#That's the true reason why werewolfs and vampires don't get together
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BB once gave fangs some strong ass weed to smoke
3 drags in, fangs was already wasted
By the time they were done (with bb forcing them to finish it)
They got so still for like 4 minutes and then they snapped their neck to s corner and walked over to it whispering "don't spill don't spill don't spill"
They sat in that corner and didn't do anything else
Bb asked what's up they said "I'm an orange juice cup, i don't wanna spill myself" they started crying in that second sentence
So you have fangs is all their royal glory sitting in a corner,unable to move, tears a waterfall from their eyes while BB is about to shit themselves laughing
#That's the true reason why werewolfs and vampires don't get together#eris serenity#eris serenity asmr#eris serenity fangs#eris serenity bigbad
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UNA SMIT-VATORE for @cawthorntales SWEET AS HONEY BC
NAME: Una Smit-Vatore (she/her) AGE: Young Adult (mid 20s) LIFE STATE: Human. Her father, Caleb Vatore, is a vampire, but Una didn't get the trait. And unlike spellcasters and werewolves, non-vampires don't inherit anything genetic (weak bloodline, dormant wolf etc) from parents, so she shouldn't be flagged as anything in your game. HOME WORLD: Windenburg, currently residing in Mt. Komorebi TRAITS: Bookworm, Overachiever, Dog Lover, Werewolf Ally - plus a few others from the satisfaction points redemption store. ASPIRATION: Renaissance Sim CAREER: Florist
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Una is a homebody, in a kind of outdoorsy way. She loves a good book, sure, but she's equally likely to be found pottering in her garden or fishing in a nearby pond (I have no idea why Mt. Komorebi has so few fishing spots) as she is curled up with one. It isn't so much some capitalist dogma to make the most of her 'leisure' time as that Una genuinely finds these things relaxing and fun.
Growing up as the eldest of such a busy household, Una nevertheless felt that her caregivers had plenty of time for her and they tried to avoid the unfortunate trope where the eldest sibling ended up as a third parent for the youngest (Caleb with his super speed and not needing to sleep was particularly good for this). However she also had to make her own entertainment a lot of the time. The television was often broken thanks to her werewolf stepfather, Lou Howell, but there were plenty of toys and books, a piano in the living room - and a garden with bees (and Patchy!).
Thus she came to enjoy her own company - and while she tends to keep the friends that she makes, her naturally reserved nature and the reality of adulting post college means that family aside, her social circle is rather small.
She's a favourite of the four legged denizens of the world, however.
Una signed up for the challenge to... challenge herself, and to try something new. While she's curious about Ian and would love to meet him (and Razzle!), she's realistic about her chances and is not expecting true love to come of it. If she makes some new friends (both of the two and four legged variety), then Una would count this as a win.
Which isn't to say that she's adverse to something else budding, however...
OUTFITS & NOTES
Has a reasonable amount of maxis match cc, mostly from @ice-creamforbreakfast as I wanted a vaguely retro vibe that wasn't really supported by the packs.
No defaults apart from her feet, which I still haven't figured out how to get rid of. She has cc eyelashes that clash with rings - I couldn't find a version that I liked which didn't.
I added "genius" and "neat" to her traits but realised that without Growing Together, you may be restricted to only three. So if you have mods that allow more, feel free to readd them.
I've been playing her since infancy and am largely not pack restricted, so if the game tells you that you don't have necessary packs installed, it's likely just a childhood trait or skill and shouldn't impact her playability.
And yup, once again I am pooling from my 100 baby challenge spawn lololol.
(If people are interested in having a cc free version of Una to download, I can eventually work on that ^^)
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ok so pnat theory: the "power" that's "sleeping" in mayview is or was literally BL/sandman, and the true nature of her dream-manipulation power is full-on godlike reality warping that just so happens to be localized to dreams as long as she's by herself w/o a "host", because she's literally sleeping at the bottom of the lake in the waking world. the entire consortium is a cover she's created to try and prevent people from claiming her power bc she clearly feels awful about the incident (i think it's pretty safe to assume she's being genuine there- it wouldn't make sense to apologize to gwen after everybody else vamoosed otherwise, i don't think), and the incident 13 years ago was the result of the closest anyone ever got and may or may not have been some sort of Harmonic Convergence-esque event
...what i'm trying to piece together is if "13 years ago" lines up with when davy might have gained his own reality warping powers, and also when dimitri met peekaboo, bc i'd bet that the could both be "fragments" of BL/Sandman since they deal in such pure reality-warping and peekaboo is so weirdly mysterious
dimitri says he remembers meeting peekaboo right after preschool
preschool is around ages, like... 3-5, right? ten years ago, ed was 3, so he would have been just born when the incident happened
is dimitri the same age as max/ed/isabel? or isaac? idk if we know, but... its, like, a couple years off >:/c
i guess there's no reason to say that peekaboo couldn't have floated around for a while before finding a medium... or, well, hang on, maybe peekaboo was possessing dimitri for some time without dimitri awakening, like forge in johnny rn. i could see that, especially if dimitri was, like. an infant.
ooh, y'know, maybe that's why VP was so outraged that she didn't get a name from the sphinx of truth-- she needs to figure out who's holding the fragments in order to piece them together to claim the power
(maybe the freaky shadow spirit could be another fragment too? idk, shadow manipulation... it seems like kind of a stretch but it definitely appeared around the same time)
CH. 8 PG. 61 EDIT: OKAy okay the LOCKER.
"Indeed, he was drawing more and more power from it with each passing day" that's GOTTA be the source of his reality warping ability as seen in his encounter with Hijack
"Davy sympathized with the poor thing, really, having sprung free from a prison they once shared", also:
OKay okay OKAY, so. Sealed away to rot? The [grudge] that let him go? Like... "this grudge" that Gwen and BL have "nursed" for years? "Locked" it in nighmares? The locker has a sticky note with "ZZZ" on it. Sleeping.
Davy was part of the Consortium. He was trapped, the same way as Gwen. He escaped by cutting off part of the spirit that was holding him there... and the piece came with him.
Is it possible... hmm. Is it possible that the power might turn humans into Monsters? I wouldn't be that surprised honestly, like... we see with Isaac that mediums tend to take after their sprits physically in some manner. Prolonged contact with a (Great?) Wight might have even more dire consequences.
Also the locker's got vampire and werewolf stickers on it. So. Also a ghost! And... a bur--? WAIT A BURGER
THE LOCKER HAS A *B U R G E R* ON IT
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Van Der Linde Gang Monster Headcanons
Don't mind me with my stupid little headcanons and shit.
🌙 Dutch Van Der Linde - Vampire
Turned decades ago before the West became wild. Molly O'Shea is the reason he can walk around in the light of day.
🌙 Hosea Mathews - Vampire
He was born human but he was turned by Dutch to save his life during their first robbery together.
🌙 Arthur Morgan - Werewolf
Was bitten by John and turned one night when John got out of his restraints. He's a lot worse than John due to the fact that Arthur is a hell of a lot bigger.
🌙 John Marston - Werewolf
Was bitten and turned before he joined the gang. He has a tendency of slipping from his restraints so it often leads to little rampages across the countryside.
🌙Abigail Marston - Succubus
Born to be a succubus, she used her powers for her prostitution job to get by. That all stopped when a werewolf of all things got her pregnant.
🌙Jack Marston - Unknown
He's far too young for his parents to tell, but as he grows older, it's starting to become apparent that he may take after his father.
🌙Charles Smith - Wendigo
He may not exhibit all of the signs of a true wendigo like cannibalism, but the hulking form tends to shut people up.
🌙Sadie Adler - Human
She's the only human woman in the gang. She has a slight distaste for monsters, but the Van Der Linde Gang is her home.
🌙Micah Bell - Demon
Born out of sin from a deep pit in hell, he continues his hellish torment in the Wild West.
🌙Susan Grimshaw - Banshee
Born to be a banshee, she's kept up at night with the knowledge of how others around her pass. It's why she's so strict and stern with some people sometimes.
🌙Molly O'Shea - Witch
She earns her keep at the camp solely from keeping Dutch and Hosea alive. She's not a fan of using her magic on others unless it's necessary.
🌙Tilly Jackson - Faun
Tilly can sometimes pass for human if her dress is long enough to cover her legs and hooves, but the horns can be a problem. Mary-Beth can always be found with Tilly weaving flowers into her little horns.
🌙Javier Escuella - Skinwalker
He was cursed to become one at a young age, way before he joined the gang. It's often a useful curse but it does come with many downsides.
🌙Bill Williamson - Werebear
Born seemingly human, he didn't know she slept with a monster until he was barely into his teenage years when he turned. It's definitely one of the major factors to his prickly demeanor.
🌙Sean Macguire - Satyr
The Irish charmer is a typical Celtic satyr. Sometimes it's hard for him to keep his holster attached to his leg from how it's all bent naturally. He missing half of one of his horns.
🌙Lenny Summers - Minotaur
Easily the sweetest man of the gang, he's a gentle giant until the bull sees red. It is sometimes hard for him to find a hat that fits the bovine head, though.
🌙Karen Jones - Succubus
She's not very good at her life's work, but when she does succeed, she's pretty brutal. There's a reason she's always drunk all of the time.
🌙Mary-Beth Gaskill - Witch
Her powers are different than Molly's. She's mostly found messing around with plants and such. She's always growing something, mostly herbs to be used for medicines.
🌙Uncle - Human
The only other human in the gang. There are often daily jokes and threats about how the other members are gonna hunt him down and eat him because of his bullshit. Mostly from Micah.
🌙Simon Pearson - Undead
Kept alive after an accident in the Navy by some supernatural forces. It explains the faulty food.
🌙Leopold Strauss - Dragon
It explains his lust for dollars and coins since he was a young child, though, he can't turn into a full beast as he was never strong enough.
🌙Josiah Trelawny - Incubus
His drive did not last long and his powers don't really work nowadays. He's been around longer than Karen and Abigail, though. He's still thankful he's just as strong.
🌙Orville Swanson - Demon
He used to be an angel but made some horrible choices in life which led him to be struck down to hell. Now he continues on the earth continuing bad habits.
🌙Kieran Duffy - Vampire's Thrall
Kept alive by Colm's word and will, he only broke free because Arthur basically kidnapped him. He much prefers the Van Der Linde Gang but he still feels the pull of his master calling for him.
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can't believe there's more lore
here's pt 3 of so it goes, my steddie focused (we'll get there, i stg) supernatural creatures au that, as of right now, features vampire!steve, werewolf!nancy, witch!robin, and last but not least, werewolf!max. can be found on my ao3, user is the same over there. [tumblr links for part 1 & part 2]
murder will out
If this were a cartoon, Steve probably would have worn the rug down to the wood floors with all his pacing. Robin says as much under her breath and he waves her off, his focus on Hopper.
"I don’t understand, why can’t we just go back to my place? We were doing fine before, just let us go back.”
Hopper sighs, sinking as far into the couch as it allows, eyes trained on the fan whirling overhead. “I’ve already explained this– you guys were seen . I wouldn't call that doing just fine . Ms Driscoll called the station nearly in tears. The poor woman thought she was losing her mind to early dementia because she saw some dead kids hanging out by the pool of the Harrington house.”
Steve scoffs, runs his fingers through his hair, hand settling on the back of his neck. “ So ? We fixed it aleady, I did the mind compulsive–"
" Compulsion ," Dustin coughs in correction.
"– that , and she, like, forgot that she saw us. We’ll be more careful this time around! We won’t step out of the house, we don’t have to flee the state over this. I don’t, fuck, I don’t get what the big deal is.”
“The big deal?” Hopper’s head snaps forward. “Harrington, for one, you can’t scramble the entire town with your mind thing, it’s not practical. You're damn lucky I was the one to respond to the call last week. We also don’t know the true extent of your power. Other than Carver and Holloway who've gone AWOL with Henry and the rest of them, you're the first vampire this town has come across. If it's a common thing amongst your kind, the Suits aren't sharing that information with us. We're lucky they even shared how to somewhat keep this town safe after their own screw up that allowed all of this to happen in the first place."
'You mean the reason it's been almost impossible to feed the last few months? There’s only so many blood bags they supply at the hospital and I feel like a dick having to steal it. What if they run out and someone needs it?”
Dustin hums, brows pulling tightly together. “Wait. Steve, have you been going without feeding?" When Steve rolls his eyes Dustin tosses a half eaten pringle at him, but it clatters against the wall. "Don't be an idiot, you know you can always get a drink from–”
“Shut up, no, I wouldn’t ever do that to you Henderson, for one. I know you and Miss America like to say the four of us have bled together or whatever, and thanks for the offer, but no, absolutely not. Robs isn't even allowed to think it. Besides, even if I wanted to, that shit’s already in your system. Do you have any idea how hard it’s been for some of us to even shower ?”
“It’s a protective measure. It’s no different than when we added fluoride to the water,” Hopper sighs.
Max scoffs. “Right well, do us all a favor, yea, and tell them to shove their Hawthorne and Wolfbanes up their–"
“ That’s the weird taste in water? I thought I was going crazy,” Dustin mutters, falling into the couch between Hopper and Max. His eyes glaze over for a moment, turning to face her, sniffing the air. “Wait, you guys can’t shower?” Max huffs, hiding behind her comic.
Hopper groans in annoyance, shuffling to the side to provide space between them, but it isn't much. "I know you didn’t ask for this life, but we have to keep this town safe from the supernatural. Unfortunately, that included keeping them safe from you. All of you.”
A breeze whips through, nipping at the end of Nancy’s skirt, flowing across the room and brushing through Steve’s hair. “ Seriously ,” Robin hisses, having reached out instinctively. Hopper’s gaze bounces between the two. Nancy doesn’t respond to his comment, the grip on her knees turning her knuckles white. Steve only pinches the bridge of his nose, the rug still in danger of being worn down.
“I’m not judging any of you for your past, no one’s perfect, but let’s be honest with ourselves here. Your kind, both kinds, can be… well you guys already know. Besides all that, what if someone catches one of you and they call the station and it's not me responding to it? Hm, what if it gets out that this town is infested with vampires and werewolves? Or witches? And on top of that, we still don't know why Heather turned you or why Carol bit Nancy. Billy biting Max, we can only guess. We don’t know anything that really goddamn matters here."
"I fucking know why Billy did this to me,” Max grumbles, the red only Steve and Nancy have the ability to catch flashing across her eyes once again. She flips the page of her comic, a tear of a page ringing throughout the room, making Dustin wince.
“Regardless. I know this shit has been your life for only the last couple of years, but try twelve years of it. El had already been bounced around between four other families before she got to me. Five years old and so full of power she had no control over. All those other families chalked it up to bad behavior but after reading up on her file with Joyce, we could see around it, around the bullshit. Speaking of–
“ You .” He points to Robin and she shrinks in on herself, uncomfortable with the sudden attention. “You made yourself into a witch. You weren’t born into it the way my girl was. I know you think you’re capable of anything, but saying a few words in Latin in the correct order every once in a while isn’t enough. You were able to make those fancy rings and bracelets for everyone here to survive out in the sun or curb some of the effects of the full moon but that's child's play compared to what you tried to do."
"That shit was so not easy. I had to fill in my eyebrows and stack layers of mascara for weeks," Robin mutters, fingers brushing faintly over the faded electrical burn scars that trace along the back of her hands towards her wrist, branching away from where they originate from her nail beds. “Surprised I only lost two nails.”
" Regardless . You needed way more time, more practice. You don’t know what you’re capable of, not yet, but those four months that you had before the attack wasn’t enough time to learn what you needed to break Henry's sire control. And you were all –” he waves his finger at everyone, “–stupid for thinking you could. Especially alone.”
Robin rolls her eyes. “Six months later, now he wants to lecture us? Sure, bucko.”
Hopper shakes his head, eyes falling closed before he continues. “Harrington, as for the house, your father is in the process of selling the property. Alright, he apparently listed it a week after that night and he finally has a buyer ready to negotiate. Considering what a fuckin’ shit show this towns become ever since Henry and the rest of them blew through town, I don’t think he’s gonna get a very good deal."
At that Steve finally stops his pacing. He shuffles over to the recliner Robin occupies and falls heavily on the floor in the space in front of her, head falling back against her knees. "I knew this was coming, I don't even know why I'm surprised. He said I was as good as dead since I turned. Being officially dead gives him no reason to stay in Hawkins… he’s got no one." Hopper gives Steve’s sneaker a tap with his own boot, the sorry kid translating well enough.
The blows keep coming.
"Then there’s the goddamn Suits. After this whole thing with Ms Driscoll they’ve decided it’s best to get you all out of town. And, quite frankly, especially after today's news? I agree. Agent Stinson has stated they have no intentions of helping supply you three with new identities or a place to stay unless you guys leave.”
“New identities?” Robin scoffs, fingers freezing in Steve's hair. "They could have left us with ours! If they didn’t declare us dead there wouldn’t be a need for new identities, did those dipshits ever think of that?” Robin crosses her arms, hands balling into fists. A bulb from above bursts, but barely anyone flinches except for Dustin.
Hopper only exhales forcefully from his nose, already used to outbursts turning into broken objects. Over so many talks , El’s broken her fair share of bulbs, plates– even the living room’s coffee table. There's a reason this cabin is so unfurnished.
He lifts his hand, like a reluctant student in class. “I'm the one who suggested we pronounce you all dead, Buckley. Not them."
"Why?"
Everyone's eyes fall on Nancy as she utters the first words since Hopper arrived. If their full undivided attention bothers her, she doesn't show it. Hopper meets her gaze, and suddenly he's years older. Exhausted.
"The Byers kid had a vision."
"Wait, he has powers? Since when? Was it big Byers or little Byers?" Steve interrupts, brows low. Hopper's eyes narrow, but he doesn’t continue, just keeps his focus on Nancy. Steve turns his attention to her, eyebrows shooting up. “You knew about this?”
"It wasn't for any of us to tell," Nancy says between her teeth. She mirrors Hop, gaze unwavering and her lips form a tight line. He only raises a brow.
"Jon can’t see into the future,” she finally supplies, arms crossing over her chest. “He can only catch glimpses from the past. He says they’re like snapshots. Moments in time that he can see, and sometimes he can step into it and explore, but it gets blurry after a while. He can't look into someone's past without a personal belonging or picture of the person he's trying to see.
"Will is the one who can see into the future, except it’s never clear. Jonathan explained it’s like looking through a kaleidoscope for him. If he tries to look too long he ends up with a migraine. It’s why he’s always painting– it’s his way of trying to decipher his visions.”
“It’s the reason Joyce was so helpful when El came into my life. Eventually our lives.” Hopper's face softens for the first time since he sat down and started delivering bad news. It’s short lived because he’s looking around the room with his signature death stare, finger raised in warning. “Stinson and the rest of them don’t know anything about our kids and we’d like to keep it that way. What was just shared about them, that doesn't leave this room.”
"Am I really the only one without powers now that Max has chompers? What the hell man, that's so unfair," Dustin groans, throwing his head back with an annoyed grumble that sounds gargled in his position. "Mike has his empathy thing–"
"Little Wheeler's got what? " Steve and Robin say in unison. It feels like he just got slapped in the face because how the hell have they not said anything these last few months, no, years ? Nancy buries her face in her hand.
“Mike can sense emotions and sometimes change them, it's been a thing. Except– he can't feel love, or something. He can feel it in himself, he just can't sense it from others or force it on them. Keep up, Steve." He turns to Max. "Lucas still hasn't shown symptoms from the bite, has he?”
“My boyfriend is still nice and human, just a scar, thanks for asking.” Her smile immediately melts. “But if I ever see Billy again, I'm going to run him over with his own stupid car for what he tried to do to him, I swear to god."
“Just us then,” Dustin beems, shoving two stacks of pringles into his mouth, the pieces flipped onto each other so it forms an open beak.
Max tilts her head, considering him. "I don’t know… I think being super annoying could be your thing. I just don't know if we can count it." She pats his shoulder, lips pouting in mock sorrow. "Hate to break it to you, but I think you’re just going to have to settle for being a lame dork."
"Would you two please ," Robin mutters, flicking a finger out into the open air in her lap, forcing Max and Dustin into a seated upright position. The sudden movement sends the can of chips rolling across the floor, their hands clasped in their laps and suddenly stiff as boards. "I don't know who's worse together; you and him, or him and Erica."
"Everybody, shut. The hell . Up." Nancy's voice is nearly a growl. "Because our beloved Sheriff Jim Hopper here has yet to tell us–" She leans forward, elbows on her knees, "–what the hell Will saw. Because, quite honestly, I can’t think of a single thing that he could have possibly seen for you to think it was a good idea to declare us dead.”
Hopper takes a deep breath, steeling himself. Then he finally says it.
“Will saw you three die.”
A beat.
And then they're all speaking over each other.
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there's more to this part, so catch the rest of it on my ao3
#steddie fic#< tagging just in case#stranger things fic#vampire!steve#werewolf!nancy#witch!robin#werewolf!max#steve harrington#robin buckley#platonic soulmates stobin#nancy wheeler#max mayfield#dustin henderson#jim hopper#stranger things au#supernatural creatures au#fic continuation#so it goes#my*stuff
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Let's Analyze - Alec in CoFA
So, I’ve been seeing plenty of discourse on two of my mutual’s blogs about this topic… so I thought I’d sit down and write another analysis post about my beloved Alec Lightwood cause people are still giving him shit for a book that came out ten years ago 🤦♀️
This is gonna be in two parts, and I'm putting both under the cut:
PART 1 - ALEC’S INSECURITIES
So, the first part - how Alec’s insecurities drove him to saying stupid things in CoFA
A quick disclaimer - I’m NOT blaming Alec alone for his and Magnus’s break up. What happened was pretty complicated, and the blame cannot be put on one person alone.
That said, let’s start with Magnus and Alec’s early ‘official’ relationship, in trsom.
These scenes are taken from only the first part of the book, but I’m pretty sure they’re more than enough to get a sense of Alec’s insecurities and all the chinks in their relationship. Throughout the entirety of trsom, we see more bits and pieces of Alec’s insecurities about Magnus’s sexuality, and his past and all the people he might have known - and that’s okay! Insecurities happen, cause brains are stupid like that.
But all of Alec’s insecurities could’ve been laid to rest with a simple conversation. But the conversation never happens. Magnus tends to deflect and change the topic every single time his past is brought up. I understand Magnus’s reasons for hiding his past, of course, but it doesn’t help his relationship with Alec. Magnus hiding a good chunk of his past will inevitably lead to Alec questioning himself - why is he so secretive? Why is he not telling me anything? Does he not trust me? ...and so on.
And when Alec is already feeling insecure in this relationship, this happens - (sorry about the terrible cropping btw)
And then later, while Magnus is talking to Camille,
Now… when people are insecure about something, they get irked at the smallest of things. I’m saying this as an insecure person myself. So now, you've got Alec, who's insecure as fuck, and his vacation with the person he loves got cut short by his ex who refuses to talk to anyone but him, and when they get there, his lover and his lover's ex seem to have obvious chemistry, he gets hit with the reality that his lover has dated several, probably even hundreds of people before him; and he has to leave them alone in a room so they can talk, and then he hears the ex basically just list all his shortcomings - i.e, his mortality, his appearance is compared to some random dead guy (sorry, Will) whom your lover had a crush on, which is just weird, and when you've had enough and open the door, it's to see your lover and his ex, standing close as fuck, and he's! touching! her! face! and! looking! into! her! eyes!
*takes a sip of water* yeahhhh... Alec was straight up having a bad day.
And at this point, a) Alec is still in his first relationship. He didn't get to navigate romance when he was younger, and while there's nothing wrong with that, there weren't exactly cutesy presentations titled 'how to keep your relationships healthy' floating around the internet. Heck, he didn’t know the internet. He didn't know that he had to communicate with Magnus, and it doesn't help that boy avoids conversations about feelings like the plague. And b) at this point, Alec would be facing several negative emotions - insecurity, obviously. Hurt. Helplessness, because of his mortality. Fear, that he might not live up to Magnus’s past lovers. Jealousy at seeing Magnus and Camille so close.
Negative emotions like these often tend to show up as anger or sorrow... and in Alec’s case, that would be anger. Which leads us to THIS- (🙈)
*sighs in second-hand embarrassment*
*drinks more water*
*this is gonna be so hard aksjakak*
So. Alec dealt with his insecurities... by being a mean, mean bitch to Magnus :/
Let's break this scene down, slowly, bit by bit.
First, Alec cuts into a conversation between Magnus and Jordan, when Magnus mentions Woolsey Scott, followed the rest of that particular page. To Alec, he's just a figure from Magnus’s past, and a possible lover, though in Alec’s defense Woolsey Scott WAS Magnus’s lover. This is the first instance that we see in which Alec lashes out at Magnus. It seems like he's trying to make a point to Magnus - "I don't know anything about your past, and so I don't know who you've had romances with, but I want to know." Except he makes his point in the worst way possible and ends up slutshaming Magnus.
The "What's true?" line, in response to Jordan saying "so it's true what they say about warlocks, then?" is pretty obvious. Alec is clearly not liking the idea that this random werewolf might know about warlocks, and in particular, his Warlock boyfriend.
Next... ooh boy... Alec basically snaps and in the next few paragraphs accuses Magnus of wanting to flirt with others which... is not a good look on ya honey 😕. These lines are the ones that get him accused of being biphobic... but is he really? I'm gonna talk about that in part 2.
So, in the first paragraph, where Alec makes the comments about Jordan, I find his choice of words pretty... interesting, seeing as 'messy-haired', 'broad-shouldered' and 'chiseled-good-looks' are all used to describe Alec in the series. Not sure if its relevant, but definitely interesting.
And in the next one, where Alec says, "or there are plenty of pretty girls here, since apparently your taste goes both ways. Is there anything you aren't into?" The 'apparently' makes me curious. In rsom, Alec mentions that he's only recently heard of the term bisexual, and there's plenty of time between rsom and cofa, so Alec should be absolutely sure of atleast the basic meaning of bisexuality. But I'm pretty sure it's just inconsistency on cc's part, since if rsom didn't exist, this book would be the first time Alec learns about Magnus’s bisexuality. (Which is obvious when you look at the scene after Magnus reveals that Camille is his girlfriend.) And as for the second sentence, I feel like it's a fallback to earlier in the book when Magnus says (I'm just gonna write the dialogue from memory), "I've dated men, women, warlocks, faeries, vampires, werewolves and even a djinn or two." Here, Alec is angry, and he takes the knowledge that Magnus has dated a variety of people and once again, lashes out.
Looking at all of it together, Alec’s insecurities are definitely a factor in all of this. We know Alec has pretty low self esteem in tmi, and he keeps having irrational thoughts about someone else grabbing Magnus’s attention, like in the trsom scene I've posted above. And he ends up taking out his insecurities on Magnus.
Was it wrong of Alec to say all those things to Magnus? Yes, absolutely. But looking back through all his scenes in cofa, it's easy to see how he could've fallen into the pit trap of emotions.
And before anyone says "but it wasn't addressed in the later books", it was, in CoLS. I’ve hit the image limit, so I'm just gonna type it out -
"[Magnus] said it would be better if he didn’t come. Apparently him and the Seelie Queen have some kind of history."
Isabelle raised her eyebrows.
"Not that kind of history," Alec said irritably. "Some kind of feud. Though," he added, half under his breath, "the way he got around before me, I wouldn't be surprised."
"Alec!" Isabelle dropped back to talk to her brother....
So, there. Alec makes yet another slutshaming comment, Isabelle overhears and is clearly not happy about it, and it's clearly implied that she talks to Alec about it. And Alec doesn't make any more slutshaming comments since then. Boy now knows what he did was wrong, and makes sure not to repeat it again.
Although, I do wish we had more than this. I wish we had more of Magnus and Alec talking about this argument, heck, even about all their arguments and the reasons they broke up, but you can't get everything you want, apparently :(
And now onto the next part...
PART 2 - IS ALEC BIPHOBIC?
The short answer, uh, no, not really.
The long answer.... would be complicated.
So, back in the day, when this discourse was at an all time high, I remember reading a bisexual person's essay about this topic, and they said that this comment from Alec - "or there are plenty of pretty girls here, since apparently your taste goes both ways. Is there anything you aren't into?" - would be a biphobic microagression.
According to Google, a microagression is "a statement, action, or incident regarded as an instance of indirect, subtle, or unintentional discrimination against members of a marginalized group such as a racial or ethnic minority".
And in Alec's case, IF his words were biphobic, they were completely unintentional. They were microagressive. Which is... still bad, of course, but it's more complicated than that.
If you look back on Alec's supposedly biphobic statements, they're more about Magnus’s hypersexuality and promiscuity than anything else. Yes, even the line i mentioned like two paragraphs ago. At first glance it may seem like a direct attack on Magnus’s sexuality, but think over the explanation I gave for the line and it will make sense. And a lot of people know that the whole 'bi people fuck around a lot and are cheaters' thing is a stereotype.
Now, it may seem like I'm going off topic here, but bear with me. I couple of days ago, I watched this video by chance. (Tw for the aids crisis and lots of biphobia, not from the narrator, if you wanna watch the video). Basically, back in the 1980s, bisexual men were scapegoated for spreading aids to the straight community and were vilified by popular media as being promiscuous scepters who would cheat on their wives with gay men and then give aids to their wives. (Yikes 😬). And since bisexuality was practically unheard of before all this (several bisexual activists have stated that all this shit, though unfortunate, pulled bisexuality out of the closet), it's safe to assume that this is how those stereotypes came to be - through 1980s propaganda.
But living with this propaganda is... a very limiting experience. The people who leaned and unlearned and fought against this propaganda are mostly US Americans who grew up with it, either the actual propaganda itself or passed down by their parents. But like I said, it's a very limiting experience. US is but one country out of many, and even for those living in the USA there's a chance that they grew up in a very hush-hush environment. People who grew up hearing all these stereotypes will see it as biphobia, while people who didn't - like Alec, and me, and several other people will not. A lot of people grow up with absolutely no knowledge of the queer community, and chances are that they'll be incredibly confused when a stereotype is pointed out to them, and they often get no more explanation than 'this is a harmful stereotype'. Queer experiences aren't the same for everyone, and while I respect the people who see this as biphobia, they should recognize that there are many people who won't see it that way.
I have seen bisexual people say that Alec's words were biphobic, and I've also seen bisexual people say that they weren't. Thus, there is no clear consensus about whether or not Alec was being biphobic. And like I said earlier, Alec grew up far, far away from mundane anti-queer bigotry. He was essentially a clean slate when it came to knowledge of eer microagressions of any kind, because microagressions and stereotypes are often incredibly specific, don't have anything to do with a person's race/sexuality/gender, etc. and will make zero sense unless you know the history behind them. To Magnus, who lived through the anti-bisexual scapegoating, the words would've definitely stung, but Alec didn't even know the implications he would be making with this words! Of course, the impact is greater than intention, and I imagine Magnus would sit Alec down one day and talk about all this history with him.
And idk if I can even blame cc cause the history of bisexual men is RARELY ever talked about, atleast on the internet.
Also, this scene in cofa is the only instance where he can be interpreted to be biphobic. Nowhere else in all of tmi, and even tec, do we see Alec express hatred or disgust or microagression towards bisexual people. If this was seen in a repeating pattern from Alec, one could argue that he's biphobic... but he isn't. Some might point to some of his internal thoughts in trsom to argue otherwise, but I believe that actions are superior than thoughts.
There's also the thing about unlearning prejudices, but in Alec's case there was hardly anything to be unlearned. The only prejudices he did pick up on were against himself, through vague homophobic comments from Robert.
P.S if you've read this far, I am legally entitled to compensation for thinking of cofa Alec for 48 hours. Put your favorite Alec moments in my askbox cause I wanna focus on his good side now. 😎
But yeah, the main thing here is that Alec has grown from his mistakes, apologized, and hasn't repeated this behavior at all.
And lastly, I just wanted to add - I don't think all this was unintentional on the author's part. She's grown up with the us American queer community, and has mentioned that she has bisexual friends, who have no doubt faced prejudices because of these stereotypes. I think she was trying to condemn making such statements, but a lot of people don't read between the lines and end up misinterpreting it and make both the character and her to be biphobic.
So... TLDR; was what Alec said biphobic? Maybe. It depends on who you're talking to. Is Alec, as a person, biphobic? Nope. Not at all. 😌
#this took WAYYYYY too long#im gonna go lay down for a while now#peace out#alec lightwood#magnus bane#malec#tmi#tec#tsc#meta#tsc meta#discourse#idk what else to tag hnnnng#i just hope i did this topic justice aksjakaksk#also idk what person needs to hear this#but im a bisexual person talking about bisexual issues#im not the authority on this obviously but if anyone pulls the 'i don't like this post so imma pull the OP is a straight person card'#imma SLAP you#😤😤😤#laks analyses
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Zodiac
Or What if Bruce Banner gave up all that science and got really into puzzles?
A joint review
It’s safe to say that our What If…? season has proven quite divisive for the Shared Brain, and Zodiac was no exception to that rule. Cass loves it, thinks it’s a masterpiece of creepy suspense that lingers unsettlingly as she goes about her business afterwards, and Becks hated it, wonders why anyone would go to the trouble to watch, or indeed even make, this movie. So this should be interesting.
We should also say, whilst this was our choice of alternate universe for dear Bruce, we do note that there are two other MCU fan favourites joining him here for a crossword or two; Tony Stark as himself (give or take a few million and a different taste in suits) and Mysterio without his helmet. We’re getting the band back together alright!
We're gonna go by character this week rather than trying to go by the plot, as we think this will hurt our brain, just like it hurt the brains of everyone else involved, and we don't want to have a breakdown [we are very close...] We really wanted to start with Dave, you know cos it’s Bruce week, but we are not going to for reasons that we will not be taking questions about at this time.
Robert Graysmith
It's safe to say Cass may have become financially troubled over little Robert at times during this film.
@cassandrafey: Look I just think he's quite cute in this film.
@becksxoxo: Yuhuh.. Is this the week where I become *better* than you?
@cassandrafey: I mean, he's cute in this but I'm not going to lose my head.
@becksxoxo: *indignantly* When have I ever lost my head?
@cassandrafey: A lot.
Anyway turns out that Cass has watched 33% of Jakey G's film back catalogue (according to Letterboxd), but not as many as Sebastian Stan [Becks here, Sebastian's films I mean, I don't know how many of Jake Gyllenhaal's films Seb has watched, perhaps I'll go message him. Hey babe, we're just writing a post, can I just check something with you. Thanks babe...] Becks is surprised it’s not Anthony Mackie, but it turns out he's been in every film ever made, so the data's a bit squiffy. [Cass here: Anthony was my most watched actor of last year according to the Jan roundup, so I’m still representing don’t worry. However, Seb is clearly looking to increase his lead in the early months of this year, by providing the sort of content I am here for. Love to see a villain phase.] Becks only watches the same 5 films on rotation, so does not have any stats to give. Anyway back to the film...
Robert Graysmith, big fan of puzzles, has very little impulse control. As soon as he heard there was the slightest whiff of a puzzle out comes the pen, all other responsibilities thrown to the wayside. Becks is a big advocate for procrastination, but even she thought he'd taken it too far.
What we will say about Robert is, that although Cass thinks he is unbearably cute, he is also unbelievably stupid so often in so many ways that could have been avoided:
You've done a lot of research into this guy, but perhaps stop broadcasting this fact to the serial killer, and putting your family at risk.
Also, don't go round a stranger's house when they're somewhat involved in a murder case.
Don't go in their house.
Do notice if they lock the door.
Try not to give all the details about the murderer to that person.
Don't follow them in a dark basement.
Also, is it true that not many people have basements in California? Any American folk that come across this can you please let us know? In our heads all American houses have basements. And nothing good happens in any of them.
Another badly thought out thing that Robert did was get the kids involved. Firstly, don't let your kid watch a TV show where a murderer is calling in after threating kids. Secondly, perhaps don't use your murderer obsession as a nice little weekend project with the kiddiewinks. Why were you getting them to check moon cycles, should we be worried that the Zodiac is a werewolf?
Would you prefer to be killed by a werewolf or vampire?
@cassandrafey: Well a vampire is neater. I think you would be mauled by a werewolf, and it would be messy and painful. And I don’t think they’re sexy are they, when they’re turned? Like before maybe, I can accept that in human form the werewolf could be hot, maybe very hot, but I don’t want to be fucked by a werewolf whilst it actually is the wolf. Not if I’m not one. I suppose if I was also a werewolf, then that would be okay, but otherwise it’s not right. But a vampire is a vampire all the time and sexy all the time, so it would have to be the vampire.
@becksxoxo: I mean, I didn’t actually ask which you would rather be fucked by…
@cassandrafey: Oh. Why was I talking about that then?! What was the question?
Anyway. Probably vampires innit?
His wife was right to take the kids away at this time. It was a date that just never ended. But everyone is fine. It’s fine.
Another tangent Becks would like to include. When were zippers invented? Hear me out, Robert wore a coat with a zipper, and this film is set in the past [which I did keep forgetting and being like why are people in flares? Why is no one just calling for help?] but I don't know when people stopped being buttoned into a thing, and instead zipped themselves up. Cass has since googled this, so we know the answer, and if you too are intrigued we suggest you also google it. We shan't help you. But it’s sort of worth it. Sort of. Do you know what we will help you, because the phrases used regarding the zip are just too good. Enjoy friends.
He was quite smart, with the puzzles and working out the library connection, but he wasn't very emotionally smart. Cass would like it reiterating again that he was very cute. Before we move on, Becks would like to say that her favourite bit of the film did involve Robert, and the extreme burn he got from the Coffee Vendor.
David Toschi
Very good hair for a man who hasn't had a full nights sleep in over a decade.
We like Dave, for the most part we're very on his side. Which we suppose you're meant to be, when the other option is a serial killer. So that’s nice.
Cass very much enjoyed watching Dave and Bill work together to get a picture of the scene, an overview of the crime and try and get into the head of the Zodiac. Becks admits that it was a good way of telling the story without telling the story.
Cass also enjoyed his role in the interrogation. His quietness adding more intimidation then any of the questions being asked. Handling that watch. Cass just thinks he does really good silent acting for much of this scene, and loves it.
She also liked his disapproving head shake at those policemen who failed at doing their jobs so spectacularly. She would not however like that disappointment to ever be turned on her.
@becksxoxo: Do you just want him to tell you you're a good girl?
@cassandrafey: Yes. *a moment of silence* but not in the way of your bloody fanfictions!
It must be so frustrating and sad not to have been able to solve the case, to have the proof you need to say it was this person and have the whole thing finished. The whole way the case played out seemed frustrating, all the procedural fuck ups, the counties and cities not working together, the whole bit where he was accused of writing one of the letters himself. We're not surprised Bill left, although Becks was very angry at him just upping and leaving. You don't do that to a friend. We wonder if he ever got his Japanese food?
He did have really good hair. And his little gun holster thing was alright. The bowties were a choice [they were so big...] and we hope he eventually got some sleep.
Becks thinks Mark did some good acting in this role. She doesn't really have much to base this on, but it’s a judgement she's made and it’s one of the nice things she has to say about this film.
Paul Avery
Poor old Paul. With his buttons and his alcohol addiction.
Paul provides a bit of levity to the film, a little light hearted fun, with his snark and his outfits, until it all goes a bit wrong. If being threatened by a serial killer could be described as a bit wrong.
Cass liked Paul and was sorry to see his life fall apart, but she can't exactly put her finger on why she liked him. He was entertaining though.
He felt very Tony-esque only without the money and weapons. Oh Tony, we miss you.
We like his and Robert's friendship, that begins as essentially bullying a little boy who is a little bit in love with you, to hanging out at gun ranges and trying to make sure you're not serial killed. Although he did seem to drift the more obsessed with the Zodiac he became.
He too did stupid things, like Robert. Going off to meet an anonymous person when an anonymous murderer has just threated you with a good bit of death. Why was Melanie the only one to point out how stupid this all was? Feeble minded men, that's why...
Speaking of feeble minded men, we shall now move on to the many possible identities of the Zodiac Killer.
The Zodiac Killer
Obviously in the film we never know for sure who the Zodiac is. They do go through a lot of very odd people, and even if they weren't the Zodiac, we're pretty sure they've probably done something. And that's why we're not in law enforcement. Apparently you can't accuse people on vibes alone.
Arthur Leigh Allen was a creepy fucker. We don’t have anything further to say about this - but he gives Cass the creeps very severely indeed, and whether he’s the killer or not we don’t want to be anywhere near him.
Bob Vaughn, also creepy. But also, don't go in possible murderers' basements, or houses in general. Cass thinks he was low key just fucking with Robert to entertain himself. Which is a dangerous game, but also a little funny.
It was weird how many people came forward claiming to be the Zodiac. You must have gone pretty wrong to claim to be a murderer when you just weren't. Gods people are weird.
Becks wants it be known that she does not want to be serial killed. If she is to be murdered it is because she is special. Take this as you will. It certainly made Cass shriek, and the words ‘so on brand’ were heard through the laughter.
Becks didn't really feel much during or after the film. There was a loud bang outside at one point, and that did make her jump, but none of the fear really lasted. Cass however really gets creeped out by this film. She had to answer the door for take away half an hour in and she didn’t like doing that at all… but she did because she’s a grown woman and didn’t want her housemate to see she was scared.
Cass here, just to add that I really do love this film. The frustration of feeling so certain that you have caught the killer and can put an end to this and keep people safe, along with the helplessness of not being able to prove it. The never quite knowing, and therefore never full unmasking the monster. The suspense and the awful tension and the way he he targets victims in pairs, making you feel a creeping dread of not being safe even when you’re with someone else and outnumbering the killer. The fact that the victims seemed totally random. Just the sense that it could happen. Awful. The first time I saw the basement scene, I nearly stopped breathing. And the interrogation scene lingers too, because it just feels like the worst game of cat and mouse - like they should be able to prove it and just can’t. Gods it gives me the creeps!
We were trying to think if there have been any serial killers during our lifetime, and we don't think there has been. Are mass shootings (which thank the gods we don't have here, but obviously we bare witness to in other countries) technically serial killers? We wonder what the definition is? We got too tied up in zippers and have not looked into this. And probably won't. It's all too gloomy as it is.
@cassandrafey: In conclusion this was a fantastic film that was not fully appreciated
@becksxoxo: *squawks* It’s just three hours I'm not getting back.
@cassandrafey: Much like his victims, you were robbed of time by the Zodiac.
@becksxoxo: Insensitive? Yes. Untrue? No
Anyway, Cabin in the Woods next week. Our final What If…? of the season. Always sad when things come to an end, when things finish. Will Becks cry? Gods imagine crying over Cabin in the fucking Woods. Also it’s going to be another Saturday night watch, with a Sunday morning review, because apparently Cass has other 'friends'.
See you next week.
love cass and becks
#what if bruce banner gave up all that science and got really into puzzles?#the shared brain in retrograde presents what if#what if#what if...?#zodiac#mark ruffalo#dave toschi#david toschi#robert downey jr#robert downey junior#rdj#paul avery#jake gyllenhaal#jakey g#robert graysmith#the zodiac#the zodiac killer#mcu#marvel cinematic universe#film review#movie review#marvel#quentin beck#the grand adventures of cass and becks#true crime
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So if you really look at everything and how everyone reacted/reacts to Landon being in danger or "dying" (excluding Hope & Rafael) and you compare it to how they react when it comes to Cleo, Alyssa, MG, Josie..... literally anyone else being in danger .... there is a difference and that difference is in one fundamental attribute the type of species they are. The school, the squad (excluding Hope & Rafael), Dr. Saltzman they all will do everything and anything for a student/classmate/friend who is a vampire, Witch or Werewolf, they will cry and worry about them and their safety with a deep feeling. But when it comes to Landon non of them give a shit, why it's because Landon isn't one of them, he's something completely different, he's part "monster" he's the son of Malivore. Even when he was a Phoenix he was still a outsider because he wasn't one of the 3 species. Hope and Rafael care about Landon(for who he is) because they know what it feels like to feel alone, a freak, out of place, unwanted they understand that feeling better than anyone especially Hope. Everyone else doesn't, and it's because Landon isn't one of them that they don't care for him or feel anything for him on that regard. Since the witches tend to always stay with the witches(their coven), the werewolves have their pack and if you're not apart of it they don't care. The vampire stick with the vampires to a fault in way(given how they acted in s1 when Kaleb got locked up for drinking human blood and found out Mg was the reason). I mean Kaleb even had that saying back in s1 "vamps before tramps". Not to mention that in 3x16 Kaleb, Mg and Alaric cared more about finding Cleo than Landon, heck Alaric even said we lost one of own but was only talking about Cleo and not Landon.But what makes that whole thing worse is that for Landon his whole life. If you think back to s1 he told Hope "I needed help and you came. That's never happened to me before." Even in 1x16 when he saw Hope you could see it in his face that he was surprised that Hope actually came for him. I mean can you imagine growing up like that? To grow up not only unloved, but scared everyday of your life. Never knowing if the next home you get sent to would be a good one and if you'll be safe there. Wishing more than anything that someone anyone would care enough to come and safe you, take you away from that place. And I honestly feel like when Landon really does come back his mind set will be there "I can't believe Hope came for me".
P.S lol don't mind me I kind of fell down the Landon Kirby Rabbit hole today.
Yep, they definitely act very differently towards Landon and seem like they couldn’t care less about him, but I never thought of it being because of his species, but that’s very interesting. They have criticized him because of his Phoenix powers before, and have viewed him as weaker because his powers aren’t like the supernatural abilities that vampires, witches, and werewolves have. So he has been an outsider for being a Phoenix in that way, plus the fact that he is Malivore’s son, so you bring up a good point. It hasn’t actually been talked about in the show (except for the insults about him being weak because of his lack of “useful” powers as a Phoenix) but who knows, maybe it does have something to do with the way they treat him.
And yeah, exactly, Hope and Raf truly love Landon. And they have a better understanding of him and a stronger connection because they’ve had similar experiences like he has. But even without them having gone through similar things, they still just care about Landon, as they should, and they value him. Because you shouldn’t have to have those things in common with someone in order to care about them and value them. So even if the other characters can’t relate to Landon the same way Hope and Raf can and don’t see Landon as one of them supernaturally, it still makes no sense to me why they don’t care about him.
And what’s also strange is that, when you think about it, some of the other characters have had experiences where they should be able to understand and relate to Landon more, if that’s what it takes for them to care about him. Like Lizzie, for example, knows what it’s like to be bullied and to not be accepted by people, like Landon has experienced (yet she has been insensitive about the bullying Landon has endured and has bullied him herself). MG knows what it’s like to be unwanted and abandoned by your parents, like Landon has experienced. Alaric has seen and been through so much, he should be able to understand and care more about what Landon has gone through. And Josie at least used to be very close to Landon, and used to be protective of him. Yet none of these things are enough for any of them to care about him now? Or the fact that he’s helped all of them, he’s always done what he can to help the school, he saved Lizzie twice... none of this is enough to get them to value his life more?
I just don’t see why him not being one of those 3 species should matter, but you’re right about all the factions sticking together, so it could be a reason why they all see Landon differently. There’s just not the same sort of attachment or loyalty towards Landon like they have to those who are like them, which is really sad. And that’s so true about Cleo! I’ve only rewatched certain parts of 3x16 so I can’t remember all the details of what was said about finding Cleo. But I do remember that MG and Kaleb were both going for Cleo, she was the priority. They talked about her on the way there, no mention of Landon, even after what MG had done. I mean, you’d think that he would feel some remorse, that he might feel a bit hesitant or worried or awkward about seeing Landon again? But no, they just talked about what Kaleb should say to Cleo, not a thought about what MG might say to Landon or apologizing to him or anything? It’s like, not only do they just not care about Landon and all that he’s been through, but they don’t even think of him, it’s like they forget he even exists sometimes.
But yes! I’ve thought about that so much. After Landon has gone his whole life being unwanted and unloved, it just makes the way everyone treats him so much worse. And that’s so true, the fact that he was surprised in season 1 when Hope came for him says so much. Everything you said, it’s genuinely so sad. He’s been so uncared for throughout his life that he doesn’t even expect people to be there for him, and is surprised when they are. And you could be right, maybe once he’s back he’ll still be surprised that Hope came for him and did so much to save him. I feel like he was at the point where, when he first ended up in Malivore, he did believe Hope would save him. But after so long, and after all that’s happened, he probably stopped believing that, he might have felt like there was no way he could be saved. So I would think that him finding out all that Hope did for him and how she has fought for him will have a big effect on him. Because Hope showed how much she loves him throughout the whole season, but he wasn’t there to see it. So I hope we get to see some of his reaction to that, and for him to know just how much Hope loves him, possibly even more than he knew before. So at least there’s that, despite how everyone else has treated him.
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Show, Don't Tell
>>>Read on AO3<<<
Yet another fanart-inspired work, because all I do lately is scroll Twitter and feel pain because of the leaks. Check it out -----> https://twitter.com/AnnLuVazzel/status/1392937671467671554/photo/1
I just wanted to take my mind off canon which is turning into a pile of flaming garbage.... So have some HS AU shenanigans instead!
“Dark knight! Dark knight!”
A weight crashed into the side of Eren’s body, familiar fingers quickly grasping his arm.
“C’mon Miki,”, he mumbled, ”I told you not to call me that in public.”
But when he looked at her, seeing the giddy look on her face and the light in her eyes, Eren couldn’t be mad at his girlfriend. Why did it matter that she called him strange names when he got to look at her from this close, when he got to…
Turning his body to face her better, Eren leaned in and Mikasa quickly got the message. Tilting her head she kissed him, her lips meeting his in a familiar and practiced movement. As it should, considering that they have been together for a year already.
When they first met, three years back, Eren thought that Mikasa is weird. The occult lover’s strange style of clothing and makeup and how she was adamant about calling him a “Dark Knight”, her defender against Jean’s advances, annoyed him at first. But then he got to know her, and those prejudices faded away.
Mikasa was a sweet, gentle being, hiding herself behind a wall of indifference and goth-ness, the more time they spent together the more he liked her. He also began to notice that she is really cute, especially when one of the rare smiles crossed her pale face. It took Eren a year and a half before he truly realized his feelings, and another six months to gather his courage and ask Mikasa out.
They went to see a movie, and although it was an interesting one with some man-eating giants running around Eren couldn’t fully concentrate on it. His eyes kept traveling to Mikasa’s face, seeing the tiny tears that appeared in the corners of her eyes when the main hero died. Armin would enjoy it if he was here, but Eren managed to croak his plan to him over the phone and the blond did what a true friend does and stayed home.
After the movie they grabbed ice cream, Mikasa’s favorite treat, and just strolled through the city while Eren kept repeating the whole speech in his head.
“Hey Mika,”, he began, getting her to stop and face him, “How do you… you know... feel about me?”
An adorable blush spread over her cheeks while she whispered some words that made no sense, and Eren knew that he would have to be the one to break it.
“I kinda like you.”, he deadpanned, “And I was wondering if you like me too.”
She stared at him, wide-eyed, stared for so long that Eren wondered if he didn’t break her with those words. But then the silence stretched from cute to uncomfortable and he realized that he probably put her on a spot – she was trying to figure out the gentlest way to let him down. That was not what friends do, so cursing himself inwardly, Eren offered her a way out.
“Sorry, that was a strange thing to ask.”, half-turning away, he went on, “Let’s….”
Her fingers grasped the sleeve of his shirt, holding on with much more strength than Mikasa’s slender build suggested. When she looked up to meet his eyes, the adoration that Eren saw in her face was everything he ever hoped for.
“I kinda like you too.”, she confessed.
And that was that.
Dating Mikasa Ackerman came with a number of things that Eren never realized when he asked her out, but that became known to him over their year-long romantic relationship.
It meant having to check his face anytime Eren went anywhere public because Mikasa was a messy kisser and her black lipstick left marks everywhere.
It meant dealing with Mikasa’s older brother, who – even with his short stature – scared the living shit out of him.
It meant a slow exploration of their intimacy and finding out that Mikasa, despite being so shy on the outside, could be demanding once private. She knew what she liked and wasn’t afraid to ask for it, and this went to the point where they watched porn together so Eren would get an idea of how to improve his stroke game. There was still something that she wasn’t telling him, he suspected, a darker side of her that only came out when Mikasa was truly losing control. Like those times when, deep in a haze, she asked him to slap her, spank her, or pushed Eren to be rougher….
Well, he was willing to give anything a try, as long as it was with her. Mikasa would tell him about these things once she felt comfortable about it, and Eren had no reason to push her. The things that they were doing together were already something from his wildest dreams.
“Do you have plans today?”, she asked, once they began walking home from school, still holding onto his arm.
Yea she was clingy, but he didn’t mind it one bit. Plus, walking around school and having the most beautiful girl there hold onto you like this? Let’s just say that it gave Eren quite an ego boost.
“Not really,”, he answered her question, “since I aced the test today – thanks to your tutoring I might add, I have free time.”
“Oh, come over then, my parents aren’t home.”, her face lit up, “We can watch a movie together.”
“Is it Twilight?”
“Maybe….”
Eren used to hate these movies because he found them stupid and cheesy, but as he dated Mikasa he began to appreciate the more subtle things that watching this vampire on werewolf action brought. Like the fact that Mikasa was easily distracted from the movie, and when he kissed down her neck she rarely told him to stop. Or that seeing Edward shirtless seemed to turn her on, and Eren was right there to help Mikasa’s horny thoughts.
Honestly speaking, he would shake Mr. Pattison’s hand for all the good times his performance blessed him with.
They passed the walk home with small things, talking about school and whatnot until Mikasa was unlocking the door to her house and letting him in. The first thing Eren did was check if they are indeed alone and for one reason only – while he liked both Mr. and Mrs. Ackerman, Levi was his nightmare and was sneaky as a cat. If he ever caught Eren doing anything intimate with Mikasa, it would probably be the last thing the poor boy ever did in his life.
Mikasa went to get some snacks and Eren was left in charge of preparing the movie. He turned on her laptop, found the movie but also noticed that the battery was quite low. Searching for the charger, he couldn’t find it anywhere so Eren checked the nightstand next to Mikasa’s bed. However, the third drawer held quite a surprise and it wasn’t a laptop charger.
Unsure of what the hell it was, Eren pulled the thing out and inspected it. Two black leather straps connected to a red rubber ball in the middle, with the straps having a buckle at the end so it could be locked in place.
What the…?
The door opened and Mikasa was back, but her smile faltered as soon as she saw what Eren was holding. Eyes darting between his confused face and the thing in his hand, she scrambled for an excuse.
“I.. Uhm… I can explain.”, she squeaked.
And that was when Eren took the wind out of her sails.
“Is this like a goth accessory?“, he asked in such an innocent voice that she wanted to burst.
“H-Huh?”
“Like your chokers, you know,”, Eren gestured at her vaguely, indicating the collection of odd jewelry Mikasa wore, “Piercings, necklaces, things like that. Is this such a thing too?”
She stared at him, unblinking, deciphering what the hell did he just say.
Oh god. Oh god her dark knight was so innocent and cute. He had no idea…
“Kind of..”, she drawled, weighing her options.
She could lie, say that it is indeed just one of her odd decorations, let him continue living in darkness. He would probably never find out, as Mikasa had a hard time imagining where her Eren would ever come across a ball gag.
Or….
She could tell him the truth, reveal that she enjoys using toys in the bedroom, teach him how to use them. The sex was good but it could be so much more, the possibilities this course of actions unlocked….
The fire igniting in her lower belly was the only answer Mikasa needed.
“… but not really.”, she finished her thought, stepping closer to her boyfriend and taking that toy from between his fingers.
His beautiful emerald eyes were confused as he watched Mikasa snap the leather strap. She had him in her clutches now, deep in her lair, and she wouldn’t let her dark knight leave until he learned a thing or two about her kinks. Mikasa’s gaze drawing him in better than any spell, the half-smile on her beautiful face holding him in place, Eren listened as her next words were said in that low sensual voice that never failed to make his spine tingle.
“Let me show you.”
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Safe Haven 3/?
Co-written with @scream-qween
Pairings: Drew McIntyre/Becky Lynch, Eventually Drew McIntyre/Becky Lynch/Seth Rollins, Jon Moxley/Renee Young, Sasha Banks/Bayley/Charlotte Flair
Warnings: Violence, Language
Word Count: 1799
Summary: After an 8-year absence, 25-year-old Seth Rollins returns home to his pack but in no way resembling the Beta Werewolf that ran away after a violent misunderstanding with his brothers.
Seth is feral, and trapped in a form the bitten wolf shouldn't even be capable of, it turns out that he is the victim of a powerful curse that would make him a mindless slave.
Meanwhile Alpha Werewolf Drew McIntyre and his Part Banshee, Part Sea Witch mate Becky Lynch have joined the unorthodox pack of Haven in search of the final member of the Triad a seer told the pair they were destined to be apart of.
Taglist: @sethsevolution @feathers-and-flesh-and-wrestling @deepdisireslonging @writtingrose @pikapuff316 @hitory--chan @finnsauroraborealis @the-beastslayers-queen
Becky took a step back, "What the hell is that?"
Finn sighed, closing his eyes until they returned to blue. "It's a long story"
"I got time, explain" Becky demanded, Drew stepping up next to her
Seth whimpered and licked Finn's face, causing Finn to smile, and lean down to rub his head against the wolf's.
"You know he doesn't like that story" Elias says gently
"I know" the vampire replied "Go play with Baron, Seth. Ember should be around somewhere as well."
With a huff and one last lick to the face of each vampire Seth ran off though the mansion to find his other friend, Baron following closely behind him.
"I recognize you as well, Cailleach na Mara and you are supposed to be very much dead." Finn says standing up and brushing off his black slacks before reaching down and helping his wife to her feet.
"So the hell are you cousin." Becky says with a snort
"Cousin!" Everyone exclaimed
"How…" Stephanie started to say
"I'm older then I look." Becky says easily, "MUCH older"
"You were killed by a Vampire." Becky says as if putting the pieces of a puzzle together "The clan told stories about seeing you still walking around after you'd died but…"
"Attacked by a vampire? Yes. Killed? Not so much"
"Prince Devitt did die that day, remember your memory problems?" Violet said.
"If you hadn't found me, I'd gone completely feral" Finn remised, kissing her head.
"Explain" Becky said
"I found him." Violet says "Dying. My sister attacked him and I saved him but his transition was….brutal and he lost a lot of his human memories. Balor has been slowly healing that part of his mind for well over a century"
"Now somebody explain why our child is a fully shifted wolf" Finn says
"Paul Heyman. He tried to turn Seth into...a slave for whatever reason. It didn't work out so well, but Seth's been like this for a while" Elias answered, making sure to step back.
Finn took a shaky breath, his eyes flashing between blue and red before finally settling on red. "Really Bálor?" Violet asked
"That....walrus, he tried to enslave our Puppy?" Balor roared causing everyone to wince and take a huge step back from the demon king. From somewhere in the house you could hear a howl and heavy four-legged footsteps, then from a corridor came Seth running, followed by Baron and a smaller wolf with orange-tipped black fur.
Seth, much to the discomfort of both Drew and Becky ran straight for the demon, who in a surprising show of strength caught the huge wolf.
"He's close with a demon...cool" Becky said, uneasy.
"We need to tell Shawn about this" Violet spoke up. "Tell a broken hearted fire sprite, 'Hey, the thing that killed your wife and twins? Yeah, his buddy tried to enslave your youngest nephew!' That? Is a death sentence" Eilas argues
"And it'd be better for him to find out later?" Violet asks
"I would highly suggest we save that conversation for after Seth is back in human form" Hunter says knowing his adopted brother well. "Seth is one of the few people who can keep Shawn calm, "
"We need your summoning circle and we need Balor to put one of his Shields around it, so we can turn him back" Stephanie explained to the pair, before asking Seth "How big are you now, so I can conjure you up some clothes"'
Elias looked down in surprise "Really? Finally had that growth spurt?" he smirked at the wolf before telling Stephanie "He says he's 6" 2" and kinda beefy?"
"Can finally fight me brother" Mox grinned, Seth growling playfully. Bálor set him down gently before summoning a ring of black fire around him. "How are we doing this" he gestured to Becky
Becky stepped forward and gestured to Stephanie,"Guide me through the counter-curse?"
Stephanie nodded "Are you ready, Starshine?"
"He's ready." Elias answered for the wolf
"Everyone back up, and keep that shield up Balor." Stephanie says taking the sea witch's hand and beginning to chant, her own golden magic soon being joined by Becky's ocean blue.
Stephanie began to pant with exertion as gold, blue and black magic surrounded Seth, who howled in pain
The magic flared almost all the way to the top of the high vaulted ceiling, completely obscuring the form within before finally fading and revealing a tall, tanned man with long dark, blond tipped hair and a thick beard, shivering and panting, with sharpened nails and fangs.
Stephanie magiked clothes on him before collasping into Humter's arms.
"Welcome back baby brother" Mox said.
"Glad to be back" Seth replied in a voice raspy from disuse, before he started to laugh for a few minutes until his eyes landed on Becky, who was now sitting on the floor with Drew wrapped around her from behind holding her up
Almost in a single leap Seth crossed the room and landed in front of the pair, startling them.
"Here we fucking go" Elias murmured
As soon as the pair locked eyes with the man crouched in front of them sonething…clicked.
"Son of a bitch" Drew swore. "You can only sense your mates for the first time when their in human form."
"Bingo" Elias says with a smirk, "Seth knew as soon as he was in his right mind"
Stephanie's eyes darted between her son and the newest members of their pack, "Goddess Above" she whispered "Xavier was right"
Everyone looked at the witch who was being held similarly to Becky by her own mate. "What?!" Mox says looking at his mother.
"Xavier had a vision about 3 months ago. He said we had to let the next two people who came to us for sanctuary into Haven, that they would be the key to getting Seth back. You two showed up about a week after that."
"We were told to come here to find our third" Drew muttered.
"Sorry we had to meet like this" Seth said. "With me all growly and shit"
Becky leaned forward and petted Seth's beard much like she had petted him in wolf form, Seth leaning into the touch "It's okay. You were kinda cute. Much cuter this way though"
"Anyone else notice that the redhead has a type?" Mox asks, pointing out the similarities in Drew and Seth's appearances
"All werewolves kinda look alike though" Violet argued.
"True but two mates looking like they could be related? Kinda a stretch" Mox replied
"I have to talk to Uncle Shawn" Seth said, turning to Stephanie "Mom. The twins aren't dead. Heyman has them under some kind of mind control spell. They both wear these amulets that they aren't allowed to take off for any reason. I managed to snatch Rhea's off of her when I was in wolf form and she recognized me, that's how I escaped from his compound. She blasted me out but The Beast caught up to us and Heyman put it back on her."'
Stephanie covered her mouth in shock. "Oh my god, Shawn always said he knew they were alive, but...we could never prove it" Seth hugged her tightly.
"What made Heyman target you?" Drew asked
"I'm not what I thought I was." Seth said quietly "Heyman's spell didn't work right on me...because I'm part warlock. Remember Mom? We always wondered why I was so good at seeing magic?" Seth waved his hand in the air creating a shower of silver sparks. "My birth mother was a Wolf and my birth father was a Warlock, they worked for Heyman but escaped when they found out they were gonna have me. That's why Heyman was here the day he killed Aunt Chyna and took the twins. He was looking for me"
"He will never have you again" Violet says. "You are our son, my baby." she caressed his cheek, Seth grabbing her hand.
Ember nudged Bálor, who scratched her head."You're gonna have to be careful Seth. Heyman won't just let you be free"
"That's why I'm here, he's going to try and get an pure Alpha. He think Omegas and Betas shake off his magic too easily and it isn't just Wolves that are vulnerable The Beast was a Dragon before Heyman fucked with him" Seth explained "When I was here the only Pure Alphas were Roman, Dad, Xavier, Charlotte and Renee"
He looked up at Drew "I'm gonna assume you are too?" He asked "Honestly, don't know for sure" Drew replied. "And I don't really care. Alphas have to protect everyone, I just have to protect Spitfire"
Seth nodded and continued "Whatever Heyman's magic did to me I have no fucking clue what I am anymore, I know it broke the seal my birth mother must have put on my magic, cause I can actually do shit now"
"I can help teach you" Becky quietly offered walking toward her new mate.
"Thank you" he says gently, with a slight bow. "I know I come with a fuckton of baggage, so I do understand if neither of you want to be mated to me"
Their impromptu meeting was interrupted when a golden blonde Wolf came barreling into the house and ran straight to Elias barking furiously
"Slow down, Renee what's wrong?!" The siren knelt down and placed a hand on her head. "I'm just gonna look okay honey?" he says gently as he closes his eyes only for them to snap open in horror a moment later.
"Elias?" Stephanie asks
"The Beast was here. Heyman took Roman."
#shai writes#seth rollins#seth rollins fic#seth rollins imagine#rollynch#rollintyre#becky lynch#drew mcintyre#drew mcintyre fanfic#Rollynchtyre#wwe fic#wwe fanfiction#roman reigns#jon moxley#dean ambrose
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Literally No Title
Please help
Idk what I’m doing
This is a fanfic
Deanxreader kinda
It needs work sorry
I will hashtag
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Damp. Everything that surrounds you is damp. As you start to come to, you smell the stench. Sulfar. Confused, you try to open your eyes, brows furred as the light tries to chase away your sight. Your adrenaline pushes you to figure out where you are. Looking around weerily, you notice the familiar iron door. Your parents old farmhouse storm cellar. Opening and closing your eyes making sure this is what you're actually seeing. It's been years. Decades even since you've seen these walls. Theyre different now. Moldy, but with cobwebs. You start to realize you're strapped down on the old iron table you used to eat spaghettios on when the tornados hit. No use in trying to squirm your way to topple over. Your father bolted it down in the cement. How did you get here. As you push and strain yourself to remember, the door opens. A tall red flannel emerges, and you go cold...
Life wasn't always fighting monsters, and saving people. You had a family of your own, until the vampire mafia ripped in to town destroying everything in their path, including your home and everyone in it. You still remember their screams as you fled into the woods. Revenge is a choice you have to make, and it sure was a hell of a ride. In this life, you run into auhtorities, but very little hunters like yourself. After bumping into the Winchesters working a werewolf case, they sort of took you under their wing. Noticing you needed guidance, before you ever could. You were in constant rage, before meeting the boys. Searching for answers, and never being satisfied with the kill. It all blurred into a blood bath of vengence. A lot of trust, losses, and whiskey, but you found a new family. You need them as much as they need you. And just recently, it was Dean needing saving.
The mark had completely consumed him. Being the hero, the guinea pig, has led him to be desperate in saving the world. You knew he was always staying strong, putting on a good face for Sam, but deep down, he is slightly broken like the rest of you. His hope depleted as the mark's strength took over his judgement. He was like you were before they saved you, scared and fuming with anger. You're just trying to return the favor before he hurts anyone else, especially his brother Sam.
After months of research, you found something. Slight chance of hope in fixing Dean. Confiding in Sam, he decides to look for it himself. The word of God. Once touched by a demon, it is said to purify them. No one has seen it in over 100 years, but you got a lead. The only thing that's near impossible is finding Dean. So time to draw him out... He wants a fight, you'll bring him a fight.
Scrounging up as many demons as possible, making sure they're alive but bleeding, you make a devils trap and wait. You heard through demon grapevine, that Dean can sniff them out. He's the big bad now. Being a demon himself, he hates them even more, if that makes sense.
But your plan didn't work. There have been plenty of close calls while working on the job, but this wasn't just a regular monster case. It was so much more, and there's a lot at stake. You realize why you're scared. You're in a situation even you can't get out of alive. Fear sets in as Dean walks closer. Each step like a predator closing in on it's prey. That red shirt, being even more red than usual.
He smirks, “Welcome back sunshine. Thought I killed you too soon”.
Your head is pounding as you try to look at your body. Realizing its broken, bruised, and bloodied, you must have put up a fight.
“Oh that, sorry, I couldn't help myself. After I knocked you out, I had some fun.” Your heart is beating so fast as if it is going to jump out of your body. The last thing you want is for him to see you afraid. You try to muffle out his name, but your voice is hoarse. “Please don't speak, I don't want my ears to bleed as you plead with me.... or on the other hand, I'd love to hear you beg for your life”, he whispers the last part in your face.
Wincing at his words, you turn your head, and say “You're not you right now. We'll fix this, Dean.”
He puts his hands on your chin, for a second you think it's him. His oversized, warm strong hands that wouldn't hurt a fly unless it was unnatural.The ones who taught you martial arts, and the ever so famous air guitar. But looking into his eyes, noticing they are lacking the softness, they flicker, and those green eyes are no longer. Black eyes, and his hands smell of sulfar. “There's nothing to fix sweetheart, I'm better than ever.” he jerks his hand away making your head turn to face him. As he walks to the door to open it, you yell out, “Just get it over with and kill me already!” He stops, turns his head just so you can see his profile, and scoffs. Walking out, and leaving you alone once again.
Wondering where Sam is, you try to squirm free from being tied up.Your fastens on your wrist have some wiggle room. Using the pointiness of your sister's ruby class ring on your left hand, you try to cut the leather bands. It's going to take hours, but you're not giving up yet. You know there are only two ways out of this, and you'll be damed if you don't fight.
'Pour some sugar on me' plays from your cell phone. Sam's calling you, the signature ringtone for drunk, fun Sam. Reminding you of the nights at the roadhouse, playing the same G43 on the old jukebox driving Dean insane. While Sammy and you sang until your voices were unrecognizable.
The door opens, and you straighten up, not making a move to let Dean know you've been trying to break free. There's a cart that he's pushing inside, full of old kitchen utensils, some tools from a shed, and a few of Dean's things from the trunk of his Impala that have been missing since the mark took him over.
“I know you and Sam have been looking for me, trying to save me. I'm going to show you how much I don't want or need you two around. Lets send Sammy a message, hm?” He walks over to your jacket with your cellphone in it. Dean throws it in the air and catches it. Holding it like a gun, making fake noises pretending to shoot you. “Glad to see you havent lost your adolescent behavior”, you say, “I know you're still in there Dean”.
He puts your phone down on the cart, picking up a rusty knife used for cutting fish. “But I'm not, and I'm going to prove to you just how wrong you are about me.” He cuts your cheek, and you feel the skin break open, stinging.
“You can hurt me all you want, you'll just be hurting yourself.” You say and spit in his face. The dark smirk scurries from his face, and you know what's coming next is worst.
The torture that he tortured you with only stems from Hell. Picture after picture taken and sent to Sam. The laughing, the darkness, and the insults coming from him, you start to lose hope that Dean is even in there. You keep reminding yourself that demons lie. Not believing anything DemonDean says, even though you desperately want it to be true. The remarks about how he used to think about you like a little sister until a couple years ago when you got stood up on a date with some guy named Brett. Thinking back from a different perspective now, you realize Dean was the one there who saved you from getting kicked out of the restaurant for using up a table. Waiting for some loser you met online, but seeing Dean sitting down across from you, feeling a sense of clarity and sureness. But now ever since he's turned into something evil, he doesn't feel a thing at all for you or Sam.
In and out of consiousness, you decide you wouldn't give up on him. Even though your body is mangled, you keep pushing.
“Dean, this isn't the path your mother would have wanted. You have to know that. You don't want to let her down or she'd died for nothing.” You plead and try, but he slaps you hard in the face. The hit seemed personal, as if you were getting somewhere with him. You reason, “Isn't family what brings people together, it's what brought us together. Aren't we family, you could let me go, and Sam and I can help you see the light again. Just like your mom used to say right? The light will guide you home. Come home Dean!” Another blow to your head. He knocks you out again.
As you come to, Dean is reaching for the blade. He's actually going to use it on you, kill you. Coming to terms with your fate, you start to hum and mumble 'simple man by lynryd skynrd'. It was always your favorite. It was everyones favorite. You figured it was a good enough song to go out to. You peek open your eyes as much as you can. Throbbing and seeping blood, you're finally able to see Dean stop and stare at you. He drops the blade, looking down at the mark and then back at you. His face twisted, unsure of what is reality. You don't stop singing. Second verse, he's closer now. A single tear rolling down your face; knowing if he ever came back, got the mark off, he wouldn't forgive himself. Even when he's unable to save someone on a job, he's hard on himself. You can't imagine what he'll feel like, so you pity him.
He's closer now, hands around your throat. He's trying to fight you and himself. The pain and anger in his eyes turns black, then normal again. You look him straight in those familiar faint green eyes, and say your final words, “I forgive you.” The world goes dark.
Heaven was always described as 'your own personal paradise'. You're wondering why yours is in a hospital. White walls and curtains. The coldness in your nose suprises you. Who knew paradise would be so cold, gray, and foggy. Nothing was easy to make out, but you could definitely tell it was a hospital. You hate hospitals, confused as to why you're heaven isn't what you expected, you look around to see if there is a recognizable face. Hoping for maybe your Dad, Mom, or sister.
No one. There's a loud beeping noise and you look up to see a monitor. Looks like the vitals of a dead man. You start to wonder maybe God put you in the wrong paradise. So you pray. But words don't come out, and you drift back into the dark.
Blinking once, then twice, then several times. The light is bright. You can tell it's daytime. Still the same Heaven as before, but this time you feel everything. The pain, the tenderness. You remember, and know that you're not dead. Relieved, but still uncertain, you try to move. Expecting straps to hold you back, your right arm goes flying in the air. Not used to being free. You look down at your body. It's bandaged and braced. A mountain of a man peeks through the curtains. You have instant relief when you recognize Sam. He has the 'poor puppy eyes' look, and you put your hand on his. He grips it tight, but gentle enough. The gentle giant. Trying to let out a smile, a shadow lurks behind Sam. Instant fear as you realize it's Dean. Panic sets in, and your body cannot handle it. The monitors go off, you see Sam try to calm you down, and Dean sneaking away, head down, disgraced with himself. Nurses rush in with the Doctor to make sure you're okay. Tears well up in your eyes. You somehow cannot forget what Dean has done to you.
Weeks in the hospital, the only visitor you had was Sam. Trying to keep your spirits up, he shows you all of his research following up on possible cases. Between playing cards, reading books, and making fun of the new Taylor Swift song, you ask Sam, “How is he?”, and each answer is the same. “No better, no worse,” Sam replies. After the panic attack, Dean thought it best if he didn't show his face anymore to you. Once healed, you were allowed to go home as long as you didn't saw off the leg brace, and practice using the crutches. Knowing how stubborn you are, Sam rolled his eyes, and promised to watch over you.
Happy to finally break out, you laugh as you fumble with the crutches. Sam lets out a worrisome smile. “I'm fine Sam. Really.” You look up to him and give him a carefree toothy grin. Throwing all of your things into the impala, because Sam refused to drive “that stupid pink truck”, you beg Sam to let you pick the music.
Pulling up to the bunker, your stomach sinks a little. You know you'll have to face Dean eventually. Fogiving is easy for you, but forgetting is a whole other learning curve. Never being the one to admit you're wrong first, or facing real problems, you know it's somehting that needs to be worked on. Staring off into the distance a bit, Sam pulls you out of it as he opens the door. “We're stocked up on all your favorite foods, drinks, and even have Netflix!” He says, nudging you arm and attempting a playful laugh.
Weeks of healing, you finally are able to get up into your truck. You need some air, and desperately needed to get away. The outside world was calling your name, so were the pink wheels on that old ford. First hours, days, then weeks went by, and not a single glance from Dean. No words, no contact. Ignored you completely. Anytime you tried to reach him, asking to grab a drink at the dirty bird bar, to researching a simple ghost job, he pushed you away. You spent so much time in your room with your thoughts. Trying not to think about the event that almost ended you, and most importantly the relationship with Dean. Even Sammy has started treating you differently like you're broken. After Sam telling you to stay home again, while they hunt monsters, you'd had enough. Weekend getaway to a cabin in the woods. You leave your phone on your nighstand and decide you need some peace to clear your mind.
“Fill her up,” you say shutting off your truck to get gas. Getting out to grab snacks from inside, a long lost friend appears. Not able to look away from the light, he shields your eyes for you. You forgot how enchanthing the bright white was. “Cas what are you doing here?” You ask as you looks at you stearnly.
“I was told to keep a tab on you, and you left the bunker. So I'm here to bring you back.” He says reaching for your arm.
“Under who's orders?!” You demand. Not letting him answer you back away and say, “The boys? Really can't even get some fresh air!” Clearly angry, you hit your tailgate. Cas immediatley lays his hands on you to heal you. Being an angel has it's perks. But you wanted to feel something, Cas didn't exactly understand what being human was really like.
Brushing his hand away, you try to reason with him. “Go back to the bunker, grab my phone, and bring it to me. That way I have it on me in case I need anything. I'm still going on my very needed trip. What I don't need is a babysitter” Before you could blink twice, Cas had your phone in hand. “Do not turn this off and always keep this on you.” Rolling your eyes you respond sarcastically, “Thanks Dad. Can I leave now?” Clearly unsure of his decision, Cas side eyes you, but finally nods, and leaves you to your road trip snacking.
The cabin is the same as you left it two summers ago. A couple empty beers scattered, but the rest of the place in neat tidy order. Your mom always liked everything in a specific spot, and you try your best to remember that while staying there. Picking up the bottles to recycle them, you smile and remember the good times spent here with your family, both families. Thinking about the boys, you let out a sigh of relief. Thanking the angels that Sam showed up when he did in the storm cellar that day. The word of God being forcefully put in Dean's hands, purifying him instantly. A bright gold light shining through the brick like object, blasting Dean into Sam. His brother holding onto Dean as he comes to and realizes, he's saved. Sam's words will stay with you forever, that story will stay with you forever. You smile as you remember, you were the one who stalled Dean as Sam had come to the rescue.
“Oh shit!” You say as your line tugs and gets stronger. You were too busy admiring the cotton candy sunset to see your fishing line got a bite. It was a warm afternoon, but turning brisk fast. Fall was settling in, you could tell as the wing picked up every now and then. The trees leaves turning the auburn colors. Setting your beer down, you reel it in, but your bait is completely gone.
“You never were good at fishing.” You quickly stand from a lousy folded plastic chair, and turn around to find Dean, smiling at your loss. Clearly shocked, you ask “What are you doing here? Cas told you didn't he. Lousy friend.”
You put your pole down, and open the cooler to offer Dean a beer. He takes it and slowly sits down on the edge of the dock, feet dangling. You sit down next to him, opening your own beer. “Where's Sam?” you ask.
“Working the case still.” He notices your cocked eyebrow from a side glance. As if he would ever leave Sammy alone, he continues, “It's easy, just some pyscho vengeful ghost.” He sips his beer, straring at the now setting sun.
Getting straight to it, you ask, “Why are you here Dean?” Staring at him, you notice the weariness.
He lowers his head, gripping his beer tight. You see his shoulders move up and down slowly. Sighing heavily, he looks at you, completely looks at you for the first time. It catches your breath, because you have never seen a man so broken, Dean so vulnerable. You can tell he's been fighting with himself, beating himself up over the events that took place. Defeated, face full of hatred for himself, he doesn't say a word. You see his jaw tighten, his temples twitching. Reaching for his shoulder to show trust, but he pulls away shaking his head. “I don't trust myself with you” He musters, as he stands up to walk toward the cabin. Thinking about chasing after him, forcing him to talk, but you can't move. Like cement, you stay planted in your spot. The sun finally sets, but you still sit there, listening to the sound of the frogs.
Grabbing your things from the dock, you head inside. What could you say to make him believe you. Would you believe yourself if you said, “Everything is okay.”? Is it? Inside, you notice Dean is cleaning up what seems to be like the bathroom mirror. Understanding what just happened, you bend down to help and he stops you. Gripping your hands tight, he says “No. You don't need to clean up my mess. Any of my messes.” With a dustpan, he walks to the trash to dump the shards of glass.
“What's that suppose to mean? Am I not allowed to care? To try to save you from yourself?” He winces at the last part.
Turning around to face you, but leaning against the kitchen counter, he looks at you cold and promises, “You will never have to save me again. I will never hurt you or anyone else again.” He looks down and then back up into your eyes, moving towards the door, “You wanna know why I'm here? I came here to say goodbye.”
Stopping him dead in his tracks, you look up at him wondering how you and Sam could even survive without Dean. You start to cry. It's not like you to let anything out, but you stand there, tears pouring out of your face. “No.” was all you could muster up. Very stearn, you said it again, “No.” He grabs you and pulls you in close. Hanging on to eachother, as if it's the last time.
You both stay like this awhile, not realizing it's way over due. “You're not leaving us. We won't let you.” you say confidently, and at this he lets go. He tenses again, trying to be strong, and insists “You and Sammy have to let me go. I've been nothing but trouble. I'm bad. I'm not worth your lives.” Clearly needing reassurance, but not knowing how, you yell, “I went through all of that for nothing?!” Talking with your hands like usual, brows furious now, you continue, “After everything, you still think you're not worth it? Sam and I have done everything for you, for us, for this family.”
He turns his back on you holding back tears, but instead letting out his frustration, “You don't what it's like to need constant saving. I need control of myself, I don't have control.” He yells as he punches the wall. It startles you.
“Oh, I don't know what it's like?” you start, “You don't think that I was ever at a low in my life. What losing my family did to me, the things I did in return. It wasn't until you and your brother, that I finally found solace!” you scoff, “Please you're not the only broken one around here.” Realizing that anger isn't the route to go down, you quietly move toward him. Pushing back the fear that has been dormant, you hold his hand. “We are family.” you say softly. “Family doesnt end in blood.” You wipe away the blood trickling from his knuckle with your shirt.
His hands are shaking now, as he holds them up inching closer to your neck. You flinch, and he tries to pull away. You immediatley grab his hands, and put them to your cheeks, making his squish them together a little. Tears welling up in your eyes, you let out a low, “i'm a little guppy...” It was something you two always did to cheer eachother up. Getting the other to laugh when you're both at a low point has been almost like a game. So far, he's beeing in the lead. Before you can finish, his lips are on yours. Waves of heat roll from your head to your toes, your wet cheeks brushing his scruff, and you give in, even being scared and uncertain. Dean pulls away, looks at you stearn, and says “I'm going to miss you.”
You're still standing not sure of what just happened, and you hear the door slam shut. It seemed as though your feet wouldn't move, but then you finally took a deep breath, turned around and bolted out the door. He was getting in the impala, but before he could jet off, you opened that door and ripped him out. Standing toe to toe, you slap him. That bottled rage unleashes. Then you connect your fist to his face. Unprepared, Dean fell against the car. Shocked at how hard you hit, he starts to realize you're not going to stop, so he holds your hands down. Red in the face from anger, and him red because well there's now blood pouring from his nose, you finally relax so he loosens his rains on you.
“What was that?!” You ask. “Who do you think you are? That is not okay. I am not okay.” Turning around, hands on your hips, shaking your head. Instantly defensive, you gasp, turn to face him, and make sure he knows, “I am not like every other girl. I don't deserve to be treated like any other girl.” He opens his mouth to say something, but you immediatley talk over him, “You're going to have to kill me.” Dean looks at you clearly confused. “Why do I have to kill you?”
Walking back and forth now, you respond, “Over my dead body...You're not walking out on us. Not Sammy, not me. Not our future. People need us, they need you.” Stopping, and turning to face Dean, you say, “I need you. And if you get in that impala, you better have shot me first because I won't stop looking for you.” Walking toward him now, pointing your finger in his chest, you end with “I refuse to give up on you.” At that, he looks down at you, smirks, and responds, “You're stubborn, you know that?” You break a smile, and say “I learned from the best.” Throwing you over his shoulder, he walks into the cabin.
Completely surprised as to what took place last night, you turn around and look at Dean's green eyes. Understanding now, the feelings that were dormant for so long. Realizing now that DemonDean only told the truth to hurt you.You put your hand to his face, brushing his cheek with the back of your finger, and he closes his eyes to just feel your touch. “You're not allowed to leave.” He nods, reaches for your hand with his, and lightly kisses your fingers. “I will never forgive myself...” He says, and you respond instantly, with your pointer finger shooshing his lips, “I forgive you, and will continue to remind you that you're the good guy.” Closing your eyes, thinking about the first time meeting these boys, not knowing how they would change your life for the better, you smile. He rolls you over with ease, and tucks you in close to his warm naked chest. Deep, and grunting, he says your name into your hair. You lift your head a little to let him know you're listening, “hm?” “I don't deserve this” he says, “I don't deserve you.” You respond while picking his hand up moving it closer to your chest, “Neither do I.”
#kay-is-krazy#spnfic#deanxreader#dean x y/n#dean winchester#supernatural#spn#dean x you#please dont steal#literallynotitle
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Shadowhunters 3x11, Lost Souls -- Review
It's that time of the year again where I put myself through the torture of enduring this show. Watching this show is like going on an endurance run. You drag your feet when you first start, when you get acclimated to the level of exercise, you think "hey, this isn't too bad" and then by the end, it's just pain...but also a sense of pride that you made it through. That's been my experience with the show, anyway. And it's basically how I felt about Shadowhunters 3x11, Lost Souls.
I would like to preface this review with saying that I am NOT a huge supporter of this show. I do enjoy certain elements of it but I'm not what would be classified as a devoted fan. For me, Shadowhunters is not a good show and I do get very critical of the show in my reviews. Honestly, for me, I watch the show because 1) I'm too curious not to and 2) I find that this show can be so bad its funny and that's how I reap enjoyment out of it. I am not at all invested in this show or its characters anymore. I'm just watching to see what happens. If you're a die hard fan and you lash out at everyone who has a different opinion than you, you might want to skip these...I'm just saying. My reviews may not be for you. If you do decide to be a total troll, well then pay attention to the below disclaimer.
This is going to be an honest review of my thoughts and feelings regarding this episode. If you're the kind of Shadowhunters fan where you only want to hear positive things about the show, this is not the place for you. If you decide to stick around and get offended by what is said, then that's on you. I warned you. Just know that if you send me any rude comments or messages, I will 100% ignore you. I find that's the best way to deal with bullies. I work 14 hour days. Do you really think I want to waste my incredibly valuable free time dealing with derogatory comments? Hell no. This review will consist of my honest opinions. Opinions are never right or wrong. I'm not telling YOU how to think and feel. I'm telling you what I, quirky and socially awkward me, think and feel. So please, lets discuss with dignity and respect. If I'm critical about this show, it's only because I want it to get better. There is, in fact, a difference between hating a show and being critical of it. I do not hate Shadowhunters, I am being critical and analyzing the flaws as I would with any other show. There are positives but there are also negatives. It's great if you want to promote positivity with this show (and I encourage you to do so) but that doesn't mean I'm not going to point out the things that are legitimately wrong with it. Also, keep in mind that despite the fact that I do like the books, me being critical of this show has nothing to do with my fondness for the books. I don't really care if the show deviates from the source material as long as the changes are good, it makes sense, and it doesn't create plot holes within the confines of the world the show has created. My problems with this show are problems I would have with any show or book for that matter. I think it's perfectly reasonable to take issue with a show that has plot holes, shoddy world building, and inconsistent characters. There will be spoilers for the books and movie.
We are at last embarking upon the final episodes of this show and if this episode is what's going to set the tone for the remaining episodes, then I'm glad it's the final episodes because...well, this episode wasn't great and is a perfect example of what I won't miss about Shadowhunters. Bland and cringey dialogue, more characters than it knows what to do with, and too much jumping across plot points. There are individual moments in the episode I enjoyed but overall, this isn't an episode I loved.
The Loss of the Mary Sue
I'm not entirely certain of the timeline in this episode. The episode never specifies on exactly how many days have passed since the 3A finale but I'm going to estimate about a week or so. Everyone believes Clary died in the explosion caused by Lillith attacking Simon.
The episode opens with Jace, Izzy, and Alec chasing after a downworlder and Jace makes some very shoddy decisions in this fight that lets you see just how reckless he's become in the wake of Clary's "death". We then get a montage of everyone missing Clary and the more significant one is Jace, that's the one they spent the most amount of time on. He's basically walking through Clary's room remembering all the times he spent with Clary...so basically three memories. Another classic example of what I've always been talking about when it comes to the adaptation changes. Clary and Jace have barely spent any amount of time together, even less actually dating and I'm supposed to believe that they're each other's one true love...not going to happen because the show didn't develop it at all. There's a moment in the montage where Jace starts looking at Clary's drawings and getting really emotional about it and I felt nothing because Jace has never been shown to take any sort of interest in Clary's artwork before. In fact, if it weren't for that one scene in 3A, I wouldn't even have known that Clary was still drawing. By the show deviating from the books in the way they did, Clace had less development but yet the show still wants to continue the aspect of Clace being hopelessly in love from the books. You can't make a significant change from the source material and then pages down the line expect to pick up exactly where you left off. By making the change, you changed the entire context of the relationship so now the entire story has to change in order to fit that new narrative. Sadly, the Shadowhunters writers have not figured that out yet and continue to make that same mistake...or they're lazy, it could be that, too. Jace eventually gets so depressed that it's implied that he's contemplating suicide but Izzy is able to talk to him and get him to think. And then she just leaves him after making him promise he won’t go through with it. If anyone's wondering, if you catch someone who you believe may be contemplating suicide, do not UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, LEAVE THEM ALONE!!! Particularly in a dark room. Being in a dark enclosed space is not the kind of place that typically sends out positive energy. But I suppose I can cut Izzy a little bit of a break. It's entirely possible the Shadowhunter world doesn't really understand how to help someone who's experiencing suicidal thoughts. They certainly didn’t help out Jace’s mother. Alec also confronts Jace about this in probably the only believable scene in this entire episode. Seriously, I've never been a Jalec shipper but I totally understand why people ship them. Matt and Dom are probably the only actors who actually have any chemistry with each other. But Alec tells Jace he's doing the memory of Clary a disservice and that if Jace were to die, it would destroy him as well. In other words, Jace isn't the only one who's going to be affected by this decision. Jace eventually is called by Luke who for some reason appears to be living in a motel room. I don't know why but whatever. Luke doesn't believe Clary is actually dead and he tries to convince Jace through some really weird conspiracy theory that probably even flat-earthers would find difficult to believe. But hey, if it leads to them finding Clary, I'll go with it. And I understand why Luke is unable to accept even the possibility that Clary might be gone for good. He can't think that about someone who he basically views as his daughter and the last connection he has to Jocelyn. Luke gives the evidence to Jace and tells Jace to at least check it out.
Simon, understandably, is also having a difficult time with all this. And Maia returns to give him emotional support despite leaving for a very particular and totally understandable reason but Simon needs her so of course she comes back for him. It's not like Maia exists for anything else but for Simon's character arc. Both Simon and Izzy kind of passive-aggressively shame Maia about leaving. And I'm particualrly disappointed in Izzy telling Maia about what happened to Simon's family as that's a very deeply personal issue and Simon should've been the one to tell her. It wasn't Izzy's secret to tell. I get that they were trying to use that scene to exposit information to the audience but there were better ways of doing that. Hell, it could've just been Izzy making an off-handed comment about Simon. Maia could've been talking to Izzy about how badly Simon is doing with the Clary situation and Izzy could've been all, "especially with what happened with his family" and Maia could've been shocked and Izzy could've been flabbergasted because she didn't know Maia didn't know. That would've been a much better way for the situation to be handled. But I'm not too pleased with Izzy saying in response to Maia not knowing, "well how could you? you weren't around." Just the insinuation that Maia should stay around and support her man and not go off and get in the right head space to properly heal herself after dealing with the re-emergence of her abuser. But I suppose I shouldn’t expect any different from Izzy seeing as she, herself, also only exists to give support the other characters. I think these passive aggressive intonations of shaming Maia are really horrible and shame on the writer. Maia, Izzy, and Simon decide to work together to find a way to get rid of the Mark of Cain from Simon's forehead. They talk to Raphael who now works at a soup kitchen in Detroit and Raphael tells them the tale of some dude chilling in the sewers of NYC who could possibly be the oldest vampire alive and may have answers to the removal of the Mark of Cain. Maia decides not to help Simon on this as its a bad idea for a werewolf and a vampire to meet and I almost forgot that was a thing, the show so rarely does anything with the vampire vs werewolf dynamic. But of course Maia has to back off to give room for Sizzy. I’m really not a big fan of Sizzy being explored here as everything that made Sizzy fun and interesting in the books has been completely stripped from the show. I’d much prefer Saia on the show. But really, I just want Maia and Izzy to have their own character arc, though that doesn’t revolve around shipping.
The Malec B-Plot
We have a Malec B-plot that I found just completely unnecessary wherein Iris returns and kidnaps Magnus because she wants to get Madzie back. She falls for the most obvious trap in the world and hopefully we never see Iris again. What it does for Magnus's story works I guess but I just found it to be a really obtrusive subplot that didn’t fit at all with the episode. I'm not sure if it's just the fact that I've been away from the show for a year so I can see the the show a little more clearly now but the Malec chemistry is no longer working for me. Maybe it's just that I've always paid more attention to how alarmingly unequal their relationship is but I'm looking at the body language they're giving off and its not the kind of body language you would expect from lovers. They're so stiff around each other and not relaxed at all.
In fact, there's a line in this episode where Malec has just put Madzie to bed as they're baby-sitting her and Alec kisses Magnus and Magnus tells him to stop because they have a child in the apartment currently. Alec kind of scoffs because it's just a kiss and Magnus is all, "You know how we get." And I'm like, "Do we really, though?" There's plenty of scenes of them talking and I can buy them as friends with that but lovers? I’m having a difficult time actually buying that now. Like I said before, the Jalec scene was way more believable than any Malec scene in this episode.
But Magnus decides he doesn't want to feel helpess ever again so he decides he needs to learn how to fight. Honestly, I was surprised to learn that this is implying he doesn't even seem to really have any basic self-defense capabilities. The way he was swinging the sword earlier in this episode lead to me to believe otherwise. Plus, Harry Shum Jr is a pretty buff dude but I guess maybe Magnus lifts weights and that’s it. Alec decides to help him out on this venture, though.
Siblings Reunited
We find out that Clary is indeed not dead and that Jonathon's back. I'll be real, here. It's kind of hard to feel sad for Jace or Simon or Luke or anyone really regarding the "death" of Clary, considering this entire episode is interspliced with moments of Clary being very much alive. Honestly, I think this episode would've functioned better if it was just about showing everyone going through all the different stages of grief regarding Clary and at the end of the episode when they've hit the acceptance stage, that's when we see Clary wake up in the apartment with Jonathon. But whatever. The show decided not to go that route so we have to make do with what we got. Clary wakes up and looking pretty damn fantastic for someone who's been asleep for days. Not a strand of hair out of place, make-up is flawless, and not a wrinkle to be found on her clothing. In fact, I think they're in even better condition than they were when Clary initially had to put them on. Clary also isn't even the slightest bit groggy, she knows exactly where she's at and everything. Clary does comas well. Jonathon tells Clary that it is indeed him, her big brother and that before Lillith was sent to hell she sent them away to Siberia, apparently. Clary plays nice for a little bit with Jonathon but decides to chance out in the cold of Siberia. It's nice to see that in her state of unconsciousness her muscles didn't atrophy from lack of movement or deteriorate from lack of food. But Clary fails in her escape, Jonathon finds her and brings her back. Clary tries to stab him with a knife but they both find out that what happens to one person will also happen to the other. So yeah, we're full in City of Lost Souls plot here which is ironically the title of this episode. Shadowhunters has never been all that subtle. This new actor for Jonathon is going to take some getting used to. Will Tudor did a phenomenal job with him so its difficult to see this new guy as Jonathon. But it also is difficult to take Clary's anger and hatred of Jonathon seriously when you think about all that Jonathon's really done on the show is kill a shadowhunter Clary had never met before and then injured Max and Max swiftly recovered. Clary is all about painting him as the worst possible being and indeed, in the books, he is but here, while he may be a bad guy who's done really bad things, I don't know if its deserving of that level of hatred. We haven't exactly seen a lot of his horrifying dastardly deeds. Another example of making a change and then thinking you can still keep the same storyline at a later point in the story. I'm certainly not saying I wanted Max to die but story-telling wise, it would make the emotions Clary's feeling here a little more believable. But I'm actually really interested to see where this whole Jonathon and Clary plot goes. In the books, it's Jace that's put in this situation so it'll be interestig to see how the show tackles Clary being in this situation. I'm also wondering, because they seem to be trying to stay away from the incest vibes here, is Jonathon going to gain an unhealthy obsession with Jace instead of Clary? In the books, Clary was who Jonathon was creepily obsessed with. He was equating possession with love and viewed that Clary belonged to him in every way imaginable. So since the roles of Clary and Jace have been reversed here, will Jonathon's obsession now change from Clary to Jace? Probably not but it would've been interesting to see for sure. I mean, if you're going to do a role reversal, you might as well go all the way, right?
The Clave Acting Shady AF
The Clave is being super shady right now. They appear to be doing experiments on the incarcerated downworlders and all I can say is, "do we really need this?" And also, "Why is it being implied that Jia knows about this and is okay with this?" The interesting thing about Jia in the books was the fact that she was the first step in the leadership to help get rid of the more corrupt aspects of the Clave and instigating change. But I suppose it's per the norm for the show to make everyone but the main group a bad guy instead of morally grey. As I've said before, this show has no concept of subtlety. I can only imagine that this is leading into the part in City of Glass the show hasn't done yet wherein the alliance rune is going to be introduced but instead of using it to fight Valentine, they're going to use it to fight Jonathon. That's what these downworlder experiments seem to be leading into as it reminds me a lot of Valentine experimenting in the books. I'm sure there was 0 social commentary intended when writing this into the show, though...but I think its safe to say it's totally social commentary. The show isn't very subtle, once again.
But good news is it looks like Ollie is gone for good so yay! I am side-eying the show, though about that. What was the point of introducing her if you weren't going to do anything with her? I'd say they probably wasted about half of 3A with Ollie unnecessarily. But maybe if this show hadn't been cancelled, Ollie would've played a more significant role? Well anyway, at least some of the fat has been trimmed.
My biggest issue, as always, is the dialogue. The dialogue felt extremely one-note. It was almost like the writer made a flow chart of what they wanted to happen in this episode and was like, "crap! I guess my characters do need to speak, here's some lines to explain what's going on." The dialogue basically existed solely for the purpose of giving exposition but the real kicker is that it was really unnecessary. I could've had this episode on silent (and that might've even have made it an improvement) and I would've understood what was happening perfectly. The dialogue really didn't add anything to the experience, it just made the episode feel more awkward than it already was. And then there continues the trend of Shadowhunters treating their awesome plans as if they’re the most clever plans in the world when in actuality, the plan is beyond obvious and it was super cringey and awkward seeing Izzy being treated as this amazing strategist for making the obvious move. And the episode was already plenty awkward with the constant cutting. It's really difficult to enjoy any particular subplot going on in this show when we only spend maybe 30 seconds to a minute on any particular moment. I kind of wish this show structured their episodes more around themes as opposed to plot. Plot is temporary, plot is always changing but exploring themes through plot gives you more of an appreciation not only for the characters but the story, itself. While I didn't mind sequences in this episode, at the end of the day, it just kind of left me feeling empty. I also think the acting felt a little stilted as well. I wasn't a big fan of any of the performances given in this episode and whereas I've never thought anyone on this show was oscar-worthy for their performances in the past on this show, their performances have always been maybe a C+ to a B. But in this episode, it just didn't feel like any of the actors' hearts were in it. Now granted, that could be a side effect of the script because, as I've mentioned before, the script wasn't great. Or it could've been the directing. There's a lot of reasons for why acting can feel stilted and it very rarely has to do with the actor or actress being bad at acting.
I've made notes about how the dialogue and acting was stilted but those weren't the only things that were. The fight choreography and the blocking felt a little off as well. For starters, the fight choreography did not feel organic. It was strangely reminiscent of season 1 fight choreography. The constant jump cuts so you don't see too much of what's actually happening and just feeling like fight scenes move very slowly. Like the reaction times between sword swing to parry were very slow and it kept on taking me out of the moment. Then you also had moments where Alec and Izzy catch up with Jace in the sewer and everyone's staring at the seelie they're trying to capture for a good 5 seconds before the actual fight continues. And then there's just strange blocking choices where a character walks to a point in the room and then delivers their line but the walk to the new mark wasn’t organic and actually made the line feel more awkward.
I'd probably give this episode a C+. It was passable, with enjoyable moments but ultimately not something I have any desire to return to. There were cute moments (primarily Jalec and Madzie), but overall as an episode, not something to be too terribly impressed with. And yes, there were moments I did like. It’s not my fault the show just had more bad parts I felt compelled to talk about.
#shadowhunters 3b#shadowhunters 3x11#shadowhunters lost souls#rife with unpopular opinions#read at your own risk
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I watched it now and I don't it. Remember in your last review you said u dislike how spn always does the same with the ambiguity; but /this/ is the thing I dislike having s/t major happen like Crowley saving Cas and it not changing/having no longlasting impact on any or their dynamic as seen with Sam/Dean/Crowley. With Crowley but also with Cas who has had one of his biggest moments in his story, is just tossed aside doing his day job and giving off screen plot updates.
Look, on good days I tell myself it just about works, right, because both Sam and Dean basically have the emotional range of a teaspoon and they don’t want to talk to each other for various reasons and also we’ve got this weird show, yeah, where sometimes weeks and weeks pass between two episodes, so while we’re still sitting here crying and giffing things, for them - they haven’t moved on, exactly, but they’ve been on three other hunts and they’ve killed stuff and they’ve been slammed into walls and stabbed and cursed, so, who even knows.
So, yes, if you squint, it sort of makes sense.
But also: it really doesn’t. Those are narrative choices, aren’t they? Because I’m still convinced Dean did say something about his mom to that social worker, Beth, and they didn’t show us that. And it’s possible Sam had some awkward exchange with a librarian or a waitress or, hell, someone at Asa’s funeral - they never showed us that either. And what about nurses and doctors? I don’t know how believable it is that they never need a professional to patch them up, and moments like those - you’re in shock, perhaps, and your adrenaline is still up and your heart is beating boom boom BOOM - I’m not saying they’d tell people about monsters, but we know they do confide in other people sometimes. Look at Dean and that priest, or Dean and werewolf widow Michelle - I’m sure there were a lot of other cases. They’re only human, after all. And, well, the same goes for everything else: those dead people they carry on their backs like heavy chains and never talk about, new monsters and new freakishness that’s never mentioned again, heavy trauma seemingly unremembered, and, yes, momentous events that apparently change nothing, like Cas being afraid to leave the Bunker and Crowley’s suddenly selflessness.
Ultimately, I think it all comes down to the usual doublespeak. They’ve got a show about monsters and gore, so that’s what they keep filming. When I first joined the fandom, I asked around about this, and someone told me it was a CW problem - that all their shows are aimed at women - think Jane the Virgin, The Vampire Diaries and Supergirl - and with this one muscle cars and blazing guns extravaganza, they wanted a piece of the male demographics, so by God, they’re fighting to keep it. I really don’t know enough about any of it to have an opinion, but it’s certainly true that Supernatural is only one step removed from those old Clint Eastwood movies: cowboy stuff with a few tears thrown in. And since they know - and we know - that Sam and Dean are not like that, they’re probably afraid that any conversation about anything will stray into chick-flick territory -
(which, ironic)
- and that will be it, goodbye male viewers and goodbye Republicans and goodbye anyone who likes to pretend men don’t have feelings and never talk about anything because being worried and guilty and anxious and overwhelmed - my God, so gay - pull yourself together and walk it off.
So I understand where you’re coming from - I feel the same way. But this show is mostly subtextual, and that’s it - love it or leave it. We spend a lot of time on those clues about Dean’s bisexuality and his love for Cas, but we could spend even more time in mapping out what goes down in all those moments we don’t see. Because we know they keep in contact with people, for instance, we know they worry (look at Dean casually mentioning to Jody he’d been wondering about how the girls were). We know they probably don’t eat fast food day in day out, if only because they look the way they do and they’re not getting any younger, so someone - probably Dean - buys groceries and cooks. We’ve seen Dean ironing clothes (and that was, like, the first time in 12 season?) but we know that must be a common occurence, as is buying those clothes, which are costumes, really, so there must be some debate between them into what pyschologists wear or whatever. We know they have many painful anniversaries, and how do they spend them? We know Sam must be going through something major right now - that God he prayed to his whole life? a fraud - the archangel who whispered to him every night for years? still around, and I’ll never believe Sam can’t feel his presence somehow - the people who burned him with a blowtorch? working with his mother - but it’s been weeks and weeks and Sam is just peachy. And we know a lot about Dean too - in fact, we know so much I won’t bore you with it.
[More on Crowley and Family Feud below the cut.]
Now, the problem is - some of it may be marketing, and other things are down to narrative choices (for instance, we’ve seen what Sam becomes when Lucifer climbs inside his mind: do we really need to see that again?*), but it’s still bizarre to watch a show like this one, which is 90% subtext and silences. Because they talk and talk about ‘going where the story leads them’ or whatever - they don’t. They insist in going in circles, because that’s the format of the show: drive somewhere, talk to people, drink bad beer, gank vampire, drive off. But stories change, and characters grow. I remember people bitching because there was no Quidditch in HP7 - and, I mean, are you for real? The Dark Lord’s taken over - there’s what amount to a military dictatorship over half of Britain - Muggleborns are being rounded up, their wands snapped in half - and you think that, what, Harry can stay at Hogwarts and play Quidditch? So here, what you’ve got is a format which used to work well with two angry young men who saw no need to talk to each other, but now - now they’re grown-ups, for fuck’s sake. And their lives actually depend on adapting their strategy around new enemies, which brings me back to Crowley.
What Buckleming did to Crowley last week is a flashing billboard of why you can’t stick to your format no matter what. Because at this point I’m pretty sure they’re planning to have Crowley betray them in some major way, again, and the problem is that good writing leads you into complicated situations you should really adjust to? Like - I may be completely off the mark, but - in Stuck in the Middle (With Me) they needed Crowley, so they wrote him in. And then it made sense that he was the only one to know about the Lance (I still think Cas is bizarelly oblivious about a lot of things concerning Heaven, but whatever), and therefore he was the only one who knew to break it. Great, done, beautiful scene, huge bit of character development. And next those two idiots have to steer the story in the ‘right’ direction again - ie, the general arc that’s been decided for the season - which means Crowley must be given a reason to be bad again or something, so they go and write that - a confusing, OOC episode full of plot holes whose only point is to give Crowley a reason to hate the Winchesters. And I’m not saying you can’t write him that way, but the problem is - that episode made me hate the Winchesters as well, because, come on - all those times they’ve gone back and forward in time and come back to life and somehow that’s not a problem, but suddenly poor wee Gavin does it and you absolutely need to kill him? And what if that had been Sam, uh? Would Dean have sent Sam back to a doomed ship without so much as a shrug? Nope, because when it’s about them, they find another way. And the fact they didn’t allow Crowley so much as a goodbye - the fact they trust Rowena over Crowley - people who spend a solid twenty minutes every episode harping on and on about family - that’s -
(That’s exactly what happened with Charlie, by the way: they needed a reason to have Dean snap, and took a shortcut. An extremely unbelievable, OOC and badly written shortcut.)
Anyway.
I don’t know what to tell you. I think my Dean, the Dean I write about, would never have been so cavalier about destroying an innocent person and someone Crowley cared about so much (the one line I liked about that episode: “In your own lizard way, I know you cared for him.”). In fact, the Dean I know would have acknowledged the huge debt he now has with Crowley - would have bought him a beer, at the very least.
(Then again, the Sam I know was affected by Lucifer’s presence - my Sam would have had some kind of faith crisis over last year’s events, and he wouldn’t have been so whatever about being locked away not once, but twice already, and he would probably have debilitating nightmares and still, despite everything, he would be sympathetic to the BMoL’s proposals because that’s who he is, or who he thinks he is: a Means and Ends kind of guy.
Shows what I know.)
I think we need to accept this show has a format, and that format doesn’t leave a lot of room for plot coherence and character development, which means a lot of the actualy story will stay in the subtext and sometimes we’ll be left to explain away illogical points and general weirdness. Luckily, most of the writers seem to know what they’re doing and they’re able to fit a lot even into a MoTW episode, but other things are just wrong, and that’s why we have fanfiction.
*Just to be clear: I would love to hear more about Sam and Lucifer, and I’m convinced it could be written in a new way, and I know they’ve got the right people to work on that - my God, just look at what Berens and Dabb were able to do with a couple of werewolves - look at what Yockey’s doing with nothing at all.
[Sorry for the rant. I mostly like this show - a lot - but as I’ve said before, its inconsistency is occasionally very hard to bear. Every other show I watch, I know exactly what I can expect - in terms of quality, that is - and here - here I’m thinking they could have something that’s critically acclaimed, as well as fiercely loved, and instead they throw it away - and for what?]
#ask#spn meta#spn 12x12#spn 12x13#crowley#dean winchester#sam winchester#buckleming#some negativity#spn problems#good writing can pierce through the veil of death#and save the day#(hopefully)
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