#I might have cut some in between scenes but bear with me

[existingingrey]

백공죽 Extended Version

Sangcheol saving CNG from Ye Yeongsil's goons who came for the phone.

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

Katharine Hepburn (Bringing Up Baby, The Philadelphia Story, The African Queen)—(I hope someone else submits real propaganda but just in case they don't:) Cries. Screams. Wails. The woman who singlehandedly made me realize I was bi. A real "do i want to look like her. be her. or be with her.' crisis, where the answer was all three. Holy shit please all three.

Diahann Carroll (Paris Blues, Carmen Jones, Porgy and Bess)— Face of an angel. She had the range. She brought chemistry with every romance she portrayed. She also had a great fashion sense, and was so pretty Mattel made a doll based off of her.

This is round 6 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

Diahann Carroll:

Another groundbreaking black actress, although she might be better remembered for her television roles. She was also an activist and worked with charities to support women in need.

here she is hanging out with shadow prince anthony perkins :3

Katharine Hepburn propaganda:

I'm sure one million people will submit her as an iconic Hollywood star but that iconicness might lead people to forget just how insanely hot she was like she had it ALL she was skilled she was funny she was smart she was beautiful AND she was likely bisexual

The single word I would use to explain Katherine Hepburn's appeal is *range*. In her acting career, that meant covering all the ground between lush period dramas and the comedies she did with Carey Grant and Spencer Tracey. In terms of hotness, it meant an uncanny ability to bring anything from a Dietrich-esque androgyny to some of the best Classic Hollywood Glamour you will ever see.

Katharine hep was so cool. The VIBES, the INDEPENDENCE,,, living life on her own terms.

she just had this.... bearing to her, this power. she could be funny, even silly (like in bringing up baby) but also so regal and elegant. she was nobody's fool and dear GOD that's so hot

Fancam link

She’s not only stunningly gorgeous (those eyes that pierce your soul! a jawline you could cut glass with!) but her delivery and physical presence in roles gives off confidence and authority in such a sexy way (truly the biggest dick energy of Old Hollywood). Her fiery energy in The Philadelphia Story? Unmatched.

God she's. She's so hot y'all. She has the range!!!!! Funny and dramatic and lovely

She IS the transatlantic accent. Classically gorgeous and such a strong personality.

She's literally one of the funniest women to ever live! She goes shot for shot with Cary Grant in Philadelphia Story and we damn well love her for it! She's the most annoying creature to ever live in Bringing Up Baby but she's so insane and funny that we simply cannot help but fall in love with her (and root for her to give Grant an aneurysm!)

i know she's accounted for but i really want to be sure someone has submitted the scene in bringing up baby where she's pretending to be a gangster

She simply stuns onscreen; you cannot do anything but be captivated by her presence. Also a non-gender-conforming icon and mild tumblr celebrity by virtue of that one picture from The Warrior's Husband (stage play).

Katharine Hepburn was out here casually changing the lives of young butch lesbians with her gender swag! She wore pants even when people said she shouldn’t, she refused to marry or have kids, and she wore menswear in at LEAST one movie!

If I start thinking about her face for too long I will cry she is so so hot. Katherine is so charismatic and charming in everything she appears in - watch her adopt a leopard and fall in love with her. Also she has the biggest dick energy ever (she and her pal Lauren Bacall share that accolade). Also had an incredibly long and varied career from screw ball comedies to serious dramas - she’s a queen of the screen and I adore her.

Someone's got to mention it, but she's won the most Oscars out of any performer and is largely considered one of the greatest actresses ever. She's got an incredible voice, an incredible presence, and she absolutely steals every scene she's in. She was private person and deemed standoffish and unapproachable, but she was also profoundly concerned for people's rights and was an outspoken supporter of abortion access. Finally, the Katharine Hepburn slacks look is just iconic. I mean look at her.

This woman. I have been obsessed with her for years. I know the urban legend is a popular one at this point of her walking around set in her underwear when her pants were stolen and she was left with only a skirt, but the pants thing is honestly enough for her to be the hottest in the room in my book. She refused to wear anything else at a time when the public in general and especially the studios did not like that. She was independent, stubborn, and so so very capable. Competency kink anyone? Also, if you want one final way that Katharine's entire life was saying "fuck you" to the establishment, it started young! Her mother took her to suffrage events, and she never got rid of that attitude of justice. I feel like I have barely scratched the surface of all the ways she was such a badass that I'm turning into a rambling mess instead.

[estellan0vella]

Restless Mind ❀ Sukuna (REQUESTED) Masterlist

The gentle rustle of leaves and the soothing sound of water greet you as you sit at the edge of the pond in the expansive gardens of Sukuna's estate.

The night is serene, the moon hanging high in the sky, casting a silver glow over the tranquil scene. The koi fish swim lazily in the pond, their bright colors muted but still visible in the moonlight. A cool breeze rustles through the trees, carrying the sweet scent of blooming flowers and the faintest hint of autumn in the air.

You take a sip of your tea, savoring its warmth as it spreads through you, a small comfort against the chill of the night. Your book rests open on your lap, the words a blur as you struggle to focus, your mind too restless to find solace in the story.

Sleep has been elusive tonight, and you couldn't bear the confines of your and Sukuna's room any longer. The gardens, with their quiet beauty, seemed like the perfect refuge.

Lost in thought, you don't hear the soft footsteps approaching until it's too late to hide. You look up, startled, to see Sukuna standing a few feet away, his crimson eyes fixed on you. He cuts a striking figure against the night, his presence both commanding and oddly comforting.

"What are you doing out here?" he asks, his voice a low rumble that sends a shiver down your spine.

"I couldn't sleep," you admit, feeling a bit sheepish under his intense gaze. "I thought some fresh air might help."

He raises an eyebrow, his eyes flicking to your attire. "And you thought it wise to come out in just your pajamas?"

You glance down at your thin nightclothes, suddenly aware of how exposed you are to the chill of the night. You wrap your arms around yourself, trying to ward off the cold and the embarrassment creeping up your cheeks.

"I didn't think it would be this cold," you mumble.

Sukuna sighs, a sound that seems to echo through the garden. He steps closer, shrugging off his haori and draping it over your shoulders. The fabric is warm, carrying his scent, and you can't help but snuggle into it.

"You're always so careless," he mutters, but there's no real bite to his words.

You offer him a small smile as he sits beside you. "Thank you."

He grunts in response, his eyes moving to the pond, watching the koi fish with a contemplative expression. Silence stretches between you, but it's a comfortable one, filled with the quiet sounds of the night.

"Why couldn't you sleep?" he asks after a while, his voice softer now.

You shrug, staring at the book in your lap. "Just... too many thoughts, I guess. I couldn't shut my mind off."

He nods, as if he understands. Maybe he does. You've seen glimpses of his own restlessness, the nights when he prowls the estate, unable to find peace, leaving you in the bed alone.

Sukuna shifts, his hand coming to rest on your back, his touch gentle. "You should have woken me," he says. "I would have kept you company."

"I didn't want to bother you," you reply, leaning into his touch despite your words.

"You're never a bother," he says firmly, his eyes locking onto yours. "Remember that."

The sincerity in his voice takes you by surprise, and for a moment, you can only stare at him, your heart pounding in your chest. It's rare for him to be so openly affectionate, even with you, and it leaves you feeling a mix of warmth and vulnerability.

"Thank you," you say again, your voice barely above a whisper.

He nods, his hand moving in slow circles on your back, a soothing gesture that makes your eyes feel heavy. The tension in your body begins to melt away, replaced by a sense of calm that you haven't felt all night.

"Tell me about your book," he says, his tone conversational, as if he's trying to distract you from your thoughts.

You glance at the cover, then back at him. "It's just a book of poetry, tragic romance, epic love stories"

Sukuna chuckles, a deep, rumbling sound that makes you smile. "Sounds like something you would enjoy."

You nod, feeling a bit more relaxed. "It's a good escape."

He hums in agreement, his fingers still tracing soothing patterns on your back. "Sometimes we all need an escape."

You glance at him, seeing the shadows in his eyes, the weight of his own burdens. It's easy to forget sometimes that even someone as powerful as Sukuna has his own struggles, his own demons to face.

"Do you ever wish things were different?" you ask softly, the question slipping out before you can stop it.

He doesn't answer right away, his gaze distant as he considers your words. When he finally speaks, his voice is low, almost contemplative. "Sometimes. But wishing for things to be different doesn't change what is. We can only move forward, adapt, and find our own moments of peace."

You lean your head against his shoulder, feeling the steady rise and fall of his breath.

"Thank you for being here," you say quietly, the words carrying more weight than you realize.

He wraps an arm around you, pulling you closer. "Always."

The night stretches on, but the restlessness that plagued you before is gone, replaced by a deep sense of contentment. The garden, the pond, the koi fish—everything seems to blur together into a peaceful tableau, a moment of tranquility in a world that is often anything but.

You close your eyes, letting the sound of Sukuna's heartbeat lull you into a sense of security. For the first time tonight, you feel like you might actually be able to sleep.

"Stay with me?" you murmur, already feeling drowsy.

He presses a kiss to the top of your head, his lips warm and soft. "I'm not going anywhere."

And with that, you let yourself drift, knowing that in this moment, with Sukuna by your side, you are safe, cherished, and loved. The worries and the sleepless nights can wait. For now, there is only this—an escape, a comfort, a peace that is found in the quiet companionship of someone who understands.

[tonydaddingham]

it was about the coffee

edit 24/11: rip miracle blocker theory, my love

but possibly not the way we thought it was. this is going to sound so convoluted but bear with me here (and big thanks to the anon that precipitated this theory, and major apologies that writing this theory is only going to delay my answer to your ask even further💕)

a major plot-point for me in s2 was this bad boy:

which i think we can safely say is a very op power for demons to possess for it not to come up again later on in the show? it's almost like a parallel to the book of life on that front - which is mentioned in the bookshop in ep6, but we've all agreed is pretty much going to be a major chekhov's gun in s3, right? well, what about the miracle blocker?

why wouldn't shax think of getting one either from furfur or from beelzebub when storming the bookshop? well, could be that shax didn't think of it. true - but i do wonder if something iffy was in fact going on in ep5/ep6 showdown, right up into the Final Fifteen.

let's start here: aziraphale has got some reality-bending bullshit going on, which i think is possibly just naturally emanating from aziraphale himself (im not wholly convinced it's entirely in-character for him to purposefully fuck with people's heads and autonomy) and perhaps the dancing/outfits/emotions etc is just the image he wanted for the dance, and his magic (?) essentially made it happen, so much so that he was potentially taken in by it too... hence why he was so readily resistant to crowley's pleas to listen to him about the danger? idk, getting sidetracked.

but anyway, then the demons come, and we see the below where... randomly, aziraphale's miracles/magic doesn't work. and there's no given reason for it:

soon after this, aziraphale opens the portal; one thing on reflection? that portal opens damn fucking fast. sure, the peril is high, certainly higher than s1 when he had to pray and practically beg to speak to someone... but if the portal is more or less for metatron's direct use, and the metatron is so damn busy, being the voice of god... why would he be sat there waiting for a call?

s1, the time between aziraphale starting to pray/dial 9-1-heaven, and the portal opening (excluding where he shouts to shadwell that the shop is closed) is just over 31 seconds. s2, from "hello, is there anybody there" to portal opening is just over 5. a very short cut-down for a retired, traitorous angel, regardless of whether they're under attack (which, tbh, would be in heaven's interests, right? for aziraphale to get Got?). the explanation for that can only be, in my book, that metatron has been watching... and possibly has been since the first time the portal opened.

anyway, we then move on to metatron arriving at the bookshop, and offering aziraphale the coffee. others have reported a miracle chime, and tbh i too can hear at least a faint, high strong, that sounds out of place in the ambient sound of the scene. video below, where ive marked out where i can hear it:

we know that aziraphale doesn't drink coffee. tea, hot chocolate, wine... but he's never, as far as we've seen, canonically drunk coffee. he must have tried it at some point, crowley likes it/drinks it, so why wouldn't aziraphale have tried it at some point? well, i think he probably has, and didn't like it. i think he tried to change it, in front of the metatron, so he could take a sip and not be offensive. but... it doesn't work. aziraphale's reaction is awkward. and metatron's reaction is smug. i think metatron has a miracle blocker.

aziraphale is not stupid. i think he knows possibly from that moment, or very soon after, that metatron has been up to something. i think he knows that metatron might have eyes and ears everywhere. i think aziraphale has worked out that metatron is not in fact A Nice Old Man, and knows it right through until he gets in the lift (which im going to talk about more in the aforementioned anon ask). i don't think aziraphale has been overtly threatened, because the metatron has worked so hard in this scene to be non-threatening. but he has underestimated how smart aziraphale actually is.

making the offer to reform heaven appeals to aziraphale, there is no doubt on that. and aziraphale is desperate for crowley to be with him - not only on the layer of wanting to be together, or another layer of crowley deserving to have heaven make amends to him, or even the layer wanting to protect crowley under his status as supreme archangel... but because if aziraphale walks away, without crowley, crowley has nowhere safe to go. the bookshop has been compromised, and it is no longer safe. metatron with his almond syrup has Eyes and Ears everywhere. when crowley refuses, aziraphale has to get to heaven, and to metatron, before they get to him.

i do completely believe that aziraphale wants to help heaven, and possibly seek any way in which he can return it to what he thinks or believes was god's original purpose for it - to return or make it into the place that was always meant to stand for good and justice and love. but i also believe that now, more than ever, aziraphale teeters on the edge of giving heaven a chance - or being burnt to ashes, literally or figuratively. idk about you, but i have a gut feeling on what option he, in this moment, would be inclined to take.

[nortimer]

I usually don't like talking about these kinds of things bc I often find I'm Not Great With Words, but bear with me I'm gonna try my best here. I've pondered this a lot since getting into Mouthwashing.

Tl;dr, I've observed a borderline aggressive need to be correct all the time about the themes of Mouthwashing or else you're immediately called an immoral and awful person. And I feel like it creates an atmosphere where people are scared to speculate in case they're perceived as evil. Or maybe that's just me personally being scared, idk. Either way, more under the cut (spoilers, obviously)

After first finishing Mouthwashing, there was a lot I didn't notice. Unfortunately, I'm an oblivious person. I didn't understand what the hibiscus meant. I had no clue what the whole scene with turning the wheels with Curly meant. I didn't even realize what Jimmy did to Anya, let alone what the conversation between Anya and Swansea was about or why Anya hid the gun.

It took scrolling through Tumblr, reading other people's analysis in order to fully understand the story. Even then, I went back and watched another playthrough once I had a better understanding.

But what I found in the fandom was a lot of hostility towards people who didn't understand the whole picture yet, or people who had the 'wrong' idea. I saw a disturbing amount of people who were saying things along the lines of "If you didn't understand the story this way, then you're just as bad as Jimmy/Curly" or "You're also an enabler, you're a bystander, etc."

I believe Mouthwashing's story having the themes it does is an effort to spread awareness about them, and I feel like that's a pretty universally agreed upon sentiment. But things like this, that are complex and have a lot of grey area, some people just aren't going to understand immediately, and that's why the game exists. To tell a story, and to teach. Hopefully in time, the messages, symbolism, etc will sink in and people will understand and be better. And some people aren't gonna get it immediately. Everyone has vastly different perspectives, so it might take some time or even some convincing for people to truly understand it. But personally I don't think screaming at people is the way to go lmao

(side note, obviously there's nuance to this situation. if someone's takeaway from mouthwashing was 'anya deserved it' or some other horrible bullshit then yeah that warrants being screamed at. also, if u disagree with me, i'd love to hear why!!)

[nataliescatorccioapologist]

I visited the WGA library to read Yellowjackets scripts and wanted to share some of my findings! (Pt. 3)

Here are my notes for 1x04! Quotation marks indicate direct lines from the script, whereas everything else is me paraphrasing.

Note: You can find an early version of 1x04 on Script Slug, but this must have been a very early version because many things are different. The notes I have here are not on that version of the script, rather they are on the final version of the script that ended up being used for the episode, so there will just be some new details and deleted scenes but no major plot differences between the script here and what we saw in the episode.

1x04 “Bear Down”

A lot of this is going to be about Nat because this is kind of her episode!

•During Nat’s plane crash nightmare in the opening scene, the script says that Adult Nat briefly appears in the seat next to her father before being replaced by Teen Nat again. I thought this was interesting, I wonder what the writers are trying to say by having a flash of Adult Nat here, does it contribute to the whole “We’ve been here for years” line when Nat dies? A representation of how Nat is essentially stuck in this place even 25 years later?

But also, the dream is Teen Nat’s dream, not Adult Nat’s, so is this would mean the dream is prophetic in a sense because Nat is seeing her future self for a moment. Maybe that’s why they cut it out? Or was it just because Juliette wasn’t available for such a small scene?

•Also in the dream sequence, the rifle Nat sees on her lap is noted by the script to be the same one she eventually uses to hunt in the wilderness. Another prophetic piece to Nat’s dream.

All of that combined with Nat’s dad’s line of “It’s been waiting for us” shows that, even though Nat is the biggest skeptic in the wilderness, she is one of the first people the wilderness speaks to and gives prophetic visions to.

•Nat is said to be 14 years-old when her father dies. The script says she and Kevyn are 14 in that scene and the year is specified as 1993. I have always wondered how old she was supposed to be in that scene!

(But it’s worth noting that they might have aged her up a year in the final product because, in the script, the cassette she pops into her boom box when her and Kevyn enter her room is the album Where You Been by Dinosaur Jr., which came out in 1993. However, in the actual episode, Nat puts in the song “Feel the Pain” by Dinosaur Jr. instead, which came out in 1994. So this scene might actually be in 1994 in the final product despite what the script says.)

•Teen Kevyn Tan is absolutely hopelessly in love with Nat in the flashback scene. He’s described as “clearly nervous to be in the bedroom of his crush” and starts coloring his nails with Sharpie just to distract himself from his anxiety.

Then Nat pats the bed for him to sit next to her and Kevyn is “thrumming with hormones and anxiety.” When Nat takes Kevyn’s hand to start painting his nails, we get this description:

“For Kevyn, her gentle touch, her careful attention…he’s in heaven. And simultaneously deep inside the hell of his own desire. Should he kiss her? Would she hate that?”

Nat is described as “oblivious” to Kevyn’s feelings in this moment.

I think these descriptions help us understand how much Kevyn idealizes Natalie in his head. He has this unrealistic, romanticized view of her even 25 years later when they meet again as adults. He likes the idea of her, but when he actually sees her trauma (and sees her as an actual person) he distances himself.

•There are some…interesting descriptions of Shauna and Adam getting freaky in the script. This girl is scratching him hard enough to draw blood, choking him, putting her fingers in his mouth, etc. This shows how Shauna is using Adam to relive the adrenaline she felt in the wilderness.

•When Travis points the gun at Nat, the rest of the girls scatter and run away in fear, but Nat stays perfectly still, staring him down.

•While Taissa is talking to Diane about her political campaign and Diane asks her what “really happened out there,” Tai hears wolves howling in the distance. Poor Tai is more traumatized by Van’s wolf attack than Van is.

•When Kevyn and Nat meet for dinner as adults, they reminisce about breaking into the chem lab at school and stealing equipment to make bongs. My fun little headcanon is that Nat got caught during this incident and the principal put her on the soccer team to set her on the right path.

•Also in this scene, Kevyn notes that he last saw Nat “twenty-two years ago,” which means he and Nat were in contact for a year or two after the rescue. I’m thinking Nat probably stayed in Wiskayok for a year after they were rescued and just decided to cut all ties at some point and leave town, ghosting everyone she knew there.

There’s this line as well:

“Kevyn: You were my best friend and you just…

You fucking ghosted me.”

•There’s another deleted scene (which they did film and we actually got to briefly see it in the trailer for the episode but they took it out of the final product for some reason!) where Adult Nat is looking in the mirror after her date with Kevyn, having mixed feelings about her grief over Travis and her new feelings for Kevyn, and she sees her Teen self behind her in the mirror imitating her movements. A little trauma regression moment and I’m not sure why it was cut. I’m just salty because I love when Sophie Thatcher and Juliette Lewis are in a room together. But here’s a photo of it:

•There’s an interesting part where Shauna finds Javi’s journal and looks through it. The journal has a bunch of drawings in it (wildlife sketches, comic book characters, etc.) that are described as really good; Javi’s talent as an artist is emphasized by the script.

I think this some subtle proof that the writers initially intended for Adam to be Adult Javi, with the obvious nod to the artist talent and I feel like the scripts for these early episodes highlight the closeness between Javi and Shauna in the wilderness more. The writers did confirm that they originally wanted Javi to be Adam, so I think you can see some details that support that in the scripts.

•Before Nat pulls the trigger on her dad, she feels “years of humiliation and thwarted rage” and she automatically “stiffens” when he steps towards her. Just a reminder of how much this man traumatized her!

•When Shauna butchers the deer for the first time, she is described as feeling a “thrill she’s never felt before.” This goes back to her sexual relationship with Adam in the adult timeline, that adrenaline from her role as the butcher that she misses and is trying to recreate.

•When Shauna returns home from her antics with Adam, Jeff asks, “How was book club?” and Shauna immediately vomits all over the floor🫢

[queer-enderdragon]

dear lord, okie.

rewatched both eps out so far, like just to have everything fresh in mind, and i got two things to share. first one is more music analysis from a music enthusiast who might or might not read a lot between lines, and second, a Thought i had that... well, maybe will be relevant, maybe not

so... the music,

if we take in the fact that ivory has been working on this project for at least 2 years and maybe some, and that instead of using music done by others she is doing these herself... well, wp!ivory Is the quiet type, definitely a nervous type too as it shows with her speech going a little out of her control when shes anxious, and the story itself is quiet in many aspects, including the hemlocke family trying to keep the press silent about whitepine's tragedy

but what it isn't quiet is the music

and i cant really explain what i mean unless you see what i'm talking about, so bear with me

starting with the end song of ep 2, larch. like... end songs for the episode to me now are like the silent moments we are given but the inverse. moments that tell us to listen, so that we may know more about the things unsaid, and this song... this song specifically speaks to me of something about tension. a soft kind of tension, one barely building up, a string that is slowly being pulled... because so far this is not really—or at least fully—a murder mystery, because the focus of the narrative is not yet of whoever killed mysti, of finding out who did it

is about grief, and how things just... keep moving, maybe too fast. there hasnt even been a Funeral, the servants were barely given a single day to rest, and her place as a personal maid has been filled in already with ivory. things are moving on, even if an investigation is already going on the back now

which leads me to wych elm. that is Exactly what im talking about here

the music starting sober, slow, then going into a crescendo and for a moment i thought i was maybe reading too much into it, but when i saw even the comments under the video of the song were talking about how this song sounded like grief and overstimulation...

in the scene this song plays, the camera is first on ivory, then a very fast paced cooking scene, but then starts jumping all over the manor. closed doors, parts of the outside, maids and butlers making sure everything is in shape and clean like it has always been. things Keep Happening, two days pass like a flash, the sense of normalcy tinted by how people still feeling the injury of the lost, but the world keeps moving. the signing in the song almost feels like a quiet cry. one you have to just let yourself be even for a moment, because the next you need to go back to work. the world keeps turning and is not going to wait for you and let you grieve. and then the song cuts the moment we are back with the hemlocke.

now the last new song, lacebark pine, at the start of the episode after the interrogations...

besides the sad tone, call me insane, but to me it feels like... longing,

and with how ivory just stares at the forest, where is said many "have gone missing", and how she Immediately goes there the moment no one is looking, even when told not to. how she says she was found in the woods,

this goes well with the last thought i had actually, that i've already been seeing people on youtube making videos of how they "solved" the murder of mysti

and i say to them. maybe you're focusing in the wrong things right now, or maybe, dare i say, you're falling for the distraction of the magician while she hides your card. because if you're focused enough on one thing, maybe something else might slip right behind you without anyone noticing

there's many odd things going on with the whitepine manor, it's history, the people in it, including the servants, the surroundings and ivory. the murder happening there might just be the last drop to finally set things into motion.

tho of course, i'll wait until at least a good 5 eps are out to start trying to see where this is going better, because again, ivory is making a wonderful job setting the tone of whitepine so far, but she herself did say she wanted to take this story slow instead of a more fast paced narrative like how her past videos used to be. so meanwhile, let's just set the table and get ready to eat

let her cook <3

[drconstellation]

A Tale of Two Peacocks

The Relationship Between Gabriel and Michael

Some weeks ago I said I would take on the challenge of looking at the relationship between Gabriel and Michael, then I got sidetracked writing something else* - which is not always a bad thing. But I want to return to this because its too good not to do a post on it, and before I get too deeply involved in the other writing.

This is definitely going to involve some NSWF language - hey, I can't help this, its in the script - so the bulk of this is going to be below the cut. But the short of it is, they have a fairly low opinion of each other.

We need to go back to S1, where there is an interesting set of parallel scenes we should start our discussion with that spells it out for us. The first one is in S1xE2, and the other is actually in one of the deleted scenes from the cold opening of S1xE3, and they both use parallel characters to inform us of what Gabriel and Michael think of each other.

It turns out I've already talked about the first one, in this meta here, where I discuss how Newt is a parallel for Crowley.

Then [Frobisher] power-walks past. Newt is not even worth her time stopping for. "Need a hand, Dick?" *Snort* - and ouch. That's a below-the belt joke. She's just called him a wanker. In the US you might use the term jerk instead. Someone who's a bit egotistical and more in it for themselves than others. (and I never thought I'd be fact-checking the meaning of this word ever, but there's always a first time...) She's basically just equated him Gabriel, in my book (and in more ways than one.)

And I wrote all that months before I started writing my Crowley-Gabriel parallel/foil series, too.

The other thing about this first parallel scene is the character of Frobisher, who is dressed very much like a demon, but is actually the parallel character to Michael, as we see later on in the paintball fight at Tadfield Manor.

(Er, I know this is all a bit 2nd/3rd hand evidence, but the second scene is a bit more direct, so bear with me.)

The second one, in S2xE3, is the deleted bookshop opening scene.

Source: Script for the unaired scene of Aziraphale opening his bookshop in 1800

Oh, look at that. Somebody is being called a wanker. Again. This time it's Crowley calling Michael a wanker, however, and its only one step to the side with Crowley being a parallel character to Gabriel (and I challenge you to watch s1 again in this light after finishing this post, and see how many similarities you can see between Crowley and Gabriel showing through even back then.)

OK. So we've established that Gabriel and Michael both think each other are wankers at this point, but what else can we find out about them?

Peacock Fighting

I've written a couple of posts about peacock symbolism. Firstly, Michael is strongly associated with having many eyes - their Ophanim ring, their costume has eye motifs, and they are essentially head of surveillance for Heaven. So this made me think they might be the peacock referred to in the Job minisode.

But later, after more research, it became apparent the lines paraphrased in Job were definitely referring to Gabriel. (See also Judgement Day.) There are associations with both royalty and vanity there.

They are both peacocks, but for different reasons.

And they are also both in competition with one another.

Gabriel Doesn't Have A Desk

Desks are a symbol of power in western society.

The bigger, and more solid the desk in a corporate office, the higher up the person is.

The teacher at the front of the room, the authority in the room, has a bigger desk than the students.

Those desks offer protection to the person in authority sitting behind them. They mark a separation between that said authority and the masses they command on the other side. Only the most trusted get to come around to the same side that they are sitting on to be more intimate with them.

At work, your desk is connected to your identity there. Its your place in the organization. You may even individualize it with decorations.

Just take a look at what Newt was bringing on his first day to work in S1xE2:

Pens, a pen holder, notepads, a ball of rubber bands, a plant (a bromeliad, a plant that does well in fully shaded damp environments, just like Hell) and some rations. Er, I mean lunch. Given to him by God Frances his mother.

The travesty of the modern trend of "hot desking" is de-personalizing the employee. They are no longer a valued employee with a valued place, they're just another faceless cog in the grind.

We see Michael behind a desk as Duty Officer in S2. It's starkly clean and sharp and made of glass, as we would expect to find in Heaven. It's used a shield and badge of office when we see them fulfilling that role.

Michael doubts Gabriel has a desk, although Gabriel insists he does, even though we have never seen it. Yet he still requires the proverbial archive box for moving locations?

I'm just going to leave the parallel between Newt and Gabriel there for further discussion. Please do remember the bottom falls out of Newt's box in the car park, leaving him with an empty box, too.

(Muriel has a glass desk, too, but interestingly they don't have a chair. You might like to compare their encounter with Aziraphale in the Job minisode to the escapade with Crowley in the present day. There is volumes said without words.)

Just while we are on the subject of desks, thought you might like to compare Crowley's and Aziraphale's desks as well. They are always on about how much paperwork they have to do!

Sovereign versus Disciplinary Power

This is eventually going to turn into a discussion about fate versus free will at some point, but I do need to talk about the different types of power first, because I haven't done my long promised Power and Authority meta yet. The two concepts are closely related, and Gabriel and Michael are each acting as foils for a side of the concepts.

Gabriel represents sovereign power, the supreme legitimate power of the state. Power and action trickles down from the top, and punishment is almost a show of entertainment, but one designed to educate. "Oh, those angels Fell - if I do something bad, I might Fall, too!" And so Gabriel expects to Fall when he is given his trial, and Aziraphale when he lies to save Job's children.

Michael is representing disciplinary power, something that lies at the heart of society today. This is where power is spread among individuals, and individuals are more likely to do their own discipline merely because of an overhanging threat of a possibility they may get caught if they do.** Are they being watched? Who might see and report their transgression? Michael has eyes (and ducks) everywhere... So does Orwell's book 1984.

This is a very simplistic view, of course - reality is more complex than that, and is usually a combination of the two, but we have to start somewhere.

Now lets throw the fate vs free will components into the mix. Let us revisit the story of King Cnut and the tide.

The story, if you are not familiar with it, is that Cnut had his throne set on the beach and commanded the incoming tide to halt where it was, and not to wet his robes or feet. Of course, the tide kept rising and splashed the king, where he leapt up and declared his might and power as a king worthless compared to that of God. The story is meant to demonstrate his piety before Heaven, and that he was not the ultimate controller of all things - his sovereign power was limited.

They say time and tide*** wait for no man - we are at the mercy of what ever fate they bring us, and we can't manipulate that. That's decided by the supreme power, the ultimate sovereign power, so to speak.

Gabriel tends to take this line - he does not have control over the summoning of the Four Horsepeople, they are just happening as they supposed to, and that's not his department. Plausible deniability, baby! Back channels? What back channels, Michael?

So if you did want to have some power over it, some free will to control outcomes? But hang on - every one else has free will as well. Sounds a bit chaotic. Who's in charge? Nobody. Everybody. Welcome to Michael's world. They want the power, they're prepared to fight for it, for what they think is right - but so is everyone else.

But what if you were the creator of free will itself? Would you be The One to have control over time and the tides?

Tadfield Manor, Again

Michael is the archangel who throws Lucifer down from Heaven, and we see this play out at Tadfield Manor during the paintball fight, when we are shown that it is actually Frobisher/Michael who shoots the shot that hits Norman/Lucifer in the heart - although we are initially made to think its Nigel/Gabriel who did it. (One day I will teach my self how to make GIFs and make a GIF of this.)

Frobisher is the more competitive one at all times - she is the only other employee besides the naive Newt to put their hand up when Nigel asks who is looking forward to the Training Initiative and she asks Crowley and Aziraphale "Who's winning?" as she runs past them inside - to which Crowley presciently declares "You're all going to lose."

If you look at the extended scene in light of the above, you can see sovereign authority of senior manager Nigel/Gabriel is still floating around as a rather toothless tiger to the whims of fate, while everyone else is exercising their free will and disciplinary powers to try and control one another. And, as Crowley says, nobody wins. It's a lose-lose situation.

Michael is competing for an empty dream.

Gabriel is trying his best to survive something that is not what it seems.

And...I think I'll leave it there. Thanks for reading.

*I've started writing a multi-chapter human AU fanfic. But I'm a slow writer, and I'm not writing it in a linear fashion - because it has to be stuffed full of meta, of course - so I decided I better pull myself out of it before I got pulled in too far and finish a couple of things off so you didn't think I'd disappeared completely. I wasn't planning on doing one, but you know how these things go - one day an idea just pops into your head, the next thing the characters are talking to you and taking on their own life and a couple of thousand words later...

**There was a post about the oculus, (found it! thanks to gallup24) the round skylight window in the roof of the bookshop and the Panopticon, an infamous prison design where the prisoners can all see each other but can't see if the guard is watching them, but of course I've lost track of it, haven't I.

***The tides are controlled by the Moon and Sun, and ostensibly for this argument, by Heaven as well. They are fated to continue in their set orbit and/or path through the sky - or the Earth on it's orbit around the Sun, is probably the better way of looking at it.

[cultofdixon]

I love you, please don’t push me away

Daryl Dixon • She/Her Pronouns • “Can I see it…” “since when did you start to care about me again?” “I’ve lost too much. I ain’t gonna lose yea now” • ANGST/SFW • TW: Canon Violence [Mentioned] / Injuries / Messy Confessions / Anxiety Attacks / Nightmares / PTSD

Requested by: Anon

Nothing tears these two apart, well. Except that time with the Governor but every fiber of their being magnetized toward the other.

Y/N and Daryl, inseparable. But never an item even if there is a running bet between Rick and Carol over how long it’ll take.

The run down?

Daryl never saw himself relate with any of the other members in the quarry. Except for this other lone wolf type that would wander out of bounds to hunt, like him. And ignore Shane’s stupid rule, like him and Merle. And also have a short fuse just like him.

He stumbled across this person during his own hunt finding the woman bashing in the skull of a walker. She turned around when she noticed she was stumbled upon by a living being, her body relaxed when realizing who it was. Which was a new feeling to Daryl.

“Shane sent yea out or what”

“Nah fuck that pig. Was tracking a deer”

“You mean that deer” The woman pointed to the hanging animal from the tree as Daryl gave the whole scene a concerned look. “Camping tips can help in the end of the world”

“Bear tactics”

“Exactly. Tie up your shit so bears don’t get it. But hell you’ve got sickos. Might as well apply those tactics to these fucks” She kicked the dead creature while pulling out her knife. “I’m uh. Y/N. By the way…you ain’t very talkative in the camp”

“Neither are yea.” He scoffs. “‘M Daryl”

“Welp. Now you’ve got a friend.” Y/N untied the deer letting it hit the ground by Daryl’s feet. “And if we’re gonna be friends. You can carry that for me, to avoid the Walker guts getting on everybody’s dinner”

“What do I get for doing this?”

“Mmm…I’m pretty good at making arrows” Y/N shrugs watching the pondering look grow on Daryl’s face before he knelt down and picked up the deer heading back to the camp while she happily follows behind.

That first moment brought an instant connection that Daryl didn’t realize. Until he got shitty news.

“You left my brother? On a fucking roof?” Daryl snaps and right before the archer got close to hitting the stranger, Y/N stepped between the two along with Shane’s help. Not that she needed it.

“Who do you think you are to make that decision?”

“Rick Grimes, deputy—-“

“Nah. I ain’t dealing with another pig thinking he can boss everybody around” Y/N cuts him off as she stood her ground even if it didn’t entirely involve her. “How would you feel if you were left behind? Left for dead” She knew her words struck a few in the crowd, specifically Shane and Lori.

“I was left behind” Rick suddenly got up in Y/N’s face not liking her attitude but right as he did, Daryl didn’t hesitate to loom from behind her making him back up.

“And how the fuck did that make you feel?”

That brought a lot of her character out to Daryl and everyone else. She was defensive and it was clear, when she gets close to someone…she has to protect them in some way.

When the invasion happened on the camp, Daryl never been more driven by his anxiety and his fear until he thought he’d lose the closest person he’s liked in the longest time. He took out a walker coming up behind Y/N when she wasn’t paying attention. The thankful look in her eyes spoke enough even if after taking care of the walkers, Daryl subtly scanned her person as he helped the others pile up the dead.

The plan to head to the CDC was a gamble, but the ride there brought more out of the two. Given Y/N loaded up in Daryl’s truck not wanting to be stuck in the RV.

“Why’d yea defend me back when we found out they left Merle?”

“Honest?”

“Mhm”

“He’s your family, whether he annoys you or not…you’d still want him in your life” Y/N leaned her head against the window fiddling with the ends of her sleeves. “And hell. I’m done letting others walk all over people. Just cuz they haven’t been in their shoes before”

Daryl felt himself grip the steering wheel wanting to ask a question but given the lighthearted feel going on between the two, he didn’t want to taint it full of uncomfortable tension.

“Who did yea lose”

“My baby brother” Y/N frowns reaching into her backpack taking out a journal that held a Polaroid of the two on a camping trip with their parents. “I…I don’t think he’s dead but, haven’t found him since outbreak day and Glenn took me back to that camp even when every fiber of my being didn’t want to stop looking”

“Do yea entirely trust these people?”

“I trust you. But that’s cuz you’re not keeping bullshit. Yea state yer mind if you have to. Hopefully the new world doesn’t beat that out of yea”

The CDC was a weird experience. A time to feel like they were in the old world once more. Just under a different roof and drowning out reality with alcohol.

Daryl was the last to shower even if it took him some time to get there given the man had drank a bit too much. But as he entered the room he was sharing with the other single in their group, which obviously was Y/N. She lifted her head to the sound of stumbling and saw the exhaustion rise in his expression as he stumbles onto the couch she sat on. She tossed her book on her bag giving Daryl an opportunity to use her lap as a pillow turning toward her and laying there in silence for a moment. Closing his eyes and doing the best he could to fall asleep even when a part of him fought to stay awake to spend this time with Y/N. Y/N on the other hand, pulled the blanket from her shoulders and covered the man laying on her…resting a hand on his side feeling him shift to get comfortable mumbling a bit to himself.

“Don’t ever wanna lose yea…”

Those words struck a bit to Y/N and even if he didn’t remember saying that last night, she knew by the way he covered her when Rick tossed the grenade to escape the CDC…

That he meant it.

Their bond was growing to others in a beautiful way but to the pair it was weird…confusing…and a bit beautiful in its own way. But it brought certain anxiety that the other never wanted to feel in a world like this.

The farm became a temporary safe haven, and the word temporary was definitely engraved in few’s minds because of how Hershel felt toward them. At first it was to save Carl’s life and thankfully he did…next was to fix what Andrea did.

“Oh my god. Is he alive—-“

“Step the fuck back” Y/N snaps at the poor girl who kept her distance from the situation. And Y/N. The bitch scared her.

“At least we have some idea of where Sophia can be. Now we can retrace Daryl’s steps”

“Nah, I’m comin’ with yea”

“You won’t be doing much activity at least for a few days.” Hershel reminds him of his injuries only for the archer to grow annoyed but his frustration grew slightly when he noticed Y/N glaring at him.

Once he was left alone after Carol gave him his dinner and a thanks for never giving up on her daughter, Y/N came in about an hour later with clothes for him and before she even made it to the door…Daryl grabbed her wrist.

“What’s up yours? Yea been quiet since I came back or well until after yea scared the shit out of Andrea. Yeah fucking Rick told me what happened the—-“ Daryl stopped speaking when he saw the tears in her eyes making him let go and her freeze like a deer in headlights.

“You shouldn’t have gone out by yourself”

“Y/N, I did what I had to. Others given up”

“Don’t. Go. By. Yourself.” Y/N hissed wiping away the tears that started to burn. “Yea ain’t alone anymore. Ain’t needing to do this shit by yourself and get yourself killed. Yea may think nobody would care if you were gone but somebody does. So watch it.” She frowns leaving on that note.

Daryl didn’t know that she felt that way toward him and there were plenty of other moments like that. For either of them.

The reunion on the freeway after the farm went up in flames. Daryl got Carol out of there on his bike, feeling his anxiety get the best of him when he didn’t find Y/N until she came running through the woods and he didn’t hesitate for a second to run at her. Bringing the tired girl into his embrace thankful she didn’t die in the flames or in the mouths of the undead.

The time the group raided Woodbury to save their own and Daryl was shoved out of the way of a bullet that embedded into Y/N’s shoulder. Thank god Hershel got it out. When he came back after leaving the first time with his brother, he couldn’t get that mental image of the disappointment written all over her face. But that was all forgiven, given she would’ve left too if it was her problematic brother.

Once the fight of Woodbury was done and people were flooding into the prison, making itself its own community…Daryl felt a sense of jealousy when watching others outside of their original group talk to Y/N who seem to be expanding their social circle. He was brewing and it was obvious to Carol.

“You’re gonna blow a fuse”

“What?” Daryl brought his attention back to reality and noticed Carol joining him beside him. “Shit.”

“What? Got spotted? We all know how much you like’er. Why didn’t yea do anything sooner?”

“It’s the end of the world.”

“Okay. Stating the obvious. So?” Carol elbows him to be told more as Daryl kept his eyes on Y/N watching her turn to him shooting him a smile.

“If I act on my feelings, and worry about another…on that level, I’ll lose her”

Carol knew Daryl felt a bit at fault for Sophia dying, including his own brother. But Y/N is a strong person. Hell she’s the one that saved them back at the outbreak in the quarry, she knows that girl can hold her ground…and she knows, how much he means to her.

“You won’t lose her…Don’t push her away”

Those words rang through his head as he found himself smoking outside the prison walls and Y/N joining him after her shift in the watchtower. The silence grew between the two even if they spent most of their time together in comfortable silence. But this was different and Y/N knew this.

“Did I do somethin’?”

“Nah” Daryl tosses the cigarette on the floor putting it out with his foot. “This ain’t worth it”

“What’s not?” She furrowed her brows confused at first as Daryl got up from his spot. “Daryl—“

“This!” He gestures to the two of them with a growing frown on his face. “It ain’t fucking worth worrying about. I can’t live like this for the rest of my life. Stressin’ over what might happen” and it clicked to Y/N as her eyes met his only for him to turn away. “Don’t. I can’t.”

“Daryl but—-“

“No. We can’t”

Another word was said because Daryl went back inside leaving Y/N outside to think about what the hell just happened. But more importantly…just…break.

The two haven’t really talked since then. Or hung around the other. The only time they would interact is when Rick asked them to go on a run, or for the council meetings for their small community. Daryl expanded and got close with other people while Y/N found herself back in the same mindset at the quarry before she extended herself to Daryl.

In the end you’re on your own.

But that never lasted because of the connection she had with him and with the others. The sickness, her angry feelings were pushed aside so that she could work with him on getting the medicine. Then when it got to their people, Y/N distanced herself from Daryl once more. This time his regret settled in in its entirety and wasn’t expressed until after the attack.

“Aren’t you and Y/N supposed to be close?”

“Why’re you bringing that up…”

“Getting to know you I guess” Beth frowns sitting across from the archer fiddling with some thread around his wrist.

“She was my best friend, that I love…and pushed away”

Beth watched as the pain when saying such brought its expression in his frown and the tears that he tried desperately not to fall.

…

“And I don’t think I’ll ever get him back” Y/N frowns sitting with Michonne in front of the fire she made for them.

“Daryl’s strong. He’ll come back to you. Even if…you two aren’t anything but friends. You two just. Gravitate toward each other naturally”

Y/N shot Michonne a smile when she said such, but during her watch while the swordsman slept, she couldn’t help the tears that fell off her face.

Michonne was right about the two gravitating toward each other. They always found the other in whatever situation they were in. Even if the most recent was the incident with the claimers, then the other with the general hospital, and finally reaching Alexandria.

And Y/N needed a minute.

“Y/N. Deanna only agreed to yea going out if it’s—-“

“I’m just sticking close. Won’t even need a goddamn car. I just. I need a minute. And I can’t get that in another confined area” Y/N frowns already geared up to head out of Alexandria. “I’ll be back before it’s too late in the day, and if I’m not. Then you can come and get me…”

Rick gave the girl a worried look, but agreed to let her go. He didn’t trust it there either and was surprised by how others are settling in.

When the sherif headed back to his group’s houses, he found Daryl standing outside of the one Carol took up with Y/N. He looked anxious from what he got first spotting the archer.

“Hey”

Daryl quickly turned toward his brother seeing the confused look. “What”

“What are you waitin’ for?”

“Courage. Fuck if I know”

“Courage for what?” Rick brought himself closer as Daryl stepped away from the door to sit on the steps.

“To talk to Y/N again. Repair what I fucking tore apart back at the prison…Before Beth and I got separated, she told me not to let a good thing go. And Carol snapped at me one of the first nights here about the same thing”

“Well. I hate to break it to yea. But she ain’t home” Rick watches the archer shot up from his spot with a you serious? look on his face. “Yeah. She needed some air. Stepped out of Alexandria”

“And yea think she’s gonna come back? After all the shit I fuckin’ said”

“You said back at the prison. Some part of her wouldn’t leave from something that happened some time ago. And there will always be a part of her, connected to yea at all times.” Rick put his hands on his hips. “She doesn’t like it here just like you. So she needed a breather.”

“If she doesn’t come back before night fall—-“

“We’ll go get’er. Alright?” He reassures the man before going back on his patrol.

She made it before nightfall.

Emphasize on the “made it” part.

“Where the hell have you been? You were supposed to help in the infirmary” Spencer, one of Deanna’s sons, got up in Y/N’s face when she first stepped back in. More so caring about the fact that she wasn’t at her job compared to the amount of blood on her. “What the fuck did you do?”

Few residence, more so her group coming close to listen to someone they didn’t know go off on one of their own.

“Why did you ignore Dean—-“

“Your mother’s.”

“Fine. My mother’s orders. You had a job to do and instead you went out doing who knows what outside the walls. Don’t you like it here? Don’t you like being safe here for once? Clearly yea—-“

“Step away from her now.” Michonne cuts in once she noticed the fists Y/N formed and the shaking her body was undergoing. “Some of us are still adjusting. You need to understand that and if you don’t, talk to your mother or I’ll let her hurt you” she states watching him stand his ground one last time.

“Turn in the weapons you took out, then I’ll—“ Spencer stops to the sound of Y/N’s bag dropping to the ground and watching her unclip the magazine of her gun and unloaded the one in the chamber before handing it to Michonne and walking past.

Y/N avoided everyone’s looks and focused on getting back to Carol’s. Even if every fiber of her being wanted to collapse in the middle of Alexandria and let the darkness settle in. But none of them knew what was happening. She just continued on her way.

“Where the hell have you been?” Carol asks when she heard the door open ignoring the rest of what Daryl was saying. Granted it was about the girl that entered.

“Needed air. Got too much of it” Y/N chokes up a bit gripping onto the stairs’ railing with one hand as the other went straight for her side taking her hand off to see the blood soaking through. “I’m gonna shower. Too much Walker blood…but uh. Is the first aid kit in the bathroom?”

Carol pulled herself away from the kitchen counter heading toward Y/N who had her back turned to her on the steps. While Daryl slide off the bar stool bringing himself within earshot.

“What happened?”

“I just cut my hand…”

“You’re covered in blood. Is it—-“

“It’s not mine. Just walkers I got stuck dealing with”

“Are you bit?”

“I wouldn’t have come back if I was” She felt a lot of the pain return to her body in that moment as she continued on the way to the bathroom leaving both confused.

You’ve always been a disappointment Y/N.

Hell. Look at me. Finally proving to this world that I’m worth something

Y/N couldn’t stand and found herself sitting in the shower letting the water wash off the dried blood but also the running. She held onto the edge of the tub feeling everything as she tried her best not to stream in pain.

Her body flinched to the sound of knocking and that resulted in the pain induced tears to finally shed.

“What.”

“Got you clothes” Daryl states from the other side of the door with clothes in hand but he couldn’t help his eyes from wandering around the room to see the blood soaked clothes and the hand print on the door. “Y/N. What happened?”

“Please…go away, Daryl”

“Nah…not this time” Daryl pressed his forehead against the door. “I ain’t leaving and I know you’re hurt…”

“I-I…” Y/N sobbed gripping harder onto the ceramic trying not to focus on the pain in her side.

“Can I see it…” He felt his heart clench hearing her wince from the other side of the door followed by choked off sobs.

“since when did you start to care about me again?”

Daryl sighs tossing the clothes on the dresser by the door and resting his hands on it. “I’ve lost too much. I ain’t gonna lose yea now” he frowns not hearing any sound come out from the other side. “Y/N?”

Something’s wrong…

There’s always been something wrong and he knew there was more to it. She just wanted to take care of it without anyone realizing. But of course she couldn’t get past the person who holds her heart.

The door was suddenly kicked open and Y/N had no strength to react except for bringing her eyes to follow his movements. Daryl gently took a hold of her face seeing the damage there along with what was happening to the rest of her body. He quickly turns off the water and as his lips moved, she didn’t register a single thing. All she did was close her eyes.

“You…were always their favorite” The youngest L/N shook in his sister’s embrace feeling the end draw near as Y/N couldn’t help the tears that spilled. “I never…got to show’em up…”

“I should have never stopped looking…I shouldn’t have left home…left you”

“Mm…” He coughs a bit as the blood splattered on Y/N’s face. “It don’t matter anymore…T-This is what I d-deserve…”

“No…no you didn’t. I should’ve found you…you would’ve loved the people I’m with…this is my fault” Y/N sobbed holding her brother tighter as he gave her one last smile.

“Yea survived…just keep doing so”

As the breath faded from his lungs and more of his group surrounded the house they were held up in. Y/N had to pull it together long enough to take care of the rest, even on her last legs. Because she would’ve found a way to bring her brother in, but as for the others?

No one is following her back to her family.

A soft groan escapes her lips, alerting the archer sitting beside her bed. He brought his chair closer carefully taking her hand into his thinking she would reject it, but instead she gave it a firm squeeze indicating some of her strength is back and that she didn’t want him to go.

“Yea lost a lot of blood…and I got mad at the surgeon here”

“Mm. Typical Daryl behavior” Y/N sighs gently grazing her thumb against his knuckles. “Last I remember…was being in the shower”

“You were in the bath as the shower ran. I don’t know how Imma explain the blood bath, literally, to Carol. But she did help me get yea here” Daryl frowns seeing the exhaustion in her expression but more focused on the black eye and bruised cheek on her left side when she turned to him. “Carried yea out in a blanket. Got bitchy when he lingered too close”

“Please tell me I got dressed after…that someone helped me. And the strange man that stared at me when we first met didn’t see my goods long”

“Imma kill him next time he does, but nah. Maggie came in with clothes”

“Everybody knows?”

“Doesn’t know why. But yeah…I…I did come running out, Y/N. Yelling for somebody. Felt…lost.” He frowns, straightening up when Y/N started to sit up. The grimace growing on her face made Daryl feel as if an ice pick went straight for his heart.

Y/N watches as Daryl got up from his seat he went to grab another blanket when he felt her grip tighten and a wince escape her lips from him pulling.

“Sorry—-I’m sorry. Fuck. I just—-“

“I can do without another…please just sit with me” She begged and she had the same look on her face like she did at the time of their fight in the prison. Something he’ll never forget. “I don’t…I can’t stand another second without you. Even if it’s just a few feet away…”

Instead of sitting in the chair, Daryl brought himself to sit on the edge of the bed holding her hand seeing the bruises on her knuckles. He kept finding more of what happened…and it upset him not knowing.

“Daryl…”

“Yeah?”

“Just ask”

Daryl didn’t want to. He didn’t want to know the pain she endured and how it happened. But he wanted to know who he had to fuck up.

“I got ambushed…by raiders in masks. I took out like…four of them…got the shiner and knocked down by the fifth…only to shoot him right in the ribs and as he dropped..” She squeezed her eyes shut biting the inside of her cheek trying to stop the tears. “I found out…it was my brother…” the tears fell stating such as Daryl soften squeezing her hand with the one she held while the other carefully wiped them away. “Then when he died…I couldn’t risk the others following…and took them out…even if it almost killed me”

“I’m sorry…”

“It’s…well, it’s not fine. But that’s keeping me going. Just saying it is…that he’s not in this hell of a world anymore…”

“never looked at it like that…when Merle died. Took the blame and ran with it”

“You carry too much of the blame for things…when a good chunk of it was never your fault” Y/N frowns tugging him forward enough for her to lean comfortably forward pressing her forehead against his. “This is one of’em. You blame yourself. I break your knee caps. This wasn’t your fault…”

“I should’ve never hurt yea back at the prison…I missed you. I miss you and you’re right here”

“Daryl…” Y/N brought her soft, tiny hands to hold the archer’s face feeling him relax in her touch. “I love you…so please, don’t push me away”

The tears that fell between the two was found in comfortable silence. Only a comfort the two share with each other. Daryl moved her hands so that he could gently bring her into his embrace holding her.

“I won’t…I promise”

[l1ve-l4ugh-lov3craft]

Brainrotting About A Crimson Rivers Fan Film aaaaa

And because @almostafunctionaladult (hopefully that @'s you cos idk if it worked) and a grand total of four other people liked the post I made about it, I'm gonna barf all my current ideas here

Cos why not??

FULL disclaimer I laid away late into the night conjuring all of this up and when I tried to bother my sibling with all this madness it was only semi coherent so hopefully this will make sense lol Strap in.

TO START OFF! There is SO much content even just in the first arena between all the hell James and Regulus are going through, plus wolfstar's domestic romance thing they have, and all the politics and Sirius' pov in the Hallow during the games. And THEN, you have the whole entire hellscape that is the second half of the fic and the second arena and revolution and shit, so it would be EXTREMELY hard to make a single movie. The original source material couldn't even be made into one book, let alone one movie XD

Which is why I have been stewing and pondering and have decided! Do it miniseries style >:D With the VERY large and generous budget of my dreams, it would be two seasons each with 30-45 minute episodes. Season 1 is 6-12 episodes and covers the first arena as well as the aftermath and ends once James and Regulus are on their way home. Season 2 is definitely more like 12-15 episodes and covers everything that goes down in the last 30 chapters or so.

UNFORTUNATELY, I do not have that splendid or magnificent of a budget as I am just a uni student with delusions of grandeur lol

So I would pick a few fan favourite scenes from the book and make short films about those! Starting off strong with the scene when Regulus and James meet up in the arena the first time cos I ADORE that scene and I need to see it in film XD That one is ALSO very easy to do on a budget which is nice cos it's two actors (which I still need so if you're in the US of A and can make it to Idaho, hit me up whaaaattt who said that??) and a patch of trees I could reasonably pass off as a forest on camera.

Another essential would be the Bear Trap scene and I have SO many fun ideas for camerawork on that one to add to the stress and chaos >:D never lingering on one person for two long to keep up the frantic, panicked feeling in the scene. I'd ALSO love to have a shot of them all just walking and then somehow quickly foreshadow that the trap is coming just for a split second before it cuts to a wide shot of the forest treeline for James' scream as he Gets Got. Then cut right back to all of them and commence the scene. Regulus calling James 'baby' is, of course, a must have in the book-to-film adaptation partly cos it's a recurring theme and hurts a lot when Reg says it later on, and also I just like it :) I would LOVE to do the scene with the death eaters when they catch Regulus and James cos I think that one can be really fun with the expressions. And being able to put Regulus going apeshit on Mulciber for hurting James could be a super cool but to film

I want to do EVERYTHING with Evan cos I love him so much but this is getting long so I'll have to save that for another rant

OH! And how could I forget the BEATBOXING SCENE??? I feel like I'm legally required to film the bit where James is beatboxing in the arena cos it's PEAK comedy but also the right background music could really do wonders in emphasising the level of humanity James still has in him at that point and could make it just a little bit angsty :)

RAGHHH AND MY IDEAS FOR THE FINAL SCENE WHEN REGULUS COMES OUT OF THE RIVER AND THEY REACH FOR EACOTHER! Camera blur will be my BEST friend in that one, giving the illusion that the audience is kind of seeing it from James and Regulus' pov as they're losing lucidity. Maybe some brief hints of flachbacks to all the top Jegulus highlights of the arena in, like, a 'happiest memories' sort of way? But not set on that it might be too much I dunno yet. And then I want to have the very last shot be from Regulus' pov. Imagine with me: we can see his hand in the foreground as he's reaching for James but the camera is swaying and his vision is blurry. Distantly, Slughorn's voice announces the winners of the 84th annual hunger games are none other than James Potter and Regulus Black. James, who had just been staring for the longest time, looks to Regulus, and there could possibly be the slightest twitch in his hand as he reaches back for Regulus, but the moment Slughorn's voice fades, Regulus collapses completely and it cuts to black as he passes out. And that's the end of the film. Roll credits :D

That's all I got for now, and those are only my ideas for the FIRST arena but this was getting long so I gotta cut it here lol XD Anyway yeah hopefully this was semi-coherent and as cool on metaphorical paper as it is in my head lol Let me know what yall think!! And if you have any other ideas I'd LOVE to hear them!!

[junk-story]

Interview: Ongaku to Hito and Sakurai Atsushi - Ichikawa Tetsushi x Kanemitsu Hiroshi, Part II

This interview is on pages 52-57 of the magazine. Footnotes are included in numbered parentheses and can be found at the bottom. For Part 1 of this interview, click here.

~~~~~~~

Ichikawa: It may have been a shock, but in short, [BUCK-TICK's] material elevated. Really, because they were able to turn their work into art, we can grasp now how they were able to bring forth a decadent rock masterpiece like 21st Cherry Boy. Although that kind of dark decadence is seen as a negative, they established it as an excellent form of entertainment, which is fantastic. When I listened to that, I wondered, “Why has Sakurai made a breakthrough to this point?” What did you make of that? 

Kanemitsu: I think he was able to gradually create distance between himself and the band - in a good way. It wasn’t because their relationship had worsened, and there were still times where they’d be up until the morning drinking, but, as you might expect, after nearly 20 years had passed since they debuted, their relationships with people had expanded too, right? When that happened, this sort of scene, where Imai-san would finish an interview and the other 4 were drinking while they waited for him, it almost completely disappeared. This positive sense of individualism is how BUCK-TICK came to be born. 

Ichikawa: I see. In the 21st century, I was listening to the works of B-T as a fan only, so I didn’t bear the weight of that darkness. 

Kanemitsu: What I call acting out the darkness, that elevated their work as entertainment. But normally, when you have this individualism come to be, it leads to actively pursuing solo activities…and that can be troublesome, certainly. 

Ichikawa: That’s the self-indulgence I talked about earlier. (laughs) When that happens in a regular band, they disband and it’s over. Suddenly some new thing starts, and the other members end up not knowing what to do. But Sakurai ended up feeling guilt about this, because he was a man with a kind heart. Thanks to that, the unique worth they had as a band that continued for 35 years with its original members came to be. 

Kanemitsu: In what ways did you feel Sakurai-san’s kindness? 

Ichikawa: Well, in many ways, the Sakurai Atsushi I carry with me is still a yankii(1), you know, a good-looking yankii full of chivalry. We talked about the time when his mother passed before, but there is no shortage of that kind of material. For instance, the launching issue of Ongaku to Hito. I asked Sakurai to be in it as well, and even though it wasn’t around the timing of any [album] release, he said, “Well, since it’s a magazine Ichikawa-san is creating, I’ll do it”, and in the middle of a national tour he came back to Tokyo from Numazu after the concert was over, and it was after midnight at an oden food stall in Sendagaya where we had a no-makeup photoshoot and interview. He was a man who could simply do such things. 

Kanemitsu: What about Sakurai Atsushi made us so charmed by him, do you think? 

Ichikawa: Hmmm…his face? 

Kanemitsu: Well, that’s some brutal honesty!(2) But certainly, it was important. (laughs)

Ichikawa: Wahahaha. There’s that issue with Sakurai Atsushi on the cover where he’s wearing an unremarkable white shirt and has a slight smile, right?(3) That one is among my top three favorites. For some reason, it was a time where there weren’t any interesting releases, and there was no content to be had during this lull, so we ended up in a tight spot for an artist to put on the cover. To be honest, we made the offer to Sakurai like, “heeeelp!”, and I was grateful when he readily consented. They also didn’t have any releases coming up, so I suggested we try a risky(4) cover with no decadence, where Sakurai had a casual appearance and is looking into the camera with a smile; he had also become more concentrated(5) at that time and said, “Let’s do it!”

Kanemitsu: That’s why he cut his hair without anyone’s permission. (laughs)

Ichikawa: I’m glad we didn’t go that far with it. (laughs) But really, Sakurai Atsushi could not be detached from my magazine. There were always plenty of guys skillful at conversation, but I have never met another frontman who, even though he wasn’t good at speaking, could expose his inner thoughts to such a point. Of course, there were also those with negative feelings, like, “It’s all just to tickle the B-T girls’ fancies”, but I hoped, even without him knowing, if we could drain the low-water swamp called Sakurai Atsushi, something amazing would happen. I wanted to do something with this man. It was the same for you too, right, Kanemitsu? 

Kanemitsu: I didn’t have that “I want to do something”. But I did have something like a maternal instinct. (laughs)

Ichikawa: (wry laugh) I understand that too. You can’t leave him alone. 

Kanemitsu: Because at some point, there were only a few articles about the album releases outside of ours. 

Ichikawa: Why was that? As I said earlier, during my time, he spoke frantically as if it was needed to confirm something to himself - so in other words, something must have changed where he could become more self-contained. 

Kanemitsu: It was like Sakurai-san created his own style. As though, dressed up in decadence and gothic imagery, he tried to act out his ideal Sakurai Atsushi. 

Ichikawa: The same as kabuki. The great name of “Sakurai Atsushi” was focused as he would be in the traditional Japanese arts. 

Kanemitsu: Yes, yes. I think that was a good thing. 

Ichikawa: It finally makes sense to me. So that’s why it happened. That Prince of Darkness character was created. 

Kanemitsu: There was what you call the Prince of Darkness character, but he also loved cats, which brought out his playful face. If such a person were to appear on TV with Shiina Ringo, everyone would be hooked. 

Ichikawa: A rare creature, really. (laughs) This may be inappropriate, but it seemed to me that Sakurai could only bring the curtain down(6) on Sakurai Atsushi in the way he did, or by going into a life of seclusion, unknown to anyone. Because he was carrying such sin(7) with him. 

Kanemitsu: Well, as someone who saw him from the 21st century point of view, I feel that he’d aged well in this way, and he wanted to enjoy the rest of his life happily. It’s just that he was a sensitive person, so he was affected by things like children being displaced by war, the oppression of people based on gender, and so on, and when he tried to get closer to the emotions of the weak, he would be forced to remember his own pain, so I suppose in the current era, it was hard for him to live…that’s what I think, anyway. 

Ichikawa: Hearing the talk about the Sakurai Atsushi of the 21st century from Kanemitsu today, it makes sense now. For me, who only knew the Sakurai of the 20th century, the Sakurai of the 21st century is like a different person. I was very fascinated with him all the same. I don’t mean this in a bad way, but it’s like he established a whole separate persona. How can I say this…maybe I could call it guilt. I could see his guilt so clearly through his songs in the 20th century, and it was made invisible in the 21st century. And, invisible things aren’t bad ones. Because that just shows how accomplished he was at fulfilling his role as Prince of Darkness. That’s also how he elevated to being a charming big name. 

Kanemitsu: As a musician, an artist, the purity of his expression had reached a level so high as to be incomparable [to anyone else]. 

Ichikawa: His skill in the 21st century clearly went up. But, although the Sakurai Atsushi of the 20th century was still a work in progress, that progress had turned into a serious dead end that was plain to see. So there were many people who were able to empathize, and I think he himself, the band, the media, and the fans all came together, able to become a community with a shared destiny. It’s strange, but in other media, BUCK-TICK was just shown as a cool band, right? However, at Ongaku to Hito, it wasn’t like that in either the 20th or 21st century. 

Kanemitsu Because we got to see them as 5 people with 5 different styles of character. 

Ichikawa: In other words, they’re “Osomatsu-kun”(8).

Kanemitsu: Hahahahaha!

Ichikawa: When I was doing it, they were “Osomatsu-kun”, and while Kanemitsu’s been doing it they’ve been “Osomatsu-san”. Their appearance between the Showa and Heisei eras was totally different, but the original people were the same. In both the 20th and 21st centuries, Sakurai was Sakurai, and his foundation and attitude didn’t change, only his appearance from that of an unusual self-deprecating man to the Prince of Darkness did; as a result, he was popular in both cases. So, as Ongaku to Hito, speaking from our beginning, he is the person we should be the most grateful for, and he was the kind of man who made me feel like I had to include him in our publication. 

Kanemitsu: He was. No matter how cool Sakurai Atsushi looked on the stage, everyone knows that he actually also had these traits. 

Ichikawa: Of course, with that presence, that appearance, and the look in his eyes, no one would know he was actually this cute and loveable character. 

Kanemitsu: Through the medium of Ongaku to Hito, you and I wrote about those parts of him, so now everyone knows. 

Ichikawa: That’s true…a long time ago, when I was doing a late-night Friday FM radio live broadcast, I had Sakurai on as my first guest. We were at the Satellite Studio in Ginza, and even though I hadn't asked them to come, Takuro and Hisashi [of GLAY] came. We finished at 3 AM and the 4 of us were drinking when Sakurai said, “Will you come to my place?”, which was unusual. When we went there, the windows - all of the windows - had these pitch black curtains on them, it was like being at a planetarium. (laughs)

Kanemitsu: Hahahahahaha!

Ichikawa: We drank in that dark room until we eventually were struck by sleep, but even when I woke up, it was pitch black and I had no idea what time it was. (laughs) When the sun was at its peak, I woke those 2 [from GLAY] up and they went home, but while that was happening, Takuro said to Hisashi, “If you’d told me 10 years ago that I’d go to the home of BUCK-TICK’s Sakurai Atsushi and drink together with him, I never would have believed you”, and I’ve never forgotten that. It was purely moving, emotionally. 

Kanemitsu: Everyone wanted to become like Sakurai Atsushi. 

Ichikawa: It must have been a dream for them. However, it’s a dream that no one could achieve. This sounds misleading, but I think you have to want to be like Yoshiki [of X JAPAN], if you’re going to abandon yourself to despair(9). (wry laugh) But no matter what gimmicks you make use of, you’ll never be Sakurai Atsushi. And for better or worse, it was tough. 

Kanemitsu: I’ve said this many times, but him finding that gothic style was big. 

Ichikawa: The gothic atmosphere seemed like maybe the one he was most comfortable in. The decadence created a kind of surreal and abnormal worldview. But Sakurai Atsushi himself was not abnormal at all, nor was he trying to intentionally deviate strongly from what’s accepted(10). It was just the suit of armor(11) that best fit when he was confronting the world, definitely. 

Kanemitsu: It was Sakurai Atsushi’s suit of armor, wasn’t it. But whether he ended up putting it on or not, he empathized with people’s sadness, and he was a person who could shed tears. And because that seeped out, everyone loved him. Those feelings [of empathy] were expressed in what became his last album, Izora. 

Ichikawa: I see. Well, perhaps he would have continued on expressing it, if he could. 

Kanemitsu: I really think so. There were yet many things he could do, and many he would have wanted to do.

~~~~~~~ Footnotes: (1) I think most people into this scene are familiar with this term, but in case you aren’t - yanki/yankii refers to a young delinquent, usually one who dresses in a sort of street/biker style. (2) If someone has ever said to you, “wow, tell us how you really feel!”, it has the same sort of feeling to it as that, although a bit more polite since Ichikawa is the elder of the two, lol. (3) I believe he is referring to the January ‘95 issue cover, based on his description. (4) Risky in the sense of something not usually done. “Nikopachi” is the type of photography he describes, and online sources generally spoke negatively of it as something not befitting professional photography. (5) Literally “boiled down”. I think this is a reference to paring back his visuals from what they were earlier in their career. (6) This is a metaphor for Sakurai’s passing - but I liked the nuance of his wording and tried to retain it. (7) This word really does not translate well - in different contexts it can be sin, guilt, karma. I translate it again as “guilt” below as it’s more befitting the context, but in all cases here, it’s a sort of heavy emotional load brought upon oneself. My husband’s preferred definition translated to “a living with the burden of past wrongdoings and feeling a sense of remorse”. (8) Per Wikipedia: a comedy manga that revolved around of group of brothers who cause all sorts of mischief. (9) I asked for more clarity on this - what he is getting at is, it’s possible, if you really want to, to become like Yoshiki, but no matter what you do, you can never become like Atsushi. (10) The direct translation for this was “be a heretic”, but heretic is a loaded word in English, and this does not have any Christian overtones. (11) He specifically says “mobile suit”, as in the suits from Gundam.

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

Natalie Wood (West Side Story, The Great Race)—She went through so much shit which I know can be said for all these women but Natalie really was a star and her death often overshadows her career and life. She could make you cry, but she also had the capacity to be incredibly funny which I think is lost on people.

Katharine Hepburn (Bringing Up Baby, The Philadelphia Story, The African Queen)—(I hope someone else submits real propaganda but just in case they don't:) Cries. Screams. Wails. The woman who singlehandedly made me realize I was bi. A real "do i want to look like her. be her. or be with her.' crisis, where the answer was all three. Holy shit please all three.

This is round 5 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

Natalie Wood:

Katharine Hepburn propaganda:

I'm sure one million people will submit her as an iconic Hollywood star but that iconicness might lead people to forget just how insanely hot she was like she had it ALL she was skilled she was funny she was smart she was beautiful AND she was likely bisexual

The single word I would use to explain Katherine Hepburn's appeal is *range*. In her acting career, that meant covering all the ground between lush period dramas and the comedies she did with Carey Grant and Spencer Tracey. In terms of hotness, it meant an uncanny ability to bring anything from a Dietrich-esque androgyny to some of the best Classic Hollywood Glamour you will ever see.

Katharine hep was so cool. The VIBES, the INDEPENDENCE,,, living life on her own terms.

she just had this.... bearing to her, this power. she could be funny, even silly (like in bringing up baby) but also so regal and elegant. she was nobody's fool and dear GOD that's so hot

Fancam link

She’s not only stunningly gorgeous (those eyes that pierce your soul! a jawline you could cut glass with!) but her delivery and physical presence in roles gives off confidence and authority in such a sexy way (truly the biggest dick energy of Old Hollywood). Her fiery energy in The Philadelphia Story? Unmatched.

God she's. She's so hot y'all. She has the range!!!!! Funny and dramatic and lovely

She IS the transatlantic accent. Classically gorgeous and such a strong personality.

She's literally one of the funniest women to ever live! She goes shot for shot with Cary Grant in Philadelphia Story and we damn well love her for it! She's the most annoying creature to ever live in Bringing Up Baby but she's so insane and funny that we simply cannot help but fall in love with her (and root for her to give Grant an aneurysm!)

i know she's accounted for but i really want to be sure someone has submitted the scene in bringing up baby where she's pretending to be a gangster

She simply stuns onscreen; you cannot do anything but be captivated by her presence. Also a non-gender-conforming icon and mild tumblr celebrity by virtue of that one picture from The Warrior's Husband (stage play).

Katharine Hepburn was out here casually changing the lives of young butch lesbians with her gender swag! She wore pants even when people said she shouldn’t, she refused to marry or have kids, and she wore menswear in at LEAST one movie!

If I start thinking about her face for too long I will cry she is so so hot. Katherine is so charismatic and charming in everything she appears in - watch her adopt a leopard and fall in love with her. Also she has the biggest dick energy ever (she and her pal Lauren Bacall share that accolade). Also had an incredibly long and varied career from screw ball comedies to serious dramas - she’s a queen of the screen and I adore her.

Someone's got to mention it, but she's won the most Oscars out of any performer and is largely considered one of the greatest actresses ever. She's got an incredible voice, an incredible presence, and she absolutely steals every scene she's in. She was private person and deemed standoffish and unapproachable, but she was also profoundly concerned for people's rights and was an outspoken supporter of abortion access. Finally, the Katharine Hepburn slacks look is just iconic. I mean look at her.

This woman. I have been obsessed with her for years. I know the urban legend is a popular one at this point of her walking around set in her underwear when her pants were stolen and she was left with only a skirt, but the pants thing is honestly enough for her to be the hottest in the room in my book. She refused to wear anything else at a time when the public in general and especially the studios did not like that. She was independent, stubborn, and so so very capable. Competency kink anyone? Also, if you want one final way that Katharine's entire life was saying "fuck you" to the establishment, it started young! Her mother took her to suffrage events, and she never got rid of that attitude of justice. I feel like I have barely scratched the surface of all the ways she was such a badass that I'm turning into a rambling mess instead.

[sparklingsora]

For the Vee-Swap AU, how does the Vee polycule develop? The polyvee shippers (me) need to know!!

HEHE OK OK SO putting it under cut bc it ended up longer than i anticipated LOL

as you already know, velvox is the established relationship in this au. and as i believe i mentioned before, velvette and val are sinstagram mutuals, it's how val finds out about the hotel. on val's part, falling for velvette isn't really a surprise to him - back when they just knew each other through social media, he already found her attractive, admired her work and they got along well, so all that turning into a full-on crush when he gets to know her better isn't very shocking. his relationship with vox is where it gets interesting, because it starts out rocky. i mentioned before that vox can tell that val's putting on an act. but because vox obv can't relate to val's situation, val just sees it as vox pitying him and refuses his help. a turning point comes in ep 4 - in the swap au, it actually starts raining during loser baby, which results in val getting sick. vox helps him out and they have a tender moment, maybe a little heart-to-heart (its hard to just describe, i will make a comic/ficlet of it at one point so you'll see :3). their relationship starts getting better from that point on, and soon enough val finds himself falling for vox. (it's funny, really - ep 4 in the swap au leads to the bettering of a grand total of 3 relationships: al & val's, vox & val's and indirectly al & vox's. load bearing episode LOL) on vox and velvette's part, well. val is a douche at the start of the story, much like canon!angel, but vox and velvette can both tell that there's a heart of gold in there somewhere. vox because of the aformentioned seeing through val's facade, and velvette because she, in fact, wasn't mutuals with val's official account, but with his art account, where he keeps his identity hidden. he shows his softer side a lot more on there, and so that's mainly the side of him that velvette knew (so now imagine the whiplash when she actually meets him in person and he's an obnoxious jerk LOL) (i dont know if valentino being an artist is actually canon - i read it on the fandom wiki and fandom wikis cant rly be trusted LOL but in any case if its not canon then its a neat hc that i incorporated into swap!val's character) but anyway yeah, vox and velvette both start falling for val as he slowly becomes more true to himself and starts showing that soft side more. eventually the two of them talk about it um. somewhere around ep 6 i think? maybe? somewhere between eps 6 and 7? something like that. anyway. there we get some juicy conflict - they agree that theyre both in love with val and wanna give the whole polyamory thing a try if he's up for it, but while velvette wants to confess as soon as possible (she's scared that one of them might die in the battle), vox wants to wait until after the battle, because the stress levels are high in the hotel right now, and he doesn't want val to feel pressured. during the last night before the battle, in a scene vaguely equivalent to more than anything (reprise), they make up, velvette admits that vox is right, and they decide to confess to val after the extermination. and then yeah they do that (it's one of the 2 things that i'm sure i want to happen at the beginning of season 2), val is like "HELL YEAH I WANNA BE IN A POLYCULE WITH YOU GUYS" and they're a polycule and its awesome :3

[seventeenlovesthree]

ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT, I HAVE THOUGHTS ON THIS. They're still rather scrambled, so bear with me while I'm trying to get them in order. So, what do we have? Let's summarize first:

In late March of 2025, we will get another PV (Promotional Video), more specifically, another music video. In contrast to the "Butterfly" PV we got on August 1st 2024, featuring newly animated/interpreted scenes from the OG Adventure anime, this one will play to "Brave Heart" and will show what'll happen between "now" (presumably after the events of Kizuna/The Beginning) and the infamous epilogue of 2028. It'll be produced by Hiroyuki Kakudou (!), who also drew the poster depicted above. It'll be animated by Yumeta Company, which was already responsible for Kizuna, The Beginning and the previous PV - and the character designs of Taichi and Yamato we've been shown were made by Rie Nishimura, chief animation director of The Beginning.

It will depict all the characters as adults, and "you will see Agumon (!!!) and their team working together a little differently than before. I think it will be especially pleasing to all of you who have always believed that you have a partner Digimon as well".

OH BOY, WHERE DO I EVEN BEGIN??? Beware of some rambles under the cut:

Seeing how Kakudou had just recently commented on Taiorato in a somewhat official interview, you can say that I am genuinely surprised to see him return to such a project. A project that, dare I say it, feels like it could potentially be the final chapter, the definite closure to the Adventure timeline...? It is meant to finally summarize what'll happen until we get to the epilogue. Which is interesting if you consider that Tri and the previous two movies all told somewhat separate stories revolving around "outside characters" (Meiko, Menoa and Rui) without really breaking through the status quo. Granted, we had a few very... Mixed messages in between, questioning the reasoning behind, the foundation of partnerships, dealing with separation, isolation and sacrifices for various side and main characters alike. There was a lot of heartbreak, but Digimon wouldn't be Digimon if there wasn't also always room left for a hopeful note.

And seeing how Kakudou, who had been mostly absent from the previous projects, seems to tackle this "in between" period is very interesting to say the least. There are so many loose threads to tie up that one probably cannot fit all of them in one music video. Nevertheless, this may be his final say in how he wants to see the timeline "end" for his characters. We can already assume that the fighting scene depicted above implies the FINAL return of Agumon and Gabumon, giving closure to Kizuna's ending... But there are still so many other questions unsolved (including Sora's and Piyomon's return to the group as well).

Granted it's always possible that they might use this as a stepping stone to a new series and, really... I wouldn't be opposed to that at all, because these character designs are probably among the best we have gotten in years. You may know that I have my love/dislike relationship with the Kizuna designs and The Beginning had improved on it slightly (Hikari was still the biggest win of the century in my book), but still felt like there was room for growth...

But this? This looks promising as heck and it absolutely has evolved/changed from what we've gotten before. And it's also pretty curious, leaving room for speculation.

Remember how Kizuna basically framed Yamato to be mostly prim and proper with his neatly cut "old" haircut, the hipster glasses, stylish biker jacket, green shirt, while pants and his motorcycle? He was obviously still very distinctly Yamato, especially when you put him next to Taichi and Takeru, but he was very... Well, neat, prim and proper. We know both him and Taichi have been on their way of reconnecting with their true selves, passions and goals post Kizuna, so... Having Kakudou decide on giving Yamato his 02!haircut back is HUGE. And has two potential implications:

02's intention had always been to show a side of Yamato that was more chill. Granted, he still had his emotional outbursts and strong opinions, but he was allowed to be goofy, silly and live for his music. He may never be a 100% people-y person (and never really fancied the fan attention either) and that is perfectly fine, because... Then he wouldn't be Yamato. But he still enjoyed playing his harmonica, playing bass, singing in his band. Personally, I always found that change a bit drastic, but boy needed to figure himself out, grow his hair out and give his emotions an outlet. Having him return to such a state visually is simply... Interesting. Especially because most recent fandom depictions (mostly on the Jyoumato side) have depicted him in his "rockstar aesthetic" as well, INCLUDING the piercing (!). It may just be a temporary state, but it still implies that something in him has changed, bringing him back on track, slowly but steadily.

What does this mean from a production point of view? My personal guess would be - and I could be completely wrong here, so take this with a grain of salt -, that Kakudou wants to put his foot down. Yamato was among those characters who lived through various hairstyle changes in recent years (to the point of returning to his signature hair in Kizuna, probably for nostalgia/promotion reasons if Koushirou's hairstyle change back to his Adventure hair gives you any clue). 02!Yamato is Kakudou's Yamato. This is going to be HIS vision and thus, we're likely to see a LOT of things he would have liked to portray in the previous iterations as well. Whether or not that means he will adjust the FINAL outcome of the epilogue, changing singular aspects about it or not, remains to be seen... Because we know that Yamato's final hair did not look like it does in the concept art, so he may go through more changes after reuniting with Gabumon. We'll see.

When it comes to Taichi, I do not have a lot to add here. If you've read all my analysis posts before, you know how much I hope for my boy to find happiness again, to finally find his path, reunite with his partner... Seeing him wear wide clothes as he does in the poster feels very reminiscent of his "young" self again, so I am curious to see where we're headed with him. Until then... Excuse me while I keep swooning over his concept art (and get absolutely giddy just thinking about how the others may look like!!!), I am absolutely in AWE of how gorgeous he looks there. I cannot wait to see his signature smile again in this art style...

I know, no matter what we'll get, not all answers will be answered. There will still be controversies, there will still be fandom wars (probably). Kakudou wants us to get that final note, that future where everyone will end up with a Digimon partner (despite all the hardships - and everything we went through with the previous three bigger projects in this timeline). Not everybody will be happy with what we'll get.

But I'm still looking forward to it.

Edit: It's also possible that Kakudou will just completely ignore everything that happened post 02 and just go straight from there. We will have to see.

[sailorshadzter]

some random jonsa

somewhat inspired by the mufasa & simba scene in the lion king lol

“.... Father…”

He groans, softly, rolling onto his other side.

“Father…” 

There it comes again, the voice unrelenting as a hand shakes his shoulder.

“Your son is awake,” it’s another voice this time, his wife’s groggy vocals filtering into his brain. 

“Before the morning call, he’s your son,” he replies, attempting to draw her into his arms, but she shrugs him off, rolling onto her other side and drawing the furs over her head. A sigh escapes him and he turns back to face the son that stands at the side of his bed, barely tall enough to come up over its edge. “It is early, my boy,” Jon yawns, reaching out to ruffle the boy’s dark locks, though the child frowns, arms folding over his chest. “Get into bed,” he gestures towards the space between he and Sansa, a place he once slept religiously, but the boy shakes his head.

“I want to learn to use a sword,” he says with all the determination of a boy his age, his gray eyes flashing. 

“Can’t it wait until sunrise?” Jon asks and the boy pouts, bringing a chuckle from his lips. 

“Alright, alright, I’m up,” he says next, pushing back the covers so he can swing his legs over the edge of the bed. Of course his son was far too young to wield a sword, but he recalls those days when he and Robb had begged to do the same, and he softens, deciding he might as well put a wooden sword into the boy’s hands. He’d be King in the North someday, after all, and despite the peaceful times they lived within, it was only fitting he learn the way of the sword. 

And so he rises up and dresses in the dark, putting back on the clothing he’d discarded the night before, stuffing his feet back into his boots. “Will you let me use Longclaw?” The boy asks as they make their way down the hall, pausing only for a moment to peek into the room where the baby slept, unaware that his brother had left his bed. At this rate, it wouldn’t be long before that babe also wanted to learn the art of the sword. 

“You have much to learn before you hold a steel sword, my son,” Jon replies as he puts a hand to his shoulder. Though the boy makes a face, he steers him along, until they reach the main floor. At this early hour there is no one around but them and so he pushes him along, out the double doors and into the twilight hour of dawn. 

“I do?”

Jon chuckles, taking in the sight of his son, a boy that is every inch his, from his dark curly hair to his Stark gray eyes. “Aye,” he replies, gesturing for him to follow him towards the door that opens up to a storage room, which from within he takes hold of two wooden swords. “I too once yearned to learn to swing a sword, to cut down my enemies, to protect my family… But there is more to it than that.” He thinks of every battle, of every enemy, of every moment that had led him to this very one… He smiles, handing one of the swords to his young son, a boy of six, the very same age he’d once been when Ned Stark had taken him and Robb out into this very courtyard. 

Now he stands here with his own son, another Robb Stark, the successor to the legacy left behind by the uncle he’d never know. “Your grandfather always said," The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword.” The boy’s gray eyes widen with these words, his young mind trying to grasp the depth of their meaning. If you would take a man's life, you owe it to him to look into his eyes and hear his final words. And if you cannot bear to do that, then perhaps the man does not deserve to die. Those words still echo in his own mind, all these years later. He thinks of every sword swing that has taken a life and he knows he has lived up to those words his father once said.

Little Robb stares up at his father, eyes wide, wondering what it might feel like to take a man’s life. He knows his father has done it, more than once, including taking the life of a tyrant queen that spared the lives of all those who still yet lived in Westeros. His older foster brother, Samwell, told him often of the stories he’d heard of Jon Snow- now Stark- from his own father, the elder Samwell. A hero, the boy had said, my father says he’s the greatest hero of all time. Better than any of the stories. “Father…” The boy begins, following after him as he steps closer into the center of the courtyard, where the ground was firm, perfect for their first lesson. “Is it true… What they say you did to the dragon queen?” 

Jon freezes, turning back to face his young son, who looks up at him with those same gray eyes he knows he has himself. “Aye,” he says honestly, dropping to a knee so he might look his son in his face. “I did,” he knows the rumors that still swirl all these years later- the truth caught somewhere between the tales. “I did what I had to do to protect my family, to protect my home.” His hand falls into place against the slim shoulder, giving it a tender squeeze. “Someday you too may have to make a difficult decision to protect those you love.” He hopes for a better life for his son, for all of his children, but there was no telling what their future would bring. All he can do is prepare them the best he can for what may come, gods willing. “You must always put your family first, as a man and as King.” The boy is nodding, slowly, his young mind doing its best to fully comprehend the meaning. Jon knows there will come a time where he will recall this conversation, just as he recalled the one with Ned Stark, and know he’s held onto his father’s wisdom all the years of his life. 

And all Jon can do is hope that Robb will smile looking back, thankful for his father’s voice in his mind.

[meta-squash]

Reading the Torchwood shooting scripts has been so interesting. I keep thinking about things that were cut and things that were added that aren't in the script.

In Greeks Bearing Gifts, the thought that Tosh overhears from Ianto -- "Can't imagine a time when this isn't everything. Pain so constant, like my stomach's full of rats. Feels like this is all I am now. There isn't an inch of me that doesn't hurt" -- that line isn't in the script. That whole little scene isn't in the script.

And it's so interesting because it's a line that seems like it's going to lead to something. Like it's going to introduce a friendship or some sort of character development, or something with Ianto. And then it doesn't. The Captain Jack Harkness episode is the next time we get extended (emotional) scenes with Ianto.

Oh, and a scene that was cut from slightly later in the episode was Tosh going to down into the cells and using the necklace on a Weevil, and it's just a primal wordless scream of pain and fury. Which I find interesting because its replacement is almost a similar sentiment, but coherent and in an understandable language.

I'm glad we got a tad more Ianto with the addition of that line, but I've always thought it was so odd that it never went anywhere. It might have been interesting for Tosh to overhear Ianto's thoughts again, because it might have either reassured her (if Ianto was thinking lighter thoughts and the one she overheard was a fluke) or found her a sort of friend (if thoughts she overheard were similarly relatable).

I think they sort of established a connection between Tosh and Ianto what with him saving her from the cannibals and all, but it might have been nice to further than relationship in a concrete way in the show. If one of the ways might have been Ianto and Tosh talking after Mary, it would have been nice, them supporting each other and also relating on the whole "Jack killed my girlfriend" front. But also it would make the entire conflict in CJH that much more interesting. Ianto's trying to stop Owen because he knows opening the Rift could destroy everything, but if they'd established Tosh and Ianto's friendship more solidly, it would have made it a lot more obvious how much of struggle taking that stance is for Ianto. It also makes the contrast between Owen and Ianto more interesting too. Owen's loyalty to Jack as a leader/father figure vs Ianto's loyalty to Jack as a lover/leader, and then Owen's obsession with Diane vs Ianto's consideration (or not) for Tosh.

But back to the overheard thought. It's such a negative, depressed thing and I think it's at least mildly deliberate on the writers' part that neither Tosh nor the viewer knows whether he's referring to his injuries from the cannibals or to the loss of Lisa or to the Canary Wharf trauma or to all of it. And then we don't get that side of Ianto at all until CJH or the very brief bits in End of Days.

I know Torchwood is basically just Clinically Depressed And Horrifically Traumatized Bisexuals: The Show, but I think it's kind of a shame they didn't do something further with this little bit of characterization.

But! I also think that's why Ianto is fan favorite. Which is a thought for an entirely separate post.