#It's frankly not an issue in things like squad battle but the quickness that you can be killed by the sidekick feels really bad in ffa

[calico-strawberry]

FFA slayer playlist being back in Infinite made me remember how much I hate the Sidekick as a starting weapon for arena modes.

Love getting cross mapped in seconds by two different people the second I step out of my spawn.

[pikemoreno]

if you ever wanna be in love

Chapter V: Lightning Strikes

a/n: it’s startingggg. it might be good to read up on the events of the mentalist... to avoid any confusion for the next few chapters... i’ll just say that. also the lightning metaphor is a callback to chapter 1. it’s been a while so i wouldn’t blame you for not recalling

pairing: marcus pike x f!reader

word count: 4k 

warnings: none, and i don’t expect there to really be any serious ones in upcoming chapters either... well actually, there’s a wee bit of angst here...

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The sun was hardly over the tree-lined horizon when you pulled up to the Elizabet Ney Museum. It was a consequence of your team being requested to come before the museum opened, allowing business hours to go on as usual during the investigation. That was making you wonder exactly how busy they thought this place was going to get on a Monday morning during the school year-- and how they expected the investigation to be successful when they had guests tramping all over the scene-- but you didn't question it. 

Being a few minutes early, you took some time to traipse around the property to see if anything looked note-worthy. The sand-colored castle-like complex was bathed in soft early morning light and a haunting fog; the grass was dewy and squeaked against your shoes as you circled the grand building. The most likely entry and exit points-- the door and windows on the far side-- yielded nothing. Nothing on the wooden door nor the brassy knob was broken, and there was no sign of trampled dirt around it, nor was there anything amiss with the paned windows. However, the security camera just above the back-door threshold made you raise an eyebrow. They had full security cam coverage and couldn't determine how their stuff had been stolen? Odd. 

You were far too distracted with your thoughts as you walked that you didn't hear the car pull in out front or the person getting out of it or the footsteps coming around the side of the building. So when Marcus appeared right in front of you as he rounded the corner, he had to grab your arm to steady you as you almost fell on your ass in surprise. You almost ripped your arm out of his grasp as the electricity of the touch shot through your arm, surprising you far more than his sudden appearance. 

You almost did. But you didn't. It felt too nice in the end.

"Sorry," he laughed, "Didn't mean to scare you. Coffee?" He held out a drink carrier containing two travel cups. "Should be the one on the right." You took it. 

"Does it have--" you took a sip before you finished your question. 

It was exactly the way you liked it. You regarded Marcus with wide eyes. 

"You know my coffee order?" you gaped. He shrugged nonchalantly. You followed him as he made his way back to the front of the museum.

"Yeah. What about it?" he laughed, sipping from his drink.

"How do you know it?" 

"From when we were at Copper Coin last week." He looked genuinely confused as to why this was a shocking discovery. 

"And you remember what I ordered?"

"Of course." His eyes shone with sincerity and just a hint of something that said, "duh."

You wanted to ask if he knew all of his co-workers' coffee orders by heart, but you were interrupted by the arrival of Adrian, followed closely by Wendy. You blinked a little. 

Did they come here together? 

You'd heard nothing from her since they had "gotten together" a few days ago. Now, this little scene had you wondering exactly how "together" they had gotten. You shot Wendy a questioning look around Adrian's shoulder, and she mouthed "later" with what was quite possibly the biggest grin you'd ever seen from her. Her whole demeanor had changed in the days since you'd seen her. Even if your plans for getting them together didn't work out as planned, the result was the same. Standing in front of you were two people finding at least the tiniest bit of healing in companionship. And that is all the set-up was about in the end. 

Mission: success.

"Hey guys," Marcus greeted them, reaching a hand out to shake Wendy's, "You must be Wendy?"

"That's me," she shook his hand, smiling, "And you're Marcus." He nodded. "Hang on. How do you two know each other?" She studied the two of you carefully. 

Oops.

"Oh well, a couple of weeks ago, we were out of coffee, so I snuck over to their break room to get some. We talked for a minute. And now I just see him everywhere, I guess," you laid out as casually as possible. 

"I see." You couldn't tell if she actually sounded unconvinced or if your incredible paranoia just made her sound that way. "Well, this is Adrian, who I told you about already," she beamed, you shook his hand.

Be cool, be cool. I definitely haven't been interfering in your love life for the past two weeks.

"Nice to meet you, Adrian. You're on the Art Squad?"

Good playing dumb, me.

"I am."

"Great. Pleased to work with you."

The museum owner arriving saved you from further pleasantries. Adrian, being the one who had talked to her the most, ran ahead to greet her while the rest of you hung back. Wendy looped her arm through yours and started her quiet detailing of her night.

"So last night I went over to Adrian's place just for a little home-cooked meal and a movie," you nodded along, smiling at her excitement, "It was so great, you know? My perfect relaxed evening. Of course, then I accidentally fell asleep there-- thank God I keep an extra set of work clothes in my car. But what do I wake up to? Breakfast from Rick's!" 

"Very impressive!"

"Right?" she sighed, "He made sure he was up before me and snuck out for breakfast. Ugh, what a keeper! How did he know?" You shot a quick look over to Marcus but gave a nonchalant shrug to Wendy.

"Everyone likes Rick's, I guess."

"Either way. It was very sexy of him. Find yourself someone like that." With that, she patted your shoulder and stepped over to join Adrian and the museum owner.

Marcus laughed a little as he fell into step with you. You cocked your head as you watched him

"What?"

"I'm the one that told him to do that."

"Really? Been giving him pointers, oh great love master?" He put a hand to his chest, feigning offense.

"Ouch. Of course, I have. He was with his ex for so long he doesn't remember how to date anymore. I had to tell him all of my tricks."

"Oh, is that how you charm all the women? Surprise breakfast?"

"Sometimes. Sometimes other meals. But always breakfast food." You laughed. "Seriously. It's unassuming, comforting. Anyone can go out to dinner and a movie, right? Breakfast food is both more relaxed and more intimate. No one is putting on airs or trying to impress with diner breakfast food. No one is ordering healthy to look good. No one is on their best manners. They're getting their chocolate chip waffles, and they're piling the syrup on it no matter what you say about it, and that tells you way more about someone than how they act at a fancy restaurant."

"That's… Actually, really profound." 

There was an indiscernible look in his eye as you gazed at him and him back at you. Like he knew something you didn't, and he was just waiting for you to figure it out.

Remember when I took you to Rick's?

***

The case was a pretty difficult one. 

The robbery occurred on one of the busiest days they'd had all year. Guests had been pouring in for one last little family day before school started back, enjoying an educational experience and the beautiful weather the day brought as they walked the grounds. The security cameras were down for the entire business day. The only lead was that the Ney family members-- a distant cousin and niece who had donated the heirloom and the bust-- had come right before closing. They would've undoubtedly noticed that their precious items were missing. Therefore, the items must've been stolen after they left, after the museum had closed. 

But that's where things got tricky. The doors to the museum were locked, as were the windows, and there were, as you'd seen this morning, no signs of forced entry. The only suspects, then, were employees and volunteers who could've gotten access to the keys. That left the owner, a bunch of high school and college students keeping a summer job, and a couple of elderly art lover volunteers. Logically, you could pretty much eliminate the students immediately, though everyone would be brought in for questioning for the sake of process anyway. There was little reason for a student to steal those items. This wasn't a Monet and the Hope Diamond. They wouldn't have sold for much, certainly not enough to make it worth the risk of robbing their own workplace. Frankly, the motive was unclear all-around. The family was ready to sue the museum for their negligence, and the museum wouldn't last very long if it came down to a money battle. The owner probably wouldn't have sabotaged themselves like that, unless there was some sort of a deeper issue. And the elderly volunteers… You guessed could've done it if they were art fanatics, but, really: why? It didn't add up. 

The owner told you as much as she could as she led you through the property-- she wasn't sure either. You were able to eliminate her as a suspect as she spoke. She was outright begging you to find the thief, nearly in hysterics over the prospect of losing the beloved museum and her livelihood.

"We'll do our best, Mrs. Moa," Marcus calmed her, "Do you know anyone who would want to sabotage you or the museum or the family?" She shook her head weakly.

"Not offhand. You'd have to ask them as well, though."

"We will. Don't worry, Mrs. Moa. You have four of the FBI's best here, we're gonna figure this out," Adrian beamed.

It was a blatant over-promise and gross exaggeration, but as you looked around at your new-found little crew, you almost believed him too. 

You all shook Mrs. Moa's hand as you departed, telling her that forensics would be along shortly to do their thing, and you would start questioning suspects the next day. She once again gave her most gracious thanks and went back to anxiously prepping for the museum opening. The news of the theft and the subsequent lawsuit was spreading, and she was going to be getting a lot of hard questions thrown at her today.  Poor thing.

"Would you all like to come over to my place later?" Adrian started as you all made your way back to your cars, "I'll order pizza, grab some drinks, and we can maybe talk about this case?" His "maybe" was not particularly convincing. This was strictly going to be a social event, and you all knew it.

You all gave your confirmation that you would be there and headed back to the office to finish out the workday.

***

Despite the in-office workday being a mere half-day by the time you made it back, it felt like it was dragging on forever. You had plenty of other files to work through and close, but you couldn't get your mind off the Ney case. There was a missing piece, and you had to get your mind off of that sinking feeling before you could do anything else. Wendy had been on the phone since she stepped foot in her office, and you frankly didn't know Adrian well enough to be comfortable going to him. So that just left Marcus to go to.

You'd been thinking about him all day. Now that Adrian and Wendy were together, was that going to change your relationship too? Would you still talk like you do now? You certainly hoped so. You'd bared your soul too much at the coffee shop for him to turn into a casual acquaintance now. And honestly? You'd gotten sort of attached to him. He really did make you feel important and wanted and cared about, just as you'd craved back at the beginning of all of this. Some sort of feeling had sprung up. Not necessarily, feeling feelings. You don't fall that fast. But there was something. Enough that you didn't want him gone. You wanted to learn more about him, experience more with him beyond just being a co-worker... Whatever that meant.

You hopped up from your desk and got into the elevator before anyone noticed you'd left, finding him where you now knew his desk to be. You leaned a hand against the front of the mahogany, and he looked up curiously, waiting for your explanation he could see forming in your brain. 

"Do you feel like there's something missing in the Ney case?" You asked finally.

"Sure, a perpetrator," he responded in a deadpan. 

"Alright, then. Good talk, smartass." You took two steps away from his desk before he grabbed you lightly by the forearm to bring you back. 

"No, no. Come back. I'll be serious now, I promise. What are you thinking?"

"Doesn't it just seem like something's missing? I feel like there's no motive in any of the suspects we have."

"Well, that's what the interrogations are for, right?"

"Yeah, but--" you bit your lip for a moment, considering, "Do you think that the family would have anything to do with it?"

"How do you mean?" he folded his arms now. You didn't realize his hand was still on your forearm until he removed it. You felt the warmth leave as the overdone air-conditioning immediately chased the feeling away.

He did, of course. He knew his hand was still on your skin. And for every moment his hand remained there, it grew a little more difficult to not slide it down to where his fingers could fully intertwine with yours. But that would have been too much. His ex-wife-- and admittedly, multiple others-- had chided how he was too overbearing. He had been feeling that something as well, terrifying as it was. And it was taking everything in him to not fall into his usual, "overbearing" ways. Your mind towards him was completely indiscernible so far. Sure, there had been moments that it seemed that you'd be more than happy to have your hand held by him, but, more often than not, the friendly, playful banter you shared moments later completed nixed out those moments to him. He had no idea what you were thinking and was maybe a little hesitant to find out at this point. Right now, he needed to test the waters, play it cool, and maybe one day he'd feel he could do that without scaring you off. 

"Well," you started, "I guess I'll have to question the family too to confirm this, but wouldn't they maybe have something to gain from the lawsuit? Money? Power over the museum?" you tapped your fingers lightly on the desk, then your eyes widened with your 'aha' moment, "Maybe I'll research if they've had any past disputes with Mrs. Moa. Thanks, Marcus, you've been a big help." 

"I didn't--" you'd already run away, booking it back to your floor, "do anything." 

He shook his head fondly.

You weren't at your desk trying to dig into the museum history for very long before Wendy walked up and sat across from you. She did so incredibly coolly, taking a moment to look around the office and give the chair little half-spins before she finally spoke. 

"So, how do you actually know Marcus?"

You almost choked as you sucked in a too-quick breath. 

"I'm sorry?"

"How do you actually know Marcus?" 

"Exactly what we said earlier," you shook your head, "We met by chance in the breakroom a couple of weeks ago, I've seen him around, chatted occasionally, and now we're on this case together." 

"Sure."

"You think I'm lying?" 

How could she have possibly known about the set up?

"I do. But I don't know if you know you're lying." You gave her a questioning look, inviting her to continue. "I've never actually seen you truly smitten with someone. But I would imagine it'd look something like this."

"Oh come on, you've seen me with him one time." She laughed. Loudly.

"What? Do you think I don't have eyes? I've seen you two talking around the office. I've seen you laughing and looking nothing short of flustered. I've seen your phone go off with a text message when you leave it on your desk. It's from a 'Marcus' pretty damn often. Am I right in assuming you don't know two Marcuses?" It was rhetorical, but you shook your head anyway. "I saw that you were together when I came into Copper Coin the other day. I saw you both with the very same Copper Coin travel cups this morning. And I know for a fact that when you were gone from your desk right now, you were with Marcus."

"I mean, that's all true. But so what? It's not what you're probably thinking it is." She hummed, thinking for a moment.

"Do you want it to be?" That stopped you in your tracks.

What did you want from this?

"I--" you sighed, throwing your head back against the back of your chair, "Undecided."

"That's ok. Hey, it's only been two weeks. I just... I really have never seen you act like that with someone before. I had to ask." You nodded along. You had a strange feeling all of that actually meant: "You've been so ridiculously obvious that I had to make sure you knew how obvious you were being."

"It's not out of the question. I just don't know yet. It takes time. Do you think he… Feels that way about me?"

She sighed. "I can't say for sure. I'll have to keep an eye out tonight."

***

It was by total accident that you arrived to Adrian's at the same time as Marcus, but it happened nonetheless. The autumn air around you was finally cooling down. Marcus had his hands in his pockets, and you were kicking pebbles up the sidewalk as you walked down the parked-up street and up to the little yellow house. Its golden porch lights beamed brightly as the sun was falling behind the horizon so much quicker lately. 

"Kind of a funny turn of events," Marcus mused. "We've been casually interfering in their lives, trying to bring them together, making sure they don't know that we know each other. And now they're together in spite of us, and we're walking into Adrian's house together."

"Yeah… Wendy kinda already knew that we knew each other."

"She did?"

"She did. She saw us together too much, I guess. But  I don't think she suspects that we were up to anything."

"Oh good… So what did she say?"

"What do you mean?" 

"Well, she obviously brought something up to you. So what was it?"

"Uh, I-- I guess she thinks there's more to it. I don't know." He laughed.

It was a nervous laugh, but you didn't hear it as such. You moved on before any of the rest of that conversation could be discussed. 

"So has Adrian said anything to you about this little relationship of theirs?" 

"Just that he has no idea what he's doing and needs help." You laughed. "So, I've been helping him out a bit."

"So… The pancakes are a part of that. What else have you been telling him?"

"You know, some date ideas. I remember you saying that a walk around a museum would be more her speed? I told him to do that. He knows all about the art in any art museum and could talk her ear off about any of it. Do you think she'd like that? Him telling her about the art?"

"She would love that, I think. That's very romantic." 

"You think?"

"I do."

Is it something you'd love too?

There was no chance for him to ask. Wendy greeted you at the door with a raised brow. You didn't intend to arrive together, but that wouldn't convince her for a second. 

***

The evening went by without a hitch. Adrian and Wendy's budding relationship was genuinely adorable. Watching them dance around the kitchen as they warmed up slices from the already-cold pizza, they looked like they'd already been doing it for months. The conversation shared was breezy and comfortable.

Until.

"Oh, Adrian, don't forget. Floor renovation starts tomorrow. We're on the 5th floor with Special Crimes for a bit," Marcus reminded as you all sat around Adrian's kitchen table-- pizza long gone, finishing the last sips of your drinks.

"Good to know," you interjected. He looked at you quizzically.

"What do you mean?" 

"Well, what if I wanted to come bother you after finishing the interrogations? I would've gone to the 6th floor and would've never found you. Now I know." You grinned, taking a smug sip of your drink. 

"What a tragedy that would've been." His smile was fond. When you looked over to Wendy, she had a peculiar expression-- her "thinking face"-- as she looked between you and Marcus. Her expression shifted to express exasperation.

"What?" You shifted uncomfortably in your seat. 

Of course, you knew what it was. Once Wendy took off your blinders, you saw everything: the way Marcus interacted with you, the way you interacted with him. Every action tonight was tinged with nervous, flirtatious energy: from the way you laughed at every terrible joke of his to the way his arm was seemingly permanently fixated to the back of your chair.

You understood now what Wendy meant earlier, but you still didn't yet understand how you felt about it. 

"Will you come with me for a second?" she asked you. You got up with her, moving to the foyer, leaving Marcus and Adrian mumbling amongst themselves to figure out what the hell was happening. She didn't waste time in confronting you.

"I've been watching you two all night, and that does not look like nothing. It's clear that he is very into you. I know you said you need time on it, but if you don't feel the same way about him, you need to stop leading him on."

"I'm not leading him on."

"You are. You may not realize it, but you are. The joking and laughing, the gazing, everything."

You opened your mouth to speak, but closed it, crossing your arms. 

"You can't be wishy-washy on this. I'm not letting you run from this this time. So, once and for all: what's going on in your head, and what are you going to do about it?" 

"You know what? Nothing. And nothing." The words came out a little sharper than you intended, tired of this conversation and…

Scared. You were scared. You felt the distinct static tingle of lightning about to strike, and you were running from its impact once again.

"Nothing?"

"No. I know what I said earlier about needing time, but I don't. I've made up my mind. Nothing is going on here; there never will be anything going on here, alright?" You turned around to stomp back to the kitchen, but someone was standing there.

Marcus.

He heard you; there was no denying it.

His face was unmistakably downcast. You looked to the floor to avoid those ever emotion-betraying eyes of his.

He was sure the whole neighborhood could hear him swallow his hurt.

"Excuse me. I was just heading out. Have a good night." He brushed past you both coolly and stepped out through the front door behind you. You think Wendy said goodnight in return, but you couldn't hear through the fog. You said nothing. 

Lightning struck. 

But you ran indoors, and he was a lightning rod. 

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[fortunatelylori]

Let’s talk about the trailer ... because what else are we going to do on a Wednesday afternoon?

I was reluctant to write a meta on this trailer since there isn’t much in terms of narrative to analyze but since I don’t think we’ll be getting much content aside from it, let’s strike the iron while it’s hot, shall we?

The first thought I had upon finishing this was that this is most likely a collection of shots and scenes from the first 3 episodes. There is not one shot in this trailer that I couldn’t comfortably place within what I believe the first 3 episodes will be about: namely the White Walker war. 

It’s also a suspicion that is given even more credence in my mind by the EW article that was released a day prior in which the vast majority of coverage is on the white walker battle and the struggles of the production crew, actors and director Miguel Sapochnik with one of the most grueling night time shoots I’ve ever heard of in my life (55 days of exclusive night shoots! 55!). 

Considering that I assume the reason why they spent 55 nights filming is because the Long Night will actually descend upon Winterfell with the arrival of the White Walkers outside its walls, I feel pretty confident in going even further in my speculation regarding the trailer and say that most of the scenes we see in this trailer are from episode 1 and 2. 

That being said, it’s rather difficult to make out what could happen in those 2 episodes because we get a lot of different, seemingly unrelated shots of the principals without much of a hint in terms of the narrative conflicts that will undoubtedly occur during what I assume will be 2 drama filled episodes. 

As a general conclusion, I believe there are three narrative strands that the trailer blends in, namely: 

The White Walker threat 

Cersei and the Golden Company

Jon/Dany and the dragons

The interesting thing about the White Walker conflict is that we are first introduced to it in the trailer not by Jon, who up until this point has been the public face of the Human Race defense squad, but Arya. 

Seeing this opening: 

Followed up with this: 

And coupled with Arya’s VO: 

Arya: I know death. He’s got many faces. I look forward to seeing this one.

Feels like it gives me a pretty good grasp of what Arya’s arc will be thematically. Incidentally, Maisie already hinted at it in the EW article and this trailer just comes to confirm that: 

Maisie Williams: “There’s this split with Arya between trying to be who she wants to be — getting back to that naiveté and innocence with her family — and her unfinished business.”

This opening seems to emphasize this vacillation between Arya’s vulnerability and humanity and her Faceless Men training. It also brings up the possibility that the Faceless Men will be making a come-back in her arc, which would make sense considering it was never truly concluded. 

We are then thrown into Bran’s VO who is conspicuously absent from this trailer, which is disappointing. I think this is in part because whatever role he is going to play in the War for the Dawn is something that the Ds most likely want to keep hidden but also, and I’m sorry to say it, because his physical disability would impede them from showing the type of dynamic, action filled shots that they use a lot of in this trailer which frankly shows a lack of creativity and a blatant lack of interest on their part for his character, two issues that has plagued Bran for seasons now. 

Out of all the VOs, Bran’s is probably the most generic. People have speculated that this is something he will say to Jon and that’s a possibility but I have to say that while I was watching the trailer, I assumed he was saying it to Arya, as a way to help her reconcile the struggle between the two sides of her personality. 

Bran: Everything you did brought you to where you are now. Where you belong. Home. 

But really it could be about any of the Starks and it could also be about everyone in the show. Essentially, what this VO conveys is the journey all these character have been on and what led them to reach the place they are now. And it’s placed over images that show that: 

We have the Golden Company arriving. As well as confirmation that Tormund and Edd are alive! Yay. We’ll just ignore Beric, shall we? He’s just a bonafied torch as far as I’m concerned We also get establishing shots of King’s Landing and Cersei. 

Then it gets more specific and focuses in on Winterfell. This VO is mainly used as exposition for all of these separate entities coming together in the North for the Great War: 

These shots are among the most beautiful and sweeping of the trailer. They’re breathtaking actually. But I can’t help but feel the same amount of apprehension that Sansa has plastered all across her beautiful face. And that’s because it also feels a little bit like a home invasion of sorts. Jon and D*ny are advancing towards Winterfell in the midst of a huge army. Sansa watches from the battlements as the dragons begin circling her home. This is not all together uplifting, optimistic imagery if looked at from her perspective and her perspective is really the only one we get in these shots since Jon and Dany are presented from the POV of the people that have come out to watch the procession, namely this kid: 

Hello potential food for D*ny’s dragons. How’s medieval life treating you?  Ready for some nukes to destroy your hut?

Also this marks the first transition from Jon/Dany to Sansa in the trailer. It’s not the last. 

Then we jump into Jon’s VO: 

Jon: They’re coming. 

Jon: Our enemy doesn’t tire.

Ok, a bit unfair. Jon’s VO is patently about the White Walkers. However if the shoe fits, you can’t help yourself from walking in it

I won’t deny it. Seeing D*ny in the Winterfell crypts is uncomfortable for me. Not least because once again it feels like she’s breaching Jon’s personal space without being invited. She seeks him out. She gets near him while he looks down and broods, which is something he does a lot of when she’s around him. 

Just like Sansa seeing the dragons fly over Winterfell and the Winter Town kid watching D*ny’s armies marching, this, once again, feels like an invasion as opposed to the benevolent savior coming to protect the North. 

The VO continues with images of Gendry forging weapons and Jaime fighting: 

Jon: Doesn’t stop. Doesn’t feel. 

The feel bit is interesting because we get this: 

Jon and D*ny are supposed to be the epic love story on this show and yet the only kiss we get is for Missandei and Grey Worm?!? 

It also marks these two as the doomed couple that will die a doomed death this season so sorry about that, Missandei/Grey Worm fans. 

However, the entire sequence doesn’t actually end there. It continues with various quick shots, only to end on this: 

I don’t know about you guys but this indicates to me that the trailer is setting Cersei apart from the enemies that Jon is talking about. Of course, that makes sense on a surface level simply because Cersei is human unlike the White Walkers. But why go out of their way to make Cersei sympathetic since aside from the Night King, she’s supposed to be the Big Bad? My guess is because she isn’t and her story this season is about something else than another villain Jon and D*ny will slay with their epic love.  

The last VO we have is from Jaime. This trailer is very VO heavy and Jaime feels like an odd choice. What he says is very much in line with his season 7 finale sentiments, so not many surprises there: 

Jaime: I promised to fight for the living. I intend to keep that promise. 

However, you know who else made such a promise? One that was reiterated in season 7? 

Jon Snow: I am the shield that guards the realms of men. 

I probably wouldn’t have made this association if the trailer didn’t make sure to link Jaime’s VO with shots of Jon: 

Jon in front of the Heart Tree ... you know the same type of tree where he first made his pledge to protect mankind, back in season 1. 

Jon Snow running through a field of fire, looking remarkably similar to his Night Watch self. 

Jon Snow walking towards the creatures he bent the knee for and almost died trying to acquire in order to save the world. 

This last shot is fascinating for 2 reasons: 

It marks the first time Jon is actually in the same shot as Rhaegal. And he’s positioned right in front of him. 

This gives me so many Dance of Dragons vibes, I can’t even begin to fully describe them. To make things clear, I don’t think this scene will end with Jon riding Rhaegal. This is probably Jon and D*ny visiting with the dragons or inspecting that they are in optimum shape for the battle. However, the hint is there visually nonetheless. 

Coupled with a VO that talks about fighting for “the living” it’s even more disturbing to see the graveyard of bones littered all around those creatures. 

To clarify, the choice of having those bones there could be entirely avoidable. Jon and D*ny could come upon the dragons just sitting there, without charred bones all around them. Or if the scene absolutely demands that bones be there, they could have just not included the shot in the trailer at all. But they did. 

Also: 

Hello, Sansa! What are you looking at? And why do I want to hug you right now?

Obviously I doubt these two scenes follow each other within the context of the actual show but in terms of the transition, once again the idea of a love triangle is inserted, albeit in a very subtle way. 

Miscellaneous thoughts: 

Cersei and Sansa’s reunion:

Firstly, let’s just all stop for a second and bow to the brilliance of Lena Heady, shall we? Just look at how much she conveys with just a few seconds focused on her face. I LOVE THIS WOMAN!

Anyway, because Lena is so brilliant and I feel like I have so much access to Cersei through this expression, I’m going to speculate that the reason why Cersei is brimming with barely concealed satisfaction and contained savagery is because in this scene she is actually being presented with a kidnapped Sansa. That’s where my mind went the moment I saw the shot and I’m sticking to it. 

Ascots: 

I HATE THE ASCOTS! HATE, HATE, HATE THEM! For all that is holy, Clapton, release Sophie and Emilia’s necks from the neck chokers of DEATH!

Dothraki? What Dothraki? 

There are no Dothraki in sight! Not during the arrival at Winterfell. Not during the scene of Missandei and Grey Worm kissing. Not during the final shot of the Winterfell army getting ready for the White Walker attack. 

Where are they? I’m willing to bet something happens to at least some of them along the way. 

White walkers and the Night King: 

These are supposed to be the ultimate Villain that all the good guys are going to band together and fight. This trailer is nominally about them. And yet all we actually get of them is this: 

There’s actually no reason to hide the White Walkers from sight. We know they’re coming, we know what they look like. A few shots of them marching isn’t going to spoil anything. 

However, the trailer seems far more interested in showing the struggles and hinting at conflicts and tribulations between the characters, namely those stuck together within the confines of Winterfell. 

Because, of course, it is. This series has never been about the White Walkers. It’s about: “the human heart in conflict with itself”. 

Bring it on, show! Bring it on!

*none of the gifs are mine. thank you to the artists!

[obsidianarchives]

In Defense of Thaddy Thor's Physique in Avengers: Endgame

There has been a lot of conversation surrounding Avengers: Endgame, the final chapter in Marvel’s 22-film, three-phase saga. Fans and critics have a lot of feelings about what the film did right, but a lot of the chatter I’ve seen on social media has been about what the film did wrong. Specifically, how the film “ruined” Thor. While I get some of the general issues people have with Thor in Endgame, a lot of the criticism feels unfair.

If you haven't seen Endgame yet and don't want to be spoiled, now is the time to stop reading.

At the beginning of the film, our heroes have lost the battle with Thanos. Thor, the self-proclaimed “strongest Avenger,” who first failed to deliver the fatal blow in Wakanda, executes a weakened Thanos on a garden planet in front of a demoralized team, then walks off. When we catch up with him five years later, he’s holed up in New Asgard with friends Miek and Korg. His hair has grown, his beard is unkempt, and crucially, he has gained weight. This has, apparently, made Thor “a joke.” That particular criticism irks me, so I’ll jump right into why I think it’s wrong.

First of all, Thaddy has been through A LOT. He loses the last of his living parents at the beginning of Ragnarok. His sister Hela, fresh outta prison, shattered Mjolnir(!) and kicked him out of the Bifrost mid-transport. She went to Asgard and murked an entire military squad, the Warriors Three, and no telling how many others. He landed on a strange planet where they cut off his hair(!!) and forced him to fight gladiator-style against his friend, Hulk. When he and his friends escaped, they came back to Asgard to save what remained but had to bring about Ragnarok — essentially letting a monster destroy Asgard — to kill Hela. Then when he led his remaining people to safety, their ship was beset upon by Thanos, who manually culled half the people on the ship, killed Heimdall and Loki, and gave Hulk the business. All while Thor watched, tied up and helpless.

Thor had already lost all his friends, family, and the majority of his people before Thanos used the Infinity Gauntlet to reduce the population of all living creatures by half. He 👏🏾 is 👏🏾 depressed. 👏🏾

Depression doesn't look the same on everybody. But it can and sometimes does look exactly like Thor. It looks like isolation, apathy, extreme weight loss or weight gain, and self-medicating or substance abuse. It looks like doing the bare minimum to keep yourself alive and grooming/showering only when you can muster the strength or the fucks to give. Thor wears his anger, grief, and guilt on his body like people who struggle with depression often do.

Apparently, this makes Thor unworthy. Or at least, that’s the way some people have interpreted it. I don't think the filmmakers thought through Thaddy, beyond wanting to show how much he was affected by everything he's experienced since we've known him. He was not written with as much care as he could have been, but I also don’t think he was written carelessly or as a punchline to a bad joke. I don't think the filmmakers saw him negatively or expected the audience to. They wrote him as someone who is still worthy.

Contrary to some criticism (1, 2, 3, 4), there are only a few times where someone makes a specific comment regarding his body/weight.

When Bruce and Rocket go to retrieve Thor and where his new, fatter body is revealed. Thor says something like "I am doing good, don't I look good?" and Rocket replies, "you look like melted ice cream."

Rocket is an asshole. That is his most defining characteristic, outside of being a sentient raccoon. (This is also why he does not give Thor a good pep-talk on Asgard.) Bruce says nothing about his physical appearance or about the way he spends his time and doesn't make fun of him or judge him for how he's changed. He just asks for his help.

When Thor abandons his mission to take the Aether from Jane and runs into his mother. After she lovingly roasts him and gives him sage advice, she sends him off with "eat a salad."

Mom's be like that. That’s not to diminish it cause it is problematic, but it's a thing a mom would say. It's something my mom has said to me and is in line with the kind of caring concern mothers who mean well often show.

After the team has successfully retrieved the stones and are discussing who will wield the new gauntlet. Thor asks them, "do you know what's coursing through my veins right now?" And Rhodey replies jokingly, "cheese wiz." Thor responds to this by making a face/gesture that's hard to read but is either agreement ("that's fair") or mild hurt. I personally read it as, "you got me there, but now is not the time."

It was, maybe, uncalled for, but definitely not worse than any of the numerous jokes that have been levied at other, fit-bodied people over time. One-liners are a staple of the Avengers films. Humor is one way the MCU and the Avengers films, in particular, have softened what might otherwise be very harsh stories to watch. Take away the zingers and it's just angst and fighting and death.

When Thor rejoins the rest of the team in Endgame, nothing really changes in how they treat him. Tony calls him a nickname, Lebowski, which is not a comment about his weight but his dress and overall demeanor. When Thor starts breaking down while discussing Jane and going on a tangent about what he's lost, they awkwardly try to get him back on task and when they can't, Tony gathers him patiently. They may react to him in ways the audience finds humorous, but they are not laughing at him.

I’d say the camera's POV was more discomforting than any of the characters’ words or behaviors. And this seems largely due to our own biases coloring how we view things. I watched all three Thor films recently and they have always loved a lingering torso shot that pans up. All-a-sudden it’s an issue when that same shot is focusing on a body we no longer find "appealing” or "attractive." They’ve always emphasized his body, it’s just now that his body is no longer “desirable” that the shot is making fun of him. The audience saw a “beer belly” and decided that was the joke. Never mind that the camera has always treated Thor this way.

Thor

Dark World

Ragnarok

Bonus: Age of Ultron

As for his character arc, he went from a person who wanted to be king but wasn’t ready in Thor to a person who was ready but didn’t want it in Dark World. In Ragnarok he discovers that even handicapped and disarmed, he has all the power within him. He leads the Asgardian refugees not because he wants to but because he is needed. It’s a lesson carried through into Infinity War, where he stands in front of a dying star to create a new weapon capable of defeating a powered-up Thanos. He doesn’t need Stormbreaker to be powerful, he needs it to channel his power.

That growth wasn't undermined in Endgame. Thor has not regressed, he’s stagnant. He’s lost. He doesn’t know where to go or how to move on. He feels like he failed his people as their king and everyone else as the “Strongest Avenger.” His retrieving of Mjolnir in the past/alternate reality was not about him “needing” a weapon (as he clearly had access to Stormbreaker), it was about him answering the question of, after all the failures and losses, is he still worthy? And he was. Belly, beard, sweatsuit, and all.

Maybe people's discomfort wasn't that the movie "made fun" of Thor's weight, but that it showed him being soft and vulnerable and messy and not all the way together. He didn't suppress the sadness and guilt he's entitled to. He responded to the pain. People want their heroes to suffer silently and never react or be affected. And it bothers some people that he didn't just move the fuck on. The film didn’t make him a “bumbling idiot” it just made him fat and people projected all their biases onto him.

As of this writing, I've seen Endgame three times. I went into both repeat viewings conscious of how the film treats Thor. And I've come away from it each time feeling the same way. I love Thaddy! I love that he was allowed to be imperfect. And I especially love that there was no “quick fix” before the big battle where he magically loses all the weight. Because even with a belly and split ends he’s still powerful, strong, and capable of and willing to fight. He’s still a hero!

And let us be clear, Thanos was beating ALL they asses! Any comments that Thor was singularly weak is nonsense. Tony and Steve got rocked in equal measure. Steve wielding Mjolnir was the shit(!!!) and it didn’t take anything away from Thor or undermine his strength in any way. Thor got his hero moments like many of the OG Avengers did, he just took a few Ls in the process.

Thor's final act on Earth is appointing Valkyrie king of New Asgard. He didn't want to be king in the first place and only took the mantle to protect his people after Asgard fell. In the five years while he was depressed and unable to lead, Valkyrie stepped up. She was ready and willing and he was not. Giving her the throne was not an act of weakness, but one of strength and wisdom. It was a culmination of all the lessons he's learned and him heeding his mother's advice to "be who you are, not who you're supposed to be."

Last we see Thor, he's hitching a ride with the Guardians and having a push-and-pull with Quill over who’s in charge. As we know, Thor is not a dude, he is a man. Quill is a dude at best. It's unclear whether Thor will make an appearance in the next GOTG, but if he does, I expect him to be the captain, it’s only fair.

Whether he remains thicc or tightens up is of no consequence. Being fat does not diminish him. He is still strong and he is still a hero. And frankly, he is still foine! A little tummy ain't never hurt nobody and Thaddy could still get it!

Header image credit to Marvel Studios.

[thievinghippo]

Fic Update: Form 5763W (4/13)

Fandom: swtor

Pairing: Aric Jorgan/Republic Trooper

Chapter Title: The Pit (Read on Ao3!)

Rating: Teen

Summary: Jorgan and Wynneth hoped for a quiet wedding. But when the political realities of the ceremony come to light, things become real complicated, real quick.

#

“This place sucks.”

 “No one asked for your professional opinion, Vik,” Wynneth said, sounding bored. “Now get your ass moving or I’ll make you double time it.”

 Underneath the safety of his helmet, Jorgan smirked. He did certainly like it when his girl didn’t take any shit from Vik. Still rankled him that Tanno Vik, once kicked out of the army, now served with the Republic’s finest. Only issue in this case was Vik was absolutely right.

 Ten minutes on Abbaji and Jorgan had to admit he agreed. This place did suck.  

The Cathar thrived on open plains. To be holed up in a dense rain forest like this one made Jorgan’s fur on the back of his neck stand up. But nothing, not even a humid rain forest like this, would keep them from finishing this mission. Then he and Wynneth could cash in most of their leave and enjoy a nice, long honeymoon. Taking out a bunch of thugs pretending to be serious criminals would only make it that much sweeter.

 “Can we at least stop for water?” Vik asked.

 Jorgan could almost hear Wynneth rolling her eyes. But he couldn’t blame Vik. Thanks to not wanting to give away their position, they landed the ship almost an hour’s walk from the camp. Almost thirty minutes had passed in hot, humid weather in full heavy armor. He wouldn’t mind a bit of water himself.

 “Fine,” Wynneth said as she stopped walking. “But only because I’m thirsty, Vik. This has nothing to do with you.”

 “If you say so, boss,” Vik said, taking off his helmet.

 One of the advantages of having a droid like Forex in the group was it didn’t mind carrying everyone’s gear. In fact, more often than not, Forex insisted. And for treks like this? The rest of the squad gladly let him. Forex held out four canteens and a hydrospray bottle for Yuun.

 Jorgan rolled his neck once he took of his helmet. This weather was the worst. Already his fur felt matted, and not for the first time, he was grateful he didn’t sweat like humans. Though he had certainly come to appreciate Wynneth in that state.

 She walked over to him, cradling her helmet on her hip, and dangling two canteens from her fingers. He took one gratefully, letting their fingers brush a moment longer than strictly necessary. Through his armored gauntlets, he could barely feel her touch, but just that extra moment was enough. Wynneth grinned at him, and he bumped his shoulder into hers.

 As he took a sip of water, he wondered if these little moments would feel any different once they were married. They already made him happy, a state of being he never truly expected to achieve. Jorgan could only imagine marriage would only make them better.

 And that’s when everything exploded.

 Jorgan’s ears rang loudly as he tried to pick himself up off of the ground. He heard the familiar song of blaster fire, one round hitting him square in the shoulder. Thankfully, his heavy armor brushed it off like dust. As quickly as he could, he scooped up his helmet, and planted it on his head, not bothering to deal with the seals.

 Wynneth was already on her feet, shouting orders. “Seven of them. Vik and Yuun, get in their faces. Jorgan, you and I are mid line fire. Dorne and Forex, back line. Dorne, keep us all alive. Forex, keep Dorne alive.”

 “Yes, sir!” came everyone’s response at once.

 The seven mercenaries they faced clearly weren’t trained all that well. Men and women, all different species. Jorgan tried to see if there was a human, if one might be General Vander’s son, but with the speed of battle, he couldn’t tell. And frankly, right now, he honestly didn’t give a shit.

 While they might not be trained, they brought some serious fire power. As he focused on a Nautolan, Jorgan cursed himself. They should have scouted first themselves, instead of relying on the apparently outdated intel they received from General Vander. Well, nothing they could do about it now, except end this fight and regroup.

 When there were only three mercenaries left, Jorgan changed the barrel of his gun with a practiced ease. After all these years, he made it a habit to take a quick glance at Wynneth after he dropped the used barrel to the ground. Her assault rifle cradled on one hip while she prepped a grenade. Even with strands of hair stuck to her forehead and dirt smeared across her face, she was still the most beautiful thing in the galaxy.

 His mind went back to the battlefield, being careful to aim away from Yuun and Vik, tanking at the front lines. Then within five seconds, the entire battle changed.

 Jorgan heard Wynneth yell, “Plastique!” and because he knew her mind in a fight almost as good as his own, he knew she’d be aiming for the one asshole who managed to ignore Vik’s taunts. Vik might be the scum of the galaxy, but the bastard did know how to piss people off in a fight.

 And only seconds later, he heard her scream.

 Over the years, he learned the tenor of Wynneth’s screams. He understood the difference between a scream in pain and a scream in anger or frustration. This scream was different. This sounded like a scream of absolute terror, and it chilled Jorgan down to the very bone.

 He looked over to where she had been standing only seconds ago and she was gone.

 “Major!” Elara yelled behind him. Jorgan took a step towards the empty space that had been his betrothed, but stopped before getting his head on straight. The best thing he could do for Wynneth right now is finish this damn fight. He heard Elara sprinting, and forced himself not to look. He had to focus on the battle in front of him.

 Three minutes later, the fight was over. “Handle it, Vik,” Jorgan said, pointing to the bodies across the way. Vik would deal with any of the bad guys stupid enough not to die during the fight, giving Jorgan the chance to figure out just what the hell had happened.

 Elara knelt next to a ditch in ground, preparing a medical probe, and Jorgan’s stomach tied itself in knots. “She alive?” he asked, hardly able to get the words out of his mouth. He took off his helmet, dropping it to the ground without a care.

 “She is, And to ease your mind, I don’t expect that to change any time soon,” Elara said quietly. Then raising her voice, added, ���You’re supposed to be counting, Major. Keep counting.”

 Relief bubbled up through him, almost enough to knock him off balance. She lived. That’s all that mattered. They could get through anything else. Jorgan splayed himself against the ground, feeling like he should have a sniper rifle in his hands. The recess Wynneth found herself in wasn’t deep; Jorgan could reach down and almost touch the top of her head. She sat with her legs spread, one clearly broken. Wynneth never wore full heavy armor like he did, wanting the mobility a lighter kit gave her. But that mobility came at a cost.

 With the shade from all the trees, it took Jorgan a moment to realize there was a dead body in the hole with her. Not only that, he saw the remnants of her grenade. Easy enough to figure what happened. The dead bastard must have jumped her just as she was about to throw her grenade and they all ended up in a ditch in the ground.

 Wynneth looked up at him then, but her gaze was slightly unfocused as her head lolled back. From here, even with the shadows from the forest, he could clearly see the tear tracts on her cheeks. “What the hell happened?” she asked, her voice pained.

 “Do you think you’re going to go into shock, sir?” Elara asked as she threw down a stim to Wynneth. “Inject yourself with that.”

 “Maybe?” Wynneth said as she caught the stim with one hand. “I think it’s a compound break. I can feel it through my armor. Hurts like a son-of-a-bitch.”

 Jorgan wanted to stay on the ground and talk to her, make sure she was going to be alright, but then his military instincts kicked. They were in hostile enemy territory and the commander of his squad was out of commission. He was the damn XO. Time to act like it.

 “If they were able to burn seven guys just on a patrol, they have a bigger camp than Vander expected,” Jorgan said, getting up off of his stomach and settling on one knee. “Forex, Yuun, start scouting the perimeter. My guess if they’re going to wonder where their missing patrol is soon.”

 “Of course, sir!” was Forex’s enthusiastic reply while Yuun simply nodded, removing his tech staff from his back.

 “Can we move her?” Jorgan asked Elara. “We’ve got to get her back to the ship.”

 Elara’s mouth settled into a thin line. “I’d prefer we devise some sort of pulley system-”

 “We don’t have that kind of time, Dorne,” Jorgan said, standing up all the way. He was in the middle of one of his worst nightmares. Scenarios like this were why Garza fought them staying together in the same squad after they begun their relationship, and for the first time, he wondered if she might have been right. Because right now, all he wanted to do was get Wynneth out of that damn hole and safe on the ship. Mission be damned. “Vik and I can pull her up.”

 “And dislocate her shoulder?”

 “Better that than getting caught with our pants down when the raiders find us,” Jorgan said. He peered into the hole. “Major, you think you can stand? Would make things a lot easier.”

 Her whole body seemed to deflate. “Yeah, might take a minute, but I can stand. Kolto tank’s mine when we get to the ship.”

 Wynneth pulled off one of her thick leather gloves and put it between her teeth. He knew that trick. It took a minute, but she managed to pull herself up in a standing position. Watching her work was agonizing, because Jorgan knew there wasn’t a damn thing he could do to help her right now. On her feet, her head was just peaking out of the ditch. She reached out, and for a moment he thought she was reaching for his hand. He hesitated, not sure if they should hold hands but then he realized she only had eyes for Elara.

 Sweat beaded her brow as her eyes clenched tightly shut. Slightly panting, Wynneth said, “Gimme a kolto pack.” When Elara took a second too long to respond, Wynneth demanded, practically snarling, “Give me a damn pack!”

 Jorgan grabbed one from his own kit and handed it to Wynneth, who immediately jammed it into her thigh. Her face lost some of the ghastly look as the kolto started to do its job. That was when he noticed her implant over her right eye wasn’t lit.

 He never developed that particular talent of so many soldiers who could fall asleep at a moment’s notice. Ideally, he would fall asleep in a completely dark and quiet room. Took him a while to get used to sleeping in Wynneth’s room when they started to bunk together regularly. Her implant gave off a soft glow, all hours of the day. These days, though, the soft blue light in the middle of a darkened room or tent comforted him more than anything.

 But right now, there was no light.

 “Something wrong with your implant?” Jorgan asked. He didn’t know the specifics, but he did know her implant didn’t give her any fancy powers or tech, like some cyborgs. Hers was simply medical.

 “What?” Wynneth and Elara asked at the same time, both sounding panicked. Elara started taking a scan. “Major, your dilantin levels are extremely low. Do you have any you can take orally?”

 Wynneth looked down and groaned. “The plastique shredded my belt. I’ve got nothing, Elara.” Her hand curling up into a fist, she pounded the dirt wall in front of her. “And I’ve been putting off the blood test and I’ve gained weight. Damnit.”

 Any relief that Jorgan felt from getting Wynneth up on her feet disappeared at the fear in her voice. “Someone want to tell me what’s going on?”

 “I’m probably going to have fucking seizure, that’s what’s going on,” Wynneth said. “Kriff, I don’t believe this.” She took a breath and in that moment, any fear disappeared and she was truly the commander of Havoc squad. “New plan. Get me the hell out of here, we’ll get back to the ship and regroup.”

 Sir, my scanners have picked up a large contingent of speeders heading in our direction. If my estimate is accurate, we have less than five minutes before they make it to your position. While there’s no doubt in my processing core that Havoc squad is the best in the Republic, nay the galaxy, the sheer number of enemies they have decided to send towards us might be more than we can handle if the good Major is unable to contribute to the fight.

 “Of course,” Jorgan spat. Because why would one thing go wrong when everything could go wrong? When it came to numbers, Forex didn’t exaggerate. If the droid worried too many fighters were on the way, then too many fighters were on the way. “Thanks, Forex. You hear that, Yuun? Both of you get back here.”

 Yuun will reverse paths so that we all might walk in harmony.

 Roger, sir!

 “Let’s get you up and out,” Jorgan said, motioning to Vik.

 Wynneth shook her head, grimacing in pain. “You’ve got to leave me here.”

 The words were a punch in the gut. “Like hell, I will.”

 “Captain, I have a broken leg and if I don’t get some meds in my system soon, I’m going to have a seizure. I am worthless in a fight right now. If I have a gun in my hand and a seizure hits? I could kill someone on the squad,” Wynneth said, her face hard.

 Jorgan ignored the tears in her eyes and tried to think like a damn XO, not someone worried about his betrothed. Problem was, that line was feeling really damn thin right now. “We’ll get you back to the ship, then we can take out the drug ring.”

 “We’re thirty minutes away from the ship and they’re on speeders, Captain. You’ll never outrun them with me.”

 Elara coughed. “We’ll just give you a moment of privacy.”

 Jorgan dropped down on the ground, laying on this stomach, so they were almost face to face. He started to say something, he wasn’t even sure what, when Wynneth grabbed his hands. “I’ll be fine where I am. I’ll get back on the ground in case I seize. Then you can lead Havoc away from here and take care of things.”

 “You really think I’m just going to leave you here?” he asked, mouth agape. What she asked was unthinkable. He wouldn’t do it. He couldn’t.

 Her eyes closed for a second and when she looked up again, she said, her voice pleading, “Aric, don’t make me order you.”

 “I’ll disobey it,” Jorgan said softly, knowing he never had disobeyed an order like this in his life. But for Wynneth? He would. He would give up everything, and the rational part of his brain was terrified at that knowledge, that anyone could have that sort of power over him.

 “Don’t. Please,” Wynneth whispered, squeezing his hands. “You know what will happen if you do.”

 Yeah. He did. Soon as she recovered, their relationship would be over. Because how could she trust him if he refused to follow her orders, even if disobeying might save her life. There’d be no vows in front of the Elders, no litter of runts they might adopt some day. He’d request a transfer before she could fill out the paperwork to have him reassigned. And a lonely road would stretch out in front of him. He’d never marry. How could he when he would have let the love of his life slip through his fingertips? They might not have said the vows yet, but she was his and he was hers. This is why Cathar mated for life. No one else could ever compare after her.

 “Damnit, Winnie,” Jorgan said, scooting forward. She was right. She was absolutely right and it killed him. He pressed his brow against hers, breathing in deeply, wanting to remember every last scent, just in case this was the last time. It couldn’t be. He wouldn’t allow it. “You better be here when I get back.”

 “I’ll do my best,” she said, sounding so earnest that Jorgan almost believed her.

 Then not wasting another second, Jorgan jumped up off of the ground, his path set. “We’re moving out, Havoc. Away from here to set up an ambush. Double time it.”

 The squad started jogging and somehow Jorgan found the strength to only look forward and to not look back.