#I think he’s a parallel to max and I can’t explain in the tags but yeah

[prismatixxkhaos]

“TRICERATOPS, ROAR!”

Hi it’s been a while but the autism won over me and I made this LOL

I would consider it almost a redraw of the other Max n Chomp piece I did like a couple years ago, but also not bc I didn’t really aim for it to be a redraw necessarily so it looks way different but…whatever LOL

“Will you draw-“ Sorry I got stuff in life to deal with rn and also a webcomic I’m working on (Age of Arkaeon if you wanna read it it’s got baby robot dinos lol) buttttt if you really NEED a drawing then my kofi commissions are always open hehe >:3

[kaypeace21]

i LOVE your analysis especially byler ones so please don't take this as hate, it's the last thing i want to do. but while i love the byler theories do you actually think the duffers are smart enough to realize the potential/brave enough to follow through on the relationship. bc tbh i think our viewpoint is skewed i don't think anyone but byler shippers see the canon possibility. and also it really seems like m/leven is going to be endgame? just wanted to know more of your thought process

Even if byler never happens- I’m 100% sure mileven won’t be endgame XD. Regardless of byler, Mike and El are just not going to happen. (Even if they’re ‘dating’ in s4). I could try to explain the reasons why I think byler will be endgame though. I’ll give the cliffnotes version. This will probably be a mess- because focusing on all the reasons isn’t as good as analyzing , each reason as it’s own separate post, in depth). 

Why mileven isn’t endgame

- The duffers said, while filming ST, El was supposed to die in s1 (glad that didn’t happen). And this was also their plan when pitching their show ‘Montauk’ (later retitled ST), saying that the hypothetical  s2 sequel would be about the boys returning to their town 10 years later. Mileven was never ‘planned end-game’. They also describe mileven kissing but never mention the word ‘love’ like how Jancy was described in the Montauk pitch. Nancy’s bio says “ she will experience love for the first time.”  But when they describe mileven, they say, “If Mike is the Elliot of our show, Eleven is our “E.T.” Like that’s … not romantic, Duffers. And if it was supposed to be … WTF did you guys watch the same film? 0-O

- In the byler centric s2, the Duffers kept mileven separated. And the mileven kiss wasn’t written in the show. Millie pretty much said “they had to do it.” Much to Matt’s confusion but then the Duffers agreed. And used ‘every breath you take’ (a song about divorce), and just by coincidence their 2nd back-up  song was also a song about a divorce? Nah, they were trolling.

- Most of the women (Nancy & Max) in the show critique Mileven saying Mike treats her as if she’s stupid, can’t take care of herself, or as she is a possession. 

-in the first ep of s3 almost all the guys (who had/have gfs) Hopper, Lucas, and Dustin all criticize the mileven relationship and think it’s unhealthy.

Hopper says “ They’re spending entirely too much time together… It is constant.It is constant! Okay? That is not normal, that is not healthy! ”

Lucas mocks Mike, saying “ Oh El, I wish we could make out forever and never hang out with any of our friends.”

Dustin says when they flake on him, “It’s bullshit, I just got home!” (insert Nancy calling Stancy ‘bullshit’)

and before this  Dustin talks about Romeo & Juliet (while mileven is out of frame). R&J is all about the dangers of not knowing the difference between love and infatuation. Juliet after Romeo is banished just complains about how in love/sad she is but never pursues looking for him (sound familiar)? R&J claimed that they were in love with each other after knowing each for a few days and deciding to get married-sabotaging the closest relationships they had with their friends/family (all in the name of ‘true love’) . Similarly Mileven thought they were in love after only a week of knowing each other, and the second they are reunited they start dating and spend all their time with each other. El is allowed out of the house (and her friends are allowed to visit), but El hasn’t interacted with Max nor Will? They spend almost everyday in her room just making out. Mike puts very little effort into integrating her into his life or as part of the group. The only time they go out- is for Mike to show off El to Dustin like a possession- then before El can even do the boding activity with the group (with the radio tower)- Mike convinces her to leave to make out. They are both complicit in this and they both bring out the worst in each other and they make each other blinded to their loved ones’ feelings.

- El literally asks Max “How do I know what I like?” Do I have to explain why this could be problematic? She even says “I don’t know”, when Max asks if Mike is a good kisser.You can call me ‘ableist’ my abused-autistic ass will disagree. But El is not ready for a romantic relationship! it makes perfect sense for El to be confused by the distinctions of romantic, platonic, and familial love- when the first 12 years of her life she didn’t receive any form of love , PERIOD! And she is not like normal abuse victims (she has never had proper socialization with peers her own age or even adults).All she had was television. She latches herself on to anyone who is kind to her (something I used to do). Without Mike she used Max as a replacement almost immediately, and even starts repeating/mirroring the things she says (specifically coping phrases from her …over 6 times!). She’s also susceptible to doing what others say or want her to do, “dumping his ass” (with Max’s validation and encouragement). El might love Mike but I don’t think it’s romantic, she latched on to the first person that was kind to her. Before their first kiss she asked Mike “Will you be like my brother?” And she’s hurt when he says “no”, asking “Why not?”. He then kisses her (she watches a lot of soap operas and she assumes it must be ‘romantic love’). You’re telling me that if she was ‘in love’ with Mike she would have been that happy over dumping him? I’m not saying El is dumb for not being able to discern these things (I think people without such backgrounds may still struggle with this concept). But it makes perfect sense for El to be confused by the distinctions of various loves or even the differences between ‘crushes’ , ‘physical attraction’ and ‘romantic love’ 

- In the last ep El asks about what he said at the cabin to Max, specifying “you talked about your feelings?”. He says and I QUOTE “Oh! Oh, yeah that.Man, that was so long ago. Um…”  and starts to scratch his head. Then he excuses what he said at the cabin, saying it was “in the heat of the moment stuff and we were arguing… I don’t actually remember. What did I say exactly?”  

Now either he legitimately forgot! Or he lied! You know the thing that broke them up in the first place! The one thing that El holds as her most important value in life- honesty. And he lied- about something as important as his romantic feelings?!  Make up any excuse (about being shy/character flaws all you want), but this isn’t real life- it’s fiction (everything is done for a narrative purpose). That wasn’t an accident ( mileven wasn’t “written out of character”- like milevens claim,  the duffers were criticizing the ship on purpose) .And the fact he lied again! Wouldn’t bode well for a long term relation with each other. The whole season, criticized their romantic relationship ! That wasn’t a coincidence neither was the fact he looked confused by her confession, and kept his eyes open the whole time and didn’t kiss her back . 

And as she smiled and walked away, he looked confused. That wasn’t a directing mistake, like so many milevens are claiming! You really think they wouldn’t make sure their ‘fav ship’ didn’t have a good final kiss? 

 Especially since it was right after a romantic Jancy scene (which was directed amazingly)- where Nancy even mentions Mileven- to make us compare the 2 pairings romantic scenes even more. 

* I know I sound like an assh*le but I’m just annoyed. I’ve always censored my byler posts trying not to offend/criticize mileven. I never cross tagged my byler meta with the hashtag mileven (never will, cause it’s rude). But (without sounding pompous) my byler posts generally gets reblogged a lot- and now the milevens have seen my posts (and are sending lots of hate my way) and worst of all they’ve invaded the byler tag. Today I saw 2 posts in the byler tag saying. “We’re delusional” and “stupid”- and also in the same posts they say they “feel attacked” by us.Um… there’s a difference between byler shippers privately criticizing a ship without bothering mileven shippers (and only tagging it byler) . Versus Mileven shippers  tagging things byler (and ranting about the ship and it’s shippers). Loved the comment about how Mike can’t be bi cause “he loves El too much”.I think Mike is probably gay and in denial. But, um that’s not how being bi works- didn’t know  bi people love women and men ½ as much as the gays/straights. Thanks for informing me (rolls eyes for eternity).So kid-gloves off, nothing left to lose! Time to compare the ships.

‘The breakup’ vs ‘fight’ parallel

comedic vs dramatic! The casual sunny day vs the dramatic framing of the storm (a romantic trope) . The ‘break-up’ being a scene with multiple onlookers vs the fight being with Will and Mike only (making it more personal/intimate).  ‘Cold as ice’ playing after the mileven breakup vs the sad instrumentals playing during the byler fight. The comedic after-math at the mall. El and Max laughing, and another joke being made as the bus leaves.El’s happiness vs Will’s heartbreak.

Mike’s drastically different expressions after their fights. He looks regretful with Will, and almost annoyed with El dumping him.  The fact Mike apologized right away more than once to Will, and ran into a storm to apologize a 2nd time. But with El he just lies to cover up the first lie, and then after the break-up he just complains/lounges on the couch (not taking any responsibility). He literally says about El “Why is she treating me this way? What did I do to deserve this? What did I do wrong?”.( He lied and made her feel “like garbage”!) Then he burps and laughs about chips- and makes sexist comments. Neither EL nor Mike are heartbroken by the breakup.

But when he angers Will (by him trying to finish the game early), he immediately tries to de-escalate saying softly “I was just joking- c’mon, let’s finish the game”. But when Will just yells back (much to Mike’s confusion) he doesn’t dismiss his feelings as irrational (like he wrongfully did to El) but chases him to the garage-  and begs him to stay since it’s raining.

In the garage, Mike immediately apologizes saying “I said I was sorry, alright. It was a cool campaign.” But after this, they fight and Mike runs into a storm to apologize a second time , and says to Will’s door “ WILL! I’m sorry I was being an asshole. Can you just come outside and we’ll talk? WILL!” He immediately takes responsibility and apologizes. And he’s desperate to resolve things. And when they find him outside castle Byers he just asks  (Mike’s catchphrase) “Will, Are you ok?”

Shed scene ( “best thing I’ve ever done” vs “the most important thing in the world to me”) parallel

When Mike says to El  “you’re most important thing to me” in the pool shed. El doesn’t even acknowledge the comment (and neither should the audience- cause the words were empty). She completely ignores his words, and responds by asking him about his previous comments. Asking whether Hopper was right about them spending too much time together.

I didn’t edit (or delete any scene after his proclamation) this is how fast it was delivered ! The framing of this mileven scene was not cinematic or heartfelt, and neither was the delivery from Mike. He’s not crying, trying to reach her with proclamations of his genuine feelings. There’s no dramatic music, framing, lighting or shot composition. And El just responds and cuts his supposed ‘true feelings’ off- only to agree with Hopper and says “ she should spend time with her own species.” And if this ‘romantic moment’ wasn’t already undermined enough. This is when Mike realizes she was spying on him , and feels wrongfully violated (something she doesn’t apologize for,  saying “I make my own rules” . He even brings this up in a later episode (this clearly bothered him)!

Juxtaposed to the MUCH longer byler scene. A literal single tear falling down his cheek as Mike , recounts the first day they met. Mike being in the back drop of darkness only his face being illuminated (having him appear like a guiding light to Will). Saying “ I felt so alone and  so scared… but you were alone too” (alone together/crazy together) .  He then talks about asking Will to be his friend, and then he pauses and breaks eye contact , before looking him in the eye and smiling (lost in the memory) saying softly “you said yes, you said yes.” (cough like saying yes at a wedding).

So, after he says “you said yes, you said yes.” It’s important to mention that he takes a deep breath and breaks eye contact again, (looking down and to the side) as he says this line. Subconsciously, I believe he knows this line is romantic and he’s too afraid to say it to his face. Only flicking his eyes up to look at Will  after he finishes the entire sentence, and to gauge Will’s reaction.

This whole monologue is only of tight shots of just their faces (their bodies aren’t shown like in the pool shed scene). This is a personal moment between them and them alone- and the fact we zoom in on their faces (expresses this to be important emotionally) . And when we see Will’s reaction to Mike saying “it was the best thing I’ve ever done”. We just see Will’s face only- no music is playing and all we hear is  Will’s whimpers and Mike crying in the background.

“ Blank makes you Crazy” vs “ Crazy Together parallel

When Mike tries to confess his “love” to El he says “Well they do say it makes you crazy”… much to El’s confusion.He has to try to explain it a second time to El- who just gets even more confused, by his ‘confession’. Saying “you never heard that expression? Like blank makes you crazy … like the word (love)?”

But when Mike says he “feels like he’s going crazy” Will immediately responds with “Me too”. Mike even smiles at the comment. So that moment in s2 means more than we think, when Mike (with tears in his eyes) smiles at Will’s comment and asks them to go “crazy together”.And when Will responds back “yeah, crazy together” (who also has tears in his eyes). They even linger on the moment as they just smile and stare at each other.

Mike is in denial, and may not even realize he loves Will, but he knows subconsciously that he does. He heard the phrase “love makes you crazy and that damn stupid”, 100′s of times and that’s why he said that phrase to Will. And why it made him so happy when Will reciprocated , by saying “ yeah. crazy together.” In addition to why we see them both go from happy, to immediately upset over the conversation.The scene was already romantically coded in s2 (but the scene in s3 re-contextualizes the whole thing) . Mike thinks “love makes you crazy” , and he asked Will to go ‘crazy together’ with him. And When Will is at castle byers looking at the Halloween pic of the 2 the day Mike said that, Will cries and calls himself “stupid” (4x). Can’t get more obvious… Like look what the duffers did! 

El and Will’s opinions on Mike (Parallels)

-When asked if Mike was a good kisser,  she just said “I don’t know he’s my 1st boyfriend.” (implying she’s thinking, at least subconsciously, of having other boyfriends ,who are not Mike in the future).  But when Mike pretty much asks’ if Will thought they’d never get girlfriends, and spend the rest of their lives with each other’.Will just sadly responds “yeah, I guess I did. I really did!” Unlike, El, Will always saw Mike as his future, his forever.

-And when Mike says “it’s just a break” , Max says “No it’s not!”, and we see El laugh along with Max’s comment. She is not heartbroken at the idea of never getting back together with him, romantically. Right after they break up she was laughing, reading comics, and playing games with Max.

But Will is devastated over the fight! And out of all the memories in Castle Byers it’s the Ghostbusters photo from Halloween that causes Will to pick up the bat and start destroying everything. That was the night that Mike agreed to go “crazy together” with him. He tears it in ½ right in the center where Mike and Will are. He was so stupid to think it meant anything. The “crazy together” scene, that Mike initiated in s2 was always meant to be romantic. Not only because of Will’s reaction to the photo in s3, but because Mike in s3 says “They do say it makes you crazy…blank makes you crazy.”  Which is exactly what happens to Will, as he has his breakdown.Castle byers was built on a rainy night , the same day Will’s dad left, when Will was 5 (the same age he met Mike). And lonnie called him a “queer” and a “f*g” and forced him to do “normal things” like baseball to have him “be more of a man”. And then on a rainy night, after Mike says “It’s not my fault you don’t like girls”… what does Will destroy castle byers with? A baseball bat! The fact Will has a baseball bat (despite in s1 saying he does not like baseball) in Castle Byers, surrounded by things he loves: drawings, d&d, art supplies, a microscope, comics- just shows what an impact Lonnie’s problematic conditioning and abandonment had on him. He used a baseball bat to destroy something he loves -castle Byers, and symbolically he was trying to reject his feelings for Mike using Lonnie’s old tactics of fixing him.

- Also, El doesn’t even seem to appreciate when Mike acts like his true self (goofy/like a kid). She laughs when Max complains he talks too much. Rolls his at his jokes with the cpr-dummy, covers his mouth and tells him to stop when he tries to joke and sing, ignores him when he gets excited about talking about dinosaurs. Which relates to my next point

The only characters who’s character bios focus on ‘escaping’ through d&d is Mike and Will.

Will in the Montauk pitch was described as having “sexual identity issues… LIKE MIKE , Will ESCAPES through fantasy gaming where he can be himself, uninhibited.” Like what is Mike escaping from… being a nerd? Because they could of said ‘like his friends’. And no it’s not because they’re best friends- they even specifIed in Lucas bio he’s “ Mike’s best friend” (which was even mentioned in s1).

.In Mike’s character description it says “ bullying and near-crippling insecurity. He has never had a first kiss, much less a girlfriend.He ESCAPES his insecurities through reading fantasy novels … retreating into his own vivid imagination. The Dungeon Master of his Dungeons and Dragons group, he writes sprawling adventures with fantastical monsters.When he finds himself on a real adventure, facing real monsters, he will discover a courage he didn’t know he had. By the end, he will even kiss a girl.”

*Interesting that Mike uses D&D  to escape his insecurities about not having a gf (retreating into his imagination). While Will (who is somewhat aware of his sexuality) uses d&d to escape and be himself uninhibited. They’re foils in a sense- using d&d for opposing reasons.

So the s3 fight about d&d games has a lot more meaning 

Mike equates heterosexual romance with ‘growing up’ and his feeling for Will as something childish he has to grow out of.When they fight over d&d. Mike says “It’s not my fault you don’t like girls!”, then he tries to ½ apologize only to say, “I’m not trying to be a jerk. Ok? But We’re not kids anymore.” He pretty much explains, this is just the way things are-boys fall in love with girls, get girlfriends, and that’s just a part of growing up (heteronormativity).  And tells Will “I mean, what did you think, really? That we were never gonna get girlfriends? We were just gonna sit in my basement all day and play games for the rest of our lives?” And poor Will who is probably more aware of his feelings just responds. “Yeah. I guess I did. I really did.” And after this Mike rushes to Will’s house and apologizes saying he was an “asshole.”When he tries to say he loves El . It was very forced. He can’t even use the world love or explain his feelings, “A feeling … yeah, like, something… like OLD PEOPLE say it sometimes”.

He can’t even describe love and what his “feelings” entail for El , he then says  “Yeah, like something , like old people say it some times. He doesn’t even say it back in the last ep, when she confesses. It’s all talk, but no feeling, it’s just a part of becoming an adult in Mike’s mind.

In the last ep before the mileven kiss, he even invites both El and Will over for Christmas saying “ And Will too… we could all have new presents to play with and… *scoffs* Sorry, that made me sound like a 7 year old...  ”

And it’s implied in the last ep (before the mileven kiss),  because of the 3 month breakup Mike is back to liking d &d. When Mike sees Will put his own d&d book in the donation box he stops him.

Mike: “WHOA, dude that’s the donation box.”

Will: “ I know, I’ll just use yours,  when I come back. (pause) if WE still want to play?”

So then Mike asks, shyly …

Mike : “Yeah, but what if you want to join another party?” (cough- girls , the other ‘species’, or just someone else: girl, guy or otherwise)

Will: “Not possible.” (Will will always love Mike- insert Mikes immediate heart-eye reaction to this comment).

I think people don’t notice what the subtext is here- regardless of his intentions, Mike broke Will’s heart. He made him feel “stupid” for ever thinking he ever had a chance with Mike. He always saw Mike as his forever, but Mike shot any hopes of that down in the garage. Will doesn’t trust his own instincts. Mike could straight up flirt with him in s4/5- and Will would dismiss it as his imagination. He essentially said ‘he’ll always love Mike- but if something is going to happen. It’s up to Mike to initiate it’.

Mike was queer coded since ep 1 (and he’s more queer coded than Will)!

 I LITERALLY thought (in s1) Mike was queer before Will!

- 3 rainbow references. Mike in s1 in his basement has a red heart being propelled by a rainbow sign. We see this again in s3 as a drawing. Mike also stands next to Will behind a rainbow apple poster in s2. Forbidden fruit + rainbow = queer forbidden romance. Also the apple poster was in the AV Club and at that time the rainbow apple-mac sign was suspected to be in reference to for Alan Turning (the gay ‘father of computers’).

In s1:

- 4 separate characters said El looked like a boy, but Mike doesn’t care! Even one of the men thought El might be the missing ‘Byers boy’. When El loses her wig , Troy said “she doesn’t even look like a girl” to the cops. But Mike just calls her “really pretty”

-Nancy says “I thought you were acting weird, but I thought it was because of Will” And Mike responds “I thought you were acting weird too I thought it was because of Steve … Do you like Jonathan now”?” Nancy: “No, do you like Eleven?”. They literally compared the explicit love triangle between Steve/Nancy/Jonathan to the Will-Mike-El dynamic!

- Mike literally uses gender inclusive pronouns when talking about crushes using the word “someone” (3 times), and embarrassing himself because he can’t articulate the difference between friendship and romance. When he could of simply given the 80s heteronormative  answer of ‘when a boy likes a girl’.

Mike: “ you go to school dances with someone.

You know someone that you like”

El: “a friend?”

Mike: ‘not a friend uh … uh someone like a” (gives up and kisses her)

-Mike’s mom said “ What’s been going on with Will, I can’t imagine what it’s been like for you. I just … want you to feel like you can talk to me. I never want you to feel like you have to HIDE anything from me” (she even emphasizes the word ‘hide”  (which is heavily queer coded)

- when Will ‘dies’, “we can be heroes” by David bowie (a bisexual singer) plays,   “And we kiss as though nothing could fall and the shame” is the lyric that plays when Mike returns to his house and cries in his mother’s arms over the ‘death’ of Will. Do I have to explain how ‘kissing and shame’ are queer-coded . And how such a lyric is oddly romantic- if we’re supposed to see their bond as nothing but platonic XD

-his dad jokes “Absolutely not” *turns to wife* “our son with a girl?”.

- when Lucas makes fun of his crush on EL, Lucas gets down on one knee  and says “ I love you so much, will you marry me?” and literally 1s later, we’re introduced to the bullies and the idea (for the first time) that Will is ‘gay’, and Mike is in the forefront of the scene and unlike his friends he is THE ONLY ONE physically assaulted as they cause him to fall face first into a rock (like a gay-bashing) .  They leave Lucas and Dustin unharmed. Even though Lucas just proposed to another guy- which should have gotten him a beating by the homophobic bullies.

It’s supposed to subconsciously hint Mike is queer like Will, and likes Will. The first interaction with the bullies, they mention Will being ‘gay’ right after they mention Mike’s crush on androgynous El and have a guy propose to Mike. Mike says to “ignore them” ( the homophobic remarks) but is assaulted anyways. And when asked what happed he doesn’t want to tell El the details cause he’s ashamed .

2nd time the bullies talk about Will, Mike is once again in the forefront, unlike his straight friends who are in the background . But this time Mike initiates the confrontation), as the bullies say Will is “flying in fairyland with all the other little fairies. All happy and gay”. Mike was literally on the verge or tears at this comment (despite being happy a few moments earlier , telling the others to ‘act sad’ because they’d look suspicious other wise). But this is the comment where Mike snaps and pushes Troy back (because he took it personally/wanted to defend Will).

The framing of Mike once again being in the front and snapping at the homophobic remarks ( gifs don’t do it justice, just rewatch the scene -Mike eyes water at the remarks). Then the last time the bullies appear , Mike jumps off the cliff and “flies like a fairy” (like Troy said) thanks to El . Troy at the police station even uses the word “fly” not levitate.

-Mike sneaking out to find Will, as Steve sneaks in to Nancy’s. They both even make eye contact (and pretend not to have seen each other).

- they share dinosaur toys , in s1 and 2 they appear to be the only ones with dinosaur toys.

- The s1 mom hug scene where Mike feels he lost Will is paralleled in s3 - signifying how he lost him a 2nd time.

- Mike in the 1st ep being the one to insist on looking for Will in the rain (callback to s3). But he never went looking for El when he saw her through his window? Even when Mike saw Will’s dead body, the second he heard his voice he convinced his friends to help rescue him!

- You remember the binder (from s1) that Mike keeps, filled with 100s of Will’s drawings, and how he caresses the drawing after thinking Will was dead. That’s totes platonic.

- Mike in s1 proclaiming “I’m the only one who cares about Will!” Seems like something a kid with a crush might say ( because obviously his other friends care about Will). But he thinks he cares the most. He was even the first to worry about Will not showing up to school, the first to suggest looking for him while speaking to Hopper, and when Hopper and his parents say ‘no’ he sneaks out anyway (and is the first to suggest forming a search party). The first to believe he was alive after seeing his dead body.The only boy to have a scene dedicated solely to him mourning Will.  Mike being the only boy to stay awake at the hospital, and the first boy to see and hug Will. The only one to have a private one on one talk before Will goes missing. The only one who was literally given 100s of Will’s drawings. And yet Dustin says Lucas’ is Mike’s best friend? So what does that make Mike and Will?

In s2:

- Will in all 3 seasons identifies as a wizard. But in s2 Mike (the paladin) says Will is a cleric. Meaning this reflects how Mike actually feels about Will. In d&d, they have similar moral values, powers, and generally need and depend on each other in the lore of d&d. Paladins have similar healing powers to clerics, but clerics have stronger healing abilities - which is interesting since Mike has always been viewed as the protector. But to Mike Will has helped him (maybe deal with the loss of El and other trauma) , just by being there. And if Mike says Will is a cleric,despite Will still identifying as a wizard in s3, it shows how deeply Mike actually feels about Will. It shows he views Will as one of the only people who understands him and views him as a healing presence and his moral compass.

“ strength of conviction gave many paladins a sense of common fellowship but did not always endear them to others. In many cases, paladins did not get along quite as well with other non-paladin adventurers, with the exception of clerics with similar beliefs.”

“A Paladin tries to hold to the highest standards of conduct, but even the most virtuous Paladin is fallible. Sometimes the heat of emotion causes a Paladin to transgress his or her oath (of honesty, courage, compassion, honor ,and duty). A paladin who has broken a vow typically seeks absolution from a cleric who shares his or her faith or from another paladin of the same order. After a rite of confession and forgiveness, the paladin starts fresh.”

This proves Mike knows he treats Will special/different than his other friends- and unlike a relationship with El (they are still individuals who are not dependent on each other). And Mike thinks being with Will quite literally makes him a better person. Juxtaposed with how him being in a romantic relationship with El made him blind and apathetic to those closest to him .

- All the mileven s1 parallels vs byler s2 parallels were ALL initiated by Mike. If the parallels were meant to show a one sided love triangle (on Mike’s end). They would of made Will the instigator not Mike! Parallels can be watched here , start at 6:50)

-Mike initiated the “crazy together’ line- and in s3 he said ‘blank makes you crazy’. So subconsciously he knew the line had romantic connotations.

-Mike initiating the hand hold (with a zoom in shot) and in the show this is only done for romantic pairings. Also Mike being the one to initiate the ‘arm thing’ which is generally romantic. But in s3 , Lucas also does this, saying “I am spending quality time with my girlfriend’

-Mike saying, asking him to be his friend was the “best thing I’ve ever done”

-Mike constantly following Will around, asking if he’s okay or biking to his house to check on him in s2 . In s3 running out to chase Will to the garage and apologizing, and running into a storm to apologize a 2nd time.

YOU SEE A PATTERN! Mike is whipped! And is the one constantly chasing and pursuing Will, not the other way around! Before s3, people always portrayed Will as the (stereotypical- problematic trope of a) sad-pinning-gay in a one sided love with Mike. It’s like people didn’t even watch the show (and just assigned tropes/stereotypes they wanted, that weren’t actually there). Will (probably too shy or scared to- because of homophobic taunts) never initiated a single byler moment- it was ALWAYS Mike!!! If people were actually objective, they would of thought it was Mike who was the one pinning!

- Which brings me to Mike literally pinning! Mike forcing Will to dance with a girl (who has a rainbow hairclip), but you literally see Mike’s shocked expression like  ‘what,why’d I do that ?’ And after this, they show Dustin looking sad about Max/Lucas dancing and then they have Mike get into the frame (next to Dustin) and look sad when Will/girl are dancing in the same exact frame as Max/Lucas. As they switch between these last 2 shots.

the cannon Spotify playlists-called ‘Mike’s basement beats’- These are character playlists that Spotify and St worked on together after s2.

-his first song is “small town boy” an 80s LGBT anthem about living in a small town and being queer and bullied. Every band member was openly gay.

-his 11th song is ‘don’t you want me’ from a “celebrate your gay pride” album

* But queer people are “delusional” for thinking Mike isn’t straight? And are told to “open your eyes and watch the show” (that was an actual quote in the byler tag). Ok? Take your own advice, then! XD

One of the Duffers cited inspirations for ST is SUPER GAY (and what they based the byler dynamic off of).

In the Will comic, Will throws an old 1970s book called “house of stairs” at the demorgorgan. And in a later chapter Mike and Will just read together at the library (just silently reading together, enjoying each others’ company-totally not a romantic cliche).And Mike warns Will the book ‘could have spoilers’ for the d&d campaign. Also look at this byler-centric cover :)

  Peter (Will) is shy, quiet ,initially a pushover, and gay-coded.  And as a coping mechanism he has psychological-breaks with reality where he thinks of his best friend from the orphanage, Jasper (Mike) . Another kidnapped boy, named Oliver (who looks just like Jasper/Mike) is also queer-coded (but a violent-sociopath). And, unlike Jasper who actually wanted to protect/take care of Peter -Oliver starts to gets a sick thrill out of making Peter dependent on him (which Peter catches on to pretty quickly). Oliver was insistent on being the only one to ‘wake’ Peter from his episodes (just like how Mike did for Will, in s2), except Oliver calls him pet-names like “sweetheart, baby, etc.” 

And again to prove it’s queer-coded I’ll read some of the (shortened) quotes, in the order they were written. These are quotes from Peter (Will’s) pov talking about his childhood best-friend Jasper (Mike) .  

-“his room. His and jaspers room.  Jasper looking up from his desk, smiling glad to see him. Jasper saying . Something very important. The most important message, the secret message.  He couldn’t hear him . But jasper keeps smiling , keeps talking . What was the message, jasper? What was the message? The dream had been beautiful at the beginning, terrible at the end, but he longed  to be in it again. If only he hadn’t awakened.”  

-“Jasper sitting on the bed and taking off his shoes ,smiling, ‘you’re okay pete, you’re better than a hundered of those slobs put together. Tomorrow I’ll tell them so myself‘ jasper’s strong, hard body as he got into bed ,so different from peter’s. Strong, to protect him to take care of him. Jasper, who always took care of him”.

-“He wanted to think about oliver it  it was like having Jasper back again. It would disturb him to see Oliver go off with Abigail… the rejection quite painful. It had never been like that with Jasper…jasper.

-The room they shared with rainbow colors, murmuring comforting words to him , enclosing and protecting him. He let himself drift into it, the rainbow hues dimness.”

-“No one ever depended on him. It was he who always depended on others, on Jasper. jasper, who had always taken care of him. Jasper…”

later he admits his feelings for Jasper to Lola/el. Lola and Pete are plantonic soulmates. The only reason why they survive and don’t succumb to their dark and violent urges/psychological brainwashing is because of each other. Lola has  brown hair and eyes and has a buzzcut and is heavily implied to be a lesbian (as she is the only girl in the group who is not fooled by Oliver’s ‘nice guy act’. Which makes the other girls ‘suspicious’ and alienate her). Also this was written in the 70s… she has a buzzcut and is said to “look like a boy”. It’s not that subtle! There was a reason that the author whose first name was WILLIAM (was suspected to be gay/bi when he was alive)!  XD

-Peter says “ he was my friend we were always together . Jasper his name was jasper .in the dream he’s taking care of me’. Now he was beginning to cry, his throat constricting and tears welling up in his eyes .’taking care of me … he always took care of me… taking care of me, and , and … and loving me’. ‘”It was the best time in your life’ she murmured’. ‘Yes’ “

* cough protective childhood friend, rainbows, ‘best time of your life = best thing I ever did.

S3 ending (byler centric ending)

When we first see Mike during the Hopper mologue, the moving truck leaves. “Like you’re pulling away from me or something. I miss playing board games every night (d &d)”…  (the last thing they talked about was Will visiting to play d&d and their fight this season started because of a disagreement about d&d.)

Then Mike looks back at the Byers house (just lingers there and looks back as his friends leave) like how Will did seeing Mike hold hands with El and leave .  “But I know you’re getting older, growing, changing. I guess, if I’m being really honest, that’s what scares me. I don’t want things to change.”Mike , like Will “doesn’t want things things to change”. He doesn’t want his  his feelings of friendship to become romantic in regards to Will,  it “scares” him (especially in rural 80s Indiana). Right after Will cries,  it immediately switches to Mike hugging his mom- to mirror the time he thought Will died in s1 “So I think maybe that’s why I came in here, to try and maybe stop that change. To turn back the clock. To make things go back to how they were.” He goes back to his mother for comfort, like he did the 1st time he lost Will. But also to reverse back time, to s1, before he realized his feelings for Will were romantic.  When things were simpler. 

“But I know that’s naive. It’s just not how life works. It’s moving, always moving, whether you like it or not. And yeah, sometimes it’s painful. Sometimes it’s sad. And sometimes, it’s surprising. Happy.” (byler endgame)

Will (in s2) even says everyone treats him like ‘freak/ that something is wrong with him’ (purposely leaving out Mike from the discussion). And then when Will disparages himself as a freak,and Jonathan agrees but asks Will, ‘who would he rather be friends with-  David Bowie (who was openly bi since the 70s) or Kenny Rogers’? And when Will says Bowie, Jonathan agrees saying “see, it’s no contest”.

So,  it’s just another coincidence that when Will ‘dies’ (in s1) a David Bowie song (‘we can be heroes’) plays. And as Mike hugs his mom, mourning Will -  a romantic lyric from the song plays during the hug?“And we kiss, as though nothing could fall. And the shame”  (which is heavily queer coded)?

And then in the last ep (in s3) Mike mirrors this scene in s1, hugging his mom, since he feels like he’s losing Will all over again. And right after the hug (‘we can be heroes’) plays again!?  I’m not saying byler is endgame. But- WAIT THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT I’M SAYING! XD

These men literally invented ‘hetero-baiting’ (with Robin & Steve) and you think they’re going to queer bait?!

Also, if Will was a girl named ‘Willow” no one would call byler ‘delusional’ ! Even the most casual viewer would say it’s obvious they’d end up together in the end!

If the witness said about El in s1 , “ same height… it could be the Byers girl”, instead of ‘boy’ (pointing out the resemblance).  Mike only meeting El cause he was looking for Willow. Proclaiming “i’m the only one who cares about Willow!” . Mike getting into fights and getting upset (almost crying) about the bullies insulting Willow. Mike only getting angry at El when he thinks she lied about Willow being alive. Mike being the only boy who has a scene dedicated to his loss of her (with the same romantic lyrics playing). Mike having a whole binder of her drawings and caressing one of the drawings, after he thinks she died.  Mike being the only one of her friends to stay awake at the hospital, waiting for her to wake up- so he can see her and hug her first. People probably would of started shipping it the second Willow stared at him and was the only one who didn’t lie to him, in the first ep! Another parallel to El!

If Will was Willow, the majority of the fandom would be byler shippers. Think about it! . Mike having s2 byler scenes that are identical to s1 mileven scenes, and then additional unique byler scenes. Mike staying by Willow’s side 24 hours a day for several days (not even changing clothes), carrying her out of the hospital, grabbing her hand (with a zoom in shot),constantly asking her if she’s okay at least 5-7 times, putting his arm around her twice, being the only one who could tell something was off with her (and it wasn’t her normal type of quiet). Calling and running all the way to her house and banging on the door to check on her, desperate. Watching her sleep cause he’s so worried. That shed scene reminiscing about how they first met in perfect detail, saying “I asked, I asked if you wanted to be my friend. You said yes, you said yes. It was the best thing I’ve ever done. (like a marriage proposal)”  The “crazy together” scene. Them being close since they were 5 vs the girl he knew for a week (but is somehow in love with?). In s2 if Mike sadly watched Willow dance with another guy , while Dustin does the same to Max. Forget it- everyone would already know mileven would be doomed to fail.

And again think about s3 if Will was a girl.They parallel the (comedic) mileven breakup vs (the sad/serious) byler breakup. Then Mike just complains and burps on the couch vs apologizing to Willlow multiple times/even going into a storm to apologize a 2nd time (and to ‘talk’). Willow having a breakdown over the fight vs El laughing and high five-ing Max after.The shed vs the pool shed scene- “best thing I’ve ever done” vs “you’re the most important thing in the world to me”, “blank makes you crazy’ (as El stares confused) vs “crazy together’ (where Willow says ‘yeah, crazy together’). Mike going on ‘movie dates with Willlow all the time’ right after making out with El. The last mileven kiss where Mike has his eyes open the whole time,  and doesn’t kiss back. And saying he doesn’t remember saying  “I love” you to El (and doesn’t say ‘I love you’ back). Right after having a talk with Willow about playing games when she comes back (the crux of their fight). Mike getting excited that he’ll be able to visit El and Willow on Thanksgiving and them visiting him on Christmas (those are holidays where family usually introduces their S.O.) Having the last scene of Mike,  be him looking back at Willow’s house, and have that whole monologue about “feelings changing”, and then he goes to hug his mom like the s1 byler scene where he thought Willow was dead, signifying he lost her again. And that’s not even all the scenes- and every time byler won by a landslide. If Will was a girl, we wouldn’t be ‘delusional’! It would be obvious writing on the wall, that Mike would eventually choose Willow over El by the end of the series.

But since they are 2 boys, we’re delusional, because queer kids don’t exist … apparently.

*S3-I’m not repeating my literal essays but they’re probably better than this post so here are the links to pretty much all my s3 byler meta.  (x) (x) (x) (x) (x) (x) (x) (x)

gif credit: 1st few have the name stark in the gifs, 2nd byler gif (found on wheheart.com- user dream_daisy, not sure if they also have a Tumblr , 3rd livelovecaliforniadreams, 4th &10th Cath-avery, 5& 6th unknown, 7-9 eggogorgon . Tell me if you know the unknown one so I can give credit , please.

[howdoyoudothedew]

Another long SPN post

This time it’s notes from my WIPs. I never actually really wrote any of these, but tags and titles are included. Anyone can use these as starting points for a fanfic, have fun

Henry/Balthazar Summary: When Henry’s mentor, Benny, doesn’t return from the war Henry is saddened. He refuses to believe Benny died. Won’t even entertain it. On the way to find his missing mentor/father figure, he meets Balthazar. A strange man with a british accent and a habit of flirting with everyone, especially him. He finds Benny. He finds love. THen Balthazar tells him he’s from another time period and has to go. The last chapter is Balthazar saving Henry from Abaddon. Side note: Henry has blue eyes that Balthy apparently likes to wax poetic about Chapter One The day’s circled on his calendar. ‘Benny comes home’. That would be today. Or, it would’ve been. He had gotten the letter a week ago. ‘Benjamin Lafitte died in the war. We send our condolences.’ The letter, of course, wasn’t actually as cold and unfeeling as that. But it didn’t matter. Because it felt like that. It felt like someone had taken him and shoved him in an ice bath. He couldn’t believe the letter. He wouldn’t believe the letter. Benny had promised he’d live through this war. And if he had to find him, then by golly he’d find him. Even if he had to do it on his own. Henry snuck out of the bunker that night. A pack of food was the only thing he brought with him. That, and a picture of him and Benny. No one caught him on the way out. He knew the passages too well. He stole a bike from the garage, and left. There would be no note left in his absence. No trace of where he’d gone. Because if he’d left one, he worried that they’d try to find him. Find him and drag him back. But he couldn’t go back. Not now. Not without Benny. New section He’d been on the hunt for four days now. Had traveled from Lebanon, Kansas to Chattanooga, Tennessee and was slowly making his way to the Georgia coastline. His plan was to check coastal cities first. Then he’d work inwards till he covered all of the US. He only hoped Benny would return here and not go to another country. This is where he runs into Balthazar It’s when he’s asking a bartender if he’d ever seen Benny, while showing his picture Balthy comes up to him and says “Are you from around here, because you’re a perfect ten.”

----

Don't Make Bets With Love Goddesses Five chapters Alternative meeting, canon divergent, Gabriel is Loki, Aphro has her son arrow multiple people, but Gabe bypasses them all “You cheated!” “That never seemed to matter to you before, now how did I cheat?” “Eros shot Sam with an arrow!” “My son’s arrow never touched the Winchester.” Everyone has what the humans would call a ‘soulmate’, not everyone finds them and they're not always romantic. It looks like Gabe found his, though.

Chapter One Explains how Loki has messed around, yet has never fallen in love “I will never fall in love” the Norse god boasted. He was talking out of his ass, and Aphrodite knew it. Loki bets Aphrodite that he will never fall in love She accepts with a wicked twinkle in her eye Aphro has never been able to pass up bets, especially when they deal with love He was close once, with Kali, but it ultimately fell flat It didn’t even actually fall flat with Gabe, but with Kali who could sense his growing attachment and cut off their involvement before it could happen. They had made a promise to each other that their thing would remain ‘no strings attached’. Then years where nothing happens

Chapter Two Sam enters the scene He’s tall and handsome; funny, sarcastic, witty. And he’s one of the only people Gabe has ever met that won’t take his crap. That will see right through it. Gabriel vows right then and there that he won’t fall in love with Sam.

----

Different Circumstances Summary: Where the first meeting isn't of a boy with demon blood and an archangel, hidden as a trickster god, disguised as a janitor. Nor is the second meeting, or the third, or even the fifth. Until suddenly it is and the world seems just that much more messed up. Six chapters Tags: Canon divergent, Canon universe, 5 + 1 format, fluff, angst

Chapter One High school Gabe is the ‘bad kid’ They bond over pranks, and Gabe teaches Sam a few tricks

Chapter Six Sam connects all the dots and realizes the few people he had met in his life, the ones other than Jess that he had clicked with on automatic, were all the same person. Where all the trickster, Loki the god of mischief, and Gabriel the messenger of God. He hadn’t even clicked with Jess as quickly as he had seemed to click with each and every version of Gabe he had met. And now he was gone.

----

To Heal A Soul Summary: Castiel isn't the only angel who tried to save Sam Winchester from the Cage. But while Castiel got a body, the other found only a soul. Tiny and broken, frayed at the edges, yet still somehow alive curled up in the corner of the Cage. Gabe keeps and heals Sam’s soul until he feels that it could be replaced with minimum consequences, when he does replace it there is still a battle. Gabe can’t help him with this battle, none of Team Free Will can. Gabe's dog is Max Chapter One Gabe gets Sam’s soul, just his soul, from the Cage because he knows what’ll happen if he puts his soul back in his body after Lucifer had ripped it out Sam gets a different… form type thing. Like, I don’t know Gabe uses pagan magic to give Sam a body like his own Explains to Sam the situation

----

Stacy’s Dad (Lafittz) Tags: help me for i know not what im doing, i love this song and had to do this though, babysitter!garth, single father!benny, female teen oc, benny is older than garth by a few years, dilf!Benny, Notes: I'm sorry for the dilf tag, but I thought of it and it was too funny to me to not include it. Garth’s turned twenty a day ago, and is babysitting Benny’s kid (she’s twelve, so it’s not exactly babysitting) Benny’s thirty (his wife and him had Stacy when they were eighteen, they married right out of high school) Garth asks Benny out, saying that he promised him when he was eleven he’d go out with him when he turned twenty Stacy and Garth go to the pool, where Benny may work as a lifeguard Or, Stacy met Garth during her freshman year and they hit it off immediately as friends But Stacy liked Garth, and when he met Stacy’s dad it was practically love at first sight. (Because he's mushy like that) Or Benny and Andrea had her at sixteen, and Benny was estatic. Sure, it was early and he wasn't sure if he was ready, but he'd be damned if he didn't try to be a good father.

----

Scarecrow Summary: Remake where Cas is a “hunter” who Dean picks up on the way to ----, he's working the same case and they decide to pretend to be a couple to solve it. Also, instead of Meg, Sam runs into Gabriel because he picks him up on the road before he got to Meg. Sam’s part is inspired in part by the honeythief amv. Tags: s01e11 Scarecrow, rewrite, i tried, canon divergent, canon hopping, beginning unchanged, fake/pretend relationship, bonding(????) Dean picks up Cas either along the road (a parallel of their brothers) or at the food place he and Sammy split A man slid into the seat Sam had vacated, black hair Dean could only describe as bedroom hair, piercing blue eyes, and a trenchcoat. “So you're going after the missing couples, too?” The other couple isn't there, instead the people there immediately assume they're a couple Cas immediately goes with it and when Dean asks about it later he simply shrugs and explains that this job seemed to require some falsehood

---- Short ficlet where they find Narnia. “I thought you'd already been to Narnia given how deep inside the closet you are,” Gabriel joked.

----

Sabriel Anniversary Sam: Gabriel, I figured we could go where I first fell in love with you. Gabriel: Sam, I'd rather not… Sam: Why not? Gabriel: I have bad memories there. Sam, in surprise: Bad memories? I mean , sure we tried to kill you Gabriel: Lucifer killed me. Sam: Oh… Oh! You were thinking Elysian Fields? I meant Crawford Hall! Gabriel: What? Sam nervously rubs the back of his neck while looking away: Yeah… Could never really get you out of my head after that. *looks back at him* Even when I really wanted to. ----

Everytime they find Gabriel again, Sam wants to ask Gabriel to help. He wants him to stay. Though he tells himself it's not for him, but the world. But then they leave him behind in that ring of holy fire. And he… dies. At the hands of Lucifer. Sam thinks that's it. But then he shows up again, only to save him and leave him. (But it wasn't just him- it was Castiel as well, he has to remind himself for the next few weeks till it sticks.) So this time Sam swallows everything down, and he tells himself it's okay. Gabriel would've never stayed. And that's fine. Then Gabriel's back again, and he finally agrees to be on their team. He finally agrees to simply stay, even if it isn't for him. So of course he has to die all over again. ----

A rebound. Gabriel knows that's exactly what this is. After knowing Sam for all these years, he can read him. Read him easier than he can read himself. Heck, he knew Jess and Sam’d date the second he saw them together. And just as he knew, a month later they were dating. So yeah, Gabriel knew how to read Sam and how he felt about others. Romantic feelings just weren't there for him. Sure, Sam sounded sincere. He truly believed he liked Gabriel, and Gabriel knew that. But he knew his best friend and he knew the feelings were just his body’s half-assed attempt at fixing whatever hole Jess had left him with that he refused to recognize.

“I'm not ready.” It's not a lie. Gabriel isn't ready to date anyone, even if he loves Sam with all his heart. But he refused to be a rebound. He told the girlfriend Sam has before Jess- Ruby- as much when she gave him her twisted blessing after Sam broke up with her. If Sam knew that's what he was looking for in Gabriel, it would crush him. The poor kid would feel terrible, and Gabriel knows it. That is something he won't allow. Sam deserved happiness, but it couldn't be with him. Not now. Maybe not ever.

---- Crime Cleaners crime scene cleaners sam and dean who get roped into something well above their paygrade by two particular Novaks, possible villain being Luci and Lilith, who is his 'queen' they definitely get help from their friend Bobby and the Novak's friends Charlie, Rowena, and Rowena's girlfriend, the coroner Billie Or, serial killers God and his Righteous Man, who are secretly Dean and Cas. Gabe and Sam are the ones trying to find them.

----

John Winchester and Chuck Shurley meet the parents thing. John first meets Cas, and Dean explains that Cas is his husband. Then he meets Gabriel, Sam’s bondmate-husband- and an archangel. When he mentions how weird this is, Gabriel is the one who points out that “If you think it's weird that your son in laws are angels, just remember that their father in law is literally God.”

----

Normal au, Gabriel shows up out of nowhere because he has to do a blood sugar test to check for diabetes or some shit and he just grabs Sam: “I need your blood.”

[galahadwilder]

I’ve Got Your Back (and You’ve Got Mine), Ch. 3

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“Okay, guys, I need theories,” Alya said, slamming her palms on the table. “Does anyone have any idea what the hell is going on?”

“Akuma. Duh.” Kim scratched the inside of his ear with his finger, barely paying attention, as if he’d solved the whole problem with two words.

Alix snapped a rubber band into the back of his head. “An Akuma effecting just the two of them and no one else?”

Alya shook her heads. “Akuma are flashy. They have to be to get Ladybug’s attention. If this were an Akuma we’d have seen it by now.” She steepled her fingers. “It’s gotta be something else.”

”Parallel universe?” Nathanael offered.

Alix scoffed. “I love you, Nath, but you read too many comic books.”

”You have traveled in time,” Max retorted.

Alix froze, finger raised and mouth open, before settling back into her seat and crossing her arms. “Point taken.”

“Okay but are we in the alternate universe or are they?” Alya said. “Like, did our Adrinette get swapped last night with someone else’s?”

”I thought we decided on Adrienette?” Rose interrupted.

Alya bolted to her feet to defend her choice before Juleka grabbed her by the shoulder. “This argument is not happening again,” she said, turning to Rose. “Sorry, sweetie.”

Rose shrugged.

Juleka turned back to Alya. “My brother tried to text her pretty late last night, but none of the messages were going through.”

Alya’s eyes widened, as did her smile. “Your brother was—” She shook her head. “No, Alya, focus. Luka drama later.”

”I repeat again,” Nino said, exasperated, “why don’t we just ask them?”

”Adrien hissed at Lila, Nino!” Alya cried. “Hissed!”

Everyone could agree that that was indeed stunningly weird. Adrien and Marinette has walked into class together, and as soon as Lila had turned to look st them Adrien basically went into attack mode—hackles raised, teeth bared, and, well... hissing. Lila had jumped and the entire classroom had been in shocked silence. He looked like he was going to claw her face off, until Marinette tugged on his arm and shushed him with nothing but a soft look.

Of course, Lila had tried to stare daggers at her, and Adrien interposed himself between them, matching her daggers with a greatsword of his own. Alya had never seen him act like that—it was so completely out of character for him that she’d nearly dropped her backpack, and in fact that she’d almost entirely missed the fact that Marinette was holding his arm without her customary windmilling “oh-my-god-I-touched-the-boy” panic episode. Almost, but not quite.

”Maybe she finally confessed,” Rose said with a dopey grin.

”Yeah!” Myléne interjected with a blushing smile. “It explains everything! I mean, you all remember how Ivan got after he... you know...” She trailed off and covered her mouth with her fingers, clearly too embarrassed to finish her sentence.

But Alya was already shaking her head. “She’d have called screaming if anything like that happened, and I can definitely still hear so I doubt it.” She tapped her ear with a smirk. “Besides, Adrien can’t get out of the house, she couldn’t get in, and we all know how bad she is on the phone—when could it have happened?”

”All of his could be so much easier if you just asked them,” Nino grumbled.

***

”What do you think Alya was gathering everybody up for?” Adrien said, trying desperately to ignore the way Marinette’s legs were slung across his lap. It doesn’t mean anything, he reminded himself, focusing on controlling his breathing so he didn’t give away what she was doing to him and risk giving her a reason to stop. He stared at one of the cat plushies on her desk, not daring to look down lest he catch a glimpse of pink-clad leg against the chaise. Ladybug touches you like this all the time. It’s not any different.

Marinette shrugged. “She’s got video of me knocking your teeth out,” she said, glaring at her raggedy half of a sandwich as if it had insulted her mother. “That’s all she’s gonna be talking about for days.”

She held her sandwich up, and he swapped it with his without even thinking.

”My brave Knight,” she giggled, shoving his lunch into her mouth and taking a bite so large he wondered how he could fit it all.

Adrien’s breath seized at the nickname, and he fought down the urge to grab her and start planting kisses on her face until she was as breathless as he was. God, she even looked heavenly with her cheeks stuffed like a chipmunk!

”What is it with you and pickles?” he said instead, looking down into the sandwich she’d given him. “They’re delicious.“

”’Ey’re ‘e worsh,” she responded through a mouthful of chicken.

”You and Ladybug are literally the only people in Paris I’ve ever met who think that,” Adrien said. Then his stomach crunched. “Or... well...”

She swallowed and laughed. “That’s how you figured it out?” she cried. “Pickles?”

Adrien just bit into his sandwich, unable to respond. It had been a mountain of little things, things he’d never have noticed if he hadn’t been watching both of them. Stalking, to be honest.

How could he say that without losing her forever?

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Want to read more? Follow the “I’ve got your back (and You’ve Got Mine)” tag on my blog!

[exhaustedwerewolf]

Detroit: Become Human fans, please consider checking out C4/AMC Humans!

I’ve been meaning to make this post since D:BH’s release, but I just found out that Humans was canceled after three seasons, and in my grief, I’m going to finally deliver. I’m not sure what the overlap between these two fandoms is like because I’ve never seen anyone talking about it and couldn’t find any posts tagged with both, which surprises me a lot.

For those unfamiliar with either, both shows are set in a world where humanoid robots are commonplace as servants and members of the workforce, and what happens when some of these individuals begin to achieve sentience. Asides from the subject matter- so similar I literally don’t have to explain them separately- so many characters have parallel roles in the story, the commonalities, from the overarching themes, to the robot detective, to the blue blood, are practically endless. I really want to draw people’s attention to Humans, though, because in my opinion it’s a severely underrated show, and I think those who enjoyed D:BH would get more of what they loved from it, and those who had more mixed feelings about it would find Humans delivers where D:BH lacks.

Let me explain what I mean.

Warning, though, that this ramble won’t be spoiler free, so if you‘re interested in the show but don’t want to read any spoilers- I’d really urge you to give it a shot!

Also warning, I’m a little dismissive of D:BH here, but that’s not to say I dislike it or don’t think people should like it, etc. I’m just trying to explain why I think in some areas, Humans does better- ofc, Humans is a tv show and not a game that needs engaging gameplay and multiple endings, so it has opportunities D:BH doesn’t.

The Synths (Androids)

I’m not a huge fan of the way androids are presented in D:BH, and the reason I’d argue for that is Cage makes no real effort to “other,” them- in fact, he goes beyond the logical to make them as human as possible. Androids’ body language and movement, range of facial expressions, idiosyncratic habits like Connor’s coin flipping, tendency even, to lie down to rest... they endear them to the player, but they’re ultimately all superfluous. Why were these things programmed in? Why don’t they operate as economically as possible? Further, why do androids become deviant, and burst out of their programming? We’re told it’s due to “stress,” but why can they feel such stress in the first place, and why does it trigger sudden sentience? We never get a clear answer. It’s pretty unclear, admittedly, how sentient androids are before they become deviant in the first place- and I see where the game was coming from with that, however...

Synths in Humans are far more unsettling- the actors portray their movements with a jarringly uniform perfection. Their speech and facial expressions are far less emotional, because emotions were never intended for them. They can’t feel physical pain, (although incurring damage remains a stressful and frightening experience) because again, that was never intended for them, and so they have no mechanism by which to do so. This gives humans arguing that they’re only machines a lot more clout. Everyone has memories of blank slates who never laugh or smile, and who can be turned off with a tap under the chin, only to crumple like mannequins. There’s times when they’re presented to the audience as unapologetically eerie and even disgusting, and it’s easy to see, therefore, how they’re being perceived by the public as machines or monsters, which arguably, was somewhat less credible in D:BH, where even non-deviant androids were personable and warm, had the capacity to create art from their imaginations, etc. Letting synths be genuinely different to humans while still portraying them as sentient and deserving of rights, rather than just... “human, but mechanical,” gives the issue a lot more nuance and fuels the inclusion of elements like anti-synth propaganda, and counter-protest, which I’ll talk more about later.

(As a note, the “why” behind their sentience is also explained in a manner that was, imho, more coherent and satisfying.)

As I mentioned before, a lot of the characters have seeming direct parallels, so I’m going to take this opportunity to talk about a couple of characters in depth.

Niska

The blue-haired Traci’s appearance is one of the most controversial elements of the game, from what I’ve seen. The writers undeniably dipped their toes into multiple subjects fraught with heavy implications in her scene, but ultimately that was as far as it went- Traci and her lover only existed to further the narratives of Hank and Connor (and to provide a frankly fan-servicey fight scene while scantily clad in the rain, but hey, that’s neither here nor there.) To anyone who found this character interesting but ultimately underutilized, might I introduce you to the light of my life; Niska. Like Traci, Niska spends a stint as a prostitute, and ultimately kills one of her patrons and skips the joint. Like Traci, Niska is a wlw- although her relationship with her girlfriend comes a little later on in the show. Unlike Traci, Niska is one of the main protagonists of the show, and undeniably one of the most important- she holds everyone’s fate in her hands more than once, she’s fascinating from an emotional point of view- her traumas are confronted in depth and not dismissed- and her actions are very often a driving force in the plot line. Her relationship with her girlfriend is developed on screen, and in many ways, arguably the most important in the entire show.

Max

I‘ve seen criticism of the revolution storyline in D:BH in that violent protest always nets you a bad ending, and in that the peaceful route is arguably too idealistic.I’d posit Max’s storyline (and the effects of his dynamics with Mia, Niska, etc.) as a more nuanced exploration of the issue. There’s characters pushing for both paths and they’re all portrayed as understandable, and their reasons for pushing either a peaceful or violent agenda are present and reasonable. As similar as he might seem to Markus at first glance, I’d argue Max, soft-spoken, brotherly, and empathetic, is a very different kind of leader, so I’m hesitant to compare them too much. But it’s interesting to see a character like this in such a high-pressure leadership role, and I’d argue that this is a less rose-tinted look at compassion in the face of oppression and violence.

Sam

I’m not going to mince words on D:BH’s  Alice twist- to me, it felt inorganic and disappointing. I felt like the game withheld foreshadowing and intentionally misdirected the player to keep the reveal a surprise, and that really bothered me. However you feel about the Alice reveal, it’s undeniable that it is so late on in the game means that the whole idea of robo-kids being adopted into human families doesn’t really get explored in much depth. Humans gets more into the grit of this, discussing how a kid like this would be able to relate to kids and adults alike, what this strange form of “eternal youth,” would mean, etc. If that was an idea that interested you, you’ll get far more of it in Humans. 

This really isn’t where the parallels stop- like I mentioned, we have a robot detective with a really close relationship with their human partner (hannor shippers, I’m looking right at you) we’ve got themes of domestic violence and abuse, we’ve got separated families, we’ve got art and morality- I can’t be here all day, but I’ll say it like this; if it’s explored in D:BH, it’s probably explored in Humans, too.

The Humans

D:BH is very much grounded in the perspective of androids- all the player characters are androids, as are the majority of the supporting cast- Hank is arguably the only human character that gets any real screen time, and one of the only real insights we get into how humans are coping with this new android-filled world. I think this is a shame, because the setting is a really interesting one, and a lot goes unexplored, or at least, unexplored in depth. It frankly feels kind of disingenuous to me to only see little of Markus’ impact beyond a number on the screen labeled “public opinion,” and this is something that I feel Humans deals with a lot better. One of Humans’ biggest strengths is, ironically, the humans in it- the viewer is grounded in this sweeping, overarching plotline primarily through the perspective of the Hawkins family, but ultimately other human characters play a lot of important roles as well. We’ve got synth/human romances, we’ve got humans passing as synths (yes, that IS Princess Shuri down there) we’ve got synths passing as humans, we’ve got humans campaigning for synth rights, we’ve got humans campaigning for synth extinction. Getting the human side of the story is really valuable and adds so much to the narrative as a whole, it makes the protagonists’ struggle more real and raises the stakes.

Frankly this post is a mess but if you made it this far, thanks for reading, and please watch Humans if you like this type of sci-fi. I promise it’s worth it.

[altheathewriter]

11/11/11

My 11 questions & tags are below!I actually have two of these but let’s tackle them one at a time. This one is from @thatfizzyyyy 

Thank you!

You answer 11 questions, and ask 11 questions for the 11 people you tag to answer

1. How do you feel about writing diversity? I like it a lot. I try to have characters be very diverse. Even if there’s a bunch of white people, they’re all different somehow. But I am Mexican-American, and I think its important that people of color be in books. Almost all my protagonists are POC. I also like to have different body types. There isn’t just “thin” and “fat.” Everyone has a different shape to them and I feel like that needs to be in books too. 

2. Remember that one WIP that’s unnamed? Quick give it a name! Uh...one I have is called Sam’s Story, because I can’t think of a name. I might scrap the story.

3. How do you keep yourself accountable for your writing (goals, daily word counts, rewards) if at all? Nanowrimo helped, but I don’t really keep myself accountable.

4. What would be a good crossover with your WIP? LOL probably Avatar, the animated one. I’ve actually never watched the show, and all I know of it is from what a friend posts on FB. I just know some people mess with water, some with fire, and there’s an old dude who likes tea. In The Prince’s Curse, magic weilders sort of...gravitate to one “feeling�� of magic. I.e. Max likes to “create” and uses all sorts of creating forces, like light and water. Other magic users may gravitate towards destroying, or removing. Another person in the story becomes the complete embodiment of death, and their magic centers around ending forces. Different than destroying, as you can destroy without killing.

5. Which of your characters do you think the fandom will misinterpret the most and why? Uh...not sure? 

6. Did you eliminate any characters from your original cast? Did you add any? I have not yet eliminated anyone. I have added 4 people.

7. Kill, kiss, marry with OCs whose names start with A, J, and S (or close to those letters). Closest is Caelius, Izora, and Quentin. Uh...I’d marry Izora cuz she’s a doll. I mean, she’s a fucking TREE of a woman, but a doll. I guess kiss Caelius? He’s not my type? I mean, he’s a freakin’ NARCISSIST. And I don’t want to kill Quentin, he’s funny. :(

8. Is there anything unusual that gives you motivation? Not wanting to clean. I’d rather write than clean. Not that I should be cleaning now but hey...

9. What’s a cool fact about your world? Or about your characters, if there’s no fantasy/sci-fi elements? Some parts of the world can only be seen by magic users. In the book, Max finds an orange grove with a scrying pond on the palace premises. Magic is illegal to use, but he’s able to find this place, which is a magical place. Here he is protected since no one can find it. 

10. What was the best scene you’ve written so far? Not sure yet. When Max seduces Caelius and gets him to keep his military uniform was fun. But I like describing clothes so...

11. Which of your characters has surprised you the most since you started writing your WIP? Max. I was expecting him to be a little wibbly guy who needs protecting but he’s grown into this badass. You don’t see that as part of his character development. That’s just what he’s become since I thought of him. Like today I totally thought of a fight scene for him, and he takes this small dagger and transforms it into this huge sword of light and fights two evil-magic-user-people, and everyone around him is like wtf I didn’t think he could do that, he’s so quiet...

My 11 questions & tags are below!

1. What common writing tips make you roll your eyes when you see it?

2. What could someone say to you that would motivate you to write?

3. What’s your writing environment look like?

4. If your current WIP was made into a movie, what do you fear producers would do to make your fans angry?

5. What time period influences your WIP the most (historical, current, etc)?

6. Has anyone ever tried to stop you from writing?

7. What traditions do your characters adhere to in your WIP?

8. What hobbies do your characters have?

9. Are any of your characters a clotheshorse? Which one and explain their style.

10. What trope will you forever love while others want it to die in a fire?

11. What parallels of the real world do you see in your WIP?

I’m going to tag some random-ass people, some of whom I am not sure are even writers or on Tumblr anymore. @elaynab-writing @thatfizzyyyy @unwriter-sc @cookiecuttercritter @grittygambit @yetmorestories @juliawritesbooks @cogwrites @cannedebonbon @valiant-ether @shellalana

[comfortablynumbonthepuzzle]

Mike/Will Season 2, Episode 1: A Shot by Shot Analysis

Ok, here it is! The first installation of my shot-by-shot analysis series! 

Some things to know before reading: 

This series will go episode by episode and each post will discuss scenes that I think are relevant to understanding Mike and Will’s relationship. I’m publishing them as I write them, so I might miss things. If I do, I’ll be sure to include them later. 

This analysis focuses on what I think the Duffers’ intentions are as far as this pairing and what the Mike/Will scenes in season two could indicate about season three. It’s not always going to reflect that Byeler is endgame, because as much as I love Byeler (and I really do), I just don’t think it’s going to be canon, at least not in the way that we hope. Don’t despair, though. 

If you haven’t, read my Is Will Byers Gay? post first! It basically establishes my thoughts about Gay Will. Give it a reblog if you’re so inclined :) Note that I wrote it BEFORE I knew about the stranger things bible clipping which basically confirms it, which you can find here.

These are just my thoughts/opinions! Feel free to disagree, and please do! Just do so respectfully :) I wrote this because I love Stranger Things, something we ultimately all have in common. If you have negative/nasty opinions about this analysis or are offended by the suggestion that Will Byers is gay, I ask politely that you keep them to yourself. 

I couldn’t find gifs for everything I wanted :/ if someone knows a better way to do this, I’d appreciate the help!

Anyway, thanks so much for reading! I hope you enjoy! (Also: I’m tagging @packupyourthingses @leondrmccoys @we-dance-like-marionettes who (I think?) asked to be tagged, and @thebandersnatchoftheshire who expressed an interest in the post a while back.)

EPISODE 1: MAD MAX

Let’s start off with some general observations. 

In the first season, Will is missing, leaving his three best friends and Eleven to recover him. In the second season, Will is back, Eleven is gone, and Max has joined the party. Obviously, each of these changes makes a significant contribution to existing group dynamics. Mike, for example, changes significantly in the wake of Eleven’s departure, while Lucas and Dustin are overjoyed at Max’s arrival.

In season 1, storylines are segmented by age group. i.e., the kids, teenagers, and adults all embark on separate adventures that ultimately converge. As we would expect of a second installation, narratives in season two reflect character and story arcs established earlier. As a result, the groups are not so neatly divided. Ergo, Steve hangs with Dustin/Lucas/Max, Mike/Will end up with Joyce/Hopper, etc. 

Crucially, the core group of boys is divided into pairs. Mike and Will spend most of the season together, as do Dustin and Lucas. The use of these pairs, which are established almost immediately, is an unmistakeable narrative device all throughout the season.

1. Arcade

The arcade scene is the first in the season of all the boys together. They spend the first half of it together playing video games, arguing with Keith, etc, and the second half divided into pairs. This begins when Will is transplanted suddenly into the upside down and steps outside the arcade.

Lucas and Dustin, at that point, are preoccupied with divining MadMax’s true identity. Because of this, it’s Mike who comes out to check on Will, and likely the one who noticed he was missing in the first place. This is the first clue as to the extent of the closeness between the two. It’s deliberate: as we see here, and throughout the season, Will/Mike and Dustin/Lucas are partitioned, and their individual friendships are developed.

In the scene, Mike comes outside and finds Will. He then makes sure he’s okay, puts his arm around him, and guides him inside. This gesture, to me, reads as pretty innocuous physical affection (of course, you’re welcome to disagree). It was, however, a conscious stylistic choice, made by the duffers with the intention of communicating a number of things. In this scene, we begin to learn firstly that Mike and Will are close, and secondly, that Mike is protective of Will, concerned for his wellbeing, and (probably) an important source of emotional support. The arm gesture underscores Mike’s key character traits: his protectiveness, his characteristic warmth and compassion for others, and his ability to take charge when the situation calls for it and help those in need. 

Here’s why that matters: Mike’s behavior in this particular scene is especially interesting in the context of his recent character development. Eleven’s disappearance has clearly affected him profoundly, and in the first three episodes of the season, we learn just how much. Earlier in episode one we see him stealing from Nancy, and in a later scene with his parents, we learn that he’s acted out in a number of ways over the past year, all indicating that Mike’s moral compass, distinct and venerable in season 1, has weakened somewhat. Same goes for his trademark positivity and determination. This season he’s sullen, irritable, apathetic, and in [my paraphrasing of] Finn Wolfhard’s own words, “not as much of a leader.” 

And yet, Mike manages to be there for Will in that moment, to take note of his presence (or lack thereof), to guide him, to help heal him. It would appear that, in Mike’s moody “post-eleven period”, it is in his relationship with Will that he has remained his best self. 

The question is, WHY? In the first episode of Beyond Stranger Things, Finn Wolfhard remarks (and the Duffers agree) that in Eleven’s absence, Mike needs “someone to impress” and therefore “tries to impress Will”. I also agree with this interpretation. Romance aside, Mike and El’s relationship is (among other things) characterized by a deep mutual admiration. Will, who’s obviously vulnerable, is an opportunity for Mike to be important to someone again, to be needed. Because of this, Will in particular has assumed a new level of importance in Mike’s life post-eleven, because in a way, Will helps Mike cope with the trauma of his loss. And, of course, Mike is very important for Will, who needs someone compassionate, sweet and understanding to help him cope with his trauma. They’re bonded by shared horrifying experiences from season 1: Will going missing; Mike losing El. They are, for all intents and purposes, “crazy together”. 

I can’t say with certainty that their relationship has a new dimension/purpose/function in the wake of all that’s happened, because Will was missing for the entirety of last season and we saw basically nothing of their friendship, so it’s impossible to make a comparison. But, I predict that in the aftermath of season one, Mike and Will’s (already close) friendship matured and deepened, and it wouldn’t surprise me if the change in their friendship had an effect on Will and how he sees their relationship. 

What are the implications of this? It’s worth it to consider:

The effects of this close relationship on Will. How does he feel about his closeness with Mike, new or not? How does he feel about the reemergence of Eleven? I predict angst. Lots of it. 

The potential of a love triangle. There are a bunch of amazing posts about this, find some here and here. I’m not convinced we’ll get one, but it’s interesting to consider in the context of this analysis. Remember that Will and Eleven have never interacted (which I think is also deliberate). How will Mike balance his emotional responsibilities to both Will and Eleven? How will Will and Eleven adjust to each other, when each of them is emotionally significant to and in some form, emotionally reliant on, Mike Wheeler? (Not suggesting Eleven needs Mike, she obviously doesn’t need a man, but it would be silly to deny how much he means to her, and vice versa.) Consider also, that there are SO MANY parallels between Will and Eleven. SO MANY. There are a lot of posts already analyzing this, I’ll link one here.

That being said, I do think Mike and Will have always been close. There are hints to this even in season 1. Exhibits A and B.

2. Mr. Clarke’s room

The next shot we see of the boys is in Mr. Clarke’s classroom, just before Max is first introduced. They sit in two rows of two: Dustin and Lucas in front; Will and Mike in back. This, if just visually, emphasizes the “pairs” theory I discussed earlier. Dustin and Lucas look at and whisper to only each other. 

3. Will gets in Joyce’s car while Dustin, Lucas and Mike watch from a distance

The physical set up of this scene again is deliberate. Mike is in front, with Lucas and Dustin behind him. (If you think this is grasping at straws, try picturing the scene with Dustin up front - it changes the mood). All the boys are concerned; Mike especially so. The exchange is as follows: Lucas asks, “Do you guys think he’s okay?”, to which Mike says, “I don’t know, he’s quiet today”. Lucas responds, “He’s always quiet.”

Then, the camera zooms in on Mike’s particularly troubled expression. We, the audience, KNOW that all is not well. We KNOW Will had an episode the night before, which explains why “he’s quiet today”. Lucas dismisses Mike’s uncertainty, but WE know that Mike is right. This is supposed to tell us that out of the group, Mike is the most intuitive/perceptive when it comes to Will, and that Lucas and Dustin obviously care very deeply for Will, but don’t know him like Mike does.

4. Lucas and Dustin at the arcade.

In this scene, Lucas and Dustin are at the arcade, trying to figure out if Max is MadMax. Will isn’t there because he’s at Hawkins lab, but where is Mike? Mike is uninterested in Max from the beginning (and so is Will, for that matter, beyond wanting to figure out if she’s MadMax. I don’t think we ever see them interact directly). 

Mike is unessential to the scene, so there’s no real reason to have him there, but I thought it was interesting that they weren’t all hanging out. This scene demonstrates that Lucas and Dustin are a pair. They have shared jokes, a witty banter, and now a shared goal, which is to befriend Max. That goal bonds them and frames their eventual storyline of setting a trap for Dart.

5. Will drawing in his room

(Sorry guys - I couldn’t find a screencap of the line I wanted; if you find one where Will says Mom, Dustin, Lucas, Everyone” PLEASE let me know!)

When Will takes Jonathan to task for treating him like a baby, he implicates “Mom, Dustin, Lucas, everyone”. The only person he doesn’t mention is Mike, which is interesting, because so far, Mike is the only one of the friend group we’ve seen express concern for Will in any capacity. This is ABSOLUTELY on purpose. Again, it emphasizes their close relationship and alludes to a symbiosis: later in the exchange, Will says “It doesn’t help. It just makes me feel like more of a freak.” Perhaps he doesn’t feel alienated by Mike’s help because Mike has been through something similar, which makes him also a freak.

It’s worth it to mention that Will has no screen time alone with any of the other characters. I think it’s probably because the writers felt the only relationship of Will’s they needed to emphasize was with Mike. 

SO...

That’s it for episode 1! Let me know if there’s anything I missed! 

[valorant-reverie]

Steve Harrington x Reader - Tag Team

Anonymous asked: steve harrington request: him being protective over his s/o when billy is an asshole

It came as no surprise that some weird shit had been going down at the Department of Energy lab in Hawkins after all. But when your childhood friend Steve finally sat you down and told you just exactly what weird shit had been going down, you were not entirely sure whether to believe him. Beginning at the time last year when Will Byers went missing, right up until this exact moment where he had driven you to a quiet spot out of town for a chat, and between the descriptions of a parallel dimension, evolving slug monsters, a girl with superpowers, and government conspiracies, you had to resist the urge to burst out of the car and run home praying your best friend wasn’t entirely crazy.

“Well,” you manage to reply after a painful silence, “that does explain why you gave that Dustin kid a ride to the Snow Ball.”

Steve exhales in relief. “Thank God. I know it sounds crazy – trust me, I know – but I promise that everything I’ve told you is the truth. I couldn’t keep it a secret from you anymore.”

“So why are you telling me all this now?” You ask.

“Because I care about you? Because I didn’t want to lie anymore, or at least keep avoiding the truth?” he replies, “You should know. And you should know that it’s safe now. The gate’s closed. None of it can come back.”

“And Hopper was in on it the whole time?”

“Yeah.”

“So Barb wasn’t poisoned by chemicals from the lab. She was… taken?”

“Yeah.”

“And she won’t be coming back either? Because she’s…”

“Yeah.”

“Shit.”

Silence falls once more. You think about what else there is to say, but what could you add? Too many questions rattle around in your mind for one to appear the most pressing to offer.

“Do you still have the bat with the nails?” You inquire eventually.

Steve can’t help but grin, and he laughs, amused that it’s the first thing you say. “Uh huh. It’s in the trunk. You wanna see?”

You nod, and both of you clamber out of the car into the chill of the night air. Steve hurries around to the back and pops the trunk, picking up an old jacket which had been pushed right to the back, one you had assumed incorrectly that he used as some kind of oil rag. He unwraps it almost reverently and there it is, nails and all.

“It’s been cleaned.” You observe, surprising even yourself with your tone of disappointment.

“It was kinda gross. I didn’t want to keep it in my car with blood and stuff on it.” Steve states, and he hands you the bat. You give it a practice swing and Steve smiles proudly. “You look pretty badass.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” He confirms, and then leans in to kiss you, a hand settling on your hip as you lower the bat and kiss him back.

The sound of a car drawing near causes you to break apart. The engine is loud and clearly powerful, and a spike of panic stabs in your chest when you realise that there is only one person in the whole of Hawkins who drives a car which sounds like that, and they’re just the kind of person to be roaring around the back roads with it at night.

Billy Hargrove.

As you move to get back into the car before the blue Camaro passes, Steve holds your wrist and shakes his head. You frown at him questioningly. Although he had been vague on the details until tonight, you had seen the cuts and bruises from the last time Steve had gone up against Billy. Now you understood that Steve was defending Max and the other kids, but Billy was sure to be pissed about losing. If he saw you both, he would definitely pull over, and not do so to have a friendly chat.

“Steve, we should go.”

“Wait. I wanna see if he stops.”

“He will stop. That’s why we should go. Or at least sit in the car. Maybe he’ll just pass.”

“Hang on.”

Sure enough, the Camaro hurtles into view, its headlights blinding in their brightness as they cut through the once peaceful darkness. With both you and Steve caught in the harsh glow, the car slows down as expected. You are frozen with anxiety as it slows to a standstill only a few yards away. Billy climbs out and closes the driver’s door with an emphatic thud, taking in Steve’s fingers wrapped around your wrist.

“Harrington.” he says, and the smile on his face is forced until his eyes shift onto you and take on a more interested stare. You try not to squirm under his scrutiny and force yourself at the same time not to look away.

“What do you want?” Steve asks.

“Nothing. Just saw you’d stopped out here. Need a hand?”

“No.”

“I hope you’re not up to anything unsavoury.” Billy says, stepping closer. Steve doesn’t move either closer to Billy or to you, but his hand tightens on you. Billy hasn’t noticed the baseball bat in your other hand that hangs at your side, which is hidden by Steve’s legs. “It would be a shame to ruin such a pretty young lady’s reputation.”

“I hear that’s more your style, Hargrove.”

“Bold words, I’ll give you that. So we gonna do this?”

“Do what?”

“You know what, Harrington. Come on. I’m sure your bitch will step up to the plate when you hit the floor like a sack of bricks. Hell, she might even do better. Maybe I’ll go easy on her. God knows I’d like to try.”

A feeble insult yanks at your tongue but it is halted as Steve steps forward. Billy doesn’t move. Neither boy makes no effort to start a fight straight away; they just stare at each other. But Billy makes the first mistake. His eyes drift just for a second from Steve’s face to the modified bat in your hand. His confident smirk waivers.

“Trust you to cheat. Bringing a knife to a fist fight.” He observes.

Steve swings but Billy sees him coming. He dodges and follows with a heavy uppercut to Steve’s gut, and sure enough, he staggers backwards clutching his stomach, already winded. Billy flexes proudly and winks at you, his grin reasserted. “Now’s your chance, sweet thing. Hop into the car and wait for me while I finish up here, huh? I’ll take you on a proper date. Not drag you out to the ass end of nowhere and f—“

He is cut off as Steve tackles him to the ground with a furious shout, and you lurch forward with the bat raised to close the distance between the two boys and you as they wrestle in the dirt. Both grunt in pain and exertion, and are already bleeding. Steve rolls on top of Billy and then pushes away, scrambling across the ground and managing to rise to his feet in the same amount of time that it takes for Billy just to sit up. He rests on his hands and goes to rise when he lifts his head and comes face to face with you wielding Steve’s bat. You point the end at his nose and give him what you hope is an intimidating glare.

Billy smirks, his bottom lip split and bleeding. “You like to play rough, huh?”

“Get out of here.” You mutter, “Before you regret it.”

Billy laughs but stands, lifting his hands in surrender and shaking his head. He backs away and gives Steve one last satisfied smile before getting back into his car. You keep the bat lifted and move to Steve’s side, your free arm wrapped around his middle with him leaning on you as Billy pulls away and speeds off into the night.

“You were really brave.” Steve pants, offering a smile that hurts his bruised eye as he hisses through it.

“And you were really stupid. Get in the car and drive us to my house. I need to patch you up.” You insist, having to help Steve back over to his car and into his seat. Maybe later you would chastise him, tell him off for his rash actions. But for now you just wanted to get him somewhere safe.

[saawek]

(Don't answer this yet) --we are now in the future where your brother have already seen 12.12 or the mixtape episode-- Tell us what he thought about it!!!!!

Today in “The adventures of my Bro the Casual Viewer”

GUESS WHAT ANON FROM MONTHS AGO, WE ARE IN THE FUTURE NOW! 

first post about that here and here and here / tagging @tinkdw @casanddeanwinchester @chibi-lie @captainhaterade @eriquin @sprinkleofhappinessuniverse

It’s very long so blah blah about s12 and destiels feels and nonsense under the cut!

/!\ ATTENTION PLEASE/!\ Before anything I think it’s very useful to remind everyone that :

my brother and I aren’t living together anymore so I can’t actually influence him that much since we watch the episodes separately. 

His experience is much “i watch the episode then I forget about the show until the next episode” CASUAL VIEWER 

He also doesn’t have the fucking heteronormative goggles since his sister is a raging pansexual and his father is remarried to a man and grew up in an homophobic family.  

And his fav character are Gabriel, Crowley, Lucifer (s4 - s5) and dorky Castiel sometimes. He wants to punch the brothers usually (Castiel too but less) and just want the funny episodes. SO NOT A SHIPPER AND NOT A TFW LOVER 

this is for fun lol #laugh >.>

NOW Today in “The adventures of my Bro the Casual Viewer” 

OVERALL ON THE SHOW : he’s more interested in the plot than in the characters really. And he wants it to be clear. He’s watching to have a good time and take a break, all the character studies are useless for him. 

Let’s do it ! S12 : 

Below only his words, mine are between ( )

12x07 rock never dies : wtf lucifer, are you a fucking 2yo throwing a temper tantrum bcse daddy isn’t home to give you candy? You remember the time when he was a good character? Because, i don’t. [about the brothers] nice the leather jacket! 

“lumberjack pffff good one”.

aw Dean left his wife and his mistress at the door *irony intensifies* Cas is not the fav anymore lol (yes he saw the drowley too and was kinda “i’ll do as if i didn’t see it, thank you bye”)

Mid Season Break. Guess what ! CAS WILL BE ALL SAD AND CRYING BECAUSE HIS HUMANS ARE GONE HA HA HA (i told you he doesn’t care about the characters!)

12x09 : AAAAW He get out of prison and call his boiyfriend first thing, THAT’S SO CUTE URGH *vomitting noises* And damn, I’m not like that after so much weeks not shaving. Tss

12x10 : SUBTLETY IS FOR THE WEAK. Lol but srsly guys, the fucking seat. They should push more it will be an orgy. You weird people must have had ideas with the three of them no? But looks more like Sam is playing gooseberry again. You must relate no, Saawek? (okay i won’t explain to him what wincestiel is and yes he was so disgustingly in love with my best friend/first girlfriend I srsly relate with Sam on this one) Dean should just sit on Cas’ lap if he wants the dick so bad. (omg i died)

And angels are stupid. If humans die when nephilim is born WHY ARE THEY HUNTING THIS HUMAN FOR HAVING HAD A NEPHILIM BABY. stupid stupid stupid

Dean making silent treatment to Cas : “Even my GF doesn’t do that.”

him when the silent treatment was going on

12x11 : A TRUE SPN EPISODE AT LAST (meaning one where there is no complicated plot, no mary, and just funny and tragic shenanigans.)

12x12 (at last!) GOD this one is really cool! Cas is hurt, poor chap, he’s really got no luck recently hm. Ugh disgusting black goo. Mary is still not dead yet? tss. 

I love you, lol. NO HOMO THOUGH. tsss. *irony intensifies*

We are Family, lol, i don’t do half he does for family. (elnawen if you read this I SWEAR DON’T DO THE JOKE)

Wait. Pause on the arrows in the cave… are these heart shaped arrows, like  cupids arrows? In the ‘i love you episode’? (yes it’s the “ILY episode” in his mind, the name or the number don’t matter) God it’s some hardcore queerbaiting. 

(otherwise the i love wasn’t groundbreaking because “we know dean and cas love each other duh”, it also almost went unnoticed because of the action with yellow eye dude. But the arrows were not, which baffles me.) 

12x13 : CROWLEY AND ROWENA, YES. (which was yes until) Why always women and rape *sighs* It was good though, I miss good Crowley.

12x14-15-16-17-18 : (not much to say except a deep hate for how Crowley is acting this season. And Lucifer is boring) “Lucifer’s arc has gone from “i wanna do whatever i want” to “i want a baby” too fucking fast. I don’t care. BMoL are boring. This season is only here to prepare the next big bad.”  Crowley is so stupid this season, he’s useless.

12x19 : When Cas left with the Nephilim : “I GUESS DEAN HAS JUST BEEN DUMPED, HA HA HA, too bad”

The Mixxtape of doom : “………………..okay it’s cute. Dad used to do that for Mom.” (he would even record vhs with her fav movie moment. I’m waiting for dean to do that now)

actual footage of him “raiiiiinboooow”

12x20 : Max/Alicia parallels : dude, it’s not even subtle anymore. (What do you think of the gay dude?) Parallels with the bro, Dean gay or bi (he tries to make the difference) blah blah. NOT SUBTLE.

at this point he’d randomly shout “gaaaaay” every time he saw max or dean lol

12x21 : Eileen died : “Aw Sam… no luck! too bad for you. No GF this season! Ha ha ha. Just like your brother he he” (yes he has no emotional attachment for characters BUT he does a cas/eileen parallel without being prompted on it, i’m so proud) 

And Mary dies too? No? Not yet? Tss. (he doesn’t hate mary, he just doesn’t care if character is not Gabe/Crowley or Cas)

God what was the thing with lucifer at the end? even the subtitles were saying “wtf”, I am saying wtf. WHAT THE FUCK? It’s like the Gondor has lit the fires or what. It’s almost as bad as the ice effect in the ‘The Flash’ episode!! Its like a looney tunes episode! OR AN ADD FOR VIAGRA OMG (he then tried to make me apply for a fx job for spn)

12x22 : Oh cool it’s nice. Surprised Mary’s not dead yet. Fake Angel Brainwasher Lady is though cool! (ps he means the fake naomi aka Toni, he’s not good with names of secondary characters / BUT cas/mary parallels spot on unconsciously!) good episode, good action, not boring. Aw cute hug. Just a Cas and everything is perfect. (i swooned, btw you can find it here)

12x23 : I HATE IT. for Crowley mainly, (Rowena has been totes forgotten lol) Cas is dead but he’ll come back. (at this point we agreed it wasn’t possible bcse financial reasons) I want to know why he’s dead though bcse he’s dead for a reason and i want to know what. I LOVE IT (we share the same opinion)

More general things to say :

He thinks destiel is just to dudes (jensen and misha) playing gay on screen for funsies and fan found that awesome and wanted to have lgbt representation . It got out of hand and now the show is doing it on purpose. Queerbaiting or eventual endgame, though? He doesn’t know and doesn’t care. 

His words “Destiel can become canon I don’t give a shit. They kiss it’s okay, now next episode, I want to see the plot”.

But in conclusion my bro watch spn with other dudes who watch like once a month when they don’t miss the episode, and they kinda all see the “not gay dude who is gay for the angel dude”. They just don’t care.

PLEASE KEEP IN MIND IT’S ONLY FOR FUN. And I’m not preaching destiel is canon because it would be twisting my brother’s words. I’m just having a good time sharing all the little things that might make us laugh :)

(psst destiel does exist)

[livingwithashipname-blog]

Ermanda’s Inner Sanctum: Scorpion 4.06 “Queen Scary”

This episode epitomized my outlook on season 4 as a reset embedded with nostalgic parallels.  The holiday episodes are always very impactful and this one doesn’t disappoint!  We see almost 40% of the episode before the first commercial break!  The opening scenes felt reminiscent of season 1.  I also like that we are seeing more locations and are introduced to the team’s friends outside of work.  Even though things start and end in the garage, it is a nice change and improvement from previous seasons in my opinion.  I really liked episode 4.03 Grow a Deer, A Female Deer, but this is one has become my favorite of the season so far.  Maybe it’s because I am really excited about these Waige developments and Toby and Cabe.  Let’s talk about these things, shall we?! 

Cabe & the Quintis Tag Team 

It's a coincidence that I mentioned Cabe and Toby's similarities in my last review.  Now, the comment on their relationship feels right on time with what is brewing between them in light of Cabe's legal troubles.  Happy and Cabe established a special relationship last season which served as a contributor to Happy’s ongoing EQ growth.  This growth helps her to recognize Cabe’s identity crisis and proposition Toby to help him as a behaviorist and a friend.  Quintis working together, tag-teaming to reach out to Cabe, is reflective of a dynamic that isn't new but is becoming more prominent now that they are married.  They have these small discussions leading to one or both of them mobilizing whatever efforts are required for the moment.  The end scene between Toby and Cabe is a reversal of the same that existed between Happy and Cabe.  It places Toby in a more serious role with someone other than Happy.  I appreciated their connection in season 2.  Now that it is here again… I WANT MORE!!!  ¡Dámelo!  Many Toby fans in this fandom, including myself, are really eager to see the character in a multi-episode arc that separates him from the comedic relief, caring husband, and supportive friend roles into something that is more personalized and influences the other arcs in which he is involved (e.g., Baby Quintis, financial struggles).  I am also eager to learn more about Cabe’s past and see him shed this hardened exterior while he processes the charges, the trial, and possible prison time!  

Walter’s EQ Musical Adventure 

W: So you like it when people communicate their emotions through music? 

P: It’s like the electromagnetic field today. We couldn’t feel it, but it affected us. I don’t know… there’s something special about a power you can’t see but you can feel. Music is like that. It can be an unadulterated expression of truth. And that’s why I wish you’d just given it a chance, Walter. 

This scene has me all in my feelings dagflabbit!  It is obvious that Walter is still learning the importance of indulging Paige’s interests even if they do not appeal to him.  If you have been paying attention, music has been used as a point of reference for Waige already, prepping us for this new development.  Walter plans to understand music to write a song for Paige!  And I have one request... DON'T LET THE SONG BE GOOFY!!!  If my memory serves me correctly (and correct me if I'm wrong), every song ever sung on this show has been goofy.  There's the impromptu cadence of "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" from 2.14 Sun of a Gun, Toby's wacky engagement song for Happy from 2.24 Toby or Not Toby, and "Dem Bones" as Walter's song suggestion for Quintis' first dance as a married couple in 3.21 Rock Block.  And do I really have to explain "Everything Is Absolutely Genius?!"  I think you get the point! 😂😂😂  The idea of Walter successfully writing a heartfelt ballad to which Paige can relate will give us WAIGE FEELS TO THE MAX!!! 😍😍🙌🏾💙💙💙🙌🏾😍😍  Then again... 

This plan showcases Walter's improving ability to apply emotional guidance in real time once again.  I am reminded of his brief Shakespeare performance in 2.11 The Old College Try where he was able to express emotion through acting even though he didn't relate to it.  He watched Shakespeare videos all day to prepare for his role as an acting coach during a mission.  We see this as well last Halloween (3.06 Bat Poop Crazy) where he uses Paige's feelings about family to aid during his immigration audit with Happy.  The moment also shows why his plans to win Paige via intellect never worked last year.  He tried to appeal to her better nature through means to which she did not relate and disregarded advice to the contrary.  So I am EXTREMELY EXCITED to see where this goes!  I hope it even turns into a collaborative task where the team, minus Paige, learns about his plan through some impromptu means (e.g., handwritten song lyrics on his desk, practicing with his guitar) and gives pointers for comedic effect!  Who knows?!  This song could be so successful that it becomes their "song"!!!  The eventual moment could be so awesome that it beats the end Waige scene of 2.15 Da Bomb as my all-time favorite! 😍😍😍💙💙💙😍😍😍  ¡VAMOS WALTER!  ¡Sí se puede!  ¡Dánoslo!  

Drabbles…

Walter knows exactly what he’s doing… trying to act like he’s keeping time with the music to cover listening to a lecture on his phone. Tsk, tsk, tsk…

I really like Paige’s blouse!

Sly: What the hades?! 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

Toby and Sly are cracking me up with the profiling prep for jury selection! 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

Ferret Bueller is back!!! Oh 👀 Happy is developing wearable tech and using Ferret Bueller to test its efficiency! Yay! This is totally in line with how the geniuses mobilize their talents towards a very important goal. In fact, you could say that they are very motivated to develop innovative things when inspired by a very pressing matter (e.g., Walter working on a rocket to fund research to help Megan; the team donating their paychecks to help him when her condition worsens; teaching Ralph new skills).

Dave Blakely (as Walter walks down the stairs): Now, I need your team to help me prove, or disprove, the existence of ghosts!  Walter (walking back up the stairs): They don’t exist. Disproven. I will send you our bill. 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂💀

Toby before the numbers… “I don’t like this idea.”  Toby after learning the job pays $20K… “Let’s catch some ghosts!” 👀😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

All the Scooby-Doo references… 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂🙌🏾

Notice how Walter defaults to Happy first when he’s trying to make a logical point. #Wappy 😉

Toby grabbing Happy’s hand during the perceived paranormal event… 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

Walter, how you gonna throw shade from the garage when you ain’t even there?! 😒 He is in so much trouble with Paige. 👀😂😂😂

Cabe and his habitat suggestions for FB…poor Cabe 😢😢😢

Oh lordt! Walter makes things worse with his acknowledgement of wrongdoing… *facepalm*

Toast crusters joke… 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂💀💀

The FollowShip representative is the new “Not Good” Happy. 😂😂😂😂😂

I am confused about the connection of these multiple extension cords.

Producer Dave is a hoot! 😂😂😂

I’m with Paige. Why does everyone look at her weird when she knows something? I mean, she’s only been working with you guys for the past 3.5 years! 👀 She has her moments. Let her have them! 🙌🏾

Happy beating the barrel top… 😍😍😍😍

Where did Paige get her idea? Flow dynamics lecture that she listened on her own time. Ooh BURN!!! How you like dem apples, Walter?! 😂

Did anyone notice that the stain on Sly’s shoulder is different towards the end of the mission? #gaffe Lol! 😉😂

Walter the Halfshirt… 😂😂😂😂😂😂 But real talk, only 25% of his shirt was ripped off so maybe he is more appropriately “Walter the Quartershirt.” 😂😂😂

I like how the Halloween song was incorporated into their “save the world” plans! Now Toby agrees that it’s Wolfman! 😂😂😂😂😂😂

That “Ghost Grabbers” pilot tho… 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂💀💀

These Halloween costume ideas are totally “Scorpion on a budget” inspired! Sylvester Dodd, Esq. is the devil’s advocate, Happy is a sad sack (that still turns Toby on #KinkyQuintis), Toby is a ceiling fan since he loves them so much, and Waige is going as Rock n’ Roll with Walter holding a rock and Paige holding a dinner roll! 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂💀💀 So funny!

Maybe Walter needs to take his cue from Ralph since Ralph knows what he’s doing to appeal to his love interest, Patty Logan. Ralph’s costume is quite awesome! Early bird gets the worm! 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

It’s official! It doesn’t matter what Happy wears or doesn’t wear. Toby will forever be turned on!!! 😍😍😍😍💚💚💚😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

Is it just me or is Paige and Walter the wearer of blue pastels, or just blue hues for that matter? #wardrobeclues 💙💙💙 Btw, I am still waiting on a ship phrase, guys! I haven’t come up with a good one yet! Quintis is to “The Mighty Love Oak” as Waige is to… ??

Hello Quintis tag team! I love it! 😍💚😍💚😍💚😍💚😍

375 IQ points is in relation to Sly and Ralph. Happy needing to drive them makes sense, but Paige and Walter in tow as well. Maybe Happy is technically driving so that Walter and Paige can be together since Toby has been left behind to talk to Cabe. Or they’re probably going in two vehicles to the event. Ignore me… I’m just rambling at this point! 😂

Toby and Cabe are making me cry! 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 GIVE ME MORE!!!

[woozapooza]

Black Sails 1x01

Here we go!!! A new show!!! What a good pilot episode. So much happened, I can’t believe it’s only been one episode.

I was apprehensive about starting Black Sails because I’d been anticipating it for months and had built it up in my head. It’s the same apprehension I had starting Wynonna Earp. But once again, I have correctly judged from a tiny bit of information that a show is an excellent match for me. I’m not nearly as good as I’d like to be at following and remembering the events of shows, so after I finished the episode, I recounted as much of the plot as I could remember to myself. While doing that, I realized one thing that made it such a good way to start a show: it’s brimming with the theme of gambling, of making dangerous choices that may pay off hugely down the line or may end in disaster. Combine that with the numerous interesting characters, not to mention the fact that it’s a period drama about pirates I mean come on what’s better than that, and you’ve got the perfect recipe to make me keep watching. I hope everything in the following lil recap/review is factually correct but eh who knows.

Let’s start with Flint. The trope of angsty morally dubious loner captain dude, while cool in theory, does not always go over well for me (see Jack Harkness and Mal Reynolds, neither of whom is as questionable as Flint). But I think in Flint this trope (which probably has a name, or at least is an amalgam of a few tropes that have names) may finally work for me, and I’m not just saying that out of ginger solidarity, nor just because aesthetically Flint is #goals. Flint has been “gambling” for months before the show even starts: he’s been going after ships that don’t seem like good targets because he thinks they’ll lead him to the jackpot, the Urca de Lima. The result of him keeping his plan secret from the crew is low morale and the threat of mutiny. Flint has to walk the line between keeping the crew satisfied and pursuing a goal that will more than make up for the toll its pursuit takes. He fails to walk this line, but Singleton’s mutiny gives Flint the opportunity to change tactics while still very much gambling: by accusing Singleton of stealing the Urca’s schedule, he gets to fight and kill Singleton (he also had to bet on Singleton choosing a duel over a trial, but I’m assuming he knew Singleton well enough that it wasn’t a risky bet) and pretend to recover the schedule from Singleton’s corpse. Until he produced the blank sheet of paper, I really couldn’t guess whether he actually suspected Singleton or he was just looking for an excuse to put down the mutiny. I didn’t expect the trick with the blank paper. Flint may be the main character but you can’t always see into his head, so I expect he’ll be a lot of fun to watch. I enjoy his cleverness, his ruthlessness, and his moments of vulnerability. I’m still unsure whether he meant it at all when he apologized to the crew for keeping secrets from them. I’d like to think it wasn’t a complete lie, even though it was also a ploy to get them to like him again, but it’s not like he’s stopped lying to them. He has his crew’s loyalty back—fortunately he was right to gamble that Billy would play along and pretend Singleton really did have the schedule—but it will only last so long before they realize he doesn’t have it. He also has to hide the fact that Guthrie, who was key to getting the ship, is a) under arrest and b) so far, unwilling to help. Will Flint get the schedule for realsies before the crew figures out that he lied to them again?

Lying now and hoping he’ll have the means to make up for it later is not the worst thing Flint does in this episode. It’s the killing of Singleton that really shows that he’s not a straightforward hero. I wouldn’t say mutiny justifies murder, but then again I’m not a pirate. I also wouldn’t say theft merits the death penalty, but that’s how pirates do. What I’m getting at is, Flint may do questionable things (like, in addition to the very fact of piracy), but he’s not the only one. I guess pirates have their own morality and just because Flint does things I wouldn’t do doesn’t mean he doesn’t have some kind of code. He even acknowledges, speaking to Billy, that pirates have a way of life that makes sense to them but not to mainstream people (I know I’m making pirates sound like hipsters but it was the first phrasing that came to mind): “men who keep what is theirs and fear no one.” 

Speaking of Billy the boatswain, I really like him as well, and not just because he’s played by Tom Hopper. His type of gambling has to do with how much of his faith and loyalty he’s going to put into Flint. He pretends that Flint was correct to accuse Singleton of theft, but he’s by no means a sycophant. When Flint is brutally interrogating Richard Guthrie and tells Billy to point the gun at Guthrie, Billy has no problem pointing it at Flint instead. So if Billy is playing along with Flint’s scheme, he must have weighed the options and decided this was best. Billy, like Flint, thinks, speaks, and acts for himself. Also, he looks like Tom Hopper.

Silver is a bit of a weird character because he’s to some extent our point-of-view character, but he’s also absent for large parts of the episode. Regarding his role as the audience stand-in, it was cool to show him discovering all the information about the Urca de Lima at the same time that Flint’s voiceover was explaining the same information. Regarding Silver’s personality, I really enjoy his unapologetic selfishness and self-preservation. Everyone on the show has their ways of looking out for themselves, and for Silver, that happens to mean hiding below deck, killing the cook (in self-defense, to be fair), stealing the Urca’s schedule because he knows it’s valuable even though he doesn’t know why, and pretending he’s a cook so he gets to join the crew of the Walrus (I’m looking forward to find out whether he actually can cook). But when Flint kills Singleton, do I dare see in Silver’s face a hint of remorse that his actions might have gotten someone killed, or do I need to be more cynical? Anyway, his main gamble is to hold on to the schedule rather than hand it over to Flint. He also has to make the gamble to trust Max.

Max, who is pretty mysterious so far but very alluring, likewise has to gamble to trust Silver. I like their dynamic—good teamwork from two blatantly self-interested people. Her acquisition of the schedule parallels how Silver got it: he could tell the cook really wanted to hold onto it, she could tell he really wanted to hold onto it. Both of them are clearly good at identifying where profit lies and getting there. Silver says that when he sees an opportunity for gain, he can’t help but take it; when given the chance to back out of a partnership with him, Max isn’t tempted, which suggests that she is much the same. As for another of Max’s relationships, as I have said, one of the reasons I wanted to watch this show was that I knew it had quality gay/bi content and WOW it turns out they hit you with it right in the first episode! I ship her and Eleanor by default (and because of the line “Max is your harbor,” I’ve decided my ship tag will be “all I want is to be your harbor”) but their interaction was mostly sex, so I hope we get to see more depth to their relationship soon. However, one of the episode’s few tender moments was Max’s concern when she saw the bruise Vane left on Eleanor’s face, so that bodes well for her and for the two of them.

I think Eleanor might be my favorite character so far, largely because Hannah New is very attractive when she’s swearing. And in general. She gambles by funding Gates’ efforts at bribery (making their interaction also a gamble for Gates) and oops she almost won that gamble but not quite. She also has to choose between loyalty to Vane and loyalty to Flint. She chooses Flint. We’ll see how that turns out. She is undoubtedly and unapologetically self-interested, but without crossing the line into immorality. (I mean immorality relative to the show’s baseline morality.) Same goes for most of these characters, now that I think about it, including Max. In addition to their similarities, these ladies balance each other: Eleanor is gruffer but more emotional, while Max is more subtle and more sanguine. Ship ship ship.

While watching The 100 I often wondered if Roan was just a boring character or if there was an innate boringness to Zach McGowan. Now I can declare that Roan is just a boring character. Vane is not boring. He’s pretty frightening, really. Maybe ZM should just only ever play villains? I don’t know. Anyway, despite being set up as the antagonist, I’m not yet convinced that Vane is really much worse than Flint. We shall see. He’s got a plan of his own, though it doesn’t really fit the gambling theme: he tried to engineer the victory of Singleton’s mutiny so that, once the crew of the Walrus realized they no longer had a competent captain, they’d defect to Vane’s crew. That didn’t pan out since Flint took down Singleton and made up with his crew, but Vane didn’t really lose anything, at least not as far as we’ve seen. For that reason, he’s probably the character who came out of the pilot looking the least vulnerable.

Gates, like Flint, feels like a character type I have seen before: the practical, long-suffering but loyal second-in-command to the headstrong, risk-taking team leader. The only other example I can think of is Bennet Drake from Ripper Street, but I think I’ve seen it elsewhere as well. Gates is the one who puts into words the theme I’ve been talking about: he tells Eleanor that if she loans him money to ensure Flint retains the captaincy, it will be an “investment in the future.” I’m looking forward to seeing whose investments pay off and whose future wins out.

There’s a lot of conflict already, but there’s a lot of overlap of characters’ traits, I guess because they all know this piratey world quite well and what kind of person you have to be to survive and to thrive. Basically, the first episode sets up a rough world where everyone is looking out for themselves and making difficult choices that they think are for their own good but that might have explosive consequences down the line. We get a glimpse of what these characters want and what they’re willing to do to get it. Also there are pirates. What’s not to love?

WHO DOES RACKHAM REMIND ME OF? I looked up Toby Schmitz’s filmography and I don’t think I’ve see him in anything else but I swear he reminds me of someone!

Best dialogue of the episode:

Gates, to Billy: You’re a highly regarded member of this crew. The captain regards your input more than you know.

Gates, to Flint: Billy’s going with you.

Flint: Who’s Billy?

[maxbronte]

i think i accidentally deleted the super exciting message i got about this two weeks ago but here’s an explanatory guide to my tags + the source creds in case that person is still wondering!!

stuff i came up with because i couldn’t find an appropriate enough quote

╳ 𝙞'𝙡𝙡 𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝 𝙮𝙤𝙪 — 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙙𝙤𝙜 𝙩𝙤𝙤.┊re: CHARLIE KING. ▒ a play on the scooby doo villain mantra, except more wholesome.

╳ 𝙞'𝙢 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙝𝙖𝙗.┊re: BOOKER CORMAC. ▒   technically a reference to sage’s characterization of booker as “the ahab” horror trope.

╳ 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙜𝙖𝙨𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨. 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙨𝙪𝙣𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙚.┊re: THE BABES VS. BULLSHIT BRIGADE. ▒    cheesy first bit written by me and second bit is a reference to this corny pinterest pin.

╳ 𝙝𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙦𝙪𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙢 𝙦𝙪𝙚𝙚𝙣.┊ANATOMY. ▒ my tagline for this character which is now canonically a reference to the headline from a news report on the “Hooper Port Horror”

╳ 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙖 𝙡𝙤𝙩 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙙𝙞𝙧𝙜𝙚.┊PLAYLIST. ▒ b/c my max playlist is mostly grotesque creepy love songs that can be interpreted as both murder fantasies and sex fantasies all at once

╳ 𝙖 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙚𝙙𝙡𝙮 𝙛𝙪𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞'𝙡𝙡 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙤 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣.┊m: FORMER POTENTIAL VALEDICTORIAN. ▒ reference to a David Foster Wallace book + my attempt to condense her former identity into 2 words. for musings on the person she used to be, who she never can be and never wants to be again: the smart cheerleader in a mean clique. her capacity for academics has dropped severely since developing ptsd

╳ 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙗𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙛𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙝.┊m: WHEN AMITY IS THE KISS OF DEATH. ▒ first half is actually from silent hill 3 but the second half is mine, from a paragraph that got cropped out of one of my threads. the tag is for musings about max being terrified of getting close to people b/c 1) anybody could be a killer and 2) she thinks she’s an inherently toxic person who will poison anyone she touches and 3) she’s pretty sure everyone who comes near her becomes slasher fodder

stuff other people came up with:

╳  𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙛𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙠𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙪𝙥 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛.┊m: MAX BRONTE SHE’S A HUMMINGBIRD. ▒  both of these are reference to a really horrific passage in this para with @saintjimmys and it’s for musings about how max is this ‘pretty dainty bird’ with a rapid heartbeat because she’s always in a state of extreme stress, & how she used to be this pretty bird who was too fast for him to catch but now she’s all crippled and vulnerable in the palm of his hands (it’s a very creepy passage i hate it i love it)

References to outside material

╳ 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙖𝙞𝙙 𝙞 𝙠𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 — 𝙝𝙖𝙪𝙣𝙩 𝙢𝙚, 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙣.┊re: JIMMY ST. CLAIR. ▒ from wuthering heights and i just want to say that the parallels between catherine/heathcliff and jimmy/max were actually 100% accidental. sage hasn’t even read any bronte and i didn’t realize when i was naming her that gothic romance would become such a huge part of her character. the quote is extra appropriate b/c jimmy accused max of “killing” the innocent boy he used to be, and max agrees and wants him around to make her confront her guilt.

╳ 𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙩 — 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙜𝙚𝙮𝙢𝙖𝙣.┊re: THE CREEPER. ▒ reference to that iconic Halloween exchange. Laurie: “It was the boogeyman...” Dr. Sam Loomis: “As a matter of fact, it was.” im not that proud of this one im probably gonna change it  to some kind of reference to THIS

╳ 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙣𝙚𝙬𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙖𝙙 𝙣𝙚𝙬𝙨.┊re: SYDNEY WURM. ▒ from the modest mouse album title because nina is modest mouse trash and also because max and sid’s co-masochistic relationship is based on a mutual desire for punishment for their sins.

╳ 𝙚𝙨𝙘𝙖𝙥𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙖 𝙣𝙤𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖 𝙘𝙖𝙨𝙪𝙖𝙡 𝙬𝙖𝙫𝙚.┊re: MITCHELL SARKOZY. ▒ from that She Wants Revenge song everybody knows. their relationship isnt that similar to the song but the line is just to demonstrate that they just have each other as fucktoys and there’s no emotional investment whatsoever. they finish up and she’s all torn up and feeling guilty about using him as a coping mechanism for tyler’s death he’s like okay bye see you next week

╳ 𝙬𝙚'𝙧𝙚 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙨.┊re: GREY CAVERLY. ▒ reference to an emily dickinson line “i’m out with lanterns-- looking for myself.” because max and grey first met wandering through the woos while max was looking for her phone and said a line about “my whole life is on that thing can you imagine losing your whole life” but also more deeply a reference to them as co-explorers trying to find their old identities and maybe wrap their heads around their new one and their whole relationship is about adventure discovery and this was the first ever tag i was really proud of ok i know where i was going with it i just can’t explain it

╳ 𝙞 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙖 𝙛𝙡𝙮 𝙗𝙪𝙯𝙯 – 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙞 𝙙𝙞𝙚𝙙.┊m: IDENTITY MORATORIUM. ▒ from an emily dickinson poem + psychological term for a state of suspended identity. this is kind of a coupled tag with FORMER POTENTIAL VALEDICTORIAN but with more emphasis on the aspect of the person max used to be dying alongside tyler’s corpse in the church fire.

╳ 𝙠𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙚 - 𝙮𝙤𝙪'𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙣 𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧.┊re: CYPRESS BRONTE. ▒  reference to another Modest Mouse song. reference to cy wanting max to chill and her wanting him to leave her alone. second bit is a double entente: they see each other as an old friend turned weirder but they’re also both both see each other as so different from the person they grew up with that they’re basically strangers to each other

╳ 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙡 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙚 .┊BRONTE vs. WURM vs. ST. CLAIR. ▒ reference to that old idiom and plans for a future plot where sid and jimmy wind up getting along and jimmy starts kicking it with them real casually and max looks into the camera very frightened like what the fuck is happening how did i get here

╳ 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙤𝙠𝙖𝙮. 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚'𝙨 𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙫𝙖𝙡 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙨 𝙖 𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙨.┊re: RUBY KANE. ▒ from angels of the get through by andrea gibson. because max and ruby are HOT MESSES but at least theyre surviving and max just wants ruby to celebrate every tiny victory she’s proud of her

╳ 𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙣𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡.┊FLASHBACK. ▒ quote from Fright Night. because after max & co made Jimmy watch a horror movie and pranked him, he made them LIVE one, for real.

╳ 𝙤𝙝 𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩. 𝙗𝙡𝙪𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙫𝙞𝙧𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙝𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙖𝙣𝙨.┊re: JONAH B. JAMES. ▒ From a fave book Deathless. because they’re both slutty heretics in their own narratives. it actually doesn’t fit their relationship yet because they still think of each other as pure but once she finds out how filthy hi soul is it’ll be easier for her to interact with him i think. 

╳ 𝙞 𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙙. 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙙. 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙’𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙣𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙙.┊re: TYLER ROMERO. ▒  from a series of unfortunate events. self explanatory. everything turned to shit when her beloved douchey boyfriend died

&. i definitely still need tags for: -eve -terence -darby -sheila -axel -dahlia -jupiter -max's super cute parents + cat -dakota

[zenon-karr]

Idk what those tags mean! But ok now I know how to reply lmao I didn’t want to be a dick about it if you were just asking lmao. But yes @packupyourthingses has some good metas. Mostly basis is the zoom on the hand touch. Personally I wouldn’t have even seen anything more than friends if that didn’t happen plus the parallels to El. And the fact in Beyond Stranger Things they didn’t talk about their friendship; only basically Finn saying with El being he needed someone to impress so again they compare to El so it just kinda does seem that way and Mike saying the best thing he /ever/ did was ask Will to be his friend says a lot to me but again some oft his other stuff I don’t personally think have a lot of weight without the hand touch and how they zoom in on hands. They did it to Jancy, Lumax, Mileven (Jancy And Lumax both before things happened between them) and even when El is looking at Mike and Max they zoomed in on their hands so they emphasized she thought this means he likes Max. While that wasn’t really happening it was from El’s perspective and she was sure that was happening.

Byler is really subtle - I can see how some people don’t get it. But I don’t think anyone I’ve talked with thinks either of them are aware of it. So when some of us interpret stuff we kinda think things are subconscious. I’m sure there more people who can explain stuff as well. But the wording of your post is a little offputting at first because you can’t really tell if it’s hate or if you’re just asking. So I just asked you instead of blowing up. I hope that helps a little - I don’t want to debate. I’m just letting you know some quick reasons. Thanks for actually just genuinely asking btw!

good evening why are y’all shipping mike and will? where does this come from?