#I think that's just a human emotion there Trisha

[redlikelove]

lights up cigarette, takes long drag

I hate horror movie fans.

puts out cigarette immediately, leaves

[wolfjackle-creates]

Emapthy Verse

Part 7

Story Summary: Jazz is struggling as the only liminal in Gotham. Interactions with regular humans just feel so hollow when she's used to the dual sense of language and projected empathy from ghosts and liminals.

But everything changes when she literally runs into another liminal on the way to the library. Maybe she can make this work after all.

Jason just has so many questions.

Parts 1-6

Word Count: 1k

-----

Jason exited the bus at Jazz’s side in Elmerton; it looked like your average small Midwest town. Across the street from the bus station was a cafe and Jazz grinned at him as she took his hand and pulled him over to it.

“I can’t believe we’re almost home! I can’t wait for you to meet everyone.” <excited, happy>

Jason pulled on her hand to bring her closer so he could kiss her cheek. He sent back his own <happy, curious>. “You sure I’m gonna make a good impression?”

Jazz rolled her eyes. “Danny will give you a hard time. But that’s just because I’ve dated some real jerks in the past so he automatically doesn’t trust anyone I bring home. His behavior will be a reflection on me, not you.” Her <exacerbation> filled every word.

<concern, righteous anger> “Is there anyone I have to beat up? You know I’m good for it.”

She laughed and projected her <gratitude, amusement, don’t you dare>. “If you even try, I’ll kick you out to spend Thanksgiving at Wayne Manor.”

Jason shuddered. <horror> “Right, no searching out your exes.”

He felt a <delight, good to see you> that felt so different from Jazz that he stopped in his tracks. But Jazz kept hold of his hand and was waving widely with her free hand as she dragged Jason into the cafe. “Angela, Trisha! You’re here!”

Two girls—one with dark brown hair, the other with light brown hair—were waving back just as exuberantly. Both were dressed for the November chill and had rolling suitcases sitting by the corner table they’d taken.

Jason set down their bags against the wall as Jazz ran over to hug them. The strong emotions of <hello, happiness> filled the space. Jason was content to hang back and watch them, a small smile on his face.

Suddenly the lighter haired one broke the hug and spun to face him. “Woah! You just projected? Jazz, where’d you find this guy?”

Jazz grinned and settled back at Jason’s side, sliding an arm around his waist. “Gotham, can you believe it? I was so homesick and needing some good death-talk. I was maybe two weeks away from transferring somewhere that had at least two other Amity Parkers when I literally ran into him outside the public library. Instead I got to stay and got a boyfriend out of it.”

“How could you!” screamed the dark-haired one. But she was projecting <relief, happy-for-you>. “You haven’t talked to us for months! We’ve been worried about you all by yourself. And here you are, just waltzing back with a boyfriend you never bothered to mention.”As she finished, a thread of <frustration> did work itself into her emotions.

Jazz frowned and sent back <I’m sorry>. “Honestly, I wanted to. But Jason here didn’t know anything about liminality. So I didn’t want to talk about him until he got used to that. And my courses have been hell. I’ve so many projects constantly.”

<annoyance, forgiven> “Just don’t forget us again, okay? Hello, Jason. I’m Angela and this is Trisha. We’re both studying at Ohio State. We’re high school friends of Jazz’s.”

Jason shook both their hands. “I’m Jason. Not in school at the moment, but I work odd jobs around Gotham.”

“You should think about enrolling,” commented Jazz. “You’ve mentioned how you wanted to study literature when you were younger.”

Jason grimaced and knew he was failing to hold back his <uncertainty, dread>. “I’d need to finish a GED first. And my jobs are keeping me real busy. Not sure I’d be able to spare the time to go to class.”

Trisha cut through the awkwardness with a laugh and <tired>. “Well, classes are killer. I’m almost regretting going to college right now.”

Jason laughed as well <thanks>. “Honestly, seeing this one”—he nudged Jazz—“and her workload is making me reconsider my former college aspirations.”

“Mr. Baxter isn’t going to be here for another hour,” said Angela. “Get yourselves a drink and something to eat and join us.”

“Has anyone else arrived?” asked Jazz.

“Oh yeah. With your arrival, there’s a good dozen of us in Elmerton right now. No one else from our grade, though.”

Jason kissed Jazz’s temple. “Take a seat; catch up with your friends. I’ll go order us drinks. Any requests?”

Jazz sent him a wave of <gratitude>. “Tea and a scone.”

The barista’s smile was strained when he went up to place their order. But she was professional and only asked what he wanted. Behind him, he could feel the excitement between Jazz and her friends as they began debating Thanksgiving day traditions.

While waiting for their order, he heard the employee whisper to her coworker, “More Amity Parkers.” She used the same tone someone from Metropolis might say “Gothamite” and Jason bristled.

He must’ve let something leak, because Jazz, without turning to look, sent a forceful <don’t>.

Jason rolled his eyes and huffed. <fine>

She reiterated the silent order. Through their silent communication, her conversation with her friends didn’t so much as pause. But the <amusement> from the other two women was quite clear.

The barista who handed him his orders squeaked as she called out his name.

It took all of Jason’s willpower to keep from raising his eyebrow at her and give a simple, “Thanks.” If the muffled laugh from Jazz was anything to go by, though, he wasn’t as successful at holding back the <really?> that he was feeling.

Jazz had told him about Bruce’s visit. Maybe he could learn how to hold back his feelings, too.

But he pushed the thought to the side. For now, he wanted to focus on the upcoming meeting with Jazz’s family. And what better way to practice than by meeting her friends?

He sat down next to his girlfriend and flashed the other girls a smile. “So, do you have any good stories about Jazz from high school?”

They burst out laughing while Jazz feigned offense. Jazz’s friends were more than happy to tell him about the things Jazz and her brother had gotten up to during their high school years.

Jason, in turn, told them about her time in Gotham. Including the time Batman and Nightwing paid her a visit in her dorm room and freaked out her roommate. They thought it was hysterical that Jazz was now in a single because housing had no idea what else to do with her.

The hour wait for their transport passed so much more quickly than Jason had expected.

-----

Hope you guys enjoy this glimpse into Jazz's life beyond just Danny.

Updates will be sporadic, but please check out the Subscription Post if you want to be notified when I do!

[blakquill]

So im thinking about fma again, as i often do. And man i keep coming back to the scene where the elrics take a family photo.

How for the longest time on the first watch/read hohenheims face is obscured and hidden. And at that point are led to believe that hohenheim was this enigmatic, uncaring person that abandoned Trisha Ed and Al with no remorse.

But then its revealed by hohenheim himself (if i remember correctly) that when he takes the picture, Its not its not a scornful look on his face or one of distain. But Hes crying. And he looks so sad and the most emotional of the four of them.

but eventually, the viewer/reader gets to see how that came to be. How theyre not tears of sadness but something more complex and maybe even happy. Because hes 400 years old, and he finally has a family. A proper one. One that hes wanted to have ever since he was a slave. And here he is holding their oldest child. He has a wife that loves him despite the 500,000 souls inhabiting his body, dispite the fact hes bot quite human anymore. He has two sons that look just like him with golden hair and eyes that he hasnt seen in centuries outside of a mirror.

The souls of Xerxes inside him must be proud too. Its like an unfiltered twitch chat in his head. They love those boys too like they're their own too. He mustve just been so overwhelmed, so happy and so proud.

But Hohenheim sucks at showing emotions ao he looks sad. But hes feeling so much more too. And honestly. Love is probably one of the biggest emotions. But all he can do is just cry.

[cherdrine]

Relationships between Trisha and Elric brothers

Trisha Elric always cheered on Elric brothers love for alchemy and making things. They were drawn to it because they found alchemy fascinating, and Trisha totally supported them.

I think the brothers wanted to bring their mom back because they really missed having her emotional support. It makes sense: without a source of support, there is no support. But after their human transmutation failure, the Elric brothers realize something. While trying to bring their mom back, it wasn’t just her being there that mattered, it was the memory of her love, "her smile".

Now let’s picture this moment when the brothers set their house on fire. They keep practicing alchemy, but now they're not obsessed with getting their mom's smile back anymore—they already have it. It lives on in their memories and feelings, which is enough to push them forward. No matter what happens, the warmth of their mother’s love and support will always be with them.

For me, this could be called "Let It Out."

[fullmetal-scar-simping]

Dante/Sloth is a dilemma to me… From Dante’s POV her fascination is self-explanatory. But what of Sloth’s? On some level I can see her pursuing it to spite the men in her life, to show just how much she isn’t Trisha Elric. But she’d also be aware of the fact that Dante’s obsession hinges on seeing her as Trisha Elric, so she’s still fueling someone else’s perception of her in that role.

Does she just go along with it? She’s named Sloth because of her boys’ sin, but also because she’s seen as shirking her motherly duties. In some ways it’s easier to be Dante’s pawn; You have a benefactor feeding you the elusive red stones. Don’t need to worry about becoming human because that would just make you more like Trisha (Which is fine by Dante; Managing another Homunculus impatient to become human is a slog).

And you don’t need to worry about any other purpose in life because Dante will tell you what to do, and that’s all you need. She guides you, cares for you. Dare I say it… Dante is like the maternal figure that Sloth would’ve preferred to have rather than be.

Which um, oedipus complex…? Or Sloth is just accepting Dante’s “eccentricity” because she’s done the calculus and has decided she’d rather pay that small price to continue having someone to take care of her. Perhaps Sloth is like Pride that way, and they are introduced working together under human aliases so that seems fitting.

It’s a strange, mutually(?) beneficial arrangement between Dante and Sloth. Does Sloth accept this as part of the terms because she doesn’t have the energy to fight Dante and take care of herself afterwards? And there’s nobody else like her out there? Or does she genuinely consider that she’ll have to kill Dante too in order to eliminate her past, because Dante is too linked to her husband to ignore?

Ooh, I'm enjoying your take on this ship, even with them posing as a dilemma. Leaning into that dilemma with the pragmatism of Sloth's survival, eventually fracturing into Sloth's murderous rejection of Dante's projection of Trisha onto her gas flavour. The potential oedipal-adjacent roles they inhabit in this interpretation of their toxicity, especially since Dante herself is not maternal (not to Envy, not with anyone)-! The image of this dead mother who rejects that previous-self so thoroughly that she's remade into the passive, dependent daughter Dante never had. An emotional and psychosexual punching bag against Hohenheim, rendered fully dependent on her 'mother' to care about her and make her world for her. She's orphaned by her children, themselves her progenitor (an inversion of the mother who births her children; the children birthed her). So, orphaned, Dante takes her into this "orphanage".

I personally never considered whether Sloth would view messing around with (or lbr being messed around by) Dante as her own revenge against Hohenheim. In some ways I almost see Sloth as being nearly indifferent to him (not fully, but nearly). Something to think about! As for Dante, we never see overt disdain for Trisha from her in canon, though it's hard to imagine she doesn't hold some contempt towards her. So it's easy (and fun) to have her intersperse her feelings around Hohenheim's new dead wife at the homunculus she now owns.

To circle back to this leading to Sloth ending Dante for her own liberation fron Trisha's past: it's poetic, and who doesn't love Dante's malevolence coming back to destroy her in the end?

I went into my own interpretation of this ship in this reblog [here]. For me, I see Sloth's perspective of this quagmire of a "relationship" as being informed by an emotional and almost human connection made while she was still fresh and suffering in her initial form. That Dante's manipulation started -immediately-, with the addition of Dante's disturbing treatment of women spliced into the mix. Like the intimacy is formed from that rescue of Sloth's body from horrific circumstances (and her mastery over alchemy) gives Dante ownership over Sloth in all conceivable ways. Sloth's depressive pit informs her passivity in the relationship, but I'm seeing that additional dependence with an existential-level of ingratiation. It may contort into the most fucked facsimile of "love" on Sloth's (maybe even Dante's?) end after enough time spent being treated cruelly-and-tenderly while being physically rehabilitated.

Sloth does not want for destiny or filial but she'll exist as per Dante's plots and whims. Dante may command her into whatever role she sees fit, nearly mirroring her creation as a being for other's benefit, but at least with Dante it's more malleable than what that pair of brothers wanted of her. Maybe Dante's control over her strangely doesn't feel like the kind of mockery that seeing Trisha's children makes her feel. Dante sees no worth in Trisha's family and neither does Sloth.

The thing that makes a 'new' ship fun is feeling out all the intricacies, conundrums, potential, and even dead-ends that can arise. Making it work narratively is half the point, the horny bullshit being the other big draw imho.

[kayssweetdreams]

The Perfect Finale Ch29

Meanwhile, Back in Wonderworld...

Yin was INFURIATED. Not only did he still not know where Wonderworld's heart was, but now he couldn't even return to the real world and find the pink haired brat. He mentally kicked himself. He may have despised the Wonderworld for kicking him out, but he never thought that the theater would actually collapse in on itself. Now it would be impossible to go after them.

He took his anger out on the Tower of Tims, reducing it to nothing but a pile of rubble. "Now Yin. Be patient. They'll have to come back eventually..." Prim said in a monotone voice. He glared at her, but she did have a point. Those who lived in Wonderworld couldn't last long outside of the theater. Sooner or later, they'd have to find another way to get back in. "You're right. In the meantime. I think a little redecorating is in order..." He said, his eyes glowing red once more...

Meanwhile, Back at the Montgomery Home...

Everyone paled at Project X. It would seem that Yin's lust for power had now trickled its way into wanting to control the real world as well. "If I thought that Yin wasn't bad before. I do now..." Haoyu muttered as he gazed at the blueprint for the Purifier. "Well. Let's not lose ALL hope! He still needs the heart. Something of which he still can't find." Emma said.

"Yeah, but WE don't know where the heart is either. And even if we did. We can't get back into Wonderworld right now, with the theater being...out of commission." Yuri said, wording the sentence carefully around Balan and Lance, who were still mourning the loss of the theater. "Um, Guys." Kaylo started, but it was drowned out by Lucy "Darling, even if we could get back to Wonderworld, we're still dealing with a bloodthirsty Yin, who would very much like to destroy us." she said.

"Guys..." Kaylo said again, but once again, her voice was muted by the sound of Cal mentioning "Not only that, but Balan and Lance are no longer maestros, but humans. So we have no way to tip the scales in our favor!" he said. That's when something awoke in Kaylo. She couldn't tell whether it was her own emotions, or the recent events causing her to lash out, but she found herself screaming out

"EVERYONE SHUT UP!!"

In that shout, something extraordinary happened. The room that they had all gathered in had completely transformed into a wide-open field. The group looked on in awe. The only time that had happened was when they were in Wonderworld. It didn't only effect the room as well, as those that lived in Wonderworld felt power surge through them like never before.

The Tims grew fluffier and started chirping with joy, The Negati's symbols began glowing and pulsating, the costumes powers all activated at the same time, the Negabosses actually returned to their normal sizes and forms, even Balan and Lance briefly returned to their true maestro forms. The humans looked in awe at what had happened, when Mei noticed something was happening to Kaylo at the same time.

Her normally pink eyes turned rainbow and gained red music notes, and her pink hair grew longer and fluffier, all the while a rainbow aura surrounded her. Just then, it all stopped. The room returned to normal, and the costumes once again couldn’t use their abilities, as Balan and Lance turned human again. Everyone in the room slowly turned to Kaylo, who's eyes and hair returned to normal as she took a deep breath.

"What I wanted to tell you is. I have the heart of Wonderworld."

Mei belongs to @sundove88

Rebecca belongs to @thehyperrequiem

Trisha Jane belongs to @lovelyteng

Aria belongs to @shadowqueen402

Lora Jade belongs to @alex-frostwalker

[shadowqueen402]

Amaunts Fatale: Part 40

(Meanwhile back with Balan and Lance)

The two watched as Wizeman went down. "NOOO!" He bellowed as he had finally been defeated. "THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!! I AM THE GOD OF NIGHTMARES!!!" Balan and Lance had since returned back to their normal forms.

"Forget it, Uncle," Balan said. "You will not cause any more trouble!"

"Fools!" Wizeman retorted. "Don't think that you have easily won! I still sent Reala to capture NiGHTS and your allies!"

"Is this one sick joke?" Lance demanded. "If so, you are one huge sorry bloke!"

"Bold of you to assume that I was joking," Wizeman said. "While you two were busy fighting me, you both failed to notice that Reala had…gotten away. That was because I gave him orders to capture NiGHTS and your allies." He let out an evil chuckle. "You two may have fought me, but you have not won the war. As for Jackle, he was supposed to stop you. But he had to be foolish enough to fall in love with a human."

Balan and Lance looked at each other, nodded, and then went to Lance's hideout.

(Meanwhile back at Lance's hideout)

Everyone backed away upon seeing Reala. But the Nightmaren General focused on NiGHTS and the group. "Ah, NiGHTS," He said to them. "I see you're in our cousin's hideout, hanging out with your little friends."

"Reala, what do you want?" NiGHTS demanded. "Didn't you bother us enough the last time we fought!?"

"Now, now." Reala flew a bit closer to the group. "That's no way to treat your sibling, is it? Master Wizeman had ordered me to bring you and your friends back to him. I will definitely do so. He's grown really impatient with your defiance."

"We're not going with you," NiGHTS retorted. "So you can forget about it!"

"Why you little—!" Reala growled before charging at the group. But Aria immediately shielded NiGHTS and fixed Reala with a stern stare.

"Reala, stop!" Aria ordered. "NiGHTS has made it quite clear that they don't want to go back to Wizeman!"

Reala growled, feeling a mixture of emotions. "Out of my way, Visitor!" Reala demanded. But Aria refused to budge. She even pulled out her revolver for self-defense.

Reala trembled as he tried to move. But the feelings he felt for Aria were stronger than his desire to complete Wizeman's task. With a huff, and to everyone's surprise, Reala gave up.

"Aria, how did you do that?" Leo asked.

"I never would have expected Reala to just easily give up," Kaylo said. "Doesn't he usually keep on pursuing until he gets what he wants?"

"Yes," NiGHTS said. "I am curious to know how Aria was able to stop him."

With a bitter tone, Reala spoke. "You obviously weren't listening to what Jackle said earlier. I have…grown a liking…to Aria." Kaylo, Trisha Jane, Rebecca, Debbie, Mei, Marina, Leo, and NiGHTS gasped. Aria blinked, genuinely shocked at the revelation.

But before anyone could reply, a familiar voice spoke to them.

"What's this I hear? Reala has a crush on someone I hold dear?"

Kaylo belongs to @kayssweetdreams

Trisha Jane belongs to @lovelyteng

Rebecca belongs to @thehyperrequiem

Mei and Marina belong to @sundove88

Debbie belongs to @mayordebbie

Aria belongs to me.

[the-catmans-offical-2]

I think people tend to overlook Al's struggles. Just because you can't see it, just because his demeanor is typically shown to be that of a happy child; He is suffering damn near if not worse than Ed.

He got his body stripped from him, he can't preform daily tasks that humans need to do to even feel a semblance of normalcy. He doesn't need to breathe, eat, sleep, he can't show emotion, he can't cry, he can only piolit the vessel of which his soul is encased in.

He doesn't blame Ed, I find that very clear. I think, similar to how Ed blames himself for all of this occurring, that Al blames himself for being in this predicament. He believes it's his fault for not saying no to Ed, to not telling him that it was a bad idea. Al also probably feels guilt for not being able to remember much about Trisha and before the human transmutation that led him to be bonded to the armor.

At the end of the day they were both grieving children who longed for one of the only people in their life who loved them. They both did something that changed their lives forever and they're both struggling to com to terms with that in their own ways. They're even struggling to try and solve this problem, with constant research and leads when Ed joins the military.

Anyway that's my TED talk, I'm gonna explode now.

Fullmetal Alchemist Gaiden/Side Story- Nagaiyo/Long Night by Hiromu Arakawa

I know I reblogged a post of this story once, but I could not find it in my tags and it was very hard to find it via google (but I did!). It was also never officially translated or made available in the US. So I decided I’d just do a new post and properly tag it. 

This is a very sweet and heartwrenching little story everyone should have a chance to enjoy. These kids are the best family.

[atiplumbob]

Astrology Observations #4

🧿Gemini rising/sun as children talk a LOT. Like y’all don’t shut up😭😭 but are also very intelligent at a young age or hyperactive, and get bored easily (I know that’s common among children but Gemini placements as children are WAYYYY more hyper compared to other kids).

🧿Gemini MCs are either perceived as intelligent by the public or controversial. (Ex. Trisha Paytas with her Gemini MC and Mark Zuckerberg).

—> One thing a lot of people don’t realize about Virgo risings is that they’re great actors and can be just as versatile as Libra/Gemini risings. They can put on a mask and easily fool people with their intentions🍒

🧿 water and fire placements are very emotional and passionate. They tend to be hard on themselves and are quite inconsistent with their emotions (Aries + Cancer placements I’m looking at you lmao)

🧿People are more attracted to people who have the same placements/sun signs as their parents. I think it has a lot to do with how humans naturally go for things or people that they’re familiar with.

🧿Taurus and Scorpios are extremely similar to each other more than other sister signs. Like with Aries and Libra, they’re very distinct but have few similarities unlike Gemini+Sag and Taurus+ Scorpio.

[calangkoh]

Recently I saw someone say brotherhood was better than 03 because of the stuff that happened to rose and that apparently 03 has p3dophiliain it?? (I'm assuming they were talking about the psiren thing or maybe Dante?? who knows)

I can understand feeling uncomfortable with the rose stuff, but it wasn't shown, just heavily implied. was it necessary? no, but still pretty realistic.

but what really gets me is that bh literally has child trisha meet adult hohenheim and its seen as like this cute moment??

anyways, sorry for ranting in your inbox about this, I know it's kinda a heavy topic and criticizing 03 is valid but not when it's just straight up hypocritical.

if the themes or vibes of 03 make people uncomfortable or depressed or anxious, or if they on the other hand just don't understand that depiction isn't glorification, then it won't be liked. im not gonna defend every narrative choice of 03 as "unproblematic" but most of those "problematic" elements i wouldn't change. i like the way things were presented. but no nothing was perfect and there are lots of things you could argue were necessary or not. you said it yourself with rose. not necessary, but i think the pros outweighed the cons with including her at the end of 03.

but also yeah the psiren episode was a little uncomfortable lmao.

dante on the other hand who i love to talk about even though it's hard to talk about her a lot because of this topic, i wouldn't change. i actually have a lot to say on dante's role in this ask [and as usual i lost sight of the initial topic and just ranted about something tangentially related go figure]....i see her plan as more symbolic than literal, where she was was so deluded by her worldview --she separates herself so much from humanity, looks down on it, isolates herself and considers herself superior, even tho she's ruled by basic human impulses and feelings herself, so used to seeing humans as simply pawns, and yet a huge romantic deep down who was once fueled by love in even her most disgusting actions, and when she's rejected by hohenheim it sends her in a downward spiral. in come ed and rose and dante sees two pawns she can recreate something she had long ago before she became this monster through them. it's not about ed, specifically, it's about wanting to use him and rose to fabricate something she once had. dante comes across as a villainous mastermind, and uh, yeah she is, but, she also is vulnerable and deeply emotional. she just won't confront it directly, and would rather run away and avoid in these contrived ways. it's actually a way she mirrors ed, who also tends to avoid confronting his issues and puts up a tough and rational face as he acts extremely emotional and irrationally.

anyway, not excusing the choice of having dante imply she was gonna fuck ed or defending it as "okay," but the opposite. i agree it was a bad and deeply uncomfortable choice.....and it elevated the character. kinda like how sometimes to develop a character, you paradoxically have to make them act out of character in a certain situation. objectively/on paper, a "bad" choice, but it actually deepens the character and the emotional impact.

back on topic like with the bh moment....idk yeah i thought that framing was weird. honestly you can pick any piece of media apart for problematic elements, scenes like that, and it can be fun. i pick apart brotherhood a lot. just remember there's a difference between thinking critically about media you consume and just looking for any excuse to label something you don't like as "problematic" so you can "cancel" it. this often goes both ways with the 03 vs fmab debate and there's no winning. 03 is problematic, fmab is problematic, im problematic, let's just cancel everything and then nothing will be truly cancelled how bout that. so in all seriousness, i wouldn't give too much weight to people who will be like "oh that piece of media? i dont like it [whether or not ive seen it]. it's problematic."

[shortysquadpresident]

First and foremost I want to reiterate that I am by no means a stan of Trisha Paytas. I’m aware of the problematic things they say and do and don’t condone or want to dismiss any of that. That being said, they were not the one at fault in this situation and I’m not going to sit by and let Ethan get away with emotional manipulation and gaslighting. These were my point-by-point thoughts as I was watching his vid.

Ethan complaining about the production of Frenemies as though he isn’t running A PRODUCTION COMPANY LMFAO

Trish was maybe saying they want to take on a bit more responsibility. They want someone on the production team representing or at least looking out for exclusively them. Your crew is there for you, Ethan. They’re your fans, you weirdo. Trish was saying “I get out voted by YOUR crew because they’re not here for me or the whole show of Frenemies, they’re here for you and your approval.” Ethan is running a production company, what it seems like Trish was asking for is someone to advocate for them. Hire someone for HR dipshit.

And the manipulative way he sent a text to his crew saying “Trisha wants you fired. Oh also will you go do a shoot” like?? Intentionally putting a negative emotional context on Trish before asking for a work related thing??? And THEN CALLING TRISH UNPROFESSIONAL?! LMFAO You know what is unprofessional? Emotionally manipulating your employees before directing them to do a work related task that you explicitly said later in this video was already planned and upcoming.

Yes it is totally a legitimate complaint that Trish is continuously pointing out your Tourette’s or calling things you do is Tourette’s. You also regularly bring up the candlestick in the ass thing after they’ve repeatedly asked you not to talk about. You both are continuously pushing each other’s boundaries. It isn’t right, but you both do that. Dr Drew said as much when y’all had him on the show.

Ethan you’re complaining an awful lot about producing a show for someone who OWNS A PRODUCTION COMPANY I’m dying lmfao

Not you saying they called YOU “Jewy.” They called themselves that. They shouldn’t have said it at all. For Ethan to say that Trish called him that is a lie. Viewers can see the discrepancy between the texts and what he said but people who are only listening aren’t going to know that. More of Ethan manipulating the viewership.

You literally said ON FRENEMIES in one of the earlier shows that y’all had purchased a building before Frenemies so why would you say you “bought it for Frenemies”?

All this video told me is Ethan has been bending to Trish’s will this whole time because “hopefully it’ll pay out big for us!” And now that you feel you’re going to lose all this money on the merch now you’re going to vocally resent them as opposed to silently resenting them lmfao

Ethan is complaining that Trish puts nothing into the production of the show but then actively denying their input is a control issue. Which is it, Ethan? Do you want Trish to have more input and pull their own weight or do you want to just keep having control over the production? Either Trish is a 50/50 partner on the show creative decision-wise or you are essentially their boss and they just have to show up and perform.

Ethan said when Frenemies started that “I provide the money, all you have to do is show up.” Trish was intended to be the spectacle for this show he has created, produced, and co-starred in.

I genuinely think this show did a lot to humanize both of them to the public. To show people that Ethan and Trisha separately aren’t just the internet dramas that they find themselves in or celebrities worthy of scrutinization, but actual human beings with mental illnesses who make mistakes and grow and learn. I would say Trish has learned and grown a lot just from being on this show but I can’t say I’ve seen the same growth in Ethan. So for Ethan to say “well this all happened in part because of her mental illnesses” just serves to further stigmatize mental illness and shift any of the blame off of himself.

[worryinglyinnocent]

Fic: Safe and Sound

Summary: After discovering the horrific truth of Tucker’s experiments, Mustang faces a race against time to get Nina to safety and away from a life in a government lab. Out of ideas, he calls in the Elric brothers, independent alchemists of the people whom he knows to have an interest in human transmutation, and more specifically, reversing it. 

Determined to do what they can for her, Ed, Al and their mother provide a safe home for Nina, and over time, they work out how to help her back to her normal state.

Rated: T

Safe and Sound

“It’s a mess, sir.”

Roy looked out of the window at the rain teeming down outside the Tucker home. Hawkeye’s blunt summation of the situation hardly did it justice, but he couldn’t think of a more apt term to use. He turned to Tucker, who still seemed unable to see what he had done wrong in the name of scientific advancement, and he felt the anger begin to burn through his veins once more, even hotter than when he had first entered the place and realised with sickening horror what Tucker had done, and what he must have done two years prior as well.

He strode across the room, grabbing the front of Tucker’s shirt and lifting him bodily out of the chair he had been sitting in whilst Fuery had recorded his statement and confession.

“Colonel.” Hawkeye’s voice was sharp, and Roy glanced over at her. She was kneeling in the corner, next to the chimera (Nina, her name was Nina, she gave him a flower crown the last time he was here), who was watching the scene with wide eyes.

“Don’t hurt Daddy,” Nina pleaded in that low, uncanny, unreal voice, slow and pained but every bit in earnest. The anger in Roy’s blood roiled afresh, and his grip on Tucker’s shirt tightened.

“Lieutenant, get her out of here. Take her out the back way and get Havoc to sneak her into HQ.”

“Daddy…”

“Come on, Nina,” Hawkeye coaxed. “We need to go now. We need to get you somewhere safe.”

“Daddy…”

“Colonel Mustang needs to talk to your daddy, Nina. Come with me. Are you hungry?”

Hawkeye guided Nina out of the room. Once the door was closed and he could no longer hear the lieutenant’s soft cajoling, Roy sank his fist into Tucker’s face. It did not make him feel any better. He hadn’t expected it to. 

He let Tucker back down into his chair, leaving the room as Fuery completed the final bits of paperwork.

He needed to work out what to do about Nina. If anyone got word of her, she’d be locked up in a lab and experimented on as an alchemical freak of nature for the rest of her life. He needed to keep her safe, and if there was the slightest chance of getting her and Alexander back to normal, then he had to pursue it.

Roy was not in his area of expertise here. Human experimentation, bio-alchemy, the many varied and illegal and impossible forms of human transmutation - none of that had ever been in his remit and he had never had any desire for it to be. He ran a hand through his hair, desperately trying to think of a solution. Smuggling her into HQ was only a temporary measure and not a perfect one at that; there was still so much that could go disastrously wrong. He needed to get Nina out of sight and out of mind as soon as possible, hiding her away where the military would leave her alone.

A thought struck him and he moved through the house towards the telephone, dialling Falman at headquarters.

“Falman, can you find out if the Elrics are still in town?”

“Yes, sir. On it.”

Roy had first come across Edward and Alphonse Elric four years ago, when news of a couple of young but extremely talented alchemists researching human transmutation and Philosopher’s Stones had come to him through the state alchemist grapevine. With the military always interested in those with an interest in the alchemic taboo, Roy had been despatched to take a look at the lay of the land as regarded the Elrics, and potentially recruit them.

He hadn’t reckoned on their being quite so young, just eleven and ten years old, and he absolutely had not reckoned on their mother. Trisha Elric was a tiny, frail-looking woman with perpetually pale blue-tinged lips and a constant cough from the Frontline Flu that had almost killed her in ‘04, and she was a force of nature who had told Roy in no uncertain terms that her sons’ interest in Philosopher’s Stones was highly personal and that there was no way in hell they were becoming state alchemists despite the research opportunities it would afford them. 

Roy had reported back that the Elric brothers were a dead end, and had left them in peace to follow their own research, whilst still keeping an eye on them every time they came to Eastern City to the large library there.

With their secretive nature, their no-nonsense mother and their persistent interest in human alchemy, Roy held out the tiniest hope of Nina’s best chance being with the Elrics. 

Hell, anything was worth a shot at this stage.

“Sir?”

“I’m listening, Falman.”

“The Elrics are still in town, sir. They’re in a guesthouse by the station.”

“Thank God. Get someone to try and persuade them to come to HQ.”

“Will do, sir. And, erm, Ms Elric?”

“She’s here too?”

“Yes, sir.”

Roy sighed. “Probably best if she comes too.”

“Yes, sir.”

He hung up, winging up a prayer that this hunch would pay off.

X

“So…” Ed stretched out his legs, uncaring for who in Eastern Command might trip over them as they waited for Mustang to make an appearance and tell them why they were there. “What do you think the Bastard Colonel wants us for this time?”

“Edward.” The sigh that his mother gave was a long-suffering one rather than showing any real disapproval, and he could see that she was trying very hard not to smile.

“What? You call him the Bastard too!”

“Not in his place of work, I don’t.”

“Officer Falman was really quite apologetic when he picked us up,” Al mused. “Maybe something’s gone terribly wrong and they need us to fix it. You know. Someone outside the military.”

Mom raised an eyebrow. “If that’s the case, they’d be better off picking anyone other than you two. You’d hold it over them as blackmail material for the rest of their lives. Honestly, I don’t know where you got your devious streak from. It wasn’t your dad, which leaves me with the uncomfortable conclusion that it must be from me.”

“Where do you think Dad is right now?” Al asked. “It would be just our luck if he chooses this weekend to come home and we’re not there. I can imagine him going over to Granny’s: ‘Pinako, I swear I had a wife and two children when I left but I appear to have misplaced them.’”

Mom laughed, but Ed didn’t respond. Although he now knew the full story of why Dad had left, the fact he’d left in the first place still rankled even now, and he knew that he would continue to view his father with mixed emotions until the man himself was back in the flesh and could answer for his own actions. Still, that hadn’t stopped him and Al from setting out on the current quest that had occupied them for the last four years, namely finding a way to get Dad back to normal so that when he did return, he and Mom could live a vaguely ordinary life together.

“I’m really sorry about all this.” Falman appeared in the corridor again. “It’s just that we’ve got a bit of a… situation.”

Ed raised an eyebrow as they got up to follow him, deciding to reserve judgement. Falman led them into Mustang’s office, where the rest of the team was clustered around the colonel’s desk with nervous expressions.

“Ok… Anyone want to tell us what’s going on?”

Mustang came over. “We have a situation that requires some discretion.”

Mom snorted. “You picked the wrong two for that.”

“I think when you see what we’ve got, you’ll agree with me.”

Intrigued, Ed approached the desk and peered under it. 

It looked like a dog, on the face of it, although it appeared to have some kind of mane of long dark hair, and there was something about the eyes and mouth that didn’t look quite right.

“Chimera?”

Mustang nodded.

“I’m guessing the majority is from a dog, but what’s it fused with?”

Mustang didn’t get the chance to respond before the chimera spoke, a soft, desperate whimper.

“I want Daddy.”

Ed’s blood ran cold. “Someone chimerised a human child?”

“Yes.” Mustang’s voice was deadly serious. “This is Nina Tucker. Her father decided to create a chimera capable of human speech. He’s in jail now.” He gave a heavy sigh. “If anyone gets wind of this, she’ll be shut up in a military lab for the rest of her life. We’re giving out that Tucker’s chimera didn’t survive the transmutation to try and buy us some time. This is the reason why I wanted you to see her. I know that you two are probably the leading state-independent researchers of human transmutation right now. If anyone can help her, you can.”

Ed looked at Al, who was staring at Nina with sad horror, and then at his mom, who was having a coughing fit. Falman brought her some water.

“Mom? You ok?”

She nodded, before slowly, deliberately, getting down on her knees and shuffling under the desk.

“Hey Nina,” she said gently. “My name’s Trisha. How old are you, honey?”

“Six.”

“You’re scared, huh?”

Nina nodded. “Want Daddy.”

“Your daddy can’t come, honey. He did something very, very bad, so he has to go away for a while.”

“A very long while,” Ed muttered.

“Don’t be scared, though,” Mom continued. “We’ll look after you, me and Ed and Al.” She reached out, carefully brushing Nina’s hair out of her eyes. “It’ll be all right, I promise.”

She was just being Mom. In her eyes, Nina was just a scared little kid. Mom didn’t see the alchemy or the implications. She just saw someone who needed a family to keep her safe.

Ed crouched down beside her. “Hi Nina. I’m Ed, and this is Al. We’ll get you sorted out, don’t worry.” He had no idea where he would even begin, but he had to do something to help her out. 

Nina looked at Trisha. 

“You… Ed Mommy?”

“Yeah, I’m Ed’s Mommy. Why don’t you come with us now, and we’ll take you home, somewhere nice and safe and quiet.”

Nina nodded slowly, and Mom looked up at Mustang. 

“I’ll look after her,” she said. “She’ll be safe and off the grid in Resembool. I can’t say we can help her, that’s up to the boys to decide what they’re prepared to try and what they’re capable of doing. But I’ll look after her, and in return, you make sure that the monster who did this never sees the light of day again.”

Ed was beginning to see why Mustang was scared of Mom.

X

The frenetic logistics of getting Nina home with them without being discovered by the military at large took a while to sort out, and Trisha couldn’t rest easy until she was safely behind her own front door. Winry and Pinako had been brought in on their secret, it would have been near impossible to keep it from them.

Actually looking after her proved to be just the same as taking care of any other child - she was just a little larger and more unco-ordinated. From the moment that she had seen Nina and decided that no matter what, she was going to take care of her, Trisha had not really given any thought to the difficulties that might be involved in caring for a chimera. At the end of the day, Nina was a little girl and Trisha intended to treat her like one, even if she didn’t exactly look like a little girl. 

She required a little more concentration than the boys had done, because whilst she could speak, full sentences were difficult simply because of the shape of her mouth, so articulating her needs wasn’t as simple as it could have been. But she would eat at the kitchen table with them if one of them spoon-fed her, and she loved to watch the boys practice their alchemy and listen to the bedtime stories they would weave her. 

Occasionally the odd trait that was definitely dog rather than human would forcibly remind Trisha that Nina was two beings in one now - most notably she preferred to sleep curled up behind the couch in the living room rather than in a bed - but generally, Nina was the daughter she’d never had. 

“Dad could fix her,” Al said one evening whilst they were sitting around after dinner. Nina was dozing, her head in Trisha’s lap. They’d taken to braiding her mane to keep it out of her eyes, and she’d decided on blue ribbons today. Trisha stroked the silky ends through her fingers. “I mean, he’s a Philosopher’s Stone, he should be able to do anything, right?”

“He probably could,” Ed agreed. “The difficulty would be finding him and explaining the situation. We haven’t known where he is for ten years, tracking him down now to break off from his quest and come home to un-chimerise a chimera wouldn’t exactly be the easiest solution.”

“Yeah.” Al sighed. “I guess it’s back to the drawing board and Dad’s books. I don’t really recall any of them talking about chimeras, but then, we weren’t really looking for any information about them.”

Trisha coughed, startling Nina out of her doze, and she looked around for a while. 

“Big brother Ed?”

Ed grinned. Trisha was surprised at how quickly Nina had decided on Ed as a surrogate big brother, but he was definitely the person that she seemed to have latched onto as her link into the family. Ed was Big Brother. Al was usually just Al. Trisha was Ed-Mommy. (Occasionally, when she woke up crying from nightmares, she was just Mommy, and Trisha would hold her as close as she possibly could.)

“Hey Nina.”

“Where’s Daddy?”

The grin dropped as quickly as it had appeared on his face. 

“Your daddy had to go away, Nina.”

“No… Ed-Daddy.” Trisha followed her sight-line over to the opposite wall; she was looking at her and Van’s wedding photo on the mantel. 

“Oh. He had to go away too.”

“He did bad?”

Ed snorted, and Trisha laughed. 

“I think that depends on who you ask, honey. No, Ed and Al’s daddy didn’t do anything bad. He’s travelling around the country at the moment. Ed’s daddy is a very powerful alchemist and there are some things he has to do to make sure everyone is safe. It’s sad that we don’t see him, but he’s the only one who can protect us. All of us.”

“Oh.”

They fell into silence again, until Al spoke up from the floor where he was sitting in the middle of a sea of books. 

“Maybe if we knew how Tucker did it in the first place we could reverse engineer it.”

“I guess.” Ed sighed. “I’d be afraid of making it worse, though. Sometimes I’ve thought about asking her if she can remember what happened, but I don’t want her to relive what was probably a very traumatic experience.”

“Exactly,” Trisha said. Nina’s head was resting in her lap and drowsing again. “It doesn’t matter if you can’t help her, boys. No one is expecting you to. You’re already giving her the care and love and safety that she needs, and that’s all that matters. If we do get a little girl and a large dog out of this, then that would be wonderful, but right now, Nina’s wellbeing takes priority.” 

She thought about the picture that Mustang had sent her, along with a packet of documents from the Tucker household that might be useful - birth certificate, medical records and the like. A sweet little girl and a huge, goofy-looking dog. She stroked one of Nina’s front paws sadly. Although she was mostly aware of her changed shape and size, there were the odd little moments where she forgot she didn’t have hands, and it always distressed her. Trisha wanted nothing more than for the chimerisation to be reversed and for Nina - and Alexander - to live normal lives, but if that wasn’t to be, then Trisha would just take care of the chimera for as long as she needed it. 

X

They’d settled into the routine of having Nina with them remarkably quickly, and Al was pleased by just how easily she’d become part of the family. It was very clear that Ed was her favourite, but he didn’t seem to mind that at all. It was strange, Al had never really thought of Ed as being particularly good with kids, but then again, they had never really come across all that many over the course of their research. He completely doted on Nina though, and whenever she and Mom had been making flower crowns, he would always wear the one Nina picked out as his without any complaint. 

Although he was used to Nina being around, it was still a surprise to see her bounding out of the house towards them as he and Ed made their way up the hill having been to see Winry in town.

“Ed! Big Brother Ed! Ed! Daddy’s here!”

Al looked at Ed, Ed looked back at Al, and they both started to sprint up the hill. Nina’s father was still in jail in Eastern City, there was no way he should be in Resembool, it had been given out that Nina was dead, who had spilled that she was here…

Al barrelled into the kitchen with Ed hot on his heels, and both of them stopped dead.

“Oh.”

It wasn’t Tucker. The man standing in the kitchen hugging Mom tightly was their own dad.

There was the click-click-click of Nina’s nails on the floor tiles behind them.

“Ed-Daddy,” she said proudly.

So that was what she meant.

Eventually, Mom let go of Dad and he turned to them. It must have been just as much of a shock for him to see them now, considering how small they had been when he had left. 

“I’ve been gone so long,” he said softly. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t realise how long I would be. I’ve missed so much. I’m sorry.”

“I…” Ed seemed to be having trouble taking it all in, and he shook his head. “It’s so weird. I’ve rehearsed this moment for years and now it’s here and I have no idea what to say.”

Al stumbled as Nina butted his legs and peered around him. 

Dad looked at her, curious. 

“I see our family has grown whilst I’ve been away. Hello there.”

“This is Nina.” Ed moved closer to her protectively. “She’s our little sister.”

“Big Brother Ed!”

Dad looked from Nina to Ed to Mom and back again.

“I’ll explain later,” Mom said. 

“It’s ok. I think I know what’s happened.” Dad came over, crouching in front of Nina and offering her his hand. She tentatively placed her paw in it, and he shook it gently. “It’s nice to meet you, Nina.” He smiled. “You’re like me, aren’t you? Made into something different by alchemy you had no say in.”

Al knew at that moment that he didn’t have to worry about his father not accepting Nina or not being prepared to help her. 

Much later, once Nina was asleep on her cushion behind the couch, and once Dad had explained everything that had happened over the last ten years - and before that - in his own words, and once Ed had stopped yelling at him, and once Nina’s situation had been explained, Al voiced the thought that had been at the forefront of their minds ever since Nina had come to live with them. 

“Dad, can you help her?”

 Dad didn’t reply for a long time, his brow furrowed in thought, but Al’s heart leapt to his mouth as he eventually nodded.

“Yes,” he said. “I think I should be able to, but it’s the kind of thing that I’d only get one shot at. It would have to be perfect first time, because if I get it wrong, it’ll just make it worse.”

Al looked at Ed, and then at Mom, who nodded.

“I think it’s worth the risk,” she said. “She’s the sweetest darling just as she is, but I can’t imagine what kind of internal distress she’s in, and I think she’d be happier if she was back to her old self.”

“In that case, I will do what I can.”

It took a couple of days for Dad to work out exactly what he would need to do, during which time Al was incredibly conscious of the fact that although he had come home now, he had not come home for good and there was still a lot of work that he had to do around the country in order to be prepared for the Promised Day coming and everything that would happen then. He still couldn’t quite get his head around the scope of it all, but it was a reasonably valid excuse for leaving them for so long. If something went wrong and it ended up backfiring on Dad, then what would happen to them all then? It would all be for nothing if they were doomed into a massive transmutation circle in a couple of months anyway.

Eventually, Dad announced that he was ready, and Al ventured into the study. All the furniture had been pushed back against the walls, and the most complex transmutation circle that Al had ever seen was drawn on the floor. Dad was kneeling in the middle of it, tracing out all the lines to make sure that there were no breaks. 

“This should separate her out into two separate entities again,” he said. “The souls should be able to provide the power needed for it.” 

Mom brought Nina into the room, and she shied away from the circle, hiding behind Mom’s legs. 

“Scared,” she said. Al couldn’t really blame her. The last time she’d seen a circle this large and complex drawn out on the floor was probably the time she was chimerised in the first place. 

“It’s ok, honey. I’m right here. This will make you feel a lot better, I promise.” She stepped into the circle. “Come on, Nina. I’ll be right here with you.”

“Mom, are you really sure that’s a good idea?” Ed asked. “Considering everything that could go wrong?”

Mom looked at Dad, who would have to be inside the circle as well in order for it to work. 

“I trust you,” she said simply, and she sat down, holding out her arms for Nina. 

“Scared,” Nina whimpered, but she padded across the floor and curled up in Mom’s lap. 

Dad looked up.

“Step out and close the door,” he said. “This could get disturbing to watch.”

“But…”

“Edward.” Dad’s tone was non-negotiable, and Al dragged Ed out of the study, shutting the door behind them. Ed continued to grumble for a while, but then bent down to watch through the keyhole. 

There was a deafening crack of alchemy, and bright red light flared out below the door.

X

The light was blinding, and Ed couldn’t really see much after Dad plunged his hands into Nina’s chest. The alchemy was roaring in his ears and he couldn’t hear anything useful, so he was forced to step back from the door and just hope that everything would be all right. 

It seemed to take forever. It was the kind of thing where once it was started, it couldn’t be stopped until it was done. It wasn’t a job that could be left half-finished whilst Dad took a break to get his breath back. He imagined what it must be like, having to separate out two souls and two bodies into two completely separate entities and not leave anything mixed up. 

He was glad it was Dad doing it and not him. He glanced across at Al.

“Do you think they’re all ok?”

Al shrugged, but his expression was just as worried as Ed knew his own was. 

“I guess all we can do is wait and see and trust Dad.”

“Hmm.” Ed didn’t trust his father with a lot of things, but when it came to alchemy, he couldn’t think of anyone he could trust more than Dad with something like this. 

The alchemy roared louder, and Ed could see sparks under the door. 

“That’s it. I’m doing something.”

“Ed, don’t be stupid, what on earth can you do?”

“I can do something!”

“Ed!”

Suddenly, everything was dark and silent. For better or worse, it was all over. Ed looked at Al, and after a moment, Al nodded.

Ed flung the door open...

“WOOF!”

...and was immediately bowled over by a very large, very shaggy dog. He could hear Al laughing above him, and he took that as a good sign. Finally managing to dislodge the mutt long enough to sit up, he peered into the room. 

Dad was flat on his back, drenched in sweat (or possibly dog saliva), and breathing like he’d just run the Central City marathon, but Mom was still sitting in the circle, and in her arms, clinging on for dear life, was…

“Nina, honey,” Mom said softly. “You can open your eyes, it’s all over now.”

Nina opened her eyes and looked around the room. 

“Al. Big Brother Ed. Alexander!”

She rushed over on slightly wobbly legs, throwing her arms around each of them in turn with the longest and most exuberant hug being reserved for the dog. Ed supposed he could understand that, he’d been her closest and longest friend, after all. 

Mom got to her feet and held out a hand to pull Dad up, slipping her arms around him and going in for a long kiss.

“Thank you,” she said. “Thank you so much.”

“Thank you, Ed-Daddy!” Nina did not let go of Alexander, who seemed content to be hugged for as long as necessary, but she was beaming at Dad. “You’re right, I feel much better now.”

Dad smiled. “You’re welcome, Nina.”

“Come on, Nina.” Al was trying to shepherd her out of the room, and considering how gooey and love-eyed Mom was looking, Ed was happy to leave his parents to smooch in peace for a while. 

“Let’s get some cookies for you and Alexander. It’s a good job we keep dog biscuits here for Den when Winry brings her over.”

They left the study, Ed closing the door behind them, and the four of them made their way into the kitchen.

Nina had always seemed to be remarkably content considering what had happened to her, but seeing the sheer joy in her face as she was able to hold a cookie and feed herself again was wonderful. 

“What do you think happens now?” Al asked as he poured milk for him and Nina. “The colonel asked us to take care of Nina and help her if we could, and we’ve done that now.”

“I guess everything just stays the same as it was before.” Ed snaffled another cookie. “Nina doesn’t really have anywhere else to go, so we might as well just keep looking after her. What do you say, Nina? Do you want to stay here with us?”

Nina nodded. “Yes. I like it here with you.”

“I don’t think Mom and Dad would have a problem with it. I think Mom feels outnumbered by us sometimes and she’s enjoyed having another girl in the house.”

Nina just giggled, and then gave a theatrical sigh as Alexander found his way into the box of dog biscuits and got his large nose stuck in it, running around the kitchen with it over his face like a muzzle.

“Alexander!” 

Ed laughed. “Well, I think that the latest new arrival might take a bit of getting used to, but I’m sure Mom won’t mind him either.”

(They were all so absorbed in chasing the dog around the kitchen that none of them noticed the flash of red alchemic light under Dad’s study door again.)

X

To say that everything surrounding the Promised Day had been one big frantic mess of alchemy, planning a highly organised and highly secret coup, and learning the most extraordinary things about what had been going on in the world for the last few centuries would be an understatement, but at the end of it all, Roy was simply glad to have made it out of the other side unharmed. There was an awful lot of work still to do, but with the immediate threat gone, they could take their time a little more and not have to worry about the entire country potentially being made into a giant Philosopher’s Stone at a moment’s notice. 

Speaking of Philosopher’s Stones, though… Roy thought of Hohenheim. It was a small world, after all. He had been surprised to find out that their independent benefactor who had been working behind the scenes to stop Father and the homunculi for over a decade was the Elrics’ father, and moreover that he was the reason for their intense interest in human alchemy and Philosopher’s Stone research, but having met him, everything made a lot more sense. 

Everything was also a lot more confusing, but Roy got the impression that someone like Hohenheim just created confusion wherever he went, without necessarily knowing why or indeed intending to. 

All of that explained why he was now on a train to Resembool to go and see the Elric family for himself, because after the dust had settled and Father had been defeated and Hohenheim had vanished off as suddenly as he had appeared, going back to his family for good now, a single thought had pushed itself into Roy’s brain and refused to leave. 

Nina.

She had gone with the Elrics months ago and they had promised to do what they could for her with their knowledge of Philosopher’s Stones. Now that they sort of had one to hand, surely something could be done? Or would it be impossible to undo Tucker’s work?

Roy made his way up the hill towards the Elric home, repeating the journey he’d first made five years ago when they had first come into his sphere of knowledge. He hoped that Trisha wouldn’t chase him down the road with a shoe as she had threatened to do on that first occasion. 

“Hello, Colonel.” He was pleasantly surprised to find her out working in the garden but still rather wary of the fork she was holding. “What brings you here?”

“I… I was actually wondering how Nina was getting on.”

Trisha smiled. “She’s doing well, Colonel. She’s settled in nicely. It’s as if we’ve always had her. Van and I would be happy to adopt her if you’re willing to sort out the paperwork for us.”

There was something different about Trisha, Roy thought. She seemed stronger, more vibrant, and her lips were a normal pink colour rather than the blue tinge he’d grown used to seeing on her. Something or someone had healed her lungs. 

“Colonel? You’re staring, sir.”

“Oh. Yes. Right. Yes. I mean, of course. I’ll get the paperwork as soon as I get back.”

“Excellent. Everyone will be so pleased.” She stood up, brushing down her apron. “Do you want to step in for a while, get your breath back after tackling the hill?”

“Erm, all right.” He stepped through the gate and followed Trisha up the path towards the house. The door opened before they got there. 

“Mr Mustang!” 

A large white shape bowled him over and started licking him voraciously, and he heard a familiar little giggle from the doorway. 

“Hello, Alexander,” he finally managed. 

Nina was standing in the doorway with Ed, who was smirking in the way only Edward Elric could smirk, and Roy knew that he’d lost all dignity in Ed’s eyes - if he’d even had any to start with. 

“You did it,” he said, looking from Nina to Alexander and back again.

“Well, Dad did most of the work,” Ed said. “But she’s safe and happy here.”

Nina nodded. “I have big brothers now! I never had them before. I’m kind of hoping for a little sister too. Maybe now that Ed’s Daddy is back and Ed’s Mommy is well again I’ll get one.”

“Oh no.” Ed threw his hands up. “We are not thinking about that at all.” He sighed. “Thanks, Nina. Now I need brain bleach.”

“Ed, Nina, are you going to let the colonel in through the door?” Trisha’s voice called out from inside the house. 

“I don’t know.” Ed looked down at Nina. “What do you think? Shall we let him in?”

“Yeah. We might need to get him a towel for Alexander’s drool though.”

Roy rolled his eyes as he got to his feet, following Alexander into the house. It was good to see Nina happy and thriving with a new family, who she seemed to have accepted readily as her own. It was good to see Trisha no longer suffering the after effects of her illness, and it was good to see the Elric family all together once more. 

He hung back in the kitchen doorway, watching them all for a moment, very much feeling like the outsider that he was until Trisha pulled him in to join them.

Considering that the state alchemist programme had been little more than a device in which to form potential human sacrifices for Father’s plans, Roy had no idea if it would be continuing into the future, but the thought still remained in his head even as Ed was showing him back to the front door an hour or so later. 

“Edward?”

“Yes, Colonel?”

“You and Al, and your parents... don’t ever stop doing what you’re doing. Using alchemy to help people, and taking care of those who’ve been wronged by it.”

Ed grinned. “Oh, we don’t intend to, Colonel. You’ve got my word on that.”

Roy felt a sense of peace as he made his way back to the station. As long as there were people like the Elrics in the world, he could hope that everything would be all right in the end.

[grigori77]

Summer 2021′s Movies - My Top Ten Favourite Films (Part 2)

The Top Ten:

10.  WEREWOLVES WITHIN – definitely one of the year’s biggest cinematic surprises so far, this darkly comic supernatural murder mystery from indie horror director Josh Ruben (Scare Me) is based on a video game, but you’d never know it – this bears so little resemblance to the original Ubisoft title that it’s a wonder anyone even bothered to make the connection, but even so, this is now notable for officially being the highest rated video game adaptation in Rotten Tomatoes history, with a Certified Fresh rating of 86%. Certainly it deserves that distinction, but there’s so much more to the film – this is an absolute blood-splattered joy, the title telling you everything you need to know about the story but belying the film’s pure, quirky genius.  Veep’s Sam Richardson is forest ranger Finn Wheeler, a gentle and socially awkward soul who arrives at his new post in the remote small town of Beaverton to discover the few, uniformly weird residents are divided over the oil pipeline proposition of forceful and abrasive businessman Sam Parker (The Hunt’s Wayne Duvall).  As he tries to fit in and find his feet, investigating the disappearance of a local dog while bonding with local mail carrier Cecily Moore (Other Space and This Is Us’ Milana Vayntrub), the discovery of a horribly mutilated human body leads to a standoff between the townsfolk and an enforced lockdown in the town’s ramshackle hotel as they try to work out who amongst them is the “werewolf” they suspect is responsible.  This is frequently hilarious, the offbeat script from appropriately named Mishna Wolff (I’m Down) dropping some absolutely zingers and crafting some enjoyably weird encounters and unexpected twists, while the uniformly excellent cast do much of the heavy-lifting to bring their rich, thoroughly oddball characters to vivid life – Richardson is thoroughly cuddly throughout, while Duvall is pleasingly loathsome, Casual’s Michaela Watkins is pleasingly grating as Trisha, flaky housewife to unrepentant local horn-dog Pete Anderton (Orange is the New Black’s Michael Chernus), and Cheyenne Jackson (American Horror Story) and Harry Guillen (best known, OF COURSE, as Guillermo in the TV version of What We Do In the Shadows) make an enjoyably spiky double-act as liberal gay couple Devon and Joaquim Wolfson; in the end, though, the film is roundly stolen by Vayntrub, who invests Cecily with a bubbly sweetness and snarky sass that makes it absolutely impossible to not fall completely in love with her (gods know I did).  This is a deeply funny film, packed with proper belly-laughs from start to finish, but like all the best horror comedies it takes its horror elements seriously, delivering some enjoyably effective scares and juicy gore, while the werewolf itself, when finally revealed, is realised through some top-notch prosthetics.  Altogether this was a most welcome under-the-radar surprise for the summer, and SO MUCH MORE than just an unusually great video game adaptation …

9.  THE TOMORROW WAR – although cinemas finally reopened in the UK in early summer, the bite of the COVID lockdown backlog was still very much in effect this blockbuster season, with several studios preferring to hedge their bets and wait for later release dates. Others turned to streaming services, including Paramount, who happily lined up a few heavyweight titles to open on major platforms in lieu of the big screen.  One of the biggest was this intended sci-fi action horror tentpole, meant to give Chris Pratt another potential franchise on top of Guardians of the Galaxy and Jurassic World, which instead dropped in early July on Amazon Prime.  So, was it worth staying in on a Saturday night instead of heading out for something on the BIG screen?  Mostly yes, although it’s mainly a trashy, guilty pleasure big budget B-picture charm that makes this such a worthwhile experience – the film’s biggest influences are clearly Independence Day and Starship Troopers, two admirably clunky blockbusters that DEFINED prioritising big spectacle and overblown theatrics over intelligent writing and realistic storytelling.  It doesn’t help that the premise is pure bunk – in 2022, a wormhole opens from thirty years in the future, and a plea for help is sent back with a bunch of very young future soldiers.  Seems Earth will become overrun by an unstoppable swarm of nasty alien critters called Whitespikes in 25 years, and the desperate human counteroffensive have no choice but to bring soldiers from our present into the future to help them fight back and save the humanity from imminent extinction.  Less than a year later, the world’s standing armies have been decimated and a worldwide draft has been implemented, with normal everyday adults being sent through for a seven day tour from which very few return.  Pratt plays biology teacher and former Green Beret Dan Forrester, one of the latest batch of draftees to be sent into the future along with a selection of chefs, soccer moms and other average joes – his own training and experience serves him better than most when the shit hits the fan, but it soon becomes clear that he’s just as out of his depth as everyone else as the sheer enormity of the threat is revealed.  But when he becomes entangled with a desperate research outfit led by Muri (Chuck’s Yvonne Strahovski) who seem to be on the verge of a potential world-changing scientific breakthrough, Dan realises there just might be a slender hope for humanity after all … this is every bit as over-the-top gung-ho bonkers as it sounds, and just as much fun.  Director Chris McKay may still be pretty fresh (with only The Lego Batman Movie under his belt to date), but he shows a lot of talent and potential for big budget blockbuster filmmaking here, delivering with guts and bravado on some major action sequences (a fraught ticking-clock SAR operation through a war-torn Miami is the film’s undeniable highlight, but a desperate battle to escape a blazing oil rig also really impresses), as well as handling some impressively complex visual effects work and wrangling some quality performances from his cast (altogether it bodes well for his future, which includes Nightwing and Johnny Quest as future projects).  Chris Pratt can do this kind of stuff in his sleep – Dan is his classic fallible and self-deprecating but ultimately solid and kind-hearted action hero fare, effortlessly likeable and easy to root for – and his supporting cast are equally solid, Strahovsky going toe-to-toe with him in the action sequences while also creating a rewardingly complex smart-woman/badass combo in Muri, while the other real standouts include Sam Richardson (Veep, Werewolves Within) and Edwin Hodge (The Purge movies) as fellow draftees Charlie and Dorian, the former a scared-out-of-his-mind tech geek while the latter is a seriously hardcore veteran serving his THIRD TOUR, and the ever brilliant J.K. Simmonds as Dan’s emotionally scarred estranged Vietnam-vet father, Jim.  Sure, it’s derivative as hell and thoroughly predictable (with more than one big twist you can see coming a mile away), but the pace is brisk, the atmosphere pregnant with a palpable doomed urgency, and the creatures themselves are a genuinely convincing world-ending threat, the design team and visual effects wizards creating genuine nightmare fuel in the feral and unrelenting Whitespikes.  Altogether this WAS an ideal way to spend a comfy Saturday night in, but I think it could have been JUST AS GOOD for a Saturday night OUT at the Pictures …

8.  ARMY OF THE DEAD – another high profile release that went straight to streaming was this genuine monster hit for Netflix from one of this century’s undeniable heavyweight action cinema masters, the indomitable Zack Snyder, who kicked off his career with an audience-dividing (but, as far as I’m concerned, ultimately MASSIVELY successful) remake of George Romero’s immortal Dawn of the Dead, and has finally returned to zombie horror after close to two decades away.  The end result is, undeniably, the biggest cinematic guilty pleasure of the entire summer, a bona fide outbreak horror EPIC in spite of its tightly focused story – Dave Bautista plays mercenary Scott Ward, leader a badass squad of soldiers of fortune who were among the few to escape a deadly outbreak of a zombie virus in the city of Las Vegas, enlisted to break into the vault of one of the Strip’s casinos by owner Bly Tanaka (a fantastically game turn from Hiroyuki Sanada) and rescue $200 million still locked away inside.  So what’s the catch?  Vegas remains ground zero for the outbreak, walled off from the outside world but still heavily infested within, and in less than three days the US military intends to sterilise the site with a tactical nuke.  Simple premise, down and dirty, trashy flick, right?  Wrong – Snyder has never believed in doing things small, having brought us unapologetically BIG cinema with the likes of 300, Watchmen, Man of Steel and, most notably, his version of Justice League, so this is another MASSIVE undertaking, every scene shot for maximum thrills or emotional impact, each set-piece executed with his characteristic militaristic precision and explosive predilection (a harrowing fight for survival against a freshly-awakened zombie horde in tightly packed casino corridors is the film’s undeniable highlight), and the gauzy, dreamlike cinematography gives even simple scenes an intriguing and evocative edge that really does make you feel like you’re watching something BIG.  The characters all feel larger-than-life too – Bautista can seem somewhat cartoonish at times, and this role definitely plays that as a strength, making Scott a rock-hard alpha male in the classic Hollywood mould, but he’s such a great actor that of course he’s able to invest the character with real rewarding complexity beneath the surface; Ana de la Reguera (Eastbound & Down) and Nora Arnezeder (Zoo, Mozart in the Jungle), meanwhile, both bring a healthy dose of oestrogen-fuelled badassery to proceedings as, respectively, Scott’s regular second-in-command, Maria Cruz, and Lilly the Coyote, Power’s Omari Hardwick and Matthias Schweighofer (You Are Wanted) make for a fun odd-couple double act as circular-saw-wielding merc Vanderohe and Dieter, the nervous, nerdy German safecracker brought in to crack the vault, and Fear the Walking Dead’s Garrett Dillahunt channels spectacular scumbag energy as Tanaka’s sleazy former casino boss Martin, while latecomer Tig Notaro (Star Trek Discovery) effortlessly rises above her last-minute-casting controversy to deliver brilliantly as sassy and acerbic chopper pilot Peters.  I think it goes without saying that Snyder can do this in his sleep, but he definitely wasn’t napping here – he pulled out all the stops on this one, delivering a thrilling, darkly comic and endearingly CRACKERS zombie flick that not only compares favourably to his own Dawn but is, undeniably, his best film for AGES.  Netflix certainly seem to be pleased with the results – a spinoff prequel, Army of Thieves, starring Dieter in another heist thriller, is set to drop in October, with an animated series following in the Spring, and there’s already rumours of a sequel in development.  I’m certainly up for more …

7.  BLACK WIDOW – no major blockbuster property was hit harder by COVID than the MCU, which saw its ENTIRE SLATE for 2020 delayed for over a year in the face of Marvel Studios bowing to the inevitability of the Pandemic and unwilling to sacrifice those all-important box-office receipts by just sending their films straight to streaming.  The most frustrating part for hardcore fans of the series was the delay of a standalone film that was already criminally overdue – the solo headlining vehicle of founding Avenger and bona fide female superhero ICON Natasha Romanoff, aka the Black Widow.  Equally frustratingly, then, this film seems set to be overshadowed by real life controversy as star and producer Scarlett Johansson goes head-to-head with Disney in civil court over their breach-of-contract after they hedged their bets by releasing the film simultaneously in cinemas and on their own streaming platform, which has led to poor box office as many of the film’s potential audience chose to watch it at home instead of risk movie theatres with the virus still very much remaining a threat (and Disney have clearly reacted AGAIN, now backtracking on their release policy by instigating a new 45-day cinematic exclusivity window on all their big releases for the immediate future). But what of the film itself?  Well Black Widow is an interesting piece of work, director Cate Shortland (Berlin Syndrome) and screenwriter Eric Pearson (Thor: Ragnarok) delivering a decidedly stripped-back, lean and intellectual beast that bears greater resemblance to the more cerebral work of the Russo Brothers on their Captain America films than the more classically bombastic likes of Iron Man, Thor or the Avengers flicks, concentrating on story and characters over action and spectacle as we wind back the clock to before the events of Infinity War and Endgame, when Romanoff was on the run after Civil War, hunted by the government-appointed forces of US Secretary of State “Thunderbolt” Ross (William Hurt) after violating the Sokovia Accords.  Then a mysterious delivery throws her back into the fray as she finds herself targeted by a mysterious assassin, forcing her to team up with her estranged “sister” Yelena Belova (Midsommar’s Florence Pugh), another Black Widow who’s just gone rogue from the same Red Room Natasha escaped years ago, armed with a McGuffin capable of foiling a dastardly plot for world domination.  The reluctant duo need help in this endeavour though, enlisting the aid of their former “parents”, veteran Widow and scientist Melina Vostokoff (Rachel Weisz) and Alexie Shostakov (Stranger Things’ David Harbour), aka the Red Guardian, a Russian super-soldier intended to be their counterpart to Captain America, who’s been languishing in a Siberian gulag for the last twenty years. After the Earth-shaking, universe-changing events of recent MCU events, this film certainly feels like a much more self-contained, modest affair, playing for much smaller stakes, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less worthy of our attention – this is as precision-crafted as anything we’ve seen from Marvel so far, but it also feels like a refreshing change of pace after all those enormous cosmic shenanigans, while the script is as tight as a drum, propelling a taut, suspense-filled thriller that certainly doesn’t scrimp on the action front.  Sure, the set-pieces are very much in service of the story here, but they’re still the pre-requisite MCU rollercoaster rides, a selection of breathless chases and bone-crunching fights that really do play to the strengths of one of our favourite Avengers, but this is definitely one of those films where the real fireworks come when the film focuses on the characters – Johansson is so comfortable with her character she’s basically BECOME Natasha Romanoff, kickass and ruthless and complex and sassy and still just desperate for a family (though she hides it well throughout the film), while Weisz delivers one of her best performances in years as a peerless professional who keeps her emotions tightly reigned in but slowly comes to realise that she was never more happy than when she was pretending to be a simple mother, and Ray Winstone does a genuinely fantastic job of taking a character who could have been one of the MCU’s most disappointingly bland villains, General Dreykov, master of the Red Room, and investing him with enough oily charisma and intense presence to craft something truly memorable (frustratingly, the same cannot be said for the film’s supposed main physical threat, Taskmaster, who performs well in their frustratingly brief appearances but ultimately gets Darth Maul levels of short service).  The true scene-stealers in the film, however, are Alexie and Yelena – Harbour’s clearly having the time of his life hamming it up as a self-important, puffed-up peacock of a superhero who never got his shot and is clearly (rightly) decidedly bitter about it, preferring to relive the life he SHOULD have had instead of remembering the good in the one he got; Pugh, meanwhile, is THE BEST THING IN THE WHOLE MOVIE, easily matching Johanssen scene-for-scene in the action stakes but frequently out-performing her when it comes to acting, investing Yelena with a sweet naivety and innocence and a certain amount of quirky geekiness that makes for one of the year’s most endearing female protagonists (certainly one who, if the character goes the way I think she will, is thoroughly capable of carrying the torch for the foreseeable future).  In the end this is definitely one of the LEAST typical, by-the-numbers MCU films to date, and by delivering something a little different I think they’ve given us just the kind of leftfield swerve the series needs right now.  It’s certainly one of their most fascinating and rewarding films so far, and since it seems to be Johansson’s final tour of duty as the Black Widow, it’s also a most fitting farewell indeed.

6.  WRATH OF MAN – Guy Ritchie’s latest (regarded by many as a triumphant return to form, which I consider unfair since I don’t think he ever went away, especially after 2020’s spectacular The Gentlemen) is BY FAR his darkest film – let’s get this clear from the start.  Anyone who knows his work knows that Ritchie consistently maintains a near flawless balance and humour and seriousness in his films that gives them a welcome quirkiness that is one of his most distinctive trademarks, so for him to suddenly deliver a film which takes itself SO SERIOUSLY is one hell of a departure.  This is a film which almost REVELS in its darkness – Ritchie’s always loved bathing in man’s baser instincts, but Wrath of Man almost makes a kind of twisted VIRTUE out of wallowing in the genuine evils that men are capable of inflicting on each other.  The film certainly kicks off as it means to go on – In a tour-de-force single-shot opening, we watch a daring armoured car robbery on the streets of Los Angeles that goes horrifically wrong, an event which will have devastating consequences in the future.  Five months later, Fortico Security hires taciturn Brit Patrick Hill (Jason Statham) to work as a guard in one of their trucks, and on his first run he single-handedly foils another attempted robbery with genuinely uncanny combat skills. The company is thrilled, amazed by the sheer ability of their new hire, but Hill’s new colleagues are more concerned, wondering exactly what they’ve let themselves in for.  After a second foiled robbery, it becomes clear that Hill’s reputation has grown, but fellow guard Haiden (Holt McCallany), aka “Bullet”, begins to suspect there might be something darker going on … Ritchie is firing on all cylinders here, delivering a PERFECT slow-burn suspense thriller which plays its cards close to its chest and cranks up its piano wire tension with artful skill as it builds to a devastating, knuckle-whitening explosive heist that acts as a cathartic release for everything that’s built up over the past hour and a half.  In typical Ritchie style the narrative is non-linear, the story unfolding in four distinct parts told from clearly differentiated points of view, allowing the clues to be revealed at a trickle that effortlessly draws the viewer in as they fall deeper down the rabbit hole, leading to a harrowing but strangely poignant denouement which is perfectly in tune with everything that’s come before. It’s an immense pleasure finally getting to see Statham working with Ritchie again, and I don’t think he’s ever been better than he is here – he's always been a brilliantly understated actor, but there’s SO MUCH going on under Hill’s supposedly impenetrable calm that every little peek beneath the armour is a REVELATION; McCallany, meanwhile, has landed his best role since his short but VERY sweet supporting turn in Fight Club, seemingly likeable and fallible as the kind of easy-going co-worker anyone in the service industry would be THRILLED to have, but giving Bullet far more going on under the surface, while there are uniformly excellent performances from a top-shelf ensemble supporting cast which includes Josh Hartnett, Jeffrey Donovan (Burn Notice, Sicario), Andy Garcia, Laz Alonso (The Boys), Eddie Marsan, Niamh Algar (Raised By Wolves) and Darrell D’Silva (Informer, Domina), and a particularly edgy and intense turn from Scott Eastwood.  This is one of THE BEST thrillers of the year, by far, a masterpiece of mood, pace and plot that ensnares the viewer from its gripping opening and hooks them right up to the close, a triumph of the genre and EASILY Guy Ritchie’s best film since Snatch.  Regardless of whether or not it’s a RETURN to form, we can only hope he continues to deliver fare THIS GOOD in the future …

5.  FEAR STREET (PARTS 1-3) – Netflix have gotten increasingly ambitious with their original filmmaking over the years, and some of this years’ offerings have reached new heights of epic intention.  Their most exciting release of the summer was this adaptation of popular children’s horror author R.L. Stine’s popular book series, a truly gargantuan undertaking as the filmmakers set out to create an entire TRILOGY of films which were then released over three consecutive weekends.  Interestingly, these films are most definitely NOT for kids – this is proper, no-holds-barred supernatural slasher horror, delivering highly calibrated shocks and precision jump scares, a pervading atmosphere of insidious dread and a series of inventively gruesome kills.  The story revolves around two neighbouring small towns which have had vastly different fortunes over more than three centuries of existence – while the residents of Sunnyvale are unusually successful, living idyllic lives in peace and prosperity, luck has always been against the people of Shadyside, who languish in impoverishment, crime and misfortune, while the town has become known as the Murder Capital of the USA due to frequent spree killings.  Some attribute this to the supposed curse of a local urban legend, Sarah Fier, who became known as the Fier Witch after her execution for witchcraft in 1668, but others dismiss this as simple superstition.  Part 1 is set in 1994, as the latest outbreak of serial mayhem begins in Shadyside, dragging a small group of local teens – Deena Johnson (She Never Died’s Kiana Madeira) and Samantha Fraser (Olivia Scott Welch), a young lesbian couple going through a difficult breakup, Deena’s little brother Josh (The Haunted Hathaways’ Benjamin Flores Jr.), a nerdy history geek who spends most of his time playing video games or frequenting violent crime-buff online chatrooms, and their delinquent friends Simon (Eight Grade’s Fred Hechinger) and Kate (Julia Rehwald) – into the age-old ghostly conspiracy as they find themselves besieged by indestructible undead serial killers from the town’s past, reasoning that the only way they can escape with their lives is to solve the mystery and bring the Fier Witch some much needed closure.  Part 2, meanwhile, flashes back to a previous outbreak in 1977, in which local sisters Ziggy (Stranger Things’ Sadie Sink) and Cindy Berman (Emily Rudd), together with future Sunnyvale sheriff Nick Goode (Ted Sutherland) were among the kids hunted by said killers during a summer camp “colour war”.  As for Part 3, that goes all the way back to 1668 to tell the story of what REALLY happened to Sarah Fier, before wrapping up events in 1994, culminating in a terrifying, adrenaline-fuelled showdown in the Shadyside Mall.  Throughout, the youthful cast are EXCEPTIONAL, Madeira, Welch, Flores Jr., Sink and Rudd particularly impressing, while there are equally strong turns from Ashley Zuckerman (The Code, Designated Survivor) and Community’s Gillian Jacobs as the grown-up versions of two key ’77 kids, and a fun cameo from Maya Hawke in Part 1.  This is most definitely retro horror in the Stranger Things mould, perfectly executed period detail bringing fun nostalgic flavour to all three of the timelines while the peerless direction from Leigh Janiak (Honeymoon) and wire-tight, sharp-witted screenplays from Janiak, Kyle Killen (Lone Star, The Beaver), Phil Graziadel, Zak Olkewicz and Kate Trefry strike a perfect balance between knowing dark humour and knife-edged terror, as well as weaving an intriguingly complex narrative web that pulls the viewer in but never loses them to overcomplication.  The design, meanwhile, is evocative, the cinematography (from Stanger Things’ Caleb Heymann) is daring and magnificently moody, and the killers and other supernatural elements of the film are handled with skill through largely physical effects.  This is definitely not a standard, by-the-numbers slasher property, paying strong homage to the sub-genre’s rules but frequently subverting them with expert skill, and it’s as much fun as it is frightening.  Give us some more like this please, Netflix!

4.  THE SPARKS BROTHERS – those who’ve been following my reviews for a while will known that while I do sometimes shout about documentary films, they tend to show up in my runners-up lists – it’s a great rarity for one to land in one of my top tens.  This lovingly crafted deep-dive homage to cult band Sparks, from self-confessed rabid fanboy Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, Scott Pilgrim), is something VERY SPECIAL INDEED, then … there’s a vague possibility some of you may have heard the name before, and many of you will know at least one or two of their biggest hits without knowing it was them (their greatest hit of all time, This Town Ain’t Big Enough for the Both of Us, immediately springs to mind), but unless you’re REALLY serious about music it’s quite likely you have no idea who they are, namely two brothers from California, Russell and Ronald Mael, who formed a very sophisticated pop-rock band in the late 60s and then never really went away, having moments of fame but mostly working away in the background and influencing some of the greatest bands and musical artists that followed them, even if many never even knew where that influence originally came from. Wright’s film is an engrossing joy from start to finish (despite clocking in at two hours and twenty minutes), following their eclectic career from obscure inception as Halfnelson, through their first real big break with third album Kimono My Place, subsequent success and then fall from popularity in the mid-70s, through several subsequent revitalisations, all the way up to the present day with their long-awaited cinematic breakthrough, revolutionary musical feature Annette – throughout Wright keeps the tone light and the pace breezy, allowing a strong and endearing sense of irreverence to rule the day as fans, friends and the brothers themselves offer up fun anecdotes and wax lyrical about what is frequently a larger-than-life tragicomic soap opera, utilising fun, crappy animation and idiosyncratic stock footage inserts alongside talking-head interviews that were made with a decidedly tongue-in-cheek style – Mike Myers good-naturedly rants about how we can see his “damned mole” while 80s New Romantic icons Nick Rhodes and John Taylor, while shot together, are each individually labelled as “Duran”.  Ron and Russ themselves, meanwhile, are clearly having huge fun, gently ribbing each other and dropping some fun deadpan zingers throughout proceedings, easily playing to the band’s strong, idiosyncratic sense of hyper-intelligent humour, while the aforementioned celebrity talking-heads are just three amongst a whole wealth of famous faces that may surprise you – there’s even an appearance by Neil Gaiman, guys!  Altogether this is 2+ hours of bright and breezy fun chock full of great music and fascinating information, and even hardcore Sparks fans are likely to learn more than a little over the course of the film, while for those who have never heard of Sparks before it’s a FANTASTIC introduction to one of the greatest ever bands that you’ve never heard of.  With luck there might even be more than a few new fans before the year is out …

3.  GUNPOWDER MILKSHAKE – Netflix’ BEST offering of the summer was this surprise hit from Israeli writer-director Navot Papushado (Rabies, Big Bad Wolves), a heavily stylised black comedy action thriller that passes the Bechdel Test with FLYING COLOURS.  Playing like a female-centric John Wick, it follows ice-cold, on-top-of-her-game assassin Sam (Karen Gillan) as her latest assignment has some unfortunate side effects, leading her to take on a reparation job to retrieve some missing cash for the local branch of the Irish Mob.  The only catch is that a group of thugs have kidnapped the original thief’s little girl, 12 year-old Emily (My Spy’s Chloe Coleman), and Sam, in an uncharacteristic moment of sympathy, decides to intervene, only for the money to be accidentally destroyed in the process.  Now she’s got the Mob and her own employers coming after her, and she not only has to save her own skin but also Emily’s, leading her to seek help from the one person she thought she might never see again – her mother, Scarlet (Lena Headey), a master assassin in her own right who’s been hiding from the Mob herself for years.  The plot may be simple but at times also a little over-the-top, but the film is never anything less than a pure, unadulterated pleasure, populated with fascinating, living and breathing characters of real complexity and nuance, while the script (co-written by relative newcomer Ehud Lavski) is tightly-reined and bursting with zingers.  Most importantly, though, Papushado really delivers on the action front – these are some of the best set-pieces I’ve seen this year, Gillan, her co-stars and the various stunt-performers acquitting themselves admirably in a series of spectacular fights, gun battles and a particularly imaginative car chase that would be the envy of many larger, more expensive productions.  Gillan and Coleman have a sweet, awkward chemistry, the MCU star particularly impressing in a subtly nuanced performance that also plays beautifully against Headey’s own tightly controlled turn, while there is awesome support from Angela Bassett, Michelle Yeoh and Carla Gugino as Sam’s adoptive aunts Anna May, Florence and Madeleine, a trio of “librarians” who run a fine side-line in illicit weaponry and are capable of unleashing some spectacular violence of their own; the film’s antagonists, on the other hand, are exclusively masculine – the mighty Ralph Inneson is quietly ruthless as Irish boss Jim McAlester, while The Terror’s Adam Nagaitis is considerably more mercurial as his mad dog nephew Virgil, and Paul Giamatti is the stately calm at the centre of the storm as Sam’s employer Nathan, the closest thing she has to a father.  There’s so much to enjoy in this movie, not just the wonderful characters and amazing action but also the singularly engrossing and idiosyncratic style, deeply affecting themes of the bonds of found family and the healing power of forgiveness, and a rewarding through-line of strong women triumphing against the brutalities of toxic masculinity.  I love this film, and I invite you to try it out, cuz I’m sure you will too.

2.  THE SUICIDE SQUAD – the most fun I’ve had at the cinema so far this year is the long-awaited (thanks a bunch, COVID) redress of another frustrating imbalance from the decidedly hit and miss DCEU superhero franchise, in which Guardians of the Galaxy writer-director James Gunn has finally delivered a PROPER Suicide Squad movie after David Ayer’s painfully compromised first stab at the property back in 2016.  That movie was enjoyable enough and had some great moments, but ultimately it was a clunky mess, and while some of the characters were done (quite) well, others were painfully botched, even ruined entirely.  Thankfully Warner Bros. clearly learned their lesson, giving Gunn free reign to do whatever he wanted, and the end result is about as close to perfect as the DCEU has come to date.  Once again the peerless Viola Davis plays US government official Amanda Waller, head of ARGUS and the undisputable most evil bitch in all the DC Universe, who presides over the metahuman prisoners of the notorious supermax Belle Reve Prison, cherry-picking inmates for her pet project Taskforce X, the titular Suicide Squad sent out to handle the kind of jobs nobody else wants, in exchange for years off their sentences but controlled by explosive implants injected into the base of their skulls.  Their latest mission sees another motley crew of D-bags dispatched to the fictional South African island nation of Corto Maltese to infiltrate Jotunheim, a former Nazi facility in which a dangerous extra-terrestrial entity that’s being developed into a fearful bioweapon, with orders to destroy the project in order to keep it out of the hands of a hostile anti-American regime which has taken control of the island through a violent coup.  Where the first Squad felt like a clumsily-arranged selection of stereotypes with a few genuinely promising characters unsuccessfully moulded into a decidedly forced found family, this new batch are convincingly organic – they may be dysfunctional and they’re all almost universally definitely BAD GUYS, but they WORK, the relationship dynamics that form between them feeling genuinely earned.  Gunn has already proven himself a master of putting a bunch of A-holes together and forging them into band of “heroes”, and he’s certainly pulled the job off again here, dredging the bottom of the DC Rogues Gallery for its most ridiculous Z-listers and somehow managing to make them compelling.  Sure, returning Squad-member Harley Quinn (the incomparable Margot Robbie, magnificent as ever) has already become a fully-realised character thanks to Birds of Prey, so there wasn’t much heavy-lifting to be done here, but Gunn genuinely seems to GET the character, so our favourite pixie-esque Agent of Chaos is an unbridled and thoroughly unpredictable joy here, while fellow veteran Colonel Rick Flagg (a particularly muscular and thoroughly game Joel Kinnaman) has this time received a much needed makeover, Gunn promoting him from being the first film’s sketchily-drawn “Captain Exposition” and turning him into a fully-ledged, well-thought-out human being with all the requisite baggage, including a newfound sense of humour; the newcomers, meanwhile, are a thoroughly fascinating bunch – reluctant “leader” Bloodsport/Robert DuBois (a typically robust and playful Idris Elba), unapologetic douchebag Peacemaker/Christopher Smith (probably the best performance I’ve EVER seen John Cena deliver), and socially awkward and seriously hard-done-by nerd (and by far the most idiotic DC villain of all time) the Polka-Dot Man/Abner Krill (a genuinely heart-breaking hangdog performance from Ant-Man’s David Dastmalchian); meanwhile there’s a fine trio of villainous turns from the film’s resident Big Bads, with Juan Diego Botta (Good Behaviour) and Joaquin Cosio (Quantum of Solace, Narcos: Mexico) making strong impressions as newly-installed dictator Silvio Luna and his corrupt right hand-man General Suarez, although both are EASILY eclipsed by the typically brilliant Peter Capaldi as louche and quietly deranged supervillain The Thinker/Gaius Greives (although the film’s ULTIMATE threat turns out to be something a whole lot bigger and more exotic). The film is ROUNDLY STOLEN, however, by a truly adorable double act (or TRIPLE act, if you want to get technical) – Daniella Melchior makes her breakthrough here in fine style as sweet, principled and kind-hearted narcoleptic second-generation supervillain Ratcatcher II/Cleo Cazo, who has the weird ability to control rats (and who has a pet rat named Sebastian who frequently steals scenes all on his own), while a particular fan-favourite B-lister makes his big screen debut here in the form of King Shark/Nanaue, a barely sentient anthropomorphic Great White “shark god” with an insatiable appetite for flesh and a naturally quizzical nature who was brilliantly mo-capped by Steve Agee (The Sarah Silverman Project, who also plays Waller’s hyperactive assistant John Economos) but then artfully completed with an ingenious vocal turn from Sylvester Stallone. James Gunn has crafted an absolute MASTERPIECE here, EASILY the best film he’s made to date, a riotous cavalcade of exquisitely observed and perfectly delivered dark humour and expertly wrangled narrative chaos that has great fun playing with the narrative flow, injects countless spot-on in-jokes and irreverent but utterly essential throwaway sight-gags, and totally endears us to this glorious gang of utter morons right from the start (in which Gunn delivers what has to be one of the most skilful deep-fakes in cinematic history).  Sure, there’s also plenty of action, and it’s executed with the kind of consummate skill we’ve now come to expect from Gunn (the absolute highlight is a wonderfully bonkers sequence in which Harley expertly rescues herself from captivity), but like everything else it’s predominantly played for laughs, and there’s no getting away from the fact that this film is an absolute RIOT.  By far the funniest thing I’ve seen so far this year, and if I’m honest this is the best of the DCEU offerings to date, too (for me, only the exceptional Birds of Prey can compare) – if Warner Bros. have any sense they’ll give Gunn more to do VERY SOON …

1.  A QUIET PLACE, PART II – while UK cinemas finally reopened in early May, I was determined that my first trip back to the Big Screen for 2021 was gonna be something SPECIAL, and indeed I already knew what that was going to be. Thankfully I was not disappointed by my choice – 2018’s A Quiet Place was MY VERY FAVOURITE horror movie of the 2010s, an undeniable masterclass in suspense and sustained screen terror wrapped around a refreshingly original killer concept, and I was among the many fans hoping we’d see more in the future, especially after the film’s teasingly open ending.  Against the odds (or perhaps not), writer-director/co-star John Krasinski has pulled off the seemingly impossible task of not only following up that high-wire act, but genuinely EQUALLING it in levels of quality – picking up RIGHT where the first film left off (at least after an AMAZING scene-setting opening in which we’re treated to the events of Day 1 of the downfall of humanity), rejoining the remnants of the Abbott family as they’re forced by circumstances to up-sticks from their idyllic farmhouse home and strike out into the outside world once more, painfully aware at all times that they must maintain perfect silence to avoid the ravenous attentions of the lethal blind alien beasties that now sit at the top of the food chain.  Circumstances quickly become dire, however, and embattled mother Evelyn (Emily Blunt) is forced to ally herself with estranged family friend Emmett (Cillian Murphy), now a haunted, desperate vagrant eking out a perilous existence in an abandoned factory, in order to safeguard the future of her children Regan (Millicent Simmonds), Marcus (Noah Jupe) and their newborn baby brother.  Regan, however, discovers evidence of more survivors, and with her newfound weapon against the aliens she recklessly decides to set off on her own in the hopes of aiding them before it’s too late … it may only be his second major blockbuster as a director, but Krasinski has once again proven he’s a true heavyweight talent, effortlessly carving out fresh ground in this already magnificently well-realised dystopian universe while also playing magnificently to the established strengths of what came before, delivering another peerless thrill-ride of unbearable tension and knuckle-whitening terror.  The central principle of utilising sound at a very strict premium is once again strictly adhered to here, available sources of dialogue once again exploited with consummate skill while sound design and score (another moody triumph from Marco Beltrami) again become THE MOST IMPORTANT aspects of the whole production. The ruined world is once again realised beautifully throughout, most notably in the nightmarish environment of a wrecked commuter train, and Krasinski cranks up the tension before unleashing it in merciless explosions in a selection of harrowing encounters which guaranteed to leave viewers in a puddle of sweat.  The director mostly stays behind the camera this time round, but he does (obviously) put in an appearance in the opening flashback as the late Lee Abbott, making a potent impression which leaves a haunting absence that’s keenly felt throughout the remainder of the film, while Blunt continues to display mother lion ferocity as she fights to keep her children safe and Jupe plays crippling fear magnificently but is now starting to show a hidden spine of steel as Marcus finally starts to find his courage; the film once again belongs, however, to Simmonds, the young deaf actress once and for all proving she’s a genuine star in the making as she invests Regan with fierce wilfulness and stubborn determination that remains unshakeable even in the face of unspeakable horrors, and the relationship she develops with Emmett, reluctant as it may be, provides a strong new emotional focus for the story, Murphy bringing an attractive wounded humanity to his role as a man who’s lost anything and is being forced to learn to care for something again.  This is another triumph of the genre AND the artform in general, a masterpiece of atmosphere, performance and storytelling which builds magnificently on the skilful foundations laid by the first film, as well as setting things up perfectly for a third instalment which is all but certain to follow.  I definitely can’t wait.

[fanficimagery]

I Will Not Bow

Summary: After moving out to LA, you quickly find yourself being adopted into a group of Youtubers. Everything is fine until one of the squad has a falling out with everyone and decides to make a video “spilling the tea”. And though you never had a problem with this particular person, you’re surprised to find out she has dug into your past and brought it up for everyone to know.

Words: 2.6K Warnings: Language. Trisha bashing. If you’re a fan of hers, then this Imagine is just not for you. Requested by anonymous who said: Hi! If you’re currently taking requests would you please be able to write a Vlog Squad x Reader where maybe the reader has a shady/troubled past that comes to light? You can put a spin on it if you want!

You've been feeling run down these past couple of days that you've stayed home in order to not get anyone else sick. Staying home, however, didn't stop your friends from bringing over soup or packages of medicine to help you get better sooner. And while you appreciated their thoughtfulness, you couldn't help but send them on their way as soon as possible. Then when your friends got the hint you didn't want them around to catch anything, they kept their distance and relied on texting or video calling.

And it's on your fourth day of being sick that your phone starts to blow up- comments on Instagram rolling in with everyone tagging you. Against your better judgement you read them and quickly find out the source of everyone's sudden interest is because of a newly uploaded video by Trisha. Your stomach drops upon seeing the title of her video and you already know it's going to be ugly. Whatever tea she's spilled, it can't be good. Especially since most of the comments are questioning your loyalty and motives.

The so-called tea starts off with petty drama that Trisha picked up on within the squad and ran with it. She puts her own twist on the truth to make it seem like it's bigger than it really is, and talks about who really is genuine and who's not. But then your name pops up and you nearly throw up when she brings up your arrest record. You hadn't told a single soul about your past since you've moved to LA and here Trisha is bringing it up for all her subscribers and even making assumptions about who you are.

"What a bitch," you mumble.

Not only are you sad and hurt this has all been brought up after you've decided to start fresh, but you're royally pissed off. How dare she.

So after taking a moment, you quickly make yourself somewhat presentable and decide to go live on Instagram. You stare at yourself on your phone, sighing as you notice everyone showing up to see what you have to say and/or immediately bombarding you with hateful comments. Clearing your throat, you finally address them. "I'm obviously here to address the things Trisha has said about me, so I'll give you guys a few minutes to tag your friends and bring them here or whatever."

In the span of twenty seconds, your friends have sent text after text but you ignore them.

Then once you've decided you've waited long enough, you speak. "So by now, I'm pretty sure a lot of you are curious about what Trisha said in her video and that's why you're here watching me. And for those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, Trisha posted a video where she basically stabbed the entire Vlog Squad in the back. And while I'm sure the others can probably laugh about what Trisha spilled about them, I cannot and will not forgive her for bringing up my arrest record."

You cough and then quickly take a sip of water, sighing a moment later and getting right back into it. "The thing is, a few years ago I was in a shitty place in my life. I had a good life, don't get me wrong, but I just- I buckled under the pressure my family was putting on me to do good. And like all stories go, I fell in with the wrong crowd. I consumed too much alcohol and took too many drugs to just forget the reality I was living in. I stole money from my family so I could pay for my addictions and when they started to keep count of their money, I then resorted to stealing their property and pawning it all just so I could get my fix."

Feeling your eyes tear up, you pause to take another sip of water and get rid of the lump in your throat. You readjust the angle of your phone and lean back in your seat, averting your eyes as you continue. "My parents threatened to kick me out if I didn't clean up my act and you know what I did? I scoffed in their faces, packed up my shit, and went to go live with the people I thought I could rely on. My addictions became worse and I ended up in the hospital a handful of times. And though I did have moments of clarity where I wanted to return home, I couldn't. I burned so many bridges that I didn't even know where or how to start making amends."

By now, the tears are flowing but you merely wipe them away. You need to finish your story. "What really opened my eyes was the day we broke into a man's house and said man ended up with a bullet in his gut." Your voice cracks so you stop talking. You momentarily get up and walk off, only to return a moment later. Your right knee bounces anxiously off screen and it's taking everything in you to not start bawling. "My, uh, my friend recruited me into breaking into a man's house. I was so high out of my mind that I agreed. I agreed to breaking and entering, and stealing whatever electronics I could shove into a duffel bag. Everything was going smoothly until the house owner came downstairs. I didn't know at the time, but my friend was armed. He was armed and when the house owner threatened to call the cops, my friend shot him. He shot him and he- shit," you curse, pinching the bridge of your nose as your emotions get the best of you.

After a moment of inhaling and exhaling deeply, you continue. "I remember screaming and crying. I dropped everything I had in my arms, stripped off my sweatshirt, and dropped to my knees next to the homeowner to make sure I stopped the bleeding. My friend threatened to shoot me if I didn't get up, but I- I couldn't. There was a man bleeding out beneath my hands and I was not about to leave him. So even though I had a gun to the back of my head, I managed to pull out my phone and dial 911." You take a moment to catch your breath, shakily breathing in and out. "I spent a year in jail and several months in rehab, and my sentence would have been a lot longer if the homeowner hadn't spoken up on my behalf in court.

"So yes, Trisha is right. I've been to jail and not a single one of my friends here in LA knew about it. Because you see, the thing is, I did my time. I paid the price for my actions, I made amends with the people I burned and hurt, and I spent a lot of time volunteering and just cleaning up my name back home. And then I decided to move here, to a place where I wouldn't be the little girl who made shitty life choices and had been to jail, and left the past in the past. Only now- now Trisha's dragged it all back up.

"So Trisha, when you no doubt see this, I have a few words for you. Ready? Because here they are. Fuck you. What gives you the right to dig into my past like that and put it all in a Youtube video? Are you really that desperate for views? You are a piece of shit human being, Trisha, and I hope those that you still call friends come to this realization as well. Am I being harsh? Maybe. Am I sorry? Fuck no. You can save those crocodile tears that we'll no doubt see in your next video about how mean I'm being to you. No one believes them and everyone laughs at you anyway."

By now the tears have dried up, but your cheeks are still sticky and your eyes feel a bit puffy. "I don't know what the hell I did to you to make you think it was alright for you to air out my business like that, nor do I care anymore. I'm done with you. And for my friends who are no doubt watching this, if you're still my friends, you know where to find me if you want to talk. My phone is going to be off for a couple days so drop by if you need anything."

After ending the live feed, you turn off your phone. You walk over to the couch where you end up collapsing on it, sobbing into a blanket and curling up on your side.

          - X - X - X - X - X -

You don't know how long it's been that you've fallen asleep when there's banging on your front door. It takes you a moment to get your bearings back and when you do, you get up to go open the door. Upon opening it you find David, Natalie, Jeff, and Jason.

"Hey," you meekly greet them.

Immediately, Natalie steps forward and envelops you in a hug. "Oh my god. How are you holding up? We've all seen the videos and everyone is pissed at Trisha."

As Natalie steps back, you momentarily twist up your mouth to attempt keeping any tears at bay. In the end, it doesn't work. "Is anyone mad at me?"

"No one's mad," David says. "We're kind of curious as to why you kept it a secret, but we're not mad."

After David gives you a brief hug, Jeff steps up and grins. "Chin up, fellow convict. We're in this together."

"Smooth, Jeff. Very smooth." You huff a small laugh as Jason nudges him out of the way, he then taking his turn in hugging you. "I'm so sorry about what happened, Y/N."

You shake your head. "Don't apologize for your ex's shitty behavior. She's the one that needs to apologize, but even if she does I'll never forgive her for this."

Shutting the door behind your friends, you follow Jason into your living room.

"Hey, Y/N, is it cool if I record?"

"David, if you didn't record whatever you're here for, then I'd be worried."

"Okay," he laughs. "Just checking."

As David sets up his camera on your coffee table, you sit next to Natalie on the couch. Jeff sits the recliner, Jason takes a seat on the ottoman, and David sits on your other side so you're sandwiched between him and Natalie.

"So what do you wanna know?" You ask, sighing. Better to get it out of the way and over with.

As kindly as possible, Natalie asks, "Why didn't you tell us about your past?"

"I.. I didn't want anyone to make light of my situation. Everyone jokes about Jeff's past, and it is funny every now and then, but my situation was a lot different than his and I was scared of jokes being made. The stuff I've been through and the stuff I did, it is not something to joke about."

"If you had just said so, we'd have understood," Jason says.

"I know, but-" you pause, wiping at the tears gathering in the corner of your eyes, "I guess I was just scared to make demands of you guys since I'm still the new girl. And plus I was scared of what you all would think of me. I did some shitty stuff and I didn't want you guys second guessing me. So just so we're clear, I no longer do any of that I stuff. I don't drink, I don't do drugs, and I don't steal. That's been over for a very long time."

Your friends all chuckle.

As you all settle down, it's Natalie who says, "For what it's worth, and David better cut this out for his video, I'm glad your secret came out. I'm not happy about the way it came out, but just that it's out now. I'm happy we get to know more about you, the good and the bad."

"We've all done shitty things in our pasts," Jeff says. "What matters now is that you've changed. You're no longer that person, so if you don't want us to bring it up again, we won't."

"I really appreciate that," you say. "But unfortunately I still have to talk to everyone else about this. They deserve to know everything if they're going to continue being my friend."

"Well as I said earlier," David pipes up, "no one is mad. Curious, but not mad."

"Of course they would be. But fair warning, the first jail joke out of Dom's mouth and I'll start swinging."

David laughs. "We'll just keep that part a surprise for him."

A few days after your rant on Instagram and yet another video from Trisha where she cried big fat tears because you were just so mean, you're riding around with David and a few others in his Tesla. Everyone in your friend group has been getting comments about your character, especially after you went off on Trisha, saying that you were being a bully. And now your friends have had enough.

Jason sits in the passenger seat as David drives, Ilya behind David and Alex behind Jason as you sit in the middle of the third row.

With the camera rolling on David's dash and his eyes on the road, he finally addresses everything himself. "So lately we've been getting a lot of comments about Y/N since Trisha posted that video of hers."

"And it's only gotten worse since Y/N defended herself," Jason says.

"Now I'm one who normally lets the drama die down," David picks back up, "but after everything was put out in the open and some comments were made, I've come to the conclusion that I'm one hundred percent in Y/N's corner."

"We all are!" Ilya says, looking around David's seat.

"Trisha and I had our falling out," Jason says, "and for some reason she felt the need to attack everyone in our friend group even if they had done her no wrong. But bringing Y/N's past into the present after she's tried so hard to leave it behind her? That was just way wrong."

"And because I called her a piece of shit human being for what she did to me, I'm the bully?" You exclaim. "That's such bullshit! Half of you only like her because of her connection to Jeffree Star and the other half only like her because she's an easy fuck."

"Y/N, nooo," Jason groans.

Alex, Ilya, and David all laugh. You do too, but then you sigh and roll your eyes. "Okay so that was harsh. I went a step too far and I apologize for that comment I just now made. But I still stand by my Instagram video."

"With all that being said, knock it off with all the hate," David says. "We get it. Y/N has a shady past, but you know what? It's her past and that's exactly where it should stay."

For the rest of the ride, you listen as the boys poke fun at one another. The drama with Trisha is pushed to the back burner and you take a moment to just breathe, and be thankful for your newfound friends. They had every right to be distrustful of you, but they chose to hear you out instead. They chose to defend you and let your past be your past.

"Y/N. Hey, Y/N!"

You snap to attention. "Yeah? What?"

"Chipotle or In-N-Out? You're the tiebreaker."

"Chipotle. Duh."

"Yes!" David cheers. "I knew she wouldn't let me down."

As Alex and Jason groan about your choice in food, you sigh happily as you relax in your seat. Because though you're still pissed about Trisha spilling the tea on your past, you're also kind of grateful because it brought you closer to your friends. But you'd never admit that out loud. Nope. No way.

[princess-of-the-corner]

Human After All: I'd like to know more about A) Lust realizing that Hohenheim had an actual life in Resembool and B) everyone's reactions to Ed and Al sneaking off to do the human transmutation and the aftermath.

Oh boy here we fuckin go!!!!!

Lust realizing that Hohenheim had a life in Resembool:

Oh boy. Okay so this has some setup.

When Lust first meets Ed and Al, she assumes the situation is a lot different. Basically They're close enough to be mistaken for twins, so she thought it was more "one night stand and disappeared from town but their mom remembered the name and told the kids". Because... Why would he stay?

But then Lust babysits Ed and Al on a trip back to Resembool to visit Winry and her grandma. And like.

Lust gets curious about some things. And she happens to see a photo album out that she can't help but look through.

Of course Granny finds her snooping but just lets her look through it and explains that it's from Winry's parents' wedding. And Lust eventually flips to a page where Hohenheim is in the photo.

Lust pauses on it because it's so strange. First in general, of how Hohenheim looks just like Father but also nothing like him at the same time. Physically identical, but the way they carry themselves is.. Entirely different.

Especially as this picture is kinda goofy. Granny tells her how everyone was hinting to Hohenheim that he should marry Trisha since they were already "basically married". And the newly married Sarah Rockbell had given up pn subtly, and chucked her boquet right at Hohenheim's face with a "sorry I was aiming for Trisha!"(which no one belives because she has incredible aim).

Lust asks more on that. And Granny mentions how Hohenheim and Trisha had been together for a bit amd were already living in the same home. And that pretty much immediatly after that whole "lack of subtly" the pair decided "despite not going through legal paperwork we are married now fuck you' and also bonus pregnancy announcement. Which has Lust relize Ed and Al aren't twins.

But it's weird to her. Because like. Hohenheim had a life here? He was with this woman for a few years and essentially got married (clearly the "don't go through the paperwork" is because he doesn't legally exist). But like. He had a wife and kids. One of the kids seems to have been actually planned. Why would he do that? And why did he leave? No one has answers on that, but Granny says that if he did leave, it was for good reasons. Not whatever the town gossips make up for fun.

Granny is a little sus about Lust's interests in all this because like. I kiiinda mentioned this before on my artblog but he way I draw Lust she actually looks a lot like "if Ed was a girl" and considering how much Ed looks like Hohenheim... They basically look somewhat related. Granny points that out and kinda pulls some Gaslight Girlboss Gatekeep of "nope no relation whatsoever my father just worked with him long ago but it's totally not relevant to anything!"

Anyway!

Later, Lust is wandering around Ed and Al's home because that fucker hasn't burned yet. And she just... Sees more of it.

True. It's been just the boys for years but there's still things like his clothes in the bedroom closet or something casually put on a shelf too high for Trisha to have reached.

The two rooms that really hit are the bedroom and the study.

Tbe bedroom is mostly untouched. But she sees a shelf of little statues. It's strange to her, but she realizes all the statutes are made from Alchemy. About half of them have very obvious marks, a sign of a talented but inexperienced maker. Seeing two distinct styles, she cam guess Ed and Al made those.

The rest are perfect. Intricate and flawless. If they weren't on the shelf with the others, she would've thought they were made by some master clay artist.

Alchemically made trinkets as gifts for someone they love.

The study is another beast altogether. A whole library on Alchemical texts. Some even older than Lust. All marked up with someone's notes in the margins. The same person's notes, as the handwriting doesn't differ. Clearly all these are important. So why leave them?

The real hard hitter is a journal Hohenheim left. Of course Lust reads it. The fact that the journal is written in Xerxian is just another punch to the gut, but thankfully Lust can read it.

It has a lot of things but the main info she reads is an entry from when Ed was just born and Hohenheim is discussing worries over how his whole "Philosophers Stone in Human Form" deal might be effecting Ed in terms of like. Genetics and stuff.

But the main thing Lust focuses on is that Hohenheim mentions discussing those fears with Trisha. That he told her what he was and his whole history and everything.

It's... Confusing to Lust. Why did Hohenheim just settle down here in this small ass rural town with a normal woman? What was it about her that compelled him to stay in one place so long? To settle down after years and have a kid? Having a second kid? And telling her about... Everything?

She finds no answer because, from all accounts, it seems like Trisha was just a normal, small-town girl. She didn't even have an interest in Alchemy! Just gardening. Why her? Why not someone at least... Great and powerful to match what he was? Even if no one could truly compare to what he was.

Everyone's reactions to Ed and Al sneaking off to do Human Transmutation:

Oh boy. This is a big plot point.

So the boys had quite a plan to trick the adults. Lust has gone on trips out of town for weekends(reporting back to Father), and she's also babysat the boys on a trip to Resembool before. So the boys wait until one of her trips and tell Roy and Riza that she's taking them on a different trip to Resembool. None of the adults know this until Lust comes back without them and has no idea where they were.

They put it together real fast and all three book it to the train station. Several hours of worried pacing of what could've happened.

Roy and Riza are entirely in the dark of what might happen. Lust though... She knows how the Gate works. And what could have happened.

She knows that There's a Price to pay. And while she was planning on encouraging the boys to go through the Gate anyway, she was supposed to be involved with it so she could trade a part of her Philosopher's Stone for their safety. Obviously just so they don't loose a Sacrifice to blood loss or later infection! Not because she cares or anything! But yeah without her, who knows what the Price may be?

They check the boys house first. They see plenty of blood, which is a terrifying sight. But they also see a trail leading out. And that if the boys are still alive, they probably went to the Rockbell place.

Which yeah. Granny's already waiting for them. She wants to yell at them for failing, but it would be hypocritical sinve she didn't notice the first time around.

She tells them the boys are alive but fucked up. Ed lost a couple limbs and Al is... Hard to explain.

Lust is the first to notice the suit of armor in the living room. The way it's arranged like a child, curled up and hiding, barely peeking out from behind the "arms". Light in it's "eyes", like someone's in there watching her.

She remembers the experiments done on the death row inmates. Puttin Souls in suits of armor. She's horrified, but not surprised, when it moves.

That is a whole conversation. Lust has to pretend she doesn't know how that works(while also questioning how the boys managed it). Al tells them what he remembers, which is just everythiny going wrong and then being in the armor and Ed missing some limbs.

We have a long emotional scene when Roy goes to talk to Ed.

Ed is very much not okay at this point and he's trying to be angry but it's just not really there. And he just asks why Roy is still there. He failed to keep them from fucking up why does he still care? Just go back home and leave them so he doesn't have to deal with them anymore.

Well that's just heartbreaking. Roy just talks to him about a lot of things. And the main thing was that this wasn't just "I'm gonna try and stop you but whoops failed that bye bitch" situation. He's not just going to drop the kids because he failed once. He's not even going ti drop them after months of pushing him away and being stubborn about the whole situation. They're a family now damn it.

And Ed kinda feels like that might be worse, because he threw that away ti go fuck up. But Roy tells him it's not "thrown away". They're still going to be here for him. And figure things out.

Later at night, Roy, Riza and Lust all kinda sneaknout individually. Which does lead to some comedy until Granny catches them and calls them idiots. But all of them were thinking of going to the boy's house and looking over their notes.

Roy and Lust are the only ones who can make heads or tails of the notes. Riza can follow some but gets lost and Granny never was an Alchemy person. Roy's looking more for "what went wrong" while Lust is focused more on "what went right". And Lust does find that though they came very close to making a Homunculus, they did do everything pretty right. She accidentally comments on that, which leads to a horrifying theoretical of "what if the boys managed to make a fake Trisha that looked and acted like her but wasn't her?". This also leads to the more disturbing question of "what was it they did manage to make"?

This is a thing that came up in Canon, but here they get answers of the thing that they made wasn't their mom, and you can't bring back the dead. Ed and Al take that news about as well as they did in Canon as well.

The "possible homunculus" thing comes up too with the others wondering if Al really is Al and not just... Something vaguely like him that Ed accidentally created. (Lust knows but can't tell how she knows rip!). Riza to the rescue on this one by asking Al about something Ed shouldn't know about. So that existential crisis is averted!

Of course there's discussion of what to do to help Ed and Al. Which... Does lead to getting back toward Canon of "have Ed become a State Alchemist". It's debated a lot because ya know. Sure it's the best option to help them have the freedom and access to stuff tk find shit but. Ya know. Roy already feels like he failed to protect these kids once already this is not helping.

Anyway! One more fun scene!

Please imagine once Ed gets the automail arm and just does the clap-slap Alchemy. And Roy and Riza are like "yo what the FUCK???"

[kayssweetdreams]

The Perfect Finale Ch44

"What is Kaylo doing here?! She's supposed to be protecting the heart!!" Jose panicked. "I don't knowm but we can't leave her out in the open. She's Yin's target right now. And we HAVE To keep her hidden from him." Aria said. "Jett, can you get her?" Mei asked. In a split second, Jett shot down and grabbed Kaylo around her waist before shooting back into the sky.

"HEY! LET GO!!" Kaylo shouts, not knowing it was him. Jett slapped a hand to her mouth "Quiet ya gumby! Do you want all of Wonderworld to know you're here?!" He hissed. "Jett! I need to find Balan and Lance! They're in danger!" Kaylo whispered, now quieter since she knows Jett isn't a threat. "YOU'RE the one in danger right now, walking around like you don't have the heart!" He tells her.

The two of them rejoined the others, all of which were worried about why Kaylo was in Wonderworld. "Where are Balan and Lance?" She asked. "We don't know! We got separated because Yin made some kind of red Negati. And it was a dragon..." Yuri said. "We gotta find them! I think they might be in danger!" Kaylo exclaimed. "But you have to get out of here! Yin is still looking for the heart! And if he finds out you're here-!" Jose started, only to be cut off by a blast of negative energy.

The humans were thrown back by the blast, and looked up to see an angry Yin staring down at them. "You. You filthy little cockroaches..." He snarled. The humans shrunk down in fear as he descended to their level. "You come back here, to MY realm. And try to take MY Yang out of the equation. I should just destroy you right now." He growled in anger. He got dangerously close to Aria, before Jett kicked him away.

Through stunned, Yin recovered himself. "WHO DARES TO STRIKE ME?!" He yelled. Jett smirked as his eyes then glowed purple. "I did. And I'll make sure that you know a new emotion: FEAR." He threatened before shooting towards the red maestro. Yin growled as he too darted towards Jett. The two of them dueled in the air, Yin launching pure negativity at the demon, with Jett avoiding them with ease.

That's when Jett suddenly stared directly at Yin, and tried to make an illusion of his worst fears...but nothing happened. "What?!" He exclaimed, as Yin grabbed him by the throat, and violently choked him with one hand. The red maestro gave a laugh. A cruel, humorless, laugh that made your hairs stand on end.

"Silly demon...I have no fear..."

Mei belongs to @sundove88

Rebecca belongs to @thehyperrequiem

Trisha Jane belongs to @lovelyteng

Aria belongs to @shadowqueen402

Lora Jade belongs to @alex-frostwalker

Jett belongs to @jettthespeeddemon