling. Jackson had just left his observation post and was closing the door to the guest room behind him as Mulder was cupping Scully’s face and leaning in to kiss her. The boy had escaped his parents’ caresses for now but was doomed to witness them over and over in the time to come.

#xf fanfic #Fox Dana and William Scully #happy fluff #happiness in the unremarkable house

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apparitionism · 5 years ago

Text

Mercury 11

This is basically just one scene. It was going to be more (and this scene was going to be better), but I’m being fussy about what follows it, so I figured some content, sooner, was better than more later. (Some previous content: part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8, part 9, and part 10.) I was additionally having a little hiccup of trouble figuring out exactly how to start this part... but “in the middle of things” is usually a good rule, particularly when the “things” in question are important, so “in medias pie” it is!

(P.S. to anon who asked about a masterpost: That’s too much housekeeping for me. But you’ll find I’m diligent with tags, plus my tumblr has search and an archive, so you shouldn’t have to scroll too much. Also, much of my stuff can indeed be found on AO3, where I move it after posting on Tumblr, usually with copy and/or content edits, depending on what seems warranted. Thanks for asking!)

Mercury 11

“But this pie,” Myka said with her mouth full.

“Has rendered you ill-mannered and inarticulate,” Helena said. “Interesting.”

“And here I thought demolishing cars was gonna be the entertainment,” Pete added.

They all had to work hard to be heard over the soundtrack provided by the derby: the roar of engines, the sharp bang and crunch of metal colliding with metal at speed, the shouts of extremely invested spectators. Myka had been paying some attention to it before she embarked on this trip to pastry-girded key-lime paradise. She hadn’t had any idea that bliss was in fact a combination of citrus and... whatever other things it was combined with, here in this very-nearly-literal slice-of-heaven pie, but Pete was right: this had been a really educational trip.

Ida said, “This is closer to what I’d call a show.”

“Here in Wisconsin?” Pete asked.

“Anywhere. Is she always like this about pie?”

“I’ve only known her five years,” Pete said, “but I think it’s safe to go with ‘never in her life has she been like this about pie.’ Or maybe anything.”

“Well,” Helena began.

“Don’t say it,” Pete advised.

Ida temporized, “She doesn’t need to. Everyone understands innuendo. And subtext.”

Myka didn’t care, not even a little—not about the kind of show she was putting on, not about how innuendo-y and subtext-y Helena was getting with regard to what Myka might find heavenly in other contexts—as long as nobody took this miracle of a pie away.

She certainly hadn’t expected this to be the outcome when she, Helena, and Pete had taken the lengthy walk—thankfully, in their normal configuration, with Myka reclaiming her “run interference” slot between Helena and Pete—to the site of the demolition derby, some distance away from the fairgrounds proper, accompanied by what had seemed like an additional fair’s worth of people. Were these things really so popular? Maybe Pete was right, maybe “the IRS” should sponsor one in Univille. For purposes of general sociability, because for all Myka didn’t like the place, she did still care what its denizens thought of her, and if—“Bet these’re cow pastures in real life,” Pete had said, interrupting her speculation. That prompted Myka to start taking careful note of where she was placing her feet during that long walk along not a path as such, but rather through grass that had been marked at irregular intervals with spray-painted arrows.

“You’re so prissy,” Pete said.

Myka shrugged that off. “Maybe. But cows. Or rabbits. Nobody with sense in their head want to walk in anything they leave behind.”

Helena said, to Pete, “Are you as unnerved by bovines as you are by lagomorphs?”

As a dig, it seemed mild, even polite, but Pete reacted as if she’d reached across Myka and slapped him. “Leave me alone! I’m not scared of anything unless it’s freakishly huge!”

They were passing the cars’ inspection area: the same spray paint had been applied to a piece of plywood, leaning against a fence enclosing those cars, to spell “INSP AREA.” It could have meant “inspiration area,” Myka supposed, but people with clipboards had seemed to be inspecting rather than inspiring, or being inspired... she tried to think of another word that began with “insp.” Nothing came to her.

“Size-wise,” she told Pete, “the bumpers on that Sable over there must be giving you nightmares already.”

Pete looked where she’d indicated. He did a cartoon double-take. “Are those even legal? I think I just found my horse.”

“I like the Pinto next to it,” Myka said.

He scoffed, “Nobody likes a Pinto.”

“The ponies enjoyed a brief vogue when I was a girl,” Helena mused, as if to herself. “Would that the car were painted like those...it’s a shame that a pinto—and, in fact, a sable—shouldn’t resemble their namesake animals in some way.”

Myka said, “I guess we can call my Pinto a Palomino, then. The color’s why I like it.”

“That’s not a good reason,” Pete said. “Not for a demo derby.”

“It’s a great reason. Look.” Myka pointed toward a corral ringed with bleachers. “There’s a lot of mud over there, where I assume they’ll do the demolishing, right?”

Pete nodded. “Mud slows ’em down. Safer, plus it’s a better show. Upset it’s gonna be such a messy show, Miss Prissy?”

“My point is, the Pinto’s yellow, so I’ll be able to keep track of it through the muck, while it does its demo-ing. Or gets demo-ed. As I watch it happen, because I’ve got a horse—almost literally—too. Do you want me interested or not?”

He glanced at the Pinto, then looked back at Myka. “Not sure,” he said, like he thought she was trying to trick him.

“You wanted us here so bad you won it,” she reminded him.

“Mostly wanted to make you suffer.”

“Then I think your win is more of a ‘win,’ because I refuse to suffer,” Myka told him. “Not about this.”

She was holding Helena’s hand. She had been, for the entire walk, “because I didn’t get to on the Ferris wheel,” she’d said when she first reached for the contact, her voiced reason in response to Helena’s questioning did-you-not-recently-express-objection-to-public-displays eyebrow, and it was true as far as it went. But what had compelled Myka to make the small display, really, was that she’d needed something, and this was simple. Uncomplicated. Something to bank against whatever was going to happen later, in the hotel room. Which she was, she had to admit to herself, doing some pre-suffering about. Because she didn’t know.

Helena declared, as if to assure Myka that she too felt both the simplicity and the need for it, “I’m not suffering either. Not about this.”

She gripped Myka’s hand tighter. It did feel good. Myka echoed the pressure, and one corner of Helena’s mouth curved up.

Pete rolled his eyes. “You two are gonna wish so hard that Myka won that duck bet.”

“It was a bet that concerned ducks?” Helena asked.

Myka grimaced. “I’ll tell you later.”

“I wonder,” Helena said, jauntily, “whether the poultry competition might include a Rouen or two.”

“I’m gonna regret this, but: okay. That’s a...?” Pete prompted.

“Giant mallard,” Helena said, with even greater cheer. Pete groaned, and Myka found herself wanting to kiss Helena: for being clever, but also as yet another instance of that bankable, uncomplicated touch. She almost said that out loud—“I want to kiss you,” simple, like that—but she understood that if she did, she’d have to deal with Pete about it. Because of ducks.

“Well, I don’t see any of your probably-made-up freak-ducks around,” Pete said. He added a taunt of, “I do see the two of you practically sittin’ in a tree, though.”

“Mature,” Myka said.

“Water off a Rouen’s back!” Helena announced.

Her insouciance made Myka again want contact, like a kiss, but more than that—but still simple. Basic. The most basic.

Pete must have seen and read that thought as it crossed Myka’s mind, crossed her face, for he said, “Jesus, Mykes, just jump her and get it over with. Get yourselves behind the bleachers and take care of business.”

Nobody had taken care of any behind-the-bleachers business, of course, but Myka had kept on holding Helena’s hand, even as they sat on the uncomfortable aluminum of those bleachers and listened to engines rev in preparation for entering the corral. Pete had taken it upon himself to explain the derby’s rules to Helena: “...and they all go in and they have to hit another car every minute, or maybe it’s every two, but anyway if your engine bonks out you get a little while to try to restart it but if you can’t you’re out, and they break that piece of wood by your window to show that you...” Myka listened with one ear, but mostly she concentrated on not finding a reason to loosen her clasp. The interlacing of their fingers had moved from “this feels good” to Helena’s barely fleshed bones pressing too solid against Myka’s, giving rise to an uncomfortable ache... but that ache was no reason to let go; rather, it was a reminder not to. Bodies, real ones, felt pain. So Myka sat on aluminum, listening to engines rev, not letting go. Banking it.

She’d been banking it, still, when Ida arrived, asking, “How did we ever live without the ability to text?” (Pete had said, as they sat down, that he would text Ida to join them, “because maybe she’s done with judgy-judge-judge and can bring us some leftovers.”) She’d looked at Myka and Helena—specifically, looked at their joined hands. “Well,” she said. “Another distraction?”

“Maybe,” Myka acknowledged. From something freakishly huge...

“How are you?” Ida asked Helena. “Did your summit go well?”

Helena smiled at the word. “As well as such a thing could. I suppose one might call the outcome détente,” she said. Myka, too, had smiled a little at “summit,” but as for “détente”... well, there was a lot to be said for that in the relations between several of her nearest and dearest. But she wasn’t sure how she felt about the idea of any relaxing of tensions between Helena and Emily Lake’s girlfriend. “It’s been a very strange two days,” Helena went on to say.

“That isn’t news to me,” Ida said, which prompted in Myka another Amen, sister. Ida added, “But I’ve got something that will make everything better.”

“Fruit spreads?” Pete asked, with great hope. He pointed at the small hamper she held. “That looks like something.”

Ida nodded. “Something. But better than fruit spreads.” From the hamper, she produced—with a “ta-da!”—the key lime pie. Pete gave a gasp that Myka judged both overdramatic and unwarranted; it was just a pie, albeit one that nearly matched her Pinto for color; if she’d thrown it at the car, no one would have noticed the spatter, not that she was in the habit of throwing pies at cars. This one hadn’t been thrown at anything, but it did look a little the worse for having traveled in close quarters: not show quality anymore. Given the crumbled edges of its crust and slightly dented surface, it might have been any pie at all. Ida then handed out plastic forks and paper plates, and if anyone near them in the stands around the fenced patch of mud recognized the picnic as larcenous, they kept it to themselves.

Pete took his fork up with his usual enthusiasm, dug in, took a bite, then closed his eyes. “This pie is freaking awesome. In an ‘I could literally die now’ way.”

“I told you, you literally can’t beat it,” Ida said.

While Myka had respected that particular “literally” when Ida said it yesterday, she wasn’t sure she believed it today in any kind of existential sense. Hence her astonishment when she found her own first bite to be... was “rapturous” outsize, as a word or an idea, to apply to the experience of eating pie? It didn’t matter what word she used, though; she wielded her fork with even more gusto than Pete, and she felt a niggling worry that this was, for her, unseemly, yet the combination of the unprecedented pie and the certainty that it was nutritious was irresistible. The mouthfeel alone was enough to knock her out—unctuous, yet with a sharp slash of lime-presence tanging on the tongue... she’d noticed Helena ignoring her own serving so as to watch Myka. “What?” Myka had asked. “It’s good for me.”

“I am prepared to offer to any and all attending deities,” Helena had said, amusement animating her face, “my prayer that your recently espoused belief does not wear off.”

“I’m prepared to livestream it so everybody on the planet can testify later that it happened,” Pete had enthused. “Also so Claud’s head explodes when she sees it.”

And so it was that the only words Myka had managed to come up with in her own defense, “But this pie,” had caused everyone to express even more opinions in the matter.

Fortunately, however, they let her keep eating. “I feel like I’m somebody else, how much I’m enjoying this,” she now said, not bothering to pause before scooping up another forkful.

“Interesting,” Helena said again, and her tone told Myka that something was waiting to be interrogated there... but she was extremely unwilling to turn her attention away from the pie.

Meanwhile, the cars destroyed each other. None of it mattered to pie-intoxicated Myka, except the Pinto, a little, because she could in fact keep track of it in the muck. It was surprisingly agile, “her” Pinto. Or Palomino. And if the derby had engaged only her eyes, that would have been fine, but exhaust and mud and the crowd’s sweaty enthusiasm hung heavy in the air, congesting her nose and clogging her lungs; she resented that it interfered with her experience of the pie. Its rich citrus viscosity was similarly condensed, on her tongue, but far more pleasurable... but wait, she thought, thickness... a dictionary-page memory... “fr. L in- + spissus slow, dense”: “Inspissate!” she exclaimed.

Pete and Ida both said “What?” and Myka looked up from her plate, ready to explain about “insp” and areas—but her neon pony caught her eye at just the right, or wrong, instant for her to witness its driver’s failure to recognize a danger for what it was: it received in that moment a dramatic T-boning from a seemingly unthreatening even-more-compact car. She yelped and upended her plate, which landed face down on the aluminum at her feet. It had held one last bit of inspissated key lime and... whatever else it was combined with, a last bit that she’d told herself she wanted to savor, but that she’d in all honesty been about to shovel into her mouth with abandon. She made a decision that was really no decision: she lifted the plate, scraped the spattered filling up with her fork, and willed herself not to think about dirt.

“Not one word,” she said, her mouth again full, to Pete and Helena. “Not one word out of either of you.”

Neither said anything. Myka chose to ignore their thunderstruck expressions, because she still had that precious morsel of pie in her mouth.

“Good choices,” Myka told them once she’d swallowed. She licked her fork. She took note of Helena’s expression as it shifted from shock to avid appreciation of her licking her fork.

TBC

Again, minimal tags, but here, an essay might mention things like strongly held beliefs, and how our strongly held beliefs shape our behavior, and why we so strongly hold the beliefs that shape our behavior, and that it is indeed interesting when a shift in belief (about anything: from sugar’s nutritional value to who we actually are) leads us to engage in behaviors that make us strangers to ourselves—regardless of whether we know of that estrangement at the time it’s occurring. When you think about it, in terms of selfhood, each of us might be said to be a cult with exactly one member. (I realize that doesn’t entirely hold up, but I’ve spent a little while thinking about it.)

#bering and wells #Warehouse 13 #fanfic #Mercury #part 11

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fuckyeahaldishodge · 5 years ago

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Press: Aldis Hodge Is A Real-Life Superhero, So Give This Man What He Wants

After years of dramatic roles, the “What Men Want” star wants to make you laugh and fulfill his dreams of being a super-powered badass

BET – Legend has it that Aldis Hodge worked cheap early in his career. Really cheap. Like, McDonald’s Happy Meal cheap. The pre-schooler was tagging along on a photo shoot for Ebony Magazine, where his older brother, Edwin, was working. The producers had a last-minute need for another cute kid and Aldis’ mother convinced him to take the gig in exchange for a coveted Batman toy. Thanks to mom’s quick thinking, Hollywood has been gifted one of its most intense and versatile acting talents.

Hodge has amassed a colorful acting resume that includes stints on shows like A.T.O.M.: Alpha Teens on Machines, Friday Night Lights, Supernatural and Leverage. But it was his moving portrayal of a restless slave named Noah on WGN’s Underground that made viewers sit up at attention and cheer with their fingers across social media. In the same year his appearance in Black Mirror as a somewhat single father named Jack living with his girlfriend’s voice literally in his head, allowed him to blend his piercing stares with subdued comedic timing. But now Hodge gets to go for the full belly laughs in the R-rated comedy What Men Want as the bartending, romantic, very single father named Will, who gets caught up in Taraji P. Henson’s mind-reading male-strom.

During a stop at BET, Hodge is adorned in gold, beads and denim fabrics that accent flawless skin that has benefited from the sun’s full attention. He walks with squared shoulders inherited from his retired Marine parents. His cape is invisible. If not for the disarming laughs cracking his intense looks, you might think he’s one cartoonish horn blare away from taking off through the ceiling to catch a meteor hurtling toward earth. Between bites of his lunch we talk about the comedy of sex, his fascination with controlling time, engineering the perfect date and being a champion for the people.

I didn’t cross reference it until just today. I just recently did an interview where I was like, “Dang, she was inside my head, too! What’s going on?” But it was pretty cool. The synergy was awesome. But with each role, I come at it with a clean slate and figure out where the tones are. I had been out of comedy for a long time, not my choice, but for the past five to seven years my career has been swinging up into the drama area. But most people don’t realize comedy is a big part of my life. I started stand-up when I was 11. When I was 13 I used to host a room at the L.A. Improv and I did that ‘til I was 17 or 18 years old. Then on Leverage we did five seasons of that. It was an action caper show but I still got to flex my comedic muscles. We killed that in 2012, so it’s been a minute. I was happy to reintroduce people to my idea of humor. Will is not inherently the braggadocios funny one. He’s not the big personality in the room. He’s reactionary. He’s gonna have a sense of realism, so his comedic timing is subtle. The tones and notes are a little more subdued, and that’s a different tone to play. But our director, Adam [Shankman], took so many different types of comedians with very different timing and put as all together and kept us on the same note. We were always on the same page. You had Josh Brenner, who most people know from Silicon Valley, Pete Davidson from SNL, Wendi McLendon-Covey from Bridesmaids, Tracy Morgan, obviously. Everybody has a different style that they’ve been hitting for a minute, and he just figured out how to weave together. And there are some people you’re not gonna expect to be funny but are hilarious, i.e. Erykah Badu. She’s hysterical. And then I’m there in the mix. As an actor, I’m always hungry for fresh challenges. I don’t like to feel like I’m sitting in a box, and when this opportunity came up, naturally I was nervous at whether or not I could still be funny, and I was hoping. But I just let Adam take care of me on that one.

Speaking of your comedic side, you pranked Taraji with honey buns on the set of Hidden Figures. Did anything else like that go down on set for What Men Want?

Nah. The prank for us was getting through the sex scenes. We wanted to get through those as fast as possible. It’s tough. It’s always a nervous environment when you’re doing scenes like that. But the biggest thing is, because it’s physical comedy, how do you do that without looking stupid? You want people to laugh with you and not at you. But thank God for Adam and Taraji. It’s easy to keep a straight face when you have nerves. We had fun with it. You let yourself fall into it. And Taraji’s a pro. If you see the movie, I took a couple of those hits for real. Some of them reactions are real!

Is it worse to know she knows your thoughts, or is ignorance bliss?

Better not to know, of course. I would not want to know who knows my thoughts. I wouldn’t want anyone to be in my head like that, but if you did know, imagine how anxious you’d be all day. You’d be like Brandon, Josh Brenner’s character, all day. Just rambling to keep people out of your head.

If you had to disguise your thoughts, what would you think about?

Man, most of my thoughts on a regular basis go to design. As soon as I step into a room I’m taking in the square footage, I’m measuring in distances, everything is art to me. Or I’m putting my engineering cap on to see how it’s built. So I don’t think anyone would want to be in my head, because it’s pretty boring. I’m a nerd, bruh.

Speaking of engineering, horology sounds like something men do after a breakup. How did you get into watch making?

I’ve been doing that since I was 19. I just love building things. I’ve always had a natural inclination to create and build, and it satisfies a necessary art. It got to a point in my career, I think I was 13 or 14, where I didn’t have enough life experience to add gravitas to some of these characters I’m trying to play. I started drafting blueprints for my dream house when I was 12. I always loved designing and building, because that’s where my imagination lives. Art is my language, and acting is just an emotional exposition of my art. So, it’s the same thing to me, just a different conduit. But the other side of me is like building, I love crafting things. Horology satisfies a lot of different things. I wanted to be an architect in school but that would mean I’d have to quit acting, and I’m not gonna do that. I’m gonna die in a director’s chair when I’m 110 years old. But what I found about the intricacy of horology and watch design is that it was architecture and painting and mechanical engineering. It satisfied so many points for me, and I could do it at my own pace.

You rarely hear of men discussing their dream house. What did yours look like?

I like space, I like nature. I like to bring the outside inside. There’s a couple of architects that I really love. I grew up on the work of John Lautner, Frank Lloyd Wright, Frank Gehry. But one of the firms I love now is Olson Kundig, particularly Thomas Kundig’s work. His houses are machines. He’ll cantilever a side or a roof and all you gotta do is crank it and you’re lifting the side of your house off. I can’t afford that in New York, but one of these days I’ll have to partner with him for a house.

Your son, Ben, in the film is adorable. What was it like working with him?

Auston Jon Moore. He’s a fun kid. I’m excited to see what happens with his career. He was five years old when we were doing it. Really spunky, good instincts. We had a good time. I was actor-parent-child wrangler. When we were shooting the rooftop scene, we had all this food out, and he kept eating the food. “We need continuity, baby. You gotta put the food back.” He’d say OK, and then we’d come back and he’d have a mouth full of chips. He was awesome.

He had one of my favorite scenes with the panties. Was your “don’t breathe” line ad-libbed?

Yes, that was ad-libbed. I was like, “The baby! What do you do?’ What would I say?” We had fun with that scene because Adam just let us be free and add as much color to the characters as possible. That was a fun day, trying to get him to put on the underwear. When he realized what it was he was like, “Hold up, fam.” So, I had to put the underwear on my head to show him it was cool.

You pulled a Mars Blackmon?

Yeah, yeah. I sacrificed [laughs].

There are two scenes in What Men Want that you’re not in, the card scene and the wedding. Which would you be in if you could?

I definitely would have loved to have worked with Erykah and have a little Taro reading. She was just pouring herself into that character. That’s her imagination splayed out on camera. But I would have loved to see Will have a session with Sistah.

What about the poker game with the athletes?

I think Will might be a card shark, but I don’t know if he got the chips to sit at that table. That was a very high-stakes game, and he’s too smart to bet his rent money. But if he had the chips, I think because of his bartending skills he could read people really well and take home a nice healthy pot.

You’ve been the subject of a lot of wish-casting, particularly to be Green Lantern. Have you ever thought of playing a superhero?

I’d love to be a superhero. I’ve been trying to be a superhero for 12 years. If that opportunity came that way, I’d eat it up immediately. I got into this business as a kid because I loved Batman. I was trying to get my Batman toys. I grew up on Marvel and DC.

Noah from Underground definitely was a superhero. How do you feel about that role years later and the impact he had?

I took it as a grand opportunity just because of the fact, when the initial idea of the show came to me, I was like, “If this is a series about enslavement, how does it work for five or six seasons? Do we want to see our people in persecution for that long? Where is the gratitude that comes out of this for the audience?” But when I read the pilot I was like, “Oh, it shows us in the situation, but not made of the situation.” It showed people in bondage, not slaves. It gave us dignity. It gave the people who went through that an actual identity. They didn’t bring slaves to America, they brought engineers and doctors, brilliant people. So, for me to be able to expose that they had hopes and dreams and still had the strength to find love in those times was immensely powerful, because we’d never see it in our history books. Our schools failed us in that. So the opportunity to add to the dignity of our people was a high honor. I look at all of those characters as superheroes. They actually added the show to curriculum in schools. This is the effect that you can have as an artist. That’s what I love.

With Valentine’s Day is coming up, how would you engineer the perfect date?

That’s tough, man, because you gotta work off the person. It depends on who she is and what she wants. Some ladies want dinner and flowers and some ladies just want to kick back and watch a movie. My ideal date would start with a little dinner, some champagne, maybe some chocolates. Then we’re gonna go to the movie theater, we’re gonna see What Men Want, I’m not even lying. Get her laughing, feeling good, then probably go dancing. Then if I really feel like I’m on my mack-ness, I’mma be like, “Hey, boo. Real quick though, I just wanted you to know that I got your mom a ticket to the movie, too. I wanna let her know it’s her Valentine’s Day, too.” And that’s my ideal date: Dinner, What Men Want and a little dancing.

What Men Want starring Taraji P. Henson and Aldis Hodge is in theaters now!

Press: Aldis Hodge Is A Real-Life Superhero, So Give This Man What He Wants was originally published on Aldis Hodge Online | Est 2010

#aldis hodge #leverage #underground #WGNUnderground #Underground WGN #WGN Underground #straight outta compton #supernatural #turn

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happymeishappylife · 6 years ago

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So I finally beat KH3

As many of you know, I’ve spent my time delaying beating the game mainly because I didn’t have tons of time with work and studying for an exam to play, but also after waiting for 17 years to play the game, I didn’t want to rush through it. Especially because I had a fun time doing all the extra/silly quests in the game and exploring the worlds. But once it got very grindy and I learned the secret reports could only be done after beating the story (hate that mechanic), I decided to finally finish the story. And now I want to provide my critique on the game based on my initial experience.

And in case any of you have extended out your playthrough, I’ll leave spoilers below and warn you here. So SPOILERS!

Story:

Everyone whether they have played Kingdom Hearts or not, knew before this game started that the storyline has become complicated and ridiculous, but its part of the charm. I think there was some hesitation to see the storyline finish out, but I’m glad that this game did what it promised and at least closed the Xehanort chapter. However, it was not satisfying to see him “die.”

I mean this dude has been fucking EVERYONE over for decades. And has always been one step ahead, so of course finishing him off was the best thing the game could give you. But then they wanted to go through the whole game picturing him as a little kid, lost in fantasies and theories of light and dark and so at the end as a magical ghost version of Master Eraqus appears and forgives him for literally destroying everything, we’re (the player) supposed to be okay with him turning back into an innocent little kid and just disappearing? I hated it. I don’t have any sympathy for this dude and the fact that they tried to make him sympathetic, made me mad. And that also had to do for the very unsatisfactory battles and “deaths” of the new organization 13 crew because other than Vanitas and Terra-Xehanort, I didn’t care about any of them, though we’ll dive in deeper to the more problematic ones in a second. So to conclude, I’m glad that this chapter is closed.

Okay, so when I say problematic Organization members, let’s talk about the ones who have more history than the game. Not the ones who apparently just love to die over and over again (and yes I’m aware that those battles weren’t deaths, that these people are going to be real again, but that’s even more of a let down to be honest, but that could just be me.) So let’s start with a focus on Young Xehanort. Now that he’s gone back to his time knowing that his ultimate plan is failing, does history just play out? Does he forget everything? That’s the only loose end, I’m cautious about and don’t trust that the game designers will leave alone. Then again when I think of great moments of potentially great storyline the game designers just blink an eye at, so hopefully I’m wrong. Next, Xion. How exactly did she get to be there again? I’m assuming a replica, but all of a sudden she was there again with no pomp and circumstance. Which seems odd because I thought she was part of Sora… Especially since she is connected to Kairi still… But okay, cool she’s back and that magically made Roxas appear? Yay! But how? Replica? Not? I don’t know. He just magically appeared. Let’s move on, like the game designers did.

Now for the main two members I’m interested in. Thanks to completing the secret reports, I’m very intrigued about this storyline of this missing girl, Isa, and Lea. Mainly because this girl means something to them, but supposedly she means nothing to no one, so what’s the story there? I hope that gets explored somewhere. The second is Xigbar/Luxu because why did he have to be the important one. He’s super annoying! But apparently that means there might be more of him in the future… Boo! But of course we need more plot for more games, so lets see what happens. Especially since he ties in to the teased storyline of the black box. I mean I totally forgot about it, Maleficent, or Pete until that ending scene so it will be interesting to see where it goes from there.

Now let’s focus on the main group of characters. Beginning with the trio who to me has had so much potential, so many unanswered questions, and a completely heartfelt, but at the same time lackluster ending. Aqua, Ventus, and Terra are finally reunited and then practically forgotten at the end of the game. It’s so disappointing. I mean Aqua and Terra are some of the strongest and most kickass characters and they get reduced to just orphan children which sucks. I mean I hope they get peace now, but I also hope they come back super strong, if they come back at all.

Alright, unpopular opinion ahead, you’ve been warned…

I’m surprised the game designers decided to “murder” Kairi. I mean technically they did send Sora to the afterworld, so I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised, but beyond my surprise that’s the only emotion I felt. I used to love her, but really… Kairi’s a useless character. She barely fights, she has no other conviction other than she is a princess of light and a constant light to Sora, and her dialogue is so vapid and unimportant when its meant to be sincere. To be honest, I was glad when Xemnas took her. I mean, she made Sora look weak, when he’s not at all, and I was glad she was gone. But then that brings me to the biggest let down of the game and that’s the end.

I don’t get Kairi and Sora’s link anymore. They’ve spent way more time a part then together at this point, how are they still in love? They don’t really act like it either. So I was devastated when Sora goes on this journey to find her and the end scene shows her alive and well and him just disappearing? Fuck that noise! At least the secret ending eluded to the fact he’s not dead and also that he’s reunited with his boyfriend, because I’m sorry, he and Riku are the ones who should be in a relationship. It’s made sense for so long and their relationship has depth. But for some reason the game designers are scared to commit to it, so instead they want you to believe the whole, well if Kairi is with Sora, then Namine must be with Riku even though that’s semi creepy since Namine and Kairi are somewhat the same. It’s like saying both boys are into the same girl, when really they are into each other, duh…

This also is because I adore Sora to death. I’ve always called him my monkey boy, and he’s an idiot most of the time and naïve, but he grew a lot in this game so I’m sad to see him be forced to go pining after Kairi just because this game gave him so much more maturity.

So we’ll see where things go. I hope the secret ending is an illusion to the next game, but if that means Sora’s in the real world, that’s a bizarre thought. At least he learned selfie tricks to help him get by in today’s day and age.

As I mentioned I didn’t like some of the storyline directions. I mean they did a great job of working with the worlds, but then there were weird moments like when we come across Vanitas the first time and Donald, Goofy, and Sora are just like, that’s weird, but he must be crazy. Not the psycho dark side of Ven they’ve been told about. Instead, let’s just forget they ran into him for a bit. Okay… Then when you have Sora on his knees, crying about the death of his friends, how do you make him so cheerful to learn he’s essentially dead as he reached the Final World and wants to come back to visit Chirithy? Okay… It all really comes to a head when you have to have Woody pretty much say what we’re all thinking to Young Xehanort which is essentially “I don’t know where you are going with this, but I don’t care” to sum up the problems with the storyline.

Now beyond this, I love the moments in the worlds and how the true essence of the game was captured as Sora, Donald, and Goofy just stumble into worlds, don’t understand a thing, and yet somehow make friends. Pirates was the best example of this because all the main characters pretended they didn’t exist. It was hilarious. I was just sad there weren’t more worlds. I mean what they did was great, but they could have had more and added more depth.

Also one of the best moments gets a shoutout, because having Yen Sid be awesome at the end was such a thrill!

Gameplay:

Overall, really, really fun! I loved that they brought together all the elements of the games, like forms, focus drive, links, and magic into the game and then added the ridiculous elements of the attraction based attacks, wall running, and parkour moves into this addition. It made for fast paced, action packed, awesome flow during fight scenes with silly consequences thanks to all the keyblade forms. I also loved the uniqueness to all the blades and the overall attention to detail they gave each and everyone of them. Especially how they interacted in other worlds. It was fantastic!

I loved that instead of journal, we got a phone. I loved that you could take pictures and get new selfie poses (though why that’s when most of the game is over, I don’t understand). Heck half the fun was taking pictures of random people just because you could. It was fun! I also loved the Classic Kingdom Games because they were well thought out to play off the old school arcade games. The keyblade you get for collecting all of them is silly but powerful which is great! The only thing I didn’t like, like I mentioned above, was that the secret reports you can’t even collect until after beating the game. I would have rather gotten everything and then beaten it, but it forced my hand. Sigh…

I loved cooking with Remy! That may have been my favorite part! It’s just a sweet way to include Ratatouille and not diminish the whole point of that story and you get to see Sora be a terrible cook, because he is. The keyblade you get for helping Remy is also my favorite one in the game. I want to make it so badly and cosplay with it. Plus there was something satisfying at the end by trying to defeat Xehanort with a frying pan and screaming, “Flambe his Ass!” that added to the mood.

I loved travelling through the worlds, I loved the openness of the maps, even though they still guided you places. I loved the aesthetic and the Unreal Engine made everything gorgeous. It got annoying after a while to hear Goofy and Donald talk about finding nearby ingredients, but helpful when looking for all the damn emblems! I loved their costumes and the way they treated the design for Toy Story and Monsters Inc. I’m in love with Sora’s Pirate’s costume, I want to also make that and cosplay in that! Maybe a mix between the that costume and keyblade? Could be fun!

The gummiship was a nice mix between 1 and 2’s style, though the fights were ridiculous and hurt my hands from trying to beat the missions. I loved the idea of constellations, but why were the designs so random? I also love the ‘Treasure Planets’ though can we have an actual Treasure Planet World? That would be amazing!!

There’s two main things about the gameplay I didn’t like though. First, the boss battles were too easy. I mean except for not protecting my pirate ship, which was bullshit, I never once died. All the cutscenes where Sora’s heavy breathing or on the ground defeated, I was like, this is crap because this was so easy. I want a challenge! So I’ll play again on Proud mode and see if it’s better. I mean not even the secret battles were hard, but admittedly I was battling them around level 70 by that point so that could be why…

And I wish they had done the fights with the Organization members better. I mean it was so jaunting to fight three enemies and kill one just to have a pause in the fight where everyone let so-and-so have their last words. Thoughtful, I guess, but dumb and if you want each death to be meaningful you could have done it so much better. Because I could have felt more for Larxene, if Marluxia wasn’t about to Axe me, ten seconds later. What I thought would have been cool is one-on-one battles and playing as all the different keyblade wielders. I mean, don’t tease me by letting me play as Riku a couple times, and Aqua once, if you won’t let me play with them at the end! That’s so not fair! I mean I love Sora, and he’s powerful, but there would have been so much more sweet justice getting to fight certain members as the other characters. Like Roxas for example. How badass would that have been to come back and beat down on Saix and Xemnas? But they didn’t let me!!!! Sad day…

Overall Rating: 8/10 Because ultimately, I did have fun. I will play it again despite the issues I had, and it still is one of my all time series.

Thanks for reading if you made it this far!

#kh3 #ending thoughts #spoilers #sora #riku

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